Both Sides of the Shield

Both Sides of the Shield

(No. 2233)

A SERMON INTENDED FOR READING ON LORD'S-DAY, DECEMBER 6, 1891,

DELIVERED BY C. H. SPURGEON,

AT THE METROPOLITAN TABERNACLE, NEWINGTON, ON THURSDAY EVENING, MAY 14,
1891.

"Then came Amalek, and fought with Israel in Rephidim. And Moses said
unto Joshua, Choose us out men, and go out, fight with Amalek: tomorrow
I will stand on the top of the hill with the rod of God in my hand."
Exodus 17:8,9.

IN trying to understand the Truth of God we are in great danger of
being one-sided. One man catches at part of a Truth of God and says,
"That is it and that is the whole of it." Another man lays hold of
another side of the Truth of God and he says, "This is the whole of it"
and, straightaway, there arises a contention between them. They are
like the men who quarreled as to the material of which a certain shield
was made. One of them said that it was a golden shield. The other was
equally sure that it was a silver one, whereas it so happened that it
was gold on one side and silver on the other. So they fiercely wrangled
when they might very well have been agreed if they had known a little
more. Most Truths of God have two sides and it is well to try to see
both of them. Nearly every doctrine in the Word of God is balanced by
some other doctrine and many of the differences among the people of God
have arisen from the undue stress which has been laid on one aspect of
the Truth while the other side has been altogether neglected. This
danger very frequently besets us.

For instance, some see the Sovereignty of God and are so carried away
with that sublime Truth, that they deny the responsibility of man! They
thus both wrest the doctrine they do know and fight against the
doctrine they do not know. Others can see the universality of the
Gospel invitation and, with large hearts can urge all men to turn unto
God and live–but they have never seen the specialty of this redemptive
work of Christ and so fail to understand the eternal purpose of God to
save His chosen people. Running away with half a Truth, they are like
men that go through the wilderness wearing only one shoe–they become
lame in one foot–and that makes them limp all over. It does not matter
which foot it is that is lame–the man is a cripple if either foot is
thus afflicted.

It is essential for us to hold our minds ready to receive whatever the
Holy Spirit teaches–and frequently to accept Truths of God which we
cannot harmonize. I have long ago given up all attempts to reconcile
what God has revealed in one part of the Bible with what He has made
known in another part. If I find, in God's Word, doctrines which appear
to me to be at variance with the teaching in other passages, I say to
myself, "God knows where these things harmonize and if He had wanted me
to know it, He would have told me. As He has not told me, why should I
worry myself about the matter? I am not going to speculate and theorize
as to where these Truths meet. Nor will I cast a bridge of gossamer
across the deep gulf which I fancy I see and then trust myself to a
thread that cannot bear my weight! "The secret things belong unto the
Lord our God, but those things which are revealed, belong unto us and
to our children forever."

One said to me, the other day, concerning two great doctrines, "How do
you make these two agree?" I answered by first asking another question,
"How do I make two things agree that never fell out? There is no need
for me to attempt anything of the kind. These two Truths are perfectly
reconcilable and as they come from God's mouth, it would be as
difficult for you to show that they do not agree as it is for me to
show that they do agree." God does not say, "Yes," and "No." The Lord
does not blow hot and cold. If He reveals two doctrines which
apparently contradict each other, yet are they both true, since both
are spoken by the God who cannot lie! And if I cannot see how they can
both be true, it comforts me to think that I am not asked to see it–I
am expected to believe it–and God's Grace gives me the faith to do
even that. In fact, I rather like a difficulty, for then there is an
opportunity for the exercise of faith. It is glorious, when

one is sailing, to come right up under the lee of a great rock and to
be compelled to say, "Well, I cannot proceed any further this way."
What then? Why, just let your anchor down and make a harbor of the
rock, and lie there at rest while stormy winds blow.

That is what you should do with difficult doctrines–make a quiet haven
of the mysterious Truth of God and let it shelter you in time of doubt
or despondency! When the storm is passed, you will find that there are
other ways for you to go where it is perfectly plain sailing. Seeing
that the Revelation is Divine, there must be mysteries which mortals
cannot understand at present. Let us comfort ourselves with our
Savior's words, "What you know not now, you shall know hereafter." Some
day the way will be made plain before us, but meanwhile our attitude
should be that of trustful children who believe implicitly whatever
their loving father tells them, whether they comprehend it or not.

