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WHERE IS JESUS WHEN YOU NEED HIM? (Rom. 8:34 April 16, 2017)

In 1 Corinthians 15:3–4, the Apostle Paul wrote this:

I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures.

Jesus died on Friday – was buried and in the tomb till Sunday – and then He rose. There is so much speculation about where Jesus was in those three days – in heaven, in hell, in limbo, soul-sleep. But this morning I want to suggest that there is a much more important question. Where is Jesus now that He is risen from dead? What is Jesus doing today and what is Jesus getting ready to do on the last day? I’m not sure what you picture Jesus doing after He ascended into heaven. Sitting on a throne ruling over the angels waiting for the end of the world. Looking down at us to see how we are doing. Where Jesus is today – is a crucial question because often we pray to Jesus, we call out to Him for help and sometimes we ask – where are you Jesus because I need you? Well, Easter – Good Friday and Resurrection Sunday – tell us where Jesus is in our hour of need. On Friday – we saw that He was dying on the cross to pay the penalty for our sin. And:

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Today – we are going to see that from the third day – Jesus was rising from the grave to be our Advocate, to sit at the right hand of the Father and to intercede for us. The fact that the grave is empty makes this a day of rejoicing because Jesus’ resurrection declares that death has lost its sting – sin has been defeated – and those in Christ will live forevermore. Easter is a time of victory for the child of God. There are so many facets to Easter, but this morning, I just want to look at a verse that tells us:

Our resurrected King erased forever every accusation that would have sent us to hell and is strengthening us to persevere to the end.

There are hundreds of excellent books written on the atonement – the death of Jesus on the cross. There are only a handful written on the resurrection. But if you study the Bible – the resurrection receives almost as much attention as the cross. And, just as there are a number of aspects to the atonement – to what Jesus did on the cross – so there are a number of aspects to His resurrection. The empty grave signifies a number of truths. Romans 1 tells us that the resurrection of Jesus declares that He is the Son of God – the promised Messiah (verse 4). The fact God raised Him is proof that Jesus is the

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Messiah sent to save us. Peter used the resurrection as proof of this to the Jews in his speech in Acts 2. Romans 6 deals with a different aspect of the resurrection. Romans 6:5 says:

For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his.

In other words, Jesus’ resurrection guarantees we will rise. The fact the tomb is empty shows that death is not the end. There is life after the grave. 1 Corinthians 15 deals many aspects of the resurrection. Jesus’ resurrection is shown to be an integral part of the gospel, it declares sin and death have been defeated and it shows us what kind of body we will rise with. The resurrection is a very precious truth. But this morning I want to focus on one verse from Romans 8 to see what it can teach us about Jesus rising from the grave. That verse is Romans 8:34. This verse tells us where Jesus is today when we need Him. He is risen, at the right hand of the Father and requesting strength for us to persevere. These truths are somewhat overlooked consequences of the resurrection of Jesus – but they are crucial to our lives as Christians. To grasp what this verse is telling us, we need to understand the context. For the first seven chapters of Romans – Paul has been outlining the bad news – the absolutely damning watertight case against every man – woman and child. Romans 3:23:

For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Everyone – Jew and Gentile, male and female, young and old – everyone failed to meet the standard God declared we must meet. And then it became worse. Romans 5:18:

There is … condemnation for all men. Romans 6:23:

For the wages of sin is death – eternal death.

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Everyone has sinned – everyone is condemned. Every one of us is headed to eternal punishment and we can’t do a thing about it. But then – after these seven chapters of woe – comes one of the great verses in the Bible. Romans 8:1:

There is therefore now no condemnation. This verse stuns us. It stands in such contrast to everything before it. We have to ask – how can this be? In the next 30 verses of Romans 8 – Paul tells us the Who, Why and What of no condemnation. Who has no condemnation? Paul gives us the answer at the end of verse 1:

There is no condemnation … for those who are in Christ Jesus. This is only for Christ’s People. Why do we have no condemnation? Look at verses 3 and 4:

By sending his own 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.

