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welcome to everyone it's good to be back in the house of our god you can turn to psalm 89 for our call to worship we'll read the next section psalm 89 will read verses 11 to 18. while you're turning there i will mention that psalm 89 along with psalm 132 are grounded in the davidic covenant in second samuel chapter 7. the most significant event in redemptive history the promise of a son of david that would take the throne of god and rule forever and ever obviously its application is to our lord jesus christ so beginning in psalm 89 at verse 11 the heavens are yours the earth also is yours the world and all its fullness you have founded them the north and the south you have created them tabor and hermon rejoice in your name you have a mighty arm strong as your hand and high is your right hand righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne mercy and truth go before your face blessed are the people who know the joyful sound they walk o lord in the light of your countenance in your name they rejoice all day long and in your righteousness they are exalted for you are the glory of their strength and in your favor our horn is exalted for our shield belongs to the lord and our king to the holy one of israel amen well please turn in your hymn books to 294 hymn number 294 will stand as we sing together [Music] [Music] is [Music] is [Music] uh [Music] [Music] last [Music] is [Music] me [Music] [Music] is [Music] well just a brief update ted said that his nephew mike fisher we had prayed for him they do not believe he's nearly as bad as they had suspected in terms of his brain looks like he's on course to make a good and possibly full recovery so we can rejoice in god's goodness and kindness to mike and i think it's britney fisher is his wife so we'll praise god for his goodness to them so let us pray our gracious god and our holy father it's a joy and a privilege to gather in your house again on the sabbath day we come to the father through the son and the power of the holy spirit and we confess that you are most high god we confess that you are the god who made the world and everything in it you are the god who governs all your creatures and all their actions you are the god who has saved us by your grace and for your glory and we we rejoice in who you are and we rejoice in what you have done and we rejoice in the fact that you've included us in these covenant mercies and blessings we know there was nothing in us deserving salvation there was nothing in us deserving anything other than damnation for our sin and rebellion against a thrice holy god but we have been found or we have found grace and mercy with you and you have granted us the faith to believe on the lord jesus christ you have forgiven us for all of our sins you've given us a righteousness wherein we can stand before authorized holy god and lord we give all praise and glory unto you and as we gather tonight may you draw out our hearts and worship and praise and adoration may you increase our love for you and may you increase our devotion to you and as well would you further conform us unto the image of your beloved son that we might live in a manner that is consistent with our gospel calling and that to your glory and honor do forgive us now for all of our sin and transgression as we come before a holy god we're mindful of our own unholiness we're mindful of our own remaining corruption and so we confess those sins now rejoicing in the promise of god to forgive us and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness as david says in the in the psalm if you lord should mark iniquities oh lord who could stand but there is forgiveness with you that you may be feared and lord may that be the case in our own hearts tonight may we approach you with that reverence and that awe that is fitting for such a holy god but as well may flood our hearts with gladness and with rejoicing as we consider the mercies that we've received from our gracious god we rejoice in this good news concerning mike fisher lord you have heard the prayers of your people and and god we bless you for that we pray for continued recovery in this man and we pray that you'd bless him and his wife and his children cause them to be ever thankful and grateful for the way that you've undertaken on their behalf and god just continue to bless this family richly as well we thank you for jonathan jonathan hall and for the way the treatment is going with him it was a joy and a delight to see him in the house of god this morning and lord we give you praise for the way that you you are blessing this young brother as well we pray for mrs van schaik that you would continue to bless her as she recovers from this surgery give her daily health and strength and we pray that she'd be able to return to her home in the not-too-distant future look with favor upon the newfelds we know they have many challenges and trials and god we ask he would bless don and karen and just continue to lift them up and grant them help and strength and grace be with mrs bolt and bless bev and and others god that have ongoing problems and trials we ask that you would just give grace to each of them to bear up under the under the afflictions and the trials that we have in this lower world and for all of us god we have many spiritual challenges we have our remaining sin and the temptation in this world and the frustration with things that we see going on around us help us to be still and to know that you are god to know that you will be exalted among the nations and throughout the earth and may this just steady our troubled hearts may you grant us the grace to resist sin and temptation and may grant us the grace to put on the lord jesus christ and to glorify you each and every day god and when we do fall help us to remember that we have an advocate with the father even jesus christ the righteous father we ask you bless the church in surrey and the plant in vernon and in dryden and god it cheers our hearts and encourages us to hear of your work in other places we thank you for these brothers and sisters of like-minded faith and we pray that you would just prosper them cause them to be faithful in their communities and cause them their their churches to be places where sinners can come and hear the truth of the gospel and be saved by your grace as well god we thank you for the ongoing work in honduras it is such a joy for us to be able to participate with these brethren in this grand event and god certainly this building looks beautiful but we pray that its spiritual application would be would be monumental in that community we pray that many in that place many in that city would come to that church to hear the gospel preached by pastors carlos and luis we thank you as well for our brother john and trust it all went well for him today as he preached your word may there be lasting impact and effect by that word upon the hearers and god be merciful throughout this earth we know there are many christians that suffer under very oppressive regimes we think of north korea we think of china we think of various countries in the middle east and the various false religions or lands that are steeped in false religion and they target for destruction the children of god almighty we ask that you would bless our brothers and sisters with the grace to persevere and the grace to be faithful even to the end and may they know the nearness of god as their good and lord may we take lessons from them may you help us to persevere as well and grant us the strength to continue to go forward in the fear of the lord and in the comfort of the holy spirit and just help us now as we gather together for corporate worship be glorified and be present with us and we ask through jesus christ our lord amen you can turn with me