“Battle Strategy” 2 – Exodus 14

Have you ever been watching a movie that seems real enough and all the sudden they do something impossible? My favorite is the classic scene where the guy breaks the car window, opens the door, pulls down a couple of wires under the dash and in two seconds, hot wires the car by sparking two wires together. Drives me crazy. Do you know how impossible that is?

Number one, that window doesn’t break like that. I know. I locked my keys in my car once so I wrapped my hand in my t-shirt and punched the window as hard as I could. Do you know what happened? The window didn’t even crack but my hand did. I couldn’t use my arm for three days. Also, I have worked on cars and trucks enough to know that there are hundreds of wires under the dash and they are all different colors and all do different things and you can’t just pull them down like that.

I hate it when Hollywood thinks I’m stupid. Like when the cowboy shoots 25 times without reloading his six-shooter or the bus jumps over the gap in the highway. Don’t get me started on the laugh track they use on these so-called comedies. Those jokes aren’t near that funny. You know what I mean, right?

So, it’s always amazing to me that the people that put out these ridiculous movies or just watch them and have no trouble with them then want to explain away the real miracles of God. Our text this morning is from Exodus 14 where we read about the Israelites crossing the Red Sea on dry land. You know the story. The Israelites finally left Egypt but Pharaoh changed his mind and went after them and found them trapped next to the massive Red Sea so he attacked and God caused the sea to divide and the Israelites walked over but when the Egyptians followed, God closed the gap in the water and they all drowned.

It’s a story most of us have heard since we were little kids and we just believe it. The Bible says it. It’s true. That’s enough. I was watching a documentary a while back and several scientists have finally “figured out” how it happened. See, if they went at just the right spot across the Red Sea at just the right time of year and the right time of day, and if there was an earthquake and the wind was really blowing at just the right speed and if they hurried, then there is a chance this really happened.

That is what they believe. But here is another option. Now, keep in mind I am not a scientist nor do I play one on TV but here is my theory. God performed a miracle. You know what? If they did go at just the right time and place and there was an earthquake and the wind blew, that is still a miracle. But I believe it happened just like the Bible says. God led the people to this spot, allowed them to be part of it and caused several incredible things to happen so that all the people had to do was be obedient and God would get the glory. That is called a miracle any way you slice it.

We have come to our second installment of Battle Strategy Training in our preparation for battle. I told you when we began this even before Boot Camp that the reason we started this is because I got tired of seeing people get attacked by Satan and just giving up. Maybe it was in temptation or maybe he attacked by causing something bad to happen but I was seeing too many people just freaking out, dropping out and rolling over when we have at our disposal the same power that brought Jesus out of the grave.

Now, if that was you freaking out and rolling over, don’t feel like you are the only one that has ever done that. In Exodus 6:5, God said He had heard the groaning of the Israelites and so He was going to work for them. They groaned in Israel. They groaned in Egypt. They groaned in the desert. They groaned when they were free and they groaned in bondage…just…like…we…do.

You may remember from the book of Genesis that there had been a famine in Israel, which was part of God’s whole plan, and Joseph, an Israelite had become second in command of Egypt where there was plenty of food. His family finally came over to Egypt to live and pretty soon the whole country of Israel had pretty much done the same and the Egyptians made them slaves for 430 years. But, again, God heard their groaning and called Moses to bring them out of slavery. There are about twenty other major miracles in all that story (all part of God’s plan) but moving right along, we see the Israelites finally getting to leave Egypt. They are gone just a little while and Pharaoh has a change of heart when he hears they are wandering lost in the desert. Our main passage is in Exodus 14 but I want to start with a couple of verses at the end of 13.

We will read Exodus 13:17-18 and 20-22 and then all of chapter 14. It sounds long but it’s a great story and fun to read.

