WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:01.199 Good morning everyone. 00:00:01.199 --> 00:00:01.900 Good morning. 00:00:02.940 --> 00:00:11.359 The reading is taken from 1 John chapter 4 verse 7. 00:00:11.359 --> 00:00:13.200 ! It's on page 1227. 00:00:14.320 --> 00:00:19.300 ! Dear friends, let us love one another for love comes from God. 00:00:19.300 --> 00:00:23.640 ! Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. 00:00:23.640 --> 00:00:28.900 Whoever does not love does not know God because God is love. 00:00:28.899 --> 00:00:32.379 This is how God showed his love among us. 00:00:32.379 --> 00:00:37.619 He sent his one and only son into the world that we might live through him. 00:00:38.479 --> 00:00:39.799 This is love. 00:00:40.140 --> 00:00:46.679 Not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. 00:00:47.719 --> 00:00:52.619 Dear friends, since God so loved us we also ought to love one another. 00:00:53.460 --> 00:00:58.619 No one has ever seen God but if we love one another God lives in us. 00:00:58.619 --> 00:01:01.439 And his love is made complete in us. 00:01:04.099 --> 00:01:07.700 Well keep your Bibles open at 1 John chapter 4. 00:01:07.799 --> 00:01:10.799 Let me pray and ask for the Lord's help as we come to his word. 00:01:10.879 --> 00:01:11.280 Let me pray. 00:01:12.579 --> 00:01:16.859 Lord we do pray and ask for your help now as we come and look at your words. 00:01:17.599 --> 00:01:23.239 We're very conscious of the slowness of our hearts to trust you, to listen to you. 00:01:24.039 --> 00:01:26.679 And so we pray please that you would be at work by your spirit. 00:01:27.619 --> 00:01:29.780 Please help me in the words that I say. 00:01:30.579 --> 00:01:39.159 Help all of us in our hearts to trust you, to listen carefully and respond in obedience and faith. 00:01:39.639 --> 00:01:40.799 In Jesus name. 00:01:41.719 --> 00:01:42.060 Amen. 00:01:42.060 --> 00:01:42.239 Amen. 00:01:42.239 --> 00:01:43.239 Amen. 00:01:44.739 --> 00:01:48.159 So as Louise pointed out, it is Palm Sunday today. 00:01:48.319 --> 00:01:51.599 We are in the build up to Easter weekend. 00:01:52.339 --> 00:01:58.500 And what we've been doing the last couple of weeks is taking a pause from our regular working through a passage of the Bible 00:01:58.500 --> 00:02:01.699 to have a think about the doctrine of the cross. 00:02:01.700 --> 00:02:07.960 So what does the Bible say in greater detail about the work of Christ on the cross? 00:02:08.039 --> 00:02:10.800 What is happening as Jesus dies? 00:02:11.240 --> 00:02:15.520 And if you were with us last week, we considered the idea of substitution. 00:02:16.360 --> 00:02:19.539 That Jesus died in our place. 00:02:20.520 --> 00:02:26.879 And at the heart of the cross is this exchange, isn't there, between Christ and us. 00:02:27.340 --> 00:02:30.099 You know, our sin for his righteousness. 00:02:30.099 --> 00:02:36.299 So on the cross, Christ the innocent son is made sin for us. 00:02:36.400 --> 00:02:40.799 Our sin is transferred onto him so that we in him might be made righteous. 00:02:41.319 --> 00:02:45.879 And if you weren't with us last week, I'd encourage you to listen online if you can. 00:02:46.659 --> 00:02:50.019 And this week I want to see how the New Testament builds on the idea 00:02:50.019 --> 00:02:57.519 because I want us to see the fact that substitution means that Jesus necessarily on the cross 00:02:57.520 --> 00:03:01.960 is paying the penalty that my sin deserves. 00:03:03.000 --> 00:03:05.600 He is facing the punishment that I deserve. 00:03:06.600 --> 00:03:09.960 Now, my hope is, and maybe this is an unrealistic hope, 00:03:10.120 --> 00:03:12.840 that, you know, preaching is the art of unrealistic hopes. 00:03:12.960 --> 00:03:15.020 You know, that's why I'm standing here. 00:03:15.320 --> 00:03:20.040 I want you to be beginning to put those two things together 00:03:20.039 --> 00:03:25.560 and see that to a certain extent the message of the cross can be summarized like this, 00:03:25.560 --> 00:03:32.680 that Jesus is facing my penalty in my place, right? 00:03:32.739 --> 00:03:34.439 That's the summary of the message of the cross. 00:03:34.539 --> 00:03:37.959 It's what theologians have called penal substitution. 00:03:38.659 --> 00:03:43.060 Penal to mean penalty and substitution to mean in our place. 00:03:43.060 --> 00:03:47.080 Sometimes it's lengthened to mean penal substitutionary atonement. 00:03:47.719 --> 00:03:54.259 That is the idea that through Jesus on the cross facing our penalty as our substitute, 00:03:54.979 --> 00:03:58.400 we are made at one meant with God. 00:03:58.500 --> 00:04:05.020 We are reconciled to God through the cross as Jesus faces our penalty in our place. 00:04:06.140 --> 00:04:08.420 Now, there might be some of you here, I don't know who you are, 00:04:08.480 --> 00:04:11.120 and I'm not going to look at anyone particularly as I say this, 00:04:11.120 --> 00:04:13.960 but you might be thinking, oh, well, Steve, this is all a bit nerdy, isn't it? 00:04:14.659 --> 00:04:20.420 I mean, who uses words like penal substitutionary atonement other than doctrine nerds? 00:04:20.420 --> 00:04:21.759 Is it really necessary? 00:04:22.399 --> 00:04:27.139 I mean, maybe if I was taking A-level theology, you might expect to have a lesson like this, 00:04:27.220 --> 00:04:29.420 but why would we really need to do that in church? 00:04:29.500 --> 00:04:31.259 Why are we doing this? 00:04:31.819 --> 00:04:34.100 Why not just go through the stories of the Bible? 00:04:35.019 --> 00:04:36.560 Well, let me try and answer that really quickly, 00:04:36.620 --> 00:04:38.480 because I think it's a really important question. 00:04:38.480 --> 00:04:41.700 So turn to 1 Corinthians 1, verse 18. 00:04:41.819 --> 00:04:43.720 It's on page 1144. 00:04:44.000 --> 00:04:47.120 It's also on the screen behind me, if you don't have time to find it. 00:04:47.160 --> 00:04:48.200 Let me read it to you. 00:04:48.240 --> 00:04:50.060 1 Corinthians 1, verse 18. 00:04:50.720 --> 00:04:52.140 We're told there by Paul, 00:04:52.400 --> 00:04:55.640 for the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, 00:04:56.480 --> 00:04:59.259 but to us who are being saved, it is the power of God. 00:05:00.240 --> 00:05:03.080 Now, let me ask you a trick question as you look at that verse. 00:05:03.079 --> 00:05:07.879 What is the power of God according to 1 Corinthians 1, verse 18? 00:05:08.359 --> 00:05:09.399 What is the power of God? 00:05:10.039 --> 00:05:13.579 Well, notice that it's not the cross itself, yeah? 00:05:14.579 --> 00:05:17.279 Notice that that's not exactly what it says. 00:05:17.639 --> 00:05:19.399 I think that's what we would be inclined to think, 00:05:19.479 --> 00:05:23.959 but it says that it is the message of the cross which is the power of God. 00:05:24.500 --> 00:05:27.879 In other words, the power of God, God's saving of his people, 00:05:27.879 --> 00:05:31.379 is seen in the message of the cross, the logos, 00:05:32.180 --> 00:05:34.860 of what Christ has done at the cross, 00:05:35.159 --> 00:05:39.240 because the power is in understanding what has happened there. 00:05:39.279 --> 00:05:42.879 Of course, the message would have no power if the cross itself didn't happen, right? 