Oh, excuse me. Hello, everyone. Hello. Hello, online. Today we're going to be in Hebrews chapter 2, verse 5. How are you guys doing today? Yes, hello. How are you, sir? Doing well. Hebrews 2.5. Thanks, Tony. She does eat donuts. She'll love those. She'll make a huge mess. She does pretty good. She does. She's so cute. She's really cute. All right. Hebrews 2.5. Let's read together. For unto the angels hath he not put in subjection the world to come, whereof we speak. But one in a certain place testified, saying, what is man that thou art mindful of him, or the son of man that thou visitest him? Thou madest him a little lower than the angels. Thou crown'st him with glory and honor, and didst set him over the works of thy hands. Thou hast put all things in subjection under his feet, for in that he put all in subjection under him, he left nothing that is not put under him. But now we see not yet all things put under him. But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honor, that he, by the grace of God, should taste death for every man. Somebody just walked through the door. It is Tom. It's Tom. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, we thank you for your word. Lord, we praise you that it reveals to us Christ and him marvelously. Lord, thank you for every single bit of it. But thank you for this special portion in Hebrews. Lord, thank you. Help me to teach clearly and well. Lord, help the listeners to hear and be affected. Lord, to give Christ all the glory and all the honor for He's the reason that we're doing this. And we do thank you for him, Lord. And we praise your name today. In Jesus' precious name we pray, amen. Amen. All right, so we're going to begin this section here, which is an interesting section. It follows the warning section in the previous verses where the apostle warned us not to not pay attention to the things that were presented. And then he moves kind of back to his argument for the son's superiority to the angels. But it takes a surprising turn. Verse five indicates that it is again a matter of his greater authority as to whom, unlike the angels, the world to come is subjected. And yet the means by which his subjection is achieved is that he is made for a little while lower than the angels by accepting the sub-angelic status of a human being the Son has achieved the glory and honor God has decreed for humanity. This point will be developed more fully in verses 10 to 18, as the implications of the incarnation of the Son are explored. In particular, because he was willing to share our life, and even more, to share our death, he is able to be the Savior that we need, and that is an honor no angel could aspire to. I'm following the previous section, which was the first of the author's warning passages. The author returns to the theme of the supremacy of Christ to angels. He states that the world to come is not subject to angels. We must note that God had promised to provide. Want to hear Tom? He has trouble hearing this. You might have to speak up. OK. I'm talking pretty loud, right? Can you hear Jim all right? Can you hear Jim? Yeah, I can hear him. You can hear him okay? You sure? I can talk louder. Sometimes I can't understand you, but I can hear something. So you've got to speak louder. Okay. He states that the world to come is not subjected to angels. We must note that God had promised to provide a new world even in the Old Testament. For example, in Isaiah 65, 17, he stated, For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth. The former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind. And in Isaiah 66, 22, he said, For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before me, saith the Lord, so shall your seed and your name remain. And this is ultimately the world to come of which he speaks, not just the new world, but the world dominated by the gospel, the new world brought in by Christ. The apostle does not treat directly anywhere in this epistle concerning heaven. He frequently mentions heaven, not absolutely indeed, but as indeed it belongs unto the gospel world as being the place of the constant residence of the high priest of the church. and wherein also the worship of it is through faith celebrated. He afterwards declares how this comprised heaven itself also because of the residence of our high priest in the holiest, not made with hands, and the continual admission of the worshipers unto the throne of grace. But this is different from the author of Psalm 8, which we will examine shortly, in which the idea of the present world seems to be strongly presented There the author deals with this world, sheep and oxen, the beasts of the field and the fowls of the air. All that are mentioned in that psalm and the dominion of man is established over that environment. But there is a phrase in the psalm of which the author will make use to identify Christ as the ultimate fulfillment of this psalm. But it is a little tricky. This world to come will not be subjected to angels as is the present world. The law which was the foundation of the Judaical church state was given, quote, by the disposition of angels, as it says in Acts 7.53 and Galatians 3.19. And our apostle here calls it the word spoken by angels. They were therefore entrusted by God to give the law and the ordinances of it unto the people in his name and authority, which being the foundation of the Mosaical church state. Can you please mute? Whoever is not muted, can you please mute? So anyway, the function of verse five is to link two chains of Old Testament citations. The first, in verses one, sorry, chapter one, five through 13, develops the superiority of Jesus in his exaltation to the angels. The second, two, six to 16, refutes the objections that could be mustered against the superiority on the ground that the Son assumed a condition inferior to that of the angels. In Hebrews chapter two, So the reminder that God did not entrust