Welcome to ECB's weekly sermon podcast. ECB is
an international church in Bangkok, Thailand
with dozens of nationalities worshiping together.
We invite you to connect with us from wherever
you are through our website ecb .asia or our
mobile app. And now we pray that you are blessed
by this week's sermon. Today we are continuing
our study. That we began in March on above all.
And this study seeks to understand what is that
Jesus accomplished for us. So that we may walk
in the freedom that he came to give us. So as
we prepare to engage on this study, let's pray
together. Lord, words can't describe. Describe
the depth of what you have done. But we want
to engage with that depth anyway. And we want
to look at your word and seek and understand.
Will you reach our hearts in the deepest parts
that no one else can reach but you? So that as
we engage with your word, our eyes will be open
to you. Use me in your power and your grace and
your strength. Thank you for the gift you give
us today of your word. We pray in Jesus' name.
Amen. At the beginning of this series, we discovered
that what Jesus came to do was to destroy the
power of Satan and the kingdom of darkness that
we humans were enslaved to. That to become a
follower of Jesus is to become free from darkness
and now to become part of the kingdom of light.
To follow Jesus is a transformation of walking
from the spiritual slavery that we were in to
the freedom that Jesus paid for. And each one
of the studies focused on a different dimension
of what Jesus did. And today I want to focus
on this word, disappointment. And I want to ask
you a very personal question. And the question
is this. Do you feel like a disappointment? Have
you felt like a disappointment? This nagging
feeling that, you know, you look at your past,
where you have been, And you feel completely
unworthy. You look at the present and it's like,
look at what you have become. And you feel so
undeserving. And all of this drains you so much
that to look at the future is just unbearable.
You don't want to even engage in thinking about
that because you feel so drained. Drained emotionally,
drained spiritually, drained physically to the
point that you just feel depressed. And this
feeling of being a disappointment is just stuck
to you. And it doesn't seem to want to go away.
That feeling is not uncommon. And it may come
and go and have different shapes. But what all
of those experiences have in common is that none
of us are from God. They are from the enemy.
And what Jesus came to do was to break the power
of the enemy to hold you captive to that. And
Jesus is inviting you to follow him and walk
in the freedom of what he accomplished for you.
And to really understand what he came to do,
we have to start today, not with the life of
Jesus, but go a little bit back to the end of
the Old Testament. The prophets that were written
before Jesus came. The last two books of the
Old Testament are Zechariah and Malachi. And
these two prophets prophesied different things.
But Zechariah specifically is where I want to
turn to. Because there is a prophecy in Zechariah.
That is describing the Messiah and what he is
going to accomplish. But it's also describing
a guy that is stuck in this place of feeling
like a disappointment. He is one of the religious
leaders. He's a priest. His name is Jeshua. And
Jeshua, the priest, is depicted like wearing
filthy clothes. And he is experiencing this spiritual
oppression where he's being accused of all the
things, all his failures, everything that he
has done. And he's in that place of just feeling
weighty and discouraged. And you can identify
with that feeling, with that moment of feeling
like defeated, like bleh. So disgusted of myself.
But what Zechariah describes is amazing. Let's
take a look at it. This is what Zechariah says.
As he turns to Joshua, he's going to come with
word from God. And he says this. Then the angel
showed me Joshua, the high priest, standing before
the angel of the Lord. And there was somebody
else there. Who was that? The accuser, Satan,
was there. At the angel's right hand, making
accusations against Joshua. And the Lord said
to Satan, I, the Lord, reject your accusation,
Satan. Yes, the Lord, who has chosen Jerusalem,
rebukes you. This man, Joshua, whom you are accusing,
is like a burning stick that has been snatched
from the fire. He was being consumed by this
guilt and by this shame. And if I left it there,
he will be completely consumed. But I took him
out of there. And now, Joshua's clothings are
filthy. As he stood there before the angel. So
the angel said to the other standing there. Guys
come. Take off his filthy clothes. And turning
to Jeshua he said. See Jeshua. I have taken away
your sin. And now I'm giving you these fine new
clothes. Listen to me oh Jeshua. The high priest.
And all of you are the priests. You are but symbols
of things. To come. Soon. I'm going to bring
my servant. Who? The branch. You might remember.
The title the branch of Jesse. This was a title
that was given. To the Messiah. The one to come.
