Five Perils to a Dynamic Faith

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This is a sermon based on Hebrews 12:3-24 regarding five warnings given by the author to alert the readers to some perils that threaten their faith.

Written Excerpts:

Introduction:

How many people here really like to come to church to feel encouraged and inspired? How many like to hear sermons that are comforting and uplifting? How many like to hear messages that are close and searching and expose our actions or attitudes to the searching light of God’s truth?

Well, let me remind you what God’s Word says the task of the pastor is by reading to you a passage from the Apostle Paul’s letter to a young pastor named Timothy. 2 Timothy 4:2 (KJV) Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine.

So you see, dear friends, I’d love to only preach comforting and uplifting sermons, but that’s only half of my responsibility. I have the responsibility before God to reprove and rebuke as well.

Well, apparently the author of Hebrews felt the same way. There are many warnings given to believers in God’s Word and the book of Hebrews is a prime example. As one reads through this letter you will find numerous warnings given to the readers of the letter. If the believers back then needed to be warned of the perils to their faith, I suppose that we need to pay attention to the warnings as well.

In our Scripture lesson for today the author of this letter gives five warnings concerning the perils that threaten the faith of the believers. These warnings are all introduced with the word “lest” in the KJV. Five times in this chapter the writer uses the word “lest,” which literally means, “that not,” and each time indicates a threat or danger to be avoided by the believers.

(The main outline of this message is borrowed from a message preached by Rev. Marc Dodrill.)

The reason I chose the title that I have chosen is because I believe the author is warning of the perils that not only could ruin the faith of those early believers in Palestine, but they can jeopardize the faith of any Christian even today.

He started out at the beginning of the chapter by reminding the Christians that all of the men and women of faith mentioned in ch. 11 are like a large crowd of witnesses who have just testified of their confidence in God and God’s promises. In light of all that these people did and endured, he urges the readers to take every possible course of action to follow their example. In other words, he is admonishing them to keep their faith as well, in spite of all the adversity and persecution they might have to go through.

However, as one tries to maintain his/her faith, there are threats and perils that lurk all around. There are hazards that can cause one to abandon his faith and bring ruin and disaster to his soul. What are the dangers that we must avoid? What are the things that hinder and even destroy many Christians?

There are five perils listed here in chapter twelve that have often caused deep trouble to many, many Christians. Some of these have even caused spiritual shipwreck from which they never recovered.

(Most of the definitions and word meanings given in this message are taken from Word Studies in the Greek New Testament by Kenneth Wuest.)

I. The Danger of Weariness (v.3)

Hebrews 12:3 (NKJV) For consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself, lest you become weary and discouraged in your souls.

A. Weariness is not a sin, but it can lead to sin.

The connections we have already noted between the warnings of this chapter and the witnesses of the previous chapter would indicate that the primary threat of weariness is that it can cause one to abandon his faith because he is just too tired or faint to keep trying (striving) any longer.

I don’t know if you will remember or not, but when I preached a series of messages on faith from chapter 11, I mentioned that “genuine faith will enable one to keep on believing when he would have otherwise given up.” So, here the author is urging them to NOT give up.

“wearied” and “faint” – literally the words are very similar in meaning. The first means to grow tired and is actually translated “sick” in one passage. The other one means to be faint or to relax due to exhaustion.

B. Weariness can be avoided.

1. By considering Jesus’ example. (v.3-4)

“consider” – reckon by comparison.

No matter what persecution these believers have had to endure, they haven’t yet suffered the level of pain, suffering and even death that Jesus suffered, yet Jesus didn’t give up.

“resisted unto blood” – Probably a reference to the shed blood of Jesus indicating His sacrificial death. But there may also be an intentional connection to the martyrs referred to back in chapter 11.

2. By remembering God’s ways of working. (vv.5-11)

Chastisement (Discipline) is a means of teaching us lessons and truths that we cannot learn any other way.

The KJV uses the word chastisement, which we normally understand as “punishment” for something we did wrong. But…The words paideía and paideúō relate to the upbringing of children, who need direction, teaching, instruction, and discipline. Both the way of education and the goal are indicated by paideía. (Theo. Dict. of the N. T.) It covers the whole idea of teaching and instruction, which by implication includes correction.

I’ve known a number of people who automatically ask this question when things are going wrong or they are suffering in some way. “What have I done to make God punish me like this?” Correction does include punishment at times and it is possible that the purpose behind your circumstances is for that reason.  However, it is also possible that it is not punishment at all. It may simply be God’s way of teaching and instructing you in truths and concepts of grace that you wouldn’t be able to learn any other way.

If we can always keep this in mind, it will help us not grow weary and contemplate giving up our faith.

II. The Danger of Waywardness (v.13)

Hebrews 12:13 (KJV) And make straight paths for your feet, lest that which is lame be turned out of the way; but let it rather be healed.

A. Waywardness is caused by…

1. “Hanging hands” and “Feeble knees.”  (v.12)

“lift up” – means to “restore to straightness or erectness, to reinvigorate.”

“hang down” – literally disregard, neglect, then also relax or loosen.” May be a reference to their neglect of prayer (lifting up holy hands).

“feeble” – this is the same word that is translated “sick of the palsy” or a paralytic.

2. “Crooked paths.” (v.13)

The word for “straight” used here is a Greek word that does not emphasize the opposite of “crooked” so much as it stresses the concept of “plain” and “smooth.” So, by implication, the crooked paths that cause believers to stray from the path would be paths that are not plainly visible (understandable).

B. Waywardness can be corrected.

1. By healing the lame.

Those who are suffering from hands that are hanging down in neglect and knees that are paralyzed need to be revived and reinvigorated; restored to new life and vitality. They need renewal; a great awakening and a spiritual revival.

2. By straightening the road.

Those who are straying from the road because of ignorance need to be enlightened with plain, simple truth.

III. The Danger of Gracelessness (v.15a)

The third peril that the author is warning the readers about is the danger of “failing of the grace of God.”

Hebrews 12:15a (KJV)  Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God…

To fail of the grace of God literally means to “fall back from or fall away from; implying a previous attainment.” (Wuest)

“looking diligently” – compound word meaning “look intensely” or “look over” (i.e. oversee)

I believe that this is a reference back to verse 14 regarding the admonition to follow after peace with men and holiness before God. The implication of this warning seems to be teaching that when we give up on seeking and following after peace with our fellowmen and we give up on pursuing holiness before God, then we risk the condition of falling away from the grace of God.

People run out of grace because of pride. (James 4:6)

More grace is available from God. (James 4:6)

Conclusion:

We have run out of time today and I will not be able to finish talking about the last two perils, so I will conclude this message next Sunday.

These warnings given to the first century believers are certainly appropriate for us today. I trust that the Lord will help each one of us to heed these warnings and remain alert to these and other perils that would threaten our faith.

For our closing song, we are asking God, Who has certainly helped us in the past, to continue to guide us through these perils of life.

Let us sing: O God Our Help in Ages Past

Growing Up

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This is a sermon based on Hebrews 5:11-6:3 and it discusses the topic of spiritual maturity.

