Sermon
#11 (Part 2) Hebrews
Notes
Title: THE
CAPTAIN MADE PERFECT
Text: Hebrews 2:10
Readings: Buddy
Daugherty and Bob Poncer
Subject: Christ’s Being Made
Perfect
As The Captain Of Our Salvation
Date: Tuesday Evening – February 1, 2000[1]
Tape # V-67b
Introduction:
If you are taking notes, the
title of my message is THE CAPTAIN
MADE PERFECT. Our text will be Hebrews 2:10.
Hebrews
2:10 "For it became him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons
unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through
sufferings."
In
these first two chapters of Hebrews, the Holy Spirit tells us about God’s Son,
God’s purpose, God’s people, and God’s salvation. He assures us that there is a
great multitude of sinners chosen by grace and redeemed by blood, called to be
the sons of God, who shall at last be brought to glory. In the light of that
fact, I have four questions which I want to answer in this message.
I.
First, How can we be sure that all
God’s elect will be brought to Glory?
Can
we, indeed, assert that every chosen sinner shall be saved, that every blood
bought child shall inherit eternal life, that every believer shall come unto
glory at last? If so, if we can be assured of this, what is the basis of such
assurance?
The
basis of our assurance is this great, glorious fact – The Lord Jesus Christ is
the Captain of our salvation.
Our text describes the Son
of God, our Savior as The Captain
Of Our Salvation. What a great title that is for him
who is our Savior. God has purposed that he will bring many sons to glory; but
he has determined that he will do so by a chosen Captain, a Captain greater
than Joshua, who will fight for his people and bring them safely into the
Canaan of glory.
The word that is translated
"captain" in our text is in
other places translated "author,"
and in other places "prince".
It means, “chief leader”.
·
Christ is the Author of our
Salvation.
That is to say, he is the designer and causer of it.
Hebrews 5:9
"And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation
unto all them that obey him."
Hebrews 12:1-3
"Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud
of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily
beset us, and let us run with
patience the race that is set before us,
(2) Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the
cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of
God. (3) For consider him that
endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and
faint in your minds."
·
Christ is also the Prince of
our Salvation. He rules the whole affair.
Acts 3:15 "And killed the Prince of life, whom God hath raised from the dead; whereof we are
witnesses."
Acts 5:31 "Him hath God exalted with his right
hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel, and
forgiveness of sins."
Revelation 1:5 "And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and
the prince of the kings of the
earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own
blood,"
God will bring his sons to
glory; but he will do so only by the Captain of our Salvation, Jesus Christ. You
cannot come to glory but by this Captain (John 10:9; 14:6)
II. Second, Why
is Christ called "The Captain of
their salvation?" Let me quickly give you seven answers to that
question. Christ is called the Captain of our Salvation because...
A. THE CAPTAIN HAS ALL AUTHORITY AND POWER.
The Captain is the one in
charge. He is at the helm of the ship. The captain of an army is invested with
the authority and power of the king himself. The captain's word is the king's
word. The king's treasures are the captain's treasures. Even so, the Lord Jesus
Christ has all power and authority given to him for the saving of his people. "Thou hast given him power over all
flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him.”
-- John 17:2
B. THE CAPTAIN MAKES ALL THE ARRANGEMENTS FOR THE
ARMY'S MARCH.
He decides what path the
troops will take, where they will camp, how long they will stay at any place.
And he supplies all provisions for them. Even so, our Lord Jesus Christ mapped
out our path in divine predestination, and supplies us with our needs and
directs our steps according to his wise and good providence.
C. THE CAPTAIN'S WORD IS THE LAW BY WHICH THE WHOLE
ARMY IS GOVERNED.
Soldiers are not allowed to
do each one what he chooses. The troops do not make up their rules of conduct
and principles of warfare as they go along. That is the Captain's business. In
the Church and Kingdom of God Christ gives the marching orders. They are not
optional. His Word is our law. He alone determined what our doctrine and duty is,
what our faith and practice must be; and he has given these things to us in his
Word.
