So our text this morning is in Matthew 27, verse 45 through 62.
If you don't have a Bible, please raise your hand.
! We'd love to get you a Bible.
If you'd love to have a Bible and follow along with us,
please raise your hand if you don't have a Bible and like to have one.
Great.
Well, guys, as I said, I feel utterly inadequate,
and we need God's help this morning.
We need God's help.
We need Him to open the eyes of our minds and our hearts to His Word.
So would you join with me in prayer as we approach God's Word together?
Father, You are glorious.
Father, Your plan of salvation from before the beginning of time,
Father, is made known to us.
It's been made known to us throughout the Gospel of Matthew, but clearly here.
So, God, we ask that You would open the eyes of our heart
for each one of us personally and as an entire church to just glean,
glean at the foot of the cross,
to see the glorious cross and the glorious death of Christ
in light of our lives,
to see Your love poured out here on the cross of Christ for our sake.
Lord, please, grow us deeper in understanding this now, we pray.
Amen.
Now, would you stand with me for the reading of God's Word?
Again, we are in Matthew chapter 27, verses 45 to 62.
Now, from the sixth hour, there was darkness over all the land until the ninth hour.
And about the ninth hour, Jesus cried out with a loud voice saying,
Eli, Eli, lama sabakrani?
This is my God, my God, why have You forsaken me?
And some of the bystanders hearing it said,
this man is calling Elijah.
And one of them at once ran to took a sponge,
filled it with sour wine, and put it on a reed,
and gave it to him to drink.
But the other said, wait, let us see whether Elijah will come to save him.
And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded up his spirit.
And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom,
and the earth shook, and the rocks were split.
The tombs were also opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised.
And coming out of the tombs after his resurrection,
they went into the holy city and appeared to many.
When the centurion and those who were with him,
keeping watch over Jesus,
saw the earthquake and what took place,
they were filled with awe and said,
truly, this was the Son of God.
There were also many women there,
looking on from a distance,
who had followed Jesus from Galilee,
ministering to him,
among whom were Mary Magdalene and Mary,
the mother of James and Joseph,
and the mother of the sons of Zebedee.
When it was evening,
there came a rich man from Arimathea named Joseph,
who also was a disciple of Jesus.
He went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus.
Then Pilate ordered it to be given to him.
And Joseph took the body
and wrapped it in a clean linen shroud
and laid it in his own new tomb,
which he had cut in the rock.
And he rolled a great stone
to the entrance of the tomb and went away.
Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were there,
sitting opposite of the tomb.
May the Lord add a blessing to the reading of his word.
A news outlet of a small town
once reported two brothers
who decide to play on mounded sandbanks
formed by the dredging that keeps a river channel clear,
dredging that pumps the sand
from the bottom of the river out
into big mounds along a river bank.
When the young boys were late for dinner
and darkness filled the sky,
a search began.
One of the boys had stepped on a crust of sand
hiding a large void
formed by the dredging of the wet sand
from the river bottom.
When the crust gave way,
the boy fell,
plunged into the deep, dark void
with its sand walls collapsing in on him.
Everything went dark.
Later, searchers found the young brother,
unconscious,
buried up to his shoulders in sand.
And when he aroused through consciousness,
rescuers frantically asked,
where is your brother?
The child replied,
I'm standing upon his shoulders.
The older brother gave up his life
so that the younger brother might live.
We're all moved by stories like this,
aren't we?
Hollywood wants to capture these stories
and feed them to us.
And we're captivated by stories like this.
That greater love has no one than this.
That someone laid down his life for his friends.
We all long for such love.
And those who are followers of Jesus
have all received such love.
Each one of you who have confessed Christ
have received his love.
Jesus died so that we might live.
He was forsaken so that we might be forgiven
and accepted.
He bore the wrath of God
so that we might receive the mercy of God.
So this passage before us is astounding.
And just as last week,
we saw the beginning of Christ's execution
beginning through the perspective
of those actively involved.
A battalion of Roman soldiers
gathering to flog him,
mock him, spit on him,
and nailing him to the cross.
Jewish leaders demanding for his death.
Gathering to watch his execution
and their approval,
reviling him and mocking him.
Abandoned by his friends.
Abandoned by the ones that followed him.
His disciples.
