Scripture and Our Great High Priest (Part B)

I'm going to address it is assessing is accountability is have to be frightening. Very nice Oregon go very badly. It's up to you blame God.

Thank you Lord and will close us up when we get to the end of this God's mercy is big one verse don't think that that mercy excuses that slothfulness sin. So not only does God see it all but he remembers all, except with his children.

This is cross reference radio with our pastor and teacher Rick Gaston. Rick is the pastor of Calvary Chapel Mechanicsville.

Pastor Rick is currently teaching through the book of Hebrews. Please stay with us after today's message to hear more information about cross reference radio, specifically how you can get a free copy of this teaching today. Pastor Rick will continue teaching through the book of Hebrews chapter 4 and his study called Scripture and our great high priest. Many Christians believes it more of a pocketknife than a sword. How many how many people are in pulpits this very moment. We simply don't believe that they may have some recently claimed to have respect for the Bible call themselves churches have a cross here. There they don't believe they don't believe that the word of God is living and powerful, sharper than any two-edged sword, so they don't preach a preach with universities.

Tell them to preach, preach what the cultures telling them the preach. They preach what they think the people in the pew. One heard from the pulpit. I have no idea what you want to hear. Overall, those of you. I know that love the Lord, I know you want to hear the word but I don't know what applications to make eye.

I asked God what he wanted to say and he unfolds it he impresses it. Next thing I know it's there and that's how we conduct the ministry one way the ministry of the word. Nothing about a sword, especially a double edge sword is that there is very little of anything humorous about it, especially when it is unsheathed. It is a serious tool.

The facts of Scripture are just like that. They are a threat to everything evil in me and outside of me in the spirit and in the flesh, the word of God goes against those things.

Word of God and as a sword is both offensive or defensive.

You can use it to shield intact, or you can use it to make an attack, it is necessary for both. We should learn to do both those who use the word of God and also be cut by the word of God is double edged. It speaks of the church militant that the church militant will be the church victorious.

If she has her sort. It speaks of a holy war, not physical violence, never that spiritual violence to destroy the works of principalities and powers in spiritual wickedness in high places to come against them.

Psalm 149 verse six. Let the high praises of God be in their mouth, and a two edge sword in their hand. The psalmist may have been speaking about violence also saying let us praise the Lord and defend the land of the Lord and under the Old Testament economy that was totally permissible within the New Testament we are not looking to cut people with a sort of violence except to say violence to those ideas to the lies of hell to those ideas that can't are contrary and offensive to God. Taking every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ Jesus. Paul said in second Corinthians 10. So, the enemies of the church are not flesh and blood, wickedness, wickedness out of the mouths of the lost wickedness in the hearts of the loss wickedness of our own flesh would take sword to it. Scripture, where would we be without aware when you are saved, be without God's word, and maybe, maybe there is someone here who is not a Christian and you think this is just rhetoric you think is just an alternate view. I hate for you to find out the hard way that your raw you have an opportunity to find out the sweetest honey way or perish in your sin. The enemies of the church never been a shortage of them. There won't be till Christ returns and purges the world of them. But for now they are here in our primary weapon is the sword you can have people that are into praying and into doing good things, but that they have departed from the expressed will of God, which only comes to us through his word is the final authority then you have a problem. You can find people in other religions that want to do humanistic things sort of goodness towards humanity that can pray can cut themselves and flog themselves in this way or that, but is totally disinterested in the word of God that cuts that is powerful. Proverbs tells us Satan has a double-edged sword to he's looking to cut you with it. Also, speaking of the immoral woman could be just the immoral person but in the end she is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a two edge sword Proverbs 405. Verse four is piercing. That means it gets in there penetrates you know the three wounds. The puncture the laceration and the abrasion the punctures. The worst one gets in and well of course and by degree, but the soul and the spirit are pierced.

That's where life resides well for some some just have a soul there. They only part of them alive other than their flashes that part that interacts with other human beings, but they had no interaction with God because this spirit is dead, and that they think they do.

It's a false God because they're not rightly related. They are not born again that's offensive to those who object to the gospel offended you will be in God's offended and return. You know those people who act like there offended that everything out. Are they that dense. Do they not understand that they too can be an offense to someone but is all about them right. Well, it's not all about me as it should be well the part of us that deals with God is the spirit and in view are not born again the spirit is dead and you are dead in your sin, but when God when you're born again when God touches you from a gutter above you come to life.

Your spirit is alive now and he divides these things. He separates them. There'd been there very detailed and complex to us but not to God, people are even Christians. The best of us are very complex at times, but not to God we were created as a mention from the dust and then God breathed into us, his life, he gave us life that he has any offers to us to see the identical eternity going forward that he has and he invites all to come and get it in those again who don't are judged.

