1. Mission Accomplished - Pr. Stephen Bohr - The 24 Elders

you you welcome let's bow our heads for prayer to ask for the Lord's guidance our loving father what a privilege it is to call you our Father we ask that as we open your Holy Word today as we begin this series on the identity of the 24 elders that your Holy Spirit will be with us to instruct us help us to understand this very complex subject and how it applies to our own personal walk with Jesus we thank you for your presence and for hearing our prayer for we ask it in Jesus name Amen the title of our study today is mission accomplished and I'd like to begin our study by going to John chapter 1 and verses 1 2 3 John chapter 1 verses 1 2 3 these verses are so well known that probably most of you could repeat them from memory there's one particular point that I want to underline in these three verses there the Beloved Disciple wrote this in the beginning was the word and the Word was with God and the Word was God he was in the beginning with God and now comes the point that I want to underline all things were made through him and without him nothing was made that was made this text tells us that Jesus was the creator of everything in other words Jesus is responsible for our existence now we need to understand that Jesus is not responsible for our sin but Jesus is responsible for our existence because we did not ask to exist he was the one who created us and he is responsible over the fact that we exist now you might be saying well that's kind of unjust I'm born into this world I did not choose to be born into this world and and so that's not fair well it wouldn't be fair unless Jesus had given us a chance to scape the sin as it exists in this world in other words if Jesus had created us and simply said well you fell into sin there's nothing I can do for you we would have problems with that because we didn't choose to fall into that condition but as long as Jesus has given us a way of escape he is not responsible for us being lost in other words we don't choose to come into this world but we can choose how we will go out of this world he has given us a way of escape and so this text tells us that Jesus created everyone now when I say this there's always people who say well you know I wasn't created by Jesus I was born from my mother and so I say okay you were born from your mother and who was your mother born from well she was born from her mother and who was her mother born from well she was born from her mother now if you go all the way back to the beginning where does the sequence ends it ends with Adam and Eve when Jesus created Adam and Eve he created every single human being that descended from them in other words Jesus is responsible for our existence Jesus created everyone on planet Earth now when Jesus created this world he created Adam and Eve any placed Adam as the king over this realm or over this territory I'd like to invite you to turn in your Bibles with me to Psalm 8 verses 3 to 5 Psalm 8 verses 3 to 5 we're going to talk about the original individual that God's established on this earth to rule over the earth it says in Psalm 8 verse 3 when I consider your heavens the work of your fingers the moon and the stars which you have ordained what is man that you are mindful of him and the son of man that you visit him you have made him speaking about the creation of Adam you have made him a little lower than the angels and you have what crowned him now who is it that uses crowns Kings used crowns so Adam was created to be a what a king his position was the position of king or ruler and so it says for you have made him a little lower than the Angels you have crowned him with glory and honor you have made him to have dominion over the works of your hands now every King has a realm over which he rules right and so Adam was created to be king he must have had a territory over which he should rule or a realm over which he should rule what was that realm verse six once again you have made him to have dominion over the works of your hands you have put all things under his feet that expression under his feet means that you have placed him as a ruler now what was under his feet verse seven all sheep and oxen even the beasts of the field the birds of the air and the fish of the sea that pass through the paths of the sea now when the Bible uses the expression beasts of the field birds of the air and fish of the waters it says it means everything connected with planet Earth sky earth and waters in other words Adam was created to occupy the position of King and his realm or his territory over which he ruled was planet Earth but in order for Adam to continue ruling over planet Earth he had to render perfect obedience to God's holy law in other words he could not deviate from God's law in the minutest detail you see the law of God requires absolute sin this perfection the law says offer me sinless perfection and you will live forever unfortunately the Bible tells us that Adam and Eve chose to sin and when they sinned another individual took over the position of Adam as king and took over the territory over which he ruled notice Luke chapter 4 and verses five through seven Luke chapter 4 and verses 5 through 7 this is speaking about the moment when the devil took Jesus up into a high mountain to tempt him and you'll notice what the devil says to Christ Luke 4 verses 5 through 7 then the devil taking him up on a high mountain showed him all of the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time did you notice that it that the devil is showing him the realm showing him the kingdoms of the world now notice when he continues saying he shows him all of the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time and verse 6 states and the devil said to him all this authority I will give