It is good to see you this morning. Very thankful that God has allowed us to be together again. God has brought us together to hear his word. I surely pray that God the Holy Spirit would speak to every heart.

to speak of these things of Christ and to academically convince men of this is possible. We can argue, we can debate, we can do all sorts of things that this world considers the way religion's supposed to be, but I confess Except the Spirit of God reveal this, this won't have any meaning. It won't mean much. But man, if the Spirit of God will show us Christ, if He'll reveal the Son of God to our hearts, then we are blessed. We are blessed. If we know who He is, And not only have the knowledge of it, but believe on Him. As He says He is, then this is the most blessed thing you could have in this world. There's nothing greater than this.

If you know Him, you know everything. You know everything. If you have Him, you have everything. And yet, if you have everything in this world and you don't have him, you don't have anything. You have nothing. Why? Because this stuff is going to go away. This stuff, you're not going to keep this stuff. You're not going to keep these relationships. You're not going to keep these jobs. You're not going to keep any of that. That's all going to go. When that goes, the only thing that matters is this. Do I have him? Do I have him?

I pray the Spirit of God reveal him as he did to Peter. Pray we'll reveal him to us this morning. Remember those that are sick. Audrey's not feeling well again, so I'm trying to keep her in the basement so it doesn't get around, doesn't get around again. Pray for her, if you will. Pray for others who are sick and not with us here today.

I am convinced of God's sovereignty in this matter of hearing the gospel. Aren't you? I want everyone to hear it. But I know this, only those God intends to hear it will hear it. It's His gospel. Paul calls it my gospel only by virtue of my union with Christ, but it's His gospel. And this river, as I told you before, wherever it goes, God directs it. Wherever it lands, the seed, whatever soul it lands upon is prepared or not because of God's will, God's sovereign will. My hope is that He will. He will make this known to our hearts.

If you know Him, I tell you this, this should excite you. It should cause you to rejoice. If you know Him, it should be the joy Joy to the world. I mean, it is an immense joy to know that you know that you know him. More important that he knows me. Isn't that wonderful? I know him because he first knew me. He chose me, redeemed me.

So I pray the Lord will bless this. Let's go to him in prayer. Our gracious Father, we come again thanking you for another time I ask You, Father, for grace and mercy this morning. I ask for Your long-suffering toward us. Father, You'd give us the strength. I need Your strength. I need the power of Your Spirit, body and mind and soul and heart. I pray You would give it this morning, not based on merit, but based on the merit of Jesus Christ, Thy Son. Everything that's said this morning, redound to thy glory. Salvation is completely thy work. We who have been saved rejoice that this is the work of God. We pray that, Father, you would keep us, even as you promised, looking always to Christ. Father, I know if there be any outside of Christ, my heart's desire is that they should see and believe. That they should cling upon Him as You revealed Him by the power of Your Spirit, that they should believe and trust in Him alone. I pray for those that are sick. Lord, only You can heal and we pray You will. Restore them again to us that we might worship together. Bless your churches and wherever your men preach. What we ask for ourselves, we ask for them. We pray this in Jesus' name and for his sake. Amen.

All right, Matthew chapter 16. Matthew chapter 16. Entitled this message, Who is Jesus. I'll read the text to you again. When Jesus came into the coast of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, Whom do men say that I, the Son of Man, am? And they said, Some say you are John the Baptist, some say Elijah, others Jeremiah, or one of the prophets.

Now here in this text the Lord Jesus asked a question. He's asking, What do men say concerning me? Who do they say I am? Now the Lord never asks for information so don't ever think that He doesn't know what men say about Him. He is inciting this so His disciples understand. And I'm thankful He did because we have this now for ourselves. Because He asked this question, we have it in Scripture for us.

And so the disciples, being among the people, began to say different reports. They said, some say you're John the Baptist. Now John the Baptist has already been beheaded. He's already been killed. And some say you are John the Baptist risen from the dead. Some say you're Elijah. Why? Because in Micah, in Malachi, I think it is, 4 or 5, it says that, I will send Elijah, the prophet, before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. Before Christ comes, Elijah was supposed to come. And so they said, this must be Elijah. This must be Elijah. Jesus had already told them that John the Baptist was the fulfillment of that prophecy, that he had the spirit of Elijah the prophet. Some said Jeremiah or one of the prophets.