D. THE CAPTAIN IS MORE THAN A COMMANDER, HE IS A
LEADER; THE CAPTAIN LEADS THE WAY.
Illustration: Stonewall
Jackson Leading His Troops
You will never go in any
path of duty, walk through any fiery furnace, go through any deep valley, climb
any high hill of difficulty, or endure any temptation, but where you will find
the footprint of the Crucified One.
E. THE CAPTAIN ENCOURAGES HIS MEN.
When the Lord Jesus appears
to us and we hear him say, "It is I,
be not afraid,” that is all that is required to calm our hearts and sustain
our souls.
F. IT IS THE CAPTAIN'S DELIGHT TO REWARD HIS FOLLOWERS.
As David's spoils were
shared equally by all the army, the brave and the timid, the strong and the
weak (1 Sam 30:24), so the Lord Jesus Christ will bestow upon all the many sons
he brings to glory all the glory he has won.
1. We are heirs of God and
joint-heirs with Christ (Rom. 8:17).
2. That means that all the
glory which Christ now possesses as our Mediator shall be ours (John 17:5,22).
John 17:5 "And now, O Father, glorify thou me with
thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was."
John 17:22 "And the glory which thou gavest me I
have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one:"
G. THE CAPTAIN IS RESPONSIBLE BOTH FOR THE ARMY UNDER
HIS COMMAND AND FOR THE VICTORY.
It is true, we are engaged
in a warfare. We must fight continually, resisting sin, contending with the
world, the flesh and the devil. But the battle is not ours. It is the Lord's.
Exodus
14:13-14 "And Moses said unto the people, Fear ye
not, stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD, which he will show to you
to day: for the Egyptians whom ye have seen to day, ye shall see them again no
more for ever. (14) The LORD shall
fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace."
2
Chronicles 20:15 "And he said, Hearken ye,
all Judah, and ye inhabitants of Jerusalem, and thou king Jehoshaphat, Thus
saith the LORD unto you, Be not afraid nor dismayed by reason of this great
multitude; for the battle is not yours, but God's."
Christ, the Captain of our
Salvation, is the One responsible for our salvation; and "he shall not fail!"
III. Third, How was the Lord Jesus
Christ made perfect as the Captain of our Salvation?
Our text says something
about the perfecting of Christ as our savior, as the Captain of our salvation.
What does that mean?
"For it became him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all
things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their
salvation perfect through sufferings."
Christ was the Captain of
our salvation from eternity. He was our Savior from everlasting. But in order
to save us, in order to bring us to glory, the Lord Jesus Christ had to be
perfected as a Savior. He had to experience something himself if he would be a
perfect and complete Savior. What does that mean?
Listen to me carefully.
Christ was not made perfect in his character by suffering. He was always
perfect, both as God and as man. But he was made perfect officially, as the
Captain of our salvation. To perform
the office of a Savior, to save lost sinners from their just and righteous
condemnation, Christ had to
possess three things: merit, power and sympathy. The only way he could
obtain all three was by those things which he suffered, which consummated in
his death as the sinners' Substitute.
The Savior of men must have
such merit with God that God
can, consistently with the perfections of his nature and the requirements of
his law, reverse the sentence of condemnation passed upon those for whom Christ
suffered and died. He must have such infinite merit that we can through his
merit alone obtain all the blessings of grace and glory, without any works of
our own, without any merit of our own.
The Captain of our salvation
must possess all power, in
heaven and in earth, so that he may, by the sheer power of his will make
ignorant, depraved, helpless, miserable sinners, wise, and good, and happy. He
must have such absolute control of all things that he can make all things work
together for the salvation of his people.
Moreover, the Savior of men
must be able to sympathize
with, he must be able to enter into the feelings of, those whom he is to
deliver and save.
All these things are
necessary if the Son of God is to be a perfect Savior; and all these things
were obtained by him through the things which he suffered.
A. BY HIS INCARNATION HE BECAME A SAVIOR OF INFINITE
MERIT.
