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good morning everyone welcome to Free Grace Baptist Church this wonderful morning day of Celebration we have a few announcements before we get started this morning uh the typical this evening we'll have our service at at 5:00 P p.m. here and then the next two Wednesdays there will be no bible study on the December 27th or for January 3rd keep that in mind we'll resume Bible study then on Wednesday the 10th of January um January 7th Ryan malar is going to be preaching here and we have moved the Lord's Supper which we usually celebrate the first Sunday of the month that's going to be on the 14th of January rather than on the 7th now as far as baptisms are concerned we're celebrating a baptism this morning Rebecca Hall will be baptized at the end of this service this morning and there's another bap AP ISM coming up we've set the date now for January 14th Charelle Neils will be baptized and also uh Becca Becca Abby has also applied for membership and for baptism and will be baptized at the same time so there will be two baptism that day on the 14th of January we rejoice in that good news for our call to worship this morning please turn to Isaiah chapter 9 Isaiah chapter 9 we're going to read this prophetic word about the coming of the Messiah from verse 1 through verse 7 Isaiah 9 beginning in verse one nevertheless the Gloom will not be upon her who is distressed as when at first he lightly esteemed the land of zebulun and the land of naftali and afterward more heavily oppressed her by the way of the sea beyond the Jordan in Galilee of the Gentiles the people who walked in darkness have seen a great light those who dwell in the land of the shadow of death upon them a light has shined you have multiplied the nation and increased its Joy they Rejoice before you according to the joy of harvest as men rejoice when they divide the spoil for you have broken the Yoke of his burden and the staff of his shoulder the rod of his oppressor as in the day of Midian for every Warrior's Sandal from the noisy battle and garments rolled in blood will be used for burning and fuel of fire For unto us a child is born unto us a son is given and the government will be upon his shoulder and his name will be called wonderful counselor Mighty God Everlasting father Prince of Peace of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end upon the throne of David and over his kingdom to order it and establish it with judgment and Justice from that time forward even forever the Zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this amen for our first hymn this morning please turn to number 311 311 hark the herald angel sing and stand with me as we sing s glory to the for chring glor to mighty everas Jesus glor [Music] glor glor Ang sing [Music] let's go to the Lord in prayer our gracious Heavenly Father we thank you for this special day this day when we can gather as your people in your house to Worship the Great God Of Heaven and Earth we thank you for sending your son into into this world to take on human flesh and to become as one of us and yet still truly God and truly man thank you that he did that in order to live a perfect life in our place and to die in our place on the cross thank you that Christ has borne our sins and cleansed us through his Precious Blood thank you oh God that we get to see uh a visual picture of that this today in Rebecca's baptism as she goes into the water and is raised again out of the water we see what you have done in her heart already and we Rejoice with her and and give you thanks and praise for the work that you have done we thank you that there have been numerous baptisms this year in this church and more coming up in the New Year we give you all praise and honor and glory for the work that you are doing in the hearts of those you have chosen Lord we pray that this would continue not only here but in churches throughout this city and throughout this land where the gospel is preached we thank you for our sister churches and the church plants in Suri in Armstrong out in dren Ontario and we pray oh Lord that this coming year would be a year of tremendous blessing upon those congregations as well we pray that you would continue to bless the preaching of the gospel and that you would draw Souls out of Darkness into Marvelous Light and we pray that we would hear the many more conversions in many more baptisms as a result in this coming year we thank you for the blessings of this past year in every respect you have kept us you have provided for us you have preserved us through difficulties and trials as well Lord we pray for those that are still struggling and some that are not able to be with us this morning we pray that you would bless them at home as well and encourage them we pray for Rebecca Butler in particular as she recovers from surgery Lord we pray that this would all go well that she would not experience too much pain or discomfort and that this problem would be once and for all cured we pray oh God your blessing upon her this day and upon others who are not able to join us whether through because of chronic illness or those who are traveling in this Christmas season we pray your blessing would rest upon them and you would keep them safe and bring us all safely back together again in the future Lord we pray for the preaching of the Gospel across this nation that you would bless your people and not only here but abroad in the in our neighbors to the South and throughout the world wherever the gospel is preached particularly in those countries where Christians are persecuted Lord this day may it be a day of great rejoicing as many Christians remember the Incarnation in a special way we pray oh God that your people would Rejoice the way the angels rejoiced on that day when Christ's birth was announced even though it was overshadowed by the the cross yet to come come that day was a day of great rejoicing and we pray oh God that this day too would be a great Rejoice day of great rejoicing all across the world where your people gather Lord we pray that you would bless the remainder of this service today bless Pastor Butler as he preaches to us we pray that you would open our hearts and that the spirit would attend that preaching so that we would be encouraged and edified and chastised and whatever we need and Lord particularly for those who are in our midst today who have not yet tasted and seen that the Lord is good who have not yet believed on Christ and been saved I pray that this would be the day of salvation we give you all praise and glory and honor for the good work that you are doing and we ask these things in Jesus name amen for our next hymn let's turn in our himels to number 293 293 and stand again with me as we sing [Music] you and rans I holy the Son of God re re come to me my mesty [Music] and re in you sh to [Music] the I know s death of h s [Music] and re shall to [Music] the and cheer Us by [Music] the of our shadows to re rej in shall to [Music] the was to shall to you can turn with me in your Bibles to the book of 2 Corinthians 2 Corinthians chapter 8 2 Corinthians chapter 8 I'll read verses 1 to 15 and then our Focus this morning will be on verse 9 so beginning in 2 Corinthians 8 at verse 1 moreover brethren we make known to you the grace of God bestowed on the churches of Macedonia that in a great trial of Affliction the