Today we want to conclude for this Christmas season our series on discovering Christ in the Psalms. We have previously examined in this series, from Psalm 8, about Jesus Christ's predicted incarnation. And then from Psalm 16, about Jesus Christ's predicted resurrection. And now today, Part 2 of Psalm 22, in Jesus Christ's predicted death and resurrection. For in Psalm 22, we will find a thousand years before Jesus Christ was born, the prediction of the Savior's death and resurrection in perfect accuracy. So let me invite you to open your Bibles with me to the book of 1st Timothy, actually. Excuse me, Psalm 22 to begin with. Psalm 22. As I quickly perused the internet this morning, I observed that Fox News reported today that an AirAsia plane carrying 162 disappeared over Indonesian waters, stormy Indonesian waters. And in doing so, all 162 people are feared dead. What a tragedy. But if you knew that your plane was going to crash Would you get on it? Would you avoid it? I would dare say probably all of you would avoid death if possible. And then I observed the article from yesterday called See a Blue Grief as 25,000 cops attended the funeral for the fallen New York Police Department officer Rafael Ramos, who was murdered in cold blood as he sat in his squad car with his fellow officer, who also was murdered by an alleged cop hater. But I ask you again, if you knew that you were going to be murdered, would you avoid it? I would dare say again, probably all of us would avoid being murdered if possible. But unlike us, this was not true of our Savior. the Lord Jesus Christ, for he was born to die, like the Ron Hamilton song states. His chorus declares for us the truth of Scripture when it announces, born to die upon Calvary, Jesus suffered. Why? My sin to forgive. Born to die upon Calvary. Why? He was wounded that I might live. And that's exactly what the writer of the book of Hebrews actually, in Hebrews chapter 12 verses 4 through 7 tells us. For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats could take away sin. Therefore, when he came into the world, as the eternal Son of God, what was Jesus Christ thinking when he came into the world? He said, sacrifice an offering you did not desire, but a body you have prepared for me. And burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin you had no pleasure. Then I said, behold, I have come. Why? In the volume of the book it is written of me. Why? To do your will, O God. Even if it meant to die, to be murdered, and to accomplish what those Old Testament sacrifices could never accomplish. Thus we go on to read a few verses later, by that will we have been sanctified or set apart unto God, positionally how? Through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ. And how many times did he offer that body? Once for all. And every priest stands ministering daily and offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But this man, the Lord Jesus Christ, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at the right hand of God. And thus the Lord Jesus Christ knew exactly before coming into the world that the will of God for him was to die. but not for his sins, for he had none, but to offer one sacrifice of himself for sins forever, past, present, and future. And he did it all for you, to save you, to redeem you, to forgive you, to provide a place in heaven for you, to make you his child, to make you a new creation in Christ, and to have an eternal relationship with God forever. Mark it down in your thinking, dear friends. Jesus Christ was born to die. And not only did Jesus Christ know it from eternity past, and not only was Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God, fully aware that this was the Father's will when He came into the world, but this was predicted in various places in the Old Testament, and especially here in Psalm 22. We begin reading in verse 1. My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from helping me, and from the words of my roaring? O my God, I cry in the daytime, but you do not hear, and in the night season, and am not silent, but you are holy. Enthroned in the praises of Israel. Our fathers trusted in you. They trusted in you delivered them. They cried to you and were delivered. They trusted in you and were not ashamed. Psalm 22 breaks down into two basic parts. Verses 1-18 deal with the suffering of the Savior. And then verses 19-31 deal with the resurrection of the King. And we saw last week regarding the suffering of the Savior, the predicted spiritual death of Christ. The psalm begins with those words, My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? You see, the Lord Jesus Christ was being separated. He was dying spiritually. when he uttered these words. They were screamed by him upon the cross a thousand years after David penned this psalm, for Psalm 22 far transcends any experience that David would ever encounter, for it is a messianic psalm. That is, it is a psalm of the descendant of David, who would one day be born to die, the Lord Jesus Christ. And he cries out in light of the separation he had experienced. Secondly, we observed last week regarding Christ's spiritual death, that it was due to the holiness of God and the sinfulness of man. The answer to, my God, my God, why have you forsaken me, is found in verse 3, but you are holy, that's why. For when Jesus Christ took upon himself your sin, and mine, and the sins of the whole world, God the Father and God the Spirit turned, as it were, their backs from God the Son. Why? For God is holy, and Jesus Christ was