you and their glory what does a full authority imply that's talking about the fact that the devil is saying I am the ruler I'm the one who governs over the kingdoms of the world so do you notice the two aspects Adam was created to be king and the realm of his Dominion was the planet Earth in Luke chapter 4 the devil is saying look I have the kingdoms of the world that's the realm and he says and I have the authority over those kingdoms in other words I rule as king over those kingdoms and then the devil says all this authority I will give you and their glory for this has been delivered to me and I give it to whomever I wish who gave the position of king and the territory into the hands of his enemy it was Adam and so the devil is saying the kingdom and the realm of Dominion has been given into my hands I am now the king and this is my realm of Dominion now the Bible tells us that everyone who descended from Adam is also a sinner in other words there's no one on planet earth that can offer the law the sinless perfection that the law requires and so because the Bible says that all have sinned and come short of the glory of God all of us are slaves and all of us have lost our territory our position of Dominion so the question is how could man recover the lost throne or the Dominion and recover the lost territory over which atom was placed to rule originally the answer to this question is found in the laws of redemption in the Old Testament I'd like to invite you to turn in your Bibles to Leviticus chapter 25 and verse 25 and then we will also read verses 47 to 49 in Israel every Israelite was given a plot of land over which they were sovereign rulers but what would happen if an individual sold that plot of land could that plot of land or that territor be recovered in some way and what if an individual sold himself from being lord over his Dominion he sold himself into slavery could he be delivered from his position of slavery and once again be placed as ruler over his domain the answer is yes but there was a specific prescription that needed to take place Leviticus 25 and verse 25 tells us what would happen if an individual sold his possession that is his territory it says if one of your brethren becomes poor and it sold some of his possession and if his redeeming relative the word redeeming there means to buy back by paying a price that's what the Hebrew word means and so if his redeeming relative comes to redeem it then he may redeem what his brother sold who was supposed to be the redeemer it was supposed to be a relative or a what or a brother according to this so could a brother or a relative pay the price to buy back the possession that had been sold absolutely now what would happen if an individual sold himself into servanthood or into slavery could he once again be emancipated so that he could occupy his position as ruler over his territory the answer is yes go with me to Leviticus 25 and verses 47 to 49 now if a sojourner or stranger close to you becomes rich and one of your brethren who dwells by him becomes poor and sells himself to the stranger or sojourner close to you or to a member of the strangers family after he is sold see he sold himself into servanthood it says after he is sold he may be what redeemed that word go l in the old testament means to buy something back by paying the price that is required to buy it back so verse 48 says after he is sold he may be redeemed again who could redeem him one of his brothers may redeem him or his uncle or his uncle's son may redeem him or anyone who is near of kin to him in his family may redeem him or if he is able he may redeem himself of course he couldn't redeem himself because he had sold himself into slavery that's a hypothetical statement but it's interesting to notice that if an individual sold himself the only way in which he could recover his lordship so to speak was if a next of kin a close relative would pay the price to buy back his freedom or to buy back the territory which he had sold the problem is with regards to the redemption of the position that Adam lost there was no one in the human race that could recover the throne that Adam lost because we all became servants because we all sold ourselves to sin there is no one within the human race that could recover the lost possession the lost territory because all of us sold our patrimony by being sinners you see the passo Paul tells us in Romans three and verse 10 there is none none righteous no not one and in verse 23 he says all have sinned and come short of the glory of God so the human race was in a very tough predicament because there was no one within humanity who could redeem what had been lost there was no next of kin that could pay the price to buy back the position of sovereignty and to buy back the territory that had been sold now this is the reason why Jesus Christ came to this earth let me ask you was Jesus our next of kin before he became incarnate was Jesus a member of our family because before his incarnation no he wasn't a member of our family whose family did he belong to he belonged to the family of the Godhead right the Father the Son and the Holy Spirit he was a member of a different family so could Jesus apply the laws of redemption when he was a member of a different family and he was not our next of kin absolutely not what needed to happen in order for Jesus to be able to fulfill the laws of redemption he had to become our brother or he had to become our next of kin are you understanding me and so Jesus gathered all of the angelic hosts all of the heavenly beings together and he said folks I am going to leave for planet Earth and I am going to face Goliath in place of all of those slaves down there who have lost their patrimony I am going to fight with the enemy down there but in order to do it I have