Sermon Tone Analysis
Overall tone of the sermon
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Scripture Introduction:
I’ve got here a bar of soap and a Christmas gift.
While, I’m sure they have more than one thing in common there is something pretty big that they have in common.
We’ll find our answer to that question in .
Now, I’d planned on moving out of Hebrews for a couple weeks but as I just couldn’t get around this particular passage and how it really is a great place to talk about the beauty of advent.
It’s a great Christmas passage.
I want to show you a 2 minute video.
It’s a bit dry but I’m sharing it with you to give you a visual picture for when we do read the Scripture.
SHOW VIDEO
Now that’ll help you picture what the author of Hebrews is saying.
READ TEXT
Sermon Introduction:
So what in the world does all this talk about blood and bulls and temples and tabernacles have to do with celebrating the birth of Christ?
What does this have to do with Christmas?
Why in the world did I pick this text for the Sunday before Christmas?
It has to do with that bar of soap and the Christmas gift.
Now if I had a child come up here for this Christmas gift what would they want to do?
They would immediately start ripping it open, wouldn’t they?
Why?
Because they realize that a wrapped Christmas gift doesn’t really do much good unless you tear into that thing.
Unless it’s opened it isn’t yours.
It just sits under the Christmas tree and creates longing and mystery.
So how is that similar to a bar of soap?
Well, it too doesn’t do you much good unless you open it up.
It’s not going to do the job with the wrapper on.
It might smell good…and maybe you could get a bit of transfer odor if you kept it in your pocket or something…but it’s not going to get any filth off while it’s still in the package.
And that’s precisely what the author of Hebrews is showing us in this passage.
He’s saying that the entire Old Covenant was like that neatly packaged soap or that unopened Christmas present.
Access was limited.
Cleansing was partial.
You can see that picture in the very structure of the temple.
Everything cried out that they didn’t have full access and their consciences confirmed that their cleansing was only partial.
But the main point the author is making is that in Christ the fountain is opened.
Christmas means full access.
Christmas means full cleansing.
So this morning we will explore those two things.
Only Christ gives full access, so draw near through Him
I want you to imagine with me the last time you did something that you felt bad about.
You know when you felt your conscience kick in and that conviction sets in and you feel bad and think, “I really shouldn’t have done that.”
Or maybe those feelings are pretty intense and you’re dealing with some serious guilt and shame and all kinds of stuff.
Maybe even crippling.
Here’s what I want you to do with that.
Think back to that time and ask yourself the question…what did I do with that?
If you were a Jewish person living in the Old Covenant…and I’m oversimplifying this a little...what you’d do is go to the tabernacle and give your offering to a priest.
Then the priest would go into this Holy Place and he’d do his daily rituals.
He’d light the candles, partake of the bread, give sacrifices, all those things he was called to do in the Old Testament.
And once a year he would actually go behind this curtain into the Most Holy Place—the holy of holies where the ark of the covenant was—where the presence of God was.
And here he’d make an offering both for himself and for the people, spread blood over the horns of the altar, and this would be an act of faith that would cover their sin.
But place yourself there for a moment.
If you’re a common person—not a priest.
What do you notice?
You don’t see any of this.
You take your goat or your grain or whatever you are offering you hand it to the priest he goes into a room, comes out and says, “it’s all good.”
Again, I’m oversimplifying massively here.
But I want us to notice something that is sticking out like a sore thumb.
It’s these curtains.
You made the sacrifice but the curtain stays there.
So lets make this relational.
You said something really mean, or did something awful, to your friend or spouse.
You feel terrible.
Your conscience is activated—conviction sets in—you want to make things right.
And so you go to this person and say, “man, I’ve really blown it.
I did this thing and it hurt you and I’m really sorry, will you forgive me.”
And that person says, “sure, I forgive you.”
But you run into them at the store a couple days later and say, “hey, what’s up.”
And they give you the cold shoulder.
The relationship isn’t really reconciled.
You don’t have the same friend access.
So here is my question—what happens with your conscience at that moment.
Do you feel clean?
Do you feel like everything is okay?
Imagine that you’re the priest.
You do all these religious rituals every day.
And you know what remains.
The curtain.
You’ve got access that the people don’t have but you still don’t have the unfettered access.
One day a year.
One guy.
That’s it.
That’s what verse 8 means.
Their access was real.
It was better than anyone else.
Better than any false religion who was just making stuff up.
God graciously dwelled amongst them.
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