Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Sermon Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/Sermons/zz20090906.htm

THRU THE BIBLE EXPOSITION
Exodus: God's Forming The Nation Israel For His Abrahamic Covenant
Part I: God's Deliverance Of Israel From Egypt, Exodus 1:1-15:21
I. The Removal Of Israel From Egypt, Exodus 12:37-15:21
3. Drawing From God's Recent Deliverance For Future Hope
(Exodus 15:1-21)
    Introduction: (To show the need . . . )

    Today, many folk are in great need of hope about the future:

    (1) One morning last week, I heard legendary radio talk show host, Brad Davis, who, after 25 years in talk radio, told his audience, "Everywhere I go, the people I meet are very, very afraid!"

    (2) Many are worried about their financial future. Paul Wiseman's article, "Consumer thrift slows recovery," in the August 31, 2009 USA TODAY, p. 1B held: "Consumers are . . . worried about their paychecks after seeing 6.7 million jobs vanish since the recession began in December 2007 . . . They're facing wage pressure, they've borrowed to the hilt, they've suffered financial losses."

    (3) Politically, many Americans fear the future, especially in regard to the health care bill issue. (a) On the one hand, many who have read the House version of the bill react as did a man in a town hall meeting whose quiet words to his congressman I heard broadcast on a radio "AP Update" by the mainstream media, said: "A lot of us are very frightened at the implications of this bill, and, quite frankly, we feel the White House has been less than honest with us!" You could then hear a loud cheer of support from the crowd in the room.

    (b) On the other hand, some supporters of the bill feel the outrage that has been voiced against the bill at such meetings is fueled by racial hatred for our President, and that it thus comes from a small, seemingly insignificant minority: E. J. Donne Jr., in his article, "Media Mislead With Coverage Of Town Halls" in the September 3, 2009 issue of Investor's Business Daily, p. A11, claimed "There is an overwhelming case that the electronic media went out of their way to cover the noise and ignored the calmer" folk! Thus, supporters fear an unjust thrust is occurring via the media for opponents of the bill!

    In the end, deep-seated distrust fuels both sides, so both groups have become anxious about the final outcome!

    (4) Last week, we received a missionary letter from believers who work in Uganda, telling of the "epidemic" of orphans there due to war, disease and hardship. It claimed "so many are simply hopeless." (5) Locally, I talked with two people in our Church last Sunday who face huge issues regarding their future welfare! In both cases, you could see the tension on their faces and hear the strain in their voices!

    Need: "I or a friend has a great need for HOPE for the FUTURE, so, IS it ATTAINABLE, and IF so, HOW may we ACQUIRE it?!"

