Exodus 14:5-7, 10-14, 21-29
(sermon note: 10-04 sermon note)
5 When word reached the king of Egypt that the Israelites had fled, Pharaoh and his officials changed their minds. “What have we done, letting all those Israelite slaves get away?” they asked. 6 So Pharaoh harnessed his chariot and called up his troops. 7 He took with him 600 of Egypt’s best chariots, along with the rest of the chariots of Egypt, each with its commander.
10 As Pharaoh approached, the people of Israel looked up and panicked when they saw the Egyptians overtaking them. They cried out to the Lord, 11 and they said to Moses, “Why did you bring us out here to die in the wilderness? Weren’t there enough graves for us in Egypt? What have you done to us? Why did you make us leave Egypt? 12 Didn’t we tell you this would happen while we were still in Egypt? We said, ‘Leave us alone! Let us be slaves to the Egyptians. It’s better to be a slave in Egypt than a corpse in the wilderness!’”
13 But Moses told the people, “Don’t be afraid. Just stand still and watch the Lord rescue you today. The Egyptians you see today will never be seen again. 14 The Lord himself will fight for you. Just stay calm.”
21 Then Moses raised his hand over the sea, and the Lord opened up a path through the water with a strong east wind. The wind blew all that night, turning the seabed into dry land. 22 So the people of Israel walked through the middle of the sea on dry ground, with walls of water on each side!
23 Then the Egyptians—all of Pharaoh’s horses, chariots, and charioteers—chased them into the middle of the sea. 24 But just before dawn the Lord looked down on the Egyptian army from the pillar of fire and cloud, and he threw their forces into total confusion. 25 He twisted[a] their chariot wheels, making their chariots difficult to drive. “Let’s get out of here—away from these Israelites!” the Egyptians shouted. “The Lord is fighting for them against Egypt!”
26 When all the Israelites had reached the other side, the Lord said to Moses, “Raise your hand over the sea again. Then the waters will rush back and cover the Egyptians and their chariots and charioteers.” 27 So as the sun began to rise, Moses raised his hand over the sea, and the water rushed back into its usual place. The Egyptians tried to escape, but the Lord swept them into the sea. 28 Then the waters returned and covered all the chariots and charioteers—the entire army of Pharaoh. Of all the Egyptians who had chased the Israelites into the sea, not a single one survived.
29 But the people of Israel had walked through the middle of the sea on dry ground, as the water stood up like a wall on both sides.
This morning’s reading reminds me of the one about a nine-year-old boy named Joey who was asked by his mother what he had learned in Sunday school. “Well, Mom, our teacher told us how God sent Moses behind enemy lines on a rescue mission to lead the Israelites out of Egypt. When he got to the Red Sea, he had his engineers build a pontoon bridge and all the people walked across safely. Then he used his walkie-talkie to radio headquarters for reinforcements. They sent bombers to blow up the bridge, and all the Israelites were saved.” “Now, Joey, is that really what your teacher taught you?” his mother asked. “Well, no, Mom. But if I told it the way the teacher said, you’d never believe it!”
Now isn’t that so true?! This morning we’re given yet another one of the more fantastical stories of the early Bible. Moses had led the thousands of Israelite slaves away from their captivity only to be cornered by the Red Sea. Pharaoh and his massive army of chariots and charioteers are hot in pursuit, eager to re-capture the slaves and bring them back to their captivity. The Israelites themselves were quite livid…”Why did you bring us out here to die in the wilderness? Weren’t there enough graves for us in Egypt? What have you done to us? Why did you make us leave Egypt?” And poor Moses was stuck between a rock and a hard place, so to speak. He couldn’t just turn his people back over to Pharoah and he couldn’t walk them across the water. Who knows how Pharoah would have punished them once he had them back in captivity? Yeah, it was his idea to let them go in the first place but he’d probably blame Moses for somehow tricking and punish them all the harder. And no man other than Jesus has figured out how to walk on water. They would have all drowned if they tried to advance across the Red Sea. So, yes, Moses was in quite a predicament. But God came to their rescue, making the impossible possible! God parted the waters and Moses and all the Israelites were able to cross the land unharmed. And to add special panache to the event, God brought the waters down upon the Egyptian army, killing them all. I mean, this is the stuff of fantasy! No way could this have happened, right?! Well, I know there are biblical “debunkers” out there that like to reason out the event. They claim that there are parts of the Red Sea that are less than a foot deep making it easily crossed and God simply revealed where to cross. Doesn’t explain how the Egyptian army was killed afterwards but that’s a mystery to be solved by other people. Yes, this event seems like the stuff of dreams. But we have to remember a couple of the key purposes of scripture.
We have to remember that scripture, first and foremost, serves to reveal the awesome and mighty wonder of our God. Our God did and does some pretty amazing things in this world. Inexplicable, unimaginable things. God performs miracles each and every day. God raises people from the dead. God creates opportunities and situations outside of our understanding and control. God exists outside of time which allows him to know all pasts, all presents, and all futures. God understands the hearts of all people! Our God is pretty amazing and does some pretty amazing things! That said, scripture’s primary purpose is to reveal this to us. Our God is an awesome God!
A close secondary purpose of scripture is to build faith within us. Because our God and his ways are so amazing and incomprehensible, we have to rely on faith to survive this world. This world is not our world. This is God’s world and we need faith to be open to God’s revelations. God reveals answers to mysteries in this world only to those who are open and receptive. Faith is important!
An even closer third purpose of scripture is to reveal who God is, the traits of God. And like Noah and Abram and Joseph before him, Moses’ journey of leading the Israelites out of slavery revealed that our God is a God of salvation. Our God saves those who place their trust in him. Our God saves the righteous! This is perhaps the greatest trait of our God of scripture, a trait that is repeatedly revealed in the characters and situations of scripture. The psalmist most clearly highlighted this trait in psalm 91: “The Lord says, ‘I will rescue those who love me. I will protect those who trust in my name. When they call on me, I will answer; I will be with them in trouble. I will rescue and honor them.’” (vs 14-15) The prophet Joel also reiterates this, “But everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” (Acts 2:21)
Moses was a man who trusted our God. Recall how he responded to the panicky Israelites at the edge of the Red Sea. “Don’t be afraid. Just stand still and watch the Lord rescue you today. The Egyptians you see today will never be seen again. The Lord himself will fight for you. Just stay calm.” He then raised his hand, and the Lord parted the seas before him. Our God is a God of salvation for those who place their trust and faith in him. Our God saved Noah, our God saved Abram, our God saved Joseph, and our God saved Moses and the thousands of Israelites who trusted him. Peter tells us in his second letter, “So you see, the Lord knows how to rescue godly people from their trials, even while keeping the wicked under punishment until the day of final judgment.” (2:9) The poor ungodly Egyptians in today’s reading found their day of judgment.
As we continue on journey through the early stories of the Bible, let us give thanks for what the characters and situations reveal about our God, especially that He is a God of salvation. We know this trait will be fully revealed in Jesus himself. Let us be faithful and thankful. Thanks be to God!
In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
