Introduction: Grace be to you and peace, from God our Father, and from our Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ. Our text is the Epistle Lesson just read, from Hebrews 10. We begin with prayer.
Dear fellow disciples of our Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ:
- Our text presents us with many beautiful and important facts regarding God’s great love for us and the salvation He has provided for us in Christ Jesus, His beloved Son. These assurances are at the heart of our faith and trust in God.
- Our text also presents us with some remarkable facts regarding our new relationship with God – based in His gracious mercy, forgiveness, and love. It speaks of the confidence that we have as believers, as children of God. And it speaks of entering into “the holy places” in the “house of God.”
- We are assured that God who promises all of these things is faithful – and then the author connects this to our life together within the church, and specifically our “meeting together” in worship, warning us not to fall into the habit of some Christians, those who are neglecting this part of Christian faith and life. Much is forfeited by this, and we are specifically urged not omit participation in worship, not to “skip” church.
- The point of the logic of this Word of God is that in view of what Christ has done for us, and in view of the privileges that are now ours through faith in Christ Jesus, there is no way that any Christian would ever want to miss out on the wondrous privileges, joys, and comforts of Christian worship.
- I think that the reason that many fail in this – and think of worship services as “mundane” and unspectacular – is that we do not properly value what God has given us in Christ Jesus, and because we do not understand or do not believe what is actually happening in Christian worship – that we are “ENTERING HEAVENLY REALITIES WHILE STILL ON EARTH” when we are engaged in worship here right now.
- So let us first consider what God has done for us in Christ Jesus, and what He is doing for us each and every time we gather together in His Name for worship! For:
I. God Has Made An Offering To Take Away Our Sin – And It Is Complete Forever
A. This Is The New Covenant In Christ’s Blood – Full Forgiveness For All Our Sins
Text: “The Holy Spirit also bears witness to us; for after saying, ‘This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my laws on their hearts, and write them on their minds,’ then He adds, ‘I will remember their sins and their lawless deeds no more.’”
B. This Covenant In Christ’s Sacrificial Offering For Our Sins Is Once And For All Time
Text: “But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, He sat down at the right hand of God. . . . By a single offering He has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified.”
Statement: These realities of which our text assures us are remarkable and astonishing. A covenant is a legal and binding agreement – and in this case the covenant is promissory, made by a single participant, God Himself. The arrangement under which He now interacts with mankind is gracious, merciful, forgiving, cleansing, and renewing love. There is no need to “offer repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins.” This has now been accomplished by Jesus – in His “for all time single sacrifice for sins.” Let that reality sink in, and sink in deeply. For we are frequently afflicted by guilt for our sin, and fear that it may not be forgiven. The devil is eager to drive us to depression, despair, ignorance, and unbelief. This reality should also change our thinking about the unbelievers around us – that they too have forgiveness and salvation, if only they would repent and come to believe in Jesus.
Application: But God is just as eager to assert what is real and true – that all sins have been paid for by “the Lamb of God Who takes away the sin of the world,” by the One Who is “the blood atonement for our sins, and not for our sins only, but also for the sins of the whole world,” the One Whose blood cleanses us from all sin. This is the new reality – the new covenant in Christ’s blood. And we should note that this sacrifice on the cross also took place “in heaven itself” where Christ “now appears in the presence of God on our behalf.”
And we should also note that of the cup, the wine which Christ commanded us to drink in remembrance of Him until His return in glory, Jesus Himself asserts: “This cup is the New Covenant in My blood which is shed for you for the forgiveness of sins.” [Matt. 26:28] To drink of this “cup” is to drink of this New Covenant and to receive all of the blessings of Christ’s sacrifice on the cross. And it is being offered in the holy places of heaven where He is our advocate with the Father – which means that participating in the Sacrament here and now on earth, in this place, takes us also into the holy places of heaven.
Transition: And so we need to understand and to believe that:
II. Our Worship Is Even Now Heavenly, Bringing Us Into The Holy Places Of Heaven
A. We Are Described As Having Confidence [Which Comes By Faith] To Enter The Holy Places By The Blood Of Jesus
Text: “Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus.”
B. We Do So Through A New And Living Way, Through The Flesh Of Jesus Christ
Text: “by the new and living way that He opened for us through the curtain, that is, through His flesh.”
C. For Also In Our Baptism We Have Been Washed And Sprinkled Clean With Pure Water
Text: “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 with pure water.”
Statement: Here we have clear references to things that pertain to Christian worship – participation in the body and blood of Christ, and the enduring effects of our baptism into Christ Jesus. What is asserted? That we have forgiveness in Christ’s blood, and having His blood upon us we have confidence to enter into the very presence of God. We enter into “the holy places by a new and living way . . . through His flesh.” The author writes in the present tense – it is happening now. And just where has Christ promised to give us His true body and blood for the forgiveness of sins – and as our access point into the “holy places of heaven”? It is in the Sacrament of His body and blood – which is the New Covenant in His blood.
Application: I understand that this seems quite “airy-fairy” to us, and I understand how easily we might not realize just where we actually are, especially if we rely only upon our empirical senses. But even our senses can be deceived in this way, and our senses do not always enable us to know where we are. Perhaps you also have had the experience of being lost – and though your senses should have enabled you to know where you were they did not. But these realities are not discerned by empirical experience or by reason – rather they are revealed to faith by the Word of God, His promises and assurances. And were it not for this Word of God, the descriptions in our text, we would not even dream that such things could be possible.
But if we “see” where we are with the eyes of faith, faith which grasps the Word of God and knows that God is faithful and true, then we will understand what is involved each time we “meet together” for worship; we will know also where we are, that we are “ENTERING HEAVENLY REALITIES WHILE STILL ON EARTH.” And if we understand this, and the blessings that we receive from God through Christ’s blood in worship, and if we believe, then it will be hard to keep us away from worship!
Transition: And so we must remember:
III. God Is Faithful – So Let Us Also Be Faithful
Text: “He Who promised is faithful.”
A. So Let Us Be Faithful In Meeting Together For This Great Privilege Of Worship In The Holy Places Of Heaven
Text: “not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.”
B. And Let Us Be Faithful In Encouraging One Another In All Good Things
Text: “Let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works.”
Statement: If we know the faithfulness of God, we will be eager to receive and participate in what He has provided for us in worship. And we will recognize that our own faithfulness only insures that we will be blessed by God’s faithfulness to His promises. And in our meeting together we will not only rejoice to be in the heavenly presence of God, but to also rejoice to encourage one another in love and good works, to participate in the things that are most godly and God-pleasing!
Application: So consider what is lost and also what is revealed about the condition of our hearts, whenever we choose to “skip church” or to participate in worship in a shallow and superficial manner. Consider just how much unbelief and blindness remains in our hearts and minds. For this sin also Jesus suffered and died – that we might have forgiveness, and live in the New Covenant of God’s love. It is true that we have been “perfected forever” through Christ’s sacrifice, but it is also true that we are still “being sanctified,” still growing in understanding, faith, love, and good works. This is a good thing – a necessary thing in view of God’s great love and blessings.
Conclusion: So I encourage you to grasp and retain the blessings of God in Christ Jesus, and I urge you to fully participate in the heavenly realities – even while you remain here on earth. For it is in this way that we are privileged in our earthly worship to “visit” our heavenly home, where our true citizenship resides, even before we are transferred there eternally. May we all enjoy this wondrous privilege and also the mutual encouragement of one another in our “meeting together,” and “all the more as you see the Day drawing near.” Amen.
Votum: And the peace of God, which surpasses all human understanding, will keep your hearts and minds in the true faith, which is in Christ Jesus, even unto life everlasting, Amen.