What do you do when your back is against the sea? This weekend, Pastor Joaquin continued our MOSES: Live No Lies series by examining one of the most famous miracles in Scripture: the crossing of the Red Sea.
Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and the Lord drove the sea back by a strong east wind all night and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided. And the people of Israel went into the midst of the sea on dry ground, the waters being a wall to them on their right hand and on their left.
Exodus 14:21- 22
After 400 years of slavery, God’s people were finally free. Yet, instead of taking the shortest route to the Promised Land, God led them toward what appeared to be a dead end. With the Red Sea in front of them and Pharaoh’s army behind them, Israel found themselves trapped, afraid, and questioning God’s plan.
1) Trust his route.
When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them by way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near. For God said, “Lest the people change their minds when they see war and return to Egypt.”
Exodus 13:17
God did not lead Israel by the shortest route because He knew they were not ready for what was ahead. The route that looked better to God’s people wasn’t actually better for God’s people.
Sometimes what feels like a delay is actually God’s protection. What feels like a detour may actually be God’s grace. God sees what we cannot see, knows what we do not know, and leads His children according to what they need, not simply what they want.
2) When we forget, we fear.
“They did not remember the abundance of your steadfast love, but rebelled by the sea, at the Red Sea.”
Psalm 106:7
Psalm 106 reveals something surprising about the Red Sea story. The real issue wasn’t Israel’s fear; it was their forgetfulness. They forgot God’s power, God’s provision, God’s promises, and God’s steadfast love. Their forgetfulness opened the door for fear. Yet even after they complained, doubted, and rebelled, God remained faithful.
The miracle of the Red Sea is not ultimately about Israel’s faith. It’s about God’s faithfulness despite their forgetfulness.
3) Faith moves forward.
When the Israelites found themselves trapped, God gave Moses a surprising response:
The LORD said to Moses, “Why do you cry to me? Tell the people of Israel to go forward.”
Exodus 14:15
There are moments in life when prayer must lead to obedience.
“There are times when prayer is not enough—when prayer itself is out of season. When we have prayed over a matter to a certain degree, it then becomes sinful to tarry any longer; our plain duty is to carry our desires into action.”
Charles Spurgeon
The miracle belonged to God but the movement belonged to his people. Faith doesn’t just believe God can make a way. Faith moves forward when He makes that way.
