Prophecy and Unleavened Bread

I know this time of the year certainly brings up some of the most familiar stories we may be familiar with. One that immediately would come to mind? Well, coming out of sin. We know that the Holy Days illustrate God's plan. What is He doing? What is His purpose for mankind? We know the Holy Days demonstrate and symbolize this journey that we're on ultimately to the Kingdom of God. One of the familiar stories, of course, is one of the greatest events of all time. Israel coming out of Egypt. And as you think about that particular story, it's not the only one that connects to this time of the year. And even as you consider this idea of coming out from Pharaoh, coming out of Egypt, leaving society, leaving sin, and ultimately dwelling with God, we're pretty familiar with those scenarios and that symbolism. But it's also interesting to recognize that these two significant events occurred during the days of Unleavened Bread, and the symbolism doesn't stop there. There's an interesting connection to prophecy. Have you ever thought of prophecy and the days of Unleavened Bread? Well, maybe that thought hasn't really come to mind. But there certainly is a prophetic framework that is wrapped around these days. In fact, to begin with, it started with prophecy when God initially prophesied to Abraham, and he told them that there was going to come a time your offspring will be enslaved. And he predicted that. So you could even maybe come to the conclusion Unleavened Bread even started with prophecy. And so I thought it would be good to consider this morning for just a little bit. These two amazing significant events that occurred during this time frame, and the connection to prophecy, and how that applies to us today. What's the significance for us? Well, when you think about that first great event coming out of Egypt, when did that begin? When did they begin to come out from Pharaoh?

Well, it happened on the first day of Unleavened Bread. The first day of Unleavened Bread, if you take a look at Numbers 33.3, I won't turn there. Numbers 33.3, it tells us the day after Passover, that they began to come out of Egypt. And Deuteronomy tells us it wasn't during the daylight part of the day, because that would have been Passover Day, that they actually left that next night. Deuteronomy 16 tells us that they left Egypt by night. So no wonder God gave them a pillar of fire to lead the way. So that happened on the first day of Unleavened Bread, and His presence was going to be with them every step of the way. So here we are on the last day of Unleavened Bread.

Where were they on this last day? Well, God led them right to the shores of the Red Sea. And we know that story. It seems God purposely put them in a position where they had no choice. They couldn't go back, because here comes Pharaoh's armies. They couldn't go forward. Here's this water that was blocking their way. Really telling them that there was no other way than to rely on God, to totally rely on Him, was the only choice, was their only option, because He had promised them that He was going to be with them. Of course, you begin to think about that and its significance for us. It's the same way for us. It's only by God's strength. It's only by His power that we can overcome. It's only by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ that we can have our sins forgiven, and we can be in a right relationship with God and ultimately be given His Kingdom. Now, when the Israelites realized the chariots were pursuing them, what did they do? Do you remember the story? They calmly looked to God. Well, no, they didn't.

They panicked. They panicked. They wanted to go back. They didn't know what they were going to do. They were all as good as dead men. And yet, they had just experienced these amazing miracles of God. They had been through these plagues that God had poured out on Egypt. They had been released from the bondage of slavery. And yet, they wanted to turn back. They wanted to go back.

And so, when you consider that story, is it like that for us? You know, what is our mindset? As soon as faced with trials and difficulties and challenges, what is our initial reaction? There's what it was to panic and go back to something they were more familiar with, something they would know. Well, that we knew. Death, we don't know what that's all about. But ultimately, we know God came to the rescue. He divides the sea. He dried the land. In fact, if you look over at Exodus chapter 14, it tells us that tremendous story of the miracle of God dividing the Red Sea and not only dividing it, but drying up the land so all could cross safely. And yet, that wasn't the end of the story. When you look at Exodus chapter 14, it tells us ultimately what happened. Look at verse 23, Exodus 14, it says, the Egyptians pursued and went after them into the midst of the sea. All Pharaoh's horses, his chariots, his horsemen. People still panicked, but God came to the rescue.