becoming sin for us, and therefore experienced spiritual death. But keep in mind that Christ's death was not only a spiritual death, it was not only a satisfying death to propitiate God's holiness, but thirdly, Christ's spiritual death was also a substitutionary death for you. Which we highlighted last week from another great Old Testament prophecy of Christ's death in Isaiah 53. written 700 years before Jesus Christ was incarnated. And why was this predicted? Because Jesus Christ was born to die. But this raises an important question, namely, for whom did Christ die for? Now, there are basically two views regarding the answer to this question. there are those who believe in what's called limited atonement. In the sense that Christ only died for the elect, or those whom God chose to save, and would one day be saved. Otherwise, his death, they argue, was a miserable failure, as so many actually will not be saved. In contrast to limited atonement, there are those who believe Christ's death involved an unlimited atonement, and that Christ died for all as God desires all to be saved, but only those who choose to trust in Christ alone as Savior have the benefits of Christ's death applied to their lives. In fact, put a marker here in Psalm 22 and turn with me, if you would, to First Timothy, Chapter 2. First Timothy, Chapter 2. For whom did Christ die? What do the scriptures say? We read in First Timothy, Chapter 2 Beginning in verse 4, or verse 3, for this is good and acceptable in the sight of God, our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man, Christ Jesus, who gave himself a ransom for all to be testified in due time. For whom did Christ die? Well, the first thing we notice, he died for all. Now we see the reason for that is he desires, verse 4, all men. The word men here is the word anthropos, speaking of all mankind. To be saved. Now it's interesting, this is an infinitive that's an aorist passive. You say, what's the point there? It usually speaks of a completed event, and in that it's passive. You don't save yourself, God saves you. And to come is also an aorist, but in this case it is an active. Which means you must choose to come. to the knowledge of the truth by believing what Christ said and I believe these two things transpire at the same time the moment you come by faith is the moment you are saved and you see God wants all people to be saved and he wants all of them to come to the knowledge of the truth For there is one God and one meeting between God and man, and it's the man Christ Jesus who gave himself a ransom for all. Why? Because he wanted all men to be saved. And the word for here is the Greek word hupere, which speaks of on behalf. in the place of. It speaks of substitution. A ransom for all. But does it really matter? Does it really matter if Christ's death was unlimited or limited in atonement? And I think the answer is an emphatic yes. It really does matter. Because one, the scriptures have spoken and they are clear. And God said it this way for a reason. On a second personal level, there's the issue of assurance. It's like the fellow who contacted us this week here at DBC and said, I've been struggling with this issue of limited versus unlimited atonement, and I'm thinking to myself, if Christ only died for the elect, how do I know he died for me? And thirdly, it affects even evangelism. You cannot go up to someone on the street and say, with certainty, I've got good news for you, Christ died for you. Because if they're not one of the elect, Christ didn't die for them. Thus, you would have to say in essence, I have good news for you, Christ may have died for you in your sins. Let's talk further, which is not good news. You see, all means all. But secondly, for whom did Christ die? He died for everyone. Due to time, I won't have you to turn to all the rest of these passages, but I would encourage you when you get home today to write these scripture answers in the back of your Bibles for future reference. He died for everyone. Hebrews 2.9 says, but we see Jesus who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death. He became a man for a little time for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honor that he, by the grace of God, might taste death for who? For everyone. And everyone means everyone. Unless you have a set of theological glasses on. in which you say everyone can't mean everyone, but instead it means everyone who is elect. It just is not true. For whom did Christ die, number three? He died for the world. In that very familiar and famous verse, John 3, 16, we read, for God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son. The idea is for the world, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life. And the world means the world. God loved the world and Christ was given for the world, not the world of the elect, as some misinterpret this. in light of their theological bias. Fourthly, Christ died for the sins of the whole world. The sins of the whole world. We read in 1 John 2, verses 1 and 2, My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous, and he is the propitiation, now catch this, for our sins, namely believers, and not for ours only, but for the whole world. The whole world means the whole world. And this verse is especially helpful as believers' sins are contrasted with the sins of the whole world, indicating that the whole world cannot be limited to the saved or the elect only. For whom did Christ die? Number five, he died for the ungodly. Romans 5, 6 says, for when we were still without strength