Good Friday 2017

Oh. you It's a long, long, long time It's a beautiful day. I'm Good evening. How are you tonight? So welcome to the Holly Hills Good Friday program. I think the first thing we should do is open with just a word of prayer. So let's pray. Father, how we thank you for this evening. We thank you for our Lord Jesus Christ who we celebrate that he gave his life on this day for us and to satisfy the Father. We thank you for, because of that, the grace that we live under. We ask that you would open up our hearts and our minds as we proceed tonight that everything we do would be edifying to those that are here and certainly glorifying to you. So we thank you again for the opportunity to be here and we pray in your son's precious name. Amen.

So what we thought we'd do tonight is that we would we're going to have music and we're going to have some scripture reading and some teaching from Byrne and Roger and myself. The focus, the two main focuses will be on Psalm 22 and Isaiah 53, talking a little bit about The fact that the Lord Jesus Christ's death was prophesied some thousand years before it happened, and even as you'll see in the Psalms and in Isaiah, some of what the Lord Jesus was going through on the cross is talked about there more than it's talked about in the Gospels. And we'll read the Gospel accounts of the prophecies coming true as they are portrayed in the gospel, the children will read those. And then at the end we'll do the Lord's Table and then there'll be refreshments out in the foyer. So tonight we're going to start with congregational singing. We're going to sing Amazing Love. Vern will lead, Vonnie and Ingrid will play. Good evening, let's stand and sing. Amazing Love, three verses.

My Lord, that takes so dearly That I, the guilty one, may go free. Amazing love, O what sacrifice the Son of God given for me. My debt he pays, and my death he dies, that I might live, that I might live. Watched him die, despised, rejected, bestowed a bloody shed. Lord, for me, amazing love, who would sacrifice the Son of God given for me? my debt He pays, and my death He dies, that I might live, that I might live.

And now His love of Christ shall flow like rivers that wash your guilt away. Please be seated. We will have Josiah and Cyrus here. Come read Psalm 22, 1-21 and then Mark 15, 33-35. Luke 23, 35-37 and Mark 15, 24. OK, I'm going to read Psalm 22, 1 through 21.

My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Far from my deliverance are the words of my groaning. Oh my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer, and by night, but I have no rest. Yet you are holy, and you who are enthroned upon the praises of Israel. In you our fathers trusted. They trusted, and you delivered them. To you they cried out and were delivered. In you they trusted and were not disappointed.

But I am a worm and not a man, a reproach of men and despised by the people. All who see me sneer at me. They separate with the lip. They wag the head saying, commit yourself to the Lord. Let him deliver him. Let him rescue him because he delights in him. Yet you are he who brought me forth from the womb. You made me trust when upon my mother's breasts. Upon you I was cast from birth. You have been my God from my mother's womb.

Be not far from me, for trouble is near, for there is none to help. Many bowls have surrounded me. Strong bowls of Bashan have encircled me. They open wide their mouth at me as a ravening and roaring lion. I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint. My heart is like wax, it is melted within me. My strength is dried up like a pot shirt, and my tongue cleaves to my jaws, and you lay me in the dust of death. For dogs have surrounded me, a band of evildoers has encompassed me. They pierce my hands and my feet.

I can count all my bones. They look, they stare at me, they divide my garments among them, and for my clothing they cast lots. But you, O Lord, be not far off. O you, my help, hasten to my assistance. Deliver my soul from the sword, my only life from the power of the dog. Save me from the lion's mouth. From the horns of the wild oxen, you answer me.

Mark 15, 33 through 35. When the sixth hour came, darkness fell over the whole land until the ninth hour. At the ninth hour, Jesus cried out with a loud voice, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani, which is translated, my God, my God, why have you forsaken me?

And the people stood by looking on, and even the rulers were sneering at him, saying, he saved others, let him save himself if this is the Christ of God, his chosen one. Luke 23, 35 through 37. And the people stood by looking on, and even the rulers were sneering at him, saying, he saved others. Let him save himself if this is the Christ of God, his chosen one.

