Bearing, Judging and Waiting

Q: What does the Bible say about God's sovereign choice in blessing?

The Bible reveals that God sovereignly chooses to bless some and withhold blessing from others according to His will (Romans 9:15). In Genesis 49, we see Jacob's blessing upon his sons, where he sovereignly chooses to withhold blessing from Reuben, Simeon, and Levi, thus illustrating God's discretion in blessing. This aligns with the biblical truth expressed in Romans 9:15, where God says, 'I will have mercy on whom I have mercy,' showing that His choices are based on His sovereign will, not human merit. God's right to do so is upheld in His nature as the Creator who governs all according to His perfect plan and purpose. Blessing is not given arbitrarily but according to God's eternal decree, which highlights the depth of His grace towards the elect.

Q: How do we know Jesus is the fulfillment of the prophecy about Judah?

Jesus is identified as the Lion of the tribe of Judah, fulfilling the prophecy of Genesis 49:10, where the scepter is promised to Judah. In Genesis 49:10, Jacob prophesies that 'the scepter shall not depart from Judah,' indicating that through Judah, the royal line of the Messiah would come. This prophecy is fulfilled in the person of Jesus Christ, who is often referred to as the Lion of the tribe of Judah in Revelation 5:5. The New Testament makes it clear that Jesus is the King whose reign is eternal and unbroken. Furthermore, Christ’s dominion as King of kings aligns with this prophecy, affirming that the royal authority and governance promised to Judah is fully realized in Jesus. He exemplifies the nature of true leadership, characterized by service and sacrifice, and His ascension to the throne is the ultimate manifestation of this divine promise.

Q: Why is the concept of bearing burdens important for Christians?

Bearing burdens is essential for Christians as it reflects Christ's call to serve others and share in their struggles (Galatians 6:2). The concept of bearing burdens is profound in the Christian life, depicted by Issachar in Genesis 49:14 as a strong donkey crouching between two burdens. This imagery signifies the Christian calling to serve and support one another, as affirmed in Galatians 6:2, which instructs believers to 'bear one another's burdens.' By doing so, Christians participate in the redemptive work of Christ, who bore our sins and suffered for our transgressions. The burdens Christians bear are not merely personal struggles but also extend to the burdens of others, enabling a community that nurtures each other in grace. Ultimately, it reflects the heart of Christ, who calls us to be strong and willing servants for His glory.

Q: How do we find rest in the burdens we bear?

Rest comes from taking on Christ's yoke, which is easy and brings peace amidst our burdens (Matthew 11:28-30). In Matthew 11:28-30, Jesus invites those who labor and are heavy laden to come to Him for rest. This rest arises from taking His yoke upon ourselves; unlike the burdens of the law, which are heavy and oppressive, Christ's burden brings lightness and joy. The reality is that when we align ourselves with Christ, we are able to serve Him without the burden of striving for acceptance or righteousness. This ensures that our labors are not in vain because they are fueled by His grace and empower us to fulfill His purposes. The peace that flows from this relationship provides comfort, underscoring that our identity is rooted in His righteousness—not in our performance—and fosters an environment where true rest and joy can be experienced in every circumstance we face.

