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00:01Ten signs Jesus isn't enough for you, even though He is.
00:07You've stopped being amazed by Him.
00:10Your time with Jesus feels more like a check-in than a relationship.
00:15What used to move you spiritually doesn't anymore, and you aren't sure why.
00:22You trust Jesus with eternity, but not with today.
00:27Your spiritual life is getting busier, but not deeper.
00:33You're more focused on what Jesus hasn't done for you than what He already did.
00:40Your walk with Jesus feels like it's stuck on repeat.
00:45Minor stress feels like a full-blown crisis.
00:50You don't expect Jesus to do anything big in your life.
00:55You're no longer living like Jesus could return at any time.
01:01Stop living like He's not enough.
01:05He is.
01:07Jesus is enough.
01:12Coming up today on Turning Point.
01:14And Jesus has done what no one else could do.
01:17He took hold of God in heaven, took hold of sinful man down here.
01:21Now watch this.
01:22And He brought us together on the cross.
01:25And there He mediated our differences, paying the penalty for all of our sin, so that Almighty God can open
01:34His arms and welcome us.
01:37Deep roots, strong branches, abundant leaves.
01:41This is the flourishing life God designed for you.
01:44A life firmly planted, growing strong, and unshakable through any storm.
01:49In his new book, Five Psalms for a Flourishing Life, Dr. David Jeremiah invites you to step out of a
01:55faith that feels like just getting by and into an active, growing faith rooted in the unchanging truth of God's
02:02Word.
02:02In this powerful study, Dr. Jeremiah explores five key psalms that have nourished God's people for generations.
02:09Psalms with the power to revive your soul and transform the places in your life that feel dry, barren, or
02:15stuck into meaningful growth in God.
02:18These aren't self-help strategies or positive thinking techniques.
02:21They are time-tested truths that have sustained God's people through millennia of both triumph and trial,
02:27teaching us how to sink our roots deep into eternal resources while bearing fruit that blesses the world around us.
02:34Dr. David Jeremiah will send you five psalms for a flourishing life in appreciation when you give a gift of
02:39any amount in support of this program.
02:41Or for your gift of $75 or more, request three books, one to keep and two to share.
02:47Five Psalms for a Flourishing Life, new from Dr. Jeremiah.
02:51Contact Turning Point Ministries today.
03:01The word mediator comes from a word which literally means a go-between.
03:09It is the actual word that was used by Job in the Old Testament.
03:14Remember when he was under so much pressure to sort out all that was going on in his life with
03:20this undeserved suffering?
03:21And he wanted to talk with God, but he couldn't get through to God.
03:25It seemed like he had no one to whom he could bring his case.
03:28And in the ninth chapter of the book of Job, he cries out,
03:32nor is there any mediator between us who may lay his hand on us both.
03:38You want a visual picture of a mediator, that's it.
03:41Somebody who lays his hand on parties that are at odds with each other.
03:47Now, for some of you here today, you may wonder what this has to do with our relationship with God.
03:52You may not believe that we have an issue with God, but let me explain something to you.
03:57God has an issue with us, and that issue is our sin.
04:02In fact, the Bible says that our sin has separated us from God to such an extent that Romans 5
04:09.10 describes our relationship with God in our present condition as a relationship of enmity.
04:16The Bible says in Romans 5.10 for if when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the
04:24death of his son.
04:26The Bible says that because God is holy and we are not, because we will not have God to rule
04:33over us in the rebellion of our own hearts,
04:36we have developed a contentious relationship of enmity with God.
04:46It's almost as if we raise our fist and say,
04:49I will not have this God to rule over my life.
04:54I will do it myself.
04:56In writing to Timothy, Paul tells us that Jesus Christ is our mediator.
05:05Listen to these words from 1 Timothy 2.
05:08There is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus,
05:16who gave himself as ransom for all to be testified in due time.
05:22In Jesus Christ, we have a true mediator who can lay his hand on the Father and on us.
05:32He is the perfect mediator because in Jesus Christ, we have all of the nature and attributes of God
05:41and all of the nature and attributes of man apart from sin.