to become one of them I have to join their family and so we're told in John chapter 1 and verse 14 and the word became flesh and dwelt among us and we beheld his glory the glory as of the only begotten of the Father full of grace and truth you see Jesus by his incarnation became our next of kin he became our brother and therefore he could pray to pay the price to buy back lost possession and to buy back a rulership or our sovereignty are you following me or not and so Jesus says to the heavenly beings gathered there he says I'm leaving I'm going to be gone for 33 years and during those 33 years in human flesh being next of kin to those people down there who have lost their possession and they have lost their position I am going to do battle with the enemy in their place and I assure you he says to the heavenly beings the thirty-three years from now I will be back and I will be a victorious war hero so you better start preparing the party and then Jesus by a mystery that we can never understand was implanted in the womb of Mary and he became our next of kin he became our brother now you know it's interesting to notice that Jesus actually belongs to two families take for example David in revelation 22 and verse 16 were told that Jesus is the root and offspring of David now that's interesting he in other words he is the creator of David and he's also the son of David he's the root and offspring of David the Bible also tells us that Jesus is the father of Abraham and he is the son of Abraham we're told in Matthew chapter 1 that Jesus was the seed of Abraham but Jesus in John chapter 8 told the Jews that were gathered there verily verily I say unto you before Abraham was I am in other words Jesus is Abraham's father and he is Abraham's son and you say that's absurd an individual cannot be his father's son and his son son it's impossible but Jesus actually was father of Abraham and he was also son of Abraham he was father of David and he was also the son of David the father of Abraham and David as God and the son of Abraham and David as man Jesus named flesh of our flesh and bone of our bones and Jesus had two things that he needed to fulfill in his mission you see the law of God demands absolute sinless perfection no one in the human race can offer the law what the law requires and therefore the law says if you don't offer me the perfection that I require you must die so what did Jesus come to this earth for he came to do two things number one he came to live the perfect life that the law requires in my place and then at the end of a perfect life which he lived in our place Jesus took all of our sins upon himself and he was punished for our sins he suffered the death penalty that we should suffer in other words Jesus had to come to live the life that the law requires from us and he came to die the death that the law requires from us as sinners he came to live a perfect life and he came to die in our place he lived for us and he died for us do you know that this is illustrated in the sanctuary service notice Exodus chapter 12 and verses five and six you know usually when we start the study of the sanctuary we usually begin in the court where the altar of sacrifice is that's not the proper weight place to begin the study of the sanctuary the proper place to begin the study of the sanctuary is in the camp where the center's sinners live you see before Jesus went to the cross which is illustrated by the altar the Lord Jesus came and lived in our midst he lived a perfect life he was tempted in all things such as we are yet he did not sin you see in the sanctuary these two roles of Christ His perfect life and his death for sin are illustrated by the lamb now you know the lamb was sacrificed but before the lamb was sacrificed they had to be absolutely certain that the lamb did not have any what any blemish or any defect in other words the fact that the lamb didn't have any blemish or defect represe the perfect life of Christ whereas the sacrifice of the Lamb represents the death of Christ two functions one in the camp where he lived his perfect life in our midst and then the altar of sacrifice where he suffered death in our place notice Exodus chapter 12 and verses five and six where this is brought out clearly speaking about the Passover lamb it says your lamb shall be without blemish a male of the first year you may take it from the Sheep or from the goats now you keep you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of the same month then the whole Assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it at Twilight do you notice two things regarding the lamb first of all they had to be sure that it had no blemish that's the perfect life of Christ and then secondly they had to slay the lamb that had no blemish perfect life of Christ and his death for sin in our place now this is also spoken of in first Peter chapter 1 and verses 18 through 20 first Peter chapter 1 verses 18 through 20 here the Apostle Peter says knowing that you were not redeemed notice the word redeemed that we studied before knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things like silver or gold from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your father's but you were redeemed with the precious blood of Christ there you have his death as of a lamb without blemish and without spot there you have his perfect life he indeed was foreordained before the foundation of the world but was made manifest in these last times for you so my question is what was the function of Jesus in taking upon himself human flesh Jesus came to this world to live a perfect life in obedience to the law in our place he came to this world to bear our sins and to die in our place he came to live for all and he came to die for all and he could do that because he was creator of all only