1 00:00:00,520 --> 00:00:04,520 Who is Jesus? Bart Ehrman, who has taught 2 00:00:04,520 --> 00:00:08,039 religious studies at UNC for the past three decades, has famously 3 00:00:08,039 --> 00:00:13,400 argued that Jesus was an apocalyptic prophet and nothing 4 00:00:13,400 --> 00:00:17,200 more. According to Airman, Jesus's 5 00:00:17,200 --> 00:00:21,560 main message was that the end of history was near, that God would 6 00:00:21,560 --> 00:00:25,840 soon intervene to overthrow evil and establish his Kingdom on 7 00:00:25,840 --> 00:00:29,240 earth. According to Airman, Jesus and 8 00:00:29,240 --> 00:00:33,440 all his disciples believed that these end time events would take 9 00:00:33,440 --> 00:00:38,480 place within their lifetimes. Airman argues that Jesus never 10 00:00:38,480 --> 00:00:42,120 claimed to be anything more than a human teacher or prophet. 11 00:00:43,440 --> 00:00:48,560 According to Airman, Jesus certainly never claimed to be 12 00:00:48,560 --> 00:00:51,040 God. What do you think? 13 00:00:51,800 --> 00:00:58,200 Who is Jesus? The whole gospel of Mark has 14 00:00:58,200 --> 00:01:02,600 been addressing that question. Almost every paragraph of Mark's 15 00:01:02,600 --> 00:01:04,920 gospel in one way or another is about that question. 16 00:01:04,920 --> 00:01:09,840 Who is Jesus? Now in chapter 12, Jesus has 17 00:01:09,840 --> 00:01:12,840 come to what he knows will be the last week of his life. 18 00:01:13,880 --> 00:01:15,200 He's been teaching in the temple. 19 00:01:16,080 --> 00:01:19,520 He's been fending off challenges to his authority from the 20 00:01:19,520 --> 00:01:22,960 religious leaders of the day. And as we saw in our passage 21 00:01:22,960 --> 00:01:27,040 last week, he answered all their questions so well that he 22 00:01:27,040 --> 00:01:30,320 silenced his opponents. It says no one dared to ask him 23 00:01:30,320 --> 00:01:38,960 any more questions. Match and set went to Jesus. 24 00:01:39,920 --> 00:01:43,840 Our passage for this morning is in verses 35 to 37 of Mark 12. 25 00:01:43,840 --> 00:01:45,600 If you don't have a Bible, you can raise your hand and somebody 26 00:01:45,600 --> 00:01:47,280 will bring you one. If you don't have a Bible, like 27 00:01:47,280 --> 00:01:49,280 you don't have one at home, that you can easily read it. 28 00:01:49,440 --> 00:01:51,160 You can also keep it, take it home, read it. 29 00:01:51,160 --> 00:01:55,120 We'd love to talk to you about it in our passage. 30 00:01:55,280 --> 00:01:58,960 After silencing his opponents, Jesus turns the tables. 31 00:02:00,200 --> 00:02:06,240 He asks a question of his own. His question is addressed to 32 00:02:06,240 --> 00:02:08,479 everyone out there in his audience who's willing to 33 00:02:08,479 --> 00:02:12,000 listen. But it's particularly a 34 00:02:12,040 --> 00:02:16,080 challenge to what the religious authorities are teaching. 35 00:02:17,200 --> 00:02:19,680 And Jesus's question is even more than that. 36 00:02:20,480 --> 00:02:25,600 It's a Riddle. Jesus poses a Riddle and he 37 00:02:25,600 --> 00:02:30,040 doesn't answer it explicitly, although I think the clues to 38 00:02:30,040 --> 00:02:32,400 answer it are they're in the Riddle, they're in the rest of 39 00:02:32,400 --> 00:02:34,000 Mark's Gospel, they're in the rest of Scripture. 40 00:02:34,000 --> 00:02:37,320 So just a little bit of a heads up, this passage, this sermon 41 00:02:37,320 --> 00:02:40,080 this morning is going to be a little bit extra teaching. 42 00:02:40,480 --> 00:02:42,760 Jesus is posing us a theological Riddle. 43 00:02:42,960 --> 00:02:45,840 We have to do a little bit of work to get the answer. 44 00:02:46,320 --> 00:02:51,560 Who do you say Jesus is? More importantly, who does Jesus 45 00:02:52,160 --> 00:02:57,240 say he is? Mark 12 verses 35 to 37. 46 00:02:59,840 --> 00:03:04,560 And as Jesus taught in the temple, he said, How can the 47 00:03:04,560 --> 00:03:09,240 scribes say that the Christ is the Son of David? 48 00:03:10,600 --> 00:03:15,120 David himself in the Holy Spirit declared, The Lord said to my 49 00:03:15,120 --> 00:03:20,720 Lord, sit in my right hand until I put your enemies under your 50 00:03:20,720 --> 00:03:27,880 feet. David himself calls him Lord, so 51 00:03:27,880 --> 00:03:32,840 how is he his son? And the great throng heard him 52 00:03:33,200 --> 00:03:36,880 gladly. Who does Jesus say that he is? 53 00:03:37,040 --> 00:03:39,480 We'll consider the answer in three parts. 54 00:03:39,800 --> 00:03:41,720 The 1st 2:00 will be pieces of his answer. 55 00:03:41,960 --> 00:03:46,320 The third part we'll put it all together, .1 David's son. 56 00:03:47,600 --> 00:03:53,720 David's son. Now, of course, Jesus is in fact 57 00:03:53,720 --> 00:03:56,440 asking a question about this very point. 58 00:03:56,440 --> 00:03:59,720 Verse 35. How can the scribes say that the 59 00:03:59,720 --> 00:04:02,720 Christ is the son of David? What's going on here? 60 00:04:03,800 --> 00:04:07,040 When Jesus asks about the Christ, he's talking about the 61 00:04:07,040 --> 00:04:09,400 Messiah. Throughout the Old Testament, 62 00:04:09,760 --> 00:04:13,520 using different titles and images, the Lord promises to 63 00:04:13,520 --> 00:04:16,959 send a deliverer to redeem his people. 64 00:04:17,880 --> 00:04:21,959 In Genesis 315, it's a seed of the woman who will crush the 65 00:04:21,959 --> 00:04:26,200 seed of the serpent. In Genesis 49, eight to 10, it's 66 00:04:26,200 --> 00:04:30,160 a descendant of Judah, who's described as a lion who will 67 00:04:30,160 --> 00:04:35,600 rule the nations. In Numbers 2417, it's a star 68 00:04:35,600 --> 00:04:40,000 that will arise from Jacob and defeat Israel's enemies. 69 00:04:40,000 --> 00:04:43,880 There are dozens more like that. But this promise of a coming 70 00:04:43,880 --> 00:04:48,000 deliverer takes a giant leap forward in clarity and 71 00:04:48,000 --> 00:04:51,360 specificity in Second Samuel Chapter 7. 72 00:04:51,920 --> 00:04:55,240 This is when David has consolidated his reign over 73 00:04:55,240 --> 00:04:57,600 Israel. He's in the process of bringing 74 00:04:57,600 --> 00:04:59,680 peace and unity and harmony to Israel. 75 00:05:00,560 --> 00:05:05,480 And in that chapter, in response to David's desire to build God a 76 00:05:05,480 --> 00:05:08,280 house, that is, David wants to build God a temple. 77 00:05:09,040 --> 00:05:11,760 God promises to build King David a house. 78 00:05:12,320 --> 00:05:15,000 That is a dynasty, a royal dynasty. 79 00:05:15,680 --> 00:05:18,280 But God's promise goes beyond a dynasty. 80 00:05:18,280 --> 00:05:20,880 It's not just about a succession of kings one after another. 81 00:05:21,360 --> 00:05:27,280 Here's Second Samuel 712 to 13. When your days are fulfilled and 82 00:05:27,280 --> 00:05:30,440 you lie down with your father's, I will raise up your offspring 83 00:05:30,440 --> 00:05:33,520 after you, who shall come from your body, and I will establish 84 00:05:33,520 --> 00:05:36,080 his Kingdom. He shall build a house for my 85 00:05:36,080 --> 00:05:40,600 name, and I will establish the throne of his Kingdom forever. 86 00:05:41,600 --> 00:05:46,320 And verse 16 your house and your Kingdom shall be made sure 87 00:05:46,320 --> 00:05:50,200 forever before me. Your throne shall be established 88 00:05:50,680 --> 00:05:54,120 forever. This is why the scribes, 89 00:05:54,680 --> 00:05:58,680 Israel's official religious teachers, say that the Messiah, 90 00:05:58,760 --> 00:06:02,440 which in Greek is Christ, is David's son. 91 00:06:03,000 --> 00:06:06,600 God himself promised David a son who would reign forever. 92 00:06:07,160 --> 00:06:10,280 This promise to David is the backbone of the Old Testaments 93 00:06:10,440 --> 00:06:13,160 expectation of a Messiah. The scribes are right. 