Todd's Road Grace Church would
like to invite you to listen to a sermon by our pastor, Todd
Nyberg. We are located at 4137 Todd's
Road, two miles outside of Manowar Boulevard. Sunday services are
at 10.30 a.m. and 6 p.m. Bible study is at
9.45 a.m. Wednesday services are at 7 p.m. Nursery is provided for all services.
For more information, visit our website at toddsroadgracechurch.com. Now here's our pastor, Todd Nybert. I've entitled the message for
this morning, The Exaltation of Jesus Christ. A text that's found in John chapter
12, beginning in verse 32, this is the Lord Jesus speaking, and
he says, and I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw
all men unto me. This he said signifying what
death he should die. Now catch the connection. If
I be lifted up, This said he signifying what death he should
die. Now the word lift up is found
20 times in the New Testament. 14 times it's translated exalted. And six times it's translated
lifted up. It means to lift up on high,
to elevate. to exalt, to raise to the very
summit of opulence and prosperity, to raise to dignity and honor
and happiness. And I, if I be lifted up, if
I be exalted beyond measure, if I be lifted up from the earth,
I will draw, and I'm reading from the King James Version.
I love the King James Version. I think it's the best version.
But he says, I will draw all, and if you have a King version,
you'll see that men is in italics. It was supplied by the translators,
hoping to make it more clear, and I love the King James version
for that reason. Things that were not really in
the text, they put them in the italics, and that's why I have
such respect for this version, but men is in italics. He's saying
literally, if I be lifted up from the earth, I will draw the
all to me. The same all of which he said,
all that the Father giveth me shall come to me. The same all of which Paul said
in Romans 8.32 with regard to the Lord Jesus Christ and God
the Father's response to his work. He said in Romans 8.32,
he that spared not his own son, but delivered him up for us all. How shall He not with Him freely
give us all things? Now, this language, if I be lifted up, if I be exalted,
If I be raised to the highest honor and dignity, I will draw
thee all to me." And then he says this saying he gave that
signified what? Death. He would die. Now, there is an inseparable
connection to Christ's greatest glory being nailed to a cross. The most God-like thing God ever
did was nail His Son to the cross. You say, wait a minute, men did
that. Yes, men did that, and they're held responsible for
it as well. But the only reason they did it is because God determined
before for it to be done. And He was giving them the strength
to do what His determined counsel and foreknowledge determined
before to be done, everything they did. It was God, the justice
of God, the law of God, the demands of God. that nailed His blessed
Son to a cross. And the cross of Jesus Christ
is the most God-like thing God ever did. His highest glory. Now here we have the full manifestation
of the character of God. Here we have both the punishment
of sin and the pardon of sin. Here we have the way that God
can be just and justify the ungodly. The cross is the whole counsel
of God. The cross, Jesus Christ being
nailed to a cross, is the eternal purpose of God. Jesus Christ
being nailed to a cross is the reason for the creation of the
world. Those are strong statements and
they could not be any more true. Why? Christ is called in Revelation
13, 8, the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. You
know, before there was a creation, before there was any matter,
before there were stars shining, When all there was was God in
the three persons of the blessed Godhead, Christ was the Lamb
slain from the foundation of the world, and He was also the
Lamb raised from the foundation of the world. It was the Roman style of execution. This is how Rome put its enemies
to death. You go against Rome, here's your
enemy, here's your end, you're going to be nailed to a tree. This was not the Jewish form
of execution. This was the Roman form of execution,
and that's what our Lord meant when he said this signified,
when he talked about being lifted up from the earth. He said the
same thing to Nicodemus. In John chapter 3, where he said,
even as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must
the Son of Man be lifted up, that whosoever believeth in him
should not perish, but have everlasting life. He was to be crucified
on a Roman cross, executed by the Roman government in this
cruel and heartless fashion. And do you know this was prophesied
in the Old Testament scripture? Deuteronomy 21, 23 said, cursed
is everyone that hangeth on a tree. And this is a reference to the
Lord Jesus Christ being nailed to that tree. The scripture says
of him that he humbled himself. This is in Philippians 2. He
humbled himself. You see, he's God. The same scripture
says, who being in the form of God thought it not robbery to
be equal with God. The only one who is equal with
God is God, God the Son. God the Son humbled himself and
became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross, wherefore
God hath highly exalted him and given him a name which is above
every name. that at the name of Jesus, every
knee should bow. Somebody says, I won't bow. You
will. You will. Maybe not now, but
you will later. Because God says every knee is
going to bow. And every tongue is going to
confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. I've heard preachers say,
won't you make Him the Lord of your life? You can't do that.
