The Word of God comes to us tonight from John chapter 17. John 17, that portion of Scripture which we call our Lord's High Priestly Prayer. We'll read together the first 12 verses of John 17 this evening. Hear now the Word of God. After Jesus said this, He looked toward heaven and prayed, Father, the time has come. Glorify Your Son that Your Son may glorify You. For You granted Him authority over all people that He might give eternal life to all those You have given Him. Now this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God and Jesus Christ whom You have sent. I have brought You glory on earth by completing the work You gave Me to do. And now, Father, glorify Me in Your presence with the glory I had with You before the world began. I have revealed You to those whom You gave Me out of the world. They were Yours, You gave them to Me, and they have obeyed Your Word. Now they know that everything You have given Me comes from You, for I gave them the words You gave Me, and they accepted them. They knew with certainty that I came from You, and they believed that You sent Me. I pray for them. I am not praying for the world, but for those You have given Me, for they are Yours. All I have is Yours, and all You have is Mine, and glory has come to Me through them. I will remain in the world no longer, but they are still in the world, and I am coming to You. Holy Father, protect them by the power of Your name, the name You gave Me, so that they may be one as We are one. While I was with them, I protected them and kept them safe, that by that name You gave Me, none has been lost except the One doomed to destruction so that Scripture would be fulfilled. May God add His blessing to the reading of His Word. I would invite you also to turn in the back of this altar hymnal to page 99. Page 99, the second head of doctrine for the canons of Dort, entitled, The Death of Christ and the Redemption of Men, Thereby. We'll read Articles 1, 2, and 3 for right now. Page 99. Article 1. God is not only supremely merciful, but also supremely just, and His justice requires, as He has revealed Himself in His Word, that our sins committed against His infinite majesty should be punished, not only with temporal, but with eternal punishments, both in body and soul, which we cannot escape unless satisfaction be made to the justice of God. Article 2. Since, therefore, we are unable to make that satisfaction in our own persons or to deliver ourselves from the wrath of God, he has been pleased of his infinite mercy to give his only begotten Son for our surety, who was made sin and became a curse for us, and in our stead that he might make satisfaction to divine justice on our behalf. In article 3, the death of the Son of God is the only and most perfect sacrifice and satisfaction for sin and is of infinite worth and value, abundantly sufficient to expiate the sins of the whole world. Well, beloved in the Lord Jesus Christ, as we think together about the doctrines of God's grace of salvation, We now, in a sense, move from the what of salvation, the what being that God chose, God elected to save some unconditionally, and to move to the how of salvation. How would He accomplish that? How? To provide atonement. To provide what sinful man desperately needed, a life and death matter. And of course, the second head of doctrine, the second point of doctrine, deals with the how of salvation. as it speaks of atonement. Well, what is atonement? Well, very simply, for the boys and girls, very simply, if you take the first part of that word of atonement, atone, and break that up, you have two small words, at one. In its simplest sense, atonement is to be made at one. You see, that perfect harmony that existed in the beginning between God and man, That perfect harmony was broken. It was destroyed by man's sin. So that fallen, sinful man and the holy, righteous God needed to be made at one again by an atonement. And how that was done is worked out by Jesus Christ and all that His work accomplished. He made sinful man and God at one again. And the second head of doctrine, this second point, spells out that it is a limited atonement. Now, of course, that phrase limited atonement has caused difficulty for many, so some prefer the terminology definite atonement or particular redemption. However, whatever you choose, whatever limited or definite or particular means is answered here in the second head of doctrine, which answers the question, for whom Christ died? Who is the atonement for? Now, Arminianism taught, and please understand that when we talk about Arminianism, I'm sure just like in the Reform camp, there have been many changes throughout history. Some going this direction, some going a little bit that direction, so there's not complete agreement anymore. But the Arminianism that we're speaking of strictly is the Arminianism that the Canons of Dort was dealing with so many years ago. And Arminianism taught that it's for everybody. The atonement is for the world universally, or at least potentially universally. After all, they would say that's what the Bible says. And I thought tonight it would be good for us to listen to the remonstrance, listen to the grievance that they had with regard to the historic understanding of Scripture up until that time, and what the church was confessing with the Belgic Confession and the Canons of Dort, and that to which the Synod of Dort was responding. This is what their grievance said. This is what they claimed that they say Scripture teaches. Our opinion is that in agreement with this, and the this is talking about conditional election, that they say that God elected some based on foreseeing, foreknowing who would, of their own free will, believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. So