Advent

The Theology of Christmas | What is a Mediator?

by Ben Zornes · Dec 28, 2024

Introduction

Last week we saw that the very fact of creation is indicative that the world is covenantal and that covenant is, by nature, a gracious one. God made the world with no external obligation, but He obligated Himself to it. Due to Adam’s sin, something dreadful took place. The marriage of heaven and earth was broken. How would God reconcile Himself to man, and man with the creation he had brought down into a ruinous curse? God wrote the code upon which this world was to run, sin introduced a corrupted file that if left to run on its own would disable the entire system. Christmas is the entrance of God Himself into the story, and His purpose was nothing other than to take the curse upon Himself, and restore the whole system.

The Text

And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots: And the spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD; And shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of the LORD: and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of his ears: But with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth: and he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked. And righteousness shall be the girdle of his loins, and faithfulness the girdle of his reins. The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them. And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together: and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. And the sucking child shall play on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the cockatrice’ den. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea. And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign of the people; to it shall the Gentiles seek: and his rest shall be glorious.
Isaiah 11:1-10

Summary of the Text

Isaiah foresaw the restoration of all things, and speaks of the new creation in terms of the resurrection of David’s kingdom. A Righteous Branch would sprout from the stump of Jesse (v1). The Lord’s Spirit would rest upon this Branch, endowing Him with all that is needful for righteous rule over the earth (vv2-3). His rule shall raise up the poor and meek, while dashing the wicked to bits (v4). His regal robes will be righteousness, and faithfulness will be the sword at His side (v5).

His rule will not be confined, but will have application in all directions. Beasts will be tamed and do violence to one another no more; furthermore, man will no longer be in an adversarial relationship with the beasts (vv6-8). The curse shall be so entirely reversed that even serpents, once counted as wretched for their association with Satan, will be the play thing of infants. Destruction and death, sorrow and sighing, war and wasting will be ended; the dark years shall fade, and in its place the bright and warm light of the knowledge of the Lord shall fill the entire earth, as waters cover the sea (v9). This Mediator, springing from the massacred stump of Jesse, would rule in such a way that not Israel only, but even the Gentiles would clamor to rest under the victory banner of His kingdom (v10).

Four Things Needful

As we reflect on who could fulfill such a task, it is important that we ascertain what is required of this mediator. The mediator of such a covenant between God and man must have four attributes. He must be a man (Gen. 3:15). However, he must also be a righteous man (Ps. 24:3-4). Further, he must be true God (Is. 9:6). Fourth, he must be both God and man (Is. 7:14).

In order to crush the serpent’s head, it was required that He be a true man. Since it was human nature “in which the disobedience had been committed” the Son assumed our nature “in order to bear in it the punishment of sin by his most bitter passion and death (BCF Art. 20).” This is why the sacrifice of bulls and sheep was temporary. It stood in place for a time, but could not be a lasting remedy to the problem of a broken covenant. So then, in order for Him to please the covenant law of creation He must be holy, righteous, without flaw. He made Him who knew no sin to become sin on our behalf.

But as the Belgic Confession so wonderfully puts it, His divinity never ceased to be in Him: “So then, what he committed to his Father when he died was a real human spirit which left his body. But meanwhile, his divine nature remained united with his human nature even when he was lying in the grave; and his deity never ceased to be in him, just as it was in him when he was a little child, though for a while it did not so reveal itself. These are the reasons why we confess him to be true God and truly human—true God in order to conquer death by his power, and truly human that he might die for us in the weakness of his flesh (BCF Art. 19).”

It is quite plain then that in order to accomplish our redemption and reconcile covenant-breakers with God, and to satisfy God’s righteous requirements, the Mediator must have these four attributes. Additionally, in His role as the Mediator of this covenant of grace, He would fulfill that mediatorial role in a number of ways; here is how the WCF describes it: “It pleased God, in His eternal purpose, to choose and ordain the Lord Jesus, His only begotten Son, to be the Mediator between God and man, the Prophet, Priest, and King, the Head and Savior of His Church, the Heir of all things, and Judge of the world; unto whom He did from all eternity give a people, to be His seed, and to be by Him in time redeemed, called, justified, sanctified, and glorified (WCF Ch. VIII, Sec. 1).” Notice that the doctrine of Christ as our Mediator, and all the glorious attributes of that role, leads to what theologians call the ordo salutis. The person of Christ is inextricably tied to the redemption of His people.

What the Mediator Brings together

Returning to our text we see that the “one mediator between God and man, the man Christ Jesus (1 Tim. 2:5),” brings about a restoration in all directions. This is because, as mentioned before, the world is covenantal. God graciously made the earth, establishing the laws of this world. But by Christ’s advent, all things begin to be restored. Between God and man. Between heaven and earth. Between man and beast (Hos. 2:8-12). Between man and man (Mal. 4:6). To quote one theologian, “No realm can be withheld from Christ’s reign. The covenant is a total treaty.”

