Exodus Journey - (3) Baptism

Exodus 14 - 15:21

We are reading the Exodus journey for Lent, the 40 days before Easter which mirror Jesus’s 40 days spent in the Wilderness tempted by Satan and the 40 years it took the Israelites to travel from Egypt to the Promised Land.

Timeline of the Journey
17/3 - Slavery - Exodus 1-7:7
24/3 - Deliverance - Exodus 7:8 - 13
31/3 - Baptism - Exodus 14 - 15:21
7/4 - Holiness - Exodus 19-32
14/4 - Trials and Perseverance - Exodus 15:21 - 18, 33-40
21/4 - Promised Land / Resurrection Sunday

We saw last week that with great miracles God delivered the people from slavery in Egypt. There are 3 key scriptures I want to remind you of;

1. The Lord’s prescription for deliverance

then if my people will humble themselves and pray, and search for me, and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear them from heaven and forgive their sins and heal their land.
2 Chronicles 7:14
The first 4 are our part but it is only the Lord who can forgive sins and heal us.

2. The Lords message to the Pharaoh was 2 part. - “let my people go (1) and worship me (2)”. If we are going to be set free it is not just in stopping doing wrong, it is in turning to the Lord and worshiping him and nothing else.
Then you are to tell him, ‘Jehovah says, “Israel is my eldest son, and I have commanded you to let him go away and worship me, but you have refused: and now see, I will slay your eldest son.”’” Exodus 4:22-23

3. The Israelites were finally delivered from the Angel of Death by their obedience in putting the blood of he lamb on the doorposts
The blood you have placed on the doorposts will be proof that you obey me, and when I see the blood I will pass over you and I will not destroy your firstborn children when I smite the land of Egypt. 
Exodus 12:13

In the same way, Jesus delivers us from slavery to sin and saves us from Death by his Blood on the Cross. True belief always involves action.

For if you tell others with your own mouth that Jesus Christ is your Lord and believe in your own heart that God has raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
Romans 10:9

Our action confirms what we truly believe !

However, up until now we are still in Egypt ! We are saved but we need to move out and cross the Red Sea because if we remain in Egypt, we will remain slaves to the Pharaoh. The way out is not easy but it is the only way to freedom.

The topic for this week is Baptism. We are not getting out of Egypt without crossing the Red Sea.

Week 3 - Baptism

Some things in our lives are so memorable that we will never forget forget them. But some stories are so important that they need to be passed on to the next generation otherwise they will be forgotten. The Passover was so important that the Lord commanded his people to have a 7 day celebration every year to remind them. Jesus also commanded on the night of the Passover to have the Communion to remember his sacrifice. To this very day, the Israelites keep the Passover and we keep the Communion.

“You shall celebrate this event each year (this is a permanent law) to remind you of this fatal night. The celebration shall last seven days. For that entire period you are to eat only bread made without yeast. Anyone who disobeys this rule at any time during the seven days of the celebration shall be excommunicated from Israel. 
Exodus 12:14-15

But why the bread without yeast ?

Yeast are living organisms that feed off of simple sugars, breaking them down into carbon dioxide, alcohol (ethanol, specifically), flavor molecules, and energy during the fermentation process. When yeast breaks down glucose, two molecules of carbon dioxide and two molecules of ethanol are formed. While at room temperature, the alcohol is liquid, but when the bread hits the oven, the alcohol begins to evaporate, transforming into gas bubbles that contribute to the rise of the bread.

Yeast is what puffs the bread up, it adds nothing to the goodness of the bread. Remember pride is a roadblock to escaping from Egypt. Escape lesson 101 is to humble ourselves. A lot of successful people forget where they came from and get filled with pride. Pride is a roadblock. It wasn’t us who did it, it was the Lord !

Yeast also means false teaching.

