Please open your Bibles to Hebrews chapter 2. Hebrews chapter 2. I believe it's on the screen. We'll be studying tonight verses 10 through 12. Dennis is a little taller than me, so I gotta adjust this. Give ear now to God's holy, inerrant, and life-giving word. Hebrews chapter 2, beginning in verse 10. For it was fitting that He, for whom and by whom all things exist, in bringing many sons to glory, should make the founder of their salvation perfect through suffering. For he who sanctifies and those who are sanctified all have one source. That is why he is not ashamed to call them brothers, saying, I will tell of your name in the midst of my brothers, in the midst of the congregation, I will sing your praise. The grass withers and the flower fades, but the word of our God abides forever. Let's pray once more. God in heaven, how we give thanks to you for the inestimable gift that is our perfect Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. May it please you by the power of your Holy Spirit to work through your word that your dear people might rejoice in him and with him. We ask this in Jesus' name and for his glory, amen. The question is often cynically asked, what have you done for me lately? implicit in the very question is that the person being asked either has done something in the past for this asker of the question or may well do something in the future, but presently they are not doing much. And if we're not careful, we can tend to think of our faith in one of those short-sighted ways. We can tend to think of our faith primarily in terms of what Jesus has done for us in the past. I think that's probably the way most Christians default think of our faith. We remember what the Lord Jesus has done. And that's absolutely good and essential and true and beautiful. Some others will reflect very often, thinking particularly of our dispensationalist friends, on all the various things that he will do. And again, that's good and appropriate. And we confess these things often. One of my favorite parts of our worship service on the Lord's Day is when we confess our faith together. I hope you're not reciting a creed from memory, but actively confessing the faith once for all delivered to the saints. And we say this when we confess the Nicene Creed of the Lord Jesus, who for us and for our salvation came down from heaven and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the Virgin Mary. and was made man, and also suffered for us under Pontius Pilate, he was crucified and buried. And the third day he rose again according to the Scriptures, and he ascended to the right hand of the Father." That's all in the past. That's what Jesus has done for us. And then the very next section, we confess what he will do, and from there he will come again with glory to judge both the living and the dead. That's what he will do. But if I asked you, to say in concrete, specific terms, what is the Lord Jesus doing for you now, presently, I suspect many of us would stumble and stammer and struggle a little bit to come up with a very clear answer. We know that he is doing something, for he's promised, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. But what is he doing with us now? This question, what is Jesus doing now, it looms large in the background of the epistle to the Hebrews. The author is writing to a group of predominantly ethnically Jewish Christians who are living in the middle of the first century, likely before the fall of the temple in 70 AD. and his readers have been truly following Christ for some time. They are truly organized as a New Testament church, and for reasons that are not made clear in the text, they are considering abandoning the faith. The most common reason suggested for this is active persecution. I think that's certainly correct, but the Bible doesn't explicitly tell us that. It makes the most sense, though. And the author of Hebrews is writing to these people who are tempted to abandon the New Testament church, to go back to the old covenant system, to go back to the temple, to go back to the synagogue, as it were. He's writing to them to say, you must not do that. For all of the promises of God, Paul would write in 2 Corinthians chapter 1, all of the promises of God, find their yes and amen in Christ, 2 Corinthians 1.20. And when Paul's writing this, all of the promises of God is the first two-thirds of your Bible. It's the Old Testament. And so, to the extent that that's true, that the Old Testament is all about Christ, to abandon Christ, to go back to the old covenant, is to go back to nothing. And he's pleading with them, don't do that. I've often used this illustration, I compare it to when I'm away for a ministry-related thing, or I'm away for a school-related thing, I have pictures of my family. My wife can tell you, I will often text her, maybe on the second day I'm gone, please send pictures of the children. And they are great, and I love them. and they're great reminders and pointers to my children. And in the same way, the Old Testament way of worshiping God was a pointer, it was a sign, it was a picture of Christ who was to come. But to abandon Christ, to abandon the New Testament church to try and go back, would be something akin to if I'm getting off the airplane at the airport, and my family's there to greet me, and I walk right past them. Because I've got the picture. It's good enough. It