And Zacharias says, soon I'm going to bring my
servant, the Messiah. And I will remove the sins
of this land in one single day. Wow. This feels
very personal. First of all. Personal because
you have a guy that is feeling the weight of
his shame and he's stuck in that place of feeling
like a disappointment to himself, to God, to
the people. And that feeling is clearly coming
from a place of spiritual oppression. There's
an accuser that is accusing him, but there's
a loving God that is coming to defend him and
stand for him. And that experience of full forgiveness,
of relief, is something that God says, this is
a picture of what is about to come. You just
wait until my servant shows up. And when he shows
up here in Jerusalem, in one single day, I will
remove the sin of this place. Just like that,
in one day. One day, my servant will come. And
Jesus did come. And when he is preparing to go
to Jerusalem, in his last trip to Jerusalem,
leading to his crucifixion, he arrives there
to Jerusalem, the same city where Zechariah had
just talked to Yeshua about this prophecy. And
now Jesus, the Messiah, the servant prophesied
by... Zechariah shows up right there in Jerusalem.
And he's going to say a few things to his apostles.
At one moment, he turns to them. And he says,
guys, the time for judging this world has come.
When Satan, the ruler of this world, will be
cast out. I came with a mission and it's about
to happen. Soon. Soon Satan the ruler of this
world will be cast out. And when I am lifted
up from the earth. I will draw everyone to myself.
I have come for a mission. And I am going to
fulfill it. And then. They go to celebrate the
Passover. He is with the apostles. The night
that he is going to be betrayed. And Judas, the
guy who is going to betray him, is partaking
of this meal. And Jesus breaks the bread and
then he gives this to Judas. And when Judas had
eaten the bread, something changed. Satan entered
into him. So now you have Judas, controlled by
Satan himself. And now Jesus turns to him and
says, hurry, do what you're going to do. So Judas,
with Satan in him, leave. They leave to entice
now the Roman soldiers to come to take Jesus
away and torture him. But before that happens,
Jesus goes to pray with his apostles to the garden.
And as he is there, he knows the time is getting
close. So he tells his friends, guys, I don't
have much more time to talk to you because the
ruler of this world approaches. Who is coming
with the soldiers in a few moments? Judas, and
who is in him? Satan. And who is the ruler of
this world? Satan. And who is going to show up
in a few minutes? The ruler of this world. He
has no power over me. Things are going to unfold
in these days, but I'm here to tell you, Satan
has no power over me. But I will do what the
father requires of me. So that the world will
know. That I love the father. Come. Let's be
going. And as they left. Then Jesus. Is confronted
by the soldiers. He's imprisoned. He becomes
tortured. And then he's crucified. What you can
see so far. Is how. The spiritual battle. And
this war that is happening. Between Jesus. The
servant that was about to come. The branch of
Jesse that was to come. To destroy the power
of Satan. And yet Satan is right there. He has
no idea what's about to come. But he is there
engaging. Trying to oppose Jesus. And lead him
to this place. Where he thinks he's going to
destroy him. And now Jesus is on the cross. And
as Jesus is on the cross. Something happens.
A series of events that happen. That depict the
epic nature and scale of what's happening. And
you have to read specifically the book of Matthew
to get just the depth of what's going on. And
all of this is happening, remember, so that the
sin of the land could be taken away in one day
so that the accuser will not be able to accuse
God's people anymore. So what happened? Let's
read Matthew. At noon, darkness fell across the
whole land until three o 'clock. At about three
o 'clock, Jesus called out with a loud voice,
Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani, which means, my God,
my God. Why have you abandoned me? Some of the
bystanders misunderstood. And they thought he
was calling from prophet Elijah. One of them
ran and filled a sponge with sour wine. Holding
it up to him on a reed stick so he could drink.
But the rest said, wait, wait. Let's see whether
Elijah shows up and comes to save him. Then Jesus
shouted again and he released his spirit. Do
you realize that the very moment before Jesus
dies, there's this shouting that happens? It
doesn't tell you the details. It's just a moment.
Jesus crucified. Everything that has been said
and done. And about a second before he dies.
He goes. And silence. And at that very moment
his spirit. Enters the realm. Of the dead. Never
before. In the history of humanity. Had anyone
entered the realm of the dead. That did not deserve
to be there. For the first time. There is a human.
Who is not guilty of sin. Who gives his life
willingly to be able to infiltrate in that space.
Because he came with a mission. And the mission
was to destroy the power of Satan to accuse.