Written excerpts:

Introduction:

For the past several weeks I have been speaking from different passages found in the letter written to the Hebrews. For those who haven’t been here previously, I just want to explain that I am not doing a verse-by-verse series through this book. I am simply going through the book and selecting passages that I had underlined or noted in my Bible while listening to other sermons or while doing personal reading and study. These are passages that stood out to me as I read/heard them and made me think of truths that I thought would be essential for all believers to keep in mind as we endeavor to walk with the Lord in obedient faith.

The topic that is emphasized in the scripture selection for today relates to the issue of growing up, or spiritual maturity.

Before we go any farther I wanted to share a couple of stories related to this matter of growing up. The first one is on the lighter side.

CHILDISH FEAR C. S. Lewis – “When I was ten, I read fairy tales in secret and would have been ashamed if I had been found doing so. Now that I am fifty, I read them openly. When I became a man, I put away childish things—including the fear of childishness and the desire to be grown-up. (Illustrations Unlimited)

This next one is a story that is also somewhat humorous, but it applies a more serious message…

FAITH OR HUNGER? Ellen Hammonds – “My husband is a minister who conducts an expanded altar call at the end of his sermon. He asks those who wish to accept Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior, as well as those with prayers or other requests, to come forward.

“To the surprise and delight of the congregation our three-year-old daughter, without a word to me, got up and made her way forward. She waited patiently while the others ahead of her made a request.

“When her turn came, my husband leaned down to ask for her request. She whispered, ‘Can we go to the restaurant after church?’" (Illustrations Unlimited)

In my years of ministry I have witnessed various occasions when a sermon or some other medium was used to convey a serious message about salvation or eternity, only to watch/hear grown adults immediately change the subject to the weather, sports, or something else that had absolutely no spiritual or eternal significance. It made my heart ache to think that there apparently was no ability and/ or desire to contemplate such serious subjects. It reminds me of a child that either cannot understand or will not consider any subject that requires deep thought.

Well, whether we’re talking about something serious or something that is a little more light-hearted, there are numerous situations that remind us of the importance of growing up and becoming mature adults. That is exactly what our Scripture lesson is about today. With the help of God’s Spirit, I want to talk to you about the need to grow up in our faith and in our spiritual lives.

I want to first of all take some moments to explain the meaning of the scripture text that we have before us. Then I want to use the basic principle that is expressed here and make some additional applications to Christian / Spiritual maturity in general.

I. The meaning of our text.

Our “first order of business” here this morning is to briefly describe the actual meaning of the verses in Hebrews 5. (Most of my information is taken from Greek scholars, Kenneth Wuest and William Barclay.)

We are starting in verse 11…

“of whom” (of which) – the prepositional phrase can be understood grammatically to refer to either the person Melchisedec or to the subject of his priesthood. Since the person is not mentioned again until chapter 7, it would be more appropriate to read it as referring to the subject of his priesthood and its application to Jesus Christ.

“hard to be uttered” – lit. difficult to interpret into words; not because of the speaker but…

“you are dull of hearing” – lit. slow or sluggish in hearing or understanding. The word “dull/slow” literally means “no push” i.e. no self-motivation or interest.

The structure of this phrase emphasizes that they had become slow in understanding in the past with the result that they are now unable to grasp difficult concepts. They apparently had learned better and known better in the past, but had become dull in hearing, i.e. had not continued to hear, or had carelessly listened, or had completely omitted the preaching and had forgotten what they heard. (Adam Clarke)

v. 12

In fact, their understanding is so dull/slow that now they have a repeated need for someone to continually instruct them at a time when they ought to be teachers instructing others.

“first principles” – the rudimentary or elementary ideas of God’s revelation.

“milk…strong meat” – metaphor used by the author to emphasize the contrast between the need for “first principles” (milk) like a young child/infant, rather that “strong meat” (i.e. solid food) that would be the primary diet of an adult.

v. 13

“everyone that uses milk” – not referring to occasional use of milk, but those for whom milk is their exclusive diet, nothing else.

“babe” – word used here is not the only word used for infant or child in the Bible. In this context it is a word that denotes one that is immature in contrast to the one that is of “full age” (v.14)

v. 14

“strong meat…full age” – solid food is the diet of those who are mature. Metaphor meaning spiritually mature people can “digest” more difficult concepts because of their habitual use of their “senses” or faculties.

This regular use of reasoning / thinking skills produces the ability to discriminate between good and evil.

The more one practices sound reasoning resulting in good moral choices, the more one will be able to continue to discriminate between good and evil; right and wrong; etc.

6:1-2

Two different views regarding this section.

a. “leaving the principles… foundation of repentance… let us go on to perfection…

These are all phrases that emphasize the need to leave behind (abandon) all the “elementary” teachings of the old covenant involving those ideas and practices that they were tempted to return to, and let’s move on to faith in the new covenant and the finished sacrifice of Jesus Christ.

b. These items mentioned that must be left behind are the elementary principles of the gospel necessary for the beginning of faith. However, they must recognize the importance of growing in their understanding of Christ, His nature and His work.

I personally think it is more likely that the first option is correct because of the background information we have mentioned several times in the past… The believers in Palestine who were suffering severe persecution and were tempted to abandon their faith in Christ and return to the temple sacrifices and OT practices.

In this case, the lesson I take from it is that the writer is urging them to move away from their dependence on physical, temporal, elementary symbols of salvation and trust in the real thing. The more one relies on physical and symbolic images and practices to maintain his/her faith, the less the are able to wrestle with the invisible truths of the faith.

II. Spiritual applications of the biblical principle of maturity.

A. Christians need to recognize the necessity to grow up mentally and intellectually.

I see this point clearly in the text that we have just reviewed. The writer was obviously frustrated with the fact that his readers were not capable of digesting difficult concepts and ideas regarding the new priesthood of Jesus Christ and how much better it was than Aaron’s priesthood in the OT. They didn’t seem to have the mental stamina to follow his message. Far too many Christians in our modern culture in America are intellectually and mentally lazy. Can I lovingly remind you dear friends that if you haven’t bothered to stretch your mind a little to meditate and process some deep theological truth that boggles your mind, then you are acting like a child.

Let me put a plug in here for the adult Sunday school class. There are topics discussed in that class that make a person think. This quarter that has just started today is a good example: “Studies in Christian Holiness.”

B. Christians need to recognize the necessity to grow up emotionally.

One of the passages that we read earlier in our responsive scripture reading was taken from Paul’s letter to the Corinthians. (1 Cor. 3) In that text he rebukes them for the envy, strife and divisions that had developed among them and presents that as evidence that they are still babes; children; and carnal. He is urging them to grow up and get past all the petty things that they have allowed to divide them from their fellow believers.

I have been amazed at the kinds of issues or problems that Christians have allowed themselves to become offended over and allowed divisions to develop between them and the brothers and sisters they are supposed to love. I recognize some of this comes from the emotional baggage that people have accumulated before they come to Christ, but there is help and victory in Jesus to overcome and grow out of all that, if we are willing to allow Him to work on us.

I currently have 300+ friends on Facebook. (I know some of you are surprised that I’m on Facebook. The rest of you are probably surprised that I have friends!) But I’ve noticed a host of people posting cute little sayings about “everyone just needs to accept me the way that I am, cause I’m not changing.”

