Christ’s Blood (Part A)

When Jesus said I go to prepare a place for I don't know if he prepared it like that like that. I don't know if he still working on it. If he just willed it. I mean, he's such a craftsman. God is he just enjoys creating things. I don't know what is happening, but I know when he said those words to those men.

He said if it weren't so, I wouldn't tell you to say saying I need you to believe this for your sake you meant it. Christ speaks, he means where the ones that have so much baggage comes along with us.

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.

Now here's Pastor Rick in Hebrews chapter 9 with a brand-new message called Christ's blood. If you have your Bibles. Please open to Hebrews chapter 9 Hebrews chapter 9, we will resume. Verse 11 but Christ came as high priest of the good things to come with the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is not of this creation, not with the blood of goats and calves, but with his own blood he entered the most holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption through the blood of bulls and goats in the ashes of a heifer sprinkling the unclean sanctifies for the purity of the flesh, how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God, and for this reason he is the mediator of the new covenant by means of death for the redemption of the transgressions under the first covenant, that those who are called may receive the promise of eternal inheritance. For where there is a testament, there must also of necessity be the death of the testator or the testament is enforced after men are dead since it has no power at all. While the testator lives. Therefore, not even the first covenant was dedicated without blood. When Moses had spoken every precept to all the people according to the law. He took the blood of calves and goats, with water, scarlet wool and his stop and sprinkled both the book itself and all the people saying this is the blood of the covenant which God has commanded you then. Likewise, he sprinkled with blood both the tabernacle and all the vessels of the ministry and according to the law almost all things are purified with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no remission again as we have been driving these points home every session so those of you familiar with it. Please bear with me, but for those of you unfamiliar with it. The writer of this Hebrew letter is saying to the Jews who had come to Christ were now considering maybe going back to Judaism or mixing Judaism with Christianity.

He writes this letter as did Paul to the Romans and the Galatians really spiritually and rationally insisting that they don't make that tragic mistake cannot go back.

They were well-versed. Of course in Judaism were not so much. So we have to bring out dictionaries and and cross reference materials and other commentaries, etc., to understand the Jewish culture, but they were very much on it and so what may be redundant to us was very much alive to them and can be alive to us. Also in so we are considering what in my notes when I will put my study notes together.

I often do a word cloud because now I think there's something sticking out.

I want to see if the word cloud grabs it so you know you just copy the text and paste it into a document word cloud document import. It highlights the words that I use the most and not to my surprise, when I did it with this morning's consideration. The word that stood out was blood. Blood was the word that stood out, then Christ and God. Of course it's Christ's blood, that is, that is central to everything we as Christians know and it is this morning's consideration. That's the emphasis from this passage. Christ's blood so we look at verse 11 of Hebrews 9 but Christ came as high priest of the good things to come with the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is not of this creation. You see how that stands out.

But Christ came. Christ came to me personally and to everyone born again, he comes personal. They will rise and we will see them face to face and eye to eye with now we walk by faith and it is not wasted is very serious business. It is often very challenging but special nonetheless. And so what the writer is doing here in the previous verses. He spoke about all of the symbols those glorious symbols of that ancient tabernacle in the wilderness that Moses was trusted with establishing and Moses did just that and the writer here is saying those items in the temple, the tabernacle itself. They all spoke of Jesus Christ, they were the coming attractions to his great fulfillment. So now he says, in contrast to the human priesthood of that system. That system of blood sacrifices of bulls and sheep and Rams, etc. Christ.

Christ comes in he goes into the presence of God the father, not with the blood of calves in bulls and goats, but his own blood. It is his blood. It is his death that stands out Israel miss this.

Not all of the Jews, not every single Jew misted of course not. But as a nation as a people. They misted and they still don't get it. The end of our reading this morning we read that without blood there is no remission of sins as a nation. They offer no blood offer. They have no tabernacle. Sin is really not dealt with but for the Christian. It is dealt with in Christ. So the high priest of Israel was the embodiment of the needs of the people is going to God on behalf of the people. He was the best that humanity had to offer to represent them. That was his office yet.

Christ, our high priest is the best God has to offer humanity. There's nothing higher is everything Jesus Christ is God the son son of God in the born again we know what we know it well. That's why we moved emotionally in our worship as Christians that's why we are startled and frightened and alarmed, but perhaps it's a better word than frightened.

We are alarmed when we don't have the thrill of our faith maybe would being sifted they were going through something in our Christian walk in God's lead and letting it happen.

To develop us to build us up to use us and so we receive from his hand that which he has to give the Lord give Lord takes away. Blessed be the name of the Lord is no lesson my eyes because he is not given or allowed me to keep that which I may have cherished is very frightening thought, but it was a thought that is very encouraging when I mean one is encouraging.