In Genesis 49, 13, Zebulun shall
dwell at the haven of the sea, and he shall be for a haven of
ships, and his border shall be unto Zidon. Issachar is a strong
ass couching between two burdens, and he saw that rest was good,
and the land that it was pleasant. and bowed his shoulder to bear
and became a servant under tribute. Dan shall judge his people as
one of the tribes of Israel. Dan shall be a serpent by the
way, an adder in the path that biteth the horse heel so that
his rider shall fall backward. I have waited for thy salvation,
O Lord. You'll remember in the beginning
of this chapter, we saw how that Jacob began to bless his sons.
And this is called Jacob's blessing of his sons. In verse 28 of the
chapter, it says, all these are the 12 tribes of Israel. And
this is it that their father spake unto them and blessed them.
Everyone, according to his blessing, he blessed them. But though it's
called His blessing, the first three sons that are mentioned,
Reuben, Simeon, and Levi, in the case of His speaking with
them, it was the withholding of blessing. And it's this way
with God's blessing also upon His creatures. He came to Abraham. in Ur of the Chaldees and said,
in blessing, I will bless you. And he has withheld blessing
from millions and millions. And he does so at his sovereign
discretion. He chooses to bless some while
passing by others. And that's his sovereign right
to do that. He said it this way. I will have
mercy. On whom? I will have mercy. In these first three sons, and
as we begin to see Jacob's blessing upon the twelve, we begin to
see a bigger picture. We saw in the first three sons
a picture of us by nature. And then in Judah, We saw a beautiful
picture of our Lord Jesus Christ, the one through whom Christ was
born, the lineage of whom he was the Lion of the tribe of
Judah. And we saw in Judah a picture of him. And we'll review some
tonight. And then in these last signs,
we see the result of our Lord Jesus Christ coming to this earth
and doing what he did for his people. doing the work that the
Father gave him to do in the redemption of his elect. So in these first three sons,
we saw that those strong and elevated in the flesh, he said,
Reuben, you're my firstborn, my might, the beginning of my
strength, the excellency of dignity or elevation, and the excellency
of power. Strong in the flesh, sounds good,
sounds like he's gonna bless him, but he doesn't. He describes
him as strong and elevated, but when he speaks of his inner character,
he said, you're weak as water. You're unstable, undependable,
fickle, no rest, no rest. And that's us by nature. Isaiah
said, the wicked are like the troubled sea when it cannot rest.
whose waters cast up mire and dirt. James said, a double-minded man
is unstable in all of his ways. And James said, concerning that
man, let not that man think that he shall receive anything of
the Lord. And that's what Jacob said here
to Reuben. You're not going to receive anything. You're not
going to excel. You're excellent, but you're not going to excel. And then secondly, in these first three, look at what he
said about, about Reuben in verse four. He said, here's why you're
not going to excel because you're a wicked, vile adulterer. How many times has God described
us that way in his word as spiritual adulterers? And in Levi and Simeon, we see
ourselves also. He said, cruelty. Your nature
is one of cruelty. And of course, that's us. It's
just like looking in the mirror. We nailed God's son to a cross
and laughed at him while he bled. That's just, that's us by nature,
we're cruel and foul. And then finally Jacob said these
two were characterized by anger and wrath. Right there in verse
6. Anger in verse 7. Their anger
slew, in their anger they slew a man, verse 6, and in verse
7 their anger was fierce and their wrath was cruel. And that's
us also by nature. The reason we did what we did
when God came down here and dwelt among us, the reason we mocked
him and spit on him and tortured him and murdered him is because
the natural mind is enmity against God. It is not subject, not submissive
to the law of God. Neither indeed can be. Not possible. You're not going to work it out.
You're not just going to decide, I think I'll submit to God today.
It can't happen. It's going to take a miracle
of God's grace. But then Jacob spoke to Judah, the one son from whom the Lord
Jesus Christ came and who himself pictures our Lord in these several
ways. Number one, your brethren are
going to praise you. We saw that in the book of Revelation.
We're going to praise Him now, we're going to praise Him forever.
We're going to attribute strength and honor and glory and salvation
and power and everything good unto Him. We're going to quit
bragging on ourselves and each other and the Lord alone will
be exalted in that day. We're going to praise Him. We
praise Him now. In song and in our hearts we
attribute worthiness to Him by His grace. And he said also of
Judah, your hand will be in the neck of your enemies. Looks like
the Lord's enemies are making a lot of headway today in this
world. They're scoring a lot of points.
The epic struggle between good and evil, you know, rages on.
No, it don't. His hand is on their neck. The
devil is on his chain and does only and always exactly what
