Not to the Law but to Christ

Q: What does the Bible say about coming to Mount Sinai vs Mount Zion?

The Bible contrasts coming to Mount Sinai, which represents the law and condemnation, with coming to Mount Zion, which symbolizes grace and the new covenant in Christ. In Hebrews 12, the author emphasizes that believers have not come to Mount Sinai, a mountain associated with law, condemnation, and fear, but to Mount Zion, which represents grace, the new covenant, and the presence of God. Mount Sinai was characterized by fire, darkness, and a warning to not approach, while Mount Zion is described as where the living God resides, full of joy and grace. The significance lies in the transition from law to grace, portraying the transformative power of Christ's sacrifice, which allows believers to access God with confidence.

Q: Why is pursuing peace and holiness important for Christians?

Pursuing peace and holiness is essential for Christians because it reflects the righteousness of Christ and is necessary for seeing the Lord. In Hebrews 12:14, believers are urged to 'pursue peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord.' This command highlights the importance of actively seeking peace in relationships and pursuing holiness, which involves both imputed righteousness from Christ and a lifestyle of obedience. The call to pursue these virtues is not merely about personal piety; it is also about maintaining a communal harmony and reflecting the nature of God to others. By doing so, Christians bear witness to their faith, glorify God, and enhance their fellowship with Him and one another.

Q: How do we know that the blood of Christ is sufficient for atonement?

The blood of Christ is sufficient for atonement because it was offered once for all and is effectual in purging the conscience from sin. According to Hebrews 9:11-14, Christ's blood surpasses the sacrifices of the Old Testament, which were temporary and merely ceremonial. Christ, as the perfect high priest, entered the holy place with His own blood, obtaining eternal redemption for believers. His blood is not just a type but the fulfillment of God's promise of atonement. It cleanses from sin and results in a new covenant relationship with God, demonstrating its sufficiency and transformative power. This underpins the Reformed understanding that salvation is entirely through Christ's sacrificial work, making a clear distinction between His once-for-all sacrifice and the ongoing sacrifices of the Old Covenant.

Q: Why is it dangerous to allow roots of bitterness to grow in the church?

Allowing roots of bitterness to grow can lead to defilement and division within the church, hindering fellowship and spiritual growth. Hebrews 12:15 warns against allowing a root of bitterness to spring up, as it can trouble and defile many. This metaphor indicates that unresolved grievances can infect the wider church community, leading to division, strife, and a lack of effective testimony. The danger lies in the tendency for these feelings to fester, leading individuals away from grace and into a state of spiritual peril. Christians are called to actively seek reconciliation and maintain unity in the body of Christ, as bitterness not only harms relationships but also distracts from the mission of glorifying God. Preventative measures include addressing issues promptly and seeking peace before they escalate.

