Monday Reflection \u2013 August 02, 2021
Freedom!<\/p>\n\n\n
Yesterday, August 1 we marked Emancipation Day. Today is being observed as the public holiday in recognition of our emancipation. We remind ourselves that August 1, 1834 marked\u00a0the date when all children under six years of age were deemed to be free, but all other slaves were deemed to be apprentices and forced to work 40 hours per week without pay as compensation to their owners. Full ‘freedom’ was not given to the slaves until four years later in 1838. We bring to memory the journey that has taken us here, and salute those on whose shoulders we stand as a proud people.<\/p>\n\n\n
I find today\u2019s Watchword relevant as we reflect on emancipation \u2013 But Moses said to the people, \u201cDo not be afraid, stand firm, and see the deliverance that the Lord\u00a0will accomplish for you today; for the Egyptians whom you see today you shall never see again. Exodus 14:13<\/p>\n\n\n
Exodus 14 shows God delivering, freeing, emancipating His people. This chapter is marked with drama – horses\u2019 hooves pound the dirt, the Israelites cry out in fear, the Egyptians scream in panic, the wind howls, and the waters churn in their great vertical walls. There is also the pillar of fire and cloud. In this chaos, Moses\u2019 instructions to the terrified Israelites are shocking:\u00a0don\u2019t fear, stand firm, look, keep still. As they were being chased down by this technologically equipped fighting force, the Israelites are certainly inclined to fight or flight, resist or run; not keep still. What good will that do? The mandate from God is neither fight nor flee, but to witness; to observe God\u2019s power and might. God will do all the fighting for them. This is the Lord\u2019s victory alone. Through this victory, all see that the Lord\u2019s glory far surpasses any of Pharaoh\u2019s claims to military prowess or status of deity. The contest between God and Pharaoh has been building throughout Exodus 1-13 to this showdown at the sea, and God has won.<\/p>\n\n\n
The story of God\u2019s deliverance of the Israelites from Pharaoh\u2019s army at the Red Sea (or Sea of Reed) is the bedrock of the covenant relationship between God and Israel. The exodus has pride of place in any recitation of the story of God\u2019s relationship with Israel. Yet, this episode testifies to Christians today about the power God has to defeat oppressors and deliver the oppressed, demonstrated in God\u2019s salvific work at Calvary and the triumph of the empty tomb.<\/p>\n\n\n
Today\u2019s text speaks to Israel\u2019s emancipation and freedom from Pharoah. Yesterday and today, we are marking the journey of our foreparents and their fight for freedom and emancipation that was achieved in 1838. Through both these stories, may we never lose sight of the power, interventions and actions of God who desires that His people experience freedom. Yet, we must also reflect on a far greater freedom \u2013 spiritual freedom. Satan desires to enslave, bound, terrify, control, steal, kill and destroy. He desires to maintain a stronghold over our lives. But, thank God, the path to freedom has already been secured by the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, our Great Deliverer and Emancipator. We don\u2019t have to live in bondage; freedom is ours for the taking. When we surrender our lives to Christ, he offers us freedom and wholeness. Let\u2019s be reminded, \u201cFor freedom Christ has set us free. Stand firm, therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery\u201d (Galatians 5:1); and \u201cIf the Son makes you free, you are free indeed\u201d (John 8:36).<\/p>\n\n\n
Jermaine Gibson\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Monday Reflection \u2013 August 02, 2021 Freedom! Yesterday, August 1 we marked Emancipation Day. Today is being observed as the public holiday in recognition of our emancipation. We remind ourselves that August 1, 1834 marked\u00a0the\u2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"template":"","watchword_topic":[13],"class_list":["post-555","watchword","type-watchword","status-publish","hentry","watchword_topic-christian-living"],"yoast_head":"\n