← Back to sermon library

everyone welcome to Free Grace Baptist Church it's wonderful to be back in the house of the Lord and a welcome to all visitors that are out there with us this morning it's always a joy to have uh to have new people amongst us so we pray that you would be blessed to worship along with us our great Triune God two announcements before we begin worship this morning the first is that that it is the Lord's Supper uh this evening we'll be observing the Lord's supper at our 5 uh 5:00 p.m. service so for for all Christians recall the the wonderful words of Our Lord with a Commandment that is not burdensome do this in remembrance of me uh so uh we look forward to seeing you tonight at the Lord's supper and then Wednesday night bible study will be on and that's 7:30 in the fellowship hall uh again Wednesday evening Bible study well let's turn to our Bibles as we open in worship this morning we'll read from Psalm 121 Psalm 121 this is the word of the Triune God a song of a sense I will lift up my eyes to the hills from whence comes my help my help comes from the Lord who made Heaven and Earth he will not allow your foot to be moved he who keeps you will not Slumber behold he who keeps Israel shall neither neither slumber nor sleep the Lord is your keeper the Lord is your shade at your right hand the sun shall not strike you by day nor the Moon by Night the Lord shall preserve you from all evil he shall preserve your soul the Lord shall preserve your going out and your coming in from this time forth and even forever more amen well let's stand together and sing our first hymn this morning that will be uh two uh 20 beat that's Psalm 20b in your himels let's stand and sing together and all your all Sal your PR and you all you and his anointing on holy heaven sh Andes be the Lord your for K and answer when we go [Music] let's go to our great God In Prayer let's pray Heavenly Father we rejoice in this opportunity to gather together as the Saints of Christ and we pray Lord God Almighty Father Son and Holy Spirit that you would cause your people by your grace and by the power of the Holy Spirit to truly hallow your name this morning we long to to be such saints that sing the Praises of our great God knowing that you are infinite Eternal and unchangeable in all of your glorious Perfections we pray that this morning your creatures your people here gathered would sing the Praises of your name that we would rejoice in our God that we would rejoice in our Christ that we would rejoice in the gospel of Saving Grace and we do just pray that you would help us then by your spirit to worship you in spirit and in truth we pray that by your spirit we'd be able to cast off thoughts of this past week to to cast off any thoughts of the upcoming week that we would not have Wandering Minds but that we would be solely focused on the worship of Father Son and Holy Spirit do help us with this we pray that as we sing hymns as we pray as we read the scriptures and as we engage in that Central act of worship the preaching of your holy word that you would lift us up that we might be those true worshippers of yours we thank you for the forgiven foress of sins by Jesus Christ Our Savior we thank you for the Blessed Gospel of our glorious God that uh in due time you did send forth your son born of a woman born under the law to redeem those who were under the law that truly it is a a faithful saying worthy of all acceptance that Christ Jesus came into this world Sinners to save we rejoice in the Perfection of his life of obedience to your law that Perfection of obedience rendered in the step of all who believe in his name we thank you for that blessed crosswork where Jesus Christ did not render an atonement of maybe or perhaps but he died so as to perfectly secure the salvation of a multitude which no man can number and that he ra he was raised again the third day in power and in great Victory and we rejoice in that blessed gospel and we rejoice in the fact that he has ascended to your right hand where he does ever live to intercede for his people we rejoice in our blessed King the truly the king of kings and Lord of lords and we pray that we would worship him a right this morning we do pray Lord God that that that uh our precious God that you father Son and Holy Spirit would be worshiped throughout the world today that in all of your churches you by your spirit would lift up the hearts of your people to sing praises and to rejoice in your word of Truth we do pray Lord God that you would reform those churches who are not preaching as they ought who are not engaging in worship as they ought we pray for uh we pray for spirit and gospel reform and we do pray Lord God for those churches who are no churches at all but synagogues of Satan that you would shut them down and that your people would find churches that preach your gospel Lord God that those who are not yours would find churches that they would come in amongst the people of God and the preaching of God and that they would by your amazing and Victorious Grace come forth from Darkness to light we do Rejoice Lord God that in the fact as we noted this morning that the gospel has gone out throughout the Nations that we have brothers and sisters scattered throughout the world and we do pray that you would protect your people in countries where there is such violence and persecution against the Church of Christ uh where where many are kidnapped many are are beaten many are abused and many are even killed Lord God we do pray that you would watch over your people that you would strengthen them in the midst of Affliction and trial and opposition that you would cause them in the face of such persecution to look with eyes of faith and courage upon the Risen Christ and find their comfort and much courage in him we do pray Lord God that you would deal with those who persecute your people that you would even bring forth many Lord God by gospel and spirit to a knowledge of Jesus Christ that they would cast off The Madness of their idolatry and persecution and that they would own the Savior by Victorious Grace and those who would remain in opposition in Rebellion against you persecuting your people we pray that you would tear out their fangs that you would Lord God cause them to wither away as the snail that they might no longer bring violence against our precious people of Christ we do pray Lord God that you be with those who are struggling with sickness with illness with disease with injury we pray Lord God that you would strengthen them in body that you would lift them up in the Inner Man in the face of trial cause them to rejoice in their God and Lord those who are struggling spiritually we pray that you would return to them the joy of their salvation we pray that you would lift them up by the spirit and even today as we engage in worship the preaching of the word that you would by your spirit lift them up to those high places of of Christian joy and and solemn and and joyful reflection we do pray Lord God that you would then be now uh continued with us in worship we ask Lord God that you would be with Pastor Butler as he preaches your word we know that preachers Ministers of the Gospel require your spirit to open up their Bibles and to preach accurately the word of Truth and so we do pray for that we pray that you would strengthen Pastor Butler in this pulpit and cause him to Proclaim with great courage with great conviction and uh with that fluidity of speech and a and solid thought the words of the living and true God and that we in the in the pews Lord God would receive the word of God preached that we would receive it well that we would be equipped that we would be encouraged that we would be edified by your word and by the spirit and Lord God we pray for salvation uh Within These Walls this morning we pray that by Victorious and Amazing Grace you would bring forth dead Sinners to life and light in Jesus Christ do save to the praise of your glorious Grace this