Hebrews 1:1-3 God’s Final Revelation in His Son

Hebrews 1:4-14 Jesus Superior to Angels

Hebrews 3:1-6 Jesus Superior to Moses

Hebrews 4:14-16 Jesus, Our Sympathetic High Priest

Hebrews 8:1-13 Jesus, a Better Ministry, a Better Covenant

Soli Deo Gloria 

1 Peter 1:1-2; 5:12 Series Introduction: Persevering in Persecution

1 Peter 1:3-5 Such a Secure Salvation

1 Peter 1:6-9 Overcoming Obstacles

1 Peter 1:10-12 Suffering is the Path to Glory

1 Peter 1:13 Choose a Certain Hope

1 Peter 1:13-25 A Call to Obedient Action

1 Peter 2:1-3 Long for the Milk of the Word

1 Peter 2:4-5a Becoming a Spiritual House

1 Peter 2:5b Offering Spiritual Sacrifices

1 Peter 2:6-8 Cornerstone and Stumbling Stone

1 Peter 2:8-10 Destined for God’s Purpose

1 Peter 2:11-12 Good Works for a Watching World

1 Peter 2:13-17 Submission to Civil Authorities

1 Peter 2:18-20 Submission in the Workplace

1 Peter 1:21-25 Following the Suffering Servant

1 Peter 3:1-6 Instructions for Wives

1 Peter 3:7 Instructions for Husbands

1 Peter 3:8-12 Instructions for All Christians

1 Peter 3:13-22 Facing Persecution for Christ

1 Peter 4:1-6 Living Like Christ in an Unbelieving World

1 Peter 4:7-11 Living as a Christian Community in an Unbelieving World

1 Peter 4:12-19 Finding Purpose in Suffering for Christ

1 Peter 5:1-5 Humble Leaders and Members in the Church

1 Peter 5:6-11 Reaching the End of Suffering

Soli Deo Gloria

To listen to the podcast scroll to the bottom of this page.

Ephesians 1:7-10 (ESV) ⁷ In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, ⁸ which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight ⁹ making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ ¹⁰ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.

We have been speaking of the spiritual blessings of those who are in Christ found in verses 3-14. The past two weeks we have spoken of the blessings of being chosen by God before the foundation of the world and of being adopted into God’s family. Today we will look at the blessing of redemption in Christ and specifically two aspects of redemption: the payment of redemption and the purpose of redemption.

First, we’ll look at

1.     The payment of redemption

The verbs in verses 7 and 8 tell us two things about this thing called redemption – that if we are in Christ, we have it, and that God gave it to us.

As we said before, verses 3-14 are one long sentence so there is no period after verse 6, but rather a comma between “in the Beloved” in verse 6 and “in Him” in verse 7.

Redemption is our possession in Christ

Verse 7 tells us that if we are in Christ, redemption is our present possession. “In Him we have redemption.” The tense and mood of the verse tell us that redemption is something we currently possess as our own. We have redemption in Christ. Paul’s letter to the Colossians begins with the same affirmation, Colossians 1:13-14 He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son,  in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

We know from other passages that redemption is not only our present possession but also our future hope. Eph 4:30 refers to a future day upon Christ’s return when redemption will be finalized. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 

Redemption is received from God in Christ

Verses 7 and 8 tells us also from whom we received redemption. It says “according to the riches of his grace, which he [God the Father from verse 3] lavished  on us.” The mood and tense of the verb tell us that God lavished it on us in the past and that its effects continue into the present. The verb lavished can also be translated “made extremely rich.” God lavished redemption on us like rich parents lavish gifts on their children. The word lavished may have been used in conjunction with “the riches of his grace” to emphasize the nature of redemption as a gift of the grace of God.

But what is this redemption God has given us by his grace?

Redemption is payment of a ransom price by Christ’s death

The word translated “redemption” in verse 7 is defined as deliverance or freedom from captivity or slavery on the payment of a price, in a word a ransom. A ransom is a fee or price paid to set someone free from captivity, bondage or slavery of some kind.

In OT times, as we read earlier, God was said to have redeemed and ransomed Israel out of slavery in Egypt through the slaying of the Passover lamb and the application of its blood over the door post of their homes, which when seen by the death angel he passed over. The lamb’s life was the ransom paid for the redemption of the first born of each Israelite family. This, as we know, was to foreshadow the redeeming, ransoming work of Jesus, of whom Paul referred in his letter to the Corinthians when he wrote “Christ our Passover has been sacrificed.” (1 Cor. ??)

In modern times, we’re more familiar with a ransom paid to set someone free from the bondage of a kidnapping. We say that a ransom was the price paid for their release. Redemption from captivity by modern kidnapping is by the payment of a ransom price.

But we’re talking about more than money when it comes to the ransom paid to free us from captivity to sin. Jesus paid the ransom price with his own life. Verse 7 tells us it was “through his blood” we have redemption. The ransom price paid for our redemption was another human life, Jesus’ life through the shedding of his blood unto death on the cross.

Redemption is forgiveness of sins

Why did Christ have to forfeit his life as a ransom payment for our lives? We are told in the next phrase, “the forgiveness of trespasses…”

The word translated forgiveness here means pardon or cancellation of an obligation, a punishment, or guilt.

The word translated trespasses here means sins, which is disregard or violation of a known law. Sin is the deliberate crossing of a known line. It is what psychologist James Dobson called in children “deliberate disobedience” or “putting their big hairy toe over the line.” The sin of Adam was a deliberate crossing of a known line, deliberate disobedience. We have inherited from him the sin nature that makes us sinners. “As in Adam all die.” (1 Cor 15.22).

 Jesus forfeited his life to pay the price of our pardon for sins, to cancel the debt we owe to God, to cancel the punishment we deserve for our sin, to pardon the guilt of our sin. But why was such drastic action required to pay the price of our redemption?

John Stott in his book The Cross of Christ deals extensively with what he calls the problem of forgiveness. The problem can be stated in the form of a question, “Why doesn’t God simply forgive our sins like we forgive each other’s sins?” As some of you know, there are other religions in which the gods or God simply forgives sins without the payment of a ransom price. No one has to die to accomplish forgiveness of sins.

But in Christianity, there are at least two reasons someone has to die. God, when he commanded Adam and Eve not to eat of the fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden, warned that death would be the result if they disobeyed. He laid down the law and because God is just, he had to enforce that law. They had to die because they had broken God’s law.

The second reason, or perhaps another part of the first reason, is that God is holy. To him, sin is not just a personal foul like our sins against one another. It is what some call “cosmic rebellion.” When we sin against one another we hurt each other either individually or as a group. At most, we can hurt an entire church. However, sin against God is much more serious. Because he is both our creator and law-giver, our sin is a crime against the whole creation.

Sin against God is like the crime of treason against a state or nation. Treason is considered such a serious crime because it is a crime against the well-being of society as a whole. In a kingdom, betraying the king who is the government, threatens the well-being of the whole nation. In a republic, waging war against the government or joining with or offering assistance to enemies of the government threatens the well-being of the entire state or nation and is therefore a crime against every person in it. For example, if a person leaks military secrets to our enemies, they threaten the well-being of every person in the nation and thus commit treason.

Treason is a very serious crime in the U.S., and therefore the death penalty is the most common punishment.  http://www.criminallawyerdenton.com/article-treason.aspx  Because of his justice and holiness, God cannot simply pardon a person who commits what amounts to treason against God’s entire creation and its government, which is God himself. As with Adam and Eve the penalty for the crime of treason against God is death. God’s holiness exposes our sin. God’s wrath opposes our sin. And God cannot act contrary to his nature.

That leads to the question of how God can pardon our sins if they are so serious. How can God achieve satisfaction against sin? How can his wrath against sin be appeased? That is what we call the doctrine of penal substitutionary atonement, which is redemption through the blood of Christ.

Since a death penalty had to be paid to appease God’s wrath against sin, God in Christ, provided a way for the ransom to be paid by way of substitution, one life for another. God’s love offered sinners a way of escape by providing for the substitutionary death of Jesus to fulfill the demands of God’s law and to appease his wrath.

