[Exodus 14]
Then the LORD said to Moses, "Tell the people of Israel to turn back and encamp in front of Pi-hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea, in front of Baal-zephon; you shall encamp facing it, by the sea. For Pharaoh will say of the people of Israel, 'They are wandering in the land; the wilderness has shut them in.' And I will harden Pharaoh’s heart, and he will pursue them, and I will get glory over Pharaoh and all his host, and the Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD." And they did so.
When the king of Egypt was told that the people had fled, the mind of Pharaoh and his servants was changed toward the people, and they said, "What is this we have done, that we have let Israel go from serving us?" So he made ready his chariot and took his army with him, and took six hundred chosen chariots and all the other chariots of Egypt with officers over all of them. And the LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and he pursued the people of Israel while the people of Israel were going out defiantly. The Egyptians pursued them, all Pharaoh’s horses and chariots and his horsemen and his army, and overtook them encamped at the sea, by Pi-hahiroth, in front of Baal-zephon.
When Pharaoh drew near, the people of Israel lifted up their eyes, and behold, the Egyptians were marching after them, and they feared greatly. And the people of Israel cried out to the LORD. They said to Moses, "Is it because there are no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the wilderness? What have you done to us in bringing us out of Egypt? Is not this what we said to you in Egypt: 'Leave us alone that we may serve the Egyptians'? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness." And Moses said to the people, "Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the LORD, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again. The LORD will fight for you, and you have only to be silent."
The LORD said to Moses, "Why do you cry to me? Tell the people of Israel to go forward. Lift up your staff, and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it, that the people of Israel may go through the sea on dry ground. And I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians so that they shall go in after them, and I will get glory over Pharaoh and all his host, his chariots, and his horsemen. And the Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD, when I have gotten glory over Pharaoh, his chariots, and his horsemen."
Then the angel of God who was going before the host of Israel moved and went behind them, and the pillar of cloud moved from before them and stood behind them, coming between the host of Egypt and the host of Israel. And there was the cloud and the darkness. And it lit up the night without one coming near the other all night.
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. The Egyptians pursued and went in after them into the midst of the sea, all Pharaoh’s horses, his chariots, and his horsemen. And in the morning watch the LORD in the pillar of fire and of cloud looked down on the Egyptian forces and threw the Egyptian forces into a panic, clogging their chariot wheels so that they drove heavily. And the Egyptians said, "Let us flee from before Israel, for the LORD fights for them against the Egyptians."
Then the LORD said to Moses, "Stretch out your hand over the sea, that the water may come back upon the Egyptians, upon their chariots, and upon their horsemen." So Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and the sea returned to its normal course when the morning appeared. And as the Egyptians fled into it, the LORD threw the Egyptians into the midst of the sea. The waters returned and covered the chariots and the horsemen; of all the host of Pharaoh that had followed them into the sea, not one of them remained. But the people of Israel walked on dry ground through the sea, the waters being a wall to them on their right hand and on their left.
Thus the LORD saved Israel that day from the hand of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the seashore. Israel saw the great power that the LORD used against the Egyptians, so the people feared the LORD, and they believed in the LORD and in his servant Moses.
{Rev. Dwight Yoo}
This story is one of the most familiar stories from the bible. For those who grew up in the church and even those who grew up outside the church, this is well-known story. However, because we are so familiar with it, we might not be so impressed by it.
Knowing God saved us in our greatest crises, empowers us to deal with every other crises.
This is one of the greatest stories of how God saves His people. It shows how God steps in and saves them. It is natural for us to be drawn to these kind of stories when we are going through tough times. When we get into a bind, we ask God to save us. But there are times where we are praying and asking God to intervene, but God does not. We get laid off. We are struggling with depression, and it continues. We pray for our loved ones, but God does not intervene. Is God inconsistent?
Look at it this way. Since sin entered the world, we were broken; our relationships were broken; all creation was broken. So God came and brought salvation through Jesus. One day all will be restored. We will be saved from sin & death. Our relationships will be restored. All of creation will be restored to it's former glory. This our greatest need/problem. And God has met us.
So when tough times come and God does not take it away from us, don't get depressed or disappointed. Consider the greater story of what God is doing. A verse that helps us to deal with the circumstance with faith & hope comes to mind.
"For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal." - 2 Corinthians 4:17-18 (ESV)
So when God has brought us into a tough situation and leaves us there, He is working for our good. He is preparing us for something better. It doesn't feel good, but it is good for us.
God saved us for His own glory.
Did God save Israel because He loved them? Yes. Did God save us because He loves us? Yes. But that is not the end of it, God saved us so that He would get all glory.
Israel was hemmed in by the Red Sea in the front. Egypt came after them. This was considered the greatest army of that time. So God put Israel in the worse situation ever, so He would get the most glory. Israel could not claim any credit for their salvation. God wiped out the entire army on His own.
The people of Israel saw Egypt coming after them. They started complaining and cowering in fear. Even though they saw all the plagues, they only saw the Egyptians. They forgot God's power in this situation. They didn't believe God would or could deliver them. But the key thing: Even though they were faithless, God still saved them.
If we think about a person who wants people to praise & glorify them, this seems like a very negative idea. People who always talk about how great they are... not exactly someone we want to be around. We would think of how insecure they are. But God is not a person, we cannot judge Him that way. He is not insecure. He does not need our praise & worship. So how does it work? God is the most valuable being. We should not place something of less valuable in higher priority than one of higher value. Since God is the most valuable, it would be unrighteous for God to NOT tell people to praise Him. We should praise things in priority of their excellence. God being the most glorious is MOST deserving of our worship. He deserves nothing less than highest glory & praise & honor.
God's command to glorify him is an expression of love.
Not only is it right for God to say we should devote our lives to Him; it is the most loving thing. If we worship anything other than Him, it is not only sinful, but foolish & unfulfilling. We were created to find our deepest joy & satisfaction in Him. That is how we've been designed. When we do this, our joy will be made complete. When we praise something, it completes our joy. Like when we find an awesome restaurant, it isn't quite whole until we go to our friend and we say... YO, have you TRIED this RESTAURANT? NICE!
When we praise Him for all He is & all He has done, we find fullness of joy. To go otherwise is delusional.
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