LESSON 1: Israelites Crossed the Red Sea

God’s people, the Israelites, had been slaves in Egypt for 430 years! According to God’s command Moses went to Egypt with his brother Aaron. Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt. There were a lot of people and animals!

When they left Egypt, God led them in the most strategic path and provided a tall, vertical pillar of cloud to lead them by day and a pillar of fire to guide them at night. An angel of God moved in and out of these pillars as needed.

When Pharaoh and the Egyptian people saw a large labor force leaving the country, they changed their minds (Exodus 12:31-33 , Exodus 14:5). Pharaoh rallied all of his chariots and chased after them. When God’s people saw the Egyptian army approaching in the distance, they became frightened. There was nowhere to go to get away. The army was behind them, and the Red Sea was in front of them. They were trapped!

The people complained to their leader, Moses. They said, “Why did you lead us out of Egypt into the desert to die? We would have been better off to have stayed in Egypt!”

But Moses said, “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see how God will save you today. The Egyptians can never win because God will fight for you.” Although they had been promised they would see the Promise Land, the Israelites saw no way out of their situation. So, God made a way.

With nowhere to go, God commanded Moses to lift up his staff and stretch his hand over the sea. Suddenly a strong wind blew the water up into two walls so that there were walls of water on each side and dry land down the middle (Exodus 14:21). God had provided a way to cross the sea to the other side! The people of Israel walked on dry ground and reached the other side.

When the Egyptians saw the dry land, they followed the Israelites, but God wanted to slow them down. Strange things began happening to pharaoh and his people. The wheels of their chariots began falling off, and it became very difficult to drive. By the time the Egyptians realized God was fighting against them, it was too late. (Exodus 14:25). When the Israelites reached the other side of the water, God said to Moses, “Raise your hand over the sea again.” When Moses did, the water rushed back and all of the chariots and horses and the entire army of the Pharaoh were drowned. Not even one Egyptian survived (Exodus 14:26-28). God saved the people of Israel again! They believed in God and trusted Moses to lead them. After crossing the red sea, the Israelites sang songs of praise and thanks to God for saving them. Miriam, Moses’ sister, led the women in dancing and singing.

What can we learn from the crossing of the Red Sea?

When God calls us to follow, he wants us to trust him with all our heart. He will always make a way for us.
There’s a word for the kind of trust that Moses had in God. It’s called faith. Faith is believing without seeing. It’s trusting that God will lead us on when we come to a dead end. Even when we are scared or unsure we should trust God.