Christ, the Exalted Son of Man

Return with me to the book of Daniel, if you will. I will finish out the remainder of that chapter before we will begin the remainder of the sermon for this evening.

Daniel chapter number seven, we'll be reading verse 15 forward. It is known to me the interpretations of these four things. Those great beasts, which are four, are four kings which arise out of the earth. But the saints of the most high shall receive the kingdom and possess the kingdom forever, even forever and ever. Then I wish to know the truth about the fourth beast, which was different from all the others, exceedingly dreadful, with its teeth of iron and snails of bronze, which devoured and broke in pieces and trampled with the residue with its feet, and the ten horns that were on its head, and the other horn which came up before which three fell, namely that horn which had eyes and a mouth, which spoke pompous words, whose appearance was greater than his fellows. I was watching, and the same horn was making war against the saints and prevailing against them, until the ancient of days came, and a judgment was made in favor of the saints of the most high, and the time came for the saints to possess the kingdom. And thus he said, The fourth beast shall be a fourth kingdom on the earth, which shall be different from all other kingdoms.

It shall devour the whole earth, trample it, and break it in pieces. The ten horns are ten kings, who shall arise from this kingdom, and another shall rise after them. He shall be different from the first ones, and shall subdue three kings. He shall speak pompous words against the most high, shall persecute the saints of the most high, and shall intend to change times and law. Then the saints shall be given into his hand for a time and times and half a time. But the courts shall be seated, and they shall take away his dominion to consume and destroy it forever. Then the kingdom and dominion and the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven shall be given to the people, the saints of the most high. His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him.

This is the end of the account. As for me, Daniel, my thoughts greatly troubled me, and my countenance changed, but I kept the matter in my heart. In C.S. Lewis's book, The Last Battle, you are immediately introduced to a character by the name of Shift. Shift is an arrogant old ape, and he has an ignorant sidekick by the name of Puzzle. Puzzle is a donkey. And it becomes immediately apparent that Shift utilizes the dim-witted yet unwavering faithfulness of Puzzle to benefit himself.

To put it simply, this is a one-sided relationship. And as we travel through this story, we find that the two of them trample upon a dead lion, and Shift conjures up the idea that if he were to put this lion skin on Puzzle, that he would be able to, in hazy conditions, pass Puzzle off as the lion, Aslan himself. And through this, Shift sneakily deigns himself to be the spokesperson of Puzzle or Aslan, and through this he becomes the leader of a false religion. And it is through this discovery of power that the already corrupt Shift exalts himself, and he performs horrible atrocities such as persecution and manipulation, and even the murder on the people of Narnia for the sake of money and power. Things aren't right in Narnia anymore.

Now, C.S. Lewis wasn't unfamiliar with pain. In his book, A Grief Observed, which is a book he secretly wrote concerning the dying days of his wife, he wrote this on page 12, cancer and cancer and cancer, my mother and then my father and now my wife, I wonder who is the next in queue. From a small boy, Lewis was brought to understand the reality that we all who have been living with our eyes open for any length of time understand, which is that things are not right. We live in a broken world. Families hurt and they are split up. Children are manipulated and abused for selfish gain.

Jobs are lost. The righteous are hated. Sickness comes. Death comes. And it leads us with our eyes hazed over in agony to cry out, Oh, Lord, how much longer?

What is the solution to this agony? We live in a world where atrocities, heartache and injustices abound and society's solution is not to flee to Christ, but rather they fling us into the endless hamster wheel of death scrolling through social media and numbing ourselves with substances to escape the realities that exist around us. This isn't just a heartache that you and myself as well as C. S. Lewis are accustomed to. As we look here in Daniel 7 tonight, we immediately need to notice a shift in current events that is taking place, which is that King Belshazzar has now ascended the throne in Babylon. And it is in that same year that Daniel is going to receive a vision, a dream from the Lord. Now, what I want to highlight for us is that Daniel has been brought into Babylonian captivity as a teenager, as a young man. And with the ascent of Belshazzar being in focus, this would place us around 50 to 52 years of Daniel's life being spent in captivity. One writer brought out that we must step into the shoes of Daniel here.

