Will Christ Be Humiliated on the Last Day? To the Class of 2025

0:01 So Jesus called the crowds and they gathered with his disciples and he said to them, if anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. because whoever would save his life is going to lose it. And whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospels will save it.

0:37 Because what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his life? because what can a man give in exchange for his life? Because everyone who's ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, I'm going to be ashamed of him when I come in the glory of my father and the holy angels. so if you want to follow Jesus then you deny yourself and you take up your cross and you get behind him because because because because I'm going to linger here at the surface level of grammar and words for just a moment to make two points.

1:44 first. If any graduates can read Mark 8, 34 to 38, and not see the four layers of argumentation that Jesus gives for following him, then in your case, we have failed. because that's what we do here. we have linked arms to learn how to see us what we do. We teach people to see what's there, really there.

2:31 So that's the first point. Second point, we don't just teach people how to see, we teach them how to see through. I mean, who cares about words? Words, words, words, grammar, grammar, grammar. Who cares? Well, God must care because that's what he gave us. But not really. Not ultimately. I mean, who cares? If we don't see through to reality, So that's what we do here. We train each other. We link arms to learn how to see what's there and how to see through to reality, ultimately the greatest reality that you've been hearing from these students.

3:33 God. Almost all my earthly life is behind me. It's an awesome thought. Totally unchangeable. Awesome thought. And I hope to live the rest of it, it won't be big, just little, the little that's left with all the might that God gives me.

4:05 But as I look back, it has struck me increasingly clearly that for 50 years, almost all my time has been spent trying to see what's there and say it.

4:26 Understand it. Evaluate it. Feel it. Apply it. Say it. That's all I do. that's what we want we want those habits of mind and heart to carry you all the way to see through to reality so let me take the rest of my few minutes to take those four verses and just zero in mainly on the fourth layer the one at the bottom of the argument for why to follow Jesus. So here's my paraphrase, unpacking each of the four layers of argumentation. So take up your cross. deny yourself, follow me, because preferring comfort over cross-bearing will destroy you, and preferring Christ over life will save you. That's argument number one. Why is that? Because I think the arguments basically argue for the one just before. I don't think they skip around and go back to the front.

5:44 Why is that? Because if you devote your life to the pursuit of security and comfort and ease and you succeed, gain the whole world, zero, it's worth zero because you're going to lose your soul. Argument number two. Why is that? Why is it that if you gain the whole world, you're going to lose your soul. You succeeded and you totally failed.

6:17 Listen politicians and rich people in the news. Why is that? Because no matter how much you gain the soul isn't for sale. No dealing on the last day. No negotiating on the last day. Bring your billions. Bring your shale collection. Why is that? That's argument number three. Now why is that? This is the one we're going to linger on, number four. Why is that? No negotiating on the last day. No deals at the judgment day. because whoever is ashamed of me and in my words in this adulterous and sinful generation I'm going to be ashamed of him Jesus says I'm going to be ashamed of him when I come in the glory of my father and the holy angels and I want to know what does that mean that just took me a few weeks to go Jesus is going to be ashamed what will that be like for Jesus Shame is a painful thing.

7:42 Everybody's tasted it. You were in the fourth grade. I won't say what happened, but it was horrible. Everybody's tasted this. Another word for it is humiliation. Will Jesus be humiliated on the last day? when he says the son of man will be ashamed of those who were ashamed of him does it mean the son of man is going to be humiliated no no it doesn't mean that he's never going to be humiliated he's never going to hear anybody say with any truth that was stupid you idiot Thank you. He despised the shame. He endured the cross despising the shame.

8:45 Well, what then does it mean that the Son of Man will be ashamed of those who were ashamed of him? This is what we do. It means the same thing, doesn't it, as what those people who were ashamed of him experienced. The same way that they were ashamed of him, he'll be ashamed of them.

9:18 How were they ashamed of him? the people that Jesus will be ashamed of in this text are not people who were shamed and humiliated because they stood for Jesus. he's not going to be ashamed of them, not the people who were shamed and humiliated because they stood for Jesus. No, the people he's going to be ashamed of are the people who sought to save their lives, save their wealth, save their ego, save their reputation by avoiding shame. so they didn't stand up for Jesus because they were afraid of being ashamed they ran away from shame In other words, to be ashamed of Jesus means to be so fearful of being shamed for Jesus that you won't stand up for Jesus in order to avoid being shamed for Jesus.

10:37 Remember the apostles in Acts 541? They came out of the Sanhedrin and they rejoiced that they had been counted worthy to be shamed for the name. Huh. They were shamed, but they were not ashamed. These people here in this text, in Mark 8, that Jesus is going to be ashamed of, they would not embrace the shame the way the apostles did. They didn't embrace it. They didn't rejoice in it. They shunned it. They were afraid of it. And they kept their mouth shut instead of speaking up for Jesus. Now we're in a position to know what it means for Jesus to be ashamed.

11:38 Just as these faithless ones would have been humiliated if they stood up for Jesus in an adulterous and sinful generation, they chose not to stand up for Jesus to avoid being shamed. And so Jesus on the last day will avoid being shamed by not standing up for them. They avoided humiliation by not acknowledging Jesus.

12:17 He will avoid humiliation before his father and the angels by not acknowledging them. Everyone who acknowledges me before men, I will acknowledge before my father. Everyone who denies me before men, I will deny before my father, Matthew 10, 32. They refused to advocate for Jesus to avoid shame. He will refuse to advocate for them to avoid shame.

12:44 They saved faith with fools by distancing themselves from the wise. And Jesus will save faith with the wise by distancing himself from fools. or to just simply read the text again, whoever is ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the son of man be ashamed when he comes in the power of his father and with his holy angels.

13:19 Okay, so graduates, bringing this now to a point for you, I ask a question. That's what we do here. we ask questions and then we try to answer them and that's how we grow. Asking questions is the key to understanding so here's my question. is what we have just seen on the judgment day, salvation by grace through faith. Or is it an earned salvation through works? Go home to your assignment. Nope. I did that for you. To answer that question, I'll pose another one because that's what Jesus did in this text.

14:15 Rhetorical question after rhetorical question. With no answers, you're supposed to give the answer. Here's my second illuminating question. Do you earn the love Christ has for you by treasuring it. no you do not you were dead you were dead when his great love made you alive by grace you have been saved through faith this is not your own doing this is a gift of god When Christ pours his love out on you and you treasure it more than the affirmation of an adulterous generation, you haven't earned anything. It's all been done. If you're ashamed of Christ and his words, if you value the approval of an adulterous and sinful generation over Christ, you're not failing to earn the love of Christ. You're failing to see it.

15:38 we've spent four years laboring with you to learn how to see and see through to value to embrace to treasure the infinite worth and beauty and greatness of the love of God in Christ this is what you're going to do for the rest of your life whatever your vocation and this is what you're going to do. If you turn away from the treasure of Christ and value the approval of the world, the adulterous and sinful generation, if you turn away from the treasure of Christ and treasure the approval of an adulterous generation.

16:34 That is, if you're ashamed of Christ, this is not a failure to earn the love of Christ. This is a failure to see the love of Christ. These four years have been a beginning, a launching into a lifelong learning to see and to see through. To see Jesus, see Jesus. He's really alive. He's in this room, folks. He's alive. He's here. A lifelong learning to see, see through, to see Jesus as wiser, stronger, more valuable, more precious, more desirable, more satisfying than the approval of all the world. So, keep on seeing the word and keep on seeing through to reality.

17:48 You will never be ashamed. Oh Father, for the graduates and everybody in this room. Wean us off the pleasure of being approved by adulterers and sinners. and addict us to the sweetness.