WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:06.600 disobedience received its just punishment. How shall we escape if we ignore such a great salvation? 00:00:07.320 --> 00:00:13.780 This salvation, which was first announced by the Lord, was confirmed to us by those who heard him. 00:00:14.400 --> 00:00:22.019 God also testified to it by signs, wonders, and various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit 00:00:22.019 --> 00:00:29.260 distributed according to his will. It is not to angels that he has subjected the world to come, 00:00:29.260 --> 00:00:34.140 about which we are speaking. But there is a place where someone has testified, 00:00:34.920 --> 00:00:42.540 what is man that you're mindful of him? The son of man that you care for him. You made him a little 00:00:42.540 --> 00:00:49.960 lower than the angels. You crowned him of glory and honor and put everything under his feet. 00:00:50.780 --> 00:00:57.640 In putting everything under him, God left nothing that is not subject to him. Yet at present, 00:00:57.640 --> 00:01:05.439 we do not see everything subject to him. But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, 00:01:05.939 --> 00:01:12.599 now crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death, so that by the grace of God, 00:01:12.960 --> 00:01:19.840 he might taste death for everyone. In bringing many sons to glory, it was fitting that God, 00:01:19.840 --> 00:01:28.280 for whom and through whom everything exists should make the offer of their salvation perfect through 00:01:28.280 --> 00:01:35.859 suffering. Both the one who makes men holy and those who are made holy are of the same family. 00:01:36.620 --> 00:01:44.580 So Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers. He says, I will declare your name to my brothers. 00:01:44.579 --> 00:01:51.719 In the presence of the congregation, I will sing your praises. And again, I will put my trust in him. 00:01:52.259 --> 00:02:00.539 And again, he says, here am I and the children God has given me. Since the children have flesh and blood, 00:02:01.060 --> 00:02:09.039 he too shared in their humanity, so that by his death, he might destroy him who holds the power of death, 00:02:09.039 --> 00:02:17.699 that is the devil, and three those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death. 00:02:18.459 --> 00:02:27.000 For surely it is not angels he helps, but Abraham's descendants. For this reason, he had to be made like 00:02:27.000 --> 00:02:34.299 his brothers in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service 00:02:34.300 --> 00:02:42.680 to God, that he might make atonement for the sins of the people. Because he himself suffered when he was 00:02:42.680 --> 00:02:52.400 tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted. Your Bibles open at Hebrews chapter 2. 00:02:52.880 --> 00:03:03.140 We're beginning to think for the next few weeks about one question. Why did Jesus suffer and die? 00:03:03.139 --> 00:03:09.659 Why? We're going to spend the best part of a couple of months looking at that, answers to that, as we find 00:03:09.659 --> 00:03:20.259 them in the book of Hebrews. I think it's a helpful way for us to prepare for Easter, to reflect on the 00:03:20.259 --> 00:03:27.939 suffering and the death of Jesus, and to remind ourselves that the Christian life is cross-centered and 00:03:27.939 --> 00:03:35.979 cross-shaped. So my prayer is that as we think together in different ways of what Jesus has done for us, it will 00:03:35.979 --> 00:03:47.000 increase our joy, it will increase our worship and thankfulness, and ultimately it will change us to be more 00:03:47.000 --> 00:03:55.699 Christ-like. So we're going to think over the next few weeks some big thoughts about God. The Hebrews has got a lot of 00:03:55.699 --> 00:04:03.819 big theology connected to the saving work of Jesus, but it's really important that we find ways to see 00:04:03.819 --> 00:04:13.139 how this matters for our lives. So I'm going to do my best to make this Monday morning theology, to be 00:04:13.139 --> 00:04:17.519 thinking about how does this stuff that we're reading in the Bible, thinking about on a Sunday evening, how does 00:04:17.519 --> 00:04:24.539 this connect to your life and mine, whether we're seven, whether we're 87, whether we're somewhere in 00:04:24.539 --> 00:04:34.439 between, to see how the glorious gospel speaks to us in our day-to-day life. So we have two big truths 00:04:34.439 --> 00:04:40.579 that we need to think about, and then we need to think about how practically that speaks to us. So here's 00:04:40.579 --> 00:04:48.079 the first big truth. We're going to be focusing our attention on Hebrews chapter 2 verse 10. Here's the 00:04:48.079 --> 00:04:56.599 first thing, Jesus