and due time, Christ died for, huper, the ungodly. And that's the whole world of sinners. Or as 1 Peter 3, 18 says, for Christ also suffered once for sins, the just for, huper, the unjust, that he might bring us to God. Jesus Christ's death was an unlimited death, and a substitutionary death, as he died for the ungodly and the unjust, which all of us are by nature. For whom did Christ die? Number six, he died for false teachers who deny him. False teachers who deny him. 2nd Peter 2.1, but there were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers among you, who will seekly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them, and bring on themselves swift destruction. Now the word bought here is the particular Greek word, egorazo. It means to pay a price to redeem a slave. And notice, it isn't talking as if it's something that's iffy, but something that's there. And the remainder of 2 Peter chapter 2 makes clear the false teachers in view in this chapter, who deny the Lord, who pay a price to redeem them, are unsaved false teachers, who the blackness of darkness forever are reserved for. Which means that Christ died for the unsaved or non-elect as well. So what was their problem? Instead of receiving the Lord Jesus Christ, these false teachers rejected the Lord who paid for their redemption. And that, dear friends, is unlimited atonement. That means there isn't a person in hell today that couldn't have been in heaven instead. The problem is not with the extent of God's provision of salvation. It is not with his desire to save all. But the problem is with the sinner's volition and rejection of God's truth, especially the Gospel. For whom did Christ die? Number seven, he died for many. Matthew 20 verse 28, just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve and to give his life a ransom for many. How many? Well, we know from 1st Timothy 2.6, a ransom for all. That many. Now there are times in the scriptures when statements are made that seem to qualify the target or audience of this substitutionary death. But these passages are not designed to teach a limited atonement, but to emphasize the specific group of people that Jesus Christ had in mind when he died. For whom did Christ die? Number eight, he died for Israel. For Israel. We know in John chapter 11 verses 49 through 51, and one of them, Caiaphas, being high priest, a Jewish high priest that year, said to them, you know nothing at all, nor do you consider that it is expedient for us that one man should die for the people, what people? Israel. And not that the whole nation, what nation? Israel, should perish. Now this he did not say on his own authority, but being a high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus would die for the nation. What nation? The nation of Israel. And the word for, again, is Hubert. Remember, the angel told Joseph to call the baby's name Jesus, for he shall save his people from their sins. So Jesus Christ died specifically for Israel. But that's not all. Number nine, he also died for the church. For the church. Ephesians 5.25 says, Husbands, love your wives just as Christ also loved the church and gave himself for her, namely the church. Now this does not mean that Christ didn't die for everyone, or for many, or for Israel, for he did. But he also died specifically for his bride, the church. And if all this wasn't grand enough, how about we personalize all of this for a moment? And we do so with great scriptural warrant. For whom did Christ die? The tenth and last answer is, he died for me. He died for me. Galatians chapter 2 and verse 20, I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. And the life which I now live in the flesh, I live by faith. In who? The Son of God. Why? Who loved me and gave himself who per for me. Can you believe it? He did it for me. For me. By the way, can you say that? Do you believe that? Have you accepted that by faith? God is satisfied with what Christ has done. Have you been satisfied so as to trust in Him alone? God said it, Christ did it. If you believe it, that then settles it, for you then have it. Salvation, free and full and forever by God's amazing grace. You know, as we think of this balance of Christ's death being provided for all and yet only received by those who trust in Christ. We read in 1st, let's see, for whom did Christ die? I got ahead of myself for a moment. He died for all, he died for everyone, he died for the world, for the sins of the whole world, for the ungodly, for false teachers who deny him, for many, for Israel, for the church, for me. And again, we see the wonderful balance, 1st Timothy 4.10. For to this end we both labor and suffer reproach. Because we trust in the Living God, who He is the Savior of who? Of all men, but especially of those who what? Who believe. He's provided salvation for all, He's the Savior of all, He's willing to save all, Christ died for all, but especially of those who believe. I asked you the question this morning, have you believed? Have you put your faith in Jesus Christ alone? Do you believe he died for your sins? Do you believe that he rose from the grave? Do you believe that he alone can save you? Not a work, not a ritual, not a church, not a religion. And if you've put your faith in Christ alone, then you qualify in the end, especially of those who believe. And if you've never trusted in Christ alone, You don't have to sign a card and raise a hand and pray a prayer or come forward. You don't have to do anything. He did it all. You simply need to receive this as a gift by faith in