The old king has died. A new one is rising. And in the midst of this time, Daniel receives a vision. And certainly we must imagine that for a moment, Daniel is thinking perhaps just maybe God is going to deliver us. Perhaps we're going home. Perhaps we will be able to resurrect the temple.

Perhaps we will be free. But that's not the news that Daniel receives. And as we dive into what he did receive, I want to go ahead and give you point one for tonight, which is this, the reality of evil. The reality of evil.

Once more with the C. S. Lewis illustration because he makes good illustrations. In the voyage of the Dawn Treader, Eustace Scrub has been somewhat of a difficult guy to be around. He's entitled. He's stuck up. He's rude. He's self-centered.

Just not an enjoyable character. And as the crew is making their voyage, they land on the island and Eustace decides that he is going to sneak away while the rest is doing work. And he makes his way into this this cave and discovers what is seemingly an abandoned dragon lair.

And it is full of gold, as C. S. Lewis writes, because everyone knows that dragons love gold. And so he goes in there and he enjoys himself. He enjoys himself until he lies down and falls into a slumber and not too long passes before he wakes up and is startled to hear the breathing of a dragon. And so he is filled with fear and he begins to run and he begins to run.

But the noises and the clashes and the breathing glow grows louder and louder and louder. And he thinks I will never escape. That is until he makes his way to a lake and he sees a reflection and he comes to accept the reality that he has become that very creature that he was so terrified of seeing. Sin can sneak up on us. This is what the Father tells or God tells Cain that sin is crouched and it is ready to pounce upon you. It can sneak up on us. It can turn us into beasts that we never imagined.

And it can corrupt men who were created to glorify God into self-seeking, God-hating monsters. In verse 2 of Daniel's vision, he begins to describe this vision that he has received. And we find a description of four beasts. Now notice with me the language throughout this passage. Verse 2, there is a tumultuous sea. Now we have to understand the Hebrew mind here. The Jews were not necessarily known for being an aquatic people. That was typically known by the Greeks.

They were a very domineering people when it came to the waters. And especially in the New Testament, you will find that imagery of water is usually associated with the Gentiles and with evil. That is an imagery they use very often in the scriptures. In verse 3, there are four beasts that are going to begin to be detailed.

And in verse 4, we find that the first one is a hybrid creature of sorts. It is like a lion. It has eagle's wings.

It has the mind of a man and it is standing up on two feet. The second beast in verse 5 is perhaps even scarier. It looks like a bear and it is chomping down on a mouthful of ribs and it is declared over it, Go and devour more flesh.

We were just at Glacier National Park just a week and a half ago and we saw a little bear running up there. Now if I am in the woods and I make my way before and I look up and there is a grizzly there who is eating ribs and he lifts his eyes and over him is announced, Go and devour more flesh. Great fear is going to dwell within me who is standing before this grizzly.

Get in his shoes there. Now in verse 6, we find another beast that seems to be a four-headed leopard with wings like a bird on his back and this one is described as having dominion. It is a powerful and terrifying beast. And then in verse 7, Daniel tells us of a beast that terrifies him and he describes it as having massive iron teeth. It has in verse 8 a head full of horns, 10 to be exact, and on top of it is one tiny little horn that has eyes like a man and he is boasting loudly and this beast is on a rampage of destruction. It is devouring. It is breaking.

It is stomping. This is a scene of terror. This is a scene of carnage and of fear struck within the heart of Daniel.

And now as we read this, we need to step back and ask ourselves what in the world is taking place here? And that's the same question that Daniel has in verse 16 as he steps forward to ask the one who is in the vision to describe to him what he is seeing. In verse 17 through 25, we find that these are not monsters from a science fiction movie. They are symbolic images describing the terror of the four kingdoms that have arisen or will arise.

