1 00:00:00,000 –> 00:00:07,040 You’re listening to a sermon from Pastor Colin Smith of Open the Bible. 2 00:00:07,040 –> 00:00:15,500 To contact us, call us at 1-877-OPEN365 or visit our website, OpenTheBible.org. 3 00:00:15,500 –> 00:00:17,160 Let’s get to the message. 4 00:00:17,160 –> 00:00:19,580 Here’s Pastor Colin. 5 00:00:19,580 –> 00:00:26,379 Will you open your Bible at 2 Corinthians 5, then as we come today to the last message 6 00:00:26,379 –> 00:00:29,500 in our series, Don’t Lose Heart. 7 00:00:29,559 –> 00:00:34,060 What has been so striking to me as we’ve gone through this series has been to realize again 8 00:00:34,060 –> 00:00:41,459 in a fresh way just how directly God speaks into all the real issues of our lives. 9 00:00:41,459 –> 00:00:47,639 I mean, think about the things that cause us to lose heart and then think about what 10 00:00:47,639 –> 00:00:51,900 we’ve seen in this one chapter of the Bible, 2 Corinthians and chapter 5. 11 00:00:51,900 –> 00:00:56,060 The difficulties of life in the body that’s rather like a tent. 12 00:00:56,220 –> 00:01:01,980 The feeling that what we do may not have lasting significance or value. 13 00:01:01,980 –> 00:01:06,820 The harsh judgments that other people may make, the criticisms that they may make about 14 00:01:06,820 –> 00:01:07,839 you. 15 00:01:07,839 –> 00:01:12,339 The disappointments that come relative to the plan you had for your life, the way that 16 00:01:12,339 –> 00:01:15,500 you thought it would be and the way it actually turned out. 17 00:01:15,500 –> 00:01:21,419 The frustrations that you have with what you are in the flesh and the limitations of your 18 00:01:21,419 –> 00:01:26,419 capacities in one way or another relative to what God has given to others. 19 00:01:26,419 –> 00:01:31,599 And then the sheer weight of evil in this lost and in this rebellious world. 20 00:01:31,599 –> 00:01:37,620 These are the things that cause us to lose heart and they are precisely the things about 21 00:01:37,620 –> 00:01:44,220 which God speaks as he tells us in this wonderful chapter how we are to handle each of them 22 00:01:44,220 –> 00:01:47,580 in such a way that we will not lose heart. 23 00:01:47,800 –> 00:01:54,620 So that’s been our series over these last weeks and today we come to a way of losing 24 00:01:54,620 –> 00:02:02,980 heart that is familiar to every person who wants to live a godly life. 25 00:02:02,980 –> 00:02:11,460 If the Holy Spirit lives in you, if you have really come truly to love God, if you have 26 00:02:11,460 –> 00:02:19,020 set your heart on living a holy life, a Godly life, a life that is pleasing to God, then 27 00:02:19,020 –> 00:02:29,460 you will often find that your own sins remaining in you as a Christian believer do much to 28 00:02:29,460 –> 00:02:36,199 cause you to lose heart and that’s the particular issue that we’re focused on as we come to 29 00:02:36,300 –> 00:02:44,699 the last verse of 2 Corinthians and chapter 5 today. Now awareness of sin is actually 30 00:02:44,699 –> 00:02:51,460 heightened in Godly people for three reasons. One is the work of the Holy Spirit, remember 31 00:02:51,460 –> 00:02:59,080 the Holy Spirit is given to convince us of sin, so he comes like a great shining light 32 00:02:59,080 –> 00:03:05,559 into our lives. When there is darkness it’s not easy to see where there is dirt, but when 33 00:03:05,559 –> 00:03:11,339 the light shines then anything that is dirty will be shown up. You can’t see if a darkened 34 00:03:11,339 –> 00:03:16,720 theater is clean or not very well. Turned on the lights and you will soon see what needs 35 00:03:16,720 –> 00:03:22,479 to be cleaned up. And so the work of the Holy Spirit is to shine a light so that those who 36 00:03:22,479 –> 00:03:28,300 know the work of the Holy Spirit in their hearts have a heightened awareness of their 37 00:03:28,300 –> 00:03:34,860 own sinfulness. Secondly people who are pursuing a Godly life have a heightened awareness of 38 00:03:34,860 –> 00:03:41,559 their own sin because of the strategy of the enemy. Remember that Satan is described in 39 00:03:41,559 –> 00:03:48,559 the Bible as the accuser of the Brothers. So what he does is he accuses Christian Brothers 40 00:03:49,679 –> 00:03:56,679 and Sisters. What that means is that he brings your sins and your failures to your mind in 41 00:03:58,220 –> 00:04:04,160 order to discourage you in the hope that you will lose heart. Now it’s worth remembering 42 00:04:04,160 –> 00:04:11,160 that this is a strategy that Satan only uses in the lives of believers. It is not in his 43 00:04:12,199 –> 00:04:17,980 interest to bring sin to the mind of an unbeliever. What he wants to do with an unbeliever is 44 00:04:17,980 –> 00:04:23,059 for an unbeliever never to think about that stuff, never to think that it actually matters 45 00:04:23,059 –> 00:04:29,200 not even to recognize it as a capacity. So it’s never in his interest to be the accuser 46 00:04:29,339 –> 00:04:35,100 of the unbeliever, but he is the accuser of the person who is in Christ. Which is why 47 00:04:35,100 –> 00:04:41,940 he is called the accuser of the brothers, the brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ. 