Sermon Tone Analysis

Last Week: Jehovah Jireh (The Lord Will Provide)

This Week: Jehovah Rapha (The Lord That Heals)

Let’s look at

In verse 30, it is the first time in Scripture where the phrase “the LORD saved Israel..” Further, the death of Egyptians prefigures that final destruction of all God’s enemies (; ).

Notice the great faith displayed in verse 31.

Let’s look back to :

10 When Pharaoh drew near, the people of Israel lifted up their eyes, and behold, the Egyptians were marching after them, and they feared greatly.

And the people of Israel cried out to the LORD.

11 They said to Moses, “Is it because there are no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the wilderness?

What have you done to us in bringing us out of Egypt? 12 Is not this what we said to you in Egypt: ‘Leave us alone that we may serve the Egyptians’?

For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness.”

Israel was an eyewitness to the miracles of God, yet still strayed.

Compare to time of Jesus.

In the two instances where Jesus acknowledged great faith in people, they were both Gentiles: The Centurion in and the Canaanite woman in .

He further lauded the Centurion by saying nobody in Israel had such great faith ().

How often we too are like Israel, having experienced God's redemption & deliverance from bondage & yet quickly shrink back into unbelief thinking that the next trial is too big for Him to handle &/or why did He even allow it in the first place?

Can you tie the actions of the Israelite nation in the Wilderness to the Doctrine of predestination ()? Who, from the original generation, survived the 40 years in the wilderness?

The important thing to remember is that no one deserves to be saved.

We have all sinned (), and are all worthy of eternal punishment ().

As a result, God would be perfectly just in allowing all of us to spend eternity in hell.

However, God chooses to save some of us.

He is not being unfair to those who are not chosen, because they are receiving what they deserve.

Somehow, in the mystery of God, predestination works hand-in-hand with a person being drawn by God () and believing unto salvation ().

God predestines who will be saved, and we must choose Christ in order to be saved.

Both facts are equally true.

Go to

22 Then Moses made Israel set out from the Red Sea, and they went into the wilderness of Shur.

They went three days in the wilderness and found no water.

23 When they came to Marah, they could not drink the water of Marah because it was bitter; therefore it was named Marah.

24 And the people grumbled against Moses, saying, “What shall we drink?”

Interesting side note: look at .

Can we see the meaning of the word use here?

Do you think it was by chance that Israel arrives at the bitter waters?

What evidence do we have that it was God’s design?

Look at

When we complain, what characteristics of God are calling into question?

Israel's physical condition began to impact their spiritual joy.

Nothing is more paralyzing than thirst.

Place yourself in their sandals: dust & rocks everywhere, children crying, nothing but sand & more sand in your path & then on the horizon the hope of water as someone sees a palm grove.

Your expectations are high.

Your anticipation almost uncontrollable.

You bring the cool water to your lips & spit it our because it is so bitter.

All hope destroyed, what else is left but to grumble at Moses.

How would you characterize Israel's spiritual walk at this time?

Most of Israel was walking by sight (& sense) & not by faith.

They were aggravated & probably felt a bit mocked by God.

They were free from slavery to Egypt but not to the lusts of their flesh & they looked at their circumstances rather than to the God of all circumstances.

An easy trap for us all to fall into.

How ironic that Israel fail to believe that He who could hold back the walls of water in the Red Sea could also provide a cup of water to drink.

Who do we look to when the "bitter" trial comes?

To God or to myself or anything but God?

An "uplook" can make all the difference in the world on your "outlook".

How easy it is for us all to forget that God is "with us" and "for us" when difficulties arise.

The people went from rejoicing to complaining!

It is easy to sing when the circumstances are comfortable, but it takes faith to sing when you are suffering.

God tests us in the everyday experiences of life to see whether we will obey Him.

Doesn’t that sound familiar?

When God surely and wisely leads us to a “Marah experience” our response is a telltale indication of where our eyes are.

When they are not on the Lord, we grumble loudly and blame our wife, our employer, our friend, or our government.

Who have you blamed this week?

Let’s go to

25 And he cried to the LORD, and the LORD showed him a log, and he threw it into the water, and the water became sweet.

There the LORD made for them a statute and a rule, and there he tested them, 26 saying, “If you will diligently listen to the voice of the LORD your God, and do that which is right in his eyes, and give ear to his commandments and keep all his statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you that I put on the Egyptians, for I am the LORD, your healer.”

Moses did what the people had neglected to do; he cried unto the Lord.

And God provided graciously for them.

Remember last week how Abraham got an opportunity to express his faith?

Well, so did Israel here.

The word for “test” here has the idea of “to prove the worth” of something, “to verify the quality” of something.

The Lord was not trying to cause them to fail Rather, as an exercise in training and testing, the need for provisions gave the people an opportunity to verify their faith.

In effect, this was to remind them that, after delivering them from the plagues and dividing the sea, God would be the One to provide for their everyday needs.

The Lord’s reference to himself as your healer indicates that Israel has already been graciously spared from what happened to the Egyptians and that faithfulness is the means by which they will continue to appropriate the blessings of the covenant relationship with the Lord (see ; ).

Mini word Study: Heal (Rapha)

What kind of disease does Jehovah Rapha heal?

look at ; (physical); ; ; ; (healed from sin - spiritual healing)

What kind of disease does Jehovah Rapha heal?

look at (physical); (repairs); (healed from sin); (spiritual healing)

The answer to this question can be discerned from a survey of the 60+ uses (and additional discussion) of "rapha" the Hebrew word for "heal".

The 1st use () refers to PHYSICALhealing (of barrenness) by Elohim in answer to Abraham's prayer (The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much.

, Spurgeon)

The next use is translated "physicians" in ().

In we get a picture of what rapha means when Elijah "repaired (rapha) the altar of the Jehovah which had been torn down".

1 peter 2:24

Coming full circle: What was used to eliminate the bitterness and heal the water in ?

Look at

Takeaways

So the land polluted by the sin of idolatry could be "healed" & made useful & fruitful by Jehovah Rapha (in answer to repentant prayer).

In () after Hezekiah prayed "Jehovah heard Hezekiah & healed the people."

In a scene similar to that at Marah's bitter waters Elisha "went out to the spring of water & threw salt in it & said, "Thus says the Jehovah, 'I have purified (rapha) these waters; there shall not be from there death or unfruitfulness any longer."

()

So clearly rapha conveys the idea of restoring something to its "normal" or useful state.

In () we see the famous statement "I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin & will heal (rapha) their land" So the land polluted by the sin of idolatry could be "healed" & made useful & fruitful by Jehovah Rapha (in answer to repentant prayer).

In () after Hezekiah prayed "Jehovah heard Hezekiah & healed the people."

In context this clearly refers to "spiritual" healing as they had been remiss in celebrating the LORD's Passover (cf , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , )

Eliphaz trying to "comfort" Job reminds him of the Almighty (Shaddai) saying "He inflicts pain & gives relief.

He wounds & His hands also heal (rapha)."

(, cf ; ; )

Clearly God alone is the Source of all healing (even if He chooses to use human vessels or other means).

Jehovah Rapha, the Great Physician heals physical, spiritual & emotional ills.

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In sum Jehovah Rapha, the Great Physician heals physical, spiritual & emotional ills.

Isaiah gives preview of a clear prophecy that by Messiah's "scourging we are healed (rapha)" ()

The bitterness caused by sin can be healed by the Cross of Christ Who became a curse for us on the Tree and made available the Tree of Life forever ()