“The Stability of the Cross”

Returning to the Cross Sermon Series

“The Stability of the Cross”

KEY PASSAGE: Hebrews 12:22–29(NASB)

We give You all the glory, praise, and honor. Father God, we thank You for this church. May the Holy Spirit empower this church to help us fulfill Your kingdom and let Your will be done in the lives of Your people.  I pray, Lord, that You will draw us close to the feet of the Cross. We pray this in Christ’s holy and righteous name, and let everyone say Amen.  You may be seated.

TITHE and OFFERING

We will call on the ushers to pass around the offering plates so we can collect our tithe and offering. The worship team will lead us [again] with a song as we collect our tithes and offerings.

PRAYER FOR TITHE and OFFERING

 Gracious Father, as You have freely given us all things, we now freely give ourselves and the substance of our hands to You. I pray that You accept these gifts as a token of our sincere worship of You and Your Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior; in His name, we pray. Everyone said Amen.

WELCOME

Well, welcome, everyone, again to our Sunday Worship Service. Please stand up, greet some folks around you, and tell them Jesus loves you. Our first-time visitors, please stand so we can see you. We also welcome all who join us online.

ANNOUNCEMENT

·  📖Wednesday Night Bible Study Connect – 7:00 p.m. Please join us this Wednesday at 7:00 PM for a time of learning, fellowship, and spiritual growth as we study the Word of God! We are studying the Book of First Samuel—a powerful journey through God’s leadership, faithfulness, and the lives of His chosen servants—a powerful journey through God’s leadership, faithfulness, and the lives of His chosen servants.

· 📅 Corporate Meeting—We meet at the church every Saturday at 8:00 a.m. for a prayer meeting. I encourage you to please join us. If you have a prayer request, please complete the online or in-person prayer request form, and we will lift you up in prayer.

· 📅Two-Day Church Workshop. Our church will host a two-day workshop from June 13 to 14, 2025, in collaboration with Olford Ministries International, Inc. I encourage all members to sign up and participate in this impactful time of learning, growth, and spiritual enrichment.

DECLARATION of FAITH in GOD

Let us stand and say the Declaration of Faith in God together. Please remain standing as we pray.

PRAYER FOR ILLUMINATION

Let’s close our eyes, and let’s be still. Our Father, we acknowledge Your Holy presence. May this church proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ openly, freely, and boldly so that lives will be transformed for Your glory. In the name of Christ, we pray. And everyone said Amen. You may be seated.

SERMON INTRODUCTION

Let me begin by saying, in 2020, the world was shaken by the COVID-19 pandemic, a crisis that disrupted lives, economies, and even churches. People everywhere asked the question, “What is going on?” as they faced uncertainty, fear, and loss. Families were separated, struggling with sickness and grief. Churches closed their doors, moving to online worship. Jobs disappeared, leaving many in financial crisis and hardship. Governments and scientists searched for answers, but confusion remained. It felt like everything was shaking and falling apart, and many wondered, “Where is God in all of this?” Many of you here today are looking at your own lives and struggles, wrestling with the question, “What is happening?” You find yourself asking, “What is happening to me, my world, and my life?” In the midst of uncertainty, you long for answers—you want to understand what is happening.

SERMON EXPOSITION 1

In Hebrews chapter 12, the author is writing to Jewish Christians who are raising the same question many believers ask today: What is going on? They are living in a time of great uncertainty and impending disaster. The Roman army, led by Titus, is preparing to besiege Jerusalem, and the destruction of the temple is imminent. The dark clouds of judgment are gathering, and fear is gripping the hearts of many Jewish Christians.

Later in the book of Hebrews, the author describes how some believers had been imprisoned, while others had their property confiscated. In the midst of these hardships, they were raising the question about their reality: “What is going on? What is happening to us? How should we respond to the chaos unfolding around us?” This sense of uncertainty and struggle forms the backdrop of the Book of Hebrews, as the author seeks to encourage them to remain steadfast in their faith despite their trials.

The author of the book of Hebrews has spent the whole book talking about the Excellency of Jesus Christ. He has been exalting Christ over the religious systems of the day, Judaism, which they have been a part of. And many Jewish Christians were thinking of going back to Judaism because this Christian thing, [this Christian experience] for many of them, was not working. It wasn’t answering the question—What is going on? So, the author speaks to them in contrast in chapter 12 to drive home the answer to the question—What is going on?