morning we pray that you would then be with us now once again Lord God that your name would be hallowed that we would worship father Son and Holy Spirit and rejoice in the glory of Jesus Christ Our Savior we pray in his name amen amen well let's stand again and sing as a church remember as we stand and sing we're singing to God and we're also singing to one another lifting uh lifting one another up in the proclamation of Truth As we sing let's stand and sing 421 421 I shall and first shall All Shall their worship we shall render We Shall Serve our K I shall over see mer shall his when see we will Mery is we will surely precious for their are preious in His Ho CH shall over and see Mery his shall ever and forever shall his all son you they shall and in him forever all and shall be and All Shall over see mer shall his myto Gody Jo your we are his [Music] glorious for be bless is glorious this eternal glory through the Earth CHR shall over land and see Mery can turn in your Bibles with me to Matthew 12 Matthew 12 a reading our new testament reading this morning as we continue through the New Testament we're at Matthew 12 and verse one we won't read the entire chapter we'll read from verse 1 to verse 21 1 so this is Matthew 12 beginning at verse one once again the word of the Triune God at that time Jesus went through the grain fields on the Sabbath and his disciples were hungry and began to pluck heads of grain and to eat and when the Pharisees saw it they said to him look your disciples are doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath but he said to them have you not read what David did when he was hungry he and those who were with him how he entered entered the house of God and ate the showbread which was not lawful for him to eat nor for those who were with him but only for the priests or have you not read in the law that on the Sabbath the priests in the temple profane the Sabbath and are blameless yet I say to you that in this place there is one greater than the temple but if you had known what this means I desire mercy and not sacrifice you would not have condemned the Guiltless for the son of man is Lord even of the Sabbath now when he had departed from there he went into their synagogue and behold there was a man who had a withered hand and they asked him saying is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath that they might accuse him then he said to them what man is there among you who has one sheep and if it falls into a pit on the Sabbath will not lay hold of it and lift it out of how much more value is a man than a sheep therefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath then he said to the man stretch out your hand and he stretched it out and it was restored as whole as the other then the Pharisees went out and plotted against him how they might destroy him but when Jesus knew it he withdrew from there and great multitudes followed him and he healed them all yet he warned them not to make him known that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet saying behold my servant whom I have chosen my beloved in whom my soul is well pleased I will put my spirit upon Him and He will declare Justice to the Gentiles he will not quarrel nor cry out nor will anyone hear his voice in the streets a bruised Reed he will not break and smoking flax he will not quench till he sends forth Justice to Victory and in his name Gentiles will trust amen well just a just a a couple observations we have here a wonderful display of the glory of Christ in this passage from just these 22 verses we have Jesus uh set forth as a Merciful Savior we have Jesus set forth as one who properly interprets the law and who corrects the perversion of the Pharisees and we have a champion of reason as he simply reasons with the Pharisees at at verse 11 and 12 this wonderful picture of Jesus coming against these who were perverting the law who were adding to the law Matthew P says Hypocrites and formalists are always most zealous for little things in the law or for their own adents to it that means adding things to something and so these were very fastidious these Hypocrites and formalists would like to pick out small things or more to the point add to the law of God and pervert the law of God that they uh that they swear to uphold Jesus Christ comes and he doesn't abolish the Sabbath of course not he came to perfect to complete to fulfill the law and to declare its rightness its truth it's its Precision its mercy and it's uh and its Force to command those in joyful obedience to obey the Lord God Almighty he comes and he corrects their perversion and he exercises Mercy the Matthew P goes on to say just to understand what's going on with Christ here not he's the lord of the Sabbath which is another uh another emphasis upon the glory and the authority of the Lord Jesus Christ but with regards to the action of Christ and his disciples fool says the letter of a ritual law is not to be insisted upon where some eminent necessity Urth the contrary in the performance of some natural or moral duty the law of nature commandeth every man to feed himself when he is hungry the moral law confirms this as it is a means to the observation of the sixth commandment Thou shalt not murder and especially on the Sabbath day so far as may fit us for the best sanctification of it we we are good to follow the lord Jesus Christ in his mercy and in rightly interpreting the law and in being merciful to those around us and it closes with this wonderful statement in uh in Matthew observing Isaiah 42 1:4 this uh verse 21 and in his name Gentiles will trust one of the things we see here is the Resolute determination of the Lord Jesus Christ to fulfill his Messianic Mission and so he tells these uh he tells these people that followed him um warned them not to make him known that it might be fulfilled Christ needed to fulfill the fullness of his Messianic Mission and I would want us to recognize that we can draw a line from our own conversion back to the resoluteness of the Savior to bring forth the promise and the prophecy that in his name Gentiles will trust we are Gentiles and we are the Blessed beneficiaries of a Resolute savior who went through the fullness of his Messianic mission to bring a multitude of Sinners to himself what a glorious savior we have in the Lord Jesus Christ well let us pray Heavenly Father we thank you for your word we thank you for these gospel narratives that bring to us the truth truth of our blessed savior we pray that we would reflect well upon the fact that we we owe our salvation of course to the Perfection of the work of Jesus Christ Our Savior we are not saved by Deeds of righteousness which we have done but much rather according to your mercy you saved us through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit and this by virtue of the Perfection of the life death and resurrection of Our Savior Jesus Christ help us as we worship to rejoice to rejoice in so blessed and So Glorious a savior and it's in Christ's name that we pray amen well let's stand and sing our final hymn before the preaching will be Psalm 47a 47a let's stand and sing together and be sh and [Music] joy our to the for us [Music] our the of prise the god to king of all the Earth praise to [Applause] [Music] he around to serve us to be all the shield [Music] of you can turn with me in your Bibles to the Book of John The Gospel according to John we're in John chap 12 John 12 our Focus this morning will be on verses 30- 36 but I want to pick up reading in John 12 at verse 20 now there were certain Greeks among those who came up to to worship at the feast then they came came to Philip who was from Betha of Galilee and asked him saying sir we wish to see Jesus Philip came and told Andrew and in turn Andrew and Philip told Jesus but Jesus answered them saying the hour has come that the son of man should be glorified most assuredly I say to you unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies it remains alone but if it dies it produces much grain he who loves his life will lose it and he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life if anyone serves me let him follow me and where I am there my servant will be also if anyone serves me him my father will honor now my soul is troubled and what shall I say father save me from this hour but for this purpose I came to this hour father glorify your name then a voice Came From Heaven saying I have both glorified it and will glorify it again therefore the people who stood by and heard it said that it had thundered others said an angel has spoken to him Jesus answered and said this voice did not come because of me but for your sake now is the Judgment of this world now the ruler of this world will be cast out and I if I am lifted up from the earth will draw All Peoples to myself this he said signifying by what death he would die the people answered him we have heard from the law that the Christ remains forever and how can you say the son of man must be lifted up who is this son of man then Jesus said to them a little while longer the light is with you walk while you have the light lest Darkness overtake you He Who Walks in darkness does not know where he is going while you have the light believe in the light that you may become sons of Light these things Jesus spoke and departed and was hidden from them amen well let us pray our gracious God and Holy Father we thank you for the gospel of our Salvation we thank you for John's gospel and the way that he reveals to us the glory of the Savior we thank you that in the beginning was the word the word was with God and the word uh was God and that that word became flesh and dwelt among us we thank you for that life of obedience to the law that death is a sacrifice on the cross we thank you for that Resurrection again the third day and for the promise the confirmation that he will come again in glory to the living and the dead may it be the case that we would all be found prepared for that day that we would be washed in his Precious Blood and clothed with that wonderful righteousness may you Open Hearts dead Hearts to receive the truth as it is in Jesus and may your Holy Spirit set forth Christ in all of his offices to save to the uttermost all who draw nigh unto God through him and may you speak multitudes of encouragement to the hearts of your people may you strengthen us with might in the Inner Man may you build us up in our most Most Holy Faith and may we indeed shine as lights in this crooked and perverse generation and may we have that boldness and courage to hold forth the word of Truth do forgive us now for all of our sin and all of our unrighteousness cleanse Us in that precious blood of the lamb and we pray in jesus' name amen well as we come to John chap 12 we come to the passion week this is basically the book of The Passion well that will start technically in John 13 Verse 1 we have the book of signs and then we have the book of passion and basically the passion means or it refers to uh jesus' sufferings and ultimately his death on the cross so he's come into the holy city of Jerusalem and we find him debating And discussing things concerning his mission with his uh with these people that are uh opposed to him for the most part we've already seen the announcement of the arrival of the hour that's in verses 20 to 26 he says in verse 23 the hour has come that the son of man should be glorified the hour in John's gospel refers to his death on the cross to affect the salvation of All Those whom the father had given him so there's the arrival of the hour in verses 20 to 26 and now we find the explanation of the hour in verses 27-36 so last time we considered verses 27 to 29 notice again just by way of review verse 27 now my soul is TR and what shall I say father save me from this hour a similarity with the synoptic gospels Matthew Mark Luke when Jesus Is In The Garden of Gethsemane we know that he is exceedingly sorrowful we know that he sweats drops of blood while he's there we know that the problem that he is facing is not necessarily the violence of Godless men but it's the very cup of God's Wrath God's Fury God's curse against sin and Sinners and Jesus says if it is possible let this cut pass from me he does something very similar In this passage again now my soul is troubled this speaks concerning his true Humanity the Lord Jesus Christ is one person two Natures Divine and human and he took on our uh uh our Humanity so that he can save us from our sins so this is proper to True Humanity being troubled at the prospect of a of a horrific death he says what shall I say father save me from this hour but for this purpose I came to this hour so our brother just pointed out in the reading in Matthew 12 Jesus was Resolute Jesus was confirmed Jesus was determined Jesus operated according to the divine plan same emphasis here and then he speaks in verse 28 and he says father glorify your name now the Divine response from the father comes back in verse 28 then a voice Came From Heaven saying I have both glorified it and will glorify it again in short he means that through the life of our Lord Jesus thus far through his signs and miracles through his Doctrine God the father is glorified but he will be glorified again at the lifting up of the son of man when he goes to that cross when he takes The Punishment Due for our sins and then when he's raised again the father is supremely glorified in the ministry of the son and so that's the backdrop and then that brings us now to the ex explanation of the hour to the people that Jesus is speaking with though we'll notice that specifically in verses 30 to 33 notice first we have this confusion with reference to the to the people verse I'm sorry verse 29 notice the therefore the people who stood by and heard it said that it had Thunder thundered others said an angel has spoken to him now the thunder makes sense if you look back in the Old Testament specifically Exodus 19 Psalm 18 you'll note that God's the oonies that means a manifestation of the divine presence is often accompanied by Thunder you see that in the Book of Revelation as well when we are face to face with the living and true God so thunder makes sense but as well some thought that it was the voice of the angel or a voice of an angel that was consistent with Jewish thought they thought that God mediated through angels to communicate divine revelation but it does underscore the fact that there was an actual voice this wasn't Mass hallucination this wasn't Jesus in some sort of a Mystic Zone but rather there was a sound that came from heaven and I think the underg guring principle is is that they didn't understand it when we drop down specifically to verse 34 and it says the people answered him we have heard from the law that the Christ remains forever and how can you say the son of man must be lifted up who is this son of man they're not seeing seeking information here they're not looking for Bible study they're not looking for a little bit of confirmation to to to justify his claims they are challenging him they reject him they despise him and they're going to offer him up to the cross in the space of a few days in fact after our section in chap 12: 37-41 we see John's Theology of unbelief in other words what these men do in terms of their rejection of the Lord Jesus isn't surprising to the Lord Jesus it's not surprising to God the father but it's in accordance with old Covenant scripture so back to our particular passage when it says they didn't understand that reflects on their spiritual condition it reflects on their spiritual state it reflects on the fact that they've rejected the very word of God incarnate therefore they don't hear the word of God as it thunders down from heaven as Edward clink says the people could not make sense of the voice of God the father even as they did not understand the word of God his son so don't miss that as we work our way to the cross in John's