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Published on Leave a comment on None other than our Lord Jesus Christ

Here's how Robert Murray McCheyne opened his sermon on Wisdom entitled "TURN YOU AT MY REPROOF."  Prov. i., 20-23.

20Wisdom crieth without; she uttereth her voice in the streets: 21She crieth in the chief place of concourse, in the openings of the gates: in the city she uttereth her words, saying, 22How long, ye simple ones, will ye love simplicity? and the scorners delight in their scorning, and fools hate knowledge? 23Turn you at my reproof: behold, I will pour out my spirit unto you, I will make known my words unto you.

THAT none other than our Lord Jesus Christ is intended to be minted to us under the majestic figure of Wisdom in the Book of Proverbs, is evident from the passage before us. Of whom but the Saviour could it be said so truly that he stood with outstretched hands in the streets, in the markets, and in the openings of the gates, crying after the simple ones the publicans and sinners; and the scorners the Scribes and Pharisees ; and those haters of knowledge the Jewish priesthood ? And again, of whom but the Saviour could it be said, with any truth at all, that he offered to " pour out his Spirit upon the returning sinner, and to make known his words unto him ?" Christ alone " hath ascended up on high, leading captivity captive ; and hath received gifts for men, yea, even for the rebellious, that the Lord God might dwell among them."

Full sermon here (num. XXVII).

Apart from verse 23, the view that Wisdom is the Spirit in Proverbs is a strong one.  The book is about a Father training up His Young Prince to get Wisdom.  Christthen becomes for us Wisdom from God since He is the Anointed One in Whom we find Wisdom for ourselves.

For those who see Wisdom as the Spirit - any thoughts on Prov 1:23?

Whether we say Wisdom is the Son or the Spirit it is vital that we not dePersonalize Wisdom - as though it were just an attribute of God.  Our faith is Personal and we dare not depersonalize One who is clearly held out in Scripture as Maker, Saviour and the One we're urged to get above all things.

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Published on 2 Comments on Feeling on top of the world? Hebrews 12:14-29

Hebrews 12:14-29 Sermon.  Audio here.  Text below.

Mountains are often thought of as spiritual.  A mountaintop experience is a spiritual experience.  People say they often feel closer to God or closer to spiritual things when they’re on a mountain.

And the bible begins in Eden which is described in Ezekiel 28 as “the holy mountain of God.”  Genesis 2 says that rivers flowed out of this mountain garden and down to the rest of the world.  So humanity began on high.  And the fall, was literally a descent down the mountain, away from God’s presence.

If anyone were to get back into God’s presence, not only would they have to get past the guardian cherubim, these angelic bouncers with their flaming swords barring the entrance.  They would have to ascend the hill of the LORD (Psalm 24).  And that’s just commonly the way the bible speaks.

The bible speaks of Jesus having descended from the heights.  And as He lived among us He lived the perfect life.  The life of other-centred love and sacrifice that you and I should live but don’t – Jesus did it.  And then He died the perfect death as our sacrifice for sins.  And then, when He arose, He ascended back into the Most Holy Place – heaven itself – and He went there as our perfect Priest.  We have a Friend in very high places.

That’s the argument Hebrews has been making for the last 12 chapters.  Jesus has come and lived our life for us.  He’s entered into the depths of our suffering and struggle and He’s lived the faithful life we never could.  But He did it FOR US.

And then He died the perfect sacrificial death on the cross.  And He did it FOR US.  You and I deserve to die in the depths because of our filth and uncleanness.  But His godforsaken death in the depths is counted before God FOR US.

And then He has ascended as the perfect Priest into heaven FOR US.  We don’t have the right to be in the holy presence of God, but He is there on our behalf.  He represents us in the highest place imaginable.

If we trust Jesus then we get joined to Jesus.  And His life is our life, His death is our death, His ascension to God is our ascension to God.

And after 12 chapters of this kind of argument, the writer says in this section: “Don’t you know where you are?  Do you have any idea where Christ has brought you?”

You are on the mountaintop.  You have reached the summit.

These verses are here to wake us up to our mountaintop experience with God.  And once we realize where we are – where Christ has brought us – then this passage will tell us how to move out into the world from these height.

