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Behold I Have Come! · Stornoway Free Church of Scotland - Sermons

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We'll look at verses 6 to 10. I can read through them first of all.
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Psalm 40 and from verse 6.
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Words that were quoted in the passage we read in Hebrews chapter 10.
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Sacrifice and offering you have not desired, but you have given me an open ear.
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Burnt offering and sin offering you have not required.
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Then I said, Behold, I have come. In the scroll of the book it is written of me.
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I desire to do your will, O my God. Your law is within my heart.
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I have told the glad news of deliverance in the great congregation.
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Behold, I have not restrained my lips, as you know, O Lord.
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I have not hidden your deliverance within my heart.
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I have spoken of your faithfulness and your salvation.
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I have not concealed your steadfast love and your faithfulness from the great congregation.
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And obviously from the New Testament quotation of these words,
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they are applicable to the Lord himself by way of this being a prophecy
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of what would later come to be realized and fulfilled
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in the arrival of the Son of God incarnate in our world, in our nature, Jesus Christ.
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The Psalms have many references, as you know, to the redeeming acts of God.
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The Psalms, of course, the book of Psalms is a unique book, unique from one point of view,
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that it's set out for a manual of praise and, you know, very well it's been turned,
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as we use it, into verse that we can actually use in our singings of praise.
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But throughout the book of Psalms, in these references to the redeeming acts of God,
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you actually have passages that speak specifically of what the New Testament makes clear,
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are references to God the Father, God the Son, Jesus, and God the Holy Spirit,
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the Holy Spirit mentioned specifically at times.
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And so you would expect that when there are such exact matches from the book of Psalms
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to some passages in the New Testament that speak about Jesus,
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for example, Psalm 22, the beginning of the first verse there, as you know,
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my God, my God, why have you forsaken me?
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Well, these are the words, the very words that Jesus took and used on the cross,
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as you know, in the very process of laying down his life.
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You would expect, then, references in the Psalms to the likes of things like atonement,
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such doctrines as the doctrine of the atonement,
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sacrifices that themselves represent the sacrifice of Christ of himself.
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You'd expect the sufferings of Jesus to be mentioned, and they are,
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not just in Psalm 22, but other Psalms as well.
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You would expect also to have such references to the way in which God has fulfilled his promises
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through the work of Christ.
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And therefore, in the book of Psalms, here in Psalm 40,
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is just one passage out of many that refer to God's saving act,
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but especially to the Lord Jesus Christ himself,
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coming to speak of his obedience,
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his obedience as part of his atoning work,
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the center of his atoning work,
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as that is made clear in the New Testament.
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And the high point of these verses is,
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in these words,
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behold,
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I have come.
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The rest of the verses round about that really feature
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different ways in which this statement is then considered.
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Behold,
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I have come.
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We'll look at the phrase
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in more detail in a moment.
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But these words,
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as they are applied
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in the Old Testament
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to Jesus prior to his coming into the world,
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I mean,
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you can really see that
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these are words which were in the mind of God,
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and in the mind of the Son of God
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from all eternity.
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That they were words which he had himself in mind
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prior to their fulfillment
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in his coming,
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in his incarnation,
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in his being born into the world.
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In other words,
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they're words from the throne of God
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that have really reverberated down through history
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until actually they came to be fulfilled
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when he actually came physically into the world.
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Remarkable thing itself, isn't it?
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That he uttered these words from the throne of God
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all the way from eternity through history
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until the New Testament age
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when he came,
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having taken our nature.
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In other words,
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he uttered these from the throne
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and then left the throne
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in order to become the servant of God
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in this world.
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And at this time of year,
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though it's not by any means
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the only time we think of it,
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it is desirable
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and it's important
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that we give emphasis
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to certain aspects of the incarnation,
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of the coming of Christ,
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the coming of the Son of God,
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and seek to set that out
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before the world in which we live
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and move and work and breathe
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so that we can hopefully draw people's minds
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to the relevance of the whole Bible
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in terms of the way it reveals
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the importance of the incarnation,
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the person of Jesus,
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of the work that he came to do.
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Now, these words that I've mentioned
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in verse 7,
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behold, I have come.
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Some of the older translations have,
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behold, I come, or am coming.
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Those who know something about Hebrew grammar
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tell us that these words are actually
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what Hebrew has as a prophetic perfect.
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And we're told that that actually means
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they are spoken in such a way
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that's so certain
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as if it had already happened.
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It's not yet happened
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in the days of the psalmist
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here in the Old Testament,
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but they're put in such a form
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that's making it so certain
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and so sure
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that it's just as if
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it's already been accomplished
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and happened.
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Remember something similar,
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though it's not in Hebrew,
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it's in Greek,
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in the Lord's Prayer in John 17,
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where he's there,
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not yet having died,
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not yet having gone out
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to his trial
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and subsequent crucifixion,
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and yet he is there
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in prayer to the Father,
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saying,
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I have finished the work
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which you gave me to do.