We are living in a time where everything seems to be shaking to its core. Global conflicts, economic instability, and cultural shifts have reshaped our lives individually and corporately. For many, life does not feel the same as it once did. The sense of security and predictability has been replaced by uncertainty and anxiety. In the midst of all this, people are asking: “What is going on? Where is this all leading? How do we respond?” People want to know what is going on. Families are in disarray, and the culture is falling apart. And so much of it is happening so quickly and unexpectedly. In the midst of that kind of environment, the author of Hebrews has a Word for you and me today, and it is connected to the Cross.

SERMON EXPOSITION 2

Today, I want to speak to you about “The Stability of the Cross.” “The Unshakable Foundation of the Cross.” The Old and New Covenants are a powerful reminder that life is a race. A race that every person is running. However, how we run this race determines its purpose and outcome.

If we run the race for ourselves, seeking personal gain and fulfillment, it becomes The Great Selfish Race.

If we run the race for self-righteousness, striving to earn acceptance through good works, it becomes The Great Legalistic Race—a path burdened by rules and human effort.

But if we run the race for Christ Jesus by way of the Cross, surrendering our lives to Him, it becomes The Great Christian Race.

Why should we commit to The Great Christian Race? The answer is clear: God can only accept a person through the Cross, through the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is not by human effort or self-righteousness but by the grace of God’s own Son. This grace makes us perfect, redeems us, and secures our place in God’s kingdom.

The author compares Mount Sinai and Mount Zion. On Mount Sinai, when God spoke to Israel in the Old Testament—Hebrews 12:18, “They came to a mountain that can be touched into a blazing fire to darkness and gloom and whirlwind, a blast of the trumpet.” Verse 20 says: “Not even a beast can touch the mountain or it will be stoned.” When God came down and spoke before the giving of the Ten Commandments, it says all hell broke loose. It was a breathtaking scene—the mountain shaking and covered in smoke as God descended to proclaim His law.

All this happened at Mount Sinai when God was about to give the Ten Commandments. [Watch This Now] Verse 21 says: And so terrible was the sight, that Moses said, “I am terrified and trembling.”

God is speaking to us today through His Word, and we must listen to what God is saying. If God shook the earth at Sinai, and those who refused to listen faced judgment, how much greater is our responsibility today, having received the blessings of the New Covenant through the blood of Jesus Christ? [You See] Far too many—including Christians—are building their lives on things that can be shaken, rather than on the unshakable foundation of God’s kingdom.

But then the author flips it in verse 22: “But you have come to Mount Zion.” He talks about Mount Sinai and how terrifying the presence of God was in that environment, but he says to Christians: “That is not your mountain, that is not the mountain you are hanging out at.” The author of the Hebrews says these mountains are spiritual symbols [Watch This]: “But you have come to Mount Zion and the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to myriads of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the Judge of all, and the spirits of the righteous made perfect.” Verse 24 brings up the cross: “And to Jesus, the Mediator of a New Covenant to the sprinkled Blood, [that is the Cross], which speaks better than the blood of Abel.”

The author of the book of Hebrews declares that you have entered a new reality—you are in a different city, a new environment, and a transformed realm. You are not living at Mount Sinai, a place of terror, trembling, and insecurity, where everything feels unstable and uprooted. Sinai is not your home if you are a believer—a Christian in Jesus Christ. You no longer live in fear but in the confidence and security of God’s unshakable kingdom.

SERMON EXPLANATION 1

Why? Because the Cross—the Blood of Jesus—established a new order, orchestrated a new arrangement, and a new covenant. This changed everything. Let me take a moment to explain what a covenant truly means. A covenant [Watch This Now] is a binding commitment that you are operating under the umbrella of a whole new realm. A new way of life that the Blood of Jesus has orchestrated is the Cross, the Mediator, the means through which the New Covenant operates, that is, God has committed to you. God’s commitment to us is mediated through the Blood of Jesus Christ, orchestrating a different arrangement that God has with His people that He does not have with the world. It is mediated by the Blood of Christ, which he says in verse 24: “Better than the blood of Abel. ” The author compares the blood of Abel to the blood of Christ, which is the Cross. And he says, Christ’s blood is better than Abel’s blood. He says, Christ’s blood speaks more graciously. Christ’s blood says, “Forgiven forever.” Abel’s blood says, “Vengeance.” Christ’s blood cries, “Mercy, pardon, and peace.”

Let’s do a quick Bible Study. Do you remember that Cain killed Abel, and the Bible says that his blood spoke out from the ground. What did Abel’s blood call for? It calls for justice! God then … when the blood spoke out … went to Cain and God claimed justice, or judgment on Cain according to Genesis 4:10-12. Abel’s blood spoke judgment.

SERMON EXPOSITION 3

But he clarifies, “That is not the blood I am referring to.” I am speaking of the Blood of Jesus Christ, which mediates God’s divine arrangement with you and me, established through the New Covenant. Having established at the Cross, the Blood of Christ is the mediation; Jesus and His Blood are the process through which this new arrangement works. He then answers the question for us—“What is going on?”