God could have demanded a personal atonement from each sinner, but sinners could never have paid the ransom price. One writer says it this way,

Sin against an infinite God must be paid infinitely. That is why payment for our sin must be infinite. There are only two options for infinite payment. Either a finite creature (man) must pay for his sin for an infinite amount of time, or an infinite being (Jesus) must pay for it once for all men for all time. There are no other options. A sin against an infinitely holy God requires and equally infinite satisfaction as payment, and even an eternity in hell will not dissipate God’s infinite, righteous wrath against sin. Only a divine being could withstand the infinite wrath of a holy God against our sin. It requires an equally infinite being as a substitute for mankind to satisfy God’s wrath. Jesus, as the God-man, fits the bill perfectly. http://www.gotquestions.org/Jesus-paid-penalty.html

Jesus, the God-man was our perfect substitute. As a man he should pay for our sins. As God he could pay for our sins.

Let’s look at a few other verses that affirm this doctrine.

Isaiah 53:6 tells us that our sins were laid on Christ All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned–every one–to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.  

John 1:29 and Heb 9.28 tell us that he bore our sins. The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!

…so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him. 

Several other verses tell us that he gave his life for sinners.

(Mark 10:45 (ESV) For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

Galatians 1:4 (ESV) who gave himself for our sins to deliver us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, 

1 Peter 3:18 (ESV) For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit,

And Romans 3:23-25 tells us that Jesus’ substitutionary death paid the ransom price and that it is received by faith.“ For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation [or appeasement of God’s wrath] by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins.

Though we had much to say about the nature of redemption, the main point of this  passage is God’s purpose in redemption. God’s purpose was to unite all things in Christ.  Look at vv 8-10

2.     The purpose of redemption

⁸ …in all wisdom and insight  ⁹ making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ ¹⁰ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.

The translation does not make it as clear as it could be. The main verbs are “he purposed” and “to unite.” God purposed to unite all things in Christ. The tense and mood tell us that God purposed something in the past with consequences that continue in the present and that purpose was to unite all things in Christ. And perhaps it would be more comprehensive to say that all things will be RE-united to God in Christ.

Col 1:16 reminds us that Christ participated in God’s perfect creation before the fall of man into sin. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities all things were created through him and for him. 

And Col 1:19-20 agrees with verse 10 that God has accomplished the reconciliation of all things to himself through Christ. “For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross. 

And that purpose was fulfilled at just the right time in history in Christ. In Mark 1:15 Jesus announced, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.” And in Galatians 4:4-9 Paul wrote, “when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law,  to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons…So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God.  Formerly, when you did not know God, you were enslaved to those that by nature are not gods. But now that you have come to know God, or rather to be known by God… how can you turn back again to the weak and worthless elementary principles of the world, whose slaves you want to be once more?

Through Jesus’ substitutionary death, God has redeemed his people – has paid the ransom price – once and for all to set us free from the things that held us in bondage, and that redemption will be finalized when Christ comes again to finally re-unite all things in heaven and earth to God.

What difference does this make to you today?

It tells you that sin is serious to God. It is like the crime of treason and demands the death penalty. It drives you to find a way of escape from the wrath of God and bondage to sin.

It tells you that you cannot pay the penalty yourself, but that God has provided a way for the price of my sin and your sin to be paid. It is by placing our faith in Jesus Christ, the only one who should and could pay the ransom price we owe to God. John 3:36 (ESV) Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.

It tells you that God will finally triumph over evil. The death of Christ has paid the ransom price, and its effects are already experienced in our hearts by faith, but its final fulfillment will be seen when Christ returns for the redeemed and all his enemies are put under his feet. It gives you hope for an even better future.

To listen the the podcast scroll to the bottom of this page.

Ephesians 1:5-6 (ESV) he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will,  to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved.

A young man was convicted of murder and sentenced to spend many years in prison. But the next thing that happened surprised everyone. The judge asked his own son to step forward out of the audience, they nodded at one another, and the son was taken into custody while the young man’s chains were removed. The young man realized what was happening and prepared to leave the courtroom a free man, acquitted of all charges while the judge’s son headed to prison.

But the next thing surprised everyone even more. The judge announced that the young man was not only free to go, but that he – the judge – was legally adopting the young man into his family. The young man would immediately move into the judge’s home, take the judge’s name, receive the judge’s provision, protection, preservation, and one day, along with his only son, even receive the judge’s inheritance.

The judge could have upheld justice for the young man convicted of murder and sent him to pay for his crime in prison. But he didn’t. Out of mercy for the young man he sent his son to pay for the crime instead. But the judge went further.

The judge could have simply sent the young back into the streets, to provide for himself out of his own resources, to protect himself from whatever enemies he had made over the years, and to receive whatever inheritance his criminal parents might leave him – likely, nothing at all. Instead, out of even greater mercy and love, he adopted the young man into his own family and promised to provide for all his needs.

Imagine, adopting a convicted felon into your own family and household, calling him your son and promising him your inheritance! Sounds dangerous.

Essentially, that is what God has done for us. He could have left us in our sin to pay its penalty, but he didn’t. In his mercy and through the death of his Son Jesus, he acquitted us of our sin and gave us a new life, even an eternal life.

But that’s not all. Because of his love and mercy he took it one step further. He loved us enough to adopt us into his own family with all its privileges and promised us an everlasting inheritance out of his own riches.

So let’s look at the process, the purpose and some of the privileges of our adoption in Christ.

1.     The PROCESS of our adoption

It began with the Father’s plan

Ephesians 1:4-5 (ESV) he chose us in him before the foundation of the world…. In love he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ…

God’s plan was to choose us before the foundation of the world and to adopt us as his sons through Jesus Christ.

God had a master plan all worked out before the earth was formed. We have friends who have chosen to adopt children from multiple continents over the course of many years. They developed a plan somewhere along the line what they intended to do. The adoption of our children was not so intentional on our part. We were still involved in dealing with infertility when the opportunity to adopt Stephen came along. It was a surprise to us.

Your adoption into God’s family is not a surprise to him. He has no late in life surprises added to his family. Each one has been carefully planned before the world began. You may have been a surprise to your parents, but you are not a surprise to God.

God had a plan, but as in our story earlier of the judge and his son, God’s plan includes

The redeeming work of the Son

Galatians 4:4-6 (ESV) …when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons… 

The Son’s work was to free us from the power and penalty of the law which we had broken. By being born into a law-breaking family – Adam’s family – and by breaking the law ourselves, we had come under the power and penalty of the law. The Son’s willing obedience to take our place and to pay our penalty in full to satisfy God’s justice, was a necessary step in the adoption process.

This process also includes

The Spirit’s witness

Romans 8:15-16 (ESV)

… you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!”  The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God,

As Jesus promised his disciples before and after his death and resurrection, the Son sent the Spirit to give us internal assurance that we are God’s sons. The Spirit enables us to know God as our heavenly Father and to trust that he will fulfill all the promises he has made. His presence inside is our guarantee that God will fulfill all his promises. He is the down-payment, so to speak, of what God intends to complete in each of his children.

The Spirit of adoption is the Holy Spirit. He provides the subjective experience of God’s objective act of adoption. When your natural father is around you sense his presence because it is a physical presence. When the spirit of adoption is given to you at the new birth, he enables you to sense the Father’s presence from within because it is a spiritual presence.

Some have said that Abba, Father can be translated Daddy, a term of endearment, but a better translation is O Father, which seems to be more of a term of entreaty – one we use to call out to him in time of need.

The final step in the process is

The believer’s waiting

By faith we wait for our Father’s promises to be finally fulfilled when Christ returns. As his children in this life, we receive many of the blessings, but for some of them we must wait.

Philippians 3:20-21 (ESV) …our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself.

The entire process of our adoption is a long one – beginning before the world began and concluding when Christ returns – includes the Father’s plan, the Son’s work, the Spirit’s witness, and the believer’s waiting.

Now let’s look at

2.     The PURPOSE of our adoption

Why did God adopt us as sons into his family? There are several reasons found in our text today.

One reason God adopted us into his family is so that we might take on the family likeness, that we might become conformed to the image of his Son Jesus.