48 00:04:41,940 –> 00:04:47,100 Now one way he does that, is that he can sometimes bring things that are long in the past back 49 00:04:47,100 –> 00:04:51,140 to your memory and you think, now that was long ago, and I’ve confessed that to the Lord, 50 00:04:51,140 –> 00:04:57,239 why is this being brought back into my mind? And it comes to your mind because of the accusation 51 00:04:57,239 –> 00:05:02,839 of the enemy who wants you to lose heart and you need to know how to answer him, when he 52 00:05:02,839 –> 00:05:07,920 works against you in this way. And then there is a third reason why there 53 00:05:07,920 –> 00:05:13,760 is a heightened awareness of sin in Godly people, and that is simply the Godly impulse 54 00:05:13,760 –> 00:05:21,380 of the new heart. When you become a Christian you are given a new heart. And the new heart 55 00:05:21,380 –> 00:05:29,660 is sensitive to sin, to its subtleties, and to its presence. That is why John in his letter 56 00:05:29,660 –> 00:05:39,839 chapter 3 in verse 20 speaks to Christians and he says whenever our hearts condemn us. 57 00:05:39,839 –> 00:05:47,140 He doesn’t say if ever our hearts condemn us, as if it was not very likely ever to happen. 58 00:05:47,160 –> 00:05:53,640 He says whenever our hearts condemn us, indicating that for a Christian believer, this will be 59 00:05:53,640 –> 00:05:59,519 something that we will struggle with. We have a new heart and the new heart loves the Lord. 60 00:05:59,519 –> 00:06:05,140 So the new heart is sensitive to the presence of sin that remains within us and therefore 61 00:06:05,140 –> 00:06:12,399 alerts us to this. And so for these three reasons put together there is a heightened 62 00:06:12,399 –> 00:06:20,420 awareness of, or sensitivity towards, sin in the life of a Christian believer, the life 63 00:06:20,420 –> 00:06:28,940 of a person who is vigorous in the pursuit of a holy or a godly life. 64 00:06:28,940 –> 00:06:35,059 Now this is one of these things that is sort of counterintuitive. You might think that 65 00:06:35,059 –> 00:06:41,779 the awareness of sin would be strongest in people who are far from God. And that people 66 00:06:41,920 –> 00:06:48,339 who are really pursuing holy lives wouldn’t have much of an issue in this regard. But 67 00:06:48,339 –> 00:06:54,339 what we are learning is that precisely the opposite is true. That the awareness of sin 68 00:06:54,339 –> 00:07:01,339 is greatest in those who are most vigorous in pursuing a holy life. Which is actually 69 00:07:01,459 –> 00:07:06,619 why when a person first becomes a Christian. I’ve often had this experience, a person becomes 70 00:07:07,119 –> 00:07:11,320 a Christian and they have a new heart, a new life and then two or three months, six 71 00:07:11,320 –> 00:07:15,399 months after that, they become a Christian. They say, you know I feel there is worse than 72 00:07:15,399 –> 00:07:20,760 ever. And they begin to talk about it. What they are saying is that I am more sensitive 73 00:07:20,760 –> 00:07:25,980 to sin within me than I ever was before. I begin to see my need of Jesus Christ. Now 74 00:07:25,980 –> 00:07:31,100 more than I ever did before. And that’s actually a mark that they are pursuing a godly 75 00:07:31,100 –> 00:07:35,519 life and the things are changing. And that there is a new heart and its wonderful and 76 00:07:35,579 –> 00:07:44,880 its beautiful and it’s from God. So it is the person who is far from God who has very 77 00:07:44,880 –> 00:07:50,899 little awareness of sin. The person who is far from God is the one who thinks that she 78 00:07:50,899 –> 00:07:56,440 is a good person, or that he is a person who is basically good at heart but just has had 79 00:07:56,440 –> 00:08:02,540 a lot of difficulties to contend with in life. The person who is far from God is the person 80 00:08:02,540 –> 00:08:07,320 that is thinking, I’m not really sure there would be much point in a sermon on the subject 81 00:08:07,320 –> 00:08:11,779 of sin, isn’t there something more practical for the church to talk about. Because it’s 82 00:08:11,779 –> 00:08:17,119 not an issue for the person who is far from God, he is not concerned about sin. Satan 83 00:08:17,119 –> 00:08:24,540 never accuses him. There is actually a sleep towards all of these things. What I am saying 84 00:08:24,679 –> 00:08:31,679 to you is that if a sense of sin in your own life is not an issue for you, you may actually 85 00:08:35,539 –> 00:08:42,539 be further from God that you think and you should be concerned about the state of your 86 00:08:43,619 –> 00:08:50,619 own soul. So today I want to speak to every person who wants to live a Godly life and 87 00:08:51,400 –> 00:08:58,400 I speak knowing that because you do want to live a Godly life that you are sensitive to 88 00:08:59,780 –> 00:09:06,780 your own sins. That you do from time to time say to yourself, now here I am a Christian 89 00:09:07,619 –> 00:09:14,619 and how can it be that these thoughts are in my mind. That you do from time to time 90 00:09:15,619 –> 00:09:21,380 say to yourself, Why have I not made more progress? Why did I speak with that sharp 91 00:09:21,380 –> 00:09:27,440 tongue? Why is it that when I know that prayer is so important and I truly love God I have 92 00:09:27,440 –> 00:09:33,700 this strange reluctance in me with regards to coming to Him in prayer? And sometimes 93 00:09:33,700 –> 00:09:38,739 you ask these questions and years down the track of being a Christian they can cause 94 00:09:39,239 –> 00:09:41,140 to 95 00:09:41,140 –> 00:09:46,619 lose heart. Now how are you going to settle your heart? How are you going to make sure 96 00:09:46,619 –> 00:09:54,099 that you don’t lose heart? As a Christian who is determined to pursue a godly life and 97 00:09:54,099 –> 00:10:03,280 yet finds that very determination brings with it a heightened awareness of your own sins? 98 00:10:03,299 –> 00:10:09,719 Well the answer to that is in the last verse of 2 Corinthians 5 verse 21. Look at it with 99 00:10:09,719 –> 00:10:22,719 me. For our sake he, that is God the Father, made him, that is God the Son, he made him 100 00:10:22,919 –> 00:10:39,780 to be sin, who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. 