Now, when we consider these verses before us, we have the benefit of the early church fathers. We have the benefit of the New Testament authors who have interpreted Proverbs 8 verses 22 through 31 as a poetic metaphor referencing Jesus' eternal nature and his pre-existence before his incarnation. about which we spoke briefly this morning in the adult class. So I want to briefly have us. survey some New Testament passages to keep those more clear passages in our minds as we go to this one that in some ways is more challenging. First, if you would look at the screen behind me, John chapter one, we looked at this this morning. In the beginning was the word and the word was with God and the word was God. He was in the beginning with God. Verse three, all things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made. And then down in the same chapter, verses 14 and following, and the word became flesh and dwelt among us. And we have seen his glory, glory as of the only son from the father, full of grace and truth. John bore witness about him and cried out, this was he of whom I said, he who comes before me, ranks before me, because he was before me. For from his fullness we have all received grace upon grace. For the law was given through Moses. Grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. Verse 18, no one has ever seen God. The only God who is at the Father's side has made him known. And then we'll move on to chapter 17 of John's gospel. Again, our Lord's high priestly prayer. where Jesus prays, and now Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed. And then verse 24, Father, I desire that they also whom you have given me may be with me where I am to see my glory that you have given me because you love me before the foundation of the world. And then on to Paul's epistle, 1 Corinthians chapter one, For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. And then down to verse 30, and because of him, in other words the father, you are in Christ Jesus who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption. And then over to Paul's epistle to the Colossians, For by him all things were created in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities, all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things and in him all things hold together. And then over into the next chapter, verse two or verse three, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. And so I hope you can see the connection. that these New Testament writers that we've just read through and surveyed, they seem to have the pulling on this illusion that we see here in Proverbs chapter 8. So it describes the glorious the glorious being of our Lord Jesus Christ before his incarnation, emphasizing his fellowship and his delight with God the Father. And so this state is illustrated by metaphors such as being brought up with him and rejoicing always before him. and hear woman wisdom in chapter eight. And this passage is poetic language for the wisdom which resides in the being of God himself. And so we're not to think of woman wisdom here as some actual being such as an angel that was present with God prior to creation. No, interpreters of this passage view this as Christ himself speaking in a poetic allusion to himself, referring to himself mysteriously in time past and yet now more clearly revealed to us at Christ's coming. Well, with that introduction, we'll go ahead and we'll make this go away. Good. And so we have a window in verse 30 through which we can we can peer into the experience the interactions between the Father and the Son who at the who is the fountain of the fullness of the grace of divine wisdom prior to taking on our human nature. And so we're not to exclude the fellowship of the Spirit here because the Spirit is not explicitly mentioned. But these verses are going to focus on the delight which the Father and the Son had in one another through all eternity. And secondly, also in verse 31, for the salvation of men. And yet this second work was not at this point really clearly revealed, but is anticipated by verse 31. And so this evening we're going to focus primarily on this first part. We're going to follow an outline provided by John Flavel in volume one of his works. So if you'd refer to your outline here, Roman numeral one, a primeval mutual delight, a primeval mutual delight. That word primeval means ancient or prehistoric. And so as we look at this verse, then I was beside him like a master workman. I was daily his delight, rejoicing before him always. And so consider first with me, A, under Roman numeral one, Christ's glorious condition. And so we're drawn to verses in the Old Testament, such as Isaiah 42, verse one, where we read, Behold, my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, and whom my soul delights, God says. I have put my spirit upon him. He will bring forth justice to the nations. Or if we turn over to the New Testament and Mark chapter one, at Christ's baptism, you know that a voice came from heaven where God himself says, you are my beloved son. With you, I am well pleased. And so that delight that the father had all through eternity is here expressed at the beginning of our Lord's ministry there. Paul is able to say in 2 Corinthians 8 verse 9, for you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ that though he was rich, so in that pre-incarnate state there was a richness that was beyond measure of deity there. But he goes on to say, yet for your sake he became poor so that you by his poverty might become rich. And we'll see what that richness entails as we open up this topic. In Philippians 2 verse 6, Paul says, who, referring to Christ, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, a thing to cling to. In the upper room discourse, Jesus says, all that the Father has is mine. In other words, there is nothing that the Father