We'll be reading from the 143rd Psalm, if you'd like to join me in your Bibles. Psalm number 143. Alright, Psalm number 143, beginning at verse 7. Hear me speedily, O Lord, my spirit faileth. Hide not thy face from me, lest I be like unto them that go down into the pit. Cause me to hear Thy lovingkindness in the morning, for in Thee do I trust. Cause me to know the way wherein I should walk, for I lift up my soul unto Thee. Deliver me, O Lord, from mine enemies. I flee unto Thee to hide me. Teach me to do Thy will, for Thou art my God. Thy Spirit is good. Lead me into the land of the uprightness. Quicken, revive me, is what that's saying. Quicken me, O Lord, for Thy name's sake, for Thy righteousness' sake. Bring my soul out of trouble. and of thy mercy cut off mine enemies and destroy all them that afflict my soul for I am thy servant.

Take your handouts if you would. Our text will be in Matthew chapter 26 if you want to open your Bibles to that. We'll be reading our text this evening from our Bibles, but everything else is in the handout. And I want to begin with that. You'll notice right underneath the Gospel according to Matthew part 85, you'll notice a question mark in the parentheses. Some of you may recognize it. I put a title in there. That's one of the ways I consider and put together the messages that God lays on my heart. I like to consider a title, something that kind of sets the table for what we're about to look at. And you'll notice there's a question mark there, and the first paragraph explains that.

As I considered the theme or the subject for tonight's study, several titles ran through my mind. For instance, An Exceedingly Sorrowful Soul, or Thy Will, or One Way. And there were several others as well, but one jumped out at me, and it's from these verses, the second paragraph of page 1, where we read from Romans 5, verse 17-21, for if by one man's offense, death reigned by one, much more, they which receive abundance of grace.

Now that's very, very important. Much more then, much more, they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one Jesus Christ. Therefore, now because of that, because of that, therefore as by the offense of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation, even so by the righteousness of one Folks, this is so important. The free gift which was added today by the translators came upon all men unto justification of life. For as by one man's disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous. Moreover, the law entered that the offense might abound, but where sin abounded, grace did much more abound. That as sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our Lord.

By the obedience of one. That's my title. That's the title that jumped out and grabbed ahold of me. Kathy's laughing at me because I told her she had to come to the study tonight to figure out what that question mark was. You can leave now.

By the obedience of one. That's my title tonight. I want to bring before you tonight a message the Lord has laid on my heart about the obedience of one.

Last paragraph of page one. As many of you know through the messages brought before you over the last several months, and by my personal sharing of these things with you, with some of you, I've been hounded, persecuted for not spending more time, not putting a sufficient emphasis on the obedience of men brought on by the Holy Spirit's indwelling in God's elect. Now I want to stop there for a moment because I don't want to pass this over. The Spirit of God, indwelling in His people, brings His people to the knowledge of God's love for us. And because of God's love for us, we love Him back and desire. Notice I said desire. I did not say we are competent, sufficient, or anything that would show that we are successful in it all. But we have a desire in our hearts to obey our God.

We do not deny the teachings of man's responsibility. Back in our handout, continuing on. We do not deny the teachings of man's responsibility. Scripture clearly teaches both. And maybe I do err on how much emphasis I give. when it comes to that subject. But I'll tell you this, I would rather err and come up short on the teaching of man's responsibility than come up short on God's grace in saving His loved ones from their sins.

The Lord warns us over and over of man's nature in turning from grace and leaning on the flesh. That's where religion has gone wrong. I was talking with a pastor earlier today about how Jacob's sons did not learn from him to trust in rituals that they were doing. But eventually, at some point through the time that had come down through the ages, the religion, the truth, had been perverted. And I believe this is what Jude was talking about when Jude said about men who were ordained of old to creep into the church and turn the word of God into lasciviousness. I believe that's what this is.

Over the years, From Jacob all the way to the day the Lord walked this earth, the Jewish religion was perverted from the truth at the time of Jacob to what it is today. Nothing but ritualism. Nothing but man's worshipping men in what they do. That's what religion has gone wrong, back in our handout. They have become religions of men. Their emphasis has become the obedience of man. They neglect these words of Romans 8, verse 3, for what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh.

