Why Talk about Sin?

This coming Sunday night I'm going to begin a series on sin. We're in the middle of a larger series on the book of Ephesians, and chapter two gives a beautiful picture of what God has done for us through Christ. But in order for us to appreciate what He has done, we need to understand our position without His work. The following quote is from John Stott, Basic Christianity, and I think he describes this very well.

...in order to appreciate the work which Jesus accomplished, we must understand who we are as well as who he was. His work was done for us. It was the work of a person for persons, a mission undertaken for needy persons by the only person competent to meet their need. His competence lies in his deity; our need lies in our sin. We have tested his competence; we must now expose our need. Only then, after we have clearly grasped what we are, shall we be in a position to perceive the wonder of what he has done for us and offers to us.

You Can Change 2

Chapter 2 of Tim Chester's excellent book You Can Change is titled "Why Would You Like to Change?" He begins by giving three common reasons.

The first is to prove ourselves to God. We want to change because we think that by doing so we will gain favor with God. Perhaps that favor is salvation, or maybe it's just daily blessing. The problem with this is that it's nothing more than religion, which says, according to Tim Keller, "I obey in order to be accepted." Religion is not the Gospel. The Gospel says that we're accepted because of what Christ has done. That's it. There's nothing we can do to make God love us. And there's nothing we can do to make him love us any less. The work has been done.

The second reason we have for wanting to change is to prove ourselves to other people. We want others to be impressed, so we wear a mask, because if people knew what we were really like on the inside, they would be far from impressed! The problem with this is that it is possible to deceive people with our impressive masked-man living, yet when we do that, we no longer need a Savior. We might be living up to their standards, but we need to seek a higher standard - that of God's.

The final reason Chester gives for why we want to change is to prove ourselves to ourselves. Sin brings shame, and none of us likes to feel bad. We want to change so that we no longer feel bad. The problem with this is that we've forgotten that our sin is truly an offense to God, not just to ourselves.

The big problem with all of these is that it's about me. It's about my glory, which, according to Chester, is the definition of sin (living for my glory instead of God's). With all of these, we become our own savior and have no need for Christ. We have no need for the Cross. Chester quotes John Gerstner here: "The thing that really separates us from God is not so much our sin, but our damnable good works" (25).

Change can only come when we realize that the work was completed by Jesus. Jesus' work allows for true change to take place. Chester says, "Holiness is new affections, new desires, and new motives that then lead to new behavior. If you don't see your sin as completely pardoned, then your affections, desires, and motives will be wrong" (28).

You Can Change 1

I just started reading Tim Chester's You Can Change. So far an excellent read, one that I'm going to recommend everyone at NC read. Here's what Tim Keller says about the book: "A book about Christian growth that is neither quietistic nor moralistic is rare. A book that is truly practical is even rarer. Tim Chester's new volume falls into both categories."

In this post I want to give some observations from chapter 1, which is titled "What Would You Like to Change?" Chester starts out by saying that most of our answers to this question (our appearance, new job, less anger, etc) are not ambitious enough. The reason? Because we were created in the image of God (Gen. 1:27). Remember, at the end of each of the six days of creation God said, "It is good," but at the end of the seventh day, after creating humanity, He said, "It is very good." Anything less than God's ideal for us is settling.

Yet we have a problem, and it's the same thing I posted about in the review of week 1 of Fight Club. It's that humanity is broken because of our rebellion against God. We've fallen short of reflecting God's glory, which was the creation intent (Romans 3:23). Because of that brokenness, we're no longer able to be the people we were created to be.

I love the beginning of the next paragraph: "Enter Jesus." He is the true image, the One who did live as we were meant to live, the One who is the image of God (2 Corinthians 4:4) and radiates the glory of God (Hebrews 1:3). Jesus not only shows us how to live the life we were meant to live, but through the Cross He provides the means for us to do it. Hence, we call this good news!

Here's my favorite quote of the chapter: "Jesus isn't just good for us - he is good itself. He defines good. The secret of gospel change is being convinced that Jesus is the good life and the fountain of all joy. Any alternative we might choose would be the letdown" (15).

