Put your finger in Exodus 33. First of all, we'll go to Luke
24, but then we'll be going to Exodus 33. The name of the message is God's
people blessed in Christ. God's people blessed in Christ.
Do you ever get weary? Ever get weird? Ever feel like
you're assailed on all sides? Ever doubt? Ever think, Lord, you saved me? We all do. We all do. We'd be lying if we said we don't.
I pray that if you're going through any of those situations, that tonight's message will be
a comfort to you. That it'll comfort you. That
it'll strengthen you. Because we are all on, all we
who believe, we're all on this pathway to heaven, aren't we?
We're pilgrims. We're sojourning through this
world. And sometimes we get tired. And sometimes we get weary. And
we get assaulted from all sides, don't we? All sides. All sides. Tonight we'll be in the book
of Exodus here. But before we go there, I'd like
us to read a portion of scripture in the New Testament. Now you've
heard me say this before. And you've heard me say that
I used to believe this, and I no longer believe what I used to
say when I used to say, well, the Old Testament was for the
Jews, and the New Testament is for believers. The whole Bible is for us. The
whole Bible. Now, dispensationalists, they
like to say that, because that's the way they divide the scriptures
up, but it's error. I believe it's error, because
this book is all about Christ. It's all about him. In fact, our Lord Jesus Christ
spoke to two of his followers, two of his elect, about himself
from the Old Testament. Turn, if you would, to Luke 24.
Luke 24. And I pray that our hearts will
burn within us just as it did for these two believers. That
when we go to the Old Testament tonight and we look in Exodus
chapter 33, that we'd be, we'd receive great comfort, that we'd
be strengthened and built up in Christ, and that we could
leave this place rejoicing in our mighty Savior, rejoicing
in our Lord and King. Look at Luke 24, starting in
verse 13. And behold, two of them went
that same day to a village called Emmaus, which was from Jerusalem
about three score furlongs. And they talked together of all
these things which had happened. And it came to pass that while
they communed together and reasoned, Jesus himself drew near and went
with them. But their eyes were holding that
they should not know him. See, he didn't reveal himself
to them right away. He didn't reveal himself. Scripture
says right here before us, their eyes were holding that they should
not know him. And our Lord has risen from the
grave. And he's appearing to these two disciples. And he's
risen from the grave. Look what it says. And he said
unto them, what manner of communications are these that ye have one to
another as ye walk and are sad? Now, beloved, he didn't ask that
question for information. He already knew. He wants them
to confess how they are and what they're feeling. And one of them,
whose name was Cleopas, answering, said unto them, Art thou only
a stranger in Jerusalem? And hast thou not known the things
which are come to pass therein in these days? And he said unto
them, What things? Again, it's not for information.
And they said unto him concerning Jesus of Nazareth, which was
a prophet, mighty indeed in word before God and all the people,
and how the chief priests and our rulers delivered him to be
condemned to death and have crucified him. But we trusted that it had
been he which should have redeemed Israel. And beside all this,
today is the third day since these things were done. Yea, and certain women also of
the company made us astonished, which were early at the sepulcher.
And when they found not his body, they came saying that they had
also seen a vision of angels, which said that he was alive.
And certain of them which were with us went out to the sepulcher
and found it even so as the woman had said. But him they saw not. Then he said unto them, O fools,
and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken. What he's saying here is I'm
in the Old Testament. The prophets speak of Christ.
That's the Old Testament. Moses spoke of Christ. All the
prophets, minor and major, spoke of Christ. Ought not Christ have suffered
these things and to enter into his glory? And look at this now. I think I've confessed this before.
I told Norm one time I said, oh, Norm. Oh, could could you
imagine being there? Because look at look at what
he says here. Look what he says here. And beginning at Moses
and all the prophets, he expounded unto them and all the scriptures,
the things concerning himself. And I've said that I said the
brother normal to be there. He goes, we already have it better. We have it right here. He revealed himself in the scriptures.
