“But the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with a wall of water on their right and on their left. That day the LORD saved Israel from the hands of the Egyptians.” Exodus 14:29-30

The nation of Israel, so it seemed, was in a hopeless position. On one side of them were the waters of a sea, cutting off any route by which to flee, while on the opposite side the mighty Egyptian army was quickly bearing down on them, intent on destruction and revenge. Escape, so it appeared, was impossible; destruction and devastation, inevitable. By all accounts, it was a dire situation that the Israelites found themselves in.

And then, when it seemed as though all hope were lost, the stunning miracle—the waters parted, the Israelites crossed safely on dry ground, and the Egyptian war machine was cast to ruin, drowned in the sea. A miraculous deliverance, indeed! That day salvation came to Israel in the most unlikely manner: a rescue so profound, so unlikely, and so miraculous that the people of Israel never could have expected it.

Don’t we find ourselves facing a spiritual predicament not unlike the physical dilemma the Israelites faced? The crystal-clear mirror of the Law reminds us over and over of all of the sinful filth that we are guilty of. On account of our sinful nature the devil is quick to accuse us, speedy to remind us that our actions deserve eternal punishment, from which there is no seeming escape. We turn around and search for an avenue to flee, but we find no means of escape that we, on our own, are capable of employing. For the holy Word of God reveals our most dire position: we may try as hard as we like, but even for our best efforts, we deserve nothing but death. A just and righteous God has demanded perfection that we are unable to deliver. Our offenses have backed us into a corner from which we cannot escape, much as the Israelites could not by their own efforts avoid certain destruction on the shores of that sea.

But then, when it seemed as though we also were left without hope, deliverance came also to us in a most profound and most unlikely manner, in a place we never would have guessed—in a humble manger in the Judean countryside, on a stark and humiliating cross on the hill of Calvary, and in an empty tomb three days later. And this deliverance has been made ours! By the grace of God, the baptismal waters that touched our foreheads delivered us from the damnation we deserved and drowned our vile offenses in the sea of blood that our Savior poured out as he died in our place on the cross. A miraculous deliverance, indeed! We have not been left to await our impending death and our deserved damnation and destruction. No! We, like the Israelites, have passed through the sea; we have crossed from death to life! Our merciful and loving God has seen fit to deliver us, just as he saw fit to deliver the Israelites. The waters of our baptism have destroyed sin, death, and the power of the devil, and have given us new life and salvation. And we have continual reminders of our miraculous rescue—in the precious words of the gospel, in holy Word and Sacrament. It is here that we find salvation from the most dire of circumstances—from eternal condemnation—that for our sins we rightly deserved. It is here that we find freedom from the sin that enslaved us. It is here that we find that most profound truth which we never would have expected— that very God would take on human flesh, that the very Son of God would take our sin and guilt and make it his own, and that our Lord and Savior would suffer and die in our place, to rescue us from our sins and to take us to live with him eternally.

Moses and the Israelites sang magnificent praises to God after their miraculous deliverance. And so do we sing glorious praises to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ for the even more miraculous deliverance that his death wrought for us— the salvation of our souls and eternal life with him in the glories of heaven.

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