abundance of their joy and their deep poverty abounded in the riches of their liberality for I bear witness that according to their ability yes and beyond their ability they were freely willing imploring us with much urgency that we would receive the gift and The Fellowship of the ministering to the Saints and not only not only as we had hoped but they first gave themselves to the Lord and then To Us by the will of God so he urged Titus that as he had begun so he would also complete this grace in you as well but as you abound in everything in faith and speech and knowledge and all diligence and in your love for us see that you abound in this Grace also I speak not by commandment but I am testing the sincerity of Your Love by the diligence of others for you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ that though he was rich yet for your sakes he became poor that you through his poverty might become rich and in this I give advice it is to your advantage not only to be doing what you began and we're Desiring to do a year ago but now you also must complete the doing of it that as there was a Readiness to desire it so there also may be a completion out of what you have for if there is first a willing mind it is accepted according to what one has and not according to what he does not have for I do not mean that others should be eased and you burdened but by inequality that now at this time your abundance May Supply their lack that their abundance Also may Supply your lack that there may be equality as it is written he who gathered much had nothing left over and he who gathered little Had No Lack amen well let us pray our gracious God and holy father we thank you for the Lord's day we thank you for this wonderful privilege to gather before our great and glorious God we acknowledge that you are most high even Father Son and Holy Spirit from Everlasting to Everlasting and we rejoice in your constancy we rejoice in the fact that the scripture refers to you as a rock we know that you are God for us and we rejoice in what you have provided in terms of the son of your love we thank you that in the fullness of the time you sent him forth born of a woman born of under the law to redeem those under the law may we Muse upon may we reflect upon may we contemplate this great wonderful uh truth that Christ the son of God took on our Humanity for us men and for our Salvation may this be a great encouragement may you build us up in our Most Holy Faith and may those who are dead in their trespasses and sins be awakened by the power of God Almighty may you call them forth may you give them the Graces of faith and repentance to lay hold of Jesus Christ that that wonderful Savior for Sinners forgive us now and cleanse us from all unrighteousness guide us and fill us by your Holy Spirit and we pray in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ amen well as Paul has to do often in his letters to the Corinthian Church he has to correct problems he has to deal with particular issues he has to set in order the things that are lacking remember in First Corinthians he certainly has to do that there's all kinds of abuse going on for 1 Corinthians chapter 6 he has to tell them flee sexual immorality 1 Corinthians chapters 8 to10 he has to tell them and caution them about the issues concerning Christian Liberty 1 Corinthians chap 11 they were basically uh abusing the Lord's table by their conduct or treatment of one another 1 Corinthians chapters 12 to4 he had to deal with the issue of spiritual gifts and then in chapter 15 the issue of the the resurrection so then as we move into second Corinthians we know that he has a pattern with this we know that he is speaking to specific issues that that are affecting the church there in Corinth and real simply what we have here specifically in this section is that the Apostle exhorts the Corinthians the Christians in Corinth concerning charity to others he wants them to be large-hearted he wants them to be cheerful he wants them to have an eagerness to to give out of their resources to alleviate the other churches the others that are affected by perhaps famine in Judea he urges them to persevere basically in what they had already started notice in verses 10 and 11 he wants them to continue in the pattern that they had already adopted and then to that end he gives them two examples of Christian liberality the churches in Macedonia in verses 1 to5 and then the example of our Lord Jesus in verse 9 and it's intriguing because the churches in Macedonia had nothing they were impoverished they had poverty and yet from that poverty or from that vantage point they nevertheless redoubled their efforts and were able to give they were able to provide for the needy and in like manner he speaks concerning Christ and he says what I think captures the very heart of the Incarnation so I don't want to grab verse 9 take it out of its context and preach a sermon on the Incarnation but that's kind of what I'm going to do basically the emphasis is on charity Christ serves as the pattern for them to be charitable minded with reference to others and so Paul speaks of the riches of Christ and the poverty of Christ notice in verse 9 he says for you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ that though he was rich yet for your sakes he became poor that you through his poverty might become rich now as I said I think that captures in essence what the mystery of the Incarnation is all about so I want to look first at The Riches of Christ and then secondly at the poverty of Christ but notice first with reference to the riches of Christ Paul assumes something in verse 9 notice the assumption that Paul makes it's an assumption that I think holds for today and it's not out of the ordinary for a preacher or an evangelist or other Christians to assume this notice that he says for you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ he assumes that the church in Corinth knew a couple of things about the Lord Jesus Christ and I would suggests that he assumes that they understand that the Christian faith is a Redemptive religion they understand that Christianity is not like Buddhism Christianity is not like Hinduism Christianity is not some men- centered attempt to try to get at God but rather it is a Redemptive religion the reality is is that God is Holy he's right ious he's just he's perfect and we Are Made In His Image but we and Adam fell as a result of that fall we're not holy we're not righteous we're not good but we are now open and liable to the just judgment and righteous punishment of God for our sins so you see We Don't Need Just a Little Help from on high we don't need just a little better education we need Redemption we need salvation we need rescue we need deliverance and so Paul assumes that his hearers understand that but he also understands or assumes that his hearers realize that the Christian faith is a Christ centered religion imagine that it's built right into the terminology Christianity right why do we call it Christianity because it focuses in on that Central mystery of our religion the Incarnation of the Son of God the fact that the word became flesh and dwelt Among Us the fact that who was in the form of God took on the form of a servant the one who was rich yet for your sakes has become poor so the Apostle assumes that the people of God know these things it is a valid assumption