♪ A son to win ♪ ♪ His erring child ♪ ♪ He reconciled ♪ ♪ And pardoned from ♪ ♪ His sin ♪ ♪ O love of God ♪ ♪ How rich and pure ♪ ♪ How measureless ♪ ♪ And strong ♪ ♪ It shall forevermore endure ♪ ♪ A saint and angel song ♪ ♪ Were we within the ocean fill ♪ ♪ And were the skies of parchment made ♪ ♪ Were every stock on earth a quill ♪ ♪ And every man a scribe by trade ♪ ♪ To write the love of God above ♪ ♪ Would drain the ocean dry ♪ ♪ Nor could the throne contain the whole ♪ ♪ Though it stretched from sky to sky ♪ ♪ O love of God ♪ ♪ How rich and pure ♪ ♪ How measureless ♪ ♪ And strong ♪ ♪ It shall forevermore endure ♪ ♪ The saint and angel song ♪ ♪ O love of God ♪ ♪ How rich and pure ♪ ♪ How measureless ♪ ♪ And strong ♪ ♪ It shall forevermore endure ♪ ♪ The saint and angel song ♪ ♪ It shall forevermore endure ♪ ♪ The saint and angel song ♪ (gentle music) (gentle music) ♪ O Lord, my rock and my redeemer ♪ ♪ Greatest treasure of my longing soul ♪ ♪ My God, like you there is no other ♪ ♪ Through delight is found in you alone ♪ ♪ Your grace, a well too deep to fathom ♪ ♪ Your love exceeds the heavens reach ♪ ♪ Your truth, a fount of perfect wisdom ♪ ♪ My highest good and my unending need ♪ ♪ Oh, we need you ♪ ♪ O Lord, my rock and my redeemer ♪ ♪ Strong defender of my weary heart ♪ ♪ My sword to fight the cruel deceiver ♪ ♪ And my shield against his hateful thoughts ♪ ♪ My song when enemies surround me ♪ ♪ My hope when tides of sorrow rise ♪ ♪ My joy when trials are abounding ♪ ♪ Your faithfulness, my refuge in the night ♪ ♪ My love when tears of hope refuse ♪ ♪ O Lord, my rock and my redeemer ♪ ♪ Gracious savior of my ruined life ♪ ♪ My guilt and cross laid on your shoulders ♪ ♪ In my place you suffered, bled and died ♪ ♪ You rose, the grave and death are conquered ♪ ♪ You broke my bonds of sin and shame ♪ ♪ You rose, the grave and death are conquered ♪ ♪ You broke my bonds of sin and shame ♪ ♪ O Lord, my rock and my redeemer ♪ ♪ May all my days bring glory to your name ♪ ♪ May all my days bring glory to your name ♪ (gentle music) (wind blowing) ♪ Who has held the oceans in his hands ♪ ♪ Who has numbered every grain of sand ♪ ♪ Kings and nations tremble at his voice ♪ ♪ All creation rises to rejoice ♪ ♪ Behold a God seated on his throne ♪ ♪ Come let us adore him ♪ ♪ Behold a King nothing can compare to ♪ ♪ Behold a King nothing can compare to ♪ ♪ Come let us adore him ♪ ♪ Who has given counsel to the Lord ♪ ♪ Who can question any of his words ♪ ♪ Who can teach the one who knows all things ♪ ♪ Who can fathom all his wondrous deeds ♪ ♪ Behold a God seated on his throne ♪ ♪ Come let us adore him ♪ ♪ Behold a King nothing can compare to ♪ ♪ Come let us adore him ♪ (gentle music) ♪ Who has felt the nails upon his hands ♪ ♪ Bearing all the guilt of sinful man ♪ ♪ God eternal humble to the grave ♪ ♪ Jesus savior risen now to reign ♪ ♪ Behold a God seated on his throne ♪ ♪ Come let us adore him ♪ ♪ Behold a King nothing can compare to ♪ ♪ Come let us adore him ♪ ♪ You will reign forever ♪ ♪ You will reign forever ♪ ♪ You will reign forever ♪ ♪ You will reign forever ♪ ♪ You will reign forever ♪ ♪ You will reign forever ♪ ♪ You will reign forever ♪ ♪ You will reign forever ♪ ♪ Behold a God seated on his throne ♪ ♪ Come let us adore him ♪ ♪ Behold a King nothing can compare to ♪ ♪ Come let us adore him ♪ ♪ Behold a God seated on his throne ♪ ♪ Come let us adore him ♪ ♪ Behold a King nothing can compare to ♪ ♪ Come let us adore him ♪ (gentle music) (gentle music) ♪ In Christ alone my hope is found ♪ ♪ He is my light, my strength, my song ♪ ♪ This cornerstone, this solid ground ♪ ♪ Firm through the fiercest drought and storm ♪ ♪ What heights of love, what depths of peace ♪ ♪ When fears are stilled, when striving cease ♪ ♪ My comforter, my all in all ♪ ♪ Here in the love of Christ I stand ♪ ♪ In Christ alone who took on flesh ♪ ♪ Fullness of God in helpless babe ♪ ♪ This gift of love and righteousness ♪ ♪ Scorned by the ones he came to save ♪ ♪ Till on that cross as Jesus died ♪ ♪ The wrath of God was satisfied ♪ ♪ For every sin on him was laid ♪ ♪ Here in the death of Christ I live ♪ (gentle music) (gentle music) ♪ There in the ground his body lay ♪ ♪ Light of the world by darkness slain ♪ ♪ Then bursting forth in glorious day ♪ ♪ Up from the grave he rose again ♪ ♪ And as he stands in victory ♪ ♪ Sin's curse has lost its grip on me ♪ ♪ For I am his and he is mine ♪ ♪ I'm struck with the precious blood of Christ ♪ (gentle music) ♪ No guilt in life, no fear in death ♪ ♪ Is the power of Christ in me ♪ ♪ From life's first cry to final breath ♪ ♪ Jesus commands my destiny ♪ ♪ No power of hell, no scheme of man ♪ ♪ Can ever pluck me from his hand ♪ ♪ 'Til he returns or calls me home ♪ ♪ Here in the power of Christ I'll stand ♪ ♪ No power of hell, no scheme of man ♪ ♪ Can ever pluck me from his hand ♪ ♪ 'Til he returns or calls me home ♪ ♪ Here in the power of Christ I'll stand ♪ (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) (gentle music) - Well, good evening, church family.