he who created all could offer himself to take the place of all are you following me or not until Jesus bid farewell to heaven he says I'm going to go down there for 33 years I'm going to live a perfect life I'm never going to disobey the law and then even though I'm a perfect lamb at the end of my life I'm going to be killed because I'm going to be bearing the sins of the world I'm going to offer my life a ransom for many now do you think that the devil knew why Jesus had come and who he was oh yes he did turn in your Bibles to mark chapter 1 verses 23 and 24 the demons knew who he was and why he had come they knew that he had come to destroy them and to restore Adam to his original position of rulership and to the territory which he had lost it says there in mark 1 23 and 24 Jesus is in the synagogue on a Sabbath now there was a man in their synagogue with an unclean spirit and he cried out saying let us alone what have we to do with you Jesus of Nazareth and now notice did you come to what to destroy us did they know why he had come oh yes did they know who he was let's continue reading did you come to destroy us I know who you are the Holy One of God now if the mission of Christ was to come and live a perfect life in our place and to offer his life as a sacrifice for sin in our place what do you suppose the devil's mission was well it's very simple the devil's mission was simply to keep Jesus from living his perfect life and to keep Jesus from offering his life as a sacrifice for sin in other words the devil's mission was to keep Jesus from doing what he came to do which was to live his perfect life and to die for sin and saw the devil 24/7 365 was after Christ to try and keep him from living a perfect life trying to get him to sin and trying to keep him from offering his life as a sacrifice for sin and the devil used four methods to try and prevent Jesus from being successful in his mission the first method that the devil used was tried to kill Jesus Christ before he reached the point where he was supposed to offer his own life as a ransom for many you see if the devil had killed Jesus before the hour of Jesus had arrived that would not count as a sacrifice for sin because it was not acceptable if his life was taken he had to offer his life so the devil says if I can kill him before he offers his life then the plan of salvation will not be successful and that's why constantly in the Gospel of John we find the expression they could not lay hands on him because his hour had not yet come his time had not yet come they could do nothing to him as long as the moment for him to offer his life had not come did the devil attempt to kill Christ on several occasions yes he did when was the first occasion when he was born the devil says I'm going to nip this in the bud I'm going to get rid of him when he is born notice Revelation chapter 12 and verses 3 and 4 revelation 12 verses 3 and 4 and another sign appeared in heaven behold a great fiery red dragon having seven heads and ten horns and seven diadem's on his heads his tail drew a third of the stars of heaven and threw them to the earth and the dragon stood before the woman who was ready to give birth to devour her child as soon as he was born and of course we know the way in which that occurred the devil influenced King Herod to kill all of the male children in the hopes of killing the rival to his throne which the devil is really saying to Herod you know if you let him live he's going to take your throne but the devil is thinking if I let him live he's going to take my throne and so we find the devil attempting to kill Christ from the moment of his birth another time there was a storm on a lake it was a storm out of season the fishermen were out on the lake it was not expected that there would be a storm in there there was this horrific storm and Jesus was sleeping in the boat who do you suppose knew that Jesus was sleeping in the boat who causes storms Satan causes storms he says I'm gonna drown this man on another occasion Jesus was preaching in the synagogue in Nazareth this is found in Luke chapter 4 verses 28 to 30 and Jesus said some things that the Jews didn't like like you know in the times of Elijah and in the times of naman the Syrian God favored the Gentiles instead of the Jews and they were really angry at Jesus and so the Bible tells us that they pushed Jesus outside the city and they were going to throw him over a cliff Ellen White tells us in desire of Ages that there were demons disguised as men they're egging on the the group of individuals that the multitude to throw Jesus over the cliff the devil was trying to kill Christ on several occasions during the Ministry of Jesus they picked up stones to try and stone Christ the Bible says that he would walk in their midst and they could not find him so the devil says I need to kill him before the moment comes for him to offer his life voluntarily for sin it didn't work the devil used a second method to try and get Jesus to fail in his ministry the devil tried to infect Jesus with the virus of sin three times on the Mount of temptation the devil tried to get Jesus to sin and each time the Lord Jesus responded by saying it is written I live by what God says in his word and in his law man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God in other words Jesus refused on the Mount of temptation to allow himself to be infected with the virus of sin because if he had he would have been an imperfect sacrifice and his sacrifice would not have been accepted in Hebrews chapter four and verse 50 we were told about the perfect sinlessness of Christ it says there for we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses but was in all points tempted as we are yet without sin he was perfectly sinless he did not allow the devil to infect