Through Christ’s Sacrifice, the requirements of justice under the Law were met by Jesus’ cross. What shows we have no condemnation? Paul says it is Christ’s Advocacy. In particular, verses 32-34 looks at Jesus as our – Legal Advocate. An advocate is one who stands before a Judge to defend a client accused of a crime. What we see is this:

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Jesus can be our Advocate because:

Of His death on the cross vv. 32-33 Of His rising from the grave v. 34

Chapter 8 is filled with promises of the blessings that are ours because we are in Christ. Let me point out a few. Verse 2 – Freedom.

For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death.

Free from the Law. Verse 15 – Adoption.

For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!”

Adopted into the family of God Himself. God was our enemy – now we can call Him Abba – Father. Verse 28 – Sovereignty.

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to His purpose.

As the master weaver, the Lord promises to take every thread of our lives and weave them into a tapestry that is good. Then we come to verse 31:

What then shall we say to these things? Paul knows that despite these blessings there is still a problem. The problem is that we still have to have our day in court.

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Freedom, adoption, sovereignty ultimately mean nothing if we are declared guilty and sent to hell forever. But:

If God is for us, who can be against us? Or perhaps it is better translated:

Since God is for us, who can be against us? Since God is for us – then no one and nothing can ultimately stand against us. And we have this confidence because Jesus is our Advocate. Why is He our Advocate? First:

Because of His death on the cross vv. 32-22 Verse 32:

He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?

The Lord owns everything – every galaxy, every planet, every palace. But the one thing of true value is His Son, Christ. Yet the Lord sacrificed Jesus for you and for me. If the Lord freely and willingly gave us the greatest treasure in all the universe – will He withhold anything good from us? This week I tried to think about what my most prized possession is if you don’t count family. I found it hard to come up with one. Personal photos, letters from my wife, my dog. If you are a D’Amour – it is definitely your dog. But then I tried to weigh any of these against a child. There is just no comparison. I am not God – but I understand the love of a father for a child. If the life of my child is at stake – you can have everything I have – no question. Consider this. There are people in this world that the Lord has seen fit to allow me to have a hand in them moving from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of light. Prayer, love, discipleship, hope, friendship – all of these have been invested in huge quantities in these people.

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I would do anything for them and yet I never had to sacrifice a son to save them. If God would sacrifice the greatest treasure in the universe for us – will He withhold any lesser gift? No! So verse 33:

Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. This is the logic of verses 29-30. God chose us, washed us, declared us innocent – who is going to tell God He is wrong? Those are the things Good Friday did for us. Jesus died on the cross to become our Redeemer – to wash us clean – to pay for every sin past, present and future. We have a Redeemer for one reason – because when we needed Him Jesus stayed on that cross – He died on that cross that we might live. But after He died – He was taken down from the cross – sealed in a tomb – and everyone – even His disciples thought that was it. Game over. It was not. Luke 24:1–6:

But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, the women went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared. And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they went in they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. While they were perplexed about this, behold, two men stood by them in dazzling apparel. And as they were frightened and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen.

Jesus was no longer dead. He came to life. In the dark of the tomb life entered Him. His lungs filled with air. His eyes opened. He arose. The stone was rolled back and Jesus left the tomb.

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Good news for Jesus. But also incredibly good news for you and me – if we have trusted in Jesus. To see why, I want to look more carefully at verse 34:

Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us.

Here we see that: Jesus can be our Advocate because:

Of His rising from the grave v. 34 Why is Resurrection Sunday such a day of rejoicing? Because it answers the question:

Where is Jesus when you need Him? He is:

Raised as our Advocate Right hand as our Sufficiency Requesting as our Intercessor

First: He is Raised as our Advocate Which shows His work is accepted.

Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised. Romans 8:31-34 uses legal language. This is courtroom language. The implication of this verse is that Jesus is raised from the dead and enters heaven to be our Advocate – to fight for us – to make sure that the accusations against us will not stand. As I said earlier – an advocate is one who stands before a Judge to defend a client accused of a crime.

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The teaching that Jesus is our Advocate is found in many places in the Bible. We saw this in Old Testament books like Job and Isaiah. But it becomes even clearer in the New Testament. Hebrews 9:24:

For Christ has entered … into heaven itself … to appear in the presence of God on our behalf.

Or 1 John 2:1–2:

My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.

Growing up – I wanted to be a lawyer. I loved TV legal dramas. In my mind’s eye – I was the chief prosecutor putting away the untouchable criminal. I was the brilliant defence barrister freeing an innocent man against all odds. I imagined I would be Daniel Kaffee – the Tom Cruise character from the movie A Few Good Men.

