As they're making the way out, if you have a
copy of the scriptures with you, I invite you
to turn to Hebrews chapter 10, where we're going
to be looking primarily at verses 22 through
25. You see that I have up on the wall behind
me, beginning of verse 19, which was where we
began two weeks ago. Now, Lord willing, we will
return back to Matthew in our series, Matthew
Next Week. But I want to look at this section
of Hebrews. As I said two weeks ago, last week
we had a missionary, but two weeks ago I said
if I was on an island, I only had two books of
the New Testament that I could read for the rest
of my life, I would choose the book of Romans
and the book of Hebrews. And the two most doctrinal
books in the New Testament. We began two weeks
ago, verses 19, but we only got to verse 21.
So let's read it in its entirety, this little
scripture passage here. Therefore, brethren,
Having boldness to enter the holiest by the blood
of Jesus By new and living way which he consecrated
for us through the veil That is his flesh and
having a high priest over the house of God 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 Let us hold fast the confession of our
hope without wavering for He who promised is
faithful. And let us consider one another in
order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking
the assembling of ourselves together as is the
Maynard Psalm, but exhorting one another. And
so much the more as you see the day approaching.
Would you join me in prayer? Father we bow before
your throne this morning Lord and we recognize
the authority of your word This is the word of
the living God and it has a binding authority
at all times over all people Lord today we desire
to submit to the authority of the word and father
Lord. I pray you'd help us understand Lord how
it is to be understood Lord Lord, we do not believe
in private interpretations of scripture. So father,
would you help us to understand this passage
and Lord God? to draw closer to you, Lord, to
hold fast our confession and to encourage one
another in this walk of faith. We pray this in
Jesus' name. Amen. As I said, it was just two
weeks ago. Lord willing, we'll look at Matthew
again next week. But the last time we were in
the book of Hebrews, we looked at the access
that you and I as new covenant believers, it's
access that we enjoy into the very presence of
God. Now the writer here says it's a new and
living way. That is through Jesus's flesh. Now
obviously that's a synonym for His sacrifice.
Because of Christ in His death and resurrection,
you and I, as the people of God, have an unparalleled
access to God. And today, verses 22 through 25,
we're going to look at how we should respond
to that truth. Now I'm going to give you a one
-minute synopsis of the book of Hebrews. The
dominant theme in the book of Hebrews by far
is the superiority of Christ. And the authors
then start to take apart everything in the Old
Covenant, and he begins to show how Christ is
superior. For example, the Lord Jesus we see
in Hebrews 2 is superior to angels. Then he goes
on, the Lord Jesus is superior to Moses. Now
that's a big deal, because this book is written
primarily to Jews. So he's superior to angels,
he's superior to Moses. And then he goes on and
he explains how Christ is superior to all the
Levitical priesthood. Aaron and his sons, he's
superior to all of them. In fact, he is superior
to anything and everything in the Old Covenant.
He mediates the superior New Covenant, which
is based on the superior sacrifice, which is
the once -for -all sacrifice of the Son of God.
Now having that knowledge, Having understood
what he just said, you and I are called to act
upon that truth. See, doctrine is not meant to
fill our heads. Doctrine is meant to motivate
us to action. It is meant to spur us on, if you
will. So now considering the death and resurrection
of Christ, you and I should approach God confidently,
keep our Christian profession. We guard that.
We hold fast to it. We don't let it go is the
idea. And then you and I are called as a church
to help one another. How do we do that? We meet
regularly for edification and encouragement in
the faith. And that's kind of going to be a basic
summary of what we'll talk about this morning.
So let's look at the very first point. In verse
22, we see that we draw near. Let's read the
text. Let us draw near with a true heart in full
assurance of faith. Draw near. It's to approach.
