Sermon:
Stand by Me
Date:
Preacher:
27 April 2014 – morning service
Pastor Francois van Niekerk
Text: Exodus 33:21 (NKJV)
‘And the LORD said, “Here is a place by Me, and you shall stand on the rock.”’
Introduction
 Everybody needs a place and a space to live and to belong. Every heart needs a home,
just as a bird needs a nest.
 All people have a deep-seated need for such a place and will go to great lengths to find
their place of safety and belonging.
 God wants you to know that He has prepared such a very special place for you.
 Christian believers are given the assurance that our final resting place is with God in
heaven. What a wonderful expectation. Yet, between now and heaven our hearts still
need a home and we need a place where we can stand – a place from where we can do
life with courage and wisdom.
 God says, ‘I have place for you. Your place is with Me!’
Main points
1. Take your place
 God wants your heart to have a home. He says, ‘I made space in My heart to give your
heart a place.’
 The only place where the heart of man will ever be at home is with God.
 Your heart’s place is with its Maker. It is humbling and very special to know that God has
you on His mind when He makes this statement in Exodus 33:21. It is very personal –
from Him to you!
 This place He provides is in effect much more than a space. It’s not like renting a garage
for your car. It is not just a place where we can park our souls. It is a place close to His
heart, a place of intimacy but also of safety and authority. It’s a place of belonging,
shaping and security.
 It is a place where:
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identity is confirmed,
personality is developed, and
purpose becomes clear.
We find our reason for living and motivation for life in this place with Him.
God the Father is jealous for us. We need to be careful to whom or what we give our
hearts.
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He wants our hearts to find a home with Him. He is inviting you to come and take the
special place He has prepared for you.
Has your heart found a home? Where is home for you?
God says, ‘Come and take your place by Me!’ This is a call from God and deserves an
appropriate response. Respond by taking your place. Taking implies a strong and
decisive step. Make up your mind to take the place He calls you to!
We must first take our place before we can take our stand. This order is important. We
take our stand in life from our position in God.
2. Take your stand
 We move into the place God offers us by putting our personal faith in Jesus Christ. It is
called saving faith.
 From this position of safety we find the courage to take our stand.
 What secures our standing is the knowledge that it is positioned in the grace of God.
 Grace means unmerited mercy and kindness. It means extending that which is not
deserved or earned. We must never forget that our stand with God is by grace alone.
Grace and faith positions us to stand strong.
 To stand with God is a secure and privileged standing. It means standing on holy ground.
Actually our security lies in the fact that, when we choose to stand by God, He fights for
us.
3. Stand strong
 Stand strong in a shaky world
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We must make sure our stand is secure in a shaky world. The way to stay standing in
in times of political and financial insecurity is to stand on the Rock.
‘The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer;
My God, my strength, in whom I will trust;
My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.’
Psalm 18:2 (NKJV)
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He is our refuge and our fortress.
‘But the LORD has been my defense,
And my God the rock of my refuge.’
Psalm 94:22 (NKJV)
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Our standing with Him is our stronghold. This Rock becomes our standing place
when we embrace the revelation of Jesus as the Son of God.
‘Simon Peter answered and said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
Jesus answered and said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and
blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. And I also say
to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of
Hades shall not prevail against it.”’ (Emphasis added)
Matthew 16:16-18 (NKJV)
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Standing with God is not just standing in any place – He makes us to stand on the
Rock!
‘He also brought me up out of a horrible pit,
Out of the miry clay,
And set my feet upon a rock,
And established my steps. (Emphasis added)
Psalm 40:2 (NKJV)
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As long as we stand by Him, He will keep us standing. Standing with God is to stand
in a stronghold.
When standing with Him, we are unshakable!
Stand for God
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People are willing to stand for many things – politically, ideologically and culturally.
Even for sport. Often they are very outspoken about these things. Yet, some of these
places are scary ground. It’s like standing on a banana peel.
Who or what do you stand for? Who are you standing with? We should not stand
with the ungodly or the mockers.
When you know that you are standing with God – that He is able to keep you safe
and will fight for you – you can then graduate to also take a stand for Him.
Taking our place and standing with God is a choice. Standing for God is an
assignment!
I believe God has a great assignment for all of us today. He says, ‘Stand for Me.’
Will you accept His assignment? I urge you to do all you can to take your stand for
Him – in your family, amongst your friends, at work and everywhere you go.
In the words of the Apostle Paul to the Christians at Ephesus, ‘having done all to
stand … stand … and speak boldly for Him.’
‘Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on
the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the
devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities,
against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual
hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of
God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to
stand. Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the
breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of
the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be
able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. And take the helmet of
salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; praying always
with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all
perseverance and supplication for all the saints – and for me, that utterance may
be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of
the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in it I may speak boldly,
as I ought to speak.’
Ephesians 6:10-20 (NKJV)
Application:
 If you don’t stand for God and with God, you will fall for anything!
 Has your heart found its home? Are you standing secure?
 God says, ‘Your place is with Me. Stand by Me and you will stand secure with your feet
on the Rock. When you stand with Me you will never be shaken. I will empower you to
take your stand for Me.’