“Watch out!” Jesus warned them. “Beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” They thought he was saying this because they had forgotten to bring bread. Jesus knew what they were thinking and told them, “O men of little faith! Why are you so worried about having no food? Won’t you ever understand? Don’t you remember at all the five thousand I fed with five loaves, and the basketfuls left over? Don’t you remember the four thousand I fed, and all that was left? How could you even think I was talking about food? But again I say, ‘Beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.’” Then at last they understood that by yeast he meant the wrong teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees. 
Matthew 16:6-12

Jesus likened wrong teaching to yeast, that is why we need to stop listening to the World’s teaching that contradicts clear bible teaching and follow Jesus closely, listening only to him. If we don’t, we eventually lose our ability to discern good from evil.

Stop listening to teaching that contradicts what you know is right. 
Proverbs 19:27

You don’t start a long walk without;

1. Checking you have everything you need - food, clothing, shelter - as well everything you don’t to keep the luggage light
The Israelis took with them their bread dough without yeast, and bound their kneading troughs into their spare clothes, and carried them on their shoulders. And the people of Israel did as Moses said and asked the Egyptians for silver and gold jewelry and for clothing. And the Lord gave the Israelis favor with the Egyptians, so that they gave them whatever they wanted. And the Egyptians were practically stripped of everything they owned! 
Exodus 12:34-36

2. Checking the map and following your leader You’ve seen the big red “you are here” sign to reassure you. But since you’ve never once before been to your destination, it will give you great confidence to have a leader that knows how to get there. In this case the Israelites had Moses (who’d never been). But at least they knew they had the Lord thanks to all the miracles he had done.
That very day the Lord brought out the people of Israel from the land of Egypt, wave after wave of them crossing the border. 
Exodus 12:51

A good leader must bring the people with them. Many ventures fail because the boss was completely unrealistic about what the team was capable of.

When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them on the road through the Philistine country, though that was shorter. For God said, “If they face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt.” So God led the people around by the desert road toward the Red Sea. The Israelites went up out of Egypt ready for battle. 
Exodus 13:17-18

Either way out of Egypt, there is a baptism ahead. A baptism is a crossing, a rite of passage. The Israelites thought they were ready for a fight but the Lord knew they were not ready for that kind of baptism.

There are 7 types of baptism in the Bible and we can see the picture of 5/7 in the Crossing of the Red Sea

1. Baptism of Moses (1 Cor. 10:1-2) 
2. Baptism of John (Mark 1:4-8) 
3. Baptism of the Holy Spirit (Matt. 3:11-12) 
4. Baptism of Fire (Matt. 3:11-12) 
5. Baptism in the name of Jesus (Acts 2:36-38) 
6. The Baptism of Jesus (Matt. 3:13-17) 
7. Baptism of Suffering (Mark 10:38-39)

The alternative shorter route through the land of the Philistines was a baptism of suffering the Israelites were not ready for.

1. Baptism of Moses
For we must never forget, dear brothers, what happened to our people in the wilderness long ago. God guided them by sending a cloud that moved along ahead of them; and he brought them all safely through the waters of the Red Sea. This might be called their “baptism”—baptised both in sea and cloud!—as followers of Moses—their commitment to him as their leader. 
1 Corinthians 10:1-2

Baptism represents our commitment to Jesus. We acknowledge he is the one who has delivered us from Slavery to Sin and the World and we are committed to following him on our journey to the Promised Land (like Moses lead the Israelites from Pharaoh and Egypt to their Promised Land)

2. Baptism of John
This messenger was John the Baptist. He lived in the wilderness and taught that all should be baptised as a public announcement of their decision to turn their backs on sin, so that God could forgive them. 
Mark 1:4

The Israelites had to leave Egypt and cross the Red Sea. Walking away from Egypt means turning your back to sin, John’s baptism means leaving the past behind and not looking back. We should not even want to go back to Egypt. That is not a good place for us. That place is for the Egyptians not the Israelites. They can keep their false gods along with their luxury living at the expense of others. That’s where we were slaves, where we lost our identity. Don’t catch that ferry !

