Oakbrook Evangelical Free Church

Sunday, March 21, 2010

10:00 pm

Hebrews 3 “Therefore, holy brothers, you who share in a heavenly calling, consider Jesus, the apostle and high priest of our confession, who was faithful to him who appointed him, just as Moses also was faithful in all God’s house. For Jesus has been counted worthy of more glory than Moses—as much more glory as the builder of a house has more honor than the house itself. (For every house is built by someone, but the builder of all things is God.) Now Moses was faithful in all God’s house as a servant, to testify to the things that were to be spoken later, 6but Christ is faithful over God’s house as a son. And we are his house if indeed we hold fast our confidence and our boasting in our hope.
Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says, “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion, on the day of testing in the wilderness, where your fathers put me to the test and saw my works for forty years. Therefore I was provoked with that generation, and said, ‘They always go astray in their heart; they have not known my ways.’ As I swore in my wrath, ‘They shall not enter my rest.’ ”
Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God. But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. For we share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original confidence firm to the end. As it is said, “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion.” For who were those who heard and yet rebelled? Was it not all those who left Egypt led by Moses? And with whom was he provoked for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies fell in the wilderness? And to whom did he swear that they would not enter his rest, but to those who were disobedient? 19So we see that they were unable to enter because of unbelief. ”

The weather Monday was clear and cool on the tiny island at South Carolina’s southern tip — perfect for an early evening jog on the beach. Gary Jones, a Pharmaceutical salesman from Georgia, had put on his iPod and gone for a jog along the shore. Bob was on a business trip. The 38-year-old married father of two would soon head home to celebrate his daughter’s third birthday.

90 minutes 59 year old Ed Smith climbed into his high performance, Lancair IV-P (N9JE) Departing Orlando, FL headed for his home town of Chesapeake, VA he lost power over water so he headed for the airport on the 12 mile strip of land known as Hilton Head, SC.  In the process of nursing his aircraft toward the airport his propeller vibrated and detached and oil filled his windscreen.  Only able to see out his side windows he was forced to either ditch the aircraft in the water or make an emergency landing on the beach.  Enjoying an evening jog on the beach before a couple of days of business surrounded by music in his ears Robert Jones did not hear people shouting to him or the aircraft approaching him.  He was struck and killed instantly.

Today, if you hear his voice do not harden

I.          Stay Focused on Jesus
Katanoeo =,consider = attention / continuous observation!
Kata tonic!  Totally fixated on Jesus!

Put your mind on Jesus and discipline it to stay focused on him.
So that you may understand who He is and what he wants!

Who is He?
1.         He is the apostle – sent one from God.
2.         The High Priest

Summary: He is powerful, merciful, faithful, substitute, author of salvation, our sanctifier, our Satan-conquerer, our Sympathizer.  And, he is the Apostle and the High Priest.

He is all anyone will ever need.  Therefore, we are to drop everything and pay attention to Him and to what he says

Gaze on Jesus.  Keep gazing on Jesus and don’t get distracted.

Matthew 11:29 “Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.”

Stay Focused on Jesus.  Gaze on him.  Learn from Him.

Philippians 3:10-12 “that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead. Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own.”

Stay Focused on Jesus.  Gaze on him.  Learn from Him.

2 Timothy 2:8 “Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead, the offspring of David, as preached in my gospel,”

Stay Focused! Gaze on him.  Learn from Him.

1 Peter 2:21 “For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps…For you were straying like sheep, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls. ”

Stay Focused on Jesus.  Gaze on him.  Learn from Him.

Hebrews 12:1-3 “Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted.”

Stay Focused on Jesus.  Gaze on him.  Learn from Him.

Would you agree with me that the reason we are so often weak and worried is that we do not stay focused on Jesus so that our minds are focused somewhere else we then we do not draw on his strength and comfort and guidance?

When you’ve come to the end of what you know to do and you’ve chatted with your friends or you’ve poured out your heart to a trusted soul mate and the wisdom you seek still eludes you
Stay Focused on Jesus.  Gaze on him.  Learn from Him.

When life gets tough and you feel like you can’t keep going.
Stay Focused on Jesus.  Gaze on him.  Learn from Him.

When disappointment is discouragement and depression become “normal” in your life
Stay Focused on Jesus.  Gaze on him.  Learn from Him.

When temptations seem overwhelming and impossible to resist
Stay Focused on Jesus.  Gaze on him.  Learn from Him.