I know what some of you might be thinking: “I believe in Jesus. I believe in the Cross. I know that Jesus died for me, and I am part of this New Covenant. But my life still feels like it is falling apart. Things are not going as I hoped, even though I am holding onto the Cross. Even though I am attached to the Cross.”

I am attached to this new arrangement. What is the connection to Jesus and the Cross? Verse 25 says: “See to it that you do not refuse Him who is speaking. For if those did not escape when they refused Him who warned them on earth, much less will we escape who turn away from Him who warns us from heaven.” “And His voice shook the earth then, but now He has promised, saying, 'Yet once more I will shake not only the earth, but also the heaven.” Verse 27 says, …………the removing of things that can be shaken, (as of created things), so that those things that cannot be shaken may remain.”

He keeps using the word ‘shaken’. If you are here today, and your world is shaking. If you are shaken up because of what is happening in the world or in your world. And you know that you are being shaken up when it keeps you from sleeping at night. You know you are being shaken up when you live in insecurity and fear because of what is happening in ‘the world’ or your world.

You know things are shaking you when that which was stable, which was Ok, is now causing you to be afraid, insecure, and unstable. Guess what he just said? He said, “When the shaking occurs, you are part of the New Covenant. You are attached to the Cross.” He says, “Do not refuse God who is speaking.” Let me put it another way. If your roots are being shaken, God is talking! Do not refuse God, who is speaking. When the mountain quaked at Mount Sinai. They refused Him who was speaking! God was saying something, and they said, “We don’t want to hear that.” The world is shaking, so your world may be shaking because God is talking.

SERMON ILLUSTRATION 1

On bad weather days, we can turn on, tune in, and focus on the weatherman or the weatherwoman. When you hear a hurricane is coming, a tornado could be in the surrounding area, or bad storms are heading your way, you focus on the weather. When God allows or causes things to be shaken nationally or personally, He says, “Do not refuse Him who is speaking.” God is talking! And the worse the shaking is, the louder God is speaking! The worse the shaking is, the louder God is shouting.

He says, ‘When things are shaking, God is speaking!’ What is God saying? That is the question: What is He saying? How can I interpret the language? I see the events, but I don’t know the vocabulary. How do I know what God’s Word is when there is so much disruption time after time, growing bigger and bigger, and I find myself affected more than ever before? Let’s look at what verse 27 says: “The expression yet once more denotes the removing of those things which can be shaken as of created things, so that those things which cannot be shaken may remain.”

SERMON ILLUSTRATION 2

When a woman goes into labor, her body is overcome with pain. Chaos unfolds within her body, and anguish intensifies as the contractions grow stronger. Pain becomes the order of the day, and she experiences great suffering, but what is causing this pain? The baby is speaking. The baby is talking. The baby is not saying words we can understand, but it sends a powerful message through every contraction and movement. The message is clear: “I want to come out! Get me out of here! I don’t want to stay in this environment anymore!” The baby is ready for a new reality.

Do you know what the message is? It is a message of separation. A painful separation is taking place between the mother and the baby—something is being removed, and the change hurts. The pain means it is time for a change! The closer the labor pains come together, the closer you are to the breakthrough. The intensity of the pain is not a sign of defeat and weakness but a confirmation that transformation is taking place.  A separation is taking place, but it is good news in the midst of a bad situation! Yes, it is painful and hurts, but something powerful and wonderful is coming down the pike. A new life is coming down the pike. It is time for the manifestation , and a breakthrough is coming!

SERMON EXPOSITION 4

[Watch This Now] Throughout the Bible, when God was ready to do something special, different, unique, and extraordinary, it would be introduced through a painful scenario! God would create or allow anguish as the pathway to something new and transformative. Now, I know what you are thinking, “Why does it have to be this way?” Trust me, I have wrestled with the same question. Why must pain precede breakthrough? Why should struggle usher in God’s greatest works? Scripture reveals that pain is often the birthplace of God’s purpose and destiny.

1 Peter 5:10 says, “After you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will perfect, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.” Hebrews 12:11 says, “For the moment, all discipline seems not to be pleasant, but painful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterward it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness.” When God is ready to do something new, He knows we are not ready for what He intends to accomplish!

When the people of Israel were crossing the Red Sea, they only crossed because  God blocked them in, leaving them with no way out. You have Pharaoh on one side, the Red Sea on the other side, and the people are stuck. The people of Israel are between a rock and a hard place. All they could see was death. “We are going to die! There is no escape!” But what seemed like the end was the setup for God’s most extraordinary deliverance.