Page 2. Man by nature will leave the obedience of one. As the Lord allows me, I will continue to put all my focus from God's Word towards His Son. I remember a very wise man the Lord has brought into my life, another pastor who once said something to this effect. The point, all these other things that people want to talk about, that's not the point. The point is, what did he think of Christ? That's always the point. And that's what I hope the Lord will give me the ability to focus on from his word until the Lord takes me out of this world. Who is he? What has he done? And where is he now? That's exactly what our text in Matthew is all about. Christ and Him crucified by the obedience of one.

Would you look with me in your Bibles at Matthew chapter 26, beginning at verse 36. Now just a recap of what we've looked at already. The Lord has had the Lord's Supper. He has declared to His faithful servant Peter that Peter will fall. Peter will deny the Lord three times before the cock crows in the morning. And Peter stood right up to the Lord's face and told Him, I will not do that. Isn't that interesting? This faithful man, this faithful servant of God falling. I'm so thankful the Lord shows us these things. I'm so thankful for that. It reminds me that my weaknesses is just like all of mankind's weaknesses. We all come to that very point where we think, oh, I'm much better than that. I would never do that. Oh, Lord, help us.

Beginning at verse 36, the Lord inspired Matthew to write these words. He said, then cometh Jesus with them unto a place called Gethsemane. And saith unto the disciples, sit ye here while I go and pray yonder. And he took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee and began to be sorrowful and very heavy. Our Lord became very sorrowful and very heavy. Then saith he unto them, my soul is exceeding sorrowful. Even unto death, tarry ye here and watch with me. That was exceeding sorrowful. That was what I thought might be the title at first, but I'm glad I came up with that other one.

And he went a little further and fell on his face and prayed, saying, O Father, if it be possible, what? Our Lord is praying what? If it be possible, he said, let this cup pass from me. Now remember, our title and our subject is the obedience of one. But look at these next words. Nevertheless, not as I will, but as thou. And that word wilt is actually, you'll notice it's in italics, and that was added on by the interpreters once again.

Verse 40, and he cometh unto the disciples, and findeth them asleep, and saith unto Peter, what, could ye not watch with me one hour? Watch and pray that ye enter not into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak. And he went away again the second time and prayed, saying, O my father, if this cup may not pass away from me except I drink it, thy will be done. And he came and found them asleep again, for their eyes were heavy. And he left them and went away again and prayed the third time, saying the same words. Then cometh he to his disciples, and saith unto them, Sleep on now, and take your rest. Behold, the hour is at hand, and the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. Verse 46, rise, let us be going. Behold, he is at hand that doth betray me.

Now, I can't cover all of that in tonight's lesson. So we're going to go through at least one point tonight. And I may come back, like I said, I thought I might come back to the other part of the verses last week. Well, pray for me again, and we might come back to this.

I want to begin tonight by quoting from our brother Don Fortner on this subject, on these scriptures that we just read. He said this, he said, as we follow the Lord Jesus Christ into Gethsemane, let us do with great reverence And then he says this, gratitude and wonder. Aren't you thankful for his obedience unto his Father? I've shared this with you before. This is the part of Scripture that is almost like sweet and sour Chinese food. It's got a sweetness to it, but yet a bitterness as well. Bitterness that my sins had to be put on my Lord, but a sweetness, that they did. For if they hadn't been put on Him, I'd still be deep in owing the debt of my sins.

" Listen to what Robert Hawker wrote. He says, we have here Christ's entrance upon His sufferings in the Garden of Gethsemane. The whole life of Jesus had been a life of sorrow for and of Him, and Him only. By way of emphasis, can it not be said that He was a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief? But here he is entering more especially upon the great work of sorrow for which he became the surety of his people. And here it is, therefore, that we need most eminently the teaching of God the Holy Ghost. I am aware how very little away our discoveries carry us. when following the steps of Jesus by faith into the Garden of Gethsemane, if Peter, James, and John, whom Christ took with Him there, fell under such drowsiness as is described, how shall we hope to watch the footsteps of Jesus to this great discovery of such an awful scene?

Nevertheless, looking up from the teachings and leadings of the Holy Ghost, I would beg the reader to accompany me in the following by faith, the Lord Jesus to Gethsemane's garden in this dark and gloomy hour. And may the Lord be our teacher in beholding the glory of Christ, even in the depth of his soul's travail. when he drank the cup of trembling to the dregs that we might drink the cup of salvation and call upon the name of the Lord.

