Could you turn with me back to the passage that we read together earlier, Exodus chapter 17? My text today is found in the verse 15 of that chapter, Exodus chapter 17, and the verse is 15. It says, and Moses built an altar and called the name of it Jehovah Nissi. And we know that that name means the Lord our banner, and that is my text for today. Let us seek the Lord's face. O Lord, we do pray as we come to Thy Word. We thank Thee for it. O Lord, where would we be without Thy Word? We would know nothing of Thee. O Lord, we'd be in darkness and ignorance. Yet, Father, we thank Thee that You have been pleased to reveal Yourself to us. Yet, Father, we pray that You would help us to submit to Thy Word, to conform ourselves to it, Pray that the Word of God would come this day with power and authority. Pray that today, O Lord, you would help us to apply it to our own hearts. Pray for help in the preaching of thy Word, I pray. In Jesus' name, Amen. This name, Jehovah-nessi, was given in the wake of Israel's battle with Amalek. We noticed that as we read the passage, and we noticed it all, and I want you to turn with me to Deuteronomy 25, where we are given more details as to this battle. If you turn with me to Deuteronomy 25, and the verse 17, Deuteronomy 25 and the verse 17, here Moses reminds the people of Israel of what occurred at that time. He says, remember what Amalek did unto thee by the way when you were come forth out of Egypt. how he met thee by the way, and smote the hindmost of thee, even all that were feeble behind thee, when thou wast faint and weary, and he feared not God." Here we see that the Amalekites attacked Israel as they were traveling to the land of promise. They ambushed them from the rear. They attacked those who were the weakest, those who were at the back of the group. the Holy Spirit reveals to us there at the end of verse 18, most significantly, that the Amalekites feared not God. And it's interesting to note then that these were a wicked and evil people, a people who were the descendants of Amalek. And Amalek was the grandson of Esau. And Therefore, when we trace back their roots, we find that they come from a lineage of men who were noted for their wickedness. Of course, Esau stands out in the pages of Scripture as a man who rejected the Lord. And this, of course, explains to us why these people were the enemies of the Lord's people. Esau was a reprobate man, and his descendants followed on in his ways, followed on in his corrupt and evil rejection of the Lord. And therefore, the wickedness of the Amalekites was manifested in their unprovoked attack upon the Lord's people. They could have allowed the Israelites to pass on by and to not molest them, but yet they went out of their way. They attacked Israel in a malicious and hateful and cruel manner. And such was their cowardice that they fought against a tired and defenseless nation, a nation that had just been delivered from slavery, a nation that was in weakness in regards to the flesh. And yet we read here that these people were God's people. and God's people responded to this attack, and under the leadership of Moses, we find that they fought and they prayed. We read that they battled against Amalek. And we read as well that they fought and won. And this name Jehovah Nissi reveals to us that the battle was not won by human strength. but rather by prayer and by the Lord's strength. And in many ways, the most significant part of this whole account is that of Moses upon the hill, holding in his hand the rod of God. That is the most significant thing. And we must take note of it because this rod of God had brought so many miracles and deliverances previously. You remember that Moses took that very rod and struck the waters of the Red Sea and the waters were parted. Do you remember it was by that rod that many of the plagues were brought down upon Egypt. And it's significant that as this battle was going on, we read in verse nine, that 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 mine hand. And so picture that scene, there's the Israelites fighting below in the valley and there's Moses standing at the top of the hill. with the rod of God in his hand. And we realize that the rod symbolized the Lord Jesus Christ, the deliverer and protector of his people. You turn with me to Isaiah chapter 11 and the verse 10. Isaiah chapter 11. Isaiah chapter 11 and the verse 10. It's speaking of the Lord Jesus Christ, says, and in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an enzyme, or that could be read, a banner of the people, to which shall the Gentiles seek, and his rest shall be glorious. And this language is not unusual. We find throughout scripture the Lord Jesus Christ referred to as a rod, or an enzyme, or a banner of the redeemed. And therefore we realize that it was the Lord himself who was the banner. It was the Lord who was being held up by Moses. the great banner, as the great enzyme of the Lord's people, and as the Israelites fought in the valley and they looked up to see Moses upon the hill with the rod of God in his hand, so too we as God's people must battle and fight in this world, looking to Christ the great captain of our salvation. What a parallel there is when we think of this battle. We think of the continued battle in the world in which we live today of truth against error, of Christ's church against the kingdom of darkness, and of course that victory must be won through Jesus Christ alone. But let me make this more personal for you today, because I believe that there is a parallel here between this battle and the Christians' daily battle. And I'm not just talking about our battle against the devil, but this includes our battle against sin, against the flesh. against the many temptations and trials that come against God's people. And perhaps you're in the meeting this morning and you are going through deep waters. You are facing a difficult situation in your family or in your own personal life and you come to God's house and the question upon your mind is this, how can I overcome this? How am I to live for the glory of God? when I am in this difficult situation? How am I to approach this trial in a spiritual manner?" And yet we see here that these people won the battle by looking to the banner. And what a thought that is for us, then, in the midst of difficulties, that we are to look to our Savior, the strength and help and comfort that we need. You see, we read of the great men of faith in Hebrews 11, and we admire their faith. And yet we read in Hebrews 12, the following chapter, that all of those men of faith looked unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith. we need to realize then as God's people that to live a life of faith, and to live a life of faith that triumphs as those men did, we must understand that our focus in our life must be the Lord Jesus Christ. It must be even as these people here in Exodus 17 found that the victory was wrought through the Lord and by looking to the banner. And therefore, that is what I want to consider with you this morning. Jehovah Nissi, the Lord, our banner, or we could say the Lord Jesus Christ, our banner. And I want you to see with me firstly that Christ, the mediator, is our banner. Christ the mediator is our banner. Look with me in verse 12. It says, And it came to pass, when Moses held up his hand, that Israel prevailed. And when he let down his hand, Amalek prevailed. But Moses' hands were heavy, and they took a stone and put it under him. And he sat thereon, and Aaron and her 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. Notice with me the actions of Moses during the course of this battle. He was engaged in the spiritual work of prayer. And we observed the great taxing effect that it had upon him. The lifting up of his arms in prayer for the victory had an effect upon him throughout the day. He became weary, became tired under the effort of prayer and as time went on his arms fell. he had to be supported by Aaron and by her. And while, yes, We focus upon Moses' activities of prayer, and what a great lesson it is for us all that in the battles of life we are to do it by prayer. But significantly, the outcome of the battle was secured by the unceasing prayer of Moses. We read that when his hands fell, Amalek prevailed. But when his hands were raised in prayer, Israel prevailed. Now this doesn't give praise to Moses, but it points us to our great high priest, the Lord Jesus Christ, whose prayer is unceasing for his people. And I want you to see with me that it is through Christ our mediator that our prayers avail. It is through Christ, our mediator, that our prayers avail. You see, Moses' prayer and intercession prevailed because he was praying in faith to the one at God's right hand. Do you realize that in this scene, Moses is praying through Christ as every one of you who are the Lord's people do? What a thought that is. I feel that sometimes we read these Old Testament accounts and we feel disconnected with the figures that we read of here and yet realize that as every one of you gets in the quiet place with the Lord and you begin to pray, you are praying to in the same manner and to the same Lord that Moses prayed to here. was praying to the Lord Jesus Christ, the one who was interceding for him. And do we not read of that in Hebrews 7 and verse 25, of the great high priest who intercedes on our behalf? You see, Christ as our mediator is the one who represents us before God's throne. who is praying for us, that we might persevere and prevail and be delivered from him. And in that great chapter, John 17, where we have a preview of the Lord's high priestly prayer, we read there that the Lord says, I pray that you would not take them out of the world, but that you would keep them from the evil one. And realize then that our Lord is in heaven at this very moment, and he is praying that every one of you who know and love the Lord here this morning might persevere, might continue on in the faith. You know, there are times in the midst of trials, is it not true, that we feel alone? Perhaps that's how you feel today. You're battling. you're in the darkness of a trial, and you feel as though you're alone, no one cares for you, no one's thinking about you, perhaps you doubt whether even anyone's praying for you. And yet what a thought this is here, that no matter what situation you are in, Christ is praying for you. And he's praying that you would come through. He's praying that you would persevere. And his prayers cannot fail. Is that not a great source of encouragement for you today? It is through Christ our mediator that our prayers avail, but then it is through Christ our mediator that all blessings flow. And we see the great blessings that flowed to God's people in this passage, because the Lord empowered them. He strengthened them. He gave them great vigor and energy to overcome the