THE WATER COMES BEFORE THE DRY GROUND

April 3, 2019

I was listening to the Preacher’s sermon on Moses leading the children of Israel through the Red Sea after God parted the waters. I have heard this story many times about the difficult situation the Israelites faced. Ahead of them lay the Red Sea, on both sides mountains, and behind them was The Egyptian army, sent by Pharaoh to recapture the former slaves. God’s children were boxed in.

If you know the story, the Israelites cried out to the Lord and complain to Moses. “But Moses said to the people, ‘Don’t be afraid. Stand firm and see the Lord’s salvation He will provide for you today; for the Egyptians you see today, you will never see again. The Lord will fight for you; you must be quiet.’” (Exodus 14:13 ,14, HCSB)

When the Preacher read the 15 and 16 verses, I heard a different message.”The Lord said to Moses, “Why are you crying out to Me? Tell the Israelites to break camp. As for you, lift up your staff, stretch out your hand over the sea, and divide it so that the Israelites can go through the sea on dry ground.” This phrase jumped out, “the Israelites go through the sea on dry ground.”

During the seemingly unsolvable problem, God provided “dry ground” for their escape. He didn’t remove the mountains or at once kill the Egyptians; He parted the waters and provided the dry ground.

At once a similar situation entered my mind was God provided dry ground to remove an obstacle. The example comes as the Israelites, under Joshua, prepared to claim the Promised Land. The problem was the Jordan River flowed between them and Jericho.

Scripture says God commanded the Priest to move across the Jordan River. Following Joshua’s instructions, “The priests carrying the ark of the Lord’s covenant stood firmly on dry ground in the middle of the Jordan, while all Israel crossed on dry ground until the entire nation had finished crossing the Jordan. (Joshua 3:17, HCSB)

When you face obstacles remember, God is bigger than the barrier. He provides dry ground for His people.