worked while I was away, why won't it work now? Because the picture is just a picture. And the picture, divorced from the substance of it, is meaningless. I say again, his argument is that to abandon Christ, to go back to Moses, to go back to the temple, to go back to these things that God once used, is to go back to nothing, because apart from Christ, they are nothing. That is the point of the book as a whole, and it's the point of our passage. But what our passage does is it gives us two reasons, two motivations, for why we should not abandon the Lord Jesus. The first is what Christ has done for us on earth. That's verses 10 and 11. And then the second is what Christ is doing for us in glory, verses 11 and 12. Again, what Christ has done for us in the past tense on earth, verses 10 and 11, and what Christ is doing for us, present tense, from glory. So first, what Christ has done for us on earth. The story of what Jesus has done for us actually doesn't begin with his incarnation. It begins in eternity past with the nature and character of God. That's why the author of Hebrews begins verse 10 with this phrase, for it was fitting. It was fitting, and contextually, he is speaking about Christ's suffering on the cross, which is mentioned directly in the preceding verse. Verse nine, Jesus, crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of his death so that by the grace of God, He might taste death for everyone. The author of Hebrews here is saying that the death of Jesus on the cross, it was fitting. It was appropriate in light of the character of God. And that very notion is actually much more controversial than you might think. It's commonly objected by atheists who, in some sense, understand what we teach and believe, and it's very commonly objected by mainline progressive Christians that this idea that it's appropriate, that it's fitting for God to send his son to die on the cross for our sins is the least fitting, the least appropriate thing God could do. It's often called cosmic child abuse. To say that God would require the sacrifice of his son is to say that God, in their eyes, is not worthy of worship. The author of Hebrews says differently. He says it was fitting. F.F. Bruce, I think, helpfully notes here, there are many who are ready to tell us confidently what would and would not be worthy of God. But in fact, the only way to discover what is a worthy thing for God to do is to consider what God has actually done. The person who says, I could not have a high opinion of a God who would or would not do this or that, is not adding anything to our knowledge of God. He's only telling us something about himself, close quote. What is behind this assertion that it's not fitting, it's not appropriate for God to do such a thing, is a fundamental misunderstanding of God's holiness and the heinousness of our sin. God is, in the language of our larger catechism, infinite in being, glory, blessedness, and perfection. And you and I are not. We are sinners in thought, word, and deed. This is why we do not just read a confession of sin and supplication for grace in our gathered worship, but rather we confess our sins together. We own that as a congregation. Because if God is of purer eyes than to see evil, and he is, and if he desires to bring many sons to glory, which verse 10 says that he does, then there must be some way of cleansing those sons from their sin. This combination of my sin and God's holiness, but also God's desire to commune with sinners, makes the cross of Jesus Christ not only necessary, but fitting, appropriate. When you wonder, then, if God really desires you in his kingdom, if he would really send his Son to die for you, the author of Hebrews says, yes, he does, and yes, he did. Not only that, but that it was fitting, right, appropriate for him to have done so, because God is love. Particularly, God the Father has especially and eternally loved you since before the foundation of the world. And not God the Father alone, but also Jesus Christ. Paul would say, this life I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave himself for me. It is fitting then that Jesus would die on the cross to ransom the souls of those whom he loves. And the fitting nature of God's love is the context, it's the lens through which we must view the rest of this passage. It's the why behind the what Christ has done for us, if you will. The love of God is why Jesus would do the rest of what we're going to talk about tonight. So it's the lens through which we understand this what he has done for us on earth. The passage says, it was fitting that God should not leave mankind to perish in his estate of sin and misery, but that he would send a Redeemer, the Lord Jesus Christ, that only Redeemer of God's elect, who being the eternal Son of God, became man and so was and continues to be God and man, two distinct natures, one person. He came, is what our verse would call, the founder of their salvation. A founder here does not mean that he discovered something or he found it, but rather it's in the sense of the founder of an organization or of a group, the one who lays the foundation, whose vision and model are to be followed. This is why many commentators will substitute words like pioneer or trailblazer for the idea of founder in this verse. The Greek word is archagon, from which we get our word archetype. He is the pattern. It can mean one who has a preeminent position, which certainly Jesus does, but I would argue that's not the sense of the use here. It can also mean one who begins something that is the first in a series. I think that's definitely in view. And it can mean the one who begins or originates something. And again, all of these senses are true of the Lord Jesus, but particularly the last two, that he is the first in series and that he is the one who originates salvation, that's what the author has in view. Jesus is the first in a series in the sense that his resurrection is the first fruits of our resurrection. Because he was raised, we will be raised. This is Paul's reasoning. 