The soldiers also mocked him, coming up to him, offering him sour wine and saying, if you are the king of the Jews, save yourself. Mark 15, 24. And they crucified him and divided up his garments among themselves, casting lots for them to decide what each man should take.

Eloi! Eloi! Lama Sabachthani! This is what Jesus cried in the afternoon of the day in which he was crucified. Most people there had no idea what he was saying, but he was quoting from the passage that Josiah just read for us. Psalm 22 verse 1. Now Jesus didn't just spontaneously come up with that. Here it was from Psalm 22 verse 1 written by David a thousand years earlier. Now we call that a prediction, don't we? But was it a prediction from God's standpoint? Not really. Think about it.

What was Jesus saying that there was great alienation between himself and the Father? Such a thing had never been before. But this was no surprise to the Son or the Father because This had been agreed upon in eternity past. So here we read in Psalm 22 the passage that David had written, Psalm, which is part of Israel's national hymn book. And so he says, My God, my God, why have you forsaken me, expressing here in this psalm, and Jesus expressed it then on the day he was crucified, expressing in the psalm the alienation between himself and God, feeling not just a little bit of irritation between the Father and the Son, but in this case, totally forsaken. We have farther down in what Josiah read for us here, in verse 6, I am a worm and not a man. This is an expression that actually comes out of the Old Testament elsewhere.

Job 25.6 and Isaiah 41.14 both express that. And what does that mean? It was a Jewish expression saying, I am of no significance at all. I am of no size, no influence. I am the lowest of low. It says then, of a reproach of men and despised by the people. All who see me sneer at me.

And Luke in fact says this very same thing in Luke 23.35. And so this is written by David a thousand years in advance. They separate with the lip. Now, culturally, separating with the lip would be somewhat the equivalent of our sticking our tongue out. They stick the lower lip out, like that, that would be the same as our sticking the tongue out at somebody.

So everybody else is sticking their tongue out at Jesus because why? They have no regard for Him. See, you're getting it, right? And so they're showing him great disrespect. That's what this sticking the tongue out or sticking the lower lip out means. The next part, they wag the head. This is a reproach.

It's also Psalm 109.25 has something similar. It's a similar facial and head expression, wagging the head, just negative expression, disrespect. of Jesus as he's there on the cross. And David wrote about this ten centuries ahead of time. Then commit yourself to the Lord, let him deliver him, let him rescue him, because he delights in him. God delights in him. But this was said mockingly.

Matthew 27.43 says exactly the same thing.

Then one of the verses that Josiah read for us, many bulls have surrounded many, many strong bulls of Bashan. We say what's a bull of Bashan? Well, to start with, If you've heard of the Golan Heights, that's Bashan. That was considered in Old Testament times a great place to raise bulls.

So many bulls of Bichon, now having been close to bulls and handling them and trying to get them off of trucks and back on when they don't want to, right? I can tell you some of those bulls weigh about three quarters of a ton and when they are upset with you, that's not a good thing. They can be very difficult. And so here he has plural bulls of Bashan. These are the best bulls and they're mad at him, right? So he's seeing himself as, here I am, I can't do anything and I'm overwhelmed not just by one, but many, plural, of these bulls of Bashan. They've encircled me, they open wide their mouth at me as a ravening and roaring lion. So threatening, okay? Lots of threats. I am poured out like water.

Now what does that mean? It says, I am dissipated. Water that's in a cup, that you can do something with. Water that's just poured out, I'm sorry, it's dissipated, it's gone. And that's what he's expressing here. He says, I'm just dissipated, I'm as good as thrown out.

All my bones are out of joint. This is a figure of speech. for being in great emotional distress. Great emotional distress. So David is writing this of Christ, his descendant, a thousand years ahead of time. My heart is like wax, it is melted within me. I don't feel like I can get it together within myself. I'm so overwhelmed by what's happening.