00:05:43.600 --> 00:05:45.279 It requires the cross to have happened, 00:05:45.379 --> 00:05:50.399 but it is the explanation of what Christ has done and achieved on the cross 00:05:50.399 --> 00:05:52.839 that is the power of God for salvation for those who believe. 00:05:52.839 --> 00:05:58.119 So, of course, we want to take time to make sure that we get this right. 00:05:59.079 --> 00:06:02.199 You know, if we are not clear on the message of the cross, 00:06:02.399 --> 00:06:05.459 then we, well, the power of God is gone, isn't it? 00:06:05.919 --> 00:06:07.439 The power is in the truth. 00:06:08.879 --> 00:06:12.179 I think you could probably say with a fairly high level of certainty 00:06:12.179 --> 00:06:16.319 that the death of a local church is almost always preceded 00:06:16.319 --> 00:06:18.599 by a loss of the doctrine of the cross. 00:06:19.299 --> 00:06:22.179 If we don't get this, we will cease to exist. 00:06:22.780 --> 00:06:24.420 And to be honest, rightly so, 00:06:25.079 --> 00:06:29.300 because this is the power of God for salvation for everyone who believes. 00:06:30.259 --> 00:06:32.180 Now, with that in mind, and hopefully you persuaded 00:06:32.180 --> 00:06:34.139 that it's worth listening for the next few moments, 00:06:34.460 --> 00:06:36.340 turn back to 1 John chapter 4, 00:06:36.379 --> 00:06:38.780 and I want to spend most of our time in just verse 10, 00:06:39.220 --> 00:06:41.540 and I want us to ask it four different questions. 00:06:42.360 --> 00:06:44.060 So let's read the verse again. 00:06:44.199 --> 00:06:45.860 1 John 4 verse 10. 00:06:45.860 --> 00:06:47.160 This is love. 00:06:47.960 --> 00:06:50.160 Not that we love God, but that he loved us 00:06:50.160 --> 00:06:54.720 and sent his son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. 00:06:55.759 --> 00:06:57.439 Let me ask four questions. 00:06:57.540 --> 00:06:58.560 And the first question is this. 00:06:58.680 --> 00:07:00.480 What is the penalty for sin? 00:07:01.040 --> 00:07:02.379 What is the penalty for sin? 00:07:03.120 --> 00:07:05.040 Really, you'll notice if you look down at the verse 00:07:05.040 --> 00:07:07.740 that it is captured in those two words towards the end of the sentence 00:07:07.740 --> 00:07:10.639 in the words atoning sacrifice. 00:07:11.780 --> 00:07:14.439 Now, the NIV there is using two English words 00:07:14.439 --> 00:07:16.780 to translate one Greek word. 00:07:17.340 --> 00:07:20.280 The Greek word literally means to deal with anger 00:07:20.280 --> 00:07:22.240 or to satisfy judgment. 00:07:23.079 --> 00:07:25.360 If you've got a different translation, maybe an ESV, 00:07:25.480 --> 00:07:27.180 I think it uses the word propitiation. 00:07:27.980 --> 00:07:30.600 But that's not a word that we regularly use. 00:07:30.600 --> 00:07:34.860 So the NIV picks up this kind of temple sacrifice language 00:07:34.860 --> 00:07:38.060 where an animal is sacrificed in the place of someone else, 00:07:38.500 --> 00:07:40.420 their life in place of others. 00:07:41.960 --> 00:07:43.240 Now, think what this means. 00:07:44.120 --> 00:07:46.720 It means, doesn't it, that the penalty for sin, 00:07:47.200 --> 00:07:54.060 the price of forgiveness is a sacrificial death, right? 00:07:54.600 --> 00:07:59.260 Not just a physical death, but a sacrificial death, 00:07:59.259 --> 00:08:03.500 a death offered to God to face justice and wrath at sin. 00:08:04.199 --> 00:08:05.279 And John is saying, 00:08:05.759 --> 00:08:08.680 that is what Jesus is doing as he dies on the cross. 00:08:09.579 --> 00:08:12.159 Jesus didn't die just because he kind of miscalculated 00:08:12.159 --> 00:08:13.899 the hostility of the Jewish leaders. 00:08:14.079 --> 00:08:15.620 Oh, whoops, I kind of got that wrong. 00:08:16.300 --> 00:08:17.279 No, it's not that at all, isn't it? 00:08:17.480 --> 00:08:19.939 It's not even just that he died to show you that he loves you, 00:08:19.980 --> 00:08:22.620 although he does, and that's going to come out in this passage. 00:08:22.939 --> 00:08:24.420 It's not just that, is it? 00:08:24.420 --> 00:08:30.439 Rather, he died because the price of forgiveness is the shedding of blood. 00:08:31.180 --> 00:08:35.580 Blood is life in the Bible, and God's wrath has to be dealt with, 00:08:35.740 --> 00:08:38.600 and the price is life, a blood sacrifice. 00:08:38.600 --> 00:08:43.560 Now, I don't know how you feel about that. 00:08:43.600 --> 00:08:45.340 I think for some people, they think, well, you know, 00:08:45.500 --> 00:08:47.820 sure, I don't really like the idea of an angry God. 00:08:48.600 --> 00:08:51.440 I don't really like the idea of an angry God punishing his son 00:08:51.440 --> 00:08:53.200 as a substitute for our sin. 00:08:53.320 --> 00:08:56.460 I mean, demanding blood, that sounds kind of gross, doesn't it? 00:08:56.480 --> 00:08:58.200 That sounds sort of medieval. 00:08:58.360 --> 00:09:00.480 It's the kind of thing that you put on stained glass windows 00:09:00.480 --> 00:09:03.120 to scare people into giving money to the church. 00:09:03.200 --> 00:09:06.940 Doesn't our passage say that God is love, not angry? 00:09:06.940 --> 00:09:08.880 Well, of course, you're right. 00:09:08.940 --> 00:09:11.040 God is love, and the passage does say that. 00:09:11.160 --> 00:09:13.460 God is the definition of love, the source of all love. 00:09:13.720 --> 00:09:15.840 But it's important to notice here in this passage 00:09:15.840 --> 00:09:19.060 that John doesn't seem to think that God's love and God's anger 00:09:19.060 --> 00:09:23.220 are opposite to one another or exclusive of one another, 00:09:24.360 --> 00:09:27.860 not least because God's anger is not the rage of a man or woman out of control. 00:09:27.980 --> 00:09:31.560 It is the holy response of a holy God, a loving God, 00:09:31.960 --> 00:09:33.540 to sin and wickedness. 00:09:33.539 --> 00:09:37.839 And it's the satisfaction of this godly anger on the cross 00:09:37.839 --> 00:09:39.199 that uncovers his love. 00:09:39.919 --> 00:09:41.240 We'll think more about that in a moment. 00:09:42.360 --> 00:09:47.079 But what we need to see and understand is forgiveness is never very easy. 00:09:48.339 --> 00:09:48.459 Right? 00:09:49.179 --> 00:09:51.319 I know we think forgiveness is easy. 00:09:51.480 --> 00:09:53.639 Perhaps you think, oh, I'm a forgiving kind of guy. 00:09:54.500 --> 00:09:56.519 You know, I have no problem forgiving others. 00:09:56.519 --> 00:09:59.379 Let me suggest to you, if you think like that, 00:09:59.439 --> 00:10:02.100 that's because no one's really wronged you very seriously yet. 00:10:02.779 --> 00:10:03.779 And that will happen. 00:10:04.819 --> 00:10:06.399 As soon as you've been wronged properly, 00:10:06.460 --> 00:10:10.139 you know that forgiveness is very complicated and a lot more costly. 00:10:11.220 --> 00:10:13.579 And when you've been betrayed or let down 00:10:13.579 --> 00:10:15.759 or deserted by those who you thought loved you, 00:10:16.100 --> 00:10:19.279 then you will be shocked at the emotional pain that you will feel. 00:10:20.279 --> 00:10:23.620 The subtle ways that you'll find yourself trying to get back at them 00:10:23.620 --> 00:10:26.100 to make yourself feel better. 00:10:27.200 --> 00:10:29.399 And that's because forgiveness comes at a price. 00:10:30.580 --> 00:10:34.179 Let me try and illustrate what I mean here to show you by an example. 