Naylor Community Christian Church
I. Introduction
-- turn in
Bibles to Exodus 14:21-31
Exodus 14:21-31
New International Version
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[a] 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[b]
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.
-- well, this
past week was one for the record books – as we are all painfully aware,
southcentral Georgia experienced its first Category 2 hurricane on record –
sustained winds over 70 miles per hour, with gusts recorded as high as 100
-- to say the least, it was
devastating – and it’s just now that we are all starting to catch our breath
and thank God for sparing us from the worst of the storm and moving into
clean-up and restoration
-- most of us now have our power
back – and I think it’s safe to say that we’re all thankful for air
conditioning and refrigerators and freezers
-- now it’s just clearing trees and
limbs and getting life back to normal, right?
-- even
though Hurricane Idalia was a record-setting storm, we’re not unfamiliar with
hurricanes and tropical systems here – we have our fair share of tornados and
severe storms throughout the year – and we need to always be cognizant of this
reality – we need to know the storms are coming and to be ready and prepared
for them when they hit
-- and that
is true for all the storms of life, including spiritual storms and spiritual
trials and tribulations
-- looking
back at my messages over the years, I know that I use the analogy of storms
quite a lot to call attention to the ever-present trials and tribulations that
life constantly throws at us because it’s the same language the Bible uses to
describe these events
-- and, so,
we've talked about facing these storms and how we get through them by leaning
on God's strength and relying on our faith in Him in these troubled times --
and while I may have beaten a dead horse even more from time-to-time, I hope my
warnings about the storms and how to get through them haven’t been in vain
-- I hope God’s words have gone
through me and helped you when the storms have hit – not only the physical
storms, like Idalia, but also the storms of life and the spiritual storms that
we occasionally walk through
-- but
sitting in the aftermath of Idalia and just taking a moment to think about what
could have been and thanking God for bringing safely through, it occurred to me
that in all our discussions about spiritual storms and the storms of life, we
have neglected to consider what comes next
-- what do we do after the storm
has passed? -- what do we do when we're standing in the aftermath of a disaster
and a new day is dawning and the sun is shining and the birds are singing and
we realize, "We made it" -- what then?
II. In the
Aftermath
-- this
morning, I wanted us to think for a moment about this great miracle that God
has done – and for all the miracles and deliverances we have experienced as God
has led us through our personal storms to the other side, bringing healing and
comfort and peace
-- and now that we are on the other
side – now that we have witnessed the mighty hand of God calming the storm and
delivering us from our trials and troubles, how should we respond? – where
should we go? – and who should we become?
-- we can
find some direction from the experiences of the Israelites as God led them out
of their storm of slavery in Egypt, through the Red Sea, and into the Promised
Land
-- just to
remind you of what God had done for the Israelites up to this point -- the
Israelites had gone into Egypt during a severe famine in the land of Canaan --
they prospered there and multiplied in number, and this worried the Egyptian
leaders -- they feared the Israelites were becoming too powerful -- so they
placed them in bondage and made them their slaves
-- for 400
years the Israelites lived as the slaves of the Egyptians -- serving them and
building their temples -- but God heard their cries and sent Moses to lead the
people out of
-- God sent
plagues against the people of Egypt -- you remember the stories -- the waters
turned to blood -- there was infestations with flies and frogs -- hail that
rained from the sky, killing the animals in the field -- there was darkness --
there was disease -- there was pestilence -- finally, God struck down the
first-born of all the people and animals of Egypt -- and then Pharaoh relented and
told the Israelites to leave
-- but
after they left, he changed his mind and chased after them with his army,
pinning them against the Red Sea with no way out -- it was going to be a
slaughter – the storm clouds had gathered against the Israelites
-- but, as we just read in Exodus
14, God parted the waters of the Red Sea -- He made a way where no way existed
before -- and He led the Israelites out of Egypt and destroyed the army of the
Egyptians at the same time
-- the
nation of Israel had faced a storm of biblical proportions and emerged on the
other side of the Red Sea victorious -- so what did they do when they made it
through the storm? – and how does their example guide us in our response after
our own storms are over?
