Readings: Psalm 114, Romans 14:1-12, Matthew 18:12-35, Exodus 14:19-31
Preached at Bridgehampton Presbyterian Church, NY, on September 17, 2023
Geographically speaking, the area where I was born and raised was known as the Wirral peninsular. On one side of the peninsular lay the River Mersey, where you could, as Gerry and the Pacemakers once sang, catch a ‘Ferry across the Mersey’ to Liverpool. On the other side of the peninsular lay the River Dee, and over the other side of that river, the nation of Wales.
The River Dee side of the peninsular held the best beaches. One of the fun things to do there was walk across the sands, at low tide, to visit a bird sanctuary called Hilbre Island, where you could watch seals playing out in the estuary.
In fact, when the tide went out it looked as though you could walk across the sands all the way to Wales. You couldn’t because there was a deep fierce channel of water that separated the English from Wales (something historically the Welsh were rather glad about) but when you were walking out on the sand, it looked as though there were just miles of sand stretching in every direction. A beautiful place.
Beautiful, but dangerous. Almost every year people lost their lives through not paying attention to the tide. If you did not know at what hour the tide turned, then it was not safe being out on the sands. Whereas when the tide was out the sands stretched for miles, when the tide turned the whole area became sea.
The frightening thing was how quickly the change from sand to sea took place. Little streams in the sand would become rivers. The rivers overflowed. You could be walking on sandbanks, unable to reach the coast, unaware that the waters were closing in. If you were out on the sand when the tide turned, you were lost.
One can only imagine the dread that the Hebrew people felt as they fled from Pharaohs’ chariots. There lay before them a seemingly impassable body of water. Their only hope was that God would intervene on their behalf. That somehow the tide would turn.
Surely, we can identify with that picture. It sometimes feels like we have come so far, but now, there are ahead of us obstacles that we seem unable to overcome. Great, immovable expanses of uncertainty ahead, and we don’t know how we can get around them, or get through them, or how to survive the enemies that are rapidly advancing upon us.
It can be our health that is letting us down. It can be circumstances in our families. It can be things that have come our way that we never expected. Disasters. Storms. Accidents. Tragedy. Oh, we’ve come so far. But now this. We’d like to make progress, but we can’t see a way through it all. We need a miracle.
It can feel like that as churches. We tried this program. We explored this possibility. We thought we were doing the right thing. But the tide keeps turning. And we just don’t see how we can make it through all the obstacles that lie ahead.
So today, notice this. The passage we read today tells us that Moses was not acting alone. Verse 19: “The angel of God who was going before the Israelite army moved and went behind them; and the pillar of cloud moved from in front of them and took its place behind them.” Moses was surrounded by forces that defied explanation. Angels. Clouds. These were not things Moses had conjured up, but the very presence of God surrounding their lives.
In a world where the tide keeps turning, it is that perspective that continually gives me hope. We are not alone. We are in the company of unseen angels. We are surrounded by a cloud of God’s protection and care, that goes beyond our understanding.
Our New Testament passage had Jesus asking His disciples, “What do you think? If a shepherd has a hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go in search of the one that went astray?” The Shepherd went to unexpected lengths to ensure everybody was ok. The Shepherd was responsible for all of the sheep. The 99 were fine and the one that was lost and found, turned out to be absolutely fine.
That little parable tells us what God is like, how much God cares for us, as a community and as individuals, but the challenge is in the first four words, “What do you think?” The story is offered to them as a question. “What do you think?”
Do you think God cares about us that much? Do you think God has the ability to get us through? Do you think God is still with us, even though we are up against seemingly impassable circumstances? Even when we feel lost and hopeless and like there is no future, do you think God can still come through for us, as God came through for the Israelites? Is the unseen presence of an Almighty God still with us today? “What do you think?”
We don’t know what was going through Moses’ mind when all this happened. But we do know what God asked Moses to do. To stretch out his hand over the sea. Twice in this passage God asks Moses to stretch out his hand.
Imagine that. All the people were looking to him. He must have been thinking, “There’s got to be a plan B. And maybe a plan C.” He must have been as terrified as they were. He didn’t have an answer. There is a huge impenetrable sea in front of them and an army that wanted to destroy them behind them. And God says, “Moses, stretch out your hand.”
“Are you sure God? What good will that do? I’m going to look kind of foolish standing here with my hand up when the waves come crashing over me. Do I really want to raise my hand, “Hey, I’m here!” when there are Egyptian soldiers waiting to shoot an arrow in my back.” But he trusts God. He trusts that God’s unseen presence was with them. And he raises his hand. And having done that, God takes care of the rest.
