Refuge of Lies

[0:00] There's a coming day of judgment. A day of judgment is coming. And we all need refuge. We need refuge.

[0:25] ! What kind of refuge do you have? In Isaiah 28 verse 16 we read, Therefore thus saith the Lord God, Behold I lay in Zion for a foundation, a stone, a tried stone, a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation.

[0:50] He that believeth shall not make haste. Judgment also will I lay to the line, and righteousness to the plummet. And the hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies.

[1:09] And the waters shall overflow the hiding place. Judgment is coming. And the Lord says he's going to use a plumb line. Now I have such a device here.

[1:25] A plumb line. He says, Judgment also will I lay to the line, and righteousness to the plummet. Now this is a plumb line. You could also use one of these.

[1:46] Give it straight up and down. Now the workmen in this back room here have had to use one of these. Have you? Amen. And make sure it's right, straight up and down. God wants us to be straight up and down. And he's judging by the plumb line.

[2:05] He's going to judge us by that plumb line. He sets the weight and the measure. He will judge the world in righteousness.

[2:18] And who is the plumb line? The Lord Jesus. The Lord Jesus is the plumb line. He is the one by which everything will be measured. He will judge the world in righteousness. And it says the flood waters shall overflow the hiding place.

[2:34] What kind of refuge do you have? Some people place their confidence in faulty refuges. Delusions of men.

[2:49] Refuges of lies. What are you trusting in? For some, as in Ezekiel 33, 31, Their heart goeth after covetousness.

[3:04] That was the refuge for some. But everything will be swept away. Everything will be swept away. Now, we've had the pleasure of some people's company in our home of late.

[3:17] And we've got two young ladies in particular in our home. And we wanted to do some demolition work. And if you could bear with me some, a degree of levity this morning.

[3:30] I didn't put a helmet on them, but you can imagine, they had some, a couple of demolition workers. Yeah. And we put some sunglasses on these young ladies. And we put a hammer in their hand.

[3:40] And, I must say, their dad gave them a little bit of help. But, uh, they set to work. Demolishing our letterbox. We've got a big brick letterbox.

[3:51] It's right in the way. And it's not really convenient. It's way too big for what we need. So, we started to smash that letterbox. Brick by brick. Piece by piece.

[4:03] And now it's been swept away. Hallelujah. Swept away. It's all gone. It's just a pile of rubble down at the local tip. And, the word says, I was going to say this one.

[4:15] The word says, it's not my word, like a hammer. Yeah. Amen. It's not my word, like a hammer that breaks the rocks in pieces. Yeah. God's word is like a hammer.

[4:27] It's going to demolish things. God's going to be a demolition worker, if you like. And sweep away the refuge of lies. Everything is going to be swept away.

[4:39] What is your refuge? What is it that you're taking shelter in? Could it be a structure like my letterbox? Seems very secure and strong, but let's two little girls with a hammer get to work on it, and it's swept away.

[4:54] It's swept away. For some, religion is their refuge. For some, good works is their refuge. For some, it's opinions are their refuge.

[5:06] For some, it's education is their refuge. For some, it's their baptism. That's their refuge. The refuge of lies is going to be swept away.

[5:18] The opinions of men are going to be swept away. What is your refuge? Is it for you the palace of pride? Is it for you the castle of carnality?

[5:30] Is it for you the shelter of self-righteousness? The refuge of lies is going to be swept away. Trusting in your own goodness is going to be swept away.

[5:41] Works are going to be swept away. Don't make that your refuge today. It's a refuge of lies. The hail shall sweep away. The refuge of lies. Religion, works, self-righteousness, trouble is, they are lies.

[5:57] Lies. They are a refuge of lies. A false refuge. Lies. Lies. Lies.

[6:07] We saw the Father. Lies. Lies. Lies. Lies. And he's still the Father of lies.

[6:18] Lies. I hear lies all the time. There was someone telling me they were going to be here this morning. I don't know if it was an intentional thing, but they're not here today. There was someone I passed on the street up yonder.

[6:28] He said, I'll see you next week for sure. I said, yeah, sure. Refuge of lies. I'm not casting aspersions unfairly here, I pray today.

[6:41] But we can be liars. Let God be true. And every man, every man a liar. Refuge of lies. Romans 1.28, it says for some, they did not like to retain God in their knowledge.

