[0:00] As the Lord will enable us for a short time this evening, can we turn again to that portion of the word which we read in 1 Corinthians chapter 15.
[0:14] I would like us to look again at verses 3 and 4. For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures, and that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures.
[0:50] Now I would like us to consider this text under three headings. First, that Christ died for our sins.
[1:06] Second, that he was buried. And in the third place, that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures.
[1:17] The apostle Paul here preaches, he says, that gospel which he also received.
[1:31] He is preaching the same message. The message of the gospel of Jesus Christ. And this is the message that has been entrusted to the church of Christ.
[1:46] To be preached to the ends of the earth, to the end of time. And the Christian never tires of hearing the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.
[2:00] This here is how we are redeemed. Through the sufferings of the Savior. And the gospel in the experience of the believer is always new.
[2:17] It is always new. This is where the apostle says he stands. And this is where the child of God stands today.
[2:30] Looking to the finished work of Christ on Calvary. Looking to what Christ has accomplished. He doesn't bring some new teaching.
[2:46] He brings them back to the cross. Back to the suffering Savior. Back to the tomb.
[2:59] And then to the empty tomb. Here we have the fundamentals. Of the Christian gospel.
[3:11] The fundamental teachings. That Christ died. That he was buried. And that he rose again. According to the scriptures.
[3:26] You see the apostle Paul. Constantly preaches the gospel. The same gospel. The glorious gospel.
[3:36] And the good news. That Christ died. To save sinners. And he lays stress.
[3:48] On these three fundamentals. And friends. This is the business. Of the church of Christ. In our day. To make clear to men.
[4:00] What we believe. What our hope is. For life. And for eternity. How is man redeemed.
[4:11] He is redeemed. He is redeemed. He is redeemed. By the precious blood of Christ. He is redeemed. By the atoning sacrifice.
[4:22] Of the sinless. Perfect. Son of God. We have no new gospel. We have the old gospel.
[4:32] And notice. Notice how he says. Time and time again. According. To the scriptures. According to the scriptures.
[4:45] And this is the highest authority. That the child of God has. This is our surety. The scriptures.
[4:58] Of the old and new testament. According to the scriptures. He died. According to the scriptures.
[5:10] He rose again. For without the shedding of blood. There was no remission of sins.
[5:21] The death of the Lord Jesus Christ. Is of paramount importance. When we consider the gospel.
[5:32] When we consider salvation. You see the law of God. Required to be satisfied. If man was to be pardoned. And forgiven for his sins.
[5:48] And the law of God. Was fully satisfied. In the Lord Jesus Christ. In the perfect sinless. Son of God.
[6:04] And the Lord Jesus. There on the cross. Voluntarily took to himself. The sins of his people.
[6:16] There as he hung. On the cruel cross of Calvary. He took to himself. The sins of others. He paid there the penalty.
[6:30] Of their sins. So that sin would be dealt with. Once and forever. Lewis Berkhoff said.
[6:41] That God there upon the cross. Imposed the punishment of death. Upon the mediator. Judicially. God imposed the punishment.
[6:55] Upon Christ. As the mediator. Of God's people. For we are redeemed. For we are redeemed. Not with corruptible things.
[7:08] Such as silver and gold. We are redeemed. With the precious. Blood of Christ. Here we have the atonement.
[7:23] Christ. taking the place. Taking the place. And the punishment. And the punishment. Of his people. And dealing. With the great problem of sin.
[7:35] He died. To deal with our sins. To take our sins away. To deal with the great.
[7:47] Problem of the human race. The problem of sin. In the epistle of John. We read. He was manifested. To take away our sins.
[7:59] And in him. Is no sin. He was manifested. The God man. The great mystery.
[8:11] Of godliness is. That God was manifest. In the flesh. He was manifest. In the flesh. So that he would take. The sins of his people.
[8:22] To himself. For there was no other way. That man could be redeemed. God must punish sin.
[8:34] You see. Sin is. As our catechism tells us. Any. Want of conformity. Or transgression. Of the law of God.
[8:47] Sin. Is contrary to God. It is the very opposite. Of what God is. And God could never tolerate. Sin.
[8:58] In his presence. Sin must be dealt with. And it will be dealt with. On this earth. Or it will be dealt with. In eternity. The Lord.
[9:12] Never did. Tolerate sin. He never did. And he never will. He cannot. Tolerate sin. Sin is so contrary.
[9:26] To the very nature. Of God. God. And. And. Therefore. If man was to redeem. Be redeemed. It meant.
[9:37] That Christ. The son of God. Was to add. Human nature. To his eternal. Personality. And he was to redeem.
[9:49] Man. Unto God. He came. And he made. The punishment. Of sin. Every sin. Of his believing.
[10:00] People. Was atoned. For there. To the full. He made. Complete. Atonement.
[10:10] For all of his people. In his death. In their place. How many. Did he die for. You might ask. Well.
[10:21] He died. For ten thousand. Times. Ten thousand. He died. For an innumerable. Number of people. For everyone.
[10:32] That ever believed. In the history. Of the world. From every tribe. And nation. And kindred. And people. For there is no other way.
[10:47] There is no other way. Under heaven. Whereby man. Might be saved. There is only one way. For man.
[10:57] To be reconciled. With God. And that is. By the cross. Crumacher. Crumacher. Says in his writings. He speaks of the horrible nails.
[11:10] The horrible nails. From the forge of hell. That they were. That they were. For seen. In the sanctuary. Of eternity. And there.
[11:22] They are. Driven. Into the hands. And the feet. Of the saviour. There he is. On the cross. And there.
[11:35] They place. On his head. A crown. Of thorns. They mock him. They ridicule him. And there he is.
[11:47] On Calvary's tree. Crucified. In the place. Of sinners. He was killed. There. By his enemies. They took him.
[11:59] By wicked hands. And slew him. The Lord. Did not kill himself. His enemies. Killed him.
[12:11] The prince of life. And we know. That when he was. Put upon the cross. That he dismissed. His own spirit.
[12:22] He dismissed. His spirit. For he was the one. Who had power. To lay down. His life. And to take it up again.
[12:34] You know. There is an astounding. Aspect. To the. Sufferings of Christ. When we consider. Who he is. In his person.
[12:46] The sinless. Perfect. Son of God. The eternal. Only begotten. Son of the father. Father. And death.
[13:00] Was a contradiction. Of all that was. Of all that he was. As a human. With no sin. The only human.
[13:10] That never lived. In the history of this world. Without sin. And here he meets. With death. At the cross. The one who was the word.
[13:22] Eternally. Pre-existing. With God. The father. The word. Who was before. The foundations.
[13:32] Of the world. He was eternally. God. And he became. Flesh. And here. In our text.
[13:43] We read. He died. He died. That Christ died. Of all.
[13:54] That ever died. Here is the only man. Who never deserved to die. For he never sinned.
[14:06] And here on the cross. We find Christ. Embracing death. Death. He takes. Death to himself. He embraces it.
[14:18] And there he yields up his spirit. To the father. He was obedient. Unto death. Even. The death of the cross.
[14:33] Macra Moore. Was one of the famous. Ministers of Lewis. In the 19th century. And in one of his sermons. He spoke. About. The father.
[14:44] And the son. Converging. About. The redemption. Of man. And he said. That the father. Would say.
[14:54] To the son. If man. Is to be redeemed. Then you. Will have to take. Human nature. To yourself. And the son.
[15:08] Would say. To the father. To do. Thy will. I take delight. Although. My God. That art. And the father.
[15:18] Would explain. If you take. Human nature. To yourself. If you're going to deal. With a problem. Of sin. Then you'll be despised. And rejected.
[15:29] Of men. And the son. Would say. To do. Thy will. I take delight. Delight. And the father. Would explain. To the son.
[15:40] If you go into. This world. You'll be taken. By the hands. Of evil men. And you'll be put. To the. Cruel agonies. Of the cross.
[15:51] And the son. Would respond. To do. Thy will. I take delight. O thou. My God. That art. You see.
[16:02] It's always. The will of Christ. To please. His father. Christ. Obediently. Accepted.
[16:12] The commission. That his father. Entrusted. To his hands. And he came. Into this world. Knowing. That here. He would suffer.