94 00:06:13,400 --> 00:06:18,440 They are correct on this point. Not only that, but the Gospel of 95 00:06:18,440 --> 00:06:22,120 Mark itself affirms that Jesus is the son of David. 96 00:06:22,440 --> 00:06:26,360 Remember blind Bartimaeus calling out in Mark 1047, Jesus 97 00:06:26,360 --> 00:06:29,560 son of David, have mercy on me. Jesus doesn't rebuke him. 98 00:06:29,840 --> 00:06:32,600 Jesus doesn't correct him. He just shows him the mercy that 99 00:06:32,600 --> 00:06:35,520 Bartimaeus is right to expect from the Son of David. 100 00:06:36,240 --> 00:06:39,360 Then in Chapter 11, when Jesus rides into Jerusalem on a 101 00:06:39,360 --> 00:06:43,080 donkey, he's openly declaring that he is the Son whom God 102 00:06:43,080 --> 00:06:45,480 promised to David. He's fulfilling the messianic 103 00:06:45,480 --> 00:06:50,040 promise of Zechariah Chapter 9, and the crowd around him get it. 104 00:06:50,520 --> 00:06:54,280 They shout out in Chapter 11, verses 9 and 10, Hosanna. 105 00:06:54,280 --> 00:06:56,680 Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. 106 00:06:57,000 --> 00:07:00,680 Blessed is the coming Kingdom of our Father David. 107 00:07:01,360 --> 00:07:04,360 Mark's point is the crowd is getting it right. 108 00:07:05,160 --> 00:07:09,960 So we know from the rest of the Bible that God promised David a 109 00:07:09,960 --> 00:07:13,680 son who would be the Messiah. And we know from the rest of the 110 00:07:13,680 --> 00:07:18,480 Gospel of Mark that Jesus is this Messiah, this son of David. 111 00:07:20,080 --> 00:07:23,680 So why does Jesus ask the question in verse 35? 112 00:07:24,400 --> 00:07:30,880 How can the scribes say that the Christ is the son of David? 113 00:07:30,880 --> 00:07:34,760 It's important to note the form of the question. 114 00:07:35,600 --> 00:07:40,760 He asks how. How asks for an explanation. 115 00:07:41,280 --> 00:07:46,760 It asks for a reason. It might ask you how two things 116 00:07:46,760 --> 00:07:50,160 can be true at the same time. That might seem to contradict 117 00:07:50,160 --> 00:07:53,600 each other. So Jesus question is not a 118 00:07:53,600 --> 00:07:57,280 denial. Instead it invites A deeper 119 00:07:57,280 --> 00:08:00,640 understanding. From the outset we should assume 120 00:08:00,720 --> 00:08:04,320 Jesus question is not denying that the Messiah is David's son. 121 00:08:04,680 --> 00:08:08,920 Instead, he's asking a question that requires us to understand 122 00:08:08,920 --> 00:08:13,240 that son of David is not all that the Messiah is. 123 00:08:13,360 --> 00:08:15,200 He's something else, He's something more, and he's 124 00:08:15,200 --> 00:08:18,240 something that is so much more that it might be hard to 125 00:08:18,240 --> 00:08:21,320 understand that something more and also how he can be David's 126 00:08:21,320 --> 00:08:25,200 son. At the same time, Jesus is not 127 00:08:25,200 --> 00:08:29,000 going to deny belief in the Son of David, He's going to show 128 00:08:29,000 --> 00:08:33,200 that it isn't the whole story. Jesus question is essentially 129 00:08:33,200 --> 00:08:38,640 asking is the category son of David a box that is big enough 130 00:08:38,919 --> 00:08:42,200 to fit everything the Messiah is into it. 131 00:08:43,520 --> 00:08:47,440 Now we see Jesus use questions like this in a similar way a few 132 00:08:47,440 --> 00:08:51,360 times before this in Mark, he asked questions that don't 133 00:08:51,360 --> 00:08:55,040 categorically reject the position of the person he's 134 00:08:55,040 --> 00:08:59,200 talking to. Instead, his question shows that 135 00:08:59,200 --> 00:09:02,800 what the person is affirming is not enough. 136 00:09:03,600 --> 00:09:08,120 For instance, Mark 828, Jesus disciples tell him that some 137 00:09:08,120 --> 00:09:11,280 people say he's a prophet. In the next verse, Jesus asks, 138 00:09:11,280 --> 00:09:14,360 but who do you say that I am? And Peter confesses that he's 139 00:09:14,360 --> 00:09:17,440 the Messiah. Now Jesus isn't denying that 140 00:09:17,440 --> 00:09:21,120 he's a prophet. He is a prophet, but he's more 141 00:09:21,120 --> 00:09:26,040 than a prophet. Or in Mark 1017 and 18, the rich 142 00:09:26,040 --> 00:09:28,760 young ruler approaches him with the title Good teacher. 143 00:09:28,760 --> 00:09:33,440 That's how he addresses him. Jesus asks, why do you call me 144 00:09:33,440 --> 00:09:36,880 good? No one is good except God alone. 145 00:09:37,560 --> 00:09:40,440 Similar to our question, but instead of asking how, he asks 146 00:09:40,560 --> 00:09:44,760 why. Jesus isn't denying that he is 147 00:09:44,760 --> 00:09:48,040 good. Instead, he's challenging the 148 00:09:48,040 --> 00:09:52,360 ruler to recognize that he is good with the goodness that God 149 00:09:52,360 --> 00:09:57,040 alone has. Jesus questions like this aim to 150 00:09:57,040 --> 00:10:01,080 accomplish the same thing that his two stage healing of the 151 00:10:01,080 --> 00:10:05,200 blind man in chapter 8 did. They aim to move someone to it 152 00:10:05,200 --> 00:10:10,040 from a partial to a fuller vision of him. 153 00:10:11,080 --> 00:10:15,920 So Jesus question how is meant to sow seeds of thought. 154 00:10:16,560 --> 00:10:20,680 It's meant to open people's minds wider so that more of the 155 00:10:20,680 --> 00:10:24,880 truth about him can fit in. Just one brief point of 156 00:10:24,880 --> 00:10:28,120 application here. Jesus question about the scribes 157 00:10:28,120 --> 00:10:31,840 teaching does not imply that they're wrong on this point, but 158 00:10:31,840 --> 00:10:34,360 it does imply they're wrong about something. 159 00:10:34,920 --> 00:10:36,400 That's why he's asking the question. 160 00:10:36,920 --> 00:10:40,120 They're missing something. Those leaders who are officially 161 00:10:40,120 --> 00:10:44,120 charged to publicly interpret Israel's scriptures and help the 162 00:10:44,120 --> 00:10:46,440 people of Israel live accordingly are missing 163 00:10:46,440 --> 00:10:50,800 something big about the Messiah. They were not infallible. 164 00:10:51,640 --> 00:10:54,920 They were not perfect bearers of an utterly authoritative 165 00:10:54,920 --> 00:10:58,240 tradition. They got stuff wrong. 166 00:10:59,160 --> 00:11:03,160 What does that teach us? It should teach us to hold 167 00:11:03,200 --> 00:11:07,000 Scripture supreme above every teacher. 168 00:11:07,400 --> 00:11:11,280 God gives teachers to help us understand and apply Scripture, 169 00:11:11,440 --> 00:11:14,240 but no teacher is supreme, only scripture is. 170 00:11:14,880 --> 00:11:18,680 No teacher is infallible, only Scripture is. 171 00:11:19,320 --> 00:11:24,520 No teacher is inerrant, only scripture is. 172 00:11:24,800 --> 00:11:26,760 So search the scriptures regularly. 173 00:11:27,360 --> 00:11:29,560 Test whatever teaching you hear against the scriptures. 174 00:11:30,000 --> 00:11:33,880 Learn to spot when a teacher is missing something that scripture 175 00:11:33,880 --> 00:11:38,320 teaches, like the scribes here, or denying something that 176 00:11:38,320 --> 00:11:42,400 scripture affirms or contradicting something 177 00:11:42,840 --> 00:11:44,840 scripture asserts. If you ever hear a little alarm 178 00:11:44,840 --> 00:11:47,240 bell going off in your head, well, the the teacher, the 179 00:11:47,240 --> 00:11:49,840 person on the radio, the podcaster, the author, well, 180 00:11:49,840 --> 00:11:53,280 they said this, but doesn't scripture say, well, definitely 181 00:11:53,280 --> 00:11:56,000 double check that little alarm bell in the back of your mind. 182 00:11:56,000 --> 00:11:58,800 Go look up that passage. Go figure it out. 183 00:11:59,400 --> 00:12:01,960 Does Scripture really say that? Does it contradict this teacher? 184 00:12:01,960 --> 00:12:05,040 If so, at the very least you need to be more cautious about 185 00:12:05,040 --> 00:12:06,960 listening to this teacher. You need to understand they 186 00:12:06,960 --> 00:12:10,520 might be wrong at this point if they're denying something 187 00:12:10,520 --> 00:12:15,400 Scripture affirms. Only Scripture is supreme. 