Exodus 14:13
Do not be afraid. Stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord, which He will accomplish for you today. (NKJV)
Today’s Reading: Exodus 14:1-31 and Romans 6:1-14
The crossing of the Red Sea is one of the most remarkable events in history. It has been studied for centuries and it still confounds us today how it even happened. Historians and explorers have visited the Red Sea in search of finding the exact location the Israelites passed through. And still today no one is certain of exactly where it happened.
They’ve even studied the historical tide charts and wind patterns to find a natural explanation for the parting of the sea. Some are hoping to determine the exact date of the event. Some are hoping to reduce God’s role in the event. But this was a miracle of God so that “the Egyptians may know that I AM the Lord” (Ex 14:4). And as great of a miracle as it was, it was only a shadow of a greater miracle to come.
Recall our Scripture yesterday from first Corinthians. Paul tells us, “They were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea” (1 Cor 10:2). And just like yesterday, Paul is telling us to see Jesus in these events. A few sentences later, Paul says, “These things happened to them as examples … for us” (1 Cor 10:11). Paul believed as I do that not only did the events of the past happen to the Israelites to serve a purpose in their lives, but they were written down so that they would also serve a spiritual purpose for us.
The entire purpose of Paul writing this section of his letter was for God to show us the exact parallel between the Israelites and us as Christians. Just as Israel passed through the Red Sea and were delivered from the slavery of Egypt, so also Christ-followers are delivered from the slavery of sin through baptism. Let’s examine further.
On the way out of Egypt, God has the Israelites turning in circles so that it appears they are confused and vulnerable to the Egyptians. As the Egyptians approach, the Israelites are terrified. At this point in their journey, they are doomed and likely headed back to Egypt as slaves. They have yet to escape their slave masters. In other words, they have not been saved yet. And there’s nothing they can do to save themselves. They need a miracle from God. They need a savior.
God provides. He stands between the Israelites and the Egyptians as the water parts throughout the night. He provides the Israelites light as they pass through the sea on dry ground. At daybreak, the Egyptians who had followed them into the sea are drowned as the waters collapse on them. As the Israelites stand on the other side and look back at the sea behind them containing the dead Egyptians, they are free from slavery. Having done nothing on their own except following God’s light, the LORD had saved them.
The obvious parallel between the Red Sea and baptism is water. Just as the water saved the Israelites from the Egyptians, so we are saved by the waters of baptism from sin. But there’s so much more. Just as the Israelites were standing on the bank of the Red Sea as Egyptian slaves with no ability to save themselves, we are slaves to sin with no ability to save ourselves. Just as God provided the Israelites dry ground with walls of water to walk through, God provided Jesus to pay for our sin through his death on the cross.
When we are baptized, we are “therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life” (Rom 6:4). And just as the Israelites come out of the Red Sea freed from slavery to embark on their new life, we come out of the waters of baptism free from sin and born again into a new life in Christ.
The New King James Version uses some great language in verses 13 and 14. “And Moses said to the people, ‘Do not be afraid. Stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord, which He will accomplish for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall see again no more forever. The Lord will fight for you, and you shall hold your peace.’”
Now simply change the words “Egyptians whom” for the word “sin” and read that verse again as if God is speaking to you. “Do not be afraid. Stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord, which He will accomplish for you today. For the [sin] you see today, you shall see again no more forever. The Lord will fight for you, and you shall hold your peace.”
Do not be afraid. Be still. See the salvation of the Lord. Your sin is gone. Jesus came for you. Now you have peace.
Christ in the Old Testament 
Leave a comment