Because, in Christ, we can expect great things from God, we must attempt great things for God.
I. Expect great things from God
We must expect great things from God because he is sovereign over human hearts (vv. 17-18), false gods (v. 24), and all of creation (vv. 16, 19-28).
Knowing: The folly of the Egyptians’ hard hearts is demonstrated by the fact that they pursued the Israelites even after God had worked such mighty acts to deliver them. God also shows himself to be sovereign over false gods, as the parting of the Red Sea puts an ironic twist on an Egyptian legend that said an Egyptian priest had once parted the Red Sea to find a piece of jewelry. Finally, God shows his sovereignty over creation by parting the waters to allow the Israelites to go through safely and closing the waters on top of the Egyptians to defeat them.
Being: The sovereign works God accomplished were to deliver the Israelites, but they were also for us. In preserving the Israelites, God was preserving the line of Jesus, our redeemer. God has been moving Heaven and earth to save you since the time of the Exodus!
Doing: This passage reveals the fear of evil people, evil forces that can draw us away from God, and the danger of living in a fallen world. Which of these fears resonates with you most right now? How does God’s sovereignty and goodness demonstrated in this passage deliver you from that fear?
II. Attempt great things for God
Because we can expect great things from God, we must attempt great things for God. Specifically, we must go and believe.
Knowing: Moses is crying out to God in panic, even while he is assuring the people, “The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent” (v. 14). God does what someone experienced in lifesaving sometimes has to do: He yells at him to wake him out of his panic, “Go forward.” God provides. God fights for us. God protects but oftentimes as we are going.
Being: The Israelites were saved in the same way we are and we are saved in the same way they were—by grace through faith in Christ. God told the Israelites to join Moses and he promised to the do the rest. This is the way Paul explains it. He says they were “baptized into Moses in the cloud and the sea.” “Baptized” means they were united to Moses, so they lived. Paul goes on to say they “ate the same spiritual food, and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank from the spiritual Rock that followed them, and the Rock was Christ” (1 Cor. 10:2-4). It is the same thing we have observed throughout our study of Exodus: “Jesus…saved a people out of the land of Egypt [and] afterward destroyed those who did not believe” (Jude 5).
Doing: In what way(s) can you attempt great things for God, especially in the midst of this pandemic?
For Further Study:
- For more on William Carey, see Sam Wellman, William Carey: Father of Missions (1997).
- For other references in scripture regarding Jesus as the one leading the people out of Egypt, see Luke 9:31; John 5:24; 1 Corinthians 10:1-4; Hebrews 3:3; and Jude 5.