malak. And you realize then that the victory that Israel won here was wrought through the strength that God imparted to them. You look with me 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. And that verse shows to us then that God's people were entirely dependent. Can you see that this morning? were entirely dependent upon the Lord. Without him they were going to fail. Without him Amalek would have prevailed. Do we not realize then that it's through our Lord Jesus Christ that all blessings flow to us, even the blessings of strength and help, to be able to endure, to be able to overcome. Do we not read in Ephesians 1 and verse 3 that we have been blessed with all spiritual blessings and have any places in Christ? Do you realize that every good thing that you have received from God has come to you through your Lord Jesus Christ? Does that not make him wonderful and beautiful in your sight? Do you not then sense how much he cares for you, is aware of your needs every day, and is there to meet that need? And what a stimulus this is for us to pray, and to pray with confidence, because our Mediator is there before the throne of God representing us. through his name he will hear and answer our prayers." How often it is we come to the place of prayer and we doubt that the Lord is even hearing us. We doubt that God is even there to help us at times. If we're honest, we do feel that way. Yet here we see that we have a great Mediator who is there praying for us, through whom we can approach and pray unto with great confidence. because he is there to aid us. It is Christ the Mediator who is our banner. But then secondly, I want you to see that Christ the Almighty is our banner. Christ the Almighty is our banner. You know, very often it is the case in our lives that we do not live in the reality of who Jesus Christ is. You see, Jesus Christ is the Almighty God, who possesses the same divine essence as the Father and the Holy Spirit. And that means, of course, that our Savior possesses all the divine attributes in all of their fullness. There is this picture so often presented to us by the world and by liberal Christianity of Christ in this very meek and very weak manner. And of course our Lord was meek and he was gentle, but let us remember at the same time that the Lord Jesus Christ is the Almighty God, the second person of the Trinity, and he himself possesses all of the divine attributes of the Godhead. these divine attributes are connected with him as the banner. You see, Christ's attribute of love is our banner. Do we not read in Song of Solomon 2 and verse 4 that his banner over me is love? His banner over me is love. And does not the banner of the cross tell us of our Savior's love? Let me ask you, have you ever doubted the Savior's love? You need to look to the cross. Perhaps you're unsaved here this morning. You need to look to the cross, because there you see the love of the Savior for sinful men. His mercy and grace towards us testify to the same fact. Do we not read in Romans 8 and the verse 39 that nothing can separate us from the love of God that's in Christ Jesus? And as a born-again believer today, are you not here in God's house? And when you hear these things, you sense within your own heart that God loves you. Oh yes, we know from God's Word that God is love and that God loves us, and yet is it just something that is merely a thing that we know? Or have we really experienced it in our lives and in our heart, that you, through your own experiences in your life, when you've been through difficulties, that you can testify before God today and you can say, yes, I know the love of my Savior? Because that is the case. You think as well of Christ's attribute of justice. You look with me in Jeremiah 50 and the verse 2. Jeremiah 50 and the verse 2. Here we see God's, or Christ's, attribute of justice in connection with him as the banner. Jeremiah 50, in the verse 2, it says, "...declare ye among the nations, and publish, and set up a standard," or that could be read a banner, "...publish, and conceal not. Say, Babylon is taken, Baal is confounded." Meroctac is broken in pieces. Her idols are confounded. Her images are broken in pieces. And here we see, speaking of the Lord's dealings with the heathen nations in judgment. And we observe as well that God dealt with Amalek in this same manner. He dealt with them in judgment. As the banner was held up, the Lord was judging the Amalekites. justice demanded their defeat. And what a thought that is when we think of Christ's justice, that while his justice could not pardon our sin, his justice now cannot refuse to vindicate our cause. You see, before you were saved, God's justice demanded that his wrath be poured out upon you. And yet because Christ has taken your place and suffered judgment that you deserve. Now God's justice cannot but vindicate you. The wrath has been satisfied. Do you realize that because God is a God of justice, his wrath can never be poured out upon you if you are the Lord's people? What a thought that is. But then we think as well, Christ's attribute of truth. We read in Psalm 60 and the verse 4, Thou hast given a banner to them that fear Thee, that it may be displayed because of the truth. We think of Christ's attribute of truth and the banner is to be displayed as truth, and truth is only to be found in Jesus Christ. Unlike the devil, who lies and deceives and seeks to lead God's people astray, our Lord spoke and