chapter 12 of the book of Hebrews. And my
subject this evening is not to the law, not to the law, but
to Christ. Not to the law, but to Christ. And my text is going to be Hebrews
12, beginning with verse 18. It says there in verse 18, ìYouíre
not come unto the mount that might be touched, and that burn
with fire, nor unto blackness, and darkness, and tempest.î And
verse 22 says, ìBut youíre come unto Mount Zion.î You've not
come to Mount Sinai, you've come to Mount Zion, not to the law,
but to Christ. You've not come to Mount Sinai,
but to Mount Zion, not to the law, but to Christ. I wish we had time to look at
the whole chapter, but we don't have the time, nor the patience
wouldn't permit it. But I've got to go back a little
bit in order to move into the text and deal properly with it. So I'll go back to verse 14,
Hebrews 12, verse 14. And the apostle exhorts the church,
you, and exhorts me and believers. He says, pursue peace with all
men. Now, to pursue peace and follow
peace is not just to desire it. Well, everybody likes peace. But this is not just to desire
it, this is actually to pursue it, diligently seek it, make
it our business to calm troubled waters. Follow peace. Pursue
it. diligently, diligently pursue
peace with all men, not only in the home and in the church,
but in the neighborhood, wherever you are, wherever you work, follow
peace with all men. And then he says, and follow
holiness, follow holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord.
Now, this has a twofold meaning. It has to have. When it says,
without which no man shall see the Lord, it's got to have a
twofold meaning. First of all, we're talking here
about the holiness of Christ, the righteousness of Christ.
Seek it, pursue it, follow it. I preached recently from Matthew
where our Lord said, seek ye first the kingdom of God and
his righteousness, his righteousness. So you follow that righteousness
and seek it and pursue it, without which no man will see the Lord.
But this has another meaning, too. It is follow godliness and
obedient walk. Walk in the Spirit, not in the
flesh. Make that your aim. Let your
light so shine before men that they may see your good works
and glorify your Father which is in heaven. Walk worthy of
your calling. As Paul said in Romans 12, I
present you, therefore, I beseech you, therefore, brethren, by
the mercies of God, that you present your body, a living sacrifice,
wholly acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. So
follow peace and follow holiness. Here's righteousness and here's
imparted righteousness, both imputed and imparted. Now look
at verse 15. looking diligently. And all these
words the apostles are writing here, looking diligently. Follow,
looking diligently. This is not a glance. This is
not a side glance. This is looking, looking diligently,
lest any man fail of the grace of God. And I urge all of us
to look in three ways, looking diligently. First of all, is
look into Christ. Look back at verse 1 and 2 of
chapter 12. Wherefore, seeing we also are
encircled with so great a cloud of witnesses who've gone before,
men of faith, women of faith, Let us lay aside every weight
and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with
patience the race that's set before us, looking unto Jesus,
the author and finisher of our faith, looking unto Jesus. That's
where we look first. Look to Him. Keep looking to
Him. But this is talking about another
looking here, too, looking diligently. lest any man fail of the grace
of God." In other words, it's looking to yourselves. Paul said
to young Timothy, you take heed to yourself now, lest while preaching
to others you become a castaway. They made me keeper of the vineyard,
but my own vineyard I didn't keep. Turn over to 2 John, 2
John verse 8. Listen to this. Looking to yourself. Diligently, in 2 John verse 8,
it says, look to yourself, that you lose not those things
which we have wrought, which we have gained, which you have
gained, but that you receive a full reward. So this thing
he's talking about here is to pursue peace. Be a man of peace. Blessed are the peacemakers,
the children of God. Follow holiness. Seek the holiness
of Christ, the robe of his perfect righteousness. And seek to walk
before him in such a way that we glorify his matchless name.
And keep looking, looking unto the Lord Jesus Christ, the author
and finisher of our faith. And look unto yourself. Look
unto yourself. Lest there be found in any of
you, he said, an evil heart of unbelief. Don't allow anything
to come between you and the fellowship of your Lord. And then there's
a third part of this looking. It's looking to Christ, and it's
looking to myself. Constantly take an inventory. Consider ourselves. Where are
we? What are we? But then it's looking