3. The Baptism of the Holy Spirit
“With water I baptize those who repent of their sins; but someone else is coming, far greater than I am, so great that I am not worthy to carry his shoes! He shall baptise you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. He will separate the chaff from the grain, burning the chaff with never-ending fire and storing away the grain.”
Matthew 3:11-12

The Israelites were lead by the pillar of cloud by day and fire by night. In the same way the Holy Spirit leads us into all truth so we need to be immersed in Him !
He is the Holy Spirit, the Spirit who leads into all truth. The world at large cannot receive him, for it isn’t looking for him and doesn’t recognize him. But you do, for he lives with you now and some day shall be in you. 
John 14:17

The Holy Spirit also liberates us from the law (we will talk more about this next week). Baptism represents liberation from the old Slave master who is as harsh on us as the Pharaoh was on the Hebrew slaves.
Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death.
Romans 8:1-2

4. The Baptism of Fire
Fire represents judgement and separation as were the Egyptians separated from the Israelites by the pillar of cloud and fire and in the same way the chaff is separated from the wheat and burned with never ending fire. For the believer, fire has a refining effect, removing the dross from our lives and it was God’s judgment on sin at the Cross that separated us from the World and saved us.

5. Baptism in the name of Jesus
The Egyptians were drowned in the sea but the Israelites walked out free on the other side. Baptism represents death and resurrection. In effect the old person dies so that the new person can live. We are joined to Christ and his resurrection.

Some people ask, I’ve made a lot of mistakes since I got baptised, can I be baptised again ? In Jewish culture there is more than one baptism.

Well then, shall we keep on sinning so that God can keep on showing us more and more kindness and forgiveness? Of course not! Should we keep on sinning when we don’t have to? For sin’s power over us was broken when we became Christians and were baptised to become a part of Jesus Christ; through his death the power of your sinful nature was shattered. Your old sin-loving nature was buried with him by baptism when he died; and when God the Father, with glorious power, brought him back to life again, you were given his wonderful new life to enjoy. 
Romans 6:1-4

Baptism is like marriage. It is our joining to Christ that saves us not the act of baptism itself. You don’t need to walk down the aisle more than once with the same spouse to remain married !

I’d like to close by watching the Prince of Egypt awesome closing scene of the Red Sea Crossing and for us to think of their “baptism” and what that means for each one of us today. It’s not a perfect match to the Bible but ask yourself what would have happened if Moses and the Israelites had not obeyed the Lord and gone through the Red Sea.



As we shall see next week, The Prince of Egypt film finishes with Zipporah saying to Moses “Look at your people Moses, they are free” and then you see him triumphantly walking down from Mt Sinai towards the Israelite camp carrying the 10 commandments. But some of us remember what happened next !

Exodus Journey - (2) Deliverance

Exodus 7:8 - Exodus 13

Last week we started reading the Exodus journey for Lent, the 40 days before Easter which mirror Jesus’s 40 days spent in the Wilderness tempted by Satan and the 40 years it took the Israelites to travel from Egypt to the Promised Land. There are 40 chapters in the Exodus Map to guide us !

Timeline of the Journey
17/3 - Slavery - Exodus 1-7:7
24/3 - Deliverance - Exodus 7:8 - 13
31/3 - Baptism - Exodus 14 - 15:21
7/4 - Holiness - Exodus 19-32
14/4 - Trials and Perseverance - Exodus 15:21 - 18, 33-40
21/4 - Promised Land / Resurrection Sunday

We looked at root cause of the Israelite slavery and we learned how we also can be trapped into slavery by Sin or by the World. We learned the 3 things that can deceive us as we remembered the 3 temptations Jesus faced in the wilderness.

1. Heart (Jeremiah 17:9) 
2. Sin (Hebrews 3:12-13)
3. Riches (Matthew 13:22)

We learned that in slavery we lose our identity but the Lord wants to give us a new identity or restore our identity if we have backslidden.

This week we will look at the way the Lord sets a slave free as we remember the deliverance of the Israelites out of Egypt.

Week 2 - Deliverance

The Pharaoh took away all human rights and made the Israelite his slaves under brutal taskmasters to wear them down. Egypt had treated the immigrants as citizens in good times but now the very army that had protected them turned on them and there was no escape. It was a lot like what the Nazis did to the Jews.

