The Captain of the Lord's Host, Part 3b

And so I thought tonight what we would do is look at the Lord of hosts. Now we need to know who that is because Joshua meets him in Joshua chapter 5. He's called the captain of the hosts or the armies or the multitudes of the Lord. The Lord of hosts. Who is he? What does he do? And how is it he ensures our victory in the battle? Once you understand the Lord of hosts, you never lose. You always win. But you must understand him. You must come to grips with who he is. So that's what we're going to do with you this evening.

Okay? Point number 7: Isaiah chapter 1, verse number 9, read this way. Unless the Lord of hosts had left us a few survivors, we would be like Sodom. We would be like Gomorrah. Now, here we realize that Isaiah recognizes that the Lord of hosts saves a remnant. The Lord of hosts is the one who saves us from our sin. Listen, it's a miracle of God that anybody gets saved, right? It's a miracle of Almighty God that anybody comes to saving faith in Jesus Christ our Lord. And it's only because of the Lord of armies that there's anybody that's saved.

You see, Israel begins to realize, especially during the latter half of the tribulation, that there is a remnant that will be saved, that God will always preserve a remnant. God has always protected Israel. God has always preserved them down through history. The Bible says in Isaiah 5, verse number 7.

That the Lord of Israel, excuse me, the Lord of hosts is the one whose vineyard is the house of Israel. In Jeremiah chapter 10, verse number 16, the Lord of hosts. Calls Israel the rod of his inheritance. And in Jeremiah 51, verse number 5, it says that the Lord of armies will never forsake Israel. Let me tell you something.

God has a special people, and that people are the ones who bow before him and recognize him as Lord. You see, we become the people of God. We become the rod of His inheritance when we follow what Romans 10 says, that when we confess Jesus as Lord. and belie in our heart that God raised him from the dead, we will be saved. When we confess that Jesus is Yah, He is the Lord of armies, He is Lord of all, He is the King of glory, When we confess him as Lord and believe in our heart that God raised him from the dead, we're going to be saved.

And that's what makes us the people of God. That makes us the choice vineyard of God. The next thing I want you to notice about the Lord of armies is his place.

Psalm 48, verse number 8 says this. As we have heard, so have we seen in the city of the Lord of hosts. In the city of our God, God will establish her forever. Where is that? Go back up to verse number one.

Great is the Lord and great to be praised. In the city of our God, His holy mountain, beautiful in elevation, the joy of the whole earth, is Mount Zion in the far north, the city of the great King. And the Bible says, in the city of the Lord of hosts, in the city of our God, God will establish her forever.

If you read Isaiah chapter 8, verse number 18, it says that the Lord of hosts dwells in the c of David. It doesn't say he will dwell there. It says he presently does dwell there. It never says that God dwells anywhere on earth except one place, Mount Zion, the city of David. Now we know that God's omnipres. God 's everywhere, right? But Mount Zion, the city of David, is the symbol of the presence of God. Whenever we go to Jerusalem and stand on Mount Zion, let me tell you something.

There's something different. when you stand on Mount Zion than there is any other place in Jerusalem. Because the Bible says in Isaiah chapter 8, verse number 18, that he dwells there.

Isaiah chapter 18 tells us that his name is there. So we begin to understand the significance of Mount Zion. It's a little hill about 30 acres just south of the southern wall of Jerusalem. Not very big at all. It's kind of a cruddy-looking run-downhill. But it's symbolic of the presence of Almighty God. See, when God says that He dwells there, not that He's going to dwell there, but that He dwells there presently.

There's something unique about Mount Zion. That's why he protects Jerusalem. That's why he watches over Jerusalem. Because you see, that place is. A unique place, unlike any other place in the world. And God dwells there now.

Now he dwells everywhere. He's on the present. He's here. He's there. He's everywhere. The omnipres of God. And yet the Bible is very clear that God says he dwells on Mount Zion, the city of David.

Next thing you need to know is the presence of Yahweh Saba, the Lord of hosts. Haggai, the book of Haggai, chapter 2. Says this, who is left among you who saw this temple in its former glory? And how do you see it now? Does it not seem to you like nothing in comparison? But now take courage, Zerubbab, declares the Lord. Take courage also, Joshua, son of Yehod. The high priest and all the people of the land, take courage, declares the Lord, and work, for I am with you, says the Lord. Of hosts. God says to Zerubbab, Look, I am with you.

