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Well, you can turn with me in 
your Bibles to the book of Romans, Romans chapter 4. Romans 4, our focus this morning 
will be on verse 25, who was delivered up because of our offenses 
and was raised because of our justification. But I wanna begin 
reading in chapter one to the end of the chapter. So beginning 
in Romans 4, one, what then shall we say that Abraham our father 
has found according to the flesh? For if Abraham was justified 
by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. For what does the scripture say? 
Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness. Now to him who works, the wages 
are not counted as grace, but as debt. But to him who does 
not work, but believes on him, who justifies the ungodly, his 
faith is accounted for righteousness, just as David also describes 
the blessedness of the man to whom God imputes righteousness 
apart from works. Blessed are those whose lawless 
deeds are forgiven and whose sins are covered. Blessed is 
the man to whom the Lord shall not impute sin. Does this blessedness 
then come upon the circumcised only or upon the uncircumcised 
also? For we say that faith was accounted 
to Abraham for righteousness. How then was it accounted? While 
he was circumcised or uncircumcised? Not while circumcised, but while 
uncircumcised. And he received the sign of circumcision, 
a seal of the righteousness of the faith, which he had while 
still uncircumcised, that he might be the father of all those 
who believe, though they are uncircumcised, that righteousness 
might be imputed to them also, and the father of circumcision 
to those who not only are of the circumcision, but who also 
walk in the steps of the faith, which our father Abraham had 
while still uncircumcised. For the promise that he would 
be the heir of the world was not to Abraham or to his seed 
through the law, but through the righteousness of faith. For 
if those who are of the law are heirs, faith is made void and 
the promise made of no effect, because the law brings about 
wrath. For where there is no law, there is no transgression. 
Therefore, it is of faith that it might be according to grace, 
so that the promise might be sure to all the seed, not only 
to those who are of the law, but also to those who are of 
the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all. As it is 
written, I have made you a father of many nations. In the presence 
of him whom he believed, God, who gives life to the dead and 
calls those things which do not exist as though they did, who, 
contrary to hope, in hope believed, so that he became the father 
of many nations, according to what was spoken, so shall your 
descendants be. And not being weak in faith, 
he did not consider his own body, already dead, since he was about 
a hundred years old, and the deadness of Sarah's womb. He 
did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but 
was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God, and being fully 
convinced that what he had promised he was also able to perform, 
and therefore it was accounted to him for righteousness. Now 
it was not written for his sake alone that it was imputed to 
him, but also for us. It shall be imputed to us who 
believe in him, who raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead, 
who was delivered up because of our offenses and was raised 
because of our justification. Amen. Well, let us pray. Our 
God and our Father, we thank you for this wonderful passage 
of Holy Scripture, for the doctrine of justification by faith alone 
in our blessed Savior. As we celebrate today that empty 
tomb, the fact that He has risen, we come to you now and pray that 
you would be glorified as we consider Holy Scripture. We pray 
that your Spirit would guide us and lead us as we consider 
our blessed Savior and His work on our behalf. May you draw out 
our hearts in love and worship and praise and adoration, and 
may you further conform us unto his wonderful image. We ask that 
you would forgive us now for all sin and transgression. Cleanse 
us in that precious blood of the Lamb. And again, we rejoice 
at what we find here summarized concerning the entirety of your 
gospel, the life, the death, the resurrection of our Lord 
Jesus Christ, that second person of the Trinity who came down 
from heaven for us men and for our salvation. We rejoice in 
this and we pray now for your blessing upon us. And we ask 
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Well, as I said, our focus 
will be on verse 25. We see the redemptive purpose 
behind the death of our Lord Jesus, but also the redemptive 
purpose behind his resurrection. But chapter 4, verse 25 does 
not appear all on its own. There is a context, and if you 
go back with me for just a moment by way of introduction, you'll 
notice what Paul's point is in the book of Romans as a whole 
in chapter 1 at verse 16. He says, I am not ashamed of 
the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation 
for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the 
Greek, for in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith 
to faith, as it is written, the just shall live by faith. Now, 
this revelation of righteousness is not necessarily the perfection 
or the attribute of righteousness, though that is revealed in the 
gospel, but I think the apostle is speaking specifically concerning 
the righteousness that God demands and the righteousness that God 
wants. supplies. The apostle speaks of this in 
Philippians chapter 3 and verse 9. It was that which ultimately 
set the Reformation into play. Martin Luther was convinced that 
it was the righteousness of God in terms of attribute or perfection 
and this kept him away. But he says when he comes to 
appreciate verses 16 and 17 in the first chapter of Paul's letter 
to the Romans, it was as it were heaven opened up, paradise opened 
up. when he realized that it was 
God who provides for needy sinners the righteousness that avails 
with God. So after that thesis statement about what Romans is 
going to be, he goes on then to set forth the bad news. So 
in chapter 1 verse 18 to chapter 3 and verse 20, he sets forth 
the reality that all men everywhere are sinful. All men everywhere 
are liable to God's just judgment and punishment for their having 
sinned against a holy God. And then in chapter 3 at verse 
21 to chapter 4 at verse 25, he speaks of justification by 
faith alone. So you'll notice a contrast. 
In 118, the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness 
and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth and unrighteousness. 
And then in 321, the contrast comes, but now the righteousness 
of God is revealed. And so he declares how it is 
that sinful man can be accredited with righteousness so that they 
may stand before and be accepted by a holy God. So he introduces 
that theme in chapter 3, verses 21 to 26, by first considering 
the righteousness of God in the gospel. In other words, what 
he says is that the cross does not compromise God's righteousness. In fact, the cross publishes, 
sets forth, and declares the righteousness of God. And as 
he says in verse 26, so that God might be just and the justifier 
of the one who has faith in Jesus. He then emphasizes in chapter 
3, verses 27 to 31, that it's faith alone. It is grace alone 
through faith alone. It's not a combination of faith 
plus works. It is not a combination of what 
Christ has done and what we contribute, but rather it is faith alone. 