[16:23] That here. He would die. That here. He would be mistreated. But knowing. That it was. His father's will.
[16:34] For him. To come into this world. To redeem. Fallen mankind. Christ. Came into the world.
[16:45] With the purpose. Of redeeming. A people. For himself. He came. Into this world. And in. His death. Upon the cross.
[16:56] He dealt. With the problem. Of humanity. He dealt. With sin. Once. And forever. In Romans.
[17:09] We read. What the law. Could not do. In that. It was weak. Through the flesh. God. Sending a son. In the likeness. Of sinful flesh. And for sin.
[17:20] Condemned. Sin. In the flesh. He died. An accursed death. The death. Of the cross. This is the one.
[17:32] Of whom. Pilate. Could say. I find no fault. In this man. I find no fault. There was no fault. To be found in him. But yet.
[17:44] He was the one. Who was sent. To be crucified. And the crowd. That were there. Were calling for Barabbas. A convicted criminal.
[17:56] And here. We have the death. Of the cross. Now. Crucifixion.
[18:07] Was a death. That was reserved. By the Romans. For the worst. Of criminals. There. The saviour. Meets the extreme.
[18:18] Demands. Of God's law. And there. Upon the cross. The sinless. Perfect. Son of God. Becomes a curse. For his believing people.
[18:33] This is where. All of the sins. Of his people. Are dealt with. This is where. All our sins. Are atoned for. At the cross.
[18:45] And so. Though your sins. Tonight. Child of God. Be as scarlet. They shall be. White as snow. Though your sins.
[18:56] Be red as crimson. They shall be. White as. Wool. Because. They were dealt with. Once and forever.
[19:07] By the perfect. Son of God. We read. In the second place. In verse 4. And that he was buried. He was buried.
[19:18] Now part of the curse. That God uttered. When Adam. Sinned. In the garden of Eden. Part of the curse.
[19:30] Was that. Thou shalt return. Unto the ground. For dust. Thou art. And to dust. Thou shalt return. Thou shalt return.
[19:40] And the burial. Of Christ. Is part of. His humiliation. Now here. We have the Savior.
[19:51] Dying on the cross. And the preparation. Was being made. For the Sabbath. And there. At Calvary.
[20:02] The crowd. Would disperse. From the scene. Of the cross. And they would go. On their way. To prepare. For observing. The Sabbath. But as the crowds.
[20:13] Disperse. There is a man. There. Amongst the crowd. Joseph. Of Arimathea. A ruler.
[20:23] Of the Jews. A member. Of the Sanhedrin. And he makes. His way. To Pilate. And he boldly.
[20:34] Asks. Pilate. If he would. Be entrusted. With the remains. The body. Of Jesus. Pilate. Receiving.
[20:44] Confirmation. From the centurion. That Jesus. Was dead. Allows. Joseph. Of Arimathea. To take.
[20:56] The body. Of Jesus. With him. Here. Is Joseph. An honourable man. An honourable. Upstanding man.
[21:06] An honourable man. And a secret. Disciple. Of the saviour. And this is the man. Who will see. To the burial. Of the Lord.
[21:17] Jesus Christ. Joseph. Of Arimathea. Now. What is interesting. Here. Is that. According to the law.
[21:30] According to the law. Of the Romans. Those who were executed. Were normally. To be buried. Upon the place. Of execution.
[21:42] Those executed. Should have been buried. There. By the place. Where they were executed. And here. Was our remarkable. Exception.
[21:53] To the rule. That. Pilate. Would grant. Joseph. Of Arimathea. Permission. To take.
[22:04] The body. Of Jesus. And to see. To his burial. You see. God. Ordered. It otherwise. The saviour.
[22:17] Had completed. The mission. That was given him. He had died. The just. For the unjust. Christ. And the Lord.
[22:30] Would not see. His son. Suffer. Any further. Shame. After. Completing. Obediently.
[22:42] The commission. Of the father. The Lord. Will see. That there is. An appropriate. And fitting. Funeral. And burial. For his son. Joseph.
[22:56] Of Arimathea. Goes out. And he buys. Linen cloth. And he makes his way. For Calvary.