You need to build. My place. Why? Because I'm with you. It speaks of the ever-presence of God. It's the Lord of armies. That's why in Hebrews 13, verse number 5, God says He will never forsake us, He will never leave us.

Matthew 28. It says, Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age. You see? And, you know, one of the reasons we don't understand that the Lord of hosts is ever present with us is because we don't understand Matthew 28, 19, and 20. The Bible says, go into all the world and make disciples.

Baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Teaching them to obey all the things that I've commanded you, right? And then he says, and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age. Listen, when you don't obey God and do what he says, guess what? You never sense or recognize the presence of God in your life. It comes from obedience. It comes from doing what God says.

Now, God's always with you because He's omnipres. But the important thing is, is when you obey him and fulfill his commission and fulfill his commandments, you recognize and sense the presence of God going before you, opening doors, clearing the way, because he is the Lord of armies. The Lord of hosts, the Lord of multitudes. He is Yahweh Sab. He is your king. He is your God. But you also must understand his punishment. His punishment, Isaiah chapter 2, verse number 12, says that he is the one who will bring judgment.

Isaiah 5, verse number 16, he is the one exalted in judgment. Isaiah 9, verse number 19, he is the one whose wrath. Will darken the land. Isaiah 13, 13. He is the one whose fierce anger will shake the heavens. Haggai chapter 2, verse number 7. He is the one who will shake all nations. Isaiah 29, verse number 6. He will cause earthquakes, storms. And the flame of devouring fire, and in Jeremiah 11, verse number 20, in Jeremiah 20, verse number 12, he is the one who judges righteously. That's the Lord of armies.

He is the one who passes judgment upon all men. That's why in Isaiah chapter 63, when the Lord, the King of glory, arrives upon this earth. And Isaiah sees him coming in all of his glory, in all of his righteousness. He says that he treads the winepress alone. And y, the hosts of the Lord will be with him. And yes, people like you and me, because we will already be in glory. We will come back with him. He is the Lord of armies. He needs no assistance. He needs no help from us. He will defeat the enemy all.

By him, because he is the king of glory, the Lord of hosts. Another thing you need to know about the Lord of armies is that he possesses all things. Hagg chapter 2. Verse number eight, the silver is mine, the gold is mine, declares the Lord of armies, the Lord of hosts. Everything you have on your fingers today is God's. Everything around your neck is God's. Everything in your house is God's. Everything you drive is God's. He owns it all. That's what he says. The Bible says over in Exodus chapter 19, verse number 5, all the earth is mine.

1 Corinthians 4:7, what do you have that you did not receive from God? He owns everything. And the problem with us is that we get into this mindset that we own it. It's our house. It's our car. It's our money. And the Bible says, no, it's not.

It's the Lord of armies. It's his money. It's his house. They're his clothes. All you have. Is own by God. And when we go to battle, if we don't recognize that, then we will fear losing something that we think is ours. Let me tell you something.

If it's God's, if He wants to take it away, let Him take it away, right? He says, Anyway, you're just a steward of what He gives you. And you'll be held accountable for how you manage his gold, his silver, because everything is his anyway. Are you doing good by being the best steward you possibly can, the best household manager of God's possessions? There is, says the Lord of hosts. Look at Isaiah chapter 9 for a moment.

Isaiah 9. A very familiar text. We see it on Christmas cards all the time. Isaiah 9:6, for a child will be born to us, the son will be given to us, and the government will rest on his shoulders. And his name will be called Wonderful Counsel, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. There will be no end to the increase of his government or of peace on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness. From then on and forevermore, the zeal of the Lord of host will accomplish this.

The Lord of armies. The zeal of the Lord of armies is going to accomplish what? That there will be a remnant of Israel that is saved, and that he will be the king, and he will rule. From his throne, and he will establish his kingdom upon the earth. It speaks to us concerning the plans of God. Let me tell you something.

It's the Lord of armies who develops the plans. It's the Lord of armies who accomplishes the plans. Because he is the ruler over all things. And then you also need to understand the purposes of the Lord of armies. It says over in Isaiah 14. Verse number 27, for the Lord of hosts has planned, and who can frustrate it? And as for his stretched out hand, who can turn it back? Let me tell you something.

