Let's take our Bibles and turn
with me to the book of Hebrews, chapter 13. Lord willing, this will be the
next to the last message out of this particular time of going
through Hebrews. I'd like to look at one verse
of Scripture, verse 22, Hebrews 13, 22. The writer to the Hebrews says,
And I beseech you, brethren, suffer the word of exhortation,
for I have written a letter unto you in a few words. Let's pray together. Our Father, this evening I pray,
would you bless the word to our hearts. Lord, would you bless
the preaching of your gospel. I pray, Lord, that we might hear
and behold Christ, for it's in His name we pray. Amen. We were talking a few moments
ago in the study. Brother Neil brought something
up that I thought was very good. It's not recorded who wrote,
the book of Hebrews, I personally think it was the Apostle Paul,
based on Peter saying, telling the Jews one time, he said, talking
about the letter that Paul had written to the Jews, and this
was the only letter that is recorded in Scripture written to the Jews. I personally think, but also
that Paul was a Hebrew He was a pharisee. He was a pharisee
of pharisees, and knew, he knew where these Hebrews were coming
from. And so he tells these Hebrews,
and this is the, I want to look at this verse right here, but
this phrase right here, of exhortation. What Paul is
saying to these Hebrews is this. Believe the word that has been
preached to you and persevere. Suffer the word of exhortation. Persevere amidst all of the temptations
which exist. for you to apostatize. Resist it. These Hebrews were converted. These are believers. And they
were converted out of the shadows of the law. Out of the types
of the law. And we've got to remember, now
these Hebrews, they came up under the law that was given by God. This law was not something that
just was made. They had been given the law 1,500
years before. But that law that was given by
the Lord was never intended to give life. Never. Look at Romans
3.20. The law was not given for life. Romans 3.20 says this, Therefore
by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in
his sight. What was the purpose of the law?
If you want to know what the purpose of the law is, here it
is, right here. For by the law is the knowledge
of sin. Why was the law given? Almighty
God gave the law to show His people their need of Christ. There's nothing wrong with the
law. We've said that before. The law is holy and just and
good. It's God's Word. It's the expression
of God's character. But a man can't keep it. It's
impossible. Well now, having been converted
and called out called out of that synagogue, called out from
under that law, under those shadows and types. These Hebrews were
now persecuted and now excluded. You've left, you're excluded
from the synagogue. That's a sentence of death as
far as the Jews are concerned. You left the synagogue. These Hebrews, had been called
out of darkness and they needed some encouragement. So here the
Spirit of God through the writer to Hebrews, I believe Paul sends
this word to these Hebrews and by that word gives them what
they desperately need. Some assurance and some comfort. Paul begins and he says, I beseech
you, brethren. Here was the Apostle Paul. He
said, I'm writing this to console you. I'm speaking to you as a brother.
Bear, endure the word of comfort concerning the Lord that you've
trusted. If I were to pick out one word,
one word, you know what I'm about to say. One word that would sum
up what Paul had been saying in the whole book of Hebrews.
Better. Better. He set forth to these
Hebrews concerning the Lord Jesus Christ that they had trusted.
He's better. Better than the angels. He made
them. He's brought in a better hope. Here's the hope that the law
gave you. You obey and have life. He brought in a better hope.
He's obeyed and you have life in Him. He brought in a better
hope and he's the surety of a better testament. That testament, this
is the New Testament. My blood, what he was saying
is, here's the payment. Here's the payment. He brought
in a better testament. What they had was the blood of
bulls and goats. He brought in a better testament.
He shed his own blood. And the Father said, when I see
the blood, the blood of Christ, the blood of His Son, I'll pass
over you. He's the mediator of a better
covenant. You're under law. That's what you've come out of.
