Christ Kept in Second Place

Pharaoh was not one of the people of Israel, and yet he came under God’s rebuke, for he regarded himself as the master of the land and its people, its soldiers and its livestock.

To think that we can live without God is pride; to live out, in the whole of life, the confession that we cannot live without him is humility. Christ opens his arms to embrace us as we tremble with fear, yet we cannot loosen our grip on the sword in our hands. To lay that sword down is obedience, and it is while we hesitate, unable to release it, that the wolf overtakes us.

Once our prayers are answered and we are at peace, in an instant we abandon the humble words and deeds of before and push God into second place. But God does not hand us a sharp sword first; he first gives the wisdom to wield it. When we hold fast to our place of service and give God the first place, he knows that faith, and it will never be lost to him.