seen his star in the east and are come to worship him. Come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary, his mother, and fell down and worshiped him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh. And being warned of God in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed into their own country another way. And when they were departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word, for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him. When he arose, he took the young child and his mother by night and departed into Egypt, and was there until the death of Herod, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophets, saying, Out of Egypt have I called my son. Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked of the wise men, was exceeding wrath, and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently inquired of the wise men. Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremy the prophet, saying, in Rhema was there a voice heard, lamentation and weeping and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children and would not be comforted because they are not. But when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeareth in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and go into the land of Israel, for they are dead, which sought the young child's life. And he arose and took the young child and his mother and came into the land of Israel. But when he heard that Archelaus did reign in Judea, in the room of his father Herod, he was afraid to go thither. Notwithstanding, being warned of God in a dream, he turned aside into the parts of Galilee, and he came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets. he shall be called a Nazarene." Again, the text that we consider is Matthew 2, verses 13 through 15. And when they were departed, Behold, the angel of the Lord appeareth to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word, for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him. When he arose, he took the young child and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt, and was there until the death of Herod, that it might be fulfilled, which was spoken of the Lord by the prophets, saying, Out of Egypt have I called my son." Beloved in the Lord Jesus Christ, we've just commemorated the birth of our Savior. We've considered the visit of the wise men following the visit of the shepherds. The joy in heaven among the angels. And now we find immediately the very life of Jesus being threatened. For the safety of the Christ child, Joseph and Mary were instructed by God to leave Bethlehem and flee to Egypt. In the symbolic language of John's visions in the book of Revelation, Revelation chapter 12, we are told of the attempt of the great red dragon, representing our great adversary, the devil, to prevent the birth of the Messiah. The Old Testament church, is portrayed there as a woman with child. And that baby she is to bring forth is the Christ, the Messiah. And the great red dragon stood before the woman who was ready to be delivered for to devour her child as soon as it was born. All the attacks of Satan upon the church in the Old Testament were his attempts to abort the child which God purposed to bring into the world. But revealed to John is the fact that God's purpose cannot be thwarted. Never can God's purpose be frustrated or defeated. We read in Revelation 12, verse five, and she, that is the woman, the church, brought forth the man-child who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron, and the child was caught up unto God and to his throne. That bringing forth of a man-child, we've just commemorated in our consideration of Jesus' birth. Today, however, we are given an entirely different perspective of that child's place in history. In the text that we consider, we have the beginning and only the beginning of the rest of the story. What happened between the bringing forth of that man-child and his being caught up to God and to his throne? What happened was a continual attempt on Satan's part to destroy him. What happened was the continued attempt to prevent God's purpose from being accomplished. What happened was the beginning of repeated efforts to kill the Lord of glory. And through it all, God was accomplishing His purpose, even as we read in Acts 4, verses 27 and 28, for of a truth against thy holy child Jesus, whom thou hast anointed, Both Herod and Pontius Pilate with the Gentiles and the people of Israel were gathered together for to do whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel determined before to be done. That determinant counsel of God purposed that the man-child, his only begotten son, obtain rule over all nations by his death on the cross, the perfect satisfaction of God's justice on behalf of all those whom God had given him, and his glorification by the way of his resurrection and ascension. The rest of the story begins with what we read and what we consider as our text this morning in Matthew 2, verses 13 through 15. The theme of the text is God's son called out of Egypt. The text proclaims something, prophesied of old, fulfilled with purpose, and significant for us. Verse 15 tells us that this incident of Jesus having to be taken to Egypt was prophesied of old. And the incident itself is unfolded beginning in the 12th verse of Matthew chapter 2, where we are told that God warned the wise men in a dream that they were not to return to Egypt, but Instead, they were to return to their own country by a different route, ignoring what Herod had told them. It's understandable, given the reputation of Herod, that these wise men would immediately understand the importance of the revelation received in that dream. It seemed strange to them when they were in Jerusalem, that there was silence concerning the birth of the king, the Messiah. It seemed even more bizarre when none among the church leaders of that day asked to accompany them when they resumed their search for the man-child, the Christ, even though those church leaders were able to point them to the Old Testament