and I think an encouragement to us to wrap our minds around it to try to understand what is going on in the pages of holy Rit when it speaks concerning that wondrous activity of the Son of God coming down for us men and for our Salvation so then notice that he speaks concerning the riches of Christ for you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ that though he was rich that though he was rich now this participle points to what he is essentially he was and always will be rich as he is God the contrast in the verse is very clear he was rich he remains Rich he'll always be rich yet for your sakes notice the ter ter terminology change he became poor he became what he was not so that he could confer upon us life eternal by what he's always been and so we're talking about this wondrous thing in re uh Christianity called the one person of Christ with two Natures both Divine and human he assumed our Humanity I've often thought about this for anybody that would wander into a church I'm not picking on anybody if you happen to wander in here this morning that was not sort of in tune with the idea of incarnation like why do you Christians celebrate the Incarnation why why do you think about this why why do you contemplate this why does your hity reflect a commitment to this reality you got to think about this reality so as I said Christianity is not like the other religions of men men are trying to work their way up to God Christianity is where God most high the father sends his son and the son takes on our Humanity to himself and he lives for us and he dies for us and he's raised again for us I guess the better question is why wouldn't you sing about that why wouldn't you praise God for that why wouldn't you rejoice in that why wouldn't you celebrate that fact that God most high sent his Rich son into the this world to assume our humanity and thus through his impoverishment he confers Upon Us great riches this is something that should make the saint of Jesus Christ jump in the air and click his feet together because it's wonderful it's in it's amazing so notice again what Paul says for you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ that though he was rich if you turn to John's gospel for just a moment John chapter 1 you see a bit of a parallel going on for those of you who come every Sunday morning you'll know this because we cover this material a lot as we work our way through the Gospel according to John I just want you to see the same sort of convention the one who was has become the one who was has become not by sacrificing or by getting rid of what he was he's was that he is that and he'll forever be that the glory of the Incarnation is that he assumes to himself or takes upon himself our Humanity so again I think that's John's movement here in the prologue notice John 1:1 in the beginning was the word and the Word was with God and the Word was God so John says three things about this word this word is Jesus Just For Those Who maybe not have figured that out notice in the beginning was the word that speaks of jesus' eternality eternality is a tough thing for you know our f finite Minds to get around right we're creatures we're built we're in space and in time when we talk about eternity I think we kind of look at it like this way here's this ball of creation and there's time and then above that is this eternity and I'm not sure that's an altogether bad way to sort of conceive of it but you see it's an attempt to conceive of something that we really can't process from Everlasting to Everlasting Thou Art God god well when we read this first phrase in the beginning was the word what is John telling us the word identified in verse 14 is the word who always was and then he says the word was with God that indicates there's a distinction between the Son and the father that's crucial that we maintain that reality when it comes to interpreting scripture but then it underscores that the word is of the same substance with the father and the Word was God see John tells us that this one who is the very substance or the has the same substance with the father now notice what he says in verse 14 the word became flesh so he was always this but he became something in the fullness of time so the word became flesh and he dwelt among us and we beheld his glory the glory as of the only begotten of the father full of grace and truth when Jesus in his High Priestly prayer praise in John 175 restore return to me the glory that I had with which uh I had be with with you before the foundation of the world he's not saying there was no glory he's not suggesting that there was nothing wondrous about him we beheld his glory in the Incarnation as of the only begotten of the father full of grace and truth and then notice he moves from this discussion of theology to what we call in theology the e economy an economy just simply means not the messed up state of current inflation not the high gas prices but economy in theological language means God's work to save his people from their sins so he lays out the relation between the Son and the father in John 1 and then uh verse one and then one uh verse 14 and then in verse 29 he says Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world how does that make sense because the Eternal what word who was with the father and who is of the same substance with the father took on to himself our Humanity so that he could live for us and that he could die for us as the Lamb of God and thus take away the sin of the world so John is answering the question who is it that does what he does according to verse 29 he goes behind the scenes to show us the Glorious God and the reality that the Son of God has taken on to himself our Humanity Paul is saying the same thing in 2 Corinthians chter 8 he refers to that he says for you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ that though he was rich we know that Christ is Rich when we consider the scripture he's rich in his identification he's the son of God and he's the son not by creation he's the son not by adoption but he's the son by Nature so naturally as the only begotten son son of the father he has the same substance he's equal to him in power and Glory but you also see that divine nature in the works that he does what does John tell us that Jesus is responsible for in John 1:13 he he created all things this is also stated by Paul in Colossians chapter 1 it's stated in Genesis CH 1 verses 1-31 if you have ears to hear it's by the word of the mouth of Yahweh that he calls into being the creation the psalmist Muses on that in Psalm 33:6 and basically says the tri and God built the Earth well that's exactly what Genesis chapter 1 says so Christ is Sovereign in the matter of creation Christ is also Sovereign in the matter of government in him Colossians 1:17 all things consist how do we know he's got the divine nature well because John tells us under inspiration of the Holy Spirit Jesus tells us all throughout his ministry the Old Testament prophesies that such is going to be the case but then look at what he does look at how he functions look at the things he's able to do now I know that Moses and the prophets and some of those men did wondrous things but it wasn't by virtue of their identification with God most high Christ does it by virtue of his relation to God most high he walks on water he hushes the wind he hushes the storm or