And at this moment that he accomplishes that
and he gets into that place to overcome the power
of Satan. a series of events unfolds. At that
moment, the curtain in the sanctuary of the temple
was turning to from top to bottom. In the temple
in Jerusalem, there was this place that was known
as the Holy of Holies. And once a year, the high
priest could go in there to offer The atoning
sacrifice for the sins of the people. And only
he could enter that place. And now with his death.
Jesus enters that place. And that curtain that
separated humans from God. Completely destroyed.
He is the high priest. And he is the sacrifice.
Both at once. And in one sacrifice, now he removes
the sin of the land in one day. And now the earth
shook, rocks split apart, and tombs opened. The
bodies of many godly men and women who had died
were raised from the dead. They left the cemetery
after Jesus' resurrection. They went into the
holy city of Jerusalem and appeared to many people.
What? Did I read that right? Yes. The Roman officer
and the other soldiers at the crucifixion were
The darkness. The earthquake. Hearing this Jesus
scream like that. And all of it happening at
once. And they are terrified by the earthquake.
And all that had happened. And they said. This
man was. Truly was the son of God. What did just
happen here? It's like, just to verify, I'm reading
the Bible here. Many people that are familiar
with the events of the death and resurrection
of Jesus have skipped Matthew altogether. And
it's like, what? Did I just read that? That happened
there? I never heard that before. Well, go and
read your Bible. You have homework to do. I'm
not making this up. There's a whole realm of
stuff that is happening in the spiritual realm
that we have no idea. But this is what Jesus,
the promised servant of God, who was going to
come, the branch, to remove the sins, in one
day, came to do. I remember that when I was living
in Dallas, I had to lead our ministry through
a whole process of rebranding. And that meant
to also do the whole rebranding of our website.
So we got to work with the designers and it was
not cheap. Because it was before AI, now you
can do it in 10 minutes. AI does everything for
you. At that time, you have to work with the
designers and the coders and all this stuff.
And I remember driving to San Antonio and met
with the company and had all these interviews
to make sure everything was being done right.
And that's when I became aware that a website
is very complex. One thing is what you do when
you click and the things that you see happen,
but there's the back end. And the back end of
the website is nothing compared to what you see
on the front. The back end is a bunch of coding.
Bunch of coding. Coding, coding, coding, coding.
And it's like, that's the website? Yeah, that's
the website. That's what's happening behind the
scenes. And when we talk about salvation, it's
like that. You see the website. You see the front.
Jesus is on the cross. All these things that
we read are happening. But what is the back end?
What is happening in the back end? To really
understand if I can, you have to turn to Colossians.
The Apostle Paul. Because he's going to tell
you exactly what happened at that moment. The
earthquake. The torn veil. The shouting. All
this stuff. What happened? And this is what happened.
Jesus. canceled the record of the charges against
us and took it away by nailing it on the cross.
And in this way, he disarmed the spiritual rulers
and authorities and he shamed them publicly by
his victory over them on the cross. On the front
end, it looks like the one that is being defeated
is Jesus. That the one that is being shamed is
Jesus. But no, the back end tells a whole different
story. Jesus is dying because he is breaking
the power of Satan now to accuse. He is disarming
him from all... All the weapons that he could
use against you and against me. Because he is
canceling everything that was against us. He
took in one moment through his death on the cross.
The sin of the land in one day. Just like Zechariah
said. And the rulers of the kingdom of darkness.
Including the ruler of this world. Satan. Is
being defeated. When I was reading this part
of the story. I remember something that happened
to me when I was in high school. As you may remember
I was born in Santiago in Chile. I went to public
school. And when I was in high school, I went
to this all -man high school. No girls, just
guys. We had to wear the uniform, the suit, the
tie, the insignia, everything. Very formal. But
the school I went to was known to be very political.
I was born during the... Time of the dictatorship
of President Augusto Pinochet. And this high
school was known for engaging in political protests
and different things. Many of the guys graduating
from the high school ended up being political
leaders in the country later. I did not know
all of that before I got into it. I just knew
I had good academic records. So I got there because
of the academics. But one day, there was a protest
happening. And they took over the whole school.
So you cannot get into the school. And they would
burn things and destroy things. It was a mess.
Well, when I was in high school, I was, you know,
overall a good student, except twice. And I got
in trouble two times, and it went on record.
They had this book in the principal's office,
and there was one guy that we called, his role
was an inspector. It's just the guy that was
in charge of making sure that everyone behaved.
You know, all these guys, all these hormones,
you know. He walked around, you know, and anytime
there was somebody that got in trouble, oh, you
go to the office, they open the book, and they
write down what you did. The problem was that
if you got so many, then you will be suspended,
and I already got two. So I got one more suspended.
