I want to speak to you this morning
from 2nd Corinthians chapter 5 verse 21. For he that is God the Father
hath made him, God the Son, to be sin for us, his elect, who
knew no sin, that is Christ knew no sin, that we God's elect might
be made the righteousness, not just looked upon that way, but
actually made the righteousness of God in Jesus Christ. I have heard it said that this
verse is the gospel. We have the gospel in a verse
here. Isaiah 53 is the gospel in a chapter. 2 Corinthians 5.21 is the gospel
in a verse. Now God the Father, this is where
salvation began. Salvation began with God the
Father. He purposed it. He's the one
who purposed and devised salvation before he created the world. Salvation was not an afterthought
with God. Salvation that's in the Lord
Jesus Christ is not an attempt on God's part to save sinners
if they'll let Him. That's the most foolish thing
I've ever heard. What kind of God would do that? Not a wise God, not the all-wise
God. He's not going to do that. That's
not the way He operates. The scripture teaches us that
He has ordered all things and they're sure. And God the Father
made a covenant with His Son concerning His elect, which are
sinners chosen before the foundation of the world. A multitude of
sinners. If God had not chosen a multitude of sinners before
the world began, and given them to Christ, and made Christ their
surety, made Christ their mediator, made Christ their Messiah, made
Christ their priest, made Christ their sacrifice, made Christ
their all in all, their wisdom, their righteousness, their sanctification,
and their redemption. Had he not done this, No one
would be saved. Christ said to those Pharisees,
ye will not come to me that you might have life. Free will is
not free. It is bound by the nature that
it belongs to. You can only do what your nature
dictates for you to do. And God the Father who made this
covenant with his son concerning his elect, made him the surety
and the substitute for his elect. For these sinners,
a multitude of sinners, it says, no man can number. Ungodly men
and women. Enemies. We are described before
the new birth as enemies in our minds by wicked works in Ephesians
2. We did not come into this world
in love with God. We came into this world with
an enmity in our hearts against God, wishing that there was no
God. The fool has said in his heart, no God for me. Wanting
to be his own God. Well Christ came into this world
as a substitute for those whom the father chose and he made to him that is God
the father made him to be sinned says for us us not every son
of Adam but every promised son of Abraham scripture says he
took not on him the nature of angels But he took on him the
seed, the promised seed of Abraham. That's who he came to save. Salvation
is not an attempt on God's part to rescue fallen men. It is not a rescue attempt. It
is not God offering you salvation. It's not God giving you a chance.
It is God the mighty God, the sovereign God saving you in Christ
by His power through the blood and righteousness of Christ that
He may be a just God and the Savior. Now it says here that
He made Christ our substitute, the substitute of sinners to
be sin for us. We cannot comprehend that. We
cannot comprehend sin. Sin is far far more heinous and
evil than we ever thought could be. Only God knows what sin really
is. That's why I believe our Lord
in the Garden of Gethsemane fell on his face and prayed unto God,
if it be possible, let this cup pass from me. But it was not
possible because the cup did not pass. It's not possible for
God to save any sinner apart from the substitutionary work
and person of the Lord Jesus Christ. It is not possible. There is no other way to God. There is no other way to be saved
except through the blood and the righteousness of the Son
of God, Jesus Christ. There is no other way. And God,
it says here, God the Father, made His Son, Jesus Christ, to
be sent for us. Now this, this is beyond human
understanding. He made Him to be sent for us. He made Him to be what I am. What am I by nature? I'm sin. Sins, plural, is what I do because
of sin, singular, is what I am. I am sin. And God made his son to be what
I am that he might make me to be what he is. Righteous. Holy. without spot or blemish. When the law dealt with Jesus
Christ, it dealt with sin. He was not just looked upon as
sin, but he was made to be sin. The one who knew no sin, he knew
no sin by word, He knew no sin by thought. He knew no sin by
action. Jesus Christ is perfectly holy,
then and now. He sits at God's right hand,
perfectly holy. It says he knew no sin. You know, in the Old Testament,
the Passover lamb had to be perfect to be accepted. There could be
no blemish in it. There was no blemish in his character.
There was no blemish in his work. There was no blemish in his thoughts.
No blemish in his words. There was no blemish in him.
Yet, he was really, really made to be sin for us, his elect. Why? Why did God do that? Why did God the Father do that
to his son? Well, we have the answer that
we, God's elect, might be made, not
just looked upon, but truly made the righteousness of God in Jesus
Christ. Brethren, that's substitution.
Christ being made what I am that I might be made what he is righteous
this is substitution and this my friend is the work of God
you cannot cannot be saved any other way except through the
blood and the righteousness of Jesus Christ. He did not do that for everyone. If he did, everyone would be
saved. But he did it for a multitude
of sinners that cannot be numbered. And I tell you what, this person,
this man that you're listening to, is a sinner. This man's a sinner and that
gives me hope in Christ because he died for sinners. I'm not
worried about whether I'm one of the elect or not, I'm worried
about this. Am I a sinner? It's hard to find a sinner. Hard to find a sinner. Everyone
has an excuse for their actions. The scripture says, by him actions
are weighed. He makes no excuse for us. He
tells us what we are. Sinners. Ungodly. Ungodly. Christ died for sinners. He substituted
himself for sinners. He stood in the stead of sinners. He worked out a righteousness
for sinners. If I could find a sinner, I have
good news. I have good news. God has made
him to be sinned for sinners. For us. Who knew no sin. Christ, the perfect son of God,
the holy son of God, who knew no sin of his own. Of his own
doing, of his own thoughts, of his own works. that we might be made the righteousness
of God in Him. Without righteousness no man
will see the Lord. But bless God we have that righteousness
in His Son. Jesus Christ is my righteousness
and I am righteous in Him. This is the gospel. This is the
gospel of substitution and satisfaction. God Almighty is satisfied with
Jesus Christ. God Almighty cannot be satisfied
with what I do, but He is 1000% satisfied with the person and
work of His Son, and with everyone that's in His Son. And I say
to any sinner out there, anyone that's bowed down under the guilt
of sin, look to the Lamb of God who was made to be sent for us,
that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him. He is our hope. He's the hope of every sinner.
Alright, may God bless His word.