089 - Go Forward? Forward?

You pick up your Bible and wonder, is there more here than meets the is there something here for me. I mean it's just words printed on paper right it may look like just print on the page but it's more than Inc. join us for the next half hour, as we explore God's word together as we learn how to explore it on our as we ask God to meet us there in its pages welcome to more than what you do and God's is going forward. Absolutely impossible select when they were standing beach of the Red Sea and there was no way you will, in terms of the God's plan is way what is not around today on to our dining room table and Dorothy and I'm Jim and this is more than Inc. more than we are here today talking Exodus where chapter 13. We are about to cross the Red Sea very dramatic very left off right in the middle of chapter 14 when the Israelites are backed up against the edge of the Red Sea and that the Egyptians are descending on them yes and everything looks dire.

Well yes and the specific the text to be very specific as in God led them there. God brought them into that persona got arrange this seemingly hopeless situation with the Red Sea at the back. Remember, the people had fled from Egypt.

They had taken stuff because they had asked for the divisions you know that we have gold and silver and clothing and all that.

So they were carrying a lot of plunder their leaving behind people who are whopping mad and in the depths of sorrow because they've all everyone in Egypt has just lost a firstborn around angry and Pharaoh is and what have done. Let's go get back to school kill one of the other yeah exactly. So Wallace just see how the people of Israel. Yeah well and we also had the God was with them in the pillar of cloud to fire yes incredible phenomenon is very unusual. Unusual affirmation from God's present and in their midst right, exactly, let me just pick up where where chapter 14 if you're following this verse read verse 10 and the drama is is right on the brink of happening here. So when Pharaoh drew near, he caught up with them 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 and they said to Moses, is it because there are no graves in Egypt that you've taken us away to die in the in the wilderness that me. What have you done to us and bring us out of Egypt is not this what we said to you in Egypt. Leave us alone that we may serve the Egyptians for what have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness. Okay when you stop that amazing. They just had this incredibly victorious march out and the text is with a high hand they're going out laden with stuff in here in these couple verses we have fear, blame and self-pity. Yep, it's rational though because you are not thinking about God's presence but they're saying look, here's the entire army of the most powerful nation on the earth and their bearing down on us and there's nowhere we can one day thinking about God's presence that's priced he gave already the pillar of fire ends and smoke and he had delivered them by means of these incredibly violent plagues in Egypt, and what you hope they witnessed all that your first impulse would be to cry out to God not to blame Moses not fear at eight absolutely unit fear, but not to turn to the guy who is God's spokesman and blame him and then pity yourself.

We should distinguish is never gone back.

So I told her we should know what I told her we shouldn't of left to be better for us to be serving Egyptians and the die here in the desert. Well, that's the story or not. Tell that I was again and again. I don't recall that being recorded anywhere in the chapters I came up to this, but now that looks like the issue completely forgot bully forgetting that God exists, which is just astonishing thing. This is what Paul calls living by faith in living by sight and if you live by sight. You let the circumstances of what your ICJ completely overwhelm every other fact in your life and the fact of God's caring and loving kindness and his power is just completely pushed out of the picture. As a result, you just on your own inner in an impossible situation and all you can do is fear that that's what happens when you forget God in any circumstance, fear and blame and pity yourself IN those things so often go together and you would expect them to come to know in the in the midst of the say look, here come the Egyptians wait to you see what God's going to do now.

Well, that's, what Moses says next yeah okay so it let's read on shy pick it up in verse 13 and 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. The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent. There let's hold still there for me it's really kind interesting. I find it interesting because God hasn't told him how this no but Moses has the faith to say look it got got this he did have this conversation with God.

Our last show where God says you know I'm gonna be on top of that I am on top of this, but he does know exactly how yeah I mean you could be thinking, well, maybe it's going to be fire from heaven. Maybe this pillar of cloud and fire is going to shoot out laser beams and to do next. Yeah, so it could be almost anything. So Moses looking just to stand firm which means don't go running away like crazy people just stay where you are and you will see the salvation of the Lord. Well, you know you could reduce this essay hold still and shut up exactly right because that steamed 14 this, I will hold still and be silent right that makes you think of so many other scriptures, I think, especially some 4610 that says, you know, be still and know that I'm God right are yammering the landing around it is a present help in trouble, maybe. But that's not a verse that I looked at but I might be in at Psalm but you will see the power of the Lord and Isaiah 3015 says in quietness and trust is your strength and sadly it follows, but you would not rain so hold still, which are yammering and watch what God will do and you know in the New Testament we all know Ephesians 6 right where within that description of spiritual warfare but were told. Now put on your armor stand firm believe in God, stand firm.

