Well, come back with me to Hebrews
chapter 2 and verse 17, and I want to look at the passage down to
verse 6 of chapter 3 with you this morning. And I call this
Hold Fast the Confidence of Hope, which is in that verse 6 of chapter
3. Let me remind you what we've
been seeing so far in this wonderful epistle of Hebrews. If you want
the best commentary on the Old Testament scriptures, you can
do no better than look and study the book of Hebrews. This is
so good. And we were thinking in recent weeks about what is
the purpose of God for man? And we saw it from Genesis, from
the creation account in Genesis 1 and into Genesis 2. The purpose
of God for man was that he should have dominion over the creation
of God, over the kingdom of God. The kingdom of God was the created
universe, this universe in which we live, but without sin, in
the Garden of Eden. And the purpose of God for man
was that he would have dominion. It says it quite clearly. He
will have dominion over everything created. Adam was the viceroy,
the vice king of God. He was God's king over that creation. But he was there on probation,
because that creation was put subject to Adam on condition
of perfect obedience. It was, you can rule it, you
can eat whatever you want, but of the tree of the knowledge
of good and evil, which is in the midst of the garden, you
shall not eat, for in the day that you eat thereof, you shall
surely die. That purpose of God for man,
that initial purpose, in the sovereign purposes and sovereign
will of God, by the permissive will of God, Satan, who was one
of the angels that Lucifer created being, was so filled with envy
and hatred of the fact that God would elevate man to such a position,
to reign and rule over all things created, that he, Satan, fomented,
brought about by subtlety and trickery, the fall, whereby Adam
and Eve, by extreme subtlety, Adam wasn't deceived, but Eve
was. Eve was deceived. Adam wasn't deceived. He knew
what he was doing. Adam knew what he was doing. He ate of
that forbidden fruit and cast us all, all of humanity, into
a condition of alienation from the living God. But that purpose
of God has not gone away. That purpose of God for man is
accomplished in the new creation that will come. You read it at
the end of Revelation. I beheld a new Jerusalem, a new
heavens and a new earth coming down from God. That's the new
creation wherein is no sin. That's a new creation by redemption
of the elect multitude of mankind by God in the person of his Son. That new creation is brought
about by the redemption of the elect multitude. That's what
we're told in Hebrews 2, 5 to 10. We read it earlier. Unto
the angels he has not put in subjection the world to come.
He hasn't made that new creation subject to the angels, that one
whereof we speak. but he's put it in subjection,
we saw last week, and I'm not going to run through the argument
again, listen to last week's message again if you want to
get it, but he's put that new creation in subjection to man,
but not all men, to man in union with Christ, his Son. He's put
that new creation in subjection to him. The people of God, the
elect of God, the children of God, the church of God, the redeemed
of God in Christ, will reign with Christ, for they are joint
heirs of all things that Christ is the heir of. God has made
Christ the heir of all things, it says in Hebrews chapter 1
and the first couple of verses. And his people redeemed in him,
elect in him, in union with him from all eternity. That is how
the new creation will be put in subjection to him. It's what
we read as the verses that Peter read to us earlier. It's the
brethren of Christ. He talks about it, he's not ashamed
to call them brethren. this multitude chosen in Christ
before the foundation of the world. He talks about in the
midst of the church, the church, and we know from Ephesians 5,
the church is the body of Christ, of which Christ is the head.
Christ is the head, the church is the body, one union together. Everything that Christ the head
does, the church is counted as having done in him. The Bride
of Christ. It doesn't say that there, but
in other places in the Scriptures we see clearly that this people
is the Bride of Christ. For we're destined to go to an
eternal marriage supper. An eternal marriage supper. Not
one that just happens in a flash and then it's gone and you've
just got photos and memories. No, an eternal marriage supper. The Bride of Christ. The Bride
of Christ. It's throughout the Scriptures.
Read the Song of Solomon. The Bridegroom and His Bride.
It's not everyone, it's not the angels, but as we saw in verse
16 of chapter 2, verily, truly, how did he do it? He took on
him the nature of the people he was to redeem. He didn't take
on him the nature of angels because he wasn't going to redeem angels.
