When it comes to Christianity, I think there is a tension that most of us feel, but very few of us talk about. It's a tension that I like to call the tension of the in-between. The tension of the in between. You see, we like the idea of faith, right? It feels like a nice warm blanket. But we like the idea of faith, but maybe not when faith calls us to change, right? We like the idea of an open door and an opportunity. But then there's the pesky thing of obedience, right? And sometimes when you follow God, you have this idea like you're gonna step out and it's the act of faith. And then it's once you step out, you feel in this like wilderness season or this open time, and you feel stuck between certain ideas. For example, you feel in between remembering what God has done. But then also wondering, OK, God, are you gonna do this again? Maybe you're feeling in between like, OK, I stepped out, but I don't see things right away. So then are you gonna ever move? Maybe you're stuck in between, you want God's direction, but then he gives you a direction and you're like, I don't like that though, right? I think sometimes God speaks in sentences, not paragraphs. Right? Don't you wish like, like he says, even in the Lord's prayer, right? Give us our daily bread. Don't you kind of wish it was like weekly or yearly or decade bread, you know, it's daily bread, right? We have this daily dependence on him. But there is a gap between when we step out into the freedom of of God and the freedom of faith. But then we actually, if we're being honest, missed the familiar, right? Like you leave your old world behind. And then you're like, you're stepping into the person God's called you to be, but you kind of miss the old sins a little bit. Or you feel restricted, or you're like, man, I've, I, I'm following God, but there's a gap between what we sing on Sunday. And then what we experienced on Monday, right? We sing songs like we just did there, like, you split the seat so I can walk right through it. And we're like, yeah, and then Monday comes and we get stuck in traffic, and then it makes us late to our meeting, and then we forget the file that didn't download correctly on our email. And then in the middle of your presentation, you get a call from the school that says, little Johnny is sick and now you gotta go and you hadn't prepared. No, it's your turn for pickup, it's your turn for pick up. And now you're just in it, right? And life starts lifeing. Right? And it just feels different, doesn't it? There's a tension in between. Have you ever heard that phrase, don't just talk the talk but walk the walk. That really became popular in the 40s and 50s in uh street and boxing culture in, in which people would talk trash to each other, right, like, oh, I could beat you, I could beat you. And they say, oh really, let's don't just talk the talk, walk the walk, like get in the ring, right? Well, today, we don't wanna just talk the talk of faith. We wanna walk the walk of faith. And so that's why this morning's message is entitled How Faith Walks. Cause it's one thing to sing about and talk about the goodness of God. It's another thing to walk in the goodness of God. And there's a tension there. Now, we're gonna take a look at a very extreme story. Some would say this is one of the biggest miracles in the Bible, or at least in the Old Testament, right? The story of God splitting the Red Sea. Now that seems extreme, and it is. But it's the same God that's working in you and I's life today. And what I, I like to think about is the fact that when it's tested in the extreme, it also works in the everyday. So I have a jacket from Patagonia. I have one. And I'll be honest, like I put the jacket on, I feel outdoorsy, you know, like I, I, I am not outdoorsy. But like, if I, if I put on my Patagonia jacket, and I'm driving through Flagstaff, I look outside, I go, I could survive. I couldn't, by the way, I have no, don't, it would not work. Um. But part of why I feel that way is those companies, and, and if it's not Patagonia, it's another company or things there too. Like you put on that jacket and you know, they test their equipment, they test their gear for like sub-zero, like Arctic temperatures, right? They have sleeping, like you're just trying to camp in the backyard with the kids and you got a sleeping bag that could survive in the South Pole, right? You're like, yeah, like I'm ready for it. Well, here's the thing, when you have a story of faith in the most extreme ways, and God comes through in that setting. Then it's tested for the extremes. It means it's also useful for today and every day. Because while their story, the story of Israel, the story of Moses, is not our story, their God is in fact our God. And so we're gonna take a look at an extreme miracle, and we're gonna see how their reaction to the miracle is actually very similar to how you and I might