From Egypt to Canaan

 

1)      In the text just read (1 Cor. 10:1-12), Paul indicated some parallels between the past and the present.

2)      When the Hebrews came out of Egyptian bondage, they had certain experiences.

3)      Some of these were good, and some were not.

a)      According to verse 11, the Hebrews are to be an “example” for us.

b)      Today we want to learn from the examples found in this chapter.

c)      Several different parallels will be given between the Hebrews who left captivity and our day.

 

4)      We begin with the word “few.”

5)      Of all the people who left Egypt, most of the adults died in the wilderness.

6)      On a single day (verse 8 of 1 Cor. 10), 23,000 Hebrews died.

7)      When soldiers die in Iraq or somewhere else, even one death is “big news.”

8)      Imagine a report that says over 20,000 men and women were killed on a single day.

9)      The number of Hebrew deaths was not limited to 23,000.

a)      Num. 32:11 has a sad but true detail.

b)      Of all those who came out of Egypt, only 2 who were over the age of 20 made it into Canaan.

c)      The older ones who had been slaves in Egypt died in the wilderness.

 

10)  Is there a lesson to be learned from this information?  Yes.

11)  When talking about salvation and eternal life Jesus said “enter in by the narrow gate” (Mt. 7:13).

12)  He also said (Mt. 7:14) that “few” enter into life (heaven).

13)  According to the Lord, getting to heaven requires people to take the “narrow road.”

14)  Few made it in the Old Testament and this is exactly what we find in the New Testament.

a)      Here is an other parallel.

b)      For the Old Testament Hebrews to get to Canaan, they had to “pass over” the Jordan River.

c)      Moses was not allowed to cross the river and thus did not get to enjoy the land, Deut. 4:21-22.

d)      Others (primarily the ones who were young people in Egypt) did get to enter into Canaan.

e)      In order to get to the land of promise, a river had to be crossed.

f)        For us who live under the New Testament, there is also a river.  We need to somehow exit this life.

g)      We “cross over” from this existence to the next (our “Canaan” or “land of rest”).

h)      At the end of time, those who are living will be taken by Christ at His second coming.

i)        For most people, the removal (crossing) comes through physical death.

j)        Physical death is the way we “cross the river” leading to eternal life.

 

15)  A third lesson from First Corinthians 10 involves unfaithfulness.

16)  Paul did not tell the Corinthians about pagans; he described God’s people; the chosen Hebrew nation.

a)      God raised up a special deliverer for the Hebrew slaves; his name was “Moses.”

b)      After Moses helped free the people God provided food for the Israelites (verses 3-4).

c)      God helped and helped, but He was pleased with most of those He helped free (verse 5).

d)      In fact, God “overthrew” most of the Hebrews who had been delivered from bondage (same verse). 

e)      God’s destruction of His people is found in verses 8, 9, and 10 of 1 Cor. 10.

f)        God knows His people can be unfaithful (apostatize) and He punishes those who will not repent.

g)      A person may lose his or physical life as well as his or her eternal spirit.

h)      If God has and continues to punishes those who are His people, what about those who are not?

i)        Punishment will be their lot at the end of time.

j)        Israel shows us that apostasy from God is a serious offense that is not overlooked.

 

17)  As Israel lived in the wilderness God fed them.

a)      We know that people need food.

b)      Though we live in a much different culture and time, we still require food.

c)      There is not only a need for physical nourishment (food), but spiritual nourishment too.

d)      In the New Testament there is an emphasis on spiritual food.

e)      Jesus said His “words are life” (Jn. 6:63).

f)        Jesus also said He is “living bread from heaven” (Jn. 6:51).

g)      We are thus to “eat his flesh and drink His blood” (Jn. 6:53).

h)      A lot of people have wondered what the Lord meant with the information in Jn. 6

i)        Was Jesus talking about the Lord's Supper?

j)        If we examine the complete thought, Jesus compared Himself to food.

k)      Man has a need for the “food” (spiritual instruction) found in the Scriptures.

l)        Israel needed to be fed and we have that same need, especially in the spiritual realm.

 

18)  God’s people who we know as the Israelites spent time in the “wilderness” (1 Cor. 10:5).

19)  This was a time for God’s people to be together and a time to honor and serve God.

20)  It was also a period for the Hebrews to be proven and tested.

21)  We too are in some respects in the “wilderness.”

22)  We have lives that involve our day-to-day activities as well as church life.

23)  This world is not our home; we are just a passing through as we sometimes sing.

24)  God evaluates us on how well we live our lives just as He examined the Hebrews.

25)  We can either live lives that are pleasing or not pleasing in our own little wilderness (existence).

26)  Part of life on earth means accepting or rejecting God’s law.

a)      Moses received a law from Mount Sinai and then delivered it to the people.

b)      We also have a law.

c)      Isa. 2:3 spoke of a time when a “law” would go out from “Zion” (Jerusalem).

d)      This is exactly what we see in Acts 2.

e)      Christ said His death would result in a new covenant (Mt. 26:26-28).

f)        After the resurrection the disciples were gathered together (Acts 1) and waiting.

g)      When the Day of Pentecost came (Acts 2), the apostles were filled with the Holy Spirit.

h)      They began to preach the great commission given by the Lord in places like Mt. 28:18-20.

i)        This preaching started in Jerusalem just as Jesus had said (Acts 1:8).

j)        If we wish to please God, we adhere to God’s law.

