THE FIRST PASSOVER EXODUS 9:1-12:36 Pharaoh had seen the waters of Egypt become blood. Then there were the plagues of frogs, tiny bugs, and flies. Each time it was clear that God was sending these. But each time Pharaoh hardened his heart and stubbornly refused to let the Israelites go. Then the Lord sent a terrible plague upon the Egyptian cattle. And he sent boils upon the Egyptian people. There also was a violent hailstorm. At first Pharaoh said the Israelites could go but then he grew hard and stubborn again. Then the Lord sent a plague of locusts. They destroyed what the hailstorm had left. And there was a terrible plague of darkness. It was dark throughout Egypt for three days. But in Goshen there was light. Now there was one last plague to come. "About midnight the Lord will pass through Egypt," Moses told Pharaoh. "The oldest boy in every Egyptian family will die. But the Israelite families will be safe." Then God gave orders to the Israelites through Moses. He told them to put the blood of a lamb around each door, on the sides and the top of the doorframe. He said each family was to eat the roast meat of that lamb. They were to eat with traveling clothes on, prepared for a long trip. This Passover feast was to be celebrated each year so that God's people would remember how he passed over their houses and kept their families safe. The Israelites did what Moses told them. They were ready to leave Egypt. About midnight, throughout the land, the Egyptian families lost their oldest sons. Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron during the night. "Go! Leave us," he said. "Take your flocks and herds and be gone. But please give me a blessing as you go." God told the Israelites to ask their Egyptian neighbors for clothes, silver and gold. The Egyptians wanted them to leave, so they gave the people of Israel everything they wanted. Now the Israelites were ready to leave Egypt.
DISCUSSION: How often were the Israelites to celebrate the Passover? What kind of animal did they use for the Passover? Why was the blood put around the doors of the Israelites? God didn't want His people to forget the Passover. So he made this day a holiday. It was a special time when the people could rest, celebrate, feast, worship God, and remember what He had done for them. God knows how busy we can get. But he wants us to set aside time to worship Him. When is a good time to do that? River of Blood Gnats Death of Livestock Boils Flies Frogs Hail Locusts Darkness Death of Firstborn
the b-i-b-l-e... god's book! There is a person who will give you everything you need. He will not give you everything you want. There is a big difference. Who is that person? The Lord is my shepherd; I have everything I need. Psalm 23:1 DISCUSSION: When God leads us, we have all we need. We get into trouble when we don't follow Him! What is the difference between what you want and what you need? Think of 5 things you really need, such as food and clothes. Now think of 5 things you want, but don't really need, such as all the candy you can eat. What is the difference? Does God give you everything you truly need? Why doesn't He give us everything we want? Do you like to play "chase?" Mom or Dad pretends to chase you. It's fun, isn't it? God sends something special to chase or pursue you every day. What is it? Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will live in the house of the Lord forever. Psalm 23:6 DISCUSSION: God sends His love and goodness to us throughout our entire lives. He not only gives us His love and goodness, but lets these things chase us! Has there ever been a time that you thought no one loved you? Have there been times when you thought that not even God or your parents loved you? Were you wrong? Did they still love you? How long will we live with God when we are truly His? That's a long, long time, isn't it? God wants you to be with Him forever because He loves you so much!
THE EXODUS Exodus 12:37-51 The Israelite people had been slaves for a long, long time. Now suddenly that was coming to an end. The Passover was over. The Lord had passed over the Israelite homes, for they all had lamb's blood on their doorways. But the oldest son in every Egyptian family had died. Now the people of Egypt were urging the Israelites to leave. Even hard-hearted Pharaoh was urging them to leave. The Egyptians gave their Israelite neighbors expensive jewelry and clothes. The people of Egypt saw now that God was with his people. Because the plagues had almost destroyed Egypt, the people wanted the Israelites to leave their land. So the Exodus from Egypt began on the night of the Passover. What a sight it was! There were 600,000 men, as well as the women and children. There were thousands of animals -- cattle, sheep, and goats. The Israelites had been in Egypt 430 years. This became a very special night for the Israelites. They had seen the plagues hurt the land of Egypt. But the plagues had not come to Goshen, where the Israelites lived. God had kept them safe. It was clear that God had prepared the Israelites to leave. They were slaves no longer. They were free! God would make a great nation of them. But the Israelites must have wondered many things as they made their way out of Egypt. Where were they going? How would they know where to go? Where would they get food? Where would they get water in the wilderness? God knew the answers. The people did not. Sometimes it is good that we don't know what will happen next. DISCUSSION: How long had the Israelites been in Egypt? How many Israelite men were in the Exodus? Moses was leading the Israelite people -- who was leading Moses?
Great leaders like Moses are led by God. To be a great leader, Moses had to be a good follower. He had to follow and obey God's commands. Someday you will be a leader. You may be a parent. You may be a teacher. You may run a business. You may be a leader in government. Now is the time to learn to follow God. That is what will help you most to become a great leader!