Jesus Christ alone. Why? Because He died for you. And as we think of that, we go back now to Psalm 22. Psalm 22. We've already seen the predicted spiritual death of Christ in verses 1-5. We now in verses 6-8 see the predicted human rejection of Christ by men. All again in perfect accuracy. A thousand years before it happened, we read what Christ is thinking here on the cross, verse 6. But I am a worm and no man, a reproach of men and despised by the people. All those who see me ridicule me. They shoot up their lips. They shake their heads, saying, He trusts in the Lord. Let Him rescue him. Let Him deliver him, since He delights in him. we see what Christ was thinking on the cross. This is why Dr. J. Vernon McGee calls this psalm an x-ray of the cross. You see, in order to provide salvation for us, it was predicted that Jesus Christ would become like a worm. Become like a worm. Henry Morrison, in his commentary on psalms, says this. These statements, however, hardly explain fully the identification of himself as a worm. Key seems to lie in the recognition that this was a specific type of worm, the scarlet worm. As a matter of fact, the Hebrew word translated worm in this passage, tolaf, is also frequently translated scarlet, for example, Exodus 25.4, or crimson, Isaiah 1.18. The reason for this odd equivalence is because the scarlet worm was the source of a fluid from which the people of ancient times made their scarlet dyes. Christ portrayed himself as stained crimson on the cross, Thus he immediately speaks to us in the words of Colossians 1.20, having made peace with the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself. But no doubt the steeper significance of his identification of himself as the Scarlet Worm lies in the remarkable life-death cycle of this unique animal. For when the mother worm of this species is ready to give birth to her baby worms, she will implant her body in a tree somewhere, or a post, or a stick of wood, so firmly that she can never leave again. Then when the young are brought forth, the mother's body provides protection and sustenance for her young until they reach the stage where they can leave home and fend for themselves. Then the mother dies and as she dies the scarlet fluid of her body emerges to stain her body and the bodies of her progeny and the wood of the tree where they were given life by their dying mother. What a picture of the blood stained cross. and it became him for whom are all things and by whom are all things and bringing many sons into glory to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings Hebrews 2.10 and so when the Lord Jesus was there hanging on the cross It certainly appears as though in his thought process he's thinking regarding this worm and how he was being crushed under the weight of sin and how his blood would be shed upon that cross in order to provide salvation. But not only had he become like a worm, but secondly he had become a reproach of men, verse 6. And he had become despised by the people and mocked by them. And he had become ridiculed, as it were. In fact, verses 7 and 8 makes it very clear that he was insulted by others. And this is what he sees going on as he's hanging upon that cross. By the way, was this fulfilled historically? And the answer is yes. That's very clear from Matthew 27. Verses 39 through 43. This is exactly what happened. And yet, in spite of all this, Jesus Christ was willing to be born into this sinful world as he trusted God's plan and constant care of his life. He trusted. He knew this would happen, and yet he walked by faith. and believed the Father's plan was best. We read in verse 9, But you are he who took me out of the womb. You made me trustful on my mother's breast. I was cast upon you from birth. From my mother's womb you have been my God. You see, the Lord Jesus Christ, though he was eternal God, was conceived in the womb of Mary via the Holy Spirit, and his body then developed as any human body would develop. And thus, what was so miraculous really was not his birth, it was his conception. And yet his birth was real, and from that point on he was trusting, as it were, the Father, And what is so significant about this? That those who rejected Christ did not realize they were fulfilling God's predictive prophecies. They didn't know, oh yeah, Psalm 22, guys, let's get it together. We need to mock them right now. Oh no. What is also so significant is that Christ, knowing this would transpire, was willing to do this in spite of what He would do. Why did he do it? Yes, you could say he did it to fulfill the will of the Father, but he also did it for you, and he did it for me, to provide salvation for us. Not only does Psalm 22 predict his spiritual death, and not only does it predict his human rejection of man, but thirdly, it predicts the physical sufferings the Lord Jesus would experience as well. We read in verse 11 these words. Be not far from me, for trouble is near, for there is none to help. Many bulls have surrounded me. Strong bulls of Bashan have encircled me, as he's talking about the soldiers and the people around him. They gape at me with their mouths like a raging and roaring lion. And what is he thinking? I am poured out like water. And all my bones are out of joint. My heart is like wax. It's melted within me. My strength is dried up like a pot shirt. And my tongue clings to my jaws. Thus, he said, I thirst. You have brought me to the dust. For dogs have surrounded me, the congregation of the wicked have enclosed me. They pierced my hands and my feet and I count