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[0:00] The Lord, dear friends, I invite your prayerful attention to Exodus chapter 14 and the 13th verse.

[0:17] The 13th to the 15th verse is really on my mind, but particularly the 13th verse. And Moses said unto the people, Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will show you today.

[0:35] For the Egyptians whom ye have seen today, ye shall see them again no more forever. The Lord shall fight for you, and he shall hold your peace.

[0:45] And the Lord said unto Moses, Wherefore Christ thou unto me, speak unto the children of Israel, that they go forward.

[0:55] Amen. On Thursday evening, I was listening to my dear pastor speaking from not this text, another text in the Psalms, when it seemed to come into my mind very clearly that this must be the word which I must endeavour to bring before you this morning.

[1:21] And as we have read this record of this part of the dealing of God with the children of Israel in bringing them out of Egypt, it is an experience which they went through which was to teach them much.

[1:43] But I believe also it was to teach all those who read the Holy Scriptures now much, as there is so much truth contained in this 13th verse.

[1:59] Because you see here, the children of Israel had been delivered from Egyptian bondage. They had been under the iron hand of their taskmasters.

[2:11] They had suffered much. And what was the result? They cried unto the Lord. And dear friends, when we are brought to cry unto the Lord in our trouble, when we are brought to a low place and we cry unto the Lord in our trouble, he does not shut his ear.

[2:32] And some of you here know that. And I can certainly vouch for that myself personally. Humbly I say that. When we come into deep affliction or deep difficulty and trouble, it has that effect as it did upon the children of Israel to cry unto the Lord in our trouble.

[2:51] That trouble can be soul trouble. That can be trouble in providence and circumstances, in all manner of various applications in life, which there is no real point in me going into.

[3:02] You all know what they are. But you may not have experienced them all. You may have a knowledge of others who have experienced various difficulties and troubles in life.

[3:14] But, oh dear friends, when the children of Israel cried out to their Lord for mercy and for deliverance, they were persecuted and suffering much.

[3:25] So it is when Satan sets about the soul with his rods and his irons and beats the soul.

[3:36] And you know, a soul is sore beaten with sin and Satan. And it's brought oft times to cry out to the Lord by the very sin which they feel within.

[3:48] And so there is that deliverance which the Lord comes down to perform. He makes preparation, you see. He has hearkened to the cry of his people.

[3:59] When a poor sinner cries out under the load of sin to God for mercy. There is preparation made. And there you see the beautiful parallel there is in this example.

[4:11] Moses has already been prepared. It was no surprise to God that the children of Israel would cry out in their need and in their trouble. It was all in those, all things in that covenant love which we just sung of.

[4:26] You see, the Lord knew the end from the beginning. He knew what Satan would be up to, to hinder the children of Israel and to hurt them in Egypt. And he knew all about it.

[4:38] And so he had prepared Moses previously. And there's not time this morning, but I'm sure you all have a knowledge of those things which Pharaoh had brought upon him by God through Moses, as it were, before he let the children of Israel go.

[4:59] And how finally, at the end of it all, the firstborn had to be slain before he would let the children of Israel go. And there's many things, friends, in our lives when the Lord deals with a soul has to be slain.

[5:16] The love of many things we find when the Lord begins to deal with his children as with the children of Israel. Many things have to be slain that we love.

[5:28] Many, many things have to be left in Egypt. There has to be that departing from those old loves of our youth, of those things which occupied our minds and a turning and a separation and a seeking unto God.

[5:44] And when that cry comes to the Lord, then he has my provision. You see, as Moses was provided to be that one who would stand before Pharaoh and under God's wonderful power, bring the children of Israel out with a high hand out of Egypt.

[6:05] You see, so we see a foreshadowing of what God had provided in his dear son to bring his children out of the bondage of Satan.

[6:16] It's by bringing them from the bondage of Satan in the precious name, merit and blood of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. It is our hope and encouragement and that which our faith looks up to, isn't it?