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In other words,
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it's a certain
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in the mind of Jesus,
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it's a certain
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in the way in which
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he speaks of it
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as having been done
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as if it had already
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been accomplished.
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Scripture here is also
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giving us something similar to that,
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where it says,
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Behold,
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I have come.
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It's from the point of view
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of being future,
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and yet it's certain
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in the mind
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and purpose of God.
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So let's see
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what it says
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about his coming.
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Why did he come?
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What's involved
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with his coming?
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First of all,
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he came to fulfill
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the types
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and promises
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of the Old Testament.
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You'll find that here
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in verse 6.
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Sacrifice and offering
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you have not desired,
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but you have given me
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an open ear,
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burnt offering
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and sin offering
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you have not required.
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Then I said,
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Behold,
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I have come.
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In other words,
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he's saying,
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here are the Old Testament
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sacrifices
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that always represented
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Jesus in his death,
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and the psalmist
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and the psalmist is saying,
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they're no longer desired,
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they're no longer relevant,
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even though that hasn't yet happened.
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It doesn't mean by this
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that God has given up
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on accepting sacrifices
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throughout the Old Testament.
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What he means is
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these are themselves
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going to actually
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be done away with,
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and they're going to be
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done away with
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because they're going
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to be fulfilled
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in the coming,
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in the person,
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in the work
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of the Son of God
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in our nature.
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Hebrews chapter 10,
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we read that
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a few minutes ago,
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and I may remind you
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of what it says
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from verse 8,
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where,
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having quoted
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from this psalm,
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from verse 5,
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he then said,
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Behold,
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I have come
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to do your will.
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When he said above,
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you have neither desired
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nor taken pleasure
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in sacrifices
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and offerings
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and burnt offerings
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and sin offerings,
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these are offered
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according to the law.
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Then he added,
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Behold,
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I have come
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to do your will.
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He abolishes the first
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in order to establish
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the second.
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He abolishes the first,
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that is,
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that system of sacrifices,
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in order that he would
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actually establish
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the second,
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and what is the second?
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It's the doing
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of the will of God
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by Jesus,
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his Son.
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He abolishes the first,
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not just in order
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to accomplish the second,
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but also he abolishes
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the first,
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because the second,
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the coming of Jesus,
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the doing the will
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of God,
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the Father,
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by the Son,
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has actually meant
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these are no longer required.
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They were shadows,
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they were preliminaries,
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they were representations,
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important as they were,
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but they are no longer
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required.
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So that's what the psalmist
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is really drawing
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our minds to,
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in terms of the
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Levitical sacrifices,
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having been accomplished
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as they were in Christ,
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and here it's as if
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that's really already
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happened,
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because it's prophetic
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of the Lord's coming.
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And you see here
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in verse 7,
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then I said,
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behold,
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I have come.
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And the then is important.
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One of these little words
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we could easily just
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skip over
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if we thought
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it wasn't just much
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than a connecting particle.
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And it doesn't just mean
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something that happens
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in consequence
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of something else.
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You know,
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you use the word then
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in that sense
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as we use it
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commonly in English.
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if this is the case,
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then this is what follows.
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It's a consequential
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sort of particle.
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But actually here
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it's rather to do
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with time fulfillment.
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In terms of the processing
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of God's plan
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and in God's time,
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when this had come about
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that the sacrifices
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and offerings
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were no longer needed
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because Jesus himself
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had arrived,
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then I said,
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in these circumstances,
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circumstances,
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in that context,
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the Lord himself,
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Jesus,
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is saying,
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behold,
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I have come.
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I am coming to replace
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and to fulfill them.
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You recall that
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Galatians chapter 4
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has something very similar.
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In chapter 4
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and verse 4
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of Galatians,
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Paul is saying there,
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but when the fullness
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of the times
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had come,
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God sent forth
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his son,
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born of a woman,
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born under the law,
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to redeem those
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who were under the law
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so that we might receive
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adoption as sons.
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And when the fullness
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of the time
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was come.
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And that's why you find
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in Psalm 40 here
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that there's a reference
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to the book.
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Behold,
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I have come
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in the scroll
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of the book
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it is written of me.
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What was that book?
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What is the book here
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the psalmist
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is prophetically
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setting out
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and what were
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the contents
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of that book?
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Well,
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the book
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essentially
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is not
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a book
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literally
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as such.
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It's actually
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a reference
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to what we can call
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really the divine plan
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or the will
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of God.
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He's going to speak
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later about
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doing the will
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of God.
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And that's all
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already in the book
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in the mind of God,
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in the plan
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of salvation
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that God himself
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has devised.