Abandoned and rejected by all of humanity.
So just when you thought,
just when it might have not,
couldn't get any darker than that.
We arrive here in verse 45.
Matthew highlights a sudden change of scenery
and zooms in,
zooms in the lens on Jesus
and Jesus' interaction on the cross.
Which brings us to our first point this morning.
Christ was forsaken.
In verses 45 through 50,
we see Christ was forsaken.
Matthew tells us that the sixth hour,
as Jesus hangs on the cross,
darkness fills the sky
and covers the land.
And this is no ordinary darkness.
This darkness that descends
comes in the middle of the day.
The sixth hour, which is 12 noon,
and lasts for three hours.
When the sun is at its very peak,
darkness descends and covers the land.
You can't explain this away simply
as some naturally occurring event.
You might ask,
well, what about solar eclipses?
Well, the Passover actually takes place
on the very day of a full moon.
And as we know,
a solar eclipse can't happen on a full moon.
While everyone is expecting light,
there is darkness.
Darkness covering the land.
And all of creation's light is being put out.
Darkness is descending.
It's like creation is put into reverse.
It's being undone.
It actually takes us back
to the beginning of time
in Genesis chapter one,
verses one through three.
In the beginning,
God created the heavens and the earth.
And the earth was without form and void.
And darkness was over the face of the deep.
Creation begins with darkness,
and it gives way to light.
And God said,
let there be light.
And there was light.
But here,
there's darkness.
At the beginning of Matthew's gospel,
Matthew kicks off Jesus' ministry
with the reminder
of God's promise to his people
by quoting Isaiah 9,
chapter 9, verse 2.
The people who walked in darkness
have seen a great light.
And those who have dwelt
in a land of deep darkness,
on them has light shown.
Jesus enters into time,
born as a baby.
His life is marked as one with great light.
The bright star that would lead the wise men
from far from the east.
As they exceedingly rejoiced
at its great appearing,
knowing it would lead them to the king.
The shepherds
tending to their flock
in the thick of darkness of the night.
Suddenly,
having a great light
bursting forth around them,
and as a choir of angels
comes to announce
the coming of the king.
Giving praise for his coming.
The scriptures clearly point
to Jesus' coming
as the light of the world.
Clearly,
as the radiance of God's glory.
Now,
at the sixth to ninth hour,
when light,
when light should be shining
at its brightest,
darkness,
has covered the land.
And this darkness
envelops over Christ.
It envelops him
as he bears the cross,
as he is
hanging there
on the cross,
which points to
a greater spirituality.
Spiritual reality
that is happening,
signifying that something
in the created order
is terribly wrong.
creation
is becoming undone.
There is a separation,
a separation
of how things
were made to be.
They are not
as they are made
to be right now.
Men
and women
were made
to be
in right relationship
with God.
Be union
with God
in perfect harmony.
Christ,
though,
here,
the light
of the world
is being snuffed out
as darkness
descends
and God's judgment
comes down.
But you ask,
how can this be?
How can the
promised Messiah,
the Christ,
the King of the cosmos,
publicly die like this?
that the Son
of God
would be hanging
on a tree?
This,
my friends,
was the plan
of the Trinity,
the Trinitarian plan
from the beginning
that Jesus Christ,
the God-man,
would become sin
on our behalf.
He himself,
the innocent one,
would bear
the full weight
of God's
just wrath,
the penalty
of rebellious sinners,
you and me.
But this is no
mere physical
penalty
that he is taking,
but it is a
deeply spiritual
penalty
he is bearing.
As he bears
the weight
of the sin
of the whole world,
here we see
he is also
forsaken.
forsaken,
not just
by anyone,
not just
by humans,
not just
by his friends
around him,
but he is
forsaken
by the Father,
his heavenly
Father.
And he now
knows
the complete
separation.
He knows
the separation
of God
the Father.
Out of this
darkness,
he lifts
his voice.
is not
a voice
of creating,
but is a
cry
of lament,
a cry
of being
undone.
My God,
my God,
why have
you forsaken
me?
To understand
forsakenness,
Michael Lawrence
gives us this
short little
pithy statement
that's very
helpful.
To be forsaken
by God
is to know
the judicial
stroke of
eternal justice.
