Title: Sanctification by God Leading Us
Text: Exodus 13: 17-21
Date: June 24, 2018
Place: SGBC, NJ
Exodus 13 begins with God
telling Moses to sanctify the firstborn to him, “they are mine.” This whole
chapter shows us something of sanctification.
Sanctification—holiness—is the
doctrine where so many turn believers from Christ back to the law; from Mt.
Zion back to Mt. Sinai; from liberty back to bondage. But sanctification is all of GOD, apart from
our works: by God the Father electing a people by which he set us apart unto
himself as his own possession, by Christ Jesus the Son of God fulfilling God’s
will and perfecting forever all them that are sanctified by his one offering
and by the Holy Spirit regenerating us in the new birth through “the hearing of faith,” the hearing of
the gospel of Christ, not by the hearing of works.
This time, we see “Sanctification
by God Leading Us”
Exodus
13: 17: And it came to pass,
when Pharaoh had let the people go, that God led them not through the
way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near; for God
said, Lest peradventure the people repent when they see war, and they return to
Egypt: 18: But God led the
people about, through the way of the wilderness of the Red sea: and the
children of Israel went up harnessed out of the land of Egypt. 19: And Moses took the bones of Joseph
with him: for he had straitly sworn the children of Israel, saying, God will
surely visit you; and ye shall carry up my bones away hence with you. 20: And they took their journey from
Succoth, and encamped in Etham, in the edge of the wilderness. 21: And the LORD went before them by
day in a pillar of a cloud, to lead them the way; and by night in a pillar of
fire, to give them light; to go by day and night: 22: He took not away the pillar of the cloud by day, nor the
pillar of fire by night, from before the people.
Proposition: God keeps his
people sanctified unto him by leading us by day and by night by Christ our
risen Head through the Holy Spirit.
KEPT
IN THE WAY OF HOLINESS BY GOD LEADING US
Exodus 13: 17: And
it came to pass, when Pharaoh had let the people go, that God led them…
When God freed them, he began leading them
to himself to his land that he promised to give them. When born of the Spirit, God translates us into
the way of holiness and begins leading us to him in his holy habitation, that
land GOD has promised his people.
Hebrews 10: 14: For by one offering he hath
perfected for ever them that are sanctified. 15: Whereof the Holy Ghost also is a witness to us: for
after that he had said before, 16:
This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, saith
the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write
them; 17: And their sins and
iniquities will I remember no more. 18:
Now where remission of these is, there is no more offering for sin.
God makes his covenant of grace with each
of his people by the Holy Spirit bearing witness in our hearts that Christ
sanctified us as he justified us on the cross. God writes on our new heart the
law of sanctification and justification by Christ, the law of redemption by
Christ, the law of repentance from dead works and faith in Christ. So we cease
working for forgiveness and begin being led to holy God in his holy place in
the land of promise.
Hebrews 10: 19: Having therefore, brethren,
boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, 20: By a new and living way, which he
hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh; 21: And having an high priest
over the house of God; 22 Let us draw near [to holy God in the holiest
of holies in heaven] with a true heart [a holy, sanctified heart] in full
assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our
bodies washed with pure water.
Before we arrive in the promised land, we
must go through this wilderness called life. But God leads his sanctified child
in the way of holiness.
Isaiah 35: 5: Then the eyes of the blind shall be
opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. 6: Then shall the lame man leap as an hart, and the tongue
of the dumb sing: for in the wilderness shall waters break out, and streams in
the desert. 7: And the parched
ground shall become a pool, and the thirsty land springs of water: in the
habitation of dragons, where each lay, shall be grass with reeds and
rushes. 8: And an highway shall
be there, and a way, and it shall be called The way of holiness;
Christ is the Way of Holiness in which we
travel through this wilderness.
Isaiah 35: 8:…the
unclean shall not pass over it; but it shall be for those:
Christ is the Way of holiness only for those
he has made holy in his blood and the Spirit washes in regeneration.
Isaiah 35: 8:…the
wayfaring men, though fools, shall not err therein.
We are fools by nature, still full of sin
in our flesh, but we shall not err because we are led by his guiding hand.
