Standing Firm Is a Powerful Way to Glorify God
Moses said to the people, "Don't be afraid. Stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will work for you today: for the Egyptians whom you have seen today, you shall never see them again." — Exodus 14:13
Be subject therefore to God. But resist the devil, and he will flee from you. — James 4:7
Author
Dr. Roberto Miranda
Summary: With Pharaoh’s army behind them and the Red Sea before them, Israel seemed to have no way out. Moses called the people to put aside their fear, stand firm, and trust that God would fight for them. We, too, glorify God when we resist panic in the face of trials and rest in his faithfulness and power. To flee would mean abandoning our profession of faith; like David, we must reject that way out and stand on God’s promises. An attitude of peace and trust honors the Lord and allows us to see his salvation even amid difficulties.
Exodus 14 is one of the most memorable passages in all of Scripture. There we are told of the occasion when the people of Israel found themselves literally between a sword and a wall. Behind them was the sword of Pharaoh’s army.
God had hardened the Egyptian monarch’s heart so that he would go back on his promise to let the Hebrew people go. Now he was coming, filled with rage, to destroy God’s people with his powerful army. Before them, the Hebrews faced a wall of water—the impassable Red Sea—which blocked their way.
All seemed lost. The Jews, as they would so many times in the future, began to rail against God and complain. At that very moment, Moses began to encourage them, calling them to stand firm and fix their eyes on God’s faithfulness: “And Moses said to the people: Do not be afraid; stand firm, and see the salvation that the Lord will bring about for you today; for the Egyptians whom you have seen today, you will never see again. The Lord will fight for you, and you will remain calm.”
Moses was urging the people not to give in to panic, not to start running about wildly from one place to another. They were to stand firm, honoring through their faith and composure the mighty God who had brought them out of Egypt with a strong hand and an outstretched arm. Any other kind of behavior on the people’s part would have dishonored the God of Israel.
Many times, standing firm is a powerful way to glorify God. By taking that stance, we declare our trust in his faithfulness and power. It is also a way to preserve our own dignity as soldiers in the army of the living God. Standing firm in our position, planted on the promises of God, is the only honorable stance for a son or daughter of God, even when the flesh urges us to throw down our sword, surrender to panic, and flee the battlefield. For the Christian soldier, flight is simply not an option.
In Psalm 11, King David, an experienced and courageous warrior, declares: “In the Lord I have put my trust; how can you say to my soul, ‘Flee like a bird to the mountain’?” In other words, if we have truly trusted in the Lord, we must face the enemy and hold fast to our profession of faith. Any suggestion that we flee should be received as a genuine insult.
If we stand firm on the word of God, cultivating a posture of peace and trust in his promises, we will inevitably see his salvation amid our trials and difficulties.