gospel and as well when you look in Matthew Mark Luke It's not that we're just dealing with a bunch of neutral sort of Hess Souls that are kind of wondering who this Jesus is by this time everything is in place by this time there has been a great antithesis by this time there are those who are for Jesus and there are those who are against Jesus and those who are against Jesus are like beasts we will consider that this evening when we consider a Psalm of the cross for our Lord's Day meditation in Psalm 22 these were beastly vicious vile Godless men that delivered up the Lord Of Glory the one who came to his own but his own did not receive him so they are spiritually ignorant they are spiritually dead and yet Jesus in his mercy and Grace goes on to explain to them the very signific ific an of the hour and that brings us to his explanation there in verses 30-33 and this is where we're going to camp this morning notice specifically he speaks of the voice of the father and then he speaks concerning the death of the son so in verse 30 Jesus answered and said this voice did not come because of me but for your sake now that's likely idiomatic I think it probably means something like the the the voice did not come because of me only but also for your sake because the voice did come in response to his prayer so we see the father's approbation of the son's prayer and the father says I have glorified my name and I will glorify it so again it's idiomatic it's not only come from me but it's also come for you but as where as well there's a a sense where John the Theologian puts this in his gospel so that later readers would reflect upon it and see the significance of it the very persons to whom the Lord Lord Of Glory came are the very persons that are resisting him and rejecting him and want to ultimately kill and crucify him so he speaks concerning the voice of the father and then he speaks now concerning the death of the son in verses 31- 33b notice specifically in verse 33 it says this he said signifying by what death he would die that's explanatory John is filling in the blanks for us in case we're still that thick and we're still that dull and we're still that ignorant that we haven't followed the Lord's explanation up to this point so John just tells us that what is whatever Jesus is saying in verses 31 and 32 is connected with his lifting up what is the lifting up the lifting up is his death and in short Compass the Lord Jesus Christ does something here that you find in other passages of scripture you find in Romans 58 for instance God commends his own love toward us and that while we were de sinners Christ died for us in one verse you've got the entirety of the Gospel Ephesians 2: 1-10 the the entirety of the Gospel got the bad news of man and sin 1: three and the good news of God's Rescue of man and sin through the redeeming work of Jesus in Verses 4 to1 you've got Romans 4:25 Jesus was delivered up because of our offenses and was raised for our justification so you got these verses located all throughout the scripture that if you only had that passage you would be able to effectively evangelize a sinner perhaps you're in a plane and you're on your way down and you've got an unbeliever next to you well Romans 5'8 would be a good one uh Ephesians 2 1:10 would be a good one uh uh uh Romans 4:25 would be a good one but so would John 1231 and 32 other words Jesus explains the rationale behind his lifting up Jesus explains the significance of his death remember the context the hour has come what's the hour Jesus the hour is is the time when my father is glorified through my crosswork and that hour has great significance not just for us here but it has great significance for all men everywhere and when we consider that hour and the significance of it the death of the Sun in particular Jesus speaks concerning three things here Jesus speaks first concerning the Judgment of the world second the triumph over the devil and thirdly the salvation of sinners in fact in Jesus Christ we have the champion the Victor the Blessed Sovereign that is able to defeat our three biggest enemies who are our big three our three biggest enemies now before you say Justin Trudeau I I'm talking a little bit more you know meta narrative I'm talking the bigger scheme of things who is the enemy of God's people who is the enemy of God's nonp people that we hope to become become God's people it's the world it's the Flesh and it's the devil it's that Unholy Trinity three forces that Ally together against us to destroy us and so isn't it wonderful that there was this hour that there was this event there was this champion this Messiah this Christ that was coming that now has come to defeat this three-fold enemy so what does he mean when he says what he says so again it's connected to his lifting up he mentions that in verse 32 John explains the significance of that language in verse 33 this he said signifying by what death he would die so the three particular things connected to his death are the Judgment of the world notice what he says there in verse 31 now is the Judgment of this world now he's already talked about judgment in fact go back to John 3 for just a moment John 3 you see something concerning judgment there in Jesus language John 3 at Verse 18 this is on the heels of the statement that as Moses lifted up the serpent so also must the son of man be lifted up notice that language lift up that's what Jesus uses there in verse 32 lift up means to go to the cross it means to be exalted not on a throne but on a cross and So after talking about that making that glor a statement in John 3:16 God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life he then says in verse 17 for God did not send his son into the world to condemn the world but that the world through him might be saved so we move through this passage though he didn't come to condemn the world why because the world was already condemned the mission of the Savior the coming of the the Messiah was to rescue it was to redeem uh Galatians 4:4 in the fullness of the time God sent forth his son born of a woman born of the law to do what to redeem those under the law so picking up in verse 18 He Who believes in Him is not condemned but he who does not believe is condemned already because he has not believed in the name of the the of the only begotten Son of God and this is the condemnation that the light has come into the world and Men Lov Darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil for everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light lest his deeds should be exposed but he who does the truth comes to the light that his deeds may be clearly seen that they have been done in god notice in John 5 he speaks concerning judgment there and specifically to highlight his divinity specifically to highlight his relation to the father that he's the son of God not by adoption and not by sort of uh uh creation but he's the son of God by nature and as the Son of God by Nature he engages in befitting tasks god- befitting tasks one of them being judgment so he speaks concerning that in John 5: 24-30 and now in our particular passage he says as the hour has arrived in verse 31 now is the Judgment of this world what does he mean does he mean at the cross there's some sort of a of a judgment yes that's what he means he doesn't mean the last day of judgment he doesn't mean the final judgment he doesn't mean that that that day that scripture tells us where God will raise all men from the dead and we will be assembled Before the Throne the Sheep on the right the goats on the left the Sheep unto everlasting life and the goats un Everlasting death that's not what he's talking about he's talking about the cross being the focal point of History the cross being Central to all of God's plan the cross being the very Apex of God's dealings and doings with this created order and our relationship to that cross is in fact a judgment if we look to the cross in faith we've