Exodus chapter 17. We are going to begin reading in just a moment in verse eight. Exodus chapter 17 in just a moment and we will start in verse eight. The Lord, our banner. Alright, here in a few more pages turn.

I'll wait just a moment longer. The Lord sent Moses to lead Israel out of the land of Egypt. Egypt, alright? Making sure y'all are awake this morning. Out of the land of.

Egypt. Egypt, okay? A place of bondage with seemingly no hope but with God, there's always what? There's always hope with God. For nothing is impossible for God and God delivered them.

He gave Moses miraculous signs to perform to convince the people that he was sent by the Lord. The first of which was his shepherd's staff. When he threw it down, it became a serpent serpent until he grabbed the tail and then it became a staff again. A simple, rugged shepherd staff became a banner of hope and a sign of the strength and the power of the Lord. The Lord who is the good, what?

The good shepherd, the Lord Jesus Christ. It was this staff or rod which God told Moses to hold up at the shores of the Red Sea and they did what? And the waters parted and the people went by went through on dry ground. There was no power either in Moses or in that staff. The power was in who?

The power was in God. God chose an old, humbled shepherd, and a worn out old stick to demonstrate that the way to win in the battle of life is not trusting in the might of huge armies or an advanced technology but in the might of all mighty God. We were talking in Sunday school this morning about the Ukraine. People of Ukraine are under attack from an army many many times their size. So far, they haven't been conquered.

I don't know what God's will is for the Ukraine but I am sure today as we sit here, there are Christians in the Ukraine praying for God to deliver them and if it is his will, he will and he can. For there is no power on earth to match the power of almighty God. He delivered Israel out of slavery. He parted the waters. He can do amazing things.

Don't trust in the arm of flesh. Don't trust in the might of men. Trust in the Lord. He will bring it to pass. Couple of verses here.

Let me come back to that in a second. Psalm 20 verse seven. Some trust in chariots and some in horses but we will remember the name of the Lord our God. First Samuel seventeen forty seven and all this assembly shall know that the Lord save us not with sword and spear for the battle is the Lord's and he will give you into our hands. Both of those verses are written by who?

Well, well, both of those were said by King David. King David was also a what? Shepherd like Moses. He was a young boy when he was a shepherd. Moses was an old man when he was a shepherd.

But God used them both. And why? Because they realized that the might and the power are in the promises and the grace of the almighty God that they served. The words of a shepherd with a staff and a sling. God would later use to deliver his people from oppression, both political and spiritual.

Later, Moses would bring the people out of Egypt. They crossed the Red Sea. They go into the desert and they wouldn't find what? What don't you find much of in the desert? Water.

Water. And they came to this place they called Meribah and there, they were just about ready to stone Moses and head back to Egypt. This is the beginning of chapter seven and God told Moses, he take, he said, take that that gnarly old stick you have there that and and hit this rock over here. So, you know what Moses did? Moses took that stick of his and he did what?

He hit the rock and when he hit the rock, what happened? That that magical wand in Moses's hand, when he hit that, that, it just opened up and a river port. No, it wasn't a magic wand? No. It was just an old what?

It was just an old stick. There was no power in the what? There was no power in the stick. There was no power in Moses or in the words that he said, there was power in the God whom he served and who he obeyed when he hit the rock with a stick and God opened up that rock and rivers of water poured out and fed and and and quenched the thirst of what is probably close to 2,000,000 people. That is a miracle.

But again, we see the stick. The stick. God uses sometimes things that man just overlooks and would just leave laying on the ground. He doesn't use many mighty. He muses humble people.

He brings low the mighty. He lifts up the what? He lifts up the humble. Look if you would in chapter 17 and verse eight. Then came Amalek and fought with Israel in Rephidim.

And Moses said to 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 mine hand. So Joshua did as Moses had said to him, and he fought with Amalek. And Moses and Aaron and Hur went up to the top of the hill. And it came to pass when Moses held up his hand that Israel prevailed.

Well, he was holding up the stick in his hand, okay? And when he let down his hand, Amalek prevailed and Moses hands were heavy and they took a stone and they put it under him and he sat there on and Aaron and Hur stayed up, held up his hands. The one on the one side and the other on the other side and his hands were steady until the going down of the sun and Joshua discomfited. That means he defeated Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword And the Lord said unto Moses, write this for a memorial in a book and rehearse it in the years of Joshua. For I will utterly put out the remembrance of Amalek from under heaven.

And Moses built an altar and called the name of it Jehovah Nissi. For he said, because the Lord has sworn that the Lord will have war with Amalek from generation to generation. Let's go to the Lord in prayer once again. Lord, thank you for your word. May you bless it.