00:10:34.340 --> 00:10:35.860 Imagine that I came round to your house 00:10:35.860 --> 00:10:39.279 and you were very kind and you offered me a cup of tea 00:10:39.279 --> 00:10:40.299 as I came into your house. 00:10:40.480 --> 00:10:42.060 And we were chatting with one another 00:10:42.060 --> 00:10:44.480 and then sort of inexplicably as I finished my cup of tea, 00:10:44.560 --> 00:10:46.759 I threw my cup at the television and broke it. 00:10:48.720 --> 00:10:51.299 Imagine that the TVs aren't actually broken, Nick. 00:10:51.299 --> 00:10:51.659 Don't worry. 00:10:51.659 --> 00:10:55.620 Now, what does that mean if I do that? 00:10:56.559 --> 00:10:59.100 It means I owe you a television, right? 00:11:00.000 --> 00:11:00.199 Yeah? 00:11:00.579 --> 00:11:01.480 I broke it. 00:11:01.559 --> 00:11:04.559 My debt to you is to replace the TV. 00:11:06.179 --> 00:11:08.279 But if you choose to forgive me, 00:11:08.319 --> 00:11:09.539 if you say, don't worry, Steve, 00:11:09.620 --> 00:11:12.139 I forgive you for breaking my television, 00:11:12.480 --> 00:11:13.879 what are you doing in that moment? 00:11:14.319 --> 00:11:15.480 What you are saying is, 00:11:15.799 --> 00:11:18.919 I take on myself the cost of that. 00:11:18.919 --> 00:11:20.719 I will replace it. 00:11:21.179 --> 00:11:21.819 Don't worry. 00:11:22.579 --> 00:11:23.360 I forgive you. 00:11:24.519 --> 00:11:25.659 And if you don't replace the TV, 00:11:25.759 --> 00:11:27.899 then you have the suffering of living without a television. 00:11:29.299 --> 00:11:29.860 In other words, 00:11:29.979 --> 00:11:34.479 my sin of throwing the teacup at the television 00:11:34.479 --> 00:11:38.319 incurs a debt that must be dealt with 00:11:38.319 --> 00:11:39.899 for forgiveness to take place 00:11:39.899 --> 00:11:42.259 and for reconciliation to come about. 00:11:42.259 --> 00:11:44.620 And that is always how forgiveness works. 00:11:44.720 --> 00:11:45.700 There is always a cost. 00:11:46.080 --> 00:11:48.659 It's not often one tangible like a television. 00:11:48.799 --> 00:11:50.700 It is rare that someone comes around to your house 00:11:50.700 --> 00:11:51.819 and throws a cup at the TV. 00:11:52.220 --> 00:11:53.580 If you know that story and it's happened to you, 00:11:53.620 --> 00:11:54.620 tell me, I'll be intrigued. 00:11:54.960 --> 00:11:56.799 But it's more often than not something like 00:11:56.799 --> 00:11:58.759 you break one another's happiness 00:11:58.759 --> 00:12:01.279 and the cost of forgiveness 00:12:01.279 --> 00:12:03.740 is that we have to voluntarily suffer the sadness 00:12:03.740 --> 00:12:05.120 for a period of time. 00:12:05.120 --> 00:12:07.740 The opposite of forgiveness in that 00:12:07.740 --> 00:12:09.899 is to inflict unhappiness on the person 00:12:09.899 --> 00:12:10.860 who has wronged you 00:12:10.860 --> 00:12:13.340 to make them pay the debt. 00:12:14.360 --> 00:12:15.399 But you can't ignore it. 00:12:16.879 --> 00:12:18.039 It's more likely perhaps 00:12:18.039 --> 00:12:19.560 that someone's damaged your reputation 00:12:19.560 --> 00:12:21.679 and the cost of forgiveness 00:12:21.679 --> 00:12:23.860 is for you to live through 00:12:23.860 --> 00:12:26.179 the misunderstanding and misrepresentation 00:12:26.179 --> 00:12:26.799 that will come. 00:12:28.120 --> 00:12:29.840 Choosing not to slander them, 00:12:30.720 --> 00:12:33.100 not to get back to them in like manner. 00:12:33.100 --> 00:12:35.080 But whatever it is, 00:12:35.220 --> 00:12:36.519 forgiveness is never free. 00:12:37.360 --> 00:12:38.680 And to offer someone forgiveness 00:12:38.680 --> 00:12:39.940 is in effect to say, 00:12:40.519 --> 00:12:43.860 I will suffer for your sin 00:12:43.860 --> 00:12:45.620 so that I can forgive you. 00:12:46.759 --> 00:12:48.639 And if that's true between you and I, 00:12:48.740 --> 00:12:51.860 it's even more true between God and us, isn't it? 00:12:52.540 --> 00:12:53.240 You know, think about this. 00:12:53.279 --> 00:12:54.519 What is our offense before God? 00:12:54.759 --> 00:12:56.000 We were talking about this with the children, 00:12:56.120 --> 00:12:56.259 weren't we? 00:12:56.259 --> 00:12:57.500 We've not broken God's television. 00:12:57.700 --> 00:12:59.580 We've not slandered him in the workplace. 00:12:59.820 --> 00:13:01.139 We've not jeopardized his happiness. 00:13:01.300 --> 00:13:02.060 What have we done? 00:13:02.059 --> 00:13:04.119 Well, the Bible will tell you 00:13:04.119 --> 00:13:06.099 that you and I have stolen something 00:13:06.099 --> 00:13:07.219 that belongs to God. 00:13:07.359 --> 00:13:08.039 What is that? 00:13:08.259 --> 00:13:09.259 Our lives. 00:13:10.339 --> 00:13:13.239 God graciously and generously gives us life 00:13:13.239 --> 00:13:15.279 to live for him and his glory. 00:13:15.779 --> 00:13:17.639 And yet we steal it back 00:13:17.639 --> 00:13:19.099 and live it for ourselves 00:13:19.099 --> 00:13:20.079 and for our own glory. 00:13:21.099 --> 00:13:22.500 We've disobeyed his law. 00:13:23.099 --> 00:13:24.399 We've run the other way. 00:13:25.199 --> 00:13:26.559 And of course, God can't just say, 00:13:26.639 --> 00:13:27.179 oh, do you know what? 00:13:27.479 --> 00:13:28.439 Just forget about it. 00:13:29.059 --> 00:13:30.299 There's no debt there. 00:13:30.299 --> 00:13:32.299 Yeah, let's just pretend that never happened. 00:13:33.000 --> 00:13:34.000 You know, if God were like that, 00:13:34.059 --> 00:13:35.759 he wouldn't be God or he wouldn't be good. 00:13:36.359 --> 00:13:38.120 You'd have no reason to trust him. 00:13:38.500 --> 00:13:40.199 There's a debt and it needs to be paid. 00:13:40.559 --> 00:13:46.079 And the debt for stealing life is life itself. 00:13:46.080 --> 00:13:49.080 I know this is obvious, 00:13:49.080 --> 00:13:51.860 but let me just rub this in if I can for a moment. 00:13:53.060 --> 00:13:54.460 Imagine back in that scenario 00:13:54.460 --> 00:13:56.060 that I threw that cup at the television 00:13:56.060 --> 00:13:56.780 and broke the TV 00:13:56.780 --> 00:13:58.639 and it incurs this debt 00:13:58.639 --> 00:13:59.920 of needing to replace the television. 00:14:00.040 --> 00:14:00.900 And I said, you don't worry. 00:14:01.139 --> 00:14:02.200 You don't have to forgive me. 00:14:02.259 --> 00:14:03.820 I'm going to repay it myself. 00:14:04.639 --> 00:14:06.440 And I turn up the next day at your house 00:14:06.440 --> 00:14:09.080 and I've got a brand new notebook. 00:14:09.080 --> 00:14:12.280 I said, you don't worry about the television. 00:14:12.680 --> 00:14:13.920 I bought you a notebook. 00:14:14.840 --> 00:14:16.240 And if you like, 00:14:16.460 --> 00:14:18.920 you can draw pictures in the notebook. 00:14:19.280 --> 00:14:21.900 And if you flick through the notebook really fast, 00:14:22.080 --> 00:14:23.280 it looks like they're moving. 00:14:23.580 --> 00:14:25.280 And that will be an adequate replacement 00:14:25.280 --> 00:14:26.020 for your television. 00:14:26.720 --> 00:14:27.460 What do you say? 00:14:28.340 --> 00:14:29.620 Well, I've added to my offense, 00:14:29.740 --> 00:14:30.280 haven't I really? 00:14:30.700 --> 00:14:32.259 I've offended you that I thought 00:14:32.259 --> 00:14:34.720 that I could buy and replace your TV 00:14:34.720 --> 00:14:35.540 with a notebook. 