the administration of the heavenly world to come to the angels, but to the exalted son puts in a proper perspective the exposition of Jesus' solidarity with the human condition. So in verse six, but one in a certain place testified this argument is established by one of the author's most daring pieces of biblical interpretation, based on Psalm 8, 4-6. Here, unlike the staccato series of proof texts in chapter 1, we have the first example of our author's delight in expounding a key text at some length, drawing out the implications of the Old Testament wording for the new Christian situation. Psalm 8 speaks with wonder of the privileges of humanity appointed by God to have dominion over the animal creation as his vice-regent, and thus placed only a little below God himself. But this text takes a different twist and sees Psalm 8 as messianic. Calvin says, this is a long quote, but I'll just pretend that I'm saying it. Calvin says, but then the Psalm which he quotes must be examined, for it seems to be unfitly applied to Christ. David there mentions the benefits which God bestows on mankind, for after having contemplated God's power as manifested in heaven and the stars, he comes to man, among whom the wonderful goodness of God appears in a peculiar manner. He does not then speak of any particular person, but of all mankind. To this I answer that all this affords no reason why the word should not be applied to the person of Christ. I indeed allow that man was at first put in possession of the world, that he might rule over all the works of God, but by his own defection he deserved the loss of his dominion, for it was a just punishment for ingratitude as to one thus favored, that the Lord, whom he refused to acknowledge and to faithfully worship, should have deprived him of a right previously granted to him As soon then as Adam alienated himself from God through sin, he was justly deprived of the good things which he had received. He was kicked out of the garden and given to eat by the sweat of his brow. The things that did yield to him were not of him, but of grace. He was not denied the use of them, but he had no right to them after he had forsaken God. The creature was made subject to vanity, it says in Romans 8.20. It is evident that God's bounty belongs not to us until the right lost in Adam be restored by Christ. For this reason, Paul teaches us that the food is sanctified to us by faith. Food is sanctified to us by faith in 1 Timothy 4, 5. In another place, he declares that to the unbelieving, nothing is clean, for they have a polluted conscience, Titus 1, 16. We found at the beginning of this epistle that Christ has been appointed by the Father the heir of all things. Doubtless, as he ascribes the whole inheritance to one, he excludes all others as aliens. And justly too, for we are all become exiles from God's kingdom. What food then God has destined for his own family, we have no right to take. But Christ, by whom we are admitted into this family, at the same time admits us into a participation of this right, so that we may enjoy the whole world together with the favor of God. Hence Paul teaches us that Abraham was by faith made an heir of the world. That is because he was united to the body of Christ, Romans 4.13. If men then are precluded from all God's bounty, until they receive a right to it through Christ, it follows that the dominion mentioned in the psalm was lost to us in Adam. And that on that account, it must again be restored as a gift. Now the restoration begins with Christ as the head. There is then no doubt but that we are to look to him whenever the dominion of man over all creatures is spoken of. Can you hear okay? Okay, so that was all a quote from Calvin, believe it or not. The whole thing, everything I just read was a quote from Calvin, a long quote. But it makes the point that this has to be Christ that's mentioned in Psalm 8, not mankind. So anyway, it is interesting how the author speaks of one in a certain place, as if it was little important who wrote the words, or he couldn't even really remember, Nevertheless, the vagueness of the reference is consistent with the strong emphasis throughout Hebrews on the oracular character of scripture. That is, as the author quotes in Hebrews 5.12, quote, the first principles of the oracles of God. If you use the Old Testament as God speaking, he believes the authority lies in the message more than the person who wrote it. Its power stems from its nature as the word of God, and God, rather than the human author, is the one who matters. Precisely because it is God who speaks in the Old Testament, the identity of the person through whom he uttered his word is relatively unimportant. It is better for our author to minimize the human author of the psalm and present it as God's word, which, as a matter of fact, it is. So the author of Hebrews 2, 6 to 8 includes the following quote from Psalm 8, 4 to 6. But it makes sense for us to look at all of Psalm 8 to see the context. Here is what the author of Hebrews quoted. What is man that thou art mindful of him? Or the son of man that thou visitest him? Thou madest him a little lower than the angels. Thou crown'st him with glory and honor. and did set him over the works of thy hands. Thou hast put all things in subjection under his feet." So let's quote the entire psalm now if you want. Let's read that. Want me to read it? Sure. Unless you want to. I can read it. O Lord, our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth, who has set thy glory above the heavens! Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings hast thou ordained strength because of thy enemies, that thou mightest still the enemy and the avenger. When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars which thou hast ordained, what is man that thou art mindful of him? and the Son of Man that Thou visitest Him. For Thou hast made Him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned Him with glory and honor. Thou madest Him to have dominion over the works of Thy hands. Thou hast put all things under His feet. Thou madest him to have dominion over the work of thy hands. Thou hast put all things under his feet, all sheep and oxen, yea, and the beasts of the field, the fowl of the air, and the fish of the sea, and whatsoever passeth through the paths of the seas. O Lord, our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth. So please note that this psalm begins and ends with the glorification of God. It starts with, O Lord, our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth, who has set thy glory above the heavens. And the psalm ends with, O Lord, our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth. And so everything in between must glorify God as well. The name means that, the name is the reference is to God in his divine reality, but to Yahweh as he has made himself known to his people. That's Psalm 108 he just read. Psalm 8. I mean Psalm 8, sorry. The unique revelation to Israel is for all the world. Here though, in this Psalm, if it is taken simply, or so it seems, just to refer to mankind, that would detract from the glory of God because mankind is utterly sinful. In this case, it must be made clear that David, who was the true author of the psalm, treats man as unfallen. The psalmist thinks of man against the background of the glory of the created order, generally. The contrast is so marked that man's stature is seen in its true perfection. I'm just trying to reconnect. Yeah, it's a bit rough. So Adam was made both in the natural and moral image of God. The fallen man still retains God's natural image to some extent. His existence is parallel to the existence of God. His reason, his moral sense, his social nature, his capacity for indefinite growth in knowledge, his ingenuity in relieving his own wants, his subjection to law, and His dominion over animated nature, and even over the elements, show that He is indeed crowned with glory and honor, and is set over all the works of God on earth. Yet how stretched is this verse in that case. Here it seems that man is not sinful, but is in the condition in which Adam was created, a perfect man in a perfect condition. But there are children mentioned, the babes and sucklings of verse two, which was not the case for man in a condition of innocence. We must note that Jesus took this verse to refer to the children in the temple during his earthly ministry in Matthew 21, 16. There it says, And said unto him, Herest thou what these say? And Jesus sayeth unto them, Yea, have ye never read out of the mouths of babes and sucklings thou hast perfected praise? So the Lord refers to Psalm 8 during his ministry, so the rest of the psalm must refer to him as well. If that part of the psalm applied to Christ's earthly ministry as he indicated that it did, then the rest of the psalm must apply to Christ as well. This part did apply to him according to his own interpretation of the children crying in the temple. It is amazing that there were children crying in the temple to him, saying, Hosanna to the son of David. as they clearly understood him as the Messiah. Here the phrase son of David is very similar to the son of man in our psalm. It's peculiar and the assertion that the Lord has put all things under his feet is what our author picks up on. Clearly not all things are placed under the feet of mankind. Wild beasts, weather, earthquakes, diseases, these all rule over mankind. Mankind is under the wrath of God and is not in any way described by the words here. Yet we see the Lord Jesus Christ in Psalm 8, then things become much clearer. Christ was made a little lower than the angels, but has been crowned with glory and honor, and all things are in subjection to him who is God over all, whose name is glorious in every way. In chapter one it said, he upholds all things by the word of his power. So clearly all things are subjected to him. The three times reproduced by the writer combined to form a confession of faith that celebrates the three successive moments in the drama of redemption. That is the incarnation, the exaltation, and the final victory of Christ. There are more, but those three are most important, I suppose. The first pertaining to the past, the second to the present, and the third to the future. Even though the psalm reflects on man's supremacy over all oxen and sheep and the beasts of the field and so forth, it does not mean that this is not Christ, because Christ is Lord of those things as well as of everything. The fact that the psalm mentions only these things does not mean that when it says, I was put all things under his feet, that it must not be interpreted literally. It must. Let's proceed. In verse 8, it says, for in that he put all in subjection under him, he left nothing that is not put under him. But now we see not yet all things put under him. So the psalm clearly says all things will be put in subjection to him when all is taken in its fullest sense. But we do not see all things in subjection to man, We have seen that the words quoted by the Apostle in a limited and modified degree do hold true even of fallen man, but the Apostle takes them in their full extent without any modification. But now we see not yet all things put under him. Not unfrequently the word all must be understood with limitation, but the Apostle teaches us that the word all in the eighth Psalm is to be understood in the fullest and most unlimited sense as leaving nothing in the universe which is not put under the sun of man, whether in the heavens above or in the earth beneath. The fact is that because of their depravity, human beings have diminished the dominion God had given them over his creation. That tension is made clear in 2.8b. On the one hand, from the ideal perspective, Quote, God left nothing that is not subject to them. This is stated emphatically