NOTES ON SCRIPTURE 1895 NO. 30
NOTES ON SCRIPTURE 1895 NO. 30
The thought has been before me as to what characterises a soul who is out of Egypt. Many are safe who are not out of Egypt. There are two places, out of Egypt and in Canaan. For us this is heaven; the work of Christ is the ground-work of both for us. It is grace that delivers us from Egypt, and it is grace that takes us to heaven. What marks a person who is in Egypt is that he is occupied with Pharaoh and the Egyptians. There are three things which mark one who is out of Egypt. First, he celebrates the work which has brought him to new ground, to a new position before God: “I will sing unto the Lord, for he hath triumphed gloriously: the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea”. All the enemies are sunk like lead in the mighty waters. Secondly, he is occupied with God; God’s interests here are before him: “I will prepare him an habitation”. If you want to know more about this, read the Songs of degrees, Psalm [p. 74] 120 to Psalm 134, the steps by which they went up to the house of the Lord. Have you ever come to what the soul there comes to? “I will not give sleep to mine eyes, or slumber to mine eyelids, until I find out a place for the Lord, an habitation for the mighty God of Jacob”. This is the second mark of one who is practically out of Egypt. What interests him in this world is the house of the living God. The third mark is that he is going to heaven. Is this what you are set for? What tests us all is the journey between, we find out ourselves in the journey. We have left the port, and the haven is sure, but between these we have to learn that we are unmendably bad, that there is nothing for us but God. He is a happy man who has come to this. God will minister nothing to the man whom He has removed in judgment on the cross, but He gives manna, bread from heaven, to sustain us on the road to heaven.