Victory in Jesus

I tell you, there are times when you just don't want to stop singing.

! What a great time of worship.

Reminders of what Jesus has accomplished for us.

The victory, and you probably have seen this, a victory that we have in Jesus.

That has been the theme of our singing and the theme of this morning's message

as we look into his word in Romans chapter 8.

Romans 8 · chapter mention

It might not seem apparent what the connection is to Father's Day,

but there cannot be a better one.

Because you cannot be a father, and you cannot be a mother independent of the power

and the victory that Jesus has obtained for you,

and the victory that he wants to accomplish in and through your parenting.

Psalm 127.

Unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain who build it.

That's the message.

Essentially, repeat it again for us in Romans chapter 8

Romans 8 · chapter mention

that we're going to see this morning as we look into the word.

Victory in Jesus.

I was reminded of a story related to victory

and kind of related to kind of the impossibility of victory.

Several years ago, back in actually the 1980s,

there was, and I think continuing on even to this day,

there is a race that takes place in Australia.

I don't know the specific name, but essentially,

this race begins in Sydney and goes all the way to Melbourne, Australia,

which is 544 miles away.

A race that usually takes about seven days to complete.

They're running over 77 miles in a given day.

So like three times the length of a marathon they're doing every single day.

Well, in this race, of course, as you would expect,

there were the big names.

There were those who had these big sponsors, corporate sponsors.

They were the elite racers.

They came prepared.

They had all the right gear.

And one guy in particular who was racing this race

had already just previously won a 1,000-mile race in South Africa earlier that year.

He was kind of the favorite to win this 544-mile race in Sydney, Australia.

And up to the line, along with these elite athletes,

comes this old man, older man.

I want to be careful.

Older man.

I'm getting there myself.

So I got to, you know, age is relative, and it's not so old anymore.

So he was 61 years old, and he comes with his boots,

and he comes with his overalls,

and he is stepping up to the line ready to race.

His name was Cliff Young.

Well, these elite athletes look over at Cliff Young and say,

you've got to be kidding me.

Has anyone informed him that this is a race?

We're not in the pasture land.

This is Cliff Young.

He was a shepherd in Australia.

And one of the things that he would have to do oftentimes

was he would have to run after the sheep,

and he had this huge amount of property,

and no horse and no vehicle to get him to where the sheep were.

So his only mode of transportation was to run after the sheep

and to try to herd them before a big storm would come.

And he would literally run for two consecutive days

just trying to round up these sheep and get them to the right spot.

So he thought, hey, I am well equipped for this race.

Well, they got started, and as you would expect,

the elite racers left Cliff Young in the dust.

And the strategy was we race for 18 hours and then rest for six

so that every day you could maximize your speed and also your rest

and so compress the number of hours of rest

and maximize the hours of running,

and that was the strategy.

Well, no one told Cliff Young what the conventional wisdom of this race was.

He had absolutely no idea.

He had never raced a day before in his life.

Well, Cliff Young, of course, lumbering along

and more of a shuffle than a run,

he is making his way and never stops

except for a couple of hours the first night

and only one hour the second night.

He just kept running and running and running.

And after that first evening where everyone else was resting,

in the morning of that second day,

he ends up passing this group of elite racers.

Well, that wasn't a problem because, you see,

by the second day they had taken off

and they had covered that ground and increased that gap once again.

But after the second day and then the third day

and now into the fourth day of racing,

Cliff Young had put enough distance between him

and the rest of the racers

that he was beginning to create a measure of fear in their lives.

Hmm.

Maybe he's not going to stop after all.

Maybe we need to get a move on

and try to cover this distance as fast as we can.

And on the fifth day,

Cliff Young shattered the record of seven days

by crossing the finish line,

ten hours before the second place runner.

It was a feat that was incomprehensible,

impossible in everyone's opinion.

It was something that was never considered to be a logical conclusion,

but in fact, Cliff Young had victory in that race.

As we've been talking about no condemnation in Romans 8, verse 1,

Romans 8:1

it begins with,

there is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free

from the law of sin and death.

For God did what the law weakened by the flesh could not do.

By sending his Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin,

he condemned sin in the flesh.

In order that the righteous requirement of the law

might be fulfilled in us

who walk not according to the flesh,

but according to the Spirit.

