Download Here:

The Song Of The Uncomforted
Psalms 88
November 8, 2020

Tonight we come upon what may be
The darkest Psalm in the entire book of Psalms.

It begins with the only positive statement in the entire Psalm.
(1) “O LORD, the God of my salvation,”

And it DESCENDS from there.
It is a Psalm which will give no relief.

We often times find our Psalmist in pain or turmoil or fear
But it seems like there is always a ray of sunshine somewhere.

For example,
• The writer may speak of his affliction but somewhere in the Psalm we read of the relief or the peace of God he receives.
• Or perhaps the Psalmist may lament his extreme pain, but we are accustomed to then reading, “Nevertheless I will hope in You…”

This Psalm gives us none of that.
• No relief is offered in this Psalm…
• No explanation is given in this Psalm…
• No consolation is given in this Psalm…
• It ends dark.
• It feels unresolved.

And while it does not produce a great emotional joy boost
In a person when they read it,
We should all be extremely grateful for a Psalm like this.

It is a song for those who are UNCOMFORTED.
It is a song for those who are NOT CONSOLED.
It is a song for those who SING IN THE DARKNESS.

You might call this the Ecclesiastes of all the Psalms.
• “Everything is meaningless…”
• “What’s the point?”

You’ve heard the old man tell that young man
To take of his rose colored glasses and take a dose of reality.

You’ve heard that old man tell that young man to quit watching the Hallmark channel and start watching Fox news where everything is wrong.

That book just comes with a realness that can be difficult to swallow
But must which must be understood.

This Psalm is like that.
It is harsh and dark and unresolved.

Apart from calling God “the God of my salvation”
There is nothing else positive in it.

And you may ask how such a song can be glorifying to God?

How can singing a song where no victory is claimed and no peace is given be seen as glorifying to God?
• Because even at this dark moment…
• Even when pain is intense…
• Even when answers aren’t present…

The Psalmist is still singing…
The Psalmist is still crying out…

In short, there is pain and confusion and even some frustration,
BUT THERE IS NOT A DEPARTURE.

Let me read again to you A FAMILIAR PARABLE.
Luke 18:1-8 “Now He was telling them a parable to show that at all times they ought to pray and not to lose heart, saying, “In a certain city there was a judge who did not fear God and did not respect man. “There was a widow in that city, and she kept coming to him, saying, ‘Give me legal protection from my opponent.’ “For a while he was unwilling; but afterward he said to himself, ‘Even though I do not fear God nor respect man, yet because this widow bothers me, I will give her legal protection, otherwise by continually coming she will wear me out.'” And the Lord said, “Hear what the unrighteous judge said; now, will not God bring about justice for His elect who cry to Him day and night, and will He delay long over them? “I tell you that He will bring about justice for them quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth?”

We like that parable because it fast-forwards to the end.
• We like the story because before it leaves, we actually see the widow granted
the protection she seeks.

But how many days and how many nights
Did she endure rejection before she received her relief?

How many times did she have to get up off the floor and approach again?

We firmly believe that
• All things work together for good for those who love God.
• God will bring about justice for His elect.

But you certainly know it’s not always immediate.
• Sometimes you go to bed in pain…
• Sometimes you go to be in turmoil…
• Sometimes you go to be without comfort…

In those time the importance is
That you CONTINUE TO SING and that you CONTINUE TO PRAY.

This Psalm is harsh, but it is honest.
• He is not manipulating God.
• He is not trying some gimmick to make God answer.
• He is just here again, for the umpteenth time, crying for justice from God.

So far he hasn’t gotten it,
But the fact that he keeps asking is evidence of his faith.

Now certainly I DON’T WANT all my songs to be like this.
I like the silver lining.

But I am glad to know that on the day when my spirit is not consoled
That there is still a song that God has preserved for me to sing.

So on the day you are not comforted, sing the 88th.

There is ONE OTHER important note to gain as we work our way through

As you read it, there are A COUPLE OF PASSAGES
That I want to just sort of put in the back of your mind.

Isaiah 53:3-4 “He was despised and forsaken of men, A man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; And like one from whom men hide their face He was despised, and we did not esteem Him. Surely our griefs He Himself bore, And our sorrows He carried; Yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken, Smitten of God, and afflicted.”

Our Savior was familiar with grief.
Our Savior was familiar with pain.

Our Savior even knew what it felt like to be forsaken.
Psalms 22:1-2 “My God, my God, why have You forsaken me? Far from my deliverance are the words of my groaning. O my God, I cry by day, but You do not answer; And by night, but I have no rest.”

And there is a two-way street there.

ONE SIDE: Christ came and suffered such grief and rejection so that He might be a merciful and faithful high priest.

He was afflicted and He was rejected
Partly so He could know what it was like to be human.

THE OTHER SIDE to that street is since He suffered in this way, now there is a fellowship to be gained when you suffer like this.

Philippians 3:10 “that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death;”

On the day you suffer without comfort…
On the day it feels like you’ve been forsaken of God…
On that day, fellowship with Christ for that was His pain also.

There is a fellowship to be gained there.
Christ didn’t just write this Psalm, He lived it; He sang it.

There is comfort there for us.

So let’s work our way through this Psalm of the uncomforted.
3 main points.
#1 HIS COMPLAINT
Psalms 88:1-9

As we said, the first line of verse 1
Offers the ONLY POSITIVE FEEL in the entire Psalm.

“O LORD, the God of my salvation”

It is important to note that the Psalmists loyalty and worship
Did not consist purely on what God might do,
But on what God had done.

We must always keep the perspective that
If God has clothed us in the righteousness of His Son
And atoned for our sin with the blood of His Son
Then regardless of the pain God allows we are in the positive.

Job said:
Job 13:15 “Though He slay me, I will hope in Him. Nevertheless I will argue my ways before Him.”

When Job’s wife wanted him to curse God and die, he said:
Job 2:10 “But he said to her, “You speak as one of the foolish women speaks. Shall we indeed accept good from God and not accept adversity?” In all this Job did not sin with his lips.”

We’ll read several statements of Job in this Psalm,
You know that at times JOB was very FRUSTRATED and very CONFUSED.

But one thing was NEVER on the table.
• Regardless of the silence…
• Regardless of the pain…
• Regardless of the confusion…
JOB WASN’T GOING ANYWHERE.

Job 19:23-27 “Job Says, “My Redeemer Lives” “Oh that my words were written! Oh that they were inscribed in a book! “That with an iron stylus and lead They were engraved in the rock forever! “As for me, I know that my Redeemer lives, And at the last He will take His stand on the earth. “Even after my skin is destroyed, Yet from my flesh I shall see God; Whom I myself shall behold, And whom my eyes will see and not another. My heart faints within me!”

Job was in great pain and confusion but he said, “Write it down in the rock with an iron pen…My Redeemer Lives!”

All of that is bound up here in the opening line of Psalms 88.
The Psalmist knows who he is calling upon.

And yet, the mood is one of frustration and complaint.

“I have cried out by day and in the night before You. Let my prayer come before You; Incline Your ear to my cry!”

God is the God of his salvation, but for the moment He is distant at best.

From the Psalmist’s perspective
God has put him on hold and won’t pick up the phone.
And that leads to the complaint.

And you’ll see why.
THE SEVEREITY (3-5)

(3-5) “For my soul has had enough troubles, And my life has drawn near to Sheol. I am reckoned among those who go down to the pit; I have become like a man without strength, Forsaken among the dead, Like the slain who lie in the grave, Whom You remember no more, And they are cut off from Your hand.”

You can hear him here lament the severity of his trial.

“my soul has had enough troubles”
• In other words he is crying “Uncle”
• Enough is enough!
• Point received!

In his mind this should have stopped by now.

“And my life has drawn near to Sheol. I am reckoned among those who go down to the pit; I have become like a man without strength.”
• He says, people say he’s as good as dead.
• It’s like I’ve got one foot in the grave.
• He is on spiritual hospice.

I’m at the end here God!

And here I am at the end and I still can’t get Your attention.
(5) “Forsaken among the dead, Like the slain who lie in the grave, Whom You remember no more, And they are cut off from Your hand.”

That is NOT a theological point, but rather a practical one.
Dead people are cut off from earthly relationships.

And this is the Psalmist complaint.
“Here I am, about to die, and You’re ignoring me like I’m already dead.”

It’s like I’m a wounded patient who is beyond saving
So You’ve moved on to the next wounded man.

It is a hard place to be.
That’s one complaint – The Severity

Severity
THE SOURCE (6-8)

(6-8) “You have put me in the lowest pit, In dark places, in the depths. Your wrath has rested upon me, And You have afflicted me with all Your waves. Selah. You have removed my acquaintances far from me; You have made me an object of loathing to them; I am shut up and cannot go out.”

I’m suffering terribly and it is YOU who put Me here.

How can one not see the suffering of Christ in verse 7?

verse 7, “Your wrath has rested upon me, And You have afflicted me with all Your waves”

• It is undeserved affliction.
• And not only is God afflicting him, but God has removed any and all comforters
from Him.

This too was so true of Christ.
As He died upon the cross,
His followers had fled, one had betrayed, one had denied,
Gathered around the cross was a multitude of mockers enjoying His death

But it has also been true of the saints throughout the generations.

• We see Joseph alone in a prison waiting there 2 years AFTER the cupbearer was supposed to speak on his behalf.
• We see Jeremiah alone being lowered into a well because his message was so hated.
• Certainly Job had people around him, but none of them were friends.

AND ALL OF THOSE PEOPLE WERE IN THAT SITUATION
BECAUSE GOD PUT THEM THERE.

Later in life Joseph even said, “It was not you who sent me here but God”
Jeremiah complained at God saying “You have deceived me and I was deceived”

Even at the end of his life, suffering in the Mamertine prison Paul wrote:
2 Timothy 4:16 “At my first defense no one supported me, but all deserted me; may it not be counted against them.”

Paul also suffering there because of the gospel.
The suffering was severe and the sovereign God was the source.

That is the Psalmist.

He is complaining because of the severity of his suffering
And because God has caused it without offering any comfort whatsoever.

Severity – Source
THE SILENCE (9)

“My eye has wasted away because of affliction; I have called upon You every day, O LORD; I have spread out my hands to You.”

And despite all this, You still won’t answer.