It was finally when the Israelites hit rock bottom that they cried out to the Lord for deliverance. Nothing can change until we turn to the One who can really save us.


Sometimes a person has gone so far off track that they are lost and all they can do is to cry out like a lost sheep bleating for help. There is absolutely nothing they can do on their own. That is like the person who is slave to sin. They need to be rescued as in the Parable of the Lost Sheep (Luke 15:3-7).

In the darkness it is impossible to see. You need someone to turn the lights on and here it is !

then if my people will humble themselves and pray, and search for me, and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear them from heaven and forgive their sins and heal their land. 
2 Chronicles 7:14

There is the Lord’s prescription for deliverance -

1. Humility 
2. Prayer 
3. Seeking after the Lord 
4. Repentance (change in thinking followed by action) 
5. Forgiveness of sin 
6. Healing

The first 4 steps are our part. The last 2 steps are the Lord’s part - only he has the power to forgive sins and heal.

The journey out of slavery begins with a humble recognition that you need help as in the Parable of the Lost Son.

“When he finally came to his senses, he said to himself, ‘At home even the hired men have food enough and to spare, and here I am, dying of hunger! I will go home to my father and say, “Father, I have sinned against both heaven and you, and am no longer worthy of being called your son. Please take me on as a hired man.”’ 
Luke 15:17-19

Something shifted when the Israelites really sort after God. Then the Lord heard them and sent them a Deliverer.

But there is often a roadblock in the way of our deliverance and that is pride

Jehovah told him, “When you arrive back in Egypt you are to go to Pharaoh and do the miracles I have shown you, but I will make him stubborn so that he will not let the people go.
Exodus 4:21

The main thing that blocked Pharaoh was his pride. He refused to accept that the God of the Slaves was greater than all of the Egyptian gods put together.

Pride disgusts the Lord. Take my word for it —proud men shall be punished.
Proverbs 16:5

Some people are so hard, so proud. We shouldn’t have to hear the Gospel more than once to respond positively. But many do not respond even when God does a miracle as proof. Some mission fields God has to send a heavy plough to break up the earth, and remove the rocks and overgrown weeds that have grown into bushes and trees.

The Pharaoh won’t give up his slaves without a fight. Jesus has given the Church his authority as he did to Moses. We speak the words but it is The Lord’s command we are speaking.

Then you are to tell him, ‘Jehovah says, “Israel is my eldest son, and I have commanded you to let him go away and worship me, but you have refused: and now see, I will slay your eldest son.”’” Exodus 4:22-23

God’s command to Pharaoh was 2 part - “let my people go (1) and worship me (2)”. We usually only hear the 1st part. In fact in the entire Prince of Egypt transcript you don’t even hear the word “worship”. But the 2nd part is equally important. The message is you can be set free (e.g. from addiction) but the reason is so that you may worship God. With an addiction, it is often the thing we turn to when circumstances turn bad. But we should turn to God instead and worship him. He is in control of our situation, he is good, he is working everything for the good of those who love the Lord.

Remember Satan wants to be worshipped. That is what he wanted from Jesus in the desert but Jesus refused. We are to worship God alone. If we succumb to fear or addiction in moments of crisis in some dark perverted way we are accepting Satan’s power is greater than God’s.

Satan is a counterfeit, unworthy of any worship. That is why Paul said, in everything give thanks. We worship God no matter our circumstances. This is what Job did.

Our enemy will do everything to prevent us worshipping God. He will put doubts in our head. He will send someone to distract or entrap us.

But notice once the Lord has decided something and gives the order, it is futile to resist. That is why the demons flee in Jesus’ name.

And I have given you authority over all the power of the Enemy, and to walk among serpents and scorpions and to crush them. Nothing shall injure you! 
Luke 10:19

Israel’s deliverance from Slavery it has been said demonstrated God’s power over the false Egyptian gods, one miracle for each of 10 gods.