react today. But as God proves faithful then, it actually shows us that God is just as faithful now. And so whatever journey you find yourself in, whatever step along the way you find yourself in, we want you to be faithful to who God's called you to be and what God has called you to do. So if you're taking notes, I encourage you to write this down, that where God makes a way, he calls us to walk. When, where God makes a way, he makes a way when there is no other way. He then calls us to walk. So there is God's part. But there is also our part, and sometimes we feel, we live in that tension in between, and we don't necessarily like where it goes. And so here's what we're gonna do today. We're gonna take a look at Exodus chapter 13 through 15. I'm gonna highlight a few verses along the way. I encourage you to read those three chapters this week to do a deeper dive for yourself, right? This isn't the only meal you get during the week. It should be one of the meals, right? That you're growing in your faith, and we're gonna highlight that and we're gonna highlight that through 5 movements of the story. And I'm gonna go ahead and preface it right now that at the end of this morning's message, I'm gonna ask you to pick one of these 5 moments that you resonate with most. And when you pick one of these 5 moments, I want you then to ask God, where have you called me to take a step this week, right? Because where God provides a way, God calls us to walk. So setting up our story, if you're just joining us, here, right? If you're, if you're coming in episode 5 of the season here, it's, it's week 5 of our series. You have the people of God, they're enslaved by the Egyptians, and evil. Pharaoh. God calls Moses, the reluctant leader comes back. He says, Let my people go. Pharaoh says, no. And so as a sign of God's power and sovereignty, he brings about 10 plagues on the Egyptians, breaking down their false idols and false gods. And on the 10th plague, which then leads to the Passover meal. Last week, we shared how Passovers connected to communion, and that after that last plague, Pharaoh says, Fine, enough is enough. You guys go. So now the people are going, well, how many people? Some say a million people and some say upwards to 3 million people. And I don't know about you, but I struggle getting a family of 5 out the door in the morning. And so imagine trying to get a million to 3 million people out of a country, it's gotta be crazy, right? And so, but we're gonna see what happens. And so here we go, the people of God are leaving Egypt. They're escaping where they've been enslaved for 400 years, and we pick up our story here in Exodus chapter 13 verse 3. Then Moses said to the people, Remember this day in which you came out of Egypt, out of the house of slavery, and for by a strong hand, the Lord brought you out from this place. You see, in this first verse, we see here the first movement of how faith walks, and that is that we do have to look back. We have to look back. Before you can step into the season that God has walked you or called you into, it's important to pause and remember how God has delivered you in the past. Right? To look back that, in fact, in this chapter, they actually set the ground rules for what would become the feast of the unleavened bread. And God actually calls Moses to tell the, the people of Israel to consecrate or to set apart their firstborn in honor of the glory of God. So to, before you look into where God is calling you to go, it's important to remember where God has brought you from. It's so easy to forget, isn't it? Like we, we see miracle after miracle after miracle, and yet, the first thing we do is we forget. I don't know if you're like me, but I will get up from my couch to grab something from the kitchen, and from the couch to the kitchen, I will forget what that item is, right? Or I'll be on my way home from my work, uh, from work, and a wife will text me like, hey, can you grab this item from the store on the way home? I'm like, sure. And like, you know, you should probably write it down. I was like, sure. Got it, honey, writing it down. Don't write it down. I go to the store, load up the cart. I'm like, man, I'm being a great husband, nailing it, right? Check out, load up the vehicle, start driving home, get halfway home, and what do I forget? The one item that she told me about, that she had told me, reminded me to write it down because she knew I would forget. And so what do I do in that moment? I turn right back around. And go to the store and run in and grab the one item I was supposed to remember and then I, when I get home, she's like, wow, that took a little bit longer than I thought. I was like, yeah, I hit traffic. Right. We forget so easily, don't we? We forget, OK? The word remember is used over 200 times in the Bible and over 100 times, it's actually used as an as an imperative or