Devotional 30 July 2025

The crossing of the Red Sea stands as one of the most striking examples of faith in all of Scripture. Before them, the sea raged; behind them, Pharaoh’s army closed in. But by faith, Israel walked forward on dry ground, trusting not in their strength, but in the God who had called them. When Egypt tried to follow (not in faith, but in pride) they drowned. The same path that saved God’s people destroyed their enemies.

This is the dividing line of faith: not all who walk the path survive the journey. Only those who trust in the Lord will stand. We are not saved by being clever, strong, or brave, we are saved by clinging to the One who makes a way where there is no way. As Moses told the trembling people at the shore of the sea: “The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent” (Exodus 14:14).

Faith like this does not look to circumstances or self. It looks to the God who controls the wind and sea, who commands history with the Word of His mouth. As Paul reminds us, “We felt that we had received the sentence of death. But that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead” (2 Corinthians 1:9). The Israelites trusted not in their ability to escape Egypt, but in the Word of God, and that Word led them to life.

This story is more than history; it is a picture of the gospel. As Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 10:1–2, Israel’s passage through the sea is a baptism, a passing from slavery into freedom, from death to life. But it is a road only faith can walk. The same message that brings salvation to the believer brings judgment to the unbeliever. As John says, “This is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil” (John 3:19). Faith in Christ is the only true dividing line.

We cannot walk by borrowed faith. The Egyptians saw Israel’s path and tried to follow, but they did not follow the God who made it. Each of us must respond personally to the call of faith. Not because others believe, but because the God who commands the seas has spoken. Like the Israelites, we must trust in His voice, step into the impossible, and walk on dry ground, because He is faithful. This is a faith not rooted in sight or strength, but in the eternal Word of God. That is saving faith. That is the only way through.

The Israelites still speak as witnesses to a faith that steps forward when obedience seems impossible. May we have ears to hear.