Cork Free Presbyterian Church, 10 Briarscourt
(Annex) Shanakiel, Cork, Ireland
Pastor: Colin Maxwell. Email: colin.maxwell@fpcmission.org
READ: EXODUS 32:1-35 TEXT: v26 [WHO IS ON THE LORD'S SIDE?]
Then Moses stood in the gate of the camp, and said, Who is on the LORD'S side?
let him come unto me. And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together unto him.
These words were asked at a very critical time in the History/COI
When Moses on in the Mount with God receiving the law…
(The Law which the COI bound themselves to receive/obey)
…The COI were with Aaron below worshipping round the Golden Calf
[i] How quickly men can go from pure religion to the false
[ii] How even the best/men (Aaron) can go from pure religion…the false
[iii] How quickly/easily the best of men can seek to justify their
actions in going from pure religion to the false: "Economic with the
truth"
How depressing/frightening is this!
As it was then, so it is now
We have the same type/hearts…the same devil…the same propensity
It is all loaded against us
It is easier to go down than it is to rise up
Easier to compromise than it is to stand
More compromising than standing
But also in this incident:
How encouraging!
One man stood against the tide
Despite the hardship…family ties…the cost
And he was so sure of his position that he invited others to it
Greater is He that is in us than he that is in the world
Matthew 16:18
God will never lack men to stand up for Him
One lone voice can do a great deal for the cause of God/truth
Moses was that voice…but appealed for others to come
What we need today is people to rally to the Lord's side
But they need to identify themselves as such
Hence the question
We do not serve God best by hiding our light under a bushel
We serve Him best by nailing our colours firmly to the mast
I'll fear not what men say, but labour night and day
To be a pilgrim (Bunyan)
1) WHAT IS IMPLIED IN BEING ON THE LORD'S SIDE?
A/ A decided renunciation of the cause of sin
We cannot run with God and sin together: 1 John 1:7
To dally with sin is to dishonour God and to oppose Him
When Nehemiah discovered:
one of the sons of Joiada, the son of
Eliashib the high priest, was son in law to Sanballat the Horonite:
therefore I chased him from me. (Nehemiah 13:28)
There could be no fellowship together
No dallying with the enemy - no honourable compromise
Each desired the destruction of the other's cause
Therefore Moses chased the enemy within away
Literally: Put him to flight
In our passage, Moses did not tolerate the idol/midst
He was bigoted against it
Moses was not very ecumenically minded!
Can be no toleration of sin if within our power to destroy it
Sin must be felt, hated, forsaken and repented of
Let there be no sparing of sin
Samuel did not spare Agag, but slew him and cut him to pieces
Let us be very brutal with sin
Sin will be very brutal to us
Same principle as fighting a war: It's you or him who must die
Such a hatred/sin will manifest itself in a changed life
It is so intensely practical that mere favourable thoughts or blood stirring words should not be mistaken for it
It is not what we think/say but rather WHAT WE DO
B/ To choose God by faith to be our portion
We cannot forsake sin until we are in Christ
Repentance in salvation is always linked to faith
We have no strength to forsake sin until we come to Christ
Then the great/ongoing, daily work begins
If we are prepared to say:
"This God shall be my God for ever and ever" (Psalm 48:14)
Then we are clearly on the Lord's side
Note how specific the Psalmist was
Not just "any God" but "this God"
Not "might be" but "shall be"
Shall be "my God" - Personally
"For ever and ever" - Not until I tire or the cost becomes too high
C/ Cheerful obedience to His commands
The two go together
We cannot separate God from His word
Not preaching mysticism here
If Moses was a mystic - He would have let them have their Golden Idol
Would have swallowed Aaron's story hook, line and sinker
A modern Evangelical would take much heart that at least they kept
Jehovah's name in their idolatry
But this cannot be
We cannot be on the Lord's side if we are going against God's word
The word from the hill in Exodus 20: No graven images etc.,
We cannot be Christ's friends if we keep not His commandments
True, we often fail…but at least we try/we express our desire to do so
We do not fail because our policy is to fail
We do not aim to fail, but to succeed and honour God
D/ An undaunted profession of His religion:
We are happy to bear His name - Christians
We bear His name where it is not appreciated
We bear His name when it is not appreciated
We seek to hold fast a good profession
Let our lights shine as disciples/witnesses/confessors
Moses did so, even though it meant going against his own brother and against the majority of those professing faith
We honour others who bear an undaunted stand
Past and present
Lay foundation so that future generations will do so
E/ A consecration of all we posses to His honour and glory
We have fully surrendered all to Him
We are His willing bond slaves
All that we have/possess has been laid at his feet
Without being fanatical, yet we offer Him our: souls/bodies/time/talents etc.,
Indeed, we are only offering them back to Him
We have crowned Him "Lord of all"
2) THE ADVANTAGES OF BEING ON THE LORD'S SIDE:
A/ It is the most honourable side
Sin dishonours - a reproach shall he get (Proverbs 6:33)
And many of them that sleep in the
dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to
shame and everlasting contempt. (Daniel 12:2)
Those of God's side have true honour (1 Samuel 2:30)
God is not ashamed to be called their God
Christ is not ashamed to call them brethren
Angels are not ashamed to minister to them
Will be honoured in that great day when they will judge the world
B/ It is the most happy side
No peace nor joy to the wicked
Christian has peace with God and the peace of God
All her ways are pleasantness and peace
What a happy future the child/God can look forward to
There is no sorrow or night in Heaven
All tears are wiped away
C/ It is the most useful side:
Sin is injurious, both to ourselves and to others
Righteousness exalts the nature, while sin is a reproach to any people
The Sodomites destroyed their own city by their sin
Had 10 righteous men been found, then it would have been spared
We are the salt of the earth and as lights shining in a dark world
That the world regards us as a nuisance is no argument against us
Paul was branded as a pestilent fellow
Even Christ's own kith and kin branded Him as insane
The Christian stands for mercy, goodness and pity
Neither do I condemn you…[BUT] go and sin no more
D/ It is the safe side:
No safety in sin, even if its dangers are not apparent
v35 shows the displeasure of the Lord against the Golden Calf
Sin always brings forth death and leads to Hell if not repented of
Those on God's side are justified and therefore cannot be condemned
They are adopted into God's family
They are renewed by the Holy Spirit and possess a meetness: Heaven
They have the promise that God will preserve them for ever
3) OUGHT TO ENCOURAGE ALL WHO ARE ON THE LORD'S SIDE:
A/ Moses did so by standing fast Himself and by calling others to identify themselves by standing with Him
Not merely exhorting them, but encouraging them by doing it himself
He called them outside the camp: Cp Hebrews 13:12-13 where there is a greater/Moses awaiting to encourage and strengthen us
B/ If we have compromised with sin, let us be assured that there is a way back to God: 1 John 1:9
Aaron returned to the fold again - for God wants us on His side
THE END