Tonight, we continue in our consideration of our confession, the Belgic Confession, Article 21, found on page 79 in the back of the Psalter hymnal. Article 21, the title says, The Satisfaction of Christ, our only High Priest, for us. We want to read together from Hebrews chapter 9, beginning at verse 11 through verse 4 of chapter 10. Hebrews 9, beginning at verse 11, as we consider now the Word of God. 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 this 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, were 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. For this reason, Christ is the mediator of a new covenant that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance now that He has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant. In the case of a will, it is necessary to prove the death of the one who made it because a will is in force only when somebody has died. It never takes effect while the one who made it is living. This is why even the first covenant was not put into effect without blood. When Moses had proclaimed every commandment of the law to all the people, he took the blood of calves together with water, scarlet wool, and branches of hyssop and sprinkled the scroll in all the people. He said, This is the blood of the covenant which God has commanded you to keep. In the same way, he sprinkled with the blood both the tabernacle and everything used in its ceremonies. In fact, the law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood and without the shedding of blood. There is no forgiveness. It was necessary then for the copies of the heavenly things to be purified with these sacrifices, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. For Christ did not enter a man-made sanctuary that was only a copy of the true one. He entered heaven itself, now to appear for us in God's presence. Nor did he enter heaven to offer himself again and again the way the high priest enters the most holy place every year with blood that is not his own. Then Christ would have had to suffer many times since the creation of the world. But now he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of himself. Just as man is destined to die once and after that to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people. And he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him. The law is only a shadow of the good things that are coming, not the realities themselves. For this reason, it can never, by the same sacrifices repeated endlessly year after year, make perfect those who draw near to worship. If it could, would they not have stopped being offered? For the worshipers would have been cleansed once for all and would no longer have felt guilty for their sins. But those sacrifices are an annual reminder of sins because it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins. beloved of our Savior and Lord Jesus Christ, as you know, we are in that season of the year in which we give a certain amount of attention to the passion and death of our Savior. Indeed, Sunday, the first day of the week, the Lord's Day, is the day of resurrection, and we serve a risen Savior each and every day of our lives. But in a particular way during this season of the year, We prepare to observe what we call Good Friday with the crucifixion and death of Jesus. And we prepare to celebrate Easter and the resurrection of Jesus. And it's fitting, therefore, that God in His providence has brought us to Belgic Confession, Article 21. Because in this article, as Reformed believers, we confess what we believe the Bible teaches about the place of the cross. The place of the cross in history. The place of the cross for us. In article 20, you recall that we considered the great exchange, His death for my life. We considered the justice and the mercy of God. God found a way to stay righteous and just and yet at the very same time show His mercy. His justice is satisfied through the death of His Son, and because of that, His mercy is applied to all believers. Now, Article 20 says that the Son of God made satisfaction in the human nature. Now, to satisfy means to meet a demand. Boys and girls, to meet a demand. If your parents give you a task to perform, and you have carried it out, you have met the demand, they are satisfied. If your teachers give you a particular assignment, once you have handed in that assignment, you've completed it sufficiently, your teacher is satisfied. To satisfy means to meet a demand. Because God is a just God. His wrath against sin, that sin which violates His holiness, that sin which is terribly offensive, to him his wrath against that sin had to be satisfied the demands of his justice had to be met the guilt of sin had to be paid for and therefore removed in order to satisfy god's holiness and whereas article 20 says that the son made satisfaction article 21 then goes a little bit further and deals with how he made that satisfaction again with this article we we confess what we believe about the place of christ's cross why he went to the cross what took place on the cross and what was accomplished by the cross and the central focus as the subtitle of The article says the central focus of all of this is the work of Christ as our only high priest. It's a little bit of a lengthy article, but allow me to read it. Please follow along. Page 79. We believe that Jesus Christ is ordained with an oath to be an everlasting high priest after the order of Melchizedek, and that he has presented himself in our behalf before the Father to appease his wrath by his full satisfaction, by offering Himself on the tree of the cross and pouring out His precious blood to purge away our sins, as the prophets had foretold. For it is written, He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities, the chastisement of our peace was upon Him, and with His stripes we are healed. He was led as a lamb to the slaughter and numbered with the transgressors, and condemned by Pontius Pilate as a malefactor, though He had first declared Him innocent. Therefore He restored