In Exodus 6:6-7 God said to the Israelites when they were slaves in Egypt, “…I am the Lord, and I will bring you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians. I will free you from being slaves to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with mighty acts of judgment. I will take you as my own people, and I will be your God…” NIV
Here we see four promises:
- I will bring you out
- I will free you
- I will redeem you
- I will take you as my own people
These four promises weren’t just for the nation of Israel! They’re for us too! In fact, these four promises outline the four steps to a life of fulfillment:
- Salvation (I will bring out). God wants to bring us out of our slavery and bondage to sin, just as brought the Israelites out of their slavery and bondage to the Egyptians.
- Deliverance (I will free you). First God took the Israelites out of Egypt, then He worked on taking Egypt out of the Israelites. In the same way, God wants to bring us out of the world, then bring the world out of us.
- Redemption (I will redeem you). To redeem something means to restore it back to it’s original purpose. In this sense, God calls us out of the world, helps get the world out of us, then helps us discover His original purpose and plan for our lives.
- Fulfillment (I will take you as my own people). Finally, God wants us to experience true fulfillment, which comes when we’re a part of a family that’s working together to make a difference for eternity.