Carried Close To His Heart: How God Guides His People // Exodus 28:15–30

There are going to be an Exodus 28 in our Bibles if you want to turn there.

Exodus chapter 28.

Exodus 28 · chapter mention

We're going to work through verses 15 to 30 in our Bibles today.

This is sermon number 73 through the book of Exodus.

Sermon titled Carried Close to His Heart.

We've been working through a series I've titled Leaving the Darkness, where we have been working verse by verse, chapter by chapter, through the book of Exodus.

If you're just joining us, and what a joy it's been.

Ups and downs, left and rights through this story.

And this big picture story has landed currently in a place where we are watching God dwell amongst his people.

So quick overview.

Again, God tells Moses to lead the people out of Egypt, out of the hand of Pharaoh, through ten plagues, through the Red Sea, into the wilderness, ultimately to the promised land.

Moses meets with God on Mount Sinai.

He receives the moral law, the Ten Commandments.

And then God starts to establish society.

He brings these principles and precepts on which his people should worship and should live together, a judicial system, God's president.

And so he's laying out the law before them.

And now we've been looking closely, zooming in on the tabernacle where God dwells in the tent, in the middle of the camp, in the middle of tents.

All of the people are living in tents.

God shows up in a tabernacle, and that is where the priest meets with God.

And we have zoomed in on this tabernacle and been looking at it closely week after week.

Again, title of the message today, if you're taking notes, carried close to his heart.

Have you ever wanted God to tell you exactly what to do in life?

You know, like I mean exactly what to do.

Like, should I take this job?

Should I move?

Should I stay?

Should I marry this person?

Should I take that risk?

Should I start this ministry?

Lord, just tell me yes or no, please.

Most of us have had moments like that.

We wish God would make it unmistakably plain and clear.

Do you remember when we were kids?

Well, when I was a kid, there was this thing called an eight ball.

And uh when when uh when somebody liked you at school, you know, you would shake that thing.

Do they really like me or not?

You know, you'd shake the eight ball and then you'd look to see yes or no or maybe.

There would be little answers, ask again later, all kinds of little funny things that would come through.

I think if we're honest, sometimes we wish God was like that.

Like a magic eight ball we could just shake, and he would say yes or no or maybe, very clearly to us.

In the Old Testament, he did give Israel unique means of guidance through the high priest, through this breastplate of judgment, this mysterious ermum and thummum.

Uh very, very interesting chest plate of stones, and these two stones the priest would hold in his hand.

We're going to talk about it today.

We study this passage, we learn something far bigger than priestly clothing.

We see that God's people are precious to him.

We see that God's people are carried actually close to his heart, and we see that God's people are guided by his ultimate wisdom.

And all of this, we know, points to our greater high priest, the Lord Jesus.

Exodus 28 in our Bibles, we're going to read verses 15 to 30.

Can we stand for the reading of God's word?

We always stand for the reading of God's word here at Legacy to pay honor to him.

Remember whose word we're reading, not my words, his story, his words, his opinion, his ways, and beautiful details hidden in the text that you probably wouldn't see.

Exodus twenty-eight, take a look at verse 15.

It says, You shall make a blessed breastplate of judgment, the work of a skillful designer.

Like the work of the ephod, you shall make it of gold and of blue, and of purple, and scarlet material, fine twisted linen, you shall make it, it shall be square.

Having been folded double, a span in length and a span in width.

You shall mount it four rows of stones stones.

The first row shall be a row of ruby, topaz, emerald, the second row of chirquois, sapphire, diamond, third row of jackanth, a gate and uh amethyst, the fourth row of beryl and onyx and jasper, and they shall set in gold settings.

The stone shall be according to the names of the stones of Israel, twelve, according to their names, they shall be like engravings of a signet, each according to its name for the twelve tribes.

You shall make on the breastplate chains of twisted work of cords and pure gold.

You shall make on the breastplate two rings of gold, and you shall put the two rings on the two ends of the breastplate.

You shall put two cords of gold and the two rings at the end of the breastplate, you shall put two ends of the two cords on the two filigree settings, and you shall put them on the shoulder pieces of the ephod at the front of it.

You shall make two rings of gold and shall place them on the two ends of the breastplate on the edge of it, which is its tower on the inner side of the ephod.

You shall make two rings of gold and put them on the bottom of the two shoulder pieces of ephod, on the front of it close to the place where it is joined, above the skillfully woven band of ephod.

They shall bind the breastplate by its rings to the rings of the ephod with a blue cord, so that it will be on the skillfully woven band of the ephod, and that the breastplate will not come loose from the ephod.

Aaron shall carry the names of the sons of Israel and the blessed plate of judgment over his heart when he comes into the holy place.