In the present discourse I am going to take up two sets of Truths which
are rather varied and yet are very practical. My range of thought will
be extensive, but I will not wander from the incident before us. There
are four things which have been suggested to my mind while meditating
upon this text and its surroundings, each of which may be viewed from
two standpoints. First, in this assault of Amalek on the people of God,
we see persecution in its double aspect. Secondly, in the rod of Moses
we behold instrumentality in its double relation. Thirdly, in the
battle we observe prudence in its double activity. And lastly, in the
leaders of the people we are reminded of Christ in His double capacity
as He pleads for us yonder and fights for us here.

I. First, let us look at PERSECUTION IN ITS DOUBLE ASPECT. On the one
hand, notice that this attack upon Israel was Amalek's great sin, on
account of which the nation was doomed to be extirpated. Because of
this, God said, "I will utterly put out the remembrance of Amalek from
under Heaven." But, on the other hand, this assault was the result of
Israel's sin, for it is significantly put after the strife of Massah
and Meribah, "Then came Amalek, and fought with Israel in Rephidim."
The point is this–persecution may come to you from evil men,
distinctly from them–and it may be their wicked free will which makes
them assail you. But, at the same time, it may be your sin which lies
at the bottom of it, and because you have erred, they have been
permitted and even appointed, to bring trouble upon you. Let us think
of these two things.

Notice well that assaults upon us may arise from the sins of others. It
is right that we should recognize this, lest in the dark day we should
become unduly discouraged. Persecution often arises because we come
into conflict with wicked men, but God will judge our adversaries–He
will remember His Covenant with His people and deliver us from the hand
of all our enemies.

These Amalekites attacked Israel and greatly sinned in so doing, for
they were the first that made war against God's people. He who had so
graciously chosen and kept them, who, with a mighty hand and an
outstretched arm had brought them through the Red Sea, had espoused
their cause, and His Word, "Touch not My anointed, and do My Prophets
no harm," had been a kind of shield to Israel in her earliest days.
Though Abraham and others had, at times, gone forth to battle, nobody
had fought with Israel since she had become a nation and, by mighty
signs and wonders, had been delivered from the hand of Pharaoh and the
bondage of Egypt. But Amalek was the first among the nations which
dared to assail the chosen people of God and, therefore, a stern doom
was decreed against him. He had heard what great things God had done
for His people and yet he presumed to fight against them! And in so
doing, he impiously lifted up his hand against Jehovah, Himself! He
became the leader in this particular form of evil and thus assumed a
fearful responsibility– and assured to himself a terrible judgment.

But the impiety was still worse, for Amalek went out of his way to
attack Israel. The people had not come into his territory–they were a
good way from it and were passing quietly by–but we read, "Then came
Amalek." His envy was stirred up so much that he came away from his own
region to fight with Israel without any provocation. Amalek was a
descendant of Esau and the hate of Esau towards Jacob so burned in the
breast of Amalek towards Israel that he came a long journey in order
that he might at once, without proclaiming war, fall suddenly upon the
hosts of Israel. Because the attack was thus wanton, he had to suffer
the stern judgment of God. Let not wicked men imagine that because God
is in Heaven and they are upon the earth they can, with impunity,
oppose His people. "He that sits in the heavens shall laugh: the Lord
shall have them in derision." Woe be to the man who wantonly attacks
the saints of the Most High God! Be not disquieted, O child of God, if
this is your case! "Fret not yourself because of evildoers, neither be
you envious against the workers of iniquity. For they shall soon be cut
down like the grass and wither as the green herb."

Moreover, Amalek in this act went forth to fight against God, Himself.
It was not with Israel, alone, that he warred–he also battled with
Jehovah, the God of Israel. In the words of the 16th verse, as some
translate them, Amalek had laid his hands upon the Throne of God and,
therefore, God laid His own hand upon the Throne and swore by His
Throne that He would uproot Amalek from among the nations. It was
because the opposition to the Israelites was distinctly on account of
God, Himself, that, therefore, Amalek had to be cut off. Dear Brothers
and Sisters, you and I may be assailed by wicked men and we may
distinctly trace the whole of it to their malice and to their enmity
against God, Himself, but though that may be all true, yet we must not,
therefore, be, ourselves, malicious towards them. Neither must we be
proud, as though we were innocent and they, alone, were guilty.

