Episode Transcript
The following program is a first person narrative using authors'license to tell stories drawn from the Bible and the books of Ellen White. Welcome to Family Storytime with Karlie Fraser. Join us as we step back in time to hear about the Red Sea crossing.
Hi there. My name is Ebana, and I'd love to share some of my story with you today. It was so dark, probably the darkest night I have ever seen.
I looked out one of our windows and couldn't even see the stars. I remember my parents were very stressed, and they kept saying that we needed to stay inside the house. Really leaving our house to run around in the dark by myself was the last thing that I wanted to do.
I was staying right where I was. Thank you very much. It had been pretty weird in Egypt those last few weeks, ever since Prince Moses had come back from the desert, although I wasn't sure if he was a prince anymore.
Apparently, he'd grown up as a prince in Pharaoh's court, even though he's an Israelite. But then he left and went to live in the desert for 40 years. Then, completely out of the blue, he came back and said that God had told him it was time for us to be freed from slavery.
We had been waiting for this moment for so long, but when it finally arrived, we found it hard to believe it was actually happening. My people had been slaves in Egypt for over 400 years. Our ancestors had moved here when there was a famine that lasted for seven long years.
Joseph, Jacob's son, had been taken as a slave to Egypt, but after 13 years, God freed him from prison, and he became second in charge of the whole country. Joseph then brought his entire family to Egypt so he could look after them better during the famine. Unfortunately, after a long time passed, there was a new Pharaoh who came to the throne, and he didn't care about how much Joseph had helped Egypt.
He was scared of how many of us there were, so he gradually made us slaves, and that's where we were. When Moses came back, saying God loved us and was going to save us. However, there was a slight problem.
Pharaoh didn't want us to go. Because of this, God sent some plagues to convince him that it would be best for Egypt if we left. Finally, on that very dark night, we knew this was it.
This was the moment our people had been waiting for for generations. God had told us that we were to have a special meal, and we needed to wear our traveling clothes so that we would be ready to go at any time. Then the moment came.
The last plague had convinced Pharaoh to let us go, and he called Moses and Aaron to his palace and told them we had to leave Egypt quickly. The word spread through our town and we all gathered together. There were 600,000 men, plus the rest of us, women and children as well.
We had even picked up some Egyptians who believed that our God is the real God and wanted to follow him too. After a lot of instructions and a bit of confusion, we finally got on the road. It was dusty, very dusty.
The flocks of sheep and goats and herds of cattle that traveled with us picked up the dust with their hooves, throwing it in the air so that we breathed it in as we walked. At the beginning, it was exciting. We got to be the generation that left Egypt.
We were stoked and kept running laps around our cart until, exhausted, my brother and I lay down in the back and stared up at the stars that had now started to appear behind the clouds. We hadn't been on the road very long before it happened. The moment is seared in my memory.
Out of the darkness above us and appearing to split the sky itself, appeared a blazing pillar of fire. It lit up the sky like daytime. It was incredible.
And then when the sun rose the following day, the pillar of flames which had kept us warm during the night became a giant cloud covering us and protecting us from the heat of the day. It was the strangest thing I'd ever seen, but it was also a reminder that God was always with us. He led us using that cloud and we trusted him and followed it.
But after a few days, we realized that this cloud wasn't leading us the quickest way to the promised land. It was actually leading us through the desert and towards the Red Sea and a dead end. One afternoon when we set up camp, we had a huge rocky mountain on one side and the Red Sea right in front of us.
If people weren't stressing before this, they certainly started to worry. Now, if the Egyptians caught up to us here, there is no doubt that would be the end of us. I remember hearing someone scream out behind me, and when I turned to look, I saw something that made my heart start beating very fast.
It was the flash of sunlight against armor. There was a great cloud of dust rising from the horizon. And we realized this was Pharaoh and his army coming to capture us again.
Pharaoh had 600 chariots, plus a whole lot more foot soldiers. Panic struck instantaneously and suddenly people were moving everywhere, trying to decide whether to pack up their belongings or race down to the seashore without them. Parents were calling for their children.
Sheep and cattle were bleating and pulling against their ropes in an effort to escape. Some of us started to get really worried. What if we'd come this far only to end up being captured and sent back as slaves again? Everything we had hoped for appeared to be coming to an end before we even had a chance to reach the promised land.
I overheard some people say to Moses, it would have been better for us to have stayed as slaves in Egypt than to die here in the desert. I couldn't believe they said that to Moses, who had done so much for us already. I didn't know how, but I knew deep down inside that God wouldn't leave us alone here.
We could see his presence in the giant cloud above, and we had to trust that he wouldn't leave us to face the Egyptians by ourselves. I distinctly remember the look of peace on Moses'face as he said to us, don't be afraid. Just stand still and watch God rescue you.