Now I'll make a side point here. This is what is called apocalyptic imagery. And I think it would be fitting to add that it is important for us to cultivate a reading diet of more than news articles and nonfiction, because if our minds only think in black and white, we cannot feel the thrust and the power of the poetic and apocalyptic imageries that are in the Bible. OK. We need to have more flavor in our minds to understand what the Bible is speaking of.

There are multiple genres in the scriptures. And in this one here, you should feel the thrust and the terror that is being perpetrated in this passage. You should too be shaking in your boots to imagine being the recipient of that vision, because you are. You are the recipient. It's right here. It's been gifted to us. Look and read and feel the terror.

Now, I want us to ask ourselves this question. Who are these four beasts? Well, with the first beast, we see that it is a lion with eagle's wings. This is similar to the imagery we're given in Daniel 2, where we find Daniel interpreting Nebuchadnezzar's dream of the great statue. Now, as we become accustomed to Nebuchadnezzar in books like Jeremiah and Ezekiel, we find that he is symbolized as a lion or as an eagle.

Jeremiah 50 verse 17 says, Israel is hunt is a hundred sheep driven away by lions. First, the king of Assyria devoured him. And now at last, Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, has gnawed his bones. Ezekiel 17 3 says, thus says the Lord God, a great eagle with great wings and long pinions, rich in plumage of many colors, came to Babylon and took the top of the cedar. And that's eluding in context to Nebuchadnezzar. With that said, I believe that the first beast that we see here is referring to Babylon, the Babylonian kingdom at the time of Daniel.

And if that is accurate, which most commentators agree upon, then we can move forward with history and find for ourselves who are these future kingdoms that are going to come along. And to keep it short and simple, I believe, as most scholars tend to agree with, that this is the Medo-Persian Empire, followed by the Greek Empire, and then finally the Roman Empire. Now, the bear with ribs in its mouth may be attributed to the Medo-Persian Empire's military conquest. The leopard with wings is a depiction of Greece's quick campaigns to conquer territory.

As a matter of fact, to give you an illustration of that, Alexander the Great invaded Asia Minor in 344 BC, and within 10 years he conquered the entire Medo-Persian Empire. And lastly, the fourth and terrifying beast is Rome. The aggression in that language there, the fear, Rome was unlike any empire we had ever really truly read of in history. And what we find here is a depiction of how violently it will dominate the world and how proudly it boasts itself underneath the Pops Ramona, the piece of Rome.

So this is what is being found here. This is describing how there will be terrifying kingdoms and they will, as seen in the fourth kingdom, blaspheme and boast themselves against the Lord God. And what I believe is being communicated to Daniel here is that though he, as well as all of us in 2023 are, we are tired of bondage. We're tired of the pain. We're tired of the sinfulness.

We're tired of the hurt in life in this broken world. And as Daniel is expecting a form of deliverance in this year, the vision comes to him that not only are you in the midst of bondage, but there's more terror that's going to come. I believe that this story is depicting for us the horrors of sin. Sin defaces and it devours and it distorts and it corrupts.

I want you to remember with me back in Genesis. I want you to think about how in Genesis God is creating mammals according to their own image and birds according to their likenesses and humanity according to their likeness and fish according to their likeness. And so there's these different categories he puts them into, but as we look here, Daniel is describing these are hybrid beasts. They're outside of the realms we find dangerous good. And not only do we find in Genesis that as God creates all things, it is good before there is murder and pain and disobedience and heartache. Here we find that these are creatures or kingdoms dedicated to destruction and horror. This is an antichrist kingdom. These are anti-God. They're anti-creation. They are revolting against what God deigns to be good.

Patrick Shriner, a wonderful resource, says apocalyptic literature pulls back the curtain on reality. God is aware of the heartache and sin and pain in the world. In short, we can say that things are not okay when mankind rebels against God. Well, what do we carry away from this? What do we get as we read this? Well, first, I believe we need to be reminded that God is fully aware of what is taking place in his world.

