Participants: Pr. Stephen Bohr
Series Code: AOT
Program Code: AOT000028
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00:12 Welcome to Anchors Of Truth,
00:15 from the 3ABN Worship Center and the Fresno Central Church. 00:18 Truths That Matter with Stephen Bohr. 00:22 Welcome to Anchors Of Truth and to the fifth and final 00:28 segment of this particular series which is entitled, 00:32 Truth That Matters. 00:34 It is so important, my friend, to know what truth is. 00:38 The Bible says that "you shall know the truth, 00:41 and the truth shall set you free." 00:45 These are the words of Jesus found in the book of John. 00:48 And I believe with all of my heart that the seeking of truth 00:52 is more important than simply looking at things 00:57 and accepting things that we may have heard that people say 01:01 but that they cannot prove from the Word of God. 01:03 And certainly during this series of five subjects, 01:06 Pastor Stephen Bohr has looked at truths that matter, 01:11 truths that are very important for these last days. 01:16 I believe with all my heart that Jesus Christ is coming soon. 01:20 And I believe that you believe that very same thing. 01:23 And so it's more important even now, today, than ever before, 01:28 with all of the delusions that we see; delusions in literature 01:33 and the movies, even in theology, that would lead us 01:37 to have a different concept of God, and to believe things 01:41 about God that simply are not true. 01:44 And so in this subject tonight, Pastor Stephen Bohr 01:48 will be presenting the second part of the Inward Outworking, 01:53 which is a subject concerning the state of the dead. 01:58 And throughout this series, he has been presenting subjects 02:02 that he feels, and that we feel, are extremely important 02:06 in these times in which we live. 02:10 I thank the Lord for Pastor Stephen Bohr, 02:13 for his commitment to the Lord Jesus Christ. 02:16 He is the Speaker and Director of Secrets Unsealed. 02:20 He is the Pastor of the Fresno Seventh-day Adventist Church. 02:25 He is a man who is sought as a camp meeting speaker 02:28 and a convocation speaker around the world. 02:32 And we're so happy that, even though it was impossible 02:35 for him to actually be here with us in Thompsonville 02:39 or in West Frankfort, he is joining us by the miracles of 02:44 technology from his church in Fresno, California. 02:49 And we appreciate his ministry. 02:52 And we know that you do too because we receive a lot of 02:56 cards and letters and emails and phone calls that tell us 03:01 that you appreciate the ministry of Pastor Stephen Bohr. 03:05 And when he comes here to West Frankfort 03:07 to our worship center, he is one person that 03:11 many people from the area come to hear. 03:14 But before Pastor Bohr speaks, Tammy Chance is going to sing 03:20 for us a song entitled, That's When I Feel Amazing Grace. 03:44 When battles are too hard 03:48 for me to win, 03:57 when Satan comes to tempt me 04:03 with all sin, 04:10 I know the Lord provides 04:16 a secret hiding place. 04:23 That's when I feel 04:28 amazing grace. 04:37 That's when I feel 04:41 amazing grace, 04:50 when I surrender all 04:54 to His embrace. 05:03 I close my eyes 05:09 and then I see His face. 05:15 That's when I feel 05:20 amazing grace. 05:28 He promised to be faithful 05:33 to the end. 05:41 And on His promises 05:46 I now depend. 05:54 He'll dry every tear 06:00 and every fear erase. 06:07 That's when I feel 06:12 amazing grace. 06:20 That's when I feel 06:25 amazing grace, 06:33 when I surrender all 06:38 to His embrace. 06:46 I close my eyes 06:52 and then I see His face. 06:58 That's when I feel 07:03 amazing grace. 07:11 That's when I feel 07:19 amazing grace. 07:45 We thank you for this wonderful passage. 07:55 We come pleading for special wisdom 07:58 to understand this passage from Hebrews chapter 12 08:02 and verses 22 through 24. 08:04 We studied the first part last time. 08:07 And as we conclude this study today, we ask for the 08:11 presence of Your Spirit. 08:12 Open our minds and hearts that we might understand 08:15 and receive the Word of truth. 08:18 And we thank You for hearing and answering our prayer, 08:20 for we ask it in Jesus' name, amen. 08:25 Just a little review of what we studied in the first part 08:28 of this particular study that we're doing. 08:32 In our last study, we noticed that the book of Hebrews 08:36 has a central theme. 08:38 And the central theme of the book of Hebrews 08:41 is a comparison of the Old Testament religious system 08:46 with the New Testament religious system 08:49 in the heavenly sanctuary. 08:51 We noticed in our study last time that the Old Testament 08:54 system was good. 08:56 It's not that the Old Testament system was bad. 08:59 It was good because it pointed forward to the coming 09:03 of the Messiah who would shed His blood for sin, 09:07 and then He would be the intercessor for His people. 