He already is the Lord of your life. God has made Him Lord,
whether you know it or not, or see it or not. He is Lord. He's
the Lord of the dead. He's the Lord of those who are
dead in sins. And He's the Lord of the living, those who live
unto Him. to the glory of God the Father. Now, with regard to the cross,
I want to read three passages of scripture and make some comments
on the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ. And the first one is
found in 1 Corinthians 1, beginning in verse 17. And let me remind
you, the Bible is the Word of God. What I appeal to is not
what churches believe or what men believe, but what does God's
word say. Now, if you can get access to
a Bible and read along with me, it would be helpful. First Corinthians
chapter one, verse 17, Paul makes this statement, for Christ sent
me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel. Not with wisdom of
words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect. Now when Paul says, Christ sent
me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel, does he mean baptism
is no longer in operation or it's not really that important?
Of course he doesn't mean that. If somebody believes they are
to confess Christ, then believers baptism. Baptism typifies the
gospel. I love baptism. But Paul said,
Christ didn't send me to baptize people. He didn't send me to
get results. He sent me to preach the gospel. That's my purpose. Separated unto the gospel of
God. My purpose is not to build a
church or get results. My purpose is to preach the gospel
of God." And then he said, not with wisdom of words, lest the
cross of Christ should be made of none effect. Now, what is
the wisdom of words? It's trying to bring the gospel
in such a way as to please people and not offend them. And that's
exactly what that means. It's packaging the gospel. It's
marketing the gospel to make it more appealing to the flesh,
which is, and I'm not exaggerating, that's what 99% of what is called
preaching is. Nothing but trying to remove
the offense from the gospel, making it more likely and easy
for people to believe. Paul says, when I do that, I've
made the cross of Christ of none effect. No one is saved by that
kind of preaching. Paul talked about the offense
of the cross, and when the offense of the cross is removed, the
truth of the cross is removed. Now, Christ sent me not to baptize,
but to preach the gospel, not with wisdom of words, not trying
to package it, lest the cross of Christ should be made of none
effect, for the preaching of the cross is to them that perish
foolishness. But unto us which are saved,
it's the power of God. Now, the preaching, the doctrine
of the cross, Jesus Christ nailed to a cross. the preaching of
the cross. Now, included in the preaching
of the cross is the resurrection of Christ, because Him being
dying on a cross would be meaningless if there were no resurrection.
But it's the resurrection of Christ that tells us what the
preaching of the cross really is. Now, the doctrine, the preaching
of the cross, first of all, the preaching of the cross is the
preaching of the character of God. The cross, Jesus Christ,
the Son of God, nailed, literally nailed to a tree, is a manifestation
of the character of God Almighty. All of attribute, every attribute
of God is fully displayed in the cross, his holiness, his
justice, his hatred of sin. He's going to punish all sin
that's seen in the cross. But oh, we see his love, his
mercy, his grace. We see his wisdom in making a
way to be just and justify the ungodly. We see his power in
putting away sins. We see his eternal purpose. Every
attribute of God is manifested in Jesus Christ being nailed
to a cross. we see the true character of
man in the cross. You wanna know what me and you
are guilty of? If God left us to ourself and
took away all restraint, we would have been right there with him
saying, let him be crucified. Now I'm sure you and I have done
things we're not proud of, that we're ashamed of, but you know
that doesn't really tell the truth about our character. The
truth of our character is seen in Jesus Christ being nailed
to a cross. That was our desire to get rid
of him. The only way you'll know the
true character of man is the cross. And the only way you'll
know the true character of salvation is the cross, the only way God
can save somebody is to take their sins and place them in
his son as their substitute, and those sins become his sins,
and him taking the righteousness, obedience of his son, and giving
it to those people that he died for, and giving them faith in
him. Salvation was totally accomplished
by what Christ did on Calvary's tree. Now in this same chapter,
he says in verse 22, for the Jews, require a sign, and the
Greeks seek after wisdom, but we preach. Here's a summary of
our preaching. We preach Christ crucified. We preach the Son of God nailed
to a cross. Now, included in that is we preach
the resurrection. It's meaningless without the
resurrection. But the focal point of our preaching is Christ nailed
to a cross. To the Jews, a stumbling block,
and to the Greeks, foolishness, but unto them which are called,
both Jews and Greeks, Christ, the power of God and the wisdom
of God. Now, the Jews require a sign. They're the religious people.
