Let's go ahead and begin tonight's service as we normally do. If you would, turn to the Psalms. I'd like to read four verses in Psalm 61. Psalm 61. In Psalm 61, verse 1, we read these words, You know, our Lord tells us in His Word that we can come to the throne of grace boldly because of our Savior, the Lord Jesus. And this is what David is saying here in his note to Neginah, the chief musician.

Hear my cry. He's coming to the throne of grace, O God. Attend unto my prayer. From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee. Who else would we cry unto? There's no one else. When my heart is overwhelmed, lead me to the rock. that is higher than I. For thou hast been a shelter for me and a strong tower from the enemy.

I will abide in thy tabernacle forever. I will trust in the covert of thy wings, says God. We're going to look at a couple of different places in Scriptures tonight. Our first place we'll look at is our text, and you'll recall that in our last look at this text, Our Lord opened not his mouth.

He kept his mouth closed. He accepted condemnation. that he was receiving, that was being laid against him, even though he had no sin in him, he was accepting the fact that they were charging him with sin, that they were charging him with all these different things. And he said no words, because this is what he came to do. He came to lay down his life for his children, of which he did perfectly.

And so, we also saw another section here, and let's just read our text, shall we? Beginning at verse 15, and we read this in our last part, but there was a part, and I mentioned it two weeks ago, that we would pick up the story of Barabbas in our next study. Oh, here's Josilla. We're gonna hold up just a moment, folks. A young lady who's been attending services quite a bit recently just arrived, and I want her to read along with us on this. So just bear with me for a moment. But back to what we were looking at.

Look at verse 14, and he answered him to never a word in so much that the governor marveled. Do you recall that was when The Lord was being charged by Pilate, and Pilate said to him, hearst thou not how many things they witnessed against thee? And then in verse 14, the Lord answered him, never a word, insomuch as the governor marveled.

Now at the feast, the governor was wont to release unto the people a prisoner whom they would. And they had then a notable prisoner called Barabbas. Therefore, when they were gathered together, Pilate said unto them," he's speaking unto the people who were charging the Lord Jesus there in the monkey court, and that's what it was, a monkey court, "'Whom will ye that I release unto you, Barabbas or Jesus, which is called Christ?'

For he knew that for envy, he knew it. He wasn't stupid. He was not a fool. He understood what those religious men were doing. He knew that for envy, they had delivered him. Because of envy, they had delivered the Lord Jesus. Verse 19, when he was set down on the judgment seat, his wife sent unto him, saying, have thou nothing to do with that just man. She's warning him, don't have anything to do with this person they're calling Jesus, for I have suffered many things this day in a dream because of him. So she was warning her husband. I've had dreams about this one.

But the chief priest and the elders persuaded the multitude that they should ask for rabbis and destroy Jesus. The governor answered and said to them, whether of the twain will ye that I release unto you? Then they said, Barabbas. Pilate said unto them, what shall I do then with the Jesus which is called Christ? They all say unto him, let him be crucified. And the governor said, why, what evil hath he done? But they cried out the more saying, let him be crucified.

When Pilate saw that he could prevail nothing but had rather a tumult was made, he took water and washed his hands before the multitude saying, I am innocent of the blood of this just person. And you recall, we looked a little bit about that last week on how the Lord was definitely a just person. See ye to it, he says there in the last part of verse 24. Verse 25, then answered all the people and said, his blood be on us and on our children. Then released he Barabbas unto them. When he had scourged Jesus, he delivered him to be crucified.

Now, turn to you, if you would, to the handout. and we'll look at the handout, read along with me if you would. In the handout, top of page one, here we have a clear illustration of why the Christ, the Lord Jesus, must go up to Jerusalem. Remember, throughout the time there, or throughout the end of of Matthew we read over and over again where the Lord said, I must go up to Jerusalem. I must go up to Jerusalem. I must be beaten by the elders and the scribes and the high priest. I must be killed. And then he would say, and I must be raised from, and I will be raised from the dead on the third day.

