Caught Between the Pharaoh and the Deep Red Sea
EXODUS 14:10 – 31
Have you ever found yourself in a desperate situation…? Ever felt you were “Painted in a corner?” Did it seem that there was “No way out?” Have you ever felt like you were between a rock and a hard place?
• Financial Problems
• Family Problems
• Health
• Faith Faltering
• Hope Halted
• Victory Vanished
We see here in Exodus 14 that this is the case with the children of Israel. They find themselves in a desperate situation. They are trapped with nowhere to turn. There seems to be no way out..... They’re caught... Between the Pharaoh and the deep Red Sea...!
There are times in our lives when we, like the children of Israel, face a Red Sea crossing. There are several things we need to do that will enable us to cross the Red Sea’s in our lives..
I. LET GO OF THE PAST (v12)
When Moses and God’s people arrived at the shores of the Red Sea, they could see the Egyptians rapidly approaching behind them. They thought they were trapped, but God had a purpose.
They were afraid according to Verse 10, the children of Israel cried out unto the Lord. They said to Moses (moaning) we told you this in Egypt; you should have left us alone, we could have carried on serving the Egyptians… Let me tell you something… when you are facing the Red Sea in your life, there is always the temptation to go back to Egypt. (Egypt represents the world)
The problem was they became accustomed to slavery... And comfortable in it…! They thought it would have been better to stay in Egypt as slaves… (Verse 12)...
Sometimes we have the tendency to look back when we come to the Red Sea in our lives.. Our old life won’t help us. When times are tough we feel like giving up and going back to our old life, going back to how things were…
It’s funny how we concentrate on how things used to be, what we used to have… What we used to do… There’s nothing wrong with memories but we won’t cross those Red Seas in our lives by looking to the past, by looking to our old life before we knew the Lord. The past – our old life – can’t and won’t help us. We can never overcome what is in front of us if we keep looking backwards (behind us)...
The Lord has been constantly proving Himself to us, taking us through dangers seen and unseen. Israel was so paralyzed with fear that they were willing to give up and settle for a life of despondency and hopelessness…!
It amazes me that when things go wrong in a Christian’s life… the first thing we do is blame the Lord and sometimes turn our backs on Him.. (A Parachute will not improve your flight… it will be uncomfortable in the seat - A parachute WILL save your life when you jump from that plane)
So many times we give up and settle for anything instead of receiving all that God has for us, if you’re going to cross that Red Sea, you’ve got to let go of the Past…! We’ve got to stop allowing the enemy to convince us to return to the things that God has already brought us out of...!
God brought the children of Israel out of bondage – He’s brought us out of the bondage of sin, by putting his Son on the cross…..
Rom 12:2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.
Let go of the past and don’t look back for your help….
II. LOOK TO YOUR FAITH (v13 – 14)
(V13) Don’t be afraid… Don’t allow the enemy to keep you in the confinement of fear… For fear is NOT of the Lord… In fact fear is OPPOSITE of faith…! F.E.A.R. is nothing more than False Evidence Appearing Real…! It’s a trick that the enemy will use to keep you entangled and entrapped in his snare…! (It’s a mind thing...)
2Ti 1:7 For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.
No matter how the devil tries to plant the device of fear in your spirit, just stand boldly on God’s Promises… Stand boldly on God’s Word… And Look to Your Faith…!
(Problem) Israel didn’t believe that God would bring them out...! In spite of all that He’d done for them... In spite of all the plagues that He cast upon the Egyptians... They didn’t believe that God would see them through...! In spite of all God’s done for us... In spite of the dangers He’s seen us through... We’ve got to learn how to Look To Our Faith...! Because when you look to your faith you’ll be able to stand still…!
All of us are going to experience a time when we have to be rescued. Moses looked at the people with FEAR written all over their faces and realised this “Fear Thing” had to be dealt with FIRST! – Therefore, he said, “Fear not.”
You have a “Choice” as to whether you allow “Fear” to dominate you or not. – “Let not your hearts be troubled.”
The people of God had come to a place where they had to make a “Choice” – Give up and go back to Egypt to slavery or Trust and Obey God.
We have the same choice today, we can either give up! Or we can give it to God!
The NEXT thing Moses said was, “Stand Still.”
Don’t just stand there do something – Headless chicken……..
Why run around when you don’t know where you are going?
Don’t just do something stand there…
We have to be able to stand by faith before we can walk by faith.
Isa 40:31 But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.
With waiting… Comes renewed faith… With waiting… Comes renewed strength… With waiting… Comes renewed zeal…
When we look to our faith and depend on the Lord, if we just trust in Him, and look to our faith… He’ll strengthen our hearts… He’ll strengthen our mind, will, and emotions…We’ll simply stand still and trust in His Word…! We’ll simply "Stand still… And see the salvation of the Lord…!"