His likeness

V4 God chose us in Christ, that we should be holy and blameless before him

When a person is adopted into a human family, the parents intend and purpose that the child will take on the same values and character qualities as the parents and the other children. The child may have grown up in an orphanage or in a broken home or an evil home.

Human parents who wish to adopt a child must go through a process of evaluation, usually by the dept of social services for a year or more, to ensure they are fit parents who will meet not only the child’s physical needs, but also his emotional needs and will be able to instill their own character qualities into the child.

God’s purpose in bringing us into his family is to conform us to himself and his son. “You shall be holy for I am holy.” Are you willing to cooperate with his plan to change your character over the course of your life? Are you willing to become a humble and obedient child like his one and only son?

Another purpose for our adoption was

His will

God adopted us to be his sons simply because it was his will. It was,

V5 According to the purpose of his will.

God, as our sovereign creator and adopted Father has the right to do with us whatever he wishes. The potter can utilize the pot for any purpose he desires. Are you willing for God to use you in any way he wishes? He will never abuse you, but, like a good father, I suggest that his purpose for your life will challenge you to stretch and grow into areas you never dreamed of.

A final purpose for our adoption was

His glory

V6 to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved.

His mercy, love and grace are demonstrated in our adoption in his family, that others might give him praise when they see what he has done for us and in us, and that we might give him praise ourselves. Have you taken the time to praise him for his grace in adopting you as his son or daughter and making you a member of his family? That is part of his purpose in adopting you – that you might give him praise – the fruit of your lips, and the fruit of your life.

Finally, let’s look at the

3.     The PRIVILEGES of our adoption

When God adopts us into his family, it is a legal action with eternal consequences. The Westminster Shorter Catechism says it this way: Adoption is the act of God’s free grace by which we become his sons with all the rights and privileges of being his.

God has freely chosen to adopt us into his family out of his mercy and grace. Eph 1 says, “In love he predestined us to adoption as sons…”

1 John 3:1 says,  See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are….  or as the song goes, “Behold what manner of love the Father has given unto us…that we should be called the sons”

And because he has chosen us to become his sons, we have received and will receive all the rights and privileges of being a member of his family. 

John 1:12 (ESV) But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God,

So what are the rights and privileges – the blessings – of adoption? They’re not all found in one place, but are scattered throughout the Scriptures. We’ll see how many we can get through today. We may have to continue next time.

Let’s begin by looking at the four P’s.

His pity

Because he is our father, he shows his compassion toward us.

Psalm 103:13 (ESV) As a father shows compassion to his children, so the LORD shows compassion to those who fear him.

A true father hurts when his children hurt. He can’t walk away from a child in pain.

His protection

As a father, he protects his children. There is safety when he is around.

Proverbs 14:26 (ESV) In the fear of the LORD one has strong confidence, and his children will have a refuge.

A father makes sure all the doors are locked at night. If there’s a loud noise, he’s the one who gets up, gets out his flashlight and checks it out, because he is the protector of the family.

His provision

As our Father, he is also the provider of the family.

Matthew 6:32 (ESV) For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. 

Our Father knows what we need, and makes sure that we have provision of all our needs.

His presence

Hebrews 13:5 (ESV) be content with what you have, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” I will dwell among you…you will be my people and I will be your God. 

A good father never leaves his family. Someone has said that in marriage the most important thing is not to leave. I suggest perhaps the most important thing in a family is that neither of the parents, and perhaps especially the father, is not to leave.

We know a person whose father left the home when she was around 13 or 14 – probably out of shame because he has lost his job during the Great Depression. It was a devastating blow to the family – emotionally (they felt abandoned), financially (their mother had to go to work and sometimes more than one job), and probably other ways. Often, the children have to step into adult roles before they are ready. However, God promises never to abandon or desert us, he will never relinquish his role as our father. We will never have to step into his role. He will always be there for us as our Father.

A few more of the privileges of our adoption…

His discipline

Hebrews 12:6 (ESV) For the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives.”

This one may not seem like a privilege, but it is definitely a benefit of our adoption. When God receives us as his sons, because he loves us he takes on the responsibility to discipline us. A good father disciplines his sons – he teaches them how to work, he teaches them right from wrong and enforces painful consequences when they fail to keep them straight – so they can function in the real world.

Sometimes we seem to get away with things, especially as young Christians, but because God loves us, over time “your sins will find you out.” And we should learn not only from what we suffer but even from what others suffer.

Another privilege is that we enter into a new family

His family

Romans 8:17 (ESV) and if children, then heirs–heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him. 

As God’s adopted children we become brothers and sisters of Christ our elder brother, and family members with one another.

We don’t mind being Jesus’ brother or sister. He’s cool. He is our elder brother whom we can look up to, depend on, and model our lives after. He’s the one who paid the debt we owed so that we could become members of God’s family in the first place. But we are reminded in this passage that we may have to suffer with him in order to be glorified with him.

But then there’s the rest of the family, who sometimes – many times – we don’t like being in the family with. We’re not so cool. You and I have lots of flaws just like your natural brothers and sisters. They’re the ones who drive you the craziest.

They take your stuff, they get into your business, they pick on you if they’re older and they irritate you if they’re younger. And you have huge fights with them.  But they’re also the ones with whom you have the best times and create the best memories. We’ll work on this one as we proceed through Ephesians.

Another privilege of our adoption is access to

His throne

In adoption, we are given access to our father’s throne.

Hebrews 4:16 (ESV) Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

This is like entering into our earthly father’s den or office or workshop or wherever he spends much of his time. We can boldly come into his private chamber to ask for and receive the things we need.

And the final privilege we’ll cover today is

His inheritance

As God’s adopted children, we have a share in the promised inheritance that is being kept for us

1 Peter 1:3-4 (ESV) Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you,

We are promised that our Father’s inheritance is being kept in heaven for us. Our earthly fathers cannot guarantee we will receive an inheritance. What our parents intend to leave us can be used up through ill health in hospital and care facilities, it can be taxed out of existence, it can be stolen by other relatives, or it can burn down.

But God promises an inheritance that is imperishable and unfading, kept securely until that day when you will receive all your adopted Father has stored up for you when Christ returns.

To listen to the Podcast, scroll to the bottom of this page.

 Ephesians 1:3-6 (ESV) ³ Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places,  ⁴  even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love  ⁵  he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, ⁶  to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved.

Introduction: We are beginning a series today in the book of Ephesians. I want you to come away from this series with three bedrock beliefs – first that as a believer God has a good purpose for you individually, second that God has a good purpose for the entire universe, and third that those two purposes work together for your good and his glory.

Going into seminar ten years ago, I was not sure about these. I had been through a lot of pain in the church through a church split and two subsequent unsuccessful senior pastorates. Though things had gone well for the first ten years of my service as a music director, the past ten years seemed to have been nothing but upheaval, pain and confusion.

During my time in seminary, God began to sort it all out for me. As we studied the Scriptures I saw that he has a master plan for the universe – though I cannot understand it all – and that he has a minor plan for you and you and you and you and me – though we can’t understand even all that – and that all the minor plans work together in the master plan. And that ultimately those plans are good because God is good.

I needed to see that God does have a good plan for me, but at the same time, it’s not all about me, that he has a plan for everyone and is in the process of working it out in a way that glorifies himself, the most worthy object of glory in the universe.

The question we have to keep going back to in our lives as Christians is: “Can we trust this God who has called us, who claims to love us, who has chosen us to be in Christ?” or rather, “How can we trust him, when we can’t understand – much of the time – what he is doing or why he is doing it?”

In Ephesians, the apostle Paul is not dealing with particular problems in the church. He is simply teaching a number of basic doctrines of the faith – the God’s sovereignty in salvation, God’s eternal plan, the church, new relationships and spiritual warfare to name a few. (See Ephesians: An Expositional Commentary by James M. Boice.)

Paul presumably had plenty of time to think about what he wanted to say. He wrote this, we believe, from prison probably in Rome. He had previously visited Ephesus twice, once for only a day or two, but later for over two years he lived among them and taught them the gospel.

