Sovereign Grace Baptist Church

Free Grace Media

Of Princeton, New Jersey

 

AuthorClay Curtis
TitleCommit All Into Christ's Hands
Bible TextPsalm 31:1-8
Synopsis As the Head of his people, Christ faith in the Father—like his righteousness and his holiness—is that by which his people are saved. Listen.
Date09-Nov-2017
Series Psalms 2011
Article Type Sermon Notes
PDF Format pdf
Word Format doc
Audio HI-FI Listen: Commit All Into Christ's Hands (32 kbps)
Audio CD Quality Listen: Commit All Into Christ's Hands (128 kbps)
Length 40 min.
 

Series: Psalm

Title: Commit All into Christ’s Hand

Text: Psalm 31: 1-8

Date: November 9, 2017

Place: SGBC, New Jersey

 

In Psalm 31, as we have seen in all the Psalms, this is Christ speaking—“Into thine hand I commit my spirit.” (Ps 31: 5) On the cross, our Substitutes last words were these—“And when Jesus had cried with a loud voice, he said, Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit: and having said thus, he gave up the ghost.” (Lu 23: 46)

 

No doubt David experienced the things he wrote here but this was not from or about David alone. It was given by the Holy Spirit concerning Christ—“Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation. For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.” (2 Pet 1: 20-21)

 

Christ did not only commend his spirit to the Father when he gave up the Ghost on the cross. He did so all his days as he lived trusting the Father as the representative of his people.  We see it most on the cross in the midst of his suffering.

 

What did Christ mean when he said, “Into thy hand I commit my spirit?”  He meant what he said in verse 1, “In thee, O LORD, do I put my trust.” (Ps 31: 1)  As a Man, Christ committed the salvation of his spirit into God the Father’s hand from his birth unto the death of the cross, trusting the Father perfectly as the Head of his people.

 

As the Substitute of his people, he humbled himself and served the Father in perfect faithful unto the death of the cross.   He redeemed his people from the curse of the law on the cross by being made a curse for us. As he did so, he did it as the one Faithful Head depending entirely upon God the Father in place of his people. 

 

Proposition: As the Head of his people, Christ faith in the Father—like his righteousness and his holiness—is that by which his people are saved.

 

Let’s look at these first five verses and see how fully Christ committed his spirit to the Father in perfect faith and let’s see what it is for us to do so.

 

NEVER LET ME BE ASHAMED

 

Psalm 31: 1: In thee, O LORD, do I put my trust; let me never be ashamed

 

Christ committed his spirit into the hand of the LORD trusting the LORD would never let him be ashamed for doing so.

 

The faith of Christ did not look to himself or his works or his will. He trusted his God alone—“In thee, O LORD, do I put my trust.”

 

Nor did he trust in the lying vanities of sinners in this world. We are in a terrible time in this country—in this world.  I suppose every generation has considered theirs to be the worse.  Ungodly worldly men recognize it but their solution is to look to ungodly worldly man to fix it. Their solution is to “regard lying vanities. ”These days they are making some good speeches about love and unity. And it is so easy for a believer to hear emotional speeches and for a moment get caught up in it.  But the faith of Christ was so perfect he did not look to himself, to his will, to his works and never to this world for any help. He says in verse 6: “I have hated them that regard lying vanities: but I trust in the LORD.”  Sinner, never look to this world. To do so is to regard lying vanities. And Christ those who regard lying vanities.

 

Christ trusted the LORD to make good on his covenant promise to never make him ashamed for trusting the LORD—“In thee, O LORD, do I put my trust; let me never be ashamed.”

 

Romans 10:11: For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.

 

God the Father did not make him ashamed. He fulfilled every covenant promise to Christ his Son just as God promised in the everlasting covenant of redemption.  Let us remember, this when we see Christ raised. God never makes his believing child ashamed for trusting him. We see it first and foremost in his Son. Christ trusted the Father and the Father did not make him ashamed for doing so.  So first, to commit our spirit into Christ’s hand is to trust him to never let us be ashamed just as he trusted the Father.

 

DELIVER ME IN THY RIGHTEOUSNESS

 

Psalm 31: 1: In thee, O LORD, do I put my trust;…deliver me in thy righteousness

 

Christ committed his spirit into the hand of the LORD by trusting the LORD to deliver him according to God’s righteousness.

 

The Son of God came to fulfill all righteousness for God and his people.  In everything he did in his public ministry, Christ was fulfilling all righteousness in this earth, especially on the cross.  At his baptism, he told John the Baptist, “Thus it behoves us to fulfill all righteousness.”

 

By the faith of Christ, he declared the righteousness of God, fulfilling the law apart from the works of his people. He is the one the law bears witness of as the perfect, righteous law Fulfiller.

 

Romans 3: 20: Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin. 21: But now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets; 22: Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference: 23: For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;

 

By the faith of Christ, he declared the righteousness of God in carrying out justice and justifying his people.

