The Israelites were in slavery for 430 years in the land of Egypt. This story was set in motion when Joseph was sold as a slave to a caravan of Ishmaelites by his own brothers. Joseph had to undergo immense trouble and hardship in the strange foreign land. But he excelled in everything he did because his lord was with him all along. He was falsely accused of sexual offence by his master’s wife and thrown into prison. But because of his ability to interpret dreams, Joseph was one day brought before the pharaoh. And when Joseph was able to interpret the pharaoh’s dream to the absolute satisfaction of the pharaoh, the pharaoh did not hesitate in making Joseph (a foreigner, a slave and a prisoner) the prime minister of the country.
As interpreted by Joseph, a great famine arose in the lands and there was food shortage everywhere. The only place where there was abundance of food was Egypt because Joseph had instructed the government of Egypt to store up food for seven whole years in view of the impending famine.
The famine spread far and wide and badly affected even the lands where Joseph’s brothers were living with their old father Jacob and they were soon to run out of all their food stock. So, upon hearing that there was plentiful food in the land of Egypt, these brothers decided to go to Egypt in search of food so that they might not die of starvation.
Little did they know that the man who was in-charge of the food supply in Egypt was none other than their brother Joseph whom they had sold into slavery years ago? But Joseph not only forgave his brothers but also invited them and their father to come and live in the land of Egypt. This is how the Israelites came to dwell in the foreign land of Egypt.
In the initial years, the Israelites were treated well because of the authority and influence of Joseph who was sitting in the chair of the prime minister of the country. But later on, when there was change of guard and the Israelites began to multiply in number and thrive and prosper, the government of the country felt threatened and alarmed by the sheer number of these foreigners in their country. Thus the government of Egypt decided to subject the children of Israel into hard labor and keep them as slaves. This is how the children of Israel ended up as slaves in Egypt.
But all throughout their slavery in Egypt, the almighty God had promised to them that He would one day bring them out of slavery into the Promised Land. And for this, God had promised them that one day he would send them a deliverer who would deliver them from slavery into the Promised Land. Thus finally, at the appointed time, God brought them out of slavery in Egypt under the dynamic leadership of Moses.
However, even as the children of Israel finally stepped out of Egypt as free people, it was going to take a long time for them to get rid of the slave mentality. And herein began another battle because they had lived under slavery and subjugation in Egypt for so long that even after they were physically out of Egypt, it was going to take time for them to consider themselves as totally free in their minds also.
The children of Israel who were able to finally step out of Egypt as free people were born into slavery. Their parents, their grandparents and their great, great grandparents were all slaves in a foreign land. So slavery was all that they knew. They did not know what it meant to be totally free and to breathe free air and drink free water without the fear of watchful eyes around them. So, even when they were totally free now physically, in their minds they still continued to think and compare everything to their lives back in Egypt.
Though the Israelites were now totally free from slavery, in their minds they still continued to view themselves as runaway slaves. So since they considered themselves as runaway slaves, there was always this fear that they might one day be captured again and taken back to slavery.
But God, on his part, did not want them to view themselves as runaway slaves but as totally free people who had been cleansed of their slavery status. But throughout their journey in the wilderness, the Israelites had a hard time to come out of this slavery mentality. But God wanted them to think that they were now totally free and that they were no longer runaway slaves and that they had nothing more to do with slavery either physically or mentally. This is why to demonstrate this unequivocally to them, God said “the enemies you see today you will no longer see them again” when God drowned the Pharaoh’s army in the red sea.
The drowning of the Egyptian army in the Red Sea was God’s loud and clear message to the children of Israel that the chapter of slavery in Egypt was totally over. The drowning of Pharaoh’s army in the Red Sea was something which all the Israelites saw happen right in front of their eyes. And thus this experience should have been more than enough to convince them that the Lord was on their side and that slavery was no longer relevant or applicable to them anymore.
But unfortunately, even after witnessing such an awesome episode, the complaining, the comparison, the grumbling and the doubting did not stop. Of course when they saw the Egyptian army being swallowed up by the waters in front of their very eyes, they rejoiced, they celebrated, they sang and they danced. But later on as they proceeded along their journey, they forgot all the awe-inspiring things their God had done and reverted back to their old ways. And thus it is no wonder God was disappointed and He made them to wander in the wilderness for forty years when the journey from Egypt to the Promised Land should not have taken even forty days.
Now, as we step into yet another New Year, what does this story of the Israelites tell us? As we step into this New Year, I think we should give up our slave mentality in one way or other and consider ourselves as totally free and fortunate. When we realize the fact that many souls had perished in the previous years while we make it, it should instill in us a sense of gratitude that knows no bound.
Even if we had come out of slavery physically, if we continue to consider ourselves as runaway slaves we can never be totally free in the truest sense. In the same way, even if we had stepped into the New Year, if we continue to live with the same slave-mentality, the New Year would have no real meaning. But through this story of the Israelites, we learn that when God delivers us from slavery, we are no longer runaway slaves anymore and that we would never be captured and taken back to slavery again. And thus even in our thinking, the word “slavery” should become irrelevant to us.
Like the Israelites, some of us also might have seen our eternal enemies drown in front of us in the past and yet still continue to live with the same fear, doubt, insecurities, disbelief and burden. But I guess such a mentality is an affront to the Lord. Thus as we step into the New Year, it’s also a time to reflect and be grateful for the miraculous things which God had already done for us in the past.
For years the children of Israel prayed for the promised deliverer to show up and bring them out of slavery. But when Moses finally showed up, brought them out of Egypt and was leading them through the wilderness, the people continued to compare everything they saw and experienced to their lives back in Egypt. This is why when they were stuck up at the Red Sea, they complained to Moses and said, “Are there no graves in Egypt that you brought us here to die in the deserts?”
When we hear accounts of such insulting and grumbling words, we are no doubt surprised and shocked at their stubbornness, disbelief and un-teachable spirit. But when we look at ourselves, many a times we also behave and complain in the same way.
New Years are always great times for reflections, insights and hindsight. And thus when God has once again graciously brought us here even when we could have perished anytime, it is worth making an effort not to be like the Israelites who continued to complain, compare and grumble with the same slave-mentality even when they were totally out of slavery…
