WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:04.179 So over our time, we have begun back in the first chapters of Genesis, 00:00:04.179 --> 00:00:07.320 and we saw the covenant that God made with Adam and Eve at creation. 00:00:08.140 --> 00:00:12.939 Then we saw the covenant of preservation, 00:00:13.359 --> 00:00:15.679 God's promise to preserve life that he made with Noah. 00:00:16.460 --> 00:00:20.320 Then for the last couple of weeks, we've been in the covenant with Abraham, 00:00:20.320 --> 00:00:23.179 both his call and those promises that were given. 00:00:23.719 --> 00:00:27.359 Abraham needing to learn to trust God's promises 00:00:27.359 --> 00:00:31.460 when God's timing didn't seem to match up to his expectations. 00:00:32.280 --> 00:00:37.359 And now we find ourselves in the covenant that God established with Moses 00:00:37.359 --> 00:00:40.119 and with the people of Israel at Mount Sinai. 00:00:40.879 --> 00:00:43.679 But law is the distinctive feature. 00:00:43.980 --> 00:00:47.219 And I want us to spend a couple of weeks thinking about this covenant 00:00:47.219 --> 00:00:49.960 and thinking about the place of law within that covenant 00:00:49.960 --> 00:00:53.120 and within our own Christian lives. 00:00:53.119 --> 00:01:00.179 And to help us to do that, we need to realize that when you start reading around this subject, 00:01:00.619 --> 00:01:06.079 how we handle the law is one of the most controversial topics in the Christian church 00:01:06.079 --> 00:01:07.060 through its long history. 00:01:07.459 --> 00:01:10.299 What are we supposed to do with the law? 00:01:11.079 --> 00:01:14.519 It made me think of that really cheesy 70s song, 00:01:14.659 --> 00:01:16.620 War, what is it good for? 00:01:17.259 --> 00:01:17.939 Absolutely nothing. 00:01:18.039 --> 00:01:18.620 Edwin Starr. 00:01:18.620 --> 00:01:21.680 We could replace the word war with law. 00:01:22.120 --> 00:01:26.540 And we recognize that different camps in the Christian tradition over time 00:01:26.540 --> 00:01:28.320 have had different attitudes. 00:01:29.520 --> 00:01:32.080 So some would say the law, what's it good for? 00:01:32.140 --> 00:01:32.900 Absolutely nothing. 00:01:33.580 --> 00:01:35.640 We are now under grace. 00:01:35.939 --> 00:01:39.300 So law has no abiding relevance for us at all. 00:01:39.860 --> 00:01:41.840 So we may as well just skip over the Ten Commandments 00:01:41.840 --> 00:01:44.520 because we're not under law, we're under grace. 00:01:44.519 --> 00:01:51.379 In fact, some people go so far as to say that when Moses went up on Mount Sinai 00:01:51.379 --> 00:01:53.640 and received the Ten Commandments, received the law, 00:01:53.719 --> 00:01:55.939 that Israel should have said, no, we don't want your law. 00:01:56.259 --> 00:01:57.819 We want to stay under grace. 00:01:57.899 --> 00:02:01.079 So some people see this huge wedge between law and grace, 00:02:01.479 --> 00:02:03.120 say we don't want anything to do with the law. 00:02:03.659 --> 00:02:06.340 Other people, I would say, law, what's it good for? 00:02:06.560 --> 00:02:07.579 Absolutely everything. 00:02:07.799 --> 00:02:09.699 Law is how you get into the kingdom. 00:02:10.240 --> 00:02:12.680 Law is how you earn your salvation. 00:02:12.680 --> 00:02:16.500 We keep the law as the way to receive God's blessing. 00:02:16.840 --> 00:02:18.840 If we were to speak to the Pharisees, 00:02:18.920 --> 00:02:22.540 that's exactly how they would have understood it at the time of Jesus. 00:02:24.080 --> 00:02:27.780 And then there's another stream of interpretation that would say, 00:02:28.140 --> 00:02:31.719 well, all the covenants that God makes are built on grace, 00:02:32.780 --> 00:02:34.000 except for this one. 00:02:35.420 --> 00:02:38.180 So they look at what happens with Moses and with Israel and think, 00:02:38.260 --> 00:02:39.920 well, here's God making a detour. 00:02:39.919 --> 00:02:43.679 It started with grace, continues with grace through Noah and Abraham. 00:02:43.759 --> 00:02:45.519 And then it gets to Sinai. 00:02:46.219 --> 00:02:49.060 And all of a sudden, God decides that let's save people by law. 00:02:49.879 --> 00:02:52.459 So some people think there's a detour taking place here. 00:02:52.519 --> 00:02:55.579 There's a temporary plan B in how God saves. 00:02:55.619 --> 00:02:57.859 And it's almost as if, well, the law doesn't work. 00:02:58.399 --> 00:03:02.619 So let's go back to covenant of grace with David and the new covenant. 00:03:02.620 --> 00:03:07.680 So some people have really mixed views on this covenant 00:03:07.680 --> 00:03:11.020 and how law functions in the Christian life 00:03:11.020 --> 00:03:13.599 and how it functions even within the Old Testament. 00:03:14.759 --> 00:03:17.780 So given the amount of ink that has been spilled 00:03:17.780 --> 00:03:20.500 on how we are to relate to the law, 00:03:21.200 --> 00:03:24.319 some of us might then have that song to sing. 00:03:24.400 --> 00:03:25.020 Law, what's it good for? 00:03:25.099 --> 00:03:27.140 Well, actually, I don't really know. 00:03:27.620 --> 00:03:28.520 It's quite confusing. 00:03:28.520 --> 00:03:31.920 So I hope as we spend two weeks here, 00:03:32.320 --> 00:03:34.520 hopefully it will become clear to us. 00:03:34.980 --> 00:03:36.460 Some of it will become clear to us. 00:03:36.860 --> 00:03:39.500 First of all, that the covenant with Moses continues 00:03:39.500 --> 00:03:41.800 the covenant of grace. 00:03:42.080 --> 00:03:44.640 This is not a separate stream that emerges. 00:03:44.800 --> 00:03:46.560 So God's dealing with people on the basis of law. 00:03:46.600 --> 00:03:49.600 It's always on the basis of grace. 00:03:50.760 --> 00:03:52.640 What we'll hopefully see very clearly 00:03:52.640 --> 00:03:54.980 is that the law represents God's will 00:03:54.979 --> 00:03:57.359 and God's way of life for a people 00:03:57.359 --> 00:03:59.419 who have already been redeemed. 