God's Hornets
God promises to fight for His people and conquer their enemies through mysterious and unseen means.
C.H. Spurgeon emphasizes that God sends His own forces, likened to 'hornets', to prepare the way for His people, ensuring their victory over adversaries without direct confrontation. He illustrates that God employs mysterious and unexpected means to fight for His people, often confounding their enemies before they even engage in battle. Spurgeon reassures believers that they need not fear, as God's divine intervention can achieve what human efforts cannot. He encourages the faithful to obey God's commands and march forward in faith, trusting that the Lord has already paved the way for their success. Ultimately, the victory belongs to God, and His power will be evident in the triumphs of His people.
Text
And I will send hornets before thee, which shall drive out the Hivite, the Canaanite, and the Hittite, from before thee. (Exodus 23:28)
What the hornets were we need not consider. They were God's own army which He sent before His people to sting their enemies and render Israel's conquest easy. Our God by His own chosen means will fight for His people and gall their foes before they come into the actual battle. Often He confounds the adversaries of truth by methods in which reformers themselves have no hand. The air is full of mysterious influences which harass Israel's foes. We read in the Apocalypse that "the earth helped the woman."
Let us never fear. The stars in their courses fight against the enemies of our souls.
Oftentimes when we march to the conflict we find no host to contend with. "The Lord shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace." God's hornets can do more than our weapons. We could never dream of the victory being won by such means as Jehovah will use. We must obey our marching orders and go forth to the conquest of the nations for Jesus, and we shall find that the Lord has gone before us and prepared the way; so that in the end we will joyfully confess, "His own right hand and his holy arm, have gotten him the victory."
Sermon Outline
- I. God's Promise to Israel
- A. The hornets were God's own army sent before His people
- B. To sting their enemies and render Israel's conquest easy
- II. God's Methods of Conquest
- A. Often He confounds the adversaries of truth by mysterious influences
- B. The air is full of influences that harass Israel's foes
- III. The Role of Faith
- A. We must obey our marching orders and go forth to the conquest
- B. The Lord has gone before us and prepared the way
Key Quotes
“The stars in their courses fight against the enemies of our souls.” — C.H. Spurgeon
“The Lord shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace.” — C.H. Spurgeon
“His own right hand and his holy arm, have gotten him the victory.” — C.H. Spurgeon
Application Points
- We must trust in God's promises and methods of conquest, even when we don't understand them.
- Our role is to obey our marching orders and go forth to the conquest, trusting that God has gone before us.
- God's victory is won by His own right hand and holy arm, and we can confidently confess this truth.