Ephesus was famous at the time as the home of the temple of Artemis, one of the seven great wonders of the ancient world, which housed the statue of Diana, believed to have fallen from heaven. The temple was served by hundreds of priestesses of Diana as temple prostitutes. In spite of the prominence of the temple, God saw fit to establish a thriving church there through Paul’s ministry.

Whenever I’m feeling dejected, rejected, down, or worthless I go to the first chapter of Ephesians to give me reassurance for the present and hope for the future. I need to remind myself again that God loves me and has a plan for my life and for this crazy mixed up world. This passage, more than any other, does that for me.

I want the same for you. I want you – when you are feeling rejection or false shame or guilt or any other feeling or belief that is not from God – to be able to return to this passage and remind yourself of God’s love and plan for you in Jesus Christ.

Verse three is a summary of what will follow for the next 10 verses. Verse three tells us “God has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places.”

So we know the source of the blessings in the verses that will follow is God, the mediator of these blessings is Christ, the extent of the blessings is total, the nature of these blessings is spiritual – that is, they are conveyed by and guaranteed by the Holy Spirit and are primarily spiritual, not material – and the fullest form of these blessings will be received in our future home in heaven.

Then he lists at least seven blessings which we will cover in turn over the next few weeks.

The first of these blessings, found in verses 4 and 5 is that we have been chosen by God. It says, “…He [God] chose us in Him [Christ] before the foundation of the world that we should be holy and blameless before Him. In love he predestined us…”

Have you ever felt truly loved by someone? Someone who loved you just for who you are – not for what you could do for them, not because of your abilities or background or position or the way you look or talk or act – but because they just chose to love you, and you felt it deep down in your bones.

You knew that nothing you could say or do would deter their love for you, even if you failed miserably in some way – even in a moral failure or a marriage failure – you knew they would be very disappointed, but would still love you and be there to help you work your way out of that failure. I hope each of you has at least one or two people in your mind right now, of someone you believe would love you no matter what!

That’s a human example of the kind of love God has for us, that God had for Israel in our OT reading; and in our NT reading, the kind of love Jesus had for his disciples, and that Jesus taught his disciples to have for one another.

I want us to see today that the first of God’s blessings we enjoy are the fruit of his love for us. That’s where it all begins – in the love of God. I want us all to begin again to understand, to feel deep down in our bones, to know the love God has for us so that when we feel useless, or tired or ashamed or under attack from the devil or other people, we can both retreat to and stand firm in that love.

I want you to understand who you are – in Christ – because that’s the ground of everything. You need a place you can go back to… in times of difficulty, when you are feeling guilty, condemned, blamed, shamed, by the devil, by other people and even by yourself at times.

There’s a Verizon commercial on TV right now. It shows some older boys in a line up for a pickup basketball game. The team leader who’s about to make the next pick looks sort of geeky and uncoordinated. He already has two other geeky guys standing next to him as if he had selected them, and he’s looking over the remaining candidates. The question posed is, “Who would you pick?”

Most are tall and/or well-built and wearing appropriate footwear for playing basketball. But one guy is wearing sandals, is generally geeky looking and is taking a huge bite out of a messy sub-type sandwich. You guessed it, the geeky team leader picks him.

Later we see the two teams warming up for game. The geeky team can’t dribble or get the ball even close to the hoop, while the talented team is alley-ooping one another and slamming the ball through the hoop.

The point Verizon is trying to make is, don’t be a loser by picking another loser. That is, when you pick an internet service provider, don’t be a loser as a consumer by choosing a loser ISP. Rather, be a winner by choosing a winning team – Verizon – the one that can give you the most bang for your buck!

But God doesn’t choose the same way!!! He doesn’t look us over and see who has the most talent, has the right shoes, will have the best job, the best family background or the biggest bank account.

He chooses on the basis of his own criteria, which are a mystery to us, but he has a purpose in doing so – the praise of his glory.

We saw in our OT reading that God chose Israel out of love “to be a people for his treasured possession, out of all the peoples who are on the face of the earth.  It was not because you were more in number than any other people that the LORD set his love on you and chose you, for you were the fewest of all peoples,  but it is because the LORD loves you and is keeping the oath that he swore to your fathers.” God chose to bless Israel, and he is working out his plan to do so.

We saw in our NT reading that Jesus chose the twelve, not because they were especially talented or faithful, but out of love.  “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. You did not choose me, but I chose you…

So let’s look at what we believe this passage is teaching and what it is not teaching. We are told in the WCF to teach the doctrine of election with great care, so that is what we hope to do.

The first view of election is what we believe the Bible teaches.

1.     Views of election  

Election pure and simple

WCF 3.5 Before the creation of the world, according to his eternal, unchangeable plan and the hidden purpose and good pleasure of his will, God has chosen in Christ those of mankind who are predestined to life and to everlasting glory. He has done this solely out of his own mercy and love and completely to the praise of his wonderful grace. This choice was completely independent of his foreknowledge of how his created beings would be or act. Neither their faith nor good works nor perseverance had any part in influencing his selection. (Rom 9.11,13,15-16, Eph 1.4,6,9, 2Tim 1.9, Eph 2.8-9)

This view preserves God’s sovereign free will. It says he freely chose in eternity past to save some undeserving people from their bondage to sin and death because of his mercy and love, apart from anything in them.

Denial of election

Before the foundation of the world, there was no plan of election. God does graciously offer salvation, but man must choose to accept it of his own free will.

This view preserves man’s free sovereign will. They say that unless man is absolutely free to choose or not choose God’s gracious offer of salvation, the process is simply mechanistic and reduces people to virtual robots.

We would reply that “absolute” freedom in man places him above the creator. Adam did not have absolute freedom even in the Garden of Eden. It was possible, before the fall, for him not to sin, but it was not possible for him to rise above the creator as sovereign. By challenging God’s word and seeking to be like God, as Satan had unsuccessfully done in the past, and as the serpent suggested to Eve, Adam fell into a state of sin which made him even further incapable of making an absolutely free choice. He became dead in trespasses and sins. He was spiritually dead, and therefore even more incapable of exercising absolute freedom of will.

Man’s will is a derived will and therefore cannot be absolutely free. Just as the pot does not tell the potter how to make the pot or how it should be used, so man cannot tell God what

This does not make man into a virtual robot. It simply makes him subject to the creator.

Romans 9:20-21 (ESV) But who are you, O man, to answer back to God? Will what is molded say to its molder, “Why have you made me like this?”  Has the potter no right over the clay, to make out of the same lump one vessel for honorable use and another for dishonorable use?

Election based on foreknowledge (middle position)

Before the foundation of the world, God chose some people for salvation on the basis of his foreknowledge of what they will do in the future.

This preserves God from accusations of arbitrariness or injustice. They say that since God is neither arbitrary nor unjust, he must have chosen people based on how he foresaw they would respond to the free offer of the gospel. So let’s look at the two objections of arbitrariness and injustice.

2.     Objections to election

Election is Arbitrary

God has no reason for what he does. God has no purpose in choosing some over the others. He could have picked everyone or none at all since there is no purpose in his choice.

Answer – it may seem arbitrary or purposeless from our perspective, but the Bible teaches that God has a purpose, found in Eph 1.5-6,  he predestined us… according to the purpose of his will… to the praise of his glorious grace…

God purposed to glorify himself by saving some. In doing so He demonstrated the glory of his love, mercy and grace. By leaving some in their sin, he demonstrated his wrath and justice toward evil.

Romans 9:22-23 (ESV) What if God, desiring to show his wrath and to make known his power, has endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction,  in order to make known the riches of his glory for vessels of mercy, which he has prepared beforehand for glory–

“God created a world in which both his wrath and his mercy would be displayed. His mercy shines against the backdrop of his just wrath.” Misunderstanding comes when we think God owes us salvation. (ESV Bible notes)

For some that raises another objection.

Election is Unjust

It is unjust or unfair for God to choose one rather than another. All must be given an equal chance.

Answer – Unfortunately, when Adam fell into sin, we all fell into sin and the penalty of sin with him. We have inherited his guilt and his sentence of physical death and spiritual death. Therefore, we are born in sin and deserve God’s wrath, not by God’s fault, but by Adam’s fault.

