Fix your Eyes upon Jesus.

The things of earth will grow strangely dim.

On September 19, 1853, Hudson Taylor boarded a boat named the Dumfries and believed He was leaving England for China for the first and the last time.

He had been preparing to be a missionary to China.

As the ship prepared to leave, He was preparing himself mentally to live on the boat for 6 months on this trek into the unknown.

In those last moments, his mom prayed with him and shared that moment together.

Then the agonizing moment came.

Hudson Taylor writes in his own words via his Autobiography, “Then notice was given that we must separate, and we had to say good-bye, never expecting to meet on earth again...

For my sake she restrained her feelings as much as possible. We parted; and she went on shore, giving me her blessing! I stood alone on deck, and she followed the ship as we moved towards the dock gates. As we passed through the gates, and the separation really commenced, I shall never forget the cry of anguish wrung from that mother’s heart. It went through me like a knife. I never knew so fully, until then, what ‘God so loved the world!’ mean’t. And I am quite sure that my precious mother learned more of the love of God to the perishing of that hour than in all her life before.”

What are your thoughts when you read that?

My first thoughts were a combination

“Holy smokes...”

And most notably…

“Oh my chicken.”

This is 1853, not 2024.

No phones, no computers, no internet, no definitive communication of any kind.

You have written communication… but you quite literally must wait months to receive it.

I think what shocks me most is the phrase “We had to say good-bye, never expecting to meet on earth again...”

That’s incomparable to anything we see today.

We don’t hold life in such high regard in our society.

We take for granted how easily we can communicate and talk with one another.

But in this time, saying good bye to each other knowing you might not meet again this side of heaven …

That is a weighty moment.

Why would Hudson Taylor do this?

It was the gospel that led him to this separation of all that was familiar to him.

He stepped into an unknown place with people he didn’t know all for the sake of making disciples of Jesus.

If there is one message I believe Hudson Taylor and is mom began to learn that day it was this:

Hebrews 13:5–8 NIV

5 Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” 6 So we say with confidence, “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?” 7 Remember your leaders, who spoke the word of God to you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith. 8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.

Having read that this morning after hearing our illustration from Hudson Taylor and his mom:

I want to ask:

What is Jesus worth to you?

I don’t want you to beat yourself up and feel bad in answering that question, I just want you to consider the question truthfully.

Before we dive into Hebrews 12 and Hebrews 13 this morning, I want to quickly share with you a few themes from Hebrews:

1. Themes in Hebrews.

a. Jesus is greater than Angels (Heb. 1:5-14, 2:9)

Hebrews 1:5-14 is self explanatory.

Hebrews 1:12–13 “12 But you remain the same, and your years will never end.” 13 To which of the angels did God ever say, “Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet”?”

Hebrews 2:9 “9 But we do see Jesus, who was made lower than the angels for a little while, now crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.”

Jesus couldn’t have been made “lower” than the angels for a brief moment in death if he wasn’t first above them as God.

This is an interesting verse and we could sit here for a while, but that’s not super important for this morning though so we will move on quickly.

b. Jesus is greater than institutions (Heb. 3:6, 9:11, 9:15)

Hebrews 3:6 “6 But Christ is faithful as the Son over God’s house. And we are his house, if indeed we hold firmly to our confidence and the hope in which we glory.”

Hebrews 9:11 “11 But when Christ came as high priest of the good things that are now already here, he went through the greater and more perfect tabernacle that is not made with human hands, that is to say, is not a part of this creation.”

Hebrews 9:15 “15 For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance—now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant.”

c. Jesus is greater than priests (Heb. 4:14-16, Heb 7:27)

Hebrews 4:14–16 “14 Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. 15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. 16 Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”

Hebrews 7:27 “27 Unlike the other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself.”

Jesus is superior

What makes Jesus superior is the humble example he has shown us through the cross and resurrection.

That the God of the universe would humble himself to go to such lengths to offer us redemption, its incredible.

It’s why we have an entire chapter talking about faithful men and women in the Bible in Hebrews 11.