Notice what he says in verse 28. Therefore, we conclude that 
a man is justified by faith apart from the deeds of the law. There's 
no introduction of human merit in God's acceptance of needy 
sinners. It's all about the merit of our 
Lord Jesus Christ. Continuing in this theme of justification 
by faith alone, he says, or he confirms, or he corroborates, 
that this has always been God's plan. This isn't some new thing 
in the New Covenant, but every sinner that's ever been accepted 
by God has come through faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. And 
he invokes two particular Old Testament examples. He points 
out Abraham. Abraham believed God, and it 
was credited to him or accounted unto him for righteousness. And 
then he points to David. Notice what David says in the 
32nd Psalm according to verses 7 and 8. And then he carries 
or goes back to Abraham and sets forth several concerns concerning 
Old Covenant and New Covenant, promise, faith, law, all those 
particulars. And then he comes to summarize how not only what Abraham has 
received and what David has received is what we in the New Covenant 
received. Notice in verse 23, now in chapter 4, now it was 
not written for his sake alone that it was imputed to him, but 
also for us. It shall be imputed to us who 
believe in him who raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead. So he's saying that what God 
has done, what God has purposed, what God has planned, has come 
to pass. Not just in this new covenant 
era, it was there in the old covenant era, but they were looking 
forward to the Messiah. We now have this sort of backward 
look, at least in history, to the one who came, who lived, 
who died, and was raised again. And then in verse 25, he says 
in verse 24, that we believe in him who raised up Jesus our 
Lord from the dead. Verse 25 explains why he was 
dead. In other words, why did Christ 
die? Well, verse 25 explains that, 
and it does so encapsulating the entirety of the good news. Matthew Poole says this one verse 
is an abridgment of the whole gospel. I don't think he's wrong. 
We have abridgments throughout scripture, 5-8 in Romans. God 
commends his own love toward us, and that while we were yet 
sinners, Christ died for us. If you had one text to present 
to a sinner in a crucial particular time, 5-8 would be wonderful. 4-25 would be as well. Hodge says this verse is a comprehensive 
statement of the gospel. The denial of the propitiatory 
death of Christ or of his resurrection from the dead is a denial of 
the gospel. So today we're not just marveling 
at the empty tomb as a sign of the power of God. We marvel at 
it as a sign of the power of God, but as the basis upon which 
we are accepted with God Most High. In fact, when Christ cried, 
it is finished, he wasn't kidding. He wasn't joking. He had secured 
the salvation of all those whom the father had given him. So 
let's look first at the redemptive purpose of the death of Christ 
in verse 25a. And then secondly, we'll notice 
the redemptive purpose of the resurrection of Christ in verse 
25b. But notice verse 25, who was 
delivered up because of our offenses. Now, if you turn with me quickly 
to 1 Peter 2. And I say quickly, so we don't 
extend our sermon until three o'clock, 1 Peter chapter 2. This is glorious stuff, brethren. This is the stuff upon which 
our souls hang. The gospel of our salvation, 
the reality of a crucified and resurrected Savior. If you notice 
in 1 Peter chapter 2, specifically at verse 18, I'm sorry, verse 24, "...who 
himself bore our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, 
having died to sins, might live for righteousness by whose stripes 
you were healed." Now, he says this in the context of Christ 
as an example. If you look back at verse 21, 
"...for to this you were called, because Christ also suffered 
for us, leaving us an example that you should follow his steps." 
I think it's customary and commonplace for people to emphasize the exemplary 
mission of our blessed Savior. Look at the love that He demonstrated 
on the cross. We should go out and demonstrate 
that selfsame love. Look at the sacrificial love 
that Christ demonstrated on the cross. Husbands, love your wives 
in that particular manner. There is an exemplary function 
in terms of what Christ has accomplished, but that's not the primary emphasis. That's not the primary focus 
in terms of His redemptive death. It's about substitutionary atonement. It's about substitutionary curse-bearing. It's about the divine Son of 
God satisfying the wrath of the Father by His sufferings on our 
behalf. So it's not example that is first 
and foremost or where the accent falls in the death of the Redeemer. 
Paul puts it this way in 1 Corinthians. He says, but we preach Christ 
crucified to the Jews, a stumbling block or a scandal. As far as 
the Jews were concerned, a crucified Messiah, that was like saying 
jumbo shrimp or military intelligence or old news. It was simply untenable 
to think about a crucified Messiah. And yet Paul says, we preach 
Christ crucified to the Jews a stumbling block or a scandal, 
and to the Greeks foolishness. But to those who are called, 
both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom 
of God. Not exemplary, but in terms of 
blood atonement. Not exemplary, but in terms of 
acceptance with God. Again, I'm not denigrating the 
example of Jesus. Be more like him. Do what he 
does. That's a great thing. But with 
reference to the coming of the Son of Man, the primary emphasis 
is upon His blood atonement for the sins of His people. So the 
death of Christ was, in fact, substitutionary atonement. Look 
back at verse 25 in chapter 4, who was delivered up because 
of our offenses. Now, when we talk about offenses, 
it's not, you know, we've been rude a little better, we've had 
some issues or some challenges. No, Paul already explains to 
us what these offenses are. As I mentioned, beginning the 
gospel presentation, he starts with the bad news in Romans 1.18. The wrath of God is revealed 
from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men. Now 
that's not an abstract statement on the part of the apostle. That's 
not left for us to try to fill in the blanks. What does he mean 
there by unrighteousness? What does he mean here in Romans 
4.25 by offenses? We'll turn back to Romans chapter 
1 for just a moment. Notice what he says, specifically 
at verse 28. And even as they did not like to retain God in 
their knowledge, God gave them over to an abased mind, to do 
those things which are not fitting, being filled with all unrighteousness, 
sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness, 
full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness. They 
are whisperers, backbiters, haters of God, violent, proud, boasters, 
inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents. to parents, undiscerning, 
untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, unmerciful, who knowing the righteous 
judgment of God, that those who practice such things are deserving 
of death, not only do the same, but also approve of them who 
practice them. When we go back to Romans chapter four at verse 
25, and we read the language that Paul gives us, he was delivered 
up because of what? Our offenses, our sins, our transgressions, 
our iniquity, our violation of the holy law of God. So when 
we consider the Lord Jesus, He's not a hypothetical Savior for 
hypothetical sinners. He is a real Savior for real 
sinners. I've often pondered that. We 
see these narratives in the gospel records. Then all the sinners 
and the tax collectors draw near to Him to hear Him. Do we think 
these were polished sinners? Do we think they were good sinners? 
Do we think that You know, the extent of their sin was that 
they coveted another piece of bread at dinnertime. They sinned 
then like we sin now. We just happen to get better 
at it each and every succeeding generation, and we know more 
about it. But Christ came to save his people 
from what? From their sins, their offenses, 
their depravity. In Exodus chapter 33, Moses says 
to the Lord, show me your glory. So God says, I will put you in 
the cleft of the rock, and it will cause all my goodness to 
pass by you. What summarizes the goodness 
of God Most High? Or rather, how does goodness, 
or goodness is a summary statement of what particular perfections? 
Well, God reveals that in chapter 34, 6, and 7. He reveals to him 
that he's gracious. He reveals to him that he's merciful. 
He reveals to him that he's long-suffering. He reveals to him that he will, 
in fact, forgive sin, transgression, and iniquity. He uses all three 
of those terms, and then he goes on to say that he will, by no 
means, clear the guilty. See, it's not just the positive 
aspect of His grace and His mercy, but the very stability of the 
moral order depends on the fact that He's justice in punishing 
sin. And so when it comes to this demonstration of our offenses, 
of our transgression, of our wickedness or our lawlessness, 
it's real sin. In fact, turn to 1 Corinthians 
6 for just a moment in terms of seeing a real Savior for real 
sinners. 1 Corinthians 6, specifically 
at verse 9. Do you not know that the unrighteous 
will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived." 
Well, who's the unrighteous? What kind of offenses have they 
committed? What are their transgressions? What is their lawlessness? What 
is their iniquity? What is it that they have lacked 
in terms of conformity unto the law of God? Notice he goes on 
to give it in the concrete, not just an abstract statement. Neither 
fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, 
nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor 
revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God. And 
such were some of you. So in the context of the church 
in Corinth, they had had sodomites. In the context of the church 
at Corinth, they had had thieves. In the context of the church 
at Corinth, they had had adulterers. In fact, Corinth became a verb 
in that particular time to mean something wicked and lawless, 
to Corinthianize, meant to engage in lawless behavior. Then notice, 
he says, in such were some of you, but you were washed, but 
you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of 
the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God. So going back to 
Romans 4.25, the description of our offenses is simply a violation 
of the law of God. And when we look at the cross, 
we see love, we see mercy, we see grace, we see forgiveness, 
but according to Paul in Romans 3, 21 to 26, we see righteousness. And when we see the Son of Man 
hung upon that cross, we see the exceeding wickedness of sin. What necessitated us going to 
heaven? or what was necessary in terms 
of us going to heaven. The Son of God, the Word who 
was with God, takes on our humanity, comes into this world, lives 
for us, dies for us, and is raised again for us, so that we might 
have everlasting life. Thomas Kelly in a particular 
hymn said, ye who think of sin but lightly, nor suppose the 
evil great, here may view its nature rightly, here its guilt 
may estimate. Mark the sacrifice appointed, 
see who bears the awful load, tis the word, the Lord's anointed, 
son of man and son of God. So when you ponder the cross, 
ponder mercy, ponder grace, ponder love, but ponder righteousness 
as well and the exceeding wickedness of sin. So he was delivered up 
because of our offenses. Well, why is that? Again, not 
simply as an example. Well, now you've got to go to 
a cross yourself. You've got to be nailed to it. 
And in doing so, dying that death, you will then enter into everlasting 
life. No, Jesus was a public figure. Jesus was a federal head. Jesus was our representative 
in the new covenant. He was surety in the language 
of the book of Hebrews, so he takes our place. He lives our 
life of obedience. He dies death so that we may 
be forgiven. And then he's raised again to 
secure the deal. And that's specifically what 
the apostle is alluding to. So when we see this language, 
he was delivered up because of our offenses. God's justice demands 
the penalty and punishment of all transgressors. If you're 
not a Christian here today, you need to ponder this. You need 
to consider this, that God's justice demands that you must 
be punished for your sin and transgression against God. Now 
it's at this point that people say, well, that's not fair. Why 
isn't it fair? A righteous God established a 
moral order and all you've ever done is raised your fist in his 
face and transgressed his holy law. And by the way, that law 
is good for us. That law is blessed. That law 
is wonderful. It calls us to devote our attention 
to him and it calls us to love one another. It's only sin in 
the heart that would cause us to see this as a burden or to 
see this as something grievous. So God Most High must punish 
sin. And that's how Romans ends, or 
not Romans, but the first section in Romans 3. Notice what he says 
in verses 19 and 20. Now we know that whatever the 
law says, it says to those who are under the law that every 
mouth may be stopped and all the world may become guilty before 
God, liable to His punishment, liable to His just judgment. 
And then in verse 20, therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh 
will be justified in His sight. Why is that? Because your deeds 
of the law, your doing of them are not perfect. It's not exact, 
it's not entire, it's not perpetual. It's hit and miss at best. And 
most of the times it's miss. He says, therefore by the deeds 
of the law, no flesh will be justified in his sight for by 
the law is the knowledge of sin. So God's justice demands that 
we be delivered to hell because of our sins. God's grace has 
provided for our sins, the son of God who dies for us and who's 
risen again. In the language of 2 Corinthians 
5 21, another passage that ought to speak great comfort to the 
people of God. God the Father made Him, Christ 
the Son, who knew no sin, to be sin for us. That doesn't mean 
that he had personally engaged in acts of transgression. It 
doesn't mean that he had lustful looks. It didn't mean that he 
had thievery or had conducted any of these things. He was made 
sin by what's called imputation. God takes our sin and heaps it 
upon his son and punishes his son in our place. So God made 
him who knew no sin to be sin for us that we might become the 
righteousness of God in him. So you see that blessed imputation 
takes our sin, puts it on the Savior, punishes the Savior in 
our stead, and then takes His righteousness and imputes it 
unto us. This is why it's gospel. This 
is why it's good news. This is why we sing hymns of 
praise. This is why we look happy on Sunday. This is why our hearts 
are busting out of our chest cavities, because we rejoice 
in what the Son of Man has done on our behalf. He was delivered 
up because of our offenses. God's Son is the perfect, spotless 
Lamb of God, who died in the place of guilty, vile sinners. 
It pleased Yahweh to bruise Him, the prophet says in Isaiah 53. 
As well, we see the reality that in this section, notice, and 
specifically in verse 25, whom God set forth as a propitiation 
by His blood. So the Son of God was set forth 
by the Father in order to function as a propitiatory sacrifice. Now, that word is very important. That word assumes something. 
That word assumes a breach between God and us. But not only a breach, 
it assumes God's wrath toward us. Remember Romans 118, for 
the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness 
and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth and unrighteousness. 
So we need propitiation. We need somebody to take the 
wrath on our behalf. We need somebody to stand in 
our place. We need a substitute to provide 
atonement. We need a substitute to bring 
satisfaction. We need someone not to deflect 
the wrath. That's not what Jesus does. Jesus 
takes the wrath for us. He stands in our place on that 
cross as our federal head, and he receives in his own person 
the very wrath and fury of God Most High. It is blessing. And 
as we consider this statement in Romans 4.25, who was delivered 
up because of our offenses. Now when you consider the gospel 
narratives, you see the instrumentality of the Jewish leaders. They're 
certainly culpable. They're certainly involved in, 
you know, leading the crowd, the hoi polloi, to say, away 
with him, away with him, crucify him. Certainly Pilate is culpable. Pilate knows that Jesus is innocent. Pilate confesses thrice that 
Jesus, or he says, I find no guilt in this man. And yet nevertheless, 
he gives the execution order. But brethren, as we consider 
the reality here, we also notice our own sin, right? He was delivered 
up, why? Because of our offenses, not 
just the unbelieving Jews, not just those deplorable Romans, 
but he was delivered up because of our offenses, right? What we had done necessitated 
the coming of the Son of Man in order to save His people from 
their sins. But notice where the emphasis 
lay here. He's delivered up. This is called a theological 
passive. The deliverer up of Him is the 
Father. I've already cited Isaiah 53. 
It pleased Yahweh to bruise Him, or to crush Him, as the NASB 
takes it. It was the Father's plan. Winslow 
says, who delivered up Jesus to die? Not Judas for money, 
not Pilate for fear, not the Jews for envy, but the Father 
for love. God so loved the world that he 
gave his only begotten Son. God commendeth his own love toward 
us, and that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. 
And here the emphasis falls upon the delivering up of the Son 
by the Father. Now, that doesn't mean that the 
Son is not willing. It does not mean that the Son 
goes without, you know, always kicking and screaming. In a demonstration 
of His humanity in the Garden of Gethsemane, He says, He says, 
Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass. Nevertheless, 
Father, not my will, but thine be done. So Christ goes where 
the Father bids Him. Christ is the obedient, spotless 
Lamb of God. Christ satisfies all the requirements 
for the sacrifice that would be a veil for all of the people 
that the Father gave Him. So Christ goes willingly. We've 
seen that in John 10. I lay down my life and I take 
it up again. Christ is a willing participant 
in the covenant of redemption. Christ is a willing participant 
in this means by which God saves His people from their sins. The 
emphasis in this passage is on the delivering up to the cross 
by the Father. He always does what pleases the 
Father. My meat is to do the will of 
Him who sent me. Nevertheless, not my will, but 
thine be done. Now brethren, according to his 
humanity, that's exactly what we'd expect. He knew that he 
was going to drink the cup of God's wrath. He knew what he 
was facing, not in terms of the brutality of the Roman soldiers, 
not in terms of the blasphemies of the unbelieving Jews, but 
in terms of the wrath of God Most High poured out upon him 
so that we might have everlasting life. He was delivered up because 
of our offenses. Now notice, secondly, the redemptive 
purpose of the resurrection of Christ. doesn't stop there. He doesn't die a martyr's death, 
he dies the Savior's death, who was delivered up because of our 
offenses and was raised because of our justification. Now, in 
this instance, we need to consider the fact of the resurrection. 
The one delivered up because of our offenses, the text tells 
us, was raised because of our justification. Turn back to the 
Gospel of Matthew, Matthew chapter 28. Matthew chapter 28, where 
you see the emphasis on the empty tomb. Matthew chapter 28, when the 
women come to the tomb, notice in verse five, the angel answered 
and said to the women, do not be afraid for I know that you 
seek Jesus who is crucified. He is not here for he is risen. 
As he said, come see the place where the Lord lay. He is risen. See, brethren, in the history 
of the world, in the history of religion, in the history of 
philosophy, leaders and rulers in those religions and philosophies 
weren't the Son of God. The Son of God came down from 
heaven, took on our humanity, the Word became flesh, and dwelt 
among us. And the word who became flesh 
lived again, a perfect life of obedience, who died a death as 
a malefactor, not for his own sins, but for ours. But he was 
raised again the third day. Death had no dominion over him. And this is precisely what the 
apostle is emphasizing here. He was delivered up for our offenses 
or because of our offenses, but he was raised for our justification. Turn to John's gospel, John chapter 
20. We have that wonderful encounter 
when Jesus appears to the disciples. And then the disciples go back 
to Thomas who had been absent. And in John 20 at verse 24, now 
Thomas called the twin, one of the 12 was not with them when 
Jesus came. The other disciples therefore 
said to him, we have seen the Lord. Imagine that. What do you 
mean, you've seen the Lord? You visited his tomb? You laid 
some flowers out there? You took some additional spices? 
What do you mean, we have seen the Lord? I imagine that is what 
would creep into Thomas's mindset, especially as we follow the narrative. 
They come and they say, we have seen the Lord. So he said to 
them, unless Unless I see in his hands the print of the nails 
and put my finger into the print of the nails and put my hand 
into his side, I will not believe. On the one hand, we can kind 
of sympathize with Judas. He's hurting, he's pained. The 
Messiah, the rabbi that had been with them for those several years 
is now gone. He's probably got a bit of an 
ache. He's probably got that sense of loss and deprivation 
that somebody good in his life is no longer present. But he 
really is arrogant. He really is, not just doubtful 
Thomas. He's arrogant Thomas. He has 
solidified Thomas. Notice the conditions he lays 
down. Unless I see, unless I touch, I will not believe. It's not 
gonna happen. You've got an apostolic witness testifying right now 
to you that they've seen the Lord. The Old Testament, our 
brother Mark read, not Mark, but Psalm 16. It's a psalm of 
the resurrection. Peter applies that to Jesus in 
Acts chapter 2. You have the Old Testament testimony, 
you have the New Testament witness, you have the reality of the empty 
tomb, and what does Thomas do? I will not believe. That's not 
gonna happen. You're not just a skeptic. There's an arrogance. 
There's a hardness of heart there. Notice in verse 26, and after 
eight days, his disciples were again inside, and Thomas with 
them. Jesus came, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst 
and said, peace to you. And he said to Thomas, reach 
your finger here and look at my hands, and reach your hand 
here and put it into my side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing. 
If you ever doubt the grace, kindness, mercy, and patience 
of our blessed God, read passages like these. Read passages like 
these. I gotta be honest, brethren, 
if I knew that Thomas's attitude was like that, I'm not sure I'd 
be so conciliatory. I'm not sure I'd speak specifically 
to his demands, speak specifically to his ask and say, go ahead. I invite you, Thomas, to verify. I invite you, Thomas, to confirm. 
I probably wouldn't be that gracious. I apologize, but I'm just being 
honest here. But then notice what happens 
on the heels of this. Verse 28, Thomas answered and 
said to him, my Lord and my God, please don't miss John's purpose 
here. How does he begin his gospel 
presentation? In the beginning was the Word. 
The Word was with God and the Word was God. The Word became 
flesh and dwelt among us. He never ceased being God while 
flesh. He never got rid of deity or 
divinity. He didn't lay it aside. It wasn't 
that he wasn't exercising. It wasn't that he didn't have 
that prerogative. The very beginning of John's 
gospel, the very end of John's gospel, is a confession of the 
divinity of our blessed Savior. Now Jesus does chide him. Jesus 
does rebuke him. Jesus does pronounce beatitude 
upon those who hear and by grace believe. They don't have to see 
They don't have to have their senses involved. They don't have 
to see for themselves and engage the scientific method. Not that 
there's no scientific method. You've got witnesses all over 
the place confirming that empty tomb. But back to our text, he's 
delivered up because of our offenses and he's raised for our justification. And again, it's the same sort 
of a thing that the father raised him. Not that the son does not 
have power. Jesus the Lord says that I have 
the power to take it and to lay it down and take it up again. 
Something called the doctrine of inseparable operations. We 
can predicate any outward act of God to all three persons because 
they each have the divine essence. But in terms of appropriation, 
the emphasis again falls here on the father who not only delivered 
up the son to be crucified, but he raised up the son again to 
validate and to confirm and to bring to fruition the justification 
that we enjoy. This doctrine of the resurrection 
is essential. It's not something that we just 
visit one time out of the year. In fact, the whole idea of an 
Easter Sunday, in some sense, is kind of I don't wanna say 
odd, but every Sunday is Easter Sunday, isn't it? Every Sunday 
is the Lord's day. Every Sunday there is that at 
least implicit confession on the part of all God's people 
that he is risen. We're here because of what Romans 
4.25 says. He was delivered up because of 
our offenses and he was raised for our justification and has 
justified men and women. We are in his presence to worship 
father, son, and Holy Spirit. So it is an absolutely essential 
doctrine. The Apostle says in 1 Corinthians 15, if it didn't 
happen, if Christ stayed in that tomb, then your faith is vain. We're pitiable among men. The 
Apostles preached the resurrection much to the chagrin of Jews and 
much to the chagrin of the Romans. You see that competing narrative 
at the end of Matthew chapter 28. The final statement is the 
Great Commission. Go, therefore, make disciples 
of all the nations. Prior to that, you have an anti-Great 
Commission. You have the plotting and the 
deception of the Jews, who cook up and concoct a story that, 
no, no, he didn't really raise from the dead. That's not what 
happened. That didn't take place. Muslim 
theology is the same. Christ didn't die on the cross. He was just severely wounded. 
He was just severely battered. They called it the swoon theory. 
He went into the tomb as a broken, battered man, but he wasn't dead. 
And yet he comes out again, and so they ascribe to him this resurrection. Paul says if we deny the resurrection, 
there's no Christian faith. There's no Christianity. Again, 
we have a martyr who's done a good thing, but a martyr cannot save 
his people from their sins. Only the Savior can save his 
people from their sins. Now notice, not only the fact 
of his resurrection, but Paul gives us the theology behind 
the resurrection. You need to understand that. 
The Bible records historical fact, and then the apostles interpret 
those historical facts in terms of theology. He was delivered 
up. We all agree. Jesus of Nazareth 
was put to death. Why is that? Because of our offenses. Substitutionary curse-bearing. 
Substitutionary atonement. You've got the fact of the delivering 
up, and then you have the theological interpretation of the significance 
of that fact. You see it in 1 Corinthians chapter 
15, the first several verses. Christ died, he was buried, he 
was raised again. Why? For our sins. Well, the apostle does the same 
thing here. He was delivered up because of 
our offenses and he was raised, notice, for our justification. What a wonderful capstone on 
the doctrine that he has been describing beginning in chapter 
3 at verse 21 up until this point. Not that he won't say anything 
else about it again in the book of Romans or elsewhere in his 
writings, but here, as I said, it ends this particular section 
in terms of justification by faith alone. So notice, the doctrine 
of justification by faith alone is connected to the resurrection. Now what is justification by 
faith alone? Outside the Bible, I think no 
better definition has been given than Westminster Shorter Catechism 
number 33. And it basically asks the question, 
what is justification? The answer is justification is 
an act of God's free grace. Notice at the outset, it's not 
an act of something. We do. Oh, I went out and tried 
harder. I went out and obeyed more. I 
went to church, you know, three times on the Sunday, and not 
just once. I'm not suggesting that if you don't come three 
times, you're not saved. I'm sorry. Stuff like that falls 
out of the mouth from time to time. But it's an act of God's 
free grace. And then there's two components, 
vital elements, involved in the doctrine of justification. It 
says, wherein He pardons all our transgressions. Isn't that 
beautiful? You know, my sin, oh the thought 
of a glorious Lord, 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. Jesus forgives us. The blood of Jesus Christ, his 
son, cleanses us from what? From all sin, not some sin. If 
it was some sin, we should be miserable people. But since it's 
all sin, we should be a lot happier. I should be a lot happier. We 
should think more often in terms of our blessed Savior's word, 
be of good cheer, I've overcome the world. There's a lot going 
on in the world that is depressing. There is a lot going on in the 
world that is tedious. But there is a lot going on in the heart 
of the believer that is most glorious, most wondrous, and 
most excellent. He pardons all our transgressions. But it goes on to say, and accepts 
us as righteous in his sight. So you see, there's two components. 
Not only the forgiveness of sins, but think about it with me for 
a moment. If we're forgiven of our sins, we're back at the tree 
of the knowledge of good and evil. God demands perfect righteousness. Never forget that. God demands 
perfect obedience. God demands spotlessness. The 
psalmist asked, who can dwell on the hill of God? Who can dwell 
in the mountain of the Lord? He gives this description. Do 
you know what he's describing? He ain't describing us in Psalm 
15. He's describing the Son of God. He's describing the Lord Jesus 
Christ. So He accepts us as righteous in His sight only for the righteousness 
of Christ imputed to us and received by faith alone. were forgiven 
and were counted as righteous. Again, Abraham believed God and 
it was accounted unto him for righteousness. It is a most blessed 
thing. This is why we call it good news 
or gospel. So with reference to the doctrine 
of justification connected here specifically to the resurrection, 
we need to understand the link, the historical link between the 
crucifixion and the resurrection. They're inseparable. They're 
inextricable. You don't have a crucified Savior 
and a non-risen Savior. You don't have a risen Savior 
without a crucified Savior. So that Paul can predicate concerning 
resurrection that our justification is attached to it. Listen to 
B.B. Warfield. He says, that he died 
manifests his love and his willingness to save. That he rose again manifests 
his power and his ability to save. Again, brethren, we're 
not dealing with the martyr's death. Martyrdom is great. Precious in the sight of God 
is the death of his holy ones. A brother indicated from reading 
Revelation chapter 13, God's not disattached or detached when 
the beasts are running amok on the earth. Where do you think 
they ultimately get their authority? It's from God. The death of His 
holy ones are pleasing to God. So with reference to this reality, 
what we have in terms of Jesus is not simply martyrdom, but 
it's saviorhood. So back to Warfield, he says, 
we're not saved by a dead Christ who undertook but could not perform, 
and who lies there still? Under the Syrian sky, another 
martyr of impotent love. If we are to be saved at all, 
it must be by one who did not merely pass to death on our behalf, 
but who passed through death. Big difference there. Not only 
passed to death on our behalf, but passed through death on our 
behalf. He really died. He really was 
raised again. So thus he passed through death. He says, in one word, the resurrection 
of Christ is fundamental to the Christian hope and to the Christian 
confidence. All our assurance of salvation 
is suspended on this fact. In other words, if he went into 
that tomb and he stayed there, or it retained him, whatever 
the gospel story was, it wouldn't be powerful to save us from our 
sins. It would be nice. We could tell 
the tale of the martyr that did these things, but to enjoy the 
blessed benefits of his blood and righteousness, to be able 
to sing of his glory and his praise and his honor, to be able 
to look forward to his coming again in glory, to judge the 
living and the dead, we couldn't do that without the empty tomb. 
Hodge makes a similar statement. He says the resurrection of Christ 
as an historical fact established by the most satisfactory evidence 
Authenticates the whole gospel as surely as Christ has risen. 
So surely shall believers be saved verse 25 now by way of 
some not application we'll get to that in a moment, but the 
connection between resurrection and justification because if 
you're sort of in tune with the doctrine of justification by 
faith alone, we typically see it relative to his life, right? We need a righteousness that 
avails with God. Well, where do we get that righteousness? 
From the 33 years that Jesus always did what pleases his Father. 
He didn't just do that as an example. He didn't just say, 
you know, I'm going to do this to sort of show all men how they 
ought to behave. I mean, there's that to be sure, 
but when you survey the animals of the world and you ask wherein 
lies righteousness, you get 33 years worth, and it's in one 
person, and it's the Lord Jesus Christ. So the Lord Jesus Christ 
lived for us, justification by faith alone, wherein He imputes 
the righteousness of Jesus to us. But then we think about justification 
and His death. We need blood. We need the bloodshedding 
of our blessed Savior, that sacrifice, that Lamb of God who takes away 
the sin of the world. It's unique in the New Testament 
to connect justification with resurrection. It's not outlandish, 
it's not unsymptomatic, but you see, it's not always all over 
the place as it is in Romans 4.25. So I just want to offer 
up several things to think about in terms of the connection between 
resurrection and justification. I'd suggest first that the resurrection 
testifies that Christ is the Son of God with power. Christ 
is the Son of God with power. In Romans 4.24, notice what we 
are told, but also for us, it shall be imputed to us who believe 
in him who raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead. So the resurrection 
testifies that Christ is the Son of God with power. He's not 
some, you know, fellow that lived and moved and had his being and 
stayed in the grave. He is the Word made flesh for 
us men and for our salvation. The apostle in Romans 1 connects 
it to a demonstration of the fact that he is the son of God 
with power. Look at Romans 1, verse 1. Paul, a bondservant 
of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated to the 
gospel of God, which he promised before through his prophets in 
the holy scriptures concerning his son, Jesus Christ, our Lord, 
who was born of the seed of David, according to the flesh, and declared 
to be the son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, 
notice, by the resurrection from the dead. Again, not that there 
was no hint of that, not that there was no knowledge of that, 
but that empty tomb declares him to be the Son of God with 
power. Calvin said, the cross of Christ 
only triumphs in the breast of believers over the devil in the 
flesh, sin, and sinners when their eyes are directed to the 
power of his resurrection. We see it in glowing detail. We see it in its manifold beauty 
and blessedness. Secondly, the resurrection testifies 
that Christ's sacrifice was accepted. The fact that Jesus was raised 
from the dead by the Father indicates the Father was well pleased with 
the life, with the death, and thus raised him from the dead. Bovinck, a Dutch reformed theologian, 
made this observation, the resurrection is a divine endorsement of Christ's 
mediatorial work, a declaration of the power and value of his 
death, the amen of the father upon the it is finished of the 
son. Amen. Praise God Most High. Thirdly, the resurrection testifies 
that satisfaction was rendered. So not only was the sacrifice 
accepted, but all of the benefits associated with that sacrifice 
are tendered. So we've got satisfaction. We've 
got the divine wrath satisfied by the penal sufferings of the 
Son of God. This is why Paul can say what 
Paul says in Romans 3.26, that he might be just and the justifier 
of the one who has faith in Jesus. His law was not compromised. 
His law was not bent. His law was not suspended, but 
his law was satisfied. And then his law was held up. It was held in high esteem and 
glorious. And yet God most high is able 
on the basis of what Christ has done, accepting this as a sacrifice, 
getting satisfaction in terms of this sacrifice. He is both 
just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. And 
then the resurrection testifies that redemption was accomplished. 
Redemption was accomplished. The sixth saying of the Savior 
on the cross. There are seven. When Jesus is 
hung upon that cross, there are seven sayings, seven things that 
he says. And the sixth is most glorious. 
He says, well, they're all most glorious. I shouldn't say that. 
What do you mean? They're all glorious, okay? But 
he says, it is finished. It's a Greek word, tetelestai, 
and it's in a particular tense. It's in what's called a perfect 
tense. That means it's a past completed action with abiding 
results. Guess where they found that word 
a lot when they went around digging and doing archaeology? They found 
it on receipts. They found it on business contracts. Probably the best thing that 
I would imagine as you get older and you finalize all of your 
debts and everything is paid in full and they stamp that on 
there. It's a completed action with 
abiding results. When Christ is on the cross, 
He says, it is finished. Not, I am finished. Not, they 
are finished. But it is finished. The work 
of redemption that the Father gave Him to do. The work of salvation 
for His people. Matthew 1, 21 says He will save 
His people from their sins. And this is precisely what He 
accomplishes upon the cross. Listen to Spurgeon. He says, 
I am persuaded that it was so intended to be used, this sixth 
saying, this it is finished, for none of the words of our 
Lord on the cross are addressed to His church but this one. So 
Spurgeon says that it's that sixth saying that speaks specific 
comfort to His church. It speaks specific comfort to 
His people. He says, I cannot believe that 
when he was dying, he left his people for whom he died without 
a word. Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do 
is for sinners, not for saints. A thirst is for himself. And 
so is that bitter cry, my God, my God, why hast thou forsaken 
me? Woman, behold, thy son is for Mary. Today shalt thou be 
with me in paradises for the penitent thief. Into thy hands 
I commend my spirit as for the father. Jesus must have had something 
to say in the hour of death for his church, and surely this is 
his dying word for her. It is finished, brethren. Our sins are forgiven. A righteousness 
has been imputed. We're fit and ready to go to 
heaven. Should the Savior descend now 
with the shout of the archangel, the thundering sound of the trumpet, 
if He should come right now, we're ready to go. Our sins are 
forgiven. We're righteousness. We have 
righteousness. We're clothed in His righteousness. 
If we die the normal death that everybody dies of old age, guess 
what? We're ready and fit to go. We 
get hit by a car on the way home from church. We're fit and ready 
to go. Why? Because it's finished. There's nothing else that we 
have to make up. There's nothing else that we 
have to supplement. There's no additions. There's no sort of, 
well, I got to try a bit harder and then maybe I'll really get 
finalized. No, it is finished. We've been accepted in the beloved. 
We have that statement in Ephesians 1, verse 7, about the riches 
of God's grace. In Him we have redemption, through 
His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches 
of His grace. It is finished, is what the Savior 
says to the church. And I would suggest, fifthly 
and finally, in terms of the resurrection, it testifies that 
the session was initiated. When we speak of the session, 
of the current session, we refer to after the resurrection, Christ 
appears for a period of time, and then He ascends on high, 
and He sits at the right hand of God Most High. And Scripture 
doesn't tell us, or Scripture tells us what He's doing. He 
never lives to make intercession for us from the right hand of 
the Father. If we do sin, we have an advocate with the Father, 
even Jesus Christ the righteous. So the resurrection testifies 
that the session has been initiated. And not only is He doing those 
things presently, but He will come again in glory to judge 
the living and the dead, to take His church into that new Jerusalem 
and to be with us world without end. Well, in conclusion, I would 
suggest first the necessity of the death of Christ. the necessity 
of the death of Christ. Theologians throughout the history 
of the church have wondered about this, the necessity. Was it necessary? Was there another way God could 
have saved His people from their sins? I've always cited on the 
side of it's absolutely necessary. To suggest there's some other 
way calls into question, in my mind, the wisdom of God. Wouldn't 
an infinitely wise God pick the only way? Wouldn't the God who 
is absolutely righteous and holy and pure put together a plan 
that upholds this holy law? that brings forgiveness to His 
sinful people, that brings them a righteousness, and extols His 
glory, and magnifies the riches of His grace, there is a necessity, 
the mustness of our Lord Jesus Christ. When He announces three 
times in the Gospel of Matthew at 16, 17, and 20, I must go 
to Jerusalem. I must be tried at the hands 
of godless men. I must be crucified. That is divine necessity. And 
so when we see our sin, and when we see the cross, and when we 
see our blessed Savior there for us, we see its necessity. Now the remedy for sin involves 
forgiveness and the imputation of Christ's righteousness. And 
that remedy is secured by Christ in his life, in his death, and 
in his resurrection. Now, as I was pondering this 
particular passage, I thought about atonement. and satisfaction 
and blood. I mean, we've just finished the 
book of Exodus on our Wednesday night study. The Shekinah glory 
of God comes down in the tabernacle. It's a dwelling place for God, 
but Moses can't go in. Why? Because in order to come 
in, in order for it to be a meeting place, there has to be blood. 
