A Lamb To The Slaughter

Luke 23:26-34.  This sermon was preached by Pastor Marty Bonner on April 17, 2016.

The title comes from a phrase in Isaiah 53:7.  The powerful descriptions in Isaiah 53 are hard to avoid.  They point to the Messiah, the ultimate Servant of the Lord, being killed for the sins of Israel and of course the Gentiles as well.  The Lord would lay all our sins upon him.  This is what John the Baptist was pointing to when he said, “Behold, the Lamb of God.”  Isaiah goes on to state that “by his knowledge My righteous servant will justify many.”  The passage that we will look at today is exactly what Isaiah and John the Baptist were prophesying would happen.

Throughout the last 2,000 years it has been a tendency to focus upon the horrendous pain and suffering that our Lord endured in the twelve plus hours leading up to his death.  This is to point out the great love that God has for mankind.  However, we will see today that Jesus himself puts the emphasis upon the judgment that was still in the future.  In other words, no matter how bad you think this judgment of me is, the judgment that is coming upon Israel (and by extension the world) is far worse.  It is important for us today to be amazed at the love of Jesus towards us.  Yet, it is equally important to recognize the judgment that looms over the world like an overhanging cliff that is about to collapse.

The Judgment Of Jesus Is Carried Out

We have seen Jesus moved about from Pilate to Herod and back to Pilate.  It is clear from the account that Pilate is done arguing with the Jewish leaders and thus gives judgment that Jesus is to be executed.  In Luke’s gospel we are not given long accounts of the suffering of Jesus.  In fact, Luke skips the whipping that the Roman soldiers gave Jesus.  Another important fact that is glossed over by Luke is that it was customary for those who were to be crucified to carry the cross beam that they would be nailed to from the place of judgment to the place of execution.  Some scholars believe this could have been up to 2 miles since the place of execution was outside the city.

It is in this that Luke takes note of the need for another to carry the cross of Jesus.  The most logical explanation for this is that Jesus physically is unable to carry the cross all the way.  At some point, Jesus begins to fail and it is then that the soldiers press Simon of Cyrene into service.  He was coming into town from the area around Jerusalem.  Now Cyrene is a city on the coast of what we call Libya today.  This is hundreds of miles away.  Most likely Simon was coming into the city for the feast celebrations, having spent the evening in a place of lodging nearby.  The fact that the Gospel of Mark mentions the names of his sons has led most scholars to contend that Simon had become a believer and joined the Jerusalem Church.  This sets up an interesting parallel.  Seemingly by accident, Simon runs into the Light of the World on his way to Jerusalem and has his eyes opened.   Whereas later we see Saul of Tarsus running into the Light of the World while leaving Jerusalem.  This theme of people having an encounter with Jesus and coming to believe in him, even without seeking it out, is seen regularly in the Scriptures.  There is also an irony that Simon helps Jesus in a physical way, so that the Lord can help him in a spiritual way.  Each and every one of us could die for our sins, but that would not save us.  It would merely give proper payment.  However, the death of Jesus allows those who believe in him to have eternal life.  There is a time when each of us who are trying to carry our load in life, may begin to physically, emotionally, or even spiritually fail.  We need others who will come alongside of us and help us to do what we need to do.  Just as Jesus needed help in this way, so we need it all the more.

By now word has spread and a large crowd from Jerusalem has gathered with a contingent of women who are mourning the approaching execution of the one who was thought to be the Messiah.  Jesus was the righteous teacher who was doing amazing things everywhere he went.  Yet, now he is to be killed?  While they are mourning Jesus gives warning to his mourners of their own coming judgment.  He does not seek their pity, though they are right to mourn him.  Rather, he is pointing them to where their pity would be better suited.  It is as if he is saying, “You think this is bad?  You should see what is coming for this whole nation.  That is what you should be weeping over.”  This ominous warning points to something that would normally be seen as being cursed (childlessness).  The days ahead will get so bad that that which is normally a curse will be a blessing.  In a similar way he points out that things will get so bad that people would rather be crushed by a mountain then face it.  Interestingly, this same figure of speech is seen in Revelation 6:16 where the kings of the earth and the mighty men cry out for the mountains to cover them, “for the great day of His wrath has come, and who is able to stand?”  We often point out how horrible the cross was, but it was an event that was horrible for one man.  First the judgment on Jerusalem in 70 A.D. (a national scale) and then the coming judgment, which will be global, each dwarf the physical and psychological trauma of Jesus.