with a double negative. There is nothing that is not under his control. Yet at present, due to sin, we do not see everything subject to them. The image of God in humans has been marred and they do not have dominion. This seems an oxymoron. Humanity has universal dominion, but it doesn't. For while the glory of human nature, as here delineated, has been so deteriorated through the fall, that is only to be seen in small fragments. And what is here is to be referred rather to the idea than the reality. It appears anew, Christ in full splendor. Yet says our author, we must look to Jesus. In him all is fulfilled. Thirsty. All right, so verse nine. But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honor, that he, by the grace of God, should taste death for every man. All right, so let's take this in sections But we see Jesus who was made a little lower than the angels. Jesus now enters the equation. It is significant that the name chosen is his human name. He makes him low by referring to him as Jesus. But after the exalted concepts in the first chapter, the writer shows him to be the one who is closely identified with man here in this section. He is called Jesus as the son of man as it is in him that we see the fulfillment of Psalm 8. In the humiliation he received from his incarnation. Oops, where am I? In the humiliation he received from his incarnation, life of opposition and death on the cross, he too endures a life, quote, lower than the angels. Yet in the results of his sacrificial death and exaltation to his session at the right hand of God, he experiences the glory of honor that is his. Here we see the reality of the already and the not yet. At present, we do not see everything subject to them, but we already see Jesus. And through him, the process of recovery has been inaugurated and is soon to be realized. As to his human nature, and in his humiliation, Jesus was lower than the angels, for they ministered to him and strengthened him. Matthew 4.11, Luke 22.43, there the angels helped him. Yea, more he consented to live very much on charity, not that of princely patrons, but of some poor women. He had not where to lay his head, He emptied himself, he humbled himself, even to the shameful death of the cross. But this was only for a season, a little while, compared with the history of the human race, compared with the eternity of renown and glory before him. Moreover, in order to leave no doubt about the character of this Christ, he combines two ideas which at first, which appear at first to be opposite, the suffering of death, and crowned with glory and honor, the specific idea of the suffering of Jesus comes into the epistle here for the first time. Although it is indirectly implied in the reference to the purification of sins in 1.3, suffering is to be a dominant theme throughout this letter. Indeed, the present combination of suffering and glory supplies the key to the writer's understanding of the Christian faith The suffering of death is a major problem to all men, but is a particular problem for the Son of God, unless some explanation of it can be given. The suffering itself belongs to a less exalted status than that of the angels. Hence the statement applied to Jesus, who for a little while was made lower than the angels. Which could also be rendered a little while instead of a little while, The combination between the two ideas, which is alien to natural thought, is nevertheless central in the New Testament. It's not only Jesus himself who gains glory through suffering, but all of his followers as well. We all gain glory through suffering. Romans 6, 8, 2 Timothy 2, 11-12. Let's take a look at 2 Timothy real quick. There it says, it is a faithful saying, for if we be dead with him, we shall also live with him. If we suffer, we shall also reign with him. And if we deny him, he also will deny us. If we believe not, yet he abideth faithful, he cannot deny himself. But anyway, you see that the idea that our suffering provokes or promotes our glorification And the problem of the passion of Jesus becomes transformed into a path to glory once it is recognized that the God who bestows the glory is the one who permits the suffering. When the text says that Jesus was made a little lower than the angels, we should note that the Greek is not clear. It might mean that he was made a little lower than the angels or was made lower for a little time. It doesn't really matter which we choose, though. Our text has a little lower, so we can go with that. But just realize it could also be a time reference. The fact is that Christ was made lower than the angels for only a little while. He was made a little lower than the angels for a little while, so take your pick there. But after his resurrection, he was glorified to the right hand of the Father. There's also a confusion in the order of the words here, since it seems like it might mean that Christ was crowned with glory and honor before he suffered on the cross. When we know that this is not the case, we can compare what the ESV has. They say, but we see him who for a little while was made lower than the angels, namely Jesus, crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone. They attempt to make the text clear by adding the words because of, because the Greek text is unclear. But we naturally understand that Christ's suffering came before his exaltation, obviously, when he was crowned with glory and honor, when he was raised to the throne. Now these words should melt our hearts and move our souls to profoundest wonderment that he, the creator of angels, The Lord of them, the one who before his incarnation had been worshiped by them, should be made lower than they. And this for our sakes. Our hearts must indeed be dead if they're not thrilled with and filled with praise as we ponder such a marvelous stoop that Christ made. For the suffering of death. Jesus' incarnate ministry to humanity ended when