The picture of the exodus of the people of Israel in the Old Testament matched with its interpretation and spiritual significance recorded in the New Testament give us a clear view of the significance of the exodus from Egypt.
In Exodus 12:29-42 and 51 there are a number of details regarding Israel’s exodus from Egypt, the first of which is the fact that it was God’s mighty hand that brought them out of Egypt (and not their effort, desire, or zeal). The exodus from Egypt was accomplished by the saving God with His powerful hand; our exodus from the world is initiated and accomplished by God Himself with His mighty hand.
On our side we cooperate with Him by enjoying Him and eating Him as the Passover lamb and the feast of the unleavened bread so that we may be inwardly strengthened to break away from the world, and His side God works in and around us to subdue Satan and the environment for our complete exodus from the world.
Another detail of the exodus from Egypt was that the children of Israel plundered the Egyptians of their silver, gold, and clothing; these were later used in the building up and decoration of the tabernacle, God’s building. We need to not just exit the world but plunder the world of its wealth for the building up of the church, the house of God!
The night of the Passover was a night of watching: today we are in the darkest hour, the world situation is the worst ever, and we need to be watchful, vigilant, and alert. God is watching over us as His people, and we need to cooperate with Him by watching with Him and to Him.
As we exit the world, we get out as an army arrayed for battle, since God’s redemption produces an army which fights for His interests on earth. When we really see what the world is, we will love the Lord and hate the world because the world is in opposition to God as a system trying to keep us away from God.
We need to be willing to be severed from the world and attached to God through baptism, and we need to go on to enjoy the all-inclusive Christ in all His riches as the reality of the good land.
Plundering the World for the Building up of God’s House
It is very interesting to see that, when they exited Egypt, the people of Israel asked the Egyptians for articles of silver and gold and clothing, and the Egyptians gave these to them – thus, the people of Israel plundered the Egyptians (see Exo. 12:35-36).
In God’s salvation He doesn’t just want to rescue us out of the world but He desires that we plunder the world of its wealth so that we may build up the house of God. The footnote on Exo. 12:36 in the Holy Bible Recovery Version explains this matter very well and applies it to our Christian life,
This was not a robbery but a belated and righteous payment for a long period of slave labor. The silver, gold, and clothing (v. 35) given to the children of Israel by the Egyptians were used not for the enrichment of God’s people but for the building of the tabernacle (25:2-8; 35:4-9). To plunder the world is not to take anything from the world unrighteously; it is to labor in the world and use the gain from our labor for the building of God’s dwelling place, God’s testimony on earth. (Exo. 12:36, footnote 1)
As believers in Christ we need to not be lazy “waiting for the Lord to return” but be diligent, get a good education, keep a job that allows you to earn a living, and do your best at it; however, the money we earn should be used not only on our needs but on the Lord’s testimony.
The articles of gold, silver, and fine linen that the Israelites took from the Egyptians later were offered for the building up of the tabernacle. Similarly, what we earn should be used for the testimony of God, and we should work diligently not for our own welfare but for the Lord’s interest.
It is worthwhile to get a good education and a good job, and then spend most of the money on the home meetings, young people meetings, conferences with the saints, helping the saints in need, feeding the students (both physically and spiritually), caring for the saints and new ones, and many other things that are for the building up of the Body of Christ.
Lord Jesus, we are here for You. Our job and our income is for You. We consecrate our finances to You. Lord, whatever we earn is from You and is for the building up of Your house. Make us those who plunder the world by using the gain from our labour for the building up of God’s dwelling place, God’s testimony on the earth!
Cooperating with the Lord to Watch with Him and to Him in this Dark Age
The night of the Passover was for Jehovah a night of watching, to bring the people of Israel out of the land of Egypt (Exo. 12:42). During the night of the Passover, God was watching over His people to bring them out of Egypt, and His people cooperated with Him by watching with Him and to Him.
Today in this dark age, the darkest age in the history of the world, we need to cooperate with the Lord as He is watching over us by watching with Him and to Him. We need to look away from anything and anyone else unto Jesus (Heb. 12:2), the One who will accomplish what He began in us.
The more we enjoy the Lord, the more we will watch with Him. For us to make an exodus out of the world we should be watchful, vigilant, and alert. We should awake from any sleep, drunkenness, or stupor in the world, and watch unto living a holy life for the church life (1 Thes. 5:5-7; Rom. 13:11-13).
We shouldn’t be caught up with this age but be constantly filled in spirit (not in our body with wine), thanking the Lord, singing and psalming to Him! God is doing everything necessary to get us out of the world, and we need to cooperate with Him by watching with Him and to Him.
Lord Jesus, we want to cooperate with You in this dark age by watching with You and to You. Lord, we set our eyes on You and we turn away from all other things, looking away unto Jesus! Save us from being drugged by the trend of the world today. Keep us watchful, vigilant, and alert for You, watching unto living a holy life for the church life. Fill us in spirit! Thank You, Lord!
Leaving the World as an Army Ready to Fight for God’s Interests on Earth
A most interesting detail concerning the exodus of the people of Israel from Egypt was that they left Egypt as an army arrayed for battle (see Exo. 12:51; 13:18). They didn’t “run for their life” but marched out of Egypt triumphantly to conquer and defeat the enemy, ready to fight for God’s interest on earth.
As we enjoy God’s complete redemption, we are being produced as an army for God to fight for His interests on earth (see Eph. 6:10-20).
We are not being merely defensive but offensive, fighting against Satan and his stratagems; we are exercising our spirit, being strengthened into our inner man with the Christ we have enjoyed, and we are full of faith like Joshua and Caleb – the enemies are our “food”, and we are ready to go and possess the land!
