WEBVTT 00:00:00.160 --> 00:00:02.399 Well, good morning and welcome to the Orchard Online. 00:00:02.479 --> 00:00:05.120 I'm so glad that you've tuned in with us this morning. 00:00:05.200 --> 00:00:12.880 Uh this is the location location pastor uh month, and I'm very excited to bring to you a message that the Lord uh laid on my heart. 00:00:13.119 --> 00:00:17.039 You know, sometimes the Christian life is just tough. 00:00:17.199 --> 00:00:20.320 It's not always rainbows and unicorns and roses. 00:00:20.559 --> 00:00:33.039 And about three weeks ago, I taken a week off for vacation, and if you're like me, you take a couple days and go to the beach, and then you spend the other five days trying to catch up and uh you know accomplish the list of honeydews that your wife has for you. 00:00:33.200 --> 00:00:38.560 And it was one of those days where I had a great plan, had everything in place to get some things accomplished. 00:00:38.640 --> 00:00:43.679 And first thing I'm gonna pressure wash, and you know, I've got to crank up my pressure washer and it won't start. 00:00:43.920 --> 00:00:45.439 I'm like, what is going on? 00:00:45.600 --> 00:00:52.159 And so finally rebuilt the carburetor, got it going, and it worked for a little while, ran out of gas, had to rebuild the carburetor again. 00:00:52.320 --> 00:00:55.119 It was just one of those days I wanted to throw it in the river. 00:00:55.200 --> 00:01:01.119 And finally I told my wife, let's take a break, let's go down to the river and then just uh jump in the boat for a few minutes and cool off. 00:01:01.200 --> 00:01:05.680 And and we get down there, and my son's jet ski is literally sinking. 00:01:05.840 --> 00:01:08.319 So we worked on that for a few hours, trying to get it. 00:01:08.480 --> 00:01:14.000 I said, I'm finally just gonna get it out of the river, I'm gonna hook it to my boat and pull it out, and then my boat won't crank up. 00:01:14.079 --> 00:01:18.560 And it was just one of those days where you really literally look up and say, Lord, why? 00:01:18.719 --> 00:01:24.319 You know, here we are trying to get some work accomplished, trying to take care of the great things you bless us with. 00:01:24.480 --> 00:01:26.879 And in the middle of this, I just say, really? 00:01:27.760 --> 00:01:28.480 Have you been there? 00:01:28.640 --> 00:01:34.079 Have you been in that place where where you just ask that, ask God that question, why? 00:01:34.640 --> 00:01:36.319 Why is all of this happening? 00:01:36.480 --> 00:01:42.400 I mean, in so much in one day, I mean, Lord, and then we justify, Lord, I work so hard to serve you. 00:01:42.560 --> 00:01:46.079 We sacrifice, we we we give, we we go above and beyond. 00:01:46.239 --> 00:01:51.840 Is it too much to ask for one day where things just flow and we can get some things accomplished? 00:01:52.079 --> 00:01:54.560 Well, I think that we've all lived in these moments. 00:01:54.719 --> 00:01:57.680 In fact, I know that we've all lived in these moments. 00:01:57.840 --> 00:02:06.959 You work hard to do the right things, you honor God with your finances, you you try to do the right thing, and it just seems like it still takes a lot of work every day. 00:02:07.200 --> 00:02:10.080 You see, these are what we call pressures of life. 00:02:10.240 --> 00:02:15.199 The pressures that we all endure, they're things that just happen because we live in a broken world. 00:02:15.360 --> 00:02:22.639 But in the humanness of who we are, we still look to God and we have that question, God, what am I missing? 00:02:22.960 --> 00:02:24.800 Am I doing something wrong? 00:02:25.039 --> 00:02:29.840 Well, I'll be the first to tell you that those are honest questions coming from an honest heart. 00:02:30.159 --> 00:02:37.520 Seems like when one problem rolls into the next, we try to take one step forward and we get pushed three or four steps back. 00:02:37.759 --> 00:02:40.400 Well, if you've ever been there, you are not alone. 00:02:40.479 --> 00:02:42.560 You're actually in pretty good company. 