Following Jesus - Week 4: Jesus Bridges the Gap | Ephesians 2:13

Hi, it's Professor Jonathan, and thanks for downloading the SBC Felder Service Podcast.

Our current series of first webinars is called Following Jesus.

In this series, uh, that will be on the weekly after.

We're going to get up close and personal with our board of Safer Jesus Craft.

And here's my promise to keep it.

But if you're willing to fuck it up, follow Jesus.

And you follow them every single day.

I hope you will join us on this journey.

As we follow Jesus towards the empty.

And uh Andy.

I was not expecting that this morning, but no problem.

That was cool.

Punk rock is right, man.

Alright.

We went to college together, for those of you that don't know.

So we've known each other since we were 18, I think.

Yeah, sounds about right.

Yeah, 18 years old.

So no worries.

So John Roebling, this guy, 1867.

He stood before the legislatures in the state of New York.

And to the men who are gathered in this room, uh Roebling, who's this civil engineer by trade, presents a visionary plan.

Um, a plan to build a suspension bridge that would connect Brooklyn to Manhattan, um, so it would span the entire East River.

And dreams of a bridge like this had been kind of um ongoing for about 70 years, um, but they were nothing more than dreams.

Um, people knew, engineers knew, that the strongest um building material they had at that moment in time was iron.

And iron in the early 1800s, they knew with a massive building project like that that the bridge would actually just collapse under its own weight.

Um, and then uh within our country, as they're having these plans, there is this growing tension uh which leads to the eventual eruption of the American Civil War.

And for those two factors, they didn't have the right material, and a war breaks out over our entire country.

They stop talking about, the legislatures do, for about 70 years, how to build this bridge over the East River.

So fast forward again, 1867, about two years after the Civil War, again, people begin dreaming of building this bridge.

And Roebling's plan stood out among other plans because he proposed building this bridge not out of iron but out of steel.

And then the second thing he would do is that he would lay the foundations for the bridge actually on the bottom of the river in New York.

He would dig down and build these gigantic foundations that the bridge would stand upon.

So the officials in New York they hear Roebling's proposal and they give him the go-ahead, begin construction.

But listen, on a project that massive, uh construction never goes as planned, right?

So the bridge takes way longer to build than they anticipated.

It took 14 years from start to finish, and the bridge far it surpassed its budget.

It cost$15 million to build.

And just so you have a little perspective,$15 million in the late 1800s, if you account for inflation, the cost of that bridge is close to like half a billion dollars.

But then in May of 1883, all the work and all the money paid off, and what we now call the Brooklyn Bridge finally opened.

At its opening, the Brooklyn Bridge, and this is an artist's rendition of the pomp and circumstance and the celebration that occurred on that day.

It was dubbed the Brooklyn Bridge when it was opened as the eighth wonder of the world.

It was on that day, and it is still to this day a sight to behold.

It's a really impressive structure, an impressive feat of engineering.

But the Brooklyn Bridge is more than an impressive structure, it's a powerful symbol.

The Brooklyn Bridge and other bridges like it, they are symbols of this universal human desire that we have to connect and to unite and to relate with one another.

A bridge is a symbol of people coming together, people who are on opposite shores, people who are disagreeing over very important issues that they want to look for some way and somehow to work it out to get on the same page.

Martin Luther King Jr.

leveraged that really powerful symbol of a bridge during the tumultuous time of the civil rights movement.

Martin Luther King Jr.

famously said, let's build bridges, not walls.

King knew that bridges are what allow people to connect and to unite and to relate, no matter how far they may be divided, a bridge provides the opportunity for people to connect and to come together with one another.

But King also understood that a wall, that's what keeps people apart.

And I think that's one reason Martin Luther King Jr.'s life left such an imprint on this country.

He understood the power of a bridge, and he was, in essence, a bridge builder.

Bridges, of course, they speak a powerful message, not uh just to society at large.

They also speak a message when it comes to the relationships that we want to have within our family, the relationships we want to experience with our friends.

That each of us has this desire to connect and to relate and to unite with people, to have intimate relationships, to have relationships where we are known and we truly know someone else, and a bridge is required.