And then an amazing verse, verse 16, they pierced my hands and my feet. This is astounding during a time when crucifixion was not common or in some sections even known. And here in Psalm 22, 16, he says they pierced my hands and my feet. That's quoted again by Dr. Luke in Luke 24, 36 through 40.

I can count all my bones. That's another Hebrew expression. It means I'm skin and bones. I'm just, I'm withered away and dissipated away. I'm skin and bones. It says finally, and they look and they stare at me, they divide their garments among them, which of course was in fact what happened with Christ. And for my clothing they cast lots. So Matthew and Mark, Luke and John all record that as having been fulfilled.

So here we see in Psalm 22, written by David, the prediction of what would happen with Christ there on the cross, when the Father would forsake Him, when He would see all the people around Him opposed to Him and sneering at Him and showing Him great disrespect while He died for their sins.

OK, now we're going to have special music, Fairest Lord Jesus by Anne-Marie, Hadley, and Katie. And then Laban is going to follow up with Isaiah 53, 1 through 12. And then Poppy is going to follow through then with Matthew 26, 62 through 63, John 12, 38. John 19, 17 and 18 and Mark 15, 24.

Fairest Lord Jesus, Ruler of all nature, Lord of God and man, the Son I cherish thee, will I honor thou my soul's glory, joy, and crown. Fair are the meadows, fair still the woodlands, robed in the blooming garb of spring. Jesus is fairer Jesus is purer Who makes the woeful heart to sing Fair is the sunshine Fairer still the moonlight, and of the twinkling starry home. Jesus shines brighter, Jesus shines purer than all the angels and candles. Beautiful Savior, Lord, Son of God and Son of Man. Glory and honor, praise and adoration, Who has believed our report, and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed? For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of dry ground.

He has no form or comeliness, and when we see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him. He is despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief, and we hid, as it were, our faces from him. He was despised, and we did not esteem him.

Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows. Yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions. He was buried for our iniquities. The chastisement for our peace was upon him. And by his stripes we are healed. And we are like sheep have gone astray. We have turned, every one, to his own way. And the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.

He was oppressed and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth. He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, and as sheep before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth. He was taken from prison and from judgment, and who will declare his generation? For he was cut off from the land of the living. For the transgressions of my people he was stricken, and they made his grave with the wicked. But with the rich at his death, because he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth, yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him. He has put him to grief.

When you make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed. He shall prolong his days and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand. He shall see the travail of the soul and be satisfied by his knowledge. My righteous servant shall justify many for he shall bear their iniquities. Therefore, I will divide him a portion with the great and he shall divide the spoil with the strong because he poured out his soul unto death and he was numbered with the transgressors and he bore the sin of many and he made intercession for the transgressors.

Matthew 26, 62-63 And the high priest arose and said to him, Do you answer nothing? What is it these men testify against you? But Jesus kept silent, and the high priest answered and said to him, I put you under oath by the living God. Tell us if you are the Christ, the Son of God. John 12, 38 That the word of Isaiah the prophet might be fulfilled which he spoke. Lord, who has believed our report, and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?

John 19, 17 through 18. And he, bearing his cross, went out to a place called the place of a skull, which is in Hebrew called Golgotha, where they crucified him and two others with him, one on either side and Jesus in the center. Mark 15, 24. When they crucified him, they divided his garments, casting lots for them to determine what every man should take. Have you ever seen the picture that Vern has with the girl with the Bible upside down? I have my notes upside down, so hopefully that's not the...

This is a fantastic verse that I have, Isaiah 53. I was looking, as I was getting ready for this, I was looking through some different folks who talked about it, and one author, it really struck me, says Isaiah 53 is the holy of holies of Isaiah's, of the book of Isaiah. And that's pretty amazing. Also, I found that, I haven't counted it, there's 80 prophecies in Isaiah, but the majority come from Isaiah 53. Obviously, I'm not going to go through 80 prophecies tonight. You will shoot me. Run me off the stage. But I do have about five to six things I'd like to consider. And they're as follows. Christ would be despised and forsaken. Christ would be our substitute. Christ's death would be the payment for our sins. Christ's death would be that of a sinless sacrifice. Christ my servant would justify many. Christ would bear the sins of many.