[6:33] And so, you see, they cry out unto the Lord in their trouble. Now, I had no intention of reading that extract from Psalm 107 this morning until I just was leaving the vestry.

[6:50] And suddenly I thought, I must read that extract. Now, that may be for a purpose, but it seemed suddenly to parallel in my mind to this experience. And you see those mariners on the sea, they were skilled seamen.

[7:05] They had exercised all their knowledge and wisdom and strength, and yet they were tossed up and down in that little ship on the sea. There was nothing they could do themselves.

[7:15] Only, only one thing left. They seemed as if they would perish. And their heart was melted in them with trouble. And, dear friends, the children of God are brought to that point in their lives from time to time.

[7:30] Their heart is melted in them with trouble. They know not what to do. All their wisdom is swallowed up. But what happened? There was something they had the world didn't have. Faith within, which brought them to prayer.

[7:45] And they prayed unto the Lord. They cried unto the Lord in their trouble. And what happened? He delivered them out of their distresses. And so, you see, the psalmist had that to say in his writing too.

[7:59] And so, deadless, he had the record of Moses before him. And he could look back to this record here. Moses said unto the people, Fear ye not.

[8:11] You just think of the situation a moment. They're hemmed in by mountains. The sea is before them. And the Egyptians are behind them. There's no way of escape. No amount of reason or scheming could see a way of escape.

[8:26] There was no way left open that their humanity could see a way out of. It had to be by faith alone. In God. All things are possible with God. You see.

[8:37] And so they cry out. And Moses said unto the people, Fear ye not. Stand still. Even in this circumstance. You've got to stand still. Fear ye not.

[8:50] Stand still. And see the salvation of the Lord. What might be your problem, dear friend, this morning? Is it soul trouble?

[9:01] Is it your soul constantly the realization of sin within? That realization that though you hope you love the Lord, you know that you still love sin.

[9:17] You can't leave it as you would. It's a constant hindrance to your Christian walking path. It brings you down.

[9:29] The older you go on, the reverse is happening in your experience to what you thought when you were young. You looked on the old saints when you were younger and you thought, Ah, it must be nice to be like them, free from sin.

[9:45] Oh, friends, what a lesson we have to learn. The older we go on, the more we have to remind us of our sinnership before God. The further we go on, the more sins we have to remember.

[10:00] Doesn't mean to say they're not forgiven, dear friend, but we remember them. The psalmist, he pleaded for pardon and forgiveness, but he remembered his sins. He asked the Lord not to remember them, but, you see, we remember them.

[10:15] He had to pray, Hold not against me the sins of my youth. Now many of us have to do that. But in all these things, you see, there seems to be an impossibility to stand still because we're all churned up by what we are by nature.

[10:31] Our sin churns us up. Our guilty conscience churns us up. What can we do? Stand still. Stand still. And see the salvation of the Lord.

[10:43] You see, salvation is of the Lord. It's not of man or woman or of any within themselves. It doesn't mean to say that we should readily sin that grace may have bound.

[10:56] I must warn there, friends. There is today, sadly, I believe for such a light approach in some circles whereby, oh yes, sin can be forgiven, therefore we can go on in it.

[11:10] That's a sin in itself, my friends, and that's not what a Christian should be doing. Paul says, God forbid, doesn't he, in speaking of that subject, that I might sin, that grace might abound.

[11:25] No. But we should flee from sin as from a serpent. But nevertheless, we find that that serpent still bites us. And we feel the pain of it and the venom of it in our veins, do we not?

[11:39] And it threatens our souls with death as the natural venom of a serpent does the body when the injection of the poison enters the veins.

[11:51] And so our souls feel in that same way, polluted. Stand still and see the salvation of the Lord. But, my friends, it's not only in spiritual things.

[12:02] The Lord in his mercy often ties together those things which are providential, those things which are family concerns, those things which come heavily upon the Lord's dear people in these things too.

[12:15] And there has to be a standing still and a seeing the salvation of the Lord in these things. We have to realize that there's a limit to what we're able to do ourselves, even, dear friends, as parents.