For remembrance before Yahweh continually, you shall put the breastplate of judgment, the ermum and the thumim, and there shall be over Aaron's heart when he comes before Yahweh, and Aaron shall carry the judgment of the sons of Israel over his heart before Yahweh continually.

Lord, we thank you for this picture.

We thank you for this passage.

We thank you as the high priest carried the names of the people over his heart.

You carry us on your heart.

You, Jesus, being the greater than Aaron, the great high priest, no doubt we are on your heart today.

All of our matters, all that we're working through.

And I pray, God, now by the power of your Holy Spirit, you would reveal your will and your truth to us through your word, that you would show us how to discern your will for our lives.

Bless us as we study your word now.

We ask it in Jesus' name.

Amen.

You can be seated.

Uh interesting passage, huh?

We have been looking again at the tabernacle.

We're going to give you some pictures to give you some visuals.

Uh the wide shot here up on the screen.

Uh, remember I stumbled on upon this in the south of Israel 20 years ago when I was traveling with my buddies backpacking through Israel.

We found a life-size tabernacle down uh by Elot in the southmost southern part of Israel.

And here it is.

Um, you would walk in through the fence here to the altar.

That's where they sacrifice animals.

They would wash their hands in that circular thing, the basin, and the priest would then walk into the tent.

In the tent, there is a table of showbread, the menorah, there is the altar of incense, there's the high priest, there's the veil.

You pull back the veil, and there's the ark of the covenants.

And on the ark of the covenant is sued cherubim.

When you push back the lid, the mercy seat, you see the ten commandments, Aaron's rod that budded almonds, and manna.

And there was the presence of God in the most holy place.

We're going to zoom in today on the Urmim and the Thermom.

Uh, not easy and fun to say, but here is the high priest, and you see the twelve stones on his chest.

We'll zoom in one more here.

And there it is.

The names of the twelve tribes of Israel, all of these very, very special stones.

Next picture there.

Uh here are the different names of them, and we will look at them in just a second.

We'll talk about them.

Uh, but very interesting stones.

This is what's on his chest.

The next one here.

We have these uh this white and black stone in which the priest would hold in his hands, and as we will see, this is the casting of lots or the glowing of these stones to determine the will of God.

Here's a uh nice visual for you to bring it all together here of the high priest holding the stones in his hand.

There you go.

And so we'll leave that on the screen there for a visual as we dive into the text.

Point number one, if you're taking notes today, God's people are precious stones in his sight.

Verse 15 says, You shall make a breastplate of judgment, the work of a skillful designer.

We talked about that.

Like the work of an ephod, you shall make it gold, blue, purple, scarlet material, fine twisted linen, you shall make it.

So, right away we're reminded that this is no ordinary garment.

I mean, this is if I walked out with the um and the thermum on my chest, you'd be like, what's going on here?

Be pretty cool though, wouldn't it?

If anybody's got access to all these stones and you want to make one, let's go.

I'm ready.

Maybe I'll start wearing it.

But this is sacred, it's intentional, and it is what?

Beautiful, right?

It really is.

I mean, you know, God, God could have just put some cardboard together, you know, cut it out, and put it on the priest's chest.

He says, you know, the most precious material on the planet.

This is glorious, it's skillful work, it reflects Almighty God.

Gold, blue, purple, scarlet, fine linen.

Remember, matching the tabernacle.

The priest's garments is matching the internal workings of the tabernacle.

These are not throwaway details.

God is teaching theology through clothing, he is preaching through priestly garments.

Every thread says something, every color means something, every detail serves a purpose.

The high priest was going into the presence of a holy God, and he was standing as mediator between God and sinful people.

So nothing about this was casual.

Verse 16 tells us it shall be square, having been double folded, and span in length, the span in width.

So this is roughly about nine inches square, folded over, like making a pouch.

And then verses 17 to 20 describes the stones.

It says, You shall mount it on the four rows of stones, twelve stones together, precious stones, colorful stones, dazzling stones.

Uh I love the colors.

I like the variation of color.

Like that God just goes off on this thing.

The exact modern identification of some of the breastplate stones is uncertain.

You can see that by comparing uh Bible translations, they're trying to translate the Hebrew into English and trying to figure out which stone, a modern stone it actually is.

That's what makes it difficult.

So you can just compare the legacy standard to the NIV, and it renders them several different ways, even notes some identifications as uncertain.

So the list is not completely certain, but uh it does point to original Hebrew minerals.

Um these were precious stones formed deep in the earth and then set in gold to represent the 12 tribes of Israel.

The first row row was ruby, topaz, emerald.

The second row was chirquois, sapphire, diamond, the third row, uh jacant or zircon, this reddish, oranges crystal formed from volcanic rock.

Um, all of these stones from diamonds deep in the earth made by pressure, or the uh turquoise made by uh water running through rock and then dried in the desert.