Now, to where or to whom do we draw near? What
is the author of Hebrews talking about? Well,
we don't have to guess because he told us earlier
in chapter 7, verse 19, for the law, that is
the law of Moses, made nothing perfect. On the
other hand, there is the bringing in of a better
hope. That's the new covenant. Through which
we now, what? Draw near to God. This word drawn
near, it's a priestly term. It's the idea of
approaching God. So if you go into the Old Covenant,
to approach God was the exclusive privilege of
the priestly class. But it really was the exclusive
privilege of the high priest, who could enter
into the Holy of Holies, also known here in Hebrews
as the holiest, behind the veil. But he could
only do so one day a year. And that's on the
day of atonement or Yom Kippur. If anyone other
than the high priest dared to go behind that
veil into the Holy of Holies, he would be immediately
struck dead. But now, this is what the author
is saying, the new covenant that has been inaugurated
by Christ, that priestly privilege, has been
extended to all believers, men and women alike,
at all times. All of us have been made priests
to God because of our union with Christ. And
I told you it's a very doctrinal book. Peter
writes about this priesthood of believers in
1 Peter 2 verse 9. But you, and he's writing
to basically a Gentile audience here, but you
are a chosen generation. You've been called out,
you've been chosen, a royal priesthood, a holy
nation. His own special people. But what's the
purpose of that? That you and I may now proclaim
the praises of Him who called us out of darkness
and called us into His marvelous light. So in
the new covenant, all worshipers, not just priestly,
not just the priestly class, I should say, we
are invited now to approach God in a priestly
way. We're invited to draw near to Him. But why?
Why can you and I draw near but they couldn't
in the Old Testament? Verse 21, and having a
high priest over the house of God, he says, let
us draw near. This is why. Because you and I,
yes, we've been made priests to God, but there
is a priest that stands over us. The great high
priest who goes before God the Father, we're
speaking of Jesus Christ here, He represents
us, His people. He intercedes for us, His people.
Therefore, you and I have confidence in going
behind the curtain into the very presence of
God. But we don't do so brazenly or arrogantly.
How do we draw near? We're told, first of all,
with a true heart. In other words, we come with
sincerity, not hypocrisy. God does not want an
undivided heart with divided loyalties. If you
go back to the Old Covenant and you look at Israel,
which the author makes reference to many, many
times, God was often displeased with Israel.
Why? Because they would go through the motions.
They paid lip service, but they had no heart
affection whatsoever. Isaiah rebuked the people
for this. God speaking through Isaiah says, inasmuch
as these people draw near with their mouths and
honor me with their lips, but they've removed
their hearts. Far from me. See, it wasn't that
Israel completely forgot God. It wasn't that
they completely abandoned God. They didn't become
atheists. They became apathetic. And God hates
apathy. If you want to look, you could look over
in Revelation chapter 3 and you see the rebuke
to the church at Laodicea. What was Laodicea's
problem? They were lukewarm. Jesus said, I would
rather you be hot or cold. Because you're lukewarm,
I'm going to vomit you out of my mouth. Apathy.
Just going through the motions. And that's what
Israel did. There was no true zeal for God. So
they still went to temple. They still went to
synagogue. Yet their hearts, Isaiah said, God
saying through him, their hearts were far from
him, miles away from him. And God hated it. So
under the new covenant, God says, you approach
me, but you come with a true heart. That means
in a heart of faith and quiet trust. Faith that
believes what God has said and acts upon it.
Notice the text, in full assurance of faith.
What does that mean? It is to be confident in
what Christ has done. Remember, some of these
believers, these were Jewish believers, They're
being tempted to turn their backs on Christ,
to fall into apostasy. They were to return to
Judaism, a protected religion at that time, to
avoid the persecution they were experiencing.
But the writer says here, the faith that pleases
God is fully assured. What does that mean? For
instance, it means all your eggs are in one basket.
And that's the basket labeled Jesus. Only trusting
in what He has done. Well, how can we be so fully
assured? We sing about it every day. This is
why we worship on this particular day. Because
of Christ's resurrection, you and I are fully
assured that the sacrifice of Jesus was sufficient
to remove our sins and to present us righteous
before God. Therefore, we draw near to Him. We
draw to Him because we're assured that what Christ
did was effective. But he says secondly, not
only being foolish or with a clean heart, he
says with a clean conscience. Having our hearts
sprinkled from an evil conscience. Having our
hearts sprinkled. Now he's using pre -sleep language
again. Now this actually is the fulfillment of
Ezekiel 36. Notice this text, and I will make
emphasis. Then I will sprinkle clean water on
you and you shall be clean. I will cleanse you
from all your filthiness and from all your idols.
I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit
within you. I will take the heart of stone out
of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.
I will put my spirit within you and cause you
to walk in my statutes. Then you will keep my
judgments and do them. Five times God says, I
will, I will, I will, I will, I will. And because
of that, then and only then you will. Works always
are the fruit of salvation. What God is working
in is going to be worked out. Now, in the Old
Covenant, we go back and we read the priest,
when they're being consecrated for the priesthood,
they were sprinkled with blood. When the temple
was consecrated, it was sprinkled with blood.