Is it unfair or unjust of God that some are born with birth defects, or a genetic susceptibility to heart disease or cancer? No. It is Adam’s fault. It was his sin that brought disease into the world. We have to live with it and deal with it.

Is it unfair or unjust of God that all men die? No it is Adam’s fault. His sin brought physical death into the world. We have to deal with it.

But it goes further than that. It’s not just Adam’s fault. It’s our fault too. Because we were born sinners in Adam, we actually commit sins. Therefore, we are guilty both for our sin nature and for our actual sins and deserve God’s wrath. Romans 3:22-23 (ESV) …there is no distinction:  for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God…

Though there are objections to the doctrine of election, there are many blessings associated with it.

3.     Blessings of election

Gives assurance of salvation or comfort to the believer

If it depended on us to accomplish or maintain our salvation, it would be a very unstable salvation. We would believe we are saved one day and not saved another day.

Our feelings come and go, but we can know based on God’s word that he will fulfill his promises in salvation which he began in election before the foundation of the world.

Romans 8:28-30 And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.  And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified. 

Eliminates boasting

Critics say that election promotes boasting, that it is the height of arrogance to say that oneself has been elected to salvation, that in doing so one is claiming to be worth more or to have done something better than others.

However, election does not imply that at all. Election means that salvation is completely from God. He chose, he predestined, he has freely given, and it is all “to the praise of his glorious grace.”

Election, in fact, eliminates boasting. If a person could get to heaven on the grounds that he had done something to merit, earn or accomplish it, then he would have a reason to boast. But that is not the case.

2 Timothy 1:9  [God] who saved us and called us to a holy calling, not because of our works but because of his own purpose and grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began,

Ephesians 2:8-9  For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.

Romans 9:11 though they were not yet born and had done nothing either good or bad–in order that God’s purpose of election might continue, not because of works but because of him who calls–

Leads to holiness

Critics say that belief in election leads to sin because a person can say, “Since I’m elect I can do anything I want, I can sin all I please, and God will still allow me into heaven.”

However, verse 4 tells us election and holiness go together.

Ephesians 1:4 (ESV) he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him

God’s purpose for us is that we would become like him – like Christ – that through sanctification, we have taken on and are continuing to take on the family attributes of holiness and blamelessness.

Promotes evangelism

Critics say that belief in election makes evangelism unnecessary. They say, “If God is going to save certain individuals anyway, he will save them, and there is no point in my having anything to do with it.”

However, election does not eliminate the means by which God calls elect persons to faith. One of those means is the proclamation of the gospel by those who already believe. 1 Corinthians 1:21 (ESV) For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe.

Also, as we recognize the importance of election, we gain hope in evangelism. If people’s hearts are as opposed to God as the Bible says they are, how can we hope to persuade them differently?

But if God is doing this work on the basis of his prior election of some, we can speak the word of truth boldly, knowing that all those whom God has previously chosen, will come to faith in due time.

Since we don’t know who the elect are, the only way to find out is by their response to the Gospel and their subsequent growth in holiness.  We should simply proclaim the word trusting in God’s ability to bring to pass what he began before the foundation of the world.

As Paul wrote to Timothy, 2 Timothy 2:10 (ESV) Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they also may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory.

A final appeal

We are a messed up people living in a messed up world. But because we have been chosen in Christ to receive the gift of salvation we can have great hope in spite of our current situation and in spite of the current situation of the world.

We must live in the promise that God is working out his loving purposes for us and for the universe simultaneously. It’s for your good, and your good, and your good and my good all at the same time. Who but God could work all that out?

And it’s all for the glory of him who created it – his response to both the bad and the good testify to his great wrath against evil and injustice and to his great love and mercy toward a fallen creation.

Because of this I don’t want to give up – well, sometimes I do! – And I want you to join me in not giving up. As we continue to return to this passage again and again, to be renewed in our hope and enabled to live in the assurance of God’s promises, to pursue lives of humility and holiness, and to pursue evangelism trusting that God is working in us and through us to fulfill his plan in others he has chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world.

Postscript: This sermon owes much to James Boice’s treatment of this topic in his commentary on Ephesians. 

To listen to the Podcast scroll to the bottom of this page.

John 20:1-31 (ESV) Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb. ² So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.” ³ So Peter went out with the other disciple, and they were going toward the tomb. ⁴ Both of them were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. ⁵  And stooping to look in, he saw the linen cloths lying there, but he did not go in. ⁶ Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb. He saw the linen cloths lying there, ⁷ and the face cloth, which had been on Jesus’ head, not lying with the linen cloths but folded up in a place by itself. ⁸ Then the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed; ⁹ for as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that he must rise from the dead. ¹⁰ Then the disciples went back to their homes. ¹¹ But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb, and as she wept she stooped to look into the tomb. ¹² And she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had lain, one at the head and one at the feet. ¹³ They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.” ¹⁴ Having said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing, but she did not know that it was Jesus. ¹⁵ Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?” Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.” ¹⁶  Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned and said to him in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means Teacher). ¹⁷ Jesus said to her, “Do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’” ¹⁸ Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord”–and that he had said these things to her. ¹⁹ On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.” ²⁰ When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord.²¹ Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.” ²²  And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. ²³  If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld.” ²⁴ Now Thomas, one of the Twelve, called the Twin, was not with them when Jesus came. ²⁵ So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he said to them, “Unless I see in his hands the mark of the nails, and place my finger into the mark of the nails, and place my hand into his side, I will never believe.” ²⁶  Eight days later, his disciples were inside again, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” ²⁷ Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and see my hands; and put out your hand, and place it in my side. Do not disbelieve, but believe.” ²⁸ Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!” ²⁹ Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”  ³⁰ Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; ³¹ but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

 Where were you when the Japanese air force bombed Pearl Harbor on Dec 7, 1941?

• You may not have yet been born, but if you were
• What was your first response to the news?
• What evidence caused you to believe it?
  • Newspaper, newsreels, eyewitnesses, personal experience?
  • Did you go and see the devastation with your own eyes or trust in the testimony of others?
  • What action did you take in response? That is, how did it change your world?
    • Volunteer to go into the military,
    • go to work in factories making military equipment and munitions,
    • My mom, still in high school – manned a local tower watching for enemy aircraft
    • My grandmother’s factory – converted to wartime production
    • My dad was deferred bc of brothers but later entered Navy.

Where were you on 911 when the Taliban flew two commercial airliners into World Trade Centers on September 11, 2001?

• You may not have yet been born, but if you were
• What was your first response to the news?
• What evidence caused you to believe it?
  • Television coverage, newspaper, eyewitness testimony of others or were you there when it happened…
  • Did you go and see the devastation with your own eyes or trust in the testimony of others?
  • What actions did you take in response? That is, how did it change your world?
    • Did you go and help rescue victims trapped in the rubble?
    • Did you volunteer for the military to fight the Taliban in Iraq or Afghanistan?
    • Did one of your family members?

Where were you when you first heard about the resurrection of Jesus?

• What was your first response? Nice story, wanted more information, rejected it, accept it
• What evidence caused you to believe it, or what evidence is still lacking so that you don’t yet believe it?
• What actions have you taken in response to the news about his resurrection?

This passage tells us four things about Jesus’ resurrection:

1. The evidence for Jesus’ resurrection
2. The uniqueness of Jesus’ resurrection
3. The necessity of Jesus’ resurrection
4. The urgency of our response to Jesus’ resurrection

 Let’s look first at

 I.                The evidence for Jesus’ resurrection

How many of you have served on a jury or been a witness or defendant in a trial?

My experience…received testimony of others, made a decision, learned later that there was more information that we couldn’t be told earlier.

We base our judgments largely on the testimony of others – eyewitness testimony is best; multiple pieces of evidence is better; multiple eyewitnesses are better yet

1.     What the eyewitnesses to Jesus’ resurrection claimed to have seen

The empty tomb and Jesus’ appearances taken together:

The empty tomb is a piece of evidence, and the appearances of Jesus are other pieces of evidence that the resurrection had taken place.

Individually, they may not be conclusively convincing, but taken together, they become more convincing proof that Jesus’ resurrection took place.

