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good evening everyone just just one announcement a reminder that an email went out with regards to the change of the date for the youth gathering for December it is December the 11th now so if you'll send the email out again 630pm December 11th i will send another email out though this week just reminding everybody for for those who are who are able to attend so it's 630 the 11th at Jeremy and Jules house that's right but another reminder email will go out so thank you well let's begin our worship by turning in our Bibles please to the Book of Isaiah our call to worship this evening will be a reading from the book of Isaiah and chapter 9 Isaiah 9 beginning in verse 1 the Word of God nevertheless the gloom will not be upon her who is distressed as when at first he lightly esteemed the land of Zebulun in the land of nafta life and afterward more heavily oppressed her by the way of the sea beyond the Jordan in Galilee of the Gentiles the people who walked in darkness have seen a great light those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death upon them a light has shined you have multiplied the nation and increased its joy they rejoice before you according to the joy of harvest as men rejoice when they divide the spoil for you have broken the yoke of his burden and the staff of his shoulder the rod of his oppressor as in the day of Midian for every warrior sandal from the noisy battle and garments ruled in blood will be used for burning and fuel of fire for unto us a child is born unto us a son is given and the government will be upon his shoulder and his name will be called wonderful counselor mighty God everlasting father Prince of Peace of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end upon the throne of David and over his kingdom to order it and establish it with judgment and justice from that time forward even forever the zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this amen well let's stand and sing our hymn is going to be him number 400 that's him number 400 let's stand and we'll sing that together Oh you please be seated let's go to God in prayer let us pray Heavenly Father we rejoice we can gather together in the house of God for the worship of the triune God and we thank you that now second time we can do so in liberty and freedom we rejoice in that mercy given to us and that kindness that we can come in from out of the world gathering together in liberty as the Saints of Christ for your worship and we do pray that all of us would count that a high and heavy honor we pray that you would help us as we now gather to hallow your name that we would rightly give you all on or in all praise we rejoice in salvation by such a Christ by such a savior we know that you did send him in the fullness of the times to come into this world sinners to save and we rejoice in that truth we sing the praises of a righteousness that avails with you that righteousness which does not come through the law but that righteousness which is Christ's imputed to us and received by faith alone we thank you for that perfect workup on Calvary's tree we rejoice knowing that the Lord Jesus Christ for his people took our sins in his own body on the tree that we having died to sin might live for righteousness by His stripes we are healed and we rejoice in that perfect salvation wrought upon Calvary's tree for all those who believe in him we rejoice in his resurrection in his ascension in his current session at your right hand is the Risen an exalted King we do pray that we would rejoice in the fact that he does ever live to intercede for us that that bleeding sacrifice stands before the throne and pleading the merits of his blood and the perfection of his saving sacrifice we do pray that you'd help us too what I'll be washed too fresh in the blood of the Savior we might have the forgiveness of sins knowing that we do have that through our advocate the Lord Jesus Christ and we pray that you would empower us by your spirit to now worship you are right and to go into this upcoming week living in light of the gospel seeking to do those things which are acceptable in your sight for your glorious sake and so that the enemy might not have cause to reproach the gospel in the word of the Living God we do pray that you would be again with all those who need prayer for physical things illness sickness disease injury surgery recovery for medical procedures we as well pray for all those who are with child we do pray that you just strengthen all of these Lord God and cause them to know strength of body that growth and health and that they would give you honor and glory in all things we do pray for those unable to join us or traveling that you would watch over them strengthen them and cause them to rejoice in their God and in his Christ and we do pray that you'd be again with the persecuted Church as we do always pray and always ought to pray for them our brothers and sisters in Christ around the world you would strengthen those that are persecuted the weather in chains or whether in their homes wherever they may be is the recipients of violence and persecution that you would cause them to know the courage and the confidence that is in the risen Christ and in their living and true God we do pray that you would daily give them all that they need to face their opposers and to face hardship and to do so unto your glory we do pray God that you would again be over the nations of the world we know that the hearts of the Kings are in your hands your hands and we do pray that you would just cause your will to be done in all the earth as it is done in heaven we would ask God that you would vindicate your name in the earth raising up rulers who seek to rule right and casting down those who would rule in wickedness in an error we do pray that you would cause your spirit to go forth with the preached word throughout the earth that you would save sinners unto your glory in that each and every Lord's Day and truly even each and every day where the gospel is and where you send your spirit that the newly redeemed tongues would sing the praises of our Christ and that you would cause more and more each day to come to a knowledge of the blessed Savior we pray that you would be with us now as we worship again for the preacher that you would strengthen him help him in this Paul to proclaim well the things of your word we pray that you would give him what he needs to engage in that act of worship the preaching of the word and that we might hear well that your Saints might be well instructed that sinners would be saved and again father that everything we do this evening would be done unto the praise of your Most High name we pray in the name of our Savior the Lord Jesus Christ amen well our last him then before their preaching a reminder that we do have the lord's supper tonight so it's a shortened introduction or a shortened first things of worship prior to the word you can stand with me and sing to 23 and then we will have the preaching of the word of God let's stand and sing to 23 together you in your Bibles to Galatians chapter 3 Galatians chapter 3 our focus tonight is actually chapter 4 verses 4 to 7 it's always unwise just to drop into a particular section of Scripture without understanding the context and essentially what Paul is doing here is contrasting or not contrasting but showing rather the relationship between the Old Covenant and the New Covenant I sort of mentioned some things about that this morning that is precisely what's in view here in chapter 3 at the end all the way through chapter 4 and with a specific reference the Judaizers