Federal Headship

Introduction

Thanks for joining us tonight.

My name is Corey Ramsey and I am from Grace Covenant church.

My purpose in being here is to share the gospel, the same gospel that saved me nearly ten years ago.

For those who may not have been with us the last time, we discussed what it meant to be born again.

How salvation is completely a work of God.

How it does not depend on how good of a person we are

or even how bad of a person we have been

It depends on our faith in the one who has accomplished salvation for us, Jesus Christ.

Today, we will be discussing another aspect of the scriptures that is seen all throughout the Bible.

This concept is called Federal Headship.

This may sound like a complicated topic but it is actually very simple.

Federal simply means that one person acts on behalf of a larger group and headship implies authority and responsibilty.

Putting them together, it means that one who has authority or responsibility to act on behalf of a larger group.

To best describe what Federal Headship might look like, picture two armies on the battlefield preparing to fight each other.

Each army is massive and a lot of people are likely to die in this war.

Both sides seeing this outcome decide for Representative Combat.

This is when a champion from each army comes forward and fights one on one.

Whichever champion wins this battle, wins the battle for his whole army.

This champion was a federal head for his side of the army.

If he wins the one on one battle, he wins it for his whole army.

If he loses the one on one battle, the whole army he is representing loses.

If you are familiar with the story of David and Goliath, this is a prime example of this.

David came out representing the Israelites and Goliath came out representing the Philistines.

David defeated Goliath which meant that the whole army of Israel was victorious in this battle.

The point I will be making tonight is that this concept is not only seen in war but also seen in the gospel.

The question really boils down to who is your federal head?

Romans 5:19

Our passage today will come from Romans.

If you have Bibles and would like to follow along, please turn to Romans, chapter 5, verse 19.

English Standard Version Chapter 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.

We see here a story of two federal heads.

The one man was disobedient and because of his disobedience, all whom he represented were made sinners.

The other man was obedient and because of his obedience, all whom he represents are made righteous.

These two people are very well known.

The federal head of the disobedient is Adam.

The federal head of the obedient is Jesus Christ.

The main thing I want us to walk away with today is knowing who is representing us.

Story of Adam

I don’t know if you have noticed this yet, but there is a big sin problem in the world today.

Sin is simply failing to do what God has commanded or doing what God has forbidden.

This sin problem has been around since the beginning of time.

In the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth, he made man and put him in the garden to take care of it.

Mankind was created in the image of God.

He gave the man a woman to be a suitable helper in this work.

These two people are Adam and Eve.

If you remember the story of Adam and Eve, you know that God gave Adam only one rule.

Genesis 2:16–17 ESV

And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, “You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.”

In the very next chapter, we see the woman tricked by the serpent.

She is tempted and eats from the tree and also gives some to her husband Adam.

The one rule they were commanded not to do is the very thing they ended up doing.

I have always wondered how long it took them to break that rule.

Did it happen the day they received the command or years down the road?

Knowing sin, I am inclined to think it was sooner rather than later.

After this God finds them in the garden and confronts them on eating from the tree.

He pronounces a curse on the serpent, a punishment for the woman

but for Adam he says

English Standard Version Chapter 3

“Because you have listened to the voice of your wife

and have eaten of the tree

of which I commanded you,

‘You shall not eat of it,’

cursed is the ground because of you;

in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life;

18  thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you;

and you shall eat the plants of the field.

19  By the sweat of your face

you shall eat bread,

till you return to the ground,

for out of it you were taken;

for you are dust,

and to dust you shall return.”

You may be thinking about how God told Adam that he would die if he ate the fruit and yet he is still alive.

Although Adam did not die that day physically, something did change.

He became dead in sin.

His relationship with God was destroyed because of his sin.

This sin and death did not end with Adam but we see it in his children.

His son Cain killed his other son Abel.

If you follow the story you see that men became more and more wicked from this point on because of sin.

Adam as Head

All of us are Adams descendants and share in this same problem.

Because Adam, our federal head ate the fruit, we are all born sinners.

Since Adam representing us in the garden sinned, we are all born dead in our sins.

We have been grandfathered in to this disease.

Romans 5:12–14 ESV

Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned— for sin indeed was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not counted where there is no law. Yet death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those whose sinning was not like the transgression of Adam, who was a type of the one who was to come.

Before you say it, I am certain you would have made that same choice in the garden as Adam did.

Look at your life today.

How many times have we done things that we know we are not supposed to do?

The only difference is that the fruit that Adam ate is something different for all of us.

Some of us with gambling, drinking, drugs, lust...

Whatever it may be, we all disobey God’s commands.

Conclusion on Adam

This leaves us with a problem.

We are born into the losing side.

We are born with Adam as our federal head, and he has failed us.

Many also die with Adam as their representative and spend an eternity in hell.

We cant represent ourselves because our condition is no better than Adams, since we are all sinners.

Genesis 8:21 ESV

the intention of man’s heart is evil from his youth.

We are in need of a better Adam.

We are in need of a better Federal Head.

The passage we just read in Romans says that Adam was a type of the one to come.

Story of Jesus

That better one to come is Jesus.

Jesus enters the world,

born of a virgin,

not born as a descendant of Adam since we know that all of Adams descendants are born sinners.

But born of God.

Making him 100% God, 100% Man

The perfect mediator between God & Man because he is both

Adam had one command to follow and keep, do not eat from the one tree

but at the time Jesus was born, there was a total number of 613 laws to keep.

Jesus never broke one of those laws the whole thirty something years he was alive.