Folks, as we read this passage, last paragraph, page two, we must remember that everything our Lord Jesus did and all that he suffered was as the surety and representative of his elect. whom He came into the world to save. Remember we read earlier in Matthew, He would be called Jesus, for He shall save His people. That fact should fill us with reverence adoration and should keep us from vain curiosity, page three.

Again, I quote from our brother Don, if it were possible for a man to remove a deadly virus from his wife by drawing it unto himself, I cannot imagine her trying to figure out the chemical and biological reactions of his body and mind as he suffered and died with her disease. Somehow, such curiosity would seem out of place, wouldn't it? It would be far more reverent, far more honoring to her husband for her to simply adore his great love for her.

You know, I've mentioned this before, and we're going to talk a little bit about it tonight. I don't understand. And I've had some of the best preachers I know try to explain it to me. But my mind just cannot comprehend the fact that my Lord, the One who knew no sin, was made sin for me. That I would be made the righteousness of God in Him. I can't understand that. I don't need to sit down and figure out the chemical reasons why that happened or how that happened. The fact is that it happened, and the thing that I adore about it is that He did it for me because He loves me. Do you get what I'm saying about that? Maybe that's why I can't understand how. Maybe that's why when people explain it to me, my mind almost shuts off. Because the only thing I can comprehend in that is the love that my God has for me, that He would do such a thing.

Back in our handout, page 3, as we read of this part of that great event, do we not swell up? from the great love that God has for us? Does not the great leant God has gone to to remove what we deserve, cause one to bow in adoration to Him who first loved us? Let us therefore reverently remember and adore our Savior's great love for us and draw from His agony and Gethsemane some practical lessons by which we may honor Him who loved us and gave Himself for us.

No man can express in words the agony of the holy, sinless Son of the living God, our Redeemer, what He endured at the prospect of being made sin for us, that agony that He went through, that is altogether beyond our human imagination. I will not attempt to explain what appears to be a conflict between human and divine wills of our Savior in this point. It's simply sufficient for us to know that He is perfectly God and perfectly man. And I leave these points alone. Because I know that any attempt of mine to explain them would only darken the counsel by words about knowledge, as Job puts it in 38 verse 2. Yet what our Savior endured and did in Gethsemane is recorded by divine inspiration for our comfort, for our learning, that we might walk in His steps

The first thing for us to consider in these verses is the fact that there is absolutely no way for the holy, just, and true God to forgive sin and save sinners apart from the sin-atoning death of His own dear Son as our substitute. Why was our Lord so sorrowful? Why was His heart so heavy? Why was his soul so troubled as it says there in verse 38? My soul is exceeding sorrowful. Why did he fall on his face and cry out to his father three times with strong crying and tears? What is the meaning of the bloody sweat or the sore amazement and the astonishment that is described by the other Gospel writers?

Page 4. Why is the Almighty, the omnipotent Son of God, so apparently helpless here? Why is that One who by a single word raised the dead, that One who performed astonishing miracles for multitudes, suddenly disturbed and cast down in His own soul? Why is the Lord Jesus, who came into this world to die for sinners by the will of God, suddenly filled with agony and astonishment?

Any thoughtful consideration of these questions forces an honest man to recognize this without the shedding of blood is no remission. Hebrews 9, verse 22. Second paragraph, page 4. God demands perfection. He is holy and cannot even look upon anything that is left. That is the reason why it is impossible for the cup of God's wrath to pass from His darling Son. God Almighty could not forgive sin. He could not save His people without the shedding of Christ's precious blood. God cannot save sinners. apart from the satisfaction of justice.

Listen to these words from Romans 3.24, being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus whom God has set forth to be a propitiation through faith in His blood, to declare His righteousness for the remission of sins that are passed through the forbearance of God, to declare, I say at this time, His righteousness that He might be just and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus. Therefore, Christ had to die. I stand with my brethren who believe the weight that is pressed, that pressed heavily upon our Redeemer's soul was not the prospect of death by crucifixion, but the prospect of being made sin for us.

For He hath made Him sin for us who knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him. 1 Peter 2 verse 24, we read these words, "...who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live under righteousness, by whose stripes ye are healed." Live under his righteousness, not ours. Folks, we have no righteousness of our own.