That’s how we’ll study this chapter.  We’ll begin on the mountaintop.  We’ll appreciate where we are – secure on the high ground.  And then we’ll consider how we’re meant to walk out into the world

But first the mountaintop experience.

...continue reading "Feeling on top of the world? Hebrews 12:14-29"

Published on Leave a comment on Church – Jacuzzi or Waterfall? [Thawed out Thursday]

What is church like?

Is it a jacuzzi?

Cosy? Relaxing?  A chance for you and your nearest and dearest to recharge the batteries?

Or is it...

A waterfall?

Scary?  Exciting?  Expansive?  Never safe?

Or is it... and here's my new word for the week...

A jacuzzerfall

Here we see the blessings of our close fellowship in Christ flowing out and blessing the whole world.

9But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. 10 Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. 11 Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul. 12 Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.  (1 Peter 2:9-12)

This is what church is like - a jacuzzerfall.  (Now go and use the word this week)

And here's my little sermon on the subject.  Text here.

Afterthought:  Of course God also is a jacuzzerfall, but that's a whole other post...

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Published on 4 Comments on Let us run with perseverance

Sermon on Hebrews 11:1-12:3.  Text below:

Let me say a phrase for you and gauge your reaction:  School sports day – cross country running.

Happy memories anyone?

Not for me.  Every year at my school in Australia they made us run what seemed like a double marathon in the sports carnival.  I’m sure it was only three miles but to me, for whom brushing my teeth is about as aerobic as I get, this was a major drag.  One year the gun fired for the race and this new kid who’d just come from China called Bob Chen, burst away from the pack and shot ahead of us at lightning speed.  And we all thought, ‘Oh my goodness, where’s this guy come from?  They breed them tough in China.’  He tore up one side of the school oval and our whole year group was jogging sedately behind him thinking we’ve seen the new school champion.  And then Bob Chen veered slightly off the route and headed straight for some trees, where we saw him stop, bend double and as we all jogged past, Bob Chen threw up all over his nice new trainers.

Bob Chen was famous for that at our school, not least because the next year he did exactly the same thing.  Tore off as soon as the gun went.  Sprinted around the oval where all the spectators were, got to that first tree, and again threw up violently.

If there’s one thing I’ve learnt from Bob Chen it’s that you need to know what kind of race you’re in, and run accordingly.

...continue reading "Let us run with perseverance"

Published on Leave a comment on Knocked down but not knocked out

Cracking sermon from John Cheeseman of Holy Trinity Eastbourne.  The text is 2 Corinthians 4:7-15 and the title is from JB Phillips' paraphrase of v9: "We are knocked down but we are never knocked out!"

A very encouraging word for those who are particularly struggling.

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Published on Leave a comment on Draw Near – Hebrews 10:19-39

A sermon on Hebrews 10:19-39.

Audio of 30 minute version.  Audio of 15 minute version.

Drawing Near

19 Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, 20 by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, 21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near to God.

Here’s the picture that Hebrews has been building up for us for the last ten chapters.  The Most Holy Place was the dwelling of God Himself.  It was the centre of the OT tabernacle and in it was the ark of the covenant – the LORD’s very throne.

But of course the whole Old Covenant system kept the people away from God’s presence.  One thing in particular – the curtain, mentioned in v20 – it had guardian cherubim embroidered into it to remind people of the guards protecting the way back to Eden.  You are a sinner and God is holy, holy, holy.  There’s no entry through here.  Not unless you’ve got a great sacrifice and a great priest.

Well then v19 speaks into this whole system and says “Come on in!”  It’s extraordinary.  Hebrews says, walk with CONFIDENCE into the presence of the Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord Almighty.  You could imagine the Old Testament priests appalled, running along behind us in their robes saying “You can’t go in there!  Are you even Jewish?”  “Nope” we say.

“And where’s your sacrifice, I don’t see a sacrifice.  And where’s your priest, you need a priest.”  And we say the blood of the LORD Jesus has been shed, is that a good enough sacrifice.  And He is our great High Priest, appearing for us in heaven right now, is that a good enough priest?  Yes it is and so we DRAW NEAR to God.