There's all these different ways these minerals and crystals are made, uh, but they're they're absolutely beautiful.

Uh the third row, again, um this zircon, or and then a gate uh banded stone formed with minerals uh filled cavities in the rocks.

Uh the amethyst, the purple quartz crystal.

Uh the fourth row is the barrel, a crystal uh forms in uh granite rock emerald is actually the same type of barrel, comes from the same place.

Onyx stone, black banded stone formed from layered quartz.

Jasper, a colorful stone formed when minerals fill cracks and rock as well.

These were not ordinary pebbles, they were precious stones formed deep in the earth through heat, pressure, water, and time, and then set in gold over the heart of the high priest as a picture of how precious God's people are to him.

Isn't that beautiful?

The phrase over his heart is mentioned multiple times in this text.

You you you didn't catch that if you're just like, ah, you know, it's like got to be folded twice, and this has got to be threaded this way, and the rings go through that.

You just like forget all these details and you skip the whole passage.

But it says, multiple times they shall be over his heart.

Now it is over the chest, but why does God point out it's over the heart?

Isn't that beautiful?

It's interesting that the only places you find these stones in Scripture are in the Garden of Eden and in the book of Revelation.

In the beginning and in heaven is where these beautiful stones are found.

I don't know how they got their hands on all these stones, but they did.

God probably led them to them, no doubt.

Verse 21 explains their meaning.

The stones shall be according to the names of the stones of Israel, twelve according to their names.

And so there it is.

Each stone bore a name, each name represented a tribe.

Each tribe represented the people of God.

So when the high priest ministered before the Lord, he carried the names of God's covenant people with him.

We don't want to rush past that.

God could have chosen plain clothes, he could have chosen a scratch on wood, he could have chosen something ordinary and forgettable, but instead he chose jewels.

Precious jewels.

Why?

I think the mystical picture is there, and we can make that connection because his people were precious to him.

He puts their names on precious stones and jewels, and then he has those put on the heart of the high priest.

That's what the breastplate said every time Aaron entered the holy place.

These people matter to God, these people are treasured by God, these people are known by name, and these people are not anonymous before heaven.

Back in Exodus 19, God had said to Israel, You shall be my treasured possession amongst all peoples.

Exodus 19, 5.

We are a treasure to God.

Here in Exodus 28, the truth is put on display.

And it's not because Israel was sinless, not because they were impressive, not because they had earned anything, but because God has set his covenant of love upon his people.

That's called grace.

It's the same today.

If you belong to Jesus, you are not an afterthought in the mind of God.

You are his thought.

The only reason we're with him is not because we're great.

All we gotta do is look at our own lives.

We kind of make a lot of messes, you know?

And God shows up and calls us his treasured people.

Really amazing.

You may feel overlooked by people, you may feel ordinary, you may feel like you don't matter much in the world's eyes.

You may be in a season where your life feels small and hidden and unnoticed.

But if you belong to Christ, your name is not lost in heaven.

Jesus does not save a blurry crowd.

He knows your name, he loves his own people, and he treasures you.

John chapter 10, verse 14, I am the good shepherd, and I know my sheep, and my sheep know me.

John 10:14

Some of you need to hear that deeply.

Because life has a way of talking lies to us, huh?

Failure tells you that you're disqualified.

Pain tells you that you're forgotten.

Loneliness tells you that you're unseen.

Waiting tells you that you are neglected.

But the breastplate always says otherwise.

That your name is engraved and that you're known by God, that you're precious to him, and that you're carried by him.

Not because of your worthiness, but because of his love.

When God looks upon the great high priest, he beholds his people upon his heart.

Israel was precious to him, and every believer in Christ is precious to God.

And so we've got to stop measuring our value by our circumstances.

We've got to stop evaluating God's love by our latest success or failure in life.

If you're in Christ, you're treasured in ways deeper than you know.

Amen.

Charles Adam Spurgeon said, God does not love us because we are valuable.

We are valuable because God loves us.

That's right.

He loves you.

Thus, he has made you the most valuable treasure in the universe.

Isn't that amazing?

It would be like at an auction, you know, of some paintings.

And it's not until the very wealthy one, the very wealthy art collector, no, someone sees a painting, no one pays any attention to it, but that art collector sees something different and makes the highest bid above all other paintings, puts the price of value upon that painting and buys it.

God has done that for us in the giving of his own son, now hasn't he?

He has purchased us at the highest value.

You think he would just say, let's just gather like half the gold of the world, and I'll make the purchase for these people.

He says, No, I will purchase them with the blood of my only son.

I was just listening to a sermon the other day, and it really got to me again as I for God so loved the world that he gave his only son.

Yeah, I know, Josh, I've heard that a thousand times.

If you only have one son, one, you give him away for all of those people.

One.

Or one child, to give that child away is impossible.

But God gave his only son.