-- let’s
turn to Exodus 15, starting in verse 1
15 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[a];
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.[b]
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.
-- this
passage reminds me of the commercials we often see right after the Superbowl – the
ones where the reporters ask the players on the winning team, "You just
won the Superbowl -- What are you going to do now?" and they say,
"We're going to Disney!" – and they’re just so happy and excited over
their victory
-- we see
the same kind of emotion and response right here – “Moses and the nation of
Israel, God just led you through the Red Sea and defeated your enemies -- what
are going to do now?” -- and Moses and the nation replied, "We're going to
the Promised Land – and so we’re going to sing!"
-- and
that's what they did -- they sang -- they danced -- they praised the Lord
-- it's
like the lyrics to that old song, "I sing because I'm happy -- I sing
because I'm free -- His eye is on the sparrow -- and I know He watches me"
– when’s the last time you just spontaneously sang and cried out to the Lord in
praise because of His goodness and grace like this?
-- the
Israelites sing because they are happy – think about what a momentous miracle
has just occurred – how this Red Sea event changed their lives forever – not
just physically, but spiritually
-- they knew God in the past, but
only in an impersonal way -- they knew Him as "God up there
somewhere" – they knew Him as the God of their fathers, but in reality,
they just knew about Him – they didn’t really know Him
-- there’s a lot of people like
that in our world today, especially here in America – they claim God as their
own, but they don’t really know Him – they just know about Him – they’re just
familiar with Him because of the faith of their fathers – because of the
foundation of this country
-- they grow up claiming to be
Christians, simply because they live in America – but their hearts are distant
– they’re like the people described in Matthew 7:21-23 as having done things
for God, like prophesying in His name and driving out demons and doing
miracles, but who don’t know God and are not known by God – as Jesus says in
verse 21, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of
heaven…”
-- up to this point, the Israelites
only knew about God – but now, having come through the storm – having seen His
hand and His deliverance in such a mighty way – they now know Him themselves –
they now know Him personally – they now know Him as their God and their Savior
-- that’s the thing about storms –
as difficult as they may be at the time, they can lead us into a closer
relationship with God if we look for Him and seek Him as we talked about last
week
-- and so, in response to their
deliverance from the storm of slavery and persecution in Egypt, the Israelites
rejoice and sing because they know they are free -- they have seen God do a
mighty work beyond anything they could even imagine
-- they had faced the impossible
and seen God make it possible -- they had faced death itself and been given
life -- they had been redeemed because of Him -- and so they could not help but
cry out in praise and worship to the God they now knew
-- as the
example of the Israelites demonstrate to us here, redemption moves us to praise
God – it is the natural response of a heart saved by the Savior – the
Israelites looked back at their deliverance and they recognized it came from
God and God alone -- and they praised Him with all their heart – giving Him the
honor and glory – lauding Him for His great work on their behalf
-- when we
make it through the storm, the first thing we should do is praise God -- for we
didn't make it in our own strength -- we didn't make it based on our own good
works -- we made it because God chose to do a mighty work in our lives
-- as
Judson Cornwall wrote, "Worship helps us find who we are and why God has
placed us here on the earth -- When we bow in God's presence with worship, only
then are we made complete"1
-- we can only say we have made it
out of the storm to the other side when our hearts are changed and our lives
are transformed and we respond in praise and worship to God
-- verse 13-18
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[c] 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[d] 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.”