1. Over Hapi, god of the Nile = River turned to blood 
2. Over Heket, goddess with the frog head = plague of frogs 
3. Over Geb, god of the Earth = plague of lice from the dust
4. Over Khepri, god with the head of a fly = plague of flies 
5. Over Hathor, goddess of love and protection = death of cattle
6. Over Isis, goddess of medicine and peace = plague of boils/sores 
7. Over Nut, goddess of the sky = plague of hail 
8. Over Seth, god of storms and disorder = plague of locusts 
9. Over Ra, the sun god = plague of darkness 
10. Over Pharaoh, the god of Egypt = death of first born

Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, was worshipped by the Egyptians because he was considered to be the greatest Egyptian God of all. It was believed that he was actually the son of Ra himself, manifest in the flesh. Pharaoh had a false identity.

God had been quiet for 400 years and was the God of the Hebrew slaves. Pharaoh concluded Jehovah wasn’t a very powerful god. The gods of the sun and the river and the cattle seemed much more powerful because they gave life. Pharaoh had no idea that it was the God of the slaves who made the sun ! Pharaoh thought “Who is Jehovah to say ‘let my people go and worship me’, I’m god they will obey and worship ME! “ But Pharaoh didn’t know God.

There is only one true God. If you want to be tough with the Lord, he’s tougher, get ready for some pain. By the time the 9th plague was over, the poor guy holding up “The End is Nigh” sign is looking the sanest man in the land. But Pharaoh still doesn’t get the message !

So you still think you are so great, do you, and defy my power, and refuse to let my people go? Exodus 9:17

Turn from False gods, they are the ones that tug us away from the Lord. I remember when I was young, one year Arsenal got to the Cup Final but it was timed with the Boys Brigade Camp. I decided to miss the Camp and watch the Final. Naturally Arsenal lost and I lived with a double regret so I decided not to let that happen again. Do you have a false god that you turn to for comfort instead of the Lord ? What if the Lord calls you to Ministry and suddenly you are offered a big promotion at work ? There is only one true God. You will waste your life in slavery unless you renounce your false god(s) and leave them behind. Who do you want to identify with - Egypt (the World) or the Israel (the Lord) ?

Up to the 10th plague, the Israelites were untouched by every plague but for the last one they had to do something to be saved from the Angel of Death. In the end, the only difference between the Egyptians and the Israelites was the blood of the lamb painted on the doorposts. We have reached the moment of deliverance.

The Passover
“On the evening of the fourteenth day of this month, all these lambs shall be killed, and their blood shall be placed on the two side-frames of the door of every home and on the panel above the door. Use the blood of the lamb eaten in that home. Everyone shall eat roast lamb that night, with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. The meat must not be eaten raw or boiled, but roasted, including the head, legs, heart, and liver. Don’t eat any of it the next day; if all is not eaten that night, burn what is left. “Eat it with your traveling clothes on, prepared for a long journey, wearing your walking shoes and carrying your walking sticks in your hands; eat it hurriedly. This observance shall be called the Lord’s Passover. For I will pass through the land of Egypt tonight and kill all the oldest sons and firstborn male animals in all the land of Egypt, and execute judgment upon all the gods of Egypt—for I am Jehovah. The blood you have placed on the doorposts will be proof that you obey me, and when I see the blood I will pass over you and I will not destroy your firstborn children when I smite the land of Egypt.” 
Exodus 12:6-13

As we know now, the Passover is an exact picture of Jesus. His death happened on the Passover Day at the moment the High Priest was cutting the lambs throat.

In fact we can say that under the old agreement almost everything was cleansed by sprinkling it with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins. 
Hebrews 9:22

You see, faith must always result in action ! It would have done no good for the Israelites to merely believe that the blood on the doorposts was a good idea. They had to actually kill the family pet lamb. So if the preacher asked you to come forward, if you know God is speaking to you, you must come forward. Staying in your chair won’t cut it.

You must put the blood on the doorposts. You must accept Jesus death on the Cross for yourself. Only his blood can cover your sins and keep the Angel of Death from taking you. These are Gods terms and conditions. Do not mess around, this is very serious.