101 00:10:39,780 –> 00:10:48,619 One writer says of these words, there is no sentence more profound in the whole of Scripture, 102 00:10:48,619 –> 00:10:56,780 and indeed, this is the epicenter of what God has done for us in Jesus Christ. 103 00:10:56,780 –> 00:11:00,919 It’s a verse to know, and to learn, and to underline, and to be familiar with, and to 104 00:11:00,919 –> 00:11:09,119 come back to every time you are discouraged about remaining sin in your own life. 105 00:11:09,119 –> 00:11:15,000 Now, we saw last week, just to place it in context, that God has removed every barrier 106 00:11:15,159 –> 00:11:19,159 to reconciliation with men and women on His side. 107 00:11:19,159 –> 00:11:24,260 In Christ, God was reconciling the world to Himself, verse 19. 108 00:11:24,260 –> 00:11:27,840 The question is, how did He do that? 109 00:11:27,840 –> 00:11:35,000 What was it that He accomplished in and through the cross of Jesus Christ that brought about 110 00:11:35,000 –> 00:11:39,020 this great and amazing reconciliation? 111 00:11:39,020 –> 00:11:41,460 The answer is in verse 21. 112 00:11:41,599 –> 00:11:43,539 Here’s what God did at the cross. 113 00:11:43,539 –> 00:11:46,400 That’s why I call it the epicenter. 114 00:11:46,400 –> 00:11:47,539 Here’s what was happening. 115 00:11:47,539 –> 00:11:58,020 He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that in Him we might become the righteousness 116 00:11:58,020 –> 00:11:59,400 of God. 117 00:11:59,400 –> 00:12:02,619 Let’s walk through this together. 118 00:12:02,619 –> 00:12:10,059 First I want us to see why Jesus is uniquely qualified to deal with our sins. 119 00:12:10,059 –> 00:12:15,979 Why Jesus is uniquely qualified to deal with our sins. 120 00:12:15,979 –> 00:12:25,500 It says here, for our sakes, He made Him to be sin who knew no sin. 121 00:12:25,500 –> 00:12:29,780 Christ knew no sin. 122 00:12:29,780 –> 00:12:37,960 Now this was affirmed by angels, devils, and by God the Father. 123 00:12:38,000 –> 00:12:43,440 Remember how it was affirmed by angels in the announcement of the conception of Christ 124 00:12:43,440 –> 00:12:45,080 as the angel appears to Mary. 125 00:12:45,080 –> 00:12:46,080 Luke 1.35. 126 00:12:46,080 –> 00:12:51,539 The Holy Spirit will come upon you, the power of the Most High will over shadow you, the 127 00:12:51,539 –> 00:12:58,320 child to be born will be called holy, the son of God. 128 00:12:58,320 –> 00:13:02,960 When Jesus begins His ministry, there’s a man who has an unclean spirit, there’s a 129 00:13:03,020 –> 00:13:10,820 demon that is possessing him, and as Jesus comes towards this man the demon manifests 130 00:13:10,820 –> 00:13:15,419 itself, speaks through his vocal cords, and here’s what the devil says. 131 00:13:15,419 –> 00:13:18,919 What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? 132 00:13:18,919 –> 00:13:20,479 Have you come to destroy us? 133 00:13:20,479 –> 00:13:24,820 I know who you are, the Holy One of God. 134 00:13:24,820 –> 00:13:28,780 The devils know it, the angels know it. 135 00:13:29,059 –> 00:13:36,000 Jesus is the only man of whom it could be said that he is God, and Jesus is the only 136 00:13:36,000 –> 00:13:43,419 man of whom it could be said that he is holy. 137 00:13:43,419 –> 00:13:51,580 The Lord Jesus Christ was holy in his conception, holy in his nature, he was holy in his life, 138 00:13:51,580 –> 00:13:57,900 he was holy in his death, he’s confessed as holy in heaven, he’s confessed as holy in 139 00:13:57,900 –> 00:14:05,659 hell, he is confessed by his church as holy on earth, and he is confessed to be the well-pleasing 140 00:14:05,659 –> 00:14:11,659 son of God, the only son of God by the almighty Father in heaven. 141 00:14:11,659 –> 00:14:17,099 And so at his baptism, and at his transfiguration, we have these wonderful words. 142 00:14:17,099 –> 00:14:25,000 This is my beloved son with whom I am well-pleased. 143 00:14:25,000 –> 00:14:29,419 And as you go through the rest of the New Testament, it is the unanimous witness of 144 00:14:29,419 –> 00:14:35,320 the New Testament writers that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, was without sin. 145 00:14:35,320 –> 00:14:40,659 Let me remind you briefly, Hebrews, we have a high priest who’s been tempted in every 146 00:14:40,659 –> 00:14:45,520 way just as we are, yet without sin. 147 00:14:45,520 –> 00:14:55,640 The apostle Peter, speaking of Jesus, He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in His mouth. 148 00:14:55,640 –> 00:15:03,119 The apostle John, you know that he appeared in order to take sins away, and in him there 149 00:15:03,119 –> 00:15:11,119 is no sin, and here we have the apostle Paul, 2 Corinthians chapter 5 and verse 21 and he 150 00:15:11,119 –> 00:15:17,559 says of Jesus that he knew no sin. 151 00:15:17,559 –> 00:15:22,880 Now here’s why this matters, why would we take time on this to settle it in our minds, 152 00:15:22,880 –> 00:15:30,599 why does the New Testament unanimously bear witness to this very important truth, answer, 153 00:15:30,599 –> 00:15:36,119 only a person without sin of their own could be in a position to deal with the sins of 154 00:15:36,119 –> 00:15:46,119 others, only a person without sin of their own could possibly be in a position to deal 155 00:15:46,119 –> 00:15:49,559 with the sins of others. 156 00:15:49,559 –> 00:16:00,979 If it were possible for a person to bear the sins of others it could only be a person who 157 00:16:01,059 –> 00:16:07,580 was wholly through and through in and of himself. 158 00:16:07,580 –> 00:16:11,340 That’s what it would take to do it. 159 00:16:11,340 –> 00:16:17,599 And here as we’ve gone through this series we have been piling up reasons for why Jesus 160 00:16:17,599 –> 00:16:24,940 Christ is unique in his glory and is the only Lord and the only savior and why Jesus Christ 161 00:16:24,940 –> 00:16:30,599 alone can do for you what no one else or nothing else could ever do. 162 00:16:30,619 –> 00:16:35,619 For in all human history there has never been another person of whom you could say He is 163 00:16:35,619 –> 00:16:40,859 God, He is Man and He is Holy. 164 00:16:40,859 –> 00:16:46,179 And these are the three great uniquenesses of the Lord Jesus Christ combined in this 165 00:16:46,179 –> 00:16:48,239 one person. 166 00:16:48,239 –> 00:16:55,539 Because He is God he is uniquely in a position to reconcile us to the Father. 167 00:16:55,539 –> 00:17:02,419 Because He is at the same time Man He is uniquely in a position to stand with us and act for 168 00:17:02,419 –> 00:17:07,260 us as our substitute and as our representative. 169 00:17:07,260 –> 00:17:14,000 Because He is Holy He is uniquely in the position of being able to bear the sins of others who 170 00:17:14,000 –> 00:17:17,579 are not holy standing in their place. 171 00:17:17,579 –> 00:17:23,939 There is no one else of whom these things could ever be said this is the unique glory 172 00:17:24,260 –> 00:17:31,339 and position of our Savior Jesus Christ There is no one else like Him and there is no one 173 00:17:31,339 –> 00:17:38,339 else by definition who could possibly do what Jesus has accomplished on the cross. 174 00:17:38,839 –> 00:17:42,660 So when people ask you why in the world do you think that Jesus is the only way you’ve 175 00:17:42,660 –> 00:17:48,439 got yet another answer we are piling up answers in this series as we are learning more and 176 00:17:48,800 –> 00:17:55,800 about the unique glory of our Lord Jesus Christ , who He is and because of who He is what 177 00:17:55,920 –> 00:18:01,760 He was uniquely able to do. So that’s the first thing I wanted us to pick up, He is 178 00:18:01,760 –> 00:18:08,760 the one who knew no sin, the unique qualification of our Lord Jesus Christ to deal with our 179 00:18:09,199 –> 00:18:11,979 sins. And here is the second thing I want us to 180 00:18:12,280 –> 00:18:19,280 see today. How God deals with people who reconcile to Him in Jesus. How God deals with people 181 00:18:22,260 –> 00:18:29,260 who reconcile to Him in Jesus. Now look at the verse again, For our sake He God the Father 182 00:18:29,339 –> 00:18:36,339 made Him the Son to be sin, who knew no sin. So that in Him, notice that word, we might 183 00:18:37,199 –> 00:18:44,199 become the righteousness of God in Him. So what we have here is a description of what 184 00:18:45,300 –> 00:18:52,300 is true of every person who is in Jesus Christ, which is what happens when you are joined 185 00:18:52,599 –> 00:18:59,599 to Him through the bond of faith. You come to believe in Him. And in Christ, God was 186 00:19:00,099 –> 00:19:07,099 reconciling the world to Himself, and as we saw last week that is why He now stands with 187 00:19:07,839 –> 00:19:14,839 open arms and invites every person from every background to be reconciled to Him through 188 00:19:14,880 –> 00:19:21,880 His unique Son our Savior Jesus Christ. That’s why the message is, Be Reconciled to God, 189 00:19:22,880 –> 00:19:29,880 and the arms of God are stretched out to every person in Jesus Christ in this way. Now to 190 00:19:31,300 –> 00:19:38,300 those who reconcile with God, through Jesus Christ, three wonderful things are true. Here 191 00:19:38,439 –> 00:19:45,439 is how God deals with us in Jesus Christ. First thing is that God does not count your 192 00:19:46,140 –> 00:19:53,140 sins against you. And that’s in verse 19. In Christ God was reconciling the world to 193 00:19:54,640 –> 00:20:01,640 Himself not counting their trespasses against them. Now please understand this because it’s 194 00:20:06,300 –> 00:20:13,300 very important to having peace when the enemy accuses you and your own heart condemns you. 195 00:20:13,300 –> 00:20:20,300 The reason we are reconciled to God, the reason that in Christ we have peace 196 00:20:23,140 –> 00:20:30,140 with Him, is not that as Christians we have come to be without sin. It is that in Christ, 197 00:20:33,760 –> 00:20:40,760 verse 19, God does not count our sins against us. Charles Hodge, a great writer on these 198 00:20:43,300 –> 00:20:50,300 verses, says this. That if we were considered in ourselves, he is speaking of Christians, 199 00:20:51,160 –> 00:20:58,160 we are just as undeserving and hell deserving as ever. The act of justification he says 200 00:21:00,900 –> 00:21:07,900 is always an act of infinite grace. So what he is saying is, he is not denying that Christians 201 00:21:08,500 –> 00:21:14,380 grow and the Christians make progress and the godliness advances in the life of a believer. 202 00:21:14,380 –> 00:21:18,939 But what he is saying, think of it like this, if we were to take the best Christian, the 203 00:21:18,939 –> 00:21:24,060 most advanced Christian, the person who is most advanced in godliness of the congregation, 204 00:21:24,060 –> 00:21:31,060 if we were to take her or him and for a moment take that person outside of Christ and plonk 205 00:21:32,520 –> 00:21:37,859 them as it were on their own two feet to stand before God on the basis of the progress they 206 00:21:37,900 –> 00:21:43,939 have made in godliness of their own life, that person would be held deserving forever. 207 00:21:43,939 –> 00:21:49,119 Because we never advance in the Christian life to a place where we are without sin. 208 00:21:49,119 –> 00:21:55,300 It clings to us in one way or another, often hidden subtly within the very folds of our 209 00:21:55,300 –> 00:22:02,300 own flesh, within our own nature in which we are born. And the reason that you will 210 00:22:03,180 –> 00:22:08,099 And the reason that you will enter into heaven is not that you came to some place where you 211 00:22:08,099 –> 00:22:14,760 were without sin. The reason that you will enter into heaven is because in Christ, God 212 00:22:14,760 –> 00:22:21,760 does not count your sins against you. It is a wonderful and a glorious truth. In Christ, 213 00:22:24,020 –> 00:22:30,540 this is what God does and it is His marvelous gift. 214 00:22:30,540 –> 00:22:35,500 Now that raises the question, if God doesn’t count your sins against you, where do these 215 00:22:35,500 –> 00:22:42,500 sins go? Where are these sins counted on the ledger of divine justice? The answer to that 216 00:22:43,760 –> 00:22:50,760 question is in our verse, verse 21 that God counts your sin dealt with in Christ. These 217 00:22:51,599 –> 00:22:58,599 two truths wonderfully stand together. That’s why it says here, for our sake He made him 218 00:22:59,599 –> 00:23:06,599 to be sin. Jesus was made sin on the cross, and this is surely one of the most amazing 219 00:23:11,800 –> 00:23:18,800 statements of the whole Bible, that the sinless, spotless lamb of God, God the son, God in 220 00:23:19,619 –> 00:23:26,619 the flesh was made sin for us, as our sins were laid on Him. That’s exactly 2 Corinthians 221 00:23:36,699 –> 00:23:42,880 chapter five, verses 19 and 21. Why would it be that our sins are no longer 222 00:23:42,880 –> 00:23:50,500 counted against us? Answer, because they’re no longer on us! Where are they 223 00:23:50,500 –> 00:23:58,680 now? You’re in Christ and they have been laid on Him who was made sin for us, 224 00:23:58,680 –> 00:24:04,060 which is at the very heart of all that He was suffering and all that He 225 00:24:04,060 –> 00:24:11,599 was enduring on the cross. Isaiah puts it like this. Our sins were laid on Him, 226 00:24:11,660 –> 00:24:18,920 the Lord laid on Him the iniquities of us all. Horatius Boner says it like this. 227 00:24:18,920 –> 00:24:26,319 God dealt with Him, Jesus, as if He were really a sinner such as we are, treated 228 00:24:26,319 –> 00:24:32,119 Him as if all iniquity was centered in Him. The Lord laid on Him the iniquity 229 00:24:32,119 –> 00:24:38,199 of us all. He was clothed with our guilt. He bore the burden of our iniquities. In 230 00:24:38,540 –> 00:24:47,199 all respects the Father dealt with Him as guilty of our transgressions. When Satan 231 00:24:47,199 –> 00:24:56,160 brings your sins to mind, when your own heart condemns you, when you become aware 232 00:24:56,160 –> 00:25:01,760 as a Christian believer of just how far you have yet to go as a follower of 233 00:25:02,680 –> 00:25:08,219 of Jesus Christ. Remember this so that you will have peace. It’s so important so 234 00:25:08,219 –> 00:25:16,579 that you do not lose heart. Your sins were laid on Him. And I love that verse 235 00:25:16,579 –> 00:25:22,119 in 1 john chapter 1 and verse 9 you know the one that says if we confess our 236 00:25:22,119 –> 00:25:29,819 sins He is faithful, what does it say next, and just but wouldn’t you think 237 00:25:30,140 –> 00:25:34,579 that it would say he’s faithful and kind or faithful and generous to forgive us 238 00:25:34,579 –> 00:25:37,880 our sins? That’s not what it says. It says He’s 239 00:25:37,880 –> 00:25:45,420 faithful and just to forgive us our sins. Why does it say the word just? 240 00:25:45,420 –> 00:25:53,859 Because our peace with God is founded on this free gift of Grace that rests on 241 00:25:53,900 –> 00:26:01,520 the foundation of God’s justice. God has not dealt with us by sort of sweeping 242 00:26:01,520 –> 00:26:07,479 our sins under the carpet, so to speak, so that if one day the carpet was lifted 243 00:26:07,479 –> 00:26:12,000 up they might all get stirred up and coming to view again. That’s not how He’s 244 00:26:12,000 –> 00:26:17,160 done it. No, God has dealt with our sins in Jesus Christ. 245 00:26:17,920 –> 00:26:24,540 they were laid on Him. The spotless Lamb of God was made sin for us. He died in our 246 00:26:24,540 –> 00:26:33,380 place and He became the sacrifice for us. God made him who had no sin to be sin 247 00:26:33,380 –> 00:26:45,420 and he did it for us. Now friends, I’ve said that this is the epicenter of what 248 00:26:46,020 –> 00:26:52,880 accomplished in Jesus Christ at the cross, and please understand this because some 249 00:26:52,880 –> 00:26:58,560 of you read widely and you think deeply. Please understand this, that precisely 250 00:26:58,560 –> 00:27:04,920 because it is the epicenter of what God has done for us in Christ, because it is 251 00:27:04,920 –> 00:27:11,920 so important, it will always, always, always be disputed. Always! James Denney 252 00:27:12,020 –> 00:27:16,219 says this about the great truth that’s at the heart of the gospel that we’re 253 00:27:16,219 –> 00:27:21,099 looking at today. He says it’s at the heart of the gospel and just because it 254 00:27:21,099 –> 00:27:28,060 is so, it has always been felt to be critical alike by those who welcome and 255 00:27:28,060 –> 00:27:34,859 by those who reject it. You will know that there are folks out there who 256 00:27:34,859 –> 00:27:40,479 will write and who will think and will say how is it possible for guilt to 257 00:27:40,479 –> 00:27:45,359 be transferred from one to another? These are categories that no longer seem 258 00:27:45,359 –> 00:27:50,859 relevant to the modern world and so forth and so on. So let me read to you 259 00:27:50,859 –> 00:27:55,959 from Spurgeon because this really made me smile because he’s writing in the 260 00:27:55,959 –> 00:28:03,339 19th century. 19th century. I just want you to know nothing ever changes 261 00:28:03,339 –> 00:28:09,800 In the 19th century Spurgeon says this, In the church and out of the church 262 00:28:09,800 –> 00:28:14,319 there is a deadly animosity to this truth. Isn’t that interesting in the 19th 263 00:28:14,319 –> 00:28:20,719 century? Modern thought he says, that’s modern 19th century thought. Modern 264 00:28:20,719 –> 00:28:25,040 thought labors to get away from what is obviously the meaning of the Holy Spirit 265 00:28:25,040 –> 00:28:30,520 that sin was lifted from the guilty and laid on the innocent. It is written the 266 00:28:30,520 –> 00:28:37,060 Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all, that’s Isaiah 53. This is as plain 267 00:28:37,459 –> 00:28:44,300 language as can be, but if any plainer language was required here it is- He has 268 00:28:44,300 –> 00:28:51,699 made him who knew no sin to be sin for us, and then later in classic Spurgeon 269 00:28:51,699 –> 00:28:58,520 style he adds this, I do not care whether it is impossible or not with learned 270 00:28:58,520 –> 00:29:05,260 unbelievers, it is evidently possible with God for he has done it. I love that! 271 00:29:06,199 –> 00:29:12,800 That’s what the scripture is saying. This is what he’s done. Let folks crab away as 272 00:29:12,800 –> 00:29:16,260 they wish with regards to what cannot be done. 273 00:29:16,260 –> 00:29:22,099 Spurgeon says the Bible tells me this is what God has done, and friends here’s why 274 00:29:22,099 –> 00:29:29,819 this is so important and so critical for all of us. If your sins are not on Jesus 275 00:29:29,819 –> 00:29:35,020 where in the world are they? There’s only one other place that they can be if 276 00:29:35,020 –> 00:29:39,199 your sins are not on Jesus and that is on you because you’re the person who 277 00:29:39,199 –> 00:29:44,619 done them you’re the person who’s responsible for them. So if the 278 00:29:44,619 –> 00:29:49,979 transference of guilt were to be impossible redemption itself would be 279 00:29:49,979 –> 00:29:57,739 impossible and here’s the Great Good News of the gospel. That our sins when we 280 00:29:57,739 –> 00:30:04,680 are in Jesus Christ are not on us and can never be on us because they are on 281 00:30:04,680 –> 00:30:11,859 Jesus Christ and they were dealt with at the cross in full completely paid it is 282 00:30:11,859 –> 00:30:16,400 finished it is done now when you feel that you’re so discouraged about your 283 00:30:16,400 –> 00:30:21,020 lack of progress here’s where you’re going to find the ability not to lose 284 00:30:21,020 –> 00:30:26,079 heart looking up into the face of God who loves you father and son 285 00:30:26,219 –> 00:30:31,479 accomplishing your redemption in the cross through what is beautifully 286 00:30:31,479 –> 00:30:37,900 described here in 2nd Corinthians 5 in verse 21 so I love that verse of The 287 00:30:37,900 –> 00:30:44,979 Hymn it is well with my soul my sin or the bliss of this glorious thought that 288 00:30:44,979 –> 00:30:53,300 my sin not in part but the whole what happened to it its nailed to the cross 289 00:30:54,199 –> 00:31:02,160 and I bear it no more not on me nailed to the cross therefore praise the Lord 290 00:31:02,160 –> 00:31:09,099 it is well with my soul so here’s the heart of how God saves a person in Jesus 291 00:31:09,099 –> 00:31:19,540 Christ he lays your sin on Jesus and he deals with your sin in Jesus so that on 292 00:31:19,680 –> 00:31:24,099 the cross the righteous judgment that would have been yours fell on him he 293 