Men and Women who know that it’s not they who are superior, it’s Jesus!

Then arguably we get to the climax of the book

Hebrews 12:2–3 “2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.”

Are your eyes fixed on Jesus? Is the focus of your life showing Jesus that He’s worth it to you?

I tell you, Jesus is constantly showing us that we are worth it to Him.

He is greater than all else, but do we see that He is superior?

That’s the humility our God has, but are we responding accordingly?

Am I responding to Jesus with Humility?

Humility - the defining mark of the Christian worldview

All other belief systems hinge on what you can do in hopes of earning favor from a god.

Yet those beliefs and worldviews offer no assurance of salvation.

The Christian worldview is the opposite. We know that our efforts aren’t enough because we know and trust that That’s what Hebrews 12:2 “2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”

And what do we gain from fixing our eyes on Jesus?

Hebrews 12:3 “3 Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.”

Assurance, comfort, calm, confidence, joy.

Things only Jesus can give the restless soul.

Remember the hymn, Turn your eyes upon Jesus?

Sing this chorus with me if you don’t mind.

“Turn your eyes upon Jesus. Look full on His wonderful face. And the things of earth will grow strangely dim. In the light of his glory and grace.”

My favorite line in that chorus is “the things of earth will grow strangely dim.”

When you read about Hudson Taylor, you will read about how earth grew strangely dim to him.

Are the things of earth becoming strangely dim to me?

Or is the sway of this world becoming more vivid to me?

What about you?

There is much insecurity in this world, but there is always security at the feet of Jesus.

As we are secure in Christ, we become insecure in the world. The world has less of a hold on our soul as our Spirit is firmly held by Jesus.

As we are held by Jesus, “You will not grow weary and lose heart.”

The things of earth will grow strangely dim.

Fix your eyes on Jesus.

As we do that

I also want us to see this morning what Jesus calls us too.

Jesus calls us to Dangerous Faith.

3. Dangerous Faith.

We will look at Faith as an acronym this morning

But first, would you consider for a moment that living in this world (especially today) means that we are called to live dangerously.

I know that sounds strange but stay with me.

God does not call us to safety.

Listen to this.

As believers, we are called to go into a dangerous world with a dangerous message that might make dangerous people do dangerous things to you.

Yet we are called to tell insecure people how to find security.

Jesus called us to make disciples, this is not a safe task.

It’s messy.

Now, don’t mishear me this morning. We thank God for our security team and those who keep us safe.

We try to make our church facilities a safe place.

Period. I’m not talking about that.

I am saying that individually as Christians, God doesn’t call us to prioritize safety.

That shouldn’t be our number 1 priority.

Was Jesus safe when he flipped the tables in the temple?

Was Jesus safe when he was thrown out of the cities and had to live as an outcast until he rode into Jerusalem on palm Sunday?

Was Jesus safe when he died on a cross for you and me?

Was He safe when He called us to Take up our cross daily and follow Him (Luke 9:23).

no no no.

Following Jesus is messy business and as the church, sometimes that means sharing the gospel is also dangerous and messy.

Matthew 5 calls us to be salt and light to the world around us.

The message is sometimes to be the light, the church has to be willing to break a few lights.

As we bring Jesus to a lost world around us, the things of earth should be growing strangely dim right?

Like the new sign says as we leave each week, “The church is leaving the building.”

That’s right.

Our eyes are to be fixed on Him.

Jesus didn’t come here and say “here’s a 10 step flow chart of how to live safely for Christ.”

Actually through Paul he said, “To live is Christ and to die is gain.”

So what is this Dangerous faith that God calls us too?

APPLICATION:

Jesus calls us to Faith.

Here’s what that looks like this morning.

a. Fulfilled in Jesus (Heb. 13:5)

Hebrews 13:5a “5 Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have,

Money and what money can give me is not my goal. I am content in Jesus.

Friends, the life of Hudson Taylor will show you that perhaps better than any other earthly example I’ve read about.

