The Eternal Significance of the Cross: Justice and Love

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Peter is preaching here in Acts and he says that this uh this event that has taken place here in the death of Jesus is an account of the fact that God delivered him up and the terminology there is worthy of your further consideration i leave it to you in other words there is already on the part of Peter as a result of the instruction of Jesus and the inspiration of the Holy Spirit an understanding that through the death of Jesus the purpose of God was being worked out a purpose that is rooted in eternity a purpose that was unfolding throughout the pages of the Old Testament. [00:01:55]

In respect to God the providence that is revealed in the death of his son is an expression of justice and of mercy what does that mean well it means at least this that Christ's death was not something that was contrived in time in order to fix a defect in a theological system but rather it was that which was conceived from all of eternity uh theologians talk about the covenant of redemption trying to peer as it were back into the eternal councils of God and putting together the fragments of things in such a way as to be able to conclude that the father and the son and the holy spirit entered into a covenant of redemption. [00:03:36]

Now let us just note then that on the cross the mercy and the justice of God are equally expressed in the cross the mercy of God and the justice of God are equally expressed in the cross God pardons those who believe in Christ even though they have sinned and deserve his condemnation without this we would be banished from the presence of God forever but it is also true that in the cross he displays and satisfies his perfect justice by executing the punishment on sin that we as sinners deserve. [00:05:36]

And it is important for us to allow the word of God to adjudicate on our thinking delivered up according to the definite plan and fornowledge of God well that seems to take everybody off the hook doesn't it well we can just re relax now no he says you are culpable you crucified and killed and it happened by the hands of lawless men the same is true again in chapter 4 and around verse 28 isn't it and as he as he identifies these individuals Herod and Pontious Pilot with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel to do whatever your hand and your plan had predestined to take place. [00:07:57]

Here we are at the mystery of it all aren't we the fact that um the primary cause of the death of Jesus lies in the definite plan of God because that's what it says that does not relieve the instigators the Jews or the perpetrators the Romans of their violence and of their responsibility this of course is the paradox isn't it the fornowledge and the counsel of God did says Vll no more compel or force their wicked hands to do what they did than the mariners hoisting up his sails to take the wind to serve his design as if somehow or another by doing so he compels the wind he doesn't compel the wind to do anything he chooses to hoist up his sails and the wind moves. [00:08:46]

The purpose of man in the death of Jesus was cruelty and malice the purpose of God in the death of Jesus was justice and mercy here we are you put him to death we will not have this man to rule over us and frankly the deeper truth is that the whole of humanity participates in this responsibility none of us is free from this and before I come to my final final point by John Knox let's just pause let's just pause and acknowledge something that the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing. [00:10:29]

The affirmations that we are seeking to make as we bow to the instruction of scripture is that the very epicenter of the entire human existence is to be traced to the cross of Jesus Christ a Galilean carpenter dying on a on a in a in a miserable bit of real estate in a backwater province of the Middle East and you're going to go out into the coffee shops and and uh and and by ways of uh of Princeton and declare this are you well be prepared for people to say "You're a complete looney you've absolutely lost your mind i knew you weren't that bright when I studied with you and it's very obvious to me now." [00:11:32]

There is an unseen boundary between ourselves and the living God we cannot access God on our own time and on our own terms he is beyond the scope of our intuitive radar we know enough about him as a creator to be held accountable for the fact that we are as we are but we do not know enough about him by creation to be saved and changed by him for that we need the word of God and we need the son of God. [00:12:19]

In terms of God then it is justice and mercy in terms of man it is cruelty and murder and in terms of Jesus himself it is obedience and humility and you see why I say this was such a find what's a great find because it's very clarifying isn't it if you forget all of the the sandwich in the middle if you forget all of the tuna as it were that I'm putting in between these slices then you can always remember the slices and you will be fine. [00:12:56]

It's true then that the father gave the son but it is equally true that the son gave himself he steps forward when they come for him in the garden he says "Are you looking for somebody maybe me." No don't do that Peter for goodness sake how many times have I told you either you're really good with that sword or you're really bad if you were going for his head that was hopeless if you were going for his ear that is remarkable but you don't need to do that you don't need to do that because I could call 12 legions of angels and we could take care of this thing in a moment no no the father gave the son and the son gave himself. [00:13:08]

Augustine said "The cross is the pulpit from which God preached his love to the world for God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life." My My Lord writes Graham Kendrick my Lord what love is this that pays so dearly that I the guilty one may go free. [00:14:22]

The men that sweeten the church the most are those taken with captivated by carried away by God's love for sinners are you captivated by carried away by captured by constrained by the love of God for sinners it's very possible that a conference like this that has some measure of at least supposed theological addition to it that delves into some of the mysteries of God visib providence for us simply to be notetakers affirmers realigning ourselves to make sure that we fit within the bounds of historic evangelical orthodoxy and walking down the street and forgetting that the one under whose banner we march was the good shepherd who lays down his life for the sheep. [00:15:19]

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