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Turn in your Bibles again to 
the book of Hebrews chapter 11. Going to look at the remainder 
of Hebrews 12, 2 and Hebrews 12, verse 3, but we'll read the 
portion of Scripture again that we read this morning just to 
set the immediate context. Hebrews 11, beginning at verse 
30. By faith, the walls of Jericho 
fell down after they were encircled for seven days. By faith, the 
harlot Rahab did not perish with those who did not believe when 
she had received the spies with peace. And what more shall I 
say? For the time would fail me to 
tell of Gideon and Barak and Samson and Jephthah, also of 
David and Samuel and the prophets, who through faith subdued kingdoms, 
worked righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the malice 
of lions, quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of 
the sword, out of weakness were made strong, became valiant in 
battle, turned to flight the armies of the aliens. Women received 
their dead raised to life again. Others were tortured, not accepting 
deliverance, that they might obtain a better resurrection. 
Still others had trial of mockings and scourgings, yes, and of chains 
and imprisonment. They were stoned. They were sawn 
in two, were tempted, were slain with the sword. They wandered 
about in sheepskins and goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, tormented, 
of whom the world was not worthy. They wandered in deserts and 
mountains, in dens and caves of the earth. And all these, 
having obtained a good testimony through faith, did not receive 
the promise, God having provided something better for us, that 
they should not be made perfect apart from us. Therefore, we 
also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, 
let us lay aside every weight and the sin which so easily ensnares 
us and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, 
looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith. who 
for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising 
the shame and has sat down at the right hand of the throne 
of God. For consider him who endured 
such hostility from sinners against himself, lest you become weary 
and discouraged in your souls. Amen. Well, let us pray. God, 
we thank you that we can again consider this passage of Holy 
Scripture. And we thank you for the one 
to whom it calls us to look. And we do pray again that you'd 
help us as we engage in this act of worship. We do pray for 
the ministry of the Holy Spirit. We pray for attentive ears, attentive 
hearts. And we would ask, Lord God, that 
your word would find its mark, would find its end destination 
in each and every one of our hearts tonight. And we pray this 
in Christ's name. Amen. Well, we looked this morning 
at Hebrews 12. The portion of verse 2 that reads, 
looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith. We 
noted the context this morning, what the book of Hebrews is about 
generally. It is Paul, or it is the author, 
setting forth the superlative glory of Jesus Christ over and 
against the articles of old covenant religion, arguing for the superiority 
of Jesus Christ and the Christian religion. And in exhorting the 
recipients of the letter unto steadfastness in the faith, the 
author is in Hebrews 11, setting forth various examples of enduring 
faith, various examples of steadfast faith, faith in Jesus Christ. And it all comes to a point where 
the author sets forth Jesus Christ as the supreme and chief exemplar 
of steadfastness in faith, he being the one, as we'll look 
at, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, despising 
the shame and sat down. at the right hand of the throne 
of God. We notice that Paul in writing, 
looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, is 
in a sense saying that that is the disposition or the means 
by which these recipients are to be steadfast, are to set aside 
every weight and are to set aside the sin which so easily ensnares 
them. They are to do that by looking 
unto Jesus, the author and the finisher of their faith. We noted this morning the object 
or we finished looking at the object of faith, the Lord Jesus 
Christ, who is the author and the finisher of our faith. We're 
going to look then at or now at the further description of 
the Lord Jesus Christ. We looked at the object of faith. 
Now we're going to look at the disposition of that object of 
our faith, the Lord Jesus Christ. So the disposition of Christ, 
we're going to look at the steadfastness of Christ, the reward of Christ. 