the Lord allows him to do, and no more. Thirdly, he said, your father's
sons, in other words, all your brethren, all your brothers,
will bow down to you. We're going to do that too. Religion
talks about, well, you know, if the Lord is your savior, you
ought to make him, you ought to make him Lord too, you know,
when you get around to it. If you ain't bowed to Him, He's
not your Savior. Do you understand that we know
that? That's what salvation is. It's bowing to His will, His
way, His Word, in abandonment of self and all that we say and
do. And so we acknowledge Him as
the Sovereign Christ. He does exactly what He pleases,
always as He pleases, only as He pleases, with whom he pleases,
when he pleases, the way he pleases. And we bow. We bow. That's the thing to do when you
see him. What are we going to do when we see the Lord? Are
we going to dance? Are we going to have a party? We're going
to bow. That's what we're going to do.
Every knee is going to bow. And he said, he's as a young
lion who has taken down its prey and has gone up. He said, you've
gone up from the prey. In other words, the battle's
already over. The enemy, the prey has already
been vanquished and he's already gone up. It said he couched down
and stooped, but has gone up having taken his prey. And as
an old lion, as the ancient of days, who shall rouse him up?"
He did stoop. He couched down. And they said,
and we said, he's stricken of God and afflicted. He suffered.
He's a sinner just like us. What he was doing there was destroying
the prey. He was destroying every enemy
I have when he stooped down. And he's gone up from the prey
and sits on the right hand of the majesty on high. And then
he said of Judah, the scepter nor a lawgiver shall depart from
between your feet until Shiloh come. And this is why his brothers
bowed down to him because he's the king. He has the scepter
in his hand. Isaiah said the government shall
be upon his shoulders. What government? the government. The governments of this world, it's Christ that sitteth upon
the circle of the earth and the inhabitants thereof are his grasshoppers. The governments of this earth,
the Lord does as he will with every man in every circumstance. He raises up one and puts down
another. The heart of the king is in his
hand just like he decides where the river turns and the way that
it goes, he turns the heart of the king. Withersoever he will. That's why we bow to him, because
he got the scepter. The government's on his shoulders. He does as he pleases in the
armies of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth. And
nobody can stop him. He is of one mind, who can even
turn him? Who can turn him? Who would want
to in their right mind? Who would want to interrupt what
God's doing? He's perfect. He's holy. He's omniscient. He's gracious.
He's good. Everything we're not. Why in
the world would you ever want to change his mind? I just want to be in on what
he's doing. Don't you? I want to bow and serve him,
be his servant by his grace. And then Shiloh's come and he
said, the prince of peace. The result of his reign and law
giving is what? Peace. Peace between God and
his people. The enmity that we are by nature
as seen in those first three sons. He's done away, He's made
peace by the blood of His cross. And He said, the Father gave
me a power, authority that I should do that, that I should accomplish
that. He has the scepter in order that He might make peace by the
blood of His cross, between God and His people. And that's what
He did. That's what He accomplished. And then unto Him shall the gathering
of the people be. We saw that. He said, if I be
lifted up, This is what I'm going to do. I'm going to draw all
unto myself. All of his sheep is elect. He's
going to say to the north, give up, and to the south, keep not
back. And his people are all coming.
And they shall be one fold and have one shepherd. Number seven, he's bound his
foal, his mule, stubborn and willful by nature. We know who
that is. but bound and used for his glory. What did our Lord conspicuously
use donkey for in the scriptures? He got on top of it and rode
into Jerusalem on that thing. And everybody threw palm branches
in front of him and said, Hosanna to the king. He used us for his
own glory. A stubborn, the very thing that
characterizes a donkey is that you can't do nothing with it.
It's willful and stubborn and useless by nature. The only way
you can use one is to break it. To overrule its will. Overcome
its will. And teach it good. Teach it service. And that's what he's done. He
bound his foe. The colt of an ass. Bound and
used. And bound to what? The vine. The choice vine, he said. The
choice vine. Our Lord Jesus said, I am the
vine. And his garments are washed in
wine, and his clothes in the blood of grapes. He's tread the
winepress of the wrath of God alone, and his garments are stained
red. And Jacob said, also his eyes
are red with wine. He has drunk the cup of God's
wrath dry. And his eyes are red, he said,
in the cup that my father hath given unto me. Shall I not drink
it? Peter, put your sword up. I'm drinking the cup that I came
here to drink. His eyes are red with it. And
his teeth are white with milk, comforting, satisfying, nourishing
milk. The word, the root word for the
word milk there in the text is fat, or this, the choice part. That's what his teeth are covered