Wicked men nailed our Savior to the Cross, but His prayer for them was,
"Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do." Dearly Beloved,
if the ungodly hate you and persecute you, avenge not yourselves, but
rather give way to wrath, for it is written, "Vengeance is Mine; I will
repay, says the Lord." When you are persecuted for righteousness' sake,
the Lord takes notice of it. "Saul, Saul, why do you persecute Me?" was
the word which came from the excellent Glory to him who journeyed to
Damascus, "breathing out threats and slaughter against the disciples of
the Lord." When he persecuted them, he was really persecuting their
Master! Be not, then, troubled if men revile you, persecute you and say
all manner of evil against you falsely, for Christ's sake, but rather,
"Rejoice and be exceedingly glad: for great is your reward in Heaven:
for so persecuted they the Prophets which were before you." Leave the
issue with the Lord–the battle is His and He will, in His own time and
way, overthrow all His and your adversaries.

Let us now turn our thoughts to the other aspect of this subject. The
guilt of ungodly men in persecuting God's people is not inconsistent
with my next statement, that assaults upon us may also arise from our
own sins. We may have brought the evil upon ourselves and we had better
look to it that there is not a sin of our own that lies at the root of
what we suffer, for it was so with these people. When they had chided
with Moses and murmured against God, "Then came

Amalek."

Israel had been quarrelling with God. Do you wonder, then, that other
people quarreled with them? You may often read your sin in its
punishment and, if you had prophetic eye enough, you might see your
chastening in your offense. Many a time our severity to others is the
reason for God's apparent severity with us. If we have withheld from
the poor, we need not wonder if God withholds from us. And if we have
been slow to forgive, we need not marvel if we do not soon get a sense
of forgiveness for ourselves. We often urge people to do unto others as
we would that they should do unto us. Let me reverently say another
thing–do unto God as you would that God should do unto you, for, "with
the froward God will show Himself froward." That ink with which we
wrote the ill word, God will use in the writing down of our sentence.
It was so in this case–Israel quarreled with God–and now Amalek
quarrels with Israel.

They put a question about God, "Is the Lord among us, or not?"–a
horrible question, since it involved a doubt as to the veracity of
Moses and as to the reality of all the great wonders which were worked
in Egypt and in the wilderness! And, because they questioned God, God
makes it a serious question between them and Amalek–a question which,
for a while, seemed to be answered favorably, for Israel prevailed. But
soon it was answered unfavorably, for Amalek prevailed. The conflicting
hosts sway to and fro on the battlefield–first victors, then
vanquished–again conquering, then once more conquered! How will the
terrible struggle end? No wonder that God puts the issue in question,
when they had put Him in question! If you question God, He will soon
leave you to question yourselves. I do not wonder that men say, "Have I
any faith?" when they begin to doubt the very Inspiration of Scripture!
What is the good of having any faith when there is nothing left for you
to believe? You may well fear to build upon that Scripture whose very
foundations you have undermined! If we question God, God will make our
safety a question–and we shall have a stern fight for it.

Moreover, we find that Israel had uttered threats against Moses, so
that he said, "They are almost ready to stone me." Now, if they would
stone the man of God, is it at all amazing that the men of the world
were ready to kill them? If you go against Moses, God will send Amalek
against you, for remember that God chastens His people! Though He
forgives, He chastens. And He chastens all the more because He
forgives. He condemns us in our consciences, that He may not condemn us
at the Judgement Seat. He afflicts us here, that we may not be
destroyed with the world at the end! Now is the day of the Believer's
chastisement for his benefit. By-and-by will be the time of the
unbeliever's punishment which shall bring him no benefit, but shall be
the just reward of his evil deeds. Child of God, do you wish to receive
chastise-

ment? You have only to go into sin and you may rest assured that you
will not escape the rod! If you are a bastard, you may, perhaps, sin
and prosper, but if you are a true-born child of God, you cannot sin
without smarting for it–

"Did I meet no trials here,

No chastisement by the way,

Might I not, with reason, fear

I should provea castaway?