As we've been walking through this passage,

we have been realizing that the declaration of no condemnation

is not because you do not deserve condemnation.

It is not because I don't deserve condemnation,

but because there was a declaration of God of righteousness on you

because of Jesus Christ, His Son.

And what He accomplished for you,

He continues that work with the Holy Spirit,

creating a whole new law in your life,

a whole new power,

a whole new principle,

that that law of the Spirit of life

turns you loose

and sets you free

from the law of sin and death.

You no longer have to succumb

to the sin that is in you.

And this morning,

as we look at the Scripture,

we look at verses 3 and 4,

we will begin to see

what is truly incomprehensible

in relationship to how victory was obtained.

It was a logical impossibility

that Jesus Christ Himself,

God, would become flesh

and dwell among His people

in the likeness of sinful flesh

and then conquer sin in His flesh.

This morning, I want to look at three,

three ways that Jesus Christ

claimed victory for Himself

and makes victory possible for you.

But before we do that, let's pray.

Lord, this morning,

as we look into Your Word,

at the amazing truths that we will see,

we pray that You will impress those truths

on our heart and life

and that You will make them true for us

to Your glory.

That the victory that You have obtained

through Your Son, Jesus Christ,

is a victory that would be realized in us.

Not just a victory that You declare,

not just a righteousness that You give,

but a righteousness that we live

through the power of the Holy Spirit,

working victory through us for Your glory.

We pray that You would be pleased

with all that is communicated this morning

through Your Word.

In Jesus' name, amen.

First, I want you to see in verse 3

that we have victory

because Jesus fulfilled the law.

Jesus fulfilled the law.

It says in verse 3,

For God has done with the law

weakened by the flesh,

could not do

by sending His own Son

in the likeness of human flesh.

Jesus fulfilled the law.

And He did that two ways.

First, He fulfilled the law

through His humanity.

He fulfilled the law

through His humanity.

God has done with the law

weakened by the flesh,

could not do

by sending His own Son

in the likeness of sinful flesh.

We've seen that there is no condemnation.

We have come to realize

that God has given us this gift,

this declaration of righteousness

over those who are in Christ Jesus.

That is the condition.

It is not over the world in its entirety,

but over those who are in Christ.

Those are the ones who get to enjoy

the benefits of this gift.

No condemnation.

Paul wants us to understand

that it was not because

the law was not good.

It was not because God did not give us

something that was perfect

and right and helpful in the law.

But the law could not be fulfilled

because it was conditioned upon

the weakness of human flesh.

because of humans' sinfulness,

because of our tendencies

through Adam to sin.

Even though the law was good,

it could not do for us

what it was intended to accomplish.

Just turn back with me for a moment

to Romans chapter 7,

Romans 7 · chapter mention

and I'll just walk through this

briefly for you.

Beginning in verse 7.

Romans chapter 7, verse 7.

Romans 7:7

If you're a guest with us,

you'll find that on page 943 and 944.

That's Romans 7 and Romans 8.

Here's what Paul says.

He says,

What shall we say?

That the law is sin?

By no means.

Yet if it had not been for the law,

I would not have known sin.

Now verse 8.

But sin, seizing an opportunity

through the commandment,

produced in me all kinds of covetousness.

For apart from the law,

sin lies dead.

Now down to verse 10.

The very commandment that promised life

proved to be death to me.

Verse 12.

So the law is holy,

and the commandment is holy,

and righteous, and good.

Verse 13.

Did that which is good

then bring death in me?

By no means.

It was sin producing death in me

through what is good,

in order that sin might be shown to be sin,

and through the commandment

might become sinful beyond measure.

Paul's point is this.

The law is not the problem.

You and I are the problem.

It was not that God didn't communicate

or give the perfect standard,

and that perfect standard

being very good for us to receive.

But the law couldn't accomplish

its intended objective

because the law was weakened

by the tendencies

and the sinful corruption

of those who were seeking

to carry out the law's demands.

So,

what does God do

to address the weakness

of sinful flesh?

What does God do

to help correct the sin problem?

Well,

He decides

to send His Son.

To send His Son

in the likeness,

and that's a really important word,

to send His Son

in the likeness

of sinful flesh

so that He could conquer sin

once and for all.

He accomplished it

in a way

that defied all of logic.

God became man.