When the Book of the Covenant was read, it was
sprinkled with blood. The people who were there
that day were sprinkled with blood. But in the
new covenant, when a person comes to faith in
Christ, the Holy Spirit, and he uses this language
here, sprinkles their hearts with blood, with
the blood of Christ, and cleanses us from all
our sin. That means there is no further need
of any lamb, any goat, any bull to ever be offered
again because Christ, the Lamb of God, has been
sacrificed and our sins are remembered no more.
This is why I totally reject the dispensational
view that the sacrifices will once again be reinstituted
in the Millennium. I cannot align that with the
book of Hebrews in any way at all. I just reject
it. Because Christ's sacrifice was sufficient.
There will never be another need for a lamb to
be offered. That's not going to honor Christ.
Under the Old Covenant, sins were never completely
removed. How do you know that? And no one ever
had completely a clean conscience. Why? Because
every day, there at the temple, morning and evening,
sacrifices would be offered. And they'd wake
up the next day and morning and evening, sacrifices
would be offered. But not only that, under the
Old Covenant, there wasn't just one priest. Priests
had to be completely reinstituted. Why? Because
you had priests who lived, served, died. Then
another priest would have to be consecrated and
take his place. So, continual sacrifices, continual
repetition of priests. But then we come to the
new covenant. There is only one high priest.
And he is the one who, yes, he died, but he rose
again to never die again. That's why Pastor Kyle,
when he read that, he ever lives to make intercession.
Therefore, he can save to the uttermost. So,
that means there is no other need for any priest
because Christ is never going to die again. Aaron
died, so his son reigned. Then he died. His son
reigned. Christ died. He rose again. There is
never again a need for a great high priest. There's
no other sacrifice Christ Jesus was given. His
blood was shed. Why? To cleanse our conscience
before God. If you look at chapter 9 verse 14,
how much more shall the blood of Christ, who
through the eternal spirit offered himself, he
gave himself without spot to God. Purge your
conscience. Cleanse your conscience from dead
works to serve the living God. Because Christ
was slain in our place, our conscience is now
clean. We're no longer burdened with that heavy
conscience of guilt. You've been internally cleansed.
That's what the Bible said. So the Spirit of
God has applied the sacrifice and merit of Christ
to your heart. By the way, that's what our baptism
represents. And we'll talk about that in just
a few moments. Friends, none of us are going
to draw near to God if you have a defiled conscience
because your guilt will keep you away. Guilt
does that. Guilt makes us run and hide from God.
Look at Genesis 3. Adam and Eve, when they fell
into sin, they hid from God. But once you come
to Christ and your guilt is removed and your
conscience is made clean, do you know what you
will want to do? You will want to draw near to
Him and worship Him out of gratitude for what
He has done. You're no longer going to hide and
stay away, but you're going to come to Him. And
that's what the author is saying, hey come, approach
God. What? With a sincere heart, a clean conscience,
but also a baptized body. Now that may not make
sense to you, but look what he says, and our
bodies washed with pure water. Again, there's
a comparison. Under the Old Covenant, there are
many rituals. There are many ritualistic baths,
many ceremonial washings. The washing of hands,
washing of feet, the washing of pots and pans.
But in the New Covenant, you don't find those
anymore. There is no longer a need for a laver.
There's no longer a need for a washing. Why?
Because the center has been made completely clean.
And he said, this is what is signified in our
identification with Christ in baptism. Our sins
are shown to be washed away. The inner spiritual
cleansing is outwardly, visibly signified in
baptism. And these Hebrew believers, now these
were Jews, they're Hebrews. They had been baptized,
it says, with pure water. That baptism is a sign.
and a seal of our cleansing, but also our union
with Christ. What is baptism? Baptism, we make
so little of it, and the Bible makes so much
of it. Baptism is a sign of our inclusion into
the covenant community. It is a seal of the righteousness
that comes by faith. So when you were baptized,
what happened? You were signified. You were one
with Christ. You're union with Christ. You died
with him, buried with him, rose again with him.
You have been cleansed from sin, so the water
shows that our sin has been taken away. It's
a sign of our regeneration, being made alive
with Christ, but it's also a sign of the indwelling
of the Holy Spirit of Christ. Titus 3 5. It's
not by works of righteousness which we have done.
