Christ-Centered Thanks #2

Where is Christ I ask you where is Christ in the control room in the mission control center of your hardware. Is he in in relationship to that is not uncommon for a king to use his position to gain wealth and fame and prestige and also of course more power hello and welcome back to the truth pulpit with Don Greene, founding pastor of truth Community Church in Cincinnati, Ohio. I bill right and today is done brings a series a Christ filled Thanksgiving to a close, will show us that the King of King Jesus Christ used his position to do something very different when it came to power, position and prestige, something that will no doubt because our hearts to well up with tremendous gratitude.

Let's find out more from our teacher. As we join them right now for part two of the message called Christ centered. Thanks. Right here on the truth pulpit. You know that the Jewish leaders and the Pharisees who were the religious leaders in the day when Jesus when Jesus came to earth. They were opposed to his ministry. They were jealous of him. They were hostile to him on multiple occasions. They were plotting his death before they were able to achieve it at the hands of the Roman government and Jesus is telling a parable to them that will pick up in the middle to warn them into to warn them against what they were doing and also to set forth his preeminent position in the kingdom of God. So in Mark chapter 12 verse seven. I know I'm picking it up in the middle for the sake of time, those vine growers said to one another. This is the air come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.

Jesus was telling a parable about a man who planted a vineyard verse one and he he sent workers to do it in the people who came with being his workers send him away entered empty-handed. They wounded them and now finally as a climax.

He sends his son verse six. He had one more to send a beloved son. He sent him last of all, to them saying they will respect my son Jesus making a point about himself.

There it in the parable of the vine grower said let's kill them and will get the inheritance so verse eight. They took out the, the owner's son. They killed him and threw him out of the vineyard. Jesus asks this penetrating question what will the owner of the vineyard. Do he will come and destroy the vine growers and will give the vineyard to others. He says in verse 10, have you not even read this Scripture and he quotes Psalm 118 to them. The stone which the builders rejected. This became the chief cornerstone. This came about from the Lord and it is marvelous in our eyes. Jesus says you Pharisees are fulfilling Psalm 118 you are rejecting me. I am the chief cornerstone, and you are rejecting me and Christ applies the concept of the cornerstone to him to his own person. In acts chapter 4 this motif is picked up again.

Acts chapter 4 Peter's preaching and, if possible, makes the application even clearer. He says in verse 10 is he speaking to the Jews. Acts chapter 4 verse 10. Now he speaking after the crucifixion. After the resurrection. Jesus applied this song to himself before the crucifixion, Peter applies it afterwords it's locked up with bookend so that it cannot be missed. Acts chapter 4 verse 10. Let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel by the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead by this name.

This man stands before you in good health and speaking of Christ says he is the stone which was rejected by you the builders you Jews rejected Christ, but he is the stone which became the chief cornerstone. As Psalm 118 set forth and so the Jewish leaders rejected Christ preferred their position over submission to the, the, the God who is manifest in front of them.

They knew what they were doing. They knew they were rejecting him, they knew he was sinless. They knew that his miracles could not be denied, and they still rejected him and what Scripture tells us is is that this and in using this analogy, this precious stone.

This chief cornerstone that they rejected becomes the basis upon which all of spiritual salvation is built all of the church is built on this very one that the Jewish leaders of the time, wanted nothing to do with that's marvelous that that is a matter of God overturning the wisdom and judgment of men in order to accomplish his own purposes. What men rejected God set forth as the most important center of it all. And now what we find is this is that the church against which the gates of hell cannot prevail. The church is built on Christ the cornerstone look at Ephesians chapter 2 Ephesians chapter 2 beginning in verse 19 is the apostle uses many different pictures to show forth the great reality of the church and the people of God that are being built by the spirit of God in response to the crucifixion of the son of God, so he says in Ephesians chapter 2 verse 19 so then you are no longer strangers and aliens your fellow citizens with the saints center of God's household. That's a blessed message to Gentiles, who were separated from God and without hope in the world.

Now you been brought into Christ by the great work of the spirit and he says in verse 20 having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets here. It is Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone in whom the whole building, being fitted together is growing into a holy temple in the Lord in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the spirit.

How high and how lofty is the church of Christ. How high and how lofty is this work that the spirit is doing to conform us to the image of Christ and to form us and to build us into being a dwelling of God and the Holy Spirit. This is this is remarkable.

This is highly exalted. This is highly knowable this far transcends anything that is happening in the world around us. These spiritual realities to which Scripture testifies, and that the spirit of God is working out in our midst, and Jesus Christ is the cornerstone of it all and so if I can switch metaphors here we see the centrality of Christ in the building of the church we and we remember what Christ said he is sorry he is our bread.

He is our spiritual bread.

He is our our spiritual drink.

We feed off of him.

We live off of him.