00:14:36.740 --> 00:14:39.759 But that's what we do with God, isn't it? 00:14:39.800 --> 00:14:40.560 All the time. 00:14:41.540 --> 00:14:43.700 Nothing less than the sacrifice of a life 00:14:43.700 --> 00:14:44.720 in the place of a life 00:14:44.720 --> 00:14:47.080 could pay the debt that we owe to God. 00:14:47.379 --> 00:14:49.740 It's underlined over and over in the Bible. 00:14:50.160 --> 00:14:51.580 It's why God does not delight 00:14:51.580 --> 00:14:53.540 in the animal sacrifices of the Old Testament. 00:14:53.720 --> 00:14:54.060 Why? 00:14:54.700 --> 00:14:56.720 Well, because really they're just the drama 00:14:56.720 --> 00:14:57.759 of what will come 00:14:57.759 --> 00:14:59.240 in the sacrifice of the Lord Jesus. 00:14:59.660 --> 00:15:01.360 A blood of a lamb can never swap in 00:15:01.360 --> 00:15:02.440 for the life of a person. 00:15:02.440 --> 00:15:05.200 And our good works, 00:15:05.280 --> 00:15:06.260 our religious observance, 00:15:06.320 --> 00:15:08.760 the idea that I can buy forgiveness from God 00:15:08.760 --> 00:15:09.660 by my diet, 00:15:10.320 --> 00:15:13.240 by my attendance at a special place of worship, 00:15:13.820 --> 00:15:17.160 by my observation of particular spiritual days 00:15:17.160 --> 00:15:17.880 or seasons, 00:15:18.420 --> 00:15:21.960 that massively underplays the nature of my debt 00:15:21.960 --> 00:15:23.180 before a holy God. 00:15:24.480 --> 00:15:26.560 It's offering a notebook for a TV 00:15:26.560 --> 00:15:30.820 when I owe him life, my life. 00:15:30.820 --> 00:15:32.980 And so God the Son, 00:15:33.780 --> 00:15:35.040 in human flesh, 00:15:35.700 --> 00:15:38.000 the perfect one in the place of sinful ones 00:15:38.000 --> 00:15:38.780 like you and me, 00:15:39.360 --> 00:15:40.280 sheds his blood, 00:15:40.879 --> 00:15:42.120 lays down his life, 00:15:42.640 --> 00:15:43.879 breathes his last 00:15:43.879 --> 00:15:46.020 to pay the payment 00:15:46.020 --> 00:15:48.040 that our sin deserves. 00:15:48.940 --> 00:15:49.440 And of course, 00:15:49.500 --> 00:15:50.660 the death of the perfect son 00:15:50.660 --> 00:15:52.100 is payment not just enough 00:15:52.100 --> 00:15:54.140 for the salvation of one other person. 00:15:54.139 --> 00:15:57.559 He is the author of life itself. 00:15:58.000 --> 00:16:00.340 His death is of infinite value. 00:16:00.919 --> 00:16:03.679 Salvation sufficient for all who would turn to him. 00:16:06.759 --> 00:16:07.860 I want to move on. 00:16:07.899 --> 00:16:08.899 There's other things I need to say, 00:16:09.059 --> 00:16:10.500 and I'm probably running over time already, 00:16:10.580 --> 00:16:12.019 but let's just pause 00:16:12.019 --> 00:16:13.480 and just consider this for a moment. 00:16:15.379 --> 00:16:16.439 Can I say to you, 00:16:16.480 --> 00:16:17.259 have you considered 00:16:17.259 --> 00:16:19.700 that the cross of Jesus Christ 00:16:19.700 --> 00:16:21.779 says to you really loudly, 00:16:22.340 --> 00:16:23.159 you matter, 00:16:23.799 --> 00:16:26.419 and what you do matters. 00:16:27.500 --> 00:16:30.039 Your life is a serious business. 00:16:31.580 --> 00:16:33.259 God cares about what you do. 00:16:34.000 --> 00:16:35.159 Sin is serious. 00:16:35.559 --> 00:16:36.679 Punishment is real. 00:16:37.259 --> 00:16:37.399 You know, 00:16:37.419 --> 00:16:38.159 the Christian message 00:16:38.159 --> 00:16:40.639 is not a message about self-improvement. 00:16:41.039 --> 00:16:43.159 It's a message about rescue and escape 00:16:43.159 --> 00:16:45.559 from the wrath of God that we deserve. 00:16:46.620 --> 00:16:49.039 Because either we turn to the son 00:16:49.039 --> 00:16:50.879 and the infinitely valuable 00:16:50.879 --> 00:16:51.959 of the cross of Christ 00:16:51.959 --> 00:16:53.539 pays for our sin, 00:16:53.759 --> 00:16:55.819 or we spend eternity 00:16:55.819 --> 00:16:58.860 under the just judgment of God 00:16:58.860 --> 00:17:01.039 paying ourselves 00:17:01.039 --> 00:17:02.600 the debt that we owe to God. 00:17:03.399 --> 00:17:06.200 Here, forgiveness is being extended to you. 00:17:06.359 --> 00:17:07.920 I will pay, says God, 00:17:08.440 --> 00:17:10.000 but you must receive it. 00:17:10.799 --> 00:17:12.399 Can I ask you if you've received it? 00:17:13.160 --> 00:17:14.940 Have you received it from the Lord? 00:17:17.060 --> 00:17:18.000 Second question, 00:17:18.600 --> 00:17:19.540 who is it paid to? 00:17:20.580 --> 00:17:21.300 Now, I know, 00:17:21.460 --> 00:17:22.860 these are obvious questions, aren't they? 00:17:22.880 --> 00:17:23.800 And you're probably thinking, 00:17:23.920 --> 00:17:24.779 I know the answer already, 00:17:24.860 --> 00:17:25.700 but let's just slow down 00:17:25.700 --> 00:17:26.480 and make sure we've thought 00:17:26.480 --> 00:17:27.220 about this carefully. 00:17:27.440 --> 00:17:28.560 In the temple language 00:17:28.560 --> 00:17:29.660 that John is using here, 00:17:30.160 --> 00:17:31.300 Jesus, God the Son, 00:17:31.340 --> 00:17:32.060 is the sacrifice. 00:17:32.279 --> 00:17:34.300 Yeah, he is the atoning sacrifice. 00:17:34.920 --> 00:17:36.080 And it would also be right 00:17:36.080 --> 00:17:36.920 to say from the verse 00:17:36.920 --> 00:17:37.700 that it is God 00:17:37.700 --> 00:17:39.000 who is making the sacrifice. 00:17:39.300 --> 00:17:41.120 So God is both the priest 00:17:41.120 --> 00:17:42.100 and the sacrifice. 00:17:42.099 --> 00:17:43.399 Yeah, you get that. 00:17:43.439 --> 00:17:44.259 The Roman soldiers 00:17:44.259 --> 00:17:45.159 might have been the people 00:17:45.159 --> 00:17:46.000 who drove the nails 00:17:46.000 --> 00:17:47.339 into the hands and feet of Jesus. 00:17:47.459 --> 00:17:48.740 But if you look down at verse 10, 00:17:49.159 --> 00:17:50.639 it's God who sent the Son. 00:17:51.159 --> 00:17:52.679 God made the sacrifice. 00:17:52.959 --> 00:17:54.019 He was the priest. 00:17:54.639 --> 00:17:56.379 And he made the sacrifice 00:17:56.379 --> 00:17:58.419 to himself, right? 00:17:58.480 --> 00:18:00.179 Because he was the one 00:18:00.179 --> 00:18:01.279 to whom the debt was owed. 00:18:01.359 --> 00:18:02.740 It is before God 00:18:02.740 --> 00:18:04.119 that we owe the debt of life. 00:18:04.859 --> 00:18:05.359 In other words, 00:18:05.399 --> 00:18:06.459 what you've got here 00:18:06.459 --> 00:18:07.219 in these verses 00:18:07.220 --> 00:18:09.120 is God making the sacrifice 00:18:09.120 --> 00:18:10.279 of himself 00:18:10.279 --> 00:18:12.180 to himself 00:18:12.180 --> 00:18:13.720 for the satisfaction 00:18:13.720 --> 00:18:15.180 of himself. 00:18:15.400 --> 00:18:15.940 Do you get that? 00:18:17.019 --> 00:18:18.180 It's incredible, isn't it? 00:18:18.380 --> 00:18:19.559 God is satisfying 00:18:19.559 --> 00:18:20.680 his own holiness 00:18:20.680 --> 00:18:22.180 with his own sacrifice. 00:18:22.900 --> 00:18:23.400 Do you just see 00:18:23.400 --> 00:18:24.720 just how God-centered 00:18:24.720 --> 00:18:26.039 the cross is right now? 00:18:27.220 --> 00:18:28.680 This is not 00:18:28.680 --> 00:18:30.480 us asking God 00:18:30.480 --> 00:18:31.019 for forgiveness 00:18:31.019 --> 00:18:31.600 and him going, 00:18:31.700 --> 00:18:32.140 okay, let me see 00:18:32.140 --> 00:18:33.059 whether I can make the way 00:18:33.059 --> 00:18:33.799 for that to happen. 