Know the power of God and just stand stand put on and hold still and let God fight for you that's totally foreign to us. Every bone in her body went away. Yes, we want to do but but Moses, saying in a written Bruker terms.

If you run away you miss stay here you see something that you won't believe right you'll see the salvation of the Lord. Something only he can do and it it occurs to me that that is seldom my first when a crisis happens is that is going to sit still numb to see what God's going to do.

Sometimes I do that, but it's not as frequently observed in myself that over my lifetime I get in way more trouble when I when I reflexively respond to something rather than hold still take a breath and wait for God and wait for you and sometimes all it takes is a breath and remember yourself. God yet. We talked about this a lot. We get into more trouble by kind of reacting badly.

Oh yeah and jumping ahead of God.

When this almost and so with so many others in the Old Testament, so you need to wait on the Lord and on the right way, which doesn't mean being active in that section, acts, or active word active in action is what it is.

What is an active exchanging of my plan for hit my strength for putting my trust in what he's going to rather my ability to run away so yeah so it's it's a it's a really mature kind of response.

Stand firm, and you'll see God/in reality where they run see behind them in the Egyptians in front of them.

All they could rent a room with her hair on fire around a panic. Yeah, the Lord will fight for you, but Moses doesn't know how yet so it's gonna be a little surprising is that God has fought for them. How have we seen Moses growing as a spiritual leader.

Oh my goodness this is this is the place where it becomes really very clear and you know many times I think about the fact that Moses is kind of sticking God's neck out right here. What if God doesn't come through with what Moses, saying, what if God doesn't fight for them. What a thrill slaughtered. He's putting God's reputation on the line so it's interesting because Moses is the one who was writing this account right. He wrote much later, but in the next verse, the Lord said to Moses now. Why do you cry to me, so Moses must have interneurons that will cut. I hope you got to tell the people of Israel to go forward forward forward where verse 16. Lift up your staff, and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it is that Israel may go through the sea on dry ground and I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians said that they will going after them and I will get glory over Pharaoh and all his house to his chariots and his horsemen and the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord when I have gotten glory over Pharaoh's chariots and his horsemen. So now God tells him how tall going to go down all going to go down on her part to see. So I say go for it. I really do mean Gold Coast forward you water it hasn't happened just yet exactly exactly, but now I think it's fascinating that God does make some allowance for Moses to say look, you know, I am gonna fight him and tell you how to give you instruction and I give instruction. I got this under control.

Watch this so he so is actually in a way in a more detailed way, telling Moses, stand firm, and you'll see the summation who will push on yeah okay yeah you read every 1919 so 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 and there was a cloud in the darkness and it lit up the night without a one coming near the other all night yeah stop there.

You know we have to suck. This is a festering fastening piece of logistics so before the waters parted. How do you keep Egyptians right to embed stuff. Well, the presence of God in this pillar moves from being in front of them were he was leaving to being between them in the Egyptians and holding the Egyptians off holding the Egyptians off and so it gives us some time. Well, this is what we have we have the pillar at the fire the cloud and the fire specifically associated with the messenger of the Lord is the presence of the Lord through his sent messenger so in a sense, the pillar itself is the messenger of the Lord, one who is speaking to them on God among you yeah so is this is a fascinating tactic because they know the young nerd like I am always wondered how long does it take to March 2 million people across the Red Sea. I mean that. That's a lot of people. When you think another carrying a lot of stuff animals gonna take a while to get across what it but when we just left the story to the Egyptian armies right there is already right there. So what you do to stall the Egyptian army while you're moving to me and people across a dry riverbed well that's why God moves around the back and holds them all.

You know this sets me thinking of Psalm 139 five it says you before me and behind me even close to me and you guys got this all worked out and I wonder if that wasn't in David's mind when he wrote that you go probably.

Are you come behind you.

You are enclosing me, probably because this whole account right here is his legendary true story, but it was a touchstone that went back to all the time.

When you talk about faith. This is what God does.

Once winter was in the mind of the Egyptians. Yeah, they are sick because they are seeing this thing to try to figure out well and see we can attack him for a wall of fire.

So we better just hang on for daylight and see where we get around it. I don't know I know is that text is silent on clearly staggered them, they did come forward, slowing down so they didn't come near each other all night like they were in the way scouts write part so and so while we were in the nighttime failure to so write the most impressive nature about this phenomenon. This cloud is going to be at night. To me that's really unusual revengeful well so then verse 21. So then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea and the Lord drove the sea back by a strong east wind all night and made the sea dry land dry land and the waters were divided and the people of Israel went into the midst of the sea on dry ground.

That's important in the waters being a wall to them on their right hand and on their left the stop right there. We get the Egyptians yeah so so sure enough, Moses is involved showing what God's going to do. He raises hand, the waters part used when parts the water and dries out the land you have you ever walked in the edge of a pond you known about 6 inches of water.

You know mucky it is in your toes something while that's where I would be what's at the bottom of of this of this see this Red Sea is not like that. Went out wind can desecrate very quickly email, Gardner, and when we get those hot winds that come through the summer time, no matter how much water I pour in the garden. It just evaporates so fast, so you can see how God reigns over all creation could send a warm wind that led not only part the waters but dry out the ground hiking room. I actually have just a little bit of an understanding of this teeny scale just because I've seen what a dry, hot wind can do in a very short period of time to write it out enough that they can walk on it and it would be a hazard. Just keep walking across the waters standing up like a wall.

See, there's the Cecil B to Bill part well in the films and you think I can really been like that, but how else are they to describe because the water is clearly there in the water itself is speaking something is holding this water back was the hand of God, and many people will testify to the fact that the miracle here isn't so much part of the water, but the fact that the land was dropped till it was dry and that's really a pretty remarkable thing to happen so so God basically pave the way for them so they wouldn't get stuck after so there crossing his night by the way, to and there crossing across the Red Sea, which is now dryland and then verse 23 the Egyptians pursued.

They pursued and went in after them in the midst of the sea all Pharaoh's horses as chariots and horsemen, and in the morning watch the Lord in the pillar of fire and of cloud looked down the Egyptian forces and through the Egyptian forces into a panic, clogging their chariot wheels so that they drove heavily in the Egyptians said all this flee from before Israel for the Lord fights for them against the Egyptians.

Okay, what's going on here. Well, there's some debate about this. However when you look at verse 25 versus clogging Warren write many translations is binding. This is because, like mud that they're having a transportation plan and some guys speculate the fact that the ground was dry enough to walk about a wasn't dry enough to support the weight of chariot wheels, which many times have two people on it, and those horses so maybe actually they broke through the dry cross that the people could walk on fine and getting stuck in the same relation is always speculation, but clearly what he's saying right here.

The Egyptians get into the dry land where the Red Sea was right and they're having problems, the chariots and that's when they say this looks bad right to think about turning around. The Lord is fighting for them against the Egyptians exactly exactly about. We just for some future reference.

When you when you look at the story of Deborah, this is sort of what happens with the chariot thinking that yeah the church are not the best not the best land transportation unless the ground is really hard right. The ground is Canada goose year mushy. They don't go forward very well. In fact it says in 25. They drove heavily right so there's a summons logging down in the mud. Yeah right here yet, so that's a real problem, so we need to press on.

So they're getting second thoughts about being out here, exposed, and they say look towards fighting for them. Once you pick up 26 okay then the Lord said to Moses, stretch out your hand over the sea. The water may come back upon the Egyptians upon their chariots, and upon their horsemen. So Moses stretched out his hand over the sea and the sea returns to its normal course. When the morning appeared, and as the Egyptians fled into at the Lord through the Egyptians into the midst of the sea, the waters returned and covered the chariots and horsemen and all of the house to Pharaoh that had followed them into the sea. Not one of them remained the people of Israel walked on dry ground through the sea, the waters being a wall to them on their right hand and on their left, past 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 in his servant Moses believed in the Lord and in his servant he feared the Lord and believed in the sin that you know right they profoundly referenced this God who did this once again this profoundly powerful and very personal thing. Yeah, yeah, I think it's I think we can't we can't overestimate the impact when you see the entire army of the most powerful nation on earth did in the water in front of you and it all happens in hours, maybe minutes and minutes.

