Salvation and Glory In The Midst of The Sea

[0:00] Please open your Bibles to the 14th chapter of Exodus, Exodus chapter 14. We're going to read the entire chapter, verses 1 through 31.

[0:23] Then the Lord said to Moses, And he will pursue them, and I will get glory over Pharaoh and all his hosts.

[1:00] And the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord. And they did so. When the king of Egypt was told that the people had fled, the mind of Pharaoh and his servants was changed toward the people.

[1:13] And they said, What is this we have done, that we have let Israel go from serving us? So he made ready his chariot and took his army with him, and took six hundred chosen chariots and all the other chariots of Egypt with officers over all of them.

[1:30] And the Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and he pursued the people of Israel, while the people of Israel were going out defiantly. The Egyptians pursued them, all Pharaoh's horses and chariots and his horsemen and his army, and overtook them, encamped at the sea by Pi-harath in front of Baal-zaphon.

[1:53] When Pharaoh drew near, the people of Israel lifted up their eyes, and behold, the Egyptians were marching after them, and they feared greatly. And the people of Israel cried out to the Lord.

[2:06] They said to Moses, Is it because there are no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the wilderness? What have you done to us in bringing us out of Egypt? Is not this what we said to you in Egypt?

[2:18] Leave us alone that we may serve the Egyptians, for it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness. And Moses said to the people, Fear not.

[2:30] Stand firm and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again.

[2:41] The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent. The Lord said to Moses, Why do you cry to me? Tell the people of Israel to go forward.

[2:52] Lift up your staff, and stretch out your hand over the sea, and divide it, and the people of Israel may go through the sea on dry ground. And I will harden the heart of the Egyptians, so that they shall go in after them.

[3:06] And I will get glory over Pharaoh, and all his hosts, his chariots, and his horsemen. And the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord. And when I have gotten glory over Pharaoh, his chariots, and his horsemen.

[3:22] Then the angel of the Lord, excuse me, then the angel of God, who was going before the host of Israel, moved, and went behind them. And the pillar of cloud moved from before them, and stood behind them, coming between the host of Egypt, and the host of Israel.

[3:39] And there was the cloud, and the darkness. And it lit up the night, without one coming near the other, all night. Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea.

[3:50] And the Lord drove the sea back by a strong east wind, all night. And made the sea dry land. And the waters were divided. And the people of Israel went into the midst of the sea on dry ground.

[4:03] The water being a wall to them, on their right hand, and on their left. The Egyptians pursued, and went in after them, into the midst of the sea. All Pharaoh's horses, his chariots, and his horsemen.

[4:17] And in the morning, watched the Lord, in the pillar of fire and of cloud, looked down on the Egyptian forces, and threw the Egyptian forces, into a panic. Clogging the chariot wheels, so that they drove heavily.

[4:31] And the Egyptians said, Let us flee from before 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, upon their chariots, and upon their horsemen.

[4:48] So Moses stretched out his hand, over the sea. And the sea returned, to its normal course, when the morning appeared. And as the Egyptians fled into it, the Lord threw the Egyptians, into the midst of the sea.

[5:00] The waters returned, and covered the chariots, and the horsemen, of all the host of Pharaoh, that had followed them, into the sea. Not one of them remained. But the people of Israel, walked on dry ground, through the sea, the waters being a wall to them, on the right hand, and on their left.

[5:18] Thus the Lord saved Israel, that day, from the hand of the Egyptians. And Israel saw the Egyptians, dead on the seashore. Israel saw the great power, that the Lord used, against the Egyptians.

[5:32] So the people feared the Lord, and they believed in the Lord, and in his servant Moses. Let us pray. Amen. Dear Heavenly Father, we thank you for your word, and for the salvation, that you worked, for the Israelites, so many years ago.

[5:48] We pray now, as your word is open, that you would help us, to understand, and make application, of this truth to us today. We pray this in Christ's name. Amen. Well today, as you saw, we come to the Red Sea, and it's a story, or passage, that's very familiar, probably to all of you, in this room.

[6:05] We probably have all, heard the story, of the crossing, of the Red Sea. So it's a very familiar story, and sometimes the problem, with familiar stories, is we get so familiar, with it we kind of miss, what's going on, and the point of it.

[6:16] And today, I really want us, to look at two things. God's purpose, and then we'll take some time, and look at what actually occurred, and why that matters. We'll make some application, at the end. But God's purpose.

[6:28] And we see God's purpose, revealed in at least two verses here. Verse 4 and verse 18, say it most explicitly. So look with me there. Verse 4.

[6:39] I will harden Pharaoh's heart, and he will pursue them, and I will get glory over Pharaoh, and all his hosts. And the Egyptians shall know, that I am the Lord. And they did so.

[6:51] And so, my point for this message is, the Egyptians know Yahweh. The Egyptians know Yahweh. And we see this here. What is God doing? Well, maybe we could see it in two parts, but I think they're not really separated.

[7:03] But he says, that he would be glorified. God is seeking, his own glory. How's that going to be accomplished? Well, the Egyptians are going to know, who Yahweh is.

[7:16] Look with me again, verse 18. He said, An Egyptian shall know, that I am the Lord. Which again is that word Yahweh. Yahweh, when I have God in glory over Pharaoh, his chariots, and his horsemen.