May you use it in our hearts today to draw us closer to you, to challenge us in your service, to convict us of sin, to make us more into the image of your dear son, Jesus Christ. For it's in Jesus name we do pray. Amen. What's Jehovah Nissi mean? Let me go back here to that slide.

Jehovah Nissi. Jehovah or they think now it's probably pronounced Yahweh. It is the Old Testament name for God. It is his personal name. It is the name that God used when Moses came to him and said, Lord, how are they going to know you sent me?

Who am I going to tell them sent me? And he said, the Lord God, Jehovah, the I am that I am. The God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob. That is who sent you and this is his name. God means almighty one, sovereign.

Lord, it's Adonai in in Hebrew means master but Jehovah is God's name. My title is pastor but my name is Rick. God's name is Jehovah. There is none other. He is the only one.

That is who he is. It is his covenant name with Israel. It is his covenant name with us. The name Jesus means Jehovah is salvation. For that's who Jesus is.

He is the only. He is Jehovah. In your Bible in the Old Testament, when it's Jehovah that's being translated Lord, it's in all capital letters. So, every time you see Lord in all capital letters, that is the name Jehovah. When you see just the first letter capitalized, that is Adonai, and that means master.

Okay? Jehovah Nissi. What does Nissi mean? Nissi means banner, flag, pole, ensign, standard. It is the ensign of the group, the army, the nation.

It is their flag like our flag over there. That is a banner. That is our enzyme. That is our standard. At the conclusion of this battle, God says, I am Jehovah Nissi.

I am the Lord your what? I am the Lord your banner. The banner under which you you fight and you serve and you are blessed because you are part of my kingdom and you are part of my family. First, I want us to see we're going to go back here a little bit in the passage and just make a few points quickly. First of all, let's see the attack.

Israel came under the attack under attack by the Amalekites at the beginning of our passage. Who are the Amalekites? Were they they are a ruthless, better trained, and equipped adversary than Israel. Israel had just come out of slavery. They weren't trained armies.

They were trained bricklayers, okay? They didn't have the equipment that the Amalekites who were a warring tribe would have had. They didn't have the training that the Amalekites would had and the Amalekites were notorious for not playing by the rules. They didn't meet them face to face in battle. They probably came up behind them and picked off the weaker people first.

They surprised them. This was the Amalekites. A ruthless foe. One who does not play by the rules. One who preys on vulnerability.

Like who? Like Satan, our enemy. Satan, our enemy is a ruthless foe. He is a powerful foe. Don't pretend that he is not.

He's no match for God. Greater is he that's in us than he that's in the what? World. But Satan is a powerful foe. He is like a a roaming lion roaming about seeking whom he he may devour.

He doesn't play by the rules. That defines who he is. He is a liar and the father of it. He doesn't care about the rules and he preys on the vulnerability and the gullibility of humanity. To get us to destroy ourselves.

He doesn't have to destroy us. He just lies and deceives people into destroying themselves. To destroying their hope and destroying their lives and destroying their eternity. But he will lose. Thanks to the Lord our banner.

He will lose. Thanks to Lord our banner who is Jesus Christ, the one who hung on a what? On a tree, on a cross, and shed his blood. He is the Lord, our banner, who shed his blood on Calvary's Cross so that we could overcome the world and overcome the enemy by his strength and by his and by his grace. Revelation twelve eleven and they overcame him.

That is Satan by the blood of the lamb. That's who? That's Jesus Christ. By the word of their testimony and they love not their lives unto the death. There's a cross behind me in the baptistry.

It is not an idol. It is not to be worshiped. It is there as a memorial just simply to remind us that it was on a cross that the savior of the world died and shed his blood and gave himself that we might receive the righteousness of God in him. He is our banner, not the cross behind me. Jesus Christ, our Lord, who gives us the victory.

So, we see the attack of the enemy. We see the commission of Joshua. When the enemy attacked Moses in verse nine said to Joshua, choose out man and go out fight with Amalek. So, he sent Joshua. This is the first mention of Joshua.

First time we meet Joshua is right here when Amalek attacks Israel in the wilderness and Moses comes to Joshua. He said, get the men together and go fight against Amalek. Well, what did Joshua do? Well, he obeyed. He went forth in battle with the enemy.

He was outgunned. But that did not stop him. He simply obeyed and trusted in who? The Lord. He led the people into the fray and they followed him.

Now, this isn't just about Joshua, the leader, it's also about the Israelites, the followers. They could have said, oh, we're not, well, what are you talking about? We we can't defeat them. That that's crazy. We're just going to hightail it and run and try to save our own skin.