that which He took not away and suffered the righteous for the unrighteous as well in His body as in His soul, feeling the terrible punishment which our sins had merited insomuch that His sweat became, as it were, great drops of blood falling down upon the ground. He called out, My God, my God, why hast Thou forsaken me and has suffered all this for the remission of our sins? Wherefore, we justly say with the Apostle Paul that we know nothing save Jesus Christ and Him crucified. We count all things but loss and refuse for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus our Lord, in whose wounds we find all manner of consolation. Neither is it necessary to seek or invent any other means of being reconciled to God than this only sacrifice once offered by which He hath perfected forever them that are sanctified. This is also the reason why he was called by the angel of God, Jesus. That is to say, Savior. Because he would save his people from their sins. Now to most of us, beloved, this, what we read here, what we've just read, is not new. We understand it. We've heard it before. But we must ever be reminded of this over and over again for the single purpose that we might continue to grow in the knowledge and the understanding that the cross is the guarantee of our salvation because there alone was accomplished Christ's high priestly work of satisfaction. We know that Jesus Christ was anointed to be our chief prophet, our only high priest, and our eternal king, as question and answer 31 of the Catechism reminds us. But the truth is, apart from his work as our only high priest, his work as prophet will mean nothing to us, and his work as king will mean nothing for us. Hebrews 9.22 says, Without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness. His work as prophet teaches of this need for forgiveness, and His work as king is on behalf of those who are forgiven, but it is His work as high priest that secures this forgiveness. And He was able to make satisfaction to God for you and me because He is the one-of-a-kind high priest. Now the writer of Hebrews introduces Christ as the great high priest at the end of chapter 4, and he continues this discussion comparing Christ to the Old Testament priesthood, and especially that Christ is superior, the superiority of Christ and his priesthood to the Old Testament priesthood. He continues that well into chapter 10. We only read a small portion of this, but the teaching is very detailed throughout these chapters. In sin, man was cut off from God. Adam, and in him, his human family chose death instead of life. And when God established His covenant with Abraham, just as the animals were cut in two, that blood was shed, the punishment for violating the covenant for sinning against God would be the shedding of blood. That is, the giving up of life. Leviticus 17 verse 11 says, For the life of a creature is in the blood, and I have given it to you to make atonement for yourselves on the altar. it is the blood that makes atonement for one's life. Blood had to be shed to satisfy God and reconcile His people to Him. Blood had to be shed before God's favor would once again be turned toward His people. And the task of offering the bloody sacrifices was given to the priests. Now we know, of course, that there were many different kinds of sacrifices and offerings that were brought before God every day. Fellowship offerings, guilt offerings, sin offerings, grain offerings, and so forth. But especially the high priest would make his way into the Holy of Holies once a year on that Day of Atonement, shedding the blood of the one goat and sprinkling it all over the mercy seat to represent the payment for sin. and placing his hands on the head of the scapegoat, sending it far out into the wilderness, which represented the sins of the people being taken away. The high priest represented the people before God. In Hebrews 5, verse 1, we read, Every high priest is selected from among men and is appointed to represent them in matters related to God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins. The priest was to act on behalf of the people before God. It was his task to bring the people to God and to do what needed to be done so that they might be acceptable to God because the people could not go into the presence of God. They had to stay out. And the priest's work was ongoing. Sacrifices for sin were made again and again and again. The Day of Atonement came religiously at the same time every year, just like our birthdays do. Just like Christmas, just like Thanksgiving, the same time every year. And the required sacrifices were a continual reminder to the people of their sin and need for forgiveness. But also the high priest brought the blood of animals to be sacrificed in the Holy of Holies. Why? Well, because his blood wasn't sufficient. Hebrews 5 verse 3 says he has to offer sacrifices for his own sins as well as for the sins of the people. Even before Aaron, for example, could go into the Holy of Holies, he had to offer a bull for his own sins and the sins of his family. And you see, all of this was a continual process. Bulls and goats and sheep were raised continually throughout the year, year after year after year, for the purpose of being sacrificed. The priests got old. They died. But others would be chosen from the proper family to take their place. And this went on and on throughout the ages. Why? Because the blood of animal sacrifices could not truly and ultimately pay for the sin of man. And the Levitical priesthood was not sufficient to take the place of their fellow sinners. Because of that very fact. they were sinners too they needed a sacrifice for their own sins and we know from God's word especially Hebrews that the Old Testament priesthood and the Old Testament sacrifices pointed to something greater the Old Testament priests pointed forward to the one great eternal high priest and the Old Testament sacrifices pointed forward to the one great eternal Lamb of God and both of these then come together in Jesus