I don’t know about you, but I’m thankful that I am not still acting in some of the ways that I used to. I’d like to think that I’ve learned to handle some things better than I used to…. God does accept us the way we are, but thank God, He doesn’t leave us the way He found us. He stretches us, molds us, forms us and rebuilds us into His likeness; not just spiritually, but emotionally and mentally.

C. Christians need to recognize the necessity to grow up spiritually.

The Bible is full of admonitions and exhortations for believers to “go to perfection” or “maturity.”

Much of the emphasis in Scripture regarding holiness and sanctification really relates to the issue of becoming mature in our walk with Christ. It is moving on from the elementary principles of repentance and the new birth, and learning the life of a disciple. Some of the references are strongly worded as commands for believers to experience the cleansing fire of God’s Spirit and to develop Christ-like attitudes and conduct.

Another emphasis in Scripture regarding spiritual maturity involves the issue of suffering and its usefulness in developing our faith. Read again through Hebrews 11 and see how many of these people listed there demonstrated the quality of their faith by the suffering they endured.

Conclusion:

I’ve been frustrated many times by the attitude among some Christians that seems to say, “I have confessed my sins and put faith in Christ, and I’ve ‘got my ticket to heaven,’ and that’s good enough for me.” They don’t seem to have any desire to grow more like Christ or to develop their understanding of the Christian faith. They are content to “stay a baby their entire Christian life.” I don’t believe it works that way. First of all, because I believe if someone’s conversion is really genuine, then they will desire to grow up just as naturally as a child wishes to become an adult.

Secondly, I don’t think we can just stay in the say immature status, because I believe we cannot remain static in our spiritual development. We will either grow up and become more mature or we will get farther and farther way from the Lord and eventually die spiritually.

The closing song I have chosen for us to sing emphasizes one aspect of the Christian life that facilitates maturity.

“Jesus, I My Cross Have Taken”

The Great High Priest

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This is a sermon based on Hebrews 4:14-5:10 that speaks about the ministry of Jesus Christ as our heavenly high priest.

Written excerpts:

Hebrews 4:14-5:10

Introduction:

In our sermons we have been picking out selected passages in the book of Hebrews that I had underlined or highlighted in my Bible at some point. These were texts that had caught my attention and interest in a particular way and I felt would be important to share with you.

Today, I want to continue by selecting a portion of scripture in chapter four. We will be discussing an entire segment of verses that speak about the high-priestly ministry of our Lord. Remember that we have previously said how the author of this letter has been presenting his arguments for how Jesus, the Son of God is much better than angels, the prophets, Moses and Joshua. 

Now, he is continuing by arguing the point that this Jesus is even better than Aaron, the first high priest under the Old Covenant. One writer (Wuest) suggests that this is the greatest in the progression of examples to which Jesus is compared, because Aaron represented the one who was “mediator” between God and man. For that reason, Aaron was greater than the prophets or Moses or Joshua. But now, Jesus Christ is shown to be greater than Aaron.

As we consider what the author has to say in this regard, we want to focus on three main thoughts that he has expressed in these verses. Let us review together the Identity of our High Priest; the Qualifications of our High Priest; and the Impact of His Ministry upon all Believers.

I.    The Identity of Our High Priest

In this group of verses the author provides us with important details regarding the identity of our great high priest. If you recall, the priests in the OT were required to be members of the tribe of Levi and the direct descendants of Aaron. In similar fashion, the author of this letter emphasizes the all-important identity of this new high priest.

A. He is identified with deity.

There are two different emphases that are presented in regards to the priest’s identity – deity and humanity.

1. His deity is expressed in His greatness. (4:14)

“…we have a great high priest…”

Lit. – “having therefore a high priest, a great one…”

Scholars (Barclay & Wuest) emphasize that the text here is not simply stating that Jesus is a really awesome priest, but the structure is emphasizing His greatness in addition to His priesthood. This emphasis seems to be alluding to His deity or divinity. i.e. He is “The Great One”.

2. His deity is expressed in His relationship. (4:14; 5:5)

His relationship is defined as “the Son of God.”

In 5:5, he is described as the “begotton Son.”

B. He is identified with humanity.

This high priest, the Messiah, is not only divine, but he is truly human.

1. His humanity is emphasized by physical weakness. (4:15; 5:7,8)

He is touched (lit. suffers with) our infirmities (physical weaknesses). This point expresses his ability to sympathize by entering into the experiences of others. He understands and sympathizes with being in pain, being tired, being pressured, and any number of other experiences that humans go through in their frailties.

2. His humanity is emphasized by testing. (4:15)

 “…tested in all points as we are…”

(Barclay) We may be inclined to think that His temptations and tests were less than ours because He was divine and had powers that we don’t have. But, in reality, His tests and temptations were greater because “…we fall to temptation long before the tempter has put out the whole of his power. We never know temptation at its fiercest because we fall long before that stage is reached.

II.   The Qualifications of Our High Priest

The author of this letter is writing to Jewish believers trying to exhort them against leaving their faith in Christ and returning to Judaism. For these people, who are beginning to think that the Old Covenant was the right way to go, the author must convince them that Jesus is not only better than Aaron, but that He is qualified to take the place of Aaron.

A. He is fit because He was called by God. (5:4-6, 10)

In the old covenant, no one just decides one day, “I’m going to be a priest.” He must be called by God like Aaron (and his family) was chosen by God. The Scripture goes on to show that Jesus did not assume this role on His own, but He was chosen by God, His Father, as well. The exact incident the author refers to is the baptism of Jesus at the Jordan River.

In addition to the incident at the Jordan River, the author applies OT prophecies from Psalms to the Lord by stating that it was Jesus whom God was referring to when He made or called Him to be a “priest forever after the order of Melchisedec. There are some other references in Hebrews to this king/priest, Melchisedec, which I won’t take the time to get into now. But, the emphasis here seems to be that the author knows Jesus was not from the family of Aaron and did not “inherit” the priestly office, but He still did not just assume it on His own. He was called and ordained by God His Father to be a priest forever.

B. He is fit because He is able to empathize. (4:15; cf. 5:2)

Another qualification or requirement that is mentioned by this author is the fact that a priest must be able to empathize with those for whom he intercedes. In 5:2, the emphasis is on the fact that the priest is sinful and full of need just as much as the people for whom he is sacrificing and interceding. Aaron and the other OT priests knew that they were making sacrifices for their own sins as well as the sins of the people.

However, 4:15 expresses another picture of Jesus. He did not make sacrifices for His own sins, because He never sinned. Yet, He did experience the severest kind of temptations and trials common to humanity.

C. He is fit because He obeyed. (5:8-9)

Jesus perfectly and completely obeyed and fulfilled all that God asked Him to do.

Needing to learn obedience (v.8) is primarily a reference to His humanity and the fact that He experienced in actual human life what obedience involved, by going through the suffering that He endured.

“…being made perfect”

This phrase does not imply that Jesus had any defect or imperfections. The word used here refers to anything that exactly carries out or fulfills the purpose for which it was designed. If it does so, then it is perfect. (Barclay) Jesus “came to do the Father’s will.” He came to suffer and to die for the sins of humanity. Therefore, He was “made perfect” (He fulfilled His purposed) by obediently suffering all the pains of our sins.