00:18:34.480 --> 00:18:35.379 It's not even God 00:18:35.379 --> 00:18:36.200 building a bridge 00:18:36.200 --> 00:18:36.960 or opening a door 00:18:36.960 --> 00:18:37.659 for us to kind of 00:18:37.659 --> 00:18:38.579 walk across. 00:18:38.680 --> 00:18:39.339 No, this is God 00:18:39.339 --> 00:18:40.399 coming down 00:18:40.399 --> 00:18:41.379 in the person of the Son, 00:18:41.759 --> 00:18:42.680 taking the initiative, 00:18:42.980 --> 00:18:43.879 sending, coming, 00:18:44.119 --> 00:18:45.119 dying, paying 00:18:45.119 --> 00:18:48.460 before we did anything. 00:18:49.759 --> 00:18:50.079 I wonder whether 00:18:50.079 --> 00:18:50.659 you really thought 00:18:50.659 --> 00:18:51.339 about this. 00:18:51.940 --> 00:18:52.079 You know, 00:18:52.119 --> 00:18:52.919 the cross isn't 00:18:52.919 --> 00:18:54.039 really about you. 00:18:54.139 --> 00:18:54.319 I mean, 00:18:54.519 --> 00:18:55.839 I know it is about us 00:18:55.839 --> 00:18:56.359 and in a way 00:18:56.359 --> 00:18:57.139 and we'll get to there 00:18:57.139 --> 00:18:57.500 in a moment, 00:18:57.759 --> 00:18:58.740 but it's really about 00:18:58.740 --> 00:19:00.519 who God is first. 00:19:01.000 --> 00:19:02.779 It's about God's holiness, 00:19:02.779 --> 00:19:04.160 his just, 00:19:04.359 --> 00:19:04.660 right, 00:19:04.839 --> 00:19:05.639 wrathful response 00:19:05.639 --> 00:19:06.039 to sin, 00:19:06.240 --> 00:19:08.180 satisfied in himself. 00:19:09.240 --> 00:19:09.480 You know, 00:19:09.579 --> 00:19:10.440 the cross tells you 00:19:10.440 --> 00:19:11.160 if you didn't know it 00:19:11.160 --> 00:19:11.779 from anywhere else, 00:19:11.839 --> 00:19:12.519 the cross tells you 00:19:12.519 --> 00:19:13.539 God is absolutely 00:19:13.539 --> 00:19:14.700 consistent with himself. 00:19:15.759 --> 00:19:17.680 He is unflinchingly holy. 00:19:18.740 --> 00:19:19.779 God will not, 00:19:19.920 --> 00:19:20.960 even at the price 00:19:20.960 --> 00:19:21.779 of his own Son, 00:19:21.899 --> 00:19:22.839 for a moment 00:19:22.839 --> 00:19:24.220 compromise his holy goodness. 00:19:24.960 --> 00:19:25.519 He won't. 00:19:25.779 --> 00:19:26.440 He can't. 00:19:26.440 --> 00:19:30.100 And he is now able 00:19:30.100 --> 00:19:31.740 to forgive sinners 00:19:31.740 --> 00:19:32.980 with joyful liberty 00:19:32.980 --> 00:19:34.580 and without any compromise 00:19:34.580 --> 00:19:35.420 of his righteousness 00:19:35.420 --> 00:19:36.140 or his goodness 00:19:36.140 --> 00:19:37.360 because of the cross. 00:19:38.440 --> 00:19:38.740 You know, 00:19:38.840 --> 00:19:39.539 the cross of Christ 00:19:39.539 --> 00:19:40.380 means that the forgiveness 00:19:40.380 --> 00:19:41.320 that we've got from God 00:19:41.320 --> 00:19:42.000 is not some kind of 00:19:42.000 --> 00:19:42.900 back alley deal, 00:19:43.039 --> 00:19:43.420 you know, 00:19:43.980 --> 00:19:45.019 where God sort of agree, 00:19:45.100 --> 00:19:45.860 I'll turn a blind eye 00:19:45.860 --> 00:19:47.100 to that for the people I like. 00:19:47.519 --> 00:19:48.039 It's not that, 00:19:48.120 --> 00:19:48.480 is it? 00:19:49.539 --> 00:19:49.759 No, 00:19:49.820 --> 00:19:51.420 sin is always paid for. 00:19:52.420 --> 00:19:53.640 And here it's paid 00:19:53.640 --> 00:19:55.519 by Jesus on the cross 00:19:55.519 --> 00:19:56.240 instead of us 00:19:56.240 --> 00:19:57.440 in the judgment of hell. 00:19:58.740 --> 00:19:59.840 And so because the cross 00:19:59.840 --> 00:20:00.580 we can cry, 00:20:01.019 --> 00:20:01.120 holy, 00:20:01.360 --> 00:20:01.660 holy, 00:20:01.820 --> 00:20:03.200 holy is the Lord God Almighty 00:20:03.200 --> 00:20:05.779 and salvation belongs 00:20:05.779 --> 00:20:06.480 to our God 00:20:06.480 --> 00:20:07.460 who sits on the throne. 00:20:09.759 --> 00:20:10.460 It means, 00:20:10.560 --> 00:20:10.779 doesn't it, 00:20:10.800 --> 00:20:11.460 if you're a Christian 00:20:11.460 --> 00:20:12.140 this morning 00:20:12.140 --> 00:20:13.740 that the holiness of God 00:20:13.740 --> 00:20:14.600 is no longer 00:20:14.600 --> 00:20:15.820 a danger to you. 00:20:16.360 --> 00:20:16.880 In fact, 00:20:16.920 --> 00:20:18.019 it's a joy to you. 00:20:18.259 --> 00:20:18.779 Do you know that? 00:20:20.640 --> 00:20:21.200 When you, 00:20:21.200 --> 00:20:21.779 when you think 00:20:21.779 --> 00:20:23.059 of the holy otherness 00:20:23.059 --> 00:20:23.580 of God, 00:20:24.000 --> 00:20:25.080 the fact that God 00:20:25.080 --> 00:20:26.759 cannot even look on sin, 00:20:26.799 --> 00:20:27.600 it's kind of scary, 00:20:27.720 --> 00:20:28.120 isn't it? 00:20:29.140 --> 00:20:30.580 How awesome he is. 00:20:31.660 --> 00:20:32.160 But actually, 00:20:32.340 --> 00:20:33.519 when you understand 00:20:33.519 --> 00:20:34.200 the cross, 00:20:34.319 --> 00:20:34.920 that everything 00:20:34.920 --> 00:20:35.940 about his holiness 00:20:35.940 --> 00:20:36.819 is satisfied 00:20:36.819 --> 00:20:37.600 in the sacrifice 00:20:37.600 --> 00:20:38.200 of his son 00:20:38.200 --> 00:20:38.860 in our place, 00:20:39.059 --> 00:20:40.080 that means his holiness 00:20:40.080 --> 00:20:40.620 is no longer 00:20:40.620 --> 00:20:41.779 terrifying for you. 00:20:42.340 --> 00:20:43.480 It's a good thing 00:20:43.480 --> 00:20:44.740 for us. 00:20:46.100 --> 00:20:47.319 The cross means 00:20:47.319 --> 00:20:47.900 that the goodness 00:20:47.900 --> 00:20:48.420 of God 00:20:48.420 --> 00:20:49.900 is now wonderfully 00:20:49.900 --> 00:20:51.039 attractive to us. 00:20:51.200 --> 00:20:53.519 Thirdly, 00:20:54.039 --> 00:20:55.200 why does he pay it? 00:20:55.819 --> 00:20:56.680 Why does he pay it? 00:20:57.680 --> 00:20:58.720 It does beg the question, 00:20:58.799 --> 00:20:59.019 doesn't it, 00:20:59.039 --> 00:20:59.200 why? 00:20:59.279 --> 00:20:59.920 Why would God 00:20:59.920 --> 00:21:00.740 choose to go 00:21:00.740 --> 00:21:01.779 to such lengths 00:21:01.779 --> 00:21:03.360 to make a way 00:21:03.360 --> 00:21:04.360 to save his people 00:21:04.360 --> 00:21:05.259 without compromising 00:21:05.259 --> 00:21:05.779 his character? 00:21:07.559 --> 00:21:08.140 I have to say, 00:21:08.220 --> 00:21:09.180 if you smash my television 00:21:09.180 --> 00:21:09.660 with a cup, 00:21:09.720 --> 00:21:10.539 that might be the last time 00:21:10.539 --> 00:21:11.600 you came round to my house, 00:21:11.720 --> 00:21:11.960 right? 00:21:12.660 --> 00:21:13.900 Why does God 00:21:13.900 --> 00:21:15.019 go to such lengths? 00:21:15.740 --> 00:21:15.920 Well, 00:21:15.980 --> 00:21:16.440 read the verse 00:21:16.440 --> 00:21:17.100 and let's see. 00:21:17.880 --> 00:21:18.799 This is love. 00:21:20.000 --> 00:21:21.019 This is love. 00:21:21.580 --> 00:21:22.720 Not that we love God, 00:21:22.779 --> 00:21:23.740 but that he loved us 00:21:23.740 --> 00:21:24.720 and sent his son 00:21:24.720 --> 00:21:25.840 as an atoning sacrifice 00:21:25.840 --> 00:21:26.900 for our sins. 00:21:27.740 --> 00:21:28.240 Verse 11, 00:21:28.380 --> 00:21:29.100 dear friends, 00:21:29.640 --> 00:21:30.220 since God 00:21:30.220 --> 00:21:31.380 so loved us, 00:21:32.340 --> 00:21:33.460 we also 00:21:33.460 --> 00:21:34.320 ought to love 00:21:34.320 --> 00:21:34.940 one another. 