00:00:00 --> 00:00:05 What I find really interesting about the Palm Sunday event, and the text that we're looking
00:00:05 --> 00:00:10 at this morning, of course, is not specifically about the Palm Sunday event, the triumphal
00:00:10 --> 00:00:15 entry into the holy city, but it's a parallel passage, a quite complementary passage, in
00:00:15 --> 00:00:24 fact, because we see in both instances just how fickle the vision of the people can be.
00:00:24 --> 00:00:31 If you recall, as Jesus is entering in his triumphal procession on the donkey, humble
00:00:31 --> 00:00:37 and lowly, greeted by palm branches and the shouts of Hosanna, there is a great reception,
00:00:37 --> 00:00:44 a great party, in fact, the anticipation that the Messiah, perhaps, is coming, and yet it's
00:00:44 --> 00:00:51 not very long into the week that Jesus is betrayed and arrested and tortured and executed.
00:00:51 --> 00:01:00 There appears to be, throughout the pages of the Gospels, in fact, this great dichotomy
00:01:00 --> 00:01:06 of vision, really sort of a polarizing effect that Jesus has on almost everyone that he
00:01:06 --> 00:01:06 encounters.
00:01:06 --> 00:01:12 It's impossible, in fact, to be apathetic or ambivalent about Jesus Christ.
00:01:13 --> 00:01:19 In John chapter 14, Jesus says something really radical, really provocative.
00:01:19 --> 00:01:22 He says, I am the way, the truth, and the life.
00:01:23 --> 00:01:25 No one comes to the Father except through me.
00:01:27 --> 00:01:32 Over and over and over again, Jesus, throughout his ministry, is putting himself at the center
00:01:32 --> 00:01:39 of human existence to say, if you want to abound, if you want to live, if you want to live eternally,
00:01:39 --> 00:01:42 you must orient yourself around me.
00:01:42 --> 00:01:48 When Jesus calls himself the way, the truth, and the life, we see that he's not simply speaking
00:01:48 --> 00:01:51 about justification, about salvation.
00:01:51 --> 00:01:53 He is speaking about that, of course.
00:01:54 --> 00:02:01 But he's talking about daily life, the grounds of real human living.
00:02:01 --> 00:02:10 The reason why I, and I suspect you, get distracted from time to time, give in to temptation to sin,
00:02:10 --> 00:02:15 is because we have, in effect, taken our eyes off of Jesus Christ.
00:02:16 --> 00:02:22 We have forgotten, at least momentarily, we've experienced a kind of gospel amnesia in the
00:02:22 --> 00:02:22 moment.
00:02:22 --> 00:02:28 We have forgotten how satisfying and how sufficient and how answering Christ is.
00:02:28 --> 00:02:34 This is true for every sin and every moment when we choose something other than God to
00:02:34 --> 00:02:36 satisfy us, that is actually what we're saying.
00:02:36 --> 00:02:38 We're engaging in a kind of disbelief.
00:02:38 --> 00:02:41 We are saying in the moment, God, you don't satisfy me.
00:02:42 --> 00:02:43 You don't fulfill me.
00:02:43 --> 00:02:44 You don't validate me.
00:02:44 --> 00:02:45 You don't justify me.
00:02:45 --> 00:02:49 This is what will give me peace and joy and happiness.
00:02:50 --> 00:02:56 I think of all the things that I look to to satisfy me when I know it really is only Christ
00:02:56 --> 00:03:01 and his glory that can bring me great and deep and abiding joy.
00:03:02 --> 00:03:04 This is what the Apostle Paul says in Philippians chapter 3.
00:03:05 --> 00:03:08 Whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ.
00:03:09 --> 00:03:14 Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus,
00:03:14 --> 00:03:14 my Lord.
00:03:15 --> 00:03:19 For his sake, I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish in order that
00:03:19 --> 00:03:21 I may gain Christ.
00:03:22 --> 00:03:30 And so I think the biggest problem that Christians face is not that we haven't thought of Christ
00:03:30 --> 00:03:36 alone for salvation, but that we only consider Christ alone every now and again.
00:03:37 --> 00:03:40 Many of us live very compartmentalized lives.
00:03:40 --> 00:03:47 We tend to think of ourselves as existing in these time slots or having multiple roles.
00:03:48 --> 00:03:53 There's our work self and our home self, our family self, our school self, our recreational
00:03:53 --> 00:03:56 self, and then there's our religious self.
00:03:56 --> 00:04:01 And we're accustomed to thinking of Jesus when it's time to think of spiritual or religious
00:04:01 --> 00:04:01 things.
00:04:02 --> 00:04:07 But the Jesus of the New Testament, the Jesus who is the real Jesus, the Son of God incarnate,
00:04:07 --> 00:04:11 doesn't abide in his own assigned time slot.
00:04:11 --> 00:04:13 He is the ruler of all existence.
00:04:13 --> 00:04:15 He is the sovereign Lord of all.
00:04:16 --> 00:04:22 The real Jesus will not stand for being assigned a compartment in our life.
00:04:24 --> 00:04:25 He is the center of the universe.
00:04:27 --> 00:04:31 So again, the problem is not that we don't look to Jesus, but that we don't spend enough
00:04:31 --> 00:04:36 time looking at all of him, which is to say, pondering his glory.
00:04:37 --> 00:04:42 And that's what I want to sort of explore with you this afternoon, what I want to help us
00:04:42 --> 00:04:48 see together this afternoon, really the point of this passage in John chapter 8.
00:04:48 --> 00:04:54 And the first thing that we should mention as we look at this exchange, this debate, this
00:04:54 --> 00:05:00 argument, is that it isn't really a personality clash.
00:05:00 --> 00:05:07 You know, sometimes when you hear, you know, some folks explain the difference between the
00:05:07 --> 00:05:13 Pharisees and Jesus or why they continue to have this clash, it's put very superficially
00:05:13 --> 00:05:17 as if the Pharisees are mean and Jesus is nice.
00:05:17 --> 00:05:21 And this is really the, you know, the reason why they're so angry with Jesus is because he's
00:05:21 --> 00:05:25 going around telling everyone to be kind to each other and he's teaching peace and this
00:05:25 --> 00:05:26 really upsets them.
00:05:27 --> 00:05:33 And that really just sort of scratches the surface of the primary disconnect between the
00:05:33 --> 00:05:34 religious rulers and Jesus.
00:05:35 --> 00:05:38 You don't execute somebody who's just teaching everyone to be nice to each other.
00:05:39 --> 00:05:44 That might irritate you, but it wouldn't drive you to want to execute them.
00:05:45 --> 00:05:49 What this is, is not primarily a personality clash.
00:05:49 --> 00:05:51 It is a theological conflict.
00:05:52 --> 00:05:54 It is about belief.
00:05:56 --> 00:06:03 In the ruler's mind, in the religious leader's mind, it's about orthodoxy and heresy, in fact.
00:06:04 --> 00:06:08 At stake is what is expressed in verse 48.
00:06:08 --> 00:06:11 Is Jesus a demon-possessed Samaritan?
00:06:12 --> 00:06:17 Now, of course, I know you don't believe that Jesus is a demon-possessed Samaritan.
00:06:19 --> 00:06:24 But if we were to put it in our terms and sort of the language of our day, how this sort of
00:06:24 --> 00:06:30 debate or misunderstanding or failure to see the glory of Christ really works out, we might put it this way.
00:06:30 --> 00:06:31 Who is Jesus?
00:06:33 --> 00:06:35 Is he who he says he is?
00:06:35 --> 00:06:37 Or is he something else?
00:06:38 --> 00:06:46 And Jesus himself is saying some incredibly provocative things about himself all over his preaching ministry.
00:06:46 --> 00:06:56 But right here in this theological conflict at which he is the center, he's saying some really provocative, really spectacular, really mind-boggling things.
00:06:57 --> 00:06:59 In verse 49, he says, I honor my father.
00:07:01 --> 00:07:05 In verse 54, he says, my father glorifies me.
00:07:05 --> 00:07:11 Now, if you're one of the religious leaders at this time, you're thinking, hold on just a second, time out.
00:07:12 --> 00:07:15 This has the air of blasphemy to it.
00:07:16 --> 00:07:24 Because this man who isn't yet 50 years old is saying basically, the father that you call God glorifies me.
00:07:24 --> 00:07:29 Why would God the father glorify this man?
00:07:30 --> 00:07:38 Who is this man to claim such kinship, such intimacy, such parity, equality with God the father?
00:07:40 --> 00:07:48 So we have to set aside, if we're to take Jesus at his own words, we have to set aside the option that he's simply a good teacher
00:07:48 --> 00:07:49 that went around telling everyone to be nice to each other.
00:07:49 --> 00:07:59 He is, as C.S. Lewis famously put it in his apologetic, he is either a lying scoundrel, right?
00:07:59 --> 00:08:01 A demonized Samaritan, perhaps.
00:08:03 --> 00:08:06 Or he's crazy, a lunatic.
