Genesis Church - Sermons

The author of Hebrews has already alluded to Melchizedek twice; now he gives us a whole chapter connecting this figure to the mission and ministry of Jesus. Melchizedek is only mentioned twice in the Old Testament, once in Genesis in the story of Abraham, and then again by David in Psalm 110. But the author shows us something amazing about how we are to understand the Old Testament—that we are to see every single story pointing to Jesus.

Melchizedek was the King of Salem, but also a priest of God, he received offerings from Abraham. And, he is a type of Jesus—a small picture of Jesus pointing forward to the true King/Priest. In this sermon we will look at typology and other ways the Old Testament points us to Jesus as the full substance of the small tastes given in the text of the Old Testament. We hope to learn how to read the Bible, and specifically the Old Testament, showing how every story, every law, and every song points us to the coming of Jesus.

The in between is hard. God is a God of promises and He is faithful. Yet, we wait to see all of His promises fulfilled.

Abraham was given a direct promise of an heir and then waited 25 years into very old age before God kept the promise. Still, the Lord had sworn, so Abraham knew the promise would come true.

God promised Israel a redeemer from the family line of Abraham; then Israel waited for hundreds of years, with generations coming and going, before seeing this promise fulfilled when God’s Son was born in Bethlehem.

While we experience the blessings of Jesus and our salvation, we also wait and trust in unfulfilled promises. In Jesus we have a better promise and while we do experience many of the blessings of grace, we still long for the day when all the promises are complete. Yet, we can go on because we have a sure and steady anchor for our souls in the faithfulness of God and the promises made true in Jesus.

Maybe the most important question we can ask ourselves is, “How can I know that I am actually a follower of Jesus?” Is it possible to know?

The Biblical answer is a definitive “yes”, but with a bit of a caveat. We can know that we are genuinely saved because it is Jesus who does the saving and He will never lose someone He has actually rescued. Yet, our assurance of this salvation can waver. The author of Hebrews wants us to have “the full assurance of hope until the end.” So, he calls believers to make sure we are setting our assurance on the evidence of God’s saving work in our lives.

Today we will look at the signs of grace highlighted in this text that reveal the authenticity of someone’s salvation; things which also give us greater assurance of our salvation. And we will see that the author of Hebrews points us to a few beautiful benefits when the Holy Spirit gives us greater assurance that we truly belong to Christ.

“Raise your hands if you’re sure!” Do you remember the advertisement? Catchy slogan, but for some who are “perspirationally” challenged, placing one’s hope in an deodorant is going to take more than just a catchy slogan and name. It’s one thing to have an anti-perspirant leave you pitted, it’s an entirely different thing to have assurance of an authentic salvation.

The Scriptures reveal the beautiful doctrine of the assurance of our salvation. In other words, if God saves a person, can that salvation be lost? The absolute answer is “no”; yet, not everyone who claims salvation has actually been saved.

Our passage this morning is really the heart of the application of the great book of Hebrews and it comes with a warning not to leave the faith and the promise of a God who will never lose someone who is authentically His.

Today we will begin a two-week look at this passage that dives deeply into the beautiful doctrine of the assurance of our salvation.

The Priest’s job in the Old Testament was to be the go- between, the mediator between God and people. They offered sacrifices for the people and served as interpreters of the Torah. Yet, their ministry was imperfect because they were flawed and broken people who also needed the forgiveness of the sacrifices. Therefore, before offering a sacrifice for the people, the priests had to offer sacrifices for their own guilt. Often though, rather than serving the Lord and His people, they misused their position for personal benefit and honor.

Hebrews shows us that Jesus is our true and better High Priest, who sympathizes with our weaknesses; He was sinless—He did not need a sacrifice. This true and better High Priest was the sacrifice that allows us to draw to the throne of grace with confidence so we can receive mercy and find grace to help in our time of need.

Many of those who grew up in church will remember being involved in Bible Drill. Bible Drill was a program using competition to help kids learn to find stuff in the Bible. The teacher would say, “Ready, draw swords!” and kids would raise their Bibles to get ready to search. Then the leader would bark out a passage and say, “Go!” and the race was on.