And now he reveals himself to us, doesn't he? When we read
or when we hear the gospel preached and something we've never seen
before and we go, oh my goodness, I never saw that. And sometimes
we've heard it. And then he just opens our eyes
up to it. He expounded unto them in all
the scriptures the things concerning himself, himself. And they drew nigh unto the village,
whither they went, and he made as though he would have gone
further. But they constrained him, saying, Abide with us, for
it is toward evening, and the day is far spent. And he went
in to tarry with them. And it came to pass, as he sat
at meat with them, he took bread, and blessed it, and break it,
and gave to them. And their eyes were opened, and
they knew him. He revealed himself. He revealed
who he was to them. And he vanished out of their
sight. And they said one to another, did not our hearts burn within
us? Oh, when he talked with us by
the way, and while he opened to us the scriptures, and they
rose up the same hour and returned to Jerusalem and found the 11
gathered together and them that were with them saying, the Lord
is risen indeed and hath appeared to Simon. Now turn, if you would,
over to Exodus chapter 33. Exodus chapter 33. We'll look at a portion of Scripture
over here. Exodus 33, verses 11 to 19. And we'll just go through these
verses. And the Lord spake unto Moses
face to face, as a man speaketh unto his friend. Exodus 33, starting
in verse 11. And he turned again into the
camp, but his servant Joshua, the son of Nun, a young man,
departed not out of the tabernacle. And Moses said unto the Lord,
See, thou sayest unto me, Bring up this people, and thou hast
not let me know whom thou wilt send with me. Yet thou hast said,
I know thee by name. Thou hast found grace in my sight.
Now therefore I pray thee, if I have found grace in thy sight,
show me now thy way, that I may know thee, that I may find grace
in thy sight, and consider that this nation is thy people. And
he said, My presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee
rest. And he said unto him, If thy
presence go not with me, carry us not up hence. For wherein
shall it be known here that I and thy people have found grace in
thy sight? Is it not in that thou goest with us? So shall
we be separated, I and thy people, from all the people that are
upon the face of the earth. And the Lord said unto Moses,
I will do this thing also that thou hast spoken. For thou hast
found grace in my sight, and I know thee by name. He said,
I beseech thee, show me thy glory. And he said, I will make all
my goodness pass before thee, and I will proclaim the name
of the Lord before thee and will be gracious to whom I'll be gracious
and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy. How beloved of God. The four blessings bestowed by
Christ to Moses in the present text are identical to those he
bestows to believers today. to believers today. Let's look
at these four blessings which are found in the Lord Jesus Christ
and Him alone. They're found nowhere else. Now,
we looked at this first one a little bit this morning in Sunday school.
Look at it as Exodus 33, verse 12. And Moses said unto the Lord,
See, thou sayest unto me, Bring up this people, and thou hast
not let me know whom thou wilt send with me. Yet thou hast said,
I know thee by name, And thou hast also found grace in my sight. So the first blessing bestowed
by Christ to Moses in the text is identical to those he bestows
on believers today. You have found grace in my sight. We looked at that this morning
in Sunday school, didn't we? That the only difference between
us and anyone else is that we have found grace in the eyes
of the Lord. That's the only difference. There is no other
difference. Look at verse 17, and the Lord
said unto Moses, I will do this thing also thou hast spoken,
for thou hast found grace in my sight, and I know thee by
name. What a wonderful text we have before us. God's grace is
his unmerited favor to sinners who otherwise only merit his
wrath and only merit his justice being poured out upon us. That's
what we merit. That's what we deserve. But God shows us mercy, and He
pours out that wrath and justice upon His Son in our place, the
Lord Jesus Christ. We know Scripture says, for all
have sinned and come short of the glory of God, right? So we
know we're all guilty. We know that the wages of sin
is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus
Christ our Lord. So the blessing, this blessing
spoken of here, bestowed sovereignly look at Exodus 33 19 this is
a sovereign God saying this and he said I will make all my goodness
pass before thee and I will proclaim the name of the Lord before thee
and will be gracious to whom I'll be gracious and will show
mercy on whom I'll show mercy he can sovereignly show mercy
and give grace to whomever he pleases that's his prerogative
he's God he's God he can do whatever he pleases to do And even if
man shakes his fist and say, that's not fair, we don't want
fair. I don't want, do you want fair?
