Face to Face
Foundations of Faith • Message 4
Bryan Jones
November 2, 2025
Prayer Points for Prayer Time:
- Pray to live boldly in your true identity as people who are forgiven, free, and made new in Christ.
- Lift up those who don’t yet know Christ. Ask God to soften their hearts and draw them into His love and grace.
- Ask God to give you the strength to move forward in faith and to trust Him with every step.
Scripture Reading:
Yet it was our weaknesses he carried; it was our sorrows that weighed him down. And we thought his troubles were a punishment from God, a punishment for his own sins! But he was pierced for our rebellion, crushed for our sins. He was beaten so we could be whole. He was whipped so we could be healed. All of us, like sheep, have strayed away. We have left God’s paths to follow our own. Yet the LORD laid on him the sins of us all. He was oppressed and treated harshly, yet he never said a word. He was led like a lamb to the slaughter. And as a sheep is silent before the shearers, he did not open his mouth. Unjustly condemned, he was led away. No one cared that he died without descendants, that his life was cut short in midstream. But he was struck down for the rebellion of my people. He had done no wrong and had never deceived anyone. But he was buried like a criminal; he was put in a rich man’s grave. But it was the LORD’S good plan to crush him and cause him grief. Yet when his life is made an offering for sin, he will have many descendants. He will enjoy a long life, and the Lord’s good plan will prosper in his hands. When he sees all that is accomplished by his anguish, he will be satisfied. And because of his experience, my righteous servant will make it possible for many to be counted righteous, for he will bear all their sins.
Isaiah 53:4-11 (NLT)
- Introduction
Hey, today is an important talk because I want you to understand what I call the Foundations of Faith.
Because what happens nowadays is people can come to church, and they get confident. Then they read something online, talk to someone of another faith, or listen to someone on a podcast or on YouTube, and they start to question everything…
So, I want to preach a really simple but arguably one of the most important talks I can to help you understand some “foundational truths”.
Do you remember the great spiritual classic Karate Kid? (Not the one with Jackie Chan.) The original. Remember what happens with Daniel Son? He wants to learn karate, and you remember what he does… This thing (wax on… wax off). Why?
Because Mr. Myagai needs him to learn the fundamentals or foundational things of karate before he ever steps into the ring, or he’s going to get knocked out. And if you don’t know the fundamentals of faith, you're going to get knocked out of the faith…
How many of you take an instruction manual… how many of you build without looking… and how many study it piece by piece? The instruction manual shows how everything fits, not just the pieces. Some people have been in the church for years and don’t understand the whole picture of the Bible…
But I want you to understand that the Old Testament is really the New Testament concealed, and the New Testament is the Old Testament revealed. It all fits in, and I want you to see that.
So today, as we look at Moses's life, someone who walked face to face with God… I want you to understand these truths so you can walk with God personally as well…
So today I want to show you two pictures that are going to help us understand some of the “foundational truths”.
The first picture comes from Exodus 12, around the Passover …and it helps us understand this foundational truth.
B. Foundations of Faith
- We are RESCUED by the blood of the lamb.
(Exodus 12:23,29)
Listen, I understand it can sound archaic or outdated to talk about the sacrifice of blood. In early times, Christians had several false views surrounding them…
Cannibals – because Christians talked about communion and eating the body and drinking the blood of Jesus.
Now, why blood?… this is important… sin leads to death… blood leads to life…
Think about it… Why do you people donate blood? Because blood gives life…
And some people go, If God is so good, why would he require an animal sacrifice or even kill his own son for our sin?
Need someone… come here, I want you to do something… I want you to slap me… can you do that?… now I didn’t say hit… I meant slap…. Why did you do that? It was a test… but do you feel sorry?… ok, so they're sorry… but can they undo that? Does the slap go away?… no, it doesn’t.
This is so important. When someone wrongs you, there are two things you can do… only two.
1.) Retaliate.
2.) Absorb the loss.