05:47Only by being possessed both of deity and humanity could Jesus Christ bridge the gap between where we are and
05:56where God is.
05:58Without Jesus Christ, there is no hope of any of us ever having a relationship with a holy God.
06:06For God is perfect.
06:08His standards are perfect.
06:10As we have said so often over the years, he does not grade on the curve.
06:17He demands absolute holiness, and in none of us is that a possibility.
06:23We need someone to stand in for us, someone to take our place, someone to represent us.
06:30And Almighty God determined that his own righteous son, Jesus Christ, would be that person.
06:40In the case of Jesus Christ, he's not only our mediator, he is also the only one who, being proved
06:47sinless,
06:48could offer himself as a sacrifice on behalf of us.
06:54So, here in the book of Hebrews, we are told that Jesus Christ is the mediator of the new covenant.
07:01Notice in the 15th verse, that's what it says.
07:06And for this reason, Jesus is the mediator of the new covenant by means of death,
07:12for the redemption of the transgressions under the first covenant,
07:16that those who are called may receive the promise of the internal inheritance.
07:21Now, let's talk for just a moment about the reason for a mediator.
07:25We can best understand this by remembering that in Ezekiel 18, 4,
07:30the soul that sins, it shall die.
07:34And Paul, writing to the Romans in the 6th chapter of his epistle, said,
07:39for the wages of sin is death.
07:42The only way a person could come to God was to have the penalty of this sin paid.
07:48Jesus' act of mediation was his death on the cross.
07:53And in that moment on the cross, he was able to solve the eternal problems
08:00that exist between God and men.
08:03First of all, he could satisfy the justice of a holy God
08:07because he himself was without sin, the spotless Lamb of God.
08:13God may not accept us, but he accepts his own Son.
08:18He also could satisfy the fact that sin must be atoned for.
08:22So, he went to the cross, and hanging between two thieves,
08:25he bore the penalty for all of our sin.
08:28And people ask me all the time, how could one man do that?
08:31One man could not do that, but one God-man could.
08:34Because Jesus Christ was God in the flesh,
08:37not only was his life infinite, but his death was infinite as well.
08:42And now God, in his love, can invite all those who will put their trust in Christ
08:46to spend eternity with him.
08:48Oh, by the way, the rest of that verse is,
08:51for the wages of sin is death,
08:53but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ, our Lord.
08:59People often wonder how Old Testament believers were saved,
09:04since the Bible clearly says that the only way you can be saved
09:09is through Jesus Christ.
09:12Acts 4.12 says there's only one way.
09:15Jesus said in John 14.6,
09:17I am the way, the truth, and the life.
09:18No man comes to the Father except through me.
09:21He didn't say no New Testament man.
09:23He said no man.
09:25The Bible teaches that no one can be saved
09:28apart from the shed blood of the Lord Jesus Christ on the cross.
09:32So, how do Old Testament believers become Old Testament believers?
09:40By means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions
09:45under the first covenant,
09:47that those who are called may receive the promise
09:50of the eternal inheritance.
09:53So, let me give you the second point in the outline today.
09:56First of all, the reason for the mediator,
09:58and secondly, the retroactivity of the mediator.
10:02That's a mouthful, but it's exactly the right word.
10:04The retroactivity of the mediator.
10:07Here's what it says.
10:09It says that people were saved in the Old Testament
10:11on the very same basis as believers are saved today
10:15by the finished work of Christ,
10:18which was retroactive to them at that particular time.
10:22You say, well, that's an unheard of thing.
10:24No, it is not.
10:25In fact, on Yom Kippur, on the Day of Atonement,
10:28there was retroactive forgiveness every year.
10:31What did the priest do when he went into the Holy of Holies?
10:34He sacrificed for the sins of ignorance of the people of Israel
10:40that had been committed the year before.
10:42His sacrifice was retroactive.
10:47Now, those of us who are Christians, we are saved proactively.
10:51Did you know that?
10:52We're not saved retroactively.
10:54We're saved proactively.
10:55You say, well, what does that mean?
10:57Well, that means that all of the sins that you have ever committed,
11:01ever will commit, are committing right now.
11:05Now, all of those sins were paid for at the cross.
