WEBVTT 00:00:05.849 --> 00:00:08.169 I notice there's a pretty good breeze coming 00:00:08.169 --> 00:00:10.009 through here in some places. If you're a little 00:00:10.009 --> 00:00:11.810 cool, feel free to get up and shut the windows. 00:00:12.490 --> 00:00:14.849 It is nice to be cool for a change, isn't it? 00:00:17.469 --> 00:00:19.850 Would you take your Bible, please, and turn with 00:00:19.850 --> 00:00:26.789 me to Romans chapter 5. We have been looking 00:00:26.789 --> 00:00:28.969 at the blessings that accompany justification 00:00:28.969 --> 00:00:34.859 in the first 11 verses of Romans 5. I remind 00:00:34.859 --> 00:00:39.439 you that justification is a legal act on God's 00:00:39.439 --> 00:00:43.079 part whereby when we place our faith in Christ, 00:00:43.219 --> 00:00:48.259 he sees us from that point on as righteous. It 00:00:48.259 --> 00:00:50.939 has nothing to do with whether we sin or not 00:00:50.939 --> 00:00:54.640 from that point on, because we do sin. Of course, 00:00:54.640 --> 00:00:56.979 the fact is that because we are God's children, 00:00:57.140 --> 00:00:59.539 we ought to be sinning less as we walk with him 00:00:59.539 --> 00:01:03.679 and mature in our faith. But justification doesn't 00:01:03.679 --> 00:01:07.459 deal with that issue. Justification has to do 00:01:07.459 --> 00:01:11.840 with our legal standing before God. Romans tells 00:01:11.840 --> 00:01:14.319 us how to be right with God, and justification 00:01:14.319 --> 00:01:18.939 is the word that summarizes it. By our justification, 00:01:19.079 --> 00:01:23.879 God sees us legally, judicially righteous in 00:01:23.879 --> 00:01:27.340 his eyes. Someone has said that Christians aren't 00:01:27.340 --> 00:01:29.959 better than anyone else. They're just forgiven. 00:01:31.560 --> 00:01:34.659 Well, that's good as far as it goes, but in terms 00:01:34.659 --> 00:01:36.799 of what we're thinking about right now, it doesn't 00:01:36.799 --> 00:01:39.400 quite go far enough. Because forgiveness may 00:01:39.400 --> 00:01:42.200 bring us back to the point of zero on the ledger, 00:01:42.299 --> 00:01:46.579 but justification, you see, adds to us perfect 00:01:46.579 --> 00:01:49.980 righteousness. Forgiveness is only half of it. 00:01:50.980 --> 00:01:54.019 God gives us the righteousness of Jesus Christ 00:01:54.019 --> 00:01:57.760 when we believe on the Lord Jesus Christ for 00:01:57.760 --> 00:02:01.469 our salvation. Ours is a full salvation, and 00:02:01.469 --> 00:02:03.950 with that justification come many blessings. 00:02:04.310 --> 00:02:07.150 We've looked at peace with God and our access 00:02:07.150 --> 00:02:09.969 to God, the fact that we have the hope of the 00:02:09.969 --> 00:02:13.750 glory of God, we can rejoice in our tribulations 00:02:13.750 --> 00:02:17.050 because God is working in our lives, and we have 00:02:17.050 --> 00:02:19.789 the experience of God's love being poured out 00:02:19.789 --> 00:02:22.330 in our hearts. Those are some of the blessings 00:02:22.330 --> 00:02:25.169 we have because we're justified. I think that's 00:02:25.169 --> 00:02:29.180 why Paul, in Ephesians chapter 1, He begins the 00:02:29.180 --> 00:02:32.719 book with a shout of praise when he says, Blessed 00:02:32.719 --> 00:02:35.419 be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, 00:02:35.719 --> 00:02:39.620 who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing 00:02:39.620 --> 00:02:44.539 in the heavenly places in Christ. In other words, 00:02:44.539 --> 00:02:48.800 because we are in Christ, in the spiritual realm, 00:02:48.919 --> 00:02:53.319 we have every possible spiritual blessing. Therefore, 00:02:53.439 --> 00:02:55.620 we don't have to pray for a second blessing or 00:02:55.620 --> 00:02:59.319 a third or a hundred and first. We don't have 00:02:59.319 --> 00:03:03.180 to ask God to add something to us, because in 00:03:03.180 --> 00:03:05.500 Jesus Christ he's already given us everything. 00:03:06.599 --> 00:03:09.259 Now we may not be experiencing everything, we 00:03:09.259 --> 00:03:13.000 may not be appropriating all of it, but positionally 00:03:13.000 --> 00:03:16.979 with our justification comes every possible blessing 00:03:16.979 --> 00:03:21.219 in Christ. Now we're going to this morning focus 00:03:21.219 --> 00:03:24.099 on verses 9 through 11, but I invite you to look 00:03:24.099 --> 00:03:26.919 with me at the whole paragraph as we set the 00:03:26.919 --> 00:03:30.689 stage for it. Therefore, having been justified 00:03:30.689 --> 00:03:34.310 by faith, we have peace with God through our 00:03:34.310 --> 00:03:38.069 Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have 00:03:38.069 --> 00:03:41.090 obtained our introduction by faith into this 00:03:41.090 --> 00:03:45.490 grace in which we stand, and we exult in hope 00:03:45.490 --> 00:03:49.150 of the glory of God. And not only