By faith they passed through the Red Sea as by dry land, whereas the Egyptians, attempting to do so, were drowned.” — Hebrews 11:29 (NKJV)
Parting the red sea is one thing; having the courage to pass through it is another. For context, the height of the Red Sea when it was parted would have been slightly shorter than today’s world’s tallest building in Dubai. So I ask again, if you were there seeing the miracle, would you have had the courage to step onto the dry ground?
Exodus 14 tells us that all Moses needed to do was stretch out his hand, and the waters divided, but the people still had to move their feet. They had to walk toward what had, moments earlier, been a wall of water. They had to trust that the ground beneath the sea would hold them. They had to keep walking while the water stood on their right and on their left, a sight that had never been seen by human eyes before that moment.
Faith is almost always required to move before the full miracle is visible. God rarely opens the whole sea before He asks you to take the first step. He opens enough for the step you are on, and then the next step reveals the next portion of the path. That arrangement is what God calls discipleship. It keeps you close to Him, dependent on Him, walking in step with His pace rather than running ahead on your own.
The Egyptians attempted the same crossing, and Hebrews marks their failure with a stark contrast. The difference was not the sea. It was the faith. The same path that carried Israel to the other side swallowed the armies that followed without faith. The miracle that protects the believer does not automatically protect the one who merely follows the route without the relationship.
Where are you standing at the edge of a Red Sea today? What is the impossible situation in front of you, behind you, on every side, that seems to offer no way through? Take the step. The ground will be there. It may not be visible until your foot reaches it, but God does not open paths for people who are still deciding whether to walk.
Prayer
Father, I am standing at the edge of something that looks impossible today. I can feel the water and hear the army behind me. But I choose to step in. I trust that you will make the ground firm under every step of faith I take. I am not moving because the way is clear. I am moving because you said to move. Hold back the waters on either side of me, and take me to the other side. In Jesus’ name, amen.