188 00:12:16,400 --> 00:12:19,800 So what? Is this something more that 189 00:12:19,800 --> 00:12:25,640 Jesus's question is pointing to point #2 David's Lord, Who is 190 00:12:25,680 --> 00:12:28,680 Jesus? He's David's Lord. 191 00:12:29,200 --> 00:12:32,160 That's what Jesus proves from Psalm 110, verse one. 192 00:12:32,160 --> 00:12:36,240 In the rest of our passage, verses 36 and 37, Look with me 193 00:12:36,240 --> 00:12:40,880 at those verses. David himself in the Holy Spirit 194 00:12:40,880 --> 00:12:45,000 declared, The Lord said to my Lord, sit at my right hand until 195 00:12:45,000 --> 00:12:46,520 I put your enemies under your feet. 196 00:12:47,000 --> 00:12:51,040 David himself calls him Lord, so how is he? 197 00:12:51,040 --> 00:12:56,320 His Son and the great throng heard him gladly. 198 00:12:58,560 --> 00:13:03,200 Notice how Jesus introduces the biblical passage that he quotes 199 00:13:03,840 --> 00:13:09,720 David himself in. The Holy Spirit declared Jesus 200 00:13:09,720 --> 00:13:12,640 is affirming that David spoke the words of Psalm 110, verse 201 00:13:12,640 --> 00:13:16,600 one, and he's affirming that David spoke the words of Psalm 202 00:13:16,600 --> 00:13:19,240 110, verse one. Under the inspiration of the 203 00:13:19,240 --> 00:13:22,160 Holy Spirit. He's teaching that these 204 00:13:22,360 --> 00:13:27,240 genuinely human words of David are also the words of God. 205 00:13:27,320 --> 00:13:30,760 They are divine revelation. They're from the mouth of God 206 00:13:30,760 --> 00:13:34,240 Himself. All Scripture has both a human 207 00:13:34,240 --> 00:13:41,240 author and its ultimate divine author. 1 central reason why 208 00:13:41,240 --> 00:13:45,920 Christians should believe in the verbal plenary inspiration of 209 00:13:45,920 --> 00:13:47,600 Scripture. That is that the very words are 210 00:13:47,600 --> 00:13:50,560 inspired and the totality of it is inspired. 211 00:13:50,800 --> 00:13:53,640 One reason we should believe that is Jesus himself believed 212 00:13:53,640 --> 00:13:56,640 it and taught it. If you want to be a follower of 213 00:13:56,720 --> 00:13:59,560 Jesus, you should follow his understanding and belief of what 214 00:13:59,560 --> 00:14:02,160 Scripture is. If you want to be a follower of 215 00:14:02,240 --> 00:14:04,040 Jesus, you should believe his teaching. 216 00:14:04,520 --> 00:14:07,800 That Scripture is the words of the Holy Spirit of God. 217 00:14:09,440 --> 00:14:13,800 So what's going on in Psalm 110, verse one, David is speaking and 218 00:14:13,800 --> 00:14:16,240 he's reporting a prophetic vision. 219 00:14:16,920 --> 00:14:22,120 In this vision, the Lord speaks to the one David calls my Lord. 220 00:14:22,880 --> 00:14:26,840 The Lord is the God of Israel, and the Lord is installing 221 00:14:26,840 --> 00:14:30,200 David's Lord in power and glory at his right hand. 222 00:14:31,040 --> 00:14:35,480 Now, Jesus clearly takes David's Lord in this verse to be the 223 00:14:35,480 --> 00:14:37,240 Messiah. That's why he brings it into the 224 00:14:37,240 --> 00:14:39,360 discussion. Who else could inherit such 225 00:14:39,360 --> 00:14:43,480 authority from the Lord Himself? But this verse also creates 226 00:14:43,480 --> 00:14:48,040 complications for understanding the Messiah as merely the Son of 227 00:14:48,040 --> 00:14:51,480 David. You don't go around calling your 228 00:14:51,480 --> 00:14:55,560 son Lord. Speaking in human terms, a 229 00:14:55,560 --> 00:14:58,080 father has authority over his Son. 230 00:14:58,680 --> 00:15:01,000 A son does not outrank his father. 231 00:15:02,000 --> 00:15:07,040 But not only that, David is the highest ranking human in Israel. 232 00:15:07,360 --> 00:15:11,960 He's the king. There's no human Lord over him. 233 00:15:12,520 --> 00:15:16,520 Who could be Lord over him? Who could he refer to as my Lord 234 00:15:16,920 --> 00:15:20,640 in addition to the Lord? If the Messiah is David's son, 235 00:15:20,640 --> 00:15:23,720 how can he call him Lord? Now? 236 00:15:23,720 --> 00:15:26,560 Here's the most crucial detail in the passage to notice in the 237 00:15:26,560 --> 00:15:30,400 verse from Psalm 110. Where does the Lord invite 238 00:15:30,400 --> 00:15:33,160 David's Lord to sit? It's at his right hand. 239 00:15:33,520 --> 00:15:37,520 So where are we? We're in heaven, and there's 240 00:15:37,520 --> 00:15:43,520 only one throne in heaven. To sit at God's right hand is to 241 00:15:43,520 --> 00:15:47,320 share God's throne and share God's rule. 242 00:15:47,600 --> 00:15:51,000 In other biblical depictions of heaven, no one else sits with 243 00:15:51,000 --> 00:15:53,840 God on His throne. Angels, like we heard in Hebrews 244 00:15:53,840 --> 00:15:57,520 1, stand as servants, ready to be sent out to minister 245 00:15:57,520 --> 00:16:01,160 according to God's orders. Glorified Saints may sit on 246 00:16:01,160 --> 00:16:05,040 their own seats, but not on God's throne. 247 00:16:06,200 --> 00:16:11,960 Just as there is only one God, so in heaven there is only one 248 00:16:12,240 --> 00:16:17,160 throne. So who besides God could sit on 249 00:16:17,160 --> 00:16:19,680 it? Well, you have to remove that 250 00:16:19,680 --> 00:16:25,960 phrase besides God, because only one who is himself divine can 251 00:16:25,960 --> 00:16:30,360 sit on that throne. In other words, Psalm 110 verse 252 00:16:30,360 --> 00:16:35,360 one is one of the Old Testaments clearest witnesses to the 253 00:16:35,360 --> 00:16:40,160 mystery of the Trinity. There's only one God, and yet 254 00:16:40,360 --> 00:16:44,840 this one God eternally exists as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit who 255 00:16:44,840 --> 00:16:46,800 is David's Lord in Psalm 110 verse one. 256 00:16:46,800 --> 00:16:50,680 It is the eternal divine Son of God. 257 00:16:51,440 --> 00:16:54,400 So now we arrive at the answer to Jesus question. 258 00:16:54,400 --> 00:16:58,360 Who is the Messiah? He's not only David's Son, but 259 00:16:58,360 --> 00:17:02,560 also David's Lord. Scripture itself says so. 260 00:17:03,080 --> 00:17:08,079 How can that be? Because the Son of David is also 261 00:17:08,079 --> 00:17:13,400 the Son of God. As man, he descends from David. 262 00:17:14,599 --> 00:17:19,200 As God, he is David's creator and Lord. 263 00:17:20,280 --> 00:17:24,560 So Jesus is saying to the scribes that their view of the 264 00:17:24,560 --> 00:17:28,319 Messiah is too small. Even though they were 265 00:17:28,319 --> 00:17:32,080 authoritative teachers of Scripture, they didn't take into 266 00:17:32,080 --> 00:17:37,440 account what Psalm 110 verse one says about the Messiah. 267 00:17:39,240 --> 00:17:45,520 Is your Jesus too small? Do you view Jesus as merely a 268 00:17:45,520 --> 00:17:48,360 good teacher? Do you view Jesus maybe as 269 00:17:48,360 --> 00:17:51,280 someone who gives good directions for your life, or 270 00:17:51,280 --> 00:17:54,320 someone who has bequeathed a rich moral inheritance to 271 00:17:54,320 --> 00:17:56,560 Western culture that we shouldn't give up on? 272 00:17:57,640 --> 00:18:01,720 Only the scriptural Jesus is the real Jesus. 273 00:18:01,720 --> 00:18:05,160 Any other Jesus is too small. The real Jesus will not fit 274 00:18:05,160 --> 00:18:10,920 inside any box you make for him. Only the Jesus who is both God 275 00:18:10,920 --> 00:18:15,760 and man is the real Jesus. Jesus here tells us that he is 276 00:18:15,760 --> 00:18:20,000 God become man for our salvation, the eternal Son of 277 00:18:20,000 --> 00:18:23,680 God who became the Son of David, the Messiah who is going to 278 00:18:23,680 --> 00:18:27,920 reign as a human being on the throne of God himself. 