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Spurgeon’s Sermon Notes: Our Hiding Place

Isaiah 32:2 — “Each will be like a hiding place from the wind, a shelter from the storm.”

Blessings from God by men

God’s best blessings to men have usually come by men. When our Lord ascended on high, he received gifts for men, and these gifts were men (Psalm 68:18; Ephesians 4:8, 11).

Immense blessings have come to nations by kings like David, prophets like Samuel, deliverers like Gideon, lawgivers like Moses.

But what are all good men put together compared with The Man Christ Jesus?

We are now to view him as our shield against ten thousand evils: the hiding place and cover of his people.

Let us consider:

This life is liable to storms

Mysterious hurricanes within, which cause the most dreadful confusion of mind. Winds, whose direction is uncertain, shaking everything, creating unrest and distraction. Frequently no definite cause can be assigned for them; the cause may be constitutional, or physical, or circumstantial.
Overwhelming tempests of spiritual distress on account of sin, wrong desire, conscious declension, unbelief, etc.
Fierce blasts of temptation, insinuation, suggestion, denunciation, etc., from Satan.
Wild attacks from human enemies, who taunt, slander, threaten, etc. David often used this refuge. He says, “I have fled to you for refuge!” (Psalm 143:9).
Trying gales of temporal losses, bereavements, and other afflictions.
Above all, the storm of divine anger when we have grieved the Holy Spirit, and lost communion with God.

None of these winds and tempests are we able to bear: our only safety lies in getting out of them by finding a shelter where God has provided it (Isaiah 25:4; 26:20; Psalm 32:7).

From these storms, the man Christ Jesus is our hiding place

As truly man.
- Sympathizing with us, and
- Bringing God near to us.
As more than man, ruling every tempest, covering every feeble traveler, as within the cleft of a rock.
As Substitutionary Man, interposing, breasting the storm for us, hiding us by being weather-beaten himself.
As Representative Man, more than conqueror, and glorified.
- In him we are delivered from divine wrath.
- In him we are covered from Satan’s blasts.
- In him we dwell above trial by happy fellowship with him.
- In him we are victors over death.
As Ever-living Man: we live because he lives, and thus we defy the tempest of death (John 14:19).
As Interceding Man. He says, “I have prayed for you,” when Satan is seeking to destroy any one of us (Luke 22:32).
As the Coming Man. We dread no political catastrophes, or social disruptions, for “he must reign.” The end is secured, “Behold, he is coming with the clouds” (Rev. 1:7).

Let us see to it we take shelter in The Man

Let him stand before us, interposing between us and the punishment of sin. Hide behind him by faith.
Let him daily cover us from all evil, as our Shield and Protector (Psalm 119:114).
Let us enter into him more and more fully, that we may be more hidden, that he may be more known to us, and that we may have a fuller sense of security.

“
He is an open refuge, available now, for you.
”

O you that are out of Christ, the tempest is lowering! Come to this refuge; hasten to this hiding place!
He is an trustworthy shelter, tried and proved.
He is an open refuge, available now, for you.
He is a spacious hiding place: “Yet there is room.” As in Adullam all David’s army could hide, so is Jesus able to receive hosts of sinners.
He is an eternal refuge: our dwelling place throughout all generations.
He is an inviting shelter, because he is Man, and therefore has compassion towards men, and a joy in their salvation.

Instances and instructions

Well do I remember being caught in a tempest in France, when it blew with unusual fury; it not only drove clouds of dust with terrible force, but limbs of trees, and all sorts of light material were propelled with tremendous force. One wondered that a tree remained upright, or a fence in its place.

What a joy it was to hide behind a solid wall, and under its shelter to run along till we were safe within doors! Then we knew in some measure the value of a hiding place from the wind. But what is that to a cyclone, which tears down houses, and lifts ships upon the dry land? Friends who have lived abroad have startled us with their descriptions of what wind can be, and they have made us cease to wonder that a hiding place should be greatly prized by dwellers in eastern lands.

The tempest’s awful voice was heard;

O Christ, it broke on thee!
Thy open bosom was my ward,

It braved the storm for me.
Thy form was scarred, thy visage marred;

Now cloudless peace for me.