So the key to change is first understanding that we, as Switchfoot says, "were meant to live for so much more." Second, we have to understand that because of sin's reign in the world, we're incapable of doing this on our own (bad news). Third, we have a Redeemer who has conquered sin and death and provided a way to live as we were meant to live (good news). Finally, the key to embracing this is to turn to Jesus, the author of our salvation and the perfecter of our faith.

Jesus & the Kingdom

Craig van Gelder ~ Jesus announced that the time of the presence of the kingdom being made manifest in the world was now at hand, and that redemption would now be brought to bear on all of life and that it was his intent to invite everyone everywhere to repent and believe this good news (Mark 1:14-15).

The Kingdom of God

We're halfway through our series on Luke's gospel at Neighborhood Church. This week I went away to St. Columba's Retreat Center to gain a little clarity on the remainder of the series. One thing I continue to learn about myself when it comes to teaching is that I always have to keep the big picture in mind. Where are we ultimately heading? Why is this series important to the life of our church? One of the big questions for me was how to incorporate the Kingdom of God, Jesus' favorite subject to talk about. So after a day away, here's where we're going.

This Sunday we're on the parable of the sower, but instead of thinking about it in terms of evangelism, we're thinking about it in terms of the condition of our own hearts. There's a great quote by Rick McKinley about this:

Pay attention, Jesus was saying, because in a mysterious but powerful way, the condition of your heart radically dictates what the kingdom is going to look like in your life. If you wrap all your hopes and dreams around it and let it sink far into your inner being, the kingdom of Jesus will live in you and bear fruit

Next week we then begin another "series within a series" on the Kingdom. Here are my tentative titles:

The "Upside-Down/Available to All" KOG (2/28)

The "Advancing/Subversive" KOG (3/7)

The "Already/Not Yet" KOG (3/14)

The "Costly/Totally Worth It" KOG (after Easter)

Reflection from Verge - Day 1

Yesterday was a long travel day. Josh, Joe and Steve got to my house at 6 am, and we drove to Little Rock. After a layover in Dallas, we finally arrived in Austin with just enough time to get our car, drop our bags off at the hotel, and get to the conference for the first session. The main sessions are going to be organized around the six themes of Alan Hirsch's The Forgotten Ways. Last night's was "Jesus is Lord."

After a great worship time led by Aaron Ivey, Matt Carter opened things up by talking about the dangers of loving your mission more than your Savior. He spoke from Revelation 2 (church of Ephesus). When you look at what Jesus commends them on, it seems like an awesome church. But Jesus says that he is no longer at the center of their lives. And the warnings of continuing this are that he will remove his blessing and presence from them. The question he left us with was, "If everything was taken from you, and all you had was Jesus, would that be enough?"

After communion Francis Chan spoke. The one thing you can count on when Francis speaks is that passion is going to pour out of him. You don't really outline or take notes when Francis speaks. He's really all over the place. But God speaks, so occassionally you write something down, knowing it's quite important.

His main points were that we just need to go back to the Scriptures to learn how to live out the Christian life. We've added so much to it. He brought us back to Acts 2. This group of 120 saw Jesus raised from the dead, and it radically changed their lives. They told everyone about it. The things that had seemed important to them before no longer appealed to them. That's why they gave their stuff away to others in need. This made perfect sense to them. What wouldn't have made sense is for this community, after seeing Jesus raised from the dead, is for them to come to a church service once a week for some singing and preaching.

When I listen to Francis speak, he reminds me of how simple things should be. Simple doesn't mean easy, but it does mean simple. This isn't rocket science. We just need to come to God through his Scriptures, and do what he says. He ended our time by calling us to pray for God to move. Earlier he had asked the question, "What power would I believe in if I really read the Bible?"

I'm still a little tired this morning, but am ready to learn. Grateful to be here with Josh and Joe, and look forward to going through this with them.