00:04:00.239 --> 00:04:03.979 So it's not obey the law and you get into God's kingdom. 00:04:04.359 --> 00:04:06.459 It's not God has rescued you in the kingdom 00:04:06.459 --> 00:04:08.439 and therefore here is God's will, 00:04:08.579 --> 00:04:10.659 here is God's law then for how to live. 00:04:11.539 --> 00:04:13.299 So it's addressed to people, in other words, 00:04:13.359 --> 00:04:14.259 who have been adopted, 00:04:15.000 --> 00:04:17.019 who are part of the new community of God. 00:04:17.420 --> 00:04:19.159 And in a sense, it's like the family rules 00:04:19.159 --> 00:04:21.699 for how they are then to live out this new identity. 00:04:22.680 --> 00:04:23.459 To put it another way, 00:04:23.459 --> 00:04:26.219 I hope that we'll see that obedience has always been, 00:04:26.560 --> 00:04:28.739 was for Israel the goal of the covenant, 00:04:29.459 --> 00:04:31.819 not the means of entering into the covenant. 00:04:31.939 --> 00:04:35.000 It's really important to get that order right. 00:04:35.779 --> 00:04:38.139 And it's really important for us to recognize, 00:04:38.339 --> 00:04:40.319 and I think this is where sometimes we struggle 00:04:40.319 --> 00:04:42.019 as we look back on the Old Testament. 00:04:42.639 --> 00:04:44.240 It's really important for us to understand 00:04:44.240 --> 00:04:46.120 that for both the Old Testament believer 00:04:46.120 --> 00:04:48.079 and the New Testament believer, 00:04:48.079 --> 00:04:49.719 for us in the 21st century, 00:04:49.720 --> 00:04:53.760 everybody has always been saved by grace alone, 00:04:53.900 --> 00:04:55.400 through faith alone, 00:04:55.680 --> 00:04:57.940 never ever saved by the law. 00:04:58.540 --> 00:05:00.100 We spent a lot of time in Galatians, 00:05:00.180 --> 00:05:01.740 and that was the big theme 00:05:01.740 --> 00:05:05.680 that the center of Galatians took us towards. 00:05:06.120 --> 00:05:06.940 So this week, 00:05:07.740 --> 00:05:09.440 we're gonna concentrate our attention 00:05:09.440 --> 00:05:13.420 on noticing the extent to which 00:05:13.420 --> 00:05:16.620 attention is being drawn in the book of Exodus 00:05:16.620 --> 00:05:19.319 to the fact that the covenant with Moses 00:05:19.319 --> 00:05:23.459 is continuing this covenant of grace made with Abraham. 00:05:24.019 --> 00:05:25.420 And we're also gonna notice 00:05:25.420 --> 00:05:26.660 that in the book of Exodus, 00:05:27.079 --> 00:05:30.220 which is the Old Testament book about redemption, 00:05:30.699 --> 00:05:32.480 we're gonna see that the pattern for redemption 00:05:32.480 --> 00:05:33.459 in the Old Testament 00:05:33.459 --> 00:05:36.699 is the same pattern that we'll see in the New Testament. 00:05:37.040 --> 00:05:40.519 It's the same pattern that's true for us today. 00:05:40.720 --> 00:05:41.579 And then next week, 00:05:41.639 --> 00:05:43.560 we'll think about law in the context of grace, 00:05:43.560 --> 00:05:45.980 and we'll think about what's the purpose of the law 00:05:45.980 --> 00:05:49.379 in the context of a covenant of grace. 00:05:51.139 --> 00:05:53.319 Hopefully, it will be helpful. 00:05:53.459 --> 00:05:55.860 I think it will be as we spend some time 00:05:55.860 --> 00:05:58.560 doing a bit of background to this covenant. 00:05:59.720 --> 00:06:01.040 So the first thing to recognize, 00:06:01.160 --> 00:06:04.439 the covenant with Moses is continuing God's story. 00:06:04.759 --> 00:06:08.139 It's continuing God's covenant purposes. 00:06:09.560 --> 00:06:11.899 Some of us will no doubt have read books 00:06:11.899 --> 00:06:14.959 in a series or you've watched DVD box sets. 00:06:15.719 --> 00:06:19.000 So maybe you've read Harry Potter, 00:06:19.439 --> 00:06:20.519 and maybe you're eager to read 00:06:20.519 --> 00:06:21.560 How to Train Your Dragon 00:06:21.560 --> 00:06:23.079 after hearing about it this morning. 00:06:23.739 --> 00:06:25.519 But whenever you read books in a series 00:06:25.519 --> 00:06:29.419 or you watch TV series that happen over a length of time, 00:06:29.819 --> 00:06:32.639 we're always on the lookout for certain links, 00:06:32.799 --> 00:06:34.799 certain connecting themes or characters 00:06:34.799 --> 00:06:35.719 that pop in and out 00:06:35.719 --> 00:06:38.060 and help the storyline to develop. 00:06:38.219 --> 00:06:40.120 So we see that there is development, 00:06:40.120 --> 00:06:42.439 but we see also a story that continues. 00:06:43.519 --> 00:06:46.519 Well, when we look at the first five books of the Bible, 00:06:46.639 --> 00:06:48.360 all of them are written by Moses, 00:06:49.180 --> 00:06:51.879 and all of them are following a pattern. 00:06:53.379 --> 00:06:55.040 And Exodus chapter one and two, 00:06:55.180 --> 00:06:56.660 in particular, as the book begins, 00:06:56.759 --> 00:06:58.819 gives us lots of clues about the fact 00:06:58.819 --> 00:07:01.019 that here is a story that is continuing. 00:07:02.040 --> 00:07:04.040 Moses is not something different. 00:07:04.660 --> 00:07:08.019 Moses is not plan B where we're adding law 00:07:08.019 --> 00:07:09.519 and we're forgetting about grace. 00:07:10.259 --> 00:07:14.000 And Moses continues and expands God's storyline of grace. 00:07:14.339 --> 00:07:16.459 So I want us to notice five things. 00:07:17.459 --> 00:07:18.799 And I'm hoping that the boys and girls 00:07:18.799 --> 00:07:21.339 will be able to notice these five things with us as well. 00:07:21.459 --> 00:07:23.539 First thing, first clue, as it were, 00:07:23.979 --> 00:07:28.120 comes in Exodus chapter one and verses one to seven. 00:07:28.240 --> 00:07:29.240 We didn't read it, 00:07:30.139 --> 00:07:31.240 but if you've been around, 00:07:31.359 --> 00:07:32.259 you'll have remembered 00:07:32.259 --> 00:07:35.579 that when God made covenant promises to Abraham, 00:07:35.680 --> 00:07:39.079 he said that Abraham would have a great big family, 00:07:39.180 --> 00:07:41.759 a family that would become a nation. 