One Way Out

So you are saved. Does it matter?

There is this television series that I’ve watched every episode multiple times.

The main character is a doctor and he’s a rather sensitive guy.

In one episode, he cares for a soldier who had been wounded and was wet for a long, long time before they found him.

He’d been wet so long, that he smelled damp and musty - you know how clothes smell after they’ve been wet a while.

It wasn’t long after he helped this kid that he started sneezing.

And then he broke out into a rash and it got worse and worse and worse

Until he finally started saying that he was going to die.

But the odd thing was, they tested him for every thing in the world he could be allergic to and nothing.

He wasn’t allergic to anything.

So they decided to call in a psychiatrist.

With the psychiatrist’s help, the doctor remembered where he had smelled that smell.

He was a little boy and he had fallen out of a boat and his best friend had saved him from drowning.

And his best friend told him how clumsy he was and how lucky he was to have a friend like him.

And the doctor agreed with him and they told everyone how he had saved him.

Until the day he finally stopped - and he had to face the truth.

His best friend did save him - but only after his best friend pushed him in - knowing - knowing that the doctor didn’t know how to swim.

So he pushed the doctor in so he could save him and be the hero.

All of these years the doctor had said that this kid had saved him.

And he believed he had saved him, until he realized he didn’t.

Like so many things in life, what he said was saving him, was the very thing that was killing him.

Lot’s of things promise us that they will change our lives, they will save us.

I’m certain you’ve watched a lot of TV over the holidays - and more last weekend with the college football playoff fiasco.

We’ve been bombarded with all kinds of things that are guaranteed to save us from our hum-drum, banal lives

If only we will drink Twisted Hard Iced Tea - that commercial must have played a million times.

We’ve heard about colleges and careers and software and you name it

All advertised to save us from whatever we think is holding us back and its going to allow us to move into our very own promised land.

Times have changed - but people haven’t.

There is only one thing in the entire universe can change our lives and save us.

And the story of Exodus is part of His story.

We spent 2023 visiting the city of Corinth learning that times change, but people and the things that tempt us never do.

This year we’re starting in Egypt.

Turn with me to the book of Exodus.

It’s the second book of the Old Testament.

The exodus of the Israelites from Egypt occurred sometime around 1,450 BC.

The author of the book is Moses.

I’m certain some of you are familiar with text criticism and might want to argue against Mosaic authorship but I don’t.

The Israelites have accepted Moses as the author since the time of Joshua (Joshua 8:34f).

I’m going with them.

I believe this is what the Lord has written for us so we can know what happened before us that has allowed us to be who we are today.

Kids, if you are using your Kid’s Worship guide today, your three words are Exodus, Egypt and people.

Listen carefully and maybe you and your folks can talk about one of those later today.

Our text is Exodus 1:1-7.

Hear now the word of the Lord.

Exodus 1:1–7 ESV

These are the names of the sons of Israel who came to Egypt with Jacob, each with his household: Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, and Benjamin, Dan and Naphtali, Gad and Asher. All the descendants of Jacob were seventy persons; Joseph was already in Egypt. Then Joseph died, and all his brothers and all that generation. But the people of Israel were fruitful and increased greatly; they multiplied and grew exceedingly strong, so that the land was filled with them.

This is the word of the Lord.

It is very old - and yet is as fresh as yesterday.

Thanks be to God.

Our story begins in the land of Goshen.

Goshen is located in the very fertile delta region of Egypt.

Yearly floods would come and the Nile would overflow its banks dumping tons of new soil on the land.

It would be a great place to live at that time.

But how did Israel end up there?

You remember the name Joseph, right?

He was the arrogant little brat that drove his big brothers so crazy that they sold him into slavery.

To make matters worse, they told their dad that Joseph had been killed by wild animals.

So for all intents and purposes, Joseph was dead.

If you know the story though, you know Joseph wasn’t dead.

Through a number of misadventures, Joseph ends up in prison.

Which is right where the Lord wanted him

Because at just the right moment, the king of Egypt dreamed a dream that only one man could interpret.

And that one man was Joseph.

The king believed him and he put Joseph in charge of logistics for all food that was raised in Egypt.

So that when the famine that the king dreamed about came, Egypt would have enough food to feed itself and the rest of the world too.

And by the rest of the world, I mean Joseph’s brothers and their families living in Hebron.

In a most wonderful reconciliation scene, Joseph and the brothers that sold him into slavery were reunited.

Joseph’s dad and entire family moved to Goshen where there was plenty to eat and Joseph was somebody.