All of this is both a great mystery, and the most common sensical thing to ever take place. He brings about this total reconciliation of all things by being righteous for us and becoming the curse for us; for judging sin, and receiving sin’s judgement; by dying for us, and then raising human nature out of the dust and breathing His everlasting Spirit into us. He truly holds all things together. And it is not sappy sentimentalism to say that the reason He did all this was because of His great love wherewith He loved us: “So God made known his justice toward his Son, who was charged with our sin, and he poured out his goodness and mercy on us, who are guilty and worthy of damnation, giving to us his Son to die, by a most perfect love, and raising him to life for our justification, in order that by him we might have immortality and eternal life (BGC Art 20).”

Christmas really is the beginning of the most extraordinary demonstration of the love of God: “Christ’s incarnation was a greater and more wonderful thing than ever had yet come to pass. The creation of the world was a very great thing, but not so great as the incarnation of Christ. It was a great thing for God to make the creature, but not so great as for the Creator himself to become a creature. We have spoken of many great things that were accomplished between the fall of man and the incarnation of Christ: but God becoming man was greater than all. Then the greatest person was born that ever was or ever will be.”

New Creation

The nativity of Christ Jesus really is the beginning of the New Creation. In His mediatorial office He not only reconciles us to God, but He renews and remakes all things. So it is fitting to bring trees into our homes, ornamented with symbolic fruit, surrounded by gifts made of plastic and pearls, wool and wood. It is right to spread a great feast, inviting as many people as will fit around the rearranged living room furniture. Christ Jesus ushered in a new creation in Himself. He is the nexus of history. He is the new man. He is the true God and our eternal life. He is the ladder which bridges the glory of heaven with the bounty of earth. He is our Mediator which rules over this world with everlasting truth and grace. Indeed, joy to the world, for the Branch of Jesse has come.

Charge & Benediction

Christ came to bring all things together, in Him. In celebrating this week, remember that our mediator reconciled us to God, in order that we might also be reconciled to each other and to creation. That rules out the sort of petty squabbling and bitter fights that can mark family gatherings; it also means that our relationship with stuff is to be sanctified, we feast without gluttony, we drink without becoming drunk, our bodily cravings are under control. It is only a merry Christmas because of the Mediator who is reconciling all things unto Himself. Rest in that, and submit to His reconciling work.

Now may the God of peace who brought up our Lord Jesus from the dead, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make you complete in every good work to do His will, working in you what is well pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.
Hebrews 13:20-21

Shadows of Bethlehem 03 | The Last Laugh

by Ben Zornes · Dec 20, 2023

Introduction

The coming of the Christ-child was God’s brilliant wit on full display. How would God overthrow Satan’s kingdom? With a baby. How would God defeat the mighty, fallen cherubim, Lucifer? By planting a human seed. How would God destroy death? By laughing in its face.

The Text

And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord, And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour. For he hath regarded the low estate of his handmaiden: for, behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed. For he that is mighty hath done to me great things; and holy is his name. And his mercy is on them that fear him from generation to generation. He hath shewed strength with his arm; he hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. He hath put down the mighty from their seats, and exalted them of low degree. He hath filled the hungry with good things; and the rich he hath sent empty away. He hath holpen his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy; As he spake to our fathers, to Abraham, and to his seed for ever.
Luke 1:46-55

Summary of the Text

At Mary’s coming, her cousin Elisabeth––pregnant with John the Baptist––breaks forth in a blessing upon Mary (Lk. 1:41-45). Elisabeth’s blessing echoes what was said of Father Abraham: He believed and it was credited to him for righteousness. Mary, like Abram & Sarai, was promised a miraculous conception, given a name for the promised son, and she believed.

In response to Elisabeth’s blessing, Mary breaks forth in what we commonly refer to as the Magnificat. Her song is almost verbatim of Hannah’s prayer (1 Sam. 2:1-10). The Lord granted Hannah’s prayer for a child, and conceived the son who would become the great prophet Samuel. Hannah’s prayer is full of exultation that God had caused her to triumph over her rival. This rival (Peninnah, Elkanah’s other wife) had a unique talent for getting under the skin; she frequently threw Hannah’s barrenness in her face.

That same key signature of exultation is present in Mary’s song. The proud are scattered (v51). The vanity of the mighty is thwarted by God’s mighty arm (v51-52). The rich find themselves penniless (v53). Meanwhile, the humble are exalted (v52), the hungry filled (v53), the lowly handmaid is regarded (v48), the servant/son Israel is helped (v54). And all of this flows from God’s remembrance of mercy (v54). But brought into keen focus is the promise which God made to Abraham and to his seed (v55). This song of exultation is grounded in a covenantal promise, which Mary keenly discerns. God would overthrow Israel’s enemies because of an ancient promise.