00:07:42.379 --> 00:07:43.399 Now, boys and girls, 00:07:43.500 --> 00:07:46.420 if you look at chapter one and verse five, 00:07:46.899 --> 00:07:52.019 you'll see how big the family of Abraham has become. 00:07:52.860 --> 00:07:53.980 And do you see the number there? 00:07:54.300 --> 00:07:55.920 It's the number 70. 00:07:56.060 --> 00:07:59.560 So that's a big family that's developing. 00:07:59.560 --> 00:08:03.379 So here is God keeping his promise. 00:08:04.060 --> 00:08:05.319 And then in verse seven, 00:08:05.759 --> 00:08:08.259 we get language that we've heard before. 00:08:09.040 --> 00:08:13.220 The Israelites were fruitful and multiplied greatly 00:08:13.220 --> 00:08:15.459 and became exceedingly numerous. 00:08:15.560 --> 00:08:17.699 Remember that the covenant that God made 00:08:17.699 --> 00:08:19.540 with Adam and Eve, 00:08:20.220 --> 00:08:22.879 told them to fill the earth and to multiply. 00:08:23.199 --> 00:08:24.620 And he did it again with Noah. 00:08:24.939 --> 00:08:27.300 Here's that same phrase repeating 00:08:27.300 --> 00:08:31.160 to remind us that there's continuity here 00:08:31.160 --> 00:08:34.159 with the covenant made at creation. 00:08:35.759 --> 00:08:38.600 There's also another clue that reminds us, 00:08:38.680 --> 00:08:42.200 this time, I guess, about the character of God. 00:08:42.980 --> 00:08:44.840 As chapter one continues, 00:08:45.080 --> 00:08:47.940 we see in a sense, Pharaoh versus God. 00:08:48.120 --> 00:08:50.740 Pharaoh in a sense, versus the midwives. 00:08:51.279 --> 00:08:54.720 And we're discovering that when God has a plan, 00:08:54.720 --> 00:08:57.379 when God has a purpose, when God makes a promise, 00:08:58.379 --> 00:09:01.940 that cannot be stopped because he is the Lord Almighty. 00:09:03.360 --> 00:09:06.660 So we discover that the Pharaoh in Egypt, 00:09:06.759 --> 00:09:08.660 the most powerful figure in the world, 00:09:09.320 --> 00:09:12.820 he is nervous about the nation of Israel 00:09:12.820 --> 00:09:13.840 that's developing. 00:09:13.980 --> 00:09:16.259 While they're slaves, there's more and more of them. 00:09:16.800 --> 00:09:19.120 And so Pharaoh begins to try and think, 00:09:19.240 --> 00:09:21.879 how can we minimize the threat? 00:09:21.879 --> 00:09:23.899 And eventually he decides, 00:09:23.980 --> 00:09:27.519 well, let's get rid of Hebrew baby boys 00:09:27.519 --> 00:09:30.340 at the point of birth. 00:09:30.439 --> 00:09:31.740 So that's his plan. 00:09:32.320 --> 00:09:34.740 But what we discover is that God is sovereign. 00:09:34.919 --> 00:09:36.659 He is greater than Pharaoh. 00:09:37.559 --> 00:09:39.259 And we have two Hebrew women 00:09:39.259 --> 00:09:43.179 who are able to defy the most powerful man in the world. 00:09:43.659 --> 00:09:46.120 And it clues us into the fact that the story of Exodus 00:09:46.120 --> 00:09:47.659 is going to be a story of a battle, 00:09:47.659 --> 00:09:51.659 a God conflict between the true God of Israel 00:09:51.659 --> 00:09:54.579 and Pharaoh who sets himself up as a son of God 00:09:54.579 --> 00:09:56.379 and all the false gods of Egypt. 00:09:56.500 --> 00:09:58.919 And what we'll see is that there is no context. 00:09:59.579 --> 00:10:01.459 That God is all powerful. 00:10:01.980 --> 00:10:03.019 God is on the throne. 00:10:03.439 --> 00:10:05.419 God is working for his people. 00:10:06.459 --> 00:10:09.199 Now into chapter two, where we did read, 00:10:10.199 --> 00:10:12.799 verses 11 to 15, 00:10:12.799 --> 00:10:16.379 we are reminded of something really important, 00:10:17.279 --> 00:10:20.479 that people need God's deliverance. 00:10:21.199 --> 00:10:22.759 And we see that negatively 00:10:22.759 --> 00:10:26.859 because we see Moses trying to act as deliverer 00:10:26.859 --> 00:10:30.419 on his own strength and failing. 00:10:31.879 --> 00:10:35.159 So we see him killing an Egyptian, 00:10:35.639 --> 00:10:37.079 hiding him in the sand. 00:10:37.519 --> 00:10:39.639 Word spreads about the murder 00:10:39.639 --> 00:10:42.620 and Moses has to run for his life. 00:10:44.000 --> 00:10:47.179 Just as Noah couldn't be God's means 00:10:47.179 --> 00:10:50.399 of saving humanity on his own strength, 00:10:50.860 --> 00:10:52.720 just as Abraham and Sarah 00:10:52.720 --> 00:10:56.340 couldn't have that great promised blessing 00:10:56.340 --> 00:10:59.439 by themselves, by their own plans, 00:10:59.600 --> 00:11:01.120 nor could Moses. 00:11:03.120 --> 00:11:07.139 God needs to act to be the deliverer. 00:11:07.139 --> 00:11:12.620 God needs to show himself powerful and faithful. 00:11:13.960 --> 00:11:16.980 You might remember in Genesis chapter 17, 00:11:16.980 --> 00:11:19.179 when God's making the covenant with Abraham, 00:11:19.580 --> 00:11:20.480 he says to Abraham, 00:11:20.860 --> 00:11:24.819 your descendants will be slaves in Egypt for 430 years. 00:11:24.899 --> 00:11:28.340 But after that point, I will deliver them. 00:11:29.580 --> 00:11:32.139 And what we see in the book of Exodus 00:11:32.139 --> 00:11:35.299 is God being faithful to that promise. 00:11:35.299 --> 00:11:37.939 God acting as the deliverer, 00:11:38.219 --> 00:11:40.299 just as he said. 00:11:42.620 --> 00:11:45.799 The next clue, the really important clue 00:11:45.799 --> 00:11:49.639 that the covenant made with Moses is continuing, 00:11:50.199 --> 00:11:51.359 the covenant with Abraham, 00:11:51.500 --> 00:11:53.799 is in the end of chapter 2. 00:11:54.719 --> 00:11:58.779 Look at verses 24 and 25. 00:11:58.779 --> 00:12:02.699 So we discover a people, 00:12:03.159 --> 00:12:03.779 the Israelites, 00:12:03.939 --> 00:12:06.199 who are groaning in their slavery, 00:12:06.899 --> 00:12:08.480 and they're crying out. 00:12:08.539 --> 00:12:10.799 They're crying out because they're being worked to death 00:12:10.799 --> 00:12:13.519 by an evil king who wants to destroy them. 00:12:14.240 --> 00:12:16.639 They're under oppression from this evil power, 00:12:16.980 --> 00:12:19.220 from these false gods that are influencing 00:12:19.220 --> 00:12:20.779 the way that they think about God, 00:12:20.819 --> 00:12:22.000 or don't think about God, 00:12:22.399 --> 00:12:24.399 influencing them towards false religion. 