1 00:00:07,200 --> 00:00:10,200 We welcome you to the We Are Zion sermon podcast. 2 00:00:10,600 --> 00:00:13,000 We are a church based out of Chennai, India. 3 00:00:13,560 --> 00:00:16,560 We are thrilled that you tuned in today and hope that you will 4 00:00:16,560 --> 00:00:20,200 be refreshed, revived, and energized by what you hear. 5 00:00:21,040 --> 00:00:24,160 Our desire is that you will live life with a renewed sense of 6 00:00:24,160 --> 00:00:27,880 purpose that stems from a vibrant faith in Jesus. 7 00:00:28,600 --> 00:00:33,440 The year 2025 is 1 where we will be positioned by God to possess 8 00:00:33,560 --> 00:00:36,480 our promise. This Good Friday we look at 9 00:00:36,480 --> 00:00:40,400 Jesus, our substitute who took our place on the cross. 10 00:00:40,960 --> 00:00:44,520 It should have been us, but he bore it for all our sakes. 11 00:00:44,960 --> 00:00:46,680 How do you look at the cross today? 12 00:00:47,320 --> 00:00:51,240 Does it bring remembrance of all that Jesus has done for you or 13 00:00:51,240 --> 00:00:54,360 have you become immune and apathetic to it? 14 00:00:56,200 --> 00:00:59,080 High Church, what a joy it is to bring God's word to you on this 15 00:00:59,080 --> 00:01:02,600 very Good Friday. You know, whenever we celebrate 16 00:01:02,600 --> 00:01:05,200 Good Friday, I think the world, those who don't know Jesus, 17 00:01:05,200 --> 00:01:08,280 don't know about what he has done for us sometimes wonder why 18 00:01:08,280 --> 00:01:11,600 we celebrate on this Friday. They say, well, it's such a sad 19 00:01:11,600 --> 00:01:16,320 day, how are you celebrating? But we know that this day marks 20 00:01:16,840 --> 00:01:20,680 God's victory through his Son Jesus over sin and death. 21 00:01:20,920 --> 00:01:24,520 It is such a victorious day. We have every reason to 22 00:01:24,520 --> 00:01:28,280 celebrate and you know, I want to really bring our focus today 23 00:01:28,280 --> 00:01:31,880 to the cross because that is the epicenter of where everything 24 00:01:31,880 --> 00:01:33,600 changed. That is the epicenter of 25 00:01:33,600 --> 00:01:37,360 transformation for us. That's where we actually 26 00:01:38,040 --> 00:01:41,440 experience something so life transformative and life changing 27 00:01:41,440 --> 00:01:43,600 that we have never been the same again. 28 00:01:44,240 --> 00:01:47,920 And I was reading the story about this French policeman 29 00:01:47,920 --> 00:01:51,840 called Arnold Beltram. And he became world famous 30 00:01:51,840 --> 00:01:55,720 because he stood his ground against a terrorist who had 31 00:01:55,720 --> 00:02:00,160 actually stormed into a shop, taken people hostage, killed a 32 00:02:00,160 --> 00:02:02,720 couple of people, had some homemade bombs. 33 00:02:02,720 --> 00:02:06,080 And he was just on the verge of creating a lot of harm. 34 00:02:06,760 --> 00:02:10,479 And Arnaud was the policeman in charge who entered that place. 35 00:02:10,840 --> 00:02:15,320 And actually, when it came to a stand off where the the 36 00:02:15,480 --> 00:02:18,640 terrorists had actually taken a woman cashier as his hostage. 37 00:02:18,960 --> 00:02:21,800 And he was, you know, you know, holding her at gunpoint as a 38 00:02:21,800 --> 00:02:24,440 body shield. And the amazing thing that 39 00:02:24,440 --> 00:02:28,160 Arnaud did, which the whole world heard about through media, 40 00:02:28,160 --> 00:02:31,920 was that he said he would exchange himself for that 41 00:02:31,920 --> 00:02:33,840 hostage. He said, you let her go, you can 42 00:02:33,840 --> 00:02:37,560 hold me as a body shield. And in the ensuing scuffle of 43 00:02:37,560 --> 00:02:40,000 what happened, the the hostage went free. 44 00:02:40,000 --> 00:02:45,120 She was safe. But Arnold Beltrum ended up shot 45 00:02:45,120 --> 00:02:48,040 and stabbed multiple times and didn't make it. 46 00:02:48,760 --> 00:02:52,080 And I wonder if that hostage remembered that. 47 00:02:52,080 --> 00:02:55,480 I'm sure she remembers the day. But whenever she sees a picture 48 00:02:55,480 --> 00:02:57,800 of Arnold Beltrum, I wonder if she wonders. 49 00:02:58,320 --> 00:03:01,080 That should have been me. That should have been me. 50 00:03:01,080 --> 00:03:05,520 He took her place and this is such an inadequate example of 51 00:03:05,520 --> 00:03:08,800 what Jesus did, but it helps us better understand the magnitude 52 00:03:08,800 --> 00:03:11,720 of what Jesus did. When we look at the cross, what 53 00:03:11,720 --> 00:03:13,720 do we think? Is it just a fashion symbol? 54 00:03:13,720 --> 00:03:17,120 Is it just a, is it just this a symbolic thing that we wear 55 00:03:17,120 --> 00:03:21,320 around our necks or carry on our bags or have as a, as a profile 56 00:03:21,320 --> 00:03:23,240 picture? But do we actually understand 57 00:03:23,280 --> 00:03:27,120 all that it symbolises for us? Do we realise that whenever I 58 00:03:27,120 --> 00:03:31,360 look at the cross, I'm saying that should have been me on it. 59 00:03:32,160 --> 00:03:36,520 That cross should have worn me. And so today I've titled my 60 00:03:36,520 --> 00:03:38,200 sermon. It should have been me. 61 00:03:38,840 --> 00:03:42,040 It should have been me. You know, Jesus is sacrifice, 62 00:03:42,040 --> 00:03:45,640 perfect sacrifice on that cross. The way he was harassed, 63 00:03:45,680 --> 00:03:50,520 brutalized, traumatized, attacked, made to suffer in 64 00:03:50,520 --> 00:03:54,200 dignities of all kind, and then paraded through the city of 65 00:03:54,200 --> 00:03:57,480 Jerusalem and then taken to the outskirts and hung on the cross 66 00:03:57,520 --> 00:04:00,280 at Calvary. All of that was actually a 67 00:04:00,280 --> 00:04:04,800 substitute for the sacrificial system that was just steeped in 68 00:04:04,880 --> 00:04:07,480 Jewish culture. You know, they had these Rams 69 00:04:07,480 --> 00:04:11,200 and goats and pigeons, and based on your economic status, you 70 00:04:11,200 --> 00:04:12,880 could go and sacrifice something. 71 00:04:13,920 --> 00:04:16,839 Jesus was the substitute for that sacrificial system. 72 00:04:17,079 --> 00:04:21,160 But if I have to bring it into today, right where we are at 73 00:04:21,600 --> 00:04:26,160 Jesus death on the cross was a substitute for each one of us. 74 00:04:26,840 --> 00:04:29,600 We deserve to be punished for the sins we have committed. 75 00:04:29,840 --> 00:04:34,800 We deserve that indignity for the way we have harboured sin, 76 00:04:34,800 --> 00:04:37,200 for the way we have perpetrated sin against others. 77 00:04:37,600 --> 00:04:43,360 But yet it was Jesus who stood in on our behalf instead of us. 78 00:04:43,600 --> 00:04:45,360 He took the brunt of the punishment. 79 00:04:45,520 --> 00:04:48,960 He offered us mercy. Mercy is the withholding of 80 00:04:48,960 --> 00:04:53,040 punishment. He showed us grace, unmerited 81 00:04:53,040 --> 00:04:54,640 favour. We didn't deserve this favour. 82 00:04:54,840 --> 00:04:58,920 And yet because of this act on the cross, today you and I who 83 00:04:58,920 --> 00:05:03,640 call on Jesus get to call the Father God, our very own ABBA 84 00:05:03,640 --> 00:05:05,920 Father. We now have access to him 85 00:05:06,160 --> 00:05:08,880 because of what Jesus did on the cross. 86 00:05:08,880 --> 00:05:11,120 Isn't it amazing? And today we're going to be 87 00:05:11,120 --> 00:05:15,280 looking at Isaiah 53 to understand better what it looks 88 00:05:15,280 --> 00:05:17,160 like when we say it should have been me. 89 00:05:17,680 --> 00:05:20,520 This is not some self pitying statement, it's a realistic 90 00:05:20,520 --> 00:05:22,480 statement. It's to better understand how 91 00:05:22,480 --> 00:05:25,840 Jesus was a substitution for you and me. 92 00:05:26,080 --> 00:05:29,520 So let's read Isaiah 53 reading from the NIV version. 93 00:05:29,520 --> 00:05:32,880 It says who has believed our message and to whom has the arm 94 00:05:32,880 --> 00:05:35,720 of the Lord been revealed? He grew up before him like a 95 00:05:35,720 --> 00:05:38,560 tender shoe and like a root out of dry ground. 96 00:05:38,960 --> 00:05:43,120 He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in 97 00:05:43,120 --> 00:05:44,960 his appearance that we should desire him. 98 00:05:45,280 --> 00:05:48,320 He was despised and rejected by mankind. 99 00:05:48,360 --> 00:05:52,760 A man of suffering and familiar with pain, like one from whom 100 00:05:52,760 --> 00:05:57,200 people hide their faces. He was despised and we held him 101 00:05:57,440 --> 00:06:01,480 in low esteem. This definition, it starts off 102 00:06:01,640 --> 00:06:04,400 with the arm of the Lord. And generally when the arm of 103 00:06:04,400 --> 00:06:07,040 the Lord is mentioned in Scripture, it indicates power, 104 00:06:07,040 --> 00:06:12,240 it indicates might, it indicates the supernatural elements of who 105 00:06:12,240 --> 00:06:14,600 God is. And yet the lines after that 106 00:06:14,840 --> 00:06:17,480 reveal the very human side of Jesus. 107 00:06:17,480 --> 00:06:20,000 He says he was ordinary, nothing much to look at. 108 00:06:20,160 --> 00:06:22,760 He was despised, He was afflicted, He was rejected. 109 00:06:23,360 --> 00:06:24,800 People didn't actually look at him. 110 00:06:24,800 --> 00:06:26,680 You wouldn't take a second glance at him. 111 00:06:26,960 --> 00:06:30,840 And it's talking about how Jesus is the source of unlikely power. 112 00:06:31,120 --> 00:06:34,160 Who would have thought this man is truly the Messiah? 113 00:06:34,160 --> 00:06:37,840 Well, he called himself that. He attested that He was the one 114 00:06:37,840 --> 00:06:40,760 promised in Isaiah 61, but no one really believed it. 115 00:06:41,000 --> 00:06:43,520 They took the miracles, they took the signs, they took the 116 00:06:43,520 --> 00:06:47,560 healing, but I don't think it sank into them as to the 117 00:06:47,560 --> 00:06:52,600 magnitude of who He really was. Verse 4 Surely he took up our 118 00:06:52,600 --> 00:06:57,040 pain and bore our suffering, Yet we considered Him punished by 119 00:06:57,040 --> 00:06:59,480 God, stricken by Him and afflicted. 120 00:06:59,760 --> 00:07:01,880 But he was pierced for our transgressions. 121 00:07:01,880 --> 00:07:03,760 He was crushed for our iniquities. 122 00:07:04,080 --> 00:07:07,640 The punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his 123 00:07:07,640 --> 00:07:11,400 wounds we are healed. Look at the the usage of the 124 00:07:11,400 --> 00:07:16,800 word our He took up our pain. He was pierced for our 125 00:07:16,800 --> 00:07:20,080 transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities. 126 00:07:20,200 --> 00:07:23,400 The punishment that brought us peace was on Him, and by His 127 00:07:23,400 --> 00:07:27,800 wounds we are healed. Do you see that transference 128 00:07:27,800 --> 00:07:31,360 which is happening there? It was my pain, it was my shame, 129 00:07:31,360 --> 00:07:34,600 it was my suffering, it was my transgression, it was my 130 00:07:34,600 --> 00:07:37,480 iniquity. But He took it up on my behalf 131 00:07:37,480 --> 00:07:40,880 because I couldn't bear it. You wouldn't be able to bear it. 132 00:07:41,080 --> 00:07:44,240 The weight of our sins is so much that we couldn't have borne 133 00:07:44,240 --> 00:07:48,360 it. And so Jesus bore it on himself. 134 00:07:48,520 --> 00:07:52,120 He was the substitute. He was the substitute. 135 00:07:53,280 --> 00:07:57,040 And if you notice that He didn't just step in, He took it up. 136 00:07:57,040 --> 00:08:01,680 It was actually an active taking up of what actually belonged to 137 00:08:01,680 --> 00:08:06,000 us. He took up, crushed, pierced. 138 00:08:06,800 --> 00:08:11,600 Punishment was on him. He actually stepped in and took 139 00:08:11,640 --> 00:08:14,040 everything that we deserved unto Him. 140 00:08:15,120 --> 00:08:18,160 And that's what a substitutionary sacrifice really 141 00:08:18,160 --> 00:08:20,200 looks like. Jesus stepped in. 142 00:08:21,040 --> 00:08:23,200 We could step down from that place. 143 00:08:23,280 --> 00:08:26,240 He bore it all. Verse 6. 144 00:08:26,400 --> 00:08:28,440 We all, like sheep, have gone astray. 145 00:08:28,880 --> 00:08:33,120 Each of us has turned to our own way, and the Lord has laid on 146 00:08:33,120 --> 00:08:38,320 him the iniquity of us all. This is the human condition. 147 00:08:38,520 --> 00:08:42,159 The best of us cannot assume that we won't wander. 148 00:08:42,640 --> 00:08:45,240 Everyone of us are prone to wander. 149 00:08:46,200 --> 00:08:48,600 Everyone of us, every last one of us. 150 00:08:49,040 --> 00:08:51,840 The the default state of our mind is to wander. 151 00:08:51,840 --> 00:08:54,240 The default state of our heart is to wander. 152 00:08:54,240 --> 00:08:58,680 And so He says, because of that inherent condition of all 153 00:08:58,680 --> 00:09:03,920 mankind, He laid on Jesus. The iniquity of all of us was 154 00:09:03,920 --> 00:09:06,680 seven. He was oppressed and afflicted, 155 00:09:06,680 --> 00:09:10,160 yet He did not open His mouth. He was like a lamb led to the 156 00:09:10,160 --> 00:09:12,280 slaughter. And as a sheep before a Shearer 157 00:09:12,280 --> 00:09:15,440 is silent, so He did not open His mouth. 158 00:09:15,640 --> 00:09:18,200 By oppression and judgement He was taken away. 159 00:09:18,600 --> 00:09:22,080 Yet who of His generation protested, For He was cut off 160 00:09:22,080 --> 00:09:24,880 from the land of the living. For the transgression of my 161 00:09:24,880 --> 00:09:29,560 people, He was punished, oppressed, afflicted. 162 00:09:31,440 --> 00:09:36,160 All of these adjectives, right? They indicate heavy pain. 163 00:09:36,160 --> 00:09:38,880 They experience. They're they're expressing to us 164 00:09:38,880 --> 00:09:40,560 an experience of pain and suffering. 165 00:09:40,560 --> 00:09:42,840 And I'm sure you're able to relate to at least one of these. 166 00:09:43,040 --> 00:09:44,440 You're probably gone through pain. 167 00:09:44,520 --> 00:09:46,160 You've probably had a bit of suffering. 168 00:09:46,320 --> 00:09:49,240 Maybe you've been oppressed. Maybe you've felt afflicted. 169 00:09:49,480 --> 00:09:53,440 And here was someone who felt all of that and took it off of 170 00:09:53,440 --> 00:09:59,800 us and laid it on himself. He bore it in silence and with 171 00:09:59,800 --> 00:10:01,880 humility. Isn't that amazing? 172 00:10:01,880 --> 00:10:04,360 Verse 9. He was assigned a grave with the 173 00:10:04,360 --> 00:10:07,640 wicked and with the rich. In his death, though he had done 174 00:10:07,640 --> 00:10:11,520 no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth, yet it was the 175 00:10:11,520 --> 00:10:15,040 Lord's will to crush him and cause him to suffer. 176 00:10:15,280 --> 00:10:18,520 And though the Lord makes his life an offering for sin, he 177 00:10:18,520 --> 00:10:21,760 will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will 178 00:10:21,760 --> 00:10:24,120 of the Lord will prosper in his hand. 179 00:10:24,400 --> 00:10:29,960 This sinless Jesus came as a rabbi was the Messiah, the one 180 00:10:29,960 --> 00:10:36,040 promised. 1 The Saviour of the world was allowed by his 181 00:10:36,040 --> 00:10:41,040 heavenly Father to walk this road of suffering, so that the 182 00:10:41,040 --> 00:10:44,480 joy set before him was that he would gather many children unto 183 00:10:44,480 --> 00:10:46,560 him. We, those of us, have said yes 184 00:10:46,560 --> 00:10:48,320 to Jesus. Those of us have brought him 185 00:10:48,320 --> 00:10:51,680 into our lives, into our hearts are the ones he talks about as 186 00:10:51,680 --> 00:10:55,440 his offspring. So this was the aim of all of 187 00:10:55,440 --> 00:10:58,640 what Good Friday is about. It wasn't for the moment, it 188 00:10:58,640 --> 00:11:02,880 wasn't a short term gain. It wasn't to display Jesus, you 189 00:11:02,880 --> 00:11:05,720 know, humility or sacrifice. Well, all of that was there. 