[23:09] And remarkably. There. At Calvary. When Joseph. Returns. We find. None other. Than Nicodemus. Nicodemus.
[23:20] Is there. That same. Nicodemus. Who came. To Jesus. By night. The same.
[23:31] Nicodemus. To whom. The Lord. Sent. Ye must. Be born. Again. For. Except. A man. Be born. Again. He shall.
[23:42] Not. See. The kingdom. Of God. Nicodemus. Who was. A teacher. Of Israel. Nicodemus.
[23:58] Who has brought. With him. A mixture. Of myrrh. And aloes. Around. A hundred. Pounds. In weight. To anoint.
[24:08] The body. Of his. Savior. And there. These. Two men. Men. Joseph. Joseph. Of Arimathea. And Nicodemus.
[24:21] Rulers. Of the Jews. Teachers. In Israel. They take. They take. The body. Of the Savior. They wound. His body.
[24:31] In spices. And in linen. Cloths. And they lay him. In a sepulcher. In which no man. Had ever been.
[24:42] The two Marys. Are there. Watching on. They're wondering. Where will they put. The body.
[24:53] Of. Our Lord. They were eager. To see. Where he was buried. But we also see. The fulfillment.
[25:07] Of Old Testament. Prophecy. In the burial. Of the Lord. Jesus Christ. Christ. Because. Over a thousand.
[25:18] Years. Before this. Isaiah. In chapter. 53. And verse. 9. Had said. His grave. Was destined. To be with the wicked.
[25:31] But he found. His resting place. With the rich. Because. He had done. No violence. Neither.
[25:41] Was guile. In his mouth. His grave. Was destined. To be with the wicked. His burial. Should have been. Upon the place. Of execution. Among the criminals.
[25:55] But he found. His place. In the tomb. Of belonging. To a rich man. Joseph. Of Arimathea. Because.
[26:08] He had done. No violence. Nor was there. Guile. In his mouth. The burial. Of Christ. Proved. That he was. Really dead. But the burial.
[26:22] Of Christ. Also. Removes. From the child. Of God. The fear. Of the grave. Because.
[26:32] We know. That our. Savior. Has gone. Into the grave. Before us. That he. Went into the grave. And that he.
[26:44] Rose again. He did not. See corruption. In the grave. For on the third day. He.
[26:54] Rose again. According. To the scriptures. And. For the. In the third place. Let us look.
[27:04] Then. At the resurrection. Of Christ. In verse four. He rose again. The third day. According. To the scriptures. Now.
[27:17] The apostles. Chief aim. In this chapter. Is to clearly. Establish. The doctrine. Of the resurrection. This chapter. Is making.
[27:27] Clear. To us. The doctrine. Of the resurrection. Of the dead. He explains. It clearly. To the church. At Corinth. In this chapter.
[27:39] The doctrine. Of Christ's death. And resurrection. Is at the heart. Of the Christian message. That he died. And that he rose again. In. And these are the doctrines.
[27:53] That must be held fast. Because the apostle. Makes the argument. So clear.
[28:04] In this chapter. If Christ is not raised. Then your faith is vain. Christ's death.
[28:14] And his resurrection. Are essential. Truths. Truths. In the economy. Of salvation. And we notice.
[28:28] Also. When Christ was buried. That his enemies. Were clear. That he said.
[28:38] He would rise again. That he said. He would rise again. On the third day. And so. They go to Pilate.
[28:49] And they say to Pilate. Put a guard. On his tomb. Seal the tomb. Because this Christ. Preached. That he would rise again.
[29:01] From the dead. And so. Pilate. Sets a watch. At the sepulcher. At the tomb. Of Joseph.
[29:12] Of Arimathea. Pilate. They seal the stone. To ensure. That his body. Will not be taken away. And Pilate asks them.
[29:23] To make it as sure. As it can be. To seal that grave. To seal. To seal. To seal. Remembering. All the miracles. That the Lord Jesus.
[29:34] Had performed. Even after they had. Put him to death. They fear. That he was. Who he said he was.
[29:45] The son. Of the living God. But despite. All of their efforts. Despite. All the efforts. That they make.
[29:55] To seal. And to guard. His tomb. They could not. Keep. The one. Who had power. Over death.