Church in Need of Recalibration

Alan Hirsch & Michael Frost: We believe that the church must constantly return to Jesus to find itself again, to recalibrate, to test whether we are indeed in the faith. The inference is that by and large the church as we currently experience it in the west has to varying degrees lost touch with the wile and dangerous message that it carries and is duty bound to live out and to pass on. As Jesus' disciples we are called to a Christlike life, and no matter how we configure it, that must surely mean that somehow our lives and our communities must be in significant congruence with the life, teachings, and mission of Jesus. The degree that we are living the life laid out by our Master is directly proportional to the degree that we can call ourselves authentic disciples (ReJesus, 64)

Jesus and His Stories

Jesus told stories whose many dimensions cracked open the worldview of his hearers and forced them to come to terms with God's reality breaking in to their midst, doing what they had always longed for but doing it in ways that were so startling as to be hardly recognizable.

N.T. Wright, The Challenge of Jesus

A Night Away for Study and Prayer

I've been learning this year that I need times away in order to be a good teacher. Like all of us, I'm bombarded by details throughout the day. And I've found that for me, there is a huge need for me to keep the big picture in mind at all times. I am getting ready to start a series on the Gospel of Luke, and I told Mandy last week that I needed to get away to do some more studying, planning, and praying. She thought that was a great idea. Last Thursday we had our church planting network meeting, and John Carroll mentioned that he goes to St. Columba's Episcopal Retreat Center once a month. I got the info from him, called later that day, and scheduled my retreat.

Last night I arrived around 5:00, armed with my Bible, notebook, laptop, some books, some leftover Chinese food, and some coffee. My goal was to come away with a week by week outline of the series. Last night I read through Luke again, and jotted down more notes. This morning I began the process of compiling those notes. I am thankful that as I prepare to leave this morning, I have an outline of 21 sermons.

The theme for this study is "Christianity: Religion or Revolution?" Jake Fasano has once again designed a visual for us to use.

The series begins next Sunday and will run a few weeks past Easter. I'll continue to post on the study as we go along, but here are some of the resources I'm using.

• The Prodigal God, Tim Keller
  
• Luke for Everyone, NT Wright
  
• Jesus in the Margins, Rick McKinley
  
• This Beautiful Mess, Rick McKinley
  
• The Myth of a Christian Religion, Greg Boyd
• Money, Possessions & Eternity, Randy Alcorn
  
• The Politics of Jesus, John Yoder
  
• ReJesus, Michael Frost & Allen Hirsch
  
• The Barbarian Way, Erwin McManus

Why I Quit Blogging through Luke

You might have noticed that I began blogging my way through the Gospel of Luke in September, but then I quit, and a month has now passed. I promise you that it's not simply procrastination. Here's the deal: I got to chapter six, and realized that I could have easily written about good trees producing good fruit (6:43-45), or the importance of building on a solid foundation (6:46-49). However, I wasn't so sure about that first part, specifically all those "blessed's" and "woe's." For that reason, I felt that I couldn't write, much less preach, on this until I had a better understanding. I had this hunch that understanding a passage such as this one was key to understanding this radical Gospel as a whole.

So that brings me to today, and more specifically, to my last few days in Cincinnati at the CCDA Conference. I had the privilege of being around many men and women who have forsaken so much in order to live out and proclaim the gospel in difficult settings. To say that I was moved would be a major understatement, however. There was a moment on Friday night where I felt as if God was ripping out my heart. I came to the understanding that my view of the Gospel is very incomplete, so I repented to God and asked for understanding. Now hear me out - I know that none of us know completely, but I realized that there are some major gaps in my understanding.

I feel that over this past year my gaps have been growing smaller. I chalk much of that up to what I have learned listening to and reading Tim Keller. My understanding of the difference between the Gospel and religion has grown so much. What I'm learning right now is very similar to this.

For some time now I have really resonated with the idea of the upside-down Kingdom of God. The life and message of Jesus is radically counter-cultural to the way many of us live today. I've always believed that it was counter-cultural to the world, but I now believe that it is often counter-cultural to Christianity as well. Jesus taught us to pray, "Let Your Kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven", but right now I wonder if we would actually recognize the Kingdom if this was a reality.