But according to His mercy, He saved us, amen,
through the washing of regeneration and the renewal,
the renewing of the Holy Spirit. Circumcision
was a sign of the Old Covenant. Baptism is a
sign of the New Covenant. This is what identifies
you with the people of God. Baptism marks you
out as belonging to Christ. Now, it is true that
you can have the sign without the inner reality.
That means you can be baptized and not saved,
if you will. You can be baptized and not regenerate.
But all of those who have been regenerated by
God need to have the sign. It's not optional.
Mark 16, and now we can talk about this, and
baptism does it save you? No, but what does Mark
16, he that believeth and is baptized shall be
saved. He that believeth not shall be damned.
It's not that baptism is the what? It's not the
method that saves you. Christ saves you by His
grace, completely. Baptism works you out. So
that's like someone in the Old Covenant who then
comes to faith in Christ but says, I'm not going
to be circumcised. They were cut off from the
people. You don't get approached. No, you're
not a member of the Covenant community. So now
we come, so we see that yes, you can have the
sign, but just a circumcision showed you to belong
to Israel. Baptism identifies you with the church,
the new covenant people of God. So as a pastor,
there is no reason for me to believe that one
is saved who refuses to identify with Christ
in baptism. Which is why only the people who
are baptized can come to the table of the Lord.
We say that every week. Why? That meal that we
will take up in a few moments is a covenantal
meal. Who belongs to the covenant? Those who
have the covenantal sign now you can have the
sign again I'm not saying because you can be
baptized and not regenerate of course that you
can But the sign that marks you out as belonging
to Christ and so therefore one who refuses to
be baptized Is to be refused from the table of
the Lord By the way Passover you didn't get eat
the Passover meal uncircumcised Couldn't do it.
It's covenantal meal So the scriptures point
us here in this verse, in verse 23, to baptism,
which marks us out as followers of Christ. So
these Hebrew people had been raised under the
Old Covenant. They were used to ceremonial washings,
but they had been baptized and made a profession.
And now he's going to talk about that in just
a few moments. But he's telling you to draw near.
You need to draw near a sincere heart, clean
conscience, and a baptized body. So draw near
in genuine worship, draw near in prayer. Why?
Because of Christ, we understand that we are
an accepted, beloved child of God, and we desire
to fellowship with him, draw near to him, both
in private and public worship. Because he's going
to, I will do this, I will do this, I will do
this, and you will walk in my judgments. So the
author says he's wanting these Hebrew believers
who are being tempted to leave Christ. Get it
in your mind. Christ, the once for all sacrifice,
he is the one who is the great high priest. He's
praying for you in heaven right now. Draw near
and hold fast that profession you made. Look
at verse 23. Let us hold fast the profession
of our faith without wavering, for he is faithful
that promised. Hold fast. What's that mean? Keep
it. Guard it. Here's the utmost serious. Whatever
you do, don't let it go. Hold it fast. Put yourselves
in these people's places. They're being persecuted.
Some are losing homes. Some are losing lands.
We're told that in the book. Some perhaps even
losing life. Life is really, really hard for
them. But life wasn't hard before they came to
Christ because under Jewish, under Roman law,
Judaism was a protected religion. Christianity
wasn't. The author says, but remember your profession
that you made at your baptism. That's what you
identified with Christ publicly, and he's encouraged
them. Hold fast. Don't let that go what you professed
that day. By the way, we know through early church
at their baptism, they would also make a profession
of faith. A lot of times they would recite the
creed. That was one of the reasons I wanted my
son Ezra to recite the creed. So remember, Ezra,
this is what you professed at your baptism. I
believe in God the Father Almighty, creator of
heaven and earth, and Jesus Christ, his only
son, our Lord, conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius
Pilate, died, was crucified, was buried, descended
into hell, and on the third day he rose again
from the grave. That's what I want him to hold
fast to. Don't lose it. You held fast to that,
Ezra, no matter what happens. Life may get really,
really hard and very, very intense, but hold
fast to that profession you make. Don't just
hold fast. He says do so without wavering. Don't
falter in it. Don't think for a second. Don't
you dare turn your back on Christ. Yes, you're
experiencing persecution, but here's how you
don't turn back. Why? Why not go save your life?
Look at the text. For he is faithful to the promised.