D. He is fit because He completed His sacrifice. (4:14)

In this very first verse of the whole passage we have been considering today, the author emphasizes a truth that is so inspiring.

“Jesus passed into the heavens.”

Language scholars tell us that the sentence structure requires this translation, “He passed through the heavens with the result that He is in heaven.”

The opinion of some writers is that this is meant to be a parallel image to the OT high priest taking the blood from the bronze altar, passing through the outer court, and through the holy place, to go into the most holy place (KJV, holy of holies) in order to sprinkle the blood on the mercy seat for the atonement.

In similar fashion, Jesus took His own blood from the cross of Calvary, “passed through the heaven of the clouds, the heaven of the stars, into the heaven of heavens, the centralized abode of Deity” where He made the atonement once and for all on the heavenly mercy seat. (Wuest)

Cf. Hebrews 9:12 “By His own blood He entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.”

III.  The Impact of His Ministry on Believers

Now, what is the impact of all this for believers in Palestine?

The recipients of this letter were strongly tempted to return to the old system of sacrifices because of the persecution they suffered. The author is telling them all this about the high priestly work of Christ for a reason. Here is the impact of what he has been saying to them.

A. He provided eternal salvation for all believers. (5:9; cf. 5:6)

The salvation provided by the sacrifice offered by Jesus is a permanent sacrifice providing an eternal salvation (v.9) because He is a “priest forever” (v.6).

B. Believers may persevere. (4:14)

Secondly, as a result of what Jesus has accomplished (passing through the heavens to make atonement for all sins)…

“Let us hold fast our profession” – Let us not give up what we believe. In light of what Jesus has done, we can persevere, we can endure, we can grip onto our faith and never let it go.

C. Believers are showered with gracious gifts. (4:16)

The final impact we want to mention is found in v. 16 with the second use of the phrase, “let us.”

All believers have the privilege of coming into the throne room of grace to receive grace rather than judgment. In this throne room of grace we find mercy (rather than judgment) for past sins – that is justification; the removal of our criminal record. And, in this throne room of grace we find grace for our present and future needs. (Barclay)

We find grace (blessing, favor, strength) to help us in our hour of need. The Priest is in heaven and He waits for you and for me to come with our need. He waits for us to come with the confidence that He will provide all the grace we need for every situation we face.

Conclusion:

This truth is not only important for first-century believers in Palestine who were tempted to throw away their faith and confidence because of their trials and tribulations, but it is also important for us today. This same High Priest is “a priest forever” and He is still available to help us today. He is still in heaven interceding for you and me.

Therefore, let US hold fast what we believe. Let US come with confidence into the throne room of grace to receive all that God has for us to remain faithful and victorious.

The Heart of the Matter (Part 2)

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This is a sermon about the human heart from a spiritual / biblical perspective. This message focuses on the positive traits that should characterize the heart of a believer, in contrast to the negative traits that were presented in the previous message (Part 1).

Written Excerpts:

Hebrews 3:7-19

Introduction:

Last Sunday we spoke from this passage in the third chapter of Hebrews on the issue of the human heart and we looked at the various descriptions that were linked with the word “heart” in these verses. If you recall, all of the descriptions that we discussed from this passage, as well as a couple of other references, were all negative in connotation, i.e. hard heart, evil heart, erring heart, blind heart and troubled heart. These are conditions of the heart that we can safely say that God does not want us to have.

Today, I want to continue this discussion, but I want to focus on those references that emphasize more positive qualities of the human heart. Again this week I admit that there is so much material in the Bible on this topic that we will be pressed to cover all of it today, but we will endeavor to do so. Let us review what God’s Word has to say about conditions of the heart that God desires for us to possess.

We’re not going to review these in any particular order. We’ll just start off first with the one that appears in Hebrews, since we began in Hebrews last Sunday.

II. Positive heart descriptions…

A. True Heart (Heb. 10:22)

Hebrews 10:22 (KJV) Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.

(Matthew Henry) “With a true heart, without any allowed guile or hypocrisy. God is the searcher of hearts, and he requires truth in the inward parts.”

Luke 8:15 (KJV) But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience. [Emphasis mine]

John 4:23-24 (NKJV) ²³ But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. ²⁴ God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth."

A true heart is a sincere, genuine or authentic heart. It is a person who makes no attempt to deceive God or man, but desires to show in spirit and in actions a life that is sincere and authentic; no pretense; no mask; no façade. I believe the concept of a true heart also includes what the Bible refers to as a “single heart.”

Acts 2:46 (KJV) And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart…

Most recent translations of this verse read, “…sincerity of heart.”

How is your heart? Is your heart sincere, open, and authentic? Do you honestly, sincerely and authentically believe and live like one that is truly a disciple of Christ?

B. Pure Heart

Consider these references:

Psalm 51:10 (KJV) Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.

Matthew 5:8 (KJV) Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.

1 Timothy 1:5 (NKJV) Now the purpose of the commandment is love from a pure heart, from a good conscience, and from sincere faith,

2 Timothy 2:22 (NKJV) Flee also youthful lusts; but pursue righteousness, faith, love, peace with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart.

1 Peter 1:22 (NKJV) Since you have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit in sincere love of the brethren, love one another fervently with a pure heart,

The concept of purity implies “not being mixed with any foreign matter or substance that pollutes or dilutes the real substance.” In relation to the human heart, it would imply a heart that is not contaminated by sin, but is clean and holy. A pure heart is one that is wholly devoted to one object of affection; undivided allegiance; or morally uncontaminated.

Jesus Christ said that out of the heart proceed all kinds of evil thoughts, attitudes and deeds. The reason why people perform wicked, evil deeds is because their hearts are morally corrupt and impure.

C. Burning Heart (Luke 24:32)

Passionate; zealous; on fire

Luke 24:32 (KJV) And they said one to another, Did not our heart burn within us, while he talked with us by the way, and while he opened to us the scriptures?

A person with a burning heart is one that is full of passion and zeal; one that is on fire for the Lord.

Revelations – Laodicea, “I wish you were either cold or hot…”

D. Established Heart (Heb. 13:9)

Hebrews 13:9 (KJV) Be not carried about with divers and strange doctrines. For it is a good thing that the heart be established with grace; not with meats, which have not profited them that have been occupied therein.

An established heart is one that is settled, unshaken, and mature. A pure heart and sincere or true heart may still be an immature heart. A mature heart that is established is one that has learned much through experience and study so it is not likely to be swayed by the latest fads in religious circles.

E. One Heart (Acts 4:32)

Acts 4:32 (KJV) And the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and of one soul: neither said any of them that ought of the things which he possessed was his own; but they had all things common.

Having one heart means to be unified in purpose and passion with others of same heart desires. There was a unity among these early Christians so that they could understand what was important and necessary in the growth of the gospel and reaching the lost. They understood that they needed to be one in heart in order to accomplish the mission God had given.

How much more could the church get done today if we were as united in purpose as those early believers were?

