The Names of the Cities of Refuge

Q: What does the Bible say about cities of refuge?

The cities of refuge in the Bible symbolize the refuge and safety found in Christ for sinners. The cities of refuge, as described in Joshua 20, were established to demonstrate both God's justice and mercy. They served as a type and picture of Jesus Christ, depicting how God provides safety and refuge for those who inadvertently sin. A manslayer, guilty of accidental death, could flee to one of these cities to find safety from the avenger of blood, paralleling how sinners must flee to Christ, who is our only refuge and source of salvation.

Q: How do we know Christ is our refuge?

Christ is our refuge as the only means of salvation and protection from sin's consequences. Christ is recognized as our refuge because He fulfills the role alluded to by the cities of refuge. Just as the manslayer was protected by entering the city, believers find safety by coming to Christ in faith. The uniqueness of Christ is emphasized by declaring that there is no other name under heaven by which humans can be saved. In Him, all who believe find not just a shelter from condemnation, but also access to mercy, acquittal from guilt, and a new righteous standing before God.

Q: Why is the holiness of Christ important for Christians?

The holiness of Christ is essential as He alone qualifies to be our Savior and as our sanctification. The holiness of Christ is crucial since it establishes Him as the only one capable of providing redemption for sinners. His infinite worth and divine nature mean that He is a perfect mediator for our sins. According to 1 Corinthians 1:30, Christ is made unto us wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption. This assures believers that they are counted as holy before God, not by their actions but through their union with Christ. In essence, our spiritual cleanliness and righteousness stem entirely from Him, underscoring the importance of His holiness in the believer's life.

Q: How does Christ provide fellowship with God?

Christ enables fellowship with God by removing barriers of sin and granting access to His presence. Through Christ, believers have direct access to God, a profound truth highlighted in the sermon. In the Old Testament, the veil separated God's people from His holy presence, but through Christ's sacrificial atonement, that veil has been removed. As articulated in John and Ephesians, our fellowship extends not only to God but also to each other as a community of believers, showcasing the unity and acceptance we have in Christ. This fellowship transcends all earthly divisions, emphasizing that all can come together as one in Him.

Q: What does it mean that Christ is our stronghold?

Christ as our stronghold signifies that He is our defense and protection against all adversities. Describing Christ as our stronghold illustrates the security and safety He provides to believers. In times of trouble, we find refuge in Him, echoing the psalmist who declared the Lord as his fortress. This means that we do not rely on our strength or understanding for protection but instead trust in Christ's power to defend us. As believers, it is essential to recognize that He is our shield and our defense, alleviating the need for self-justification or defense against accusations.