Happy Tuesday of the Passion Week. We're hoping that just the readings that you've been doing and the praying and the reflecting has been helping you to just appreciate the significance of this week and to grow in gratitude. Let's begin our worship just with a time of prayer, and then we'll go into just some songs of adoration and praise.

Father, we thank you for just your grace and your favor and your kindness, and we thank you for giving us time to pause and reflect on just the means for our salvation. We pray that as we sing and we pray that as we hear, though we're all separate, just in our own homes, I pray, Lord, God, that you would unite our hearts really to offer up just praise and fill us with not just gratitude, just the joy, peace, and compassion for the lost.

We thank you for just the life that you lived, the death you died in our stead, and your resurrection as the greatest evidence that you indeed are God. So we pray for your help tonight just to engage. We love you, Lord. We pray these things in Jesus' name. What gift of grace is Jesus my Redeemer?

There is no more for heaven now to give. He is my joy, my righteousness and freedom, blessed and fast love, my deep and boundless peace. To this I hold, my hope is only Jesus. For my life is wholly bound to His. Oh, how strange and divine, I can sing all is mine, yet not I but through Christ in me.

The night is dark, but I am not forsaken, for by my side the Savior He will save. I labor on in weakness and rejoice soon, for in my need His power is displayed. To this I hold, my shepherd will defend me, through the deepest valley He will lead. Oh, the night has been won, and I shall overcome, yet not I but through Christ in me.