11:10Could I ask a question this morning?
11:12How many of you were alive when Jesus died on the cross?
11:15Anybody here?
11:16No, no, no, no.
11:17Obviously not.
11:18That's a silly question.
11:20What that means is that all of the sacrifice for all of your sin and mine
11:24was paid for at the cross before we were ever born,
11:27before we could ever sin a sin.
11:29All of our sins are paid for, past, present, and future.
11:34The cross is at the center of redemption,
11:39paying for all the sins that were committed under the first covenant
11:43as people expressed faith in God
11:45and proactively paying for all of our sins going forward.
11:49But how many of you today would say with your pastor,
11:53how grateful I am that I was born on this side of the cross?
11:57Otherwise, our service this morning would look a bit different than it does.
12:03This mediator was a mediator of a covenant,
12:06not only the new one, but the old one.
12:10The reason for the mediator and the retroactivity of the mediator.
12:14Now, notice thirdly, the requirement of the mediator,
12:16verses 16 and 17.
12:18For where there is a testament,
12:20it helps me a lot to insert a little word here.
12:23The word testament is the word we use for will, for a will.
12:26For where there is a will,
12:28there must also of necessity be the death of the testator
12:31or the one who made the will.
12:33For a will is in force after men are dead,
12:37since it has no power at all while the testator lives.
12:41In these verses, we are told that a will is activated
12:45by the death of the one whose will it is.
12:48Without death, there are no benefits that accrue to the beneficiary.
12:53Kent Hughes, one of my favorite writers, has written,
12:56you may be the recipient of a fabulous will
12:59that includes millions of dollars, a luxurious apartment,
13:02season tickets to the hottest team in town,
13:05but it will do you no good unless the one who made the will dies.
13:10When Jesus died, that will was activated
13:15going all the way back to the old covenant.
13:20The reason for the mediator and the retroactivity of it
13:23and the requirement of it, and notice fourthly,
13:25the ritual of it.
13:26In Hebrews 9, 18 through 22, the writer of Hebrews
13:29goes back into the Old Testament covenant
13:32and gives us a little history.
13:34He says,
13:35"'Therefore, not even the first covenant
13:37was dedicated without blood.'"
13:39In other words, when Moses had spoken every precept
13:42to all the people according to the law,
13:44"'He took the blood of calves and goats
13:48with water, scarlet wool, and hyssop,
13:51and sprinkled both the book itself,'
13:53the book of the covenant,
13:54"'and all the people, saying,
13:57"'This is the blood of the covenant
13:59which God has commanded you.'"
14:01We treasure the blood of Christ
14:04because it is the symbol of the death of Christ.
14:07The blood itself is not the sacrifice.
14:11The blood of Christ is not the sacrifice.
14:13It is the symbol of his death,
14:15which is the sacrifice.
14:17If the blood had been the sacrifice
14:19in the Old Testament,
14:20they would have bled the animals,
14:22but they killed them.
14:24They did not just bleed them.
14:25They killed them because blood symbolizes death.
14:30The soul that sinneth,
14:31it doesn't say,
14:32the soul that sinneth, it shall bleed.
14:34It says,
14:35the soul that sinneth, it shall die.
14:38So, in this whole picture,
14:40as gory as it seems to us,
14:42looking at it from our perspective,
14:44it was all about this truth,
14:46that sin brings forth death.
14:51And the good news of the gospel is
14:53you have a choice to make.
14:55You can either pay the sin penalty yourself,
14:58which you will,
14:59or you can let Jesus pay it for you
15:02and put your trust in him,
15:04and then you will never die.
15:07When you are born again,
15:10you don't have to die spiritually
15:12because you have accepted
15:15the penalty of Jesus Christ
15:17that is given in your behalf.
15:20Now, let's talk about the results of this mediator.
15:24The Bible says that this mediator
15:26that we have in Jesus Christ
15:28is so much better than anything
15:30that's ever come along beforehand.
15:31First of all,
15:33he provides a better righteousness.
15:35It says at the end of verse 23,
15:38there are better sacrifices.
15:40The heavenly things themselves
15:41are better sacrifices.