That day I went to school. I couldn't get to
class because big protests going on, big mess.
So I went back home. And then when I was able
to come back to class, I learned that these guys
had made a big mess. They had burned some furniture
and a couple of other things, including the book.
And I was so happy. I didn't care about their
political views. I just was happy that it was
no longer a record. In one day, my record was
canceled. And knowing that changes everything.
Because next time that something happens, you
know, and you're accused by the accuser, and
the accuser comes and says, I have all these
things against you. And wait until I tell everybody
about all your things. I have the book. What
would you say? It's like, please don't, please
don't. Or would you say, what book? You're just
bluffing. There's no book. Haven't you heard
the news? Jesus nailed it on the cross. And he
canceled all the accusations. Hundred times.
All of them. Once and for all. That is what Jesus
accomplished. And because he did that. He took
away all the material. That the enemy could take
against you. He has no meat. He has nothing to
blackmail you with. But Satan is like a dog.
He can bark. But cannot bite. And you fell for
it. And you've been feeling like you are in a
disappointment. And you're ashamed. And you're
this and that. And that is not what Jesus came
to save you for. There's no book. That's why,
read with me what the following verse says. Don't
let anyone condemn you. No one, especially Satan
the accuser. Your past is your past. Jesus redeemed
it. Would you let him rewrite your story? What
Jesus accomplished for us, Was so amazing. That
as you read all these things. It simply makes
you wonder. How could someone like Jesus do this?
What was so special about him? That he could
do all of this stuff. I mean this is epic. This
is major. He cancelled our debt. He disarmed.
The powers of darkness. Who is this Jesus? Well
you don't have to go far. Stay in Colossians.
And it will tell you. And that's what you read.
Word by word. The picture that unfolds. Is just.
Amazing. Let's read it. Christ. meaning Jesus,
is the visible image of the invisible God. You've
seen Jesus, you've seen God. Like Jesus told
the apostles, you've seen me, you've seen the
Father. Christ is the visible image of the invisible
God. He existed before anything was created,
even Satan, because Satan was a created being.
And he is supreme over all creation. For through
him. God created. Everything. In the heavenly
realms. And on earth. He made the things. We
can see. And the things we can't see. Such as
thrones. kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in
the unseen world. Everything was created through
him and for him. Wait. So if Satan was the ruler
of this world, and he's an angel that rebelled
against God, and Jesus created... All thrones,
kingdoms, rulers and authorities. That means
that Jesus is not an equal with Satan. Jesus
is the creator of these beings. Wow. Everything
was created through him and for him. He existed
before anything else. And he holds all creation
together. He is the glue that keeps the universe.
Christ is also the head of the church, which
is his body. He is the beginning, supreme over
all who rise from the dead. So he is first in
everything. For God, in all his fullness, was
pleased to live in Christ. And through him, God
reconciled everything. To himself. He made peace.
With everything in heaven and on earth. Through
what? By means of Christ's blood. On the cross.
The creator. Of heaven and earth. Is hanging
on that cross. The one who had created Satan
and the angels that rebelled is hanging on that
cross. And as he's on that cross and as he screams
before he dies, it's a stream of not pain but
victory. It's now the moment in which he is reconciling
everything on heaven and on earth through his
death on the cross. And the one that is being
defeated is Satan. The one that is being shamed
is Satan. And now, not only he had canceled everything
that was against us, not only he has disarmed
the powers of darkness, but now he has reconciled
us. Completely. In one moment. In one day. He
took away the sin. Completely. I like those moments
in the superhero movies. When everything is going
so bad. And the enemy is attacking everybody.
And killing everybody. And then the superhero
shows up. And he goes. And before you know it.
All the enemies are dead on the floor. You know.
Because he knows how to fight. And this was Jesus
on the cross. He went. And Satan. Got it. Defeated.
Boom. If this is what happened. Why do you keep
thinking. That God is disgusted with you. Why
do you keep thinking that somehow God is too
busy to care for you? Look at the cross. He's
not too busy. He came specifically for that mission
and mission accomplished. He loves you so much.
That because he has taken away and canceled the
record against us. You are like that Jeshua that
is standing there being accused by the enemy.
And God is standing on your side and saying,
I resist you, I rebuke you Satan. Because I have
removed the filthy clothes and giving this person
new clean clothes. The sin has been removed.