-- take a
moment and think about where we are this morning – about what we just went
through and where we are headed
-- right now, we’re all reeling
from the aftermath of the storm – but give it a couple of weeks – and this
storm will just fade into memory – something we mention from time-to-time, but
never really dwell on again
-- things will get back to normal,
and it will be just like we never experienced the storm in the first place --
just like it never happened
-- we experienced that with Covid –
Covid was a world-wide pandemic on the scale of the 1918 Spanish Flu pandemic –
there has not been a similar disease outbreak in the last 100 years – it
affected our lives in so many ways – it seemed like things would never be
normal again
-- but here we are giving no
thought to Covid at all – it’s like a mist that we walked through – it’s like a
shadow of a dream – and life just went back to normal
-- Hurricane Idalia will be the
same
-- there is
a principle called homeostasis -- it means people like things to stay the same
-- their goal is to always keep the same-old, the same-old -- they want things
to be normal – to be familiar – even if their familiar is not great
-- just
like in a TV show -- on almost every TV show you watch, the characters live in
the same-old, same-old -- the status quo -- no matter what storms or trials the
characters may face in this week's episode, by the time the credits roll at the
end of the show, everything is back to the way it was in the beginning -- and
by next week's episode, it's like no one even remembers what happened
-- unless
it’s a show where the plot develops over the course of a season, last week’s
events are never mentioned again – it’s like they never happened
-- that's
what we've learned to expect out of life -- when we go through a storm, the
best we hope for is a return to normality -- to the same-old, same-old -- we
are longing for the status quo to be restored -- how many times have you said
to yourself, "Now that I'm through this, things can get back to
normal"
-- but is that the right answer? – is that
where we want to be – is that who we want to be – after experiencing God’s hand
in the midst of our storms? – after experiencing God’s hand in our lives?
-- I saw a
motivational poster one time that proclaimed, "Do ordinary things better
than anyone else" -- and when I read it, I thought to myself, "That
is the stupidest advice I have ever heard"
-- be ordinary -- strive for
mediocrity -- don't push yourself beyond your limits -- don't try to do
something bigger than yourself -- don't try to grow or do more -- no, just be
ordinary -- just be normal
-- but,
folks, as Christians, we are not supposed to be normal -- Peter wrote that we
are peculiar people -- we are aliens and strangers in this land -- and that
means that we are not supposed to be normal or ordinary or any of that -- our
goal is not to be like the rest of this world -- our goal is to be like Christ
and to live in the Kingdom of God
-- that
means we live beyond normal -- we live beyond the natural and in the
supernatural -- we live beyond the ordinary to the extraordinary -- and that
means that when we pass through the storm, we don't go back to the way our
lives were before -- no, we grow and go with Christ to new horizons and
promised lands
-- look
what's happened in these verses -- the Israelites have gone from praising God
for what He has done and have started praising Him for what He is going to do
-- they're not looking at getting back to the same-old, same-old -- they're not
wanting to get back to their former, normal way of life -- no, they're looking
ahead – they are future-oriented because their God – our God -- is
future-oriented
-- it's not
about just getting through the storm -- it's about moving on with God to the
promised land -- God's purpose in His mighty acts through Moses was not
intended to just free the Israelites from Egypt's grasp -- no, His mighty acts
were to free them for the future and to transform them and change them into
people who knew Him and who could live in relationship with Him
-- too
often in the church we focus on salvation as the means to the end -- in other
words, once you are baptized and join the church of Christ, you are done --
your ticket is punched -- heaven awaits
-- but
Jesus did not just die on the cross and rise from the dead on the third day to
just free you from your sins -- no, He did all of this to free us for the
future -- to lead us into abundant life with Him -- to be more and to do more
than we were capable of before
-- Jesus
came to show us a new way through Him – a way that was made possible through
the cross and that transforms us through His Holy Spirit within
-- anytime
God brings us through a storm – whether it’s a natural disaster or a spiritual
storm or just the trials and tribulations of life, God wants us to do more than
just make it through to the other side – He doesn’t reveal Himself and do