You know what you find as you go through and you look at Isaiah 53, you find that the seed is planted for many wonderful truths that we'll see in the New Testament that just are amazing. So let's just kind of jump into it and maybe you'll see what I'm talking about. In verse three, I'm going to kind of jump around and pick about, like I said, five or six things. So in verse three, it says, he was despised and forsaken of men, a man of sorrows acquainted with grief. And like one from whom men hide their face, he was despised and they did not esteem him.

So the idea of despise, I think, actually kind of fits well with Psalm 22, is worthless or unworthy. They didn't see Christ. The Jews didn't see Christ. Many, many of them, including the rulers, didn't see him of any value. He was a pain. He was a pain, basically. And they wanted to get rid of this, you know, let's take care of this guy. So they didn't see him as any value.

Well, Isaiah is going to argue he is of, you know, unfathomable value. It's just tremendous. So one of the places that we see in the New Testament that talks about this It talks about when Jesus was going up to Jerusalem and he called himself the Son of Man. He said in Mark 10, 34, he says, they will mock him, they will spit upon him, they will scourge him, they will kill him, and three days later he will rise again. And then a verse a little farther on in John, and actually this one in John is kind of cool because it kind of sums up this being despised and forsaken.

John 1.10, and also it kind of sets the stage for his place here as he walked on this earth. He was in the world, and the world was made through him, and the world did not know him. That's kind of key there. They did not really know who he was or what he was about. He came to his own, and those who were his own did not receive him. If they didn't receive him, they would not know about him, and they could not profit by him.

The next point is in verse 4. Christ would be our substitute and this is kind of cool. We kind of see the the seed plot of Christ's substitutionary death It says in here in verse 4. It says surely our grief he himself bore and our sorrows he carried Yet we ourselves esteemed him stricken smitten of God and afflicted and one side us as room went through this, you know Some people looked at him said boy God's really on Christ's case. He's really doing a number to Christ the ones who didn't believe But Isaiah is going to argue, no, that was what needed to be done.

But look at the wonderful things that came out of it. He bore our sin. He bore our grief. He bore our sorrow. And that's repeated in the New Testament by Matthew, where he says, he himself took our infirmities and carried away our diseases. He took our place.

So that's the beginning of the substitutionary concept we see all throughout the New Testament. The third point. It's about Christ would be the payment for our sins. So we're going to see the beginning of that whole concept. We don't really see its crystallization until we look at the New Testament.

But he says in verse 5 of Isaiah 53, he says, he was pierced through for our transgressions. He was crushed for our iniquities. His chastening was for our well-being fell upon him. And by his scourging, we are healed. And then it goes on actually in verse 6, All we like sheep have gone astray. Each of us has turned to his own way. But here's the part. But the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all to fall on him. So this transgression, iniquity, is all about sin. All those issues Christ was pierced, was crushed, was chastened, all that was upon him. So that's the beginning of the wonderful, I have about three or four verses here, the wonderful payment that Christ accomplished for our sins.

So in Hebrews 9.28, so Christ also having offered once to bear the sins of many.

Then in Romans 4.25, he was delivered over because of our transgressions. than in 1 Peter 2.24. He himself wore our sins in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness, for by his wounds we are healed.

You know, you can kind of sum up this payment for our sin in this kind of overarching statement that's just really so wonderful in 1 John 2.2. And he himself is a propitiation or satisfaction for our sins, and not for our sins only, but also for the sins of the whole world. So Christ, you know, the question is, Christ has paid for the sins of the whole world. So what is man going to do about that? You can say, boy, that's wonderful. That's a great thing. He was a great man. But God invites us to go beyond that.