Now, what I want you to notice about these opinions, right, is that they're all good. I mean, what if somebody came to you and said, man, you sure lot like John the Baptist. Boy, I'd like, whoo, be able to preach like John? Or one of the prophets like Elijah? You want to compare me to one of those guys? That's a compliment. And so I want you to see that these people that the disciples were talking about were one who were in favor of Him. They were saying things that were very complimentary. They weren't like the scribes and pharisees. Remember, the scribes and pharisees called him the son of a whore. They called him a Samaritan. They called him a devil. They called him a blasphemer. So these people aren't the pharisees. But these thought highly of Jesus Christ. These men spoke highly of Him because they were trying to understand how it was that He could do all of these miracles that He did. They didn't understand except God be with... Isn't that what Nicodemus said? We know thou art a prophet come from God for no man could do these miracles except God be with him. So this is how they rationalized it. This is how they justified it. They thought of the greatest person they could think of, and they said, well, that must be Him. Must be Him. They, using earthly wisdom, thought, who could do these miracles but a prophet? One time they said this, do you suppose Christ is gonna do, when He comes, is gonna do greater miracles than this? They didn't know who He was. These people complimented Him.

Now, this morning I want to ask you the same question. Who do you say that Jesus is? I say this is the most vitally important question that can be asked. Who is Jesus? You know, I even tried to look this up. Not even A.I. could count how many, right? I asked, how many books had been written about Jesus of Nazareth? And they said, you can't count it. Isn't that astounding? A man who lived 33 years on this earth, who never traveled more than a couple of hundred miles from where he was born, never wrote a book, never did a seminar, never did anything. He never had a job, as far as this world is concerned, other than as carpenter when he was young. But when he was in his ministry, he went about preaching the gospel. Totally dependent upon God even for his food. And yet, there are more books written about this man.

But yet, I want you to understand, he is the least known man in the world. Now, there are a lot of opinions as to who this man is. A lot of opinions. And so this morning, I'm not even asking his enemies. I'm asking those who profess to know him. Who is he? You who profess to know him. Who do you say he is? Who do you say he is? I'm talking to those professing Christians.

Now they know a lot about the history of this man. You could read Josephus, and Josephus was never a believer in Christ, and yet he wrote a beautiful history, a little segment in his book about the Lord Jesus' life, death, burial, and resurrection. He even confirmed, historically, that he was risen from the dead. So whom do you say the Son of Man is? Like I said, there are many answers Many arguments, many opinions about who this man is and what he's done.

Most today believe that Jesus was a good man or a prophet, not much different than the people of his day, right? Even the Muslims will tell you that Jesus was a good man, that he was a prophet of some sort. They can't deny this, and they don't. But among those who profess to be Christians in this day, it is a common belief, a common belief that Jesus came into the world to die for the sins of all men. That's a common belief. I say, who is Jesus? What did He come to do? That's exactly what people will say. Well, He came to die for all the sins of all men. What did He come to do? He came to make salvation possible. He's a good man. He's an example. That's what people say about Him. He's a good example that we should just follow what He did. We should help the poor and we should forgive others. It's a very common conception of Jesus Christ.

But mostly that He came to save everybody and make salvation possible. That's the common thought of this day concerning the man Jesus. You will hear this in most churches, Jesus did all He can do and the rest is up to you. This is a common thought of who Jesus is and what He came to do. Is this your thought of Jesus? Do you, like these people, perceive this to be a compliment? Now when people say this, don't they intend this to be a compliment? They're not trying to downgrade Him. They're really trying to compliment Him. It's not a compliment for this reason. It's not true. It's not true. What they say of Christ is not true because of this. They don't know who He is. If you know who He is, then you understand what He came to do. Most people don't know who He is.

In fact, It doesn't matter what men think of Jesus. You know what? I'm not here to give you my opinion of who Jesus is. That's not my job. I'm not here to give you an opinion. And you know what? Your opinion amounts to about as much as my opinion does. It doesn't count. The only thing that matters is this. What does God's Word say about this man Jesus? That's all that really matters. What does God say about him? What does God say? What does God's Word declare? And that's what we do as preachers. I don't debate and I don't argue and I don't try to convince you of this and not of this doctrine. I'm here to declare something. I'm here to tell you what God says and then leave it. I can't make it applicable. I can tell you who Jesus is according to the Word of God. That's what I'm going to do. But I can't apply this to you.