him with the virus of sin because he had a had to be a perfect lamb a perfect sacrifice Hebrews chapter 7 and verse 26 speaks also about the perfect sinlessness of Christ it says for such a high priest was fitting for us who is holy harmless undefiled separate from sinners and has become higher than the heavens notice the terminology holy harmless undefiled and separate from sinners in John chapter 8 Jesus was speaking to a group of Jews and he threw out this question in John 8 verse 46 where he said which of you convicts me of sin now those who of you can convince me that I am a sinner and of course it's a rhetorical question nobody could say that he was a sinner in first John chapter 3 and verse 5 once again we have a description of the perfect sinlessness of the life of Christ it says there and you know that he was manifested to take away our sins and in him there is no sin one final verse on the perfect sinlessness of Christ 1st Peter chapter 2 and verses 21 and 22 here Peter says inspired by God's Spirit for to this you were called because Christ also suffered for us leaving us an example that you should follow his steps who committed no sin nor was deceit found in his mouth Jesus committed no what Jesus committed no sin Jesus came to live the life that the law requires from us he came to live a perfect life the devil says I'm not going to allow him to do it so the devil was after him 24/7 365 but each time Jesus refused to allow the devil to infect him with the virus of sin he lived his perfect life the devil could not kill him and the devil could not infect him so the devil says what I'm going to do is distract him from the cross I'm going to distract him and lead him to choose a different path or a different way of getting the throne back so the third method of the devil is to distract him from having to live and die in place of man offering him an easy way and of course the easier way is to offer Jesus the throne without Jesus having to suffer and to die now let me ask you did the devil on repeated occasions try to get Jesus to take a detour a different way of getting the throne of the world back YES on the Mount of temptations the devil says look here's all the kingdoms of the world and all the authority I have those because Adam gave them to me he says you don't have to go to Jerusalem and suffer and die no no all you have to do is bow down and worship me for an instant and you will be the King without any suffering and without any agony Jesus says no way that's not the way the way of the Cross leads home in John chapter 6 and verse 15 Jesus had just fed 5,000 people with five loaves and two fishes and the Bible tells us that the people are so impressed that they wanted to make Jesus our temporal king and by the way the ringleader was Judas Iscariot constantly the disciples wanted Jesus to take the throne now Jesus had to win the throne back but not in that way the devil tried to distract him getting him to choose a different path in John 6 and verse 15 after feeding the 5,000 were told this therefore when Jesus perceived that they were about to come and take him by force to make him King he departed again to the mountain by himself alone six months before his death Jesus asked his disciples who are men saying that I am and the disciples say well some people say that your Jeremiah somebody some say that your others say that you're one of the prophets and then Jesus says who do you say that I am and Peter who appeared to be the spokesman for the disciples said oh you are the Christ which means the Messiah you are the Messiah the Son of the Living God and Jesus now says to Peter Peter well said flesh and blood did not reveal it to you but my father in heaven did because Peter didn't even know what he was confessing you say how do we know that he didn't know what he was saying yeah he knew that Jesus was the Messiah but he had wrong in his mind a kind of Messiah in fact Jesus immediately afterwards in Matthew chapter 16 in verses 22 and 23 Jesus says I must go to Jerusalem I must suffer I'm going to be killed and I will resurrect the third day and when Jesus says that Peter is indignant notice the story in Matthew 16 22 and 23 then Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him imagine Peter rebuking the master saying far be it from You Lord this shall not happen to you whose emissary was Peter at that point who was trying to say to Jesus no you die Messiah rules notice verse 23 but he turned and said to Peter get behind me Satan Wow he wasn't talking to Peter he was talking to whom to the devil who was using Peter get behind me Satan you are an offense to me for you are not mindful of the things of God but the things of men now after Peters confession the disciples began their journey with Christ towards Jerusalem this was Christ last journey to Jerusalem and the disciples are disturbed because Jesus has said he's going to Jerusalem to suffer and to die he kind of didn't hear that he said that he had resurrect a third day because they were so focused on his sufferings and his death and so for six days the Bible tells us that they're walking behind Jesus and they're sad and you know they say we're going to Jerusalem he said he's going to be killed he's going to die there and six days later Jesus knows that they're terribly discouraged and so he takes three of his disciples up to the Mount of Transfiguration the Bible says that he is transferred figured in their presence he looked like he will look at his second coming in other words he was trying to tell them hey after the suffering comes the glory as a result of what I'm going to do in Jerusalem I will be glorified someday and I will come again not as the suffering servant but as the king of kings and Lord of lords and and Moses and Elijah appeared speaking to Christ on the