The dividing wall

Then the angel of God, who had been leading the people of Israel, moved to the rear of the camp. The pillar of cloud also moved from the front and stood behind them. The cloud settled between the Egyptian and Israelite camps. As darkness fell, the cloud turned to fire, lighting up the night. But the Egyptians and Israelites did not approach each other all night. (Exodus 14:19-20)

In reading through the account of Moses and Egyptians standing at the shore of the Red Sea with the Egyptian armies approaching from their rear, I was caught by this account of God's protection. Moses had been telling the people God would defend them, that he'd be their place of safety as they left Egypt, but some did not realize he would do what he was about to do on their behalf. They complained, wanting to turn back, even if it meant being in bondage to the Egyptian people. It isn't uncommon to want to turn back when we realize the struggle ahead may take us into the unknown. In fact, we probably have all stood at our 'Red Sea' at one time or another, not really sure we want what lies ahead, but also not so happy with what lies behind. We are indeed dissatisfied or disappointed with our past, but we are very uncertain about our future, so we might just opt for the 'known' instead of trusting God with what is 'unknown'.

What I would like us to observe this morning is where God positions himself in this picture. He moved to the rear of the camp. Isn't that an odd place for the angel of God to be? Wouldn't we expect him to be out front, leading them onward, telling them to keep their eyes on him? The angel of God placed himself at the rear, effectively drawing a line between the Israelites and the Egyptians - so there was a boundary of sorts. Why is this important for us to see? While God positions the pillar of fire and cloud before them, he positions the angel behind them. Perhaps this was so they'd see they were surrounded with God's protective power. When we are tempted to 'turn back', maybe God sends something we don't fully see to act as a barrier between us and that 'history' we need to put in our rear-view mirror. We may not recognize it as the angel of God, but I think it may be as powerful!

God creates a barrier between the past and he prepares a cleared path into their future. Perhaps the barriers we have been pushing back are meant to keep us from turning back. If so, maybe it is time we recognize God doesn't want us going that way any longer and has a well-prepared path prepared for us just up ahead. Every step of obedience is always accomplished when we face forward and stop pushing back against the barriers to our past. Just sayin!