[7:27] And so we see those two again, closely related. They will know who I am. They will know Yahweh, when I get glory, over them. You may remember, we saw this way back when, but Exodus chapter 5, verse 2, Pharaoh talks about, how he doesn't know the Lord.

[7:46] But Pharaoh said, who is the Lord, that I should obey, his voice, and let Israel go. I do not know the Lord, and moreover, I will not let Israel go. Now I said way back then, that this is really, set in the stage, for all that's going to happen, in the coming chapters.

[8:01] And here we are, coming to the end of it. And what is God doing? Pharaoh says, I don't know Yahweh. And am I going to listen to this, God I don't know?

[8:12] Of course not. God. What's Pharaoh going to do? What Pharaoh wants to do, because Pharaoh is God. And I don't know, this other God. And so now, God has been doing it all along, with the pleads, the miracles that had been worked.

[8:28] But now he's going to manifest, in an even greater way, than we've seen in all the prior pleads. He's going to demonstrate, that he is the Lord. He's going to cause Egypt to know, that he is the Lord.

[8:41] And how is he going to do that? He's going to get glory. Not just glory in general, but glory over Pharaoh, and over the chariots, and the Egyptian army. He's going to show his glory.

[8:53] And so, as we see this, that means that, God's working all this out, to his purposes. God's ordering, these events, so that Pharaoh will attack, and so that God will receive the glory.

[9:07] Now, I think this is always so hard, for us to understand and imagine, especially when we're in this situation. Think of the Israelites here. Verses 1 through 3, paint this picture of them, walking into a trap.

[9:18] God tells them to turn around, from the way they were going, and go back a different way, and camp, near the wilderness, but also, right up against the Red Sea. And, as you think, in military, mindset, we've been fleeing from Egypt, we're leaving Egypt, but now you want us to go back, toward Egypt, and to kind of wander around, for a little bit, going this way, and that way, and then they camp, right up against the Red Sea, where there's no escape for them.

[9:49] And so, they're caught, between the Egyptian army, and the Red Sea. But God's worked it that way, and we see as well, that God, hardens Pharaoh's heart, we'll look at that in a second, but Phil Riken, says, what the Israelites saw, was the world's, most powerful army, supported by the world's, most advanced military technology, the chariot.

[10:11] And you can imagine, they're parked there, against the Red Sea, there's nowhere for them to go, and they probably see the dust coming, ascending up, from miles away. And they know what it is, what else could it be, that much dust coming up, and then they begin to come inside, and they see, oh no, they brought the, we don't probably think much of chariots, think of taints, or fighter planes, today it's probably drones, but, they have the most advanced technology, in the world, and they're coming against, a people who are walking, on foot, and who are trapped there, against the Red Sea.

[10:44] And we see in verse 5, Pharaoh's regret, when the king of Egypt was told, that the people had fled, the mind of Pharaoh, and his servants, was changed toward the people, and they said, what is this we have done, that we have let, Israel go, from serving us?

[11:02] We see as well, back in verse 3, that Pharaoh, will save the people of Israel, they are wandering in the land, the wilderness has shut them in. So Pharaoh expresses regret, not regret for what he did, to the Israelites, but regret that he let them go.

[11:20] They don't have their servants anymore, their slaves aren't there, and he's upset about that. And God, I almost feel like, if you've been fishing, how you kind of tease the bait, in front of the fish, trying to get it to bite.

[11:33] God sent the Israelites, walking this way, and that way, so that they look lost out there. And it just kind of draws Pharaoh in. We can get him back. They don't know which way to go, they're kind of stuck here, and so let's go, and get them.

[11:49] We see God's sovereignty over Pharaoh, again in verse 8, and the Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and he pursued the people of Israel, while the people of Israel, were going out defiantly. And so God's working, on Pharaoh's heart, who's responding to the stimulus, or whatever he sees, the warning, the reports he's getting, the fact that they're trapped, against the Red Sea, all this God's working together, to get Pharaoh, and the Egyptian army, to attack the Israelites.

[12:17] And again, as we think about this, I think we have to understand that, we're often in the situation, of the Israelites, where we don't understand, what all is going on, but maybe it looks like, God's drawing in our enemies, against us.

[12:35] Well, he may well be, and we don't know his purpose, but when they saw it, they were afraid. It also reminded me of Christ, and his victory at the cross. Colossians 2, 15 says, he disarmed the rulers, and authorities, and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them, in him.

[12:55] And so, what Christ did at the cross, was a triumph, over his enemies. To what extent, Satan understood the plot, the plan, I'm not sure, but, at that moment, there he is, Satan thinks, perhaps, the plan is working, he's going to put to death, the son of God.

[13:12] But it's in that moment, that God gains the victory, and something similar, is going on here. Pharaoh's been drawn in, he thinks, I'm going to get the victory, over the Egyptians, what can they do, against my chariots? They're defenseless, they're trapped, and God gets, the glory over Pharaoh.

[13:26] And particularly, he says, he wants to get the glory of Pharaoh, and that, Egypt would know, the Lord, that they would know, that he is Yahweh. What is he speaking of, with this knowledge of the Lord?