We who believe, do you want fair? I don't want fair. I don't want
fair at all. I want mercy. I want grace. Fair would be me going to hell
for my sins. I want mercy. I'm a mercy beggar. Are you? Oh, I beg for mercy. And God has shown me mercy in
Christ, in Christ. Remember the proud Pharisee,
I thank you that I don't do this and that I'm not like that publican
and here we are God's elect, oh God be merciful to me the
sinner. We cry and beg for mercy, don't
we? My. For he saith to Moses, look in
the New Testament in Romans chapter 9. And I'll read Exodus 19 again,
33-19, and he said, I'll make all my goodness pass before thee,
and I will proclaim the name of the Lord before thee, and
will be gracious to whom I'll be gracious, and will show mercy
upon whom I'll show mercy. And then look at Romans chapter
9. He shows grace to some, while at the same time dealing
wrath with others. Look at Romans 9 verses 15 to
18. For he saith to Moses, I'll have mercy on whom I'll have
mercy, and I'll have compassion on whom I'll have compassion.
So then is it not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth,
but of God that showeth mercy. That verse right there destroys
free willism. That verse absolutely destroys
the free will of man. So then it is not him that willeth.
You can't will your way into heaven. And if you think you can, you're
going to be like the guy who shows up to the wedding feast
with no garment. Clothed in your own self-righteousness. So it's not of him that willeth,
nor of him that runneth, but of God that showeth mercy. For
the Scripture saith unto the Pharaoh, even for this same purpose
have I raised thee up, that I might show my power in thee. And my
name might be declared throughout all the earth. Therefore, he
hath mercy on whom he have mercy and whom he will. He hardened.
I praise God, he didn't he didn't leave me where I was. Oh, I'm
so thankful. That I've been showing mercy
and all who flee the Christ are showing mercy, and only we know
we know that the Lord will make his people will and then their
fleet of Christ. He's the only refuge for sinners. He's the
only refuge. And we know from this morning
when we look that Noah, the only difference between Noah and anyone
else, the scripture said, is Noah found grace in the eyes
of the Lord. That's the only difference between Noah and anyone
else. And this blessing reoccurs throughout
the life of the saint. Notice in Exodus 33.13, Now therefore
I pray thee that Pray thee, if I have found grace
in thy sight, show me now thy way, that I may know thee, that
I may find grace in thy sight and consider that this nation
is thy people." And we know that Lot, righteous Lot, he dwelt
in Sodom, didn't he? But he was afterward delivered
from destruction. The city was destroyed, but he
was delivered. And it says, righteous Lot was
vexed. My! What's the only reason Lot
was righteous? Christ? Only Christ and him alone? How can I stand before you and
tell you that I'm clothed in the righteousness of Christ only
because he's put that righteousness on me? Nothing I did. I was running. I wasn't looking
for God. And I know it's so for all you
too who believe. I know. We weren't looking. He sought
us out. He came and got us. And he saved
us by his pure, free and sovereign grace in Christ. And now we just
rejoice. We marvel, as I said this morning,
we marvel that we found grace in the eyes of the Lord. We marvel. It's incredible. Likewise, believers have found
grace in the eyes of Christ. Turn, if you would, to Jeremiah,
chapter 31. We are told in the prophecy of
Jeremiah, chapter 31, verses 1 to 6, which has its greater
fulfillment in the church of Christ. We are told some things
in these verses. Look at this. Jeremiah 31, verses 1 to 6. And keep in mind that the Lord
shows mercy to whomever he's pleased to show mercy. And he shows it to undeserving
sinners. Look at Jeremiah, chapter 31,
verses one to six. At the same time, saith the Lord,
will I be the God of all the families of Israel and they shall
be my people? That's speaking of the church. God's will be his people. We are his people. He will gather
every one of His sheep. And He uses the preaching of
the Gospel. The Holy Spirit takes that and goes forth and makes
it effectual and regenerates the dead sinner and they flee
to Christ. And there are people who never
called on Him. Thus saith the Lord, the people
which were left of the sword found grace in the wilderness,