God is faithful. Yeah, you may lose homes. Yes,
you may. You may lose lands. You may even lose
your own life for the sake of the gospel. You
may. But God, the one who promised eternal life,
He's faithful. God doesn't renege. He keeps His
promises. He promised eternal life in Christ,
and He sealed that at your baptism, and He will
deliver it regardless of the cost. 2 Corinthians
5 .1. For we know that if our earthly house,
this tent, is destroyed—that's death—we have
a building from God, a house not made with hands.
eternal in the heavens. That's true, friends.
I believe that. So, how do you hold fast? You
keep going. You keep on keeping on. You persevere.
The writer writes about this all throughout the
book. Hebrews 3, that Christ as a son over his
own house, whose house are we, if we hold fast,
the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope,
firm unto the end. He said, you turn back. That's
a bleak outlook for you. Don't turn back. Remember
when Paul's co -worker, his name just slipped
and he says, having loved this present world,
if someone can remember it? Thank you, Demas.
He has forsaken me having loved this present
world. He turned back. Hebrews 3 .14, for we
are made partakers of Christ if we hold the beginning
over confidence steadfast into the end. 6 .11,
we desire that every one of you do show the same
diligence to the full assurance of hope and to
the end. Be unmoved by the threats. Keep on holding
on. Because you know why? There's something better
than life. There's something better than this
life, and it's Jesus. And you best be prepared
to die for that belief. I think of our brothers
today in some Middle Eastern countries. When
one identifies with Christ, it's not until they're
baptized. There's all kinds of Muslim contexts
where people are okay if you make a private confession
of faith in Christ. But when you publicly identify
with Him baptism, a lot of times a bounty is
placed on your head. You risk your life. But
what they're saying, there is something better
than life, and that is Jesus, and He is faithful,
and His promises are true. These believers, they
had been baptized. It was a seal that what God
had promised, He will deliver on. Therefore,
there shouldn't be any hesitation or unbelief.
God is faithful. Everything is sure on His side.
Think about the testimony. When you can willingly
suffer the loss of everything, homes, lands,
family, life, because of the testimony of Christ,
that is a real testimony to the world of the
power and sufficiency of the gospel. Look at
verse 24. We provoke each other to love and good
works. Let us consider one another to provoke
unto love and to good works. To stir up is another
translation. How are you going to keep your profession?
You meet together for encouragement. The Christian
life, it is never ever meant to be lived in isolation,
but always in community. This is something we
in the Western world have a much harder time
grasping because in our culture, we are by nature
rugged individualists. Americans pull themselves
up by the bootstraps. So there's a hyper individual
focus in American culture. But that's not the
way the biblical culture is. You will be more
tempted to quit and to fall into despair or turn
your back on Christ if you go through extreme
trials and persecution alone. This is why we
need each other, which is why God has placed
us in a body, if you will. Think of war and those
who have been captured as prisoners of war. If
they have the support of a fellow prisoner or
fellow soldier, they are much more likely to
survive both mentally and physically. There's
something about being isolated, which is why
one of the tortures is what to put you in isolation.
But as we look at the welfare, you and I, as
we come back to the church, we're to look out
for the welfare of our fellow brothers and sisters.
So we need to be actively doing something and
the author says provoke them. Now we normally
think of provoking them as something that's negative,
but the word here actually means to incite, stir
up. You and I are to actively incite each other
to love and to good works. Richard Phillips in
his commentary writes this. The result of our
example and conversation should be love and good
works in the lives of other believers. Let me
ask you, if the way you handle yourself provokes
others to take seriously what the Bible teaches,
does your counsel cut against the grain of worldly
logic and press home the claims and promises
of God? Does your behavior set a helpful model
for weak or new believers? If not, you are not
making the impact you should for Christ's work
in the church. You and I are to provoke to love.
It's a supreme Christian virtue. It's the one
that Jesus said, by love shall all men know that
we are his disciples. But what does it mean to
love? Love is not the emotion that we're taught
to believe it is. Love doesn't mean you have
warm thoughts about someone. Love is willingly
seeking out the welfare of another person, period,
biblically speaking. 1 Timothy 1, 5. The purpose
of the commandment. That's an interesting statement.
This is the purpose. is love from a pure heart,
from a good conscience, and from a sincere faith.
Paul wrote that to Timothy. That's the same words
that's used over in Hebrews. Galatians 5 -6.
For in Christ Jesus, neither circumcision nor
uncircumcision basically amounts to anything.
What does matter? Faith working through love.