Grace. God's grace. Unmerited favor. Grace. So he's the mediator of
a better covenant which was established upon better promises. That was temporary. It lasted
1,500 years, but it ended. Our priest ever liveth to make
intercession. So Paul says, I'm beseeching
you, brethren. Suffer the word of exhortation,
for I have written a letter unto you in a few words." Now this
was one of the longer of the letters that Paul had written,
but the meaning of what he had said was this, in comparison
to the importance of what I've written to you, in comparison
to the difficulty of the subjects that I've dealt with, and what
you were raised under, and what you've been taught. Comparatively
speaking, I've just used a few words. Remember, these are converted
Jews called out of darkness, called out of that so-called
salvation by works. And now they're suffering, they're
being pressured. pressured by their unbelieving
friends and family. What? Go back. Go back. Back to the law. Back to the
rituals. Back to yourself. Back to the darkness. And they
needed some comfort. They needed some consoling. They
needed some encouragement, just like us. I wouldn't do anything in the
world to embarrass my mother, but I'm going to use my mom as
a Example, when my mother came out of Roman Catholicism, all of her family, all of them,
all of them, Catholic, Catholics, been Catholics all their life,
and my grandmother that I remember that she'd come over to our house
and I can remember my grandmother and she'd say her prayers and
she'd pray the rosary, and I remember we always, you know, mom always
told us, you know, you kids got to be quiet, you know, grandma's
praying and stuff, and she'd pray the rosary. And when my
mother left the Roman Catholic Church, my grandma went to her
grave grieving, believing that my mom had no hope. that she had left the only hope
of salvation. Mark, you know what I'm talking
about. She had left. She was now excommunicated. You've apostatized. And these
Hebrews had come out. They'd come out from under the
law, under those rituals and rules. And when they came out,
that was conviction. To those that stayed, they trusted
Christ. And I know this, the Lord keeps
His own. I know that. That's an absolute
fact. But they were still in this body
of death. And the flesh, that old man. Believers believe God. But they're not presumptuous.
They're diligent to make their calling and election sure. They
make much of the means of God's grace. There's not a believer
in this room tonight that doubts for one second that Almighty
God is going to keep him until the day of Jesus Christ. You don't doubt that one second.
You know whom you've believed. And you're persuaded that He's
able to keep that which you've committed unto Him against that
day. But I'll tell you this, you will make much of the means
of God's grace. You'll be where God's Word is
preached. You will. You will pray. I want to say it was Richard
Baxter. If I'm wrong, correct me later. It's okay. One of the old, old-time
writers. He said, sooner would a natural
man not breathe than a spiritual man not pray. A believer will
cry unto the Lord. He'll find that secret place. He'll find that closet, wherever
it is. by himself somewhere, and he's
going to call on the Lord. And he'll search the Scriptures.
There's not a believer that does not make much of the Scriptures. Reading the Scriptures, praying,
crying unto the Lord, hearing the gospel preached, and believing
all the while as he's striving to enter in at the straight gate.
I know whom I have believed. My Lord shall keep me." These
Hebrews were just like us. They were sinners saved by the
grace of God and they needed some comfort. You come here,
you know what you want tonight. Tell me one more time how the
Lord's put away my guilt. Tell me one more time, because
of the struggles of this old flesh, Paul says, suffer the
word of exhortation. Strive against the temptation
to apostatize. They needed, first of all, to
hear that what the Lord Jesus Christ had done, Turn with me
to Hebrews 1. I'm going to just show you a
few Scriptures here. When Paul says, suffer the word of exhortation,
we've gone through a whole book, 13 chapters. And I've just picked out a few
verses out of this where he was teaching them to believe the
comfort that you've been taught by the Spirit of God. They needed
to hear what the Lord Jesus Christ had done. in the redemption of
his people. He did as God's servant, God's
prophet, God's spokesman, and he finished the work of redemption. They needed to hear that. That
it was finished. Why? 1,500 years they've been
doing the same thing, Carl. Hebrews 1.1, God, who at sundry
times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers
by the prophets, hath in these last days spoken unto us by His
Son, whom He hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also He
made the worlds, who being the brightness of His glory, and
the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the
word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat
down on the right hand of the majesty on high." Paul was telling
these Hebrews, suffer the word of exhortation. Hear. Bear with. Believe it. Believe the word
of comfort. that's been preached to you.