[13:40] Nehemiah 9, 10, says, you performed signs, and wonders, against Pharaoh, and all his servants, and all the people of his land. For you knew, that they acted arrogantly, against our fathers, and you made a name, for yourself, as it is, to this day.

[13:56] Now, maybe you guys understand this, we don't, usually use names, in that kind of way, that our name, has great meaning, but, I think we get the idea, you make a name, for yourself, someone accomplishes, something great, they make a name, for themselves.

[14:11] God made a name, for himself, that day, at the Red Sea. So what's Nehemiah, speaking of? He calls, not only Egypt, to know, who he was, but for many, surrounding countries, the world around, to know, this is who God is, the God who defeated, the Egyptian army, the God who, parted the Red Sea, and drowned, the Egyptians.

[14:33] In Isaiah 63, 12, it says, that God, who calls his glorious arm, to go, at the right hand, of Moses, who divided the waters, before them, to make for himself, an everlasting name.

[14:46] So again, we see that purpose, God's making his name, known, everlastingly. Perhaps even saying, this will be spoken of, throughout all history, it's recorded in his word, we're still talking about, what God did that day, and we're praising him, for that salvation.

[15:02] But as we think, of this knowledge of God, what is it that God's, really driving for? Well the new covenant, speaks specifically of, a knowledge of God, or knowledge of the Lord. Jeremiah 24, 7 says, God speaking says, I will give them a heart, to know, that I am the Lord, and they shall be my people, and I will be their God, for they shall return to me, with their whole heart.

[15:26] And so here's what God desires, not just that he makes him name, for himself, amongst the Egyptians, but that his people, would know him. There's a relational aspect, to that. They shall be my people, and I will be their God.

[15:40] Jeremiah 31, 33 through 34, speaking specifically, of the new covenant says, I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Really a repetition, of what we saw in 24. And no longer shall each one, teach his neighbor, and each his brother, saying, know the Lord, for they shall all know me, from the least of them, to the greatest, declares the Lord.

[15:58] For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin, no more. And so here, God speaking of the new covenant, speaks of, a covenant people, who all know the Lord.

[16:10] There's no, none in the covenant, that don't know the Lord. Why? Because God has forgiven, their sins, and their iniquities. He remembers her sin, no more. And so God, is doing a work.

[16:21] His desire, even his, the realization of, the covenant people of God today, is that, they know him, because they've had their sins forgiven. John 17, 3, Jesus says, and this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, in Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.

[16:39] And so now, as we think of this knowledge, of the Lord, ultimately, I'm not saying this is where the Egyptians were, but the knowledge that God is striving for, is not just, an academic assent of, oh, there's a greater God, than the gods we worship, in Egypt.

[16:52] It is, a saving knowledge. Eternal life, is that they know, God the Father, the only true God, in Jesus Christ, whom he has sent.

[17:04] And then, Habakkuk 2, 14 speaks in a similar way, it says, for the earth will be filled, with the knowledge, of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea. And so, ultimately, this is what God's doing.

[17:16] God is making a name for himself. How has he done it? Well, he did it there, through salvation. Watch and see the salvation, that God's going to render, through the Red Sea.

[17:27] He saved his people, from certain death. For the new covenant, there's going to be a greater knowledge. Their sins are going to be forgiven. How's that going to be accomplished? Well, he's going to make a name for himself.

[17:39] How? By salvation. By saving his people. What does that require? The Son of God, to come and die. To shed his own blood. To be resurrected, and ascend to the right hand of the Father.

[17:53] He's done this. He's made a name for himself. Why? So that there would be, this everlasting relationship, so his people would be saved, and be with him forever. But also, for the earth will be filled, with the knowledge, of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.

[18:08] And so, through the advance of the kingdom, the world's going to know, who the Lord is. And in particular, when Christ returns, every knee will bow, and every tongue confess, him is Lord.

[18:22] So this is what God's working. And here we get, a small glimpse of it, and in some ways, it becomes a pattern, for the salvation, that we see, given to us, throughout God's word. It becomes a pattern, for the knowledge of the Lord, that will be expressed, in greater and greater revelation, has become, closer and closer, to the return of Jesus Christ.

[18:41] But here, God is, glorifying himself, over, the greatest power, the greatest nation, in the world, the greatest technology. It says even, over the chariots, and the horsemen, in verse 18, of Pharaoh, and the Egyptians.

[18:59] And so God, shows his glory, and makes a name, for himself. Now let's talk a little bit, about what actually happened, there at the Red Sea. The Lord really starts, the entire movement, well even further back, he starts it, by putting them in a place, to get the Egyptians, to come.

[19:17] But we really see, the starting of the movement, by the Lord, moving between Israel, and Egypt. Now remember, we talked last Sunday, about the pillar, of fire, and of cloud. And how it led the people, all through the wilderness, wanderings.

[19:29] And whichever way it led, they went. But now, they're not following it exactly. It departs, and goes, not in front of them, but behind them. And becomes a guard for them, against the Egyptians.

[19:43] Look at verse 19 and 20. Then the angel of God, who was going before the host, of Israel, moved and went behind them. And the pillar of cloud, moved from before them, and stood behind them.

[20:00] Last week, I talked a little bit, about the idea, that there are elements, of the pillar of fire, and of cloud, that reminds us, of the Holy Spirit, and manifestation. We said, it's a theophany.