Both what is happening and what is to come. Beloved, as me and Pastor Latour were speaking the other day, we just rejoice in the fact we do not serve a reactionary God. He declares what will be from the beginning. There is nothing that surprises him. There is none who will usurp his authority.

There is none who will catch him off guard. God is aware of what is occurring in this world. And in the midst of the horrid atrocities taking place in our society and in this world, we just have to rest and understand that we serve a sovereign God who one day will do what is right. Second, I believe we need to be reminded of the corrupting power of sin. Yes, we are aware of the sinfulness of the world, but we must, we have to be careful here. We need to prevent ourselves from thinking of sin as a merely out there kind of problem, a kind of them issue. When I pastored at Five Forks, I pastored a church primarily made up of cattle farmers and tobacco farmers. And what's interesting, right there in Cedar Grove, is that if you drive 10 minutes away, you have Hillsboro, which has become just a miniature Chapel Hill.

And so you've got your overall wearing, flannel wearing, country boys, and then you have your multicolored haired friends hanging out at the coffee shops in Hillsboro to diverse, diverse groups of people. And everyone thinks that the other group has the problem. And that's an issue if we are in the church, because we have to be careful here and understand the stealthiness of sin. Beloved, were it not for the grace of God, we would happily reside amongst the beast here in Daniel. One writer says this, seeing the stealthiness of sin brings to light the necessity of accountability in the believer's life.

Amen to that. Though this text shows us the reality of sin, thank God it does not end there. The beast will not always rage. And that leads us to our second point, which is Christ, the exalted Son of Man.

The story doesn't end there, thankfully. In Daniel 7 verse 9, Daniel tells us that he sees the ancient of days, seated in a throne. And he tells us that the ancient of days is seen as clothed with white garments, with hair like pure wool and a throne like a fiery flame. Daniel is depicting for us that God is pure. He is wise.

He is gloriously just and in control. And verse 10, notice the phrase at the very end, the court was seated. So what we are seeing here in the midst of all the terror that Daniel has beheld, he lifts his eyes and we see a court scene taking place. We see the just, wise and pure judge seated in his throne. And before him come these evil kingdoms to answer to him.

The books are open. The meeting begins. And in verses 11 through 12, we see that God delivers forth a death sentence to this little horn of Rome. An antichrist like figure. And as for the rest of these kingdoms, verse 12 and 13 describe for us that he strips them of their dominion, but allows them to go on for a time. This is declaring to us tonight that no matter the might of the highest, most fearful kingdoms on earth, none can stand before God. In verse 13, Daniel sees now another who is approaching.

Daniel 7, 13 through 14 says, I was watching in the night visions and behold, one like the son of man coming with the clouds of heaven. He came to the ancient of days and they brought him near before him. Then to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom that all peoples, nations and languages should serve him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion which shall not pass away and his kingdom, the one which shall not be destroyed. This is the one who will stand before God and not be consumed. This is God's chosen king who is exalted and who will reign forevermore.

And we ask ourselves this question exactly who is this king? Who is this one, the son of man? If we are familiar with our synoptic gospels, we will find that Jesus's favorite descriptor of himself is I am the son of man. And it infuriates me when I see atheists state that Jesus is denying his deity by calling himself the son of man.

That is why it is important for us to be biblically literate in today's society. In Mark 2, we find that Jesus is sitting and down comes a paralytic. And as he looks at this paralytic, he says, son, your sins are forgiven you.

And the scribes and Pharisees present didn't much like that. And so Jesus says in Mark 2, 9 through 12, OK, which is easier for me to say, to say to the paralytic, your sins are forgiven you or to say to him, arise, take up your bed and walk. He said to the paralytic, I say to you, arise, take up your bed and go to your house. And immediately he arose, took up the bed and went out in the presence of them all so that all were amazed and glorified God, saying, we never saw anything like this. So who is the son of man? Now, notice with me, verse 10 again, let me highlight that. But so that you might know that the son of man has power on earth to forgive sins, he said to the paralytic. So who is the son of man? Well, according to Jesus, it's him.