Shane Claiborne ended his talk on Saturday night by taking us to the the fall of the great whore of Babylon found in Revelation 17-19. He made a statement that shook me. He said, "I wonder if we will rejoice with the angels (18:2) or weep with the merchants (18:3) when we hear this news. Here's what's scarier than not recognizing the Kingdom coming: it's fighting against it. Why in the world would we fight against it? Because we do not see it for what it is. Because we do not hear. This is perhaps why Jesus said over and over, "He who has an ear, let him hear."

So with that as a rather long explanation, I will return to blogging through this great book of the Bible, asking God continually to give me the courage to see what He wants me to see and hear what He wants me to hear.

Luke 5

Scripture

On one occasion, while the crowd was pressing in on him to hear the word of God, he was standing by the lake of Gennesaret, and he saw two boats by the lake, but the fishermen had gone out of them and were washing their nets. Getting into one of the boats, which was Simon’s, he asked him to put out a little from the land. And he sat down and taught the people from the boat. And when he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.” And Simon answered, “Master, we toiled all night and took nothing! But at your word I will let down the nets.” And when they had done this, they enclosed a large number of fish, and their nets were breaking. They signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats, so that they began to sink. But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.” For he and all who were with him were astonished at the catch of fish that they had taken, and so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men.” And when they had brought their boats to land, they left everything and followed him.

Observation

I love this story. The crowds were enamored with Jesus. They wanted to be near him. Luke says that they were "pressing in on him to hear the word of God." It's obvious that not all truly wanted to follow him. Some where there to watch a show. They had heard that he was healing people and casting out demons. But there were some who were drawn to him in such a way that they understood that their life was not as good as it would be if they were following him. This is true surrender, and it's true worship! We believe a lie when we simply think about sacrifice. Peter, Andrew, James and John all left their careers and family to follow Jesus. But they didn't spend their lives in regret. They followed Jesus because something inside them believed that it would be the best decision that they would ever make.

Application

Our next teaching series is on the subject of worship, and yesterday I was re-reading John Piper's Desiring God. I first read it during my senior year of college. As I read it a couple of days ago, I wondered if some of my passion for God has waned. Am I responding appropriately to who He is? Peter's response to Jesus was complete humility. He didn't even deserve to have Jesus in his boat, yet here he was. Do I understand what Jesus has done for me? How often do I reflect on this? As I write this, I'm thinking back to Matthew 13:44, in which Jesus said, "The kingdom of heaven (God) is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field."

Prayer

This is the response that I desire to have. Following Jesus is a treasure. I have been given this treasure. I definitely don't deserve it, yet it's been offered to me. Today I desire to follow Jesus more than I desire anything else. Thank you, Father, for your grace. Thank you for continuing to seek after me. I repent of my inferior desires, and want all that you have for me.

Luke 2

Scripture

And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with fear. And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of a great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.” And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!” (Luke 2:8-14)

Now there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon, and this man was righteous and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ (Luke 2:25-26).

Observation

Both of these passages reveal the great sense of anticipation that there must have been during this time. The angels must have no doubted anticipated the coming of the Messiah for a long time, and now it was finally there...though once again in a way that they would have never expected. The same can be said about Simeon. Here we have a human whom God has spoken to. God has told him that the promised Messiah will come during his lifetime. Luke doesn't say that God gives Simeon any details, though. No doubt like many Jews he imagined one resembling King David. Definitely not a baby! Yet when Joseph and Mary brought Jesus into the Temple, the Most High God whispered into Simeon's ear and said, "Your Messiah!"

With both the angels and Simeon, this anticipation has now given way to fulfillment, and the only response is rejoicing. The angels couldn't contain themselves, but, in keeping with God's plan, they revealed their rejoicing to a group of lowly shepherds. So picture that for a moment: when you see an angel walk up to you, you're definitely a little scared. But when you look up into the sky and see a multitude of angels praising God...that's got to be amazing.

Application/Prayer

God, may my anticipation grow as we draw near to Advent and Christmas. May I more fully grasp the magnitude of what happened 2000 years ago in Bethlehem. May I not miss it. And may my anticipation give way to rejoicing. Capture my heart with the majesty, humility and power of Jesus, and through it change the way that I live.