00:02:42.719 --> 00:02:53.280 And I'll be the first to tell you that God has not answered every question that I have, but he has given me a clear understanding of how we can find peace in these moments of pressure. 00:02:53.520 --> 00:02:59.439 You see, here's the thing: the Israelites found themselves in such a tough place. 00:02:59.759 --> 00:03:09.680 If you remember, they were in bondage, they were in slavery for 400 years, and they wanted to get out of slavery in Egypt, and then they had watched ten miraculous plagues by the hand of God. 00:03:09.840 --> 00:03:20.080 They had seen the power of God, and now all of a sudden they were Exodus, and they experienced this miraculous uh escape from slavery, and freedom is before them. 00:03:20.319 --> 00:03:23.520 And here we are, just a couple days later, and they're trapped. 00:03:23.759 --> 00:03:25.599 Now the Red Sea's in front of them. 00:03:25.759 --> 00:03:35.759 Pharaoh's army is coming back to get them, and they are literally between a rock and a hard place, and it's just one of those tough places where they're experiencing pressure. 00:03:36.000 --> 00:03:44.960 So I want to show you in this text of what it looks like when we're under pressure, when it looks like everything we're trying to accomplish ends in a dead end. 00:03:45.199 --> 00:03:47.199 Let me read this text to you, Exodus 14. 00:03:47.360 --> 00:03:48.800 I'm going to begin in verse 10. 00:03:49.120 --> 00:03:54.400 It says, As Pharaoh approached the Israelites, looked up, and there were Egyptians marching after them. 00:03:54.639 --> 00:03:55.360 This is important. 00:03:55.520 --> 00:03:58.479 They were terrified, and they cried out to the Lord. 00:03:58.639 --> 00:04:05.439 And they said to Moses, the leader, Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you brought us to the desert to die? 00:04:05.599 --> 00:04:08.240 What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt? 00:04:08.400 --> 00:04:12.000 Didn't we say to you at Egypt, just leave us alone, let us serve the Egyptians. 00:04:12.080 --> 00:04:15.439 It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the desert. 00:04:15.680 --> 00:04:18.240 And Moses answered the people, This is so important. 00:04:18.480 --> 00:04:19.920 Do not be afraid. 00:04:20.160 --> 00:04:23.680 Stand firm, and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. 00:04:24.079 --> 00:04:27.680 The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. 00:04:27.920 --> 00:04:31.600 And then verse 14, he says, The Lord will fight for you. 00:04:31.839 --> 00:04:33.600 You need only to be still. 00:04:33.839 --> 00:04:37.600 And then the Lord says to Moses, Why are you crying out to me? 00:04:37.759 --> 00:04:40.079 Tell the Israelites to move on. 00:04:40.480 --> 00:04:42.560 And then here's the instruction, verse 16. 00:04:42.800 --> 00:04:50.319 Moses, raise your staff, stretch out your hand over the sea to divide the water, so the Israelites can go through the sea on dry ground. 00:04:50.560 --> 00:04:54.720 I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians so that they will go in after them. 00:04:54.959 --> 00:05:00.000 And I will gain glory through Pharaoh and all his army, through his chariots and his horsemen. 00:05:00.240 --> 00:05:06.560 The Egyptians will know that I am the Lord when I gain glory through Pharaoh, his chariots, and his horsemen. 00:05:06.800 --> 00:05:13.519 Now, before we are too hard on these Israelites, let's be honest, we've all stood in moments of where they've stood. 00:05:13.759 --> 00:05:24.079 Maybe not with an army charging down on you from behind and a dead end, a Red Sea in front of you, but we've all found ourselves trapped between those rocks and a hard place. 00:05:24.800 --> 00:05:29.839 Those things that we've hoped for and what the reality of life actually looks like. 00:05:30.079 --> 00:05:42.079 And it's in these moments that we naturally experience anxiety and fear and doubt, and we experience things that make us question what our faith once celebrated. 