00:31:24,099 –> 00:31:30,000 absorbed it he exhausted it and the flaming sword was broken on him as far 294 00:31:30,000 –> 00:31:38,939 as you are concerned so that you should be reconciled completely to God. how 295 00:31:38,939 –> 00:31:45,000 could any sin ever be charged to you or ever counted against you when in the 296 00:31:45,060 –> 00:31:50,160 justice of the Almighty it has already been charged against Jesus and he died 297 00:31:50,160 –> 00:32:00,660 for it God not counting our sins against us and God counting your sin dealt with 298 00:32:00,660 –> 00:32:08,260 in Christ this is the very heart of the gospel and there’s more and here’s the 299 00:32:08,260 –> 00:32:14,000 third thing third wonderful reality for every person is in Christ that God 300 00:32:14,000 –> 00:32:22,560 counts Christ’s righteousness as yours he made him to be sin who knew no sin 301 00:32:22,560 –> 00:32:35,359 so that in him we might become the righteousness of God in himself 302 00:32:35,359 –> 00:32:43,160 Jesus is the sinless Son of God but our sins were laid on him and God dealt with 303 00:32:43,319 –> 00:32:53,719 him as if he were sin itself and here we are we are in ourselves sinners but God’s 304 00:32:53,719 –> 00:33:00,119 righteousness has been draped on us because we are in Christ and so God 305 00:33:00,119 –> 00:33:10,319 deals with us as if we were righteousness itself God dealt with 306 00:33:10,319 –> 00:33:17,599 Christ as he deals with sin even though Christ is holy and God deals with us in 307 00:33:17,599 –> 00:33:26,760 Christ as he deals with righteousness even though we are sinners and in Jesus 308 00:33:26,760 –> 00:33:33,959 we become the righteousness of God I love that phrase the righteousness of 309 00:33:33,959 –> 00:33:37,040 God Paul uses it in Philippians in that 310 00:33:37,040 –> 00:33:42,619 wonderful passage where he says I want to be found in Christ same theme not 311 00:33:42,619 –> 00:33:48,420 having a righteousness of my own that comes by works of the law but that which 312 00:33:48,420 –> 00:33:55,380 is through faith in Christ the righteousness from God that depends on 313 00:33:55,380 –> 00:34:01,099 faith why faith because faith is the way in which we are bonded to Christ faith 314 00:34:01,099 –> 00:34:05,479 believing is the way in which we come to be in Christ and all these wonderful 315 00:34:05,800 –> 00:34:09,840 wonderful things are true of us in Christ when we believe when we have 316 00:34:09,840 –> 00:34:15,800 faith in Christ when we’re in Christ God not counting your sins against you God 317 00:34:15,800 –> 00:34:21,060 having dealt with your sins in Christ at the cross and God counting Christ’s 318 00:34:21,060 –> 00:34:31,000 righteousness as yours so here’s the question are you believing in Jesus the 319 00:34:31,000 –> 00:34:34,879 question is not how much progress have you made in your life as you kind of 320 00:34:34,919 –> 00:34:40,840 examine yourself internally which is an important thing to do from time to time 321 00:34:40,840 –> 00:34:45,280 when you examine yourself and sometimes you’re discouraged and you lose heart 322 00:34:45,280 –> 00:34:49,800 and the Holy Spirit lifts your mind up to Christ the question is are you 323 00:34:49,800 –> 00:34:56,879 believing in Jesus he sometimes a Christian person may say something like 324 00:34:56,879 –> 00:35:04,320 this well you know I would feel more sure about having peace with God if I 325 00:35:04,679 –> 00:35:11,919 prayed more or if I was more holy or if I had made more progress but you see at 326 00:35:11,919 –> 00:35:15,479 that point where you say well I I would have peace with God if I was further 327 00:35:15,479 –> 00:35:18,879 advanced in the Christian life you see what you’re saying you’re not at that 328 00:35:18,879 –> 00:35:23,239 point looking to be found in him with the righteousness from God what you’re 329 00:35:23,239 –> 00:35:28,500 trying to do is to is to do exactly what Paul says he did not want to do which 330 00:35:28,500 –> 00:35:32,280 is to have a righteousness of your own according to the law that’s based on 331 00:35:33,020 –> 00:35:37,379 a lot and and being more holy and and making lots of progress 332 00:35:37,379 –> 00:35:41,639 Paul says that’s exactly what I don’t want to do I want to be found 333 00:35:41,639 –> 00:35:46,520 in Christ not having a righteousness of my own but that which comes through 334 00:35:46,520 –> 00:35:52,560 faith in Jesus Christ because if I attempt to establish my own standing 335 00:35:52,560 –> 00:35:56,060 before God on my progress in the Christian life I’ll always lose heart 336 00:35:56,060 –> 00:36:00,860 always lose heart that would be true even for the Apostle Paul let alone 337 00:36:01,080 –> 00:36:08,000 folks like that’s why it’s in Christ that I know that I have peace with God 338 00:36:08,000 –> 00:36:11,840 because it’s in Christ that my sins are not counted against me it’s in Christ 339 00:36:11,840 –> 00:36:15,840 that my sins are dealt with and it’s in Christ that I am draped with the very 340 00:36:15,840 –> 00:36:24,080 righteousness of God thank God that he deals with us in Christ last couple of 341 00:36:24,080 –> 00:36:34,159 minutes just this what difference will it make in your life this week if you 342 00:36:34,159 –> 00:36:42,320 really believe these truths that we’ve been looking at