F. Cheerful Heart (2 Cor. 9:7; Eph 5:19)

Delighted; not morbid, long-faced; pleasantly, willingly obedient.

Ephesians 5:19 (KJV) Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord;

2 Corinthians 9:7 (KJV) Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.

I believe that cheerfulness is the most attractive quality about Christians who have all the other heart qualities. I certainly believe whole-heartedly in the importance of honesty and truthfulness; holiness and purity; passion; and maturity. But those who possess all of those traits yet do not exhibit cheerfulness are not a very good “advertisement” for the Lord. Having cheerfulness on top of all the other heart qualities we have discussed is the thing that makes others hungry for the Lord. No matter how holy, and sincere and mature someone may be, if they are constantly portraying an attitude of dissatisfaction, anger, “poor me”, etc. then non-believers are not going to be interested in having what they have.

Conclusion:

We have been talking about the human heart these last two sermons.

How is your heart today?

Is your heart right with God?

We’re going to close today’s service by singing the closing hymn:

“Is Thy Heart Right with God?”

The Heart of the Matter

(To listen to this message, click on the play button of the audio player shown above.)

This is a sermon preached at Wayside Community Church on August 12, 2012. The message was based on Hebrews 3:7-19, as well as a short passage from Ephesians and another in John 14:1.

Written Excerpts:

Introduction:

Last Sunday I spoke from the first chapter of Hebrews regarding the things that the author had to say about Jesus Christ, the Son of God. I thought that I would stay in the book of Hebrews for today’s message and possibly for the next two or three messages. I’m not really trying to do a series, but I felt that I would just continue using some of the texts from this letter that had stood out to me in the past and I had underlined or highlighted in my Bible as potential sermon material. I guess I felt like this would be as good a time as any to go through the book and focus on some topics that caught my attention during personal devotional reading or through listening to other sermons.

Today, I want to draw your attention to a word that is used a few times in this third chapter – the word “heart.” In the verses of this chapter that were read earlier, the word “heart” is used four times, and it is used in connection to three different adjectives to describe the kind of hearts in the people that the author is referring to in Israel’s history. My desire is to look at these descriptions provided here, as well as a few other references, and learn what kind of heart we ought to have and what kind we ought not to have.

Let us begin by discussing the meaning implied in the word “heart” then we will consider the types of heart conditions that God’s Word warns us against, and those that it exhorts us to possess.

A. The Meaning of the word “heart.”

“Heart” – Most theologians and scholars have defined the human heart as used in Scripture, as the seat of the will and the emotions.

(Thayer) 1. Properly, that organ in the … body which is the center of the circulation of the blood, and hence, was regarded as the seat of physical life…

2. Universally, καρδια denotes the seat and center of all physical and spiritual life; and

a. “the vigor and sense of physical life”

e.g. Acts 14:17 (NKJV) Nevertheless He did not leave Himself without witness, in that He did good, gave us rain from heaven and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with food and gladness."

Luke 21:34 (NKJV) But take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that Day come on you unexpectedly.

b. The center and seat of spiritual life, “the soul or mind, as it is the fountain and seat of the thoughts, passions, desires, appetites, affections, purposes, endeavors” (so in English “heart, inner man,” etc.); including the will and character.

….of things done “from the heart i.e. cordially or sincerely, truly” (without simulation or pretence) ….  For example,
Romans 6:17 (NKJV) But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered.

These descriptions and definitions would also include what some have referred to as the motives or intentions of an individual.

The heart is so crucial to everything we do. It is the core of life. This can be demonstrated by this illustration:

(moreillustrations.com) One of the interesting aftermaths of the great flood [in] Pittsburgh was the revelation of the underground life and structure of a great city. Passing along the streets, one looked down into man­holes, sewers, trenches, chambers, and boxes. One was amazed at the depth, the intricacy, and the extent of these catacombs of a modern city. Under normal conditions they are hidden from view, and we think little about them. Only the excavations and openings for the repair of the damage wrought by the flood revealed this subterranean world; and yet there were lodged and hidden the power lines, the gas, the electricity, the telephones, the water mains, without which the great granite buildings which raise heavenward are but cold, dark, and useless shells. Like a great city, man has an underground life. It is not visible as the surface man is; yet the hidden man of the heart, as Peter calls him, is a real man. He is, indeed, the hidden man.

B. The immediate context of the passage.

The passage we are considering here in Hebrews 3 is presented by the author as a warning.

It is a warning to believers. Remember what I have stated in the past that this letter was written to Jewish believers in Palestine who were severely persecuted and tempted to give up their faith in this “new doctrine” and return to the Mosaic covenant. In the verses leading up to verse 7, the author has been talking about the faithfulness of Jesus Christ, our High Priest. He has also been talking about the faithfulness of Moses.

He contends that Moses was completely faithful in the charge he was given over “his house” (v.5) yet Jesus is more worthy of honor and glory than Moses (v. 3). Jesus Christ is also faithful over His “house” (v.6), which consists of all those believers who hold fast their confidence and hope until the end.

Immediately after speaking about holding fast to our confidence and hope until the end, the writer gives a stern warning against unbelief manifested by departing from the living God (v.12). The warning is tied to the previous thought with the conjunction “Wherefore” that is found at the beginning of verse 7.

Literally, he is saying, “Since it is only by holding fast our confidence to the end that we continue to be the house of Christ and enjoy His faithful oversight, beware (take heed) that you do not end up in unbelief like those who hardened their hearts during the Exodus.” (Marcus Dods, Expositor’s GT)

As we consider the descriptions of the heart provided in Hebrews 3 and a couple of other references, we will first consider the negative then we will discuss the positive descriptions in our next message.

I. Negative heart descriptions…

A. Hard Heart (v. 8, 15)

The first heart description provided by the author is a hardened heart. He alludes to the hard heart by warning those early Christians to not harden their hearts like their ancestors had done back in the days of the Exodus. The Apostle gives the warning twice; once in v. 8 and again in v. 15.

How does a heart get hard?

It seems to me that there are some illustrations from everyday life that might shed some light on this point.

1. Calloused – Just like a person’s hand can be soft, gentle and tender at one point in life, but after a long time of rough, hard work, the hands can become so calloused and hard that hardly anything bothers them; not heat, not sharp objects, not a lot of things. This calloused condition came about as a result of repeated exposure to harsh treatment until the skin became thick and hardened.

In similar fashion, individuals who experience harsh treatment to the emotions and the soul become hardened in their attitudes about life in general.

2. Some become hardened simply through a process we call desensitization.

(This is very similar to the process of becoming calloused.)

Many years ago, I read an article that described how terrorists are trained. It described how very young boys were taken away from their families and subjected to a daily barrage of violence and destruction to animals and other humans. At first they cried, they were afraid, and they showed all kinds of tender emotions. But as they were forced to view it and participate in it day after day, they eventually lost their ability to feel those emotions. They became so hardened in their hearts that rather than feeling emotional pain over the violence and harm, they began to delight in it. They began enjoy it and crave it. Their hearts had become so hard that what had caused them great sorrow at one time, now became the very thing that caused them perverted joy.

