How to Recognize True Repentance #2

Remember beloved. Remember that Jesus said in John chapter 10 no one takes my life away from me. I lay it down of my own accord. I do this voluntarily, what kind of man does that seasons or before the coming of Christ to die on the cross for our sin. There has never been a man to compare the perfect God man who knew no sin took our punishment so that we might be restored to a right relationship with God.

That's what Pastor Don Greene will call us to fully realize today on the truth pulpit hired Bill Wright and Don is finishing up a message titled the cross of Christ drawn from Psalm 22 last time Don told us that the crucifixion could be broken down into three parts. The first was the problem of our Lord suffering today will see prayer and praise added to the picture so turn to Psalm 22 in your Bible and let's join Don now in the truthful Psalm 22 shows that Christ modeled a persistent trust. Psalm 22 verse nine he says yet you are he who brought me forth from the he says.

Despite this rejection that is going on around me in the way that they sneer at me. I remember who you are. My father you are he who brought me forth from the womb.

You made me trustful and upon my mother's breasts upon you. I was cast from birth. You have been my God from my mother's womb. Notice again that he says the Psalm opened up my God, my God, why have you forsaken me. This wasn't the first time that he never thought that her said that here in this verse we see that that he was thinking of the father is my God from the very beginning of his earthly life. The beginning of his incarnation, my God, my God, my God, it's written throughout the Psalm in that trust and from that position of trust. There's a spirit of prayer that comes forth in verse 11. Be not far from me, for trouble is near for there is none to help be not far from me expresses the urgency in the sense of the of the abandonment and the separation all the sorrow is particularly intense now.

Don't be far from me in the midst of my hour of my greatest needs. I need help now and he goes on, and he describes his enemies like strong animals are using metaphors to describe them like strong animals that were surrounding them for the kill. Verse 12. Many bulls have surrounded me strong bulls of Bashan have encircled me and then we go on and we see they open wide their mouth at me as a ray evening and a roaring lion, I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint. My heart is like wax. It is melted within me. His physical strength is dissipating as the hour of death draws near the intensity of his thirst even is spoken of in this passage you remember from the Gospel of John. He said from the cross. I said I thirst. Here's here's the maker of heaven and earth, one who separated the heavens from the earth, the one who created the ocean two controls the skies and controls the rain and he says I'm thirsty. How deep is the humiliation how deep is the self-sacrifice that would give him over to a suffering like that. Remember, beloved, remember that Jesus said in John chapter 10 no one takes my life away from me. I lay it down of my own accord. I do this voluntarily, what kind of man does that for those who hate him.

Verse 15. My strength is dried up like a potsherd. My tongue cleaves to my jaw and you lay me in the dust of death for dogs have surrounded me dogs at that time were not the friendly domesticated animals that we know it as dogs today. They were wild, savage scavengers, so you have these evil wicked men crucifying him calling out mocking him, having spat on him, having crushed the crown of his head with the crown of thorns mocking him, beating him blind folding him and in a a stunning prophecy of the crucifixion in verse 16.

The song was written centuries before crucifixion was invented as a form of capital punishment for 16 they pierced my hands and my feet. I can count on my bones.

They look they stare at me. They divide my garments among them, and for my clothing they cast lots look over John 19 verse 23 John 19 verse 23 then the soldiers when they had crucified Jesus after seeing the fulfillment of Psalm 22, recorded a thousand years later thousand years later you know a thousand years.

Liz is for us was like 400 years before Columbus came and discovered the Americas. That's how long the time pass. That's how that's how profound Scripture is. That's how perfectly God sees the future. It's how much he controls the future they can speak in a thousand years later his word is fulfilled to perfection in every detail so much in the song John 19 verse 20 through the soldiers when they had crucified Jesus took his outer garments and made for parts apart to every soldier and also the tunic. Now the tunic with seamless woven in one piece so they said to one another.

These Roman soldiers fulfilling the prophecies without even knowing it, just going about their normal business and yet fulfilling the hand of what God prophesied.

So they said to one another, let us not terribly cast lots for to decide whose it shall be.

This was to fulfill the Scripture. They divided my outer garments among them, and for my clothing they cast lots.