now, our opinion is that in agreement with this, Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world, died for all men and for every man so that He merited reconciliation and forgiveness of sins for all through the death of the cross. Universalism. However, they knew that Scripture did not teach universalism, that not everybody is saved, so they added this to it. Yet, so that no one actually enjoys this forgiveness of sins except the believer. And they go on to give their proof text. Also according to the word of the Gospel of John 3, verse 16, God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. And in the first epistle of John, chapter 2, verse 2, he is the propitiation for our sins, and not only for ours, but also for the sins of the whole world. Now, I hope and trust that even as you listen to what the Arminians taught, that you hear right away there are problems, there are discrepancies, there are contradictions. It's confusing, to say the least. They said that Jesus died for all men, for every single one. That He merited reconciliation and forgiveness of sins for all through the death of His cross. If that is true, therefore, we would expect that all ought to be saved. Yet, as I pointed out, they're not. Only those who believe. And that would mean, then, that Jesus did His work for nothing when it comes to some. But it also means what they teach, of course, that salvation that is possible for all, for absolutely everyone, yet it depends on man. So Christ did not die. He died for no one actually. He did not secure salvation in Arminian theology. He did not secure it for anyone and possibly for no one at all. If you read the first paragraph of the Rejection of Errors, it's clear that that's what they teach, that it's very possible that Christ, that God sent His Son to do His work. And oh yes, it remains effective, but yet it might be effective for no one at all. You see, beloved, that attacks God's sovereignty because He is forced to settle for those who choose for Jesus. And it also attacks God's power because He is not able to save anyone without their effort. Jesus' sacrifice only made it possible for God to forgive on the condition that they would believe. Therefore, salvation is secured only by the one who believes and not by Jesus Christ. And as well, the Arminians considered the word world in their proof text. And when the word all comes in, they considered those words to mean absolutely every person. When the context of these passages and the rule of Scripture interprets Scripture makes it clear that whenever Scripture speaks of God's election and reprobation of His salvation and the word world is used, which can have many meanings in Scripture, yet in those places it means people of every tribe or nation, those who would believe by the grace of God, but not all tribes, not all nations as a whole. Scripture teaches that Christ died for all men without distinction, that is, Jews, Gentiles, red, yellow, black, and white, but not for all men without exception. And the fathers of the Synod of Doris set forth the true teaching of Scripture in this second head of doctrine with regard to the nature of Christ's atoning work. And we look at that tonight considering its divine necessity, but also its vicarious character and then finally its limited scope. The bottom line is the nature of Christ's atoning work is that Jesus Christ did not die for everybody, but He died for His people specifically and He secured their salvation. And notice, first of all, it's divine necessity. Why was an atonement necessary? Well, very simply, because God is holy. God is righteous. And our God is a just God. In John 17, Jesus speaks of the glory of God and that glory includes His sinless perfection. It's interesting, the Arminians taught that Jesus' suffering and death resulted in the original sin of Adam that you and I inherited, that that original sin is gone for everyone. That original sin is of no consequence. And then of course, as we've already pointed out, that those who believe that by their own choice have their original sin paid for, but not their actual sin. But by believing, we might say then that that actual sin is simply forgiven. It is simply overlooked. In other words, in their theology, God lowered His standard and they called that merciful. But the Bible teaches that God demanded obedience from Adam and that after Adam's sin, God still demands, God still expected obedience. Sin is open, defiant rebellion against the law of God. It is a violation of God's holy character. One commentator says, God is perfectly holy, perfectly just, and perfectly truthful. Because He is holy, He hates even the smallest sin. Because God is just, God insists that righteousness be rewarded wherever it is found and that unrighteousness and sin be punished wherever it is found, God cannot reward disobedience. And because He is truthful, God must carry out His threats as well as His promises. God said to Adam, in the day that you eat of the fruit, you will surely die. Scripture says the soul that sins, it shall die. And the Bible also says that all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. Talking about the actual sin that we struggle with day by day. Beloved, our God is just. And that means that sin, all sin, must be punished. But also because our God is just, that means that He will only punish sin once, not twice. And if you think about the Arminian position, really then God punishes sin twice. they said again that Jesus merited reconciliation and forgiveness of sins for all of mankind by His sacrifice. But yet, they say that those who reject Him are lost, and they too will be punished, and therefore God punishes sin twice, according