[20:10] It's God manifested, and perhaps, the manifestation, of the Holy Spirit. Here we're told, the angel of God, which is the same language, as the angel of the Lord, and is often, understood, to be, a pre-incarnate manifestation, of Jesus Christ.

[20:26] The angel of God, goes from, it says it was before them, and the angel of God, moves and goes behind them. And then it says, also the pillar goes. So, it seems to be, distinguishing between the two.

[20:38] They're not synonymous, with one another. Something about, the pillar of cloud, leading them, also contained, momentarily, maybe throughout the wandering, a manifestation of God, the angel of God, was there, in the cloud, with them.

[20:54] However we understand this, we see, there's a divine manifestation, that's given to them. More than just the pillar, this time. The angel of God is there, and again, this may well be, an appearance of Christ, in some form or another, before he, took on human flesh.

[21:11] But God, in a form or another, appears, as a messenger, before them, and goes behind them, to protect them. Some of your versions, may have this, it wasn't as clear, in the ESV, and I think it's hard, to distinguish, but as we look at verse 19, excuse me, verse 20, coming between, the host of Egypt, and the host of Israel, and there was a cloud, and darkness, and it lit up the night, without one coming, near the other, all night.

[21:42] The ESV really, takes the perspective of, without either army, coming near one another, and that is what happened. I think some, different versions, understand the Hebrew, to be saying, that basically, the pillar of cloud, and fire, puts shade, or shadow, upon the Egyptian army, darkness on them, maybe even, hiding out the moon, so there's no light, over Egypt, while it gave light, to the Israelites.

[22:11] That may be true, I'm more comfortable, with how the ESV, has rendered it, because it doesn't quite, draw the conclusion, but that may be, what's implied by this, why are they not, coming together? Well it may be, that God is, blinding the Egyptians, while he's giving light, to his people.

[22:26] It may also be possible, that it's the sheer fact, that there is a wall, of fire, and of cloud, between the two, and who would dare approach, at that point. But either way, the point is clear, that God is protecting, his people, he goes between them, he's fighting for them already.

[22:43] I mentioned last week, that my, my understanding, my perspective, is that the Red Sea, is the Red Sea.

[22:55] And I touched a little bit, on why I have that view. There are some, who have argued against, this being the Red Sea. The word, from the Hebrew, can mean, reed, this reed sea, and they've argued that, well there aren't reeds, in salt water, there's not papyrus, the paper sea, is somehow, how it can be rendered.

[23:16] So there have been, some have argued against it, and as I've looked at it, that word Red Sea, I think I told you guys last time, it's mentioned elsewhere, I think it's in numbers, speaking of, maybe it's not numbers, I forget now, where it was, I referenced last Sunday, but, that Solomon built a port, on the Red Sea, and we have, that location of where it was, we know it is the actual Red Sea, it's probably, what we would call today, the Gulf of Suez, there's a more narrow section, of the very northern, northwest tip, of the Red Sea, where that port was built, and probably this is where they are, right now, as they cross.

[23:54] So, I'm of the opinion, that that is, that we're speaking of the actual Red Sea, and I'm going to talk some more, about this, I didn't include this in my notes, but, multiple commentaries that I read, had this same story, so I'll try to give it to you, from memory, because I think it was good, it was, a pastor was telling a story, of a liberal pastor, in a church, and he was preaching on this, and somebody, in the congregation, stood up and said, amen, praise God, what a miraculous miracle, he worked, that he drowned them, or that he parted the Red Sea, and the pastor said, no, no, no, no, it wasn't really the Red Sea, it was a smaller lake, it was probably only six inches deep, and that same guy, stood up and said, praise God, for the miracle he worked, and drowning the entire Egyptian army, in only six inches of water, either way, we see there's a miracle, that God's working here, now, it's not a natural occurrence, right, this is something, obviously supernatural, that's going on here, again, it has been argued, that maybe the tide went down, and you know, they went to the marsh, and then the tide came back up, and there's been all these kind of arguments, but what we see is really, a supernatural, a miraculous occurrence, why, well, we're told a few things, one is, we're told that, there's an east wind, that blows all through the night, there's a wind, specifically designed, to move in such a way, as to do this, secondly, verses 21 and 22, talk about a wall of water, a wall of water,

[25:26] I don't know if any of you guys, have seen the, newer, Narnia movies, the last, my kids would know, the last movie, that they made, of the series, there's a scene at the end, where there's an actual wall of water, and the water parts, but, a wall of water, this, I mean, maybe if you've gone to SeaWorld, you've seen it in glass, or something, right, but this is something, we've never seen before, this is something, that doesn't ever naturally occur, there's not some, tsunami tidal wave coming, that just stops, right there, and it's just, a solid wall of water, not moving, and it says that they walk, between two walls of water, so however we might try, to explain it, it doesn't work, if we think it's a tide going, the tide's going to be on one side, right, or any other kind of occurrence, we can imagine, this is something, abnormal, something, amazing, in Psalm 78, 13, it says, he divided the sea, and let them pass through it, and made the water, stand like a heap, there's a heap of water, on either side of you, as you're walking, in between these two,