They require something they can see. I need to see a changed
life. I need to see good works. I need
to see a righteous life before I can believe. I need something
I can see. The Greeks seek after wisdom. I need to know how to make this
world a better place. I need to know how to bring on
fairness and equity for everybody. I need to see education improved. I need to see healthcare improved.
I need to see the economy improved. I want to make this world a better
place. Paul says, while they're seeking those things, we preach
Christ crucified. We preach Jesus Christ nailed
to a tree. And to the Greeks, or to the
Jews, that's a stumbling block. And to the Greeks, foolishness. To the Jews, a stumbling block.
Do you mean that God accepts me without regard to my works,
totally because of what he did on the cross? I can't believe
that. Why? You're leaving no room for
good works or changed life or anything like that. You're saying
salvation is totally accomplished by what he did? Why, that will
lead to sin. That will lead to licentiousness.
I can't believe that. And the Greeks, they say, well,
how can that improve the world? How can that improve the economy?
How can that bring better health care and bring in social justice
into the world? That's not going to do anything
for us, but unto them which are called. Oh, here's the difference. But to them which are called.
You see, whom He did predestinate, them He also called. He called you by our gospel to
the obtaining of the glory of Jesus Christ. II Timothy 1.9
says, He saved us and called us with a holy calling to them
which are called. This is talking about the irresistible,
invincible call of God's grace to them which are called What? Christ, the power of God. Christ, the wisdom of God. In Christ being nailed to a cross,
I see the very power of God to make my sin not to be. I see the wisdom of God in making
a way that that can be, how God can be just and justify the ungodly. The cross is the highest exaltation
of God. the complete salvation of everybody
he died for. Oh, I see exactly what the Lord
meant when he said, if I be lifted up will draw all to me. His talking about his death is
his highest exaltation in saving sinners. Now, the next scripture
I want to look at is found in Galatians chapter three, verse
eight, and the scripture. For seeing that God would justify
the heathen through faith. Preach before the gospel unto
Abraham, saying, in thee shall all nations be blessed. Now, he's talking about Abraham's
seed, the Lord Jesus Christ who would come through him, David's
son and David's Lord. In your seed, in that one in
your loin, shall all the nations of the earth be blessed. So then
they which be of faith are blessed with faithful." Abraham. Did
you know that saints in the Old Testament were saved the same
way saints in the New Testament are? Faith in Christ. What's the difference? They're
looking to Him who was coming. We look to Him who has already
come. But it's still true, everybody's
saved the same way. Faith in Christ. Verse 10, for
as many as are of 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." Now, remember how Christ
was cursed on the cross, made a curse? Don't forget that as
we consider this. As many as are under the works
of the law are under the curse. Now, what's it mean to be under
the works of the law? My dear friends, if you believe
in free will, you believe in salvation by law, because you
think there's something you must do before God can do something
for you. That is to be of the works of
the law. If my salvation is dependent
upon me first doing something, Before God can do something for
me, I believe in salvation by works, plain and simple. And
if I believe in salvation by works, there's only one thing
God will accept, perfect, continual obedience on my part without
sin. And it's not gonna happen. Not on my part, not on your part. But then Paul says, but, That
no man is justified by the law on the side of God, it's evident.
It's clear. For the just shall live by faith. That's the only way they've ever
been saved. Looking to Christ. The just shall live by faith.
