Exodus 13:17-22 - The Presence of the Lord
Notes
Transcript
The Word Read
The Word Read
Please remain standing for the reading of the Holy Scripture. Hear the Word of the Lord from:
17 When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them by way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near. For God said, “Lest the people change their minds when they see war and return to Egypt.” 18 But God led the people around by the way of the wilderness toward the Red Sea. And the people of Israel went up out of the land of Egypt equipped for battle. 19 Moses took the bones of Joseph with him, for Joseph had made the sons of Israel solemnly swear, saying, “God will surely visit you, and you shall carry up my bones with you from here.” 20 And they moved on from Succoth and encamped at Etham, on the edge of the wilderness. 21 And the Lord went before them by day in a pillar of cloud to lead them along the way, and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, that they might travel by day and by night. 22 The pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night did not depart from before the people.
Behold, brothers and sisters, this is the Word of the Lord. Please be seated.
Exordium
Exordium
Beloved in Christ,
The people of Israel find themselves in a position they’ve not had for hundreds of years, out of the authority of Pharaoh. They are free. You can imagine their elation. No more oppression. No more working for an evil country and an evil Pharaoh. Freedom. However, their freedom does not mean they will not face difficulties in the immediate future. In fact, trouble will occur over the following few chapters.
As they come to the edge of the wilderness, the Lord will begin to form this people's identity. They must learn to live Deuteronomy 6:5:
5 You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.
They are to find their identity in Him and His redemptive work, learning to love Him fully. Their existence is centered on God’s redemptive work in saving them by His strong, mighty hand. So, He gives them His presence despite their disobedience—and continual disobedience.
My thesis for these verses is that the Lord graciously gives His people His presence upon their deliverance to lead them to the Promised Land. Thank God, the same is true for us today. Upon our deliverance, our salvation, the Lord gives us His presence as He leads us to the eternal promised land. It is an incredible promise and a great gift of assurance to know that our God is always with us, day by day and moment by moment.
Exodus 13:17-20 - To the Edge of the Wilderness
Exodus 13:17-20 - To the Edge of the Wilderness
17 When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them by way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near. For God said, “Lest the people change their minds when they see war and return to Egypt.” 18 But God led the people around by the way of the wilderness toward the Red Sea. And the people of Israel went up out of the land of Egypt equipped for battle. 19 Moses took the bones of Joseph with him, for Joseph had made the sons of Israel solemnly swear, saying, “God will surely visit you, and you shall carry up my bones with you from here.” 20 And they moved on from Succoth and encamped at Etham, on the edge of the wilderness.
Pharaoh sent out or drove out the people of Israel. Yet, God did not lead His people to the Promised Land by the shortest distance. He did not guide them through the land of the Philistines, which would have been a northern exit. Why did He not send them north? They could have been in the Promised Land rather quickly, as they would have traveled along the Mediterranean Sea. He sends them south because He knows their hearts. The Lord knows that if the people are sent through the land of the Philistines, they will encounter war and desire Egypt.
The Lord knows the hearts of His children. He knows they will see warfare and change their minds or regret their departure from Egypt. This is an unfortunately poignant truth about the human heart - we forget how the Lord has already worked in our lives. The people of Israel were prone to forget the Lord. As they are commanded in Deuteronomy 6:12:
12 then take care lest you forget the Lord, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.
This forgetfulness was not just an issue for the Exodus generation and their children. For Isaiah 51:12-13 states,
12 “I, I am he who comforts you; who are you that you are afraid of man who dies, of the son of man who is made like grass, 13 and have forgotten the Lord, your Maker, who stretched out the heavens and laid the foundations of the earth, and you fear continually all the day because of the wrath of the oppressor, when he sets himself to destroy? And where is the wrath of the oppressor?
Lest we think New Testament believers cannot forget God. Hear what Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 10:1-6:
1 For I do not want you to be unaware, brothers, that our fathers were all under the cloud, and all passed through the sea, 2 and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea, 3 and all ate the same spiritual food, 4 and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank from the spiritual Rock that followed them, and the Rock was Christ. 5 Nevertheless, with most of them God was not pleased, for they were overthrown in the wilderness. 6 Now these things took place as examples for us, that we might not desire evil as they did.
Like the Exodus generation, God’s people have always struggled with forgetfulness. How often do we forget God’s goodness to us? How many times have we forgotten our salvation? Don’t we often forget that God has previously provided for every one of our needs? Yet, we come to Him repeatedly in distress, believing He won’t care for us again. We are no different than the Exodus generation.
Our hearts are fickle and fragile, so we take great comfort in looking to Christ for our salvation. The Lord knows the fragility of your heart, so He does not lead you to places that would cause you to desire a sinful land. How often have we thought, “God, I don’t know why you are doing this. It would be so much easier if this were different.” Yet, what if God, in His kindness towards your life, led you perfectly because He knew your heart better than you knew your own heart? Christ took you south when you thought going north was easier and better. He knew precisely what your beaten and battered heart needed the most, just like He knew the Israelites would run right back to Egypt if they traveled through the land of the Philistines.
What is interesting about the Lord leading them south towards the Red Sea? As verse 18 tells us, they were “equipped for battle.” Incredible. They were equipped for battle as they went up out of Egypt, yet they would have turned back when they saw war in the land of the Philistines. Can you imagine an army equipped for battle, yet they would have turned back as soon as they saw war? This is the people of Israel. They may have been equipped for battle, but had no training for war. Their entire battle experience was trusting in Yahweh to fight on their behalf against Pharaoh and the Egyptian gods. They rested in His power.
As the people of Israel rested in God’s fighting against Egypt, we rest in Christ against the battle of sin. We have no power in ourselves to defeat the power of sin. In fact, before our salvation, we were slaves to sin, and we reveled in all that sin gave us. We loved the sin that enslaved us. So, coming out of the power of sin by the work of Christ, we have no power to fight against sin. We rest in the victory Christ has secured on our behalf.
Furthermore, we should recognize that we are the Church Militant while we live on earth. We are in a very real war against the powers and principalities of evil. According to Ephesians 6:12:
12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.
We must keep in mind that we are in a war against Satan and his demons. Our wrestling in this war is not against flesh and blood, but against these demonic beings that have rebelled against the great God of heaven. One of their objectives is to make war against the offspring of God (Revelation 12:17). They love to come against those who belong to Jesus. They love to shoot their fiery darts into our hearts. We must use the shield of faith to defend ourselves against their flaming arrows (Ephesians 6:16-17).
In Exodus 14, we read of God saving the people of Israel at the Red Sea. At the beginning, the people are terrified. They look back and see Pharaoh and his army. No doubt, we would have been terrified as well. They had just left the Pharaoh’s rule and had limited provisions. They were equipped for battle, but never had to fight. They stand between Pharaoh’s army and the Red Sea, shaking in their sandals. Then Moses says these powerful words in Exodus 14:13-14:
13 And Moses said to the people, “Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again. 14 The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.”
What comforting words for a people full of anxiety and fear: “Be silent, for the Lord will fight on our behalf and give us salvation!” Ultimately, we, like Israel, do not fight the battle alone. We rest in Christ’s redemptive work, knowing He has won the war. In spiritual warfare, maybe the best posture we can take is to be silent and trust in Christ to fight the battle against the enemy.
In Exodus 13:19, we see Joseph’s faith in God. He trusted that Yahweh would one day visit the Israelites and bring them up out of the land of Egypt. Genesis 50:24-25:
24 And Joseph said to his brothers, “I am about to die, but God will visit you and bring you up out of this land to the land that he swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.” 25 Then Joseph made the sons of Israel swear, saying, “God will surely visit you, and you shall carry up my bones from here.”
Joseph’s faith was not rooted in the people of Israel. He did not look around and think, “Oh yes, this will be a strong, mighty nation one day. I know there will be mighty warriors who will fight against Egypt. They will wage war and win.” No, Joseph’s faith in the Exodus was not man-centered, but entirely God-centered. As Hebrews 11:22 notes,
22 By faith Joseph, at the end of his life, made mention of the exodus of the Israelites and gave directions concerning his bones.