God had two options: He could pay us back or absorb the loss, and this is exactly what Jesus did on the cross.
See, I want you to see that this 10th plague is really pointing to Jesus and the sacrifice to be made.
“For the LORD will pass through the land to strike down the Egyptians. But when he sees the blood on the top and sides of the doorframe, the LORD will pass over your home. He will not permit his death angel to enter your house and strike you down.”
Exodus 12:23 (NLT)
And it came to pass at midnight that the LORD struck all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sat on his throne to the firstborn of the captive who was in the dungeon, and all the firstborn of livestock.
Exodus 12:29 (NKJV)
- Basically, God tells Pharaoh that he will kill all the firstborn sons of everyone since he wouldn’t repent, but that those who put the blood of a lamb on the doorpost, the angel of death will pass over... and as Perry mentioned, this is nine opportunities to repent.
- Think about this plague… what child was killed? It was the firstborn… how many of you are the firstborn? The responsible one, the rule follower? How many are the younger child, the free-spirited, wild one? How many of you are the middle child? Sorry, there is no mention of you in the Bible.
- But notice it’s the firstborn in that culture. The firstborn was the identity of the family… he was the one who was like the soul, the heir, the keeper. So, in a way, it's God's way of saying every family owes me a debt…
- What’s interesting about this plague is that it didn’t just focus on the Egyptians; it was also for the Israelites… Everyone had to be made right with God, and the only way it could be done was with the lamb. But this would have been odd to them. They had never done anything like this before… but the point was to be obedient…
- To understand this, though, we have to remember everything is about the lamb…
The Old Testament is the New Testament concealed; the New Testament is the Old Testament revealed… meaning to understand the Old Testament, you need to know it's all pointing to Jesus.
3 key requirements….(all point to Jesus)
The Passover Lamb
a) PERFECT
(Exodus 12:5)
“This animal shall be a year-old male, either a sheep or a goat, without any defects.”
Exodus 12:5 (TLB)
But part of the requirement for lambs was that they had to be without blemish; they had to be perfect.
They couldn’t be maimed…
Jesus was the perfect lamb. (Perfect Lamb Photo)
b) SACRIFICED
(Exodus 12:6. C/R: Isaiah 53:5-6; Hebrews 9:22)
“On the evening of the fourteenth day of this month, all these lambs shall be killed,”
Exodus 12:6 (TLB)
This perfect lamb had to be sacrificed or slaughtered. Why? To save the people. To be a scapegoat for their sins.
Sometimes we read passages like this, and we think that’s extreme… why killing of animals?
Think about it, we have a whole series of movies about someone getting revenge because someone killed his dog, called Jon Wick… You will never find a single movie or book about someone getting revenge for someone killing their cat… in fact, the only movie involving a dead cat is Pet Sematary, but I digress … we struggle with the slaughtering of animals, and the blood feels intense… and sometimes we don’t like to talk about it.
And one of the top questions I get asked is... What about the Old Testament, God seems angry… like there are these passages with death... passages where it seems like the slaughtering of innocents… where people are killed in a flood, or during a Canaanite conquest, entire groups of people are killed, and people go… See, this shows God isn’t love. God can't be merciful; he can't be kind.
Good news- no one who was innocent has ever been slaughtered in the Bible.
Bad news- no one is innocent – all have sinned.
Best news- There is only one slaughtering of the innocent in the Bible, and it wasn’t in the Old Testament, it was in the New Testament… and His name was Jesus.
But remember, the Bible also says that God so loved the world that He gave up His one and only Son!
But he was pierced for our rebellion, crushed for our sins. He was beaten so we could be whole. He was whipped so we could be healed. All of us, like sheep, have strayed away. We have left God’s paths to follow our own. Yet the LORD laid on him the sins of us all.
Isaiah 53:5-6 (NLT)
If there was any other way for us to be made right with God, don’t you think God would have done it… His son was crushed... Imagine what it must do to the heart of God when people say all paths lead to God… His son was crushed so that we could have access to him… Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life… only through his blood are we made right…
In fact, according to the law of Moses, nearly everything was purified with blood. For without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness.