One of the first things God brings us to understand when we... I was talking to his sister earlier about prayer. The thing the Lord does is He cuts our legs out from underneath us. What did He do to Paul on the road to Damascus? He made him go blind. He put scales over his eyes so he couldn't see. He cut his legs out from underneath him. Oh, Lord, show us. How are we going to look up to the Lord if we're standing up there already on our own? If we think we have our own worth to stand on? You've got to be brought low. You've got to be brought down. This is what it's talking about here in 1 Peter 2, verse 24, who his own self bearer sends in his own body on the tree that we, being dead to sin, should live unto righteousness by whose stripes we are healed. Unto His righteousness. No mere man, not even, last paragraph, page 4, no mere man, even an angel of God can imagine what that must have been like to his holy soul. I can't imagine my own sins being laid on Him, let alone the sins of all of His people. As He anticipated being sent for us, our Savior said, My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death. Again, I quote from Brother Don, the sorrow of His soul was the very soul of His sorrow. Page 5. What was the cause of this great heaviness? and sorrow, this grief and agony of our blessed Redeemer soul. What was it that crushed our Master's heart? What so greatly disturbed Him? It simply was not the fear of physical pain. It certainly was not that. It was not the fear of death or even the fear of dying upon the cross. It was not death on the cross that our Redeemer agonized over in Gethsemane. He stated very emphatically that He came for that very purpose of dying as our substitute upon the cursed tree. Every time He spoke of dying, He spoke of being raised again on the third day. He wasn't afraid of dying. Might we read back in our handout, first paragraph, page 5, might we read the record of our Savior's agony here in light of his earlier temptation in the wilderness. After that temptation, Satan left him for a season, it says, as if wanting, as if awaiting to return for another opportunity to assault him. That's recorded in Luke chapter 4, verse 13. In Gethsemane, the prince of this world launched his final assault upon the Lord Jesus. Just as He assaulted the first Adam in the Garden of Eden, He assaulted the last Adam in the Garden of Gethsemane. In Gethsemane, the serpent bruised the heel of the woman's seed, and in Gethsemane, the woman's seed again overthrew His assault. It was the enormous load of our sin and guilt that crushed our Savior's heart in Gethsemane. The heavy, heavy burden which crushed his very soul was the enormous load of sin and guilt, the sin and guilt of all of God's elect which was about to be made his. J.C. Ryle wrote, it was a sense of unutterable weight of our sins and transgressions which were then especially laid upon him. He who is the only man who really knows what sin is, the only man who sees sin as God, was about to be made sin. He who is the holy, harmless, undefiled Lamb of God was about to be made a curse for His people. The Holy Son of God was about to be forsaken by His Father. You know, we talk about the fact that God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit are one. Yet God the Father turned His back. My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me? Isn't that what He said? Isn't that what our Lord said when His Father could no longer look upon Him? I thought about that as I was putting this together. You know, our Lord didn't say a word. He never turned the accusations that were made against Him in that monkey court. He never refuted them. He never said a word. Why? Because They were all made His. That grabs a hold of me at times. And it shakes this poor sinner harder than I can deal with. The Holy Son of God was about to be forsaken by His Father. Last paragraph of page 5, Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, began to be sore amazed, as it states in Mark 14, verse 33. To be in great astonishment is what that means. And he was that way at the sight of all the sins of his people coming upon him. As I stated a moment ago, mine alone would be enough for such agony, yet this was all of his elect. Everyone for whom he chose to have mercy upon. Page 6. Again, I quote from our brother Don, the Lord gifted that man with a way to write just like he did with Robert Hawker. I'm not ashamed to put these in here. Again, I quote from Brother Don Kortner, 1st paragraph, page 6, "...the black storm of divine wrath gathering thick over him, the sword of justice about to be drawn against him, and the curses of God's holy law and inflexible justice about to be poured out upon him when he would be made sin for us." In consideration of these things, our Savior began to be very heavy. That which crushed our Savior's very heart and soul was the very thing for which He came into the world, the prospect of what He must endure as our substitute. Those for whom the Lord Jesus was made sin, for whom He suffered and died, are most assuredly made the righteousness of God in Him and shall be saved by His almighty grace. And that brings me back to this. By the obedience of one shall many be made righteous. Be assured, folks, the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ shall accomplish what it was purposed for. All for whom the Son of God died under the wrath of God shall be saved by the grace of God. His blood was not shed in vain. Do we not read these words in Isaiah 53, verse 10 through 12? Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise Him He hath put him to grief. When thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hands. What is the pleasure of the Lord? To save his people. To save his people by the obedient ones. He shall see the travail Isn't that what we're looking at tonight? Isn't that what we read in these texts? The travail of his soul? And he shall be satisfied. By his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many, for he shall bear their iniquities. Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoiled with the strong, because he hath poured out his soul unto death. and he was numbered with the transgressors and he bare the sin of many and made intercession for the transgressors. All this was done for one purpose, God's will. For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats should take away sins, wherefore when he cometh into the world he sayeth sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not This next part of this verse is becoming my most favorite one of all time. But a body hast thou prepared for me. God prepared the eternal Son of God, His darling Son, His only begotten Son, a body that He might dwell in on this earth and walk in perfect righteousness, and then being made sin, our sin, He would go to that cross and do what? Die. Lay down His life. shed His blood for all those for whom He is loved with an everlasting love. In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin, Al has had no pleasure. Folks, those things never did anything, but point us They never did anything but give us in this world, in this earth, a picture of the blood and the body that would accomplish exactly what God's will is, and that is that Christ should lose none. Isn't that what we read in the book of John? What is the Father's will? Is that He should lose none. Then said I, Lo, I come in the volume of the book it is written of Me. Oh how I like to take those words and show them to those who say Christ is not in the Old Testament. This is about the volume of the book before the New Testament was even finished. This is the Old Testament writings right here. In the volume of the book it is written of me. To do what? We're talking about the obedient one. The very one who is obedient unto God the Father, the very one that God the Father, the only one that God the Father said, this is my only begotten Son in whom I am well pleased.

