Turn with me, if you would, now
to 1 Corinthians 2. 1 Corinthians 2, and let's read verse 2. It says, for I determined not
to know anything among you save Jesus Christ and Him crucified. Period. Period. Five words. Jesus Christ
and Him crucified. Period. That is a very important
verse of scripture to me. Very, very important. It very
simply declares the message of our ministry here. It declares
what we preach here. For that reason, I felt led to
quote that verse on our bulletin. That's at the bottom of the front
page of our bulletin. By God's grace, that's all that
we will ever know and all that we will ever preach here. If
God is gracious to us and has his hand on us, that's all we'll
ever preach here. Paul said he was determined,
set not to know and not to preach
anything other than Jesus Christ crucified, because in verse one,
he said, that is the testimony of God. Verse one says, and I
brethren, when I came unto you, came not with excellency of speech
or of wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God. For I determined not to know
anything among you save Jesus Christ and Him crucified." Sometimes
men and women stand up in front of other men and women and they
want to give their testimony. They want to give their word
of truth. They want to give their record
of good news. Well, God has given His testimony. He has given His word. He has given His record of good
news. What is it? Jesus Christ and
Him crucified. In 1 John 5 verse 9 says, God
has given us the testimony of his son. If you look at chapter 1 right
here, verse 6 says, even as the testimony of Christ was confirmed
in you, Christ himself is God's record. He is God's Word. He is God's witness. He is God's
truth. He is God's testimony of good
news. And Paul said, for that reason,
I'm determined not to know anything else. And I'm determined not
to preach anything else, but Jesus Christ and Him crucified. That's it, only that. Now I want
us to see this morning that Jesus Christ crucified is the entire
Word of God. That's what I want us to see.
I don't have any excellency of speech this morning. I don't
ever have any excellency of speech, but I especially don't have any
Anything wowing, anything hard, anything, I don't have any of
that. None of that. All I want us to
see is that the entire Word of God is Jesus Christ and Him crucified. When you say, that's all I'm
going to preach. That's all I'm gonna, that's
it, I'm putting it right, we're stopping it right there. It's
all I'm gonna know, that's all I'm gonna preach. When people
hear that, they think, well, what about the rest of the Word
of God? You mean that's it? That's all
you're gonna preach every time you stand up in a pulpit? What
about the rest of the Word of God? What about the Old Testament? Look with me, if you would, at
Luke 24. I love this verse of scripture.
Luke 24 verse 26, it says, all not Christ to have suffered these
things. Jesus Christ crucified all not
Christ to have suffered these things and to enter into his
glory. And beginning at Moses, Genesis,
Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy. Beginning at Moses and all the
prophets. If you've got a center margin
in your Bible, all the prophets, if you look at it, look at all
those prophets listed. Beginning at Moses and all the
prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things
concerning himself. Verse 44 right here says, And
he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto
you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled
which were written in the law of Moses. What Moses wrote has
to be fulfilled. And in the prophets, what they
wrote has to be fulfilled. And in the Psalms, what David
and those other men wrote has to be fulfilled. concerning me. Now watch verse 45. These are his apostles. These
were his disciples that had been with him all this time. Watch
verse 45. Then opened he their understanding
that they might understand the scriptures. The moment they saw
this, it all made sense. And he said unto them, thus it
is written, and thus it behooved Christ to suffer and to rise
from the dead the third day. And that repentance and remission
of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning
at Jerusalem. And he said, you are witnesses
of these things. All of it spoke of Jesus Christ
crucified. All of it. I love the story of
that young man who was called on to fill the pulpit while the
pastor was out of town. And he got up and delivered his
message and came down. And after it was over, he went
up to that elder in the congregation and he asked him, he said, what'd
you think of my message? And the elder said, I thought
it was a very poor message. And he said, why? Did you not
think my delivery was good? He said, no, your delivery was
fine. He said, well, do you think I didn't put in enough time studying?