No fate I dread, I know I am forgiven. The future's sure, the price it has been paid, for Jesus died and suffered for my pardon, and He was raised to overcome the pain. To this I hold, my sin has been defeated. Jesus now and ever is my plea. Oh, the chains are released, I can sing I am free, yet not I but through Christ in me.

With every breath I long to follow Jesus, for He has said that He will bring me home. And day by day I know He will renew me, until I stand with joy before the throne. To this I hold, my hope is only Jesus. All the glory evermore to Him.

When the race is complete, still my lips shall repeat, yet not I but through Christ in me. To this I hold, my hope is only Jesus. All the glory evermore to Him. When the race is complete, still my lips shall repeat, yet not I but through Christ in me.

There is a Redeemer, Jesus God's own Son, precious Lamb of God, Messiah, Holy One. Thank You, O my Father, for giving us Your Son, and leading Your Spirit to the work on earth is done. Jesus, my Redeemer, Name above all names, precious Lamb of God, Messiah, all for sinners lame.

Thank You, O my Father, for giving us Your Son, and leading Your Spirit to the work on earth is done. Thank You, O my Father, for giving us Your Son, and leading Your Spirit to the work on earth is done. Amen. Well, again, good evening, everybody. I hope that you're having a good week.

It is really important for us to make sure that we are trying to remember and to think through all the various events of the Passion Week as we think about such a momentous occasion, the work of our salvation, and our Savior as He makes His way in His devotion and His dedication to accomplish what is set up before Him.

Now, by way of review, we want to look back at what we've already covered. But starting from actually Saturday, what I'd like to highlight is on Saturday, Jesus is anointed. Jesus is anointed. We recall that Jesus is having a meal with His disciples and people gathered. And Mary comes and surprisingly lays oil on His head and on His feet.

And when some of the disciples get indignant and say, "What is this? What a waste," Jesus says, "Let her alone. This is for preparation of my burial." But that already cues what's about to happen. On Palm Sunday, Jesus enters into Jerusalem. But that entry, although it's typically called a triumphal entry, in many ways it was misunderstood.

Our Savior, who was being celebrated, yes, was also in tears, in tears at what the people were missing. On Monday, Jesus curses the fig tree and clears the temple. He curses the fruitless tree and He clears the fruitless temple. And in that way, He incites, so to speak, there is a clear just rebuke of all the practices that's been going on.

And within that, He also poses a threat to the people and their economy. And so, there is a reaction. On Tuesday then, in a broad summary, this is when Jesus is challenged. Jesus is being challenged by the leaders. Jesus is being challenged for His authority. Jesus is being challenged in many ways.

The leaders of the time, the Pharisees and the Sadducees, already are conspiring. They see Jesus as a major threat. And essentially, they have to take Him out. What I'd like to do is highlight that kind of conflict, the challenge that's rising, but also walk through together the movements of the things that happened on Tuesday.

So, beginning first with the first part of the things that happened on Tuesday. Movement 1. I call this the fig tree of little faith. The fig tree of little faith. Why? Because Jesus and the disciples, they are re-entering Jerusalem. So, one thing to keep in mind is that on Sunday, Jesus entered into Jerusalem.

But the disciples and Christ did not stay there. They essentially went out about a mile or two east to Bethany, where they rested. And then, the next morning, they came back. And then, so that actually happens several times. So, with the events that happened yesterday, yesterday, Jesus, you know, He cursed a tree because it was fruitless.

And then, they went into the city, they run into Jerusalem to clear the temple. And then, they went back in the evening. And then, they're on their way back. And on their way back, they revisit the tree. And what's very interesting and a little bit comedic about this scenario is that the disciples see the tree and they're surprised.

Like, "Look at this." And the scriptural passage talks about how the disciples saw and the tree was actually rotten from the ground up. From the very roots of the tree, it was withered. And so, when they looked upon this in Mark chapter 11, Peter says, "Rabbi, look. The fig tree that you cursed, it's withered." Okay?

So, when you look at this passage, there is almost like kind of a comedic sense because, of course, Christ the Savior, the one who is powerful, has made it so. Now, if you would, please turn your Bibles to Mark chapter 11, verse 20 through 25. And what we're going to do is just walk through these passages together again.