The Passover was judgement over all the gods of Egypt. The Cross at Calvary was judgment over all the powers of Hell. The Cross, the blood on the doorposts, is what delivers us out of Egypt. This is why a Cross is used during an exorcism along with the Sword of the Spirit - the Bible.


Jesus is our Deliverer from every power of Hell through his triumph at the Cross !

When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the charge of our legal indebtedness, which stood against us and condemned us; he has taken it away, nailing it to the cross. And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross. Colossians 2:13-15

Which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.
1 Corinthians 2:8

You must have the flesh cut away. You have to leave your old life behind, cut off the addictions and sin. You must be born again to live by the Spirit and receive the salvation of God.

The Passover is a celebration of deliverance. In the same way we can celebrate our deliverance through the victory at the Cross.

Next week we continue our escape from Egypt and find ourselves at the edge of the Red Sea with Pharaohs army in hot pursuit ! What does it all mean ?

On Friday, the Nation heard the call to prayer but today I’d like to finish by us all saying the Lord's Prayer out loud which includes a cry for deliverance. I've used the old version because this is the one I remember best.

Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors. And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen. 
Matthew 6:9-13

Exodus Journey - (1) Slavery

This Easter I invite you all to come on a journey. We are in the Christian calendar period of Lent which is the 40 days leading up to Easter. It is a reminder of the 40 days Jesus spent in the Wilderness after his baptism.

At Lent, we are called to draw near to God and he draws near to us as we rely on him rather than our own resources. At Camp we focussed a little on suffering. Suffering is a part of Lent, just as it was for Jesus in the desert for those 40 days. Yes, we will be tempted to give up and it won’t be easy but we will hear God’s voice clearly !



It is also likened to the journey that the Israelites took in leaving Egypt to go to the Promised Land with various stages, some amazing, miraculous, some testing and difficult to go through. Lent is a time of self-denial and I would encourage you strongly to make a commitment for the 40 days in some way just as Jesus did when he went into the desert for 40 days. Some people fast, some people refrain from drinking alcohol, some stop their screen time or TV watching so that they can make time for God instead. That’s the important thing - make time for God instead. If you do, I can testify that you will be in tune with what God wants in a way that you may rarely experience otherwise.

There are many other lessons in the Exodus story than the ones I have chosen but I chose them because they relate most to PCC as a whole as we journey together and to help us prepare for Easter. If there is a particular subject that I miss and you would like to hear about please let me know.

Timeline of the Journey

• 17/3 - Slavery - Exodus 1-7:7 
• 24/3 - Deliverance - Exodus 7:8 - 13 
• 31/3 - Baptism - Exodus 14 - 15:21 
• 7/4 - Holiness - Exodus 19-32 
• 14/4 - Trials and Perseverance - Exodus 15:21 - 18, 33-40 
• 21/4 - Promised Land / Resurrection Sunday

Week 1 - Slavery

The Exodus story begins with an explanation of why the people of Israel were in slavery in Egypt.

You will remember from Bob’s series on Joseph, that Jacob and his 11 other sons and their families had joined Joseph in Egypt because of a famine. They had settled in Egypt in the good times and they never went back to Canaan which was the land promised to Jacob’s grandfather Abraham. They were in the wrong place. They were in the Devil’s Domain.

Taking into account that Moses was 80 when he lead them out of Egypt, the story of Exodus begins approximately 350 years after the arrival of Jacobs family.

This is the list of the sons of Jacob who accompanied him to Egypt, with their families: Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, Benjamin, Dan, Naphtali, Gad, Asher. So the total number who went with him was seventy (for Joseph was already there). In due season Joseph and each of his brothers died, ending that generation. Meanwhile, their descendants were very fertile, increasing rapidly in numbers; there was a veritable population explosion so that they soon became a large nation, and they filled the land of Goshen. 
Exodus 1:1-7

The sons of Jacob and their descendants had lived in Egypt 430 years, and it was on the last day of the 430th year that all of Jehovah’s people left the land.
Exodus 12:40

350 years is a long time but loyalty is a cheap word when you are dealing with men. Only the Lord is faithful to his promises, better to place your trust in Him !

