Turn with me in your Bibles to
Hebrews chapter 12. This morning I have hope for
needy sinners. For needy sinners. And it's found
in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ. Perfect. Lamb of God,
the substitute surety of his people. He gives us hope and
his finished work. Hope is finished work. Why? Well, very simply put, it takes
us out of the equation. All of the religions put us in
the middle or at the beginning or at the end of salvation. Doesn't
matter the religion. But true religion This gospel
puts Christ at the center and as the alpha and the omega. And you and I are the benefactors
if we're his people. That's good news if you're a
needy sinner. First hour we heard that there
is now and only have ever been or ever will be two covenants,
the covenant of grace and the covenant of works. As it's described
here in chapter 12 of Hebrews, it is two mountains. We know
that it is Mount Sinai, the mountain that can be touched, but it's
death to touch it. And it's Mount Zion, the finished
work of Christ on the cross, the city built by his own hands
that points to him. That's the two mountains. Mount
Sinai representing the law, representing judgment, representing works,
and Zion representing free grace. We shouldn't even have to say
free grace because grace is just grace, isn't it? But we use that
term free grace now because it's been so diluted down that you
say grace and nobody knows what it even means. So we use the
term sovereign grace. Well, you don't even need to
use sovereign grace. If it's God's grace, it's sovereign. And if it's God's
grace, it's free. It's grace. That's the hope for
needy sinners is grace. I'll remind you. that he's speaking
metaphorically of these places. They are real places. One is
spiritual, one is physical. But the reason he's speaking
metaphorically is because his audience is the Hebrews. It's
the Jews. They would have known of the
Torah. They would have known of the first five books of the Bible.
They would have taught their children all the things, history.
They're very religious people. They believe they were God's
chosen people unto eternal life. They didn't know that they were
just God's chosen people into the Messiah, the physical entity
that would bring forth the Messiah into the world, and not the chosen
people into salvation necessarily. Somewhere, somewhere scripture's
clear on that. Every nation, every tribe, every
kindred, every tongue will be represented that day, but the
Jews had a tendency of being very racist because of that.
The reason he's bringing this up to them is to say, We're not
come to that mountain, Mount Sinai. We're not coming to that
mountain. We've come to Mount Zion now.
So he's hitting the nail on the head where it is. He's meeting
the issue, the forefront. He's not beating around the bush.
And so many times, I fear that men do beat around the bush.
And Lord, help us to never do that. Let's speak the truth in
love. Somebody said, well, you better
be bold. Well, boldness is confidence in the Lord. It's not derogatory
speaking, and it's not aggressive preaching and it's not loud and
boisterous condescension. That's not boldness. That's called
arrogance. Boldness is being completely
confident in the Lord. And that's what I hope we are
this morning. And the Lord enables me to be as I deliver this to
you. He's using the description to again, reveal the old and
the new covenant. And this again is given to show us whatever
covenant you approach God with pleading. Whatever mountain you
approach, that's where God will meet you. That's where God will
meet you. If you want to approach Mount
Sinai to try to establish your own righteousness, that's where
God will meet you. But I promise you on the authority
of the word of God and what he says here, even in this chapter,
it is certain death to do it that way. Certain death. So how
can we approach Sinai? Well, thank God. We are unable,
but he is able to cause us to do so. We are incapable, but
he was capable of giving us the ability because he is the way. He is the truth. He is the life. Therefore we live in him, move
in him and have our being. Our hope is that the Lord would
cause us to see him in fleet to Mount Zion this morning. Let's
read our text, Hebrews chapter 12, verse 18 through 24. For ye are not come unto the
mouth that might be touched and that burned with fire, nor into
blackness and darkness and tempest. And the sound of the trumpet
and the voice of words, which voice they that heard entreated
that the word should not be spoken to them anymore, for they could
not endure that which has commanded. And if so much as a beast touched
the mountain, it shall be stoned or thrust through with a dart. And so terrible was the sight
that Moses said, I exceedingly fear and quake for ye are come
unto Mount Zion and into the city of the living God. the heavenly
Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels, to the general
assembly of the church of the firstborn, which are written
in heaven, and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirits of
just men made perfect, and to Jesus, the mediator of the new
covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling that speaketh better
things than that of Abel. Notice he says ye, and I say
this the first hour too, but I wanna point this out again.
He says, ye are not come. He's speaking to a specific audience.