Rise the Woman’s Conquering Seed

Mary’s closing line takes us back to the ancient stories found in Genesis. While she explicitly mentions Abraham and his seed, God’s promise of a seed was first given in Eden. The promise to Abraham was an expanded revelation of what God said to the serpent at the fall of Adam: “And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel (Gen 3:15).” In the face of man’s rebellion and subjugation to the dragon, God reveals that a seed of the woman would arise to crush the dragon’s head. The rival would be overthrown. The tyranny would end. The accuser of the brethren would be cast down. The Lord echoes this promise to Noah (Gen. 9:9); God hangs His war-bow in the sky as an assurance that He would surely bring this promised seed to pass.

God called Abram out of the idolatrous people of Ur, and promised him Canaan, assuring him that his seed would possess it forever (Gen. 12:7, 13:15-16). Abraham believed this promise, and God reckoned it to him as righteousness (Gen. 15:6). But then Sarah’s barrenness persisted. This led to a lapse of faith on their part, and the conception of Ishmael by Sarah’s handmaid Hagar. Hagar becomes a rival for Sarah, and a thorn in her side. Eventually, Abraham pleads with God: “O that Ishmael might live before thee! And God said, Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou shalt call his name Isaac: and I will establish my covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his seed after him (Gen. 17:18-19).” Abraham requests that the son begotten by fleshly wisdom be accepted by God; this would not do, for God was intending to bring about a child of promise.

Sarah, memorably, laughs at the news that the Lord would grant her conception (Gen. 18:12-15). But then, as the Lord had promised, she conceives and bears a son, “And Sarah said, God hath made me to laugh, so that all that hear will laugh with me (Gen. 21:6).” Time and again throughout the OT narrative, we find that God brings about and preserves His promise, often by the most improbable circumstances. In the thick of the moment, it seems as if God’s purpose to bring about a conquering seed has been compromised, and yet over and over He gets the last laugh. Not barrenness (Sarah, Rebekah, Naomi), foreign women (Tamar, Rahab, Ruth), or sin (Saul, Bathsheba, Jehoash, the Exile) could thwart the purpose of God to deliver His people through the promised Seed.

The Singular Seed

The seed promised to Abraham was a big deal, and the Apostles spend a great deal of time commenting on it. Paul in Galatians makes the clearest assertion regarding the inner pith of this promise to Abraham regarding his seed: “And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through faith, preached before the gospel unto Abraham, saying, In thee shall all nations be blessed. So then they which be of faith are blessed with faithful Abraham. … Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ. … And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise (Gal 3:8-9, 16, 29).”

So then Isaac was only a partial fulfillment of God’s promise to Abraham. The true fulfillment was found in Jesus Christ, born of Mary. Isaac was the type, while Christ was the antetype. God’s mercy was not to be found in simply having Abraham as an ancestor. His mercy would be found in a Seed; singular not plural. This is an instance of Paul exercising a fine-toothed exegesis. This promised seed was not a collective of human effort or lineage. The Seed would engage in mortal combat with the dragon and emerge wounded though victorious. In order to be righteous in God’s sight, you must trust in this Seed. Faith & not your paternity test determines who is Abraham’s heirs. This is how Gentiles might be reckoned as partakers of the blessing God promised to Abraham.

A Jolly Belief

Mary’s prayer of exultation is the prayer of all believers, exulting over the triumph of the seed of the woman over the serpent’s seed. God made good on His promised mercy to mankind, and He did so by bringing to pass His word of promise to Abraham: a seed.

God’s promise of mercy which Mary recalls is to Abraham and to his seed. That Seed of mercy was now gestating in her womb. God’s covenant of mercy is found in Christ alone. There is no mercy outside of Him. The Apostle Peter makes this explicit when he says, “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved (Act 4:12).”

There is divine humor in this promise. It was by design that Isaac’s name means laughter. God was going to do something which no eye had seen, or ear heard, or mind had conceived. The serpent sought to engulf all of mankind, and Christ submits Himself to being bait as it were, tempting the dragon to devour Him. Yet by His resurrection, Christ broke the jaws of death. Christ, the promised Seed, was the true and better Isaac. Satan sought to kill God, but God the Son overthrew death by His death. Christ became the curse, that you might not be accursed. The Word became a speechless baby, in order that His blood might eternally plead for you. And your response to this is to lay hold of this better Isaac by the same faith which Abraham, Hannah, and Mary all demonstrate. Exult, for God has overthrown your rival. For He has crucified your old man, and begotten you, not by perishable seed, but by the imperishable seed of the living and abiding word of God.