Do you have the mind and heart of a puppy?
Does it jump around here and there   Are you learning to train your mind and emotions to stay! Come! Sit! Heal! ? This is not impossible!  But you do have to work at learning to train your mind and emotions!

Apostle – the supreme one sent from God.

Has the rights, power and authority of the One who sent him.

Second, He speaks completely on behalf of the one who sent him.
John 12:49 “For I have not spoken on my own authority, but the Father who sent me has himself given me a commandment—what to say and what to speak.”

John 8:28 “So Jesus said to them, “When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am he, and that I do nothing on my own authority, but speak just as the Father taught me.”

John 8:38 “I speak of what I have seen with my Father, and you do what you have heard from your father.” “

What has captured my attention?  Be honest. Is there anything you are more focused on than your relationship and walk with Christ?  If there is they are undercover idols in your heart.

II.         Do Not Harden Your Heart, 3:7-12
“Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says, “Today, if you hear his voice, 8do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion, on the day of testing in the wilderness, where your fathers put me to the test and saw my works for forty years. Therefore I was provoked with that generation, and said, ‘They always go astray in their heart; they have not known my ways.’ (vs their ways, their wants, their ideas) As I swore in my wrath, ‘They shall not enter my rest.’ ”

from Latin callosus, from callum, callus callous skin 15th century
1 a : being hardened and thickened b : having calluses
2 a : feeling no emotion b : feeling or showing no sympathy for others : hard-hearted

2 Peter 3:9 “The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.”

Jeremiah 4:3-4 “For thus says the Lord…“Break up your fallow ground, and sow not among thorns. Circumcise yourselves to the Lord; remove the foreskin of your hearts…lest my wrath go forth like fire, and burn with none to quench it, because of the evil of your deeds.” ”

Hosea 10:12-14 “Sow for yourselves righteousness; reap steadfast love; break up your fallow ground, for it is the time to seek the Lord, that he may come and rain righteousness upon you. You have plowed iniquity; you have reaped injustice; you have eaten the fruit of lies. Because you have trusted in your own way”

The Holy Spirit is gives us supernatural pushes
This is about the garden of your heart.
Before your feet ever go astray your heart has preceded them.

The voice of God in your life:
~ The gospel
~ The Word of God applied specifically day by day!

Romans 15:4 “For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.”

1 Corinthians 14:3 “On the other hand, the one who prophesies speaks to people for their up-building and encouragement and consolation.”

2 Timothy 3:16 “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness,”

2 Timothy 4:2 “preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching.”

Hebrews 4:12-13 “For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account.”

John 14:21 “Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him.””

John 14:23 “Jesus answered him, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.”

Luke 6:46-49 “Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do what I tell you? Everyone who comes to me and hears my words and does them, I will show you what he is like: he is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock. And when a flood arose, the stream broke against that house and could not shake it, because it had been well built. But the one who hears and does not do them is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. When the stream broke against it, immediately it fell, and the ruin of that house was great.” ”

What is the condition of your heart?
What is really going on inside you?  Do you need to break out and break up the soil of your heart?

III.        See to It that You Exhort One Another
Hebrew 3:12-13, “Take care (see to it), brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God. But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.”

Relay on each other to have ur backside

Deceitfulness of sin.
Just this once – it won’t hurt.
I need this…I have to have it…you don’t understand

Nothing outside the will of God will meet your needs.
~ There is not enough alcohol in the world to satisfy your thirst.
~ There is not enough sex outside the will of God to satisfy
~ There is not enough food to comfort and satisfy your emotional needs.

The only things that satisfy are within the will of God!
You must be very careful even or especially in the days of your youth to not start down the wrong road!

Ecclesiastes 11:9-10 “Rejoice, O young man, in your youth, and let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth. Walk in the ways of your heart and the sight of your eyes. But know that for all these things God will bring you into judgment. Remove vexation from your heart, and put away pain from your body, for youth and the dawn of life are vanity. ”

Ecclesiastes 12:1 “Remember also your Creator in the days of your youth, before the evil days come and the years draw near of which you will say, “I have no pleasure in them”;”

Everything else will rob you of your youth and vitality and steal away the years of your life.

Relay on each other to have your backside!
Voluntary, mutual accountability!  Do you have? R u open?
Grace based–safe place! If not u r vulnerable! Walking time bomb
“unbelieving” here = “disobedient” heart!