been judged righteous by God only for the virtue of Jesus imputed to us and received by faith alone but if we look to that cross and we disdain it or we look to that cross and we disregard it or we look to that cross and it just doesn't really have any effect upon us then there's a judgment rendered by that we're on the wrong side we're excluded from that Kingdom that's what Christ means concerning now is the Judgment of this world in other words the cross is the central point it is about the cross that you have to do whether you're in Christ or out of Christ that is the Judgment that Jesus is speaking to again Edward clink makes this observation he says what is important to notice is that the Judgment of this world is directly connected to the Cross as I said you may not feel judged right now maybe you do I'm pretty loud Cam's pretty loud we yell a lot and you might feel a little bit uneasy by that but but there is a judgment you're either with Christ or you're out of Christ you're either the light or you're the darkness you're either in him or you're in Adam he goes on to say the cross is simultaneously the glorification of Jesus and the Judgment of the world it is the throne upon which the King of Kings is crowned his glory yet it is also the point of decision for the world either as the place of their salvation in which the cross is the sacrifice of the Lamb of God on their behalf or the place of their judgment by which they stand already condemned so if you are not in Christ the Judgment has been rendered but the blessedness of the text Beyond us or Beyond this verse indicates there's still hope there's still time if you're breathing in God's world right now you're under the sound of God's gospel right now I would take that as a very encouraging thing the fact that you're going to hear about the Lord Jesus Jesus Christ and the the way that he saves to the uttermost all who draw nigh unto God through him is is an emphasis upon you to look unto him in faith so he speaks concerning the Judgment of this world now notice secondly the triumph over the devil so verse 31 now now is the Judgment of this world now the ruler of this world will be cast out now the ruler of this world will be cast out a few things here first of all the identification of the devil as ruler you can turn to John 14 specifically at verse 30 John 14 specifically at verse 30 I will no longer talk much with you for the ruler of this world is coming and he has nothing in me John 16 specifically at verse 11 John 16 at verse 11 or Jud of judgment because the ruler of this world is judged notice in 2 Corinthians chapter 4 2 Corinthians chapter 4 the specific word ruler is absent but God of this world is present same sort of a concept 2 Corinthians 4:4 whose Minds the God of this age has be blinded who do not believe lest the light of the Gospel of the glory of Christ who is the image of God should shine on them Ephesians chapter 2 Ephesians chapter 2 describes the devil in this language verse one you he made alive who were dead in trespasses and sins in which you once walked according to the course of this world according to the prince of the power of the air the spirit who now works in the sons of Disobedience and then in 612 when he bids us put on that full armor of God he gives as the argument because we don't wrestle against flesh and blood we wrestle against notorious forces that are unseen notice in 612 for we do not wrestle against flesh and blood but against principalities against Powers against the rulers of the darkness of this age against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the Heavenly places so going back to John 12 when the Lord Jesus said says now is the Judgment of this world now the ruler of this world will be cast out the identification of the devil as ruler is seen elsewhere in the New Testament but I think sirel of Alexandria gives us a good caution here he says he calls him the ruler even though that is not strictly speaking what he is God alone is the king of all but because they are under the influence of stupidity people selected the devil as their ruler that's the language that's the suggestion that's what's Happening Here the people are under that bondage they're under that bondage because by and large they want to be under that bondage look at the horrible things that obtain in the body politic do you ever just want to say well you know you voted for this if you hadn't a voted for this perhaps we wouldn't be in this particular mess the man in Adam basically voted for this he wants the bondage he's in the bondage and and now Jesus is saying there's a Time coming connected to the Cross where that Bond bondage is broken by the work of the Lord Jesus Christ we see the beginning of the devil's overthrow in Christ's Earthly Ministry turn back to Matthew 12 Matthew 12 our brother read from Matthew 12 we see the beginning of the overthrow of the devil in the Lord's Ministry there notice specifically in Matthew 12 at verse 24 now when the Pharisees heard it they said this fellow does not cast out demons except by be El abub the ruler of the Demons but Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them every Kingdom divided against itself is brought to Desolation and every city or house divided against itself will not stand if Satan casts out Satan he is divided against himself how then will his kingdom stand and if I cast out demons by be elab by whom do your sons cast them out therefore they shall be your judges but if I cast out demons by the spirit of God and he does then the kingdom or surely the kingdom uh uh I'm sorry surely the kingdom of God has come upon you or how can one enter a strong man's house and plunder his Goods unless he first binds the strong man and then he will plunder his house he who is not with me is against me and he who does not gather with me scatters abroad so there is the sense where the beginning of the overthrow of the devil takes place in the life and Ministry of our Lord Jesus turn over to Luke's gospel in Luke chapter 10 Luke chapter 10 so we Trace out the beginning and then we move to the final overthrow relative to the Devil Himself notice in Luke 10 the scene is Jesus sends his disciples out they go to preach they go to teach they go to cast out demons they go to heal people and then they return according to 10:17 it says then the 70 returned with Joy saying Lord even the demons are subject to us in your name and he said to them I saw Satan fall like lightning from Heaven behold I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions and over all the power of the enemy and nothing shall by any means hurt you nevertheless do not rejoice in this that the spirits are subject to you but rather Rejoice because your names are written in heaven it's a whole sermon there specifically on verse 20 in terms of where our joy ought to be our joy ought not to be in our performance because that's fleeting our joy ought to be in The Sovereign Grace of almighty God but beyond that notice what Jesus says through the life rather the ministry of these Apostles Jesus says I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven so going back to John 12:31 now is the Judgment of this world now the ruler of this world will be cast out so the beginning of that overthrow is in the ministry of Jesus but the finality of his overthrow is in the death of Jesus that's what he is doing he's connecting the cross the hour to the overthrow of the devil he deals with the world in his death he deals with the devil in his death and then as verse 32 will explain he deals with our sin in his death the three-fold enemy of God's people the three-fold enemy of image bearers is taken care of by the Lord Jesus Christ so in terms of the completion of his overthrow turn to Paul's letters turn to Colossians chapter 2 Colossians chapter 2 just where you see this in terms of the successful Triumph of Jesus At The Cross to destroy the Devil well Colossians 1:13 hints at it or tells us