even Israel, when I went to cause him to rest. The Lord hath appeared
of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting
love. Therefore with lovingkindness
have I drawn thee." Now look at that. Yea. And let each of us who are believers,
let this sink in. Yea, God says to us, yea, I have
loved thee with an everlasting love. Therefore, why did we come to
Christ? With loving kindness have I drawn
thee. You see who's doing all the work? Again I will build thee, and
thou shalt be built, O virgin of Israel. Thou shalt be adorned
with thy tablets, and shalt go forth in the dances of them that
make merry. Thou shalt yet plant vines upon
the mountains of Samaria. The planter shalt plant, and
shalt eat them as common things. where there shall be a day that
the watchman upon the mount Ephraim shall cry, Arise ye, let us go
up to Zion unto the Lord our God. So those who found grace
in God's sight while in the wilderness, verse 2, are told that they were
loved with an eternal love, verse 3, and therefore drawn to God,
God, drawn to God himself, and we know it's by the Holy Spirit,
with loving kindness, and they were made to prosper, verses
four to six. My, my. They who found grace in God's
sight while in the wilderness were all saved. They're his people. Look at verse one. And they shall
be my people. Beloved, we were all in the wilderness
of sin. That's where we were. We were
lost in the wilderness of sin, in the sea of sinfulness. Drowned
in it. And only He could rescue us.
Only He could. And He did. He rescues His people. That's what Savior means. He's
a rescuer. And He has saved us from our
sins. And the believer in the Lord
Jesus Christ, who is trusting in the Savior, who is a substitute
has found grace in the eyes of the Lord. And this is marvelous,
free, and sovereign grace. That's what it is. The second
blessing bestowed by Christ to Moses in the text, which is identical
to those he bestows to believers today is this. Look at verses
12 and 17. 12 and 17. And Moses said unto
the Lord, see that see thou sayest unto
me bring up this people and thou has not let me know whom that
will send with me yet thou has said i know thee by name and thou has found grace in my
sight and then look at verse 17 and the lord said unto moses
i will do this thing That thou has spoken for thou has found
grace in my sight and I know thee by name Christ knows every
one of his sheep beloved How long has he known us From eternity Isn't that amazing
It's amazing Do you see how, like I said, if we're struggling,
if we're having a hard time, how much this can just lift our
souls? God has known my name from eternity. I can't even fathom
that. I'll be honest with you, it just
makes me just, it's incredible. But that's the truth, that's
what scripture declares. He knows us by name. Christ, by virtue of his deity,
is all-knowing. That's how he knows us. He's
God. He's not like us. We forget people
all the time, don't we? We forget their names. I know
I do. I forget people's names. And I have a hard time sometimes. I remember faces, but I forget
names and different. But God will never forget one
of his sheep. Never, never. He knows us by name. He knows
all things and persons. It is therefore not a surprise
that he should know Moses. He knows Moses' name at the burning
bush. And Moses didn't tell him who
he was. In Exodus 3, 4 it says, And when
the Lord saw that he turned aside to see God, to see, God called
unto him out of the midst of the bush and said, Moses, Moses. He knew his name. And he said,
here am I. Now, think of this. Scripture
declares that we are engraved in the palms of his hands. So
he's known us from eternity and wherever before him, his people. He knows every one of the sheep,
every one of them. This brings the believer great
comfort, great comfort. Furthermore, though, he knew
Moses in a special manner, not as a mere acquaintance, but as
one whom he spoke face to face. Look at our text in Isaiah 33,
11. And the Lord spake unto Moses
face to face, as a man speaketh unto his friend. And he turned
again into the camp, but his servant Joshua, the son of Nun,
the young man, departed, not out of the tabernacle. So just
as Christ knew Moses personally, knew him by name, He knows his
people. He knows his sheep. It's not
by chance we're saved. We know that. Not at all. It's all according to the purpose
of God. And his decree, we saw this morning,
what he says, what? Shall come to pass. Shall come