00:05:42.319 --> 00:05:43.600 You gotta think about this. 00:05:43.759 --> 00:05:47.120 Just a couple days before, they were singing praises to God. 00:05:47.680 --> 00:05:53.279 They were delivered, God had delivered them, and now they're asking, Did he bring us here to die? 00:05:53.600 --> 00:05:55.759 Oh, how quickly things can change. 00:05:56.000 --> 00:05:59.279 And if we're honest, I think we've all done the same thing. 00:05:59.519 --> 00:06:04.560 We worship and we praise God on Sunday, and then Monday morning happens. 00:06:04.800 --> 00:06:09.839 And we say things like, God, this isn't where I thought my obedience would lead. 00:06:10.079 --> 00:06:12.399 I thought following you would make life easier. 00:06:12.639 --> 00:06:16.160 I thought if I was faithful that some of the pressure would let up. 00:06:16.560 --> 00:06:26.720 Well, let me tell you something that I know, and I believe that you know too, is the enemy loved to try to convince us that when the path gets hard, somehow we must have just missed God's will. 00:06:27.040 --> 00:06:31.519 Maybe we've done something wrong, and that's what's causing all these problems. 00:06:31.920 --> 00:06:37.120 But what if what if the pressure isn't proof that God has abandoned you? 00:06:37.439 --> 00:06:45.360 What if the pressure is proof that you are standing exactly where God desires you to be so he can reveal his power and his glory? 00:06:45.600 --> 00:06:47.439 Because that's what the Israelites couldn't see. 00:06:47.600 --> 00:06:49.439 The Red Sea was not a mistake. 00:06:49.759 --> 00:06:51.920 The Red Sea wasn't God's failure. 00:06:52.240 --> 00:06:58.079 It wasn't a detour, it was actually a stage that he was setting up so his glory could be revealed. 00:06:58.399 --> 00:07:03.680 So the people could see and know that something extraordinary had happened. 00:07:03.920 --> 00:07:14.639 And maybe in the same way, maybe the place that you're at is where you're asking God, God, are you going to show me something big out of this time, this place of pressure? 00:07:15.279 --> 00:07:17.680 So why do we experience these pressures? 00:07:17.759 --> 00:07:19.519 Well, this leads to the big idea. 00:07:19.759 --> 00:07:27.199 You see, the pressure you're standing in right now could be God's platform for you and the entire world to see his glory. 00:07:27.519 --> 00:07:34.399 Man, when we think about those moments of pressure that we are living in, could God be using this for his glory to be revealed? 00:07:34.639 --> 00:07:39.120 Well, God laid out for us these powerful progressions that's in the story. 00:07:39.439 --> 00:07:41.759 And I think it all comes down to obedience. 00:07:41.920 --> 00:07:48.160 In fact, I would say unrealistic obedience, even in those high pressure moments of life. 00:07:48.319 --> 00:08:01.439 Because in this text, I want to share with you three choices that we have to make, three steps that we must take, three mindsets that we must have if we're going to see God's glory, even in those high pressure moments of life. 00:08:01.680 --> 00:08:08.560 You see, when you get to the point that so many things are happening and you're just kicking the can down the road, asking God why. 00:08:08.800 --> 00:08:10.079 Let me show you these three things. 00:08:10.240 --> 00:08:15.680 The first is this you gotta just remember what God has already done. 00:08:16.079 --> 00:08:21.600 Man, it seems like when when pressure moments come in, we get amnesia. 00:08:21.839 --> 00:08:27.759 In verse 10, it says these words As Pharaoh approached, the Israelites looked up, and there were the Egyptians marching after them. 00:08:27.839 --> 00:08:32.240 And here's the key they were terrified and they cried out to the Lord. 00:08:32.399 --> 00:08:35.440 Now the Israelites, they're in a serious place of fear. 00:08:35.600 --> 00:08:40.720 And the first thing fear does is erase our memory from how good God is. 00:08:41.279 --> 00:08:48.080 I mean, if they could just remember the miracles that had taken place, that God had just delivered them out of 400 years of slavery. 