Jesus then says, “If they do these things in the green wood what will be done in the dry?”  This figure of speech is intended to warn of something worse to come.  It does so by referencing green wood versus dry wood.  Green wood does not burn very well and can be easily put out, whereas, dry wood is very dangerous and creates a far worse and hard to manage fire.  Jesus is a righteous man in that sense he is green wood.  He is more than connected to a thriving root system.  Jesus is life itself.  He is the vine and we are the branches.  Thus, Jesus is warning that if this is what happens to the green wood, it will be much worse when the dry branches (those who have rejected God and have no life in themselves) are judged.  This reminds me of Isaiah 57:1-4.  “The righteous perishes, and no man takes it to heart; merciful men are taken away, while no one considers that the righteous is taken away from evil.  He shall enter into peace; they shall rest in their beds, each one walking in his uprightness.  But come here you sons of the sorceress, you offspring of the adulterer and the harlot!  Whom do you ridicule?”  The offspring of the sorceress, adulterer, or harlot is one who has grown up following an evil path and being taught evil things as normal.  Of course they can learn to repent and turn towards God, but that is not the point in this passage.  The point is that we should not mourn so much the passing of the righteous.  Things will go well for them.  However, the unrighteous will receive the wrath of God.  There is nothing wrong with mourning the passing of a righteous person, even more so the Son of God.  However, that is not the end for The Righteous One and those who have believed on Him.  They will be exalted by the Father and given all things.  However, the wicked will be taken in hand by the wrath of God and find their place in the Lake of Fire.  Do we weep over the coming judgment of the Lost?  God does.

Next we see that Jesus is crucified in public shame.  The place where Jesus is to be crucified is called the Place of the Skull.  The Latin is Calvaria (where we get Calvary), the Greek is Kranion (think cranium), the Aramaic is Golgatha.  All of these different terms are pointing to the same thing that will happen.  A human’s head that represents the essence of the person’s identity is going to be turned into a skull.  It is a place that reeks with death and the Devil’s power.  As a lord of death, the Devil feels that he has won, but in truth it is about to become the public shame of the devil and his angels that is highlighted before the world.  Jesus is crucified in a vile way and hanging between two other vile offenders, as if he was the worst of them.  It is as if the Devil is daring anyone to choose to be on the side of such a man.  Everyone is going to have to choose sides.  You are either with the great men and rulers of this world, or you are with the lowly Jesus.  Will you let go of the pomp, power, and pride of this world and embrace the public shame of Jesus?  If you do your future will be eternal life.  The other choice leads to destruction and shame.

In this context the next words of our Lord seem impossible.  “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.”  The Lord demonstrates that he practices what he preaches.  They speak death and execution to him, but he speaks love and forgiveness towards them.  Thus Jesus displays perfect righteousness.  As he taught in Luke 6, “Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.  To one who strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also.”  It is hard to accept such words at face value.  However, when people do accept them, they usually do in the hopes that such actions will win them over.  In fact, this argument is used against the West in regard to Islam.  If we loved them more, then they wouldn’t pick up weapons and bombs.  They wouldn’t hate us so much.  At the cross, such trite is proven a fairy tale.  Jesus loved those who were killing him, not because he hoped they would stop, but because he knew they wouldn’t.  Jesus will die and his enemies will live on.  Yet, he still offers them righteousness.  He basically makes the case for manslaughter to the Father.  They don’t realize that they are offending the God of heaven and heaping up judgment against themselves.

So what was God’s answer?  Well, for 40 years following the crucifixion, God sent the apostles of Jesus to minister with miracles and the truth.  They offered their fellow Israelites forgiveness in the name of Jesus; “whosoever would” could have it.   Yet, ultimately the answer is this, “If they will turn from their sins and put their faith in Jesus, then I will forgive them completely.”  This is the grace and love of our Lord.

Lamb to the Slaughter audio

The Trials of Jesus II

Luke 23:13-25.  This sermon was preached by Pastor Marty Bonner on April 10, 2016.

The trials of Jesus continue, on the day of his crucifixion.  He is brought before the High Priest, then to Pilate, then to Herod, and now sent back to Pilate.  You would think that Herod’s refusal to do anything to Jesus would bolster the case for releasing Jesus.  But the religious leaders and the crowd who have gathered will have none of it.  They want Jesus dead.  There is a tragic irony on display in this section.  A peaceful healer who merely speaks truth will be put to death, while a murderous robber will be let go free.  Such is the justice of mankind.  Yes, Jesus is on trial here, but so is the justice of mankind.

Throughout the history of mankind getting justice has been at best a slippery target.  Beware of those leaders who cry for justice the loudest because they are usually playing on our emotional desires.  Beware of the crowd that is worked up into a fever pitch seeking justice because all manner of evil will be done by it in the name of justice.  It matters little if it is Jerusalem in the first century A.D. or the French Revolution of the late 1700’s, in which those who helped to execute the aristocrats later found themselves on the chopping block.  Perhaps the Arab Spring, which was so inappropriately named, was not so noble as the crowds in Egypt’s Tahrir square raped, young female journalists while calling for justice from the government.  Even the United States has had its share of mobs out of control in the name of justice committing heinous crimes.  The mob is rarely if ever about true justice because the hearts of mankind are twisted by sin.

Pilate declares Jesus Innocent

Pilate is most likely not happy to have Jesus back in his judgment hall.  The whole purpose of sending Jesus to Herod was to avoid this issue.  Yet, here it is again.  Perhaps we can see the tendency of many today to try and push off the “Jesus issue” by appealing to the judgments of others.  However, you will find throughout life that one way or another, God will bring Jesus back before you.  What will you do with Jesus?  This is the most critical decision of your life because it affects your eternal destiny.

Pilate makes his case before the religious leaders and the crowd.  First, he does not see any reason to execute Jesus.  Second, Herod saw no reason to execute Jesus.  Thus Pilate will have Jesus flogged and release him.

This may sound strange to our ears.  He is innocent but will be punished anyway?  What is going on here is something that happens every day throughout the “justice” of this world.  Decisions are made with an eye to how it will be received.  If Jesus was released without anything done, the religious leaders and the people would riot.  This would require Pilate to use force to quell them, which would lead to the deaths of many.  This would bring Pilate’s leadership under question before Caesar.  Thus Pilate is seeking to appease the religious leaders without executing Jesus.  A public flogging would bring great physical harm to Jesus and social humiliation.  Also, the release is not a normal release.  Pilate is referring to a tradition that had developed in which a guilty prisoner would be pardoned on Passover each year.  Thus Jesus would have the further social stigma of being a prisoner who was guilty and yet pardoned.  Yet, this is not enough for the religious leaders and the crowd.

The Crowd Calls for Crucifixion

The crowd breaks out into loud objection to Pilate’s decision.  Luke takes time to note that Pilate had made three attempts to make a case for letting Jesus go.  I believe this is an intentional allusion back to Peter’s three denials of Christ.  Three times Peter had been given a chance to stand with Jesus and yet he shrunk back and refused to stand with Christ.  As bad as this is, we see a similar thing happening with the religious leaders and the crowd in Jerusalem.  They are given three chances to change their mind and listen to reason.  However, they are not merely refusing to stand with Jesus.   They are actively choosing to punish Jesus with death.  Such is the justice of mankind when its base notions are not kept in check.

When the leaders realize that Pilate intends to make Jesus the official release criminal of the Passover, they quickly counter this by calling for the release of Barabbas instead.  So who is this Barabbas?  Luke tells us that Barabbas was involved in a rebellion and had murdered someone.  In his gospel, John also adds that Barabbas was a robber or bandit.  The word used is not that of a sneak thief who unsuspectingly steals things, but of a thug who takes things by force and violence.  The man they ask to be released is a violent, beast of a man who didn’t have a righteous bone in his body.  Thus, in the name of righteousness, they call for the death of the innocent Jesus and for the release of the guilty Barabbas.  However, the irony does not stop there.  Barabbas’ name literally means “son of the father.”  Thus we have two individuals, Jesus and Barabbas, with two very different lives, and both representing the son of the father.  Of course they are clearly from two very different fathers.  Jesus is the exact image of the heavenly Father.  Barabbas reminds me of John 8:44, where Jesus tells the religious leaders that they are just like their father the devil.  Of course, they are not children of the devil biologically.  Rather, they have spiritually rejected the Heavenly Father and have turned to another spiritual progenitor, the devil.  They are choosing to kill the Son of the Father in heaven while embracing the son of the devil.  This is also reminiscent of John 10:10, “The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy.   I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.”  Why would we choose a killer over a life-giver?  Why are we enamored with the bad guy or the bad girl, when we could choose a good one?  The answer is simple, we have a sin problem and Jesus is the only answer for it.

Under the threat of riot, Pilate gives in to the desires of the leaders and their crowd.  Jesus will be executed and Barabbas will be release.  The phrase in verse 25 is somewhat haunting.  It says that “he delivered Jesus to their will.”  I believe this is intentional by Luke.  Jesus is delivered over to the will of the people by Pilate.  However, Pilate cannot do anything but what the heavenly Father allows.  Thus it really is the Father who is handing Jesus over to the will of the people.  He will not step in and stop them from doing evil.  Neither will he force them to do the right thing.  He will simply let them choose.  Yes, God loves mankind and has created us to sit as glorified sons in His heavenly council.  Yet, he will not force it upon us.  We must choose.

Have you ever realized that in this life God has put the judgment of Jesus in our hands, in your hands?  It is up to each of us to make our judgment of Jesus, yea or nay, up or down.  This is our time to wrestle with the evidence and make a choice.  If you choose against Jesus, fire will not fall down from heaven and burn you up.  And, if you choose for Him, a glorious chariot will not swoop down from the sky and lift you up.  God will give you complete freedom to choose.  But you are not just deciding to choose for or against Christ.  It is a choice between Jesus or the alternative that the world offers.  Before you make such a choice, you should understand the further reality.  Once you leave this life, your judgment will then be in the hand of Jesus.  Take care with the measure you use in judging Jesus and the Father.  That same measure will be given back to you in the afterlife.  Jesus makes it clear how his judgment will be in Matthew 10:32-33.  “Whoever confesses me before men, him I will also confess before my Father who is in heaven.  But whoever denies me before men, him I will also deny before my Father who is in heaven.”  Now is your turn to judge, but the day will come when you will wonder, “What will he do with me?”  Choose this day whom you will serve:  the giver of life or the bringer of death.

Trials II audio

The Trials of Jesus I

Luke 23:1-12.  This sermon was preached by Pastor Marty Bonner on April 3, 2016.

This begins the official trials of Jesus.  However, he has already been questioned, beaten, and mocked for several hours at this point.  As we walk through this process it is valuable to recognize the actions and motivations of all involved.  All humans can be manipulated to promote actions that are not above reproach, and do not come from good motivations.  Yet, we see many who are operation out of pure selfishness and impure motives.  How do you defend yourself before such people?  Thus we see that the famous silence of Jesus before his accusers is more than just his mission to die for our sins.  It is also about the difficulty of convincing hardened hearts of the truth of God's love.  We live in a day of hard hearts, impure motives, and evil actions.  Can such peopel truly know what justice is?  Hardly.  May God help us to navigate these times as the Lord would have us, because these times are our trials and tests.

Jesus Is Accused Before Pilate

Pilate is a Roman who has been appointed as Governor over Jerusalem and Judea by the Emporor Tiberius.  At this time, the Jews could not execute anyone without his approval.  Thus, the religious leaders must make their case before him.  Their first accusation is that Jesus promotes revolution.  Perverting the nation is just a way of saying that he is leading the people astray.  Thus they are representing Jesus as a revolutionary who is stirring people up against Rome.  He is dangerous and instigating insurrection.  This is a powerful argument to make before Pilate because he has a vested interest in shutting down any rebellion before it gets started.  If Ceasar thinks that he can't control Judea then Pilate will lose his position.  Of course this accusation is a bald faced lie.  Jesus in no way ever promoted political revolution against the Romans or Herod.  Let Christians today keep this in mind.  It is not our job to conquer the governments of this world.  This is not the way of Jesus.

The next accusation is that he tells people not to pay the Roman taxes.  Again, Pilate has a vested interest in protecting the ability of Rome to extract taxes from Judea.  Caesar needs a constant supply of money to pay the expenses of having military throughout the Mediterranean area.  But again, this is a lie.  Jesus never taught his disciples to refuse to pay taxes, even to a wicked government.

The last accusation is that Jesus claims to be the Messiah, and therefore a king.  This claim is true.  However, the insinuation is that Jesus fancies himself a king and will therefore fight against Rome.  It is the first accusation dressed up in religious garb.  He is not just a rebel.  He is a fanatical, religious rebel.  Again, Jesus never instigated his disciples and followers to prepare for war against Rome or Herod.  In fact, it is important to notice that at such a critical hour Jesus does not send his disciples to fight against those trying to kill him.  In the days ahead he will actually send them out to fight against the spiritual powers that were behind the power of Rome and Herod.  It is easy for us to get so caught up in the political battles of our day that we lose sight of the greater battle that we have been called to fight.

Though Jesus is generally silent through these trials, he does not back away from the truth.  Jesus admits to Pilate that he is King of the Jews (that is the rightful king).  I am reminded of Psalm 2 where it says, "The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the Lord and against his Anointed (Messiah), saying 'Let us break their bonds in pieces and cast away their cords from us.'  He who sits in the heavens shall laugh; the Lord shall hold them in derision.  Then He shall speak to them in His wrath, and distress them in his deep displeasure: 'Yet, I have set My King on My holy hill of Zion.'"  You see, Jesus is more than the king of the Jews.  He is also the King of kings and the Lord of lords.  He will one day take up the rule of all the nations, but that day was not yet here.

As Pilate views all that is put before him, he comes to the conclusion that Jesus is not guilty of anything and he is not interested in putting this man to death.  There is no real threat in Jesus, and Pilate doesn't trust the religious leaders.  He cannot afford to be seen as weak and manipulated by them.  This first "No fault" verdict is vehemently rejected.  The religious leaders give fierce opposition to the intention of Pilate to let Jesus go.  As Pilate sees the riotous nature of the crowd, he knows that he must do something to keep the peace in Jerusalem, otherwise he is endangering his own position.

It is at this point that Pilate perceives that Jesus is a Galilean.  This provides him with the perfect opportunity to avoid the pickle that he is in.  Jerusalem is his jurisdiction, but Galilee was under the jurisdiction of Herod Antipas.  He uses this fact to send Jesus to Herod and thus avoid a sticky situation.

Jesus Is Accused Before Herod Antipas

Herod Antipas was one of the sons of Herod the Great who was also lucky enough to not be put to death by his father.  He ruled over Galilee and a portion on the eastern side of the Jordan called Perea.  This is the same Herod who had John the Baptist executed.  He at one point was worried that Jesus was actually John the Baptist come back from the dead.  Herod is actually in Jerusalem because of the feast, thus Jesus is quickly taken before Herod.

It is immediately clear that Herod sees Jesus as entertainment.  He is not interested in giving a decision of justice.  He is clearly not threatened by this man who is sent to him, however, is is interested nonetheless.  Herod asks Jesus to show him a miracle.  When Jesus refuses to "perform" for Herod the fun quickly runs out.  Note that a desire to see a miracle is generally not motivated by a love for God.  Many people who witnessed lots of miracles went on to doubt God.  God is not some kind of "dog and pony" show that seeks to fascinate us with tricks while we sit and enjoy.  The sad thing is that this is what many churches have turned into in this generation.  Jesus remains silent and "seemingly" does nothing.  However, we must recognize that this is a challenge to our wicked hearts.  He will not throw pearls before swine.  Jesus is not our entertainment.  He is our rescuer and savior.  He is the one died in our place so that we can live.  No matter how much Herod questions Jesus, the Lord remains silent.  Often the silence of God is a rebuke to our wicked desires.  Sometimes it is also a test to see if we will still trust Him.  Be careful that your heart does not become so hard that there is no way that God could break through to your heart.  The image of Jesus on the cross should break all our hearts and hardness towards God.  But, sadly enough, many reject such love.

The scene deteriorates into a hall of mocking as a royal cloak is put upon Jesus and he is mockingly called the "King of the Jews."  To Herod, Jesus is a joke.  He is no threat and need not die.  Thus Herod refuses to assert his jurisdiction and sends Jesus back to Pilate.  He is basically saying "Thanks, but no thanks.  You can have him."  This game of hot potato with Jesus will soon come to an end.  No matter how many times a person seeks to avoid making a decision about Jesus in their life, it will come back around again, and again, until a decision is finally made.  May we choose to stand with Jesus rather than give in to the crowd and condemn him.

Trials of Jesus Audio

There is Hope

Romans 8:16-30.  This sermon was preached by Pastor Marty on March 27, 2016, Easter Sunday.

Hope is a word that we use to refer to the anticipation of something good in the future.  This seems to be the default position of the human heart.  When we are young and innocent we have a basic sense of good things ahead.  However, through difficult experiences in a fallen world and our own moral failures, we can lose hope.  In Jesus God has restored hope by demonstrating the depths to which His love is willing to go for fallen humans.  Yes, we may give up on hope, but God will never.  He is the creator of hope.

It is also important to recognize that we are not talking about hope in the sense of wishing for something.  “I hope I win the lottery,” is a statement that is more about wishing for something.  In the Bible the hope in our heart is instigated by the object of hope that God has promised in our future.  It would be more like the hope a young person has of graduating from college because their parents have promised to pay for it.  Today we are going to remind ourselves of the hope that God has anchored in the future for all who put their faith in Jesus and follow him.

We Are Children Of God

In verses 16-22, Paul reminds us that we are children of God.  Now we all belong to God by the fact of creation.  Thus all humans are children of God in that sense.  However, in the Bible it has a more narrow sense.  It is referring to those who have been born spiritually.  When you were physically birthed you were the child of two human parents, i.e. a child of man.  In order to be a child of God you must also be born spiritually by putting your faith in Jesus as your teacher and the one who covers your sins.

As a child of God we are also heirs, and joint heirs with Jesus.  Technically it is Jesus who stands to inherit all/ things because of what he did while he was on this earth.  He lived the perfect, sinless life and yet was unjustly attacked.  Instead of fighting, Jesus puts his full trust in the God of heaven.  Though the cross may seem to show his trust was ill-placed, the resurrection proves that Jesus knew what he was doing.  God has declared that those who put their trust in the work of Jesus and his commands will be brought into the Family of God and allowed to inherit with Jesus.

Notice that Paul states at the end of verse 17 a conditional phrase.  We stand to inherit with Christ, “if” we are willing to suffer with Jesus.  Just as Jesus suffered in the hope that the Father would answer him so too, we must pick up our cross and follow him.  Now we will not all suffer the same things or in the same way.  But we will experience many hardships in this life that will challenge our decision to follow Jesus.  His commands are very clear and cause us to have to choose between trusting him or making our own way.  Some people walk away from the faith when they encounter suffering.  But, this seems strange because we are going to have pain and suffering whether we follow Jesus or not.  This world is filled with them everywhere you go.  Thus Paul states that those who will follow the way of Jesus will suffer on this earth, but they will one day be glorified with Jesus.  Just as Jesus was glorified with an immortal, indestructible body and was glorified in his position over all creation, so we too will receive glorified bodies and a glorified position beside Jesus.  To illustrate this, I would point us to the Basketball tournament that the NCAA is putting on right now.  These teams are in the middle of a great struggle to be the champions.  As each game is played one team walks away saddened because they lost, but the other team is rejoicing because they have won.  As the final championship game ends with the blare of the buzzer, the time of blood, sweat, and tears will be over and one of the teams will enter into a time of glory, the time of enjoying the fruit of your labor.  This is what it will be for all believers at the Resurrection.