[12:27] And I don't profess to have any special knowledge to give you, dear parents, in bringing up children. But the Word of God, it gives you ample instruction in bringing up children.

[12:41] But we have, after all, to do that which Scripture tells us in the teaching, but then we've got to leave it on our knees before Him. We cannot give our children grace.

[12:55] There's no such thing as inherited grace. Grace is a gift of God. But I believe the Lord hears the prayers of faith of His people.

[13:08] He gives the faith in the first place, and He hears the prayer of faith. And so we do see that in many cases, the love of the Lord is to the third and fourth generation of those that love Him, but it's got nothing to do with the transfer of grace by blood and natural inheritance.

[13:28] It's all of the Spirit, dear friends, and all of faith. The Lord is merciful in these things. Stand still and see the salvation of the Lord.

[13:41] He will show to you to die. For the Egyptians whom ye have seen today, He says, see them no more forever.

[13:52] You see, there was that bringing out of Egypt. There was that bringing away from the domination, that is, of Egypt. I believe we see that in that, that there is a point when the Lord begins to deal with His people where they're no longer under the dominance of sin.

[14:13] Sin shall not have the dominion over you, but it doesn't mean to say you'll be free from it. You see, there's a difference between being totally dominated in something and being hindered in it.

[14:28] And I believe that the children of God won't be free from the hindrances of sin and self and Satan until they're taken from this life scene. But nevertheless, they're not under the total domination of sin as the world is in itself.

[14:46] But when the Lord deals with that child of God, when He calls, when they're born again, ye must be born again. And when is that new birth? There is, as it were, I heard it put once, there's now another employer.

[15:02] You're no longer in the employment of Satan, but you're in the employment of God. And Satan can no longer destroy you. He will worry you and hinder you.

[15:12] But he can no longer destroy you because you've been purchased with the precious blood of the Lamb if the Lord has called you by His grace, by His mercy. And what a mercy that is, friends, if we ever hope that that's the case in our soul's experience.

[15:28] Moses said unto the people, Fear ye not and stand still and see the salvation of the Lord. He will show to you to die. For the Egyptians whom you have seen to die, you see they're no more again forever.

[15:44] No more would they be under the dominance of the Egyptian whip and taskmaster. And you see how the Lord brings them out of that situation which they're in.

[16:00] And then I just want to think for a moment or two of the mighty hand which God showed in delivering His people.

[16:11] You see, there they were with the Egyptians coming up behind. And the mountains on either side and the sea in front. And as I said just now, a situation which seemed totally hopeless to them.

[16:26] And then Moses says, Stand still and fear not. And what a faith that they must have needed to do that. But I believe they were given that faith. And so it is when we see that situation, we need great gift of faith to be able to stand still.

[16:45] in that situation. But, you see, what happened next? The angel of, verse 19, the angel of God which went before the camp of Israel removed and went behind them.

[17:01] That was not the normal procedure. The children of Israel would normally follow the cloudy and fiery pillar by day and night respectively.

[17:11] But this is an exception. You see how the Lord can work in one instant in a different way than He perhaps normally does.

[17:22] This time there was a need and the cloudy pillar and the fiery pillar went between them and their enemies. Blinding the enemy to where they were and what they were doing. And to the fact that the sea was being divided.

[17:34] And so you see how the angel of God, the power of God, in this instant, was so clear that they were not able to come near them all that night.

[17:49] Sometimes we have enemies. It can be in very many ways in life.

[18:00] Sometimes the enemy's here, within us. Sometimes we have external enemies who try to cause us no end of trouble. Sometimes you'll have a troublesome neighbour who, no matter how you try to live quietly and peaceably by the side of them, they will always be doing something or complaining about something, especially if they know you attend a place of worship.

[18:25] There's all these sort of things which can come in. And I remember one dear old gentleman, I feel sure he's in glory now, his spirit's in glory now, he ran a coal business and he had an opponent, the other side of the railway line, who was also running a coal business.