this, but we 00:03:49.150 --> 00:03:52.990 also exult in our tribulations, knowing that 00:03:52.990 --> 00:03:58.669 tribulation brings about perseverance, proven 00:03:58.669 --> 00:04:03.789 character, and proven character, hope. And hope 00:04:03.789 --> 00:04:06.590 does not disappoint, because the love of God 00:04:06.590 --> 00:04:08.949 has been poured out within our hearts through 00:04:08.949 --> 00:04:12.349 the Holy Spirit who was given to us. For while 00:04:12.349 --> 00:04:15.490 we were still helpless, at the right time Christ 00:04:15.490 --> 00:04:19.310 died for the ungodly. For one will hardly die 00:04:19.310 --> 00:04:22.449 for a righteous man, though perhaps for the good 00:04:22.449 --> 00:04:27.180 man someone would dare even to die. But God demonstrates 00:04:27.180 --> 00:04:30.980 his own love toward us in that while we were 00:04:30.980 --> 00:04:35.100 yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more than 00:04:35.100 --> 00:04:39.240 having now been justified by his blood, we shall 00:04:39.240 --> 00:04:43.139 be saved from the wrath of God through him. For 00:04:43.139 --> 00:04:45.899 if while we were enemies we were reconciled to 00:04:45.899 --> 00:04:49.259 God through the death of his Son, much more having 00:04:49.259 --> 00:04:52.680 been reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. 00:04:54.029 --> 00:04:57.490 And not only this, but we also exult in God through 00:04:57.490 --> 00:05:00.589 our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now 00:05:00.589 --> 00:05:05.730 received the reconciliation. The two blessings 00:05:05.730 --> 00:05:09.470 of justification that will conclude our study 00:05:09.470 --> 00:05:12.790 in the first paragraph of this chapter are the 00:05:12.790 --> 00:05:18.490 deliverance of God and joy in God. And as we're 00:05:18.490 --> 00:05:20.709 going to see this morning, only those who are 00:05:20.709 --> 00:05:24.790 justified may know those blessings. What do we 00:05:24.790 --> 00:05:29.750 mean by the deliverance of God? In verses 9 and 00:05:29.750 --> 00:05:34.170 10, we have twice the same phrase. We shall be 00:05:34.170 --> 00:05:40.149 saved. We shall be saved. The word saved means 00:05:40.149 --> 00:05:44.250 to rescue or to deliver. And you'll notice that 00:05:44.250 --> 00:05:48.149 it's pointing toward the future. We shall be 00:05:48.149 --> 00:05:51.110 saved. But up to this point, he's been talking 00:05:51.110 --> 00:05:53.529 about our salvation in the past. What's up here? 00:05:54.730 --> 00:05:57.509 In the New Testament, salvation is spoken of 00:05:57.509 --> 00:06:01.170 in three tenses, as you may know. There are times 00:06:01.170 --> 00:06:04.629 when it's spoken of in the past tense as something 00:06:04.629 --> 00:06:07.670 that has been accomplished, Ephesians 2 .8, for 00:06:07.670 --> 00:06:13.009 by grace you are having been saved, literally 00:06:13.009 --> 00:06:16.949 it says. And it looks to the past, at the work 00:06:16.949 --> 00:06:19.470 of God in saving us at that moment that we trusted 00:06:19.470 --> 00:06:25.379 Christ. That's what we call justification. But 00:06:25.379 --> 00:06:28.540 there's also the present tense used in the New 00:06:28.540 --> 00:06:31.199 Testament when it speaks about something God 00:06:31.199 --> 00:06:35.819 is doing right now in saving us. For example, 00:06:35.819 --> 00:06:40.139 over in James chapter 2 and verse 21, it speaks 00:06:40.139 --> 00:06:44.199 about the word of God, which when it is implanted 00:06:44.199 --> 00:06:51.139 in our hearts, is able to save our souls. And 00:06:51.139 --> 00:06:54.060 there it's not talking about... salvation originally, 00:06:54.500 --> 00:06:57.420 but it's talking about saving our souls right 00:06:57.420 --> 00:07:02.459 now from the pollution of sin in our lives. It's 00:07:02.459 --> 00:07:04.879 able to save us, therefore, from heartaches and 00:07:04.879 --> 00:07:09.079 griefs in this life. The Word of God is able 00:07:09.079 --> 00:07:12.980 to save us right now, present tense. And then 00:07:12.980 --> 00:07:16.240 there is the future sense. The Bible speaks about 00:07:16.240 --> 00:07:20.600 salvation that is yet to come. For example, in 00:07:20.600 --> 00:07:23.819 Hebrews 9, verse 28, it says that Jesus Christ 00:07:23.819 --> 00:07:26.160 is coming the second time for those who look 00:07:26.160 --> 00:07:30.920 for him unto salvation. The writer is saying 00:07:30.920 --> 00:07:33.720 in the future he is coming to bring salvation. 00:07:34.720 --> 00:07:37.899 And so when we look at the word salvation or 00:07:37.899 --> 00:07:41.339 the verb save in the New Testament, it helps 00:07:41.339 --> 00:07:44.800 us to determine if he's talking past tense in 00:07:44.800 --> 00:07:48.660 our justification, present tense, sanctification. 00:07:49.420 --> 00:07:52.180 or our future tense, which we call glorification. 