For the message this morning, we’re going to go back to the book of Exodus... and we’re going to look at a real historical event that will be very familiar to most of you… The crossing of the Red Sea. Since this story IS very familiar to us already, we must be careful not to just read through it quickly and move on to something else… Our challenge this morning is to view this story with fresh eyes… and to open our hearts and minds to what the Holy Spirit will teach us… Maybe some new insights that will challenge us… or encourage us… or convict us in our walk with the Lord.
So, to remind you of what's happening at this point in the Biblical narrative… God sends Moses and Aaron to Pharaoh to deliver the Israelites out of slavery. God sends 10 plagues to prove His power and authority over all of creation, and over all other gods. After the 10th plague, where the Death Angel brings death to the firstborn of every Egyptian family and their livestock, Pharaoh finally agrees to let the people of Israel go… So Moses leads them out of Egypt… He takes them through the desert toward the Red Sea… God leads them with a pillar of cloud by day and with a pillar of fire by night. Wherever the pillar of cloud or fire went, the people would follow.
Turn with me in your Bibles to Exodus 14:5-10… and let’s pick up the story from there…
5 When the king of Egypt was told that the people had fled, Pharaoh and his officials changed their minds about them and said, “What have we done? We have let the Israelites go and have lost their services!” 6 So he had his chariot made ready and took his army with him. 7 He took six hundred of the best chariots, along with all the other chariots of Egypt, with officers over all of them. 8 The Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt, so that he pursued the Israelites, who were marching out boldly. 9 The Egyptians—all Pharaoh’s horses and chariots, horsemen and troops—pursued the Israelites and overtook them as they camped by the sea near Pi Hahiroth, opposite Baal Zephon. 10 As Pharaoh approached, the Israelites looked up, and there were the Egyptians, marching after them. They were terrified and cried out to the Lord.
Let’s PRAY…
The events that happen in Exodus chapters 13 and 14 are very significant… God supernaturally delivers His people from slavery in Egypt… This story is an important part of Israel’s history… an important part of their heritage… It’s so significant that Jewish families still observe the Feast of Unleavened Bread and the Passover to this day… and when we read these verses, we see God’s awesome power and how He cares for His people.
But these events are also very significant when we look at them, not just historically, but in a spiritual context… This is more than just history… it also points us to Jesus Christ… Through Moses, God delivers the people of Israel from slavery… And through Jesus, God is also delivering His people from slavery to sin…
John 8:34 & 36 says...
34 Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. [ ... ] 36 So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.
The whole story of the Exodus from Egypt and into the Promised Land is so rich with examples pointing us to the New Covenant in Jesus Christ:
1. Slavery in Egypt (OT) ... Slavery to sin (NT)
2. Set free by the blood of Passover lamb (OT) ... Set free by blood of Jesus, our Passover Lamb (NT)
3. Emerging from the Red Sea to start their new life (OT) ... Emerging from the waters of baptism to start our new life in Christ (NT)
4. The people receive God’s Law (OT) ... The people receive the Holy Spirit (NT)
5. Life dedicated to following & worshiping God with Moses as the leader of God’s chosen people (OT) ... Life dedicated to following & worshiping God with Jesus as the head of the Church (NT)
6. Entry into Canaan, the Promised Land (OT) ... Entry into heaven, our Promised Land (NT)
We could easily do a whole sermon series just talking about these parallels… or it would also be easy just to focus on the miracle of how God delivered them by parting the waters of the Red Sea… But I want to go a different direction this morning… We’re going to look more closely at how the people of Israel got into this situation to begin with… and I also want to look at how they were to respond to it.
Have you ever been in a situation where things are not going as you hoped they would? Maybe the situation is some kind of serious financial problem… or a health problem… or family or relationship problem… or a problem at work or at school.
I used to think that after I became a Christian, my problems and struggles would be gone. But that isn’t true… We still live in a world that is full of sin and evil… I still struggle with selfishness… I still desire the things this world has to offer… And on top of all that, the devil and his demons want to kill, steal, and destroy anything that God loves (John 10:10).
There would be many times during the years we spent as international missionaries, that I would look at our bank account… and we would only have a couple hundred dollars… sometimes even less than a hundred dollars… That’s all we had to pay our bills, feed a family of four, and still do ministry… We had no idea when money might be sent our way, or how much… But we never went hungry… We never failed to pay our bills… God was always faithful to provide for us.