Colossians 3:16 “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.”

Hebrews 10:24-25 “And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, 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.”

Sunday, March 14, 2010
10:00 am	to	11:16 am

Hebrews 2:13 “Behold, I and the children God has given me.””

Hebrews 2:14-18 “Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery. For surely it is not angels that he helps, but he helps the offspring of Abraham. Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted. ”

Introduction:
Book of Hebrews written to Flesh and blood Christians struggling to overcome past traditions and adjust to the fresh movements of God in a fast changing world.  They struggled to hold onto their faith in Christ in a world of growing chaos and powerful pressures from their culture.

I.          He is the author of our salvation
II.         He is Our Ultimate Perfecter
He Was himself Perfected Through Suffering
Christ always had a perfect nature and character.
But his function as Savior and Advocate required the process of incarnation, ministry, humiliation, death and resurrection.

III.        He is Our Sanctifier
Hebrews 10:10 “And by that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.”
We live with an underlying sense of shame

But Christ holds out his hand and encourages us to take his hand in faith and trust God to be cleansed through faith in his once for all sufficient sacrifice.

TF, Jesus is not ashamed to call us brothers.

God is not ashamed to say about us, “I am their God.”

Yet, though Christ is not ashamed to call us brothers and the Father is not ashamed to call us His we are so often ashamed of ourselves before Him.

IV.        Why?  So he could Bring Many Sons to Glory

Today – Big Idea:  Jesus is Our Conquering Hero and Our Compassionate Helper!

I.          Our Conquering Hero
You and I are the children.  Grown up children.  Flesh and blood nonetheless.  The trauma of birth and growth, sibling rivalry, obedience, responsibility, growing up before you are ready
Those who struggle to find direction in their lives.
Those who struggle and need reassurance in their relationships.
Those who find comfort in friendship and marriage only to have difficulty understanding each other.

Those who work hard to find a better life for their families.

Those who have children who have the common colds and ear aches and scraped knees.  And those whose children experience the uncommon fight against chronic illness: diabetes, asthma and cancer.

He was disowned, abandoned, executed.

The children share in flesh and blood
Koinonia – fellowship, deep sharing, partnership with others

SOLIDARITY WITH HUMANITY:  “he had to be made like his brothers” Before he went to the cross he never called his followers brother
He called them disciples, or friends or sheep but never brothers.
Why?  Could not be brothers till after the cross and price paid.

Said to Mary, “Go tell my brothers”
~ Brothers because of + R held in common
~ Brothers because of flesh and blood

He partook of the same – his solidarity with us had to be real
metecho = taking hold of something that is not naturally your own

Now how can we understand that?
Like when a man takes hold of a woman.
Like when a woman takes hold of a man – something totally other

Christ took hold of something which did not naturally belong to him.
He added to himself, like when a man adds to himself / woman
Christ added to himself our nature so that he could die in our place

2 Peter 1:4 “by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.”

II.         Our Compassionate Helper
Why did Jesus become a man?  Three reasons…
1.         To destroy the power of the devil
Christ shattered the devil’s power

1 John 3:8 “The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil.”

In what sense does Satan have the power of death?
In that he has the power of temptation!

He pushes us around with temptation…we succumb…we die!

The only way to destroy Satan was to rob him of his most powerful weapon – death: physical, spiritual and eternal death!

But Christ paid the penalty for sin!

Jesus broke the grip of death on us.
In death he became the death of death!

There are two certain things in life: death and taxes!
Satan wants to hold onto us until we die!  Then salvation is impossible.

Christ had a more powerful weapon!  If you have a more powerful weapon than your enemy his weapon is useless!

UAV – Unmanned aerial vehicles
Drones

2.         To deliver us from being ruled by fear and death
Christ shattered the devil’s rule over us!

John 11:24-26 “Martha said to him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.” Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?””

1 Thessalonians 4:13-14 “But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep.”

Death no longer has the last word!

Heaven – more a person than a place.
Our first inclination is to think of heaven primarily as a place, and, of course, this is true. Nevertheless, I believe that there is more to it than this. Heaven, most of all, is being in the presence of God.

“… we are of good courage, I say, and prefer rather to be absent from the body and to be at home with the Lord (2 Corinthians 5:8).

But I am hard-pressed from both directions, having the desire to depart and be with Christ, for that is very much better; yet to remain on in the flesh is more necessary for your sake (Philippians 1:23-24).

“Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and thus we shall always be with the Lord” (1 Thessalonians 4:17).

And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He shall dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself shall be among them, … (Revelation 21:3).

Let me illustrate. Suppose that you were the wife of a prisoner of war, held captive for many years. You knew your husband was alive and hoped to see him soon. Finally, after many false hopes and setbacks, an agreement was negotiated with the enemy and the release of your husband was at hand. The United States government had made arrangements for you to meet your beloved in Hawaii, where you would be with him for two weeks before returning to this country. Now Hawaii is a very beautiful place, I am told, and I am sure that most of us would love to go there. But, for you, the place is very secondary to the person. If you were to meet your husband in the Sahara desert it would be no disappointment. While the place of heaven is beautiful, the Person should be our greatest joy.

What Is heaven Like?
1.         A better place, Phil 1:21-23  “to depart, and to be with Christ; which is far better.”
2.         A Wonderful Place 1 Cor 2:9  “Things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard, and which have not entered the heart of man, all that God has prepared for those who love Him.”
3.         A Beautiful Place – Rev 4:1-3  (compare 21:1 f)
4.         A holy place-Rev 21:27  “nothing unclean and no one who practices abomin ation and lying shall ever come into it, but only those whose names are written
5.         A Place of Rest Rev 14:13  “Write blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on! Yes says the Spirit that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow with them.”
6.  A place of reward 2 Tim 4:6-8  “Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but to all them that love his appearing.”
7.         A place of comfort Rev 7:17  “God shall wipe every tear from their eyes”  “Earth has no sorrow that heaven cannot heal.”  Thomas Moore, 19^th century Irish poet.
8.  A place of glory - here – Indignities, humiliations, exposures,…
2 Cor 4:17  “For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison.” ….5:1  torn down body tent…but
9.  A place of joy Ps 16:11 “In Your presence is fullness of joy; in Your right hand there are pleasures forever.Mt 25:20-23  “enter into the joy of the Lord.”

3.         To become our Compassionate and Faithful Helper
This is not about what he has done!
This is about what he does and is able to do!
He was hungry and thirsty
He was overwhelmed by fatigue
He slept
He needed close friendship
He was grieved.
He was troubled
He prayed, read scriptures, he cried in grief

Merciful and faithful high priest (ἐλεημων και πιστος ἀρχιερευς [eleēmōn kai pistos archiereus])
ἐλεήμων [eleemon /el·eh·ay·mone/] Two occurrences; “merciful” twice. 1 merciful.

ἔλεος [eleos /el·eh·os/] 28 occurrences;  “mercy” 28 times. 1 mercy: kindness or good will towards the miserable and the afflicted, joined with a desire to help them. 1a of men towards men: to exercise the virtue of mercy, show one’s self merciful. 1b of God towards men: in general providence; the mercy and clemency of God in providing and offering to men salvation by Christ. 1c the mercy of Christ, whereby at his return to judgment he will bless true Christians with eternal life.

Compassionate: eleemon
Matthew 9:36 “When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.”

Matthew 14:14 “When he went ashore he saw a great crowd, and he had compassion on them and healed their sick.”

Matthew 15:31-33 “they saw the mute speaking, the crippled healthy, the lame walking, and the blind seeing. And they glorified the God of Israel. Then Jesus called his disciples to him and said, “I have compassion on the crowd because they have been with me now three days and have nothing to eat. And I am unwilling to send them away hungry, lest they faint on the way.”

Matthew 18:26-28 “So the servant fell on his knees, imploring him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.’ And out of pity (mercy) for him, the master of that servant released him and forgave him the debt.”

Matthew 20:34 “Jesus in pity (compassion) touched their eyes, and immediately they recovered their sight and followed him. ”

Mark 1:41 “Moved with compassion, he stretched out his hand and touched him and said to him, “I will; be clean.””

Luke 7:12-13 “As he drew near to the gate of the town, behold, a man who had died was being carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow, and a considerable crowd from the town was with her. And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her and said to her, “Do not weep.””

Matthew 9:13 “Go and learn what this means, ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.’ For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.” ”
~ Prompted by the pain of others
~ a deep awareness of and sympathy for another’s suffering
~ the humane quality of understanding the suffering of others and wanting to do something about it

Daniel Goleman:  The act of compassion begins with full attention, just as rapport does. You have to really see the person. If you see the person, then naturally, empathy arises. If you tune into the other person, you feel with them. You want to help them, and then that begins a compassionate act.  compassion begins with attention.