We must have him nourishing our hearts and and and causing us to grow and and in yet we never outgrow our need to do to grow in him, and to abide in him you see Christ is the goal. Christ is the is the ultimate end of salvation is not that you get saved and then you move on to other things away from Christ. Christ saves you and then you move on to have a a a healthy and prosperous life in all of your dreams get fulfilled here on earth.

You know, in Christ proceeds into the background. Once the initial work of salvation is done. No no no no no no, we cannot think that way Christ saved us in order to become the preeminent object of our affections in the preeminent object of that which we love and that which we we aim toward we are built-in Christ and Christ is our goal.

We started in Christ we finish in Christ and everything in between is about Christ. That is true salvation and I would want to say in kindness and in a word of of earnest caution to those who have pictured salvation is something else you been rooted in thinking that something else about about Christ making your life happier giving you exactly the family that you want or are giving you exactly the earthly circumstances you want, you know. And that's your idea of salvation friends you may not understand the gospel if that's what you think. It's about.

It's about earthly attainment and and Christ being the. The axle grease which make sure make sure car move. No, no, Christ himself is the focus. Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness and all these things will be added to Christ alone is the objective of our affections. And that's what true salvation produces in the heart.

So I ask you whether that's what's in your heart is is knowing Christ loving Christ is that the preeminent affection of your heart.

Even if you stumble around and you know we all stumble in many ways. At the end of the day what is it that you love the most.

What is it that you want the most. Where is Christ I ask you where is Christ in the control room in the mission control center of your heart. Where is he, and in relationship to that because it's his glory that we preeminently love. If we are in Christ is that what the apostle John meant when he said in John chapter 3 verse 30. He must increase, I must decrease in yet we have multiple generations of Christians that have been conditioned to think about Jesus being the one who helps fulfill their earthly ambitions with no regard of loving him, obeying him longing for him and seeing him face-to-face. No wonder Scripture warns us that there will be many on that day, the Christ says to them.

I never knew you depart from me, you who practice lawlessness. These these things are glorious in their application to the believing hard as we embrace these things but oh what a warning and a a caution they are to those who have their life focused on something other than him. Christ is the cornerstone Christ is at the center of it all for the true believer and for the true church. Secondly, let's go on and see how the song is used elsewhere. Christ is the king. You'll remember that in the Old Testament, God elevated David to the throne of Israel and in second Samuel chapter 7, he promised David that he would have a son to sit upon his throne and what Scripture tells us is that Jesus Christ is that greater son of David.

He is the king of Israel and going back to Psalm 118 will see how this plays out in New Testament times that grounding this in the original prophetic song. Psalm 118 verse 26 we see the psalmist saying this, Psalm 118 verse 26 Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.

We have blessed you from the house of the Lord what you find as you read the Gospels, is that the people were quoting this song as they hailed Jesus at his triumphal entry into Jerusalem. Look at Matthew chapter 21 without little bit of background in place. Matthew chapter 21 and in verse six, I'm assuming that you know that some of the surrounding context for the sake of time, verse six, the disciples went and did just as Jesus had instructed them and brought the donkey and the colt and laid their coats on them and he sat on their coats.

This itself was in fulfillment of a prophecy that Zechariah made visual. You can look later at verse five in verse eight. For our purposes tonight.

This is what we want to see most of the crowd spread their coats in the road and others were cutting branches from the trees and spreading them in the road, the crowds going ahead of him and those who followed were shouting hosanna to the son of David, Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest, when he had entered Jerusalem, all the city was stirred saying who is this. The crowds were saying this is the prophet Jesus from Nazareth in Galilee. Now, as we know they hailed Jesus one day in basically crucified him. The next but their shouts of praise during his prophesied entry into Jerusalem were in fulfillment of this recognition that Psalm 118 speaks of look down in chapter 21 to verse 42 and you'll see how these link together what we were saying in our first point in the second point Jesus said to them, did you never read in the Scriptures, the stone which the builders rejected. This became the chief cornerstone. This came about from the Lord and it is marvelous in our eyes. Then in verse 45.

You see this, the chief priests and the Pharisees heard his parables, and they understood that he was speaking about them. The crowd rejected Christ because he was not giving them the earthly deliverance that they wanted in the Pharisees stirred up their fickle emotions against him. A few days later.

They didn't realize it at the time Christ came as a king became in his first had been in order to give spiritual deliverance to his people. He came in order to give his life and he was like a seed that had to fall in the ground and die in order that life might come forth the inherent life and the seed could come forth and bear fruit. At his second coming, heal, and establish his throne in Jerusalem, but we see in the usage of Psalm 118 how the Scripture ascribes to Christ the title son of David, we see that the praise given to him is rooted in the Solomon and we see that Christ is this king that was promised. He is the greater son of David as as you see even even in the genealogy in Matthew chapter 1.