If you wanted to convince someone that a friend of yours was raised from the dead, they would need to see at least two things: the empty grave – evidence that the body was no longer there; and, the living body of the person himself/herself walking around alive.

The empty tomb of Jesus tells us either that someone besides the disciples removed the body, or that the body left the tomb on its own power

The appearances of Jesus apparently alive tells us either this was an apparition of some kind (a zombie or a ghost – they seemed to believe in ghosts even in that day), or that the body had come to real life in some way

Peter and John:

Saw the empty tomb in orderly fashion – the grave clothes, and especially the folded head piece indicated that this was no grave robbery

Later saw Jesus  in the upper room who, though there were some differences, was recognizable and spoke with them

Mary Magdalene

Saw the empty tomb and before entering assumed someone had stolen the body, but upon entering spoke with the angels and later the risen Jesus, who though there were differences, she was recognizable, spoke with her and tangible – she held onto him for some time

The disciples except Thomas in the upper room where they were staying later on the same day

Saw Jesus appear suddenly in a locked room who was recognizable and spoke with them, apparently not a ghost

Thomas

Same thing happened a week later. Jesus appeared suddenly in a locked room, and showed Thomas the nail prints in his hands and the spear print in his side

Others, 13 appearances in total over 40 days

He appeared to two disciples on the road to Emmaus on the same day

He appeared later to the disciples on the seashore and ate broiled fish with them

Luke and Paul sum it up. Acts 1:3-8 (ESV) sums it up.  “He presented himself alive to them after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days. 1 Corinthians 15:5-8 (ESV) he appeared to Cephas (Peter), then to the twelve.  Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive…  Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles.  Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me.”

2.     What the eyewitnesses believed – the conclusions they drew – as a result of what they claimed to see

Background: the pagans of that day, did not believe in a resurrection; they believed as many today that after death there is nothing

The Jews of that day, except the Saducees, believed there would be a general resurrection on the last day, the day of the Lord, in which the creator God who set all things right because of his justice

When Jesus told Martha Lazarus would rise from the dead.  John 11:24-27 (ESV) Martha said to him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.”

Saducees who tried to trick him in Mat 22:23-28 ESV). [the] Sadducees came to him, who say that there is no resurrection, and they asked him a question, saying, If a man over the course of his life, has seven wives who died, In the resurrection, therefore, of the seven, whose wife will she be?”

Mary Magdalene believed she had seen the Lord alive, told the disciples

John saw and believed though he “still didn’t understand the Scriptures about him”

Peter and the disciples except Thomas in the upper room, believed and told Thomas about him

Thomas a week later in the upper room, believed and confessed, “You are the Christ the son of the living God”

Apparently many of the 400+ others who saw him believed as well that he had been raised from the dead

3.     What they did as a result of their belief – how they responded

They believed what they had seen and heard deeply enough that

They spread the gospel throughout the known world at that time

They started a movement that, in the words of the city officials in Thessalonica,  “These men who have turned the world upside down have come here also,  and Jason has received them, and they are all acting against the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, Jesus .” (Act 17:6-7 ESV)

They staked their lives on it – most of the 12 and probably many others were martyred for their faith in Christ

We’ve looked at the evidence of Jesus’ resurrection. Let’s look second at

II.              The uniqueness of Jesus’ resurrection

1. A qualitative difference in his appearance –

Sometimes recognizable, sometimes not

Mary recognized neither his face, form or voice at first, but did so when he called her name

Disciples on the Emmaus road recognized neither his face, form or voice at first, but did so when he broke the bread with them

Like seeing an old friend from a long time ago – mixture of similarities and differences – eg. seeing high school friends  in library

2. A qualitative difference in his abilities

Seemed to appear out of nowhere

Appeared suddenly behind Mary in the tomb – would have had to crawl in

Appeared suddenly to the disciples and later to to Thomas and the disciples in an upper room whose door was locked.

3.     A qualitative difference in the extent of his life 

He claimed be completely transformed so as to be beyond the possibility of a future death.

Mary, “don’t cling to me, I haven’t yet ascended

“Tell the disciples I am ascending to my Father

Different from Lazarus, who undoubtedly later died

NT Wright says, “Resurrection” is not simply death from another viewpoint; it is the reversal of death, its cancellation, the destruction of its power.   NT Wright in Bible Review. 2000. http://www.ntwrightpage.com/Wright_BR_Resurrection.htm

Jesus’ was the first genuine resurrection in history. His is said to be the first fruits of many who will follow after him. 1 Corinthians 15:20-23 (ESV) But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. ²¹  For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. ²²  For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. ²³  But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ.

In other words, his resurrection, his victory over death made it possible for those who believed in him to experience the same.

We’ve looked at the evidence and the uniqueness of Jesus’ resurrection. Let’s look third at

III.            The necessity of Jesus’ resurrection

Jesus’ resurrection was necessary for several reasons. The first is found in

Vv 8-9. Then the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed;for as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that he must rise from the dead.

(The following list borrows heavily from Robert Deffinbaugh, “The Significance of the Resurrection” at deffinbaugh@bible.org)

1.     Jesus’ resurrection was necessary to fulfill OT Biblical prophecy

In Acts chapter 2 Peter cited David’s words in Psalm 16:10:

“Because Thou wilt not abandon my soul to Hades, Nor allow Thy Holy One to undergo decay” (Acts 2:27; cf. 13:33).

Peter said that David could not have referred to himself, but rather to his Son, whom God would raise from the dead. The Old Testament Scriptures were understood by the apostles to foretell the resurrection of Christ. The resurrection of Christ was thus a biblical necessity.

2.  Jesus’ resurrection was necessary to prove that Jesus Christ was who He claimed to be.

Jesus had clearly claimed to be the son of God, which was the reason the religious leaders conspired to kill Him (cf. John 19:7). The resurrection was God’s proof that the Lord Jesus was Who He claimed to be: the Son of God:

(Romans 1:4) [Jesus] was declared with power to be the Son of God by the resurrection from the dead,…

3. Jesus’ resurrection was necessary to prove that he had accomplished what He promised.

His death alone was not enough. The resurrection had to follow. It is by our identification with Him in His death, burial, and resurrection that we are saved.

(Rom. 5:9-10).Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him. For if while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life

In 1 Corinthians chapter 15, Paul argues that apart from Christ’s resurrection, we would have no hope:

But if there is no resurrection of the dead, not even Christ has been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is vain, your faith also is vain. . . . For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins (1 Cor. 15:13-14; 16-17).

4. The resurrection of Jesus was a logical necessity.

It is impossible for God to remain in the grave and to decay, as men do.

“And God raised Him up again, putting an end to the agony of death, since it was impossible for Him to be held in its power” (Acts 2:24).’

5. The resurrection of Jesus is a necessary element of a saving faith.

In both the Old and the New Testaments, a saving faith was a faith in a God who could and would raise men from the dead.

(Romans 4:19-20). Says of Abraham, “and being fully assured that what He had promised, He was able also to perform. Therefore also it was reckoned to him as righteousness”

The apostle Paul wrote to the Romans (Rom. 10:9).. . . if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you shall be saved

Personal faith in the resurrection of Christ is therefore necessary because it is a vital element in a faith that leads to salvation.

We’ve looked at the evidence, the uniqueness and the necessity of Jesus’ resurrection. Finally let’s look at

III. The urgency of our response to Jesus’ resurrection – actions to be taken… like responding to Pearl Harbor, 911 or any other life changing news

1.     We should believe

Thomas is told in the imperative in v 27 “do not disbelieve, but believe”

The stated purpose of the writing of John’s gospel:  V31 these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

 2.     We should go and preach the gospel

The disciples were sent out by Jesus as the Father had sent him, to proclaim the gospel in the power of the Spirit. Note the Trinitarian nature.

Vv 21-22  Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.”  And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit.

3.     We must believe the gospel in order to receive eternal life. 

V23  If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld.”

Literally, “those whose sins you forgive have already been forgiven; those whose sins you do not forgive have not been forgiven’

In other words  those who proclaim the gospel are in effect forgiving or not forgiving sins depending on whether the hearers accept or reject Jesus.

