In Exodus 13, we see that God did not take the Israelites the most direct route to the Promised Land because it would involve battles that they were not ready for. Instead, we see that ‘God led the people around by way of the wilderness. (Exodus 13:18)
If any faith journey, you are bound to experience a wilderness season. Now listen carefully. God will never bring anything into your life that is against His nature. It would be impossible for Him to do so. In other words, He could not bring disease into your life if He is the Healer, and He wouldn’t lead you into sin if He is Holy. God didn’t make you sick or bring trouble into your life to teach you a lesson. God always heals, saves and delivers because He is good; however, sometimes, the Way of the Wilderness is a season we encounter. But surprisingly, more often than not, we discover it was in these seasons that we find our most significant growth, blessing and increases in intimacy with God.
I believe that the Exodus story has many, many parallels to the Christian walk of faith. God delivered us from our Egypt of sin and death, and He brought us out into a moment of intimacy at our Sinai so that we could understand who He is and our relationship with Him before we try to conquer our Promised Land.
The last part was always going to be the toughest part of the journey for the Israelites and us. Leaving Egypt is comparatively easy, worshipping at Sinai isn’t complicated. But overcoming giants and conquering fortified cities is always the hardest part of faith. God had already given them the land, but they still had to take it. God has already provided everything we could ever possibly want or need, but we too attain those promises through the good fight of faith, and just like the Israelites, we sometimes struggle to consistently see ourselves as victorious and hold fast to the confession of our faith. The
reason is that the taking of God’s promises is harder than the ease of Egypt.
Unfortunately, Exodus 13:17 has applied to my faith journey on more than one occasion.
17 Then it came to pass, when Pharaoh had let the people go, that God did not lead them by way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near; for God said, "Lest perhaps the people change their minds when they see war, and return to Egypt…
Verse 17 is a display of God’s faithfulness because He knows better than anyone that before we can kill giants and possess His promises, there are things for us to learn ‘by way of the wilderness’.
18 So God led the people around by way of the wilderness
You may have experienced this or may even be in the wilderness right now. If so, here are four things to help you understand your wilderness experience.
The Way of the Wilderness should lead us to the Sinai of our surrender.
Entering God’s promises and our spiritual formation into Christ is a process of order. God brought victory in every area of your life but growing into a victor is the journey in which His patience proves His faithfulness.
God didn’t thrust them into a battle they weren’t ready for even though He had already provided the victory. God has success waiting for you whenever you are prepared to take it, but to do that, you are going to have to let your life be a sweet symphony of surrender. It is His love that changes us, empowers us and moulds us into the completion of His plan in our lives.
Phil 1:6
being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ;
The Way of Wilderness is not preparation for war, its preparation for worship.
In Exodus 12:41
41 And it came to pass at the end of the four hundred and thirty years—on that very same day—it came to pass that all the armies of the Lord went out from the land of Egypt.
Israel had an army; what they didn’t have was intimacy. Israel had troops that could have gone into battle with God on their side; what they didn’t have was an intimate knowledge and relationship with God.
Often we can know a lot about spiritual principles and strategies to go into battle with and our battle plans can be well-formed and thought out. But the best weapon you could ever carry into a fight is the weapon of an intimate knowledge of God. Having an experiential understanding of who He is and the characteristics of His love and Grace are a must for possessing His promises.
A.W Tozer encapsulates this when He describes that,
‘My concept of theology is God. I want to know God. The more I know God, the more my heart is filled with worship and adoration. As I grow nearer to God, I discover the beauty of all things pertaining to God. I believe worship is admiring the beauty associated with God. If our theology is not full of beauty, it is simply because it is not full of God.’
A.W. Tozer – Delighting in God.
Simply put, when you lose your heart to God, you find the love of His.
The Way of the Wilderness is the patience of a loving Father, not the harsh dealings of a deity.
The wilderness can sometimes feel like judgement or that God has abandoned you. God has promised, however, never to leave you nor forsake you. I guarantee that no matter what you are going through right now, God is in the middle of it with you. The name of God that acts as the fulcrum of salvation is Emmanuel. He with you at all times, no matter how barren your experience is right now. It is the presence of God and the reality of His love that is ensuring the transformation into a Promised Land taking Giant Killer that God sees in you.
Its God’s love that brings true healing and restoration to the current condition of humanity. It is his love that turns any story of sorrow into songs of salvation. Understanding His love is the key to overcoming any insecurities and failings. His love removes fear, rejection, hurt and loneliness. It empowers, restores and leads us into the relational reality of dwelling with God and enlightens our most accurate knowledge of the eternal God of Grace.
God is not finished with you and won’t rush you when you aren’t ready for the battle. Instead, He builds you and reveals Himself to you in the moments when it is just you and Him and nothing else around.
The Way of the Wilderness will lead to songs of praise.
When they left Egypt, the armies of the Lord were not ready for battle, but when they were prepared to leave the wilderness, it was shouts of praise that was the weapon of choice at Jericho.
One of the greatest gifts the way of the wilderness brings is a robust praise. Anyone can give God a high five on their way out of Egypt, and when you’re in the promised land, everyone could easily find a good ‘Hallelujah’ dance. But to praise Him before the walls have come down and before you have taken possession of that promise is for the experienced players only.
A praise that is produced from a surrendered heart is powerful and authoritative. Praise declaring God’s goodness from a knowledge of who He is and not because of what He has done is a mountain-moving, giant-killing weapon in the hands of a believer.
The Israelites learned this the hard way when they chose to shrink back in fear based on the report of how big and formidable the enemies that were in front of them were. Forty years later, they were not going to make that same mistake twice. The nation of Israel had learned a crucial lesson by going the way of the wilderness.
When you worship you enter God’s presence,
but when you praise, He enters yours!
Psalm 22:3 tells us that not only does God inhabit the praises of His people, but He is enthroned, remains and dwells in that praise.
Praising God positions Him to move in power as you enthrone Him to dwell and remain in your world, situation or circumstance. Praise establishes Him to act of your behalf like He has always done and will continue to do because of His great faithfulness.
There is one last point you need to understand about yourself, God and your wilderness. Don’t focus on blame focus on His loving-kindness. Blaming God for your wilderness or blaming yourself is a waste of time and will only prolong your time in the wilderness. Instead, act in direct response to your faith and know that God is there with you, that His will is for you to possess His promises and that He has already guaranteed success through the victory of the cross. His loving-kindness has made a way where there was no way, and this is because God is good, and He wants you to encounter, know and experience that goodness through all of His great and precious promises.
God’s promises are waiting, time to leave the wilderness.