Of course, here's what we know about life.

As much as we want it, sometimes it doesn't happen.

In life, whether it's in our family or among groups of friends, there's always misunderstandings.

Often words are spoken carelessly.

Or sometimes there's even like these deliberate actions that people commit.

And whether it's a word or an action or a misunderstanding, it builds a wall, doesn't it?

It separates people, it puts people at odds with one another.

And so, friends, when a wall uh emerges, they no longer uh call or text each other, right?

They no longer want to spend time with one another.

Or in a home, if a wall is built between a husband and a wife, they end up spending time apart from each other within their own home.

They stay at opposite ends of the house.

Or teenagers, think of this, teenagers, they're trying to exercise their freedom.

So what do they do?

They spend more and more time within the walls of their own room, right?

And especially if it's a boy, it smells like something's died in there because they keep the door locked all the time and they never bring out their dirty laundry, right?

I see Morgan Hague's face.

I promise, it's that way for teenage boys.

They're kind of disgusting.

Yet there still persists this desire within all of us to connect and to unite and to relate.

And we know there has to be a bridge that's built.

So sometimes a bridge in our life, when it comes to family and friends, it takes the form of a table, right?

One of the best ways to connect with people is around a table.

Friends meet together for coffee to talk out their differences so that they can begin their relationship afresh.

Or moms and dads who want to connect with their children decide, hey, we're gonna gather around the table every week for a family meal, or more than maybe one time a week.

Or sometimes that bridge is actually another person.

Maybe you've had a group of three friends before.

Is anybody you've been a part of kind of a group of three friends, and two of the friends get at odds with one another, right?

Two of the friends are mad at each other, and so the third friend is just kind of out here, and each of the other two friends, they're vying for that friend's attention.

They want that friend to believe that they're right.

But the third friend, what that third friend knows he or she must do is to be the bridge, to be the person who stands in between the two people that are at odds with one another and to bring them together.

Or the bridge can be a person, it could be a counselor that a husband and wife go to see together.

That that counselor allows uh that husband and wife to finally have the conversations that they've been needing to have.

Or in the context of a sports team, think about it this way: uh the bridge can be the team captain who allows uh people who play different positions and people who have different opinions and people who come from different home lives.

That team captain is the bridge that brings them together as that leader on the team and says, we're all in it together.

Let's unite, let's relate, let's get to know each other and accomplish our goal.

But we can all think of times in our life then when we can build a bridge, right?

And we can all think of times in our life when God is calling us to be the bridge, to be that person who steps in the gap.

But there's a time in life when you and I, we just simply need a bridge.

We need a bridge.

Listen to these words written by the prophet named Isaiah.

Isaiah 59, verse 2 says this.

Isaiah 59:2

It says, But your sins have separated you from God.

But your sins have separated you from God.

That single verse in Isaiah 59, verse 2, it reminds us of this common theme that runs throughout Scripture, that due to sin, so sin is this, this falling short of God's perfect and holy standard.

Isaiah 59:2

And we fall short, we sin in every area of life, desires and deeds and habits and attitudes and thought patterns.

And due to that sin, falling short of God's holy standard, a rift erupts.

A rift exists between God and man.

We are separated from Him.

And that separation is far wider and far greater than the East River.

It's wide.

But listen, here's the good news.

That reality is also true, but listen to this: God still desires to unite and to relate and to connect with his children, with the people that he's created.

And so God says something like this He says, Let's build a bridge and not a wall.

Ephesians chapter 2, verse 13 puts it this way.

Ephesians 2:13

Begins with this phrase, once you were far away from God.

Once you were far away from God, once you stood on opposite sides of a river that was as vast as an ocean, you were separated.

And then the next word, though, is this little word, but that conjunction, but three letters in the English language, a short word, but it's one of the more important words in the Bible.

Those three letters tell us this.

It tells us that something is about to change.

And then Paul says this in Ephesians 2.

He says this.

He says, Now you have been brought near to him through the blood of Christ.

God was not content to see you standing in the distance.

He was not content to see you standing on the other shore, separated by a chasm created by your sin.