He's speaking to a specific audience. So when the Lord speaks, he does
not speak generally. He speaks directly. And this
particular time is no different. He's speaking directly to his
people. You are not come to Mount Zion,
but you're not come to Mount Sinai, but you are come to Mount
Zion, to the city of the living God. to Christ, the mediator
of the new covenant, the blood of sprinkling. That's who we're
come to. We're not come to Sinai. After the first hour, we know
full well that there's those who approach Mount Sinai daily
seeking their own righteousness, not even meaning to necessarily.
Maybe it's a learned behavior. Maybe you call it human nature
if you want. I believe that's probably accurate. But men tried
to get to God their own way. And the Tower of Babel's a fantastic
example of that. What was their intention? To
get to God. Let us build a tower to God. They wanted to get to God. Did
it work? No. No. Lord confused their language,
didn't he? And that's a picture of All different types of religion. None of them will get you to
God, except for true religion. True religion is the Lord Jesus
Christ and his finished work. That's true religion. Now the
Tower of Babel was a failure because you can't get to God
with these hands. But the Lord Jesus Christ did
for His people. He sure did. We can't please
God with these hands. We can't please God with these
eyes. We can't please God with this tongue or these ears. But
the Lord Jesus Christ can, and He did. And now He gives faith
unto His people to look to Christ so that when we do move and we
do speak and we do, He sees the blood. He sees the blood. And He says, perfectly righteous,
never sinned one time. That's the good news of Mount
Zion. Well, there's only one who is
righteous, and it's the Lord Jesus Christ. Irregardless of
our pedigree, our knowledge, our intellect, irregardless of
our law keeping, no man comes to the Father but by me, the
Lord Jesus Christ said. No man come to the Father but
by me. That mean he has to be the doer
of it. He has to initiate us to be able to come to him. How
do you get to Zion? You have to go to Christ. How
do you get to God? You must go to Christ. How do
you get to Christ? Well, the command is, come unto
me. How can a lame man walk? How can a blind man see? How
can a deaf man hear? Except the Lord be the one that
heals, gives life and sight and hearing. That's why the scripture
says in Revelation, he that hath ears to hear, let him hear. If
you have ears to hear, let him hear. The Lord's the one that
is the doer of that, isn't he? No, we don't come by Mount Sinai
to the Lord, but Mount Zion, not the covenant of works, but
of grace. That's what Paul's iterating in Philippians chapter
three, if you'd like to turn there with me. Philippians chapter three. Look at Philippians three, verse
three. For we are the circumcision which
worship God in the spirit and rejoice in Christ Jesus and have
no confidence in the flesh. Can you relate to that? This
is not the circumcision of the flesh. This is the circumcision
of the heart. This is the work of the Lord. That's what I'm
describing. The one that gave eyes and ears, just as I mentioned,
the one that spoke life into his people. This is the circumcision
of the heart. We have no confidence in the
flesh. Verse four, though I might have
might now, this is what's about to happen. Paul is about to give
us his pedigree. And that was the point. I said,
it doesn't matter about our pedigree. It doesn't matter where you come
from. It doesn't matter your bloodline. It doesn't matter your heritage or your
intellect, your knowledge, any of that. And he's given us example
here. Verse four, though I might also have confidence in my flesh,
if any other man thinketh that he hath whereof, he might trust
in the flesh I more. Circumcised the eighth day of
the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews,
as touching the law, a Pharisee. Concerning zeal, persecuting
the church. Touching righteousness, which is in the law, blameless.
But what things were gained to me, those I counted loss for
Christ. Yea, doubtless, and I count all
things but loss for the excellency. of the knowledge of Christ Jesus,
my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things and do
count them but dung, but dung, that I may win Christ and be
found in him, not having my own righteousness, which is of the
law, not Mount Sinai, but that which is through the faith of
Christ, the righteousness of God, the righteousness which
is of God by faith, that I may know him and the power of his
resurrection, the fellowship of his sufferings being made
conformable unto his death, if by any means I might attain unto
the resurrection of the dead. There is no righteousness and
law keeping by us. This is something that is shouldn't
even be controversial. The Lord's very clear. We have
no confidence in the flesh because that which is wrought in the
flesh cannot please God. So what makes us think that we
can have a righteousness by doing? All that we're doing is running
to certain death. All that we're doing is going
back to Sinai. Paul says, if you, you're confident
in your flesh, you're confident in what you've done, you're confident
in who you are. As far as That goes, I more so was confident
than you ever could be. He says, I was of the house of
Benjamin. I was circumcised the eighth day. I was a Hebrew of
Hebrews. I was a Pharisee as touching the law, blameless.
