His Work - Our Rest

Good evening.

It is good to be with all of you on this Good Friday in which we remember the death of our Savior, Jesus Christ.

And I think it's a fair question that some of you might have: Why is it Good Friday?

What is it about the death of Jesus, the darkest day in history, the day when the only truly innocent man to ever live died a criminal's death.

The day when it looked like evil triumphed.

Why would we call that good?

Because, on the darkest day in history, God accomplished the greatest good in history.

The redemption of those who were helpless in their own trespasses and sins

And so while, from a human perspective, a great evil was done on that Friday, 2000 years ago…

From God's perspective, a great work of redemption was done where Jesus Christ bore the sins of the world in his own body

So for a few moments tonight, we are going to consider that moment on the cross when Jesus died,

and what it means for us today, who live 2000 years in the future

That though we were not witnesses to his death, we are most certainly the benefactors of his death

And we're going to spend just a few moments in John 19.

So please take out your Bibles and turn to the Gospel of John, chapter 19, and we're going to be in verses 28-30.

John 19 is the John’s retelling of the day jesus was crucified.

He has stood before Pilate

He has been accused by his own people

He has been nailed to the cross

And he is in the final moments of his perfect, sinless life as we come to v. 28

John 19:28–30 ESV

After this, Jesus, knowing that all was now finished, said (to fulfill the Scripture), “I thirst.” A jar full of sour wine stood there, so they put a sponge full of the sour wine on a hyssop branch and held it to his mouth. When Jesus had received the sour wine, he said, “It is finished,” and he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.

These are God’s words for us - And may we be exceedingly grateful for what they mean

Big Idea: Jesus finished his work, so I can rest. [4:00]

You see, Jesus did not come to earth, taking on flesh as a man

to just live life and see what it was like.

He didn’t become like us because he was curious

He came with a very clear mission:

To redeem a lost people by being what no one else could be, by doing what no one else could do, by accomplishing what no one else could accomplish

And in him finishing that work, we become the benefactors of his work when we follow Him by faith.

So all of us here this evening who follow Jesus by faith, there is no work required for us to have God’s favor

Instead, we can rest from that work, because Jesus has earned it for us.

This is why the book of Hebrews tells us, in Hebrews 4, that because Jesus finished his priestly work in paying for our sins, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God because we don’t have to work for his approval

Because jesus did the work, We live in an ongoing sabbath reality of rest in God’s presence.

[Bridge Question] And so the question that we need to answer is, what was that work that he finished, and what is the rest that we then get to enjoy as a result of the work that he has finished?

Six things he finished - Six realities of rest for us as his people

His Finished Work:

He Obeyed the Law Perfectly [6:30]

v. 28a - “After this, Jesus, knowing that all was now finished…”

That isn't just referring to the day of the the crucifixion process.

This is actually looking back through the whole gospel narrative.

This is essentially Jesus looking back over his whole life, saying, “I have completed what I came to complete. So now my death can truly be meaningful.

I have perfectly obeyed the law, and so now my death will be sufficient sacrifice.”

In fact, theologian John Murray says that the concept that summarizes all of the saving work of Christ can be summarized by one word: obedience.

Jesus death was sufficient for all sin because his life was perfectly obedient.

And his obedience was both passive and active

He was passively obedient, meaning that his disposition was always submitted to God's will

There was never a time when Jesus wanted something different than what God wanted

He was also actively obedient. He always did things the right way, according to God's command.

So his whole life, in his attitude and his actions, was perfectly obedient.

And the rest of the New Testament reminds us of this

Jesus said in John 17, that he accomplished all that the Father gave Him to do.

And in Hebrews 5, we're told that because Jesus obeyed perfectly, he became the source of eternal salvation to all who would follow Him.

Paul tells us in Romans 5:19 “For as by the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous.”

And Paul tells us how this would work in 2 Corinthians 5:21 “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”

He took our sin - He gave us his righteousness

And now we stand before God as a people who can rest because

We are declared righteous before God, not because we are righteous, but because Jesus was righteous for us as He perfectly obeyed the law.

We don’t have to earn God’s approval - Jesus earned it for us

So we can rest.

He Fulfilled the Word Precisely [10:00]

v. 28b-29 - “… said (to fulfill the Scripture), “I thirst.” A jar full of sour wine stood there, so they put a sponge full of the sour wine on a hyssop branch and held it to his mouth.”

And now you might be saying what a strange detail to include at such a significant moment,

but if you were to read his gospel, John has shown how Jesus entire life was a fulfillment of every word of God.

That's why he's called the word in the beginning of John's gospel, because He is the embodiment of the mind and the will and the word of God, and so his life fulfills every word of Scripture precisely.

This is a very specific reference to Psalm 69:21 “They gave me poison for food, and for my thirst they gave me sour wine to drink.”

Jesus is intentionally, consciously aware of his active fulfillment of that passage.

He says, “I thirst” in order to fulfill the scriptures, not because he was actually thirsty and just wanted to drink.

Look at what it says - He said it in order to fulfill the Scriptures.

And this helps us to see that he is fulfilling every word precisely

And so, because he fulfills every word of God precisely, that means that every promise of God that is attached to every word of God is also fulfilled in him.

So you and I can rest knowing that we are the recipients of every promise and blessing of God, because we are in Christ who finished the work fulfilling every word precisely.

Because Jesus fulfilled the scriptures, we can rest in the promises of God.

He Paid for Sin Completely [12:00]

v. 30 - “When Jesus had received the sour wine, he said, “It is finished,” and he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.”

Now there's nothing about sin in that verse,

But the the pattern of Scripture is that atonement for sin is made through sacrifice.