The Egyptians you see today will never be seen again. Whoa. What a promise to make.
I had no idea how God would save us, but now I had no doubt whatsoever that he would. We couldn't go back the way we came because the Egyptians were behind us and we had high mountains next to us, so we really needed to go straight ahead. Unfortunately, the Red Sea was in front of us, blocking our only way of escape.
As the Egyptians got closer, we began to notice that the cloud that had been above us now rose even higher and came down between us and the enemy army. It blocked them from seeing us at all. As it became nighttime, the cloud remained dark on the Egyptian side, but turned into a wall of fire on our side, lighting up the whole campground.
God spoke to Moses and gave him the plan for our rescue. It was amazing how quick the word spread through camp, and we packed up all our belongings and walked down to the edge of the Red Sea. Moses stood next to it, and we all went silent, holding our breath as he held up his hand, stretching his shepherd's rod out over the water.
Suddenly, we heard the roar of a mighty wind, and right before our very eyes, we saw a road appear in the middle of the sea. God was creating a way for us to walk right across the Red Sea itself. The light of the pillar of fire reflected back at us from the giant walls of water on either side of the road.
The water rose so high, I could barely even see the top. Reaching down, I touched the sand beneath my feet and realized it was completely dry. Carefully, I worked my way across the stream of people and came to the wall of water on the left.
Reaching into it, I could feel the powerful surge of current as it raced up and away from us. Looking closely, I even saw some fish swimming by. I'm pretty sure they looked confused.
I would have been too, if I was a fish and saw a crowd of people walking along the bottom of the ocean. It took a while, but eventually we all made it across to the shore. On the other side, looking back down onto the road God had opened up, I could see the Egyptians racing to follow behind us.
What had previously been to them. A dark cloud now became a pillar of fire, and we could hear the sound of thunder and see lightning flash from it over the advancing army. Realizing they were fighting God himself, the Egyptians tried to retrace their steps and head back the way they had come.
But it was too late. Their chariots were caught in the sand, and as Moses lifted up his shepherd's rod again, the water came rushing back down, completely covering the entire army. As the sun began to rise, we stood on the shore of the Red Sea and realized just how close we had come to being captured and how God had again provided a way for us to be saved.
Moses started singing a song to God, and soon we all joined in. We could hear our voices echo back from the mountains around us, and it seemed like they joined in as well, praising God for loving us and saving us. God didn't just care about us Israelites.
He knows you so well that he knows exactly what you are thinking right this minute. He knows if Mum and dad were fighting this morning, that you're sad because your cat is lost, that your dad has lost his job, that you are scared of the test you'll have to do today. He hurts.
When you are sad and wants to be there for you in sad and in happy times, he can make the impossible simple in your life. He wants you to know that you can talk to him anytime at all about what's happening to you. You are his treasure and he wants to help you with whatever you are worried about because he loves you so much.
Will you pray with me? Dear God, thank you so much that you love us and that you know everything about us and everything that we're experiencing. Thank you that you want to help us and that it makes you happy when we pray to you and when we ask for Your help. Thank you so much that you save us.
And thank you, Jesus, that you died for us so that we can live with you forever. We love you, God. Amen.
Thank you, Karlie, for showing us how God is able to save us, even when it seems impossible and the way ahead looks hopeless. Let's hear from Jesse and Christopher as they unpack today's story from the Bible. What an incredible story about God freeing the Israelites from slavery in Egypt.
Thank you, Karlie. Yeah, I especially love stories from the time of Moses because I've always found learning about Egypt fascinating. From the pyramids to the mummies and the ancient myths and legends, it has always been somewhere that I've just wanted to travel.
Yeah, me too. But I know if I traveled there today, my holiday would probably never end. I'd be living the tourist life forever.
But while it would be a dream come true for me to visit Egypt today, we know it wasn't an ideal tourist destination for the ancient Israelites. In fact, did you know that in the Bible, egypt is often a symbol for sin? Wow. Really? But Egypt seems like such a nice place.
Well, again, it may be a nice place to visit today, but as we know, the Israelites were slaves in Egypt under the pharaoh, and they had been for 400 years. Can you imagine being a slave for 400 years? 400 years? No way. No wonder the Israelites wanted to leave Egypt.
It wouldn't make any sense for anyone to want to stay in such a place. Well, it's interesting that you say that, because remember, Egypt was a symbol for sin. And so all of humanity has at one point been a slave to sin, just like the Israelites were slaves in Egypt.
In fact, Jesus said to his disciples, very truly, I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to hmm. Doesn't Paul talk about no longer being a slave to sin in the book of Romans? That's right. I think.
