Year 2 Day 275

Year 2 Day 275


Pray (ACts)


Read - Hebrews 2:14-18


Message - Alan Burke


The writer of Hebrews thought takes us to the hope that we have in Christ Jesus, he explains the purpose of the incarnation, one that although things are far from how we would want or desire it to be, should give those who believe hope and comfort in the midst of it all. As we are told how Christ partook of the same things as he took on flesh and blood, our humanity. The reason why this needed to happen, the reason why that the only begotten son of God had to take on flesh and blood was because of what happened in the beginning with our first parents. In creation God made all things out of nothing and he made it very good (Gen 1:31). He made the human race, and the Lord willingly lowered Himself and entered into the Covenant of Works with the first man. This man called Adam was promised everlasting life on the condition of his personal and perfect obedience. The Lord God forbid Adam to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil upon the pain of death (Gen 2:16-17). 


The most tragic moment in history then takes place that effects each one of us, in each of our relationships in our entire being. For as our representative head ate of that tree and sin entered the world and with sin death followed. Even as the Covenant of Works lay in ruins, the Lord spoke of another covenant the Covenant of Grace. To Satan the Lord declared “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall crush your head, and you shall strike his heel.” (Gen 3:15) In this the Lord preached the Gospel to the devil. Throughout the rest of human history there would be conflict between those with the devil and those with the woman. The story of redemption, as redemptive history plays out past, present and future this is seen, the conflict continues, none of us can say that we are free from the stain of original and actual sin, none of us could save ourselves as a result but though Christ Jesus taking on our humanity and through his death the devil’s power has been destroyed. 


God remained true to his promise that he would send one who would crush the head of the serpent, and he has in Christ Jesus. For Jesus did what we could not do. For Jesus in passive obedience, went to the cross to received the wrath of God due to the sins of His people. We call this the passive obedience of Christ not because Jesus was inactive; He purposefully and actively laid down His life for His flock (John 10:1–18). Instead, calling it the passive obedience of Christ stresses the fact that He did not resist the cross, that while He chose to lay down His life, things were done to Him. This is an amazing truth, he died on the cross for our sins, it is wonderful truth, on the cross he paid the penalty of sin. Also in his active obedience, in all of his life, he followed the law of God, an obedience that came from his love for the Father, he lived a sinless life, (1 Pet 2:21-25). His contemporaries were unable to convict him of any transgressions (Jn 8:46) and in this he did what Adam did not, he did what we could not do and kept the law of God for us. Jesus, born without sin through virgin birth, lived without sin his whole life. He honoured God in our place, and for us obeyed God in our place (Luke 22:39–46; John 19:28–30; see Phil. 2:5–11). That is why there is no more condemnation for those in Jesus Christ (Rom 8:1). We stand before God with the perfect righteousness of Jesus Christ (Phil 3:9).


Pray (acTS)


Sing


WSC
Q38 What benefits do believers receive from Christ at the resurrection?
At the resurrection, believers being raised up in glory, (1 Cor. 15:43) shall be openly acknowledged and acquitted in the day of judgment, (Matt. 25:23, Matt. 10:32) and made perfectly blessed in the full enjoying of God, (1 John 3:2, 1 Cor. 13:12) to all eternity. (1 Thess. 4:17–18)
​