a command. The number one command in the Bible is fear not. The the second most repeated command in the Bible is remember. Why? Because it is human to forget. Right. You know, the Egyptians look at those 10 plagues as plagues. But those 10 plagues are actually 10 miracles for the people of God, who God used to set them free. So they just witnessed 10 miracles of God. And the first thing they do out of slavery, God says, remember. Remember Because they are going from slave to redeemed, right? They're going from captivity now to calling. And God says, now, before you go where I need you to go, remember, it is I who brought you there, right? And whatever you are in your journey, how many of us are facing a situation right now that seems very stressful, that feels unknown, right? We, we worship on a Sunday, but then we worry Monday through Saturday. That sometimes it's, it's great and important and key in our lives that when we're stressed out, look back and see how God had shaped you, formed you in the past, OK? That's the first movement, look back. Second movement we see here is to move forward, right? You can't live in the past. The rearview mirror is important, but the windshield is a lot more important. Why? Because while it's good to see where you've been, it's also important to see where God's taking you, where you're going. So we pick up our story in verse 17, where God calls the people to move forward. He says, when Pharaoh let the people go, he did not lead, um, he did not lead them. God did not lead them by the way of the land of the Philistines, although it was near. For God said, lest the people change their minds when they see war and return to Egypt. Right? He continues on in verse 18 says, but God. Uh led the people around by the way of the wilderness towards the Red Sea, and the people of Israel went up out of the land of Egypt, equipped for battle. And then there's a unique verse here in verse 19, in which he says, Moses took the bones of Joseph with him, for Joseph made the sons of Israel solemnly swear, saying, God will surely visit you, and you shall carry up my bones with you from here. And they moved on from Sakoth and encamped in Etham at the edge of the wilderness. And the Lord went before them uh by day in a pillar of cloud that led them along the way. And by night, a pillar of fire to give them light, and they might travel by day and by night. And the pillar of cloud by day, and the pillar of fire by night did not depart from before the people. Now, there's so much there in this passage. Let's break it down a little bit. First, they are led out of Egypt. God is leading them, and God doesn't take them the shortest path. Right? Because the shortest path out into the promised land would have been through the Philistines. Think, you know, David and Goliath down the road, OK? So this land of warriors, these, these, these, these giants, OK? And God says, hey, I, I know you want to go here, but you're not ready yet. God's not gonna lead you somewhere where he knows you're not ready for it. Anyone experience of a faith detour? God, I thought you were taking me here, and now I'm here. Right? Well, the reality is God's not gonna give you more than what you can handle in that moment. Now, it is more than what you can handle, but apart from his dependence on him. And, and it's human nature for us to only handle one turn at a time. Right? Think about your phone, right? When you're getting directions somewhere on your phone. It just says, hey, 5 miles from now, you're gonna turn left. It doesn't say, 5 miles, turn left, go here, 3 miles, turn right, turn left, turn right, turn left, turn right, 7 miles, go past here, turn right, you turn here, go, right? No, it, it says, hey, you're gonna make it at this time. But right now, 4 miles, turn left. OK. 3 miles, turn left, 2 miles, turn left, 1 mile, turn left, 0.5 miles, turn left, turn left. You missed it, you idiot. You turn and go back to, no, OK. That'd be great if you had like a sarcastic Siri, right? Like in there. Right. We can only handle one turn at a time. Right? And God's only gonna give us one. He said, hey, I know you wanna go this way, but that detour is actually divine protection. So instead, I'm gonna lead you this way. Well, how do we know which way to go, God? Send a pillar of fire, right? Now all of a sudden it starts to make sense of how do you keep an organized group of a million people together. You don't have to give a lot of direction. It's just follow the giant pillar of fire, right? It's not like, well, which pillar of fire, right? It's, it's that one, right? And here's the thing though, is that they weren't given the plan, they were given the presence. And that's important because the presence of God is more important than the plans of man. Not only is the presence of God, but also the promise of God. Did you catch that weird verse in the middle