who had plagued the Churches of Christ had come and said that the people of God it was good for them to have believed the gospel but they also needed to be circumcised in order to be counted among the people of God so Paul is highlighting the reality that the Old Covenant is now gone it has become obsolete the New Covenant is in place and so those ceremonies that were attached to the Old Covenant are no longer binding essentially that's what he does in this first section I'll pick up reading in verse 19 of chapter 3 where he deals with the purpose of the law and in terms of Paul's use of law in this section he's probably referring to the Mosaic Covenant the Old Covenant and specifically with reference to the ceremonies in that Mosaic Covenant so beginning in verse 19 what purpose then does the law serve it was added because of transgressions till the seed should come to whom the promise was made and it was appointed through angels by the hand of a mediator now a mediator does not mediate for one only but God is one is the law then against the promises of God certainly not for if there had been a law which could have which given which could have given life truly righteousness would have been by the law but the scripture has confined all under sin that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe but before faith came we were kept under guard by the law kept for the faith which would afterward be revealed therefore the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ that we might be justified by faith but after faith has come we are no longer under a tutor for you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus for as many of you as were baptized into Christ to put on Christ there is neither Jew nor Greek there is neither slave nor free there is neither male nor female for you are all one in Christ Jesus and if you are Christ then you are Abraham's seed and heirs according to the promise now I say that the air as long as he as a child does not differ at all from a slave though he has master of all but his under guardians and stewards until the time appointed by the Father even so we when we were children were in bondage under the elements of the world but when the fullness of the time had come God sent forth his son born of a woman born under the law to redeem those who are under the law that we might receive the adoption as sons and because you are sons God has sent forth the spirit of his son into your hearts crying out Abba Father therefore you are no longer a slave but a son and if a son than an heir of God through Christ amen will let us pray father we thank you for the word of God and we pray now for the Ministry of the Holy Spirit as Paul said to believers that when we believe we know that the presence of the spirit of adoption we are able to call you Father we have intimacy with our great God in heaven we pray now father that you would send the spirit to guide us as we study Scripture may it encourage our hearts may we appreciate a fresh the doing and the dying and the rising again of our beloved Lord Jesus Christ do forgive us for all of our sins and unrighteousness we thank you God that there is forgiveness with you that you may be feared even now we pray that you would wash us and purify us in that pressure blood of the Lord Jesus Christ and it's in his name that we pray amen well as I said our focus is on versus 427 but i do want to start in verse 1 under first an analogy heirs according to the promise we'll look at that briefly in verses 1 2 3 secondly will note the coming of Christ to inaugurate the new covenant thirdly the person and work of the Redeemer described so notice in the first place Paul gives an analogy essentially to summarize what he has said in the preceding verses in verses 21 to 25 Paul is dealing with Jews with reference to the place of the law specifically the Old Covenant is it contrary to the promises of god no the Old Covenant had a very specific reason fact Pascal Denault points out three specific reasons concerning the Old Covenant there are probably others but the first place it preserved the Messianic line in the covenant of grace I look at the Old Covenant as a way by which God hedged the people in and kept them and preserved that until the coming of the Lord Jesus as well it pointed tip illogically to Jesus Christ and thirdly it confined everything under sin so that the only means to obtain the promised inheritance was through faith in Christ so in verse is 21 to 25 Paul is showing the relationship between Israel of old and the law the law was ultimately given in this context as a tutor to bring us to Christ it hedged them in it pointed tip illogically to the Lord Jesus but it assured redemptive history forward and kept the people who people of the Covenant together until Jesus came and then notice in verses 26 29 he deals specifically with Gentiles and in the context this has great polemic value because the Gentiles are being told they must be circumcised in accordance with the ceremonial law that Paul has just said has ended in verses 21 to 25 once the once the what after faith has come we are no longer under a tutor the idea here is that once Jesus Christ has come inaugurated the New Covenant the Old Covenant is not in play anymore it is not a part of our reality so as a result there's no more ceremonial law attached to the Old Covenant furthermore as Gentile believers you are already Abraham see you are heirs according to the promise there's no need for you to identify with Old Covenant Israel by being circumcised in the flesh now the circumcision he's dealing with is religious in nature it's not just the cultural sign but rather it has to do with religion and obtaining favor from god so in the first place he highlights the place of Israel under the Old Covenant that it was not contrary to the promise of god that would be revealed at the coming of christ in the second place he speaks to the Gentiles concerning their already appointed status as heirs and then in the third place in chapter 4 verses 1 2 3 sort of caps Eliza's or encapsulate this again with reference to this air analogy notice in verse 1 of chapter 4 I say that the air as long as he as a child does not differ at all from a slave though he is master of all the child in a king's house has certain prerogatives and privileges but he's under age he cannot exercise those things at that particular time so verse 2 he's under guardians and stewards until the time appointed by the father just like Old Covenant Israel was and then in verse 3 even so even so we when we were children were in bondage under the elements of the world the bondage there doesn't mean in some wicked terrible sense but again the old covenant hedged them in it kept them in Paul's use with reference to the Mosaic Covenant he highlights its role in guarding and in tutoring and in stewarding the people until the time appointed by the father and that brings us to verse 4 in the fullness of the time God sent forth his son to inaugurate the new covenant to render obsolete the old covenant that's not a bad thing obsolescence was built into the Old Covenant it was never intended to go on forever it was intended to be superseded by the New Covenant Old Covenant Revelation teaches that in Genesis 31 31 to 34 now I said I wanted to help clarify everything for everybody so that we could go to verse 4 I feel like I really didn't do that but suffice it to say Paul is dealing in covenantal categories showing the incompleteness or rather the obsolescence of the Old Covenant now that the Lord Jesus has come the heirs have full privilege full benefit full liberty as a result of the coming