00:12:24.399 --> 00:12:27.779 So they're in slavery of a variety of kinds. 00:12:29.240 --> 00:12:30.879 But what happens next? 00:12:31.100 --> 00:12:32.000 Verse 24, 00:12:33.139 --> 00:12:35.000 God heard their groaning. 00:12:36.399 --> 00:12:37.179 Boys and girls, 00:12:37.259 --> 00:12:39.799 do you notice in verse 24 what he remembered? 00:12:42.120 --> 00:12:44.500 Doesn't say God remembered their cries. 00:12:45.240 --> 00:12:47.279 Doesn't say God remembered their groaning. 00:12:47.939 --> 00:12:50.819 Says God remembered his covenant. 00:12:51.740 --> 00:12:53.399 God remembered his promise. 00:12:53.399 --> 00:12:56.480 And so the whole story of Exodus, 00:12:56.899 --> 00:12:59.000 the story of redemption and salvation, 00:12:59.480 --> 00:13:03.319 is rooted in God's commitment to Abraham 00:13:03.319 --> 00:13:05.899 and those promises that he made to Abraham 00:13:05.899 --> 00:13:06.980 and his family. 00:13:07.759 --> 00:13:10.019 So God's going to end their slavery 00:13:10.019 --> 00:13:12.139 to be faithful to his promise. 00:13:12.919 --> 00:13:16.199 God's going to establish that Emmanuel principle 00:13:16.199 --> 00:13:18.939 of being their God and they being his people 00:13:18.939 --> 00:13:21.460 in answer to those promises. 00:13:21.460 --> 00:13:23.139 He's going to make them a people, 00:13:23.540 --> 00:13:24.460 give them a land, 00:13:24.840 --> 00:13:27.040 make them a blessing because of his grace, 00:13:27.660 --> 00:13:28.960 because of his faithfulness, 00:13:29.240 --> 00:13:31.980 because he remembers his covenant. 00:13:33.019 --> 00:13:35.360 Now, why does this matter for us 00:13:35.360 --> 00:13:36.879 as we think about God's covenant? 00:13:37.080 --> 00:13:38.620 Well, it reminds us in the first place 00:13:38.620 --> 00:13:40.940 of God's absolute sovereignty. 00:13:41.420 --> 00:13:42.940 It's good for us to remember 00:13:42.940 --> 00:13:45.200 that we have a God that we can trust. 00:13:45.200 --> 00:13:48.820 Whatever the circumstances of our lives, 00:13:48.920 --> 00:13:51.660 we have a God who is on the throne. 00:13:52.280 --> 00:13:55.879 He is building up the family of Abraham, 00:13:56.060 --> 00:13:57.640 establishing the nation of Israel, 00:13:57.700 --> 00:14:00.520 despite the best efforts of Pharaoh to destroy them. 00:14:01.700 --> 00:14:05.720 Even through their 430 years of slavery and hard labor, 00:14:06.100 --> 00:14:08.980 God will work out his purposes and will set them free. 00:14:08.980 --> 00:14:13.480 God is showing himself to be stronger than Pharaoh. 00:14:14.860 --> 00:14:19.060 The book of Exodus reminds us of that great theme in the Bible, 00:14:19.159 --> 00:14:20.720 that we have a God who is powerful 00:14:20.720 --> 00:14:22.860 and we have a God who cares for his people 00:14:22.860 --> 00:14:24.860 and a God who keeps his promises. 00:14:26.279 --> 00:14:28.639 So whenever we come to the covenant with Moses, 00:14:28.759 --> 00:14:31.379 we need to remember that as the background, 00:14:31.500 --> 00:14:34.360 to remember what brought the people from slavery 00:14:34.360 --> 00:14:37.360 to Mount Sinai to receive the law, 00:14:37.440 --> 00:14:38.440 to receive the covenant, 00:14:38.940 --> 00:14:41.399 was God's sovereign rule. 00:14:42.039 --> 00:14:45.200 And to remember that this God who is on the throne, 00:14:45.300 --> 00:14:48.740 who is almighty, is the king who saves. 00:14:50.740 --> 00:14:52.919 That the people are brought into the covenant 00:14:52.919 --> 00:14:54.740 by saving grace. 00:14:56.379 --> 00:14:58.560 We also need to remember, 00:14:58.980 --> 00:15:00.159 and it becomes really clear, 00:15:00.220 --> 00:15:01.580 and we'll see it in a couple of minutes, 00:15:01.580 --> 00:15:05.420 that the promise of God and the grace of God 00:15:05.420 --> 00:15:08.940 absolutely come before the law of God. 00:15:10.120 --> 00:15:10.920 So we'll see, 00:15:11.700 --> 00:15:14.320 Israel will see his powerful acts 00:15:14.320 --> 00:15:18.320 before the law in Egypt and in the wilderness. 00:15:19.000 --> 00:15:21.000 They will enjoy his powerful presence, 00:15:21.100 --> 00:15:22.960 the pillar of cloud, the pillar of fire. 00:15:24.000 --> 00:15:26.600 They'll be shown grace despite their sin 00:15:26.600 --> 00:15:27.800 in the wilderness, 00:15:27.800 --> 00:15:31.340 and all of that before they receive the law. 00:15:31.580 --> 00:15:36.720 So it was never the law that made Israel the people of God. 00:15:37.320 --> 00:15:41.759 It's never the law that makes anybody a child of God. 00:15:42.320 --> 00:15:44.080 It's always God's grace. 00:15:45.040 --> 00:15:50.259 For us, Jesus comes as God's great gift of grace 00:15:50.259 --> 00:15:54.020 to a broken and a sinful world. 00:15:54.620 --> 00:15:55.620 We are forgiven. 00:15:55.620 --> 00:15:58.240 We are adopted, not because of our merit, 00:15:58.240 --> 00:16:00.600 but because of God's grace to us, 00:16:00.940 --> 00:16:02.720 because of the righteousness of Christ 00:16:02.720 --> 00:16:04.360 that's credited to us. 00:16:06.019 --> 00:16:08.060 And it's always so important for us, 00:16:08.100 --> 00:16:10.899 it's in that context that we are then called to obey. 00:16:11.980 --> 00:16:15.560 Just as Israel were set free to become the people of God, 00:16:15.600 --> 00:16:16.940 and then they were called to obey, 00:16:17.299 --> 00:16:20.080 so we obey as the children of God, 00:16:20.139 --> 00:16:22.659 not to become the children of God. 00:16:22.659 --> 00:16:25.319 When we get that mixed up, 00:16:25.740 --> 00:16:28.500 we think of it as perhaps a duty. 00:16:29.759 --> 00:16:32.339 We can approach it with real reluctance, 00:16:33.059 --> 00:16:35.339 when actually we should approach obedience 00:16:35.339 --> 00:16:36.980 as a great delight for us, 00:16:37.539 --> 00:16:39.579 as people who have been made children of God. 00:16:40.219 --> 00:16:43.139 So getting the order right really matters. 