Luke 1

I'm planning on starting a teaching series on Luke's Gospel around Christmas, so I decided to blog my way through it as a devotional exercise, kind of like I did with Hebrews.

Scripture

But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zechariah, for your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth, for he will be great before the Lord. And he must not drink wine or strong drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb. And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God, and he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready for the Lord a people prepared.”

Observation

John's role was to prepare God's people for what He was getting ready to do. This plan was truly going to be good news, but the way it would come about would baffle everyone. It would be truly subversive in nature. As I read this again, I'm astounded at the company that God keeps. He goes to a priest, yes, but it's a priest with flaws. This priest, Zechariah, cannot pass down his priesthood to a son. He and his wife, Elizabeth, have never been able to have a child, and at this point, they are too old.

I love Mary's visit to see Elizabeth. There is nothing special about these two, yet the Most High God decides to include them in His plan for redeeming the world. I think this scene is a great picture of the immanence and creativity of God. God is in their midst in a beautiful and profound way.

Application

John's father, Zechariah, was disciplined by God for not believing that his wife Elizabeth could become pregnant. This seems a little severe, but part of preparation for this plan was, and still is today, faith. Do we believe that God can do the impossible (Lk. 1:37)?

Neighborhood Church is going to participating in The Advent Conspiracy for the third year, and the tag line that resonates with me so much is "Christmas was meant to change the world." Christmas did change the world, and Christmas does change the world, but it's changed as God's people partner with Him in His plan of redemption.

Prayer

Oh Great God, how easy it is to miss what You are doing in our world. How easy it is to miss what You are doing in my life. You don't work the way I think You ought to work. You don't always use the people I expect for You to use. Help me to see things as You see them. Help me to see people as You see them. And help me to be prepared for the work that You are going to do. I don't want to miss it. Help me to believe with everything in me that absolutely nothing is impossible for You.

Links

It's been awhile since I posted links, so you can imagine that I've got some really good ones here. Hopefully that will prove to be the case.

Tim Chester on the differences between house churches and missional communities

Tim Kimmel, author of Grace-Based Parenting, is coming to Memphis in October. Hoping to take a great group from our church

A month or so ago I started doing a bible study on our identity in Christ. Today I see that Greg Boyd has beaten me to it. This is worth spending some time on. I want to teach on this at some point soon.

A key passage for our Acts series this summer was 1 Peter 3:15, which says that we as Christians should always be ready to give a reason for why we have hope. I remember first hearing Brian McLaren say that this implies that people are asking questions. So what questions are our friends asking?

I just ordered the TK Primer (Workbook). It's a follow-up to one of my all-time favorite books, The Tangible Kingdom, by Hugh Halter and Matt Smay. I'm looking forward to going through this workbook.

How I Got Here - Gospel

The Gospel as been described as a pool in which a toddler can wade and yet an elephant can swim. It is both simple enough to tell to a child and profound enough for the greatest minds to explore.

Tim Keller, The Gospel in All Its Forms

A little over a year ago I was at the Exponential Church Planting Conference in Orlando. One of the keynote speakers was Tim Keller. He gave a talk on the Gospel. He said that when you read the New Testament, it can seem at times as if there are two gospels. There's the gospel that Jesus preached, and there's the gospel that Paul preached. As you read this, you'll probably have one of two reactions: either Keller is a heretic for saying this, or you can relate to this tension. As I listened to his talk, and later read this article, I found myself in the second camp.

I was raised understanding the gospel (good news) as follows: God created me for relationship with Him. However, my sin caused that good relationship to be broken. Jesus died on the Cross as the penalty for my sin. Because of this amazing act, I can be forgiven and cleansed. To top it off, when I die I will spend the rest of eternity with God in heaven.

Keller describes this "form" of the gospel as Paul's gospel of justification. It's also seen in John's gospel. There's another form of the gospel, though. It's the form, or expression, found in the Synoptic gospels (Matthew, Mark and Luke). This can be described as the gospel of the Kingdom, and it's the form that I began discovering several years ago.