all my bones as he there in that crucified position is seeking to push up the best he can to try to breathe during this horrible death we call crucifixion. See, the details described here clearly indicate that the Messiah would suffer crucifixion. Again, I'm poured out like water. All my bones are out of joints, which happen when the cross is put into the ground and there's a crack. My heart is like wax. It's melted within me. My strength is dried up. They pierce my hands and my feet. cut all my bones, they'll look and stare. All of this happens in crucifixion. Now, what is so significant about this, though, is that the Old Testament would predict that the Messiah would die by crucifixion, the worst kind of death, and yet the Jewish way of dealing with tried criminals was by means of capital punishment through stoning, not crucifixion. And that's why over and over again, they picked up stones to stone the Lord Jesus Christ. For they said, he being a man made himself to be God, which he was. That is why they stoned Stephen in Acts chapter 7, for what they claimed to be blasphemy. That's why they stoned the man in Numbers 15, who picked up sticks on the Sabbath. Crucifixion is not Jewish in nature. It is Gentile in nature. And yet we see here a tremendous example of the inspiration of the Bible. That the Bible could record in advance, in light of the all-knowing God and his all-pervasive plan, the very thoughts of the Lord Jesus, the very reality of a future crucifixion, a thousand years before it happens, and do so in perfect accuracy. There's no book like that, but your Bible. How would David know and then accurately predict Christ's crucifixion? He certainly never experienced anything like this. So how did this happen? Well, the Holy Spirit of God moved men of God so they could write with perfect accuracy the Word of God. And that's what we have in our Bibles. We also see regarding these human sufferings, But another fulfilled prophetic prediction regarding Christ's death was that the Roman soldiers would cast lots for his clothing. We read in verse 18, they divided my garments among them and for my clothing they cast lots. We know that's exactly what happened historically as well. In fact, it is recorded for us in Matthew 27, 35. In Mark 15, 24. It's recorded in Luke 23, 34. It's recorded in John 19, 23. Four times in each of the gospel accounts it is recorded that this happened. Now what is significant about this? Again, what is significant about all of this is that this was extremely humiliating. Yet Jesus Christ was willing to go through this for you and me. He went through it all that you might be clothed, as it were, in the righteousness of Christ. And also, this is a tremendous evidence to the authenticity and authority and accuracy of the Bible, unless you believe the Roman soldiers tried to fulfill Psalm 2218, which I don't think they did. How would they have known? And would they have been willing? Of course not. And this should impress upon you and me, again, the truthfulness of Scripture. You have the very Word of God. The probability of these predictions being fulfilled by chance on one afternoon is astronomical. The probability of all this occurring by accident is beyond one's wildest imaginations. And yet, what is the first truth emphasized in this section? It wasn't Christ's physical sufferings, as horrendous and terrible as they were. It wasn't Christ's human rejection, as foolish as it was. It was the spiritual death of Jesus Christ. Why? Because that's what got, as it were, this job done. And that's what I missed for years. being raised in my religion I would see the stations of the cross and during the lentil season I would notice again physical suffering, physical rejection, physical suffering and he died on the cross and I felt so bad for the Lord Jesus Christ that they had done that to him and I did not understand he did it for me I didn't understand he did it for my sins I didn't understand that On the cross he had in essence me in mind, and he said in essence, unless I die for the sins of Dennis Roxler, he could never be saved, for he is ungodly and unworthy. But he died for me. And when I understood what he meant, it is finished. It was paid in full. I realized there was nothing left for me to do, nothing left for the church to do, nothing left for a sacrament to do. that He had done it all and I simply needed to trust in Him and receive Him as my Savior. You see, when Christ died, He died fully for all upon the cross. And that's why Isaiah 53 11 says, He shall see the travail of His, now watch this, His soul and be satisfied We read in 1 Peter 3.18, having been put to death in the flesh but made alive literally in spirit, which means the spirit had to have died. He had to have died spiritually. And then in Hebrews 10 we read that it was the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. He had offered one sacrifice for us since forever, when He offered His soul, when He died spiritually, when He offered His body. You see, in the fullness of Christ's death, He gave us all, body, soul, and spirit, as He died both spiritually and physically, for our redemption and forgiveness, as predicted in Psalm 22. And just like the old hymn, How Can It Be, states so well, Amazing love, how can it be that thou, my God, should die? Now having seen the suffering of the Savior in verses 1 through 18, we're now prepared to consider the resurrection of the King in verses 19 and following. But as a means of transition from Christ's death to His resurrection, look with me at