00:16:44.579 --> 00:16:46.720 So to help us to think about that a little bit more, 00:16:46.980 --> 00:16:49.100 we're going to think about how the covenant with Moses 00:16:49.100 --> 00:16:52.180 and the story of Exodus shows to us 00:16:52.180 --> 00:16:54.800 the pattern of salvation. 00:16:56.500 --> 00:16:58.040 Why do we sometimes struggle 00:16:58.040 --> 00:17:00.220 to get the place of the law right? 00:17:01.180 --> 00:17:03.980 Why have certain groups throughout the history of the church 00:17:03.980 --> 00:17:05.259 missed the point? 00:17:05.339 --> 00:17:06.720 For example, the Pharisees, 00:17:07.680 --> 00:17:09.259 because it's when we get the order wrong. 00:17:10.099 --> 00:17:11.579 Or to think of it another way, 00:17:11.640 --> 00:17:13.460 it's if we forget the context 00:17:13.460 --> 00:17:15.380 behind the giving of the law. 00:17:15.440 --> 00:17:16.839 If we forget that the law is given 00:17:16.839 --> 00:17:18.379 in the context of grace, 00:17:19.399 --> 00:17:20.659 then we go wrong and we think, 00:17:20.759 --> 00:17:22.500 well, I need to obey in order to earn. 00:17:23.919 --> 00:17:27.240 Context matters when we hear a story. 00:17:27.240 --> 00:17:31.679 So if I was to begin a story along these lines, 00:17:32.399 --> 00:17:36.919 the man plunged the knife into the man's chest, 00:17:37.240 --> 00:17:39.879 we might expect something awful, 00:17:40.059 --> 00:17:42.259 something terrible was happening. 00:17:42.259 --> 00:17:45.680 But if in a wider context, 00:17:46.160 --> 00:17:48.920 we knew that the story was about a surgeon 00:17:48.920 --> 00:17:52.099 at work in an operating room performing heart surgery, 00:17:52.180 --> 00:17:54.640 well, that transforms our view of that situation. 00:17:57.319 --> 00:18:00.000 For law, whenever we're thinking about the law, 00:18:00.140 --> 00:18:02.480 our context must always be, 00:18:03.000 --> 00:18:05.099 this is in the light of God's covenant promise. 00:18:05.819 --> 00:18:07.799 This is in the light of grace. 00:18:07.920 --> 00:18:11.079 Grace always comes ahead of the law. 00:18:11.079 --> 00:18:12.980 And so we're gonna just very quickly 00:18:12.980 --> 00:18:14.720 scan through the book of Exodus, 00:18:15.519 --> 00:18:17.299 the first few chapters at least, 00:18:17.819 --> 00:18:20.740 to see all that takes place before the law, 00:18:21.240 --> 00:18:23.119 to make absolutely clear to us, 00:18:23.159 --> 00:18:25.159 hopefully that they are redeemed first 00:18:25.159 --> 00:18:26.819 and then they receive the law second. 00:18:26.899 --> 00:18:29.659 And that's really important for our Christian life, 00:18:29.799 --> 00:18:32.220 our understanding of the gospel. 00:18:33.679 --> 00:18:38.059 We can follow the pattern of redemption 00:18:38.059 --> 00:18:39.740 in the book of Exodus 00:18:39.740 --> 00:18:42.000 and we can see themes that emerge 00:18:42.000 --> 00:18:44.539 that are still equally true today. 00:18:45.679 --> 00:18:48.859 First of all, the idea of deliverance 00:18:48.859 --> 00:18:51.839 from sin and slavery. 00:18:52.559 --> 00:18:54.899 A couple of verses up on our screen 00:18:54.899 --> 00:18:56.240 which are helpful in this regard. 00:18:56.399 --> 00:19:00.700 Chapter three, verses seven and eight of Exodus. 00:19:00.700 --> 00:19:02.680 The Lord said, 00:19:02.759 --> 00:19:04.940 I've indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. 00:19:05.200 --> 00:19:06.620 I've heard them crying out 00:19:06.620 --> 00:19:08.120 because of their slave drivers 00:19:08.120 --> 00:19:10.640 and I am concerned about their suffering. 00:19:11.360 --> 00:19:13.299 So I have come down to rescue them 00:19:13.299 --> 00:19:14.539 from the hand of the Egyptians 00:19:14.539 --> 00:19:16.980 and to bring them up out of that land 00:19:16.980 --> 00:19:19.580 into a good and spacious land, 00:19:20.140 --> 00:19:22.920 a land flowing with milk and honey. 00:19:23.360 --> 00:19:24.460 So we know this. 00:19:24.460 --> 00:19:28.019 We know that the situation for Israel 00:19:28.019 --> 00:19:31.100 was that they were under physical slavery. 00:19:31.840 --> 00:19:36.360 Pharaoh and his taskmasters working them to death. 00:19:37.420 --> 00:19:39.600 But we also are told 00:19:39.600 --> 00:19:42.799 that they're under a spiritual slavery as well. 00:19:43.700 --> 00:19:46.240 That because of their long years in Egypt, 00:19:47.380 --> 00:19:51.799 they had forgotten by and large about the true God. 00:19:51.799 --> 00:19:57.480 So Joshua chapter 24 says, 00:19:57.859 --> 00:20:01.899 throw away the gods your forefathers worshipped in Egypt 00:20:01.899 --> 00:20:03.899 and fear the Lord. 00:20:04.200 --> 00:20:06.000 So even after they've been set free, 00:20:06.279 --> 00:20:07.980 even after they've wandered through the wilderness, 00:20:08.279 --> 00:20:09.659 even after they've received the law, 00:20:09.740 --> 00:20:13.159 some of them were still holding on to the worship 00:20:13.159 --> 00:20:15.279 that they'd been used to in Egypt. 00:20:16.419 --> 00:20:18.819 Here is a people who are in physical chains, 00:20:18.819 --> 00:20:22.000 but also in spiritual slavery. 00:20:23.879 --> 00:20:26.480 And so when Moses comes and says, 00:20:26.579 --> 00:20:28.599 God has heard your groans and he's going to set you free, 00:20:28.659 --> 00:20:31.240 they're asking the question, who is this God? 00:20:31.299 --> 00:20:34.220 They genuinely seem to have lost sight of him 00:20:34.220 --> 00:20:36.319 over those long years. 00:20:38.960 --> 00:20:40.819 And so when God delivers, 00:20:41.579 --> 00:20:43.859 he delivers from sin and slavery. 00:20:43.859 --> 00:20:45.939 And that of course is a picture, 00:20:46.179 --> 00:20:51.179 an image that applies to all salvation. 00:20:52.219 --> 00:20:56.879 We still find people today in spiritual slavery. 