Pursued By The Past With Nowhere To Go

Introduction:

JAWS: Most of us remember the movie Jaws. What made that movie terrifying wasn’t just the shark — it was the feeling that no matter where they went, that thing kept coming back. It was the fear of something beneath the surface… something behind them… something they couldn’t shake.

Israel knew that feeling. They looked behind them and saw Pharaoh’s army. They looked ahead and saw the Red Sea. And just like those men on that boat, they felt trapped with nowhere to go.

There have been numerous times in my life when I didn’t really know what God was doing but I knew He had a plan. It might not have made since to me but I trusted Him.

In a day when having faith is laughed at and daring to believe when there seems no hope is thought to be a fool – God may be asking each of us in here today if we really trust Him. Or is that just something that we say because of where we are today?

The children of Israel were God’s chosen people, they had seen the mighty miracles of the ten plagues, now they are beginning their Exodus and they have a crisis of faith.

Body

I. They Saw Their Past Coming After Them.

Transition: You remember in Jaws how every time the crew thought they were safe, that fin would break the surface again? Just when they thought they’d outrun it — there it was. The past threat kept resurfacing.

The Egyptian army was closing in, and fear overwhelmed them.

They saw Pharaoh behind them and the Red Sea before them — trapped.

This was the first of many “we should have stayed in Egypt” moments.

They were free, but still thought like captives.

Fear makes us forget what God has already done.

When all we see is death on one side and destruction on the other, we panic.

And we start making our own “post-exodus declarations.”

Preaching moment:

God has called us to proclaim freedom — not to run back to the chains He broke.

Transition: And when the past looks terrifying… the present starts looking hopeless.

II. They Saw Their Hopeless Present.

Transition: There’s a moment in Jaws when the boat — the Orca — is literally sinking. Water is pouring in. The engine is failing. The shark is circling. They’re out of options. They’re trapped.

That’s Israel at the Red Sea.

They focused on how bad things looked in the moment.

Suddenly slavery didn’t seem so bad — fear rewrites history.

They placed more faith in Pharaoh than in God.

Their complaints weren’t really against Moses — they were against God.

They didn’t believe God would save them.

But with God, it is never hopeless.

We often think our “right now” is the worst it’s ever been.

We forget who we are and start acting like people with no hope.

Preaching moment: We are children of God — but we walk around like spiritual orphans.

Transition: But God never leaves His people staring at the past or drowning in the present. He lifts their eyes to the future.

III. God Showed Them Their Amazing Future.

Transition: At the end of Jaws, the shark comes in for one final attack while the boat is sinking and Brody has nowhere left to run. He fires his rifle at the pressurized tank lodged in the shark’s mouth, and when the bullet hits, the whole thing explodes. In a single moment, the monster that looked unstoppable is gone — sudden deliverance right when it looked like the end.

Israel saw the same thing.

Moses Trusted God

Trusting God is hardest when the command is “wait.”

But when God said “move,” He revealed His power.

Even the Egyptians realized they could not fight God.

Israel saw God’s greatness and learned to stand in awe..

Trust God

Never lose sight that God is in charge.

God places us where He wants us so we can see His power.

Those who chase, harass, or oppose God’s people will see His power too.

Transition: And that brings us to where we stand today — caught between what was, what is, and what God is calling us toward..

Conclusion

JAWS: Some of us are living like those men on that sinking boat — staring at the fin, staring at the waves, staring at the danger. But the God who delivered Israel is still delivering His people.

Could it be that you are where you are because you’ve spent more time staring at the enemy and the barriers than at the Deliverer?

When will you admit the problem isn’t “out there” — it’s in your own heart?

You need to repent.

As long as we stand around looking at what’s wrong, we will never move toward what God has promised.

Invitation Rhythm:

Stop looking back.

Stop staring at the present.

Lift your eyes to the God who parts seas.

Trust Him — even when there seems to be nowhere to go..