Those who hear the gospel message through the disciples will be judged by God according to whether they accept or reject the message

In other words, those who hear your message and believe will be forgiven, but those who disbelieve will not be forgiven by the Father.

Illustration from my experience at age twenty upon hearing Dr. John Akers at an Intervarsity retreat. He said, “If Jesus really was raised from the dead, that would make all the difference in the world.” It made all the difference in the world to me that day. I was converted. I appeal especially today to those who have grown up in the church. You may have heard it all, as I did, but have never formed a clear verdict about Christ. This passage tells us that we must deliver a verdict on his claims – that our eternal destiny hangs in the balance, and that delivering no verdict is equivalent to a verdict of unbelief. Do not disbelieve, but believe!

Summary:

1. The evidence for Jesus’ resurrection
2. The uniqueness of Jesus’ resurrection
3. The necessity of Jesus’ resurrection
4. The urgency of our response to Jesus’ resurrection

To listen to the Podcast, scroll to the bottom of this page.

Introduction: Today is Palm Sunday.  On this day in history, Jesus, by his actions, announced that he was the promised Messiah. But he made clear he was a certain kind of Messiah, one that is humble and faithful, not arrogant and self-serving. By entering Jerusalem on the foal of a donkey, he announced to believers and unbelievers his intention to go humbly to the cross and rise victoriously from the dead and later to ascend to a place of authority and power next to his Father’s throne – to accomplish all that had been prophesied of him in the Scriptures.

During the season of Lent we have been engaged in a series from Hebrews on the excellencies of Christ.

So far, we have seen that Jesus is superior to angels, superior to Moses, and serves as our faithful high priest in heaven.

This week in Heb 8, we will see in more detail what he has done in history and how and why he is able right now, in the present, to help us from his position in heaven.

Do you ever wonder what Jesus is doing right now in heaven? Is he simply sitting on some kind of heavenly throne next to the Father, watching to see what we will do next, talking with the angels and saints of old, maybe cheering us on or saying a prayer for us from time to time?

This passage tells us two primary things about what he is doing. It tells us

1. The nature of his heavenly ministry as our high priest (vv 1-6)

2. The nature of the new covenant he is mediating (vv 7-13)

Hebrews 8:1-13 (ESV) Now the point in what we are saying is this: we have such a high priest, one who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in heaven, ²  a minister in the holy places, in the true tent that the Lord set up, not man. ³  For every high priest is appointed to offer gifts and sacrifices; thus it is necessary for this priest also to have something to offer. ⁴  Now if he were on earth, he would not be a priest at all, since there are priests who offer gifts according to the law. ⁵  They serve a copy and shadow of the heavenly things. For when Moses was about to erect the tent, he was instructed by God, saying, “See that you make everything according to the pattern that was shown you on the mountain.” ⁶  But as it is, Christ has obtained a ministry that is as much more excellent than the old as the covenant he mediates is better, since it is enacted on better promises. ⁷  For if that first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no occasion to look for a second. ⁸  For he finds fault with them when he says: “Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will establish a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, ⁹  not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt. For they did not continue in my covenant, and so I showed no concern for them, declares the Lord. ¹⁰  For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my laws into their minds, and write them on their hearts, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. ¹¹  And they shall not teach, each one his neighbor and each one his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest. ¹²  For I will be merciful toward their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more.” ¹³  In speaking of a new covenant, he makes the first one obsolete. And what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away.

Let’s look first at

1.     The nature of Jesus’ ministry as our high priest

-We are told it’s a new ministry, and a better ministry

First,

A.    It is a new ministry,

 ⁶ …Christ has obtained a ministry that is as much more excellent than the old…

 A few weeks ago in Heb 1 we read, “Long ago, at many times and in many ways God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, “but in these last days, God has spoken to us through his Son. After making purification for sins, he has down at the right hand of the Majesty on high… (vv1-3).

Jesus’ ministry as our high priest became effective in time and space after his ascension at his exaltation in heaven. Just as Aaron went into the holy of holies to offer the sacrifice on the Day of Atonement, Christ went into the heavenly sanctuary to present his offering of himself to God to secure our eternal salvation.

Heb 9:11-12, 15 ESV ¹¹ …when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things that have come,then through the greater and more perfect tent (not made with hands, that is, not of this creation)

 ¹² he entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption. (15) Therefore he is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance, since a death has occurred that redeems them from the transgressions committed under the first covenant. 

V 6 tells us that Jesus has obtained a ministry that is more excellent than the old. This ministry was obtained through his own blood and the presentation of that blood before the Father in heaven. We’ll learn more about what this means a little later.

V6 tells us second that

 B.    Jesus’ ministry is a better ministry than the old ministry of Israel’s priests.

- it is a better ministry in two ways – it is a heavenly ministry rather than an earthly ministry, and it is an eternal ministry rather than a temporal one

First,

It is a heavenly ministry, not an earthly ministry;

 8:1 Now the point in what we are saying is this: we have such a high priest, one who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in heaven,

 We are told in verse 1 that he is seated at the right hand of the Father in heaven. His current physical address, so to speak, is heaven.

The point is that Jesus, as our high priest, is no longer on earth, like the Levitical priests, but in heaven. Because he died and rose again and ascended, he is in heaven with his Father. And because he humbled himself and perfectly fulfilled his Father’s will, he was given a position of power and authority above any other than his Father. So his ministry is located in heaven, no longer on earth like the OT priests.

 Second, we are told that he carries out some kind of ministry in heaven.

 ² a minister in the holy places, in ^athe true tent¹ that the Lord ^bset up, not man.

He is said to be a minister, literally, a liturgist, a servant, minister with special ref. to accountability before God (Ro 13:6; 15:16; Hb 1:7; 8:2).

We saw this word in Heb 1:7 when it speaks of the angels of God. Hebrews 1:7 (ESV) Of the angels he says, “He makes his angels winds, and his ministers a flame of fire.” So Jesus is a servant, a minister of God.

And he is located in what the writer calls “the true tent that the Lord set up, not man” to indicate a contrast in the place of Jesus ministry with that of the earthly high priests. Jesus’ ministry in the true tent that the Lord set up is heaven, while the ministry of the OT high priests is on earth, by implication, in an earthly tent that man set up.

The phrase “true tent” does not intend, by contrast, to indicate the tent or tabernacle of the OT priests was false in some way, but rather, imperfect, less valuable, symbolic. Their tent was an imperfect, less valuable copy or symbol of the true tent in heaven, as we will see later.

So Jesus, our high priest is located in heaven, and carries out his ministry as high priest in heaven. By contrast, the high priests of Israel were located earth and were therefore inferior. And their ministry was located in an earthly tent of their own making, which was therefore inferior.

 Third, we are told that although his lineage disqualifies him from an earthly ministry, his character qualifies him for a heavenly ministry.

³ For ^aevery high priest is appointed to offer gifts and sacrifices; thus ^bit is necessary for this priest also to have something to offer. ⁴ Now if he were on earth, he would not be a priest at all, since there are priests who offer gifts according to the law.

 Jesus was from the line of Judah, not the line of Levi, and therefore would not have qualified to serve as a high priest in the temple. Jesus, we learn in chapter 7, however, is from the line or order of Melchizedek, who (7:16) “has become a priest not on the basis of…his ancestry but on the basis of the power of an indestructible life.”

Jesus is a priest because God has declared an oath or promise about him through his ancestor David in Psalm 110:1, “You are a priest forever.” And Heb 7 goes on to say, “because of his oath, Jesus has become the guarantee of a better covenant” (Heb 7:21).

So Jesus’ ministry is better than the OT priests because it is a heavenly ministry in contrast to their earthly ministry.

Second, Jesus’ ministry is better not only because it is heavenly but also because

 B.    It is an eternal ministry, not a temporal ministry

 ⁵ They serve a copy and shadow of the heavenly things. For when Moses was about to erect the tent, he was instructed by God, saying, “See that you make everything according to the pattern that was shown you on the mountain.”

 Israel’s priests served or ministered in what the author calls a copy or shadow of the heavenly. The word “copy” can also be translated “sketch.” What God showed Moses on the mountain, presumably, was the real thing, a vision of the heavenly reality, but all Moses was able to build by comparison was a sketch of heaven.

