Tuesday morning blessings to you and your loved ones, my friend! May the peace of Our Lord and Savior Jesus rule in your life today!
Read Exodus 14:31 – 15:18.
The events (and song) recorded in today’s scripture occurred immediately following the miraculous deliverance of the children of Israel from the pursuing Egyptians. As you read through this passage, pay close attention to the overall structure of what is called “The Song of Moses” (Moses is joined in this song by all of the saved of Israel). And as you read this morning, consider the picture that is being conveyed – in light of the great victory that has just been achieved by and through the powerful “right hand” of God, the children of Israel are raising a standard, a banner, by way of the song they lift to the LORD. And while the song seems to us to be intangible, it is indeed real and significant- Israel’s act of “raising a Hallelujah” is akin to the iconic picture of our Marines raising the Stars and Stripes on Mount Suribachi during the battle of Iwo Jima.
It should not be surprising to us that the song opens with praise to our God, the LORD who has just shown Himself to Israel to be mighty and incredible. Truly, the song begins by “raising a Hallelujah”!
In the middle portion of their song-banner, the children of Israel recount in great detail the victory that they have just witnessed. Through this part of the song, they are establishing a testimony – emphasizing and restating every aspect of the LORD’s power and His salvation and His miracle.
Then, beginning in vv 13 and through the remainder of the song, the children of Israel launch into a “declaration of holy anticipation”. That is, they begin to declare that they will see the LORD do more and greater miracles on their behalf as they continue on their journey into the sanctuary land that God has promised them. Unfortunately, we know that almost all of the children of Israel that raised this song, that witnessed this victory, that declared this testimony – they were unable to fully possess it. Later, their hearts would become fearful, but that is another study!
Brothers, each of us face battles in our lives today. And to us, our battles are just as real and just as significant as the threat posed to the children of Israel by their Egyptian pursuers. We would do well to embrace the lessons we see in “The Song of Moses”:
1 – Praise our Good God during, through, and after the battle! Raise a Hallelujah!
2 – Establish your testimonies. Remember the times that our Good God has delivered you; that He has saved you; that He has made Himself known to you through His power and His miracles; and think about those times. Write them down. Get them deep inside of you, so that you can remember them the next time you face a battle.
3 – Declare His victories in advance. Don’t wait for the battle – it will inevitably come for every Believer! But until the battle comes, declare that He is victorious, and because He is victorious, you will possess every promise he has for you!
LORD, I praise Your mighty and powerful Name today! Thank You, LORD, for every victory, every miracle you have already provided for me! And thank You LORD, that You go before me today to fight my battles! Amen!