Hebrews chapter 12 Hebrews chapter 12 I'm gonna read the first three verses Hebrews 12 verses 1 2 3 we look at verse 3 in particular and for this lesson on the mind of Christ, having the mind, the same mind as Christ. He says in Hebrews, wherefore seeing we are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight and the sin which so easily beset us and let us run with patience the race that is set before us. looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross despising the shame and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God for consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest we be wearied and faint in our minds. That's what we're going to look at. We're going to look at the mind of Christ. Lesson number 12, endurance of contradiction. Endurance of contradiction. Consider him who endured such contradiction of sinners against himself. What he was, we were not. And so we had no idea since the fall of how to act in a godly manner, how to respond, how to, you know, human nature will only take us so far.

But I pray that we would do as our text dictates, consider him. Consider him, consider him that endured, consider him that endured contradictions, lest we be wearied and faint. And it's easy to get wearied and get faint. So I pray that tonight we would follow Christ, imitate Christ, resemble him in all manner of attitude, action, and thought. As we will, the new man will do these things. Well, let's look at these just before we get into the life of Christ.

Consider Him. Let's look at that word, consider. That means to contemplate, to study, to chew over, to maul over. Consider Him, and obviously the Him is Christ. That endured, that word endured means He stayed under and suffered. consider him, contemplate him, maul upon him that endured, suffered contradiction, that is disobedience and opposing strife, opposing strife. Bruce and I were out there just a little bit ago talking about The older we get, the more aches and pains we have. I always think about John and Betty. They were in pain all the time. All the time. It never let up.

If it was one thing, it was something else. I don't know that kind of pain, thankfully. But there are those of God's people who do. But he didn't complain. It'd get to a point where he'd just get frustrated because he was tired of it. But Christ, can you imagine holiness walking in amongst unholiness? And here, you know, we go to different things and events or whatever, and we hear God's name blasphemed all the time. It's like, oh, but we can get away from, we go home and we can get alone or get away.

Christ, he always went about doing good. So he never hid himself other than when they were trying to take him. But everywhere he went, he was misunderstood, misrepresented, mocked, laughed at, ridiculed, disobedient. He knew what it was to obey the Father. All those people around him did not.

So let's look at Christ. Let us consider, let us have the same mind. It is very, very difficult. Consider him that endured such contradiction, opposing strife. He, what an endurance was this. What a staying power. What a steadfastness that Christ had.

Perfect truth in the midst of error. This is Christ. Perfect love in the midst of ingratitude and coldness. And you know how we get, we get ingratitude and then the cold. Perfect virtue and honor in the midst of violence and fraud. Perfect loyalty, our Lord, in the midst of ridicule and desertion. Even his disciples deserted him. Perfect innocence, that was our Lord, in the midst of full depravity and guiltiness.

Perfect patience in the midst of high treason and constant provocation. He was constantly being provoked. Tried by Satan, the Sanhedrin, religious people of his day, even his disciples didn't understand him. Turn with me to Isaiah 53. Isaiah 53 and verse 7, Christ was oppressed, contradiction against us, and he was afflicted.

Yet he opened not his mouth. He is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he opened not his mouth." He had every, as we would say, it's your right to defend yourself. He didn't. He just told Pilate, he says, you couldn't do what you, you know, unless it was given from you from my father. You couldn't do, you couldn't even do this. And he said, I'm the one you're seeking after, and the centurion fell backwards. What endurance of contradiction.

Turn with me to Psalms 9. I've never seen this before. This is really sad, but this is our Lord speaking, I believe. And boy, we need to take this example to heart for sure. If nothing else you hear, we hear tonight. May we hear this, Psalms 109 and verse four. Well, let's look at verse three.

They compassed me about also with words of hatred and fought against me without a cause. That's obviously the Lord, He's endured contradiction. Psalms 109, look at verse four. For my love, they are my adversaries. David says, I'm for peace, they're for war. But look at this next verse.

But I gave myself to prayer. How often do we do that? That to me is, what endurance was this? They did this, they did that. For his love, they were his adversaries. But what did he do? But, but, but, B-U-T, right there in the middle. I gave myself to prayer, not revenge. Not payback, not one-upmanship, but perfect, enduring resolve.

We need to have the same mind. Look at that verse again, for my love they are my adversaries. and his love saved us. This is almost as though we're like a kid, we're kicking and, you know, Paul, kick against the pricks. It's hard, yes, it's impossible, but thanks be to God for his unspeakable gift of his son. The Father, the Son, and the Spirit agreed in covenantal relationship to seek and to save the lost.

He endured We like to think, you know, and even now as we are believers, how often do we sin against love, against grace, His endurance. That's a contradiction and we of all people know the truth and yet we still fall so far short. I was thinking about this this morning. You have to be careful but There's no sin that we can do that God will not forgive.

That would give license to some people, but to think about it, Jesus paid it all. He paid everything. Everything. to have this mind of Christ ruling and reigning in us. Back to our text, and then turn back one page to, listen, what about Moses? He was a believer. We know he was a man after God's own heart, and he loved the ways of the truth. Even back there, he knew the gospel, he believed the gospel.