Job 30:20-23 “I cry out to You for help, but You do not answer me; I stand up, and You turn Your attention against me. “You have become cruel to me; With the might of Your hand You persecute me. “You lift me up to the wind and cause me to ride; And You dissolve me in a storm. “For I know that You will bring me to death And to the house of meeting for all living.”

It is a hard place to be.
And the Psalmist is complaining about it.

But find fellowship in knowing that Christ has been there too.

Hebrews 2:14-15 “Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise also partook of the same, that through death He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and might free those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives.”

Christ embraced human life and Christ endured human death.
There is fellowship in His sufferings and there is sympathy in His heart.

But the Psalmist isn’t feeling it.
There is only the complaint.

#2 HIS CASE
Psalms 88:10-12

Here the Psalmist appeals to logic
And how it doesn’t make sense
For God to be responding the way He is.

Boy, welcome to human suffering 101,
When God doesn’t respond in a way that seems logical to you.

Many times in our hardship, when we think we clearly see what would be best in a situation, we are slammed against the rock of Isaiah 55.

Isaiah 55:8-9 “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” declares the LORD. “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways And My thoughts than your thoughts.”

We are often forced in our suffering to not only endure pain,
But also endure the shattering of our logical sense of what is right.

But that hasn’t stopped the Psalmist from giving HIS LOGICAL APPEAL.
It is his case as to why God
Should stop ignoring him and come deliver him.

It is framed in 5 questions.
• “Will You perform wonders for the dead?”
• “Will the departed spirits rise and praise You? Selah.”
• “Will Your lovingkindness be declared in the grave, Your faithfulness in
Abaddon?
• “Will Your wonders be made known in the darkness?
• And Your righteousness in the land of forgetfulness?

Now, from the Psalmists perspectives and by his logic
The answer to every one of those questions is “NO”.

He is approaching this with a TEMPORAL MINDSET in his questioning.

And HIS POINT is that once death occurs
A person offers no benefit to God on the earth.

• It does no good to provide money for the electric bill for a dead man.
• The dead man will not testify of such a provision or praise God for it.
• The dead man will not go and tell other dead men about what God did.
• The dead man will not shout praises in the casket.
• The dead man will not preach the gospel of righteousness in the grave.

And so the logic of the Psalmist is:
“What good am I to You dead?”

• It just doesn’t make any sense that You would let me die since there is no
benefit in it for You.
• I can do much more for you as a living man that as a dead man.

THAT IS HIS LOGIC.

And you’ve likely applied that very logic
At times in your life and in your suffering.

• A young person tragically dies too soon and someone says “what a waste”.
• Lamented is how much that life could have accomplished but now that death has occurred it can’t accomplish anything.

That is the Psalmist’s logic.

I do think it is also worth noting then that BY DEFAULT
The Psalmist declares to us what is THE PURPOSE OF LIFE.

• It is that God might perform wonders and be praised accordingly with our life.
• It is that God’s lovingkindness might be declared.
• It is that God’s faithfulness might be declared.
• It is that God’s wonders might be declared.
• It is that god’s righteousness might be declared.

The Psalmist clearly sees those things as the obligations of life
And so he is arguing with God
That letting him die doesn’t make any sense.

And we can understand that.

However, we SHOULD ALSO POINT OUT that while the answer to all of the Psalmists questions are “NO”.

If you apply those same questions to Christ then they all become “YES”.

Did God perform wonders for the dead with Christ?
Yes God raised Him.
Did the departed spirits rise and praise Him?
Yes Jesus clearly testified of the Father after He rose.
Was God’s lovingkindness or faithfulness or wonders or righteousness declared in the grave?

Yes
1 Peter 3:18-20 “For Christ also died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit; in which also He went and made proclamation to the spirits now in prison, who once were disobedient, when the patience of God kept waiting in the days of Noah, during the construction of the ark, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through the water.”

And the obvious point there is that our logic fails
Because we don’t know what God knows.

In our mind God should always respond to our suffering a certain way
Because in our limited understanding it makes the most sense.

But God knows what we do not.

Consider the Lazarus story.
By the time Jesus showed up to Bethany the sisters and all their friends were just like this Psalmist.

They were filled with complaints about severity and silence.

John 11:21 “Martha then said to Jesus, “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died.”

John 11:32 “Therefore, when Mary came where Jesus was, she saw Him, and fell at His feet, saying to Him, “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died.”

John 11:37 “But some of them said, “Could not this man, who opened the eyes of the blind man, have kept this man also from dying?”

But that is because Jesus knew what they did not.
John 11:4 “But when Jesus heard this, He said, “This sickness is not to end in death, but for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified by it.”

It is just an important reminder that our logic is flawed.
We don’t have all the facts.

The death of Jesus looked like a real low point in human history until 3 days later when He stepped out of the grave.

I’ve told people repeatedly that
We are not supposed to know everything right now.
Right now we are supposed to have faith.

Someday in the future when we know fully
Then we will see why God was so right in what He did.

But the simple point is that we have a Psalmist here complaining to God
Because God is not doing what seems logically right.

His Complaint, His Case
#3 HIS CONFUSION
Psalms 88:13-18

And since God has not done what is logical
The Psalmist is just going to spell out what doesn’t make sense here.

UNANSWERED QUESTIONS (13-14)

(13-14) “But I, O LORD, have cried out to You for help, And in the morning my prayer comes before You. O LORD, why do You reject my soul? Why do You hide Your face from me?”

I have prayed and prayed and prayed and prayed …BUT NOTHING.
It doesn’t make sense that You would ignore me.

Job 23:8-9 “Behold, I go forward but He is not there, And backward, but I cannot perceive Him; When He acts on the left, I cannot behold Him; He turns on the right, I cannot see Him.”

I still remember reading the biography of Adrian Rogers written by his wife Joyce. In it she talked about the day they lost an infant child to SIDS. She mentions that the hardest thing she had to do was surrender the right to understand.

The Psalmist is fighting that battle right now.
Even Jesus on the cross said, “Why have You forsaken Me?”

It’s a real issue in our lives when we suffer.
UNYIELDING TERRORS (15-17)

(15-17) “I was afflicted and about to die from my youth on; I suffer Your terrors; I am overcome. Your burning anger has passed over me; Your terrors have destroyed me. They have surrounded me like water all day long; They have encompassed me altogether.”

There are some phrases there that are hard to swallow.
• “from my youth on”
• “all day long”

Let those sink in.
• This is NOT some “Johnny come lately” infirmity.
• This has been the infirmity of his life.

This is being born with a disease that makes life harder for you than anyone else and never being told why and never getting any relief.

It just never stops.
It never lets up.

How often we have spoken of our ability
To handle the shock of tragedy,
But it is the duration of tragedy that seems to really wear us down.

When it just won’t relent.

We have only the command of Scripture.
Proverbs 3:11-12 “My son, do not reject the discipline of the LORD Or loathe His reproof, For whom the LORD loves He reproves, Even as a father corrects the son in whom he delights.

And we have the promise of Scripture.
Hebrews 12:11 “All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness.”

God is making us a sharer of His holiness.
God is producing righteousness in us.
BUT IT IS HARD.

The Psalmist is also confused about:
UNAVAILABLE CONSOLATION (18)

(18) “You have removed lover and friend far from me; My acquaintances are in darkness.”

This seems extremely harsh and confusing.
Suffering and suffering alone.

• We already mentioned Christ being abandoned by His own.
• We mentioned Paul alone in prison.
• We mentioned Joseph and Jeremiah in their suffering.
• We still remember Job, who had friends but was still alone.

Job 16:1-2 “Then Job answered, “I have heard many such things; Sorry comforters are you all.”

Job 19:13-22 “He has removed my brothers far from me, And my acquaintances are completely estranged from me. “My relatives have failed, And my intimate friends have forgotten me. “Those who live in my house and my maids consider me a stranger. I am a foreigner in their sight. “I call to my servant, but he does not answer; I have to implore him with my mouth. “My breath is offensive to my wife, And I am loathsome to my own brothers. “Even young children despise me; I rise up and they speak against me. “All my associates abhor me, And those I love have turned against me. “My bone clings to my skin and my flesh, And I have escaped only by the skin of my teeth. “Pity me, pity me, O you my friends, For the hand of God has struck me. “Why do you persecute me as God does, And are not satisfied with my flesh?”

It is not just suffering, it is suffering alone.

AND WITH THAT THE PSALM ENDS.

There is no “Nevertheless”
There is no “But…”

We desperately want a verse 19 which says, “Then God answered me from the pit. He renewed His compassion for me, and raised me up.”

BUT IT’S NOT THERE.

Oh, make no mistake, IT WILL COME.
If not in this life then in the next.

But this Psalm isn’t about that day.
• This Psalm is about the 100’s of days before that day.
• This Psalm is the song of that widow 2 years before the judge granted her legal protection.

This is the song BEFORE the comfort comes.

I have told you how I love the imprecatory Psalms
• Because it gives me a place to go with my frustration.
• I can lay it at the feet of a righteous Judge and let it go.

This Psalm is like that regarding the frustration of our suffering.
• We sing this Psalm and also lay it at the feet of “the God of my salvation” and let it go.

We certainly don’t want to sing it every day,
But on that day it is great to have a song to sing.

Download Here:

The Greatness of Jesus
Luke 22:21-27
November 8, 2020

As you know we are now in the upper room.
It was the place where Jesus selected to have
His final earthly Passover with His disciples.

As we saw last week,
It was here where Jesus explained what the Passover was really about.
• It was always about Him.
• That Lamb and that blood was always a picture of Him and how He would
save us from the wrath of God.
• It is a remarkable truth and on that night Jesus changed the way we looked at
the bread and the cup for the rest of eternity.

But there was far more that occurred in that upper room
Than just the eating of the Passover.

John’s gospel gives a lot of information that was shared there.
• Jesus washed the disciple’s feet
• Jesus gave the famous “I am the way and the truth and life” statement.
• Jesus gave the famous “I am the vine, you are the branches” analogy.
• Jesus gave great insight regarding the coming and work of the Holy Spirit.
• Jesus gave His great intercessory prayer.

It was a busy night for Jesus.

And when you read of the account among all the gospels
There are CONSISTENT THEMES that emerge throughout all of them.

Clearly it was the intention of Jesus on this night to SOLIDIFY THE HOPE of the disciples.

