The Joy of Worshiping with Christ

August 25, 2013 Hebrews 12:18-29 The Joy of Worshiping with Christ 14th Sunday of Pentecost Year C The City has a sound Shhh, listen. Have you ever noticed that if you are quiet enough, you start to realize that there is a distinct sound to the streets of Chicago. If you listen close enough, you will see that every big city have a voice. People say that Chicago has a bass voice, whereas London has a baritone voice, and New York with all of its horn blowing and yelling has a tenor voice. Every church and community has a personality We have been studying the book of Revelation in bible study, and in the first chapters we were told that the book was written to the angel of the church. John’s point is that every organization, every community, every church has its own personality. It’s set way of understanding life. And it is impossible to lead in that community, or get anything done in that community, or even live comfortably in that community unless you understand and honor the personality. And you come to realize that personality is a living being determined to get its way; that is why John calls the personality of the church an angel. John was not the only writer in the new testament who understood the church as a living organism. That is why the books of the new testament are written to different communities. If you read the epistles the letters to the churches, you will see that each of them have a very similar message, that Christ is the center of our faith. But they each use different words- to help us understand the same message. It is said that Romans, Ephesians, and Hebrews are all based on one verse from the old testament. Habbakuk 2:4 says “the Just shall live by his faith. Romans tells when it means to be a just or righteous person, Ephesians tells how a righteous person should live, and Hebrews tells what it means to have faith. All three books in every chapter of the book talk about Christ being the center of our righteousness, our lives and our faith. Christ is the author and finisher or our faith. Christ is the source of all that we are – whether we confess Christ or not. Another commonality of Romans and Hebrews is that they are not written to a specific church. They are written to a whole community of people. Every city has a personality, a way of dealing with things. Both Romans and Hebrews were written specifically to Christians in the city, reminding them to hold on the faith in Christ, in spite of what is going on around them that may distract them and pull them away from Christ. The text of hebrews Hebrews has been our text for three weeks now, and we still have one more week of the book of Hebrews. God told me that it was a good time to focus on the message of Hebrews for us to day. The message of Hebrews is basically keep the faith. That message was not written to a church but to a community. We don’t know who wrote Hebrews, or what city he was even talking about. It was a unique community because Gentile Christians and Jewish Christians were worshipping together in the same church. They had achieved what is impossible for most churches today. When I started out in ministry I asked if I could be placed in a multicultural church, where different races worshipped together. And was immediately told that there was no such thing in the whole conference. There were white churches that accepted ethnic people, but were still white in character, and there were ethnic churches that accepted white people, but were still ethnic. But there was no church that had a personality of acceptance of all people regardless of race. Churches have always been segregated into like minded people. But somehow, this church was able to overcome all of that and learn to live together. They had achieved the goal that Jesus had set for them to learn to put Christ first and their differences second. They had come up and were now heading down They had reached the heights of what a community of Christ was supposed to be – but leaders realized that instead of them climbing up to bigger and better things, that they started to go backward. They started to revert to their old understandings of life. The older jewish members started to believe that the newer gentile members had to become jewish before they became Christian. They needed to be reminded that we are saved by grace alone. Christ freed us from the law and set us free to be saved. Our salvation is in Christ, not the rules and not the past. I know I seem to say that I love all of the books of the bible, but I really do appreciate Hebrews. Paul was an amazing writer, but we know that this was not written by Paul, because the author of Hebrews has an amazing understanding of the jewish faith. This is the only history book that we have in the new testament. In each chapter of the book the author goes back into the old testament and reminds us of an element of faith. He talks about the angels, the prophets, the saints, the priest, and in each chapter he reminds us that what we had in the past was truly awesome, but what we have in a future with Christ is so much more awesome. The theme of Hebrews is the absolute supremacy and sufficiency of Jesus Christ as revealer and as mediator of God's grace. The prologue (1:1-4) presents Christ as God's full and final revelation, far surpassing the revelation given in the OT. The prophecies and promises of the OT are