While you're turning to Joshua
chapter 20, Let me call your attention to
a couple of things with regard to these cities of refuge that
are described for us in our text this evening. Many times in the
scriptures, as you read through the Old Testament, it's apparent
that certain laws given in Israel were given specifically for only
one purpose. And that one purpose was that
they might be types and pictures of Jesus Christ and the grace
of God and redemption that's found in Christ. There are some
aspects of the law that are certainly given because those things are
both pictures of Christ and useful in other ways. But this particular
type, this particular law given concerning the cities of refuge
clearly was given with only one purpose in mind. It had absolutely
no other function that I can see anyway. The cities of refuge
were established so that the manslayer whom the Lord God himself
describes in Deuteronomy chapter 19 as one who is not worthy of
death. He's not worthy of death because
he killed a man accidentally. And yet under law, he was under
the sentence of death. So why did God do that? Because
God would show us both his justice and his mercy, his truth and
his grace. The man who was guilty of murder
could not be allowed to go free. He could not be justified. But
in type and picture, here is a man who is guilty of manslaughter,
who under the law might be slain by the avenger of blood, but
now he flees to the city of refuge and there finds safety and refuge
and life because of the high priest who lives in that city
until the death of that high priest. Now, that was clearly
given specifically just to be a type and picture of our Lord
Jesus Christ. Here is another aspect of this
type of the cities of refuge that's so very, very important
to grasp. And that is the absolute totality
of God's sovereignty over the actions of men, even of wicked
men who know him not. These cities of refuge were named,
specifically named, by pagan men who had no knowledge of God,
who had no understanding of the things of God, named before the
children of God inhabited the land. But they were named and
given specific names which in themselves typify and portray
our Lord Jesus Christ. Now, our subject this evening
is the names of the cities. Read with me in Joshua 20, beginning
at verse 7. And they appointed Kadesh in
Galilee, in Mount Naphtali, and Shechem in Mount Ephraim, and
Kirjeth Arba, which is Hebron, in Mount Judah, or in the mountain
of Judah. And on the other side of Jordan,
by Jericho eastward, they assigned Bezer in the wilderness upon
the plain out of the tribe of Reuben, and Ramoth in Gilead
out of the tribe of Gad. and Golan invasion out of the
tribe of Manasseh. Now, let me refresh your memories.
The manslayer in Israel, that man who was guilty of having
accidentally slain another man, that man who by, without forethought,
without malice, without intent, killed another man. would flee
from the avenger of blood. And he must flee to one of these
six cities of refuge and there find safety if he would have
his life spared from the avenger of blood. Even so, all who would
be saved by the grace of God must flee to Jesus Christ, the
refuge. Lead to him by faith as that
refuge whom the Lord God has appointed for guilty sinners.
There is no other refuge but Christ. Neither is there salvation
in any other, for there is none other name given under heaven
among men whereby we must be saved. The only refuge for our
souls is Jesus Christ the Lord. He's the only refuge for you
who need God's mercy and grace, for you who are under the wrath
of God. There's no hope for your soul except Jesus Christ. But more than that, he is the
only refuge for you and I who are believers for the consolation,
strength, and comfort of our hearts during this pilgrimage
here. I could not help but to think as reading that seventh
chapter Romans and discussing the horrible conflict and warfare
every believer experiences with sin in his members. Our only
refuge, our only recourse is to Jesus Christ the Lord. We
dare not try to find consolation for ourselves when we look at
our sin, when we consider our corruption, when we consider
the depravity of our hearts and the evil of our deeds. We dare
not try to find some peace looking back to an experience or to a
religious ceremony or to church membership or to our good deeds.
We recognize, believers do, the unbeliever does not, but believers
recognize that our best works are abominations before God.
Our best works are corruption. Our best thoughts are nothing
but sin. Well, where do we find consolation?
We walk by faith. Not by sight. That's what you
read in the last verse, Romans 8 to 1. There's therefore now
no condemnation to them that are in Christ Jesus, who walk
not after the flesh, but after the spirit. What is it to walk
after the spirit? It is to walk looking to Jesus
Christ alone as our only hope before God, our only refuge. We flee continually away to Jesus
Christ. Salvation is obtained only by
fleeing to Christ. There's no other place of mercy,
no other place of peace, no other place of safety, no other place
of rest for the manslayer until he goes through the gates into
the city of refuge. It wouldn't do him a bit of good.
Wouldn't do him one bit of good to stand outside the gates of
the city and admire the gates and say, boy, those are beautiful
gates. Wouldn't do him any good to defend the city. Wouldn't
do him any good to know all the historic data about the city.
to be able to describe and locate all the provisions in the city.
The only place of refuge for his soul is through the gates
in the city. Will you please understand me?
Salvation is not in knowing all about Christ. Salvation's in
Christ. Salvation's not being able to
defend the doctrine of Christ. Salvation is taking refuge in