to pass. I had no clue I was one of God's
sheep. when I was born into this world
and I know you didn't either. But he knew us. He knew us. And he watched over
us even when we were in rebellion. And he loved me with an everlasting
love. Even when I was in that state. And it's so with you, if you're
a believer. This is wonderful grace. He knows them by name because
they belong to him. He knows every one of his sheep
by name because they belong to him. Turn, if you would, to John
chapter 10, and I'll read Isaiah 43.1. Isaiah 43.1 says this, But now,
thus saith the Lord that created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed
thee, O Israel, fear not, for I have redeemed thee. I have
called thee by thy name. Thou art mine. Mine. The Lord's sheep are His. Look at John chapter 10, verses 3 and then verses 14 and
15. Look at verse 3. To Him the porter
openeth, and the sheep hear His voice, and He calleth His own
sheep by name, and leadeth them out. They say that if you put
two or three flocks together in a pen, that each shepherd
can go there, each shepherd can go there and call his sheep,
and only his sheep will follow his voice. My sheep hear my voice, and they
follow me. We follow the shepherd's voice
through the preaching of the Word, through the preaching of
the Gospel, through reading the Scriptures. Look at verse 14
and 15. I am the good shepherd and know
my sheep. He knows us before we know him,
and am knowing of mine. He reveals himself to us, beloved. As the Father knoweth me, even
so know I the Father, and I lay down my life for who? For everyone? That's not what the Scriptures
say. Amen, brother. I lay down my life for the sheep. He laid down his life for his
people, the very ones in Isaiah 43, one which says again, Oh,
Jacob, and he that formed the old Israel, fear not, for I have
redeemed. I have called the by thy name,
and he does that by his Holy Spirit. I mean. Thou art mine. Oh, what security the believer
has in Christ. He laid down His life at Calvary's
cross for every one of His sheep. He is the sinner's substitute,
bearing the wrath and justice of God that we deserved and redeeming,
purchasing us by His own precious blood. We were dead in trespasses
and sins. We come into this world dead
in trespasses and sins with no hope. But God is rich in mercy,
isn't He? He's rich in mercy towards His
people, and He knows every one of them by name. And He calls
us by His effectual grace, and we flee to Christ. We flee to
Christ. And we have found mercy. Mercy in the Lord Jesus Christ.
And this is why we say flee to the Savior. Oh, that God would
make you willing to flee to Him. He's the only hope for poor bankrupt
sinners like us. Oh, Christ has known His people
by name from eternity. And their names were inscribed
in His book of life. In eternity. In eternity. There's, I remember, when I was
in religion and I used to hand out these tracts and boy now
I just shake my head on them now, just what did I do? But
in the tract it said, now that you believe, your name's written
in the book of life. That's a lie. The believer's name is written
in the book of life from before the foundation of the world. Because if it was the other way
around, what that tract said, then their name is written in
the book of life because they're doing it. Because they made a
decision. Oh my. Lies, lies, lies. Turn if you would to Revelation
13.8. Revelation 13.8. If anybody ever tells you that,
take them here. Revelation 13.8. And all that dwell upon the earth
shall worship Him whose names are not written in the book of
life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. Christ knows His people and He
knows them from before the foundation of the world. Now that's something for us to
marvel. Now that's something for us to ponder, too. If our
names are written in the Lamb's Book of Life from eternity, then anyone who says they're
saved by their works, they're lying. Because that's God's choosing.
That's God's doing. Turn, if you would, to Matthew
7, 21. There are some who are religious, whose names are not written in
the book of life. Although, when you talk to them, they say, well,
I'm a Christian, and I've done all these marvelous things for
the Lord. And I'll tell you, I've met many religious folks
who will love to tell you what they've done. What they're either
doing, or what they've done for Christ. And it's heartbreaking
when you talk to them. It's absolutely heartbreaking.