held back. from his own beloved son. Therefore I said that he, the spirit, will take what is mine and declare that to you. Letter B under the same heading. Not only is that, but we see in this passage an illustrated fellowship, an illustrated fellowship between the father and the son. The writer of Hebrews uses the term here of a master architect. a craftsman in the creation of the world. And so Christ is pictured here as a delightful child playing before his father, rejoicing before his father, delighting, signifying a laughter, a playful rejoicing as one would delight to see their son or daughter opening up a new gift such as a box of Legos and taking delight in both the gift and the father who provides the gift. And so you can see a picture of mutual delight that the father had as well as the son in one another's company. I recall one day sitting with my son Dan on the floor of our family room one day playing Legos together and at one point Dan just burst out, this is the best day of my life. You can imagine my surprise and my delight. And this perhaps in some tiny way pictures that mutual delight that the father and the son had with one another. Consider as well not only this illustrated fellowship, but a perpetual delight. Perpetual means, of course, forever, right? forever in eternity past to eternity future, a perpetual delight. Note that our text here says, I was daily his delight rejoicing always before him. Bridges comments, but the wonder of wonders yet remains that he who was the father's infinite delight and infinitely delighting in him. through eternity past, uninterrupted through eons upon eons. We'll look earlier in the passage, ages ago, the text says, through eternity past, uninterrupted, there. Flavel goes on to comment, They knew uninterrupted, excuse me, they knew not a moment's interruption or diminution. And thus did these great and glorious persons mutually let forth their fullest pleasure and delight, each into the heart of the other. They lay as it were embosomed one in another, entertaining themselves with delights and pleasures inexpressible and inconceivable. And so Flabel can summarize all of this saying that the condition and state of Jesus Christ before his incarnation was a state of the highest and most unspeakable delight and pleasure in the enjoyment of his father. Hard for us to grasp and comprehend how they had delighted in one another through all eternity. And so by way of comparison, Roman numeral two I want to contrast what we've seen so far with Christ's abased condition. Contrast with Christ's abased condition. And so to view the state of Christ's existence prior to taking upon himself our nature, we can also view this negatively. In other words, what it was not. When we compare Christ's pre-existent state there, delighting in the Father's presence and being delighted upon by him. we can see first of all, A, that it was free of abasement and sorrow, free of abasement and sorrow. Our Lord had not taken upon himself any degrees of humiliation and sorrow that were associated with his condition as a creature. He never tired. You would see that even that he's falling asleep in the back of the boat right on the Sea of Galilee. He never knew weakness or ill health. He never knew the experience of seeing the death of a loved one or suffered from an accident as we would. and later as you know he made himself of no reputation and emptied himself of his glory. He laid aside the unspeakable glory of his regal apparel and took upon himself the likeness of sinful flesh with all of its weakness and its sorrows. And so we can see that this state that Christ dwelt in in the bosom of the Father prior to his incarnation was one that was free of abasement and sorrow. But not only that, He was not under the law, letter B, he was not under the law. Now we rarely consider this, I'm sure, but God has always been above his law in the sense that the law could never somehow call God into account as a higher authority than himself. No, our Lord was not yet under the law in the sense that we read of that in Galatians 4 and verse 4 where it says, And so even at this our Lord Jesus submitted himself to, placed himself under the authority of the law of God in a way that was not true prior to that point. And so note the contrast of his previously exalted position, and then his willing submission as the servant of Jehovah. Consider as well, not only was he not under the law, but see, he was free from sorrows and griefs. We'll take this a step further. Jesus was unacquainted with griefs. There was never a sorrow, never a grief, which later would daily describe his life in the flesh, where we read that he was a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief that were daily his intimate companions. Instead, here in Proverbs 8, never experienced reproach and shame. but only glory and honor, waited upon and worshiped by all of heaven. Flabel goes on to say that his father never looked upon him without smiles and love, of delight and joy, though afterward he would become a reproach of men and despised by the people, as we read in Psalm 22. His holy heart was never offended by an impure suggestion or temptation of Satan, while in the comfort of the Father's peace and love. He never knew what it was to be assaulted, to be besieged by unclean spirits, or led into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. never sensible of pains and tortures in soul or body. And though later he experienced both griefs and sweat under them, as we read in Isaiah 53. Until Jesus Christ left the bosom of the Father there was never a moment of separation or hiding from each other. but always in the closest of communion. There was never a cloud on the Father's face for all eternity up until that point that we read about in Matthew 27 where Jesus would cry out, my