to do thy will, O God. Above, when he said, sacrifice and offering, been offering and offering for sin, thou wouldst not neither hadst pleasure therein, which are offered by the law. Then said he, lo, I come to do thy will, O God. He taketh away the first, that he may establish the second. The first covenant was, do this, do that, and you shall be saved. And man cannot do it. Christ came in the words of the second covenant. Do this and my people shall be saved. And that's exactly what Christ did.

That He may establish the second by the which will we are sanctified, set apart, made holy through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ. And then these last words are so important. Once. Do you grasp that? Can you get a hold of this? Jesus Christ only had to do it once, folks. When He said it's finished, it's finished. When God does something, it's done. Aren't you thankful? If He required me to do anything, I'd mess it up. My obedience is so full of sin that how could He ever look upon my obedience as pleasing to Himself? The only thing pleasing in Me is His Son who has brought me to believe on Him.

That was Hebrews 10, verses 4-10. Going on, 2nd paragraph, page 7. The Lord Jesus was the only one who was obedient. He was obedient even unto the cross as we read in Philippians 2, verses 5-8. Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus, who being in the form of God, How could anything take away from what God hath done? If it could, He wouldn't be God. We'd be wasting our time. But our Lord, who being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, He was obedient. He humbled himself. He took upon himself the form of a servant and was made in the likeness of men and being found in the fashion as a man, he humbled himself and became what? There it is. There's our subject matter. There's the one right there who is obedient.

And guess what? Unto death, even the death of the cross. The people of God take our stand on the obedience of one. For our all in all, because of His obedience, we are made the righteousness of God. in Him. Not one iota of our doings has anything to do with our standing before God. Only one who sees themselves as no longer a sinner would think differently than that. And I can tell you, I don't know a single one of God's people who don't see themselves as sinners worse now than they were before they knew God.

Because of His obedience, second to the last paragraph, page 7. Because of His obedience, wherefore God also hath highly exalted Him. What does it say in 1 Corinthians 1, verses 29-31, I think it is. He who is glorious, let him glory in the Lord. Wherefore God also hath highly exalted Him, and given Him a name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow of things in heaven and things in earth and things under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.

Wherefore, because of that, because our Lord has exalted His Son above all things, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now as much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God which worketh in you, both to will and to do his good pleasure. Any good that comes from this flesh. It is God which worketh in me, both to will and to do of His good pleasure.