[6:58] They didn't want God in their knowledge. They wanted a refuge of lies to trust in. They would rather believe in lies. Falsehood. Deception. The hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies.

[7:12] Spurgeon put it like this, referring to Luther. Luther, he said, that Luther scarcely ever preached a sermon without invading against the righteousness of man. And yet he said, Luther said, I find that still I cannot preach it down.

[7:29] Still men will boast in what they can do. And mistake the path to heaven. To be a road paved by their own merits. And not a way be sprinkled by the blood of the atonement of Jesus Christ.

[7:45] Spurgeon continued, my dear hearers, I cannot compliment you by imagining that all of you have been delivered from the great delusion of trusting in yourselves.

[7:58] The godly, those who are righteous through faith in Christ, still have to mourn that this infirmity clings to them. While as to the unconverted themselves, their besetting sin is to deny their guiltiness.

[8:14] To plead that they are as good as others. And to indulge the still vain and foolish hope that they shall enter into heaven from some doings, some weepings, some sufferings of their own.

[8:27] No, sir. The hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies. Here's a famous quote from an infamous person. People will believe a big lie sooner than a little one.

[8:42] And if you repeat it frequently enough, people will sooner or later believe it. So said Adolf Hitler. If you believe people believe a lie, people will, sorry I'll say that again.

[8:56] People will believe a big lie sooner than a little one. And if you repeat it frequently enough, people will sooner or later believe it. The big lie.

[9:06] It's a propaganda technique. As much as Adolf Hitler there was referring to others using that method, he used it with great success. The same lie repeated over and over.

[9:21] In spite of all arguments to the contrary and evidence to the contrary, people will believe it. Massive repetition is essential. Think, why do they keep running those stupid commercials on TV over and over again?

[9:38] Ad nauseum. It's the big lie. It's Satan's and Adolf Hitler's propaganda technique. Think of it. What could we use as some present day example of this?

[9:49] A big lie. You could, for example, think climate change, climate change, climate change, carbon pollution, carbon pollution, carbon pollution. You hear it often enough, you don't even start to believe it.

[10:02] It's a big lie. The big lie. Satan has a big lie. He says your good works, your good works, your good works. He says your religion, your religion, your religion.

[10:13] You should be as gods. You should be as gods. You should be as gods. the father of lies. He's still tricking people today. Where is your refuge? Our nation has made lies its refuge.

[10:33] The word says in Psalm 142, 14, refuge failed me. No man cared for my soul. Have you been conned? Have you been conned to think that it is your religion that will be your refuge?

[10:49] That it will be the things you've done or are doing, your good works, however good they may be. People are living a lie. They're believing a lie. They're swallowing a lie. In 2 Timothy 3, 13 it says, but evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse. They're going to be worse and worse.

[11:09] More so, deceiving and being deceived. Deceiving and being deceived. Telling lies and believing the lies. The hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies.

[11:21] One day the storm will come. The hail storm will come. And it's going to sweep away the refuge of lies. One day the refuge of lies will just crumble and be swept away.

[11:35] Our trust must be entirely, entirely, entirely upon Jesus Christ and no other. Upon His blood and nothing but on His grace, His wonderful mercy. Is He your refuge?

[11:51] Friends, I urge you, I urge you in the light of eternity to consider what is your refuge today. Can you say as the psalmist did in Psalm 91, 2?

[12:04] I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress, my God in Him will I trust. Is He your refuge?

[12:19] Deuteronomy 33, 27 it says, The eternal God is thy refuge. And underneath are the everlasting arms. And He shall thrust out the enemy from before thee and shall say destroy them.

[12:34] God, the eternal God, your refuge and underneath are the everlasting arms. As Spurgeon put it, You cannot go so low, but that God's arms of love are lower still.

[12:49] You get poorer and poorer, but underneath are the everlasting arms. You get older and feebler, your ears are failing, your eyes are growing dim, but underneath are the everlasting arms.

[13:05] By and by, unless the Lord speedily returns, you will have to die and you will come down very low then. But still, it will be true. Underneath are the everlasting arms.

[13:18] Amen. The eternal God is thy refuge. God is always there for us. Flee to the refuge. Find refuge in Him.

[13:29] In Proverbs 14, 26 it says, In the fear of the Lord is strong confidence, and His children shall have a place of refuge.