00:21:36.279 --> 00:21:37.000 I think of all 00:21:37.000 --> 00:21:37.700 the aspects of this, 00:21:37.759 --> 00:21:38.320 this is both 00:21:38.320 --> 00:21:39.279 the simplest 00:21:39.279 --> 00:21:39.900 to understand, 00:21:40.000 --> 00:21:41.039 but the most astounding. 00:21:41.859 --> 00:21:42.980 God pays the price 00:21:42.980 --> 00:21:43.779 of our forgiveness 00:21:43.779 --> 00:21:45.099 in the death 00:21:45.099 --> 00:21:45.819 of his son 00:21:45.819 --> 00:21:46.819 because 00:21:46.819 --> 00:21:48.899 he loves us. 00:21:49.259 --> 00:21:49.720 That's it. 00:21:50.539 --> 00:21:51.259 In other words, 00:21:51.339 --> 00:21:52.159 God's love 00:21:52.159 --> 00:21:53.920 is not a response 00:21:53.920 --> 00:21:55.220 to our love for him. 00:21:55.539 --> 00:21:57.420 He loves us first. 00:21:58.039 --> 00:21:59.059 It's not even 00:21:59.059 --> 00:22:00.259 a general response 00:22:00.259 --> 00:22:01.119 to the loveliness 00:22:01.119 --> 00:22:01.960 of humanity. 00:22:02.599 --> 00:22:02.879 No. 00:22:03.420 --> 00:22:03.859 Rather, 00:22:04.019 --> 00:22:04.579 God's love 00:22:04.579 --> 00:22:05.359 is not that 00:22:05.359 --> 00:22:06.299 we loved God, 00:22:06.379 --> 00:22:08.519 but that he loved us. 00:22:09.500 --> 00:22:10.000 So here, 00:22:10.079 --> 00:22:10.559 John says 00:22:10.559 --> 00:22:11.319 that God pays 00:22:11.319 --> 00:22:11.919 for our forgiveness 00:22:11.919 --> 00:22:12.579 in the death 00:22:12.579 --> 00:22:13.679 of the son 00:22:13.679 --> 00:22:15.179 because he loves 00:22:15.179 --> 00:22:16.339 sinners, 00:22:17.259 --> 00:22:18.179 people who don't 00:22:18.179 --> 00:22:19.139 yet love him 00:22:19.139 --> 00:22:20.779 in a way 00:22:20.779 --> 00:22:21.399 that's completely 00:22:21.399 --> 00:22:22.379 beyond our understanding. 00:22:22.740 --> 00:22:23.440 This is so important. 00:22:23.519 --> 00:22:24.179 Let me try and prove it 00:22:24.179 --> 00:22:25.039 to you with another passage. 00:22:25.159 --> 00:22:25.659 It's going to come up 00:22:25.659 --> 00:22:26.019 on the screen. 00:22:26.119 --> 00:22:26.980 You might want to turn to it. 00:22:27.299 --> 00:22:28.179 Romans chapter 5, 00:22:28.220 --> 00:22:28.960 verse 6. 00:22:29.759 --> 00:22:31.359 It's page 1132 00:22:31.359 --> 00:22:32.519 if you want to turn to it. 00:22:33.679 --> 00:22:34.639 Paul writes this. 00:22:34.839 --> 00:22:35.460 You see, 00:22:36.220 --> 00:22:37.819 just at the right time, 00:22:38.519 --> 00:22:39.919 when we were still powerless, 00:22:39.920 --> 00:22:41.680 Christ died for the ungodly. 00:22:42.539 --> 00:22:43.740 Very rarely will anyone 00:22:43.740 --> 00:22:45.220 die for a righteous person, 00:22:45.279 --> 00:22:46.180 though for a good person, 00:22:46.300 --> 00:22:47.240 someone might possibly 00:22:47.240 --> 00:22:48.060 dare to die. 00:22:48.620 --> 00:22:49.360 Oh, they're good enough. 00:22:49.420 --> 00:22:50.220 I might give my life 00:22:50.220 --> 00:22:50.600 for them. 00:22:51.279 --> 00:22:52.420 But God demonstrates 00:22:52.420 --> 00:22:53.720 his own love for us 00:22:53.720 --> 00:22:54.340 in this. 00:22:54.900 --> 00:22:56.580 While we were still sinners, 00:22:56.779 --> 00:22:59.320 Christ died for us. 00:22:59.900 --> 00:23:00.940 It's exactly the same, 00:23:01.019 --> 00:23:01.400 isn't it? 00:23:01.940 --> 00:23:03.100 God demonstrates 00:23:03.100 --> 00:23:03.680 his love 00:23:03.680 --> 00:23:04.759 by Christ's death 00:23:04.759 --> 00:23:06.560 while we were still sinners. 00:23:06.559 --> 00:23:09.059 I said last week 00:23:09.059 --> 00:23:10.419 that substitution 00:23:10.419 --> 00:23:11.460 means, 00:23:11.659 --> 00:23:12.700 the doctrine of the 00:23:12.700 --> 00:23:14.019 substitution of Jesus Christ 00:23:14.019 --> 00:23:14.440 at the cross, 00:23:14.519 --> 00:23:15.259 means that 00:23:15.259 --> 00:23:16.519 my contribution 00:23:16.519 --> 00:23:17.279 to salvation 00:23:17.279 --> 00:23:18.379 is my sin, right? 00:23:18.419 --> 00:23:18.980 Because that's been 00:23:18.980 --> 00:23:20.059 counted over 00:23:20.059 --> 00:23:20.879 to the Lord Jesus. 00:23:21.579 --> 00:23:22.059 Well, here, 00:23:22.159 --> 00:23:22.460 if you like, 00:23:22.500 --> 00:23:23.899 it's exactly the same story. 00:23:24.259 --> 00:23:25.419 What is my contribution 00:23:25.419 --> 00:23:26.879 to the love of God? 00:23:27.440 --> 00:23:28.819 What is it that I have done 00:23:28.819 --> 00:23:29.539 that's made myself 00:23:29.539 --> 00:23:31.019 so attractive to God? 00:23:31.460 --> 00:23:32.659 Well, nothing really. 00:23:32.720 --> 00:23:33.319 I'm a sinner. 00:23:33.319 --> 00:23:35.740 But God loves sinners. 00:23:36.759 --> 00:23:37.740 He loves sinners. 00:23:38.220 --> 00:23:39.339 Not because he approves 00:23:39.339 --> 00:23:40.480 of their lifestyle choices. 00:23:40.619 --> 00:23:41.319 Not because he doesn't 00:23:41.319 --> 00:23:41.960 judge sin. 00:23:42.299 --> 00:23:43.480 Not because sin itself 00:23:43.480 --> 00:23:44.220 doesn't arouse 00:23:44.220 --> 00:23:45.139 his righteous anger. 00:23:45.519 --> 00:23:46.200 It's not because God 00:23:46.200 --> 00:23:47.159 has no standards. 00:23:47.319 --> 00:23:48.319 No, the cross screams 00:23:48.879 --> 00:23:50.319 the moral justice of God. 00:23:51.099 --> 00:23:52.299 Rather, the point is 00:23:52.299 --> 00:23:52.919 that the God 00:23:52.919 --> 00:23:54.579 who is love, 00:23:55.299 --> 00:23:55.819 freely, 00:23:55.980 --> 00:23:57.079 for reasons only 00:23:57.079 --> 00:23:58.279 understood by him, 00:23:58.700 --> 00:23:59.599 freely chooses 00:23:59.599 --> 00:24:01.059 to love sinners 00:24:01.059 --> 00:24:02.500 like you and me. 00:24:03.319 --> 00:24:04.639 Incredible as that might be. 00:24:06.059 --> 00:24:06.779 In fact, 00:24:06.859 --> 00:24:07.460 according to John, 00:24:07.519 --> 00:24:08.720 this is the very definition 00:24:08.720 --> 00:24:09.460 of God's love. 00:24:09.899 --> 00:24:10.899 God is love, 00:24:10.960 --> 00:24:11.339 he says, 00:24:11.460 --> 00:24:12.599 and the overspill 00:24:12.599 --> 00:24:13.559 of his character 00:24:13.559 --> 00:24:15.359 is as it overspills 00:24:15.359 --> 00:24:16.619 onto the undeserving. 00:24:17.500 --> 00:24:17.980 God's love 00:24:17.980 --> 00:24:19.799 is by its very nature 00:24:19.799 --> 00:24:20.619 not deserved 00:24:20.619 --> 00:24:21.240 or earned 00:24:21.240 --> 00:24:21.779 or merited. 00:24:22.299 --> 00:24:23.460 Anything it is, 00:24:23.519 --> 00:24:24.460 it's spilling out 00:24:24.460 --> 00:24:25.720 from God's very character. 00:24:26.399 --> 00:24:27.319 And so he lovingly 00:24:27.319 --> 00:24:28.059 doesn't compromise 00:24:28.059 --> 00:24:28.839 his justice 00:24:28.839 --> 00:24:29.740 or act as if 00:24:29.740 --> 00:24:30.480 sin doesn't matter. 