[26:35] I mentioned this already, with the story of the miracle, but the depth, of the water, is definitely implied, by the fact, that in verse 28, it says it covered, the horses and the chariots, again that's not, since the interest of water, however, deep it was, it was deep enough, that it could go, over the top of, a standing chariot, or standing horse, or a man standing, on top of a chariot, I mean if we just, probably guess, that's at least eight feet, right, but more than that, to drown them, in such water, that they couldn't survive, and so yes, I think it's, the Red Sea, it's quite amazing, however we look at it, so we talk about, supernatural again, we see in verses 15 and 16, and in verses in 21 and 22, the timing of it, in verses 15 and 16, it's when Moses, holds the staff out, over the water, that it all begins, and as they cross, and get to the other side, he does the same thing, he puts the staff back over it, and the waters come back together, if somehow, someone can argue, that this is a natural occurrence, natural occurrences, don't occur, at our timing, do they, our weatherman, can't even get right, what's coming, when we know it's coming, but to predict it, in this kind of way, or to make it happen, would be remarkable, verses 26 and 27, it returned, the waters returned, at Moses's command, also as we think, of the timing, it ends when the Israelites, are through, and before the Egyptians, are through, it ends at the perfect timing, to deliver, or to save God's people, and to judge, the Egyptians, we have to understand, as we think about this, and this being, this miraculous work, of God, that it was really, an act of faith, to walk in between, two walls of water, in seeking, your salvation,

[28:25] Hebrews 11 29, says, by faith, the people, cross the Red Sea, as on dry land, but the Egyptians, when they attempted, to do the same, were drowned, and so Hebrews tells us, this was an act of faith, that they did, they were trusting God, and his salvation, I would assume, that the Egyptians, they don't enter, as an act of faith, they enter in desperation, to get back, what they lost, to seek, the victory, and as we think about it, in that way, by faith, they pass through the waters, without faith, the Egyptians die, and are lost, I mean, does that not speak to us, of that future salvation, that we, is accomplished in Jesus Christ, none of us, will enter into, eternal life, none of us, will enter into the promised land, apart from the fact, that we have faith in Christ, and if we attempt, to do so otherwise, we would die, look at verses 23 through 25, we see the panic, that happens, with the Egyptian army, the Egyptians pursued, and went in after them, into the midst of the sea, all Pharaoh's horses, his chariots, and his horsemen, and in the morning, watched the Lord, in the pillar of fire, and of cloud, look down, on the Egyptian forces, and threw the Egyptian forces, into panic, clogging their chariot wheels, so that they drove heavily, and the Egyptians said, let us flee, from before Israel, for the Lord, again that word, for Yahweh, fights for them, against the Egyptians,

[29:55] God's going to make a name for himself, and he does so, they know that God is fighting, for the Israelites, there's, a military realization, that I think comes upon them, they realize, that their position, is not very good, we're not told, how wide, this passage was, through the Red Sea, but we know, military, that going through, small passages, limits the fighting ability, that they would have had, but let's also speak, of the very fact, that they're walking, between walls of water, at some point, they have to look, to each side, and realize, this could go bad, for us, and at that same moment, it says, the wheels begin, to clog up, now always, it's fascinating, it says, the Israelites, went through the Red Sea, on dry land, this wind blew all night, part of the sea, and the wind also, dried out the land, right, we understand, this should be muddy, this should be a hard, a soft surface, to pass through, but God dried the land, by the wind, so somehow, something's happening now, it's becoming muddy again, maybe water's seeping up, from below, maybe the walls, are starting to, even now, begin to seep back, a little bit, but whatever causes it,

[31:14] God mates the wheels, of the chariots to clog, so the greatest technology, they had of the day, and it's out, you can't use it anymore, again I think, imagine, the United States, with drones, and their fighter jets, and there's a, EMP, electromagnetic, pulse, things, electromagnetic pulse, that all of a sudden, they can't fly anymore, we can't use our technology, what good would it be, and so God, in a miraculous way, brings an end, to their greatest strength, their technology, I talked already, about the wind that came, and how God, parted the Red Sea, but let me read, this account to you, in Psalm 77, it says, when the water, saw you, oh God, when the water, saw you, they were afraid, indeed, the deep, trembled, the clouds, poured out water, the skies, gave forth thunder, your arrows, flashed, on every side, the crash of your thunder, was in the whirlwind, your lightnings, lighted up the world, the earth trembled, and shook, look, if I were to go, in Psalm 77,

[32:26] I think it's clear, that the reference, is actually to, what took place, at the crossing, of the Red Sea, if we take that, and try to understand, what's going on here, that I think, this east wind, may well have been, it could have been, what we would think of, as a tornado, hurricane, some kind of force, that's driving the water back, and they're walking, as it were, in the eye of the hurricane, with water, on either side, and now, the Egyptians are seeing, the lightning flashing, it says the earth trembled, were the earthquakes going on, it says God looked down, upon them, and they panicked, what did they see, in the angel of God, or the pillar of fire and cloud, that all of a sudden, they realized, we're not fighting, against the Israelites, at all, it's Yahweh, that we're fighting against, and we're not going to win, this battle, and so they panic, and they're ready to run back, but the chariots, got bought down, there's no escape, there's no getting back, and I think it's important, we understand, they wanted to flee, because they understood, that these things, were the work of the Lord, the work of Yahweh, verse 25, at the very end, let us flee, from before Israel, for the Lord fights for them, against the Egyptians, and so God is making, a name for himself, and they're afraid, as we think of this again,