And they all lived happily ever after.

Until they didn’t.

Exodus starts as it does because God wants us to know that this isn’t a new story.

It’s simply the continuation of the story of Genesis.

Genesis ends with Joseph and the family in Egypt.

Exodus opens just a few years prior to that so we can see that it all fits together.

Exodus 1:1 “These are the names of the sons of Israel who came to Egypt with Jacob, each with his household:”

You can read the expanded version of this sentence in Genesis 46 - 50.

In Genesis 49:33 Jacob dies - “When Jacob finished commanding his sons, he drew up his feet into the bed and breathed his last and was gathered to his people.”

In Exodus 1:6 we hear everybody dies: “Then Joseph died, and all his brothers and all that generation.”

But now pay attention to those last four words - “and all that generation.”

That’s not just the generation of Israelites - that the entire generation of humans - Israel, Egyptians - everyone.

All of humanity shares two traits - they are born, and they die.

In Egypt - everyone eventually got old and they died.

And the memory of Joseph and the Pharoah that loved him died as well.

But one thing didn’t die.

Way back in time - before Jacob, before his daddy Isaac, there was their daddy Abraham.

God made a promise to Abraham Genesis 12:1-3

Genesis 12:1–3 ESV

Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”

For anyone familiar with Genesis, verse 7 would jump out at them like it was in bold and highlighted

Exodus 1:7 “But the people of Israel were fruitful and increased greatly; they multiplied and grew exceedingly strong, so that the land was filled with them.”

In verse 6, time had tried to scrub God’s promise from history.

Everyone involved died.

There was no one left to remember so people started re-writing history.

This isn’t an ancient phenomena, its happening right now.

One of the reasons given for 9/11 and all of the fighting with the Muslim territories is the Muslim’s haven’t forgotten what the Christians did to them during the Crusades.

But, history has seemed to erase what the Muslims did in the 600’s when they conquered almost all of the Mediterranean basin and the Middle East.

One of the reasons given by the folks protesting Israel’s response to the Hamas attack is Israel stole that land.

But we are reading where almost 2,000 years before the land was occupied by Muslims, before there was ever such a thing as a Muslim, it was given to Israel by God.

And somehow, with most of the Greatest Generation dead, we’ve forgotten what a holocaust looks like.

History is trying to erase the cries of “Never again” when it comes to any group trying to exterminate the Jews - which is Hamas’ mission.

Exodus 1:6 rings true even today.

It’s how messes are made - people forget.

But Exodus 1:7 tells us that Someone hasn’t forgotten.

Eugene Peterson in his introduction to Exodus says this:

“At the center and core of this work is God. The most comprehensive term for what God is doing to get us out of the mess we are in is salvation. Salvation is God doing for us what we can’t do for ourselves. Salvation is the biggest word in the vocabulary of the people of God. The Exodus is a powerful and dramatic and true story of God working salvation.”

“Salvation is God doing for us what we can’t do for ourselves.”

The obvious church thing to jump to is - yes, I’m saved from death and hell and I will go to heaven when I die.

Let’s forget that for a moment - it’s true - it’s probably the most important truth - but let’s take the argument from out there to right here.

Graduation is coming up in 5 months.

For a few of you it’s a joy that can’t come soon enough.

For some of you it’s a knife that is slowly being pressed into your heart.

Either way, the clock is ticking and unless Jesus returns, your little Buffy and Jody are going to walk across the stage.

And if you are the graduate’s parent, you’ll probably quote this verse

Jeremiah 29:11 ESV

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.

Here is the very practical, real question: On whom does your future rely?

A number of you are very savvy business people - in 2018, did your five year plan factor in Covid?

All of you in the public sector - did you plan into your life the effect that Covid would have on your budgets and on your policies?

And everyone who goes to work every day, do you think your company factored in how Covid was going to affect their staffing forever?

Now, let me ask this question again, On whom does your future rely?

Salvation doesn’t extend only to heaven - salvation extends to the messes we find ourselves in now.

Exodus is going to be one long mess really - Israel will be rescued from one mess and will immediately make another one.

The Israelites will keep forgetting over and over and over again - just like we do.

But then there is verse 7: Exodus 1:7 “But the people of Israel were fruitful and increased greatly; they multiplied and grew exceedingly strong, so that the land was filled with them.”

You see, we forget - but God never does.

A new year has just begun.

I will complete my 68th trip around the sun.

Cianna Milam will complete her first one.

Magnolia Whitley was born to Kayla and Justin just yesterday.