If you would look at my life, you would say that man right
there is keeping the law. But he said, I've counted it all
but loss. Why? Because it didn't do me any good. God's not looking
upon the outward things that I do. That's just me going to
Sinai. That's just the Lord showing me now, you're gonna die in your
sin. You haven't erased one sin. And
as a matter of fact, everything that you've tried to do, Paul,
to fix it, to be good, to be the Pharisee that you've been,
to learn everything that you've done, it's called iniquity. And God
hates the workers of iniquity. That's what he said. Hates the
workers of iniquity. So what are we to do? Don't flee
to Sinai. Don't go to Sinai. Flee to Christ. Flee to Christ. Righteousness
is not earned by going to Sinai. It's bestowed by grace alone.
Because he, the Lord Jesus Christ, is righteous. Thank God that he kept the law
that we couldn't keep. Thank the Lord that he fulfilled
every jot and tittle of God's demands for his people. Everything
that God required, he provided in the person of the Lord Jesus
Christ. Did you know he's not requiring one thing from you
or one thing from me? Because if he did, he's God,
he knows we couldn't perform it. We couldn't perform, we couldn't
do it. Name something. We couldn't do
it. We might give it our best effort, but we couldn't do it. But the Lord Jesus Christ did
it all in order to prepare us a place in Him and with Him for
eternity. In order to give us life, eternal
life and liberty in Him. In order to give us peace with
God. In order to finish the work the Father gave Him so that you
and I could have a place called Mount Zion. All they had in the
Old Testament was Sinai. That's all they had. That's it. They were not saved going to
Sinai, they were saved looking to the cross, but that's the
only covenant that they, they were, the taste not, touch not,
handle not, that's what they kept doing to try to worship
the Lord. And I think it's amazing that some of them, the Old Testament,
patriarchs and matriarchs, they were given the same faith you
and I are given to see that lamb upon that altar and realize that's
going to be their substitute one day. Not that lamb, but the
lamb of God. That's how they were saved is
looking to Zion even then. That's the whole point. They
weren't looking back to Sinai saying, okay, I'm saved because
I've done this and this and this and this. No, their worship was
the same as our worship. We're looking to the lamb. We're
looking to the lamb. Some of them didn't understand
that just as we'll have people, many churches will have gatherings
and they'll talk about the same Jesus. They won't understand
that unless the Lord shines the light into their heart. But for
those that he does, we understand, look to the lamb, that lamb is
Christ. That's the only place of salvation
ever, ever. We don't go to Sinai, we don't
run to the law. The scripture actually says,
for what the law could not do, and that it was weak through
the flesh. The law was not corrupt, the law was not broken. You and
I were broken. You and I are corrupt. I say
we're because the Lord saved us, that fixed it. I'm saying
that without him, we're still corrupt and broken. And in his
flesh, we're still corrupt for that matter. Our sin is ever
before us, but thank God he put them away. We see it, don't we?
But he put them away. What the law could not do in
that it was weak through the flesh, meaning the law could not, we
could not do that which pleased God through the law because our
flesh is weak. Remember Paul said the spirit indeed is willing
but the flesh is weak? That's exactly what he's talking,
that's exactly what he's talking about. You and I could not do
in order to please God. So Christ is the end of the law
because of righteousness. because of righteousness. In
one complete perfect act, he hath perfected them forever that
are sanctified. I love that verse. He perfected
forever them that are. Not gonna be. You're not gonna
be sanctified, Al. He hath perfected once forever
them that are. Right now, if you sanctified,
you are sanctified. It's not gonna be. Not one day.
He did all that on the cross. You're not gonna be justified.
You've already been justified. So what you do now, doesn't determine
your justification, doesn't determine your sanctification, doesn't
determine your glorification. What you do now is look to Christ
because he is your justification. He is your sanctification. He
is your glorification. That's what Zion represents.
It's the complete finished work of God on Calvary's cross, the
redemption of his people, the salvation of his elect. That's
what it represents. Zion is totally opposite of Sinai. Sinai represents judgment and
death and darkness and separation. And Zion represents peace and
life and joy and well, joy unspeakable and full of glory is what he
said, wasn't it? That's what it represents. Life with God.
Life, oneness, oneness with God. That's why fleeing back to Sinai
is such apostasy. It just discredits our Lord.
Now those that hear this, hear the gospel, they hear the truth.
They hear that the Lord doesn't love everybody and they become
offended. They say, well, we won't have that man reign over us.
