God’s Pattern For Deliverance
Part 5 – The Uprooting Begins
Time to Start Pulling the Tares…
So if we’ve followed the step-by-step
Deliverance Pattern that God lays out in the Word up to this point, we’ve
watched as God has turned the power of our oppressor against itself. We’ve also
seen that its source of nourishment has become abominable to it, and how He’s made
those things a source of weakness for it. So now what?
And
the LORD spake unto Moses, Say unto Aaron, Stretch forth thine hand with thy
rod over the streams, over the rivers, and over the ponds, and cause frogs to
come up upon the land of Egypt. And Aaron stretched out his hand over the
waters of Egypt; and the frogs came up, and covered the land of Egypt. Exo 8:5-6
And
the LORD said unto Moses, Say unto Aaron, Stretch out thy rod, and smite the
dust of the land, that it may become lice throughout all the land of Egypt. And
they did so; for Aaron stretched out his hand with his rod, and smote the dust
of the earth, and it became lice in man, and in beast; all the dust of the land
became lice throughout all the land of Egypt. Exo
8:16-17
Else,
if thou wilt not let my people go, behold, I will send swarms of flies upon thee, and
upon thy servants, and upon thy people, and into thy houses: and the houses of
the Egyptians shall be full of swarms of flies, and also the ground whereon they are. Exo 8:21
And
the LORD did so; and there came a grievous swarm of flies into the house of Pharaoh, and into his servants' houses,
and into all the land of Egypt: the land was corrupted by reason of the swarm of flies. Exo 8:24
At the time of the exodus event,
the Egyptians believed that nature, and all things natural, consisted of four
primary elements. These elements were water, earth, air and fire.
By causing frogs to come from the
water; lice from the dust of the earth; and swarms of flies to fill the air,
Jehovah was teaching the Egyptians a very important lesson. He was proving to
them that He was so powerful, that He could turn all of created nature into a
weapon that could be used against the nation of slave-owners. If this had
happened during our time, we would see a guy on every street corner holding a
sign, reading “Repent! The end is near!”
Water, air and earth were the
three elements of nature that man had absolutely no control over. As a result,
the ancient world both feared and revered them. Every civilization on the earth
at the time worshipped gods of air, earth, and water.
In
Egypt, the gods that were based in and around the Nile – the greatest source
for water and nutrition in the land – were especially revered. In fact, only
the god of the sun, the king of Egypt’s deities, was more powerful and more
worshipped than the gods centered on the Nile. And even part of his worship was
tied to the Nile. For the Nile to produce legions of frogs had to turn the
spiritual and supernatural beliefs of the Egyptians upside down.
This
whole process of nature turning against the oppressors is still part of the
pattern that God uses today. Once the uprooting process has begun in earnest,
God empowers His children so that our very nature; the one thing that any
source of bondage cannot control, turns against the oppression.
Know
ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are
to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?
Rom 6:16
Bondage of any sort may only
enter our lives through our submission to it. In one form or another, we have
invited our oppressor to begin operating in our bodies, hearts and minds. Usually,
it is an act of disobedience to the word of God that opens the doorway for it
to enter our lives.
For
all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; Rom
3:23
Because we have all sinned, we
have all disobeyed the word of God at some point in our lives. As a result, all
of us can be oppressed, because we have all opened doorways into our lives
through disobedience. Oppression is not a “them” issue, it is an “us” issue
Then
Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron, and said, Intreat the LORD, that he may
take away the frogs from me, and from my people; and I will let the people go,
that they may do sacrifice unto the LORD. And Moses said unto Pharaoh, Glory
over me: when shall I intreat for thee, and for thy servants, and for thy
people, to destroy the frogs from thee and thy houses, that they may remain in the river only? And
he said, To morrow. And he said, Be it according to thy word: that thou mayest know that there is none like unto
the LORD our God. Exo 8:8-10
But
when Pharaoh saw that there was respite, he hardened his heart, and hearkened
not unto them; as the LORD had said. Exo 8:15
And
the magicians did so with their enchantments to bring forth lice, but they
could not: so there were lice upon man, and upon beast. Then the magicians said
unto Pharaoh, This is
the finger of God: and Pharaoh's heart was hardened, and he hearkened not unto
them; as the LORD had said. Exo 8:18-19
It is at this point that we see cyclical effect on
Pharaoh’s attitude. First, he is going to let the Israelites go. Then he
decides not to. We see this time and again.