All this has profound implications for our modern society. Mary understood that the Christ child which was conceived in her, by the overshadowing power of the Holy Ghost, was a recreation of mankind. Morning stars & angels attended the Trinity in creation, and all the angelic flutter in the Christmas story make it plain that a new creation was happening. That means Christ was the ultimate iconoclast. As the carol says:

Come, Desire of nations, come!
Fix in us Thy humble home:
Rise, the woman’s conqu’ring seed,
Bruise in us the serpent’s head
Adam’s likeness now efface
Stamp Thine image in its place:
Final Adam from above,
Reinstate us in Thy love.

So, not only the tacky shrines to Satan in state capitols, but all monuments to and institutions of mankind’s avarice, lust, envy and pride are soon to be forever and finally overthrown, because Christ was born of Mary. This is also a comfort to you in your own temptations, for Christ came to give all who believe in Him new life.

Mary’s namesake, Miriam, danced as the Egyptian warriors drowned in the Red Sea. This is the jolly faith which God reckons as righteous, because it is faith in His Son: the Word made flesh. The Word that bled. The Word that was put to death. The Word that crowns you with the cleansing waters of your baptism. The Word that is a feast of covenantal bread & wine. The Word that says to all who believe in Him, “Yahweh is Salvation.”

Charge & Benediction

Remember that Your Christmas celebration is an exulting over the overthrow of the kingdom of Man; but faith sees that the way He brings this about is in the unlikeliest of ways, He gave old Abraham and barren Sarah a baby boy which was a type of how He would overshadow Mary to bring about the Incarnation of God the Son, to be the true and final deliverer. Your faith reaches back thousands of years and sees that not one promise of your God has failed.

Now our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God, even our Father, which hath loved us, and hath given us everlasting consolation and good hope through grace, Comfort your hearts, and stablish you in every good word and work. Amen. 2 Thessalonians 2:16-17

Shadows of Bethlehem 02 | Rachel’s Tears

by Ben Zornes · Dec 13, 2023

Introduction

The hallmark of Christmas is joy. Ear to ear grins. Hot chocolate mustaches. Gleeful shouts as presents are unwrapped. But your joy, true joy, is given to you by the grief of the Man of sorrows. The story of Christ’s birth, which brought glad tidings and peace on earth, is swiftly followed by a grisly tale of the ravenous wolf of sin. The Advent story, to put it another way, is no Hallmark movie. It doesn’t airbrush away the vileness of depravity, nor does it paper over the weight of our grief & suffering. The Advent story tells us that Jesus had come to engage in fierce combat with that ancient dragon. Christ in the manger is not a story of escapist sentimentality. It is the first jab & parry in the war He’d come to wage on evil.

The Text

Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked of the wise men, was exceeding wroth, and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently enquired of the wise men. Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremy the prophet, saying, In Rama was there a voice heard, lamentation, and weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, and would not be comforted, because they are not.

Matthew 2:16-18

Tyrannical Brutes

The slaughter of the infants of Bethlehem is staggering. Herod stands in a long line of brutes who use their throne to slaughter the innocent. Pharaoh killed the Hebrew infants. Saul deputized Doeg (an Edomite like Herod) to slaughter the priests in Nob for helping David. Nebuchadnezzar starved the Jews of Jerusalem (during the two year siege, circa 587BC), and then as he marched them off to exile he brutally slaughtered many of them (Cf. Lam. 2:19-22, Ps 137:8-9, 2 Ki. 25:20-21).

The thing which set Herod off was the wise men refusing to cooperate with his design to destroy the Christ-child. Herod had been informed that Bethlehem was prophesied to be the birthplace of the new davidic king (Micah 5:2), and he knew that the star had appeared less than two years before, implying the baby was no older than that. Caesar Augustus is said to have stated that he’d rather be one of Herod’s swine than one of his sons. Herod’s brutality was well-known. But in the slaughter of Bethlehem’s sons, his wicked wrath is put on full and gruesome display.

Adam & Eve submitted to the Serpent, and reduced mankind to the level of brute. The first tyrant bludgeoned his brother. Man’s depravity always leads to murder. It leads to devouring others. The coming of Christ the King is good news, and this is put in stark relief when contrasted with the reign of Man in bondage to sin and Satan. Herod is the City of Man. He is a mirror held up to us to see the depravity of the human heart. But in Christ, the Kingdom of God has come upon us.

Weeping Exiles

Matthew tells us that this slaughter was a fulfillment of Jeremiah’s prophecy in Jeremiah 31:15, “Thus saith the LORD; A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, and bitter weeping; Rahel weeping for her children refused to be comforted for her children, because they were not.”