or the waves he's able to raise dead people he's able to forgive sins that's his emphasis there in Matthew chapter 9 I want you to know that the son of man has power on Earth to forgive sins so this Lord Jesus Christ was rich this Lord Jesus Christ remains Rich this Lord Jesus Christ can't be anything but rich as John Gil makes the point he says in the Perfections of his divine nature having the fullness of the godhead in him all that the father has and so equal to him such as eternity immutability infinity and immensity omnipresence omnicient and omnipotence in other words everything true of God is true of the Son of God in this particular clause for you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ that though he was rich now let's move to the poverty of Christ yet for your sakes he became poor we'll deal with the for your sakes in a bit but first I want to understand that the poverty of Christ here refers to his true Humanity he was rich and he takes to himself our Humanity that's the nature of the poverty that's it how did this one who was in the beginning the one who was with God and the one who was God impoverished himself for us well the word became flesh and dwelt among among us and we beheld his glory the glory as of the only begotten of the father full of grace and truth so he was rich and he takes on this poverty this is the Incarnation this is the Glorious truth of Christianity the fact that the one person of our Lord Jesus Christ has two Natures Divine and human and the human didn't just appear to be human the human didn't just kind of feel a human the human was in fact real as our confession says with all the essential properties and the common infirmities thereof yet without sin other words everything true of humanity was true of Christ yet without sin everything true of divinity is true of Christ without change without messing it up without any sort of an impact or negative impact at all so we've got the poverty of Christ it refers to his is true Humanity so the riches and the poverty of Christ points to that reality the one person in two Natures again the central mystery of Christianity and by mystery as our brother reminded us this morning that's not something we can't understand it's not something only for the initiates it's only for the esoteric it's only for the gnostics that had the the certain pipeline into the Divine throne room no it's a it's a mystery in the sense that we can grasp it we can't understand it it makes sense theologically and philosophically but to fully explore the depths of that the fact that he was rich and for your sakes he became poor I think it's better to understand mystery in the language of of that final stanza in Newton's Amazing Grace when we've been there 10,000 years bright shining as the sun we have no less days to sing God's praise than when we first begun other words our minds are not not going to get to this point well I we we got it all figured out I I got the nuts and bolts down I I can answer all the house Brethren there is a casm that exists between the infinite God and finite man again not that we don't have true knowledge not that we have to you know walk around you know kind of banging on our lips and in our minds or you know monkeys banging symbols I'm not suggesting that we learn truth from God's 31,000 of propositional Revelation but I'm suggesting that there is the concept the doctrine of divine incomprehensibility we cannot fully explore the depths of the Divine and Brethren that's a good place to be it's humbling it's uh promotes a a a righteous understanding of who we are before a great and awesome God if we could figure him out if we could explain him if we could domesticate him and put him in a box and set him on a shelf he wouldn't he wouldn't amaze us anymore he wouldn't Fascinate us anymore we wouldn't sing praise to him we would have it all figured out we don't throw them on the on the uh the little slide that you put in the microscope and just sort of examine him to satisfy our own carnal desires no we stand in on and worship we glorify we praise we we honor the one that was rich for your sakes became poor but there's something that you need to understand he didn't become poor by getting rid of the riches he didn't become poor by by doing something different in terms of his divinity as Augustine the famous father in the life of the church says the Divinity is not changed into the creature so as to cease to be Divinity nor the creature into Divinity so as to cease to be creature it's the beauty of the hypostatic Union two Natures one person they're not mingled they're not combined they don't make one super person but what you have are the two Natures in Union in the one person in theology we call that the hypostatic union that's not a big word h hypostasis simply means person there is a union of natures in the one person that's what Paul's getting at the one that was rich became poor but he became poor not by getting rid of his riches he became poor not by adding something to him that that wasn't there to begin with the change or the newness of the Incarnation doesn't come at the level of God it's not Divinity that's affected it's not Divinity that's changed it's in the person it's in the flesh of the Son of God that's where the Innovation that's where the change takes place it's not that the Divine can be changed if you have a God that can be changed may I suggest you find a new God remember those Heathen back in the prophet Isaiah's day when those Heathen are carrying their gods on their carts and they hit a bump in the road and the god falls off of the cart what do the Heathen go do they they pick up the God and put him back on the cart remember Deon that half man half fish idle of of Canaanite religion when they put the Ark of the Covenant the Philistines captur the Ark of the Covenant and as an obvious image and declaration they put the Ark of the Covenant into the temple with deeon that wasn't just the most handy place to store things that wasn't just a big closet where you know well put your other boots in in deon's Temple there was a message there degon one Deon bested Yahweh Deon beat Yahweh you see that that's what they were saying they capture the Ark of the Phil Ark of the Lord which was by God's design by the way he's teaching Israel L that he's not trying to exalt the Philistines or make them actually believe that Deon is real but but as Waring factions would do they want to prize their God they want to display their God they want to show the supremacy of their God so they bring the Ark of the Covenant put it into deon's Temple what happens when they go the next morning to sing praises to deeon well deon's fallen over so what do they do they dutifully put him back upright and then the next day what happens well Deon had fallen over but this time he he he broke some things off so did they have super glue Gorilla Glue I'm not sure what they did to fasten these appendages back onto deeon what's the point Brethren if your God is like us you are in the wrong religion there was no change that occurred at the level of divinity there's no addition and again addition isn't the worst possible language that one can use but you can't add to Divinity you can't increase Divinity you can't make Divinity more divine so when we talk about the Assumption of a human nature we use that language with theological emphasis some say