I began to understand that Jesus came not just to forgive me of my sins and provide a way for me to go to heaven. His plan was much bigger than that. I was drawn to texts such as Luke 4:16-21, and I began hearing people talk about topics such as peace and justice. I began to understand that Jesus came to redeem the entire world. The gospel was no longer so much about me, but was instead about God's Kingdom coming on earth as it is in heaven.

Keller says that we are not dealing with two gospels, but instead with two different forms of one gospel. John and often Paul speak of the individual implications of the gospel (eternal life), while Matthew, Mark and Luke speak of the corporate implications (how the gospel changes society). Both are essential. In this article Keller goes on to explain how he preaches these two expressions of the gospel, yet rarely ever at the same time.

I found this article to be so refreshing and helpful. I'll leave you with Keller's definition of the gospel (if it's possible to put the gospel into one statement, Keller does a fine job doing it):

Through the person and work of Jesus Christ, God fully accomplishes salvation for us, rescuing us from judgment for sin into fellowship with him, and then restores the creation in which we can enjoy our new life together with him forever.

Hebrews 12 & 13

Scripture

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes of Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart (Hebrews 12:1-3, NIV).

Observation

The word "therefore" is pointing back to chapter 11 (the faithful servants of God), but I think it can also point us back to the message of the entire letter. The author of Hebrews has given reason after reason for us to be grateful to Jesus for the work he did on the cross, and to surrender our lives to him. Now he is telling his readers that we have a job to do. The job is to live in light of this knowledge, in light of this gift.

Application

God has "marked out" a race for us. In order to complete this race (or "task", as Paul puts it in 2 Timothy 4), we first have to fix our eyes on Jesus. He has run the race before us. He has been a faithful Son. Second, we have to recognize that sin, as well as other "weights" (ESV), serve to hinder our running. These need to be thrown off or else we will not finish well. We will be "weighed down" by the hinderances (anything that distracts us from our purpose of running) and tripped up by our sin. Finally, we need to remember the work of Jesus so that we will not grow weary and lose heart.

Prayer

Father, I thank you for this letter, which, though written almost 2000 years ago, applies in so many ways to my life today. I thank you for the reminders of what my Lord, Savior, and King did for me on the Cross. May I live my life in a way that brings honor and glory to you, and may I be faithful in accomplishing all that you would have me to do.

Hebrews 10 & 11

Scripture

For since the law has but a shadow of the good things to come instead of the true form of these realities, it can never, by the same sacrifices that are continually offered every year, make perfect those who draw near. Hebrews 10:1

For by a single offering he (Jesus) has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified. Hebrews 10:14.

Observation

As I read chapter 10, the word that jumped out to me was "perfect." It's mentioned twice in this chapter. In verse 1 we learn that the law could not make us perfect. In verse 14 we learn that Christ's sacrifice could do what the law could not do - make us perfect. So what does this mean? I did a little word study on it. The Greek word here is τελειόω, which can be translated as follows: "to make perfect, complete, accomplish, finish one's work." This word is also used in Hebrews 2:10, in referring to the fact that Jesus was made perfect by the Father through his suffering, as well as in Acts 20:24, where Paul speaks of finishing the work that God called him to.

Application

Some might be concerned that a word like this might cause us to think too highly of ourselves. However, I think we need to be more concerned about the opposite. We of course have not reached a state of perfection at this point. We still live in a fallen world, and we have the capacity to become slaves to sin rather than slaves to righteousness (Romans 6, Galatians 5). What we need to digest is the fact that Jesus has taken care of it all. I love the phrase that's used "once for all." Because of this "once for all" sacrifice, we are clean before God. When God looks upon us, He does so in light of His Son's perfect sacrifice for us. And what does He see? He sees a people who are holy, sanctified, clean, perfect.

On Sunday I spoke at Church Without Doors, a ministry to the homeless in downtown Memphis. I made the statement that what we think about God is critical, and what we think God thinks about us is also critical. In light of this passage, I'll say it this way: How we think God sees us is critical. And here's another phrase that I try to challenge myself with everyday: The image of God that we carry around in our heart and mind affects the way that we live.