Christ of whom John the Baptist declared behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. Jesus Christ is the one of a kind high priest ordained by God with an oath to be an everlasting high priest after the order of Melchizedek. The writer of Hebrews quotes Psalm 110 verse 4 and says, the Lord has sworn and will not change his mind, you are a priest forever in the order of Melchizedek. Melchizedek in the time of Abraham was both a king and a priest. And his name means the king of righteousness. And as Hebrews 7 says, king of peace. And Hebrews 7 verse 3 also points out a unique feature about him. Without father or mother, without genealogy, without beginning of days or end of life, Like the Son of God, He remains a priest forever. Now we know, of course, boys and girls, that literally Melchizedek had a father and a mother. But in a time when genealogies were important, nothing was recorded about Him. And therefore, it's as if He had no beginning of days or end of life. He is an eternal priest. Jesus Christ is an eternal priest. Not like the Levitical priesthood. again, each priest got old, they died, they ended, and even the Levitical priesthood, as we will see, ended. But you see, that points to Jesus, who is eternal. But not only is Jesus Christ a one-of-a-kind high priest because he is eternal, but because he himself is the sacrifice. Again, nothing new to us. But we need to be reminded, he is the sacrifice. This one-of-a-kind high priest sacrificed Himself on the cross. He poured out His own precious blood, His one-of-a-kind blood. And as the high priest, He presented the offering of Himself into the greater, into the heavenly tabernacle. And notice our Savior didn't just present to God the Father His work or His righteousness or some portion of His work, but He presented Himself. He gave Himself. Life is in the blood, and therefore the lifeblood had to be shed unto a complete remission of all of our sins. And this one-of-a-kind high priest brought this one-of-a-kind sacrifice into the one-of-a-kind tabernacle where no animal blood ever went. We read again from verses 11-14, 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 this 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? Where the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself unblemished to God, cleansed our consciences from acts that lead to death so that we may serve the living God. And Jesus Christ, our great high priest, made satisfaction, beloved, through His one-of-a-kind suffering. We're not talking about the crucifixion here because, as we know, many died by crucifixion. On the very day that our Lord died on the cross, He was in the middle, remember? between two other men who were also crucified. But His suffering on the cross, and even as the Catechism rightly says, His suffering every day of His earthly life, this suffering was one of a kind. For one reason, because the holy, the sinless Son of God walked in the midst of sin. And indeed, we do think of the physical suffering He endured. Isaiah 53 is graphic when it says He was wounded. he was bruised he was chastised and it speaks of stripes it says he was slaughtered but then article 21 also says he suffered as well in his body as in his soul feeling the terrible punishment which our sins had merited insomuch that his sweat became as it were great drops of blood falling down upon the ground he called out my God, my God Why hast thou forsaken me and has suffered all this for the remission of our sins? Beloved, being true God and true man, as well as true man, Jesus understood the wrath of God that burns eternally, night and day, against sin. He understood that perfectly. God's wrath is His holy hatred for and rejection of sin. and it includes the terrible execution of His vengeance against sin. You and I don't understand that. And because of our great high priest, those for whom He died will never understand that. And that fact alone is to result in humble praise from our hearts, beloved. That you and I will never even taste, not even in the smallest taste, That eternal wrath of God against sin. But Jesus understood that wrath so much so that He was tormented in His Spirit with the very thought of it. So that His sweat, as it says, were like great drops of blood. So that He cried out, imagine that the Son of God crying out, not My Father, My Father, why have You forsaken Me? But My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me? We cannot imagine. and I think sometimes because we will never imagine that or never taste it and can't truly imagine that, I think that makes us maybe a little bit lazy in our contemplation of it sometimes. But we must strive to be conscious and to remember the wrath of God that our Lord Jesus Christ suffered in our place so that we never will. Christ's suffering was unique and incomparable because he bore the full wrath of God against the sin of the world. He suffered a curse that was not rightfully his and a punishment that should have been inflicted upon you and me. His suffering was substitutionary as God made him who had no sin to be sin for us. Again, I think the best way to think about that substitution is that, as it were, He picks us up, moves us out of the way, and steps into our place. Completely took our place. His suffering was one of a kind with regard to His people. Again, because they will never, ever suffer it. But it was also one of a kind with regard to those who reject Him. Those who will suffer God's eternal wrath. You see, they will suffer. But they will suffer for their own sin, which will be terrible. But not for anyone else's sin, only their own. And it will indeed be for all eternity. But as God forsook Him, our Lord suffered. And this is a mystery. Our Lord suffered an eternity's worth of hell for all of his people at one and the same time. But this one-of-a-kind high priest who placed himself on the altar of sacrifice and endured that one-of-a-kind suffering has also accomplished a one-of-a-kind result. And that's the ultimate beauty here. You see, Article 