verses 19 through 21. But you, O Lord, do not be far from me. O my strength, hasten to help me. Deliver me from the sword, my precious life, from the power of the dog. Save me from the lion's mouth and from the horns of the wild oxen. You see, we have here the prayer of the dying Savior in amazing prediction as well. For anticipation of these tremendous events, Jesus Christ would pray for God to rescue him from his enemies and deliver him from or out of death. Out of death. In response to that prayer, God the Father answered him. Isn't that how verse 21 ends? YOU HAVE ANSWERED ME! And by the way, this is confirmed in the New Testament. We saw it in our study of Hebrews chapter 5 and verse 7. We read in verse 6, as he also says in another place, You are a priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek, who in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications like in the Garden of Gethsemane, with vehement cries and tears to him, who was able to save him from ech, out of death, and was heard because of his godly fear. Because he was doing the will of God. He was heard. And that's exactly what we're reading about here. You have answered me. And in what sense was an answer? Well, there's two basic interpretations. On the one hand, a prayer in anticipation of spiritual death, praying for spiritual life. My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Saved out of spiritual death. Others interpret this to mean out of physical death by way of resurrection. And by the way, both are true in Scripture. And that's why we move from the predicted prayer of the dying Savior to the predicted praise of the resurrected Savior. Where we read in verse 22 these words, I will declare your name to my brethren. In the midst of the assembly, I will praise you. Now, how can a dead Savior and a cross praise Him? How can a body in a tomb praise Him? Thus, in order for the Savior to declare God's name and praise Him in the midst of the congregation, He would have to be delivered out of death, which He was, both spiritually and physically. And ultimately, this was accomplished when Jesus Christ victoriously rose again from the dead on the third day. And that's why the gospel is that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures. He was buried and he rose again the third day according to the scriptures. In fact, in keeping with the language of this very psalm, we read in Hebrews chapter 2 verses 9 through 12 these words. But we see Jesus was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honor. that he, by the grace of God, might taste death for who? For everyone. For it was fitting for him for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, and bringing many sons to glory. Not all, but many. To make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings. Why? Though he died for all, you have to still trust in him to be saved. For both he who sanctifies and those who are being sanctified are all of one, for which reason he is not ashamed to call them brethren, saying, I will declare your name to my brethren in the midst of the assembly. I will sing praise to you." Just like Psalm 22. So how should you respond to Jesus Christ in light of all this? You see, one of the things we have to keep in mind is that all of this is not designed to scintillate our intellect or satisfy our curiosity. It's ultimately to transform our lives. You see, doctrine learned is wonderful, but doctrine believed and applied is absolutely necessary. So how should we respond? What we see here, first of all, you should praise Him. Verse 23, you who fear the Lord, praise Him! The word fear means you take God seriously. You stand in awe of Him and you trust Him. Therefore, you should praise Him. Have you been praising Him? Has praise been coming out of your lips? Or have you lost sight of the Lord Jesus Christ and what He's done? Secondly, we see you should glorify Him. Verse 23, all you descendants of Jacob, glorify Him. And I know that's directed towards Israel, but by way of application, should we not glorify Him? Give Him the honor, do His name? And fear Him, all you offspring of Israel. So we're to praise Him, we're to glorify Him, we're to fear Him, we're to take Him seriously. or to stand in awe of our Savior who died spiritually and physically and rose from the grave out of death. Why should we do this? Well, verse 24 says, for He has not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted, nor is He hidden His face from him. But when He cried to him He heard. He was willing to do the will of God. He knew in the Garden of Gethsemane what it would mean. In fact, he knew when he entered the world what it would mean. And yet he was willing to be despised. He was willing to be abhorred. He was willing to be afflicted for the afflicted. He was willing to die for your sins and mine. And in that death, we see the predicted peace offering and proper responses to the resurrected Savior. You see, verse 25 says, my praise shall be of you in the great assembly. I will pay my vows before those who fear him. I will pay my vows. What is all that about? Well, if we know our Old Testament, we know that I will pay my vows refers to the peace offering of Leviticus chapter 3. And the joy and the fellowship that resulted from eating part of it. They would offer the sacrifice, it was a peace offering, and they were then privileged to enjoy eating part of that sacrifice. In doing so, We know because of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, peace with God and the joy of His fellowship are available