00:08:08 --> 00:08:13 Or, or, quite possibly, verse 55, he knows the father.
00:08:14 --> 00:08:18 Like, actually knows the father and keeps his word.
00:08:19 --> 00:08:25 And what makes the difference, what makes the difference between seeing Jesus as he truly is,
00:08:26 --> 00:08:31 as the redeeming God-man, and not seeing him as he truly is,
00:08:32 --> 00:08:34 is contingent upon seeing his glory.
00:08:36 --> 00:08:43 My working thesis here, the reason why I draw that particular filter over our understanding of the text,
00:08:43 --> 00:08:48 comes primarily from 2 Corinthians chapter 3, where in verse 18, Paul says,
00:08:48 --> 00:08:54 it's by beholding the glory of Christ that we are transformed from one degree of glory to another.
00:08:54 --> 00:08:57 So there's something, there's something supernatural, something spiritual,
00:08:58 --> 00:09:04 about seeing the glory of Jesus that makes the difference between seeing Jesus as just a man,
00:09:04 --> 00:09:07 or just a good teacher, or as a liar, or as a lunatic,
00:09:07 --> 00:09:13 and seeing Jesus for who he truly is, for who he revealed himself truly to be.
00:09:14 --> 00:09:16 And this really is a spiritual thing.
00:09:16 --> 00:09:20 Some people look at Jesus all the time, and they don't see anything impressive.
00:09:20 --> 00:09:28 They see the liar Jesus, or the lunatic Jesus, or the just a good teacher Jesus.
00:09:29 --> 00:09:34 But others, others see a glimpse of his glory.
00:09:35 --> 00:09:39 They taste and see, in the revelation of Jesus Christ,
00:09:39 --> 00:09:47 something delicious, spiritually transformative, forever changed.
00:09:47 --> 00:09:52 So if we look carefully at this text, we can see some of this glory here in this exchange.
00:09:53 --> 00:09:58 Jesus is showing it to us, even as he's withholding it from his Jewish accusers.
00:09:59 --> 00:10:00 And what do we see?
00:10:00 --> 00:10:03 How wondrous is the glory of the God-man Jesus?
00:10:03 --> 00:10:07 What is it that Christ's glory alone does?
00:10:07 --> 00:10:12 Well, first of all, Christ alone has glory that reaches into the eternal past.
00:10:13 --> 00:10:16 He has glory alone that reaches into the eternal past.
00:10:16 --> 00:10:20 As the author of Hebrews says in Hebrews chapter 1, verse 1,
00:10:20 --> 00:10:23 once upon a time, God spoke in a lot of ways through the prophets,
00:10:23 --> 00:10:28 but now, finally, all of these messages, all of these prophecies,
00:10:28 --> 00:10:33 culminate in the final message, the incarnate word, Jesus Christ.
00:10:34 --> 00:10:38 And the entire collection of books that we call the Old Testament
00:10:38 --> 00:10:44 unfold the plan of redemption that sets the stage for the incarnation of the Son of God
00:10:44 --> 00:10:46 who has come to save sinners from death.
00:10:46 --> 00:10:51 Every person, every prophecy, every prescribed ritual,
00:10:52 --> 00:10:56 all of it is pointing to the fulfillment of itself in Christ Jesus.
00:10:58 --> 00:11:00 If you remember, right after his resurrection,
00:11:00 --> 00:11:04 Jesus kind of sidles up along the disciples on the road to Emmaus.
00:11:04 --> 00:11:06 And at first, they don't recognize him.
00:11:06 --> 00:11:07 They're not quite sure who he is.
00:11:07 --> 00:11:10 But he begins to teach and preach to them.
00:11:10 --> 00:11:10 And it says,
00:11:10 --> 00:11:15 He revealed everything about himself from the law and the prophets to them.
00:11:15 --> 00:11:19 Essentially, Jesus is preaching to them a Christ-centered,
00:11:19 --> 00:11:21 expository sermon from the Old Testament.
00:11:22 --> 00:11:24 Or if you prefer, because it's Jesus preaching it,
00:11:25 --> 00:11:28 a expository, self-centered sermon from the Old Testament.
00:11:28 --> 00:11:30 He's telling them about himself.
00:11:30 --> 00:11:35 This is where I was in Genesis and in Exodus and Leviticus and Deuteronomy.
00:11:36 --> 00:11:38 And their response, if you remember,
00:11:38 --> 00:11:41 the disciples who are hearing this sermon,
00:11:41 --> 00:11:47 Jesus showing himself, his glory from the pages of the Old Covenant Scriptures,
00:11:47 --> 00:11:49 their response is not simply to say,
00:11:49 --> 00:11:50 Oh, that's really interesting.
00:11:51 --> 00:11:55 You've really unlocked some things that help us mentally.
00:11:55 --> 00:11:56 No, they say,
00:11:57 --> 00:11:59 Our hearts burned within us.
00:12:00 --> 00:12:02 What does that mean?
00:12:02 --> 00:12:04 Well, it's the response of worship.
00:12:04 --> 00:12:08 They have not just heard intellectually the glory of Christ,
00:12:08 --> 00:12:11 but they have seen spiritually the glory of Christ,
00:12:11 --> 00:12:13 and they have been transformed.
00:12:13 --> 00:12:17 They've had their affections stirred for this Jesus.
00:12:17 --> 00:12:20 This is how Jesus puts it here in verse 56.
00:12:20 --> 00:12:24 Your father Abraham, Old Covenant,
00:12:24 --> 00:12:28 your father Abraham rejoiced that he would see my day.
00:12:28 --> 00:12:30 He saw it and was glad.
00:12:31 --> 00:12:36 This is very similar to another moment in Jesus' ministry,
00:12:36 --> 00:12:38 in the early days of his ministry, in fact,
00:12:38 --> 00:12:41 when he's in the synagogue in Luke chapter 4, if you remember,
00:12:41 --> 00:12:44 and he's reading from the scroll of Isaiah,
00:12:45 --> 00:12:47 reading the prophecy,
00:12:47 --> 00:12:49 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me.
00:12:49 --> 00:12:50 He reads this,
00:12:50 --> 00:12:53 and then he essentially says to the gathered congregation,
00:12:54 --> 00:12:55 All of that is about me.
00:12:55 --> 00:13:03 And the audience reacts very similarly to how this audience reacts in John chapter 8.
00:13:04 --> 00:13:09 The reality is that Jesus Christ is not some divine improvisation.
00:13:09 --> 00:13:15 It's not as if God thought that we could work out salvation by our own merit,
00:13:15 --> 00:13:18 just pulling ourselves up by our bootstraps,
00:13:18 --> 00:13:22 that we could eke out some sort of spiritual achievement,
00:13:22 --> 00:13:25 and then embarrassed by our failure to measure up,
00:13:25 --> 00:13:28 and surprised by our inability,
00:13:28 --> 00:13:28 thought,
00:13:28 --> 00:13:31 Oh, I guess I should go ahead and send my son down there to sort things out.
00:13:33 --> 00:13:35 No, the covenant of grace,
00:13:36 --> 00:13:39 begun and finished by Jesus Christ,
00:13:39 --> 00:13:41 was part of his plan all along.
00:13:43 --> 00:13:45 In fact, everywhere Jesus goes,
00:13:45 --> 00:13:46 he's telling people this.
00:13:46 --> 00:13:47 He's not plan B.
00:13:48 --> 00:13:49 He is God's plan A.
00:13:50 --> 00:13:51 He says,
00:13:51 --> 00:13:54 You don't believe me because you don't believe the scriptures.
00:13:55 --> 00:13:56 Here are a few examples.
00:13:56 --> 00:13:58 In Matthew 21, verse 42,
00:13:59 --> 00:13:59 Jesus said to them,
00:14:00 --> 00:14:01 Have you never read in the scriptures
00:14:01 --> 00:14:03 the stone that the builders rejected
00:14:03 --> 00:14:04 has become the cornerstone?
00:14:05 --> 00:14:07 This was the Lord's doing,
00:14:07 --> 00:14:09 and it is marvelous in our eyes.
00:14:09 --> 00:14:11 Matthew 22, 29,
00:14:12 --> 00:14:12 Jesus answered them,
00:14:12 --> 00:14:13 You are wrong,
00:14:14 --> 00:14:15 because you know neither the scriptures
00:14:15 --> 00:14:16 nor the power of God.
00:14:17 --> 00:14:20 Matthew 26, verse 56,
00:14:20 --> 00:14:22 All of this has taken place
00:14:22 --> 00:14:24 that the scriptures of the prophets might be fulfilled.
00:14:26 --> 00:14:27 Mark 14, 49,
00:14:28 --> 00:14:30 Day after day I was with you in the temple teaching,
00:14:30 --> 00:14:31 and you didn't seize me,
00:14:32 --> 00:14:33 but let the scriptures be fulfilled.