00:07:52.899 --> 00:07:55.699 Now the blessed truth is that once God has begun 00:07:55.699 --> 00:07:58.480 the work, he's not satisfied until it's completed. 00:07:59.720 --> 00:08:03.019 For you to trust the Lord Jesus Christ is for 00:08:03.019 --> 00:08:05.660 you to be glorified as far as God is concerned. 00:08:06.120 --> 00:08:09.860 You see, he's apart from time. He's eternal. 00:08:10.399 --> 00:08:13.699 He can look at time and be separate from it. 00:08:14.220 --> 00:08:16.500 And therefore, when he sees us place our faith 00:08:16.500 --> 00:08:19.920 in Christ at that same time, he sees us in Christ 00:08:19.920 --> 00:08:24.339 as already being glorified with Christ. But we're 00:08:24.339 --> 00:08:29.079 down here in September 26th, I think, 1982. Time 00:08:29.079 --> 00:08:32.720 is a process for us. And for us, there is past, 00:08:32.960 --> 00:08:35.320 there is present, and there is future. Now here, 00:08:35.399 --> 00:08:37.519 the apostle is talking about something in the 00:08:37.519 --> 00:08:40.620 future. He's talking about the deliverance of 00:08:40.620 --> 00:08:43.850 God. with regards to something that is yet to 00:08:43.850 --> 00:08:47.769 come to pass. What is it? Well, in verse 9 he 00:08:47.769 --> 00:08:52.409 says, We shall be saved from the wrath of God. 00:08:53.730 --> 00:08:56.850 So he's saying that there is some aspect of God's 00:08:56.850 --> 00:09:00.470 wrath in the future that we are going to be saved 00:09:00.470 --> 00:09:03.710 from, delivered from, because we have been justified. 00:09:06.809 --> 00:09:09.769 When we think of God's wrath in the future, often 00:09:09.769 --> 00:09:14.669 we think, to the very end of things, when the 00:09:14.669 --> 00:09:18.669 Lord is going to bring before his great white 00:09:18.669 --> 00:09:21.450 throne of judgment all of the lost, of all of 00:09:21.450 --> 00:09:25.250 the ages, for their final and full judgment. 00:09:26.149 --> 00:09:28.710 And it says that on that occasion, those whose 00:09:28.710 --> 00:09:31.850 names are not written in the book of life will 00:09:31.850 --> 00:09:36.669 be cast into the lake of fire. You see, that's 00:09:36.669 --> 00:09:40.889 the eternal destiny of the one who turns from 00:09:40.889 --> 00:09:43.610 God's provision of salvation in Jesus Christ. 00:09:43.870 --> 00:09:49.110 There is no other destiny. There is no other 00:09:49.110 --> 00:09:52.750 course for the soul than to head for eternal 00:09:52.750 --> 00:09:55.610 separation from God. And you see, that is the 00:09:55.610 --> 00:09:59.889 ultimate wrath of God. Now when we talk about 00:09:59.889 --> 00:10:06.190 wrath, we're talking about God's indignation 00:10:06.190 --> 00:10:11.240 with sin. We sometimes get the idea that it's 00:10:11.240 --> 00:10:16.240 a flash in the pan. We sometimes express that 00:10:16.240 --> 00:10:19.179 kind of anger, don't we? Something hits us wrong 00:10:19.179 --> 00:10:24.559 and we respond sinfully, perhaps. There are times, 00:10:24.600 --> 00:10:27.139 I think, that we can respond righteously in anger. 00:10:27.179 --> 00:10:30.399 Jesus did. In fact, in Mark, this very same word 00:10:30.399 --> 00:10:33.539 anger is used of him. It's not used of a sinful 00:10:33.539 --> 00:10:37.980 anger. But most of the time when this word wrath 00:10:37.980 --> 00:10:41.539 is used, it's used of God. And it refers to his 00:10:41.539 --> 00:10:45.940 holy response to sin. You see, God is holy. He 00:10:45.940 --> 00:10:52.320 is offended by our sin. He is light, and in him 00:10:52.320 --> 00:10:56.019 there is no darkness at all. Sin is darkness, 00:10:56.080 --> 00:11:01.000 and the two cannot dwell together. God's response 00:11:01.000 --> 00:11:05.269 to sin is wrath and judgment. That's the ultimate 00:11:05.269 --> 00:11:09.230 wrath that we've just talked about. But there 00:11:09.230 --> 00:11:11.789 are other aspects of God's wrath that are yet 00:11:11.789 --> 00:11:13.789 to come as well. For example, the tribulation 00:11:13.789 --> 00:11:18.769 period. When we use that word, tribulation, we're 00:11:18.769 --> 00:11:23.129 thinking of the last seven years of this age 00:11:23.129 --> 00:11:27.210 in which we live. I wish we had time to go into 00:11:27.210 --> 00:11:30.289 details as to why it's seven years and some of 00:11:30.289 --> 00:11:32.250 the things that will occur during that period 00:11:32.250 --> 00:11:36.700 of time. A fascinating study in itself. That 00:11:36.700 --> 00:11:39.379 time is called in the Bible the tribulation. 