to those who trust and humbly seek Him. For we read in verse 26 these words, The poor shall eat and be satisfied. Those who seek Him will praise the Lord. Let your heart live how long? forever. That's only true if you have peace with God. We know Romans 5.1, therefore having been justified by faith, faith in who? The Lord Jesus Christ. We have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. This is true of all believers. So that all believers now are privileged to have fellowship with the Father And with His Son, Jesus Christ, of these things we write to you, that your joy may be full. And that's what God wants. He wants, first of all, that you have peace with Him, through our Lord Jesus Christ. And then He wants you to daily enjoy fellowship with Him. And with His Son, He wants to fill your life with joy, as you walk by faith in fellowship with Him. And then our psalm comes to a tremendous end in verses 27 through 31 as it exhorts us concerning the proper responses to the resurrected King. And in light of the fulfillment of scripture regarding Christ's sacrificial death and bodily resurrection, you should first of all remember what he has done for you in turn to the Lord. You should remember what he has done for you and turn to the Lord. Verse 27 says, all the ends of the world shall remember and turn to the Lord. Now, when I think of the ends of the earth, I can't help but thinking of them. Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. To remember means to look back on this prophecy. Remember that God predicted this. Remember that Christ fulfilled this. And turn to the Lord in faith. Trusting Him alone to save you if you've never been saved. Or believing His word and His promises if you have been saved. See, there's no value in knowing and remembering this if you don't turn to the Lord in faith. And I don't know what you're going through today, but I know this. God predicted in perfect accuracy these truths. He always keeps His word, and He will keep His word to you as well. The question is, will you trust Him for it today? Will you remember what He's done for you, and will you turn to the Lord? If you've trusted Christ as your Savior, shouldn't this cause you to worship before Him as Savior and Son? To worship before Him as Savior and Son. And again, we see this idea of worship. Verse 27 goes on to say, "...and all the families of the nations shall worship before you. For the kingdom is the Lord's, and He rules over the nations." And indeed, this is going to happen. When the Lord Jesus Christ returns, there will not only be the Jews, but a multitude of Gentiles who will come to faith and they will worship Him as He sets up His kingdom on earth. But why wait till then? Why wait as members of the body of Christ until you go to be with the Lord and are involved in that great worship scene of Revelation 4 and 5? Why not worship Him today? Why not sing His praises today? Why not worship Christ because He is your Savior? Why not worship Christ because He is sovereign? Why not worship Him for who He is and what He's done? You know, dear friends, if you're walking with the Lord and enjoying fellowship, that overflows into a vertical worship. And even a desire to worship with the people of God, like we have done this morning, For people to say, I'm enjoying great fellowship with the Lord, but I see no need to corporately worship with others means there is a disconnect in their thinking. For believers in Christ, true worship and fellowship with the Lord will then result, number three, in serving Him. You should serve Him. Verse 30 says, a posterity shall serve Him. It will be recounted of the Lord to the next generation. A posterity shall serve Him. A seed will serve Him. A spiritual family will serve Him. And I can't help but think of Romans 12.1, in light of the mercies of God, that we should present our bodies a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable unto God, which is our reasonable service. Our service. You know, all that you do should be, in essence, rendered a service to the Lord. You don't need a position to do that, but you do need a posture to do that. You need an attitude which recognizes you're a product of grace, and you're privileged to serve, and you learn to do whatever you do heartily is on to the Lord, and all how we should serve Him. The problem is, so often we're serving ourselves. So often the bottom line is us. So often the bottom line is, what am I going to get out of this? Instead of for me to live as Christ, to die as King. And one of the greatest ways that believers can serve the Lord Jesus Christ, though not the only way, is by being a witness to others of Christ's righteousness. You should witness to others of God's righteousness in that He always keeps This word. We read in verse 30, it will be recounted of the Lord to the next generation. They will come, and what are they going to do? They're going to declare his righteousness to a people who will be born. That he has done this. And that's exactly what he did. is fulfilled, Psalm 22. And we now have the privilege of being a witness to others of the spiritual death of Christ, the satisfying death of Christ, the substitutionary death of Christ, how he died for all because he wants all to be saved. We have the privilege of declaring his righteousness and that he always keeps his word. For you see, as we think of righteousness, we know that we are all as an unclean thing. And all our righteousness are like filthy rags. Isaiah 64, 6. And thus we declare not our righteousness, not our