mountain and encouraging Jesus and then when this scene ends Peter still didn't get it Peter said that he knew that they were on their way to Jerusalem he says Lord it is good for us to stay here let's not go to Jerusalem it's good to stay let's build three Tabernacles and just stay here it was a temptation to stay you remember the towards the end of the life of Christ during the last week of his life some Greeks came for an interview to speak with Jesus see they wanted Jesus to go to Greece to speak the beautiful things that he had spoken and to perform his marvelous science and so they come to Jesus for an interview and they talked to Philip and Philip talks to Andrew and when they say to Jesus the Greeks want to speak to you Jesus said something that is very strange let's read about this in John 12 verses 20 to 24 now there were certain Greeks among those who came up to worship at the feast then they came to Philip who was from Bethsaida of Galilee and asked him saying sir we wish to see Jesus Philip came and told Andrew and in turn Andrew and Philip told Jesus and I'll notice the strange answer of Jesus but jesus answered them saying the hour has come that the Son of man should be glorified in other words the hour for me is not to go to Greece the hour is now to be glorified to die and to resurrect it to be exalted then he says this most assuredly I say to you unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies it remains alone but if it dies it produces much grain what is saying is if I go to Greece now people will believe that they what they can't be saved because in order to be saved there has to be a perfect life and a death for sin in their place and so they'll heal my beauty here my beautiful words and they will be healed by my marvelous words but they won't be saved he says the only way in which they can truly be saved is if a seed of wheat or grain of wheat falls into the earth that grain of wheat is Jesus and dies it then germinates it becomes a plant and it produces much fruit Jesus says if I die and I am buried I will sprout a new life and then there will be many people saved in the kingdom the devil was trying to distract Jesus from going to the cross to go to Greece to preach the gospel he was even using something positive to try and distract Jesus from the wake of the cross even when Judas betrayed Jesus Christ you know some people think that Judas betrayed Christ because he wanted Christ to be crucified no no no no that's not what the Gospels say Judas betrayed Christ because he wanted to put Jesus between a rock and a hard place he wanted to pressure Jesus into retaliating against those who arrested him and to proclaim himself king he wanted to pressure Jesus into taking over the kingdom you say how do we know that hey if it was an intention of Judas that Jesus be crucified he wouldn't have committed suicide when he saw that Jesus was being crucified he was said hey my plan worked perfectly but what happened when he saw that Jesus did not escape and did not proclaim himself king the Bible says that he went and he threw the money see money meant nothing for this covetous man anymore he threw the money there in front of the priest and he said I have betrayed innocent blood and the Bible says that he went and he committed suicide you see once again the devil was using in fact the Bible says that the devil entered Judas that's what the Bible says and through Judas the devil was trying to pressure Jesus into taking the throne in a different way than living a perfect life and dying for sin the devil use the fourth method and this was the most terrible method of all the most crying for Jesus Christ basically the fourth method was to discourage Jesus in such a way that he would pick up and that he would leave where he was loved in heaven do you know that Jesus at any point during his ministry could have chosen to go back to heaven and allow the human race to perish and the devil especially at the end of the life of Christ tried to discourage Jesus in such a way that Jesus would simply say it's not worth staying here I'm going back to heaven where I am loved let's notice several verses in the final days in the final hours of the life of Christ Matthew 26 and verse 38 Jesus speaks to his disciples when he's goes to the Garden of Gethsemane and he says my soul is exceedingly sorrowful even unto death stay here and watch with me notice Jesus is filled with sorrow as he goes to the Garden of Gethsemane and then in chapter 26 and verses 39 42 and 44 Jesus three times begs the father that if it's possible the cup might be taken from him notice Matthew chapter 26 and verse 39 it says he went a little further and fell on his face and prayed saying O my father if it is possible let this cup pass from me nevertheless not as I will but as you will verse 42 again a second time he went away and prayed saying O my father if this cup cannot pass away from me unless I drink it your will be done and then verse 44 tells us so he left them went away again and prayed the third time saying the same words let me ask you what was it that was contained in that cup that Jesus had to drink folks it was the wrath of his father that word Cup that is used there is the same word that is used in Revelation 16 where it speaks about the bowls of God wrath being poured out upon the earth the word Bowl in Revelation 16 is the same word cup here Jesus was going to drink the wine of the wrath of God because he was bearing the sins of the whole world upon himself who gave him that cup his father gave him that cup notice John chapter 18 in verse 11 John chapter 18 and verse 11 so jesus said to Peter put your sword into the sheath this is when he cut off the ear of the servant of the high priest put your sword into the sheath shall I not drink the cup which my father