00:11:40.340 --> 00:11:43.840 Christians are promised tribulation now, but 00:11:43.840 --> 00:11:47.240 that is the tribulation, and it's described in 00:11:47.240 --> 00:11:50.960 Revelation chapter 6 and verse 17 as the day 00:11:50.960 --> 00:11:56.340 of their wrath. Their, referring back to the 00:11:56.340 --> 00:12:00.179 previous verse, where it speaks about God and 00:12:00.179 --> 00:12:05.360 the Lamb, the Lord Jesus Christ. All the judgments 00:12:05.360 --> 00:12:09.620 are poured out in that period of time. God's 00:12:09.620 --> 00:12:12.679 wrath is delivered to a Christ -rejecting world 00:12:12.679 --> 00:12:19.059 of lawlessness. That is the tribulation. Zephaniah, 00:12:19.159 --> 00:12:22.440 the Old Testament prophet, in chapter 1, verses 00:12:22.440 --> 00:12:26.159 14 through 18, speaks about the day of the Lord 00:12:26.159 --> 00:12:28.720 that is coming, and he calls it a day of wrath, 00:12:29.179 --> 00:12:34.379 a day of fury. He's talking about this. period 00:12:34.379 --> 00:12:37.779 that we called the Tribulation. Now what the 00:12:37.779 --> 00:12:40.080 promise is for us here is that we're going to 00:12:40.080 --> 00:12:45.460 be saved from the wrath of God. And I believe 00:12:45.460 --> 00:12:47.639 that it not only includes that final judgment. 00:12:47.700 --> 00:12:52.159 We're not going to be there. Our names are written 00:12:52.159 --> 00:12:54.139 in the Lamb's Book of Life. We are not going 00:12:54.139 --> 00:12:56.879 to be before God at that great white throne judgment. 00:12:57.259 --> 00:13:00.559 We're going to be delivered from that. And I 00:13:00.559 --> 00:13:03.000 believe with all of my heart that it also includes 00:13:03.529 --> 00:13:05.570 The wrath of God that's going to be poured out 00:13:05.570 --> 00:13:08.669 upon the world during the tribulation. That we're 00:13:08.669 --> 00:13:11.009 going to be delivered before the tribulation 00:13:11.009 --> 00:13:15.429 through the rapture of the church. Now, what 00:13:15.429 --> 00:13:17.470 basis is there for thinking that we're going 00:13:17.470 --> 00:13:20.710 to be delivered from all of God's wrath? Well, 00:13:20.730 --> 00:13:25.409 you'll notice that he says here in verse 9, Having 00:13:25.409 --> 00:13:29.210 been justified by his blood, we shall be saved 00:13:29.210 --> 00:13:33.350 from God's wrath. And then again in verse 10, 00:13:33.429 --> 00:13:36.370 he says, we were reconciled to God through the 00:13:36.370 --> 00:13:39.149 death of his son. In other words, the apostle 00:13:39.149 --> 00:13:41.750 says, we are going to be delivered from the future 00:13:41.750 --> 00:13:44.549 wrath of God because of something that took place 00:13:44.549 --> 00:13:48.730 in the past. And he points to Calvary. He says, 00:13:48.730 --> 00:13:51.629 because God's son died there, because his blood 00:13:51.629 --> 00:13:55.990 was offered up as a sacrifice for our sins, we 00:13:55.990 --> 00:13:59.830 shall be saved from God's wrath. You see, when 00:13:59.830 --> 00:14:03.090 the Lord Jesus Christ died upon the cross, he 00:14:03.090 --> 00:14:10.009 took all of God's wrath for you. He took the 00:14:10.009 --> 00:14:15.289 judgment for your sins upon himself. God's wrath 00:14:15.289 --> 00:14:20.250 fell on Calvary that day. And when you and I 00:14:20.250 --> 00:14:23.090 come to Calvary and receive the Lord Jesus Christ, 00:14:23.570 --> 00:14:26.669 we come to a place where God's wrath has fallen 00:14:26.669 --> 00:14:29.830 once. and for all, never to fall there again. 00:14:31.769 --> 00:14:34.730 Let me illustrate it this way. Several years 00:14:34.730 --> 00:14:39.210 ago, I read about a forester in the West who 00:14:39.210 --> 00:14:43.690 was fighting a forest fire. And through carelessness 00:14:43.690 --> 00:14:46.470 really on his part, he got trapped in the fire. 00:14:47.149 --> 00:14:51.549 He found himself in a ring of fire with no escape. 00:14:53.789 --> 00:14:57.330 But because of his training, he knew one way 00:14:57.330 --> 00:15:00.470 that he might be able to save himself. And so 00:15:00.470 --> 00:15:04.549 he lit another fire and allowed it to burn over 00:15:04.549 --> 00:15:07.490 an acre or so, to burn all the brush off of it. 00:15:07.750 --> 00:15:10.289 And he got into the middle of that scorched piece 00:15:10.289 --> 00:15:14.909 of earth and dug a hole and pulled that hot soil 00:15:14.909 --> 00:15:17.450 around himself and buried himself under that 00:15:17.450 --> 00:15:20.649 soil as best he could. And the forest fire came 00:15:20.649 --> 00:15:23.169 and burned around the patch that was already 00:15:23.169 --> 00:15:27.610 burned and went on. and that forester was saved. 00:15:27.669 --> 00:15:30.730 Why? Because that fire could only burn once in 00:15:30.730 --> 00:15:34.289 that spot. And you see at Calvary, God's wrath 00:15:34.289 --> 00:15:39.009 was poured out upon sin. When you and I trust 00:15:39.009 --> 00:15:42.549 the Savior who died there in our place, then 00:15:42.549 --> 00:15:44.330 we don't have to worry about the wrath of God 00:15:44.330 --> 00:15:47.730 again. It can never fall upon Jesus Christ again. 