miraculous acts in our lives just for us to go back to who we were and where we
were before the storm
-- God works miracles and brings us
through the storm so that we might grow in grace and move forward with greater
faith and trust in Him than before – He doesn’t want us to go back to Egypt,
but to press on towards the promise – to press on to what He has in store for
us – and to strive to be who He is calling us to be through His sanctifying
grace
-- look at what God was doing in
and through the Israelite people here – God didn’t call Moses to just lead the
people out of Egypt through the Red Sea so they could stay there forever – no, He
had bigger plans for them -- the promised land awaited – a new life awaited
-- thus,
our focus after the storm should be on trusting in God's mighty power because
of the miracle He has just done and focusing on what He is going to do in us
and through us now that we’re on the other side of the storm
-- Bob
Deffinbaugh wrote, "Israel came to know God in a greater way as a result
of the trials and testings that they experienced in Egypt and in the wilderness
-- We, too, come to know God more intimately and more fully in the midst of the
trials which He leads us through -- And when we “pass through” these trials, we
look to the future fulfillment of God’s promises as even more certain, having
experienced His faithfulness in the tough times of our lives."2
-- in other
words, going through the storms make us aware that nothing can hold us back
when we go with God -- our desire should not be for the same-old, same-old –
our desire should not be to go back to normal – our desire should be for God
and for the Promised Land that lies ahead
-- the one
thing we can clearly see in these verses is that the Israelites didn't just
emerge from the sea free from Egyptian bondage -- they were transformed – they
went from being fearful slaves in captivity to the Egyptians to being fearless
followers of God
-- the
Bible tells us that perfect love casts out fear -- and when you have walked
with God through a frightening storm and emerged on the other side, from that
point on fear has lost its power
-- no
matter what the Israelites were going to face from this moment on as they moved
forward towards the Promised Land -- whether that was the chiefs of Edom or the
leaders of Moab or the people of Canaan -- whether that was the trials they
were going to face in the wilderness or persecution at the hands of their
enemies -- they would be able to face those storms without fear because they now
knew and trusted in a God who would deliver them
-- from
this moment on, the Israelites were going to be able to speak into the storm,
“Go away – we don’t fear you – our God parted the Red Sea – what can you do
against a God like this? – why should we fear you when our God is greater than
you?”
-- we need to get to that place in
our lives, too -- where we walk fearless in the face of the wind and rain –
where we can face the storms of life without fear because we know and trust in
God for our future – and we know and trust in His promise that our future with
Him is greater than we could ever imagine
-- when
Jesus and His disciples were being buffeted by a great storm on the sea that
threatened to capsize their little boat, we read that Jesus stood and rebuked
the storm
-- He didn’t just calm it – He
rebuked it – He cried out to the storm and said, “No! That’s enough! Stop!” -- we need to do the same
-- we need
to call to mind the victories that God has given us and rebuke the next storm
in His power -- "Storm, go away -- look what God just brought me through
-- you are nothing, compared to that and nothing compared to Him"
-- looking
around this room, just think for a moment what God has brought you through and laugh
at the fears the storm threatens you with – there is nothing to fear, because
God has this and He has you – and no matter what your future holds, you can
face it without fear because you stand on what God has done in the past and you
have faith that He is going to bring you through the next storm to the other
side, too
-- I want
to leave you with this quote from Sir Ernest Shackleton, who led an expedition
to Antarctica in the early 1900s -- after going through a plethora of
devastating disasters and troubles, to the point where he almost lost all of
the men with him, he stood up and proclaimed, "After today, nothing will
be hard, ever again."
-- that
quote sums up this entire passage -- as the Israelites stood on the shores of
the Red Sea and rejoiced and praised God for the victory that was and the
victory that was to come, their hearts cried out, "After today, nothing
will be hard, ever again"
-- let that
be your heart-cry as well, as we look back at the storm that was Idalia and as
we face the future storms in our lives
-- let us
pray
1 Judson
2 Bob Deffinbaugh, https://bible.org/seriespage/8-song-sea-exodus-15
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