ESF Lord’s Day service message

5/25/2025

The Way of God’s Guidance

Exodus 13:17-22

¹⁷ When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them on the road through the Philistine country, though that was shorter. For God said, “If they face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt.” ¹⁸ So God led the people around by the desert road toward the Red Sea. The Israelites went up out of Egypt ready for battle.

 ¹⁹ Moses took the bones of Joseph with him because Joseph had made the Israelites swear an oath. He had said, “God will surely come to your aid, and then you must carry my bones up with you from this place.”

 ²⁰ After leaving Sukkoth they camped at Etham on the edge of the desert. ²¹ By day the LORD went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they could travel by day or night. ²² Neither the pillar of cloud by day nor the pillar of fire by night left its place in front of the people.

There was a story of a little boy some years ago. It was about a 5-year-old Texas boy who was accidentally left behind at a Nashville, Tennessee, service station. The boy’s name was Tyler Payne. He got out of the family minivan to use the rest room, then couldn’t get out of the building because the door had become stuck. His family continued their trip not realizing the boy was missing. About two hours later, when the family drove out of the highway and stopped at a Wendy’s restaurant, his parents, five brothers and a sister noticed he was missing. They drove back to the station as fast as they could.

Back in Nashville, a woman had heard the boy screaming inside the bathroom andopened the bathroom door for him. When the family arrived at the station, they immediately found the forgotten and lost son. They were overjoyed. The boy hugged his mother and told her, “I’m never going to the bathroom again.”

Like this boy, we may be forgotten and lost. We may wonder without knowing where to go and what to do. But God never forgets us. Whenever we are lost and wondering, God provides ways for us to be found and guides us to the right direction. How? In this text, God shows us how He finds us and guides us when we are lost and wondering.

The Israelites were traveling in the desert at the time of the Exodus. The desert is very hot in the daytime and very cold at night. The desert is a place where there is no shelter, no water, and no food. The desert is a place where there is no road. The desert is a place where people must face extremely uncomfortable circumstances every day.

However, God guided them moment by moment and day by day safely.

Let’s see the ways of God’s guidance and follow the ways whenever we are lost and wondering.

Through God’s perfect knowledge of us

After God took the Israelites out of Egypt, He guided them through the desert. There were two roads from Egypt to Canaan. One road was a short cut from the north of Egypt to the south of Canaan. Another road was much farther through the desert. The first road was faster, easier and a more comfortable road than the second road.

If God had not told them anything about which road they should take, they would have taken the easier road. Or if God had told them to choose among the two roads, they would certainly have chosen the same easier road. But God led them through the second road-the desert which was a difficult road. Why? Because God knew the best way for them at that time. See verses 17-18: “…. For God said, “If they face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt.”  So, God led the people around by the desert road toward the Red Sea.”

They lived as slaves for a long time. They had never been trained to fight a battle. The Philistines against whom they would fight were formidable enemies. They had many well-trained soldiers. They had weapons which were far superior to the weapons of the Israelites. So, if they faced war against the Philistines too soon, they would be caught up with fear. Then they would give up going into the land of promise and return to the slavery in Egypt.

They were unable to see their weakness. They did not foresee what would happen if they took the shorter and easier way. But God was able to see it. God knew who they were. God knew what their weakness was. God knew what would happen if they chose the easier way.

So instead of guiding the Israelites along the shorter, and more comfortable route from Egypt to the land of promise, He led them through the longer and more difficult route.

Although we believe in God, serve Him and obey Him, our lives may remain in a situation like a desert. We may find ourselves in the midst of a desert where we face an extremely uncomfortable and difficult situation. In such a situation, we may get confused. “Why has God allowed this difficulty in my life?”

But in moments like that, we have to trust that God has good reason for us. We must believe that God knows our weaknesses. We must believe that God knows and sees what we can’t know and see. We must trust that God always leads us through the best path for us.

