2nd Corinthians – Godly Social Order

The Lord is Come

Professor: Dr. R.J. Rushdoony

Subject: Godly Social Order

Lesson: 4-25

Genre: Talk

Track: 4

Dictation Name: RR4163A

Location/Venue:

Year: 1998-2000

[Mark Rushdoony] How amiable are thy tabernacles oh Lord of hosts, a day in Thy courts are better than a thousand. The Lord God is a sun and shield, the Lord will give grace and glory. No good thing will He withhold from them that walk uprightly. The Lord of hosts, blessed is the man that trusteth in Thee.

Let us pray. Our most good and gracious God and heavenly Father, it is so good for us to gather together in he midst of this beauty all around us, to worship you in the beauty of holiness. We thank you for your so great salvation, we thank you for this Christmas season, and what it means to us. We thank you that we can set aside a time when we can celebrate the incarnation of your son, come to earth, to save us from our sins. We pray that the joy that we feel in this time of holiday and celebration would be a time when we feel the joy of your salvation, and the joy that we have because our lives have meaning and purpose, and hope because of you. Bless now this time that we have together, we pray that you would bless all those who worship this day in your name. We pray that you would encourage them so that they might spread your kingdom throughout all the earth. In Christ our saviors name we pray, amen.

[R.J. Rushdoony] Our scripture lesson this morning is 2nd Corinthians, the 8th chapter, and the 9th verse. 2 Corinthians 8:9

“For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich.”

One of the more shocking experiences of seminary life is the arrogance of scholars. Truth does not exist without their confirmation. I imagine that if seminary scholars told the truth, they would say it was too bad that the revelation of God was given back in Bible times, and not nowadays when there would be people like themselves, able better to interpret and explain it. Thus, the incarnation and the virgin birth of our Lord were, some scholars have held, unknown to the early church except to Matthew and Luke, because supposedly only Matthew and Luke wrote about it.

But Luke in Luke 1:1-3 tells us that he is reporting on those things which are most surely believed among us, and to confirm the certainty of those things wherein thou hast believed. So Luke makes clear that what he is reporting on, whether respecting to the virgin birth or anything else, is familiar to all of them; and he has checked on the stories and confirmed them.

Their sources were eye-witnesses, and ministers of the word. We have thus a summation of the great certainties of the faith. Luke reports on nothing new, but on the well-established foundations of the life of Jesus Christ, the Messiah. A modern scholar such as J. Gresham Machen, has studied all the New Testament, and found here and there other references to the virgin birth, and to the incarnation. So, Matthew and Luke are not the only ones who write about it. Others refer to the fact of our Lords birth, and its miraculous character. Given this fact, why when the virgin birth was common knowledge, why do we not hear more about it in the New Testament? But the question assumes a modern outlook. We are not prone to believe in the supernatural, nor the miraculous. We want more evidence before we believe. In fact, to satisfy modern scholars, there should have been a document the length of the whole Bible, just to prove the virgin birth and the resurrection.

We are the products of 20th century scientism, unbelief. And therefore supposedly, God should have addressed us rather than all generations of history. But the Bible speaks in the power of God to those whom He makes wise. Not to the willful blindness of men who will not hear. God has made you wise, and given you the grace to hear Him, and He has withheld that grace from the ungodly.

But does Paul speak of the incarnation? Or does he pass over it? Several passages do clearly refer to the incarnation, but in very surprising terms. Our text this morning was one of these verse, I think perhaps the most surprising one. 2nd Corinthians 8:9. Paul calls Christ’s coming an act of grace: “For ye know the grace of our lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that ye through His poverty might be rich.”

First, Paul tells us the incarnation was an act of grace. Now there is no question, and the Bible certainly reflects it, that every reference to our Lords coming and birth, Matthew and Mark and elsewhere, speak of the majesty, the beauty, the glory of it Heaven and earth coming together. angels coming to sing. The joy of the good news, that the Lord is come.

The virgin birth is for us a great and a majestic event, but Paul tells us that for Christ it was a condescension, and an act of grace for God the Son. From our perspective, from Johns prologue, John 1:1-18, we see powerfully set forth the glory of the incarnation. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”

This is from the perspective of heaven. It was an act of amazing grace. God the Son became God the babe of Bethlehem. Assuming all of the babes of a fallen human race, all their handicaps.

Now, second, Paul tells us that He did this for our sakes. We became the recipients of His mercy. Because we deserved no such thing, but in sheer and total grace God gave us His only begotten Son. Matthew and Luke from the perspective of history, form our viewpoint, call attention to its marvelous mercy and beauty. The centuries resound with the glory and majesty of the event. Many would call it the most joyful event of the ages.

Paul enables us in this way, in this verse, to see the Virgin birth as a glorious act of grace.