00:08:48.240 --> 00:08:49.279 You gotta think about this. 00:08:49.440 --> 00:08:53.279 Every person that was there was born into slavery, it's all they had ever known. 00:08:53.440 --> 00:08:56.799 And now God is inviting them to go down this very specific route. 00:08:56.960 --> 00:08:58.399 They've answered with obedience. 00:08:58.559 --> 00:08:59.279 Everything is good. 00:08:59.440 --> 00:09:06.720 I mean, they're camping, they're sinking Kumbaya got the hot dogs on the grill, and the kids have the s'mores, everything is looking great. 00:09:06.960 --> 00:09:09.519 And then all of a sudden they look up in a plume of dust. 00:09:09.679 --> 00:09:12.559 Here comes the Egyptians marching down behind them. 00:09:12.799 --> 00:09:14.960 So the Red Sea is in front of them. 00:09:15.120 --> 00:09:16.559 There's a roadblock here. 00:09:16.799 --> 00:09:25.039 The Egyptians are behind them coming down, and there's mountain ranges that are impassable on both sides, and they are literally between a rock and a hard place. 00:09:25.200 --> 00:09:29.759 And it's in that moment that they forget everything that God has already done. 00:09:30.000 --> 00:09:31.519 Here comes the pressure. 00:09:31.759 --> 00:09:35.840 When pressure kicks in, it seems like that's when amnesia kicks in. 00:09:35.919 --> 00:09:38.799 They forgot every miracle that God had already performed. 00:09:39.039 --> 00:09:41.519 So, what is this word calling us to do? 00:09:41.840 --> 00:09:43.360 Just simply remember. 00:09:43.759 --> 00:09:45.759 Just remember the goodness of God. 00:09:46.000 --> 00:09:52.000 Remember all the hard times and the pressures that you've been through in your life and how God used them for his glory. 00:09:52.240 --> 00:09:53.759 We've got to remember where we've been. 00:09:53.919 --> 00:09:55.360 We've got to remember where he's brought you. 00:09:55.440 --> 00:10:02.799 We've got to remember the prayers that he's answered, remember the doors that he's opened, the times that he carries you when you couldn't carry yourself. 00:10:03.039 --> 00:10:07.600 You see, there's somebody listening today who's probably at a Red Sea right now in your life. 00:10:07.759 --> 00:10:10.399 Maybe it's just a red mud puddle. 00:10:10.639 --> 00:10:15.519 But whatever it is, I promise you, if God brought you to it, he will bring you through it. 00:10:15.759 --> 00:10:18.559 But he's simply calling us to remember. 00:10:19.360 --> 00:10:22.240 So what's the next thing that we see, this next progression? 00:10:22.399 --> 00:10:26.080 After we remember the glory of God, we remember how good He is. 00:10:26.480 --> 00:10:30.720 The second thing we do is we rest before we react. 00:10:30.960 --> 00:10:34.879 You know, we live in a world of instantaneous gratification. 00:10:35.200 --> 00:10:37.679 We want to be gratified instantly. 00:10:38.000 --> 00:10:43.440 I mean, if you have a phone and you're trying to upload a picture, we get upset if it's not uploaded in a half a second. 00:10:43.600 --> 00:10:45.120 We want instant gratification. 00:10:45.200 --> 00:10:47.600 And I think that's something that has never changed. 00:10:47.840 --> 00:10:50.480 Because the Israelites, they wanted instant gratification. 00:10:50.559 --> 00:10:53.360 They wanted instant salvation in this moment. 00:10:53.600 --> 00:10:59.840 But what we're seeing in this text, if you take a moment and if you remember what God has already done, take a deep breath. 00:10:59.919 --> 00:11:04.559 You don't panic, and very simply just give God a moment to work. 00:11:05.120 --> 00:11:07.279 Just give him a minute to work. 00:11:07.519 --> 00:11:10.799 You see, in verse 13, Moses doesn't tell them to figure it out. 00:11:10.960 --> 00:11:17.279 He doesn't tell them, hey, let's go gather up some palm trees and some palm fronds and some grapevines and let's try to build some rafts. 