And what happened? It says, when it came to pass in the morning watch, the Lord looked down, and through the pillar of cloud, He troubled the army of the Egyptians, took off the wheels as they drove them with difficulty. And ultimately, verse 26, God says to Moses, stretch out your hand and the waters may come back upon the Egyptians on their chariots and on their horsemen. And so ultimately, God rescues them in the midst of this miraculous event around water. Now, when you consider this very fact, it's interesting that there is a parallel in future prophecy that connects with this event that occurred on the last day of Unleavened Bread. Hold your place here in Exodus, and go with me to Revelation 12. Revelation 12. Notice verse 13, because there is a connection in the way that God destroyed the Egyptian army and the prophecies that we find just ahead of us. Prophecies just down the line that are found here in the book of Revelation. Revelation 12.13, it talks about the dragon, ultimately representing Satan. It says, he had been cast to the earth and he persecuted the woman who gave birth to the male child.

Now, in prophetic language, that's not just talking about Jesus Christ and Mary, the child that was born through Mary. Here, we realize it represents the church, the woman that gave birth. This woman, the church, is persecuted by Satan. Verse 14, it says, when the woman was given two wings of a great eagle. That should bring us back to Exodus, because Exodus 19 tells us Israel came out of Egypt on the wings of an eagle, and they didn't fly out on a jet or anything. We know they walked. We know they walked. But we have a connection here. They were given this woman, the church, given two wings of a great eagle. Why? That she might fly into the wilderness to her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time. We know that connects us with the great tribulation. And it says she's nourished from the presence of the serpent, the devil. Now, does the devil just give up? Doesn't care about the church anymore? No, not at all. Verse 15, notice this connection that goes back to Exodus. It says, the serpent spewed water out of his mouth like a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away by the flood. So whether forced against the waters of the Red Sea or facing a flood from the devil himself, we find a connection here to the last day of Unleavened Bread.

What does God do? It's going to take God's intervention, the only means of salvation, the only way that the church can be saved is by miraculous intervention of God. Verse 16, the earth helped the woman by God's intervention and opened its mouth and swallowed up the flood which the dragon had spewed out of its mouth. And so here we have an Unleavened Bread connection that God intervenes to save His people. He did it for Israel on the last day of Unleavened Bread. He's going to do it in the future as well. It's also interesting that if you still have your place held back there in Exodus, if you go back to Exodus chapter 15, we see what happened during the daylight time of that last day of Unleavened Bread. During the daylight time, that would be, like today, the daylight time of that last day of Unleavened Bread. They had finished crossing the Red Sea. God had annihilated the Egyptian army. And in chapter 15, they sing praises to God.

Exodus chapter 15, verse 1, it says, Moses and the children of Israel sang the song to the Lord. Sometimes this is called the song of Moses. Imagine that tricky name here. The song of Moses, they sang this song. In fact, the song that we sing oftentimes at services. Do you recognize it? It says, I will sing to the Lord, for He is triumphed gloriously. I will sing unto the eternal, He has triumphed gloriously. Yeah, that's the song of Moses. That's the song of Moses. Is there a connection prophetically as well? Absolutely. Go back to Revelation 15. Exodus 15, Revelation 15, we find that this song will be sung again. So it wasn't just a one-hit wonder for Moses. It's going to be sung again. Revelation 15, verse 3. Here we find the resurrected saints before the throne of God. And what do they sing? They're offering praises and honor and glory to God, just like Moses and the children of Israel did on that last day of unleavened bread. Here we find in the kingdom, they sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb.

And so we have this beautiful package that began with the freedom of the people of God ultimately leading to the ultimate freedom in the kingdom when this song will once again be sung. And so when they had set their feet on the other side of the Red Sea on what seems to be that last day of unleavened bread, they were truly leaving Egypt, evil, sin behind them. And we all know, now they were ultimately free from any evil influence, right? Oh, well, maybe not. Maybe not. Well, not yet they weren't, because what does their history tell us? Well, they got to the other side, God miraculously intervened, but were they free from Egypt's influence?

Well, the army was gone, but the influence was still there. And I think that's a good reminder for us today. We've come through Passover. We're finishing up the days of unleavened bread. We've been baptized. We've crossed the Red Sea, you might say. Are we free from the influence of this world? I think that's a good reminder that we have to be careful not to fall into that same trap that ancient Israel did. Have we truly shaken off the shackles of our carnality, our carnal hearts? Have we left that behind? Have we totally committed fully, like Christ fully sacrificed His life in the representation of the giving of His body for us? Have we left that way behind?

