#1 (The
“Remember” Series)
“REMEMBER THE DAY YOU CAME OUT OF EGYPT!”
TEXT: Exodus
13:3-14:31
INTRO: What would
life be like without memory? To
find out you only have to find someone with Alzheimer’s disease. It is a hideous disease that robs a
person of their memory, eventually their memory of literally everything
disappears, even their memory of how to swallow food, and finally death.
Memory
plays one of the most important functions in order for us to be truly human! The
inability to remember the past invites chaos into the present and means an
uncertain future without meaning.
It is for this reason that we find many of the commands and stories in
the Bible prefaced with: “Remember …” “Recital”
of the past is often a prelude to “revival” in the present with the goal of
“renewal” in the future.
The
whole purpose for repeating “communion” as a Church body according to Jesus’ own
instructions was to “REMEMBER!”
Jesus told his disciples, “As often as you do this, you do it in REMEMBERANCE of me.”
We are to remember what
God has done and where we have come from ... lest we become tempted to return
back to our old way of life. Those
who fail to remember the slavery of sin are destined to return to that way of
life. Every time
PROP
SENT:
It is important that we remember where we
have come from, how God has delivered us from this world, or we will return to
our old ways. It was easier getting
I. REMEMBER THE DAY! Ex.
13:3-22
A. Purity
13:3-10
1. “Remember this
day,” (KJV) the day they came out of
a. If they forgot how horrible slavery
was, they might be tempted to return to it when times get tough, how true this
temptation proved itself, over and over again in the wilderness trials they
complained and wanted to return when things got tough!
b. To remember how rotten life was and
how quickly they had to leave
2. The bread was to be without YEAST!
For two
reasons:
a. The speed at which they were to
leave left no time for raising bread dough with yeast, thanks to
God!
b. To avoid the corrupting effects of
Egypt, the symbol of yeast even in Jesus’ day.
3. They were being asked to give up
yeast for “Milk and Honey” – not a bad exchange unless of
course they forget where they came from!
a. This yeast was not even suppose to
be seen anywhere in
b. This observance would be like a
sign to each generation to help them remember the realities of being slaves
and the deliverance only God could give them!
4. The whole purpose of this special
annual observance was to drive home the need for purity and not to pine around
for the “good old days of
Egypt!” 13:8-10
ILLUS: ON
MARCH 11, 1830 A LITTLE ENGLISH GIRL WAS DOING HER LESSONS WITH HER TUTOR AND
THE LESSON THAT DAY HAD TO DO WITH THE ROYAL FAMILY. AS SHE STUDIED THE GENEALOGICAL CHART IN
THE BOOK SHE BECAME AWARE OF THE ASTOUNDING FACT THAT SHE WAS NEXT IN LINE FOR
THE THRONE OF ENGLAND. AT FIRST SHE
WEPT, AND THEN SHE LOOKED AT HER TUTOR AND SAID, “I WILL BE GOOD!” THE FACT THAT
LITTLE VICTORIA WOULD ONE DAY BE QUEEN MOTIVATED HER TO LIVE ON A HIGHER
LEVEL. ONCE SHE DISCOVERED HER
HISTORY, SHE WAS MOTIVATED TO LIVE PURE IN THE PRESENT AND
FUTURE!
– SOURCE UNKNOWN
B. Price-tag
13:11-16
1. As a reminder that their salvation
was costly they were to annually REDEEM every first born donkey and child and
offer every firstborn lamb to God.
a. The idea of “redeem” means to “obtain release
by means of payment.”
b. Thus to keep their children meant
to offer something else as payment for their lives, the very principle God used
to save us all in sending Jesus as payment for our sins so we might be
saved!
c. Interestingly enough, donkeys could
be saved by sacrificing a lamb or goat though donkeys were not considered “clean” animals per se. They were the ordinary work horses of
that day but considered worthy enough to be redeemed just like a son! The idea of course is that God through
Christ redeems the best and the common!