You're going to see this in the text, that Peter knew Him, but it's not because of anything in Peter. If you know Him this morning, it's not because of anything in you. So I want to get personal, and look at that in your text, Jesus said, OK, who do others say I am? Now he gets personal, and he says, whom do ye say? Whom do you say that I am? Who do you say that I am? I want to get personal, and I want to ask that question to you. Who do you say this Son of Man, Jesus, is?

Why is this important? Because if you get this wrong, you're lost. If you get this wrong, you're lost. If we fail to know who Jesus is, we are believing on another Jesus. Somebody come up and say, you know, I know your wife, Cheryl. Oh, okay. Describe her to me, and then she would they would say well. She's you know about 350 pounds and She's got red hair and some freckles, and I would say you got the wrong Cheryl Okay, same name Not the right person That's what happened today many are believing on a Jesus of their own making of their own opinions I think Jesus is like this well. I feel that Jesus is like this who cares and Our thoughts and our feelings have nothing to do with this. Who is He is not based on how I feel He is or what I think He is. It is simply this, what does God say about Him? Everything else just don't matter. And if you don't believe on Him whom God has declared, now you may call Him Jesus, But if he is not who God says he is, he's not Jesus. He's just a figment of your imagination. You've made him up. He's like an idol. You've carved out an idol for yourself.

John 3, verse 36 says, He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life. Not just any son, is it? I've got a son. Is he talking about him? No! He's talking about this man, Jesus, who is the Son of God. He that believeth on the Son hath whatever last name. He that believeth not the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.

Remember what Paul said in Romans chapter, look at Romans chapter 10 real fast. Look at this. Look at verse 13, everybody loves this one, ìWhosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.î And they stop reading, they just quit. Now what it says, ìHow then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed?î Youíre not going to call on somebody you donít believe. But listen, you canít believe on somebody you donít know. He said, How shall they believe on him in whom they have not, what? Heard. And how shall they hear without a preacher? Look at verse 17. So then, faith cometh by, what? Hearing. And hearing by specifically, what? The Word of God.

That's what preachers are sent to do. Preach Christ. Preach Christ. Why? Because this is how God saves sinners. And so let us then bow down before the Word of God and surrender our opinions. If you've got an opinion, it should be surrendered. To what? The Word of God. The Word of God. And so I want you to see, go back to your text now, go back to your text, and look at the clearest answer that is given. Peter was the most boisterous of the group and he was just speaking for everybody. He usually did that. I don't know if they asked him to or not, but I'm sure he just blurted it out there. But it was alright because it was the right answer.

He said this, Whom do you say that I am? And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ. the Son of the Living God. I want you to know how outstanding this was. We are so far removed from that moment right now. But you understand that Peter was looking at a man. It's like I'm looking at you. He was looking at a man. Just like every other man that ever lived, he was a man. I heard that this week that he was so much man as if he was not God. And he was so much God as if he were not man. But he was a man. And he's staring into the face of this man said, you're the Christ, listen, the son of the living God. That's who you are. We know who you are. Wasn't debatable. This is, I know you. I know who you are.

And what'd Jesus say? Blessed art thou. You're blessed. Simon, son of Jonah, why? Flesh and blood hath not revealed this to thee, but my Father which is in heaven. If anyone's to know Christ and understand this answer, it is a gift of God's grace. It is not of human wisdom or human origin. Peter never could have figured it out had God the Father not revealed it to him.

You this morning who know Him, when I talk of Him, all you do is say, yep, that's Him. When I speak of Christ and His person, His offering, His work, and I do it according to the Word of God, you say, yep, that's right. That's him. I know that one. I know who you're talking about. That's what Peter did. He said, I know who you are. This morning, if you know him, it's going to be the work of God to reveal it to you.

Now, I want to see these two points. These two points this morning that Peter lays out very clearly, and I'm going to take them in reverse order, but they're both necessary. First of all, Jesus is the son of the living God. This speaks to his person. It speaks to his person. Now, as Peter was looking him in the eye, he was seeing a man. But he saw much more than a man. Peter was confessing he is God. You're God. He said, You're the son of the living God. He confesses his deity. His deity. He was the Son of God.