We’ll be able to "Stand Still…" And let God do what He does best…! "Stand Still…" And watch God move on your behalf… "Stand Still…" And Look to your Faith…! He’s telling us in Psalm 46:10 Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth.
God – never leave nor forsake… Have faith that God will deliver you….. It is for a purpose…. We don’t understand why we are at the Red Sea… God seas what’s on the other side.
I’ve brought you out in times past... I’ve led you by clouds in the day, by fire in the night.... I gave you food when you were hungry, drink when you were thirsty..."
III. LAUNCH FORWARD (v15)
We’ve got to learn how to go forward in the things of God… If you really want to go forward, you’ve got to learn how to move at His command…Learn how to
Go forward in His…
I. Presence: (David & Goliath, 3 Hebrew Boys)
II. Power: (Phil 4:13)
III. Promise: (Mat 28:20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.)
Just launch forward… No matter what comes your way…! The crossing of your Red Sea is for a purpose… on the other side your faith may be stronger, your song may be louder, your prayer time more frequent, closer to the Lord, brought to your knees….. Success / Failure = 18 inches – knee to floor…..
We Say “It’s impossible.” God Says “All things are possible” (Mat 19:26)
We Say “I am too tired.” God Says “I will give you rest.” (Mat 11:28)
We Say “Nobody really loves me.” God Says “I love you.” (John 3:16)
We Say “Nobody really cares for me.” God Says “I care for you.” (1 Peter 5:7)
We Say “I cannot go on.” God Says “My grace is sufficient.” (2 Cor 12:9)
We Say “I cannot figure things out.” God Says “I shall direct thy paths.” (Prov 3:6)
We Say “I cannot do it.” God Says “You can do all things.” (Phil 4:13)
We Say “I am unable.” God Says “I am able.” (2 Cor 9:8)
We Say “I am not worth it.” God Says “It will be worth it.” (Rom 8:28)
We Say “I cannot forgive myself.” God Says “I forgive you.” (1 John 1:9)
We Say “I cannot afford to.” God Says “I will supply all your needs.” (Phil 4:19)
Conclusion
There is a story about an old farmer whose mule fell into a well. After many unsuccessful attempts to haul the mule out of the hole, the farmer decided it was hopeless. With sadness, he instructed his boys to fill up several truckloads of dirt and just bury the old mule right in the well. The boys backed up the truck filled with dirt, and shovel by shovel, they began to fill the well and bury the mule. The mule didn’t take kindly to this action. The first shovel of dirt hit him square on the head, got in his eyes and mouth, and made him sneeze.
Every shovel full after that hit him somewhere, causing the old mule to stomp around in the bottom of the well. Several truckloads of dirt later, the mule was still stomping and packing dirt firmly underneath his feet. Little by little, that mule was lifting itself out of the hole. Sure enough, about mid-afternoon that mule simply stepped out of the well and snorted at the whole business.
There are different ways people have of dealing with problems life throws at them. Some are constant complainers. They do not handle setbacks and upsets very well. Some of them cannot even handle normal events. Others are defeated at the slightest difficulty. Quite a few get confused, turned around and seem not to know what to do. Then there are a few who are unconquerable. They are like the mule. Problems can hit them square on the head, but they just stomp around enough until they actually use the problem to rise above it.
Look at the great heroes of the Bible. They were men and women who could match the occasion. Moses was that kind of man. Surely Joseph, who rose from the bottom of a pit to a leader of Egypt, was that kind of man. Could David have been anything other than the kind of man who rose above his faults and problems? Esther was surely the kind of woman who did not let problems paralyze her. On and on we could go, but you see the point.
How was all this done? The reason such people could rise out of the "wells" of life is because they all had a great faith in God. It is a childish attitude that says, "If God loved me, He would take away all these problems." Not so! The opposite is really true. If God loves you, He will reveal Himself to you through His Word and give you opportunity to let your faith lift you up. God wants us to learn how to do it. He wants us to work at it. When you realize that and accept it, it will give you a power to deal with living you never had before.
What I want you to see in closing is that coming to the Red Sea is just as much a part of God’s plan as crossing it. A predicament in God’s hands is only a highway to the Promised Land.
Why does God allow these predicaments to happen in our lives? Often times it takes these tight places to get us to look up to Him for our help. We cannot cross the Red Sea in our own strength…. God will part the waters for us… He’ll never leave us…
I shall meet tomorrow bravely,
I am stronger now,
The disappointments that befell me
Strengthened me somehow.
The dawn shall find my face uplifted,
Serene, in the sun,
And with Him my problems sifted,
One by one.