he, quote, suffered death, which led him to being crowned with glory and honor by his father. His humiliation produced his exaltation. We are at the true heart of the message of Hebrews. It is the core of everything. All that has been said prepares for this. His incarnation and life on earth were vehicles for his greatness and his exaltation and second coming will flow out of that. He died as the suffering servant of Isaiah 52 and 53. For our sake, as it says there in verse 10, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand. And in verse 11, he shall see of the travail of his soul and shall be satisfied. This clearly speaks of him as being alive after his death, right? Which is glorious and marvelous. The two clauses that stand in an emphatic position in the middle of the sentence also express a sequence in thought. Because he suffered death, Jesus was crowned with glory and splendor and honor. Whenever the writer speaks of the death of Jesus, he uses the verb to suffer and its derivatives. In the clause, through the suffering of death, the reference is to the suffering that consists in death. As the equivalent expression, he might taste death, indicates this is the first explicit reference to the death of Christ in the book. Now, crowned with glory and honor, it says, the crowning with glory and honor was the direct result of the death that Jesus Christ suffered. Hebrews 12, 2 says, Hebrews 12, 2 says, 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." So his suffering was the precursor to his being seated at the right hand of God the Father. So this understanding results from the distinctive manner in which the writer read the affirmations of Psalm 8, 6. The expression with glory and honor recalls the investiture of Aaron to the high priesthood when God bestowed upon him glory and honor. And it says in Exodus 2.8, sorry, Exodus 28.2 and verse 40 as well. It may be proper to find in the statement that Jesus was crowned with glory and honor, another anticipation of his high priesthood, which is not formally introduced until 2.17 and 18. So in resuming the acquisition, the writer leads his readers to contemplate Jesus in his solidarity with humankind. The transcendent Son of God made the human condition, and especially its liability to death, his own, in order to achieve for them the glorious destiny designed by God. That design informs Psalm 8, which speaks of the creatureliness and subordination of human beings. and yet also of the glory, splendor, and universal authority for which they have been created. Unfortunately, the promise implied by the divine intention has plainly not been fulfilled in humanity's limited dominion over nature. It actually appears to be mocked and frustrated by the presence of sin and death in the world. Nevertheless, It has been secured by Jesus who took upon himself humanity's full estate in order that by means of his own redemptive accomplishment that he might bring the vision of the psalmist to its realization. There is a profound note of anticipation in the Old Testament teachings about humanity. The words of the psalmist look forward into the future and that future is inextricably bound up with the person and work of Christ. His condescension to be made for a brief while lower than the angels set in motion a sequence of events in which abasement and humiliation are the necessary preludes to exaltation. His coronation and investiture with priestly glory and splendor provide assurance that the power of sin and death has been nullified and that humanity will yet be led to the full realization of their intended glory. Now I'll pull it out. That he by the grace of God. Sorry. That he by the grace of God, in our text it says. Moreover, all this came by the grace of God, There's a frequent New Testament emphasis pointing to the divine mercy and love of the Godhead that led the father to send his son to die so that we sinners could find salvation. That is what drives all of Christ's first coming. He didn't need to save sinners. He could have condemned all of mankind and been perfectly righteous. But by the grace of God, Christ came, else all would be lost, everything, quote, should taste death for every man. The biblical idiom, taste death, means a full experience of death, not, as our idiom might suggest, a tentative taste without going through with it. This strong ancient idiom stresses that he experienced a full enormity of the cross and all its ignominy and pain on our behalf. To taste is to experience fully. Christ's greatness and exalted glory came through his humiliation and suffering. That is the gospel message, right? The way up is down and self-abasement for the glory of Christ leads to exaltation. Whosoever therefore shall humble himself, I have some verses now. Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Marvelous, right? Whoever will humble himself as a child, the same is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. What? It makes our heads explode. And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased. And he that shall humble himself shall be exalted. We have to humble ourselves. Though the Lord be high, yet hath he respect unto the lowly, that the proud he knoweth afar off. Psalm 138, six. They're still coming in. Hey, Joshua. 