The fallen third of angels remain fallen and condemned for eternity. No, it wasn't the nature of angels
that he would take on, nor was it the seed of Adam that he took
on. Not all men, without exception,
you'll find that error throughout religion. All religion, all that
religion which calls itself Christian, the vast majority, will say that
it was for all the seed of Adam that Christ came to accomplish
redemption. But it's clear, isn't it? It
wasn't for angels, nor was it for the seed of Adam, it was
for the seed of Abraham. How do we know this? Well, it's reinforced. Look at
Ephesians chapter 1 and verse 11. Speaking of Christ, speaking
of the glories of Christ and the election that's in him, and
in verse 11, in whom, in Christ also, we. Who's we? the objects
of God's grace. Whenever you see the we and the
us and the personal pronouns, it's the people
of God speaking. The scriptures are for the people
of God. It's the confirmation of the
salvation that has been accomplished. In whom also we, how do we know
that we're amongst them? We believe, we believe through
sanctification of the spirit and belief of the truth. In whom
also we have obtained an inheritance. We have obtained an inheritance.
Why? Being predestinated. predestinated, according to the
purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel, after
the advice, after the planning of his own will. This is God.
God who has purposed that we have an inheritance. We have
obtained an inheritance being predestinated. If the God of
the universe has predestinated it, if it is His purpose, if
it is His intention, and He is God who cannot change, whose
will can never be thwarted, how can anything stop that from happening?
He works all things after the counsel of His own will. Oh,
dreadful things have happened. Oh, this disaster's happened.
Now God, you listen to religion speaking. God can't have intended
that that earthquake happened, or that hurricane happened, or
that disaster happened. No, God can't have intended that.
Oh, pray, let's pray to him that he might, well, if he wasn't
able to stop it in the first place, what's the point of praying
to him about anything? God is sovereign over everything. Everything that happens is according
to his will. He works all things after the
counsel of his own will, and because of that, because of his
predestinating purpose, we who believe, we who are in that number,
that multitude, chosen in Christ before the foundation of the
world, look, you don't even need to turn over a page. Verse four,
according as he has chosen us in him before the foundation
of the world. In that purpose, we have an inheritance,
an eternal inheritance, and it's for the seed of Abraham. You
know that verse well, Romans 8, 28, that all things work together
for good to those who love God, to those who are called according
to God's purpose. This is the point. God has a
purpose, his purpose for man. Now, what we see when we come
to verse 17 of chapter 2, and this is my first point, having
made an introduction, is a merciful and faithful high priest. That
he might be a merciful and faithful high priest. This is speaking
of our Lord Jesus Christ. Our God whom we know in Christ
alone is a merciful and faithful high priest. The epistle has
so far lifted up God. elevated God, as we always must,
has lifted up God who is manifest to his people in his Son. How do we know him? No man shall
see me and live. No man has seen God at any time,
the only begotten Son who is in the bosom of the Father. He
has declared him. Hebrews has lifted up God who
is manifest in his Son. He's spoken in times past by
the prophets to the fathers, but now, in these last days,
has spoken to us by His Son, whom He has made heir of all
things. It's He who must accomplish His
eternal purpose. If God has a purpose, it cannot
go unfulfilled. The Son of God must accomplish
the eternal purpose of God. Why? Because He is Himself God. He cannot fail. God who is over
all cannot fail. We've seen in chapter one that
he, God manifest in Christ, is better than the angels, more
glorious. The angels, make no mistake,
if an angel appeared to our physical senses in this room, we'd fall
down terrified. The shepherds, when Jesus was
born in Bethlehem, the shepherds didn't fall down in terror because
they were simple, ignorant hillside shepherds. No, the sight they
saw terrified them. Our Lord Jesus Christ is so much
better than the angels. In him dwells the fullness of
the, in that baby, you know, a couple of hymns speak of God
contracted, the infinite God, what can contain God? Solomon
said, my temple cannot contain God. What can possibly contain?
