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e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e everyone it's good to be back in the house of our God for our call to worship you can turn with me in your Bibles to Psalm 20 Psalm 20 I'll begin reading in verse one to the chief musician a Psalm of of David may the Lord answer you in the day of trouble may the name of the god of Jacob defend you may he send you help from the sanctuary and strengthen you out of Zion may he remember all your offerings and accept your burnt sacrifice se la may he Grant you according to your heart's desire and fulfill all your purpose we will rejoice in your salvation and in the name of our God we will set up our banners may the Lord fulfill all your petitions now I know that the Lord saves his anointed he will answer him from his holy heaven with the saving strength of his right hand some trust in chariots and some in horses but we will remember the name of the Lord Our God they have bowed down and Fallen but we have risen and stand upright save Lord May the king answer us when we call amen well please turn in your hym books to Psalm 145 psalm 145b as in bravo we'll sing the first four stanzas 145b stanzas 1 to [Music] 4 will forever bless your I will you day after your PR PR the great praise PR to will tell your Andy has your words I [Music] will shall your will your praise for your glor and good sing [Music] [Applause] [Music] well let us pray our gracious God and Holy Father we thank you again for the privilege to gather in your house on your day with your people it is a great joy to come into the place where God is pleased to dwell with his people we thank you for for what the Apostle tells us in Ephesians 2 that we come to the father through the son in the spirit and we want to bring glory and honor and praise to you please fit our hearts AR right for the worship of our Triune God we pray that the Holy Spirit would guide us and direct us and help us that we would indeed be mindful of the Majesty of God on high that we would be mindful of your Holiness and your righteousness and it would indeed promote in us a right fear and reverence before you and may uh uh consideration of our great privilege as the the children of God flood our hearts and Minds with joy May there be that rejoicing in that celebration may it be the case that as we sing as we pray as we turn our attention to the to the word of God and to the table of Our Lord that you would draw out from us Worship in spirit and in truth we confess our sins to you even now as we come into your presence we are mindful that we don't always walk as we ought we know that we are called to let our conduct be worthy of the gospel yet so often we find ourselves described well by the hyw writer we're prone to wander and prone to leave the god that we love we confess our transgression of your law we confess that lack of Conformity unto it sins of commission and omission and we pray now that you would cleanse Us in the Precious Blood of the Lord Jesus Christ we Rejoice that the word became flesh that he dwelt among us we Rejoice that he is indeed the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world and though this does not promote in us the desire to sin we do have an advocate with the father when we do sin so we confess it now trusting in that precious blood of the Lord Jesus Christ to cleanse us and to wash us from all iniquity as well God we pray for any and all who've come here tonight that are still dead in their trespasses and sins we pray they'd learn something of blood atonement the reality that God's justice must be satisfied through offering we pray that you would open eyes and hearts to underscore the gravity of sin the fact that it necessitated the Son of God coming into this world to live for us and die for us and to be raised again for us sin is no light thing so may you impress that upon Sinners here tonight and show them the glory of Jesus Christ as it's revealed in the gospel we ask you'd bless our children and our young people we thank you for each of them we ask God that you would help us to take seriously their training and admonition we ask that you would indeed bless them from their youth cause them to call upon the name of the Lord Jesus Jesus Christ and thank you as well for the babies in the wombs we thank you for these little ones we pray for their protection we pray that in your time they would come forth and one day by Grace they would come forth confessing Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior we pray for your blessing upon other churches here in our community we ask that you bless pastor cman and the Saints at the free Reformed Church we pray as well God for your blessing upon the church in Su and in Armstrong the church plant in dren we pray for the brethren in sigu toek and as well God we pray for that that city of Elder in Kenya we just pray for our brothers there that they would be faithful in the ministry of the word that you would be gracious to that country as there's been unrest with reference to their government we just pray that things would be calmed and that you would be glorified in the proclamation of the truth in that nation and God be merciful in Myanmar we thank you for the reports that we receive we thank you for our brother Peter truly it is an amazing thing to see this brother step up to the plate in so many ways over these last several years certainly God we do believe him to be the man of your choosing for that work we pray for the safety of the children and all those involved and we do pray for a ceasefire in that Nation so Lord continue with us now grant us Grace and cause us to again reflect upon the glory of our savior revealed to us in the gospel of our salvation and we pray in Jesus name amen well you could turn with me again in your hym books to s 134 we'll stand as we sing [Music] 134 the [Music] in his house to stand and praise him there with all your [Music] oh bless the Lord worship him with bless you from all his all bless be his great and [Music] well you can turn with me in your Bibles to the book of 2 Samuel chapter 21 2 Samuel chapter 21 last week we looked at the righteousness of David in 2 Samuel CH 22 verses 21 to 25 I'll just repeat that the Lord re rewarded me according to my righteous according to the cleanness of my hands he has recompensed me for I have kept the ways of the Lord and have not wickedly departed from my God for all his judgments were before me and as for his statutes I did not depart from them was also blameless before him and I kept myself