the at least the the the macrocosmic transfer of of of individuals from one Kingdom to the other notice in Colossians 1:13 he has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the king Kingdom of the son of his love in whom we have Redemption through his blood the Forgiveness of sins now look over at 2:15 speaking about Jesus speaking about the benefits accured by his death and Resurrection speaking about the Redemptive benefit enjoyed by the people of God the Apostle underscores this notice in verse 15 having disarmed principalities and Powers he made a public spectacle of them triumphing over them in it and then notice over at Hebrews chapter 2 I take Pauline authorship here as well so this is still considered Paul's Epistles Hebrews chap 2 at verse4 in as much then as the children have partaken of Flesh and Blood he himself likewise shared in the same that through death he might destroy him who had the power of death that is the devil so for the believer you can't blame your problems on the devil even for the unbeliever you know I've mentioned before when I was a kid growing up at least in California there was a comedian called Flip Wilson and Flip Wilson's tagline was the devil made me do it that's not good theology might make people laugh but it's not good theology the devil is not a sovereign being the devil is not omnipotent the devil is not omniscient the devil is not omnipresent the devil is creature when we sin Brethren the devil may have enticed us there might have been Temptation there he does roam about like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour according to First Peter chapter 5 but we need to take responsibility and be big boys and girls and when we sin we need to admit it God we were prone to wander we were prone to leave the god that we love the Lord Jesus At The Cross defangs the devil the Lord Jesus At The Cross destroys the devil notice in joh uh first John first John two places where John speaks of this in addition to John's gospel notice in First John chter 3 specifically at verse eight he who sins is of the devil for the devil has sinned from the beginning for this purpose the Son of God was manifested that he might destroy the works of the devil solidarity what the devil does his minions do what the minions do they see it evidenced in their father the devil again he doesn't make you he doesn't formulate your brain he doesn't impose his strength upon you so that you go out and sin but for this purpose the Son of God was manifested that he might destroy the works of the devil and then one final place in John is in the Book of Revelation our John who wrote the fourth gospel is the John who wrote the Book of Revelation and he speaks concerning the defeat of the devil in Revelation 12 Revelation 12 is a beautiful passage of scripture connecting the defeat of the devil to the first coming of the Lord Jesus so we often think well it's going to be when he comes again in glory to judge the living and the dead then he'll finally Vanquish our foe he does finally Vanquish our foe to the Lake of Fire but with reference to the the the the enemy The Devil Himself he is greatly thwarted he has sto been stopped he has been defeated and that's the point in Revelation 12 based on the Incarnation of Our Lord based on his uh death on the cross his resurrection and exaltation to the right hand of the Father the Devil is a four-fold loser Revelation 12 speaks speaks of the devil's defeat in four ways the devil is defeated by Christ the devil is defeated by the Angels the devil is defeated by the church the devil's defeated by the the the first century church and then the church subsequent to that that's the whole point notice in Revelation 12 specifically at verse 5 she bore a male child who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron and her child was caught up to God and his throne then the woman fled Into the Wilderness where she has a place prepared by God that they should feed her there 1,200 60 days the uh uh and war broke out in heaven Michael and his angels fought with the dragon and the dragon and his angels fought but they did not Prevail nor was a place found for them in heaven any longer so the Great Dragon was cast out that Serpent of old called the devil and Satan who deceives the whole world he was cast to the Earth and his angels were cast out with him then I heard a loud voice saying in heaven now salvation and strength and the kingdom of our God and the power of His Christ have come for the accuser of our Brethren who accused them before our God day and night has been cast down now notice the power behind this and they overcame him by what the overwhelming Force expressed in the second Advent of our Lord Jesus oh that's certainly going to be manifested that's certainly something the Bible points us forward to but they overcame him by the blood of the lamb and by the word of their testimony and they did not love their lives to the death so going back to John 12 when is the ruler of this World cast out it's at the cross the father is glorified the son is glorified the world is judged and the devil is cast out in other words what Christ accomplishes on that cross takes care of our enemies and again the last and probably most formidable one we'll see in just a moment but just by way of some practical thought regarding the overthrow of the devil the result of his overthrow what does that mean for us was that a being for you if you're not a Believer pretend I'm well not pretend uh imagine that I'm trying to tell you how glorious Jesus is how wonderful Jesus is how how blessed his gospel is how how good that good news really is and in order to do that I I I I got to tell you you know that it's not just your sin it's not just this world but but it's also that that grand enemy of souls it's it's the devil what happens when a when a man a woman a boy or a girl comes to the Lord Jesus Christ in faith when the Holy Spirit regenerates them when the Holy Spirit causes them to be born again when the Holy Spirit implants The Graces of faith and repentance in their heart so they receive with empty hand the goodness that God gives us in Jesus what does that mean practically for the saint of Christ what does that mean for us in our life in this present evil age well I would suggest in the first place the children of God no longer walk according to the prince of the power of the air Ephesians 2 you once walked that way but you no longer do walk that way that's why in Ephesians 4 our walk is to be characterized by The Calling with which we were called coloss Ephesians 4:1 and that's why he says in Ephesians 4:17 no longer walk as the Gentiles walk in the futility of their mind it's why when he moves to to chapter 5 he says we a walk in love we're to walk in light we're to walk in wisdom why because that old walk has been destroyed by the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ you're no longer subject to the prince of the power of the air the spirit who now works in the sons of Disobedience you're free men and women as well the children of God are no longer in bondage because of a fear of death this is the visiting the same passage as I just read Hebrews 2:14 and 15 in as much then as the children have partaken of Flesh and Blood he himself likewise shared in the same same that through death he might destroy him who had the power of death that is the devil and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage now Brethren I'm with you in terms of this fear with reference to manner if it is the plane hurtling to the Earth that's a bit of a concern for me but the destination isn't and I think that's the point of the Apostle there in Hebrews 2 the circumstances and our manner as to how we exit this lower evil world that's in the hand of our good God it could be you know incredibly horrific not here to encourage you this morning I want to tear you right down uh just just kidding there's a lot of ways that people go out of this world so