2. The constant visual experience of
watching lambs slaughtered in order to redeem the children of Israel would serve
as a powerful reminder of the price-tag for their salvation and also the
horrible reminder of what happened to those who rejected the blood of the lamb,
remember the Egyptians who ignored applying the blood of the lamb to their
homes – they all lost their firstborns sons to the death
angel!
a. This is the whole point of
communion and the use of bread and grape juice!
b. They provide a more powerful reminder of the
price paid for our salvation by what Christ did!
3. The Passover ceremony thus became a
powerful force in the community of Israel as communion does in the
Church!
ILLUS:
REMEMBER
THE EXPRESSION FROM YOUR HISTORY LESSONS: “REMEMBER THE
C. Promises
13:17-22
1. God promises to not force them to
face trials they are not ready to handle yet, He leads them the long way around
lest they collapse under the threat of constant warfare too early in their
journey out of Egypt!
a. The New Testament has this same
promise: “He
will not give us temptation too great for us to
handle.”
b. Ironically however, the people of
2. They were also reminded to take
Joseph’s bones with them, almost 400 years earlier Joseph predicted this day of
deliverance would come and he wanted to go with them even if it meant that they
would only take a “skeleton crew” along!
a. This would then visually
remind them that God only intended all along that they would be in
slavery for a period of time; salvation was always on God’s
mind!
b. God never intended for His
people to live in slavery!
3. God also grants two other visual
reminders of His promise to guide them all the way through the wilderness to the
promise land, not only was He interested in getting them out of slavery He was
also concerned about the trip before they arrive in the promise land! (He still does this today
too!)
a. God provides a pillar of fire by
night. (gives light in
darkness)
b. God provides a pillar of smoke by
day. (a covering against the hot
sun)
c. This stayed always in front of them
and didn’t move unless they were supposed to move with
it!
d. Thus, they weren’t left to try and
figure out how to get there, God would lead them through the wilderness and
abide with them in their midst dispelling the darkness by the fire and
sheltering them from the searing sun by a cloud by day – how could they get
lost!?
4. What is so weird is that even with
all these promises made through the constant visual realities
ILLUS: LIKE
THE WEALTHY TEXAN WHO WAS IN THE HABIT OF GIVING HIS DAD UNIQUE GIFTS ON
FATHER’S DAY EACH YEAR. ONE YEAR IT
WAS LESSONS ON HANG-GLIDING. THE
YEAR BEFORE IT WAS THE ENTIRE COLLECTION OF SLIM WHITMAN’S HITS. BUT THIS ONE YEAR HE THOUGHT HE REALLY
HAD OUTDONE HIMSELF, HE PURCHASED FOR HIS DAD A RARE KIND OF TALKING BIRD THAT
COULD SPEAK 5 LANGUAGES AND SING WHILE STANDING ON ONE FOOT THE SONG “THE YELLOW
ROSE OF TEXAS.” THE TALENTED BIRD
COST HIM $10,000 BUT HE FELT IT WAS WORTH IT! HE FIGURED THIS WOULD BE A FATHER’S DAY
GIFT HIS DAD WOULD NEVER FORGET! A
WEEK AFTER FATHER’S DAY HE CALLED HIS DAD AND ASKED, “DAD, HOW DID YOU LIKE THE
BIRD?” HIS DAD RESPONDED, “IT WAS
DELICIOUS!” HE OBVIOUSLY MISSED THE
WHOLE POINT OF THE BIRD!
– SOURCE UNKNOWN
a. Tragically,
b. The result is FEAR! Panic really set in as perspective was
lost!
c. How about us? We see God’s grace in our lives and
others daily, yet we forget too easily and so complain and fret about God’s
guidance and presence in our lives!
5. It was time to
remember!!!