So here we see why. why he must go up to Jerusalem and be beaten and killed. Our blessed Savior died as a substitutionary sacrifice to make atonement for the sins of his people, to redeem us from the curse of the law. Because Christ died in the place of God's elect, all of God's chosen elect must go free. Do you see that? This is how, you know, there's another verse that goes right along with this. He says, all that the father given me shall come to me. That's God's elect.

That's the reason that he went up there to die so that they would all come to him and be with him in life for eternity. second paragraph of page one, the story of Barabbas is recorded by all four of the gospel writers, and during the days of Israel's subjection to Rome, it was customary on the day of the Passover for the Roman governor to release a guilty prisoner.

No doubt this was intended to be an act of goodwill on the part of Roman authorities towards the Jews. The Jews probably accepted it as a significant complement to their Passover celebrations. Since that day, the Jews were themselves delivered out of the land of Egypt. You remember that was what the start of the Passover was all about.

And they may have thought it most fitting, a most fitting thing for some prisoner to obtain his freedom on that day. Since a prisoner must be released on the Day of Atonement, Pilate thought that he now had an opportunity to allow the Savior to go free. Remember, he was trying his best. He kept asking over and over again, why do you want to kill this man? What has he done? This is a just man. Here's my chance. Here's my chance. Maybe I can let him go this way. Maybe I can let him go without compromising myself in the eyes of my superiors at Rome."

So he asked the people which of the two they preferred, a notorious criminal or the Holy Savior. Notice that without hesitation or dissension, the crowd cried out for release of Barabbas and the death of Christ. Pilate's last effort to release Christ had failed, then released Barabbas unto them, and when he had scourged Jesus, he delivered him to be crucified. Last paragraph of page one, Barabbas appears to have committed at least three crimes. He was imprisoned for murder, sedition, and robbery.

This wretched of a man was brought out and set in competition with the Holy Son of God, and the poor inhabitants of Jerusalem were so hardened in their unbelief and sin, so thirsty for the innocent blood of Christ, that they preferred this obnoxious creature to a man who is the Son of the living God. Page 2.

It is this act of freeing the guilty and binding the innocent that we have a vivid example of salvation by substitution. The guilty is set free and the innocent is put to death in his place. Barabbas is spared and Christ is crucified. We have in this event a display of the manner in which God pardons and justifies the ungodly. He does this because Christ has suffered and died in their stead, the just for the unjust.

We deserve to die for the punishment of our sins, but a mighty substitute has suffered our punishment. Eternal death is our due. but a glorious surety has died in our stead. We are all in the position of Barabbas by nature. We are guilty, wicked, condemned, and shut up under the law. But when we are without hope and without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. And now God, for Christ's sake, can be just and yet the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus. Second paragraph, page two.

In Leviticus 14, there is a recorded ritual for cleansing lepers. Two birds were used. One bird was killed and its blood was poured into a basin. The other bird was dipped into that blood of the slain bird, and then, with its wings covered red, it was set free to fly into open air. The slain bird typified our Savior, whose blood was shed at Mount Calvary, and every soul that by faith is plunged into that, and you recall this is a song that we sing frequently, a fountain filled with blood, drawn from Emmanuel's veins, is set free, owing their life and liberty to the Savior who was once for sinners slain.

This is substitution. It comes down to this, folks. Barnabas must die, or Christ must die. You, the sinner, must perish, or Christ, the Immaculate Lamb of God, must be slain. The Incarnate God died that we might be delivered the death that we have earned.

The Lord Jesus suffered in the place of sinners like Barabbas, satisfying the wrath and justice of God. And like Barabbas, all those sinners for whom Christ made satisfaction must go free. Barabbas was a man guilty of many offenses. There's an old saying, as guilty as sin. Well, Barabbas was guilty of sin. His life was a life of righteousness and sin. He was tried in a court of law and found guilty of robbery, of sedition, and of murder.

As such, he is a fair representative of all men by nature. We could all be named Barabbas. We are all the sons of our father Adam. His image, his nature, and his character reflected in us. Page 3. Like Barabbas, we are all rebels. Brabus stirred up sedition. He was a revolutionary. That is a modern name for rebels. He would not submit to authority.