Past attitudes that have bogged us down. It's easy to think, well, hey, my eyes have been opened. I'm called of God. Everything's great now. But have we truly left all of the influence behind? Are we still chained to our past? Or have we left that behind as well?

I think we see in the story of Israel coming out of Egypt, too oftentimes we carry that baggage from the past along with us. And yet God's called us to leave that behind. Even if we've been distracted, even if we've been influenced, we've got to leave the values and the attitudes and the infection of sin behind us. And we can never be like the Israelites and think, well, maybe it was better before when they willingly wanted to turn back to that way.

They kind of longingly look back to Egypt, and we certainly can't be found in that regard. We have to continue to go forward and not lose focus and not get distracted, and look forward to ultimately the prophetic things that God has promised. Unleavened Bread certainly carries that connotation. So that amazing event in Egypt and the escape of Israel, I think it paints such a beautiful picture.

And yet it wasn't the only significant event that happened during this time frame. If we fast forward 40 years, where was Israel? It was going to come into the Promised Land. So after 40 years of trials and testing through the wilderness, they were prepared to enter the Promised Land. We're told that story in the book of Joshua, that the people prepared themselves to enter the Promised Land. And if you turn with me over to Joshua chapter 5, there's also another interesting connection that ties in with these stories that we've seen back at Exodus and then also in the book of Revelation. We look to Joshua chapter 5, as the people were getting ready to come into the Promised Land, we find something interesting takes place. Well, actually, I'll back up, not chapter 5, but chapter 3 verse 5. Chapter 3 verse 5, as the people are preparing to enter the Promised Land, guess what was blocking their way?

Water. Like the Red Sea, blocking the Israelites escape from Egypt, here we find water, blocking the entrance to the Promised Land. Just like Satan would love to have blocked the church from the hand of God in the future, we find a similar circumstance as Israel comes into the Promised Land. The Jordan River was in the way. And as we recognize here, we see there had to be a miraculous intervention. And so what happens? They go to cross the Jordan. Let's skip down to verse 14 of Joshua chapter 3. When the people set out from their camp to cross the Jordan, the priests bearing the Ark of the Covenant, as those who bore the Ark came to the Jordan, the feet of the priests who bore the Ark dipped in the edge of the water, probably with their big toes, dipped in the water. It says, the water for the Jordan was overflowing its banks during this time, the springtime. Then, verse 16, the waters which came down from upstream stood still and rose in a heap very far away. And so the waters were cut off. And so we have the Red Sea happening all over again, 40 years later. 40 years later, this takes place and they're given dry land to cross over into the Promised Land. I mean, it would have been undeniable, this connection to the past, which also then has a connection to the future as well. It's only by the grace of God that makes a way possible for us to enter the ultimate Promised Land, the Kingdom of God. Now, once they cross, story's not done yet, they were circumcised, they renew the covenant with God. Of course, we've done that. They were getting ready to keep the Passover. And so they took the Passover and now everything is unicorns and rainbows. It's all free and clear. Everything will be wonderful, right? No, no. Well, here they made a covenant with God. They'd been baptized, you might say, in the rivers, waters in that regard, but the enemy was still in the land. The enemy was still in the land. And what was first up?

Jericho. Jericho was first up, the first enemy that was seemingly indestructible, fortified, double-walled city. Not only that, it was a terrible place. It was the sin city of the day, you might say. They were licentious. They were evil. They were well known to be a wicked, shameless place. And yet they stood in the way of the establishment of the Kingdom of God, the Promised Land, Israel's kingdom at that time. They stood in direct opposition to the people taking the Promised Land. And so in this second event, we find similarities. God had declared war on Egypt, and here He declares war on Jericho so that the Promised Land could be established. As far as we can tell from the scenario here, on the day after keeping the Passover, something interesting happens. If you turn the page just a little bit over to Joshua, chapter 6. Joshua chapter 6, verse 2, it says, The Lord said to Joshua, I've given Jericho into your hand, its King and the mighty men of valor. And so here we have this significant event. Now, who's telling him this? Very interesting. Now, in this case, we see the Lord said to Joshua, well, just before this, look back to verse 13 in chapter 5. It says, It came to pass when Joshua was by Jericho. He lifted his eyes and looked and behold, a man stood opposite him with his sword drawn. Joshua went to him and said, Are you for us or our adversaries? And he said, No, as commander of the army of the Lord, I have now come. And so what we find, this is the pre-incarnate Christ. This is the Word of God appearing as the commander of the army of the Lord.