When the Babylonians took the Jews into exile, they released Jeremiah at Ramah: “Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard had let him go from Ramah, when he had taken him being bound in chains among all that were carried away captive of Jerusalem and Judah, which were carried away captive unto Babylon (Jer 40:1).” Jeremiah then is taken down to Egypt by a remnant of Jewish leaders (Jer. 42-43). Meanwhile, Jerusalem’s young men in particular were being cruelly slaughtered at Riblah (Jer. 52:27). There are echoes of Jeremiah in the story of Joseph whisking his wife and son down to Egypt (in fulfillment of another prophecy, Cf. Mt. 2:15), while Herod’s henchmen slaughter Bethlehem’s boys.

This is the context for Jeremiah’s prophecy. His prophecy had a two-fold fulfillment; first in the events that shortly followed his prophecy. But these events themselves become a type of the slaughter of Bethlehem’s sons. Both Nebuchadnezzar & Herod are non-davidic kings slaughtering the sons of Israel. A theme we’ll revisit in a future sermon. For now, it suits our purpose to simply make mention of it.

Though Israel dwells in the land the Lord promised her, it is clear that they are still in exile, still under siege, still in need of the deliverance of the Messiah. Bethlehem’s mothers mourned once more, for their sons were cut down, and would not grow up like plants around their tables (Ps. 144:12). The deuteronomic blessings were not to be found. Only the curses. They sowed in tears once more (Ps. 126). Ramah once more heard cries of grief & untimely death.

Benoni

Jeremiah’s mention of Rachel takes us further back into the story of redemption: “And they journeyed from Bethel; and there was but a little way to come to Ephrath: and Rachel travailed, and she had hard labour. And it came to pass, when she was in hard labour, that the midwife said unto her, Fear not; thou shalt have this son also. And it came to pass, as her soul was in departing, (for she died) that she called his name Benoni: but his father called him Benjamin. And Rachel died, and was buried in the way to Ephrath, which is Bethlehem. And Jacob set a pillar upon her grave: that is the pillar of Rachel’s grave unto this day (Gen. 35:16-20).”

As Rachel was expiring from childbirth she named her son Benoni: son of my sorrows. And then Jacob’s cherished wife dies. Jacob had worked under Laban’s tyrannical demands for fourteen years in order to claim Rachel as his bride. She’d been barren for long years before bringing forth his beloved son Joseph. And now his bride perished in anguished sorrow. Jacob buried her in Bethlehem (Ramah is relatively nearby to Bethlehem). Rachel had prayed, “Give me children or I die” and it was in bringing forth her second son that she died. This baby boy was both a son of sorrow and a son of his father’s right hand.

One other thread is worth tracing here. Saul came from the tribe of Benjamin, but instead of reigning at Yahweh’s right hand, he becomes a son of grief, while David becomes a true son of the right hand (Ps. 110:1). The Benjamites were famous slingers, but when a giant threatens Israel and her Benjamite king, a funny thing that happens. David (of Judah) deftly wields the sling to kill Goliath. David is a better Benjamite than Saul.

Herod is the king of the Jews who slaughters and devours his people, akin to Saul. Meanwhile, Jesus is, of course, a new David, a son of David come to lay down His life and give Himself as food for His people. Jesus comes to suffer not only with us, but ultimately, in our stead. He took our sins and our sorrows, and as the hymn-writer put it, He made them His very own.

New Covenant Glory

Rachel’s weeping gives birth to a Son of the right hand. This world is full of sorrows, but the coming of Christ was the death knell for all sorrow and all suffering. The misery of God’s people was great. Their weeping was heard afar off. But now a Savior had been born in Bethlehem. He would take all their griefs and sorrows upon & unto Himself. All the tears which all of God’s people have sown, will turn into shouts of joy.

Jeremiah not only describes Rachel’s weeping over the death of Judah, he invites her to dry her tears (Jer. 31:16), comforting her with a revelation of new life. New life through a new covenant (Jer. 31:31-34). But this new covenant would be bought with innocent blood. Jesus, the only son who survived Herod’s slaughter of Bethlehem’s boys, would still be slaughtered by another Herod. So He would, in all ways, be acquainted with our grief, share in our suffering, and die as one of us.