So, please have your Bibles ready. We'll read certain passages together. Let me read this for us. And it says, "As they were passing by in the morning, they saw the fig tree wither from the roots up. Being reminded, Peter said to him, 'Rabbi, look. The fig tree which you cursed has withered.' And Jesus answered, saying to them, 'Have faith in God.

Truly I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, 'Be taken up and cast into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says is going to happen, it will be granted to him. Therefore I say to you, all things for which you pray and ask, believe that you have received them, and they will be granted you.

Whenever you stand praying, forgive. If you have anything against anyone, so that your Father who is in heaven will also forgive you your transgression.'" Now, both things are surprising to me. Surprising in the sense that the disciples would see a tree and be so surprised. And what's more, Jesus' response simply, that immediately he would say, "Have faith in God." Now, from the disciples' standpoint, if you think about it, any miracle is astounding.

Sure, they've seen lots of miracles, but any miracle is astounding. He's taken a tree, perhaps, yes it wasn't bearing fruit, but a certain tree and has completely withered from the ground. Anybody would have replied with a sense of like, "Wow." But at the same time, Jesus replies with this, what seems like a little bit of an on-edge reply.

"Have faith in God," he says. I want you to take a moment to think about that from Jesus' perspective. When you see the disciples being so surprised by a small, I guess you could even say a minor miracle, it immediately points to the fact that perhaps they lost sight of the fact of all the grandiose things that Christ has already done.

I mean, just a few days ago, they were having dinner with Lazarus and people were coming from afar just to see him. This is a Savior who has calmed the storm with a rebuke. He commands the storm. And so in a sense, Jesus, in seeing their surprise, is strengthening their faith and saying, "You are about to see even greater, more drastic things in the next coming days." Surprised at this?

Have faith. You need to strengthen your faith. Now, as I think about this, Jesus' love for the disciples is absolutely patient. We were reflecting on this from the Sunday sermon. God's love is so patient. Christ's love here is instructively patient. Because what their surprise shows you is a little bit of the little faith.

To think that if Christ said it on one day that it wouldn't be so the next day, or just to be surprised by that, it shows a little bit of that smallness of faith. And to think about this, in Christ's eyes then, He is instructing them, "Listen, what you think is so astounding, remember what God can do, essentially." And He has to repeat this over and over with His disciples.

For you parents out there, you know the feeling, right? How many times do you have to repeat a certain lesson to your children? How many times do you have to say the same thing? How many times do you have to show them and instruct them and guide them and do the same process of activity or whatever it may be to help them get it?

Jesus Christ is always being patient with their little faith. Now, I want to take a brief moment to talk about our faith. Because truthfully speaking, our faith can be very weak. Why? Because we often live by sight. Because we often live by the things that we see in the moment.

Have you ever been incredibly discouraged because of the failures you see? The disappointments that you see in others? And oftentimes the disappointments that you see in yourself. Sometimes I hear, even in my own internal voice, or I even hear from the people that I talk to, that perhaps because of the trail of failure and the trail of sin that they see with their eyes, they say something to the extent of, "Oh, goodness, this is just the way it's going to be.

I'm helpless. I'm such a failure. Beyond the help of others." But, brothers and sisters, we have a Christ who can take a dead person and make a life. And in some sense, when we fellowship with our brothers and sisters in Christ, we are literally having a meal with the resurrected, right?

I mean, it would have been such an incredible experience to have a meal with Lazarus. But spiritually, we do that when we fellowship. We see people who, by faith, they have been made new. And that oftentimes is expressed and it's visible. And for us, then, we have to maintain this kind of encouragement of our faith.

Do not be discouraged by what you see, especially in thinking about the days to come. We believe in a God who can not only move mountains, He can move it up, move it down, He could do that again if He wanted to. He can squash and level every single mountain that exists in a word.

And we know that in the days or future days, the things that we know and see is going to be burnt up by the Word of God. To be amazed at such little thing, it would only expose how little our faith is. Thanks be to Christ because His love is instructively very patient.