And he can't say he's on Joshua's side. Isn't that an interesting answer? Whose side are you are on Joshua says? Ours are our enemies. And what's the answer? No. No, God loves everyone. God is on everyone's side. God wants the best for everyone. The real question is, Joshua, whose side are you on? That's the real question. And so the Lord, the commander of the Lord's army, same individual here, not the father, in this case, the word incarnate, the one who would become Christ, tells Joshua, I'm giving the city over into your hand. Now, it's also interesting. This commander of the Lord's army will later come in human form. God in the flesh, Emmanuel with us, His name, Jesus. Same as the Hebrew word, Joshua. It's the same word, just translated differently. Hebrew form of Jesus is Joshua, means Savior. His name literally means deliverer. So here's Joshua as a type of Jesus to lead the army under the authority of the commander of the army to ultimately take over the promised land.

Hi, fast forward to the book of Revelation. Revelation chapter 19 verse 11.

Revelation chapter 19, we have an interesting parallel in prophecy.

Take a look at ultimately what is standing in the way of the establishment of the kingdom of God. Well, in this case, it's not Jericho, it's mankind, man's governments, man's way, Satan himself influencing man's way. But here in Revelation chapter 19 verse 11, here John sees in a vision, I saw heaven opened and behold a white horse. And he who sat on him was called faithful and true. And in righteousness he judges and makes war. His eyes were like a flame of fire and on his head were many, many, many, it talks about, crowns. And he a name written that no one knew except himself. He was clothed with a robe dipped in blood and his name is called the Word of God. And the armies in heaven clothed in fine linen, white and clean, followed him on the white horses. And it says, out of his mouth goes a sharp sword that with it he should strike the nations and he himself will rule them with a rod of iron. He himself treads the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.

So who is leading the attack to overthrow the governments of man in the future? The commander of the Lord's army, Jesus Christ. As he appeared to Joshua, here we see Jesus Christ will lead. He will command God's army. He will destroy not Jericho in the future. The future he's going to destroy spiritual Babylon. He will destroy mankind's governments. He'll destroy the beast and the false prophet, all foreshadowed at the time of Joshua and Jericho.

Now, it's interesting when we begin to compare these events, if you've still got your place held there in Joshua 6, go back there. At the beginning of Unleavened Bread, God gave Joshua very precise, specific instructions on how to defeat Jericho over the next seven days, during the days of Unleavened Bread. So at the beginning, when we compare when the commander of the Lord's army appeared, and then when God gives instructions to Joshua in Joshua 6, verse 3, take a look at Joshua 6.3. We're familiar with the story. God tells Joshua, march around the city, you, all your men of war, go around the city once.

Do this six days. During the six days of Unleavened Bread, this is what you do. And you do this with the seven priests bearing seven trumpets. But the seventh day, middle of verse 4, march around the city seven times, and the priests shall blow the trumpets. Interesting, it's quiet when they're marching around those first six days. I suppose you could say it was pretty silent. Nobody's doing much of anything, right? They're bearing trumpets. They're marching around, but the seventh day, it says, blow those trumpets.

Blow the seven trumpets. It says, they'll make a long blast with the ram's horn, verse 5. And when you hear the sound of the trumpet, all the people shall shout with a great shout, and the wall of the city will fall down flat, and the people shall go up every man straight before him. So here's Joshua and the men circling Jericho once every day for six days, during the days of unleavened bread, and seven times on the last day of unleavened bread.