He says of the joints and the marrow. There are the intricate details. Scripture finds no part of us unreachable when talking about the Bible and the writer is saying to the Jews therefore be diligent to remember your Scripture as I've been calling to you too. You've been thinking about going back to the temple to offer sheep when Christ was crucified for you. You better pay attention to the word of God because therein are the blessings and the judgments. It is a discerner that Greek word crit E costs means it is a critic we get our English word critic from that Greek word there are those who think that they are criticizing the Scripture, but in the end, the Scriptures, criticizing them, it is the supreme critic and that's how it penetrates the Bible says, out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. And what is in the heart defiles the man you read those words and you can't help but saying that is true. I don't need a scientist to tell me that I don't need a preacher to tell me that I know it's true.

My own experience my own heart. God's word judgment.

No matter what they say or think God's word judges them and, in that it is living and it is powerful. It is sharper than any two-edged sword, pierces even to the division of the soul and the spirit, and of the joints and of the Morrow cuts all the way through, if necessary, it will several limbs if necessary.

Verse 13 pausing a moment.

Remember we said there's nothing humorous about a sword unsheathed when someone pulls a pistol on you. It's not ha ha that's funny sword in a pistol. The only difference between the two really is distance one can cut a thousand feet away.

The other cannot. Well, maybe thousand feet of derringer would be able to do that still has a greater reach verse 13. Well let me close that E how what we talking about Scripture is serious business just as serious as someone pulling a weapon on you. God's word is a weapon on sin and if you are enjoying sin. If you have not repented about it. If you are careless about our relationship with Christ that sword is drawn on you. Just as the cherubim that stood to make sure Adam and Eve did not stay in the garden forever, but he chased it barred them. He had his sword out he meant business and it turned in every direction.

Verse 13 of Hebrews now. Chapter 4, and there is no creature hidden from his site, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of him to whom we must give account.

God misses nothing, it is exposed.

People dream have nightmares about going outside naked, exposed nothing shielded there's nothing shielded from God no matter what you have on Revelation 2. Speaking of Jesus or Jesus speaking says I am he who searches the minds and the hearts that's all of you. There's nothing left in the Bible talks about the heart is talking about all of you that he adds minds just gives us a little bit more detail as man is made up of more than a mind and a hard he is will he is a soul that soul will live forever, but where will it live. If the spirit is dead in this life and the man dies with a dead spirit. You won't live in heaven. Spirit is alive in this life. That man dies, that soul will go to heaven. Well he says I am he who searches the minds and hearts and I will give to each one of you according to your works. God is speaking to the church in Revelation 2 and he saying to those in a charge.

I see what you're doing in the church at all and I'm going to address it is assessing accountability.

This doesn't have to be frightening.

This will go very nicely. Or go very badly. It's up to you blame God.

Thank you Lord and will close us up when we get to the end of this God is merciful. He is big on mercy but don't think that that mercy excuses that slothfulness sin. So not only does God see it all but he remembers it all, except with his children because the blood of Jesus Christ washes the sin of way and whatever sin was there is now not admissible in God's court. Jeremiah put it this way, says God speaking to the prophet for I will forgive their iniquity and their sin. I will remember no more. I will forgive their iniquity and their sin. I will remember no more. But you have to be redeemed. You have to be saved.

Mankind is redeemed in the sense that the price is been paid.

It is finished, all they need do is go claimant. I don't mean the silly go claimant.

You know, blabbing rabbit, you know, God wants you riches claimant that's blasphemy. But I mean Christ died for sinners and any sinner that would come and receive on his terms. His salvation that sinner is saved so when he says that I will remember their sin no more. He is speaking to those who want the Jews in Israel at the time the Jeremiah spoke those words who were engulfed in treachery and blasphemy and idolatry and violence they would not benefit from Jeremiah's words quite the opposite.

Well, he continues, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of him to whom we must give account accountability. We must give account. Get it in your heads. This RIA. The mean of the Warren unrighteous judge should be very bad if God were just sovereign is some parts of Christianity tend to exaggerate and not that you can exhaust exaggerate his sovereignty. But you can so focus on his sovereignty. You have no love left you have a tyrant yes he is sovereign. We got that, but that's all he is.

I'm doomed. Thank God he is not thank God John the apostle says point-blank God is love.

Do we think, as though God were blind to do. We think as though he can't see what with thinking he doesn't see it was inside my head. We think that only x-rays can see what's inside of us. But God can't. Well I have you have a genuine understanding or a right understanding of God.

You know he's of course he can do anything but you mindful of this you conscious of it enough to live this way we talk as though God is not deaf, speech, do we treat others as though God is ignorant. I didn't see what I just did you do we realize that unbelievers they are not aware God sees like we are aware.

They think he doesn't hear. He doesn't keep a list every idle word of man is remembered by God.

Mankind is absolutely vulnerable to God, therefore it is in man's best interest to be friends with God.

So this is the part of the sermon that someone may say that was a believer may say yeah I need that I have someone who I'm God is letting me minister to. That's what I was looking for. Or maybe it's just the point that resonate you write that down for later, but we all are aware of those things we are friends with Jesus.