Whether a graduate or a Christian in your later years this morning, you can find fulfillment in Jesus and Him alone.

It’s a dangerous, scary thing to find fulfillment in Jesus rather than all the world throws at you.

b. Assured in Jesus (Heb. 13:5)

Hebrews 13:5b , because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.””

Again, all other worldviews fail to offer assurance in this life.

Jesus promises to be with us always. As we read in 12:3, he also promises we will not grow weary or lose heart.

He promises in Matthew 11:29 “29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.”

What an incredible, miraculous, dangerous thing that God gives us assurance.

This is dangerous for Him, not us! We are crazy people down here!

Why on earth would God offer such close, tender, assurance that we can know we can rest in Him?

because this world is crazy y’all. But the things of this earth are growing strangely dim in the light of his glory and grace, his presence, his inability to leave us alone. Be assured.

c. Invulnerable in Jesus (Heb. 13:6)

Hebrews 13:6 “6 So we say with confidence, “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?””

What can mortals do to you?

What a statement! This is a call back to Psalm 118:6 “6 The Lord is with me; I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?”

I think of Romans 8 here as well. Nothing in all the cosmos can separate us from Him who cares for us.

What an incredible promise of security today.

You cannot exit this world one moment sooner than Jesus desires for you.

Now, there is an unseen realm out there, there is a spiritual battle waging.

Again, this is dangerous stuff we are talking about, Read Ephesians 6 to see our struggle is not against flesh and blood (mortals) but against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. But even there, its’ Jesus.

Yet, in Christ, in His timing, nothing can take us out of this world one second sooner than Jesus has for us.

d. Taught about Jesus (Heb. 13:7)

Hebrews 13:7 “7 Remember your leaders, who spoke the word of God to you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith.”

Hebrews 12:1 says “Therefore since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us run with perseverance…

Who has taught you about Jesus?

Who are you teaching about Jesus?

13:7 says “Remember your leaders who spoke the word of God to you. Imitate their faith.”

I always get nervous when I read about imitating a human beings faith.

Like when Paul talks about that in 1 Corinthians 11:1, I get nervous.

I want to imitate Jesus.

We’ve all probably known someone who seems to have become a stranger in this world. They are full of God’s grace.

When we think of that person and seek to imitate them, honestly, it’s not them we are imitating, it’s the picture of Jesus that person has so graciously shown us with their life.

That’s Hudson taylor, that’s a Sunday school teacher, that’s probably several people unique to you in your life.

Now ask, Are you that person to someone else?

We are called to be.

e. Hear from Jesus by abiding in Jesus (Hebrews 13:8, 20-21)

Hebrews 13:8 “8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.”

Hebrews 13:20–21 “20 Now may the God of peace, who through the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, 21 equip you with everything good for doing his will, and may he work in us what is pleasing to him, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.”

Hear from Jesus and abide in Him.

If we aren’t walking with Jesus personally, then we are missing out on the greatest blessing in this life.

We are missing out on the day to day walk with Jesus.

The reminders of how He has worked in our life in the past.

The assurance for how he holds us together today.

And the hope that we cling to for whatever danger comes tomorrow.

When you’ve walked with Jesus for a long period of time in your life… we begin to know this verse…

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.”

Amen.

How are you spending time with Jesus?

There are some cards at the end of the pews today that you can pass down.

They say “Hear” on them.

It’s a simple acronym that says Highlight, explain, apply, and respond.

Highlight - What scriptures stood out to you the most in your reading today?

Explain - write out what those scriptures mean. Write down any truths or details from the text.

Apply - We don’t want just knowledge from Scripture, we want it to affect us. How can Jesus affect your body, soul, and spirit from what you read today?

Respond - Now go and do what Scripture calls you to do.

Wherever you are at in your walk with Christ this morning,

I hope you remember and consider what Jesus is worth to you.

He’s worth it all.

His grace is far greater than anything this world offers.

May the things of this earth become strangely dim to us all in the light of His glory and grace today.

Let’s pray and have a time of invitation.