James Fetterly's sermon focuses on the significance of Christ's crucifixion and its spiritual implications for believers. He begins by outlining the current series on the cross of Christ, noting that the study will conclude with a discussion on the crucifixion and the observance of the Lord's Supper. Fetterly plans to transition to a series on the attributes of God afterward.
The sermon then shifts to a detailed examination of Luke 23, where Jesus' words from the cross are highlighted. Fetterly discusses the theological and spiritual meanings of Jesus' seven statements from the cross, which encapsulate themes of forgiveness, salvation, compassion, abandonment, human suffering, triumph, and reunion with God. These statements form a comprehensive view of the cross's paradoxical nature—highlighting both the agony and the victory it represents.
Further, Fetterly emphasizes the importance of prayer in Jesus' life and ministry, as depicted throughout the Gospel of Luke. He uses this to encourage the congregation to integrate prayer deeply into their own lives, mirroring Jesus' example. The sermon concludes with a call to reflection and deeper communion with God, urging believers to consider their spiritual practices and the profound lessons of the cross.
Overall, the sermon seeks to enrich believers' understanding of the cross's significance and to inspire a more prayerful, devoted Christian life.
James Fetterly's sermon focuses on the significance of Christ's crucifixion and its spiritual implications for believers. He begins by outlining the current series on the cross of Christ, noting that the study will conclude with a discussion on the crucifixion and the observance of the Lord's Supper. Fetterly plans to transition to a series on the attributes of God afterward.
The sermon then shifts to a detailed examination of Luke 23, where Jesus' words from the cross are highlighted. Fetterly discusses the theological and spiritual meanings of Jesus' seven statements from the cross, which encapsulate themes of forgiveness, salvation, compassion, abandonment, human suffering, triumph, and reunion with God. These statements form a comprehensive view of the cross's paradoxical nature—highlighting both the agony and the victory it represents.
Further, Fetterly emphasizes the importance of prayer in Jesus' life and ministry, as depicted throughout the Gospel of Luke. He uses this to encourage the congregation to integrate prayer deeply into their own lives, mirroring Jesus' example. The sermon concludes with a call to reflection and deeper communion with God, urging believers to consider their spiritual practices and the profound lessons of the cross.
Overall, the sermon seeks to enrich believers' understanding of the cross's significance and to inspire a more prayerful, devoted Christian life.
We're in the middle of studying the cross of Christ. Today we are going to hear the word of prayer from the cross. Next week we will observe the Lord's Supper and we will talk about the cross of Christ and the blood. I hope you're excited about that, anticipating the Lord's Supper. And that will conclude our study on the cross. I hope it's been enriching for you spiritually to meditate upon that which Christ has accomplished for his people. Once we're finished with our study on the cross, we're going to then look at the attributes of God. So that's what's on the docket for us, is that we'll conclude next week the cross and the blood and then we'll begin a study on the attributes of God. Well let us open our Bible to Luke chapter 23 so that we can consider the cross again and let's bow our heads in prayer, committing this time to the Lord. Almighty God, we do thank you that you have given us your word. Your word is powerful, your word is life, your word is living. We ask that by your Holy Spirit that it would do its work in us, softening our hearts, lifting us up towards heaven so that we might seek Christ and all that is found in the cross that we might be encouraged in the faith. You are the God of our salvation. You are the one that we depend upon, that we look to and we ask and plead with you to be kind to us in this time where we study your word to behold beautiful things. We ask all of this in Christ's name. Amen. Luke chapter 23, I'd like for us to consider what Christ has spoken from the cross and we'll pick up our reading in verse 33. And when they had come to the place that is called the skull, they crucified him and the criminals, one on his right hand and one on his left. And Jesus said, "Father, forgive them for they know not what they do and they cast lots to divide his garments." Dropping down to verse 43, of course we know those criminals were scoffing at him, ridiculing him. And then in verse 43, after the one criminal said, "Hey, this man is innocent." Jesus said to him, "Truly I say to you today you will be with me in paradise." It was about the sixth hour and there was darkness over the whole land until the ninth. While the sun's light failed and the curtain of the temple was torn in two, then Jesus calling out with a loud voice said, "Father, into your hands I commit my spirit." And having said this, he breathed his last. Now when the centurion saw what had taken place, he praised God saying, "Certainly this man was innocent and all the crowd that had assembled for this spectacle, when they saw what had taken place, returned home beating their breasts. And all his acquaintances and the women who had followed him from Galilee stood at a distance watching these things." Matthew Henry has helped us to understand the cross of Christ by looking at the paradox or looking at the ways that you can see the ironies of the cross. He says,"Come and see the victory of the cross. Christ wounds are thy healing. His agony thy repose. His conflicts thy conquest. His groanings thy songs. His pain thine ease. His shame thy glory. His death thy life. His suffering thy salvation." On the cross much was accomplished but I do think that it is helpful for us to consider the sayings of the Savior from the cross. There are seven of them when we look at the whole of all the Gospels. The first one is a word of forgiveness. We read it in our text. Jesus said, "Father forgive them for