of our Lord Jesus so let's look at that notice in verse 4 but when the fullness of the time had come God sent forth his son born of a woman born under the law to redeem those who were under the law that we might receive the adoption as sons now he speaks concerning the fullness of the time the Old Testament prophesied in the Old Testament announced the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ Genesis chapter 3 was the first announcement of the seed of the woman that would crush the head of the serpent in Genesis chapter 22 tipa logically the Lord God indicates through Abraham's almost sacrifice of Isaac that he himself would provide a lamb the Shiloh prophecy of Genesis 4910 signified or said that there would be one who would come to save his people from their sins we see those promises anticipated in the law of God as well we see those promises anticipated in the psalter Psalm 2 messianic Psalm 45 Psalm 72 Psalm 110 there's certainly other messianic Psalms but these are some of the big ones Psalm 89 specifically and then as well the prophets they foretold the coming of these days when a champion from God would come when the Messiah would come when the son of David would arrive so that he could save his people from their sins second Samuel 7 the promise given to David that of his CD would raise one up to sit upon David's throne and to reign forever and ever and ever the prophet Isaiah Emmanuel prophecies of Isaiah 7 Isaiah 9 which pastor Porter read at the outset of worship Isaiah 4253 the prophet Daniel the prophet Micah the Prophet Zechariah the profits through and through announced the latter days or the last days when the Lord Christ would come to save his people from their sins Paul describes that under this terminology he says when the fullness of the time had calm and Gil specifically refers to that he says the time agreed and fixed upon between God and his son from all eternity in the council and covenant of peace we also call that the Covenant of redemption it differs from the covenant of grace the covenant of grace is that plan by God of which we are participants in all of the redemptive benefits accomplished by Jesus but the Covenant of redemption or this covenant of peace is transacted by the person's of the triune God it is a pre temporal arrangement it is a inter intro Trinitarian arrangement the father predestined to save a great multitude he gives them to the Sun the Sun willingly undertakes on their behalf to be there surety to be there mediator and to accomplish those things that the father has stipulated for their salvation that's what Gil is referring to the time agreed and fixed upon between God and his son from all eternity in the council and covenant apiece when the Son of God should assume human nature which time was diligently searched into by the prophets was revealed unto them and predicted by them as more generally that it should be before the civil government seized from Judah and before the destruction of the Second Temple and more particularly by Daniel in his prophecy of the 70 weeks towards and about the close of which there was a general expectation among the Jews the Messiah's coming and was the fullness of time here referred to and what is sometimes called the dispensation of the fullness of time the end of the mosaic dispensation in Jewish Jewish Church state the last days of that state and the end of the Jewish world as to their ecclesiastical and civil polity again that fits what Paul is doing in terms of the Covenant ignition so of the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ the fullness of the time had come Matthew chapter 1 Luke's Gospel in the beginning all throughout the New Testament it teaches us concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ something before we leave this particular verse of this section notice the divine initiative involved when the fullness of the time had come God sent forth his son you see brethren total depravity and total inability is such that if there is any saving to be done it is not going to be initiated by the creature if there is ever entrance into heaven by a son of Adam it is not going to be because of the son of adam god sent forth his son Paul picks up a convention in this particular section that the Bible lays down everywhere I already referred to Genesis 3 15 God says I will put enmity between you and the woman Isaiah 96 unto us a son is given John three sixteen God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son Romans chapter 3 we need the wrath of God dealt with we need the wrath of God a spent elsewhere and Paul tells us that God sent forth price as a propitiation through his blood in Romans 8 3 Paul says what the law could not do God did by sending his son in the likeness of flesh you see divine initiative the Divine Will the divine prerogative and the divine sovereignty is that too h we owe our salvation it is not of us it is not a man it's not by the will of man it's not through blood but it's of God who gives redemptive benefit Paul says it doesn't depend upon him who wills or upon him who runs but upon God who shows mercy and Paul is asserting that very thing here God sent forth his son you know we ought to pause and reflect upon that reality and how thankful we should be God dealt with our sin we didn't deal with it we never wanted to deal with it we wanted to continue to traffic in it we wanted to continue estranged from God Most High Paul describes our state clearly in Romans chapter three there is none righteous no not one there is none who seeks after God there is no fear of God before the eyes of men if there is salvation to be had it must be wrought by God and certainly that is precisely what he does he takes the initiative he predestined he elected he fortune or for Neil he chose all those things are highlighted throughout the scriptures to indicate where salvation is from the prophet Jonah made this confession salvation is of the Lord it's not of us thankfully Jonah wasn't in our minion the Angels and having aren't our minions when they stand before the throne of God they say salvation belongs to our God and to the lamb who sits upon the throne that ought to be the church's confession today and that ought to be the church's encouragement today that ought to be each and every one of our encouragement that there has been in fact a son given a son given to us to miserable wretched hell deserving sinners that right least and understand liable to the fury and wrath of Almighty God so God sent forth his son and then Paul develops in detail the person and work of our Lord Jesus in verses 4 be 27 the person is described here in verse 4 notice three things Paul says concerning the person of our Lord Jesus in the first place he refers to his pre-existence his pre-existence God sent forth his son if you've ever studied systematic theology or you've ever visited our confession study or you're familiar with the reformed confessions of faith you'll know that there are three offices of Christ he is prophet priest and King you'll also know that there are three states of Christ there is the state of the pre incarnate State before Jesus came into this world there is the state of humiliation how Jesus found himself in this world and in the state of exaltation after Christ finishes his work he is then exalted by the father to the right hand of God most high those are the states of Christ and Paul refers here to the pre-existent state how do we know that he says God sent forth his son I believe Calvin was right the son who was sent must have existed before he was sent and this proves his eternal God had this is obvious in John chapter 12 