again in your hymn books to 313. him 313 will stand as we sing together so me [Music] is [Music] is [Music] is [Music] is [Music] save free [Music] is [Music] oh [Music] is [Music] uh [Music] well you can turn with me in your bibles to leviticus chapter 13. leviticus chapter 13 the law concerning leprosy remember cleanliness ceremonial and just normal cleanliness was most important in the body politic of israel as well it was connected to the approach to god in terms of corporate worship tabernacle and then temple so this legislation concerns cleanliness ceremonial cleanliness and as well health with reference to those who had this particular disease so i'll begin reading in chapter 13 at verse 1. and the lord spoke to moses and aaron's saying when a man has on the skin of his body a swelling a scab or a bright spot and it becomes on the skin of his body like a leprous sore then he shall be brought to aaron the priest or to one of his sons the priests the priest shall examine the sore on the skin of the body and if the hair on the sore has turned white and the sore appears to be deeper than the skin of his body it is a leprous sore then the priest shall examine him and pronounce him unclean but if the bright spot is white on the skin of his body and does not appear to be deeper than the skin and its hair has not turned white then the priest shall isolate the one who has the sore seven days and the priest shall examine him on the seventh day and indeed if the sore appears to be as it was and the sore has not spread on the skin then the priest shall isolate him another seven days then the priest shall examine him again on the seventh day and indeed if the sore has faded and the sore has not spread on the skin then the priest shall pronounce him clean it is only a scab and he shall wash his clothes and be clean but if the scab should at all spread over the skin after he has been seen by the priest for his cleansing he shall be seen by the priest again and if the priest sees this sees that the scab has indeed spread on the skin then the priest shall pronounce him unclean it is leprosy when the leprous sore is on a person then he shall be brought to the priest and the priest shall examine him and indeed if the swelling on the skin is white and it has turned the hair white and there is a spot of raw flesh in the swelling it is an old leprosy on the skin of his body the priest shall pronounce him unclean and shall not not not isolate him for he is unclean and if leprosy breaks out all over the skin and the leprosy covers all the skin of the one who has the sore from his head to his foot wherever the priest looks then the priest shall consider and indeed if the leprosy has covered all his body he shall pronounce him clean who has the sore it has all turned white he is clean but when raw flesh appears on him he shall be unclean and the priest shall examine the raw flesh and pronounce him to be unclean for the raw flesh is unclean it is leprosy or if the raw flesh changes and turns white again he shall come to the priest and the priest shall examine him and indeed if the sore has turned white then the priest shall pronounce him clean who has the sore he is clean if the body develops a boil in the skin and it is healed and in the place of the boil there comes a white swelling or a bright spot reddish white then it shall be shown to the priest and if when the priest sees it it indeed appears deeper than the skin and its hair has turned white the priest shall pronounce him unclean it is a leprous sore which is broken out of the boil but if the priest examines it and indeed there are no white hairs in it and it is not deeper than the skin but is faded not but is faded then the priest shall isolate him seven days and if it should at all spread over the skin then the priest shall pronounce him unclean it is a leprous sore but if the bright spot stays in one place and has not spread it is the scar of the boil and the priest shall pronounce him clean or if the body receives a burn on its skin by fire and the raw flesh of the burn becomes a bright spot reddish white or white then the pre shall examine it and indeed if the hair of the bright spot has turned white and it appears deeper than the skin it is leprosy broken out in the burn therefore the priest shall pronounce him unclean it is a leprous sore but if the priest examines it and indeed there are no white hairs in the bright spot and it is not deeper than the skin but is faded then the priest shall isolate him seven days and the priest shall examine him on the seventh day if it has at all spread over the skin then the priest shall pronounce him unclean it is a leprous sore but if the bright spot stays in one place and has not spread on the skin but is faded it is a swelling from the burn the priest shall pronounce him clean for it is the scar from the burn if a man or woman has a sore on the head or the beard then the priest shall examine the sore and indeed if it appears deeper than the skin and there is in it yellow a thin yellow hair then the priest shall pronounce him unclean it is a scaly leprosy of the head or beard but if the priest examines the scaly sore and indeed it does not appear deeper than the skin and there is no black hair in it then the priest shall isolate the one who has the scale seven days and on the seventh day the priest shall examine the sword and indeed if the scale has not spread and there is no yellow hair in it and the scale does not appear deeper than the skin he shall shave himself but the scale he shall not shave and the priest shall isolate the one who has the scale another seven days on the seventh day the priest shall examine the scale and indeed if the scale has not spread over the skin and does not appear deeper than the skin then the priest shall pronounce him clean he shall wash his clothes and be clean but if the scale should at all spread over the skin after his cleansing then the priest shall examine him and indeed if the scale has spread over the skin the priest need not seek for yellow hair he is unclean but if the scale appears to be at a standstill and there is a black hair growing up in it the scale has healed he is clean and the priest shall pronounce him clean if a man or a woman has bright spots on the skin of the body specifically white bright spots then the priest shall look and indeed if the bright spots on the skin of the body are dull white it is a white spot that grows on the skin he is clean as for the man whose hair has fallen from his head he is bald but he is clean he whose hair has fallen from his forehead he is bald on the forehead but he is clean and if there is on the bald head or bald forehead a reddish white sore it is leprosy breaking out on his bald head or his bald forehead then the priest shall examine it and indeed if the swelling of the sore is reddish white on his bald head or on his bald forehead as the appearance of leprosy on the skin of the body he is a leprous man he is unclean the priest shall surely pronounce him unclean his sore is on his head now the leper on whom the sore is his clothes shall be torn and his head bare and he shall cover his mustache and cry unclean unclean he shall be unclean all the days he has the sore he shall be unclean he is unclean and he shall dwell alone his dwelling shall be outside the camp amen we'll pick up god willing next sunday the rest of this section but this passage should remind us of an incident in the life and ministry of our lord jesus christ in matthew chapter eight specifically at verses one to four when he had come down from the mountain great multitudes followed him and behold a leper came and worshiped him saying lord if you are willing you can make me clean this man had to live on his own this man was disconnected from his family he was disconnected from his synagogue