A Sermon of Grace

Coming up on the Saturday edition of Renewing Your Mind that there is never a true follower of Christ to his been born again to a pasta sizes and falls away from the faith, know the true believer. One is in the house of God, referring to the building, but to the family of God, the one who is truly in the house of God is the one who holds fast to a hurting and confused first century Jewish community in professing Christ as their Savior, they risk losing their families, their livelihoods, even their homes.

So the temptation was there to reject the faith, then returned to the familiar and the comfortable, safe.

This book contains clear warnings for them and us.

But even in these warning we see the grace of our God in our study the doctrines of grace we have now come to one of the most important books in the New Testament fact.

RC Sproul says after the book of Romans that he feels the most important epistle is the book to look at right now. It's a book of Hebrews, the book of Hebrews is in reality a sermon at the end of the book of Hebrews chapter 13 verse 22. It refers to itself as a word of exhortation this word of exhortation and that little phrase is used in acts 13 verse 15 to refer to an address so the book of Hebrews is an epistle written in that form, but it is in reality an evangelistic sermon it presents the supremacy of the Lord Jesus Christ, that he is greater than the Angels and Moses in the priesthood and any sacrifice that could be offered is greater than the prophets woven through the book of Hebrews are five warning passages and they are like parentheses in the middle of the book interspersed throughout the book, and each one is a plea to come all the way to faith in Jesus Christ. The book Hebrews was addressed to the Hebrew people to the Jewish people. Some who had not yet come all the way to faith in Christ, who were paralyzed because they knew they would be D synagogue if they became a Christian gave her life to Christ, the parents would hold a funeral service and they would be cut off from business contacts, etc. so the book of Hebrews is written, among other reasons to urge these Jewish people to not just have a head knowledge of Christ and not just be under the ministry of the preached word but to come to full commitment saving faith in Jesus Christ will in the midst of this book. There are several verses that we want to focus upon that speak to the doctrines of grace and the first is found in chapter 2, which deals with the atonement and the extent of the atonement in Hebrews chapter 2, and in verse nine, at the end of the verse we read that Jesus and because of the suffering of death, I was crowned with glory and honor, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for every one now, upon reading that it might initially seem that Willie died for everyone.

What we need to know is that in the original language. Everyone is actually simply the word every and it does not say every what just every of us certain category not it could be every one. Or it could be every something else. As we continue to read in this section we read in verse 11, that he who sanctifies and those who are sanctified are all from one father.

Now he who sanctifies refers to Jesus Christ and refers to his saving death upon the cross, by which he saves since sanctifies us and those who are sanctified are those who are believers in Christ are all from one father, for which reason he referring to Jesus is not ashamed to call them brethren down verse 12 saying and the writer of Hebrews now quotes Psalm 22 verse 22 I and that I refers to the Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ some 22 is a very non-messianic Psalm. The first line is my God, my God, why have you forsaken me, the very words of Christ upon the cross. Later in the same Psalm, Jesus is still the speaker I will proclaim your name to my brethren. Now, my brethren refer to all believers in him. So Jesus will proclaim the glory of the father, the name of the father to those who are truly believers and nieces in the midst of the congregation I will sing your praise and again verse 13. I will put my trust in him and this is what Jesus said upon the cross that he was putting his trust in the will of the father as he died that he would accomplish the eternal plan of God and again, behold, I and the children whom God has given me.

Now that's interesting. There are those whom God the father has given to God the son, that he would die for these given once.

Now this is not the first time we have come across this phrase because in John's Gospel. This phrase, those whom the father has given me is found in John six is found in John 10 and is found in John 17 and it refers to the elect of God in the sequence would be that in eternity past, God the father chose his elect and then gave them to the son that the son would go into the world and secure their redemption through his death upon the cross, Jesus came to die for these given ones so that's what verse 13 is indicating behold, I and the children whom God has given me for saying here is that the intent of the cross is to secure the salvation for the children whom God has given me meaning those who would become the children of God through the new birth given before the foundation of the world.

Now verse 14 therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise also partook of the same doors.

Jesus had to become like us. In order to save us. He had to enter the human race in order to save out of the human race. Those in the father had given to him. He had to get into our skin.

He he had to come all the way down to us to be on our level to raise us back up to the father so he had to share in flesh and blood, such as us in order to redeem us that through death he might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil in my free those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives. Now verse 17 therefore he Jesus had to be made like his brethren, that would be us all believers in all things, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in things returning to God to make propitiation for the sins of the people. The people is a synonymous phrase with those whom the father has given to me.

It is a synonymous phrase really with the children referring to those who are born again when we pull all this together.