00:14:34 --> 00:14:36 Or Luke 24, 27,
00:14:36 --> 00:14:38 Beginning with Moses and all the prophets,
00:14:38 --> 00:14:41 he interpreted to them in all the scriptures
00:14:41 --> 00:14:42 the things concerning himself.
00:14:43 --> 00:14:44 Luke 24, 45,
00:14:45 --> 00:14:48 He opened their minds to understand the scriptures.
00:14:49 --> 00:14:50 John 5, 39,
00:14:50 --> 00:14:51 You search the scriptures
00:14:51 --> 00:14:54 because you think that in them you have eternal life,
00:14:54 --> 00:14:57 but it is they that bear witness about me.
00:14:59 --> 00:15:02 The truth of the glory of the God-man Jesus Christ
00:15:02 --> 00:15:05 rests on the rich, thick tapestry
00:15:05 --> 00:15:08 of the God-breathed scriptures.
00:15:09 --> 00:15:11 Even Abraham, Jesus says,
00:15:11 --> 00:15:13 could see it on the horizon.
00:15:14 --> 00:15:17 From the darkness of antiquity,
00:15:17 --> 00:15:20 Abraham sees the dawning light of Jesus Christ,
00:15:20 --> 00:15:22 and his heart thrills with hope.
00:15:22 --> 00:15:24 His heart burned within him.
00:15:25 --> 00:15:27 He saw my day, Jesus said,
00:15:27 --> 00:15:28 and he rejoiced.
00:15:28 --> 00:15:32 But the Bible doesn't just give us a glimpse
00:15:32 --> 00:15:34 into the beginning of time
00:15:34 --> 00:15:35 and the beginning of the covenant.
00:15:36 --> 00:15:37 No, in fact, the glory of Jesus,
00:15:38 --> 00:15:40 the glory of the saving Son of God,
00:15:40 --> 00:15:41 didn't begin in Genesis
00:15:41 --> 00:15:44 any more than it began in Luke chapter 2
00:15:44 --> 00:15:45 or John chapter 1.
00:15:46 --> 00:15:48 It's not just into the historical past
00:15:48 --> 00:15:50 that Christ's glory reaches,
00:15:50 --> 00:15:52 but into eternity past
00:15:52 --> 00:15:54 that his glory reaches.
00:15:54 --> 00:15:56 Before time even began,
00:15:56 --> 00:15:57 the plan of the gospel
00:15:57 --> 00:15:59 was in the heart of God.
00:16:00 --> 00:16:01 How do we know this?
00:16:01 --> 00:16:02 Well, we see that the names
00:16:02 --> 00:16:04 written in the Lamb's book of life,
00:16:04 --> 00:16:04 for instance,
00:16:05 --> 00:16:07 in Revelation chapter 13, verse 8,
00:16:08 --> 00:16:09 were written, it says,
00:16:09 --> 00:16:10 before the foundation of the world.
00:16:12 --> 00:16:14 The truth is this,
00:16:14 --> 00:16:14 for the Christian,
00:16:15 --> 00:16:16 Christ's saving glory
00:16:16 --> 00:16:17 was fixed on you
00:16:17 --> 00:16:18 before there even was a you.
00:16:18 --> 00:16:24 Romans chapter 8, verse 29,
00:16:24 --> 00:16:25 Paul puts it this way,
00:16:25 --> 00:16:28 for those whom he foreknew,
00:16:28 --> 00:16:29 he also predestined
00:16:29 --> 00:16:30 to be conformed
00:16:30 --> 00:16:32 to the image of his Son.
00:16:34 --> 00:16:35 I don't know if you've ever
00:16:35 --> 00:16:36 thought about that,
00:16:36 --> 00:16:38 but just the reality,
00:16:38 --> 00:16:39 the biblical reality
00:16:39 --> 00:16:42 that the God who is outside of time,
00:16:42 --> 00:16:43 who created time,
00:16:44 --> 00:16:46 who rules outside of time,
00:16:46 --> 00:16:47 could look forward
00:16:47 --> 00:16:48 into the time
00:16:48 --> 00:16:49 that he will create
00:16:49 --> 00:16:52 and see me,
00:16:52 --> 00:16:53 puny little old me,
00:16:55 --> 00:16:56 weak and deficient
00:16:56 --> 00:16:57 and flawed,
00:16:59 --> 00:17:00 riddled with sin,
00:17:01 --> 00:17:02 and say,
00:17:02 --> 00:17:03 I'm going to put my grace
00:17:03 --> 00:17:06 on that person.
00:17:07 --> 00:17:08 I'm going to make that man
00:17:08 --> 00:17:10 a beloved son of mine.
00:17:11 --> 00:17:13 I can barely get over that.
00:17:15 --> 00:17:17 God even knows the sins
00:17:17 --> 00:17:17 I've yet to commit,
00:17:18 --> 00:17:18 the ones that I don't even know
00:17:18 --> 00:17:19 I'm going to commit.
00:17:20 --> 00:17:22 He sees all of that
00:17:22 --> 00:17:23 and still says,
00:17:23 --> 00:17:25 I dedicate myself to him.
00:17:27 --> 00:17:28 And if you've repented
00:17:28 --> 00:17:28 of your sin
00:17:28 --> 00:17:29 and put your faith
00:17:29 --> 00:17:30 in Jesus Christ,
00:17:31 --> 00:17:32 he says that about you as well.
00:17:33 --> 00:17:35 But it gets much deeper,
00:17:35 --> 00:17:35 in fact,
00:17:35 --> 00:17:36 the wondrous glory
00:17:36 --> 00:17:37 of the God-man
00:17:37 --> 00:17:38 reaches into the past,
00:17:38 --> 00:17:39 but also,
00:17:39 --> 00:17:39 secondly,
00:17:40 --> 00:17:41 Christ alone has glory
00:17:41 --> 00:17:42 that reaches
00:17:42 --> 00:17:44 into the eternal present,
00:17:44 --> 00:17:46 into the eternal present.
00:17:47 --> 00:17:49 In 1 Corinthians chapter 15,
00:17:49 --> 00:17:51 in the first few verses
00:17:51 --> 00:17:52 of that chapter,
00:17:53 --> 00:17:54 Paul is essentially
00:17:54 --> 00:17:54 just giving kind of
00:17:54 --> 00:17:55 the outline
00:17:55 --> 00:17:57 of the gospel message.
00:17:57 --> 00:17:59 He gives the simple
00:17:59 --> 00:18:00 summation
00:18:00 --> 00:18:01 of the good news.
00:18:02 --> 00:18:02 He says,
00:18:03 --> 00:18:04 Jesus Christ died
00:18:04 --> 00:18:05 in accordance
00:18:05 --> 00:18:05 with the scriptures.
00:18:06 --> 00:18:07 He rose again
00:18:07 --> 00:18:07 in accordance
00:18:07 --> 00:18:08 with the scriptures.
00:18:08 --> 00:18:10 He mentions Christ's ascension
00:18:10 --> 00:18:11 and the witnesses
00:18:11 --> 00:18:12 to that event.
00:18:13 --> 00:18:13 And he says
00:18:13 --> 00:18:14 that this message
00:18:14 --> 00:18:15 is the most important thing
00:18:15 --> 00:18:16 that you could know.
00:18:16 --> 00:18:17 This message
00:18:17 --> 00:18:18 is of first importance.
00:18:19 --> 00:18:19 But then he says
00:18:19 --> 00:18:20 something really radical.
00:18:21 --> 00:18:21 And in fact,
00:18:21 --> 00:18:22 if you're reading too quickly,
00:18:22 --> 00:18:23 you would just sort of
00:18:23 --> 00:18:24 gloss right over it.
00:18:25 --> 00:18:25 This news,
00:18:25 --> 00:18:26 he said,
00:18:26 --> 00:18:29 about the gospel,
00:18:29 --> 00:18:30 this news about Jesus Christ,
00:18:30 --> 00:18:31 what he has done
00:18:31 --> 00:18:32 in history,
00:18:33 --> 00:18:33 he says,
00:18:33 --> 00:18:34 you received it,
00:18:35 --> 00:18:35 right?
00:18:35 --> 00:18:35 So,
00:18:36 --> 00:18:37 in some way,
00:18:37 --> 00:18:37 shape,
00:18:37 --> 00:18:38 or form,
00:18:38 --> 00:18:39 you assented,
00:18:39 --> 00:18:40 you believed
00:18:40 --> 00:18:41 in the gospel,
00:18:42 --> 00:18:43 you had a conversion
00:18:43 --> 00:18:44 experience of some kind,
00:18:44 --> 00:18:45 that might look different
00:18:45 --> 00:18:46 depending on your context
00:18:46 --> 00:18:48 or the circumstances.
00:18:48 --> 00:18:49 Perhaps you prayed
00:18:49 --> 00:18:50 a prayer with someone,
00:18:51 --> 00:18:51 someone led you
00:18:51 --> 00:18:52 through a gospel tract,
00:18:52 --> 00:18:53 you responded
00:18:53 --> 00:18:54 to an invitation
00:18:54 --> 00:18:55 at a church service
00:18:55 --> 00:18:56 or something like that,
00:18:56 --> 00:18:57 but you received it,
00:18:57 --> 00:18:57 right?