to them. Our God is a just God. He punishes sin indeed, but only once. And because He is just, He requires a satisfaction. Article 1 says, God is the only supremely merciful, but also supremely just. And His justice requires, as He has revealed Himself in His Word, that our sins committed against His infinite majesty should be punished, not only with temporal, but with eternal punishments, both in body and soul, which we cannot escape unless satisfaction be made to the justice of God. God must be satisfied. His wrath must be satisfied. His broken law must be satisfied. Punishment must be given. And atonement must be made for God to be in a relationship with fallen man. And that atonement is what Christ provided. The writer of Hebrews in chapter 2 says, Since the children have flesh and blood, He too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might destroy him who holds the power of death, that is the devil, and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death. For surely it is not angels he helps, but Abraham's descendants. For this reason he had to be made like his brothers in every way in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God and that he might make atonement, also translated propitiation, for the sins of the people. Beloved, Jesus Christ came, we know, as the great, the perfect High Priest to offer the perfect sacrifice of Himself and make atonement which includes propitiating, covering, appeasing, removing the wrath of God against sin. No other creature would do. God must punish mankind. And the God-man Christ in all of His perfection, in all of His righteousness, in all of His holiness, as a perfect law keeper, made atonement, and He made it because of God's love. God loved His own. So God sent His Son. He doesn't love us because He sent His Son, because Jesus paid for our sins. But because He loved us, He sent His Son, and His love continues to be poured out upon us. You see, God's mercy is not going easy on sin. He would not be just. He would not be God. But God's mercy is His willingness to open a way for us so that His justice might be satisfied and a way of escape open for you and me through the shedding of Christ's blood. That is the work the Father gave the Son. That is what He has completed as He says in verse 4 of chapter 17. He is the bridge between God and man. The atonement was a divine necessity. But notice, secondly, it's vicarious character. Very simply, that means that somebody else did it. There was a substitute. Boys and girls, when you have a substitute teacher in school, it's because your teacher is not there, so you have one to fill in for your teacher, to take your teacher's place, to do the same work that your teacher does, but to do it for them. Somebody else did it. Man could not accomplish it. Another had to do the work. And again, Jesus Christ is that substitute. Article 2 says, Since therefore we are unable to make that satisfaction in our own persons or to deliver ourselves from the wrath of God, He has been pleased of His infinite mercy to give His only begotten Son for our surety who was made sin and became a curse for us and in our stead that He might make satisfaction to divine justice on our behalf. It's clear that the writers of the canons took that straight from Scripture. He was made to sin. He became a curse. That's the language of the Apostle Paul. And that substitutionary, that vicarious character, is pictured throughout the Old Testament already in the Garden of Eden on that first day of judgment, we might say, when God came looking for man. Man tried to fix his situation himself. He sewed fig leaves together to try to hide himself from God. But God knew. God knew that man could not cover himself properly, so God made man garments of skin. God shed blood to cover fallen man. And that substitutionary character is seen throughout the Old Testament with the sacrificial system, the blood of bulls and goats and lambs. It was not man who was being put to death for his sin, but another was put to death on behalf of the sin of man, which pointed to the ultimate someone else. Again, as the writer of Hebrews points out, our Lord Jesus Christ. Chapter 9. When Christ came as High Priest of the good things that are already here, He went through the greater and more perfect tabernacle that is not man-made, that is to say, not a part of His creation. He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves, but He entered the most holy place once for all by His own blood, having obtained eternal redemption. The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean. How much more then will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death so that we may serve the living God. Beloved, His shed blood provided an eternal atonement for us. It's not just Hebrews 9 that teaches of the substitutionary character. We find it again throughout the New Testament. In Romans 5, Paul says, While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. In 2 Corinthians 5, verse 21, he says, God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us. In Galatians 2, verse 20, Paul speaks of the Son of God who loved me and gave himself for me. And in Galatians 3, verse 13, he speaks of Christ who became a curse for us. What is the meaning of the word for in those passages? We see Arminianism again would say that it means simply for the benefit of all humanity, so that everyone has the same opportunity, so everyone has an equal chance. But the truth is, for Paul, it means in the place of. It means in the stead of. A substitute. Jesus Christ actually, not potentially, not possibly, but Jesus actually took the place of a certain people, of a specific people, and He took upon Himself what belonged to them, took it