OPPRESSION FROM FEAR
Title: Oppression From Fear
Author: Christopher Harbin
Text: Exodus 1:8-2:10
Fight or flight is a very natural reaction to the unknown. Generally, it is spontaneous. It is not a thought-out response. We can train ourselves not to respond reactively, following predetermined procedures, instead. That is at the root of how military forces train soldiers to set aside gut responses and trust their training. We have the ability to respond to the world around us in much more creative ways than succumbing to instinctual reactions. All too often, however, we allow our fears and uncertainties to direct us, even when the danger is just imagined. How do we move beyond fear and oppression into the life God has for us?
Around age thirteen, I was alone outside an uncle's house. I saw a snake on the roof near me. It seemed agitated, moving the part of its body I could see from side to side, looking toward me, and flicking its tongue in and out. I had not encountered many snakes in my life. This may have been the first time I had seen one in the wild. I did not stick around for a scientific investigation. I took off running the 150 yards to my grandparents' home. I ran up to the gate, though the snake was far behind and gone a different route by then. I wasn't thinking. I reacted. Reaction took me a good distance away from what I perceived as a threat.
Today's passage describes a new Pharaoh coming to power. This is likely a new dynasty, Egypt being taken over by a new people. This Pharaoh had no familiarity with Joseph's story, how these Hebrews had come to Egypt, and what role they had played in Egypt's past. This new Pharaoh was focused on consolidating power. He imagined these Hebrews as a threat in the making. The argument he sets forth is contradictory from the beginning, but that did not seem to matter. First of all, the Hebrews have become a threat due to being too numerous. That they would assist an enemy of Egypt to attack would ap ...
Author: Christopher Harbin
Text: Exodus 1:8-2:10
Fight or flight is a very natural reaction to the unknown. Generally, it is spontaneous. It is not a thought-out response. We can train ourselves not to respond reactively, following predetermined procedures, instead. That is at the root of how military forces train soldiers to set aside gut responses and trust their training. We have the ability to respond to the world around us in much more creative ways than succumbing to instinctual reactions. All too often, however, we allow our fears and uncertainties to direct us, even when the danger is just imagined. How do we move beyond fear and oppression into the life God has for us?
Around age thirteen, I was alone outside an uncle's house. I saw a snake on the roof near me. It seemed agitated, moving the part of its body I could see from side to side, looking toward me, and flicking its tongue in and out. I had not encountered many snakes in my life. This may have been the first time I had seen one in the wild. I did not stick around for a scientific investigation. I took off running the 150 yards to my grandparents' home. I ran up to the gate, though the snake was far behind and gone a different route by then. I wasn't thinking. I reacted. Reaction took me a good distance away from what I perceived as a threat.
Today's passage describes a new Pharaoh coming to power. This is likely a new dynasty, Egypt being taken over by a new people. This Pharaoh had no familiarity with Joseph's story, how these Hebrews had come to Egypt, and what role they had played in Egypt's past. This new Pharaoh was focused on consolidating power. He imagined these Hebrews as a threat in the making. The argument he sets forth is contradictory from the beginning, but that did not seem to matter. First of all, the Hebrews have become a threat due to being too numerous. That they would assist an enemy of Egypt to attack would ap ...
There are 12058 characters in the full content. This excerpt only shows a 2000 character sample of the full content.
Price: $5.99 or 1 credit