fulfilled in the "new covenant" (or "new testament"), of which Christ is the mediator. From the OT itself, Christ is shown to be superior to the ancient prophets, to angels, to Moses (the mediator of the former covenant) and to Aaron and the priestly succession descended from him. Hebrews could be called "the book of better things" since the two Greek words for "better" and "superior" occur 15 times in the letter. A striking feature of this presentation of the gospel is the unique manner in which the author employs expositions of eight specific passages of the OT Scriptures:Communications, Inc. The Book of Hebrews is one of the most profound sections of the Word of God. In it we get a glimpse of the Lord Jesus Christ as the God man more clearly than we do in any other portion of the Scriptures. Moreover, we understand by a study of this epistle that He is God's Apostle to the human family and our great High Priest. Because He is what He is and has done what He has accomplished for us, we have a covenant better than that of Israel; a sanctuary better than that of the Hebrews; a better sacrifice than the blood that flowed on Jewish altars; a better ministry than that conducted by the Aaronic priesthood; and better promises than those made to the Jews. In every way we have things better than those enjoyed by the Israelites. Comparison of Mt Sinai and Mt Zion On today’s lesson the teacher says that in the old days we used to talk about Mount Sinai, and moses and how moses had awe and wonder for God because he was told that he was on holy ground. But in the olden days people could not have a direct relationship with god. In the old days people were afraid of God, and they had these rules and rituals that they had to follow. Today we don’t need to go back to mount Sinai and its ways of doing things. Because today we have a new mountain, mount zion, a new way of understanding God and a new way of doing things. You don’t need to go looking for God because God knows where to find you. When god finds you there is not fear and judgment, there is joy and celebration. 3816 The Holy City Thirty men, red-eyed and disheveled lined up before a judge of the San Francisco police court. It was the regular morning company of “Drunks and disorderlies.” Some were old and hardened, others hung their heads in shame. Just as the momentary disorder attending the bringing-in of the prisoners quieted down, a strange thing happened. A strong, clear voice from below began singing: “Last night I lay a sleeping There came a dream so fair.” Last night! It had been for them all a nightmare or a drunken stupor. The song was such a contrast to the horrible fact that no one could fail of a sudden shock at the thought the song suggested. “I stood in old Jerusalem, Beside the Temple there,” The song went on. The judge had paused. He made a quiet inquiry. A former member of a famous opera company known all over the country, was awaiting trial for forgery. It was he who was singing in his cell. Meantime the song went on, and every man in the line showed emotion. One or two dropped on their knees; one boy at the end of the line, after a desperate effort at self-control, leaned against the wall, buried his face against his folded arms, and sobbed, “Oh mother, mother!” The sobs, cutting to the very heart of the men who heard, and the song, still welling its way through the courtroom, blended in the hush. At length one man protested, “Judge,” said he, “have we got to submit to this? We’re here to take our punishment, but this—” He, too began to sob. It was impossible to proceed with the business of the court, yet the judge gave no order to stop the song. The police sergeant, after an effort to keep the men in line, stepped back and waited with the rest. The song moved on to its climax: “Jerusalem, Jerusalem! Sing for the night is o’er! Hosanna in the highest! Hosanna for evermore! In an ecstasy of melody the last words rang out, and then there was silence. The judge looked into the faces of the men before him. There was not one who was not touched by the song; not one in whom some better impulse was not stirred. He did not call the cases singly- -a kind word of advice, and he dismissed them all. No man was fined or sentenced to the workhouse that morning. The song had done more good than punishment could possibly have accomplished. —Author Unknown Stumbling upon God Verse 18 begins by saying you have not come to something that can be touched. Come means you have approached, you have walked into. The old God was unapproachable, but Christ is fully approachable, he understands us because he came into the world as one of us. Our task in not just to look for God in the places and people we recognize, but to see God in all things and in all people. In Christ we worship a better God, so we need to be a better people. We need to continue to go forward, not backward, to go up and we have no reason to go down. The biggest message of our verses today is to trust the voice of God in all things. Do you listen to the sounds of the city or the voice of God. Hebrews tells us to listen to the voice of God. the city sometimes can mislead you, but God never does. The voices of the city can lead us away, but the voice of God is always the voice of faith. God shaking things up Hebrews also talks about God shaking our lives, and shaking anything that is not of the new kingdom out of our hands. We