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This is written,
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he says,
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about me
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in the scroll
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of that book,
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in the purpose
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of God,
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in the mind
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of God,
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in the plan
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of God,
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the plan
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of redemption.
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All this
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already
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has been
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inscribed.
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Metaphorically
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or spiritually
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speaking,
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that's already
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in the book.
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It's been drawn
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up by God
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and it awaits
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in the psalmist's
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time
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to be
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worked through
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and fulfilled
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by the coming
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of Christ
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himself.
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And
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there's also
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an importance,
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we mention this
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word quite a
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number of times
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in the course
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of studying
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various parts
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of the Bible,
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this word
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behold
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in verse 7.
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And we've
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referred to it
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as it really
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is
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in a sense
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it's a
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spotlight,
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a spotlight
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in a literary
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sense
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this is
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God's
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way of
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actually
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drawing
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attention
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to things.
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Whenever you
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find the
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word
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behold,
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whether it's
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here or
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in the
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New Testament
13:24
version of
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it,
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that is
13:25
always
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drawing our
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mind to
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something
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really
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important,
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something we
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cannot afford
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to miss.
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And what
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he's saying
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here is
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here's the
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spotlight,
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the sacrifices,
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the offerings,
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they're actually
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now being
13:40
replaced.
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Behold,
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look at
13:42
this,
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I have
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come.
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I have
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come as
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their
13:47
fulfillment.
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And the
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word
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I
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is
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important
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because
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who is
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speaking?
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Well,
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of course,
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it's
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God
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himself.
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And it's
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God
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himself,
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more
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specifically,
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as the
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New Testament
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shows in
14:05
the person
14:05
of Jesus
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the Son.
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Behold,
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I have
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come.
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God
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and
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that takes
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us
14:12
secondly
14:13
to say
14:13
that
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he came
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to fulfill
14:16
the types
14:16
and promises
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but he
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came,
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in fulfilling
14:20
these,
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he came
14:21
as the
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servant
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of God.
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I have
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come.
14:26
It is
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written in
14:27
the scroll
14:28
of the book
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of me.
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I desire
14:30
to do
14:31
your will,
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O my
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God.
14:33
Your law
14:34
is within
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my heart.
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Now,
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one of
14:39
the
14:39
most
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obvious
14:41
sets
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of
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references
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to
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the
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coming
14:47
of Jesus,
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to the
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person
14:48
of Jesus
14:48
in the
14:49
Old Testament
14:49
is in
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the prophecy
14:50
of Isaiah.
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Isaiah,
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that prophet
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that presents
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God in
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such majestic,
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such
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momentous
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terms,
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the God
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who is the
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creator of
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all the
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earth,
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who holds
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everything in
15:03
his hand
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and yet
15:05
the God
15:06
who is,
15:07
who condescends,
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who lowers
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himself to
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behold the
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plight of
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his people
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and to
15:14
come to
15:15
make provision
15:16
for them.
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And it's
15:18
in that
15:19
great book
15:19
of Isaiah,
15:20
more than
15:21
any other
15:21
book of
15:21
the Old
15:22
Testament,
15:23
that you
15:23
find more
15:24
about the
15:26
servant of
15:27
the Lord.
15:28
He came
15:29
to fulfill
15:30
the types
15:31
and the
15:31
promises,
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but he
15:32
came as
15:33
the servant
15:34
of the
15:34
Lord to
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do that.
15:37
For
15:37
example,
15:38
chapter 42
15:40
of Isaiah,
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if you're
15:44
taking notes,
15:44
you can
15:45
take the
15:46
verses down
15:46
that I
15:47
referred to.
15:48
I follow
15:49
them through
15:49
afterwards.
15:50
Chapter 42,
15:51
verses 1 to
15:53
4 there,
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where you
15:54
find
15:54
comfort,
15:55
sorry,
15:56
chapter 42,
15:57
where you
15:58
find Isaiah
15:59
prophetically
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saying,
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behold my
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servant,
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whom I
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uphold,
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my
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chosen,
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in whom
16:05
my soul
16:05
delights.
16:07
I have
16:07
put my
16:07
spirit upon
16:08
him,
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he will
16:09
bring forth
16:10
justice to
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the nations.
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Then he
16:12
goes on to
16:13
say,
16:13
he will not
16:13
cry aloud,
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nor lift up
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his voice,
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or make it
16:16
heard in the
16:17
street.
16:17
A bruised
16:18
reed he
16:19
will not
16:19
break,
16:20
and a
16:20
faintly
16:21
burning
16:21
wick he
16:22
will not
16:23
quench.
16:24
He will
16:24
faithfully
16:25
bring forth
16:25
justice,
16:26
he will not
16:27
grow faint,
16:28
or be
16:28
discouraged,
16:29
until he
16:30
has established
16:30
justice in
16:31
the earth,
16:32
and the
16:32
coastlands
16:33
wait for
16:34
his law.