This command to draw near is repeated seven times in Hebrews.  It’s a major theme.  It says “draw near, draw near, draw near, draw near, draw near, draw near, draw near.”  Christ’s sacrifice is the perfect sacrifice, His priesthood is the perfect priesthood, draw near with confidence.

And you think, well I can’t, can I?  I get tongue tied in the presence of earthly authorities.  I make a fool of myself in the presence of minor celebrities.  I feel small and awkward and ashamed in the presence of human greatness.  Can I really draw near?

Yes, v22 goes on:

draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water.

There is a FULL assurance that comes from faith.  When we see Jesus, arms open on the cross, we see just how approachable He really is.  He assures we can draw near and we trust Him.  Not only that He sprinkles our hearts with His blood.  The blood of the OT sacrifices were sprinkled on external things to say “This sacrifice has outwardly cleansed these things.”  Christ’s sacrifice goes deep – it cleanses even our wayward and sinful hearts.  No more guilt – it’s all been laid on Jesus:  He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities.  The punishment that brought us peace was upon Him.  And by His wounds we are healed.  No need for guilt.  Christ has paid for it all, cleansed it all, removed it all.

And our bodies are washed with pure water.  In between the altar and the holy place of the tabernacle there was a massive basin where the priests washed before entering the holy places.  Jesus has taken us through that washing into God’s presence.  And for our part, baptism is the symbol of this deeper washing.  But as we stand before God no need to feel out of place, no need to feel uncertain, no need to feel guilty, no need to feel impure – Christ has cleansed us.  Draw near.

But what does that actually mean?  What does it look like to ‘draw near to God’?

In Hebrews 10 there are three important contexts we need to bear in mind as we draw near:

The holiness of God

The suffering of the Christian life, and

The need for community

...continue reading "Draw Near – Hebrews 10:19-39"

Published on Leave a comment on True Guilt, True Cleansing – Hebrews 10:1-18

A sermon on Hebrews 10:1-18. 

Audio here (recording failed at church, re-recorded at home).

Out, damned spot! out, I say!

Lady Macbeth’s line is one of Shakespeare’s most famous.  In the first act of Macbeth she helps her husband to murder the King and by the end of the play she is in mental torment and eventually takes her own life.  In her final scene she is before a doctor and cannot cleanse her conscience.

Out, damned spot! out, I say!... who would have thought the old man to have had so much blood in him?   ...What, will these hands ne’er be clean?...Here’s the smell of the blood still; all the perfumes of Arabia will not sweeten this little hand. Oh, oh, oh!

The Doctor says

What a sigh is there! The heart is sorely charg’d. ...This disease is beyond my practice.

Shame and guilt is a disease.  And it’s a disease beyond the practice of 17th century doctors.  It’s beyond the practice of 21st century doctors.  Cleansing away our guilt and shame is beyond every power on earth.

But it’s what this chapter is all about.  Verse 2 – it’s about being cleansed and no longer feeling guilty for our sins.  Verse 3 – it’s about not being reminded of our sins.

Instead, v10, it’s about being made holy.  Verse 11, having our sins taken away.  Verse 14, being made perfect.  Verse 17 – our sins and lawless acts remembered no more.  Verse 18 – it’s about forgiveness.

It’s a passage all about sin and shame, cleansing and forgiveness.  It’s a passage about whether your sins are forever remembered, or forever forgotten.  It’s a passage about guilt.

Do you feel guilty?

Now as I ask that question there’s a big danger.  Those who should feel guilty, often don’t.  And those who shouldn’t, often do.  So as I ask “Do you feel guilty?” there will be some of you who, personality wise, are virtually impervious to feeling ashamed.  You’re just you and that’s the way you are.  And there’ll be some of you who, personality wise, almost never feel anything but guilty.  Our feelings about guilt are so unreliable, which is why this chapter is so helpful.  Because this chapter will help us to make sure our feelings are anchored in reality, and not just in personality.

But so long as we’re aware that there’s such a thing as false guilt – and that’s wrong – what about true guilt.  Do you feel guilty?