are given five important warnings as people of faith. We are warned of the danger of neglecting our faith, of allowing unbelief to take over, of falling back into spiritual immaturity, of failing to endure, but the message for today is don’t ever refuse God. it is not just our faith, but our life depends on it. Verse 25 says see that you do not refuse the one who is speaking; for if they did not escape when they refused the one who warned them on earth, how much less will we escape if we reject the one who warns from heaven. Keep the faith in all situations and God will not lead you astray. HOPE AND A GRATEFUL HEART There is an old legend of a man who found the barn where Satan kept his seeds ready to be sown in the human heart. On finding the seeds of discouragement more numerous than others, he learned that those seeds could be made to grow almost anywhere. When questioned, Satan reluctantly admitted that there was one place in which he could never get them to thrive. "And where is that?" asked the man. He replied sadly, "In the heart of a grateful person." (From a sermon by Stephen Sheane, "Remembering the Blessings" 1/19/2009) We have been a superior faith – let us it We have been given a superior faith, when we put Christ as the center of our lives. We have been given a superior faith than those who came before us, because we have all that we need in the arms of Christ. Christ is our sanctuary, our salvation, our peace. There is a lot of stuff on Hebrews, it covers everything when it comes to faith. But the important thing to remember – that faith in Christ, and in Christ alone is the source of our salvation. Amen. ________________________________________ 7120 Seeing Other Mountains Talking with John Dewey several months before his ninetieth birthday, a young doctor blurted out his low opinion of philosophy. “What’s the good of such claptrap?” he asked. “Where does it lead you?” The great philosopher answered quietly, “The good of it is that you climb mountains.” “Climb mountains!” retorted the youth, unimpressed. “And what’s the use of doing that?” “You see other mountains to climb,” was the reply. “You come down, climb the next mountain, and see still others to climb.” Then, putting his hand gently on the young man’s knee, Dewey said, “When you are no longer interested in climbing mountains to see other mountains to climb, life is over.” —Maxwell Droke 7122 They Saw The Goal Napoleon saw Italy, but not the Alps. He had an objective and knew where he was going. Washington saw the Hessians at Trenton. A man of smaller stature would have seen the Delaware choked with ice. The majority see the obstacles; the few see the objectives; history records the successes of the former while oblivion is the reward of the latter. —Healthways 4457 Every City Has A Voice High above a city, the medley of street noises is blended into one overall note, sound, or murmur. For instance, we are told that the overall note of Chicago is bass; of London it is baritone; and that of New York is tenor. The Book of Hebrews addresses three separate groups: believers in Christ, unbelievers who had knowledge of and an intellectual acceptance of the facts of Christ, and unbelievers who were attracted to Christ, but who rejected Him ultimately. It’s important to understand which group is being addressed in which passage. To fail to do so can cause us to draw conclusions inconsistent with the rest of Scripture. Read more:http://www.gotquestions.org/Book-of-Hebrews.html#ixzz2cvybhecM There is an old story of a man who had just become a Christian. He was experiencing some of the difficulties that new Christians often have of uncertainty in his faith; he was wondering if he really was a Christian, and was feeling frustrated with his own lack of growth. He felt he had come to the place where he just could not stand any longer; he could not live as a Christian any more. He came into a church service where a pastor was speaking on the verses in Ephesians that tell of Christ being seated at the right hand of the Father, and that we are dead, and our life is hid with Christ in God. He talked about Christ as the head of the body, and said that we are the body, and that Christ as the head is seated at the right hand of the Father. As the truth of this gripped this man's heart, and he realized that although he was struggling to swim against the current down here below, his head was seated in victory and triumph already at the right hand of God, he jumped out of his seat, and shouted, "Hallelujah! Who ever heard of anyone drowning with his head high above water!" That is what Hebrews does to us: it helps us to focus on the One who is already in the place of victory. We are fighting a battle already won, and that is what encourages us. When we walk in the flesh, we are fighting a battle already lost; there is no chance, no hope of victory; but when we walk in the Spirit, the battle is already won. The Book of Hebrews addresses three separate groups: believers in Christ, unbelievers who had knowledge of and an intellectual acceptance of the facts of Christ, and unbelievers who were attracted to Christ, but who rejected Him ultimately. It’s important to understand which group is being addressed in which passage. To fail to do so can cause us to draw conclusions inconsistent with the rest of Scripture. Read more:http://www.gotquestions.org/Book-of-Hebrews.html#ixzz2cw36oneQ