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[0:00] Welcome to Built on God's Word, the preaching and teaching ministry of Highland Park Baptist Church in Bartlesville, Oklahoma.! Pastor Mike Scrivani preaches on Hebrews 7, verses 20-28.

[0:14] If you would stand with me though as we honor the reading of God's Word together here finishing Hebrews chapter 7, reading verses 20-28.

[0:25] And it was not without an oath, for those who formerly became priests were made such without an oath. But this one was made a priest with an oath by the one who said to him, The Lord has sworn and will not change his mind, you are a priest forever.

[0:43] This makes Jesus the guarantor of a better covenant. The former priests were many in number because they were prevented by death from continuing in office, but he holds his priesthood permanently because he continues forever.

[0:57] Consequently, he is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them. For it was indeed fitting that we should have such a high priest, holy, innocent, unstained, separated from sinners, and exalted above the heavens.

[1:15] He has no need like those high priests to offer sacrifices daily, first for his own sins and then for those of the people, since he did this once for all when he offered up himself.

[1:27] For the law appoints men in their weakness as high priests, but the word of the oath, which came later than the law, appoints a son who has been made perfect forever.

[1:37] May God add a blessing to the reading of his Word. Would you please be seated? Amen. Each of us has established a set of rules in our homes to create order and define acceptable behaviors in our household.

[1:58] These rules help maintain a peaceful environment and foster healthy relationships between the members of our families and our homes. However, not all households follow the same rules.

[2:13] For example, some families require everyone to remove their shoes at the front door, while others don't. Bedtimes and chore assignments also vary from home to home.

[2:27] Although we all have rules, the specifics differ, reflecting the unique values and routines of each of our households.

[2:38] When you go over to someone else's house, the expectation is that you are going to follow the rules established by the owner of the house.

[2:50] I remember when I was a kid, I would wear a baseball hat just about everywhere that I could, especially in the summertime. And at home, at my house, it wasn't a big deal for me to show up at the dinner table with my baseball hat on.

[3:02] But I had a friend whose dad didn't want anyone to wear hats at their dinner table, and ironically, my friend's dad was also my baseball coach.

[3:16] The first couple of times I spent the night at their house, I came to the dinner table wearing my hat. And my friend's dad looked at me. I was sitting right next to him to his right.

[3:28] He snatched my hat off of my head, and he threw it to the floor. After the second time that that happened, I learned to take my hat off before going to their dinner table.

[3:40] If I protested in that moment, if I would have said something like, I can wear my baseball hat to the dinner table at my home, the response would have been a firm reminder that when you're in my house, when you're under my roof, you'll obey my rules.

[4:01] The Bible says that in the beginning, God created everything. The earth we live on, the universe that holds it, the air that we breathe, all of it, it all belongs to God.

[4:16] The Bible describes God as the source and giver of life. He has set the rules and boundaries by which the universe operates. The Bible presents God as the creator of all things, and everything, including you and me, exists under His authority.

[4:36] We live under His roof. The Bible also tells us that soon after the beginning, God's rule and authority as ruler was challenged.

[4:50] Adam and Eve were tempted by Satan to disobey God. They gave in to that temptation by eating the fruit from the tree of knowledge which God had forbidden them to eat of.

[5:02] They exchanged the truth of God for Satan's lie, believing and being deceived by the thought that defying God's rule would make them like God. Instead of making them more like God, though, it made them less like God because they sinned.

[5:19] They defiled the good creation God made. God is holy. He is sinless. He is perfectly righteous and just. Being such, God could not overlook their sin and pretend as if nothing happened.

[5:34] The consequences of Adam and Eve's sin resulted in curses which negatively affected every aspect of the good creation that God had made. However, in His grace, God promised to make a way for sinful humanity to be forgiven of their sins and made right with Him.

[5:55] And the story of the Bible progressively reveals all God has done to redeem humanity from the curse of sin and to restore to them the dominion He originally gave them over His creation in a new creation that no longer will ever suffer the consequences of sin.