An episode from Narnia illustrates this point wonderfully:

DIGORY kept his mouth very tight shut. He had been growing more and more uncomfortable. He hoped that, whatever happened, he wouldn’t blub or do anything ridiculous.
“Son of Adam,” said Aslan. “Are you ready to undo the wrong that you have done to my sweet country of Narnia on the very day of its birth?”
“Well, I don’t see what I can do,” said Digory. “You see, the Queen ran away and —”
“I asked, are you ready?” said the Lion.
“Yes,” said Digory. He had had for a second some wild idea of saying “I’ll try to help you if you’ll promise to help my Mother,” but he realised in time that the Lion was not at all the sort of person one could try to make bargains with. But when he had said “Yes,” he thought of his Mother, and he thought of the great hopes he had had, and how they were all dying away, and a lump came in his throat and tears in his eyes, and he blurted out:
“But please, please — won’t you — can’t you give me something that will cure Mother?” Up till then he had been looking at the Lion’s great feet and the huge claws on them; now, in his despair, he looked up at its face. What he saw surprised him as much as anything in his whole life. For the tawny face was bent down near his own and (wonder of wonders) great shining tears stood in the Lion’s eyes. They were such big, bright tears compared with Digory’s own that for a moment he felt as if the Lion must really be sorrier about his Mother than he was himself.

The wages of your sin is death, but the Good News of Christ’s coming is that Christ’s death for sin is reckoned by God as your death for sin. Weeping may endure for the night. But the morning brings joy. And now, in Christ, the eternal day has dawned. David’s throne is filled. Of the increase of His government and peace there shall be no end. The sun of righteousness arises, with healing in His wings. Death’s dark shadow is put to flight. This is the comfort for your every sorrow. This is the grace for all your sins. This is the Good News of Great Joy which is for all people. Christ is born in Bethlehem.

Charge & Benediction

Know that God has not turned a blind eye to the wickedness and suffering which is in the world. But always remember that God’s remedy for it all was to send His Son to share in our suffering, in order to bring us into His eternal joy. There is joy in our Christmas celebration because Christ suffered the wrath of God in your stead.

The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen.
2 Corinthians 13:14

Christmas in the Light

by Ben Zornes · Dec 19, 2022

The coming of Christ was like the dawning of the day. The Apostle John framed his coming this way, “The darkness is past, and the true light now shineth (1Jo 2:8).” This was nothing less than what the Prophet Isaiah had foretold in his wonderful words, “The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined (Isa. 9:2). Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee. (Isa 60:1).”

Christmas is the celebration of God opening the curtains, and exposing to mankind how dark indeed was the darkness in which we were living. He sent His Son, to be the light, in order to show us how to be truly human. Since His advent, we now live in the day, not in the dark.

Your sin cannot hide from God, so don’t pretend it can. Your lies & evasions won’t cloud the Son of Righteousness that has arisen. The Church’s task is to teach the world to live in the Light of Christ’s glory. This is why we make a habit of confession of sins.

Christmas calls you to humble yourself, and confess your sins one to another. It summons you to curb your lusts by the power of the Spirit. You can no longer slink around in the dark alleys of spite, sloth, or slander. Christ’s coming means that every hidden drawer, closet, and cave are bathed in His Kingdom’s Light.

All the current convulsions of our culture are from its insane attempt to try to go back into the pre-Bethlehem darkness. But the powers and principalities are overthrown. Christ is King of this planet. We live in the Light, as He is in the Light, because He is the Light of the World.

Always remember, it is a mercy whenever your sin comes to light. You ought not think that keeping your sins hidden is for the best, or that it is even possible. We most certainly live in a time when rebellious men are attempting to bring the world back into shadow. But, whenever we avoid hard conversations, refusing to bring our sin into the Light, we have joined that foolish project of trying to live as if Christmas never happened. So as the Psalmist said, “O send out thy light and thy truth: let them lead me; let them bring me unto thy holy hill, and to thy tabernacles (Ps. 43:3).”

Refusing to confess your sin is like trying to live in the White Witch’s Christmas-less winter. But when you confess your sin to God, and to those you’ve sinned against, Christmas has indeed come.

Celebration is Frontlines Warfare

by Ben Zornes · Dec 12, 2022

These days leading up to Christmas should be a crescendo of celebration. It shouldn’t be a descent into a legion of carnal indulgence. Whether it be to partake to the point of drunkenness, snap with annoyed anger at your children or spouse, scroll aimlessly down the dark corridors of the Internet, or bemoan some degree of loneliness, you must not invert the celebration of Christ’s Incarnation into an indulgence of the very things which He came to deliver you from.

Our celebration shouldn’t be seen as a diversion from the battle against the orcs of Hell. Rather, it is by our pure-hearted celebrations that we do battle against the deeds of darkness. We blow the trumpet of our feast to warn all the gloomy & bloated ranks of hellish vices that we are on the warpath.

So, do not feast on the poisoned fare of bitterness. Do not sip the spoiled wine of unlawful sexual fantasies. Do not brew a pot of irritation & frustration. Do not spread the table full of the watered down slop of laziness.

The Angels’ good news was that of great joy. Our celebration should be free from the yeast of sin, so that it might be leavened by the Gospel joy of the Kingdom. You can celebrate with vigor because the Lord Jesus came to forgive your sins.