[13:42] That's a promise for you. If you're one of God's children, Amen. Are you a son of God? Are you a daughter of God today? His children shall have a place of refuge.

[13:53] Psalm 9, verse 9 it says, The Lord also will be a refuge for the oppressed. A refuge in times of trouble. God is our refuge.

[14:05] Whatever you're going through, He is there for you. A sanctuary. A shelter from the storm. And we can depend upon His presence.

[14:16] What air be tied. Whether the hail comes. Whether the floodwaters come. He is the hiding place. He is the refuge. He is your strong tower. Saint of God.

[14:27] And perhaps our God will choose, In His divine wisdom, To send some heaviness your way. Because of your sin.

[14:41] Spurgeon again said, I don't mean to lay, But quoting Spurgeon, But it was telling this quote, God has a heavy hand for His sinful children. Other fathers may spoil their children with indulgence, But the Lord will not spoil His children.

[14:59] If we sin, We shall feel the weight of God's hand. We ought to thank Him for this, For though it brings great sorrow, Yet it brings great safety to us.

[15:11] The worst thing that can happen to a man Is to be allowed to sin, And yet to be happy in it. Sometimes heaviness will come. And sometimes it will be God's hand That will be heavy upon you.

[15:25] Flee to the refuge. Flee to the refuge. Psalm 119, 97 it says, Oh how I love thy law, It is my meditation all the day.

[15:36] Let this be that source of strength, The promises of His word. Flee to the refuge. Trust His promises. Whether it's work, trouble, Whether it's income, Whether it's sickness, Whether it's the day by day, There's a refuge for you.

[15:57] There's a refuge for you to go to. God is strong. God is a rock. God is our fortress. In Psalm 62 it says, Truly my soul waiteth upon God, From Him cometh my salvation.

[16:10] He only is my rock and my salvation. He is my defence. I shall not be greatly moved. On Him we can depend.

[16:22] In Isaiah 25, 4 it says, There must be a strength to the needy, In his distress, A refuge from the storm, A shadow from the heat. That's your God.

[16:33] A refuge from the storm, A shadow from the heat, A strength to the needy in his distress. On Him we can depend. God is a refuge, A shelter, A haven, A sure place of safety.

[16:50] I know earlier in the week, At the Bible study, Someone referred to, The cities of refuge. We talked about that, As we went through Romans Wednesday. The cities of refuge.

[17:03] And the Lord has given us, This picture, Of who He is. Of the kind of refuge, He can be for you. We see in these cities, Of refuge.

[17:16] They symbolise our refuge. The refuge that you can find, In Christ. That safe haven. That asylum. Now there's some people, Fleeing for asylum today.

[17:27] They're looking for asylum. They're getting away from some bad stuff. They want to get to a safer place. Now if you want to go for asylum, You won't get in a boat, And go to North Korea. They'll be going in the wrong direction.

[17:40] It'll be a refuge of lies. No matter how they're not painted. But if you want to find asylum, You want to go to a place that is safe. And friends, The place that is safest, It's not Australia, But it's the refuge, Christ Jesus.

[17:54] It's Christ. Here's the one who provides asylum. Here's the one who provides safe haven. And in the history of these cities of refuge, They were places that someone could flee, When they accidentally caused the death of another.

[18:08] Six cities that you could flee to. Six cities. Six cities. Towns in which these perpetrators of manslaughter Could run And find a right of asylum.

[18:20] And then they could be tried legally. Because it was an unsafe thing. If you accidentally were to Cause the death of someone, Their relatives could be after your blood.

[18:31] And the eldest of that family Would then have the legal right To take an eye for an eye. A tooth for a tooth.

[18:42] But thankfully, God established these six cities of refuge. They were established before they were needed. They were available to all. As well as accessible to all.

[18:53] Even the Gentiles. They were widely advertised. These six cities of refuge They were prominently located. In high elevation So they could be seen from great distances.

[19:04] They were easy to reach. Everyone was just within a day's journey Of at least one of them. And no matter where you were in Israel, You were not very far from a city of refuge.

[19:15] And whosoever needed to flee To one of the cities was free to do so. Whether or not he was an Israelite. And then they could be tried fairly. And if it was manslaughter, They could remain safe in that city of refuge.