This universe cannot contain God. The infinite God contracted
to a span. contracted to the span of a little
baby, a little helpless baby. Is that not amazing? And yet
we read that in that body, that body of that man that had no
comeliness that we should desire him, when he walked this earth
with his disciples, The people saw, the Pharisees saw, just
an ordinary man who looked rather beyond his age. He looked more
like 50 than 30 years old. No comeliness that we should
desire him, but yet in that body, that Godhead contracted to a
span, dwelt the fullness of the Godhead bodily. And what is revealed
by the Spirit of God is that truth of Christ to the objects
of his grace and mercy. But look, in order to accomplish
what he did for us, for his people, look what he did. Verse 17, in
all things it behoved him. That means it was necessary.
It means there was an overwhelming compulsion that he had to be
made like his brethren. He who is infinite God, he who
is infinitely holy, had to be made like the people he was going
to redeem from the curse of the law. What's the curse of the
law? The soul that sins, it shall die. He's the God-man. He's God-become-man. He is the
eternal creator. How do you know that? How do
we know that he's God, the eternal creator? Look at verse 10 of
chapter one. Thou, Lord. This is words of God to God in
Christ. Thou, Lord. You notice the letters
are lowercase, O-R-D, Lord. It's Christ. Thou, Lord, in the
beginning has laid the foundation of the earth. and the heavens
are the works of thine hands. He's made all things, it said
that right at the start, didn't it? the Son, whom he has appointed
heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds. We could
spend ages going and looking at other places where it's clear
Christ is our creator God. He is the one who upholds things. You know, the chair you're sitting
on now, you know, you say, oh, well, this is a solid thing.
Do you know it's only solid because it's upheld by the Word of the
Lord Jesus Christ. He is the one who upholds all
the physical laws of nature. They are what they are, not because
they are that anyway. They are what they are because
the Word of God tells us it's all upheld, held together, held
in its position by the Word of the Lord Jesus Christ. There's
deep stuff in there. He is the Word of God. You know, your unseen thoughts
in your head become apparent to others when you speak the
word. He is that word that speaks the being of God to his people. He, where mankind was made in
the image of God, he The man, Christ Jesus, he is the express
image of his person. Says that in the first two or
three verses. He is the express image. He is the outshining,
the brightness of the glory of God. And he is the object of
angelic worship. Let all the angels of God worship
him. He is the Son of God, addressed by God the Father. Therefore, unto the Son, verse
eight of chapter one, unto the Son, God says, God the Father
says, to the Son, God the Father says, thy throne, O God, is for
ever and ever. The Son is God. A scepter of
righteousness is the scepter of thy kingdom. Thou hast loved
righteousness and hated iniquity. Therefore God, even thy God,
has anointed thee, O God, with the oil of gladness above thy
fellows. And thou, Lord, in the beginning has laid the foundation
of the world. He's addressed by the Father as God. And there
we see the unity of God. There is one God. Oh, Israel,
there is one God. But we see him in the trinity
of his persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. He's the saviour
of his people. Saviour? Why saviour? Because
as we are, we're under the curse of the law. We're under the curse
of the fall. We're under the curse of that
disobedience. In the day you eat thereof, you
shall surely die. The soul that sins, it shall
die. We're sinners. The justice of God cannot change. And the being of God cannot possibly
excuse sin. The being of God cannot possibly
say, oh, it doesn't matter, we'll forget about it, as religion
will tell you. Not at all. They have to be brought by redemption
to glory. They have to be saved from their
sins. Something has to be done to make
the justice of God happy that they're brought to glory. He
is the savior of his people, as it says in verse 10 of chapter
2, bringing many sons to glory. This is it. Sons who are sinners
in their fleshly nature, they're brought to glory. How? Because
look back at verse nine, because by the grace of God, he, the
son of God, who's that? Jesus. Verse nine, we see Jesus,
made for a little while lower than the angels. He was made,
he came down, read Philippians two, he came down from his glory,
he who was in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be
equal with God, but laid that glory aside. Why? That he might
come down for the suffering of death. That he should, by the
grace of God, I'll say it the way I think it means it, he should
taste the death of every man that he's going to taste it for.