Once our recreated nature, the nature of God within
us, begins to rise up in holy indignation to our oppression, we see the same
effect in our own lives. This cyclical effect of strength and weakness is a
good sign. It means that our spirits and our flesh are starting to defy our
oppressor.
We see this manifest as a cycle that is repeated time
and again. On some days, we will be stronger than the addiction, illness, etc.
On other days, it will be stronger than us. This cycle will continue until the
last stages of our deliverance.
And
I will sever in that day the land of Goshen, in which my people dwell, that no
swarms of flies
shall be there; to the end thou mayest know that I am the LORD in the midst of the earth. And I
will put a division between my people and thy people: to morrow shall this sign
be.
Exo 8:22-23
We see at
this point that God has drawn a line in the sand between the Egyptians and the
Israelites. He has separated them so the plagues He sends against Egypt do not
affect His children.
The same
thing happens with our oppressor at this point in this process. God separates
us spiritually from whatever bondage we have been struggling against. This spiritual division, or breaking of covenant
with it, causes its power over our lives to diminish even further. Now the
cycles of strength and weakness begin to grow longer and longer in our favor.
Whatever need that this thing used to satisfy, it cannot satisfy any longer. Deliverance
is coming.
The Negotiations Begin
And
Pharaoh called for Moses and for Aaron, and said, Go ye, sacrifice to your God
in the land. And Moses said, It is not meet so to do; for we shall sacrifice
the abomination of the Egyptians to the LORD our God: lo, shall we sacrifice
the abomination of the Egyptians before their eyes, and will they not stone us?
We will go three days' journey into the wilderness, and sacrifice to the LORD
our God, as he shall command us. And Pharaoh said, I will let you go, that ye
may sacrifice to the LORD your God in the wilderness; only ye shall not go very
far away: intreat for me. And Moses said, Behold, I go out from thee, and I
will intreat the LORD that the swarms of flies may depart from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from
his people, to morrow: but let not Pharaoh deal deceitfully any more in not
letting the people go to sacrifice to the LORD. And Moses went out from
Pharaoh, and intreated the LORD. And the LORD did according to the word of
Moses; and he removed the swarms of flies from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people;
there remained not one. And Pharaoh hardened his heart at this time also,
neither would he let the people go. Exo 8:25-32
Now we notice that Pharaoh starts to look
like he’s tired of sleeping with a bed full of bugs, and he becomes willing to
at least talk about giving in to the demands of Jehovah and Moses. At least he’s
willing to negotiate to see if he can get a little better terms than what he’s
been offered.
Our source of bondage will use
the same tactic at this point. This will generally happen in the battlefield of
the mind. This is usually where an alcoholic will begin to think, “I’ll keep
drinking, but just on the weekends.” Other forms of oppression will use similar
tactics to make us believe that we are being partially released, and that we’ll
be given terms that we can live with.
And
Pharaoh hardened his heart at this time also, neither would he let the people
go. Exo 8:32
First of all, we need to
understand that any attempt to negotiate with any form of oppression is doomed
to end in failure.
And
what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with
an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are
the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk
in them; and I will
be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out from among them,
and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive
you, 2Co 6:15-17
If we are to be free from our
bondage, we cannot be partially free. We cannot continue to associate with our
oppressor in any form or fashion.