so you know a bit of a fear of death in the sense that you're walking walking through the woods you don't want to me a grizzly bear that that that that doesn't mean you're contrary to God you're a blasphemy you know blasphemous rch now the fear there is connected to what's on the other side we're no longer in bondage we no longer have that that restraint we no longer have that that that trembling at the thought of what's on the other side we rejoice in the language of the Apostle Paul that that that death has lost its sting the grave has lost its Victory why because of what Jesus has accomplished in the destruction of the devil and then as well the children of God are no longer prevailed upon by the accuser of the bre now listen to the language they're no longer prevailed upon in the sense where they are debilitated the accuser of the Brethren still tries the accuser of the Brethren still tries to usurp the accuser of the Brethren does try to try to get at you but this is the language in Revelation 1210 and 11 then I heard a loud voice saying in heaven now salvation and strength and the kingdom of our God and the power of His Christ have come for the accuser of our Brethren who accused them before our God day and night has been cast down and they overcame him by the the blood of the lamb and by the word of their testimony and they did not love their lives to the death what does that mean when the accuser comes and says how do you dare call yourself a Christian because Christ Jesus bought and paid for me it's not my performance it's not my Merit it's not my works it's not my lawke keeping but it's Christ alone that's how we refute the attack or the assault of the devil who comes to accuse and up braid the people of God there is great benefit in the cross there's great benefit in terms of this world the Judgment has come in terms of the Devil he's been defanged he is no longer that Archen enemy of our souls again he roams about like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour but greater is he that is in you than he that is in the world is what John tells us so with reference to the world Jesus kills it again metaphorically by way of judgment with reference to the devil he kills him by the work on the cross and that brings us finally to the flesh brings us finally to us brings us finally to our own sin notice what Jesus says there in verse 32 and I if I am lifted up from the earth will draw All Peoples to myself the language is employed in John 3:14 already mentioned that just as Moses lifted up the serpent so also must the son of man be lifted up turn back to John 8 you see a similar convention used by our Lord to describe his death John chapter 8 specifically at verse 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 so language that he's employed now language that does serve to explain the significance of the hour and to bring home the truth with reference to that hour if I am lifted up there's judgment upon the world if I am lifted up the devil is cast out and if I am lifted up I will draw all men to myself so there's three things here that we ought to appreciate first the means what is the means by which Sinners come to Salvation it's the cross in case you didn't get that yet in case you're still I'm not really sure about this Butler I don't know it's the cross the cross vanquishes all the foes again that most formidable one is our own flesh when you read Pilgrim's Progress and and you see him swimming through that that River Jordan to the celestial City the devil isn't aen he's he's away from the world but what's still the entanglement it's that wretched enemy we can never fully dis disenfranchise ourselves from it's us right the devil might be messing with a whole bunch of other people on a given day you may be you know in Cancun in a little Villa and not a soul around well there's probably lots of souls let's say up in northern BC you're out on a little piece of property there's not a soul around there there's no influence of the world it's what the monks thought if I just sort of withdraw myself I'll be holy I'll just sit up on a long on a big pull and and there I'll be holy the devil can't get at me the world can't get at me you foolish monk guess what's going to get at you up on the top of that that pole it's your own heart see that's the problem with man we've sinned against God we've done what is evil in the sight of God and we can we can try to blame the world that the world has helped provides a lot of the backdrop provides a lot of the Temptation provides a lot of the sort of stuff out there that looks enticing to us we we can blame the devil again he does give enticement he certainly in charge of that sort of Avenue with you know all the lust of the flesh out there but in the final analysis it's it's us that took the fruit it's us that ate it's us that transgressed it's us that rebelled it's us that lack Conformity unto God's holy law it's us who have violated that law so what's God's remedy God's remedy is the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ it's the hour for which the son of man came it's the hour that he was resolved about it's the hour that he was determined by was the hour that he wouldn't shrink back from even though it was horrific for for him according to his Humanity but that cross is the means by which you and I have everlasting life see we've got two problems when I when we sin against God we need to be forgiven of that sin but we also need a righteousness right a lot of preachers and and I'm not picking on them but they get the Forgiveness part down and we should preach full and free forgiveness in and through the blood of our Lord Jesus but we need a right righteousness we need to be able to stand in the presence of God this goes all the way back to the the former prophets in 1 Samuel chapter 15 what does God say behold to obey is better than to sacrifice God demands Perfection there's no sort of uh uh uh uh uh uh relaxation on the part of God in terms of our obedience when when did we ever think that that God was going to grade on a curve well as long as I get a Dem us I'm going to make it into heaven kids we used to be graded like that I don't think you are anymore it's all about good job and good effort but you used to be you know bright and you got an A and you were and you got an F Well some people think well if I just do D minus work then then I'll get accepted by God no we need to be forgiven but we need a righteousness that's the life of Jesus that's The Obedience of Jesus why does he do what he does for 33 years for us men and for our salvation why John 1:14 the word became flesh and dwelt Among Us for us men and for our Salvation we need to be cleansed in his blood and clothed in his righteousness and it's connected to his cross his life of obedience his death as a substitute and his resurrection again the third day that is the Christ upon whom we believe and it is that Christ that brings salvation to needy Sinners so back to our text and and I if I am lifted up from the earth that's the means notice then the method the method that he employs it says and if I am lifted up from the earth I will draw all men to myself that draw there speaks concerning the effectual calling of God the drawing there is what we've already seen in John 6 no one can come to me unless the father who sent me draws him other words God is Sovereign God is glor GL God not only ordains the death and resurrection of our Jesus but he also ordains the means or the method of appropriation how do we receive that well he picks us up out of deadness and sin he gives us new life he draws us to the Savior not kicking and screaming not whining and complaining he makes us willing in the day of his power it is a Most Blessed thing and so the effectual call of God is what lay behind the methodology in terms of our Salvation the reference is to the effectual call of God placed upon the Sinners for whom Jesus died and when he says I will draw all men to