Isaiah 35: 9: No lion shall be there, nor any
ravenous beast shall go up thereon, it shall not be found there;
The devil cannot harm us in Christ the Way.
Isaiah 35: 9:…but
the redeemed shall walk there:
We shall not run in haste and fear of the
enemy, but we shall walk calmly because we are protected every step of the way.
Isaiah 35: 10:
And the ransomed of the LORD shall return, and come to Zion with songs and
everlasting joy upon their heads: they shall obtain joy and gladness, and
sorrow and sighing shall flee away.
Christ said he will lose none of those he
ransomed by his blood. By his comfort we shall be comforted and sorrow and sighing
shall flee away.
CHRIST
LEADS US
Exodus
13: 21: And the LORD went before
them by day in a pillar of a cloud, to lead them the way; and by night in a
pillar of fire, to give them light; to go by day and night: 22: He took not away the pillar of the
cloud by day, nor the pillar of fire by night, from before the people.
Christ is not only the way, he is the one
who leads us. The pillar of a cloud and
the pillar of fire is Christ. Our risen
Redeemer leads his dear children alone.
Isaiah 48:17: Thus
saith the LORD, thy Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel; I am the LORD thy God
which teacheth thee to profit, which leadeth thee by the way that thou shouldest
go.
Isaiah 4:2: In that day shall the branch of the
LORD be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the earth shall
be excellent and comely for them that are escaped of Israel. 3:
And it shall come to pass, that he that is left in Zion,
and he that remaineth in Jerusalem, shall be called holy, even every
one that is written among the living in Jerusalem: 4: When the Lord
shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, and shall have
purged the blood of Jerusalem from the midst thereof by the spirit of judgment,
and by the spirit of burning. 5: And the LORD will create upon
every dwelling place of mount Zion, and upon her assemblies, a cloud and smoke
by day, and the shining of a flaming fire by night: for upon all the
glory shall be a defence. 6: And there shall be a
tabernacle for a shadow in the daytime from the heat, and for a place of
refuge, and for a covert from storm and from rain.
Psalms 23: 1: The
LORD is my shepherd;
I shall not want. 2: He
maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. 3: He restoreth my soul: he
leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. 4: Yea, though I walk through
the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with
me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. 5: Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of
mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. 6: Surely goodness and
mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of
the LORD for ever.”
Christ shall not forsake us in the way—“He took not away the pillar of the cloud by
day, nor the pillar of fire by night, from
before the people.”
Nehemiah 9:19: Yet
thou in thy manifold mercies forsookest them not in the wilderness: the pillar
of the cloud departed not from them by day, to lead them in the way; neither
the pillar of fire by night, to show them light, and the way wherein they
should go.
Christ has sworn, “I will never leave thee nor forsake thee.” That is the promise of
our Redeemer who shed his precious blood for us.
Psalms 27:10: When my father and my mother
forsake me, then the LORD will take me up.
Christ leads all us Jacobs all the way at
every moment and keeps us at all times.
Deuteronomy 32:10:
He found him in a desert land, and in the waste howling wilderness; he led him
about, he instructed him, he kept him as the apple of his eye.
Therefore brethren let us not live in this
world clawing to get gain like the rest of the world. He says
Hebrews 13:5: Let
your conversation be without covetousness; and
be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never
leave thee, nor forsake thee. 6: So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my
helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.
THE
LORD LEADS IN THE BEST WAY
Exodus 13: 17: And
it came to pass, when Pharaoh had let the people go, that God led them not through
the way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near; for God
said, Lest peradventure the people repent when they see war, and they return to
Egypt: 18: But God led the
people about, through the way of the wilderness of the Red sea…
Christ intercedes for us to be
kept.
John 17: 9: I pray
for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for
they are thine…15: I pray not
that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep
them from the evil.
And it is the risen GodMan our
Head that keeps his people sanctified from the evil.
Exodus 23: 20: Behold, I send an Angel before
thee, to keep thee in the way, and to bring thee into the place which I have
prepared.
That means he does not always lead
us the nearest way—“God led them not through the way of the land of the
Philistines, although that was
near.”