He invites us to believe that Christ actually accomplished that. And we see the, what are we to believe? And, you know, 1 Corinthians 15 tells us what we need to believe, the good news. For I have delivered you of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, He was buried and he was raised on the third day, according to the scriptures. That's what we need to believe. Christ, even back in Isaiah's time, he started that Christ would pay for the sins, the iniquities, the transgressions.

And here in the New Testament, it tells us what we need to believe to enter into that, to own that. And I would invite you, if you haven't done that, to consider that. Then going on. You know, there's so much actually, I had to be careful I didn't overdo it here. So the next point is verse 9.

And this is basically Christ's death was that of a sinless sacrifice. His grave was assigned with wicked men. He was a rich man in his death because he had done no violence and there was no deceit found in his mouth. So this no violence and no deceit You know, that's the attributes of someone that doesn't sin. And maybe it's a little harder to understand language, but no violence and no deceit.

And once again, we find this repeated in the New Testament in 1 Peter 2.2, who committed no sin, nor was any deceit found in his mouth. While being reviled, he did not revile in return. While suffering, he uttered no threats and kept entrusting himself to God, who judges righteously.

And then just a beautiful passage that is so wonderful in 2 Corinthians 5 21. He made him who knew no sin. So there's he knew no sin to be sin on our behalf so that we might become the righteousness of God in him. Just ponder that. He knew no sin. He never but God put the sin in the world on him.

How cruel in a sense. Christ entered into that totally. That's what they decided in eternity past. He said, I'll do that. Even though I have never known sin, I will take on the payment for those sins. Incredible, incredible. Okay. A couple more. And actually what you find is, you know, as you go through Isaiah, you'll see he'll come back and he'll reiterate points. And this is one of the cases.

And he calls Christ my servant. He says, my servant Christ will justify many. And we see that in verse 11 of 53. As a result of the anguish of his soul, he will see it and be satisfied. By his knowledge, the righteous one, my servant, will justify many, and he will bear their iniquities.

So kind of a repeat of what we saw before. A couple of verses that kind of occurred to me, or I saw that kind of fit Romans in Romans chapter 5. talking about the comparison between Adam and Christ. So then, as through one transgression, Adam, there resulted condemnation to all men, even through one righteous act there resulted in justification of life to all men. And then the second one would be, so as through the obedience of one, many were made righteous. And then last one, I promise, is he Christ would bear the sins of many. Sounds very familiar what we saw in the earlier verses. And that's in verse 12, the last verse.

Therefore, I will allot him a portion with the great, and he will divide the booty with the strong, because he poured out himself to death and was numbered with the transgressors. Yet he himself bore the sins of many, and interceded for the transgressors. So I kind of connected that with a verse in Philippians. Being found in the appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on the cross.

For this reason, God highly exalted him and bestowed upon him a name which is above every name. And it goes on. So, you know, just wonderful things from Isaiah 53. And Mike's going to Do some more here. Actually, before Mike does his part, we're going to have some music by Randy and then we're going to have some reading by by J.D. and Eddie. So Randy first, then J.D., then Eddie and then and then Michael. despised and forsaken.

He hung on the tree for our guilt and blame. They called him the man of sorrows. For the joy set before him, he endured the shame. All the grief we should have felt, all the sorrows he carried. All the Pharisees rejoiced to see Him buried, all with certainty We have our own shortcomings For crucified in God's first coming My sins pierced His hands and feet. He was crushed for our iniquities. The discipline for our correction came bound with our own healing.

We've gone astray, oh, how God can wonder That God should dare to call us brothers Suppressed and afflicted, He remains silent Not a word was uttered despite torture so vile His grave was to be with wicked men He was buried with the rich instead God was pleased to crush his son A guilt offering for everyone He will see his own descendants rise He will see it and be satisfied Many will be justified, because the innocent We've gone astray, oh how I can wonder That God would dare to call us brothers Oppressed and afflicted, He remains silent Not a word was uttered despite torture so Okay, Mike has asked me to read a number of verses from the Gospels. Each of these add up to the perspective of what the Lord Jesus was dealing with as he was handed over to death. Rather than referring to each of these and giving you the reference, I'd like to just read them all in sequence and let you hear the picture come together. There's a little bit that's added as each perspective of each disciple adds his own understanding to it. I'll just let you kind of listen along as I read them all in sequence.