well he added humanity and again it's not the worst thing in the world but the better language is the language of Paul in Philippians 27 taking on the form of a bonder servant taking on see all addition is assumption in theology but not all assumption is addition in theology we need to make sure we keep that clear so it's not that the Divinity was added on to by the Flesh of the Savior as again to make some super Divinity now but the more problematic approach based on Philippians 2:6 is that he emptied himself of his divinity he got rid of some of his divinity so that he could really be like us and save us though he was rich yet for your sakes he became poor but but he didn't do that by getting rid of the riches that we desperately need he does it by an assumption of our Humanity when Paul says you or have this mind in you which was in Christ Jesus our lord who being in the form of God did not consider it to be robbery or to be seized upon to be equal with God it says in the new King James he made himself of no reputation no account in the Old King James the Greek word there is emptying he he emptied himself so guess what people have done they've emptied Jesus of his divinity to make him a fit Savior for us and our Humanity you see when you empty Jesus of his divinity he's no longer a fit Savior for us in our Humanity the glory of the Incarnation is that though he was rich yet for your sake he became poor that you through his poverty might become rich he doesn't divest himself that's a big word that see means got rid of he doesn't empty himself in terms of divinity he has what he's always had when he's assumed our Humanity so that as I said earlier he's one person in two Natures both Divine and human turn to Philippians chapter 2 for just a moment just to sort of see how this particular argument goes and again in the context Paul is holding forth Jesus in an exemplary fashion other words be like Jesus here just like he's doing in 2 Corinthians chapter 8 never forget the main emphasis in 2 Corinthians 8 is to let go of that wallet brothers sisters let those pennies you know wipe their eyes when they see the sun of the day and you start coughing up to the churches in need that's Paul's point in 2 Corinthians 8 you you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ that though he was rich yet for your sakes he became poor that you through his poverty might become rich again grander emphasis I want you to give to the churches in Judea that are suffering famine the same sort of attitude here notice in Chapter 2 veres 1:5 therefore or verses 1 to4 therefore if there's any consolation in Christ if any comfort of love if any Fellowship of the spirit if any Affliction or affection and mercy excuse me fulfill my Joy by being likeminded having the same love being of one Accord of one mind let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conce but in loneliness of Mind Let each esteem others better than himself let each of you look out not only for his own interest but also for the interests of others isn't it incredible in very concrete real life real world applications the Apostle invokes christology at its highest levels to bring to bear upon the people of God their necessary Duty in terms of Charity and in terms of humility let this mind be in you notice in verse 5 which was also in Christ Jesus the next time you feel feel full of yourself 12 the next time you think you're it the next time you think that everybody is below you let this mind be in you the one who was in the form of God could certainly act that way couldn't he couldn't he absolutely positively but he doesn't act that way let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus who being in the form of God which he can't not be in the form of God he can't cease being in the form of God in the beginning was the word the word was with God and the Word was God it's another glorious thing about our religion Our God can't stop being God our God can't deny himself Our God doesn't go on holidays Our God doesn't sleep Our God doesn't take breaks remember this is how Elijah challenged the Heathen of his day where where's your God maybe he's gone on a visit maybe he's gone on a holiday maybe he's in the latrine relieving himself I bet you Elijah I can't say this under inspiration but he probably had a smile on when he was mocking those Heathen it was a knee slapper Brethren it was funny why because our God doesn't need to go to the latrine Our God doesn't go on holiday Our God doesn't Slumber doesn't Isaiah invoke that principle in Isaiah 40 when he wants you to find conf confidence and rest in your God he's neither weary nor Slumbers our God is everything specifically that we need and why would we want to divest him of those riches in order to get something look back at verse 5 let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus who being in the form of God did not consider it robbery to be equal with God don't want to get into trying to explain that but just see what he is he's equal with God form of God equ equal with god notice in verse 7 but made himself of no reputation no account again the Greek word kosis is to empty oneself this is a good rendering this is a good helpful interpretive call but made himself of no reputation how did he make himself of no reputation how did he make himself of no account how did he empty himself well Paul tells us that by virtue of two statements notice the poverty or the the the making himself of no reputation is in the form of taking the form of a bonder servant and coming in the likeness of men he assumes our Humanity verse 7 and he comes in the likeness of men now likeness isn't this kind of appeared or almost was a man he's using language to say that he came with all of our essential properties and common infirmities thereof and yet without sin so going back to our particular text this one form of God form of a servant that speaks to the two Natures the Divine and the human when we come to 2 Corinthians 8 and verse 9 it speaks of two Natures Divine and human though he was rich yet for your sakes he became poor that you through his poverty might become rich so again Brethren it cannot be the case that Jesus is able or would take his divinity and and throw it on the act burner again this is a very common way to approach christology and it's a very commonly incorrect way to approach christology the the the beauty of the savior is that he doesn't get rid of the riches that you and I need imagine if I called you or imagine better you called me and you said I I ran out of gas I'm over on Highway one just off on wat gum okay I show up and I say you know I had this great big can of gas in my garage but I didn't bring it why not cuz I want to identify with you in your gasless this is what we're doing when we're divesting The Riches of Christ with reference to his impoverishment you see that's what we may be doing that's what Heretics in the church may have done but that's not what the Bible does the bible presents to us the one person in two Natures we we quite need that guess don't we we quite need those riches don't we we we quite need his power don't we we want him to come and save us from our sin you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ that though he was rich yet for your sakes he became poor again not by getting rid of his riches but by taking to himself our impoverished state aquinus