Hebrews 9:22 (NLT)
c) APPLIED
(Exodus 12:22. C/R: Romans 5:9-10)
“Drain the lamb’s blood into a basin, and then take a cluster of hyssop branches and dip them into the lamb’s blood, and strike the hyssop against the lintel above the door and against the two side panels, so that there will be blood upon them, and none of you shall go outside all night.”
Exodus 12:22 (TLB)
When Steph and I were first married, we were so broke that we ate ramen noodles most nights, and the only drinks we had in our house were water and Kool-Aid. So, one day, Steph's car broke down, and we had no money. None.
A family in the church caught wind of it… and they wanted to bless us. So, they told us they had a blessing… and it was a 7-year-old Acura MDX. Listen, a Honda would have been a blessing…, but an Acura was like a miracle. We were literally so broke that to celebrate, we went to Denny's… and I told Steph, Get anything you want on the menu. I know what you're thinking…. what a romantic gesture.
The family had talked about it, but what mattered wasn’t the words; it was the title… we had to have it transferred to our name… it wasn’t any good until it was transferred.
When the lamb was killed, the blood was to be caught in a basin… but this precious blood didn’t do any good in this basin… it had to be applied to the doorposts.
What a strange place to put the blood. But think about this, Jesus bled and died on a piece of wood.
The blood of Jesus does you no good unless it's applied, unless you receive it in your life. It doesn’t matter if Jesus was born in a manger if He isn’t born in your heart. That’s why you use the phrase being born again. It's not like you come out of some spiritual womb, but it's that you have received the life of Jesus. His blood has covered you…
Everything points to Jesus… He was the perfect sacrifice…. And by His blood we are healed…
Sin leads to death… blood leads to life.
And since we have been made right in God’s sight by the blood of Christ, he will certainly save us from God’s condemnation. For since our friendship with God was restored by the death of his Son while we were still his enemies, we will certainly be saved through the life of his Son.
Romans 5:9-10 (NLT)
Jesus died on Passover, and His blood is now applied to us if we believe in Him!
Second picture comes from Exodus 13, around the crossing of the Red Sea…and it helps us understand this foundational truth.
- Jesus’ blood gives us NEW LIFE.
(Exodus 14:10-12. C/R: Exodus 14:15, 26-28; Psalm 106:7-8a; Romans 6:4)
Think about what happens right after Passover… It’s the crossing of the Red Sea… which the Red Sea… I want you to see it as a salvation picture… It’s a picture of our new life.
Church, can I ask you a question? Do you believe Jesus makes all things new? Do you?
Do you believe you have been raised to new life? Do you?
Then, can I ask you another question? Why do you go back to your old life? Your old habits? Your unhealthy relationships? Your destructive thinking? Your guilt? Your pride? Your judgement?
Church, if He’s made you new, why do you go back to the old you? Why can't you escape it?
Because sometimes we fail to see that the blood of Jesus makes us new.
The other day I grabbed an old shirt… something I had like a decade ago… and I thought maybe I can fit in it… and I put that thing on and it looked like it was painted on… so I sucked in, tucked in, pushed in and as soon I got the thing buttoned you know what happened… the buttons just popped off… like a small projectile…now listen, if you can fit into your stuff from a decade ago… good for you… keep it to yourself… but I put the shirt on and it didn’t look good, it didn’t fit good, it didn’t feel good… and it wasn’t a moment after I put this thing on, I took it off and threw it, I hurled it and said that it has to go… because it doesn’t fit…
Do you realize what Egypt was to the people of God? It was their past, their old life, and, in some ways, their identity. And God wanted them to know that it didn’t look good, it didn’t fit, and it didn’t feel good. He wanted them to leave it behind and step into the new.