[33:55] I've said already, this is a familiar story, I want us to see, greater death maybe, than we typically think of, I think there are ways, in which this story, points us back, to the creation account, Genesis 1, 9, and God said, let the waters, under the heavens, be gathered together, into one place, and let the dry land appear, and it was so, the word wind, that's used here, is the same as breath, or spirit, in verse 21, and it's used again, if you look at verse, chapter 15, verse 8, at the blast of your nostrils, the waters piled up, the flood stood up, in the heap, the deep congealed, in the heart, of the sea, and again in verse 10, you blew with your wind, the sea covered them, they sank like lead, in the mighty waters, in the waters, so this word, is the same word, that's used as spirit, when it talks about, the spirit hovered, over the waters, in the creation account, and likewise,

[34:56] God gathered the waters, into one place, to make dry land, in the creation account, Genesis 1, 2, the earth was without form, and void, and darkness was over, the face of the deep, and the spirit of God, was hovering over, the face of the waters, so that same word, that's used in chapter 14, and 15, is used there, in the creation account, listen to Genesis 8, 1, but God remembered, Noah, and all the beasts, and all the livestock, that were with him, in the ark, and God made a wind blow, over the earth, and the water subsided, so again, we see something very similar, is God using his spirit, to recreate, in the time of Noah, there was water, over the face of the earth, and the spirit's hovering over, and God parts the water, to make dry land again, for Noah, in the recreation, and we see it, in the creation account, waters cover the earth, and the spirit's hovering over them, and God parts them, and creates dry land, and so, I think we're meant to see, this is something glorious, that's happened, maybe not quite, but close to, on par with what happens, at the creation,

[36:00] God's parting waters, and creating dry land, for the salvation, of his people, if we understand it that way, then we think of verses 27, and 28, as uncreation, so Moses stretched out his hand, over the sea, and the sea returned, to its normal course, when the morning appeared, and as the Egyptians fled into it, the Lord threw the Egyptians, into the midst of the sea, the waters returned, and covered the chariots, and the horsemen, of all the hosts of Pharaoh, that had followed them, into the sea, not one of them remained, and so if God is working, in creation language, then this would be, uncreation, decreation, I'm making these words up, you understand what I'm saying, God's undoing, the creation, by pouring the waters, back upon them, and again as we think of, the flood, that same kind of thing happened, God undid, what he created in the world, and in the midst of it, he judged those, who were in opposition, to him, and his people, I've said this, before,

[37:03] I've read a book, I think it was on the book table, if it may still be there, but that was very interesting, it talked about, God's means of saving, through judgment, we always think of saving, from judgment, but God often saves, through judgment, and so here we see, the Israelites are saved, through a judgment, that comes upon the Egyptians, had God not judged, the Egyptians, the Egyptians would have killed, the Israelites, or carried them back, into slavery, but God judges them, and saves his people, all with one blow, it's really a sweet move, right, who works these things out, in this way, that God would do this, so God cast them, into the water, in much the way, that Pharaoh had done, as we think about this, I know there's a tendency, especially in our day and age, to say, that seems a little harsh, why would God kill, all the Egyptian army, think back to, it says 122, then Pharaoh commanded, all the people, every son that is born, to the Hebrews, you shall cast, into the Nile, but you shall let, every daughter live, you may remember, we talked about in past weeks, that God threatens Pharaoh, as you've done, to my firstborn Israel,

[38:15] I will do to you, we talked about that, in the passing of, the angel, in the Passover, but now here again, we see the same thing, Pharaoh, kills, the firstborn of Israel, who is God's firstborn, his child, he kills him, how does he do so, he drowns him in, the water, and so God brings, an ultimate end, to this judgment, he's brought on Egypt, by drowning Pharaoh, and his army, in the water, and so our passage, really comes to an end, with verse 30, I mean it touches on 31 as well, but verse 30, thus the Lord saved Israel, that day from the hand, of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians, dead on the seashore, such a potent statement there, what do they see, the salvation that God brought, they see all the Egyptians, wash up dead, and verse 28b, or the second half of verse 28, makes it clear, that not one of them, remained, what does this mean for us, or how do we apply, these truths to us, well the first thing,

[39:32] I think we need to see, is the Lord's deliverance, or we might say, even as it says here, the salvation of the Lord, look how God delivered them, and saved them, but first see as well, the sin of the Israelites, look at verses 10 and 12, 10 through 12, when Pharaoh drew near, the people of Israel, lifted up their eyes, and behold the Egyptians, were marching after them, and they feared greatly, and the people of Israel, cried out to the Lord, they said to Moses, is it because, there are no graves in Egypt, that you have taken us away, to die in the wilderness, what have you done to us, in bringing us out of Egypt, is not this what we said, what we said to you in Egypt, leave us alone, that we may serve the Egyptians, for it would have been better, for us to serve the Egyptians, than to die in the wilderness, back in verse 4, we see that God told them, that this is what's going to happen, I will harden Pharaoh's heart, and he will pursue them, and I will get glory over Pharaoh, and all his hosts, and the Egyptians shall know, that I am the Lord, and so God's already told them, what's going to happen, the end of it, he's going to deliver them, and yet here they are, when they see the Egyptian army, what do they want to do, they want to go back to Egypt, we never should have left, in the first place,