Because I'm always reminded of these verses here. Matthew 7
verse 21 to 23. Not everyone that saith unto
me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven. So these
are religious professors. These are people who are professing
belief in Christ. But he that doeth the will of
my Father which is in heaven, many, not just a little amount,
many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied
in thy name? And in thy name have cast out
devils? In thy name done many wonderful
works. So what are they doing? They're saying, Lord, we've done
all these things for you. What do we say? What do each
man who gets up in here to teach Brother John, Brother Matt, Brother
Tim, what do we preach? What do we teach? That Christ
did it all. It's not based upon what we've
done. It's based upon what Christ has done. And that's the same message that
Brother Jim preaches, that Brother Tim preaches, that Brother Gary
preaches, that it's not by works of righteousness which we have
done. But these folks in the text, they're saying, but Lord,
we did all these things. We did all these things. I remember reading Brother Henry
saying we will not know this side of eternity, the damage
that Arminianism free will religion has done. We will not know. People making false professions
and preachers saying, well, now you're on your way to heaven
when they made him twofold the child of hell. This is why we must preach. the
free and sovereign grace of God in Christ, that Christ is all,
that it's Christ crucified, it's all what He's done, that we're
clothed in His perfect righteousness, that only He can satisfy the
justice and law of God. This is why we must trumpet it
every time. Look what it says here in Matthew
7.23, a chilling verse. Then will I profess unto them,
I never knew you. And the new there, I think I've
mentioned this before, is the word gnoska in the Greek. It's
an intimate knowledge. He knows them, of course, because
he created them. But he doesn't know them intimately.
They're not his people. And then will I profess unto
them, I never knew you. Depart from me, ye that work
iniquity. He doesn't gnosk at them. But
He gnosk at His people. He knows His people. And He knows
us by name. He knows us intimately. Intimately. The third blessing bestowed by
Christ to Moses in the text, which is identical to those He
bestows upon believers today is, My presence will go with
you. Look at Exodus 33, 14. Exodus 33, 14. And He said, My presence shall go with Thee,
and I will give Thee rest." Our Lord is all-knowing. He's
God incarnate in the flesh. He's identified as Him who fills
all in all. Here He refers to His special
presence as the angel of Jehovah's presence. who had already in love and pity
saved and redeemed Moses at the Red Sea and would bear and carry
him all the rest of his life. In Isaiah 63, 9 it says this,
in their affliction he was afflicted and the angel of his presence
saved them. In his love and in his pity he
redeemed them and he bared them and carried them all the ways
of old. It was Christ who took them all through the wilderness.
It was Christ who was with them all the time. His presence never
left them. In this special presence of Christ
distinguish Moses and Israel from all the other nations around
them. Look at Exodus 33, 15-17. Just as it distinguishes us. Look at Exodus 33, 15-17. And He said unto him, If thy
presence go not with me, carry us not up hence. For wherein
shall it be known here, that I and thy people have found grace
in thy sight. Is it not in that thou goest
with us? So shall we be separated, I and thy people, from all the
people that are upon the face of the earth. Who made them to
differ? God? Christ? And the Lord said
unto Moses, I will do this thing also that thou hast spoken. For
thou hast found grace in my sight, and I know thee by name. Likewise,
the presence of Christ goes with believers every day. This is
the fulfillment of his promise just prior to his resurrection.
I am with you always, even to the end of the age. The Lord
never leaves his people. Now, there may be some dark days
for our sake, and we do. We go through times. We go through
times when sometimes we feel closer to the Lord than other
times. Let's be honest, because there is that time. We do. We
all go through that. But he never leaves us. He's ever present with us. Ever present. That's comforting
for God's people. Because no matter what we go
through, he said, I'll never leave you, nor forsake you. That's his promise to his people.
And again, remember in the Greek with that word never? Never,
not ever, never. It's in the triple. Triple negative,
the fact that He will never, ever leave His people. Ever. Turn, if you would, to John 14. Christ is in heaven presently,
but His special presence is nevertheless with His people in the person
of the Holy Spirit. Look at John 14, verses 15, to 18. If you love Me, keep My commandments.