Now John tells us in I John chapter 5, I John chapter 5 and verse 7, listen to what John bears record of. He says there are three that bear record in heaven. Who are they? The Father, the Word, and the Spirit. And these three are what? These three are one. One God, yet manifest in three distinct persons, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. Now we know that John was talking, when he said the Word, people get that, they get all in, if you don't want to believe Jesus is God, then they use that text and say, well, he doesn't mean Jesus. Well, excuse me, Yes, he does. In chapter 1 of his gospel, isn't that exactly what he called it? In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. And then in verse 14, he says it plainly, the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us. And I like what he says in his epistle at the beginning of his epistle in 1 John chapter 1, he says, That which was from the beginning we have heard, we have seen with our eyes, and with our hands we have handled. That one who was from the beginning, he said, I heard his voice. Much more than that, I saw him with my own eyes. And much more than that, I touched Him. I touched Him. He was a witness that Jesus is God manifest in the flesh.

Now friends, this is who He is. He's God. He's God. Look at 1 Timothy. Look at 1 Timothy. 1 Timothy. Chapter 3, verse 16. The apostle makes it very clear as well. He says, ìWithout controversy, great is the mystery of godliness.î Listen to this, ìGod was manifest in the flesh.î

Iíve told you that story many times about the Unitarian preacher, a man who didnít believe in the deity of Christ, and he had a brother who was a Baptist preacher. And one time he got sick and he wanted his brother to fill in for him. And he said, I want you to preach for me, but listen to this, you've got to promise me that you won't preach anything controversial. And he preached from this text, without controversy. without controversy. Great is the mystery of God. God was manifest in the flesh. There's no debate in this. When we say, Who is Jesus? Simply put, He is God manifested in the flesh. And so the opinions of men are of no value. They do not change the truth concerning His person. He is God, very God.

Now why is this important? This is necessary. Why is it necessary? Because if you don't believe that Jesus is God, you're lost. That's a strong statement, isn't it? I mean, I'd have to be really bold to make that statement. Well, the point is, I didn't make it. Christ Himself did. Jesus Himself made that statement. Look at John chapter 8. Look at John chapter 8 and tell me if Jesus didn't make this same statement. Look at John chapter 8 and verse 23. This is what He confessed about Himself. He said, He said unto them, You are from beneath, listen, I am from above. You are of this world, I am not of this world. Why? He was above it because He made it. He made it. I said therefore unto you that you shall die in your sins, listen to this statement, for if you believe not that I am, the word he is in italics is not in there, it's not in the original, if you believe not that I am, you shall die in your sins.

Now, how do you know he's saying, I am God? Well, that's what he said at the burning bush. That's how he revealed himself to Moses. He said that I am. Look, look down in verse 58, just just to clarify it. Look at this. Jesus said, then barely, barely I say unto you before Abraham was listen, I am. And what do they do? They took up stones to stone Him. They knew exactly what He was saying, I am God.

Who is Jesus? You make no mistake about it, He is God. He is God. And if you do not believe that Jesus Christ is God, you will die in your sins. You don't know who He is. When I say He is God, you believe on Him, you say, that's Him. I know that one. He's God. God manifest in the flesh, the son of the living God.

Paul says, who is the image of the invisible God. Firstborn of every creature, for by him all things were created. He said all things were made by him, and listen to this, for him. Jesus. Listen to that. All things were made by Jesus and for Jesus. Why? He's the image of the invisible God.

Secondly, Peter said, Thou art the Christ. The Christ. I know most people profess Him to be the Christ. But do you know what that means? This is like putting the whole of Scripture into one word, Christ. When you unpack that, it just is like a fountain that never ceases. It's just overflowing with meaning. Thou art the Christ. It means the anointed one of God. The one sent of God. The one determined of God to be the Savior of Israel. He knew that He was the Christ, the anointed.

According to the scriptures, the Christ of God was anointed to be Savior from the beginning. He was to come into the world and destroy the works of the devil. He was anointed to be the high priest, the mediator, and the offering for sin. So in order for Jesus to be the Christ of necessity, He must fulfill every type and every picture and every prophecy of the Old Testament. That's what Peter said. You are the fulfillment of all that God had said concerning the Christ. You're it. All salvation's in you. It's what Peter was confessing. This was from the beginning.