Prayer is raising our hands to God. Lifting our hands and our heart and our hopes and our fears to God. When we lift our hands in the knowledge and the faith and the trust that God is all around us, that God is with us, then there are no limits as to how a situation may change.
There have been a number of times in my life (and my ministry) when I have literally felt completely stuck. Couldn’t go forward and had things going on that seemed to be intent on bringing me down. Like most of us, I have done my best to change the situation, to analyze, to adjust, to work it out for myself. What’s plan A? What’s plan B? But there has come that point when the realization has come that’s what is really needed is prayer. I need to raise my hand, not knowing what the result may be.
Prayer isn’t twisting God’s arm so that we get out of a tricky situation. Prayer is reminding ourselves that whatever lies ahead of us and whatever lies behind us is a situation that God is aware of. That God is still there, calling for our trust and commitment and calling us to let go. “Quiet resignation” I like to call it. That moment you realize that there’s nothing you can do to change things yet are totally accepting of the idea God has it under control.
So, we have a choice. We can lift our arms in prayer. We can keep on coming together and worshiping and serving and seeking to be a community of God’s people. We can trust in the unseen presence of God, guiding us and leading us through difficult days. We can choose to build our lives upon faith in Jesus Christ, who challenges us time after time… “What do you think?”
Do you think I’m still with you? Do you think I still care for all my sheep? Do you think I can still lead you and guide you? Do you think I’m still the shepherd of the 23rd Psalm, the shepherd that can be trusted?
We can choose, as did the Hebrews, to invest in nurturing the spiritual lives of both ourselves, and our loved ones in the ways of God’s Kingdom. We choose our priorities. We choose how much of our energy and time and talent we invest in the things of God’s Kingdom.
The Christian gospel, the Good News of Jesus Christ, is that there is a way to live, a better way, and a higher way! But to discover it, we have to trust that God is with us, even when we face obstacles that we can see no way of getting around.
After the Hebrews had passed through the waters, they arrived safe on the other side. Moses was asked to raise his hand once again. This time, when he raised his hand, the army of the Egyptians, that were intent on destroying them, are vanquished and perish under the force of the waves. The tide had turned.
Surprisingly, there was very little rejoicing among the Israelite's as they gazed across the sea at the bodies of their enemies. Verse 31 ‘And when the Israelite's saw the mighty hand of the LORD displayed against the Egyptians, the people feared the LORD and put their trust in Him.’ I think they knew this was not the end of the story, but just the beginning of a new chapter. That there was a long way to go before they ever reached their promised land.
They would still need those reassurances that God was with them. They would still need the angels and the cloud and every reminder that God could offer that they were still His people and God was still their God. They would still need to keep lifting their hands in prayer. The tide would keep turning. . Sometimes they would appear to be hopelessly lost! Sometimes they would prove faithful.
I started out talking about the tides that ran on the River Dee between England and Wales. Because of the tidal estuary that lay on the sands between England and Wales, I learned at an early age that you had to be aware of the changing tides. It was not anything you could control. Tides happen!
A bestselling book in my home area was the ‘Tide-Tables’ that cataloged the times when the tides would turn. Now Yvonne used to work for the University department of Oceanography, and she knew the precise work that went into producing those tables and how many peoples livelihoods depended on accurate information. The tables told you how high the tides were likely to be, and all the vital information that would let you know when it was safe to walk out to Hilbre Island and when you needed to stay away from the sands.
God has not left us in the dark.
• We have “Tide Tables” for life. God’s Word in Scripture. But we must study it.
• We have the living presence of Jesus Christ to lead and guide us. But we must discover the guidance of His Holy Spirit, which only comes through prayer and commitment and opening our hearts to God in worship.
• We have a community of faith to which we can belong. But we must make life choices that enable us to be active participants in our faith community.
The tide is going to keep turning. Sometimes it will flow against us. Sometimes it will carry us along. We can't do anything about that. But we can choose who is going to navigate our lives through the shifting currents of the present day.
It was a deputy of Moses, Joshua, who declared “Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve... But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord." (Joshua 24:15.)
Amid changing tides, may God's Holy Spirit lead us to make the right choices for ourselves, our families, and our faith community. May we continue to raise our hands in prayer.
Before telling them a story about God’s faithfulness, Jesus challenged His disciples “What do you think?” May our thoughts today be directed to the God who could lead God’s people through impassable seas, and land them safe on the other side.
To God’s name be the glory. Amen.
The Reverend Adrian J. Pratt B.D.
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