We'll be reading several verses
from Exodus chapter 12 if you'd like to turn there and I encourage
you to. Exodus chapter 12. Last Sunday we observed the Lord's
Supper and we read these verses in Matthew 26 about that ordinance,
the Lord's Supper. You hold your place in Exodus
12, but listen to what we read here in Matthew 26, verse 26. And as they were eating, Christ
and his apostles eating the Passover, as they were eating, Jesus took
bread and blessed it and break it and gave to the disciples
and said, take, eat, this is my body. And he took the cup
and gave thanks and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of
it, for this is my blood of the New Testament, the New Covenant. This is my blood of the New Testament,
which is shed for many for the remission of sins. That took
place as they were concluding, observing the Passover. And that
would be, as I pointed out last Sunday, That would be the very
last Passover. Now, I know there are people
who observe the Passover today, but it's because they're blind. Your typical Jew looks for the
Messiah to come back. The first time, we're looking
for him to come back. The second time, because he already
came. That's why they observe that
ordinance. So, no, it's not ordinance, excuse me, the Passover, because
they're blind. That was the last Passover that
night we read of in Matthew chapter 27. That pictured, that was a
picture and a type of what was soon to be fulfilled. Did you hear that? That was just
a type, a picture, a shadow of what was soon to be fulfilled. That was the last Passover because
after that, soon after that, Jesus Christ went and laid down
his life for his sheep. The last Passover. Paul said
in 1 Corinthians 5 and 7, for even Christ, our Passover, is
sacrificed for us. I don't need any Jewish Passovers
now because Christ, my Passover, was sacrificed for me once and
for all. No repetition. We read in Exodus
about the first Passover, and what it must have meant to those
in the houses where the blood had been applied. You ever thought
about that? As we read these few verses,
think about that. Those Jews who obeyed the command
of God to get in those houses after the blood had been applied,
can you imagine how they must have felt? Exodus 12, Exodus
12. This was God's promise to them,
Exodus 12 verse 12. This is God speaking, Exodus
12 and 12, for I will, I will. It doesn't matter what follows
that, whatever it is, it'll be accomplished, it'll happen because
God said I will, I will. What could prevent it? For I
will pass through the land of Egypt this night. You can bank
on it. And I will smite all the firstborn
in the land of Egypt, both the man and beast. And against all
the gods of Egypt, I will execute judgment. I am the Lord. I am the Lord. I will do this. He did it. He did it. No question
about that. Verse 13. And the blood shall
be to you for a token upon the houses where you are. And when
I see the blood, man, I love that, don't you? When I see the
blood, what's God looking for? Bobby, I'm almost tempted to
change the title of the message. I always give Bobby the title
because he posts them, uploads them on the Free Grace Radio.
Been doing it ever since I've been here, and I appreciate it,
Bobby, and I always write down the title and lay it in the pew
where she is, and the text, but I'm almost tempted to change
it. Keep the text, oh, but change the title. What is God looking
for? What is God looking for? Well,
here it is. When I see the blood, I will pass over you. And the
plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite
the land of Egypt, when God sees the blood, can you imagine, can
you imagine, try if you will, try if you will, can you imagine
when those in the houses where the blood of the lamb had been
applied heard those awful, mournful, terrible cries coming from without. At midnight, in the darkness,
one shriek, one cry, one mournful moan after another because there
wasn't a house where there was not one dead. The firstborn in
every house, whether it was in that luxurious palace, oh, can
you imagine how decorated that must have been? Pharaoh sitting
upon his throne, he wasn't exempt. Death entered there too. Or in
the most modest, humble dwelling of the poorest servant in Egypt,
this was still happening. Verse 29 of Exodus 12. And it
came to pass that at midnight the Lord smoked. Man, if God
be for us, who can be against us? But if God be against us,
who can be for us? It came to pass, it always does,
that at midnight the Lord smote all the firstborn in the land
of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh that sat on his throne,
unto the firstborn of the captive that was in the dungeon, and
all the firstborn of cattle. And Pharaoh rose up in the night,
he and all his servants, and all the Egyptians, And there
was a great cry in Egypt, for there was not a house where there
was not one dead. Yes, again, I ask you, can you
imagine how precious, how precious that blood was to them that awful
night? Because that was the only reason. I don't think I can overemphasize
that too much. That was the only reason death
did not enter their houses. That was the only reason. God
had promised them this, when I see the blood, I will pass
over you and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you.