Therefore, the soldiers did these things and so the dislocated bones thirst the pierced hands and feet. The division of clothing all came to pass during the suffering of our Lord listen beloved. What I want you to see is that whatever importance we attach to those things is a Vincennes. Our society what we're seeing here from Psalm 22 is of infinitely greater importance, infinitely greater value is of much more enduring significance in all of those things, and anything else she could throw into the pot with them, combine because because there is no one more important in the universe than Jesus Christ. There is no event in the course of human history. More important than his crucifixion is an act of redemption on behalf of sinners, and so shouldn't we, as believers in Christ, at least for at least for a time just said all of this other stuff aside and give this act of Christ in his sufferings on our behalf.

The unique prominence in the unique affection that it alone deserve.

This puts everything into perspective. It puts everything into context and for the believing heart.

We see this is where the supremacy of my affections lie.

I don't like the other staff and I enjoy certain things in life. But it's all secondary to the magnificence of this suffering servant to the purity of this innocent lamb slain for sinners like me and like you to the caring oversight of this shepherd who was slain for his sheep, takes your breath away to so we seen the problem of Christ suffering here in these first 18 verses and now going to pivot into our second point prayer in Christ suffering the prayer in Christ suffering in this desperate condition in which he found himself Christ prays David penned this in Christ modeled it.

Later on, as will see briefly so. This prayer comes in the midst of all of this mocking of his enemy. This prayer comes but you oh Lord they're counting the Egan count is bones are dividing his garments. His last earthly possession is that is a matter of a dice game to pagan soldiers. The eternal son of God. I can't get over this. I can't get over the fact they were describing what happened to the eternal holy eternal son of God. I can get over how does he respond in the midst of that utter rejection and abandonment. Verse 19 he still manifesting an unconditional trust in his father says that you oh Lord, be not far off OU my help hasten to my assistance deliver my soul from the sword. My only life from the power of the dog, save me from the lion's mouth from the horns of the wild oxen you answer me, and so in the midst of this, he's declaring his trust in God and calling upon him in and saying answer me and this prayer marks a decisive turning point in the song beforehand in the first 18 verses you see an alternation between his his cries of trust in the description of the suffering here in verses 19 through 21.

As one commentator says the alternate cries and prayers give way to praise into a broadening of God's perfect rule. Notice here in these three verses that that in the midst of the suffering there is a complete unbroken confidence as he is. He calls for help. He calls them on the on the name of the covenant name the promise keeping name of Yahweh says hasten to my assistance in verse 21 he says from the horns of the wild oxen you answer me there's a spirit of confidence that God will hear his prayer. God has heard his prayer and he will not abandon him forever to the suffering, despite all external appearances to the contrary. What's he doing here, except committing himself over to the care of God and saying your you're the only one who can help me here. Remember praying to like that in times in your own experience were things were utterly impossible and you finally turn to God, humbled, and in your own the fullness of your hearts and your the only one who can help me here God. I remember a time or two like that.

I'm sure you do to you been a Christian for any length of time now to the depth of sorrow in the in the sense that there is no human help to be had here, and perhaps people stronger than you had the authority in the upper hand over you, you just you just cried out to God and an expression of trust will Christ mirrored this on the cross. We happen to comment on this first last time when winded. Christ manifests this during the crucifixion.

Luke 2346 father, into your hands I commit my spirit. He hands himself over to God in a complete active trust, and then he breathed his last. He had gone through the separation and now the time for his earthly life to and had come in. Even in that most desperate moment from a human perspective. He says father, into your hands I commit my spirit father. I'm confident that you will answer me, and what comes from that that the contrast in mood and in verses 22 to 31 are astounding. It's it's overwhelming just to see the contrast of what flows from this because having seen the problem of Christ suffering in the prayer in Christ suffering now in the third part of the song were going to see the praise from Christ suffering. This is this is a total redirection of of mood and tone and intent.

In what follows, and what you see in this in this final section of the Psalm is you see an ever expanding circle of worship and praise given to the God who granted deliverance to his son.

What were about to see here is that the Lord who suffered in isolation that suffering gave over to praise that echoes into the future. Still today that echoes in ever expanding circles of peoples and that that that that singularly great active trust was honored by God in a way that brings glory to him and also to his crew. The suffering yielded over to try out of incalculable proportions and unspeakable suffering gave way to to an infinite degree of praise. Our father honored our Savior's suffering honored his trust in ways that were going to see now verses 22 and 23 flowing from this trust is a commitment to praise, I will tell of your name to my brethren in the midst of the assembly. I will praise you now look how the circle starts to expand. It was individual. I will praise you and then and then he calls other God fears around you who fear the Lord.