• Already in Luke’s gospel He reminded the disciples that the next time He will drink of the vine will be in His kingdom.

• It is John’s gospel where He told them, “Do not let your hearts be troubled…for I go and prepare a place for you…and I will come again an receive you unto Myself.”

• Later in Luke’s gospel Jesus will reveal that the disciples will (30) “eat and drink at My table in the kingdom, and you will sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.”

Clearly one of Jesus’ main goals on this night was to solidify the hope of His followers that despite what is about to come, it ends in victory.

Another consistent theme is that Jesus meant to SOLIDIFY THEIR FAITH on this night.

Primarily their faith regarding who Jesus was
And what He was accomplishing through His death.

In just a few hours the disciples were going to see Jesus
Betrayed, Arrested, Beaten, Tried, Condemned, and Crucified.

It is the goal of Jesus to assure them ahead of time that
THIS IS ALL PART OF THE PLAN.

Even this morning we read: (21-22)”But behold, the hand of the one betraying Me is with Mine on the table. “For indeed, the Son of Man is going as it has been determined; but woe to that man by whom He is betrayed!”

The betrayal is part of the plan.

Later on this night He will announce His rejection by Israel saying (37) “For I tell you that this which is written must be fulfilled in Me, ‘AND HE WAS NUMBERED WITH THE TRANSGRESSORS’; for that which refers to Me has its fulfillment.”

He was telling them ahead of time about all these things
So that their faith would not be shaken by unexpected events.

And finally in this room Jesus worked to SOLIDIFY THEIR ENDURANCE.

That is to say, He told them ahead of time about the coming persecution So that they would not be shocked when it happened.

Even here in Luke
• You see Him warning Simon that he is about to be sifted by Satan.
• He tells the disciples that the days of free meals and hospitality are likely over.

In John’s gospel we read:
John 16:1-4 “These things I have spoken to you so that you may be kept from stumbling. “They will make you outcasts from the synagogue, but an hour is coming for everyone who kills you to think that he is offering service to God. “These things they will do because they have not known the Father or Me. “But these things I have spoken to you, so that when their hour comes, you may remember that I told you of them. These things I did not say to you at the beginning, because I was with you.”

He is simply preparing them for everything that is about to come.

In less than 24 hours He will be dead
And He does not want this event
To ruin their hope, their faith, or their endurance.

1. All the events that are about to occur are all part of the plan.
2. His coming rejection and death is so that He might purchase the kingdom where He will one day return and reign,
3. And all those who endure with Him will reign with Him there.

And while the differing gospel accounts
Seem to focus more on differing aspects of that night,
These truths are the consistent themes that emerge.

And THIS MORNING we certainly see that
As Jesus announces to His disciples that one of them is a traitor.
Though it is tragic
It is all prophesied…
It is all part of the plan…

But even after this announcement
Luke preserves for us something that is quite disheartening.

Luke shows us the disciple’s response to the announcement of Jesus.
And it is shameful.

But it is important to see, not to highlight the foolishness of the disciples,
But because the way Jesus answers them
SHOWS US THE GREATNESS OF JESUS.

The scene that unfolds here simply reminds us that
We serve a remarkable Savior and One
Who is nothing like the corrupt rulers of our world.

We can just break this text up into 3 points.
#1 THE ANNOUNCEMENT
Luke 22:21-22

Now for us this is not new information.
We already saw it back in the early parts of the chapter.

Luke 22:3-4 “And Satan entered into Judas who was called Iscariot, belonging to the number of the twelve. And he went away and discussed with the chief priests and officers how he might betray Him to them.”

Luke already showed us what was going on BEHIND THE SCENES.

And we talked about Judas and why he did what he did.

We saw the CAUSE – that Satan was using Judas, whom he owned.
• As an unredeemed sinner Judas was a slave of Satan (as are all unredeemed sinners)
• And Judas merely was used by him in this role as betrayer.

We saw the CRIME – not just betrayal, but apostasy.
• Judas was one of the 12 and he left to betray Jesus.
• And we learned that it is not familiarity with Jesus that saves a person but submission to and faith in Jesus that saves them.

We saw the CONSPIRACY – We saw Judas actually approach the religious leaders with the plan of betrayal.
• They didn’t have to approach him, he sought them out.
• We were reminded that what Judas did, he did because he wanted to do it.
• God didn’t make Judas do anything he didn’t want to do.

We saw the COMPLICITY – Judas did it.
• It wasn’t just a temptation, it became an action.
• Judas didn’t just think about sin, he actually sinned.
• Judas agreed to betray Jesus and he began looking for an opportunity.

We learned quite a bit about Judas
And so we already knew that this plan was in place.

But at the moment, the disciples did not.
They had no clue about this plot.

The only people here who did know about it where Judas and Jesus
(And Judas didn’t know that Jesus knew about it.)

But Jesus did know, which is why He went to such great lengths
To keep the location of the upper room secret.

But as the disciples sat around the table eating the Passover
They were unaware of what was brewing in the shadows.
Until Jesus announced it.

(21) “But behold, the hand of the one betraying Me is with Mine on the table.”

• WOW!
• One you…one of the 12…one of My followers
• Is currently, right now, “betraying Me”

This again was a DIRECT FULFILLMENT of what God had promised:
Psalms 41:9 “Even my close friend in whom I trusted, Who ate my bread, Has lifted up his heel against me.”

Which is what Jesus says next.
(22) “For indeed, the Son of Man is going as it has been determined;”

And I would remind you again of what we said
Regarding THE NECESSITY OF THE BETRAYAL.

It had to be betrayal because of the eternal plan of God
Regarding the salvation of Gentiles.

• Judas was merely a picture of all Israel.
• What Judas does today, they will all do tomorrow.
• And in their rejection and betrayal of their King, Israel will be broken off and the
Gentiles grafted in.
• The betrayal is a necessary catalyst in the eternal plan of God.

BUT HERE IS THE FIRST TIME THE DISCIPLES HAVE HEARD IT.
Aside from Judas, this is all news to them.

And we would also reiterate what we said a few weeks ago,
That as the betrayer Judas would be destroyed.

(22b) “but woe to that man by whom He is betrayed!”
• Judas was not a victim of God’s sovereignty.
• Judas was not an undercover disciple doing the will of Jesus.
• Judas was not an eventually saved person who just messed up.
• Judas was lost.
• And Jesus pronounced woe upon him.

In other gospels saying, “It would be good for that man if he had not been born.”

But as we said, we’ve covered all of that a few weeks ago
When we studied verses 3-6 of the chapter.

What we see taking place here is
The announcement of that fact to the disciples.

Jesus knows about it.
Judas knows about it.
And for the first time the disciples are told.

Jesus will be betrayed by one of the 12 men sitting here with Him.
There is a traitor in the midst.

The reason for announcing this
Is so that it will come as no shock to the disciples when it happens.

Neither Satan, nor the chief priests, nor Judas are in control here.
Jesus is.

And when the unthinkable occurs here in just a few hours
Jesus wants the rest of the disciples to know that
This was all part of the plan.

God determined this long ages ago.
It is merely about to be fulfilled.

But that is the announcement.
#2 THE ARGUMENT
Luke 22:23-24

The response here is really sad coming from the disciples.

So Jesus announces that one of the 12 is a traitor.

“And they began to discuss among themselves which one them it might be who was going to do this thing.”

Now we are familiar with the other gospel accounts here as well.
Matthew 26:21-22 “As they were eating, He said, “Truly I say to you that one of you will betray Me.” Being deeply grieved, they each one began to say to Him, “Surely not I, Lord?”

Mark 14:18-19 “As they were reclining at the table and eating, Jesus said, “Truly I say to you that one of you will betray Me — one who is eating with Me.” They began to be grieved and to say to Him one by one, “Surely not I?”

So the initial response to His statement was obviously grief and shock.
It was a punch in the gut to hear that there was a traitor among them.

But it didn’t take long for the grief to turn into suspicion.

In fact they each quickly turn to denial.
According to Matthew “they each began to say to Him, “Surely not I, Lord?”

We are even told by Matthew
That in order to save face and hide his true intentions even Judas joined in on that declaration.

Matthew 26:25 “And Judas, who was betraying Him, said, “Surely it is not I, Rabbi?” Jesus said to him, “You have said it yourself.”

That was obviously a private conversation between the two.

But what you have occurring is that
• After Jesus announced it,
• They all immediately denied it
• And then there began to be these sort of private conversations around the table to try and figure it out.

“they began to discuss among themselves which one of them it might be who was going to do this thing.”

So you can see the little whispering accounts
And semi-private conversations.

That also helps you understand what John’s gospel says:
John 13:22-27 “The disciples began looking at one another, at a loss to know of which one He was speaking. There was reclining on Jesus’ bosom one of His disciples, whom Jesus loved. So Simon Peter gestured to him, and said to him, “Tell us who it is of whom He is speaking.” He, leaning back thus on Jesus’ bosom, said to Him, “Lord, who is it?” Jesus then answered, “That is the one for whom I shall dip the morsel and give it to him.” So when He had dipped the morsel, He took and gave it to Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot. After the morsel, Satan then entered into him. Therefore Jesus said to him, “What you do, do quickly.”

So you see how it all is playing out.
• Jesus announces it.
• They all sort of quickly outwardly deny it.
• Then they sort of go on a witch hunt to try and figure out who it is.

NOW THAT’S NOT THE SAD PART.
The sad part is where the conversation ends up.

It starts with each person claiming that they are not the traitor.
But notice where it ends.

(24) “And there arose also a dispute among them as to which one of them was regarded to be the greatest.”

This is an obvious natural progression.

• Matthew says, “Hey Peter, who do you think it is?”
• Peter – “It’s not me, I’d never do that.”
• Philip overhears and says, “Yeah right, didn’t He already call you Satan once?”
• Peter – “You don’t know what you’re talking about, I’m not a traitor, I’m the most faithful.”
• James – “You’re not the most faithful, I am. My mom even worked it out where I get to sit on his right in the kingdom.”

It’s a natural progression.
It starts with self-defense and ends up with self-promotion.

At first they are on a search for who the worst among them was,
And it doesn’t take long before the conversation turns into a fight
About which one was the greatest.

That’s human nature isn’t it?
That’s just like us.
Too lofty of a view of self.

This attitude, by the way, is the greatest explanation as to
WHY every one of these men is GOING TO RUN away tonight.