I would love to say that I never felt any anxiety… or fear… that I never felt helpless… I would love to say that I never tried to figure out how to solve our money crisis in my own strength… But that wouldn’t be true… We sometimes face situations that seem hopeless… and we start looking around for a way out.
But any anxiety or fear I felt is nothing compared to what the Israelites were probably feeling when they saw Pharaoh’s army coming toward them… They were trapped between Pharaoh’s army and the Red Sea! Fear… Hopelessness… Panic starts to set in… and they cry out to God.
But how did they allow themselves to get trapped? How did they get into this problem in the first place?
Let’s turn back a little bit to Exodus 13:17-18… and let’s see what happened…
17 When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them on the road through the Philistine country, though that was shorter. For God said, “If they face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt.” 18 So God led the people around by the desert road toward the Red Sea. The Israelites went up out of Egypt ready for battle.
Notice that God did not take them straight to the Promised Land… He made them go the long way! The shorter way would have only taken them 2-3 weeks, and they’d be home! But God took them the long way around… And if you know the story, it took them 40 years to eventually get there. But why?
Verse 17 shows us that the Israelites were not ready to face the difficulties they would find on that road... so God took them a different way… GOD LED THEM IN A DIRECTION THAT HE KNEW THEY WERE READY TO HANDLE!
And then in Exodus 13:21-22… we see that
21 By day the Lord went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they could travel by day or night. 22 Neither the pillar of cloud by day nor the pillar of fire by night left its place in front of the people.
Don't miss this! They were following God the entire time! God was leading them!
The walk of a Christian is usually not a straight line either… God leads us through many detours along the way… We’re doing our best to discern what God wants us to do… where He wants us to go… But sometimes, it seems like God is leading in the wrong direction… We have a goal or a destination in our mind, some place we want to go, something we want to become or achieve. Sometimes we even know that God is in it and wants us to get there, but we just can’t understand why it’s taking so long.
It took 80 years before God had prepared Moses to lead the Israelites out of Egypt… He wasn’t ready to face the challenges of leading the people before then… The people weren’t ready to face the Philistines yet… They would be ready later, but not now… so God leads them to the Red Sea…
Whatever God has placed on your heart to do… don’t expect the road to be the quickest and straightest one… There are challenges you may not be ready to face yet… God is still preparing you… or possibly preparing someone who will follow along with you… or even after you. We must continue to trust God, and follow where He leads… especially when it doesn’t make sense to us.
But now look at Exodus 14:1-4…
1 Then the Lord said to Moses, 2 “Tell the Israelites to turn back and encamp near Pi Hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea. They are to encamp by the sea, directly opposite Baal Zephon. 3 Pharaoh will think, ‘The Israelites are wandering around the land in confusion, hemmed in by the desert.’ 4 And I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and he will pursue them. But I will gain glory for myself through Pharaoh and all his army, and the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord.” So the Israelites did this.
WHAT?! God set this up on purpose! He led the people of Israel to the Red Sea, knowing that Pharaoh would come after them… God knew that the people would be trapped between Pharaoh’s army and the sea! Sometimes, we face difficulties because God led us there…
Let's look at a New Testament example of this in Matthew 8:23-27…
23 Then he got into the boat and his disciples followed him. 24 Suddenly a furious storm came up on the lake, so that the waves swept over the boat. But Jesus was sleeping. 25 The disciples went and woke him, saying, “Lord, save us! We’re going to drown!” 26 He replied, “You of little faith, why are you so afraid?” Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the waves, and it was completely calm. 27 The men were amazed and asked, “What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the waves obey him!”
Jesus know the storm was coming, and He led His disciples to get on the boat with Him!
Then another time, in Matthew 14:22-25…
22 Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd. 23 After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. Later that night, he was there alone, 24 and the boat was already a considerable distance from land, buffeted by the waves because the wind was against it. 25 Shortly before dawn Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake.
And it's during this event when Jesus calls out to Peter to walk out onto the water with Him… and in verse 33, “Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, ‘Truly you are the Son of God.’”