10 minutes left. Isaiah 57 says, for thus sayeth the high and lofty one that inhabiteth eternity, Whose name is whole. Holy place. Also, it is a contract and hump. To revive the spirit of the humble and to revive the heart of the contrite ones. That's a new Lord work. James 4 sectors, but he giveth more. If God is proud. but giveth grace unto the humble. And at first Peter 5 five, it says, likewise, you younger submit yourselves unto the elder. Yeah, all of you be subject one to another and be clothed with humility. For God resisted the proud and give us giveth grace to the humble. It should be noted in this verse where let's go back to this verse again. Hebrews 2.9. It ends by saying that he should taste death for every man. And I just want to make a couple quick notes on that. It should be noted that every man does not mean each and every individual in the world. The gospel does not tell every individual to whom it is addressed that Christ died for him, but that if he believes, he shall be saved. This is a warrant to preach the gospel unto all men. And as only as he is a believer, that is known to any man that Christ died for him individually. As only when we believe in Christ can we know that Christ died for us. This is a warrant to preach, oops, sorry, to preach the gospel then to every man and call on everyone to believe that we say it is quite consistent as it is a truth. There is the most perfect certainty that he shall be saved. It is certain, however, that they for whom Christ did not die and who do not belong to the election of God, of grace, will not believe that there are things which belong to God to be revealed in their proper time. We are not then to inquire first, either for ourselves or others, for whom Christ died and who are chosen to eternal life, but before we determine to whom the gospel is to be preached, but to preach it to all with the full assurance that whoever believes it shall receive the remission of sins. In believing it, we ascertain for ourselves that Christ bore our sins in his own body on the tree, and that God, from the beginning, has chosen us to salvation through sanctification of the spirit and belief of the truth. It is interesting that Peter said we should make our calling and election sure, but never anywhere in scripture we call to make I'm sure that Christ died for us. Finally, this verse brings to mind the verse in Philippians 2, which Paul wrote in 5. It says, let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus, who being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God, but made himself of no reputation and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men. And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, things in heaven and things in earth and things under the earth. and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father. To crucify God then becomes the foundation of Christian faith, but also the foundation for understanding the nature of God. A little lower than the angels is not included in these verses, but his death on the cross makes him lower than the angels. The divine nature had infinite beauty in itself, even without any creature contemplating that beauty. That beauty was, quote, the form of God. But Christ took the form of a servant, which is contrasted in opposition to it. And he takes for granted the existence of his human nature. So the form of God takes for granted his divine nature. But Christ emptied himself, taking upon him the form of a servant, being made in the likeness of men. He further humbled himself to die on the cross. He abased himself to death. Therefore, God highly exalted him. He is seated at the right hand of God, and he has the name which is above every name. At the name of Christ, every knee should bow, and every tongue confess him as Lord. So that's really what Psalm 8 is about. When we look at Psalm 8, we see that really it's about Christ. And that's amazing. Because when you first read it, you think, oh, it's about mankind. Right? That's what you think. But no, it cannot be. That's it, actually. Oops. There's like 10 more minutes, nine minutes. Yeah, maybe, uh, any questions, questions or clarification, clarifications, comments, anything is also clear. You understand it all perfectly. Yeah. Uh, by the grace of God, you taste death for every month. The word taste death for every month. Just imagine the agony and suffering of Christ for His elect. The impact. To taste death. Just how deep is the ark of Christ. To taste death for us. It's an interesting phrase. To taste death. Like we taste sweet, but for you to taste death, It's something that all of us, I think, would lead us into great thankfulness to God for us to really come. But instead of us facing death, Christ did it for us. It's something that we should really be thankful. And at the same time, the world should know the extent of Christ's suffering for us to as he acted in our behalf. So this is love for us. Let me just say one thing. I've got a question for you. Can I just read one thing first? In John 8, 52 it says, Then said the Jews unto him, Now we know that thou hast a devil. Abraham is dead, and the prophets. And thou sayest, If a man keep my saying, he shall never taste of death. So Christ tasted death here. and we will never have to, like we will die, but we immediately translate it to glory, like the separation from the body is, I guess, a given fact, but yeah. It was us being there in the cross, and the one that we are the one facing death. If all of us can just imagine that graphic, graphic illustration of how Christ really faced death for us, We should really be thankful for him, for his, the depth of his love for us. We don't deserve this. But it takes the death for us. Tom? Yeah, I have a question. Yeah. The question is, when Jesus came into the world, he had a mission. That was to address the group that the Father gave him to save. And as such, did he really, he wasn't here to save everybody. He was just here to save the elect. And I often wonder, did salvation apply to everybody? He couldn't, did it apply to the ones that were not designated by the Father. What do you mean by salvation? Just the whole process of salvation? There were two groups. One that was designated by the Father. They were Christ's sheep. And he saved all of them except for Judas. What about all the other people? Well, some never heard of Christ at all, right? They lived their life and they died and never ever heard of Christ. They couldn't be elect, right? They never had a chance to hear of Him. And other people heard, but they didn't get it