And so God built a bridge, or more accurately, God sent a bridge.

He sent a bridge so that we could cross over and connect and unite and relate with the one who first gave us life.

And the bridge that God sent is Jesus Christ.

Jesus bridges the gap.

Jesus bridges the gap so that you and I can connect and unite and relate with God.

And there is no one else who can bridge that gap.

There is no other way except through Jesus to have a relationship with God.

And because Jesus bridges that gap, here's what we know about Jesus Jesus is our merciful, and he is our faithful high priest.

Today we are putting a bow on our current series following Jesus.

In this series, we're getting up close and personal with Jesus.

Understanding who he is and what he came to accomplish in light of three offices, three titles, three anointings that are found in the Old Testament.

The anointing of prophet, the anointing of king, and the anointing of being a priest.

As a quick reminder, as our prophet, what do we say about Jesus?

We said Jesus speaks truth.

It's a truth that's both hard and hope-filled.

And then as our king, we we were reminded that Jesus leads us to true greatness, a greatness that goes lower and a greatness that gives more.

And today, in our final week, again, we'll get up close and personal with Jesus, and we're going to see him as our priest, because Jesus is the one who bridges the gap.

In the Old Testament, the role of the priest is summarized in Numbers.

The book of Numbers, chapter 16, verses 8 and 9, says this.

Numbers 16:8

This is the words of Moses.

Moses looks at the Levites and he says, Now listen, you Levites.

Does it seem insignificant to you that the God of Israel has chosen you from among all the community of Israel to be near him, so you can serve in the Lord's tabernacle and stand before the people to minister to them.

So the Levites are one of the twelve tribes of Israel, and God designates the tribe of Levi to be the tribe out of which every priest would come.

They are the priestly tribe.

And what Moses reminds the members of this priestly tribe of in this verse is simply this: that the priest bridges the gap.

The priest has an important role.

You see, the priest had this opportunity to bridge the gap by first approaching God as a representative of sinful humanity, of sinful Israel.

The priest approached a holy God representing the people who could not draw near to him.

He bridged the gap in that way.

That's why the priest received the offerings of the people and took them to God.

It's why the priest received the sacrifices of the people and offered them to God.

It's why the priest could lead worship in the presence of God, representing all of sinful Israel before a holy God.

The priest bridged the gap for people, and the priest bridged the gap for God.

The priest is the one who allowed a holy God to, in effect, be present to the people and to come close to them.

It's why the priest was entrusted with the reading of the law, God's word, and the teaching of the law.

It's why the priest was entrusted with the task of giving benedictions, of pronouncing God's blessing over the people.

He was the one who bridged the gap and brought the presence of God in a way, mediated the presence of God to sinful Israel.

The presence of a holy God through the ministry of the priest came close to sinful people.

The priest bridges the gap.

But as important as the work of the Old Testament priests was, and this is important, their work was very important, but it was incomplete.

Their work was incomplete because the priests of the Old Testament, the members of the tribe of Levi, were imperfect.

They were sinners like you and me.

In other words, the bridge that they were able to offer was only temporary.

It could only last for a time.

And the bridge that they built, it would point forward to an even greater bridge, a more permanent bridge, an eternal bridge that would come by way of Jesus Christ.

A permanent bridge that would allow people from around the world and for every year to come to connect and to unite and to relate with the God who first gave them life.

Yeah, the priest bridges the gap, but the way that the priest bridges the gap ultimately it points forward to the one who is our great high priest who is always faithful and always merciful, Jesus Christ.

He completes what the priest started, what the priest tried to do and could not do, what they did was temporary, and Jesus makes it permanent.

You see, Jesus, he bridges the gap by giving his life.

Jesus bridges the gap by giving his life.

Listen to Hebrews chapter 2.

Hebrews 2 · chapter mention

This is verse 17.

I'm just reading the opening thought.

It says this, it says, Therefore, it was necessary for him to be made in every respect like us, his brothers and sisters.

Therefore, it was necessary for him to be made in every respect like us, so you and me, right, like people, his brothers and sisters.

That opening thought tells us something absolutely critical about the identity of Jesus Christ.

Jesus is fully human.