which you can turn John chapter 1 referring to the pre-existence state of our Lord Jesus and its movement in its trajectory in time in history when he comes into this world notice in John 11 in the beginning was the word that's the Lord Christ and the Word was with God there is distinction between the person of the father and the son but there is unity and identity in terms of their essential being as Jon says and the Word was God and then dropping down in verse 14 notice and the word became flesh the Word was God that refers to past existence into eternity it's tough to talk that way because it almost sounds like you know there's a place called eternity and there it is but he was God notice he became man verse 14 in the word became flesh and dwelt among us and we beheld his glory the glory as of the only begotten of the Father full of grace and truth the Sun is eternally generated by the father the son is eternal from everlasting to everlasting thou art God Father Son and Holy Spirit and his essential glory but in time and in space he comes and he takes her he becomes flesh and he dwelt among us and notice in John 118 no one has seen God at any time the only begotten Son who is in the bosom of the Father he has declared him so when Paul says God sent forth his son Calvin is absolutely right the son who is sent must have existed before he was sent and this proves his eternal God had our confession puts it this way the Son of God the second person in the Holy Trinity being very an eternal God the brightness of the father's glory of one substance and equal with him who made the world who upholds and governs all things he has made did when the fullness of time was come take upon in man's nature with all the essential properties and common infirmities thereof yet without sin so the pre-existent crawler that the pre-existence state indicates something of Christ's eternal God at the reality is that God sent him forth to do this particular work notice secondly his incarnation he is born of a woman I mean this is a truly amazing description a truly amazing reality that the second person of the triune God would enter the womb of Mary back in Isaiah 9 specifically in verse 6 it says for unto us a child is born unto us a son is given and the government will be upon his shoulder and his name will be called wonderful counselor mighty God everlasting father Prince of Peace if you understand what I just tried to explain concerning the pre-existence state of Christ it decades that he is god it is he's eternal Godhead that's in view in that reference but notice run to us a child is born I love what John Owen says that the same person should be the mighty God and a child born is neither conceivable or possible nor can be true but by the union of the divine and human natures in the same person God sent forth his son born of a woman I mean let that sink in as I said the Emmanuel prophecy in Isaiah 7 in verse 14 we see that flashed out and applied in the life of Jesus go back for a moment to Matthew chapter 1 well this is reported to us concerning this one who has come from heaven Matthew 118 now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows after his mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph before they came together she was found with child of the Holy Spirit then Joseph her husband being a just man and not wanting to make her a public example was minded to put her away secretly but while he thought about these things behold an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream saying Joseph son of David do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit and she will bring forth a son and you shall call his name Jesus for he will save his people from their sins so all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the Prophet saying behold the Virgin shall be with child and bear a son and they shall call his name Emmanuel which is translated God with us wonder of wonders that the second person of the triune God would be born of a woman and notice in the third place not only the end of the pre-existence state and then the stuff of the Incarnation with Paul refers to his role as mediator he's born under the law why is he born under the law so that he can redeem those who were under the law in other words he was born under the law to fulfill that role of me again our confession this office of mediator the Lord Jesus did most willingly undertake which that he might discharge he was made under the law and did perfectly fulfill it you see we need the forgiveness of sins and Paul's going to deal with that in just a moment but we also need a righteousness that avails with God we need to be clothed in a righteousness that God approves off and that's the beauty of the doing and the dying of our Lord Jesus Christ it's not only his death that we need it's his life we need that active obedience we need the fact that he never disobeyed his parents we need the fact that he never had a lustful thought we need the fact that he never stole that he never lie that he never coveted that he never broke the Sabbath that he never had other gods before him that he never made for himself idols that he never took the name of the Lord God in vain through and through our Blessed Lord fulfilled the law of God and he did that because he is the second person of the Trinity because he is impeccable to be sure but he does it for us the theologians refer to this is the active obedience of our Lord Jesus Christ and we desperately need this we absolutely most positive positively need to be clothed than a righteousness not our own second Corinthians 5 21 God made him who knew no sin to be sin for us why that we might become the righteousness of God in him Galatians 2 21 Paul says I do not set aside that the grace of God for if righteousness comes through the law then Christ died in vain what's paul's implication righteousness comes through the gospel cry a righteousness comes as a result of christ hath righteousness is imputed to us and received by faith alone and that's what is highlighted here under this blessed reality that Christ is our mediator he was born of a woman he is born made under the law in order to redeem those who were under law blessed be God most high that we have a mediator who fulfilled all of the law on our behalf now that doesn't mean once we're justified we go out live like the devil that is absolutely positively not what it means it means that Christ the law points us to Christ for our justification when we are justified freely by His grace Pryce sends us back to his law gives us the spirit and calls us to follow that law as a rule of life in our sanctification but we are ultimately entering into heaven not based on our sanctification but based on the justifying grace of god most high poured out through our lord jesus and that brings us to consider his work that's typically the convention by which men treat the subject of jesus christ is person and his work and there are several elements that we ought to consider here notice in the first place the redemption of his people you know i was thinking about this and you know having been here for a long time and preaching a lot of Lord's Supper meetings I know I've preached Galatians 4 before and I know I've preached Redemption before I'm hoping that all of you could define what redemption is and all of the particulars involve the presupposition all those things and you know you get in this mindset well I hope they don't get weary of hearing the same thing I hope you never get weary of hearing of your Redemption I hope you never go man I got to hear about how it was redeemed from my sin again I hope that never enters into your hearts but you continually stand amazed at the redemption wrought by our Lord Jesus Christ born of a woman born under the law in order to redeem those who were under the law the presupposition involved with redemption is bondage slavery that's what's involved here Christ frees us from the bondage and the slavery of sin and in Redemption it's not just power it's not just deliverance but it is the payment of a price in order to bring about the redemption that is acted and Christ does that having fulfilled the law in his earthly life Christ then goes to the cross if we call that the doing of Christ his active obedience we call the dying of Christ his passive obedience that doesn't mean that he wasn't involved he most certainly was but the active refers to Christ's life and what he accomplishes in terms of God's law the passive is what priced accomplishes on the cross it's probably related to the word passion which has to do is suffering on behalf of his people and it's through that suffering that the price is paid it is through his blood that the payment is rendered not to the devil that was a heresy that came out in the early church the ransom to Satan theory the idea being is that Satan held in captive all of the the sinful sons of Adam so that when Christ pays this debt on the cross he is paying the debt to the devil and their end sinners are released but that's not what the Bible reflects it is the father it is God most high it is he who is angry with the wicked every day it is God will punish sinners in hell it is God who is propitiate advises on the cross at Calvary the ransom is paid to God the Father it is paid by Christ the Son in order to save us from our sins so it is the act of deliverance through the payment of a price specifically blood in Ephesians 17 in him we have redemption through what through his blood the same thing is repeated in Colossians we see that emphasises have already referred to an in Romans chapter three God sent forth his son our God set forth rather his son as a propitiation by his blood specifically to take from us the wrath of God that we deserve as a result of our sin he delivered us from the slave market of sin notice in the second place with reference to the work of Jesus the blessing of adoption to redeem those who were under the law that we might receive the adoption as sons now we certainly do not deserve a place at the father's table we are not feasting here tonight because we're good we are not eating here tonight because we deserve it we are not participating in this particular ordinance tonight because we had a good week we are here because of the grace of God most high he chose us in him before the foundation of the world in love he predestined us onto adoption as sons by Jesus Christ it is because of grace that we participate in this ordinance tonight it is because of grace that we are counted as members of the household of God it is by grace that we have this privilege and I wonder if we thought through this and understood the implications if it might change the way we approach church attendance this is the father's house this is where we get to come this is our privilege and our grand delight this is what God purpose from the foundation of the world to do to adopt us as sons and daughters to call us together on nights like these to furnish a feast for us so that he can encourage our weary hearts so that he can help us along our pilgrim way so that he can show that fatherly love to his sons and daughters we have the blessedness of adoption as sons and daughters of our Lord Jesus this includes a filial relationship with God you hear this at times the universal Fatherhood of God no he's not I mean there is a sense where God in creation is father overall because he created everything we talked about the Fatherhood of God we're talking about integration sense we're talking about the reality of Ephesians 1 he chose us he predestined us onto adoption as sons an adoption is a beautiful way to describe this adoption in the Roman world brought a man into a household and conferred in the same rights the same privileges the same entitlements of a natural born son fact if you look at Paul and you look at John they both come at this whole idea in a knot in a different way that it's wrong but in certain facets John speaks of God having begotten us Paul speaks with us as having been adopted and they're both right they're both accurate they're both true Paul is highlighting the juridical or the judicial or the legal sense whereby we have been brought out of the slave market of sin he's washed us he's cleansed us he's clothed us and he has put us in his home think prodigal son remember when that young man throws himself on the mercy of his father not for salvation I think the prodigal and the more I consider the prodigal the more I think he was functioning in him as a mercenary at least to some degree when he's in the hog pen and he's eating that pig slop he thinks to himself I know what I'll do I'll go back to my father's house I'll tell him that I sin I'll cast myself on his mercy and perhaps he'll take me on as one of the hired servants it's a mercenary feel in that so you want to go back to the Father for real does he want to go back to the Father legitimately no it's more like he doesn't want to eat pig food or rather he doesn't want to crave what pigs are eating he thinks it would be better to be a hired servant than his father's house but lo and behold what does the father do the father runs out there the father kisses him the father puts a ring on his finger the father puts a robe on his back that's where in the change as calm and then the Sun is brought back to full privilege and entitlement and and blessing and all those good things you see that's what we have has adopted sons and daughters of the Living God we are included in the household of God and one of the most blessed aspects that I think we oftentimes fail to appreciate is what paul says in romans 8 17 he says that we are co-heirs not with one another and that in and of itself would be good right there's nobody extra special in the church I've got more grace units than you you miss durable slob and I'm going to be closer to my god when we get that's not the way it works we r Co errors with Christ whatever is Christ by his merit is ours by grace we have the same entitlement the same privilege the same prerogative not because of our doing but because Christ has done it and because of God's grace which he lavishes upon us in and through his glorious son it truly is an amazing reality we have a filial relationship we are in the household of God most high and we are joint heirs with Jesus do you know that Hebrews 2 tells us that Christ is not ashamed to call us brethren sometimes were ashamed to call each other brethren well you know that guy did such and such and I can't believe you did that Jesus is it a shame to call us brethren there is a real legitimate sense wherein we can refer to Christ as our elder brother our Victor our champion our head our Lord our Savior the one who is not ashamed to call us brethren so that blessing of adoption and participating in the household of God notice thirdly we are sealed by the spirit verse 6 and because you are sons it's almost like Paul is just say it just gets better and better and better and better you see him tracing this though all down here's the person of Jesus Christ consider his pre-existent State consider the fact that he was incarnate consider the fact that he has mediator and now I want you to understand what he does specifically as mediator he redeems us from the slave market of sin he adopts us or brings us into that blessed adoption as sons of God and then that wasn't enough he gives us the spirit notice the three persons of the triune God in this passage God probably referring not to the essential God or God in His a sense but specifically to the relative property the father the father sends the Sun and then in verse 6 and because you are signs by adoption go the father has sent forth the spirit of his son the Lord Jesus into your hearts crying out Abba Father the spirit according to Ephesians 1 13 and 14 is sent to seal believers and to guarantee our inheritance think about that for a moment to guarantee our inheritance you know there's actually debate among some Christians as to whether or not we can lose our salvation well you can rest assured that if you have believed the gospel by the grace of God just look at Ephesians 1 verse 13 in him you also trusted after you heard the word of truth the gospel of your salvation in whom also having believed you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise who is the guarantee of our inheritance you see if you have believed the gospel you are not going to lose your salvation who does it reflect poorly on if a sinner for whom Jesus died loses their solve Asia it reflects upon the Savior if his task is to save his people from their sins and his people end up not saved then ultimately he is the one to blame and I'm speaking you know crassly to illustrate the point the reality is by the grace of God the saint of God persevere zhun to the end but he is preserved always by God's grace the Holy Spirit is our seal the Holy Spirit is our guarantee of our inherent errand our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession to the praise of his glory one commentator said the purpose of the sons mission was to give the rights of sonship the purpose of the spirits mission is to give the power of using them and I think that's what Paul alludes to here in verse 6 and because you are sons God has sent forth the spirit of his son into your hearts crying out abba father you've probably heard it explained that abba is like Daddy not probably wasn't but it's still a term of intimacy a term of communion a term of just blessed endearment I mean if your child came to you and called you daddy or father there's no fundamental difference in there is there you're his father there's no closer relationship that exists between a father and of course mother and their children and this is what Paul says he sends the spirit of his son indeed so that you can cry Abba Father what a blessing reality this is for the people of God this is why Jesus can teach us in Matthew 6 when you pray you say our Father you're not relative or you're not related to him as some machine some sort of you know power up there there is the closest intimacy when we go to the throne of grace we as sons and daughters go to our Heavenly Father through the mediation of the Lord Jesus Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit wherein we cry Abba Father and we let our petitions our supplications our prayers are intercessions our givings of thanks be made to him in the name of his most blessed son it's as if Paul has moved from this coven ental category to bring us into that most closed closed and blessed intimacy wherein we have with the father and then finally he indicates spiritual liberty notice in verse 7 therefore this is the implication this is the conclusion therefore you are no longer a slave but a son and if a son and heir of God then an heir of God through Christ you can see how this functions and the letter to the Galatians of course not you don't need to be circumcised that's certainly not going to commend you to God God has done all this in terms of its grace in terms of the New Covenant in terms of adoption in terms of the ceiling of the spirit in terms of all of these blessings certainly you don't need to go out and get circumcised in order to commend yourself to God it functions beautifully in this particular context to summarize and conclude at least this section with reference to Paul's polemic against the Judy izing heresy but in terms of the general application therefore you are no longer a slave by the Son and of the Son and an era of God through Christ there's no more bondage there's no more slave market there is no more lack of Liberty but we have the liberty of the sons of God most high secured for us by this mediator who was pre-existed and who was incarnate for us men and for our salvation well in conclusion terms of the covenantal categories the Old Testament was designed to be obsolete where there was a built-in obsolescence but ought not to strike us as odd and ought not to strike this as bad that's the whole point of Jenica Jeremiah 31 31 32 34 behold the days are coming when I will make a new covenant with them not like the covenant which I made with their fathers which they broke but I will write I'll write the law in their hearts I will give them the holy spirit I will forgive them of their sins all those things were announced we ought not to be shocked when there is this transformation in terms of God's covenantal trajectory in the second place as I've mentioned we need to appreciate the triune God in our salvation God the Father sends forth the Sun the Sun is born of woman he's born under the law the specific purpose to redeem us who are under the law were redeemed were adopted as sons because your son's the father has sent forth the spirit of his son into your hearts crying out Abba Father isn't it a blessing thing to witness the Trinity in such a capacity and so persons think that there's just these one or two verses that refer to the Trinity you know we got Matthew 28 go therefore and bap to make disciples of all the nations and baptize them in the name of the Father the Son and the Holy Spirit and then we've got the benediction in 2nd Corinthians 13 those are those are our two big Trinitarian passages the New Testament is thoroughly Trinitarian Paul can't write without being Trinitarian Paul can't communicate the blessings of salvation without being Trinitarian Ephesians 1 the father chose us the son redeems us the spirit seals and guarantees us Ephesians chapter 4 those one Lord one spirit one one God and Father overall 1st Corinthians what he's talking about spiritual guess father son and spirit father son and spirit is everything for the Apostle Paul and there ought to be a robust trinitarianism in the Church of Jesus Christ today we ought to realize there is one God that exists in three verses the Father the Son and the Holy Spirit these three are one God the same in substance equal in power and glory but there are personal and relative distinctions between the person's of the triune God may I say come to the confession study where we deal with such things read our confession of faith Reed Birkhoff systematic theology oftentimes in the church today we kind of have this idea about the Trinity but we really don't spend any time investigating your understanding it brethren this is foundational to our salvation this is foundational to our status before a holy God we must know who he is we must know how he functions we must know I mean is in his persons its father son and spirit we must understand the biblical data concerning God it amazes me today how little attention the people of God give to what is called theology proper the doctrine of God you know especially as Christians as believers as blood-bought children of God I remember one of the things when my children were little the incessant questions Oh didn't it just tire you out why this why that why you know they're always asking you put I'm just