And
Moses said, It is not meet so to do; for we shall sacrifice the abomination of
the Egyptians to the LORD our God: lo, shall we sacrifice the abomination of
the Egyptians before their eyes, and will they not stone us? We will go three
days' journey into the wilderness, and sacrifice to the LORD our God, as he
shall command us. Exo 8:26-27
Instead of accepting the terms
offered in any attempts at negotiation, we must continue on the path to complete
freedom. We must not waver.
This
persuasion cometh
not of him that calleth you. A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump. I have
confidence in you through the Lord, that ye will be none otherwise minded: but
he that troubleth you shall bear his judgment, whosoever he be. Gal 5:8-10
If we allow any oppressor room to
operate in our lives, even under negotiated terms, we will soon find ourselves
completely under its control again. A little oppression is still not freedom.
We must continue with this process until we are completely free.
If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed. Joh 8:36
It is always God’s will for us to
be completely set free. It was not His plan that we should continue to be
oppressed by anything in any part of our life.
The Powerless Oppressor
Then
the LORD said unto Moses, Go in unto Pharaoh, and tell him, Thus saith the LORD
God of the Hebrews, Let my people go, that they may serve me. For if thou
refuse to let them
go, and wilt hold them still, Behold, the hand of the LORD is upon thy cattle
which is in the
field, upon the horses, upon the asses, upon the camels, upon the oxen, and
upon the sheep: there shall
be a very grievous murrain. And the LORD shall sever between the cattle
of Israel and the cattle of Egypt: and there shall nothing die of all that is the children's of
Israel. And the LORD appointed a set time, saying, To morrow the LORD shall do
this thing in the land. And the LORD did that thing on the morrow, and all the
cattle of Egypt died: but of the cattle of the children of Israel died not one.
And Pharaoh sent, and, behold, there was not one of the cattle of the
Israelites dead. And the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, and he did not let the
people go.
Exo 9:1-7
At the time of the exodus event, horses
and cattle represented power just like tanks and helicopters represent power
today. When God threatened the cattle and horses of Egypt, He was in fact,
threatening their power base.
Horses represented military power
at home. Camels represented power to cover great distances to trade, and
military power abroad. Oxen and donkeys represented power to feed the nation by
plowing and reaping the harvest. They were also used to carry great loads for
Egypt’s building projects. So when God threatened the health and welfare of
Egypt’s herds, He was threatening to eliminate their military power, and their
power to acquire or replace the wealth and power that had already been stripped
from them.
After we have successfully gone
through all the previously outlined steps in this process, we will begin to see
the power of our oppressor over our life begin to falter. It is at this point
where many deliverance ministers feel the time is right to jump on whatever is
binding us and cast it down. The time is not right just yet, however. We need
to complete the process. Don’t be in a hurry to jump ahead of God.
And
the LORD said unto Moses and unto Aaron, Take to you handfuls of ashes of the
furnace, and let Moses sprinkle it toward the heaven in the sight of Pharaoh.
And it shall become small dust in all the land of Egypt, and shall be a boil
breaking forth with
blains upon man, and upon beast, throughout all the land of Egypt. And they
took ashes of the furnace, and stood before Pharaoh; and Moses sprinkled it up
toward heaven; and it became a boil breaking forth with blains upon man, and upon beast. And
the magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils; for the boil
was upon the magicians, and upon all the Egyptians. And the LORD hardened the
heart of Pharaoh, and he hearkened not unto them; as the LORD had spoken unto
Moses. Exo 9:8-12
Once God released the plague of
boils against the Egyptians, their ability to do any sort of productive work
was stopped cold. The power of their workforce was instantly brought to almost
zero. As a result, all types of productive work needed to sustain the nation
was ceased.
As God continues to strengthen us
against our oppressor, we will begin to notice that our new spiritual strength
begins to manifest in our flesh, as well. Whatever is keeping us in bondage
will begin to lose all of its ability to exert its power and authority over our
daily lives. As it loses its ability to operate in any sort of power, it
becomes weaker every day, just as the nation of Egypt did.