But they followed Joshua into the fray and into the battle Leaders are powerless unless they have people of faith to go with them. Moses couldn't defeat them. Amalek by himself. Joshua couldn't defeat Amalek by himself. The Israelites did.

Moses did. Aaron and Her did. The Lord who is our banner did. And he can do the same through us. But it takes many.

Following our what? Following our leader and our Lord, the Lord Jesus Christ. It takes many following the Lord to accomplish great things. In his name. Joshua obeyed and the people followed.

Number three, the banner of the Lord lifted high. Look, if you would, in verse 11 and it came to pass when Moses held up his hand that Israel prevailed and when he let down his hand, Amalek prevailed. So, as Moses lifted up the rod up there on the hill overlooking the battle, Israel prevailed. They won. They started winning but when his hands got tired and I dare you to take a stick and try to hold it up like this.

It won't take long before you start to let it down. And when he let it down to rest, Amalek prevailed Moses climbed up on that that hilltop to rally the troops in a show of what? What was that a show of? A show of faith. A demonstration of faith in the Lord who had used that stick as a symbol when God parted the waters, when God brought water out of the rock.

So, Moses went up there not in faith in the stick but in faith in who? In the Lord. To demonstrate that he was trusting in God and to rally the troops of Israel to do the same. God used Moses. God used that old stick before and so Moses stood up there like a somebody waving a big what?

A big flag. When he does, the Israelites win. When he lets it down, they begin to lose. Now, while I do believe the man seen Moses up there with the rod did encourage them to fight. Moses knew there was more to it than that.

It wasn't just a way to manipulate the people. No, it was there was more to it than that. Because the battle belongs to who? The battle belongs to Lord. When God's children put their faith in God to give them the victory, he does.

When God's people look to God to help and acknowledge they need him, he helps them. Call unto me and I will what? Answer thee. When God's people in faith lift up the standard of the Lord and proudly wave their faith high and exalt the name of Jesus before the world God acts. Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify your father in heaven and when that happens, God acts, souls are saved, things are changed.

Paul understood that. Romans 116, he said, for I'm not ashamed of the gospel. It is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth to the Jew first and also to the Greek. Paul said, I'm not ashamed of the gospel of Christ. I am not ashamed of it.

I will shout it from the mountain. I will shout it in the marketplace. I will speak of it in the synagogue. I'll talk of it on Mars Hill in Athens. I'll talk about it while I'm hanging from a board after a shipwreck in the Mediterranean Sea.

Or in the prison bound. After having been beaten. As Paul and Silas, praise the Lord. And God opened the doors and saved the Philippian jailer. Paul was not ashamed because he knew that the Lord keeps his promises.

He knows, he knew the Lord heard his prayers. He knew the Lord would act when Paul stood for the Lord and when he opened his mouth to proclaim the gospel and God did. Paul trusted. Paul followed. Paul lifted up the banner of the Lord and God acted again and again and again and again and again.

Because that's what God does. When we glorify his name and when we put our faith and trust in him. So, when Moses held the rod up, Israel prevailed and when he let it down, the enemy did. When we draw near to God, he draws what? Near to us.

When we lift up our voice in prayer and faith and dependence on him for wisdom and direction and help, he will show us great and mighty things which we would never have imagined. When we exalt the name of the Lord in public worship as we did here this morning, and in public and private discourse as we are right now. And testify of the grace and power of God, God glorifies himself. In our midst. When we in faith seek the direction of the Lord and follow his lead wherever it may lead, God will make our paths straight.

That means he's going to lead us in paths of righteousness. He will lead us to victory. When we put our faith and trust in him. But when we sit on our hands, when we're too ashamed to lift up our voice and testimony or song. When we're too faithless to seek him in prayer, when we look for help in every place but in the Lord, we will what?

We will fail. When the banner was lifted up, they they won. When it came down, they began to lose. When the Lord Jesus Christ is lifted up in our lives, we're going to what? Win.

When we let him down, is when we'll lose. Walk in the what? Spirit and you will not fulfill the lust of the flesh. Don't walk in the spirit and you what? You will succumb to the lust of the flesh and Paul is talking to Christians.

When we testify and follow and trust the Lord, he does great and mighty things in our life. Sometimes through hardship, yes. Doesn't say it's going to be an easy road. But he will give us the grace that is sufficient, victory, and joy in the midst of trials. But when we let him down, when we say, okay, well, I'm okay without him.

Is when we are in what? Deep trouble. Sometimes, God rumbles forth from a pillar of cloud and fire like up on the top of Mount Sinai where we haven't gotten yet. Other times, he speaks to us in a while. Still, small voice.

Are you listening? Will you follow? Next, we see the battle is won and how is the battle won? Well, Joshua got smart. No, that's not how the battle was won.