1 Corinthians 15-20, also because he suffered. We will suffer. We may not suffer physically in the same ways that he did, though some may. This is why the apostles in the book of Acts had said, after they were flogged by the authorities, it says, they rejoiced. Why? I don't know about you, but, you know, I've been beaten up before and I did not rejoice over it. They rejoiced because they were counted worthy to suffer for the name. They were being conformed to the pattern of the Lord Jesus Christ. And again, you may not suffer physically in that same sense. It's unlikely right now that we will do so, but there is still suffering that we go through. There are lots of hard providences in this room. that wear on our hearts and our souls, and we suffer them. And in suffering them, we are being conformed to the pattern of the Lord Jesus Christ, who was the man of sorrows. But his life, death, and resurrection are not only the pattern for our life, they're also the source, the strength, the origin of our spiritual life. We derive our life from his. The Apostle Paul writes in Romans chapter eight and verse 11, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies. In this way then, we can say broadly and generally that the whole of Christ's incarnation, the whole of his life on this earth, from the moment that he was conceived in the womb of the Virgin Mary to the moment he ascended to the Father, that's what he did for you. All of it, all 33 years or however long it was, all of it for you, every second, both as your model and as your source of life. But the author does narrow his focus. Look again at verse 10. It was fitting that he should make the founder of their salvation perfect. Does that notion stand out to anybody as peculiar? How is Jesus supposed to be made perfect? Is he not already perfect? What is meant by making him perfect here? This doesn't mean that there was anything sinful about Jesus as to his human nature. There was nothing lacking in him. There was no want of perfection in a moral sense whatsoever. Okay, well, thanks, Jeff. You told me what it doesn't mean. What does it mean? What it means is that he was consecrated. He was set apart for the task. You might even say he was made qualified for the task of being your high priest in his humanity. The priesthood of Christ, it's a major theme that develops throughout all of the epistle to the Hebrews, and this passage is really where it begins. And perhaps the best short explanation for what we mean here by he was qualified to be our high priest is to contrast the office of the priest with that of the prophet. The prophet, his office, his role was to represent God to the people. His job, his office was to represent God to the people, not speaking his own words or his own opinions, but rather saying, thus saith the Lord. We've seen this as we've studied Nahum and Obadiah and Amos and Joel. We even saw it this past Lord's Day morning in the prophet Daniel, where he says to Nebuchadnezzar, the interpretation's not within me, but God will make known to you what the dream means. The prophet represents God to the people, speaking on God's behalf. And Jesus did this as well. He prays towards the end of his earthly ministry. Father, I have given them your word, John 17, 14. The office of a priest, on the other hand, This is why Jesus had to be made human. The office of a priest was to represent the people before God, both in terms of offering a sacrifice for sins, but also in terms of his intercessory prayer. It was to this special office that Christ, being the eternal Son of God, was consecrated for, was made perfect for in his humanity. He was made perfect in the verse that says, through suffering. He was made our perfect representative before the Father in his sufferings, not only on the cross, but through all of his life. It's what our shorter catechism would call the humiliation of Christ, which consists in his being born, and that in a low condition, made under the law, undergoing all the miseries of this life, the wrath of God, and the cursed death of the cross, and being buried and continuing under the power of death for a time. In his life, he humbled himself by subjecting himself to the law, which he perfectly fulfilled. and by conflicting with all the indignities of the world, by the temptations of Satan and all of the infirmities of the flesh. Let's dwell on that for just a moment. The second person of the Trinity, the very Word of God which created the world, and without Him was not anything made that was made. He did not just take on the appearance of humanity, he actually donned humanity. All of what it means to be human body and soul. The infinite took on finitude, took on finiteness, so that he might