No shame in flight

No shame in flight

Scripture:

When they had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up,” he said, “take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the child to kill him.”

¹⁴ So he got up, took the child and his mother during the night and left for Egypt, ¹⁵ where he stayed until the death of Herod. And so was fulfilled what the Lord had said through the prophet: “Out of Egypt I called my son.”

¹⁶ When Herod realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious, and he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi. ¹⁷ Then what was said through the prophet Jeremiah was fulfilled:

¹⁸ “A voice is heard in Ramah, weeping and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children and refusing to be comforted,   because they are no more. Matthew 2:13-18

Observation:

After the Magi leave, Joseph then receives a second visitation from an angel, giving him an urgent and specific command to escape to Egypt. The small family stay on in Egypt until the death of Herod and then only return, fulfilling the prophecy in Hosea 11:1 “Out of Egypt I called my son”. The wicked king Herod, when realizing the Magi had outwitted him, proceeded to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and the surrounding areas who were 2 years old and under. Here Matthew quotes Jeremiah 31:15 in giving us a picture of the tremendous sorrow of the mothers in Bethlehem at that time.

There are several lessons we can learn from this passage. Firstly, if we receive an urgent instruction we know beyond doubt is from the Lord, we must act quickly and without any delay. Joseph took Mary and Jesus and left in the night. There was no waiting until morning.

Secondly, there is a time when we must flee, and there is no shame in that. When the church was persecuted, the Christians fled scattering but spreading the gospel wherever they went. In the end times, Jesus warns those in Jerusalem to flee to the mountains when the Anti-Christ appears. However, when Jesus comes again, it will be all his enemies who will have to flee and take cover.

Thirdly, the role of prophecy in Scripture shows us that God’s hand is in control of all that happens in history, even when the most heinous acts happen. Many may question how a good and merciful God could allow someone like Herod to commit such terrible acts, murdering innocent, young children. However, it is our part to trust that God’s ways are higher than our ways, and His thoughts than our thoughts. We may not understand everything but we can be assured that God is good, and in the end He will makes all things right. Concerning the death of little children, there is evidence in Scripture, that they go straight to be with Jesus in Paradise. In the Psalms, King David spoke of going to his dead infant son, and Jesus said that to enter the kingdom of Heaven, we need to become like little children.

Application:

If we receive a clear, urgent command from the Lord to leave, then we need to go quickly. The lesson of Lot’s wife is clear reminder to us. Just as there are times for everything, there is also a time to flee, and there is no shame in taking flight when we have to. Thank God for prophecy which confirms our faith and builds our trust in the Lord. Choose to trust that God is good and faithful, even in the midst of the rampant evil in the world today. Seek to come to God like little children, for as Jesus said, we need to become like little children to enter the kingdom of God.

Prayer:

Praise Your great name, O Lord. You hold all things in Your hands. In time to come, if we are so called to leave, help us be ready and vigilant, without being too entangled in the things of the present. Lord, even in dark times, when evil is rampant, and others may doubt, let my faith ever be strong in You. You are good O Lord, in spite of all that happens, and You are faithful. In the end, You will make all things new. Let me learn to come to You like a little child O Lord. Lead me in the way everlasting. In Jesus name, Amen.