where they're like, oh yeah, don't forget the bones of Joseph? That seems odd, right? Until you do a deeper study of the Bible and you realize that Genesis ended with this guy named Joseph. So Abraham, Isaac, Jacob. Jacob has a bunch of kids. The youngest brother, Joseph, not not liked by his brothers, gets sold into slavery. goes and works at Potiphar's house. Potiphar's wife hits on him. He's, he does the integrity thing, rejects the wife. She feels embarrassed and instead tells a lie, gets him thrown in prison. He gets thrown in prison, gets overlooked in prison, spends this long time in prison for doing the right thing, by the way, but God had him in position so that when Pharaoh needed help, he called upon him. He interprets the dream, gets put into leadership. He has character, he has competency, he has wisdom, he has work ethic. OK, he starts Leading within Egypt and in pagan society to when there's a drought across the land, the people of Israel come to Egypt, and here it is Joseph, and instead of giving revenge on his brothers who put him into slavery, he says, what you meant for evil, God meant for good. Now I understand why I've been placed in this position. And let me tell you something even greater. God's gonna take you back. And when he does, remember this promise that he's gonna take you back and you're gonna take my bones with you. Now this is crazy. Why? Because this is now 400 years later, OK? We think in instant moments, everything, right? Like when I, like, I'm so used to watching a show on streaming services where it says next episode, 5 seconds, that when that doesn't pop up in the credits played, I get annoyed. I'm like, what is this? I'm being spiritually attacked like a, like I know it's bad, right? But we do that, don't we? Like, we get so like, you ever ordered at this, we're so spoiled in our culture today. Have you ever ordered an Amazon package and then be annoyed that it's not there by like 3 p.m. the same day? Well, you said it was gonna be here. Where is it? OK. We live in an age of instant everything. And God thinks in nations and legacy and generations to where he keeps a promise to Joseph, 400 years later. This promise is older than our country. Like it's easy to turn on the news day by day and be really stressed. Like if you ever, like, 7 times this week, we turned like, well, this is it. It's over, right? Like, you know what I'm talking about? Like you turn on the news and it doesn't matter which side you turn on, no one's, no one's feeling real good about ourselves, right? And so like, you turn on the news like, oh my gosh, where are you, God? Like, God keeps promises by generation and by nation, and for all eternity. And so he is fulfilling a promise he gave to Joseph, 400 years later, through Moses, and Moses is reminded in this moment, Look, God has never forgotten us. So it's time to move forward. And we're gonna move forward. I don't know the plan, but we're gonna take the presence of God. Because the presence of God is more important than the plans of man. And he doesn't say, well, here's the plan. We're going here, we're going here. He gives him one sentence at a time. He says, follow the fire. I, and as cool as that is, as awesome as that is, do you understand we have something more sure? The eternal Word of God. The story of Jesus Christ himself, the power of the Holy Spirit, that same fire, that same pillar now is indwelling amongst all believers. That we have the power of the living God, to understand that whatever you're walking through, way more important than your plans is the promise, the power and the presence of God. Amen. So when he calls you to move. Are you willing to, to move forward? Movement one, you gotta look back, remember who God is and what he's done. Movement two, OK, he's gonna call you to step out. He's gonna call you to move, right? You gotta move forward. Following his presence, walking with God, not knowing where it's gonna turn. But then when you do, you're gonna be in that tension of in between, is you're gonna get surrounded. Right? In this case, the people of God, they weren't led to the Philistines. They were led down to the Red Sea, and now now they're surrounded by the wilderness, the sea, and now you have the Egyptian army, the strongest army in the world at that time, coming from behind. So the third movement of the walk of faith is to stand firm. We continue reading here now in Exodus 14:10. And when Pharaoh drew near, because he realized after he let the people go, he's like, wait a second, I just lost my entire workforce. I am the greatest ruler in the world. No, I'm getting my slaves back. So he sends the full force of the army after him. He says, when the 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, and they said, uh, to Moses, Is it because there is no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the wilderness? What