Why Lady Macbeth Didn't Have To Commit Suicide Part 1

For to Jesus phone number for its tragic, all too many people find the only way out and miserable life is to end their lives through suicide today. Why no, depression is so deep that many of us have to kill ourselves to stop it, stay with us from the Moody Church in Chicago this is running to win with Sir was clear teaching helps us make it across the finish line.

Today's message has been in honor of having one of the longest titles you've ever used by Lady Macbeth didn't have to commit suicide, and why you don't have to either days.

You don't just think back to leading the death goes back to my high school days, but all the perfume in Arabia cannot sweeten this little hand I'm doing this from memory, but as I recall what she said is that if all the oceans of the world were to wash this blood. He hand it would make the oceans bloodied but my hand would still be bloodied.

What a story, and eventually she felt that she needed to commit suicide and I say to the people out there today who are depressed, you don't have to go in that direction. Feelings are not facts.

And God offers hope it's what you want to get on the phone my friend perhaps and call somebody to make sure that they listen to this message and I've written a book entitled the power of a clear conscience let God free you from your past for a gift of any amount. It can be yours. Go to RTW offer.com or call us at 1-888-218-9337 now let's dive into God's word and understand the much better the extent of God's matchless grace in all my years of preaching. This is the sermon with the long title that I've ever given a message why Lady Macbeth didn't have to commit suicide, and why you don't have two either.

I think about 35,000 Americans every year to choose to end some of them are famous like Robin Williams.

Most are unknown, but many of them live with depression that seems to be endless and hopeless. A friend of mine tried to commit suicide. He took some pills but he was rushed to the hospital and I visited him there and he said he'll never understand the blackness the darkness the tunnel. The hopelessness. I'm so glad that he didn't pull it off because while I was there is little six-year-old daughter came into the room.

Daddy, are you sick she didn't know why daddy was in the hospital.

Thankfully he's doing much better today, and this young woman still has her daddy so there's depression but then there's also guilt a chaplain asked a drug addict.

Why is it that you take drugs.

He said you should know the answer that question.

I feel so bad about what I've done and I don't have the nerve to blow my brains out so I die slowly at a time.

I take drug here in the Chicago area some time ago teenagers Christian teenagers committed suicide. One of them left a note that said, I've messed up too many times he did not have to commit suicide as this message will show now. Which leads me to Lady Macbeth in Shakespeare's famous play, Macbeth, these are her words not mine. Remember she had been an accomplice in the murder of the king and remember we learned that our consciences do not work before we commit a sin. It's afterwords that they plague us so listen out damn spot.

I would I say what we need, what need we fear when none can call our power to account she saying were in such a position of privilege. Nobody is going to get even with us. Why should we fear yet. Who would've thought the old man to have so much blood in him will those hands never be clean.

Here's the smell of blood still all the perfumes of Arabia will not sweeten this little hand. Oh, what a slide is there. The heart is sorely charged all the oceans of the world would not wash the blood from my hand. Rather, my hands would make all the oceans laddie so she wanders the hallway there is no peace. Overwhelmed by a plague conscience.

She commits suicide.

Now wouldn't it be wonderful if we heard a message and I hope that this will be up to under the good hands of God, where we learn that we don't have to believe depression because depression is full of lies. It tells us lies about ourselves lies about our value as a person and we don't have to believe those feelings because they're lying to us when it be wonderful to know that when we really do mess up as Lady Macbeth did that there is a place where we can park our guilt so that we need not be playing and why we should be able to sleep at night. Imagine a message in which we are brought into the presence of God received honored welcome with the past completely forgiven. Imagine what a hope that is. And that's the purpose of this message today, but in order for us to get there.

Were going to have to plow through some basic ground and then when we get to the end of the message I'm going to be giving you very important transforming truths that I believe is going to be a means of delivering for hundreds of people who are here today and even more who are listening by other means. I have that much confidence in the blood of Jesus Christ.

I believe it will be transforming in the Old Testament you know that when you begin to read it. It is so difficult because everywhere there's blood. People want to read through the Bible in a year and they begin with Genesis and they say this pretty interesting Exodus is manageable, but when you get into the tabernacle and stuff. It's a little much but you you hang in and then comes Leviticus.

These offerings all this blood. You do this you have to bring this offering you do this yet until we say enough already. Let me say this about the book of Leviticus either study it in detail, in which case it will be a great blessing to you or else the speed read it. Don't get stop there because it is hard for us to grasp what in the world is going on in the Old Testament. What God is doing is he is establishing a program by which people will be able to have fellowship with him without him contaminating himself and all of those various sacrifices had no permanent answer to sin, but thankfully God says in the meantime I'm going to use them to set sin aside so that we can have fellowship at the final offering is yet to come. It would be like being saved on credit. I mean, when you go into a store, you can use your credit card and you can benefit from whatever it is that you buy but at the end of the day at the end of the month.