Exo 25:40 is quoted here, “And see that you make them after the pattern for them, which is being shown you on the mountain.” All Moses could do was follow the pattern God gave him. He could not build the heavenly reality. Dress makers can appreciate the pattern metaphor. The pattern is not the real thing, the dress is.

It’s like the difference between seeing the Grand Canyon itself and seeing a sketch of the Grand Canyon. There’s no comparison.

It’s like a simulation of the real thing. The tent and the ministry of the OT priests were like a simulation of the real thing. Have you ever driven in a simulator of a car or a plane or a tank? They’re temporary, intended to train us and prepare us for the real thing and to be replaced by the real thing.

The purpose of the tent and the OT priesthood was to train us, to prepare us, to point forward to the eternal reality of Christ’s priesthood in heaven. They are temporary sketches or illustrations or simulations of the permanent, the real, the eternal reality in Christ.

So the nature of Jesus’ ministry is new by virtue of his death, resurrection and ascension; and Jesus’ ministry is better because it is heavenly not earthly, and eternal not temporary.

Now, let’s look secondly at

2. The nature of the new covenant Jesus is mediating (vv 7-13)

Even though we speak of the new covenant with Christ and the old covenant with Moses, we are speaking of one covenant. It is the covenant of grace that God established with man to deal with our sin problem after the fall. The covenant of grace is one covenant that has passed through various administrations beginning immediately after the fall with Adam. In Gen 3.15, God promised a deliverer from the sin of Adam through the woman. With Adam, (using Robertson’s terms in The Christ of the Covenants) it can be characterized as the “covenant of commencement;” with Noah the “covenant of preservation;” with Abraham, the “covenant of promise;” with David the “covenant of the kingdom;” with Moses, the covenant of the law;” and with Jesus, the covenant of the consummation.”

In each case, the commands and the promises became more clear. So when Hebrews refers to the covenant of Moses as an old covenant, it’s still the covenant of grace. When he refers to the new covenant in Christ as better than the old covenant administered through Moses and the law, it does not mean that it is an essentially different covenant – it is still the covenant of grace – it means that it is a better and final administration of the covenant of grace, the one to which all of the previous administrations were pointing.

We learn two things about the nature of the covenant. It is a better covenant because: 1) it is based on Jesus’ better ministry and because 2) it is based on better promises

First,

A.    It is a better covenant because it is based on Jesus’ better ministry

⁶ But as it is, Christ  has obtained a ministry that is as much more excellent than the old asthe covenant he mediates is better…

 Verse 6 is transitional between the two sections. It tell us that Jesus’ entrance into the heavenly tabernacle made the new covenant possible and necessary.

A new covenant required a new mediator. The mediator of the so-called old covenant was Moses. The mediator of the new covenant is Jesus:

1) His perfect obedience and death inaugurated a new covenant;

2) his entrance into the heavenly sanctuary guarantees God’s acceptance of his sacrifice and the actualization of the superior covenant he mediated.

Jesus’ ministry is superior because it is effective. It is effective because God has appointed Jesus as our high priest by his oath, his promise, “You are a priest forever.” Heb 7:22 tells us “This makes Jesus the guaranee of a better covenant.” God’s promise is greater than the regulations set down in the law of Moses.

The Apostle Paul writes to the Galatians, Gal 3:19 Why then the law? It was added because of transgressions, until the offspring should come to whom the promise had been made, and it was put in place through angels by an intermediary. 

 The law was put in place temporarily because of sin, to mediate until the promised mediator-son arrived to take his place as the permanent mediator.

Verses 7 and 8a tell us that God “found fault” with Israel because of their disobedience, and he found fault, as it were, with the Mosaic covenant itself, because it was always intended to be temporary and was meant to be replaced by the new covenant found in Jeremiah 31.

⁷ For if that first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no occasion to look for a second. ^8a For he finds fault with them when he says (present tense) ”Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will establish a new covenant with Israel…

Heb 7:11 tells us, Now if perfection had been attainable through the Levitical priesthood (for under it the people received the law), what further need would there have been for another priest to arise after the order of Melchizedek, rather than one named after the order of Aaron? 

So the new covenant is better because it is based on Jesus’ better ministry.

Second, the new covenant

B.    Is a better covenant because it is based on better promises

1. It is internal, not merely external

2. It provides complete forgiveness of sins

3. And therefore makes the old obsolete

First, it is a better covenant because

 1)     It is an internal covenant, not merely external (10-11)

 ¹⁰For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my laws into their minds, and write them on their hearts, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

 ¹¹ And they shall not teach, each one his neighbor and each one his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they shallall know me, from the least of them to the greatest.

 God promised a new covenant through Jeremiah, one that would surpass and supplant Moses covenant. The people would no longer follow the law mechanically, simply externally, merely going through the motions. The law would be written on their minds and hearts. Paul could write to the Corinthians, 2Co 3:3 And you show that you are a letter from Christ delivered by us, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts. 

They would know the Lord because of his indwelling presence by the Spirit because of the work of the mediator of the new covenant. God’s promise to be their God and for them to be his people would become a reality. John could write in his first letter, 1Jo 2:27 But the anointing that you received from him abides in you, and you have no need that anyone should teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about everything, and is true, and is no lie just as it has taught you, abide in him.

Second, God promised the new covenant would

 2)     Provide complete forgiveness for sins.  (12)

 ¹² For I will be merciful toward their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more.”

(Heb 10:4 ESV) Reminds us that ⁴ it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.

And Rom 3:23-26 ESV reminds us that God had merely overlooked sins until his Son should arrive and deal with sin definitely and finally. In his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins….to show his righteousness at the present time, so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

In the new covenant, God promised, sins are completely forgiven, God remembers them no more.

Finally, verse 13 is a sort of summary the passage. It  tells us that the creation of a new covenant makes the old one obsolete.

 ¹³ In speaking of a new covenant, he makes the first one obsolete. And what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away.

Have you ever heard the phrase, “planned obsolescence?” It refers most often to products we buy like cars and washing machines. It means that those who produce them plan for them to no longer be useful at some point in the future, because they will have a new model ready to take its place. That’s why after a while, you can no longer get parts for an old car or an old washing machine. They planned for it to become obsolete so you’ll have to buy a newer model.  You can’t keep patching up the old one.

That’s what God had in mind for the law, the covenant of Moses. God planned for it to be replaced by the new covenant in Christ. Like an old washing machine, it still works to some degree. We continue to use the law as our tutor to lead us to Christ, and to serve a normative function to tell us what is right and wrong.

But in Christ, we have that law written in our hearts as well. The written word reminds us, but because we are indwelt by the Spirit of Christ, we know right from wrong on the inside.

So what Jesus doing right now as our high priest in heaven? (from Berkhof, pp 402-405)

He is doing at least five things:

1.     He is reminding God to pass over us in his wrath against sin. The perpetual presence of the completed sacrifice before God is an intercession like the blood of the Passover of which God said, “when I see the blood, I will pass over you.” Ex 12:13

2. He is defending us against the devil. When Satan accuses us, Christ meets all his accusations by pointing him to his completed work. (Rom 8.33-34)

3. He is accomplishing our sanctification. He sanctifies our imperfect and sinful prayers and presents them to God as holy. He sanctifies our imperfect and sinful service and presents it to God as holy. And He lovingly helps us in our trials and difficulties as our sympathetic high priest.

4. He is praying for us. “He forever lives to make intercession for us.” He is presenting to the Father the spiritual needs that we have not thought to pray; he is praying for our protection against the dangers and enemies that threaten us of which we are unaware; he is praying that our faith may not fail; and that we may come out victorious in the end.

5. He is directing all the work of the Holy Spirit on our behalf.

 Finally, we should remember that he is

1. Constantly interceding for us. He is always on the alert. He is alive to our every need. None of our prayers escape him.
2. Authoritatively interceding for us. His are the requests not of a creature to his creator, but of a son to his father, on equal terms.
3. Effectively interceding for us. “The Father always hears him.”

As we move to the Lord’s Supper, I hope now we can better understand what Jesus meant when he said, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this as often as you drink it in remembrance of me.”