Shaped by God's Word

[00:00:00] In the name of jesus. Amen. [00:00:08] It's a great comfort to put Jesus cross on oneself to do this. [00:00:16] It brings to your mind Jesus cross and our own union with him in his death and resurrection. [00:00:30] This week we are commemorating, we are remembering, we are worshipping Jesus in His passion, in his suffering. That's what that word means, in his suffering for us. [00:00:49] And that suffering is for us, and we're all wrapped up in it. [00:00:55] He came to us to suffer and to die and to rise from the dead and to pull us all into it. [00:01:03] We are wrapped up in his suffering and death and resurrection. [00:01:08] And so putting the cross on ourselves is a reminder that we are in Christ. And in Christ we've been crucified, that our suffering is in Christ, that our life is in Christ, that He's drawn us to himself and lifted us up with himself. [00:01:33] We came in with palm branches just as they followed him on Palm Sunday, waving palm branches. [00:01:44] And one of the things that the palm branches are doing is lifting Jesus up, right? These are. [00:01:53] Well, these belong in the air. [00:01:57] As you walk through the world, the trees are above you. [00:02:01] And so by bringing the trees down and setting them beneath Jesus, part of what they're doing is lifting Jesus up above the trees, bringing the highest things down and lifting him up to say hosanna in the highest, to say, you are. [00:02:22] You are the highest thing, Jesus. [00:02:25] And so, you know, if you take a palm branch home today, I don't know how many we have. [00:02:31] It's not my fault if you take too many home. You know, we'll just ask somebody for permission or not and then blame me, right? But just if you take one home and look at it this week, let it remind you to lift Jesus up in your heart and to remember well, to enthrone him in your heart, lift him up in his suffering and death, lift him up in his service to you, and then let him lift you up. [00:03:10] Remember as you lift him up, that he came down to you to lift you up with Himself. [00:03:17] It's an incredible, incredible, undeserved gift. [00:03:22] So I'd like to reflect right now on Jesus, obviously, but especially on his divinity and his human, very human suffering. [00:03:41] Two things, two very, very different things brought together in one person. [00:03:49] That's kind of the movement of Palm Sunday, I think, especially in the readings given to us in the lectionary and also encapsulated in the prayer of the day. [00:04:03] Almighty and everlasting God, you sent your son, our Savior, Jesus Christ, to take upon himself our flesh and to suffer death upon the Cross mercifully grant that we may follow the example of his great humility and patience and be made partakers of. Of his resurrection. That's the movement that the readings call us to reflect on this morning. That he was sent by the Father from heaven to take on flesh for us. [00:04:39] He who is above all. [00:04:43] He through whom all things were made, John says, in whom all things hold together, Paul says, became one of us, took on flesh. [00:04:57] Father, grant that we might partake in his humility, his great humility and suffering for the sake of those around us. [00:05:10] The Old Testament reading. [00:05:13] We hear about Christ in the words of the prophet Isaiah long before his crucifixion. All right, and this is Psalm 50, you know, just. I mean, I'm sorry. Isaiah 50, just a couple chapters later is where we get a lot of the language that we hear on Good Friday about the suffering servant. [00:05:45] So this is about the Messiah and about the suffering servant. The Lord God has given me the tongue of those who are taught that I may know how to sustain with a word him who is weary morning. By morning he awakens. He awakens my ear to hear as those who are taught. [00:06:07] The Lord God has opened my ear, and I was not rebellious. I turned not backward. [00:06:13] I gave my back to those who strike and my cheeks to those who pull out the beard. [00:06:19] I hid not my face from disgrace and spitting. [00:06:24] We'll stop there for now. [00:06:26] So that latter part. You hear that? And you say, ah. You can see Jesus crucifixion, the disgrace and the spitting that he endured for us also. I turned not backward. [00:06:39] I gave my back to those who strike. [00:06:44] But what comes before it is striking because it's so human. [00:06:53] And here's what I mean. [00:06:56] The Lord God has opened my ear, and I was not rebellious. [00:07:02] Why would the Son of God. [00:07:05] Why would the One through whom all things were made, the One without sin, say something like that? [00:07:14] The Lord God has opened my ear. [00:07:18] What a humble thing to say. [00:07:21] Lord God, open my ear, make me not rebellious. [00:07:28] That's a good daily prayer for us, right? We broken, fallen human beings. [00:07:35] The Son of God becoming one of us, becoming human and enduring suffering for us. [00:07:43] He attributes to God his own obedience, his own ability to endure suffering righteously. [00:07:53] He attributes to God. The Lord God has opened my ear, and I was not rebellious. [00:08:02] He awakens my ear to hear as those who are taught. [00:08:09] Jesus is teachable, but he's the Teacher. [00:08:16] He is wisdom incarnate. [00:08:19] Wisdom