Bastards may escape the rod,

Sunk in earthly vain delight;

But the true-born child of God

Must not, would not if he might." So there is our first point. We may
sometimes justly charge our afflictions upon the evil intent of ungodly
men and yet, at the same time, we may have to also charge them upon
ourselves. It may be equally true that we have procured them by our own
slips and stumbling in the ways of the Lord, as that evil men have
wickedly raised their hands against us. So, when attacks are made upon
us, let us be more careful to search our own hearts and examine our own
lives, than to condemn the faults of other men. To their God they will
have to render their own account.

II. In the second place, let us think of INSTRUMENTALITY IN ITS DOUBLE
RELATION. Here, again, another contrast is to be found in the text and
its connection. If you will notice, in the fifth verse, God says to
Moses, "Take with you of the elders of Israel; and your rod, with which
you smote the river." But when Moses talks about the rod, in the ninth
verse, which forms our text, he says, "Tomorrow I will stand on the top
of the hill with the rod of God in my hand." In both verses it is the
same rod which is spoken of. God calls it the rod of Moses. Moses calls
it the rod of God and both these expressions are true. I want you to
remember that. The first is true–it is the rod of Moses–that is the
human side. And in this connection it is sometimes called the rod of
Moses and sometimes the rod of Aaron. But the Divine side is just as
noticeable and then it is called the rod of God. With reference to the
instrumentality which God is pleased to use, we must thus remember its
twofold nature and look on both sides of the shield.

One side is that God calls it the rod of Moses and so honors Moses.
Wherever there is an opportunity of doing honor to the faith of His own
servants, God is never slow to use it! He is a King who delights to
give glory to His warriors when they behave themselves bravely in the
heat of battle. It gives Him pleasure to knight them on the field and
let them know that they have done well. At the end He will say to those
who have been valiant for His cause, "Well done, good and faithful
servants." Even here He gives His chosen a foretaste of that full
approval which will make their Heaven complete. God is not afraid of
spoiling His people by saying a good word about them. You remember the
story of the man who had a good wife and one said to him, "Why, she is
worth her weight in gold." "Yes," he said, "she is worth a Gibraltar
rock in gold, but I never tell her that. You know that it is necessary
to maintain discipline and if I were to tell her how much I really
value her, she would not know herself."

Well, now, that is wrong! It does people good to be told how highly we
value them. There is many a Christian man and woman who would do better
if, now and then, someone would speak a kindly word to them and let
them know that they had done well. God Himself gives us an example of
this, for He, here, puts honor on His servant, by saying to Moses,
"Your rod, with which you smote the river, take in your hand, and go."
Moses was the instrument whom God used against Pharaoh and though his
rod was, in itself, only a common stick, yet it was Moses who used the
rod and it was really that rod with which he smote the river. God
actually did use him and it is not God's way to use a man and then say
nothing about it. God ascribes to Moses what Moses really did! We must
never despise the instrumentality which God uses. The tendency of our
nature is to run to the other extreme and to rest in instrumentality.
We often need to remember that word, "Cursed be the man that trusts in
man, and makes flesh his arm, and whose heart departs from the Lord."
But in trying to avoid that rock, we must not run on the other and
slight all instrumentality. God will have His servants esteemed and, if
He puts honor upon them, we cannot be wrong if He also honors them.

Moreover, it really was the rod of Moses and would not so well have
fitted any other hand. God does not put into a position of influence a
man unfit for the post. Even Moses did not work wonders with the rod
until he had renounced the riches of Egypt and borne the burden of life
in the wilderness. There was a fitness in the fact of the rod being in
the hand of such a man. He had no rod when, in his fleshly energy, he
slew the Egyptian whom he found oppressing the Hebrew slave. Had it
then been in his hand, what sad havoc he might have made! But now he
used it as God directed. In fact, the

rod was the symbol of his authority and that authority was not bestowed
upon him until he was qualified to exercise it! Thus, in a very real
sense, it was the rod of Moses. In addition to this, it was the faith
of Moses which gave power to his rod–he, himself, was the conductor of
the Divine energy. Had the rod been wielded by another man,
self-appointed and lacking the confidence which Moses had come to
possess in God, it would have been simply a powerless stick. But
because of his authority and because of his faith, it was right to call
it, "the rod of Moses." When a man is evidently used of God, let us be
quick to recognize the special qualities which render him worthy to be
used, and let us esteem him very highly in love for his work's sake.
Thus we see that God calls the almond branch, which did such wonders in
Egypt and at the Red Sea, the rod of Moses.