Pride comes before a fall and these men are ripe for it.

But beyond that, IT’S JUST SAD if you think about.
Jesus has already routinely told them about His upcoming death
Now we find it will be at the hands of a disciple.

• But where was the compassion for Jesus?
• Where was the heart to console Him?
• Where was the gratitude for Him?
• Where was the desire to care for Him?

Jesus announces what must have been terribly grievous to Him
And all the disciples can think about
Is which one of them is the greatest.

And you know this ISN’T EVEN THE FIRST TIME the issue has come up.

Shortly after Jesus was transfigured and Peter, James, and John saw His glory on the mountain, we read:
Luke 9:46 “An argument started among them as to which of them might be the greatest.”

Of course it did.
Peter, James, and John must’ve been feeling pretty good about themselves.

After the incident with the Rich Young Ruler
• And Peter had asked what they would receive for following Jesus.
• Jesus had told them how they would be compensated in the kingdom.

Not long after that, on the road, we read:
Mark 10:35-37 “James and John, the two sons of Zebedee, came up to Jesus, saying, “Teacher, we want You to do for us whatever we ask of You.” And He said to them, “What do you want Me to do for you?” They said to Him, “Grant that we may sit, one on Your right and one on Your left, in Your glory.”

We know we’re all going to sit on thrones in the kingdom,
But we want the best two.

And if that was not enough, apparently at the same time James and John got their MOTHER involved.
Matthew 20:20-21 “Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee came to Jesus with her sons, bowing down and making a request of Him. And He said to her, “What do you wish?” She said to Him, “Command that in Your kingdom these two sons of mine may sit one on Your right and one on Your left.”

It was bad enough that this was ever their thought.

BUT NOW, on this night, immediately after taking the Lord’s Supper.
Immediately after hearing that the Lord would be betrayed.

The fight breaks out again?
Again the argument as to which one is greatest?

It is sad, but it happened none the less.

The Announcement, The Argument
#3 THE ANSWER
Luke 22:25-27

Jesus hears the debate going on
And He intervenes to once again correct these immature men.

NOW, BEFORE WE GET TO THE ANSWER,
I must remind you what has already occurred in this room.
• Before they even got comfortable…
• Before they ever took the Passover meal…
• Before Jesus ever explained the Lord’s Supper…
• Before the announcement of betrayal was ever made…

I want to remind you what has already occurred in this room on this night.
TURN TO: JOHN 13:1-20

Remember that humbling scene?
• Here was Jesus, the unquestioned greatest in the room,
• Belittling himself to do the humiliating job of the lowest in the room.

And not only did Jesus wash their feet,
But He was specific about the meaning of such an event.

(13:13-17) “You call Me Teacher and Lord; and you are right, for so I am. “If I then, the Lord and the Teacher, washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. “For I gave you an example that you also should do as I did to you. “Truly, truly, I say to you, a slave is not greater than his master, nor is one who is sent greater than the one who sent him. “If you know these things, you are blessed if you do them.”

They’ve already been through that ceremony
And obviously forgotten everything He told them
Because they’re already fighting about who is the greatest.

SO IT’S TIME TO GIVE THE SERMON AGAIN.
And Jesus responds.
(25) “The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them; and those who have authority over them are called ‘Benefactors.’”

What Jesus is explaining there is simply the way of the world.
• When people are in a position of authority, it can quickly go to their head.
• It is actually one of the things we presently lament about our own government.

It was Abraham Lincoln in his famous Gettysburg Address where he summarized our government as “By The People – Of The People – For The People”

But it is rare anymore to find someone in Washington
Who we view to be one of us or actually for us.

• It doesn’t take long for lobbyists to get involved.
• And the people who are paid about $175,000 a year end up millionaires.
• And the elitist mindset immerges.
• And very few end up seeing themselves as our equals.

It’s just the way of the world.
“The kings of Gentiles lord it over them;”

And not only that, but Jesus says, “and those who have authority over them are called ‘Benefactors.’”

It’s funny that most politicians today
Consider themselves to be “Public Servants”
But we are all supremely confident
That most don’t seem to rightly understand service.

“Benefactor” is a better title.

EUREGETES (your-a-gay-tace)
It speaks of one who has honor conferred upon them for doing service.

In other words, it is NOT a person who serves
For the benefit of the one they are serving.
It IS a person who serves
For the glory of being considered a servant.

Jesus has addressed this many times in His ministry.
Matthew 6:2 “So when you give to the poor, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be honored by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full.”

And of course that warning extended on to prayer and fasting as well.

Or
Matthew 23:6-12 “They love the place of honor at banquets and the chief seats in the synagogues, and respectful greetings in the market places, and being called Rabbi by men. “But do not be called Rabbi; for One is your Teacher, and you are all brothers. “Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven. “Do not be called leaders; for One is your Leader, that is, Christ. “But the greatest among you shall be your servant. “Whoever exalts himself shall be humbled; and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted.”

• These men didn’t serve or give or pray or fast or teach for the benefit of others,
• They only did it for their own benefit.
• They only did it for the glory they could receive.

THAT IS THE WAY OF THE WORLD.

Every politician is going to spout the party line that
They are serving their country and they do it because they love America,
But most of the time we find their motives to be entirely different.

NOT ALWAYS, BUT OFTEN.
THAT’S JUST THE WAY THE WORLD OPERATES.

But Jesus here reminds the disciples that they are to be different.
We are not to be like the world.

(26) “But it is not this way with you, but the one who is the greatest among you must become like the youngest, and the leader like the servant.”

Do you see the difference?
• In the world men seek to be servants so that they can lead.
• In the kingdom of heaven men seek the position of leadership so that they can serve.

It’s fundamentally different isn’t it?

And true greatness is NOT FOUND in the amount of honor or glory you can accumulate, BUT in how much service you can offer.

There is a necessary relinquishing of glory
So that you can benefit those around you.

Jesus said to be great you have to become “like the youngest”.

That’s because in their culture the youngest were the least important.
• In their culture, you didn’t let kids make important decisions.
• In their culture, you didn’t let kids make non-important decisions.

The important decisions were reserved for those with experience and wisdom.
The non-important decisions were reserved for those who you sought to honor.

Jesus said in order to be great you had to seek the glory of a child.
If you wanted to be a true leader, you had to be like a servant.

And then comes the question to ponder.
(27) “For who is greater, the one who reclines at the table, or the one who serves?”

The point being, in a normal situation,
• If you looked into a room and saw one guy setting at the head of the table and another guy serving him,
• Which one of the two would you think was the most important?
• Which one of the two would you assume was in charge?

And the answer is obvious.
“Is it not the one who reclines at the table?”

The reclining will always be considered greater
Than the one serving in the world.

And yet we see what Jesus says:
“But I am among you as the one who serves.”

This is the curious difference.

The disciples all know that Jesus is the greatest among them.
• Jesus is the Son of God.
• Jesus is the Messiah.
• Jesus has miracle power.
• Jesus is the teacher.

There is no question in the room as to who the leader is,
Or who is the greatest, or who is the most important.

And yet, here He was serving them.

• Here He was sacrificing for them.
• Here He was laying down His life for them.
• Here He was giving His body and His blood to them.

He didn’t use them He served them.

Now obviously Peter will pick up on this, even later in his epistle he will write:
1 Peter 5:1-4 “Therefore, I exhort the elders among you, as your fellow elder and witness of the sufferings of Christ, and a partaker also of the glory that is to be revealed, shepherd the flock of God among you, exercising oversight not under compulsion, but voluntarily, according to the will of God; and not for sordid gain, but with eagerness; nor yet as lording it over those allotted to your charge, but proving to be examples to the flock. And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory.”

Where to you think Peter learned that?

Jesus took everything the disciples understood about greatness
And turned it on its head.

True greatness is found in service
True service is that which benefits others, not that which glorifies self.

THIS WAS THE LESSON.
And look back at the scene.

The debate around the table was about greatness.
And everyone in there had some claim as to why they were the greatest.

But true greatness immerged in only one place – in Jesus.

Why?
Because only Jesus ascended to leadership for the purpose of service.
• Only Jesus laid aside His glory for the good of others.
• Only Jesus offered up His body and His blood for the benefit of others.
• Only Jesus subjected Himself to pain and shame and suffering for others.
• Only Jesus endured hostility and betrayal for the sake of others.

It was ONE THING to hand the disciples a roll and say “This is for you”
It was ONE THING to hand them a glass of wine and say “This is for you”
We can all make claims about what we do for others.

But only one at that table truly surrendered His glory.
Only one at that table truly served the others.

They all claimed to be the greatest
And by the end of the night they’ll all be looking out for themselves.
ONLY JESUS WILL FOLLOW THROUGH.

And so this morning we just point out again THE GREATNESS OF JESUS.
Not just because of His title – Not just because of His power
But ultimately because of His service.

• Jesus humbled Himself to take on human flesh.
• Jesus submitted to the Law He wrote in order to obtain righteousness for us.
• Jesus endured hostility and rage and wrath to pay our penalty for sin.

And while He is Lord of all, He never lorded it over anyone.
He merely came to give His life for the benefit of others.

Isaiah 50:4-7 “The Lord GOD has given Me the tongue of disciples, That I may know how to sustain the weary one with a word. He awakens Me morning by morning, He awakens My ear to listen as a disciple. The Lord GOD has opened My ear; And I was not disobedient Nor did I turn back. I gave My back to those who strike Me, And My cheeks to those who pluck out the beard; I did not cover My face from humiliation and spitting. For the Lord GOD helps Me, Therefore, I am not disgraced; Therefore, I have set My face like flint, And I know that I will not be ashamed.”

And all that so that He might save you.

That Passover was no empty ordinance.
Jesus followed through.

And the offer to you is that
If you will repent of your sin and seek righteousness only in Him
Then you will be forgiven and justified.

There is no other Savior, but none other is needed.
For the Greatness of Jesus is obvious.

Download Here:

Citizens Of Heaven
Psalms 87
November 1, 2020

When we planned our first ever international mission trip
I still remember Janeen lecturing us about the importance
Of keeping a firm hold on our passports.

She would tell us that many people in Africa
Would “Give their right arm for an American passport.”

Simply put, the benefits of being an American citizen in our world
Are regarded to the rest of the world as invaluable.