[6:18] God makes the rules. As creator of all things, as owner of all things, it's His right to do that. Soon after announcing the consequences of sin and promising to one day send a deliverer to reverse the curse of sin, God established a way for sinful people's sin to be covered.

[6:41] We read about that in Genesis 3, 21 through 24. And the Lord God made for Adam and for his wife garments of skins and clothed them. Then the Lord God said, Behold, the man has become like one of us in knowing good and evil.

[6:56] Now lest he reach out his hand and take also of the tree of life and eat and live forever. Therefore the Lord God sent him out of the garden of Eden to work the ground from which he was taken. He drove out the man and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim and a flaming sword that turned every way to guard the way to the tree of life.

[7:15] The first physical death should have been Adam and Eve. They were created in God's image.

[7:26] They were given dominion over God's good creation. They were told not to eat of the forbidden tree or they would die.

[7:36] But they didn't die physically, at least not in that moment. Instead, God graciously sacrificed an animal to clothe them, to cover their nakedness and their shame.

[7:52] And this established a pattern in the Old Testament, a rule which communicated a spiritual reality. Hebrews 9.22 communicates that spiritual reality.

[8:04] Indeed, under the law, almost everything is purified with blood and without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness of sins. Why this pattern?

[8:17] Why is the shedding of blood necessary to forgive sins? Leviticus 17.11 tells us, for the life of the flesh is in the blood and God says, I have given it for you on the altar to make atonement for your souls, for it is the blood that makes atonement by the life.

[8:42] Biology wasn't my best subject, but I learned that blood is pretty important for life. Blood carries life-sustaining elements to all parts of the body.

[8:56] I have about a quarter-sized piece of my knee that had to be removed because blood stopped flowing to it inside of my knee, inside of my femur, and so without the blood flow to it, it died and it broke off inside of my knee, which thankfully it was taken out, and I look forward to glory when I get that piece back.

[9:21] But blood represents the essence of life. Therefore, shedding blood represents the loss of life, which is death.

[9:34] And the Bible tells us in Romans 6.23 that the wages of sin is death. Sin committed against our holy, life-creating, life-giving, life-sustaining God is a big deal.

[9:48] The animal sacrifices in the Old Testament revealed they were a picture of how big of a deal sin is to God. A life must be given.

[10:02] Blood must be shed for a life to be spared. Blood must be shed by a substitute to atone for the sins of the guilty. And for centuries, this system of animal sacrifices performed by the Levitical priests was in place.

[10:22] But God never intended it to be permanent. Priests lived and they died and they had to be replaced. Animals were continually sacrificed to temporarily cover and atone for people's sin.

[10:37] However, during the time when this system was in place, God revealed that He would one day provide a better priest who would make a better sacrifice to completely atone and totally remove His people's sins.

[10:54] This is the point that the writer of Hebrews, inspired by the Holy Spirit, has been making and continues to make in our text this morning. He's argued from Old Testament Scriptures that in Jesus, God the Father has fulfilled His promise to provide us with a priest of a superior order who made a superior sacrifice by offering up Himself.

[11:19] And so the main idea for this morning's sermon is that Jesus is the promised high priest of God who has secured complete and everlasting salvation for all who believe in Him.

[11:31] Jesus is the promised high priest of God who has secured complete and everlasting salvation for all who believe in Him. The original recipients of this letter were Christians who converted from Judaism.

[11:48] They were facing persecution, most likely from unconverted Jews who rejected Jesus as the Messiah. The persecution they've faced, as well as the pull that their old religious traditions had on them, tempted some of them to drift away from the faith that they had confessed in Christ.

[12:10] And so the writer of Hebrews urges his readers to not reject the great salvation of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who came in fulfillment of God's promise, fulfilling all that the law required, and who offered Himself as a sacrifice on the cross to completely and permanently atone and remove sin from those who trust in Him, who believe in Him.