scriptures, to Micah 5 verse 2, that the Messiah was to be born in Bethlehem. The apathy, the rejection, of the one whom they were seeking had been very evident to them. But when the dream explicitly forbade them from returning to Herod, they realized there was malice intended by Herod in his request that they return and reveal where they found this king of the Jew. Herod had a history It was a history of ruthlessness in quelling any perceived opposition to his rule. The brutality of that ungodly ruler would soon become grievously evident. Satan's attempt to destroy the Christ continued to be executed, and so the dream God gave the wise men was for the protection of his only begotten son. When the wise men departed, Joseph himself received the warning. Just as we read in Matthew 1 verse 20 that the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream to announce the wonderful conception and coming birth of Jesus who would save his people from their sins, we now read the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream again. Only this time, the announcement was not so joyful. Arise and take the young child and his mother and flee into Egypt. And be thou there until I bring thee word, for Herod will seek the child to destroy him. Imagine, as a father, recognizing the responsibility that God has given you, bringing a child into your home, recognizing that your chief responsibility as a father in loving that child is to protect that child. Imagine the joy of that event being disrupted within but a few weeks by the news that the very ruler of your country is seeking to kill your very son. Hard to fathom, isn't it? Ever since Joseph and Mary had presented Jesus at the temple and received the blessing and prophecy of Simeon, Joseph must occasionally have wondered about what Simeon said to the child's mother, Mary. We read it in Luke 2, verses 34 and 35. And Simeon blessed them and said unto Mary his mother, Behold, this child is set for the fall and rising again of many in Israel, and for a sign that shall be spoken against, yea, a sword shall pierce through thine own soul also, that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed. a sword shall pierce through thine own soul also." Joseph had to have wondered what that meant. But now, seeing the angel of the Lord again and hearing that Herod would seek the child to destroy him, it began to come together in his mind. As encouraging as had been the visit of the angel, the fact of Simeon's prophecy remained. The sword piercing through Mary's soul had to begin with her being told that they had to flee to Egypt and the reason for that flight. Joseph, upon awakening, didn't even wait for daylight. He took the young child and the child's mother and immediately left for Egypt under the dark of night and was there until the death of Herod. And all of this happened that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophets saying, out of Egypt have I called my son. God had spoken those words by the prophet Hosea in Hosea 11 verse 1. And there we read, when Israel was a child, then I loved him and called my son out of Egypt. The reference you see is historical. In fact, if you did not read the entire prophecy of Hosea, and lay hold of the concept of Jehovah's faithfulness set forth over against Israel's unfaithfulness, you wouldn't see this reference of Hosea 11 verse one as a prophecy at all. It's simply an historical reference used to set forth the horrible sin of God's wayward people. You remember that Egypt occupied a very important place in the history of the Old Testament Church of Israel. It had provided them safety and shelter when Israel itself was threatened, not physically, but spiritually. It being outnumbered in the land of the Canaanites, and because of Israel's spiritual weakness, threatened by the temptation to marry the unbelieving Canaanites to the spiritual loss of the generations to follow. To preserve them, therefore, as a peculiar people, holy unto the Lord, God led them to Egypt in a most wonderful exercise of his providence as found in the history of Joseph. And there in Egypt, the children of Israel could dwell in safety alone, sheltered in the land of Goshen for a period of 400 years. This, mind you, was according to the promise God had given to Abraham, recorded in Genesis 15, which word of promise focused on the promised seed, the Messiah, coming from Abraham's loins and establishing his people in the promised land in Canaan, the type of the heavenly Canaan. But then you who know your Old Testament history also remember that Egypt itself must serve as a type, a picture of the spiritual bondage of sin and death. And so sometime after Joseph died, a new pharaoh arose who knew not Joseph, and that pharaoh not confident of his own power to hold the kingdom together, felt threatened by the sheer number of the children of Israel. Though they had not shown a hint of rebellious activity or even an inclination towards such, that Pharaoh attempted to instill population control upon the Israelites, enslaving them, even attempting to subject them to full-term abortions, the murder of infants as soon as they were born. This persecution of God's people went on for some 80 years. making the lives of God's people so difficult that it appeared that all hope of the promise had been lost. It was only then that God finally called his son out of Egypt, demonstrating his absolute sovereignty by delivering his people in the way of the wonder. even drowning the obstinate Pharaoh and his host in the Red Sea. And if you should ask, why does God lead his people into such impossible situations and circumstances? Why does he bring his son into such trouble? and bring such turbulence into his life in order then to deliver him? The Bible gives the answer. Though difficult for us to comprehend, God would show himself as God alone, who alone delivers, so that his people might see their complete dependence upon him. and know his great power, his infinite wisdom, and glorious loving kindness, and tender mercies, and that we might realize that our salvation is