with. Isaiah said, he shall see of the travail of his soul and
shall be satisfied. And now the rest of Jacob's sons
are addressed in the last verses here of this chapter, the eight
sons remaining. And in them we see the believer
in the first three, our nature in Judah, the Lord Jesus, and
then this is what the Lord's done for us. This is the change
that he's wrought in us. Look at us once the Lord has
done his miraculous work of sovereign grace upon us. Look at us. We see man's sin, we see Christ
the Savior, and then we see what Christ has wrought. In Zebulun,
he said in Zebulun, look at what he said, shall dwell at the haven
of the sea. And he shall be for a haven for
ships. He's going to dwell in the haven
of ships and he's going to be a haven of ships. We will, the word there dwell
means to settle down and abide. This is where God's people live.
We're in a haven, in a safe place, a port in the storm. And we are,
by God's grace, a haven. We've settled down in a haven
for ships, where a ship goes to tie off so that it won't be
tossed and destroyed in the waves. Protection from the storm, from
the weather. tied off to a solid structure. Turn to Hebrews chapter 6. This is what Paul is talking
about here in Hebrews chapter 6, verse 17. He said, God willing more abundantly
to show unto the heirs of promise the immutability of his counsel,
confirmed it by an oath that by two immutable things, in which
it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation. who have fled for refuge to lay
hold upon the hope set before us." We lay in hold. We're tying
off in a refuge, a haven. That's that word there, a haven.
Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul. That word anchor
there is stay, a stay or a safeguard. both sure and steadfast. We're not going to drift away
if we're anchored in Christ. And which entereth into that
within the veil, within the forerunner, is for us entered, even Jesus,
made in high priest forever, after the order of Melchizedek.
So we're tied off in the refuge, to the stay and anchored our
souls in the haven of rest. And by God's grace, when I need
to tie off in this life, God uses his people to be a comfort
to me. His people are a haven. I found
that to be so. A true shelter of the Lord is
our shelter in the time of storm, but his people also He uses them
to be a haven to one another. Paul said we suffer the things
that we suffer so that we might be able to comfort those who
suffer the same things. We might be a haven to them.
The Lord teaches us His truth for that reason also. In His
purpose and by His power, He consoles and encourages His sheep
by His sheep. And then in Issachar, we see
a couple of things about us. First of all, look at that verse
11. Verse 14 first, Issachar is a
strong ass, couching down between two burdens. So we saw who the
ass is in verse 11, where the Lord subdues us and uses us for
his glory, a creature that, as we said, characterized by nature
as being willful and stubborn and unruly and worthless, but
our Lord, as He rode that donkey into Jerusalem and was praised
and lauded, so He uses us for His glory. And here we're seen
as that donkey bearing burdens. Bearing burdens. We bear, and
we have to be strong in order to do it. He's a strong ass. Have to be to bear. to bear the
burden and are strong because of one of the burdens, I believe.
Bearing burdens, that's what donkeys are good for. Did you
know that? That's what a good donkey will do. One whose will,
his natural rebellion has been broken. That's what he does for
his master. He bears burdens. And that's
what we'll do when the Lord breaks us and causes us to bow to his
will. subdued and usable. What are
the two burdens that we bear? Well, this is a difficult thing
to be absolutely certain about, but we see some things in the
scripture. Any answer to that that's true to the word of God
would be a good answer, don't you think? And I know this, we're still in this flesh. Is
that a burden to you? Being in sinful flesh? Paul said
it is. And that's why I thought of this
as being one of the burdens that we bear now as one of God's chosen
and broken and by His grace usable servants. Paul said, O wretched
man that I am, who shall deliver me from this burden? He didn't
use the word burden there, but he said this body of death. This
body of death. He did use the word burden in
another play. We're still struggling with the bondage of sin. And
listen to what he said in 2 Corinthians 5, 4. We that are in this tabernacle
do groan. How come, Paul? Being burdened. Would you say that's a burden
that you bear as one of God's people? We're burdened. Not for that we would be unclothed. We don't just want to die, but
we want to truly live clothed upon. Not for that we would be
unclothed, but clothed upon. It's a burden to not be what
we want to be. Paul said, what I want to do,
I don't do. And what I don't want to do,
that's what I do. Who's going to deliver me from this? I thank
God through Jesus Christ, my Lord, I'm delivered. I'll be
delivered. but clothed upon, that mortality
might be swallowed up with life." We're burdened. That's just the
truth. And the other burden, I believe,
and as I say, it's difficult to be sure about this, but our
Lord speaks of a burden in Matthew 11. And we know that if we're true to