says he says being and not having been lest it seem that Christ lost his spiritual riches when he assumed poverty for he assumed this poverty and such a way that he did not lose those inestimable riches see again the glory of the Incarnation is that the word became flesh and we beheld his glory the glory as of the only begotten of the father full of grace and truth the exact sorts of riches that you and I need to rescue us to vindicate us to redeem us from the bond slave slavery of sin and depravity so just get this in your head when you're celebrating the Incarnation don't celebrate it in the sense that he stopped being what he was in order to be just like me he's just like us yet without sin but without ever having stopped being what he is the word became flesh he dwelt among us and we beheld his glory so going back to our text in 2 Corinthians 88:9 for you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ that although he was rich yet for your sakes he became poor we've seen the sort of theological uh uh exposition of that in Philippians chapter 2 the bond or the the form of God and the form of a bonder servant Divinity Humanity in the one person we've seen it in John's prologue the word God verse one became flesh man verse 14 again they're not mixed and mingled we don't make a super Jesus a super god or a less than God he takes on his human uh takes on our Humanity but what does that look like in terms of his own Ministry wow a quick brief trip through scripture will educate us on that the the theologians of yesterday used to refer to this as the state of humiliation his state of humiliation now we hear that and say oh I was humiliated when my son or baby you know let one fly in church oh we were humiliated that's not what theologians are referring to it refers to the loneliness of Christ in our Humanity his impoverishment when he assumes our Humanity notice according to scripture the Lord took upon Him man's nature with all the essential properties and the common infirmities thereof and yet without sin he was born like we are born of not royalty not in a palace not attended by servant but in loneliness right as well his hum uh uh human life or his life rather according to his Humanity was prophesied by Isaiah in chapter 53 at verse three it says concerning Jesus he is despised and rejected by Men A Man of Sorrows and acquainted with grief and we hit as it were our face from him he was despised and we did not esteem him I think I read it in Lloyd Jones once where he argued that Jesus never smiled it's a bit much for me I I don't maybe I'm giving it a bit more crass than the spin he put on it but the idea was in light of Isaiah 53 verse three Jesus didn't walk around with big some you know smile on his face the way Jesus Christ Superstar you know the kind of eminite character having tea all all over the Israeli country so no no he was a Man of Sorrows and he was acquainted with grief but I know that when Jesus I'm not going to say needed but I'm going to say needed a child for little illustration they had no problem coming to him him right CH children are pretty good judges of character somebody that's always D and sour and scolding and mad kids don't typically run to the chill uh to the to that person so I wouldn't argue that he never smiled in fact a mark of true humanity is smile right but I get his point he is despised and rejected by Men A Man of Sorrows and acquainted with grief and we hit as it were our faces our face from him he was despised and we did not esteem him Paul says you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ that though he was rich yet for your sakes he became poor again what does that poverty look like remember that man that wanted to follow Jesus according to Matthew chapter 8 Jesus says Foxes have holes and birds of the air have Nest but the son of man has nowhere to lay his head state of humiliation state of loneliness state of impoverishment to use the language of 2 Corinthians 88:9 again not ever ceasing to be what he is as Divine but assuming to himself our Humanity as well when we consider it the the poverty is most vividly seen in the sufferings and death of our Lord Jesus right Divinity can't suffer Divinity can't die Jesus does that according to his Humanity the one person operating according to his Humanity in those instances we see it come to culmination in suffering and death it came up in the last hour Jesus in Gethsemane my my my soul is exceedingly sorrowful even unto death he says to Peter James and John as they enter into Gethsemane well why is he saying that why is he why is he uh uh verbalizing that because he knows what lie behind Gethsemane upon the cross and that not necessarily connected to his divinity he read the prophet Isaiah he understood that he was a Man of Sorrows and acquainted with grief he understood from Daniel 9 that he must be cut off he understood from the typology in Genesis 22 that that a ram had to die as a substitute in order to provide atonement Jesus knew all this according to his Humanity he knows that he's the Target and he knows that this is where he's going of course true Humanity would say my soul is exceedingly sorrowful even unto death and then of course that death on the cross you see that impoverishment being a vehicle by which he conveys to us the riches we don't want him devoid of riches we don't want him empty of riches we want all the riches with the necessary impoverishment to enable us to receive all that he is in God it is a beautiful wonderful thing remember Peter could not conceive of the Messiah suffering and dying remember in Matthew 16 Jesus makes his announcement I must go to Jerusalem I must be tried I must be arrested I must be crucified what does Peter say that's a good idea Lord that's the way it's going to fulfill all the type he says no I don't want you to do that I don't want you to go so Jesus says Get Behind Me Satan you're not thinking God's thoughts you're thinking man's thoughts what about post resurrection and Ascension on high what about Jews today do they look at the cross and say what a what a wonderful beautiful depiction of God's love for his world no they see on that cross a revolutionary they see on that cross a heretic they see on that cross one that may have had love for people but the Divine son take on our Humanity die in our place they don't see that 1 Corinthians Chapter 1 what does Paul say we preach Christ and him crucified to the Jews what to the Jews what a stumbling block a scandal and the Greeks foolishness but to those who are being saved Christ the wisdom and power of God see this has always been a bit of a hurdle for people to get their minds wrapped wrapped around when it comes to biblical truth that God the son takes on our Humanity without ever stopping to be God the son in order that he can live for us and die for us and be raised again for us that is amazing that is wondrous and it is glorious and it should evoke from our hearts great praise and worship and adoration and then finally notice the Redemptive benefit involved again he's not just this one person in two Natures he's this for us so when you think about the nyine Creed for instance you've heard a lot of that you know in our studies in John's gospel probably going to hear a lot more of that in our studies in John go John's gospel it talks about who the father is talks about who the son is and it talks