When I smite the land of Egypt, the one is as sure as the other. When I see the blood, there's
the cause. Here's the result, I will pass
over you. Are you thinking of that old
hymn that we sometimes sing? When I see the blood, I will
pass over you. God had promised them that. They
may not have thought much about the blood of that lamb before
it was sacrificed. It was set aside for several
days to make sure, to make sure there wasn't a spot or a blemish
in it. Pick ye out a lamb, God told
Moses to tell them. Set it aside for several days.
Watch it. Look at it. Make sure it's the
very best one before you slay it. They may not have thought
much about it during those several days of inspection. Oh, but they
did this night, didn't they? That blood was precious to them
this awful night in Egypt because that was the one thing God saw,
the one thing God saw that prevented death from entering those dwellings. The only thing. The Lord, verse
23 here in Exodus 12 again, verse 23, for the Lord will pass through
and smite the Egyptians. This is Moses now telling them
what God told him. And when he seeth the blood upon
the lintel and on the two side posts, the Lord will pass over
the door and will not suffer, will not allow, will not allow
this to happen, will not suffer the destroyer to come in unto
your houses to smite you. God wasn't looking for anything
that night except the blood of that sacrificed lamb. That's
the only thing he was looking for. If he didn't see that, death
entered that house. Nothing anybody had done that
was in that house made a lick of difference. Nothing, nothing. Nothing anybody could say or
do that would turn death away. Those in the house, nothing they
did mattered. Nothing they could boast of would
not change a thing. Nothing anyone could plead as
a just cause, no one in those houses could plead a just cause
within themselves why God should pass them by. The only reason
was, God said, when I see the blood, you can't see it from
the inside, I see it. When I see the blood, I'll pass
over you. God's justice. Oh my soul, every
time I think about this, I just can't help but think of this
religious generation that we live in, they're just clueless.
I told you about that chaplain I met a few weeks ago and asked
him, how can a man be just with God? He looked at me, Donnie
Bell would say, he looked at me like a calf looking at a new
gate and admitted, I don't know, I have to go home and think about
that. This generation doesn't have a clue. When they hear that
God Almighty is a just and holy God, really? What do you mean? What do you mean? I mean that
he himself said he will then know why it's clear to guilty.
He won't wink at iniquity. His justice is not going to be
set aside for anybody. It never has been. It'll be satisfied. Folks are clueless to that, aren't
they? And the only thing that would satisfy God's justice is
what God himself had provided. What God had provided. You remember
when Abraham was commanded to take his son, that son of promise,
that he had waited so many years for, Isaac. And God spoke to
him one day and said, take your son and offer him unto me, Abraham,
as a sacrifice. We have the story in Genesis
22, verse 6. And Abraham took the wood of
the burnt offering and laid it upon Isaac, his son. Is that
not a picture of Christ? God had laid upon him the iniquity
of us all. And his son was obedient. Christ
was obedient. And he took the fire in his hand
and the knife, and they went both of them together. And as
he spake unto Abraham his father and said, My father? And he said,
Here am I, my son. And he said, Behold the fire
and the wood, but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?
Where is the lamb? And Abraham said, Oh, I like
this, don't you? My son, God will provide himself
a lamb. God would provide himself a lamp
or a burnt offering. So they went, both of them, together. And you know the story. As Abraham
raised that knife to slay his son, God said, no, no, don't
do it. Don't do it. And there was a
ram behind Abraham. Take that. You know Isaac believed
in substitution, didn't you? He didn't have a problem with
substitution. And Abraham called the name of
that place Jehovah-Jireh. That means it shall be seen and
the Lord will provide. The Lord will provide. If the
righteousness of the Father demands a sacrifice, the love of the
Father provides that sacrifice. Did he not? The Passover lamb,
again, was typical of Christ our Passover. Christ is the lamb
of God. The next day we read in John
1, these words are spoken of John the Baptist. The next day,
John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and he said, Behold, behold.
You remember everybody was looking at John. Oh, the rumor was, oh,
they were just whispering. John was a novelty. He was different.
He wasn't like them dried-up Pharisees. He didn't teach like
them. He spoke with authority. But they were whispering, you
think this might be the Messiah? I mean, look at him. He's different.
Listen, he's got a different message. This could be the Messiah
that we've been promised, that we're looking for. And John said,
no, I'm not. You can just stop thinking that
I'm not the Messiah. He's coming. He's coming. But
it's not me. The next day, John seeth Jesus
coming unto him. And he said, Everybody that was
in earshot of his voice heard him say, behold, behold. I told
you he was coming. Well, there he is. Behold the
Lamb of God, our Passover, our Passover. There's the Lamb of
God that's taking away the sin of the world. Men and women of
every race and color, every nationality, Oh, the glorious crown of the
Son of God. Oh, how it shall shine in glory.