On the other hand, Moses calls it the rod of God and so honors God. He
whom God uses, gives God the praise, for God is always the source of
our strength. And if any work is done that is worth doing, unto Him
must be ascribed all the glory! It was not in his own might that Moses
turned the waters of the Nile into blood and caused the fish to die. It
was not by any power inherent in himself that he made the dust of Egypt
to live and become a terrible plague to the people. It was not by any
human magic that Moses divided the Red Sea and made a way for the
ransomed nation to march through its depths. No one knew better than he
that the instrument that branded the breast of the Red Sea and left a
dry mark where it fell, was the rod of God, not man's! It is He, alone,
that does great wonders, and unto His name be all the praise! 'Won
nobis, Domine," must always be our Psalm of adoration unto
Jehovah–"Not unto us, O Lord; not unto us, but unto Your name, give
glory."

Let us learn, from these words of Moses, that instrumentality is not to
be decried or despised, for God uses it. But the instrument must never
be allowed to usurp the place of God, for it must be always remembered
that it is God who uses it. The axe must not exalt itself against him
that cuts with it, but, when there are trees to be felled, it would be
folly to throw the axe away! The net must not be made a god that we may
sacrifice to it, but it would be idle to go fishing without a net! Use
your agencies and your instrumentalities to the very fullest extent,
but understand that it is God that works in you, and God that works by
you, if anything is accomplished that is worthy of record.

Thus I have given you two sets of things in which it is easy enough to
blunder if you shut one of your eyes, or if you only look at them in
one light–first, the persecution of God's people and, secondly, the
instrumentality used in God's service.

III. And now, for a third thing. Behold, in this incident, PRUDENCE IN
ITS DOUBLE ACTIVITY. You have that

in the text. Moses said unto Joshua, "Choose us out men and go out,
fight with Amalek." To which Joshua might have replied, "Yes, I will
gladly do that, and you will go, too, Moses, and fight, will you not?"
No, no, he will not! "Tomorrow I will stand on the top of the hill with
the rod of God in my hand." You see, as Oliver Cromwell would have put
it, prudence trusts in God and keeps its powder dry. Prudence prays
with Moses while it fights with Joshua. In like manner, in the
activities of our holy faith, we must learn to balance work and
worship, prayer for victory and conflict with the enemy. In the case
before us, we see that the means are not neglected. Moses did not call
all the people to pray when it was time for fighting! He prayed, but at
the same time he set the battle in array. This is true wisdom, for,
"faith without works is dead." We cannot expect to have souls saved if
we pray and never preach! We cannot expect to have our children saved
if we only pray for them night and morning, and never speak to them
about eternal matters, and do not instruct them in the things of God.
The means must not be neglected!

Observe how Moses prepared to fight the Amalekites. He said to Joshua,
"Choose us out men." He did not lose sight of the necessity of having
the most fit warriors because his trust was in God. If someone, seeing
only one side of the question, had come to him, and said, "The battle
is the Lord's, why do you want to pick out men? Will not one man do as
well as another?" Moses would probably have replied, "These Amalekites
are mighty warriors. Take chosen men–men that are able-bodied–men
that are expert in war, the choicest men you can find, and go to war
with Amalek. We shall need our best men to overcome such a foe. Choose
us out men."

This is a rule without exception when you go to work for Christ–bring
forth the best of everything that you have–your best thought, your
best knowledge, your best ability! Let the Church always see to it that
she tries to get the best men she can to fight the battles of the Lord.
It is a mistake to suppose that just anybody will do for Christian
work. Christ may use whom He wills, even the weakest things and the
things that are despised–but as for us, we must always

look to that which is most adapted to the work, most suitable for it,
always hearkening to the words of Moses to Joshua, "Choose us out men."

The leader was also chosen–"Moses said unto Joshua." He did not pick
up the first youth that he met and say to him, "Go and fight these
Amalekites," but he took the man whom God had fitted for the post of
leader in the war, even Joshua, and said to him, "Go out and fight with
Amalek." It is well for us, in carrying on the work and warfare for
God, to rally round those whom God has qualified to be leaders. Means
are not to be neglected, nor may God's work be done in a slovenly
style. Choose you out men and let the leader of them be a choice man,
the man of God's choice.