God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Where the Father turned his face away from him for our sakes when he had been made sin. Christ had never before experienced the Father's wrath, that bitter cup of death. He was above all things until he willingly subjected himself to them, and that for our sakes. And so in this passage, the text is going to emphasize that Christ was not subject to the law, to grief, to poverty, to reproach, to temptation, to pain, to the withdrawal of his Father's presence. of his holy wrath or death in his pre-incarnate state. So we can see by contrast negatively that which our Lord Jesus never experienced while in his pre-incarnate state. But let's move on then to Roman numeral three. Let's positively consider that. How would we describe Christ's pre-incarnate state? Well, Mr. Flavel, Pastor Flavel helps us in a number of different ways. First of all, A, matchless happiness. Matchless happiness, unknown to our whole race. Again, John chapter one, in the beginning was the word, and the word was with God, and the word was God. And so God the Father and God the Son delighted in and enjoyed each other as the fountain, as the source of all delights. When we think of David's prayer in Psalm 16, where he says, you have made known to me the path of life. In your presence there is fullness of joy. At your right hand there are pleasures forevermore. David did not experience this himself, but yet he has a window in to what it's like to dwell in God's presence. He could only speak of only his limited experience there, and yet Christ knew the fullness of joy, being in the presence of the Father. at his right hand were pleasures forevermore. And so picture Christ completely wrapped up in the embrace of the Father, who is the fountain of love, delighting in each other so immediately, so completely and eternally. This is a happiness far beyond our experience. It's matchless in its abundance, in its satisfaction to the full, running out and brimming over, farther than we can comprehend. And so there is a matchless happiness, a joy, that was there for all eternity. Secondly, under this heading, an intimate union, an intimate union between the father and the son. The closer the union, the sweeter the communion. Now, it is said that a dog is man's best friend. That's true in many ways. Yes, my dog, Odie, loves me unconditionally, and I'm sure your dog loves you too, unconditionally. And yet, we are very different from each other, aren't we? My dog and I. And yet, when we think of descriptions of human love and intimacy in the Bible, we think of Jonathan and David, where it says that Jonathan made a covenant with David in 1 Samuel 18, three, because he loved him as his own soul. There was such a deep affinity for each other. The closer the union, the sweeter the communion. We can only experience the closest intimacy of human relationships in this life, such as in marriage. And this was underscored for us, of course, in this morning's message. We read in Ephesians 5, 28, in the same way husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. And so, the oneness in marriage has the idea of leaving the parents, of cleaving and weaving of these two lives into one. And yet, even this falls far, far short of that natural and essential union with the Godhead, within the Godhead. Jesus could say in John 10 verse 30, I and the Father are one. I and the Father are one, and yet with the Father and Son there is a unity of being that even in marriage we don't see. And so this is unknown in human relationships, but necessarily be such a blessed union between these two. And so, it is a union that we see. But also, because of this union, there's also, see, an unparalleled purity. An unparalleled purity. The best of human relationships could never attain to this in this world. It is said that when two people marry each other, they marry each other's sins, don't they? The sobering fact. Even in the best of marriages and friendships, there is eventually going to be something that is sickening, that is distasteful because of this. And however, that was never true of the father and the son. The purer any delight is, the more excellent. And so these persons, the Father and the Son, the Spirit as well, are pure in their beams of light, of holiness, and their delight in each other is holy and glorious as they are, as glorious as their persons are. And so the Holy, Holy, Holy Father embraced the thrice Holy Son. is the most holy delight, is in a most holy delight and love. So we can see it's an unparalleled purity. We can see further under D, it is also the essence of pure delight. The essence of pure delight. Think about the constancy of this delight between the father and the son. Verse 23, ages ago, daily his delight rejoicing always before him. Think of the fullness of this delight. In the Hebrew, it's actually in the plural, I was delights. And so all delights, delight itself, as Jesus was later the man of sorrows. He was characterized as the man of sorrows. Here, he is the person of all delights. And so from the fullness of delights, even constituted and made up of pleasure and delights. And so this is partly why Jesus could say in that upper room discourse, John 14, 28, you heard me say to you, I am going away. and I will come to you. If you loved me, you would have rejoiced because I'm going to the Father, the best of all possible places. And the Father himself is greater than I. If the disciples really understood what it meant for Jesus to return to the Father's immediate presence, having accomplished his mission, we would appreciate his delight. in returning there. And of course that's only part of that joy they'd experience. The other added benefit and joy was in bringing many sons to glory along with him. And so we can see this pure delight or delights of the father and the son. Also, this love that they