My Morning Meal

So often, the New Testament writers were corner men. You know, those guys with the towels on their shoulders and the water bottle in their hands who wait for the bell to ring between rounds of a boxing match and then go into action trying to get their fighter ready for the next round. Sometimes their guys come back pretty beat up . . . their job is to patch them up and get them back in the fight . . . 10% attendance to the physical . . . 90% focus on the mental. That’s what comes to mind as I read the last half of Hebrews 10 this morning . . . the writer is a corner man trying to encourage his readers not to give up the fight. And the “secret sauce” for endurance? Faith.

For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God you may receive what is promised. For, “Yet a little while, and the coming One will come and will not delay; but my righteous one shall live by faith, and if he shrinks back, my soul has no pleasure in him.” But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who have faith and preserve their souls.   
                                                                                 (Hebrews 10:35-39 ESV)

These Hebrew believers had been “enlightened” (v.32). They had grasped something of the “new and living” way that God had opened up to them through Jesus the Great High Priest . . . they had tasted something of the confidence to “enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus” (v.19-21). They had also suffered for their allegiance to the Christ . . . they were regarded as rejecters of the law of Moses . . . they had been “publicly exposed to reproach and affliction” and the “plundering of their property” (v.33-34). And as such, many were now wavering . . . the fight was tough . . . they were feeling somewhat beaten up . . . thinking about throwing in the towel. Enter the Corner Man . . .

For nine-and-a-half chapters the Corner Man has been painting a picture of the superiority of Christ over those things that foreshadowed Him in the law. A better minister than angels . . . a better mediator of a better covenant . . . a better builder of a better house of God . . . a better high priest in a better tabernacle . . . a better sacrifice for sin opening a better way into the most holy place. And then, to those who are reeling from going round after round with opposition and trial, the Corner Man says, “The just will live by faith . . . and we are those who have faith and preserve their souls.”

Not to be overly simplistic . . . not to minimize suffering . . . not to think lightly of trials . . . but, at the end of the day, when you’re kind of feeling beat up, doesn’t it come down to what we believe that propels us to get up again the next morning and enter again into the fray? Isn’t it with an eye to the sky, owning by faith that “the coming One will come” (v.37) that we determine, as much as lies in us and by the power of the Spirit upon us, to keep on keepin’ on? When we seem to be losing everything around us, isn’t it because we believe that we have “a better possession and an abiding one” (v.34) that we press on towards the finish line . . . believing that we will “receive what is promised” (v.36)?

Faith is the fuel of endurance.

And so the Corner Man whispers in our ear as He strengthens the inner man, giving us living water to drink . . .

. . . let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith . . . let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful . . . let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works . . . encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.  
                                                                                   (Hebrews 10:22-25 ESV)

The righteous . . . those declared righteous through the work of the cross and their place in Christ . . . the righteous will keep on keepin’ on by faith . . . by really believing what they say the believe . . . by not relying on their own ingenuity, strength, and abilities, but in His finished work and in the power of His resurrection . . . by not trusting in “horses and chariots” to win the battle, but trusting in the name of the LORD our God (Ps. 20:7).

O’, that by His grace we might walk by faith. Let us fight the good fight . . . by faith alone in God alone . . . for His glory alone. Amen?

A friend commented on my post yesterday and offered this summary of the book of Hebrews . . . “The whole book of Hebrews is kind of a taste test comparison (Coke/Pepsi?) by someone who has known, loved and been blessed by the OT law and prefiguring ritual. But now he has ‘tasted Christ’ and there is no comparison!” I like it. A taste test . . . comparing the new with the old . . . the substance with the foreshadowing types . . . the real thing with the prefiguring copies and patterns . . . the most excellent with the good and better. And as I continued reading in Hebrews this morning, the “director” of the taste test is not prepared to leave it to the “untrained dull palette” to draw the right conclusion . . . eventually you just have to declare which is superior . . eventually you just need get to the point . . .