He should taste the death due to every one of his elect multitude. That's what it means when it
says, having done that, He will have taken away the curse of
the law from them by being made a curse for them, as Galatians
3 tells us. He's bringing many sons to glory,
many sinners to glory, many sinners to the place that cannot tolerate
sin. There shall nothing enter that
defileth. Are you defiled with sin? Yes,
you know you are. If you examine yourself, if you
hear the word of God, you know that you are a sinner before
the justice and righteousness of God. But he's going to bring
you to glory in him by virtue of what Christ has done, by redeeming
grace, by paying the sin debt. Why did he become a man like
us, in flesh and blood like us? because in the blood is the life
that he might pay with his life, the infinite life of the Son
of God, contracted to the span of a man, he might pay the debt
of the sin of his people with his precious blood. You are not
redeemed with silver and gold, says Peter, but with the precious
blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot. Is this not why we need to give
the more earnest heed, as verse one of chapter two says, We must
take note. How shall we escape if we neglect
so great salvation? So then, verse 17, it behoved
him, it was necessary, to be made like his brethren. It was
necessary that he be made like the church, the children, the
people that were sinners, that he's going to die to redeem from
the curse of the law. He had to be a true man to shed
the blood of man, to pay the price of sin for his people.
to make reconciliation for sins, as it says there at the end of
verse 17. He was made like his brethren that he might be a merciful
and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God to make reconciliation
for the sins of the people. If reconciliation is made for
the sins of the people, there is nothing that would cause the
infinitely holy God to bar this people, redeemed by Christ, from
entrance to his glory. To justly justify sinners You
know, you say, well, just let them off. Say, oh, that's OK,
you can go. I think I explained a week or two ago, didn't I,
that in a court of law, somebody can come and pay your penalty
for you. If I get a speeding ticket, somebody can say, oh,
I don't want him to have the £100 fine. I'll pay his £100
fine for him. Well, that's fine. The debt is cleared, but I'm
still guilty of speeding. That's still on my record that
I've been a speeder. That can't be taken away. But
in the purposes of God, he justifies sinners. He takes their sins
away. He removes them as far as the
east is from the west. And he's righteous and just in
doing it because he does it justly. because all of his wrath against
sin was poured out on his son bearing the sins of his people.
And what does that mean? Look at verse 18, how suitable
he is for us. In that he himself has suffered,
the infinite God contracted to the span of a man in whom dwelt
the fullness of the Godhead bodily, he suffered being tempted or
tested. And because he's been in flesh
like ours and been suffered and has been tempted, he is able
to succor them that are tempted. He's able to soothe and comfort
those that are tempted. He knows it. He has an empathy
with his people. An empathy. Why? Not just a sympathy. Sympathy is something that you
have when you're not in that situation but you feel sorry
for them. Empathy is when you've been in that situation. You know
the feelings. He knows the feelings. He's been
tempted. He's been tested as a man. And
so what are we called to do? Chapter 3 and verse 1. Wherefore? Wherefore, whenever you see a
wherefore or a therefore, you always have to ask, what is that
word for therefore? Or what is it there? What is
it wherefore? Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly
calling, consider the apostle and high priest of our profession,
Christ Jesus. Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers
of the heavenly calling, Consider the Apostle and High Priest of
our profession. I refer you to the bulletin where I've put a
piece in by Don Faulkner on this, Consider the Apostle and High
Priest of our profession, because that is worth meditating on.
But who is called to consider? Answer, holy brethren, partakers
of the heavenly calling. They are called to consider.
People who are chosen to holiness. How are they holy? Not in themselves,
you know yourself. As Happy Jack said, I'm a poor
sinner and nothing at all. But Jesus Christ, he's my all
in all. Think on that, repeat it. What are you? I'm a poor sinner.
How, oh, that was a good thing. I'm a poor sinner and nothing
at all. Jesus Christ is my all in all.
Look what we were chosen to, Ephesians one, verse four. He
has chosen us in Christ, in him, When? Before the foundation of
the world. Before the clock of time started
ticking. What for? That we should be holy
and without blame before him in love. So the legalist says,
well I better start obeying this law and that law and I better
start not going shopping on a Sunday and doing all of this. No, we're
made holy and without blame before him in love in the Lord Jesus
Christ and everything that he is and he has done. His people
are his church, his body. Ephesians 5.27 says this, Christ
loved the church and gave himself for it to sanctify it and cleanse
it. Why? So that he can present it
to himself glorious in eternity at that marriage supper of the
Lamb, present it to himself glorious without spot or wrinkle. Do you
know Brothers and sisters, in Christ, if you know the truth,
you know that you are a sinner worthy of hell and condemnation. But you also know by the grace
of God, by the quickening of the Holy Spirit, by the redemption
that Christ has accomplished, you are made the righteousness
of God in him. You are as holy as God is in
him. That's the message of scripture.