3rd, the incarnation was an act of grace, Paul says: “For your sakes.” As a fallen humanity, we needed Gods sovereign grace to be saved. How great that salvation was and is. Humanity has celebrated ever since. Joy to the world, the Lord has come. Let earth receive her king. However rich the world may be in material resources, it is poor because of sin. The coming of the king is the coming of salvation.

The Christmas carols are postmillennial. They celebrate a great victory because Christ’s coming is the beginning of the re-conquest of creation by the creator king. How else, I have asked people who object when I say the carols are postmillennial, can you read Joy to the World, the Lord has Come? Or any of the other hymns? Or God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen? And so on and on.

Christ made Himself poor by His incarnation, in order to make us rich, to make us heirs of His eternal kingdom. His birth was a step downward, to bring us upward, into His kingdom.

Paul, as he tells us these things in 2nd Corinthians 8:9, begins with the words: “For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ.” We may be ignorant of all its implications, but to know the grace of our Lord is very clear cut in the meaning of this event. It is an act of grace. We know it in the joy of the incarnation, a mighty act of grace, of condescension, and we know it in the new and eternal status that is ours in Jesus Christ.

Then, 4th, he tells us that Christ’s incarnation has made us rich. We are heirs of His eternal kingdom. This is often a hard world for us, but it was harder for Him. We suffer hear at times, but our destiny is an eternal one with Him. Let earth receive her king.

On the Indian reservation, there was an interesting man, an old Indian, taller than most, very quiet, he rarely spoke. He knew the faith, although he rarely if ever appeared at church. But the remarkable thing about him was that while he kept his mouth shut and not many people could say they had heard him talk more than a time or two in the course of a year, when he opened his mouth it was with considerable wit and wisdom. I recall once he said how stupid people were to deny that Christianity was the best thing the world had ever seen. Why? Well, he was a man with a sense of humor. He said: “Take Thanksgiving and Christmas. They come at the worst part of the year, when there is snow all over, and you are shivering and cold, and you are wondering: “How long will my wood pile last to heat my little one room log cabin?” and you are told to celebrate and eat.” He said, “That is marvelous. When I heard about it, I though the white man was pretty smart. My mistake was, I thought I had to eat the turkey on that day, so I got a little bit sick before it was over.” And he said, “Then Christmas. When you are beginning to feel blue, the days are short and dark because it is cloudy or snowing, and you have a time of giving of presents, and everybody happy, even if they don’t know why.” And so he said: “I don’t see why people will speak against Christianity, I think it is wonderful!”

Well, I always appreciated the old man. It is a joyful time. “Joy to the world, the Lord has come. Let earth receive her king.” Let us pray. Our Lord and our God, we give thanks unto Thee for all Thy mercies and blessings. Thou art indeed a God of all mercy and all grace, and we give thanks unto Thee for thy only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord and our redeemer. Make us ever joyful in this season, that though our trials be many, and though indeed the snow is on the ground and it is cold, our hearts are joyful. Our king has come. Joy to the world, our Lord is come. In Christ’s name, amen.

Are there any questions about our lesson?

Yes?

[Audience Member] Not so much a question…

[Rushdoony] Could you speak up?

[Audience Member] It is not so much a question as a comment, I was at a woman’s retreat lately, and a woman stood up, and said it’s interesting if you think of Christ lowering Himself to become man, but we never think of the aspect that He lowered Himself, that even for 9 months He was in a woman’s womb, a created being whom He created Himself. It is awesome.

[Rushdoony] Very good. Any other comments or questions?

It is interesting, that we live in a world that hates Christ, that is in rebellion against Him, so much so that the decorations at Christmas time are not done with ever a use of the word Christmas any longer… it is ‘Seasons Greetings’ that you will read across the street, hanging in the main streets of cities. Season’s Greetings, not Christmas. Because the word Christmas refers to Christ. And increasingly the word Christmas itself is being left out more and more by the media. They don’t want any reference to Christ. And instead of having carols on radio and T.V. throughout the Christmas season, we rarely hear them unless they are pseudo carols like Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer.

And yet in spite of that, the joy keeps coming through. Joy to the world, the Lord is come. Let earth receive her king. And that is our duty of course, our responsibility and our joy, to proclaim to the world that He has come and He shall triumph.

Any other questions or comments? If not let us pray.

Our Father, Thou knowest better than we do the evils that prevail around the world; wars and rumors of wars. Men manifesting their hatred and their hatred against Thee and Thy kingdom, and against one another. And yet, oh Lord, we give thanks unto Thee, and in the face of all these things, Christ reigns. His will is done, and shall prevail, and the kingdoms of this world shall become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ. Our Lord how great Thou art, we praise Thee. And now go in peace, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost, bless you and keep you, guide and protect you, this day and always, amen.