It's him. And what's more fascinating here is the stark differences between him and the kingdoms in Daniel 7. In Daniel 7, those kingdoms had authority. And what did they do with their authority?

They devoured one another. There's pain, there's heartache, there's tumult, there's grappling, there's trampling, there's stomping, there's chomping. What does Jesus do with his authority? He comes forth with grace. He comes forth with compassion.

He heals the paralytic. He is in essence the true human, as it were. Jesus is the son of God, the most high. He is very God of very God. He has never had a beginning and he will never have an end. And it has been, according to his own divine wisdom and pleasure, his pleasure to come and to robe himself in humanity, as it were, to walk a mile in our shoes. And not only did he do it, but he did it perfectly. And what we see when Jesus comes as the son of man, he is doing what Adam wholly failed to do.

He is the perfect man. He is the God-man, Christ Jesus. Look with me, if you will, in Mark 14. It is this great and compassionate Lord that they crucify, but through his humiliation is brought his exaltation. Now here in Mark 14, we find that Jesus has been betrayed and he is now standing before the Sanhedrin. And in verse 61, we read this, he kept silent and he answered nothing. Again, the high priest asked him, saying to him, are you the Christ, the son of the blessed?

Jesus said, I am. And you will see the son of man sitting at the right hand of the power and coming with the clouds of heaven. Then, I'm just going to keep reading because I adore the terror and the anger in the minds of the Pharisees. Then the high priest tore his clothes and said, what further need do you have of witnesses? You have heard the blasphemy.

What do you think? And they all condemned him to be deserving of death. Then some began to spit on him and to blindfold him and to beat him and to say to him, prophesy and the officer struck him with the palms of their hands. Jesus is aware that he's going to die. Guys, he's been telling his followers that for quite some time now. And in the face of what would be his impending death, he declares that he is going to soon triumph over such humiliation and he will be most gloriously exalted. And when Jesus looks at this council and he says he is the son of man, he is not denying that he is the son of God. Rather, he is declaring that he is the only one who will stand before the father being fully righteous, having conquered death and he will be exalted to rule and to reign forever and ever. This is what Psalm 2 is talking about. I'm going to read it for you because Psalm 2 is just marvelously beautiful.

And we need to understand what it is talking about here. Psalm 2 reads, Why do the nations rage and the people plot a vain thing? The kings of earth set themselves and the rulers take counsel together against the Lord and against his anointed, saying, Let us break their bonds in pieces and cast away their cords from us. But he who sits in heaven shall laugh. The Lord shall hold them in derision. Then he shall speak to them in wrath and distress them in deep displeasure, saying, Yet I have set my king on my holy hill of Zion. I will declare the decree the Lord has said to me, You are my son. Today I have begotten you.

Ask of me and I will give you the nations for your inheritance and the ends of the earth for your possession. You shall break them with a rod of iron. You shall dash them to pieces like a potter's vessel. Now, therefore, be wise. The Psalmist is going to apply it to their lives. O kings, be instructed, you judges of the earth, serve the Lord with fear and rejoice with trembling.

Kiss the sun lest he be angry and lest you perish in the way when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all those who put their trust in him. And Jesus connects in his ministry.

Daniel seven and Psalm one ten one, which reads, The Lord said to my Lord, Sit at my right hand till I make your enemies your footstool. Well, we know what happens following this event with the Sanhedrin, don't we? Jesus is brought before Pilate.

Pilate declares that he finds no fault in them, but hands him up. And Christ is delivered, beaten and crucified. Three days later, following his death on the cross, he will rise from the dead. But it does not end there. I am troubled that oftentimes in our gospel presentations, we merely focus on the death, burial and resurrection of Christ.

There is more to it. It is this neglected doctrine, the doctrine of the ascension of Christ. If there is not an ascended Christ, there is no power for us here below.

And that is what we'll be considering for the rest of our time here today. Forty days after Easter is the ascension of Jesus Christ. And church, if there's no ascension, I really don't believe there's any assurance or power.