suffered and died to bring many sons to glory. See that there, verse 10, in bringing 00:04:56.599 --> 00:05:04.539 many sons to glory, it was fitting that God and so on. So we're thinking about the coming of Jesus and 00:05:04.540 --> 00:05:14.439 the work of Jesus. Tolkien, J.R. Tolkien, in a letter to his son, wrote about this section of Hebrews as 00:05:14.439 --> 00:05:24.700 describing the happy corner in the human story. There is this dramatic change that happens in the story of 00:05:24.700 --> 00:05:32.560 men and women and boys and girls, and it connects to Jesus, and it connects to Psalm 8, as that connects 00:05:32.560 --> 00:05:45.699 to Jesus. So let's look together at verses 5 to 8, where the author of Hebrews is quoting from Psalm 8. 00:05:46.240 --> 00:05:52.779 We didn't sing it, perhaps we should have sung it on reflection, but Psalm 8 presents the human ideal. 00:05:53.420 --> 00:06:01.660 It reminds us that God has made mankind, and we've been made with dignity. It speaks of us being 00:06:01.660 --> 00:06:11.180 crowned with glory, made to rule and reign for God under God's rule. So that's the idea. We see it in 00:06:11.180 --> 00:06:17.480 Genesis, we see it in Psalm 8, but here's the tension. As we think about our lives, as we look around the 00:06:17.480 --> 00:06:27.740 world scene, is that our reality? Is that our experience as people in the world today? We recognize, 00:06:27.740 --> 00:06:33.920 I'm sure, I'm sure, along with verse 7, that we are made low, because often we feel low and weak. 00:06:35.280 --> 00:06:43.379 But do we see this idea of being crowned with glory and honor? Do we see humanity ruling in this 00:06:43.379 --> 00:06:50.160 peaceful environment? We're more likely, I think, to see chaos rather than control. 00:06:50.160 --> 00:06:59.180 When we reflect on ourselves as people, along with, I remember this quote from Discipleship 00:06:59.180 --> 00:07:06.180 Explored, I think it was, talking about people as both the glory of the universe, made to do wonderful 00:07:06.180 --> 00:07:11.400 things in the image of God, but we're also the garbage of the universe, because we do so much 00:07:11.400 --> 00:07:17.180 to harm one another and to harm our world. We're supposed to reflect God's love, but we don't 00:07:17.180 --> 00:07:26.819 do it well. So since Adam's sin, since the fall of humanity, this is not the story that we live in, 00:07:27.180 --> 00:07:32.980 where we're crowned with glory and honor, and we're ruling and reigning, and everything is as it is to be. 00:07:33.660 --> 00:07:40.720 But there is good news in verse 9. End of verse 8, at present, we don't see everything subject to him, 00:07:40.720 --> 00:07:50.240 that's to people, but what do we see? We see Jesus. And here's what the author of Hebrews is saying, 00:07:50.580 --> 00:08:00.400 Jesus is what Adam was made to be. Jesus is the ideal. Jesus was made low, left the glory of heaven 00:08:00.400 --> 00:08:08.700 to become fully human in the incarnation, and now Jesus is crowned with glory and honor. 00:08:08.699 --> 00:08:16.479 Jesus, after the resurrection, returns to the glory of heaven. Because, it says, because he suffered 00:08:16.479 --> 00:08:22.560 death. So he went through, he came low to come into our world, he went low to suffer and die for us, 00:08:22.639 --> 00:08:30.699 and because of that, he's been raised to a place of glory. And why did God do that? He did it because 00:08:30.699 --> 00:08:37.019 of his grace. See that at the end of verse 9, so that by the grace of God, he might taste death for 00:08:37.019 --> 00:08:42.659 everyone. Jesus has done something for everyone. Jesus has done something for the world as an act of 00:08:42.659 --> 00:08:50.379 grace. He has suffered and died for us before returning to glory. And what the author of Hebrews 00:08:50.379 --> 00:09:00.600 is saying to us is that that journey of Jesus from suffering and death to glory, that's the same 00:09:00.600 --> 00:09:11.259 journey for his people. By faith, where Jesus goes, we follow. Jesus is now crowned with glory and honor. 00:09:11.759 --> 00:09:22.159 One day, that will be true of his people also. So Jesus fulfills what Psalm 8 was talking about. Now, 00:09:22.220 --> 00:09:25.440 why is that a big deal? Why does that matter for us? 00:09:25.440 --> 00:09:31.900 It talks about Jesus being crowned with glory and honor, and it's significant to think about that for a moment. 00:09:32.080 --> 00:09:38.600 Jesus always enjoyed eternal glory, Father, Son, and Spirit enjoying glory in heaven. 00:09:39.660 --> 00:09:46.800 But there's something unique when Jesus returns to heaven, having suffered and died. Now, he's receiving glory as 00:09:46.799 --> 00:09:55.579 a man. Now, as one of the old professors of the Free Church College used to say, the dust of the earth 00:09:55.579 --> 00:10:09.039 sits on the throne of the universe. Jesus is crowned, and in him we will share in his glory. 