God Himself

took on human flesh,

the likeness of sinful flesh,

and He was able

to live a perfect life.

Philippians chapter 2, 7

Philippians 2 · chapter mention

puts it this way,

He made Himself

of no reputation,

taking the form

of a servant

and coming

in the likeness

of men.

Jesus was willing

to subject Himself

to every human emotion,

every human temptation,

every human weakness,

so that He could not only

experience it for Himself,

but so that He could conquer it

once and for all.

He was willing to weep.

He was willing

to be grieved.

He got hungry.

He showed compassion.

He displayed righteous anger.

He depended on God the Father.

He was guided

by the Holy Spirit.

He was tempted

in the wilderness

and also before the cross.

He needed to be strengthened.

He was limited in knowledge

and He limited His knowledge

based upon what the Father

gave to Him access to.

He had friendships.

He built community.

All of the things

that we would experience

in life as humanity,

Jesus was willing to embrace

so that He could then

conquer sin

once and for all for us.

but in His humanity,

He did not submit

to human sinfulness.

We find from Hebrews 4, verse 15

Hebrews 4:15

that He was tempted

in all points,

just as we are,

yet without sin.

And that leads us

to this next point.

He fulfilled the law

in His humanity,

but He also fulfilled the law

through His holiness.

through His holiness.

God did what the law

could not do.

God was able

in holiness

to meet the standard

of the law.

He says in Matthew,

Matthew 5:17

chapter 5, verse 17,

this is Jesus speaking,

Sermon on the Mount.

He says,

Do not think that I have come

to abolish the law

or the prophets.

I have not come

to abolish them,

but to fulfill them.

For truly I say to you,

unless,

until heaven and earth

pass away,

not an iota,

not a dot,

will pass from the law

until all is accomplished.

Because,

Jesus came

to fulfill the law.

To do

what no one before Him

had ever been able

to accomplish.

There had been no man,

no woman,

no priest,

no prophet,

no king,

not even Moses

or Daniel

or anyone

was able

to fulfill

the law

as God

had prescribed.

Only Jesus

was able

to do this.

Only Jesus

was the fulfillment

of the law.

And we see

even in the earliest

stages of Jesus' life,

this conformity

and compliance

to the requirements

of the law itself.

even His parents

on the eighth day

circumcising Him

and then on the

fortieth day

bringing Him

to be consecrated

in the temple.

That's where we find

in Luke chapter 2

Luke 2 · chapter mention

He's brought

in the company

of Simeon

who sees

the future Redeemer

right there

in His hands.

He took pilgrimages

with His parents

to Jerusalem

on Passover.

He honored

His parents.

He obeyed

the commands

of the Sabbath.

He spoke the truth.

He paid

the temple tax.

And even in healing

on the Sabbath

He conformed

His life

to the standards

of the Sabbath

and that was mercy.

Mercy for those

who needed it.

He confronted sin.

He washed feet.

He served the crowds.

In every way

Jesus was the

composite

of perfection.

And as Jesus

describes in

Matthew chapter 5

Matthew 5 · chapter mention

and 6

and 7

it wasn't just

the outward expression

of the law

that was important

it was also

the secret intentions

of the heart

the motives

that were also

significant.

And so Jesus

didn't murder

but even more

Jesus did not

get angry

at His brother.

Jesus did not

commit adultery

but He also

did not lust

after another person.

He did not

demand eye

for an eye

or tooth

for a tooth

and He also

was willing

to turn

the other cheek.

When reviled

He did not

revile in return

as we find

in 1 Peter

1 Peter 2 · chapter mention

chapter 2.

He did not

curse His enemies

but loved them

and prayed for them

and asked

the Father

to forgive them.

He did not

perform His righteous

deeds

out in the open

so that people

could revere Him

but He prayed

in private

and even

so many of His

prominent miracles

were done

in privacy

of home.

He concealed

His glory

in the

transfiguration.

The glory

that He

had access to

He was willing

to conceal

for the sake

of humility.

He honored

the law

to the letter

both internally

and externally.

And by fulfilling

the law

Jesus then

positioned Himself

to condemn

sin

in the flesh

as we find

continuing on

in this passage.

Jesus not only

fulfilled

the law

but He

condemned sin

as we see

in the second part

of verse 3.