they know not what they do." It was yes a word of forgiveness and we need to remember that in the sacrifice of Christ it is forgiveness to those of us that have fallen in Adam. Not only is there a word of forgiveness but we see that there is a word of salvation. Jesus said to that criminal, that malefactor, next to him, "Truly I say to you today you'll be with me in paradise." Not only is the cross a word of forgiveness and a word of salvation but you can see the compassion that even Christ had for his mother. You see his relationship that he had there with him and he is no longer going to be able to take care of her and he said, "Woman behold your son talking to the disciple whom he loved." And then he said turning to him, "Behold your mother." Even on the cross he was fulfilling the fifth commandment, taking care of those that he loved dearly. Not only do we see that but Christ was also abandoned. Matthew's account and Mark's account give us Eloi, Eloi, Lama, Sabathani where Jesus is crying out, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" Even pulling from the Psalms which this is recorded from, Christ was abandoned on the cross so that spiritually and eternally those that would believe in him would not be cast into utter darkness and abandoned from God Almighty but could be brought into a saving relationship with him forever. In John's account chapter 19 verse 28 we see even the humanity of Christ where Jesus says, "I thirst." And this fulfilled Scripture. Everything was according to the timetable that God had preordained. Moreover in John's account we see the sixth saying where Jesus said, "It is finished." This was a word of triumph. All that the Father had given the Son to do, he had accomplished his life, his death, was going to secure everyone who would ever believe in him so they would spend all of eternity in his presence. They would be his people and he would be their God. Finally there is a word of reunion, a word of contentment, a word that is relying upon the Heavenly Father where Jesus cries out with a loud voice, don't forget that, with a loud voice. This isn't a whimper. This isn't Jesus being a weakling on the cross. Father, into your hands I commit my spirit. Seven words, seven words that could spend a lifetime for us to look at and behold at the cross. It is quite interesting when you consider all of this that it starts off with forgiveness. Father, forgive them and then it also ends with Father into your hands I commit myself. The cross, full of so many wonders John Calvin helps us with it by saying, "There is no tribunal so magnificent, no throne so stately, no show of triumph so distinguished, no chariot so elevated as the gibbet of Christ has subdued death and the devil." Yes, this gibbet is a public instrument of execution and this is where Christ was magnificently lifted up. This was the throne that was so stately. This is the triumph that he has over all that is our enemy, sin, death and the devil. But how does Christ do it? Well, on the cross as I had alluded to, it started with prayer and it ended with prayer and I'd like for us to stay in the Gospel of Luke so that you can see how much prayer was an emphasis in the life and the ministry of Christ. Would you turn to Luke chapter 3? Here in Luke chapter 3, of course we're going to deal with Jesus being baptized and it says in Luke chapter 3 verse 21, "When all the people were baptized and when Jesus also had been baptized," and notice it says, "and was praying." When Jesus starts his ministry, he didn't do it in and of himself, by himself, but rather he is devoting himself to prayer. His ministry was going to be bathed in it, baptized in it. He was praying. Maybe that is so helpful and instrumental for us as we consider our ministry in the body of Christ. Are we bathing it with prayer as Christ was doing? Chapter 6, let's continue on and take a look at how Dr. Luke is giving us a description of the Savior's prayer life, his teaching and his ministry. In chapter 6 verse 12, it says, "In these days he went to the mountain to pray. He went out to the mountain, what to pray? And all night he continued in prayer to God." Christ was committed to prayer. He started in prayer and now he's about to make decisions about his ministry. Who's he's going to bring in? Who's going to help him? How is the kingdom going to be advanced? And he was committed to this prayer, so he went out, he went to the mountain to pray. He was doing this all night. He continued, he persevered in prayer to God and when they came, he called his disciples and chose from them 12. Of course, you know in the Old Testament, there were the 12 tribes of Judah. It was setting the foundation and the government for that people back then and now it's as if Christ is starting a new government in the New Testament and he was going to start it with his disciples, his apostles. And all of this was bathed in prayer. The second person of the Trinity was communing with God, expressing his trust in him, pouring out his soul to his heavenly Father in prayer and then he chose his disciples. And then of course we know who they are there, Simon whom is called Peter and Andrew his brother and James and John and Philip and Bartholomew and Matthew and Thomas and James the son of Alphaeus and Simon who was called the zealot and Judas the son of James and Judas Iscariot who became a traitor. Jesus is praying. Chapter 9 let's consider more of what Dr. Luke has to give to us about the description of Christ and his ministry. In chapter 9 we pick up the reading in verse 10. "And on their return the Apostle told them all that they had done and they took them and withdrew to a part of a town called Bethsaida and when the crowds learned it they followed him and he welcomed them and spoke to them of the kingdom of God and cured those who had need of healing. Now the day began to wear away and the twelve came and said to him send the crowds away to go into the surrounding villages and countryside to find lodging to get provision for we are here in a desolate place." Can you just imagine Jesus has his twelve he teaches them and then he's also preaching to the masses he's healing he's expending all kinds of energy and of course the twelve