II. REMEMBER THE DELIVERANCE Ex.
14:1-31
A. Panic!
14:1-12
1. God has Moses take Israel and have
them camp right against the Red Sea, thus no escape route if Egypt comes after
them!
a. WHY? The reason is given in 14:3,5 “The
Israelites are wandering around the land in confusion…” “What have we done? We
have let the Israelites go and have lost their services!” This was to entice the Egyptians to come
after them so God could show both
b. The real point was to let God
destroy their enemy right before their eyes, to get rid of the
Egyptians!
c. In their panic however
2. Sure enough, Israel sees the
Egyptian army coming after them and after taking note that their backs were
against the Sea with no escape they cry out in panic!
a. How many times has God allowed your
back against the wall?
b. How like
3. It’s too bad that
a. Hadn’t God just shown how He can
attack the enemy without hurting God’s own people?
b. What was wrong with their
recent memory???
c. God had given them TEN good reasons
why they should not panic and trust Him, and
B. Perspective! 14:13-20
1. God’s plan here was interesting, to
do something so dramatic that it would live on forever in man’s memory so we
never forget God’s power and promises, thus to keep our perspective healthy all
the time!
a. God was making a point both to
b.
2. God always has a purpose in mind
for everything that happens to His children!
a. For
b. For
c. In this sense it was meant for GOOD
to both sides: Israel and Egypt will come to know God, and so will everyone
eventually; although for some it will mean eternal death and damnation while for
others it will mean eternal life!
d. The question is which side you will
choose to be on?
3. With their eyes off of God and on
the Egyptians they panic, just like Peter who took his eyes off Jesus and
noticed the stormy waters and so began to sink!
4. It is quite interesting to note in
a. God’s presence brought darkness to
the side of
b. But it brought light to
c. This major difference in what each
side experienced with the same God is present today; to the saved God is light,
to the lost they only experience darkness!
5. It’s too bad Israel was so quick to
forget the recent deliverance from Egypt through the plagues, how quickly they
forgot God’s work and thus lost their perspective!
a. They assumed the worse from God
instead of the best, though God had proved Himself faithful to them over and
over again!
b. How quick we are to jump to
conclusions about God not loving us when we are in a
trial!
ILLUS: LIKE
THE BOY WHO WAS SAILING HIS BOAT ON A POND ONE DAY. SUDDENLY A LITTLE WIND CAUGHT HIS BOAT
AND IT BEGAN TO DRIFT AWAY FROM HIM, WELL BEYOND HIS REACH AND ABILITY TO SAVE
IT. THE LITTLE BOY DID THE ONLY
THING HE KNEW TO SAVE IT, HE CRIED FOR HELP FROM A NEARBY MAN. TO THE LITTLE BOY’S HORROR HE WATCHED THE
OLDER MAN REACH DOWN AND PICK UP SEVERAL LARGE STONES AND BEGIN THROWING THEM AT
THE BOY’S FRAGILE BOAT! THE BOY
THOUGHT, “HOW CAN THIS MAN BE SO CRUEL TO A LITTLE BOY LIKE ME?” TO THE LITTLE
BOY’S DELIGHT HOWEVER, HE NOTICED THE MAN WAS A BAD SHOT, EVERY ROCK HE THREW
WENT OVER THE BOAT AND
6. This is precisely why God gave us
His WRITTEN WORD – THE BIBLE, SO WE don’t forget the past workings of God for
His people and SO WE DO keep the right perspective!
a. The only thing God was planning on
destroying here was the enemy, not his people!!!
b. Proof of this will be the path
through the sea for them!
c. The same God that had gotten them
OUT of
7. If only Israel wasn’t so quick to
forget, yet how quickly we forget too!
C. Power! 14:21-31
1. Moses stretches out his hand over
the sea and all night long a strong wind from God comes and builds a dry path
right through the sea for them to cross over!!!
a.
b. This wind did its work all night
long, dividing the waters and then drying the path – God didn’t want them bogged
down in mud!
c. Was this any harder for God to do
than the plagues? – OF COURSE NOT!