or they didn't comprehend it. They weren't given faith by the Father, right? But only those who the Father gives faith are able to believe in Christ, right? They need to be born again. That's what the Scripture says. You must be born again. So, like, the father, when the word comes to a person, the father borns and then bears them again, right? If they're elect, and if not, then he just passes them by, and they don't believe, and they mock or whatever, but, I don't, to say about. Okay. So in a way, those not designated for salvation by Christ, Is it up to them, or is it still up to the Father to bring them under the umbrella of salvation? They're responsible for their actions in every single way, right? They reject Christ, they're absolutely 100% responsible, because it's them, right? It's their actions, it's absolutely their decision to reject Christ. That's why the Father has to intervene in our lives, right? He has to regenerate us in order that we can believe in Christ, Otherwise, we're just going to say, that's some junk, right? No, we have to be born again. And then we say, oh, Christ is everything to me. He's everything. He's the world to me. He's more than the world. He's everything. And a person who's not born again, they're not going to see that. They're going to, Christ, hmm, sure. There's no solutions. A deeper question I have is, it's a shame that there a group that were not designated for salvation. They were not Christ's sheep. Why? The amazing part is not that there's a group of people not chosen. The amazing part is that God chose people. In other words, God should have chosen none of us. We're his enemies. We're in direct opposition to God. God should not have chosen anybody. The amazing part is not that, say, my children, if they're not saved, the amazing part is not that my children are not saved, although we weep for our children. I pray we do for their salvation. But the bigger problem is that I, or the more amazing thing is that I am saved. It's not that they're not saved, this is that I am. So it's not that, the amazing part is not that God hated Esau, it's that he loved Jacob. I mean, that's really the, he should have hated Jacob. So you have to see it from the other way around. Now, granted, it doesn't really solve the problem of how are there so many people that are still unelected. But that's not for us to judge. I don't think we should look at it like that. I preach the gospel to every person, and whoever believes will be saved. And all men are called to hear the gospel and believe. Not all men hear the gospel. Not all will, for sure. Because they're not condemned because they reject the gospel. I think you might have answered that a minute ago. They reject because they reject because they're sinners, right? Right, because they love their sin. Men are under condemnation not because they reject the gospel. There's up to, some people estimate, three billion people on earth today that have never heard the gospel, never seen a Bible. And many of them will die in their sin and go to hell. because, not because they rejected the gospel, because they love their sin and they refuse to... That's the condition we're all born into, right? We sin in Adam. I'm born a guilty sinner, right? So I naturally sin, sin, sin, sin, sin, sin, sin. I sin continuously because I don't love the Lord. I'm constantly sinning. And so God should hate me, right? Because I hate him, right? That's the natural condition of our situation. God hates me because I hate him. But God loves me. Why? I don't know. But he does. And he saved me through Christ. That's amazing to me. How could it be possible? In my mind, I'm talking specifically for myself, salvation is a gift. And it's up to God, the Father. He chose these people right here. He chose them. And it's entirely a gift from him. And you can't deny it. It is a gift. And we have to be thankful for that. We all sit here as chosen sons and daughters of God. And I thank God that I'm here. And I feel like I was chosen. And it's the spirit that's telling me that I'm chosen. So I feel I have my the truth through the spirit that I was chosen just like all these people here. And I feel bad that not everybody's chosen. I know, I do too, but what can I do about it, right? Nothing. It's a free gift from God. God the Father could have chosen many, many, many more people, and he didn't. So it's his gift, bottom line. It's his prerogative, yeah, you can't delve into that. It's God's prerogative. He has the right to choose whom he wants. He has the right to condemn whom he wants, and that's totally in his hands. And we can't, because the numbers will, and a lot of people, that's where they forsake Christianity. They'll say, no, I can't believe that God would do that. What compass do I have to even say that? I don't have anything outside. That's what a friend told me. Crazy. There will be false sums though. Right, right. There will be people that are professing and they are not safe. It's important to realize that putting on a very low level... and I can walk to the neighbor across the street and give him $50. Does that mean that I have to give $50 to all my other neighbors? The answer is no. It's a free gift. That's where it stops. It's up to the father. I just thank him, really, for all these people here. They have been chosen, I can tell you right now. I feel, in my heart, the Spirit telling me that they are chosen. So thank God for that. Well, we know we're chosen by our profession and by our fruit. In 1 Peter chapter, 2 Peter 1, and then also 1 John. And Jesus, you know, spoke the same way. But we, yes, so we know we're chosen by our profession of faith, that we're trusting Christ alone. We've rejected anything we've done to save ourselves. And we've trusted Christ. And if that's true, we're born again. And when we're born again, if any man is in Christ, he's a new creature. Old things have passed away, but old things become