Felix Adler: To care for anyone else enough to make their problems one’s own

He knows that we are thinking and feeling.
He knows where we hurt and where we are tempted.
He is the God who not only saves us from the penalty & power of sin
He sympathizes with our weaknesses!

Faithful: πιστός [pistos /pis·tos/] 67 occurrences;
translates as “faithful” 53 times, “believe” six times, “believing” twice, “true” twice, “faithfully” once, “believer” once,
~of persons who show themselves faithful in the transaction of business, execution of commands, or the discharge of official duties.
~ one who kept his plighted faith, worthy of trust.
~ that can be relied on
~ one who trusts in God’s promises.

When I think of Faithful I think of Friendship
A British publication once offered a prize for the best definition of a friend. Among the thousands of answers received were the following:

“One who multiplies joys, divides grief, and whose honesty is inviolable.” “One who understands our silence.” “A volume of sympathy bound in cloth.” “A watch that beats true for all time and never runs down.”   winning definition “A friend is the one who comes in when the whole world has gone out.”

Friendship
You will remember Jackie Robinson as the first black man to play Major League baseball. In his first season with the Brooklyn Dodgers, Robinson faced venom nearly everywhere he traveled. Pitchers threw fastballs at his head. Runners spiked him on the bases, brutal epithets were written on cards and spoken from the opposing dugouts. Even the home crowds in Brooklyn saw him as an object of reproach. During one game in Boston,  the taunts and racial slurs seemed to reach a peak. To make matters worse Robinson committed an error and stood at second base humiliated while the fans hurled insults at him. Another Dodger, a Southern white man by the name Pee Wee Reese, called timeout. He walked from his position at shortstop toward Robinson at second base, and with the crowds looking on, he put his arm around Robinson’s shoulder. The fans grew quiet. Robinson later said that arm around his shoulder saved his career.

1 Peter 5:6-7 “Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.”

Very specific compassion and help – help when tempted!
He felt temptation to a degree none of us will ever experience.
Most of us never experience the full degree of temptation because we succumb to it before we experience its full extent!

But since Jesus was tempted but never sinned He took the full degree of Satan’s ability to tempt.

1 John 2:1-2 “My little children…if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.”

1 Corinthians 10:13 “No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.”

Sunday, March 7, 2010

12:00 am

Hebrews 2:10-13 “For it was fitting that he, for whom and by whom all things exist, in bringing many sons to glory, should make the founder of their salvation perfect through suffering. For he who sanctifies and those who are sanctified all have one origin. That is why he is not ashamed to call them brothers, saying, “I will tell of your name to my brothers; in the midst of the congregation I will sing your praise.” And again, “I will put my trust in him.” And again, “Behold, I and the children God has given me.””

Introduction:

Book of Hebrews written to
Flesh and blood Christians struggling to overcome past traditions and adjust to the fresh movements of God in a fast changing world.  They struggled to hold onto their faith in Christ in a world of growing chaos and powerful pressures from their culture.

For the most part, they were second generation Christians. They had professed faith in Christ for some time. But they’ve reached a stage of discouragement and 0f spiritual lethargy.  Some had given up meeting in corporate worship.  Experiencing opposition to their faith both from friends and family and from the culture around them.

Let me try to bring us into the sequence of thought in chapters one and two of Hebrews. The writer wants us to realize that Jesus Christ is not an angel. He is worshipped by angels (1:6) because he is himself God (1:8).

He is God’s final decisive word to the world in these last days. God has spoken to us in these last days by a Son (1:2).

And the writer wants us to join the angels in worshipping this great God-revealing, God-expressing Son. So he piles up glories in 1:2-4: he is the heir of all things; through him all things were made; he is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of God’s nature; he upholds the universe by the word of his power; he made purification for sins once for all time and then sat down at the right hand of the Majesty of God in heaven where he reigns today until all his enemies are put under his feet (1:13).

Now on the basis of that tremendous celebration of the greatness of Christ, in chapter two the writer warns us about the utter craziness of not paying attention to this final Word of God (1:1-2), and of neglecting our great salvation (1:3). “How shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation?”

He says it is suicidal to hear about such a great Savior and such a great salvation and then to neglect it while we busy ourselves with other things and prove by our neglect that we do not think it is great, and therefore have never really seen it and tasted it in truth.