He lived a perfect life, something nobody but Him was able to do.

Jesus was then taken and crucified on a cross

Rose again on the third day

And now sits at the right hand of God the Father.

Jesus as Head

The Son of God dying on the cross is the most evil thing that has ever happened but also the greatest thing that has ever happened at the same time.

Jesus on the cross, has no sin of his own

but takes our sin upon him

All of our past sins, all of our present sins, all of our future sins

and faces God’s wrath in our place.

In place of taking our sin upon himself, his perfect obedience is given to us by Grace.

Now there is hope for those who were dead in Adam.

From Adam, we received the wages of sin which is death.

From Christ, we receive the wages of his obedience which is life.

By placing our faith in Jesus Christ, our sin is paid for and forgiven,

This sin that has left us disconnected from God is gone.

We bear it no more.

Through his perfect obedience we are gifted a righteous standing with God.

We have a new Federal Head.

We are not grandfathered into Christs headship but enter through imputation.

This means something that we did not legally earn is credited to our account.

Romans 5:15–17 ESV

But the free gift is not like the trespass. For if many died through one man’s trespass, much more have the grace of God and the free gift by the grace of that one man Jesus Christ abounded for many. And the free gift is not like the result of that one man’s sin. For the judgment following one trespass brought condemnation, but the free gift following many trespasses brought justification. For if, because of one man’s trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ.

Conclusion on Jesus

Our first federal head left us in a miserable condition.

Disconnected from God.

Dead in our sins.

On the path to spend an eternity in hell.

Through Adam, we all die.

But friends we have a better Adam.

The Lord and savior Jesus Christ.

He has won the battle for all whom he represents.

Through him, our fellowship with God is restored.

Through him our sins are forgiven.

Through him we have a righteous standing with God.

Praise God!

Summary

This concept is found all throughout the Scripture.

Consider this passage in Ephesians that does a great job of summarizing what has just happened.

Ephesians 2:1–10 ESV

And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

Christ Jesus is our champion.

Apart from Jesus, we remain on the losing side

In Adam

Dead

BUT

Jesus paid it all!

All to him I owe!

Reflection

Now that we have understanding of this great doctrine of Federal Headship my question for you is:

Who is your champion?

There are many in the world today who are okay with Adam as their representative.

They live lives full of sin

They mock God

They worship themselves.

Is this you?

I am here with the news that if this is you, it doesn’t have to be.

Your position can change completely today

Right Now.

You can go to the winning side by placing your faith in Jesus Christ as your federal head.

Believing that on account of his blood, your sins are forgiven

On account of his name you have a right standing before God through his obedience being imputed to us.

Application

It is by grace through faith we are saved.

As I talked about last time, the word faith is often misunderstood.

People tend to water the term down so it loses its meaning.

To help us better understand, I will separate faith into two categories

We will call the first example of faith demonic faith.

In James 2:19 we read,

James 2:19 ESV

You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder!

This kind of faith says you believe the fact that Jesus is the Son of God

but you don’t love him

you dont trust him

you dont follow him

you dont obey him.

Then we have saving faith.

Saving faith is given by the Holy Spirit

It is faith in Christ alone for salvation

You become a new person

It results in a change of heart including Love, Repentance, Obedience.

Saving faith perseveres to the end.

It is visible in your life.

Where are you today?

Do you have demonic faith or saving faith?

My Testimony

I spend the first 26 years of my life with demonic faith.

I knew all the stories about God

I went to school at a church until 6th grade

I believed that God was real

I would read the Bible occasionally

Say the Lords prayer almost every night

Sometimes try and be what the world considers a good person

But the truth of it all is that I was still in Adam!

I was still dead in my sin.

I was still a child of wrath like the rest of mankind.

At the age of 26, my life had hit rock bottom.

I was broke

Still living with my Mom

My dreams were dead

I had no hope

I was depressed

No clue what to even do with my life.

Such is the result of a life in Adam.

It was at this point that God found me.

Through the actions of a coworker, I decided to open my Bible.

I was reading one of Paul’s letters.

Everything that Paul was saying that should not be done in this letter, I noticed, were the kinds of things I had done my whole life.

Then it all made sense.

Maybe I was in this position because I had actually rejected God my whole life.

After this, I watched a sermon in which the gospel was preached.

My heart was changed.

Jesus was what my life had been missing all these years.

Then followed repentance.

I turned away from the sinful life I had been living, and followed Jesus Christ.

I was hungry to know all about Him.

I joined a church and served in any way I could.

This is how my life changed from demonic faith to saving faith.

I will not tell you that all of my problems went away

or that everything was easy after that.

What I will tell you is that I have not been without hope ever since.

If everything in this world should fail me, I can still find joy in the fact that the Son of God shed his blood to save me from an eternity in hell.

I am loved by God!

Jesus is my federal head

I stand before God blameless because of what he has done for me.

Call to Believe

Friends, I am begging you tonight, to think about what we have discussed.

To think about who is your federal head.

To think about what kind of faith you have.

To think about where you will spend eternity.

Will you spend eternity in heaven with Jesus Christ?

or will you spend eternity in hell, separated from the love of God forever?

If I did not believe this message was true with all of my heart

I would not be here tonight begging you to consider it.

I have witnessed a change in my life that was nothing short of a miracle.

I know that God is real.

1 Corinthians 1:18 ESV

For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.

I have experienced this power of God firsthand in my life

and my hope tonight is that you will experience it too.

Lets Pray!