[40:45] I mentioned, maybe two weeks ago, the sarcasm, they say, were there not, were there no graves in Egypt, that you carried us out here to die, and remember the pyramids, are basically, big tombstones, or graves, and so Egypt was known, for their graves, were there no graves in Egypt, we couldn't find one for ourselves, that you could bury us in, you got to bring us out here to die, and you see as well, their desire, they said, let us go back, that we can serve, the Egyptians, what's remarkable about that is, why are they being delivered, why has God saved them, so that they could, serve Yahweh, and they're saying, it would have been better for us, just to keep serving, the Egyptians, to remain in slavery, to worship, or to serve Pharaoh, and we talked about how, service and worship, are really very similar words here, when they saw the Egyptian army, they wanted to go back, and to serve Pharaoh, and the entire reason, that they had left, was that they could serve God, but they're willing to turn their back, on God and go back, in case you think,

[41:55] I'm just manifesting this as sin, and thinking too much, of what they said, Psalm 1 and 6, verses 6 through 10 says, both we and our fathers have sinned, we have committed iniquity, we have done wickedness, our fathers, when they were in Egypt, did not consider your wonders worse, they did not remember, the abundance of your steadfast love, but rebelled by the sea, at the Red Sea, yet he saved them, for his namesake, that he might make known, his mighty power, he rebuked the Red Sea, and it became dry, and he led them, through the deep, the deep, as through a desert, so he saved them, from the hand of the foe, and redeemed them, from the power of the enemy, and so we see, God's deliverance, expressed there in Psalm 106, and we see as well, it says, they committed iniquity, they sinned, they rebelled against God, at the Red Sea, so God understands, what happened there, is rebellion, they didn't want to follow him, they wanted to go back, and serve, Pharaoh, and yet God, delivers them, and he does so, in a way, that makes it clear, that the deliverance, was his deliverance, his salvation, and his alone, verses 13 and 14, and Moses said, to the people, fear not, stand firm, and see, the salvation, of Yahweh, which he will work, for you today, for the Egyptians, who you see today, you shall never see again, the Lord will fight, for you, and you have only, to be silent, silent, isn't that remarkable, he's saying, all you need to do, is just shut up, stop with your whining, your crying, your rebelling against God, you're wanting to go back, just stop, it's not about you,

[43:42] God's going to do it, you don't have to fight, the Egyptians, God's fighting for you, and so their deliverance, was from God, alone, all they had to do, was stand and watch, the deliverance come, I think, how do we respond, when we see, maybe something that we fear, on the horizon, heading our way, do we sometimes do like the Israelites, and cry out against God, do we blame God, do we think, God doesn't care for me, he's not paying attention, I've got to do this on my own now, shake our fist at God, maybe sometimes like, the Israelites who leave Egypt, even in salvation, we leave our sins, we depart from them, and then when things get tough, do we want to turn back, and go back to Egypt, go back to our sin, from which we fled,

[44:46] I want to encourage us, that one application, that we see of the Lord's salvation, or deliverance is, be silent, shut your mouth, watch and see, what God will do, do we have faith, and trust that God is fighting the fight, for his people, do we believe that, my guess is, most of the time, we think we're fighting the fight, and God's assisting us at times, God's like, backup reinforcements, he's the bomber, that comes and drops some bombs occasionally, but we're there on the ground, doing the battle, and he says, be silent, and watch and see, the Lord fight for you, watch and see, the salvation that God will bring, this is exactly what, ultimately has been done for us, at the cross, there's nothing that we have done, to save ourselves, Christ did all the work for us, all we have to do, is sit back and receive, what Christ has done, to delight in the salvation, that he has worked, listen to John 5, 24, Jesus says, truly, truly,

[45:49] I say to you, whoever hears my word, and believes him who sent me, has eternal life, he does not come into judgment, but is passed from death, to life, whoever hears my words, and believes him who sent me, believe it, and you have eternal life, secondly, I think we can see, that there's always a bigger picture, than we're aware of, than is exposed to our vision, there's always more going on, than we realize, think about what was going on, for the Israelites, they're wandering around, they look like they're lost, are you sure this is the way, I'm supposed to go, and in the end, they get stuck against the Red Sea, in a cul-de-sac as it were, there's no escape, but we're encouraged to trust God, look at verse 13, Moses said to the people, fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will work for you today, for the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again, and then verses 19 and 20, then the angel of God, who was going before the host of Israel, moved and it went behind them, and the pillar of cloud, moved from before them, and stood behind them, coming between the host of Egypt, and the host of Israel, and there was the cloud, and the darkness, and it lit up the night, without one coming near the other, all night, we can trust God, that he will care for us, that he will take care of us,