From that time, Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes and be killed and be raised up on the third day. And while they were gathering together in Galilee, Jesus said to them, the son of man is going to be delivered into the hands of men and they will kill him and he will be raised on the third day. And they were deeply grieved. Goes on, as Jesus was about to go to up to Jerusalem, he took the 12 disciples aside by themselves. And on the way, he said to them, behold, we are going up to Jerusalem and the Son of Man will be delivered to the chief priests and scribes, and they will condemn him to death and will hand him over to the Gentiles to mock and scourge and crucify him. And on the third day, he will be raised up.

And John says, for this reason, the father loves me because I lay down my life so that I may take it again. No one has taken it away from me, but I lay it down on my own initiative. I have authority to lay it down and I have authority to take it up again. This commandment I received from my father. And Luke, let these words sink into your ears for the son of man is going to be delivered into the hands of men.

But they did not understand the statement and it concealed and it was concealed from them so that they would not perceive it. And they were afraid to ask him about the statement. Then he took the twelve disciples aside and said to them, Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem and all things which are written through the prophets about the Son of Man will be accomplished. For he will be handed over to the Gentiles and will be mocked and mistreated and spit upon. And after they have scorched him, they will kill him. And the third day he will rise again. But the disciples understood none of these things. And the meaning of this statement was hidden from them. And they did not comprehend the things that they were said that were said finally in John.

Now judgment is upon this world. Now the ruler of this world will be cast out. And I. If I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself." And he was saying this to indicate the kind of death by which he was to die. Luke 22, 33. When they came to the place called the Skull, there they crucified him and the criminals, one on the right and the other on the left. Luke 23, 35 to 38.

And the people stood by looking on, and even the rulers were sneering at him, saying, He saved others, let him save himself, if he is the Christ of God, his chosen one. The soldiers also mocked him, coming up to him, offering him sour wine, and saying, If you are the king of the Jews, save yourself. Now there was also an inscription above him, This is the king of the Jews. Addie did a great job there. She's got a retainer. She was worried she was going to slur her words. So don't worry about it. I follow you. I slur all the time.

So I want to talk tonight about when the Lord Jesus was born, the goal was that he was here to die. The birth of Jesus was not an end or but a means to the end in itself, it had no redemptive value. But it paved the way for his death, which alone has redemptive value. It could never make an end of sin, but it did give the world a savior. Our Lord himself and every New Testament writer set forth the death of Christ as the goal of his birth. He was born not merely a man, but a savior. He came not alone to live, but to save. And in order to save, he has to die.

The eternal son became in the flesh, the son of man, that he might lay down his life as the crucified son. He became the son of man that he might die for the race of man. Matthew 20, 28 says, even as the son of man came not to be ministered to, but to minister and to give his life a ransom for many. He took a body supernaturally prepared for him by the Father, which didn't have any taint in it of sin, and upon which death didn't have any claim, that he might offer it as a voluntary sacrifice unto God. that through the death, through his death, he might destroy him who had the power of death, that is the devil.

Christ Jesus not only came into this world to die, but he knew that he came for that purpose. From the very beginning of his public ministry, the Son of Man had a heavy anticipation of what is termed an hour or that hour that was to come. An hour which in some eventful way would be the culmination of his entire ministry. Let's trace that hour a little bit.

John 7.30 says that then they sought to take him, but no man laid hands on him because his hour was not yet come. But just right after that time, there was this very interesting event that happened. The Jews were fiercely criticizing and opposing him. And this event happened. A delegation of Greeks, Gentiles, came to worship him.