from them, and took care of it for them, and He secured their salvation. Jesus Christ was charged in the sight of His Father. He was charged legally with the sin of His people. He was punished for it so that they don't have to. So that they never will suffer for it. He is our surety, As the article says, a surety is one who is responsible for another. A one who guarantees something. Like a father who signs for a son who is too young to buy a car, so the father signs the note on the car, the father becomes responsible to pay it. Jesus Christ became responsible for us. He assumed all of the liabilities and the debts and the obligations of His people. And in Him, beloved, we have a guarantee. We have the assurance that satisfaction, payment for sins has been made and that those for whom it has been made will be brought to faith. Well, for whom then is Jesus Christ the substitute? Well, that's answered thirdly in its limited scope, its limited extent. And this, again, is where some of the difficulty comes in among those who have trouble with what's called limited atonement, even beyond those whom we might say are in the Arminian camp. There is the accusation that comes against what we believe with regard to the word limited. It's taken by some to mean that there is some limit in the power of Christ's atonement. As if Jesus suffered so much for you, and then so much more for you, and then so much more for you. He suffered so much for each one. So therefore, limited here must mean that there is some limit in the power of Christ's atonement that is limited because Christ didn't do quite enough. If He had done a little bit more, if He had suffered a little bit more, if He had shed a little bit more blood, then He could have paid for the sins of more people and more could be saved. That's one of the accusations. But that's not what limited means. That's not the teaching of Scripture as if the value of Christ's death is deficient or lacking in some way. Indeed, there are those verses again. For example, 1 John 2, verse 2, He is the propitiation for our sins and not only for ours, but also for the sins of the whole world. Those Scripture passages that we know are not talking about each and every single individual universally, but yet they do point us to the broad scope of the work of Christ's work of redemption. It is of infinite value. Article 3 says, The death of the Son of God is the only and most perfect sacrifice and satisfaction for sin and is of infinite worth and value, abundantly sufficient to expiate the sins of the whole world. The only and most perfect sacrifice. First of all, it's the only one that would do. As the writer of Hebrews says, not the blood of bulls and goats and lambs and those kinds of animals, but only the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. It is the only perfect one. It is the only one that would pay for sin. And it is sufficient. It is sufficient to pay for the sins of all of mankind. If God had chosen to save absolutely every single person, which of course Scripture says He did not, But if God had chosen to save absolutely everyone, Jesus Christ would not have suffered one bit more. He would not have shed one more drop of blood to save one more person. Think of a firefighter entering a burning house. That firefighter faces the very same heat. He goes through the very same flames, whether he is rescuing ten or whether he is rescuing one person. Jesus Christ suffered the full force of God's wrath against the sin of the world. The full force of God's wrath. All of His anger against sin. And in the same way, Jesus would not have suffered one bit less. He would not have shed one less drop of blood if He had come to save only you. He would have suffered all that He suffered. Just for you. Just like the sun that shines in the sky gives off the very same heat for one plant as it would if the whole earth was covered with plants. Christ's atonement is unlimited in power, yet it is limited for the elect. John 17, our Lord's High Priestly Prayer, again, is a classic passage on God's sovereign choice from the words of Jesus Himself. beginning in verse 1 father the time has come glorify your son that your son may glorify you for you granted him authority over all people that he might give eternal life to all those you have given him and verse 6 I have revealed you to those whom you gave me out of the world they were yours you gave them to me and they have obeyed your word verse 9 I pray for them I am not praying for the world, but for those You have given Me, for they are Yours. Notice, Jesus here does not pray for the world indiscriminately. Otherwise, He would be praying here for all of mankind and doing so in a redemptive sense. But some are lost. And if He is praying for everyone, it cannot be that some are lost because there is no deficiency in Him. But here in this prayer, He distinguishes between those for whom He died, of whom He says He loses none of them. He distinguishes between those for whom He died and those for whom He did not die. Very clearly, He died for the elect. If you have your Psalter hymnals open, follow along with Article 8. It's a little bit lengthy. Article 8, page 100. Which really summarizes everything that we believe in contrast to Arminian theology. For this was the sovereign counsel and most gracious will and purpose of God the Father, that the quickening and saving efficacy of the most precious death of His Son should extend to all the elect for bestowing upon them alone the gift of justifying faith, thereby to bring them infallibly to salvation. That is, it was the will of God that Christ, by the blood of the cross, whereby He confirmed the new covenant, should effectually redeem out of every people, tribe, nation, and