In fact, it's in chapter six. So then, just like the Israelites, god wants to call us out of slavery to sin. So what I don't understand then, is why the Israelites complained and asked Moses to take them back to slavery.
You're right. It doesn't really make that much sense, does it? But many people still do it today. Many people are given the opportunity to be saved by God, and yet they decide to stay slaves to sin.
It just doesn't make any sense. That's why Paul calls it foolishness. Imagine this.
It's been a rainy day. You've been jumping in the puddles, having loads of fun with friends, and now you're covered completely with mud. Then your mum calls you inside, you have a nice clean shower, you get all cleaned up and dry.
You're a spotless clean. Now, once you're all cleaned up, would it make much sense to go back outside and jump in the mud again? Probably not. That's just silly.
Well, in the same way, once God has saved us from sin, it's silly to go back into ah. Okay then. So now that I've chosen to follow God out of Egypt, though, what's next? What do I do now? Well, do you remember what the Israelites did when they left Egypt? Sure.
Once they left Egypt, they followed that pillar of cloud by day and a fire by night. Right. And that was God.
It sure was. So then, just like the Israelites followed God out of Egypt, we need to keep following God in our lives. But hang on.
Sometimes, and I don't know about you, Jesse, but it feels like God is taking us right into a dead end. What do I do? When it seems like sin is chasing after me and God is just leading me between a rock and a hard place? Good question, Chris. Well, the Israelites experienced the exact same thing when they were being chased by the Egyptians.
First of all, God took them through the desert, which was a long way to get to the Promised Land. And then he took them to the Red Sea, where they couldn't move forward, and they had the mountains beside them, trapping them in. Well, that definitely doesn't make any sense.
I think I understand why the Israelites were a bit confused. Well, sometimes God's plans just don't make any sense to us. But God knows us better than anyone, even better than ourselves.
So if there is anyone we can always trust in, it's God. And so even though God's plan for the Israelites didn't make much sense to them, god knew it was the best plan for them. They just needed to keep trusting in Him.
Ah, I see. So no matter what is happening in our lives, no matter how strange or confusing it may seem, we just need to keep trusting in God that he has a plan to save us. That's right.
We need to trust in God wherever he takes us. For the Israelites. That was the Red Sea.
But think about this. If God had not led them to this dead end, the Egyptians would have eventually caught the Israelites and taken them back to Egypt to be slaves for who knows how long. But at the Red Sea, god was able to finally free Israel from slavery forever.
Whoa. That's amazing. I don't think I've ever thought of that story like that.
So even though it didn't make sense to the Israelites, god's plan made sense. And so the Israelites were right to trust in God. Hey, you know what? What? This reminds me of? When we studied the story of snakes in the desert.
Do you remember that? I do. Now, didn't we find out in that story that the Red Sea crossing was a symbol for baptism? That's right. In fact, Paul talks about this same idea in Romans six.
Why don't we all turn together? Let's read from Romans, chapter six, and let's read together verses three and four. And here is what Paul says. Or have you forgotten that when we were joined with Christ Jesus in baptism, we joined him in his death? For we died and were buried with Christ by baptism.
And just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorious power of the Father, now we also can live new lives. So what Paul is saying here is putting our trust in God is the same as putting our trust in Jesus. So just as Jesus conquered sin and death at the cross, when we are baptized, it is a symbol of us putting our trust in Jesus and also conquering sin and death in our lives.
That's so true. Baptism is such an important moment in life. I remember the day I was baptized and how happy my friends and family were for me that I had decided to fully trust God with my life and that no matter what happened in my life, I would continue to follow him.
Yeah. Same with my baptism. I was so excited to start a new spiritual journey with Jesus and to keep learning to follow him.
Well, imagine if we thought our church was full of excitement at our baptisms. Imagine what heaven would have looked like, man, you're right. Jesus even says in Luke 1510, in the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.
So then, just like the Israelites, we are invited to trust in God and follow him into the Red Sea. Jesus is calling us to trust him and follow him into baptism. I know I've made that choice, and so have you, Jesse.
And I hope that one day our listeners at home will decide to make that same choice, to have Jesus as their best friend. You know, this story reminds me of a song I sang often in church so many times. It's called tis so sweet to trust in Jesus.
And as we finish our study, we invite you to think about the words of the song and consider making that choice to trust in Jesus with your life. Tis so sweet to trust in Jesus and to take him. At his word, just to rest upon his promise and to know thus says the Lord, and consider making that choice to trust Jesus with your life.
Jesus. Jesus. How I trust him.
How I've proved him awe and awe. Jesus Jesus precious Jesus oh for grace to trust him more tis so sweet to trust in Jesus it you have been listening to Family Story Time, a production of Three ABN, Australia radio.
