1 Peter

[0:00] As the Lord shall be pleased to help me this afternoon, I would desire to ask your attention to the words which you will find in the first epistle general of Peter, the first chapter and the last clause of verse 11, the sufferings of Christ and the glory that should follow.

[0:48] The first epistle general of Peter, the first chapter and the last clause of verse 11, the full verse reads, searching what or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glory that should follow.

[1:30] You will notice that the apostle Peter has addressed this epistle to the strangers scattered throughout the various places and they were scattered because of persecution.

[1:55] It was no easy thing to be a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ. They were hungry and thirsty.

[2:10] They had no certain dwelling place. Their lives were hunted. But the apostle writes to them by way of encouragement, reminding them of their calling and of the Father's care.

[2:37] Father's care. And showing unto them that the path they trod was the path their master trod.

[2:49] And I'm sure of this, though their pathway was so trying and so painful that what the poet said would have been true in their case would have been true in their case would they another lot prefer rejected be the thought.

[3:20] And for their encouragement, you see, he reminds them of the sufferings of Christ and the glory that should follow.

[3:37] And so today, as we are particularly reminded of that day when the Lord Jesus Christ was crucified, though if we are rightly exercised, we would ever have his cross before our eyes.

[4:07] not just a piece of wood, but the sufferings of Christ. So as hell, I would try to notice these words.

[4:24] And first of all, we must speak of the sufferer. The sufferer is Christ.

[4:35] Christ. This is clearly described, this is clearly stated in our text. The sufferings of Christ.

[4:48] Christ. Christ, the Anointed. The one whom God the Father sent according to that gracious promise made in Eden.

[5:05] Christ. Christ. Oh, my dear friends. The one whom the Father sent was his own dear Son.

[5:20] When the fullness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son.

[5:33] Yes, this was the one whom he sent. And we read in the Gospel according to John that he was in the world and the world was made by him.

[5:57] Oh, this is the sufferer. My dear friends, his eternity is clearly brought before us in the Word of God.

[6:10] When we turn to the book of the Proverbs, we read there where he declares he was set up from everlasting.

[6:24] Yes, set up as the Redeemer of his dear people, as their surety, as their Savior.

[6:40] He who suffered is none other than the dear Son of God who came from heaven.

[6:55] He is co-equal and co-eternal with the Father and the Holy Ghost. We do not worship three gods, but we do worship a triune Jehovah, three persons in the one glorious Godhead.

[7:20] He veiled his glory. My dear friends, he was clothed in flesh, for he was made of a woman, made under the law to redeem them that were under the law.

[7:46] What condescension is here in his coming into this world.

[7:58] Oh, what a stew that he should come into this world. And my dear friends, I think that little children's hymn brings this before us very clearly, wherein they sing, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, who lived above the sky, came down to be a man and died.

[8:36] Yes, it is God's dear Son. And oh, he was not taken by surprise.

[8:49] He knew what was before him. And so when the time came for him to suffer, he set his face steadfastly to go up to Jerusalem.

[9:08] The sufferer is he who came from heaven, sent by the Father, who is the Son of God.

[9:20] And yet he is he who is holy, harmless, undefiled, the one, and oh, the only one, of whom it could be said, he did no sin.

[9:43] He knew no sin. Why, Pilate had to give a just verdict when he had to say, I find no fault in him.

[10:05] For he was without hope. The sufferer is he who was holy, innocent, and pure.

[10:20] But my dear friends, we must notice the sufferings. For we have brought before us the sufferings of Christ.

[10:40] And let me say this, there is no topic, no subject, more important, because without the sufferings of Christ, every individual of the human race must have sunk into hell.

[11:04] There is no other way of deliverance, no other ground of hope, but the sufferings of Christ.

[11:18] So, as we come to consider the sufferings of Christ, first of all, we must say those sufferings were appointed, divinely appointed.

[11:44] You know, we live in days when people forget divine appointments and they speak of him as living before his time, having notions which they could not receive.

[12:05] And so, he was taken and crucified for a good cause. Oh, my dear friends, he was the lamb slain from before the foundation of the world.

[12:24] In that covenant, he engaged to be the substitute of his dear people and thus to take their place, to be their surety and to pay their debt.

[12:43] And God accepted that undertaking on their behalf.

[12:54] O, that covenant which was drawn up by the sacred three secures all blessings unto his dear people.

[13:09] God, they were secure by this appointment. I can't do better than bring before you the words of the poet when he said this, before all worlds, the glorious plan, the blessed eternal day, was settled by the eternal free that Christ for man should leave.

[13:48] when the dear Redeemer stood before Pilate, he says, for this cause I came into the world.

[14:09] my dear friends, those sufferings were divinely appointed and how clearly did Peter declare this on the day of Pentecost.