represent you to his Father in heaven. He went through all the despisings of the world, so that he might have firsthand solidarity with you and serve as your representative. He endured all the infirmities of the flesh, all the weaknesses that come with having a human body, all the infirmities that come with living in a fallen world. Jesus said, foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head. He who was rich beyond all measure for your sake became poor so that he might represent you. He experienced the depth of human sadness and grief at the tomb of his friend Lazarus. We read Jesus wept so that he might represent you. He endured ridicule from his mother and from his brothers who thought he was a crazy person. so that he might have solidarity with you. He endured all the temptations of Satan. That's why the author of Hebrews goes on to say in verses 17 and 18, he had to be made like his brothers in every respect so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God to make propitiation, that's the sin-atoning, wrath-absorbing sacrifice for the sins of his people. For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted. Because he himself suffered when being tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted. Hebrews 2.18. He goes on to say, for we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, and yet without sin. Hebrews 4.15, what a Savior indeed. But of course, it was on the cross of Calvary that he most perfectly was shown forth to be our high priest and our representative before the Father, taking on himself all of the wrath of God that was rightly aimed at your sins and mine. He donned all of it. Taking it. made perfect not because of his imperfections, but because of yours and mine. What wondrous love indeed. And this is why we must not abandon him for any reason. For how shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation? Dennis mentioned earlier that that verse on the front of your intercessor is a rhetorical question, so is that. You will not escape if you neglect such a great Savior. I assure you, you will not. But before moving on to what Jesus is doing for us now, let's just pull briefly from the text three benefits, three blessings that Christ procured for us by his earthly life, death, and resurrection. First of all, he secured our justification. Verse 9 says, He tasted death for all of us, for everyone. Because Jesus lived that perfect human life, His righteousness can be legally credited to you. And to the degree that He is morally pure and perfect, so are you before the Father in heaven. And because He died the sin-atoning death on the cross, all of your sins—past, present, and future— have all been fully paid for because Jesus is the perfect high priest. God, as judge, is able to pardon all of your sins. And I like to remind our young people, how many of your sins were future tense sins when Jesus was on the cross? Every last one of them. He pardons all of your sins, even those yet to come, even now, because they were all future to him then. only for the sake of the righteousness of Christ imputed to us and received by faith alone. And in Christ, we are given now a new legal status. That's our justification. But we're also given a new familial status, a new relational status. And this is alluded to throughout the passage. You see that it speaks of through Christ the Father bringing many sons to glory in verse 10, that we are called brothers. by the Lord in verse 11. And again, children given by God in verse 13. This language summarizes, or rather is summarized by our confession and catechisms with the word adoption, wherein we are received unto the number and have a right to all the privileges of the sons of God. Where because you are his adopted child, you are pitied, protected, and provided for. This is what Christ has secured for us. But we also see in verse 11, he has secured our sanctification. Look at verse 11 again. He says, for he who sanctifies, that's the Lord Jesus, and those who are sanctified all have one source. Our sanctification works in two ways. First of all, it's the act of God's free grace whereby we are renewed in the whole man after the image of God. In other words, it's not just that he pardoned your sins, though he did that, and gave you legal, legal, blanking on the word, forensic, forensic righteousness. He actually gave you a new nature too. He changed your existential reality of who you are. Ezekiel says, or the Lord rather, says through Ezekiel in Ezekiel 36, I will sprinkle clean water on you, and I will remove that heart of stone that was hard towards me, and I will give you a heart of flesh. He did that for you. And more than that, as our priest, he then nurtures and develops that new nature to maturity. By his grace, we are enabled more and more to die unto sin and to live unto righteousness. Paul writes in Ephesians 5, Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her that he might sanctify her. having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. I hope you are looking forward to the day when you, according to Christ's sanctifying work, will not only be counted as holy, but actually holy, because he's doing that. That's what he's doing right now. Notice that that passage in Ephesians and in our text in Hebrews, Christ is actively involved, personally committed to your sanctification now to make you more holy. It's