190 00:11:06,040 --> 00:11:09,680 It was for a larger purpose. The purpose was the salvation of 191 00:11:09,680 --> 00:11:12,080 the world, salvation of all who believed. 192 00:11:12,960 --> 00:11:16,840 Verse 11 after he had suffered, He will see the light of life 193 00:11:16,840 --> 00:11:19,280 and be satisfied by his knowledge. 194 00:11:19,280 --> 00:11:22,840 My righteous servant will justify many and he will bear 195 00:11:23,240 --> 00:11:25,960 their iniquities. Look at how he's communicating 196 00:11:25,960 --> 00:11:29,960 what was going to be achieved. He would die, He would suffer, 197 00:11:30,080 --> 00:11:31,640 and yet he would see the light of life. 198 00:11:31,640 --> 00:11:35,080 He's talking about the resurrection and he's saying 199 00:11:35,080 --> 00:11:38,520 that this servant, this righteous servant, Jesus the 200 00:11:38,520 --> 00:11:40,960 righteous servant, will justify many. 201 00:11:41,240 --> 00:11:44,840 All our credits, all our accounts are credited fully. 202 00:11:45,000 --> 00:11:47,680 We are counted as righteous because of what Jesus did. 203 00:11:48,480 --> 00:11:51,320 He will justify us and bear our iniquities. 204 00:11:52,760 --> 00:11:58,720 This is the purpose of what happened on that Friday 2000 odd 205 00:11:58,720 --> 00:12:01,720 years back. This was the purpose, the 206 00:12:01,720 --> 00:12:05,440 justification of all mankind. Because you know, on our own we 207 00:12:05,440 --> 00:12:08,440 cannot justify anything. We can try to justify our 208 00:12:08,440 --> 00:12:13,480 actions, but it will not add up. But Jesus blood shed on that 209 00:12:13,480 --> 00:12:16,920 cross justified everyone. Verse 12. 210 00:12:17,120 --> 00:12:21,840 Therefore I will give him a portion among the great, and he 211 00:12:21,840 --> 00:12:25,160 will divide the spoils with the strong, because he poured out 212 00:12:25,160 --> 00:12:28,280 his life unto death, and was numbered with the transgressors, 213 00:12:28,640 --> 00:12:32,600 for he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the 214 00:12:32,600 --> 00:12:37,600 transgressors. The rewards that Jesus received 215 00:12:38,000 --> 00:12:41,000 was eternal. Did the Son of God receive 216 00:12:41,000 --> 00:12:43,760 rewards? Yes, because it says His name is 217 00:12:43,760 --> 00:12:47,360 higher than every other name and that the name of Jesus, every 218 00:12:47,360 --> 00:12:49,560 knee will bow on heaven and on earth. 219 00:12:49,760 --> 00:12:53,040 This was the exaltation and the glorification which Jesus 220 00:12:53,040 --> 00:12:56,000 received because of the obedience that He had and 221 00:12:56,000 --> 00:12:58,520 displayed. The submission to the Father 222 00:12:59,200 --> 00:13:03,760 exalted and glorified Him to the highest name ever. 223 00:13:04,680 --> 00:13:08,560 And so this is how we, when we look at the the culmination of 224 00:13:08,560 --> 00:13:13,240 this chapter, all of it was lived out on that Friday, that 225 00:13:13,240 --> 00:13:17,080 day when Jesus was crucified, when Jesus was tortured, he was 226 00:13:17,080 --> 00:13:18,840 crucified. He was made a spectacle. 227 00:13:19,040 --> 00:13:22,560 But what was actually happening was this huge substitution was 228 00:13:22,560 --> 00:13:26,040 taking place. He was standing there instead of 229 00:13:26,040 --> 00:13:27,880 you and me. He was standing there instead of 230 00:13:27,880 --> 00:13:30,280 every man, woman and child of that time. 231 00:13:30,880 --> 00:13:33,360 He was standing there as a substitution for everyone who 232 00:13:33,360 --> 00:13:37,400 had gone before him. He was standing there to say, I 233 00:13:37,400 --> 00:13:40,800 have now stepped in. You don't bear the brunt of what 234 00:13:40,800 --> 00:13:42,080 you've done. I will. 235 00:13:43,120 --> 00:13:45,600 And that's the beauty of being a substitute. 236 00:13:45,600 --> 00:13:48,960 You know, none of us can be a substitute for anyone else. 237 00:13:49,560 --> 00:13:52,400 You know, I remember during COVID, all our children were 238 00:13:52,400 --> 00:13:55,560 online and each of them were struggling with different 239 00:13:55,560 --> 00:13:59,080 subjects and being at home watching, I was juggling, you 240 00:13:59,080 --> 00:14:01,440 know, going between 3 systems, making sure all of them were 241 00:14:01,440 --> 00:14:03,520 logged in, all of them were getting there, you know, 242 00:14:03,520 --> 00:14:05,760 finishing up their work. I remember there was a time when 243 00:14:05,760 --> 00:14:08,880 all of them were having tests and one of our children hadn't 244 00:14:08,880 --> 00:14:12,040 prepared for a test. And I remember so desperately 245 00:14:12,040 --> 00:14:16,400 trying to coach the child before the test and but no matter what 246 00:14:16,400 --> 00:14:18,640 I could do, I couldn't substitute for him. 247 00:14:19,240 --> 00:14:23,240 I could see the child needing help, but I couldn't take his 248 00:14:23,240 --> 00:14:27,160 place and answer the questions. I couldn't step up and be for 249 00:14:27,160 --> 00:14:29,440 him what only he could be for himself. 250 00:14:29,600 --> 00:14:33,600 And I realise just as we grow our children up, as we do our 251 00:14:33,600 --> 00:14:37,200 lives as married couples, as we are children of ageing parents, 252 00:14:37,360 --> 00:14:40,440 or whatever your role in life is, I cannot substitute for 253 00:14:40,440 --> 00:14:43,800 anyone else. And I realise with greater 254 00:14:43,800 --> 00:14:47,520 gratitude than ever before that Jesus, what you did for me is 255 00:14:47,520 --> 00:14:51,680 unbelievable. No one can stand in for anyone 256 00:14:51,680 --> 00:14:55,600 else the way Jesus did for me. So if you are today standing in 257 00:14:55,600 --> 00:14:59,480 this place of trying to be a bridge for someone, if you're 258 00:14:59,480 --> 00:15:02,240 trying to be a Redeemer for someone, you cannot, we cannot 259 00:15:02,240 --> 00:15:04,840 redeem anything. You're trying to be someone's 260 00:15:04,840 --> 00:15:08,600 saviour. You cannot because we already 261 00:15:08,600 --> 00:15:12,800 have all of that in Jesus. We have all of that in him. 262 00:15:13,280 --> 00:15:18,480 And I just want to encourage you that when we look at Jesus, we 263 00:15:18,480 --> 00:15:20,800 don't look at him anymore as on the cross. 264 00:15:21,040 --> 00:15:23,360 But when I look at the cross, I remember that it should have 265 00:15:23,360 --> 00:15:25,720 been me on that cross, but it was Jesus instead. 266 00:15:26,280 --> 00:15:29,560 And he stood in for me and achieved for me what I could 267 00:15:29,560 --> 00:15:34,600 never have achieved for myself. And today when you go through 268 00:15:34,680 --> 00:15:39,240 suffering and pain and shame and torment, you probably think, 269 00:15:39,240 --> 00:15:41,960 well, if Jesus took it all on the cross, why am I still going 270 00:15:41,960 --> 00:15:44,560 through it? Well, this is the side effects 271 00:15:44,560 --> 00:15:47,720 of living in a broken world. All of these things will happen 272 00:15:47,720 --> 00:15:49,080 to us. They will touch our lives. 273 00:15:49,400 --> 00:15:54,120 We will walk through it. But it's beautiful because I 274 00:15:54,120 --> 00:15:58,320 believe that so much good comes out of all of the hard stuff. 275 00:15:58,680 --> 00:16:02,120 And that is because of the hands of the Redeemer on us. 276 00:16:02,480 --> 00:16:06,160 I believe that from all our afflictions, God can save us 277 00:16:06,520 --> 00:16:10,920 because He is our Saviour. I believe that he can wash us 278 00:16:10,920 --> 00:16:14,280 clean and make us pure because He is the one who refines us. 279 00:16:14,480 --> 00:16:18,160 He's the one who consecrates us. I believe that from the ailments 280 00:16:18,160 --> 00:16:20,400 we go through, we can experience healing. 281 00:16:21,040 --> 00:16:23,600 I believe that our inner man can be healed from the stuff that 282 00:16:23,600 --> 00:16:27,400 has afflicted us for years because He is our healer. 