00:20:57.639 --> 00:21:03.579 We are by nature both unwilling and unable to choose God. 00:21:04.599 --> 00:21:06.759 That we construct for ourselves 00:21:06.759 --> 00:21:09.240 all kinds of modern day idols, 00:21:09.399 --> 00:21:13.000 things that we live for and value ahead of God. 00:21:13.000 --> 00:21:19.279 That by nature, we are in rebellion against our creator. 00:21:20.240 --> 00:21:23.400 And we are heading towards judgment and death, 00:21:23.519 --> 00:21:26.779 just as the people without God's deliverance here 00:21:26.779 --> 00:21:28.559 would have been worked today. 00:21:29.920 --> 00:21:33.140 Our only hope is for God to deliver us. 00:21:33.500 --> 00:21:36.859 And he does that through Jesus and by the cross. 00:21:37.519 --> 00:21:40.619 It's at the cross that Jesus destroys the power of sin, 00:21:40.619 --> 00:21:42.399 that he rescues us. 00:21:42.839 --> 00:21:45.339 And a new master is established in our lives 00:21:45.339 --> 00:21:46.879 where it's not sin anymore. 00:21:47.000 --> 00:21:48.679 Now it's Jesus. 00:21:49.599 --> 00:21:52.359 So deliverance from sin and slavery 00:21:52.359 --> 00:21:57.139 is a reality in our salvation, 00:21:57.139 --> 00:21:59.799 just as it was at the time of Moses. 00:22:01.079 --> 00:22:04.279 Another reality true then and true now 00:22:04.279 --> 00:22:08.740 is that this happens with a display of divine power. 00:22:08.740 --> 00:22:12.759 So in Exodus 6 and verse 6, 00:22:14.220 --> 00:22:17.839 Moses is to give this message to the Israelites. 00:22:17.839 --> 00:22:40.459 And what we discovered in the book of Exodus 00:22:40.460 --> 00:22:43.160 is that God sees their plight, 00:22:43.819 --> 00:22:45.539 God hears their groaning, 00:22:45.539 --> 00:22:50.340 and God acts decisively in power and in judgment 00:22:50.340 --> 00:22:52.039 through the plagues, 00:22:52.940 --> 00:22:56.279 through them being delivered through the Red Sea, 00:22:56.680 --> 00:23:00.220 and all of that in powerful grace. 00:23:00.900 --> 00:23:06.100 We cannot be saved apart from the power of God. 00:23:06.099 --> 00:23:10.059 And that's the message of the New Testament as well. 00:23:11.299 --> 00:23:12.419 The New Testament will say, 00:23:12.879 --> 00:23:13.899 while we were still sinners, 00:23:14.559 --> 00:23:16.139 Christ died for us. 00:23:16.839 --> 00:23:19.500 That it's Jesus and his death on the cross 00:23:19.500 --> 00:23:22.899 that's able to take us from that kingdom of darkness 00:23:22.899 --> 00:23:25.299 and bring us into the kingdom of light. 00:23:25.379 --> 00:23:27.119 And that's by his powerful grace. 00:23:27.939 --> 00:23:29.719 In the book of Colossians, 00:23:29.839 --> 00:23:32.000 Paul talks about Jesus on the cross 00:23:32.000 --> 00:23:34.579 disarming the powers and the authorities, 00:23:34.579 --> 00:23:36.679 making a public spectacle of them, 00:23:36.839 --> 00:23:38.759 triumphing over them at the cross. 00:23:39.819 --> 00:23:43.539 So again, there is that decisive display of God's power 00:23:43.539 --> 00:23:46.919 that allows anybody to be saved. 00:23:48.199 --> 00:23:52.039 True for us, just as it was at the time of Moses. 00:23:53.240 --> 00:23:55.099 Very much connected to that, 00:23:55.439 --> 00:23:59.240 there is this demonstration of sovereign grace. 00:23:59.399 --> 00:24:01.980 One of the things that you see as the plagues develop 00:24:01.980 --> 00:24:05.039 is that God wants to make it really clear to Pharaoh 00:24:05.039 --> 00:24:06.400 and to Egypt and to Israel 00:24:06.400 --> 00:24:10.380 that there is a distinction being drawn. 00:24:11.039 --> 00:24:15.480 So in Exodus chapter eight and verse 22 and 23, 00:24:16.539 --> 00:24:18.599 he says this to do with the plague of flies. 00:24:18.720 --> 00:24:20.539 On that day, I will deal differently 00:24:20.539 --> 00:24:22.940 with the land of Goshen where my people live. 00:24:23.680 --> 00:24:26.039 No swarms of flies will be there 00:24:26.039 --> 00:24:29.059 so that you will know that I, the Lord, 00:24:29.180 --> 00:24:30.420 am in this land. 00:24:30.420 --> 00:24:34.519 I will make a distinction between my people 00:24:34.519 --> 00:24:35.960 and your people. 00:24:36.060 --> 00:24:37.380 Here's God speaking to Pharaoh. 00:24:37.860 --> 00:24:41.779 This miraculous sign will occur tomorrow. 00:24:42.519 --> 00:24:44.900 So the plagues function as a division 00:24:44.900 --> 00:24:46.320 between Egypt and Israel. 00:24:46.840 --> 00:24:48.740 Egypt under Pharaoh, 00:24:49.060 --> 00:24:50.400 refusing to let God's people go, 00:24:50.480 --> 00:24:51.720 they suffer the consequences 00:24:51.720 --> 00:24:55.279 while Goshen where Israel lives 00:24:55.279 --> 00:24:57.539 is free of these various plagues. 00:24:57.539 --> 00:25:01.460 Now, it can be very easy for us to think, 00:25:01.579 --> 00:25:04.700 well, of course, because Egypt was the bad guys 00:25:04.700 --> 00:25:06.299 and Israel was the good guys. 00:25:07.279 --> 00:25:10.639 But remember what we just read in Joshua 24, 00:25:11.420 --> 00:25:12.700 where even after they've been delivered, 00:25:12.799 --> 00:25:16.599 they're told to throw away their foreign gods. 00:25:17.259 --> 00:25:19.240 We need to remember that Israel, 00:25:20.180 --> 00:25:20.960 same as ourselves, 00:25:21.839 --> 00:25:23.920 saved by grace alone. 00:25:23.920 --> 00:25:27.100 Because they too were worshipping idols. 00:25:27.960 --> 00:25:29.100 We see all through the wilderness 00:25:29.100 --> 00:25:30.640 how quick they were to grumble, 00:25:30.820 --> 00:25:32.580 complain, rebel against God, 00:25:32.960 --> 00:25:35.840 to want the cucumbers and the melons of Egypt 00:25:35.840 --> 00:25:38.680 rather than freedom to become the people of God. 00:25:39.259 --> 00:25:41.820 We remember them setting up the golden cap. 00:25:42.460 --> 00:25:45.000 We need a visible image to follow. 00:25:45.000 --> 00:25:48.940 They weren't saved because they were better. 