not just something that Jesus prays for, though he does. Father, sanctify them in the truth, thy word is truth. It's also something that he does, and it's something, therefore, that the Father is certain to grant, and so let us pursue it. This is what Jesus is doing for us now in glory. He is sanctifying us. He is setting us apart to holiness and then he's working that holiness in us. Look again at verse 11. That is why he is not ashamed to call them brothers. He's not ashamed to call you his brother because he's still working on you. He's still developing you. He's still sanctifying you. And what a joy it is to know that you don't have to wait for a day when God will look on you with joy and gladness. He does it right now. My son is five, and that means he's at the stage where he wants to show me everything. He wants me to watch everything. whether he's playing with his action figures, or building a Lego set, or whatever it might be, he wants me to watch him. He wants me to see him work. Even though it's a work in progress, even though it's not yet finished, he wants to show me, why? Because he's proud of the work that he's doing, and he's eager to share it. And that same thing is true of you. The Lord Jesus Imperfect though you are right now, in much need of work though you are right now, He isn't finished with you yet. And He's not ashamed to own you before His Father in heaven. He's proud of you and the work that He's doing in you. And there's a myriad of ways that He does this great sanctifying work But for the sake of time, which is rapidly eclipsing, the college students were wondering earlier if we were going to finish early. They've forgotten high school already. For the sake of time, though, we're going to focus on just the two that the author of Hebrews highlights in our passage in verse 12. Verse 12 is a citation of the 22nd Psalm, which, of course, famous for the fact that Jesus quotes the opening verse on the cross, "'My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?' And Psalm 22 has actually quite obviously been on the author to Hebrews' mind all the way through, because he's rehearsing all the events of what Christ would do, being made perfect through suffering, bringing many sons to glory, all of that's there. And we tend to only think of the cross when we think of Psalm 22, There are few more prophetic passages about the cross than Psalm 22, and that's good and right, but there's a whole second half to it. And the turning point of that psalm is what the author of Hebrews quotes here. He says that this is Jesus speaking. And he says, I, that's Jesus, will tell of your name, God the Father, to my brothers, that's me and you, that's the assembled church. When does that happen? When does Jesus himself tell you about God and his glory? It happens, in a sense, every time you read your Bible, but it happens most potently in preaching. That's the primary means by which Christ sanctifies his people. We already saw that in the Ephesians 5 text. He sanctifies them by washing with the water of the Word. The Word of God is what Paul would tell Timothy in that famous passage of 2 Timothy 3. The Word of God is profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work. Or we could say, if we wanted to shorten that, the word of God is profitable for your sanctification. How does he use it? Well, the very next verse, Paul says, therefore, I charge you, Timothy, in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, preach the word. The point that the author of Hebrews is making to his original audience is that if they abandon the church And they retreat back to the temple or to the synagogue because of persecution, and they think it will be easier there. They will no longer be under the ministry of God's Word. They'll still have the Scriptures. Jews have the Old Testament, and that is the Word of God. But they will not be told by Christ through his ministers. And I realize that that is a big claim. And I assure you, there is nothing more uncomfortable than for a young preacher to tell a congregation that preaching of the preacher is God speaking. And yet it is the claim of our Reformed heritage. All of our confessions and catechisms make a distinction between the Word of God written and the Word of God preached. The second Helvetic confession, chapter one, article four, plainly says the preaching of the Word of God is the Word of God. Wherefore, when this word of God is now preached in the church by preachers lawfully called, we believe that the very word of God is preached and received by the faithful. But more importantly than being the claim of our confessionally reformed heritage, it's the teaching of scripture. It's the claim of the author of Hebrews in chapter 12. He writes, see that you do not refuse him who is speaking. For if they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, in the context he's talking about Moses, much less will we escape if we reject him who warns from heaven. Hebrews 12, 25. Paul writes in Ephesians chapter two and verse 17 of a time when Jesus went and preached peace to the saints at Ephesus. We have no record of Jesus ever going to Ephesus. But Paul did. And through him, Jesus Christ preached peace to those who were far off. But the thing that Paul also says is, to the Thessalonians, he gives thanks to God that they did not receive his preaching as the word of men, but as it