entirely of him, that no flesh may glory in his presence. God is Lord alone. But when Hosea spoke the words of Hosea 11, verse one, He was pointing back at that history. And the perspective of that backward glance was tragic. The child whom God had let out of Egypt, Israel's son, had grown up. Now, if we take into account how the Bible describes the Old Testament church as a child and the Spirit-filled church of the New Testament as an adult, I wouldn't describe Israel as having yet reached adulthood, but I might describe him as a child that has reached his upper teenage years, perhaps. A child that should be showing significant indication of maturity and responsibility. You see, Hosea is speaking prophetically of Ephraim. He had become a man in appearance, girded with the strength of youth, a powerful young man. The problem was he had become so proud with himself, so self-centered in his independence, he didn't think he needed God anymore. He had become ashamed to his father and had filled his mother's heart with sorrow. And to emphasize how far Ephraim had strayed, God had sent the prophet Hosea to remind Ephraim of his childhood, of how much he had been given in the heritage of his home in his upbringing. he had earned in none of it. It was given him freely by God himself. Every provision received by the hard work of his father, the careful nurture and love bestowed upon him by his mother was an expression of God's provision and God's care. Hosea is saying, in effect, Don't you remember the love that God bestowed upon you as a child? Don't you remember how he called you out of Egypt? You were able to do nothing to free yourself from the chains of slavery to the bondage of Egypt. Only the powerful word of God could free you. God raised up Moses to proclaim that word to Pharaoh. Do you remember what he said? We read it in Exodus 4, verses 22 and 23. Thus saith the Lord, Israel is My son, even My firstborn. And I say unto thee, let My Son go that He may serve Me. And if thou refuse to let him go, behold, I will slay thy son, even thy firstborn. So God called his son out of Egypt. And what has that meant to you, Ephraim? You who are so full of yourself, what does this history mean to you? Why did God love you as a child? Why did God call his son out of Egypt? Was it because you were such a lovable child? Not at all. As a child, you already showed yourself extremely difficult, almost unmanageable. And you've grown to become the shame of your father and the heartbreak of your mother. What does it mean to you that Jehovah called his son out of Egypt? The prophet Hosea, in recounting this history, was holding Ephraim up to the judgment of God. and announcing that salvation comes only in one way, and that only for the remnant. So he will conclude his prophecy with the words, who is wise, and he shall understand these things. Prudent and he shall know them for the ways of the Lord are right and the just shall walk in them But the transgressors shall fall therein When you think of that context of Hosea's prophecy and how that reference to Hosea 11 verse 1 is found in Matthew 2 verse 15. You see these words in an entirely different light, not simply as an historical reference, holding God's wayward children to account, but as an amazing prophecy fulfilled with purpose. In Matthew 2, verse 15, we learn that Christ Himself was already in Israel, carried as it were in her womb. He was Himself the reason for Israel being brought out of Egypt. The reason wasn't in Israel itself. It certainly wasn't in Ephraim. Nor was it in Judah. When you look at the history of the 12 sons of Israel, you and I might judge that only Ephraim, the son of the faithful Joseph, the son blessed by Jacob, would be the only reason for God to save his people. The rest of the sons, Judah included, had shown themselves horribly unworthy of being saved. Think of the abuse that they had thrown upon their brother. But Scripture reminds us, also in the words of our text, Ephraim was no better. The only reason for Israel to be saved is that Christ was in her by promise and by God's sovereign election. That's the history revealed in Revelation 12. God loved his people Israel because of his Son that was in her womb. The Lord faithfully preserved his church over against the manifold attempts throughout the history of the Old Testament to see her child destroyed. The great adversary, his name is Satan, was not concerned about all those little babies in Israel when he filled Pharaoh's heart to see to their deaths. but not knowing which mother would bring forth the Messiah, the promised seed, Satan would destroy Israel's children in his attempt to destroy the Christ. The exodus from Egypt was the deliverance of the promised Messiah. Long before his birth, he was already called out of Egypt. Now again, upon his birth into this world, the child uniquely loved by God is brought to Egypt, brought into that very land which typified the bondage of sin and death until at God's appointed time, he could fulfill the prophecy out of Egypt have I called my Son." The very way in which God led the wise men to Jesus, having directed them first to Herod in Jerusalem, served God's sovereign purpose in revealing Jesus Christ, His Son, as the fulfillment of the Old Testament Scriptures. the one who had come from the womb of the Old Testament church. The world that stands in opposition to Christ would drive him out of his inheritance, deprive him even of a simple existence in the land of his sojourn, and show the intensity of their hatred against him and his cause. And so the world shows its character as anti-Christ. But God stands exalted, ruling over all. That His Son should be brought into Egypt to be called out again is God's demonstration of His sovereign purpose being executed. The Lord of glory, Jesus, came to save his people from their sins and must begin his ministry as one disinherited. But the fulfillment of prophecy announced in the words of our text is a fulfillment that only has its beginning here. What was demonstrated in the Old Testament is also brought to expression