283 00:16:28,360 --> 00:16:32,680 But the important thing to realise is that when I say it's, 284 00:16:33,040 --> 00:16:36,440 it's all about him. I really need to stop making it 285 00:16:36,440 --> 00:16:39,800 so much about me. It should have been me. 286 00:16:39,800 --> 00:16:42,320 If that is your resonating chorus when you look at the 287 00:16:42,320 --> 00:16:46,160 cross, let us also change the narrative to say it should have 288 00:16:46,160 --> 00:16:47,760 been me. But it isn't. 289 00:16:48,240 --> 00:16:49,960 It wasn't. It was Jesus. 290 00:16:50,080 --> 00:16:52,720 But we need to go to the next stage where we don't make it all 291 00:16:52,720 --> 00:16:56,440 about ourselves. Sometimes we tend to say, oh 292 00:16:56,440 --> 00:16:59,880 wow, this life is so hard. This is written on my forehead. 293 00:16:59,880 --> 00:17:02,800 This is my life. This is what I meant to carry 294 00:17:03,240 --> 00:17:05,800 this hardship, this suffering, this pain. 295 00:17:06,480 --> 00:17:09,240 It seems to follow me around. It seems to have my name on it. 296 00:17:10,599 --> 00:17:12,400 It should have been me, but it wasn't. 297 00:17:12,520 --> 00:17:15,119 And I don't get to make it all about me. 298 00:17:15,800 --> 00:17:20,079 I have to make it all about the one who did it for me. 299 00:17:20,400 --> 00:17:22,160 I need to make it all about Jesus. 300 00:17:22,160 --> 00:17:25,800 I'm not the hero of my story. I'm not a Redeemer of anyone. 301 00:17:25,960 --> 00:17:29,480 I'm not a saviour for anyone. I'm not the atonement for 302 00:17:29,480 --> 00:17:31,360 anyone. I can't be paying the price for 303 00:17:31,360 --> 00:17:33,880 someone else's sins. I cannot even pay the price for 304 00:17:33,880 --> 00:17:37,680 my own sins. And that's when I come to the 305 00:17:37,680 --> 00:17:41,920 one who actually did take my place, the one who substituted 306 00:17:42,120 --> 00:17:45,840 for me. You know, when I make everything 307 00:17:45,840 --> 00:17:48,480 about myself, it's so easy to make our stories about 308 00:17:48,480 --> 00:17:51,080 ourselves. Oh well, I'm self-made this. 309 00:17:51,080 --> 00:17:53,880 I achieved it on my own. The minute we start doing that, 310 00:17:54,200 --> 00:17:57,040 we take the divinity out of the substitution that happened on 311 00:17:57,040 --> 00:18:00,680 the cross. What happened that day was a 312 00:18:00,680 --> 00:18:05,760 divine moment. Jesus was 100% human, but he was 313 00:18:05,760 --> 00:18:08,120 100% God. He was perfect. 314 00:18:09,240 --> 00:18:12,080 And yet in that complete weakness, he submitted and 315 00:18:12,080 --> 00:18:14,840 surrendered himself to what God had allowed. 316 00:18:15,760 --> 00:18:19,720 And so today I want us to look at the cross with fresh eyes. 317 00:18:19,920 --> 00:18:22,280 I want us to look at the cross for what it really is. 318 00:18:22,840 --> 00:18:26,640 Because Jesus very clearly told his disciples way before he got 319 00:18:26,640 --> 00:18:29,840 crucified. He said take up your cross and 320 00:18:29,840 --> 00:18:32,360 follow me, right? This is what he said. 321 00:18:33,040 --> 00:18:36,720 And I want to ask you, what have you been taking up? 322 00:18:37,600 --> 00:18:40,360 Many times it feels heavy. So if we assume it's a cross, 323 00:18:41,760 --> 00:18:45,640 but sometimes sin can feel heavy, guilt can feel heavy, 324 00:18:45,640 --> 00:18:48,600 shame can feel heavy. The labels people have put on us 325 00:18:48,600 --> 00:18:50,760 can feel heavy. The labels we have put on 326 00:18:50,760 --> 00:18:53,920 ourselves can feel heavy. The dysfunction that we have 327 00:18:53,920 --> 00:18:55,760 allowed into our lives can feel heavy. 328 00:18:56,800 --> 00:19:01,000 And maybe it's time that we need to come and lay down some of 329 00:19:01,000 --> 00:19:04,520 these things so that we can actually take up the cross. 330 00:19:04,880 --> 00:19:07,800 I remember last year teaching about how the cross symbolizes 331 00:19:08,040 --> 00:19:11,400 our weighty assignments. The Kingdom assignment that is 332 00:19:11,400 --> 00:19:14,280 marked for everyone of God's children is weighty. 333 00:19:14,280 --> 00:19:17,160 It's heavy. We cannot carry it on our own, 334 00:19:17,160 --> 00:19:20,480 which is why he says, take my yoke upon you, learn from me. 335 00:19:21,920 --> 00:19:25,240 He says he cares for us and he shares the load, which is why we 336 00:19:25,240 --> 00:19:28,080 need Jesus so much because this assignment is all about him. 337 00:19:28,880 --> 00:19:32,880 It's all about him needing us to to help a hurting world. 338 00:19:33,280 --> 00:19:36,400 But I want to bring us back to something more when it comes to 339 00:19:36,400 --> 00:19:37,840 the cross. Every time you look at the 340 00:19:37,840 --> 00:19:40,680 cross, I want you to understand there are certain things that 341 00:19:40,840 --> 00:19:44,120 are implied about this cross because the cross will change 342 00:19:44,120 --> 00:19:47,080 your life. When we keep the cross of Jesus 343 00:19:47,200 --> 00:19:50,320 in in the forefront, it changes so many things. 344 00:19:51,800 --> 00:19:55,120 Many times we we emphasize on the cross and not the the 345 00:19:55,120 --> 00:19:57,760 command that Jesus gave off. He says take up your cross. 346 00:19:58,240 --> 00:20:00,400 When I take up something, I have to lay down something. 347 00:20:01,560 --> 00:20:02,840 What are you willing to lay down? 348 00:20:03,640 --> 00:20:07,640 Are you willing to lay down the baggage that you have assumed 349 00:20:07,640 --> 00:20:10,360 you needed to carry? Are you willing to lay down the 350 00:20:10,360 --> 00:20:13,680 identity that you have assumed for yourself and take up the 351 00:20:13,680 --> 00:20:15,720 cross? But it doesn't end up with end 352 00:20:15,720 --> 00:20:17,240 up with just you taking your cross. 353 00:20:17,440 --> 00:20:21,040 You need to follow Jesus because the one we follow is so much 354 00:20:21,040 --> 00:20:22,520 more important than what we carry. 355 00:20:25,440 --> 00:20:28,360 So the weighty Kingdom assignment is very, very heavy. 356 00:20:29,920 --> 00:20:35,400 But I want us to be challenged today to do 4 things to 357 00:20:35,400 --> 00:20:38,680 understand the cross and take it up for four reasons. 358 00:20:38,920 --> 00:20:41,840 Because when you take the cross up, the first thing is the cross 359 00:20:41,840 --> 00:20:44,520 is a separator. What does that mean? 360 00:20:45,200 --> 00:20:47,560 What does it mean? The cross is a separate? 361 00:20:47,560 --> 00:20:51,160 I want to read from Hebrews chapter 13 verses 11 to 13. 362 00:20:51,160 --> 00:20:54,160 It says the high priest carries the blood of animals into the 363 00:20:54,160 --> 00:20:57,240 most holy place as a sin offering, but the bodies are 364 00:20:57,240 --> 00:21:02,160 burnt outside the camp and so Jesus also suffered outside the 365 00:21:02,160 --> 00:21:05,160 city gate to make the people holy through his own blood. 366 00:21:05,360 --> 00:21:10,480 Let us then go to him outside the camp bearing the disgrace he 367 00:21:10,480 --> 00:21:13,480 bore. The cross is a separator, 368 00:21:13,480 --> 00:21:17,480 meaning there was there is no way if you're carrying your 369 00:21:17,480 --> 00:21:18,880 cross, you will fit in with the crowd. 370 00:21:19,480 --> 00:21:22,120 There is no way when you're living the way Jesus wanted you 371 00:21:22,120 --> 00:21:25,120 to live, the narrow way that you will be able to do the things 372 00:21:25,120 --> 00:21:27,600 that everyone else is doing. You will not be able to attest 373 00:21:27,760 --> 00:21:30,280 to their lifestyle choices. You won't be able to do the 374 00:21:30,280 --> 00:21:32,160 things that they are saying is OK. 375 00:21:32,680 --> 00:21:34,960 It will separate you from the madding crowd. 