“GOD LEADS HIS PEOPLE” Ex. 13:17-22
FBCF – 5/16/21
Jon Daniels
INTRO – What do all these have in common?
- Hide & Seek
- Kickball, Wiffle ball
- Four Square
- Kick the Can
- Duck, Duck, Goose
- Freeze Tag
- Red Rover
Children’s games. Played everyone of them at some point in my childhood. Especially loved Red Rover when you could clothesline someone who was running to your side!
There was another kid’s game we played – “Follow the Leader.” Here are the official rules that I found: “One player, the Leader, begins moving around with actions that the rest of the players must mimic. Anything — including wildly flailing his hands or furiously scratching his head — that the leader does, the others must follow. Those players who disobey, or lag behind the leader’s motions are out of the game. The last person standing becomes the new Leader.” (https://www.considerable.com/entertainment/games/follow-the-leader/)
Today’s sermon could’ve been titled, “Follow the Leader.” But it has nothing to do w/ a kid’s game, nothing to do w/ silly movements like “wildly flailing his hands,” & nothing to do w/ someone else becoming the leader. The context of this sermon & the passage of Scripture that we are going to look at today is that there is only one Leader that we must follow, & that Leader is God. One writer said this: “Follow the Leader isn’t just a kid’s game. Knowing who you are following & who is following you is important. We are witnesses of Christ.” (https://intentionalbygrace.com/follow-leader-isnt-just-kids-game/)
Moses knew this. He knew that if he was going to be successful in leading the people of God out of bondage in Egypt, he had to let God lead him. What an important principle for us all to follow!
- If you’re going to lead your family the way God would have you lead them, then you must let God lead you
- If you’re going to lead a Life Group in our church, then you must let God lead you.
- If you’re going to lead in a servant role as a deacon in this church, then you must let God lead you.
- If you’re going to lead in a staff position in this church, then you must let God lead you.
- If I’m going to lead as Pastor of this church, then I must let God lead me.
And the good news for all of us today is that God leads His people.
EXPLANATION – Exodus 13:17-22
God is with His people. He always has been & He always will be. This is a central message that is reiterated all throughout the Scriptures. He wants to be in relationship w/ us & one of the ways He makes this known is through His presence.
- Joshua 1:9 – “Have I not commanded you? Be strong & courageous. Do not be frightened, & do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is w/ you wherever you go.”
- Isaiah 41:10 – “Fear not, for I am w/ you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you w/ my righteous right hand.”
- Matthew 28:19-20 – “Go therefore & make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father & of the Son & of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am w/ you always, to the end of the age.”
- Revelation 3:20 – “Behold, I stand at the door & knock. If anyone hears my voice & opens the door, I will come in to him, & eat w/ him & he w/ me.”
God was w/ His people, the children of Israel, even during their days of trouble & captivity, their heartbreak & oppression. They may not have thought He was & even felt that He had abandoned them at times. But He was w/ them throughout it all.
- He was w/ the infant Moses as he was placed in the river to spare his life.
- He was w/ the people when they were being heavily oppressed by Pharaoh & were crying out to Him
- He was w/ Moses during the 40 years he was in the wilderness as a shepherd
- He was w/ Moses when He called him from the burning bush & commissioned him to go tell Pharaoh to let God’s people go
- He was w/ Moses when he confronted Pharaoh w/ God’s demand to let His people go
o Showed His presence through the courage He gave Moses, the abilities He gave Moses, the miraculous signs He gave Moses
- He was w/ Moses & the people when the 10 plagues came through Egypt. He shielded & protected them while the Egyptians suffered the judgment of God.
- He was w/ Moses & the people when Pharaoh finally caved in after the final plague that claimed the lives of all the firstborn children & animals in the land.
God was w/ them, & God led them. He finally led them out of Egypt after 430 years of captivity. Exodus 12:51 – “…on that very day the Lord brought the people of Israel out of the land of Egypt…” What a great day! A day of deliverance! A day of freedom! A day of rejoicing! But God wasn’t done w/ them. He led them out & He was going to continue to lead them on. As Deuteronomy 31:6 says, “…it is the Lord your God who goes w/ you. He will not leave you or forsake you.” “…The Lord will always be at your side. He will never abandon you.” (CEV)
APPLICATION – God has always led His people. We can trust Him to do that now.
GOD LEADS HIS PEOPLE: I want us to consider 3 ways God leads His people.
WHENEVER IT’S RIGHT FOR THEM – V. 17a – This is a timing issue.