from my iniquity therefore the Lord has recompensed me according to my righteousness according to my cleanness in his eyes and as we read that we are mindful that David definitely had his shortcomings David committed the sin of adulter and then he covered up that sin of adultery with conspiracy to commit murder and when we reflect upon that it's a bit difficult to entertain him rehearsing or rejoicing in his righteousness again last week we argued that it was the imputed righteousness of Christ received by faith alone that David is musing upon we know that he understands that because of Psalm 32 Paul's use of that in the Book of Romans I also argued that David understood his own sin he knew knew the nature of depravity but he also understood atonement we see that in 2 Samuel 12 when he repents or confesses his sin and the Lord atones for his sin we see that as well here in chapter 21 David understood atonement he understands it according to Psalm 65 also so I thought this would be a good time to shine the light on the atonement at giba in 2 Samuel 21 I'll read the first half verses 1-14 now there was a famine in the days of David for three years year after year and David inquired of the Lord and the Lord answered it is because of Saul in his bloodthirsty house because he killed the gibit so the king called the gibeonites and spoke to them now the giban ites were not of the children of Israel but of the remnant of the amorites the children of Israel had sworn protection to them but Saul had sought to kill them in his Zeal for the children children of Israel and Judah therefore David said to the giban ites what shall I do for you and with what shall I make atonement that you may bless the inheritance of the Lord and the gibeonites said to him we will have no silver or gold from Saul or from his house nor shall you kill any man in Israel for us so he said whatever you say I will do for you then they answered the king as for the man who consumed us and plotted against us that we should be destroyed from from remaining in the in any of the territories of Israel let seven men of his descendants be delivered to us and we will hang them before the Lord and giba of Saul whom the Lord chose and the King said I will give them but the king spared mbath the son of Jonathan the son of Saul because of the Lord's oath that was between them between David and Jonathan the son of Saul so the king took armony and mbath the two sons of rispa the daughter of Aya whom she bore to Saul and the five sons of Michael the daughter of Sha of Saul whom she brought up for Adriel the son of bareli the Mah molite and he delivered them into the hands of the gibeonites and they hang them on the hill before the Lord so they fell all seven together and were put to death in the days of harvest in the first days in the beginning of barley Harvest now rispa the daughter of Aya took sackcloth and spread it for herself on the Rock from the beginning of Harvest until the late rains poured on them from heaven and she did not allow the birds of the air to rest on them by day nor the beasts of the field by night and David was told what rispa the daughter of Aya the concubine of Saul had done then David went and took the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his son from the men of jabes Gilead who had stolen them from the street of bethshan where the Philistines had hung them up after the Philistines had struck down Saul in gilboa so he brought brought up the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his son from there and they gathered the bones of those who had been hanged they buried the bones of Saul and Jonathan his son in the country of Benjamin in zah in the Tomb of Kish his father so they performed all that the king had command or all the king had commanded and after that God heeded the prayer for the land amen well let us pray Our Father we come to this passage of scripture we pray for the aid in the ministry of the Holy Spirit Jesus says he is the one who teaches us he is the one who reminds us he's not only the one who inspired Holy Scripture but he illumin us to understand that scripture so please send him now guide us and direct us and again cause us to make the connection between blood atonement here at gibba and the blood atonement rendered at golgatha we thank you for our savior we thank you that he is our substitute that he stood in our place and satisfied Divine Justice on behalf of All Those whom the father had given him we bless you for this and we praise you now in Jesus name amen well just a reminder of the L of the land here in 2 Samuel basically we have the commencement of David's reign in chapters 1:4 the consolidation of David's rule over all Israel chapters 5 to8 and then the consequences of of David's sin in chapters 9 to 20 remember David sins as I mentioned he commits adultery commits murder to sort of cover that up and then there are consequences the sword does not depart from his house and then chapters 21 to 24 are a final assessment of David and I think specifically as well contrasted with Saul but I would suggests that we're not to understand 21 and following chronologically in other words it is not the case that chronologically chapter 21 and this atonement in giba happens directly after the events recorded in chapter 20 remember that the biblical authors are not constrained by uh uh specific time and chronology the way we are they structuring together theology they are showing something again in contrast of David and Saul and their respective Reigns so I'm not suggesting that chapter 21 is directly connected or follows chapter 20 in fact if you look at verse one it says now there was a famine in the days of David for three years we don't know what days of David that that three-year period obtained we just simply know that it was but again I think the idea here is to underscore the necessity of atonement in a typical fashion to point us forward to the Lord Jesus Christ so we'll look at the giban ites Avenged in verses 1 to4 under four considerations first the Judgment of God in verses 1 to3 second the demand of the gianitsos the section but NE notice first the Judgment of God it's tipped off right at the beginning in verse one now there was a famine in the days of David for three years if you're reading your Bible Covenant you're reading your Bible sensitive to what God promises in terms of blessing in the book of Deuteronomy and Leviticus or in terms of cursing in The Book of Leviticus and Deuteronomy when you meet up with things like this you're not supposed to conclude well they had bad irrigation systems or they didn't have the agrarian ability to to properly cultivate the land when you see a famine in the land in Old Covenant Israel you can smell the Judgment of God most high as I mentioned Leviticus 26 specifically in verses 19 and 20 but then in Deuteronomy 28:23 to 24 this is the result of breach the result of Covenant breaking and your Heavens which are over your head shall be bronze and the Earth which is under you shall be Iron the Lord will change the rain of your land to powder and dust from the heaven it shall come down on you until you are destroyed so then notice we get tipped off that the problem is the Judgment of God verse 1 18 now there was a famine in the days of David for three years year after year and then note David inquired of the lord always a good thing for those in Authority always a good thing for those not in Authority it is good to inquire of the Lord it is good to seek the face of God it is good to try and understand what is happening typically typically when Calamity hits us we Panic typically when Calamity hits us we recoil typically when Calamity hits us we want to blame everybody else or blame all kinds of situations or circumstances we need to reflect upon the very word of God himself this is in a direct esoteric contact apart from the word we go to scripture to inquire of the Lord and this is precisely what David does notice specifically the Divine response so verse 21 our chapter 21:1 we read that David inquired of the Lord and the Lord answered and I think this is a great Mercy from God the Lord answered he doesn't have to he's not beholden to David he could let David try and figure out what the situation is but the Lord answered and not only does the Lord answer the Lord underscores the specific reason for this famine notice it is because of Saul and his bloodthirsty house because he killed the ganit and I think that illustrates the mercy of God that he answers but as well the justice of God that he notices what goes on in this present evil age again we see all kinds of lawlessness all kinds of wickedness to the point where we might get frustrated and wonder does God actually see Solomon talks over and over again in the Book of Proverbs about unjust scales being an Abomination to Yahweh and yet we see what appears to be unjust scales all around us all the time does Yahweh notice he does notice he does see he acts in his time he acts according to his purposes so he understood or he rather reveals to David so that David can understand the breach that had occurred with reference to the house of Saul again one of the emphases in this section is to show the faithfulness of David and the unfaithfulness of Saul and Saul sinned specifically concerning the gibian ites notice verse one it is because of Saul and his bloodthirsty house because he killed the giban ites you can turn to the Book of Joshua Joshua chapter 9 fills out this particular narrative or sets the backdrop for this particular narrative Joshua chapter 9 basically word is getting out all throughout Israel about the the god of Israel remember last week in the Sunday evening reading we had Rahab and Rahab was very much understanding the power and the Majesty of Yahweh and wants to broker a deal as far as it was concerned to protect her and her family well here the gibeonites they hear the same thing they understand that the god of Israel doesn't joke around they understand that heads were broken in Egypt such that the Israelites were able to march boldly out of that land so the gianitsos specifically about verse 7 then the men of Israel said to the hivites perhaps you dwell Among Us so how can we make a covenant with you they're trying to vet them they're trying to see maybe you're just our neighbors to you know in the near proximity and and we're not supposed to have truck with you so so so why should we help you verse 8 but they said to Joshua we are your servants and Joshua said to them who are you and where do you come from so they said to him from a very uh said to him from a very far country your servants have come because of the name of the Lord God for we have heard of his name of his Fame and all that he did in Egypt and all that he did to the two kings of the amorites who were beyond the Jordan to sihon King of heshbon and OG king of Bashan who was at asaroth therefore our elders and all the inhabitants of our country spoke to us saying take Provisions with you for the journey and go to meet them and say to them we are your servants now therefore make a covenant with us this bread of ours we took hot for our provision from our houses on the day we departed to come to you but now look it is dry and moldy and the these wine skins which we filled were new and see they are torn and these are garments and our sandals have become old because of the very long hours so you see they weave this tail can't blame them on the one hand right the god of Israel is out there fighting and Waring and destroying for the nation of Israel the gianitsos so that we don't end up at the receiving end of the wrath of Yahweh so notice in in verse 14 the men of Israel took some of their Provisions but they did not ask counsel of the Lord David sought the Lord he inquired of the Lord but not Joshua and the leaders of Israel at this time notice in verse 15 so Joshua made peace with them and made a covenant with them to let them live and the rulers of the congregation swore to that so there was this Covenant in place to protect the giban ites they're not going to die they're not going to destroy them now even when they learned that they had been close neighbors even when they learned that they had been duped that does not reneg the Covenant remember Psalm 15 the description of our blessed savior he swears to his own or he swears to his own hurt and does not change so they were faithful now they sort of gave them menial jobs as wood cutters and water carriers but nevertheless they spared the gianitsos Samuel 21 telling us that he did in fact do this it is because of Saul and his bloodthirsty house because he killed the giit notice in verse two so the king called the gibeonites and spoke to them now the gibeonites were not of the children of Israel but of the remnant of their of the amorites the children of Israel had sworn protection to them but Saul had sought to kill them in his Zeal for the children of Israel and Judah so that's the problem that's the issue that's why there's famine in the land for for these three years it isn't a mystery David asks God answers and now David wants to get the Kingdom Under Control so notice under this head still the judge uh of the Judgment of god notice in verse three they make a particular request therefore David said to the gibeonites what shall I do for you and with what shall I make atonement that you may bless the inheritance of the Lord now this word atonement as I've often mentioned it's usually in the older authors speaks of s satisfaction it's the satisfaction of divine Justice sort of sort of at the core of this idea of atonement you you see forgiveness in there you see cleansing you see Ransom you see the aversion or or averting rather of God's Wrath you see as well numbers specifically where atonement is associated with averting the wrath of God so it's the satisfaction of divine justice so let's just reflect upon this David understands they're under the Judgment of God David asks why are we under the Judgment of God God answers because of Saul in his bloodthirsty house trying to exterminate the gibeonites with whom Joshua and the elders made a a binding Covenant with and so now David fetches the gibeonites and he says what is it what is it that will provide atonement what will bring a satisfaction for this breach of justice that brings us then to the demand of the gibeonites in Verses 4 to six notice their rejection of silver gold or any man verse four the gibit said to him we will have no silver or gold from Saul or from from his house nor shall you kill any man in Israel for us other words it can't just be anybody that functions as the substitute and it certainly cannot be silver or gold why not well for whatever problems the gibit may have had they understood something about biblical Justice in numbers 35:33 we read so you shall not pollute the land where you are for blood defiles the land and no atonement can be made for the land the blood uh for the blood that is shed on it except by the blood of him who shed it basically what that demands is capital punishment for the crime of murder it demands it it's not a suggestion it's not you know this would make life a little better on your public streets it'll clean up Walmart the problem's there it'll clean up your kidnapp no it is a demand by God that whoever commits or whoever sheds man's blood by man his blood will be shed for in the image of God he made man numbers 35 is non-negotiable you cannot profer silver and gold to Ransom a murderer the only just retribution for a murderer is capital punishment so the gibeonites understand something about this as well the giban ites understand something about substitution can't just be any man whatsoever now this was not Revenge driven you might read it and say well wait a minute that sounds a bit Revenge driven they want seven men it's not Revenge driven David sought them out David wants to protect the inheritance of the Lord David wants to protect protect his people as Matthew Henry well said they did not require this out of malice against Saul or his family had they been revengeful they would have moved it themselves long before but out of love to the people of Israel whom they saw plagued for the injury done to them so they don't want silver and gold but rather they want men notice in verse four at the end so he said whatever you say I will do for you then they answered the king as for the man who consumed us and plotted against us that we should be destroyed from remaining in any of the territories of Israel let seven men of his descendants be delivered to us and we will hang them before the Lord in giia of Saul whom the Lord chose now Brethren this is going to sound a bit offensive to us because we're delicate it's going to be sound a bit offensive to us because we're not conversant with the laws of God relative to this particular situation we might even Ponder Deuteronomy 24:16 which says and if you're not then you should fathers shall not be put to death for their children nor children be put to death for their fathers A person shall be put to death for his own sin that's biblical Juris Prudence you shouldn't be executed for the sin or the crime of your father however this is different and this is different precisely because the act of Saul polluted the land the entirety of the land with blood guiltiness which was a big no no in in Old Covenant Israel again numbers 35 No ransom for the murderer but rather execute the murderer such that the land is not polluted with that that blood as well the act of Saul was a breach of a covenant made with the giban ites it's interesting that the language often employed in the Old Testament to talk about covenanting is to cut a covenant and I think one of the best ways to illustrate the cutting of a covenant is in Genesis 15 in Genesis 15 God basically promises Abraham a great number of descendants and a great piece of land and Abraham has a point where he says well well how do I know what what you're saying is is true how do I know that what you're communicating here via seed and land is going to come to pass so God tells him to cut a covenant literally take these animals cut them in half put one half on one side and one half on the other side this was ancient near Eastern Covenant making the significance is seen in the parties of the Covenant passing through those severed animals head here tail here head here tail here I'm thinking symmetry could you could have had head here head here tail there tail there but but the two parties would walk through that and the significance of this particular Act was simple if we reneg on the Covenant then may what happened to these animals happen happen to us so it was a self maledictory oath you were basically affirming the Judgment of God most high you were affirming any sorts of negative consequences or sanctions appended to that Covenant by that activity so Israel under Joshua's leadership went into Covenant with the gianitsos sua found out the GI gibit deceived them he didn't Rene he didn't hack them into pieces he didn't engage in this bloodthirsty uh uh desire to rid the land of the gibit but he kept the Covenant again he relegated them to menial service but he kept the Covenant and spared their lives so Saul is functioning as a not as an individual but represent uh represent uh representational and therefore on a national level it's a representative of the nation his sin in this particular Endeavor basically brought curse upon the land Visa the Famine of God the demand of Deuteronomy 24:16 is not applicable here it's not an individual criminal offense not that Saul you know on a bad day got drunk went out and robbed a bank and then all of his uh uh posterity was judged for that particular Act of robbing the bank this is a different kettle of fish as a public figure he violated trust and he brought the wrath of God down upon this particular Nation so it was not applicable for he was functioning as a represent a representative and it was not EX applicable because of what God does in terms of receiving this atonement see we have a bit of a tip when we're reading texts we kind of get to see how God responds and if God responds then airo it must have been legit I've mentioned before Samson's prayer at Jawbone height I just beat all these Philistines you're going to let me die of thirst it sounds a bit cheeky sounds a bit forward sounds a bit out of line Samson you don't you know you're addressing the high and holy God God gives him water so when you've you've got the Lord healed the land the Lord heard the Lord saw the Lord affirmed then you know that we're operating under the the the opes of biblical Juris Prudence as well note the specific atonement indicated so verses 7 to9 verses 7 to9 the king said I will give them verse 7 but the king spared mbth there's two mths here you need to make sure you keep them clear I don't know how common of a name that was in Old Testament Israel I'm sure you're you know over John when you you read the the New Testament or James comes up a lot you kind of wish you know it would always be James Smith or James Brown or James whoever so we kind of keep them straight in our minds well there's two mths mbishi in this particular section you need to understand that verse 7even the king spared mbth the son of Jonathan the son of Saul because of the Lord's oath that was between them between David and Jonathan the son of Saul we'll look at that in just a moment but then notice verse eight so the king took armony and mbath the two sons of rispa the daughter of Aya whom she bore to Saul and the five sons of Michael the daughter of Saul whom she brought up for Adriel the son of barel the molite and he delivered them into the hands of the gianitsos the son of Jonathan you can turn back to uh 1st Samuel chapter 20 1st Samuel chapter 20 specifically verses 14 to 16 he spares mfib ath in this line notice in chapter 20 1st Samuel specifically at verses 14-6 and you shall not only show me the kindness of the Lord while I still live that I may not die but you shall not cut off your kindness from my house forever no not when the Lord has cut off everyone of the enemies of David from the face of the Earth so Jonathan made a covenant with the House of David saying let the Lord require it at the hand of David's enemies and then turn to chapter n in the book of a second Samuel remember 2 Samuel up until chapters 10 and following really is all positive everything David touches turns to Gold I mean he's consolidating the kingdom he's bringing the Ark of the Covenant he's establishing Jerusalem as the political and religious capital and here in chapter nine of 2 Samuel he's expressing hessed which is kindness or love or Grace or or mercy and who does he do that for he does it for this man mbath he lets mbath who was not too good on the eyes and probably had some rough edges all about him at his own table and so David expresses this and David is consistent with this all the way into the end of second Samuel but as well we've got the particular identity of the sons I want you to notice something in verse 8 that's a bit of a challenge in our text so the king took armoni and M fibat the two sons of rispa and daughter of Aya whom she bore to saw and the five sons of Michael the daughter of Saul whom she brought up for Adriel the son of barel the mahaly there's a there's a variant here the mastic text has Michael but Michael was Barren and Meb was married to Adriel the new King James tries to sort it out by indicating that Michael brought up the sons for Adriel so there is a variant reading that simply means in the manuscript transmission there's a difference doesn't mean it's the Bible's messed up or the Bible's wrong or anything like that she got variance and we've got comparison passage with passage that's probably the legit way to to go here but the the main emphasis is verse 9 and again this is where we see the whole emphasis on atonement so David delivers the seven men up and they hang the seven men and they do it before the Lord again don't miss that sort of thing in your Bible now there's times before the Lord where he's angry or just or righteous or he's going to express his wrath but this whole scene is positive and favorable in terms of the Lord's perspective this was necessary the gravity of the sin of the House of Saul in trying to exterminate the gianitsos Divine Justice and so these men pick the men or rather the men are picked then they are handed over by David to them and verse n he delivered them into the hands of the gibeonites and they hang them on the hill before the Lord so so they fell all seven together and were put to death in the days of harvest in the first days in the beginning of of The Barley Harvest and then that brings us to this final bit this aftermath notice the action of rispa verse 10 says now rispa the daughter of a took sackcloth and spread it for herself on the Rock from the beginning of harvest until the late rains poured on them from Heaven she did not allow the birds of the air to rest on them by day nor the beasts of the field by night what do we learn from this it's brutal it's hardcore Brethren it's tough and as I'm going to quote Davis in a few minutes it's supposed to be our version of Christianity is pretty polished it's pretty antiseptic it's pretty sterile you know we don't have to traffic in you know what the Israelites in the old Covenant did Sabbath morning go out and find your animal not the wor first but your best take it down to the Tabernacle or the temple and there you're going to cut its throat and then you're going to hand it over to your priest I've not had animals like that I had a dog that I loved very much so uh but I got to think that if you have a nice cow a nice goat there's a bit of bonding that takes place right and you're probably predilect you a predilection to like the one that's really in good shape he's the winner of any battles in the Barnard he can jump the high he's the one you're the F fondest of you got to cut that throat you got to hand it over to the priest and the bulk of it going to be burned and you're not going to even get to participate in it that's got to be tough tougher at least at some level than us you know slipping an envelope into a box in terms of our sacrifice or in terms of our offering and I'm not belittling the latter I'm just suggesting that we're far far removed from atonement we're far removed from this kind of action the first thing to observe is that the rules of Deuteronomy 2122 and 23 are not enforced here Deuteronomy 21 and 20 uh 22 and 23 says if a man has committed a sin deserving of death and he is put to death and you hang him on a tree his body shall not remain overnight on the tree but you shall surely bury him that day so that you do not defile the land which the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance for he who is hanged is a cursed of God this was probably due to the fact that it was an extraordinary case so rispa the daughter of a took sackcloth and spread it for herself on the Rock from the beginning of harvest until the late rains poured on them from Heaven she did not allow the birds of the air to rest on them by day nor the beasts of the field by night she's not just laying there chilling prolonged nap she's actually active she's actually keeping the birds off these men she's actually keeping the beasts off these men another commentator makes this this statement he says the moment we allow our imagination to dwell on the details of her situation we recoil again I'm going to finish the sermon with quot Davis quote and I'm sure most of you have heard it he says the bodies just hang there exposed to the elements the stench and sight of decay can hardly be borne by any Outsider let alone a relative and rispa is a mother of two who day in and day out week in and week out is forced to exper experienced this with her own children the horror defies description and the narrator does not describe it either that's got to be tough Brethren it's got to be a a a challenge a heartache a hardship something that twists you on the inside and then the the the chapter the section rather ends on the activity of David David sees this and David sympathizes with this so David reckons he's going to get the bones of of of Saul and Jonathan and bring them so that they can be interred or buried with the remains of these seven men it'll be a complete done deal now the men of jash Gilead had basically spirited off the body of of Saul after he died in battle and the reason for that is because the men of J bash gillad had a very favorable impression of Saul Saul began his military career by by protecting the men at jash Gilead 1st Samuel chap 11 we've got that text that that Saul was busy killing ammonites until the heat of the day well that was for the benefit of jabes Gilead and so that's why Jonathan or rather David fetches the bones and gives them a proper burial but then notice how the section ends and after that God heeded the prayer for the land so the primary message that is taught to us in second Samuel 21: 1-14 is succinctly summarized by the Apostle in Hebrews 922 when he says without the shedding of blood there is no remission what you see here is consistent with Leviticus chapter 16 the day of atonement the one day out of the year when the high priest dropped all of his regelia and with linen cloth alone took the blood of the one goat into the holy of holies and poured it on the mercy sea took the other goat laid his hands upon Him confessed the sins of Israel and then drove that goat out into the Wilderness so that the Israelites were taught that blood atonement was necessary to cover sin that blood atonement provided the experation or the removal of sin that goat sent out into the to the Wilderness preached a sermon my sin oh the Bliss of this glorious thought my sin not in part but the whole is nailed to the cross and I bear it no more praise the Lord praise the Lord so that's what's happening and that's what happens here in giba and the chapter typically points forward to the victory of the Kingdom God sustains God blesses and God advances the kingdom in spite of internal threat which is Saul and his destruction of the gibeonites and external threat at the end of the chapter the latter half is that the Philistines are destroyed by David and his armies the Lord sustains the kingdom in the midst of both internal and external threats he's always mindful of what's Happening he always knows when a Saul is trying to engage in the extermination of a people and he takes notice and he brings the Judgment of God to bear I would suggest secondly the action of rispa is a presentation of a sad scene David Davis says the writer tells you this very solemn story especially about rispa because because he wants to make you solemn right there's times when you should read your Bible and just feel bad feeling bad is really underrated today it's not bad to feel bad once in a while our Lord was a Man of Sorrows and acquainted with grief our Lord learned obedience through suffering do you think every day is going to be a Friday afternoon for you think every day is going to skipping through the the Tulips do you think every day is going to be just just magnificent I don't ever trust people how great great always great really you're always great because I'm not our savior wasn't was a Man of Sorrows and acquainted with grief sadness and depression and sorrow are often times part of a healthy life that's just the way it is you live in a sin cursed world people hate you because they hate the Savior it's it's hard to be peppy all the time it's hard to always be dancing through the streets when you know Sodom is is in full swing anyways sometimes it's okay to feel bad now that doesn't mean you're putting a 38 upside your head then you've got a problem give me a call but Davis says he wants to make you solemn he depicts this very sad episode because he wants you to be sad over it and marinate in that sadness and not to go worrying about how to piler some application from it that's great in Christian well what do we learned from rispa well first of all how to fend off animals secondly how to make sure you protect yourself in a little Earthly tent so that you can fend off animals and thirdly the way that you fend off animals is sort of dependent upon no not every passage has five practical points to help you in your Thursday either and that's okay God wrote the Bible he didn't load it with all the Practical points of a Joel oain and there's good reason for that because he wants us to focus on the hero of scripture which is his son the Lord Jesus Christ but as well I would suggest the action of rispa underscores the Sorrows associated with life in a sin cursed world wasn't her fault I mean she's a sinner I'm not suggesting she isn't but it wasn't her fault she didn't didn't tell Saul go out and exterminate the gibeonites I'm going to help you I'll load your gun you do your thing Saul cuz I want to be there the Sorrows associated with life in a sin cursed world uh the terrifying reality of the wrath of God and The Wretched consequences of sin most of the times it's our own sin isn't it what what's our issue well it's you know the sin that dwells in me but sometimes it's the sins of others that that have an effect or it has impact upon us you get a bad King like Saul who's Unfaithful and he does it for Israel and Judah which may suggest a bit of a nationalistic spirit let's get these gibian ites out of here which by the way Saul hailed from giia so kind of an interesting situation but the bottom line is you get wretched people over you sometimes you feel the consequences of their sin I think another good reason for us to pray for our civil government Paul tells us to pray in 1 Timothy chapter 2 for kings and all who are in Authority so that we may lead Peaceable and quiet lives other words hedge in these lunatics so that we can meet freely to worship and to glorify and honor God I would suggest thirdly and finally the typical significance in other words what does this chapter point us forward to in the New Testament the victory of the Kingdom already mentioned I would suggest secondly the safety of Covenant David's Covenant with Jonathan and then applied to me MTH kept Mich safe Jesus is the greater son of David who via Covenant keeps us safe in this instance it was the wrath of God on the seven men of the House of Saul in giba for us it's the wrath of God on the day of judgment for sins that you and I have committed I would suggest thirdly that well perhaps not a formal type I don't know why it wouldn't be but but risu kind of looks like Mary I don't know about physically but the kind of grief the kind of Sorrow the kind of Woe that attended the the the the mother of the Savior at the cross remember in uh simeon's announcement Luke 2 he says to Mary behold this child is destined for the fall and rising of many in Israel and for a sign which will be spoken against yes a a sword will P Pierce through your own soul also do we Ponder we we we talk about the humanity of Christ the true Humanity of Christ so that means he had a real mother perhaps because we don't want to be Catholics we don't ever talk about Mary Jesus was a real man with a real mother and Simeon understood that when he was going to go to the cross it was going to pierce the heart of his mother come on Mom I mean even if your son was guilty and deserve that it would be tough but imagine if your son was wholly harmless and undefiled absolutely posit positively not guilty and he was getting that that that would have to be a blow as well Gil says the Sorrows she met with on account of her son as he was a Man of Sorrows talking about Jesus so was she a woman of Sorrows from his Cradle to his cross and his Sorrows like so many darts or javelins rebounded from him to her and pierced her soul through as when sarid uh Herod sought his life Matthew 23 when she had lost him for a whole day Luke 248 and when he was frequently exposed to Danger among the F and malicious Jews but never more than when she stood at his cross and saw him in his agonies extended on the tree bleeding gasping and dying I think he's right I think we see in rizpa something that should at least remind us or be reminiscent of the the the the uh mother of Jesus and then finally the Vivid reminder of substitutionary atonement that it's for the satisfaction of divine Justice this is challenged all the time the thought of penal substitutionary atonement is offensive outside the church sometimes inside the church penal substitutionary atonement that means somebody standing in our place receiving the punishment that is due for us so that we can receive forgiveness and a righteousness that avails with God again I get why the world thinks that's unfair I get why the world is perplexed about about that I don't get why the church at least in one of the more recent iterations would accuse the concept of penal substitutionary atonement as Cosmic child abuse on the part of the father toward the son if that's the right way you're reading your Bible you need to believe on the gospel and you need to repent from your sin blood atonement is laced throughout when God came to deal with Adam and Eve he gave them skins to cover them how did he get those skins by killing the animals from Genesis 3:21 all the way forward we learn without the shedding of blood there is no remission God is not changed on that God is Not mutable God has not determined that there's a better more nicer way that we can go about this the word became flesh and dwelt among us so that he could live so that he could die so that he could be raised again and here's the quote from Davis he says most readers are simply a gast at the sheer horror of the episode that I suggest points us to its primary application readers should be a gas the text says atonement is horrible it is Gory atonement is never nice but always gruesome we need to see this for for we easily fall into the Trap of reg regarding atonement as merely a Doctrine a concept an abstraction to be explained a bit of theology to be analyzed or little better to view it as a moving story to be replayed during passion week but we should know better surely the Israelite worshipper realized this when he towed a young bull to the Tabernacle and had to Slit its throat skin it cut it in pieces and wash the insides and legs it was all mess and Gore from slicing the Bull's throat in Leviticus 1 all the way to Calvary God has always said atonement is nasty and repulsive Christians must beware of becoming too refined longing for a Kinder gentler faith if we've grown too used to golgatha perhaps giba can shock us back into truth atonement is a drippy bloody smelly business the stench of death hangs heavy wherever the wrath of God has been quenched Brethren I don't feel like I preach that justly enough but I hope you got it and I hope Davis brings it home and commends it that's what giia teaches us it's not just this beautiful rendition of the artist of Jesus hanging there on the cross it's drippy bloody smelly mess you wonder how much the savior loves his people you wonder how much God commends his own love toward us and that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us not exemplary but to satisfy Divine Justice may God as he said not God but Davis shock us back into a proper view of