self-righteousness, not our works righteousness, not our ritual righteousness. We declare His righteousness. Why? For He, God, made Him, Jesus Christ, who knew no sin, to be sin for us. Why? That we might become the righteousness of God in Him. That's why. And what should you tell the lost? What message does God want you to proclaim to those who are perishing? That He has done this. that Christ died for their sins. The proof is He was buried. He rose from the dead. The proof is He was seen. And He is willing to save. He is willing to give. His righteousness is a gift to all who simply put their faith in Him. And He has finished work on the cross. He has done this. Is that not tremendous? What a song! What a prophecy! What a fulfillment! What a savior! But what does all of this mean to you? During the administration of President Andrew Jackson, a man named George Wilson was convicted of robbing the United States mail and was sentenced to be hanged. Intercession was made on Wilson's behalf, and President Jackson actually granted George Wilson a pardon. But Wilson refused to accept it. The authorities were perplexed, so they turned the problem over to Chief Justice Marshall. And this was his conclusion. A pardon is a slip of paper, the value of which is determined by the acceptance of the person to be pardoned. If it is refused, it is no pardon. George Wilson must be hanged. Do you see the illustration and application to you? The pardon is available, it's been offered, it's been paid for, Christ died for you, but until you accept it, it's not yours, you can reject it. And what did they do with George Wilson? They hung him. Why? Because he couldn't be saved? Oh no, he could have been. Because the pardon wasn't available? Oh no, it was available. Because he didn't know about it? No, he knew about it. Why? Because he rejected it. Have you received the pardon? Or have you rejected it? And if you rejected it, you can receive it today. And if you received it today, or you received it in the past, you should praise him, you should worship him, you should serve him, you should witness to others of the Lord Jesus Christ. For you see, when he came, dear friends, he was born to die. For as the psalm says, born to die upon Calvary, Jesus suffered, can you say this, my sin, Born to die upon Calvary, he was wounded. Can you say this? That I might live. Let's pray. Father, thank you for the Lord Jesus Christ. And thank you that we've seen him in the Psalms. In Psalm 8 in his incarnation. In Psalm 16 in his resurrection. Now here in Psalm 22. In his spiritual death. his human rejection, his physical sufferings, his bodily resurrection, all in perfect accuracy a thousand years before it happened. Because you spoke and you did not stutter and you always keep your word. And we know we can trust you because of that. And Father, my heart and my prayer goes out to anyone today who are either here in person or watching via webcast who has never personally trusted the Lord Jesus Christ as their Savior. That they've never decided in their heart to change their mind about those things they thought could save them, a church, or a ritual, or their works, or their holiness, their commitment, their surrender, their sacrifice. and simply put their faith in the sacrifice and work of another, the Lord Jesus Christ. And Father, if that's true of anyone here today, I pray that right now in the quietness of their heart where they're seated, they would put their trust in Christ and be saved. They would believe he died for their sins. He rose again to give them eternity. And for those of us who are saved, Father, oh may we not forget the pit from which we've been dug. May we not lose sight of the Savior, but instead may we enjoy sweet fellowship with Him. May we know we have peace with You through our Lord Jesus Christ. May we revel and rejoice in the grace that has been shown to us. May we worship You from our hearts in word, in praise, and in prayer. May we witness of Christ. to a lost and dying world, so in need of a Savior, and so in need of a clear presentation of the Gospel. May our lives now be lives of service to our Savior. Not because we have to, but because we want to, with your love compelling us to that end. And thank you that we can always take you at your word, for you do what you say. We thank you so much, Father. in Jesus' name, amen. It's only fitting that we close our service today with our song, Born to Die. Let's stand as we sing together. On the night Christ was born, Just before break of morn, As the stars in the sky were fading, O'er the place where He lay, Fell a shadow cold and gray, On the cross that would humble a king. Born to die upon Calvary, Jesus suffered my sin to forget. Born to die upon Calvary, He was wounded that I don't mind then. Jesus knew when He came, He would suffer in shame. He could feel every pain and sorrow. But He left paradise, with His blood He paid the price. My redemption to Jesus I owe. Born to die upon Calvary, Jesus suffered my sin to forgive. Born to die upon Calvary, He was wounded that I might live. From His throne Jesus came, laid aside heaven and faith, in exchange for the cross of Calvary. For my gain He suffered loss, for my sin He bore the cross. He was wounded and I was set free. Born to die upon Calvary, Jesus suffered much sin to forgive. Born to die upon Calvary, He was wounded that I might live. Dearest Lord evermore, may Thy cross I adore, as I follow the path to Calvary. Of Thy death I partake, my ambition I forsake, on my will I surrender to Thee. more Jesus Oh