As long as we continue in the
steps of this process, it will be unable to ever regain the ability to operate
as it once did. Just like the nation of Egypt, it has become a diseased,
weakened opponent, unable to muster any sort of power to operate against us.
And
the LORD said unto Moses, Rise up early in the morning, and stand before
Pharaoh, and say unto him, Thus saith the LORD God of the Hebrews, Let my
people go, that they may serve me. For I will at this time send all my plagues
upon thine heart, and upon thy servants, and upon thy people; that thou mayest
know that there is
none like me in all the earth. For now I will stretch out my hand, that I may
smite thee and thy people with pestilence; and thou shalt be cut off from the
earth. And in very deed for this cause have I raised thee up, for to shew in thee my power; and that my name may
be declared throughout all the earth. As yet exaltest thou thyself against my
people, that thou wilt not let them go? Behold, to morrow about this time I
will cause it to rain a very grievous hail, such as hath not been in Egypt
since the foundation thereof even until now. Send therefore now, and gather thy cattle, and
all that thou hast in the field; for upon every man and beast which shall be found in the field,
and shall not be brought home, the hail shall come down upon them, and they
shall die. He that feared the word of the LORD among the servants of Pharaoh
made his servants and his cattle flee into the houses: And he that regarded not
the word of the LORD left his servants and his cattle in the field. And the
LORD said unto Moses, Stretch forth thine hand toward heaven, that there may be
hail in all the land of Egypt, upon man, and upon beast, and upon every herb of
the field, throughout the land of Egypt. And Moses stretched forth his rod
toward heaven: and the LORD sent thunder and hail, and the fire ran along upon
the ground; and the LORD rained hail upon the land of Egypt. So there was hail,
and fire mingled with the hail, very grievous, such as there was none like it
in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation. And the hail smote
throughout all the land of Egypt all that was in the field, both man and beast; and the hail smote every
herb of the field, and brake every tree of the field. Only in the land of
Goshen, where the children of Israel were, was there no hail. And Pharaoh sent, and called for Moses
and Aaron, and said unto them, I have sinned this time: the LORD is righteous, and I and my
people are wicked.
Intreat the LORD (for it is
enough) that there be no more
mighty thunderings and hail; and I will let you go, and ye shall stay no
longer. And Moses said unto him, As soon as I am gone out of the city, I will
spread abroad my hands unto the LORD; and the thunder shall cease, neither shall there be any more
hail; that thou mayest know how that the earth is the LORD'S. But as for thee and thy
servants, I know that ye will not yet fear the LORD God. And the flax and the
barley was smitten: for the barley was in the ear, and the flax was bolled. But the wheat and the rye were not smitten: for they
were not grown up.
And Moses went out of the city from Pharaoh, and spread abroad his hands unto
the LORD: and the thunders and hail ceased, and the rain was not poured upon
the earth. And when Pharaoh saw that the rain and the hail and the thunders
were ceased, he sinned yet more, and hardened his heart, he and his servants.
And the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, neither would he let the children of
Israel go; as the LORD had spoken by Moses. Exo
9:13-35
Fire is the fourth, and most
powerful element in the natural world of the Egyptians. Although it is also the
most fear-inspiring and destructive, it is the one element that the Egyptians
had the power to control. At least to some extent. Now, we see that their power
to control this most destructive of elements has been harshly wrested from
their grasp, and is destroying their wealth and substance.
To the Egyptians, Amun-Ra, the
sun god and king of the Egyptian deities, appears to have broken forth upon
them, destroying everything that makes them a wealthy and powerful nation. To
make it even worse, their second most powerful gods, those of the Nile, are
completely unable to assist them in putting the fires out. The fires of wrath
that have descended upon their nation are consuming all of their belongings as
they stand around helplessly and watch.