This is what is being referred to in vs. 19.  All creation awaits the revealing of the Sons of God.  This is the moment when believers are glorified and revealed to the world in glorified form and position.  Most people don’t recognize how critical mankind is to the universe.  Through our moral fall, all of creation was put under the curse of sin.  In the Old Testament the term Sons of God is a reference to the angelic beings.  They were direct creations of God and they were immortal.  However, through Jesus, God is raising up lowly humans to join the heavenly Sons of God.  This is referenced in Hebrews 2: 9-10, “But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angles, for the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, that He, by the grace of God, might taste death for everyone.  For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all things and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings.”  Yes, we are in a time of difficulty, blood, sweat, and tears at this time.  Yet, a day has been appointed in which all who have believed upon Jesus Christ will be raised up immortal.  We will be revealed as the Sons of God, along with Jesus the One and Only Unique Son of God.

In verses 20-22, we are reminded that the curse was given for the hope of what was to come.  We might be tempted to look at the effects of the curse and sin on the Earth and accuse God of doing a terrible job, perhaps even being evil.  The truth is that we were not cursed for the sake of vengeance, but for the hope of what would one day come.  The triumph of mankind over the devil would be a long time in coming, but come it would.  At the cross, the devil was disarmed.  The truth was given to the world and the law was satisfied.  For the last 2 thousand years people have been plundered from his control, people from every language and nation.  One day all of those people will stand immortal beside the Lord, while the devil is captured and removed from the scene.  This is the victory that the Lord has assured us.

Jesus Is The Hope Of Mankind

Starting in verse 24 we see the hope that Jesus makes possible for mankind.  First it states that this is what we have been saved for.  Putting your faith in Jesus is not about simply trying to get something better in this life.  It is about so much more.  Sure, following Jesus will change the way you live and bring many good things into your life.  But it can also bring some bad things into your life as well: suffering, pain, rejection, and even death.  But the apostles knew that they were not dying for a lie.  They had seen the resurrected Lord and had been told by him that they too would experience resurrection if they followed him.  It would be good for American Christians to recognize that our greatest hope is not in fixing America, as great as that would be.  Our greatest hope is to reign with Jesus over a new earth and a new heavens that is not tainted by sin, pain, and suffering.

In verse 28 we are told that all things are working together for the good of those who are called by God.  It may seem impossible to understand that such a thing could be true.  Yet, even for a person who is not an unbeliever, this can be true the second they believe in Jesus.  Until that moment, everything that happens in their life is a sad story.  But once they believe in Jesus, it all becomes part of a glorious story of overcoming an enemy that was far too strong for us.  Don’t push faith aside.  By doing so you will only allow your pain and suffering to remain meaningless and evil.  But when you embrace it, all that difficulty becomes full of meaning and goodness.

Verses 29-30 show us that God’s plan is far greater than ours.  It is greater in effect and greater in scope.  From the beginning of time before he created, He foresaw all that would be.  In the moment that he chooses to create, He also chooses a destiny for all who would trust Him.  This is what is meant by Predestined.  He destined those who would trust him to be transformed and made like Jesus (morally and physically).  Then, in the course of time, He Called us to join His family.  All of us who are followers of Jesus had to hear the call of God by the Spirit and through a human being.  When we responded in faith that destiny became our own.  Then, those that responded to the call were Justified.  They were made to be righteous by the work of God.  No one will be able to stand before God and make a case against them receiving such a destiny.  They have been justified by the judge himself.  Lastly, those who have been justified will one day be Glorified.  The justified will be clothed with immortal glory and enter into the inheritance of a new creation.  This is the hope of mankind that Jesus has made available to whosoever will believe upon Him.  If you haven’t already, please do so today.  If you hear the call of the Spirit to join the ranks of the redeemed then respond today and let God justify your claim to the glory He has for you.

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