So don’t try to indulge your sins by using this great grace as a camouflage for your carnal appetites. Don’t smuggle your lust, envy, lies, angst, greed, or gluttony into the Christmas celebration. Rather, celebrate with the joy of sins forgiven, life eternal given. Your joyful celebration of Christ while in Christ, is how you lay siege on the darkness. Your Christmas feasting, giving, & rejoicing are the frontlines of the battle with sin, the devil, and the world.

The Lord commands us to be vigilant, and to take heed lest we fall. We know that we are redeemed and cloaked in the grace of Christ’s righteousness. It is incumbent upon us to walk with a holy wariness, that we might rejoice and celebrate with Davidic zeal; but never for a moment allow the cunning works of the flesh a seat at the table. All too often we justify bad attitudes, fleshly indulgence, and slothful lethargy by telling ourselves, “It’s the holidays.” But the Father sent His Son to deliver us from such sins; may we not take these glad tidings as a permission slip to coddle our sins. Rather, by God’s great grace, may our celebration of Christ’s birth invigorate our battle against remaining corruption both inwardly in ourselves and outwardly in our church & our culture.

Joseph

by Ben Zornes · Dec 9, 2022

Introduction

There is comparatively little that Scripture tells us about the man who raised our Lord Jesus as his own son. He leaves the stage almost as soon as he entered it. We have no dialogue from him. But while he is a silent character of Scripture, he still speaks volumes.

The Text

And Jacob begat Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ. So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations; and from David until the carrying away into Babylon are fourteen generations; and from the carrying away into Babylon unto Christ are fourteen generations. […]
Matthew 1:16-21

Summary of the Text

The “begats” of Matthew run along as expected until it runs into the most unexpected thing that ever happened: Jesus born of Mary, not by natural conception but by the Holy Ghost (vv16, 18). Joseph is reckoned as Jesus father, and thus Jesus shares the Royal lineage back to David, and the covenantal lineage back the Abraham (v17). Matthew tells us that Joseph was espoused to Mary, but before they had consummated their marriage, Mary was found to be with child, and this by the work of the Holy Ghost (v18, Cf. Lk 1:26).

This put Joseph, a righteous son of Kings, in a quandary (v19). While Joseph pondered what to do, the angel of the Lord came to him in a dream to reveal God’s mighty deeds and glorious purposes to him (v20). Joseph is given his marching orders: fearlessly take Mary as his wife, and name the son which would be born Jesus (v21). This all is what Isaiah prophesied to King Ahaz (Cf. Mt. 1:22-23, Is. 7:14), and Joseph did as he was told (Mt. 1:24-25). Though Joseph has no recorded dialogue, the one word we know he spoke was Jesus, when he named the firstborn son of Mary.

The Carpenter

The professional trade of Joseph was that of carpentry, and of course Jesus would later be Joseph’s apprentice in this trade. There’s a wide range of skills which this likely encompassed; it wasn’t just wood-work, but also stone-work; might even mean as much as an architect. Herod built his palace just outside of Bethlehem. The Magi arrived within the first two years after Christ was born; meaning, Joseph probably was employed in the construction of Herod’s vanity project. David’s heir was right under the imposter king’s nose, in other words. Their trek to Bethlehem (Lk. 2:4), and however long their stay in Bethlehem was a rather dangerous one. Especially given how deranged and paranoid King Herod was.

Jesus came to be known as “the carpenter” (Mk. 6:3) as well as being referred to as Joseph’s son (Lk. 4:22, Jn.6:42). Joseph clearly took seriously his role to raise this divinely begotten son of God as his own son. Through the few glimpses at Christ’s early days, we see that Joseph was present & active.

Though David’s royal line was humbled and obscured, the Angel of the Lord greets Joseph as a son of David. To paraphrase one commentator, by greeting him with a great title, great deeds were expected from this humble carpenter.

A Just Man

Perhaps the most significant thing we learn from Scripture about Joseph is that he is called “a just man.” This is the same language that is used of OT heroes of the faith, like Noah, Abraham, Job, and David. Joseph stands in the ranks of just men made perfect.

This declaration of his being a righteous man is in the same breath as describing his contemplation of divorce from Mary his betrothed (Deu. 22:23-29). Hardliners on divorce and no-fault divorce advocates both are confronted with a rebuke in Joseph’s action. His desire was to be faithful to the ordinances of God as respecting adultery, but also desiring to show mercy to Mary. It would seem that Joseph was deeply puzzled that Mary (who he knew only as a virtuous woman) was pregnant out of wedlock. At last, he determined to divorce her as privately as was possible, laying no charge of unfaithfulness upon her. It would become known eventually, but she would be spared the worst of any scandal.