he was disconnected from society at large it was a miserable and a horrific condition that he suffered as a result of this uncleanness as a result of this leprosy this disease but notice that the man understands god's sovereignty lord if you are willing you can make me clean there are those passages in the bible that tell us if we ask anything in the name of jesus then it shall be granted to us now certainly people run hog wild with that for getting the necessary qualification it must be according to the will of god so this leper had good theology lord if you are willing you can make me clean then jesus put out his hand and touched him saying i am willing be cleansed now that was a no-no you were not supposed to touch somebody that was ceremonially unclean but obviously it wasn't a no-no for the one who was able to cure him for the one who was able to heal him the idea behind the prohibition against touching unclean things was that the unclean thing would make you unclean but the power of christ is such that his cleanliness is able to affect positive positively those whom he touch those whom he touched so it says immediately his leprosy was cleansed and jesus said to him see that you tell no one but go your way show yourself to the priest and offer the gift that moses commanded as a testimony to them so this man was not only cleansed this man was not only healed but this man was now able to return to community he was able to be with his family he was able to be with society because the legislation that we saw there in leviticus 13 necessarily meant that someone like him would be removed from the camp of israel so the lord christ exercises the mercy of christ demonstrates his power and his willingness to heal the man and restores him and blesses him immensely well let us pray our god and our father we thank you for the mercy demonstrated in this passage and we know that all things that we ask are granted to us if they are in fact according to your will so lord help us to be mindful of this and help us to be earnest in our prayer to you for those things that we have need of and for those persons that we know and love and as well god as we reflect on leviticus 13 as we reflect upon the holiness code that we find in that particular book we know it is typical we know it prefigured we know it pointed forward too ultimately our lord jesus christ and that healing and that wholeness and that blessing that he alone can give and we praise you through him and him alone amen well let us turn finally in our hymn books to number 319 him 319 will stand as we sing together [Music] foreign [Music] oh [Music] oh [Music] [Music] oh [Music] is [Music] is [Music] [Music] oh [Music] yes [Music] is [Music] [Music] [Music] oh [Music] ohio [Music] well you can turn with me in your bibles to second corinthians chapter eight second corinthians chapter eight our focus will be on verse 9. this morning we looked at the prophet isaiah and a prophetic announcement concerning the coming king the lord jesus christ the messiah sent by god to redeem his people from their sins that was prophetic announcement tonight we'll look a bit more at the theology of the incarnation the apostle sets that forth in verse 9. now i should tell you that the context is the apostle exhorting the corinthians to being benevolent to being liberal not in terms of their political bent but in terms of their pockets in terms of their wallets in terms of their checkbook there were suffering churches that stood in need and so the apostle encourages the corinthian church to be liberal in their giving to those in need he uses two specific examples he shows the liberality of the churches in macedonia in verses one to five and the liberality of our lord jesus christ in verse 9. so that's the context the apostle is encouraging cheerful giving on the part of god's church but as i said we're going to hone in specifically on the theology of the incarnation in verse 9 but i'll read the chapter and then we'll pray so beginning in chapter 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 as we had hoped but they first gave themselves to the lord and then to us by the will of god so we urge 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 in speech and knowledge in 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 were desiring to do a year ago but now you must also 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 a 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 an equality 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 but thanks be to god who puts the same earnest care for you into the heart of titus for he not only accepted the exhortation but being more diligent he went to you of his own accord and we have sent with him the brother whose praise is in the gospel throughout all the churches and not only that but who also was but who was also chosen by the churches to travel with us with this gift which is administered by us to the glory of the lord himself and to show your ready mind avoiding this that anyone should blame us in this lavish gift which is administered by us providing honorable things not only in the sight of the lord but also in the sight of men and we have sent with them our brother whom we have often proved diligent in many things but now much more diligent because of the great confidence which we have in you if anyone inquires about titus he is my partner and fellow worker concerning you or if our brethren are inquired about they are messengers of the churches the glory of christ therefore show to them and before the churches the proof of your love and of our boasting on your behalf amen well let us pray our father in heaven we pray for the ministry and the aid now of the holy spirit as we consider the incarnation of our blessed lord jesus christ what a great and wondrous event what a glorious event when heaven came down as it were to bless earth and we ask god in heaven that you would guide our thoughts now which would cause us to think clearly concerning not only christology but the doctrine of the trinity and help us to see that this is in fact the true and the living god one glorious god who exists eternally as father son and holy spirit and again forgive us for all sin and everything that darkens our understanding and we pray through jesus christ our lord amen well in this particular example or passage rather christ is being used as an example now that's not always the way we treat the lord jesus it is the case that he came to make atonement to make sacrifice for sin but the biblical authors do at times point to him in an exemplary fashion in other words corinthians give give liberally give heartily like the churches in macedonia and give liberally and give heartily like our lord jesus christ his life was one of giving his life was one of a deposit his life was one of provision and blessing others and so the apostle captures that very clearly in verse nine 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 so i want to look first at the riches of christ and then secondly at the poverty of christ what does the apostle mean by using this terminology or by using this language so let's jump first into the riches of christ but before we unpack that notice how the apostle appeals to the corinthian church if i were to ask you with reference to the churches in the new testament what was corinth like corinth was pretty messed up in a whole host of ways if you've read through first corinthians for instance you know they had issues they had a case where a man had his father's wife and instead of the church disciplining him or dealing with him they were arrogant about it you have that instance where the apostle paul in first corinthians chapter 6 has to admonish the corinthians to flee from sexual immorality to admonish them not to join themselves with harlots and then you get into that section where they're dealing with christian liberty and meat offered up to idols and those sorts of things and then in to first corinthians chapter 11. you've got issues concerning headship and authority in the context of the local church and then of course first corinthians 11 as well the apostle has to correct their misconduct at the lord's supper so the corinthians were not the perfect church i've always been intrigued by people who say we need to get back to the early church which early church do you mean do you mean corinth because if you do you may not like how that all fleshes itself out but with reference to the corinthians though they had these practical issues though they had these practical problems they had good theology they understood christology and the apostle paul appeals to that notice how he begins his statement in verse 9 he says for you know the grace of our lord jesus christ this was not foreign information to that this was not stuff that they had no connection with what the apostle sets forth in verse 9 concerning the incarnation of our lord vis-a-vis his riches and his poverty such that the people he came to benefit would be rich they knew they understood they had an appreciation and an appropriation of christian doctrine charles hawkes says the fact referred to including the highest mystery of the gospel specifically the incarnation of the son of god or the manifestation of god in the flesh and the love therein manifested is assumed to be known and acknowledged by all who called themselves christians so they couldn't have said well you know paul this is theology that we're not really calculated to receive we're not bright bulbs and therefore we can't really understand no paul appeals to something that they knew so as we look at the new testament documents as we consider the early church they were doctrinally sound they understood the trinity they understood christology they understood the hypostatic union they understood the incarnation of our lord this underscores for us the importance of of the public means of grace so i mentioned to you before at the time of the writing of second corinthians there wasn't a new testament bound alongside of an old testament it wasn't as if the corinthians all had bibles in their laps the way that chilliwackians do the corinthians depended on an earnest ministry in their local church to instruct them concerning theology proper to con instruct them concerning the one true and living god and in that one uh divine and infinite being there are three subsistences or persons the father the son or word and the holy spirit they would have been instructed in these things in the context of the church this anti-doctrinal mindset that is still rampant to this day in our churches is absolutely contrary to the spirit and ethic of the new testament the early churches were doctrinal the early churches were instructed the early churches valued the public means of grace because while they didn't have sermon audio while they didn't have banner of truth trust while they didn't have presbyterian and reform while they couldn't order books off amazon.ca or dot com they had their church and when they went to their church their pastors preached the word their pastors taught them the truth and their pastors put that food out there and the sheep ate it and the sheep were able to follow and the sheep received it so the importance of the public means of grace as well for those of us living in this 21st century when there is a great availability of resources there's really no excuse for us to not know the things that paul says 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 i'd like to think that you already have a good understanding of the passage and where we're going to go in the exposition but i suspect there are christians out there i suspect there are churches out there and i suspect there are pastors out there that don't know this that don't have this equipment that don't have this competency that don't have this ability for the apostle to appeal to them and say for you know what i'm about to tell you and how it relates in the manner of giving liberally to the churches that are in need as well we ought to see and value a ministry that provides this kind of teaching this kind of instruction this kind of doctrinal truth it is not the case that we are trying to find elders or pastors who are simply you know uh uh pep squad leaders or i don't even know if you guys know what a pep squad is i was the the friday night football games in high school where you had the pep squad who fired everybody up so that they would root for the home team that's not what pastors are supposed to be they're not supposed to be ceos they're not supposed to be managers they're not supposed to be guys that are you know savvy and everything other than preaching the word of god the apostle says clearly in second timothy 4 2 preach the word be ready in season and out of season convince rebuke exhort with all long-suffering and teaching he doesn't say oh i want you to just be the gregarious guy that has coffee with everybody or be the fortune 500 guy that's able to manage small group that's not the point the point of the christian ministry is to proclaim the word in such a way that there are appeals like this for you know the grace of our lord jesus christ this shouldn't be new information this shouldn't shake your world this shouldn't rock you this shouldn't be something that you go wow i never knew that rather you should see how it applies in terms of the specific contextual emphasis of the apostle in this instance and then as well before we move on the importance of right doctrine for right practice if we don't think god's thoughts after him we're not going to live in a manner that he calls us unto i'd like to say as a reformed baptist church with a good robust confession of faith and doctrinal instruction and biblical exposition it's still hard to live in a manner that's consistent with the gospel of our salvation right it's not easy to be holy it's not easy to be godly it's not easy to be righteous and we have the mental faculties provided to us in order to comply imagine having no doctrine imagine having no orthodoxy how could there be orthopraxy or right practice when there's not right thinking about who god is so we need to think biblically in order to live in a manner that is consistent with that biblical thought now note the content of what he appeals to so again the riches of christ he says for you know the grace of our lord jesus christ that though he was rich that though he was rich he is speaking concerning the pre-existence state of our lord jesus pre-existent according to his humanity christ as the second person of the trinity has always been from everlasting to everlasting thou art god that applies to the divine essence it applies to the three subsistences that each have that divine essence so the riches of christ that paul is appealing to here is the reality that jesus is in fact the son of god that jesus is in fact god the son that jesus is in fact the second person of the trinity so he's going to move from that to the incarnation to establish riches and poverty and it's through that poverty that you yourselves have become rich so what's the practical implication for the corinthians imitate jesus take your riches give it to those who are impoverished so that they like you can be blessed and increase in terms of their riches so the apostle says or the apostle uses what's called a participle here he says you know the grace of our lord jesus christ that though he was rich and the participle points to what jesus is essentially second person of the trinity he was and always will be rich as he is god notice the contrast he was rich he became poor he was rich he became poor he never became rich now there is a sense in terms of the mediatorial glory in terms of the god man his exaltation to the right hand of the father where he reigns over the messianic kingdom there is that exaltation but paul isn't pointing to that he's not pointing to matthew 28 he's pointing to the reality of the trinity he is pointing to the reality of the second person of the trinity that though he was rich one man says he says being and not having been lest it seemed that christ lost his spiritual riches when he assumed poverty for he assumed this poverty in such a way that he did not lose those inestimable riches that's the thing we need to take away from our study here the incarnation did not diminish the divinity of jesus christ the incarnation did not suspend the divinity of jesus christ the incarnation left the second person of the trinity intact vis-a-vis his divinity but he assumed our humanity he took on our humanity there was that union of the natures in the one person now turn to john chapter one i know we've been there recently but this is a parallel passage john chapter one shows a similar flow he was one thing and he became another thing you know the grace of our lord jesus that though he was rich he was in the state of being rich it wasn't that he had been rich but he was in the state of having been rich and he does not lose those riches rather again he assumes this poverty and the poverty is in the incarnation notice the identification of the word verse 1 in the beginning was the word the word was with god and the word was god that word is further described or told us in verse 14 the word became flesh and as we looked at recently i think you've seen that jesus is in fact the word the word is according to verse one co-eternal distinct from and consubstantial with the father that means he's one in being or one in substance with the father the word is the one through whom all things are made notice in verse three all things were made through him the word and without him nothing was made that was made so john puts jesus on the side of creator he doesn't put him on the side of creation he puts him on the side of creator there's creator there's creature jesus is creator and then notice that this word according to verse 10 was in the world the word that was in the beginning the word that was with god the word that was god according to verse 1 comes into this world according to verse 10. this is an amazing thing this is glorious this is wondrous this is absolutely fantastic typically man tries to reach god in the christian gospel god comes to man god seeks and saves that which is lost it's not us going after him it's him coming after us in a mission of redemptive mercy and benefit so you've got the word who is co-equal with the father distinct from the father or co-eternal and co-equal with the father comes into the world in verse 10 and he does so the way that verse 14 describes the word became flesh and dwelt among us and we beheld his glory the glory as of the only begotten of the father full of grace and truth now notice the parallel he was in the beginning with god he was god he became flesh in the incarnation he assumed our humanity with all of the essential properties and the common infirmities thereof and yet without sin so that's the same sort of statement that the apostle paul is making in second corinthians chapter 8 9. he says you know the grace of our lord jesus christ that though he was rich though he is in the state of being rich he goes on to say yet for your sakes he he did what he became he became something that he was not in order to save us from our sin and so when we go back to verse nine in second corinthians chapter 8 the riches are seen specifically in two aspects first the divine nature the lord jesus christ as i've said is the second person of the trinity and therefore very god a very god the riches do not point to what he is by virtue of his exaltation to the right hand of the father after his work of redemption but it points to the divine nature his very being the reference is to his pre-existence and the poverty is seen in the incarnation and in the state of humiliation you know the grace of our lord jesus christ that though he was rich the divine nature is underscored john gill 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 omniscience omnipotence in some everything true of god is true of the son of god again in this divine and infinite being there are three subsistences each having the whole divine essence yet the essence not divided it's not that it's shared 33 and a third percent 33 and a third percent 33 and a third percent that's not the doctrine of the of the trinity so back to this particular statement that though he was rich the divine nature but as well divine works jesus is responsible for creation think about this appeal he says to the corinthians you've got fellow churchmen that are suffering you've got fellow churchmen that are hurting you've got fellow churches that are suffering under under bad you know economic policy whatever whatever place they happen to live in they don't have enough food they don't have enough water they don't have enough good gifts be like those churches in macedonia they didn't have a lot but what they had they gave be like the lord jesus christ that that that was rich rich according to the divine nature but rich in terms of works he's the creator of all things colossians 1 17 tells us he's responsible for the government of all things just like we saw in isaiah 9 6 the government shall be upon his shoulders christ is sovereign at the right hand of god most high so it's not only the divine nature but it's the divine works creation providence and redemption so the apostle appeals to the corinthians by saying you know the grace of our lord jesus christ that though he was rich now let's look secondly at the poverty of christ yet for your sakes he became poor that you through his poverty might become rich again the same trajectory that you have in the prologue he was with god he was god but he becomes flesh he was rich but for your sakes he became poor the language is a referent to the incarnation of our lord jesus christ our confession speaks concerning this truth we call it in theology the hypostatic union i know you've heard this several times over the last year hopefully you'll hear it several times over the next several years because it's absolutely crucial so that the apostle could say to us for you know the grace of our lord jesus christ that though he was rich yet for your sakes he became poor and we wouldn't scratch our heads and wonder what's he talking about what's he suggesting what's he saying so you have in the prologue and you have here what we refer to as the hypostatic union our confession describes it this way the son of god the second person in the holy trinity being very and eternal god the brightness of the father's glory of one substance and equal with him who made the world who upholds and governs all things he had made has made did when the fullness of time was come take upon him man's nature with all the essential properties and common infirmities thereof yet without sin being conceived by the holy spirit in the womb of the virgin mary the holy spirit coming down upon her and the power of the most high overshadowing her and so was made of a woman of the tribe of judah of the seed of abraham and david according to the scriptures so that two whole perfect and distinct natures were inseparably joined together in one person without conversion composition or confusion which person is very god and very man yet one christ the only mediator between god and man that's paul's point you know the grace of our lord jesus that though he was rich yet for your sakes he became poor augustine makes this observation in his treatise on the trinity he 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 in other words the two natures remain as the confession states distinct united together inseparably in the one person the lord jesus christ now in terms of just the beauty of it we'll move from augustine to watson watson says that man should be made in god's image was a wonder and it is right that we're made in god's image is a wonder you talk about the sin of abortion you talk about the sin of euthanasia what is that it's an assault upon the image of god you talk about the drive-by shooting you talk about the fentanyl overdoses you talk about the the the wholesale the lack of concern for human life is ultimately an assault upon the image of god so back to watson 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 in the womb bigger than the mother that the human nature should not be god yet one with god that is again glorious stuff that should cause our hearts to lead now in terms of this what the apostle says very clearly is that jesus is eternally god that jesus is eternally rich that in the incarnation he does this he impoverishes himself for us men and for our salvation you know the grace of our lord jesus christ that though he was rich yet for your sakes he became poor yet for your sakes he became poor again the appeal in terms of the context should have been having or should have had the corinthians writing massive checks should have had the corinthians pulling out their wallets and throwing money into the plate i mean this is such a grand appeal in terms of a very common practice in the context of the church of the lord jesus look at jesus christ and his riches and his poverty and the fact that it was for you and as a result of that you need to give paul says to the churches that are in need now again this is not christianity that is unique to the 1689 confession of faith in that statement that i read which comes from chapter eight paragraph two it reaches back to nicaea it reaches back to cal sadon it reaches back to the various creeds and confessions in the church when theology meant something when persons actually cared to know the grace of our lord jesus christ when they actually wondered about the incarnation and the hypostatic union and the doctrine of the trinity and christology brethren just to have an interest in that today is a good thing but better to actually read good books and hear good sermons instructing you concerning these particular truths because when it's all boiled down in its final analysis do you know what separates us from the heathen it's what we believe it's whom we believe in it is the object of our faith that is absolutely paramount and if we do not know that object if we do not know that christ if we do not understand the doctrine concerning him our faith is going to be misplaced especially when it comes to challenge when somebody challenges you when a jehovah's witness knocks on your door and he tells you he ridicules the doctrine of the trinity or he suggests that jesus is a creature or that jesus is a little g god what do you do do you just stand there and go uh well i think you're wrong you need to be able to respond to that the apostle the the uh uh jude rather tells us specifically that he want us uh he writes to us he wanted to write concerning their common salvation but i found it necessary to write to you to exhort you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints brethren especially now and i'm sure every preacher in every generation has been able to say that but especially now we need to know our stuff the christian faith is under attack the christian faith is under assault brethren bill c4 basically tells you it's wrong for a hetero to try to convert a transsexual but it's perfectly acceptable for a transsexual to try to convert a hetero and when it comes to the bible it's just myth it's just fabrication it's just old and antiquated and it's something that should be canceled brethren these things hit close to home abortion euthanasia how in the world can the church of christ fight these battles without knowing scripture without the apostle being able to appeal to a to a particular local church saying for you know the grace of our lord jesus christ they shouldn't have all had to scratch their heads and say what's he talking about what do you mean christ is rich what do you mean christ became poor this is crucial stuff and this is the catholic faith and by catholic i don't mean roman catholic catholic means universal this is what the church through its ages has always confessed this is the athanasian creed after summarizing the person of our lord jesus christ it says this is the catholic faith which except a man believed faithfully he cannot be saved he cannot be saved now you might think that's a bit of a stretch we're not saved based on our doctrinal integrity no we're not it's belief in our lord jesus christ but again it's belief in our lord jesus christ and it's a christ not according to our own making it's not a christ according to our own figment it's not a christ that we like but it's the christ of holy scripture jesus says very clearly and unequivocally in john's gospel in chapter 8 if you do not believe that i am you will die in your sins and there i believe he goes back to the bush of exodus 3 14 when he says i am he is equating himself with the father he is putting himself on par with yahweh and he says if you do not believe that i am then you will die in your sins it is crucial that we understand this doctrine so you know the grace of our lord jesus christ that though he was rich divine nature divine works yet for your sakes he became poor that refers in the first place again to the incarnation the incarnation when he assumed our humanity when he took on our humanity with all the essential properties and common infirmities thereof and yet without sin you see it in matthew's gospel chapters one and two you see in luke's gospel chapters one to three basically you see the nativity scene there you see the referent in john 18 when the lord jesus says to pontius pilate for this cause i was born you see it in the epistles that jesus came from the lion or tribe the tribe of judah and the lion specifically of david he was true humanity he took on our man uh he took on our humanity now in the humanity of christ or rather taking on the humanity of christ did not destroy or diminish his deity it did not destroy or diminish his deity now it didn't blaze and it wasn't as obvious in terms of full glory when he's you know toddling around the kitchen table but nevertheless he was never devoid of his divinity john gill says not that by becoming man he ceased to be god or lost his divine perfections though these were much hit and covered from the view of man the king james bible in philippians chapter 2 translates a word there as he emptied himself i think the new king james gets it better now that's not a dig on the king james i gave my thoughts on the king james i think it's a wonderful translation i think it's a wonderful bible if i was king for a day i would make every christian read it at least once through i'd make every non-christian read it at least once through this is why i'll never be king for a day but with reference to that translation it tells us in philippians 2 that he emptied himself he emptied himself and theologians in the history of the church have taken that to mean that he divested himself of his divinity he he separated his divinity there's there's no divinity in our lord jesus that's not the point in philippians 2. the philippia philippians 2 the point is the hypostatic union according to to man he's a bond servant but he has the form of god there's divinity there's humanity into one person and so with reference to the incarnation he never ceased being god that can't happen god can't stop being god god can't divest himself of godhood god can't do something that denies god it's just an impossibility now we sang either tonight no we sang it this morning christ by highest heaven adored christ the everlasting lord late in time behold him come offspring of the virgin's womb veiled in flesh the godhead see hail the incarnate deity pleased as men with men to dwell jesus or emmanuel so the riches divine were divine nature divine works the poverty incarnation but not only incarnation you have the lowly life this was prophesied by isaiah in chapter 53 he says he is despised and rejected by man a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief and we hid as it were our face from him he was despised and we did not esteem him that's the poverty of jesus here is the second person of the trinity he comes to his own and his own receive him not well it was prophesied that that would take place it was prophesied that that would be the condition or the case but it was experienced by our lord jesus in matthew's gospel other places as well but in matthew 8 20 he says foxes have olds and birds of the air have nests but the son of man has nowhere to lay his head you know the grace of our lord jesus that though he was rich yet for your sakes he became poor through the incarnation and through his lowly life but then thirdly that poverty comes to fruition in the sufferings and death of the lord of glory so paul says yet for your sakes he became poor so the mission of the redeemer in terms of incarnation in terms of lowly life in terms of suffering and death is for the sake of those whom the father had given him just as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world the father chose a lot of miserable wretched disgusting sinners and gave them to his son the son bans rather covenants to be their surety he takes on our humanity he lives in our stead he dies in our stead and then he's raised again the third day and this is wherein his poverty is seen and in terms of the sufferings and the death the apostle peter for instance couldn't conceive of this the apostle peter just couldn't get this remember in matthew 16 the first time when jesus announces that he must go to jerusalem and there he must be tried and there he must be killed what does peter say no way lord forbid it no that's not going to happen to you and of course jesus rebukes him and says get behind me satan a few verses earlier he says blessed are you simon barjona for flesh and blood did not reveal this confession that you are the son of god uh you are the christ the son of the living god so jesus commends him when he makes that great statement and declaration but then jesus condemns him by saying get behind me satan you're not thinking god's thoughts after him i must go to jerusalem i must be tried i must die in order to save my people from their sins the apostle paul turned back to first corinthians this is why i made the distinction between exemplary preaching and indicative preaching what we find in christ first and foremost is not example brethren christianity is not simply behavior modification christianity isn't simply imitation be like jesus do like jesus and everything will go well that's a liberal take on the reading of the scriptures that's a bad take on the reading of the scriptures christianity is a redemptive religion christianity is about god saving his people from their sins through blood atonement christianity is about redemption not simply imitation but as i've caught uh i've noticed notified you there are times when the apostles point to jesus as an example but look at first corinthians chapter 1 verse 18 for the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing but to us who are being saved it is the power of god for it is written i will destroy the wisdom of the wise and bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent where is the wise where is the scribe where is the disputer of this age has not god made foolish the wisdom of this world for since in the wisdom of god the world through wisdom did not know god it pleased god through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe now notice the sufferings and death of our lord jesus christ was an affront to the jews of his day it was a scandal it was a stumbling block as far as they were concerned messiah would come and subjugate the roman empire and every jew would have a chicken in their pot every jew would have a car in their driveway every jew would have a good job every jew would be fatted and happy and everything would be great they missed the whole point of the prophetic word they missed isaiah 53 he was a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief the chastisement for our peace was laid upon him all we like sheep have gone astray they miss the redemption through his blood now notice in verse 22 for jews request a sign and great seek after wisdom but we preach christ crucified to the jews of stumbling block and to the greeks foolishness you see that for the jew it was a stumbling block for the jew it was a scandal remember we saw that in the the passion narrative in matthew's gospel what are they saying at the foot of the cross are they saying let's hail him let's adore him let's stand in awe of the suffering servant of yahweh who's come to save us from our sin they mocked him they said he said he's the son of god if he's the son of god let god help him if he is able to save others why can't he save himself come down from the cross you see the poverty of christ is seen in the incarnation the poverty of christ is seen in the fact that even though the foxes had their holes and the birds had their nests the son of man had nowhere to lay his head but that poverty is seen in his suffering that poverty is seen in his crucifixion and that poverty for the believer who has appreciated christology is seen as a glorious example of redemptive love and benefit notice how paul continues in verse 24 but to those who are called both jews and greats christ the power of god and the wisdom of god because the foolishness of god is wiser than men and the weakness of god is stronger than men so back to second corinthians chapter 8 and verse 9. the apostle tells us that christ was rich for your sakes christ became poor philip hughes says from highest heaven he descended to calvary and the grave none was richer than he none became poorer than he so that is his riches that is his poverty now notice the redemptive benefit that you through his poverty might become rich he says that at the first part for you know the grace of our lord jesus christ that though he was rich yet for your sakes and then again that you through his poverty might become rich it points to the blessed reality that there are benefactors who have been chosen by god from before the foundation of the world to receive that redemptive benefit and that christ in the mission that he assumed from the father that he took on willingly to take on our humanity to live a life of obedience to die a death of sacrifice and atonement and substitution and to be raised again the third day it was such that we would become rich that we would become blessed in the nicene creed it says and in one lord jesus christ the only begotten son of god begotten of the father before all worlds god of god light of light very god a very god begotten not made being of one substance with the father by whom all things were made and then it says who for us men and for our salvation there's redemptive benefit for the people of god in the mission of the messiah it is glorious it is awesome and it is a blessed display of what we find in this passage that though he was rich yet for your sakes he became poor that you through his poverty might become rich now brethren we are not health wealth prosperity morons the riches in view are spiritual riches ephesians 