You want answers? – I want the truth! – You can’t handle the truth! Danger! – Grave danger? – Is there any other kind?

I mean – how cool are lawyers? Well TV lawyers anyway. Problem is – I never became a lawyer. In fact – I have never even been in a courtroom. And my bubble was popped even further when I found that most criminals never see the inside of a courtroom. The evidence is so overwhelming and compelling that most just plead out. However, the reason we need an Advocate is that there will come a day when every person ever born will face a court – and no one will plead out. Scripture calls this time – the Great White Throne Judgment. It is described in Revelation 20:11–13:

Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. From his presence earth and sky fled away, and no place was found for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened.

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Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done. And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them, and they were judged, each one of them, according to what they had done.

I’m not sure how you picture the world ending. A supernova, intelligent terminator robots hunting us down, Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un getting itchy trigger fingers. No the end is far worse. The Bible is very clear – the world will end when the great angel announces the time of the end has come. And on that day – everyone – the great and the small will stand before the throne of Almighty God – and the books will be opened and the day of reckoning for all men will begin. The text is clear – this is a day of judgment for everyone. Verse 12 deals with the judgment of the saved. Verses 13-15 deal with the judgment of the lost. Although it is not clear in this passage – other passages tell us that on that day we are going to face accusers. Revelation 12:11 tells us that Satan is one accuser and he attacks us day and night. He will point out every sin, failing, inaction and hypocrisy – in our lives. But I believe he won’t be the only one accusing us. The books will be opened and our own lives will accuse us. Perhaps our consciences will accuse us. And possibly every person we sinned against, offended, ignored, lied to, lusted after, ripped off or otherwise treated shamefully might be there to accuse us. On that day – there will be so many voices of accusation and condemnation poised ready to speak words that would sentence us to hell for all eternity. It sounds horrific – and it is. But for the Christian – on that day – every voice of accusation will be silenced. Not one voice of allegation will be actually be raised against us. Why are they silenced?

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Because our great Advocate, Jesus, silences every voice raised against us. You might think some Hollywood lawyers are good – they are nothing compared to Jesus. You are never quite sure who is going to win in the movies – let alone in real life – but when Jesus stands to defend us – it is lights out – game over. He ensures no accusation against us stands. Don’t misunderstand what is going on here. It is not that we are innocent – we are far from it. It is not that the accusations against are unable to be proved – they are recorded in the books. No! What Jesus does is to erase every accusation. How? By showing that His work on the cross fulfilled every aspect of the legal penalty levied against us. His death erased every sin such that no accusation against us remains. How did the cross erase our sin? The Bible teaches that by faith – we are united with Jesus. So, as Jesus hung on the cross and the wrath of God fell on Him – the wrath of God fell on us and on our sins. In this way, our sins have been punished. But, the Bible also says that it is the resurrection that shows that God accepted Jesus’ death as payment in full for our sins. Raising Jesus declares to the world that God accepted His payment made on the cross. Romans 4:25:

Jesus our Lord, was delivered up for our trespasses and [was] raised for our justification.

Geerhardus Vos said this means that:

God, through suspending the forces of death operating on Him, declared that the ultimate, the supreme consequence of sin had reached its termination. In

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other words, resurrection had annulled the sentence of condemnation. [The Pauline Eschatology (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 1953), 151]

That is theologian speak. So if that meant nothing – then in plain language – the resurrection is proof that God accepted the death of Jesus as payment in full for every sin committed by those who trust in the death of Christ. No matter how many sins, how bad your sins – Jesus paid it all. And the empty tomb is proof that God accepts that every sin of yours is washed away. So, when Jesus rose – He had every bit of ammunition necessary to destroy our accusers. 1 Timothy 2:5-6 tell us:

There is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all.

Remember that in Hebrews 9 we saw that Jesus enters … into heaven itself … to appear in the presence of God on our behalf. But if you read on in that chapter, what we see is that Jesus doesn’t stand before God and say:

Craig Lloyd – I know He sinned. But man he tried hard. He did a lot of good things. He gave to Life Saving Australia, he loved his kids, he worked hard – I submit that he deserves mercy.