Why?

Because he loves us.

It's a beautiful picture.

Jerry Packer said there is tremendous relief in knowing that God's love to me is utterly realistic, based at every point on prior knowledge of the worst about me.

He loves us, and he knows everything about us.

It's absolutely beautiful.

The text doesn't stop with precious stones.

It tells us that those stones were placed in a certain position, and that's where it gets deeply personal.

Look at this is uh point number two if you're taking notes.

God's people are carried close to his heart.

Exodus 28, 22 to 29 describes how the blessed breastplate was secured.

There's chains of gold, there's rings of gold, there's cords, attachments, binding, all these connections.

And at first read it can feel uh repetitive, but it isn't a filler.

God is emphasizing that the breastplate was to be firmly attached, and it was not to dangle loosely, it was not to slip, it was not to fall away.

It was firmly placed and wrapped around the chest of the high priest.

Uh they shall bind the breastplate by its rings to the rings of the ephod with a blue cord so that the breastplate will not come loose from the ephod.

And that matters.

These names were not to be accidentally dropped, these stones were not to be forgotten, uh, these stones were not to slide out of place.

It was all locked in place and was to sit on the chest of the high priest.

Verse 29, and Aaron shall carry the names of the sons of Israel on the breastplate of judgment over his heart when he comes into the holy place for a remembrance before Yahweh.

There's purpose here.

Over his heart.

Yet we looked at on his shoulders last week, remember?

Carried on his shoulders, now carried on his heart.

Early in the priestly garments, the names of Israel again appeared on the shoulders of the high priest.

And that teaches us that he carries our burdens.

But here the names are over his heart as well.

I love the emphasis.

Teaches love, nearness, concern, tenderness from God.

The priest was not merely carrying out a duty, he was carrying the people with him.

It meant that the high priest represented God's people before the Lord, and he did so with their names close to his heart.

Do you remember Moses pleading with God on Mount Sinai about the people?

God's like, I'm gonna wipe them all out.

He's like, No, Lord, don't do it.

It's so amazing to see Moses' heart grow for the people.

And try to hold back the wrath of God.

Now that's God's heart in Moses, now, isn't it?

Because later Moses' heart would kind of turn against the people.

And he would strike the rock two times.

Remember with the staff?

I hate the what these stiff-necked people.

And God will actually keep him out of the promised land for doing that very act.

But the responsibility of every spiritual leader, in some measure, pastors are to carry the people in prayer, shepherds are to carry the burdens in love.

Parents, elders, disciplers, mentors.

We are all called to carry each other's burdens, carry people on our hearts.

That's a good thing to do.

It is a good thing to bear the burdens of your friends, of your family.

It's a good thing.

For many would have not made it had they not found a close friend to carry their burdens.

We need each other.

And yeah, it's taken a long time to develop.

But I get it a lot more now.

Oftentimes, all people need is a good ear.

Did you know that?

They just want to tell you.

They don't even need a good answer.

They just need an ear.

They just need somebody by their side.

You don't have to say anything often.

You can just be there.

You can give them a hug.

You can pray a prayer.

You can give an encouraging scripture.

Well, you don't have to answer a bunch of questions like Job's friends.

They didn't do very well.

I was learning that with the passing of our friend Dara this these last few weeks.

I was just hanging out with the friends, and I I realized I felt like there was a part of me that felt like, you know, I'm the pastor, you know, and like I was with them 20 years ago, and now I'm here today, and they're calling on me to do this service.

So I I did the graveside, we I buried her, did the service.

But then I noticed there was like they they weren't really looking for more instruction, but just to be there.

And I wanted to be there, just to hang out, and just to be a part, and just your presence sometimes and go a long ways.

I wish I could be there more.

Every human leader eventually reaches his limit, though.

You gotta understand, pastors forget.

Did you know that?

Why didn't Pastor Josh remember that?

It's impossible.

And I try.

I'll tell you, there's people I've known for 10 years.

They'll walk up to me, looking at me in the face.

I can't remember their name.

I'm like, what's what's going on right now?

You want to know why?

You can only store like 400 to 500 names at one time.

So every time you learn a new name, you oftentimes will forget those old names and you got to pull it back up.

And it's my job to remember everyone's story, everyone's name, everyone's situation.

And it's near impossible.

Pastor, I'm gonna fail you, okay?

I will, I promise you that.

If I haven't already, don't worry.

It's on its way.

It's not my desire to fail you.

I do, I try hard.

But a leader gets tired, a shepherd is finite, an earthly priest is imperfect.

And that's why Christ is the ultimate priest, the ultimate pastor, the ultimate shepherd who forgets no one's name and remembers everyone's story.

Oh, wait, your name is on his heart.

Your story, every detail.

Aaron was a shadow, Jesus is a shepherd.