Verse 14 seeing then that we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the son of God, let us hold fast our confession now from this verse to the end of the next chapter is going to show that Christ is superior to the Levitical priesthood that is important to the Jews because so long as they esteem the Levitical priesthood and not see that Christ has made it obsolete you can say suspended it because parts of it will be revived in the millennial kingdom. But if they do not see the Christ has is over it all now. Then they will cling to a defunct system and let that which is alive and beautiful die on the vine, you could say and so he says seeing then that we have a great high priest, a title bestowed on no other person in Scripture the great high priest is great is none greater.

There is none that he could even come close.

A priest is one who is to stand between God and me, that's what we are a royal priesthood, the Bible tells us we who believe we stand between the unbeliever in God on their behalf in that sense we don't stand in between, in the sense we can stop God from getting to them. Quite the opposite. We are part of the process of getting them to God and getting God to them we are the go-between we been entrusted with this office. We have been deputized so you have an unbeliever knows nothing about Christ whatsoever. God sends us over there and he uses us as a mediator in that sense we share the gospel. We live the life before them. People get saved that way. It is a better system and so to confess Jesus as the great high priest would be the same as leaving Judaism and that is what he is trying to get them to do. Let's look back now at Hebrews 4 verse one because he is the consequence of their denial of Christ. He says let us fear lest any of you seem to have come short of it is something to worry about is not making it across the finish line with Christ because you swapped him out for something else.

He says who has passed through the heavens that refers to his resurrection and his ascension into heaven. In his seat at the right hand of the father, the high priest once a year of his realm. On the day of atonement going to the holy place and then leave after burning incense on the golden altar. He would go behind a veil that separated the holy place from the holier place in there and that holier place was the ark of the covenant, the mercy seat of God originally inside that Ark was the word of God. The tablets that God had written from Moses in the wilderness. There was a pot of manna that spoke of God's provision for man, not only for April his provision in the word for the spirit is provision for man in the flesh for the food the manna and then there was the rod of Aaron that but it was a stick, a walking stick long since dead but it bore right almonds instantly and that speaks of society. Sorry the authority of God and the authority of men given by God to men over his people. And on top of that chest with these articles were was this with the cherubim. The Angels, but it was called the mercy seat of God.

That led over the word over the provision over the authority is God's mercy and the writer here is telling them that we have a priest that doesn't go behind the veil on earth, but he is going behind the veil in heaven.

He is at the throne of God.

He is sitting on a throne himself next to the father. So when he says he is passed through the heavens are great high priest is on the throne there for whenever we draw near to Jesus, we draw near to the Godhead.

All of it. So… Imagine visualized not in that mystical sense of the word, but if you're in a throne room and there's a king on the throne and next to him as his son. And if you draw near to the sun and you speak to the sun well.

The father is going to hear you.

Also it's one and the same.

You cannot separate the two. So to draw near to Jesus Christ is to draw near to the father you are drawing near to the father and the son.

And this is done through the spirit, the Holy Spirit, and that is the Godhead we call the Trinity, so we conclude that when we conclude our prayers we say in Jesus name because he is the one that is penetrated the veil in heaven. He is the one on the throne and through him we are accepted not take two verses from Hebrews Hebrews 8.

Now this is the main point of the things we are saying we have such a high priest was seated at the right hand of the throne of Majesty in the heavens than Hebrews 924.

Christ is not entered the holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us. That's what it says Hebrews 924 and so there we have the holy Scripture living and powerful making it clear how this process of access works to God for us is going to go on to say therefore because of this without shame with courage without impudence you can freely go and access the strong make the statements. Now I want to repeat them we get there in a minute but you could not go to Caesar's court and just sashay into his courtroom, or even respectfully walking there or heralded God Almighty God Almighty says you come. I've already lifted the scepter. I've already given you permission to come to me at any time with anything any place and so we believers we have two intercessors we have Christ Jesus on the throne pleading on our behalf for our sin. That's what recurrent grace is all about.

You see, God will continue to forgive his people, and then we have the Holy Spirit in us and he pleads the case of Christ to us. You know this is not right. Don't do it you know this is right do it you know Christ loves you, you know, and that is the Holy Spirit ministering within us, teaching us what to say.

Have you ever prayed and said to God, maybe not. With these words, but the same idea. I don't know what to say about this and then you all of a sudden it's just coming out. We think that came from. You think it was manufactured in your heart heart is deceitful and desperately wicked above all things as God the Holy Spirit ministering sometimes and groans.

Other times articulation really think David got the words for his song, God found a heart that he could write on and out of the abundance of the heart of David, we have the Psalms move you've been listening to cross reference radio the daily radio ministry of Pastor Rick asked Calvary Chapel in Mechanicsville, Virginia. As we mentioned at the beginning of today's broadcast.

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