to others. Looking out for others. Turn
with me to Philippians 2, verse 4. This is what I'm talking about. Caring about others, looking
to others, concerned about others. We're to warn one another, we're
to exhort one another, we're to encourage one another along
the way. It says here in Philippians 2,
verse 4, Look not every man on his own things, he better look
on his own things, but not only But every man also on the things
of others. We not only care about ourselves
and our relationship with God, but we care about one another
and their relationship with God. Turn to Hebrews 10. Hebrews 10,
verse 22 says, Let us draw near. Let us draw near with a true
heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from
an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water. And let
us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering, for
he is faithful that promised. But let us consider one another,
too, to provoke unto love and good
works, not to forsaking the assembling of ourselves together. We need
one another. It's like, I believe, the Proverbs. Solomon, the wise man, said,
one man in a bed can be awful cold. Two, you got heat. That's
right. Two gives heat, you know, from
the cold weather. So he said, you look to Christ,
and then you look out for this fellow here. And you look out
for that fellow out there. Help him, lift him, consider
him. Now here's verse 15, here's the
danger. Verse 15, you look diligently,
lest any man fail of the grace of God, fall away from the grace
of God. Many have. You go through the scriptures,
example after example after example, name them, Alexander, Ammonaeus,
homogenies, demons hath forsaken me, having loved this present
world. Paul talks about those that have
departed from the faith. Dogs return to the vomit, hogs
to wallow in the mire. Many have, and many do. Many do. And here's where the
thing starts. Listen. Looking diligently, lest
any man fail of the grace of God. lest any root of bitterness,
root of bitterness, spring up, trouble you. Now listen, every
one of us, we got a new heart and a new nature, and we know
God. But in every man's heart and
old Adamic nature, there's still that root of sin, dormant, pressed
down, pruned, cut, but not destroyed. And if we're not careful, that
old root will spring a twig over here, and a twig over there,
and a twig over yonder, and after a while, it just engulfs the
whole house. And I'll give you an example. I told you about this in a message
recently. about a certain church where
they had some difficulties. Everybody has difficulties. Families
have difficulties. Churches have difficulties. Individuals
have difficulties. But just this falling out, and
leaving the place of worship, and leaving the gospel message,
and leaving the fellowship of the saints, and my feelings are
hurt, and I'm mad at this one, I'm mad at that one, I'm mad
at the other one. I got hard feelings. bitter spirit, and
that's that root of bitterness. And it's taking, it's springing
up. And if you let it, if you let it, if you don't cut it,
if you don't deal with it, if you let it, if you let it spring
up and trouble you, listen, thereby many be defiled. Many be defiled. And I watched this couple and
that couple and another couple And I see conflict and disagreement
and these little natty nothings, and they deprive themselves of
fellowship, and deprive themselves of preaching, and deprive themselves
of the Word of God. And the longer they stay estranged,
the more impossible it is to come back. Like a couple, a married
couple will get separated, and I say, get back now, now, now. The longer you wait, the more
impossible it will be. And you wait over a period of
weeks or months, you're gone. Because the house is cobbled
up. The old root of bitterness. Bitterness. It's in everybody. It has to
be subdued. It has to be crucified. It has
to be stomped on. It has to be kept out. It has
to be taken to the prayer closet. It has to be dealt with. It has
to be crucified. Pride's got to go. But if you
let that root of bitterness keep on, it'll damn you. and your
family. That's what we're doing. See,
if you get mad at me and quit, you take them two precious boys
out of here. And your wife. That's right. And this is what's
happening. I'm watching. I see it all the
time. I see these little, these little bitterness. It's a root.
The apostles got it right here. It's a root of bitterness. It's
a root of bitterness. And the issue is not the gospel.
Never is. It never is the gospel. It's
something else. I don't know whatever makes people
think that they can't get along here, but they're going to get
along in glory. That's not so. We'll carry the same love and
the same spirit there that we have here. If we've got the Spirit