It gives courage that he will never leave us nor forsake us. He is our high priest. He always stands for us. He knows what's coming and he knows how to prepare us and work us through them and that's why I don't know I speak for myself.

Maybe you share this view when I go through things that are difficult. I know what my I know what I'm supposed to do.

I know my station on the ship. I am to rush to him.

I am to rush to him for strength and to tap into all the strength that is available to me and to use it and that in the process of that I may not feel very good. I may not be very excited a certain you not entertained, but I am focused and his Holy Spirit allows that to happen. First Peter Peter writing ale. How much junk did Peter have to put up with. If you didn't reveal possibly got out of Jerusalem because they eventually moved amongst the Gentiles, even begin to share their faith and they knew that with all this junk in this life.

All the things we can explain and concerning human suffering and things that make no sense, they'd still knew Christ Jesus himself as God. Peter said whom having not seen you love.

You know what it took for him to write that Peter's writing is I have seen Christ. I saw him alive. I saw him crucified and I saw him risen and I saw him ascend. I saw him. You did not choose one just as much as me as humbling. So he writes.

He says whom having not seen you love, though not now you do not see him get believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible full of glory, glorious power, but it's not sour power business, not the power of of that which the world has is the power of holiness and righteousness that comes from God's throne.

And it doesn't always feel good but it's there for the believer as high priest of good things to come.

He says in verse 11. How profound is that good things to come.

When was I like them. Now I don't want to wait to cash in. I want now, but I cannot cannot get all that I want now on so that patients patients built on faith more than hold hope is that we wanted righteous hope is connected to the one that we are hoping in because he is faithful and so that is that. Hope that is built upon faith and so he says with the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands is contrasting the tabernacle of Moses, that Judaic system everything in his speech is exalted in this high speech is of the high priest of good things to come with the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands is taking them away from this physical universe is keeping them in the spiritual you remember in Exodus when the temple was being designed by Moses in or upon instructions from God, and there were those artisans that were gifted by God to make it to manufacture the articles for the temple that temple. Those articles were made by men wonderful as they were the human craftsmanship that was anointed going into it. But God's handiwork. What is that we could just little bits of it from Scripture because it is beyond us. Revelation 2121 and the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass is just the road but it doesn't take you into the glorious chambers and stations of of the structures that belong to God and spiritual.

We can even imagine. So he John leaves is you you want to send John come on do hook up up a pump and get out of you tell me more. I can't stop what was happening all around him, trying to focus on the shouting angels were trumpets and that all the stuff I can't tell you what I saw. It was marvelous. So when Jesus said I go to prepare a place for you. I don't know if he prepared it like that relate that I don't know if he still working on it. If he just willed it. I mean, he's such a craftsman. God is he just enjoys creating things. I don't know what is happening, but I know when he said those words to those men. He said if it weren't so, I wouldn't tell you to say saying I need you to believe this for your sake he meant it. Christ speaks, he means it will and ones that have so much baggage comes along with us and so that is not of this creation, you know, when Solomon had built the temple and Nebuchadnezzar destroyed it and then Zerubbabel comes back in the rebuild the temple and they dedicate the temple and there were those who knew it. Solomon's Temple looks like because they were there and they went. They wept because by comparison, it paled. It was so dim, it just did not have anything near what they once had. But imagine imagine this in reverse. When you get to heaven is going to make everything here.

Look small tiny puny. You could even say.

Imagine the magnificence of what God has prepared for the righteous. We really cannot, we can just enjoy trying but that's built on reality.

So much reality that we want to share our faith with others so they can share this glory that God has prepared in the opposition to that is fierce. It is intense is never-ending in this life. Verse 12 he goes on his is not with the blood of goats and calves, but with his own blood he entered the most holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption will for you Bible students. Here's a thought, see the line of the of Aron, they did bring the blood of bulls and calves and when they entered into worship at the temple at the line of Melchizedek. If a candidate was a real man. He offered the blood of Al's blood sacrifices.

But if he was a Christophe and he then at something to think about what that's what you Bible students, but coming back now to to this before us, the high priest, our Christ is a high priest outside the Old Testament system and he is beyond and above it forever.

There will be no human deaths and there will be no animal deaths in the kingdom of God in heaven but to get sinners into paradise. There had to be blood there had to be death.

They had to be death enough and blood enough numbers, but in quality. The one who died to get the sinners in had to be worth it. Moses wasn't worth. Noah, Enoch, Isaiah, Paul, none of them worth Christ. Christ only.

He is the one glorious enough is the one that is able to do wouldn't all other can do another that defined me.

He is the one that is able and no other can really do this not the way he does it is the one it finds me and forgives me he finds me knowing I'm a sinner, he forgives me knowing my sins, but it doesn't stop there he finds me he forgives me he favors me he likes me and other people that we love because were commanded to love. We don't like him too much. Look, I love your help in change a flat I just don't you come over dinner Christ is unlike you, the sin part.