God's Word, we're safe. I know that this is a burden
that His people bear. And I believe this may be the second
burden. that he's talking about here, Matthew 11, 28. He said,
come unto me all you that labor and are heavy laden. There's
the first burden. We're laden under a sense of
our sin. And now he's lifted that burden. He's taken our sins upon himself
and we rejoice in that and we delight in that, but we're still
troubled by our sin. But that's the, our sin is the
first burden. And we're still laboring under
it, Paul said. We're burdened because we're living in this
body of death. That's the first burden. You're heavy laden, come
to me and I'll give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn
of me for I am meek and lowly in heart and you shall find rest
under your souls for my yoke is easy and my burden. This is a burden that we're gladly
bearing. My burden is light. Because of
the burden of the Lord, all of our burdens are light. Paul said,
our very afflictions, the worst things that happen to us, the
worst burden that we bear in this life is light because of
the second burden. Bearing this second burden results
not in just a different kind of legal bondage, He said, when
you take my yoke, my burden upon you, you'll find rest. This is a different kind of burden,
isn't it? Rest. You'll find rest under your souls. Religion just trading one law
for another. They say, well, we're not under
Mount Sinai anymore, but we've got to live the Christian life.
Really? In order to get to heaven when we die, you know, we're
working our way to heaven, living the Christian life. That's just
trading one law for another. If you're not resting, you haven't
taken this burden on you. Rest. Malachi speaks of the burden
of the Lord. In Malachi 1.1, he said, he talked
about the burden of the Lord. And that word means weight. It
means something to be carried. And he's talking about delivering
the word of God. And that's a burden that all
of us are involved in here. in this place. Is it grievous
to you? It's pretty light. Pretty light. The second burden, it's rest,
but it involves usefulness and work. We're a donkey bearing
a burden. Usefulness and work and service,
like a donkey performs. But in the plowing of this field,
we're yoked to the Lord Jesus Christ. That's why it's light. That's why it's rest. We're yoked
to him. And so the result is what we
see in our text, back in verse 15 again of Genesis 49. He said this asphyst is crouched
under two burdens. And it says this about him. He
saw that rest was good. When you obey the Lord and when
he said, take my burden on you, then you'll say this, rest is
good. And the land, that it was pleasant.
What did David say? Beautiful for situation. We're
sitting pretty. And he bowed his shoulder to
bear. He willingly. He desires to carry that burden.
It's a privilege and an honor and a blessing. To carry the
Lord's burden. It's life, it's rest. Unto our
souls. And became a servant under tribute.
That's all I want to be. You got any aspirations beyond
that? Paul said, Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ. The Lord Jesus
Christ gives us a work to do, but not the burden of the law.
And Paul said, it's him that worketh in you, not only to want
to do what he said, but to do it. That's what it's like. You're
up to him and he does the labor. He bears the burden. He sets
us free from the burden of the law, having borne it for us as
our representative. The one who gave Moses his law
on Mount Sinai, the one who wrote the law with his finger, was
made under the law. Why? That he might redeem them
that are under the law. And he sets us free from the
burden of the law. In Hebrews 4.10, Paul said, for
he that is entered into his rest, Christ's rest, He also hath ceased
from his own works as God did from his. Let us labor, therefore,
to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example
of unbelief." We talked about this before. Paul said, let's
labor to rest. That sounds like a contradiction
of terms. Labor in order to rest? That's
what our Lord's talking about. Take my yoke upon you and learn
of me. My yoke is easy and light and
you'll find rest under your soles. Christ is our Sabbath, our rest,
having kept the law for us and paid for our transgression of
the law. And now we sing free from the
law, free from the law. Oh, happy condition. He saw that
rest is good. Oh, happy condition. Jesus hath bled and there is
remission from our sins. Cursed by the law and killed
by the fall, Christ hath redeemed us once for all. Rest is good. We're not laboring heavy laden
under that bondage of the law anymore. Paul said, don't even
look at me with that yoke in your hand again. Not putting
that back on. Rest is too good. Too good. All right. Dan is described as a judge and
a serpent. This is interesting. And this
is as far as we'll get tonight. I wanted to not go too long so
that we can maybe remember these things. If the Lord would impress
these upon us. He's described as a judge and
a serpent. That's interesting. The word
judge here, and again, we always think it like judging somebody,
you're condemning them. If you've been judged, you've
been condemned. It always carries a kind of a
bad, a negative connotation, but not here. That's not what