He said, no, clearly, you put in much time studying. He said, well, then why would
you say it's a poor message? He said it was a poor message
because Christ wasn't in it. And the young man said, well,
Christ wasn't in the text. He said, young man, in every
text of scripture, there is a road that leads to Jesus Christ crucified. Our business is to find that
road and get on it. And that's the truth. That is
the truth. All of this word speaks of Jesus
Christ crucified. All of this word speaks of the
mystery of godliness. How God was manifest in the flesh. Amazing, amazing grace. In the name Lord Jesus Christ. In that name, Lord means God. Jesus means man. Christ means both. Which one
is he? Both. Is he more of one than
the other? No. 100% God. 100% man. Amazing. God, Man, Mediator. That's what His name means. The
only Mediator. The Lord Jesus Christ. All of this Word speaks of how
the just God made Himself. The just, holy, righteous Judge
of Heaven and Earth made Himself. to be the just Savior of His
people. The Lord Jesus Christ crucified. Turn with me over to 1 Timothy
3. 1 Timothy 3 verse 16. It says,
and without controversy, great is the mystery of godliness.
God was manifest in the flesh. That very God was justified in
the Spirit. The Spirit justified Him, said,
He's pure, He's perfect. The Spirit descended on Him like
a dove. That very God was seen of angels. He was seen of angels when they
announced His birth into this world. Seen of angels when they
strengthened Him after He was tempted in all points like as
we are for 40 days in the wilderness of the adversary. He was seen
of angels when He bowed His head and gave up the ghost. He was seen of angels when they
rolled the stone away and watched Him walk out. Seen of angels,
verse 16 goes on to say, He was preached unto the Gentiles, believed
on in the world, and received up into glory. That is the testimony
of God. how Christ came and gave Himself
to be that sacrifice for the sin of His people. And because
He willingly offered Himself to the judgment of God, He gave
Himself to it. Because He died under that judgment
with His death, in His death, the sin that is paid, His people
are free. That's the testimony of God.
Here's His testimony. Because Christ died, all of His
people live. That's His testimony. And because
Christ finished the payment in His death, Christ lives. That's
the reason God raised Him from the dead. That payment was done.
It was finished. And now He's taken His rightful
place on the throne of glory. That's the testimony of God.
That's what all of the Word of God speaks of, all of the Word
of God. Now let me declare that to you
in as plain a words as I can. When Adam and Eve sinned in the
garden, sinned in the garden of Eden, the Lord God, after
they sinned and he dealt with them and told them, this is now
what's coming to you, the Lord God slew an animal and he covered
Adam and Eve in the skins of that animal. That's Jesus Christ crucified. That's what that is. Another died in their place. The moment they sin, another
died in their place, and through that death of another, God covered
their sins. That's Jesus Christ crucified.
When God literally rained down his judgment on the earth with
rain and flooded this earth and everything in this earth died
except for Noah and his family and everything that was inside
the ark. That's Jesus Christ crucified. That's not a story of Noah's
great faith and the great work that he did for God. That's Jesus
Christ crucified. God rained down judgment and
wrath on everything in the earth, including Noah. God poured out
His fury on Noah. But Noah bore God's judgment
and wrath on him in the ark. The ark bore it. The ark was
the mediator between Noah and God. That's when it says, but
Noah found grace, Christ was the grace. That's Jesus Christ
crucified. In Exodus, the Passover lamb,
that's Jesus Christ crucified. God said that the firstborn male
in every house was going to die. Every single house. But He said,
if you have a substitute who will die for your house instead of your firstborn, when
I pass through the land and see the blood of your substitute,
I'll pass over you. Your debt will be paid. I'll
be satisfied. I won't bring death into that
house. I will see death has already come here. Here's the blood. I see the blood on the doorpost. That's Jesus Christ crucified
for his people, in the stead of his people. In Leviticus,
there's a story of the scapegoat. All of the sins of the people,
this was a picture, it was a type, it represented what must be fulfilled,
what was to come. The high priest would ceremonially
take all the sins of the people and he would lay them on the
head of this scapegoat. And then once all the sins of
the people were, again, ceremonially transferred to this scapegoat,
a fit man would lead all that sin out into the wilderness. He would take it away, never
to return again. Take it to a place where that
goat could not come back. That's Jesus Christ crucified. That's what it is. took our sins
away, took them upon himself and he went to a place that we
cannot go and come back from. The Lord Jesus Christ crucified
in numbers. There's a story of Moses lifting
up a serpent on the pole. The people were being bitten
by poisonous snakes. And I used to hear this story
when I was a child and think, why a snake on a pole? Why did
he choose that? I thank the Lord for the day
that he revealed to me. Why a snake on a pole? It's because
these deadly serpents were biting the people and their poison was
killing the people. And God told Moses, you take
the exact thing that is killing the people and put that on the
pole. And then you lift it up and you
tell all the people to look and live. You tell them to see what's
killing them hanging there. What I deserve right there. My
sin, right there. I see my sin. Where is my sin?