about who the spirit is and and you can't you know sort of accuse them of well that's just abstract sort of out there theology who for us men and for our Salvation it's not just an abstract theology out there for us to sort of gaze upon and wonder it is that but it's a for us men and for our Salvation theology that is designed if we're the people of God to elicit praise worship and adoration if you're not a Believer it's designed to communicate to you the Great Lengths that God has gone to to save sinners in other words sin is so bad and God Is So holy the only way available I don't like that word necessarily but it works for the moment for God to to to to breach that Chasm is in the sending of the son of his love who takes on our Humanity who lives for us and dies for us and is raised again for us see that doesn't communicate well you know God really isn't about saving Sinners that's precisely what it communicates that God is about saving Sinners God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but but have everlasting life the whole Bible is designed to call you sinner to to Jesus Christ to call you sinner to faith in him to call you sinner to look from yourself to the one in whom there is forgiveness to the one in whom there is redemption to the one in whom there is salvation so it's not that well you know this handful of people are going to end up in heaven the Bible says a great multitude that no man can number from every tribe and tongue and people and Nation God's about saving in fact the word Jesus the name Jesus guess guess guess what it means yah we Sav imagine that the very name of Jesus carries for us the mission of Jesus this idea that there's there's no hope for me I'm too far gone I'm just outside the pale of redemption I I I I could never be saved I could I could never come to Jesus I've I've heard these you know extra uh hyper preachers tell me that there there's no way I I could come the whole Bible tells you come the whole Bible ins some sense is encapsulated in jesus' words in Matthew 11 and verse 25 come to me all you who are weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest what what part of that don't you get what what part of that is hard come to me you you understand the nature of that command when you give it to your child child's on the other side of the room you want him to bring a cookie to you and you say come to me well Daddy I don't know what that means I've never you do know what that word means for whatever reason there's a disc connect well I don't want you to be disconnected Sinners and I'm not saying sinners like I'm not I'm a sinner redeemed saved by grace maybe a whole lot worse than any Sinners out there unredeemed and saved by grace I'm addressing unbelievers everything in the Bible converges at this reality you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ that though he was rich yet for your sakes he became poor why that we through that poverty might become rich there's riches held out by God it is the empty hand of faith that receives it it's not your works it's not your doing it's not even the strength of your faith if you have faith the size of a mustard seed Jesus says there is blessing there it is an instrument to receive the promised blessings of God most high what we see in this passage is called The Riches of Christ Ephesians 1:3 blessed be the God and father of our Lord Jesus Jesus Christ who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the Heavenly places in Christ it's a beautiful statement isn't it these are the riches conferred Upon Us by God's grace receive through faith alone justification by God's grace through faith we're we're Justified freely by his grace Romans 3:23 the the gift of sanctification see Brethren sanctification isn't first and foremost you trying harder you being better if the work of Christ is for us the work of the spirit is in US conforming us ever unto the image of our beloved savior it's a work of God he is at work in you both to Will and to do according to his good pleasure and of course glorification that's what awaits us in the future these are the riches that are conferred by Christ these are the riches that are secured by Christ these are the riches that come as a result of his having become impoverished for us so that we can become rich through him so Brethren listen to the text let it inform your idea of the Incarnation and let it elicit praise and worship and glory and honor given unto our great God because in the fullness of the time God sent forth his son born of a woman born under the law to do what to make sure nobody would ever be redeemed to make sure that there's only five people that are going to haveen to redeem those who are under the law see you cannot prove hyper Calvinism from an Open Bible you cannot prove it from an Open Bible there is just too much contrary evidence in terms of the graciousness the large-hearted the benevolence and the glory of God in the salvation of Sinners do you understand that that's what the scope of scripture is the scripture speaks to science I'm not going to tell you otherwise but is it a science book the scripture speaks concerning history not going to tell you otherwise but is it a history book scripture speaks to biology is it a Biology book it's a book of redemption it's about God in Christ reconciling the world to himself the scope of the whole is to give glory in the salvation of Sinners by the Son of God who though he was rich yet for your sakes became poor that you through his poverty might become rich now the $64,000 Question how does he connect this to baptism I don't want to neglect Rebecca who's going to enter the Waters of baptism momentarily I would suggest first with reference to a specific application of baptism I'll read presently in the water chapter 29 in our confession of Faith from paragraph 1 but then the General application if we ask the question why is Rebecca going into the water today you might be tempted to say cuz Rebecca's a fine young lady Rebecca's very nice Rebecca can play a mean piano that might be the temptation but that's not the answer Rebecca is going into the Waters of baptism today because the one who was rich became poor for her sake that she through his poverty might become rich it's a about God's grace it's about God's glory it's about God's honor this tank does not exist to celebrate the Rebeccas of this world she's got two parents that do that probably profusely on their own this tank is designed to promote the glory of God most high the tank is there to preach to us in an external form what God the Lord does internally he changed changed her heart he gave her the Graces of faith and repentance he conferred upon her the riches acquired by our Lord or through our Lord's impoverishment it is because of God's kindness love mercy and Grace that this young woman today is baptized in the name of the father and of the son and of the holy spirit this will preach 2 Corinthians 8 verse 9 you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ that though he was rich yet for your sakes he became poor that you through his poverty might become rich she has been made a rich woman by God's grace she has been made a rich woman by the power of the spirit applying the finished work of our Lord Jesus to her and that will be conveyed when she identifies publicly with our Triune God in baptism well let us pray Our Father