You’ve probably heard the old saying, “Fear knocked at the door. Faith answered. There was no one there.” I always liked that saying. But, in light of that, let me ask you this: What is it that you fear today?
Well, whatever your utmost fear might be, I will guarantee you—as your pastor—that FAITH is the answer to your greatest fear today! But, like most things in our life with God, there are two sides to this equation: God’s and ours! FAITH is a gift from God, but whether we pick it up and use it … is entirely up to us! Here’s another old saying for you: “Faith in many ways is like a wheelbarrow. You have to put some real push behind it to make it work.” Let’s find out today how we can do that in our life… Listen now to our scripture lesson for today:
“On that day the LORD saved the people of Israel from the Egyptians, and the Israelites saw them lying dead on the seashore. 31 When the Israelites saw the great power with which the LORD had defeated the Egyptians, they stood in awe of the LORD; and they had faith in the LORD and in his servant Moses. … 1 Then Moses and the Israelites sang this song to the LORD: ‘I will sing to the LORD, because he has won a glorious victory; he has thrown the horses and their riders into the sea. 2 The LORD is my strong defender; he is the one who has saved me. He is my God, and I will praise him, my father’s God, and I will sing about his greatness.’” – Exodus 14:30-31; 15:1-2 (TEV)
Let me jump right in to our first Red Sea Rule for today: RULE #9: VIEW YOUR CURRENT CRISIS AS A FAITH-BUILDER FOR THE FUTURE! What the Israelites experienced at the end of Exodus, Chapter 14, was nothing short of a miraculous victory … and they knew it! But, not only that; the Israelites actually benefitted from what seemed to them—I’m sure—like a narrow escape… Their faith in both God and their leader, Moses, was strengthened for the great challenges that were ahead of them (and they had no idea, at this moment, but God sure did)… Well, if our Red Sea moments in life are supposed to be ‘faith-builders,’ then let’s take just a moment to define this thing called FAITH… First, I want to say that ‘Faith is all about FROGs!’
Not long ago in Ft. Worth, Texas, there was a gunman who walked into Wedgewood Baptist Church during a youth rally that was being held there. Among those killed there that day was 14-year-old Cassie Griffin. Later, when reading accounts about her brief life, we find out that Cassie had a collection of FROG figurines, FROG trinkets, FROG jewelry, and so forth. According to her parents, the word FROG really summarized her philosophy on life. So, what does it stand for? (I should ask Brenda this, because she’s already introduced this to our congregation before!) It stands for Fully Rely on God!
That’s not a bad definition of FAITH, is it? But, let’s expand our definition a little further and let me continue by saying this: Faith is really about making reasonable assumptions … like these:
Faith is believing that what the Lord has said to us will be accomplished! Luke 1:45 reminds us of this; when Mary visited her relative Elizabeth, Elizabeth cried out about Mary: “How happy you are to believe that the Lord’s message to you will come true!” Next…
Faith is being fully persuaded that God has the power to do what He has promised! In Romans 4:20-21 Paul—speaking of Father Abraham—says: “His faith did not leave him, and he did not doubt God’s promise; his faith filled him with power, and he gave praise to God. 21 He was absolutely sure that God would be able to do what he had promised.”
Finally, faith means believing that things will happen just as God has told us! In Acts 27:23-25 Paul is a good example of what our faith should be like in the midst of a storm: “For last night an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I worship came to me 24 and said, ‘Don’t be afraid, Paul! You must stand before the Emperor. And God in his goodness to you has spared the lives of all those who are sailing with you.’ 25 So take courage, men! For I trust in God that it will be just as I was told.”
So, faith is about making reasonable assumptions about his care over and guidance of our lives, based on what we know from God’s word… Finally, consider Him faithful who has made these promises! And, when it comes to this Red Sea Rule (#9) also know this: Know that there are DEGREES of faith … and Jesus richly rewards those who fully trust Him! So, folks, we need to progress in our faith intentionally … knowing that as we go through our Red Sea moments in life, we can trust the One who has made us the promises…
Several years ago, a Houston pastor told the story about when his 5-year-old daughter asked for a dollhouse. He was busy reading a book at the time, but he nodded and told his daughter that he would build her one, then promptly returned to reading his book.
A short time later, he glanced out the window to see his daughter, arms crammed with dishes and dolls, making trip after trip until she had a huge pile in the middle of the yard. The pastor asked his wife what his daughter was doing…
“Oh, you promised to build her a dollhouse, and she believes you. She’s just getting ready for it.”
According to the pastor, he tossed aside his book, raced to the local lumberyard for supplies, and quickly built his daughter that dollhouse. Why? It was her simple, childlike faith in his promise that did it…
And, that’s the way God wants it to be with us, too! The next time you have a mountain in life to climb, or you are backed into a cul-de-sac with no way out but the way you came in, put your faith in the One who has made the promises … and just wait to see how God reacts to your childlike faith!
As we wrap this series up today, let me give you the final Red Sea Rule: RULE #10: DON’T FORGET TO PRAISE GOD! Exodus 15:1-2 lets us in on what the Israelites did right after they were saved by God: “Then Moses and the Israelites sang this song to the LORD: ‘I will sing to the LORD, because he has won a glorious victory; he has thrown the horses and their riders into the sea. 2 The LORD is my strong defender; he is the one who has saved me. He is my God, and I will praise him, my father’s God, and I will sing about his greatness.”
We too need to have a perspective of praise … just like this one! One of the reasons that God allows some tough situations in life … is to give us the opportunity to sing His praises! He expects gratitude for His deliverances! Do you remember the story of Jesus healing the Ten Lepers? Only one came back to thank Jesus … and Jesus (God) wanted to know where the other nine were…
Let’s have a perspective of praise just like the Israelites did, as we see God bringing us through the Red Sea moments of our lives! One thing I truly have learned in life is this: PERSPECTIVE MATTERS…
I’m sure that many of you have flown either in the military or commercially in your lives. Have you ever taken off on a very overcast day … or a stormy day? I have. And, it seems like the worse the weather, the more drastic the ascent on take-off! Up, up, you go … directly into the stormy clouds. You pierce those clouds … and then, finally, you level off at a high altitude ABOVE the storm. In a matter of minutes, you have gone from a gray and angry storm … to an altitude where it seems much more peaceful, because you are now looking down on those same clouds, those same storms… What a difference perspective makes!
Folks, let’s develop a perspective of praise! Wisdom, some have said, is really seeing things from God’s point-of-view. Let’s learn to do that … together. And, let’s remember these final 2 Red Sea Rules…
Rule #9: VIEW YOUR CURRENT CRISIS AS A FAITH-BUILDER FOR THE FUTURE! And… Rule #10: DON’T FORGET TO PRAISE GOD! Again, God expects gratitude for His deliverances…
So, whether you are on the upper side or the underside of the storm, whether you are on the east bank or the west bank of the Red Sea, God will make a way! And, as He does … don’t forget to praise Him!