And
Moses stretched forth his rod toward heaven: and the LORD sent thunder and
hail, and the fire ran along upon the ground; and the LORD rained hail upon the
land of Egypt. So there was hail, and fire mingled with the hail, very
grievous, such as there was none like it in all the land of Egypt since it
became a nation. And the hail smote throughout all the land of Egypt all that was in the field, both man
and beast; and the hail smote every herb of the field, and brake every tree of
the field. Only in the land of Goshen, where the children of Israel were, was there no hail. Exo 9:23-26
To
the average Egyptian, it must have appeared that Amun-Ra and the rest of the
Egyptian deities had either deserted their nation, or been defeated by Jehovah.
This foreign God was destroying their nation, and all they could do was to
watch helplessly as it happened.
As God releases the purifying
fires of His wrath against our powerless oppressor, He begins to destroy every
outward sign that it ever had any life in it to begin with. And this all
happens without any negative effects on us, His children. At this point, drug
addicts will begin to notice that they are able to go long periods of time
without any withdrawal symptoms. Alcoholics may see long periods of recovery
where there aren’t any shakes or any of the other alcohol-related withdrawal
symptoms. That doesn’t mean that the cure has been administered. It means that
the process is working and we must continue with it.
And
Pharaoh sent, and called for Moses and Aaron, and said unto them, I have sinned
this time: the LORD is
righteous, and I and my people are wicked. Intreat the LORD (for it is enough) that there be no more mighty thunderings
and hail; and I will let you go, and ye shall stay no longer. Exo 9:27-28
Pharaoh appears to finally be
getting the message. It appears that he has figured out that the only hope of
saving what is left of his nation is to repent and set the children of God
free.
It is at this point in our
deliverance that our oppressor will begin to repent, as well. Disease may go into
complete remission. Drug and alcohol withdrawal symtoms may completely stop.
But still, we must continue.
And
Moses said unto him, As soon as I am gone out of the city, I will spread abroad
my hands unto the LORD; and
the thunder shall cease, neither shall there be any more hail; that thou mayest
know how that the earth is
the LORD'S. But as for thee and thy servants, I know that ye will not yet fear
the LORD God. And the flax and the barley was smitten: for the barley was in the ear, and the
flax was bolled. But
the wheat and the rye were not smitten: for they were not grown up. Exo
9:29-32
We are not to be fooled by the
apparently complete remission of our oppressor at this point in time. Notice
from the text above that everything was not destroyed. The wheat and rye were
still in the ground, not having grown up, yet.
It is the same with our pattern
of deliverance. If we allow ourselves to be fooled by the apparent remission of
our bondage, we will find out later that it had planted seeds that we were not
aware of. As a result, there are still roots which may spring up at any time,
restoring life to it once again. This is how diseases like leukemia and cancer
can spring back up after years in remission. This is also why a recovering
alcoholic will fall off the wagon after five years of sobriety. The entire
pattern must be completed for deliverance to actually occur.
And
Moses went out of the city from Pharaoh, and spread abroad his hands unto the
LORD: and the thunders and hail ceased, and the rain was not poured upon the
earth. And when Pharaoh saw that the rain and the hail and the thunders were
ceased, he sinned yet more, and hardened his heart, he and his servants. And
the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, neither would he let the children of Israel
go; as the LORD had spoken by Moses. Exo 9:33-35
Notice that as soon as Moses leaves the
city and the pressure is off, the Pharaoh is no longer repentant. He no longer
plans to release the Israelites.
It is the same in our deliverance
pattern. As soon as we turn our backs or stop this process, whatever is
oppressing us will rise up again, no longer in fear of the consequences. As
soon as we are no longer vigilant, it returns. It will return in power, and we
will be captive once again. The only solution is to continue to the end of this
process and let God have His full work in our lives.
To those truly seeking deliverance
please be on the look-out for the next article in this series: “God’s Pattern
For Deliverance Part 6 – The Oppressor Humbled.”