Jesus

condemned

sin.

It says

by sending

His own

Son

in the likeness

of sinful

flesh

and for sin

He condemned

sin

in the flesh.

Well how did

Jesus do this?

How did He

condemn

sin

in the flesh?

And I

just want to make

sure we understand

we're all on the

same page.

When it says

He condemned

sin

it's not just

talking about

the fact that

He proclaimed

judgment

against sin

that He called

it what it was

that it was

wicked

and wrong.

It wasn't

that He just

assigned a label

to it as

being condemned

by God

but that Jesus

in actuality

received the

punishment for sin

and it was

condemned.

The sentence

and the penalty

for sin

was absorbed

by Jesus

Himself.

Of course

our minds

go immediately

to His death

on the cross

as being

the foremost

way in which

Jesus condemned

sin.

But I want to

just back up

for a moment

and I want

to suggest

to you

that Jesus

also condemned

sin through

His ministry.

And He did

that in at least

three different

ways.

He condemned

sin through

His ministry.

First we see

the condemnation

of sin

and even

the purpose

statements

that Jesus

has for

the ministry

that He

had.

Luke chapter

Luke 4:18

4 verses

18 and 19

says this

Now we'll get

to this in just

a moment.

But I want you

to recognize

that in this

purpose statement

what Jesus

is saying

is He came

to free

oppression.

And not just

spiritual

oppression

but we will

see in just

a moment

that Jesus

wanted to

illustrate the

work that He

intended to do

in a physical

way by reversing

the effects

of sin

and healing

people

of those

very things

that sin

ravaged bodies

experience.

The effects

and consequences

of sin

Jesus came

to deliver.

We'll get there

in just a

moment.

But this

verse

particularly

in pointing

to the

work of

God

in freeing

the real

oppression

that we

experience

not just

in a physical

way

but especially

in a spiritual

way.

His purpose

statement in

Mark chapter

Mark 10:45

10 verse

45 says

this

For even

the Son

of Man

came not

to be

served

but to

serve

and to

give His

life a

ransom for

many.

And then

in Matthew

Matthew 9:13

chapter 9

verse 13

I desire

mercy

and not

sacrifice

for I

did not

come to

call the

righteous

but sinners

to repentance.

Does that

leave any

question in

your mind?

What Jesus

came to

do

the purpose

of His

ministry

which means

not just

the final

objective

of His

ministry

but His

purpose

of His

ministry

all the way

through

every one

of those

three years

was committed

to this

purpose

and to

demonstrate

it in a

vivid

illustrative

way

to give us

a portrait

of what

God desires

to do

for sinners.

Second

we see

throughout His

ministry

that He

occasionally

says

your sins

are forgiven

you.

He says

to the

paralytic

he says

when the

men bring

him in

the first

thing he

does is

say your

sins

is forgiven

you.

And the

Pharisees

and the

scribes

in objective

say who

is this

person?

Only God

can forgive

sins.

To which

Jesus responds

yeah that's

exactly what

I'm trying

to say.

Is it

easier for

me to

say rise

and walk

or is it

easier for

me to

say your

sins are

forgiven

you?

And to

demonstrate I

have power

to do

both I'm

going to

say rise

up and

walk so

that you

know that

God has

given me

the authority

to do

both.

Jesus

came to

forgive

sins.

He says

the same

to the

blind man

who he

healed.

One of my

very favorite

stories in

the book of

John where

this really

smart mouthed

blind man comes

to faith in

Jesus Christ

and he goes

into the

temple and

he's confronted

by the

Pharisees and

he says

hey what are

you doing

here?

And he has

this little

interaction with

the Pharisees and

he said hey you

want to be

disciples of

Jesus too?

and I

just gotta love

that guy.

He was able

to say what

Jesus couldn't

in some ways.

His sarcasm

really got to

the heart

of the

difficulty that

these Pharisees

had with

Jesus'

ministry.

And Jesus

tells him

your sins

are forgiven

go and

sin no more.

And also

to the woman

who was caught

in adultery

his compassion

and forgiveness

for him

for her

but also

sending her

out and

saying go

and sin

no more.

There was

in Jesus'

life in

ministry a

commitment

to forgiveness.

He was the

friend of

sinners and

tax collectors.

That was the

focus and

the objective

of his

ministry.