of Christ, we'll have it there. If we don't, we won't be there.
That's just so. Isn't that something? All right, look at verse 16.
It gives us an example. It gives us an example. You let
this thing get out of hand. You let it get out of hand. or profane person as Esau, who
for one little morsel of meat sold his birthright. For you
know how that afterward, when he would have inherited the blessing,
he was rejected. For he found no place of repentance,
though he sought it with tears. Now let's see what we know about
Esau here. It's a warning to us. This is a warning. I've told
you so many times here, the book of Hebrews is a book of promises,
but it's a book of warnings. Like old brother Jeff Thornberry
used to say, the highway of God is hedged about on one side with
promises, lest we despair, and on the other side with warnings,
lest we presume. So let's see what we know about
this fellow. Well, first, he was not a true believer. Not
Esau. Not Esau. He hung around believers. His
daddy was a believer. His brother was a believer. His
mama was a believer. But he wasn't. No, he wasn't.
Turned out he wasn't. He only professed to believe.
He only professed to be in God's kingdom. He only professed to
be in God's house because his choice reveals. See that? A man that'll sell his birthright
for a bowl of beans doesn't have much regard for the birthright.
Isn't that right? He shows what value he puts on
the birthright, no value at all. His present comfort, his present
situation, His present loss is what's important to him, not
what lies ahead. So the birthright, you see, what
else do we know about him? Well, we know that birthright,
which he counted so lightly, that wasn't a family farm. That's
what most Bible teachers I hear them talk about. He was going
to inherit all that his daddy had. That old boy would have
been wealthy if he hadn't of got his daddy's farm. That whole
clan was wealthy, you know. But that wasn't the birthright
which he counted so lightly, the family farm. It was a spiritual
responsibility. It was a spiritual headship of
that family. When his daddy died, it fell
on him. That's the birthright. God's
man in the house. God's man in the neighborhood.
Divine favor. spiritual responsibility, spiritual
leadership. And he says, I'd rather have
a bowl of beans right now. I'm going to do my thing right
now. I don't count that of too much value. And that's what we do when we
put these insignificant fleshly desires and wants above the kingdom
of God. We're saying being God's man
is not as important to me as having what I want. My way. Tell you something else about
this man. It says down here in verse 17. You know how that afterward,
after when, a whole lot of years went by. Some time went by. Some time passed. He went on
his little way. He sold his birthright. He ate
his beans. And he went on his way and forgot
the transaction. A busy man. He was a hunter.
He was an outdoor man. He was a man's man. He was his daddy's favorite.
He was all these things. But there came a time, there
came a time when the blessing was there to possess. He was
rejected. He was rejected. He knew the
value now, but it was too late. And this is a sad story. And
though he sought it then carefully with tears, I'd like to be back
where I was. It's impossible. I'd like to
have what I lost. It's impossible. But I'd just
do anything for it. This is repeated so often, so
often, so often. The blessing, the blessing. The
blessing is God's love. The blessing is God's favor.
The blessing is God's righteousness in Christ. The blessing is sin
forgiven. The blessing is eternal glory. The blessing is adjoining with
Christ. That's the blessing. It can be ours. And I'll tell
you when we're going to inherit it. is when the Savior comes,
when this life reaches an end. When you come down to where I
am right now, and some of you are, that's when the blessing
is right at your fingertips. Right at your fingertips. It's
there. It's there. But the man to whom
the blessing belongs is the man like Abraham. who contingent
in the faith, to whom that blessing was more important than his father's
house, more important than being made rich, more important than
having the bottom land, more important than this, more important
than his son, both Ishmael and Isaac, more important. That blessing was everything.
He looked for a city. whose builder and maker was God.
He dwelt in tents. And when he came to that time
when the blessing was to be his, he laid hold on it. But I tell you, when we're willing
to sell out, just sell out, just absolutely sell out, lock, stock,
and barrel for this present world, Demas hath left me, Paul said,
he's left me. He just left me because he loved
this world. And one day Demas realized what
he had lost. But it was too late. And he found