In the resurrection, one writer said, Jesus is declared alive forevermore. But in the ascension, Jesus is declared to be reigning and that forevermore. In ancient monarchies, monarchs would be seated on a throne that would be lifted as high as possible as a means to enhance their image before men. And around them would be glorious multitudes praising them, lauding them, playing music for them.

And as you make your way before them, you would need to lift your head up to even look upon them. Far more glorious than the highest seated monarchs earth has ever experienced. Since one who has ascended into the heavens, he is higher than the greatest mount.

He has acceded beyond the greatest of thrones. And even though the kings of earth might hear a myriad of people singing their praises, around Christ sit myriads and myriads and myriads who sing his glory to where the revelator can only remark that their voices sound like that of thunder. Behold Christ. Behold his glory. Behold the glory of the ascended son of man. He is seated above all. He is more glorious than any other. See him high and lifted up and behold his glory.

Behold his glory. I want to ask you to turn with me to the book of Acts. We will spend a great deal of our time here, the last few minutes that we have, and we will spend our time in Acts where we'll find our third point, which is the ascension of Christ and our empowerment. Now in Acts 1, if you're unfamiliar with the book, Jesus has already risen from the dead and he is going to spend the next 40 days or so teaching and fellowshipping with his followers. And now we reach Acts 1, 9 and it says this. Now he is sitting here teaching them and it says, Now when he had spoken these things while they watched, he was taken up and a cloud received him out of their sight.

Let me go ahead and make a statement here. Jesus did not spiritually rise from the dead. Jesus rose from the dead bodily. And not only did he bodily resurrect or rise from the dead, he bodily ascended into the heavens. That has great importance for our doctrine.

We are not Gnostics and our desire of being resurrected from the dead and dwelling in these bodies for eternity and not being spirited beings, rest upon Christ's bodily resurrection and ascension. That's important here. Perhaps we can discuss that some other time. Now we often read right over the statement here in Acts 1, don't we?

He was taken up and a cloud received him out of their sight. Okay. We often treat that as though we can just read right over it, as though it's not extremely important because it only has one verse dedicated to it in this time. But what occurs in the ascension is what is detailed as we have seen in Psalm 2, in Psalm 110 and Daniel 7 in repetitive passages in Christ's statements throughout the Gospels. And I have one thing I want to show you tonight before I apply this text. Perhaps I'm going to nerd out, but I really think it's important for us to see this, to get a full orb doctrine of the assurance. Perhaps you will bear with me.

If not, there are many doors here, but I'm just going to satisfy myself with this one here. In Acts 111, Luke records the phrase, this Jesus who was taken up from you into heaven. And what he is doing here is he is expecting us to draw a connection back to the Old Testament. In 2 Kings 2 11, we read this, then it happened, as they continued on and talked, that suddenly a chariot of fire appeared with horses of fire and separated the two of them, and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven.

And then something impressive happens here. Something impressive happens in verse 15 concerning Elijah and Elijah. Elijah has just been taken into heaven and it says this, the observers say, the spirit of Elijah rests on Elisha. Well, what is promised in Acts 1? Acts 1 4-8 says, and being assembled together with them, he commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which he said you have heard from me.

What is that promise there? For John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now. Therefore, when they had come together, they asked him, saying, Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?

And he said, it is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in his own authority, but you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit shall come upon you, and you shall be witnesses to me in Jerusalem and Judea and Samaria and to the ends of the earth. What I want to suggest to you this evening, seeing how Luke is using this grammatical structure, is that I want to suggest that here we find that Jesus is the greater Elijah. Jesus is the greater Elijah who has conquered humiliation and is now being taken into the heavens where he will reign forevermore. But also, we the church are similarly a full Elisha. It is upon us that not the spirit of Elijah dwells, but it is upon us that the Spirit of God dwells. The Holy Spirit rests upon us, and because of that, we are an empowered people.