A PILLAR OF CLOUD AND FIRE Exodus 13:17-22 Now the Israelites were free. God was going to lead them into the land where Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob had lived. It was the land God had promised to them. So it is often called the Promised Land. But how would the Israelites know where to go? It had been 430 years since their ancestors came to Egypt. They knew that Moses would lead them. But who would lead Moses? Who would show him where to go? The most direct way to the Promised Land was through the land of the Philistines. But the Israelites were not ready to fight a war. They had been slaves. They were not yet warriors. So God led them through the Red Sea wilderness. Moses took the bones of Joseph from Egypt. Joseph had made his brothers and their families promise that they would do this. The Exodus took God's people from their homes in Goshen, at a place called Rameses, to a place called Succoth. From there they went to Etham, which was at the edge of the wilderness. God sent a beautiful pillar of cloud to guide the Israelites during the day. At night he led them with a pillar of fire. That made it possible for the people to travel by day or night. The pillar of cloud was never out of sight during the day, and the pillar of fire was never out of sight during the night time hours. God was showing the Israelites that He himself would guide them to the place where they were going. DISCUSSION: Why didn't God lead his people on the shortest way to the Promised Land? Whose bones did Moses take with him? Why? How did God guide His people during the day? What about at night? God doesn't send a pillar of cloud or fire to guide us, but He is still with us. He guides us in many different ways - can you think of some ways?
the b-i-b-l-e... god's book! How much does God own? How much does He let us own? The earth is the Lord's, and everything in it. The world and all its people belong to Him. For He laid the earth's foundation on the seas and built it on the ocean depths. Psalm 24:1-2 DISCUSSION: God owns everything! That's because He made everything. "Mine!"... Have you ever said that? Since God owns everything, what really belongs to us? Is our house really ours, or is God just letting us use it? Since God owns our house, we should use it for Him, shouldn't we? Does God own your toys? Does He own your car? What doesn't He own? How does this change your thoughts about what's "mine"? What does God want me to do? Some people worry about that. Some people pray about that. Does God really help us know what He wants? Teach me how to live, O Lord. Lead me along the path of honesty, for my enemies are waiting for me to fall. Psalm 27:11 DISCUSSION: God knows best how we should live. Thats because He is the only one who truly knows us. He knows us better than we know ourselves, so He knows what is best for us.
CROSSING THE RED SEA EXODUS 14 The Lord told Moses to lead His people along the seashore. Pharaoh would think they were trapped between the desert and the sea. Then he would come after the Israelites. So the Israelites camped along the seashore. Pharaoh heard about it. He also heard that the Israelites would not be coming back to Egypt. Pharaoh and his officers said, "Why did we let all these slaves go free? Lets go after them." Pharaoh chose 600 of his best chariot drivers. He and the high officials of Egypt led them on the chase and soon approached the Israelites. When the Israelites saw the chariots, they were terrified. "Why did you bring us out here to die?" they complained to Moses. "We told you to leave us alone. It would be better to be slaves in Egypt than to die out here." "Don't be afraid," Moses said. "Watch what the Lord will do for you." The angel of the Lord moved the pillar of cloud between the Egyptians and the Israelites. On the Egyptian side it was dark that night, so the Egyptians could not find the Israelites. On the Israelite side it was light because the cloud turned to fire. "Hold your rod out over the sea," the Lord said. When Moses stretched out his rod, the Lord opened a path through the sea, with walls of water on each side. A strong east wind dried the path. So the Israelites walked safely across the sea between the walls of water. The Egyptians followed in their chariots. But their chariot wheels began to come off, and the chariots scraped along on the ground. "Let's get away from here," the Egyptians said. "The Lord is fighting for the Israelites and against us." When the Israelites were on the other side, the Lord told Moses to hold his rod out over the sea again. The sea roared back over the Egyptians, and they all drowned. Now the Israelites knew that the Lord was with them. Moses and all the other people began to sing a song of praise to the Lord.
DISCUSSION: Why did the Lord tell Moses and the Israelites to camp by the sea? How many chariots did Pharaoh send after the Israelites? Did the Israelites think that Moses and the Lord had made a mistake? What changed their minds? Have you ever thought that God made a mistake or could have done something better? God never makes mistakes! Ask for His wisdom and guidance when you think something is wrong. When you are in trouble, start with the Lord! Ask Him to help you. It may not be a path through a sea, but He will help you in the way that is best!
BITTER WATER AT MARAH EXODUS 15:22-27 At last the Israelites were safe from the Egyptians. They were on the other side of the sea. Pharaoh's army and chariots were on the bottom of the sea. And it was now time to move on. Moses led them into the Shur Desert. For three days the Israelites walked across the desert. But there was no water. Everyone was very thirsty. At last, when they came to Marah, there was water. But the water was bitter so they could not drink it. Once more the people turned against Moses. "We'll die of thirst out here!" they whined. So Moses prayed. Then the Lord showed Moses a branch from a tree. Moses threw the branch into the water. That made the water sweet. Then the people could drink it. There at Marah the Lord gave orders to the Israelites. "You must listen to me and obey me," He told them. "You must do what is right. If you do these things, I will keep you from getting the diseases the Egyptians had. I am the Lord. I will heal you. The next stop on the journey was Elim. This was a wonderful oasis with 12 springs flowing with good water. There were 70 palm trees at Elim too. So the Israelites set up camp there beside the springs. DISCUSSION: Why couldn't people dring the water at Marah? Did they pray or complain? God helps us more when we pray than when we complain! Do you like to help people when they complain about you? Would you rather help them when they ask nicely for your help? When you have a problem, do you complain about it or pray about it?