Again, what can wash away my sin? Nothing but the blood of
Jesus. Nothing else. Oh, but what a
job he does. What can make me whole again?
Nothing but the blood of Jesus. I imagine those Jews in those houses that
have been sprinkled with the blood of that Spotless land,
oh, how they must have appreciated that blood. Oh, precious is the
flow, and how Mary Christ ought to appreciate the sacrifice of
the Son of God, because precious is the flow that makes me white
as snow. Not in your estimation. Not in
man's estimation. In God's estimation. God says,
no fault. No fault with him. Oh, precious
is the flow that makes me white as snow, no other fount I know,
nothing, nothing but the blood of Jesus. That's what God's looking
for. But Christ, the Hebrew writer
again said, but Christ being come and high priest of good
things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle,
his body. In the body that thou hast prepared
me, he said, I come to do thy will, O my God. Not bathed with
tans, that is to say, not of this building, neither by the
blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood. His own blood. He entered in one time into the
holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us. We sing, don't
we? Redeemed, how I love to proclaim
it. Redeemed by the blood of the
Lamb. I love to proclaim that only
if that redemption was sufficient and a successful redemption.
If what most religious folks tell me today, most preachers
tell me today, tell us today, that Christ only made redemption
possible, that people that he redeemed end up in hell anyway,
what do I want to sing about that for? My soul. That's a sad, sad song. That's
true. It's not worth singing about.
No, only that redemption that actually redeemed his people,
that atonement that actually atoned for their sins, that sacrifice
that God Almighty accepted. Now that's worth singing about.
Anything else is dishonoring to God. It's dishonoring to God. And it gives sinners no hope.
Not really. Billy, if Jesus Christ died for
Judas, In the same way that he died for Peter, it didn't make
a lick of difference for Judas, did it? And we have no reason
to believe it would make any difference for Peter either.
If it didn't help Judas, it didn't help Peter. And it won't help
you and I. Oh no, thank God he put away the sins of his people
at the very moment that he suffered up on that cross. They're gone.
They're gone. My sins are all gone. They're
all taken away. They're all taken away. A redemption
that does anything less than secure the eternal salvation
for everyone it was intended for is not worth singing about. This is what God said 700 years before. He sent his son
into this world before that fullness of time was come for God to send
forth his son. Before that time, the son said
in response to his father, I come to do thy will, O my God. This
is what God said about him. Before he ever come to this earth,
behold my servant, God said. Do you want to be encouraged?
Do you want to be encouraged out of God? God says, look where
I look. Where does God look? Behold my
son, whom I uphold, mine elect. in whom my soul delighteth, hath
put my spirit upon him, he shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles."
Listen, God says, Behold my servant, he shall not fail. He shall not fail in what? Anything. He shall not fail nor
be discouraged. Why would he be discouraged?
He shall not fail. till he has set judgment in the
earth, and the owl shall wait for his law. And he certainly
would not fail in the great work that God sent him into this world
to do." So I would try to convince me that God tried to create the
heavens and the earth, that it was a chore for him. I wouldn't
believe it, because it's contrary to God's Word, but I would I
would be more apt to believe that if you come to tell me that
Jesus Christ came into this world on a perchance, or a maybe, or
a hope so. My soul, that degrades every
attribute of God. It degrades his wisdom. Why send
his son on a fool's errand? Why send his son into this world
to live and suffer as he did if he wasn't going to accomplish
everything God sent him to do? It reflects on God's wisdom.
It reflects on his power, his justice, his mercy, his grace. Every attribute of God is thrown
down in the dust If Jesus Christ didn't absolutely obtain eternal
redemption for us. Hebrews 9 verse 27. This is exactly
what we read here. As it is appointed unto men once
to die, one time. This is Hebrews 9 and 27. Now
the writer is using the finality of death to show the finality
of the death of Jesus Christ and what it obtained in the salvation
of his people. One time, one time. You don't
die once and float around above the operating table and see everything
that's going on, then go to heaven or hell, then come back and write
a book and sell it to a bunch of blind fools. No, you die one
time, you ain't coming back. You ain't coming back. It's appointed
unto men once to die, but after this the judgment. So Christ,
in the same way, this is what Paul was saying in the next verse,
verse 28. So Christ was once offered, that
bear the sins of many. And what's the result of that?
Unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without
sin unto salvation." This was from our bulletin last Sunday.
Old Mr. Spurgeon, he said, you say that
Christ did not die so as to infallibly secure the salvation of anybody?
We beg your pardon when you say we limit Christ's death. No,
my dear sir, it is you that do that. We say that Christ so died
that he infallibly secured the salvation of a multitude that
no man can number. Who through the death, who through
his death, not only may be saved, but are saved. They must be saved,
and they cannot by any possibility run the hazard of being anything
but saved. You are welcome to your theory
of the atonement. You can keep it. I'll never renounce
mine for yours. Oh, thank God, Jesus saves, Jesus
saves the cross. Not only shows the love of God,
yes, God's love provided the sacrifice, but God's justice
is what demanded that sacrifice. The cross not only shows the
love of God more gloriously than anything else, it also shows
His righteousness, His justice, His holiness, and all the glory
of His eternal attributes. They are all seen shining together
there at the cross when He made His Son to be sin for us. that
we might be made the very righteousness of God in him. It was there at
the cross that this took place. The psalmist said in Psalm 85
verse 10, mercy and truth are met together. Righteousness and
peace have kissed each other. Oh, what a meeting. What a meeting. All the divine attributes, all
the persons of the triune God joined in man's salvation, and
they all center in the Lord Jesus Christ. Mercy, righteousness,
justice, love, truth, peace, they all come together, not as
enemies, but as friends. And because of that, God can
now be just, absolutely perfectly just when he justifies a sinner. Because that sinner stands on
the grounds of justice satisfied in the person of his dear son. That's what happened at Calvary.
And that's worth singing about, isn't it? That's worth singing
about. That's what they sing about in
glory. That's the theme. That's the theme in glory. Larry,
how do you know that? Listen to this. When Christ the
Lamb, Revelation 5, behold, Verse 6, And I beheld, and lo, in the
midst of the throne, and of the four beasts, and in the midst
of the elders, stood a lamb, as it had been slain, there's
our Passover lamb, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are
the seven spirits of God sent forth into the earth. And he
came, he came, thank God he came, and took the book, nobody else
could, Nobody else had a right to that. He took the book out
of the right hand of him that sat upon the throne. That book
is a picture of God's decrees, God's eternal purpose, especially
of salvation and grace. Who's going to open it? Who's
going to bring it to pass? Who's going to fulfill those
purposes? And when he had taken the book,
the four beasts and the four and twenty elders fell down before
the land, having every one of them harps and golden vows full
of odors, which are the prayers of the saints. And they start
singing a new song. And they've not stopped since.
They've not stopped since. Oh, what a glorious... This theme,
this theme of redemption by the Lamb, this theme of the blood
of the Lamb, it's never gone stale to them. Oh, no, they sing
as they never could before. It's the continuous theme again
and as the ages roll on, It'll never grow old. They sung a new
song saying thou art worthy. Oh, won't that be a treat? Won't that be a treat, Billy,
to hear a multitude of redeemed sinners in glory and every one
of them singing the very same tune from the very same heart? in perfect unison, no discord,
no jarring notes about man's free will or man's ability or
what man did and man's rewards. It's all about the land. Thou
art worthy to take the book and to open the seals thereof for
you were slain and has redeemed us to God by thine own blood. They wouldn't be in heaven if
he hadn't. That's the song. Yes, indeed, that's worth singing
about. Here below, until we're gone
above to join the redeemed, the multitudes in glory, singing
worthy is the Lamb. Oh my soul, won't that be nice? Won't that be sweet? Worthy is
the Lamb. We read, we had this in our notes,
Hebrews 10, but we read it in our reading, but let me read
verses 12, 13, 14 again. But this man, the Lamb, after
he had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at
the right hand of God, at God's right hand, from henceforth expecting
to his enemies be made his footstool. For by one offering he hath perfected
forever them that are sanctified, them that were set apart in eternal
election. He's perfected. No wonder they
sing, in glory worthy is the Lamb. Not all the blood of beasts
on Jewish altars slain could give the guilty conscience peace,
that's what we read in Hebrews 10, or wash away its stain. But Christ, the heavenly lamb,
takes all our sins away, a sacrifice of nobler name and richer blood
than death. Believing we rejoice to see the
curse removed, we bless the land with cheerful voice and sing
of redeeming love. Jesus Christ, that night again,
as the Passover was being finished, for the last time, he said, this
is my blood of the New Testament, which is shed for many for the
remission of sins. This is the blood of that everlasting
covenant, is what he was speaking of. That everlasting covenant
of grace. When's the last time you heard
a message on that from anybody, anywhere? You can scroll those
religious channels and you'd be looking for a needle in a
haystack to hear anyone speak about God's everlasting covenant
of grace. They talk about maybe this will
happen, maybe it won't happen, maybe God will see. No, no, no. The everlasting covenant of grace
is what Christ was speaking of. This is the blood of the everlasting
covenant, entered in by Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. before
they ever created the worlds. They entered into a covenant
whereby the Son promised the Father in the fullness of the
time, knowing man would fall. God the Father committed them
into the hands of His Son with the stipulation and the Son willingly,
willingly agreed to it. In the fullness of the time I'll
send you forth And Christ said, I'll go, I'll go. To redeem,
to suffer, to be made sin. I'll go, I'll go. They agreed
to that in the everlasting covenant of grace. This is what Christ
speaks of. This is the blood of the New
Testament. Listen to how the writer concludes
Hebrews chapter 13. Look at this with me if you will.