Over and over again, including the Cross, there had to be death before there was life, creating another arrangement. God’s arrangement with you and me, called ‘The New Covenant’, is centered on the Cross, Jesus being the mediator. The Cross, the life, and the death of Jesus Christ—He says the Blood that is the Cross is the foundation through which God operates this new covenant and divine plan. It is manifested through the Cross; it includes God speaking and shaking things. He says, “As of created things.” Verse 27 says: “So that those things which cannot be shaken may remain.”

We are too attached, and God wants to shake us loose from the things we are connected to, to take us to the place He wants us to be. So, guess what? God creates disconnection to remove us from our loyalty to earth, so that we can see the movement of heaven. During an earthquake, everything attached to the ground shakes aggressively. But if you are high above in an airplane, you remain unshaken—because you are not connected [or attached] to the earth. God desires to move in our lives through the Cross and the blessings of the New Covenant—His divine commitment to us and all its manifestations. But for that to happen, God must first disconnect us from everything inconsistent with the New Covenant—anything that does not align with His divine arrangement and our relationship with God through Jesus Christ.

SERMON APPLICATION 1

The Blood of Jesus Christ on the Cross mediates God’s new arrangement with every Christian and His church. Through the Cross, God is going to flow to you His goodness. But before God can pour out His goodness and blessing, He must first remove anything that hinders His work in your life, disconnecting you from whatever stands in the way of His divine flow. Some of my great memories and experiences have emerged from moments of crisis, where heaven had to intervene in my situation because earth had no solution. Earth could not fix it, and God would not allow it because God spoke through the situation. God had something to say. “Therefore, verse 28 says: “Since we received a Kingdom which cannot be shaken.” The Cross of Jesus Christ has resulted in a new arrangement with God. When God saved, forgave, and made you one of His own, He also transferred you.

We must ask ourselves: “God, what are You saying to me or to us?” If your world is falling apart, say, “Lord, You are talking, and I am listening.” If the nation is falling apart —Say, Lord, You are talking and I am listening, I want to hear what You have to say to me in this situation. In every crisis and disruption, say: “Lord, what are You saying to me—in this situation?” “Let us show gratitude.” Thanksgiving, when things are shaking. You should be thankful that God is talking to you. God is speaking! “Lord, I want to establish gratitude now that I have access to the Cross.”

SERMON EXPOSITION 5

Verse 29 says, “For our God is a consuming fire.” When the walls of Jericho fell to the ground, the Bible says, “Rahab and her family were delivered when the walls of Jericho collapsed.”  Everything around Rahab collapsed. The kingdom she was a part of, called Jericho, fell apart. Why? Because Rahab was part of an unshakable Kingdom.

FAITH APPEAL, CALL to ACTION, and ALTAR CALL

The more the culture disconnects from God, the louder God will talk. The louder God will speak. The Cross has given you a new arrangement with God, placing you in a Kingdom that does not shake despite the shaking around you. And so in the midst of your shaking situation, as bad as it is, and as close as the labor pains are apart, let us respond with gratitude and thanksgiving! Right now, you may not have steak and potatoes, but praise God for hot dogs and baked beans.

Right now, you may not have everything you desire, but thank God, there is still a roof over your head, clothes on your back, and God has given you the strength to carry on. This is not the time to cuss and fuss, because God is talking! God is speaking to someone right now. This is the time to bless His Name and serve Him faithfully, because God is working in your life. And when the time is right—when His purpose is fulfilled-God will clothe Himself in you, revealing His glory through you. You will be blessed because God Almighty is moving through you! And God will be able to do some things for which He alone will get the glory. And then there will come that one day, the final shaking will come, and the whole world will tremble because Jesus is preparing to break through the clouds, return, and call us home. Jesus is going to shake stuff up first. And it is called The Day of the Lord before His ultimate entrance.

God bless you!

If you are here today and don’t know Jesus, I want you to come to the Cross, give your life to Christ, and trust Jesus to be your Savior. If you need prayer, please come forward so we can pray for you.  Let’s stand on our feet and bless His Holy Name for the “Stability of the Cross!”

BENEDICTION [CLOSING PRAYER]

Join me in prayer, please.

Father, we thank You for speaking to our hearts. Father, we pray right now that You and Your extraordinary grace would reach down by Your spirit and touch the hearts of any here who do not yet know You, who have not yet come to You at the point of grace but stand at the point of law. Father, we pray that in Your incredible love, You would draw them to Mount Zion to all You have for them in Christ Jesus, in whose wonderful name we pray. And everyone says, Amen.

God bless you. We will see you next week at 10:30 a.m.