I want to begin this message
with a few scriptures to set up this subject. We're going
to turn to a few places and then we'll go to our text, which is
Exodus 17. Turn with me first to Psalm 60. Psalm chapter 60. Look at one verse in here with
me. It's verse 4. Thou hast given a banner to them that fear thee, that it may be displayed because
of the truth. And the word silah means just
pause right there for a minute. It means just stop and think
about that. Thou hast given a banner to them
that fear thee, that it may be displayed because of the truth.
All right, now go to Isaiah 11. Isaiah chapter 11. Isaiah 11 and look at verse 12. It says, And he shall set up
an ensign. He shall set up a sign, a banner,
for the nations and shall assemble the outcast of Israel and gather
together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the
earth. He's going to set up a sign. Now look at Isaiah 13 verse 2. Lift ye up a banner upon the
high mountain. Exalt the voice unto them. Shake the hand that they may
go into the gates of the nobles. I have commanded my sanctified
ones. I have also called my mighty
ones for mine anger. Even them that rejoice in my
highness, the noise of a multitude in the mountains, like as of
a great people, a tumultuous noise of the kingdoms of nations
gathered together. The Lord of hosts mustereth the
host of the battle. This is all talking about a battle. And he's saying, raise up a banner.
There's a battle. Paul told Timothy, fight the
good fight of faith. We're at battle. We really are. There's a war going on. Paul said, there's a war in my
members. We know what that means, don't
we? There's a struggle within and there's a struggle without. There is. We're at peace with
God, but we're at war. We really are. All right, now
turn to Ephesians 6. Ephesians 6, look at verse 11. It says, Put on the whole armor
of God, that you may be able to stand
against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh
and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers
of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness
in high places. That's the truth. That's the
truth. Verse 13 says, Wherefore take
unto you the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand
in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore,
having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the
breastplate of righteousness, and your feet shod with the preparation
of the gospel of peace, above all taking the shield of faith,
wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of
the wicked, and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of
the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying always." praying always with all prayer
and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all
perseverance and supplication for all saints." Pray for your
brethren. They are at war. They are at
war. Believers endure spiritual warfare. Why is it that we can go to a
movie theater and sit there for an hour and a half just engrossed
in everything about it? Mentally, there, with it, we
know it, we love it. But we, me included, we can't
sit and listen to the gospel for 30 minutes without our mind
here and our mind there and we feel bad about it. Spiritual warfare, that's why.
That's why. I have good news, though. We
have a banner. We have a banner. The Lord is our banner. I heard that so many times growing
up and I had no idea what that meant. Sounds good. The Lord
is our banner, but what does that mean? Well, let's go to
our text now, Exodus chapter 17, Hopefully we'll see what that
means. Alright, Exodus chapter 17, we're
going to start with verse 8. And Brother Tony just read the
story for us. We kind of understand what's
going on here. Verse 8 says, Then came Amalek. Alright, now Amalek is a descendant
of Esau. Jacob have I loved and Esau have
I hated. So Amalek and his people, they're
the enemy. They're the enemy. It says in
verse 8, Then came Amalek and fought with Israel in Rephidim. They made war. This enemy made
war with Israel. Attacked Israel. Okay, now, as
we read this, almost everybody in this text, almost, and almost
everything in this text represents Jesus Christ. Everything about
it. Alright, verse 9 says, and Moses,
God's Deliverer, God's Law, said unto Joshua. Now Joshua, his name in Hebrew
is the very same name as Jesus in the Greek. It's the same name,
Jesus and Joshua, same name. They both mean Savior. Verse 9 says, The law said unto the Savior,
Choose us out men and go out fight with Amalek. Tomorrow I
will stand on the top of a hill with the rod of God in my hand. A battle is about to take place.
And God's law said, I'm going to stand on the top of a hill. And I'm going to stand there
with the rod of God in my hand. Aaron's rod. Now turn with me
to Exodus 7. I love this. Exodus chapter 7. Look at verse 8, Exodus 7 verse
8. And the Lord spake unto Moses
and unto Aaron, saying, When Pharaoh shall speak unto you,
saying, Show a miracle for you, then thou shalt say unto Aaron,
Take thy rod and cast it before Pharaoh, and it shall become
a serpent. And Moses and Aaron went in unto Pharaoh, and they
did so as the Lord had commanded. And Aaron cast down his rod before
Pharaoh and before his servants, and it became a serpent. Then
Pharaoh also called the wise men and the sorcerers. Now the
magicians of Egypt, they also did in like manner with their
enchantments, for they cast down every man his rod, and they became
serpents. But Aaron's rod swallowed up
their rods, ate them all. Their rod is not like our rod. The rod of God, that's Jesus
Christ. There shall come forth a rod
out of the stem of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his
roots. A rod. Thy rod and thy staff, they comfort
me." Back to our text, Exodus 17,
verse 9 says, And Moses said unto Joshua, Choose
us out, men, and go out, fight with Amalek. Tomorrow I will
stand on the top of the hill with the rod of God in my hand.
