Vicariousness of Christ's Sacrifice

A boy walks home through a leafy autumn night and feels every rustling tree is a hobgoblin — goose flesh, sweat, terror. The next day he turns the corner and sees the actual neighborhood bully waiting for him. Pastor Martin: spooks were subjective; the bully is objective. Christ dealt with objective realities, not subjective notions.

A lot of the big words have gone over your head, but hang in there, you'll catch this. Here's a fellow who has to spend the evening over at his friend's house helping him rake up the leaves. And he's going to have supper at his friend's house, and he stays on a little longer than he had hoped, and the sun began to sink in the west, and it was getting dark, and he has about a mile walk to get home. And about halfway home, it seems like the sun just all of a sudden dipped behind the big hill that was there in that area where he lives, and it gets dark.

12:41 - 13:08 Read in full sermon

The point: Once your conscience takes God's law seriously, you will hunger for sound, well-defined views of the cross — pursue them.

Pastor Martin calls Calvary the most vivid preview of the day of judgment God ever gave. The destruction of Sodom, of Israel's enemies — none equaled the cross as God's display of how seriously He takes sin: He did not spare His own Son.

In fact, it's accurate to say that the cross is the most vivid preview of the day of judgment God has ever given to men. The destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, the destruction of the world with the flood, these are vivid demonstrations of the principles that will operate in the day of judgment, but they cannot hold a candle to the light that comes from Golgotha. There upon Golgotha

26:44 - 27:12 Read in full sermon

A man named Joe is sentenced for a crime. A third of the way through, his identical twin Pete visits, and they switch places. The prison releases the wrong man. Pete vicariously serves the rest of Joe's sentence — that is what 'vicarious' means: in the room and place of another.

There's a man out west who was sentenced to jail for a certain crime. I don't know what he had to spend. Two years? It was a relatively brief sentence. Let's call the one brother Joe, and the other brother we'll call Pete. Poor Joes and Peets. They always get picked on in illustrations. Now, they're identical twins. Now, Joe has committed a crime. It's a true story. For that crime, he is sentenced, and this I don't remember the exact sentence, but for the sake of the illustration, two years in prison.

30:25 - 30:54 Read in full sermon

The worshiper of Leviticus 1 came with his cattle, laid his hand on the head of the burnt offering, and 'it shall be accepted for him to make atonement for him.' He confessed real alienation from a real God for real sin — and another died in his place.

And he shall lay his hand upon the head of the burnt offering, and it shall be accepted for him to make atonement for him. So when the worshiper came, what was he saying? He was saying, I have sinned. My sin is real, and the God of Israel is real, and his anger against sin is real.

35:03 - 35:30 Read in full sermon

On the Day of Atonement Aaron laid both hands on the live goat and confessed over him 'all the iniquities of the children of Israel and all their transgressions.' Then a fit man led the goat into the wilderness, bearing the sins away — type of Christ taking His people's sin upon Himself.

He shall present the live goat, and Aaron shall lay both his hands upon the head of the live goat, and confess over him, notice now, all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions, even all their sins, and he shall put them upon the head of the goat, and shall send him away by the hand of a man that is in readiness into the wilderness, and the goat shall bear upon him all their iniquities unto a solitary land, and he shall let go the goat in the wilderness. What was God saying to these people? Imagine what it would be like for you that day to stand as a worshipper o...

38:19 - 39:12 Read in full sermon

In Philemon 13 Paul wishes Onesimus could remain to minister to him 'on thy behalf' (huper) — acting in Philemon's place. Pastor Martin uses this to ground the New Testament preposition that explicitly teaches substitution.

To get a feel for the word itself. Look at Philemon 13. The little book of Philemon. So often is overlooked and yet has some wonderfully helpful words of instruction. Concerning the precise meaning of some biblical concepts. And here is one of them. The book of Philemon. Right after Titus. And verse 13.

47:13 - 47:39 Read in full sermon

Driving home: You may have comfort with vague views of the cross while all is well. But death and the world to come draw nigh and you'll want something more.

Imagine a deadly disease in a community. Word spreads that certain pills work, but they are useless. People feel calm because they believe the pills work — and die. A doctor walks the community telling them, 'Throw those pills away — here is the true remedy.' That is what Pastor Martin says he must do for those clinging to false views of the cross.

What would you think of a doctor who lived in a community where there was a disease that was taking life on the left hand and on the right and the government had sent into that community massive doses of the one antidote for that illness. What would you think of the doctor who had that in his hands and when he went out to administer it he saw people who said, oh doc I don't need that. I had the disease but I feel great. You feel great? How come? Oh someone was by here and gave me some pills and I just feel wonderful. Well, what were the pills? Oh, there's some over here. And he analyzes them. ...

58:19 - 59:15 Read in full sermon