 

Romans 3: 24: Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: 25: Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; 26: To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.

 

But in order to declare the righteousness of God, he had to be separated from the God he trusted.  Justice required Christ our Sin-bearer be forsaken by the justice of God alone on the cross in order to satisfy justice and justify his people.  Justice required he die and be buried in a tomb where sinners suffer corruption in place of his people.  So Christ had to trust the Father to deliver him according to his righteousness.

 

Believer, our faith is tried by God and we face a lot of difficult trials but our faith never has to be separated from God under the wrath of divine justice. That should show us how that Christ’s Faith is the faith by which we are saved.

 

But where did Christ’s faith rest? Christ’s faith rested in the fact that God is righteous—“deliver me in thy righteousness.” God delivered Christ in God’s own righteousness because Christ fulfilled all Righteousness and is God’s Righteousness. It would have been unjust to leave our conquering Righteous Redeemer in the grave.  So we see God is Righteous. He only does right!

 

Now, as sinners, the only way we will delivered in God’s righteousness—establishing his law perfectly in righteousness—is by believing on Christ, committing all into his care, trusting him to deliver us in his righteousness.

 

Romans 3: 30: Seeing it is one God, which shall justify the [Jew] circumcision by faith, and [Gentile] uncircumcision through faith. 31: Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea, [through faith in Christ] we establish the law. [to show us that is what he means in uses Abraham] 4: 1: What shall we say then that Abraham our father, as pertaining to the flesh, hath found? 2: For if Abraham were justified by works, he hath whereof to glory; but not before God. 3: For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness.

 

Believe on Christ and God shall deliver you in Christ Jesus his Righteousness. So secondly, committing our spirit into God’s hand is to trust him to deliver us in Christ his Righteousness.

 

BOW DOWN THINE EAR TO ME

 

Psalm 31: 2: Bow down thine ear to me; deliver me speedily: be thou my strong rock, for an house of defence to save me. 3: For thou art my rock and my fortress; therefore for thy name’s sake lead me, and guide me. 4: Pull me out of the net that they have laid privily for me: for thou art my strength.

 

Christ committed his spirit into God’s hand by trusting the Father to hear him, to deliver him, to be his rock, to lead and guide him.

 

We see how far down Christ condescended to save God’s elect. He came down so far that he asked God his Father to bow down to hear him—“Bow down thine ear to me.”

 

We live in a world full of arrogant, proud, haughty sinners—none so much as the religious world.  And sadly, we have a sin-nature that is proud. But God does not condescend to hear haughty arrogant sinners.

 

James 4:6…Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.

 

Isaiah 66: 2..[thus saith the LORD: but to this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at my word.

 

The humble Man, the Man poor and of a contrite spirit that trembles at God’s word, to whom God looks to build his house is Christ, the GodMan. Did Christ save his people in pride and arrogance? No, he did so in perfect humility.

 

Philippians 2: 5: Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: 6: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: 7: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: 8: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. 9: Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him,

 

Christ highly exalted God by humbling himself in perfect obedience. Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him.

 

Philippians 2: 9:…and given him a name which is above every name: 10: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; 11: And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

 

In humbling himself so lowly, trusting the Father, Christ praised and exalted God highly. He exalted God highly with these words—“be thou my strong rock, for an house of defence to save me. For thou art my rock and my fortress; therefore for thy name’s sake lead me, and guide me. [you Father] Pull me out of the net that they have laid privily for me: for thou art my strength.”

 

By exalting Christ to such high honor, God proved that God is our Rock in Christ our Rock; God is our Fortress in Christ our Fortress; Christ is his name’s sake by and for whom he gives Christ to lead and guide his weak believing child. When God pulled Christ out of the net that his enemies laid for him, he pulled all his people out of the net of our enemies.

 

So Christ further exalted and praised the Father for delivering him—Psalm 31: 7: I will be glad and rejoice in thy mercy: for thou hast considered my trouble; thou hast known my soul in adversities; 8  And hast not shut me up into the hand of the enemy: thou hast set my feet in a large room.

 

Do you see what God means when he says through James that “God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.”  Committing our spirit into Christ’s hand is—not to exalt ourselves in bombastic pride and boasting of our faith.  It is to humble ourselves, casting all our care on Christ, trusting Christ to exalt us in his time even as Christ highly exalted God by humbling himself. God exalted him in God’s time and Christ will exalt us in his time.

 

1 Peter 5: 5:…Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble. 6: Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: 7: Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.

 

Believer, it is not the quality or quantity of our faith by which we are saved—it is the object of our faith Christ Jesus. His Faith was Perfect. Christ committed the keeping of his spirit to the LORD and never looked elsewhere. So true God-given faith trusts the perfect faith of Christ by whose ability we are kept and saved.

 

2 Timothy 1:12  For [Christ’s] cause I also suffer these things: nevertheless I am not ashamed: for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day.

 

Amen!