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[0:00] This is the First Mustang Pulpit Podcast, a podcast of the weekly preaching and teaching at First Mustang.! Thank you for joining us. There's a two-year Bible training program for men.

[0:32] They don't have to go to our church. We've got four or five different churches represented currently as active students. We've got students in high school.

[0:44] We've got men who have graduated in their 80s. We've got men who are students who are new believers. We've got graduates of men who are retired pastors who have been through seminary and preached for decades.

[0:59] And so, we've got a whole gamut of men who have been and are currently a part of the Institute. We've got 75 men who have graduated.

[1:10] Next Sunday morning, as a part of our evening service, we'll have our graduation for the class of 2023. We've got 27 men who will be graduating next Sunday.

[1:21] And so, I want to invite any man in our church of any age to the interest meeting next Sunday. The interest meeting is a no commitment kind of a thing.

[1:32] If you go to the meeting, it doesn't mean that you're signing up to enroll. But at that meeting next Sunday at 4 in the Fellowship Center, I'll show you a sample syllabus from our most recent course.

[1:44] I'll walk you through the two-year program, all the courses that we'll cover, give you an idea for what the workload is all about. Also, today, right out here in this lobby at the Ministry Connection table, we've got a number of handouts that you can grab there.

[2:00] It will answer a bunch of questions for you. So, if you've thought about it, you've considered it, someone's mentioned to you about the Institute, I want to encourage you gentlemen to come and be a part of at least the meeting next Sunday.

[2:13] No strings attached. If it's not for you that in the right season, no problem. But if you have any interest, I'd love to encourage you to come and be a part of that. After next Sunday, we will cross over 100 men who have graduated and completed the Institute.

[2:30] And so, I'm really proud of all of those men and excited for next Sunday. It's going to be a great, great day next Sunday morning. Ladies, for you, make note of Tuesday, May the 2nd.

[2:43] That's our next Ladies' Night of Theology. It's in this sanctuary from 630 to 830. And we will have maybe 450 women who are generally here a part of that.

[2:56] It just gets larger each time. And that's for any lady of any age from anywhere. If you've got a friend that you think would enjoy a night of theology and Bible study, encourage them to come with you.

[3:08] All you need is a Bible and a pen. We come here at 630. I'll teach for an hour. We'll take a 10-minute break. We'll come back and do a second hour. And we'll get done around 830.

[3:21] Some of the leaders of our ladies' ministry are providing some snacks and refreshments afterwards. Just a time for ladies to get a chance to talk and get to know each other. We've got so many ladies who are coming to be a part of that.

[3:32] We want to continue to try to encourage and foster relationships and helping people get to know each other. We've got ladies that come to that that are in their 90s every time. We've got teenagers and even younger that come to that.

[3:45] So, any lady of any age, two weeks from this Tuesday, ladies' night of theology. So, ladies, mark that down. And then finally, for all of you, tonight we resume our evening service.

[3:59] We've taken the last couple of weeks off. We had Family Matters dinner. And then last week was, of course, Easter holiday. But tonight we begin again our evening service at 5.

[4:10] On Sunday nights we're studying through the armor of God in Ephesians 6. And I think you'll really enjoy what we're looking at tonight. I think you'll learn something, perhaps to see something that will be really an encouragement, a help to you.

[4:25] We'll have a testimony from one of our college students. We'll be singing together as well. So, if you can, come back at 5 o'clock tonight. Be a part of our evening service. It's always a wonderful way to end our Lord's Day together.

[4:38] Mark chapter 8. We looked last Sunday and considered three questions. One, what will people do with Jesus?

[4:51] Jesus asked His disciples, who do people say that I am? And they answered and said, some say you are John the Baptist, others Elijah.

[5:02] Some say you're one of the prophets. Matthew tells us that some were saying He was Jeremiah. And then Jesus turns and He asked the apostles this collective question, but who do you say that I am?

[5:17] What do you believe about me? And immediately, Peter jumps out and speaks for the group. And he says, you are the Christ, the Son of the living God.

[5:33] And then we looked at a third question, and that is, what will Jesus do for you? And that comes in Mark chapter 8, verse 31.

[5:44] I want to pick up this morning with the verse that we left off with last week. I want us to consider verse 31 again, as we look this morning at verse 31 to 33, with the message entitled, When Sincerity Is Condemned.

[6:02] When Sincerity Is Condemned. And I want to show you three things in this text specifically. Let me read it for you to get it said in front of your minds this morning.

[6:13] Mark 8, verse 31. And He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes and be killed, and after three days rise again.

[6:28] And He said this plainly. And Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him. But turning and seeing His disciples, He rebuked Peter and said, Get behind me, Satan, for you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.

[6:51] This is quite a quick turn of events. I mean, the conversation where we left off last week in verse 29, Peter rightly says, You are the Christ.

[7:06] Matthew's Gospel adds that Peter says, You are the Son of the living God. And just a few verses later, we have Jesus saying to Peter, Get behind me, Satan.

[7:17] That didn't take long. What's going on? Well, let's look at three things. First, the purpose of Jesus is clear.

[7:31] The purpose of Jesus is clear. This is from verse 31. It says, He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things.

[7:42] Son of Man was Jesus' most preferred way to refer to Himself. It's used over 80 times in the New Testament. That term, Son of Man, comes from Daniel chapter 7, where it says that you will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven.

[7:59] And Jesus says, He must suffer many things. He must. The word here is day.

[8:11] He must. It's imperative. It's necessary. It must happen. It's binding. It's what that word means. And as we looked at last week, there are several things He must do.

[8:24] One, He must suffer many things. He's going to suffer betrayal. He's going to suffer arrest. He's going to suffer illegal trials.

[8:35] He's going to be scourged. He's going to be mocked. He's going to be cursed. He's going to suffer many things. And He's going to be rejected.

[8:46] As I told you last week, this is a technical term that refers to legal scrutiny. People are going to hear the evidence, and though the trials are illegal, and though the whole thing is really just a charade, He's going to officially be rejected.

[9:05] It says specifically in verse 31, by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes. These are the groups that make up the Sanhedrin. The Sanhedrin in first century is the supreme court of the land.

[9:22] The elders were the lay leaders. The chief priests were the priestly aristocracy. The scribes were the most influential experts in the law.

[9:36] And they are going to reject Him. But as I mentioned last week, I'll say again today, rejection of the world does not kill the mission.

[9:51] The Lord Jesus said, I will build my church, and the gates of hell will not prevail against it. The rejection of the world does not, will not, cannot kill the mission.

[10:02] The rejection of the Lord is the king of the Lord. So, His purpose is clear. He's going to suffer. He's going to be rejected. And third, He will be killed. He's not just going to die.

[10:14] Jesus isn't going to die of a heart attack. He's not going to die of natural causes. It's not just that He's going to die. He's going to be killed. He's going to be the suffering servant.

[10:25] And praise God, as we celebrated last week on Resurrection Sunday, the end of verse 31, and after three days, rise again.

[10:37] And this is really the good news for us, that the resurrection of Jesus Christ impacts us every single day. Not just one Sunday a year. Not just because of tradition or holiday.

[10:50] But because the truth of the death and the resurrection of Jesus Christ has impacted us. It's changed us. It's transformed us. It's gripped our very heart.

[11:05] And the answer to the question of why in our nation, seven days ago, were so many churches filled to capacity, and today it won't be the case?

[11:25] Why is that? Why is it that seven days ago, every church in our state had the highest attendance they'll have all year?

[11:39] And today, no one will boast about their attendance. Why is that? Well, it's because the tradition of the holiday stirs people's emotions.

[12:01] But the message of the resurrection has not transformed their heart. Now, don't get me wrong. Let me be really, really clear. I'm not saying that anyone who's not at church day that was here last week doesn't love Jesus.

[12:14] There's all kinds of reasons somebody may not be here today. But it's not a strange thing that church attendance on Easter Sunday every day swells, and the Sunday after Easter is drastically different.

[12:32] Now, I'm a little strange for a lot of reasons. Here's one of them. One of my favorite Sundays of the year is a Sunday after Easter. This is my Sunday. Because this is our church.

[12:48] And I am thankful for anyone who comes. I'd rather preach to 1,500. I'd rather preach to 2,000, 1,000. I'll preach as many people as we can fit in here. But what we have to understand is just like in Jesus' day, huge crowds would gather for a time.

[13:10] And then many left. Why is that? Well, because the emotion of the miracles of Jesus stirred them.

[13:20] But the message did not transform them because they did not believe. And what we see even in our culture today is that when Jesus says, I'm going to be killed, and after three days I'm going to rise again, once a year, when we celebrate Easter, everybody comes.

[13:42] And that's great. They're welcome here. I'm glad they came. I'm excited for next Easter. The more, the merrier. But what's the difference between Easter Sunday and the Sunday after Easter?

[14:00] For one, the emotion of the holiday stirs them. For the other, the message of the resurrection has transformed them.

[14:16] And it's imperative that you understand the purpose and the message of Jesus. And by the way, don't be discouraged that the Sunday after Easter is smaller.

[14:30] Don't be discouraged by that. Don't be discouraged that there are certain times of the year when people come and other times where not as many people come. Don't be discouraged that there's some seasons of your ministry that your class is doing well and other seasons that it's low.

[14:48] That's just the way life and ministry really is. It's the way it was for Jesus. There were times where Jesus was doing ministry, and there were so many people there, they couldn't fit them all in.

[14:59] And other times when He's hanging on the cross and there's nobody there. Don't be surprised by that. Don't be discouraged by that. Just remember that our message and our mission is the same as Jesus, and that is to proclaim that Christ has died for our sin and was raised back to life, and all who would believe in Christ shall be saved.

[15:25] And you proclaim that message in season and out of season. And you proclaim that message when people are saved, and you proclaim that message when people call you a fool.

[15:39] You stay faithful. Verse 32 said, He said this plainly. No illustrations. No parables.

[15:51] Just plain speech. I'm going to suffer. I'm going to be rejected. I'm going to be killed. And I'm going to rise again.

[16:03] Now they are in Caesarea Philippi. They're about to make the hundred mile journey to Jerusalem. And in the next several months, the events of the cross will take place.

[16:17] So Jesus has made His purpose clear. His purpose is to suffer, to be rejected, to be killed, and to rise again. That's His purpose. And Peter has made his profession clear.

[16:31] You are the Christ, the Son of the living God. God. Which makes, secondly, the pride of Peter confusing.

[16:44] The pride of Peter is confusing. He's just said, you are the Christ, the Son of the living God. And then, verse 32, Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him.

[17:05] What a terrible idea. To rebuke the Son of God. And what makes this so confusing is this is just right after he's made this strong confession that Christ is the Son of the living God.

[17:22] And Matthew 16 tells us Jesus' reply to Matthew's confession. So let me put it all together so you can get a sense of how the whole conversation takes place.

[17:37] Who do you say that I am? You are the Christ, the Son of the living God. Then Jesus says, this is Matthew 16, Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven.

[17:55] And I tell you, you are Peter. And on this rock I will build my church. And the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven.

[18:07] And whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven. And whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. And then Jesus says, I'm going to suffer many things.

[18:18] I'm going to be rejected. I'm going to be killed. And on the third day I'm going to rise again. And then Peter puts his arm around Jesus and begins to lead Him off away from the group.

[18:30] And he begins to rebuke Him. It's the same word used in chapter 8 verse 30 where it says, He strictly charged them not to tell anyone.

[18:47] Same word used here that Peter began to rebuke Him. Peter is strictly charging. Peter is rebuking Him. The word means to chide, to censure, to rebuke, and to reprimand.

[19:04] Far be it from you, Lord. This shall never happen. Matthew's gospel tells us.

[19:16] This will not happen. Peter makes it very plain and very clear. He is not on board with this plan. Puts his arm around him perhaps.

[19:30] Leads him away from the group. And with the same boldness and confidence and sincerity with which he said, You are the Christ, the Son of the living God. He now says to Jesus, This will not happen.

[19:47] Now notice what Jesus does not say in reply. He doesn't say, Oh really? You don't think this is a good plan? Well maybe we should do it a different way.

[20:01] That's not what he says. Peter goes on record that he's good with the man of Jesus, but he's not on board with the mission of Jesus.

[20:14] He's good with the person of Jesus. He is not on board with the plan of Jesus. As one pastor put it when he was speaking of this and of the disciples, he said, They just don't get it, do we?

[20:34] They just don't get it. And yet we see that in our own selves where we say, I love Jesus the person, but I'm not sure about his plan. You ever thought that in your own life? Jesus, I trust you to be my Savior.

[20:46] I'm just not sure I agree with you in the timing of how you're doing things. I believe, Jesus, that you are the Redeemer for my soul. I'm just not convinced that the trial you've brought into my life was a good idea.

[21:01] Jesus, I trust you with all of my eternity, but I just think that you're moving too slow. They just don't get it, do we?

[21:18] Why does Peter argue with the will of God? I mean, verse 31 is the entire hope of the gospel.

[21:29] The Son of Man is going to suffer. He's going to be rejected. He's going to be killed. But it doesn't end there. He's going to rise again. That's the hope. That's the victory. That's where we see our salvation secured.

[21:42] And yet Peter says, I rebuke you. I chastise you. I'm censuring you. This will not happen. Why does Peter revolt against the will and the plan of God?

[21:59] And the best I can come up with is the same reason that we do. Because in our weak moments, we think we know best.

[22:16] Because we think that what's best for us is to never suffer. We think what's best for us is to always have things worked out our way in our time.

[22:30] We think what's best for us is to have things the way that we most desire them to be. And when God doesn't do what we wanted, and when He doesn't move in the way that we expected, and when He doesn't answer prayer in the timing that we most request and desire, we, like Peter, have a tendency to question the very will and purpose of God.

[22:53] But right after Jesus makes His purpose clear, the very next thing to rise to the surface is the pride of Peter. Can you imagine the scene?

[23:07] You are the Christ, the Son of the living God. And His next words? No, no, no, no, no.

[23:17] No. This isn't going to happen, Jesus. I know a better way. When we read it in the life of Peter, we just shake our head and think, what is wrong with Him?

[23:36] But my guess is you could look at your own life and see how this same kind of attitude comes to the surface so quickly. God, I love you.

[23:47] God, I trust you. You want me to do what? God, I believe you're the maker of heavens and earth. I believe you can do all things.

[23:59] I don't know if I trust you in this detail of my life. Which brings us to a third thing that we see in this text. It's the most hurtful of all, and that is that the plan of Satan is condemned.

[24:18] The plan of Satan is condemned. Verse 32, He said this plainly, and Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him.

[24:30] Matthew adds that Peter said, this will never happen to you. Verse 33, Notice that word.

[24:48] Peter rebuked Jesus, and then Jesus rebukes Peter. He says, Peter, you got that out of your system?

[25:00] Now let me speak plainly to you. And he said, get behind me, Satan.

[25:19] If you're looking for an explanation that softens those words, it's not in the text. It's that forceful. The question is, what is the plan of Satan that's being condemned?

[25:34] I want to show you two things from the text of what the plan of Satan is that's being condemned. Number one, the plan of Satan is to be a hindrance to the purpose of Jesus.

[25:48] So go back to verse 31, our first point, the purpose of Jesus is clear. The purpose is to suffer, to be rejected, to be killed, and to rise again.

[26:01] The plan of Satan is to be a hindrance to that purpose. We know that because in Matthew's gospel, chapter 16, verse 23, Jesus adds this sentence, you are a hindrance to me.

[26:16] Get behind me, Satan. You are a hindrance to me. When Peter tries to get Jesus to go against the Father's will, Jesus' response is, what you're trying to get me to do to escape the suffering, escape the cross, is a hindrance to the purpose of Jesus.

[26:39] Jesus. We need to understand that when we do not obey the Lord, we are a hindrance to the gospel work.

[26:51] That does not mean that our resistance calls into question the success of the mission. Jesus already made it clear, the gates of hell will not prevail.

[27:03] But, when you do not obey the Lord, in the Lord's way, in the Lord's timing, you miss the joy of being a part of the kingdom work.

[27:15] Verse 33, go back to verse 33 again, but turning and seeing his disciples, what does that mean? Well, Peter has kind of pulled Jesus away from the crowd. Peter's the spokesman, and he kind of pulls Jesus away from the crowd.

[27:31] Why? Because he's rebuking him. Now, I do want you to see this in Peter. Peter is sincere, and I think you can even see that Peter's trying to be a bit gracious.

[27:52] He doesn't confront Jesus so much publicly. He pulls him aside, and Jesus turned, and he saw the disciples.

[28:03] So, we don't know how far he takes him aside. We don't know how far away the disciples are, but they're right there within eyeshot, and so, it says Jesus turned, and he saw his disciples.

[28:17] This could mean one of two things. Either, Jesus knows that Peter is speaking on behalf of the whole disciples, and so, he's going to answer Peter, and by so doing, he's looking at the disciples to answer their objection as well.

[28:34] Or, what it may mean is that Jesus knows this is just Peter's reply, but he knows the apostles have heard it, and he wants to make sure that just as they heard Peter's rebuke, so they hear the correction that Jesus gives to Peter.

[28:50] Turning and seeing his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, get behind me, Satan. Now, Jesus is not implying here that Peter is indwelt by Satan.

[29:05] He's not implying that he is possessed by Satan. What he's saying is that what you are doing is the exact strategy of the devil.

[29:20] Now, why do I say that? Because in Matthew chapter 4, we have the account of the temptation of Jesus in the wilderness, where three times the devil tries to tempt Jesus to sin.

[29:38] What was his goal in that? He says, turn these stones to bread. There's nothing wrong with eating bread. What he was trying to get Jesus to do was to not trust the Father's provision.

[29:49] then he says, bow down to me and I'll give you all the kingdoms of the world. What he's trying to get Jesus to do is to look for glory without the cross.

[30:06] Because if there's no cross, there's no salvation. salvation. The very purpose of Satan in the wilderness was to try to entice Jesus to receive the glory but evade the suffering, which was exactly what Peter was saying.

[30:34] Jesus said, I'm going to suffer. I'm going to be rejected. I'm going to be killed. And Peter pulls him aside and says, no, no, no. This will not happen. You will not suffer the cross.

[30:46] It was the exact strategy that the devil tried to employ in the wilderness. Jesus recognizing that what Peter is voicing and speaking is the exact same thing the devil spoke to him says, get behind me, Satan.

[31:11] Peter wants Jesus to forego the cross. He wants him to wear a crown without a cross. Same thing the devil offered. But if that happens, there's no salvation. Peter was not prepared for the high demands that it would take for Jesus Christ to redeem sinners.

[31:44] But Peter was sincere. He was sincere. He really did not want Jesus to suffer.

[31:55] He did not want Jesus to be rejected. He did not want to think about a suffering Messiah. He didn't want to think about the Son of the Living God being put to death on a cross and scrutinized and rejected and cursed and hated and scourged.

[32:15] I think his intentions were good. But even in his sincerity and his zealousness, it is no excuse for sin.

[32:27] even when a person is sincere, their sincerity is condemned if they're trusting in the wrong thing or the wrong person.

[32:43] Peter thought he knew a better way. and Jesus says, get behind me, Satan.

[32:57] I've heard this before. I've faced this temptation before. I did not give in to it in the wilderness.

[33:10] I'm not giving in to it here today. get behind me. Fall in rank. Peter, you're not first.

[33:22] You're not leading the charge. You're not calling the shots. You get behind me. You fall in your proper place. I'm leading the way.

[33:37] And where Jesus was leading them was to Jerusalem. and in a few months to a cross.

[33:51] And if they're going to execute the leader, the followers know what's coming. Which is why, as we'll look at next Sunday, Jesus says one of the hardest statements ever recorded.

[34:16] Because those who are going to follow Jesus must be willing to lose everything. The plan of Satan that was condemned first was to hinder the purpose of Jesus and second, and I want you to notice this, the plan of Satan is to influence you to set your mind on things of this world.

[34:38] world. He wants to influence you to set your mind on things of this world. I want you to look carefully at verse 33. This is a part of the conversation that's often overlooked or just missed altogether.

[34:52] Get behind me, Satan, for you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.

[35:02] you're thinking about the world, Jesus says. You're thinking of things from a worldly perspective.

[35:15] You're viewing life how people in the world, unconverted people, see things. If you're not a believer, it just, it makes no sense.

[35:26] Why would you risk your life for the gospel? If you think you're going to live 80 years and then that's it, why in the world would you sacrifice on this earth? If you don't believe in eternity, it makes no sense.

[35:40] If you don't believe there's real treasures in heaven, and you don't believe the kingdom is the greatest joy, why are you voluntarily giving up your hard earned money to give to the Lord through his church?

[35:54] Why are you risking being hated and ostracized by speaking out in the gospel? Why are you going on a mission trip and using vacation time to go on a mission trip?

[36:07] You could do something far better with that. That's how the world sees it. Why don't you just let everybody believe what they want, say what they want, live how they want? Why would you ever call something sin?

[36:20] Don't you know that the world doesn't want to hear that? It's going to cost you friendship, it's going to cost you prestige, it may cost you your job, and one day may cost you your life?

[36:34] And Jesus says when you think like that, when you think just like the world, you're thinking like the devil.

[36:51] now we don't usually see it that way. We think we're just being realistic.

[37:05] We say, you know what, I could share the gospel with my friend, but if I share the gospel with my friend, and they're going to reject, it's going to make things odd, it's going to put tension between us, I don't want to do that, so I'm just not going to say anything.

[37:17] My co-worker asked me what I really believe about the Bible, and if I tell the truth, they're going to think I'm narrow-minded, I'm going to get ostracized at work, everyone's going to laugh at me, I'm just going to play it safe, I'm just being realistic.

[37:38] But that's not what Jesus says. Jesus says when you put your own perspective ahead of the revealed word of God, you're thinking like the world, and that whole system of thought comes straight from hell.

[38:04] Not my words, Jesus' words. He says get behind me Satan because Peter's thinking like the devil, because he's talking about all kinds of wickedness and evil and murdering people, no, because he's thinking like the world.

[38:29] And when you think like the world, Jesus says you think like the devil. Get behind me Satan.

[38:47] This may help us to understand why our disobedience is such a big deal. I mean, I just raised my voice at my wife, but she made me mad.

[39:01] I just disobeyed my parents, but I don't like the rule anyway. I just took a little bit from my office and stole a little bit, but they don't pay me enough anyway.

[39:13] They owe me more. I just broke the law, but I don't really like the government leaders anyway. we can do it so easily.

[39:27] We justify our disobedience. And when we say we'll do it our way, not God's way, the word says you're thinking like the world, and the systems of the world come from the devil.

[39:50] And so Jesus pulls no punches and says you get behind me Satan. I'll lead, you get in place. Our sin is that big of a deal.

[40:09] Let me just show you one last thing really, really fast. Turn to Romans chapter three. Romans chapter three. Because the question comes down to this.

[40:23] Was Peter right? Peter's saying there's a different way. We don't have to go to the cross. We don't have to be rejected. We don't have to suffer.

[40:34] We don't have to be killed. There's a different way. The question is, is there? Could there have been salvation without the cross?

[40:50] Could there have been redemption without the crucifixion? Romans chapter three, verse 23. For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God and are justified by his grace as a gift through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation.

[41:16] That big word means he satisfied God's wrath. God put Christ forward as a propitiation, as an offering that satisfies the wrath of God by his blood to be received by faith.

[41:33] So, we've all sinned, we've all fallen short of the glory of God. God puts Christ forward publicly to be our propitiation. He's going to bear in his body the price, the cost of our sin.

[41:50] Go back to the text, verse 25. This was to show God's righteousness because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins.

[42:05] Like who? Like David and Abraham and Ruth and John the Baptist and Jacob and Isaiah and Habakkuk and Haggai and the other believers who lived lived before the cross.

[42:45] God had passed over their sin. What's the problem with that? Well, the problem is that speaks a lot of God's mercy, but it calls his holiness into question.

[43:03] If a perfect, holy, righteous God can just forgive sin and there's no payment, no sacrifice, no atonement, we may speak well of his mercy, it speaks poorly of his holiness.

[43:20] And so, scripture clarifies in verse 26, it was, this is the cross, the crucifixion, it was to show his righteousness at the present time so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

[43:48] He put his son forward because he's been passing over sin and that sin must be paid for. If it's not paid for, he's not just.

[44:01] You cannot by definition have a holy God who is not just. And so those sins that have been passed over must be fully atoned.

[44:15] And so God put Christ forward to be our propitiation, satisfies God's wrath for our sin so that God could display both his mercy and his holiness.

[44:31] If you have a judge in America who routinely lets murderers and criminals go free and went a step further and rewarded their behavior with a gift, you might think that judge was a very nice man, but you would demand he be removed from the bench as a judge because you would say he has no justice.

[44:59] And so God puts Christ forward so that he would be both just and the justifier.

[45:11] He would have perfect holiness and redeem sinful humanity. As Psalm 85 verse 10 expresses, loving kindness and truth have met together, righteousness and peace have kissed each other and that is exemplified on the cross where you see God's absolute demand of holiness in his absolute work of mercy and grace.

[45:46] Yes, Jesus had to die for our sin. He must suffer and I must be rejected and I must be killed and I must rise again.

[46:12] It was true. He must. And I'll leave you with this this morning. Did Peter learn his lesson?

[46:25] Make note of 1 Peter chapter 2. Later in his life, let me tell you what Peter would say. For to this you have been called because Christ also suffered for you, leaving an example so that you might follow in his steps.

[46:46] He committed no sin. Neither was deceit found in his mouth. When he was reviled, he did not revile in return. When he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly.

[47:02] He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree that we might die to sin and live to righteousness by his wounds.

[47:16] you have have been healed. It's the words of the same man who pulled Jesus aside and said this will never happen.

[47:31] Then the cross, then the resurrection, and then Peter fully understood this is why he must die for sinners who questioned his will just like me.

[47:55] And so today, my friends, as Romans 3 reminds us, we are all sinners, all have sinned, and all have fallen short of the glory of God.

[48:07] and the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is everlasting life through Jesus Christ.

[48:23] Would you today look upon Christ and believe in his name? Would you today acknowledge your sin and acknowledge his redemption and receive his salvation?

[48:47] Would you today say, God, have mercy on me, a sinner? Would you today receive his free gift by faith?

[49:06] God, he saved Peter, he saved Peter, he can save you.

[49:18] Would you trust yourself to the one who died and was raised to life? Lord, we thank you for your word today.

[49:32] I pray that it would help us to understand I pray that if I said anything that was unclear or anything confusing that it would be quickly forgotten.

[49:44] I pray that your Holy Spirit would come and help my words to be understood, that they would be helpful and that we would call upon the name of the Lord and be saved for any in this room that do not know you today as their Savior.

[50:00] for those who are believers give us faith to trust you not only for salvation but for the details of our life for the times when we would metaphorically put our arm around you and pull you aside and say but I know better I have a better way I have a better plan I have a better timing Lord you know all things and you do all things well help us please to trust not only for your gift of salvation but for even the smallest detail of our life in Jesus name amen if we can help you church would you take that connection card and let us know your need you have a prayer need you have a question about the

[51:00]  Christian life you need someone to follow up with you would you make note of that drop it in one of the giving boxes on your way out let us follow up with you and help you and serve you any way that we can hope you'll come back at five o'clock tonight as we study the armor of God from Ephesians So it as as as as as as as as as as as as as as as as as as as as as as as as as as as as as as as as as as as as as as as as as as as as as as as as as as as as as as as