We are a people who Christ has been pleased to make a nations of kings and priests unto God. Now what I find perhaps most sweetly encouraging in the vein of this story, is the story of Stephen the martyr. The Spirit has fallen upon the church, and in Acts 6 we find that Stephen has been selected as a deacon of the church and is a man full of the Spirit, and in Acts 6 we read that he is preaching to the Jews and it says this, and they were not able to resist the wisdom and the Spirit by which he spoke. The Jews here are cut to the heart and they are full of rage and hatred for Stephen and his gospel, and Stephen is going to go forward and preach to them, and in Acts 7 55 they are going to kill him. And listen to what he experiences here, he reads, But he being full of the Holy Spirit gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God and said, Look, I see the heavens open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.

Now what's so encouraging about that? Well, that Spirit that Jesus sent forth when he ascended to reign on high, is that same Spirit that empowered Stephen to preach the message that's going to get him killed. But in those dying moments, Stephen being full of the Holy Spirit is going to lift his eyes to see Christ, the greater prophet, Christ the true king, Christ our intercessor, our great high priest. He is going to lift his eyes and he is going to see that Christ standing at the right hand of the Father.

Beloved, Jesus has not ascended and is just sitting there hanging out in the heavens. He is the prophet declaring his word over his people. He is the king who is waging a holy war through us. He is our priest who lives to make intercession for us. And I can't help but be overwhelmed with emotion as I consider Stephen in his dying moments, looking upon Christ and beholding his Lord standing for him.

Why is that important? It's because I believe what we are witnessing here is the intercessory work of Christ on Stephen's behalf, to pray that in his inner man he might be strengthened unto death. And not only that, but I believe that Psalm 116 verse 15 says, Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints. I believe Christ is preparing to receive him to himself, that most beloved and faithful martyr.

Just think of this, that Christ has come and been humiliated and exalted and he sends his Spirit. And that Spirit so empowers Stephen that Stephen can't help but to preach. And as Stephen is dying, Christ is even still praying for him. And even in his dying breath, Christ waits to receive him.

Christ is one who is fully focused on his people. We are his beloved. He's not ashamed of us. He is pleased with us. He is delighted with us. When we flee to Christ, we are not a burden.

You're not a burden to the one who has died for you. He is pleased with us, his people. What we see in this passage is that Jesus didn't just ascend to do nothing. In heaven, Christ is governing the universe as king. He's presiding over his church as prophet. He's interceding for us as people, as priests. And another thing we see is that Christ is seated on high. And though there is much wickedness that abounds around us in this world, he reigns supreme. He reigns supreme. Jesus is not shocked at what is happening in our state, in our country, in our world. Jesus is not surprised. He is not called off guard. He is not shrugging and saying, I did the best I could. He is in absolute control.

There is not the tiniest dust molecule. When you wake up in the morning and see that sun coming through your blinds, and you see that little dust molecule floating in there, not even one of those is out of the control of the most sovereign, the most high. He's in control even in the hardest moments of life. He prays for us and he is faithful to us. And even in our dying moments, he stands ready to receive us unto himself. He is our most glorious and loving Lord.

I will give you a few lessons here. First, concerning the sinfulness of man. In these passages, we find healthy reminders of the horribleness of sin, that it corrupts those who were created in the image of God, and it leads us to act in a horrifying ways. But lest we find ourselves looking outward, let these stories draw us inward to see how truly vile we are, but for the grace of God. There is not one sin that I would not commit by tomorrow, were it not for the restraining grace of God.

When we execute church discipline, when we restore a brother, when we meet in private, and we are horrified by the injustices or the sins that we have heard, we must be very quick not to be so judgmental, because we too would be in the same position were it not for the restraining grace of the Lord. Second, concerning the reign of Christ who is worthy of praise. In Daniel 7, we found that around the throne of the Son of Man, stands peoples of all nations and languages to serve him, and that his kingdom will never pass away or be destroyed.

