Do You See What God Sees? 2
Notes
Transcript
The Bible is about Jesus:
Fall
Redemption
Restoration
God wants to restore our lives - He sees something in us, and wants us to set our sights upon what He has for us - Restored
It doesn’t matter this morning how broken you are - God can restore
It doesn’t matter what sin is in your life - God can forgive
It doesn’t matter how far you are from God - God can bridge the gap
I Spy Game - travel with the boys
Paul is trying to get this church to see what God sees in this church. Paul has addressed:
Marriage - the sanctity of marriage - Ch 7
Meat - helping others grow in grace through faith - Ch 8
Example - Did you see the example by which I lived before you? - Ch 9
Paul is going to come back to the discussion of meat, and before he does Paul lays some more ground work
He builds the foundation by using some types in our text.
What we mean by types is called typology (the study and interpretation of types and symbols)
Abraham & Isaac - when Abraham went to sacrifice Isaac, God provided a ram - this ram is a symbol or type of Jesus Christ
There are many of these in the OT - Isaac’s wife, Rebekah, being brought by the servant of Abraham to Isaac - beautiful symbol of salvation and the Holy Spirit bring us to Jesus Christ
Not everything in the OT is a type - I have heard some preach that the 5 stones David picked up to battles against Goliath were: the Bible, prayer, soul winning, separation, and church - or replaced by whatever else the preacher wanted to name the stones - this is mysticism (vague or ill-defined religious or spiritual belief, especially as associated with a belief in the occult) - Simply making the Bible say whatever you want to get off of your chest
Some of these types God clearly mentions later in the Bible, especially the NT, but not every occurance
These types are for an illustration to help us see the fall of man, redemption in Jesus, and/or the restoration God will bring
Paul here calls all the brethren to remember what God has done and desires to do.
Notice how many times he uses the word “all”
5 times
For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.
As we look at this portion of Scripture Paul carefully reminds us that he is speaking to all who are saved:
Jew & Gentile
Paul uses the exodus Israel and all those who chose to believe in God, as a powerful illustration of the inclusiveness for:
Salvation
Separation
Supply
Sorrow
Salvation
Salvation
Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea;
Paul uses the story found in Exodus 13-17 & Numbers 10-15 as illustration and typology
All our fathers
ALL
Why all?
He that feared the word of the Lord among the servants of Pharaoh made his servants and his cattle flee into the houses: And he that regarded not the word of the Lord left his servants and his cattle in the field.
7th plague - As the hail was foretold - some began to recognise Who the Lord is
8th plague - locusts
And Pharaoh’s servants said unto him, How long shall this man be a snare unto us? let the men go, that they may serve the Lord their God: knowest thou not yet that Egypt is destroyed?
God wanted the Egyptians to get saved
Some did get saved!
And a mixed multitude went up also with them; and flocks, and herds, even very much cattle.
God did not forbid or deny any of them to come with them
A religion will try to keep things private and hidden
A relationship is public and open
Under the cloud
To get under the cloud, the blood first was applied
Passover - blood of the lamb
Heb 9:12
Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.
The blood of the lamb was spilt, so they could be free!
Moses could not save them. The mighty miracles of Moses could not free them, but the blood saved them!
When the blood was applied, protection is made available
The cloud protected
Ex 13:21-22
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: He took not away the pillar of the cloud by day, nor the pillar of fire by night, from before the people.
The cloud brought protection from the heat of the sun in the wilderness
Ps 121:5-6
The Lord is thy keeper:
The Lord is thy shade upon thy right hand.
The sun shall not smite thee by day,
Nor the moon by night.
Same cloud that rested on the mercy seat in the tabernacle between the cherubims
Came to the temple years later as Solomon dedicated the temple to the Lord
Shekinah - that which dwells
This cloud was God Himself leading His people among His people
Protected them as they were about to cross the Red Sea
Ex 14:19-20
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: 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.
Rev 12:10
And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.
As the accuser, the Devil, casts blame at us
1 John 2:1-2
My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.
Our advocate, Jesus Christ, reminds God of His blood applied to the Mercy seat in Heaven:
Heb 12:24
And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel.
The blood Jesus shed for you and me speaks a language that we do not fully understand, but to the perfect, holy, and just God it cries out:
REDEEMED!
THEY HAVE BEEN CLEANSED FROM ALL THEIR SINS!
THE PRICE HAS BEEN PAID! BOUGHT WITH MY BLOOD!
God places us under His cloud, that shekinah glory, and protects us
Darkness to Satan and his demons, but light unto us!
Separation
Separation
Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea;
The people of Israel had crossed the Red Sea
Now we read in:
And it came to pass, that in the morning watch the Lord looked unto the host of the Egyptians through the pillar of fire and of the cloud, and troubled the host of the Egyptians, And took off their chariot wheels, that they drave them heavily: so that the Egyptians said, Let us flee from the face of Israel; for the Lord fighteth for them against the Egyptians. And the Lord said unto Moses, Stretch out thine hand over the sea, that the waters may come again upon the Egyptians, upon their chariots, and upon their horsemen. And Moses stretched forth his hand over the sea, and the sea returned to his strength when the morning appeared; and the Egyptians fled against it; and the Lord overthrew the Egyptians in the midst of the sea. And the waters returned, and covered the chariots, and the horsemen, and all the host of Pharaoh that came into the sea after them; there remained not so much as one of them. But the children of Israel walked upon dry land in the midst of the sea; and the waters were a wall unto them on their right hand, and on their left. Thus the Lord saved Israel that day out of the hand of the Egyptians; and Israel saw the Egyptians dead upon the sea shore. And Israel saw that great work which the Lord did upon the Egyptians: and the people feared the Lord, and believed the Lord, and his servant Moses.