myself that doesn't mean all men without exception don't think for a moment well you know maybe that I think it was origin was was was right it was a Universalist everybody's going to be saved no no that's not a Biblical Doctrine the idea that every man is going to be saved is not biblical I mean there's many a passage that tells you otherwise you need to believe the Bible here you need to understand that when he says all men he doesn't mean all men without exception he means all men without distinction he means all men in the context remember in John 12:19 the Pharisees are just upset aren't they if we don't stop this man if we don't silence this man if we don't put him to death then then the world will come after him well right after that what do we see in verses 20 to 22 Greeks want to see Jesus sir we would see Jesus so so the Pharisees to a degree we're right if we don't stop him if we don't silence him then all the world will come after him remember what he says in in verse 24 he's speaking in terms of metaphor well now he's explaining that metaphor look at verse 24 in our in our passage in John 12 most assuredly I say to you unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies it remains alone but if it dies it produces much grain and that much grain comes from Israel that much grain comes from the Gentiles that much grain comes from every uh every tongue tribe people and Nation throughout the Earth so the Lord Christ here is highlighting the nature of his death in terms of the immediate context all sinners from the Greeks from the Jews those who have been purposed by God will know the salvation of our blessed savior but in terms of the The Wider context of John's gospel John 1:29 Behold the Lamb of God who takes away what the sin of the world John 3:16 God so loved what he loved the world John 442 after the salvation of the Samaritan woman and then the Samaritan men what do they come to realize we know now that he he is in fact the savior of the world so Christ here as he explains the arrival of the hour underscores the fact that it's his death and that death brings glory to the father it brings glory to the son and it brings great benefit to the people people of God the devil is taken care of the the world is taken care of and our own sin is taken care of through the crossw of our blessed savior well in conclusion just a couple of thoughts and then we'll go first the person of our Lord Jesus Christ we need to understand John 1:1 and John 1:14 are key to understanding John's gospel the word became flesh who's the word the Word was God see only God could save Fallen Humanity man couldn't man couldn't make his way to heaven man can't find his way back to the Garden of Eden once he's you know thrown out it must be divine in nature it's why the veil of the temple is rent from from top to bottom it's God coming after sinners in and through his son it's not Sinners going after God so with reference to Christ he must be divine in order to satisfy in order to do what he's supposed to do as our brother pointed out yesterday it was his own law that that that that he was uh uh satisfying his own penalty that he's satisfying on the cross it is absolutely crucial that the Son of God the the the the Lord Jesus Christ be that one person in two Natures Divine and human as the father said whatever is not assumed is not redeemed so he took on our Humanity with everything essential properties that that are true of man except sin of course so the person of our Lord Jesus Christ is set forth here you see his true Humanity in verse 27 now my soul is troubled and what shall I say father save me from this hour but for this purpose I came to this hour father glorify your name and you see that Divinity in terms of the efficacy of his work if I went to Die For You Brethren it might be a good example might be a bad example but if I went to Die For You there'd be no efficacy there'd be no benefit there'd be nothing that would change you or or bring blessing or acceptance with God but when God the son comes when God the son goes to that cross when God the son is cut off when God the son carries out the Divine Purpose and plan there's efficacy such that He will draw all men to himself secondly we see the work of the Lord Jesus Christ in a snapshot here and we we should think about enemies do you ever think about enemies well you know I've got these enemies out there these guys that don't like me because I cheated them one time or they cheated me and I don't mean that I mean spiritual forces the dark things in this world that oppose you and that oppose I those things are the World the Flesh and the devil now they obviously Express in various ways to be sure but you can categorize your problem today with the world The Flash and the devil that's it that that's a simple as it gets what's your problem well the world The Flash and the devil only if there was an answer to those there is an answer it's in the hour it's in the death of the Savior it's in his life death Resurrection there's hope to be had in the Lord Jesus Christ look to him in faith and you will have everlasting life and that is precisely how he ends this particular discourse with these particular men we'll visit this God willing next week but notice in verse 36 while you have the light in the context I think he means while you have me in your midst Jesus is the light light from light God from God true God from True man he's been introduced in the prologue as light well he says to these men while you have the light believe in the light don't reject it don't resist it don't say no to it what is there about the Jesus In this passage You couldn't possibly long for or desire or crave if he takes care care of my three-fold enemy he's the one I want if he's going to bring the betterment to my soul and bring me into that Heavenly Kingdom then he's the one I want he is in the language of the Bride altogether lovely and chief among 10,000 you should want him and if you do want him what's the response it's right there from him this isn't me I didn't make this up I didn't write John 12:36 while you have the light believe in the light that you may become sons of Light that you may be transferred from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of the son of his love it's grace alone through faith alone in Jesus Christ alone for salvation may you indeed believe on him look to him and know the joy of being found in him not having a righteousness of your own which is from the law but that righteousness which is from God received through faith in our lord Jesus well let us close in a word of prayer Our Father in Heaven thank you for your word thank you for the clarity of the savior's Doctrine here thank you for the efficacy of his crosswork on behalf of his people thank you for the privilege to preach and Proclaim this truth in the church throughout the Earth and we pray that many from every tribe and tongue and people and Nation would gather together before that Throne that great multitude that no man can number until that time most high we pray for the blessing of God upon that preached word today that many would come to a saving knowledge of our of our Lord Jesus and even now open hearts and convict of sin and demonstrate the person and the work of the Lord Jesus Christ that he is able to save to the uttermost all who draw near to him all all who draw near to you through faith in him and we ask in Jesus name amen well you can turn in your hym books to 568 as we close our service singing the doxology in praise to our great and glorious God number 568 all bless PR all andly the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all amen father thank you for that wonderful gift of your son the son of your love we pray that you would help us today to glorify and honor you to call this day a delight and to find refreshment from the presence of God Almighty we ask this through Jesus Christ Our Lord amen will please be seated for a brief time of meditation