[12:39] The writer of Hebrews uses Scripture to make the case that no other sacrifice is needed. Jesus is the perfect Lamb of God. His death satisfied the Father's righteous demand for justice.

[12:53] Because Jesus was offered once, we do not need to earn God's favor through good works. In Christ, we already have His favor.

[13:06] In Christ, we no longer need to resort to animal sacrifices or any other form of penance to cover our sins. Romans 8.1 says, there is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

[13:22] And as we'll read eventually in Hebrews 10.14, for by a single offering, He has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified.

[13:34] In our text this morning, the writer of Hebrews continues to make his case that Jesus is better than anything that came before. He is superior to angels, to Abraham, to Moses, to Joshua, to Aaron, to the Levitical priesthood and the animal sacrifices which foreshadowed and pointed to Jesus' coming, His dying, His rising again as our once-for-all sacrifice to atone for our sins, to save us from our sins, to forgive us of our sins, and permanently remove our sins from us.

[14:14] In these verses, the writer of Hebrews provides three facts which support the truth taught in Scripture that Jesus is the promised High Priest of God who has secured complete and everlasting salvation for all who believe in Him.

[14:34] Now, you might be thinking, Pastor Mike, I know this and I believe this. and praise the Lord. But brother, sister, in this life, we will battle against our sinful flesh and its desires.

[14:52] God created us to work. Before sin entered the world, God gave Adam work to do. Work is not a consequence of sin, but sin has distorted our view of work.

[15:06] Even after our salvation, we can be tempted to think, especially when we sin, that we've got to do something more or something else to be forgiven.

[15:18] In our sinful flesh, we can think that we've got to add something to what Jesus has done. We need to prove something. We need to feel like we've done something to earn God's grace.

[15:34] But grace, by definition, can never be earned. And in Christ, in regard to our salvation, there is nothing for us to contribute other than the sin that made His sacrifice necessary.

[15:50] God wants you to live confidently in the joy of your salvation. He wants you to know what He's done to save you, to keep you, and one day glorify you, so that you will delight in Him now.

[16:12] That you would know your salvation in Jesus Christ as a settled issue, so that you will then be about His mission that He's given to you, that He's given to His church to go, to declare the gospel, to make disciples, and disciple disciples as we collectively, as God's people, demonstrate the goodness of God to save sinners and give them new and eternal life in Jesus Christ, His Son, our Lord, and Savior.

[16:44] If you aren't a Christian, I'm glad you're here. Friend, God has ordained this day for you to hear these facts about Jesus, to know His love, to experience His grace, and to be rescued from your sin which separates you from your holy Creator.

[17:08] I've prayed for you, and I hope that today is the day that God saves you. Some of the things I'm going to say this morning are going to sound like things I've said over the past month as we've gone through Hebrews chapter 7, and that's what someone who makes a good argument does.

[17:29] They continually reassert the facts, and that's what the writer of Hebrews continues to do here. These facts, these truths about Jesus never grow old or stale to the person whom He's truly saved.

[17:45] Like your favorite movie or song or book, the gospel, the reality of who Jesus is and what Jesus has done should always be on repeat in your minds and in your hearts as we continually reflect upon the great love of our great God to save great sinners through our great Savior and High Priest, Jesus Christ.

[18:08] So now let's look at the first fact. Jesus' priesthood is preeminent. Jesus' priesthood is preeminent. He is the guarantor of a better covenant.

[18:18] Verses 20 through 21 again say, And it was not without an oath for those who formerly became priests were made such without an oath, but this one was made a priest with an oath by the one who said to him, The Lord has sworn and will not change his mind, you are a priest forever.

[18:36] Now 1,500 years is a long time, and for 1,500 years, God's people obeyed his command to go to the temple and offer animal sacrifices to cover their sins.

[18:50] The Levitical priesthood descended from Aaron seemed permanent. But the writer of Hebrews continues to make the case here that God never swore, he never gave his oath that this priesthood would be anything but temporary.

[19:06] The writer of Hebrews shows his readers again that the belief that the Levitical priesthood and the animal sacrifices associated with it were permanent have no basis, that thought has no basis in Scripture.