The time for the battle was also chosen. "Tomorrow I will stand on the
top of the hill." Why not tonight, Moses? These Amalekites have just
been falling upon you. Why not fight them at once? Well, because the
people were not ready. It would take a little time to get the fighting
men in order. Tomorrow was quite soon enough. Besides, Moses felt by
instinct that he would fight these children of the wilderness best when
he could see them–not by night, when they knew the way better than he
did–but by daylight. To those of you who earnestly desire to serve
God, I would say–Do not be in too great a hurry, lest your indiscreet
zeal should bring disaster upon you. "He that believes shall not make
haste." Choose the best time! Serve God wisely. Go about the work as if
all depended upon you–and then trust in God, knowing that all depends
upon Him! Use the same foresight, the same judgment, the same care that
you would use if it were solely your own work. And then, when you have
done that, fall back upon God, feeling that all your care and all your
foresight will be in vain unless He stretches forth His hand to help
and to ensure success!

Note, again, that the battle was most real. Moses did not say, "Choose
you out men and go and drive Amalek away like a flock of sheep." No,
but, "Go out and fight with Amalek." Believe me, Brothers and Sisters,
we make a great mistake if we think that this world is to be conquered
for Christ without mighty efforts. Some talk as if the expenditure of a
few pounds and the going forth of a few men will end the whole war. It
will do nothing of the sort! If nations are to be subdued to Christ,
His Church must exert all her power. All her power without Him is
nothing, but if He chooses to use her power, He will have the whole of
it brought into use before He gives the blessing! "Choose us out men,
and go out, fight with Amalek." When the battle began, it was no
child's play! It was a hand-to-hand conflict, a struggle for life or
death, and the end of it was that, "Joshua vanquished Amalek and his
people with the edge of the sword." Not merely by praying, but, "with
the edge of the sword." Moses on the hilltop is doing his part by
holding up the rod–but you must have Joshua down below with the sharp
edge of the sword, or else Amalek will laugh at the prayers of Moses! I
should like to have this rule written on every man's mind, that if he
is to serve God, and get a blessing from God, he must have both the
prayer of Moses and the sword of Joshua!

But, on the other hand, in this battle, reliance on God is not
neglected. Moses ascends the hill holding up his ban-ner–and that
banner is the rod of God. The staff on which God's servant had been
accustomed to lean, God had blessed, and made it to be a scepter, the
sign of His royal Presence and a wonder-working thing in the land!
Moses holds this up. The banner is the rod of God and the banner-bearer
is the chosen servant of God. Everything on Israel's side is of God–
Moses and Joshua are ordained of God and the rod chosen of Moses is, at
the same time, the rod of God! This is held up where all the people can
see it and every warrior, as he turns his eyes, can behold that rod of
God which had worked such wonders before, still held aloft above the
conflicting armies! When Moses' hands are heavy, the symbol of God's
Presence need not be lowered, for Aaron and Hur are at hand to hold up
his arms. Israel is continually reminded of the interest of God in the
battle against Amalek. The rod in the hand of Moses seems to say, "God
is fighting for you! God's servant is holding up the appointed
standard!" Undoubtedly that assurance must have largely aided them to
go through the battle with a brave heart. The meaning of it would be
clear–"Fight, but trust. War with Amalek with the edge of the sword,
but prevail over Amalek by prevailing with God in prayer."

Unfortunately, in our work for God, we generally fall into one of two
blunders. Either we get a lot of machinery and think that we shall
accomplish everything by that, or else we are like some whom I have
known, who have confided so much in prayer that they have done nothing
but pray! Prayer is a downright mockery if it does not lead us into the
practical use of means likely to promote the ends for which we pray. I
have known friends take medicine when they have been ill and never pray
about their sickness. There are some others who pray about their
sickness, but never take the proper medicine. They are both wrong! You
must have Joshua and you must have Moses, too, in the time of trial! Go
before God

with your sickness, but if there is an appointed means that has been
made useful to others, use it, for God will bless you by the use of
means.

Try to see two sides of a thing. Do not trust exclusively to either one
or the other. It is a very heinous fault to trust the means without
God, but, though it is a much smaller fault to trust in God and not use
the means, yet still it is a fault. Practical prudence will lead you to
do both. It gives to Joshua his sword, that he may make it red with the
blood of the enemy and it gives to Moses his rod, that he may go with
it up to the top of the hill and hold it up there in the sight of the
people–that all may know that the battle is the Lord's–and that He
will deliver the enemy into their hands. God make you wise in these
things and enable you to use both the rod of God and the sword of man!