Now moving forward to the second movement. The second part of today and Tuesday is that, again, on their way from Bethany back into Jerusalem, they actually make it in and immediately they're met by the challenge from the leaders. And I do this quote purposely because these are supposed to be the religious leaders who are able to see what are the desires of God, the will of God.

They're supposed to be the ones in tune with the times and the seasons. They're supposed to be guiding the people. They're supposed to also be aware who could be this Messiah to come. I mean, leaders, okay? The leaders come together, join forces to confront Jesus Christ. Take your Bibles.

Let's all go to Matthew chapter 21, starting from verse 23. Again, Matthew 21, starting from verse 23. The passage says, When He entered the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to Him while He was teaching and said, "By what authority are you doing these things?

And who gave you this authority?" Jesus said to them, "I will also ask you one thing, which if you tell Me, I will also tell you by what authority I do these things." The baptism of John was from what source? From heaven or from men? And they began reasoning among themselves, saying, "Hmm, if we say from heaven, He will say to us, 'Then why did you not believe Him?' But if we say from men, we fear the people, for they will all regard John as a prophet." And answering Jesus, they said, "We don't know." He also said to them, "Neither will I tell you by what authority do I do these things." Wow!

What an incredible exchange. I mean, the scheming of the people, right? The religious leaders. This is a scenario in which these many questions, the unanswerable questions, the kind of, you know, can't win one way and can't win the other way, the questions that were intended to trap Jesus come out.

They ask Him questions about the tax. "Tell me, is it right to pay Caesar's, or is it right not to pay?" And Jesus says, "Whose image is on this coin?" Right? These are times when the questions of the marriage in heaven, if one brother is married and that brother dies, and then marries another brother and that brother dies, then whose wife is she?

And Jesus answers them. "You don't understand because you don't know the Scriptures. Do you even know what heaven is like?" And then they ask Him about the great commandments. These are the questions that they throw at Him as an attempt to try to capture Him. And all of these questions kind of summarize into an attack.

"Jesus Christ, what authority do you have to do any of this stuff? What authority do you have to come into the temple? What authority do you have to claim who you are?" At this point, they're challenging Him and saying, "You don't have any authority and we're going to prove it!" They're hell-bent on proving that whether spiritually, intellectually, or even by His pedigree, Jesus Christ is not worthy.

What's pretty incredible is the way Jesus responds, right? Jesus meets the challenge with incredible authority. Incredible, pointed, piercing truth. And He actually directs it at them. Jesus Christ points to their inconsistency. Jesus Christ points even to their internal heart. "Were you even wanting to follow the Lord?" And in His response, because we don't have time to walk through all of it, in your passage, in your Bibles, this section will run all the way from chapter 21 to chapter 25.

And within it, Jesus uses parables. Talking about two sons and one of them being rebellious to the point where he has no intention of obeying the father. But what's crazy is not only does He use parables, He used direct statements. If you would turn your eyes to verse 31, halfway into the passage there, halfway into the verse, I'll start reading.

Okay, Matthew 21, verse 31. Jesus says, "Truly I say to you, that the tax collectors and the prostitutes will get into the kingdom of God before you. For John came to you in a way of righteousness, and you did not believe him. But the tax collectors and the prostitutes did believe him, and you seeing this did not even feel remorse afterwards, so as to believe." Wow!

What direct authoritative correction and rebuke. If I could paraphrase his words, it's like seeing you leaders. You think you're first in the kingdom, but you're going to be last, last beyond all of these. That's right, even the prostitutes, even the tax collectors whom you hate. The thing about it is, why, you ask me about my authority?

Do you ask me because you want to actually learn? Do you ask me because you care to follow that authority? No, you didn't. You had no intention of following. You didn't even blush. That's the kind of poignant, authoritative rebuke Jesus gives the people. And upon parable, upon parable, and upon direct condemnation and correction, Jesus rebukes their behavior of hypocrisy, of complete negligence of God.