00:18:57 --> 00:18:58 So we kind of
00:18:58 --> 00:18:59 all understand that.
00:19:00 --> 00:19:00 But then he says,
00:19:00 --> 00:19:01 you didn't just
00:19:01 --> 00:19:03 receive it past tense,
00:19:03 --> 00:19:04 but you're also
00:19:04 --> 00:19:05 standing in it
00:19:05 --> 00:19:06 present tense.
00:19:07 --> 00:19:08 Isn't that interesting?
00:19:08 --> 00:19:11 The glory of Jesus Christ
00:19:11 --> 00:19:12 didn't just capture
00:19:12 --> 00:19:12 your soul
00:19:12 --> 00:19:13 at some point
00:19:13 --> 00:19:15 in your personal history,
00:19:15 --> 00:19:17 it is at this very moment
00:19:17 --> 00:19:18 sustaining you.
00:19:20 --> 00:19:21 Paul puts it in Galatians
00:19:21 --> 00:19:22 like this,
00:19:22 --> 00:19:23 having begun by the Spirit,
00:19:23 --> 00:19:24 do you continue
00:19:24 --> 00:19:25 in the flesh?
00:19:25 --> 00:19:26 And the answer is no.
00:19:26 --> 00:19:27 Having begun by the Spirit,
00:19:28 --> 00:19:28 you continue,
00:19:29 --> 00:19:30 you stand
00:19:30 --> 00:19:31 in the Spirit.
00:19:32 --> 00:19:33 Jesus Christ is
00:19:33 --> 00:19:34 millisecond
00:19:34 --> 00:19:35 by millisecond
00:19:35 --> 00:19:37 upholding your salvation
00:19:37 --> 00:19:37 by the word
00:19:37 --> 00:19:38 of his power.
00:19:40 --> 00:19:41 Here is the
00:19:41 --> 00:19:42 spectacular,
00:19:42 --> 00:19:43 mind-blowing thing
00:19:43 --> 00:19:44 that Jesus says
00:19:44 --> 00:19:45 to his accusers
00:19:45 --> 00:19:46 in verse 58.
00:19:46 --> 00:19:47 Jesus said to them,
00:19:48 --> 00:19:48 truly, truly,
00:19:48 --> 00:19:49 I say to you,
00:19:49 --> 00:19:51 before Abraham was,
00:19:51 --> 00:19:51 I am.
00:19:54 --> 00:19:54 Now,
00:19:54 --> 00:19:55 the first thing
00:19:55 --> 00:19:55 that we notice
00:19:55 --> 00:19:57 about this verse
00:19:57 --> 00:19:58 is this.
00:19:58 --> 00:19:59 Jesus is
00:19:59 --> 00:20:00 very clearly
00:20:00 --> 00:20:02 appropriating
00:20:02 --> 00:20:02 or assigning
00:20:02 --> 00:20:03 to himself
00:20:03 --> 00:20:05 the divine name,
00:20:05 --> 00:20:06 Yahweh,
00:20:06 --> 00:20:06 I am.
00:20:08 --> 00:20:09 And unless we think
00:20:09 --> 00:20:10 that's somewhat
00:20:10 --> 00:20:12 of an interpretive
00:20:12 --> 00:20:13 improvisation
00:20:13 --> 00:20:13 that we're just
00:20:13 --> 00:20:14 kind of making that up,
00:20:14 --> 00:20:15 notice how the crowd
00:20:15 --> 00:20:16 reacts to him
00:20:16 --> 00:20:17 making this statement.
00:20:18 --> 00:20:19 They know
00:20:19 --> 00:20:20 he's assigning
00:20:20 --> 00:20:20 the divine name
00:20:20 --> 00:20:21 to himself,
00:20:22 --> 00:20:23 which is why
00:20:23 --> 00:20:24 they pick up rocks
00:20:24 --> 00:20:25 to murder him,
00:20:25 --> 00:20:25 because they think
00:20:25 --> 00:20:27 he's committing blasphemy.
00:20:27 --> 00:20:28 He's claiming
00:20:28 --> 00:20:29 to be God.
00:20:31 --> 00:20:32 This is one
00:20:32 --> 00:20:32 of Christ's
00:20:32 --> 00:20:33 more astounding
00:20:33 --> 00:20:35 I am statements,
00:20:35 --> 00:20:36 if only because
00:20:36 --> 00:20:37 it's somewhat
00:20:37 --> 00:20:38 of a standalone.
00:20:38 --> 00:20:39 There's no
00:20:39 --> 00:20:42 addition to it,
00:20:42 --> 00:20:42 right?
00:20:42 --> 00:20:43 So in other places
00:20:43 --> 00:20:44 he says things like,
00:20:44 --> 00:20:45 I am the door,
00:20:45 --> 00:20:47 or I am the vine,
00:20:47 --> 00:20:48 or I am the way.
00:20:49 --> 00:20:50 Here he's simply saying,
00:20:51 --> 00:20:52 I am.
00:20:54 --> 00:20:55 It's very similar
00:20:55 --> 00:20:55 to the moment
00:20:55 --> 00:20:57 in Mark chapter 6,
00:20:57 --> 00:20:57 if you recall,
00:20:58 --> 00:20:58 where the disciples
00:20:58 --> 00:20:59 are on that
00:20:59 --> 00:21:00 storm-tossed boat,
00:21:00 --> 00:21:01 and Jesus comes
00:21:01 --> 00:21:02 walking on the water.
00:21:03 --> 00:21:04 And he says to them,
00:21:05 --> 00:21:06 don't be afraid,
00:21:07 --> 00:21:07 it is I.
00:21:09 --> 00:21:10 And the Greek
00:21:10 --> 00:21:10 phrase there
00:21:10 --> 00:21:11 that's translated
00:21:11 --> 00:21:12 it is I
00:21:12 --> 00:21:13 is the equivalent
00:21:13 --> 00:21:14 of the Hebrew
00:21:14 --> 00:21:15 I am.
00:21:17 --> 00:21:18 So it's not simply
00:21:18 --> 00:21:18 that the disciples
00:21:18 --> 00:21:19 are scared in the boat
00:21:19 --> 00:21:20 and Jesus walks up
00:21:20 --> 00:21:20 and says,
00:21:21 --> 00:21:22 don't be nervous guys,
00:21:22 --> 00:21:23 it's just me.
00:21:24 --> 00:21:25 Essentially what he's saying
00:21:25 --> 00:21:26 is,
00:21:26 --> 00:21:27 don't be afraid,
00:21:27 --> 00:21:28 I'm God,
00:21:28 --> 00:21:29 I control all of this.
00:21:32 --> 00:21:32 Jesus says,
00:21:33 --> 00:21:34 before Abraham existed
00:21:34 --> 00:21:35 in the past,
00:21:35 --> 00:21:37 I am right now.
00:21:38 --> 00:21:39 I don't know about you,
00:21:39 --> 00:21:41 but this hurts my brain.
00:21:43 --> 00:21:44 Before Abraham was in the past,
00:21:45 --> 00:21:46 I presently am.
00:21:46 --> 00:21:47 It's messing with our sense
00:21:47 --> 00:21:49 of the space-time universe.
00:21:51 --> 00:21:52 Just let it settle in
00:21:52 --> 00:21:53 for a second.
00:21:53 --> 00:21:54 Jesus Christ,
00:21:54 --> 00:21:55 not yet 50 years old here,
00:21:55 --> 00:21:56 is claiming
00:21:56 --> 00:21:58 to be outside of time.
00:21:59 --> 00:22:00 To be eternal,
00:22:00 --> 00:22:02 to be eternally now.
00:22:02 --> 00:22:02 He doesn't need
00:22:02 --> 00:22:03 a DeLorean or a TARDIS
00:22:03 --> 00:22:04 or a Narnian wardrobe
00:22:04 --> 00:22:05 to do it.
00:22:06 --> 00:22:08 This is what I find
00:22:08 --> 00:22:11 so wonderfully confounding
00:22:11 --> 00:22:12 about the incarnation.
00:22:13 --> 00:22:14 The Son of God
00:22:14 --> 00:22:16 becomes fully man,
00:22:16 --> 00:22:16 right?
00:22:16 --> 00:22:18 That's the true Christian,
00:22:19 --> 00:22:20 the orthodox view
00:22:20 --> 00:22:21 of the incarnation,
00:22:21 --> 00:22:22 that Jesus Christ
00:22:22 --> 00:22:23 is fully God
00:22:23 --> 00:22:24 and fully man
00:22:24 --> 00:22:25 simultaneously.
00:22:26 --> 00:22:27 He's not sometimes God
00:22:27 --> 00:22:28 and sometimes man.