His righteousness is, like all the righteous, by faith alone. His faith is seen in his swift obedience in response to the four times an angel came to him in his dreams. It is worth pointing out that Joseph is given a prophetic ministry, he is taken up into the counsels God, and let in on the divine deliberations.

Our text gives the first instance of this swift, obedient faith, he is told of the divine conception and does as the angel instructs. There is no dilly in Joseph’s dally. The next instance is when the angel warns Joseph of Herod’s wicked design to massacre Bethlehem’s infant boys (Mt. 2:13-14). The third dream takes place after Herod died, the angel informs Joseph that it is now safe to return from Egypt (Mt. 2:18-21). But in the final dream Joseph is warned not to dwell in proximity to Archelaus, but to go and dwell in Galilee, and it would seem that Joseph had the fulfillment of prophecy in mind (Cf. Is. 11:1) and selected Nazareth as the hometown of his son (Mt. 2:22-23). Joseph walked by faith. This was no blind faith either, it was a faith informed by God’s revealed Word.

Joseph also demonstrates this life of faith in at least three other episodes. Even under the Roman oppression, Joseph is a dutiful citizen (Lk. 2:4-6). He brought Jesus to be circumcised according to Moses’ Law, along with the proper sacrifice for their poor (or at least refugee) estate (Lk. 2:22-24). Joseph also took his family to Jerusalem for the customary feasts (Lk. 2:42). It could also be added to this that Joseph had other children by Mary (at least four sons, and some daughters, for at least six siblings for Jesus); these children eventually became followers & martyrs of the Lord Jesus.

Another Dreaming Joseph

Looking back at the genealogy, there is something which might easily escape our notice, but which Matthew uses to spark our remembrance. A Jacob begets a Joseph who fathers a Joshua. Remember that Joshua was descended from Joseph (by Ephraim, Cf. Num. 13:8). Here again is a dreaming Joseph, used to bring about the salvation of the world. Here again is a Joshua, raised up to save God’s people, this time from their sin.

It is easy to see Joseph as a prince of David’s line. This fulfills one aspect of the anticipated Messianic reign. But we also see another thread, and Joseph ben-Jacob is the typological link. Ironically, when Israel was split into two Kingdoms, Judah is how the Southern Kingdom came to be known, but Israel was sometimes called Ephraim. In other words, in this son of Joseph, all Messianic types and shadows terminate.

Here is David’s heir. Here is a conquering Joshua. Here is the Scepter rising out of Judah. Here is the multitude of Ephraim. Here is Joseph’s fruitful bough and the crown on his brow (Gen.49:22-26). Here is the shepherd and stone of Israel. Here is the reunification of Israel. And Joseph called his name Jesus, by faith.

Two applications should be drawn out of the example of Joseph. We walk by faith, not by sight. You must not try to demand of God more explanation than His Word plainly declares to you. Do not be merely a hearer of the Word revealed to you, but do it. Secondly, you are not the main character of the story, just as Joseph was not. But you must, in the same faithful humility, do your duty. Believe the revealed Word, and proclaim the name of Jesus.

The Charge

The charge is this, as we celebrate the Incarnation of the Word, we ought to want that understanding to be shaped by the Word; rather than having it shaped by Christmas Cards, Precious Moments nativity figurines, or Hallmark Movies. Be shaped by the Word, just as Joseph evidently was: a just and merciful man who humbly followed God’s Word.

Born to Die

by Ben Zornes · Nov 29, 2022

While our focus during the Advent season is upon Christ’s incarnation & birth, we should ever be mindful that He was born to die. As we come to this table, it should be noted that we are commanded to keep this Supper until Christ comes; and in our partaking of it, we show the Lord’s death.

There is poignancy in the Lord’s death. To state the obvious, death isn’t possible unless He was first born in the likeness of human flesh, and then lived a truly human life. And so, it’s the death of the Lord which we declare each time we partake of this bread & wine.

The church makes a corporate proclamation whenever we take this meal. We proclaim that God became a man and died. He died the death our sin deserved; He died so that one day death might be no more; He died in order that we might not die the second death.

The death of Christ, as Spurgeon once put it, is the hinge of history. This is the central moment of history. It demands your attention. It demands that you live accordingly. It demands that nothing can ever be the same. The world can’t be the same because the eternal Christ died for the sins of the world. Mankind must either partake of Christ by faith, or else partake at the demons’ table (1 Cor. 10:21).

And so, week after week, Lord’s Day after Lord’s Day, like the drumbeat of an advancing army, we proclaim the Lord’s Death. The death of the babe born in Bethlehem, the death of the Christ, the death of the King of the Jews, the death of Jesus of Nazareth. The Death which all peoples of the earth must reckon with. Here we proclaim it. Next week we proclaim it. Until He comes again we proclaim the death which defanged Death itself.

So come in faith and welcome to Jesus Christ…