Verse 10 says, So Joshua did as Moses had said unto him. Christ
obeyed the law. Everything it asked, everything
it required. Verse 10 says, So Joshua did
as Moses had said unto him, and fought with Amalek. And Moses,
Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill. Aaron was Moses'
brother. I think he was three years older
than Moses. Aaron was God's high priest. God made him to be the
high priest. Aaron was the one who administered
the sacrifice. Aaron was the one who dealt with
the blood. That was his business. Aaron
was the one who was covered in blood. That's Jesus Christ. Her. H-U-R. Her. His name means
this. It means a cavern. It means a
hole. It's a cleft in the rock. It's a place to hide. A place
of safety in the middle of this battle. That's Jesus Christ. He hideth my soul in the cleft
of the rock that shadows a dry, thirsty land. He hideth my life
in the depths of His love, and He covers me there with His hand
through the whole battle. Verse 10 says, So Joshua did
as Moses had said to him, and fought with Amalek, And Moses,
Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill. War is about
to break out. So the law, the sacrifice, and
the rock of safety go to the top of the hill. Verse 11 says, And it came to
pass, when Moses held up his hand, the hand that had the rod of
God in it. It wasn't just his hands by himself.
He was holding the rod of God up. It came to pass, when Moses held
up his hand, when Jesus Christ was lifted up, as long as Israel
could see that rod, As long as Israel kept their
eyes on that rod, verse 11 says, Israel prevailed. As long as Israel had a single
eye on that rod. They're in the middle of battle. There's a lot going on. It's
a crazy world they're in. And as long as Israel stayed
on that rod, stayed upon Jehovah, Israel prevailed. Verse 11 says, And when He let
down His hand, when the people lost sight of the rod of God, when they started looking to
themselves, They got worried for what they were in the middle
of. Started looking to their own ability. Started looking
to their own fight. Verse 11 says, Amalek prevailed. The enemy prevailed. Now this
is not just an old story for us to hear about. not just a history book. Believers
are in spiritual warfare. The scripture says that as the
word goes forth, as the sower starts throwing out seed, the evil one grabs it before
it ever makes it to our ears. That's spiritual warfare. The outcome of their battle depends
on whether or not they can see that rod. Now think about this, when that
rod goes down and they can't see it, they're not focused on
it, you'd think that'd be the time they could get their mind
in the battle. I don't have time for that right now. I got something
facing me, it's in front of me right now, I gotta deal with
this. You'd think that'd be the time they could fight. You'd
think it'd be the time they could win. They can't win this battle, though.
And neither can we. We cannot win this battle. But listen to his word on this.
The next time that the battle comes, and it will come, the
next time that battle comes to you, Whether it's within, whether
it's without, whether it's with self, whether it's with the world.
Don't try to fight your own battle. Don't try to fight your own battle. See if you can get a glimpse
of the rod. That's the lesson, that's the message. I've got
something in front of me that I've got to take care of. It's
not going to get taken care of. The next time something comes,
start looking for that rod. Instead of taking matters into
our own hands, let's come to the place where we can see the
rod of God. If we can see Him, if we can
ever look to Him and see what He has already done, we'll prevail. Alright, verse 11 says, And it
came to pass, when Moses held up his hand, that Israel prevailed. And when he let down his hand,
Amalep prevailed. Verse 12 says, But Moses' hands
were heavy. He was trying to hold it up,
trying to keep it up, but his hands were heavy. I thought about
Romans 8. It says, For what the law could
not do, in that it was weak through the flesh. God sent His Son for that. That's
why Jesus Christ came. Verse 12 says, But Moses' hands
were heavy, and they took a stone, and put it under him, and he
sat thereon. That stone is Jesus Christ. He's the chief corner stone. He's the firm foundation. And
the law rests on Him. Does that make sense? The law
just rests on Him. Verse 12 says, But Moses' hands
were heavy, and they took a stone and put it under him, and he
sat thereon. And Aaron and Hur stayed up his
hands, the one on the one side, and the other on the other side.