[19:24] And this is a good reminder for us of the importance of going to the Scriptures, of going to the Bible, and submitting to the truths God has revealed in his Word and making sure that it is God's Word that informs our beliefs.

[19:42] If an opinion we have, a position we've taken, a feeling we possess, or a belief we hold contradicts what God's revealed in his Bible, in his Word, then we must change whatever needs changing so that we are in alignment with God and his Word.

[19:58] We must view our culture through the lens of Scripture, not Scripture through the lens of our culture. I'll be going to the Southern Baptist Convention this week, and I'll be voting for Al Mohler's Truth and Unity Amendment, which affirms the Bible's clear instruction that the role of pastor, elder, overseer, is a position that God has given to men he uniquely calls to serve in such a role.

[20:32] And I've been grieved to see the way that people, pastors, and our convention have misunderstood this amendment and have turned it into something that it is not.

[20:48] God has a unique and special calling for men and women. He's given us different and distinct roles that complement one another. Distinction in roles does not mean inequality in person.

[21:04] We can look at the Trinity for that truth. The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit have distinct roles. They are distinct persons, but they are equally God.

[21:15] And it grieves me that those who oppose this amendment aren't addressing the scriptures that this amendment is based on. And so, I ask you, are we going to let God's word or popular opinion determine what we will believe?

[21:35] And I know my answer. In our lives, in this church, and hopefully in our homes, God's word must have the final word.

[21:48] And if our thoughts, opinions, or feelings, or beliefs contradict God's word, then we are the ones who need to change. The belief that some of the initial recipients of this letter had contradicted Scripture.

[22:07] God never promised that the Levitical priesthood, the animal sacrifices they performed in the temple, and all the rites, rituals, and ceremonies that took place there in the temple were permanent things.

[22:19] As a matter of fact, he promised with an oath that one day a better priest would come after the order of Melchizedek. And so here again, the writer of Hebrews quotes Psalm 110.4, here the third time, to stress this point that Jesus' priesthood after the order of Melchizedek is preeminent to the Levitical priesthood.

[22:43] It not only came before, but it came with God's oath. God established the Levitical priesthood through Aaron based on his divine instruction, not based on his divine oath.

[22:59] He never swore that the Levitical priesthood, the animal sacrifices they offered, and everything else entailed in their service in the temple would last perpetually.

[23:09] But God did swear that his son, the Messiah, would be a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.

[23:26] The only time in Scripture where God makes an oath other than this is when he confirmed his covenant with Abraham, something the writer of Hebrews mentioned in chapter 6, verse 17.

[23:37] Now with God, an oath is not necessary because God is the source of all truth and God cannot lie. His word is always good. But in those moments, God accommodated himself.

[23:51] He condescended to the sphere of sinful humanity in a way to give double assurance to fallen, duplicitous people of the eternality of Jesus and his Melchizedekian priesthood, which preceded the Levitical priesthood in which God swore in Psalm 110.4, again, which is a Messianic psalm, that his priesthood would last forever.

[24:19] The result of God's self-imposed binding oath is that, in verse 22, this makes Jesus the guarantor of a better covenant.

[24:30] Now the Greek word there translated as guarantor is only used here in the New Testament. In Greek and in Roman legal practice during this time, a guarantor, this Greek word, bound himself to another to satisfy another's debt should they fail to repay it.

[24:54] Kind of like how a bail bondsman works today. But in their case, a breach of that pledge implicated the guarantor's property, reputation, and potentially their freedom.

[25:09] For Christians, this means that Jesus Christ, by sworn oath of the Father, binds himself to us. He's taken full responsibility for our debt to sin, bearing our sin on the cross, suffering in our place, shedding his blood, dying to atone for our sins, paying our debt to God for our sin, covering us completely and permanently in his righteousness, rising again, ascending into heaven where he intercedes for us as our preeminent high priest.