00:15:48.809 --> 00:15:51.889 It came upon him once. He came the first time 00:15:51.889 --> 00:15:54.830 to deal with sin, and that was once and for all. 00:15:57.360 --> 00:16:00.220 The ground around Calvary, so to speak, has been 00:16:00.220 --> 00:16:03.899 scorched already. We stand on safe ground. We 00:16:03.899 --> 00:16:09.200 stand in grace. And we could go on to say this, 00:16:09.200 --> 00:16:16.379 too. You and I who are saved are members of the 00:16:16.379 --> 00:16:21.100 body of Christ, aren't we? We are so identified 00:16:21.100 --> 00:16:25.039 with Jesus Christ that it can be said that whatever 00:16:25.039 --> 00:16:30.120 happens to us happens to Jesus Christ. Illustration. 00:16:31.539 --> 00:16:33.820 Remember when Paul was on his way to Damascus, 00:16:33.820 --> 00:16:36.120 he was going there to strike out against Christians. 00:16:36.700 --> 00:16:39.639 He was a zealous Pharisee. He had thrown many 00:16:39.639 --> 00:16:42.720 Christians into prison. He was on his way to 00:16:42.720 --> 00:16:46.879 Damascus to attack more Christians. But on his 00:16:46.879 --> 00:16:51.590 way, the Lord Jesus Christ met him. And Jesus 00:16:51.590 --> 00:16:56.669 said to him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou 00:16:56.669 --> 00:17:01.610 who? Me. He doesn't say, why are you persecuting 00:17:01.610 --> 00:17:05.450 those Christians? He says, why are you persecuting 00:17:05.450 --> 00:17:09.529 me? Because you see, when Paul struck out against 00:17:09.529 --> 00:17:12.789 the Christians, he was striking out against Jesus 00:17:12.789 --> 00:17:17.529 Christ himself. Now think with me. God's wrath 00:17:17.529 --> 00:17:21.069 has already fallen upon Jesus Christ. It is unthinkable 00:17:21.069 --> 00:17:24.769 that God would allow his wrath, or that there 00:17:24.769 --> 00:17:27.650 be any reason for his wrath, to come upon his 00:17:27.650 --> 00:17:31.549 Son again. Therefore, I am perfectly convinced 00:17:31.549 --> 00:17:36.230 that we, the body of Jesus Christ, we who are 00:17:36.230 --> 00:17:39.970 one with him, will be delivered from all aspects 00:17:39.970 --> 00:17:44.519 of God's wrath in the future. What guarantee 00:17:44.519 --> 00:17:47.660 do I have, though, that I'm not going to fall 00:17:47.660 --> 00:17:52.480 before then? Or that I'm not going to fail God? 00:17:53.500 --> 00:17:55.759 Or that with all the Christians in the world, 00:17:55.799 --> 00:17:59.500 God isn't going to forget little old me? How 00:17:59.500 --> 00:18:03.440 do I know that? We have a guarantee. And you'll 00:18:03.440 --> 00:18:06.339 notice that it says in verse 10 that we shall 00:18:06.339 --> 00:18:11.890 be saved by his life or in his life. In other 00:18:11.890 --> 00:18:15.829 words, we are guaranteed deliverance from God's 00:18:15.829 --> 00:18:19.349 wrath and future glorification because Jesus 00:18:19.349 --> 00:18:24.349 lives for us. Because he died for us, yes, but 00:18:24.349 --> 00:18:27.750 because he lives for us, too. Turn in your Bible 00:18:27.750 --> 00:18:31.970 to Hebrews chapter 7 for a moment. As we look 00:18:31.970 --> 00:18:34.990 at a passage that deals with this wonderful subject 00:18:34.990 --> 00:18:38.680 of Christ's present ministry for us. We often 00:18:38.680 --> 00:18:40.839 think of what he's done in the past, and we think 00:18:40.839 --> 00:18:43.640 of what he's going to do in the future, but we 00:18:43.640 --> 00:18:45.900 don't so often think about what Jesus is doing 00:18:45.900 --> 00:18:50.039 right now on our behalf. In this chapter, there's 00:18:50.039 --> 00:18:54.200 a contrast between the old covenant and its priesthood 00:18:54.200 --> 00:18:58.460 with the new covenant and Jesus Christ, the high 00:18:58.460 --> 00:19:01.839 priest, the great high priest. In verse 22, it 00:19:01.839 --> 00:19:05.980 says, Jesus has become the guarantee of a better 00:19:05.980 --> 00:19:10.509 covenant. Notice that word guarantee. And the 00:19:10.509 --> 00:19:12.890 former priest, on the other hand, on the one 00:19:12.890 --> 00:19:16.750 hand, existed in greater numbers because they 00:19:16.750 --> 00:19:20.490 were prevented by death from continuing. But 00:19:20.490 --> 00:19:24.210 he, on the other hand, because he abides forever, 00:19:24.569 --> 00:19:29.529 holds his priesthood permanently. Hence also 00:19:29.529 --> 00:19:35.109 he is able to say forever or completely or to 00:19:35.109 --> 00:19:39.619 the uttermost, Those who draw near to God through 00:19:39.619 --> 00:19:43.500 him, since he always lives to make intercession 00:19:43.500 --> 00:19:46.859 for them. Do you understand that even in those 00:19:46.859 --> 00:19:52.160 times when you fail, as all of us do, that there 00:19:52.160 --> 00:19:56.059 is one in heaven who prays for you faithfully? 