are witnessing this and they're like man I bet you he needs just a little bit of rest. They're like why don't you just send them away? Does Jesus say I need a little bit of me time? No. Jesus continues to minister even when it's pouring out all of his strength all of his time. Isn't that amazing? Are you investing into the kingdom of God like this? Well how does Jesus then deal with this from the disciples to send the crowds away? Jesus said to them in verse 13 "You give them something to eat" and they said we have no more than five loaves and two fishes unless we are to go and buy food for all these people for they were about 5,000 men and he said to his disciples have them sit down in groups of about 50 and they did so and had them all sit down and taking the five loaves and the two fishes he looked up to heaven and having a blessing over them he broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples to set before the crowd. Did you miss it in verse 16? What did he do? He looked up to heaven. He's looking up and he's thanking God for his provision in the midst of being exhausted in the midst of of all that teaching of all that ministry and of course you know many of us we have the tradition we have the custom of when we eat we give thanks to God and maybe that's because of this passage right here but don't miss it. In prayer there is thanksgiving to our Heavenly Father that richly provides our every need even our daily bread and we thank him for that. Are you thanking the Lord not just for your food but for what he has given you or what he hasn't brought into your life so that you could be sustained? Maybe your life is is so full of ministry so full of work so full of family that you feel exhausted that you can't go on and yet you there's still something for you and for me to give thanks to God for because he is providing what is needed in the moment even our sustenance to eat. Well we could also look at verse 18 after the feeding of the 5,000 of course you know that God not only provided them just a little bit of food but then they picked up 12 baskets just loaded down with all of that and in verse 18 of chapter 9 it says and now it happened as he was praying alone the disciples were with him. So is Jesus praying alone or is it or is he with the disciples? Yes he's praying alone and he has the disciples and and notice what occurs then and Jesus asked them who do the crowd say that I am and when they answered at Parmesan they answered the John the Baptist but others say Elijah and others that one of the prophets of old has risen then he said to them but who do you say that I am? Jesus is concerned about those that he's discipling those that he's training he's praying that his ministry that the word that is being taught and preached to them that it's not going to fall upon death ears he's praying that they would grow in the grace and the knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ that they would abound more and more in this area. The crowds do they know who Jesus is? Well some of them have some wild ideas. John the Baptist Elijah just one of those prophets they believe in resurrection that has risen and now Jesus hones it in he hones it in and he and he's pointing right towards them but who do you say that I am? Peter as the spokesperson answered the Christ of God the anointed from on high. I think that was a prayer that was answered as you parents are training your children reading the Bible to them pray over them pray over your ministry whatever that might be so that by his providence and the Holy Spirit that they would be able to confess even like Peter did here that this Jesus is the Messiah this is the one that I believe in that I'm going to trust in. Saying on in chapter 8 let's look at a part me chapter 9 let's look at verse 28 now about eight days after these sayings Jesus took with him Peter and John and James and went up on a high mountain once again this is in the context of he is fostering these relationships he's discipling them he takes the inner three and look at verse 29 and as he was praying as Jesus was praying notice once again Jesus is praying all the time all the time some of you guys mentor others you should be praying for them all the time all the time and Jesus was praying and the appearance of his face was altered and his clothing became dazzling white and behold two men were talking with him Moses and Elijah who whose appearance in glory and spoke of his departure which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem Moses the law and the prophets Elijah and they appear to Christ and what are they talking about Christ Exodus his departure what he had come to do to die on the cross for his people but all of this is done in prayer in prayer moving on to the next chapter chapter 10 Dr. Luke is even giving us more insight into Jesus prayer life and his teaching and it's so instructive for us notice right before verse 21 we're in the context of the 72 they're returning with joy and they're saying to Jesus Lord even the demons are subject to us in your name I mean they're excited that ministry has prospered and what does Jesus do he says to them in verse 21 he says where your joy should really be is not in what you can do and not in the results that you see but you should rejoice that your names are written in heaven how often do you how often do we find our joy in things that are fleeting and temporal the demons they flee they flee when we use your name and cast them out and Jesus like no no no no your joy ought to be in something greater than that your joy is that your citizenship is in heaven is that where your joy is well anyways with that as the context look at verse 21 in that same hour Jesus rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and he said I thank you father Lord of heaven and earth that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children his disciples yes father to such was your gracious will all things have been handed over to me by my father and no one knows the son except the father or who the father or who the father is except the son and anyone whom the son chooses to reveal him here we see that Jesus is rejoicing he's rejoicing in the Holy Spirit he's praying