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Call
Sealed
with
Promise
Unit
1:
Called
Out
of
Egypt
(Lessons 1-4)
FINDING
PROTECTION
LESSON
4
INTRODUCTION
A.
TRAPPED?
Quicksand
is
not the dangerous natural threat that
Hollywood makes
itout
to be.
It
simply
is
a mixture of a certain ratio of water
to
sand, possibleanywhere
in
the
world.
Quicksand seldom accumulates
more
than a
few
feet
deep.
In
extreme situations,
like
those caused
by
earthquakes or underground streams, quicksand
may be
deep enough
to
engulf an adult's
body.
However,
since
the
human body can
float
in
water,
it
floats
even
more
easily
amidst a mixture of water and sand, which
is
far
denser.The
key to
survival
is
not panicking. One must
relax,
maintain composure, and
allow
the
body
to
rise
to
the surface through small subtle movements.Christians
face
many quicksands throughout
life.
These
are
momentswhen
we
feel
helplessly trapped with no discernible end
in sight. In
a
flashwe
imagine
the
worst.
So
we
panic.
Panic
may
result in rash decisions,
like
throwing money
we
do
not
have
at a problem
in
order
to
buy our
way
out of
it.
The
result
alsomay be excessive
worrying,
complaining, or
even
gossiping
if we
think someone
else
is
to
blame.
We
suppose that
if
we
scramble
fast
enough
we
can
reverse
the prob
lem, make
it disappear
entirely,
orat
least minimize
the
damage.
In such instances it
is
easy to forget
that
God
is
in
control.
We
may
forget
that no problem
we
face
is
too big
for
him.
We
may
forget
that
he never
calls
his
people
to
make
rash or unholy decisions
to
right a perceived
wrong.
He
calls
us, instead,
to
be
still,
wait on
him,
and trust that
he
will
deliver
us.In
today's lesson, the
Israelites saw
themselves
to
be
sinking
fast.
Theywere
trapped between Pharaoh's
army
and a
large
body
of
water,
with no
dis
cernible
way
out. Their instinct
was
to
panic.
But
God
beckoned them
to
be
still and
to
watch
his
promised
deliverance.
B.
LESSON BACKGROUND
By
the
time of
today's lesson,
God
had showed
his
power
over
the
mighty
Egyptian
empire
in
a sequence of stunning
plagues.
As
a result, Pharaohpractically
begged
Moses
to
take
the
Israelites
and
leave
(Exodus
12
:31, 32).On top
ofthis,
the
Egyptians
themselves
blessed
the Israelites
with parting
gifts
of clothing and precious metals (12:35, 36).Though
God
triumphed
decisively,
he
was
not finished teaching a lesson
to
both
Israel
and
Egypt.
As
the people approached the
Red Sea,
God called
them
to
tum back a bit
in
order
to
provoke
Pharaoh
to
pursue them
(Exo
dus
14:
1-4).
That
is
exactly
what happened.
The
Israelites turned, Pharaohassumed
they were
confused and vulnerable, and he gathered his
army
to
march
after
them.
This
was
all
part of
the
plan
God
disclosed
to
the
Israelites. But
as
the
Egyptians
drew
near,
the Israelites
panicked.
They
cried out
to
Moses
and
DEVOTIONAL READING:
ExODUS
15:1-13
BACKGROUNDSCRIPTURE:
ExODUS
13:17-14:30
PRINTED TEXT:
EXODUS
14:15-25,
30a
LESSON
AIMS
Afterparticipating
inthislesson,
each
student
will beable
to:
1.
Tell
how Godsaved
Is-
rael
at
the
RedSea.2.
Draw
a
parallel between
the
deliverance
at
the
Red
Sea
and
how God
delivers
today.
3.
Write
a
poem
or
song
praising
God
for
his
protection.
KEY
VERSE
That
day the
LORD
saved
Israel
from
the
hands
of
the
Egyptians.
-Exodus
14:30
 
JUNE
28,
2009
_420
__
FINDING
PROTECTION
LESSON
4
NOTES
God that it would have been better to remain slaves in Egypt than to be killedin the desert (Exodus 14: 10-12). Moses tried to encourage the people, apparently to no
avail.