09:10 But we also noticed that the Old Testament system 09:13 had mere human priests, and the sacrifices were 09:18 made of animal blood which could not remove or take away sin. 09:23 So the Old Testament system was good because it 09:27 pointed the minds of people forward to the time 09:30 when the Messiah would come. 09:32 Now the New Testament system is better 09:35 because the New Testament system is the fulfillment of 09:38 that which the Old Testament system pointed to. 09:42 In other words, what was promised by the 09:45 Old Testament system was fulfilled in the New Testament. 09:49 Because in the New Testament, 09:50 we have better blood; the blood of Jesus, 09:53 we have a better intercessor; the God-Man. 09:57 And therefore, we know that the New Testament system 10:01 is better than the Old Testament system. 10:05 Now we also noticed last time that the spirit that is 10:10 referred to in this passage when it says, 10:12 "the spirits of righteous men made perfect," 10:16 those spirits actually represent the personal identity 10:21 or the character or the life record of the heroes that 10:26 we find mentioned in Hebrews chapter 11. 10:29 You know, in Hebrews chapter 11, we have 10:32 this long list of Old Testament heroes. 10:34 And some of them are even called righteous. 10:38 And so the spirit of these individuals simply means 10:42 their personal identity, their life record, 10:45 or their biographical record which is contained 10:48 in the heavenly book. 10:51 Now, they're called righteous because according to 10:54 Hebrews chapter 11, they were made righteous by faith. 10:57 Time and again in Hebrews chapter 11, we find these 11:01 individuals referred to as being righteous by faith. 11:06 So we notice then, that this passage in Hebrews chapter 12 11:10 verses 22 to 24 is telling us that there is this group 11:16 of heroes that died in Old Testament times 11:20 and they were made righteous by faith 11:22 but their life record, or their personal identity, or their 11:27 biographical sketch which is written in heaven 11:31 needed somehow to be made perfect. 11:35 In other words, somehow it needed to be made complete. 11:39 But of course, the question that begs to be asked is, 11:42 why did the life record, or the character, 11:46 of these individuals that was written in the books 11:48 need to be made perfect? 11:50 And how could this record of their lives be made perfect? 11:56 Now in order to understand what it means that the spirit 11:59 needed to be made perfect, we need to understand what 12:03 is meant by the word "perfect" in the book of Hebrews. 12:07 The word "perfect" in Hebrews does not refer 12:10 to moral perfection. 12:13 It does not refer to living a holy life. 12:17 Basically, the word "perfect" in the book of Hebrews 12:21 means to be qualified or to be complete. 12:25 Now I want us to understand that. 12:27 I'm going to give you several texts. 12:28 In fact, we're going to read all of the texts in the 12:30 book of Hebrews that uses the word "perfect". 12:32 And we're going to see that the word "perfect" means 12:35 to be complete or to be qualified. 12:39 Now this word is used, first of all, of Christ. 12:43 And then secondly, it is used of the followers of Christ. 12:47 So what we want to do first of all is look at the 12:50 word "perfect" as it is used in connection with Christ 12:54 in the book of Hebrews. 12:55 So go with me in your Bibles to Hebrews chapter 2 and verse 10. 13:00 Hebrews chapter 2 and verse 10. 13:03 And immediately, you're going to see that the word "perfect", 13:06 as it applies to Christ, cannot mean moral perfection. 13:10 It cannot mean perfection of character, because 13:14 Jesus was morally perfect all throughout His life; 13:18 from the time of His birth till the moment of His death. 13:21 Hebrews chapter 2 and verse 10, speaking about Christ says this, 13:26 "For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all things 13:31 and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory..." 13:37 Now notice what the objective is. 13:39 He's going to bring what? 13:40 He's going to bring many sons to glory. 13:43 Now did He have to do something in order to 13:45 bring many sons to glory? 13:47 Absolutely. 13:48 "...in bringing many sons to glory, to make the captain 13:52 of their salvation..." which is Jesus Christ. 13:55 God the Father had to make Jesus Christ, what? 13:58 "...perfect through sufferings." 14:02 Did Jesus have to be made perfect? 14:04 Yes. 14:05 Does that refer to moral perfection? 14:08 No, because Jesus was not imperfect. 14:11 Basically, what this is saying is that in order for Jesus to 14:15 be the Captain of the salvation of His people, 14:18 He needed to go through suffering, He needed to die 14:21 in order to be qualified, or be complete, 14:25 to be able to save them. 14:27 Are you understanding what I'm saying? 14:28 Now let's notice a second example. 14:31 Hebrews chapter 5 and verses 7 through 9. 14:37 This is also referring to Jesus Christ; 14:39 the word "perfect" in Hebrews as it applies to Christ. 