16:36
There's a
16:37
marvelous picture
16:38
there of
16:38
the God
16:39
who is so
16:40
immense,
16:41
but nevertheless
16:42
who has this
16:43
servant that he
16:44
commissions in
16:45
order to do
16:46
his will,
16:47
to carry forth
16:49
his will till
16:50
it's accomplished
16:51
in redemption.
16:53
But he does it
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by this servant
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who is described
16:56
as lowly,
16:58
and humble,
16:59
and gentle.
17:01
There's a
17:01
reference there
17:02
to a bruised
17:03
reed he
17:03
will not
17:04
break.
17:05
If you go to
17:06
a reed bed
17:07
and try and
17:07
walk through
17:07
it, you'll
17:09
find some
17:09
reeds there
17:10
that are
17:11
already broken,
17:12
snapped,
17:13
almost snapped
17:14
off in
17:14
half.
17:15
It's very
17:15
difficult to
17:16
then make
17:16
your way
17:17
through it
17:17
without
17:17
actually
17:18
breaking it
17:18
altogether.
17:19
Or take
17:19
it as the
17:20
burning
17:21
wick he
17:22
will not
17:22
quench.
17:23
When you
17:23
have a
17:24
candle with
17:25
a wick
17:25
burning,
17:26
and you
17:26
actually put
17:27
the light
17:28
out, it's
17:28
difficult to
17:28
do without
17:29
crushing the
17:30
wick itself.
17:30
It's so
17:31
delicate at
17:32
that stage,
17:33
having burnt
17:33
for some
17:34
time.
17:35
And all
17:35
of that's a
17:35
reference to
17:36
such a
17:37
precious,
17:38
precious thing
17:38
pastorally for
17:40
us under
17:40
the pastoring
17:41
of Jesus,
17:42
under his
17:43
own care as
17:44
our shepherd,
17:45
as our
17:45
shepherd king,
17:47
that when he
17:47
deals with us
17:48
in all our
17:48
trials and
17:49
our pains and
17:51
our woes and
17:51
our needs,
17:52
and at the
17:53
very depth of
17:53
our need,
17:54
when it
17:55
might be
17:55
all too
17:56
easy just
17:57
to present
17:58
ourselves to
17:59
him as if
17:59
we're just a
18:00
smoking wick ready
18:01
to be snuffed
18:03
out.
18:04
And maybe
18:04
that's how it
18:05
feels to us
18:05
at times.
18:07
But he
18:08
will not,
18:09
he will not
18:10
break it.
18:12
When he
18:12
handles your
18:13
life,
18:14
such as his
18:16
care and
18:16
quality of
18:17
care,
18:18
such as his
18:19
ability,
18:22
that he
18:22
comes in
18:24
order to
18:24
heal you
18:25
by his
18:26
gentleness.
18:28
He is the
18:29
great creator
18:30
whose hands
18:32
fashioned the
18:32
universe,
18:34
and yet he
18:35
comes gently
18:37
so that,
18:38
like the
18:38
psalmist
18:39
elsewhere says,
18:40
your
18:41
gentleness
18:42
has made
18:43
me great.
18:45
The
18:45
gentleness,
18:46
isn't that a
18:47
magnificent
18:47
thought?
18:49
When you
18:50
think of the
18:51
immensity and
18:51
the majesty
18:52
and the
18:52
greatness,
18:54
the eternity
18:54
of God,
18:56
that we can
18:56
say,
18:57
your
18:57
gentleness
18:58
made me
19:00
great.
19:01
The
19:02
gentleness
19:02
of God,
19:04
how precious
19:05
is that to
19:06
you and to
19:07
me tonight?
19:08
The very
19:09
gentleness of
19:10
God in
19:10
Christ that
19:12
has come to
19:12
deal with
19:13
our predicament
19:14
and hasn't
19:15
crushed us
19:16
despite our
19:17
sins or
19:17
for our
19:18
sins.
19:19
But has
19:19
come to
19:20
redeem us
19:20
and bring
19:21
us back
19:22
to himself
19:22
and restore
19:24
us and
19:25
make us into
19:26
what we
19:27
should be,
19:28
what we
19:28
were designed
19:28
to be from
19:30
the beginning.
19:31
So here
19:31
he's doing
19:32
this by
19:33
becoming the
19:34
servant of
19:35
God.
19:36
And in
19:36
that passage
19:38
in Hebrews
19:39
that quotes
19:39
this,
19:40
there's a
19:40
slight difference
19:41
there,
19:42
where the
19:44
psalm is
19:44
quoted as
19:46
in the
19:46
Greek
19:46
translation
19:47
of the
19:48
Old
19:49
Testament,
19:49
in fact,
19:50
where it
19:51
says there
19:51
that,
19:53
where it
19:53
says,
19:54
sacrifice
19:54
and offerings
19:55
you have
19:56
not desired,
19:57
but a
19:58
body you
19:58
have prepared
19:59
for me.