00:22:28 --> 00:22:29 He's not a man
00:22:29 --> 00:22:32 who just is somewhat anointed,
00:22:33 --> 00:22:34 has the air of divinity
00:22:34 --> 00:22:34 about him.
00:22:35 --> 00:22:36 He's not God
00:22:36 --> 00:22:37 who gives the appearance
00:22:37 --> 00:22:38 or the illusion
00:22:38 --> 00:22:39 of being a man.
00:22:39 --> 00:22:40 He is 100% God,
00:22:41 --> 00:22:42 100% man.
00:22:42 --> 00:22:43 And if this is true,
00:22:44 --> 00:22:45 if this is true,
00:22:45 --> 00:22:46 it makes sense
00:22:46 --> 00:22:47 of the entire testimony
00:22:47 --> 00:22:47 of the Scriptures.
00:22:48 --> 00:22:49 Paul in Colossians 2,
00:22:49 --> 00:22:50 verse 9,
00:22:50 --> 00:22:51 for in him
00:22:51 --> 00:22:52 the whole fullness
00:22:52 --> 00:22:53 of deity
00:22:53 --> 00:22:54 dwells bodily.
00:22:56 --> 00:22:57 Hebrews chapter 13,
00:22:57 --> 00:22:57 verse 8,
00:22:58 --> 00:22:58 Jesus Christ
00:22:58 --> 00:23:00 is the same yesterday
00:23:00 --> 00:23:00 and today
00:23:00 --> 00:23:01 and forever.
00:23:03 --> 00:23:05 Or John chapter 8,
00:23:05 --> 00:23:06 verse 58,
00:23:06 --> 00:23:07 before Abraham was,
00:23:08 --> 00:23:09 I am.
00:23:10 --> 00:23:12 Here's just one implication
00:23:12 --> 00:23:13 of this.
00:23:14 --> 00:23:14 I don't know if you ever
00:23:14 --> 00:23:16 have thought about this.
00:23:16 --> 00:23:18 I know we're entering
00:23:18 --> 00:23:20 the Easter season,
00:23:20 --> 00:23:20 Easter week,
00:23:21 --> 00:23:22 but look forward
00:23:22 --> 00:23:24 to the Christmas season
00:23:24 --> 00:23:26 and picture little baby Jesus,
00:23:27 --> 00:23:27 right?
00:23:27 --> 00:23:28 Cute, adorable,
00:23:28 --> 00:23:29 little baby Jesus.
00:23:30 --> 00:23:31 Put him in the manger
00:23:31 --> 00:23:32 with the swaddling clothes.
00:23:33 --> 00:23:36 If Jesus is fully God,
00:23:37 --> 00:23:38 then the baby Jesus
00:23:38 --> 00:23:38 who was wrapped
00:23:38 --> 00:23:40 in swaddling clothes,
00:23:40 --> 00:23:41 lying in a manger,
00:23:41 --> 00:23:43 was also omnipresent
00:23:43 --> 00:23:44 Lord of the universe.
00:23:44 --> 00:23:47 Because omnipresence,
00:23:47 --> 00:23:49 the ability to be everywhere,
00:23:49 --> 00:23:50 to be everywhere,
00:23:50 --> 00:23:50 to see everything,
00:23:51 --> 00:23:52 is one of God's
00:23:52 --> 00:23:53 impassable attributes.
00:23:53 --> 00:23:54 Meaning,
00:23:54 --> 00:23:54 it's one of the
00:23:54 --> 00:23:56 qualities of God
00:23:56 --> 00:23:56 or the
00:23:56 --> 00:23:59 characteristics of God
00:23:59 --> 00:24:01 that cannot change.
00:24:03 --> 00:24:04 So God cannot
00:24:04 --> 00:24:06 not be omnipresent.
00:24:07 --> 00:24:08 So for Jesus Christ
00:24:08 --> 00:24:09 to be fully God,
00:24:09 --> 00:24:10 really fully God,
00:24:11 --> 00:24:12 must mean
00:24:12 --> 00:24:13 that he was omnipresent.
00:24:14 --> 00:24:17 You might say,
00:24:17 --> 00:24:17 well,
00:24:18 --> 00:24:18 I mean,
00:24:18 --> 00:24:19 didn't Jesus
00:24:19 --> 00:24:20 disregard his deity
00:24:20 --> 00:24:20 as something
00:24:20 --> 00:24:22 to be grasped?
00:24:22 --> 00:24:22 That's what Paul says
00:24:22 --> 00:24:24 in Philippians chapter 2,
00:24:24 --> 00:24:25 verses 5 through 8.
00:24:26 --> 00:24:27 But I think
00:24:27 --> 00:24:28 what Paul is getting at
00:24:28 --> 00:24:29 is not that Jesus
00:24:29 --> 00:24:30 didn't hold
00:24:30 --> 00:24:31 or maintain
00:24:31 --> 00:24:31 the fullness
00:24:31 --> 00:24:32 of his divinity,
00:24:32 --> 00:24:33 but that he did not
00:24:33 --> 00:24:34 exploit it
00:24:34 --> 00:24:35 or leverage it.
00:24:36 --> 00:24:37 In other words,
00:24:37 --> 00:24:38 at any point,
00:24:38 --> 00:24:39 the temptation
00:24:39 --> 00:24:40 for Jesus
00:24:40 --> 00:24:40 could have been,
00:24:40 --> 00:24:41 I don't want to experience
00:24:41 --> 00:24:42 this kind of suffering,
00:24:42 --> 00:24:43 I don't want to experience
00:24:43 --> 00:24:44 this kind of hurt,
00:24:44 --> 00:24:45 I don't want to experience
00:24:45 --> 00:24:46 this part of humanity,
00:24:46 --> 00:24:47 therefore I'm going to
00:24:47 --> 00:24:48 slip into God mode
00:24:48 --> 00:24:50 and exploit my deity
00:24:50 --> 00:24:51 so that I don't have
00:24:51 --> 00:24:51 to experience that.
00:24:52 --> 00:24:53 And what Paul is saying
00:24:53 --> 00:24:54 is he was fully God,
00:24:54 --> 00:24:55 he was never not God,
00:24:55 --> 00:24:57 but he didn't leverage
00:24:57 --> 00:24:57 his divinity
00:24:57 --> 00:24:59 against the experience
00:24:59 --> 00:25:01 of humanity.
00:25:01 --> 00:25:02 He didn't pull
00:25:02 --> 00:25:03 the divine parachute,
00:25:03 --> 00:25:04 in other words.
00:25:06 --> 00:25:07 So what we see
00:25:07 --> 00:25:07 in the wonder
00:25:07 --> 00:25:08 of the God-man,
00:25:09 --> 00:25:09 in the wonder
00:25:09 --> 00:25:10 of the incarnation
00:25:10 --> 00:25:12 is in essence
00:25:12 --> 00:25:13 not a reduction
00:25:13 --> 00:25:15 of the Trinity
00:25:15 --> 00:25:15 or reduction
00:25:15 --> 00:25:17 of the divinity
00:25:17 --> 00:25:18 of the Son of God,
00:25:18 --> 00:25:19 but an extension.
00:25:19 --> 00:25:21 It's as if the Son of God
00:25:21 --> 00:25:22 bent over from heaven
00:25:22 --> 00:25:23 and stooped low
00:25:23 --> 00:25:26 to become one of us,
00:25:26 --> 00:25:28 to embrace us.
00:25:30 --> 00:25:31 If we're going to deny
00:25:31 --> 00:25:33 that Jesus was simultaneously
00:25:33 --> 00:25:34 incarnate and omnipresent,
00:25:35 --> 00:25:35 in fact,
00:25:35 --> 00:25:36 we have to adopt
00:25:36 --> 00:25:37 a lesser incarnation
00:25:37 --> 00:25:38 on one side
00:25:38 --> 00:25:39 or a lesser deity
00:25:39 --> 00:25:40 on the other.
00:25:42 --> 00:25:43 Here is something
00:25:43 --> 00:25:45 extremely marvelous.
00:25:46 --> 00:25:48 In Calvin's estimation,
00:25:49 --> 00:25:49 John Calvin,
00:25:49 --> 00:25:50 he says,
00:25:50 --> 00:25:51 God's incarnation
00:25:51 --> 00:25:51 in Christ
00:25:51 --> 00:25:53 was not an exit
00:25:53 --> 00:25:53 from heaven
00:25:53 --> 00:25:55 so much as a descent,
00:25:55 --> 00:25:56 a stooping,
00:25:56 --> 00:25:57 in other words.
00:25:58 --> 00:25:59 So the incarnation
00:25:59 --> 00:26:00 was a humbling
00:26:00 --> 00:26:01 of God's Son,
00:26:01 --> 00:26:02 but not a lessening
00:26:02 --> 00:26:02 of Him.