This is an important point. This is what the
Holy Spirit is doing in the life of the church.
Love is the very root of the Christian life,
and the good works that flow from it are the
fruit. Love and good works. So they're at a hold
faster confession, and now he's saying, hey listen,
be involved in each other's lives. Encourage
each other to persevere. Hold fast to Christ.
Because these believers were all facing the same
thing. And when you're weak, you need the strength
of the body. No one is strong all the time. Friends,
no one is strong all the time. That's why we
need each other. That's why we need to be praying
for each other. I have personally benefited so
many times by some of you in here reaching out
and saying, Pastor, I'm praying for you. And
I usually try to write back and say, that means
more than you'll know. When we're weak, the prayers
of God's people avail. But then lastly, how do
we then really provoke to each other and incite
one another? Look at verse 25. Not forsaking
the assembling of ourselves together as a manner
of some, but exhorting one another so much the
more as you see that day approaching. How do
you do this? You don't neglect to gather to work
corporately to worship the Lord. That means this
is the priority. This right here, what we're
doing today, is the priority. Nothing else, not
sports, nothing else. Public worship is central
to the Christian life, and it is here that one
finds the means of grace. Because in the corporate
worship of God, the word is preached, the sacraments
or ordinances are administered, prayers are offered,
hymns are sung, and to neglect that means is
spiritually dangerous. continue to worship God,
continue to gather, but you're doing so as an
encouragement to your brothers and sisters. Now,
people today neglect corporate worship all the
time, but that's nothing new. In the first century,
they were tempted to not meet together because
it was very dangerous. The Roman army might come
in and attack them. They were being persecuted
for that. But in the 21st century, in America,
It's not because we're being persecuted, we've
allowed other things to become the priority.
And this is what I see as very dangerous. If
you look at the book of Revelation, there are
two enemies, and I'm jumping ahead of myself,
but I want to mention this here. We often think
about Satan being the great dragon, and he is.
And the great dragon seeks to just pummel the
people of God, persecute them ruthlessly, take
their lives if he can. But that often served
to purify the church. But there is an enemy that
is more insidious And perhaps more effective.
There's the great whore of Babylon, right? And
what does she do? So as a great whore, she seduces
God's people. She lures them away, not by persecuting
them, but by offering them other things that
they find more desirable. And this is just as
effective. So maybe the reason we neglect it
is different, but the result is the same, and
that's the neglect of corporate worship. And
Paul said, or excuse me, the author said here,
you assemble together, you exhort one another.
Do you see the communal aspect? It's not primarily
on what you may receive, but rather on how you
may contribute. So you're to look out for, we
are our brother's keeper in the church. We're
to look out for one another. But some here had
failed to meet together. As a result, sadly,
some turned their backs on Christ and they went
back to Judaism. And the writer saying, please
don't do that. Please don't do that. That is
to turn your back on Christ. That is to give
up salvation. That is to turn your back on salvation.
Don't neglect the public assembly. It is of utmost
importance in scripture. How often do I as a
pastor, I hear this, not so much from church
members, but you hear it in our culture all the
time. I don't need to go to church to worship
God. I can worship God by myself at home. In
a sense, okay, yeah, you can worship God anywhere.
That's the access we have. But I will say this,
you cannot be right with God if you do not come
together to worship God corporately. Yeah, you
can have private worship. But if you only have
private worship, never corporate worship, you're
not right with God. Our Christianity, and this
is one thing we have to understand, we have to
reclaim it. We've lost it. Our Christianity is
not to be lived out in isolation, but in community.
There's a well -known Scottish preacher of yesteryear
whose name is Robert Murray McShane, and he wrote
this. He preached this in 1838. When two travelers
are going through the wilderness, you may know
which of them is thirsty by his always looking
out for wells. So it is with thirsty believers.
They love the word, both read and preached. They
thirst for it more and more. Is it so with you,
dear believing brethren? In Scotland, long ago,
it used to be so. Often, after the blessing was
pronounced, the people would not go away till
they heard more. The blessing's talking about
the benediction, like I do at the very end. He
said, after the preacher had given the benediction,
people wanted more. They stayed around. Ah, children
of God, it is a fearful sign to see little thirst
in you. I do not wonder much when the world stays
away from our meetings for the word and prayer,
but ah, when you do, I am dumb. My soul will
weep in secret places for your pride. We have
to regain a vision of what God is doing in his
church, the priority of it. We come together
to worship our God and to exhort one another.