15:44Through Jesus Christ,
15:45we have holiness.
15:47Through Jesus Christ,
15:48we have righteousness.
15:49You say,
15:50how do you get into heaven?
15:51Well, let me give you a verse
15:53that puts it all together succinctly,
15:55and I want you to read this one with me
15:56from the screen.
15:57This is 2 Corinthians 5, 21.
16:01For he made him who knew no sin
16:05to be sin for us
16:07that we might become
16:09the righteousness of God in him.
16:13Have you ever heard of such a deal,
16:17such an exchange?
16:19The Lord Jesus, who knew no sin,
16:21takes our sin upon himself
16:24and then gives to us his righteousness
16:27so that now we can be acceptable to God.
16:31So, when I pray in Jesus' name,
16:34what I'm saying is,
16:35Lord, I don't have any standing before you
16:37in my own name.
16:38I pray to you, O God,
16:40in the name of Jesus,
16:41in whom I stand.
16:45When I am accused before God,
16:47God does not look at me.
16:48He looks at Jesus,
16:49and the penalty has been paid.
16:52In Jesus Christ,
16:53we have a better righteousness,
16:56and in Jesus Christ,
16:57we have a better representation.
16:59Notice what it says in verse 24.
17:00It says that he is in heaven now
17:03to appear in the presence of God for us.
17:07When the writer says that God appears in heaven
17:10in the presence of God,
17:11he uses a word which means face.
17:14It means that Jesus is in heaven
17:17face to face with the Father.
17:20And why is he there?
17:21To represent us.
17:23He is in heaven as our representative.
17:26Just as he represented us on the cross,
17:28now he is in heaven representing us before God.
17:31The Bible says he's not only our mediator,
17:33he's our advocate,
17:34he's our attorney.
17:36He represents us in all that we do
17:38and all that we need.
17:39In Jesus Christ,
17:40we have representation in heaven.
17:42And Romans 8, 34 says it this way.
17:45Who is he who condemns?
17:47It is Christ who died,
17:49and furthermore is also risen,
17:52who is even at the right hand of God,
17:54who makes intercession for us.
17:56Anytime I am accused before God
17:59by the enemy, by Satan or his minions,
18:03here's the verse.
18:05Who is he who condemns?
18:07It is Christ who died,
18:10who is risen,
18:12who is seated at the right hand of the Father,
18:14and who makes intercession for me.
18:17Who else do I need?
18:19I have God representing me before God.
18:24He provides a better remission.
18:25Let me tell you what the better remission
18:27is all wrapped up in.
18:28It's wrapped up in one word.
18:29You know what that word is?
18:30It's the word once.
18:32Say that with me.
18:34Once.
18:35The Bible is so wonderfully put together
18:38so as to bring emphasis
18:40where it needs to be brought.
18:41What was the word of the Old Testament?
18:44Many times, over and over again,
18:47sacrifice after sacrifice.
18:48What did I say?
18:49Over one million of them
18:51during the thousand years of the Old Covenant.
18:55As opposed to once.
18:59In fact, that word is everywhere in the Bible.
19:02It says in verse 28,
19:04so Christ was offered once
19:06to bear the sins of many.
19:08Hebrews 7, 27,
19:09for this he did once
19:11when he offered up himself.
19:13Verse 12 of chapter 9,
19:15once for all,
19:16having obtained eternal salvation.
19:17Hebrews 10, 10,
19:19by that will we have been sanctified
19:21through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ
19:23once for all.
19:24Romans 6, 10,
19:25for the death he died,
19:27he died to sin once.
19:28First Peter 3, 18,
19:30for Christ also suffered once for sin
19:33that he might bring us to God.
19:34Let me tell you something.
19:35He died once.
19:37He will never die again.
19:38He will not sacrifice himself again.
19:41He is not going to do that again.
19:43His sacrifice is unrepeatable
19:45and the problem of sin
19:46has been dealt with forever.
19:48If you fixed it,
19:49you don't have to revisit it.
19:52Somebody said,
19:53how did he do that?
19:54Well, he absorbed all of the sin
19:55of all sinful nature,
19:57of all mankind,
19:58and he himself became that sin
20:00and offered himself as a sacrifice
20:02so that God's edict could be met.