That's the message of the gospel. Is it not rightly called the
gospel? You know what gospel means? Good
news. So then, brethren, brethren, brethren, holy brethren, holy,
made holy by God in Christ, brethren, we've already seen. He regards
his people as his brethren. Galatians 4 says in verse 4,
when the fullness of the time was come, God sent forth his
son made of a woman. He doesn't say born of a woman,
but that's another issue. He says made of a woman, made
under the law, made under the, righteous requirements of God,
that he might be subject to it. What for? To redeem those who
are under the law. Who's that? His people. You and
me, if we believe in him. To redeem those who are under
the law. Why? That we might receive the adoption
of sons. No more servants. Heirs of God
through Christ. He's called us with a holy calling.
We'll see what Peter says. The Apostle Peter, 1 Peter 2
and verse 9. You, speaking to this multitude
again, the same people, you are a chosen generation, a royal
priesthood, that's quoting from the Old Testament, a holy nation,
a peculiar people. I know a lot of people think
that we're very peculiar people who believe in the Lord Jesus
Christ, but he means that in a special way. You're separate,
you're set apart, that ye should show forth the praises of him
that's the praises of God, who has called you out of darkness
into his marvelous light. Have you heard the call of the
living God out of darkness into his marvelous light? The darkness
of the thinking of the fallen man, the darkness of the thinking
of the world all around us, the culture of the world all around
us, the evil that is in the world all around us. Why is it evil?
Because it's godless. and it doesn't believe the living
God. And if it doesn't believe the living God, this world is
shaking its fist in the face of God and calling God a liar.
You've made him a liar, it says. No, have you heard that call
of God out of the darkness of this world into his marvellous
light? This is the objects of God's eternal purpose of grace,
the you, the us, the we, whenever scripture uses those terms, we
are the ones that are called upon to consider him, consider
the Lord Jesus Christ, consider the apostle and high priest of
our profession, Christ Jesus, meditate upon him. You know,
it's a good practice, is to meditate, to spend, you know, the world
is so full of noise, and clutter. You can't seem to sit down quietly
for a minute these days without something bombarding you. Some
music, some news, some events, some entertainment. Quietly meditate
upon him. Consider him. Focus on him. Wherever scripture uses these
terms, You, us, we, focus, consider him. It's what, towards the end
of the epistle in chapter 12 and verse 2, he talks about we're
in a race, we're on a road to the celestial city, as Bunyan
called it, to the heaven of God, the kingdom of God. We're on
this road, and how are we going to continue on this road in these
bodies of flesh with all of their frailty and weakness, and we
see all around us people passing from this life and the difficulties
that there are. How are we going to do it? It
says there, it says, run the race that is set before you,
looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith. Spurgeon
said, I looked to Christ and the dove of peace flew into my
heart. I looked into my heart, looking
for some good there, and that dove flew away. I looked to Christ
and the dove of peace flew into my heart. He is the apostle. He is the apostle and high priest
of our profession. The apostle is the heavenly messenger. Christ is the one who, as the
word of God, has brought the truth of God down to us. The Lord whom ye seek shall suddenly
come to his temple, says Malachi chapter 3, verse 1. Even the
messenger of the covenant whom ye delight in. He's the heavenly
messenger bringing truth. How can we know the things of
heaven and eternity but that the Lord came down from heaven
to tell us? The Lord whom ye seek. And he
is the high priest. What does a high priest do? And
I must hurry on. A high priest mediates between
fallen man and holy God. And there is one mediator. Paul
tells Timothy. One mediator between God and
man. There is one mediator between
God and man. The man, Christ Jesus. Those
Old Testament priests might have represented. They did. That was
the idea of them. Aaron's priesthood was to represent
Christ as the intercessor between a holy God who cannot look upon
sin and sinners. He was to intercede, he was to
make intercession for them, between God who is holy and man who is
sinful. This is our God, our creator,
our saviour, our prophet of eternal truth, our priest making intercession. It is Christ that does all of
these things. Any man, these days, to call
a man a priest as opposed to other believers, is completely
wrong. We have one high priest, which
is our Lord Jesus Christ. Yet we in him, all who believe,
as we read in what Peter said in his epistle, we're a holy
priesthood. We each have that interceding
ability with God. Now then, before time's completely
gone, Let's compare him with Moses. Verse 3 says, this man,
he's speaking of Jesus Christ, this man was counted worthy of
much more glory than Moses. Inasmuch as he who hath builded
the house hath more honor than the house. Christ was faithful
to God who appointed him to his office as Redeemer. As Moses
was faithful in all his house, but Christ was counted worthy
of more glory than Moses, inasmuch as he who hath builded the house
hath more honor than the house. What's this house all about?