Everything converges to show that Christ in that hour he has so long anticipated is now pretty close. So when Andrew and Philip bring the message of the Greeks to him, with great calmness and control, he replies, the hour has come. Upon this time, he's not explained, or up to this time, he's not explained what he means by the often repeated words, my hour. Several times he has foretold his death, as JD talked about, and his resurrection, but the disciples couldn't grasp the meaning of what he was talking about. In John 12, 23, he said, Jesus answered him saying, the hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. John 12, 28, now my soul has become troubled. What shall I say? Father, save me from this hour. But for this purpose, I came to this hour.

And in 31 through 33, now judgment is upon this world. Now the ruler of this world will be cast out, and I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself." But he was saying this to indicate the kind of death which he was to die. Not a single event of that entire week takes the Lord by surprise. He knows his hour has come.

In his last conversation and prayer with his disciples, he anticipates his leaving this world and his return to the Father in heaven. And when the Lord had spoken these words, they went forth with his disciples into the place called Gethsemane. There, his soul became very sorrowful and oppressed, so much so that he left the companionship of his disciples and went off to be alone to pray to his father. Falling on his face, he cried. In Matthew 26 and three other places and three other times, he says, My father, if this cannot pass away, can't we do it some other way? Can't I drink this cup some other way? But your will be done.

Never in the history of man was there such anguish of spirit and agony of soul endured so that the son of man, as he went to Calvary, he passed by way of the garden of Gethsemane. So what was this dreaded cup that he was so concerned about and that what was this hour that was inevitable, inevitably coming and was long anticipated by him. He said, the son of man must be betrayed into the hands of sinners. From this and the events that follow in quick succession, the hour could be nothing other than the hour of his death.

But why should he why should he dread that or shrink from this approach. Because an hour or two before that, he had said, now I go my way to him who sent me. So would not the death, the death he was to die here, just release him? Let's say he just died.

Wouldn't it release him from everything that surrounded him, the sin that was here, the suffering and the glory and the sorrow that was here? Above all, if he were not to return to the blessedness of immediate intimate fellowship with his father, that would have happened. If he died a death such as other men died, then he would indeed have been just a glorious release for him. Had death for him been merely a culminating event in the life of unblemished perfection, then it would have been such a gracious reunion with the Father. So why does he need to die? Scripture is really clear about this in the statement that that which death is and who dies.

In Romans 6.23, it says the wages of sin is death. 5.12 says, Wherefore, by one man sin entered the world, and death by sin. So sin passed upon all men, because all men sin.

Even in Ezekiel 18.20, the soul that sins, it will die. So death is the consequence of sin. It is the sinner who dies, and Jesus Christ is the one to die. The irresistible logic of these facts places before us two alternatives.

The first alternative is either Jesus was a sinner, as all other men are, and his death, like theirs, was the wages of his own sin, or he died a death different from the death of all other men and for the reason entirely outside of his own life. So Jesus, was Jesus Christ a sinner? Did death come to him as a penalty of his own sin?

Even his bitterest enemies in the time in which he lived and in all the succeeding ages have never accused him of being a sinner. He said once to a group that were opposing and denying him, which one of you convicts me of sin? But not one word with accusation was spoken to him about that. Even Pilate couldn't find any fault in him. So why did he have to die? How foolish and futile to look anywhere else for the answer to such a question, but to God's own divine word.

There an absolutely sufficient and altogether satisfying answer is given. First Corinthians 15.3 that Roger talked about. For I delivered unto you first importance that I also received that Christ died for our sins. According to the scriptures.

Isaiah 53, 6, all of us like sheep have gone astray. Each of us has turned to our own way. But the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all to fall on him. Isaiah 53, 4 and 5, surely our grief he himself bore and our sorrow he carried. Yet we ourselves esteemed him stricken, smitten of God and afflicted, but he was pierced through for our transgressions. He was crushed for our iniquities. The chastening of our well-being fell upon him, and by his scourging we are healed.

In every one of these passages and all that we read tonight, death and sin are shown to have an inseparable relationship to each other. It is inevitable that death of Christ and two inevitable issues here, the death of Christ and the sin of man. Words could not make it clearer than Jesus died, not because of anything in himself, but because of something in us. that it was not the wages of his sin but ours that he paid on the cross. It is our sin that he put away, our sins that he bore, our iniquities which were laid upon him.