golgatha with scenes like we have at the Tabernacle at the temple and here at giba well let us pray Our Father in heaven we thank you for our lord Jesus truly is an amazing gospel El it truly is good news that the Divine word took our flesh that he lived for us that he satisfied Divine Justice through his own sorrow his own death his suffering and that he rose again from the grave on that third day and now he sits and throned at your right hand What A Savior we serve and what a blessed God we serve and how we thank you for that atonement how we thank you that without the shedding of blood there is no remission and you provided the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world we see that emphasis in the Old Testament it must be a blemish free a perfect sacrifice and obviously no man could ever offer that but God most high undertook on our behalf as we eat the bread tonight as we drink this cup may we reflect on these things and may it encourage us and may it draw from us worship and praise and adoration to our great God and we pray through Jesus Christ Our Lord amen well you can turn with me in your Bible to Matthew's gospel Matthew chap 26 because of scheduling difficulties and not being able to meet with the deacons we're going to continue with our pattern at least this month maybe next but we will make the change for sure uh hopefully August but in September so that's why we're still doing it the way that we have been doing it but I did want to remind everybody that the ordinance or the sacrament of the supper is for believers only it's not a converting ordinance it's not something we give in the H that you become a Christian but it is for God's people as well the ordinance is for believers who are dealing with their sin we learned that from 1 Corinthians 11 not that you've got to be perfect because nobody would ever be able to take the supper this is a means of Grace given by God to help us along the pilgrim way that's why it's always good for us to attend this isn't our service to God God the householder is serving us when it comes to the supper he's building up his weary pilgrims as well the ordinances means of Grace but we need to remember that the bread and the wine Remain the bread and the wine they're consecrated move from profane to Sacred use to be used in the church but they don't become something other it's not the case that the body or that the the bread actually becomes the body of Jesus the the wine actually becomes the blood of Jesus when he says this is my body this is my blood he means represents he means symbolizes it's a it's a very helpful metaphor for the weary Pilgrim who needs food for daily sustenance to get this benefit from God for our way along the path and then of course the supper points us to Christ don't be preoccupied with yourself confess your sin find that mercy of God and take the supper and rejoice in the goodness of the Savior well the brothers will come and they will pass out the bread excuse me and while they pass out the bread will remain seated and will sing 20 75 after we finish the hymn I'll read the appropriate section in Matthew's gospel pray and then we'll take the bread together so 275 sh [Music] sa in my of my is on his ever is for the to [Music] his for every rest is for every s down the of rece on calary PR for for for for for [Music] hising I he for noer and [Music] Matthew 26 at verse 26 we read and as they were eating Jesus Took bread blessed and broke it and gave it to his to the disciples and said take eat this is my body well let us pray our gracious God and Holy Father thank you for the provision of the son of Your Love thank you that you did commend Your Love toward us and that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us and certainly all of scripture points in this direction it sets before us the atonement wrought by the Savior King and we Rejoice that you in Grace have made us partakers of it be glorified as we eat this bread cause us to reflect upon his broken body on our behalf and we pray in jesus' name amen we'll take together well you can turn in your hym books to 276 if you're inclined to take the juice it's in the outer ring the the wine is in the inner ring so juice in the outer ring wine in the inner inner ring and we sing [Music] 276 all Jesus all [Music] my I ch all to for where in Theus [Music] stand di Soul still [Music] Jesus continuing in verse 27 then he took the cup and gave thanks and gave it to them saying drink from it all of you for this is my blood of the New Covenant which is shed for many for the remission of sins but I say to you I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in my father's Kingdom and when they had sung A Hymn they went out to the Mount of Olives well let us pray our gracious God we thank you that without the shedding of blood there is no remission we see that in the old Covenant typically prefiguring the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world we thank you that that Announcement by our Lord on the night that he was betrayed where he said specifically that this is my blood of the New Covenant which is shed for many for the remission of sins we praise you we bless you we give you thanks and and glory for including us in this plan again cause us to reflect upon his doing and his dying and his Rising for us not just tonight but each and every day may we live in the light of the Blessed Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ and we pray in jesus' name amen we'll take together well you can turn in your hym books to Psalm 117 one of the halel Psalms that Jesus and the disciples went to sing Psalm 117b which speaks of Gentile inclusion in the Covenant Promises of God we'll stand as we sing together all Nation all s his for his Tru and forever and his all his he is is hallelu praise the [Music] Lord now may the God of Peace who brought up our lord Jesus from the dead that great Shepherd of the sheep through the blood of the Everlasting Covenant make you complete in every good work to do his will working in you what is well pleasing in his sight through Jesus Christ to whom be glory forever and ever amen God go with us now may you cause your face to shine upon us may you bless all the brothers and the sisters in this local church and again father we pray that you would be glorified honored and worshiped in our daily lives that you would bring us together again next Lord's day that we may worship you corporately and we pray through Jesus Christ Our Lord am amen well please be seated for a brief time of [Music] [Music] meditation e e