How often do we desire
something to happen now? We want the
nearest way, fastest. But in his good providence God does not lead us the way
we think we should go. He is keeping us
sanctified from the evil because he knows what each of his children will do—“for God said, Lest peradventure the people repent
when they see war, and they return to Egypt.” If God had led
them the nearest way they would have been attacked by the Philistines. God knew as soon as they saw war, they would turn
and run back to Egypt. Therefore, though it be long, Christ
leads us the way best for us—“But God led
the people about, through the
way of the wilderness of the Red sea.”
When I first began to think the
Lord would use me to preach, I asked a pastor what to do. He said, “Don’t tell
a soul. Wait on the Lord.” The LORD took
me the long way. It was 5 more years before I preached the first time and 8 more
years after that before the LORD called me to pastor. The LORD knew I was a novice. He knew if I was
attacked, I would go backwards. So he did not take me the way that was near. He
took me the long way to teach me to trust him, to preach Christ and him
crucified and to wait on the Lord to work in his people. It was the right way. Brethren, do not become discouraged when he
takes you the long way. He is keeping
you sanctified from the evil.
Also, often the Lord takes from us that which is dearest to us and
it causes us much sorrow. When our
children were very little, I would see them take hold of something and I would
take it from them. They would cry. But I
knew it would harm them; that is why I took it away. They always came to me
with both arms out, crying, and I would take them up and comfort them. Brethren,
we often grip God’s gifts and let go of the Giver. So God takes away that which is so dear to
us. We cry! But he knows it would harm us. So he takes it
away to keep us running to him alone. Then he takes us up and comforts us. He is keeping us sanctified from the evil.
Psalm
121: 3: He will not suffer thy
foot to be moved: he that keepeth thee will not slumber. 4: Behold, he that keepeth Israel
shall neither slumber nor sleep. 5:
The LORD is thy keeper: the LORD is thy shade upon thy right
hand. 6: The sun shall not smite
thee by day, nor the moon by night. 7:
The LORD shall preserve thee from all evil: he shall preserve thy soul. 8: The LORD shall preserve thy going
out and thy coming in from this time forth, and even for evermore.
So brethren as we journey
through this wilderness, remember the words of our Lord,
Isaiah 43:1: 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. 2: When thou passest through the waters, I will
be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee:
when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the
flame kindle upon thee. 3:
For I am the LORD thy God, the Holy One of Israel,
thy Saviour: I gave Egypt for thy ransom, Ethiopia and Seba
for thee. 4: Since
thou wast precious in my sight, thou hast been honourable, and I have loved
thee: therefore will I give men for thee, and people for thy life. 5: Fear not: for I am with
thee: I will bring thy seed from the east, and gather thee from the west; 6: I will say to the north,
Give up; and to the south, Keep not back: bring my sons from far, and my
daughters from the ends of the earth; 7: Even every one that is called by my name: for I
have created him for my glory, I have formed him; yea, I have made him.
KEPT
UNITED TO OUR BRETHREN
Exodus 13: 18:...and the children of
Israel went up harnessed out of the land of Egypt.
The LORD keeps those he has
separated sanctified and united to each other.
In this world, the closest thing we have to Christ in body, to touch and
hold and express our love towards, are brethren in Christ.
This harnessed
state of Israel alluded to the church of God in this world, which is described
as an army with banners coming up out of the wilderness (Song of Solomon 6:4;
8:5). But the margin here reads by “five
in a rank.” They came up as soldiers in ranks. But the word is in the passive
participle. They were harnessed not by their own hands, but by the hand of God
their Deliverer. Five is commonly used in Scripture to represent grace (Five
Offerings — Five Feasts).
Brethren, we are a people harnessed by grace,
harnessed by our God, brought out of bondage and harnessed as a band of
soldiers, but we are not soldiers who fight the battle! Yes, we must fight the
good fight of faith. We are at war with the world, the flesh and the devil. But the victory was won for us by Christ our
Redeemer, who brought us out of the house of bondage and death long ago when he
destroyed Satan and led captivity captive, as the Captain of our Salvation!