has given me why would the father give Jesus the cup of his wrath it's because Jesus was carrying upon himself the sins of the whole world the punishment for sin he had lived the perfect life and the devil is saying to Jesus if you go through with this you will never see your father's face ever again you better leave while you can in fact Hebrews chapter 5 and verse 7 describes the agony of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane the devil was torturing the Heart of Jesus with his temptations according to the desire of Ages telling him listen leave now while you can or else you are going to be lost and everyone else is going to be lost and Jesus you know he wanted the encouragement of his disciples he says pray pray for me in three times he finds them sleeping and the devil is saying to Jesus all your disciples sure love you a lot don't think they're sleeping while you are agonizing trying to discourage Christ it says in Hebrews chapter five and verse seven speaking about the suffering of Jesus and get cemani who in the days of his flesh when he had offered up prayers and supplications with vehement cries and tears to him who was able to save him from death and was heard because of his godly fear notice the expressions prayers supplications cries and tears he's raising up to his father in fact his agony was so great that instead of sweating sweat the Bible says that he sweated blood Luke chapter 22 and verse 44 says and being in agony he prayed more earnestly then his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground Ellen White in desire of Ages page 753 expresses the agony and let me interject before I read that statement something very important Jesus did not die from his wounds do you know that Ellen White tells us that Jesus would have died in the Garden of Gethsemane before one finger was placed on him if it had been for an angel that was sent to strengthen him that's before anything happened to Jesus before one finger was placed on him she says he fell dying to the ground in an angel is sent to revive him so that he would not die Jesus did not die because of his wounds Jesus died because of the weight of sin of the whole world that he was bearing upon himself after living his perfect life Ellen White says Satan with his fierce temptations wrung the Heart of Jesus the Savior could not see beyond through the portals of the tomb hope did not present to him his coming forth from the grave a conqueror or tell him of the father's acceptance of his sacrifice he feared that sin was so offensive to God that their separation was to be eternal imagine that the devil is say the separation is going to be eternal then she says Christ felt the anguish which the sinner will feel when mercy shall no longer plead for the guilty race it was the sense of sin bringing the father's wrath upon him as man's substitute that made the cup he drank so bitter and broke the heart of the Son of God and do you know something folks jesus said to his disciples he said to Peter after he cut off the ear he says put away that sword don't you know that if I wanted to I could call right now twelve legions of angels and they would deliver me know Jesus is saying I could leave right now if I wanted to I don't have to go through with this imagine the devil says to Jesus huh your disciples really careful you don't think one of them betrayed you the other one denied you and all of the rest of them scampered away and they slept when you asked them to pray for you Hey not even your disciples are going to be saved much less the human race pick up and leave while you can the Bible tells us that Jesus was beaten and he was punched they spit in his face the purpose of the devil is to either get Jesus to leave and to go where he's appreciated or else for Jesus to retaliate and in this way sin and ruin the plan of salvation were told in mark chapter 14 and verse 65 then some began to spit on him and to blindfold him and to beat him and to say to him prophesy and the officers struck him with the palms of their hands in mark chapter 15 verses 16 through 20 we find how Jesus was treated the devil is causing this because he wants Jesus either to retaliate or he wants Jesus to leave it says there in mark chapter 15 verse 16 then the soldiers led him away into the Hall called praetorium and they called together the whole garrison and they called him with purple and they twisted a crown of thorns put it on his head and began to salute him hail King of the Jews then they struck him on the head with a reed and spat on him and bowing the knee they worshiped him and when they had mocked him they took the purple of him put his own clothes on him and led him out to crucify him do you know that even while Jesus hung on the cross that they will try to entice him to come down from the cross there were individuals gathered at the foot of the cross then actually said to Jesus if you're really the Son of God come down and prove they were breathing the words of the devil notice Matthew 27 verses 41 to 43 likewise the chief priests also mocking with the scribes and elders said he saved others himself he cannot save if he is the king of Israel let him now come down from the cross and we will believe in him he trusted in God let him deliver him now if he will have him for he said I am the son of God but Jesus would not be discouraged he was going to go to the tomb even if it meant eternal separation from his father that's how much Jesus loves us in John 8 in verse 29 Jesus explained that his father was always with him in fact it says there Jesus is speaking and he who sent me is with me the father has not left me alone for I always do those things that please him so Jesus says the father is always with me he's never left me alone but listen carefully Matthew 27 verse 46 tells us