I believe what we see is that in verse nine, Jesus might taste death for every one of the children that he might taste death for every one of those who have been given to me that he might taste death for every one of his brethren referring to those who would be birthed into his spiritual family. So rather than canceling out a limited or definite atonement. I think in the larger context we see that his death is for those whom the father chose and gave to the son in eternity past a John Murray in his book redemption accomplished and applied has a more careful treatment of this and gives a very precise explanation and I would commend it to you for further reading because we continue through the book of Hebrews in chapter 3, verse one we read. Therefore, holy brethren know what is interesting to me is holy brethren. He has just referred to the brethren in chapter 2 verse 17 I'm sure you can say that so his train of thought is still on these brethren who are birthed into the kingdom of God into the family of God.

These for whom Christ is died so therefore, holy brethren, partakers of a heavenly calling, consider Jesus. Here's the calling again the sovereign, powerful, effectual, irresistible summons of God the father working by the spirit to draw all of the given ones to faith in Jesus Christ.

And again, these are the ones for whom Christ has died.

Now while were still here in Hebrews chapter 3, I want you to note verse six says we think about the perseverance of the saints in Christ was faithful as a son over his house whose house we are now how do we know if were actually in the house in the family. One of the brethren. One of the children who's been born again. Well, he says, beginning in the middle of verse six.

Here is how the elect are identified in this world. If we hold fast our confidence in the boast of our hope firm until the end miss the perseverance of the saints, perseverance, and endurance and steadfastness to the end of life marks the one who is a true believer marks one for whom Christ is died marks the one who the father has chosen firm until the end. There's not a falling away from the faith. There is not a believer becoming an unbeliever. There's not ever a true believer turning his back on Christ and going into another religion that there is never a true follower of Christ, who is been born again to apostate sizes and falls away from the faith, know the true believer, the one who's in the house of God, referring to the building, but to the family of God, the one who is truly in the house of God. Chapter 3 verse six is the one who holds fast their confidence even in the midst of difficulty in tribulation for how long until the end he says it again and I would draw this to your attention. He repeats this in verse 14 he says for we have become partakers of Christ. If not, how can you know who are the true partakers of Christ and in who are those who simply say, Lord, Lord, but the Lord does not know well the answer is right here and what we will discover is perseverance in the faith to the end is one of the leading marks of the elect of God, so he writes for.

We have become partakers of Christ. If we hold fast the beginning of our assurance firm until the end.

So once again I want you to see that endurance is the mark of the elect.

They don't simply start well. They finish well and is been well said, is not how you start the race is how you finish the race that really matters. Well the fact is they start well also. But they end well. What an important truth. This is and I know as a pastor that there have been many that seem to have started well and then they fall away, so we do with this. Did they lose their salvation. Did they go from being a believer to an unbeliever.

What we do with this and the answers will that's impossible. The answer is they were never a true believer to begin with. They merely said, Lord, Lord, as I merely prayed a prayer. They join the church. They join a Bible study, they learn the vocabulary and usually is when tough times come, that the acid test is put to their life and they are revealed to be a Judas disciple one who has never become an authentic follower of Christ that they join the church.

They just never join the kingdom of heaven. They know the pastor they just don't know the Lord.

They profess Christ they just don't possess Christ and how easy it is to profess him and yet how challenging it is to possess him and endure to the end well in Hebrews chapter 6 and in verse 19 and 20. We read this hope we have in the way refers to true believers. This hope we have as an anchor of the soul. Believers are not like a ship that just adrift that the currents of this world can can take in any direction know we have an anchor for our soul. We don't drift away from the Lord, and in this imagery, he says in verse 20 Jesus has entered as a forerunner for us in the ideas, the anchor of our soul has been put into a rowboat if you will.

And Jesus has taken this anchor to heaven with him when he ascended to the heights of heaven and has anchored us already to heaven. We are attached to the throne of God. We have an anchor for our soul and so we are not addressed in this world, subject to the whims of the times, but we are attached in the in the imagery here is of a large ship in the Mediterranean Sea and there's an anchor and a lower of a rowboat and they put the anchor in the rowboat and they take the rowboat to the rocks on the coastline so that they can attached the large ship to the strong rocks that will never move in by this imagery, we have an anchor for our soul. Jesus is our forerunner and he's gone before us and he's anchored us to the throne of grace we we are certain to be there one day and then in Hebrews 7 in verse 25 we see some more of the perseverance of the saints and the eternal security of the believer in Hebrews 7 in verse 25 we read he referring to Jesus, the antecedent is in verse 24 the previous verse. He is able also to save for how long five years.

10 years 20 years.