Praise him, all you descendents of Jacob glorify him and stand in awe of him, all you descendents of Israel in Christ in Christ we have a brother who has brought us to the glory of God. Look over at Hebrews to see how the New Testament applies these verses to what we have just read the application that the writer of Hebrews makes Hebrews chapter 2 verses 10 through 12. Recognizing the glory of Christ in verse 22 from Psalm 22 and said I will tell of your name to my brethren. Now in verse 10 of Hebrews chapter 2 appears able to stay with me here says, for it was fitting for him, for whom are all things and through whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory to perfect the author of their salvation through sufferings for both.

He who sanctifies and those who are sanctified are all from one father, for which reason he meaning Christ is not ashamed to call them brethren unbelievable.

This is just incredible saying I will proclaim your name to my brethren in the midst of the congregation I will sing your praise and again I will put my trust in him. The outcome of the sufferings of Christ.

The intention to which he was submitting himself to those sufferings was so that he could gather together a people gather together those at the father had chosen before the beginning of time and and to save them so completely and so utterly that he would rightly gladly unashamedly call people like you and me who now believe in him. This one who transcended in his humanity. This perfect man who suffered on our behalf. Our sins drove him, as it were, to the cross that one now gladly calls us brothers gladly receives us as intimate family and because of that we praise his father. We praise the name of our Lord Jesus we are captivated by the glory and the love and the grace and the mercy that is been shown to us in arson and we love him with all our hearts, we worship him from the depths of our being let goods and kindred go this mortal life.

Also, nothing will take us away from that supreme affection of our heart that we reserve alone, for the Lord Jesus after what he is done. No I Christ can call us brethren, it's because his father did not abandon him at the cross, just like Jesus knew he would do. Jesus knew that he would not abandon him even though he was giving over his life and entering into death. He knew that the father would not abandon him.

He knew that the father had not despised him as all those around him had done verse 24 of Psalm 22 you who fear the Lord.

Praise him. Why verse 24 for he is not despised nor poured the affliction of the afflicted, nor has he hidden his face from him when he cried to him for help. He heard that's so sweet and precious.

The father having just poured out the wrath that should've been on us on to his son because he loves us and wanted to wanted to redeem us. And as he is pouring out wrath undeserved wrath on his son that it might be spared us in the midst of that.

The sun continues to trust him and commit his spirit over to him. Well, when the wrath was spent. The father heard that cry for help and was faithful to rush to answer what do we do we worship this great God of mercy, we honor him. We recognize that he is both the object and even the source of our praise. Verse 25 from you comes my praise in the great assembly. I shall pay my bowels before those who fear him. Verse 26 who will share in that verse 26 the afflicted will eat and be satisfied. Those those poor wants those poor in spirit.

Those that the world despises those sharing the joy don't build there will share in the feast. Who else will share in it. Those who seek him will praise the Lord will let your heart live forever, and so that it's expanded he said I will I will tell your name, you who fear the Lord, O Israel, and Jacob. You come and join in and the great assembly and it expand still further the greatness of this song transcends the suffering and the prophecies of Christ to look to the fulfillment of the fruit that it brings all the ends of the earth. Verse 27 will remember and turn to the Lord and all the families of the nations will worship before you.

Verse 28, for the kingdom is the Lord's and he rules over the nations, not just the afflicted, though all the prosperous of the earth will eat and worship with verses 30 and 31 posterity will serve him.

It will be told of the Lord, to the coming generation they will come and will declare his righteousness to a people who will be born that he has performed it at the end of verse 31. They will hear that he has performed that echoes again what Christ said on the cross. It is finished. It has been done. It is accomplished. John 1930 and so the son of God was alone with our sin and guilt and punishment, and in that forsaken ethical moment in time. What was he doing he did that for the redemption of the sinful human race. What we say in response a whole. Praise be to this God. Praise be to this Christ. Let the story never cease past generations told us past generations delivered the story to us today and what will we do, we will tell others who will go forth and tell still others yet to be born about this glory that this Christ, who was once abandoned is now the solitary hope in praise of sinners, the solitary hope in praise nations. A poignant message of self-sacrifice and ultimate love, all displayed by Jesus Christ on Calvary.

We pray you will reflect on today's lesson. All through this year. Pastor Don Green has more powerful words from Scripture next time and we hope you'll join us. Then on the truth pulpit will done on this radio broadcast is indeed a valuable tool to help increase biblical understanding, but we have other great tools available to don't wait.

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