have you done to bring us, uh, in bringing us out of Egypt? Verse 12. Is it not 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. Pause here. That seems a little ungrateful, right? Can we agree to that? Right? But isn't that the most human thing to do? Right? Have you ever had one of those days where you feel like you're winning as a parent, right? Like, we're going here on this trip, we're taking here, boom, we're doing this, we're going out, we're making memories, boom, you get back and you're exhausted. You're like, yeah, we, you high five the spouse, like we won that day as parents. And then you turn to your kids and they're like, I'm bored. Right? What? I'm hungry. What are we gonna eat? We You're telling me, oh, I'll show you board. You on board? I got, I got bored. I got some chores that are real exciting. Right? But let's, like, think about the Egyptians or think about the um think about the Israelites. They just witnessed 10 miracles on the plagues. They're then set free from a group of people that enslaved them for 400 years, and they are now being led by a pillar of a cloud and fire. And they come out and they're like, did you lead us out here to die? At least in Egypt, we had shelter. Let's be real though. As crazy as that sounds, as crazy as it is with young kids, are we any better as adults? Do you understand that when you wake up, Like you cannot make your heart beat. You cannot control your breath. We live in Arizona. You can't stand outside for more than 2 minutes without putting sunscreen on from something that is 93 million miles away without getting burned. And yet we have the audacity to use the breath that God has given us to look and be like, God, are you even there? Really? Like creation, sun, sky, mountains, oceans, the Bible, miracle, miracle, miracle, miracle, miracle. And you're like, and you're questioning me? So I think the reason we question sometimes. is because slavery feels more secure than freedom, right? How do I know that? Come on now. How many people stay in a job they hate because it's a boss they know? And if they step out, That's unknown, right? If it's a new season, I don't, I, I don't know what's gonna happen there. And at least I know the person that frustrates me here. Right? At least I know the circumstance. At least in Egypt, we had a house to live in. Right? God, did you lead us out here to die? Oh, I had these conversations. When God called us to start the church, there were so many seasons, man. I mean, God gave me this call to start and, and a series of people within our launch team like, God's gonna lead us and then we'd show up. And like the janitor wouldn't show, and so we'd be locked out of the church. And so we're like, are we gonna do church in the parking lot? Like, what is this? Like, or the air conditioning wouldn't come on, or like people weren't show or like, and I remember I remember distinctly having prayers like, God, how am I supposed to reach people if I don't have people to help me reach people? You know what I mean? Like you call me to reach people with the gospel, and I don't even have people to reach people to help me reach the people. And then if I have the people, I don't have the resources to do the things to help the people like. At least in the last position, I had a paycheck. Right? At least I knew what I was supposed to do, like, and God's like, at least I had, we had a building, at least we had this, and like, there's seeds in your life and whatever it is for you, you're gonna get called out and you're gonna be like. I know I stepped out in faith, but God, what are you doing? But some of the coolest verses in the Bible is what God gives Moses in these next two verses, verse 1314. And and Moses said to the people, fear not, stand firm and see the salvation of the Lord, right? Fear not, stand firm, trust God, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians, that thing you're afraid of, whom you see today, you will never see them again. And check out this verse, this is so good, verse 14. The Lord will fight for you. Fear not, stand firm, trust God. Some of you are in a situation right now and you don't see the solution, God's gonna tell you, fear not, stand firm, trust God. But this last part I don't like, I'm gonna step on some toes here. You only have to be silent. Why did he say that? What did they just say? Stop complaining. You just had 10 miracles, a pillar of a cloud, a pillar of fire, the promises of God, the power of God. I'm gonna fight your battles. Stop it. If you would just pause for a moment. Do you think you're gonna win this battle anyway? I remember in those early days in the prayers for the church, and continue to this day, like, I remember like being angry at God, like we didn't have, like, it was like a, I had some staff shortage, we had some resource shortage, we're moving locations, one of our 8 times we had to move, and