Then, eventually, a new king came to the throne of Egypt who felt no obligation to the descendants of Joseph. He told his people, “These Israelis are becoming dangerous to us because there are so many of them. Let’s figure out a way to put an end to this. If we don’t, and war breaks out, they will join our enemies and fight against us and escape out of the country.” So the Egyptians made slaves of them and put brutal taskmasters over them to wear them down under heavy burdens while building the cities of Pithom and Rameses as supply centers for the king. 
Exodus 1:8-11

The Slavery began because of an evil thought the Pharaoh had. There was a spiritual reason behind it. Satan hates God’s Chosen people and he uses every opportunity to persecute them. Pharaoh became afraid of the Israelites growing population and the potential for them to join their enemies in war. Be discerning of negative thoughts !

What once seemed a way out was now a dead end, a trap. Through no fault of their own, the Israelites became slaves.

Slavery is a picture of Sin and also of entrapment into the World system. In both cases, Jesus comes to set us free. Like the Israelite Slaves in Egypt, you need a Deliverer because you can’t escape by your own power.

Sin is powerful because it breaks relationships. To be set free you need forgiveness from God, yourself and others. Sin is cunning because it is attractive, it tempts a person at their weakness point.

Addiction is complicated. When you see someone trapped in addiction, you do not know their journey. The addiction is the end product. There is a root cause, it may be sin but it may be a result of choices their ancestors made. Sometimes it’s the root that has to be dealt with first to cure the addiction. It may be logical whether biological, psychological, sociological, or it may be seemingly illogical because it is hidden by guilt or spiritual separation from God.

When dealing with an addiction there are many factors at work;

1. The biological disruption of the brain which incidentally is capable of being happy by manufacturing its own opiates - endorphins. We can eat, sleep well, exercise and go to the doctors but sometimes that’s not enough. 
2. The psychological which is basically faulty thinking. It’s often helpful to choose the positive view - the glass half full. Or as in the film Inside Out, recognise that sad emotions can be good if they make us choose something good not bad. But sometimes that’s not enough. 
3. The sociological - If the best choice is to leave the environment so be it. Cut off the right hand if it causes you to sin so to speak. But sometimes that’s not enough - try telling a Belarusian not to smoke or a Frenchman not to drink so much alcohol. 
4. Moral or spiritual reasons for for escaping and hiding from God.

Several years later the king of Egypt died. The Israelis were groaning beneath their burdens, in deep trouble because of their slavery, and weeping bitterly before the Lord. He heard their cries from heaven, and remembered his promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob to bring their descendants back into the land of Canaan. Looking down upon them, he knew that the time had come for their rescue. Exodus 2:23-25

The Israelites suffered for a long time before they got serious in turning to God. The first thing should be to turn to God. Often this is our last resort because we don’t really want to give it up. A major crisis such as health exhausts all hope and finally makes us want to escape. They had hit rock bottom.

The word I have to speak on from these first passages in Exodus is “Identity”.

First of all comes the loss of identity. A Slave belongs to his Master, he does not have his own identity. Sin is a harsh taskmaster. Are you a slave and want to be free, then call out to the Lord ! Then the Lord told him, “I have seen the deep sorrows of my people in Egypt and have heard their pleas for freedom from their harsh taskmasters. I have come to deliver them from the Egyptians and to take them out of Egypt into a good land, a large land, a land ‘flowing with milk and honey’—the land where the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites live. 
Exodus 3:7-8

The Bible calls 3 things deceitful and these things ultimately lead us into slavery apart from God and make us lose our identity;