Jesus led them into those storms on purpose… to grow their faith… and to help them see and understand who He really is… So there is a 2-part purpose for these trials… One is FOR OUR OWN GOOD…
James 1:2-4 says…
2 Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. 4 Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.
God leads us into these trials so that we can become mature and complete… So that we are lacking nothing in our walk with the Lord… God continues to test us using these trials… He continues to ask time-after-time, “Do you trust Me?”… When He led us to a foreign land, we faced one trial after another… and each time, God kept asking us, “Do you trust Me?”… "What if there is less than a hundred dollars in your bank account, will you still trust Me?”
But this isn’t the only reason why He leads us into these trials… The other reason is FOR GOD'S OWN GLORY AND HONOR…
In Exodus 14:4, God says He was doing it for His own honor and glory, and so that the Egyptians would know that He alone is God. God receives all the honor and glory when we give testimony of His faithfulness as He leads us through these trials… when we have no other choice than to trust God, and He shows up in a big way.
Times like when the rent was due, and there was no money, so we prayed to God in the morning… and in the afternoon, strangers showed up with gifts of cash that more than covered the need. Like when we were running low on funds, and one of our monthly donors accidentally put an extra zero on their check, giving us $1,000 instead of $100... and told us that God must have meant for us to have extra that month. But not just with finances… Another time, our translator called just before Sunday service was to begin saying they couldn't make it... The church was filling with visitors who didn't speak English, and we didn’t have anyone to translate the message… As we prayed, seeking for what we should do, in walked another visitor... She was a new believer who could translate for us. Praise the Lord!
There are testimonies upon testimonies of God’s incredible goodness and faithfulness toward His people… God receives the honor and the glory through these trials! Through these trials, people come to know that HE ALONE IS GOD!
But don’t forget that there are times when we face difficulties and struggles because of our own bad choices… when we choose the temporary pleasures of sin instead of holiness… When we choose disobedience instead of obedience to Christ… Then we must live with the consequences of our choices. Financial problems can be a trial that God has led us to for His glory, OR it could be a consequence of bad money choices we’ve made.
It’s important for us to stop and think about it when we are facing troubles… We need to know whether it’s a result of sin, or is it a trial that God has allowed?
King David says in Psalm 139:23-24…
23 Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts.
24 See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.
Why is it important to know the difference? Because our response to the situation will be different. In the case where a situation is the result of my SIN, I need to confess my sin and seek forgiveness. I need to turn away from my sin… I need to turn around and go back to God… There are so many verses in the Bible that talk about returning to God… something called repentance... God disciplines us like a good Father when we wander away from Him…
Proverbs 3:11-12 says…
11 My son, do not despise the Lord’s discipline, and do not resent his rebuke,
12 because the Lord disciplines those he loves, as a father the son he delights in.
But our response during a TRIAL is completely different… Turn back to Exodus 14:13-15…
13 Moses answered the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. 14 The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.” 15 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Why are you crying out to me? Tell the Israelites to move on. (or go forward)
First, don’t be afraid… We can still trust God’s goodness and faithfulness… The people of Israel could see no way out of their problem… But God led them there… and He tells them not to be afraid… Trust Me! When you’re facing that impossible situation, and you’re sure it was not because of your own sinful choices… God is telling you the same thing… DON'T BE AFRAID!… TRUST ME!
And second, He says to stand firm or stand still… because the Lord is going to fight for us… This is very similar to what we find in Ephesians 6 on the topic of spiritual warfare… There are many, many verses in the Bible about waiting on the Lord… about being still…
Waiting on the Lord is when we quietly and calmly trust Him until He provides clear direction… It is the opposite of panic. It’s different than trying to fix things or make things happen on our own. Stand still, stay with God, and don’t get ahead of Him. You could try in your own strength to swim across the Red Sea, but if you would have just waited He was just about to part the waters for you!
And then third, He says to move on or go forward… Don’t turn back… Move forward… Take the next step of faith… The Apostle Paul says in 2 Corinthians 4:7-9…
7 But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. 8 We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; 9 persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed.
We know that these trials serve a purpose… So that we will continue to be shaped and molded into the person that God desires for us to become… but most importantly, so His glory can be revealed to the world! No matter where He leads us, we’re right where He wants us to be! Amen?
Let’s PRAY.