I was like, God, are we gonna exist? Like what's, it's on the other side of the pandemic, we didn't know if we were gonna meet, we didn't know what's gonna be there. I'm like, God, I I remember praying like, is, is this gonna work? Like, I don't, I don't see the solution. And I remember God hit me with this thought in the devotional time. He's like, he's like, John, whose church do you think this is? Is this your church or my church? And I was like, oh, OK. Some of you are struggling right now and are in a battle, and you need to remember that it's God that's fighting for you. And so when you're surrounded, when you're worried, When you don't see a way, God's reminding you, fear not, stand firm, trust God. Watch me work. So they paused. Mos said, OK, God, make the way clear and he's gonna do a miracle. He's gonna part the Red Sea. He's gonna make a way where there is no way. And so then the next step is he's gonna challenge them to step out. We're gonna pick up our story. It's a little bit longer passage now, but I wanna read it because I want you to see God's words, not mine. Here in verse 19, it says, then the angel of God who was going before the host of Israel moved and went behind them, and the pillar of the cloud moved from before them and stood behind. Now this is legit. Come on now. Like the pillar that's following them. God says, hang on, the Egyptians are coming, and it moves. And now it's playing defense. How awesome is that? They're following a cloud. And God says, hang on, and moves and now comes between the Egyptians and them. That sometimes the power and presence of God is playing defense for you. And it's protecting you from you what you don't even know. I thought I needed this thing and God, you said no, and he's like, no, I'm playing defense, you just don't know it yet. I like to think there's a few a handful in that million people that wasn't quite getting it. They like were barely following the cloud, oh look, the cloud's going this way. And you just start walking like towards the Egyptians, you know, that's sorry, that's just how my mind works. But like, they're like, no, no, no, no, it's playing defense now. Hang on, like, you know what I mean? Like they're following, they weren't, anyway, OK. So now the clouds there, this is verse 20, and coming in between the host of Egypt and the host of Israel, and there was a cloud and the darkness, and it lit up the night without one coming near the other all night. So now there's a separation that that's set up for the miracle. And then verse 21, then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and the Lord drove the sea back with a strong east wind all night and made the sea dry land and the waters were divided. I want to pause here for a second because I want to move into a little bit of speculation, OK? We're gonna continue reading, but I want you to pause cause this is some fun theories out there. I'm gonna preface this by saying these are theories, OK? There's discussion on it. So I don't need emails like, well, it's not true, blah blah bh. OK. I'm acknowledging that, but it's fun to dream, OK? The Red Sea is real. Egypt is real. Most likely walk through the Sinanai, uh, Sinai Peninsula first, right? So there's debate on where this crossing happened. Uh, there's more commonly agreed upon, there's this place called the Agaba Finger of the Red Sea. It's like this little peninsula that comes out. Because in this peninsula, there's a path from the wilderness, so there's wilderness, a giant peninsula, and then a gradual entry into the sea, cause there's like a 5% grade. And in that narrow part of the Red Sea is about 10.5 mile stretch where there's a gradual grade. Now, it goes 2500 ft below sea level, OK, which makes sense, right? Cause it's a sea, like it's not just a lake, it's deeper, so there's depth there. Right? But at a grade that people can walk down and then, and a shallow rise up to the other side, about 10.5 miles, which makes sense too. It's got to be really wide enough for 1 to 3 million people to walk through it, flat enough for people in chariots and horses and stuff to go through it, OK, to go through and, and also being 10.5 miles, you see where a giant group of people could be ahead and there could be a group that's behind that can kind of see them, but they're not, they're not there yet, not catching them, OK? Another cool thing, and again, it's a theory, so again, just look it up, it's kind of fun to think about. Um, there's actually coral shaped in that portion of the sea, shaped in the shape of chariot wheels. And so potentially there's stuff that calcified and then coral grew around it. And if it's not that, it might not be. I don't know how else you explain explain chariot wheel looking coral hardened in the Red Sea, exactly where people, the Bible says it went. But it's a historical thing here. So, even though it's debated, it's