I wonder how many times the children of Israel had cried out to God for His deliverance. And God’s answer kept coming back, “Not yet.” That’s one of the ways God answers our prayers – Yes, No, or Not yet. That had to be hard for them to hear. Life was hard. The oppression was heavy. The work was backbreaking. The pain was great.
But God knows what He’s doing & His timing is always perfect, just as all of His ways are perfect.
- Psalm 18:30 – “This God – His way is perfect…”
That first phrase in v. 17 – “When Pharaoh let the people go” – the only way that came about was b/c God said, “It’s time.” His timing is never early & it’s never late. There’s never been any event or circumstance in the world that has put a wrinkle in His eternal plan, even something as monumental as the 430 yr. slavery of His people.
There are 2 important components that we need as we wait on God’s timing as He leads us:
- Patience – Not something that we are good at. Fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22) – Waiting patiently on God is so important, even though it’s difficult for us in our “instant society.” We want what we want & we want it now. And most of the time, we get it now. But God doesn’t operate on our schedule. So we have to learn to wait on Him. Good news is that while we are waiting, He’s still working, strengthening us, energizing us, & molding us into the Christ-follower that He desires for us to be. Isaiah 40:31 – “They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength. They will mount up on wings like eagles. They will run & not be weary; they will walk & not faint.” We’ve got to learn to wait on God.
- Trust – Our ability to wait is largely related to how much we trust Him. And we learn to trust Him as we come to know more about Him. And the way we come to know more about Him is to immerse ourselves in His Word. So that means that our time in God’s waiting room needs to be spent growing in our understanding of who He is & how He works.
o Waiting room at doctor’s office – old magazines just to browse & pass time. Not really interested in them. Just trying to take your mind off why you’re there or procedure you’re about to have.
o God’s waiting room – Grab your Bible, not an outdated magazine. Get into the Word. Deeply interested in it. Renew your mind in it. Romans 12:2 – “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” Build your trust in God.
WHEREVER IS BEST FOR THEM – V. 17b-18 – This is a direction issue.
Not only do we have to trust God’s timing, we’ve got to trust His direction as He leads us. God did not lead the children of Israel out of Egypt by the closest route – which would have caused them to have to fight the Philistines – but by a route that would take them toward the Red Sea, eventually putting them between the water & Pharaoh’s approaching chariots.
Sometimes the direction that God is leading us doesn’t make sense initially.
- Exodus 14:10-11
But we’ve got to know that, if God is leading us in a way that doesn’t seem to make sense to us at the time, there’s a reason for it.
- There’s something greater coming.
- There’s something that He wants to teach us
- There’s something that He want to show us
The Red Sea experience was coming.
- God knew what He was going to do – they didn’t.
- He was about to reveal His power & might to them in a way that the world had never seen. He knew that – they didn’t.
- He was about to deliver them in an incredibly spectacular way that ONLY He could do. He knew that – they didn’t.
- He knew that the only way they could experience this was to be brought to a point of no return. He knew that – they didn’t.
“This doesn’t make sense, God.” – “Trust me & come on.”
“This doesn’t look right, God.” – “Trust me & come on.”
“This has never been done before, God.” – “Trust me & come on.”
“Folks are going to think we’re crazy, God.” – “Trust me & come on.”
They had to trust God. They had to trust their God-called leader, Moses. And they had to go the direction that God told them to go through their leader.
HOWEVER WILL WORK FOR THEM – V. 21-22 – This is a methodology issue.
God didn’t just send them out there into the wilderness on their own to take their chances. He was faithful to provide them w/ specific methods of leadership in the daytime & in the nighttime. And those means never left them as long as they needed them.
God is going to lead you. He’s going to lead us. In fact, He’s doing that now. Probably won’t be w/ a pillar of cloud & a pillar of fire. His methods of leading us now are to lead us through His Word, by the power of the Spirit, using God-called, Spirit-filled pastors & leaders to speak truth & challenge us to take the next step.
- Exodus 14:15 – “Why do you cry to me? Tell the people of Israel to go forward.”
- They would have never experienced the amazing work of God in their midst if they hadn’t moved forward. They would have died if they had stayed where they were.
- Will you & I move when God says, “Go forward”?
CONCLUSION/TAKEAWAYS
What’s God leading YOU to do today?
- Give your life to Jesus?
- Renew your walk w/ Christ?
- Join church?
- Reconcile a broken relationship?
- Commit to ministry/missions?
FBCF: What’s God leading US to do?
- We’ve got decisions to make
- We’ve got directions to go
- We’ve got a commission to obey
- We’ve got work to do
- We’ve got an enemy to defeat
- We’ve got a community, state, nation, & world to reach out to w/ the Gospel
Are we ready to move forward as God leads us? I sure hope so! Let’s go!