Jesus is fully human.

He is like us in every respect.

That means Jesus knows what it's like to be tempted.

Jesus knows what it's like to grow up.

Jesus knows what it's like to experience the range of human emotions.

Jesus knows what it's like to be betrayed.

Jesus knows what it's like to have friends who both are life-giving and life-consuming.

Jesus has experienced everything that we've experienced.

He doesn't appear to be human.

He is fully human.

I find great comfort in the full humanity of Jesus Christ.

I'm comforted by it.

Because that means that nothing I can experience in this world can catch him off guard.

He's experienced it himself.

It's one of the reasons why I think Jesus is such an amazing listener when I come to him in prayer.

He's been there, he's done that, he knows how hard it is.

He doesn't Say there, there, get over it.

He says, I know.

I felt that.

I've experienced that.

I'm right here with you.

I was fully human.

So Hebrews chapter 2, verse 17 affirms that Jesus is fully human.

Hebrews 2:17

But it's important to realize this.

Hebrews chapter 1 affirms that Jesus is fully God.

Hebrews 1 · chapter mention

So the chapter immediately prior to this affirms that Jesus is fully God.

Hebrews chapter 1, verse 3 says this the sun radiates God's own glory and expresses the very character of God.

Hebrews 1:3

In other words, whatever it is that makes God God, Jesus has it.

It's his very essence, it's his very being.

This means that Jesus is all powerful, he's all-knowing, he's all-wise, he's always good.

Anything that we know is true about God, we also can say is true about the Son of God, Jesus Christ.

So I want you to think about this real quick.

So what's our idea?

Jesus bridges the gap.

Okay?

Jesus bridges the gap between a holy God and sinful people.

He bridges the gap, a gap between God and people, right?

He bridges it.

Now think about what Hebrews chapter 1 and chapter 2 do.

Hebrews 1 · chapter mention

Hebrews chapter 1 affirms that what?

Hebrews 1 · chapter mention

Jesus is fully God.

And Jesus and Hebrews chapter 2 is fully man.

Hebrews 2 · chapter mention

In the person of Jesus Christ, the gap is bridged.

That God brings together humanity and the essence of God in one person.

That gap is bridged.

Without confusion, without distortion, without alteration.

Listen, Jesus isn't half God and half man.

I know some of you like half and half in your coffee.

Alright?

Jesus is fully God and fully man.

He's not 50-50.

He's 100-100.

And I don't fully understand it, but I know it's true.

I struggle to wrap my mind around it.

But I trust what God's word says about who Jesus is.

And it's because he's fully God and fully man that Jesus can bridge the gap.

Hebrews chapter 2, verse 17 continues this way.

Hebrews 2:17

It says this, it says, so that he could be our merciful and faithful high priest before God, then he could offer a sacrifice that would take away the sins of the people.

But unlike those priests who offered a sacrifice of goats and bulls, of animals, Jesus offers himself as the sacrificed.

By shedding his own blood.

Chapter 9, verse 12 of Hebrews puts it this way it says, with his own blood, not the blood of goats and calves, he entered the most holy place once for all time and secured our redemption forever.

Jesus bridges the gap.

No one else can bridge that gap, and he did it forever.

It's a permanent bridge.

It doesn't ever need to be rebuilt or refashioned or refabricated.

It's a permanent bridge that the Father has sent into this world so that men and women and boys and girls can relate and connect and unite with the God who first breathed them life.

But have you ever wondered why blood was necessary?

Why blood?

Now in our culture, we like stay away from blood.

Blood's gross, it's gory, you keep it outside of the house, you wash your hands, you wear gloves.

But in the ancient world, blood was just an acceptable part of everyday life.

You saw it everywhere.

And again, it was a powerful symbol.

A sign, a symbol of life.

So in the Old Testament, when an animal was slaughtered, and it would, its blood would be poured out, it was a sign and a symbol that the life of the animal was being given and poured out so that those who were dead, that was sinful Israel, might have their sins forgiven and receive the life of the sacrifice, the life they didn't have in and of themselves.

And in the same way, Jesus died on the cross, his blood, his life poured out for dead sinners like you and me.

But again, the difference is this the blood of the animals in the Old Testament was an annual, year-by-year sacrifice.

It was temporary.

But the blood of Jesus Christ is once and for all, it's permanent.

Jesus bridges the gap by giving his life.

One of our favorite writers is a guy named John Ortberg.

And John tells the story of one of his friends named Max.

Max was a medic in World War II.

And so it was Max's job when he would enter into a battlefield and see soldiers lying there on the brink of losing their life, that he would try to go and restore their life.

Try to help them heal, help the wounded, make it another day.

And one of the big parts of his job was Max would have to often give those men, those soldiers on the battlefield a transfusion of blood.

As Wortberg tells the story, though, Max had been given instructions and training that he was not only to care for Allied soldiers on the battlefield, he was to care for enemy soldiers as well.

And Max and his medic buddies, they noticed that on these bags of blood that they would give for a transfusion, that recorded on the bag of blood was the name of the person who gave their blood, right?

Whose blood it was, who was the source of it.

And Max and his buddies, they had this idea because they noticed that some of the last names suggested that the donor was Jewish.

And so Max and the other medics decided we'll save those blood, that blood for the Nazi soldiers.

And Max and his friends would walk forward and they would see the Nazi soldier, and they would say, You can be saved, but only if you're willing to receive the blood from a Jewish donor.

Of course, what Max said is not just true of a fallen soldier on a battlefield.

It's true of every fallen sinner.

You can only be saved by the blood of a Jewish donor, the blood of a Jewish Savior, Jesus Christ.

Jesus bridges the gap by giving his life.

Did you know that on the average day, 125,000 cars, 4,000 pedestrians, and about 2,600 cyclists cross the Brooklyn Bridge?

If you do the math, you multiply that out over just the course of a few weeks and a few days, quickly it's in the millions of people who cross between Brooklyn and Manhattan back and forth, back and forth, back and forth.

But as I think about the millions who have walked over that great bridge, I can't help but think about the millions who have crossed over the even greater bridge.

The millions around the world who have put their faith in Jesus Christ.

And by his blood shed on the cross and putting their faith in him, and as a gift of grace from God Himself, have been able to unite and connect and relate with the God who first gave them life.

Revelation chapter 7, verse 9 imagines those millions of people who've crossed over that bridge, put their faith in Jesus this way.

Revelation 7:9

It says, After this I saw a vast crowd, too great to count, from every nation and tribe and people and language standing in front of the throne and before the Lamb.

A number that far exceeds millions.

A number drawn from every corner and every continent on this globe.

All because of what?

Jesus bridges the gap by giving his life.

Here's the question then.

Have you walked over the bridge?

Have you walked over the bridge?

Have you put your faith in Jesus and begun a relationship with God?

Jesus has bridged a gap that we cannot bridge on our own by giving his life on a cross, dying for the sins of the world, and then rising again on the third day.

All of us have this desire within us to connect and unite and relate with people, to know and be known.

But ultimately, that desire to connect and unite and relate to know and be known will never be satisfied until you have a relationship with the God who first gave you life.

Have you crossed the bridge?

Do you want to cross that bridge today?

Let's stand together and pray.

Almighty God, loving Father.

We thank you that you sent Jesus Christ into this world and that he is our merciful and faithful high priest, the one who has bridged the gap for us.

We celebrate the gift and the victory of Jesus Christ and the cross and through his resurrection.

We celebrate that.

God, I couldn't build the bridge my own.

I'd be stuck.

Be lost without Jesus and be far away from you.

So, Lord, I just pray for those who walk the bridge, they put their faith in Jesus, that they would lean into the hope that they have and the power of his victory today.

That we get up close and personal with Jesus and realize Jesus not only has saved them to start that relationship, but because of Jesus, they can lean into and grow in that relationship.

And Lord, I pray for that person who has never put their faith in Jesus Christ, who has never started a relationship with you through Jesus.

He is the only way, the only bridge that allows people like us, people around this world, to have a relationship with the God who gave them life.

God, call us, call people in this room to salvation and faith in Jesus Christ today.

In your name we pray.

Amen.