00:10:10.240 --> 00:10:15.339 That's the good news of Jesus fulfilling Psalm 8. The early church used to speak of it in this way, 00:10:15.340 --> 00:10:21.860 the Son of God became a man, so that man, so that people might become the sons of God. 00:10:22.660 --> 00:10:27.220 Remember, Jesus is the head of the church. We're the body, so where he goes, we go. 00:10:28.519 --> 00:10:34.019 So we have, in the story of the Bible, we have the sin of Adam that brought the human race under God's 00:10:34.019 --> 00:10:41.900 curse. But we also have the story of the gospel, and we see Jesus going low, and we see Jesus going 00:10:41.899 --> 00:10:50.720 under God's curse for us. But we see him going beyond the curse, a victory beyond death, now ruling in 00:10:50.720 --> 00:11:00.559 total victory and glory, and united to him. That's our destiny too. So Jesus suffered and died to bring 00:11:00.559 --> 00:11:07.980 many sons to glory. There's our first big truth. It's huge, isn't it? It has eternal consequence for us. 00:11:07.980 --> 00:11:17.820 The second big truth in verse 10 is that Jesus suffered and died as the pioneer of our salvation, 00:11:17.960 --> 00:11:21.860 or the author of our salvation. Look at verse 10 with me again. 00:11:22.100 --> 00:11:29.460 In bringing many sons to glory, it was fitting that God, for whom and through whom everything exists, 00:11:29.980 --> 00:11:35.860 should make the author of their salvation perfect through suffering. 00:11:35.860 --> 00:11:41.600 So some versions of the Bible translate that the author of their salvation, sometimes the captain 00:11:41.600 --> 00:11:47.060 of their salvation, sometimes the pioneer. Let's think about Jesus as author of salvation. Let's 00:11:47.060 --> 00:11:58.860 think about authors, people who write books. There would be, for example, no Harry Potter without 00:11:58.860 --> 00:12:06.879 his author, his author, J.K. Rowling. That's hard to imagine. In Edinburgh, Harry Potter is everywhere. But without 00:12:06.879 --> 00:12:15.480 J.K. Rowling, there would be no Harry Potter. And likewise, there would be no salvation without Jesus. 00:12:16.240 --> 00:12:25.840 There would be no story of good news without Jesus, the author of our salvation. He is the chief 00:12:25.840 --> 00:12:34.480 worker, not us. We get to be part of that story, but only because of God's grace in sending Jesus 00:12:34.480 --> 00:12:42.500 to suffer and die as the author of salvation. Some translations describe him as the pioneer 00:12:42.500 --> 00:12:49.960 of salvation. I like that image. You know, the pioneers. Perhaps we can imagine a family, 00:12:49.960 --> 00:12:56.300 and they're getting ready for one reason or another to move to the new country. And so the dad goes ahead, 00:12:56.800 --> 00:13:05.680 crosses over the ocean, arrives in the new country, finds the land is swampy, and there's wild animals, 00:13:05.900 --> 00:13:14.600 and he prepares the ground. He deals with the danger. He makes it safe going ahead of his family. And when 00:13:14.600 --> 00:13:23.940 all is ready, he says, come and join me now, the place is like home. That's what Jesus does for us 00:13:23.940 --> 00:13:34.519 as our pioneer. He has gone ahead of us. He's gone ahead of us into suffering and temptation and death, 00:13:34.560 --> 00:13:41.360 and he's moved beyond that. And he's made all of these things safe for us. When we are in him, 00:13:41.360 --> 00:13:49.960 we are kept by him. That's a great truth. Why does the author of Hebrews, this is significant, 00:13:50.180 --> 00:13:56.240 why does the author of Hebrews say that Jesus, the author of our salvation, was made perfect 00:13:56.240 --> 00:14:01.680 through suffering? People have wondered about that. Jesus made perfect. Does that imply that he was 00:14:01.680 --> 00:14:09.139 imperfect at some point? This isn't saying Jesus was disobedient and he had to learn how to be 00:14:09.139 --> 00:14:16.340 obedient? This is not implying that Jesus had some moral fall or imperfection and gradually became 00:14:16.340 --> 00:14:25.340 perfected. No, the idea is that Jesus is perfect in the sense of being complete. Jesus is the perfect 00:14:25.340 --> 00:14:32.220 and complete savior for sinners. We need no other salvation. We need no other savior. Why? 00:14:32.220 --> 00:14:44.440 Because Jesus became fully human. Because Jesus came to completely represent us. Because we have in 00:14:44.440 --> 00:14:54.879 Jesus one who can sympathize with us, having identified with us, having walked in our shoes both in his life 00:14:54.879 --> 