 

27)  Part of the Old Testament system given by Moses involved helping people.

28)  Early in the Hebrew’s history the Jews received water from a rock, 1 Cor. 10:4.

29)  When the new law was preached, the messengers also spoke of a rock.

a)      Let’s look at 1 Cor. 10:4 one more time – READ.

b)      Somehow Jesus was tied in with helping the Hebrews who lived under the Old Testament.

c)      At the present time Christ is still involved in helping people.

d)      Acts 4:12 says there is “no other name under heaven whereby we may be saved.”

e)      1 Tim. 2:5 reminds us how Christ is serving as a mediator.

f)        Under the Old Testament, a temporal need (literal water) was met.

g)      For us, an on-going need (salvation from sin) is taken care of through Christ.

h)      Jesus referred to Himself as “living water” (Jn. 4:10).

 

30)  The Hebrews looked and their physical deliverance and they were pleased.

31)  At the end of Ex. 14, we see how Israel was saved from their Egyptian enemies.

32)  Ex. 15:1 opens with these words:  “and Moses and the children of Israel sang a song.”

33)  Is there is a parallel to this as we look at the New Testament?

a)      We do find some similarities in the book of Acts.

b)      We have a man in Acts 8 who was reading the prophet Isaiah.

c)      He learned about the Lord and became a Christian.

d)      Acts 8:39 says he went on his way “rejoicing.”

e)      There was a jailor who learned the truth and he too became a Christian.

f)        Just as Jesus commanded in the great commission, the jailor and his household were baptized.

g)      Upon becoming a Christian, this man and others “rejoiced” (Acts 16:34).

 

34)  Both in the Old Testament and New Testament there were specific reasons for joy.

35)  For the Hebrews, it was being delivered from Egypt.

36)  They had been under a system of slavery and oppression for a long period of time.

37)  They were not able to find deliverance by their own strength; they needed God.

38)  A similar thing is true for us.

39)  Human beings are in bondage to sin; they need deliverance.  This salvation cannot be done on our own.

40)  Our deliverer is God.

41)  We know how God delivered the people of Israel:  water.

a)      Water was parted to let the Hebrews pass through the sea.

b)      Water was also used to destroy God’s enemies (the Egyptians).

c)      Today God still uses water to bring His people to safety.

d)      Salvation is in Christ (2 Tim. 2:10), and we enter into Christ by baptism, Gal. 3:27.

e)      Faith is essential as is a desire to live correctly and a willingness to submit to Christ’s authority.

f)        Baptism is the step that joins us to Jesus.

 

42)  Before the Hebrews were able to get to the water, they had to forsake Egypt.

43)  Egypt was a land of idolatry.  Other problems were also there.

44)  Israel had to look at that land and say, “No, we want a different and better way to live.”

45)  A similar thing is involved in becoming a Christian.

46)  A person looks at his or her life and says, “I have been living the wrong way long enough.”

47)  “It is time to change; I need to leave behind my old ways and habits.”

48)  Forsaking “our Egypt” for Christ is always required.

49)  Jesus spoke of this need in Lk. 13:3 – QUOTE.

50)  When we talk about this kind of radical change, it requires a certain degree of faith.

51)  Israel certainly needed to have a lot of faith in Moses because he was the deliverer.

52)  Moses was a great man, but he was only man.

53)  We now have a better system – instead of putting faith in Moses, we put it in Christ.

a)      God has given us His word so we can believe “Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God,” Jn. 20:30-31.

b)      God has authenticated the Lord in a way similar to Moses.

c)      Many believed Moses because of the miracles he did.

d)      Jesus also did signs but on a much larger scale.

e)      Jesus was also raised from the grave after a brutal death.

f)        Under the Old Testament system, two key figures were Moses and Aaron.

g)      Jesus is greater than Moses.  Moreover, He did not limit Himself to one helper.

h)      Jesus selected special men to serve as apostles.

 

54)  Jesus picked excellent helpers because He had a very special job.

55)  Under the Old Testament, the Hebrews faced Pharaoh and his wicked rule.

56)  Pharaoh is gone, but there is still a very evil ruler, and he rules the world.

57)  We know him as Satan.

58)  Jesus and His apostles helped liberate people from Satan’s kingdom by preaching a special plan.

59)  They taught that people are in bondage to sin.

60)  Just as Israel was in bondage to slavery; so all people are in bondage to Satan and unrighteousness.

61)  These men showed a free way of escape if people would only obey. 

62)  Again and again we find parallels between 1 Cor. 10 and Christianity.

a)      The ancient Hebrews had problems and God provided the solutions.

b)      We have different problems but God still provides to man what he needs.

c)      We must first “learn” from the example of the Hebrews and then apply that knowledge.

d)      From 1 Cor. 10 we see that sin is bad and God’s way is the only good and right way.

e)      Once we believe this, we respond to the plan God has given for salvation.

f)        Today we ask if each one here has responded to God’s plan?

g)      Have we become a Christian to be delivered from sin?

h)      If we believe this, have we acted upon it?