no place of repentance, though he sought it carefully with tears.
That's the reason he says here, follow peace and righteousness
and look diligently to yourselves, to Christ, to one another, lest
any of us fail. Well, I'll give you an example.
Old Esau. Old Esau. And he didn't even
know that he'd lost it till it came time to have it. He didn't
even know what he'd lost till it came time to have it. Old brother Scott Richardson
Talking to me about a fellow one time, he said he laid down
the banner. He laid it down. Right in the face of the enemy,
he laid it down. And turned and went back. And
then he said he came back years later wanting to pick it up.
But the battle was over. And the enemy had fled. And the
banner wasn't there. He had it. And he laid her down. He had something else to do.
That's serious. All right. And then that's what
he said here in verse 18. For, you're not come to Mount
Sinai. There's no mercy in that mountain.
There's no grace on that ground. From that mountain came the law,
the moral law, the ceremonial law, which can only condemn. We don't come to Mount Sinai
for that blessing. We don't earn it, merit it, or
work for it. It says you're not come to Mount
Sinai, that mountain that might be touched. You say, Moses said
in Exodus the mountain couldn't be touched. This has a two-fold
meaning. One, it's a mountain which may
be touched, better not touch it, but it may be, it's material. We're not talking here about
spiritual relationship with God. We're talking about material
things. That mountain can be touched because it's material. But these blessings we have in
Christ are not touch, taste, and feel. They're experienced
in the heart. See what I'm saying? Now it better
not be touched. He said, don't you come near
that mountain, don't even let an animal touch it. And what
accompanied the giving of the law? The giving of the law. You not come to the mountain
that might be touched and that burned with fire? The giving
of that moral law of God, that ceremonial law, Levitical law,
it was accompanied with fire and with blackness and darkness
and tempest. Why was it accompanied with these
things, surrounded by these things, the giving of God's law? I'll
tell you why, because it offered no hope, not a glimmer of hope,
not a glitter of hope. It was a law accompanied with
wrath and curses, fire, blackness, darkness, and tempest. When the gospel came, Out shunned on that Judean hillside,
the shepherds calmly watched their flocks by night. And the
angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord
shone, Tom, not brightness, not darkness, shone round about them,
and the glory of the Lord. And the angel said, Good news,
good news, glad tidings of joy and gladness. See the difference? We don't come to that mountain.
I don't want to come to that mountain. I don't want anything
to do with that mountain. I don't want to look at that
mountain with its fire and brightness and darkness and tempests and
curses and wrath. I want to look to Christ. Good
news. Gladness. Joy. The brightness
of the glory of God. The brightness of His glory. What else accompanied the giving
of that law? Verse 19, and the sound of the
trumpet, the blast of the trumpet, and the voice of words, which
voice they that heard entreated that the word should not be spoken
any more, don't talk to me any more, they said. When those angels came down and
said, we bring you glad tidings, tell me some more. Glad tidings
of great joy! Come on, what is it? Talk to
me! But when God gives the law, thou shalt not! Oh, thou shalt
not! Oh, don't! Don't give me any
more, that's all I want. Don't give him, don't talk to
me any more. I don't want to hear it. I can't hear it. They couldn't endure his voice,
they couldn't endure his words, and they couldn't endure his
presence. It says, verse 20, For they could not endure that
which was commanded. And if so much as a beast approached
God and touched that mountain, stone him, thrust him through
with a dart, and it was all so terrible, such an awful sight,
that even Moses, even Moses, said, I exceedingly fear and
tremble. And the law came by Moses. We don't come to that mountain,
and I'm not going to let anybody take me back to it. Because it's
just like it was. There's no difference. No difference. Oh, listen, verse 22. But you
are come to Mount Zion contrary to Sinai, opposite of Sinai. What is Mount Zion? Listen to
me. Sometimes it's referred to as referring to the church of
God. Sometimes to the habitation of God. I have set my king upon
my holy hill of Zion. But it has to do with God in
grace. That's what it has to do with.
God in grace. That mountain with its fire and
darkness and blackness has to do with God in judgment. And
Mount Zion has to do with God in grace, the throne of grace.
