Will you go on a journey with me?
One that will probably feel very familiar to most. One that some of you probably have old Sunday school coloring pages capturing it. One that could be recited by most as easy as the pledge of allegiance.
It’s a journey I know you have probably taken before but I ask you to take it again with me today because I know there is always something new for us to see. As I have been journeying through the Old Testament, filled with familiar stories I have heard my whole life, I have been asking God to enlightened my mind and widen my eyes. If we aren’t careful we can grow numb to what we have “heard” a million times. Yet, what difference it makes when we approach His scriptures with a humble heart, knowing that these are living words. Everything I think I already know couldn’t even begin to scratch the surface of all that He is. It has been such a reminder to myself that if I am not mindful, even my pride can rear its ugly head as I read His words – “I already know this.” Oh, but what joy is there when I lower myself and come to His words with a heart that is fully aware that there is always more to learn.
With all of that being said, let’s cross the red sea.
Once upon a time, there was a guy named Moses. I am kidding. Well sort of. I think sometimes our ears grow numb to stories like this one. They almost feel like a story about a made-up land that our parents use to tell us before bed. Your parents might have even read you this before bed. Yet, this was no “once upon a time.” This was in fact a very real-time, with a very real man. With a group of people who are more like us than we care to admit.
So the story goes – the Israelites had been enslaved in Egypt for years. Moses had been called by God in a burning bush and commissioned to lead the people out of Egypt. With his brother at his side, they asked Pharaoh to let them go. With Pharaoh’s no, we see the ten plagues unfold. After the Lord had struck down the firstborns, what we know as the Passover, finally, Pharaoh summons Moses and Aaron and releases them and the people of Israel.
We then have the institution of the Passover, the consecration of the firstborn, the feast of the unleveled bread, and the pillar of cloud and fire. Whew, I am telling you, for the sake of blog writing, I know I can’t keep your attention long enough to go into all the details of those things but I highly encourage digging on your own.
The Israelites have been led out by Moses and the Lord guided them day and night. Scripture says, “the pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night did not depart from before the people.” Exodus 13:22. I love that the word choice there is “before.” Their guide was before them. He was not hiding from them. He made it to where He could be seen.
Then they reach the red sea. God parts the waters and they pass through on dry ground. But I want us to do more than cross the sea. We talk about God parting the waters and the Israelites making it through, an undeniable miracle. However, there is something so stunning that happens right after that until recently I have missed it.
The song of Moses
“Then Moses and the Israelites sang this song to the Lord:
“I will sing to the Lord,
for he is highly exalted.
Both horse and driver
he has hurled into the sea.
2 “The Lord is my strength and my defense;
he has become my salvation.
He is my God, and I will praise him,
my father’s God, and I will exalt him.
3 The Lord is a warrior;
the Lord is his name.
4 Pharaoh’s chariots and his army
he has hurled into the sea.
The best of Pharaoh’s officers
are drowned in the Red Sea.
5 The deep waters have covered them;
they sank to the depths like a stone.
6 Your right hand, Lord,
was majestic in power.
Your right hand, Lord,
shattered the enemy.
7 “In the greatness of your majesty
you threw down those who opposed you.
You unleashed your burning anger;
it consumed them like stubble.
8 By the blast of your nostrils
the waters piled up.
The surging waters stood up like a wall;
the deep waters congealed in the heart of the sea.
9 The enemy boasted,
‘I will pursue, I will overtake them.
I will divide the spoils;
I will gorge myself on them.
I will draw my sword
and my hand will destroy them.’
10 But you blew with your breath,
and the sea covered them.
They sank like lead
in the mighty waters.
11 Who among the gods
is like you, Lord?
Who is like you—
majestic in holiness,
awesome in glory,
working wonders?
12 “You stretch out your right hand,
and the earth swallows your enemies.
13 In your unfailing love you will lead
the people you have redeemed.
In your strength you will guide them
to your holy dwelling.
14 The nations will hear and tremble;
anguish will grip the people of Philistia.
15 The chiefs of Edom will be terrified,
the leaders of Moab will be seized with trembling,
the people of Canaan will melt away;
16 terror and dread will fall on them.
By the power of your arm
they will be as still as a stone—
until your people pass by, Lord,
until the people you bought pass by.
17 You will bring them in and plant them
on the mountain of your inheritance—
the place, Lord, you made for your dwelling,
the sanctuary, Lord, your hands established.
18 “The Lord reigns
for ever and ever.”
Exodus 15:1-18
Think about it….
Moses and the people of Israel sang.
How many people would that have been? Scripture says six hundred thousand men, besides women and children. How would they have learned the words to this song? There were no lyrics on the screen for them to follow along with. Yet, they sang. They needed no lesson in responding to what God had done. I imagine the sounds of waters behind them now flowing normally again. I imagine Moses standing before the massive crowd of people making sure they knew they would sing together. The collective worship of God’s people in the middle of a wilderness. I imagine every voice signifying a laying of a brick and a throne of praise being built for God. How wide and how high it would have been. I bet that ground they stood on is still echoing with the words – “This is my God, and I will praise Him.”
When we look at this collection of verses, we see the two parts.
- VS:1-2 – What I will do.
- VS:3-18 – Who God is.
This to me feels like what we can use as an equation for praise. Who God is + What I will do = a response of praise
What a moment it would have been. Only to be followed by the doubting hearts of those same people. It can almost feel annoying to read the back and forth postures of the Israelites hearts, only until I remember that I am prone to wander just as much as they did.
God led them out from the Red Sea into the wilderness of Shur where they could find no water. I find it fascinating that the very thing they thought would crush them, water, is now what they thirst for. It is important to note here that the people grumbled, but they didn’t grumble against God. They grumbled against Moses. (Exodus 15:4) They asked Moses for water before asking the Lord. They came to Marah where the water was bitter but so were they. God, in His infinite grace, changes the bitter water to sweet water. Then He reminds them again who He is, “I am the Lord, your healer.” (Exodus 15:26) Then from there, they went to Elim, where there were springs of water.
How quickly they forgot. How quickly we forget. How quickly their public worship was not followed by daily walking by faith. How quickly we do the same thing.
What is the point of all of this? As I read through these chapters, it felt a little bit like “they responded right” to “they responded wrong.” The thing is, the Israelites were in the right heart posture when they recognized what God had done, understood who they were singing to, and who they belonged to – “this is my God.” They got it wrong when they made it about themselves – “we are thirsty” (paraphrasing) / “what will WE drink.”
I don’t want to be the kind of person who lays a brick on Sunday morning, to build God a throne of praise, only to remove it come Monday because I have made it all about me again and because my faith has become small. Just as the Israelites did it, I am notorious for this too.
The daily abiding in Christ is what allows us to walk by faith, moment by moment. It is what allows our public collective worship to match our day-to-day thoughts, decisions, and actions. The beautiful thing is that it’s all His grace. The same grace that saves me is the same grace that keeps me.
God was there. He was leading them. He was before them. On this side of the cross, as His sons and daughters, He is not just before us – He is within us.
Maybe it’s the words of those from a story most of us have heard a million times, that today we take up as our own – “This is my God and I will praise Him.”
Who God is + What I will do = A response of praise.
We each have had / will have / or are on a Red Sea journey. Some of us have already crossed over on dry ground. Some of us feel like what lies before us is impossible to cross. Some of us haven’t quite entered into that territory. With my heart postured towards what God has done, despite where my feet might be, praise will always be the right response.