The same process is possible spiritually speaking. There have been people who have been exposed to the message of salvation and have been emotionally moved upon, but through the process of stubborn resistance, they no longer feel that same emotion. They no longer feel the desire to follow God and obey His voice. Now, they can hear the truth and not be the least bit moved by it.

Notice that this warning, as I stated earlier, is given to believers. Friends, we must be careful how we respond to the Word of God and the truth He sends to us. It is possible to become hardened through repeated resistance.

3. Some are hardened through the “deceitfulness of sin.” (v.13)

(Matthew Henry) [1.] There is a great deal of deceitfulness in sin; it appears fair, but is filthy; it appears pleasant, but is [destructive]; it promises much, but performs nothing.

[2.] The deceitfulness of sin is of a hardening nature to the soul; one sin allowed prepares for another; every act of sin confirms the habit; sinning against conscience is the way to sear the conscience; and therefore it should be the great concern of every one to exhort himself and others to beware of sin.

We Christians must not ever assume a casual attitude toward sin; even the smallest sin. Why? Because every sin committed and excused will generate the rationalization for the next one.

B. Erring Heart (v. 10)

A second description of the human heart is offered in verse 10. Here the Apostle refers to the story of the Exodus and the refusal of the Israelites to obey the Lord and conquer the land of the Canaanites. In his reference to that historical event, he quotes from a passage in Psalm 95 where God says “…they err in their heart; and they have not known my ways.”

Most modern translations of the Bible use the phrase, “go astray” in place of the word “err” that is used in the KJV. The point seems to be that they turn away, or veer off the path that God had intended for them to go.

And, they “have not known my ways.”

This is probably a parallel thought with previous statement. i.e., They err or go astray, which is further described as not knowing God’s ways.

(Barnes Notes on the New Testament) They have not been acquainted with the true God; or they have not approved my doings. The word “know” is often used, in the Scriptures, in the sense of approving, or loving.

An erring heart is one that refuses to stay on the path that God has designed and “mapped out.” It gives the image of someone that continually chooses his/her own willful or “head-strong” way. Because of their insistence to keep straying from God’s plan and God’s way, they never “know” learn by experience what God’s way is really like. They never get to experience the joy and satisfaction and peace that results from being in the center of God’s will.

“I sware in my wrath, They shall not enter into my rest.”

Those who persist in going astray and doing their own will are forbidden by God to receive what He had originally designed for their pleasure and their good. God finally grants them their desire and lets them have their way.

C. Evil Heart (v. 12)

The third description of the human heart provided by the author of this epistle is found in the 12^th verse.

Here, the author draws a parallel between an evil heart and an unbelieving heart. He further describes the evil, unbelieving heart as one that results in departure from the living God.

(Marcus Dods, Expositor’s Greek Testatment) “…it is when the heart is hardened through sin, it becomes unbelieving, so that the psychological order might be stated thus: sin, a deceived mind, a hardened heart, unbelief, apostasy.”

D. Blind Heart (Eph. 4:18)

Ephesians 4:17-18 (NKJV) ¹⁷ This I say, therefore, and testify in the Lord, that you should no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk, in the futility of their mind, ¹⁸ having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart;

In this passage, the Apostle Paul clearly links the blindness of heart with the practice of sin. It appears that both are intertwined so that the more one indulges in sin the more blind one becomes and the more blind one becomes the more he/she indulges sin.

E. Troubled Heart (John 14:1)

In this passage, the heart is described as troubled. This is different from the previous descriptions in that it doesn’t seem to be a result of willful disobedience or defiance, but a condition of anxiety.

John 14:1 Let not your heart be troubled. You believe in God. Believe also in me.

(Thayer) “Troubled” – “to cause one inward commotion, take away his calmness of mind, disturb his equanimity; to disquiet, make restless”; to strike one’s spirit with fear or dread….

Jesus is calling the anxious, fearful, disturbed heart to place its trust in Him.

Fear of the future or fear of the unknown can be handled by the Lord. All we need to do is trust Him.

Conclusion:

This is all that we have time to discuss today. I plan to continue this topic next week by taking a look at Scriptures that talk about some positive descriptions of the heart.

As we close today, let us seek God’s grace and the aid of His Spirit in order to clearly understand the condition of our own hearts. Let us prayerfully seek to have our hearts in full compliance with His will and completely aligned with His purposes and designs for our lives. Let us diligently avoid the conditions we have been describing today: the hard heart; the erring or straying heart; the evil unbelieving heart; the blind heart and the troubled heart.

God wants to guide us into His marvelous provisions and blessings just like He did for the Israelites described in our text. If we stay surrendered and committed to Him, He will accomplish His plan.

Let us sing an old hymn of surrender and dedication:

Cleanse Me (# 657)

God's Superior Son

(To listen to this message, click on the play button of the audio player shown above.)

This is a sermon based on Hebrews 1:1-4 and was given at Wayside Community Church on August 5, 2012.

Written Excerpts:

Introduction:

As I was trying to discern the Lord’s will for today’s message I felt impressed to use this passage in Hebrews to focus our attention today on the central figure of our faith and of our entire history – Jesus Christ.

As Christian believers it is sometimes easy to get so involved in the behavioral and ethical components of our faith and trying to stay focused on how we should act, and live out our faith, that we sometimes lose sight of the fact that the central point and focus of our faith is a person; not a belief system; not a code of ethics; not a list of taboos. Those things are important and have their rightful place, but it is a person that we worship and serve. It is a person that we celebrate and honor, for He and He alone has accomplished our redemption from sin, from corruption, from destruction and hell. If we’re not careful our attention can be diverted completely away from Him and get caught up in the peripheral agendas of our daily lives.

So, today, I want to take some time to just focus on Jesus. I want to take some time to exalt Him, to emphasize some of the truths that the Bible reveals about His identity, His personality, and His achievements. With the help of the Holy Spirit, I want to help us all to get a new glimpse of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. I want to help us get a renewed vision of the central figure of our salvation.

Obviously, there are hundreds of Scripture texts we could have used to accomplish this goal, because the entire Bible is about Him in one way or another. However, I believe that the writer of this letter to the Hebrews starts off his epistle with a description of Jesus that is as good as any other we could use.

Before we actually look at the statements made by the Apostle, I want to remind us about the historical setting and context of this letter, some of which I have mentioned in previous messages.

Biblical scholars obviously do not all agree on the circumstances surrounding this letter, but many have proposed that it was written around the year of 63 AD during a time when the Apostle Paul would have recently been released from his first imprisonment. It was probably written to the Christian Jews living in Palestine, and it was written to dissuade them from turning back to the Mosaic and Judaic beliefs and away from faith in Christ. Evidently a great deal of persecution had arisen against the Christian believers. Some were sorely tempted to abandon the faith and return to the former practices of sacrifices, ceremonies and rituals they knew under the old covenant.

I’ve already mentioned other times that the book of Hebrews emphasizes the key word, “better.” The idea was to convince the readers that they were far better off now because of the fact that Jesus was a better sacrifice, a better high priest, better than the angels, better than Moses, etc.