language all those and those only who were from eternity chosen to salvation and given to Him by the Father, that He should confer upon them faith, which together with all the other saving gifts of the Holy Spirit, He purchased for them by His death. should purge them from all sin, both original and actual, whether committed before or after believing, and having faithfully preserved them even to the end, should at last bring them free from every spot and blemish to the enjoyment of glory in His own presence forever. For His elect. Beloved, the Bible speaks, we know very clearly, of His people. The angel said He will save His people from their sins. It speaks of His sheep. It speaks of His church. It speaks of those for whom He came and died specifically, actually, effectually saved them. Not only possibly, not only potentially, but as He says in verse 4, I have brought you glory on earth by completing the work you gave Me to do. Jesus had not yet died. He had not yet rose again. Yet it was so certain He could speak as if it was already done. And Jesus Christ knew exactly for whom He was dying. And there are many passages throughout Scripture, especially in the New Testament, that talk about exactly what it is He has done, what it is He has secured. For example, passages in which we read that we are reconciled. We are now justified. We are more than conquerors. We have redemption. Not we might have. Not it's possible. But it's already done. In Christ, it is finished. Jesus Christ has not come to do a half a job. He has not come to do a partial job and leave the rest up to us. That would be absolutely hopeless because fallen man, dead in sin, would never accept the offer of the Gospel. And that's why the Arminian teaching is so very much at fault. man cannot come to Christ on his own he is dead in sin he needs to be made alive Jesus Christ has taken our place he has paid the full price by his wounds we are healed and as article 8 rightly says that he also earned for you and me the gift of faith so that we can say that one is not saved because they believed they did not earn it by their believing but we can say that we believe because we are saved and we are given that gift of faith by which to receive all the benefits that Christ has earned for us. His elect of whom He loses none. Beloved, all limit the atonement in some way either in its power or in its scope or extent. Arminianism limits the power of Christ's atonement and saying it's only possible, but it's not actual. Calvinists, we might say. The Reformed limit the scope that Christ died for His people and only His people, specifically for His people. We think of the Grand Canyon. When you stand on the edge of the Grand Canyon and try to look over, you can see the horizon of the other side, but you cannot see the details. It is simply so far. With regard to the atonement, as it were, the Arminians, we might say build a bridge that is so very wide that everyone can stand on it, but it only goes halfway. And the other half is up to those standing on the bridge. But the truth of Scripture is of a narrow bridge that spans the entire canyon, that guarantees getting a cross for all whom God has chosen. This is Jesus Christ. Beloved, it is a humbling truth that because of our sin, Jesus Christ came to bridge, to actually and effectually to bridge the uncrossable canyon between the holy God and sinful man. Again, He would not have suffered one bit more to pay for the sins of one more, nor would He have suffered one less if He had come only for you. It is finished. He is our guarantee that God will not punish sins twice and He will not punish His believers for their sins at all because Jesus Christ took it all. Every bit of the punishment. So then what is the all that this atonement accomplished? For us, beloved, He kept God's law perfectly. And by suffering the punishment of God, He removed our guilt. He removed God's wrath. He redeemed us. He reconciled us with God. He defeated Satan, sin, and death, meriting for us eternal life. Securing it. That's the difference, isn't it? With Arminian theology, there is absolutely no security. As long as it depends on you and me, there is none. But in Jesus Christ, we are absolutely secure in our salvation. This is what Jesus Christ actually did for all whom the Holy Spirit would really bring to new life and faith. Our assurance is that it is not up to us to finish the work of redemption. It is not up to us to complete what God has started. Instead, beloved, ours is the joy to live not in the fear of trying to get saved, but in the guarantee that I am saved. you are saved. Because Jesus Christ has done it all. Every last bit. Amen. Let's pray together. Dear Heavenly Father, once again, in so many ways, there are mysteries here that we may have a hard time wrapping our minds around. help us, Heavenly Father, to focus on the truth of Your Word which reminds us, which teaches us that indeed You have chosen a certain people. A certain people whom You have known by name, whom You have given to Your Son, for whom He came, for whom He died, whose salvation He secured. And that we may have that confidence as we know that You have brought us by Your Holy Spirit to faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Father, we thank You and praise You for that blessed security. Help us more and more day by day to increase in the joy of that great salvation. Indeed, the joy of the Lord is our strength and may it be both now and forevermore. We praise Your name for the blessed truth of Your Word that You have loved Your people with an everlasting love and you have done all that we have needed that we might be one with you forever and ever. In Jesus' name we pray these things. Amen.