21 says he suffered all of this for the remission of our sins. If you've noticed today, this morning and this evening, we've sang of that a couple of times. The remission of our sins. Ransomed. One of the Heidelberg Catechism includes this phrase, that He fully paid for all my sins. Those are simple terms. We understand that. He fully paid. Think about that. Meditate upon that. There's nothing left to pay. It's all been taken care of. Indeed, the Old Testament sacrifices pointed to the need for remission, but they could not accomplish it. Those sacrifices covered the sins of the people in the sight of God, but did not remove those sins as far as the east is from the west. Those sacrifices were to point the people to the Messiah to come. who would be the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. And beloved Christ's one-of-a-kind result is that His sacrifice is once for all and it is effective. Again, we read in chapter 9 verses that we considered this morning briefly, just as man is destined to die once and after that to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people and He will appear a second time. Why? Because it's been effective. Not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for Him. He has made full satisfaction to God so that our sins no longer stand between us and God. He no longer holds them against us and He no longer holds us accountable for them. Eternally accountable for them. Again, verse 22 of chapter 9 says, Without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness. The pouring out of blood and forgiveness go hand in hand. Christ's perfect and sinless blood has been shed. The payment has been made. And the one-of-a-kind result which the Old Testament sacrifices could not accomplish is that we are forgiven. It's a present reality, beloved. And chapter 10, verse 18 says, And where these have been forgiven, there is no longer any sacrifice for sin. Jesus Christ, the eternal high priest, and the one final sacrifice for sin, he's done away with the Levitical priesthood and with the need to offer animal sacrifices. And we as God's people no longer need a man, a priest, a human being to stand before us and God to mediate for us here on this earth. That's why we have a communion table where we enjoy the Lord's Supper, where He feeds and nourishes our forgiven souls. And where we are reminded that our sins are paid for, that salvation has been accomplished, that we have peace with God. We do not have an altar where Christ is sacrificed again and again and again and where we are reminded over and over again of our sin and offense and need for that sacrifice to be made. That one-of-a-kind result is that the blood of Jesus went where no animal blood could go. Verse 12, 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. And the blood of Jesus did and does what no animal blood could ever do. Verse 14 again. 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. Cleansed down to the very core by the blood of Jesus. But there's more to that one kind of result. This one-of-a-kind high priest. Unlike the Old Testament high priest who could only go behind the curtain once a year and only for a temporary period of time, unlike that high priest, Jesus Christ, our great high priest, abides, dwells, remains in the very presence of God until He comes again. He is the anchor of our soul, as chapter 6 says of Hebrews, firm and secure, it enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain where Jesus, who went before us, has entered on our behalf. He has entered heaven once and stays always in the presence of God as our mediator, as our advocate, as our intercessor, as our guarantor of eternal life, as our all in all. He is an ever-present reminder on our behalf before His Father as if to say, I paid for them. They are mine. Again, even as Satan would say, no, they're mine. Jesus says, no, they are mine. And beloved, what more can we say? This is the blessed truth of God's Word. The blood of Jesus alone is sufficient and effective for our salvation. No other work but Christ's. No other blood will do but this one-of-a-kind result, namely actual forgiveness and actual salvation is to have a result in us. It is to draw from us a one-of-a-kind response. The last paragraph of article 21 says, Therefore, we justly say with the Apostle Paul that we know nothing save Jesus Christ and Him crucified. We count all things but loss and refuse for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus our Lord in whose wounds we find all manner of consolation. Neither is it necessary to seek or invent any other means of being reconciled to God than this only sacrifice once offered by which He hath perfected forever them that are sanctified. This is also the reason why he was called by the angel of God, Jesus, that is to say Savior, because he would save his people from their sin. Our true confession is to be in the cross of Christ I glory, because, hallelujah, what a Savior. And the work of Christ, beloved, is the source of our complete blessedness. Nothing is lacking. And our response to his substitutionary atonement is to include a Christ-confessing life. With Paul, we are to be content to know nothing but Christ and Him crucified. There's much human wisdom out there in the world. But we are to be content, not with that, but knowing nothing but Christ and Him crucified because this is the only ground and foundation of our salvation. Only in Him crucified and sacrificed are we restored to God and do we have the hope of eternal life. And our response is also to include a Christ-centered life. For those who confess Christ, we are to have a Christ-centered life. He is to be our all in all. In other words, we are to practice what we preach. Our walk is to match our talk. That's what Paul says in Philippians 3 when he says, What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish that I may gain Christ and be found in Him not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law but that which is through faith in Christ the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith. So many things in this life are attractive and appealing. especially to boys and girls. I want that. That looks good to me. I'd like to have that in my possession. So many things. And we think these things, well, that will make it. If I have that, I'll be set. But for those who are found in Christ Jesus, worldly pomp and pleasure and, again, wisdom will no longer charm their hearts. The sad truth is we do often neglect Him, But may God never allow us to forget Him who is our true life. May we daily reflect on the price that Jesus paid for our sins to redeem us. I'm pausing for a purpose. Let me say that again. May we daily reflect on the price Jesus paid for our sins to redeem us. I don't do that enough, do you? think about the blood that Jesus shed to pay for my sins? Maybe if I did, then in those times where I'm tempted to sin because, you know, it's just a little white one, a little white lie, it's not a big deal, then maybe if I would reflect on the blood Jesus shed to pay for that sin, that I know He'll give me confidence of forgiving, maybe I wouldn't even commit it. May we daily reflect on the price jesus paid for our sins and as we confess our sins before him may we enjoy his assurance of pardon a christ-centered life as we said this morning laying down our lives for the one who laid down his life for us and then that fruit of assurance of that forgiveness is ours through a Christ-comforted life. You see, our true comfort is not found in earthly peace and prosperity. Again, boys and girls and young people, we just think, well, if I just have that, well, that will make my life complete. Well, if I can just go here, well, then I will be happy. And the things of this life might give a little temporary satisfaction, but not true security or true peace or true hope. Our trust and comfort is in the perfect work of the Redeemer, as the article says, in whose wounds we find all manner of consolation. Now, we don't want to take joy or find profit when one of our fellow brothers and sisters is hurting, do we? And this seems awkward, yet we are called to find our comfort in the wounds of our Lord Jesus Christ. It's not our works. It's not even our faith that gives us comfort in this life and peace with God, but the wounds of Jesus. His nail-scarred hands, which are emblems of His suffering and shame and emblems of our salvation. In Isaiah 50, we read these words, verses 15 and 16, Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has born? Though she may forget, I will not forget you. See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands. Your walls are ever before me. We are ever with our Lord Jesus Christ in His nail-scarred hands, as it were. Our names are inscribed there. Through true faith and trust in Him, He alone gives us the courage to face the burdens of today and the sorrows of tomorrow. And beloved, when we understand all of this by God's grace, as we stand strengthened in our faith by a life of fellowship with the Savior and Lord Jesus Christ, only then do we realize how foolish is the thought, as the article says, of trying to seek or invent any other means of being reconciled to God than this only sacrifice once offered. And the confession follows this up with a quote from Hebrews 10, 14, because by one sacrifice He has made perfect forever those who are being made holy. Think about that. Where would you start if you were to try to think up a way to try to be reconciled with God? The ideas would be interesting, I think. But how can you improve upon perfection? You can't. I can't. It is finished. It is done. It is Jesus Christ alone, through His work of satisfaction, who has made us acceptable to God. We were not acceptable. That's hard for our pride to chew, isn't it? We were not acceptable to God, but in Christ Jesus, we are acceptable to God. There is no other name under heaven given among men by which we might be saved. There is no other way to the Father than through Jesus who is the way, the truth, and the life. And beloved, that's why if you know the Lord Jesus Christ and if you can make this confession using the words of the title given here, the satisfaction of Christ, our only high priest, and then make it personal for me. If you can make that confession, then you've got it made for eternity. But if you don't know Him by faith, then you're in trouble. And you are called to turn to Him in repentance and faith because just as sure as the Bible teaches that those who reject Him will suffer in hell forever, the Bible also teaches whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. And that's a guarantee. Many still want to play God's mercy off against His justice and say they're incompatible. It doesn't fit. But the truth is, beloved, in His mercy, God accepted the payment of His Son to satisfy His justice against you and against me. And the bottom line is, in Christ Jesus alone, God is satisfied. And we as His people are justified. This is the gospel message we are called to preach faithfully, teach faithfully, and witness to faithfully. Because, beloved, life is only worth living if God is satisfied with you in Christ Jesus. Amen. Shall we pray? Father, even as we have already sung in this evening hour, we confess how vast the benefits divine which we in Christ possess. And we do confess that we will never understand the fullness of it until one day in glory. But Father, help us to have a little wider glimpse day by day of the blessing of the gifts of salvation bestowed upon us in Christ Jesus, our Lord. And may it be as well that you would give to us an earnest desire to share that message of salvation with those who have never heard or with those who have heard yet have not believed. Heavenly Father, if it be your will, use us as your people in some small way in the privacy of our homes or in the workplace or any other place you see fit to be used of you to share the gospel of Jesus Christ. Again, of such a great Savior and such a great salvation. In Jesus' name we pray these things. Amen.