Prayer

Father, help me to see myself the way You see me. I've done nothing to warrant the way You see me. It's all because of Jesus' work on the Cross. For that I am eternally grateful. But I know that You desire for me to accept that work, and one of the ways that I accept it is to see myself in light of that work. I ask for the grace to do this today, knowing that it will affect the way that I live today.

Hebrews 9

Scripture

Nor did he enter heaven to offer himself again and again, the way the high priest enters the Most Holy Place every year with blood that is not his own. Then Christ would have had to suffer many times since the creation of the world. But now he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of himself. Just as man is destined to die, once, and after that to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him. Hebrews 9:25-28

Observation

This is a great chapter on understanding the old covenant (the way the Jews were forgiven by God and cleansed of sin). The writer of Hebrews is making the connection between the old covenant and the new covenant, brought in by the sacrifice of Christ. There are similarities, but there are also major differences. The primary similarity is that, according to the law, "without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness" (Heb 9:22). The primary difference is that Jesus, unlike the high priest during the days of the old covenant, only had to shed blood once. His sacrifice brought forgiveness and cleansing once for all.

Application

This is an amazing thing to ponder. No one could have predicted God's plan, but it is truly amazing. I marvel at the fact that God was giving a picture of sacrificial cleansing so long ago, which would one day be fulfilled with Jesus' death. A few months ago I preached a series on the Cross. One of my sermons was on the Day of Atonement. Hebrews 9 serves as a reminder of God's plan, but also connects the dots all the way to Christ.

Prayer

Jesus, thank you for offering your life as the ultimate sacrifice for my sins. My only response is to offer my life up to you as an act of surrender and worship. May it be an acceptable response.

Hebrews 7 & 8

Scripture

...and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. And they shall not teach, each one his neighbor and each one his brother, saying, 'Know the Lord,' for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest. For I will be merciful toward their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more Hebrews 8:10-12

Observation/Application

What a beautiful passage. It's taken from Jeremiah 31, another beautiful section of Scripture. This is the new covenant. The culmination of this covenant is that we shall all know the Lord. Two words here should be discussed. Who is "we." Jeremiah (and therefore the author of Hebrews) says that "we" includes all of us - from the least to the greatest. It's not reserved simply for those who have their acts together. It's available to all. Second, what does it mean to "know" the Lord. I think back to Genesis 3:8, where Adam and Even "heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day." It's as if God took a walk with these two every day. There was intimacy. Sin caused that intimate relationship to be broken, but one day there will be a new covenant, and all that was broken will be restored. We will once again know God.

Prayer

Father, because of the work of Christ on the cross, I now live in the new covenant. What an amazing work that was. I thank you that the curse of sin is broken and that I can be free. More than that, because of that work it is possible for me to know You. Never let me take that for granted. Let it be my consuming passion to know You.

Hebrews 5 & 6

Scripture

In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to him who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverence. Although he was a son, he learned obedience through what he suffered. And being made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him, being designated by God a high priest after the order of Melchizedek. Hebrews 5:7-10

Observation

The author of Hebrews wants his audience to grasp the humanity of Christ. For someone unsure of this, the passage can be very uncomfortable. The following words convey humanity: "loud cries and tears", "learned obedience through what he suffered." Jesus cried out to God to be saved. We see this in the Garden of Gethsemane. He knew that God could save him, which is what he wanted. But more than that, he wanted to obey his father, even if it meant humiliation, separation from his Father, and a painful death.

Application

What does it mean when the author says that Jesus "learned obedience through what he suffered?" Every high priest had to understand what the people were going through before he could be any help to them. Jesus was the ultimate high priest, but that would not have been the case if he had not truly understood us, and the only way that he could truly understand us was to experience suffering. And experience suffering he did.

In the creation, the Lord made man like himself; but in the redemption he made himself like man. John Brys

Prayer

As the Son of God, and as the only one who never did anything wrong, you were the one person who did not deserve to suffer. I thank you for choosing to lay down your life for me, a pitiful sinner. I am truly thankful that you know me, understand me, and despite all that is in me, you love me.