Aaron was a symbol, Christ fulfilled it all perfectly.

Hebrews chapter 7, verse 25, we've looked at it quite a few times.

Hebrews 7:25

Therefore, he is able also to save forever those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them.

Hebrews 4 15, for we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weakness.

He fully understands us, and this is glorious.

Jesus Christ carries his people close to his heart.

He carries you when you're weak, when you're fearful, when you're confused, when you're ashamed, when you're tempted, when you're grieving, when you're too tired to explain even your own heart, he's carrying you.

You may forget him in panic, but he will not forget you.

You may lose your footing, but he will not lose his footing, and he will not lose your name.

You may feel like everything is coming apart, but he remains your faithful high priest.

The breastplate was fashioned so it would not come loose.

It will never come loose on Christ.

You are strapped to his chest forever.

You know those baby carriers on the chest?

Now some babies like to be faced in, other babies like to be faced out.

But it is magical to watch a child strapped to their mother's or father's chest.

They just love it.

And I think we still love it, don't we?

That's not because we hold on so perfectly, it's because he holds on.

Right, faithfully.

Some of you need this comfort more than an outline of guidance today, because before you we get to this next step, you need to know that the heart of the one who guides you truly loves you.

He's truly for you.

You need to know that the one who leads you is not irritated by you, not cold towards you, not distant from you, not careless with you.

Sadly, oftentimes the representation of authority in our lives when we were young is the way that we picture God.

We have to go through the scriptures to try to unravel all of that in our minds, the way your dad treated you, the way your mom treated you, the way that authority figure treated you.

You think that's how God treats you.

It's no contraire.

You have to read his word.

You start to discover who he actually is.

Maybe it was a bad pastor or a bad priest when you were young.

I'm telling you, God's different.

We have to look at his word.

He carries you near.

Song of Solomon 8, 6.

Set me as a seal over your heart.

What a picture of salvation.

Lord, keep me close, keep me near.

Set me over your heart.

And that's exactly where he keeps his people.

When guilt comes to accuse you, remember that Jesus is praying for you.

When fear rises, remember that Jesus is near to you.

When sorrow tries to crush you, remember Christ is not disconnected or detached from your own pain.

When direction feels cloudy, you remember that you are not wandering alone.

You're over his heart.

Charles Spurgeon, if you could hear Christ praying for you in the next room, you would not fear a million enemies.

You could hear him praying for you.

Let's look at point number three here in our text.

It brings us to the Urim and the Thummim.

God's people were guided by his voice.

Point number three.

Verse 30 says in our text, you shall put the breastplate of the judgments, the Urim and the Thummim, and they shall be over Aaron's heart when he comes in before Yahweh, and Aaron shall carry the judgment of the sons of Israel over his heart before Yahweh continually.

Now here we meet this mysterious Urmum and Thummim.

Can everybody say that with me?

Ermum and Thumum.

Come on, one more time.

We all got a lisp.

You know what I mean?

Ermum and Tumum, yes.

Interesting words.

You know what they mean?

They connect to the first letter of the Hebrew alphabet and the last letter of the Hebrew alphabet.

Isn't that interesting?

What are they exactly?

The honest answer is we do not know with certainty.

We do not know.

It's a very mysterious thing in the Word of God.

But we'll speculate.

It doesn't walk us through the exact method of use.

This is this white and black stone being held in the priest's hands.

And maybe that's a mercy for us because we love exact methods.

We'd literally be doing it, wouldn't we?

We'd literally, we'd be taking the stick, you know, like where's the water?

You know, like we'd be doing all the casting lots, right?

We'd be doing the thing.

We love the law.

We want it exact.

I want to know what to do when my donkey falls into my neighbor's hole.

I want to know exactly what to do.

How many shekels do I pay him?

God doesn't detail it out for us.

People would be trying to recreate them today.

Uh, but we do know their practice.

They were connected to divine judgment, divine decision to divide guidance for Israel under the old covenant.

In certain moments in redemptive history, God provided unique means by which his people could discern his judgment and matters he chose to answer.

We see it in Numbers 27, 21.

And he shall stand before Eliezer the priest, whom shall inquire for him by the judgment of the Urim before Yahweh.

Proverbs reminds us that the lot is cast into the lap, but its every judgment is from Yahweh.

Proverbs 1633.

These two stones, the black and the white, were like lots cast to find the will of God, and somehow the stones would glow or land, heads or tails, we don't know, but God used them to speak to his people.

And the questions were very, the questions weren't like, How did you make the heavens and the earth?

Tell us.

It was like, should we go and fight this enemy or not?

David inquiring, the prophet goes to God and asks.

And they would cast the lots, and they would glow, or they would flip, or they would do something, and they would believe that this is God speaking, and they would listen to him based upon his answer.

We see it in Exodus 28:30 here.