[25:51] in chapter 8, the writer of Hebrews draws our attention to what this better covenant is and he'll do so by pointing us back to Scripture, back to God's promise of a better covenant through a better high priest who sits at God's right hand and has access to his true sanctuary, his presence in the heavens.

[26:17] Jesus' ministry, unlike the Levites, is heavenly, it's not earthly. And his ministry establishes a better covenant giving us direct access to God and is based on better promises that in Jesus we are saved from sin, we are set free from slavery to sin and we will one day in glorification be unable to sin.

[26:45] Jesus is our preeminent high priest. Now the second fact, Jesus' priesthood is permanent. He always lives to make intercession. Verses 23 through 24 again say the former priests were many in number because they were prevented by death from continuing in office but he holds his priesthood permanently because he continues forever.

[27:08] In the Greek the word translated permanent in the ESV means permanent. Levitical priests were many in number because they all died and when they died they stayed dead and they needed to be replaced.

[27:23] None of them could serve indefinitely. Death was the ultimate disqualification for permanent ministry. Every Jewish generation for 1500 years had to produce new priests.

[27:41] The writer of Hebrews draws his readers attention to this reality to remind them of the limitations of the old covenant. Surely knowing the Old Testament scriptures the recipients of this letter would recall the death of Aaron Israel's first high priest and the progenitor of all the priests who succeeded him.

[28:06] In that moment God gave Israel a dramatic reminder of the impermanence of their earthly priests. I want to read that account to you in Numbers 20 verses 22 through 29.

[28:22] And they journeyed from Kadesh and the people of Israel. The whole congregation came to Mount Hor. And the Lord said to Moses and Aaron at Mount Hor on the border of the land of Edom, let Aaron be gathered to his people for he shall not enter the land that I have given to the people of Israel because you rebelled against my command at the waters of Meribah.

[28:44] Take Aaron and Eleazar his son and bring them to Mount Hor and strip Aaron of his garments and put them on Eleazar his son and Aaron shall be gathered to his people and shall die there.

[28:56] Moses did as the Lord commanded and they went up to Mount Hor in the sight of all the congregation and Moses stripped Aaron of his garments and put them on Eleazar his son and Aaron died there on the top of the mountain.

[29:08] Then Moses and Eleazar came down from the mountain and when all the congregation saw that Aaron had perished all the house of Israel wept for Aaron thirty days.

[29:20] In this moment God reminded Moses that Aaron like Moses would not be allowed to enter the promised land. The human giver of the law and the human progenitor of the priesthood would both die before Israel entered the promised land.

[29:40] As the people mourned Aaron's death God was impressing on them the fact that the priesthood he represented was a dying priesthood.

[29:51] Moses would die soon afterward unless the two things the old covenant were symbolized in the death of these two men. sin. It was not permanent.

[30:05] It could not bring people permanently into the promised land. Neither the law represented by Moses or the sacrifices represented by Aaron could deliver them from the wilderness of sin and bring them into the land of salvation.

[30:17] On the other hand Jesus though he died rose again. He fulfilled all that the law required.

[30:28] God he gave his life he willingly shed his blood to atone for our sins and on the third day again he rose victoriously over death.

[30:41] Thus as verse 25 says in Hebrews 7 consequently Jesus is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him since he always lives to make intercession for them.

[30:56] Jesus' priesthood is eternal. because he is eternal. He saves to the uttermost. He saves completely and eternally because he lives he exists and ministers forever.

[31:15] The priesthood of the old covenant the sacrifices they administered were temporary they needed to be repeated again and again and again. But in Jesus there is complete total and permanent deliverance from sin.

[31:33] The nature of his salvation is to bring us near to God. Clothed in his righteousness we can enter God's unbarred unveiled presence.

[31:47] Jesus lives to make intercession for us. We can no more keep ourselves saved than we can save ourselves in the first place. Only Jesus has the power to save us and to keep us as he constantly perpetually intercedes for us before the Father.

