"Israel wanted freedom. Pharaoh stood in the way. His stubbornness seemed insurmountable. Liberty came at a cost. Their hope grew weak. They forgot that God cared, I Peter 5:7. They forgot that He was concerned. It is one thing to admire freedom. It is quite another to endure the austere conditions to obtain it.
"Therein lies a lesson. The Good News sounds good. The convert rejoices in his new found faith. Yet, from the beginning of his spiritual journey, he is little aware of the long road ahead—the rigors of spiritual discipline involved. Freedom for sin is great until the challenge of dying to sin is required, Romans 6:11-13. They give up because they fail to look up. The Lord cares. At no time, however, does He intend to remove all of the obstacles from our path. The struggles remain so that faith can get its daily workout."
—Ed Mathews, Plow New Ground
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