But third

he condemned

the consequences

of sin by

healing broken

bodies.

By healing

sin ravaged

bodies.

By reversing

the effects

of the

consequences

of sin

Jesus said

I am here

to fix

all of

this.

Raising

Lazarus

from the

dead.

Healing

leprosy.

Overcoming

years of

paralysis.

Restoring

sight to the

blind.

Casting out

demons.

Jesus

states

emphatically

I am here

to resurrect.

I am here

to save.

I am here

to deliver.

I am here

to turn

the effects

of sin

upside down.

But as we

know even

in that

physical way

it was only

temporary.

It was only

meant really

to point

people

to the

enduring

reversal

of sin

that could

only come

through

Jesus'

death.

It was

a picture.

A temporary

picture

however it

was

to point

to the

enduring

picture

of what

his death

was meant

to accomplish.

To totally

and ultimately

and finally

reverse the

effects

of sin

through

his

death

he condemned

sin

in the

flesh.

Jesus

in condemning

sin in the

flesh

through his

death

agrees

with the

father

that sin

is worthy

of eternal

punishment.

Jesus

in submitting

himself

to the

will of

the father

stepping

into

the cross

and into

death

a willingness

to endure

the suffering

and the pain

and the

condemnation

for us

agrees

with the

father

to say

sin

is worthy

of final

punishment

eternal

damnation.

Jesus

willingly

on that

Passover

becomes

the Passover

lamb.

Why death?

Well

because the

wages of

sin is

death

but

the gift

of God

is eternal

life

through

Jesus

Christ

our

Lord.

Why blood?

Well

because as we

find in

Hebrews

9

22

without

the

shedding

of

blood

there

is

no

forgiveness

of

sin

that

life

would

correlate

excuse me

the blood

would correlate

to life

it would be a

symbol

of life

and as the

priest would

sprinkle their

garments

as they

would sprinkle

the people

as they

would sprinkle

the altar

it would be a

representation

of the

blood

the life

blood

sacrifice

the

costliness

of sin

that Jesus

would ultimately

pay

through

his

blood

and through

his

life

on the

cross

1 Peter

1

2

says this

we are

elect

according to

the foreknowledge

of God

the father

in sanctification

of the spirit

for obedience

and sprinkling

of the blood

of Jesus

Christ

John

3

17

and 18

confirms

that

by saying

this

for God

did not

send his

son into

the world

to condemn

the world

but that

the world

through him

might

be saved

he who

believes

in him

is not

condemned

but he

who does

not believe

is condemned

already

because he

has not

believed

in the name

of the

only

begotten

son

of God

now we

have a

third

point

but we

don't have

time to

get there

this morning

and I

don't want

to rush

it

because

I want

to make

sure

we spend

some time

on this

but I

want to

conclude

just with

just with

some

statements

this morning

if you

are not

one

who

has

believed

in him

you put

yourself

in a

place

of

condemnation

you are

rightly

condemned

as we

all

are rightly

condemned

because of

sin

the wages

of sin

is death

but

because

of the

offering

of Jesus

Christ

because

of his

work

of

death

on the

cross

and

resurrection

life

he

has

obtained

for us

for any

who believe

he has

obtained

for us

the gift

of no

condemnation

so the

call

for us

this

morning

the call

to you

this

morning

are you

one

who can

say

there is

no

condemnation

written

over your

life

because

condemnation

landed

on the

shoulders

of your

savior

it is

an open

call

it is

a

beckoning

of our

savior

come

all those

who are

weary

and heavy

laden

and you

will find

rest

for your

soul

for my

yoke

is easy

my

burden

is light

so come

to me

one song

that has

really

ministered

to me

over the

years

is the

song

alleluia

what a

savior

says this

man of

sorrows

what a

name

for the

son of

god

who came

ruined

the

sinners

to reclaim

alleluia

what a

savior

bearing

shame

and

scoffing

rude

in my

place

condemned

he stood

sealed

my

pardon

with his

blood

alleluia

what a

savior

guilty

vile

and helpless

we

spotless

lamb of

god

was he

full

atonement

oh how

can it

be

alleluia

what a

savior

lifted up

was he

to die

it is

finished

was his

cry

now in

heaven

exalted

high

alleluia

what a

savior

let's pray

miracle