14:43 In Hebrews 5 and verses 7 through 9, 14:45 speaking about Jesus, it says this, 14:48 "Who, in the days of His flesh..." 14:51 That means while He was on earth. 14:53 "...when He had offered up prayers and supplications, 14:57 with vehement cries and tears to Him who was able to save 15:02 Him from death, and was heard because of His godly fear..." 15:07 Now question, is this talking about His passion 15:09 and His suffering in Gethsemane and on the cross? 15:11 Absolutely. 15:13 Now notice verse 8. 15:14 "...though He was a Son, yet He learned obedience 15:18 by the things which He suffered." 15:21 "And," notice, "having been..." What? 15:24 "...perfected, He became the author of eternal salvation 15:29 to all who obey Him." 15:32 Do you notice once again what the word "perfect" means here? 15:35 Is it talking about the fact that Jesus was imperfect 15:37 and He had to become perfect? 15:39 Absolutely not. 15:40 Because Jesus was perfect from the moment of His birth. 15:43 What this is saying is that Jesus, according to verse 9, 15:48 had to be perfected in order to be the author 15:52 of eternal salvation to all those who obey Him. 15:55 Did Jesus have to suffer and did He have to die 15:58 in order to be qualified, in order for Him to be complete, 16:02 to be able to save His people? 16:05 Yes or no? Absolutely. 16:06 And that's what the text is saying. 16:08 It's saying, He suffered. 16:09 Through His suffering, He's made perfect. 16:11 And therefore He is able to, what? 16:13 He is able to bring eternal salvation to His people. 16:16 In other words, Jesus becomes qualified to save. 16:20 That's what the word "complete" means or the word "perfect" 16:25 means in this sense. 16:26 Let's notice one other verse where the word "perfect" 16:29 is used in connection with Christ. 16:31 Hebrews chapter 7 and verse 28. 16:39 It says here, "For the law.." 16:41 This is the Old Testament system. 16:43 "For the law appoints as high priests 16:46 men who have weakness..." 16:50 So what is the first group of priests? 16:52 It's the priests from when? 16:54 From the Old Testament system. 16:56 "For the law appoints as high priests men who have weakness, 17:00 but the word of the oath..." 17:02 And the oath that it's referring to is, "you are a priest forever 17:05 after the order of Melchizedek," which is regards to Christ. 17:08 It says, "...but the word of the oath, which came after the law, 17:12 appoints the Son who has been..." What? 17:16 "...who has been perfected forever." 17:19 What does that mean that Jesus has been perfected forever? 17:22 Does it means that His character had to become perfect 17:27 because it wasn't perfect? 17:28 Absolutely not. 17:29 Because His character was perfect all the way through. 17:32 What it means is that Jesus Christ, as the Priest 17:37 who shed His blood, when He shed His blood He became 17:40 qualified or He was complete in order to bring... What? 17:45 ...in order to bring salvation for His people, 17:48 and in order to intercede for His people. 17:51 So in other words, the word "perfect" with regards to 17:54 Christ, means that He suffers in order to be qualified, 17:59 in order to be complete, to be a Savior for His people 18:04 because the Old Testament system did not 18:07 bring that kind of perfection. 18:10 Now let's notice the verses in the book of Hebrews 18:14 that refer to us now. 18:17 Because we've already noticed the texts that speak about 18:19 Jesus being made perfect, or Jesus becoming qualified, 18:23 or Jesus being a complete Savior by His suffering 18:27 and by His death. 18:28 Now we need to know how this word is used with regards to us. 18:33 Now we're going to look at several passages from 18:36 Hebrews chapter 7 through chapter 10. 18:39 And the first passage we want to take a look at is 18:42 Hebrews chapter 7 and verse 11. 18:45 And we're not going to read the whole passage. 18:47 We're going to jump down to verse 19 and then 18:50 verses 25 and 26, where the word "perfect" is used 18:54 with regards to God's people. 18:55 So it says in verse 11 of Hebrews 7, 18:59 "Therefore, if perfection were through the 19:03 Levitical priesthood, for under it the people received the law, 19:08 what further need was there that another priest should rise 19:13 according to the order of Melchizedek, 19:15 and not be called according to the order of Aaron?" 19:18 Now let's stop there. 19:20 How many priesthoods are being compared here? 19:22 Two priesthoods. 19:23 What is the first priesthood? 19:25 The priesthood of Aaron. 19:28 And what is the second priesthood? 19:30 The second priesthood is the priesthood of Christ. 19:32 Could the first priesthood bring perfection? 19:36 Absolutely not. 19:37 Can the second priesthood bring perfection? 19:39 Yes, but remember that the word "perfection" does not refer 19:43 to moral perfection of character. 19:45 What it means is that the sacrifice of Jesus under 19:49 the new system is complete and can truly... What? 19:53 ...and can truly save. 19:56 In other words, we are saved because Jesus Christ 20:00 shed His blood on the cross. 