Transcription downloaded from https://sermons.cccharlotte.org/sermons/68623/arrive/.

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[0:00] A pastor's reflections arrive. Exodus 15, 27. And they came to Elam, where were twelve wells of water, and threescore and ten palm trees, and they encamped there by the waters.

[0:14] Psalms 87, 7. All my springs are in thee. Acts 3, 19. Times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord. Traveling from Egypt to the Red Sea, from the Red Sea to Mara, and then from Mara to Elam, Israel must have been continually asking the question, when are we going to get there?

[0:38] God had promised that the deliverance of Israel from Egypt was not just about bringing them out of a particularly bad situation, but also for the purpose of bringing them in to a situation of blessing.

[0:53] Through all of Israel's journeying to this point, there has been held out before them the hope of a promised land. Exodus 6, 8. And I will bring you unto the land, concerning which I did swear to give it to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.

[1:09] And I will give it to you for an heritage. I am the Lord. However, the realization must have grown, with each step along their journey, that the promised land was still a distant future.

[1:22] Each day that Israel tarried along the road was one more day removed from where they longed to be. Arriving at Elam must have been one of the first times that they truly felt that they had at least finally arrived somewhere worth being.

[1:39] We too long for a day when we will arrive at our destination, when the journey of this life is finally over and we stand in a promised glorious future. Revelation 21, 4.

[1:52] And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes, and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain, for the former things are passed away.

[2:03] How wonderful it will be to arrive at our final destination, to know that the journey has ended and we will forever be with our God. And yet, I believe that like Israel, God would have us to understand that it's not arrival that determines our fulfillment in God, but what we derive from God in the midst of the journey.

[2:27] We do not have to wait until we arrive at the promised destination to experience the promised presence of God. Exodus 33, 14.

[2:38] And he said, My presence shall go with you, and I will give you rest. Israel will come to understand that the presence of the one they travel with is far more important than the destination they arrive to.

[2:54] All men will one day arrive at God. The question is not, will they arrive? But how do they arrive? Revelation 20, verses 12 and 15.

[3:08] And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire. Matthew 25, 34.

[3:21] Then shall the king say unto them on his right hand, Come, you blessed of my father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. Father, thank you that in Christ our destination is not in question.

[3:37] There will be a day when we arrive. Help us until that day to realize all that we have already derived in Jesus. In him, we have all that is needed for our journey.

[3:49]  Help us to not focus so much on when we arrive, but to instead focus on the one we get to journey with. Amen.