We may feel overwhelmed with worry, our annoyances as election season is beginning to come back around. We may be filled with worry or stress there, but we may rest easily knowing that we belong to another kingdom. One whose king will never let us down and one whose kingdom will never end.

And one day when he makes all things new, we will enjoy him and serve him faithfully forever and ever. I told the teens this this morning, but we are pilgrims. We are pilgrims.

I had to write a paper on Native Americans last year, and an interesting aspect, I found an article about the French trying to domesticate the Native Americans. And what's interesting is one of the chiefs speaks and he says, the French come here and they speak to us that we need to begin to build houses like they do. And he begins to remark about how interesting it is because he tells the Frenchman this, your houses are built in one place and you cannot move them.

And so you are bound to the location of that house. Meanwhile, our teepees, we can take them up and move with them as we see fit. And you call us the barbarians. Well, the question I have for you today is how deep are your tent stakes in the things of this world? We are pilgrims.

We are not of this world. As election season comes back around or as the affairs of this life begin to be all around us, let's make sure our tent pegs are dug deep in the beatific vision of Christ and his glory and what is soon to come. We are a future minded people. And by that, I mean that Christ is ruling and reigning now.

And the consummation of that to come is going to be glorious. And as sure as Christ is in heaven, so too will I be there. Third, concerning our Christian duty, and I will hurry up, I'm not going to hold you hostage any longer. Robert Murray M'Shane said this concerning our Christian duty. If I could hear Christ praying for me in the next room, I would not fear a million enemies.

Yet the distance makes no difference. He is praying for me. Jesus calls us to take up our cross and follow him in Mark chapter 8.

And in Mark 8 38, it says, For whosoever is ashamed of me and my words and this adulterous and sinful generation, of him the Son of Man also will be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels. But what has he done for us? He has sealed us in his spirit.

He has empowered us with the Holy Ghost. And so we may rest because we are an empowered people. We are a strengthened people.

We are a preserved people. And when he returns, he will gladly receive us unto himself. Beloved, we are empowered by the Spirit of God and we sit under the command of a king who is waging a war he absolutely will not lose. We are to be encouraged today knowing that he sees us and he prays for us and one day he will make all things new for us.

I'll fast forward to the last point which is concerning heartache and happiness. Since sin's consequences have so ravaged the world and since we have seen Christ the Son of Man suffering before his exaltation, we who trust in him and long to be like him may face adversity in this life knowing that, as Paul said, we know that all things work together for good to those who love God and are the called according to his purpose. Likewise, seeing that Jesus now has ascended and reigns as king, we may rejoice in the good pleasures of this life knowing, as James puts it, every good and perfect gift is from above.

Now, for conclusion, I will say this. Now, church, I know you're tired. I know it's wearying living in such a broken and sin-crossed world. But in Isaiah 52.7, we read this, How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who proclaims peace, who brings glad tidings of good things, who proclaims salvation, who says to Zion, Your God reigns. Yes, it is dark, but in this message that Christ reigns, we find light for our path and a pillow for our weary and tired heads.

Hold on. Christ reigns. Amen. Heavenly Father, we thank you for the mercy and grace that you have given to us through Christ our Lord. He did not merely face humiliation, but he is risen and ascended. He is exalted. He is the name above every name. He is the Alpha and the Omega and the Beginning and the End.

There is none that can touch him, none that can surprise him, none who can thwart him. Lord, you reign above and to that our hearts ascend into the heavenlies and declare worthy is the Lamb. Tonight I pray that you might wage war even on those who are your enemies, those who don't know you and sin against you, Lord. Might you in your goodness draw them to yourself, that they might look to Christ and live. And for us who are beaten down and battered with this sin-curse world, for us who are beaten and battered with our own internal warfare, encourage us this evening knowing that you rule and reign, you are in control of whatsoever comes to pass. So may we rejoice in that you know us and you love us and you are in control of whatsoever comes to pass around us. We ask that you be glorified in the remainder of this service and this week. It's in Christ's name we pray. Amen.