This seventh day that we're picturing today. Now, even though it was a holy day, it wasn't going to be especially restful for the people that day, when those walls were going to come down, because God had a work for them to do. And this is a parallel. This parallels future prophecy as well. If you go to Revelation chapter 8, we're reminded, just like the walls of Jericho were going to come down, that society, what represented everything that stood against the establishment of the Promised Land of the people in Israel had to be removed. Same thing has to happen in the future as well. Revelation chapter 8 verse 1. It says, when He opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about a half an hour.

I saw seven angels who stand before God, and to them were given seven trumpets. Like the seven that helped at the time of Joshua. So we have this connection, this parallel with Revelation. And interesting, verse 6, the seven angels who had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound. So these trumpets are going to blow. And like each day circling Jericho, the blowing of trumpets, specific things happen at each blow of those trumpets, one after another. And so there's similarity between these things. And here, in the end time, the next angel cannot sound until the one before it has blown its trumpet plague.

And so it goes on in order, just like a parallel in Joshua. Also interesting, the priests going before the Ark of the covenant, they blow those seven trumpets before the Ark, before the coming presence of God. And then what did they do? Once those trumpets blew, they shouted. They shouted. And when they heard those trumpets and they shouted, the wall fell down flat. Certainly, parallels what will happen in the future as well. We know 1 Thessalonians 4 tells us of that. There will be the sound of a trumpet and a shout, and a shout. And man's societies are going to fall down flat before God.

And that last circling of Jericho, all likelihood, was on the last day of unleavened bread. And God exercised dominion, authority over not only Jericho, but foreshadowed what would happen in the future. What would ultimately be fulfilled in Revelation 11.15, where it says, the kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ. And He will reign forever and ever. And so we picture ourselves at this time where ultimately sin should have no control over us. Because as Israel on that day, when those walls fell flat, they went up into the city and they utterly destroyed it.

They utterly destroyed it. Joshua 6, 11 reminds us of that very fact. In fact, verse 21, Joshua 6 tells us, they not only wiped out the city completely, they burned it. They burned that city with fire. God instructed them to do that very thing, because God wanted the total annihilation of anything that represented evil.

Now that symbol also was paralleled at the end of the age. So many times, as Israel was entering into the various cities that they attacked, they were told to utterly destroy them. That's the Hebrew word, harem. Harem, those cities, utterly destroy them, burn them. You destroy them and you be devoted to God. The word literally means devoted to God by destruction. By destruction. And when you think of the parallels of that, that itself represents who we are. We are devoted to God by destruction. We have destroyed the old man, the old way, our old sins, and now we are totally, completely devoted to God. And so just the symbolism in those things to utterly to put away what is evil and put on Christ. We are devoted to God by destruction. And so by destroying man's system, ultimately the kingdom of God will be established. We see an amazing prophecy of this, in fact, this time not in the book of Revelation, but I'm going to go over to the book of Jeremiah. Take a look at Jeremiah chapter 50, verse 14. Here in Jeremiah chapter 15 verse 14, we have a prophecy that mirrors what happened in Jericho, talks about what Israel would do when they came out of captivity and reestablished Jerusalem, but ultimately points forward to the time of the end that we're on the cusp of. Jeremiah chapter 50 verse 14, a future prophecy that says, put yourselves in a ray against Babylon all around. Did that ever happen with ancient Israel? Not really. Babylon and then Persia let them go. Let them go back to Jerusalem and establish the temple and their own society. But here we have this future prophecy against Babylon, Babylon the great man system that will come to control this world under the power of the beast and the false prophet. It says, you who bend the bow, shoot at her, spare no arrows, for she has sinned against the Lord. Shout against her all around. That sounds vaguely familiar, doesn't it? She's given her hand, her foundations have fallen, her walls are thrown down.

Sounds like Jericho. Sounds like what's going to happen in the future as well. For it is the vengeance of the Lord. Take vengeance on her as she has done so due to her. So that mirrors those things that we were reading in Revelation. In fact, skipping down to verse 32, it says, the most proud will stumble and fall. No one will raise him up. I'll kindle a fire in his cities, and it will devour all around him. So interesting connections here that Babylon the great, future prophecy is telling us, it will be an obstacle to the establishment of the kingdom of God.