279 00:18:29,120 --> 00:18:32,240 If you're not a believer in Jesus, what boxes are you 280 00:18:32,240 --> 00:18:38,400 tempted to put Jesus in? Does a smaller Jesus feel safer 281 00:18:38,920 --> 00:18:45,280 to you? Jesus teaching in this passage 282 00:18:45,400 --> 00:18:50,440 is a Riddle, and it's a Riddle that open ultimately opens out 283 00:18:50,880 --> 00:18:54,200 into a mystery or actually 2 mysteries. 284 00:18:55,080 --> 00:19:00,360 This passage and the Psalm 110 verse one that it cites is one 285 00:19:00,360 --> 00:19:04,360 of the crucial scriptural witnesses to two mysteries at 286 00:19:04,360 --> 00:19:07,960 the very heart of the Christian faith, the Trinity and the 287 00:19:07,960 --> 00:19:13,000 incarnation. There is only one God and there 288 00:19:13,000 --> 00:19:15,880 is personal distinction within God. 289 00:19:16,200 --> 00:19:20,080 There's only one God and within that one God the Lord God the 290 00:19:20,080 --> 00:19:25,960 Father can speak to David's Lord, the Son who is talking to 291 00:19:25,960 --> 00:19:31,240 whom in Psalm 110 verse one Jesus is crucial insight is that 292 00:19:31,240 --> 00:19:36,040 it is one divine person addressing another. 293 00:19:36,680 --> 00:19:40,760 So the doctrine of the Trinity is not some sort of like distant 294 00:19:40,760 --> 00:19:43,360 conclusion where if you kind of reason it all out and get all 295 00:19:43,360 --> 00:19:45,640 your steps right, kind of like a big algebra problem where you 296 00:19:45,640 --> 00:19:47,920 got to do 40 steps and keep working and going get to the 297 00:19:47,920 --> 00:19:49,440 end. And if you did every single step 298 00:19:49,440 --> 00:19:53,680 right, you get the right answer. Jesus saying the doctrine of the 299 00:19:53,680 --> 00:19:57,960 Trinity is there in the text. The identity of David's Lord is 300 00:19:57,960 --> 00:20:01,840 that he is God's Son. That's how he has authority to 301 00:20:01,840 --> 00:20:04,560 sit at God's right hand. That's why he's way more than a 302 00:20:04,560 --> 00:20:08,400 human son of David. You can only make sense of this 303 00:20:08,400 --> 00:20:11,400 verse. You can only make sense of Jesus 304 00:20:11,400 --> 00:20:14,560 use of this verse with the doctrine. 305 00:20:14,560 --> 00:20:17,720 Would you equally call the mystery of the Trinity. 306 00:20:18,560 --> 00:20:22,400 This text also bears witness to the mystery of the Incarnation. 307 00:20:23,120 --> 00:20:27,000 Jesus would come to fulfill this prophecy as a man through his 308 00:20:27,000 --> 00:20:29,400 life, death, resurrection, and ascension. 309 00:20:30,360 --> 00:20:34,400 When did Jesus take his seat at God's right hand? 310 00:20:35,320 --> 00:20:39,760 As we read in Hebrews one, it was after making purification 311 00:20:39,760 --> 00:20:43,360 for sins. As Acts 2 verse 32 says, it was 312 00:20:43,360 --> 00:20:46,640 after his resurrection that Jesus was exalted to God's right 313 00:20:46,640 --> 00:20:49,160 hand. So in Psalm 110 verse one, when 314 00:20:49,160 --> 00:20:52,640 it comes to be fulfilled, the Father is speaking to the divine 315 00:20:52,720 --> 00:20:57,280 Son Incarnate. Now the Trinity and the 316 00:20:57,280 --> 00:21:00,880 Incarnation are mysteries in two senses. 317 00:21:02,200 --> 00:21:05,360 They are mysteries in the sense of the Apostle Paul frequently 318 00:21:05,360 --> 00:21:07,160 uses the word like in the book of Ephesians. 319 00:21:07,640 --> 00:21:12,960 It means something present but hidden in the Old Testament, 320 00:21:13,520 --> 00:21:15,760 something that's really there that God has really revealed in 321 00:21:15,760 --> 00:21:18,560 the Old Testament Scriptures, but that only comes fully to 322 00:21:18,560 --> 00:21:23,480 light once Jesus himself comes to accomplish our salvation. 323 00:21:25,000 --> 00:21:27,760 The Trinity and the Incarnation are also mysteries in another 324 00:21:27,760 --> 00:21:30,640 sense. They're mysteries in the sense 325 00:21:30,640 --> 00:21:33,680 that they exceed our ability to comprehend them. 326 00:21:34,240 --> 00:21:36,480 We can understand something of the truth of them. 327 00:21:37,040 --> 00:21:39,240 We can see something of their coherence. 328 00:21:39,840 --> 00:21:43,760 They're not irrational, they're not against reason, but they go 329 00:21:43,760 --> 00:21:47,160 above and beyond reason. Our reason can never fully grasp 330 00:21:47,160 --> 00:21:50,160 their whole dimensions. And we could never have 331 00:21:50,160 --> 00:21:54,800 discovered these truths had God himself not revealed them to us. 332 00:21:55,200 --> 00:21:58,720 And the way He revealed them to us was by sending his Son to be 333 00:21:58,720 --> 00:22:01,760 become Incarnate for our salvation and sending His Spirit 334 00:22:01,760 --> 00:22:04,920 to indwell us. The way that God revealed that 335 00:22:04,920 --> 00:22:09,520 He eternally is the Trinity is by bringing the Trinity to bear 336 00:22:09,520 --> 00:22:13,320 on the stage of history and wrapping us up by faith into the 337 00:22:13,320 --> 00:22:18,480 life of the Trinity. Looking into Jesus comments in 338 00:22:18,480 --> 00:22:23,960 Psalm 110, verse one. In our verse 37 of our passage, 339 00:22:24,400 --> 00:22:28,680 David himself calls him Lord. So how is he his Son? 340 00:22:28,880 --> 00:22:33,240 There's that word how again and again Jesus isn't making a 341 00:22:33,240 --> 00:22:35,560 denial. Instead, he's pointing to a 342 00:22:35,560 --> 00:22:38,960 surprising fact that requires explanation. 343 00:22:40,120 --> 00:22:43,160 Ah, so the Messiah is David's son, you say. 344 00:22:43,680 --> 00:22:46,920 Well, then I'll see you David's son, and I'll raise you David's 345 00:22:46,920 --> 00:22:48,480 Lord. What do you say? 346 00:22:48,480 --> 00:22:53,480 Now by asking how Jesus is putting the burden of proof on 347 00:22:53,480 --> 00:22:55,800 the scribes, you guys explain this. 348 00:22:56,360 --> 00:22:58,720 How are these two things true at the same time? 349 00:22:59,120 --> 00:23:03,960 You tell me. Jesus is saying that the only 350 00:23:03,960 --> 00:23:07,320 way that the scribes can affirm all that Scripture teaches about 351 00:23:07,320 --> 00:23:10,960 the Messiah is by recognizing him as divine. 352 00:23:11,360 --> 00:23:14,560 Just like they've tried to pin him into a hard position by some 353 00:23:14,560 --> 00:23:18,320 of the questions they've asked him, now he's doing something 354 00:23:18,320 --> 00:23:20,240 similar to them. But notice how he does it. 355 00:23:21,280 --> 00:23:25,000 He uses only the words of scripture. 356 00:23:25,680 --> 00:23:31,120 He pins them to the wall with a proof text and says explain this 357 00:23:31,120 --> 00:23:33,240 part of the Bible. To me. 358 00:23:34,040 --> 00:23:37,240 That also shows Jesus attitude towards scripture, that he views 359 00:23:37,240 --> 00:23:40,560 it as fully inspired, authoritative, inerrant. 360 00:23:40,880 --> 00:23:45,400 He's using scripture to refute his opponents. 361 00:23:46,520 --> 00:23:50,800 So he's really leaving them only one of two possible conclusions. 362 00:23:50,800 --> 00:23:54,560 One, not only is Jesus the Messiah, but he's also the 363 00:23:54,560 --> 00:23:57,840 divine Son of God. That would be the right answer. 364 00:23:59,120 --> 00:24:02,440 Two, he's a liar and a blasphemer. 365 00:24:03,240 --> 00:24:08,680 Sadly, as Jesus's trial will show, his opponents are going to 366 00:24:08,680 --> 00:24:11,160 go with option 2. They're going to charge him with 367 00:24:11,160 --> 00:24:13,520 blasphemy. If you're not familiar with that 368 00:24:13,520 --> 00:24:17,080 term or that category, it means someone falsely claiming for 369 00:24:17,080 --> 00:24:21,200 themselves privileges or dignities that belong to God 370 00:24:21,200 --> 00:24:23,560 alone. It's like when Jesus tells the 371 00:24:23,560 --> 00:24:26,680 paralytic in Mark 27, My son, your sins are forgiven. 372 00:24:26,960 --> 00:24:28,720 The scribes instantly say he's blaspheming. 373 00:24:28,880 --> 00:24:30,840 Who can forgive sins but God alone? 374 00:24:31,000 --> 00:24:33,280 Good question. Theologically true. 375 00:24:33,480 --> 00:24:35,760 Nobody can forgive sins but God alone. 376 00:24:36,240 --> 00:24:39,000 Jesus can only forgive sins because he's God Incarnate. 377 00:24:39,600 --> 00:24:42,440 So he's claiming to do something only God can do because he 378 00:24:42,440 --> 00:24:44,760 really can. But that leaves you only the 379 00:24:44,760 --> 00:24:48,000 option of faith in him as divine or rejecting him as a 380 00:24:48,000 --> 00:24:49,840 blasphemer. There's no middle ground. 381 00:24:50,040 --> 00:24:53,240 There's no nice prophet Jesus that you can say, oh sorry, he 382 00:24:53,240 --> 00:24:54,720 got the whole apocalypse thing wrong. 383 00:24:54,960 --> 00:24:56,160 I guess. He's an interesting religious 384 00:24:56,160 --> 00:24:57,480 figure. We don't have to pay attention 385 00:24:57,480 --> 00:24:59,880 to anything he's really doing. He's just one more casualty of 386 00:24:59,880 --> 00:25:02,040 history that you know people then made-up and did a whole 387 00:25:02,040 --> 00:25:04,240 bunch of stuff with. There is no middle grounds. 388 00:25:05,160 --> 00:25:07,680 Either he's the divine Son Incarnate, as the whole Gospel 389 00:25:07,680 --> 00:25:11,600 of Mark has shown, or he's a liar and a blasphemer, and the 390 00:25:11,600 --> 00:25:15,800 charge of blasphemy is going to be what gets him crucified. 391 00:25:18,440 --> 00:25:25,440 By resolving to regard Jesus as a blasphemer, the scribes are 392 00:25:25,440 --> 00:25:27,920 rejecting his claim to fulfill Psalm 110, verse one. 393 00:25:28,400 --> 00:25:32,120 In Psalm 110 verse one, there is another figure who receives 394 00:25:32,120 --> 00:25:36,440 divine dignities, divine privileges, rights that belong 395 00:25:36,440 --> 00:25:38,400 to only God. Like, say, I don't know, ruling 396 00:25:38,400 --> 00:25:39,920 the whole universe from the throne of heaven. 397 00:25:40,920 --> 00:25:42,680 That's what Jesus is claiming he's going to get. 398 00:25:43,240 --> 00:25:47,920 That's his right. You either accept that, rejoice 399 00:25:47,920 --> 00:25:51,920 in it, embrace it, or the sentence you yourself pass on 400 00:25:52,040 --> 00:25:56,520 Jesus is that he's a liar and a blasphemer. 401 00:25:58,120 --> 00:26:01,680 When it comes to the revealed mysteries of Christianity, there 402 00:26:01,680 --> 00:26:07,440 are basically two ways you could ask the question How one comes 403 00:26:07,440 --> 00:26:12,240 from skepticism, from unbelief. You can ask how meaning, how can 404 00:26:12,240 --> 00:26:15,000 this all be true? If this just doesn't make sense 405 00:26:15,000 --> 00:26:17,600 to me, so it it, it must not be true. 406 00:26:17,800 --> 00:26:20,200 I can't explain it. This just doesn't seem to all 407 00:26:20,200 --> 00:26:22,720 hold together. Therefore I conclude false. 408 00:26:22,920 --> 00:26:25,600 And actually, there's some people earlier in Mark's gospel 409 00:26:25,600 --> 00:26:31,160 who basically do that with Jesus, Chapter 6 verse two 410 00:26:31,400 --> 00:26:33,400 people in his hometown synagogue. 411 00:26:33,600 --> 00:26:36,600 When he comes back, they say, where did this man get these 412 00:26:36,600 --> 00:26:38,360 things? What is the wisdom given to him? 413 00:26:38,760 --> 00:26:41,760 How are such mighty works done by his hands? 414 00:26:41,760 --> 00:26:44,160 But they're not really asking for an explanation. 415 00:26:44,520 --> 00:26:47,120 They're like, we know this guy, he's the hometown carpenter's 416 00:26:47,120 --> 00:26:50,400 son. They're skeptical of the things 417 00:26:50,400 --> 00:26:53,240 he's doing and saying because they think they know better. 418 00:26:53,360 --> 00:26:56,880 And their question how is really more like, yeah, we're not 419 00:26:56,880 --> 00:27:02,920 buying it, but there's another way to ask the question how. 420 00:27:04,280 --> 00:27:08,880 You could ask the question how as an expression of faith 421 00:27:09,160 --> 00:27:15,360 seeking understanding, you could say I know scripture reveals 2 422 00:27:15,360 --> 00:27:17,720 truths that seem contradictory to me. 423 00:27:18,080 --> 00:27:20,280 It's like what Michael mentioned in the evangelism class coming 424 00:27:20,280 --> 00:27:21,840 up next week. It's a mystery. 425 00:27:21,840 --> 00:27:24,000 Divine sovereignty and human responsibility. 426 00:27:24,160 --> 00:27:26,280 People have broken their heads on these two seemingly 427 00:27:26,280 --> 00:27:28,200 contradictory truths for thousands of years. 428 00:27:28,480 --> 00:27:30,680 Not just Christians, but secular philosophers, all kinds of 429 00:27:30,680 --> 00:27:33,720 people. What is free will doesn't exist. 430 00:27:33,720 --> 00:27:35,360 Is there a God who rules over all things? 431 00:27:35,640 --> 00:27:39,560 Ultimately, it's a mystery. Scripture teaches 2 truths that 432 00:27:39,560 --> 00:27:41,120 we have a tough time reconciling. 433 00:27:41,640 --> 00:27:46,160 You can say how in a way that leads to a deeper understanding 434 00:27:46,160 --> 00:27:50,720 of both so you come to a fuller knowledge of who God is and who 435 00:27:50,720 --> 00:27:54,000 he's created us to be. You could say I struggle to see 436 00:27:54,000 --> 00:27:56,520 how these two things can be true at the same time. 437 00:27:56,520 --> 00:27:59,920 Lord, show me how. Grant me to accept all that you 438 00:27:59,920 --> 00:28:01,320 teach. Grant me to grow in my 439 00:28:01,320 --> 00:28:04,360 understanding of this part and this part so that I see better 440 00:28:04,400 --> 00:28:08,000 how they fit together. That's essentially the the 441 00:28:08,000 --> 00:28:10,200 challenge of coming to a deeper knowledge of God. 442 00:28:10,200 --> 00:28:12,240 That's a question we always have to keep in mind when we're 443 00:28:12,240 --> 00:28:15,120 reading Scripture. Whenever you come upon a sort of 444 00:28:15,120 --> 00:28:17,240 new truth in Scripture or something that's unfamiliar to 445 00:28:17,240 --> 00:28:19,800 you, you really want to keep in mind everything you already know 446 00:28:19,800 --> 00:28:24,000 to be true about from Scripture. It's possible this new thing you 447 00:28:24,000 --> 00:28:27,120 learned goes and changes an interpretation of something else 448 00:28:27,120 --> 00:28:30,880 you thought you knew. That's always possible, but you 449 00:28:30,880 --> 00:28:33,600 always want to say, Lord, I'll believe everything you reveal. 450 00:28:34,240 --> 00:28:35,840 I will submit to everything you teach. 451 00:28:36,320 --> 00:28:39,760 And if anything ever seems not to fit, I know the problem's me, 452 00:28:39,760 --> 00:28:43,160 not you. I'm going to ask how in faith 453 00:28:43,760 --> 00:28:47,240 and trust that you will lead me deeper into understanding. 454 00:28:48,520 --> 00:28:52,640 So pray. When two scriptural truths seem 455 00:28:52,640 --> 00:28:54,840 to be butting up against each other, turn it into prayer. 456 00:28:55,360 --> 00:28:57,920 Hand it over to God. Submit yourself to Him 457 00:28:57,920 --> 00:29:01,640 spiritually, emotionally submit your mind to Him. 458 00:29:01,840 --> 00:29:05,360 Ask for His help in understanding Him better. 459 00:29:05,600 --> 00:29:11,840 The question How can either express unbelief seeking 460 00:29:11,840 --> 00:29:18,200 validation or faith seeking understanding? 461 00:29:20,600 --> 00:29:24,840 So if Jesus is David's son and Lord, what does that mean for 462 00:29:24,840 --> 00:29:30,480 you and me right now .3 Putting it all together, who is Jesus? 463 00:29:31,640 --> 00:29:39,280 He is God's Son reigning in heaven now and supreme over all 464 00:29:39,400 --> 00:29:43,000 then. God's Son reigning in heaven now 465 00:29:43,840 --> 00:29:49,440 and supreme over all. Then we see this in verse 36. 