Surely there's something I can do to please God. Don't think
that. Perish the thought. No, there's nothing we can do
in the flesh to please God. Not unto salvation is what I'm
saying. Not unto salvation. He's not looking to you and I
as part of our salvation. He's not looking to you and I
after he saves us. He's looking to his son, and
if he ever stops looking to his son, we're in trouble. But he's
always gonna be looking to his son on behalf of his people.
And you know what that means? He's always gonna be satisfied.
He's gonna look at his people, each one of you, he's gonna look
at and say, perfectly righteous. Perfectly holy, never sinned
one time. How can that be? Because we haven't
come to Sinai, we came to Zion. He's placed us in Zion, in Christ
Jesus. Perfectly righteous, never sinned
one time. Well, I know that I committed
this and that this week. What are you talking about? Well,
if you ever see that we are sin, that'll change your perspective
of sinning. You sin because you are a sinner, not to become one.
That's all we can do. Breathing, I'm sinning. I mean,
it's just how it is. My heart's beating, I'm sinning.
It's just, that's what we are. The exhale, everything that you
ever thought about the fact that everything that we get rid of
in our body is toxic. Like the breath that we have,
the waste that we have, everything's just toxic. You know, that's
all we can produce is toxic, isn't it? Oh, we need the Lord
Jesus Christ and his life to be given to us. So that now that
we are in Christ, what we produce in the eyes of God is perfection.
It's holiness. How is that possible? We're in
Christ. It's not me. It's him. He gets all the glory
in it. That's the difference between Zion and Sinai. You go to Sinai to try to accomplish
something. You go to Christ. You go to Sinai to try to accomplish
something. You go to Zion where Christ is
because it's already been accomplished. That's the difference. You go
to Sinai to work, you go to Zion to rest. You go to Sinai to try
to get to God somehow or please God somehow, you go to Zion because
God has been satisfied. That's the difference. That's
your two differences. That's the covenant of works
and the covenant of grace. That simple. If you're doing anything to please
God, you're on Sinai and the Lord won't have it. The Lord
won't have it. If he's given you faith, faith to look to his
darling son, you're in Zion, you're resting in him, his finished
work, there's nothing else to be done. You're not trying to
prove anything. You're not trying to become something.
You're looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of faith.
You're completely trusting, hoping, resting in his finished work
alone, alone. Oh, the Lord had to make that
unfailing covenant. Covenant whereby sinners could
be saved without our contribution whatsoever. He didn't contribute
anything. Did you know that? Somebody said, well, he took our sin.
Yeah, you didn't give them to him. He took them. That's what I said.
We didn't contribute anything. He's God. How could we have contributed? How could I give him my sin?
There's no way. He took them and nailed them to his cross
and put them all away. He drank of the cup, the bitter
dregs of wrath and justice that was due us. Why? Because all
we're gonna do is go to Sinai to try to fix it. He took that
too. The thoughts and intents of our
heart, he took that. He took the wickedness of our
heart. He took everything that we are. And he paid the debt
in full. Sinai is silenced for the Lord's
people. There's no more judgment. There's
no more wrath. There's no more death. All we
hear is now Mount Zion saying, come, take of the water of life
freely. Whosoever will, come ye without
money and without price. It's already been paid for. It's
already been paid for. Somebody said, you don't know
how bad I am. Well, you don't know how good God is. There's nobody
that can be so bad that God can't save them. That's just unbelief.
There's not a sin that I understand blasphemy of the Holy Spirit.
What that is is That's a rejection of the Lord in the gospel. That's a rejection of the gospel.
So of course, that's, you understand what I'm saying. I'm talking
about something you do physically and you think God won't forgive
you for it. Come to Christ. There's grace sufficient. He'll forgive. Matter of fact,
he delights in showing mercy. He delights in showing mercy.
That's why he built Zion, is to do just that. Grace and mercy
for his children. You, as parents, or even grandparents,
some of you, if you had the opportunity to build your children a safe
place, they'd never be injured, they'd never do without, never
need anything, they'd be good. Would you not do that? Of course
you would. No sickness, no pain, no suffering. But they couldn't
help. Because if they helped, they'd
mess it up. You got to do it all. That's what God did. Not
physically. No, he didn't give us a nice
house up on the hill somewhere where we overlook a valley and
see a nice mountain. Now he put us right in the city of God,
where Christ Jesus is the focal point the entire time, and his
light is the light of that city. There's no sun, there's no moon,
there's no stars, he's the light. And guess what? There's no night.