And they thought they had left it behind… but listen to what it says…
As Pharaoh approached, the people of Israel looked up and panicked when they saw the Egyptians overtaking them. They cried out to the LORD, and they said to Moses, “Why did you bring us out here to die in the wilderness? Weren’t there enough graves for us in Egypt? What have you done to us? Why did you make us leave Egypt? Didn’t we tell you this would happen while we were still in Egypt? We said, ‘Leave us alone! Let us be slaves to the Egyptians. It’s better to be a slave in Egypt than a corpse in the wilderness!’”
Exodus 14:10-12 (NLT)
See, sometimes people come to faith and they're ready… but then their old identity, their past, their old way of life creeps back in and they begin to panic…Is my faith real? Will I ever overcome this? I thought it was supposed to be different. I still have shame.
Is there something from your past that keeps terrorizing you? Something you can’t seem to shake? Something that’s causing you to say… What’s the point? Or like the Israelites, and just go home, or sabotage yourself?
Here's what I know: God will chase you, but so will sin, death, Satan, and hell..
When our ancestors were in Egypt, they gave no thought to your miracles; they did not remember your many kindnesses, and they rebelled by the sea, the Red Sea. Yet he saved them for his name’s sake,
Psalm 106:7-8a (NIV)
This was a shocking verse because I always thought they had great faith at the Red Sea… but notice it says they rebelled. They sinned. We read above that they forgot God… and He saved them for His name's sake.
Some of us go, You know what I need… I need a miracle. If God would just fix this one thing, heal this one thing, change this one thing, do this one thing, everything would change…
The Israelites had 10 miracles, and the next week they forgot them… and here they are sinning and doubting God…
But they failed… they were going back to their old life, their old past… in fact, in the very next verse, they said,
Why didn’t you just leave us there? It was a better life… Church, they were slaves…
And think about this… the Israelites crossed the Red Sea on dry ground… but do you know what chases after them?
Their past. And what does the Bible say…
Then the LORD said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand over the sea so that the waters may flow back over the Egyptians and their chariots and horsemen.” Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and at daybreak the sea went back to its place. The Egyptians were fleeing toward it, and the LORD swept them into the sea. The water flowed back and covered the chariots and horsemen—the entire army of Pharaoh that had followed the Israelites into the sea. Not one of them survived.
Exodus 14:26-28 (NIV)
Ancient peoples, including the Egyptians and the Israelites, associated the depths of the ocean with the underworld. They literally called it the abyss. To them, the bottom of the ocean WAS hell.
So, think about how God has covered up hell, sin, death, their past, all in this story… and remember what I told you, the Old Testament is the New Testament concealed… and the New Testament is the Old Testament revealed…
And guess what God does... He sweeps it away… the only people that could accuse them and entrap them and enslave them are completely wiped out… This is what God does with our past! Whatever anyone says, it's been completely freed.
So that’s why Paul says this…
We were buried therefore with Him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.
Romans 6:4 (ESV)
Your past is gone and buried. You are forgiven and freed… meaning you don’t have to go back to it. But for some reason, you haven’t experienced forgiveness because you haven’t forgiven yourself.
How many of you will just sit there at a stoplight if a car is in front of you and the light turns green? My patient people?
How many of you give it about a second, and then you lay on the horn in Jesus' name?
Can I speak something over someone this morning… I think God is kindly and gently hitting the horn for you this morning…
Then the LORD said to Moses, “Why are you crying out to me? Tell the Israelites to move on.”
Exodus 14:15 (NIV)
It's time to move… it's time to go on from the old habits. It's time to move on from the unhealthy relationships. It's time to move on from the blame. From the self-pity. It's time to move on from the negative thinking…. It's time to surrender your life to Him!
Give it to Him this morning… and remember that because of the blood of Jesus, you are raised to new life… which means you are truly forgiven and freed…. Nothing can ever change that!
- Jesus is the only way to God.
- Sin can’t be wished away; it must be paid for.
- Because of Jesus' blood, you are forgiven. You are freed.