00:26:04 --> 00:26:05 The God-man
00:26:05 --> 00:26:05 was simultaneously
00:26:05 --> 00:26:06 incarnate
00:26:06 --> 00:26:07 and omnipresent,
00:26:08 --> 00:26:09 there in time
00:26:09 --> 00:26:09 and space
00:26:09 --> 00:26:10 as the Son
00:26:10 --> 00:26:11 of a carpenter,
00:26:11 --> 00:26:12 but also upholding
00:26:12 --> 00:26:12 the universe
00:26:12 --> 00:26:14 as the Son of God
00:26:14 --> 00:26:15 before Abraham was,
00:26:15 --> 00:26:16 I am.
00:26:18 --> 00:26:19 And this is why
00:26:19 --> 00:26:20 this is good news,
00:26:20 --> 00:26:20 by the way,
00:26:21 --> 00:26:22 because it may just say
00:26:22 --> 00:26:22 this is just like
00:26:22 --> 00:26:23 a theological head trip.
00:26:23 --> 00:26:24 What difference
00:26:24 --> 00:26:24 does this make?
00:26:25 --> 00:26:25 Why should we even
00:26:25 --> 00:26:26 think about this?
00:26:27 --> 00:26:28 It's really complex.
00:26:29 --> 00:26:30 It's in the afternoon,
00:26:30 --> 00:26:30 you're tired,
00:26:31 --> 00:26:31 it's hot.
00:26:32 --> 00:26:33 Why even think about this?
00:26:34 --> 00:26:35 Well, here's why
00:26:35 --> 00:26:35 it's important,
00:26:36 --> 00:26:36 or at least why
00:26:36 --> 00:26:37 I think this is important.
00:26:39 --> 00:26:41 Because it's not just
00:26:41 --> 00:26:42 the sinful past
00:26:42 --> 00:26:43 that you've been
00:26:43 --> 00:26:44 forgiven of,
00:26:45 --> 00:26:45 and it's not just
00:26:45 --> 00:26:46 the future paradise
00:26:46 --> 00:26:48 that you look forward to,
00:26:48 --> 00:26:50 it is the very present
00:26:50 --> 00:26:51 moment
00:26:51 --> 00:26:52 that believers
00:26:52 --> 00:26:53 in Jesus
00:26:53 --> 00:26:54 are spiritually
00:26:54 --> 00:26:55 united
00:26:55 --> 00:26:56 to the Son of God.
00:26:58 --> 00:27:00 That Christ's glory
00:27:00 --> 00:27:01 reaches into
00:27:01 --> 00:27:02 the eternal now
00:27:02 --> 00:27:03 means that we
00:27:03 --> 00:27:04 who are united
00:27:04 --> 00:27:04 to Him
00:27:04 --> 00:27:06 are never in danger
00:27:06 --> 00:27:07 of being separated
00:27:07 --> 00:27:07 from Him.
00:27:09 --> 00:27:11 We get to enjoy
00:27:11 --> 00:27:12 blessed union
00:27:12 --> 00:27:13 with Christ.
00:27:16 --> 00:27:17 Ephesians chapter 2,
00:27:17 --> 00:27:18 verse 6,
00:27:18 --> 00:27:18 Paul writes,
00:27:18 --> 00:27:19 He has raised us
00:27:19 --> 00:27:20 up with Him
00:27:20 --> 00:27:21 and seated us
00:27:21 --> 00:27:21 with Him
00:27:21 --> 00:27:23 in the heavenly places.
00:27:23 --> 00:27:24 We are inextricable
00:27:24 --> 00:27:26 from Christ.
00:27:28 --> 00:27:29 In Colossians chapter 3,
00:27:29 --> 00:27:30 Paul puts it this way,
00:27:30 --> 00:27:31 we are hidden
00:27:31 --> 00:27:32 with Christ
00:27:32 --> 00:27:33 in God.
00:27:35 --> 00:27:36 Or in John chapter 11,
00:27:37 --> 00:27:38 just three chapters
00:27:38 --> 00:27:40 after our focus text here,
00:27:41 --> 00:27:42 Jesus says,
00:27:42 --> 00:27:43 I am the resurrection
00:27:43 --> 00:27:44 and the life.
00:27:44 --> 00:27:46 Whoever believes in me,
00:27:46 --> 00:27:47 though he die,
00:27:47 --> 00:27:48 yet shall he live.
00:27:51 --> 00:27:52 Where does he get off
00:27:52 --> 00:27:53 saying this?
00:27:55 --> 00:27:56 If you don't see Jesus
00:27:56 --> 00:27:57 for who He truly is,
00:27:58 --> 00:27:59 hearing things like this
00:27:59 --> 00:28:00 would make you angry.
00:28:02 --> 00:28:03 This is why the rulers
00:28:03 --> 00:28:05 are constantly upset
00:28:05 --> 00:28:05 with Him
00:28:05 --> 00:28:06 and aggravated with Him.
00:28:06 --> 00:28:07 This is why they're driven
00:28:07 --> 00:28:09 by envy to murder Him.
00:28:11 --> 00:28:12 And yet for those of us
00:28:12 --> 00:28:13 who have seen
00:28:13 --> 00:28:14 the glory of Christ
00:28:14 --> 00:28:16 in a saving way,
00:28:17 --> 00:28:18 even if in a small way,
00:28:18 --> 00:28:19 but a saving way,
00:28:20 --> 00:28:23 this means that
00:28:23 --> 00:28:25 having been united
00:28:25 --> 00:28:26 to Christ,
00:28:26 --> 00:28:29 who is eternally God,
00:28:30 --> 00:28:31 you are as secure
00:28:31 --> 00:28:33 as Christ is.
00:28:34 --> 00:28:35 Now how secure
00:28:35 --> 00:28:36 do you think Christ is?
00:28:38 --> 00:28:40 The wondrous glory
00:28:40 --> 00:28:41 of the omnipotent,
00:28:41 --> 00:28:41 omniscient,
00:28:42 --> 00:28:43 omnipresent God-man
00:28:43 --> 00:28:44 reaches us,
00:28:44 --> 00:28:45 sustains us
00:28:45 --> 00:28:46 in the eternal present.
00:28:47 --> 00:28:47 But thirdly,
00:28:47 --> 00:28:48 and finally,
00:28:48 --> 00:28:49 Christ's glory,
00:28:50 --> 00:28:50 I'm sorry,
00:28:50 --> 00:28:51 Christ alone
00:28:51 --> 00:28:52 has glory
00:28:52 --> 00:28:53 that reaches
00:28:53 --> 00:28:54 into the eternal future.
00:28:54 --> 00:28:55 Christ alone
00:28:55 --> 00:28:56 has glory
00:28:56 --> 00:28:57 that reaches
00:28:57 --> 00:28:59 into the eternal future.
00:28:59 --> 00:29:00 This is where Paul goes,
00:29:00 --> 00:29:00 by the way,
00:29:00 --> 00:29:01 in 1 Corinthians 15,
00:29:02 --> 00:29:02 in those early verses,
00:29:03 --> 00:29:03 when he says,
00:29:03 --> 00:29:04 you received,
00:29:04 --> 00:29:05 past tense,
00:29:05 --> 00:29:05 the word,
00:29:06 --> 00:29:06 the gospel,
00:29:06 --> 00:29:07 you stand,
00:29:07 --> 00:29:08 present tense,
00:29:08 --> 00:29:09 in the word,
00:29:09 --> 00:29:09 the gospel,
00:29:09 --> 00:29:10 and then he also says
00:29:10 --> 00:29:11 something that's even
00:29:11 --> 00:29:12 more spectacular.
00:29:12 --> 00:29:13 He says,
00:29:13 --> 00:29:14 you are being saved
00:29:14 --> 00:29:15 by this word
00:29:15 --> 00:29:16 of the gospel.
00:29:17 --> 00:29:18 This is how Jesus
00:29:18 --> 00:29:18 puts it here
00:29:18 --> 00:29:19 in verse 51.
00:29:20 --> 00:29:20 Truly, truly,
00:29:20 --> 00:29:21 I say to you,
00:29:21 --> 00:29:22 if anyone keeps
00:29:22 --> 00:29:23 my word,
00:29:23 --> 00:29:24 he will never
00:29:24 --> 00:29:25 see death.
00:29:28 --> 00:29:29 This is like
00:29:29 --> 00:29:29 the moment
00:29:29 --> 00:29:31 when Jesus
00:29:31 --> 00:29:33 looks into
00:29:33 --> 00:29:35 the tear-stained face
00:29:35 --> 00:29:35 of Martha,
00:29:36 --> 00:29:37 weeping over
00:29:37 --> 00:29:37 the loss of her
00:29:37 --> 00:29:39 brother Lazarus.
00:29:39 --> 00:29:40 And Jesus himself
00:29:40 --> 00:29:41 is weeping,
00:29:41 --> 00:29:43 the text tells us.