If you would even then turn your eyes to verse 43, Jesus says this. He kind of concludes another section by saying, "Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you, and given to a people who will produce its fruits." Wow! Scroll down to verse 45, and it talks about the chief priests and the Pharisees.

And it says, "When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard his parables, they understood that he was speaking about them. When they sought to seize him, they feared the people, because they considered him to be a prophet." Take a moment now to think about these religious leaders, the Pharisees, the priests, the chief of them.

They were enraged. I mean, it would be an understatement to say that they were livid. I mean, they were so angry. They were tempted with violence. They wanted to grab him. They publicly beat him. But because there was such a crowd, they couldn't do it. It's quite the intense scene.

Rage filled them. And I would imagine these religious leaders, they weren't just young newbies within the field, so to speak. A lot of them are generational, right? They had this position and title for generations. And so they're probably raised up in it. They've probably been in it for a while.

And even just legally, they weren't allowed to go in as a young individual. There were certain time points when they could go in. And so if you think about it, a lot of them are probably looking at Jesus, thinking, "You little boy, how dare you?" They're probably looking at Jesus like, "Who is this young punk coming to tell us and correct us?" I want you to take a moment and just remember that Jesus Christ, at the time of his death, was probably around the age of 33, give or take a year or two.

And so think about this. In our church, we have guys who are that age. Just a shout-out to David Jung. Happy birthday. Today's your birthday, and I think you're turning 33. This is crazy. And think about Jesus as not necessarily this old sage who has the kind of aura that everyone's looking at him like, "Wow." For a lot of people, he's a young man.

They know where he's from. He's from Nazareth. They knew the family, so to speak, the carpenters, right? They knew. And so a lot of them did not honor him as some wise individual. They saw him as a boy. "What are you doing?" I mean, if you could imagine being a young man and going to rebuke the likes of, let's say, John Piper or something, the likes of Ligon Duncan or John MacArthur and these individuals who've been walking the faith and teaching and teaching, and the masses of people are following the teaching, and you come on on scene and you rebuke them, you've been dead wrong all your life.

That would be the scenery. And so you can imagine the rage. And what's more, legally speaking, you recall that in the Old Testament prescription, when there were children, younger individuals who did not honor the hierarchy, who did not honor, let's say, sons who did not obey the fathers, there was permission that those individuals would receive corporal punishment.

And so perhaps they thought it was in their privy and right to grab this young man and just let him have it. These Pharisees then were bent on making sure Jesus learned his lesson. But the reason why I'm talking about this is because some might wonder, like, he was already clearly walking, and even Jesus points out this hypocrisy, saying, "I was with you.

Was I not teaching here and was I not teaching there?" But in a sense, this is when it got so personal for the Pharisees. Jesus was a threat to everything they built. Jesus was a threat to their reputation. Jesus was a threat to their leadership. Jesus was a threat to their economy.

This was a threat to them as a whole. So I want you to think about that for a moment and to think about us. You do not have to be a Pharisee for Jesus to be a threat to you. You simply have to play this worldly game. If you are playing this worldly game to win, to gain prestige, to be a leader in this world, to gain financial prowess, and you think you're winning this game, Jesus Christ is a massive threat to you.

He is. Because Jesus is going to show you that you have built your house on an absolute sand pile. You have a house of cards, and just with one breath, it's going to be done. And Christ entering into your life is going to be that threat. We have to ask ourselves, are we so different from the Pharisees, who see Christ as such a nuisance, as such an annoyance?

So when Christ gives them these corrections, it would be to them such a correction. Let's take a moment, too, also to think from Jesus' perspective. When you read that Matthew account, starting from chapter 21 through 25, you will see many woes. You will see many, many indictments. "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees." "You washed the outside." "You whitewashed tombs." And there are so many things that are incredible rebukes.

There's a question to ask, just so that we can reflect. Was Jesus being too harsh with these Pharisees? If you think from Jesus' perspective, He is seeing the religious leaders who, yes, they have quite a power in a human sense. They're coming at Him with wicked intent. They're coming at Him with malice.