And God willing, Lila Mae Bryant, Kristen and Richard little girl and a host of other kiddos will be dedicated right here at this altar.

And every one of us needs the same thing.

We need the Lord’s salvation.

In 500 words or less, what does Exodus 1:7 say about that?

First, people say that the Lord will never give you more than you can handle.

That’s a lie from the pits of hell and smells like smoke.

It’s not in the Bible - it’s not true - please quit saying it.

God can, God will, and God does allow you to have more than you can handle.

Otherwise, you could save yourself - and you can’t.

It’s that simple - if God didn’t allow us to make messes and if God didn’t allow messes to come into our lives, we’d do it all on our own.

Forgetting Him and suffering the consequences of living a life without thinking of God.

Life is better lived remembering the Lord.

Death is impossible without the Lord.

He will give you more than you can handle so you will remember Him.

Second, life is a collection of moments, don’t get stuck in one.

Something you hear is “live in the moment.”

That’s both good and bad advice.

Enjoy the moment.

Be present in the moment.

But one moment does not define your life.

I hope God works faster in our lives than this, but from Genesis 46 to Exodus 1:7, over 300 years passed.

You will go through hard times - times harder than you could ever face on your own - and it will seem like they last forever.

But you aren’t on your own if you are a Christ follower - verse 7 says so.

The Lord promised He would never leave you or forsake you.

So no matter what moment says, the truth says something different.

You may get beat down so far that you can’t breath, but Jesus never will forget you.

Finally, God gets real quiet sometimes but that doesn’t mean He’s not interested.

300 years from Genesis 46 to Exodus 1:7.

400 years from Malachi 4:6 to Mathew 1:1.

25 years from the time God promised Abraham and Sarah a baby until the day Isaac was born.

We bounce from one moment to the next - one high to the next - one success to the next.

And when it doesn’t happen that way, we begin to think that God doesn’t care anymore.

Or worse, God’s not there.

I really think that’s why the Psalmist said, Psalm 46:10

Psalm 46:10 ESV

“Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!”

When we still our minds - and we can.

We can hold every thought captive.

When we still our minds, we can see the Lord all around us.

I know it doesn’t sound like it to us - but Jesus told us to pray, “Give us this day our daily bread.”

Do we understand what it takes for us to get fed every day?

The hundreds if not thousands of hands our food passes through to get to Walmart and Kroger and Publix?

The days of rain that’s required.

The fertilizer, the fuel that it takes to raise that brussel sprout you go “Ewe” to and toss in the garbage.

You are one tiny blood clot away from being paralyzed.

One car accident away from being maimed.

One tick bite away from giving up hamburgers for years.

I know that some of us are in some desperate times.

Your parents are aging and dying.

Shoot, you are aging.

Your children are facing harder and harder things.

And some of your children are facing hurdles other children and their parents have no concept about.

And the Lord does feel a million miles away, but I promises.

And I can promise because of verse 7.

You can trust the Lord to do what He has said He will do.

I wish you could have seen Israel with me.

Psalm 94:22 “But the Lord has become my stronghold, and my God the rock of my refuge.”

Everywhere you look in Israel, you see rock.

It is THE rockiest place I have ever seen in my life.

Everywhere you look, you see rock - everywhere you look, you see God.

Because He remembers you - and He will never forget you.

He wants you to know that.

Our very first statement was, “So you are saved. Does it matter?”

If you are a Christ follower, I pray the Holy Spirit has moved you to remember why your salvation matters.

I pray if you feel like you’re all on your own, that you’ve heard that you are never alone.

And when your prayers are bouncing off the ceiling, you remember, that they don’t have to go through the ceiling.

Because the Lord is right beside you, He is in your heart.

I also pray that some of you will listen to the voice in your heart right now telling you to come home.

It is high time you made peace with the Lord

That’s what the pulling at your heart is saying - the Lord wants you and Him to get along.

He wants to save you from your mess.

And if you aren’t at peace with the Lord, you are in a big mess.

Listen to me, verse 7 reminds us that God always does what He says He will do.

It’s one of the things I count on - that I can count on Him.

In just a moment I will lead us in prayer and then we’ll sing.

Some of us will remember that the Lord is with us - something we really needed to remember.

And some of us will hear the Spirit calling us to be saved.

And He promised if you would call on Him, He would save you.

If you want Jesus in your life, I invite you to come talk to me when we sing.

We can talk about Jesus until you know you are ready to follow Him.

You can count on Jesus - He never forgets - He always does what He says He will do.

Let us pray: