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June 9, 2022 6:00 am
Pastor Rick teaches from the book of the Acts
For man's sin remedy had already been provided for paradise was lost paradise had already been regained because Christ was crucified before the foundation of the world and in the mind and purpose of God. Christ had already died before he was born in the purpose of God. Christ had already died before Adam was created in the purpose and plan of God. The world had already been redeemed.
This is cross reference radio with our pastor and teacher Rick Gaston. Rick is the pastor of Calvary Chapel Mechanicsville. Pastor Rick is currently teaching through the book of acts.
Please stay with us after today's message to hear more information about cross reference radio, specifically how you can get a free copy of this teaching, but for now, here's Pastor Rick with his study called attacking the gates as he teaches in acts chapter 2 we are in the age of faith, according to the truth of the word, not the age of miracles.
When a running around waiting for some allies of the come up and do miracles so that we can believe miracles that is power in action. Now Satan is capable of doing miraculous things to and granted by God. The story of Job teaches that Antichrist will come with lying wonders, signs and lying wonders, lying in the sense that they going to mislead people. Those who want to be misled because the deciding factor with Antichrist is he going to be unrighteous is not going to be a decent person so anything he does is disqualified with those who will fawn over him. That will matter. Indecency won't matter, Solomon and Gomorrah should have been preserved according to their mindset of those who will be around Antichrist.
Many today the science of first the miracles that is the power in action in the wonders, the wonders of the effects of the miracle experiencing that hear next chapter 2 with a mighty rushing wind with the tongues they were experiencing something that was. Not normal. There were spiritual. This Spiritual Activity Taking Pl. in Peter will let them know that spiritual activity is from heaven not from hell.
The signs here of the value of the miracle. The effect is the wonder, the sign is supposed to create a response that's what it says this is not to be wasted. It's meaningful it's connected connected to God's word, not outside of God's word miracles today there still granted to just not as widespread dramatic as in biblical times, much of biblical times of their peers in the Bible when miracles were not pronounced either, but miracles tend to breed a craving for more miracles. Okay, you've seen Amir that I don't know. And God will not be reduced to that he gives us a special beatitude on this very subject. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet believe the age of faith.
It's disappointing when people tried to tell you that you're going to be healed when you're not going to be healed. When is it when you know you're not going to suffer this or that and you are going to suffer this, that's not what we're supposed to do. We don't know the mind of God be quite presumptuous on many things to just insert into somebody's life would God is going to do for them what happens when he does I think so many times we are here to subject ourselves to the will of God because we cherish him and we cherish him, because we know who he is. We know what he is about. We know where he's taking us and we know where we are going and we are not apologizing to anybody for this and when I backing away from it either apostates. They will come. That's them. That is them that is not me and you've got to have that foundation in your heart you two going to leave where we are, though you have the words of life. Well coming back to this and I'll quote that again from Peter here in verse world only got the first verse of four guys gotta hurry up verse 22 is where we are. He says which God did through him in your midst, as you yourselves also know what Jesus was well known to this crowd. Big John chapter 12 verse 19.
The Pharisees therefore said among themselves.
You see that you are accomplishing nothing. Look the whole world is gone after him shadows miracles of Galilee and Syria to Jerusalem and Judea that it was just the word was spreading all over the place about Jesus. Peter knew that they knew and he was going take advantage of that to their edification.
They knew the character of Christ even if they never saw him, they heard the knew about the sermons miracles in the murder. They heard of his resurrection.
Also, Peter is about to bring to them right up close these facts is going to back them up from the Bible and they going to be converted. The signs are evidences made necessary in order to grab their attention. The sign of the coming of the Holy Spirit. Those signs never produce conviction based a loss they had the signs saw the miracle but they still were lost. This was the case in the days of Christ is the case in the days of Paul. It is the same way. To this day. Miracles are not enough to convert a soul just ask Judas Iscariot but you can ask because he became an apostate peters preaching his witnessing of the truth with reason produce conviction.
Look with me at verses 37 now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, men and brethren, what shall we do, how do we fix this.
You've convinced us that we are guilty and that's conviction felons are convicted. When found guilty. Verse 23 him, being delivered by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God, you have taken by lawless hands have crucified and put to death. What is boring about this kind of preaching. Peter, do you know that Stephen is going to do the same thing and to kill him for doing this Peter points out here we says in verse 23 him, being delivered by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God is pointing to the mystery of sovereignty and free will and human choice by God's decided will him being delivered by the determined purpose.
God decided how he was going to deal with our sin. Jesus became the Lamb slain before the foundation of the world according to other passages than Revelation 13 eight which says it just like that the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world, God the father delivered Jesus Christ to the cross that we could be delivered from the judgment upon ourselves because of our sin.
Now this crucifying of Jesus did not absolve those responsible for their ghastly crucifixion simply because God had purpose to deliver humanity by delivering Christ of the cross. The Lord use what he had and what he had were guilty people who many of them opted to remain guilty in Luke's gospel, Jesus speaking to the naysaying religious leaders essentially said to them, you got plenty religion you plenty of culture which are going to hell anyway because you don't want to believe the truth. Luke 1213, 28 there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. When you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God and yourselves thrust out as you have no one else to blame and the fact that they will be gnashing their teeth indicates they will be angry at God for having the audacity to be God to judge them for their wickedness. Even though God had offered them salvation. Jesus forsaken by his father for not abandoning us to sin, taking our sin upon himself according to his father's will. According to the will of Christ. Every time you see the cross of Christ. Remember, it was no accident.
Whether you see it on a piece of jewelry whether you see on the roadside altar whether you see it in the church on a church where you see the cross of Christ. It was not a mistake. It was planned by God him, being delivered by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God.
Isaiah 5310 yet it pleased Yahweh to bruise him. He has put him to grief. When you make his soul an offering for sin that has happened is done, not when Isaiah when Isaiah wrote those words still over 700 years away, even in the millennial age according to Ezekiel what Christ achieved for us on the cross will be commemorated with bloodless sacrifices they will act out the crucifixion because there will be people born in that age that really don't understand it and they're going to get a lot of help with that and some will still reject. In the end, the foreknowledge of God, first of all, all knowledge with God's foreknowledge. It is almost a redundancy. God knows everything. You cannot learn this foreknowledge of God, a W toes are really just lazy self so wonderfully.
He says before man sin. The remedy had already been provided before paradise was lost paradise had already been regained because Christ was crucified before the foundation of the world and in the mind and purpose of God. Christ had already died before he was born in the purpose of God. Christ had already died before Adam was created in the purpose and plan of God. The world had already been redeemed before the world was ever brought into being. Where did Jesus die in the will of his father ready rise to the throne beside his father. These things are predestined, they did not evolve in the mind of God, they did not develop.
Christ did not come here and sort of just stumbled into these things choreograph a spy God in the Godhead. You have taken by lawless hands and crucified and put to death taken, tortured and terminated. That's what he just said they did to Jesus Christ and they had no right to do it. There were others who were blasphemers. They had a right to do the Christ was no blasphemer Peter here charges the crowd the multitude with murder.
They are on defense. At this point Peter is on offense as long as he is preaching this sermon, they got their backs up against the ropes of so to speak, being instruments through which the will of God was accomplished did not again relieve them of their guilt. Those who applauded the death of Christ. Those who dismissed it and ignored ignored it, knowing his miracles in his life and all these other things that belong to the ministry of Jesus Christ.
They were guilty sovereignty and free will and action. No one forced them to side against Christ in God uses people nonetheless. Whether you are for him or against him. Now he mentions here lawless hands that has a dual application the Gentiles who crucified Christ, they were lawless.
They were not under the law of Moses and then the Jewish intelligentsia who arrested him and brought him to the Gentiles. They were guilty to. So if you said and why it's even a debate in some circles who's responsible for the death of sinners death of Christ, is it easy question me. Sinners are responsible for the death of Christ, and it is the love of God that decided to do something about it before the foundations of world were made.
Verse 24, God raised up, having loosed the pains of death because it was not possible that he should be held by God is stronger than death that this painful, even if not for the individual who dies for those left behind. Death is an opponent of love, death hurts, death is always wrong. Even when you kill a mosquito because it's a demonstration of the curse things die now. Without the curse I mean I don't know, there wouldn't be any was Idaho. I wasn't there, but I know they wouldn't be a problem and I wouldn't have to kill them ask you will be written. It was not possible that he should be held by God is invincible Jesus being single S had no wage to pay who was going to be the recipient of no judgment. Death could not defeat him. That's why on the cross he gives up his spirit. He was in total control.
He was sinless and to be sinless is to be outside of the curse of sin which is death. Mary died because she was not sinless, just like the rest of us and that is not an insult sheet if she were listening to the sermon now should be applauding at the end of the service. She said that was one of the greatest sermons ever heard you preach showing we just know this is true right 25 for David says concerning him, I foresaw Yahweh always before my face is at my right hand that I'm may not be shaken. Verse 26 therefore my heart rejoiced.
My tongue was glad. Moreover my flesh also will rest in hope, will the resurrection of Christ was both prophetic. In fact, this is not always the same because until Christ was crucified and risen, it was just prophetic, but now it's taken place.
Now it is a fact. Peter quoting Psalm 16 messianic song is God dart between three different Psalms in this one section of the sermon is already laid out jolt of them. Now he is as I said, speaking from the books of wisdom in the Old Testament a barrage of Scripture to support his points is not his opinion, giving them the word is applying Christ with David.
Some of what David saw concerning himself, making it a dual fulfillment.
Christ being the greater fulfillment for Christians the Old Testament part of pointed forward to Jesus Christ. It is in fact the Old Testament meaningless without him.