00:11:17.440 --> 00:11:20.000 He doesn't tell everybody to learn how to swim. 00:11:20.159 --> 00:11:24.639 He doesn't get them in groups with the strongest swimmers, with the weakest swimmers. 00:11:24.879 --> 00:11:28.320 He simply says, don't be afraid. 00:11:28.720 --> 00:11:30.000 But that's not all. 00:11:30.320 --> 00:11:34.399 He tells them don't be afraid, but he also says, stand firm. 00:11:34.879 --> 00:11:44.159 It's so important that stand firm because in the original context of this Hebrew word, it literally means to stand firm as if you're standing before your Savior. 00:11:44.720 --> 00:11:50.399 I hope you realize this today that panic and moments of pressure has never solved any problems. 00:11:50.799 --> 00:11:57.759 Fear in the moments of pressure has never parted any seas, and anxiety has never ever ever performed any miracles. 00:11:58.000 --> 00:12:09.679 And Moses, this extraordinary leader, he gives them this invitation to set fear aside and embrace faith by the power of remembering in this moment of rest. 00:12:10.159 --> 00:12:16.799 Moses says, Do not be afraid, stand firm, and here's the result, and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring for you today. 00:12:17.039 --> 00:12:20.320 These Egyptians you see today you will never see again. 00:12:20.720 --> 00:12:23.919 You see, some of us we don't need another explanation. 00:12:24.080 --> 00:12:26.559 We just need another reminder of who God is. 00:12:27.200 --> 00:12:30.480 And we we do that, we experience that when we rest. 00:12:30.879 --> 00:12:35.759 And it's funny because right after this, the text says, the Lord will fight for you. 00:12:36.000 --> 00:12:37.120 You need only be still. 00:12:37.279 --> 00:12:43.919 So he's saying we got to remember, and then we we gotta stand firm and then be still. 00:12:44.159 --> 00:12:47.200 You see, most of us aren't gonna be standing in front of a Red Sea. 00:12:47.279 --> 00:12:51.840 You know, some of us are gonna be standing in the pressure of a stack of bills that we can't pay. 00:12:52.080 --> 00:12:56.720 Some of us are standing before a doctor's appointment with a new diagnosis. 00:12:56.960 --> 00:13:02.639 Some of us are standing before a red sea of a job that seems that there's not certainty of a future. 00:13:02.879 --> 00:13:07.279 Some of us are standing before kids and not knowing what the future is going to bring with them. 00:13:07.440 --> 00:13:12.639 Some of us are standing before parents that are getting older and we're wondering how are we going to survive? 00:13:12.799 --> 00:13:14.799 How are we going to go through this? 00:13:15.279 --> 00:13:17.679 It's a different sea, but it's still a red sea. 00:13:17.759 --> 00:13:18.799 It's still pressure. 00:13:19.039 --> 00:13:20.320 The pressure's the same. 00:13:20.399 --> 00:13:21.759 So, what do we do? 00:13:22.080 --> 00:13:36.720 Oftentimes we react and we lose sleep, we replay every possible outcome in our mind, we try to control everything, we we start making decisions based on our emotions, and we convince ourselves that if I worry enough, somehow that'll fix it. 00:13:37.039 --> 00:13:39.440 Man, can I ask you a quick question? 00:13:39.759 --> 00:13:43.279 How many miracles has worry ever produced in your life? 00:13:43.840 --> 00:13:47.039 How many marriages has panic ever healed? 00:13:47.919 --> 00:13:52.080 How many doctors' reports has fear ever changed? 00:13:52.879 --> 00:13:56.320 How many bills have ever been paid because you had a sleepless night? 00:13:56.879 --> 00:13:58.159 Never, not any. 00:13:58.559 --> 00:14:01.679 Because panic has never, ever been the language of faith. 00:14:02.159 --> 00:14:08.080 You see, there comes a moment when faith says, I don't know how God's going to work this out, but I'm going to trust Him through it. 00:14:08.559 --> 00:14:09.679 You see, that's rest. 00:14:09.759 --> 00:14:14.960 It's not the absence of problems, it's the presence of peace in the midst of our problems. 00:14:15.200 --> 00:14:19.519 And that's why Moses says something that's almost sounds impossible in verse 14. 