When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them on the road through the Philistine country, though that was shorter. For God said, “If they face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt.” ¹⁸ So God led the people around by the desert road toward the Red Sea. The Israelites went up out of Egypt ready for battle. ²⁰ After leaving Sukkoth they camped at Etham on the edge of the desert. ²¹ By day the Lord went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they could travel by day or night. ²² Neither the pillar of cloud by day nor the pillar of fire by night left its place in front of the people. 14 Then the Lord said to Moses, ² “Tell the Israelites to turn back and encamp near Pi Hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea. They are to encamp by the sea, directly opposite Baal Zephon. ³ Pharaoh will think, ‘The Israelites are wandering around the land in confusion, hemmed in by the desert.’ ⁴ And I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and he will pursue them. But I will gain glory for myself through Pharaoh and all his army, and the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord.” So the Israelites did this. ⁵ When the king of Egypt was told that the people had fled, Pharaoh and his officials changed their minds about them and said, “What have we done? We have let the Israelites go and have lost their services!” ⁶ So he had his chariot made ready and took his army with him. ⁷ He took six hundred of the best chariots, along with all the other chariots of Egypt, with officers over all of them. ⁸ The Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt, so that he pursued the Israelites, who were marching out boldly. ⁹ The Egyptians—all Pharaoh’s horses and chariots, horsemen and troops—pursued the Israelites and overtook them as they camped by the sea near Pi Hahiroth, opposite Baal Zephon. ¹⁰ As Pharaoh approached, the Israelites looked up, and there were the Egyptians, marching after them. They were terrified and cried out to the Lord. ¹¹ They said to Moses, “Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die? What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt? ¹² Didn’t we say to you in Egypt, ‘Leave us alone; let us serve the Egyptians’? It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert!” ¹³ Moses answered the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. ¹⁴ The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.” ¹⁵ Then the Lord said to Moses, “Why are you crying out to me? Tell the Israelites to move on. ¹⁶ Raise your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea to divide the water so that the Israelites can go through the sea on dry ground. ¹⁷ I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians so that they will go in after them. And I will gain glory through Pharaoh and all his army, through his chariots and his horsemen. ¹⁸ The Egyptians will know that I am the Lord when I gain glory through Pharaoh, his chariots and his horsemen.” ¹⁹ Then the angel of God, who had been traveling in front of Israel’s army, withdrew and went behind them. The pillar of cloud also moved from in front and stood behind them, ²⁰ coming between the armies of Egypt and Israel. Throughout the night the cloud brought darkness to the one side and light to the other side; so neither went near the other all night long. ²¹ Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and all that night the Lord drove the sea back with a strong east wind and turned it into dry land. The waters were divided, ²² and the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with a wall of water on their right and on their left. ²³ The Egyptians pursued them, and all Pharaoh’s horses and chariots and horsemen followed them into the sea. ²⁴ During the last watch of the night the Lord looked down from the pillar of fire and cloud at the Egyptian army and threw it into confusion. ²⁵ He jammed the wheels of their chariots so that they had difficulty driving. And the Egyptians said, “Let’s get away from the Israelites! The Lord is fighting for them against Egypt.” ²⁶ Then the Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand over the sea so that the waters may flow back over the Egyptians and their chariots and horsemen.” ²⁷ Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and at daybreak the sea went back to its place. The Egyptians were fleeing toward it, and the Lord swept them into the sea. ²⁸ The water flowed back and covered the chariots and horsemen—the entire army of Pharaoh that had followed the Israelites into the sea. Not one of them survived. ²⁹ But the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with a wall of water on their right and on their left. ³⁰ That day the Lord saved Israel from the hands of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians lying dead on the shore. ³¹ And when the Israelites saw the mighty hand of the Lord displayed against the Egyptians, the people feared the Lord and put their trust in him and in Moses his servant.

When I was a little kid, I had an illustrated story book of the Bible and I remember it had an illustration of this story that showed the people walking through the Red Sea with a wall of water on both sides and on one side the people were looking up at a whale swimming right beside them like they were looking at a huge aquarium. We don’t know that anything like that happened but I like that way of thinking. If God can do a small miracle then He can do a big miracle!

I think everybody here would say they believe that. But I think the problem most of us have is believing that God can do the small miracles in our lives, at least we don’t live like it. Oh, sure you believe God can part the sea or make a donkey talk or even speak the universe into existence but when the doctor gives bad news, it’s time to worry. When that temptation comes at you from what used to be an addiction, that’s too much for God. When the bills start piling up, you know what the Bible says but you still quit tithing and start working on Sunday so you can fix the problem.

When an alcoholic became a believer, he was asked how he could possibly believe all the nonsense in the Bible about miracles. "You don't believe that Jesus changed the water into wine do you?" "I sure do, because in our house Jesus changed the whiskey into furniture."  R. Stedman, Authentic Christianity, p. 36.

I look around here this morning and I see a lot of miracles. I see the prisoner who was set free and now goes back to the prison to share Jesus. I see the spiritually blind, the physically sick and the emotionally abused who are healed. I see the drunk who hasn’t had a drop in 30-something years. I see the immoral and the ugly, the wasteful and mean man who now stands up here to preach. But the question is, can God handle the attack you are going through right now? When Satan attacks, is God really going to fight for you?