As a pre-adolescent boy, it felt kind of cool to hear the call to arms, but also a bit bizarre that our response was to raise a book in readiness to find a passage. At first look, the Bible appears to be just like every other book, filled with information and stories on pages. Yet, as any long time reader knows, the Bible is something different—it is alive, active, cutting. The reason is that this book is inspired; it is the very Word of God.

To be honest, we don’t read it—it reads us, exposes our need, and points us to Jesus, who is the true author behind every word.

Most of us could use a good nap. The problem with life is that it is so difficult to ever really rest. We believe the universe depends on us, and if we stop for a minute it will all fall in.

Religion is the spiritualization of this, picking up the weight of salvation and trying to carry our load. But the call of the Gospel is to enter rest, to cease from works, and to enter the land of promise. The Sabbath was a day set aside to slow down from the busyness of work, to rest, gather at a table, and worship with God’s people. These rhythms are important, yet the author of Hebrews also shows us that the Sabbath rest was a pointer looking to Jesus, who is our true Sabbath.

And while there are great benefits to taking a day off and clearing our calendar for worship, family time, and rest, the True and Better Sabbath is found in Jesus, the only real place where we can rest, stop earning, and enjoy the land of promise.

It would be devastating to hear your doctor tell you that your heart is damaged beyond repair, the result of years or ignoring signs and warnings. Worse than that is to develop a spiritually hardened heart that gradually moves farther and farther away from the kindness of God and the grace found among His people.

Under Moses, the Hebrews were rescued by God from slavery in Egypt and brought to Yahweh and into a covenant. Yet, they quickly abandoned the Lord, falling into sin and failing to believe His promises. This section recalls the horrible story of God’s people found in Exodus and Numbers, when a whole generation of Hebrews died in the wilderness, missing out on the hope of the Promised Land. While God was still faithful, keeping His promises to their children, the first generation who crossed the Red Sea missed it because of their ungratefulness, idolatry, and unbelief. This is a warning for everyone who once looked to Jesus but turned away, developing a hardened heart.

Jesus provided a better Exodus because His redemption is even greater than the rescue from slavery in Egypt under Pharoah. And the promises of rest and peace from the Gospel are far better than those found in the Old Testament. Yet, there is a clear warning to protect ourselves from spiritual heart disease.

For the First Century Jew, Moses was the foundation for their faith and their greatest hero. He was a prophet and spokesman for God who gave Israel the Torah (first 5 books of the Bible). He was their deliverer who led them out of Egypt and through the Red Sea. And he was the leader that took them to the Promised Land. For Jewish people, the life, work, and theology of Moses was the foundation for their whole identity as a people. The Jews who were following Jesus were accused of leaving Moses to embrace a different rescuer and, therefore, a different religion. As a result they were being persecuted. But the author of Hebrews shows us that Moses was just a brick in the wall, a servant in the house. Jesus is actually the builder of the whole house that is Israel, and is the ultimate apostle and high priest. More important, to rightly understand Moses is to realize that his life, ministry, and writings were pointing forward to Jesus who is worthy of more glory than Moses.

Today this is a reminder to be careful about our influences. We often have received our philosophy, values, and even identity from influential people. Whether we have been shaped by ancient philosophers, celebrities, or politicians and political pundits, the call of this passage is to consider Jesus, who is the Apostle and High Priest of our faith and confession. For those who know Him and hold fast to their hope, they will discover a better identity and a sure world view.

This One who is the ruler of all, for a little while was made lower than the angels, put on flesh, suffered and tasted death. The One for whom and by whom all things exist lived the perfect life then died our death and through His suffering brought many sons to glory.

The glorious miracle of the incarnation is in view in this text, and for these people, the man Jesus was someone they had seen, heard, known. Yet, this individual in human history destroyed the power of death and the devil on our behalf, standing as every human being’s Representative and High Priest.