This exposition of Exodus 14:15-31 by Pastor Rod Harris was delivered at Trinity Baptist Church on Sunday morning, October 21, 2018.
Intro:
That family had just said grace over the Sunday noon meal when the father asked the elementary aged son, “What did you learn in Sunday School this morning?” The son said, “We learned about the children of Israel crossing the Red Sea.” “Oh,” said the father, “tell us about it.”
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The boy gathered his thoughts and said, “Well, Israel was trapped between Pharaoh’s army and the Red Sea. There was no time to waste. Moses and Aaron called the men together and they built this pontoon bridge. They floated it out on the Sea and hurried the people across to the other side. Once they were safely on the other shore a team of Israeli commandos set charges on the bridge and waited for the Egyptians to get halfway across. They then blew up the bridge and killed all the Egyptian soldiers.” The father asked, “Son, is that they way your teacher told the story?” The son looked down at his plate, embarrassed and said, “No sir, but if I told it the way she told it…you would never believe it!” If you have any knowledge of the Old Testament you no doubt know the story of the parting of the Red Sea. It is one of the best known biblical text. You’ve probably seen Charlton Heston part the Sea every year during Easter season. And yes, we believe it happened just as the book of Exodus records it. God, supernaturally delivered His people. He brought them up out of Egypt with a strong arm and the Exodus is to the Old Testament what the Cross is to the New Testament. The story of God’s gracious deliverance of His people. As we work our way through the book of Exodus we keep before us the big picture, God is sovereignly at work saving a special people for His own glory. The Exodus is a gospel event. It is a picture of God’s ultimate deliverance of His people through His son the Lord Jesus. Our text this morning is found in Exodus chapter 14.
Text: Exodus 14:15-31
God heard the cries of His people and He has come to deliver them.
He is keeping the promise He made to Abraham centuries before.
After a series of plagues Pharaoh finally relented and Israel was set free.
Having “plundered” Egypt they Israelites marched out of Egypt.
They were led by God through a cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night.
But rather than head north, the most direct route to the land of promise, they went south toward the wilderness. The LORD placed them out on the edge of Egyptian territory with their backs to the Red Sea and had them settle in. He was using them as bait to draw Pharaoh out for one last encounter. He had one last act to perform to ensure that all Egypt knew that He, Yahweh God of the Hebrews, was the true God.
As we work our way through this text we see that…
Thesis: The Crossing of the Red Sea gives us great insight into the wonder of our salvation.
We said last time, “Scripture is the revelation of God.” By that we might not just that God is the one revealing truth but that He is the one being revealed. Scripture is about Him. He is the focus of the story. So, as we read through Scripture we are to ask, “What does this tell me about God? What does it say about what He has done or is doing? How am I to relate to Him?” As we’ve seen already Exodus is about salvation, it is about redemption and deliverance. It is a foreshadowing of God’s ultimate deliverance of His people from sin and death through the Lord Jesus, the Lamb of God.
As we walk through this passage I want to point out 3 things.
- In salvation, God demands the impossible and then He, himself accomplishes the impossible on behalf of His people. (12:15-16, 19-22)
- God’s glory is the goal and purpose of both the salvation and the judgment of God. (12:17-18, 23-30)
- Salvation is the work of God alone and faith is our response to what God has already accomplished. (12:31)
Conclusion:
When I’m asked, “When were you saved?” I want to answer, “2000 years ago, just outside the walled city of Jerusalem.” Of course I should say, “I don’t know the exact date but it was in eternity past, before the world was ever created when God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit entered into covenant to redeem fallen humanity. For the Lord Jesus is the Lamb slain before the foundation of the world.”
God saves, our response to His saving is to fear (reverence) and believe.
The New Testament ties the work of the Lord Jesus to the Exodus. At his birth there is reference to “Calling out of Egypt” God’s Son (Mt. 2:15). That is a quote from Hosea 11:1 in reference to the Exodus. When the Lord Jesus took James and John with him on the Mountain (Mount of Transfiguration) as our Lord met with Moses and Elijah they discussed his (Jesus’) “exodus.” Paul, in 1 Corinthians 10:1-2 connect our salvation/baptism to this crossing. Thus I say with confidence, The Crossing of the Red Sea gives us great insight into the wonder of our salvation.
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