00:15:10.120 and in his day. That's why he is a perfect savior. To truly and fully represent us, he must walk our path. 00:15:10.700 --> 00:15:21.460 There couldn't be a shortcut from the manger to the cross. Jesus needed to learn obedience. Every stage of 00:15:21.460 --> 00:15:29.220 testing and temptation, he needed to prove himself faithful. We need the active obedience of Jesus in his life 00:15:29.220 --> 00:15:39.780 to make up for our active disobedience. He needed that perfect obedience. He needed to become one of us, 00:15:39.820 --> 00:15:49.300 to taste tears and pain and death. Sometimes people have the idea of Jesus as some kind of Superman figure, 00:15:49.299 --> 00:15:58.799 that he kind of floated above the ground. That any sort of sense of suffering was imaginary rather than real. 00:15:59.799 --> 00:16:09.079 That kind of person could not save us. We need a savior who is truly one of us. And when we read the 00:16:09.079 --> 00:16:18.599 gospels, we see that Jesus truly felt pain. Two places to think of. First of all, we can think about 00:16:18.600 --> 00:16:28.440 the garden of Gethsemane. There is Jesus anticipating his death on the cross. There is Jesus anticipating 00:16:28.440 --> 00:16:38.040 the full weight of the father's anger for sin coming on him. And he cries and he prays with tears and he 00:16:38.040 --> 00:16:47.899 sweats great drops of blood. Such is his pain in his mind anticipating the cross. 00:16:48.600 --> 00:16:59.180 And then the cross itself, where Jesus truly shed blood and died as the one who is fully God and fully man. 00:16:59.879 --> 00:17:08.880 This is not a Superman. This is one who is truly God and truly man. And he came in order to represent us, 00:17:08.940 --> 00:17:16.440 to go before us, to be the pioneer of our salvation. Perhaps we can think of the story of David and Goliath. 00:17:16.440 --> 00:17:24.299 And so David had been anointed the next king of Israel. But at the time when he fights Goliath, 00:17:24.340 --> 00:17:32.360 he's still a shepherd boy. And he's sent by his father to come to the soldiers of Israel. And they're 00:17:32.360 --> 00:17:38.460 all cowering in fear. They're all terrified of this great giant Goliath, the champion of the Philistines. 00:17:38.460 --> 00:17:48.240 And here's David, the shepherd boy. And he says, I'll fight on behalf of God's glory and honor. I'll fight on 00:17:48.240 --> 00:17:57.120 behalf of the people of Israel. He fought on behalf of weak, scared Israel. And he won a remarkable victory 00:17:57.119 --> 00:18:03.699 there as God's glory there as God's king, pointing us forward to the work of Jesus. 00:18:04.699 --> 00:18:12.559 Jesus, the greater son of David. Jesus, our representative, our captain, our hero, who goes into the fight 00:18:12.559 --> 00:18:20.899 against our enemies, Satan, sin and death, conquered on the cross, receiving a death blow 00:18:20.900 --> 00:18:26.200 for the sake of his people. 00:18:28.700 --> 00:18:38.080 So when we read in the Gospels, the story of the cross, we are seeing Jesus, truly human, dying. 00:18:38.079 --> 00:18:44.679 We discover Jesus rising, truly human. 00:18:46.000 --> 00:18:54.079 We recognize from the epistles that Jesus is still fully human as well as being fully God 00:18:54.079 --> 00:19:02.159 as he rules in glory. And he is the pioneer who shares his glory with us. He's gone through all that 00:19:02.160 --> 00:19:09.500 and he declares to us from heaven, it's safe if you will put your trust in me. 00:19:10.720 --> 00:19:16.580 So there's our two big truths. Jesus suffered and died to bring many sons to glory. 00:19:17.019 --> 00:19:22.820 And he suffered and died as the pioneer of our faith. Now we need to think about why does this, 00:19:23.140 --> 00:19:29.480 why do these big thoughts matter for our Monday morning, for our Wednesday afternoon, for our day-to-day 00:19:29.480 --> 00:19:38.620 routine? Three things to think about together. First of all, in Jesus, Hebrews is telling us we are 00:19:38.620 --> 00:19:47.559 adopted as sons and daughters of God. We discover in verse 9 that the suffering and death of Jesus is 00:19:47.559 --> 00:19:56.779 God's grace to us. Here is a reminder that God freely chooses to love his church, that Jesus in love 00:19:56.779 --> 00:20:06.099 tastes death and God's curse and experiences hell on the cross for us. And Jesus defeats there the powers of 00:20:06.099 --> 00:20:18.599 evil so that we are free to become children of God. So that we are free to receive that invitation into the 00:20:18.599 --> 00:20:27.919 family of God. In verse 11, a great statement, both the one who makes men holy and those who are made holy 00:20:27.919 --> 00:20:39.279 are of the same family. We belong in God's family with Jesus when our faith is in him. Now at this point, 00:20:39.279 --> 00:20:46.859 I'm going to do a little album review. Strange segue perhaps. But at a recent conference that Vicki was at, 00:20:46.859 --> 00:20:55.379 she picked up this. It's called Theology. It's a family worship CD written by the folks at Sovereign Grace. 