The flesh party sees beyond that. Remember we talked about those boards that made up the tabernacle of Moses, they were overlaid with gold. When you look at that gnarled would you didn't see the wood you saw the goal this golden them year planks when Christ sees you and me. He sees the gold of Calvary of the empty tomb, he finds he forgives. He favors NS. Not all is forever is a son for a while so I we start and stop liking me and find out that you no matter not you, not me.

But maybe you if you find on your Red Sox fan.

For example, you had is not true for those of you that, unless a baseball team and if you don't know that you some serious cultural catch up to do what the before asked that I put there of course are intentional. The alliteration I want to back a little bit of this up with scripture and I want to back it all up Scripture. He found me. Luke's gospel chapter 10 is this not beautiful to the one who was once lost but now it's found Milton not fig wrote a song about this John Newton for the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost when he came here. I'm going to go get sinners. That's why he came to earth, who else would do that. Who else would say let's go fetch some sinners for ourselves, clean them up, make them our own. Christ we are forgiven. Colossians 213 courses all over the Scripture so pronounced in the New Testament because in the New Testament. Forgiveness does not have the blood of goats and bulls. It has the blood of Christ on it and you Paul writes being dead in your trespasses and the and circumcision of your flesh, and distance from God barriers that existed you the dirty one. He has made alive together with him, having forgiven all your trespasses, gone God wills out of existence your sin. That's what forgiveness is when God says I wanted gone is not delegated. It's done first John chapter 2 new Christians who may always fret my say that I'm a seven unsafe today okay tomorrow my safe computers. Maybe you've got that issue. Satan has learned that the dental number that bugs you, and he keeps hitting you with that may be because you fell a lot and so here's a verse just for you and for you who are strong in the faith is a verse just for you. I write you little children because your sins are forgiven you, your sins are forgiven you for his namesake.

That's what it says because what he did. That's the his namesake. There is thorough and you are favored as I mentioned, your like just why why does God like me is God's love. God is perfect God is holy God is able God is able to take that which is not likable and make an adored if that object will submit to him and that object does not submit to him, then the wrath of God will abide Ephesians 6 talks about this favor of God, to the praise of the glory of his grace by which he made us accepted in the beloved. That Greek word accepted. Kari told all it is the root word is carless grace. But in this form it means to be favored.

It means to be liked, accepted, highly favored splendid honor put upon.

That's what the word mean your Bible says that's what the word means. The Bible says that we, to the praise and the glory of his grace by which he made us favored in the beloved. Every Christian should have a humble scribe.

What I mean by that I don't mean we should strut like little proud roosters or anything like that, but this should be this anger that holds us to says you belong to the king. You are his subject, which you more than that, your family, your loved your embraced your adored your cherished we sing about adoring the Lord will come let us adore him, we sing about out cherishing the Lord, but he loves Theodore as he cherishes us more God loved us before we loved him and he loves us more than we could ever love him piled up together.

Hard to believe it when you're suffering but by faith.

You can do that then we come to the forever Ephesians again 321 to him be the glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen. That's what it says forever and ever. The old King James puts it more poetically, world without end. And so we have a robust announcement that we have listened to that we have heard from the Scriptures, God has announced his care for us because we don't get the things we want because we don't mature the way we want requesting these things that your flesh, your flesh is always insane when it comes to spiritual issues is never correct. It never gets it right.

It is always a connoisseur of fine wines, why don't I get this. Why don't I get that. How come he gets it. He says what would his own blood. Here in verse 12 he is the substitute for the sinner, there is no substitute for him on any level.

Christ died in the place of the center so you you broke the law of God, God said this is my commandment, don't do this and you did it. What's the penalty on the holy caught a melody around me black like that your sinner, your unclean and the penalty is separation from me forever. Death, real death, not just the loss of life in this world, but God has provided a Savior to make a way of escape, to resuscitate that life to bring them back all that Adam lost. God is made a way to regain and so he took the penalty he took the penalty about death on the cross with his own blood, his own life wasn't easy because he was God the some welding on God the son. Watch this. This is nothing that wasn't like that. He suffered. The Bible says he suffered the shame also has very serious is not a stroll through this life for him.

It was a miserable experience. He saw the some enormous suffering exist in this life we look at things we seem why did God allow that all the diseases all of the adjusted the things that are that happen to be human beings but he's on his draw a line is that you can understand this much. The rest is mine you can understand me and that should be good enough for you, please says here in verse 12, but with his own blood, by his own blood. Christ paid the price for sinners saved by the blood of the Lamb, not by the Bible Bible leads to salvation. It stirs us to salvation, which you don't get saved by the Bible.

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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