Mount Zion. Let me show you that. Be patient.
Turn to Romans 9. Let's learn something here. Watch
it. Romans chapter 9. This is important. Zion. Mount Zion. This habitation of
God. Romans 9 verse 33. Listen. And as it is written, Behold,
I lay in Zion a stumbling stone and a rock of offense, whosoever
believeth on him shall not be ashamed. Zion has to do with
the presence, the habitation of God in Christ. It always has
to do with God in mercy. One more, Revelation 5. You're so familiar with these
scriptures. Revelation 5, verse 5, listen. This is that part
of the scripture where he had that book in his hand, the purposes
of God. Verse 5 of Revelation 5 says
this, And one of the elders said to me, Weep not. Behold, the
Lion of the tribe of Judah, the root of David, hath prevailed
to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof. I beheld,
and lo, in the midst of the throne, and of the four beasts, in the
midst of the elders, stood a Lamb, as it had been slain, having
seven horns and seven eyes, which of the seven Spirits of God sent
forth unto all the earth." There's Zion, where the Lamb is, and
where the Lamb suffers, and where the Lamb opens the book. So that's
where we come. We'll come to Mount Sinai. We
come to Mount Zion. All right, back to my text. Now,
move along. Hebrews 12, verse 23. It's verse 22. We've come to
Mount Zion, to the city of the living God. It's the city of
God. He built it. It's built on Christ,
the chief cornerstone. It's a city of many people of
every tribe, kindred, nation and tongue. It's the city Abraham
looked for. Did you think Abraham was looking
for a little cottage on 40 acres? He's looking for a city, a populated
inhabited city, the city of God, built by God, built by God. Every stone, living stone laid
in every building is built by God. on the foundation Christ
Jesus. And what is it? Read on. It's
the heavenly Jerusalem. Oh, Israel came to Jerusalem.
They had a temple there. They had a Holy of Holies there.
They had an altar there. They had an ark there. They had
a mercy seat there. They had a priest there. We come to Jerusalem. Our Jerusalem
has a temple. Our Jerusalem has an altar. Our
Jerusalem has a holy place, our Jerusalem has a mercy seat, and
our Jerusalem has a priest forever. It's the heavenly Jerusalem.
Heavenly Jerusalem. God has blessed us with all spiritual
blessings in the heavenlies in Christ Jesus. Listen, and to
an innumerable company of angels. Ah, listen, if you've got time.
There is something here. We didn't come to that mountain,
we come to this mountain, where the Lamb is. That city of God,
that heavenly Jerusalem, and an innumerable company of angels.
When a man is brought to God by the Spirit of God through
the Lord Jesus Christ, he is brought into a state of friendship
and fellowship with angels. angels. They minister to the
heirs of salvation. He'll give his angels charge
over thee. He'll encircle you with his angels. If there's ever one of these
little ones, angels appear before the throne of God. You've got
an angel. I'll show you that in Matthew
18. That's right, our Lord was talking to Peter He said, if
you're not converted and become as a little child, Matthew 18,
you're not going to enter the kingdom of God. Then he starts
talking about these little children. He's not talking about infants.
He's talking about grown people who know God, young people who
know God who have been made little children by conversion and conviction
and humility. They're little ones. They're
God's little ones. And he says in Matthew 18, verse 10, Now
you take heed that you despise not one of these little ones.
Don't you make an enemy out of one of these little ones and
set out to destroy him? I say unto you that in heaven
there angels do always behold the face of my Father which is
in heaven." That's right. Did you know angels visit the
worship service of believers? That's what Paul said. If we are here tonight in his
name, and he is here in his presence, and we are preaching There's
angels here tonight. Angels. And I'll show you something here,
that when the Old Testament talks about these chariots of fire
and so forth, in the life of Elijah, that's
angels. Let me show you that. Turn with
me now to 2 Kings 2. This blessed me very much. I believe it will to you. 2 Kings
2. Listen. Verse 11. You know, Elijah was about to
go to glory, and Elisha, the young man, was going to take
his place. And he said, What do you want
from me? And Elisha said in verse 10, 2 Kings 2, verse 9, he says,
I want a double portion of your spirit. In verse 10, Elijah said,
You ask a hard thing. Nevertheless, if you see me when
I'm taken from you, it shall be so unto you, but if not, it
won't be so. And it came to pass, as they
still walked on and talked, that, behold, there appeared a chariot