[18:46] And he used to have his lorries tampered with. And when he went to get his lorry to go in the morning, he'd find there was something disconnected somewhere and it wouldn't start. It didn't fall off.

[18:56] He knew what was happening. And it went on for quite a long time. And it so got to him that one night, one morning I believe, they went and found a similar trouble and took them some time to get going.

[19:10] And he went home that night so at his wits' end and he cried to the Lord, he said, Lord, I can't carry on any longer like this. And in the morning, he heard that that man died that night.

[19:23] True. He that touches you touches the apple of my eye, the Lord says. And you see, here, the children of Israel are being threatened by the Egyptians.

[19:35] So, God comes and he stands in the cloud, as it were, the angel of the power of God stands in that cloud betwixt them that night.

[19:46] That was a prevent, to prevent any harm coming to them that night. Well, the Lord will open a way through the sea. And Moses stretches forth his hand. It wasn't Moses' hands that separated the sea.

[19:59] It was just an outward indication to the children of Israel that God was working. God was working as Moses stretched out his hand and that way was made through the sea.

[20:11] The children of Israel, though, they were called to walk through that way that the Lord made. Now, friends, I, I can speak humbly for a moment here.

[20:25] This word was the first word my dear wife read to me when I came home from hospital suffering from my heart attack. I couldn't see to read at that time because of my eye problem.

[20:36] And, uh, we read a, a daily portion and it was the first morning I believe that I was able to come downstairs to read. And, uh, the speaker spoke of this, this was the key, the 13th verse to his, the text, and he spoke about the various things which come into our lives and where we were totally helpless to do anything and where we have to lay all before the Lord.

[21:07] It's all out of our hands and so many perplexing problems that didn't seem to be any answer to at all and I looked at it all. I had a business at that time and several employees and, uh, my son had left his work to, to manage the firm suddenly for me in those past two weeks and, uh, the, the whole scene seemed to be so impossible to me as to what we should do and yet this word and I do believe and I, I give God the honour and glory to this, I believe I was given that stillness.

[21:46] It's the gift of God, my friends. We can't engineer it ourselves. The gift of God, I say, that stillness to stand still. Not in my nature to stand still.

[21:57] I'm not a standstill person by nature. I had to learn how to and the Lord taught me, I believe, here. But what I wanted to come to was there seemed to be that sea of impossibility in front in all my circumstances and it was as if the Lord spoke and there was a way made but I couldn't see the end of that way.

[22:22] It was step by step as I went on, the way opened up and you know, the children of Israel and it came to me in looking at this again, the children of Israel when Moses stretched out his hand over the sea and the way was made there was a walking in faith and they had to walk on their own feet and how do you walk?

[22:43] One step at a time. One step at a time. And we had to go on one step at a time through those next months and we saw one thing and another just gradually drop into place.

[23:00] I was able to find a buyer for my big digging machine which was useful for bringing the finance into pay, the final redundancy pay all helpful towards it for the employees as we closed the business and it was, I could go on, I don't want to do that but I could go on in steps all the way through that way opened up and yet every step had to be taken in faith.

[23:26] It was a step of faith and the children of Israel if you think of it as they went through that sea, there's a water either side great walls of water threatening them there they are but the Lord has made this way and they've got to walk through it and to walk through it they need tremendous faith because if you think that with a certain death there either side of them is it proved to be for the Egyptians and yet they walk through step by step by step and that way was kept open until the last child was through, the last one of the children of Israel was through.

[24:09] Now you see dear friends here, here is a sea and a way is made through the sea by God's almighty power for his dear people, whatever that problem may be in front of you, there's a way made through it, you've got to walk through it step by step as you go through it, when you get through it you'll turn and look at that sea and as it closes behind you, you will realise it's a sea of salvation to you, a sea of salvation to you, but it's a sea of destruction and judgment to your enemies, because you see the arrogance that Satan has, he actually worked in the king of Egypt's mind to be arrogant enough to walk in the pathway that the Lord had made for his chosen people, just look at the arrogance it's the arrogance of