But what's going to happen? Just like the Israelites escaped Egypt, just like the walls came tumbling down at Jericho, Babylon the great stands as an obstacle to the establishment of the kingdom of God. But it's going to be swiftly and completely and thoroughly destroyed, just like Jericho. And Scripture describes this over and over again. Malachi 3, 2 says it's going to be like a refiner's fire at his coming. Revelation 18 describes that very fact. Verse 8, it says she will be utterly burned with fire like Jericho, because ultimately God judges. And so God has had it with his societies. He's had it with false religion. He's had it with this political system of this world, and it will be over. Ultimately, 2 Peter 3 even tells us, the elements will burn and melt with fervent heat. God wants every aspect of man's system to be gone. So no wonder this happened at the time of Unleavened Bread, because God wants us to rid ourselves of that. And ultimately, what's going to be saved? What won't be burned up? Only those that are devoted to God, only those that are completely in God's system will be saved. And like these baptism miracles, you might say, that happen at the Red Sea and at Jordan, for those generations of the Israelites, we find that this worldly system stands in our way. But God is ultimately going to destroy sin. He's ultimately going to destroy this evil world.

He's already sounded that death knell to the beast and Babylon the Great. He is making way for us to enter into His kingdom. Unleavened Bread certainly reminds us to come out. Come out, no doubt. Separate ourselves from the Babylon of this world, from sin, because those who participate in this system will ultimately be destroyed. And so, we have to have a different foundation. A foundation that we find described in 1 Corinthians chapter 3. Take a look at 1 Corinthians chapter 3 verse 11, because it certainly describes where we need to be, that we not only have come out, but we are staying out. We have been forgiven of sin, and now we want to remain walking in righteousness. 1 Corinthians chapter 3 verse 11 describes this foundation that we are built on. Verse 11, 1 Corinthians 3, no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. It says, if anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each one's work will become clear.

And here we find an interesting connection. How does that come clear? It says, the day will declare it because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test each one's work of what sort it is. And obviously, we look at that, and how do you think the wood's going to fare? How do you think the hay's going to fare? Straw, is that going to last? That's all going to be burnt up. But the gold, the silver, the precious stones, those things that represent the character of Jesus Christ, that is something that can't be destroyed. And so, it causes us to consider this very fact. You know, is Christ a part of my life?

Maybe we've considered that during these days of Unleavened Bread. And if we have, I hope we've come to see that is incomplete. Because if Christ is a part of our life, we're in trouble. Because Scripture says, Christ must be our life. Is Christ your life? Or is He a part of your life? You see, that's the key. It must be Christ. Who live is Christ. To live is Christ. And so, we must. And so, yeah, the alarm's sound off. The alarm is sounding.

Yeah, it's not far. We are on the cusp of this very time. We could ask ourselves, do I believe? That's a start, but incomplete. Am I obedient and act on what I believe? That's the real question that we need to answer. And so, here we've been called to this amazing process. And like the walls falling flat, I think God's opened the way for us. But we also recognize when those walls fell down, was it all done? Was it finished? Job complete? Nope. Certainly wasn't. They entered the Promised Land. The initial enemy was destroyed. God made that possible, but they had to do their part. They had to go up into the city. They had to harem. They had to utterly destroy. And after that, and whether it was the time of Egypt, just because they were free from Pharaoh, does that mean everything was peachy keen? Nothing to worry about all day? No! They had continual trials as they traveled to the Promised Land. Once Jericho's walls fell, well, next was Ai. And then there were the five Amorite kings. And then there was Makada. And then there was Libna. And it goes on and on. We have to continue to fight during this lifetime. But God will fight our battles. He says and has promised He will. Do we need God to intervene for us?

Absolutely. Yes! There is no doubt about that. We will face problems. We will face challenges. We'll have trials and tests that absolutely will come along. But we better trust God to knock down those walls and lead us in His way. Because we're going to face problems that can only be solved by God Almighty. And how's He going to do that? By us doing our part, just like ancient Israel. We have to do our part. Through His Spirit. He's given us the power of His Holy Spirit to overcome sin. So it's through His power, by His means, through His intervention, that we can overcome. And so we don't have to be taken in by this world. It's such a reminder that to live is Christ, that Christ is our life, that we just can't have one foot still in the Red Sea and one foot on the shore, one foot in the Jordan, one foot in the Promised Land. We can't have one foot in the world and one foot in the church. It doesn't work that way. We can't please both. It's not going to happen.

