Trusting God Secures Our Hope

The Lord said to Moses, "Write this in a book as a memorial and recite it to Joshua, that I will utterly blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven." Moses built an altar and named it The Lord Is My Banner; and he said, "The Lord has sworn; the Lord will have war against Amalek from generation to generation." Exodus 17:14–16

This follows the Israelites' first battle after leaving Egypt. God promised them that He would utterly destroy their enemy (the Amalekites). But the battle against them would take place from generation to generation--the battle would be ongoing. 

God wanted His people to trust Him in spite of the presence of their enemies. However, since the Israelites left Egypt just weeks before, they had been grumbling against Moses because they feared they would die of thirst and hunger. Their complaints were ultimately complaints against God because they didn't trust Him. 

God had promised the Israelites security and peace as He fought their battles. He had more than proven Himself trustworthy through the ten plagues of Egypt, through the crossing of the Red Sea on dry ground, through bitter water being made sweet, through provision of food from manna and through water from the rock. And yet they still were struggling to accept that God would be their secure hope throughout all the difficulties life brought their way. 

God has promised us life eternal with Him through the miraculous life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The miracle of His Son far outweighs the miracles of the Israelite Exodus. And yet we struggle to accept God as trustworthy when faced with life's difficult experiences. 

The Israelites will have their nation in spite of the Amalekites (foreign enemies) as a reminder of God's trustworthiness. We (as Christ-followers and true children of Abraham) have our faith, joy, strength, and hope in a fallen world as a reminder of God's trustworthiness. Just as He will one day utterly destroy Israel's enemies, He will one day return and sets all things right. 

The lesson we all need to learn is to trust God through the difficult processes of life--our hope is secure.