To be forsaken
by God
is to know
the judicial
stroke of
eternal justice.
Deep in this
darkness,
in the final
three hours
of his life
on the cross,
Christ
experienced
this judicial
stroke of
eternal justice
on our behalf.
He bore it all.
Christ
experienced
hell
here on
the cross.
The infinite
wrath
of the
omnipotent
God
to the
very last
drop
of that
wrath.
As 2 Corinthians
chapter 5
verse 21
helps us
understand,
for our
sake,
for our
sake,
he made
him to
be sin
who knew
no sin
so that
in him
we might
become
the
righteousness
of God.
When I
was 12,
my brother
15,
my sister
16,
my dad
took us
12 hours
away from
home to
visit my
uncle.
I was a little
confused.
I didn't know
why we were
going so far
away from
home,
just us,
just the
four of
us.
But as I
was sitting
alone in
the backyard
of my
uncle's
house,
it dawned
on me.
I realized
what was
happening.
My parents
were getting
a divorce
and all
of a sudden
it's like
darkness
fell.
All of a
sudden I
felt all
alone.
more
alone
than I
had
ever
felt
before.
But the
reality was
I wasn't
utterly
alone.
I still
have my
family
inside.
I still
have my
family.
But have
you ever
experienced
a time
in your
life
when you
felt
utterly
alone?
a taste
maybe
of what
it feels
like to
be
forsaken.
Oh,
friends,
what it
must have
been like
for the
Son of
God who
has only
known God's
favor for
eternity,
from
eternity's
past.
Christ,
this is
my beloved
Son,
in whom
is my
delight,
the words
of the
Father
speaking over
his Son.
But yet
now to
be left
to die
on the
cross
alone
by his
Father.
As Isaiah
chapter 53
verse 10
says,
it was
the will
of the
Lord to
crush
him.
He has
put him
to grief.
Oh,
what it
is to
be put
to grief
by his
own
loving
Father.
But yet
this is
what we
deserved.
This is
what each
and every
one of
you
deserved.
You and
I,
we deserve
to be
utterly
forsaken
by God.
Oh,
what a
mystery.
What a
mystery that
it is that
is going
on here
on the
cross
on our
behalf.
Where the
Son of
God,
fully God,
fully man,
was forsaken
by God
the Father
on our
behalf.
But make
no mistake
here.
Make no
mistake.
There is no
rupture here
happening
between the
triune
God.
The
Trinity
is still
one
here,
working
together
in
unison
to
secure
our
salvation.
Oh,
what a
glorious
truth.
That the
fullness of
God would
be on
display
to secure
a great
salvation
for each
and every
one of
us.
Yet we
will never
fully
comprehend
this love
of God
that is
being poured
out here
on our
behalf.
Friends,
I want to
encourage you.
It's easy
here in the
moment,
it's easy
to minimize
the anger
of God,
to do away
with the
wrath of
God,
to explain it
away.
When someone
asks you
about the
gospel,
to just
focus solely
on the
love of
God,
because we
don't fully
understand this
mystery of
what is
going on
here.
Sometimes it
feels scary
to us when
we think
about this,
we think
about the
wrath of
God.
But I
encourage you
as you
dwell on
this moment,
as you
dwell on
this scene,
as you
read the
scriptures and
you see them
all pointing
to this
very moment,
you will
see that it
is God's
perfect love
being poured
out,
God's
perfect justice
being poured
out.
In his
wrath against
sin,
against sinners
and their
rebellion,
we cannot,
we cannot
have the
love of God
without the
justice of
God.
God in
his perfect
justice
must repay
sinners for
their rebellion.
God would
not be
loving.
if he
did not
pour out
his wrath
on the
rebellious
sinners of
this world
against
sin.
The
bystanders
here,
as we
see as
we go
into the
next scene
here,
and as
Jesus is
crying out
in his
forsakenness,
they hear
him.
The
bystanders
in the
darkness
of the
cross,
they hear
his cry
and they
actually
think that
this man
is calling
for the
prophet
Elijah.
In
verse 47,
this man
is calling
for Elijah.
Let us
see if
he'll come
down and
save him.
But as
we recall
earlier in
Matthew,
Elijah has
already
came.
He came
as John
the Baptist
to prepare
the way
for Jesus.
So as
they're
waiting to
see if
Elijah
comes,
what happens
next is
not what
they're
expecting.
In
verse 50,
we see
that Jesus
cries again.
He cried
out in a
loud voice
and he
yields up
his spirit.
He has
been
physically
slaughtered
up to this
point with
blood flowing
freely from
his body
now.
He has
endured
the full
divine
judgment
for sin.
And here
we are
reminded that
God is
in full
control
every step
of the way
even in
Christ's
death.
From the
moment of
his going
to the
crucifixion,
we see
that Jesus
lays down
his life
that he
may take
it up
again.
No one
takes it
from him,
he says,
but he
lays it
down on
his own
accord.
And he
has the
authority
to pick
it up
again.
This
charge he
has received
from the
Father.
Christ
willingly
went to
the cross
with this
purpose
to lay
down his
life and
love for
us and
love for
the Father.
He went
to the
cross to
enter into
darkness,
to enter
into our
darkness that
we deserved.
The darkness
of death.
But yet,
he did this
that we
might live.
My friends,
there is
nothing outside
of the
control of
God.
When it
may seem
that in
times that
evil is
reigning in
our day,
that death
is consuming.
Yet,
when we look
at this
moment,
we can
trust in
the sovereign
plans and
power of
God to
accomplish
his purposes.
That Christ
goes before
us and he
overcomes the
darkness of
death by
entering into
that very
darkness
himself.
He does
this to
secure our
forgiveness.
That leads
us to our
second point.
Christ secured
our forgiveness.
So as these
bystanders witness
this dramatic
moment of
Christ giving
up his life
on the
cross,
the unexpected
happens.
At the
same time,
same moment
of his
death,
they witness
a divine
cataclysmic
event.
A
cataclysmic
event not
of physical
standards but
in the
created cosmos,
in the heavens
and the earth,
out of the
darkness of
the cross of
Christ,
burst forth
divine power.
The veil
being torn
into the
earth shaking,
rocks being
split, the
dead being
raised to
life.
In
Gentiles,
confession are
all divine
shockways bursting
forth from the
epicenter of the
cross of
Christ.
All of
these, all of
these are signs
or evidence
pointing to
Christ, pointing
to something
being undone in
the wake of
his death.
Something new
being ushered
in.
The first
sign that
Matthew draws
to our
attention in
verse 51,
and behold,
the curtain
of the temple
was torn
in two from
top to
bottom.
Christ said
he would do
this.
Christ said
he would
destroy the
temple and
he would
rebuild it in
three days.
In Matthew
24, as we
saw, his
death here
was the
beginning of
the temple's
destruction,
causing the
curtain of the
temple to be
torn to from
top to
bottom,
something only
of divine
power could
do.
Inside the
temple, the
design included
multiple
curtains,
like layers
to get to
into the
place where
God's presence
was to dwell.
and that
last curtain,
which I
believe here
that Matthew
has in mind,
that is also
a symbolic
reason that
he has this
in mind,
that last
curtain was
a massive,
thick curtain,
like a
partition,
and behind
it is where
the very
place God
dwelt.
His very
presence
dwelt there.
This was the
holy of
holies,
a place
only the
high priest
could enter
into only
once a year.
After making
blood sacrifice
for his own
sins, he
would enter
in to make
blood sacrifice
for the sins
of the people
of Israel.
But now,
that thick
physical wall
separating God
and man
was completely
undone,
ripped from
top to
bottom,
torn in
two.
The temple
is now
empty
and rendered
obsolete,
a sign
not only
of God
opening up
the heavens
to his
people,
but it is
yet a sign
of judgment
on the people
of Israel
and this
temple,
destroying
the temple
through
his death.
God is
creating
and establishing
a new
covenant here
between God
and man
where no
broken temple
system is
needed,
run by
sinful men.
No more
traveling to
the temple
to put forward
our feeble
sacrifices.
no more
restricted
access
to seek
reconciliation
with God
because
maybe you're
a Gentile,
you're poor,
you're not
able to
travel to
the temple,
you're physically
not able
to go.
No.
God
here
rips
the curtain
in two,
opening
the heavens,
making
salvation
available
to all
peoples,
to the
ends
of the
earth.
This
is the
first fruits,
the first
fruits of
the gospel
being open,
the gospel
going forth
to all
nations.