[30:06] And over the grave. They could not. Keep him. In his tomb. For we read.
[30:16] That there was. A great earthquake. There was. A great earthquake. And the angel. Of the Lord. Descended. And rolled.
[30:27] Back. The stone. And sat. Upon it. And the keepers. The guards. That were sent. By Pilate. To keep.
[30:38] The tomb. Of Christ. Sealed. Became. We read. As though. They were. Dead men. They were. So afraid. And the Lord.
[30:52] Who was. Given. The execution. Of crucifixion. A shameful. Cursed death. He rose.
[31:04] From the grave. With honor. With dignity. With power. He rose. He rose. With glory. He rose. From the grave.
[31:15] With glory. Knowing. That he had. Accomplished. The work. That was given.
[31:25] Him to do. That he has. Secured. The salvation. Of all of his. Believing people. And he has.
[31:35] Demonstrated. His power. And his divinity. In the Lord Jesus Christ.
[31:47] We see. Complete. Victory. Over death. Complete. Victory. Having died.
[31:57] Once unto sin. He is now alive. And will be alive. Forevermore. He has taken.
[32:09] The sting. Out of death. For every child. Of hers. For all of his. Believing people. They can all say.
[32:20] Now that. To depart. And to be with Christ. Is far better. As we read.
[32:31] In. Verses 54. So when this corruptible. Shall have put on. In corruption. And this mortal. Shall have put on.
[32:42] In mortality. Then shall be brought. To pass. The saying. That is written. Death. Is swallowed up. In victory. O death.
[32:52] Where is thy sting? O grave. Where is thy victory? The sting of death. Is sin. The strength.
[33:04] Of sin. Is the law. But thanks be to God. Which giveth us. The victory. Through our Lord. Jesus Christ. Therefore.
[33:14] My beloved brethren. Be ye steadfast. Unmovable. Always abounding. In the work of the Lord. For as much as ye know.
[33:26] That your labour. Is not in vain. In the Lord. Christ has risen. With victory.
[33:38] Over death. Christ. Crumacher. Says that. Graveyards. Should now be considered. Resurrection fields.
[33:52] Where those who are bought. With the blood of the lamb. Rest in their graves. Under the almighty's wing. and over their remains a divinely sealed hope casts a radiant light that they shall rise again when the Saviour comes again to judge the world.
[34:28] Jesus crucified buried and risen is the very sum and substance of the Gospel.
[34:40] It's the sum and substance of Christianity. It is by this faith we live and it is through this faith we will die.
[34:55] Friend, have you come tonight have you come to lay hold to stand fast in the old message of the Gospel?
[35:11] Have you sought the Lord Jesus Christ as your own personal Saviour? The Christ who dined for sinners will not refuse any who come to him in faith.
[35:34] He says, Come unto me all ye that labour and are heavy laden and I will give you rest.
[35:47] He says, Whosoever shall come unto me I shall in no wise cast out. The Saviour who dealt with sin welcomes sinners to himself.
[36:04] Have you sought the Christ who loves you and who gave himself for you? For the resurrection of Christ will have implications for us all.
[36:25] If Christ is risen as we are sure he is then we await the final resurrection when the Lord shall come to judge the world in righteousness.
[36:44] Friend, will you be found on that day with your sins covered in the blood of the Lamb? Will you be found on the morning of the resurrection rejoicing at the coming of the Saviour?
[37:04] Whether we hear the sound of the trumpet on this earth or in our graves will you rejoice at his coming? Or will you be found with those that will be calling for the hills and the mountains to cover them from the presence of his glory?
[37:30] Friend, what a tragedy should anyone from this community or from this island enter eternity outside of Christ enter eternity with their sins undealt with when there is full free salvation offered to every man in the gospel.
[38:01] I see that you're not standing before Christ as a stranger. They'll be there and they'll be saying did we not do this and did we not do that?
[38:15] and the Saviour will have to say to them depart from me I never knew you Oh there is life to be found in the gospel there is hope for everyone in the gospel of Christ let us seek this Christ while he may be found for here friends is the only way that our problem of sin will be dealt with in the finished work of Christ let us pray let us pray let us pray let us pray