And in Leviticus 16, on the Day of Atonement, you had the sacrificial lamb without blemish whose blood was shed for the forgiveness of the sins of the people

And so in Jesus being a perfect substitute, living a perfect life, he then is the sacrificial lamb whose blood is shed for the forgiveness of God's people.

Paul and John both call this a propitiation.

It is a sacrifice that absorbs and satisfies wrath.

So Jesus, in dying, was a perfect propitiation for our sins, he satisfied the wrath of God through his shed bled.

But not only that

On the Day of Atonement, you also had the scapegoat, who would have the sins of the people named over it, and then it would be driven out of the camp, thus carrying the sins of the people away.

And so not only did Jesus, in paying for sin completely, die to satisfy the wrath of God, he also carried our sin away, so that we are no longer defined by our sin.

This is why the author of Hebrews says

Hebrews 10:12–14 “But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God… For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified.”

Because Jesus paid for sins completely, because he fully satisfied the wrath of God and carried our sins away…

You and I stand before God perfected [though our living is not yet perfect, and it will not be until we see Him face to face.]

When we do stand before him, he does not see our sin, but he sees the perfect righteousness of his son.

When you draw near to God, it is not your sin that he sees

Because Jesus’ death paid for sin completely.

So you and I can rest knowing that there is no wrath left for us, because Jesus bore the penalty in his own body on the cross as he paid for sin completely.

Now, those first three are in the passage - The second three are the implications of the first three and are found in other places in the New Testament

So, fourth

He Defeated the Enemy Decisively [16:00]

Listen, we got to get something really clear:

God and Satan are not equals.

God is God

Satan is a fallen angel. He's essentially the head of all the demons.

He is not on equal footing with God.

The only authority and power that he has has been allowed to him by God's sovereign, absolute authority.

So the question is: what kind of authority? What kind of rule does Satan have?

To put it simply: He has been allowed to be the primary influence in the lives of those who do not belong to God

Those whose lives are in rebellion against God, meaning those who are not following Jesus by faith, they live under Satan’s temporary rule

They are actively deceived by him

They are actively doing his will, though they are unaware.

And so, How is it that he defeats the enemy decisively?

It is that in his life, he conquered temptation. In his death, he paid for sins, and in his resurrection, He secured eternal life and freedom for those who were captive to sin.

They are free and transferred from the domain of darkness into the kingdom of God.

And so now those who put their faith in Jesus, Satan has no authority over their lives anymore, because Jesus has set them free.

He cant deceive them anymore

They aren’t going to do his will anymore

Paul says in Colossians 2 that He disarmed demonic powers by triumphing over them

Disarmed them how? What weapon would they have used against us that they can no longer us?

In Rev. 12:9, Satan is called the accuser of God’s people

He accuses God's people of their sin He accuses God's people of condemnation He accuses them that they are not worthy of God's love.

Have you ever felt like someone was pointing out all of your failures and it was causing you to question if God loved you?

That was Satan accusing you

But because Jesus obeyed the law perfectly, fulfilled the word precisely, and paid for sin completely,

he then defeated the enemy decisively, and disarmed him

so that Satan cannot accuse you anymore.

When Satan accuses you of your past, you need look no further than the cross.

When Satan tells you of all the things you've done wrong, all that you have to do is point to all that Jesus did right

Satan has no power to condemn, because there's nothing to condemn anymore.

You and I can rest from the shame of our past, knowing that the enemy has been defeated, so he can’t accuse us anymore.

And when you feel those accusations from the enemy,

when you're tempted to be ashamed of your past,

when you wonder if you're not worthy of God's love because Satan is bringing up your past…

Remember these words from English pastor John Newton

Bowed down beneath a load of sin, By Satan sorely pressed, By war without, and fears within, I come to thee for rest. 

Be thou my shield and hiding place, That, sheltered by thy side, I may my fierce accuser face, And tell him thou hast died.

Because Jesus finished the work of defeating the enemy decisively, you and I can rest from shame.

He Conquered Death Eternally [20:00]

Paul says in Romans 6:23 “the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

The consequence for sin is being estranged from God, which is death

But the opposite of that is life, to be reconciled to God.

While we will die physical deaths, that is only a temporary matter

We have been reconciled to God, no longer estranged from him

And we live daily in the newness of life, looking ahead to a day when death will be no more, because Jesus has conquered death and given us eternal life.

And so we can say with Paul in 1 Cor. 15 “O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?” The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Jesus conquered sin and death…

so we can rest knowing that death has no power, and instead, we get to enjoy life eternal

He Revealed God’s love Fully [22:00]

1 John 4:9–10 “In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.”

The love of God was fully revealed in the death of Christ on the cross

to be a propitiation for our sins, to absorb the wrath of God,

to satisfy God's righteous demand for justice

Jesus received in himself the full punishment and wrath for our sin

And in doing so he perfectly revealed the love of God

laying down his life for those he loved

So you and I can rest knowing that we are loved because we belong to Him, because He died for us.

It was all his work

Obeying the law

Fulfilling the word

Paying for sin

Defeating the enemy

Conquering death

Revealing God’s love

And because Jesus finished the work, you and I can rest knowing that there is nothing left to do but to respond with lives of worship and thanksgiving

And so it is fitting that we would then move into a time of communion in which we remember the finished work of Jesus with the bread and the cup

[25:00]

[Communion]

Remembrance

Open communion

Parents of young children, steward this with your kids

If you are not confident of their faith in Christ yet, it is better to tell them to wait.

Don’t mock the cross

Conflict with God

Conflict with others

Ushers, flow, GLUTEN FREE