here. God is working out His purpose even in those events that are most puzzling to us, even in those events that are most painful to observe. Think first about that Old Testament deliverance from the bondage of Egypt when God initially called his son out of Egypt. Not only was Egypt forced to let God's child go, but God saw to it that the Egyptians even provided for the needs of the Israelites in their sojourn. God's enemies are compelled against their will to accomplish the purpose of the Almighty and the salvation of his people, even when the intention of those enemies is to destroy his people. But who could see that at the time? Very few indeed. Now look at the context of our text in Matthew 2, and read what happened after Joseph and Mary fled to Egypt. Herod butchered all the children of two years old and younger in Bethlehem and the entire surrounding area, fulfilling the prophecy of Jeremiah in Ramah. Was there a voice heard? Lamentation and weeping and great mourning. Rachel weeping for her children and would not be comforted because they were not. How painful to our observation and experience are the ways of God accomplishing His purpose in this world that rejects Him and His Christ, that seeks to overthrow His kingdom and destroy His church, His beloved people. But remember, that attempt to destroy God's people is an attack upon Christ Himself. For those people loved by God are those who are in Christ Jesus, inseparably bound to Him with the unbreakable cords of God's faithfulness. the historical event of Jesus himself being taken as a helpless child into Egypt, and his return after Herod's death in fulfillment of the prophecy out of Egypt, have I called my son, belongs to Christ's humiliation and finds its further realization and final fulfillment in the cross and in the resurrection of our Lord. Jesus, like Joseph before him, had to be carried down into Egypt, there to be preserved for the purpose whereunto God had sent him. Egypt must provide a temporary protection from Judea. But there is more. Egypt, as I mentioned earlier, the type of the bondage of sin and death, is that into which the very Son of God entered for our sakes. At the cross, God sent His Son into the depths of Egypt's bondage, as it were, all the powers of hell were bent on his destruction. Not just Herod, mind you, but carnal Israel, which spiritually is likened unto Egypt and Sodom and Babylon. God led his son there. into the bondage of sin and death to bear our iniquities and the punishment of our guilt. One might think, being driven from the land of promise into Egypt, all hope of the salvation of God's people was removed. Overcome by the world power? Seemingly forsaken by God? He became a castaway. And at the cross, that appeared to be finally the case. All had become hopeless from every earthly perspective. Think of how lost the disciples were at the death of their Lord. But God led his son out of Egypt. Do you remember how and why? by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. God brought His Son out of the bondage of Egypt, the bondage of sin and death, and He did so because that very Son of God, our Jesus, had conquered the enemy of sin and death. He paid the debt that you and I had incurred. He paid that price with His own life. He paid it completely. Affirming it with the words, it is finished. And God said, Amen! It is finished. So He raised His Son from the dead. Do you see then, beloved, the significance of this fulfillment for us? that God called His Son out of Egypt took place in order to accomplish our exodus and that of all God's people from the bondage of sin and death. He does that which is impossible for us out of the depths of death. Our Savior leads us to the glory of life everlasting. Even death becomes the passageway to everlasting joy in the blessed covenant fellowship of Jehovah our God. But just as important for us now is the fact that the Exodus meant freedom for Israel. The Exodus fulfilled in Christ is freedom for all you who believe. And that freedom, marked by our text as the fulfillment of prophecy, is a true freedom. Satan promises freedom. That's his lie to you young people. even as it was his lie to Eve. The devil will tell you, your parents don't know so much. This is the freedom you want. Well, I tell you, young people, you ask anyone here who has been caught in the snares of the devil but for a moment, if they found freedom that way. They will tell you by bitter experience that Satan is called the devil, deceiver, for a reason. Satan is a tyrant. Sinners are his slaves. And the bondage is cruel. He might make the way appear fun, and He can show you all kinds of pleasure in the way of sin. He will even put in the minds of some that they are their own Lord and Master. They have to answer to no one. That lie is cruel. To walk in sin is to become a slave to sin. And the chains of that slavery is a death march. Because God called His Son out of Egypt. He accomplished for everyone who believes true freedom. That of being reconciled to God. and being given the life that death itself cannot destroy. It isn't that we never sin anymore. It isn't that we are free from the temptations and the disturbances that Satan would fling against us. But the freedom that is ours means that the gates of hell cannot prevail against us. That same God who brought His Son out of Egypt, protecting Him against all the assaults of death and hell, has united us with Him who is now exalted in the heavens, Himself sovereignly executing the counsel of God in the salvation of His people. And the more we live by faith out of that union with Christ, the greater is the awareness of the freedom that is ours. What joy is ours in the gospel of our salvation. Amen. Gracious Father, we stand in awe before the wonder works of Thy grace. Thy ways are higher than our ways, Thy thoughts than our thoughts, Sometimes, as Thou dost lead us through the depths, we feel like we're going to be swept away and drowned. But Thy hand upholds us, faithfully guiding us, sheltered in our Savior's love, and we rejoice for Jesus' sake. Amen.