Jesus Christ the Lord. There is no salvation until you
get to Christ. So don't stop short of Him. Don't
let Satan deceive you with anything that would cause you to stop
short of getting to Jesus Christ, the only refuge for your soul.
Now, once the manslayer entered into the city, if he would be
saved entering into that city, five things happened. First,
we're told in Deuteronomy 19 that he would enter into the
city and declare his cause. Oh, come this day to Christ the
Lord and declare your cause. Mercy. That's all. God be merciful to me a sinner.
If we confess our sin, he's faithful and just to forgive us our sin
and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. And then that man who came into
the city and declared his cause came under the protection of
the city. He came under the protection
of God's high priest. There is therefore now no condemnation. Blessed is the man to whom the
Lord will not impute sin. Will you understand what I'm
saying? If you enter into Christ by faith, if you call upon the
Son of God, if you come to Jesus Christ, if this moment where
you are, you look to Christ alone as your righteousness, your salvation,
your redemption, your atonement, look to him alone, there is right
now no condemnation and forever no condemnation. And thirdly,
that man who entered into the city and declared his cause,
coming under the protection of the city, received a complete
acquittal from all guilt." What'd you do? Nothing as far as you're
concerned. Nothing as far as you're concerned. The law declares, here, I'm innocent. I'm acquitted of all charges.
There is none who shall lay anything to the charge of God's arrest.
The Lord God declares, I am he that blotteth out thy transgressions
as a thick cloud. But wait a minute, there's a
dead man out yonder in the woods. I know it. And I'm so sorry. But as far
as the law is concerned, I've done nothing. We're guilty, yes. Corrupt, yes. Vile, yes. Abominable, yes. Sinners, yes. Bless God as far
as his law is concerned. As far as God's concerned. For
as much as we despise the sin, I'm not guilty of it. Can you
get hold of that? Not guilty of it. Forgiven of
all sin. That's forgiveness we can't even
begin to, we can't even begin to imagine it even though we've
experienced it. Because we can't practice such
forgiveness. But the Lord God has blotted
out our transgressions. And that center, that manslayer
coming into the city of refuge, like the sinner coming to Jesus
Christ, comes declaring his cause, comes under the protection of
God's high priest, receives complete acquittal from all guilt, is
made clean and stands righteous before God. Made clean in Jesus Christ the
Lord. He has washed us in His blood. He has robed us with His righteousness. And not only has He imputed righteousness
to us, the believer is made a new creature in Christ and He's put
something in us we didn't have before. He's given us a righteous
nature, made clean in Christ Jesus. And now that one who comes
into the city of refuge is safe and secure. Secure so long as
the high priest lives. Secure because the high priest
does not die. And you and I, children of God,
are secure as long as Jesus Christ, God's darling son, sits upon
the throne of glory. When Jesus Christ can be crucified
again, then one of those for whom Christ dies shall perish,
but not till then. That means security is a matter
of absolute certainty. Now, none of those benefits were
the privileges that belonged to the manslayer until he entered
into the city of refuge. The manslayer standing outside
the gate could not claim any of those things. If he did, he
was fooling himself. If he did, he was deluding himself.
He would stand up there and say, I'm all right, I'm right here
at the gates of the city. And the avenger of blood comes and
takes his life. Now listen to me. You dare not
assume to yourself any of those privileges, any of those benefits,
any of those blessings, until you lay hold of Christ. And laying
hold of Christ, Lord God will give you grace and faith to lay
hold of him right now, right this second. Those privileges
are yours as surely as they belong to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
As surely as they belong to Paul, Peter, and James. They're yours
in Christ Jesus. Now tonight, I want to refer
you again to the names of these cities and show you how that
in their very names, these cities are a portrayal and type of our
Lord Jesus Christ. I have, on other occasions, I'm
certain, given you the names of the cities and their meanings,
but let's look at them a little closer this evening. The first
city is Kadesh. Just keep your Bibles open here
to Joshua 20. The word Kadesh, this name means holy, holy. The Lord Jesus Christ is holy. The only man who ever lived who
really is holy, the only one. Adam was innocent. Adam was upright. Adam was made righteous after
abasement. But here is a man who is holy,
both as God and as man. He is the holy God, the holy
Lord God. He is not only God who is holy,
but he's man. And therefore, this man's holiness
is a holiness of infinite worth and of infinite value before
God Almighty. That makes him, Bob Foster, just
the kind of man you need to save your soul. He's God man. We have such an high priest who
is not touched with the feeling of our infirmities, but is holy,
or who is touched with the feeling of our infirmities, and is holy,
harmless, undefiled, and separate from sinners. The Lord Jesus
in Psalm 16 describes himself as that one who is laid in the
grave, who having been made to be sin for us, but then having
put away sin by the virtue of his sacrifice, he says, thou
wilt not leave my soul in hell, neither wilt thou suffer thine
holy one to see corruption. Jesus Christ is the Holy One. Not only is he holy and thus
qualified to be our Savior and our Redeemer, the Lord Jesus