[32:13] Whenever we sin, whenever you sin, brother, sister, Jesus is there to say, Father, charge that to my account, my sacrifice has paid for it.

[32:29] 1 Timothy 2, 5-6 says, For there is one God and there is one mediator between God and men, the man, Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time.

[32:46] A mediator and intercessor is one who resolves a conflict between two parties. God is holy. We are sinful. That is our conflict. That is all of our conflict.

[32:58] But Jesus is the God-man, fully God, who added a human nature to his divine nature and came to us as the perfect man.

[33:09] Only he could resolve our conflict. He is the Lamb of God who lived sinlessly, who died sacrificially, and who rose eternally to completely atone for our sins.

[33:22] And by faith in him, gives us permanent peace with God because he is our perfect high priest. And now we come to the third fact. Jesus' priesthood is perfect.

[33:37] He offered up himself. Verses 26-28. For it was indeed fitting that we should have such a high priest, holy, innocent, unstained, separated from sinners, and exalted above the heavens.

[33:53] He has no need like those high priests to offer sacrifices daily, first for his own sins and then those for those of the people, since he did this once for all when he offered up himself.

[34:04] For the law appoints men in their weakness as high priests, but the word of the oath, which came later than the law, appoints a son who has been made perfect forever.

[34:15] Jesus did not need to offer any sacrifice for his own sin like the Levitical priests did because Jesus never sinned.

[34:26] He is sinless. He is perfect, holy, innocent, separated from sinners in the sense that he is completely without sin. He does not need to offer up sacrifices repeatedly like the Levitical priests did because the cross and the resurrection are not repeatable events.

[34:49] They are once for all time. Nothing more can be added to it or taken away from it. It was a perfect sacrifice made by the perfect God-man and it was completed all at once.

[35:11] Unlike the Levitical priests under the Old Covenant, Jesus did not offer up the blood of another. He offered up himself. He gave himself.

[35:23] He was the completion of what the Old Testament priests and sacrifices pointed to. Our need for a Savior, our need for a better priest, a better sacrifice who would secure a complete and everlasting salvation, a full and complete atonement for our sin, granting us full and complete access to the Father through the life, death, and resurrection of God's only Son, Jesus Christ.

[35:54] Under the Old Covenant, aging priests performed daily sacrifices knowing that they were doing so and they would do so again and again and again until they aged out of the priesthood and died.

[36:05] the Old Covenant faithfully demonstrated the forbearance of God until Christ came in the fullness of time. It brought conviction of sin and showed the need for a Savior.

[36:22] When God made the perfect sacrifice, when Jesus came to live the sinless life that we could not do, could not live, to die on the cross for our sins where he shed his blood for our transgressions.

[36:42] His dying words were a shout of victory. And he said, it is finished. John 19, 28-30 records that moment.

[36:54] After this, Jesus, bleeding, dying on the cross, knowing that all was now finished, said to fulfill the Scriptures, I thirst. a jar full of sour wine stood there, so they put a sponge full of the sour wine on a hesap branch and held it to his mouth.

[37:13] And when he had received the sour wine, now it says he said, but in the Greek we understand that this was not just an utterance, this was not a whisper, with all the strength that our Savior could muster before he died, filled with his lungs that were depleted of air, he shouted from the cross, it is finished.

[37:42] Not I am finished, it is finished. I shared this at our Good Friday service and I think it's worth sharing again as we think about our Lord's sacrifice to save us.

[37:57] Brothers and sisters, because Jesus said it is finished, you can say I am rescued. Because Jesus said it is finished, you can say I am redeemed. Because Jesus said it is finished, you can say I am forgiven.

[38:12] And because Jesus said it is finished, you can say I am saved. Because Jesus said it is finished, you can say I have eternal life. I am permanently saved by the grace of God through Jesus Christ, my Lord and Savior. Can you say that? But can you say that? I'm asking you.