Usually, we want to take a short cut. We want to take an easy and broad road. But we do not know what really lies ahead on the easy and broad road. However, God knows exactly what will happen in our future. God knows what will appear in every road we may take in this world. There are many roads which seem good to us but eventually lead us to harm and destruction. In contrast there are certain roads which seem difficult now but eventually lead us to security and victory. God leads us through the road which is best for us. So, when things do not go our way, when our plans are not going as we expect, when our roads are detoured and become difficult to go through, we need patience.

One day Billy and Ruth Graham were driving through a long stretch of road construction. They had numerous slowdowns, detours, and stops along the way. Finally, they reached the end of all that difficulty, and smooth pavement stretched out before them. This sign caught Ruth’s attention: “End of construction. Thanks for your patience.” She commented that those words would be a fitting inscription on her tombstone someday.

As a matter of fact, those words fit all of us as believers, because in this life we are “under construction.” When we accept Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord, we begin the lifelong process of spiritual growth. The Holy Spirit works in us to remove our selfishness (Philippians 2:4), to renew our thinking (Romans 12:2), and to develop qualities in us that are more and more Christlike (Colossians 3:5-14). Paul described this process as a work of God. He said, “He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 1:6). When His work in us is complete, “we shall be like Him” (1 John 3:2), perfectly conformed to our Savior’s likeness.

A little boy was leading his sister up a mountain path and the way was not too easy. “Why this isn’t a path at all,” the little girl complained. “It’s all rocky and bumpy.” Her brother kept on up the mountain, pausing just long enough to call out “Sure, but the bumps are what you climb on.”

If you face detours, bumpy roads, difficult paths, be patient with the detours, bumpy roads, and difficult roads. Keep trusting that God knows the best for you and is going to lead you through the best way. Sooner or later, you will realize that God always guides you to the best way.

Through God’s presence

When the people were in the desert, they might have doubted God’s presence. “Where is God? If He is with us and guiding us, why has He put us in this terrible place?”

Then, God appeared to them through a pillar of fire and a pillar of cloud. The pillars of fire and cloud were “theophany”- “God’s appearance in a visible form.” God proved that He was still there with them. He proved that He was still guiding them in the desert. With the pillar of fire and the pillar of cloud, God lighted Israel’s path, protected them from their enemies, and guided their movements. With His presence through the pillar of fire and the pillar of cloud, God assured them that He would never leave them nor forsake them. Deuteronomy 31:6 says, “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.”

When we face desert like circumstances and doubt God’s presence in our lives, God may use some signs to assure us that He is still with us. Then what could be the signs of God’s guidance?

First, God may reveal His presence through something ordinary which touches your heart to realize that God is in it, or God is speaking something to you. You can’t explain how God is in there or how He is speaking to you through it, but you can’t deny God’s presence in it. Don’t ignore it. Keep God’s presence in your heart. Then you can find new meanings of life, truth, purpose, or direction.

Second, God may reveal His presence through some events, happenings that are supernatural or miraculous. When God revealed His presence to Moses, He used a burning bush. The bush was on fire, but it did not burn up. It was something supernatural. Through it, Moses heard God’s voice and encountered God’s holy presence. In His holy presence, God gave Moses new direction and purpose of life.

You may have seen something supernatural or miraculous in your life. While you are struggling with financial difficulties and have no way to solve the financial problem, the problem is resolved through some people’s help, or some ways you have never expected. While you need some person’s favor, but cannot ask the person for a favor, you may pray that the Lord may touch the person’s heart. Then the person gives you the favor. Through it, you realize that God moves a person’s heart which noone else can do. Through it, you realize God’s presence. Don’t forget it. Keep that in your heart and remember whenever you do not know what to do in serious troubles. God will enable you to stay calm and confident.