[25:10] Satan shows as clear as ever as it did in the garden of Eden there, and they venture to go through and the Lord looks through the cloud and takes off their chariot wheels, there they are in the middle with no chariot rims on, we all know how little progress they make with spokes and no rims, and so there they are in the middle, and they're Moses and the last child of Israel is through, and on Canaan's side, ready to take that forty years in the wilderness, and those waters close, and they're a judgment upon the enemies of God, and how great the song was, we read in the beginning of the fifteenth chapter, 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, and so on, that's a beautiful chapter, read it if you get the chance when you get home, that song of Moses in that deliverance, and friends, when we look back and we see the

[26:20] Lord has delivered us, doesn't it give us a little true song in our hearts toward him, for those of you who can look back over the years and see and remember the deliverance of God in this circumstance, and in another circumstance, those things which you've prayed about and you've found, the Lord has answered your prayer, all my dear friends, what a mercy it is to have a prayer hearing and a prayer answering God, can you not answer, can you not come in with him, writer, that Christ is God, I can avouch, and for his people cares, why?

[27:00] for I have prayed to him as such and he has heard my prayers, all friends, pray on, press on, may his love in time past forbid you to think that he will leave you at last in trouble to sink, it's impossible, but you will have tribulation in the world, you see the Lord Jesus said in the world you might have tribulation, tribulation, no, no, in the world he shall have tribulation, we prove it don't we, in the world we shall have tribulation, but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world, friends, that's the place for our faith to rest isn't it, in him, he's ascended to glory, it all was just past the Easter period and I trust you were reminded of it from the pulpit last week, a glorious Easter message, the grave could not hold, he's not here, the grave couldn't hold him, he's risen again, he's ascended, gone to be with his father, the first fruits of them that slept, because I live, ye shall live also, he says, word to the Lord, there's our hope, the fact that he's risen again, oh, we shall have the sea to pass through, we'll have the way made very rough at times, but you know, this verse, this hymn we sung, sons of

[28:37] God, not sons of Satan, sons of God, sons of God in tribulation, let your eyes to saviour view, he's the rock of our salvation, he was tried, and tempted too, he passed through, all those things, which he passed through, he suffered, and bled, and died, for poor sinners, tis if need be, he reproves us, lest we settle on our lees, yet he in the furnace loves us, tis expressed in words like these, I am with thee, Israel, passing through the fire, to his church, his joy, his treasure, every trial works for good, they had doubt in weight and measure, yet, they were little understood, not in anger, not in anger, dear friends, but, in his dear covenant love, if today he deigns to bless us with a sense of pardon sin, perhaps tomorrow he'll distress us, make us feel the plague within, why, all to make us sick of self, and fond of him, and that's the purpose, and what a beautiful hymn that is, and how very true that is,

[30:08] Mr. Kent has got the nail right on the head again, hasn't he? His hymns are so beautiful, and so to the point, and so deep, and friends, may we be enabled to enter into these things just a little, you find perhaps today that you're in a position you, when great trouble looms before you, you think, but, he said, unto the people, fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord, for he will show you you today, for the Egyptians whom he has seen today, you see them no more again forever, why, for the Lord shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace, and of course that's exactly what happened, and what they witnessed, and the Lord said unto Moses, wherefore Christ so unto me, say unto the children of Israel, that they go forward, to go forward in the pathway of the Christian pathway, walk in the means of grace, walk prayerfully, walk carefully, walk on in that pathway which the

[31:17] Lord himself has opened before you each, and may you and may we each, come to the end of that pathway, and prove that we're there forever with the Lord, from condemnation free, may it all be to his honour and glory, and to the good of our souls, Amen.

[31:37] The collections taken last Lord's Day for the church fund amounted to £381.5 for the Kosovo Refugee Appeal £475 I would just like to thank you for your very generous giving both to the chapel cause and also to the Kosovo Refugee Appeal.

[32:19]  So get to the Lord's will, Mr. Pat will preach here on Friday evening, and Mr. Chapman is engaged to preach next door. To Scripture Is to Don't