You see the line of Christ being established, showing that he was entitled to the throne of David by genealogical dissent in one day. Still future to us. Israel will greet him in his rightful capacity as King look at Matthew chapter 23 verse 37 and in this text, which ends with this quote from Psalm 118 Matthew 23 verse 37 Jesus says Jerusalem Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her how often I wanted to gather your children together, the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were on willing. He attributes the moral because the moral culpability for their for their loss of salvation was with them and their unwillingness not with the God who ordained salvation.

So there were consequences for their rebellion.

Verse 38 behold, your house is being left to you desolate for verse 39 for I say to you, from now on you will not see me until you say Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord they they they ascribe that to him in his first Advent. Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord when Christ returns to earth. There is going to be a conversion of Israel. There will be a supernatural saving of Israel. They will look and they will see their Messiah and that he who they want rejected. They now will welcome.

Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord and God will manifest his great faithfulness to the nation of Israel by producing a national conversion and national repentance at the second coming of Christ. When they embrace him like they should have the first time around. And at that second coming Christ will reign as king over the earth and in the majesty, the majesty of his people, welcoming him, saying, Blessed is he who comes the second coming of the Lord there. There is going to be this reception of Christ. This recognition of his king and this glad reception and submission to him. Blessed is he praise God he is the one who comes in the name of Yahweh. So Christ is the king we see this from the way that the New Testament applies. Psalm 118 to his person.

Thirdly and finally we see this we see the Christ is the sacrifice Christ as the sacrifice is the cornerstone. He's the king he's the sacrifice back in Psalm 118 one final time, where it says in verse 27 the Lord is God and he is given a slight bind. The festival sacrifice with cords to the horns of the altar. In Old Testament times. The animal was tied to the altar and then slain in Christ we have is not the sacrifice of an animal but a sacrifice of the Lord himself wasn't strapped to an altar. He was nailed to a cross and offered up as the sacrifice which would atone for the sins of his people. It was there at the cross where he paid for our sins.

With his precious blood, the animal sacrifices were done they were shadows pointing to the ultimate reality of the sacrifice of Christ.

The repetition over and over again of the Old Testament sacrifices is done away with in the new because Christ is the sacrifice he is the ultimate sacrifice. The fulfillment of all of the shadows of those other sacrifices were pointing to, but had no efficacy of their own. Christ is the cornerstone Christ is the king and Christ is is the sacrifice. How can that be.

This is totally contrary to everything that we know earthly about what people with power do they don't do this to themselves. They don't sacrifice themselves. They use their position to accumulate wealth and power to themselves. This is the testimony of 6000 years of human history, and yet what we have here pointed to us in Psalm 118 is something that is utterly contrary to normal human experience you have the cornerstone, the one who is the royal thread that runs through pre-eternity to eternity future eternity past to eternity future and he is the bright royal purple ribbon. The runs through it all is the center of human history we measure time by him and he's the king, and yet this king humbled himself, coming down from heaven to live in human flesh, giving himself as a sacrifice on the cross for the sins of his people is guilty. People what you make of that what kind of unique otherworldly character is this that one of his exalted Majesty would step down like that in Philippians 2, kind of way. Although he existed in the form of God, he did not regard his equality with God a thing to be grass, but emptied himself, taking the form of a bondservant being made in the likeness of men being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. This king gave his life for us.

Amazing well might we all take our shoes off because were standing on holy ground here, Christ the king humbled himself to be the sacrifice for his own people to secure their well-being. He gave himself up for our well-being. We who were not looking for him. He was looking for us. We who rejected him. He was looking to accept us and to purchase us for his own through the cross and in his own person. He is the cornerstone upon which a people for his own praise is built. We are part of a great plan with the glory of it all belongs to Christ, we have received great mercy but the glory of all of that belongs to Christ. And so as we look at Psalm 118 through New Testament eyes as we understand something of the greatness of who Christ is and what he is done for us.

What do we to what do we do in response to this Majesty go back to someone 18 and we come full circle.

Verse 29. Give thanks to the Lord for he is good for his lovingkindness is everlasting. See our Thanksgiving is always rightly a Christ centered. Thanks.

It starts with him.

It ends with him is to his glory will friend if you'd like to hear this message again were to be like to share it with a friend or loved one. Just go to the truth. Pulpit.com that's the true pulpit.com will done as we bring this series to a close about some final thoughts on thankfulness and gratitude friend. I've always been convicted by what the apostle Paul said in first Thessalonians 518 in everything give thanks, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus. When we look at the world we see cause for a troubled heart.

But when we lift up our eyes to Christ, and we see him in glory that causes us to find renewed hope and gratitude is the spirit of God works in our heart and so as we close this series about a Christ filled Thanksgiving.

My friend let me just encourage you think about Christ read about Christ in the Scriptures and meditate on that and and you'll find that all things will be well when your mind is centered on Christ. It has a transforming impact on your heart and the things of this world grow strangely dim in the light of his glory and grace that is good reason to give thanks and friend. We trust that our time. Today has been an encouragement to you. We do hope you'll join us again next time right here on the truth pulpit teaching God's people. God's word