[14:31] For as he stood before that vast multitude, he said, according to the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken and by wicked hands have crucified and slain.

[15:03] the sufferings of Christ were divinely appointed. But then, my dear friends, the sufferings of Christ were voluntarily endured.

[15:25] I don't know how else to describe what I want to bring before you, only I want to say this, the Lord Jesus Christ, God's dear Son, was under no obligation to any individual to find himself for them.

[15:56] He did it freely and that which moved him to do it was love. It was love that took their cause in hand.

[16:15] And now, we see in this the fulfilment of his own gracious word wherein he says, I will love them freely.

[16:30] Oh, my dear friends, there was nothing in us to deserve that love.

[16:42] But he set his love upon them from all eternity. they were given to him by the father.

[16:55] We know that before he suffered on Calvary's cross, he said, thine they were, and thou gave us them made.

[17:12] They were given to him for a church, for a bride. And you know how the apostle Paul writes to husbands in that epistle to the Ephesians.

[17:31] he says, husbands, love your wives, as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it.

[17:49] Oh, my dear friends, he willingly gave himself. How willing was Jesus to die that we fellow sinners might live.

[18:09] The life they could not take away. How willing was Jesus to give those sufferings, you see, what voluntary.

[18:24] He came into this world to save his people from their sins.

[18:37] And to accomplish this, he must suffer. He himself said, the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.

[18:55] And again he declared, no man taketh my life from me. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again.

[19:12] This commandment have I received of my father. He did that which was divinely appointed. Though it is well for us to remember, he did not take his own life, yet he laid his life down.

[19:36] Oh, my dear friends, those sufferings were endured for his dear people.

[19:47] Yes, one truly says, he wept, he bled, he died for you.

[20:00] What more, ye saints, could Jesus do? We do see in this, the greatness of his love.

[20:11] Many waters could not quench it, neither could the floods drown it. Oh, the love of Christ for his people.

[20:28] And then, my dear friends, the sufferings of Christ, they were not only appointed, and voluntary sufferings, but the sufferings of Christ were great.

[20:52] I am not going to infer that I can express them before you. The poet was right when he said of his sufferings so intense, angels have no perfect sense.

[21:17] Tis to God and God alone that their weight is fully known.

[21:28] But my dear friends, his sufferings were great. blood Oh, if we follow him to the garden of Gethsemane, where he took the cup as it were from his father's house, his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling to the ground, and that was soul he was taken to Calvary, and there he was crucified.

[22:10] Now, crucifixion, without me trying to set it before you, I am sure is well known by you what it entailed, but this we can say, it was not only an ignominious death, a shameful death, but it was a painful death, a most torturous death, one which was reserved for slaves said that it should be, and the worst of malefactors, but as one old divine said, Christ was no malefactor, but a benefactor, but my dear friends, this was the death of which he died, those kind hands that did such good, they nailed away to a cross of war, but you know, one of our poets says, the pains of his body were great, but greater the pains or pains of his soul, yes, oh, this is where we see the greatness of his sufferings, the prophet

[23:58] Isaiah says of his dear people, and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquities of us all.

[24:14] my dear friends, sometimes we hardly know how to bring before you what this entailed, but if I can just turn to the words of the psalmist, when he himself was convinced of sin, and felt something of his grievous load, he said this, there is no soundness in my flesh because of thine anger, neither is there any rest in my bones because of my sin, for mine iniquities are gone over mine head as a heavy burden, they are too heavy for me.

[25:19] My dear friends, if we know anything of being convinced of sin and having to come before the Lord, like the poet when he said, with my burden I begin, Lord, remove this load of sin, we know that that load of sin which we felt was a crushing weight, a painful weight, but listen, all the sins of his dear people were laid upon him.

[26:03] Oh, think of it, the Lord, in the day of his anger, did lay our sins on the lamb, and he bore them away.

[26:19] He who was holy, innocent, and pure, had the sins of his people imputed to him.

[26:33] What a painful, pressing, crushing burden, but that was not all, as he thus stood in the sinner's place.

[26:49] the word was given by a just and holy God. Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, and smite the man who is my fellow, and the sheep shall be scattered.

[27:16] The poet says, but the awful stroke that found him was the stroke that justice gave.

[27:38] The greatness of the sufferings of Christ can never be measured, but we understand a little when we remember that when he was led as a lamb to the slaughter, as a sheep before, his shearers is dumb, so he opened not his mouth.

[28:11] heart and we never hear a word or murmur escaping from his lips when they nailed him to a cross of wall, but when the sword of divine justice pierced him, he cried out, my god, my god, why hast thou forsaken them?

[28:46] But of those sufferings we have to say, he bore them for a chosen rose, and thus became their hiding eyes.

[29:07] Oh, we see something of the hideousness of sin when we remember what sin cost the Lord of life and glory, and if we have an interest in those sufferings, we will readily agree with one who said, it was you, my sins, my cruel sins.