And his hands were steady until the going down of the sun. The
law concerning me, concerning my flesh is a losing battle. It's a losing battle. I can't
keep it. I can't uphold it. But thanks
be to God, sacrifice and security stood up and took a stone and put it under
the law for me. And they upheld the rod of God
for me. Does that make sense? How firm a foundation, you saints
of the Lord, is laid for your faith in His excellent Word,
when through fiery trials I caused thee to stand, upheld by my gracious,
omnipotent hand. The sacrifice stood up, and my
surety stood up, and they said, these hands aren't going down. The end of verse 12 says, And
His hands were steady until the going down of the sun. This war
is going to be with us until the day we leave this earth.
But if we belong to Him, He's going to uphold us all the way
to the end. All the way to the end. To the
going down of the sun. Verse 13 says, And Joshua discomfited Amalek
and his people with the edge of the sword. And the Lord said
unto Moses, Write this for a memorial in a book, and rehearse it in
the ears of Joshua, for I will utterly put out the remembrance
of Amalek from under heaven. And Moses built an altar, and
called the name of it Jehovah-Nissi." That means the Lord, my banner. For he said, Because the Lord
hath sworn that the Lord will have war with Amalek the enemy
from generation to generation." Every generation is going to
have to deal with this until the end of time. And the Lord
will have war from generation to generation. Write it in a
book. Make it a memorial. Cause everybody
to remember that the Lord is our banner. The Lord is our banner. Now there's a song that's very
dear to this country and it's called the Star Spangled Banner. Right? And that song is about a flag. And that flag means something. It does. It's a reminder of what
freedom costs. Right? Don't you remember certain
things every time you get a view of that flag? I saw one driving
over here this morning. I think it was on top of a bank
or something. I saw a flag. It's a reminder
that battles have been won. Well, the Lord is our banner. As long as the people look to
that hill, Psalm 121 says, I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills. As long as the people looked
to that hill and saw the rod of God, they knew, this battle
is ours. They were encouraged, this battle
is ours. Now listen to this. The war of 1812. Sadly, it was between the British
and the Americans. We have some very dear British
friends, don't we? Thankfully, they never had war
after that ever again. The War of 1812. By 1814, the
British ships came in and started ruining American cities. They
bombed Washington, bombed the White House, took it, took control of it.
They bombed Alexandria, Virginia. They'd come out with new bombs
that would explode in midair, not when they hit the ground.
And they would spread shrapnel everywhere, devastating. They
weren't used to this. So they burned Washington, they
burned Alexandria, and then they're headed to Boston, specifically
to Fort McHenry. The commander of Fort McHenry
all this time knew Washington was bombed, knew Alexandria was
bombed, knew they were coming, and he had two flags made. One
of them was called the Garrison Flag. It's at the Smithsonian
right now. The size of that flag was 30
by 42 feet, half the size of a basketball court. Huge. And then the other one was called
the Storm Flag. It was much smaller. On clear
days, they would fly the Garrison Flag. And whenever it was storming,
whenever weather was bad, they would raise the smaller flag,
the Storm Flag. Well, the British come and their
ships come and they start bombing Fort McHenry. And this battle
lasted 25 hours. So they bomb all day, they bomb
all night. And the Americans from Boston
know we're being overtaken. We fought for freedom and independence,
and it's being taken back. We're losing our land. They're
taking our land. We're going to lose our home.
We're going to lose our freedom. And they're blowing everything
up. We're going to lose our lives. This is it. I mean, just devastating.
Absolutely devastating. So the bombing continues all
night long. And about 6.30 a.m., the bombing
stopped. And this was the people's initial
reaction. It's over. We lost. They took Fort McHenry. No need to bomb anymore. We've
lost it all. But what actually happened is
the ships realized they couldn't take Fort McHenry and they quit
bombing and they retreated. Well, you can imagine how happy
Fort McHenry was. They couldn't believe it. They
did not have the same artillery. And every time the ships would
come in, the ships would get close enough where they'd have
to back away. Then they'd come in and they'd
have to back away. Come in and they'd have to back away. Finally they
said, let's retreat. It rained all night long. It
was a stormy night. Terrible storms and they had
the storm flag up. And when they retreated it was
still storming. But the commander of Fort McHenry
told the men, take down the storm flag and run up the garrison
flag. And when they did, about 7.30
in the morning, by dawn's early light, they said it could be
seen for miles around. Eight miles away was a man named
Francis Scott Key, who was worried. And when he saw that banner go
up, He knew it wasn't taken. The fort wasn't taken. He was so thankful and so moved,
he wrote the words, and the rockets' red glare, the bombs bursting
in air, they're watching all night long, gave proof through
the night that our flag was still there. Our flag is there. Our banner is still there. It means something. It means
we won the battle. It means we still have our freedom.