When the Lord of armies makes a plan and purposes to accomplish something, nobody can thwart that plan. We need to understand that. Over in Isaiah chapter 19, listen to this. Well then, where are your wise men? says the Lord. Please let them tell you and let them understand what the Lord of hosts has purposed against Egypt. These are the purposes of God. Remember, Egypt is representative of the world in the Old Testament. And so God has a purpose for the world. It says over in verse number 17, and the land of Judah will become a terror to Egypt.

Everyone to whom it is mentioned will be in dread of it because of the purpose of the Lord of hosts, which he is purposing against them. Folks, let me tell you something.

God has a purpose. And that purpose is always accomplished at the right time. Because God's plans and purposes can never be thwarted. Because he is the Lord who controls all things. He is the creator of all things. Over in Isaiah chapter 23. Verse number 9, it says this: The Lord of hosts has planned it to defile the pride of all beauty, to despise all the honored of the earth. Let me tell you something.

God has a plan. And don't think for one moment what's happening in Israel is not a part of the plan of God. God was never taken by surprise. God has everything on a time schedule, He has it all mapped out. And when you look at Daniel chapter 9, verses 25 to 27, you realize that in those days there's going to be this Antich that rises to the scene.

Don 't think for one moment that that Antich On his own or doing what he wants to do. All you got to do is read Revelation chapter 13. Because in Revelation chapter 13, it says, To him it was given power, to him it was given authority. Who gave the Antichrist authority? Who gave the Antichrist power? The Lord of armies. The Lord of hosts. That's who did. See, Satan can't do what he wants to do. He has to ask permission to do anything. He has to ask the ultimate ruler of the world to do something.

He cannot just do whatever he wants to do. He is subject to the overall king of the universe. That's the Lord God. That's why I like what it says back in Revelation chapter 17. Verse number 14: These will wage war against the Lamb, and the Lamb will overcome them, because he is Lord of lords and king of kings, and those who are with him are the called and chosen and faithful. And he said to me, The waters which you saw, where the harlot sits, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues.

And the ten horns which you saw, and the beast, these will hate the harlot, and will make her desolate and naked, and will eat her flesh, and will burn her up with fire. For God has put it in their hearts to execute his purpose by having a common purpose and by giving their kingdom to the beast until the words of God should be. Fulfilled. Why is it all the nations of the world give all their power to the beast, to the Antichrist? Because God has purposed it to be so. That's why. You see, he's the Lord of armies.

He's in control of everything. We have nothing to fear. Because God knows exactly what's happening. He has a purpose, and no one can thwart his purpose. Nobody can change his plans because he controls it all. We need to understand that. It gives you a sense of security. It allows you to rest easy at night. It allows you to understand that God's in complete control of your children. Your finances, your job, your schooling, everything. Because he's the Lord of armies. He's got it all under control.

Do you understand that? And that's who Joshua would meet in Joshua chapter 5. That would give him the confidence to fight the insurmountable battle of Jericho without any fear. Without any trembling, without any trepidation, because the Lord of hosts would lead him and would guide him. Another thing you need to note about the Lord of hosts is his peace. It's his peace. Psalm 84, verse number 12 says, O Lord of hosts, how blessed is the man who trust in thee. O Lord of hosts, how blessed is the man who trusts in thee.

You know, folks, we need to trust in the Lord God of the universe. You know, there are. In the Bible, the central verse of the Bible speaks about trusting in God. There are 594 chapters before this verse and 594 chapters after this verse. Before it is Psalm 117, the shortest Psalm in the Bible, and after it is Psalm 119, the longest psalm, or the longest chapter in the Bible. And you add up 594 plus 594, you come up with 1,1 chapters in the Bible, excluding Psalm 118. And 1 comes to Psalm 118, verse number 8, and that reads this way: It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in man.

That's the central verse of the Bible. And therefore, you begin to understand that is that not true? It is better to trust in the Lord than to take refuge in man. It's better to trust in God than anybody else. You can't trust in man to accomplish something for you. You can only trust in God. You can only trust in God for your salvation. You can't trust in man for your s You can't trust in yourself. For your salvation, you got to trust in God, you got to believe in God, you got to wrap yourself around Him and count on Him.

That's it. When you go to battle, you can't trust in man. The Bible says in verse 9 of Psal 1, it is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in princes.

You can't even trust in the elite of your society. You've got to trust in the Lord God Himself. Take refuge in Him because He is Yave Sabaiel, the Lord of armies, the Lord of hosts. And he is the one that we are to trust in. And when you do, you are surrounded with great peace. Great peace. The Bible says in Isaiah 26, Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on thee.