What did you get from the Old Testament without Jesus Christ. He brings life to it all because it's all about him and that's why when he says I am the way the truth and the life that goes back to Genesis 1 where God says where the Bible says God speaking through Moses in the beginning God or in the Hebrew God in the beginning, created the heavens and earth and everything forward. Psalm 68 verse two our God is the God of salvation and Yahweh, the Lord and to Yahweh, the Lord belong escapes from death while having a hard time reading some of these things I want her to get to what I want to say and not what I will and what I want to read. It is a dilemma. But back to that verse again. Our God is a God of salvation and to Yahweh, the Lord belong escapes from death. Only God could be the Savior.
So when you come to the New Testament in Jesus is referred to the Savior that makes him equal with God by design. Verse 27, for you will not leave my soul in Hades, nor will you allow your holy one to see corruption, Hades, or see old was the Old Testament in the Old Testament the place of death, and in the New Testament the minds of those two is quoting verse 10 of Psalm 16, and David indicates that he will be in Hades, he will be in the underworld and she old righteous side of it, but he will not be left there, Psalm 68 verse 18. Another Psalm of David. You have ascended on high, yet you led captivity captive what the psalmist saying is that God is the one that will take those who are in righteous shield who died before Christ and he will bring them into heaven. Paul uses this in Ephesians 4 now this he ascended, what does it mean but that he also first descended into the lower parts of the earth. He who descended is also the one who ascended far above the heavens, that he might fill all things. Isaiah 61 verse one. Speaking of Jesus that he came to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison door of the prison to those who are bound so again before the cross of Christ. When someone died a righteous person such as Abraham. They went to see all which was divided into two compartments. The wicked side where they were doomed in the right decide where they had no Savior because heaven was not open to sinners until Jesus descended and then ascended with them and that's why we read and Jesus said to him, assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise. You will be taking a dirt nap as that theology that teachers were in a sleep state that this doctrine and hopefully you've never heard of itself, there, though I think the Jehovah witnesses of the big ones. It that push that one that I would when we die were not conscious of what the Bible says otherwise. Nor will you allow your holy one to see corruption. Will David saw beyond himself and yet he speaking also of himself. The paradox that the prophets bring to brought to their day was Messiah would die, but his throne would last forever.
When Trice came many of the Jews lost sight of that Revelation chapter 1 verse 18 I am he who lives in was dead, and behold I am alive forevermore. Amen. And I have the keys of Hades and of death. Total control full fulfillment of Isaiah 53 in all the messianic Psalms in the writings of the prophets like Ezekiel and Isaiah admission Messiah will reign on earth.
Nonetheless, we have to learn to discover and understand dual meanings and dual applications and drool fulfillments in the Scripture because of quite a few of them now. The idea of the resurrection from death is where Peter finds ultimate and significance in these words of David that there is a resurrection and so he's telling his Jewish audience. You know there's a resurrection because our Bible preaches the resurrection when Davis said you will not allow your holy one to see corruption is holding them to the Scripture the Scripture. They claim to believe. David did not mean that David would not die with that his death would not be permanent. His original reference has in it a reference to himself. You will not leave your holy one himself being separated when Samuel anointed him. There is a dual application there but it's greater for Miller fulfillment is in Christ and and David would've known that of the many of the Psalms do just that many of the prophets when they speak of the prophecies they bounce back and forth different ages of their prophecy different stages of its fulfillment, and we see the New Testament writers explaining these things to us as Peter is doing here, Peter is saying David is talking about this Jesus even though there was a present meaning it's for meaning is now in his audience had every chance to refute Peter to stop it Peter at this point and they don't because they can't deny it.
This holy one of God, even the demons recognize Jesus to be the holy one Isaiah 49. Speaking of Messiah, Yahweh, the Redeemer of Israel there holy one, the holy one of Israel will do nothing to say, the holy one of the church because the church didn't exist. It was a non-idea could not even imagine it.
To this day there are amongst to his city choose this passion to reach other Jews and zero passion to reach Gentiles that is un-biblical. But there listening to their rabbis. The town moved in mission and their other writings and they departed from the they bring up the lawn. They bring up Moses and the characters in the Bible when convenient for their points, but they're not adhering to their own Scripture. I mean, for instance, Messiah cannot come right now there are no longer the records of the genealogical records to prove that he's from the line of David so that little section know that beginning of Matthew's gospel in the third chapter of Luke. The critical they're saying. Here's his royal line from Matthew from Joseph and Matthew from Joseph to Solomon to David and we have the bloodline going from Mary all the way back to Nate and David.
This covers it all the mind so they've missed that window, but many of them don't want to hear this move you've been listening to cross reference radio daily radio ministry pastor Rick Gaston of Calvary Chapel in Mechanicsville, Virginia. As we mentioned at the beginning of today's broadcast. Today's teaching is available free of charge at our website. Simply visit cross reference radio.com that's cross reference radio.com would also like to encourage you to subscribe to the cross reference radio podcast subscribing ensures that you stay current with all the latest teachings from Pastor Rick you could subscribe cross reference radio.com or simply search for cross reference radio in your favorite podcast to the next time as Pastor Rick continues teaching through the book of acts right here on cross reference rating