20:00
Now that's
20:01
not in
20:01
contradiction
20:02
to the
20:02
words of
20:03
the psalm
20:03
itself in
20:04
the book
20:04
of Psalms,
20:05
but it's
20:05
an additional
20:06
feature that
20:07
reminds us
20:08
or teaches
20:08
us that he
20:09
became the
20:10
servant by
20:11
taking our
20:11
nature,
20:12
by taking
20:13
a body
20:13
and soul
20:14
to himself
20:15
and becoming
20:17
a servant
20:17
by becoming
20:18
human.
20:22
And that's
20:23
why he says
20:23
here in
20:24
Psalm 40,
20:25
you have
20:25
opened my
20:27
ear,
20:28
you have
20:29
given me
20:29
an open
20:30
ear,
20:31
instead of
20:31
sacrifices
20:32
and offerings,
20:33
I have
20:34
come and
20:35
you have
20:35
given me
20:36
an open
20:36
ear.
20:37
What does
20:37
that mean?
20:38
Well,
20:38
an open
20:39
ear is
20:39
language
20:40
that's
20:41
applicable
20:41
to a
20:42
servant
20:43
waiting for
20:44
the master
20:44
to give
20:45
his order.
20:47
And not
20:47
just ready
20:48
to hear
20:49
the master's
20:50
order,
20:51
but instantly
20:52
obedient to
20:53
that instruction.
20:55
It's the
20:55
essence of
20:56
a servant
20:57
that he
21:00
or she
21:00
wishes to
21:02
do what
21:02
the master
21:03
requires
21:04
in order to
21:05
carry out
21:06
the will
21:06
of the
21:06
master,
21:07
assuming,
21:08
of course,
21:08
that that
21:09
isn't cruel,
21:10
that it's
21:11
a good
21:11
thing that
21:12
he's being
21:12
asked to
21:12
do.
21:13
But in
21:14
other words,
21:14
the obedience
21:15
of the
21:16
servant is
21:17
very much
21:18
part of
21:18
the
21:19
servitude,
21:20
the position
21:21
he takes
21:21
or she
21:22
takes.
21:22
And in
21:23
terms of
21:23
the Lord,
21:24
in terms
21:24
of Jesus,
21:25
the Son
21:25
of God,
21:26
he is
21:27
saying,
21:27
you have
21:28
opened,
21:29
you have
21:29
given me
21:30
an open
21:31
ear,
21:31
or you
21:31
have opened
21:32
my ear.
21:34
God
21:35
and how
21:36
often in
21:36
the New
21:36
Testament,
21:37
indeed in
21:38
the statements
21:40
of Jesus
21:40
himself,
21:42
you find
21:42
this very
21:43
thing brought
21:43
out in
21:44
contrast,
21:45
he says,
21:46
to the
21:46
likes of
21:47
the kings
21:48
of the
21:48
Gentiles,
21:49
Luke chapter
21:50
22,
21:51
verses 24
21:52
to 27,
21:53
where he
21:54
speaks of
21:54
himself having
21:55
come to
21:56
serve,
21:57
not to be
21:57
served.
21:59
Mark 10
21:59
has the same
22:00
kind of
22:01
reference,
22:01
but you
22:02
remember the
22:02
context in
22:03
Luke 22,
22:04
here were
22:04
disciples
22:05
squabbling as
22:06
to who was
22:06
going to be
22:07
the greatest,
22:08
just having
22:09
an argument
22:09
among each
22:10
other,
22:10
even though
22:11
they were
22:11
approaching
22:12
the time
22:12
when Jesus
22:12
was going
22:13
to be
22:13
crucified,
22:14
here they
22:15
were,
22:15
and that's
22:16
what they
22:16
were doing,
22:17
walking along
22:18
the road
22:18
with him,
22:19
and just
22:20
in their
22:20
own minds,
22:22
thrusting out
22:22
their chests,
22:23
or making
22:24
themselves kind
22:25
of important,
22:26
and disputing
22:27
as to which
22:28
of them would
22:28
be the
22:28
greatest.
22:30
And Jesus
22:31
saying,
22:31
here,
22:32
I'll tell
22:32
you who
22:33
will be
22:33
the greatest,
22:34
the one
22:35
who is
22:35
the least
22:36
of you
22:36
will be
22:38
the greatest,
22:39
the one
22:39
who is
22:40
the servant
22:40
of all,
22:41
he's the
22:41
greatest,
22:43
for I
22:43
have come
22:44
not to
22:45
be served,
22:46
but to
22:47
serve,
22:48
and to
22:48
give my
22:49
life a
22:50
ransom
22:51
for many.
