Introduction
Greetings, everyone. Let's examine Chapter 14 of Exodus. In this chapter, God once again performed a miracle unprecedented and unmatched, leaving us deeply awestruck. When we read this passage, we find it incredibly astonishing. The Red Sea parted – how miraculous is that! What people need most in life is a miracle, and I believe it is better to have a miracle than not. It is the greatest tragedy in a person's life to believe in the Lord but not believe in miracles. If a person does not believe that God can perform miracles, they are truly missing out! Because I believe that God will surely deliver, I often see miracles, and God has performed many miracles through my hands. Many people have some very erroneous ideas in their minds, thinking that since the canon of the Bible has been formed, God no longer performs miracles. This is pure nonsense!
In life, people often encounter situations where there is the Red Sea in front and Egyptian pursuers behind, a dark abyss, and a chaotic void. At this time, people are extremely fearful, and without a miracle, wouldn't they just be waiting to die? Therefore, what people need most in life is a miracle. If we know that God's power will surely save us in difficult situations, wouldn't that be a great comfort! Brothers and sisters, you must know for sure that the God we believe in is a God who delivers, is powerful, and is great and awesome! God is simply wonderful! I don't know how to live without God. If we encounter situations where we cry to heaven and get no response, and cry to earth and get no answer, what else can comfort us besides having God to rely on? Absolutely nothing! So I trust in the God who performs miracles, not in a god who has ears but cannot hear, has eyes but cannot see, and has a mouth but cannot eat – that is just a clay statue.
In this chapter, our God once again performed a miracle. He deliberately did something very great. This great event came at a painful cost for some and left a deep impression on others. To this day, the story of the Exodus and the crossing of the Red Sea is still told among believers. Why did God do this? Because God wants to reinforce our memory again, reminding us that God is the God who delivers.
What is the theme of Exodus Chapter 14? It cannot be found in the original text of this chapter but must be sought in the previous and subsequent chapters. Chapter 15 is a song that Moses sang, and the previous chapter speaks of remembering Jehovah God as the God who delivers, so the theme of this chapter is God wants us to remember again that Jehovah is the God who delivers. God performed so many miracles in Egypt, striking down the firstborn of Pharaoh and the common people alike, causing the Egyptians not only to beg the Israelites to leave quickly but also to give them gold, silver, and treasures. At this time, the Egyptians were completely bewildered.
Human Memory and Logical Reasoning Are Very Spiritual Matters
Human memory is a very spiritual thing. The length of time that each person's memory lasts varies. Some last only three seconds, some three hours, some three to five days, and some can remember forever. There is a Chinese idiom called "mending the fold after the sheep is lost," which means that if a sheep is lost, the fold must be quickly repaired and the problem solved. It is very spiritual for us to have a long memory and remember our God. We must know for sure that how well you remember determines your life.
Among the people I have encountered, some Christians are quite detestable because they forget all the grace they have experienced in the past when they encounter challenges. They forget how I led them to pray for healing, how I led them out of bondage, and can only see the problems before them. Although I serve these people as if I were serving God, it is because I have God that I serve them. If it were according to my personal disposition, I would have slipped away long ago when I encountered such people, hiding as far away as possible. Because these people only remember the bad things in their minds, they have forgotten all the grace they have received in the past. After encountering difficulties, they only see the difficulty and know nothing else. I wonder, how could this person get dementia at such a young age? There are many such people. After serving them, I thank God that I am not God, or I would have crushed them to death long ago.
Everyone must know that human memory is very spiritual, depending on what you remember. I have a great advantage: I often remember the kindness of others. I remember all the grace God has given me, without missing a single one. How God saved me, how He gave me a job, how He gave me grace to be blessed in my work, etc. I remember all of these clearly, and I remember my God. Many people think that my ability is super strong, but it is not my strength; it is God's grace! The more I count in this way, the more grace God gives me. I have also encountered situations where there was the Red Sea in front and Egyptian pursuers behind, and I was about to die, but I knew that my God would surely deliver. So, if you ask me what kind of person I am, I am a blessed person! A fortunate person!
Unlike some people whose memory is so bad that they can even forget what they said. I used to serve a person who was possessed by demons. She had mental illness and could see many things in the spiritual realm, such as the fire of hell and the worms of hell. I released her from the bondage of the devil, but after the release, I asked her to take notes, but she didn't; I asked her to do homework, but she didn't, telling me she didn't have time. I wondered, she had time to be mentally ill but didn't have time to grow? In just one or two years, she completely forgot God's grace and then left the church. After she left, I rejoiced and cheered, finally pastoring away an ungrateful fellow! If she didn't leave, I couldn't actively kick her out.