And I will pray the Father, that He shall give you another Comforter,
that He may abide with you forever. Even the Spirit of Truth, whom
the world cannot receive, because it seeth Him not. And I know
what that's like. There was a time when I had no
clue about the Lord. I'm still just learning. But
I remember groping around in the darkness like that. Now I
can look back and see, at the time I had no clue. Now I just
marvel. Neither knoweth him, but ye know
him. You believer know him. He's been
revealed to you. He lives within us. The Holy
Spirit lives within us. For He dwells with you and shall
be in you. I will not leave you comfortless. That's a wonderful verse. I will
come to you. Remember, the sheep never ever
seeks the shepherd. This is the master. This is the
God-man mediator. This is God incarnate in the
flesh saying to his people, I will not leave you comfortless. I
will come to you. Why does he have to come to us?
Because none of us would seek him. He must come to us. Acts 18 says this, 1810, for
I am with thee. And no man shall set on thee
to hurt thee. For I have much people in the
city. Paul was told to go and preach in the city. And before
he even spoke a word to them, the Lord said, I have much people
in the city. Who are those much people? Those
are his sheep. Paul didn't have a clue who they
were, but he was told to go and preach Christ. to go and preach
Christ, and that he did. He went and preached Christ,
and the Lord drew in his sheep as he was pleased. Acts 23.11
says this, In the night following, the Lord stood by him and said,
Be of good cheer, Paul, for as thou hast testified of me in
Jerusalem, so must thou bear witness also at Rome. The Lord
was with him. The Lord was with Paul in his
bonds and in his chains. That gives us great comfort no
matter what comes our way, right? The Lord is with His people. The same angel of Jehovah's presence
who led Moses in the old covenant times does the same for His saints in the new covenant times as
their shepherd, as their shepherd. Turn, if you would, to Psalm
23. Psalm 23. Now, I often heard this psalm
read as an unbeliever, but now as a believer, I know
what it means. I didn't then. It sounded very poetic then,
very nice. Now it's so precious, so precious. The Lord, the self-existent one,
the eternal one, the Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green
pastures. He maketh me to do that. I was
a lost sheep before running wild. He's made me to lie down in green
pastures. Is it so with you? He makes us
to lie down in the green pastures of His Word, feasting on the
clover of His Word. He maketh me to lie down in green
pastures. He leadeth me beside the still
waters, the waters of His Word. He restoreth my soul. He leadeth
me in the path of righteousness for His name's sake. Yea, though
I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, He was with
me in my birth. He is with me in my conception.
He is with me in my birth. And He'll be with me in my death. And think, though, of this valley
of the shadow of death is now. We live in the land Brother Donnie
said, we live in the land of the dead, and we're going to
the land of the living. Yea, though I walk through the
valley of the shadow of death, I'll fear no evil, for thou art
with me. Remember, we looked at his presence,
he's always with us. For thou art with me. Thy rod
and thy staff, they comfort me. Thou preparest a table before
me in the presence of mine enemies, a gospel feast. that we feast
upon. Oh, and He prepares it right
in the midst of our enemies. Thou anointest my head with oil,
my cup breatheth over, surely goodness and mercy. I remember
one preacher saying this, the two sheepdogs of God, goodness
and mercy, shall follow me all the days of my life, and I will
dwell in the house of the Lord forever. Forever. And David's saying that's not
based upon any confidence in himself, but based upon the fact
that Jesus Christ is his Lord and Savior. That God is his Shepherd. The fourth blessing bestowed
by Christ to Moses in the text, which is identical to that which
he bestows on believers today is in verse 14, I will give you
rest. I will give you rest. And He
said, My presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest.
This was not physical rest which Christ promised Israel would
find in Canaan. Moses did not enter into that
rest. Rather, this rest is part of
the reward Moses received through forsaking the world and coming
to Christ and Him alone. Look at Hebrews 11. Hebrews 11,
verses 23 to 27. Christ is our exceeding reward,
beloved. And our rest is in Him, we know
that. He said, come unto me all ye
that labor and are heavily laden, and I'll give you rest. And He
gives us rest for our souls, doesn't He? Rest from our labors
and rest for our souls. But it's only in Christ, it's
nowhere else. I can find no rest in myself.