00:20:56.179 --> 00:21:05.539 And it is solid gold. Let me read the chorus from God's great family, one of the standout tracks on the CD, 00:21:06.179 --> 00:21:12.939 to remind us of this great truth that we belong in God's family along with Jesus. Pick up this CD or 00:21:12.940 --> 00:21:19.640 listen to it online if you get the chance. It says, no one is good, not even one, but God can make us 00:21:19.640 --> 00:21:28.580 daughters. God can make us sons. Jesus paid the price when he offered up his life so we could be part 00:21:28.580 --> 00:21:35.779 of God's great family. That is solid truth right there. That's the truth that through faith in Jesus, 00:21:35.779 --> 00:21:43.079 we're brought into God's family. When Jesus is our elder brother, our salvation is secure and our 00:21:43.079 --> 00:21:51.980 identity changes. We're given a whole new identity. I guess politically everything's up in the air with 00:21:51.980 --> 00:21:57.839 Brexit. Who knows what our passport is going to look like? But for us as Christians, one of the things that 00:21:57.839 --> 00:22:04.399 we can think about is that spiritually, our passport is stamped with where we are from, and that says 00:22:04.400 --> 00:22:15.620 citizen of heaven. Ultimately, that's where we belong. That's our home. What's our family name? It's God's 00:22:15.620 --> 00:22:23.940 name, because that's whose family we've been adopted into. And that's so important for our everyday life. 00:22:24.040 --> 00:22:32.220 When we go to school, when we file a report in the office, when we're planning a shopping list, 00:22:32.220 --> 00:22:40.120 whatever we are doing, we are doing all of those things, exciting or mundane, as a child of God. 00:22:41.299 --> 00:22:48.779 So all of life is now infused with this incredible dignity. Everything that we do matters to our 00:22:48.779 --> 00:22:53.720 Father. Everything that we do is a chance for us to bring glory to our Father, whether it's doing our 00:22:53.720 --> 00:23:01.559 sums really well in school, whether it's preparing a family meal, whatever that might be. And all of it 00:23:01.559 --> 00:23:07.960 also gives us the chance to witness to God our Father, to testify in the way that we conduct ourselves 00:23:07.960 --> 00:23:17.039 to the good news that we have in Jesus. It reminds us, too, of our most basic identity, 00:23:17.559 --> 00:23:24.059 that we are not our job. If we happen to be good at school or happen to be good at sport, 00:23:24.059 --> 00:23:32.319 that doesn't ultimately define us. Here is something more basic and more fundamental, 00:23:32.980 --> 00:23:41.519 that in Jesus we are adopted into the family of God. There's a security in that. There is a love 00:23:41.519 --> 00:23:46.759 in that that never ends for us as the people of God. 00:23:46.759 --> 00:23:56.160 Another reason why this truth matters for us, one of the ways that the author of Hebrews goes on in 00:23:56.160 --> 00:24:05.819 verse 11. So we read the first part of verse 11, but look at the next part. So Jesus is not ashamed 00:24:05.819 --> 00:24:15.279 to call them brothers or to call them brothers and sisters. When we're in God's family, Jesus is not 00:24:15.279 --> 00:24:21.660 ashamed of us. Now you and I, however old or however young we are, we know what it is to feel ashamed. 00:24:22.160 --> 00:24:27.859 We know what it is to have done something wrong and we desperately want to hide ourselves and to hide 00:24:27.859 --> 00:24:35.639 that thing from others. There are things in our lives, things in our past that we have said and done 00:24:35.639 --> 00:24:43.220 that we would hate to have anyone discover. They cause us shame when we think about them. 00:24:43.220 --> 00:24:49.980 And there are things that other people perhaps have said and done to us that have brought shame upon us. 00:24:50.579 --> 00:24:59.620 We know what shame is and we know how shame feels. I wonder if you've ever thought to yourself 00:24:59.620 --> 00:25:08.259 in the heat of the moment perhaps, I can't believe I just said that. I can't believe I just did that. 00:25:08.259 --> 00:25:15.859 Maybe perhaps we have found ourselves to be shocked at just how bad we can be sometimes. 00:25:16.379 --> 00:25:20.879 Maybe especially with the people that we love the most, our family and our close friends. 00:25:21.099 --> 00:25:25.619 Sometimes we lash out in frustration and we say and we do awful things. 