Look at Hebrews 11, starting in verse 24. Hebrews 11 starting in verse 24, By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused, that's enduring, to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter. Choosing rather to suffer affliction, there's that word suffer, affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season, esteeming the reproach of Christ, greater riches than the treasures of Egypt, for he had respect unto the recompense of reward. By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king, for he," there's that word, endured, as seeing him who is invisible. Why? He was feeding the new man. He was feeding the new nature. It wasn't wrapped up in all this stuff that the world seems so important. Just be like Christ and be like Him. Well, what about us? What about us?

Turn to Ephesians chapter 6. Ephesians chapter 6. Starting in verse 10, Ephesians chapter 6. The encouragement to the church at Ephesus would be an exhortation to this church here. Verse 10 of chapter 6, Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of His might.

Put on the whole armor of God. That's putting on the mind of Christ. Thinking what He did, how He did it. That attitude, actions. And it comes from a new heart, we know that. That you may be able to to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, powers, rulers of darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Verse 13, wherefore take unto you the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, having done all to stand.

That's enduring. That's enduring. That's enduring. Stand against false accusations that come against you, rumors and contradictions purported which oppose us and him and his gospel. No, you know, like Martin Luther, here and I stand, I can do no other. This is what I'm going to do. I'm going to worship the Lord Christ and let everything else come as it may, but I'm not going to interrupt the time that we have together, and the time that we have to open the Word, and these things. Well, let's also look at 1 Corinthians 4. What about the Apostle Paul? 1 Corinthians chapter 4. verses 1 through 4, 1 Corinthians 4. This is Paul's example.

Same as Moses, same as what ours is. There's no difference in believers. It's different generations, different decades. But the gospel, that scarlet thread, is the same from Genesis to Revelations. And it's appropriate for us to today, verses one through four in first Corinthians. This is the apostles attitude. May we have this attitude. Let a man so count of us as of the ministers of Christ. Now technically speaking of pastors and elders, but we're all ministers of Christ. So I'll use, look at this universally and stewards of the mysteries of God. Moreover, it was required of stewards that a man, woman, boy, girl, if you're a believer, be faithful.

But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged of you, or of man's judgment. Yea, I judge not my own self, for I know nothing by myself, yet am I not hereby justified, but he that judges me is the Lord." That's just basically saying, do what you want to do. You can judge me if you want, but it doesn't bother me, because my judge is the Lord.

I'm going to endure contradictions, because that's all we see. You go to City Hall, you make this phone call, you do this, you do that. You try to straighten things out. It's all discombobulated. But then you step back and you say, Paul had the same thing.

And we read historical, Melinda reads historical accounts of Spurgeon and Newton, and they all said the same thing as we're saying right now. 2026 is no different. The depravity of man knows no limits, no bounds. It's not tied to one or two generations. It's universal.

So let us have this attitude of Moses endure. Let's stand firm in the faith as Paul required in Ephesians, or as Paul said, I know nothing about myself and I'm hereby justified, but he that judges me is the Lord. Leave it there. Leave it there in our sovereign Lord's hands under his watchful eyes of compassion for his mark. Chapter seven and verse 37.

You have to turn her says he does all things well. He still does all things well. If this, if this government collapses, I'll be upset. But as I've said, with the COVID thing and all this other kind of stuff, as a human, as an American, there's certain things that I see that bother me. But as a believer, I could care less. He's in control. He's on the throne and he has not vacated. He has not vacated. What is our contradiction or opposition compared to Christ? Not much. What is our cross that we're told to carry that burden of the cross? What is that compared to what he did, what he suffered, how he bled, how he died? Nothing. It's nothing. So in closing, I ask us to look beyond this world and look ahead to our coronation day. We're going to be crowned. The church is going to be triumphant at last. then we will surely know of a truth that he does all things well, without question. Now, we may run into some stiff situations.

In this country, the Lord has spared us, but you don't have to turn there, but in Acts chapter five, verse 41, and they departed, the apostles, they shared the gospel, they got thrown in prison from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame, for his name. That may be our lot. Suffer shame for his name. May we consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself lest we be wearied and faint in our minds. Wearied and faint in our minds? Yes, probably and maybe, but as James chapter 4 verse 6 says, he gives more grace. His grace is sufficient.

It's a lesson that we're constantly learning, but we're not going to learn it. I want to be careful how I talk here. We need to open the book. We need to meditate, we need to chew the cud, as one person said, you know, a cow is chewing. We need to endure, we need to be faithful. We need to be faithful servants, stewards of the grace of God. And we need to gather together. These times, they're precious, they're few, and we need to take advantage of them because this world tugs so often and so hard.

You know, the word no. No, just say no. Just say no. Anyway, may the Lord give us grace to endure contradictions. If you know unbelievers, if you're mingling amongst unbelievers, you're going to be up against contradiction. When we go see our daughter tomorrow, we're going to have contradictions. We're going to have contradictions getting up there, because that's just, even believers. But I'm so thankful that there's peace here, there's unity, and there's harmony. And that's only because you believe the report. Who hath believed it? You do. And I thank you for that. Bruce, would you close us, please? People just don't understand, and that bothers us.