And here
Matthew
helps us
see that
in each
one of
these signs
here
after the
curtains
torn.
But most
clearly
and explicitly
we see it
here in
the first
fruits
of a
Gentile
Roman's
confession.
A Roman
centurion.
He just
saw what
took place.
It says
in verse
54,
as he
was keeping
watch over
Jesus,
he saw
the earthquake
and what
took place
and they
were filled
with awe
and said,
truly,
this was
the Son
of Man,
the Son
of God.
The author
of Hebrews
here helps
us grasp
the significance
of the
rendering
of the
veil even
clearer
here.
In Hebrews
chapter 9
verses 11
through 15
it says,
but when
Christ
appeared
as a
high priest
of the
good things
that have
come,
then through
the greater
and more
perfect
tent,
not made
with hands,
that is,
not of
this
creation,
Christ
entered
once for
all into
the holy
places,
not by
the means
of blood
and goats
and calves,
but by
the means
of his
own
blood,
thus
securing
an eternal
redemption.
For at the
blood of goats
and bulls
and the
sprinkling
of defiled
persons
with the
ashes
of a
heifer
sanctify
for the
purification
of the
flesh,
oh,
how much
more
will the
blood of
Christ,
who through
the eternal
spirit
offered himself
without blemish
to God,
purifying our
conscience
from dead
works to
serve the
living God.
Oh,
friends,
the old
system could
only cleanse
our bodies.
It was only
sufficient enough
to cleanse
us outwardly
of our
sin,
but this
new covenant
of Christ
ushering
in Christ's
sacrifice
on the
cross
cleanses
us
entirely
from our
sin,
spiritual
and physical,
bringing us
into the
presence of
God.
Salvation
here,
my friends,
now flows
freely
and abundantly
through
Christ.
It is by
him pouring
out his
blood and
laying down
his life
on the
cross that
he has
now secured
the forgiveness
of all of
our sins.
And all of
these signs
here that we
say, we
see are
evidences,
are clear
evidences of
that reality,
of that truth,
of what is
going on in
the cosmic
realm.
This, my
friends, is
the power
of the
cross of
Christ.
Friends,
are you
wracked
with guilt
over your
own sin?
Are you
burdened?
Are you
hiding sin
in darkness?
God,
bring those
sins into
the light.
Bring those
sins into
the light of
confession and
take heart.
Take heart
that your
sins, all
of them, are
paid for on
the cross of
Christ.
Bring your
sins into
the light and
know the
forgiveness of
Christ.
Matthew,
though, doesn't
stop there.
We see the
power of the
cross sweeping
through the
lives of
some unlikely
people here.
Some unlikely
people who
come to
gather around
Christ.
Which brings
us to our
third and
final point.
Christ
gathered the
unlikely.
Psalm 22,
which Jesus
quotes on the
cross when he
says,
my God,
why have you
forsaken me?
In fulfillment
of that,
Psalm 22
mirrors the
crucifixion.
As Christ is
in anguish,
David also in
Psalm 22 is
in anguish and
suffering as he
cries out,
my God, my
God, why have
you forsaken
me?
Enemies
surrounding him.
Yet, it does
not end there.
It does not end
in despair.
It does not
end in
forsakenness.
If you read
Psalm 22,
you'll trace
it mirrors this
crucifixion scene
quite well.
Pastor theologian
Peter Leihart
helpfully points
out,
Psalm 22
provides background
for the
crucifixion in
other ways as
well.
The Psalm
is not only
about David's
deliverance from
suffering,
it also has a
corporate dimension
to it as well.
David begins
alone,
attacked by
enemies,
but ends
with brothers
and friends
gathered around
him.
Christ was
utterly alone
in his
crucifixion,
forsaken by
all on the
cross,
forsaken
by his
father,
attacked
and devoured
by priestly
bulls
and Gentile
dogs.
Yet,
in the
wake of
Christ's
death on
the cross,
we see
God
surround
Christ's
body with
brothers,
with those
who fear
God.
But he
doesn't
surround him
with the
ones you
might expect.
The twelve
disciples
closest to
Jesus
have been
absent
throughout
the entire
scene of
Christ's
crucifixion.