466 00:29:49,440 --> 00:29:52,360 It's in the part of Psalm 110, verse one that we haven't paid 467 00:29:52,360 --> 00:29:55,800 much attention to yet. Look again at Jesus citation of 468 00:29:55,800 --> 00:30:01,800 the passage, verse 36. Sit at my right hand until I put 469 00:30:01,800 --> 00:30:06,560 your enemies under your feet. In just a few chapters, the 470 00:30:06,560 --> 00:30:09,080 Gospel of Mark is going to narrate how Jesus gets arrested, 471 00:30:09,080 --> 00:30:12,240 tried, killed, how he rises from the dead, and then it kind of 472 00:30:12,240 --> 00:30:13,520 ends abruptly. That's it. 473 00:30:15,120 --> 00:30:20,000 But Psalm 110, verse 1 is a script for what happens next. 474 00:30:20,760 --> 00:30:22,360 It's a script for the rest of the story. 475 00:30:23,000 --> 00:30:25,880 It tells us what's going to happen immediately after Jesus's 476 00:30:25,880 --> 00:30:28,200 earthly career in the book of Acts witnesses to this, and the 477 00:30:28,200 --> 00:30:29,560 rest of the New Testament does too. 478 00:30:30,160 --> 00:30:34,240 After Jesus lives, teaches, dies, rises again, what then? 479 00:30:34,920 --> 00:30:37,720 He ascends to heaven, and he sits down at the right hand of 480 00:30:37,720 --> 00:30:41,680 the Father to do what? To reign over all things from 481 00:30:41,680 --> 00:30:44,200 heaven. Twit end. 482 00:30:45,120 --> 00:30:52,200 God will one day subdue all the sun's enemies under his feet. 483 00:30:52,880 --> 00:30:54,840 That will be God's work, not ours. 484 00:30:55,480 --> 00:30:59,240 It will happen at Christ's return and not before. 485 00:31:00,600 --> 00:31:05,680 That word enemies is unsettling. If you don't trust in Jesus, you 486 00:31:05,680 --> 00:31:08,400 might not naturally think of yourself as God's enemy. 487 00:31:09,000 --> 00:31:13,800 We often overestimate on what good terms we must be with God. 488 00:31:13,800 --> 00:31:16,440 God must be looking at me as a pretty good moral person. 489 00:31:16,440 --> 00:31:18,800 I'm doing my best. I'm an upstanding citizen. 490 00:31:18,800 --> 00:31:21,480 I take care of my family. I pay taxes. 491 00:31:21,640 --> 00:31:24,800 I'm contributing to other people's welfare through my job. 492 00:31:25,880 --> 00:31:28,280 But if that's how you're thinking of yourself before God, 493 00:31:29,160 --> 00:31:31,680 you are missing your fundamental spiritual condition. 494 00:31:32,640 --> 00:31:34,360 Scripture teaches that we're enemies of God. 495 00:31:34,960 --> 00:31:39,480 Our hearts are set against Him. We reject his rule and reign 496 00:31:39,480 --> 00:31:41,880 over us. And that shows up in specific 497 00:31:41,880 --> 00:31:44,920 things we do, which the Bible calls sins. 498 00:31:45,480 --> 00:31:49,000 But sin in the singular is deeply rooted in our hearts. 499 00:31:49,440 --> 00:31:51,520 It's dictating the course of our lives. 500 00:31:51,520 --> 00:31:53,800 It's dominating us. It's setting us at enmity with 501 00:31:53,800 --> 00:31:55,840 God. And his right and righteous 502 00:31:55,840 --> 00:31:59,920 response is wrath. It's punishment. 503 00:32:00,560 --> 00:32:04,360 It's to be set against us as a righteous judge. 504 00:32:06,360 --> 00:32:10,000 If you don't trust in Jesus, you are right this second. 505 00:32:10,360 --> 00:32:14,640 God's enemy. But you do not have to remain 506 00:32:15,160 --> 00:32:18,440 God's enemy. He sent Jesus into the world for 507 00:32:18,440 --> 00:32:23,000 the whole purpose of teaching, healing, living, dying on the 508 00:32:23,000 --> 00:32:26,120 cross to pay for the sins of all those who had turned from sin 509 00:32:26,120 --> 00:32:28,800 and trust in Him. Rising from the grave to triumph 510 00:32:28,800 --> 00:32:31,120 over death and offer eternal life to all who believe. 511 00:32:31,400 --> 00:32:34,600 Ascending into heaven to begin His reign to guarantee that all 512 00:32:34,600 --> 00:32:36,640 who believe in Him will share in His Kingdom. 513 00:32:37,120 --> 00:32:40,760 That's what God sent Jesus into the world to do, to turn you 514 00:32:41,720 --> 00:32:44,400 back to Him through faith in Christ. 515 00:32:44,800 --> 00:32:48,600 If you turn from sin and trust in Christ, you instantly go from 516 00:32:48,600 --> 00:32:53,400 being God's enemy to being God's friend through nothing you've 517 00:32:53,400 --> 00:32:56,360 done but everything that Jesus has done for you. 518 00:32:56,360 --> 00:32:59,040 If you've never turned from sin and trusted in Christ, believe 519 00:32:59,440 --> 00:33:05,120 in Him today. Think about the religious 520 00:33:05,120 --> 00:33:07,720 leaders that Jesus is calling out here, the scribes. 521 00:33:07,960 --> 00:33:10,200 We've seen again and again in the last few chapters that the 522 00:33:10,200 --> 00:33:12,320 scribes are dead set against Jesus. 523 00:33:12,560 --> 00:33:14,640 They're scheming to find a way to kill him. 524 00:33:14,920 --> 00:33:17,560 They're his enemies and they will get him killed. 525 00:33:18,160 --> 00:33:23,920 But after that, one day he will subdue them under his feet. 526 00:33:25,160 --> 00:33:28,120 In the end, there will be only two categories of humanity, 527 00:33:28,920 --> 00:33:32,800 friends of Jesus and enemies of Jesus. 528 00:33:33,640 --> 00:33:40,480 It will be an infinitely fearful thing to be Jesus's enemy on 529 00:33:40,480 --> 00:33:45,480 that last day. Jesus vengeance on his enemies 530 00:33:45,480 --> 00:33:50,160 will last forever. But if you are his enemy now, 531 00:33:50,920 --> 00:33:54,880 you do not need to remain his enemy any longer. 532 00:33:55,080 --> 00:34:00,320 Turn from sin and submit to him. Entrust yourself to him. 533 00:34:02,560 --> 00:34:06,920 Psalm 110 verse one is something like a master key that opens up 534 00:34:06,920 --> 00:34:09,440 the whole New Testament. As Michael mentioned, it's the 535 00:34:09,440 --> 00:34:14,120 Old Testament verse that the New Testament quotes or alludes to 536 00:34:14,280 --> 00:34:16,480 most frequently. And that's by a landslide. 537 00:34:17,120 --> 00:34:20,080 You might even say Psalm 110 verse one is the New Testament's 538 00:34:20,080 --> 00:34:22,159 favorite verse in the Old Testaments. 539 00:34:22,320 --> 00:34:25,719 Why? Because it proclaims Christ's 540 00:34:25,719 --> 00:34:29,199 divine equality with the Father. It reveals some of the fullest, 541 00:34:29,199 --> 00:34:30,920 deepest truth about who Jesus is. 542 00:34:31,639 --> 00:34:34,440 It proclaims Christ's finished work of atonements. 543 00:34:34,800 --> 00:34:38,159 Only after making definitive atonement for sins could Christ 544 00:34:38,199 --> 00:34:40,760 sit down at God's right hand in heaven. 545 00:34:40,760 --> 00:34:43,719 Like Hebrews 10 says, all the old covenant priests had to 546 00:34:43,719 --> 00:34:46,840 stand whenever they were offering sacrifices, stand as 547 00:34:46,840 --> 00:34:48,280 they ministered in the holy place. 548 00:34:48,600 --> 00:34:52,480 Jesus offered one sacrifice, then sat down, showing that He'd 549 00:34:52,480 --> 00:34:55,719 taken care of all the sins of all of God's people. 550 00:34:57,080 --> 00:35:00,240 Psalm 110, verse one proclaims Christ's intercession for us. 551 00:35:00,240 --> 00:35:03,880 Paul Elizabeth verse in Romans 8 to remind us that Christ is 552 00:35:03,880 --> 00:35:07,720 there in God's presence at God's right hand for us. 553 00:35:08,080 --> 00:35:13,040 His presence with God is the pledge of our acceptance with 554 00:35:13,040 --> 00:35:17,160 God. Psalm 110 one proclaims Christ's 555 00:35:17,160 --> 00:35:20,800 present reign over all things. It proclaims His future 556 00:35:20,800 --> 00:35:26,640 judgement of all people, and it implies our final resurrection. 