Saved by the Gospel

Consider the Bible: Written by approximately 40 men over a period of about 1,600 years. These men did not know each other and came from a variety of backgrounds and levels of education. One was a cupbearer to the king, one was a shepherd and later a king, one was a tax collector, one a fisherman, one a physician.

They wrote a book in three different languages – Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek with one common theme – the salvation of man through Jesus Christ. Yet there is not one contradiction to be found anywhere in its pages. How so? These men were all inspired by the same God!

When Jesus encountered the Samaritan woman at a well, she said to him. "Sir, I perceive that thou art a prophet. Our fathers worshipped in this mountain; and ye say, that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship."  Notice Jesus' response.  "Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father. Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews. But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth." John 4:19-24. 

Notice Jesus said, "But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth." Notice Jesus’ words – “the hour cometh.” Jesus is telling the woman there’s a change going to take place.  Whatever worship in spirit and in truth means, it is different from worship under the old law.  It cannot simply mean worship in the right way and with the right attitude, for these were both requirements of acceptable worship under the old law.

What then, did Jesus mean when he said "God is a Spirit, and those that worship Him must worship in spirit and in truth? Today, we worship God with our spirit as opposed to the physical aspects of worship under the Old Testament.  We're not offering animal sacrifices to be burnt at the altar.  We're not burning incense or wearing priestly clothing such as the priests wore under the old law.  Today, the church is a spiritual house offering spiritual sacrifices to God.  I Peter 2:5. God does not dwell in temples made with hands (Acts 7:48) and we do not worship Him with our hands. Acts 17:25. Because God is a Spirit, we worship Him with our spirits.

We worship Him in truth.  The Old Testament tabernacle, and later the temple, was only a figure of the substance, the true temple, the church. The tabernacle and temple were only figures that foreshadowed the coming of the true church. No wonder Hebrews 8:1 describes Jesus as a minister of the true tabernacle. Christ has entered, not into holy places made with hands. Notice these were physical in nature and were mere figures of the true.  Hebrews 9:24.

Today, as Christians, we enjoy the blessing of engaging in worship with our spirits and carrying out that worship in the substance of the true temple, the church of Christ.

The purpose of preaching has always been to teach every man and warn them of the judgment to come.  Colossians 1:28. In Isaiah 5:8-23, God’s prophet Isaiah pronounces six woes, or warnings, to a sinful people, pleading with them to come back to God. The parallels between the sin of Isaiah’s day and that of our own time are strikingly similar – too much so to be overlooked.  Warning is given to the covetous (5:8-10), the carnal (5:11-17), those who are captive to sin (5:18-19), those who have lost their moral direction (5:20), those who conceive their own standard of right and wrong (5:21) and lastly, those who corrupt justice (5:23).

What do you know about Christ's kingdom? Does it exist now or is it something to come in the future? Can it be found on earth?

As Christians, we have been rescued from the evil power of darkness and translated into the kingdom of the Son. We've been redeemed and forgiven!

What do your prayers for the church include?

Of all the blessings we enjoy in life, none is greater than the New Testament church.

As the writer brings this great book of Hebrews to a close, he reminds us that here we have no continuing, or permanent city and reminds us to keep seeking our eternal home in heaven.

Let brotherly love continue. Be not forgetful to entertain strangers. Live a life free of covetousness. These are just a few of the practical exhortations the writer gives us to help live a life that is pleasing to God.

As Christians, we have come unto Mt. Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels.