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You can turn with me in your 
Bibles to John's Gospel, John chapter 15, as we continue in 
our study in the upper room discourse. John 15, we're going to do something 
a bit different this morning. We're going to just take up the 
first half of verse 1. But I want to read from chapter 
15, verse 1 to verse 8. So Jesus says in the upper room, 
I am the true vine and the father is the vine dresser. Every branch 
in me that does not bear fruit, he takes away. And every branch 
that bears fruit, he prunes that it may bear more fruit. You are 
already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you. 
Abide in me and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit 
of itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless 
you abide in me. I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in me and I in 
him bears much fruit, for without me you can do nothing. If anyone 
does not abide in me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered. 
And they gather them and throw them into the fire and they are 
burned. If you abide in me, and my words 
abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done 
for you. By this my Father is glorified, 
that you bear much fruit, so you will be my disciples. Amen. Well, let us pray. Our gracious 
God and Holy Father, we thank you for the Lord's day. We thank 
you for the house of God, which is the church of the living God, 
the pillar and the ground of the truth. And we pray that your 
spirit would be at work now, that you would edify and encourage 
the people of God, that you would save those who are dead in their 
trespasses and sins. May they hear of Jesus, the true 
vine, that one in whom is everlasting life. And may they, by grace, 
believe on him that they may pass from death into life. Forgive 
us all for all of our sins. Cleanse us in the precious blood 
of the Lamb. And again, we ask that you'd 
be glorified, even Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. And we pray 
in Jesus' name, amen. Well, as we come to this particular 
statement, the first half of verse 1, I am the true vine. As I said, I want to take some 
time to investigate that because I think it's very important for 
us to understand how the Bible as a whole works together. When 
I was a child, and probably many others here, you had encyclopedias 
in your home. You have the World Book or Britannica. I understand those are still 
available, but it's worth the push of a button instead of having 
to get up all the way and walk across the couch or walk across 
the hallway and find that particular encyclopedia. When we talk about 
theology, there's four heads in the theological encyclopedia. First, we call exegetical theology. That's simply where we ask the 
Bible, what do you mean? The second head is historical 
theology. We ask the church, can you help 
us understand what the Bible means? Not in an authoritative, 
magisterial sense, but Christ gave gifts to the church and 
we should certainly listen to them whatever age they find themselves 
in. And then thirdly is what's called 
systematic theology, where we take the fruit of that research 
and we put it into what you might consider a systematic or logical 
fashion. We ask the Bible, what do you 
say about God? And then the texts come and the 
doctrines come. And then the fourth head, with 
reference to that encyclopedia, is called practical theology. 
We take the fruit of all that research and then we hopefully 
live in a manner that is consistent with that. In other words, our 
lives adorn the doctrine that we confess and that we believe. So we have looked a lot at systematic 
theology thus far in our studies in the Upper Room Discourse. 
Certainly exegesis, I've tried to open the text and show you 
what the Holy Spirit intended by way of meaning, but systematically 
we've tried to put all that data together in our formulation of 
the doctrine of the Trinity, the Christian doctrine of the 
Trinity. Well, our focus with reference to verse 1a in chapter 
15 is going to be on what's called biblical theology. Now, biblical 
theology is a part of exegetical theology, and biblical theology 
basically starts in Genesis 1 and goes all the way to Revelation 
22 to see the outflow of God's self-revelation in a more organic 
way. It's not systematic. What does 
the Bible say? So, look in various parts and 
then bring all those parts together. Rather, it takes up the Bible 
from the left, continues all the way to the right, and takes 
God's revelation as it comes to us in history. Sort of a father 
of biblical theology in our own generation, a man by the name 
of Gerhardus Voss explains it this way. Biblical theology is 
that branch of exegetical theology which deals with the process 
of the self-revelation of God deposited in the Bible. So the 
process of the self-revelation of God deposited in the Bible. He then highlights that there 
is a historic progressiveness of revelation in process. Again, what we find in the beginning 
helps feed us along the way till we come to the end and we have 
a robust understanding. He speaks of the actual embodiment 
of revelation in history. In other words, as we move through 
scripture, we see the embodiment of revelation in history. As 
well, organic nature of the historic process observed in Revelation, 
organic again in contrast, but not in competition, was systematic. So you start in Genesis, you 
move to the book of Revelation. Now, why is all of this important? Because when Jesus uses this 
metaphor in 15.1a, it brings together a lot of strands of 
biblical teaching to present for the reader something concerning 
who he is. not only in terms of his person 
and work, but in terms of his connection to the Old Testament, 
in terms of his connection to the true people of God. And so 
if you pay attention, and that's not in some sort of third grade 
teacher way, but if you pay attention, I don't think we're going to 
make it all the way to the sermon this morning, so I would really 
encourage you to come back next week. I may just make you mad 
enough this morning to hopefully invite you to come back Next, 
well, you're gonna get more mad next Sunday morning, depending 
on where you're at in terms of some biblical theological concepts. And then as well, when we use 
biblical theology, we often see something concerning typology. 
And I've nodded toward and spoken about typology in our study in 
the Gospel of John up to this point. Remember that a type can 
be a person, office, place, institution, event, or thing in salvation 
history. The temple, the tabernacle, was 
typical. The anti-type, the fulfillment 
of, the in the place of, is our Lord Jesus Christ. Remember in 
John 2, destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise 
it up? And then they mock and they scoff. Well, it took us 
all these years to build the temple, and in three days you're 
going to build it up? Well, John the theologian tells 
us he was commenting or talking about the temple of his body. The Aaronic priesthood, the Levitical 
priesthood, was typological of our Lord Jesus Christ. The Levitical 
sacrifices were typological of our Lord Jesus Christ. Remember, 
in John 1, 29, Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin 
of the world. You don't really understand that without typology 
and anti-type. You don't really get it unless 
you appreciate what happens in the book of Leviticus and what 
is being fulfilled by our Lord Jesus Christ. So typological 
sort of prefigurement in the Old Testament gives us understanding 
concerning our Lord. And our Lord gives us understanding 
in what to do with those types. So the argument here is going 
to be simple as we treat 15.1a. Adam was a type of Christ, according 
to Romans 5.14. The Apostle Paul tells us clearly, 
Adam was a type of him who was to come. Adam doesn't become 
a type in Romans 5.14. Adam was a type when God planted 
him in the garden. It didn't become true because 
Paul recognized it. Paul rather shows us what had 
always been true. There is a first Adam and there 
is a last Adam. But as we proceed here specifically 
in 15.1a, Adam was a type of Christ and so was Israel. What Adam failed to do in the 
garden and Israel failed to do in the old covenant, the Lord 
Jesus Christ came as the last Adam and the true Israel to fulfill 
all that they were obligated to do. So when Jesus says, I 
am the true vine, he's using a metaphor to be sure, something 
that we can connect with that we'll review in just a moment, 
but he's also dipping back into old covenant reality and showing 
that he is in fact the one in whom all the promises of God 
are yea and amen. In short, we're going to do another 
thing that is a subset of exegetical theology. You've got biblical 
theology and you've got covenant theology. As a Reformed church, 
we hold the covenant theology. So nothing that I say this morning 
or next Sunday morning should really surprise any of you, but 
I think it is the right application of an interpretative method to 
these texts in the Old Testament that announce and prophesy the 
coming of the Messiah, and the New Testament texts that show 
us the realization and the fulfillment of those texts in the person 
and in the work of our Lord Jesus Christ. So essentially what we 
want to do with reference to verse 1a is to first look at 
the I am statements in John's gospel. Just going to be a bit 
of a review for those who have been with us. Notice Jesus says, 
I am, I am the true vine. So we'll review the I am statements 
in John's gospel, and then secondly, the identification of Jesus as 
the true vine. And I suspect we're only gonna 
get a little bit of the way into that, but let's begin by first 
remembering the I am statements in John's gospel. There's two 
kinds. Sometimes Jesus says, I am the 
true vine. I am the good shepherd. I am 
the sheep of the door. He provides a predicate or he 
provides something about the I am that further indicates something 
concerning who he is. But there are those other instances 
where he does not use a predicate. He simply says, I am. And remember or recall the Old 
Testament background relative to that. It's God at the burning 
bush in Exodus 3.14. When he commissions Moses, he 
tells him, I am sent you. So Moses asks the name of the 
living and true God, and the living and true God gives him 
his name, consistent with his infinity, consistent with his 
eternality, consistent with his glory, consistent with the fact 
that he is the creator. He says, I am who I am. And then 
you see this phrase picked up by God, Yahweh of Israel, in 
the book of Isaiah. where on several instances he 
reveals himself as I Am. So when we get to John's Gospel 
and we see Jesus use this I Am without a predicate, we know 
why he does that. Because Jesus is consubstantial 
with the Father. Because in the beginning was 
the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 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. He's consubstantial with the 
Father. He maintains that mutual indwelling with the Father. We 
refer to that as perichoresis. He speaks to that here in John 
14. Notice specifically in verse 10. He says, do you not believe 
that I am in the Father and the Father in me? The words that 
I speak to you, I do not speak on my own authority, but the 
Father who dwells in me does the works. Believe me that I 
am in the Father and the Father in me, or else believe me for 
the sake of the works themselves. Look at 14.5, Jesus, I'm sorry, 
15.5. Jesus says, I am the vine, you 
are the branches. He who abides in me. Remember, 
we abide in Christ, but we abide by grace, the grace of adoption, 
based on God's election, based on God's predestination, based 
on His eternal decree. We are in Christ by grace. Jesus is in the Father, and the 
Father is in Jesus, not by grace, not by adoption, not by nature, 
but rather by the common essence, the consubstantiality, the fact 
that there is a unity in the divine nature. So he is there 
as one who is one with the Father, as he says in John 10.30. So 
let's just review these places where we see these IMs without 
a predicate. Notice in John 14. I'm sorry, 
John 4. We'll end up at John 14, I think. Actually we won't, not in this 
head. Notice in John 4 specifically. Jesus and the woman at the well. 
Bringing it to its pinnacle in verse 25, the woman said to him, 
I know that Messiah is coming, who is called Christ. When he 
comes, he will tell us all things. Jesus said to her, I who speak 
to you am. Now the he is supplied, but the 
emphasis is upon, his self-identity as the Messiah sent by God. The 
Messiah, incidentally, prophesied in the Old Covenant that would 
be divine. He would be everlasting Father. 
He would be the Eternal One. His goings forth would be from 
of old, even from everlasting. The Jews deny that the prophets 
spoke of a divine Messiah, and yet we see a divine Messiah prophesied 
by the prophets. The Lord said to my Lord, sit 
at my right hand till I make your enemies your footstool. 
The infinite God of absolute sovereignty and glory is not 
going to station a creature at that place of preeminent dignity 
and majesty. The Old Testament prophesied 
a divine Messiah, and in connection with this woman's confession 
concerning, or at least her understanding at this point, I know that Messiah 
is coming. When he comes, he will tell us 
all things. She says this on the heels of having been told 
all things. She's getting it. She's understanding. So Jesus discloses, I who speak 
to you, am he. Notice in chapter six, specifically 
in verses 15 to 21. Remember that scene, Jesus walks 
on the sea, and the disciples see it. And when Jesus sees them, 
not that he didn't see them, I'm kind of using the manner 
of men. Notice in verse 20, but he said to them, it is I, do 
not be afraid. Well, it's the same convention. 
The it is I could be translated, I am. Now, take it alone, you 
might say, well, that's just a way that one would identify 
himself. But taken in connection with the Old Testament, taken 
in connection with the book of Job, taken in connection with 
the Psalter, the fact that God Most High, the Lord of Israel, 
Yahweh, the living and true God, is the ruler over the seas of 
the earth, is the one who treads the seas, This statement is pregnant 
with meaning in the lips of our Lord Jesus Christ. I am, I am 
the one that treads the waves. Notice in John 8, John 8, specifically 
at verse 18. I am one who bears witness of 
myself, and the Father who sent me bears witness of me. That's 
the general overarching particular theme. Now notice specifically 
in verse 24, therefore I said to you, this is his debate, this 
is his confrontation, this is him going head to head with the 
religious leaders of his time. Those apostates, those reprobates, 
those who had rejected the Lord of glory and ultimately crucify 
him. He says, therefore I said to 
you that you will die in your sins, for if you do not believe 
that I am, you will die in your sins. Now this is where it becomes 
very practical. Remember Elijah on Mount Carmel 
when he says, how long will you falter between two positions 
or opinions? If Baal is God, serve him. If 
Yahweh is God, serve him. For Elijah, this was no academic 
pursuit. For Elijah, this wasn't just, 
well, you pick your God today. For Elijah, it was, you better 
get your act together and you better go after Yahweh. Well, 
with reference to the identity of our Lord Jesus Christ, as 
the Word became flesh, as the Word of God, who was with God 
and was God, you can't just see him as another religious teacher. 
You can't just appreciate his ethical impressions made in the 
Sermon on the Mount. You can't just say, I'm going 
to really dig deep and follow Jesus' example. You need to believe 
that he is. You need to believe that he is 
God Most High, that he is the second person of the Trinity, 
that he was sent for us men and for our salvation. This is not 
simply an academic biblical theology lesson. Where are you at relative 
to the one who declares that unless you believe that I am, 
you will die in your sins? This isn't simply academic. This 
isn't intramural. This is everything concerning 
the Christian faith. If you are wrong at the point 
of who Jesus is, you will go to hell. That's what scripture 
tells us. He who has the Son has everlasting 
life. He who does not have the Son 
shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him. John 3, 
36. Or Jesus in John 14, 6. I am the way, the truth, and 
the life. No one comes to the Father except 
through me. See, the Bible doesn't just give 
us information to tickle our minds. The Bible gives us information 
to drive us to the cross. If you do not believe that I 
am, you will die in your sins. If you do not believe the self-revelation 
of Jesus as it comes to us in the scriptures, then you will 
die in your sins. Notice John 8, 28, then Jesus 
said to them, when you lift up the Son of Man, then you will 
know that I am, and that I do nothing of myself, but as my 
Father taught me, I speak these things. As Cam rightly pointed 
out, the centurion at the foot of the cross saw enough to convince 
him that this was indeed the Son of God. Did he understand 
the mediatorial office, prophet, priest, and king? Probably not. But when these Jews who crucified 
him and had listened to him in debates like these, he says, 
when you lift me up, then you will know that I am. When he's 
raised from the dead, declared to be the Son of God with power 
by the Spirit of holiness. then it would be all too clear 
who Christ was. And then notice the Jews understand 
this specific emphasis. We see that toward the end of 
John 8. Notice specifically in verse 54, Jesus answered, if 
I honor myself, my honor is nothing. It is my father who honors me, 
of whom you say that he is your God. Yet you have not known him, 
but I know him. And if I say I do not know him, 
I shall be a liar like you, but I do know him and keep his word." 
How do you think Jesus would fare in Ottawa or DC or in some 
sort of academic environment? He just called us lawyers or 
in churches or in synagogues or in mosques. How do you think 
Jesus would fare? when just as matter-of-factly 
as we might say in Chilliwack, pretty regularly, it's raining 
outside. He as matter-of-factly says, 
you're liars. You're deceivers. Remember he 
upbraids them in the previous section, specifically in 844. You are of your father, the devil, 
and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer 
from the beginning and does not stand in the truth because there 
is no truth in him. Again, not the sort of fellow 
in today's climate that you would invite to speak in any of those 
environments, and again, the church more often than not, because 
of the fact that that's not nice. Notice that one of the attributes 
of God or perfections of God that we celebrate in scripture 
is not niceness. That's the big crime today. He's 
not nice. She's not nice. Now, I'm not 
suggesting we run around with scowls on our face, screaming 
at everybody because we're not nice. I'm not saying that. But if our theology doesn't have 
a place for the Son of God going into the temple of God, taking 
a scourge, and driving out animals and the ones who tended to them 
because they had bastardized the public worship of God Most 
High, then our theology needs to be recalibrated. Zeal for 
your house has consumed me. That's what drove our blessed 
Savior when he cleanses the temple there. Back to our text, verse 
56. Your father Abraham rejoiced 
to see my day and he saw it and was glad. Then the Jews said 
to him, you are not yet 50 years old and have you seen Abraham? Jesus said to them, most assuredly 
I say to you before Abraham was, The language, the New King James 
translators interpret this correctly. In light of Exodus 3.14, I am. Well, that's just what he claimed. That's just what he thought. 
That's just what he declared. Well, that's certainly how they 
understood it, because notice in verse 59, then they took up 
stones to throw at him, but Jesus hid himself and went out of the 
temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by. Now, 
whatever we say about these religious leaders, and I think there's 
a lot to say about them that is pretty bad, because the apostles 
don't hold back, I doubt it was their custom routinely to pick 
up rocks and throw it at various people they disagreed with. Why 
would they pick up rocks to throw them at Jesus? Because Leviticus 
24 14 demands the death penalty for a blasphemer. And as far 
as they're concerned, this is the son of a carpenter. This 
is that rube from Nazareth. And here he is claiming to be 
on equal footing with Yahweh. take up stones, cast them into 
his head, and rid him from the earth. That's their mindset, 
brethren. They understood better than what 
many understand in our own day in terms of Jesus' self-revelation. And then notice in the upper 
room, John 13, we nodded to this last week, specifically at verse 
19. Now I tell you, before it comes, for the purpose of predictive 
prophecy, we see it in the prophet Isaiah. God says, I'm telling 
you what I'm going to do so that when it comes to pass, you don't 
ascribe that activity to your idol. Because I foreannounced 
or foretold, I think I messed up last week, foretelling and 
foretelling. I'll just blame it on the flu 
plague that I had and the fugue state that I was in. Foretelling 
is when the prophet foretells the word of God. Foretelling 
is when he announces predictively what God's gonna do. So Yahweh 
does that in the book of Isaiah. I'm gonna tell you what I'm gonna 
do so that when it comes to the past, you can only ascribe it 
to me. Well, that's the same function in the prophetic mouth 
of Christ. Notice in verse 19, I tell you before it comes, that 
when it does come to pass, you may believe what? Boy, that was 
a lucky guess! Boy, he's, you know, batting 
a thousand! 90, you know, 99.9% of everything. Well, 100%. Why did he want them 
to hear these predictions? So that you'll know that I am. 
So that you'll understand and confirm, authenticate, in the 
beginning was the Word. The Word was with God and the 
Word was God. And then notice in chapter 18, 
chapter 18, again, we see this I am without a predicate in a 
couple of instances. John 18, they get to the Garden 
of Gethsemane, verse five, then they answered him, Jesus of Nazareth. 
So Jesus said to them, I'm sorry, let's back up to verse four. 
Jesus, therefore, knowing all things that would come upon him, 
went forward and said to them, whom are you seeking? They answered 
him, Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus said to them, I am. And 
Judas, who betrayed him, also stood with them. But note the 
interesting and curious thing here. Brethren, you've got to 
understand, this is a glorious reveal in terms of the person 
of our Savior. It's kind of like the Mount of 
Transfiguration in Matthew's gospel. Remember, Jesus takes 
Peter, James, and John, they go up to the Mount of Transfiguration, 
and it was, as it were, the Lord peels back his humanity to reveal 
something of his divinity. And it blows their minds. He's 
shining, white, whiter than any garment any launderer could clean. There was a revelation of His 
glory. That's why John can say in 114, 
we beheld His glory. The glory as of the only begotten 
of the Father, full of grace and truth. So notice what happens. Jesus says, I am, Judas who betrayed 
Him stood with that. Now when He said to them, I am, 
they drew back and fell to the ground. The they there includes 
the Roman armies. The they there includes the civil 
authority. The they there confronted, was 
rather confronted by the glory of the I am, and the only inevitable 
result was to fall down. So when Jesus in John's gospel 
says, I am, and he doesn't supply a predicate, he is asserting 
his equality of nature with the father. Now in terms of the Old 
Testament, I've mentioned Exodus 3, Isaiah 41, Isaiah 43, Isaiah 
48. Now the function in John's gospel 
specifically is the self-revelation of Jesus as the Son sent by the 
Father, who for us men and for our salvation came down from 
heaven. That one who is consubstantial 
as the only begotten Son. Not the son by adoption or by 
grace or by creation, the son by nature. Now, when it comes 
to the I Am statements with a predicate, I'll just run through these because 
we've met them along the way. But notice, in our text, or rather 
in the Gospel of John, we have first, I am the bread of life. John 6, 35, 41, 48, and 51. We have then, secondly, Jesus 
says, I am the light of the world, John 8, 12, John 9, 5. We have 
thirdly, Jesus says, I am the door of the sheep, John 10, 7, 
and John 10, 9. Fourthly, Jesus says, I am the 
good shepherd, John 10, 11, and 14. at the gravesite of Lazarus 
when Jesus is comforting the sibling. He says, I am the resurrection 
and the life, John 11, 25. I've already alluded or already 
repeated the sixth one. Jesus says, I am the way, the 
truth and the life, according to John 14, 6. And then here 
we have the seventh and final I am with a predicate in John's 
gospel. I am the true vine. We have that in 15.1 and then 
again in 15.5. And Klink, Edward Klink, makes the observation, 
the seven formal I am statements are emphatic descriptions of 
the person and ministry of Jesus and cumulatively form a detailed 
picture of Jesus Christ. Again, they're metaphors, metaphors 
that we can No pun intended. Sink our teeth in. I am the bread 
of life. We've got to sink our teeth into 
the bread of life. I am the light of the world. We can't function 
without light. I'm the door of the sheep. Not 
as applicable to us, because none of us that I know of are 
sheepherders, but something I think we at least have a general understanding 
of. I am the good shepherd. Absolutely, positively. I'm the 
resurrection and the life. Again, things that we can understand, 
metaphors provided in the simple teaching of our blessed Savior 
to inform His people. It's not shooting over their 
heads, dealing with abstract theological concept. He's revealing 
Himself under figures that these men would understand, that men 
like us would understand. but as well, as I've said earlier, 
the theological weight of such statements. Again, take the one, 
I am the good shepherd in John 10. How does that hit you? It should hit you like this. 
Wow, that's great. I'm a wretch. I'm like a sheep. 
I've wandered, I've gone astray. I'm very thankful that I have 
a good shepherd who collects me, who gets me, who not gets 
me, but gets me with crook. But brethren, if you don't hear 
Psalm 23 in that declaration, you need to reorient your brain. The Lord is my shepherd, I shall 
not want. And then Jesus comes to his people 
and says, I am the good shepherd. And then one better than that 
says that the good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. 
And then even better than that, he says, I've come that they 
might have life and that they might have it more abundantly. So brethren, in that John 10, 
good shepherd, I am with the predicate, you got to hear Psalm 
23. You've got to hear the glory 
of God as shepherd in Ezekiel 37. You've got to hear those 
images. So yeah, metaphor to inform and 
instruct us in a way that's tangible and concrete. But the biblical 
richness of the old covenant narrative tied up in a bow and 
placed right on our Lord Jesus. This is why Paul can say all 
the promises of God are yea and amen in him. Now let's move then 
to the identification of Jesus as the true vine. And I know 
it says it, I know that's a declarative statement, but I wanna put that 
declarative statement in a larger biblical context. Why? Because 
that declarative statement summarizes that larger biblical context 
and should help us to profoundly understand the very person of 
our Lord and the nature of our Lord in terms of his temporal 
mission. As well, I think it helps us 
answer the question, who's God's people? So first, I wanna look 
at the opening of Matthew's gospel. And for those keeping an eye 
on the clock, I think this is as far as we're gonna get this 
morning. And then we'll pick up to this specific declaration 
in John's gospel, God willing, next Sunday morning. But with 
reference to the opening of Matthew's gospel, Matthew does two things. Matthew highlights that Jesus 
is connected to Old Covenant Israel by the term firstborn. As well, Matthew shows us there 
is a connection between Jesus and Old Covenant Israel by what 
Jesus does in the opening pages of Matthew's gospel. That's pretty 
simple. Shouldn't be too tough. Let's 
get our minds to it. First, we need to understand 
that Old Covenant Israel is referred to as the firstborn of God. You 
can turn to the book of Exodus, Exodus chapter four. Exodus chapter 
4, identification of Israel as the firstborn son of God. Exodus 
chapter four, specifically at verse 21. And the Lord said to 
Moses, when you go back to Egypt, see that you do all those wonders 
before Pharaoh, which I have put in your hand, but I will 
harden his heart so that he will not let the people go. Then you 
shall say to Pharaoh, thus says the Lord, Israel is my son, my 
first born. Now, brethren, that shows the 
relation that Yahweh bore to Old Covenant Israel, my firstborn 
son. It's a beautiful statement, it's 
a beautiful expression. Incidentally, it's the foundation 
for what we call the lax talionis or the law of retribution. Remember 
when we get further in the book of Exodus and God Almighty starts 
to send plagues upon the people of Egypt? How do you think non-Christians 
like that? Let me ask you better. How do 
you think the Egyptians, who buried their firstborn after 
Yahweh killed them, liked that? Well, that's horrible. That's 
vicious. It's genocide. The behest of 
Yahweh, the children of Egypt die. Look at what God says. Verse 22, then you shall say 
to Pharaoh, thus says the Lord, Israel is my son, my firstborn. So I say to you, let my son go 
that he may serve me. But if you refuse to let him 
go, indeed, I will kill your son, your firstborn. You want 
to talk about fear? Let's talk about justice, something 
absent and vacant in our day. Guy goes out and commits horrific 
crimes. He murders, he kills, he rapes, 
he pillages, he destroys. He goes to prison for six years 
and then he's out on good behavior. Really? That's justice? No, justice is the law of retribution. God lays down specifically the 
terms that they must obey. Do not harm my firstborn. If 
you do, I will harm your firstborn. This is justice, brethren. This 
isn't genocide. This isn't the behest of Yahweh 
to go and ruin a bunch of people's days. This was justice. In other words, God sent not 
altogether just Israel in upon the Canaanites in the conquest 
to dispossess the land of those wretched sinners. But you'll 
notice in subsequent history when Israel apes the Canaanites, 
that means imitates them and acts like them, what happens? 
God sends the Assyrians to deal with the Northern Kingdom, God 
sends the Babylonians to deal with the Southern Kingdom. There's 
no capriciousness, there's no arbitrariness, there's no good 
day, bad day for our gracious God. There is justice, there 
is righteousness, there is holiness, and the dignity of God, He maintains 
that. So Israel, as the firstborn son 
of God Almighty. We're gonna get back to Matthew, 
but stop on the way to Psalm 89. With reference to the firstborn 
of God, I want to show the connection between Old Covenant Israel and 
our Lord Jesus Christ. So the identification of Jesus 
as the firstborn Son of God. In Psalm 89, which we would call 
the Covenant Psalm or a Covenant Psalm, it expands for us or rather 
celebrates for us or rehearses for us what we call the Davidic 
Covenant in 2 Samuel 7. A time when David is musing about 
himself, I've got this palace, I've got this beauty, I've got 
this glory, and Yahweh dwells in a tent. I want to build him 
a house. Of course, God says, no, you're a man of war. Not 
that that's a condemnation. David was supposed to be a man 
of war. But it would be in the son of David, Solomon, the man 
of peace, wherein they would have the ability to then construct 
the temple. When God makes that indictment 
of David, I think it's a wrong-headed inference to say, well, he was 
a man of war, and he had bloody hands, and so therefore he wasn't 
holy enough to engage in the temple building. That's not the 
emphasis. He was too busy killing heathen. He was too busy breaking their 
things. He was too busy doing king things 
in terms of securing the kingdom. Once the kingdom is secured and 
his son Solomon is born, it is Solomon's then to build the temple, 
to build the house for God. So Psalm 89 in essence tells 
us about that. But notice in terms of prophetic 
announcement concerning the Lord Jesus or the Messiah. Notice 
in Psalm 89 27, also I will make him my firstborn, the highest 
of the kings of the earth. My mercy I will keep for him 
forever and my covenant shall stand firm with him. His seat 
also I will make to endure forever and his throne as the days of 
heaven. And you say, well, it doesn't capitalize the H there 
in verse 27. It should, because it's about 
Jesus. He's the firstborn of God Most High. Now turn to Matthew. Turn to Matthew. Specifically at verse 24, 124. Well, before that, notice 1.1, 
the book of genealogy of Jesus Christ. I skipped this. The son 
of David, the son of Abraham. There's that physical and covenantal 
connection to Abraham and David. Matthew, out of the chute, is 
saying, I've got something to tell to you, people of Israel. Most Bible commentators agree 
that while all the four Gospels are written for us, initially 
they weren't addressed to us. Matthew writes to a Jewish audience, 
Mark writes to a Roman audience, or better, Peter preached and 
Mark recorded that, Luke is more Gentilic or Gentile, and then 
John writes to everybody else, the church, the non-church, people 
of God who need to know more about their triune God, and the 
non-people of God who need to understand 20, 30, and 31. These things are written so that 
you may believe that Jesus is the Son, the Son of the living 
God, and that believing in Him you may have life in His name. 
So Matthew, out of the chute, connects us to David and Abraham. Then notice in 124, Then Joseph, 
being aroused from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord commanded 
him, and took to him his wife, and did not know her till she 
had brought forth her firstborn son. And he called his name Jesus. 
Now I know what's going on in your heads. Well, that's a verse 
that speaks against Roman Catholicism and the dogma of perpetual virginity 
on the part of Mary. Her firstborn son, which intimates 
she had other sons. Oh, I agree with that a hundred 
percent. But as I hope to show you, the fact that Matthew uses 
firstborn there has some theological connections too. When we move 
through the rest of the New Testament, we see this identification as 
Jesus, the firstborn. Look at Romans 8, Romans chapter 
8, specifically at verse 29, a familiar passage. but one that 
is instructive. For whom He foreknew, He also 
predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He 
might be the firstborn among many brethren. Turn to Colossians 
1, probably one of the primary places you think of when you 
hear this term firstborn applied to our blessed Savior. Colossians 
chapter 1, specifically in verse 15. He is the image of the invisible 
God, the firstborn over all creation. Now, if you've ever done any 
witnessing or discussing with Jehovah's Witnesses, this is 
a big text for them. It's a huge text for them. So 
much so that they radically alter the text. Specifically in verse 
16. How do they define firstborn? 
Well, he's the first creature of God. And as the first creature 
of God, then he's handed the reins to create all other things. That's ignorance. Was Israel 
The firstborn chronologically among all the nations of the 
earth? No. Ezekiel 16.3, your birth and 
your nativity are from the land of Canaan. Your father was an 
Amorite and your mother a Hittite. Oh, there were previous nations? But I thought Israel was the 
firstborn. It means preeminence. It means 
glory. It means magnificence. Covenanted with Yahweh of Israel, 
Israel was the best thing going versus the Canaanites and the 
various ites. Jesus is not a creature. Notice 
in verse 16, here's where the witnesses really show their theological, 
not bias brethren, that's too soft a word, prejudice, viciousness, 
an absolute departure from the translation of the text to the 
imposition of their godless theology upon the sacred text. So they 
say he is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. So he's the first one made by 
God. He's a creature. So then in verse 
16, for by him all, then they put in brackets, other. all other. What's the implication? He himself is created and now 
he as the creature of God creates all other things. See, that's 
not what the text is telling us. Firstborn does not mean chronology. It means preeminence. It means 
glory. It means majesty. It means excellence. Notice in 118, and he is the 
head of the body. The church, who is the beginning. 
The firstborn from the dead, that in all things he may have 
the preeminence. Turn over to Hebrews chapter 
1. Hebrews chapter one, specifically in verse six, but when he again 
brings the firstborn into the world, he says, let all the angels 
of God worship him. Now there is obviously a chronology 
with reference to Christ according to his divinity. In the beginning 
was the word, and the word was with God, and the word was God. 
But fundamentally and foundationally, firstborn as applied to Israel 
in the old covenant, as applied to the Lord Jesus as the true 
Israel in the new covenant, the idea is the preeminent one, the 
champion, the victor, the glorious one, and the one by which I will 
reveal my glory, the one in whom all the covenant promises of 
God are. Yay and amen. As well, notice in 12.23, 12.23, 
this contrast between Sinai and Zion. I won't read the whole 
thing, but just notice specifically in verse 22, but you have come 
to Mount Zion and to the city of living God. Curious language, 
isn't it? Why do you think old New Covenant 
authors refer to the church as Zion? because of the true Israel, 
which is Jesus. And by virtue of our union with 
Him, we are now in the language of Galatians 6.16, the Israel 
of God. This is where the sermon's going. 
Again, this might make you uncomfortable if you're not up on your covenant 
theology. But God Most High, in His eternal 
purpose and His plan and mission for this earth, was to redeem 
from every tribe, every tongue, every people and nation, and 
in theological shorthand refer to them as the Israel of God. 
the one that is preeminent with God among all others. So notice 
in 1222, but you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of 
the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable 
company of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn 
who are registered in heaven, to God, the judge of all. That's 
the firstborn church because of its vital connection to the 
firstborn Son of God. Notice as well in Revelation 
1, and I think specifically John the seer has in his mind, in 
this particular instance, Psalm 89. The Book of Revelation is 
the most Old Testament-ish book in the New Testament. Not just 
necessarily direct quotation, but allusion, theme, metaphor, 
imagery. All that stuff is co-opted by 
the Apostle as he's on the island of Patmos for the testimony of 
our Lord Jesus Christ and the Word of God. And He conveys to 
us, using that rich imagery, glory about Jesus. And notice 
in Revelation chapter 1, specifically at verse 4, because it's a Trinitarian 
greeting, or a greeting in the name of the Triune God, Grace 
to you and peace from Him who is, and was, and who is to come. Father, and from the seven spirits 
who are before his throne. It doesn't mean there's seven 
Holy Spirits. I think it probably means the number of completion, 
the number of fullness, the number, again, of glory as predicated 
of the Holy Spirit. And then notice, and from Jesus 
Christ. With Jesus, he extrapolates then 
the threefold office of Christ, and again, I think this all comes 
from Psalm 89, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, 
and the ruler over the kings of the earth. So when we look 
in Matthew 1 and we see this conspicuous connection between 
Jesus and David and Abraham, and we see this comment that 
this is Mary's firstborn son, yes, over and against the doctrine 
of perpetual virginity, But yes, over and for the doctrine of 
the fact that Jesus has come as the fulfillment of what Adam 
forfeit and what Israel in the Old Covenant forfeit. Now in 
terms of the Israel of God, How do we see that played out in 
the early chapters of Matthew's gospel? Well, as I've already 
said, the physical and covenantal connection to Abraham and David, 
but then notice secondly, the application of Hosea 11 to Jesus 
in Matthew 2. Look at Matthew 2, we'll pick 
up reading in verse 12, we're gonna be ending soon. Matthew 
chapter two, specifically at verse 12, then being divinely 
warned in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed 
for their own country another way. Now, when they had departed, 
behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream 
saying, arise, take the young child and his mother, flee to 
Egypt and stay there until I bring you word, for Herod will seek 
the young child to destroy him. When he arose, he took the young 
child and his mother by night and departed for Egypt. And was 
there until the death of Herod, notice this is a fulfillment 
formula often used by the evangelist Matthew to show us how Jesus 
fulfills what the old covenant pointed to. And in this instance 
specifically, that it might be fulfilled, which was spoken by 
the Lord through the prophet saying, out of Egypt I called 
my son. Huh? You read the prophet Hosea 
and you say, well, that obviously refers to the exodus from Egypt 
that God brought Israel out of. Yeah. But it obviously refers 
to the flight to Egypt by the firstborn son of God, who is 
the yea and amen of all the promises of God, who is the successful 
Israel of God. Out of Egypt I called my son. As well, when we start to move 
along in the book of Matthew, we see, thirdly, the passing 
through water after being called out of Egypt. And you might say, 
well, you know, that's getting a bit obscure. It's getting a 
bit, you know, esoteric. It's not, brethren. If a dim 
bulb like me can see it, I invite you to give it a try. Matthew's 
a theologian, writing to people who knew the 
Old Testament. Matthew wants to show them Jesus 
is the one. It's not condemnatory in the 
first instance. Ah, you wretched Jews, you need 
to get it together. He's telling them. He's unveiling, 
as it were, the temporal mission of the Son of God, functioning 
as the true Israel of God, the champion to save us from our 
sins. So notice, out of Egypt and then 
through water. It's not exactly what happens 
in the book of Exodus. They go out of Egypt, chapter 
12. They pass through the waters 
of the Red Sea in chapter 14. Look at Jesus. He's come out 
of Egypt, and now in chapter 3, He passes through water. Verse 
13, Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan to be baptized 
by him. And John tried to prevent Him, 
saying, I need to be baptized by you, and are you coming to 
me? But Jesus answered and said to him, Permit it to be so now, 
for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness. 
Then he allowed him. When he had been baptized, Jesus 
came up immediately from the water, and behold, the heavens 
were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending 
like a dove and alighting upon him. And suddenly a voice came 
from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am 
well pleased. Yes, the doctrine sets forth 
the earthly baptism of our Lord Jesus Christ. Yes, the doctrine 
highlights the blessedness of the Trinity. You want to learn 
about the Trinity, as the ancients said, to Arius, go down to the 
river Jordan. There you will see. But it links 
Jesus with Israel. It really does. So then, think 
back for just a moment. Exodus 12, they leave Egypt. 
Exodus 14, they pass through water. Where do they come out 
on the other side? Jehoiach, Abbotsford, Cities 
Flowing? No, they come to the wilderness. 
Look at what we look at in verse one of chapter four. Then Jesus 
was led up by the spirit into the wilderness to be tempted 
by the devil. And intriguingly, in that first 
temptation, it's with reference to food, right? You gotta be 
hungry. It's been a long time that you've 
been out here. Interesting, 40 years in the wilderness, 40 days 
of temptation. Wow. Matthew got lucky. Matthew's weaving history and 
theology so that he can instruct us concerning the fulfillment 
of all the promises of God that are yea and amen in Jesus. So notice, When Jesus goes out 
to the wilderness, the devil seizes upon the opportunity to 
test him three times. The first is with reference to 
food. It's intriguing because after Exodus 15 comes Exodus 
16. You know what happens in Exodus 16 when they get in the 
wilderness? They complain about food. We're going to die out 
here. We kind of like those leeks and 
melons and garlic and all those verities we had back in in Egypt, 
but you were slaves. Brethren, I'm not convinced everybody 
wants their freedom. I'm not convinced of that at 
all. I think the nation of Israel displays that in the Old Covenant 
very, very vividly and perceptively. Moses sends out the spies to 
recon the land in Numbers 13 and 14. They recon the land. It's a good land. Milk, honey, 
berries, fruit, goodness. but there's these pesky giants 
in the land. We don't wanna venture against 
them. They're big men, they're strong 
men. We don't wanna do it. Only two of the spies were like, 
let's go, Caleb and Joshua. In fact, Caleb says, let's go 
at once. Who do you think the congregation listened to? The 
two spies that had faith and a backbone that said, let's go 
conquer the land for God. Because remember, he's already 
promised that he gave us the land. Of course they don't. They listen to the 10 whiners. 
They listen to the grumblers. Oh no, those giants are pesky. The land's not that good after 
all. It's interesting, as the narrative flows in Numbers 13, 
they continue to revise their report. Great land, but becomes, 
but not that great a land. Now notice Deuteronomy 8. We're 
gonna tie this up here. Deuteronomy chapter 8, specifically 
in verse 1. Again, just to see the connection 
between Jesus and Old Covenant Israel. In the use or title of 
firstborn, and then as well in the actual activity of our son, 
which in many respects imitates what Old Covenant Israel did, 
but the emphasis or the accent falls upon his victory. God put 
Adam in a paradise. God put Adam in a paradise and 
he forfeit eternal life. Adam is what we call protology, 
not proctology, protology. The doctrine of first things. 
Israel functions by way of typology, prefigurement, shadows, announcements, 
promises, prophesying. Jesus is the anti-type. To the 
prototype, Adam, he's called the last Adam, and to the type 
of Israel, he's the Israel of God. So notice in 8.1 of the book 
of Deuteronomy, every commandment which I command you today, you 
must be careful to observe that you may live and multiply and 
go in and possess the land of which the Lord swore to your 
fathers. And you shall remember that the Lord your God led you 
all the way these 40 years in the wilderness to humble you 
and test you. Is that the purpose why the Spirit 
drives Jesus out into the wilderness? After divine approbation, this 
is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased, we ought to expect 
something like this. Divine confirmation in terms 
of the steadfastness and the commitment and the resolve of 
the servant of Yahweh that does not shrink back from fulfilling 
all the obligations placed upon Him. It's our covenant head, 
of course He does it. But then notice specifically 
verse to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep 
his commandments or not. So he humbled you, allowed you 
to hunger, and fed you with manna, which you did not know, nor did 
your fathers know, that he might make you know that man shall 
not live by bread alone." Isn't that interesting? That's the 
text that Jesus pulls out of his sheath, as it were. He's 
the one that has the sheath on the back. You know, those really 
rugged soldiers and gladiators, they pull it out and they'll 
dash their enemies. It's this passage when the devil 
comes to him and says, you gotta be hungry, turn these stones 
into bread. What is Jesus doing there? He's 
showing us that he's the true Israel of God. Again, brethren, 
I'm not forcing this. And by the way, I'm not the first 
dim bulb to alight on these things. But man lives by every word that 
proceeds from the mouth of the Lord. Your garments did not wear 
out on you, nor did your foot swell these 40 years. You should 
know in your heart that as man chastens his son, so the Lord 
your God chastens you. I think that's a great place 
for us to stop. God willing, we'll look at the Declaration 
in John's Gospel next week, but we'll put it again in its Old 
Testament background and then show its New Testament revelation, 
biblical theology, the organic self-revelation of God in the 
historical process so that we can make heads or tails of who 
Jesus is relative to that Old Testament. Now, before we close, 
I do want to reemphasize something that came out prior. that we 
should, as God's people, reflect upon the I Am statements with 
a predicate and stand in awe. Jesus is the bread of life. Jesus is the light of the world. Jesus is the resurrection and 
the life. Jesus is the door of the sheep. Jesus is the good shepherd who 
gives his life for the sheep so that we might have life abundantly. 
Jesus is the way, the truth, the life. Jesus is all that he 
says that he is. And as the people of God, that 
should inform us so it will promote worship. And dare I say comfort 
and encouragement and stability and security? Jesus is all that 
for the likes of us. So brethren, rejoice. Brethren, 
worship. Brethren, praise and adore. And 
if you're not a believer, don't forget John 8, 24. Well, I've 
already forgotten it. Well, I'm gonna remind you, if 
you do not believe that I am, not Jim Butler, Jesus is saying, 
self-declaration, if you do not believe that I am, you will die 
in your sins. What is the way to everlasting 
life? What is the way to everlasting 
joy? What is the way to no more sorrows, 
to no more hunger, to no more pain, to no more death? What 
is that way? It's Jesus. I am the way, the 
truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except 
through me. And I can encourage you, he's 
in the business of receiving some pretty messed up people. 
So there is good news and great hope for any here that have still 
not come to our Lord Jesus Christ in faith. Well, let us pray. 
Our great God and our Holy Father, we thank you for your word. We 
thank you for the scope of the whole, which is to give all glory 
to God. We thank you for the revelation 
of our Lord Jesus Christ. We thank you for the glory that 
we see in passages like these. We thank you for biblical theology, 
covenant theology that helps us to appreciate and to tie up 
loose ends or what may seem to be loose ends in our minds and 
cause us to reflect again upon the fact that Jesus is the yea 
and amen of all the promises of God. And you have made us 
blessed benefactors and beneficiaries of these things by your grace. And we praise you and we worship 
you and we adore you. And we pray now through Jesus 
Christ, our Lord, amen.