Christ is that one who makes his people holy and righteous
before God. Turn to 1 Corinthians chapter
6. Hold your hands here in Joshua, but turn to 1 Corinthians chapter
1, I'm sorry, not chapter 6. This very, very familiar text
of Scripture. I get letters all the time and
folks, you get all the time about this matter of our sanctification
and our insistence that Christ is all our righteousness and
all our holiness. Listen to 1 Corinthians 1.30.
Now, I wish fellows would just, I'm not concerned about theologians,
I'm concerned about you, just forget, just forget all the nonsense
people talk about when it comes to religion and to doctrine and
to righteousness. You ain't got any righteousness.
I meant to say you ain't got any, because I want you to hear
it. You don't have any righteousness. You don't have any ability to
perform righteousness. You can't do good because we're
sinners. Therefore we can't do good. Our
only hope of being righteous is to be made righteous in Jesus
Christ the Lord Therefore the Apostle says in 1st Corinthians
1 30 of him. Are you in Christ Jesus? If you
this moment Merle heart are in Christ if you flee to him to
your refuge God put you there God gave you grace and brought
you into this blessed rest who of God has made unto us wisdom
and righteousness and sanctification and redemption. What's that mean? That means we're holy in him.
That means he is our holiness. He is our righteousness. All
right, look at the next name, Shechem. Shechem means the shoulder. The shoulder. When you want to
look at one who is a man of war, the captain of our salvation.
You look for a man whose shoulders are broad and strong. Jesus Christ
is that man who is God, whose shoulders are broad and strong.
The scripture declares that Jesus Christ carried the enormous load
of our sin and our guilt in his body upon the curse tree for
the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. And when
he carried our sin in his body on the tree, he put away our
sin by the sacrifice of himself. The scripture also declares in
Isaiah chapter nine and verse six that the government shall
be upon his shoulder. the government of the universe,
the government of all nations on his shoulders, more than that,
the government of his church and his kingdom. He's the only
lawgiver in Zion. He's the only one who determines
what we believe, what we do, what we practice, how we behave.
His word is his revealed will. And by that, we are ruled and
governed. The Lord Jesus Christ is described in Luke chapter
15 as that good shepherd. I suppose this is my favorite
picture of it. That good shepherd who steps from his lofty throne
in glory and goes through the agony of death itself and comes
to find his lost sheep. And when he's found his lost
sheep, he says, little sheep, little sheep, I've come to save
you, if only you'll decide for me. No, he's a good shepherd. And
a good shepherd doesn't leave it up to the sheep whether or
not his life is in jeopardy. The good shepherd doesn't leave
it to the sheep whether or not he slips off into hell. Oh no,
the good shepherd lays hold of his sheep and lays it on his
shoulders and carries it all the way home. And when he comes
home, he rejoices and says, look here, here's my sheep that was
lost. I found him and now he's safe
forever. Look at the third name, Hebron. Oh, what a blessed name. Christ
our refuge is our Hebron. That means fellowship. John said,
truly our fellowship is with the father and with his son,
Jesus Christ. In Christ, sinners have access
to God. And we who are far off from God,
we who could not approach God, we whom God himself could never
approach apart from this mediator, we now are brought by and to
God and have fellowship with the eternal God in Jesus Christ
the Lord. Fellowship with God. Can you
imagine that? Fellowship with God. In the Old
Testament, there was always a veil hanging between the holy place
and the most holy place. Back yonder behind that thick
veil sat God, Shekinah glory on the mercy seat, typifying
God on His throne, typifying God seated in the heavens high
above us. And no man can go into that place
except the high priest once a year. And he only with incense to cover
up and make a cloud and with the blood of sacrifice to make
atonement. And just as soon as he made his business, he got
out of that place lest he be slain. He was entering into the
presence of God. We come freely and boldly to
God himself. not trembling and fearfully,
lest we make some mistake, but freely and boldly, for we have
access to and acceptance with God in Jesus Christ the Lord.
More than that, we have access to and fellowship with one another
in Christ Jesus the Lord, so that we who are by nature enemies. In Colossians chapter three,
the apostle describes Jew and Gentile Barbarian, Scythian,
bond and free, male and female, black and white. And he said,
now in Christ, Christ is all in all. So that all national
barriers, all social barriers, all economic barriers, all those
things that divide me, we come together in Christ on one footing.
We come together in Christ sinners, sinners, not me. Well, you ain't
welcome. I mean to tell you, you ain't
welcome. We come together in Christ, sinners. And sinners
are welcome. And we come on that one footing,
our sinnerhood, accepted with God through Jesus Christ the
Lord, we have fellowship. Oh, sweet, sweet fellowship. And the only time there's ever
any disruption in the fellowship is when somebody forgets he's
a sinner. When somebody forgets our only acceptance with God
is Christ the Lord. Look at this next word. It means a fortified place. I
will say of the Lord, David wrote, he is my refuge and my fortress,
my God, in him will I trust. The wise man said, the name of
the Lord is a strong tower, the righteous runneth into it and
is safe. The Lord Jesus Christ, is the