I didn't know what peace was until the Lord saved me. And
now I know. while Paul talks about the peace
that passes all understanding. I know now. I've experienced
it. It's incredible. And look at Hebrews 11, it says,
verse 23, By faith Moses, when he was born, was hid three months
of his parents, because they saw he was a proper child, and
they were not afraid of the king's commandment. By faith Moses,
when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's
daughter. Now there are some who say that he could have been
Pharaoh. Some commentators say that. He forsook it all. Choosing rather to suffer affliction
with the people of God than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for
a season. Esteeming the reproach of Christ's
greater riches than the treasures in Egypt. for he had respect
unto the recompense of the reward. By faith he forsook Egypt, not
fearing the wrath of the king, for he endured, as seeing him
who is invisible." Likewise, believers today receive the same
rest, an eternal rest, an eternal rest, which is only in Christ,
only in Christ and Him alone. Again, Christ exhorts us, come
to me, all ye who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give
you rest. And he does, doesn't he? And
it's marvelous. Rest for your souls. This is
the rest of peace and tranquility in the soul, the assurance of
salvation. The assurance of salvation, knowing,
knowing that it's not based upon me. But that is based upon Christ
and Him alone. He's my assurance. Now I may
doubt sometimes, right? We all do sometimes. Let's be
honest. But my hope and my rest is not
based upon my works or not based upon me. It's wholly in Christ
and Him alone. He's my hope. Vicki and I were
talking this week, and sometimes when we examine ourselves, and
when we think how holy and how righteous God is, I tremble sometimes,
beloved. But I know, I know that I'm safe
in Christ. And He, He has paid all that
God demanded for my sins. So my assurance is not in me.
My hope is not in me, it's in Christ alone. And this is why
we say, again, we say flee to Christ because he's the only
hope for sinners. Left to ourselves, we're perishing
our sins. But oh, what hope we have in
Christ. What assurance of salvation we
have in Christ. We have justification. through the righteousness of
Christ. The fact that my sins were placed upon him and that
that he satisfied God's justice for my sin and that he really
did do that. Oh, that's such comfort for the
believer. Such comfort. So when doubts do come or when
we're sold by different things, we can just look to Christ, right?
Just look to him. And him alone. and be thankful and praise God
that my salvation is not based upon me. It's not based upon
anything I do. And that's why, and I'm telling
you, I preach to myself, look to Christ, look to Christ. When
something arises up, look to Christ. I got to keep my eyes
on the Lord, because if I get my eyes on the circumstance,
then I must confess. Then I become
a mess. But I'm constantly reminded through
study and constantly reminded through reading the scriptures
to keep your eyes on Christ, Wayne. He's your hope. He's your
assurance. It's all in Him. It's all in
Him. And it's marvelous. It's marvelous. Wonderful salvation. Moses of
old and believers too have received all these blessings in and through
Christ alone. All these lessons we've looked
at are only in Christ. Nowhere else. Nowhere else. Oh, my. Will you receive them?
I pray the Lord make you willing. I pray he would make you willing
and that you trust Christ and him alone, for he is the end
of the law for righteousness, for those who believe, for those
who believe. And what does the believer say?
Praise his mighty name. Gracious Heavenly Father, we
are so thankful that our salvation, we who believe that our salvation
is not dependent upon anything we do, and that it is wholly
dependent upon Thee, and You alone, and what You did at Calvary's
cross, and oh, may we marvel that You left the glories of
heaven that you left and you redeemed, as we looked at this
morning, you redeemed your people. Christ has redeemed, scripture
declares, you have done it. Your people. From their sins. Oh, we may we think upon these
blessings today or this week as we go through this week that
we looked at tonight, may we think upon them, may we ponder
them. And may they be a blessing to
our souls in Jesus name. Amen.