I know the temptations you have to leave. I know the pressure
that people put under you. I know that the flesh will tell
you, it would be easier just go back, just give in. It'd be easier if you just didn't
say anything. Paul says, don't bow to that
temptation. Consider the dignity of His person. He's the brightness of God's
glory. The express image of His person,
it means you take something, you press something into clay
or something, you take it out, and there's the very image of
the mold here. There it is, right there. There
it is. He is the express image of His person. Our Lord said, you see me, you've
seen the Father. I can't understand the depth
of that. Three persons set forth one God. He said, you see me,
at His baptism, He was baptized, the Spirit of God descended,
and the Father spoke. One God. And the dignity of His power
Paul told him he's upholding all things by the word of his
power. He upholds what he made. And
the apostle told him when he had by himself purged our sins. I know this. I know that and
I believe that when he had by himself put away. And I, by the grace of God, I'm
convinced that God's taught me that It's not by works of righteousness
that I've done. I know the Lord's taught me that.
I know that I am not maintained daily by anything that I do. I know that faith cometh by hearing. I know. But I need to be told
that again. Tell me again. They needed to
hear it and I need to hear it. Tell me one more time how He
by Himself, where does that leave me? Where does that leave you? When
He had by Himself purged our sins, when He had given Himself,
Isaac said to Abraham, Father, here's the fire. Here's the wood. Where's the lamb? My son God
will provide himself a lamb. When he had by himself the provision
of God for his people, purged our sins, he sat down. He sat down. It was finished. It was over. And those Hebrews needed to hear
that, and again, we do too. He sat down on the right hand
of the Majesty on high. Having accomplished redemption
for his sheep through the shedding of his own blood, And after he
had laid down his life, buried, raised, he ascended into heaven
as the forerunner of his sheep to rightfully claim as the obedient
servant of God, the man, Christ Jesus. The man, Christ Jesus. God, fully God, fully man. The man, Christ Jesus, was taken up into heaven, received
into heaven, and Almighty God said to His beloved Son, who
is right now in the very nature in which those apostles saw Him,
everybody else did, in flesh, is seated on the right hand of
power and dignity. They needed to hear that. Paul
told them, justice has been satisfied. The debt is paid. When he had
by himself purged our sins, they're gone, they're gone. I beseech you, brethren, suffer
the word of exhortation. Endure with this word of comfort.
Christ has by himself purge the sins of his people. He told them
secondly, that what he did, he did one time. Now Paul is going to tell them
about the oneness. of the sacrifice of the Lord
Jesus Christ, because I hinted at it a while ago, because of
the continual sacrifices that they and their fathers had witnessed
and trusted in. Look at Hebrews 10. Hebrews 10,
1-7. Again, listen, now you think
about this. Here they are. They're sinners
saved by the grace of God. Think about what their flesh
tells them. Think about what their families tell them. Think
about what Satan insinuates to them. Hebrews 10, Paul is telling them,
he said, listen now, I'm telling you, you hear this word of comfort,
in the midst of the temptation to apostatize, you listen to
me. The Lord Jesus Christ, the fulfillment
of all the shadows and types, He came as God's servant, and
He purged our sins, and He did it with one sacrifice. 1,500 years, as I said, they'd
been watching the blood of bulls and goats sacrificed day after
day. I mean, you go back and read
of those sacrifices. They killed thousands and thousands
and thousands. I mean, it was unbelievable.
how much blood was shed. What he told them is this, I'm
telling you this for your comfort, it's over. He suffered one time,
Hebrews 10, 1-7, for the law, having a shadow of good things
to come. And not the very image of the
things can never, with those sacrifices which they offered
year by year, continually make the comers thereunto perfect.
For then would they not have ceased to be offered? If the
blood of bulls and goats put away sin, why keep offering them? Because that the worshippers
once purged should have had no more conscience of sins. If the
blood of bulls and goats put it away, then it would have been
over. Why do it? Once it had been purged. But
in those sacrifices, Because it was over and over and over
again, there is a remembrance again made of sins every year. Because they kept doing it and
kept doing it and kept doing it. It's telling you, this is
not putting away sin. For it's not possible that the
blood of bulls and goats should take away sins. Wherefore, when
He cometh into the world, He saith, Sacrifice and offering
thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me. In burnt
offerings and sacrifices for sins thou hast had no pleasure. Then said I, Lo, I come. In the volume of the book, it's
written of me. Do thy will, O God." Now here
was a word of comfort and promise. He has come and He has put away
the sins of His people. When I came up, not only was
I Roman Catholic for a while, and I got into another false
religion. And as I said before, it's just
one out of the frying pan into the fire. It's just six of one
half dozen of the other. It's just whatever. And you know,
if you got saved, you walked down the aisle and you prayed
the sinner's prayer and you know, repeat after me and everything.