There has to be bloodshed. And that's when the book of Leviticus 
comes. Leviticus 1 to 7, the emphasis 
is upon the sacrifice. 8 and 9, the emphasis is upon 
the priesthood. The end of chapter 9, they offer 
up a legitimate sacrifice, and God sends fire down from heaven 
to consume the sacrifice. And Moses and Aaron then walk 
into the tabernacle. What does the Old Testament teach 
us? The same thing that the New Testament teaches us, something 
that I think Paul encapsulates well in Hebrews 9.22. Without 
the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness. Without the 
shedding of blood, there is no remission. Now, when we ponder 
this, we do it from a distance. And we do it in a culture where 
we're not sort of into sacrificing animals on a regular basis. I was musing on a quote by Dale 
Ralph Davis. He preached, or rather, he wrote 
a commentary on 2 Samuel. And in 2 Samuel chapter 21, you 
have an instance of atonement. And essentially what happens, 
it's the reign of David, there's famine in the land, and David 
inquires of the Lord. He says, why? These men understood. When there's problems in the 
land, you ask God, because God's sovereign, God's powerful, God's 
omnipotent, God's over all this. Why? And God says to him, because 
you guys are guilty of the sin of killing Gibeonites. Remember 
that treaty that was made in Joshua chapter 9? Those Gibeonites, 
they lied, they pretended so that they could find favor with 
the Israelites. What does Joshua and the leaders 
do? They enter into a covenant to preserve the Gibeonites. I 
mean, you're not going to be royalty in Israel, but you're 
not going to be destitute either. Well, what happens in 2 Samuel 
21 is that the Gibeonites had been wronged. So in order to 
alleviate the judgment of God in terms of famine, David sends 
for the Gibeonites. And he says, what is it that 
you want? And they said, we want seven descendants of Saul to 
die. Because it was Saul that had orchestrated this sort of 
extermination of the Gibeonites. So David does it. And it's a 
horrifying scene, brethren. I mean, seven people are hung 
to death, and there's one mother there that wants to take her 
sons down and provide some care for their bodies. It is a gross 
scene. Well, here's what Davis says 
concerning it, and I think it's appropriate to our study of the 
resurrection and the death of Christ on what we typically call 
today is Easter. He says, the text says atonement 
is horrible. It is gory. Atonement is never 
nice, but always gruesome. We need to see this, for we easily 
fall into the trap of regarding atonement as merely a doctrine, 
a concept, an abstraction to be explained, a bit of theology 
to be analyzed. And I know Davis is not saying 
we shouldn't do that. We should do that, but it shouldn't 
stop there. 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 Golgotha, 
perhaps Gibeah can shock us back into the truth. Atonement is 
a drippy, bloody, smelly business. The stench of death hangs heavy 
wherever the wrath of God has been quenched. Brethren, it's 
not some day to get all polished and just put on the new clothes 
and all that sort of thing. I'm not saying don't do that. 
But our Savior was delivered up because of our offenses and 
He was raised for our justification. Certainly that demands our attention. That demands our focus. That 
demands our love and our praise and our adoration. The necessity 
of Christ's death is all over the Bible. The glory of His resurrection 
is such that God confirms His Son to be His Son according to 
power. It is that testification, that 
divine testimony that the Savior's work on our behalf has been accepted. The Savior's work on our behalf 
has accomplished the purpose for which the Father sent Him. 
The blessedness of God's people is seen in Romans 4.25, and in 
passages like it, to be sure. He was delivered up because of 
our offenses, and he was raised for our justification. The people 
of God ought to live in light of these things, not just once 
a year, but each and every day. May the shadow of the cross overarch 
us in terms of our life and our orientation. And if you're not 
a believer here this morning, look at what the text says. Look 
at what God went to in order to save his people from their 
sins. The son of his love, the darling of heaven, the gem as 
it were in that cabinet of God's jewels. He sends him to take 
on our humanity to come into this miserable, wretched, disgusting 
world. Not because it's built that way, 
but because we're in it, and we're filled with sin, and vileness, 
and guilt, and shame, and all that sort of thing. Christ comes 
into this place, and he lives, and he dies, and he's raised 
again. Why? So that people aren't saved? 
So that there aren't men from every tribe telling people a 
nation? No, he does that specifically to save people from their sins. So don't tarry, don't wait, don't 
say, well, I gotta get the divine zap before I look unto Jesus 
in faith. Look unto Jesus in faith. He 
who believes in Him will have everlasting life. In fact, see 
it for yourself in Romans chapter 10. Romans chapter 10, specifically 
at verse 9, that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus 
and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, 
you will be saved. For with the heart one believes 
unto righteousness, and with the mouth confesses a confession 
is made unto salvation. For the scripture says whoever 
believes on him will not be put to shame." See, there's this 
idea or this attitude that, you know, these Christians, you've 
had to give up so much. I just don't think I could be 
a Christian. Just the thought of it. Have you, as a believer, 
ever thought you've given anything up? Have you, as a believer, 
ever thought you've been short-changed in this grand scheme? Have you, 
as a believer, ever said, you know, I don't really want to 
be forgiven of my sins. I really don't want this righteousness 
by which I'm going to enter into eternal bliss with God Most High, 
world without end. No, of course not. Even when 
the believer befalls difficulties and hardships and afflictions, 
you know, Jesus says it's better to enter into life maimed, better 
to enter into life with only one eye and only one hand than 
enter into hell whole. And this is Paul's point. Whoever 
believes in him will not be put to shame. For there is no distinction 
between Jew and Greek. For the same Lord over all is 
rich to all who call upon him. Now notice how it ends. For whoever 
calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. In other words, 
believe on him and you will have everlasting life. You will know 
the joy of the one who is delivered up because of our offenses and 
was raised for our justification. Well, let us pray. Our Father 
in heaven, we thank You for Your Word. We thank You for the life, 
the death, the resurrection of our blessed Savior. We thank 
You for His session now at the right hand of God Almighty. And 
we look forward to His return again in glory to judge the living 
and the dead. And may it be the case that we 
would all be ready, that we would have received that forgiveness 
of sin and that cloak of righteousness by which we can enter into the 
presence of a holy God. We thank you that you are both 
just and the justifier of the one who has faith in our Lord 
Jesus Christ. May you cause us to worship, 
may you cause us to glorify, may you cause us to adore you, 
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, for so great a salvation. And 
send this gospel throughout the world, conquering and to conquer. 
And may there be a multitude today that are saved by your 
grace and for your glory. And we ask in the name of Jesus 
Christ, our Lord, amen. Well, you can turn in your hymn 
books to 568 as we close by singing the doxology of praise to our 
triune God. 568, you may stand and we'll 
sing together. ♪ Praise Him, all ye who fear Him 
alone ♪ ♪ Praise Him, all ye heav'nly host ♪ ♪ Praise Father, 
Son, and Holy Ghost ♪ that theme of doxology instead 
of benediction with the reading from the last part of the book 
of Romans. Now to him who is able to establish you according 
to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ according to 
the revelation of the mystery kept secret since the world began 
but now made manifest and by the prophetic scriptures made 
known to all nations according to the commandment of the everlasting 
God for obedience to the faith to God alone wise, be glory through 
Jesus Christ forever. Amen. Thank you for this great 
truth, Lord God almighty. Thank you not only for the works 
of creation and providence in which you demonstrate your wisdom 
and your power and your goodness, that work of redemption, where 
you show us that grace and that mercy and that forgiveness and 
that long-suffering that the Scriptures testify consistently 
to. We ask that you would go with 
us now, cause us to reflect upon these things, and may it bring 
great joy to our hearts. And we pray through Christ the 
Lord. Amen. You may be seated for a brief 
time of meditation.