His faith rested in God, not man. For him, his true home was not Egypt but the Exodus and the land God promised to him, where he was ultimately buried in Shechem (Joshua 24:32). He firmly believed that Egypt was not his final destination. He was merely a pilgrim in this foreign land. This is a core belief for us as well. We should have a deep conviction that this world is not our home. As Peter writes in 1 Peter 2:13:
13 Be subject for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme,
The earth is not our home. America is not our final destination. We are merely sojourners, aliens, and foreigners living in a world under Satan’s sway (2 Corinthians 4:4, 1 John 5:19). We shouldn’t grow accustomed to what this world has to offer. Our hearts shouldn’t bow to all the idols the devil and the world have to offer. Instead, we like Joseph, we know our home is yet to come. Our home is far more glorious than anything this puny world has to give. Our home is with Christ. Let us not become attached to Egypt and all the worldly riches she has to offer; instead, we look forward to the majestic place He has prepared for us. Let us have the eyes of faith Joseph had thousands of years ago, putting our complete trust in the deliverance He has already given us, and the ultimate victory He will secure when He returns.
Exodus 13:21-22 - The Lord’s Presence is with His People
Exodus 13:21-22 - The Lord’s Presence is with His People
21 And the Lord went before them by day in a pillar of cloud to lead them along the way, and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, that they might travel by day and by night. 22 The pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night did not depart from before the people.
When I worked at Liberty, I had the opportunity to oversee a department that was a shell of itself. At one time, the department was thriving. However, the office was no longer considered valuable to the university over the years, so they removed the department entirely. The student population served by this office became upset and wrote to the president asking him to reinstate the department. He did, but it was not a fully functioning office. Those in charge of the office were told, “This is your special project.” This means, “Give it a few hours each week, but it is not your primary job.” So, the newly reinstated office went from one person to another person to me.
Over time, the Lord strengthened my love for that department and its potential. I fell in love with the idea that there is an unknown future in front of us. It is a blank canvas, and we get to paint the picture. I love looking into an entirely unknown future. I get excited and dream about what it might become if the Lord wills it to occur. You might think, “Yeah, I don’t like the unknown. I like what I know.” You can imagine the hearts of the people of Israel as they sit on the edge of the wilderness, looking into the unknown future.
Whether they were fearful or excited, the Lord gave His presence to His people. He went before them by day in a pillar of cloud and by night in a pillar of fire to provide them with light. Why? So that He might lead them. These people are on their own, out from the authority of Pharaoh. We see throughout the Exodus that fear filled the hearts of these people. The Lord was gracious and kind to lead them and show them by this sign that His presence was with them. Just imagine the comfort they would have known as they looked up and saw the pillar. The God who fought against Pharaoh and the Egyptian gods is now traveling with us. He’s actually leading and guiding us as we travel out of Egypt!
Deuteronomy 4:32-35 reveals the incredibly special relationship between the Lord and the people of Israel:
32 “For ask now of the days that are past, which were before you, since the day that God created man on the earth, and ask from one end of heaven to the other, whether such a great thing as this has ever happened or was ever heard of. 33 Did any people ever hear the voice of a god speaking out of the midst of the fire, as you have heard, and still live? 34 Or has any god ever attempted to go and take a nation for himself from the midst of another nation, by trials, by signs, by wonders, and by war, by a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, and by great deeds of terror, all of which the Lord your God did for you in Egypt before your eyes? 35 To you it was shown, that you might know that the Lord is God; there is no other besides him.
There has never been a god who has taken a nation for himself from all the other countries. In the Exodus, the Lord’s presence continually went with these people. Think of how incredible this is, and think of how great God’s mercy is as well. In Exodus 33:20, the Lord said to Moses:
20 But,” he said, “you cannot see my face, for man shall not see me and live.”
Simultaneously, the Lord reveals His presence to His people and conceals Himself so that they might live. He will be with them, but in a way that will not cut them off. God’s power, presence, and mercy are shown in the pillar of cloud and fire.