Exhort, it's a Greek word, parakaleo, and it
simply means to implore, to beg, to comfort,
to beseech, to call to action. It's all those
things. The Holy Spirit is called our paraclete,
the one who comes alongside us and helps us.
So that means you and I are to be vessels used
by the Holy Spirit to encourage one another in
our walk with the Lord. As the song says, there
are many pitfalls, dangers, toils, and snares.
We can't overcome them on our own. We need each
other. But no, it says, and so much, and we'll
close here, and so much the more as you see the
day approaching. The author said, hey, man, keep
encouraging another. Keep meeting. And especially
as you see that day approaching, what day is
he talking about? The day of the Lord. The return
of Christ. He is coming back, friends. Christ
Jesus is coming back. And all your effort, all
the blood, the sweat, the tears will never be
in vain. Keep on following the Lord. Which is
why at the end of 1st Corinthians 15, when he's
talking about the resurrection, he says, Therefore
be unmovable, always abounding in the work of
the Lord, for as much as you know that your labor
is not in vain in the Lord. Because Christ is
alive. Now think about it, if you're being persecuted
for your faith, this is a lifeline. Christ is
coming back. Christ is going to return. It gives
them hope and it gives them courage to continue
on, knowing all these wrongs that I'm experiencing
will one day be made right. William McDonald
in his commentary said, there was need to exhort
one another, especially in view of the nearness
of Christ's returns. When he comes, the persecuted,
the ostracized, despised believers, they will
be seen to be on the winning side. But until
then, there's need for steadfastness. Many dangers,
even in America here. It's not physical persecution,
like I said earlier. We're seduced by the great
poor of Babylon. You see it in the book of Revelation.
It seduces the people of God away from our faith,
offering the best this world has to offer. It's
what we're most tempted by. What shall profit
a man if he gains the whole world and loses his
own soul? So many people have made a risky gamble
and they've lost. It's not worth it. Look beyond
this world. Look beyond what you can presently
see. Look to the eternal. Gathering as believers
will help you do that. It is a safeguard so that
you're not seduced by the enemy because every
week we come and we're reoriented toward true
north. Okay, Lord, I am being deceived because
every day, all day long, I'm being tempted and
there's seduction out there and we're being drawn
away from the faith. And every Lord's Day we
gather and say, nope, my allegiance is to King
Jesus, to his kingdom, and he's returning, so
I'm not being moved. So my exhortation to you
today as a pastor is to see that the day is approaching.
It is drawing near. Don't be fooled. Don't be
caught off guard. Believer, you have a great
high priest in the heaven. He's praying for you.
He's interceding for you. So draw near to God.
Approach Him. Draw near to Him. Keep though your
profession. And while you're here on this earth
and as long as you have breath, stir up your
brothers and sisters in Christ unto love and
good works until the day that Christ returns.
This is what it means to have this great high
priest over the house of God. Let's pray. Father,
thank you. Lord, it is an encouragement to me
to know that, Lord, I am not alone. It's an encouragement
to me to know that Jesus is praying for me even
now in heaven. It is an encouragement, Lord,
to know that, Lord, you have given us all that
we need for life and godliness. Father, would
you protect us? Lord, all of us are weak. All
of us are just frail and easily to be seduced
and led away from the faith or to be led away
from our steadfastness in Christ. Lord, Father,
would you keep us from that? Lord, you must hold
us fast. But Father, as we're doing so, Lord,
we pray that, Lord God, we will not be moved.
But Father, Lord, we would encourage one another.
Lord, may your Holy Spirit work in me, in the
lives of your saints here this morning, that
we would encourage each other in our most holy
faith. that we would grow and mature and see
what life is really all about, that we will glorify
you, whether it be by life or by death. Lord,
I don't say that lightly or flippantly because,
Lord, I also realize some people truly are hurting.
Lord, in their hurt, may they find their source
of comfort in you. Lord, now as we come and we
not only do we remember by holding the elements
in our hands that represent the body and blood
of Christ, but we commune with the risen Lord.
I don't understand how it happens, but there's
a true communion with Christ this morning as
your Holy Spirit makes this meal effective in
the lives of your people. Father, I thank you
for that Lord. What an encouragement your church
is and we pray that God we would continue to
do so even more as we see the day approaching
and we ask this in Christ's name. Amen. Mice
and Deacons if you'll come. Distribute the elements,
please.