00:29:44 --> 00:29:45 And I imagine
00:29:45 --> 00:29:45 he's just sort of
00:29:45 --> 00:29:46 gently put his hands
00:29:46 --> 00:29:47 on her shoulders
00:29:47 --> 00:29:48 and he's looking
00:29:48 --> 00:29:49 into her face
00:29:49 --> 00:29:51 with abundant,
00:29:51 --> 00:29:52 eternal compassion,
00:29:53 --> 00:29:56 and he comforts
00:29:56 --> 00:29:57 her in a way
00:29:57 --> 00:29:58 that no other man
00:29:58 --> 00:29:59 could ever comfort her.
00:30:00 --> 00:30:01 He says,
00:30:01 --> 00:30:02 I am the resurrection
00:30:02 --> 00:30:03 and the life.
00:30:04 --> 00:30:05 Whoever believes
00:30:05 --> 00:30:05 in me,
00:30:06 --> 00:30:07 though he die,
00:30:07 --> 00:30:08 yet shall he live.
00:30:09 --> 00:30:10 And everyone
00:30:10 --> 00:30:11 who lives
00:30:11 --> 00:30:12 and believes in me
00:30:12 --> 00:30:14 shall never die.
00:30:14 --> 00:30:16 and then as if
00:30:16 --> 00:30:17 to drive the point
00:30:17 --> 00:30:18 home,
00:30:18 --> 00:30:20 to make it personal,
00:30:21 --> 00:30:22 he looks her
00:30:22 --> 00:30:23 straight in the eye
00:30:23 --> 00:30:23 and says,
00:30:23 --> 00:30:25 do you believe this?
00:30:27 --> 00:30:28 This is the question
00:30:28 --> 00:30:29 before you this afternoon.
00:30:29 --> 00:30:30 This is the question
00:30:30 --> 00:30:31 before all of us.
00:30:31 --> 00:30:32 This is the question
00:30:32 --> 00:30:33 before us every morning
00:30:33 --> 00:30:34 when we get out of bed.
00:30:35 --> 00:30:36 Are we going to live
00:30:36 --> 00:30:37 our life as if
00:30:37 --> 00:30:38 Jesus Christ
00:30:38 --> 00:30:39 is the God-man,
00:30:39 --> 00:30:40 as if he really is
00:30:40 --> 00:30:41 the resurrection
00:30:41 --> 00:30:42 and the life,
00:30:42 --> 00:30:43 as if to be
00:30:43 --> 00:30:44 united to him
00:30:44 --> 00:30:44 means that
00:30:44 --> 00:30:45 even if we die,
00:30:45 --> 00:30:46 we will live?
00:30:47 --> 00:30:48 And in fact,
00:30:48 --> 00:30:49 to believe in him
00:30:49 --> 00:30:49 means that we'll
00:30:49 --> 00:30:50 never die?
00:30:53 --> 00:30:54 We must be out of our minds
00:30:54 --> 00:30:55 to think something like that.
00:30:57 --> 00:30:58 Or perhaps,
00:30:58 --> 00:31:01 perhaps we've seen
00:31:01 --> 00:31:02 something different
00:31:02 --> 00:31:02 that other people
00:31:02 --> 00:31:03 haven't seen.
00:31:03 --> 00:31:06 maybe our eyes
00:31:06 --> 00:31:06 have been opened
00:31:06 --> 00:31:07 in a way that
00:31:07 --> 00:31:08 other people's eyes
00:31:08 --> 00:31:08 haven't been opened.
00:31:09 --> 00:31:10 Maybe we've seen
00:31:10 --> 00:31:12 the glory of Jesus Christ.
00:31:13 --> 00:31:14 And we know
00:31:14 --> 00:31:15 he's not an ordinary man.
00:31:16 --> 00:31:17 And we know
00:31:17 --> 00:31:18 he's not just a good teacher.
00:31:19 --> 00:31:19 And we know
00:31:19 --> 00:31:20 he's not a liar.
00:31:21 --> 00:31:22 And we know
00:31:22 --> 00:31:22 he's not a demon-possessed
00:31:22 --> 00:31:23 Samaritan.
00:31:24 --> 00:31:25 We know he is
00:31:25 --> 00:31:26 who he says he is,
00:31:27 --> 00:31:28 the Son of God.
00:31:30 --> 00:31:31 For God so loved
00:31:31 --> 00:31:31 the world
00:31:31 --> 00:31:32 that he gave
00:31:32 --> 00:31:33 his only Son
00:31:33 --> 00:31:34 that whoever believes
00:31:34 --> 00:31:35 in him
00:31:35 --> 00:31:37 will not perish
00:31:37 --> 00:31:39 but have everlasting life.
00:31:40 --> 00:31:41 And the only alternative,
00:31:42 --> 00:31:42 of course,
00:31:42 --> 00:31:43 is everlasting death,
00:31:44 --> 00:31:46 which is no alternative
00:31:46 --> 00:31:46 at all.
00:31:48 --> 00:31:49 To take or leave Jesus,
00:31:49 --> 00:31:50 to be ambivalent
00:31:50 --> 00:31:51 about Jesus
00:31:51 --> 00:31:52 is to be against him.
00:31:52 --> 00:31:53 He says this himself.
00:31:55 --> 00:31:56 If you are not for me,
00:31:56 --> 00:31:57 you are against me.
00:31:58 --> 00:32:01 And these people,
00:32:01 --> 00:32:01 these leaders,
00:32:01 --> 00:32:02 they're against him.
00:32:02 --> 00:32:03 Verse 59,
00:32:03 --> 00:32:04 they picked up stones
00:32:04 --> 00:32:05 to throw at him.
00:32:07 --> 00:32:08 They wanted to kill him.
00:32:08 --> 00:32:08 They tried to kill him.
00:32:09 --> 00:32:11 But Jesus hid himself
00:32:11 --> 00:32:12 and went out
00:32:12 --> 00:32:12 of the temple.
00:32:13 --> 00:32:14 Now there's something
00:32:14 --> 00:32:15 fascinating here
00:32:15 --> 00:32:16 about verse 59.
00:32:16 --> 00:32:16 And I don't know
00:32:16 --> 00:32:18 if you see
00:32:18 --> 00:32:19 what I see.
00:32:19 --> 00:32:20 And it's something
00:32:20 --> 00:32:20 that I have missed
00:32:20 --> 00:32:22 for a very long time.
00:32:24 --> 00:32:25 If you're reading quickly,
00:32:25 --> 00:32:26 again,
00:32:26 --> 00:32:27 it's maybe something
00:32:27 --> 00:32:27 that you could just
00:32:27 --> 00:32:28 gloss over.
00:32:28 --> 00:32:29 He's revealed the truth
00:32:29 --> 00:32:30 about himself
00:32:30 --> 00:32:31 and they reject him.
00:32:32 --> 00:32:33 They want to kill him.
00:32:33 --> 00:32:34 But Jesus hid himself
00:32:34 --> 00:32:35 and went out of the temple.
00:32:35 --> 00:32:36 What does it mean
00:32:36 --> 00:32:37 he hid himself?
00:32:39 --> 00:32:40 What do you think
00:32:40 --> 00:32:40 he did,
00:32:40 --> 00:32:41 like literally,
00:32:41 --> 00:32:42 physically did
00:32:42 --> 00:32:42 in that moment?
00:32:43 --> 00:32:44 How did he,
00:32:44 --> 00:32:45 like was there a pillar there
00:32:45 --> 00:32:45 and he like jumped
00:32:45 --> 00:32:46 behind it to hide?
00:32:48 --> 00:32:49 Did he pull
00:32:49 --> 00:32:50 the kind of classic,
00:32:50 --> 00:32:51 look over there guys.
00:32:51 --> 00:32:51 And when they turn
00:32:51 --> 00:32:52 their backs,
00:32:52 --> 00:32:52 you know,
00:32:52 --> 00:32:52 they're distracted,
00:32:53 --> 00:32:53 he kind of ran away.
00:32:56 --> 00:32:56 What does it mean
00:32:56 --> 00:32:57 he hid himself?
00:32:57 --> 00:32:58 What does it mean?
00:32:59 --> 00:32:59 Well, I mean,
00:32:59 --> 00:33:01 this is just speculation.
00:33:01 --> 00:33:02 This is just imagination.
00:33:02 --> 00:33:03 It doesn't say literally
00:33:03 --> 00:33:04 what's there.
00:33:04 --> 00:33:05 So we just have to kind of
00:33:05 --> 00:33:06 go by implication.
00:33:06 --> 00:33:07 But it's within the realm
00:33:07 --> 00:33:08 of possibility
00:33:08 --> 00:33:11 if he is who he says he is.
00:33:12 --> 00:33:13 It could be
00:33:13 --> 00:33:16 a miraculous obscuring.
00:33:17 --> 00:33:18 In some way,
00:33:18 --> 00:33:19 supernaturally,
00:33:19 --> 00:33:20 spiritually,
00:33:20 --> 00:33:21 he hid himself.
00:33:21 --> 00:33:22 They couldn't see him.
00:33:25 --> 00:33:25 Earlier,
00:33:25 --> 00:33:27 I referenced the incident
00:33:27 --> 00:33:28 in Luke chapter 4
00:33:28 --> 00:33:29 where Jesus is preaching
00:33:29 --> 00:33:31 and the crowd
00:33:31 --> 00:33:32 at first is loving it.