00:14:19.600 --> 00:14:21.600 He says, The Lord will fight for you. 00:14:21.840 --> 00:14:24.000 You only need to be still. 00:14:24.720 --> 00:14:28.080 That's not God telling them to ignore the problem. 00:14:28.399 --> 00:14:30.320 It's not God dismissing the problem. 00:14:30.480 --> 00:14:31.519 The problem is a reality. 00:14:31.679 --> 00:14:32.480 The problem's real. 00:14:32.639 --> 00:14:38.480 It's God telling you that the battle that you're trying to fight with worry is a battle that belongs to Him. 00:14:38.720 --> 00:14:39.919 So what are we called to do? 00:14:40.000 --> 00:14:41.360 We're called to remember. 00:14:41.679 --> 00:14:43.039 Remember how good God is. 00:14:43.120 --> 00:14:46.879 We're called to rest, and in that rest find the peace that God is who he said he is. 00:14:47.039 --> 00:14:53.519 And then here's the third progression that we see, and these are the words of God speaking to Moses, and that is where we simply respond. 00:14:53.919 --> 00:14:57.279 Number three, respond when God says move. 00:14:57.600 --> 00:15:01.200 You know, obedience always requires action. 00:15:01.519 --> 00:15:03.679 And here's the tension in our story. 00:15:03.840 --> 00:15:06.320 Moses is telling everybody to be still. 00:15:06.559 --> 00:15:14.159 It's almost as if he's saying, let's just lengthen this time, let's just lengthen this moment and don't do anything, and let's watch what God's going to provide. 00:15:14.399 --> 00:15:20.960 And I love this because it's as if God is getting onto Moses because he says, Why are you crying to me? 00:15:21.440 --> 00:15:25.120 In other words, I've already shown you my power, I've always shown you my glory. 00:15:25.279 --> 00:15:27.279 You just have to remember who I am. 00:15:27.600 --> 00:15:30.080 He's saying, you just need to find some peace in this moment. 00:15:30.159 --> 00:15:33.600 You need to rest in this moment as you stand before me and trust me. 00:15:33.840 --> 00:15:37.519 And then he says, Tell the people to move forward. 00:15:38.240 --> 00:15:39.519 You see, it's interesting. 00:15:39.759 --> 00:15:46.960 There's a time to pray, there's a time to wait, and then there's a time to move, because faith never stands still. 00:15:47.200 --> 00:15:50.080 In fact, we know that faith without works is dead. 00:15:50.159 --> 00:15:55.360 And God is very simply telling them, You have faith, now move forward in that faith. 00:15:56.320 --> 00:15:57.600 And here's the kicker. 00:15:57.840 --> 00:16:01.200 Here's where you're moving forward, bring God's brings God glory. 00:16:01.440 --> 00:16:04.480 Is God didn't show Moses the whole plan. 00:16:05.120 --> 00:16:08.240 He had given him a little insight of what he was going to do. 00:16:08.480 --> 00:16:10.799 He had declared to them where they were going to go. 00:16:10.960 --> 00:16:12.639 He didn't show them the entire plan. 00:16:12.799 --> 00:16:16.159 He just instructed them what they needed to do next. 00:16:17.120 --> 00:16:19.200 Move forward without knowing everything. 00:16:20.480 --> 00:16:22.000 Church family, please hear this. 00:16:22.159 --> 00:16:26.960 There's going to be many, many times in your life when you're in a place that you're going to get upset. 00:16:27.200 --> 00:16:32.720 There's going to be many times in your life where you're going to be faced with challenges and you're going to feel like you're at a dead end. 00:16:32.960 --> 00:16:36.080 You're going to feel like the enemy is coming down behind you. 00:16:36.320 --> 00:16:39.279 There's impassable mountains on the side of you. 00:16:39.600 --> 00:16:41.200 There's a dead end in front of you. 00:16:41.279 --> 00:16:44.000 And you're in that place where you just don't know what to do. 00:16:44.480 --> 00:16:46.399 And you're going to question who God is. 00:16:46.480 --> 00:16:49.679 You're going to question what God can do, how powerful He is. 00:16:49.840 --> 00:16:54.559 You're going to look back at the things that all of that He has done, and you're going to say, How much of this was just me? 00:16:54.799 --> 00:16:56.080 Was God in this? 00:16:56.879 --> 00:17:00.159 You're going to forget to rest in the Lord in that moment. 