In this sermon, the preacher discusses the story of the Israelites crossing the Red Sea and the role of God in their deliverance. He emphasizes that God forced the Egyptians to pursue the Israelites in order to harden their hearts. The preacher suggests that the angel of the Lord mentioned in the Bible is actually the pre-incarnate Christ. He highlights the supernatural nature of the events, such as the pillar of cloud and fire leading the Israelites and the parting of the Red Sea by a strong east wind. The sermon emphasizes the presence and work of the Holy Spirit in guiding and protecting God's people.

Now, will you notice verse 17, "...And I, behold, I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians, and they shall follow them. And I will get me honor upon Pharaoh, and upon all his hosts, and upon his chariots, and upon his horsemen." Now, had you been at the water's edge when Pharaoh started to follow the children of Israel across the Red Sea, and you would have said to him, I suppose that you recognize you're doing this, all of you Egyptians, because your heart's been hardened and you really don't want to go. Well, I think they would have laughed at you, said, we're going over because we want to go. The thing is, God is forcing them to do the thing that's in their heart, and that is the hardening of it, as we saw in the land of Egypt. Now, verse 18, "...And the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord, when I have gotten me honor upon Pharaoh, upon his chariots, and upon his horsemen." Now, when it says, "...the Egyptians shall know," it doesn't mean the crowd that attempted to go across the Red Sea, the horsemen and Pharaoh. It means the people left back in the land of Egypt, because that crowd crossing the Red Sea is just not going to know. Verse 19, "...And the angel of God, which went before the camp of Israel, removed and went behind them, and the pillar of the cloud went from before their face and stood behind them." This is interesting to note. I believe the angel of the Lord here is none other than the pre-incarnate Christ, by the way. And I'll be calling attention to that from time to time. Verse 20, "...And it came between the camp of the Egyptians, and the camp of Israel was a cloud and darkness to them, but it gave light by night to these, so that the one came not near the other all that night." In other words, God stood between them. "...And Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and the Lord caused the sea to go back by a strong east wind all that night, and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided." Now, that's important to see. A natural wind would never have made a wall on both sides. Now, I'll grant that a wind might have blown the water to one side if they'd been near the bank, but to cross it and to make a way across with a wall of water on both sides, a natural wind doesn't do that, friends. Verse 22, "...And the children of Israel went into the midst of the sea upon the dry ground, and the waters were a wall unto them on their right hand and on their left. And the Egyptians pursued and went in after them to the midst of the sea, even all Pharaoh's horses, his chariots, and his horsemen. And it came to pass that in the morning watch, the Lord looked unto the hosts of the Egyptians through the pillar of fire and of the cloud, and troubled the hosts of the Egyptians." The interesting thing to note here is God worked through the pillar of fire and the cloud, and I think this represents the Holy Spirit. God works through the Holy Spirit. He does today, and here you find Him moving through the Holy Spirit, or through the pillar of cloud and the pillar of fire. And they were led as the child of God should be led today by the Spirit of God. Now, verse 25, "...And took off their chariot wheels, that they drove them heavily, so that the Egyptians said, Let us flee from the face of Israel, for the Lord fighteth for them against the Egyptians." Now, it was clear to them that what was happening was certainly supernatural. And they now want to escape, and they turn and try to retreat.