— Sacred Songs and Solos

“
Our safety lies in getting behind Christ, and letting him stand in the wind’s eye.
”

I creep under my Lord’s wings in the great shower, and the waters cannot reach me. Let fools laugh the fools’ laughter, and scorn Christ, and bid the weeping captives in Babylon to sing them one of the songs of Zion. We may sing, even in our winter’s storm, in the expectation of a summer’s sun at the turn of the year. No created powers in hell, or out of hell, can mar our Lord’s work, or spoil our song of joy. Let us then, be glad and rejoice in the salvation of our Lord, for faith had never yet cause to have tearful eyes, or a saddened brow, or to droop or die.

Samuel Rutherford

You must stay hidden to be sheltered by Christ

A shelter is nothing if we stand in front of it. The main thought with many a would-be Christian is his own works, feelings, and attainments: this is to stand on the windy side of the wall by putting yourself before Jesus. Our safety lies in getting behind Christ, and letting him stand in the wind’s eye. We must be altogether hidden, or Christ cannot be our hiding place.

Foolish religious people hear about the hiding place, but never get into it. How great is the folly of such conduct! It makes Jesus to be of no value or effect. What is a roof to a man who lies in the open, or a boat to one who sinks in the sea? Even the Man Christ Jesus, though ordained by God to be a shelter from the tempest, can cover none but those who are in him. Come then, poor sinner, enter where you may; hide in him who was evidently meant to hide you, for he was ordained to be a hiding place, and must be used as such, or the very aim of his life and death would be missed.

Adapted from Charles Spurgeon’s sermon notes.

Blessings,
David Jee [Eternity Bible College]

Posted 2 years ago

6 notes

Tags: The Resurgence, Gospel, C.H. Spurgeon, Isaiah, Blessing, Psalm, Ephesians, Jesus Christ, Life, Trial, Hiding Place, Trust, Samuel Rutherford,

Prayer Request for Egypt

For the purpose of security the names and positions of the Egyptian Christian leaders have been removed.

Earlier this morning, I was privileged to participate in a conference call facilitated by the Lausanne Committee with evangelical leaders in Egypt. The recorded call will be made available shortly at the Lausanne website.

We heard especially from [Leader One] who related the exhiliration of Egyptians in the wake of the revolution that toppled Hosni Mubarak and his 30-year “emergency rule.” The peaceful revolution that evolved in Tahrir Square was “something we never dreamed about,” said [Leader One]. “Egyptians cannot themselves believe that we now have a new country: a free country with free elections.” He said that for the last 30 years “it has been very tough.” Christians were not allowed to build or repair churches without permission and were watched closely in their regular ministry.

Seething beneath the public reports of peaceful protest were three weeks of violence, as daily police security was virtually non-existent, according to [Leader One]. There are about 1200 evangelical Protestant churches (over a million members) and early on in the Tahrir Square revolution, according to [Leader One], he and other evangelical leaders submitted an appeal in support of religious freedom (not for or against the regime).

He said he is leading a meeting tomorrow with 50 evangelical leaders to consider the best way forward. He asks for prayer for those in military government to make good on the promise of democratic reforms, including a more inclusive government. At this meeting a committee will be formed, including Christian lawyers and judges, to offer suggestions for revising the Egyptian constitution. Of special concern is Article 2, which identifies Egypt as Islamic: a key source for laws that have restricted religious freedom. [Leader One] hopes that the article will be either eliminated or changed to include other religions.

[Leader One] observed that on February 1, Coptic and Catholic leaders weres still publicly supporting the Mubarak regime. On February 9, [Leader One] invited Protestant leaders and issues statement supporting the Revolution: asking for religious freedom and human rights for all. “Not as evangelicals,” he added, “but as Egyptians: we want to help with the new country.” He encouraged Christians to participate in the revolution: “Go to the demonstrations as individuals, but not as religious leaders.” One of the highlights was the spontaneous support of Christians who set up a human shield on Friday to protect the Muslims during prayer, with Muslims then doing the same for Christians at Sunday worship. [Leader One] hopes that this reflects more than momentary solidarity for religious freedom. Muslim supporters of the revolution know that Christians—especially evangelicals—were there with them in the Square.