He talks about the greatness of what our salvation really is.   What he focuses on is the purpose of God for us humans to one day have a magnificent position of glory and honor under God and over the creation he has made.

In 2:6-8 he quotes Psalm 8 about how man is crowned with glory and honor and has all things in subjection under his feet. But he is not naive. He knows that this great destiny appointed for man is not now a reality.

What then is the answer to our hopeless subjection to death?

Hebrews 2:10-13 “For it was fitting that he, for whom and by whom all things exist, in bringing many sons to glory, should make the founder of their salvation perfect through suffering. For he who sanctifies and those who are sanctified all have one origin. That is why he is not ashamed to call them brothers, saying, “I will tell of your name to my brothers; in the midst of the congregation I will sing your praise.” And again, “I will put my trust in him.” And again, “Behold, I and the children God has given me.””

Three Themes:
1.         Jesus came to earth to share fully in our humanity and solidarity with us
2.         Christ had to go through suffering and death in order to provide salvation for us.
3.         Because of Christ’s obedience he has been exalted to

I.          Our Ultimate Pioneer
What God did through Jesus was fitting, it is consistent
God’s character
his wisdom (no human or angelic mind could think of this)
his holiness (on the cross God showed his hatred for sin)

his power (the greatest display of power in history)
his love (he loved the world so much that he gave his Son)

his grace (bec/ Christ’s sacrifice was substitutionary)
What God did through Christ was totally consistent with God’s nature.

Author of Salvation – Christ is the forerunner of the new humanity

Archegos = pioneer or leader
Someone who involves others in his endeavor.

As a man who starts & heads a family into which others are born
As a man who founds a city in which others come to live
As a pioneer who blazed a trail for others to follow
He is the supreme “archegos”

The Son of Man is not the only One God intends to glorify (v. 6). All of His sons, believers, will experience glorification. “Him” is God the Father. “Author” is Jesus Christ, the Son of Man. The unusual title “author” (Gr.archegos) describes Jesus as a file leader, pioneer, pathfinder, and captain of a company of followers (cf. 12:2; Acts 3:15; 5:31). However, it also views Him as originator or personal source.

Has anyone cheated death?
If so, did he leave the way open for others to follow?
Christ is the great pioneer who blazed the trail through difficulty, suffering and death all the way through resurrection and ascension into glory.

II.         Our Ultimate Perfecter
Hebrews 2:10-13 “he…made the founder of their salvation perfect through suffering.”
He Was Perfected Through Suffering

Christ always had a perfect nature and character.  But his function as Savior and Advocate required the process of incarnation, ministry, humiliation, death and resurrection.

Hebrews 2:10-13 “ in bringing many sons to glory, should make the founder of their salvation perfect through suffering. For he who sanctifies and those who are sanctified all have one origin. That is why he is not ashamed to call them brothers, saying, “I will tell of your name to my brothers; in the midst of the congregation I will sing your praise.” And again, “I will put my trust in him.” And again, “Behold, I and the children God has given me.””

Our Sanctifier
Hebrews 10:10 “And by that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.”

Hebrews 10:14 “For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified.”

2 Corinthians 5:21 “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. ”

Colossians 2:10 “and you have been filled in him, who is the head of all rule and authority.”

It is difficult to see ourselves as holy.
Sin is too much with us.
TF, We live with an underlying sense of shame

But in our new nature God has made us perfectly holy.
Before God those who are in His Son are holy.
We may not act holy but we are viewed as holy in God’s eyes.
We are holy in the sense that before God the righteousness of Christ has been applied and imputed to us on his behalf.
We were made holy through his sacrifice.

Christ removed the possibility of positional sinfulness.
Every single one of us has scars from our past.

All of us have committed sins that though forgiven make our mental, emotional and behavioral present problematic.
So often our sin is ever before us and we are ashamed of ourselves
But Christ holds out his hand and encourages us to take his hand in faith and trust God to be cleansed through faith in his once for all sufficient sacrifice.

Jesus is not ashamed to call us brothers.God is not ashamed to say about us, “I am their God.”
Yet, through Christ is not ashamed to call us brothers and the Father is not ashamed to call us His we are so often ashamed of ourselves before Him.

Let us say with Paul, “I am not ashamed of the Gospel for it is the power of God for salvation for all who believe”
Christ is not our brother through birth but through rebirth
Christ is not our brother through our common nature because he is not only human but he is divine.
Christ is our brother through common righteousness and common faith in the Father.