376 00:21:34,960 --> 00:21:37,920 It will set you apart. The whole of last year our team 377 00:21:37,920 --> 00:21:42,320 was set apart being consecrated and and each of us in our church 378 00:21:42,320 --> 00:21:46,240 experienced a kind of refining so that he actually set us 379 00:21:46,240 --> 00:21:48,960 apart. He actually moved us away from 380 00:21:48,960 --> 00:21:52,920 what was fancy, what was comfortable, what was famous 381 00:21:53,040 --> 00:21:56,720 into what was now seclusion. And was it lonely? 382 00:21:56,720 --> 00:21:58,000 Was it hard? Yes. 383 00:21:58,560 --> 00:22:01,440 So many times when I go for youth retreats, the question is 384 00:22:01,440 --> 00:22:04,320 asked when you know, they know we are Christians. 385 00:22:04,320 --> 00:22:07,160 They don't invite us out for, you know, drinking parties and 386 00:22:07,160 --> 00:22:09,720 things. And you know, all we, we as 387 00:22:09,720 --> 00:22:12,480 youth leaders always have these, you know, bad answers that we 388 00:22:12,480 --> 00:22:14,560 give. But I remember reading this once 389 00:22:14,560 --> 00:22:19,080 before a youth and I asked them, do you really think that Jesus 390 00:22:19,080 --> 00:22:23,080 wants you to be part of the in crowd or would you be OK to let 391 00:22:23,080 --> 00:22:24,800 Jesus suffer outside the gate alone? 392 00:22:25,040 --> 00:22:27,200 Would you be OK in a bit of loneliness? 393 00:22:27,200 --> 00:22:31,000 Because it's interesting. God will arrange for encounters 394 00:22:31,000 --> 00:22:32,680 in those moments of being separated. 395 00:22:32,960 --> 00:22:36,360 God will arrange for you to be nurtured and to be a nurturer 396 00:22:36,360 --> 00:22:38,400 even in those moments of separation. 397 00:22:38,720 --> 00:22:43,720 The cross will bring separation. You know, too many of us are 398 00:22:43,720 --> 00:22:46,200 dying to be included. We want to be part of every 399 00:22:46,200 --> 00:22:47,920 conversation. We want to be part of every 400 00:22:47,920 --> 00:22:51,880 catch up. I want to encourage you that if 401 00:22:51,880 --> 00:22:55,440 your faith, your convictions, your lifestyle cause you to be 402 00:22:55,440 --> 00:22:57,480 evicted, cause you to be excluded, it's OK. 403 00:22:57,960 --> 00:22:59,600 Because the cross is a separator. 404 00:23:00,400 --> 00:23:03,160 Because once you choose to identify with Christ alone, once 405 00:23:03,160 --> 00:23:06,640 you choose to live in a way that glorifies Him, once you choose 406 00:23:06,640 --> 00:23:10,400 the narrow way, you will find that your delight is for the 1. 407 00:23:11,440 --> 00:23:13,360 And so many times you'll find that you're the only one. 408 00:23:13,480 --> 00:23:15,840 And that's OK. That's OK. 409 00:23:16,120 --> 00:23:20,240 Why are we so desperate to be loved by everyone when we were 410 00:23:20,240 --> 00:23:22,400 created for the enjoyment of the One? 411 00:23:24,040 --> 00:23:26,840 God will separate you from certain people in certain 412 00:23:26,840 --> 00:23:28,840 seasons. There are some seasons where the 413 00:23:28,840 --> 00:23:30,320 whole crowd cannot come with you. 414 00:23:30,480 --> 00:23:34,520 He will actually remove certain people from your life so that 415 00:23:34,520 --> 00:23:37,800 you can be faithful to the calling, faithful to the path He 416 00:23:37,800 --> 00:23:40,800 has cut out for you. He could separate you from 417 00:23:40,800 --> 00:23:44,240 certain family members whose views are toxic, whose thoughts 418 00:23:44,240 --> 00:23:50,840 are toxic, whose ideas are not biblical, whose ways would 419 00:23:50,840 --> 00:23:53,760 grieve the Holy Spirit. He may remove those people for a 420 00:23:53,760 --> 00:23:57,240 season, 4 seasons to come. And that's OK. 421 00:23:57,760 --> 00:23:59,960 Because the cross, first of all, is a separator. 422 00:24:00,760 --> 00:24:03,280 The second thing that the cross is, is a connector. 423 00:24:04,240 --> 00:24:07,160 Isn't that, you know, it feels a little more comfortable. 424 00:24:07,160 --> 00:24:09,560 Separator feels hard but connector. 425 00:24:10,080 --> 00:24:14,080 Hebrews 13 verses 15 to 16. It says through Jesus. 426 00:24:14,080 --> 00:24:17,000 Therefore let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of 427 00:24:17,000 --> 00:24:20,880 praise, the fruit of lips that openly profess His name, and do 428 00:24:20,880 --> 00:24:23,920 not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such 429 00:24:23,920 --> 00:24:31,640 sacrifices God is pleased. The cross is a point of the 430 00:24:31,640 --> 00:24:35,560 greatest of joy, greatest of peace and greatest of connection 431 00:24:35,560 --> 00:24:39,520 because others who are carrying the cross of Jesus, others who 432 00:24:39,520 --> 00:24:44,520 are choosing the way of Christ, just connect with you over the 433 00:24:44,520 --> 00:24:47,360 cross. It's amazing because when we 434 00:24:47,360 --> 00:24:51,160 travelled abroad, we went to study with the children and we 435 00:24:51,160 --> 00:24:53,760 were in the US for a year, we were in Australia for a year and 436 00:24:53,760 --> 00:24:56,880 many times we would just be in common areas. 437 00:24:56,880 --> 00:24:58,920 We wouldn't even be in Bible college, we wouldn't even be in 438 00:24:58,920 --> 00:25:02,080 church, but we would just be outside and someone would just 439 00:25:02,080 --> 00:25:04,800 look at us and they would talk to us, find out they're 440 00:25:04,800 --> 00:25:07,600 Christian. And I remember our oldest son 441 00:25:07,600 --> 00:25:12,200 being prophesied to in a, in a, it was in Walmart or Kroger's, I 442 00:25:12,200 --> 00:25:14,120 don't remember. There was this man who just 443 00:25:14,120 --> 00:25:16,600 walked in. He saw children and then he just 444 00:25:16,600 --> 00:25:18,920 pointed Caleb out and said, can I prophecy over him? 445 00:25:19,600 --> 00:25:22,240 He just looked at us. He said, are you guys believers? 446 00:25:22,440 --> 00:25:24,480 We said yes. And he went ahead. 447 00:25:25,360 --> 00:25:29,720 We were in the middle of of a, a shop, of a store, of a grocery 448 00:25:29,720 --> 00:25:32,360 store. The connector was Jesus. 449 00:25:32,360 --> 00:25:34,440 The connector was the cross of Jesus. 450 00:25:35,080 --> 00:25:39,720 And so you may feel excluded, secluded, isolated, because the 451 00:25:39,720 --> 00:25:41,880 cross is a separator. But the beautiful thing is the 452 00:25:41,880 --> 00:25:44,640 cross is a connector. So it will connect you and me to 453 00:25:44,760 --> 00:25:47,560 the people who we need to be widely connected to in this 454 00:25:47,560 --> 00:25:50,240 season. He will connect us to people who 455 00:25:50,240 --> 00:25:53,600 are also carrying the cross, who are also counting the cost, who 456 00:25:53,600 --> 00:25:57,000 are also leaving behind the things that that attach itself 457 00:25:57,000 --> 00:26:01,400 to their flesh and who are pursuing hard with God for God. 458 00:26:02,400 --> 00:26:06,880 It's amazing because thanks to the work of Jesus on the cross, 459 00:26:07,160 --> 00:26:09,640 even every time we have communion, when we celebrate the 460 00:26:09,640 --> 00:26:13,800 table of the Lord, I love that all of us standing at church, 461 00:26:13,920 --> 00:26:16,280 we're about, you know, so many of us from different parts of 462 00:26:16,280 --> 00:26:19,080 the country, different language barriers. 463 00:26:19,480 --> 00:26:22,640 None of it matters when we hold the elements in our hand because 464 00:26:22,640 --> 00:26:27,480 that unites us across every kind of cultural, social, economic 465 00:26:27,480 --> 00:26:31,160 barrier that could ever exist. This unites us. 466 00:26:31,960 --> 00:26:35,400 And so the cross is a connector. The cross is a connector. 467 00:26:35,400 --> 00:26:39,240 I remember when we lived in the US, we had, we lived on, on 468 00:26:39,240 --> 00:26:42,320 campus in the Bible college and just across from our house. 469 00:26:42,320 --> 00:26:45,920 We had Egyptians living there. We had people from north from 470 00:26:45,920 --> 00:26:48,320 South Korea. We had people living from Ghana. 