So, for today, let us take a look at these words in the first few verses of this letter to discover (or review) some important truths about the Son of God – our Redeemer, the Lord Jesus Christ. By examining the contents of these first four verses, we see that the author establishes the “credentials” of Christ by presenting the Identity of the Son; the Accomplishments of the Son; and the Exalted Position of the Son.

Let us begin with the

I. The Identity of the Son

One of the problems confronting the author as he is writing to the Jews was the fact that they undoubtedly struggled with who Jesus really was. Imagine the difficult time that Jewish believers would have trying to reconcile the belief in Jesus as Messiah along with their long-held understanding of only one God. Try to imagine how strange it would be for a Jew to think of Jesus Christ as God without somehow equating it with the common paganism all around them that promoted multiple gods. So the Apostle “had his work cut out for him” in trying to explain the truth about Jesus in a way that could convince devout Jews without making them feel like they were becoming pagans.

A. The Son is the brightness or radiance of God’s glory.

Someone has defined God’s glory as the expression of the divine attributes collectively and is used of various displays of divine light and splendor. (Wuest) Others have said that “glory” is equivalent to “honor,” “power,” or “majesty.” (NIDNTT)

Here in v. 3, the author is boldly stating that Jesus, the Son, is the brightness or the splendor of God’s glory.

(Clarke) The word implies the exhibited or emitted splendor in contrast to the inherent splendor. But they are one and the same since you cannot have one without the other.

What the Apostle seems to be saying is that Jesus Christ is the exhibited splendor of God’s glory shining forth the glory of God in a darkened world.

I am reminded of the passage in the OT when God told Moses that he could not view His full glory, but could only see a limited amount of it,

Exodus 33:20-23 (NKJV) ²⁰ But He said, "You cannot see My face; for no man shall see Me, and live." ²¹ And the LORD said, "Here is a place by Me, and you shall stand on the rock. ²² So it shall be, while My glory passes by, that I will put you in the cleft of the rock, and will cover you with My hand while I pass by. ²³ Then I will take away My hand, and you shall see My back; but My face shall not be seen."

Some writers have suggested that what God essentially did for Moses here was…. (Clarke) “probably … that appearance which he should assume in [later] times, when it should be said, God is manifest in the flesh…. covering him with his hand, and passing by in such a way as to exhibit a human similitude."

All of this to say that the writer is equating Jesus, the Son, with the glory of the Father for the benefit of those who were worried about worshiping another God. But, he doesn’t stop there. He goes on to proclaim that

B. The Son is the exact representation of God’s being.

v. 3 “…He is the express image of His person…”

In addition to declaring His splendor of God’s majesty, the author continues to declare that Jesus is the exact image or reflection of God’s very essence.

The word “person” used in the KJV, is the word that means being, substance or essence.

Col. 1:15 – “who is the image of the invisible God…”

In Hebrews, the word “express image” is the Greek word meaning carving or engraving. But in Colossians, the word “image” is the word meaning likeness or profile (icon). In both passages the emphasis is the fact that Jesus Christ is the exact likeness of the Father, who is invisible to the human eye, but truly represents God in human form. This must have been difficult for a trained Jew to grasp without concluding that there were two gods.

II. The Accomplishments of the Son

The author of this letter not only presents the identity of Christ, but he further establishes His credentials by emphasizing His accomplishments. There are four different accomplishments that are presented in verses 2 and 3.

A. He created the worlds.

v. 2 “by whom also He made the worlds.”

Genesis 1:  God created… God said let there be… and there was….

John 1: All things were made by him [i.e. the Word] and without him nothing was made that was made.

Colossians 1:16 (NKJV) ¹⁶ For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him.

This blazing splendor of God’s glory and exact impression or engraving of His being is the one that created all the worlds in this universe. He is the Word of God creating things out of nothing just by speaking them into existence.

B. He sustains the worlds.

v. 3 “…and upholding all things by the word of His power.”

“upholding” – is the Greek equivalent of the Hebrew word when Moses told God, “I am unable to bear this people…” The idea expressed is of guidance and responsibility of governance. (Wuest, Expositors NT)

This Son of God, Word of God, image of God, splendor of God not only speaks worlds into existence that never existed before, but He also holds all of those worlds together by the same powerful word that brought them into existence. He is the One that set the “Laws of Nature” into action and causes them to continue their courses by simply saying so.

If I understand my Bible correctly, there is coming a day when He will SAY it is enough and the Laws of Nature will revolt; the world will be dissolved and will melt with intense heat (2 Peter 3).

C. He reveals the Father

v. 3 “brightness of His glory… express image of his person.”

We already talked about Jesus revealing the Father through the fact that He is the exact image of God’s being and the shining forth of His glory. Now, we want to add the thought expressed in the beginning of verse 2 where the writer emphasizes the fact that God spoke to us in our language by sending His Son to be one of us.

v. 2 “Hath…spoken to us by His Son…”

Messages were previously communicated by God through the prophets to His people. But, eventually God sent His own Son to assume the form of humanity and communicate God to us in a way that we can relate to and we can understand.

(Wuest) “…the revelation God gave in His son consisted not merely in what was said, as in the case of the prophets, but [also] in what … the Son was….”

They not only could hear the Word of God, but now they could see the Word lived out before their very eyes.

D. He provided our Salvation.

The final accomplishment mentioned here is explained in verse 3.

“When he had by himself purged our sins…”

As the Bible thoroughly explains in other places, this phrase is a reference to the fact that Jesus Christ made it possible for our sins to be completely washed away; forgiven; and atoned for through the sacrifice Jesus made of his own blood.

The grammatical structure of this phrase emphasizes two thoughts:

1) He did it to himself. It was a willing self-sacrifice.

2) He did it once-for-all. It was a sacrifice to end all sacrifices.

III. The Position of the Son

Finally, we want to talk about the author’s reference to the exalted position of the Son of God.

v. 3 “…sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high.”

This phrase emphasizes the exaltation of Christ following His sacrifice and passion. What a contrast to the shame and humility He experienced in Jerusalem and on Calvary! There are three thoughts that are stressed by the structure of this phrase regarding His seat at the right hand of God.

A. It is a position of rest.

His work of redemption is finished. It is a description that is in direct contrast to the OT priests who always stood while they were in service at the temple because their work was never finished. There were always more sacrifices to be offered. There was incense to be offered.

Christ, as I stated a moment ago, made a sacrifice to end all sacrifices. There are no more sacrifices required or necessary. His work is completed. He cried from the cross, “It is finished.” So now He is seated, signifying His work is done.

B. It is a position of authority and preeminence.

(Expositor’s NT) Sitting down on the right hand denotes entrance upon a reign. The source of this expression is Ps. 110:1, which is quoted later in verse 13.

(Rendall) “The king’s right hand was a place of power and dignity, belonging to the minister of his authority and his justice, and the channel of his mercy, the mediator in short between him and his people.”

C. It is a position that is superior to any of the angels. (v.4)

Angels were always considered important beings in the Bible, mediating some form of God’s interactions with man; carrying out His orders and purposes. But none of them were ever given a position of prominence and authority like this.

Conclusion:

John 12:32 - Jesus said,³² And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me.

We have been trying to exalt and lift up the Son of God here today. As I stated at the outset, He is the central figure of our faith. He is the focus of our love and devotion. He is the center of all history.