of fire." Now, you don't suppose that God really took Elijah to
heaven and burned him up on the way, do you? Come on now. A chariot of fire, and horses
of fire, and parted them asunder, and Elijah went up by whirlwind
into heaven. There's a whole lot going on
there. And I believe I can show you that the angels of God came
after him. An innumerable company of angels
came after him. It took him to glory. Let me
show you. Turn to 2 Kings 6. Here, Elisha is talking
to the young man, you know. It was so scared, remember the
young man, it was so scared in verse 15 in 2 Kings 6. 2 Kings 6, verse 15, And when the
servant of the man of God was risen early, and gone forth,
behold, a host accompanied the city, encompassed the city with
horses and chariots. And his servant said unto him,
O master Elias, what are we going to do? And Elisha said, Fear
not, they that be with us are more than they that be with them.
And Elijah prayed and said, Lord, I pray thee, open his eyes, that
he may see. And the Lord opened the eyes
of the young man, and he saw, behold, the mountain was full
of horses and chariots of fire, rounded by the elisha." What's
going on here? Angels of God. The heavenly host. That's what they are. And it
appears, you see, when a man looks and sees the very glory
of God and the angels of God, it appears to be in its brilliance
and glistening power. Power, doesn't it? Looks like
the whole sky is on fire. The brightness of it. You'd have to cover your eyes.
I bet they had to cover his eyes to look at the glory that surrounded
those angels. Psalm 68. Turn over there a minute. Let's follow this through a little
bit. Chariots of fire. Chariots of fire. A chariot of
fire came down and got Elijah. chariots of fire circling Elisha
and the young man. Psalm 68, 17. Psalm 68, 17. The chariots of
God are 20,000, even thousands of angels. The Lord is among
them, as in Sinai, in the holy place. That's the glory. That
mountain was on fire. That's right, Tom. Angels. Psalm 104. Look at this. Psalm
104. This is verse 4. Talking about our God, it says, He maketh
his angel spirits, his ministers, a flaming fire. The angels are
ministers to the heirs of salvation. So that's what he says here in
Hebrews 12, verse 20. 22, the last line, and we've come
to an innumerable company of angels. All right, read on a
little bit more. And to the general assembly and
church of the firstborn. Down here on earth, the church
is called an assembly. We have an assembly here. The
church is not the building. If you burn the building down,
we met in the parking lot, it would still be an assembly. It
would still be a church. So it's an assembly. But this assembly
to which we come, to which we're brought by his grace, not to
a mountain, to this assembly, is the general assembly. It's
the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven.
It's every believer of every time and age and generation,
from the first one to the last one. A perfect church, without
spot or blemish, which he purchased with his own blood. And we've
come, listen, verse 23, and we come to God. We come to God,
the judge of all. Well, preacher, who wants to
come before the judge? Especially us. Yeah, but especially
us. We can come before God, the righteous
judge, the judge of all, because we come in Christ. We don't come
in our own righteousness or holiness. We come in Christ. Half said
in his prayer, he's the least worthy of anybody here to lead
this congregation in prayer. We all take our place right beside
him. He's the least, and I'm the least,
and you're the least. Now, it's a whole family of leasts. Somebody said, Paul, the apostle,
belonged to a tribe in which everybody was
a chief, chief of sinners. So we come to God, the judge
of all in Christ, and listen, and we come to the spirits of
just men made perfect. Now, stay with me. To spirits
of just men made perfect. This is every person in Christ,
because we are perfect in Christ. We are called just men because
the just shall live by faith, because we are justified in Christ.
Therefore, being justified by faith, we have peace with God.
And everybody who is in Christ is just, justified. And the spirit
of just men made perfect. And this is what he's talking
about. Our fellowship, our relationship, our cheap communion is not of
a fleshly nature, but a spiritual nature. We come to the Mount
Zion, city of God. to an innumerable host of angels,
to the assembly of the Church of the Firstborn, whose names
are written in heaven. Also, we come with people, every one,
in a spiritual family, in a spiritual fellowship, and everybody in
Christ is made perfect. And I think one verse will explain
that verse. Colossians 2, verse 5. Colossians
2, verse 5. Paul said to the church at Colossae,