kidding it was great you know how I got grandkids and they asked me that but a lot of times those questions are about you aren't they what was it like when you were a kid what was it like when you were a little guy how is it when you went to school what kind of student were you or you know all these questions about you why because your child wants to find out about you isn't that beautiful your child actually wants to know something about his parent that's a good thing so I was kidding I like the fact that now you know once in a while you get a little irritated with the same question a million told you that a million times but the idea there is that the child wants to know his father and yet we come into the church and I can't be bothered with the doctor in the Trinity I can't be bothered with theology proper I can't be bothered with the whole idea of impossibility or immutability or God is spirit or the doctrine of divine simplicity I I really just can't be bothered just tell me how to function tomorrow I've got a word for you you can't function tomorrow without a knowledge of who God is if you don't understand the ology proper you need to start studying and reading and learning if you want not to know some books to purchase you know call me or email me or text me there's all kinds of ways to get old of each other nowadays I will tell you some good books that you should get not telling you like you have to read on but if you're asking for suggestions i'll be more than happy to suggest because it is that important how does Jesus described the essence of eternal life and this is eternal life that we know how to live on Monday that we know how to have a better Tuesday that I know how better to relate to my my my boss at work on Wednesday now this is eternal life that they may know thee the only true God and Jesus Christ whom thou has sent he sees eternal life if we are bored at the idea or horrified at the idea of studying theology on this side of glory we ought to check our hearts because guess what's going to happen on that side of glory it's going to be being being blown away by who god is that is going to occupy us for all eternity isn't that a blessed blissful glorious thought what is your long-term goal to stand in the presence of the triune god that's my long-term goal that beats any five-year plan any 10-year plan any retirement plan or even any burial plan if you are in Christ Jesus the very essence of eternal life for you is to know and Jesus Christ whom thou has sent isn't that blessed and beautiful if that is the case we ought to be a people that mirror that or image that on this side of glory and via people who study the scriptures to know who is this God to understand what he's allowed to know something of his relative properties father and son and spirit to know something about how these things work according to the Word of God brethren this is the most worthy endeavor the psalmist said great are the works of the Lord they are studied by all who delight in them it's always amazed me that men will spend more time or men you know committed to botany zoology or men committed to stamp collecting if you are good for you but man imagine looking at stamps for you know countless hours I you know that just does not strike me as something fun but if that's your cup of tea you know great but people will spend a lot of hours and give a lot of time and give a lot of attention and a lot of energy and their own money and what not to pursue the knowledge of a perfect of a particular Creek created thing and we have God greater the works of the Lord they are studied by all who delight in that so that validates the study of biology or zoology or scamp all the cheer I know there's an actual name for that God created all things and there's a sense where we can study those but what more glorious in the work of redemption what more glorious than what we've just traced her outlined here in Galatians 4427 what more glorious than the purse pour our pursuits into understanding this God his father who sent this son into this world you know the statement God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son you know what that what makes that amazing it's that it's this world it's not the fact that you know this that we always think of God so loved the world and it's wrongly wrongly wrongly interpreted as to mean that Christ to die for each and every sinner that's not John's point in that particular in that particular verse but the interesting thing is God so loved this world this one he sent his son into this world now why is that amazing because it's wretched because it's terrible because it's filled with sinners because it's filled with people that do ratchet and monstrous and horrific things God sent his son into this world what does that tell us about God he really is loving in a way that we haven't even entertained he really is gracious in a way that we probably really haven't entertained he is merciful in a way that he probably really haven't entertained we moved from the world generically and then we look at our own hearts and our own Souls and when we see what we were saved from if that doesn't make us appreciate the reality of sovereign grace I don't know what will if God has saved you you ought to appreciate and sing forever concerning God's glorious grace well brethren as we eat this bread and as we drink this cup we do proclaim the Lord's death until he comes and that death specifically outlined to that death and life specifically outlined in this particular passage was to provide Redemption adoption reception of the Spirit and the blessing of spiritual Liberty will let us pray father we thank you for your word and for this brief description concerning the person in the work of our Lord Jesus Christ we thank you for so great a salvation we pray tonight that you would just continue to encourage our hearts and strengthen us we praise you that as the householder you have provided this meal to us to refresh us along the way and may it have that desired effect upon our hearts tonight and we pray through Christ Jesus our Lord amen you turn in your Bibles to Matthew 26 the passage that will read with regards to the Lord's Supper Matthew 26 Bible testifies to the reality of two ordinances for the New Covenant their confession summarizing saying baptism and the lord's supper our ordinances of a positive and sovereign institution appointed by Jesus Christ the only lawgiver to be observed in his churches until the end of the world and so we come tonight observing one of those the Lord's Supper again given by the Lord Christ a demonstration of Christ's lordship and sovereignty and instituting this positive law to be observed in the New Covenant until he comes again and to be observed in his gathered churches Lord's Supper isn't something of an observation of private home owners Christians in a private home but is to be observed in his churches it's a blessing for us to come together and to have a level of horizontal communion as we partake of the Lord's Supper mutual edification in recognizing and observing Christ's death remembering christ's death until he comes again but also that vertical communion that we have with the risen and exalted christ sending us the blessings of his spirit growing us in our faith for his glory and for our good in Matthew 26 we have the account of the institution of the Lord's Supper I just want to read the portion where they're celebrating the Passover where Christ is celebrating the Passover with his disciples beginning in verse 17 and then we'll read the portions related to the bread end to the wine when we get to observing the Lord's Supper