Well, the notion here is of a rich man's house with servants and
children, built with the rich man's resources. The house is
the people of God. The house that it's speaking
of and picturing is the people of God. It's the temple of God,
the church of God, the body of Christ. This is the house, Old
Testament Israel. represented the true spiritual
house of God. And it actually contained some
members who were true members of that. But we know from the
history that the nation as a whole was not. They are not all Israel.
They're not all the Israel of God, which are of the race of
Israel, the nation of Israel. No. But Moses, in that Old Testament
representation of the people of God, he was faithful as a
servant in the house of God's Old Testament Israel. Just look
at a couple of references. Exodus 14. Speaking of Moses,
Exodus 14 and verse 31. And Israel saw that great work
which the Lord did upon the Egyptians. And the people feared the Lord,
listen, and believed the Lord and his servant Moses. Because
the people believed that when Moses spoke, he was speaking
the word of God. Look at Numbers. Numbers, where's
the reference gone? Numbers 12, verse seven. Numbers
12 and verse seven. What had happened was Miriam
and Aaron had started to complain that they were just as good as
Moses, and Moses had set himself up on a pedestal above all the
rest, but Moses was very meek above all men which were upon
the earth, and the Lord rebuked Moses. sorry, rebuked Aaron and
Miriam, and to the extent that Miriam was made leprous, to say
that I'm speaking through Moses. And verse seven, he says, my
servant Moses is not like these false prophets. My servant Moses
is faithful in all mine house. That's where the quotation comes
from. In Hebrews chapter three, my servant Moses is faithful
in all my house. And then the words that we read
right at the start of the service, in Deuteronomy 18, verse 15,
The Lord God will raise up unto thee a prophet from the midst
of thee, this is Moses speaking, of thy brethren, like unto me,
like to Moses, unto him you shall hearken. And I will raise them
up a prophet from among their brethren. That prophet is Christ. He's saying he'll raise up Christ
to you. You know, it says in John's gospel
that the law came by Moses. That which condemns came by Moses,
but grace and truth came by Christ Jesus. As a prophet, as a type,
was Moses a servant. He was like a picture of Christ. But Christ is the reality. Christ
is not a servant, but the Son in God's house. This man is counted
worthy of more glory than Moses. Moses was part of the house of
God, a servant in it, and an important servant in it. But
this man, Christ Jesus, is the man who is not only in the house,
not only the son of the house, but he's actually built the house.
