Tuesday, March 13, 2012
By Faith... Moses, Part 51 of 54
TEXT: “By faith they passed through the Red Sea, as by dry land, whereas the Egyptians, attempting to do so, were drowned” (Hebrews 11:29).
Idea: The crossing of the Red Sea was an act of faith on the part of the Hebrew people.
Purpose: To help listeners appreciate why crossing the Red Sea was a great test of faith for the Hebrew people.
I once asked Tom Landry why teams that won the Super Bowl one year often didn’t even make the play-offs the following year. He said, “Because Super Bowls never stay won.”
Have you ever wondered why Christians who have experienced a great act of God in their lives sometimes crumble when another test of their faith comes along?
I. The people of Israel had seen God work on their behalf in Egypt.
They had witnessed the plagues (water turned to blood, frogs, gnats, flies, livestock, boils, hail, locusts, darkness, and the Passover), which happened to the Egyptians and not the people of Israel. What could they have learned from that?
The people were led by a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night so that they could travel day or night.
II. In spite of what the people had seen God do for them in the past, they had difficulty trusting Him in the present.
How did the people happen to camp by the sea? Exodus 14:1-3 describes it:
“Now the Lord spoke to Moses saying, ‘Speak to the children of Israel, that they turn and camp before Pi Hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea, opposite Baal Zephon; you shall camp before it by the sea. For Pharaoh will say of the children of Israel, “They are bewildered by the land; the wilderness has closed them in.” ’ ”
Why did God say that?
Why did Pharaoh pursue the Hebrews after he had urged them to leave Egypt? Exodus 14:4-8 says, “ ‘Then I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, so that he will pursue them; and I will gain honor over Pharaoh and over all his army, that the Egyptians may know that I am the Lord.’ And they did so. Now it was told the king of Egypt that the people had fled, and the heart of Pharaoh and his servants was turned against the people; and they said, ‘Why have we done this, that we have let Israel go from serving us?’ So he made ready his chariot and took his people with him. Also, he took six hundred choice chariots, and all the chariots of Egypt with captains over every one of them. And the Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and he pursued the children of Israel; and the children of Israel went out with boldness.”
How do you think Pharaoh would have explained his actions?
The Israelites were trapped between the insuperable barrier of the sea in front of them and the fearsome, pursuing army of Pharaoh behind them.
This tested their faith to the limit. Why? Unless God was the God of the impossible, there was no chance that a weak, poorly organized multitude could survive.
They forgot all that they had seen in the previous weeks (Exodus 14:11-13).
They also forgot what Egypt was like (14:12).
Does their reaction surprise you?
III. The writer of the letter to the Hebrews states, “By faith the people passed through the Red Sea as on dry land; but when the Egyptians tried to do so, they were drowned” (Hebrews 11:29 NIV).
We can see the faith of Moses clearly in Exodus 14:13-14: “And Moses said to the people, ‘Do not be afraid. Stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord, which He will accomplish for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall see again no more forever. The Lord will fight for you, and you shall hold your peace.’ ”
Why do you think the writer of Hebrews also says, “By faith the people passed through the Red Sea”? How do you think the faith of the people was shown?
Read Exodus 14:23-31 and think about what this tells us about their faith:
“And the Egyptians pursued and went after them into the midst of the sea, all Pharaoh’s horses, his chariots, and his horsemen. Now it came to pass, in the morning watch, that the Lord looked down upon the army of the Egyptians through the pillar of fire and cloud, and He troubled the army of the Egyptians. And He took off their chariot wheels, so that they drove them with difficulty; and the Egyptians said, ‘Let us flee from the face of Israel, for the Lord fights for them against the Egyptians.’ Then the Lord said to Moses, ‘Stretch out your hand over the sea, that the waters may come back upon the Egyptians, on their chariots, and on their horsemen.’ And Moses stretched out his hand over the sea; and when the morning appeared, the sea returned to its full depth, while the Egyptians were fleeing into it. So the Lord overthrew the Egyptians in the midst of the sea. Then the waters returned and covered the chariots, the horsemen, and all the army of Pharaoh that came into the sea after them. Not so much as one of them remained. But the children of Israel had walked on dry land in the midst of the sea, and the waters were a wall to them on their right hand and on their left. So the Lord saved Israel that day out of the hand of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the seashore. Thus Israel saw the great work which the Lord had done in Egypt; so the people feared the Lord, and believed the Lord and His servant Moses.”
The people showed the courage to cross the sea when it opened to them.
The people, in spite of their fears, were willing to go forward.
From what you know about the people, did they ever doubt God again? Super Bowls and great victories of faith don’t stay won.