00:25:25.759 --> 00:25:29.440 We love to take them back and we can't and they cause us shame. 00:25:29.440 --> 00:25:34.960 And we find that we are surprised perhaps by the sin that lurks within. 00:25:37.120 --> 00:25:39.259 Do you know there's good news for us in the gospel? 00:25:40.600 --> 00:25:47.539 Because Jesus was not surprised by those moments that take us by surprise. 00:25:48.279 --> 00:25:52.480 Jesus will never be surprised by anything that we ever do wrong. 00:25:52.480 --> 00:26:03.519 Because Jesus has seen it all, he knows our darkest sins, but still in grace loves us and died for us. 00:26:04.440 --> 00:26:15.839 He has never and will never be ashamed to call us family, to call you a brother or a sister when your faith is in Christ. 00:26:15.839 --> 00:26:24.579 Sometimes the fact that Jesus is remote can make us wonder whether his character has changed. 00:26:24.699 --> 00:26:28.000 Perhaps he's moved on, he seems distant perhaps. 00:26:29.659 --> 00:26:38.000 Thomas Goodwin, one of the Puritans, wrote a book to remind us that the character of Jesus that we find in the gospels, 00:26:38.459 --> 00:26:44.879 the person that we meet in the gospels, is the same person who loves us in heaven. 00:26:45.839 --> 00:26:52.359 That kindness that he showed to his disciples, that patience that he had with them when they misunderstood, 00:26:53.079 --> 00:26:59.599 when they messed up, when they ran away in fear, when Peter denied even knowing Jesus. 00:26:59.859 --> 00:27:03.899 That forgiveness that was extended to them, that compassion that was shown, 00:27:03.899 --> 00:27:14.959 is the same mercy and love and patience and forgiveness that is for us, from Jesus, our Savior in heaven. 00:27:15.839 --> 00:27:19.720 He hasn't moved on from his church. 00:27:20.799 --> 00:27:27.339 He hasn't sort of decided, I know that I'm up in heaven and I've got the angels and I've got the saints in glory, 00:27:27.500 --> 00:27:31.199 that I've got better company, I've got better people to worry about. 00:27:31.939 --> 00:27:32.559 Not at all. 00:27:33.039 --> 00:27:40.839 He remains completely committed to keeping and saving his family. 00:27:40.839 --> 00:27:45.419 And this is extremely good news for us. 00:27:46.679 --> 00:27:50.799 Let me share for a couple of minutes my early Christian experience, 00:27:50.899 --> 00:27:52.619 maybe especially with the boys and girls, 00:27:52.720 --> 00:27:58.980 just so that you don't have to go through the kind of mental wrestling that I went through perhaps. 00:27:59.079 --> 00:28:00.720 So I became a Christian when I was about 11. 00:28:00.720 --> 00:28:08.539 But I remember distinctly those early months of trusting in Jesus. 00:28:08.700 --> 00:28:12.579 Every time that I messed up in a significant way, 00:28:13.360 --> 00:28:15.700 I thought to myself, 00:28:15.940 --> 00:28:17.819 I can't believe I sinned again. 00:28:17.880 --> 00:28:20.240 I can't really be a Christian. 00:28:21.120 --> 00:28:25.100 There's no way God would have me in his family when I've just done that thing 00:28:25.100 --> 00:28:27.059 and when I've just said that thing. 00:28:27.059 --> 00:28:35.240 So I spent months on this cycle of asking Jesus into my heart to forgive me and to be Lord, 00:28:35.700 --> 00:28:39.179 then messing up and thinking I was awful, 00:28:39.359 --> 00:28:41.399 thinking that I had to do the whole thing again. 00:28:41.980 --> 00:28:44.339 So I was asking Jesus to be my Savior, 00:28:44.440 --> 00:28:46.599 to come into my heart time after time after time. 00:28:46.799 --> 00:28:48.779 And what the problem was, 00:28:49.419 --> 00:28:55.659 I kind of had the idea that I had to perform for God. 00:28:55.660 --> 00:28:57.660 That I didn't think of him as a father, 00:28:58.019 --> 00:29:02.019 so much as I thought about him as a headmaster. 00:29:03.000 --> 00:29:05.460 And I needed to perform really well, 00:29:05.680 --> 00:29:07.560 otherwise it was expulsion. 00:29:08.540 --> 00:29:11.060 I didn't understand this truth, 00:29:11.120 --> 00:29:13.019 that when we trust in Jesus, 00:29:13.140 --> 00:29:15.340 we are adopted into his family. 00:29:16.860 --> 00:29:19.120 We're sons and daughters, we're not servants. 00:29:19.119 --> 00:29:25.399 And God never kicks his children out of the family home. 00:29:26.419 --> 00:29:29.759 So yes, you and I, we do mess up. 00:29:30.899 --> 00:29:33.099 Yes, absolutely, we will fail. 00:29:33.619 --> 00:29:34.619 We do sin. 00:29:35.619 --> 00:29:39.979 But Jesus is not ashamed of the people he came to save. 00:29:40.699 --> 00:29:42.119 And so we confess freely, 00:29:42.239 --> 00:29:43.259 we confess humbly, 00:29:43.359 --> 00:29:44.679 and we seek to live for him, 00:29:44.680 --> 00:29:47.400 but we do that insecurity. 