20:05The soul that sinneth it shall die.
20:07He died,
20:08and in him we were represented in his death.
20:11And so, we can never face our sin again
20:15if we have put our trust in Christ.
20:18I read this week that in a rural village
20:21a doctor lived who was noted
20:22both for his professional skill
20:24and his devotion to Christ.
20:26After his death,
20:27his books were examined,
20:28and several entries had written across them
20:31in red ink,
20:33forgiven,
20:34too poor to pay.
20:37Unfortunately, after his death,
20:39his wife was not of the same disposition
20:40as her husband,
20:42and she wanted to collect all this money.
20:44And she insisted that these debts be settled,
20:47and she filed a lawsuit before the proper court.
20:51When the case was being heard,
20:53the judge asked her,
20:54is this your husband's handwriting in red?
20:57And she replied that it was.
20:59Then said the judge,
21:00not a court in this land can touch those
21:03whom he has forgiven.
21:06So, here's the question.
21:10Jesus,
21:11is this your handwriting in red
21:13that says forgiven?
21:17There is not a one
21:19who could ever come
21:21and undo the forgiveness
21:23we have in him.
21:25And the fact that he died once
21:27is the proof of it.
21:29He did not have to die again
21:31because he died once for all.
21:34No more sacrifices.
21:35It's all over.
21:37The sin question has been settled.
21:40He provides for a better remission,
21:44and then he provides for a better return.
21:47And I just want to bring this to you in closing.
21:50Hebrews 9, 28, it says,
21:52to those who eagerly wait for him,
21:54he will appear a second time
21:55apart from sin for salvation.
21:59Let me tell you how this fits into the passage.
22:02In the Old Covenant,
22:05on the Day of Atonement,
22:07the high priest
22:08would go into the outer court
22:10of the tabernacle,
22:11and he would go to the brazen altar,
22:13and he would offer sacrifice
22:14for the sins of the people.
22:16Then he would move through the outer court,
22:17and he would go into the Holy of Holies,
22:19and he would disappear
22:20into the Holy of Holies
22:21for an entire day.
22:23No one knew what was going on.
22:25And frankly,
22:25the people of Israel
22:26were very concerned about this
22:28because the high priest
22:29didn't get to make any mistakes
22:30while he was in there.
22:31Make one mistake,
22:32and it's over.
22:33Your history as a high priest
22:35is finished.
22:35He would be struck dead.
22:37So now watch this.
22:39He went into the outer court,
22:40and he offered himself
22:42for the sin of the people.
22:45Then he went into the Holy of Holies,
22:47and he ministered on behalf of the people
22:49for their sins committed in ignorance
22:51the year before.
22:52And outside of the tabernacle,
22:54the congregation of Israel gathered,
22:56hoping to see him when he came out.
22:58And ultimately,
23:00after a period of time,
23:01he would walk out through the veil
23:03into the outer court,
23:05and the people would rejoice
23:06because the high priest
23:08had survived another Yom Kippur.
23:10He had gone to the holy place.
23:11He had offered the sacrifice.
23:13The sacrifice had been accepted,
23:14and he had returned to his own.
23:19In like manner,
23:20it says in this passage,
23:21Jesus Christ is coming again
23:23apart from sin.
23:25How many of you know
23:25that when he came the first time,
23:27he came for sin?
23:29He was manifested in order
23:30to take away sin,
23:31says the Bible.
23:33He came into the outer court,
23:34which is our world,
23:35and he died on the cross for our sin.
23:37And then he summarily disappeared
23:40into the Holy of Holies in heaven,
23:42and we haven't seen him physically since.
23:44But I am here to tell you,
23:46the Bible says he is coming again,
23:48and for those who eagerly await him,
23:50we can be like the congregation
23:52in the outer court of the tabernacle,
23:54standing there with our hearts beating faster,
23:57breathlessly waiting for him to come again,
23:59and we will see him as he is.
24:03And just as the Old Testament Israelites
24:05were filled with joy
24:06when they saw the high priest,
24:08we will be filled with joy
24:10when our high priest returns
24:13from his work in the heavens
24:15where he's making intercession for us.