00:17:00.480 --> 00:17:08.640 You're going to get worked up, you're going to get stressed up, your blood pressure's going to rise, and you're going to get the Monday morning blues no matter what day of the week it is. 00:17:08.960 --> 00:17:13.599 And just like the Israelites, we're going to say things like, God, did you bring us here just to suffer? 00:17:13.920 --> 00:17:20.079 God, did you bring me here to show me that this new Christian life is just going to be a life where I'm on the short end of the stick? 00:17:20.480 --> 00:17:26.960 You're going to say things like, Did you lead me into this just to punish me or just to try to beat me down or just to die? 00:17:27.920 --> 00:17:28.799 No, sir. 00:17:29.039 --> 00:17:30.400 And no, ma'am. 00:17:30.880 --> 00:17:41.599 God brought you here on this path, in this way, so in the pressure, he can receive praise, honor, and glory. 00:17:42.400 --> 00:17:44.480 So God simply says, respond. 00:17:44.799 --> 00:17:47.039 And in verse 16, he shows us how to do this. 00:17:47.119 --> 00:17:54.799 He tells Moses, Raise your staff, stretch out your hand over the sea to divide the water so that the Israelites can go through the sea on dry ground. 00:17:55.279 --> 00:17:58.799 You see, what God was saying is, I've already given you everything that you've need. 00:17:59.440 --> 00:18:01.839 All you have to do is step forward in faith. 00:18:02.400 --> 00:18:13.039 And so this progression and this pressure, very simply, he says, Remember me and then rest in me, find peace in me, and then respond in me. 00:18:13.599 --> 00:18:18.160 Don't let what you don't know keep you from obeying who you do know. 00:18:18.559 --> 00:18:21.599 Now I want to show you something pretty cool as we close out. 00:18:21.920 --> 00:18:30.319 Because in the middle of this text, where we see Moses is telling the Israelites, he says, All you've got to do is stand still and the Lord will provide salvation. 00:18:30.400 --> 00:18:31.519 You just be still. 00:18:31.680 --> 00:18:35.839 And then we see that God kind of comes back and says, Stop crying to me. 00:18:36.160 --> 00:18:39.759 In that text, in verse 14, the Lord will fight for you. 00:18:39.920 --> 00:18:43.119 You only need to be still, is what Moses says. 00:18:43.359 --> 00:18:46.960 Now that phrase, be still, is a powerful phrase. 00:18:47.200 --> 00:18:50.160 It's actually better translated as be silent. 00:18:50.400 --> 00:18:52.400 I love to think of it like this. 00:18:52.720 --> 00:19:03.920 All of the Israelites are chattering, they're upset, they're nervous, they're they're getting on Facebook and telling everybody how bad it's going to be, they're saying goodbyes, you know, they're going to AI and saying, how can we build a boat? 00:19:04.160 --> 00:19:05.039 They're doing everything they can. 00:19:05.200 --> 00:19:07.200 Their minds are filled with noise. 00:19:07.839 --> 00:19:09.920 They're upset, they're talking. 00:19:10.160 --> 00:19:13.519 But that word be still literally means to be silent. 00:19:14.079 --> 00:19:17.440 It's like Moses is saying, Shush. 00:19:17.920 --> 00:19:33.839 It comes from the Hebrew word karash, and I need to get you need to grasp this because it literally means to hold your peace, to hold on to the peace that you found because you've remembered, and now that you've rested. 00:19:34.319 --> 00:19:38.319 And when that peace comes, we're called to just stop all the noise. 00:19:38.799 --> 00:19:42.559 Now let me tell you what's what else is amazing about this word karash. 00:19:42.880 --> 00:19:46.000 Because it's used many other times in the Old Testament. 00:19:46.240 --> 00:19:52.480 And this word carash is a word that's used that means a farmer putting a plow to the ground. 00:19:53.200 --> 00:19:57.359 Or it also means a craftsman engraving something in the stone. 