Now the point in what we are saying is this: we have such a High Priest, one who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in heaven, a Minister in the holy places, in the true tent that the Lord set up, not man.   (Hebrews 8:1-2 ESV)

I like it when it’s made easy for me. Sometimes you gotta dig and noodle on stuff before you get it . . . other times someone clearly helps you by drawing a big arrow that points to what is important to know. That’s Hebrews 8:1-2 . . . the NLT puts it this way, “Here is the main point: We have a High Priest who sat down in the place of honor beside the throne of the majestic God in heaven. There He ministers in the heavenly Tabernacle, the true place of worship that was built by the Lord and not by human hands.”

That’s the point . . . in heaven, in the presence of majestic God, is the “true tabernacle”, the real place where man and God come together. And the High Priest who serves in that holy of holy places is Jesus Christ the Son of God. And this High Priest is at the right hand of God — there being no higher place of authority than Majestic God’s right hand . . . and this High Priest is seated at the right of the Father because His work is finished — the work of opening the way to God . . . and what remains is for Him to serve as an intercessor. And, behold, this High Priest is my High Priest . . . and the High Priest of all who, by faith, have received the gift of salvation through His once-for-all sacrifice. That’s the point!!!

This morning it’s not so much about where I am but about where He is. It’s about His authority and His on-going ministry on my behalf. It’s about a heavenly perspective and about a heavenly tent not made by man but by God Himself. It’s about entering into that most holy of places through the Spirit of God. It’s about considering Jesus, the risen Christ . . . about focusing on what is unseen rather than what is seen . . . about setting my heart on things above. Its about living here with a renewed vision and appreciation for what He’s doing there. That’s the point!!!

There’s a place for complicated things . . . but not this morning . . . its been clearly shown to me again. In fact, its been shown twice. Here’s what I read in Luke 22 this morning . . .

When day came, the assembly of the elders of the people gathered together, both chief priests and scribes. And they led [Jesus] away to their council, and they said, “If you are the Christ, tell us.” But He said to them, “If I tell you, you will not believe, and if I ask you, you will not answer. But from now on the Son of Man shall be seated at the right hand of the power of God.”   (Luke 22:66-69 ESV)

Doesn’t get any clearer than that. My Lord is sitting at the right hand of the power of God . . . that’s the point. Get it? Got it? Good!!

And that’s the taste that refreshes. No need to keep sipping on the other stuff . . . no need to look other places . . . instead, as my friend encouraged me in his comment, let’s keep “our eyes fixed on Jesus, the Pioneer and Perfecter of our faith” (Heb. 12:2) . . .

O’ what a Savior! Amen?

Jesus is a priest forever. That’s what the writer to the Hebrews emphasizes this morning. Jesus is foreshadowed in a guy that Abraham ran across almost 2,000 years before Christ entered this world, Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God (Hebrews 7:1). Like Melchizedek, Jesus has “neither beginning of days nor end of life” (7:3) . . . Jesus comes from a line apart from the Levitical line (7:14) . . . in fact, He has become a priest not on the basis of “bodily descent, but by the power of an indestructible life” (7:16). Thus He is ” a priest forever, after the order of Melchizedek” (7:16).

And what does a forever priest do?

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.  
                                                                                  (Hebrews 7:25 ESV)

While it is true that work of atonement for sins was finished on the cross . . . that through the once for all offering of Himself, Jesus completely and fully paid the ransom for my redemption . . . I’m reminded this morning that Jesus is far from “being in retirement” . . . that Jesus’ work continues . . . a priest forever . . . always living to make intercession for those who have drawn to God through Him . . . that they might be saved to the uttermost.

Saved to the uttermost . . . that’s what I’m lingering on this morning. I am a work begun by God . . . to be completed through the Spirit of God . . . aided by the risen, ascended Son of God as He makes intercession for me.

Saving to the uttermost isn’t just about being saved forever, it’s about being saved completely . . . saved to the fullest extent . . . saved perfectly . . . the finished product being all the Maker had in mind when He began the work. At that moment I believed, I was utterly saved FROM THE PENALTY OF SIN through the work of Christ on the cross. One day, I will be utterly saved FROM THE PRESENCE OF SIN when I go to be with Jesus and am removed from this world of darkness. And today, I am in the process of being utterly saved FROM THE POWER OF SIN through the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit and the never-ending intercessory work of the One who is my Great High Priest forever as I’m transformed and conformed to His very nature.