He is able to say forever those who draw near to God through him, and that imagery represents saving faith that we draw near to God through Jesus Christ as our picture of coming to God through the sun and when we do so, Jesus is able to save us forever.

How do we know he's able to save us forever of the universe and says since he always lives to make intercession for them. We have an advocate with the father the Lord Jesus Christ is at the right hand of the father, and when Satan brings his accusations against us before the father. Jesus is there to plead our case and I want you to know he's never lost a case and he is our great high priest. He is our great advocate at the right hand of God the father and he continues to make intercession for us at the right hand of the father. He interceded for us upon the cross, and he intercedes for us. Presently, at the right hand of the father in Hebrews 9 universe 28 we find yet another passage that speaks to the death of Christ and that having been offered once to bear the sins of many. He will appear a second time for salvation without reference to sin meeting. He will not have to die yet again. At his second coming. He only had to die once and that was at his first coming in so it is coming back, he is coming to those who eagerly await him. He died for those who are eagerly awaiting his return and those for whom he died at his first coming are those who are eagerly awaiting his return at his second coming. Come to Hebrews 12 and verse two I will make certain that we have time to include this text. Hebrews 12 and verse two tells us that as we run the race of faith. We must do so with endurance that continues the theme of perseverance running through the book of Hebrews were to run the race that is set before us. Verse two fixing our eyes on Jesus literally in the original language looking away from all else looking to Jesus I watch this, the author and perfecter of faith that's very good. This says that Jesus is the one who is authored our faith. He is the one who has created our faith. He is the one who has bestowed to us the faith with which we believe in him and he is the one who perfects that faith which means sustains it and upholds it. This is why no believer will ever become an unbeliever, because not only does he offer our faith.

He also perfects meaning, sustains our faith. He doesn't give a week faith that he doesn't create a hollow, thin, shallow, superficial faith he gives to us a dynamic faith, a living faith and obedient faith and it is a face that he continues to maintain it. It is a faith that keeps ticking. If you will.

So what is important verse. This is and then we come to the end of Hebrews Hebrews 13 in verse 20 we read the God of peace who brought up from the dead, the great Shepherd of the sheep through the blood of the eternal covenant, even Jesus our Lord. A. Here we see the saving covenant referred to as the eternal covenant that we know for sure. This extends into eternity future because it is the new covenant, the new covenant by which we are eternally secure in our forgiveness of sin into the future and it may look back to eternity past and when the father first chose his elect and gave them to the sun and the sun agreed to the terms of the covenant that in receiving these select ones. His part would be to come into this world and be born of a virgin. Under the law, lived a sinless imperfect life go to Calvary's cross die for the sins of his people and is he will fulfill the terms of the eternal covenant, then the father will give to him. His inheritance in the saints do we know that.

Certainly this is true of eternity future and if this verse is teaching that of even the covenant in eternity past, then this is an extraordinary passage of Scripture that Jesus upon the cross has purchased the sheep that were entrusted to him, not the goats, but the sheep that were given to him by the father in eternity past, under the terms of this covenant. I got a father is faithful to the government and the Lord Jesus Christ has faithfully fulfilled the requirements of the covenant, and that is why you and nine are eternally secure in our relationship with God. Not because of us that because of the executor of this covenant and the one who has fulfilled Jesus Christ the gospel you so clearly proclaimed the book of Hebrews suits with really big years and it Dr. Steven Lawson is taking you through the New Testament, week by week here in the Saturday edition of Renewing Your Mind. He is showing us God's amazing plan of salvation from every book in the New Testament today's message from Hebrews provides such a clear picture of God's sovereignty in the celebration of his people. The series is 24 messages and would be happy to send you the two DVD set when you give a donation of any about to leader ministries more than eight hours of teaching in the series and it's great for Sunday school class in your church were a small group meeting in your home. This request foundations of grace New Testament when you call us at 800-435-4343. You can also find as though online at Renewing Your Mind.word for limited time were making the study guide for the series free to download. Whether you use it to enhance your personal quiet time were usually outlined in study questions for group.

It's a God that there will be of great help to you in your study. You can look through all of Wagoner's free study guides when you go to Ligonier.word by the way the daily devotionals in table talk magazine, or focusing on the book of Hebrews this month. Table talk is our monthly magazine, which along with hobos devotional lesson spotlights a theological issue or a period of church history, it's been a valued resource for thousands of people over the years that I've received every issue since 1990. And if you've never subscribed were offering a free three month trial subscription. Just go to try.table talk.com that's try.table talk.com but will continue Dr. Lawson series next Saturday. He'll remind us once again that God's kindness is shown to the perfect wife death and resurrection of Jesus and because of that the believers hope is unshakable even in the midst of trial to join us next Saturday Renewing Your Mind