And then the remedying example of Christ. First off, the disposition 
of Christ. Notice here who for the joy that 
was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame. Now, this probably has more in 
view that ultimate joy, which would come on the other side 
of the cross. But I think it is safe to say 
and it isn't taking liberties with the text to say that Jesus 
Christ was marked by a steadfast, resilient, anticipatory joy, 
that he was marching forth doing the will of the father, which 
was to glorify him by the salvation of his elect. We see this, and 
I think in Hebrews 10, if you want to go back there in Hebrews 
10, the author in verse five saying, therefore, speaking of 
Christ, when he came into the world, he said, sacrifice an 
offering you did not desire, but a body you have prepared 
for me, invert offerings and sacrifices for sin. You had no 
pleasure. Then I said, behold, I have come. 
In the volume of the book, it is written of me to do your will, 
O God. In Psalm 40, that this text cites, 
it says, I delight to do your will, O God. The Lord Jesus Christ 
no doubt had a joy that was set before Him, but we can, I believe, 
safely say that as Jesus Christ said Himself, it was His meat 
to do the will of the Father. Jesus Christ delighted to carry 
out the work that the Father had given to Him. I think we've 
already let the cat out of the bag in a sense, but there's two 
interpretations of this verse, who for the joy that was set 
before him endured the cross. One school of thought sees that 
as being Christ setting aside the joy of his pre-incarnate 
glory and his divine prerogatives to come and instead endure the 
shame of the cross. That would that would jive in 
a sense with Philippians, not in a sense, but jive with Philippians 
2, 6 to 11 that we read that Jesus Christ, even though he 
had that equality with God being verily and truly God, he nevertheless 
came and humbled himself in the incarnation and took up the obedience 
of the cross and the death of it. But I think it is preferable 
to see this who for the joy that was set before him as what we 
have already noted Christ having that joy that was set before 
him the salvation of his people on the other side of the cross. 
And I think this view is supported by what we find in Hebrews chapter 
11. In a number of places, but specifically here, beginning 
at verse 13, speaking of the of some of the Old Testament 
saints, saints, these all died in faith, not having received 
the promises, but having seen them afar off, were assured of 
them. embrace them and confess that they were strangers and 
pilgrims on the earth. For those who say such things 
declare plainly, they seek a homeland. And truly, if they had called 
to mind that country from which they had come out, they would 
have had opportunity to return. But now they desire a better, 
that is, a heavenly country. Therefore, God is not ashamed 
to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them. 
They had an anticipatory joy. They look forward to that reward, 
the promise, of the Lord their God. Also, Moses, in 1124, by 
faith, Moses, when he became of age, refused to be called 
the son of Pharaoh's daughter, choosing rather to suffer affliction 
with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of 
sin, esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the 
treasures in Egypt, for he looked to the reward. So just as Moses 
rejoiced in the reward of Christ Jesus, setting aside those treasures 
of Egypt for and looking forward with great joy that reward. So 
Christ looked forward with anticipatory joy for that reward that would 
come on the other side of the cross. So Jesus was marked. by a disposition of joy and delight 
to do his father's will. And that's ultimately what is 
at the crux of the Savior's joy. You can turn to actually turn 
back to Isaiah 53 for a moment, because we get some of that same 
language in that well-known passage of Scripture that sets forth 
the substitutionary sacrificial work of the suffering servant. Isaiah 53, keeping in mind this 
language Now, this language of joy, delight that the Savior 
had to carry out the work of his father, Isaiah 53, beginning 
in verse 10. Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise 
him. He has put him to grief. When 
you make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed. He shall prolong his days and 
the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand. Now notice 
verse 11. He shall see the labor of his 
soul and be satisfied by his knowledge. My righteous servant 
shall justify many, for he shall bear their iniquities. The Lord 
Christ counted it a joy to carry out the will of the father in 
justifying many. And then, of course, we know 
that the joy that Christ had yet that anticipatory joy is 
the carrying out of the will of the father specifically linked 
to. and marked by salvation. In John 
6, we see that this is exactly what Jesus came into the world 
to do, and He will most certainly carry it out. John 6, verse 38, 
For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the 
will of Him who sent Me. This is the will of the Father 
who sent Me, that of all He has given Me, I should lose nothing, 
but raise it up at the last day. Isn't that glorious? The Jesus 
Christ had that joy set before him that he would, yes, endure 
the cross and despise the shame. But it was for this that he would 
lose nothing of the father, nothing of what the father had given 
to him. But he would most certainly raise them up at the last day. It was the Lord Christ's need 
to do the will of the father, his delight to do the will of 
the father. And this is seen. This is used 
by the author of the Hebrews. as we'll look to in a few moments 
time, to stir up the audience unto a like joy in that reward 
that would come on the other side of suffering. Now, we've 
looked at the disposition of Christ. Secondly, the steadfastness 
of Christ. Again, the author is setting 
this forth as the ultimate example of steadfastness. As we read 
through Hebrews 11, as the reader reads through Hebrews 11, There 
is a lot of enduring faith. There is a lot of steadfastness. There is a lot of overcoming, 
trial, and tribulation. We only have to look at, for 
example, verse 37 of Hebrews 11. They were stoned, they were 
sawn in two, were tempted, were slain with the sword. They wandered 
about in sheepskins and goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, tormented, 
of whom the world was not worthy. Jesus Christ, though, is set 
forth as a super abounding exemplar over and above even these examples 
of enduring faith, because he endured the cross. He endured 
the cross, the shame of the cross, the curse of the cross, the wrath 
of the cross, all of those high and heavy things of the cross, 
but the steadfastness of Jesus Christ. What is it? about Jesus that the authors 
of Holy Scripture always bring forth as the jewel, the gem of 
his work. But it is the death and resurrection 
of Jesus Christ. We might even say the death, 
the crosswork of Jesus Christ, because what does Paul say? It 
assumes and it has its anticipation, the victorious resurrection. 
But what does Paul say? We preach what? We preach Christ 
crucified. That's what we preach. That's 
what Christianity is about. Christianity is about our precious 
and perfect bleeding Messiah nailed upon a Roman cross for 
the perfect salvation of his people. And that is the ultimate 
example of steadfastness marked by the Lord Jesus Christ, that 
he came into this world and he always had before him that mission. He knew that he was to go to 
the cross. He announced that to his disciples. 
They didn't really believe him, or at least they didn't want 
to. They didn't fully understand. They understood at his resurrection, 
when he came victoriously, opened their eyes to understand the 
scriptures. But Jesus always told them, the Son of Man must 
go to Jerusalem. He must be delivered into the 
hands of wicked men. He must be crucified. But on 
the third day, he will rise again. Jesus Christ, each and every 
inch of his earthly ministry, marched with resilience, with 
a resolute joy towards that great end, that he would die upon a 
cross for his elect, for his people, and that he would rise 
again the third day. And if it is the jewel that the 
apostles always set forth, the jewel of the work of Christ, 
it ought to be that jewel that we hold very dear. and that we 
hold as the highest thing of our Christian religion, the gospel 
of our Lord Jesus Christ. The death and resurrection of 
Jesus Christ is primary. That is the gospel. It's what 
Paul says in 1 Corinthians 15. The gospel that I delivered to 
you, the one that I received, I also delivered it to you. And 
what is it? That Christ died according to 
the scriptures, that he was buried. And that he rose again the third 
day, according to the scriptures, that is the glorious gospel gem 
that we have, that we are to propagate, that we are to protect 
and that we are to proclaim to all who will give us an ear. You can always tell. You can 
always tell what is vital to Christianity by by the fact or 
by those things being attacked or taken away from the Christian 
religion. In other words, what's vital 
to Christianity is always the things that are attacked, always 
the things that are opposed, always the things that are sought 
to be reduced, taken away or destroyed. The death and there 
was certainly the deity of the Lord Jesus Christ. That's right 
up there. The death and the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Why? Because 
that is the good news of Christianity. We can think of Muslims and those 
who oppose the dying of Jesus Christ upon Calvary Street. They 
deny and they seek to attack and strip away the historical 
veracity, the certain truthfulness that Jesus Christ died upon that 
Roman cross. And again, with the resurrection, 
they'll argue with great venomous and horrible apologetic vigor 
that Jesus Christ did not die and that he did not rise again. 
Even perversions of Christianity and those who seek to call themselves 
Christian will denigrate, will strip away the efficacy of the 
cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. No, it was it was for all people 
and some were covered under it's covered under the breadth of 
that dying of the Savior upon the cross will actually and ultimately 
end up in hell or that Jesus Christ, yes, died. But you must 
do X, Y and Z in order to make that death and that act efficacious, 
to make it powerful, to really save yourself. No, Jesus Christ, 
the crux of Christianity is the death and resurrection of Jesus 
Christ. And we must grip that with great and true and right 
apologetic vigor, the death and resurrection of our Jesus Christ. 
And that is the steadfastness that's in view here, specifically 
the cross, that Jesus Christ had a joy set before him. And 
by virtue or in the midst of of manifesting that joyful, delightful 
disposition and carrying out the will of the father, he endured 
the shame and the horror of the cross. One of the things that 
we see, though, one of the glorious things that follows upon the 
heels of the perfect work of the cross is the third point, 
the reward of Christ, not the reward that Christ gives, but 
the reward that Christ receives. See, Jesus Christ in going to 
the cross comes out the other end of that perfect work and 
he is risen again the third day and he sits down at the right 
hand of the glory of God. We read that at the outset of 
worship in Philippians 2, 6 to 11. When Jesus Christ is obedient 
and when he is obedient unto the death of the cross, what 
happens? The Lord, his God, highly exalts 
him and gives him the name which is above every name. When we 
look back at the exhortation to look unto Jesus, it is a glorious 
thing to cast those eyes upon Jesus in all of his offices. Jesus Christ is glorious. He 
is beauteous. He is absolutely majestic in 
all of his offices, isn't he? We look at him in his pre-incarnate 
office before he came into the world in the incarnation. And 
we see what we don't see like Isaiah, but we read of that one 
whom Isaiah looked upon and whom the angels hid from. We look 
at him in the incarnation, and I love what Spurgeon does in 
his sermon on the Song of Solomon. Speaking of that, speaking of 
Jesus Christ, preaching on the text, he is altogether lovely. 
And as Spurgeon recounts, from babe to cross, the glorious, 
beauteous aspect of Jesus Christ. You see, we like we touched on 
this morning are sort of natively predisposed to liking the golden, 
to liking the sparkly, to liking the heroes, to liking those who 
are shiny and glorious in armor and in their pomp and circumstance 
and glory. And certainly we'll get there 
in a moment with regards to Jesus Christ. But before we do, we 
have to cast our eyes upon Jesus in his lowliest state. God manifested 
in the flesh a baby lying in a manger. wrapped in swaddling 
clothes. Amazing. A baby wrapped in swaddling 
clothes in a manger. God manifested in the flesh. Spurgeon called the robes, the 
stuff that Jesus was wrapped in, the swaddling clothes that 
Christ was wrapped in, the white flag of peace. The white flag 
of peace, because this one would be peace to his people. It's 
what the angels proclaim. But we see Jesus, God, manifested 
in the flesh as a babe lying in a manger. We see him carrying 
out his earthly ministry. And we see nothing but trial 
and tribulation, Jesus opposed at every single point. And Spurgeon 
says, we see that, and we see one who's altogether lovely. 
We see one in the garden, bleeding, sweating blood. We see one in the garden crying 
out to the father, and we don't turn our faces away as believers, 
but we see one who is altogether lovely. When he's before the 
authorities, both Pilate and Herod and the high priest, what 
do we see? We see one who is spit upon and 
beaten, given the crown of thorns, and we don't look away. We cast 
our eyes of faith upon him, and we find one who is altogether 
lovely. And when we see him on the cross with Roman nails, blood 
coming, from his wounds. We don't turn away. We don't 
run away. But with eyes of faith, we say, 
yeah, he is altogether lovely. But isn't it great when we get 
to that cross, we move past that and we find one who has been 
exalted by the father. We find one who marches now as 
that hero victorious out of the tomb, who marches with that full 
and glorious pomp and power from out of that tomb and in great 
victory. And 40 days later, ascends to 
the right hand of the majesty on high. It is a glorious thing 
to cast our eyes upon Christ and to see him now at the point 
of his reward, his current session, where he reigns in heaven. He 
reigns at the right hand of God, no longer riding upon a colt 
the foal of a donkey, but riding that white horse, where he treads 
the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God, marching 
valiantly for his people and for the glory of his Father. 
We have the reward of Christ after the steadfastness of Christ 
and the disposition of Christ. And some of these elements will 
come out now as we look at the remedying example of Christ. What do we mean by that? Verse 
three, for consider him who endured such hostility, hostility from 
sinners against himself, lest you become weary. and discouraged 
in your souls. He is a remedying example in 
that he brings correction to those who are beset by weariness 
and by discouragement. In other words, if you are weary 
and if you are discouraged, what you need to do is to consider 
him. Consider him who endured such 
hostility from sinners against himself. A.W. Pink entitles it this way, the 
divine antidote against weariness. That's what verse three is, the 
divine antidote against weariness. Consider him, engage the mind. 
This is somewhat similar, though different in a sense. We'll look 
at this by looking unto Jesus. We are to look with eyes of faith. 
We're to engage our minds. We're to contemplate, consider. 
We are to bring and engage our minds and consider Jesus Christ, 
dwell upon, meditate upon the Lord Jesus Christ. And we're 
going to look at this under four things. First off, they are the 
recipients of the letter and by extension us. They are to 
model their realities or their Christian lives or the pattern 
and order of their Christian lives after his perfect example. And what is that perfect example? But it is joy. looking forward 
to the reward and in the midst of that, enduring the trials 
until we get there. We're to model our lives after 
that. If the Lord Jesus Christ could 
delight to carry out his work until looking forward to the 
other side of that work, the other side of that suffering, 
how much more are we not to manifest joy? We're never going to be 
Christ. We're never going to endure his 
hardships, his sufferings, his trials. So we are most certainly 
to be marked by joy. What A.W. Pink says, to paraphrase 
him, is that when we look upon the small cup, we look upon the 
small cup of our trials and afflictions, upon the small cup of our frowning 
providences, or to quickly look away and cast our eyes upon the 
large cup of the wrath of God that Christ drank. You see, this 
is a divine remedy to us being bound up and carried away by 
our weariness and the discouragement of our souls. Look to Jesus. Consider this one who endured 
much. But our pattern is to be one 
of joy, looking forward to the reward. And until we receive 
that reward by virtue of Christ's work, we are to endure. We are 
to endure in this lower world. Come what may upon us. And this is something that the 
recipients of the book of Hebrews once knew they were to draw from 
previous experience. It's not like this is new information. 
By the way, you're to be marked by joy in your enduring unto 
the reward. In fact, they already manifested 
this disposition. Look at Hebrews 10. at verse 
thirty two. But recall the former days in 
which after you were illuminated, you endured a great struggle 
with sufferings, partly while you were made a spectacle, both 
by reproaches and tribulations, and partly while you became companions 
of those who were so treated. For you had compassion on me 
in my chains and note joyfully accepted the plundering of your 
goods, knowing that you have a better and enduring possession 
for yourselves in heaven. So they had already right after 
they were illuminated, after they were saved, after they were 
brought into the religion of the Lord Jesus by sovereign grace, 
they already joyfully accepted the plundering of their goods. 
They already did so knowing that they had a better and enduring 
possession for themselves in heaven. So what happened? Of 
course, the pressures that were around them, their Jewish family, 
the unbelieving Jewish family coming and saying, no, you need 
to come back to the temple. You need to come back to the 
priests in their vestments. You need to come back to the 
multitudinous instruments of old covenant religion. And so 
the further they came distance from that day of illumination, 
the more of the trials came and they need to be reminded. You 
need to consider this one whom you once knew and whom you once 
considered. being manifesting the result 
of that, the joyful acceptance of the plundering of your goods. 
Come back to that point. Consider him. Consider this. 
Jesus, who underwent so much, who underwent horror of horrors 
in his march to the cross, including the cross. Think upon this one 
who at every point in his ministry received the opposition of the 
enemies of the gospel of Jesus Christ. So they are to model 
their lives after the pattern. joy, looking forward to the reward 
and endurance in the midst until they reach that point. Secondly, 
they are to put into perspective. We are. They were to put into 
perspective our suffering in light of his. They were to come 
to to come to considering the Lord Jesus Christ and then, OK, 
put their problems in perspective of it. We do this as parents 
noted this before. We do this with our children. 
You know, sometimes children find it a really hard thing to 
walk from the kitchen to the garage to carry out garbage. It's like we ask them to run 
a marathon carrying a 100-pound bag. No, I'm just asking you 
to go from the kitchen to the garage to carry garbage out. 
We put things in perspective. I used to always use one with 
my children. OK, I'm going to call some children 
in Africa and make them feel better because of your hardships. 
So you put things in perspective. With our hardships, with our 
weariness, with our discouragement of soul, we cannot begin to approach 
what our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, underwent in the hostility 
that came upon himself from his enemies unto that death upon 
the cross. Let alone that, but consider 
the wrath that was poured out upon him by his father in crushing, 
bruising the son of his love. And so we need to we should put 
things in perspective when we are weary, when we have discouragement 
of soul, when we're ready to give up, when we're ready to 
take off, when we're ready to run to the hills. Consider Jesus 
Christ. Just come on, put those problems 
aside and look at the one who saved you. Look at the one who 
came into this world to die for you and to rise again. And let's 
start to think with a little more perspective. Consider Jesus. In reality, we really don't have 
it so bad. We can amplify our problems to 
a point where it's ridiculous. We need to be realigned unto 
this Hebrews 12, 3 perspective. We need to be realigned to what 
everything that preceded that. All the Old Testament saints, 
all of all of these ones who were who underwent trial and 
suffering on behalf of their savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. 
But we certainly have to look to the Lord Jesus Christ and 
find the chief exemplar of steadfastness and shut our mouths and be realigned 
onto proper. steadfastness in the faith. Now, this isn't to say that when 
someone is weeping, when someone is mourning, we run at them with 
Hebrews 12, 3 and say, suck it up. No. But there can be this 
unbiblical or inconsistent with biblical truth and the reality 
of Christ and salvation, this inconsistency that we can find 
ourselves in. And Paul, in his epistle to the 
Philippians, writes, be anxious in nothing. Be anxious in nothing 
but what but with prayer and supplication mingled with thanksgiving. Make your requests known to God 
and this weariness and discouragement will be washed away because that 
peace which surpasses all understanding will be found in you through 
Jesus Christ. And so we are to again put into 
perspective our suffering in light of the Lord Jesus Christ. I like what Calvin wrote, mind 
you, it's on pride and humility, but I think it relates here. 
He said, since then, the son of God descended from so great 
a height, how unreasonable that we who are nothing should be 
lifted up with pride. We transfer that to this discussion, 
the Lord Jesus Christ, and I have this zany idea that if the Lord 
Jesus Christ, God manifested in the flesh, the recipient of 
eternal praise, the host of heaven can descend that glory into again 
this lower ignominy to take up the role of the suffering servant, 
to receive spittings, to receive beatings, to receive bruising, 
to receive death upon the cross, to ultimately receive the wrath 
of his father poured out upon him. Then we can be nice to each 
other. Can't we? Can't we? We really don't have it. that 
bad. Our sufferings in our trials 
ought not to be such that they bring us to a point where it 
affects us negatively by weariness, discouragement of soul, and where 
we take it out on brothers and sisters in the Lord Jesus Christ. We are to put into perspective 
our suffering in light of his. Thirdly, consider him to quote 
A.W. Pink in the ineffable excellency 
of his person. You see, the first two have more 
to do, I think, with what the author is getting at here. We're 
to model our conduct, our reality, our Christian life after the 
perfect exemplar, Jesus Christ. We are to put into perspective 
our suffering in light of his. But in considering him as a balm 
to our weariness and as a remedy for our discouragement of soul, 
we ought to think of Jesus Christ in the ineffable excellency of 
his person. He is divine and sovereign and 
holy creator. He is that one who is the divine 
and sovereign, holy sustainer of all things. He upholds all 
things by the word of his power. How can you be discouraged when 
we have one like that on our side? He is redeemer. He is a 
wonderful counselor, mighty God, everlasting father, prince of 
peace. He is on our side. If Christ 
is for us, who can be against us? We are to consider him in 
the excellency of his person. And fourthly, we are to consider 
him in the absolute perfection of his work. We are to consider 
him in the absolute perfection of his work. When we are weary, 
when we are discouraged in our souls, a good remedy, the remedy 
and the antidote to that, Jesus Christ died for us. You believe 
in Jesus Christ, isn't it? Should be a balm to the soul 
that Jesus Christ died perfectly for you, rose again for you. And his work of intercession 
always works to ensure that you will reach that great day when 
you'll enter into Emmanuel's land. Very often, Tracy and I, 
if we're having bad days and we're weary and we're discouraged, 
we'll just message that to each other, Jesus died for you. You know, we can we can get down 
over, you know, sometimes big things. Jesus is the remedy for 
the big things, these smaller things that can drag us down. 
OK, put that into perspective. Jesus Christ came into this world 
to die for you and to rise again. And that ought to be isn't that 
an antidote to weariness and discouragement of soul, whatever 
it is, maybe it is something to do with the church, maybe 
it's something to do with work, family, whatever it might be. 
We're not to be downcast into to cast ourselves into into just 
just a frenzy of depression, filling the void with things 
that are not Christ and that are not contemplations of his 
riches and his excellency and excellencies in his person. We 
are to fly immediately to the Lord Jesus Christ. There, find 
our remedy there, find the antidote for weariness and for discouragement 
of soul. Consider the fact that he came 
into this world, performed the perfect work of salvation. And 
in fact, in the context, Hebrews chapter 10, that's that's the 
argument. By virtue of this, do that. We look at Hebrews 10 verse 11. We won't read entirely, but we'll 
read this and then go to verse 23. Notice Hebrews 10 at verse 
11. And every priest stands ministering 
daily and offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can 
never take away sins. But this man, after he had offered 
one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at the right hand of 
God from that time waiting till his enemies are made his footstool. 
For by one offering he has perfected forever. those who are being 
sanctified. Notice verse twenty three. Let 
us hold fast our confession of hope without wavering for he 
who promised is faithful and let us consider one another in 
order to stir up love and good works. You see, the foundation 
of the bounce of the remedy for and the antidote for overcoming 
weariness and overcoming discouragement of soul. is nothing else save 
for the Jesus Christ of perfect salvation. And brethren, that's 
where we immediately ought to fly when we are weary, when we 
are downcast and when we are discouraged. Never, never drag 
on and hang on to the weariness and to the discouragement because 
it just doesn't work and it just doesn't help. That's what we 
tend to do. We tend to do. We tend to not 
do what the Bible says. We tend to not listen to the 
apostle when he writes these things. That's just what we do. 
Let's it's just I find it amazing we can preach this. I can preach 
this. Something may happen this week. And my first thing won't 
be if I'm weary or discouraged to fly immediately to Christ. 
I need to be prayerful that that is my first destination. But 
can we get dragged off into all weariness and discouragement? 
and to try and fill the void with everything else. Maybe it's 
even just a simple us trying to overcome it ourselves. Trying 
to man it up, trying to tough it up, trying to do whatever 
in and of your own self in order to overcome the weariness and 
the discouragement or hoping that others will do it for us. 
Others are going to be a colossal disappointment, but Jesus Christ 
will never disappoint because he is the perfect remedy, the 
perfect antidote. The perfect bomb to correct weariness 
and discouragement of soul. And so, brethren, to close a 
couple of things, we need to always consider Christ. It's very not interesting, but 
it's very simple. What wisdom from God is wisdom 
from God is Jesus Christ. That's the wisdom from God. So 
why would we not fly to why would we not consider at all points 
and in all trials and and every time the Lord Jesus Christ. The 
ineffable perfection and excellency of his person and his absolute 
perfect work, the wisdom of God is found in Christ. And so when 
we are to seek out when we are to seek out remedy, when we are 
to seek out a resolution to a problem, We go to the Lord Jesus Christ. 
We don't go to Oprah. We don't go to Dr. Phil. We don't 
go to a bottle. We don't go to a canister. We 
don't go to a bowl. We go to the Lord Jesus Christ. 
We fly to the one who is truth incarnate. And brethren, it needs 
to be something that we always imbibe the ethic of putting things 
rightly into perspective. Jesus Christ endured such hostility 
from sinners against himself. Jesus Christ came into this world, 
endured the cross, despising the shame. When trials come, 
when difficulties come, we need to think we need to cast our 
eyes away from that small cup of frowning providences and cast 
our eyes upon that large cup of the wrath of God that Christ 
drank to the last draw. And brethren, again, and I would 
repeat it, this considering Jesus and looking unto Jesus, we need 
to attend unto the means of what that means, the engagement of 
our minds to read our Bibles. We need to love theology. This 
culture of repudiating and thumbing the nose at theology is thumbing 
the nose at the apostolic commission to consider Jesus, to look unto 
Jesus. We need to exercise our minds 
and glory in these truths that we have been given by great deposit 
by the prophets and the apostles, protected providentially by God. 
We can carry a full Bible in our hands. Let's read it. Let's 
open it up and read of this Christ. Let's open it up and read of 
this one that we are to look unto and find everything that 
we need in him. Well, let us pray. God, we thank 
you so much for the Lord Jesus Christ. And we thank you, Lord 
God, for his disposition, for the perfection of his character, 
for his steadfastness in his mission and his work. When he 
came into this world, we thank you, Lord God, that you have 
exalted him and given him the name which is above every name. 
We would ask, Lord God, that we would each and every day profess 
with our tongues that he is Lord, that we would bend the knee. 
whether inwardly or outwardly, to our blessed Lord Jesus. And 
we do ask, Lord God, that you would help us in this lower world 
to consider him, to meditate upon him. When weariness and 
discouragement of soul come upon us, we pray that we would fly 
nowhere save for the Lord Jesus Christ and that we would cast 
those eyes of faith upon him, considering his example, considering 
the perfection of his being, the perfection of his person 
and the perfection of his work. And we pray, Lord God, that we 
would not be dragged down by weariness and by discouragement, 
but each and every time quickly fly to the divine antidote and 
quickly fly to that divine remedy, the Lord Jesus Christ. We pray 
now that you'd go with us into this week. We would ask, Lord 
God, that you help us to think about Jesus Christ each and every 
day. And we would again each and every 
day glory and the spiritual blessings, all of which we have in him. 
And we pray that each and every day we would conduct ourselves 
in a manner worthy of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ, bringing 
glory to you and exalting him upon the work that we do in this 
lower world. So go with us now, help each 
and every one of my brothers and sisters to be strengthened 
in body and to have the wounds of the inner man healed and strengthened 
by their triune God. And we pray that in all we do 
this week, we would bring glory to you and we pray in Christ's 
name. Amen.