Week 16: Exodus 13-14-Israel Exits

Israel Exits

As a family, read Exodus 13-14 together.  Afterwards, share the discussion below.

What happened?

When God sent the tenth and final plague, He passed over the homes of the Israelites and protected them, but every firstborn son in Egypt died.  As a result, Pharaoh finally changed his mind and allowed the Israelites to leave. God commanded the Israelites to celebrate and remember what He had done for them.  He then led them through the wilderness toward the land He promised them.

Meanwhile, Pharaoh changed his mind about letting the Israelites go.  He pulled his army together and went after them.  When the Egyptian army got close, God put a pillar of fire between the Egyptians and the Israelites to protect His people.  The future was looking brighter for the Israelites, until they ran into another problem – the Red Sea. With a big body of water in front of them and the most powerful army in the world behind them, they knew there was no way they could escape.  All seemed hopeless.  They complained and regretted ever leaving Egypt.

But despite these challenges, Moses never wavered in his faith.  He told the people to not be afraid.  He walked into the water, picked up his staff, and raised it over the sea.  God divided the water, so the Israelites could walk through the middle of the sea on dry ground.  Moses led over a million people across the Red Sea that night.  The Egyptians tried to follow but drowned when the waters swept over them.

Why is this important to us today?

When the Israelites saw the Egyptian army approaching, they doubted God and started to complain. They felt hopeless and regretted ever leaving Egypt.  But despite the invading army and panic from his own people, Moses never wavered in his faith.  He had confidence in who God is and in all that He promised.  He believed that God could do the impossible and that brought him hope even when everyone around him felt hopeless. God honored Moses’ faithfulness by rescuing Israel that night.

God is still inviting us to put our faith in Him.  He is still calling us to believe in His ability to bring hope in the midst of a hopeless situation and to do something miraculous when it seems impossible.  No matter what we are going through – no matter how hard or hopeless or impossible things may seem – we can still trust God, believing that He is always in control and bigger than whatever we may face in life.

Spend a few minutes talking about what you just read by answering these questions together:

As a family, talk about why you think Moses remained faithful even when the entire community doubted God.  What situations do people view as hopeless today? How would following Moses’ example of unwavering faith help in those situations?

Now what? – How can we better follow God this week?

What are you struggling to trust God with right now? Maybe it’s a subject in school, a friendship, a job loss, or a sick family member. Does the situation seem hopeless? Is it causing you to fear or doubt God? Spend a few minutes talking about God’s character traits (all-powerful, merciful, faithful, etc.) How do those characteristics strengthen your faith in God to handle the situation? Spend time as a family praying for one another. Ask God to help you trust in Him, even when it is hard.