00:19:57.039 --> 00:19:59.720 You may think there's nobody who cares about 00:19:59.720 --> 00:20:01.880 you, there's nobody who prays for you, and friend, 00:20:01.960 --> 00:20:05.160 you're wrong. Because as a believer in Jesus 00:20:05.160 --> 00:20:08.599 Christ, you have a great high priest, the Lord 00:20:08.599 --> 00:20:11.720 himself, who stands at the right hand of God 00:20:11.720 --> 00:20:17.380 continually remembering you in prayer. You say, 00:20:17.420 --> 00:20:19.519 how can he remember me and all the other Christians? 00:20:19.799 --> 00:20:24.240 He can do that because he's God. He is interceding 00:20:24.240 --> 00:20:26.980 for you and he is able to save you to the uttermost 00:20:26.980 --> 00:20:32.680 by his life. Roy Lauren, in his book, on Romans, 00:20:32.759 --> 00:20:36.559 has a helpful paragraph. He says, The assurance 00:20:36.559 --> 00:20:40.500 of salvation from sin is Christ dying, while 00:20:40.500 --> 00:20:44.160 the assurance of salvation from falling is Christ 00:20:44.160 --> 00:20:48.140 living. We were saved by Christ, the Lamb of 00:20:48.140 --> 00:20:51.759 God, dying. We are kept saved by Christ, the 00:20:51.759 --> 00:20:56.319 High Priest of God, living. If the death of Christ 00:20:56.319 --> 00:21:00.849 was the means of our reconciliation, The life 00:21:00.849 --> 00:21:08.130 of Christ is the means of our preservation. How 00:21:08.130 --> 00:21:10.329 many of you have a will? Would you lift your 00:21:10.329 --> 00:21:14.250 hand? Well, we have at least one attorney here 00:21:14.250 --> 00:21:16.210 today that I know of. He's got fertile ground. 00:21:17.690 --> 00:21:19.950 You should have a will. As somebody said, if 00:21:19.950 --> 00:21:21.950 you don't have a will, the government has one 00:21:21.950 --> 00:21:28.630 for you. That's right. Did you know Jesus Christ 00:21:28.630 --> 00:21:32.970 had a will? He reveals his will in the Garden 00:21:32.970 --> 00:21:38.690 of Gethsemane before he died. He said, Father, 00:21:38.769 --> 00:21:41.609 I pray that those who believe on me will be with 00:21:41.609 --> 00:21:46.589 me in glory, that they may behold the glory that 00:21:46.589 --> 00:21:49.970 I had with you before the world was. That's his 00:21:49.970 --> 00:21:53.029 will, that every one of us who trusts him someday 00:21:53.029 --> 00:21:57.529 be in heaven with him. Now, when you have a will, 00:21:59.079 --> 00:22:04.059 It's not brought into enforcement until you what? 00:22:05.880 --> 00:22:11.380 Right. You have to die. It's a legal document, 00:22:11.440 --> 00:22:14.960 but it's not enforced until you die. And then 00:22:14.960 --> 00:22:20.380 someone has to execute it or administrate it. 00:22:20.579 --> 00:22:23.039 And you're wise if you select somebody who's 00:22:23.039 --> 00:22:25.660 going to do that for you. Obviously, you can't 00:22:25.660 --> 00:22:29.740 do it. And so somebody you trust, To follow through 00:22:29.740 --> 00:22:33.119 needs to do it on your behalf. Now let me share 00:22:33.119 --> 00:22:35.900 with you a wonderful truth about the will of 00:22:35.900 --> 00:22:38.980 the Lord Jesus Christ. His will is, Father, I 00:22:38.980 --> 00:22:42.940 want those who trust me to be in heaven. And 00:22:42.940 --> 00:22:46.339 then he died so that that might come to pass. 00:22:46.420 --> 00:22:49.259 Without his death, we could never be there. And 00:22:49.259 --> 00:22:52.559 so his will came into enforcement. And then he 00:22:52.559 --> 00:22:56.039 was raised from the dead so that he himself could 00:22:56.039 --> 00:22:59.210 administrate his will. Do you think that he's 00:22:59.210 --> 00:23:02.369 going to allow one person who's trusted him to 00:23:02.369 --> 00:23:05.950 fail to show up in heaven someday, fully glorified? 00:23:06.809 --> 00:23:11.329 Not by any means. You see, he is the guarantee 00:23:11.329 --> 00:23:15.890 that we are delivered and shall be delivered 00:23:15.890 --> 00:23:21.950 from the wrath of God. Now there's a second blessing 00:23:21.950 --> 00:23:23.769 we're going to look at today. It's number seven 00:23:23.769 --> 00:23:28.430 in our list, and it's joy in God. He says in 00:23:28.430 --> 00:23:32.730 verse 11, not only this, but we also exalt in 00:23:32.730 --> 00:23:36.250 God through our Lord Jesus Christ. That word 00:23:36.250 --> 00:23:41.910 exalt means to glory, to boast, to joy. I think 00:23:41.910 --> 00:23:46.410 we could even say to brag. It's not a sinful 00:23:46.410 --> 00:23:51.329 bragging. It's a proper bragging. He has used 00:23:51.329 --> 00:23:54.369 this word twice before. He says in verse 2 of 00:23:54.369 --> 00:23:58.509 chapter 5 that We exert or we brag in the hope 00:23:58.509 --> 00:24:02.069 of the glory of God. And then in the next verse 00:24:02.069 --> 00:24:06.589 he says we also brag about our troubles. Now 00:24:06.589 --> 00:24:10.289 too many of us do that, do we? We brag more about 00:24:10.289 --> 00:24:12.349 heaven than we do our trials, but he says we 00:24:12.349 --> 00:24:14.710 ought to brag about them evenly. Because our 00:24:14.710 --> 00:24:16.849 trials simply prove that God's working in our 00:24:16.849 --> 00:24:22.930 lives. Mary says that we... Rejoice, we boast 00:24:22.930 --> 00:24:26.609 in God himself. Not just in his working, not 00:24:26.609 --> 00:24:29.890 just in his blessings, but we boast in God himself. 