This is the problem with our race. We are proud, self-willed rebels. We hate authority. In our father Adam, we rebelled against God's commandment. We were born with a rebellious nature. In pride, and self-will, we rebelled all the days of our lives against God's throne. We sinfully rebel against God's holy law. Man acts like he does simply because God says, don't do that. Man sees the good and refuses to do it simply because God says, do it.

And we are steadfast and persistent in our rebellion. As children, we rebel against our parents and teachers. As adults, we rebel against moral and civil authorities. Even as believers, we have a nature within us that rebels against everything holy and good.

This is what the Apostle Paul was saying in Romans 7, verse 14 through 15. For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am carnal, sold under sin. For that which I do, I allow not. For what I would, that do I not. But what I hate, That I do. And then in verse 18, we read these words again by Paul. For I know that in me, that is in my flesh, dwelleth no good thing. For to will is present with me, but how to perform that which is good I find not.

Like Barabbas, we are all robbers. It was Adam's determination to rob God of His authority, of His creation, and of His glory. And that's what man does by his sin. We have robbed God of His glory, refusing to worship Him in spirit and in truth. We have robbed God of His honor, refusing to believe His Word. We have robbed God of His creation, stealing that which God has made for Himself and using it for ourselves without regard to Him for giving it to us.

When was the last time you asked God, thank you, for the worms that crawl in our yard out here? Everyone should be shaking their head, that's me. How often have I used something of God's creation without thanking Him for it, without giving Him the credit You know everything about us, including the gifts that we have to do what we do in this world, comes from our Lord, doesn't it? So why do we not give Him credit and thank Him for everything that we have?

I don't. We use it for ourselves without regard for Him in giving it to us. We have robbed ourselves and our children of the blessedness of our original creation. of fellowship with God and the image of God of true freedom, of the favor of God and of life itself. Through our sin and rebellion, our race is reduced to nothing but emptiness and vanity. Once we were princes of God's creation, now we are empty-handed thieves.

Listen to these words from Ephesians 2, 11 and 12. Wherefore, remember that ye being in times past Gentiles in the flesh, who were called uncircumcision by that which is called the circumcision in the flesh made by hands, that at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.

And like Barabbas, we are all murderers. In the course of his rebellion and robbery, Barabbas had committed murder. So have we all. There's not a guiltless one among us. We've all committed murder in our hearts. Envy, hatred, anger. Wrath and malice are in the eyes of God's law equal to murder. Is that not what we read in Matthew 5, 21 through 22?

Ye have heard that it was said unto them of old time, thou shalt not kill, and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment. But I say unto you, this is the Lord Jesus speaking. He says unto you and I, that whosoever is angry with his brother, without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment. And whosoever shall say to his brother, Raka, shall be in danger of the council. But whosoever shall say, thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire. We have infected our children with dew, with the deadly disease of sin. Sin is a plague of the heart.

It is a family disease passed from generation to generation, and we are all guilty of the blood of the Son of God. Lord, help us to never forget what we are by nature. It says in Matthew 15, 19, for out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murderers, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, and blasphemies. There's not an evil deed or crime or infamous sin recorded on the pages of human history which does not reside in the heart of every man and woman and child in the world. Yes, we all could be named Rabbis. We are all the descendants of Adam. We are all of our father, the devil. We are all by nature children of wrath. Read the book of God's holy law. Read every commandment of the Almighty. By the law, we stand judged. Did you catch that? We stand judged.

And the verdict is guilty. Like Barabbas, we are men, men and women, guilty of many offenses. Barabbas was a prisoner under the sentence of the law. He had been found guilty. The sentence was passed. Barabbas must die. On the day when the Jews observed their Passover, two thieves were to be crucified, and Barabbas would have been crucified in the midst of them as the vilest of the three. He was bound hand and foot and cast into prison to be held there as a cursed, condemned man until the day of his execution. Try to picture Barabbas in the prison.