Even though we can get disillusioned quickly with our country,
We still recognize the freedoms and blessings and prosperity
That we enjoy here is not common throughout the world.

Being a US citizen means something so far as it relates to this life.

In New Testament times we saw the benefits of being a Roman citizen.

You may remember when Paul was arrested and beaten in Philippi.
Acts 16:37-38 “But Paul said to them, “They have beaten us in public without trial, men who are Romans, and have thrown us into prison; and now are they sending us away secretly? No indeed! But let them come themselves and bring us out.” The policemen reported these words to the chief magistrates. They were afraid when they heard that they were Romans,”

Or later when Paul was about to be beaten in Jerusalem:
Acts 22:25-29 “But when they stretched him out with thongs, Paul said to the centurion who was standing by, “Is it lawful for you to scourge a man who is a Roman and uncondemned?” When the centurion heard this, he went to the commander and told him, saying, “What are you about to do? For this man is a Roman.” The commander came and said to him, “Tell me, are you a Roman?” And he said, “Yes.” The commander answered, “I acquired this citizenship with a large sum of money.” And Paul said, “But I was actually born a citizen.” Therefore those who were about to examine him immediately let go of him; and the commander also was afraid when he found out that he was a Roman, and because he had put him in chains.”

Being a Roman citizen was a big deal.
There were certain rights and privileges and protections
That came with being a citizen of that nation.

But if a straight up comparison is to be done.
Nothing compares with being a citizen of Zion.

Psalms 87 is a song about that blessing.

It is the Hebrew equivalent to Lee Greenwood’s “God Bless The U.S.A.”

The Psalmist here is singing, “I’m proud to be from Zion…”

And obviously, (as you’ve no doubt already gathered),
The imagery here extends far beyond just the earthly city of Jerusalem
And looks to the heavenly Zion.

And it allows us to turn our focus
To the value of having a heavenly citizenship.

And obviously the TIMING TONIGHT IS INTERESTING
Since this coming Tuesday America will elect a president.

At least half of the population is in a state of great anxiety
As they await the results.

I’ve heard everything from
• This election being called a “tipping point”
• And even “the point of no return” for our nation from both sides.

And so a study of this Psalm will do us good
As we take our eyes off of what is most certainly a temporary nation
And FIX OUR EYES what is an eternal one.

EVEN AS AN INTRODUCTION,
I would remind you again of what we know to be true in Scripture.

Stephen Butts shared with us from Daniel 5 Sunday morning about the feeble nature of kings. We saw that God can raise up and tear down a ruler any time He desires.

But I would also remind you of something
THAT EVERY AMERICAN NEEDS TO KNOW.

In Daniel 2 we are told about a dream that Nebuchadnezzar had which terrified him and which no man could interpret.

You’ll remember the dream was of a statue.
• It had a head of gold (Babylon)
• It had a breast and arms of silver (Media/Persia)
• It had a belly and thighs of bronze (Greece)
• It had legs of iron (Rome)
• It had feet of iron/clay (Anti-Christ)

And Daniel revealed this to Nebuchadnezzar:
Daniel 2:34-35 “You continued looking until a stone was cut out without hands, and it struck the statue on its feet of iron and clay and crushed them. “Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver and the gold were crushed all at the same time and became like chaff from the summer threshing floors; and the wind carried them away so that not a trace of them was found. But the stone that struck the statue became a great mountain and filled the whole earth.”

Later Daniel would reveal:
Daniel 2:44 “In the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which will never be destroyed, and that kingdom will not be left for another people; it will crush and put an end to all these kingdoms, but it will itself endure forever.”

One thing every American needs to understand is that
The United States of America is not the kingdom of heaven.

There is no doubt that
• The USA was raised up by God.
• The USA has been used by God.
• The USA has been blessed by God.

But that could be said of countless other kingdoms as well.
God raised up, used, and blessed
Egypt and Babylon and Persia and Greece and Rome, etc.

BUT IN THE END, ONLY ONE KINGDOM IS LEFT STANDING.

And in the end it is only a heavenly passport
That is accepted through security.

Now there is certainly nothing wrong with praying for and working for and voting for the peace and prosperity of an earthly nation.

Even the exiles who were sent to Babylon were told:
Jeremiah 29:4-7 “Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon, ‘Build houses and live in them; and plant gardens and eat their produce. ‘Take wives and become the fathers of sons and daughters, and take wives for your sons and give your daughters to husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters; and multiply there and do not decrease. ‘Seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the LORD on its behalf; for in its welfare you will have welfare.’”

That’s a good practice of how to live in an earthly kingdom.
You ought to seek the welfare of the place where you live.

But at the same time don’t forget the ADMONITION
That EVENTUALLY CAME to those Jews who were living in Babylon:

Jeremiah 51:6 “Flee from the midst of Babylon, And each of you save his life! Do not be destroyed in her punishment, For this is the LORD’S time of vengeance; He is going to render recompense to her.”

Jeremiah 51:9 “We applied healing to Babylon, but she was not healed; Forsake her and let us each go to his own country, For her judgment has reached to heaven And towers up to the very skies.”

Jeremiah 51:45 “Come forth from her midst, My people, And each of you save yourselves From the fierce anger of the LORD.”

It is no different than Jacob and Joseph
Who found exile in Egypt and great peace and prosperity there.

But both of those men prepared for the day
When their descendants would leave that nation behind
For a land of their own.

• Joseph gave orders commanding his bones to be taken out of that place.
• Jacob actually demanded burial back in Canaan.

Egypt was good to both of them,
But they knew they were citizens of a better country.

That is really the theme of Psalms 87.
It is the rejoicing of a citizen of Zion.

It is a Psalm to help you understand that
Regardless of your earthly country,
Nothing compares to your heavenly one.

Tonight we’ll break it down into 3 points.
#1 ZION’S DESIGNATION
Psalms 87:1-3

Right off the bat we are reminded of the location of Zion
As the city set in the mountains.

(1) “His foundation is in the holy mountains.”

Only here they are called “the holy mountains”.
• God did not select those mountains because they were holy.
• They were declared holy because God selected those mountains.

(2) “The LORD loves the gates of Zion more than all the other dwelling places of Jacob.”

We see God’s love for Zion in the fact that
God selected her as the place where His name would dwell.

And in that sense, God loved her more than every other city.

Think of it like the passage
• “Jacob have I loved, Esau have I hated”
• Or when Jesus says “If anyone comes after Me and does not hate his own
father and mother…he cannot be my disciple.”

It is a contrasting statement.
God did for Zion what He did for no other city in Israel.
God caused His name to dwell there.

Deuteronomy 12:8-14 “You shall not do at all what we are doing here today, every man doing whatever is right in his own eyes; for you have not as yet come to the resting place and the inheritance which the LORD your God is giving you. “When you cross the Jordan and live in the land which the LORD your God is giving you to inherit, and He gives you rest from all your enemies around you so that you live in security, then it shall come about that the place in which the LORD your God will choose for His name to dwell, there you shall bring all that I command you: your burnt offerings and your sacrifices, your tithes and the contribution of your hand, and all your choice votive offerings which you will vow to the LORD. “And you shall rejoice before the LORD your God, you and your sons and daughters, your male and female servants, and the Levite who is within your gates, since he has no portion or inheritance with you. “Be careful that you do not offer your burnt offerings in every cultic place you see, but in the place which the LORD chooses in one of your tribes, there you shall offer your burnt offerings, and there you shall do all that I command you.”

And the place God ultimately selected was Jerusalem.

David moved the ark of God there, SOLOMON BUILT HIM A HOUSE.
1 Kings 8:27-29 “But will God indeed dwell on the earth? Behold, heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain You, how much less this house which I have built! “Yet have regard to the prayer of Your servant and to his supplication, O LORD my God, to listen to the cry and to the prayer which Your servant prays before You today; that Your eyes may be open toward this house night and day, toward the place of which You have said, ‘My name shall be there,’ to listen to the prayer which Your servant shall pray toward this place.”

This place was promised to have God’s attention.
God’s eyes and God’s ears would be open to this place.

This is the place where His name and His glory dwelled.
This was the access point on earth to the living God.

No other city could boast such an attraction.

Psalms 68:16 “Why do you look with envy, O mountains with many peaks, At the mountain which God has desired for His abode? Surely the LORD will dwell there forever.”

• Giza could boast of the sphynx
• Athens could boast of the Parthenon
• Rome could boast of the Coliseum
• Brownwood could boast of Underwoods Cafeteria

But none of them had an attraction like this.

THIS CITY HOUSED THE LIVING GOD.

Beyond that, this city held the promises of God.
(3) “Glorious things are spoken of you, O city of God. Selah”

And we immediately think of the many promises
God has made in regard to this city.

Isaiah 65:18-19 “But be glad and rejoice forever in what I create; For behold, I create Jerusalem for rejoicing And her people for gladness. “I will also rejoice in Jerusalem and be glad in My people; And there will no longer be heard in her The voice of weeping and the sound of crying.”

Isaiah 66:10-13 “Be joyful with Jerusalem and rejoice for her, all you who love her; Be exceedingly glad with her, all you who mourn over her, That you may nurse and be satisfied with her comforting breasts, That you may suck and be delighted with her bountiful bosom.” For thus says the LORD, “Behold, I extend peace to her like a river, And the glory of the nations like an overflowing stream; And you will be nursed, you will be carried on the hip and fondled on the knees. “As one whom his mother comforts, so I will comfort you; And you will be comforted in Jerusalem.”

Zechariah 1:14-17 “So the angel who was speaking with me said to me, “Proclaim, saying, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts, “I am exceedingly jealous for Jerusalem and Zion. “But I am very angry with the nations who are at ease; for while I was only a little angry, they furthered the disaster.” ‘Therefore thus says the LORD, “I will return to Jerusalem with compassion; My house will be built in it,” declares the LORD of hosts, “and a measuring line will be stretched over Jerusalem.”‘ “Again, proclaim, saying, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts, “My cities will again overflow with prosperity, and the LORD will again comfort Zion and again choose Jerusalem.”‘”

Zechariah 8:20-23 “Thus says the LORD of hosts, ‘It will yet be that peoples will come, even the inhabitants of many cities. ‘The inhabitants of one will go to another, saying, “Let us go at once to entreat the favor of the LORD, and to seek the LORD of hosts; I will also go.” ‘So many peoples and mighty nations will come to seek the LORD of hosts in Jerusalem and to entreat the favor of the LORD.’ “Thus says the LORD of hosts, ‘In those days ten men from all the nations will grasp the garment of a Jew, saying, “Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.”‘”

And those are but a few.
The GREATER PROMISES have to do not only with that city,
But the new CITY WHICH IS TO COME.