[29:44] His chief tormentors were the sufferings of Christ. Oh, they were great, but my dear friends, the sufferings of Christ were necessary.

[30:07] Never let us lose sight of this. People today tell us they don't want to hear about a religion of gore.

[30:19] It has to do with a past age, when people only understood things by shedding blood and killing. My dear friends, when people talk like that, it brings before us their ignorance of divine things, for the sufferings of Christ were necessary.

[30:47] first of all, they were necessary because of his own covenant undertaking.

[30:59] There was no other way by which that covenant undertaking could be carried out, could be performed.

[31:11] you see, my dear friends, he was found by his own bond in that covenant to accomplish the salvation of his dear people and therefore he could not be spared those sufferings.

[31:52] Otherwise, that covenant must have failed. But you know, this is hell where the Lord speaks and it's the word of the Lord in the Psalms.

[32:09] My covenant will I not break nor alter the thing that is gone out of my lips.

[32:22] And then, my dear friends, it was necessary for the satisfaction of divine justice.

[32:35] Those sufferings were necessary. God, many will speak of him as a merciful, loving God, and it's true, but God is holy, and God is righteous, and God hates sin, and God must punish sin.

[33:02] and my dear friends, he will either punish sin in us or in our substitute.

[33:17] You see that God's justice should be vindicated. Christ must suffer.

[33:32] Oh, on him, as I said at the beginning, almighty vengeance fell. When he took the sinner's place, he endured that which a holy, righteous God would have poured upon millions of the human rights.

[34:03] But to have an interest in those sufferings, and to know that they were necessary for the satisfaction of divine justice, and to feel assured of that which we sometimes see, peace satisfied the claims of law in that tremendous day, it will bring us to the point where we shall see that we are delivered from condemnation because a holy, just, and righteous God will not payment twice demand first at my bleeding short his hand and then again at mine.

[35:07] This enabled one feelingly to say, nor can the righteous judge of men condemn me for that debt of sin which Lord was charged on thee.

[35:25] The sufferings of Christ were necessary, necessary because of his own covenant engagement, and necessary to satisfy divine justice.

[35:45] And my dear friends, they were necessary for those blessings which his people experience to be known.

[36:07] The sufferings of Christ were necessary for a fountain to be open for sin and for all uncleanness.

[36:20] Without those sufferings there would have been no place of cleansing and however much we try, we cannot remove one stain. But there is a fountain filled with blood, drawn from Emmanuel's veins, and sinners plunged beneath those floods lose all their guilty stains.

[36:53] Have you ever been thankful for that fountain? You will know indeed that the sufferings of Christ were necessary so that that fountain should be opened for you.

[37:14] And though I would say to any feeling sinner, seek no other cleansing but in Jesus' use far made blood.

[37:27] What a mercy it is that that precious blood will never lose its power till all the ransomed church of God be saved to sin no more.

[37:44] But then my dear friends, it was necessary, those sufferings of Christ, they were necessary for mercy to be manifested.

[37:59] I have heard people say that Christ died to make God merciful. That is untrue. God is a merciful God and his mercy is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him.

[38:25] But Christ suffered to make a way for that mercy to be manifested which was in his heart, not to make him merciful, but my dear friends, for a way of mercy to be shown.

[38:46] I think the poet expresses this very clearly. He saw it in its true light when he said it was Jesus, my friend, when he hung on the tree who opened the channel of mercy for me.

[39:08] Have you ever felt that? You'll see the sufferings of Christ were necessary. And then my dear friends, the sufferings of Christ were necessary for peace to be made.

[39:33] Sometimes people talk about making their peace with God before they die. They never can. there's only one way of peace, and that is through the blood of Christ.

[39:47] His blood speak of peace, peace by his cross as Jesus made. Without an interest in that blood, we cannot know peace with God, peace of conscience, peace with God.

[40:09] We obtain through Jesus' blood. Oh, my dear friends, the sufferings of Christ are important to us.

[40:22] Have we an interest in them? And do we know through them, peace with God? Have we received mercy through his sufferings?

[40:36] And oh, have we rejoiced to see that fountain, even of his precious blood, the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow.

[40:55] I must leave it there. The Lord had his blessing. Amen. We will conclude this service by singing him 1116.

[41:16] Stricken, smitten, and afflicted, see him dying on the tree. Tis the Christ, thy man rejected.

[41:29] Yes, my soul, tis he, tis he, tis the long-expected prophet, gave its son, yet gave its law.

[41:43] Proofs I see sufficient of it, tis a true and faithful word. 1116.

[41:59] Can be for the님 How to Thank you.

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[45:58] Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

[46:10] Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

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[46:48] CHILD SINGole Un&Sung. Amen. Amen.