But here,
Matthew
draws our
attention
to another
different
crew of
individuals
that surround
Jesus.
us.
We see
in verses
55 through
61,
we see
a Roman
centurion,
we see
the women
who have
followed Jesus
from Galilee,
and we
see
Joseph
of
Arimathea.
Yes,
these characters,
if we walk
through it,
these characters
are also
recorded
to be
recorded as
eyewitnesses
bearing testimony
that they
observed all
that just
occurred.
They observed
Christ's death
and the
burial of
his body.
They were
first-hand
eyewitnesses.
However,
I don't believe
that Matthew
just leaves
us there.
I think
Matthew wants
us to see
more here.
He wants
to connect
more.
He also
wants to
see that
Jesus'
death
gathers
those who
have been
far off
and he
now brings
them near.
The Roman
centurion
and his
cohort of
soldiers,
Gentiles,
who were
once Gentile
dogs far
off from
the presence
of the
Almighty
God,
have been
brought
near.
Women who
have followed
Jesus throughout
his ministry,
even sometimes
on the fringes
throughout Matthew's
gospel,
and yet in
this time and
culture,
they were not
regarded highly.
They are here
made a central
part of his
very story
as they care
and watch
over Jesus
in his
death.
Joseph of
Arimathea,
the gospel
writers,
John and
Luke and
their gospel
accounts,
give us
further insights
into who
Joseph of
Arimathea
is.
He is a
secret disciple
who has
followed Jesus
from a
distance for
fear of the
Jews.
Why?
For he was a
part of the
Sanhedrin,
the Jewish
council of
leaders,
and he was
a rich man
as well.
Matthew,
in a small
way here,
is reminding
us that
God's
redemptive
plan through
the cross
of Christ
has the
power to
transform
the lives
of the
unlikely,
to include
the lives
of the
unlikely into
his redemptive
plan.
Those who
are in
the background
now are
made central
figures here
in his
redemptive
plan.
Oh,
how encouraging
is that?
Those that
have been in
the background
are now
central figures
in his
redemptive
plan.
Recall with
me in
Matthew
chapter 8
verses 5
through 13,
the centurion
who came
to Jesus
to hear
his paralyzed
servant,
in which
Jesus
responds,
no one
in Israel
have I
found such
faith.
Or the
woman who
pours expensive
ointment on
Christ,
upon his
head he
douses her
in a
full
flask
of ointment.
man.
And Jesus
says,
wherever this
gospel is
proclaimed in
the whole
world,
what she
has done
will also
be told
in memory
of her.
But now
here is
a Jewish
leader of
the High
Sanhedrin
Council being
transformed
by what
just transpired.
God.
He has
given boldness
and courage
to step
out from
hiding in
the shadows
now and
into the
light.
As Matthew
puts it in
verse 57
through 58,
when it was
evening,
there came
a rich man
from Arimathea
named Joseph
who also
was a
disciple of
Jesus.
He went
to Pilate
and asked
for the
body of
Jesus.
Then
Pilate
ordered it
to be
given to
him.
The first
time we
see
someone
publicly
identifying
himself
with
Jesus,
Joseph
of
Arimathea
first time
publicly
identifying
himself,
stepping
out from
the
shadows,
going
to
Pilate
in
boldness.
To do
what?
To ask
for the
body of
Christ
so that
he can
give
Christ
a
proper
burial
and put
his
body
in
his
own
newly
carved
tomb.
Now
this
would
have
been
a
little
unusual,
a
rather
unusual
request
for
Pilate
to
receive
as
typically
those
who
hung
on
the
cross
were
left,
who
were
left
there
after
their
death
to
hang
in
shame,
left
there
to
rot.
But
here
we
see
a
glimpse
of
God's
loving
kindness
for
his
son,
that
he
calls
this
unlikely
Jewish
leader,
a
member
of the
very
council
that
put
Jesus
to
death,
to
care
for
the
body
of
Christ
and
to
give
him
a
proper
burial.
Brothers
and
sisters,
how
amazing
is
the
love
of
our
God
here
that
we
see
being
poured
out
at
the
death,
at
the
cross
of
Christ,
transforming
lives
of those
around
him.
So
I
might
ask,
how
is
the
cross
of
Christ
transforming
your
lives
today?