Why is there no night? Because it's one glorious day
forever and ever and ever and ever. Don't flee to Sinai. All you'll find is darkness and
damnation and separation. Don't try to put your hand to
the finished work of Christ. Look to him. Look to Christ and
live. Look to Christ. Flee to Christ.
Flee to Zion where he's at. The beautiful city of God. That's
the city of grace and truth. You won't find it anywhere else.
It's not gonna be anywhere else. That's where God declares his
people clean by the blood of Christ. Romans chapter three verse 21
tells us, but now the righteousness of God without the law as manifested. Don't you love that? What do
you mean? I don't have to keep the law
to have righteousness? Christ kept the law in your place. The
law had to be kept. And the consequence for breaking
the law had to be fulfilled. And that's what he did as our
substitute. Being witnessed by the law and the prophets, Christ
is the end of the law for righteousness sake. What is for righteousness
sake? What is the Lord saying here? Cease, desist. Stop working. Don't go to Sinai. There is no salvation in Sinai. It will not help you. It'll hurt
you. It will kill you. Flee to Christ and live. Flee
to Christ and live. Don't move a muscle. Flee to
Christ. Flee to Christ. How does one
do that? By faith bestowed. Fleeing, looking, coming to him. Oh, it's all the same thing.
It's all the same thing. with Hermameda Romans chapter
three. Then we'll go back to our text. Now this is, this is the most simple illustration
in all of scripture that I have found that explains to us that
there is no justification by the deeds of the law. It literally
says that verbatim. Let's read this. Romans 3 verse
19 and 20 says, now we know that what thing soever the law saith,
it saith to them that are under the law, that every mouth may
be stopped and that all the world may become guilty before God.
You wanna know the reason Sinai exists? That's the reason, that
everyone become guilty before God. God showed everyone you're
guilty. without exception, you're guilty.
Therefore, in light of that, verse 20, by the deeds of the
law, there shall no flesh be justified in his sight, for by
the law is the knowledge of sin. That was the purpose of it. But
here's the good news. But now the righteousness of
God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and
prophets, even the righteousness of God, which is by faith of
Jesus Christ and to all And upon all them that believe, for there
is no difference, for all have sinned and come short of the
glory of God. Now look at those next couple
words, being justified freely by his grace. That's the difference
between Sinai and Zion. Sinai cannot redeem you freely. It's gonna cost you something,
but you can't pay it. Can't pay it. You owe a debt you cannot
pay. Christ Jesus paid the debt he did not owe. He owned our
sin as His own and put them away by His own blood. That's how
a redemption, that's how our redemption was accomplished.
Being justified freely by His grace through the redemption
that is in Christ Jesus, whom God has set forth to be a propitiation
through faith in His blood to declare His righteousness for
the remission of sins that are passed through the forbearance
of God. To declare, I say at this time,
His righteousness, that He might be just and the justifier in
him that believeth. Where's boasting then, he says?
What are you gonna brag about yourself? That's all Sinai does
is it causes you to either be a Pharisee or a rebel. That's
all that it can produce. You put a child underneath the
law and you're gonna get one of two things, a Pharisee or
a rebel, that's it. That's all you'll get. It can't
produce life. It can't help them in any way
in regards to the things of life, eternal life. You'll get a Pharisee
or a rebel. The Lord says, but with this
gospel, God being just and the justifier, where's boasting then?
What are you gonna brag about now? What have you done? What have you received that hasn't
been given to you? What have you accomplished that
hasn't been bestowed upon you? Or he's saying there's nothing.
It's all by grace alone, justified freely by his grace. Not by the
deeds of the law, not by the works of your own righteousness.
The purpose of the law was to show us We cannot be justified by the
deeds of the law. We cannot be justified before
God by our actions. Christ had to do that. Christ
had to justify his people. And now God is just. See, his
attributes can't change in order to save somebody or he's not
God. He had to remain just the entire time. He had to remain
holy the entire time. He had to remain everything that
God is the entire time. And he did that in the person
of the Lord Jesus Christ on the cross of Calvary. And he justified
his people in the process. Don't flee to Sinai. There's
certain death there. Somebody said, well, I'm not
fleeing to Sinai. Well, let me ask you a question. Is there
one thing, and you don't have to answer to me, it's the Lord
we have to answer to. Is there one thing that you are
clinging to As part, one thing that you have done that you are
clinging to as any part of your salvation, because if there is,
you're fleeing to Sinai. One part. Why do you think the
writer said, Lord, search me and know me? See if there be
any wicked thing within me. See if there is something I'm
holding on to. Get rid of it. Lord, save me from myself. Because I'll flee to Sinai if
you let me. And I'll die in my sin. Let's go back to our text in
closing. Verse 18, for ye are not coming
to the mount that might be touched and that burned with fire, nor
into blackness and darkness and tempest. The sound of a trumpet,
the voice of words, which voice they that heard entreated that
the word should not be spoken to them anymore. for they could
not endure that which was commanded. And if so much as a beast touched
the mountain, it shall be stoned and thrust through with a dart.