Death had no claim on him. Then the death he died was for the sake of others and to accomplish something for them which they were unable to accomplish for themselves. The death of Christ was obviously for the purpose of taking up the sin question and dealing with it in such a way as to bring salvation to all men. But would He also deal with it in such a way that it would bring satisfaction to God about sin? God has an unalterable, irrevocable attitude towards sin. which is most clearly revealed in his judgment upon it, the wages of sin is death. Death is the expression of God's implacable condemnation of sin. Death is the man's liability in relationship to sin. So, did the death of Christ deal with this judgment upon man in a way that was satisfactory to God?

2 Corinthians 5.14, for the love of Christ controls us, having concluded this, that one died for all, therefore all died. And he died for all so that they who live might no longer live unto themselves, but for him who died and rose again on their behalf.

So, what then? would be the requirement, what then would the requirement be? That an adequate substitute, able to meet the full penalty of the law and sin, should voluntarily offer to take the sinner's place and die the sinner's death. But where could such an adequate substitute be found? Only the lamb without spot and blemish could be accepted as the offering for sin. Only an absolute sinless one could be the sinner's substitute. It would require one who himself had fulfilled every demand of God, God's holy nature to pay the sinner's penalty for a broken law.

There was but one who has ever lived such a life on earth, and he was made flesh. He's the son of God. So now we're going to do the Lord's table. One of the reasons that this is Good Friday is not only because of the love of the Lord Jesus Christ, but because of the love of the Father.

Both of them were willing to have an alienation, a time of alienation between them, which they had never experienced in eternity past. They agreed to it. before God said, let there be light, that this time would come. And for a few brief hours, the Father and the Son were alienated from one another. Why?

Because of the Father's deep love for us. How deep the Father's love for us How vast beyond all measure That He should give His only Son To make a wretch His treasure How great the pain of searing loss The Father turns His face away As moons which mar the chosen bond Bring many sons to glory.

Behold the man upon a cross, My sin upon his shoulders, Ashamed I hear my mocking voice, All out among the scoffers It was my sin that held him there Until it was accomplished His dying breath has brought me life I know that it is finished I will not boast in anything Gifts, no power, no wisdom. But I will boast in Jesus Christ, His death and resurrection.

Why should I gain from His reward? I cannot give an answer. But this I know with all my heart. His wounds have paid my ransom. Behold the man upon a cross, and I to die there with him. So I have died unto the world, and to the law and the sin. As there my Savior bled and died, His death is now my history, and I no longer live His life.

He now lives from within me. From Matthew 26, 26. And as they were eating, Jesus took bread and blessed and broke it. And he gave it to the disciples and said, take, eat. This is my body. Then he took the cup and he gave thanks and gave it to them, saying, drink from it, all of you, for this is my blood of the new covenant, which is shed for you and for many for the remission of sins. All right. So I have Mark. 14, 24, and 25. And it kind of continues, or I can somewhat re-repeat.

And he said to them, this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many. Truly, truly, I say, I will never drink of the fruit of the vine until the day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God. And in Luke 22, 20, it says, And in the same way he took the cup after they had eaten, saying, This cup which is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood. 1 Corinthians 11, 23 through 26.

It's interesting that the Lord, not only in the Gospels, but also revealed to the Apostle Paul the night in which he was betrayed, the Lord's table information. It seems interesting to me that in all of these cases, the repetition of Him means that He doesn't ever want us to forget what He did and how important it is, not only to Him, but to us. So, for I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus, in the night in which He was betrayed, He took bread.

And when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, this is my body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me." In the same way, he took the cup after supper, saying, this cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this as often as you drink it in remembrance of me. For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes. If you'll stand, we'll sing. my Savior's love. And then afterwards, I will have a closing prayer and then there will be refreshments in the vestibule out there. you