And I’m just a bit taken aback this morning at the thought of Jesus, even now, making intercession for me. Not because I don’t think I need it . . . oh, do I need it! . . . but because of the eternal commitment He has made to those who are His. Jesus came that we might have life and have it abundantly (John 10:10) and, to that end, He has forever linked His eternal being with our feeble frame as He draws alongside through His blessed Spirit and as He intercedes before the Father as our Great High Priest.

And as such, though I stumble . . . though I struggle . . . I believe that this born again sinner will be saved to the uttermost . . . saved completely . . . saved to the fullest extent provided by the grace of God.

Saved to the uttermost . . . for my eternal blessing . . . more importantly, for God’s eternal glory.

Even so, Lord Jesus, intercede . . .

My kids loved picture books. You know those big, over-sized children’s books that cared less about narrating a story but instead captured the imagination with full-page graphics and photos. It seemed they never got tired of them . . . we’d pull them out again and again. But eventually my kids grew up . . . and while there may be fond, nostalgic memories of those picture books, my girls don’t read them anymore . . . don’t rely on them for their intellectual stimulation. They moved beyond picture books . . . started reading “chapter books” . . . and now read “adult books.” My reading in Hebrews 5 this morning reminded me that, as the people of God, we need to move beyond picture books, as well.

. . . for everyone who lives on milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, since he is a child. But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil.
                                                                            (Hebrews 5:13-14  ESV).

The writer to the Hebrews wants to take His readers deep . . . “connecting the dots” of Scripture with the Person of Christ . . . showing them that Christ is the Messiah, and has become the Author or Source of eternal salvation . . . that He is a High Priest after the order of Melchizedek . . . BUT . . . screech to a stop . . . the writer to the Hebrews can’t plumb the depths of this thought because his readers had become “dull of hearing”.

He says that by now, with how long they have had exposure to the Word they should be teachers . . . instead they need someone to take them through the basics again — they are still on “milk” and not “solid food” . . . still babies . . . not mature. They need to get out of Sunday School . . . move beyond the “Bible stories” and picture books . . . and get deeper . . . stop sucking on the sippy-cup and get their teeth into the meatier stuff. It is possible — and perhaps too prevalent in the Church — to be “unskilled in the word of righteousness” (5:13). Inexperienced . . . bottle-feeders . . . unable to chew on the solid food of the Word and digest it themselves.

I have often thought that we don’t spend enough time showing believers the basics on how to feed themselves. We focus on pre-packaged Bible studies (good stuff, not saying it isn’t) without also spending time on how to study the Bible . . . how to read and correctly handle the Word and get beyond the Sunday School stories and dig out of the pages of Holy Scripture solid teaching for themselves. To experience for themselves the rush that comes from making an observation to then find the Spirit stirring their souls with illumination.

For too many, their sole intake of the Word, I fear, is the pre-digested, 3 or 4 point sermon on Sunday morning. I’m not saying there isn’t a place for gifted teachers to open up the word for others and feed the sheep — there is . . . it is an integral part of how the church is intended to grow. But we also need to equip the sheep with enough tools so that they can be Bereans . . . that, after receiving the Word with gladness on Sunday morning, they can go home and “examine the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so” (Acts 17:11) . . . to take in “solid food” for themselves and grow up.

If we don’t move beyond the picture books, the people of God are in such danger of looking like and living like the world about us . . . rather than being salt and light. Without “constant practice” . . . without having “our powers of discernment trained” by handling the living Word of God we lose our edge to discern good from evil . . . and can so easily settle for “good enough.”

Constant, habit-forming, consistent use . . . reading . . . studying . . . meditating . . . obeying. It’s as we seek to get deeper . . . as we “use” the word . . . that we develop the spiritual discernment concerning good and evil . . . that we recognize what’s beneficial and what’s not . . . that we distinguish what’s just good, from what’s better, from what’s best.

It doesn’t happen overnight . . . but maturing isn’t an overnight process . . . it occurs over a lifetime. We need to move beyond the “Sunday School stories” . . . and put away the picture books . . . and ask God, by His grace and through the illumination of the Holy Spirit, to take us deeper as we exercise ourselves in the Word . . . desiring  to become “skilled” in the Word of righteousness.

For our benefit . . . For His glory . . .