And so terrible was the sight that Moses said, I exceedingly
fear and quake, but you are come unto Mount Zion and into the
city of the living God and to the heavenly Jerusalem. You know
what that word Salem means? Peace. The new peace that the
Lord made. and to an innumerable company
of angels, and to the general assembly of the church of the
firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God, the judge
of all, to the spirits of just men made perfect, and to Jesus,
the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling
that speaketh better things than that of Abel. The Lord's finished work was
so perfectly completed that we no longer have to fear in trembling
before God for fear of judgment. Christ Jesus endeared that judgment
on the cross. And if you are in him, there
is now therefore no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus.
No, the child of God doesn't have to look to Sinai and see
God's holiness and start trembling in fear and quaking, thinking,
oh no, he's gonna punish me Not if I had a substitute. Not if
I had a surety, the Lord Jesus Christ. Not if I'm looking to
the Lamb as that substitute, that surety, the Lord Jesus Christ.
If I have that, I have nothing to fear. Nothing to fear when
we stand before God. As a matter of fact, the Lord
says, come boldly. And that word boldly we've already
established. Boldly is complete confidence
in what Christ did. We come boldly now to the throne
of grace. To the very presence of God,
he broke down the middle wall of petition. The veil in the
temple was written twain for top to bottom. We enter boldly
to the throne of grace, that we might obtain mercy and find
grace to help us in the time of need. That's what Zion has
to offer. Not do, but it's done. Coming
to me, Christ said. Father beckons us to come, take
of the water of life freely. Sinai is satisfied, Zion is complete. Come and buy without money, without
price. You want wine and honey? You
want bread and water? Come to Christ. Sinai doesn't
have any of that, you know that? There's no bread, there's no
water. There's no milk and honey in Sinai. No, there's just death.
But oh, there's an abundance in Zion. Now there is one thing
you are required to do in Zion, rest. By definition, that's not
working. Rest in the finished work of
Christ. And only those who are enabled to rest in the finished
work of Christ, rest. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.
Those who are made to believe, believe. Trust, those that are
made to trust, trust. And they look through the eyes
of faith that the Lord has given them to their substitute surety
and they rejoice that he completed the work and built them a place
that they could never have, you know, we can never even fathom
what we have waiting on us, really, because we're in the flesh. And
if the Lord let us know about it, it'd probably kill us and
overwhelm us too much. Lord made such a beautiful place for his
people. And the most glorious part about that is people talk
about the streets of gold. I mean, Something that we hold
as a prized possession here is nothing but asphalt compared
to the Lord Jesus Christ, less than asphalt. You know what I'm
saying? Nothing, pavement, who cares? Why? Because he's the
focal point of it all. He's the treasure. He's the desire. I wrote an article in your bulletin
that talks just about that. He's everything. He's everything. Those that hold on to the things
of this life too strongly The cares of the world, the things
of the world, when they die, they lose everything. But oh,
those that have been enabled by the God, who have been elected,
called, been saved and kept by his power, made to set their
affections on things above, made to have their treasure in heavenly
places, as the Lord said, whenever they die, they gain everything. They gain everything. Now in Zion we say, not unto
us, O Lord, but into thy name be all glory and honor and praise
forever. There are but only two mountains,
Sinai and Zion, but only one way to be saved. That's the Lord
Jesus Christ. That's the Lord Jesus Christ.
Thank God the believer's caused to flee to Christ, who is the
mediator and executor of the new covenant. who is the complete
fulfillment of salvation. He is salvation to his people,
complete fulfillment of redemption. By his blood, he perfected everyone,
them that are sanctified. By himself, he purged our sin,
he satisfied the law and judgment and justice, and he has given
his people Mount Zion, come to Christ, rest in him, believe
on him. Let's pray. Father, we thank
you for your word, your truth. Thank you for your grace. Lord,
we pray that you would bless this to our understanding for
your glory. In Christ's name, amen. You'll notice.