cool to think about. So you got, now, but what I didn't think about is that if you have the sea, you're not just walking here, you're walking down. And you're walking down. OK. And which makes sense with this next verse, verse 22, and the people of Israel went into the midst of the sea on dry ground. Do you notice it's not even marshy ground, muddy ground, but dry ground. It's the miracle that the waters are parted, but you know that it's, it's dry. Right? They're walking across the water's being a wall to them on the right and to the left. And if you think about it going down, it's 2500 ft below sea level. So as the walls go up, the ground's actually going down. So as you are walking, the appearance is that the water is getting higher. You ever been walking on your journey where like you're following God and like the surroundings, the stakes seem to get higher and higher and higher? Right? These people are walking through and they keep going, it says a wall to them. No kidding. Like we're talking thousands of feet of water. Like, if you've ever just had like a bowl or something, you try to move water over or in a bathtub. Now imagine a, a seed, let alone. The narrowest part of 10.5 miles, and which is, so it's, it's, there's no way this could happen apart from God. So a wall on the right and to the left, verse 23, and the Egyptians pursued them and went in after them into the midst of the sea, and all of Pharaoh's horses and his chariots and his horsemen. And in the morning, uh, in the morning watch, the Lord in the pillar of fire in the 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. Even the bad guys know that God's fighting for them, right? Because they're going down like, yeah, we'll get these slaves. Wait, wait, what the. The water's going in and now it's getting muddy, like now the dry ground's muddy, like it's getting clogged, like I think we should turn, right? And go through. It says then the Lord said to Moses, stretch out your hand over the sea, and the water may come up upon the Egyptians, and upon the chariots, and upon the horsemen. So Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and the sea returned to its normal course when the morning appeared, and the Egyptians fled into it, and the Lord threw the Egyptians into the midst of the sea. The waters returned and covered the chariots and the horsemen and all of the hosts of the Pharaoh that had followed them into the sea, not one of them remained. Here's a crazy verse here, verse 29, but the people of God walked on dry ground through the sea, the waters being a wall to them on the right and to the left. When, when God does make a way, he's gonna call you to walk. When he does provide the opportunity, you then have to take that step of obedience, even when it doesn't necessarily make sense, right? And you take that step of obedience forward, and you're, you're still gonna have the fears on the left and the right and from behind, and God says, that's OK, trust me, right? Look back, move forward. When you're surrounded, stand firm, and then when the opportunity comes, when that door opens, you're like, OK, I'm gonna step out. And when they cross to the other side, what's the natural response to the blessing of God? It's worship. So the last movement for this morning is to lift up. To lift up. Because in Exodus 15, we have the first recorded worship song in the Bible. And I'm, I encourage you to read the whole chapter, but let me just read the first two verses here in verse 1 and 2. Then Moses and the people of Israel sang the song to the Lord, saying, I will sing to the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously. The horse and his rider was thrown into the sea. The Lord is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation. This is my God, and I will praise Him, my Father's God, and I will exalt him. They get to the other side. And it's not look what I did. It's look who God is. The response to anything good or bad in your life is to worship him in the moment. Some of you are on a journey right now, and it's longer than you thought it would be, it's different than you thought it would be, it's harder than you thought it would be. The people that you thought were with you are not with you. It, the, the addictions were stronger and, and the walls were higher, and the battles were deeper to the point where like, God, why did you even take me here? Why are you even having me do this? It is better in slavery. At least I had fill in the blank. And like I said, no. Says, I am for you. I'm gonna lead you out. When you get through, I want you to lift me up. And then there's this really cool New Testament connection that I want you to walk away with today. Fast forward 1500 years to the story of Jesus. Jesus comes down, lives a perfect life, preaches, does miracles, says, hey, I'm gonna die for you, like I am God, like he's doing all