Hopefully it's then that the payment will be made so all of this is pointing towards Jesus Christ. Now, in order for us to get a grasp on how much the blood of Christ means to God and how he values it. Let's begin by reminding you about the Passover, God said to the Jews that what I want you to do is to kill a lamb.

Sprinkle the blood on the doorpost of your houses because I'm going to pass through the land of Egypt. All firstborn's will be killed by the angel of death except those families that have blood on their door so all of the Jewish families they put blood on their door, they killed a lamb and they put blood on the door. Now it's not as if you know God looks at the corpuscles. Whatever it is that makes up blood and says that's what's important. What's important is the fact that the blood symbolizes that someone, and in this case an animal has been killed as a substitute for the firstborn, so God says when I Passover you that's why it's called the Passover. I will see the blood, I will see that some animal died in the place of the firstborn, and you won't come under judgment. Now think for a moment, imagine a Jewish family and they have a teenager who struggles with depression. He's been depressed all the time.

He doesn't know how to relate.

He gives his parents a hard time and that will that matter, whether or not he will be exempt from judgment is irrelevant. God says when I see the blood all Passover you. Now let's suppose that that teenager was a very bad kid fact, let's suppose that he was even worse than some of the Egyptian firstborn's does that matter. It matters and don't misunderstand me here. It has implications, but as far as the judgment is concerned. God says I'm not looking at that right now when I see the blood, I will pass over you. It is the blood that has value to God, so God says all see the blood, and I'll spare your son and then throughout the Old Testament.

He says when I see the blood, I will spare your sin, your sin will have had a substitute and that's why you have all of these animals being sacrificed to point toward the ultimate substitute.

Now when you get to Jesus, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world now suddenly we're in a different era and suddenly his blood and his life is spoken of as precious. You don't find out about the blood of lambs and a lot of other animals known on the his is precious blood of Christ, and God says that he uses the fact that this blood has special value, I mean very special value as a substitute and is our access to God. Know all that, by way of introduction where in Hebrews chapter 9 Hebrews chapter 9. Thank you so much for bringing your Bibles that is thanking some of you for something you haven't done but that God wants you to learn to do and I have my cell phone up here but it's not because I'm looking at anything. It's to keep my pages down because sometimes the air conditioner blows my notes away right but notice Hebrews chapter 9 and I'm going to begin.

Verse 12.

It's kind of in the middle of things, but he Jesus entered once for all into the holy places, not by the means of the blood of goats and calves, but by means of his own blood. That's the precious blood vessel securing an eternal redemption.

For if the sprinkling of defiled persons with the blood of goats and bulls with the ashes of effort sanctifies for the purification of the flesh, how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God hears the phrase purify your conscience from dead works to serve the living God always remember the purpose of this series of messages and I hope you memorize the verse is first Timothy 15.

The goal of our instruction. The aim of our instruction is love that flows from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith were talking about a good conscience.

So what he saying here is far as its value to us is concerned of the blood of Christ that what it does is it cleanses us from dead works.

What's a dead work at work is a ritual that you go through that you think is going to incur the favor of God so that you are accepted by him.

That's a dead work for the folks to whom the book of Hebrews was written it was going back to the Old Testament sacrifices some of them said I don't know about this business of Jesus and the fact that he accomplished it all we have to re-offered the sacrifices and for those people. They were dead works even in the Old Testament times, in a sense, these were dead works because there was no ultimate assurance that forgiveness had eternally been granted they were in a state there of a flux. Yes, they have fellowship with God. But but where is the final sacrifice. Well, it's Jesus the final sacrifice. Now, what can a dead work be mass is a dead work because in the mass Jesus is re-offered again and again and somehow the work of Jesus is never seen as totally completely finished. Baptism can be a dead work.

We baptize people here but not because we think this baptism is going to gain them some special access to God, hear me now and don't misunderstand confession can be a dead work. Martin Luther confessed his sins up to six hours and day until she felt with his confessor was so sick of it. He said next time come with some big sense. Not all these little smidgen's these little peccadilloes get. Don't let it be murdered or something like that.

Luther was a better theologian than that though he knew that that's not the issue. The issue is not whether the sin was bigger little. The issue was whether or not a holy God had acquitted his sin. So all those years.

He confesses his sins was he saved no because it was a dead work. He did not understand the gospel.

People go to confession. Why go to confession on Sunday will, but if you midsentence on Tuesday and die.

On Wednesday, then what happened to dead work.