BUT ISRAEL HAD FORGOTTEN SO QUICKLY THE
PLAGUES!
2. This was not the first
demonstration by God of His power on behalf of His people and it wasn’t to be
the last either!
a. How true this is for
us!
b. We get so easily discouraged, yet
God is always so faithful and He will continue to be!
3. No matter how impressive a show the
enemy demonstrates with their power there is no power greater than
God’s!
a. How easily we forget His
power!
b. Or how great it still is, we can be
amazed at other powers and fail to remember God’s!
ILLUS:
LIKE
THE SCIENTISTS ON MARCH 5, 1979. THE MOST POWERFUL BURST OF ENERGY EVER
RECORDED BY MAN HAPPENED ON THIS DAY. FROM SOMEWHERE OUT IN SPACE A BURST OF
GAMMA RADIATION WAS DETECTED HITTING THE EARTH. FORTUNATELY IT LASTED ONLY 1/10 OF A
SECOND AND CAME FROM SO FAR AWAY THAT WE ALL LIVED THROUGH IT. IT WAS SO POWERFUL IN THAT 1/10 OF A
SECOND THAT IT PRODUCED THE POWER THAT OUR OWN SUN WOULD PRODUCE IN 3,000 YEARS!
HAD OUR OWN SUN BELCHED OUT THIS
MUCH ENERGY IN THAT 1/10 OF A SECOND OUR PLANET EARTH WOULD HAVE BEEN VAPORIZED
INSTANTLY INTO NOTHINGNESS! THEY
WERE AMAZED THAT THIS KIND OF ENERGY AND POWER CAN BE GENERATED SOMEWHERE IN THE
UNIVERSE, YET SCIENCE SO OFTEN FAILS TO REALIZE THE POWER OF GOD WHICH IS SO
MUCH GREATER!
– SOURCE UNKNOWN
4. Israel marched through the sea on
dry ground, they should not easily forget this
incident!
a. And sure enough, when they are
safely over the Egyptians attempted to follow but without honoring God they were
simply going to their grave!
b. God threw the Egyptians into
confusion, much the same way the world today is
confused!
c. Their great chariots fell apart,
their wheels fell off! Just like
this world is going to fall apart if it continues to fail to honor
God!
d. Finally, even the Egyptians
realized God was against them, but it was too late; how tragically true this
will be one day for this world also!
e. As the Egyptians attempted to get
free and return to
(1. Yet, how many Christians attempt to
return to their old sinful ways after they get saved, they might continue to
live in sin, return to old values and lifestyles that God saved them out of,
they go back to old sinful habits!
(2. The return to
f. There was not one survivor
except those who trusted God!
5. God made His power known and the
results were good for Israel! 14:31
a. They greatly respected God (the literal meaning of the word “fear” here)
b. They also respected God’s leader
over them, Moses. (At least for the
moment, until later when they forgot again the work God had done for
them!)
6. They
were instructed NOT TO FORGET THE DAY GOD BROUGHT THEM OUT
a. Why, because reminders help keep us
on track!
b. Why, because we need to remember
the past in order to get to the future!
c. THOSE WHO FAIL TO REMEMBER THE
PAST ARE DOOMED TO REPEAT IT!
7. How about you? REMEMBER THE DAY GOD SAVED YOU? ARE YOU TRYING TO GO BACK TO EGYPT OR ARE
YOU HEADING TOWARD THE PROMISE LAND?
a. Stay out of
b. Remember what it was like back
there so you don’t desire to return!
CONCLUSION:
Without remembering the past we have no future, and the present becomes
meaningless. The whole idea of
communion is about remembering, “DO THIS IN REMEMBRANCE OF ME!” It is to not only remember Christ’s
sacrifice and our salvation but also to restore our perspective so we can stay
on track. Past victories give us
hope for the future when we need it in the present!
REMEMBER!