IV. I have to speak of one other Truth and then I am done. Behold here,
in a wondrous type, CHRIST IN HIS TWOFOLD CAPACITY. Christ is
represented to us here as Moses on the hill, pleading, and as Joshua in
the valley, fighting!

Learn, first, that Christ is pleading for us. He is not here. He is
risen and He has ascended to the right hand of God, even the Father,
and there He is making intercession for His people. It is because He
intercedes for us that we win the victory! Cannot your faith's eyes see
Him now, on the top of the hill, with the rod of God in His hand, with
all power given to Him in Heaven and in earth, pleading with authority
before the great Throne of Jehovah? Here is the secret of our strength!
He never fails. He never needs to sit down upon a stone, nor does He
need any to hold up His hands because they grow weary. No, blessed be
His name, He pleads and prevails from generation to generation–and
will continue to do so until He shall descend from Heaven a second time
to complete the victory of His people! In His mediation is our
confidence.

But, then, do not forget that He is also warring for us. He is here,
though I have just said that He is not here. In one sense He is gone
and in another sense He remains. On the very eve of His departure, He
said, "Lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world." And
His promise is forever true, "Where two or three are gathered together
in My name, there am I in the midst of them." So, though He has gone
into Glory, He is yet here in a spiritual sense by the Holy Spirit–He
is His Lieutenant, who takes the Kingdom and presides over it, and
works in it on behalf of King Jesus. He is that "other Comforter" whom
the Lord Jesus promised to send to His disciples. And so, though Christ
has ascended, that blessed Paraclete, the Holy Spirit, has taken His
place and, by the Holy Spirit, Christ is still here! We need not pray
for the Holy Spirit to be poured out. He never will be poured out,
again, since He was once poured out at Pentecost and is still here! You
may very properly ask to be baptized into the Holy Spirit if you desire
to know His power to the fullest and you may go down into His
influences till you are immersed therein, but how can we ask that the
Spirit should again be poured out, when He has not gone back to Heaven?
He came down once and here He stays. "He shall abide with you forever."
This is the dispensation of the Holy Spirit and, in Him, Christ is
always with us, our greater Joshua, fighting for the people whom He
will one day lead into the Promised Land, the heavenly Canaan!

I think that I see our Joshua now, sword in hand, chasing our
adversaries. And I turn my eyes upward and see our Moses, rod in hand,
pleading for His people. Let us see Him in both capacities and thank
God that Christ is All–not one type of the Law, but all the types–not
one of the ceremonials, but all the ceremonials, and all the shadows
melting into one great substance! Glory be to His name! Believe in
Christ in Heaven and trust Him with your prayers! Believe in Christ on
earth–range yourself on His side and rest assured that no foe will be
able to stand against Him! He is on the battlefield, today, and in the
thickest of the fray! When His own people are driven back and His
adversaries begin to rejoice, friends and foes, alike, shall yet prove
the power of His almighty arm! "Gird Your sword upon Your thigh, O most
Mighty, with Your glory and Your majesty; and in Your majesty ride
prosperously because of truth and meekness and righteousness; and Your
right hand shall teach You terrible things."–

"Fight for Yourself, O Jesus, fight, The travail of Your soul regain."

So, you see that though two things may look contradictory, they are
often both really true, and are both different sides of one shield.
Try, then, to always see both sides of every Truth of God revealed in
the Scriptures. Divine Truths often resemble tramcars which travel upon
two lines of iron, and yet the two lines make but one tramway. The
lines are parallel and do not touch each other. How could the car
travel if they did? This is the Truth of God–it is but one Truth–but
it has two sides which run parallel to each other. Do not try to join
them, nor take them up and make them cross each other, but travel along
them till you come to the great terminus above.

God bless you, if you are His people! If not, all is wrong. Oh, may you
now trust the living Christ! He is here, ready to hear your cry for
mercy! He is there in Glory, ready to plead your cause. He waits to be
gracious to sinners here below. He waits in Heaven till His enemies
shall be made His footstool. May you bow before the silver scepter of
His mercy, that you may not be broken in pieces by the iron rod of His
justice–and may the Lord be with you all! Amen.

PORTION OF SCRIPTURE READ BEFORE SERMON–Exodus 17.