But then there'd be times and you'd just, you'd kind of slip
away. And what we'd have is, I'd have to come down and go
down for rededication. I'd have to kind of re-up. You
know, that's the only way I know how to say it, you know. In the
military, you just re-up. But if things are not going well
for you and you haven't been what you ought to be, you come
down for rededication. Get your life right again with
God. It was like shedding the blood
over and over and over and it never put away sins. I was still looking right here. It was me. I was not looking
to Him. It was my profession of faith
and my rededication and my this and my that. It is not possible
that these rituals, the blood of bulls and goats, should take
away sin. But this man, Paul told, One sacrifice for sin, and he's
put away the guilt of his people. And thirdly, Paul told them what
he did. He did as the Savior and the
substitute for all of his people. Hebrews, I'll read this to you,
Hebrews 2.9, but we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than
the angels, for the suffering of death, crowned with glory
and honor, that He," now listen to these next few words, "...by
the grace of God." By the grace of God. That He,
by the grace of God. Not God looking to me to satisfy
God. God satisfied Himself. And that is a great comfort to
me. God Almighty satisfied Himself. As Brother Scott used to say,
the Lord God had to do something for Himself before He'd do anything
for us. And that's right. God Almighty
had to be just to justify a sinner. And he did
it in the Lord Jesus Christ. Paul told him what he did. He
did as the Savior and substitute for his people. But we see Jesus
who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering
of death, crowned with glory and honor. Not me. I'm not crowned with glory and
honor for my works. My works are filthy racks, but
by the grace of God, He, by the grace of God, should taste death
for every man." What, what, what? Taste death for every man without
exception? Well, you know it can't mean
that. Not if the Lord Jesus Christ said, I lay down my life for
the sheep. Then told the Pharisees, He said,
you don't believe me because you're not my sheep. I mean,
that was very distinguishing. That's in John 10. You can read
that. That's in John 10. He told those Pharisees. He said,
you're not my sheep. He said, my sheep hear my voice.
I know them. And they follow me. I lay down my life for the sheep.
That's what Paul told them. He tasted death. He endured it
personally for every man, meaning, all the heirs of salvation. That's Hebrews 1.14. Jew and Gentile. That's what
he was telling these Gentiles. See, they came out of the Jewish
economy of religion. He said, there's no salvation
for a Gentile. And Paul told them he died for
his people. He died for every man, every
type of man. You know, you're going to have
to, you can't take one scripture and just pull it out and just
say, see there? He died, when the Lord said, I laid down my
life for the sheep. I died for those that you've
given me. Your will is that all that the Father has given me,
I should lose none. You have to take everything He
said to qualify that statement right there. He died for everyone
that the Father had given Him. And then lastly, He told these
Hebrews what He did. He did it. Perfectly. Did it
one time, he did it perfectly. Back in closing in Hebrews 10
verses 11 to 14. He did it perfectly. This is
so beautiful. Listen to these beautiful words.
Hebrews 10, 11 to 14. And every priest standeth daily,
ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices which can
never take away sins. Now just think about what he
just said. Consider their position, their posture. Every priest standeth
daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices
which can never, never, never, take away sins. But this man,
after he had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down on the right hand of God, from
henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool,
for by one offering He hath perfected forever them that are sanctified. Paul says to those Hebrews that
needed some comfort, suffer. Believe this word of exhortation,
this word of comfort. God Almighty, the Lord Jesus
Christ, the one in whom you trust, I know the pressure you're under.
I know that Paul was a Hebrew. He knew. He knew. You know, we grow in grace. But you know,
growing in grace, and it is through the knowledge of our Lord and
Savior, but you don't know anything if you haven't experienced it.
You don't know anything. You don't know. You don't know. I told you a while ago, and Gabe
called me a while ago, the other day, Gary, and he told me what
he did, and when I heard the word, lymphoma, but you know what, I told him,
I said, Gabe, the Lord's grace is sufficient. I knew, I knew what it felt like. Paul knew what it felt like.
He knew the pressure. He knew the trials and tribulations
that these believers were going through. And he talked to them
as a brother. I want to do that. I want to
be faithful and come for God's people. Lord bless these words
to our heart for Christ's sake.