They're coming to put Him down, and they hate Him. What would be the loving thing for Christ to do to them? What would be the merciful thing for Christ to do for them? You know what's incredible? Is thinking about the fact that these woes and warnings of corruption are actually then, to the Pharisees, what they exactly need.

When Christ says to them and points out where they're going wrong, that is actually what they need to be saved. You know what's also incredible? Just to comment on this, and then we're going to pass it by. There's an incredible encouragement that eventually we find that one of these religious leaders, Nicodemus, I don't know where he is on this scene.

If he's on the side going, "Oh my goodness, he said what?" I'm not sure if he's part of them standing behind the religious leaders, or if he's on the side and he doesn't know where to stand. But thankfully, Nicodemus is one. After seeing all that's happened, after Christ's death and resurrection, we find his name of those who believe and walk with the disciples.

Now, the last part of this, for this day on Tuesday, movement number three, is that Jesus continues to teach with authority. He teaches authoritatively about subject matters that you can't teach unless you have that kind of power. What is he teaching about? He's actually teaching about the end times.

He's teaching about the things to come. He's teaching about the things of which we know nothing because we do not have the ability to see that far. The movement intensifies with the conflict of the leaders, and as they go back away from Jerusalem towards Mount of Olives, the disciples see the glory of the city, and Jesus uses that as an opportunity to teach.

If you want to summarize Tuesday in another way, it's lecture day. Jesus is teaching extensively. Jesus is answering questions. Jesus is giving them lessons about what's to come. Please turn your eyes to Matthew 24, verse 1. Matthew 24, verse 1. And he says this. Jesus came out from the temple and was going away when his disciples came up to a point out of the temple building to him.

And he said to them, "Do you not see all these things? Truly I say to you, not one stone here will be left upon another, which will not be torn down." As he was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately saying, "Tell us, when will these things happen?

And what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?" And Jesus answered and said to them, "See to it that no one misleads you. For many will come in my name saying, 'I am the Christ,' and will mislead many. You will be hearing of wars and rumors of wars.

See that you are not frightened, for those things must take place. But that is not yet the end. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and in various places there will be famines and earthquakes. But all these things are merely the beginnings of birth pains. Then they will deliver you to tribulation, and will kill you, and you will be hated by all nations because of my name.

At that time, many will fall away, and will betray one another, and hate one another. Many false prophets will arise and will mislead many. Because lawlessness is increased, most people's love will grow cold. But the one who endures to the end, he will be saved. This gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all the nations.

And then the end will come." Jesus, at this time, Jesus is preparing them. John chapters 12 and 4, Jesus is preparing his disciples about his departure. But in Jesus' loving kindness and his loving patience, he's instructing them about things to come even beyond that. And as he does so, something caught my attention.

Jesus says that they are not to be frightened at the sight of these things. He actually says, "See to it that you are not alarmed." We are going to see things, right? And he's telling the disciples, "You are going to see things with your eyes. That's going to absolutely tempt you to be alarmed." Naturally so.

The disciples are going to see in just a few days the alarming frenzy of the masses, the nonsensical hatred of their Savior, the most innocent man, the man who's been healing and tending to everybody who would come. People would--the disciples, the whole nation would see incredible things in the days to come.

But Jesus points and says, "You're going to see even things for you." People are going to hate you, and they're going to kill you. We have to hear these words and remember these words. Because for the disciples themselves, their expectations-- their expectations were going to be completely thrown out the window.

"Wait, what? You don't mean we're all going to get little thrones next to yours? What is this?" And truthfully speaking, my observation about our generation, about sometimes my own heart, is that genuinely I am surprised by any kind of suffering. We live in a generation where genuinely we're sometimes shocked by when things fail.

When our enterprise fails, when our systems fail, when our community fails, when our families fail. We're shook and embittered by disappointments in our lives. And it seems as though we don't know how to deal with things, and so we're beset with ongoing wishful thinking. "God, say it ain't so!