1. The Heart
The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it? 
Jeremiah 17:9
This is why it takes so long for the addict to seek help, they often need to reach rock bottom. The alcoholic says they can handle their drink, the smoker says they would rather die happily smoking, the gambler thinks they can walk away any time, the adulterer says that love was too strong. It will turn us into slaves no matter how attractively it is packaged by Satan. Don’t be fooled by your own deceitful heart, listen to God’s Word instead. When Satan tempted Jesus to satisfy his hunger by turning stones to bread; But Jesus told him, “No! For the Scriptures tell us that bread won’t feed men’s souls: obedience to every word of God is what we need.” Matthew 4:4

2. Sin
Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God; but exhort one another daily, while it is called “Today,” lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. 
Hebrews 3:12-13

We have a total blind spot in the West towards sin and we do not understand its effect. We won’t defeat sin by legalising it. Democracy is great if you choose right, but it leads to slavery if you choose wrong. Sin will be your Master.

The Devil packages sin to make it look and feel the most attractive option. He tempted Jesus to jump off the temple because the angels would catch him. He would experience supernatural help. Many people today are attracted to Eastern mysticism and the occult. Many also see nothing wrong with getting high on drugs as it opens the mind. Hollywood makes it look exciting but God calls it sin and the Devil walks in the front door. Before long you become a slave and lose your identity.

3. Riches
Now he who received seed among the thorns is he who hears the word, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful. 
Matthew 13:22

Before every man there lies a wide and pleasant road that seems right but ends in death. 
Proverbs 14:12

In his final temptation, Satan offered Jesus all the Kingdoms of the World if he would bow down and worship him. Riches and worldly comfort are attractive. This is why Lot chose Sodom and why Moses but for the Grace of God would have remained an Egyptian Prince.

But Jesus said;
“You cannot serve two masters: God and money. For you will hate one and love the other, or else the other way around. 
Matthew 6:24

The rich and successful are more easily deceived. They feel bullet proof, above the law. Moses had been deceived that he was good when his heart wasn’t right. He murdered a man.

Moses was an Israelite but he was raised an Egyptian Prince he had lost his identity and was captive to the World.

Then 40 years after running away and becoming an outlaw, God called Moses when he least expected it. He calls Moses by name unlike Satan who accuses and labels us;
One day as Moses was tending the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Midian, out at the edge of the desert near Horeb, the mountain of God, suddenly the Angel of Jehovah appeared to him as a flame of fire in a bush. When Moses saw that the bush was on fire and that it didn’t burn up, he went over to investigate. Then God called out to him, “Moses! Moses!” “Who is it?” Moses asked. “Don’t come any closer,” God told him. “Take off your shoes, for you are standing on holy ground. I am the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.” (Moses covered his face with his hands, for he was afraid to look at God.) 
Exodus 3:1-6

Jesus is calling some of you by name today. For some of you it’s to come out of Egypt, come out of slavery. For others, he has a special task for you just like he had for Moses. Moses protested, he gave every excuse why he shouldn’t be the one. But with the calling comes the equipping. You will find your identity in Christ alone, accept the call.

By faith Moses, when he became of age, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin, esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt; for he looked to the reward. 
Hebrews 11:24-26

You have a choice to make just like Moses had a choice to make. It’s no good to say you got a call from God if you don’t do what he’s asking you to do ! You need to seize your chance.

Today we may be a slave to something or someone but that is not the person we want to be. We have been trapped but Jesus comes to set us free. To become a Christian is to receive a new life, a new identity or if we have backslidden, to receive back our identity.

I won’t pretend the way out is easy. Choosing God’s way is not easy. It is the narrow path. There is so much wrong in our thinking in our actions that it is hard to come out of the World, easy to fall back into the comfort of what is known and sinful habits.

Remember it’s a miserable life being a slave.

You are never too old to be set free !
Moses was eighty years old and Aaron eighty-three at this time of their confrontation with Pharaoh. 
Exodus 7:7

Our first step in this journey is to recognise if we have become a slave. What are the things you turn to for comfort and in what order ? Be honest with yourself. If you have something or anyone other than the Father Son And Holy Spirit at the top of your list, you may want to reconsider your priorities.

Next week we will move on to how God delivered the Israelites from their Slavery and what are the lessons for us today.