22:53
That's the
22:54
context.
22:55
And in
22:56
this passage
22:57
in Luke,
22:59
in Psalm
23:00
40,
23:01
these elements
23:02
from Luke
23:02
and other
23:03
gospels
23:03
are really
23:04
adding some
23:05
light to
23:06
what is here
23:06
already,
23:07
an embryo,
23:08
and you
23:09
can see that
23:09
it's already
23:10
included here
23:11
in principle
23:12
anyway,
23:13
in the
23:13
Psalm.
23:14
So that you
23:15
find here
23:16
in verse
23:16
8, for
23:17
example,
23:17
following on
23:18
from,
23:18
I have
23:18
come to
23:19
do your
23:19
will,
23:20
I desire
23:20
to do
23:21
your will,
23:22
oh my
23:22
God,
23:23
you see,
23:23
there's the
23:23
obedience
23:24
being followed
23:24
through.
23:25
I have
23:26
come,
23:26
I have
23:27
come to
23:28
do your
23:28
will,
23:28
and I
23:28
desire,
23:29
in other
23:29
words,
23:30
there's an
23:30
element of
23:31
delight in
23:32
that as
23:32
well,
23:33
a delight
23:34
in doing
23:35
the will
23:35
of God,
23:36
and it's
23:38
a remarkable
23:38
thing as
23:39
you look
23:39
at the
23:40
life of
23:41
Jesus,
23:41
how he
23:42
himself was
23:42
not only
23:43
conscious of
23:44
this,
23:44
but constantly
23:45
doing this.
23:46
you think
23:49
of yourself
23:50
and myself,
23:52
think of
23:53
us as
23:53
in terms
23:54
of our
23:55
obedience
23:55
to God,
23:57
is it
23:58
always
23:59
100%
24:00
active?
24:02
Of course
24:03
it isn't,
24:03
we're
24:04
sinners,
24:05
but you
24:07
look at
24:07
Jesus,
24:09
and every
24:09
single moment
24:10
of his
24:10
life on
24:11
earth as
24:11
the servant
24:12
of God,
24:13
there isn't
24:13
a single
24:14
moment of
24:15
that where
24:15
he is not
24:16
actively
24:16
obedient,
24:18
where he
24:19
is not
24:19
actively
24:19
obedient in
24:21
fulfilling the
24:22
will of
24:22
the Father.
24:24
You will
24:25
never find
24:25
an instance
24:26
where he
24:27
falls short
24:27
of that.
24:28
He doesn't
24:28
wake up
24:28
at some
24:29
times,
24:30
as it
24:31
were,
24:31
in the
24:31
morning and
24:32
say,
24:32
well,
24:33
I need
24:33
to be
24:33
obedient
24:34
today,
24:34
and then
24:35
going through
24:35
the day,
24:36
he sometimes
24:36
forgets,
24:37
and then
24:37
he has to
24:37
say,
24:37
well,
24:38
I'm here
24:38
to be
24:38
obedient
24:39
to the
24:39
Father,
24:39
I'd
24:39
better get
24:40
back on
24:40
track.
24:41
There's
24:41
nothing
24:41
like that,
24:42
because
24:42
he's
24:43
constantly
24:43
perfectly
24:45
obedient,
24:47
as the
24:47
servant
24:47
of the
24:48
Father.
24:51
You remember
24:52
in John's
24:52
Gospel,
24:53
in chapter
24:54
4,
24:55
when the
24:56
disciples
24:56
came back
24:57
and found
24:57
him talking
24:58
with Oman
24:59
at the
24:59
well,
25:01
they were
25:02
amazed that
25:02
he spoke
25:03
to the
25:04
woman,
25:05
and they
25:05
urged him
25:05
to eat
25:06
something.
25:07
And he
25:09
said to
25:10
them,
25:10
I have
25:10
food to
25:12
eat that
25:12
you know
25:12
not of,
25:13
for my
25:14
food is
25:15
to do
25:15
the will
25:16
of my
25:16
Father,
25:18
and to
25:18
finish
25:19
his
25:19
works.
25:20
That was
25:21
his food.
25:23
Not that
25:24
he didn't
25:24
need physical
25:25
food,
25:26
but that's
25:27
where his
25:27
spiritual
25:27
appetite was
25:28
always
25:29
exercised,
25:30
in being
25:31
the obedient
25:32
servant of
25:33
the Father,
25:34
for our
25:35
sake,
25:35
for our
25:37
benefit.
25:39
That's why
25:40
he says
25:40
here as
25:41
well,
25:41
your law
25:42
is within
25:42
my heart.
25:43
I desire
25:43
to do
25:44
your will,
25:45
O my
25:45
God,
25:46
your law
25:46
is within
25:47
my heart.
