Pillar marker with inscriptions found 1985… erected by King Solomon commemorating Moses exodus at the Red Sea crossing at Baal Zephon located on the Saudi side opposite of Nuweiba Beach, Egypt.  (Today the stone pillar has been removed and a flagpole marker stands in the location)

“History, you can choose to either ignore it or learn from it”

James 1:2-3,12 ² Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, ³ because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance… ¹² Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.

Wilderness Experiences are…

1.  Necessary for Every Believer. (Heb 12:4-11)

·         Your wilderness experiences goes with you… you cannot escape them by moving or changing jobs

·         Your Egyptian (fleshly) appetite is still with you… God’s working to train us to become Christlike

·         The Lord works throughout our lifetime getting us ready to go into the Promise Land (heaven).

Hebrews 12:5-11 ⁵ And you have forgotten that word of encouragement that addresses you as sons: "My son, do not make light of the Lord's discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you, ⁶ because the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son." ⁷ Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father? ⁸ If you are not disciplined (and everyone undergoes discipline), then you are illegitimate children and not true sons. ⁹ Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of our spirits and live! ¹⁰ Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness. ¹¹ No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.

·         Educational Process Heb 12:10

·         Proof of Authenticity Heb 12:6,8

·         Training in Obedience Heb 12:9

·         Produces Spiritual Fruit Heb 12:11

“The Lord got the people out of Egypt now He’s working on getting Egypt out of His people”

2.  Designed to Prove Your Faith.

Deuteronomy 8:2 Remember how the LORD your God led you all the way in the desert these forty years, to humble you and to test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands.

·         We tend to repeat the same mistakes over and over… like our forefathers before us.

·         God carved the Israelites experiences into living truth, God’s Word.  So we may learn obedience

·         We’ve been born again, set free from sin… to a new birth, life, beginning, heart, lifestyle, song…

·         We too go through wilderness adventures, to test us, to prove us, to stretch our faith muscles

·         When you remove the desert experiences we become spiritual wimps…

Test Cycle… (Ex 15:22-27)

Imagine your life hooked to a big slow turning wheel…a wheel of five spokes.

Like an imaginary wheel… we’re all on this wheel somewhere right now… designed to test our faith.

1)    Abundance          (Look Up)

·         God delivered them thru the Sea… now in Chpt 15 we see the song of praise & worship…

·         The people were overwhelmed in praise & gratitude to the Lord… His many blessings… look up

2)    Expectation         (Look Ahead)

·         The people enjoyed abundant blessing, now they expected continual abundance

·         In expectation we look ahead to wave after wave of God’s divine favor… we begin to think it’s my personal “right” – yet that’s unrealistic…

·         The people came through the Red Sea and expected continued abundance… miracles…

·         Feelings of safe, satisfied, comfortable… grow accustomed to God’s presence (glory cloud)

·         Just come to church and be blessed… but refuse to get involved, let someone else do the work

·         I just love Cross Creek… I’m so blessed… expectation, accustom, tradition sets in, world of self

3)    Disappointment  (Look Down)

·         Now watch what happens… three days of travel (30 miles later)… Desert time & thirst sets in…

·         God where’s your abundant blessings?  Three days and no water – they became disappointed

·         Excitement started to peak when they finally found water… bitter! What good is it, undrinkable…

·         The people looked down, looked at their circumstances rather than looking to God.

·         We too can be so blessed… born again, expecting waves of blessings… now becoming disappointed, discouraged, depressed… it began by looking down within yourself…

·         Your “thinking” turns south, your “feelings” follow close behind + devil is good at his craftiness

4)    Complaint            (Look Back)  16:2-3

·         The next spoke on the test cycle… v24 “the people grumbled against Moses” – We’re thirsty!

·         This is the spoke of looking back to better former times, easier days…

·         We see grumbling, complaining, whining, quarreling over & over – 15:24;16:1-2,7-8,9,12; 17:2,3,4,7 – they grumbled against Moses, Aaron, leadership… God Himself.

·         Rather die in Egypt then in no man’s land… we had plenty of food… “wants vs needs”

·         Are we any different?  When we start to look back, we start to complain, murmur, grumble…

·         We so often forget the bad, remember the good and complain about the present situation.

Exodus 16:8 Moses also said, "You will know that it was the LORD when he gives you meat to eat in the evening and all the bread you want in the morning, because he has heard your grumbling against him. Who are we? You are not grumbling against us, but against the LORD."

5)    Provision                         (Look Around)

·         At the end of ourselves & look around, God once again steps in to bring a solution to our problem…Piece of wood thrown into the bitter water and the water became sweet… God provides... Manna, Quail, water from split rock at Horeb!

·         Notice v25-26  “There He tested them”… Testing is the reason they’re in the desert in first place

·         Then God led them 7 miles south to the Oasis of Elim… with 12 springs and 70 palm trees!

·         God sovereignly designs the wilderness just for you… To Prove you, to test you…

·         ILL – Jeff’s pituary tumor and the Neurologist…

3.  Intended to Grow us and Glorify God…

Exodus 15:22-24 ²² Then Moses led Israel from the Red Sea and they went into the Desert of Shur. For three days they traveled in the desert without finding water. ²³ When they came to Marah, they could not drink its water because it was bitter. (That is why the place is called Marah.) ²⁴ So the people grumbled against Moses, saying, "What are we to drink?"

Exodus 16:31 The people of Israel called the bread manna. It was white like coriander seed and tasted like wafers made with honey.

John 6:32-35 ³² Jesus said to them, "I tell you the truth, it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. ³³ For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." ³⁴ "Sir," they said, "from now on give us this bread." ³⁵ Then Jesus declared, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty.

Numbers 11:4 The rabble with them began to crave other food, and again the Israelites started wailing and said, "If only we had meat to eat!

Numbers 11:18-20 ¹⁸ "Tell the people: 'Consecrate yourselves in preparation for tomorrow, when you will eat meat. The LORD heard you when you wailed, "If only we had meat to eat! We were better off in Egypt!" Now the LORD will give you meat, and you will eat it. ¹⁹ You will not eat it for just one day, or two days, or five, ten or twenty days, ²⁰ but for a whole month--until it comes out of your nostrils and you loathe it--because you have rejected the LORD, who is among you, and have wailed before him, saying, "Why did we ever leave Egypt?"

2 Thessalonians 1:3 We ought always to thank God for you, brothers, and rightly so, because your faith is growing more and more, and the love every one of you has for each other is increasing.

Apply the Truth… (1Co 10:1-12)