become flesh for us. [00:08:23] Wisdom come down from heaven, and he's teachable. [00:08:27] You see, In Jesus, there's this divine paradox, divine and human in one person. [00:08:38] He's done it for us, that humility. [00:08:45] For him to come and be teachable and to receive from the Lord strength, not to rebel is incredibly important for us and for our salvation. [00:09:00] If he had just come and you're just like, well, here he comes like a lightning bolt or like a superhero come into the world. And then he goes and does his thing and, you know, well, then he wouldn't be one of us. [00:09:18] And so we couldn't pray. [00:09:24] Mercifully grant that we may follow the example of his great humility and patience. [00:09:31] But Jesus has come and become what we should have been, become what we were made to be, become what we are becoming in Him. [00:09:43] He came to restore our human nature, to make us truly human again, to draw us into his life and to give us his obedience. [00:09:57] To make us wise like a human being, not like, well, something that we couldn't be. [00:10:09] Well, that's cool. [00:10:14] The Lord God has given me the tongue of those who are taught that I may know how to sustain with a word him who is weary. [00:10:25] Lord, give me the tongue of those who are taught to sustain those who are weary instead of making people weary. [00:10:34] He says that he's received that from the Lord. The Lord God has given me. This is what you and I were made for. To have our ears open and to receive from the Lord our nature. To receive what we should be, to be shaped by God's Word and Jesus Christ himself. [00:10:57] God in the flesh is that for us, shaped as a human being through his ears, by God's Word and then draws us into that through repentance and faith. [00:11:19] We're on a journey in Lent and this week in Passion Week, in Holy Week, we're on a journey, struggling to follow Christ through the wilderness, to be drawn into his passion, his suffering. [00:11:38] Suffer with him in temptation, in struggle, in confusion and difficulty. [00:11:54] Look to the one who set his face like a flint, who set his face toward suffering and took it on for you and me. Look to him and ask him for strength. [00:12:09] Ask him for his humility. [00:12:14] When you're tempted with pride or fear or cowardice or whatever it is. [00:12:24] Look to the one who had his ears open to God's word and was conformed to God's will. [00:12:32] For you and for me, who received beatings and insults and spitting every manner of dishonor and pain and torment and finally death. [00:12:52] For you and for me. And when you are confronted with fear of loss or pain, when you're worried about tomorrow, look to Jesus, who took on all of those things for you and for me, steadfastly going into challenge and struggle with God's strength. [00:13:19] That strength, that humility and patience and courage are for you and for me in Christ. [00:13:29] Not apart from him, but in Christ. [00:13:34] When you see Jesus in all his glory on the cross, embodying perfect humanity, repent and take refuge in Him. [00:13:56] But the Lord God helps me, therefore I have not been disgraced again. He's speaking as a human being in the flesh, receiving strength from God. Why? [00:14:13] Because that's what we were made for, to receive God's strength and victory. [00:14:19] And that's our victory in Jesus Christ, who became us to make us him. [00:14:28] Lord God helps me, therefore I have not been disgraced. Therefore I have set my face like a flint and I know that I shall not be put to shame. [00:14:35] He who vindicates me is near. [00:14:38] He's trusting in the Lord, finding strength in him who will contend with me. [00:14:46] Bring it on. [00:14:48] Let us stand up together. Who is my adversary. Let him come near to me. Behold, the Lord God helps me, who will declare me guilty. [00:14:59] You and I, on our own, can't say those words. [00:15:05] He doesn't say those words on his own. [00:15:10] He receives it from God. [00:15:13] What humility. [00:15:17] In Christ we can say those things. We can be bold like that. [00:15:24] You know, this is a passage about the suffering servant Christ, the Anointed One. [00:15:34] But it also describes the apostles and martyrs, describes Christians around the world empowered by Christ, living in him and enduring all manner of suffering in his name and rejoicing. [00:15:54] So many Christians have died with this kind of confidence, boldly hanging on to Jesus Christ and saying these things. [00:16:03] He who vindicates me is near, who will contend with me. [00:16:06] Bring it on. [00:16:09] It's not just Jesus. [00:16:13] It's his people in Him. It's those who he gathers to Himself and makes his body. [00:16:22] Take courage. [00:16:25] Christ has come for you. [00:16:30] Don't take courage apart from Him. [00:16:33] Take courage in Him. [00:16:39] Take with you a palm again with that caveat that I already gave. It was very unclear. [00:16:49] Or take one in your mind again. I don't know how many we have. [00:16:55] Remember Jesus. [00:16:58] Lift him up in your heart and worship Him. [00:17:02] Give him your attention this week in his suffering and humility in order to be prepared to give him attention in his life and victory. He is our strength. Blessed are those who take refuge in him in Jesus name. Amen.