really is, the word of God. 1 Thessalonians 2.13. The temptation is then to say that, well, Paul's an apostle. So of course, when he says it, That's God speaking through him, but Paul actually doesn't give us that option. Because he says, of the Thessalonian Christians, in 1 Thessalonians 1.8, that the word of the Lord has sounded forth from them. My New Testament professor at RTS Charlotte, Bob Carra, writes, not everything that the preacher says, or every application that the reader may draw, is properly derivative of the written word of God, and by implication, therefore, is not God speaking. It's only God speaking insofar as it's the proper understanding, the proper implications of it. But God has decided that one primary way that he conveys his grace to us is through preachers who have been authorized by the church. Our high esteem of the preached word of God and not the preacher himself should motivate us to listen for God's message as we listen to a sermon. It is a wonderful thought that although God uses All things in his providential care of his church, he uses the preaching of the word of God in a special way. But preaching is not the only way that Christ is present with his people, ministering to them, sanctifying them in worship. Look again at verse 12 in the second part. In the midst of the congregation, I will sing your praise. Again, note that Jesus is speaking in the present tense. He says, now and today, in the midst of the congregation, that's you and I gathered in the sanctuary on the Lord's Day, I, the resurrected Christ, will sing your, God the Father's, praise. Again, Dr. Karra writes, the author of Hebrews is also showing that Christ is a leader in that he leads the church in praising and singing hymns to God the Father. Intriguingly, as this epistle was, is read in a worship service, the congregation is being reminded that Christ is spiritually in her midst and leading her in worship. Hebrews 13, 15 says, through him, that is through Christ then, let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God. That is the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name. We don't just say, Father, we've gathered today in the name of Jesus because that's the theologically correct thing to say. No, we've actually gathered in the person of Christ to offer worship to God the Father. What this means then, among other things, is that in congregational singing, we are not only singing about God, though we are, We're not merely singing to God, we also are doing that. In a very real way, we are singing with God. Your singing matters because it's your duty, but it's also your delight. And what more delightful thought is there than that of singing hymns of praise with the very one who has saved your soul? singing with Jesus about Jesus. It's hard to wrap the mind around, and yet it's very plainly what the text is saying. Thomas Schreiner writes, Jesus does not praise God alone. He does it in the assembly, in the eschatological congregation of God, which from one perspective is already assembled around the exalted Christ, but is still very much a part of this world. He praises God with his brothers and sisters whom he has ransomed from Satan's power. How could these Hebrew Christians consider for a moment leaving a savior like this? How could you and I consider for a moment neglecting so great a salvation? I tend to doubt that anybody in this room will be tempted to abandon New Testament church and worship for the sake of Jewish synagogue worship, though I suppose it could happen. But we are nonetheless tempted in these same ways to neglect our salvation, to neglect the Lord Jesus, to abandon him when we skip corporate worship, Sunday morning, Sunday evening, we neglect our time with him because he's among us then and there. And we say, well, I've got an early day tomorrow. I've got a lot of meetings Monday morning. I've got a sports game for my kids that came up. We really believe what Hebrews 2, 10 to 12 says, where would you rather be? What's more important to do than to hear from your resurrected Christ himself, instructing you, training you in the ways of righteousness? We miss out on the inestimable privilege to sing about God, to God, and with God. We must not neglect so great a salvation. It is a duty, and we must not regard it as anything less, though, than also a delight. So what has Jesus done for you lately? He died on the cross for your sins. He was raised for your justification. And in so doing, he secured your justification, your adoption, your sanctification. He secured for you the right of access into the throne room of grace, into the presence of God himself. And he's actually with you when you enter in. He is with you as you worship, sanctifying you through the preaching and the praise of his name. Amen. Let's pray. God in heaven, we have considered deep truths that are admittedly difficult to wrap our minds around from your Word tonight. But I do pray that you would work in us an affection for worship, that you would work in us an appreciation for not only what you have done for us in Christ, And not only the hope of the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, but also the present realities that the powers of the age to come do break through and minister to us. Lord, help us to count that as a great privilege, our chief duty, and our chief delight. We pray in Jesus' name, amen.