In this lesson we'll be studying about one of the greatest miracles of all time: the parting of the Red Sea.

Exodus 14:1-9
1 Then the LORD said to Moses,
2 "Tell the Israelites to turn back and encamp near Pi Hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea. They are to encamp by the sea, directly opposite Baal Zephon.
3 Pharaoh will think, 'The Israelites are wandering around the land in confusion, hemmed in by the desert.'
4 And I will harden Pharaoh's heart, and he will pursue them. But I will gain glory for myself through Pharaoh and all his army, and the Egyptians will know that I am the LORD." So the Israelites did this.
5 When the king of Egypt was told that the people had fled, Pharaoh and his officials changed their minds about them and said, "What have we done? We have let the Israelites go and have lost their services!"
6 So he had his chariot made ready and took his army with him.
7 He took six hundred of the best chariots, along with all the other chariots of Egypt, with officers over all of them.
8 The LORD hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt, so that he pursued the Israelites, who were marching out boldly.
9 The Egyptians--all Pharaoh's horses and chariots, horsemen and troops--pursued the Israelites and overtook them as they camped by the sea near Pi Hahiroth, opposite Baal Zephon.

Q: In v.2, God told Moses to bring the Israelites near the Rea Sea. Why did God do this? [He wanted Pharaoh to think that the Israelites were confused, so he would pursue them and be destroyed (vv.3-4).]

C: Sometimes Satan is persecuting us, and we think that God is not helping us. But God is leading Satan into a trap, so that we can be saved! The Egyptians fell into the trap. They took 600 chariots, and thousands of soldiers, and they came to attack the Israelites. It looked like a hopeless situation. Let's see what happened after the Israelites were trapped.

1. Stand Firm And See the Deliverance of God

Exodus 14:10-20
10 As Pharaoh approached, the Israelites looked up, and there were the Egyptians, marching after them. They were terrified and cried out to the LORD.
11 They said to Moses, "Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die? What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt?
12 Didn't we say to you in Egypt, 'Leave us alone; let us serve the Egyptians'? It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert!"
13 Moses answered the people, "Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the LORD will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again.
14 The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still."
15 Then the LORD said to Moses, "Why are you crying out to me? Tell the Israelites to move on.
16 Raise your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea to divide the water so that the Israelites can go through the sea on dry ground.
17 I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians so that they will go in after them. And I will gain glory through Pharaoh and all his army, through his chariots and his horsemen.
18 The Egyptians will know that I am the LORD when I gain glory through Pharaoh, his chariots and his horsemen."
19 Then the angel of God, who had been traveling in front of Israel's army, withdrew and went behind them. The pillar of cloud also moved from in front and stood behind them,
20 coming between the armies of Egypt and Israel. Throughout the night the cloud brought darkness to the one side and light to the other side; so neither went near the other all night long.

Q: How did the Israelites feel when they saw the Egyptian army approaching (v.10)? [They were terried, and they prayed.]

C: They even grumbled in v.11, saying sarcastically, "was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die?"

But Moses gave them great advice in v.13. He told them to stand firm, to not be afraid, and they would see the deliverance of God. He promised them that God would fight for them.

So often we are afraid of our boss, or our relatives, or our friends. God tells us at that moment, "stand firm, and see the deliverance of God!"

C: God told Moses to stretch out his staff and part the waters of the Red Sea. He did this to gain glory by defeating Pharaoh and his army without even fighting. The angel of God separated the Egyptians from the Israelites all night long. It was scary, but God was with them.

Q: What are some very frightening situations that we may face in life?
- A goonda threatening us.
- We owe a lot of money.
- We have no job.
- Health problems of a close relative.
- Failing exams.
- Husband leaves us.

C: In all these situations, God wants us to stay faithful to him, to be strong.

2. The Waters Parted For the Righteous

Q: What is the most amazing thing you've ever seen in your life?

Exodus 14:21-31
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 made the wheels of their chariots come off 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 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 great power the LORD displayed against the Egyptians, the people feared the LORD and put their trust in him and in Moses his servant.