00:24:30.289 --> 00:24:35.329 We may enjoy God. No unsafe person in all the 00:24:35.329 --> 00:24:40.509 world can do that. You and I are destined to 00:24:40.509 --> 00:24:46.130 enjoy God in this life and forever. Perhaps the 00:24:46.130 --> 00:24:48.529 Westminster Catechism, Shorter Catechism, has 00:24:48.529 --> 00:24:50.940 put it, most succinctly, when it says, What is 00:24:50.940 --> 00:24:55.559 the chief end of man? To glorify God and what? 00:24:57.099 --> 00:25:02.859 Enjoy Him forever. And it's not talking about 00:25:02.859 --> 00:25:06.299 heaven only, though it says that in His presence 00:25:06.299 --> 00:25:09.519 is fullness of joy, and at His right hand there 00:25:09.519 --> 00:25:12.460 are pleasures forevermore. But it's talking about 00:25:12.460 --> 00:25:16.059 right here and now, folks. You and I can enjoy 00:25:16.059 --> 00:25:21.180 God in this life. We can boast and rejoice in 00:25:21.180 --> 00:25:27.599 him here. Are you doing that? Is that joy a reality 00:25:27.599 --> 00:25:31.859 to you? Why can we do this? Because it says we've 00:25:31.859 --> 00:25:35.339 received the reconciliation. The word atonement 00:25:35.339 --> 00:25:37.740 in the King James Version is a bad translation 00:25:37.740 --> 00:25:42.940 of the word. It is the word reconciliation. Jesus 00:25:42.940 --> 00:25:46.099 Christ has purchased for us not an atonement, 00:25:46.099 --> 00:25:50.009 a covering for sin, But he has made possible 00:25:50.009 --> 00:25:54.349 the reconciliation. What that means is that whereas 00:25:54.349 --> 00:25:57.069 before there was a barrier between us and God, 00:25:57.289 --> 00:26:01.029 now the situation has been thoroughly changed, 00:26:01.269 --> 00:26:05.849 which is what the word means. So the man is rendered 00:26:05.849 --> 00:26:09.990 savable. He can now come to God through Jesus 00:26:09.990 --> 00:26:13.769 Christ. We have received the reconciliation, 00:26:13.789 --> 00:26:20.059 and God intends for us to enjoy it. him why is 00:26:20.059 --> 00:26:23.799 it that there are so many christians who don't 00:26:23.799 --> 00:26:28.680 seem to be enjoying god there are some christians 00:26:28.680 --> 00:26:31.740 that i think i would almost swear were soaking 00:26:31.740 --> 00:26:35.500 pickle juice or lemon juice or some sour substance 00:26:35.500 --> 00:26:38.559 every night when they go to bed because in the 00:26:38.559 --> 00:26:43.240 morning they get up and all through the day miserable 00:26:43.240 --> 00:26:46.579 to be around As a friend of mine says, there 00:26:46.579 --> 00:26:49.579 are sorrier rascals. There are some Christians 00:26:49.579 --> 00:26:52.940 who are pretty sorry. Why is it that there are 00:26:52.940 --> 00:26:54.720 some Christians who are not experiencing the 00:26:54.720 --> 00:26:57.720 joy of God? Do you want me to tell you? There 00:26:57.720 --> 00:26:59.400 are several reasons, but I've got time to share 00:26:59.400 --> 00:27:06.180 just one. And that is sin. You see, sin is a 00:27:06.180 --> 00:27:12.299 thief. It robs us of the joy of our salvation. 00:27:16.129 --> 00:27:19.210 I'm talking to some people today who are without 00:27:19.210 --> 00:27:28.170 much joy. And that reason hits you square in 00:27:28.170 --> 00:27:32.569 the heart. Because you've been living in sin. 00:27:33.569 --> 00:27:36.390 A Christian, yes, but you've been a prodigal 00:27:36.390 --> 00:27:41.130 away from the Lord. God wants you to experience 00:27:41.130 --> 00:27:46.460 fullness of joy. It doesn't mean that you're 00:27:46.460 --> 00:27:48.339 always going to have a tickler going on down 00:27:48.339 --> 00:27:52.380 inside. But it means that there is going to be 00:27:52.380 --> 00:27:55.400 such an inner contentment that it will produce 00:27:55.400 --> 00:28:02.720 an inner joy that cannot be taken away by circumstances, 00:28:03.059 --> 00:28:10.039 by people. It's tragically possible for us to 00:28:10.039 --> 00:28:16.920 substitute cheap thrills and passing sinful pleasures 00:28:16.920 --> 00:28:23.160 for the joy that we may have in God. Is that 00:28:23.160 --> 00:28:28.339 where you are today? I tell you, God wants you 00:28:28.339 --> 00:28:31.720 to know that fullness of joy, and you can know 00:28:31.720 --> 00:28:34.720 it if, as a believer today, you'll come back 00:28:34.720 --> 00:28:37.359 to that place where you started your prodigal 00:28:37.359 --> 00:28:41.519 journey and will come home to the Father. Will 00:28:41.519 --> 00:28:45.690 you do that today? All