No – The Law said perfection – never one whiff of sin – that is the only life that can enter heaven. None of us goes close to that. All have fallen short. No! Jesus points to His cross. What do I mean? I imagine Jesus my Advocate will say something like:

The accused – Craig Lloyd – is charged with wanton rebellion and wilful violation of every commandment of God. And that is all true. Satan will allege that he has chosen to sin against his Creator right from the moment of His conception. That he has committed foul acts of depravity. That he lived for years refusing to bow the knee to the One who formed Him.

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We don’t deny it. That is also true. Even after salvation he has violated His conscience. He has done what he knew to be wrong. There is a long, long line of men, women and children he has sinned against. He has lied to them, lusted after them, been selfish to them, in fact there is barely a sin he has not committed. Again – I stipulate that every accusation against him is true. For this he stands condemned and the eternal Law of God demands the most terrible punishment – eternal damnation.

At this point you might be thinking – Jesus is not the greatest Advocate. He hasn’t done anything to defend me. Things aren’t going so well. BUT – The Bible tells us Jesus will then declare this irrefutable truth.

However – by faith he accepted My gift of grace. He lives in Me. So, Father – when Your wrath fell on Me – it fell on Him. His sins are paid for in full. I am the propitiation for his sins. My wounds have paid his ransom. He bears My righteousness.

Or as Charles Wesley put it: Arise, my soul, arise. Shake off thy guilty fears.

The bleeding Sacrifice In my behalf appears. Before the throne my Surety stands. My name is written on His hands. He ever lives above For me to intercede; His all redeeming love, His precious blood to plead. His blood atoned for all our race, And sprinkles now the throne of grace. Five bleeding wounds He bears Received on Calvary. They pour effectual prayers; They strongly plead for me.

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“Forgive him, O forgive,” they cry, “Nor let that ransomed sinner die!” Jesus’ death paid it all. This means that in that courtroom the justice of God is completely satisfied so the Father will declare:

His sins are paid in full. No accusation against him can stand. He is to receive eternal life – that is My final irreproachable and irrevocable verdict.

Or as Philip Bliss so wonderfully put it:

Guilty, vile, and helpless we; Spotless Lamb of God was He; “Full atonement!” can it be? Hallelujah! What a Saviour!

Satan, our conscience, the world – once they were right we were guilty. But, now they are wrong. We are no longer guilty. Our sins, our guilt, our shame – Christ took them all. Every sin, every indiscretion big and small. So now, no accuser has any weapon, no allegation will stick. The risen Christ has erased them all. The fact the tomb is empty proves the cross is effective and that our Advocate is in heaven ready to defend us. But there is a second truth about what Jesus is doing for us: He is at the right hand of the Father as our Sufficiency Which shows His work is finished. There are some who think like this. Yes Jesus’ death paid for my sins. But – then I sin again – and so something more needs to be done to wash that new sin away. No! Our verse in Romans confounds this by telling us Jesus is at the right hand of God. What this means is that His work on the cross is finished – once and for all time. It is sufficient to pay for every sin past, present and future.

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Again and again in Scripture – we are told that after Jesus was raised from the dead He was seated at the right hand of God the Father. For example Ephesians 1:20:

He raised [Christ] from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places.

What is the significance of being seated at the right hand of the Father? Hebrews unpacks this. Hebrews 1:3:

After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high.

Hebrews 10:10–14:

We have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. … When Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God … For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified.

Taking a seat in the heavenlies might not sound like Jesus is doing much. It sounds like He is just kicking back. But, when you read through Hebrews the point is clear. By sitting down at the right hand of God it declares that His work is done. Nothing more is necessary. Jesus is signifying that His death paid for every sin – past, present and future. He is our Sufficiency. His work is finished. The Jews sacrificed every day, every year – because the blood of bulls and goats could not take away sin. Even today the deep desire of the Jews is to rebuild the Temple to make a sacrifice for sin. The Catholic Church also misunderstands the work of Jesus. They re-sacrifice Jesus at every mass. Even some Christians miss this. They keep trying to earn His favour. They sin and think they have to do something to pay for news sins.