  1. After God saved Israel at the Red Sea, Moses led Israel and Miriam to praise God and hope in His future for her, Ex. 15:1-21.
  2. This song recalled God's recent help (Ex. 15:1-12) as applied to the future for hope (Ex. 15:13-19 NIV), so we similarly apply it now:
    1. Moses was sure that God would lead Israel in her future in accord with how He had led her up to His deliverance of her at the Red Sea:
      1. God had led Israel to shift direction, from going into the Sinai north of the Red Sea that she might move down to the sea's western shore to lure Pharaoh to go against her for God's glory, Ex. 14:1-4.
      2. The cloud of God's presence had led Israel until the Egyptian army had arrived, and then it had moved behind her to protect Israel from the Egyptians so she could safely cross the sea, Ex. 14:19-22.
      3. Hence, Moses was confident God would continue to lead Israel safely until she had arrived at the Promised Land, Ex. 15:13 NIV.
    2. Moses was sure God would guide Israel to safety as He had guided her out of Egypt to the safety of the Red Sea's eastern shore:
      1. The verb "guide" in Exodus 15:13b NIV (nahal, B. D. B., A Heb.-Engl. Lex. of the O. T., p. 624) means to lead to a nurturing goal , picturing God's parting the Red Sea to lead Israel to cross it to safety on that sea's eastern shore, Exodus 14:15-17, 28-29.
      2. Thus, Moses was confident God would continue to guide Israel to SAFETY until she reached the Promised Land, Ex. 15:13b NIV.
    3. Moses was sure God would frighten Israel's Gentile foes so she could travel TOWARD Canaan as He had terrified Pharaoh's charioteers:
      1. Exodus 15:5 poetically parallels Exodus 15:16, based on the theme of a stone: since Pharaoh's men had sunk in terror in the Red Sea like a stone though she had safely passed by that same seabed for the safety of the Red Sea's eastern shore (Ex. 15:5; 14:24-25), Israel's future foes would be as still as a stone in fear while she safely passed them on her way to the Promised Land, Ex. 15:16.
      2. Thus, Moses trusted God would keep intimidating Israel's foes as He had Pharaoh's army so Israel could get to Canaan, Ex. 15:14-16.
    4. Moses was sure God would plant Israel securely IN Canaan as He had safely planted her in full security on the Red Sea's eastern shore:
      1. Since God had expended so much power at the Red Sea to display His will and ability to transfer Israel securely across the sea, Moses was sure He would securely position Israel IN Canaan, Ex. 15:17.
      2. This is a great hope in view of all the livelihood supplies needed to sustain 2 million people for 40 years in the wilderness so as to put them securely in Canaan, and Scripture later tells of this provision:
        1. God miraculously gave Israel her daily food needs via manna for the 40 years she was in the wilderness, Deut. 8:3; Ex. 16:35. Typical of His grace, when Israel entered Canaan, God gave an extra day's worth of manna along with Canaan's grain, Jos. 5:12!
        2. God supernaturally provided so that Israel's 2 million people did not wear out their clothes or shoes all during the 40 years they were in the wilderness, Deuteronomy 8:4; 29:5. As hundreds of thousands of growing, active children lived for 40 years in a hot wilderness climate, this miracle was uniquely great!
        3. These provisions are a display of great grace if we recall those 40 years were spent waiting for a faithless generation in Israel to die so a new generation could enter Canaan, Numbers 14:32-34!
    5. Moses was sure God would reign forever for Israel's welfare since He had shown His long-term sovereign rule for Israel's sake:
      1. Moses' song ended with the claim that God would reign for ever and ever, that God was thus ETERNAL as seen in having begun to fulfill His 430-year-old promise to Abraham to deliver Israel out of Egypt, Exodus 15:18 with Exodus 12:40-41 and Genesis 15:13-14.
      2. Patriarch Jacob's prophecy about the coming of Messiah as Israel's King was spoken back in Genesis 49:9-10, so God used Moses to add to it that God's kingdom would be everlasting , Exodus 15:18.
      3. Thus, the Angel Gabriel told Mary that Jesus would rule forever over the house of Jacob (Luke 1:32-33), and Mary said Jesus' birth fulfilled God's everlasting promise to Abraham (Luke 1:54-55)!
      4. In line with God's eternal plan, in the Tribulation, Moses' song will be sung anew in expectation of God's world kingdom, Rev. 15:2-4.
Application: To obtain hope for the future, (1) may we trust in Christ as Savior to become a child of God, John 1:11-12. (2) As God's child, may we (a) consider the lessons of His RECENT AID, (b) concluding that He intends to CONTINUE supplying such aid, and so (c) HOPE in that FUTURE divine PROVISION!

Lesson: Moses taught Israel edifying conclusions she could make about her future based on God's great deliverance of the nation at the Red Sea.

We may then ask, "If struggling to find HOPE for the FUTURE, IS it AVAILABLE, and IF so, HOW may I GAIN it?!" Conclusion:

 God repeatedly and richly illustrated this message all last week:

(1) After last Sunday's morning service, my wife and I realized from reports we heard that we might be the only ones at the Evening Service! We were content with that, for Acts 20:7 and 1 Corinthians 16:1-2 reveal the Early Church met once a week, so to avoid legalism, we do not press people to attend multiple services per week!

However, after driving that night to the Church for the Evening Service, a regular attender surprisingly arrived just before the service, reporting her scheduled event of picking up a relative at the airport had been postponed since a bad storm in Atlanta had delayed her flight! That led me to recall God's multiple past uses of thunderstorms to move us to keep presenting His Word at Nepaug Church!

Then, two more people came to the meeting, and after the service, they lingered to speak, one with my wife and the other with me! The party speaking with me testified that she had been at another service earlier that day, but with the larger number present, she had not then felt free to ask the question she had asked at our Evening Service!

Later, I told my wife I believed that God had arranged for that evening's events, for (a) they confirmed our belief about not pushing people on attendance , and (b) supported our view on the need to focus on long-term ministry to individuals for lasting results!

(2) Then, Wednesday night after the Prayer Meeting Service, I received a plate covered with foil and a note that read: "To Pastor Shell from . . . This homemade peach pie slice says 'Thank You' for always being willing to teach!" I knew from 2 Timothy 2:6 that such gifts from God's people are His signal of approval, meaning the Lord greatly approved of our giving His Word in the less-attended Sunday Service!

(3) Finally, on Thursday, a couple took my wife and me out to a special restaurant for dinner! There, I recalled the decades of personal discipling it had taken for them as a couple to make the giant advance from where they had once been to where they were now in the Lord! God had richly repeated His former emphases of the week!

The Lord thus RECENTLY revealed His APPROVAL and ENCOURAGEMENT to KEEP MINISTERING at Nepaug as we do, giving us HOPE in His help for our FUTURE ministry efforts!

May we like Moses then APPLY the LESSONS of God's RECENT PROVISIONS for HOPE for an unseen FUTURE!