[38:41] If you don't know Jesus Christ, I mean it when I say that God, who is sovereign over all things, has ordained this day for you to hear this message, to hear about who Jesus is, to hear about what Jesus has done. John 3.16, you may be familiar with it. I think it's probably the most popular verse in our culture. For God so loved the world that he gave his only son, that whosoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. Salvation isn't about you cleaning yourself up and getting your act right before you go to God. That's not how it works.

[39:20] It's you realizing that you're a sinner, realizing that you've sinned against your holy creator, and knowing that you need a Savior to atone for your sins and seeing in Jesus that one, the only one, the only way for anyone to have eternal life. And God has brought you here to hear it.

[39:43] You've heard it. And I pray that you will turn to him in repentance of your sin and call out to him, and he will save you. For those of us whom God has been gracious to save, how do we adjust our lives according to what we've heard? I think there's at least three ways here. First, pray consistently.

[40:02] We've been told, we've been reminded in this letter that as Christians, we can come confidently to the throne of God, to the throne of grace in our time of need. And I don't know about you, but I find myself in time of need pretty much frequently throughout the day, whatever it is, big or small. Why would we not go to the God of the universe, to the creator of all things, who loves us, who saved us, who sustains us, and not talk to him, and not pray to him consistently and fervently? Pray. Pray. You have access through Christ to God's ear. So pray. Second, pursue holiness. Because Jesus has done all of this for us, because he set us free from sin, because in salvation we have the indwelling of his spirit, and we know where we're going. Pursue holiness. Pursue Christ's likeness. Fight sin. Put it to death in your life. Be like Jesus. Store up for yourselves treasures in heaven where moth and wrath don't destroy and thieves don't break in and steal. Live your life for Christ by pursuing holiness.

[41:34] You can, because Jesus has saved you and has given you the indwelling of his Holy Spirit. And then thirdly, proclaim the gospel boldly. We know this truth. We've experienced its transformation.

[41:54] We see the goodness of God in our lives to save us and to sanctify us and to put up with us and to patiently forgive us as he grows us into Christ's likeness. There's a lot of problems in this world. And the problem that is the greatest problem of all is our sin, which puts us in conflict with our Holy Creator. And the only solution, the only way that sinful people can be made right with their Holy Creator is the gospel and what it says. The message of Jesus Christ and who he is and what he's done.

[42:33] Why would we not proclaim this boldly? Who cares what people think? Who cares what men might do to you? Proclaim the gospel and do it boldly in the hopes that the Lord will save more.

[42:50] I want to close this sermon and this time that we'll spend in Hebrews with the benediction that's given in chapter 13 verses 20 through 21. And this will be my prayer for our church and I encourage it to be your prayer for our church as well. Hebrews 13 20 through 21, God's word will have the last word.

[43:14] Amen. Let's pray.

[43:41] Father, we thank you for this truth that we have spent time to reflect on again this morning.

[43:55] That's the reality of who your son is and what he's accomplished for us as our great high priest. Lord, we're thankful to know that there's nothing else for us to do, nothing that we could contribute to our salvation, that in your grace, Lord, you have done it all, that you gave your life to give us life, granting us peace with you.

[44:30] And we have a great shepherd who has shown his love for us by making the ultimate sacrifice on the cross. And through salvation has equipped us with the indwelling of his spirit to do everything that is good, that we can accomplish your will for us, Lord, that we can live lives that glorify you as we pursue holiness.

[44:55] And so, Lord, I pray that in knowing who Jesus is and knowing what Jesus has done, that we will seek to live lives that are pleasing in your sight, that we wouldn't make it about us, that we would make it about you, that people would see you in us, that we would have the opportunity to proclaim the gospel boldly in the hopes that more will be saved.

[45:26] Lord, we thank you that heaven awaits. And we look forward to that day when we are with you permanently in a sinless creation, as sinless people, reveling in your goodness forever and ever.

[45:45] Lord, until that day, may we be diligent to do what you've called and commanded us to do. And again, that our desire would be that you be glorified in our lives, in our homes, and in our church.

[46:03] In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. To learn more, visit us in person or see the website at highlandparkbaptist.net.