[19:30] Of course, if they committed murder, Then they were dealt with by the law of the land. But for those that were given safe refuge in the city After they had been tried and found not guilty of murder, They were safe there.

[19:44] And then full freedom came When the high priest died. The great doors of these cities Were always left open And never locked. And tradition tells us that Each city of refuge Was well stocked with food.

[19:59] It was a completely sufficient refuge. There was everything sufficient For your needs Within the city of refuge. And so we see What a picture of Christ.

[20:12] What a picture of him. That he is available. That he has his gates open. That he Is easy to reach.

[20:23] And that whosoever Can flee. And then at his death There's full freedom. In the cross we see Full freedom. And we see the sufficiency Of his absolute supply.

[20:36] But there's one difference here In this symbolism That in this city of refuge The cities of refuge Only help the innocent. Whereas Christ Our absolute and true refuge Our eternal refuge Is the one who helps The guilty.

[20:51] The guilty can come To Christ And find refuge. Refuge. So when you're in trouble You want to look for a refuge That will be sure. You don't want to find A structure Such as my letterbox That is going to be swept away.

[21:05] You want something That's eternal. You want something That's everlasting. You want a refuge That will stand. And the names Of these cities too Speak to us of Christ. The names of these cities Of refuge.

[21:16] They speak of what A believer has In Christ. Kadesh. It means sanctuary. Holy place. Righteousness. He provides sanctuary for us.

[21:28] He is our righteousness. Christ. Shechem. It means strong shoulder. A place of burdens. He is our strength. We know the government Shall be upon his shoulder.

[21:41] We know that He is the one On whom we can cast Our cares. The one who bears That yoke. Hebron. It means fellowship.

[21:51] Fellowship. Fellowship. Fellowship. We've been called To the fellowship Of his son. Jesus Christ our Lord. 1 Corinthians 1 Verse 9. He is our friend. He's a friend That sticketh closer Than a brother.

[22:06] Bezer. It means fortress. Or strong Hiding place. As a believer Your life Is here With Christ In God.

[22:17] Colossians 3 Verse 3 Bezer It means A fortified place A stronghold Nahum 1 Verse 7 It says The Lord Is good A stronghold In The day Of trouble In Jeremiah 16 19 It says O Lord My strength And my fortress And my refuge In the day Of affliction And I've got fond Memories as a young lad When we headed back To UK To live For a time Until we came To the better country Of Australia We had some time Around the English castles The English And Scottish castles And Welsh castles And we saw the castles The fortresses Some still standing today But our God Is a fortress It won't grow Rewind such as they But our God Is a fortress Who will stand strong He's a stronghold In the day of trouble Nahum 1

[23:18] Verse 7 And then another Of these cities Is Ramoth It means exalted Heights A high place As it says In Ephesians 2 Verse 6 He's made us To sit together In high places In heavenly places In Christ Jesus He is Our heavenly home And the last Of the six Is Golan Golan It means joy Or separated And this could speak To us of our Being set free From sin Of the Of the captivity To sin When he ascended Up on high He led captivity Captive Ephesians 4 Verse 8 And we're told Of these six Cities That at every Turn That at every Crossroad There was a Signpost There was a Guidepost Saying refuge Refuge Refuge Everybody Everybody Everybody Looked at Every Crossing At every Intersection Of note We're told That there was A signpost A guidepost We're saying

[24:18] Refuge Refuge The guideposts Point to the Refuge Do you see The guideposts Whether it be A brother A sister A Christian Exalting you Whether it be The preacher Whether it be The bible As you read it Whether it be Some message You hear There's a Guidepost There's a Signpost And it's Beckoning you It's pointing You to the Refuge What is Your refuge Today Please Take stock Today Let it not Be a refuge Of lies And for Believers too We can make That mistake Of putting Our trust Of leaning On things Of man Of leaning On the arm Of flesh On putting Our confidence In our Own selves Let it not Be Let him Be your Trust Let him Be your Confidence Let your Life be Holy Planted On this Divine Truth That sure

[25:18] Refuge That is Christ In Hebrews 6 18 It tells us It's impossible For God To lie And we can Have strong Consolation There's a Consolation There's an Encouragement There's a Comfort For those Who have Fled for Refuge To lay Hold Upon the Hope Set Before us There's a Great Confidence There's a Great Consolation There's a Great Comfort In that One Upon whom We can Lay hold That hope Set And people

[26:21] Are believing I can't Conceive Of that How they So tricked Nice People I'm sure But yet It's a Refuge Of lies Friends We need To take Stock Take stock Of your Life Of mine Consider What it Is that Is your Refuge What it Is that You're Putting Your Trust In And Sometimes The Refuge Of lies It has To be Swept Away I was Reading Of late That persecution Itself Can be A godsend A godsend You don't see Anybody playing Church in Papua New Guinea!