in heaven we thank you for your word we thank you for its Clarity here in 2 Corinthians chapter 8 and Philippians 2 and John 1 not necessarily simple not necessarily easy for us to get our minds wrapped around but when we behold the infinite God of glory and majesty and power and honor that word who became flesh for us men and for our Salvation certainly there is a learning curve involved but what we may not know fully or wholly may we receive what the written word tells us concerning this reality and may we stand in awe and worship and praise and glorify you our great and Sovereign God we thank you for this Wonder uh wonderful uh doctrine of the Incarnation of Our Lord we thank you for its Redemptive benefit on our behalf and we pray now that you would be glorified and honored as we see the gospel in Christian baptism and we ask this through Jesus Christ Our Lord amen our brother Mark is going to come up and lead a a hym and then Rebecca you can go change and I'll meet you in the tank make sure to turn that light on please [Music] ho [Music] to of angels oh in Christ GL cre us let us let USR sing sing ex sing all glory in the highest come let us adore oh come let us us adore oh let us adore Christ for this Happ morning Jesus all glory of the father oh come let us adore oh come let us adore him let us adore Christ children well in just a moment I'm going to read from our confession there were two quotes that I neglected to read from Thomas Watson concerning the Incarnation specifically regarding 2 Corinthians 8:9 he says he was poor that he might make us rich he was born of a virgin that we might be born of God he took our flesh that he might give us his Spirit he lay in the manger that we might lie in Paradise he came down from heaven that he might bring us to heaven and then elsewhere this sort of Prince of the Puritans in terms of quotability he says that man should be made in God's image was a Wonder but that God should be made in man's image is a greater wonder that the Ancient of Days should be born that he who thunders in the heavens should cry in the cradle that he who rules the Stars should suck the breast that a virgin should conceive that Christ should be made of a woman and of that woman which himself made that the branch should bear the vine that the mother should be younger than the child she bear and the child child in the womb bigger than the mother than the that the human nature should not be God yet in Union with God Amen well baptism is a wonderful time in just a few moments Rebecca is going to share a few things I want to remind us about our confessional position that means our con uh uh position based on our Church's confession of Faith which is the second London Confession of 1689 in the chapter on baptism chapter 29 we read concerning its spiritual significance in paragraph 1 baptism is an ordinance of the New Testament ordained by Jesus Christ to be unto the party baptized a sign of his fellowship with him in his death and resurrection of his being engrafted into him of remission of sins and of his giving up unto God through Jesus Christ to live and walk in newness of Life paragraph two goes on to consider the proper subjects in other words who should be baptized who should receive the sign that communicates what we see here in paragraph 1 it says those who do actually profess repentance towards God faith in and obedience to our lord Jesus are the only proper subjects of this ordinance it speaks concerning the outward element why are we standing in water well the confession rightly reflecting scripture says the outward element to be used in this ordinance is water wherein the party is to be baptized in the name of the father and of the son and of the Holy Spirit and then in concerning the specific mode is it enough just to sprinkle some water is it enough just to pour some water well no when we look at the scriptural usage of the word baptizo it means what baptizo means immerse and so our confession says immersion or dipping of the person in water is necessary to the due administration of this ordinance and it captures finely that imagery or metaphor that Paul sort of uh uses in in Romans chapter 6 when he's appealing to the people of God to be holy when he's appealing to the people of God to pursue sanctification he does also based on What's called the indicative the fact that they've been saved they died with Jesus they've been buried with Jesus they've been raised with Jesus therefore no longer let sin reign in your mortal bodies in other words put to death the Deeds of the body because Christ is saved you and it's been typified or rather emblemized by this wonderful Act of baptism now I am very thankful to have met with and talked to Rebecca as I mentioned I think a few times ago it's a real privilege of the office to be able to speak to people to hear their testimony to to hear how they came to know the Savior and then to commend these people to the membership in the church well Rebecca is certainly one of them so now she can say what she wants to say I believe God saved me at a young age but I cannot point to the specific moment when I passed from deadness and sins to life in Christ Jesus consequently I struggled with the Assurance of my salvation through the holy spirit's work in my my heart I have come to trust that When God says that whoever believes in Jesus will be saved and includes me John 6:37 is a reassuring verse that says all that the father gives me will come to me and the one who comes to me I will by no means cast out amen a wonderful passage of scripture conveying a wonderful reality hold your nose I baptize you in the name of the father and of the son and of the Holy Spirit God wonderful [Applause] wonderful well Brethren this is an encouragement to see young people that have been growing up or have grown up in the life of the church to confess saving Faith to identify with our God in this manner it is very very encouraging to see the handywork of the Lord in the salvation of Sinners please join with me now in prayer Our blessed God certainly these are the riches conferred by our blessed savior in terms of his impoverishment on behalf of his people we rejoice in the salvation of Rebecca we rejoice in this public identification with the Triune God we pray for her that she would continue to grow in the grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ that the holy spirit's work in her sanctifying her and and conforming her further under the image of Christ would continue and that it would be blessed and that she would grow regularly in the grace and knowledge of our blessed savior thank you for all of the children in this local body thank you for these little ones watching watching on now I pray for them that you'd open their hearts to receive the truth as it is in Jesus from a young age for certainly this world is is no friend to to to child rearing it's no friend to bringing up children in the training and admonition of the Lord may he get a hold of their hearts early on May they hear the admonition of Solomon often to remember their creator in their youth and may they by Grace cast faith upon the Lord Jesus Christ and we pray in his Most Blessed name Amen brother Mark is going to come up and close close our service with the singing of the [Music] doxology PR All Creatures here pra him all the heav host praise Father Son and Holy Ghost seated [Music] time