So
God intervened. The idea was
both
to assure the Israelites of his protection and to prove to them (again) that he alone could deliver them. It didnot matter how deeply they thought themselves sinking in the quicksand ofadversity; God was
on
their side.
I.
GOD
DIRECTS
(EXODUS
14:15-18)
A.
WHAT
MOSES
Is
TO
Do
(w.
15, 16)
15. Then the
LORD
said
to
Moses,
"\Vhy
are
you
crying
out
to
me?
Tell
the
Is-
raelites
to
move
on.
God hears Israel's desperate pleas,
but
with little sympathy.
What
moredoes he have to do to show them that Pharaoh
is
no
match for him? Hehas squashed Egyptian power through dramatic signs and plagues. He hasled the Israelites
out
of Egypt with a supernatural flame and cloud (Exodus13:21,22). He has
just
used them to lure Pharaoh into a trap. But as the trapbegins to work, the Israelites still
doubt
and panic.
WHAT
Do
You
THINK?
The fact that God asks Moses
Why
are
you
crying out
to
me?
may indicatethat Moses shares in the
doubt
and panic. God has the cure:
move
on.
There
How do
we
wiseO'
pray
is
a time to pray and a time for action. Knowing the right time for each
is
im
for
missionaries
working
in
. portant. It's
now
time for Moses and the Israelites to stop crying
out
to God.
situations
where they
may
be
It's time to get moving!
attached
or
imprisoned?
How
16.
"Raise
yourstaff
andstretch
out
your
hand
over
the
sea
to
divide
the
water
do
we
discern
that
it's time
to
so
that
the
Israelites
can
go
through the
sea
on
dry ground.
put
our
prayers
into
personal
In previous encounters with Pharaoh, God caused the
staff
ofAaron to
action?
become a snake (Exodus
7:
10); turned water into blood (7:20); drew
frogs
out
of various waters (8:5, 6); made gnats of the earth's dust
(8:
17); broughtthunder, hail, and
fire
from Heaven (9:23); and called on the east wind toblow in a horde oflocusts
(l
0:
13). Now God calls on Moses with his staff to
WHAT
Do
You
THINK?
work one of the most memorable miracles in Israel's history: the parting of
What
resources
are avail-
the Red
Sea.
able
to
Christians
when
cir
The identity of this
sea
is
not
given in this verse,
but
it
is
clearly stated
cumstances
start
to
tum
bad
in Exodus 15:4 as the Red Sea. In the original (Hebrew) language, however,
or
when the
situation
seems
!
the sea
is
identified as
Yam
Suph,
which means Sea of Reeds. It
is
not
until
impossible?
the third century
Be
that a Greek version of the Old Testament translatesthis as Red Sea. This leads some students to speculate that it
is
not
the RedSea as we
know
it today that
is
parted. However, Acts 7:36 and Hebrews11 :29 follow the Greek translation
and
identify this body of water as the
i
Red Sea. Furthermore, the details
of
two walls of water in Exodus 14:22(below) hardly fit any body
of
water in the area other than the Red Sea.Therefore the Red Sea
is
the same as the Sea of Reeds.
PANIC ATTACK
Caffeine
is
the
most
widely
used
psychoactive
drug
in
the
world. This
drug
is
found
not
only
naturally
in
coffee,
but
also
artificially
in many
soft
drinks and
so-called
"energy" beverages.But
caffeine
usecan causeproblems.
Some
studies show a connection
between
caffeine
use
and
the occurrence
of
panic
attacks
in
certain
people. Genetic
factors
may
predispose them
to
srrong
reactions
to large
amounts
of
caffeine.
Giving
up
 
LESSON
4
421
caffeine is
not
that easy, however.
Coffee
jitters
is
what happens when
coffee drink
DAILY
BIBLE
READINGS
ers experience caffeine withdrawal symptoms. The short-term cure,
of
course, is
Monday,
June
22-Led
to
to have a
cup of
coffee!