1 the apostle says blessed be the god and father of our lord jesus christ who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in christ so the benefit that we accrue through the poverty of jesus doesn't necessarily mean two cars a boat and a summer home that's not the riches that are in view it's the spiritual riches the doctrine of justification by faith alone the reality that when god regenerates us by the power of the holy spirit when he opens our heart or better removes the old stony heart puts in a new fleshly heart and gives us the graces of faith and repentance to close with christ we are forgiven of our sins and we receive a righteousness from god it's imputed to us and it's received by faith alone so we have the doctrine of justification that's a riches or part of the riches that has been conveyed to us and then there's sanctification there's growing in the grace and in the knowledge of our lord jesus so in justification we have the benefit of what christ did for us in sanctification we have the benefit of what the spirit does in us it is a most blessed reality philippians 2 12 and 13 underscores this and then of course there is glorification the reality that one day when we breathe our last breath when we get hit by a truck or when the world ends we pass into the presence of god most time you see why paul refers to this as riches we are rich men and women we may not have two cars we may not have boats we may not have houses on the lake now that's not necessarily evil the bible doesn't condemn hard work do you see a man who excels in his work he shall stand before kings do not overwork to be rich the the wise man says but if god blesses you and there are temporal provisions and and all of those things you have to sell all that and give it to the poor and go to the airport and bang a tambourine that's not biblical that is not godly that is not righteous but the emphasis in second corinthians eight in terms of our riches accrued by the poverty of jesus it's justification sanctification glorification we might add in there adoption we're adopted as sons unto god through the finished work of our blessed lord jesus christ so in conclusion we notice at least contextually the macedonians gave out of their poverty according to verses 1 to 5. christ though he was rich yet for your sakes became poor that you through his poverty might become rich so the apostle appeals to the corinthians to be large-hearted liberal and giving to churches in need and he speaks concerning the macedonians and concerning our lord jesus christ well we find her we should appreciate the glory of jesus the glory of jesus in his person typically in theology we consider the person and the work of our lord jesus and his person we've seen we've understood i hope that there's two natures in the one person we call that in theology the hypostatic union but as well the work of christ his life of obedience why why does jesus obey everything that the father tells him because we don't because we fail because we reject because we transgress because we're lawless because god tells us good things and we do just the opposite so christ's life of obedience is crucial for the people of god the lord demands or or or or demands sacri obedience over sacrifice and so the life of the lord jesus is absolutely crucial but as well so is his death when we consider the work of redemption we see the death of christ as absolutely crucial we need cleansing we need purity we need forgiveness we need washing and we get that through the blood of our lord jesus christ and then of course his resurrection seals the deal the apostle in romans 4 25 says that jesus was delivered up because of our offenses and he was raised for our justification in terms of the possession of riches listen to john gill he says that they through his poverty might be rich not in temporals but in spirituals and by his obedience suffering and death in his low estate he has paid all their debts wrought out a robe of righteousness rich and adorned with jewels with which he clothed them and through his blood and sacrifice has made them kings and priests unto god and then one final observation and then we close in prayer turn over to luke 2. luke chapter 2 i think one of the best ways to marvel at the wonder of the incarnation is to imitate that man simeon to imitate that man simeon if you look at luke's gospel in chapter 2 at verse 25 and behold there was a man in jerusalem whose name was simeon and this man was just and devout waiting for the consolation of israel he's waiting for the messiah he understood the prophet isaiah he understood the prophet jeremiah he understood the prophet micah he understood the prophetic literature that god most high was sending the messiah to save his people from their sins so this man is just and devout he's waiting for the consolation of israel and the holy spirit was upon him and it had been revealed to him by the holy spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the lord's christ imagine that you're not going to die until your eyes lay hold of jesus i mean he lived in a in an interesting time in redemptive history and he certainly received redemptive benefit that was most blessed now notice in verse 27 he came by the spirit into the temple and when the parents brought in the child jesus to do for him according to the custom of the law he took him up in his arms and blessed god and set he took a baby out of a mother's arms and he starts to basically dance not dance like the jig but he's just reveling he is rejoicing he is delighting mary obviously saw in him a trustworthy fellow that was able to take the babe from her so he takes him up in his arms he blesses god and he says lord now you are letting your servant depart in peace according to your word for my eyes have seen your salvation so as he lays eyes upon that little baby he is able to rehearse back to god these eyes now have seen your salvation that's the incarnation brethren the incarnation of the lord jesus christ is the salvation of our god most high notice which you have prepared before the face of all peoples a light to bring revelation to the gentiles and the glory of your people israel so this brother saw what we haven't by you know by reason of our life setting and all that sort of thing but he has conveyed to us something of the wonder of the incarnation to see christ is to see god's salvation to seek christ is to see the one prepared beforehand by god to be uh not only savior for israel but to be a light as well unto the gentiles this is why i said he understood the prophet isaiah because in 42 and 49 the prophet says as much that jesus will not only save the lost tribes of jacob but he will be a light unto the gentiles brethren let us never lose this simeon-like wonder at the incarnation of our lord let us not treat it like old hat let us not forget that though he was rich yet for our sakes he became poor that we through his poverty might become rich well let us pray our father in heaven we thank you for this brief statement that is so packed full of good theology god help us to understand these things and may it be the case that they would promote in us and devote from us worship to our great and glorious god that we would worship the father through the son in the power of the holy spirit and that we would glorify your great and awesome name what a what a wonderful manifestation of the love of god and the sending of the son and the son who was rich and yet for our sakes he became poor that in the incarnation and in his life of lowliness and in his sufferings and in his death he brings us to a place of great spiritual riches help us father to ponder these things to be encouraged by them and help us to glorify you and we pray through jesus christ our lord amen we'll close with a brief time of meditation you