have for each other, part A, surpasses human loves. It surpasses human loves. We could turn back to Genesis 44 and we could see that Jacob's life was bound up in the life of Benjamin, his youngest son. His love for him was so great. We've already alluded to Jonathan's delight in David. If we were to turn back to Deuteronomy 13, 6, it alludes to that intimate relationships also hold hidden dangers and temptations as well. And so for the best of us, our relationships are tainted with sin. Additionally, at best, our ability to express that love is limited by our lifespan, isn't it? which is like the withering grass. Even if that were not the case, we are still finite beings. We can only love in a finite manner. And yet none of these limitations are between the Father and the Son. They are unlimited in their capacity to love. Their love matches their infinite perfection and their divine being. It is never mixed as ours is, but perfectly and purely love. And so consider further that this love in the Godhead surpasses even the love that God has for his creatures. Now we read in Zephaniah 3.17, Pastor Mitch read this last week. The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save, who will rejoice over you with gladness. He will quiet you by his love. He will exalt over you with loud singing. But it's also true that there is a great difference between this love and the love that the father has for Christ, his only begotten. He loves us because of our union with Christ. For Christ's sake, he loves us. We read in Ephesians chapter one, verse six, that we are made, that we are accepted in the beloved and praise God for that. But that love that we enjoy and we will enjoy far more in heaven as well is by virtue of the union that we have with Jesus Christ. And so surely the bride of Christ loves his beloved, her beloved I should say, but in reality our love for Christ is variable, isn't it? It's up and down from one day to the next. There's an ebbing and flowing of our love for our Savior. but the love within the Trinity is constant and it is in the highest and most matchless delight. And so we've explored here some of the positive aspects of Christ's pre-incarnate state, focusing on the matchless happiness, the intimacy, the purity, the constancy, and the fullness of that delight that was shared between the Father and the Son. And so this delight is described as surpassing any delight found between creatures or even between God and creatures. Well, what are some of the abiding lessons for each of us this evening? First, and I'm using this word glory as a verb, okay? Glory, glory in the Father's gift. Glory in the Father's gift. What an astonishing act of love was this for the Father to give the delight the darling of his soul, out of his very embrace to the poor wretches that we are. All expressions of such grace are insufficient. And you know the verse, John 16, for God so loved loved in this manner, loved to this extent. This is how far he was willing to sacrifice even the son himself to part with the Father's presence, his glory, his love upon himself to take upon himself our nature. in order for our rescue from sin and from condemnation. And so we must excuse the minds of tongues, the minds and tongues of angels who fail to comprehend even this love, this love of grace. Flavel goes on and he asks the question, which of us would deliver a child, a child of our delights, an only child to death for the greatest inheritance in the world? What tender parent would endure that parting pull with such a child? And you can see this pictured in Genesis 21 when Hagar separated herself from Ishmael so that she would not see her beloved child die. And she far from the best of mothers and he far from the best of sons and yet she could not bear to lose her own son. What an outcry of David to find the news of Absalom who had been killed, wishing that he had died instead of his son. What a vacuum had been made in the hearts of some parents, having lost their children through tragedy or disease. All of these fall far short of the parting which the father had for his dear son. And to subject him to that cursed death for sinners, for the worst of sinners. Oh, how admirable is the love of God on our behalf. So we're to glory in the Father's gift. Secondly, we're to glory also in the Son's humiliation because that was done for our part, to glory in the Son's humiliation. Adore and forever be astonished at the love of Jesus Christ for poor sinners. Wonder forever how Jesus would consent to leave the embrace of his Father and the inexpressible delights that he knew there for poor worms that we are. You turn to a well-known passage of Romans 5 beginning at verse 6. For while we were still weak at the right time, Christ died for the ungodly. For one would scarcely die for a righteous person, though perhaps for a good person would dare even to die. But God shows his love for us that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Would you be willing to leave the comfort of your home on a dangerously stormy night, such as they experienced down in Tennessee this past week? For a neighbor who continually hated and abused you? Or for that soul of yours to leave your body to sacrifice that life of yours for another who despised you? Who hated everything that you stood for and held dear? Yeah, I wouldn't either. Or have you ever in your life experienced the Spirit of God drawing near to you, ravishing your very soul? Would you give that up for all the good that is in this present world? I surely hope not. And then perhaps somehow you can measure in some small way the love the Son has for us. As Jesus prayed in John 17, for the glory that you have given me, I have given to them. that they may be one, even as we are one, Jesus would have us know the love that he experienced with the Father. That was his prayer in John 