Hebrews chapter 13. Again, they're speaking of that
New Testament. the new covenant. Hebrews 13 and 20. Now the God
of peace that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus Christ,
that great shepherd of the sheep, through, because of, according
to, the blood ratified that covenant. Through the blood of the everlasting
covenant, make you perfect in every good work to do his will,
working in you that which is well-pleasing in his sight, Through
Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen. Do you remember when old Simeon
entered that temple and took that babe from the arms of its
mother, that dark-skinned Jewish baby boy? That was God in the
flesh. Embracing him in his arms and
looking upon him with eyes ravished by the sight, he said, Let your
servant depart in peace. Let me depart this world. Let
me make my exodus. Paul, sitting in that present
cell, said, oh, the time of my departure is at hand. Mine is
too. You hear that? The time of our
departure is at hand. It's at the door. It's at the
door. But on what grounds can a sinner like me and you depart
this world and hope to be accepted by a God like Him. What hope
can there be? What hope can there be? I'm going
to conclude this message by referring again to our dear, dear friend,
that faithful servant of God who's now with his God in glory,
Brother Henry Mahan. Henry wrote these words from
Revelation 13, verse 14. Blessed are the dead who die
in the Lord. Listen to this. Henry wrote,
the world will take you into a lavish country club where wealth
and power and success abound. These people are laughing and
singing and drinking and making merry. Nothing on this earth
is beyond their reach. The best is none too good. The
world will take you to a university where the scholars of the world
delve deeper into the wisdom of the world. or to the Olympic
Games where men and women in excellent health vie for prestigious,
precious medals, or to the field of battle where officers win
a place in history, or to the halls of legislature where the
doctrine of men is blessed are the living who are rich and wise
and healthy and powerful. That's what men say. That's what
men say. Those are blessed that are healthy
and wise. Then Henry wrote, the voice from
heaven takes you into a darkened room. There is complete silence
except for the breathing of a weary pilgrim. A loving husband and grateful
children stand at the foot of the bed as tears flow silently
down their cheeks. In a moment, with a deep sigh,
her eyes open and a smile crosses her face as she sits. I am ready
to go and be with Christ, which is far better. For I know whom I have believed,
and am persuaded he is able to keep that which I have committed
unto him for this very day. She breathes for the last time,
and she's gone. And the voice from heaven says,
blessed are the dead who die in the Lord, that they may rest
from their labors. The world may try, but they cannot
write blessed where God is written cursed. And try as they might,
they cannot write cursed where God is wrote blessed. It is so
sad that what the world calls rich, God calls poor. And that which the world calls
poor, God calls rich in faith and heirs of his kingdom, all
because when he sees the blood, he will pass over you. old top
lady in one of his many hymns wrote this. From whence this
fear and unbelief? Has God my father put to grief
his spotless son for me? Can he the righteous judge of
men condemn me for that debt of sin which Lord was charged
to thee? Then turn my soul unto thy rest. The merits of thy great high
priest speak peace and liberty. Trust in his efficacious blood,
nor fear thy banishment from God, since Jesus died for thee. May God, may God, this is my
prayer as we conclude. May God keep this comforting
promise from him in our hearts and help us remember this as
we go through this world. Come what may, God says, when
I see the blood, I'll pass over you. That's what he's looking
for. That's what he's looking for.
Thank God for the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. Thank you for your attention.