Out of the Old, into the New: Your Exodus Life in 2018
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Dear Congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ,
All the calendars have them. A beginning and an end. Pagan idea of rebirth of a year, cyclical kind of thing - little progress, Stuck in this world skipping record player. Early church put a ban on new Year’s celebrations, as I mentioned the Christmas time of Saturnalia, and in fact they eventually put special services on that day to combat this point of view. Suppose in similar way we are saying tonight, this past year, our whole life, not just a skipping record, a year that belonged tot he LORD, sovereign in the big things, but also in the little things, every event of my life, not random, but end of a year, appropriate to mark it has been the LROD”s year. Like cathedral ringing bells - ANNO Domine, THE YEAR OF THE LORD. Time to remember as our gospel reading put it - not just pointless cycle but a step along teh way to the goal - Christ’s return, progress in this church, in this coutnry, or regress, but all part of a journey to the fulness of Christ’s kingdom ast his comoing. New Year’s Eve time to take a step back on the year, on our lives, on our world - recall this and recommit ourselves not to an oanther enedless cycle, but to the joureny, to the Eoxdus from the old Egypt of our lives to the Promised Land, To walking the new path that God has opened up in the wilderness!
This is indeeed how the jews mark the festival Rosh, the head of the year. Not with bells, but with trumpets, horns blowing the whole day ,even ion the Sabbath day, Whole idea was: ‘Rouse ye, rouse ye from your slumber; awake, awake from your sleep, you who mind vanity, for slumber most heavy has fallen upon you. Take it to heart, before Whom you are to give an account in the judgment.’ Probably what used in synaggoues for this time of year, and eachoes of it may be what we have in
for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light
This is also the call of our text for new Year’s eve this year in
TI - The Temple, its ministry and services as they were at the time of Jesus Christ.
Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.
AU - Edersheim, Alfred
I will make a highway for my chosen, elsewheree Isiah says, in the midst of the wildrness of thei9r lives. How are you doing walking that way, that new path, progress this passt year, challenges, get \bumpted ouff, are you still on the endless cyccle of the world, met great obstacles, have you made progress, journeyeed with other,s helped them, have you met Jesus on this path. Time to stake a step back
A) Take Stock of the Way Points of God’s Path in Your Life (; )
CY - London
PB - James Clarke & Co.
Notice in our text that though the command will be not to look back and be stuck remembering the former things, but to press on to the new things God’s doing, the promised deliverance things, the text still begins recounting past events that shaped God’s people. If we are going to make our lives not a pointless cycle but a journey that has its goal end point, its fruit, purpose and goal - Christ’s kingdom - then we need to trace our path back to the time God called us on to His path. Can you do that?
What is the starting point for Israel? in Vv.16-18 we see it was their life in distress in Egypt, there back against the Sea and the enemy pressing in - chaariots and horse and army and warrior bearing down on them - an God makes a way! Turn to with me. What is the actual start date of Israel’s steps on the infite journey - 1st Month, 15th Day = Passover. Day everything changed for them, no longer endless cycle of years in slavery but new path. Went out truimphantly! DO you have a start date to your \journey? In the NT what is our start date. Seems upside down, like pasover death of first born, but life begins at the Cross. Infitie journey when recognize the life of sin, borkenness - ends with the curse, the wrath of God - and that a new life must begin at the Cross!
PY - 1959
That’s the date that a Chrsitain like the children of Israel leaving Egypt going out truiphantly - picture Christ rising from the dead in the new Edxodus - defeated teh gods, of Egypt, deliv3ered and adopted His people as frist-bron of God. Every Jew was to live into thea t story - that’s when I baptized into Moses in water of the Red Sea, that’s when I left the cycle lie and got on God’s path. Can you recall when that came true in your life - many of you youngest years, some in adulthood, recently, some from baptism - but the important thing is that you recgonize God put you on a path. mark it down starting point of your Exodus! Truth in the saying, that a journey of a thousand miles begins with a first step! Maybe unsure - make it today - not living but living new life in Jesus - living for eternal life, for Kingdom of God!
SE - 300–301
But that isn’t the only point you need to recall tonight. Since that time a lot has happened, not a cycle, but bearing on your Exodus path. Ie. Mother’s travelouge outwest; Common thing ie. Rush’s drummer Song writer - lit , new book = places. A lot happened along the way - failures, provisions, all those events places Moses wrote down, he marked them, like Joshua, - Eben Ezer - I cahllenge you to write them down from this year - biggest struggles, failures, worst moments, best brightest moments, where have you made progress? Like Time Magazine - big events, news of your life, nothing ultimately insignificant, it all counts one way or another in the journey! Look at
ER -
Moses wrote down their starting places, stage by stage, by command of the Lord, and these are their stages according to their starting places.
Not random events, but at command of the LORD a purpose, even the suffering, even the failure - something to be learned, something you are to steward, the opportunities in it all.
This is the Second Thing I want you to do on Your year in Review:
B. Perceive the Provision in God’s ‘New Thing’ in Your Exodus ()
God’s people had gone through some big ups and downs, and where in the middle of a down. They had wandered, distracted, pressed dwon in isuffering. And God’s promises is a new and greateer exodus in their lives. Ulitmately fulfilled in Christ. But look at isaiah’ question to them. Like looking at an optical illusion, puzzle, do you see it yet. There’s your life, your year, and there’s God see htem overlap - do you see th pattern, the path God working?
Beside those events, and those way points, I dare you to perceive and to Behold, what God is doing. Look for his way - don’t miss it.