Faith is allowing your soul to go beyond what your eyes can see.

Let me take us one step further
We too are perfected through suffering!
Identified with Christ through suffering

1 Peter 2:21-15 “For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps.”

1 Peter 4:1-3 “Since therefore Christ suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves with the same way of thinking, for whoever has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, so as to live for the rest of the time in the flesh no longer for human passions but for the will of God.”

Learn obedience through suffering
Hebrews 5:8-9 “Although he was a son, he learned obedience through what he suffered. And being made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him,”

Matured through suffering
James 1:2-4 “Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.”

Equipped to help others through suffering
2 Corinthians 1:3-5 “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. For as we share abundantly in Christ’s sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too.”

Principles:
1.  Often we see suffering in the world and philosophically shrug it off as a condition of living–there seems to be nothing special about suffering because so many people, both good and bad, suffer.

Puritan John Arrowsmith wrote, “There is as much difference between the sufferings of the saints and those of the ungodly as there is between the cords with which the executioner binds a condemned criminal and the bandages wherewith a tender surgeon binds his patient”

Do you see your own suffering as God’s special dealing with you to bring you into greater glory?

2.  We often treat suffering as if it’s to be avoided at all costs, yet it’s often the best display of a life transformed by Christ.

Robert Murrey McCheyne, a Scottish minister of the previous century, said, “There is a great want about all Christians who have not suffered.  Some flowers must be broken or bruised before they emit any fragrance”

Do you view afflictions, trials, and sufferings as things to be avoided, or as the greatest opportunities to project the fragrance of a transformed life.

III.        To Bring Many Sons to Glory
Hebrews 2:10-13 “For it was fitting that he, for whom and by whom all things exist, in bringing many sons to glory, should make the founder of their salvation perfect through suffering. For he who sanctifies and those who are sanctified all have one origin. That is why he is not ashamed to call them brothers, saying, “I will tell of your name to my brothers; in the midst of the congregation I will sing your praise.” And again, “I will put my trust in him.” And again, “Behold, I and the children God has given me.””

What glory is he talking about?
It’s the same glory promised in Psalm 8 in Hebrews 2:7, “You have crowned him with glory and honor and appointed him over the works of your hands.”

This is the glory we have fallen from in our sin and rebellion against God. But now God is undertaking a “great salvation.” He sends his Son to taste death for us, deliver us from the futility and defeat and misery and condemnation of sin and death, and lead us to glory. To do this he has suffered and entered before us into that very glory, as verse 9 says: “Jesus, because of the suffering of death [is] crowned with glory and honor.”

This is a great salvation because the destiny we are saved for is great: we will one day break free from cancer and paralysis and arthritis and blindness and depression and corruption and futility and inherit the glory of the risen Son of God. He has been crowned with glory and honor (2:9); and that is where he is leading us. And it is a great salvation because the Savior is great: This is the Son of God who came, not an angel, not a mere human being, but the Son of God, who is God — worshipped and revered forever. No one less than God has come to lead us to glory. So this is a great salvation because the Forerunner is great and because the goal is great. The Forerunner is the Son of God and the goal is glory of God.

Colossians 1:27-28 “To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ.”

So, what is the opposite of neglecting your great salvation?
One of the reasons for weakness in the Christian church is that so many neglect the greatness of their salvation.

Hebrews 2:1 says it’s “paying close attention to what we have heard.” Hebrews 3:1 says it’s to “consider Jesus, the Apostle and High Priest of our confession.”
Hebrews 3:12-13 says it is, “taking care lest there should be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart . . . but encouraging one another day after day . . . lest any one of you be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.”
Hebrews 4:16 says it is “drawing near to the throne of grace for help.” Hebrews 10:23 says it is “holding fast our confession without wavering.”
Hebrews 10:35 says it is “not throwing away your confidence which has great reward.”
Hebrews 12:1-2 says it is “running the race set before us by looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith.”
Hebrews 12:25 says it is “not refusing him who is speaking from heaven.”

So what is the opposite of neglecting our salvation?
It means applying yourself to think about your salvation; and to meditate on why it is great; and to focus on the greatness of Jesus Christ the Forerunner, Captain, Pioneer and Perfecter of our salvation; and to pray for help in all of this at the throne of grace. Not neglecting is the opposite of coasting and then dabbling and then forgetting.