Just a split second and suddenly the entire army of the most powerful nation is decimated and you see bodies floating when he made to the fact that that happens in the morning right they been running in the night and crossing the sea, apparently in the night and asked they have crossed the daylight dawns in the Egyptians are in the middle of the of the dry space in the water conscious throws them into the water. You clearly text says clearly all you through men like you, shall come off right says yeah and all the Israelites are out of the water. So now you have you have this whole army that's kinda mired it's bogged down in so they can turn around. They can't move they can see the water right crashing in, but they can't find it and I really like stuck there like me know.

One of those flight like a title flytrap.

They can get out of like a tidal wave and then a tie we just completely yeah I I don't I don't think the people of Israel. They have seen so much of the 10 plagues so you know we should really know what God is like, but when you see something like this and entire army and chariots, which is the chariots are like becoming the best of the best of the war machinery.

I mean if you got chariots you know you went and all and God in a sense, snaps his fingers and they're all dead and imagery of a tidal waves a good one. You know in our recent memory. We have memories of a couple of huge, incredibly destructive, tidal waves within the last couple of decades and people who witness to that and saw death and the destruction of buildings and the destruction of equipment and in the world just in look the same afterwards course, that was a wave that came in and washed back to see this is jersey returning on itself must've been astonishing that you would think that from this point forward in the memory of the nation of Israel. They say gosh if God can do that then all the armies it really come up against. As we come into Canaan and this is a pushover that we've got the God who took out the entire Egyptian army and got us out and got us out right but that fear and blame and that self-pity is still deeply rooted in them. But what's interesting to me about this crossing the sea and God crashing the water back is there is no return. Now yeah no going back to this. See, it's what we call burning your bridges don't go backwards. Now the Lord made a way only he could and then he closed the way behind him and said you're not going back now your mind you're out here you're going forward. Yeah exactly yeah II think about is looking at Psalm 77 in this Psalm 77 to an interesting song because the front half of Psalm 77 he mopes about how bad a situation is and then when he gets near the end of Psalm 77 he says in verse 11. I will remember the deeds of the Lord. Yes, I will remember your writers hold so he this is like the limitations everything he writes all member God's light and then he recalls this very event says I will ponder on your work on meditate on your mighty deeds your way of God is holy. You are the God who works wonders. You may know yourself among the peoples and then at the very end of this always kind of boys me. Everything is horrible. He says the way was through the sea way was through through the city.

Your path through the great waters yet. Your footprints were unseen. You lead your people like a flock by the hand of Moses and Aaron. So that's what this story is meant to do, not only for Israel but for us is that this is how we look back and say but this is the God we have so maybe my current circumstances look impossible. Maybe my back is up against the wall and I see no options in my own power to fix the situation, but I recall to my mind who God is and that changes everything. Remember what he's done. I remember what he's done, you know that sets me thinking about first Corinthians 10 and we referred to this last week where Paul has said all of that they experienced all of that, they were all baptized into the into the cloud and the scene he says in verse contains 10 one says they experienced all of that for our benefit and our instruction so that we would not do what they did. Yeah right that we would remember God can deliver that you know that thought culminate from there. In verse 13. There's no nothing overtaking this not common to man, but God will way through it in the day of trouble all seek the Lord yeah and that's the reflex that we should have the Mr. horrible's address. So what does it take for you for us to fear the Lord and believe that God will do what he says he will do right right yet because of the fear reaction in bad circumstances says overtly. God doesn't see God doesn't care. God doesn't love anymore sort of cast me off and now I'm going to be taking them on my circumstances came to that pang of fear is natural and all experience it, but you can nurse it is going on in fear right it is sin right right when we've remembered who God is and what he's done when you dwell on it. So basically you need to have the honest fear of your circumstances right translated into her memory of the fear of God who looks right deep reverence so that that's that's remarkably different think that's a solid that's a solid theme through many Psalms and David himself writes many of the message being pursued and very unjust circumstance right likings. All is that same idea. My back is up against the wall.

There is no escape. There's no way out and I have to think that what you would think is what he's what the psalmist says and 77 the way out is through this I it's and so like like Moses jurors them, he says, look, stand firm, and you'll see the salvation of just stand for God's know someone of my very favorite passages and it relates this is Isaiah 43 got only undermine have called you by name when you pass through the waters, when it's not. When you pass on it with my go forward your way is through this around when next we come back with us and were going to celebrate together because we have this wonderful song of Moses and Miriam dancing around celebrate style about got through this in Joy's next week on production of mainstream church of Brigham city is solely responsible to contact us with your questions or comments