25:48
You see,
25:48
there's the
25:48
law of
25:49
God,
25:50
that you
25:50
find summarized,
25:52
for example,
25:53
in the Ten
25:53
Commandments.
25:55
The law
25:55
of God
25:56
is really
25:57
the expression
25:58
of the
25:58
will of
25:59
God,
26:01
his
26:01
demands
26:01
for our
26:03
lives.
26:04
And
26:05
Christ
26:05
came,
26:05
as
26:05
Galatians
26:06
4 put
26:07
it,
26:07
Christ
26:08
came to
26:08
place
26:08
himself,
26:09
or to
26:09
be
26:09
placed
26:09
under
26:10
the
26:10
law,
26:11
born of
26:12
a
26:12
woman,
26:12
born under
26:13
the law.
26:14
In other
26:14
words,
26:14
born as
26:15
a servant,
26:17
born to
26:17
fulfill what
26:18
the law
26:19
required.
26:22
And he
26:23
says,
26:23
your law
26:24
is within
26:25
my heart.
26:29
There's a
26:29
very interesting
26:30
passage again.
26:31
I'm just
26:31
mentioning these
26:32
passages.
26:32
I don't have
26:33
time just to
26:33
open them all
26:34
up just now,
26:34
but if you
26:35
note them,
26:35
you can
26:36
follow them
26:36
through easily
26:36
enough for
26:37
yourselves.
26:38
When you
26:38
remember the
26:39
way in
26:40
which Jesus
26:41
was tempted
26:42
in the
26:42
wilderness by
26:43
the devil,
26:44
you find it
26:45
in Matthew's
26:45
gospel and
26:46
Luke's
26:46
gospel.
26:47
Matthew's
26:47
gospel,
26:48
you can
26:49
see his
26:49
temptation,
26:50
the three
26:50
main prongs
26:52
of the
26:53
devil's
26:53
attack.
26:55
How did
26:56
Jesus
26:56
respond?
26:57
How did
26:58
he respond
26:58
when the
26:59
devil said,
27:00
why should
27:00
you hunger
27:01
here?
27:01
Command these
27:02
stones to be
27:02
made into
27:03
bread.
27:04
He was
27:05
hungry.
27:06
And the
27:06
devil was
27:07
seeking to
27:08
take advantage
27:08
of that so
27:09
that Jesus
27:10
would, in
27:11
an unauthorized
27:12
way, exercise
27:13
his power to
27:14
relieve himself of
27:15
his sufferings,
27:17
to relieve
27:18
himself of the
27:19
duties that he
27:20
had as the
27:20
incarnate son of
27:21
God, to yield
27:22
obedience to the
27:23
father, to the
27:24
law of God.
27:25
How did Jesus
27:26
respond?
27:27
Well, he responded
27:28
to that and he
27:29
responded to the
27:29
other two temptations
27:31
that followed in
27:32
exactly the same
27:33
way.
27:33
He took the
27:34
devil to the
27:35
book of
27:36
Deuteronomy,
27:37
the book of
27:39
the law.
27:40
And Jesus
27:41
said to him,
27:42
it is written,
27:44
it is written,
27:45
that's where my
27:46
food and drink
27:47
comes from.
27:48
That's what I'm
27:49
here to do.
27:50
I'm here to
27:51
fulfill this
27:51
law for my
27:52
people.
27:54
And I cannot
27:55
step out of
27:55
the way of
27:56
obedience just
27:58
to listen,
27:58
especially to the
27:59
likes of you,
28:00
he says to
28:01
Satan.
28:03
That's
28:03
essentially what
28:04
he's saying in
28:05
the words that
28:06
he used.
28:06
He took him
28:07
back to the
28:07
book of the
28:09
law.
28:10
And that
28:11
too is for
28:12
our motivation,
28:13
isn't it?
28:14
And our
28:14
example and
28:16
our instruction
28:17
and also our
28:19
inspiration.
28:20
Because there's
28:21
one psalm, as
28:22
you know, in
28:23
the book of
28:23
Psalms that
28:24
more than any
28:25
other has to
28:25
do with the
28:26
law of God,
28:27
the word of
28:28
God, the
28:28
precepts of
28:29
God, the
28:30
statutes of
28:30
God, Psalm
28:31
119.
28:34
And there
28:34
are many, many
28:35
references
28:36
throughout Psalm
28:36
119 to
28:39
the relish the
28:40
psalmist has
28:41
for the law
28:42
of God.
28:44
And you
28:44
remember, I'll
28:45
just quote two
28:46
verses, verse
28:46
77.
28:48
Let your
28:49
mercy come to
28:50
me that I
28:50
may live, for
28:52
your law is
28:54
my delight.
28:56
And then
28:56
there's verse
28:57
97 as well.
28:59
Oh, how I
29:00
love your
29:01
law.
29:02
It is my
29:03
meditation all
29:05
the day.