the word means here. The word, it doesn't mean to
condemn. It's not talking about a judicial
condemnation. It means to discern and make
judgments about things. It's the way you reckon things
to be. You make judgment. We've made judgment since we
walked in this building tonight. We make them constantly, and
that's what this is about. It's the way that we discern
things. It's the way that we react to things. It's the way
that, as I said, we reckon things to be. We make them judgments.
Paul said this about believers 1st Corinthians 2 14 the natural
man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God he talked
about unbelievers first they don't receive the things of the
Spirit of God for their foolishness unto him neither can he know
them because they are spiritually discerned he can't judge in spiritual
matters because he has no knowledge of spiritual things Unless you
are a spiritual being born from above of the Spirit of God, born
again of the Spirit of God, then you can't make judgments concerning
spiritual things. You have no idea about them.
But he that is spiritual judgeth all things. The Word is discerned. He understands. Same word that was used in verse
14 when he said they are spiritually discerned. Here, the spiritual
man, he that is spiritual judgeth. Same word, discerns. He discerns
all things. You say, well, Chris, I don't
understand everything. Everything that you understand,
every judgment you make in this world, you make in the light
of the glory and grace and person and work and gospel and truth
of the Lord Jesus Christ. Every judgment you make is affected
by that. Yet he himself is judged of no
man. We understand the things of God,
not perfectly, not like we ought to, not like we want to, but
we know God by his grace. We know God. We know his way. Moses said,
reveal to me your way. He said, I'm going to do it for
you. Has he done that for you? Then you're a judge. A true judge
of things the way they are. A good judge. As the Lord said,
judge righteous judgment. You're talking to the Pharisees
who twisted and perverted everything to their own advantage. to the promotion of the flesh.
Everything was outward. He said, don't you judge that
way. Don't judge by the outward appearance.
Judge righteous judgment. And that's what we're required
to do. And you can't do it unless he's caused you to be born of
his spirit. That's what Paul said here. If
you're not spiritual, then you can't judge anything rightly. He said, He that is spiritual
judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man, for who
hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But
we have the mind of Christ. That's what he's talking about.
That's the way you judge with the mind of Christ. His glory,
His service, His worship, His will, That's the way we judge
things. A believer doesn't judge things
based upon their feelings or the way things appear, but according
to the word and will, revealed will of God. And here's an example of that
in 2 Corinthians 5.14. Listen to what Paul said. Think
about this. For the love of Christ constraineth us. Is that true? Do you do anything in this life
because Christ loved you and gave himself for you. Paul said,
the love of Christ constraineth us. How does it do it? Because
we thus judge. How does this love constrain
us? Well, it affects our judgment. That's what Paul's saying here.
It affects our judgment. And here's the way we judge things
to be. that if he died for us, it was because we were dead.
Because there was no other way to bring us to God. No other way. And we reckon this
way, this is our judgment concerning things. Concerning really everything
in this life. This covers pretty much everything
you do. We judge this, that they which live by his grace should
not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them
and rose again. Is that the way you reckon things?
Oh, you know why? Because of his lies. His love has overwhelmed us and
made us to where we just can't think any other way but this
way. We love Him because He first loved us. And we're going to do what we
do because we love Him. And we love Him because He loved
us first. Well, what does a serpent have
to do with that? He's a judge and he's a serpent. You remember
what our Lord said to the disciples as he was sending them out to
preach his gospel. He said, I'm sending you forth
as sheep among wolves. Aren't you glad what we read
this morning is true? He said, I'll be with you always.
A sheep among wolves. How long is a sheep going to
last among wolves? Well, it depends on who his shepherd
is. I send you forth as sheep in
the midst of wolves." And now listen to this exhortation because
of that. That's what I'm doing. He said,
I'm going to send you forth among wolves. You're going out among
them. And he said, here's what I want you to do. Be ye therefore
wise as serpents. Don't be gullible and foolish.
We need to know God's word and we need to ever and always lean
upon the Lord Jesus Christ. Don't start thinking, well, I'm
a big bad sheep. I can, you know, I can do all
right. I'm on one. No, you're not. You're lunch without him. And I am to be wise as serpents
and harmless as doves. That's the reason we judge things
the way that we do, because the Lord Jesus Christ is our wisdom. of God are ye in Christ Jesus