to the father and he's rejoicing in God's sovereignty in God's sovereign will in God's election and God's selection he's praising God because the Holy Spirit illuminates to his disciples that which they need to know are you rejoicing in that way we need to we need to rejoice even on a day like today the Lord's Day where we're gathering with God's people and we are so overjoyed that you're sitting next to a brother to a sister because the father has revealed to them who Jesus Christ is I should overwhelm us chapter 11 of course you know this is the model prayer this is where Jesus was teaching his disciples how to pray now verse 11 it says now Jesus was praying in a certain place once again it's Jesus practiced to pray and when he had finished one of his disciples said to him Lord teach us to pray as John taught his disciples and then he goes on through that marvelous prayer but he says when you pray pray father hallowed be your name your kingdom come give us each day our daily bread forgive us our sins for we ourselves forgive everyone who's indebted to us and lead us not into temptation and then he gives a marvelous example of how we should pray how we should have this as a pattern for that and he said to them which of you who has a friend will go to him at midnight and say to him friend lend me three loaves for a friend of mine has arrived on a journey and I have nothing to set before him and he will answer from within do not bother me for the door is now shut and my children are with me in the bed I can't get up and give you anything office hours are over we're closed he says verse 8 but I tell you though he will not get up and give him anything because he is a friend yet because of his impredence he will rise up and give him whatever he needs I tell you ask and it will be given to you seek and you will find knock and it will be open to you for everyone who ask receives and the one who seeks finds and the one who knocks it will be opened persist in prayer you continue to go to prayer not just once asking the father for that which is needed and that which is required but we ask we ask we seek we seek we knock and we knock and why should we do that he's giving an analogy of a friend that will do it because you wear him out and then Jesus turns the teaching and says in verse 11 what father among you if his son asked for a fish will instead give a give a serpent or if he asked for an egg will give him a scorpion of course this is a ridiculous situation and then Jesus ramps it up in verse 13 by saying if then if you then who are evil know how to give good gifts to your children Jesus believes in the depravity of man but that doesn't mean that we don't know how to do civil goodness right he says if then if you know how to give good gifts how much more will the Heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit who ask in that wonderful chapter 18 chapter 18 we have this parable which is it's very similar to the teaching that we even heard here but of course you know this is about that woman the woman that is a widow and she wants justice and this judge there doesn't fear God doesn't respect man and doesn't give her what is needed but she keeps on coming back and back and back again and finally because she's wearing him out he finally hears her right and Jesus says and will not God give justice to his elect who cried to him day and night are you guys crying to God Almighty day and night that's prayer that's prayer chapter 19 verse 41 and when he Jesus drew near and saw the city he wept over it he was praying over that city would that you even you had known on this day the things that make for peace but now they are hidden from your eyes Oh Jesus was praying over those that that seemed to be on the reach those that are rejecting him he's praying over it with great zeal and passion are you praying that way over the loss over those that are around you chapter 21 we see dr. Luke's teaching once again on Jesus prayer life chapter 21 verse 34 Jesus says but watch yourselves lest your hearts be weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and the cares of this life and that day come upon you you know so many times we can get caught up in the cares of life we may be distracted with those things that are occurring in life but Jesus is saying we need to look we need to watch our lives and look forward to the day when the son of man is coming that's the context of this situation watch and wait look for this day and now let's take a look at dr. Luke's final thoughts on Jesus prayer life in chapter 24 chapter 24 verse 34 and Jesus said father forgive them for they know not what they do even on the cross Jesus is praying he's praying for forgiveness and then of course we can look at verse 46 and verse 46 we read Jesus crying out with a loud voice he says father into your hands I commit my spirit Jesus started his ministry with prayer and he ends it on the cross with prayer how marvelous is that how instructive is that for all of us James Montgomery boys says the following about the cross the cross stands as the focal point of Christian faith without the cross the Bible is an enigma and the and the gospel of salvation is an empty hope but friends the cross is not an enigma for those of us whose eyes have been opened by the Holy Spirit and we do see that the gospel of salvation is our only hope these seven sayings tell us all about it father forgive them for they know not what they truly I say to you today you will be with me in paradise woman behold your son and behold your mother my god my god why have you forsaken me I thirst it is finished and father into your hands I commit my spirit Jesus started the cross with prayer and then he ended it in prayer is your life starting and ending with prayer communion with God let's use this as a pattern for our own lives let's pray Oh Lord we do thank you that you have revealed this to us by your holy apostles of not just the glory of the cross but also the practicality of the Savior of how he prayed how we should pray even as we enter the next few moments let us pray in the spirit so that your will would be done so that your kingdom might come Oh Lord we ask all of this in Christ's name amen Thanks for watching.