Are
you
trusting
in
the
power
of
Christ?
Are
you
trusting
in
the
power
of
Christ
to
give
you
courage
to
publicly
step
up
and
identify
with
him?
Because
you
love
him,
because
you
know
his
love.
And
you
want
to
share
the
good
news
of
Christ's
sacrifice,
who
are
those
that
are
maybe
the
unlikely
in
your
lives,
the
unlikely
to
come
to
Christ.
Do
you
trust
in
Christ
to
save
those
that
are
unlikely?
So
friends,
do not
pass
quickly
by
the
cross
of
Christ.
let
it
transform
you.
Let
it
transform
every
part
of
your
life.
We
as
Christians,
brothers and
sisters,
should
linger
in
the
cross
of
Christ.
We
should
linger
at
the
foot
in
its
shadow
and
be
amazed
at
the
complexity
of
the
mystery
and
the
wonder
and
the
awe
of
love
of
God
being
poured
out
here.
The
older
brother
that we
heard
about
at the
beginning
in the
introduction,
the
older
brother
that
jumped
down
into
the
deep
dark
pit
as
the
walls
of
sand
came
crashing
down.
He
jumped
in
to lay
down
his
life
so
his
younger
brother
might
live.
And as
you can
imagine,
in that
moment,
the
younger
brother
knew
and
experienced
the
immense
love
his
brother
had
for
him.
That
this
love
then
would
transform
his
life
forever.
Have
you
known
this?
Some
of you
in here
maybe
are not
Christians.
So I
ask,
have you
known
and
experienced
the love
of Christ
that lays
down
his
life
for you
so that
you would
be freed
from the
just
penalty
of your
sin,
eternal
death?
when you
know this
and when
you
experience
this
love
of
Christ,
when you
trust
in his
finished
work,
when you
cast
yourselves
upon his
shoulders,
his shoulders
are broad
and they
are a
firm
foundation
for all,
a firm
foundation
for us
to stand
on for
our
eternal
life.
So I
invite you,
cast
yourself
upon
his
shoulders.
When you
stand
upon
his
shoulders,
I just
want to
read this
passage
from Romans
chapter
8.
This is
what God
says,
when you
stand
upon
the
shoulders
of
Christ,
what
shall
we
then
say
to
these
things?
If
God
is for
us,
who
can
be
against
us?
He
who
did
not
spare
his
own
son,
but
gave
him
up
for
us
all?
Oh,
how
will
he
not
also
with
him
graciously
give
us
all
things?
Who
shall
bring
any
charge
against
his
elect?
It
is
God
who
justifies.
Who
is to
condemn?
Christ
Jesus
is the
one
who
died.
More
than
that,
who
was
raised.
And
who
is
at
the
right
hand
of
God,
who
indeed
is
interceding
for
us.
Who
shall
separate
us
from
this
love
of
Christ?
Shall
tribulation
or distress
or
persecution
or
famine
or
nakedness
or
danger
or
sword?
As
it
is
written,
for
your
sake,
we
are
being
killed
all
the
day
long.
We
are
regarded
as
sheep
to be
slaughtered.
know
in all
these
things
we
are
more
than
conquerors
to
him
who
loved
us.
For
I
am
sure
that
neither
life
nor
death
nor
angels
nor
rulers
nor
things
present
nor
things
to
come
nor
powers
nor
height
nor
depth
or
anything
else
in
all
of
creation
will
be
able
to
separate
us
from
the
love
of
God
in
Christ
Jesus
our
Lord.
my
friends
look
with me
and gaze
at the
cross
of
Christ
and
find
the
forgiveness
of
your
sins
your
redemption
!
Your
forgiveness
secured!
This
is where
the love
of God
is on
full
display!
This
is where
the power
of God
the
assurance
of God
the
comfort
of God
the glory
of God
the mercy
of God
the grace
of God
flows
abundantly
and freely
for all
who trust
in Christ's
death
for your
sins!
Let us
pray.
Father
we thank
you
we thank
you for
your word
we thank
you for
fully
revealing
your glory
at the
cross
of Christ
making
your love
known
to us
extending
forgiveness
and eternal
life
oh Lord
I pray
that we
would
cast
ourselves
upon
this
love
and know
this
deep
love
of Jesus
I pray
amen
away