17, 22. And so we learn that a believing commitment to Jesus Christ is the true way to spiritual performance in heaven. Do you long to be in the heart and favor and delight of God? And so if you do, then you must trust in and commit yourself to Jesus Christ. And you will know even this delight this evening. What old Israel said of the children of his beloved Joseph, he said, your children are my children. Well, God can say that to Christ, his son, if you belong to Jesus Christ, your children, dear son, are my children. You see, among men, all things are carried about by personal relationship, aren't they? Persons rise in this world as they are befriended. Relationship goes before favor, and so it is in heaven. Persons are preferred according to their interest in the beloved, and that we read about in Ephesians 1, 9. Christ is clearly the favorite in heaven. His image upon your soul. His name in your prayers, that is what is going to make you acceptable to God in heaven. Spiritual advancement in heaven is achieved through this faith connection with Jesus Christ. And so if you desire to be close to God and experience His favor, His delight, you must seek a relationship with His Son, His beloved Jesus Christ. God views the followers of his Christ as his own adopted children, as we see in Ephesians 1-9, just as Israel considered the children of his beloved son Joseph as his own children from Genesis chapter 48. And so our text here in Hebrews 8 and verse 30, calls for believers to forsake all for Christ, to trust in our prayers to him, to find comfort in death, knowing that they are going to God's embrace. What Christ experienced in the, what he experiences in the Father's presence is also going to be ours as well, and that for all eternity. It also urges sinners to embrace Christ and warns them of the severe consequences of rejecting him. Now as we go to the Lord's table this night, what does the pre-incarnate Christ and the love that he and the Father both enjoyed, what does that have to do with what we're about to do this evening? If you would turn please with me to Colossians chapter one, and I'll help you to make the connection here as Paul does in Colossians chapter one. You'll find that on page 1168 in the church Bible in the pew. Colossians chapter one beginning at verse 15. While you're turning, I'll just remind you that at Colossae, they were dealing with a heresy that there needed to be a relationship that you would have to be really spiritual. You needed to have a relationship with these heavenly beings that were through the cosmos, throughout the cosmos, and to honor and venerate them. Paul says, you need Christ. You need to know Christ. He begins at 15 in our passage. He is the image of the invisible God. The firstborn of all creation, that place of first honor, in other words. And first in the sense that he is the eternally begotten son of the father. Verse 16, by him all things were created in heaven and on earth. We see that in our passage in Proverbs 8. Visible and invisible. What are these thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities? Christ created all of those. All things were created through him and for him. So if you have these angels that you're talking about, Christ himself, he's the one who created them. So don't worry about them. Focus on Christ, 17. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. Not only is he the God of creation, he is the God of providence, who upholds all things by the word of his power, it says in Hebrews chapter one. He is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, the firstborn of the new creation, the first place. And that in everything he might be preeminent. For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell. But notice as Paul goes further in this, not only is Jesus Christ before God, was with God in creation, is the agent of creation, of that which is visible and invisible, Let's go on in verse 20. whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross. And that's what we celebrate this evening, isn't it? And you who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he is now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him. if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister." And so notice the repetition in this passage of the word reconciled. That's what you and I are this evening if you are trusting in Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ became the God-man to suffer for and make peace by the blood of his cross. We were alienated once. We were enemies of God. But now all who trust in Jesus Christ have this unspeakable privilege of being accepted by God as an adopted child and that forever experiencing this ineffable delight of God's delight and embrace. And we owe this to Jesus Christ. Can you glory in the gift of the Father? Can you glory in the sacrifice of the Son? And this is why we celebrate this supper this evening. And so finally, as in verse 23, for us, this is a means of grace, as we read in verse 23, to continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from this hope of the gospel, which you have heard. This supper is a means to that great and good end. to keep this certain hope before our mind's eye and our hearts as we celebrate it. May God the Spirit bless this means to us this evening. Glory in the Father's gift. Glory in the Son's humiliation and exaltation now in heaven as he continues as our great prophet, our great high priest, and our reigning king. May he get glory through us. and in his church forevermore. Let's pray. Father, this passage blows all the stops. of our ability to comprehend. We pray, Spirit of God, that you would help us, as Paul prays in Ephesians 3, that we would be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the height and depth and width and breadth of the love of God in Christ. We pray this in his