Exodus 28:30

Leviticus 8:8, Aaron is ordained with them.

Leviticus 8:8

Numbers 27, 21, Joshua to seek guidance through them.

Deuteronomy 33.8, the priesthood brings the blessing through them.

Ezra chapter 2, verse 63, awaiting a priest with them after exile.

Ezra 2:63

Nehemiah 7.6, the same situation after exile.

We see Saul, King Saul, seek the Lord in 1 Samuel, and we see David seek the Lord as well in 1 and 2 Samuel using these stones, going to the priest and asking for direction.

But we we just because it's sitting here and we can see a picture of it, we have to be careful because the Urim and the Thermom were not a toy, not fortune telling, not superstition, not Israel's version of astrology, not a private device for every personal uh every uh personal whim, like the magic eight ball that we shake.

And this is why psychics and all this stuff, you know, tarot cards and all these things are so popular today.

People pay money to inquire because they want to know.

They want the lots.

And God would obviously say, get away from that.

That psychic is communicating with the spiritual world.

The problem is they're not communicating with God, they're communicating with demons.

Be careful to go into those places.

So, what did they mean then?

It meant God was guiding his covenant people in a way suited to stage uh to this stage of revelation and redemption.

He was showing them his plan uh through the high priest.

The high priest would seek wisdom from God and then he would give the instruction to the people and they would walk in these ways.

We do not live by the Urim and the Thummim today.

Uh God has not given us holy dice to carry around in our front pocket to roll uh, let's find the will of the Lord.

You know, you lose, thank you very much.

Uh no, that's not how we discern the will of God today.

Uh He has given us something better.

He's given us His Son, He's given us His Word, He has given us His Spirit, and He has given us providence.

Hebrews chapter 1, verse 1, God having spoken long ago to the fathers and the prophets in many portions and in many ways, in these last days he has spoken to us in his Son.

Hebrews 1:1

The most important thing God ever said had to say, He has already said, in Jesus Christ.

Let's talk about this.

The written word of God is sufficient for life and in godliness.

Now, if someone says, yes, but the Bible doesn't tell me whether to move to Texas or to stay in California.

That's true.

The Bible does not tell you every private detail of your future, and it's not a personalized roadmap of every street address, job title, or timeline, but it does something better.

It tells you what kind of person to be.

It tells you what kind of life honors God, it tells you what holiness looks like, it tells you what sin to avoid, it tells you what wisdom values, it tells you what to love, it tells you what to reject.

So there's a lot of yes and no's, right?

Thousands of yes and no's right there now, isn't there?

And this is where many people get stuck.

They want specific direction while ignoring plain obedience.

They're like, I'm gonna move to Texas.

Why?

Well, because you know, it's I hate California and it costs too much here and this and that.

Okay.

Is there a church are you going to?

Oh, we haven't looked yet.

Do you have family or friends there, or community you're gonna go into?

Well, we don't know, we don't know.

So why are you well the pay is a little bit better there and it's lower cost of live?

Okay, so you haven't mapped out the big things of life first.

You're gonna go on the lower things of life and make that decision.

That doesn't sound wise.

Thank you.

Thank you, Mask.

Thank you.

So the starting point of guidance is not hidden revelation, it is revealed truth.

And this is where people get stuck.

They want specific direction while ignoring plain, again, obedience sitting right in front of them.

If you are ignoring what God has already made clear, don't expect clarity in gray areas.

You don't need to pray about whether to sin.

Did you know that?

Pray about it.

Never.

I really like this girl though.

I'm telling you, it's not a believer.

You're a fool.

You don't need to seek a sign about whether to get drunk tonight.

You don't need to ask for divine confirmation about whether to date a non-believer.

You don't need to discern whether it's okay to lie, cheat, gossip, lust, hate, or compromise.

That just knocked out like 80% of your questions.

And if something in your head tells you to murder someone, that's not the Holy Spirit.

You don't have to pray about that.

The Holy Spirit never leads against the scripture he inspired.

So if you fill your heart and mind with just the book of Proverbs, oh my gosh, you can discern 90% of life's questions.

I get it.

I want specifics too.

I want to know what town to plant a church in.

God, give me the revelation.

I didn't, it fell into my lap.

It wasn't like I was on Mount Sinai and I was with the stone tablets, and I'm like, I'm ready to write it.

Show me Studio City.

That's not how it worked.

I just started looking almost 12 years ago.

I'm walking in Silver Lake, and I walk up to Intelligentsia, and there's Tim Chatdock.

Tim, what's up, man?

Good to see you.

Yada yada.

He's pastor of Reality LA.

Tim, we gotta catch up.

Yeah, yeah, gotta come over to my office.

I go over to his office.

Dude, I can't, I don't know where to plant.

You know, he's like, have you thought about you know Studio City, Sherman Oaks?