You know there’s a trick that preachers can pull to make you feel guilty.  We can confess to one or two old sins of ours that are embarrassing and we can say – “I’m sure you’ve got embarrassing sins that you keep locked in your basement too, don’t you?”  And I could make you dwell on your past right now and there’d be a handful of things in your past for which you felt shame.  And it would usually be that misuse of alcohol, or that misuse of sex, or that misuse of a friend, or those words you said that you would immediately bring to mind.  Now if you are wracked with guilt about individual sins listen in to this chapter because there is liberation from all guilt here in Hebrews 10.  But the guilt we’re mainly talking about in this chapter is not about that one sin or those half-dozen sins, or even those wilderness years of back-sliding.  The guilt we’re talking about is the all-pervading knowledge that in myself, I am utterly unfit for God’s presence.

Because the context for these 18 verses is all about “drawing near” to God.  It’s not the guilt that comes when you’re doing the washing up and you remember that awful thing you did.  It’s the dread feeling of being summoned, not just into the Headmaster’s office, not just summoned before a magistrate, but summoned before the Judge of all the world.  This is about the problem of guilt not just because it causes unpleasant feelings, but it’s about the problem of guilt because we are summoned into God’s presence.

Look at the last six words of verse 1 – we’re talking about “those who draw near to worship”.  And in v22 he tells us the outcome of all this teaching: “[therefore]... let us draw near to God.”

Drawing near to God is mentioned 7 times in Hebrews.  And at the same time, chapter 10 verse 31:

It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

Draw near – but if you happen to be His enemy it’s a dreadful thing.  Draw near – but, chapter 12 verse 29 – our God is a consuming fire.  Draw near – but He is a furnace of goodness, beauty, truth and holiness.  But draw near.

The kind of guilt we’re talking about in Hebrews 10 is the knowledge that when we’re summoned into the presence of the consuming Fire, we’re not up to it.

...continue reading "True Guilt, True Cleansing – Hebrews 10:1-18"

Published on Leave a comment on Sending our representative to the seat of power

A Tale of Two Thursdays

On Thursday we sent our representative to the seat of power.  Eastbourne chose Stephen Lloyd to send him to Westminster.  He will now represent us in matters relating to parliament.   Whether you personally voted for him or not, he is our representative, he represents the whole constituency.  And we have sent him to the seat of power to appear for us before parliament.

That’s what happened last Thursday.  This coming Thursday we celebrate something that dwarfs the general election into relative insignificance.  This coming Thursday is Ascension Day.  You see after Good Friday where Christ made the one sacrifice for sins on the cross, He rose again on Easter Sunday and then appeared to hundreds of His followers over a period of 40 days.  Then, 40 days after He rose, it was Ascension Day – the day Christ ascended from among us as the King of Glory and went to the true seat of power.  He ascended to the right hand of God the Father – the throne of the universe.  And Jesus Christ – our Flesh and Bone Brother – sat down to rule heaven and earth as our representative.  We have sent our man to the seat of power to rule on our behalf.

At Christmas we sing the line “Pleased as Man with man to dwell.”  On Ascension Day we can sing “Pleased as Man for man to rule.”  He hasn’t just descended to us to become one of us.  He has ascended from us to reign for us.

Look at verse 24:

24 For Christ did not enter a man-made sanctuary that was only a copy of the true one; He entered heaven itself, now to appear for us in God's presence.

Jesus Christ sits on the seat of power and He appears in Heaven FOR US.  Pleased as Man for man to rule.  He rules on our behalf.  And this is so much better than anything a politician could offer us.

But maybe the first question we want to ask about our representatives is this: Are you qualified to rule?  Do you know how to use power?

QUALIFIED

Our conservative MP kept telling us about his track record in parliament, he knew his way around the halls of power, you could trust him. The Liberal Democrat MP pointed to his years of successful business – he knew how to lead.  And we want that for our representatives.

Well chapter 1 of Hebrews began by telling us Christ’s qualifications.  When Christ ascended to heaven 2000 years ago He was not a new kid on the block.  No Hebrews 1:2 says He is:

heir of all things, and through Whom God made the universe. 3 The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of His being, sustaining all things by His powerful word.

Jesus is qualified to sit on the throne.  It’s where He has always belonged.

But you know, we can get turned off a politician if we think they’re just big and powerful.  We also want to know that they are one of us.