And therefore time has come for us to walk as
if that is true. The servant, the branch, the
Messiah, the creator has come. And because he
came and he accomplished what he accomplished
on our behalf. He's inviting you and me to follow
him. But to follow him not like you are a disappointment.
Not like you have to live as if you are dying.
That's why James wrote these words. And I want
to conclude this study with this. Would you read
it with me? So humble yourself before God. Resist
the devil and he will flee from you. Come close
to God. And God will come close to you. Wash
your hands, you sinners. Purify your hearts,
for your loyalty is divided between God and the
world. And in this short paragraph, he addresses
three of us. Just like that. First, if you are
a follower of Jesus, And you have been going
through this season in your life in which you
feel like a disappointment. You're disappointed
with yourself. You have been disappointed with
what you have become. You're disappointed with
your past. You are just a big disappointment.
I'm here to tell you, you are under spiritual
attack. That is not the voice of the Holy Spirit.
That is the voice of the accuser. And the Word
of God says you have to resist the accuser. And
he will flee from you. But you have to do that
by standing firm on the faith. Do that. Resist
him. Come to the Lord when you are experiencing
that. And say, God, the accuser is telling me
this and this and this and this. But I refuse
that. And I'm asking you, take that from me.
Because I know who you are. And I know who I
am. Resist. The accuser. Otherwise, he's going
to bark at you and you're going to feel like
he can bite, but he can't because there's no
book. Good news. The second group that he addresses
are the ones that are yet to follow Jesus. You
are not a follower of Jesus. Jesus is not your
savior. Therefore, you only have an accuser,
but you have no one to defend you. Because the
only one that took the book away is not your
savior. And if Jesus is not your savior, James
says this, look, there's only one thing that
you need to do. Come close to God. And God will
come close to you. He loves you. He's inviting
you to experience the peace of his forgiveness.
Don't keep wasting your time in all these other
religions that are trying to tell you, if you
do this, if you do this, maybe you will be good
enough, but you do not know, so give us more
money and we'll keep trying. They are deceiving
you and duping you. Jesus is saying, come close
to me. And I'll come close to you. Would you
let me? If Jesus is not your savior. He's inviting
you today. For that to change forever. And wherever
you are today. You can tell the Lord. Lord Jesus.
I want to follow you. From now on. I'm yours.
But the third group. That he addresses. Are those
of us who are following Jesus, we are already
followers of Jesus. We're indwelled by the Spirit,
but we are not walking with the Lord. And our
hands are dirty. Yeah, there's no book, but I
have dirty hands. Because I've been engaging
in things that are contrary to who God called
me to be. They do not honor God and I've been
doing it anyway. And I feel so upset with myself
because there I am again and again. And if that
is you, James says, look, wash your hands. You
can wash them. You don't have to live with those
dirty hands. But you have to purify your heart.
For the truth is that your loyalty is divided
between God and the world and you have to make
a decision. Are you going to follow God? Or are
you going to continue playing religious? You
don't need to continue living with a divided
heart. You can come to the Lord today and say,
God, My heart's been divided between the world
and you. I'm struggling, but here I'm telling
you, in my weakness, give me a heart that fully
loves you. I don't want that anymore in my life.
That's not who I am. Would you lead me to restoration?
This is what God is inviting us to experience.
He came for us to walk in freedom and experience
life, not to be enslaved and experience death.
So I would like to invite you today to seriously
consider your walk with God and whether you are
walking in the freedom that Jesus accomplished.
For you. So I want to end. Just like I began.
With a personal question. And that question is
this. What is draining you? Because something
is draining you. And the Holy Spirit doesn't
drain you. The Holy Spirit fills you. If something
is draining you. It's not from the Lord. And
chances are. That you are being drained by the
enemy. Through all of these different things.
So that you will be compromised. And I'm here
to tell you. Turn to Jesus. He already did everything.
You just have to trust him. That's all. Let's
pray. Lord. The ruler of this world. Satan. It's
just so evil. So sneaky with his kingdom. Thank
you for rescuing us, Lord. But today we know
there's this feeling of disappointment that doesn't
go away. And today, in Jesus' name, I break it.
And I silence that voice from the enemy. In Jesus
name. Let the truth of Christ. Be loud. That
says. Canceled. Disarmed. Reconciled. Let the
voice of truth. Give us a breakthrough. That
from now on. We will walk in your freedom. In
Jesus name. Amen. You will find giving options
on our website. Remember to join us next week.
God bless you.