fortress and defense of his people. The stronghold in which prisoners
of hope are secured. He alone is our defense. He alone
is our shield. Let us be wise and not try to
defend ourselves from anything or anyone. Let us be wise and
not try to shield ourselves from anything or anyone. I got a carping
letter yesterday, the day before yesterday, I guess. Oh, three
or four pages, typed it in single space, edge to edge. The fellow
really wanted to straighten me out. And I used to, I used to
answer the letters, hang on to them three or four days, and
then throw them away after I got done fuming. Anymore, I just, I sat
down and wrote him, said, I received your letter, read it, have a
good day. Now you imagine reading, well,
the audacity of that man. I don't need to defend myself.
I don't need to defend the gospel I preach. I don't need to defend
you, this congregation. I don't need to defend what we
believe or do. Oh no, Christ is our defense.
And if there's anything to be defended, he'll take care of
it. And if not, it doesn't need to be defended. Me, you, or anybody
else. Look at the next word. Ramoth. This word means exalted. The
Lord Jesus Christ is our exalted savior. God also hath highly
exalted him. Lord God put everything
in his son. He put all things in the hands
of his son. He gave his son to have dominion
over everything because his son has redeemed and saved his people.
And now the God-man, our Savior, sits upon the exalted throne
of glory, ruling and disposing of everything for the saving
of his people and the glory of his name. His name is exalted. Our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ,
is not only exalted as our Savior, but he is that one by whom we
have been exalted from our lowest state of sin and death and corruption
to sit among princes as the sons of God. Turn to Ephesians 2,
Ephesians chapter 2. Paul has described how we were
dead in trespasses and sins, how we all had our conversation
in time past in the lust of our flesh, fulfilling the desires
of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of
wrath, just exactly like everybody else. And here's the only difference
between you and all the multitudes in hell. The only difference
between you who believe God and your brothers and sisters in
your family, your mothers and fathers, your sons and daughters
who do not believe God. But God. But God. Oh, thank God for his
sovereign interposition of himself. in our lives to stop us in our
mad rush to hell. But God, who is rich in mercy,
for his great love wherewith he loved us. Since he loved us,
he wouldn't let us perish. Since he loved us, he wouldn't
let us have our way. Since he loved us, he would not
leave us to ourselves. Even when we were dead in sin,
has quickened us together with Christ. What does that mean?
By grace, you're saved. That's what that means. and hath
raised us up together and made us sit together in heavenly places
in Christ, that in the ages to come he might show the exceeding
riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. Since Christ is the one whom
God has exalted and the one in whom and by whom and through
whom we are exalted, Christ is the one we exalt and we shall
spend eternity doing so. In Revelation chapter 5, John
describes that picture of the redeemed of the Lord seated around
the throne. And as they cast their crowns
at his feet, they sing unto the Lord Jesus Christ, thou art worthy,
thou art worthy to take the book and to open the seals thereof,
for thou was slain and has redeemed us to God by thy blood out of
every kindred and tongue and people and nation, and has made
us unto our God kings and priests. Such things as we are, he made
kings and priests, and we shall reign forever. Look at the sixth
city. The name of the city is Golan.
It means revealed or manifested. The Lord Jesus Christ, the Apostle
Paul tells us is God manifest in the flesh. Jesus Christ is
that one who is himself the revelation of God. And He is that One who
is revealed in us to the saving of our souls, in whom God is
made known. The only way you and I could
ever know God is if God should reveal Himself to us by His Word,
Christ Jesus. And now, through the Gospel,
the glory of God is made to shine forth in the face of Jesus Christ
So we read the word and we see the glory of God in the face
of Christ. We hear the gospel and you see the glory of God
in the face of Christ. And your wife sits beside you. She kind of goes along with it,
but she can't. Glory of God in the face of Jesus
Christ. They can't behold the things
of God because they have no eyes to see. The believer beholds
God's glory in all its fullness in Jesus Christ the Lord because
his name is manifested. Now it's my prayer that the Lord
God will be pleased this day to bring you to Christ's refuge
and teach us by his grace continually to take refuge in him and in
him alone. The hymn writer put it well.
Other refuge have I not. Hangs my helpless soul on thee. Leave, oh leave me not alone. Still support and comfort me. Hide me, oh my savior hide, till
the storm of life be past. Safe into the haven guide. Oh, receive my soul at last. Amen.

The Names of the Cities of Refuge

What does the Bible say about cities of refuge?

How do we know Christ is our refuge?

Why is the holiness of Christ important for Christians?

How does Christ provide fellowship with God?

What does it mean that Christ is our stronghold?

Sermon Transcript

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The Names of the Cities of Refuge

What does the Bible say about cities of refuge?

How do we know Christ is our refuge?

Why is the holiness of Christ important for Christians?

How does Christ provide fellowship with God?

What does it mean that Christ is our stronghold?

Sermon Transcript

About Don Fortner

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