557 00:35:27,440 --> 00:35:31,280 If all of Christ's enemies will be put under His feet, that will 558 00:35:31,280 --> 00:35:35,320 include death, and so our bodies will come up glorified out of 559 00:35:35,320 --> 00:35:40,360 the grave against the backdrop of early Jewish expectations of 560 00:35:40,360 --> 00:35:43,240 a Messiah. Psalm 110, verse 1 is a kind of 561 00:35:43,240 --> 00:35:47,080 all-purpose proof text to explain how Jesus really can be 562 00:35:47,080 --> 00:35:49,960 the Messiah. Think, think your way back into 563 00:35:49,960 --> 00:35:52,240 the situation of the first believers in Jesus right after 564 00:35:52,240 --> 00:35:54,560 his death and resurrection. They would have faced a number 565 00:35:54,560 --> 00:35:57,040 of tough questions from Jewish people that they were trying to 566 00:35:57,040 --> 00:35:59,280 persuade to believe in Jesus as Messiah. 567 00:35:59,560 --> 00:36:02,000 And Psalm 110, verse 1 answers virtually all of them. 568 00:36:02,800 --> 00:36:05,120 What kind of Messiah is Jesus? A dead one? 569 00:36:05,480 --> 00:36:07,720 Didn't the Romans crucify him? You say? 570 00:36:07,920 --> 00:36:12,360 No, he's a resurrected Messiah. What kind of Messiah do you 571 00:36:12,360 --> 00:36:13,680 have? I don't see him on David's 572 00:36:13,680 --> 00:36:16,000 throne. Where is his throne? 573 00:36:17,080 --> 00:36:20,000 It's in heaven. He reigns not over a limited 574 00:36:20,000 --> 00:36:23,080 geographic territory, but over the whole universe, over every 575 00:36:23,240 --> 00:36:25,640 person. He has all authority in heaven 576 00:36:25,640 --> 00:36:28,920 and on earth, and one day every single person who has ever lived 577 00:36:28,920 --> 00:36:32,160 will answer to him. What kind of Messiah do you 578 00:36:32,160 --> 00:36:34,640 have? His enemies appear to be running 579 00:36:34,640 --> 00:36:37,760 rampant all over the place. I don't see any Kingdom of God 580 00:36:37,760 --> 00:36:42,880 around here. The answer is implied in Psalm 581 00:36:42,880 --> 00:36:48,480 110, verse one. He's going to return, sit at my 582 00:36:48,480 --> 00:36:55,600 right hand, until when Jesus returns, every person, every 583 00:36:55,600 --> 00:37:01,280 spirit, every atom in this universe will be subjected to 584 00:37:01,720 --> 00:37:04,840 his will. And so this verse offers the 585 00:37:04,840 --> 00:37:07,360 same rich answers to modern skeptics questions. 586 00:37:07,440 --> 00:37:09,320 What kind of a savior do we Christians have? 587 00:37:09,840 --> 00:37:11,680 One who's not dead but resurrected. 588 00:37:12,840 --> 00:37:15,560 One who's not powerless but reigns over all things. 589 00:37:16,200 --> 00:37:22,200 One who hasn't abandoned us, but who will one day soon return. 590 00:37:24,160 --> 00:37:28,840 Jesus already reigns over all things, but his reign is not yet 591 00:37:28,840 --> 00:37:33,400 perfectly manifested, executed, brought to bear. 592 00:37:33,880 --> 00:37:40,840 It will be 1 day, but until then we wait in hope to kind of round 593 00:37:40,840 --> 00:37:43,320 out the sermon. I want to zoom out and offer 594 00:37:43,320 --> 00:37:47,040 four points of application that flow from the whole passage, 595 00:37:47,480 --> 00:37:50,360 from the truth Jesus is teaching us about himself in light of 596 00:37:50,360 --> 00:37:53,960 Psalm 110 verse one. Four more extended application 597 00:37:53,960 --> 00:38:02,880 points to conclude the sermon #1 when you share the gospel, don't 598 00:38:02,880 --> 00:38:07,120 stop at Jesus death. Instead, keep going to his 599 00:38:07,120 --> 00:38:11,160 resurrection, his ascension, and his rule at God's right hand in 600 00:38:11,160 --> 00:38:14,080 heaven. Consider Peter's gospel 601 00:38:14,080 --> 00:38:20,120 preaching in Acts 530 to 31. This is speaking to a Jewish 602 00:38:20,120 --> 00:38:23,080 audience. He says the God of our fathers 603 00:38:23,080 --> 00:38:27,640 raised Jesus, whom you killed by hanging him on a tree. 604 00:38:28,320 --> 00:38:33,040 God exalted him at his right hand as leader and Savior to 605 00:38:33,040 --> 00:38:35,800 give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. 606 00:38:36,760 --> 00:38:40,120 Or consider Paul's gospel preaching to a Pagan, 607 00:38:40,120 --> 00:38:46,600 polytheistic, non Jewish crowd. In Acts 17 verses 30 to 31, Paul 608 00:38:46,600 --> 00:38:50,920 says the times of ignorance got overlooked, but now he commands 609 00:38:50,920 --> 00:38:56,040 all people everywhere to repent because he has fixed a day on 610 00:38:56,040 --> 00:39:00,160 which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he 611 00:39:00,160 --> 00:39:04,120 has appointed. And of this he has given 612 00:39:04,120 --> 00:39:08,080 assurance to all by raising him from the dead. 613 00:39:09,400 --> 00:39:11,440 Have you ever read through the book of Acts and wondered why do 614 00:39:11,440 --> 00:39:14,280 the apostles seem to say so much about Jesus resurrection and 615 00:39:14,280 --> 00:39:17,600 ascension and kind of little about his crucifixion or the 616 00:39:17,600 --> 00:39:20,080 atonement? It's not because the crucifixion 617 00:39:20,080 --> 00:39:22,760 was unimportant. Redemption, atonement, 618 00:39:22,760 --> 00:39:24,760 forgiveness are all there in the book of Acts. 619 00:39:25,480 --> 00:39:28,680 But the apostles are so insistent about Christ's 620 00:39:28,680 --> 00:39:32,840 resurrection and ascension because the resurrection proves 621 00:39:32,840 --> 00:39:34,680 Christ's claim to be the Messiah. 622 00:39:35,680 --> 00:39:39,720 And Christ's ascension to heaven and sitting down on God's throne 623 00:39:40,000 --> 00:39:43,640 are how he was installed in office as Messiah. 624 00:39:44,000 --> 00:39:47,880 When Christ entered heaven, he took his throne and began to 625 00:39:47,880 --> 00:39:50,480 reign. That's why Jesus says in Matthew 626 00:39:50,480 --> 00:39:54,800 2818 after his resurrection, all authority in heaven and on earth 627 00:39:54,800 --> 00:40:00,320 has been given to me. The cross is absolutely central 628 00:40:00,320 --> 00:40:03,440 to our salvation as Christians. In his death on the cross, 629 00:40:03,600 --> 00:40:07,440 Christ paid our debt in full. But what happened next is 630 00:40:07,440 --> 00:40:12,200 equally important. A dead savior is no savior, and 631 00:40:12,200 --> 00:40:14,000 a king without a throne is no king at all. 632 00:40:14,920 --> 00:40:17,800 So when you share the gospel, don't stop with Jesus's death. 633 00:40:17,920 --> 00:40:21,720 Keep going to his resurrection ascension, his sitting down to 634 00:40:21,720 --> 00:40:25,120 God's right hand, and his soon return. 635 00:40:27,080 --> 00:40:33,640 Application #2 Be confident Christ reigns on heaven's 636 00:40:33,800 --> 00:40:37,440 throne. Be confident Christ reigns on 637 00:40:37,440 --> 00:40:43,480 heaven's throne. Sit at my right hand until those 638 00:40:43,480 --> 00:40:48,360 6 words are the bedrock of a Christian political philosophy. 639 00:40:49,320 --> 00:40:57,800 Christ reigns over all, and until he returns, no earthly 640 00:40:57,800 --> 00:41:03,320 political order will ever perfectly align with his rule, 641 00:41:04,160 --> 00:41:07,680 which means that we as Christians must be in some 642 00:41:07,680 --> 00:41:12,840 measure skeptical and critical of every earthly political 643 00:41:12,840 --> 00:41:19,520 platform, party, and order. Christ has all authority in 644 00:41:19,520 --> 00:41:21,800 heaven and on earth. He is the King of Kings and Lord 645 00:41:21,800 --> 00:41:24,240 of Lords. He is the ruler of the kings on 646 00:41:24,240 --> 00:41:27,120 earth, and yet his reign is not yet perfectly executed. 647 00:41:27,520 --> 00:41:30,560 One day his reign will be undisputed. 648 00:41:32,000 --> 00:41:37,040 That phrase sit in my right hand until tells us that the last 649 00:41:37,040 --> 00:41:40,360 things have begun but are not yet fully present. 