00:25:49.920 --> 00:25:50.980 They were saved by grace. 00:25:51.339 --> 00:25:52.759 God's sovereign grace. 00:25:52.920 --> 00:25:55.400 God elects to save them from the darkness 00:25:55.400 --> 00:25:58.359 in faithfulness to his covenant promise. 00:26:00.259 --> 00:26:02.339 One of the things that reminds us of 00:26:02.339 --> 00:26:04.119 is that as Christians, 00:26:04.279 --> 00:26:05.819 we ought to be humble. 00:26:07.440 --> 00:26:08.960 When we meet people 00:26:08.960 --> 00:26:10.640 who don't know anything about Christianity 00:26:10.640 --> 00:26:12.380 or people who disagree with us 00:26:12.380 --> 00:26:14.220 fundamentally about our faith, 00:26:14.220 --> 00:26:16.579 we need to take a position of humility 00:26:16.579 --> 00:26:18.559 and recognize that without God's grace, 00:26:19.660 --> 00:26:22.839 we would be just as ignorant of the truth. 00:26:23.500 --> 00:26:25.339 We'd be just as hopeless 00:26:25.339 --> 00:26:28.059 without a savior, 00:26:28.500 --> 00:26:29.940 were it not for God's grace. 00:26:30.440 --> 00:26:31.759 So it should lead us towards humility. 00:26:31.920 --> 00:26:34.299 It should also lead us profoundly towards gratitude. 00:26:36.380 --> 00:26:38.680 Sometimes, maybe if we've been Christians for a while, 00:26:39.380 --> 00:26:40.940 we can become complacent. 00:26:40.940 --> 00:26:42.620 We can start to think, 00:26:42.720 --> 00:26:45.279 well, it's because I know how to live. 00:26:45.380 --> 00:26:48.980 I know how to put it always on the basis of grace. 00:26:49.880 --> 00:26:52.779 So humility and gratitude should be consequences 00:26:52.779 --> 00:26:57.039 as well as trusting in this God, 00:26:57.559 --> 00:27:02.420 this sovereign, almighty, powerful, covenant-keeping God. 00:27:02.420 --> 00:27:06.580 Another thing that we see that's true of redemption 00:27:06.580 --> 00:27:09.700 in the Old Testament that's true for redemption today 00:27:09.700 --> 00:27:12.740 is that sacrifice is involved. 00:27:13.360 --> 00:27:14.660 In chapter 12, 00:27:15.960 --> 00:27:17.600 we find that the final plague, 00:27:17.680 --> 00:27:18.920 the plague on the firstborn, 00:27:19.340 --> 00:27:23.160 also causes God to introduce the Passover. 00:27:23.960 --> 00:27:25.420 So Exodus chapter 12, 00:27:25.420 --> 00:27:28.000 we can read verses 12 and 13. 00:27:29.259 --> 00:27:29.740 It says, 00:27:29.840 --> 00:27:30.620 On that same night, 00:27:30.740 --> 00:27:32.200 I will pass through Egypt 00:27:32.200 --> 00:27:35.160 and strike down every firstborn, 00:27:35.580 --> 00:27:37.019 both men and animals, 00:27:37.340 --> 00:27:40.480 and I will bring judgment on all the gods of Egypt. 00:27:40.920 --> 00:27:42.560 Exodus is a God conflict. 00:27:43.420 --> 00:27:45.080 I am the Lord. 00:27:45.800 --> 00:27:47.880 The blood will be a sign for you 00:27:47.880 --> 00:27:49.940 on the houses where you are. 00:27:49.940 --> 00:27:52.340 And when I see the blood, 00:27:52.779 --> 00:27:54.759 I will pass over you. 00:27:55.120 --> 00:27:58.160 No destructive plague will touch you 00:27:58.160 --> 00:28:01.180 when I strike Egypt. 00:28:01.740 --> 00:28:03.600 One of the things that we've seen 00:28:03.600 --> 00:28:04.880 as we've looked at the covenants 00:28:04.880 --> 00:28:07.600 is that covenants require blood. 00:28:08.539 --> 00:28:11.420 Blood that ratifies an agreement, 00:28:12.120 --> 00:28:15.180 but blood is also shed as a reminder 00:28:15.180 --> 00:28:19.200 that forgiveness and washing is required. 00:28:19.940 --> 00:28:22.400 God needs to cleanse his people from sin 00:28:22.400 --> 00:28:24.940 if they are to be his own. 00:28:25.519 --> 00:28:28.480 And it's the same that's true here. 00:28:28.880 --> 00:28:30.400 The way to escape the judgment 00:28:30.400 --> 00:28:31.960 of the just and holy God 00:28:31.960 --> 00:28:34.080 is for them to sacrifice the lamb 00:28:34.080 --> 00:28:37.039 and to sprinkle the blood on the doorpost. 00:28:38.559 --> 00:28:39.420 And of course, 00:28:39.519 --> 00:28:40.980 Jesus picks that up, doesn't he? 00:28:41.000 --> 00:28:43.220 He reinterprets the Passover 00:28:43.220 --> 00:28:45.660 to speak of the cross, 00:28:46.140 --> 00:28:48.500 that it's through him shedding his blood 00:28:48.500 --> 00:28:52.980 that is the basis for our sins being forgiven, 00:28:53.500 --> 00:28:55.140 that we are made holy 00:28:55.140 --> 00:28:59.900 through his sacrifice for us. 00:29:01.880 --> 00:29:04.440 Another hugely important thing 00:29:04.440 --> 00:29:06.119 to recognize about salvation 00:29:06.119 --> 00:29:07.079 at the time of Moses 00:29:07.079 --> 00:29:09.259 that's true for us as well 00:29:09.259 --> 00:29:11.880 is that God redeems a people 00:29:11.880 --> 00:29:13.960 so that we might know him 00:29:13.960 --> 00:29:16.039 and enjoy him. 00:29:17.120 --> 00:29:19.299 So when God was speaking to Moses 00:29:19.299 --> 00:29:21.620 in the burning bush back in chapter 3, 00:29:23.079 --> 00:29:25.059 and at verse 13, 00:29:25.279 --> 00:29:27.279 well, chapter 3, verse 13, 00:29:27.360 --> 00:29:28.640 Moses said to God, 00:29:29.420 --> 00:29:30.940 suppose I go to the Israelites 00:29:30.940 --> 00:29:32.120 and say to them, 00:29:32.720 --> 00:29:35.220 the God of your fathers has sent me to you. 00:29:35.440 --> 00:29:37.140 And they asked me, what is his name? 00:29:37.840 --> 00:29:39.319 Then what shall I tell them? 00:29:39.319 --> 00:29:41.519 God said to Moses, 00:29:41.740 --> 00:29:43.819 I am who I am. 00:29:44.460 --> 00:29:46.419 This is what you are to say to the Israelites. 00:29:46.759 --> 00:29:50.539 I am has sent me to you. 00:29:51.460 --> 00:29:53.419 Now there's lots that have been, 00:29:53.659 --> 00:29:54.879 that has been written and said 00:29:54.879 --> 00:29:56.700 about the name of God. 00:29:57.259 --> 00:29:59.039 But one thing at least we can say, 00:29:59.539 --> 00:30:02.319 God is saying to Moses to say to Israel, 00:30:02.720 --> 00:30:03.899 I am the king, 00:30:04.000 --> 00:30:05.359 I am independent, 00:30:05.359 --> 00:30:08.819 I am free to determine whatever happens. 