Nathan E. Lewis

Nathan Lewis preached this sermon on November 22 at Ascension PCA and Evergreen PCA in Beaverton, Oregon
Exodus 17: 8-16, “The Staff and the Sword: Our Church Planting Mission in Oregon”

In 1993 at Rock Creek School, where we started worshipping as Evergreen PCA, we posted a sign in the entry way, “Evergreen Mission = to plant five churches in Oregon.” The first Sunday of March 2010 will mark the beginning of the 18th year of our mission. We have made some progress: Evergreen Church in Salem is organized and soon Chehalem Valley Church and Hoodland Chapel will organize. We have begun to gather a beautiful group of people known as Reconciliation Church on Saturday nights in this building and Ascension mission has been worshipping here alongside us for 10 weeks. We have been joined by our sisters and brothers at Intown and Hope PCA. The work of Westminster PCA in Vancouver and Cascade PCA in Eugene continues. Our Korean congregation, Eden, in Aloha is doing well. As we consider this morning the work of Moses on the hill and Joshua in the valley, we can readily apply it to our mission as well as to our burgeoning ministries and our individual pursuits. Towards the refining of all our work in the name of Christ, we do well to take a lesson from both Moses and Joshua, who put their trust in Lord, erecting a memorial to the glory of his holy name rather than to themselves.
Moses and Joshua were not tilting at windmills. Their foe was real and formidable. Amalek was an enemy of God, of peace and purity, a leader of much evil in the land, ravishing the land, oppressing the other tribes in the region, and participating in the unspeakable religious rites of orgy and infanticide. Not only Moses and Joshua, but Saul and David would fight against the Amalekites seeking to free the land from their devastation. As we read in the Old Testament of ancient tribal wars, the question before us is, “How is it that we are to fight against the enemies of God and of peaceful society in our day?”
Moses commanded Joshua to marshal an army, to pick up the sword against the Amalekites. Notice that Amalek was the atagonist in this skirmish. But on the ultimate level, far beyond the efforts of mere humanity, God had commanded Israel to purge the land of those who had perverted the course of human civilization. The lesson for all of us who live in the valley of the 21st century is this: We have much work to do as instruments of truth and grace, in the name of Jesus, who descended into the valley to end human strife once for all. Joshua would prevail with his sword but in no way would he enjoy a complete victory over the enemy. The Amalekites would lick their wounds, regroup and arise again and again through out the coming generations. As we seek to serve Christ in our day, we are faced with one looming deterrent to a direct application. We should not quickly conclude in our application: “As Joshua picked up his sword to slaughter the Amalekites so we should clean our barrels to slaughter the enemies of Christ today.” This is the reasoning for holy wars, no longer an option for the community of faith. To take up arms is a consideration for any nation seeking to preserve peace in this world. A nation is part of the divine institution of the state. But we are gathered here today as the divine institution of the church. Christ and his apostles in the New Testament have given to the church a much different sword than the one Joshua wielded against Amalek. We have been given the Word of God as our sword. Biblical application is an unfolding message that culminates in the work of Jesus and the army he has marshaled in these last days. We have beaten our swords into ploughshares and we proclaim with the courage of Joshua the gospel of peace. In the face of opposition we speak of Jesus Christ and him crucified.
In our church planting, the Word of God is central to all that we do. We have one message: Christ Jesus is Lord! Jesus descended into the valley to live among us, to teach us to turn the other cheek, to be reviled among men, and to declare that the kingdom of God has come and all who would abandon self and devil may enter in to the proclamation that Jesus Christ has ascended to the throne of God and he shall come to judge the living and the dead. The ministers of our congregations and missions preach the gospel. Our members proclaim the gospel. All of us seek to live in the light of the gospel. Each of us as individuals has opportunities to invite others to join us in worship of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. We have opportunities to do our work and to complete our projects in such a way that the world around us would see Christ, his beauty, his truth, his goodness.