[47:13] Psalm 1830, this God, his way is perfect, the word of the Lord proves true, he is a shield, for all those who take refuge in him, we can believe these things to be true, these accounts teach us, that our God is worthy of all trust, that he is a savior, a deliverer, and again, always a bigger picture than we see, there is always more going on, than we are aware of, thirdly, we can understand, or see this in light of a new Exodus, and really, this point, I got from Tim Chester, who wrote a commentary on Exodus, but Isaiah 43, verses 16 through 19, thus says the Lord, who makes a way in the sea, a path in the mighty waters, who brings forth chariot and horse, army and warrior, they lie down, they cannot rise, they are extinguished, quenched like a wick, remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old, behold I am doing a new thing, now it springs forth, do you not, do you not perceive it,

[48:18] I will make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert, so, here in Isaiah, God is pointing them back to, the crossing of the Red Sea, there is no question about it, it talks about the horses, and the chariots, that are killed there, in the Red Sea, he says, but don't look back, look ahead, because I am doing something new, I will make a way in the wilderness, and rivers, in the desert, and really we see the fulfillment of that, as Christ comes into the scene, as John the Baptist declares, behold the Lamb of God, who comes to take away the sins of the world, that way that he is making, is through Christ, along with that, we see that Jesus underwent, judgment of water, we don't often think of water, as judgment, maybe we like swimming in the pool, or taking a bath, but in God's word, we see several times, water is judgment, we mentioned one already, with Noah, and the world being flooded, but Jesus at his baptism, went through the waters,

[49:19] Jesus did not have to be baptized, he had not sinned, he wasn't trying to express repentance, he was baptized on our behalf, he passed through the judgment, symbolically there, in that baptism, he will later do it, or he later did it, physically at his death, Mark 10 38, Jesus says, are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or to be baptized, with the baptism, with which I am baptized, and what is that baptism, he's speaking of, it's him passing through the waters of death, and then there's a resurrection, there's salvation from death, and judgment, he passes through the waters, and is resurrected, and so we see really a greater exodus, he suffered the waters of judgment, that we could walk on dry land, that we could have salvation, and so likewise, our baptism points to the same reality, 1 Corinthians 10 1 through 2, for I do not want you to be unaware brothers, that your fathers were all under the cloud, and all passed through the sea, and all were baptized into Moses, in the cloud, and in the sea, so 1 Corinthians uses that same language, they were baptized into Moses, as they passed through the waters, but Romans 6 3 through 4 says, do you not know that all of us, who have been baptized into Christ Jesus, were baptized into his death, we were buried therefore with him, by baptism into death, in order that just as Christ was raised from the dead, by the glory of the father, we too might walk in newness of life, and so, what we see here, is exactly what we go through, through union with Christ,

[50:53] Christ passed through the waters, he was resurrected, and so we don't face the waters of judgment, Christ has faced us for us, we were there with him, we died with him when he died, and now we've been raised to walk in newness of life, finally, how do we respond to these truths, look at the response of God's people, in verses 30 and 31, thus the Lord saved Israel that day, from the hand of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the seashore, Israel saw the great power, that the Lord used against the Egyptians, so the people feared the Lord, and they believed in the Lord, and his servant Moses, so two responses, fear and belief, we talk a lot, I think we've explained this many times, fear in God's word, means more than just being afraid, it's an idea of reverence, an idea of awe, the idea of, we don't use it this way, but all some, or even what our hymnal sometimes uses, all full, it's full of awe, but I don't want to also,

[51:59] I don't want to take away from the fact, that there's genuine fear I think, they have just seen the power of God manifested, they're watching even now, as the bodies of the Egyptians, wash up on the seashore, all of them dead, how do they respond, they fear God, this is a God, who brings death on his enemies, what's the conclusion, we ought to draw from that, I don't want to be, his enemy, I'm afraid of this God, the same is true for us today, God speaks of a future judgment, that is coming upon all those, who have not trusted in Jesus Christ, if we see this here, we ought to be afraid, we ought to tremble, and know that, God will keep his word, there will be a judgment, and our desire is that none of you be, in that judgment, that you pass through those waters, in Christ, and so we see the other part of that is, it says the people fear the Lord, and they believed in the Lord, they believed in Yahweh, and so this fear of God, this reverence, this awe, but this trembling fear, of the great power of our God, that should lead us, to believe, and trust, in his son Jesus Christ, and so I want to encourage you today, that needs to be our response, this isn't just some story, that we read in God's word, our God is a powerful God, he made a name for himself, an everlasting name for himself, in that day, do you see that name, if you do, you ought to be afraid, you ought to be afraid, especially if you haven't trusted, in Jesus Christ, but if you have, you can know, that in Christ, you passed through those waters already, you have been saved through that, let's pray together, let's pray together, let's pray together, let's pray together, dear Heavenly Father, we understand, we know, that we are, a sinful people, who are deserving of judgment, yet Lord, you have been merciful to us, even as you did, to your people Israel, in the Old Testament,

[54:11] Lord, we thank you, that you have, given us salvation, not just from waters, not just from physical death, but spiritually, through your son Jesus Christ, who passed through the waters, of death for us, who walked through, to the other side, who was resurrected, and we pray Lord, that our trust and hope, would be in him, Lord, forgive your messenger, for the ways in which he fails, but we pray, that you would drive home, by your spirit, fear of you, reverence and awe, of who you are, that would make us cry out, that would cause us to believe, Lord, we pray, that we would trust, in your son Jesus Christ, for our salvation, we pray this all, in his name, amen.

[54:51] Amen.