I get annoyed when I see those who don't remember God and are ungrateful, and I have to control my own carnal nature. So I thank God that I am not God, or I would have crushed them to death long ago. Do you all understand that feeling? I often thank God that I was once a very muddled person, but God not only didn't crush me to death but has preserved me to this day and greatly uses me.
As Pharaoh approached, the Israelites looked up, and there were the Egyptians marching after them. They were terrified and cried out to the Lord. They said to Moses, “Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die? What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt? Didn’t we say to you in Egypt, ‘Leave us alone; let us serve the Egyptians’? It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert!” (Exodus 14:10-12)
Human logical reasoning is also a very spiritual matter. The logic inside most people is very strange. How could the Israelites say such muddled things? Because their logical reasoning for judging things is often in a state of confusion, so whether we are doing education or training, it is to adjust people's wrong perceptions and wrong logical systems to a more practical state. Don't be like the Israelites! They forgot all the miracles they had experienced before encountering a problem, their logical reasoning was gone, and they only knew how to mess things up. Later, all these people died in the wilderness, either killed by God or taken away by demons, and the end was destruction.
God Wants to Reinforce the Israelites' Memory Again
This time, God wants to reinforce our memory again. Did the Israelites see all the things God did in Egypt? They saw them! Why did God want to reinforce their memory again? Because later, the facts proved that the Israelites' memory was indeed not good. God tested them, bringing them to the edge of the Red Sea, wanting them to know what it means to burn their boats and fight with their backs to the water. After the Israelites left the wilderness and ran to the edge of the Red Sea, who informed Pharaoh of Egypt? Did God send an angel disguised as a human to run to Pharaoh of Egypt and report that the Israelites were lost and had run to the edge of the Red Sea, and it was still not too late to chase them? This event is not recorded in the Bible, and none of us can say for sure, but I guess this should be a small trap set by God.
When the Israelites saw the army and chariots of Pharaoh of Egypt chasing after them, bringing the most advanced weapons of that generation, they began to complain, "Was it because there were no graves in Egypt?" It's over, we are going to die this time. They forgot that when they came out of Egypt, the Egyptians had these advanced weapons and chariots. They forgot that at that time, the Egyptians, from Pharaoh to the common people, gave them gold, silver, and treasures. Hadn't they just finished eating unleavened bread for seven days? How could they die without a burial place? Although there was the Red Sea in front and Egyptian pursuers behind, didn't God save them from Egypt last time? Would God not care now? What kind of brain is this?
Then the angel of God, who had been traveling in front of Israel’s army, withdrew and went behind them. The pillar of cloud also moved from in front and stood behind them, coming between the armies of Egypt and Israel. Throughout the night the cloud brought darkness to one side and light to the other side; so neither went near the other all night long. (Exodus 14:19-20)
It is a tragedy in life to have such a forgetful brain. God will curse these people. Did God know about this behavior of Israel? God knew! But at that time, God did not want to destroy them yet, wanting them to have a long memory again, but the Israelites still forgot. I lament that what God did was not easy! How hurtful! The Israelites were not complaining about Moses but about God. At that time, the Israelites had a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night to lead them, seeing God in their midst every day. How could they forget so quickly? It's really strange!
Later, the pillar of fire and the pillar of cloud were between the Israelites and the Egyptians, and the two could not approach each other, but the Israelites saw this phenomenon but did not understand it and still said those nonsense words. I can't understand why they still feared the Egyptian chariots as soon as they saw them, even though they saw God's guidance every day, personally experienced God's power, and were led out of the house of slavery in Egypt. If I were in the Israelite camp at that time, I would provocatively say to the Egyptians, "Come over if you have the ability! What were you doing when we left Egypt? Have you forgotten the death of your firstborn? Why is your memory so bad? Why don't you learn a lesson!"
God Wants to Be Glorified in the Egyptians Again
In the process of serving people, I can understand God. It's not easy to be God! God sits on His throne, looking at the things His people do and not understanding! We humans don't understand God, and what I can't understand even more is Pharaoh of Egypt. At that time, Egypt had already suffered ten plagues, and the whole of Egypt had been corrupted, so the Egyptians begged them to leave quickly because the dough in the Israelites' basins had not even risen. But now, why are they chasing after the Israelites again? Don't they know that God is in the midst of the Israelites? Think about it, everyone. The pillar of cloud and the pillar of fire are between the Egyptians and the Israelites. It is clear at a glance that this is God, and it is clear that you can't mess with the God behind the Israelites!