00:29:48.759 --> 00:29:50.860 And knowing that he holds on to us. 00:29:51.259 --> 00:29:52.220 He's not ashamed of us. 00:29:52.240 --> 00:29:55.100 And when we stand before God on the judgment day, 00:29:55.160 --> 00:29:56.100 if our faith is in him, 00:29:56.160 --> 00:29:58.560 he'll not be ashamed of us on that day either. 00:29:59.340 --> 00:30:01.000 He will stand by us, 00:30:01.019 --> 00:30:02.680 and he will defend us. 00:30:03.960 --> 00:30:07.680 Our elder brother is for us, always. 00:30:07.680 --> 00:30:08.279 Always. 00:30:11.600 --> 00:30:14.240 Here's the last thing to mention 00:30:14.240 --> 00:30:18.060 for Monday morning 00:30:18.060 --> 00:30:20.080 that we need to understand about Jesus. 00:30:20.259 --> 00:30:23.080 Jesus leads us, as his people, 00:30:23.240 --> 00:30:25.600 to worship and trust God. 00:30:26.740 --> 00:30:32.100 Verse 12 is a quote from Psalm 22 00:30:32.100 --> 00:30:36.259 that the author of Hebrews attributes to Jesus. 00:30:36.539 --> 00:30:37.400 Jesus says, 00:30:37.400 --> 00:30:39.980 I will declare your name to my brothers. 00:30:40.380 --> 00:30:42.160 In the presence of the congregation, 00:30:42.540 --> 00:30:44.780 I will sing your praises. 00:30:44.900 --> 00:30:47.700 So what does Jesus do according to Psalm 22? 00:30:48.420 --> 00:30:50.759 Jesus leads us to praise God. 00:30:51.800 --> 00:30:55.120 Jesus leads us to share the same joy in God the Father 00:30:55.120 --> 00:30:56.880 that he always has. 00:30:58.700 --> 00:31:01.820 In fact, the picture there is that Jesus comes among his church. 00:31:02.620 --> 00:31:03.920 He comes to be in the middle of us, 00:31:03.920 --> 00:31:06.720 causing us to praise him, to trust him, 00:31:06.720 --> 00:31:09.500 even in suffering, 00:31:10.019 --> 00:31:11.799 even in trials. 00:31:13.980 --> 00:31:15.559 The author of the Hebrews says, 00:31:15.680 --> 00:31:17.140 Jesus prayed Psalm 22. 00:31:17.940 --> 00:31:20.100 When do we know for certain 00:31:20.100 --> 00:31:22.799 that Jesus prayed Psalm 22? 00:31:22.799 --> 00:31:25.680 On the cross. 00:31:25.680 --> 00:31:27.980 My God, my God, 00:31:28.059 --> 00:31:29.359 why have you forsaken me? 00:31:29.440 --> 00:31:31.819 Psalm 22, verse 1. 00:31:32.259 --> 00:31:37.799 Jesus identified himself as the righteous sufferer 00:31:37.799 --> 00:31:40.379 who endured opposition and attack, 00:31:40.819 --> 00:31:43.720 the one who trusted God always, 00:31:43.940 --> 00:31:45.779 even in the darkness. 00:31:45.779 --> 00:31:51.099 And he comes alongside us so that we might do the same. 00:31:51.099 --> 00:31:55.439 So there'll be times in our lives, 00:31:55.519 --> 00:31:57.139 I guess, where we feel isolated, 00:31:57.419 --> 00:31:58.719 perhaps because of our Christian faith. 00:31:58.779 --> 00:32:01.379 Maybe we're the only person who goes to church, 00:32:01.459 --> 00:32:03.459 the only Christian in our classroom, maybe. 00:32:04.659 --> 00:32:05.879 Maybe in our workplace. 00:32:05.879 --> 00:32:08.539 There are very few, if any, other Christians. 00:32:08.719 --> 00:32:11.539 And the conversation can become hostile or challenging. 00:32:12.480 --> 00:32:15.940 Maybe you have faced rejection from friends or family 00:32:15.940 --> 00:32:18.599 who can't understand your faith. 00:32:20.519 --> 00:32:23.099 We need to understand that Jesus has been there. 00:32:24.319 --> 00:32:26.339 And Jesus is with us, 00:32:27.039 --> 00:32:28.019 standing with us, 00:32:28.240 --> 00:32:30.240 supporting us to help us to keep trusting, 00:32:30.399 --> 00:32:31.139 to keep praising, 00:32:31.559 --> 00:32:33.180 even in those situations. 00:32:34.619 --> 00:32:35.639 And then positively, 00:32:35.799 --> 00:32:38.700 when there's times where we feel like we want to share our faith, 00:32:38.700 --> 00:32:39.519 but we're afraid, 00:32:40.220 --> 00:32:41.700 where we want to live on mission, 00:32:41.799 --> 00:32:43.319 but we're not sure how to, 00:32:43.380 --> 00:32:44.080 and we need wisdom, 00:32:44.160 --> 00:32:47.080 we need to remember that Jesus is there then too. 00:32:47.380 --> 00:32:49.140 He helps us with that. 00:32:49.240 --> 00:32:51.019 He gives us the joy in God 00:32:51.019 --> 00:32:53.500 that overflows in our lives. 00:32:53.500 --> 00:32:56.220 He gives us his spirit to help us 00:32:56.220 --> 00:32:59.500 and to share the good news with others. 00:33:00.620 --> 00:33:05.299 Jesus is the pioneer of our salvation, 00:33:05.299 --> 00:33:09.960 and he is bringing many sons and daughters to glory. 00:33:11.079 --> 00:33:14.740 Let me finish with some more applications, 00:33:14.919 --> 00:33:15.519 some more truth, 00:33:15.740 --> 00:33:19.539 some wise words from three different Johns to finish. 00:33:19.700 --> 00:33:20.839 Johns are wise people. 