That word a way in the desert. Do you know what it is referring too? Path, trade route. Israel has no abundance of natural resources, so grow agriculture, to trade to get the provisions need from - no sea ports until Solomon, then hoerd the Great. So the road, carravan routes - lifeline with all the ourishment of life flowing through. God is saying, I will make such a path in your life,right int he middle of the struggle chaos, the duties and opporotunites. , stage by stage.
How it pictured? Do you remember God’s provision in Israel’s wilderness - water from a rock,
remember when under attack, arms of prayer of Moses deliverance,and there was Aaron holding his hands up, and their was Joshua in the valley doing the battle. And through it all God worked a dleiverance. I challenge you with the events of this past year, do you see how God has provided, do you see how those circumstances, called uyou to new duty with God’s people, perceive oppoturnity to serve family, neighbour, at work, as a citizen, ahcurch member here. -
Can you recall where God wascalling you to take new territory for his knkgdom, to spread…
Do you remember it - in sin disciled and some even punished with dath - what form did that plague take - viper, snake - Sickness suffering, not imune to these on our journey whatever the cause - what distress - depressions, ailemnts, loss of job -
But will look at God’s provision in those times:
The wild beasts will honor me, the jackals and the ostriches, for I give water in the wilderness, rivers in the desert, to give drink to my chosen people,
That’s my challenge to you as you end this year to look back and mark besid ethose events, with strong points good point and the weak points the hard times, what God has provided for you - and how he has called you to provide for others.
And that brings to the last exercise for Old Year’s Eve, our text calls us to not remember the former things, in comparison to keeping firmly fixed before our mind’ yes and our hearts desire - the new things - in the future, the final future. Like a trumpet balst in a Jewish New year’s festival - head of days - three books opened in Talmud, book of life, book of death, and intermediate book 10 days after the new year = Day of Atonement - being granted repentnace get life! A day to call us to our ultiamte destinies!
And that brings to the last excercise for Old Year’s Eve, our text calls us to not remember the former things, in comparison to keeping firmly fixed before our mind’ yes and our hearts desire - the new things
C. Keep the Vision of Your Mt. Pisgah before you, to give persepctive to your portion inthis past year (;)
Here I challenge at the close of this year - mark down what you know about your ultiatem future, about heaven. Our text telss us we are not to be a peopel looking back ie 1500m in BC Roger Banister? We are not a people of the former things. Like
For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.
Moses
When you are in the wilderness, Exodus of this life, the future can seem so distant , dim and scary, unknown, uncertain. IE Scariest thing when Reuben was born. But that is why God gave Moses a vision of the proimsed land, Supernatural one. Formed in teh iwlderness, but the goal, the hope, the way all these events of our past year fit in - preparing forus an eternal weight of glory
This was Moses vision - what is yours - all that the Bible reveals about heaven - about goign to Christ our head, seeing him being made like him. Does Heaven factor into your thgouth life, prayer life, does it cpature at a gutt level what your living for?
Understand, need this vision of the otherside. Have it in Christ, picture of life of kingdom is like, life of ove , Vision of the otherside of the River. Moses given supernatural vission, You have this in your heart, Not just Christ, but worldwide kingdom where He rules and lives among us, 2 nd Coming.
Why gvien the vision? Need to recgonize this side of the River on one gets the whole deal - Lazarus got sick and died eventually, X said kigndom is not of this world , not yet… So that means you look over that line of your life - like Moses you’ve got to be alirght with where God choses to put the dot that brigns you to the otherside. That means trust like says My times are in his hands. So the porition, the boundaries, the opprotunies he gives , can’t do it all, limtited but must do it for him, part of bigger whole.
Someithing humbling in that - we have dreams of what we want to accomlish, what we want to see in other people’s lives, - but here is a reminder that we are not God, - ana this life is to be lived by faith, trust, their is a grieving and lamenting and entrusting to God - taht Moess had to do - entrusting to a jsohua - Ok God. But only be able to do that well whenthe future is not a di,s cary, unknown uncerttain.
IE Saw a picture this holidays, of a unforgettable black cast iron railing, I was only 4 years old, couldn’t palce it at first. But you ‘ve proablly been there - railing on edge of Niagera Falls. Brought me back to a dsier I had, for a copule quarters that never came. Desire to look through those scopes. .. 4 years old, whole other country over there, through the mist I wanted to see, ever got the chance. Well America is not the proimsed land. But God gave Moses the quarters, he saww promised land, after years in the desert 40 yeara as a shepherd, 40 years with stubborn humansheep, after all that journey in tents, whole nation below him - saw a land flowing with milk andhoney - Christ is our Moses - not only seen the promised land, he is there,
Tonight Lord willing not called across the River, but are called with this vision to conitihneu yoru exodus journey - and ask God as puts it:
Make us glad for as many days as you have afflicted us, and for as many years as we have seen evil. Let your work be shown to your servants, and your glorious power to their children. Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us, and establish the work of our hands upon us; yes, establish the work of our hands!
The Apostle Paul,like Moses accomplished somcuh, also given that Vision even into the 7th heaven, gvien as much as we can handle and need , but then back to the journey nknowing it is not in vain: and this is our persepctive: Turn to it with me
That’s why we are stilll here. There are more miles to go for us and those around us, on theis Exodus journey, and Christ by His spirit is here for us in His glory to serve one naother. It iwll be betteer to be with Him in glory, but he is also here, for us to serve and to help each other in that journey until he comes again. Tomorrow we will look at the provisionof his Spirit for a new year, but tnoight lets look back and trace the start and the way points of our journey, let’s record the provision and the calling he given us in theis past year. And let’s make sure that its not the wilderness wadnersings in cicercle, stuck in the groove ofthis world, jsut living for earhtly pleasures, or turdging through purposeless existence beyond getting rich or even jsut surving - let’s make sure the end of the rope that God has called us to fastened frimly on the Christian’s hope!