But the Egyptians' brains were also broken. The brains of those who belong to the world don't work well. I don't know what they were thinking. They were probably thinking about their GDP, economy, and engineering projects, etc., but they didn't know that what was in front of them was going to kill people! What's the use of GDP if you don't have a life? What's the use of those worldly things? God wanted to be glorified in the Egyptians, so He buried them at the bottom of the Red Sea. So sometimes, people are just blinded by greed and want to rush upwards no matter what. People's memory is really deadly. How could they have forgotten everything?
We see some phenomena today that are the same. Some people only have one or two days to live and are still constantly tossing around. They have already lost before when playing with God, but they have forgotten everything and still want to play. Their brains are like walnut kernels, and their hearts are like peanuts, and yet they think they are great. I think even if you have Red Hare under your crotch and a bright silver spear in your hand, it's useless. Even Qin Qiong, Xiang Yu, and Li Yuanba of the past are useless – just clowns. Aren't those who oppose God in human history just clowns? It's like watching a skit, and the result is that God is glorified in these people.
You think you are great, but if you know that you only have one day to live, then don't bother anymore. It's meaningless. I admire the Israelites who died in the wilderness, and I also admire the Egyptians who died in the Red Sea. After reading such stories, shouldn't we wake up a bit? I often see some people who only have a few dozen hours to live and are still worried about this and that. I served a person who didn't even know how many days he could live. But as soon as I finished serving him, he sat up and talked about 30 million and 800 million. I asked him what he was talking about. The people on the scene said he was talking about money.
I was surprised by what kind of brain this person had! When death is imminent, he is still entangled in the things of this world endlessly. He wants to get what he can't get, so he chooses to commit suicide, but the suicide attempt fails and he is rescued. The problem becomes even bigger after he is rescued because the original problems are still there. Many people's problems become more serious after they come back to life from the brink of death, and they are anxious about living this little bit of life. Originally, it would have been fine if they had died, but now that they are alive, they have to continue to worry about firewood, rice, oil, salt, sauce, vinegar, tea, and a lot of problems with eating, drinking, and sleeping.
I have found that it is easier for people to die because they don't have to worry about anything, but it is more troublesome to live. Some people continue to worry about living after they recover from their illness, such as marriage, having children, and retirement. Why didn't they consider these things when they had a terminal illness? So when people want to live, the problems become bigger, and when people want to die, the problems are solved immediately. As the Apostle Paul said, as far as I am concerned, the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. If you think that the things of this world are small things, wouldn't you be relaxed and free? For example, if a person has a terminal illness and can only live for a week, then you have to plan well for this week. What else are you worried about GDP?
So people who value living become dazed when they encounter difficulties or things that threaten their survival. Even if you are Pharaoh of Egypt, you will be dazed and insist on walking towards death. Pharaoh and his servants worried about Egypt's GDP and became props for God to manifest His glory. In the end, they had nothing, and no one remembered them anymore. GDP had nothing to do with them. So whether it is the Israelites or the Egyptians, whenever their desire to live is strong, they run towards death. If you and I don't have such a strong desire to live, and even have a strong desire to die, will you still be bound by anything?
Suppose one day Somali pirates catch me and want to kill me, then I have to thank them! I will ask them to kill me quickly. I will tell them that I have attempted suicide several times, and thank God that I can finally fulfill my wish this time. Kill me! These Somali pirates will definitely be confused by me. They used to encounter people who were greedy for life and afraid of death, but today they encountered someone who was seeking death. I will also tell them not to ask for ransom. There is none! If you let me go back, I will have to commit suicide again. It's good to kill me now!
What is this idea? This can not only confuse the pirates but also confuse Old Ma and the spirits of death in the underworld! In the past, when they called, they would quickly send money, but why is this person different from the people of the world? GDP and money have no attraction for him, so they can't do anything about it. They will feel that they have made a mistake and quickly let him go! This way, you have a chance to live!
Fear Causes Memory Loss
In my ministry, I have found that people lose their memory when they are afraid! The fear of death is the root of many problems, and when one is not afraid of death, many problems disappear. When you undertake a project, if you do it with fear, worrying about this and that, you will not be able to accomplish anything. The Egyptians were not afraid of God, but of their GDP, worrying that their engineering projects would not be completed. In fact, thousands of years later, those GDPs and engineering projects are nothing but ruins, yet they valued them so much.