that when Jesus hung on the cross he could not feel the presence of his father in fact he cries out my God my God why have you forsaken me why has thou forsaken me you walked with me all during my life but now I don't feel your presence why have you forsaken me and then Jesus says on the cross it is finished and as we will notice in our next lecture in this series Jesus was actually speaking those words to his father Jesus was saying I have lived the perfect life that the law requires and now I am bearing the sins on the world salvation is finished there's a perfect life and there's a death for sin available to every repentant human being who comes confessing his sin and trusting in me it is finished John 19 verse 30 says so when Jesus had received the sour wine he said it is finished and bowing his head he gave up his spirit but do you know what Luke tells us that Jesus said one last thing after he said it is finished this is found in Luke 23 and verse 46 Luke 23 verse 46 now listen folks Jesus felt forsaken by his father we just read it he said my God my God why have you forsaken me he could not see beyond the portals of the tomb he feared that sin was so offensive to God that the separation would be eternal and yet Jesus the last words that he pronounces on the cross are found in Luke 23 verse 46 where we are told and when Jesus had cried out with a loud voice he said father into your hands I commit my spirit having said this he breathed his last do you know what Jesus was saying Jesus was saying father you promised that if I was faithful then if I lived a perfect life and that if I offered my life as a ransom for sin that you would preserve my spirit and that you would resurrect me from it from the dead father into your hands I'm commending my spirit because you have promised that the third day you are going to give me my spirit back you are going to resurrect me and I will be alive again father into your hands I commend my spirit so Jesus did not die a dejected and pessimistic life Jesus feels separated from his father but he says father I claim your promise that you will return to me my spirit you will preserve my spirit and you will return to me my self-identity you will make me who I was in life on the third day when I resurrect from the dead Jesus died on what is known as Good Friday he rested in the tomb on the Sabbath very early on the first day of the week two angels descended from heaven one of them removed the stone you know the devil was trying to keep Jesus in the tomb it kind of makes me snicker the devil thought that he could keep the Prince of life in a tomb with a little stone in front of the entrance of the tomb with a Roman guard with his demons there at present in front of the tomb he actually thought that he could keep Jesus in the tomb and so one of the Angels removes the stone and sits upon it the other angel stands in front of the tomb and with a commanding voice he says although son of God thy father calls thee remember he had said father into your hands I commend my spirit immediately out through the entrance of the tomb comes Jesus Christ he had removed the wrappings and he had folded them neatly see he was a neat individual this teaches us that we should make our bed kids in the morning it teaches us many important lessons that we need to be orderly see he didn't say oh I'm kind of resurrect you know just throw everything aside no he folded everything perfectly and when he comes out of the tomb he says in a commanding voice I am the resurrection and the life the Roman soldiers fell like they were dead the demons scattered the earth shook because the Messiah had come forth from the grave now he had a perfect life and he had a death for sin that he could a firt offer to every sinner that comes to him repentant confessing sin and trusting in Jesus Christ and Savior and his Lord but Jesus did not resurrect by himself our final point is that there was a group of individuals that resurrected with him notice Matthew chapter 27 verses 51 to 53 Matthew 27 verses 51 to 53 then behold the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom and the earth quaked and the rocks were split and the graves were opened in many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised and now notice and coming out of the graves after his resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many there was a multitude of in dividuals that resurrected with Christ and the purpose was twofold number one for 40 days to go into the city and prove that Jesus had resurrected from the dead and secondly when Jesus went to heaven 40 days after his resurrection Jesus took these people who resurrected with him as a sample to heaven of all of those that will come forth from the grave when Jesus comes for the second time in power and glory in other words by taking that small group to heaven Jesus is saying to the devil I'm only taking the sample now but when I return again I'm going to take all of the rest of them with me as well now some people have reached the conclusion that this group that resurrected with Christ were the twenty-four elders of Revelation four and five but the question is as we conclude this presentation are those who resurrected with Jesus really the twenty-four elders or are the twenty-four elders a different group who play a very important role in the plan of salvation don't miss the next exciting episode where we will study this subject you

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Keywords: 24 Elders, Pastor Stephen Bohr, Bohr, Secrets Unsealed, Revelation, SUMTV, SUMtv, SecretsUnsealed, War Hero, Earth Two Representatives, Earth 2 Representatives, heaven, God, Jesus, Pastor Bohr, Pastor Borh, Pastor Esteban, Pastor Esteban Bohr

Id: g3yYvwv8r0Y

Length: 58min 34sec (3514 seconds)

Published: Tue Jan 29 2013