I'll give you an illustration. The very first message that was preached, God preached it to Adam and Eve. You remember the message, wasn't it? Very clear. They had sinned. They had rebelled. God found them. God came to them. And God preached the gospel of Christ to them. He said, The seed of the woman. Now listen, that narrows it down. Every one of us are the seed of some man. Well, he's not going to be the seed of some man, he's not going to be of the fallen race of Adam, he's going to be the seed of the woman. And he specifically has a work to do, he shall crush the head of the serpent, very specifically how? By the bruising of his heel. It's a gospel message! It's a gospel message! Concerning who? Christ! Christ! That's who Peter believed him to be.

Later on, that prophecy is more vivid, isn't it? Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and thou shalt call his name what? What are you going to call him? Emmanuel, which being interpreted is what? God with us. See that? The Christ is to be God, manifest in the flesh. And we know that he did accomplish the will of God and the salvation of his people when he was crucified, when he said, Thou shalt bruise his heel. This was speaking of his death, that he by his death should destroy the works of the devil.

And then God gave us a picture. The very next thing we see in Genesis is this, God kills an animal and covers the nakedness of Adam and Eve. Another glorious picture. See, we have prophecy and then we have pictures. What the Lord does in all the Old Testament is He gives us a prophecy and then He gives us a picture. The Lord Jesus Christ was to be killed so as to cover our nakedness, our sin. And how that grows as you go down the Old Testament Scriptures, the types become clearer and stronger and the prophecies become more focused as to who He is and what He would do.

Think of the Passover Lamb. I thought of this one. John the Baptist, when he came into the world, what was his confession? Behold, the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world. Now where did he get that? He got that from the Passover. that Christ was going to be the Passover Lamb. What a picture that was. Remember that Passover Lamb? There were very specific things that had to be about that Lamb. It had to be, first of all, without spot and blemish. Is this not a picture of Jesus Christ without sin? He came to the world without spot and without blemish. That lamb was to be inspected for 14 days. Now I don't want to get into the specifics of numbers, but seven is the number of perfection. Two times! Two times perfection. He was analytically looked at by everyone. The Jews inspected Him. The Gentiles inspected Him. Satan inspected Him. And even God inspected Him. And what did God say? He said, this is my beloved son in whom I am well pleased. What did he say about Satan? Satan, the prince of this world, has found nothing in me. Pilate said this, I find no fault in this man. You see, he's been inspected. Why? He had to be. Who is Jesus? He's the lamb of God, inspected, perfect.

And that lamb had to be killed in the midst of the congregation. Isn't this astounding? How many times do Jews want to take him out there in the back alley and kill him? They want to do that all the time. They want to stone him right there. Get it done. Put him away. But they couldn't. He had to be killed in the midst of the congregation, in front of everybody.

I was talking to Todd this week about it, the crucifixion of Christ. What a wonderful subject. We were talking about this. Do you realize that all history hinges on three hours? Three hours of time. When the Lord Jesus Christ was crucified, all time is based on that one period. Our Lord Jesus Christ was crucified. This thing wasn't done in a corner, was it? It was done in the open. Why? Because this was the prophecy that the Christ would be killed in the midst of the congregation. He was.

And think about that. The blood wasn't wasted. The blood was taken And applied. What a picture. The Lord Jesus Christ's blood was shed for who? The sons of Israel. And He applied that on that door. That father came and took that blood and put it on the door and then they went what? They went into the house. Isn't this a picture of us? The Lord applies the blood to our hearts and where do we go? We go in Christ. We have our refuge. He's my refuge.

And what did God say? He said, when I pass by and I see the blood, I will pass over you. Isn't that wonderful? It's not, when I see thy conduct, I will pass over you. Isn't that wonderful? It doesn't say that. What does God see that would move Him to pass over you? It is the blood. of Jesus, who is what? The Christ. The Christ. You see, Christ, in order for him to be the Christ, he must fulfill all prophecy.

And you know what we're gonna be singing about when we get to heaven? The Lamb. Worthy is the Lamb who was slain. That's gonna be the song of the ages. is the Lamb who was slain to receive all power and riches and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and blessing forever and ever. Amen. Worthy is the Lamb who was slain to receive. And it's just constantly full of joy, never ceasing praise. Why? Because Jesus is the Christ. He is the Christ.