Like, no churches over there.

I email my buddies who are musicians, uh, Ricky and Rand Jackson here in LA, twin brothers.

And I said, dude, I don't know where to plant.

And they're like, Have you ever thought about Sherman Oaks or Studio City?

What?

That's how it's it stumbled into my lap.

I said, I just go check it out.

And this is the only place in all of LA after eight months of looking that said yes to us, and that's how we got here.

Sinclair Ferguson said, God's guidance comes through the study of his word, a heart submitted to him, and the help of the Holy Spirit.

The combination of those three is very important.

John Newton, the word of God, furnishes us with just principles to regulate our judgments and direct our conduct.

It's so crucial.

A.W.

Pink, the will of God is revealed in the Word of God.

It's really sad.

Oftentimes, I remember we were in the college ministry, I remember a pastor had told this girl that God spoke to him and said that she's gonna marry that guy.

And she's like, I don't like that guy.

And why does he get to decide?

What if I don't get that download from God?

Why is that?

Do I have to obey him?

And I'm like, no, dude.

We should pick up stones and stone that guy.

You don't say, thus saith the Lord, God showed me that you're gonna marry that person.

What if it never works out?

You just derailed that person's life.

What are you doing?

In the Old Testament, if you did that, they killed you for it.

You're not allowed to do that.

We have to be careful.

Psalm 19, 105, your word is a lamp unto my feet, a lantern, and a light unto my path.

God has spoken, there is wisdom there already sitting there for practical application.

Okay, we're gonna blitz these last ones, okay?

Point number four, be led by the Spirit within the confines of Scripture.

I don't want to quench being led by the Spirit.

I think it's crucial to be in communion with God.

Listening to Him daily, ask Him, Lord, speak.

Your servant is listening.

Speak to me within the confines of Scripture.

If all this is true, then yes, be Spirit-led, but Spirit led within the confines of Scripture.

Jesus said, the helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.

It's like the Holy Spirit's going to lead you, and what's he gonna lead you in?

All that Jesus said to you.

Interesting.

Again, when when he, the Holy Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you in all truth.

John 16, 13.

Holy Spirit teaches, Holy Spirit reminds, Holy Spirit illuminates, the Holy Spirit guides.

He does not contradict the word of God.

He will never tell you to violate the scriptures in the name of faith.

He will never lead you into sin in the name of freedom.

He would never pull you away from Christ while claiming to be spiritual.

And the Spirit always points to Jesus, always honors Scripture, always works in holiness and truth.

If something contradicts the Bible, you do not need to pray about that.

It's not from the Spirit.

If it aligns with Scripture, that honors Christ, it's consistent with wisdom, it should love people, it requires courage.

If it's not disobedience, if you sense a burden to act, then sometimes the most biblical thing you can do is just take the step of faith.

Pray for that person in public, pray for someone's meal, stop and help that hurting person, start a ministry idea, have the hard conversation with that person, open your home to somebody, give sacrificially, share the gospel with somebody, plant a church, serve the needy, take time for people.

He's all aligned with scripture.

And sometimes you won't know it was the Lord until after you obey.

If it's clear in scripture, it's like, well, that isn't, you know, that doesn't contradict God's word, so maybe you should just take the step of faith and do it.

Maybe you should.

Just take the step of faith and see what happens.

Sometimes the clarity comes on the other side of the step.

Providence is often confusing in the moment, but beautiful in the rearview mirror.

Isn't that good?

Charles Spurgeon said, when you cannot trace his hand, you can always trust his heart.

Corey Tenboom, never be afraid to trust an unknown future to a known God.

And that's where faith comes in, church.

It's not without faith.

Once we understand that God guides us through his word, his spirit, his providence, we can realize something that we do not have to sit frozen until every detail is crystal clear.

God never does it that way.

Sometimes we need to just go forward until God says no.

And I call it this point number five go until he says no.

Go until he says no.

If you're walking in the word, go until he says no.

If it does not violate God's word and your heart is submitted to Christ, then go until he says no.

Proverbs 16, 9 says, the heart of a man plans his ways, but Yahweh, the Lord, establishes his steps, determines his steps.

Proverbs 19, 21 says, Many plans are in the man's heart, but the counsel of Yahweh stands forever.

So we can make our plans, you can take steps, you can move forward, and you can trust that God will govern the outcome.

Psalm 84, 11, for Yahweh our God is a son and shield.

No good thing will he withhold from those who walk uprightly.

He is a son, he's a shield, he gives life, he protects.

And so if the Lord withholds something from you, then in the end it was not good for you.

You got it?

It was like everything lines up.

It seems the will of the Lord.

I'm gonna take the step of faith and try to get this job.

There's the everything looks great.

I'm just gonna go for it.

And then he closes the door.

I guess it wasn't good for you.