Third, God’s word can be a visible sign of His presence. As the Israelites looked to the pillars of cloud and fire and guided by God’s presence, by looking to God’s word we can see His presence and can be guided by Him day by day. That is what the Psalmist testifies, “Your word is a lamp for my feet and a light on my path” (Psalm 119:105). If you are in trouble and you can’t handle it, look to God’s word in the Scripture and try to find out how to overcome the trouble. If you do not know what to do in a difficult situation, read the Scripture to find out what to do. God will show you the right word to give you direction.

Fourth, the gifts of the Holy Spirit can also be visible signs of God’s guidance. We can see God’s presence in the visible gifts of the Holy Spirit such as healing, speaking in tongues, power to control oneself, courage to tell the Good News to other people, peace in the midst of turmoil and changes in the hearts of people. If you see any of these spiritual gifts, believe that you are following the guidance of God. Be confident that the Spirit of God is guiding you. Keep using the gift to serve the Lord.

Finally, the perfect visible sign of God’s guidance in our lives today is.

Jesus. Jesus is the pillar of cloud and the pillar of fire today. Jesus is the manifestation of God’s word, which became flesh, and made his dwelling among us (John 1:14). “No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is himself God and is in closest relationship with the Father, has made him known” (John 1:18).

Jesus is the perfect visible sign of God’s presence. When we confess our faith in Him, He brings peace to our hearts. When we call His name, the devil is afraid of us and goes away from us. We can overcome the devil’s temptation when we hold on to His name. So, when we are in a desert, we have to fix our eyes upon Him. “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith….” (Heb 12:2).

Through constant dependence on God

Why did God not give them a complete roadmap for their journey in the desert instead of giving them a pillar of fire and a pillar of cloud? Why did God use a pillar of fire and a pillar of cloud on which the people should rely upon for their direction every day? A full roadmap would have been more convenient. If they had a roadmap for their journey, they could use it without worrying about a new schedule every day. But God did not give them a full road map at once. God made them follow the pillar of fire and the pillar of cloud day by day.

Why did God lead them that way? Because God wanted them to depend upon Him day by day and moment by moment. God told them clearly about the final destiny they would reach- the land of promise, Canaan. But before they reached there, they should follow God’s guidance day by day and learn to have intimate fellowship with God every day.

God does not give us one big roadmap of our lives. He does not say to us “Here is the roadmap of your entire life. Just follow it” No, He does not guide us like that. Why? Because, God wants to have fellowship with us day by day. If we have a clear roadmap for our whole lives, we will not depend upon God every day. We may forget to have intimate fellowship with God every day. We may forget how fragile and weak we are and may become proud of ourselves. Eventually we may fall into the hand of the devil and the way of destruction.

That is why God leads us to depend upon Him day by day. We know the final destiny where we are going to. We know that there will be final victory in God. We know that death is not the end of everything. We know that there is life after death in Jesus. We know that by faith in Christ, we will go to the eternal heaven.

But before we reach that moment, we are going to face some situations that are like a desert. We have to face our limits. We must be disciplined to depend on nothing but God. We have to realize that without depending upon God, we will be lost. And we must depend upon Him moment by moment, day by day.

A man was flying a small plane to his parents’ home far away from where he lived. After several hours of flying, he finally reached an area above his parents’ home. He was preparing to land. But suddenly he lost control of the plane. He tried to do everything to regain control, but the plane did not respond. At that moment there was nothing he could do. At that moment he had nothing to depend upon. For a short moment he earnestly prayed upon God for help; “God, please save my life!” Soon after that prayer, the plane crashed into a huge tree nearby his parents’ home. The tree was the tree he planted when he was a young boy and lived with his parents. It grew a lot and became so big that it was able to prevent the plane from crashing to the ground. God used the tree to rescue the man’s life that day.

God may use many different situations and paths to guide you. No matter what circumstances you are facing today, you must never forget that God is with you and can guide you to the right way and best way. Just depend upon Him moment by moment and day by day. God will surely protect you and guide you moment by moment and day by day.