You owe the greatness of man's depravity to not believe this. to trust in His own work. Yet God in grace sent His Son to provide both two things, and I want to give you two things that Christ was to supply. According to the Scriptures, He was to supply both righteousness and redemption. These are the two things that the full meaning of the work of Christ was to provide what we could not provide. righteousness and redemption.

I want to ask you this. Do you know what God requires of you? Do you have any idea what God requires of every man that breathes breath in this world? Now listen very carefully. He requires absolute holiness. Now listen, just because you can't do it, doesn't mean God doesn't require it. He does. Listen to what God said, Be ye holy, listen to these words, even as I am holy. That's not a request, it's a demand. Anyone who thinks to run to the law is a fool. Cursed is everyone that continueth not in all things written in the book of the law to do them. How many commandments are there? I've told you this. How many commandments? 613. Cursed is everyone that continueth not in all things written in the book of the law to do them. You want to be under the law? The law can't help you. To meet this requirement, the law can't help you. All the law can do is condemn you. That's it.

Paul said this, that there is none righteous, no not one, there's none that understandeth, there's none that seeketh after God, therefore, listen, here's the conclusion, by the deeds of the law shall no flesh be justified in his sight. You see, the law is only intended to shut your mouth. He said, We know whatsoever things the law saith, that saith to them that are under the law, that every mouth should be stopped.

Listen, if somebody keeps flapping their gums about the law, listen, they don't know Christ, they just don't know God. Because God intended the law to do one thing, is to shut us up. There's no righteousness in me. There's no righteousness here. I have nothing to give.

But see, this is why it's so glorious Christ came. Christ came to provide righteousness. I'll give you a text. Isaiah 42. Look at Isaiah 42. See what Christ, in that very first chapter, He said, Behold my servant whom I uphold, mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth. He's the Christ, the anointed, the elect of God. Look what he says he's supposed to do in verse 19 of Isaiah 42. He said, Who is blind but my servant or deaf as my messenger that I sent? Who is blind is he that is perfect and blind as the Lord's servant.

What does he mean by that? Jesus wasn't blind or deaf. He means this. He was blind and deaf to all sin. It didn't affect him whatsoever. Doesn't sin affect you? When you see things, you are tempted by them, aren't you? Why? You're not blind to it. You are attracted to it. But when my servant comes, he won't be attracted to any of it. He'll be like a blind man that can't see it. He'll be like a deaf man that can't hear it.

Listen to what he's going to do. Seeing many things, but thou observest not. Opening the ears, but he heareth not. The Lord is well pleased for his righteousness sake. Listen. He will magnify the law and make it honorable. You and I, as men by nature, men by nature want to view the law like this, at a distance. Maybe we can find some loopholes in it or something like that. No, when Christ would come, he would magnify it. He would examine every part of it. And what is he going to find? He'll make it honorable.

Is this not astounding? One man alone honored the law of God in every way. Did he need it? Was it for him? Just as natural as it was for you to sin, it was natural for him to obey. It was not complicated. It was natural. for Him to obey. Did He need the righteousness? No, we did!

Christ came to provide righteousness, not just any, Paul says in Romans 3, even the righteousness of God, which is by the faith of Jesus Christ. When Peter said, Thou art the Christ, He said, You're my righteousness. You're my righteousness.

Secondly, redemption. He had to provide redemption. Make an atonement for sin. Righteousness was not sufficient. If God put his righteousness on you, it would be what? Contaminated. It's like taking a man out of a coal mine and putting a white cloth on him. He'd just contaminate him. What God did in order for His righteousness to be ours, He also took our sins and bore them away.

This is the most astounding thing. Listen, in 2 Corinthians 5. 21, For God hath made him to be sin for us. Who knew no sin? The greatest mystery in all the universe that I can't wrap my mind around, but it's so. Being the Christ, He bore my sin in His own body on the tree. As my high priest, He made an offering to God as payment for all my sin. That's what it means for Him to be the Christ.

And you know what? Paul said about this in Hebrews 9, he said, So Christ once offered to bear the sins. How many times was He offered? Once. Why? Because when He was offered, it was perfect. God couldn't ask any more payment. Comfort ye, comfort ye, my people, saith the Lord. Why? For the Lord hath received double at His hand for all my sins." This is what it means to be the Christ, that He has provided both righteousness and redemption.