00:33:21.460 --> 00:33:22.799 First, John Newton, 00:33:23.259 --> 00:33:24.879 who wrote Amazing Grace. 00:33:25.419 --> 00:33:28.519 This week, I came across a section of one of his letters 00:33:28.519 --> 00:33:32.259 where he was encouraging a Christian friend 00:33:32.259 --> 00:33:34.019 to persevere in his faith. 00:33:34.019 --> 00:33:37.619 And to paraphrase Newton, he said this. 00:33:37.720 --> 00:33:37.960 He said, 00:33:38.099 --> 00:33:40.259 To view Jesus by faith, 00:33:40.779 --> 00:33:43.440 to look and to reflect and to meditate 00:33:43.440 --> 00:33:46.480 and to see Jesus as having lived for us, 00:33:47.099 --> 00:33:49.960 to see Jesus as dying for us, 00:33:50.539 --> 00:33:54.619 to recognize that he is right now reigning and ruling for us, 00:33:54.980 --> 00:33:57.960 interceding and governing for us, 00:33:58.480 --> 00:34:00.559 Newton says that will enable us, 00:34:00.559 --> 00:34:03.099 when we catch that vision of who Jesus is 00:34:03.099 --> 00:34:04.000 and what he's doing for us, 00:34:04.259 --> 00:34:05.699 that will enable us, 00:34:06.039 --> 00:34:06.419 Newton says, 00:34:06.480 --> 00:34:07.619 to endure any cross, 00:34:08.699 --> 00:34:10.159 to withstand any temptation, 00:34:11.019 --> 00:34:13.259 and it will cause us to run to obey his commands 00:34:13.259 --> 00:34:14.259 with a joyful heart. 00:34:14.400 --> 00:34:16.099 When we see the glory of Jesus, 00:34:16.779 --> 00:34:19.579 when we see the significance of what he's done for us on the cross, 00:34:19.860 --> 00:34:22.319 what he continues to do for us in heaven, 00:34:22.839 --> 00:34:24.400 when we catch that glory, 00:34:24.400 --> 00:34:29.619 that's when we're able to live the Christian life with joy 00:34:29.619 --> 00:34:33.980 and with obedience and with hope beyond suffering. 00:34:34.720 --> 00:34:35.340 So it's John Newton. 00:34:35.460 --> 00:34:40.400 Then John Owen wrote a really helpful book a long time ago 00:34:40.400 --> 00:34:41.760 called The Glory of Christ. 00:34:42.240 --> 00:34:44.220 And in that, again, to paraphrase Owen, 00:34:44.619 --> 00:34:45.240 he said, 00:34:45.239 --> 00:34:46.339 when we read the Bible, 00:34:46.739 --> 00:34:47.559 what should we do? 00:34:47.619 --> 00:34:48.479 Every time we read the Bible, 00:34:48.559 --> 00:34:48.919 what should we do? 00:34:48.919 --> 00:34:52.179 We should look to meet Jesus in his word. 00:34:53.139 --> 00:34:54.939 Every time we read the Bible, 00:34:54.939 --> 00:34:58.339 we should be looking to see and discover 00:34:58.339 --> 00:35:01.179 the good news of Jesus, 00:35:01.299 --> 00:35:03.159 to see more of his glory. 00:35:03.839 --> 00:35:06.759 He said that we should think about the glory of Christ often 00:35:06.759 --> 00:35:08.739 so that it causes us to worship. 00:35:08.739 --> 00:35:14.559 We should consider the beauty of his life and death for us 00:35:14.559 --> 00:35:16.859 to meditate on that reality 00:35:16.859 --> 00:35:18.719 so that it would melt our hearts, 00:35:19.000 --> 00:35:21.579 that it would transform our character. 00:35:23.019 --> 00:35:25.299 He said a wonderful thing. 00:35:25.379 --> 00:35:25.539 He said, 00:35:25.599 --> 00:35:26.759 whenever you're reading the Bible 00:35:26.759 --> 00:35:29.819 or whenever you're even just walking along the street 00:35:29.819 --> 00:35:32.279 and a verse from the Bible comes to your head, 00:35:32.299 --> 00:35:34.439 as soon as you stop and you start reflecting, 00:35:35.579 --> 00:35:35.959 Owen says, 00:35:36.079 --> 00:35:38.539 Jesus comes to meet you in his word. 00:35:38.739 --> 00:35:40.059 To commune, 00:35:40.239 --> 00:35:42.319 to enjoy friendship with you, 00:35:42.799 --> 00:35:45.719 to strengthen you in his word. 00:35:46.319 --> 00:35:48.679 So as we look to see more of the glory of Jesus, 00:35:49.039 --> 00:35:50.839 look to find it in his word. 00:35:50.939 --> 00:35:53.019 Make time to read and reflect 00:35:53.019 --> 00:35:55.500 and enjoy his beauty. 00:35:56.119 --> 00:35:57.019 And then to finish, 00:35:57.279 --> 00:35:58.279 words from John, 00:35:58.879 --> 00:36:00.139 the friend of Jesus. 00:36:00.979 --> 00:36:03.659 See what kind of love 00:36:03.659 --> 00:36:06.419 the Father has poured out on us 00:36:06.420 --> 00:36:09.079 that we should be called 00:36:09.079 --> 00:36:10.599 children of God. 00:36:10.599 --> 00:36:11.599 You're right. 00:36:11.719 --> 00:36:12.179 Thank you. 00:36:12.219 --> 00:36:12.920 We should continue on the Lord. 00:36:14.940 --> 00:36:15.679 He's calling the Lord. 00:36:15.799 --> 00:36:16.539 To address it, 00:36:17.199 --> 00:36:17.980 you're not a sensual character, 00:36:17.980 --> 00:36:18.980 but I will. 00:36:18.980 --> 00:36:24.239 I'll tell you about how good God 00:36:24.239 --> 00:36:25.059 you are at all.