That's found four times in the scripture. I look to him only
as my only grounds of acceptance. And that never changes. That's
what Abraham believed. That's what Moses believed. That's
what David believes. That's what every believer believes. We look to Christ only. The evidence
that God's done something for me is I look to Christ only as
everything in my salvation. The just shall live by faith.
And the law is not a faith. The man that doeth them shall
live in them. All the law recognizes is perfect obedience on my part
without sin. Now listen to this, Christ hath
redeemed us from the curse of the law being made a curse for
us. For it's written, cursed is everyone
that hangeth on a tree. You see, when Christ was made
sin, that's why he was on the cross, he was made sin. He was
made a curse, and He bore the full equivalent of an eternal
hell, being forsaken by His Father, being made a curse. But there
was something different when he died, when you and I will
die. When he died, he completely satisfied
God. God said, I can ask for nothing
else. Complete satisfaction was made
for sin because he knew no sin in and of himself. And the moment
he died, all the sins that he bore were put away, made not
to be. He was delivered for our offenses
and raised again for our justification. You see, Christ hath redeemed
us. God, He made redemption available
or possible. He hath redeemed us because He
was made a curse for us, the others representing everybody
He died for, all the elect, which is evidenced by faith in Christ,
that the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through
Jesus Christ, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through
faith. Now, here's the last scripture
I would like to read with regard to the cross of the Lord Jesus
Christ, his highest exaltation. This is the Apostle Paul speaking,
and he says in Galatians 6, verse 14, but God forbid, at that strong
language, God forbid that I should glory save in the cross of our
Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and
I unto the world." Now, let's remember who's speaking, the
Apostle Paul, the man God used more than any other man to expound
the gospel. The man whom God used to write
scripture. The man who was brought up into
the third heavens and taught the gospel directly by Jesus
Christ. Now, Paul says, God forbid that
I should glory in any of that. Now the word glory means to boast
in, to have confidence in, to rest in. Paul says, God forbid
that I should glory in anything. The way God's used me, I don't
glory in that. The only thing I glory in is
the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ. This is all my salvation, the
cross of the Lord Jesus Christ. I'm not going to glory in my
works. I'm not going to glory in my faith. I'm not going to
glory in my repentance. I'm not going to glory in the
fact that God used me to write scripture. I'm not going to glory
in the fact that many churches were established in me. I'd glory
in none of that. That's just what God has done.
I glory only in what Christ has achieved in my behalf. God forbid that I should glory
save in the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ. Now, The only thing
that I glory in, like Paul. is the cross of the Lord Jesus
Christ. I don't glory in the fact that
I'm a preacher. I don't glory in the fact that God's called
me to the ministry. I know he has. God's put me in
the ministry. I know that. I don't glory in that. It doesn't
have anything to do with any goodness in me. The only reason
God accepts me is because of the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ. And in the cross of Christ, I
have all that God requires, all that God desires. I have it all
in Christ. Paul put it this way in Philippians
chapter 3, verse 3 he says, we are the circumcision which worship
God in the Spirit, rejoice, same word glory, Rejoice, glory, have
confidence in Christ, and have no confidence in the flesh. None whatsoever. I look to Christ
only. Now, you've perhaps heard of
the song Amazing Grace. John Newton was the author. And
here's another song he wrote that I think will summarize what
we've been looking at from God's Word. He said, in evil long I
took delight, unawed by shame or fear, till a new object caught
my sight and stopped my wild career. I saw one hanging on
a tree, in agony and blood, who fixed his languid eyes on me
as near his cross I stood. Sure never till my latest breath
can I forget that look. It seemed to charge me with his
death, though not a word he spoke. My conscience felt and owned
the guilt and plunged me in despair. I saw my sins, his blood had
spilled, and helped to nail him there. Alas, I knew not what
I did, but now my tears are vain. Where shall my trembling soul
be hid, for I the Lord have slain? A second look, he gave, which
said, I freely all forgive. This blood was for thy ransom
paid. I died that thou mayst live thus
while his death displays my sin and all its blackish hue, such
is the mystery of his grace, it seals my pardon too. Thank God for the cross of Jesus
Christ, his greatest glory. To receive a copy of the sermon
you have just heard, send your request to todd.neibert at gmail.com
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