May 8th Mother's Day

Good morning every one. Happy Mothers day to all of the loving women in our church who have been a mother, or served in that capacity. We are blessed to have you all as a part of this church.

Last week as we celebrated communion together I shared from the book of Hebrews the beautiful reality that is our new covenant agreement with our God.

We are getting closer today to the end of our series in the book of Hebrews, my intention is to finish this book in the next three weeks. Open our Bibles to Hebrews chapter 10.

Pray.

Hebrews 10:19–27 CSB

Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have boldness to enter the sanctuary through the blood of Jesus— he has inaugurated for us a new and living way through the curtain (that is, through his flesh)— and since we have a great high priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed in pure water. Let us hold on to the confession of our hope without wavering, since he who promised is faithful. And let us consider one another in order to provoke love and good works, not neglecting to gather together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging each other, and all the more as you see the day approaching. For if we deliberately go on sinning after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a terrifying expectation of judgment and the fury of a fire about to consume the adversaries.

This passage can be broken into two parts, the first being our current situation; this is who we are right now, and the second is what that should mean in your life - how you should respond to it.

It is written exactly how I write most of my sermons, the first half explaining and the second half exhorting. What you should know, and then what you should do.

Lets start with what you should know.

Therefore - Looking back.

If you have been around a while you know that the word therefore is one of my favorites in scripture. It demands that we look at the context of everything around it before we are able to properly understand the passage we are reading.

Jesus accomplished the work of the temple once and for all. Serving both as the perfect high priest and the perfect sacrifice.

He established a new covenant in His blood that we get to live in today.

The new covenant that we we are in is so much better than what we had before because it takes into account and covers for our failures as people and restores us to right relationship with the father.

The author of the book of Hebrews wants us to understand all of that as he goes into this next passage

Therefore.

Therefore. Since we have boldness to enter the sanctuary through the blood of Jesus.

Now lets stop and think about what that means. Before Jesus walked the earth, the tabernacle was the mobile temple.. then the temple was built, and that permanent structure would be set up in the same way as the temporary one, in that there would be the place everyone would go to do the things that they were worthy of doing, but then there was a curtain that separated the presence of God. A great, thick cloth barrier that kept people out of the presence of God. The only person to enter that area was once a year the high priest could - risking their lives.

Our new paradigm is to be in a place where we can, without preparation, without sacrifice, enter into the most holy place of God. We can be in his presence.

Vs 20 says that we have a new and living way through the curtain.

3 Let us statements:

Let us draw near.

Let us hold on.

Let us consider one another.

Let us Draw Near

Hebrews 10:22 CSB

let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed in pure water.

Let us draw near.

The author of Hebrews tells us that there needs to be some honesty here. That we come close to God, with a true heart. A sincere heart. A heart that is genuine, valid.

So what does that look like?

We have to get honest with our selves, and honest with God.

Are you ready to serve Him? Are you ready to do things differently than you have done them before?

If you have that part figured, then the next part is yours.

You get to draw near to God with boldness, knowing.

Knowing that your sins are forgiven.

Your Sins are forgiven.

You are clean.

You sit here today, clean and righteous. Do you believe that?

Romans 10:9 CSB

If you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.

You will be saved.

If you have proclaimed Jesus as Lord and Savior - you are in. You’re taken care of. You are paid for. Your debts are satisfied.

And you can be certain of that.

Not assuming it or thinking it - but knowing it. Since we have a great high priest over the house of God - LETS GO.

Let us draw near.

the command that we are given in Hebrews 10:19-22 is to draw near to God.

Hebrews 4:16 CSB

Therefore, let us approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in time of need.

Hebrews 7:25 CSB

Therefore, he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, since he always lives to intercede for them.

Hebrews 11:6 CSB

Now without faith it is impossible to please God, since the one who draws near to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.

This isn’t the first time that this writer has given this instruction. In fact, it seems like one of the most important thing to this writer - that we get near God, that we have fellowship with him, that we not settle for a Christian life at a distance from God, that God not be a distant thought, but a near and present reality, that we experience what the old Puritans called communion with God.

This drawing near is not a physical act. It's not building a tower of Babel, by your achievements, to get to heaven. It's not necessarily going to a church building. Or walking to an altar at the front. It is an invisible act of the heart. You can do it while standing absolutely still, or while lying in a hospital bed, or while sitting in a pew listening to a sermon.

Drawing near is not moving from one place to another. It is a directing of the heart into the presence of God who is as distant as the holy of holies in heaven, and yet as near as the door of faith. He is commanding us to come. To approach him. To draw near to him.

The puritan author John Owen once said this

"Friendship is most maintained and kept up by visits; and these, the more free and less occasioned by urgent business . . ."

We are celebrating mothers day today - I am sure there are a lot of mothers including my own who would echo this statement. Relationships are maintained and kept up by visits. More of them just because and fewer of them that are urgent and in need. But either way - many visits.

As we draw near to God, the relationship that matters most in this life - we got to keep the visits frequent.

Let us Hold On

Hebrews 10:23 CSB

Let us hold on to the confession of our hope without wavering, since he who promised is faithful.

Let us hold on is the next Let us statement of this passage.

Rick and I were talking yesterday about the Hebrew translation of a different passage, we are getting into some theological mud together on some other things and having a good time. But that led me to look at this word - hold on. And the implications of that.

My understanding of this concept here is to make a stronghold out of. Keep things close and well protected.

To make it a stronghold means to build it out of substance and strong material. That is, we aren’t building our house out of grass so the enemy can huff and puff and blow the whole thing down.

To do that requires an understanding of who Jesus is.

The Bible says “since he who promised is faithful”

that is the argument that the author of Hebrews has been building for 10 chapters. That Jesus is bigger, better, badder than anyone else. He is more faithful. More generous. More gracious.

Let us consider one another

Hebrews 10:24–25 CSB

And let us consider one another in order to provoke love and good works, not neglecting to gather together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging each other, and all the more as you see the day approaching.

Consider one another

We aren’t doing this alone. To pretend that we are, or to set ourselves up so that we can, is dangerous.

We are commanded to meet together. The kind of meeting in view seems to be one that allows for some kind of mutual encouragement and stirring up of one another. It is not talking about merely sneaking into a big church service and sneaking out again. It’s talking about the kind of meeting where you say something to someone that will help them be more loving and where someone can say something to you that will help you be more loving, and help you have the strength to more good deeds.

Avoid the habit of NOT gathering.

The second point is don’t get into the habit of not meeting. This is almost the same as the first point, but verse 25 seems to give it a special stress. So I want to too. It says, “Not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some.” The warning here is that not meeting with other Christians in this way can become habitual. Ask yourself right now: Are you in the habit of only coming to more or less anonymous, bigger meetings of the church where there doesn’t have to be much personal interaction or accountability? Does that pattern of life feel comfortable now?

Many of you would have to answer, Yes. Why? Because it is now a habit. It’s what you are comfortable with. In fact, it is so much your normal way of looking at the Christian life that what I am saying right now is threatening to you. You do not want to be told that the Bible insists that you are outside the Lord’s will when you do not meet in some kind of smaller group intentionally designed to stir you up to love and good works.

So my second point is: don’t get into this habit of not meeting in this way.

All the more as you see the day approaching

all the more as you see the day approaching

Provoke love and good works

Encouraging one another.