taught and is the truth. Therefore, in seeking to be like Christ and in honoring him, we must speak the truth in love. And there are many more. I could go on, but I cannot for sake of time. There is Christ's attribute of wisdom connected with the banner. There's Christ's attribute of power, his infinites, his eternality, his unchangeableness, his goodness, his holiness. And the reason I go through these things this morning is for this purpose, that with such a one as our banner, what have we to fear? put that to you this morning. Because is it not the case that each one of us have fears when we consider the course that the world is going, and when we consider the new year ahead of us? Is it not true that every one of us have fears, and yet I trust by God's grace, as we have seen some of these attributes, that our banner has the Lord Jesus Christ, that we can rest and be secure in his loving arms. We truly do not have anything to fear, for we have won our banner, who is the Lord himself. treasures and loves his people, who seeks the good of his people and will not allow his people to be destroyed. Is that not an encouragement for you today? Especially, I say, as we think of a new year ahead. Again, we are reminded of the fact that like the people of Israel here who were looking up and to Moses as he held the rod of God in his hand. That is the key, dear people. How are we going to overcome in this coming year? How are we going to live a life of faith? We must look to the rod of God. We must look to our banner. We must look to Jesus Christ and realize as we look to him by faith, we comprehend one who possesses all of these divine attributes. look to one who is more than able to keep us and to help us through all of our difficulties. We've seen that Christ the mediator is our banner, Christ the Almighty is our banner, but then thirdly and finally today, Christ the victor is our banner. We read in verse 14, And the Lord said unto Moses, Write this for a memorial in a book, and rehearsed it in the ears 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. We realize then that the altar was raised as a memorial, not to the gallantry of Israel, but to the Lord's victory through them. And that is the reason why the altar was built. that is the reason why Moses gave the Lord the name that he did. If this victory was won through Israel, he may well have called the altar Israel Urbano. But he didn't. He called the name of it the Lord Urbano. And therefore, by such an action, Moses was giving the glory of the victory not to Israel, but to the Lord as their victor. And therefore, we realize that the Lord is the one who is victorious. He is the triumphing King, the one who has never and will never lose a battle. You think of our Lord's greatest victory at Calvary, where he defeated sin, the devil, he purchased eternal redemption for us. Do we not read in 1 John 3, in the verse 8, of Christ's great victory? He defeated them. The devil overcame him by the blood of his cross. You know, the fact that Christ is our banner and secures the victory. And therefore we can fight with confidence and assurance, knowing that the battle is won. And the Apostle Paul, he summed up this thought this way. He said, if God be for us, who can be against us? What a thought that is. because of Christ, our banner, the victor. And therefore, as I conclude today, I ask you this. How are we going to defeat the devil and his workers in these days? How are we going to overcome sin in our lives? How are we going to go on in grace in this coming year? It is simply this. By lifting up Jesus Christ in our lives, Moses lifted him up, so we too must lift him up. This must be done comprehensively in our lives, in our families, in our homes, in our workplace. Every church, every minister, every worker for the Lord, every preacher must lift up Christ in their ministry. You see, the Lord Jesus Christ must be central to all that we do. Is he central in your life? Is he central in your home? Is he central here in this church today? You see, like the banner that is set up high in the midst of the army, so Christ must be to us. So as the tabernacle was planted and set in the midst of the camp of the Israelites, so too must the Lord dwell in the midst of his people. Is he dwelling in the midst of your life today, or is he far off, outside the camp? Is Christ and Christianity something that you do merely on a Sunday, or is it something that consumes your life, controls everything you do? You see, we must seek to obey and honor Christ in all things that we do, live for him, serve him, and witness for him. And the apostle Paul put it in this manner. In Colossians 1, in verse 18, he said, In all things Christ must have the preeminence. The preeminence. Now, dear people, if we live in this manner, preeminent in our lives, we will have an impact upon our families, an impact upon this community, an impact upon this nation. That is the case. And so I pray that God's Word today has been a challenge to you. Do you realize that the Puritans did this in Scotland and England all those years ago, and Christ was preeminent. Look at the impact that they had upon the United Kingdom. We need to emulate that, that as Moses lifted up the rod of God and the victory was run through the Lord Jesus Christ, may God grant us grace to lift up the rod in our lives. He would be central in all that we do. I pray that God's Word has been an encouragement to you. Amen.