He is the exact image of the Sovereign Majesty in heaven. He is the author and finisher of our faith. He is our redeemer, our sanctifier and our coming warrior. Jesus is the Son of God and He is far, far superior to any other in the universe!

Hallelujah! Praise the Lord! Love Him, Serve Him, Worship Him!

I think it is only fitting for us to sing a song that glorifies Him, so I have chosen the hymn:

Crown Him with Many Crowns.

Treasures and Turmoil

(To listen to this message, click on the play button of the audio player shown above.)

This is a sermon given at Wayside Community Church on July 29, 2012. It was based on the Scripture 2 Corinthians 4:7-18.

Written Excerpts:

Introduction:

As I try to determine the will of God for the messages I bring, I do try to maintain a balance in the themes that I emphasize in my ministry. One of the things that I try to do periodically is present a message that inspires hope and faith.

As a pastor that has the responsibility to instruct and motivate people to a greater level of discipleship and a deeper level of love for the Lord, it can be appealing to make most of my sermons focus on who we ought to be or where we ought to be going or what we ought to be doing. Those kinds of messages are certainly necessary and hopefully helpful. But, a steady diet of that can begin to cause people to be discouraged, as it begins to seem that we are never achieving.

So, today I felt drawn to this passage of scripture that I hope will inspire some fresh hope and renewed faith in every one of us. With the help of God’s Spirit today, I want to bring a message that lifts your spirits to a renewed confidence in God and that inspires each of us to keep faithfully serving our Lord until He calls us home.

The two contrasting words I have used in my title seem to emphasize the stark contrast that the Apostle used in these verses before us today. On the one hand he speaks of a treasure. On the other hand, he immediately begins to speak in terms that I think are best described with the word turmoil.

Whenever we think of the word treasure, we usually do not think of trouble. And, when we think of the word turmoil, we do not usually think of treasures. But, Paul shows a clear connection to the two concepts in our passage we are considering today.

As we consider this passage today I want to emphasize

The treasure - I. We have a treasure.

The vessel - II. We are earthen vessels.

The turmoil - III. We experience turmoil and trouble.

The victory – IV. But not destroyed.

I. We have a treasure.

A. The treasure represents the message of the gospel.

The word is probably a reference back to the preceding verse where the apostle uses the phrase, “… the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” This knowledge, that is akin to a light suddenly coming on in the darkest surroundings, has been explained and developed in all of the verses leading up to verse 7.

B. The treasure did not originate with us; it was given to us.

Let us never forget, dear friends, that this gospel, this treasure, this knowledge is purely a gift of divine grace.

II. We are earthen vessels.

Our normal conclusion regarding such a rich treasure is that God would keep it, store it, or protect it in containers that are perfect and completely indestructible. Yet, this is not the case.

“earthen” – a word that Greek language scholars say is derived from the word that is used for the shell of an oyster. Thus, is implies something fragile or even brittle.

“vessel” – a common word that had different uses depending on the context. It is translated 19 times as “vessel,” but it is also translated twice with the word “goods,” once as “stuff,” and once as “sail.”

Some believe that Paul is alluding to an ancient custom of storing gold and silver in earthenware pots. (JH Bernard, Expos. Gk. NT)

His point seems to be this…

A. We are human.

We are made from dust.

We are “clay in the potter’s hand”.

We are mere flesh and bones.

Although, this doesn’t seem to be Paul’s point here, it is worth mentioning that this analogy seems to run parallel to the fact that God chose to become incarnate in human flesh. The treasure of the Godhead was wrapped in the earthen vessel of human flesh. (JH Bernard)

B. We are flawed.

We are limited, finite, weak, fragile, etc, etc. We are unlikely vessels for such a valuable treasure, but God has entrusted it with us. God has granted us the awesome privilege of carrying the knowledge of the gospel that is described like a bright light shining into a room of darkest ignorance.

III. We experience turmoil and trouble.

Immediately after declaring that we have been entrusted with this awesome treasure, the Apostle switches his focus to the struggles we face.

As I said at the beginning… whenever we think of the word treasure, we usually do not think of trouble. And, when we think of the word turmoil, we do not usually think of treasures. But, Paul shows a clear connection between the two concepts here.

A. Trouble is just a fact of life.

It is undeniably and unavoidably a part of our earthly journey. You can’t get to the end of this journey without experiencing some kind of trouble and turmoil. Some people have the mistaken idea that if we are Christians and we are trying to obey the Lord and live a good life then we should be exempt from trouble, suffering and turmoil.

But… our world has been deeply infected by the consequences of sin ever since the Garden of Eden. The curse which came about as a result of Adam and Eve’s disobedience has only heightened and worsened through time.

We are a part of this earthly environment. And we will also be affected by the curse of sickness, death, trouble, evil, and all other consequences of sin. This world never will again be a paradise, no matter what the earth-worshippers and environmentalists fanatics or others may say!

B. Sometimes, trouble seems to get progressively worse and compounded.

Look at the description Paul uses in verses 8 & 9.

2 Corinthians 4:8-9 (NKJV) [emphasis added]
⁸ We are hard pressed on every side, yet not crushed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; ⁹ persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed--

Adam Clarke concurs with others by assuming that Paul’s language here is referring to the athletic games or contests that would have been common knowledge for his readers. In any case, he is using figurative language to draw an analogy to life’s experiences, and more particularly his own experiences.

Notice what he describes later on in this letter, chapter 11.

2 Corinthians 11:23-27 (NKJV)
²³ Are they ministers of Christ?--I speak as a fool--I am more: in labors more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequently, in deaths often. ²⁴ From the Jews five times I received forty stripes minus one. ²⁵ Three times I was beaten with rods; once I was stoned; three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I have been in the deep; ²⁶ in journeys often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils of my own countrymen, in perils of the Gentiles, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren; ²⁷ in weariness and toil, in sleeplessness often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness--

There are many times in life when we feel like we are squeezed nearly to death, perplexed or in doubt, persecuted (pursued, chased), and knocked down all at the same time.

Have you been there? Many of us have felt like this at various times in our lives. But, I’m glad Paul’s message doesn’t end here.

IV. We triumph in victory.

Look again at Paul’s words in verses 8 and 9.

In every description of adversity he gives, he balances it with a word of hope.

We may be squeezed in, pressed, or beset with trouble on every side, but we are not crushed, distressed or straitened.

We may be in doubt and perplexed, but we have not given up in complete despair or given up our faith.

We may be persecuted (pursued, chased like an animal) but we have not been forsaken or abandoned by God.

We may be knocked down, but we haven’t been destroyed, killed or lost.

In all of these troubles, there is a ray of hope. There is a ray of light. God hasn’t abandoned us.

Look at verses 11-15.

2 Corinthians 4:11-14 (NKJV) [emphasis added]
¹¹ For we who live are always delivered to death for Jesus' sake, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh. ¹² So then death is working in us, but life in you. ¹³ And since we have the same spirit of faith, according to what is written, "I believed and therefore I spoke," we also believe and therefore speak, ¹⁴ knowing that He who raised up the Lord Jesus will also raise us up with Jesus, and will present us with you.