What happened to my sin? It's right there. God put it
right there. Our Lord plainly said in John
3, 14 and 15, as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness,
even so must the Son of Man be lifted up that whosoever believeth
in Him. It says my sin is right there.
My death is right there. Everything I am, all my judgment
before God, it's all hanging right there. Whosoever believeth
in him should not perish but have eternal life. He said in
John 12, if I be lifted up, men and women will live. If I be
lifted up, they'll live. He said in Isaiah 45, look unto
me, look at the Christ of the cross and be ye saved. That smitten rock, there's a
story of the smitten rock, that rock that Moses struck with his
rod. He took the rod that God gave
to him and he struck it because of the murmuring sin of the people. That rock is Jesus Christ crucified. smitten by the justice of the
law. Moses wrote the law. Moses was
given the law. The law, the holy law of God
struck Christ. And because of that, life flowed
out. In his death, life flowed out
for his people. When Moses struck that rock,
water, they said, we're thirsty, so thirsty. Water just started
gushing out to him. I guarantee you, every man who
put his cup there, it was running over. In Deuteronomy, there's a story
of the city of refuge. If any man has sinned, If any
man has sinned, there's a place of safety. There's a place to
hide from the wrath to come. That's Jesus Christ crucified. In the book of Joshua, Rahab's
scarlet thread. Don't you love that story? That
red cord, that blood red cord, that token of promise. She said,
promise me. They said, here's a token. Here's
a covenant. This is our binding covenant.
This is the only way of escape. That's Jesus Christ crucified.
In the book of Ruth, a precious man named Boaz, I like just saying
his name, the kinsman redeemer, the only man who had the right,
the only man who had the ability to redeem, to buy back, that's
Jesus Christ crucified. Job said, I know that my Redeemer
liveth. Who is he talking about? Jesus
Christ crucified. David, sparing the life of Mephibosheth
for Jonathan's sake. That's Jesus Christ crucified
as God for Christ's sake has spared you. Shadrach, Meshach,
Abednego being delivered from the fiery furnace. Daniel being
delivered from the lion's den. That's Jesus Christ crucified.
Jonah in the belly of a whale. That's Jesus Christ crucified.