In Colossians 2, verse 5, "...though I be absent in the flesh, I am
with you in the Spirit." When we asunder part, it gives
us inward pain. But one day we'll be joined again
in Spirit. It's always a spiritual relationship.
And this is where churches go wrong. When they try to keep
things going, and moving and supported and
done in efforts and organizations
and activities that involve flesh. Because ours is not a fleshly
communion, it's a spiritual communion. And whether we're in Timbuktu
or Ashland or Ironton or wherever, we're still one in spirit. That's
right. We don't have to be together
physically to have a church, an assembly, a people of God,
or a family. That's right. Because it's a
spiritual relationship. It's a spiritual relationship.
And we may not see each other for weeks sometimes, but you
take up where you left off. Because in spirit there was no
interruption. No interruption. That's what this is. It's the
spirits of just men made perfect. All right, the next verse says,
"...and to Jesus, the Mediator of the new covenant." We come
to Christ, not to the law, but to Christ, to Jesus, the Mediator,
the one Mediator between God and men. We come to Him. "...and
to the blood of sprinkling that speaketh better things than that
of Abel." I'll tell you this, this blood, is, my, how important,
how important. Turn to Hebrews 9 for our last
scripture, this subject of the blood. We come to Christ and
the blood, and the blood, the blood of sprinkling. Now, some
people think this means that Abel's blood himself, Abel's
blood cries out from the ground for vengeance, and Christ's blood
cries from the cross for forgiveness. That's all right. But the blood
of Abel's offering was typical. The blood of Abel's offering
was typical. The blood of that cross is effectual. And while
that blood speaks in a typical fashion, and that blood points
to Christ, that blood on the cross don't point to anything.
It's of itself. empty word, effectual. It speaks
better things than the type speaks. That's the reason the whole book
of Hebrews says Christ is better than Moses, Christ is better
than the priest, Christ is better than the temple, Christ is better
than the sacrifice, Christ is better. But this man, you see,
that's what it's talking about. We come to Christ through the
blood of sprinkling, effectual blood. Don't you ever surrender
that to nobody. effectual blood, substitutionary
blood, satisfying blood, redeeming blood, cleansing blood, justifying
blood. Don't let anybody take that away
from you. You lose that and you've lost everything. General atonement
is general nonsense. And you just let that slip away.
You just let anybody stand in this pulpit and start compromising
in order to get along with somebody on the atonement. You compromise
somewhere else besides the blood. Because it's the blood that makes
us atonement for the soul, isn't it, John? Don't you let anybody
compromise there. We'll compromise somewhere else.
We'll wear gray breeches and blue coats or something. We'll
serve in the Confederacy and wear Union suits. But we ain't
going to compromise on this. It's the blood that makes us
atonement for the soul. When I see the blood, I'll pass
over here. And he says in Hebrews 9, verse 11, Christ being come a high priest
of good things to come by greater, more perfect tabernacle, not
made with hands, that is to say, not of this building, neither
by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered
in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption
for us. For if the blood of bulls and
goats and the ashes of a heifer sprinkling the unclean sanctify
to the purifying of the flesh, I'll tell you something far better
than that. How much more! How much more! shall the blood
of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without
spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works, from Mount Sinai,
from laws and rules and ceremonies, to the living God. Come to the
mountain. Don't come to the law. Come to
Christ. All right, Ronnie, come and lead us in a song.

Not to the Law but to Christ

What does the Bible say about coming to Mount Sinai vs Mount Zion?

Why is pursuing peace and holiness important for Christians?

How do we know that the blood of Christ is sufficient for atonement?

Why is it dangerous to allow roots of bitterness to grow in the church?

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Not to the Law but to Christ

What does the Bible say about coming to Mount Sinai vs Mount Zion?

Why is pursuing peace and holiness important for Christians?

How do we know that the blood of Christ is sufficient for atonement?

Why is it dangerous to allow roots of bitterness to grow in the church?

Sermon Transcript

About Henry Mahan

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