Living in the valley is fraught with every conceivable problem and enemy. In our private lives we struggle against the enemies of Self, confusion, and lust. Often we feel defeated and deem ourselves unworthy to fight the good fight. We often wonder if our labors will amount to anything lasting and good. Take heart. Christ Jesus has gone before us and he is the definition of righteousness. He is the blameless one and by grace we have been saved through faith. Do not lose heart. Take courage. Our message is the gospel of Christ. Our work is instrumental, even our limping along to follow Christ. The very Spirit of Christ dwells in us to empower us toward all good works.
While Joshua and his army fought in the valley, Moses remained on the hill. He took the staff of God in his hand and stood overlooking the battle. The staff of Moses was once a sturdy shepherd’s rod. At the burning bush God commanded Moses to throw his rod to the ground and when he obeyed the rod turned into a serpent. At that moment Moses’ staff became the staff of God. Moses used it to perform the miracles of God in Egypt. He stretched the staff of God over the Red Sea and the great wind of God held back the waters as Israel safely crossed. During Joshua’s battle against Amalek, Moses, accompanied by Aaron and Hur, stood on the hill. Whenever Moses stretched out his hand with the staff of God extending over the valley, Joshua prevailed. But whenever Moses rested his arms and the staff of God came to his side, Amalek prevailed. The three men noticed the connection and as Moses grew weary, they placed a stone upon which Moses sat while Aaron and Hur supported his arms, one on each side. Thus the staff of God stretched toward the heavens until sunset. In the end Joshua routed Amalek.
The lesson for us is that our work in the valley is connected to the work of Christ on the hill. Jesus not only descended into the valley but he climbed the hill, not with the staff of God in his hand but with the cross of humanity on his back, until he was too weary to carry it. Moses may be a picture of us relinquishing control unto God, our hands upraised, relying upon God to win the battle, but one thing is for sure: Moses is certainly a powerful picture of Jesus Christ on the hill, his hands outstretched, the victor over sin and death. The staff of God powerfully hit its mark upon the life of Jesus Christ, smiting him for our sin, the very wrath of God poured out upon the perfect Lamb of God. The weary hands of Jesus were nailed to the cross and thus outstretched over the valley as the Father and the Son put an end to sin and death once for all.
There are little hints in the text supporting this view of Moses as a pointer to Jesus. Moses is the prophet of Israel. His brother, Aaron, was the high priest of Israel. Hur was a member of the royal tribe of Judah from whence would come King David and his royal Son, Jesus, who would sit upon the throne of David forever. And so, the day of Amalek’s defeat, the prophet, priest and king labored on the hill. 1,400 years later, Jesus Christ, the Prophet, Priest and King would accomplish the ultimate work of God on the hill for those of us who live in the valley.
In our church planting the gospel we preach is the gospel of the cross. The communion table we share is a table of remembrance: we remember Christ Jesus’ death until he comes. The two marks of the Church are our consistent and primary plan to establish and grow the Church of our Lord Jesus Christ. We also count prayer for growth to be our regular and ardent work, praying in the name of the crucified Christ risen and ascended to the right hand of God. Everything else we do flows from this glorious center, this climax of redemptive history, the very center of our faith and practice.
In our individual battles against personal sins, we do not merely make a list of virtues and vices, as Ben Franklin methodically did, seeking to root out our foibles replacing them with good deeds, but instead, we make our lists and fight our demons and do our good, ever looking to Christ, remembering his rescue of us, his cleansing of our sins and his empowering Spirit working within us toward divine pleasure.
As we join our deacons in relieving the needs of the poor and maintaining our facilities, we do so in the name of Christ. As we admonish one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, making melody in our hearts, we do so to the Lord, who bought us with his precious blood. As we work heartily in our vocational pursuits and in our families and neighborhoods we work heartily unto the Lord. Today, all of us, who are striving in the valley, let us lift up our eyes to the hills from whence comes our help. Our help comes in the name of the Lord. Amen.