Whereas the servant doesn't inherit, the son inherits. It is the purpose
of God that he should inherit all things. But he's the man
who has built the house. When he asked his disciples,
who do men say that I am? And you know, Peter said, you
are the Christ, the son of the living God. And Jesus said, upon
this rock, he didn't mean on this rock, Peter, he meant on
that expression of faith, on that faith, on that truth of
gospel grace. He said, upon that, I will build
my church. I will build my spiritual house. Jesus is the builder of the spiritual
house. But look, the builder of the
house, every house, verse 4, every house is built by some
man, but he that built all things God. Moses, verse 5, was faithful
in all his house as a servant for a testimony of those things
which were to be spoken after, but 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 to the end. Christ is much
more. He is the son and heir. He is
the son and heir of the house of God, ruling over it. What
comprises this house of God in subjection to Christ, the Son,
now? What is it? Verse 6. He is the Son over his house,
whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence. All the
seed of Abraham? Sorry. All the seed of Adam? No, not all the seed of Adam. The seed of Abraham. Chapter
2, verse 16. Abraham, whose Faith is that
faith which is given to all the seed of Abraham. Those who believe
the same as Abraham, we read in Galatians 3, those who believe
what Abraham believed are the children of Abraham. It's absolutely
clear. We're the seed of Abraham. If
we believe, what did he believe? He believed that God would send
his lamb, the lamb of God. And he pictured it in so many
ways. If we believe the gospel, preached, that God preached to
Abraham. It says God preached the gospel
to Abraham. If we believe that we're the seed of Abraham and
thereby we're that house, we're that house of the Lord Jesus
Christ that he has built. It's the gospel of accomplished
redemption in the Lamb of God. How do you know that you're a
member of Christ's house? You believe the gospel truth
of God and you keep believing it to the end. How? In your own
strength? Not in your own strength. Why? Looking unto Jesus. Run the race
that is set before us, looking unto Jesus. What is he? It tells
us, the author and the finisher of your faith. It says in Philippians
that Paul was confident that he that had begun a good work
in the Philippians would finish it. Not in their own strength,
but in His keeping strength. It isn't in reform of the flesh
and resolution to turn over a new leaf, but it's by the sight of
the soul. And what's that? It's faith.
And who gives faith? You? No. It's the gift of God
that none should boast. And it's focused on hope. What
is hope in Scripture, in the Gospel? It's confident and rejoicing
in that hope. It's that hope of eternal bliss
outside of this valley of the shadow of death, outside of this
veil of tears. It's that confidence that we
will spend eternity in the intimate communion of our glorious God
in Christ. God who is above all, God who
is over all, but we'll be there with him, free from sin. That's
our hope, free from sin and all its consequences. May the righteousness
of God in him. made heirs of God and joint heirs
with Christ of all that he, Christ, inherits, and thereby rule over
all things, that the purpose of God, at the very start, that
all things should be in subjection to him, not in subjection to
the angels. That world to come should be
in subjection to his people, redeemed in the Lord Jesus Christ.
Hope is the certain knowledge that in life we have his presence,
and His grace and His keeping power, that in death we have
the promise of eternal life, of resurrection, that in heaven
we have a place reserved where we eternally behold His glory. Our hope and confidence is set
on that city, I keep saying it since we've started this epistle
to the Hebrews, but it's there. As Abraham, he looked for a city,
it says in Hebrews 11 verse 10, he looked for a city, not of
this world, not with all the trappings and things of this
world, but he looked for a city which has foundations, whose
builder and maker is God. Because why? Because he knew
at the end of Hebrews chapter 13 verse 14, that here, In this
world, we have no continuing city. Oh, we visit them, we are
aware of them, we go to them, we travel to and from them, but
here we have no continuing city. This isn't our home. This is
not our eternal home. We seek one to come, and this
is the hope. This is what it's set on, the
hope. Christ is all and in all. If you are his house, then he
to you is the unknowable almighty God made manifest. Please try
and ask God to show this to you, that our Lord Jesus Christ Above
all else is the unknowable God made manifest to us. He's the
prophet that speaks truth from heaven, eternal truth that we
could never know any other way. We can see the hand of God in
creation, but we can never know eternal truth unless he reveals
it. He's our priest of mediation. He's our king. He's our ruler,
but our benign, bountiful ruler. Not only that, He's our brother.
He's our friend. I call you no longer servants,
but I call you my friends. He's my redeemer. How blessed
it is to know him and rest in all that he is and all that he's
accomplished. As the Psalms say, blessed is
the man to whom the Lord imputeth not iniquity. Blessed is the
man that trusteth in him. Blessed, favoured by God, is
the man that makes the Lord his trust. Blessed is the man whom
the Lord chooses and causes to approach to him. Lord, that he
might make all that hear this know that they're chosen of him
and caused to approach him. Amen.