Revelation 21:1-4 “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them, and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.”

Not only has God done for this city
What He has done for no other city,
But He has also promised to do for this city
What He will do for no other city.

Only this city gets a heavenly remake.
• Only this city has an eternal plan.
• Only this city gets a divine king to rule for all eternity.

No other city has a designation like that.
No other city has an attraction like that.
No other city has a future like that.

Zion’s Designation
#2 ZION’S DISTINCTION
Psalms 87:4-6

These 3 verses can read A LITTLE CONFUSING at first, but let me just tell you what they are about and then perhaps they will make a little more sense to you.

You obviously read WORD ANALOGIES here
That speak of Jerusalem as a mother.

It brings to our mind Paul’s distinction:
Galatians 4:21-26 “Tell me, you who want to be under law, do you not listen to the law? For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by the bondwoman and one by the free woman. But the son by the bondwoman was born according to the flesh, and the son by the free woman through the promise. This is allegorically speaking, for these women are two covenants: one proceeding from Mount Sinai bearing children who are to be slaves; she is Hagar. Now this Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia and corresponds to the present Jerusalem, for she is in slavery with her children. But the Jerusalem above is free; she is our mother.”

Paul was making the point
• We are not children of the slave woman, we are children of the free woman.
• We are not inhabitants of the slave mountain, we are inhabitants of the free
mountain.
• We are not citizens of the present Jerusalem, we are citizens of the above
Jerusalem.

That is mother imagery Paul took from this Psalm.
He saw Jerusalem as a mother.

You see the same type of imagery here.

Here you see various nations listed.
Actually listed are 5 Gentile nations.

“Rahab” (Egypt), “Babylon”, “Philistia”, “Tyre”, and “Ethiopia”

And of those cities GOD REVEALS THAT
These are nations “who know Me”

That is to say that even among these pagan nations,
There are those who have been redeemed and have been saved.

They are nations that are NOT TOTALLY VOID of the blessings and benefits of God.
• We could throw the United States into a list like this.
• We are certainly a Gentile nation that has in it people who know God.
• We are a nation that has been used and blessed by God.

And the IMPORTANT DISTINCTION for all these Gentile nations is this.
“This one was born there.”

We would do good to ask: “Born where?”
And the answer is Zion.

All of those Gentile or pagan nations that now know God,
Know Him because they approached God through Zion.

Keep reading and I’ll show you.
(5) “But of Zion it shall be said, “This one and that one were born in her.”

Perhaps it would help if we said it like this:
“This one and that one were born [again] in her.”

These nations that have come to know God and be known by God
Have experienced that privilege
Because they came to God through Zion.

Let me give you another reference.
Romans 11:17-18 “But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, being a wild olive, were grafted in among them and became partaker with them of the rich root of the olive tree, do not be arrogant toward the branches; but if you are arrogant, remember that it is not you who supports the root, but the root supports you.”

• We remember that we are those merely grafted in to the promises that God made to Abraham.
• We are not Israel, but through Christ we are grafted in to Israel and thus sharers of the blessing.

THAT IS THE POINT BEING MADE HERE.
For those Gentiles that come through Zion
And are in effect born in her, they also know God.

Consider the heavenly scene:
Revelation 5:9-10 “And they sang a new song, saying, “Worthy are You to take the book and to break its seals; for You were slain, and purchased for God with Your blood men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation. “You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God; and they will reign upon the earth.”

• In heaven we see represented every nation, tribe, and tongue.
• They are there as those who have been grafted in to Zion and thus share the blessing.

This is what the writer of the Psalm is talking about.

That not only is Zion the blessed city of God
But it is also the source of blessing
To any and all who desire to know God.

Even a Babylonian could know God by traveling to Jerusalem.
Even a Philistine could meet God by traveling through the gates of Zion.

THERE IS ACCESS TO GOD HERE.

BUT EVEN MORE THAN THAT, we find out that IN THE END, it is only those who are now citizens of this city who are welcome to God.

(6) “The LORD will count when He registers the peoples, “This one was born there.” Selah”

It is the picture of the end and God opening the registry.
• Only the registered citizens of Zion are acceptable to God.
• Only those with a heavenly passport are permitted.
• Only those who entered Jerusalem are allowed to come to Him.

Revelation 21:27 “and nothing unclean, and no one who practices abomination and lying, shall ever come into it, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life.”

And this simply makes the point again.
• Egyptians are not welcome unless they have become citizens of Zion.
• Babylonians are not welcome unless they have become citizens of Zion.
• Romans are not welcome unless they have become citizens of Zion.
• Americans are not welcome unless they have become citizens of Zion.

Does that make sense?
This is the city God blessed and this is the only city He accepts.

If you have to choose between American citizenship and Heavenly citizenship it is obvious which one you should choose.

Zion’s Designation Zion’s Distinction
#3 ZION’S DELIGHT
Psalms 87:7

You recognize here obvious rejoicing.
There is obvious music and obvious singing.

The statement is “All my springs of joy are in you.”
• That is to say everything worth having comes from you.
• It is Asaph’s cry that apart from you I desire nothing on earth.
• It is the cry of the Psalmist that he doesn’t need anything any other country has to offer, he only wants what Zion offers.

We actually see a great picture of this in Scripture.

TURN TO: EZEKIEL 47:1-12
You remember this picture of the river.

1) THE SOURCE OF THE RIVER (1)
• It comes from God.
• He is there, and He is the source of life.

2) THE SUFFICIENCY OF THE RIVER (2-5)
• The river gets deeper further downstream.
• It’s not diminishing it is growing stronger.
• It will go on forever. (John 10:10)

3) THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE RIVER (6-11)
• The river gives life.
• Even to the Dead Sea…life

4) THE STAMINA OF THE RIVER (12)
• It never stops.

And of course we read:
Revelation 22:1-2 “Then he showed me a river of the water of life, clear as crystal, coming from the throne of God and of the Lamb, in the middle of its street. On either side of the river was the tree of life, bearing twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit every month; and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.”

This is the joy of the new and heavenly city.

TURN TO: REVELATION 21:10-27
There are the blessings and the joys as well.

And the point of the Psalmist is that this is THE CITY YOU SHOULD SEEK.
This is the city you want to be a citizen of.
• If you’re a citizen of Babylon then forsake it and apply for citizenship here.
• If you’re a citizen of Egypt then forsake it and come apply for citizenship here.
• If you’re a citizen of America then forsake it and apply for citizenship here.

Do not love the world or the things of the world…

And so the obvious application of the Psalm is clear.
MOVE YOUR CITIZENSHIP HERE!

Consider the saints of old.
Hebrews 11:13-16 “All these died in faith, without receiving the promises, but having seen them and having welcomed them from a distance, and having confessed that they were strangers and exiles on the earth. For those who say such things make it clear that they are seeking a country of their own. And indeed if they had been thinking of that country from which they went out, they would have had opportunity to return. But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God; for He has prepared a city for them.”

They didn’t want what their old country had to offer.
• We see Abram leave Ur
• We see Moses leave Pharaoh’s court
• They wanted something better.

And the writer of Hebrews would appeal to his readers to DO THE SAME.

Hebrews 13:14 “For here we do not have a lasting city, but we are seeking the city which is to come.”

What city is that?
Hebrews 12:22-24 “But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to myriads of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the Judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood, which speaks better than the blood of Abel.”

• Don’t hang on to this world.
• Don’t put your hope in this world.
• Let it go and embrace the city which is to come.

Paul said:
Philippians 3:17-21 “Brethren, join in following my example, and observe those who walk according to the pattern you have in us. For many walk, of whom I often told you, and now tell you even weeping, that they are enemies of the cross of Christ, whose end is destruction, whose god is their appetite, and whose glory is in their shame, who set their minds on earthly things. For our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ; who will transform the body of our humble state into conformity with the body of His glory, by the exertion of the power that He has even to subject all things to Himself.”

This is our calling.
That is what this Psalm is about.

We can all sing about being proud to be an American,
But this Psalmist was proud to call Zion his home.

It was his heavenly passport that mattered the most to him.

And I think regardless of what happens Tuesday,
This must be the focus of every child of God.

Don’t latch your hopes to a political leader.
Don’t attach your future to an earthly nation.

I hope America lasts many more years to come.
I hope America enjoys peace and prosperity.
I desire the welfare of this nation.

But there is only one nation that stands in the end
And that is the nation you must be a part of.

And it is through Jesus Christ alone that entrance is granted there.
• It is a holy city.
• It is a righteous nation.
• And only Christ can make you righteous.
• Only Christ can make you holy.

And when you forsake this life in order to gain His…
When you deny yourself, take up your cross, and follow Him…
That is when you receive your new passport.

And that is when you are guaranteed access to heaven’s springs of joy.

And it is a benefit like no other.

Psalms 87:1-3 “His foundation is in the holy mountains. The LORD loves the gates of Zion More than all the other dwelling places of Jacob. Glorious things are spoken of you, O city of God. Selah.”

Download Here:

(Microphone difficulties, message begins at around the 1:00 minute mark)

Explaining The Passover
Luke 22:14-20
November 1, 2020

You’re familiar with the train we’ve been riding now in Luke’s gospel.
Ever since chapter 18 the focus has been on GETTING TO THE CROSS.

• We’ve actually said that Jesus was “Securing a Crucifixion”.
• We saw the journey through Jericho to Jerusalem.
• We saw Jesus go on the offensive giving His enemies no choice.
• And the last couple of times we were in Luke’s gospel we saw the divine plan of betrayal come to the forefront.

But verse 14 marks A TRANSITION in Luke’s gospel.

We read these simple words:
“When the hour had come…”

Those are huge words in the divine timetable.
If you are familiar with John’s gospel, he especially liked the reference.

There was the time when Jesus’ brothers wanted Him to make a flashy public appearance at “The Feast of Booths”
John 7:6-8 “So Jesus said to them, “My time is not yet here, but your time is always opportune. “The world cannot hate you, but it hates Me because I testify of it, that its deeds are evil. “Go up to the feast yourselves; I do not go up to this feast because My time has not yet fully come.”