of the blessings of justification 00:28:45.690 --> 00:28:50.009 come through Jesus Christ. If you are trusting 00:28:50.009 --> 00:28:53.230 in anyone or anything other than Jesus Christ 00:28:53.230 --> 00:28:55.849 for your salvation, the blessings we've talked 00:28:55.849 --> 00:28:58.089 about in this paragraph cannot be experienced 00:28:58.089 --> 00:29:03.609 by you. But if today you would trust the Lord 00:29:03.609 --> 00:29:06.130 Jesus Christ, you may become the heir of these 00:29:06.130 --> 00:29:12.630 blessings and know them. And as a Christian, 00:29:14.319 --> 00:29:17.119 Are you living in the place of blessing? The 00:29:17.119 --> 00:29:18.920 place of blessing is the place of obedience, 00:29:19.160 --> 00:29:26.099 isn't it? I heard a story several years ago about 00:29:26.099 --> 00:29:30.740 an immigrant. This man did not speak any English. 00:29:30.799 --> 00:29:37.559 He came from a European country. His family was 00:29:37.559 --> 00:29:39.920 concerned about him, of course, and so from their 00:29:39.920 --> 00:29:42.299 city in the Midwest, which was his final destination, 00:29:43.079 --> 00:29:45.240 They sent a ticket to New York, and they had 00:29:45.240 --> 00:29:47.019 written him in advance saying, when you get off 00:29:47.019 --> 00:29:49.740 the ship, there will be a ticket waiting for 00:29:49.740 --> 00:29:52.400 you so that you may come to our city in the Midwest 00:29:52.400 --> 00:29:56.779 and live with us. And so the man got to the city, 00:29:56.900 --> 00:30:00.460 got to the dock, rather, in New York where the 00:30:00.460 --> 00:30:06.099 boat disembarked, and he picked up the ticket, 00:30:06.220 --> 00:30:09.079 managed to find out where that was, and headed 00:30:09.079 --> 00:30:12.960 off on his journey. On the day he was supposed 00:30:12.960 --> 00:30:15.599 to arrive by train in the Midwest, the family 00:30:15.599 --> 00:30:18.460 was at the station, but he didn't get off the 00:30:18.460 --> 00:30:23.400 train. Of course, they were concerned about that, 00:30:23.420 --> 00:30:25.339 and so they began to trace where he might be. 00:30:25.859 --> 00:30:28.200 And back up the line, they traced from station 00:30:28.200 --> 00:30:30.660 to station until finally somewhere in the state 00:30:30.660 --> 00:30:36.200 of New York, they found him walking along the 00:30:36.200 --> 00:30:40.740 railroad tracks. And so some people went up to 00:30:40.740 --> 00:30:44.630 him, and began to ask him questions. He couldn't 00:30:44.630 --> 00:30:46.950 really understand English, so he simply pulled 00:30:46.950 --> 00:30:51.890 out the ticket and showed them the ticket, that 00:30:51.890 --> 00:30:55.730 he had the right to walk on the tracks. You see, 00:30:55.769 --> 00:30:58.289 nobody told him that the ticket gave him permission 00:30:58.289 --> 00:31:04.630 to ride the train. That little illustration describes 00:31:04.630 --> 00:31:08.269 some Christians. They've got the ticket of justification 00:31:08.269 --> 00:31:13.869 stuck in their pocket. They're walking through 00:31:13.869 --> 00:31:16.869 a dry, miserable experience in this life because 00:31:16.869 --> 00:31:18.789 they're living in their own strength and for 00:31:18.789 --> 00:31:22.890 themselves when God has provided for them to 00:31:22.890 --> 00:31:25.690 ride and to know the joy of the blessings we've 00:31:25.690 --> 00:31:28.609 talked about here. Christian, does that describe 00:31:28.609 --> 00:31:32.910 you today? Are you walking? Will you get on the 00:31:32.910 --> 00:31:41.519 train today? Let's bow together. Father, this 00:31:41.519 --> 00:31:47.059 message finds all of us at some point. I pray 00:31:47.059 --> 00:31:49.440 that if we are at that place of disobedience 00:31:49.440 --> 00:31:54.319 and dryness and spiritual coldness, that you 00:31:54.319 --> 00:31:56.680 will bring us under such intense conviction that 00:31:56.680 --> 00:31:59.400 we will repent of the sins that have led us away 00:31:59.400 --> 00:32:03.259 as prodigals, so that we may come back into fellowship 00:32:03.259 --> 00:32:06.779 with you. I pray for that Christian here today, 00:32:06.819 --> 00:32:10.440 or for those several perhaps, who need to come 00:32:10.440 --> 00:32:15.460 and surrender to your Lordship and rededicate 00:32:15.460 --> 00:32:20.319 themselves to a faithful walk with God. And then 00:32:20.319 --> 00:32:22.480 I pray for that one or several who may be here 00:32:22.480 --> 00:32:26.279 who have never trusted Christ. Pray that today 00:32:26.279 --> 00:32:28.900 they'll understand the joy that comes, the fullness 00:32:28.900 --> 00:32:32.640 of salvation that can be theirs by the simple 00:32:32.640 --> 00:32:38.559 act of faith in receiving your free gift. God 00:32:38.559 --> 00:32:41.619 bless in this invitation, I pray, and may we 00:32:41.619 --> 00:32:44.539 do business with you. Amen.