Freedom
by
God
(Exodus
13:
Israel's panic attack was
not
a case
of
coffee jitters. But they were indeed expe
17-22)
riencing withdrawal
symptoms-withdrawal
from
"the known"
of
Egypt
into
Tuesday,
June
23-
"the unknown" of
a
journey
ahead.
That
fact
combined
with the
sight
of
Pha
Pursued
by
the
Enemy
raoh's hordes
coming after
them
was a recipe for panic.
God's
prescription for
(Exodus
14:
1-9)
their
panic
is good advice for us.
In
times
of
stress,
God
still says "Believe
in me
Wednesday,
June
24-
and
move
in
the
direction
I'm
leading you."
-c.
R.
B.
Overtakenby
Fear
(Exodus
14:10-14)
B.
WHAT GOD
WILL
Do
(w.
17, 18)
Thursday,
June
25-God
1
7.
"I
will
harden
the
hearts
of
the
Egyptians
so
that
they
will
go
in
after
them.
Is
Our
Refuge
(Psalm
46)
And
I
will
gain
glory
through
Pharaoh
and
all
his
allllY,
throughhis
chariots
Friday,
June
26--
Tmst
in
and
his horsemen.
the
Lord
(Proverbs
3:3-10)
Christians have long wrestled with the fact that God hardened
thehearts
Saturday,
June 27-Cele
of
Pharaoh
and
the
Egyptians
against the Israelites. Some say such harden-
brating
Deliverance (Exodus
 
ing demonstrates that God fully controls
all
human
action; the result of this '
15:1-13)
proposal is that
humans
lack genuine
free
will (meaning the power of op-.
Sunday,
June 28-Saved
posite choice). Others who are committed
to
the principle of free will may
from
the
Enemy
(Exodus
try to "explain away" these verses so that the
human
will
is
never overrid-
14:
15-25,30)
den
by God.
As
a result, passages like this have become fodder
for
a doctrinal debate.
We
cannot resolve that debate here. But three factors should be kept in mind
if
we are to read this passage in context.First, this
is
not
the only passage in Exodus to discuss God's hardening ofthe hearts of Pharaoh and the Egyptians (compare Exodus 4:21; 7:3; 9:12;10:
1,20,27;
11:10; 14:4,8). Second, other passages in Exodus discuss Pharaoh hardening his own heart (8:15, 32; 9:34). Third, what God does in oneparticular situation does
not
prove what God "must" do in another situationor with most humans in most places.With these facts in mind, a proper reading of this narrative may be attempted. Going back to Exodus
4,
the text depicts a scenario in which Pharaoh genuinely and freely desires to deny Israelite release from captivity andto punish them
for
even asking. Though God announces in advance his planto
harden
Pharaoh (Exodus 4:21; 7:3), Pharaoh hardens his own heart twice
(8:
15,32)
before God does so
for
the first time
(9:
12). This
is
why Pharaohand the Egyptians serve
as
negative examples in 1 Samuel 6:6 of those whoharden their own hearts.Thus when God finally joins the hardening process,
he
is
not
forcing theEgyptians to do something that
is
uncharacteristic of them. They have madetheir intentions
clear,
and God uses their existing stubbornness to advancehis
glory.
What
we may safely infer from this narrative
is
that at a critical time
How
TO
SAY
IT
in Israel's development God strengthened an enemy's resolve
to
pursue his
Aaron. AIR-un.
people. The reason why
is
the subject of the next verse.
Egypt.
EE-jipt.
18.
"The Egyptians
will
know
that
I
am
the
LORD
when
I
gainglorythrough
Egyptians.
Ee-JIP-shuns.
Pharaoh, his
chariotsand
his
horsemen."
Israelites.
IZ-ray-el-ites.
God's purpose
for
hardening the Egyptians' hearts
is
not
to
provide fod
Moses.
MO-zes
or
MO-zez.
der for doctrinal debates,
but
to
gain
glory
himself in the sight of his people
Pharaoh.
FAIR-o
or
FAY-roe.
and
their
foes.
Pharaoh dishonored God by denying his existence (Exodus
Sinai.
SIGH-nye
or
5:2) and ruthlessly oppressing his people (5:6-9). God
is
about to set the
SIGH-nay-eye.
of 00

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