It wasn’t time for Jesus to make His final play and go to the cross.

Later when Jesus went up to the feast sort of incognito we read:
John 7:30 “So they were seeking to seize Him; and no man laid his hand on Him, because His hour had not yet come.”

We saw it again:
John 8:20 “These words He spoke in the treasury, as He taught in the temple; and no one seized Him, because His hour had not yet come.”

You are aware of the divine time table which was laid out by Daniel.
Though Jesus certainly irritated the religious elite His entire ministry,
It was not yet His time to die.

BUT NOW WE HAVE REACHED THE TIME.

By the divine predetermined plan
Jesus is now in Jerusalem preparing for His death.

“the hour had come”

And now we are at the final moment of ministry and instruction by Jesus.

John’s gospel gives us the most detailed account of this night in his famous “Upper Room Discourse” which fills John chapter 13-17.

• It is where we get stories about Jesus washing the disciple’s feet
• It is where we get the famous “I am the way, the truth, and the life” statement.
• It is where Jesus lays out His “I am the vine, you are the branches” analogy.
• It is where Jesus speaks of the coming persecution of the disciples.
• It is where Jesus reveals the benefit of the Holy Spirit.
• It is where Jesus offers that powerful intercessory prayer for all believers.

A lot happens in this final night.

But from the perspective of the synoptic gospel writers
One moment clearly ascended above the rest.

It was the moment when Jesus
Totally revolutionized their understanding of the Passover by explaining it

It is typically quite common for people to say things like “Jesus changed the Passover into the Lord’s Supper” and that ISN’T ENTIRELY WRONG.

But saying it like that almost assumes that
Jesus changed the entire focus of the Passover.
And that is not necessarily true.

John 5:39 “You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; it is these that testify about Me;”

In reality the Passover was always about Jesus,
Just as the entire Old Testament is about Him.

It’s just that until this night no one understood it.

You are familiar with the Passover from the Old Testament.
Its beginning is found in Exodus 12 coinciding with the final plague God would pour out on the Egyptians as He prepared to deliver Israel from bondage.

The final plague was the death of the firstborn.
• Israel would be spared a visit from the death angel by painting the blood of an
unblemished lamb on the doorpost.

It is important to note that even the original Passover
Was not to protect Israel from the wrath of Egypt,
But from the wrath of God.

The Passover was NEVER solely about deliverance from Egypt,
But rather about deliverance from sin
And the judgment of God upon that sin.

It was always a picture of Jesus,
IT’S JUST THAT THE JEWS NEVER REALLY GRASPED THAT.

But after this night, and the explanation of Jesus,
No one should ever misunderstand it again.

As we work our way through it there are 3 points we’ll make
#1 HIS SUBMISSIVE AFFECTION
Luke 22:14

On one hand this is A POINT WE’VE ALREADY MADE.
“When the hour had come, He reclined at the table, and the apostles with Him.”

That is to say that Jesus was totally submissive to the divine plan.

• As the hour approaches, you don’t find Him skipping town or resisting in any way.
• He is totally compliant to the divine mandate.
• He came to this earth to ultimately die upon a cross and now that the hour is upon Him
• He is approaching it with the same humble obedience that we’ve seen from Him His entire ministry.

There is also another point which Luke doesn’t mention, but it is such a remarkable point, that we will for a moment appeal to John’s gospel.

John 13:1 “Now before the Feast of the Passover, Jesus knowing that His hour had come that He would depart out of this world to the Father, having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end.”

John gives us a little more insight into the phrase “hour had come”.

Specifically John says that it was the hour
“that He would depart out of this world to the Father”

In short, Jesus knows full well what is going on.
• He is not caught off guard.
• He is not in the dark.
• He is not some sort of turtle optimist with His head in the sand regarding the plot that is brewing against Him.

In fact, in the very next verses which we will read next week:
Luke 22:21-22 “But behold, the hand of the one betraying Me is with Mine on the table. “For indeed, the Son of Man is going as it has been determined; but woe to that man by whom He is betrayed!”

Jesus knows what is going on.

John’s gospel even spells that out.
John 13:1-5 “Now before the Feast of the Passover, Jesus knowing that His hour had come that He would depart out of this world to the Father, having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end. During supper, the devil having already put into the heart of Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon, to betray Him, Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into His hands, and that He had come forth from God and was going back to God, got up from supper, and laid aside His garments; and taking a towel, He girded Himself. Then He poured water into the basin, and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel with which He was girded.”

• Jesus knows that Judas is planning to betray Him.
• Jesus knows this is His last night on earth.
• Jesus knows He is about to die.
• Jesus knows the crucifixion is just hours away.

And yet we find Jesus TOTALLY SUBMISSIVE to the Father’s plan.

And we even see the MOTIVE behind it.
John says, “having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end.”

• Literally it means He loved them to the uttermost.
• He loved them to the max.

John 15:13 “Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends.”

And so here we see Jesus, in the upper room,
Driven by submission to His Father, and by love for His own.

Jesus isn’t going anywhere.
He knows what is coming, but He is facing it with submissive affection.

His Submissive Affection
#2 HIS SINCERE ANTICIPATION
Luke 22:15-18

Here we find a great picture which LUKE
Seems to FOCUS ON EVEN MORE than the other gospel writers.

Matthew includes:
Matthew 26:29 “But I say to you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in My Father’s kingdom.”

Mark adds:
Mark 14:25 “Truly I say to you, I will never again drink of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.”

But neither of them include as much of the statement as Luke does.
Luke includes the repeat.

Clearly it was an important statement to Luke
As it gives us INSIGHT INTO THE MINDSET of Jesus.

According to Luke Jesus said:
“I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer;”

It is a word that speaks of INTENSE DESIRE.
To say that Jesus was looking forward to this was an understatement.

And that at first might seem a little strange,
Especially with regard to where we are in the timeline.

From a human standpoint it seems a little bizarre
That Jesus would so eagerly anticipate His last meal.

But this was a very important moment for Jesus.

And rather than facing this moment with dread
For what He was about to endure,
Jesus is anticipating this moment with eagerness
For what He was about to accomplish.

These 4 verses are filled with OPTIMISM and anticipation from Jesus.

(16) “for I say to you, I shall never again eat it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.”

He essentially says the same thing again in verse 18
“for I say to you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine from now on until the kingdom of God comes.”

What do we make of such statements from Jesus?

To understand Jesus’ point
It is important that you understand Jesus’ view of the kingdom of God.

And honestly, Jesus’ statement here should clear up
A lot of theological confusion regarding differing views.

For example.

There are those, and I am one of them,
Who reads the Old Testament and the book of the Revelation literally and thus believe that there is coming a physical earthly kingdom of Christ.

• We call it the millennium.
• We expect a physical and bodily return of Jesus.
• We expect a physical kingdom on this earth where Christ will reign for a 1,000 years.

If you read the Old Testament literally and Revelation literally
That is the only view you can come up with.

Revelation 20:6 “Blessed and holy is the one who has a part in the first resurrection; over these the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with Him for a thousand years.”

So in a sense, we are waiting for a kingdom.
A holy city where righteousness dwells.

There are others
Who spiritualize those teachings in what is commonly referred to as Amillennialism. (No literally 1,000 year reign)

They seize upon statements in the New Testament

Like the preaching of John who says:
Matthew 3:2 “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”

Or the preaching of Jesus:
Matthew 4:17 “From that time Jesus began to preach and say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”

And they would say, “The kingdom is already here. It arrived spiritually at Pentecost with the birth of the church, and thus it is here in a spiritual sense.”

They DO NOT LOOK FOR a future earthly kingdom or millennial reign,
They simply see the kingdom as a spiritual reality
Currently enjoyed by the redeemed.

But if you read what Jesus says here, it becomes clear that
Jesus is looking for an actual physical kingdom on the earth.

For Jesus says, “I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you…I shall never eat it again until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.”

What in the world could Jesus be talking about?

He goes on to tell the disciples (17) “Take this and share it among yourselves…” [But] (18) “…I will not drink of the fruit of the vine from now on until the kingdom of God comes.”

IF the kingdom of God were only a spiritual reality
THEN Jesus’ statement makes no sense at all.

Certainly there is a spiritual element here today, but we still look for more.
We look for a literal earthly kingdom.

And it is apparent that Jesus looked for a physical earthly kingdom.

Jesus is clearly looking for a physical kingdom,
And a fulfillment where He will be physically present.

He is looking toward the day where the Passover is totally fulfilled.

The Passover was literally a passing over of the wrath of God.
• It was literally a day of salvation.
• It was literally a day of deliverance from bondage.

WE SEE THAT OCCURRING in lives this very day,
But none of us would say that the work is
Totally finished or completed or fulfilled.

But there is a day coming when the true Passover will be totally fulfilled.
Revelation 7:9-12 “After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no one could count, from every nation and all tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, and palm branches were in their hands; and they cry out with a loud voice, saying, “Salvation to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.” And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures; and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, saying, “Amen, blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might, be to our God forever and ever. Amen.”

Does that scene ring a bell?
Do you know what that is?
• It’s the heavenly triumphal entry.

All the redeemed from every tribe and tongue
Waiving palm branches before the King
As He prepares to come and claim His earthly kingdom.

WHICH HE DOES LATER IN THE BOOK.
• He comes from heaven and destroys His enemies.
• And He sets up His 1,000 year reign on the earth.

Revelation 20:4 “Then I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was given to them. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony of Jesus and because of the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received the mark on their forehead and on their hand; and they came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years.”

That is the kingdom Jesus is talking about here.

He is telling the disciples, “Look, you drink this wine, and you do it as a memorial, and you do it in hope. I’m not doing it again until I do it in My earthly kingdom.”

We’ve been reading Ezekiel on Sunday nights in our Scripture reading.
And you’re seeing the millennial kingdom, and millennial temple,
AND THEY’RE SACRIFICING.

Why are they sacrificing?
• They’re doing exactly what Jesus said He’d be doing.
• They’re participating in those ordinances as a memorial to a completed work.

And Jesus here, on the night before He would die,
IS LOOKING FORWARD TO THAT DAY.

Hebrews 12:2 “…who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”

What joy?
• The joy of a purchased bride…
• The joy of a redeemed humanity…
• The joy of a purchased kingdom…
• The joy of a coming reign…

That is what Jesus is doing here on the night before He would die.
He is looking forward to the kingdom He will purchase.
He is looking forward to the kingdom He will redeem.