He expected very soon to be taken out and nailed to a cross and hung up to die as the just payment for his crimes, page five. He was held under the sentence of the law. This is the exact condition of every person in this world by nature. Listen to John 3 verse 36. He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life. But then it says this.

He that believeth not the Son shall not see life. You see the condemnation that has come upon this world? People have asked me, what is the unforgivable sin? You know what the unforgivable sin is? It's to go through that door marked death and not believe God Almighty. That's the one sin that he has not forgiven. When you go through that doormark death, if you do not believe God and everything he says in his word, then you're guilty. John 3, 36. He that believeth not the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abideth on him.

Listen to these words from Romans 3.19.

Now we know that what thing soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law, that every mouth may be stopped and all the world may become guilty before God. We're talking about the guilt that Barabbas had, the same guilt that every person that's ever walked this earth will have without a Savior. Here in Galatians chapter 3 verse 10 and then Galatians 3 22 to 23, for as many as are the works of the law are under the curse. For it is written, cursed is everyone that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them. And then in 22 through 23, the scripture has concluded all under sin, that the promise of faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe.

But before faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith, which should afterwards be revealed. We all, folks, every single one of us, every single one who's ever walked this earth, we're by nature the children of wrath, even as others, as it states in Ephesians 2 verse 3.

Man's bondage is as cruel and terrible as it is sure. Men today like to boast of their independence and freedom. We like to think I'm going to do my own thing. In reality, We are only doing exactly the same thing that men have been doing throughout history. They're shaking their fist at God. We shook our fist at God and we said, we will not have that one rule over us. That's exactly what has been going on since the day of Adam in the garden.

Man is not free. He is in bondage. He is in bondage to religious traditions, social customs, peer pressure, and man by nature is in bondage to sin. He is in bondage to his own nature and the lust of his own heart. Man is in bondage to his sinful nature.

We read, can an Ethiopian change his skin or a leopard his spots? then may ye also do good that are accustomed to do evil." Jeremiah 13, 23. Men are taken captive by Satan at his will as stated in 2 Timothy 2, 26. Man by nature is prone to every kind of evil.

It is only by the restraining grace of God that keeps you and I from practicing the wicked things that we pretend to hate. And all who are without Christ are bound under the chains of darkness. This, their will, is held in captivity by the chains of iniquity. Page 6.

How often fallen man resolves to change. To some degree, he may even succeed, reforming his outward behavior, breaking evil habits, and ceasing from the practices of outward vices. But his character, his nature, his will remains in bondage. He remains a bondman in chains of despair and in the dark dungeon of hopelessness and helplessness.

Christ alone can set guilty prisoners free. That's what He tells us. If the Son therefore shall make you free, you shall be free indeed. We were such as sit in darkness and in the shadow of death being bound in affliction and iron. And then, in the day of His power, we cried unto the Lord in our trouble and He saved us out of all of our distresses. He brought us out. of the darkness and of the shadow of death and break our bands in asunder.

Turn in your Bibles, if you would, to Psalms 107. Turn over to Psalms 107, will you? And let's read this together. Psalms 107, beginning at verse 10. Psalms 107, beginning at 10. Such as sit in darkness and in the shadow of death. This is Psalms 107, verse 10. being bound in affliction and iron, because they rebelled against the words of God and condemned the counsel of the Most High.

Therefore he brought down their heart with labor. They fell down and there was none to help. Then they cried unto the Lord in their trouble and he saved them out of their distresses. He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death and break their bands in thunder." Back in our handout, mid page six. Man's sentence is fixed.

Scriptures tell us, the soul that sinneth, it shall die. God has spoken. There is no repeal. God's law says the guilty must die. God's holiness demands that the sinner must be slain. And God's justice requires the death of every transgressor. Man by nature is under the sentence and curse of God's holy law.

Fallen man is not on probation. He's on death row. The God of heaven judges him guilty. His own conscience consents to the verdict. That's why there's so many different religions in the world. Everybody's trying to appease their idea of who God is. The sentence is passed. The only thing lacking is the appointed day of execution.