29:05
And if that
29:06
was true as
29:06
it was for
29:07
the psalmist,
29:09
how much
29:09
more so in a
29:10
perfect fashion
29:11
was it true for
29:12
Jesus?
29:14
He could say
29:14
that at every
29:15
moment of his
29:16
life, oh, how
29:17
I love your
29:19
law.
29:20
It is my
29:20
study all the
29:21
day.
29:22
I'm here to
29:22
do it to
29:23
accomplish its
29:24
requirements.
29:25
He came to
29:28
fulfill the
29:29
times and the
29:29
promises.
29:31
He came to
29:33
do that as
29:33
the servant
29:34
of God.
29:35
But the
29:36
psalm here
29:36
tells us
29:37
thirdly, he
29:38
came to
29:38
announce the
29:39
good news.
29:41
He came to
29:41
announce the
29:42
gospel, in
29:43
other words.
29:44
Because there
29:45
you have it in
29:45
verse 9 and
29:47
10.
29:47
I have told the
29:48
glad news of
29:49
deliverance in
29:50
the great
29:51
congregation.
29:52
Behold, I have
29:53
not restrained my
29:54
lips as you
29:54
know, O
29:55
God.
29:56
I have not
29:56
hidden your
29:57
deliverance within
29:58
my heart.
29:59
I have spoken of
30:00
your faithfulness
30:01
and your
30:02
salvation.
30:03
I have not
30:03
concealed your
30:05
steadfast love
30:05
and your
30:06
faithfulness from
30:07
the great
30:07
congregation.
30:09
And you could
30:09
really take
30:11
these words,
30:11
the great
30:12
congregation, as
30:14
indicative really
30:15
in a sense of
30:16
all humanity.
30:17
Jesus, through
30:18
the gospel, is
30:19
declaring the
30:20
steadfast love,
30:21
the gospel, the
30:22
good news, the
30:23
salvation of
30:24
God.
30:27
Now, he
30:27
himself, of
30:28
course, is the
30:28
embodiment of
30:29
this.
30:30
Some people will
30:31
say, well, we
30:32
shouldn't really
30:32
focus as much on
30:34
Jesus preaching as
30:36
on Jesus being the
30:37
substance of what we
30:39
preach.
30:40
He himself is the
30:41
good news, the
30:42
gospel.
30:43
And there's a sense
30:44
in which that's
30:44
true.
30:45
But it's also
30:46
true that Jesus
30:47
very deliberately
30:48
preached the
30:49
gospel.
30:50
For example,
30:50
Matthew 4,
30:52
verse 17,
30:53
interestingly enough,
30:54
after the way in
30:56
which he had
30:56
overcome the
30:57
devil, from
30:58
that time,
30:59
Matthew says,
31:00
Jesus preached.
31:02
Jesus preached
31:03
about the
31:04
kingdom of
31:05
God.
31:07
So Jesus,
31:08
not only did he
31:09
preach, but
31:09
that's what he
31:10
preached.
31:11
He preached
31:11
the kingdom of
31:13
God and
31:13
preached,
31:14
therefore,
31:14
his own
31:15
coming in
31:16
relation to
31:17
that.
31:18
He came to
31:19
announce that
31:20
good news.
31:22
Jesus knew
31:23
where he had
31:26
come from,
31:28
who he was,
31:30
where he was
31:31
going back to,
31:32
back to heaven.
31:34
He knew what he
31:35
had come to do,
31:37
why he had come
31:38
into this world.
31:41
That it was to
31:41
die the death
31:42
of the cross,
31:44
that it was to
31:45
fulfill the
31:45
types, the
31:46
sacrifices,
31:47
of the Old
31:48
Testament time.
31:50
He came as
31:51
the servant of
31:52
God, to
31:53
yield perfect
31:54
obedience to
31:55
the will of
31:55
God.
31:57
He came to
31:58
announce and
31:59
to represent in
32:00
himself the
32:01
kingdom of
32:01
God, claim
32:03
of God over
32:04
human life,
32:06
and the call
32:07
of God through
32:08
the gospel to
32:10
come to be
32:11
citizens,
32:12
subjects of
32:14
that kingdom.
32:15
them.
32:16
Oh, we're
32:17
better some
32:17
than in
32:19
John's gospel
32:19
chapter 10
32:20
and verse 10.
32:22
In contrast
32:23
to the false
32:24
shepherds,
32:26
I have come,
32:27
he said,
32:28
that they
32:29
might have
32:29
life, that
32:30
his sheep
32:30
might have
32:31
life, and
32:33
have it the
32:34
more abundantly.
32:37
May God
32:38
bless these
32:38
thoughts.
32:39
On his
32:39
word, let's
32:40
conclude by
32:41
singing in
32:43
Psalm 40
32:44
from the
32:45
scripture.