And the last thing about the Christ is this. In order for Jesus to be the Christ, this is, I think, one of the most important things. Most religion would probably even acknowledge what I've just said so far. But this is where they get. This is where they're wrong. This is where they differ from the Word of God. In order for Jesus to be the Christ, He must be successful. When God speaks of Christ, He never speaks ambiguously as though He might or might not do something. When the angel came, what was His statement? Thou shalt call His name, Jehovah saves. What in Jesus? Now why are you going to call him that? For he shall save his people from their sin.

When I say Jesus is the Christ, it is of necessity that he came to provide righteousness and redemption and he must be successful. He must be successful. That text in Isaiah 42, it says, He shall not fail. Isaiah 42 and verse 4. He shall not fail nor be discouraged. He's not going to fail. This is the prophecy of Christ. He shall not fail.

Was Jesus successful? When I say, who is Jesus? You must understand. Are you talking about the same one I'm talking about? Because the one I'm talking about was successful. What He intended to do, He did. And listen to what He intended to do. He intended to save all that the Father gave Him. Now how do I know that? How do I know that? Because that's what He said. Look at John 6. Look at John 6. Tell me if this is not what He said. John 6 and verse 37. All that the Father giveth me, what are they going to do? Shall come to me. What is he going to do when they come? And him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out. And He tells you why. Four. This is why this is going to happen. Four. I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of Him that sent me. You don't have to guess. You don't have to guess what Christ, the will that Christ has followed. He said, And this is the Father's will, that of all He hath given me, I should lose nothing.

It was Jesus. He is the Christ. And this is what the Christ has come to do. He has come to save all that the Father gave Him. All that the Father gave Him will come to Him. When they do, He won't cast them out. Praise God to that. For I came down to do His will. His will was to save you. He chose you. He loved you. And Christ, He sent Christ to die for you.

Well, how do I know? Do you believe on the Son of God? Have you come to Him? This is the evidence of our election. This is the evidence of our righteousness and redemption. Even faith in Christ. And so now, go back to your text real fast. Let's go back there just for a few minutes. You that know him. When I described him, is this the Christ, the Jesus you know? He is God, manifest and blessed. Well, of course he is. That's what God said about him. I believe that. He's God, manifest and blessed. He's the Christ. He's the one anointed of God, chosen of God to come and provide righteousness and redemption for who? For God's people, for all that the Father gave Him.

And the only hope I have that I'm one of Him is this, I know who He is. Look at what He said to Peter. He said, Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-Jonah, for you figured this out all by yourself. That's what religion says. Well, bless your heart. You made a decision. Oh, you're wonderful. You're so blessed. No, you're only blessed if this, if my Father reveals it to you.

Now listen, you can know what I said academically and you can search it out. You can't deny what I said. I mean, the Scriptures are clear. If you want to deny it, Go argue against the wall, I don't want to hear it. The Word of God is plain, it's simple, it's not complicated. He's the Son of God and He's the Christ. He's victorious, He's successful, God accepted His offering no matter what men say about it.

You know this academically, but unless you know Him by the power of the Spirit of God, you'll die in your sins. Jesus is not a historical figure that I find in a book. He is more real than you or me or any physical thing. I know He I know He's the Son of the Living God and the only reason I know Him is because of His grace to reveal Himself to me.

Do you know who He is? I'll tell you this, if you know Him, you love Him. There's just no separation of this. If you know Him, you love Him. John says we love Him who has begotten us. And if we love Him who has begotten us, we love those that are begotten of Him. We love His people.

My desire is that the Spirit of God reveal His Son to your heart and that you cling to Him with all your soul you know I've got no other hope I'm not all my eggs are in this basket all my soul rests upon this man Jesus who is God in the flesh and the Christ I long for God to make this known to you all. And you that know Him, you may have such comfort, such peace, regardless of what takes place in time, because your salvation is not dependent upon any of this stuff. It's dependent on Him. God said He's successful, He's victorious.

I pray God will bless this to you. Let's stand and be dismissed in prayer. Gracious Father, dismiss us with your own blessings and mercies. Brought your spirit to us. Set our eyes upon Christ. not on the things of time, but men. Let us lay our heads on his breast. May he hold us and keep us, who is our Savior, our Redeemer, our King, and our Friend. In his name we ask

I'm sorry you feel so bad, brother. Well, I'm not. It's all right, I've been...