Of course, the main concern now is the Muslim Brotherhood. [Leader One] related that Christians have been living in fear of a take-over by the group the past 20 years. However, it became clear over the last month that they were one of the forces, not the principal force, in the revolution. Officially suppressesd by the Mubarak regime, the Brotherhood has tried to control parliament through elections. However, there is confusion even within the movement. Some want to take advantage of the revolution and current instability to rise to domination, while others seem willing to participate in a democratic transition. It’s too early to judge, according to [Leader One].

[Leader Two] underscored these cautions. “Outsiders should not be naïve that Egypt is now a free country with respect to religious freedom,” he said. “It will not necessarily become easier to share the gospel with Muslims or for Muslims to follow Christ. So we need to be careful about what freedoms we’re talking about. People will be free to make their objections against the government, for strikes, etc., but we will face a period of unrest as people adjust to freedom. My plea is that people won’t rush in naively to do things that make things more difficult. Pray for Egypt. There has been no decrease in the role of Islam.”

Another Egyptian Christian leader [Leader Two] pointed out that Islamism is still very much at the heart of Egyptian identity. “It’s not like the collapse of the Soviet Union with the fall of the Berlin Wall,” he warned, “where the ideology collpased and then the reigme collapsed.” Islamic ideology remains firmly entrenched. “Many of the Muslim young people in the Revolution would not like the Muslim Brotherhood.” However, he noted the Gallup report that 99% of Egyptians said that religion is “very important” to their daily lives and the majority religion “doesn’t distinguish between religion and civil states.”

As for Muslim Brotherhood penetration into the army now in charge of the transition, [Leader Two] has some concern, since the Brotherhood has certainly infiltrated the powerful labor and trade unions. “There is no distinction in Islam between religion and states, so the Muslim thinkers who may want to have a state that is not based on Sharia are going to have a great difficulty and the Muslim Brotherhood will exploit that. So we’re in a very delicate situation.” Christians living in Western democracies shouldn’t naively assume that religious freedom will simply emerge as a consequence of the revolution. Rather, he encourages fellow Christians to pray “for a ‘second miracle’ in Egypt”: namely, a new constitution that enshrines religious liberty.

Given the potential for similar grassroots movements in Jordan, Yemen, Algeria, and perhaps even Syria, the eyes of the Middle East—as well as the world—will be on Egypt in the coming months and even years.

Seven centuries before the birth of Jesus Christ, Isaiah prophesied “an oracle concerning Egypt”:

Behold, the LORD is riding on a swift cloud and comes to Egypt; and the idols of Egypt will tremble at his presence, and the heart of the Egyptians will melt within them….In that day there will be an altar to the LORD in the midst of the land of Egypt, and a pillar to the LORD at its border. It will be a sign and a witness to the LORD of hosts in the land of Egypt. When they cry to the LORD because of oppressors, he will send them a savior and defender, and deliver them. And the LORD will make himself known to the Egyptians, and the Egyptians will know the LORD in that day and worship with sacrifice and offering…and he will listen to their pleas for mercy and heal them. In that day there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria, and Assyria will come into Egypt, and Egypt into Assyria, and the Egyptians will worship with the Assyrians. In that day Israel will be the third with Egypt and Assyria, a blessing in the midst of the earth, whom the LORD of hosts has blessed, saying, ‘Blessed be Egypt my people, and Assyria the work of my hands, and Israel my inheritance’ (Is 19:1, 19-21, 23-25).

Amazing, isn’t it! The two nations identified most closely in history with the oppression of Israel—Egypt and Assyria—will be saved from their oppressors by calling on the name of Israel’s King. Throughout the New Testament, of course, calling on the name of Yahweh is identfied with calling on the name of Jesus Christ (Acts 2:21 and Rom 10:13, citing Joel 2:32). “And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12).

This prophecy was not fulfilled before Christ’s birth. Nor was it fulfilled in the remarkable revolution in Tahrir Square. It was fulfilled when the Word became flesh, died, and was raised to the seat of all authority and power. Even now, people from every tribe and tongue are being drawn by the Spirit onto that highway through the gospel and our prayer is that Egyptians in growing throngs will come to the Savior who alone can guarantee liberation from the oppression of death and hell.