We should not think that the Lord’s presence is only given to the Israelites as they journey to the Promised Land. Jesus promises the disciples that the Holy Spirit will be sent to them. He says in John 14:16-17:
16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, 17 even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.
Lest we think the Holy Spirit is only given to the disciples, Paul writes these words in Romans 8:9-11:
9 You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. 10 But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. 11 If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.
At this very moment, if you are in Christ, the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinity, dwells in you. Have you considered the glorious truth that the Holy Spirit dwells within your mortal body? When was the last time we dwelt on the reality that the Lord’s presence is constantly with us? Every moment of every day, the Holy Spirit dwells in you.
Think of the Holy Spirit’s work in your life. Due to the Holy Spirit’s work in your life, you can say, “Jesus is Lord” (1 Corinthians 12:3). He is the source of the spiritual life in you (Galatians 5:25). He transforms you into the image of Jesus Christ (2 Corinthians 3:18). He enables you to pray (Ephesians 6:18).
Most relevant to our passage this morning is that the Holy Spirit leads us. As Paul writes in Galatians 5:16-17:
16 But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. 17 For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do.
The Holy Spirit leads us so that we might walk in the fruit of the Spirit (But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.), not the works of the flesh. This is the goodness of God. He doesn’t leave us on our own to walk in godliness.
If we were being honest, we find ourselves in a similar position to that of the people of Israel in these two verses. Here’s what we know for sure: Christ has saved us by His blood, we do know that the presence of God goes with us, and we do not know what the future holds. What we do know for sure is that Christ has promised eternal life to those who belong to Him.
We trust in the promise that God is always with us. There is never a time when He is absent from our lives. God is with us on the day of great blessing and good news. On the worst day of our lives, God is with us. He does not leave or forsake us based on our day. The Israelites had the presence of God, not because of them, for they were idolatrous worshippers, but because of the grace of God. This is an incredible promise our fickle and fragile hearts can cling to: My God is always with me, not because of me, because I know I am unworthy and undeserving, but because of Christ. If Christ had not taken my sin, if Christ had not bore God’s wrath on my behalf, if Christ had not humbled Himself to the point of death on a cross, becoming sin, then I would not know the sweet presence of the Lord. I would not know His grace, steadfast love, kindness, mercy, compassion, and tenderheartedness. I also wouldn’t know that He was leading and guiding my life.
Maybe the real question we should ask ourselves is not, “Does the Holy Spirit go with me through this life?” Perhaps we should ask ourselves, “Am I willing to follow the Holy Spirit’s leading in my life?” The Word of God is clear; the Holy Spirit indwells us, forming us into the image of Christ Jesus. However, am I willfully hardheartened towards His leading? Am I more concerned with getting my way rather than following the Spirit’s leading in forming me into the image of Jesus Christ?
Have you ever asked people what fills their thoughts? High school students might be consumed with schoolwork as they look forward to college. Those in their 20s-30s think about beginning their career and starting a family. Those in their 40s-50s think about their children growing up, attending college, and dating others. They may be thinking of climbing the corporate ladder. Then those in their 60s are thinking about retirement and grandchildren. The average lifespan of an American is around 77 years. So what might those in their 70s and above think about? The legacy they’ll leave behind, and the reality that the golden shore is closer than it used to be.
Closing
Closing
When I think about the eternal golden shore, in my mind as a 38-year-old, it seems like an event in the distant future. Sure, it will happen, but I have another 30-40 years before I reach the eternal shores. We, just like the people of Israel encamped at Etham, know the Promised Land is our future, but we don’t see how the time between our salvation and our deaths will be filled. Life is full of twists and turns, trials and tribulations, incredible joys and heartbreaks. Yet throughout all of life, there is a tremendous promise for weary souls who belong to Jesus: the Spirit of Christ dwells within, and He leads us to the glorious, eternal golden shore, the place where we will behold the glory of Christ, no longer by faith, but by sight.