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But Jesus paid it all and once and for all. The empty tomb tells us that the risen Jesus is seated at the right hand of God and that His work is finished. The sin you commit today, tonight, tomorrow, ten years from now – all paid for in full. How awesome is that? But there is one final thing the risen Christ is doing: He is requesting as our Intercessor Which shows His work is empowering. Our verse says this:

He indeed is interceding for us. We need to be very clear about what is going on here and even clearer about what is not going on. Jesus is not in heaven pointing out all the good things in your life. Wow – showing mercy – good job. Reading the Bible daily – not bad. Nor is Jesus in heaven praying for your sins to be forgiven. It is not that Fred Boggs tells a lie and Jesus intercedes like this:

Father, your servant Fred Boggs has lied. But overall Fred is one of your better servants. I ask that My sacrifice be applied to this new sin and you wash Him clean.

We just said Jesus sat down at the right hand of God to signify His work is finished. He paid for every sin including the ones yet to come. So, what does it mean that He is in heaven interceding? Hebrews 7:25 says this:

Consequently, [Jesus] is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them.

Jesus is interceding to save you and I to the uttermost. OK – but what does that mean? What we need to realise is that this word save does not always refer to the one time salvation that moves us from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of light.

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Salvation also refers to what is often called sanctification. Persevering, growing in holiness, becoming like Jesus. For example in Hebrews 9:28 we read:

So Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.

Jesus will come a second time to finish the work of salvation He began when He came the first time and dealt with sin. And in between saving us and finishing the work – Jesus is in heaven praying, interceding for us right now. Let me spell this out. When you became a believer – it is not as if Jesus says – my blood avails for him – OK see you when I come back – hope you can live holy. No – Jesus is praying for us right now that we might be strengthened to persevere and become holy. If you read through Hebrews, you will see that the author speaks often about the need to persevere and to become holy. In 13:22 the author describes his letter as a word of exhortation. One of the main purposes – if not the main purpose of Hebrews – is to encourage Christians not to give up, not to grow weary – but to keep going, so that we will be saved to the uttermost. And one of the great encouragements to keep going – to keep persevering – is to know that the risen Jesus is in heaven interceding for us. He is not praying for our sins to be forgiven. He is praying that we would be saved to the uttermost, that we would be saved to the end—that we would persevere, that we would keep going when times grow tough, that we would deal with sin and become like Him. Think about this. So often we think of our perseverance in terms of what we need to do—our prayer, our Bible reading, our church attendance. But our verse reminds us that He is interceding for us. If we are having a hard time we pray and ask God to give us strength and hope and endurance. We should do that. But never forget – because the tomb is empty – Jesus is in heaven praying for you – and His prayers are divinely powerful.

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When the day comes – His prayers will have helped save you to the uttermost. You will make it to the end – because of the empowering prayers of the risen Jesus. If you are struggling – one of the great things about church is that we can ask a brother or sister to bear our burdens and pray with us. It is a real encouragement to when a faithful saint says – I will be praying for you. How much more to know Jesus is praying for you at God’s right hand!

Before the throne of God above I have a strong, a perfect plea; A great High Priest, whose name is Love, Who ever lives and pleads for me. Until the day you draw your last breath – Jesus is interceding – praying for you. Where is Jesus when you need Him? In heaven interceding for you. We are here today rejoicing that the grave is empty – that death and sin are defeated – and that we will rise. But I want to tell you – this is only a day of rejoicing if you are in Christ. If you are not in Christ – when that day comes – when the accuser stands – Jesus will have nothing with which to defend you. You will have rejected the one defence possible. The accusations against you will stand. Your punishment will come. I plead with you – ask Jesus to be your Advocate. Ask Jesus to bear your sin. Ask Jesus to intercede for you. That is why He came. For those in Christ – how awesome is this verse? Jesus paid it all – once forever. Every sin I know of – every sin I have no idea about – every sin yet to come – Jesus paid it all. Every failure, every disappointment, every transgression – gone. And to help me navigate this world – Jesus is praying for me.

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Even thinking about that this week has helped me.

When Satan tempts me to despair, And tells me of the guilt within, Upward I look and see Him there Who made an end of all my sin – I see Him praying for me. How can I go ahead and sin knowing Jesus is interceding to strengthen me against sin? And then even if I do sin on the final day:

The Judge will say – no accusation stands! The Judge will say my verdict is – no condemnation!

These are the truths of the empty tomb. These are the truths of the resurrection. These are the truths in which we rejoice.