but notice Matthew 26 beginning in verse 17 now on the first day of the feast of the unleavened bread the disciples came to Jesus saying to him where do you want us to prepare for you to eat the Passover and he said go into the city to a certain man and say to him the teacher says my time is at hand I will keep the Passover at your house with my disciples so the disciples did as Jesus had directed them and they prepared the Passover when evening had come he sat down with the twelve now as they were eating he said assuredly I say to you one of you will betray me and they were exceedingly sorrowful and each of them began to say to him Lord is it I he answered and said he who dipped his hand with me in the dish will betray me the son of man indeed goes just as it is written of him but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed it would have been good for that man if he had not been born then Judas who was betraying him answered and said rabbi is a tie he said to him you have said it now we've noted before and it's it's worth repeating again if only briefly that it is not some haphazard coincidence that the Lord Jesus Christ Institute's the Lord's Supper when they observe the Passover on a night in which they are observing the Passover there is something very rich going on here the Passover in the Old Testament yes rehearsed a redemptive event in Israel's history the exodus but it also tip illogically pointed forward to with the christological trajectory the coming of the true Passover the Lamb of God who would take away the sins of the world remember Paul uses that language in first Corinthians or in second Corinthians with regards to the Passover truly Christ our Passover was sacrificed for us have this blessed reality of Christ bringing an end if you will or instituting a positive law for the New Covenant that would remember the event that would bring an end to the Passover of the Old Covenant in other words christ in his death brings an end to the Passover celebration because now the New Covenant remembrance of redemption is the Lord's Supper and so Christ Institute's this on a night where he observes a meal that ultimately pointed forward to himself in the section of his work so we come to the Lord's Supper and we come to an event hi in its significance and remember that when we do so we take bread and we take wine and in so doing we're not taking things that have been changed into something else we do not are we are not participating in some abomination like the Roman Catholic Church supposing that the bread is changed into the actual body blood and divinity of Christ and that the wine is so likewise changed there is no magic there is no hocus pocus only a solemn remembrance where we do set aside these physical emblems these physical elements onto a holy use in reflecting upon the perfect death of the Savior the Lord Jesus Christ there is no real sacrifice made for the quick and the dead only a remembrance of that once for all sacrifice made by Jesus Christ in time and in history a reminder that the juices in the outer ring when the wine comes around the juices in the outer ring the wine in the center a reminder as well that you are to examine yourselves well first off this is an ordinance for Christians only reminder of that fact this has been given by the Lord Jesus Christ in a manner such that it reflects the remission of sins that he won upon Calvary's tree and so the ordinance is only for those who believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and so have such remission of sins if you're here tonight and you are not a Christian you are not to take if you're here tonight and you are a Christian you are to take and you are to do so after having examined yourself do not take in an unworthy manner if you are harboring unrepentant sin if your remaining rebellious in the sense as as a Christian you're holding on to sin unrepentant you are not to take but repent of your sins knowing that you have Jesus Christ the advocate with the father who cleanses you from all iniquity and so take so if I could ask the the brothers to come up and to pass out the bread once they have done so we will read from Matthew 26 but you can stay seated and turn in your hem books actually turn in your red Trinity Salter to Psalm 130 Stacey to turn to Psalm 130 and will sing that as the brothers pass out the bread you you you matthew writes in Matthew 26 verse 26 recounting the institution of the Lord's Supper by our Lord and as they were eating Jesus took bread blessed and broke it and gave it to the disciples and said take eat this is my body amen let us pray Heavenly Father we rejoice we can now gather together as the assembled church to remember the Lord's Supper we thank you for this blessed opportunity and we pray as we now partake of this bread we would reflect upon our Lord Jesus Christ and his body broken for us we rejoice and we're humbled by the truth that we breached your law time and again and Christ for that took in his body breach upon breach for our having violated your holy law he bore our sins in his own body on the tree we rejoice that we can now remember the perfection of his death the glory of that saving sacrifice and we pray that you would cause us each and every day to rejoice in the Lord Jesus Christ and perfection of his saving work and it's in his name that we do pray amen let's take together if I could have the brothers come up to pass out the wine a reminder that the juice is in the outer ring you can stay seated and turn in your Trinity hymnals this time the larger ones to 357 will stay seated and seeing 357 together you you you in Matthew 26 at verse 27 the account continues then he took the cup and 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 many for the remission of sins but I say to you I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in my father's Kingdom and when they had sung a hymn they went out to the Mount of Olives amen will let us again pray Heavenly Father we thank you now that we can partake of the wine we rejoice in what this reflects upon what this represents and what we now remember the shed blood of our Savior the Lord Jesus Christ we know that without the shedding of blood there is no remission of sins we know that the blood of bulls and goats could never take away sin but Jesus Christ by the perfection of his shed blood alone has saved a multitude of sinners which no man can number we thank you that by your grace we can be counted among that number we pray that we would now rejoice with solemn reflection upon the shed blood of the Savior the Lord Jesus Christ knowing that by that we have the perfect forgiveness of sins and it's in the name of the Savior we do rejoice and pray amen let's take together well we can all stand together now as a gather chand seeing him 175 in your Trinity hymnal that's the larger one again let's stand and sing 175 together now may the God of peace who brought up our Lord Jesus from the dead that great Shepherd of the sheep through the blood of the everlasting covenant make you complete in every good work to do his will working in you what is well pleasing in his sight through Jesus Christ to whom be glory forever and ever amen Heavenly Father we pray that you would go now with us into this night into this upcoming week we rejoice and having had the freedom and the high honor to gather in the name of the Savior to worship our triune God we pray that you would help us now to go into this week by your spirit and for your glory to conduct ourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of grace we pray in the name of Christ Jesus the Lord amen please be seated you