today if you really 343 00:36:42,320 –> 00:36:45,600 believe what we’ve been looking at today what difference will it actually 344 00:36:45,600 –> 00:36:52,879 practically make in your life we tell you this if you really 345 00:36:52,959 –> 00:37:00,040 believe what we’ve been looking at today you will love Jesus Christ you really 346 00:37:00,040 –> 00:37:09,979 will God looks on us in Him blesses us in Him loves us in Him will glorify us 347 00:37:09,979 –> 00:37:18,080 in Him we are complete in Him we are sunk without Him and we have all things 348 00:37:18,399 –> 00:37:25,899 in Him and if you really believe that you will love Jesus Christ and the more 349 00:37:25,899 –> 00:37:30,760 you believe it the more you will love Him and you’ll no longer be in a 350 00:37:30,760 –> 00:37:36,360 position of seeing worship as sort of formal kind of a thing there’ll be a 351 00:37:36,360 –> 00:37:42,219 love for Christ that’s like a glowing fire that’s increasing in your heart 352 00:37:42,239 –> 00:37:49,479 because you really believe who He is and what He’s done and that all Your good is 353 00:37:49,479 –> 00:37:55,939 in Him and apart from Him you have no good thing and if you really believe 354 00:37:55,939 –> 00:38:02,899 this you will take sin more seriously believing this will actually lead to 355 00:38:02,899 –> 00:38:07,620 more good change in your life why because you’ll take sin seriously you’ll 356 00:38:08,300 –> 00:38:17,679 what this did to Jesus look how much God hates this and because I know believe 357 00:38:17,679 –> 00:38:21,699 what we’ve been learning from 2nd Corinthians chapter 5 in verse 21 I 358 00:38:21,699 –> 00:38:27,500 believe it I can no longer drift along n a compromised life that sort of 359 00:38:27,500 –> 00:38:31,080 accommodate certain sins that I’ve said well they’re just habitual and they’re 360 00:38:31,080 –> 00:38:36,100 just mine I can’t do that because I’ve come to love this Christ and I’ve come 361 00:38:36,100 –> 00:38:41,199 to see what sin is and there’s a new energy that will come into your life in 362 00:38:41,199 –> 00:38:47,260 the pursuit of holiness this is the extraordinary thing that when people try 363 00:38:47,260 –> 00:38:52,060 to make their pursuit of holiness the great thing that they’ll offer to God it 364 00:38:52,060 –> 00:38:56,459 actually cuts the thing at the root but when you see that all your good is in 365 00:38:56,459 –> 00:39:03,139 Jesus Christ you’re actually energized in the pursuit of holiness it’s amazing 366 00:39:04,020 –> 00:39:07,379 Here’s the third thing if you really believe this you will be reconciled to 367 00:39:07,379 –> 00:39:12,899 God because if you believe this how could you possibly go out and say I am 368 00:39:12,899 –> 00:39:19,020 not going to walk with God I am going to walk my own independent way. how could 369 00:39:19,020 –> 00:39:24,739 you possibly do that if you were to believe this? To believe that in Christ 370 00:39:24,739 –> 00:39:30,679 God was reconciling the world to himself not counting men’s sins against at them 371 00:39:31,000 –> 00:39:35,639 entrusting to us the message of reconciliation so that we are ambassadors 372 00:39:35,639 –> 00:39:40,280 for Christ and God’s making his appeal through us imploring you on behalf of 373 00:39:40,280 –> 00:39:48,560 Christ to be reconciled to God. God did all this on his side in order to be in 374 00:39:48,560 –> 00:39:53,080 this position today of reaching out to you in love and saying be reconciled to 375 00:39:53,080 –> 00:39:57,520 me there’s no reason why your sins some or all of them should be counted against 376 00:39:57,600 –> 00:40:04,520 you when Jesus Christ is provided as a savior for you a unique and a glorious 377 00:40:04,520 –> 00:40:09,340 Savior and he came and he did all this to reconcile you to God why would you be 378 00:40:09,340 –> 00:40:15,340 walking away not committed to Jesus Christ as his disciple and as a believer 379 00:40:15,340 –> 00:40:22,959 today why would you do that be reconciled to God why because for our 380 00:40:22,959 –> 00:40:36,419 sake he made him who had no sin to be sin so that in him we might become the 381 00:40:36,419 –> 00:40:42,580 righteousness of God let’s pray together 382 00:40:42,919 –> 00:40:54,060 bearing shame and scoffing rude in my place condemned he stood and he sealed 383 00:40:54,060 –> 00:41:05,020 my pardon with his blood hallelujah what a Savior Lord as we have glimpsed 384 00:41:05,020 –> 00:41:11,500 just something of the unique glory of your son our Savior the Redeemer we 385 00:41:11,500 –> 00:41:20,379 gladly confess we believe in him we love him and we come to you through him and 386 00:41:20,379 –> 00:41:27,159 because of him and our great desire is that when he shall come with trumpet 387 00:41:27,159 –> 00:41:37,699 sound O may I then in him be found dressed in his righteousness alone 388 00:41:37,840 –> 00:41:45,620 faultless to stand before your throne cuz on Christ the solid rock 389 00:41:45,620 –> 00:41:51,679 I stand all other ground is sinking sound 390 00:41:51,679 –> 00:41:55,479 here are prayers in Jesus name 391 00:41:57,300 –> 00:42:01,600 you’ve been listening to a sermon with Pastor Colin Smith of Open the Bible to 392 00:42:02,479 –> 00:42:06,439 call us up 1 877 open 365 393 00:42:06,439 –> 00:42:13,459 or visit our website openthebible.org