00:24:30.919 --> 00:24:31.639 He upholds 00:24:31.639 --> 00:24:32.099 the holiness 00:24:32.099 --> 00:24:32.839 of his character 00:24:32.839 --> 00:24:34.059 while in love 00:24:34.059 --> 00:24:35.579 saving the lost 00:24:35.579 --> 00:24:36.519 by paying the price 00:24:36.519 --> 00:24:37.179 for their sin. 00:24:40.339 --> 00:24:40.859 Again, 00:24:40.939 --> 00:24:41.439 can we just 00:24:41.439 --> 00:24:42.399 pause there 00:24:42.399 --> 00:24:43.299 and can I ask you 00:24:43.299 --> 00:24:43.719 the question 00:24:43.719 --> 00:24:44.679 whether you've seen 00:24:44.679 --> 00:24:45.359 that God 00:24:45.359 --> 00:24:47.039 really loves you? 00:24:48.759 --> 00:24:49.980 God loves you. 00:24:50.719 --> 00:24:51.339 And that's not 00:24:51.339 --> 00:24:51.919 because he has 00:24:51.919 --> 00:24:52.740 a gushy feeling 00:24:52.740 --> 00:24:53.799 welling up inside of him 00:24:53.799 --> 00:24:55.079 when he thinks about you. 00:24:55.679 --> 00:24:56.879 It's way better than that. 00:24:57.480 --> 00:24:58.480 God loves you 00:24:58.480 --> 00:24:59.519 even in the depths 00:24:59.519 --> 00:25:00.259 of your sin 00:25:00.259 --> 00:25:01.740 and so provides 00:25:01.740 --> 00:25:02.180 a way through 00:25:02.180 --> 00:25:03.299 the atoning sacrifice 00:25:03.299 --> 00:25:03.759 of the Son 00:25:03.759 --> 00:25:05.259 to save you. 00:25:06.700 --> 00:25:08.579 And you do know, 00:25:08.720 --> 00:25:09.119 don't you, 00:25:09.160 --> 00:25:09.940 as I say to you 00:25:09.940 --> 00:25:10.720 that God loves you, 00:25:10.819 --> 00:25:11.480 you know 00:25:11.480 --> 00:25:12.579 that no one else 00:25:12.579 --> 00:25:12.940 in the world 00:25:12.940 --> 00:25:13.779 loves you like that. 00:25:14.879 --> 00:25:15.599 No one else 00:25:15.599 --> 00:25:16.400 loves you like that. 00:25:17.460 --> 00:25:18.500 There is not a person 00:25:18.500 --> 00:25:19.039 in your life 00:25:19.039 --> 00:25:19.759 that if you didn't, 00:25:20.039 --> 00:25:20.920 if you shared with them 00:25:20.920 --> 00:25:22.000 exactly what was going on 00:25:22.000 --> 00:25:22.519 in your head 00:25:22.519 --> 00:25:23.700 at every single moment 00:25:23.700 --> 00:25:24.619 that they would still 00:25:24.619 --> 00:25:25.400 feel the same way 00:25:25.400 --> 00:25:26.019 about you. 00:25:27.280 --> 00:25:28.280 Maybe you're married. 00:25:29.160 --> 00:25:30.280 You know that's true, 00:25:30.360 --> 00:25:30.680 don't you? 00:25:32.120 --> 00:25:33.000 You know that's true 00:25:33.000 --> 00:25:34.100 of your parents. 00:25:34.840 --> 00:25:35.140 And so, 00:25:35.300 --> 00:25:36.280 to some measure 00:25:36.280 --> 00:25:36.759 or other, 00:25:36.980 --> 00:25:38.019 we are always going 00:25:38.019 --> 00:25:38.759 about this process 00:25:38.759 --> 00:25:39.620 of kind of hiding 00:25:39.620 --> 00:25:40.740 ourselves from one another 00:25:40.740 --> 00:25:41.960 in order to make sure 00:25:41.960 --> 00:25:43.140 that we don't compromise 00:25:43.140 --> 00:25:44.759 people's love for us. 00:25:45.259 --> 00:25:46.320 Because we're afraid 00:25:46.320 --> 00:25:47.280 if they really saw 00:25:47.280 --> 00:25:48.220 what we were really like, 00:25:48.280 --> 00:25:48.700 they wouldn't want 00:25:48.700 --> 00:25:49.259 anything to do 00:25:49.259 --> 00:25:49.800 with us anymore. 00:25:52.340 --> 00:25:53.200 But God knows 00:25:53.200 --> 00:25:53.900 all about you. 00:25:53.900 --> 00:25:55.560 He knows everything 00:25:55.560 --> 00:25:56.100 you've done. 00:25:57.000 --> 00:25:57.600 He knows everywhere 00:25:57.600 --> 00:25:58.160 you've been. 00:25:58.920 --> 00:25:59.780 He knows the thoughts 00:25:59.780 --> 00:26:00.400 of your heart. 00:26:00.500 --> 00:26:01.000 He knows what you're 00:26:01.000 --> 00:26:01.940 thinking right now. 00:26:02.040 --> 00:26:02.680 He knows where you're 00:26:02.680 --> 00:26:03.420 going this week. 00:26:03.500 --> 00:26:05.440 He knows what you will do. 00:26:05.900 --> 00:26:07.200 And He loves you. 00:26:07.820 --> 00:26:08.440 He loves you. 00:26:09.620 --> 00:26:10.440 There's no one else 00:26:10.440 --> 00:26:10.880 like that. 00:26:12.660 --> 00:26:13.259 Finally then, 00:26:13.320 --> 00:26:13.740 what difference 00:26:13.740 --> 00:26:14.440 does this make? 00:26:14.620 --> 00:26:15.060 What difference 00:26:15.060 --> 00:26:15.560 does this make? 00:26:15.620 --> 00:26:16.240 Just as we finish, 00:26:16.360 --> 00:26:16.900 I want to look 00:26:16.900 --> 00:26:17.519 just a little bit 00:26:17.519 --> 00:26:18.620 outside of verse 10 00:26:18.620 --> 00:26:19.580 to see what difference 00:26:19.580 --> 00:26:20.840 this penalty-paying love 00:26:20.840 --> 00:26:22.140 makes to us. 00:26:22.960 --> 00:26:23.780 Just have a look down 00:26:23.779 --> 00:26:24.559 at verse 7. 00:26:25.440 --> 00:26:26.180 Dear friends, 00:26:26.740 --> 00:26:28.099 let us love one another 00:26:28.099 --> 00:26:30.200 for love comes from God. 00:26:30.859 --> 00:26:31.899 Everyone who loves 00:26:31.899 --> 00:26:32.879 has been born of God 00:26:32.879 --> 00:26:33.619 and knows God. 00:26:33.720 --> 00:26:34.720 Whoever does not love 00:26:34.720 --> 00:26:35.740 does not know God 00:26:35.740 --> 00:26:37.779 because God is love. 00:26:38.619 --> 00:26:39.379 This is how God 00:26:39.379 --> 00:26:40.440 showed His love among us. 00:26:40.519 --> 00:26:41.960 He sent His one 00:26:41.960 --> 00:26:42.700 and only Son 00:26:42.700 --> 00:26:43.339 into the world 00:26:43.339 --> 00:26:44.220 that we might live 00:26:44.220 --> 00:26:44.819 through Him. 00:26:45.539 --> 00:26:46.539 This is love. 00:26:46.899 --> 00:26:48.119 Not that we love God, 00:26:48.180 --> 00:26:49.399 but that He loved us 00:26:49.399 --> 00:26:50.819 and sent His Son 00:26:50.819 --> 00:26:52.200 as an atoning sacrifice 00:26:52.200 --> 00:26:53.159 for our sins. 00:26:53.859 --> 00:26:54.639 Dear friends, 00:26:55.079 --> 00:26:57.240 since God so loved us, 00:26:57.379 --> 00:26:58.899 we also ought 00:26:58.899 --> 00:26:59.859 to love one another. 00:27:00.599 --> 00:27:01.259 No one has ever 00:27:01.259 --> 00:27:01.879 seen God, 00:27:01.939 --> 00:27:02.980 but if we love one another, 00:27:03.079 --> 00:27:03.879 God lives in us 00:27:03.879 --> 00:27:04.539 and His love 00:27:04.539 --> 00:27:06.099 is made complete in us. 00:27:07.379 --> 00:27:08.460 Notice what John 00:27:08.460 --> 00:27:09.119 is saying here 00:27:09.119 --> 00:27:10.639 about this love of God 00:27:10.639 --> 00:27:11.659 in Christ's sacrifice. 00:27:12.099 --> 00:27:12.960 Notice that he's saying 00:27:12.960 --> 00:27:14.200 it changes us. 00:27:14.740 --> 00:27:15.500 In verse 7, 00:27:15.599 --> 00:27:16.019 he says that 00:27:16.019 --> 00:27:17.179 encountering this love 00:27:17.180 --> 00:27:18.940 is like being reborn 00:27:18.940 --> 00:27:19.759 into someone 00:27:19.759 --> 00:27:21.299 who then loves others 00:27:21.299 --> 00:27:22.420 in the same way 00:27:22.420 --> 00:27:23.380 that God has loved us. 00:27:23.660 --> 00:27:24.039 He says, 00:27:24.180 --> 00:27:24.539 verse 7, 00:27:24.680 --> 00:27:25.660 everyone who loves 00:27:25.660 --> 00:27:27.279 has been born of God. 00:27:27.759 --> 00:27:28.720 The logic here 00:27:28.720 --> 00:27:30.680 is that if we are able 00:27:30.680 --> 00:27:31.779 to love like God, 00:27:31.940 --> 00:27:32.820 it is because we, 00:27:33.240 --> 00:27:34.380 not because we're good people 00:27:34.380 --> 00:27:35.360 or because we're particularly 00:27:35.360 --> 00:27:36.299 good at this kind of thing, 00:27:36.560 --> 00:27:37.560 it's because that love 00:27:37.560 --> 00:27:38.640 has not come from us, 00:27:38.680 --> 00:27:39.900 it's come from God Himself. 00:27:40.100 --> 00:27:41.860 We have been born of God 00:27:41.860 --> 00:27:43.640 into these kind of lovers. 