At times the Lord leads us
face-to-face with the enemy. He did that to Israel at the Red Sea. We behold
our utter weakness. But that is when the Lord uses our brethren, as he did
Moses, to remind us to
stand still and see the salvation of the Lord. Then
the Lord makes us behold his strong hand as he fights for us and makes us
overcome
Exodus 14:19: And
the angel of God, which went before the camp of Israel, removed and went behind
them; and the pillar of the cloud went from before their face, and stood behind
them: 20: And
it came between the camp of the Egyptians and the camp of Israel; and it was a
cloud and darkness to them, but it gave light by night to
these: so that the one came not near the other all the night.”
The pillar of fire was darkness to the
Egyptians, though it was light to Israel. So Christ is the salvation, joy and
comfort of his people, and a stumbling-stone and rock of offense to those who
believe not. There is nothing common or universal about the work of
Christ. What he does he does for his elect alone, and he does effectually. So Christ keeps us sanctified by teaching us to fear him
and not anything or anyone else.
Deuteronomy 1: 29:
Then I said unto you, Dread not, neither be afraid of them. 30: The LORD your
God which goeth before you, he shall fight for you, according to all that he
did for you in Egypt before your eyes; 31: And in the wilderness, where thou
hast seen how that the LORD thy God bare thee, as a man doth bear his son, in
all the way that ye went, until ye came into this place…
And in all this the LORD uses
our brethren to whom we are harnessed to remind us of this good news. When one
is troubled and doubting, the LORD has strengthened another to speak a word in
season to the troubled brother. Next time, it will be the other strengthening
the other. Oh, how good to be united to brethren in the Way of holiness!
CHRIST
IS THE WAY OF HOLINESS INTO THE PROMISED LAND
Exodus 13: 19: And Moses took
the bones of Joseph with him: for he had straitly sworn the children of Israel,
saying, God will surely visit you; and ye shall carry up my bones away hence
with you.
Genesis 50: 24: And Joseph said unto his brethren,
I die: and God will surely visit you, and bring you out of this land unto the
land which he sware to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. 25: And Joseph took an oath of the children of Israel, saying, God
will surely visit you, and ye shall carry up my bones from hence. 26: So Joseph died, being an
hundred and ten years old: and they embalmed him, and he was put in a coffin in
Egypt.
Joseph was not buried in a tomb but in an
Egyptian sarcophagus. He was second in command in Egypt behind
Pharaoh so it was probably gold and ornate sarcophagus. It was kept visible so
that the children of Israel could see it or at least see where it lay. So every time they looked toward
Joseph’s coffin they remembered his promise, “God will surely visit you.” For
all those 430 years in bondage in Egypt, that coffin kept them in remembrance
and cheered their hearts to wait on the Lord to come and deliver them. Then 430
years to the day, just as Joseph promised, the Lord visited them and delivered
them out of Egypt. So they did as they
swore to Joseph they “carried up his
bones away hence with them.”
Brethren, Christ promised us that he would
come again and deliver us from this world.
Colossians 3:4: When
Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in
glory.
Hebrews 9:28: So
Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for
him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation.
But we have something far better than what
they had! We do not have a coffin but an empty tomb! The Son of God, Christ Jesus succeeded in
redeeming every chosen child the Father entrusted to him. And because Christ fulfilled his covenant
promises to the Father, the Father also fulfilled his covenant promises to the
Son. Christ is risen, the glorified GodMan with all power in heaven and in
earth. As we journey through this
wilderness of Egypt that empty tomb keeps us in remembrance and cheers our
hearts to wait on our Lord to come and deliver us. But when he comes, he will be the one
carrying our bones out of this Egypt into the promised land.
Job 19: 25: For I know that my redeemer
liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth:
26: And though after my
skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God: 27: Whom I shall see for myself, and
mine eyes shall behold, and not another; though my reins be consumed
within me.
Philippians 3:21: Who
shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious
body, according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things
unto himself.
1 John 3: 2:
Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall
be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall
see him as he is.
Psalm 17:15: As
for me, I will behold thy face in righteousness: I shall be satisfied, when I
awake, with thy likeness.
Romans 8:29: For
whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of
his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.
1 Corinthians
15:49: And as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the
image of the heavenly.
In that day when the journey
is over we will say as the Psalmist said of Israel, Ps 107:7: And he led [us] forth by the right
way, that [we] might go to a city of habitation.
Amen!