24:19He's our mediator.
24:21We need no one but him.
24:23There is no one but him.
24:25So I'm here to tell you today,
24:26if you don't know God,
24:28the only way you can know God
24:30is to know Jesus,
24:31because Jesus is the only way
24:33you can get to him.
24:35He is the way, the truth, and the life.
24:39And Jesus has done what no one else could do.
24:42He took hold of God in heaven,
24:44took hold of sinful man down here.
24:45Now watch this.
24:47And he brought us together on the cross,
24:50and there he mediated our differences,
24:54paying the penalty for all of our sin
24:56so that Almighty God can open his arms
24:59and welcome us
25:01and be faithful to who he is in his holiness.
25:06So today, if you don't know God,
25:07I want to ask you,
25:09have you put your trust in Christ?
25:10That's what it means.
25:11Jesus Christ is the bridge
25:13you have to walk over to get to God.
25:17If you want to be a Christian,
25:19you have to come by Jesus Christ.
25:29Thank you for watching Turning Point.
25:31Dr. Jeremiah would like to offer you
25:33five psalms for a flourishing life.
25:35In his new book,
25:36Dr. Jeremiah invites you
25:37to step out of a faith
25:38that feels like just getting by
25:40and into an active, growing faith
25:42rooted in the unchanging truth of God's Word.
25:45In this powerful study,
25:47Dr. Jeremiah explores five key psalms
25:49that will help you experience life
25:51as God intended to the fullest.
25:54Dr. Jeremiah will send you
25:55five psalms for a flourishing life
25:57in appreciation
25:58when you give a gift of any amount
26:00in support of this program.
26:01Or for your gift of $75 or more,
26:04request three books,
26:05one to keep and two to share.
26:07Thank you for your support.
26:10Request five psalms for a flourishing life
26:12new from Dr. Jeremiah
26:13when you contact
26:14Turning Point Ministries today.
26:19Thank you for joining us today
26:21as Dr. Jeremiah shared
26:22how Jesus is enough
26:24for everything we need.
26:25To help you start
26:27or deepen your relationship with Christ,
26:29Dr. Jeremiah would like
26:30to send you two resources.
26:32The first is a booklet called
26:34Your Greatest Turning Point,
26:36which will help you begin
26:37your relationship with Christ.
26:38And the second is our monthly
26:40devotional magazine,
26:42Turning Points,
26:42to give you encouragement
26:44and inspiration throughout the year.
26:46These resources are yours
26:47completely free
26:48when you contact
26:49Turning Point Ministries today.
26:53David Jeremiah and Turning Point
26:55are making a global impact
26:56for the kingdom of God,
26:58but we can't do it alone.
26:59That's where Bible Strong Partners
27:01come in.
27:02Bible Strong Partners
27:03form the foundation of Turning Point,
27:05allowing Dr. Jeremiah
27:06to reach the world with the gospel
27:08and enabling you to share
27:09in the eternal impact
27:11of the ministry.
27:11In return,
27:12we want to support your faith
27:14with special and exclusive resources.
27:16To become a Bible Strong Partner,
27:18go to davidjeremiah.org
27:20slash Bible Strong today.
27:23Next time on Turning Point.
27:26Moses has outlived Voltaire.
27:29Isaiah has outlasted Ingersoll.
27:32The apostles have outsmarted
27:34the agnostics
27:35and the prophets have overpowered
27:37the professors.
27:38And the Bible still stands
27:40as God's wonderful message to man.
27:48Join Dr. Jeremiah next time
27:50for a special message
27:51from Madison Square Garden
27:52in New York City
27:54here on Turning Point.
28:00Dr. David Jeremiah
28:01is delivering the unchanging
28:03Word of God every month
28:04to more than half a million homes
28:05through Turning Point's
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28:08Request your first issue now
28:09to read inspirational,
28:11in-depth articles
28:12and quick, clear,
28:13and creative devotionals
28:14from Dr. Jeremiah each month
28:15that will encourage,
28:17challenge,
28:17and strengthen your walk
28:18with the Lord.
28:19Request your first three issues
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