Exodus 15:1 Then sang Moses and the children of Israel this song to the LORD, and spoke, saying, I will sing to the LORD… A song is the proper conclusion of a victory. Fasting is the worship of sorrow; singing is the worship of joy. The words specially chosen for meditation show that the victory did not end in itself; it touched the holy past; it consummated the promises and hopes of ages. I. "My father's God." THEN RELIGION WAS NO NEW THING TO THEM. They were not surprised when they heard the name of God associated with their victory. Religion should not be an originality to us; it should not be a novel sensation; it should be the common breath of our daily life, and the mention of the name of God in the relation of our experience sought to excite no mere amazement. II. "My father's God." THEN THEIR FATHER'S RELIGION WAS NOT CONCEALED FROM THEM. They knew that their father had a God. It is possible not to suspect that a man has any regard for God until we see his name announced in connection with some religions event. We cannot read this holy book without being impressed with the fact that the men who made the history of the world were men who lived in continual communion with the spiritual and unseen. III. "My father's God." YET IT DOES NOT FOLLOW THAT THE FATHER AND THE CHILD MUST HAVE THE SAME GOD. You have power deliberately to serve the connection between yourself and the God of your fathers. It is a terrible power! IV. "My father's God." THEN WE ARE DEBTORS TO THE RELIGIOUS PAST. There are some results of goodness we inherit independently of our own will. This age inherits the civilization of the past. The child is the better for his father's temperance. Mephibosheth received honours for Jonathan's sake. The processes of God are not always consummated in the age with which they begin. Generations may pass away, and then the full blessing may come. Practical questions: 1. Your father was a Christian, — are you so much wiser than your father that you can afford to set aside his example? There are some things in which you are bound to improve upon the actions of your father; but are you quite sure that the worship of the God of heaven is one of them? 2. Your father was a holy man — will you undertake to break the line of a holy succession? Ought not the fame of his holiness to awaken your own religious concern? 3. Your father was deeply religious, — will you inherit all he has given you in name, in reputation, in social position, and throw away all the religious elements which made him what he was? 4. Your father could not live without God, — can you? (J. Parker, D. D.) Parallel Verses KJV: Then sang Moses and the children of Israel this song unto the LORD, and spake, saying, I will sing unto the LORD, for he hath triumphed gloriously: the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea. |
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