new. We have this new life. A true believer has a new way to talk, a new way to think, a new way to act, a new way of everything. New motivation. And it's the fruit. You'll know that you know them by their fruit. So it is the profession and then the fruit. You know, at times that has to be bore out over time. I mean, some people go on for a period of time. I mean, you read Hebrews 6, 4 through 6, and you say, wow. I mean, what does that even mean? They were once enlightened, and they perceivably had the Holy Spirit, but yet they were not saved. So there is that aspect of it. that yes, God has chosen the people for himself. We can't necessarily say, I know this person's elect, but we can be assured of a certain point. I'm sorry, go ahead. If you give your neighbor $50 and not some other people, don't you have a good reason for doing that? It's up to me. It is up to you, but what's your reason to do that? My point being that God has a good reason for what he does and where the choices lie. Right, and so why does God do what he does? Does anybody have a question to answer to that? Why does God do what he does? To glorify himself. So, at the end of 1 Corinthians, let me say this and then we have to close. 1 Corinthians 1, since this came up, what does the scripture say when it says, you know, God has chosen the weak, the foolish. And then at the end, in verse 29, it says, and God has chosen the base things of the world, and these things that are despised hath God chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to naught the things that are, that no flesh should glory in his presence. God chooses to glorify himself, and he chooses the nobodies, the lowly, right? The foolish, the scum, the outcasts, right? And we know that Christ chooses in that way, but we don't know exactly how it works because that's a spiritual point of view. He knows the hearts of all men. But he does not look down and see something in this person that's worthy of being saved and say, I'm gonna save that person. If that's the criteria, then none of us are saved. None of us will ever be saved because there's nothing in us drawing God's grace toward us. It's solely by his good pleasure that he chooses to save those who are unworthy for the glory of his name. The more unworthy we are, the more glorified he is in saving us, right? And here we are as enemies, and yet God saved his enemies. And I know election can be a tough topic. Joshua, did you have something there? Oh, Jeremiah? I know we have to go. I kind of agree with that. I know I've lived a life of sin since I was about 80 years old. 80? Wow, that's a long time. Maybe 81. By the grace of God, something happened in my life. That's amazing to me. 80 years old is crazy to me. Jeremiah, did you want to ask something or no? I think God just chooses someone. What? I'm not sure I understand. He just randomly picks people. He kind of doesn't randomly pick, he has a good reason for picking people, but we don't know what it is. We have no idea what it is. So, Deuteronomy 29, 29 says, the secret things belong to the Lord our God. And they should remain that way. But we know it's not because he saw something good in us. Right. And then responded to that and chose us. We know it's not that because the scripture blatantly speaks against that. And I always like to look at it from two angles. From God's angle, he has an elect, and he knows who they are, and he's operating in that way. From my angle, from the way I'm seeing things, like I said, I call everybody to salvation. In my mind, everybody's elect. I want everybody to be saved, right? Because I don't know. I'm not God. I can't make judgments on that basis. And so we call all men to Christ, and we never would say, well, Maybe that person isn't elect. I mean, if we would have met the apostle Paul before he got saved, we'd have probably said, he's not elect. I mean, he's going around killing Christians. But God chose him and set him apart clearly for his purpose in sin. We don't know, so we're not operating from that angle in terms of unbelievers. I would agree with Spurgeon that election predominantly has to do with the Christian. It has very little to do with the unbeliever. I mean, it's everything to do with them as well. They're going to hell because they're not elect. It does, but we don't operate that way, I guess you could say. We should never think about that. Anyway, let's pray. Jay had one last question. One last one. Jesus said to you, you're told to love your friends and hate your enemies, but I tell you to love your enemies. to those that hate you, pray for those that despitefully use you. Boy, that's a huge subject. The desires of God. It's the elect there, though, anyway. It's not going to keep going on and on forever and ever and ever because maybe they'll be saved. The you there is the direct reference to the elect, if you read that in context. That first, and so many people take that out of context. God's not willing that any should perish, but all should come to repentance. Read that verse. Any elect should perish. Right. Clearly what he's saying, if you read the text before it and what's around that. All right, should we pray? Yep, sure. Okay. Heavenly Father, we do thank you absolutely for your word. What a joy we had reading it and studying it today. Lord, thank you for the grace that you poured upon me and helping me, Lord, thank you for everyone here. I pray that you will bless them and keep them, Lord, strengthen them, give them grace, help them to trust and believe in Christ and everything that he did for us, Lord, we are so thankful for him. And we trust and praise his name as well, Lord, we trust you. And thank you, Lord, we praise your name today in Jesus' precious name we pray, amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. All right, see you guys. All right. Have a good day. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Bye. Have a good day.