00:30:08.919 --> 00:30:10.299 I am who I am 00:30:10.299 --> 00:30:13.740 and nobody can interfere with my purposes. 00:30:14.339 --> 00:30:16.740 And as the story of Exodus goes on, 00:30:17.079 --> 00:30:18.679 we discover that here is God saying, 00:30:19.159 --> 00:30:21.719 as the totally free and independent God, 00:30:21.899 --> 00:30:24.240 I am free to save people by grace, 00:30:24.759 --> 00:30:26.219 to make them my own. 00:30:27.599 --> 00:30:29.179 Why does God set the people free? 00:30:29.259 --> 00:30:31.059 Not just so they can have their own land, 00:30:31.839 --> 00:30:34.139 not just so that they don't have to be slaves anymore, 00:30:34.140 --> 00:30:36.300 but so they can become the people of God. 00:30:36.840 --> 00:30:38.980 So they can live in relationship with God. 00:30:39.040 --> 00:30:42.560 So that their life literally can be centered around 00:30:42.560 --> 00:30:45.080 God being present with them. 00:30:46.080 --> 00:30:47.880 God saves them to make them his own. 00:30:47.960 --> 00:30:50.620 And of course that's what God does for us 00:30:50.620 --> 00:30:51.860 in the new covenant too. 00:30:52.759 --> 00:30:55.680 We're saved to become God's people. 00:30:55.880 --> 00:30:59.540 We're saved to enjoy God's presence now 00:30:59.539 --> 00:31:04.960 with the expectation of enjoying God's presence forever 00:31:04.960 --> 00:31:07.720 in a world made perfect. 00:31:09.099 --> 00:31:12.619 And notice that all of this is true 00:31:12.619 --> 00:31:16.420 before God ever introduces the law. 00:31:18.819 --> 00:31:22.579 The whole Bible points to just one way of salvation 00:31:22.579 --> 00:31:26.199 and it's always the way of grace through faith, 00:31:27.259 --> 00:31:29.819 ultimately in Jesus Christ alone. 00:31:32.319 --> 00:31:35.059 And so we see the whole plan of redemption 00:31:35.059 --> 00:31:39.740 being worked out in the early chapters of Exodus, 00:31:40.500 --> 00:31:42.819 one to 12, one to 15 perhaps. 00:31:43.500 --> 00:31:44.799 And it's only after that, 00:31:44.879 --> 00:31:46.539 as the redeemed people of God, 00:31:47.039 --> 00:31:48.419 that they then receive the law. 00:31:48.420 --> 00:31:52.680 Here's how you are to live now that you are my people. 00:31:53.320 --> 00:31:55.220 Bear in mind too that within the law, 00:31:55.340 --> 00:31:57.180 there was always that recognition 00:31:57.180 --> 00:31:58.900 that people wouldn't be able to keep it perfect. 00:31:59.039 --> 00:32:01.539 So within the law, there was provision for sacrifices, 00:32:01.759 --> 00:32:03.900 for forgiveness, for failure, 00:32:04.420 --> 00:32:05.920 because God's a God of grace. 00:32:08.420 --> 00:32:11.420 One person who came to understand this 00:32:11.420 --> 00:32:12.900 and it transformed him entirely 00:32:12.900 --> 00:32:14.820 was Martin Luther, the reformer. 00:32:15.680 --> 00:32:17.740 If you read the story of Martin Luther, 00:32:17.740 --> 00:32:21.900 you discover a man who was a thoroughly miserable monk 00:32:21.900 --> 00:32:24.259 because he was spending all of his time 00:32:24.259 --> 00:32:26.500 working really hard to try and please God, 00:32:26.539 --> 00:32:29.140 to try and keep all these rules and regulations and laws 00:32:29.140 --> 00:32:32.099 and trying to make life miserable for himself 00:32:32.099 --> 00:32:33.759 as a way to earn God's favor. 00:32:34.319 --> 00:32:35.779 But he just found himself more and more 00:32:35.779 --> 00:32:37.720 being crushed by the demands of the law. 00:32:38.519 --> 00:32:40.319 And the more he tried, the worse he felt 00:32:40.319 --> 00:32:43.279 because he thought you had to keep the law 00:32:43.279 --> 00:32:45.339 in order to earn God's favor. 00:32:45.339 --> 00:32:48.079 You had to obey before belonging. 00:32:49.559 --> 00:32:53.699 But his discovery of Romans chapter 1 and verse 17, 00:32:54.559 --> 00:32:57.819 where it says the righteous will live by faith, 00:32:58.919 --> 00:33:01.959 absolutely transformed his life to one of joy, 00:33:02.679 --> 00:33:06.579 a life that ultimately turned the world upside down 00:33:06.579 --> 00:33:10.079 as he came to discover that what we need 00:33:10.079 --> 00:33:13.899 is not to try and work really hard to please God. 00:33:13.960 --> 00:33:16.919 Rather, by faith, we need to receive the perfect obedience, 00:33:17.439 --> 00:33:19.939 the perfect salvation offered to us 00:33:19.939 --> 00:33:23.220 through Jesus' life and death and resurrection. 00:33:23.220 --> 00:33:29.779 And so it's important for us. 00:33:30.380 --> 00:33:33.700 And we'll think more about the law and the covenant next week, 00:33:33.759 --> 00:33:37.279 but it's important for us to get that order right. 00:33:38.140 --> 00:33:40.500 To see that the law is good, 00:33:41.799 --> 00:33:44.220 the law is good, it's like a mirror, 00:33:44.339 --> 00:33:46.120 it shows up the dirt of our sin, 00:33:46.279 --> 00:33:49.940 it ultimately shows us our needs of a savior. 00:33:49.940 --> 00:33:52.940 So it's an act of grace because it drives us to Jesus, 00:33:53.160 --> 00:33:57.160 but it's also good in showing us God's will for how to live, 00:33:57.220 --> 00:33:59.160 but not how to live in order to be saved, 00:34:00.000 --> 00:34:05.000 how to live as those who have been saved by grace. 00:34:05.920 --> 00:34:09.059 So hopefully thinking about the pattern of redemption, 00:34:09.280 --> 00:34:10.840 hopefully thinking about that continuity, 00:34:10.840 --> 00:34:16.840 will help us to recognize that grace always comes first. 00:34:16.840 --> 00:34:22.000 There was never a plan A of grace and a plan B of law. 00:34:22.840 --> 00:34:28.100 God has always and always will saved by grace and grace alone. 00:34:28.519 --> 00:34:29.700 Let's pray together. 00:34:31.400 --> 00:34:35.820 Lord God, thank you for the way that you choose to say.