Q: Can you imagine standing in front of the sea, and then seeing the wind separate the waters and form a path in the middle?

C: It must have been incredible. The God who made the earth and the sea can split the water as easily as we can empty a glass of water.

Hebrews 11:29


Q: According to this verse, why did the Israelites survive the Red Sea crossing, but the Egyptians were drowned? [Because they had faith, and the Egyptians did not have faith.]

C: Two people could do the exact same thing. The one who does it with faith will succeed, and the one who does not believe will fail. That is why some people evangelise and are fruitful, and others are not. That is why some people find jobs, and others do not.

Q: Think about yourself tonight: are you living by faith? Or are you like the Egyptians, relying on your own strength, and often failing?

3. Praise the Lord

Exodus 15:1-13
1 Then Moses and the Israelites sang this song to the LORD: "I will sing to the LORD, for he is highly exalted. The horse and its rider he has hurled into the sea.
2 The LORD is my strength and my song; 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.

C: After the Israelites passed through the waters, they were so fired up. So Moses sang a song to God, to praise him. He talked about how "the Lord is my strength" (v.2) and "the Lord is my song."

Q: Think about your relationship with God. Is he your strength? Is he your song? Are you grateful for your salvation (v.3)? Do you view God as a warrior, fighting for you (v.3)?

C: In v.6, he talks about God's right hand. We need to think of God as being a great, powerful giant, towering above the nations. His hand can smash whole countries. He can shatter his enemies (v.6). Every day, when we pray, we should not simply be begging God with all our requests, but we should also be praising his name. Let's pray aloud together through verses 11-13.

4. Rejoice in the Lord

Exodus 15:19-21
19 When Pharaoh's horses, chariots and horsemen went into the sea, the LORD brought the waters of the sea back over them, but the Israelites walked through the sea on dry ground.
20 Then Miriam the prophetess, Aaron's sister, took a tambourine in her hand, and all the women followed her, with tambourines and dancing.
21 Miriam sang to them: "Sing to the LORD, for he is highly exalted. The horse and its rider he has hurled into the sea."

C: After praying, then Moses' sister Miriam (the same one who had been with him when he was born in Exodus 2), took a tambourine and led all the women in a dance. They were fired up! In the Bible, people played music and danced.

Q: In your quiet times, do you ever rejoice? Or is it your "burden time," when you burden the Lord with all your problems?

C: Life is happier when we get fired up and celebrate about the good things. There will always be problems and defeats. Let's savour the good times in Christ.

5. Learn From the Past.

1 Corinthians 10:1-6
1 For I do not want you to be ignorant of the fact, brothers, that our forefathers were all under the cloud and that they all passed through the sea.
2 They were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea.
3 They all ate the same spiritual food
4 and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ.
5 Nevertheless, God was not pleased with most of them; their bodies were scattered over the desert.
6 Now these things occurred as examples to keep us from setting our hearts on evil things as they did.

C: In this passage, Paul referred to the great miracle we've read about tonight. He explained that the Israelites passed through the waters of the Red Sea, and in the same way, we passed through the waters of baptism (v.2)! They ate the manna in the desert, and we break bread for the communion. They depended on God's water, we depend on God's living water (v.4). Even so, most of them died in the desert because of their grumbling (we'll study about that next week).

C: The point we must get out of this passage comes from verse 6. Everything written in the Old Testament is an example for us. We must not follow the sins of the people of the Old Testament. We must live righteously, and learn from their mistakes. Even in the church, we can do this.
- Some people have gone out of town for too long, and then fallen away. We must learn from their bad examples.
- Some have left Jesus to marry outside the church. Then they've become miserable. We can learn from their poor choices.
- Some have been discouraged by their families, but they are even more unhappy now that they are out of the kingdom.
- Some have allowed their bosses to pull them away. But they have lost those jobs they loved so much.

C: Let us learn from the past, both in the Bible and in the church!

Conclusion

In the same way God saved the Israelites from Egypt, he can save us, too.