It means we still have our liberty. We have our lives. We have our
land. Our banner is still there. The Lord is our banner. When you need a reminder of how
great things the Lord has done for you, look to the banner. You know what you'll see? The
Lord is our captain. I want you to turn to a couple
of places and then I'll close. Turn with me to Exodus 15. Exodus
15 and look at verse 3. The Lord is a man of war. That's who gentle Jesus, meek
and mild is. He's a man of war. Don't turn, just listen to this.
This is Joshua 5. And it came to pass, when Joshua
was by Jericho, that he lifted up his eyes, and looked, and
beheld, there stood a man over against him, with his sword drawn
in his hand. And Joshua went unto him, and
said unto him, Art thou for us, or for our adversaries? And he
said, Nay, but as captain of the host of the Lord am I now
come. And Joshua fell on his face to
the earth, and did worship, and said unto him, What saith my
Lord unto his servant? And the captain of the Lord's
host said unto Joshua, Loose thy shoe from off thy foot, for
the place whereon you stand is holy ground. And Joshua did it. Now when John fell at the feet
of an angel, that angel said, get up, get up, don't worship
me. I'm not God. But when Joshua fell down at
the captain, he said, you take your shoes off. You're on holy
ground. The Lord is our captain. Not
only is he our king watching from above, He's our captain. He's leading the charge. First
man in. He's actually the only man who
ever went in. The next time you feel attacked,
look to the banner. You know what you'll see? The
Lord is our weapon. Sticks and stones may break my
bones, but words will slay men to their grave. The word of our banner is sharper
than any two-edged sword. The next time you feel weak,
look to the banner. You know what you're going to
see? The Lord is our courage. Turn to Deuteronomy 31. Deuteronomy 31, look at verse
6. The LORD thy God, He will go
over before thee, and He will destroy these nations from before
thee. And thou shalt possess them,
and Joshua he shall go over before thee, as the LORD hath said.
And the Lord shall do unto them as He did to Sion and to Og,
king of the Amorites, and unto the land of them whom He destroyed. And the Lord shall give them
up before your face, that you may do unto them according to
all the commandments which I have commanded you. Be strong and
of good courage. Fear not, nor be afraid of them,
for the Lord thy God, He it is that doth go with thee. He will
not fail thee, nor forsake thee. Cheer up. God is with you. Look to the banner. You know
what you'll see? The Lord is our defense. Just listen to this. Psalm 125
says, They that trust in the Lord shall be as Mount Zion,
which cannot be removed, but abideth forever. As the mountains
are round about Jerusalem, so the Lord is round about His people
from henceforth even forever. He's our captain. He's our weapon. He's our courage. He's our defense. And if you look to this banner,
you're going to see the Lord is our victory. Turn to Isaiah 25. Isaiah 25, verse 1 says, O LORD, Thou art
my God, I will exalt Thee, I will praise Thy name, for Thou hast
done wonderful things. Thy counsels are of old, faithfulness
and truth. For Thou hast made of a city
an heap, of a defenced city, a ruin, a palace of strangers
to be no city. It shall never be built. Therefore
shall the strong people glorify thee. The city of the terrible
nations shall fear thee, for thou hast been a strength to
the poor. a strength to the needy in his distress, a refuge from
the storm, a shadow from the heat when the blast of the terrible
ones is as a storm against the wall. Thou shalt bring down the
noise of strangers as the heat in a dry place, even the heat
with the shadow of a cloud. The branch of the terrible ones
shall be brought low. And in this mountain shall the
Lord of hosts make unto all people a feast of fat things, a feast
of wines on the leaves, of fat things full of marrow, of wines
on the leaves well refined. And He will destroy in this mountain
the face of the covering cast over all people and the veil
that is spread over all nations. He will swallow up death in victory,
And the Lord God will wipe away tears from off all faces. And the rebuke of His people
shall be taken away from off all the earth, for the Lord hath
spoken it." Do you remember Jehovah-Jireh?
Do you remember that? The Lord will provide. Well, Jehovah-Nissi, that's what
Exodus 17 says. Moses built an offer and he named
that place Jehovah-Nissi. The Lord is our banner. Now I
close, I promise, with this. Don't turn. This is Exodus 14,
13 and 14. This is what it says. And Moses
said unto the people, Fear ye not, stand still, and see the
salvation of the Lord, which He will show to you today. For
the Egyptians whom ye have seen today, ye shall see them again
no more for ever. The Lord shall fight for you,
and ye shall hold your peace." The battle is the Lord's. Stand
still. Look to the banner. I hope the
Lord will bless that. Stand together with me.