James says we can't be friends of the world. We can't be friends of the world. That's the challenge. We cannot. We have to come out of this world. We have to come out of its ways. We have to recognize what God has ultimately called us to, and that is His way. Take a look at James 4. Maybe we can remind ourselves of what He's telling us here. James 4, verse 4, it is just such a stark reminder of our calling to continue to fight the battles that remain before us. James 4, 4, it says, adulterers and adulteruses. Don't you know friendship with the world is enmity against God? That's not just being opposed to God, but this is an enemy. This is absolutely in rebellion against God, being an enmity against God. Verse 5, he says, do you think Scripture says, in vain the Spirit who dwells in us yearns jealously? God wants the best for us, and by His Spirit we can overcome. Verse 6, He gives us more grace. And so on love and bread, questions pop to mind when you consider the great symbolism involved here. God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble. Have I submitted to the grace of God? Have I submitted to Him? Verse 7, have I resisted the devil? As I do, what's the promise? He will flee from you. He says, as we continue this journey, verse 8, draw near to God. And what's God's response? He will draw near to you.

Cleanse your hands, you sinners. Purify your hearts. You double-minded. Yep, can't be one foot in, one foot out. Got to be complete, completely spiritually minded. He says, lament, mourn, and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning, your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord. He will lift you up. And so I think we have this life-altering grace that God has given to us. And so because He's poured out His grace and made away, open, you could say, the doors to the Promised Land, to the Kingdom of God to us. Now, fight those battles. Resist. How much am I really resisting? How much am I really drawing near? How often am I drawing near? Reminds us, even though the symbolism of the days of unleavened bread, yeah, physically we're done eating after sunset tonight, but we've got to continue to be unleavened. And we've got to take God's direction. We've got to take God's direction. And perhaps you've done this. Everybody have a GPS? Yeah, probably. Maybe you needed it today to get here. Right? Do you ever ignore the GPS and say, oh, forget that. There can't be any traffic ahead. I'm going to just barrel straight through.

Yeah, I learned that lesson a number of times. Or I think there's a shortcut if I go this way, and then I end up getting lost. Yeah, that GPS is kind of an interesting spiritual reminder.

I can't go my way because that dopey little thing knows better than I do.

But God knows best. God knows best. Does God know best how we should lead our lives? Absolutely. Absolutely. And we have to make that choice to choose His reliable lead. Because if we don't submit to the best source of guidance, then we're going to end up off the path. We're going to end up lost. We're going to be unstable in our ways. We'll be double-minded here. And so here we're called to commit ourselves to Him completely in faith, choosing to follow His lead wherever that goes and believe what He says in His Word. And so He's promised to give us the help as we faithfully trust in Him. And so Unleavened Bread reminds us of these great things. The events that happened, especially on this last great day of Unleavened Bread, give us this symbolism, both in the past, things that are important today, and ultimately what's going to happen in the future. And that spiritual significance of the freedom from the bondage and slavery of sin is everywhere. But we don't want to forget the final destruction of sin and ultimately the destruction of the ways of this world where God will certainly establish the Kingdom of God. And we can realize that as we position ourselves with the power of God to enter His Kingdom, it only happens by His help and by His grace and His intervention. And yet it's going to require our active participation.

So as we finish these physical days, let's continue to put on the spiritual Unleavened Bread of Sincerity and Truth. Let's continue on this long quest that God has called us to, this great spiritual expedition, you might say, that we make it our daily choice, that God gives us our daily bread in choosing obedience and commitment to Him. Because He's given us this amazing opportunity, reminding us during these tremendous days that we follow His guide and we need to be fully and totally and completely committed to Him, seeking His will. And ultimately in the end, God promises He will have those walls come tumbling and down of this world and provide an entrance to His amazing Kingdom.