Human memory is closely linked to fear. So, do you still want to be afraid? Because you have not remembered that God is your salvation, and you do not know that God has delivered you with His mighty arm, you are afraid. When people are afraid, their memory is poor, they forget God's salvation, and they rely on their own small arms and legs, which cannot support them! If a person's life lacks miracles and they cannot support themselves, they will perish. This is how fearful people perish. Don't tell me that you are naturally timid and fearful, I will say, serves you right! Who told you to be afraid? Who told you to be timid? Therefore, brothers and sisters, you must train yourselves to become bold. What is there to fear? You are not even afraid of death! What else is there to fear? Constantly remembering God's salvation and constantly experiencing miracles will make the fear inside disappear.
God Will Surely Fight for Us
Our God will surely fight for us! After saying this, many people may ask: Is this true? I think it is true, because I know that my God will fight for me! As for whether He will fight for you, it depends on you! Although God does not like people to be afraid, because it is your first time being afraid and your first time forgetting God's salvation, God will say: It's okay, this time your memory is not good, your logical reasoning is not good, I forgive you. But people must know that God gives you one chance, and you have one less chance. God also forgave the Israelites at that time. The Israelites came out of Egypt, crossed the Red Sea, and experienced so many miracles, and they once again believed in God and His servant Moses, but they forgot again after a short time.
I warn everyone, you can forget once, you can forget twice, but if you always forget, you are not far from death, and you will definitely be abandoned by God in the wilderness. You cannot deliberately forget again and again! God uses this method to test whether we have memory. If you forget again and again, are timid, and fear difficulties, even if you have experienced God countless times and seen many miracles, it will be useless to you. I tell you, you will definitely die in the wilderness.
You may ask me, aren't you trying to build our faith? Why does it feel like you are tearing it down? You need to know that building faith in this way is the best. Because we must know in our understanding that each opportunity is one less, and we cannot continue like this forever. You will see with your own eyes that when God wants us to have a good memory, He uses pillars of cloud and pillars of fire to protect us. The Egyptians were not killed by the hands of the Israelites, but by the hand of God. How were they killed? The Red Sea parted, and the Israelites passed through. The Egyptians thought it was good, the Israelites were fine, let's go too. But when they went down, they overturned, and then the water of the Red Sea closed up.
Wasn't it easy for God to overturn the Egyptians? Before the Egyptians died, they did a foolish thing, which was to chase the Israelites back. They did not know that the Israelites were God's army, and they could not be touched. Whoever touched them would die. This is the certainty that God fights for us. Do we still remember that God once fought for us? How much memory have you gained through these experiences? Ask yourself if you are a grateful person? Do you remember the salvation that God has performed in us? If people only remember bad things, no matter how much grace God gives, He cannot save such people.
Jehovah is the commander of God's army. When we pray for people to be healed and delivered, it is God Himself who does it, not us. We are just vessels. We have no ability ourselves, it is God who is fighting for us. Becoming Jehovah's army is incomparably good! Jehovah's army does not rely on swords and guns, nor on chariots and horses, but on God to fight. No matter how strong an army or how advanced weapons are, they cannot play with God.
"The Art of War" mentions the main secrets of winning battles. The first is water. Using water to fight is very powerful, and even the strongest army will be submerged by water. The second is fire. Water and fire both come from nature. Zhuge Liang's burning of Cao Cao's camp was a great victory. More than a thousand soldiers defeated tens of thousands of soldiers, one against ten, one against a hundred, which is a model of using natural resources. Natural resources are in God's hands, and God will certainly use them to the fullest. For example, a fire burned Sodom and Gomorrah; no matter how strong the Egyptian army was, it could not defeat water. Then you ask if God has mercy? Of course God has mercy! But God only has mercy on the Israelites, not on the Egyptian Pharaoh who opposes God, so you better know the power of natural disasters.
We must remember every battle that God has fought for us, and we must praise God's holy name. God will once again fight for us and lead us to conquer cities and seize land. We must win the whole earth for God, so that people may see God's glory filling the whole earth! God both brings disaster to the world and gives blessings to His people. If we are God's army fighting for God, we can trample on the devil and the enemy, release those who are captive and oppressed by the devil, and God will surely fight for us! God will surely accomplish what we declare, and the whole earth will see God's glory! The whole earth will see God's glory, which sounds like good words, but when God's glory was manifested in the land of Egypt, many people died, so it depends on how you interpret this sentence. God's mighty army will come out of Egypt with God's promise and enter the promised land. This is what God will accomplish in this generation.