And then all of a sudden, a year later, this door opens, boom, perfect job.

Or that relationship wasn't right for you.

You're like, but they're godly and I'm attracted to them, and I think it's gonna work out, and all that, and then boom, God closes that door and then boom, opens the perfect door.

You see?

God knows.

That means a closed door is not always punishment, sometimes it's protection, huh?

So take the step, make the call, start the conversation.

Trust God to close the door if needed.

He is a better shepherd than you are, a navigator.

Oswald Chambers said, faith never knows where it is being led, but it loves and knows the one who is leading.

Martin Luther said, faith is a living, daring confidence in God's grace.

Hudson Taylor, great missionary.

God's work done in God's way will never lack God's supply.

One of the hardest things about following God is that his providence usually makes more sense backwards than forwards.

It's like as we're looking forward, it's like, what are you doing?

But then as we look back, we say, Oh, I see what you were doing.

But that's faith, isn't it?

We want to know now.

But that messes up the journey.

You get to trust God, you get to trust the one leading you into the Red Sea.

And you don't know what he's about to do.

He's about to do something great.

If you would have told Moses up front, I'm gonna have you back the people up against the Red Sea, I'm gonna send the Egyptians and Pharaoh down on you, scare the people out of their minds, it's gonna be great.

They're gonna lose their minds.

They're all gonna say, We wish we'd die out here.

Should have left us in Egypt.

God says, No, no, no, no.

I'm setting the stage to do the most amazing miracle in all of history.

For thousands of years, they were marveled at this parting of the Red Sea.

This is the truth.

The moment we often don't know is whether or not the flooded yard is good or bad, a new friendship good or bad, a painful loss, good or bad, a closed door good or bad.

We don't know.

Go ask Joseph sitting in prison.

Go ask Job in the middle of his suffering.

Ask the disciples as they're watching their king and their general die on the cross.

In the moment it looked terrible, but later we see that God was doing something far greater.

Romans 8.28, for those who love God and are called according to his purpose, he causes all things to work together for good.

Now, doesn't he?

That doesn't mean everything feels good.

It means God is working everything toward ultimate good, our ultimate good, his ultimate glory.

When you cannot trace his hand again, you can trust his heart.

That's where faith comes in.

Hebrews 11:1.

Hebrews 11:1

Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.

Noah built the ark by faith.

Abraham went out by faith.

Sarah believed by faith.

Moses chose suffering with God's people by faith.

Israel crossed the sea by faith.

It's all by faith.

Without faith, it is impossible to please God.

Hebrews 11:6.

Hebrews 11:6

Some of you are waiting for zero-risk obedience.

Some of you have worked your whole life to remove risk.

And that's why being young is so wild and awesome.

You just don't know what you don't know.

You're just like, I'm just gonna ascend it and see what happens.

And as we get older, we wish you could get some of that back.

But it's true, we do have wisdom as we grow older.

But that wisdom should be used in calculated risks for God's glory.

Take, continue to take steps of faith and watch what he will do.

These are moments when God is calling you to trust him, not into sin, not into foolishness, but into holy dependence.

Sometimes you won't know it was the Lord until you take the step.

And then one day you will look back and say, Now I see it was the Lord guiding me all along.

Then I knew it was the Lord.

God's people are precious to him.

God's people are carried close to his heart, and God's people are guided by his wisdom.

Amen?

Jesus is our high priest.

He carries his people, he guides us by his word and his spirit, and he is over all things.

Some of you need to trust in Christ maybe for the first time now.

Some of you need to trust him again.

Amen.

We need to go to the cross.

We have to go to his resurrection, see the miracle that he has done, see what he's done in our lives, and trust him for more.

There are more resurrections to come.

There are more red seas to be parted.

We got to keep taking steps of faith and trusting him.

Amen.

Let's pray and let's go before the Lord.

Father, we worship you in this place, and we ask now that you would cause us to believe on you more than ever.

I pray for those maybe who have never fully believed on you, that they would see their sin, that has separated themselves from you, that they would look to the cross and the work that Jesus has done in his death, burial, and resurrection, that they would see forgiveness of sin.

They would see grace being poured out from heaven.

God, your hand being reached down from heaven to bring them into relationship.

All they must do is call upon you as Lord and Savior, repent of their sin, turn away from running away from you and run to you with all of their hearts.

Ask for forgiveness.

And I pray, God, that you would forgive them now.

You would give them the gift of heaven.

You help them to walk with you all the days of their life.

Father, I pray for all the believers in this room that you would stir their faith to believe you for more in their lives.

They would not settle on this faith today.

They would not settle on zero risk calculations.

But Lord, we would start risking for your glory through your word by your spirit, and we would see great things happen in our lives.

We love you, Lord.

We commit our lives to you.

We do it now.

In Jesus' name, amen.