Good works can be a dead work. I'm convinced that there are people today who do charitable things because it makes them feel better, and because they think that surely God is going to look down and say hello.

Boy you have been so generous. I think I should accept you now people sometimes operate out of guilt for good works. I have a friend who said that whenever he came home and mow the lawn without being asked. His mother used to say to him. Well, what have you been up to now, what atonement are you making Jesus comes and delivers us from all those dead works because of the acceptance of full acceptance that we had in his presence. Now just hang onto that thought and your Bibles are now open to the next chapter in chapter 10. If you look at verse 11 it says and here's a contrast now between the priests of the Old Testament and Jesus in the new.

And every priest stands daily at his service, offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But when Christ had offered for all time as single sacrifice for sins, he sat down on the right hand of God, waiting from that time until the enemies should be made a footstool for his feet. Now notice this for by a single offering he has perfected for all time forever those who are being sanctified. The work totally done. Now let's look at the contrast Old Testament. Many priests, Jesus one priest Old Testament many sacrifices that's where the book of Leviticus comes in Jesus one sacrifice one sacrifice for all time perfecting for every see what Luther needed was an understanding that showed him that there was a work of God that was so sufficient that he could have the assurance that he belonged to God for ever and he never understood that until he was studying the book of Romans were that idea also is found so the point is simply this, that Tim there were many priests and they had to stand. It's my understanding that when you had a priest in the Old Testament, they worked on eight hour shift. They were never allowed to sit because to sit is to imply that your work is finished and God wanted to say your work is never finished its endless you try to please God by doing this, but the question is have you done enough. It's an endless experience and end Jesus when he finishes his work. The Bible says that he sent down because he said it is finished the work is done the work is finished now with your Bibles open. Let's continue to read here.

I'm in verse 19 and I'm going to make some comments about these verses and then were going to go to the transforming lesson. Therefore, brothers, and we might include sisters, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus understand the imagery here in the Old Testament, the priest could go into the holy place. That's where the altar of incense was. That's where the shewbread was.

That's where candlestick was they could go there but to go into that area that is called the holy of holies they could do it only on the high and holy day, the day of atonement, and according to Josephus, when the priest went in there they had a rope on his ankle so that he did something wrong and God struck him dead. They did a pull them out without having to go in me this. This is the very dwelling place of God. Now notice what the author is saying we have confidence. I know that there's another translation I was looking at this week we have boldness. Another good word for the word confidence to enter into the holy places, including the inner sanctuary where God dwelt because we come with blood that God values so high that he says if you come because your faith is in the blood of Jesus. You are welcome in my very presence we come by the blood of Jesus. Now notice continue to hang on. Stay with me here we come by a new and living way knew because it was not in the Old Testament Living Way, Greek text actually says a freshly slaughtered way.

The imagery is that Jesus Christ died, but his death is so present that we can believe on him immediately that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh remember when Jesus died the curtain between the holy of holies in the holy place ripped in two from top to bottom.

Because God did it and hear what the author is thinking of is that just as Jesus Christ body was ripped on the cross in the very same way thanks to his body and his suffering, the veil that separated the common person from the holy of holies has been ripped into thanks to Jesus so we can come into the very presence of Almighty God through the blood of Jesus. Let's continue to read.

We have a great high priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, we don't come wondering and saying, well now I wonder if I've done enough for God. I wonder if God is going to accept what I've done them. I good enough look at my past. Look at my background know that would work were that that's all important.

But that's not the basis upon which you come to God you come to God because God says I sold value. The blood of Christ, that if you, trusting that come boldly come to receive come to have fellowship with me because that's the basis upon which I received you this is kind. Students are then truth is the one that I would be willing to die on the blood of Jesus Christ, God's son is sufficient for great centers for depressed people, for those who seem to be so hopeless. Do you know somebody who needs to listen to this message, you know someone who perhaps would benefit from this series of messages entitled the power of a clear conscience were making this series available to you. We make it available as a resource to help you on your spiritual journey for a gift of any amount. It can be yours. You can go to RTW offer.com that's RTW offer.com or you can call us and I'm going to be giving you a phone number in a moment.

Thanks in advance for helping us. We are deeply convinced that people need to hear the word of God apply to their lives so that they might be successful in the race of life. Call us at 1-888-218-9337 that's 1-888-218-9337 may give you that web address again. RTW offer.com. You can write to us running to win 1635 N. LaSalle Boulevard Chicago, IL 60614 running to win is all about helping you find God's roadmap for your race of life, guilt and shame can drive people to kill them, so there is a way back from the precipice, and it's found in the word of God. Next time I'm running to win.

Hope for the hopeless, this is Dave McAllister running to win is sponsored by the Moody Church