ONE OF US

During the election campaign the various candidates kept trying to tell us how Eastbournian they really were.  “Born and bred in Eastbourne” is a line that goes down well with voters.  The candidates want to be able to say: “I know all your issues, I suffer all the same trials as you do, I’m one of you.”  That’s what wins votes.  That’s what’ll get you political power.

But what about heavenly power?  Can we really believe that the One who sits on heaven’s throne is ONE OF US?  Well Ascension Day says Yes.  The book of Hebrews says Yes.  Jesus Christ, was born and bred in our constituency.  That’s what Hebrews chapter 2 was all about.  Look at Hebrews 2 and v14: “Since we have flesh and blood, He too shared in our humanity.” (v14).

Or verse 17: “He was made like His brothers in every way in order that He might become a merciful and faithful High Priest in service to God [representing us to God].”

Born and bred in our constituency.  Suffering all the same troubles that we face.  Verse 18 says “He Himself suffered when He was tempted and He’s able to help us when we’re tempted.”  The Ruler of the Universe has gone through all the trials we go through.  The One on the throne is one of us!

FOUGHT OUR BATTLES

And He’s fought all the same battles that we fight.  In the election, everyone wanted to claim that they’d saved the DGH.  You might have thought that they’d thrown themselves in front of bulldozers to save the maternity ward.  Because it was a battle that affected us all, and all the candidates wanted to be able to say, “I fought the powers that be and I won through for Eastbourne.”  That’s going to win votes.

Well Jesus Christ fought the ultimate powers that affect us.  In chapter 2 we read halfway through v14:

By His death He destroyed him who holds the power of death--that is, the devil-- 15 and freed those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death.

Jesus went to the cross.  And there He fought against the powers that be – sin and death and the devil.  And He alone defeated them.  He’s not just qualified, He’s not just one of us, He’s fought our battles and won!

But more than that, He’s sympathetic to our suffering.

SYMPATHETIC TO OUR SUFFERING

When a politician says “I, like you, have suffered through the recession and I know what it’s like to struggle to make ends meet” that’s a vote-winner.  We don’t believe them, but it’s a vote winner.  And if they’ve made good through adversity we reckon that this breeds character.  And it makes them more approachable if they can sympathise with our suffering.

What about Jesus?  Heb 4:15

15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathise with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are--yet was without sin. 16 Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

Chapter 5 speaks more about Christ’s sufferings for us.  The One on the throne sympathizes with our suffering.  He was Himself THE Great Sufferer.  So we can go to Him.

But there’s something else I want from my representative.  I want them to be above reproach...

ABOVE REPROACH

The expenses scandal has damaged a lot of politicians from all the parties.  And I’m sure it damaged the former MP who held office here.  We want our representatives to be completely above board, to be pure and blameless.  We have a great fear that power corrupts.  And we hate to think that our politicians are corrupt.

But do we ever wonder whether heaven is corrupt?  Whether heaven rules righteously?  When things go wrong in life we’re very tempted to question whether the universe is being run fairly and above reproach.  Can we be certain that the One who sits on the throne is not just a self-interested, power-hungry bully?  Can we be sure of that?

Well yes we can.  Because of Ascension Day, we know that the One in absolute control is absolutely pure.  The One up there has been down here and He’s been completely transparent with us.  Think of the Gospels.  Even Christ’s greatest enemies couldn’t make their smear campaigns stick.  And the One thing He’s shown that He does with His power is He gives it away to protect and serve the weak.  That’s the One who sits on the throne.  He is above reproach.  Look at chapter 7 verse 26:

26 Such a high priest meets our need--one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens.

Jesus Christ the Son of God is qualified to rule, He’s one of us, He’s fought our battles, He sympathizes with our suffering and He’s completely above reproach.  That’s what we want in our representatives in Westminster and we probably won’t get it, let’s be honest.  But this IS what we already HAVE in heaven.  We have a Great High Priest who represents us right now as He occupies the true seat of power.

Don’t put your trust in politicians or in politics or in parties or in electoral reform.  You can pray for all of that, you’re commanded to pray for all of that, but you’re commanded to pray for all that because that’s not where the real power is.  Your real representative occupies the true seat of power.

Audio of sermon

For more text continue reading...

...continue reading "Sending our representative to the seat of power"

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