How was the battle won? Back here to verse 12. Moses hands were heavy and they took a stone and they put it under him and he sat there on and Aaron and Hurst stayed up his hands. The one on the one side and the other on the other side and his hands were steady until the going down of the sun. And Joshua discomfited that is defeated Amalek and his people by the edge of the sword.

The battle was won. What happened? Well, Moses couldn't hold that thing up all by him, all by what? All by himself. He needed what?

He needed help. Do you need help? Yes. Yes, you need help. Do I need help?

Yes. Yes, I need help. God said, I will build my church and the gates of hell will not prevail against it. He says in Hebrews, not to forsake the assembling of yourselves together as the manner of some is but exhorting one another and so much the more as you see the day approaching. Do we need each other?

Yes. Yes, we do. That's why God built a church and he's not talking about the building. He's talking about a congregation of believers to pray for one another, to teach one another, to encourage one another, at times to rebuke one another, to help one another through life. He has given us each other.

And for us to succeed to the extent that God wants us to and that we can achieve. We do need each other. Moses couldn't do this alone and so Aaron and Her recognized it and they sat him down a rock and they held up his hands till the sun went down and the battle was won. This goes to show that we all have a part. It takes more than a king or a governor, a coach, or a preacher to win the victory.

It takes an errand and a herd to lift up his arms. Not trusting in Moses but trusting in who? God. Don't get confused. I'm not going to give you victory in the Christian life.

No preacher's going to do that but God can. God can use you and God can use me. All glory goes to God but we all need help to fulfill what God has called us to. Moses needed help. You and I can't do this alone.

We need each other. We need to trust in God and we need to include one another. We need to work together in faith following the Lord and seeking his guidance and help and God will give the victory. We need to look at the big picture. You know, I'm sure Aaron and her got kind of tired of standing there beside Moses all that time holding his hands up.

It was inconvenient. But it gained them the victory. We need to look at the big picture. Sometimes, if you're like me, we get kind of bent out of shape over personal reasons. But there's a bigger picture than than my feelings or or what I want or what somebody else's wants or there's a bigger picture.

There's souls at stake. There's the glory of God at stake. Praise the Lord. I'm preaching to the choir. I've had it good at Missouri Avenue Baptist Church.

I've been here for sixteen years. I don't plan on going anywhere. So, just so you know, I'm not leading up to that, okay? But I've had help it's appreciated but we need to continue to follow the Lord and to trust in him and God will give us the victory. Finally, we have the memorial.

Verse 14 and the Lord said unto Moses, write this for memorial in a book and rehearse it in the ears of Joshua. For I will utterly put out of remembrance Amalek from under heaven. Moses built an altar and called the name of it Jehoshanisi. That means the Lord our banner. For he said, because the Lord has sworn that the Lord will have war with Amalek from generation to generation.

The Lord said, you you encourage Joshua, Moses, you tell him. I'm going to take care of Amalek. Vengeance is mine. I will repay, say it who? Saith the Lord.

And Joshua trusted. Did God take care of Amalek? He did. He did. He did take care of Amalek.

He said, I will utterly put out the remembrance of Amalek from under heaven. You ever meet an Amalekite today? No. Why? Because God put the Amalekites out of remembrance.

The only reason we know about the Amalekites is because of this. Because there are no Amalekites. Are there Jews? Millions and millions and millions of them. Are there Christians?

Millions and millions of them. But there are no Amalekites. God always keeps his wife. Promises. Are you listening?

Are you following? Are you trusting in the Lord? Are you holding high the banner of Jesus Christ in your life? So that he can be magnified and give you the victory. Do you know him as your Lord and savior?

If not, today is the day of what? Salvation. We'll give a hymn of invitation in just a moment. Come and trust Christ. I'll meet you down here.

Let's pray. Dear heavenly father, thank you Lord today for your word. Thank you for the example of we have in scripture of Moses and Aaron and her. Lord, we thank you for the victory that you gave Israel A reminder of the victory that is ours in Jesus Christ. The enemy is daunting.

The enemy does not play by the rules. But Lord, greater is he that's in us than he that's in the world. And we don't have to get down in the dirt with the enemy. We can overcome evil with good. As we learn to trust you.

And Lord, I pray that we would lift the name of Jesus high. That like the apostle Paul, we would not be ashamed of the gospel of Christ. That we would proclaim it from the rooftops, that we would talk about him in our daily conversations. That we would look to Jesus Christ, our banner, and our Lord. To give us the victory in every aspect of life.

As we trust in you and we pray Lord today if there's one here that's never trusted Jesus Christ to be the Lord and savior of their life. We pray they would come as we give this hymn of invitation today. In Jesus name, we do pray. Amen.