Why would you do this to us?" But we remember Jesus already told them, and he told us. We were supposed to anticipate the hardship. We were supposed to anticipate the suffering. And the reason why I talk about this is because it has been such a spiritual challenge for me.

I have to keep sober. If I am following through these events, and I put myself in the place of the disciples, I am absolutely challenged. And I'm almost speaking to the disciples from through the passage, "Guys, you have to stay alert. You can't be bickering with each other. You can't be like, 'Whoa, look at that tree!' You've got to pay attention.

You're going to see things with your eyes as incredible and so different from what you expected. And you're not going to know how to deal with it. You're not going to know what to do." And so now, because I have the privilege of being able to flip the page, I have to stay sober.

My heart is at unease. My heart is worried. What's to come? What are we going to see in the next days? But remember, we, by the privilege of knowing God Almighty, we already have assurance, steadfast hope. It is for us to not walk by sight, but to walk by faith after our Lord.

Let's take a moment to pray. Heavenly Father, God, we thank you so much. We see your love, not simply as, God, just the Creator, which is amazing, but here intimately as the discipler, the teacher, the master of the disciples. We know, Father God, from the scriptural accounts, you sat with the disciples to teach them.

Father God, we know, Father Lord, that you're trying to prepare them because you love them. And it stirs you inside knowing that the enemy is trying to scatter us, intentionally, meticulously, scheming to attack those who are yours. But we thank you so much, God, that you protect and guard us.

Would you grant to us, especially during this Easter week, as we follow the events of history, a kind of sobriety and a sense of the need for it. I pray, Father God, that we would truly be on alert and we would be steadfast. Help us, Lord, to exercise our faith.

What's more, God, I pray that in this season, when there is perhaps much to complain about, perhaps much to grieve and much to worry, I pray, Father God, nevertheless, you grant to us thankful hearts for the great sacrifice and the great work of salvation you have accomplished. We thank you, Lord.

It's in Christ's name we pray. Amen. 2 Corinthians 5.21 says, "He made him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf." And just in response to what we heard through Pastor Mark's devotional and 2 Corinthians 5.21, I'd like us to just sing and reflect on just Jesus, our Messiah.

He became sin, who knew no sin, that we might become His righteousness and humble themselves and carry the cross. Love so amazing, love so amazing, Jesus, Messiah. Name above all names, blessed Redeemer, Emmanuel. The rescue for sinners, the ransom from heaven, Jesus, Messiah. Lord of all, He became sin, who knew no sin.

He became sin, who knew no sin, that we might become His righteousness and humble themselves and carry the cross. Love so amazing, love so amazing, Jesus, Messiah. Name above all names, blessed Redeemer, Emmanuel. The rescue for sinners, the ransom from heaven, Jesus, Messiah. Lord of all, His body, the bread.

His body, the bread, His blood, the wine. Broken and poured out, all for love. The whole earth trembled and the veil was torn. Love so amazing, love so amazing, Jesus, Messiah. Name above all names, blessed Redeemer, Emmanuel. The rescue for sinners, the ransom from heaven, Jesus, Messiah. Lord of all, all our hope is in You.

All our hope is in You. All the glory to You, God, the light of the world. Jesus, Messiah. Name above all names, blessed Redeemer, Emmanuel. The rescue for sinners, the ransom from heaven, Jesus, Messiah. Lord of all. The rescue for sinners, the ransom from heaven, Jesus, Messiah. Lord of all.

Lord, we are thankful that You've come. And we are so thankful, Lord, that You've called us, and that by Your grace that we've responded in faith and accepted the free gift of salvation. We pray that as we walk through the remainder of this week, Father, by the end, when we're celebrating Your resurrection, would You overflow our hearts with immense gratitude and deeper trust in Your sovereign purpose and in Your kindness.

Lord, help us indeed to walk by faith and not by sight. So we pray that You would guard our hearts, transform our thinking, so that it would be more in line with the purposes of Your will. We love You, Lord. We thank You. We pray these things in Jesus' name.

Amen. All right. See you tomorrow. (upbeat music)