The person's mind who's steadfast on God, stayed on God, is the mind that's in perfect peace. If your mind is in turmoil, guess what it's fixed on? Not God. It's fixed on something else, right? Because the Bible says that we'll be kept in perfect peace.

In fact, literal translation is: you'll be kept in peace, peace. You know, Isaiah didn't know how to say it. So he just said, Your mind will be peace, peace. You'll have so much peace that you can't even begin to imagine it. But to have that your mind must be fixed, steadfast upon God. And when you look at your life and I look at my life, those times we are uneasy, those times we are unsettled, those times we are filled with fear, it's because our mind is not fixed on the Prince of Peace the Lord of hosts the Lord of armies and blessed is the man who trusts in thee Are you trusting in the Lord of armies?

Are you trusting a man? Are you trusting yourself? For Joshua to go to battle, in Joshua chapter 6, he could not trust. Himself. He could not trust his sword. He could not trust the Israeli army. All he could trust was the Lord God of hosts. And when he did. They won. When you do, you win because he's the Lord of armies. One more thing you need to understand. And that is the pardon of the Lord of armies. He is the one who forgives us of our sins. We looked at Isaiah 44, verse number 6. He is called the Redeemer, and he is the only God.

That there is. Isaiah 47, verse number 4 says, Our Redeemer, the Lord of hosts, is his name, the Holy One of Israel. Isaiah 54. Verse number 5 says, For your husband is your Maker, whose name is the Lord of hosts, and your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel, who is called the God of all the earth. There is only one person who can forgive you of your sins. There is only one person who can redeem your soul. And that is the Lord of armies. He is called the Redeemer of the God of Israel. That's who He is.

And we need to look at this and realize that without him there is no forgiveness of sins. There's nothing you can do to obtain forgiveness of your sins. It's the Lord God of Israel, the Lord of armies, who is your Redeemer. And he is the one who wants to forgive us of our sins. And so when you begin to think about God, you know, this is who He is. Remember, we told you before that God only has one name? Shem is always used in the singular to describe God. You say, Well I thought He had many names.

He's wonderful, He's Counsel, He's the Prince of Peace, the Mighty God, the Everlasting. No, those are all. All attributes of the one God of Israel. And his name will be called. Not, and his names are. No, his name will be called. And his name is Yave Sab. His name is El Gab, the mighty God. His name is Emmanuel, God with us. His name is the Prince of Peace. His name is Everlasting Father. That's who He is. All those titles describe the nature and character of our God. He is incomprehensible. He goes way beyond anything we can ever imagine.

And that's the person we need to trust in. That's the person we need to believe in. See, our problem in modern-day Christianity is that we just don't know who God is. Now, we think we do, but we truly don't know who He is. And the more we study God, and the more we become enamored with His character, and the more we become enraptured with His nature, the more we learn to entrust ourselves to Him. And that's the way it's supposed to be. And this is what happened to Joshua when the captain of the Lord's host would draw a sword.

And Joshua would come face to face with him. Whose side are you on? M or theirs? He said, I'm not on either side. I'm on my own side. And you best be on my side, Joshua, if you want to win the battle. And I wonder what side you're on. Are you on God's side? Are you with the Lord of armies? Is he your king? Is he your Lord? Because every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Yave, is Lord to the glory of God the Father. See, some people say, well, you know, Christ is just an earthly Lord.

That what all the cults say. Christ is just an earthly Lord. Let me tell you something. In the Old Testament, Adon is the earthly Lord. Yave is the heavenly Lord. Okay? And in the Greek Septuag, which is the translation of the Old Testament from Hebrew to Greek. Yave is always trans cur or lord without exception. So when you read about Kyri in the New Testament, it's describing the Yave of the Old Testament. You see, we need to begin to realize that our Lord God, Jesus Christ, is the King of Israel.

The Messiah, the Lord of armies, and that's the one we trust, and that's the one we give our lives to. Because we can't win any battle without Him. We can't. And I don know what battle you're facing this evening. I don know if your battle is in your family. I don know if your battle is at work. I don know if your b I don know if your battles on the inside of yourself. I don know if the battle's in your mind, but whatever your battle is, it's the Lord of armies who is the man of victory. Are you on his side?

I trust that you are.