Then sang Moses and the children of Israel this song unto the Lord, and spake, saying,
I will sing unto the Lord, for he hath triumphed gloriously:
The horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea.
The Lord is my strength and song,
And he is become my salvation:
He is my God, and I will prepare him an habitation;
My father’s God, and I will exalt him.
When the family of God crossed the Red Sea, there was reason to sing!
In Egypt there was slavery, sadness, and sorrow
BUT NOW! There was a reason to rejoice in gladness for the freedom God had brought them!
God had changed their lives forever!
They identified with that change
And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea;
Baptise - immersion
unto Moses - Paul used Moses as a picture of the law
For Moses describeth the righteousness which is of the law, That the man which doeth those things shall live by them.
For it is written in the law of Moses, Thou shalt not muzzle the mouth of the ox that treadeth out the corn. Doth God take care for oxen?
And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea;
Here’s where I land in context of the changes in the lives of the children of Israel:
God redeemed them through the blood, brought them into a relationship with Him as their Lord, Shepherd, and King, and now their lives would be immersed with the law identifying them as of the Lord.
This statement indicates where they stood in relation to the Lord
Paul used baptism here to illustrate the change of life
Baptism is a picture, an outward sign indicating the heart decision to trust in Christ as Saviour
There was a sense in which the newly redeemed people were now united with Moses in a new and living way. He was their head, they were his people. They were to be one with him. - John Phillips
We are baptised we are making the clear statement that Jesus is my Saviour and I am a part of God’s family.
This changes us. It causes us to think differently than the world thinks. Moves us to talk differently than the world thinks. Our actions begin to emulate the Saviour’s life more than the Devil’s lies. Our desires change to yearn for those things that bring good fruit in our lives.
Supply
Supply
And did all eat the same spiritual meat; And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ.
1 month after leaving Egypt they had already forgotten what Egypt was like - the prospect of death, the constant pressures of slavery, their cries and burdens
And the children of Israel said unto them, Would to God we had died by the hand of the Lord in the land of Egypt, when we sat by the flesh pots, and when we did eat bread to the full; for ye have brought us forth into this wilderness, to kill this whole assembly with hunger.
God responds with grace!
Then said the Lord unto Moses, Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you; and the people shall go out and gather a certain rate every day, that I may prove them, whether they will walk in my law, or no.
And had rained down manna upon them to eat,
And had given them of the corn of heaven.
Man did eat angels’ food:
He sent them meat to the full.
And when the children of Israel saw it, they said one to another, It is manna: for they wist not what it was. And Moses said unto them, This is the bread which the Lord hath given you to eat.
And the house of Israel called the name thereof Manna: and it was like coriander seed, white; and the taste of it was like wafers made with honey.
What provision!
The wilderness couldn’t provide a table in the wilderness, but God could!
Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life. I am that bread of life. Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are dead. This is the bread which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof, and not die. I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world. The Jews therefore strove among themselves, saying, How can this man give us his flesh to eat?
You and I need spiritual bread.
That spiritual bread God has given us is:
But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.
The Word of God is our spiritual bread - it is God’s supply!
Not only did God supply bread; He supplied water:
And all the congregation of the children of Israel journeyed from the wilderness of Sin, after their journeys, according to the commandment of the Lord, and pitched in Rephidim: and there was no water for the people to drink. Wherefore the people did chide with Moses, and said, Give us water that we may drink. And Moses said unto them, Why chide ye with me? wherefore do ye tempt the Lord? And the people thirsted there for water; and the people murmured against Moses, and said, Wherefore is this that thou hast brought us up out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and our cattle with thirst? And Moses cried unto the Lord, saying, What shall I do unto this people? they be almost ready to stone me. And the Lord said unto Moses, Go on before the people, and take with thee of the elders of Israel; and thy rod, wherewith thou smotest the river, take in thine hand, and go. Behold, I will stand before thee there upon the rock in Horeb; and thou shalt smite the rock, and there shall come water out of it, that the people may drink. And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel. And he called the name of the place Massah, and Meribah, because of the chiding of the children of Israel, and because they tempted the Lord, saying, Is the Lord among us, or not?
This rock is a powerful picture of Jesus Christ
So much about the rock could be said - Deuteronomy, 1 & 2 Samuel, Psalms, Isaiah, Matthew, 1 Peter, to name a few
This all pointed to Jesus Christ
Jesus would be smitten once on Calvary and out would flow the water of life - His atoning blood that is the price for our sins
He alone can satisfy our thirsty soul
O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee:
My soul thirsteth for thee,
My flesh longeth for thee
In a dry and thirsty land, where no water is;
Sorrow
Sorrow
But with many of them God was not well pleased: for they were overthrown in the wilderness.
What incredible things the multitude coming out of Egypt experienced!
Salvation!
Separate
Supply
Paul here is picturing 3 stages of the Christian life:
Coming out of Egypt - salvation - newborn babe
The wilderness - learning and growing in grace - child
Promised land - Christian begins investing into others - maturing and serving - adult
Many don’t see all that God has for them because of discontentment, worldly pleasures, or sin.
Paul wants them to see what God sees! A life filled with the blessings of God through battles, trials, and temptations.
God has a plan and wants us to see what He can restore!
Don’t miss it!
You may not see the beautifully restored car! But God does! You may just see the rust, the dents, the chipped paint, or the cracked windscreen, but God sees what He alone can do!
God wants you to enjoy the blessings of a life full of the promises of God! You can enjoy the taste of Heaven now!