Breaking Away from the World and Following the Lord into the Good Land to Enjoy Him
The exodus of the children of Israel from Egypt typifies the believers’ breaking away from the world. Before Israel left Egypt, God exposed what life in Egypt was really like: full of frogs, flies, pestilence, darkness, blood, and death (see the ten plagues); therefore, they were eager to have an exodus from Egypt.
When the Lord really shows us what the world is, we will eat Jesus as our Passover Lamb and we will desire to break away from the world to serve God for His purpose. I was enlightened by a part of the footnote in the Recovery Version,
God created man to live on the earth for the fulfillment of His purpose. But His enemy, Satan, in order to usurp the God-created man, formed an anti-God world system on this earth by systematizing men with religion, culture, education, industry, commerce, entertainment, etc., through men’s fallen nature, in their lusts, pleasures, and pursuits, and even in their indulgence in necessities for their living, such as food, clothing, housing, and transportation (see note 312 in John 12). The whole of such a satanic system lies in the evil one (5:19). Not loving such a world is the ground for overcoming the evil one. Loving it just a little gives the evil one the ground to defeat and occupy us. (1 John 2:15, footnote on, the world)
The world is anything that is not for the Lord, anything that quenches our spiritual life. It is difficult to point out the many aspects of the world, but you could say that the world is anything that quenches our zeal to God, anything that takes away our interest in God’s word, anything that frustrates us from testifying for the Lord before men, anything that hinders us from coming to the Lord and confess our sins, anything that discourages our heart from loving and yearning for the Lord, and the world is an atmosphere that chokes us and dries us up.
The whole world lies in the evil one, being unconscious of it; the whole world lies on the operating table, fully anesthetized, while the evil one is operating on them (1 John 5:19). We must have a definite breaking away from the world, from all that floating mass of thoughts, opinions, maxims, speculations, hopes, impulses, aims, and aspirations in the world.
We need to love the Lord and allow Him to sever us from the world through the cross of Christ (Gal. 6:14), boasting in the cross of Christ and living a life of baptism in union with the Lord.
After the Lord delivers us from the world, we go on a journey to worship God, following the Lord wherever He may go (Heb. 13:13-15). As the Lord delivers us from the world, we offer up a sacrifice of praise to God continually, even when we don’t feel like it.
We can cooperate with the Lord to be delivered from the world by loving the Lord, praising Him, calling on His name, thanking Him, eating Him in His word, musing on Him, and practicing to be one spirit with Him all the time!
The goal of our being delivered from the world is that we would enter into Christ to enjoy all His riches as the reality of the good land (1 Cor. 1:30; Eph. 3:8).
We have received Christ, Jesus the Lord, and therefore we should walk in Him (Col. 2:6); He is everything to us: our breath, our air, our joy, our peace, our righteousness, our boldness, our food and drink, and our everything. By eating of Christ as the passover lamb we get a foretaste of the full taste, which is the all-inclusive Christ as the good land.
Lord Jesus, keep us eating You as the passover lamb and the feast of unleavened bread until we get a full taste of the all-inclusive Christ as the reality of the good land. Lord, make us Your overcoming ones, those who overcome to eat Christ until they enter into the full enjoyment of Christ! Deliver us from the world that we may serve You and build up the church, Your dwelling place! Lord Jesus, bring us fully into the enjoyment of the all-inclusive Christ as the good land!
References and Hymns on this Topic
- Inspiration: the Word of God, my Christian experience, bro. Dick Taylor’s sharing in the message for this week, and portions from, Life-study of Exodus (msg. 26), as quoted in, the Holy Word for Morning Revival on, Crystallization-Study of Exodus (1), week 6 / msg 6, The Exodus from Egypt and the Crossing of the Red Sea (you can buy this morning revival book here via LSM and here via Amazon).
- Hymns on this topic:
# Watch, for the night is ending! / Watch, and the world not seek; / Watch, for the day is dawning! / Watch, sink not in sleep. / Watch, for the Lord is coming! / Watch for the foe’s attack: / Watch, for the Lord is waiting! / Watch, be never slack. (Hymns #666)
# We were held in bondage, toiling down / in Egypt land, / Glory to God, Hallelujah! / But the God of Hebrews rescued us / from Pharaoh’s hand, / Glory to God, Hallelujah! (Hymns #1128)
# What a Christ we have, the all-inclusive One, / Our allotted portion, set apart in light. / In the kingdom of the Son of God, the Son of God’s love, / Here He rules us in the light of His love. (Song on the All-Inclusive Christ)
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In Exodus 3:8 God said to Moses, “I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land to a good and spacious land, to a land flowing with milk and honey.” When God led the children of Israel out of Egypt, He severed their relationship with the world and enabled them to go on the journey to sacrifice to God. Furthermore, He enabled them to enter the good land to enjoy the riches there that He might establish His kingdom on the earth and build His dwelling place. The enjoyment of the children of Israel was of three stages. The first stage was the enjoyment of the passover lamb in Egypt; the second, the enjoyment of the manna and the living water in the wilderness; and the third, the enjoyment of the rich produce of the good land. After their exodus from Egypt, the children of Israel were able, eventually, to enter the good land to enjoy its riches. This typifies that after our breaking away from the world, eventually we are put in Christ to enjoy all His riches. (Witness Lee, Truth Lessons — Level Three, vol. 1, p. 129)
In 5:19 John says that the whole world lies in the evil one. We may use surgery as an illustration of how the whole world is lying in the evil one. During surgery a patient lies passively on the operating table, and the surgeon perform the operation. The patient is fully under the surgeon’s control. The whole world today is like this in relation to Satan. Satan is an evil “surgeon,” and the people of the world are the “patients” lying on his “operating table.” Praise the Lord that we are of God and have a relationship in life with Him! (Witness Lee, Life study of John, message 39, http://www.lsm.org)