471 00:26:49,040 --> 00:26:52,680 And just to to go out into the lawn, I would take the kids out 472 00:26:52,680 --> 00:26:56,440 and to just gather with them. Lot of them didn't know the same 473 00:26:56,440 --> 00:26:58,120 languages. They were people from South 474 00:26:58,120 --> 00:27:01,560 America, Central America. All we connected over was the 475 00:27:01,560 --> 00:27:05,000 fact that Jesus had brought us here, that Jesus was doing a 476 00:27:05,000 --> 00:27:08,200 work in US, and that we were all going to take his name back into 477 00:27:08,200 --> 00:27:09,200 our countries. That's all. 478 00:27:10,160 --> 00:27:13,280 But I just want to tell you that that connection is actually so 479 00:27:13,280 --> 00:27:15,680 deep. It's so authentic. 480 00:27:16,160 --> 00:27:19,360 And I want to encourage you that the cross is a connector. 481 00:27:19,880 --> 00:27:22,720 It is not only separation, it's also connection. 482 00:27:24,000 --> 00:27:26,480 The third thing about the cross is that's a perfector. 483 00:27:27,240 --> 00:27:29,520 What does that look like? I know that's a bad word. 484 00:27:30,000 --> 00:27:33,680 We all hate the word perfection, but the cross is the perfector. 485 00:27:34,080 --> 00:27:37,600 What does that mean? Hebrews 10 verses 12 to 14 it 486 00:27:37,600 --> 00:27:39,720 says. But when this priest had offered 487 00:27:39,720 --> 00:27:43,760 for all time 1 sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right 488 00:27:43,760 --> 00:27:47,080 hand of God. And since that time he waits for 489 00:27:47,080 --> 00:27:49,280 his enemies to be made his footstool. 490 00:27:49,520 --> 00:27:54,160 For by 1 sacrifice he has made for a perfect forever those who 491 00:27:54,160 --> 00:27:58,360 are being made holy. What an interesting verse. 492 00:27:58,560 --> 00:28:03,480 For by 1 sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are 493 00:28:03,480 --> 00:28:07,360 being made holy. You know, a lot of us like to 494 00:28:07,360 --> 00:28:09,040 talk about how we're perfectionists. 495 00:28:09,240 --> 00:28:12,160 Oh, I'm a perfectionist with how I keep my house or the way I 496 00:28:12,160 --> 00:28:15,320 work or but honestly, you know, it's I feel like that's just a 497 00:28:15,320 --> 00:28:18,480 bit of vanity on our part because anything that we call 498 00:28:18,480 --> 00:28:22,520 perfectionism, anything that we attest as perfect is still 499 00:28:22,520 --> 00:28:25,360 flawed. It isn't God's design. 500 00:28:25,760 --> 00:28:28,400 God's design is so different and only God's design can be 501 00:28:28,400 --> 00:28:31,880 considered perfect. Anything we call perfect becomes 502 00:28:31,880 --> 00:28:35,720 imperfect. And So what is this perfection? 503 00:28:36,840 --> 00:28:40,800 It is a high standard that only God can reach and only Jesus 504 00:28:40,800 --> 00:28:43,880 lived a perfect life. But the beautiful thing is 505 00:28:43,880 --> 00:28:46,840 through situations, through people, through the world, 506 00:28:47,200 --> 00:28:50,520 through the the torment, the suffering, the trials that we go 507 00:28:50,520 --> 00:28:55,440 through, God starts to shape us. He got God starts to mould us 508 00:28:55,640 --> 00:28:58,720 and we become more and more like Jesus, his Son. 509 00:28:59,120 --> 00:29:04,080 We grow in holiness, we grow in holiness and ultimately when we 510 00:29:04,080 --> 00:29:07,720 reach eternity, we have been perfected forever. 511 00:29:08,640 --> 00:29:12,520 The goal is not perfection here. The goal is to grow in holiness. 512 00:29:12,520 --> 00:29:15,880 The goal is to stay pliant in the hands of God so that the 513 00:29:15,880 --> 00:29:19,000 Holy Spirit can shape us into His likeness, into the Son's 514 00:29:19,000 --> 00:29:20,920 likeness. That is the aim. 515 00:29:22,280 --> 00:29:25,000 The perfection that God desires is such a high bar. 516 00:29:25,560 --> 00:29:28,400 If I was to start to consider that, I would give up before I 517 00:29:28,400 --> 00:29:31,400 even began. And which is why the job of 518 00:29:31,400 --> 00:29:34,280 perfection is done by the Holy Spirit, the agent of renewal, 519 00:29:34,520 --> 00:29:37,880 the one who's working on me, who's teaching me how to speak, 520 00:29:37,880 --> 00:29:40,240 who's teaching me how to respond, who's teaching me to 521 00:29:40,240 --> 00:29:42,280 keep quiet, who's teaching me to verbalize. 522 00:29:43,520 --> 00:29:47,520 We are a work in progress. But the cross reminds me. 523 00:29:48,000 --> 00:29:51,720 The cross reminds me that Jesus is the author and perfector of 524 00:29:51,720 --> 00:29:55,320 my faith, not me. So often we see our children 525 00:29:55,320 --> 00:29:57,160 behave a certain way. You know, those of us who are 526 00:29:57,160 --> 00:30:01,640 parents of teenagers, preteens, we see certain things in their, 527 00:30:01,680 --> 00:30:03,560 you know, their, their traits, the way they behave. 528 00:30:03,560 --> 00:30:06,560 And you feel embarrassed. You think, wow, where did that 529 00:30:06,560 --> 00:30:08,160 come from? Where did that trait arrive 530 00:30:08,160 --> 00:30:10,680 from? And we try to shape it 531 00:30:10,680 --> 00:30:12,880 outwardly. We try to control the 532 00:30:12,880 --> 00:30:15,560 circumstances. We try to control the things 533 00:30:15,560 --> 00:30:17,760 they say in response to certain circumstances. 534 00:30:18,000 --> 00:30:21,480 And you find as they get older, you really aren't aren't in 535 00:30:21,480 --> 00:30:25,160 control of anything. We cannot perfect anything. 536 00:30:26,000 --> 00:30:28,640 If you're someone who likes to bake, you probably found this 537 00:30:28,640 --> 00:30:30,840 recipe you like. You keep doing it till you 538 00:30:30,840 --> 00:30:36,240 perfect it. You find that you still are in 539 00:30:36,240 --> 00:30:40,480 pursuit of this for the rest of your life because nothing ever 540 00:30:40,480 --> 00:30:45,560 reaches real perfection. But the cross is a perfecter. 541 00:30:45,560 --> 00:30:48,760 Because the minute I take up my cross, the minute I walk in a 542 00:30:48,760 --> 00:30:51,720 complete surrender to God, the minute I'm walking in obedience 543 00:30:51,720 --> 00:30:55,040 to Him, the Spirit of God comes alongside me. 544 00:30:55,200 --> 00:30:59,040 He who is within me is working all things so that I am being 545 00:30:59,040 --> 00:31:03,160 shaped, I am being made holy. I am being made pure. 546 00:31:03,160 --> 00:31:06,480 He burns the impurities of me through the refiners fire. 547 00:31:06,640 --> 00:31:10,480 He washes me like launderer soap with his word, with his 548 00:31:10,480 --> 00:31:13,320 convicting power and perfects me. 549 00:31:13,920 --> 00:31:16,920 Isn't that amazing? The cross is the perfecter. 550 00:31:18,240 --> 00:31:23,040 Hebrews chapter 10 verses 12 to 14, it says when this priest had 551 00:31:23,040 --> 00:31:26,720 offered for all time 1 sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the 552 00:31:26,720 --> 00:31:29,640 right hand of God. And since that time he waits for 553 00:31:29,640 --> 00:31:31,400 his enemies to be made his footstool. 554 00:31:31,680 --> 00:31:35,200 By 1 sacrifice he is made perfect forever those who are 555 00:31:35,200 --> 00:31:38,600 being made holy. I'm reading it again so that you 556 00:31:38,600 --> 00:31:42,160 understand that under Christ's feet everything has already been 557 00:31:42,160 --> 00:31:44,720 placed. He is sovereign, He is supreme, 558 00:31:45,160 --> 00:31:48,960 but we are still heading there. We are still a work in progress 559 00:31:49,120 --> 00:31:54,600 and as much as He is perfect, he's drawing us in to holiness. 560 00:31:55,200 --> 00:31:57,560 Maybe you feel you're in a season of being disciplined by 561 00:31:57,560 --> 00:31:59,640 God. He is a faithful God even in 562 00:31:59,640 --> 00:32:01,040 discipline. He's righteous. 563 00:32:01,280 --> 00:32:05,040 He is. Just don't shun his discipline 564 00:32:05,560 --> 00:32:07,680 because he's perfecting. Maybe you're going through a sea 565 00:32:07,680 --> 00:32:10,240 feel a season of being ground in a grinder. 