00:19:58.079 --> 00:20:09.279 So, with both of those understandings of this word and how it's used, to be still, to shush, it means to shush and put your plow down in the ground. 00:20:09.680 --> 00:20:11.680 It means to engrave something in stone. 00:20:11.759 --> 00:20:14.319 It means literally to make a mark. 00:20:14.880 --> 00:20:17.759 I believe God's word is telling us through this word. 00:20:18.240 --> 00:20:27.279 He's saying what God's going to do because you have remembered, because you've rested, because you've been obedient and moved forward, he's about to leave a mark through your obedience. 00:20:27.759 --> 00:20:29.039 I love this picture. 00:20:29.279 --> 00:20:36.640 He says, be quiet, be still, rest, remember, stop complaining, stop telling the world how unfair life is. 00:20:36.880 --> 00:20:40.160 Stop trying to figure things out, letting the fear do all the talking. 00:20:40.480 --> 00:20:44.319 And just simply move forward and make a mark. 00:20:44.559 --> 00:20:47.440 I think of the farmer when he puts a plow down. 00:20:47.680 --> 00:20:56.720 He's not talking, he's just running that plow because he's getting ready for a seed to be planted, that that seed will sprout and grow and produce much fruit. 00:20:56.960 --> 00:21:04.079 I think of an engraver when he takes a blank slate and he begins engraving words on that, literally, that will be written in stone forever. 00:21:04.319 --> 00:21:11.039 It's a beautiful picture of our testimony that produces fruit so God can receive the glory. 00:21:11.359 --> 00:21:17.279 So, what is the story telling us about how we can persevere through these pressures of life? 00:21:17.519 --> 00:21:18.640 Well, here's your takeaway. 00:21:18.880 --> 00:21:21.279 We've got to remember what God has done. 00:21:21.599 --> 00:21:23.759 We've got to rest in who God is. 00:21:24.079 --> 00:21:30.480 We've got to respond to where God leads and let it leave a mark that's going to always point back to Him. 00:21:31.200 --> 00:21:37.039 I believe God is doing something amazing in every moment of your life when we experience pressure. 00:21:37.440 --> 00:21:42.319 We just need to remember, we need to rest, and we need to respond. 00:21:42.640 --> 00:21:43.519 Let me pray for you. 00:21:43.680 --> 00:21:45.200 Father, I thank you for this day. 00:21:45.359 --> 00:21:50.640 I thank you for this moment in time that you have given us, God, for uh this specific portion of Scripture. 00:21:50.960 --> 00:21:55.920 And God, I know that we live in a broken world and pressures are going to come, they're going to continue to come. 00:21:56.240 --> 00:22:02.960 But Lord, for the person out there right now that's struggling, God, I pray that you would just help them remember that you are good, God. 00:22:03.359 --> 00:22:07.119 Help them remember that you drew them from the miry clay, God. 00:22:07.440 --> 00:22:09.519 And you have a plan and a purpose for their life. 00:22:10.079 --> 00:22:16.640 God, I pray for the person who's in the midst of worry right now, God, that you would just help them to rest and find peace in you. 00:22:16.960 --> 00:22:21.119 God, on the foundation of who you are and what you've done and the fact that we have remembered. 00:22:21.680 --> 00:22:26.880 And Father, I pray for a boldness that you would help us to respond in accordance to your will. 00:22:27.200 --> 00:22:30.720 God, we know that that's going to always require faith. 00:22:30.960 --> 00:22:38.160 So, Lord, help us trust in you in these moments and times where we feel like we're between a rock and a hard place, whatever it may be. 00:22:38.720 --> 00:22:41.119 So, God, I thank you once again for this word today. 00:22:41.200 --> 00:22:46.559 Thank you for continuing to speak to us and helping us to live a faith filled life that'll always leave a mark. 00:22:46.720 --> 00:22:48.160 We love you and we praise you. 00:22:48.319 --> 00:22:49.519 In Jesus' name. 00:22:49.839 --> 00:22:50.400 Amen.