[27:02] Amen! It's for real! It's fair dinkum! It's life and death For these people People! It's not playing Church anymore! Brothers and Sisters in Other lands It's real!

[27:17] It's not a Refuge of Lies! They're not Pretending To be Christians! They're not Putting Their Trust In Their Own Works In Their Own Religion! And Persecution It can Be a Godsend!

[27:27] Maybe We need Some More More so! To provoke Us to that Genuine Spirit of Prayer! To Provoke Us to Consider What is It That I'm Basing My Life Upon?

[27:39] Is It A Refuge Of Lies! Psalm 91 2! It Says! I Will Say Of The Lord He Is My Refuge And My Fortress My God In Him Will I Trust Is He Your Refuge When The Hail Comes When The Flood Waters Come Will He Be Your Hiding Place Psalm 46 1 God Is Our Refuge And Strength Of Our Present Help In Trouble And More Than Fifteen Other Times In The Psalms It Speaks Of God As Our Refuge You Can Take Those Verses And As Much As We Might Rightly Divide The Word And Everything It's Right Here And I Believe It's For You He Is Your Refuge You Can Take Heart In That You Can Flee To That Hope Set Before!

[28:26] You Can Flee To That Hope That Is Christ He Is My Refuge He Is My Fortress My God In Him Will I Trust There's Only One Sure And True Refuge And Judgment Is Coming Have You Found Christ Have You Found The Sure And Certain Refuge Have You Seen The Guidepost To The Cities Of Refuge Who Christ Is The One Who Is The Shoulder The One Who Is Our Fellowship The One Who Is Our Sanctuary The One Who Is Our Joy The One Who Is Our Righteousness Is He A Refuge The Hail Shall Sweep Away The Refuge Of Liars I Trust Today You're Saved I Pray So But I Don't Know So I Trust That You Will Consider Your Standing I Know I'm Probably Preaching To The

[29:26] Choir Today But Nevertheless Believers To Take Stop Take Stop Please Consider Your Life In The Light Of Eternity Consider That And Into Your Refuge If He Is Praise Him Praise Him Psalm 104 33 I Will Sing unto The Lord While I Live As Long As I Live I Will Sing Praise To My God While I Have My Being My Meditation Of Him Will Be Sweet!

[30:04] Praise He The Lord Habakkuk 3 17 Although The fig trees Shall not Blossom Neither Shall fruit Be in The Vines The labour Of The Olive Shall Fail And The Field Shall Yield No Meat The Flock Shall Be Cut Off From The Fall And There Shall Be No Herd In The Stalls Yet I Will Rejoice In The Lord I Will Joy In The God Of My Salvation The Lord God Is My Stream And He Will Make My Feet Like Hinds Feet And He Will Make Me To Walk Upon Mine High Places There Is A Refuge For Your Brother There Is A Refuge For Your Sister As David Prays To Close Psalm 18 I Will Love The O Lord My Strength The Lord Is My Rock And My Fortress And My Deliverer My God My

[31:06] Strength In Whom I Will Trust My Buckler Or Shield And The Horn Of My Salvation And My High Tower I Will Call Upon The Lord Who Is Worthy To Be Praised So Shall I Be Saved From Mine Enemies 2 Samuel 22 The God Of My Rock In Him Will I Trust He Is My Shield And The Horn Of My Salvation My High Tower And My Refuge My Saviour Psalm 57 Be Merciful Unto Me O God Be Merciful Unto Me For My Soul Trusteth In The!

[31:47] In The Shadow Of Thy Wings Will I Make My Refuge Until These Calamities Be Overpassed I Before God God Is A Refuge For Us Selah That's Psalm 62 8 I'll Just Repeat That To Close Trust In Him At All Times You People How Often All Times Pour Out Your Heart Before Him God Is

[32:47] A Refuge For Us Let Us Pray