650 00:41:41,960 --> 00:41:47,440 So don't let news headlines lead your emotions around on a leash. 651 00:41:48,400 --> 00:41:53,600 Instead, lash your heart to the comfort and the hope of Christ's 652 00:41:53,600 --> 00:41:59,680 present reign in heaven. Psalm 110, verse one is also a 653 00:41:59,680 --> 00:42:02,800 proof text for surviving A cultural crisis. 654 00:42:03,560 --> 00:42:06,360 The key to keeping calm and confident amid any kinds of 655 00:42:06,360 --> 00:42:09,880 challenging circumstances or disturbing trends is fixing your 656 00:42:09,880 --> 00:42:14,880 mind and heart on the fact of Christ's present rule and the 657 00:42:14,880 --> 00:42:20,640 promise of His perfect rule. Whatever news feeds you scroll 658 00:42:20,640 --> 00:42:24,440 through during the day, make sure the news feed from heaven 659 00:42:24,600 --> 00:42:28,080 plays loudest. Make sure that in your mind and 660 00:42:28,080 --> 00:42:31,480 heart, the news from heaven tells you how to interpret the 661 00:42:31,480 --> 00:42:34,920 news from earth. Make sure that the news from 662 00:42:34,920 --> 00:42:36,640 earth doesn't drown out the news from heaven. 663 00:42:37,880 --> 00:42:41,000 And the news from heaven is the same as it has been every day 664 00:42:41,000 --> 00:42:46,000 for 2000 years. Jesus, the Messiah who died for 665 00:42:46,000 --> 00:42:49,920 your sins, reigns on the throne of heaven. 666 00:42:50,000 --> 00:42:52,280 That's good news, That's great news. 667 00:42:52,640 --> 00:42:57,520 It is news that never gets old #3 be encouraged. 668 00:42:58,840 --> 00:43:03,120 Your salvation and sanctification are powered by 669 00:43:03,120 --> 00:43:09,200 Christ's present reign. In Acts 232, Peter proclaims 670 00:43:09,200 --> 00:43:14,640 this Jesus, God raised up, and of that we are all witnesses. 671 00:43:15,040 --> 00:43:17,680 Being therefore exalted at the right hand of God, and having 672 00:43:17,680 --> 00:43:21,080 received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he 673 00:43:21,080 --> 00:43:25,120 has poured out this that you yourselves are seeing and 674 00:43:25,120 --> 00:43:28,080 hearing. And then Peter cites Psalm 110, 675 00:43:28,080 --> 00:43:31,840 verse one. Jesus, when he was exalted to 676 00:43:31,840 --> 00:43:34,680 God's right hand in heaven, received the gift of the Holy 677 00:43:34,680 --> 00:43:37,680 Spirit and poured it out on his church, poured out the Holy 678 00:43:37,680 --> 00:43:43,640 Spirit to convict us, to convert us, to sanctify us, to renew us. 679 00:43:43,880 --> 00:43:47,120 Like many kings do. Upon beginning his rule, Jesus 680 00:43:47,120 --> 00:43:50,320 began a building project. But his building project is not 681 00:43:50,320 --> 00:43:52,680 a palace or a temple or a castle. 682 00:43:52,680 --> 00:43:56,480 His building project is us. His building project is a chosen 683 00:43:56,480 --> 00:43:59,440 people from every language and tribe and nation. 684 00:43:59,720 --> 00:44:02,680 And the way he's building us up, the way he's exerting his power 685 00:44:02,680 --> 00:44:06,640 from heaven, is through the Spirit whom He gives to convict, 686 00:44:07,240 --> 00:44:13,560 to convert, and to sanctify us. Jesus puts forth his almighty 687 00:44:13,560 --> 00:44:17,840 power to preserve and transform and conform you to His image. 688 00:44:18,320 --> 00:44:22,160 Your salvation is safe in his omnipotent hands. 689 00:44:24,000 --> 00:44:27,680 Forth. Be patient, be patient. 690 00:44:27,960 --> 00:44:33,360 One day Christ's reign will be perfected and His glory will be 691 00:44:33,360 --> 00:44:37,960 yours. Consider how Paul quotes Psalm 692 00:44:37,960 --> 00:44:43,120 110 verse one in First Corinthians 15, verses 25 and 693 00:44:43,120 --> 00:44:46,360 26. For he must reign until he has 694 00:44:46,360 --> 00:44:48,120 put all his enemies under his feet. 695 00:44:48,360 --> 00:44:52,360 The last enemy to be destroyed is death. 696 00:44:54,760 --> 00:44:58,360 So we're waiting not just for heaven, but for resurrection. 697 00:44:59,520 --> 00:45:01,400 Not just rest, but glorification. 698 00:45:02,040 --> 00:45:04,920 We're waiting for justice. We're waiting for joy. 699 00:45:04,920 --> 00:45:09,280 We're waiting for everlasting intimacy with God. 700 00:45:11,840 --> 00:45:14,240 We're waiting to see our Savior face to face. 701 00:45:15,640 --> 00:45:19,400 That's what you're waiting for. Until Jesus puts all his enemies 702 00:45:19,400 --> 00:45:27,200 under his feet, and he will. So wait patiently and wait and 703 00:45:27,200 --> 00:45:30,360 hope. Jesus is already reigning over 704 00:45:30,360 --> 00:45:34,880 all things, and one day he will bring heaven's rain to earth. 705 00:45:36,640 --> 00:45:39,560 Who is Jesus? Is he just an apocalyptic 706 00:45:39,560 --> 00:45:42,920 prophet? Jesus teaching in this passage 707 00:45:42,960 --> 00:45:47,360 utterly demolishes Bart Ehrman's view of who he is and that of 708 00:45:47,360 --> 00:45:50,600 many other critical scholars. Jesus is not only the Son of 709 00:45:50,600 --> 00:45:53,320 David, but the Lord of David. Jesus not only the son of David, 710 00:45:53,320 --> 00:45:56,760 but the Son of God. The main thrust of Jesus 711 00:45:56,760 --> 00:45:59,600 teaching here is to charge the scribes with having a too small 712 00:45:59,600 --> 00:46:02,160 view of him. So the question for you is, is 713 00:46:02,160 --> 00:46:06,960 your Jesus too small? And if your Jesus is too small, 714 00:46:06,960 --> 00:46:09,640 how do you get a right sized Jesus? 715 00:46:10,640 --> 00:46:14,160 It's not by brainstorming. It's not by saying I like to 716 00:46:14,160 --> 00:46:17,920 think of Jesus as. It's not by looking down into 717 00:46:17,920 --> 00:46:20,440 the well of your own heart and seeing your own reflection. 718 00:46:21,720 --> 00:46:25,400 It's not by lifting a finger to the wind and trying to find a 719 00:46:25,400 --> 00:46:29,320 Jesus who will fit most smoothly with the way the wind's blowing. 720 00:46:30,280 --> 00:46:33,320 The only way to receive the real Jesus is to embrace from the 721 00:46:33,320 --> 00:46:35,640 heart everything Scripture says about Him. 722 00:46:36,120 --> 00:46:39,040 Our job is not to limit what Scripture says, but to 723 00:46:39,040 --> 00:46:42,480 gratefully receive it all. Look at the very end of the 724 00:46:42,480 --> 00:46:46,720 passage, one last little bit. We haven't said anything about 725 00:46:47,480 --> 00:46:51,600 verse 37, The very end. And the great throng heard him 726 00:46:51,600 --> 00:46:55,320 gladly. They could hear the point he 727 00:46:55,320 --> 00:46:59,720 scored on the scribes. This was a mic drop moment for 728 00:46:59,720 --> 00:47:03,680 Jesus. But the kind of vicarious thrill 729 00:47:04,280 --> 00:47:08,400 of seeing Jesus score a point, Yeah, Jesus, you really got him. 730 00:47:09,120 --> 00:47:13,160 Liking the kind of mic drop Jesus doesn't necessarily bring 731 00:47:13,160 --> 00:47:17,760 you any closer to moving from being his enemy to being his 732 00:47:17,760 --> 00:47:20,520 friend. That calls for submission. 733 00:47:21,600 --> 00:47:25,760 That calls for faith. That calls for repentance. 734 00:47:27,280 --> 00:47:33,360 Let's pray. Heavenly Father, we pray that we 735 00:47:33,360 --> 00:47:36,200 would receive Jesus as He is, as you've revealed Himself, as 736 00:47:36,200 --> 00:47:39,320 you've revealed Him to be in Your word, as He showed Himself 737 00:47:39,320 --> 00:47:41,800 by his actions and teachings in His earthly ministry. 738 00:47:41,800 --> 00:47:43,760 Pray that we would submit to Jesus. 739 00:47:43,760 --> 00:47:46,720 Lord, pray that we would delight to crown Him. 740 00:47:47,160 --> 00:47:50,880 Lord of all and Lord of our lives, we pray in Jesus name, 741 00:47:51,360 --> 00:47:51,920 Amen.