1. The Savior of men must be a
man, because man had sinned and man must suffer.
2. He must also be God, because
none but God has infinite merit to satisfy the claims of divine justice.
B. CHRIST OBTAINED THE POWER TO SAVE AS THE REWARD OF
HIS OBEDIENCE UNTO DEATH AS OUR SUBSTITUTE (John 17:2; Heb 7:25).
John 17:2 "As thou hast given him power over all
flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given
him."
Hebrews
7:24-25 "But this man, because he continueth ever, hath an unchangeable priesthood. (25) Wherefore he is able also to save
them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make
intercession for them."
C. THE SON OF GOD BECAME A
SYMPATHIZING SAVIOR BY THE THINGS HE SUFFERED AS A MAN FOR US (Heb 2:18; 4:15).
Hebrews 2:18
"For in that he himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able to
succour them that are tempted."
Hebrews 4:15
"For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the
feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin."
D. THE LORD JESUS CHRIST IS A PERFECT SAVIOR.
1. He has made a perfect
expiation of sin.
2. He has brought in a perfect
righteousness.
3. His holy heart is filled
with a perfect sympathy for his needy people.
4. He is a perfect example for
us to follow.
5. He has perfect power, he is
perfectly able to save!
IV. Fourth,
What
was THE NECESSITY FOR
CHRIST'S SUFFERING AND DEATH.
He suffered and died, he was
made a perfect Savior by suffering and death, because "it became him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all
things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their
salvation perfect through sufferings.”
It was becoming to God to
save us in such a way. Indeed, this is the only method of salvation that is
becoming to the holy and just Lord God. This method of salvation, through the
merits of Christ's sufferings and death, is a salvation becoming to God because...
A. It glorifies all his divine attributes.
·
Wisdom and Immutability
·
Mercy and Truth
·
Righteousness and Peace
·
Love and Wrath
·
Grace and Justice
·
Kindness and Veracity
Nahum 1:1-7 "The burden of Nineveh. The book of the
vision of Nahum the Elkoshite. (2) God
is jealous, and the LORD revengeth;
the LORD revengeth, and is furious;
the LORD will take vengeance on his adversaries, and he reserveth wrath for his enemies. (3) The LORD is slow to anger, and great in power, and will not at all acquit the wicked: the LORD hath his way in the
whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are
the dust of his feet. (4) He
rebuketh the sea, and maketh it dry, and drieth up all the rivers: Bashan
languisheth, and Carmel, and the flower of Lebanon languisheth. (5) The mountains quake at him, and the
hills melt, and the earth is burned at his presence, yea, the world, and all
that dwell therein. (6) Who can stand
before his indignation? and who can abide in the fierceness of his anger? his
fury is poured out like fire, and the rocks are thrown down by him. (7) The LORD is good, a strong hold in the day of trouble; and he knoweth them
that trust in him."
B. It will glorify him before Satan and all the demons of
hell.
Salvation by a Man will
forever glorify God and make a mockery of Satan who refused to be a servant to
man.
C. It will glorify the triune God in the eyes of all the
damned.]
You who perish under the
wrath of God will yet be made to see the glory of God in redemption. You will
yet see the glory of the gospel. You will forever acknowledge that your
condemnation is just.
D. Salvation by Christ, the sinners' Substitute will forever
delight the hearts and minds of the redeemed as we give glory to God forever in
glory.
"And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the
book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us
to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation;
And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the
earth. And I beheld, and I heard the voice of many angels round about the
throne and the beasts and the elders: and the number of them was ten thousand
times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands; Saying with a loud voice,
Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and
strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing. And every creature which is in
heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and
all that are in them, heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and
power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and
ever. And the four beasts said, Amen. And the four and twenty elders fell down
and worshipped him that liveth for ever and ever." -- Rev 5:9-14
Application: I call upon you now, one
and all, to fall on your faces before this great God, our great Savior, the
Lord Jesus Christ in repentance, faith and adoration. Glorify him now and
forever as the sinner's perfect Savior, the Captain of our Salvation.
Amen.