Do you remember Satan offering Jesus the kingdom very early on in Jesus’ ministry?

Matthew 4:8-9 “Again, the devil took Him to a very high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory; and he said to Him, “All these things I will give You, if You fall down and worship me.”

Jesus resisted that temptation.
He chose rather to worship God and endure suffering.

But now, on this night, He is looking to the final fulfillment.
He is eagerly anticipating the day when all the saints are redeemed
And He returns and reigns on the earth and celebrates with His own.

It reminds me of the promise God made to Moses.
Remember when God was sending Moses back to Egypt to liberate His people.

Exodus 3:12 “And He said, “Certainly I will be with you, and this shall be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall worship God at this mountain.”

• You and I know that before the fact that doesn’t seem like much of a sign.
• But my how sweet the worship must have been for Moses when he came back
to that mountain with the delivered people of God.

That is where we find Jesus here.
He is anticipating the day of His return.
He is anticipating His earthly reign.

He is anticipating the total fulfillment of God’s Passover
When all the elect have been saved.
He is anticipating the true JOY OF THE VINE
When all the redeemed are in.

Isaiah 25:6-9 “The LORD of hosts will prepare a lavish banquet for all peoples on this mountain; A banquet of aged wine, choice pieces with marrow, And refined, aged wine. And on this mountain He will swallow up the covering which is over all peoples, Even the veil which is stretched over all nations. He will swallow up death for all time, And the Lord GOD will wipe tears away from all faces, And He will remove the reproach of His people from all the earth; For the LORD has spoken. And it will be said in that day, “Behold, this is our God for whom we have waited that He might save us. This is the LORD for whom we have waited; Let us rejoice and be glad in His salvation.”

We certainly enjoy the Lord’s Supper today.
There is certainly a warmth and gratitude that fills our hearts
As we remember His sacrifice.

But can you imagine how good the Lord’s Supper or Passover will be on the day we take it with Jesus?
• Can you imagine how good it will be when sin is gone?
• Can you imagine how good it will be when we dwell in a land where righteousness dwells?

That is what Jesus is anticipating here.
• He wanted to take this last Passover with the disciples because there is some explaining to do.
• But He wouldn’t take it again until He can take it on earth in His glorious kingdom with all His redeemed.

That is the sincere anticipation of Jesus here in the upper room.
• He knows what He is about to do.
• He is doing it out of great love and obedience.
• He is doing it with joy as He looks to the fulfillment of His sacrifice.

That is pure joy to the heart and hope for the soul
As we see Jesus rejoicing in what He is about to accomplish.

His Submissive Action His Sincere Anticipation
#3 HIS SACRIFICIAL ACCOMPLISHMENT
Luke 22:19-20

And here is where the explanation reaches its climax.

Jews had been taking the Passover for nearly 1500 years
But it was not until this night
That they finally understood what it was about.

It WASN’T about deliverance from Egypt
It WAS about deliverance from sin.

And THE FOCUS of the ordinance was not the Exodus,
It was the cross and the atonement which Christ purchased for us.

He didn’t change it here, He merely explained it.

(19) “And when He had taken some bread and given thanks, He broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.”

What a statement!

All of those feasts and all of those sacrifices
Were so filled with imagery and symbolism.
Jesus just unlocked the greatest image and symbol yet.

He took that bread and He broke it and “gave it to them”
It was an offering of Himself to them.

And He said, “This is My body which is given for you”

He WASN’T SAYING that the bread was literally His body, clearly it was a symbol. At the time, He was still using His body.

But why the body?
What does that mean?

The writer of Hebrews made it clear didn’t he?
Hebrews 10:4-10 “For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins. Therefore, when He comes into the world, He says, “SACRIFICE AND OFFERING YOU HAVE NOT DESIRED, BUT A BODY YOU HAVE PREPARED FOR ME; IN WHOLE BURNT OFFERINGS AND sacrifices FOR SIN YOU HAVE TAKEN NO PLEASURE. “THEN I SAID, ‘BEHOLD, I HAVE COME (IN THE SCROLL OF THE BOOK IT IS WRITTEN OF ME) TO DO YOUR WILL, O GOD.'” After saying above, “SACRIFICES AND OFFERINGS AND WHOLE BURNT OFFERINGS AND sacrifices FOR SIN YOU HAVE NOT DESIRED, NOR HAVE YOU TAKEN PLEASURE in them” (which are offered according to the Law), then He said, “BEHOLD, I HAVE COME TO DO YOUR WILL.” He takes away the first in order to establish the second. By this will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.”

What was the body?
It is where Jesus satisfied the righteous requirements of God.
God didn’t want a sheep or a goat or a bull, God wanted a holy life.

Jesus took on flesh and lived that holy life.
• That is why He was circumcised at 8 days old.
• He put Himself under the Law.
• He bound Himself to the righteous ordinances of God.
• And He perfectly fulfilled it.
• He perfectly obeyed it.
• He earned a righteous standing before God.

He did that in His human body.
• We see Him meticulously obeying the Law of God.
• We see Him resisting every temptation.
• We hear the Father declaring Him pleasing.

JESUS DID IT!
And here He tells the disciples, “I DID IT FOR YOU.”

All of My obedience…
All of My suffering…
All of My resistance of temptation…
IT WAS FOR YOU.

It is what we call the ACTIVE OBEDIENCE of Jesus.
Jesus satisfied the righteous requirements for you.

Matthew 5:17 “Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill.”

And Jesus offered that righteousness to His disciples.
• He offered His holy resume…
• He offered His holy life…
• He offered His righteous robe…

To His disciples.
And He told them to EAT IT.

WHY EAT IT?
John 6:52-58 “Then the Jews began to argue with one another, saying, “How can this man give us His flesh to eat?” So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in yourselves. “He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. “For My flesh is true food, and My blood is true drink. “He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him. “As the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, so he who eats Me, he also will live because of Me. “This is the bread which came down out of heaven; not as the fathers ate and died; he who eats this bread will live forever.”

It is symbolic of acceptance.
It is symbolic of need.

They were to eat showing that
They needed this righteousness that Jesus alone had obtained.

And Jesus said that when they eat it “do THIS in remembrance of Me.”

Certainly in an immediate sense He was referring to the Passover.
• When you do this every year, don’t do it thinking about the Exodus, do it thinking about the cross.
• When you come together every year for this feast, remember that it is about Me and what I did for you.

But if you’ll remember a remarkable phenomenon took place.
They didn’t wait another year until they did it again.

Acts 2:42 “They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.”

Acts 2:46 “Day by day continuing with one mind in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart,”

Paul alludes that the Corinthians met weekly for their “love feast”
Where they took the Lord’s Supper.

They couldn’t get enough.

THEY CELEBRATED IT ALL THE TIME,
Not only was it a reminder of the cross,
But it was also an act of anticipation of His coming
And the kingdom He would bring with Him.

They ate in remembrance and in anticipation.

1 Corinthians 11:26 “For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes.”

And that brings us to the SECOND SYMBOL Jesus revealed.
(20) “And in the same way He took the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup which poured out for you is the new covenant in My blood.”

That wine they were drinking was symbolic of the blood of Jesus.
• It wasn’t His actual blood, it was a symbol.
• It looked to His atoning work on the cross.

He spoke of His coming death
Where He would pay the penalty of our sin against God.

• THE BREAD was His righteous life where He fulfilled what we should have been and were not.
• THE WINE was His blood which was spilled to satisfy what we were and should not have been.

This is where we speak of His PASSIVE OBEDIENCE
And what He endured on our behalf.

HE PAID OUR DEBT WITH HIS LIFE.

And we DRINK the wine symbolizing again that WE NEED IT.
• On one hand we are clothed in His righteousness.
• On the other hand He was clothed in our sin.
• And we needed both to happen.

And Jesus says that this together ushers in “the new covenant”.

Do you remember what He is referencing?
Jeremiah 31:31-34 “Behold, days are coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, not like the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, although I was a husband to them,” declares the LORD. “But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days,” declares the LORD, “I will put My law within them and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. “They will not teach again, each man his neighbor and each man his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them,” declares the LORD, “for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.”

• The old covenant was instituted by Moses, where He read the Law and the sprinkled the people with blood to ratify the covenant.
• That covenant was contingent upon the people obeying God.
• You know they broke that covenant and brought wrath upon themselves.

Jesus came and ushered in the new covenant
That DID NOT depend upon the righteousness of the people.

RATHER the new covenant said that GOD WOULD DO for the people
What they could not do for themselves.

And on this day Jesus says, “This is it.”
• This is the new covenant.
• This is Me doing for you what you cannot do for yourselves.
• I will pay for your sin.
• I will give you My righteousness.

Leave the covenant of you earning God’s favor behind
And enter this new covenant of Me doing it for you.

Eat this bread and accept My righteousness.
Drink this wine and accept My atonement.

And every time you do it, remember what I did for you.

And as you do it look forward to the day when we will again do it together.

That is how Jesus explained the Passover to the disciples.

And this morning we partake together just as the disciples did.

We see this bread and we see this juice.
• It is symbolic of His body and His blood.
• It is His righteous life…
• It is His atoning death…

We eat it because we need it.
• We eat it casting aside the old covenant of works and embracing this new covenant of grace.

We eat it and we worship Jesus for what He did.

We eat it and we anticipate the fulfillment when we will eat it with Him in His kingdom.

As always, we will have a time of preparation as we prepare to partake.

1 Corinthians 11:26-28 “For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes. Therefore whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner, shall be guilty of the body and the blood of the Lord. But a man must examine himself, and in so doing he is to eat of the bread and drink of the cup.”

 

[evp_embed_video url="https://www.dropbox.com/s/ijk47smqsw2p547/D-Now%202020%20Highlight%20Video.mp4?dl=1" width="500"]

 

“Who Is God? – Part 1” (Acts 17:16-29) – Rory Mosley

 

“Who Is God? – Part 2” (Acts 17:30-31) – Rory Mosley

 

“The Sovereignty of God over Suffering” (Job 1) – Stephen Butts

 

“The Sovereignty of God over Life” (James 4:13-17) – Rory Mosley

 

“The Sovereignty of God over Kingdoms” (Daniel 5) – Stephen Butts