Our Lord said no sign's gonna be given. but Jonah in the belly
of the whale. Son of man's gonna be in the
heart of the earth. That's Jesus Christ crucified. Hosea taking
Gomer to himself to be his wife. That's Jesus Christ crucified. Zechariah said the righteous
branch is coming. Malachi said the son of righteousness
with healing in his wings is coming. That's Jesus Christ crucified. Matthew said, He's here. Call
His name Jesus, for He shall save. Call His name Emmanuel,
because God is with us. The prophets said, He's coming. The gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke,
and John said, He's here. And the New Testament epistles,
all the apostles say, He's coming again. Who is coming back? When God comes back, who is coming
again? Jesus, the Christ who was crucified. Turn with me to Revelation 1. Revelation 1 verse 1, it says,
the revelation of Jesus Christ. Most people think this is the
revelation of Armageddon. It's not. What is it then? It's the revelation of Jesus
Christ. What about Jesus Christ? What
does it reveal? Look at verse 5. And from Jesus
Christ, who is the faithful witness and the first begotten of the
dead and the prince of the kings of the earth unto him that loved
us and washed us from our sins in his own blood. And hath made
us kings and priests unto God and his father, to him be glory
and dominion forever and ever, amen. Oh, the glory of His return
for every soul He was crucified for. Every soul the Father placed
in Him and the horror of His return for every soul He was
not crucified for. Every soul the Father did not
place in Him. It's a day of judgment, not a
day of glory. Verse 7 says, Behold, he cometh
with clouds, and every eye shall see him, they also which pierced
him, the very ones who pierced him, when he was crucified. And all kindreds of the earth
shall wail because of him. Even so, amen. Jesus Christ crucified. That was the judgment for God's
people. If a soul is found outside of
Christ, then a judgment is still to come. But in the Lord Jesus
Christ crucified, judgment's over. It's over. Sometimes even we believers say,
you know, I fear standing before the judgment. I just think about
that day of the judgment. Well, if God has made all of
our hope to be in Jesus Christ crucified, what judgment? There
is no judgment. That was the judgment. In Christ,
we were judged for our sins, and we didn't make it. We didn't
hold up. God killed us. God killed us in Him. Jesus Christ
crucified us. That's where our judgment was,
and it's over. In that one event, I'm going to leave us with these
thoughts. In that one event, this is what
we see. We see all of the justice and
judgment of God for His people. All of it. All of it. Our Lord
Jesus Christ cried, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? It's because our sin was on Him. That's why He was judging us
in Him. Christ was judged for His people. We were judged in Him. He was
judged in us, bearing our sin. In that one event, we see God's
sovereign purpose concerning His people. We see what God desired
to be done. What He wanted in the will of
His heart. Isaiah 53 10 says, It pleased
God to bruise Him. for His people. Why was He crucified? Why was
Christ crucified? Here's why. Acts 4.28 says, because
that's what God predetermined to be done. That's why. Jesus Christ crucified, that
was not man and that was not sin ruining what God came to
do. That's what God came to do. That's
what He came to do. In this one event, we see the
love of God for His people. Also, we see the love of God
for Christ. Clearly, concerning His people,
we see greater love had no man than this. He laid down His life.
But concerning the Father's love for Christ, this is what our
Lord said, and this is an amazing verse. John 10, verse 17, He
said, Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life that
I might take it again. He said, this is the foundation.
This is the basis of the Father's love to me. It's because I laid
down my life for the ones that he wanted to be saved. In this one event, we see the
glory of God. in what he did for his people.
In John 17, four, our Lord said, Father, I have glorified thee
on the earth. I have finished the work which
thou gavest me to do. He said, I've glorified you by
finishing this work. Moses said to God, show me your
glory. God said, Jesus Christ crucified. I'll have mercy. I'll be gracious
in the cleft of the rock. That rock is Christ. In this
one event, we see the power of God. We see the ability of God
to save His people. How do we see that? Christ said,
Father, I finished the work. I finished it. It is finished. Romans 1 verse 16 says, I'm not
ashamed of the gospel of Christ. the testimony of Christ, Christ
crucified. It's the power of God unto salvation. And in this one event, we see
the absolute union of God with his people. You know, our desire
is we want to be with him. The glory and the promise is
that we are one with him. How do we see that in the most
clarity? Where do we most clearly see
that? Paul said in Galatians 2.20,
I am crucified with Christ. Nevertheless, I live. Yet not
I, but Christ liveth in me, and the life which I now live in
the flesh, I live by the faith of the Son of God who loved me
and gave himself for me. Paul said, that's the only thing
I want to know. That's the only thing I wanna
know. That's the only thing I'm going to preach. May that be said about us. May
that be said about us. May God make us determined to
know nothing, and to preach nothing, and to look to nothing, and to
cling to nothing, but Jesus Christ and Him crucified. All right,
let's all stand together. Turn with me to 118.