00:33:32 --> 00:33:32 I mean,
00:33:32 --> 00:33:32 they really like
00:33:32 --> 00:33:33 when Jesus teaches
00:33:33 --> 00:33:34 because he's really dynamic
00:33:34 --> 00:33:35 and he's really compelling.
00:33:36 --> 00:33:37 They say he preaches
00:33:37 --> 00:33:38 as one with authority.
00:33:39 --> 00:33:39 He has a lot of power.
00:33:41 --> 00:33:42 But then when he says,
00:33:43 --> 00:33:43 all of the stuff I just read,
00:33:44 --> 00:33:44 that's about me,
00:33:44 --> 00:33:45 they turn on him
00:33:45 --> 00:33:46 in an instant.
00:33:46 --> 00:33:48 And they do what this crowd does.
00:33:48 --> 00:33:48 They try to kill him.
00:33:49 --> 00:33:49 And if you recall,
00:33:50 --> 00:33:51 they try to push him
00:33:51 --> 00:33:51 off a cliff.
00:33:52 --> 00:33:53 They like kind of carry him out
00:33:53 --> 00:33:54 to push him off the edge
00:33:54 --> 00:33:54 of a cliff
00:33:54 --> 00:33:55 to murder him.
00:33:55 --> 00:33:57 And in that instance,
00:33:58 --> 00:33:58 do you remember
00:33:58 --> 00:33:59 what Jesus does?
00:34:00 --> 00:34:01 He walks right through him.
00:34:02 --> 00:34:03 How do you think
00:34:03 --> 00:34:04 he did that?
00:34:05 --> 00:34:06 I mean,
00:34:06 --> 00:34:07 like did he fight him off?
00:34:08 --> 00:34:09 It doesn't say he did that.
00:34:10 --> 00:34:11 How is it possible
00:34:11 --> 00:34:12 that the crowd
00:34:12 --> 00:34:13 would be around him
00:34:13 --> 00:34:14 violently trying
00:34:14 --> 00:34:15 to murder him
00:34:15 --> 00:34:16 and he just passed
00:34:16 --> 00:34:17 right through them
00:34:17 --> 00:34:17 as if to say,
00:34:18 --> 00:34:19 this is not how this happens.
00:34:19 --> 00:34:20 This isn't going
00:34:20 --> 00:34:21 to happen today.
00:34:21 --> 00:34:22 And he just peacefully
00:34:22 --> 00:34:23 with authority
00:34:23 --> 00:34:24 passes right through them.
00:34:24 --> 00:34:25 Perhaps it was
00:34:25 --> 00:34:26 a supernatural thing.
00:34:26 --> 00:34:27 Perhaps this is
00:34:27 --> 00:34:28 a supernatural thing.
00:34:28 --> 00:34:29 He's obscuring himself.
00:34:32 --> 00:34:34 But whatever's happening here,
00:34:34 --> 00:34:35 whether he truly
00:34:35 --> 00:34:36 hid himself behind something,
00:34:37 --> 00:34:38 if it's like physically
00:34:38 --> 00:34:40 he's getting away from them,
00:34:41 --> 00:34:43 or he veiled himself
00:34:43 --> 00:34:45 in some supernatural way,
00:34:45 --> 00:34:47 the point is really heartbreaking.
00:34:47 --> 00:34:48 Either way you slice it.
00:34:48 --> 00:34:50 The point is this.
00:34:50 --> 00:34:51 They can't see him.
00:34:51 --> 00:34:54 They can't see him.
00:34:56 --> 00:34:57 Which is the worst thing
00:34:57 --> 00:34:58 that can happen to you.
00:34:59 --> 00:35:00 The worst thing
00:35:00 --> 00:35:01 that can ever happen
00:35:01 --> 00:35:01 to anybody
00:35:01 --> 00:35:03 is to be closed off
00:35:03 --> 00:35:04 to the glory of Christ.
00:35:05 --> 00:35:06 The worst thing
00:35:06 --> 00:35:07 that can ever happen to you
00:35:07 --> 00:35:09 is to reject Jesus
00:35:09 --> 00:35:10 and have his glory
00:35:10 --> 00:35:11 hidden from you.
00:35:13 --> 00:35:15 The glory of the God-man
00:35:15 --> 00:35:16 is our only hope.
00:35:16 --> 00:35:16 hope.
00:35:21 --> 00:35:22 I pray that you have
00:35:22 --> 00:35:24 the eyes to see.
00:35:28 --> 00:35:29 Christians,
00:35:29 --> 00:35:31 here's the eternal reality.
00:35:31 --> 00:35:36 if Jesus is who he says he is,
00:35:37 --> 00:35:38 and if you have put your faith
00:35:38 --> 00:35:39 in him,
00:35:40 --> 00:35:42 he has you covered
00:35:42 --> 00:35:42 past,
00:35:43 --> 00:35:43 present,
00:35:43 --> 00:35:44 and future.
00:35:46 --> 00:35:46 And one day,
00:35:46 --> 00:35:48 when the rapidly coming future
00:35:48 --> 00:35:49 crashes into the eternal now,
00:35:50 --> 00:35:51 when the glory of Christ,
00:35:51 --> 00:35:53 as Habakkuk chapter 2 says,
00:35:53 --> 00:35:54 covers the earth
00:35:54 --> 00:35:57 like the waters cover the seas,
00:35:57 --> 00:36:00 you will stand blameless
00:36:00 --> 00:36:01 before his presence
00:36:01 --> 00:36:02 in great joy.
00:36:03 --> 00:36:05 Not because of you,
00:36:06 --> 00:36:08 but because of him.
00:36:10 --> 00:36:11 And you will see,
00:36:12 --> 00:36:14 as if for the first time,
00:36:15 --> 00:36:16 that you are clothed
00:36:16 --> 00:36:18 in the glory of Christ.
00:36:19 --> 00:36:20 Let's pray.
00:36:23 --> 00:36:24 Heavenly Father,
00:36:24 --> 00:36:26 we ask for the eyes to see.
00:36:27 --> 00:36:29 for some,
00:36:29 --> 00:36:31 in a fresh and newer way,
00:36:32 --> 00:36:33 to have our eyes
00:36:33 --> 00:36:35 opened a bit wider
00:36:35 --> 00:36:37 to how wonderful,
00:36:38 --> 00:36:40 how lovely,
00:36:41 --> 00:36:42 how saving
00:36:42 --> 00:36:43 your son Christ Jesus is.
00:36:45 --> 00:36:46 Father, perhaps,
00:36:46 --> 00:36:47 for some,
00:36:47 --> 00:36:48 for the very first time,
00:36:49 --> 00:36:51 that the scales,
00:36:52 --> 00:36:52 as it were,
00:36:52 --> 00:36:53 would fall from
00:36:53 --> 00:36:54 their eyes.
00:36:54 --> 00:36:56 and they would behold
00:36:56 --> 00:36:58 the glory of your son
00:36:58 --> 00:36:59 for the first time.
00:37:02 --> 00:37:03 Heavenly Father,
00:37:03 --> 00:37:05 your church believes in you
00:37:05 --> 00:37:05 and we ask that you would
00:37:05 --> 00:37:06 help our unbelief.
00:37:06 --> 00:37:07 Help us to press
00:37:07 --> 00:37:08 the gospel
00:37:08 --> 00:37:09 into the corner
00:37:09 --> 00:37:10 of every room
00:37:10 --> 00:37:10 of our heart.
00:37:14 --> 00:37:16 That we would worship you
00:37:16 --> 00:37:18 more vibrantly,
00:37:19 --> 00:37:19 more faithfully,
00:37:19 --> 00:37:23 with our hearts aflame
00:37:23 --> 00:37:24 with affection
00:37:24 --> 00:37:24 for your son.
00:37:27 --> 00:37:28 We ask for the grace
00:37:28 --> 00:37:30 to see your son
00:37:30 --> 00:37:31 as he is.
00:37:31 --> 00:37:32 So we ask for your
00:37:32 --> 00:37:32 Holy Spirit, Father,
00:37:33 --> 00:37:34 to be stirring
00:37:34 --> 00:37:35 our hearts and souls,
00:37:36 --> 00:37:37 revealing a vision
00:37:37 --> 00:37:38 of your son,
00:37:39 --> 00:37:39 crucified,
00:37:40 --> 00:37:40 risen,
00:37:41 --> 00:37:41 ascended,
00:37:42 --> 00:37:43 ruling over heaven
00:37:43 --> 00:37:44 and earth.
00:37:44 --> 00:37:46 And we pray all these
00:37:46 --> 00:37:47 things in the name
00:37:47 --> 00:37:47 of your son,
00:37:47 --> 00:37:48 the precious name
00:37:48 --> 00:37:48 of Christ Jesus.
00:37:49 --> 00:37:49 Amen.