566 00:32:10,520 --> 00:32:13,280 You feel like God. The the attack doesn't stop the 567 00:32:13,400 --> 00:32:15,960 the the assignment feels heavier than ever. 568 00:32:15,960 --> 00:32:19,160 But I want to encourage you, the crosses are perfect and God is 569 00:32:19,160 --> 00:32:22,760 not done with you yet. God is not done with you yet. 570 00:32:22,920 --> 00:32:25,280 Starting today, I want you to look at what you're going 571 00:32:25,280 --> 00:32:28,600 through and understand every encounter, every situation, 572 00:32:28,600 --> 00:32:33,320 every problem, every success is a moment by moment training in 573 00:32:33,320 --> 00:32:36,840 holiness. The fourth thing about the 574 00:32:36,840 --> 00:32:40,560 cross, why we must take up our cross and follow him is that the 575 00:32:40,560 --> 00:32:45,320 cross is the equiper verse. Hebrews chapter 13 verses 20 to 576 00:32:45,320 --> 00:32:49,840 21 says, Now may the God of peace, who through the blood of 577 00:32:49,840 --> 00:32:53,280 the eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord 578 00:32:53,280 --> 00:32:56,600 Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, equip you with 579 00:32:56,600 --> 00:32:58,680 everything good for doing his will. 580 00:32:58,680 --> 00:33:02,200 And may he work in us what is pleasing to him through Jesus 581 00:33:02,200 --> 00:33:05,920 Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. 582 00:33:06,360 --> 00:33:09,040 Maybe you sometimes wonder, God. Will I finish well? 583 00:33:09,520 --> 00:33:11,640 Will I do all the things I was created to do? 584 00:33:11,640 --> 00:33:14,760 Will I fall by the wayside? Will I give in to sin? 585 00:33:14,760 --> 00:33:17,640 Will I give in to doubt? Will I lose my faith? 586 00:33:17,640 --> 00:33:19,760 Will I hold on to hope? There's so many things I need to 587 00:33:19,760 --> 00:33:23,080 grapple with. This is the consolation that the 588 00:33:23,080 --> 00:33:27,200 cross is the equiper. When I am carrying the cross of 589 00:33:27,280 --> 00:33:31,680 Jesus, when I have chosen his way, when I've chosen the narrow 590 00:33:31,680 --> 00:33:35,880 path, when I am choosing Jesus again and again, when I keep my 591 00:33:35,880 --> 00:33:41,240 eyes fixed on him, He equips me for the life that He's given me. 592 00:33:41,640 --> 00:33:45,080 He equips me with the ability to do the things I'm required to do 593 00:33:46,560 --> 00:33:50,520 in taking up the cross. We're able to actually live the 594 00:33:50,520 --> 00:33:54,200 life marked out for us. You know, many times we because 595 00:33:54,200 --> 00:33:58,680 we haven't fully joined the narrow way, we haven't entered 596 00:33:58,680 --> 00:34:01,280 through the narrow gate. We think anything goes. 597 00:34:01,280 --> 00:34:04,560 I can live however I want it's not a big deal. 598 00:34:04,560 --> 00:34:08,080 Who cares Everyone lives like this, everyone takes bribes, 599 00:34:08,360 --> 00:34:10,360 everyone's having extramarital affairs. 600 00:34:10,480 --> 00:34:13,080 So why not me? Why do I have to be held to a 601 00:34:13,080 --> 00:34:15,239 higher standard. We disqualify ourselves. 602 00:34:15,239 --> 00:34:19,320 We lower the bar for ourselves, but God is calling us into a 603 00:34:19,320 --> 00:34:22,280 place of carrying this cross on a daily basis. 604 00:34:22,280 --> 00:34:25,000 He doesn't say take up the cross once a month and follow me. 605 00:34:25,159 --> 00:34:28,560 He says take up your cross daily because when I take the cross 606 00:34:28,560 --> 00:34:32,360 for of Jesus today, it strengthens me for today. 607 00:34:32,480 --> 00:34:36,320 It gives me capacity for today. It gives me the ability to think 608 00:34:36,320 --> 00:34:38,239 and process the things I need to do for today. 609 00:34:38,600 --> 00:34:43,920 It enables me to actually accept what God is allowing in my life 610 00:34:44,440 --> 00:34:47,239 to take it and sometimes just make lemonade with the lemons 611 00:34:47,239 --> 00:34:50,239 given. All of that is because he's in 612 00:34:50,239 --> 00:34:55,199 me, willing me, enabling me to do the things I'm created to do. 613 00:34:56,679 --> 00:35:01,480 When we lay down the things you know that we thought was safe, 614 00:35:02,000 --> 00:35:06,520 when we when we give up stuff that's been holding us down, 615 00:35:06,760 --> 00:35:10,360 when we lay down the things that have weighed us down for too 616 00:35:10,360 --> 00:35:13,560 long, you'll actually tend to feel a bit vulnerable and and 617 00:35:13,560 --> 00:35:16,840 exposed. But the beautiful thing is when 618 00:35:16,840 --> 00:35:23,800 Jesus says, lay it all down, what you take up equips you for 619 00:35:23,800 --> 00:35:25,960 the road ahead. You are not left vulnerable. 620 00:35:26,160 --> 00:35:29,000 You are not left alone and isolated. 621 00:35:29,160 --> 00:35:31,760 But God equips you with his presence. 622 00:35:32,160 --> 00:35:37,840 He equips you with his promises. He equips you with your with his 623 00:35:37,840 --> 00:35:39,440 people. You're never alone. 624 00:35:40,000 --> 00:35:42,680 You're never alone. So whatever the season looks 625 00:35:42,680 --> 00:35:44,560 like, I want to just encourage you with this. 626 00:35:45,520 --> 00:35:48,520 The cross has to remind you that it should have been you, but 627 00:35:48,520 --> 00:35:49,840 it's not. It was him. 628 00:35:50,040 --> 00:35:53,000 So don't make it about you, make it about him. 629 00:35:54,040 --> 00:35:56,400 Make it about him what you are walking through. 630 00:35:56,400 --> 00:35:59,360 Make it about him. God, what is it you want me to 631 00:35:59,360 --> 00:36:03,960 do with this situation instead of making it all about yourself? 632 00:36:05,040 --> 00:36:08,520 Will you start to live set apart because it's a separator? 633 00:36:08,720 --> 00:36:12,600 Will you start living more connected to Him and His people? 634 00:36:12,840 --> 00:36:16,160 Would you start living a life that is growing in holiness 635 00:36:16,160 --> 00:36:17,960 because the cross is a perfector? 636 00:36:18,960 --> 00:36:21,760 And will you start moving forward with confidence because 637 00:36:21,760 --> 00:36:25,040 the cross is an equiper, It equips you for all that is 638 00:36:25,040 --> 00:36:28,640 ahead. Sometimes those who follow Jesus 639 00:36:28,640 --> 00:36:31,760 act like it's such a hard thing because, well, you know, our 640 00:36:31,760 --> 00:36:34,520 options are so limited. Can I just encourage you, as 641 00:36:34,520 --> 00:36:37,960 someone who's followed the Lord for about 30 years now, it is 642 00:36:37,960 --> 00:36:41,560 the most freeing life ever. Are we devoid of stress? 643 00:36:41,560 --> 00:36:43,760 No. Are we devoid of problems? 644 00:36:43,760 --> 00:36:47,560 Not at all. But the freedom that we find in 645 00:36:47,560 --> 00:36:51,720 this relationship with Him, the freedom that we have to be the 646 00:36:51,720 --> 00:36:55,840 one He created us to be, the freedom I have to change for His 647 00:36:55,840 --> 00:37:00,840 delight, is unparalleled. It is not a confined life. 648 00:37:01,320 --> 00:37:03,880 The narrow way is actually deceptively narrow. 649 00:37:03,880 --> 00:37:07,800 It's so narrow, we take it, but you find that your life is 650 00:37:07,880 --> 00:37:11,760 infinitely more blessed. And so I want to encourage you 651 00:37:12,840 --> 00:37:14,320 in church today. We're going to be having 652 00:37:14,320 --> 00:37:16,320 communion. And I wanted to read the 653 00:37:16,320 --> 00:37:18,920 Scripture then, but I'm going to read it for you just to give you 654 00:37:18,920 --> 00:37:23,280 a glimpse of what Jesus actually suffered for you and for me. 655 00:37:23,720 --> 00:37:26,280 It should have been us, but it wasn't. 656 00:37:27,040 --> 00:37:32,960 Isaiah 52, verses 12 to 15. See, my servant will act wisely. 