PARTING RED SEA
CHRISTIANITY OASIS HAS PROVIDED YOU WITH THIS PARTING RED SEA AND THE CROSSING RED SEA STUDY. MANY HAVE HEARD OF THE PARTING RED SEA AND CROSSING RED SEA STORY BUT SOME ARE NOT AWARE OF HOW THE RED SEA PART OR WHY THE ISRAELITES WERE CROSSING THE RED SEA. LET US SEEK AND FIND THE TRUTH OF THE PARTING RED SEA TOGETHER, SHALL WE?

BOOK OF EXODUS

CHAPTER 14

            Welcome to the wilderness of Egypt.  Daily Bread is following Moses and the children of Israel as they make their exodus from Egypt.  We have the Lord leading in a pillar of a cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night.

            The Lord told Moses to take the children of Israel to camp by the sea and Pharaoh will think that they’re trapped and the wilderness has shut them in.  Pharaoh’s heart and all of his servants was turned against God’s people AGAIN and they said, Why did we do this?  Why did we let Israel go free from serving us?  You didn’t really think Pharaoh’s heart would ever soften, did you? Neither did God. (Wink)

            Pharaoh got his chariot and took his people with him with all the chariots of Egypt and captains over each one and they followed the children of Israel.  They caught up with them camped by the sea and when God’s people saw that the Egyptians chased them, they were very afraid and they cried out to the Lord. 

            They said to Moses, Did you bring us to die in the wilderness because there were no graves in Egypt?  Why have you done this to us?  Didn’t we tell you in Egypt to leave us be and let us serve the Egyptians?  It would have been better to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness.  Surely they were afraid that Egypt would capture them and they would be put through worse turmoil than being beaten for not making enough bricks without straw.

            Moses however had seen the Lord work His wonders against Pharaoh and Egypt ten times now and his faith was firm.  He answered the people, Don’t be afraid, stand still and watch the salvation of the Lord that He will show you today.  The Egyptians that you’ve seen today, you’ll never see again for ever.  The Lord will fight for you and you’ll keep your freedom. 

            The Lord said to Moses, Talk to my people, tell them to go forward.  Lift up your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it, and my people will walk on dry ground through the middle of the sea.  I’ll harden the hearts of the Egyptians and they’ll follow them and I’ll get my revenge on Pharaoh and all his people, his chariots and his horsemen, and after that, they’ll know that I am the Lord.

            The angel of God that was in front of the camp of Israel in the pillar of the cloud, went and stood behind them between the camp of the Egyptians and the camp of Israel.  It was a cloud of darkness to the Egyptians but it gave light to Israel so that the Egyptians couldn’t reach God’s people all the night long. 

            Moses stretched out his hand over the sea and the Lord caused the sea to go back with a strong east wind all that night and made the sea dry land.  The waters were divided and God’s people went into the middle of the sea on dry ground.  The waters were like walls to their right and to their left.

            Pharaoh and the Egyptians, his horses and his chariots and his horsemen all pursed after them into the middle of the sea.  At dawn, the Lord looked at the Egyptians through the pillar of fire and of the cloud and troubled them by taking off their chariot wheels.  The Egyptians said, We’d better run from Israel, the Lord is fighting for them.    

            When the Israelites had reached the other side, the Lord told Moses, Stretch out your hand over the sea so the water will close on the Egyptians, their chariots and their horsemen.  So Moses did, and the waters returned and covered the chariots and the horsemen and all the host of Pharaoh that came into the sea after them.  Not a single one of them lived.  God’s people saw the Egyptians dead on the sea shore and Israel feared the Lord, and believed the Lord and his servant Moses.

            It must have been so amazing.  There is no strength like God’s strength.  There is no one as clever.  His humor is incomparable and His grace is the most astounding of all.  His people doubted Him so many times, as you’ve seen several times and will see still more, and yet He stretched out His hands to them over and over again. 

            Now that the fear of Egypt is behind them, what’s next for God’s people?  Join us again to sojourn with Daily Bread and God’s people as they follow God to the Promised Land. 

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