Oh, I know what you’re thinking. “If I saw God do a huge miracle like parting the Red Sea, then I would believe.” No, you wouldn’t. Do you know why I say that? In the very next chapter, right after the big celebration and the long, wonderful prayer of thanksgiving, it says the people started groaning when they didn’t have enough water. The last person to cross over is just barely on the other side good and it’s already, “Oh, no! What are we going to do now? I mean, what has God done for us lately?”

There are several things I want us to see in this wonderful passage that will help us when Satan attacks. First we need to look at it from an overview. Was it God’s will that Joseph went to Egypt back in Genesis? Yes, it was. Was it God’s will that the people would follow Joseph and even be enslaved? Yes, it was. Was it God’s will that Moses deliver them? Absolutely. But look closer. In chapter 13, verse 17, God led them out of Egypt and into the desert right up to the Red Sea. God did that on purpose.

He didn’t take them the quickest way but led them in a way that would go around the crazy–mean Philistines and make it look like they were lost so that Pharaoh would chase them. God set all of this up. Why? For His glory. Why does God do anything? For His glory. Why does God allow or even cause what we think are bad things to happen to us? For His glory.

Read verses 2, 3 and 4 again.  “Tell the Israelites to turn back and encamp near Pi Hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea. They are to encamp by the sea, directly opposite Baal Zephon. ³ Pharaoh will think, ‘The Israelites are wandering around the land in confusion, hemmed in by the desert.’ ⁴ And I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and he will pursue them. But I will gain glory for myself through Pharaoh and all his army, and the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord.”

I bet they were groaning then, too. “That Moses! He is getting us lost. Where’s the GPS?” But God was telling Moses, in fact, He was showing Moses which way to go. It wasn’t Moses’s fault. God was in control of where they went the whole time just like He is today with your problem. So, that leads us to this question, how do we know where God is leading us? Look at chapter 13, verses 21-22. ²¹ By day the Lord went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they could travel by day or night. ²² Neither the pillar of cloud by day nor the pillar of fire by night left its place in front of the people.

Don’t you wish you had something like that? Don’t you wish you had something to guide you and to help you make wise choices? You do! In Isaiah 30:21 it says, “Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, "This is the way; walk in it." Do you know what that voice is? For us as believers, that voice is the Holy Spirit.

In John 16:7, Jesus said, “But very truly I tell you, it is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you.” He calls Him the Advocate here or the Comforter. The Holy Spirit is our Guide and He wants us to know which way to go. He wants what is best for us and wherever He guides, it will be for our best and for God to get the glory through it.

So, when Satan attacks you, either by temptation or causing something bad in your life, we see in this passage what God’s part is in it. He allows it. He may even cause it. In John chapter 9, Jesus and His disciples come to a man born blind and His disciples ask Jesus, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” 3Jesus answered, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but this happened so that the works of God would be displayed in him.” Sometimes God allows or causes what we consider to be bad things to come into our lives but God is still in control. He is sovereign but He also loves us and wants us to do the right thing, to be obedient even in the midst of the trial.

It is fascinating to me to read verse 13 of chapter 14 that says, “¹³ Moses answered the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand firm (does that sound familiar? Stand firm? Stand. Put on the armor of God and stand? Ephesians 6) and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. ¹⁴ The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.”

God will fight for you. Just be still. But then in just the very next verse, God tells Moses to tell the people to move on. Do you see that in verse 15? Well, which is it? Be still or move on? The answer is “yes.” Psalm 46:10 uses the same words. “Be still and know He is God.” I love that verse and I know we have talked about it before. It literally means to let your hands hang down. Quit trying to solve the problem and to fix everything. Relax. God’s got this.

When you do that, you just keep moving on. Keep living life. The battle’s not over. Don’t give up and freak out and fall over. It’s gonna be ok. God’s in control and He loves you. His job is to fight the battle in a way that is best for you and brings Him glory. You just be obedient, keep going, be still in your heart and mind. Make Him look good in every season of your life, good or bad and watch Him work. Then watch the miracles.

I believe the greatest miracle God ever performed was making us justified and righteous and holy and His friends and He did that through the shed blood of Jesus on the cross. On that cross He died for your sins to pay the price we could never pay and all we have to do is believe. If you have never done that today, then let Him work that miracle in you right now. Ask Him for forgiveness of your sins and then repent or turn away from those sins. Let God change your life for your good and His glory today. Do it right now as the music plays.