these things. Get to this point in Luke chapter 9, it's called the Mount of Transfiguration. Check this out, this is so cool. Verse 28 in Luke 9. Now about 8 days after these sayings, Jesus took with him Peter and John and James, kind of the inner circle of the disciples, went up to the mountain to pray. He says, and as he was praying, the appearance of his face was altered and his clothing became dazzling white. That's why they call it the transfiguration. And behold, two men were talking with him in this manifestation here, Moses and Elijah, who appeared in glory and spoke about his departure, which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem. You know what's really cool about this verse? Do you know what the Greek word for departure is right there? Look it up, it's so cool. The Greek word for departure in this verse, Exodus. So Jesus on the mountain of transfiguration, before he would begin the Holy Week and holy walk and all this stuff. He's having a conversation with the manifestation there of Moses and Elijah on the mountain and talking about his exodus. In other words, setting up the story that as great as that miracle was, as great as splitting the Red Sea sea was for those people to go from slavery to freedom. To be redeemed, to be delivered? How about the waters and the sea of eternity, that God parts the sea of eternal damnation and all the weight of the world and sinfulness and the justice of God that he creates the path on dry ground. And his exodus out leads us from not slavery to the Egyptians, but slavery to sin and death itself, where he makes a way where there is no other way to where he's talking about exodus with the guy who lived it to say, actually, no, Jesus is the greater Moses. So that the story where he creates a way is where he calls you and I into it, so that that whatever we're walking through right now, we can look back and understand who he is. That we can move forward when he calls us out, that we can stand firm when we feel surrounded by fears and worries. That's why in 2 Timothy 1:7, it says, God did not give us a spirit of fear, but of what? But of power, love, and self-control. He says, fear not, stand firm. Trust me, stop complaining. I'm battling for you. It's not your battle. It's my battle. And if I promise to deliver you, I'm going to come through. You think the Red Sea was cool. How about the Sea of eternity that I'm giving you not just a path to walk on, but dry ground that you can come from the other side, not just go from sick to healed, not to go from bad to good, but to go from death to life. Amen. We gotta get a little more charismatic, come on, like this. Like there was some hesitating clapping, they're like, Yeah, is that OK? Is that OK? Here's what we gotta remember, that where God makes a way, he calls us to walk, OK? He's gonna give you a step to take. Are you willing to take it? Where God makes a way, he calls us to walk. I want you to look at these five areas. I want you to pick what's an area that you need to give to God this week, OK? Look back. Do you need to remember his goodness, where he's brought you out before? Do you need to move forward? Like do you feel stuck in the past? Do you feel like even if it's in the wilderness, you don't know where the next step's gonna be? Do you need to take a step? Do you need to stand firm? Do you feel surrounded with questions, fear, worry? Do you need to trust God knowing that he's fighting the battle for you? Do you need to step out in faith when God's opened that door, open that path? Were you walk in obedience? Or if God brought you through the other side to where you need to pause and lift up who he is and what he's done, giving him glory in all things. And what area of life do you need to walk in God's ways this week? I'm gonna pray for us. And then we're gonna take communion together. And we shared this last week about how the community is actually connected to Passover. But it's a way for us to do those things, to remember, right? To move forward, to stand firm. To step out and to lift up. We do all these things when we take communion together. Let me pray for us and we'll prepare the elements. Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for who you are and what you've done. God, you made a way when there was no other way. You say in Romans 5:8 that while we were still sinners, Christ, you came down at the perfect time died for us. So God, help us to remember who you are and what you've done. That you've brought us through. From slaves to our own sin and death, to redeemed sons and daughters of God. Fully forgiven, fully loved, fully known. Help us to remember who you are and what you've done on the cross. To stay silent where needed. To remember that you're fighting our battles, but then to lift up in gratitude and in victory that's only found in you. The love of God, it's in your sons, let me pray. Amen.