0501. THE TRUE AND THE FALSE REFUGE
THE TRUE AND THE FALSE REFUGE
"A MAN SHALL BE AN HIDING PLACE" (Isa_32:2)
"THE REFUGE OF LIES" (Isa_28:17)
Two hiding places are brought before us here. The one is the refuge of truth, the other is a refuge of lies. The one is a Man, the other is an imagination. The first is a revelation from God, the second is an invention of man. All men feel their need of a refuge of some kind or other, but all men are not equally safe in their place of refuge. It is of vital importance that we should know now the true from the false. It will be too late for the self-deceived to find out this distinction when their "refuge of lies" is being swept away. Here then are some of the features of the true, God-appointed refuge. The true refuge is the place of-
I. Conscious Safety. "A man shall be an hiding place from the wind, and a covert from the tempest." Those who have fled to the Man Christ Jesus, as a refuge for the soul, ate now being sheltered from the wind and tempest of sin and judgment The wind round about them may be as bitter and terrible as ever, but they are being saved from its power, and they know it. Their refuge saves them. Is your refuge saving you from being turned aside by the sudden blasts of sin and the pressing storms of iniquity. If your hiding place-that in which you trust-is not sheltering you day by day, then your refuge is a refuge of lies.
II. Friendship and Communion. "A man shall be an hiding place." This is the man who is God’s fellow (Zec_13:7). All those who have fled for refuge to the true hiding-place are in the fellowship and friendship of the Lord Jesus Christ. They are reconciled to God, and rejoicing in Him. They know assuredly that God is their refuge and strength. Does your hiding-place bring you into contact and communion with God? Does that in which you trust for salvation make Christ unspeakably precious to your soul? If your refuge is not in Him, it is a refuge of lies that the judgment of hail shall sweep away, and the waters of desolation overflow. God’s only refuge for the sin-smitten souls of men is the Man who was smitten for sin. "Other refuge have I none." "I flee to Thee to hide me" (Psa_143:9).
III. Rest and Refreshing. "A man shall be.. as rivers of water in a dry place." Those who have found the true refuge of the soul know of it and enjoy it, for they now drink the living waters of satisfaction. In their place of hiding they find the source of abiding blessing. Their Rock of refuge has become a fountain of delight. Here everlasting springs abide, and never-withering flowers. They heard the Divine call, "If any man thirst, let him come unto Me and drink; "they obeyed, and found in Him salvation from the wind and the tempest of sin and wrath, and waters of cleansing and refreshing. Does your hiding place bring cleansing for your soul, and yield refreshing streams for your thirsty heart. If you are not happier and holier through that in which you trust for salvation, your hiding place is, in the sight of God, only a "refuge of lies." If that so-called faith of yours is not saving you from your sins, and bringing refreshing and gladness into your life, then it is a delusion; it is not faith in Jesus Christ, for all that believe in Him are justified from all things. A dying infidel was exhorted by his companion to "Hold on." "I am quite willing to hold on," said the dying man, "if I knew what to hold on by." He had no Christ, and so had no hope, for all refuges of lies will be swept away.
"Jesus, Lover of my soul,
I will to Thy bosom fly"
Autor: James Smith