We died spiritually in our father, Adam, as stated in Romans 5.12. Physical death is the consequence of sin. And every unbelieving sinner must die eternally because of God's immutable law. Every sinner out of Christ is dead in the law.

Is there any hope for a sinner like Barabbas? Must all guilty forever perish? Will God not have mercy? Is there any way whereby God can be faithful to his holy law and yet pardon sin? Is there any means whereby God can both satisfy his justice and let the sinner live? Page seven. God will not show mercy at the expense of his justice. but he will show mercy if justice can be satisfied in a substitute.

Blessed be the name of the Lord, there is hope for sinners, for God has found himself a substitute. A substitute was provided to die in Barabbas' place. The Roman soldier came and unlocked Barabbas' prison door and he took off his shackles and he said, Barabbas, you're free to go. Jesus of Nazareth is going to die in your place. Now folks, that's real substitution. The one who suffered and died is Barabbas' substitute, is the substitute of everyone for whom the Father gave the Son from before the stars ever twinkled in the sky.

His name is Jesus Christ the Lord. He is God's own well-beloved Son. He is the only substitute that God can or will accept. being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God has set forth to be a propitiation." That's a mercy seat. That's the seat of mercy.

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.

Romans 3, 24-26. Or how about these words from 2 Corinthians 5, 21. For he hath made him to be sin for us who knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in him. That's our substitute. That's substitution right there. Or how about these words from 1 Peter 2 verse 24, who his own self bear our sins in his own body on the tree that we being dead to sins should live unto righteousness by whose stripes we are healed.

The sinner's substitute must be a suitable person who like Boaz with Ruth is able and willing to redeem. You recall the story, Boaz found out that he was in relations to Ruth. And he redeemed her. He went and he sat at the gates. Well, that's a different story though. Yet this one, this one who is like Boaz, able and willing, who undertakes to reconcile the holy God and simple man, must himself be both God and man.

He must be God, for only God is able to make infinite satisfaction. Yet he must be man, for man must be punished. The Lord Jesus Christ is just such a substitute. Being God, He is able to redeem. Being man, He is able to suffer. Being the God-man, He is an all-sufficient redeemer, both able and willing to save. Page 8. Someone once said, God could not die and man could not satisfy. But the God-man has both died and satisfied.

In order to be a substitute for others, our Redeemer must be perfect and sinless, and our blessed Savior knew no sin. Yet the sinless one, the Lord Jesus, was made sin for us and suffered the just punishment due to our sins as our substitute. When the Holy Lord God made Christ sin for us, He was slain in our place. God took his son without the camp. God hung his son up in our place between two thieves. God forsook his well-beloved son. God killed his son as our substitute.

And by the marvelous transfer of grace, All for whom Christ was made sin are made cause to become the very righteousness of God in him. Hebrews 10 14 For by one offering he hath perfected forever them that are sanctified. Because the Lord Jesus Christ died in his place, Barabbas was set free. The Son of God took Barabbas' place at Calvary. Therefore, Barabbas did not die. There is a glorious truth here.

All of those of whom the Son of God died at Calvary must be set free. It's not possible for the law to punish my substitute and punish me too. Justice will not allow it. Not one soul for whom Jesus Christ died shall be found in hell. The cross of Christ can never be discouraged. The blood of Christ can cannot be spilled in vain.

It says he shall see of the travail of his soul and shall be satisfied. That's real substitution. Any doctrine that teaches that God will both punish Christ and punish those for whom Christ died is not substitution and is not the gospel. Understand this. The atoning death of Christ was a satisfactory substitution.

It satisfied all the desires of His Father, it satisfied all the desires of His own soul, it satisfies all the demands of His law, and it satisfied all the debt of His people. That means that every guilty sinner for whom Jesus Christ died must be set free. Amen. That, folks, is a wonderful picture of every one of us. We're all just as guilty as Barabbas, yet there is no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, our Lord. Why? Because He was condemned in our stead. Amen?