00:27:43.640 --> 00:27:48.520 It's not so much that, 00:27:49.060 --> 00:27:49.360 sorry, 00:27:49.460 --> 00:27:51.160 so much so that the loveless 00:27:51.160 --> 00:27:52.720 are those who haven't 00:27:52.720 --> 00:27:53.940 encountered this love. 00:27:54.880 --> 00:27:55.680 Those who are unable 00:27:55.680 --> 00:27:56.580 to love like this 00:27:56.580 --> 00:27:57.540 is because they haven't 00:27:57.540 --> 00:27:58.400 been loved like this 00:27:58.400 --> 00:27:59.100 by God. 00:27:59.780 --> 00:28:00.720 Verse 9 pretty much 00:28:00.720 --> 00:28:01.680 repeats the same point, 00:28:01.780 --> 00:28:02.320 but here the image 00:28:02.320 --> 00:28:03.580 is not birth but life. 00:28:04.140 --> 00:28:05.380 So we live through 00:28:05.380 --> 00:28:06.560 the one and only Son 00:28:06.560 --> 00:28:08.040 who was sent into the world 00:28:08.040 --> 00:28:08.920 to lovingly pay 00:28:08.920 --> 00:28:09.960 the penalty for our sin. 00:28:11.259 --> 00:28:12.540 The verses are really dense, 00:28:12.660 --> 00:28:12.800 aren't they? 00:28:12.799 --> 00:28:13.879 There's a lot going on here 00:28:13.879 --> 00:28:14.599 but the big idea 00:28:14.599 --> 00:28:15.399 is really simple, 00:28:15.799 --> 00:28:16.619 that encountering 00:28:16.619 --> 00:28:17.500 the love of God 00:28:17.500 --> 00:28:18.759 in the wrath-bearing 00:28:18.759 --> 00:28:19.819 penal substitution 00:28:19.819 --> 00:28:20.440 of the cross 00:28:20.440 --> 00:28:22.180 remakes us. 00:28:22.839 --> 00:28:24.099 It remakes us. 00:28:24.839 --> 00:28:25.399 John is like, 00:28:25.839 --> 00:28:26.500 it's like saying 00:28:26.500 --> 00:28:28.980 encountering Christ's cross 00:28:28.980 --> 00:28:30.440 is as significant 00:28:30.440 --> 00:28:31.960 as being created 00:28:31.960 --> 00:28:33.159 in the first place 00:28:33.159 --> 00:28:34.480 because you are being 00:28:34.480 --> 00:28:35.819 remade. 00:28:36.180 --> 00:28:36.700 You are being given 00:28:36.700 --> 00:28:38.240 a new life to live 00:28:38.240 --> 00:28:39.619 and you are now living it 00:28:39.619 --> 00:28:40.919 not in that old way 00:28:40.919 --> 00:28:42.220 but you are living it now 00:28:42.220 --> 00:28:43.339 through the love of God 00:28:43.339 --> 00:28:44.500 seen at the cross 00:28:44.500 --> 00:28:46.039 bringing a life 00:28:46.039 --> 00:28:47.100 that we've not experienced 00:28:47.100 --> 00:28:48.059 before that's capable 00:28:48.059 --> 00:28:49.220 of loving others 00:28:49.220 --> 00:28:49.960 in a way that we were 00:28:49.960 --> 00:28:50.980 not capable before. 00:28:52.860 --> 00:28:53.220 You know, 00:28:53.240 --> 00:28:54.559 we sometimes experience this, 00:28:54.620 --> 00:28:54.779 don't we, 00:28:54.779 --> 00:28:55.539 on a human level. 00:28:55.700 --> 00:28:56.420 You know when you've 00:28:56.420 --> 00:28:57.420 fallen out with a friend 00:28:57.420 --> 00:28:59.519 and then you are able 00:28:59.519 --> 00:29:00.500 to sit down together 00:29:00.500 --> 00:29:01.500 and have a conversation 00:29:01.500 --> 00:29:02.720 and you agree 00:29:02.720 --> 00:29:03.880 that the debt will be paid 00:29:03.880 --> 00:29:04.579 and that forgiveness 00:29:04.579 --> 00:29:06.220 will mean reconciliation 00:29:06.220 --> 00:29:07.279 for the two of you 00:29:07.279 --> 00:29:08.559 and as you walk out 00:29:08.559 --> 00:29:09.460 from that kind of meeting 00:29:09.460 --> 00:29:10.279 there's a new kind 00:29:10.279 --> 00:29:11.099 of freshness, 00:29:11.200 --> 00:29:11.539 isn't there? 00:29:11.920 --> 00:29:12.720 It's like you've been 00:29:12.720 --> 00:29:13.980 reborn again 00:29:13.980 --> 00:29:15.279 in your relationship. 00:29:16.039 --> 00:29:16.759 This is that 00:29:16.759 --> 00:29:17.899 but on a whole new level 00:29:17.899 --> 00:29:19.539 that through the cross 00:29:19.539 --> 00:29:20.519 we are reconciled 00:29:20.519 --> 00:29:21.619 to the God who made us. 00:29:22.000 --> 00:29:23.000 The death sentence 00:29:23.000 --> 00:29:24.519 that was hanging over us 00:29:24.519 --> 00:29:25.299 has been lifted 00:29:25.299 --> 00:29:26.180 through Christ's 00:29:26.180 --> 00:29:27.039 atoning sacrifice 00:29:27.039 --> 00:29:29.180 and we are remade 00:29:29.180 --> 00:29:30.660 to live new lives. 00:29:31.259 --> 00:29:32.680 Coming to Christ, 00:29:33.099 --> 00:29:34.339 trusting in him, 00:29:34.339 --> 00:29:35.959 receiving the forgiveness 00:29:35.959 --> 00:29:36.559 of the cross 00:29:36.559 --> 00:29:37.980 is nothing less significant 00:29:37.980 --> 00:29:38.859 than being made 00:29:38.859 --> 00:29:39.899 completely new, 00:29:40.539 --> 00:29:41.059 says John, 00:29:41.959 --> 00:29:42.919 and new in a way 00:29:42.919 --> 00:29:44.119 that is able to love 00:29:44.119 --> 00:29:45.220 and forgive others. 00:29:45.919 --> 00:29:46.899 A life that is even 00:29:46.899 --> 00:29:47.799 able to do that 00:29:47.799 --> 00:29:48.539 to the extent 00:29:48.539 --> 00:29:50.339 to which it reveals God 00:29:50.339 --> 00:29:51.519 to other people. 00:29:52.480 --> 00:29:53.399 A love that can't 00:29:53.399 --> 00:29:54.299 generate itself 00:29:54.299 --> 00:29:55.779 but comes from 00:29:55.779 --> 00:29:57.019 the power of the cross. 00:29:57.480 --> 00:29:58.519 The cross, if you like, 00:29:58.939 --> 00:29:59.879 is the kind of 00:29:59.879 --> 00:30:01.500 moral capital 00:30:01.500 --> 00:30:03.359 that pours into us 00:30:03.359 --> 00:30:05.039 and flows out of us 00:30:05.039 --> 00:30:06.759 to those around us 00:30:06.759 --> 00:30:08.579 as Christ dies 00:30:08.579 --> 00:30:10.079 facing my punishment 00:30:10.079 --> 00:30:12.019 in my place. 00:30:12.799 --> 00:30:13.519 Let's pause 00:30:13.519 --> 00:30:14.559 and have a moment 00:30:14.559 --> 00:30:15.379 for quiet prayer 00:30:15.379 --> 00:30:16.319 and then I'll pray 00:30:16.319 --> 00:30:17.379 for us. 00:30:33.359 --> 00:30:40.099 Heavenly Father, 00:30:40.179 --> 00:30:41.719 we thank you so much 00:30:41.719 --> 00:30:43.079 that you love us. 00:30:44.119 --> 00:30:46.959 As unlovely as we are, 00:30:47.759 --> 00:30:49.319 you love us. 00:30:50.679 --> 00:30:51.679 And not with a kind of 00:30:51.679 --> 00:30:52.459 sentimental, 00:30:53.159 --> 00:30:53.759 gushy love 00:30:53.759 --> 00:30:54.579 but with a 00:30:54.579 --> 00:30:55.879 committed, 00:30:56.659 --> 00:30:57.319 active, 00:30:58.479 --> 00:30:59.419 saving love 00:30:59.420 --> 00:31:01.640 that you sent 00:31:01.640 --> 00:31:02.160 your son, 00:31:02.240 --> 00:31:03.360 the Lord Jesus Christ 00:31:03.360 --> 00:31:04.680 to face 00:31:04.680 --> 00:31:05.580 our punishment 00:31:05.580 --> 00:31:06.539 and die 00:31:06.539 --> 00:31:07.600 in our place. 00:31:08.400 --> 00:31:09.380 How we praise 00:31:09.380 --> 00:31:10.039 and thank you 00:31:10.039 --> 00:31:10.480 for Jesus. 00:31:11.820 --> 00:31:12.519 Give us, we pray, 00:31:12.600 --> 00:31:13.500 just even this morning 00:31:13.500 --> 00:31:14.620 a fresh grasp 00:31:14.620 --> 00:31:15.600 on what he has done 00:31:15.600 --> 00:31:16.800 that we might 00:31:16.800 --> 00:31:17.660 love one another 00:31:17.660 --> 00:31:19.180 as he has loved us. 00:31:19.640 --> 00:31:20.759 In Jesus' name. 00:31:21.480 --> 00:31:21.840 Amen. 00:31:21.840 --> 00:31:22.100 Amen. 00:31:22.100 --> 00:31:22.160 Amen. 00:31:22.160 --> 00:31:22.160 00:31:22.160 --> 00:31:22.160 00:31:22.160 --> 00:31:22.160 00:31:22.160 --> 00:31:22.160