Start Using the Authority in Your Hands
Moses was a very powerful man. When the Israelites began to complain, he said:
Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still.” (Exodus 14:13-14)
Moses said this to the Israelites with great confidence. In fact, he was also very distressed in his heart, not knowing what the future would hold, so he kept pleading with God:
Then the Lord said to Moses, “Why are you crying out to me? Tell the Israelites to move on. Raise your staff and stretch out your hand over the sea to divide the water so that the Israelites can go through the sea on dry ground. (Exodus 14:15-16)
I love these words so much! God has given authority to Moses, just as He has given authority to us in this generation. We have already received this authority, which is God's imperial sword. When you stretch out your staff to the sea, the sea will listen, and the water will be divided. What can hinder God's authority? Nothing!
Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and all that night the Lord drove the sea back with a strong east wind and turned it into dry land. The waters were divided, (Exodus 14:21)
Who did this? It was not Moses who was powerful, but the authority in Moses' hand! This is called working with God! Take up the authority and stretch out your staff to the sea, and the sea will be divided. Why? Because God will accomplish it for you. I especially like working with God, and I especially like these records and stories. This is walking with God. It feels like God listens to us, and we have become the commanders! Our God is so good, He lets us fight, He makes us victorious, but the crown of victory is placed on our heads.
God fights for us, and we just raise the staff, which represents the authority from God. The church must obtain the authority from God. When we raise the authority given by God to this generation, even the sea will be divided, the mountains will be moved, and the high and low pits will be filled. God's mighty army will come out of Egypt and enter the promised land. No need to plead! I am very opposed to pleading, because God once told us not to plead! Learn to use authority often.
One of our sisters was very uncomfortable because of the evil spirits behind her family. She prayed at home for two days. She pleaded, sang hymns, and praised God, but she was still uncomfortable. If this continued, she would die. My co-worker asked me to go and see her quickly. I especially like to use authority. I went over and told her to put her hand on her chest and follow me to declare loudly, in the name of Jesus Christ, I bind the evil spirits behind the sister's family and retreat! In just five minutes, she was fine! It's amazing!
The authority in your hand can divide the Red Sea, and it can also bring the water of the Red Sea together. When you divide the Red Sea, God's army walks on dry ground; when you bring the Red Sea together, this world will be buried under the Red Sea. God has given us authority, and the keys of the kingdom of heaven have been given into our hands. This is a great grace. But many people are terribly afraid when they encounter a little illness or a little difficulty. Fearing death will lead to death, and fearing death is not far from death!
God Is Our Way
People often come to a place of life and death where there is the Red Sea in front and pursuers behind, but God is our way, and we do not need other ways. There is a story that tells it very well. A person got lost in the mountains. He finally met a woodcutter in the mountains. He asked the woodcutter for directions to get out of the mountains. The woodcutter told him to follow him. The woodcutter led the lost person through the grass, and the person was confused. He asked, "Where is the road?" The woodcutter said, "I am the road! Follow me and you will not go wrong!" Because the woodcutter was taking shortcuts, they quickly got out of the mountains.
Where is your road today? It is not under your feet, but in God's hands. We follow in the footsteps of Jesus, and even the Red Sea will be divided before our eyes, and crossing the Red Sea is like walking on dry ground. We will experience God again and again. No matter how great the obstacles ahead, do not be afraid, be strong, because God is our way. If people want to walk their own way, then let them go their own way. As for me, I will follow God. God is my way, Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life, and is everything to me.
That day the Lord saved Israel from the hands of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians lying dead on the shore. And when the Israelites saw the great power the Lord displayed against the Egyptians, the people feared the Lord and put their trust in him and in Moses his servant. (Exodus 14:30-31)
How long did they trust God and Moses? Not long. So God wants us to remember again. If we are people who often remember God's grace, God does not need to do such strange things, and does not need to lead these Israelites around in the wilderness, but can directly bring them to the promised land. If we are not afraid of fighting, not afraid of death, and believe that God is our God, God will surely lead us and fight for us. God has given authority into our hands. Wouldn't it be possible to enter the promised land in three days? But the Israelites spent forty years walking a three-day journey, all because of their poor memory.
When you have seen the miracles that God has performed among us again and again, should you trust God and God's servants? You must know for sure that God brought His people out to become the army of Jehovah God and to fulfill God's Mingding Destiny in us. From now on, no longer live for ourselves, but live for the God who saves us. Trust God, know that God does not want to kill us, but to lead us to the path of life, and lead us into the promised land flowing with milk and honey!
May God bless everyone!