who is made unto us wisdom." Thank God. Thank God for that. Wise as serpents
and harmless as doves. May the Lord give us wisdom to
judge wisely in all things. To judge wisely, I believe, is
to judge with an eye to the glory of God. Paul said, do everything
you do to the glory of God. That's a rebuke, isn't it? And
an exhortation. And I'll tell you this, to judge
wisely will be, it'll have something to do with what Paul said in
Philippians 2, 4. It'll be not only to think on
our own things when we're judging matters in this world, but to
think, Paul said, on the things of others. That's the way our
Lord would have us judge things. Look not every man on his own
things, but every man also on the things of others. Let this
mind be in you. Paul said we have the mind of
Christ. What is the mind? He thought it not robbery to
be equal with God, and yet he humbled himself and became obedient
unto death, even the death of the cross. When we make judgments,
in other words, let's just say it this way. When we make judgments
about what to say and what to do and how to handle things,
and we do so every moment, let's do so for His glory and for the
good of His people. That's why God does what He does. May He make us more and more
like Himself. Now, we'll look more at this
next verse 18. We'll look more at it next time,
but I just want to mention it this time. And it's not perfectly
clear to me here, or to anybody that I read after, whether this
is Dan's judgment. You're talking about Dan being
a judge and being wise. And so maybe this is Dan's whole,
maybe this sums up his whole life. I don't know. Or maybe
this is just Jacob stopping in the middle of this blessing just
to declare what's on his heart. Paul did that sometimes. You
never notice that in his letters? He'll be addressing a subject
and speaking on some doctrine, and then he'll just say, oh,
the depth of the riches, both of the wisdom and knowledge of
God. And maybe that's Jacob here. Maybe the Jacob is just saying
this, or maybe this is Dan. This is what sums up Dan's life. I'm not sure. But either way,
I pray that it'll be us. I have waited for thy salvation.
Oh, Lord. That's wise judgment. I've ceased
to go about to establish my own righteousness, and I gladly submit
myself to the righteousness of God in Christ. I abandon my own will, my own
way, my own works, and cling to Christ as my righteousness,
my sin offering, my wisdom, my holiness, my hope, my all. That's what this says here. The
word wait there, it doesn't just mean by it in time. It means
I'm hanging on you. I'm hoping for your salvation. I've put all my eggs in one basket.
I've cast myself upon him, sink or swim. Have you? Paul said, I've committed myself
unto him. Everything I am, everything I
have, committed to him. That's what that's talking about
right there. I have waited for thy salvation. I'm hanging on
your mercy. And that's a wise thing to do.
He's talking about judgment and wisdom here, and he just stops.
Or perhaps he sums up this one who is a wise judge by saying
this. I've hoped in your salvation.
I've trusted in your salvation, oh Lord. And that's a wise thing
to do. I believe it was David that said,
whoever does that will never be ashamed. You'll never be ashamed. You'll never regret it because
he's worthy of your trust. Shiloh has come and it's by his
grace, as our brother read in the Bible lesson this morning,
by the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, we're saved. You talk about salvation here.
I've waited for your salvation. How are you going to be saved?
What's your hope? By the grace of the Lord Jesus
Christ, we shall be saved. The day of his power has come
to us and we're willing to wait and rest confidently in his promise
that we'll never be ashamed. Well, we'll continue from there,
Lord willing, next time, and see the rest of these signs.
The work of God's grace upon us, seen in these sons of Jacob. You know, he calls us the sons
of Jacob. Didn't he say that? He said, I'm the Lord, I change
not. Therefore, you sons of Jacob
are not consumed. This is us, this is who we are,
right here, by His grace. Let's bow in prayer together. Our gracious Father, thank you
for your word, Lord. We see ourselves in these three
wicked and rebellious and unstable and double-minded sons. gone everyone to his own way. Lord, thank you for this prophecy
of Judah. Thank you, Lord, for revealing
to us through your word the one who is called the Lion of the
tribe of Judah, who hath prevailed to open that book that contains
all of your purposes of grace toward your people. Your grace in the Lord Jesus
Christ and in his name we pray amen

Bearing, Judging and Waiting

What does the Bible say about God's sovereign choice in blessing?

How do we know Jesus is the fulfillment of the prophecy about Judah?

Why is the concept of bearing burdens important for Christians?

How do we find rest in the burdens we bear?

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Bearing, Judging and Waiting

What does the Bible say about God's sovereign choice in blessing?

How do we know Jesus is the fulfillment of the prophecy about Judah?

Why is the concept of bearing burdens important for Christians?

How do we find rest in the burdens we bear?

Sermon Transcript

About Chris Cunningham

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