657 00:37:33,320 --> 00:37:37,120 He will be raised and lifted up and highly exalted, just as 658 00:37:37,120 --> 00:37:39,000 there were many who were appalled at him. 659 00:37:39,360 --> 00:37:42,720 His appearance was so disfigured beyond that of any human being 660 00:37:43,240 --> 00:37:45,680 and is far marred beyond human likeness. 661 00:37:46,120 --> 00:37:49,520 So He was sprinkling many nations and kings will shut 662 00:37:49,520 --> 00:37:52,760 their mouths because of him. For what they were not told they 663 00:37:52,760 --> 00:37:56,440 will see, and what they've not heard they will understand. 664 00:37:57,960 --> 00:37:59,280 I want you to look at that again. 665 00:38:00,080 --> 00:38:04,360 His appearance was so disfigured beyond that of any human being 666 00:38:04,360 --> 00:38:09,240 and is found marred beyond human likeness. 667 00:38:09,440 --> 00:38:13,120 Maybe you say you have been so badly shaken up. 668 00:38:13,520 --> 00:38:15,720 Maybe you say I've been so deeply marred. 669 00:38:15,960 --> 00:38:22,000 Maybe I've been so traumatized. God is saying that Jesus knows 670 00:38:22,000 --> 00:38:25,680 Jesus stood in for you. Nothing you and I have walked 671 00:38:25,680 --> 00:38:30,760 through on this earth. Nothing, absolutely nothing is 672 00:38:30,760 --> 00:38:33,520 beyond what Jesus endured for us on the cross. 673 00:38:33,520 --> 00:38:36,600 He was the perfect substitute. And look at the confidence we 674 00:38:36,600 --> 00:38:38,600 have. He has sprinkled many nations. 675 00:38:39,280 --> 00:38:42,120 He has shut the mouth of kings. It's not just earthly rulers 676 00:38:42,120 --> 00:38:43,240 he's talking about. He's talking about 677 00:38:43,440 --> 00:38:46,760 principalities and powers have to shut their mouth because of 678 00:38:46,760 --> 00:38:49,760 the blood of the Lamb, which was sprinkled over the earth through 679 00:38:49,760 --> 00:38:53,640 Jesus. Even as we get into a time of 680 00:38:53,640 --> 00:38:57,000 just quietly looking into ourselves and saying, Lord, 681 00:38:57,360 --> 00:39:01,640 where have I become so complacent that I fit in into 682 00:39:01,640 --> 00:39:05,800 the world? Where have I become so caught up 683 00:39:07,040 --> 00:39:12,360 with living how I chose that I forgot that my task, my calling 684 00:39:12,360 --> 00:39:15,000 is to take up the cross daily and follow you? 685 00:39:15,760 --> 00:39:19,080 Where have I made this life about myself, my needs, my 686 00:39:19,080 --> 00:39:22,320 desires, my appetites, instead of what you wanted? 687 00:39:22,320 --> 00:39:27,240 God, could we spend a minute? And even as we just Mull over 688 00:39:27,240 --> 00:39:28,880 that, I'm just going to pray over you. 689 00:39:29,720 --> 00:39:33,840 I'm going to pray that you will begin to experience Jesus and 690 00:39:33,840 --> 00:39:35,640 all His goodness and all His glory. 691 00:39:36,800 --> 00:39:41,360 But today he is no longer marred and beyond recognition. 692 00:39:41,360 --> 00:39:48,360 Today he sits on the throne, the King of all kings, the Judge of 693 00:39:48,360 --> 00:39:53,440 all judges, Ruler of all the earth, Creator of the heavens 694 00:39:53,440 --> 00:39:57,440 and the earth, the one who holds the world's with the word of his 695 00:39:57,440 --> 00:40:00,280 mouth, the one who sends his word and heals, the one who 696 00:40:00,280 --> 00:40:03,640 comes to fight for us. He rides a White Horse. 697 00:40:03,640 --> 00:40:08,760 He is righteous and true. From his mouth comes a sword. 698 00:40:09,880 --> 00:40:12,920 He slays his enemies with the breath of his mouth. 699 00:40:13,160 --> 00:40:15,240 This is the God who sits on the throne. 700 00:40:15,640 --> 00:40:19,680 He's alive. He delights in you and me. 701 00:40:20,480 --> 00:40:24,240 He died for us even before we made a choice to follow him. 702 00:40:25,080 --> 00:40:28,040 That's how great His love for us is. 703 00:40:28,040 --> 00:40:30,680 And God, I just pray that you would enable us. 704 00:40:31,080 --> 00:40:35,480 You would enable us to take up our cross daily and follow you. 705 00:40:36,280 --> 00:40:40,720 God, I pray for those who have rejected the separation that 706 00:40:40,720 --> 00:40:43,480 you're trying to bring. I pray in submission they will 707 00:40:43,480 --> 00:40:45,080 allow you to do what you have to do. 708 00:40:45,680 --> 00:40:48,800 I pray for those, Lord, who are longing for the right connection 709 00:40:48,800 --> 00:40:51,160 at this time. I pray that God, you would bring 710 00:40:51,160 --> 00:40:54,880 into their lives those who are choosing to carry their cross, 711 00:40:55,040 --> 00:40:59,280 that you would surround them with those who you have marked 712 00:40:59,280 --> 00:41:02,600 for them in the season. God, I pray at this time for 713 00:41:02,600 --> 00:41:07,400 those who need the refining of heaven upon their lives. 714 00:41:07,720 --> 00:41:11,320 I pray, O God, that You will begin to do that great and 715 00:41:11,320 --> 00:41:13,720 mighty work within them without them. 716 00:41:14,280 --> 00:41:16,720 I pray that you would strengthen hearts, Lord, through the 717 00:41:16,720 --> 00:41:19,800 sifting, through the shaking, that God, you will preserve 718 00:41:19,800 --> 00:41:22,440 them. And Lord, I just pray right now 719 00:41:22,840 --> 00:41:27,920 for those who feel ill equipped, at a disadvantage, inadequate. 720 00:41:28,120 --> 00:41:31,360 God, I thank you that the cross equips us for all that's ahead. 721 00:41:32,160 --> 00:41:33,680 I thank you that they are not alone. 722 00:41:34,160 --> 00:41:38,640 I thank you that they stand with boldness because you are within 723 00:41:38,640 --> 00:41:42,720 them. We thank you, we love you, We 724 00:41:42,720 --> 00:41:46,440 thank you, Lord, that it should have been us, but it wasn't. 725 00:41:46,440 --> 00:41:48,800 Forgive us when we have made it about ourselves. 726 00:41:49,040 --> 00:41:54,080 Forgive us, Lord, when we have thought this story required me, 727 00:41:54,080 --> 00:41:56,360 the hero in it. Forgive me. 728 00:41:58,120 --> 00:42:02,040 We thank you God, for you are the one that we follow. 729 00:42:03,000 --> 00:42:07,960 Help us God, to just obey and submit and run behind you. 730 00:42:09,320 --> 00:42:12,120 I love you. In your precious name I pray. 731 00:42:12,880 --> 00:42:14,040 Amen. Amen. 732 00:42:14,560 --> 00:42:17,560 God bless you as you head into this weekend. 733 00:42:18,160 --> 00:42:20,600 I just pray that you will keep Jesus at the focus, that you 734 00:42:20,600 --> 00:42:23,760 have two more days to just really lean and ask Jesus, you 735 00:42:23,760 --> 00:42:25,640 know what, I've got the rest of the year to run. 736 00:42:25,640 --> 00:42:28,400 I want to run. Well, God, show me yourself. 737 00:42:28,400 --> 00:42:31,240 Show me your face. I believe it's a great place to 738 00:42:31,240 --> 00:42:34,000 begin. The cross can be a great place 739 00:42:34,000 --> 00:42:36,720 of meditation. Ask God to show you where you 740 00:42:36,720 --> 00:42:38,720 have discounted the cross. Show. 741 00:42:39,000 --> 00:42:43,080 Ask Him to show you where you haven't picked up your cross. 742 00:42:43,920 --> 00:42:46,120 And I pray that this weekend would be one that's full of 743 00:42:46,120 --> 00:42:48,400 victory, full of joy, full of celebration. 744 00:42:49,000 --> 00:42:52,200 God bless you. Thanks for listening to this 745 00:42:52,200 --> 00:42:55,320 message. We hope you were blessed to hear 746 00:42:55,320 --> 00:42:59,080 more messages like this. Make sure to subscribe and check 747 00:42:59,080 --> 00:43:01,720 out our podcast channel for past episodes. 748 00:43:02,160 --> 00:43:05,520 If you like what you are hearing, consider rating us 749 00:43:05,640 --> 00:43:08,640 subscribing and even sharing it with friends. 750 00:43:09,040 --> 00:43:13,320 That could really help us. For more content from Via Zion 751 00:43:13,680 --> 00:43:19,920 and to connect with us, go to Via Zion in Remember, whoever 752 00:43:19,920 --> 00:43:21,960 finds Jesus finds life.