20:01 The Old Testament system of human intercessors 20:05 and of blood of animals could not save at all. 20:10 And so what it's saying here is that perfection... 20:12 In other words, full forgiveness of sin, legal forgiveness of sin 20:18 could not take place in the Old Testament system, because 20:21 as we'll see, the blood of bulls and goats cannot... What? 20:24 ...cannot take away sin. 20:27 Now let's go down to verse 19. 20:29 It says here, "For the law made nothing..." What? 20:33 "...perfect." 20:35 What is the author of Hebrews trying to tell us by saying 20:38 that the law made nothing perfect? 20:39 What he's saying is that the law did not legally... What? 20:44 ...take care of sin. 20:46 The law did not legally forgive sin. 20:48 Why not? 20:49 Because the blood of bulls and goats cannot... What? 20:53 ...take away sin. 20:54 And human priests, mere human priests, 20:56 cannot intercede for sinners. 20:59 They were just symbols or shadows of Jesus Christ. 21:02 And so it says in verse 19, "For the law made nothing perfect." 21:07 In other words, it didn't deal once and for all with sin. 21:10 And so then he says, "On the other hand, there is the 21:14 bringing in of a..." What? 21:16 "...of a better hope, through which we draw near to God." 21:21 What is that better hope? 21:23 It's hope that comes through whom? 21:25 Through Jesus Christ. 21:26 So the Old Testament system did not legally forgive sin 21:30 because the blood of animals could not take away sin. 21:32 And so it was necessary to have a better hope, 21:35 which is the blood of... Whom? 21:36 ...the blood of Jesus and the intercession of Jesus Christ. 21:40 Now I want us to notice also verse 22. 21:44 Let's read verse 22. 21:45 I said we were going to jump to verses 25 and 26, 21:48 but let's notice verse 22. 21:50 It says, "By so much more Jesus has become a surety 21:55 of a better covenant." 21:57 Was the old covenant a good covenant? 22:00 You know, some people say, "Oh the old system, 22:02 that was bad and this system is good." 22:04 No. Do you know there is a key word 22:05 used in the book of Hebrews. 22:06 That's the word "better". 22:08 It's not bad and good. 22:10 It's good and better. 22:12 The old system was good, because as the people sacrificed 22:16 the animal, they were suppose to see in the animal 22:19 a symbol of... Whom? 22:21 ...of Jesus Christ. 22:22 That was good because it pointed to the future, 22:25 to the coming Messiah. 22:26 But the new system is better. 22:28 Because that which the old system pointed to 22:31 has taken place in Jesus Christ. 22:33 Are you following me? 22:35 Now let's notice once again here verse 22. 22:38 "By so much more Jesus has become a surety 22:42 of a better covenant." 22:43 Verse 23, "Also there were many priests, because they were 22:47 prevented by death from continuing. 22:49 But He," that is Jesus, "because He continues..." How long? 22:53 "...forever, has a..." What? "...an unchangeable priesthood. 22:58 Therefore He is also able to..." What? 23:01 "...to save to the uttermost those who come to God 23:05 through Him, since He always..." that means forever, 23:08 "...since He always lives to make intercession for them." 23:11 What was the problem with the Old Testament priests? 23:13 They all died. 23:15 What's the characteristic of the priesthood of Jesus? 23:17 Once He resurrected, He... What? 23:19 He never dies again. 23:21 And He is ever able to intercede for us and deal with sin. 23:25 Are you following me? 23:26 Let's notice verse 26. 23:28 "For such a High Priest was fitting for us, who is holy, 23:32 harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and has become 23:36 higher than the heavens; who does not need daily, 23:41 as those high priests, to offer up sacrifices, 23:45 first for His own sins and then for the people's sins, 23:49 for this He did..." What? 23:51 "...once for all when He offered up Himself." 23:54 So in the Old Testament, you had a repetition every year. 23:57 A repetition, a repetition of these sacrifices. 24:00 They reminded Israel that the Messiah was 24:02 going to come in the future. 24:03 But when Jesus came, how many sacrifices? 24:06 One. 24:07 And Jesus Christ now intercedes forever 24:10 because He is not prevented by death from interceding. 24:14 Now, what is meant then by the word "perfect"? 24:18 "The law made nothing perfect." 24:19 It simply means that the Old Testament system 24:22 did not deal definitively with sin. 24:25 In other words, it did not legally take care of sin. 24:29 It was incomplete. 24:31 It wasn't complete. 24:33 Are you understanding what I'm saying? 24:34 When Jesus comes, He now becomes qualified 24:39 to truly and legally save and to forgive sin. 24:42 So the Old Testament system was imperfect; 24:46 the New Testament system is perfect 24:49 in the sense that it truly can save. 24:51 Now let's go to Hebrews chapter 9 24:54 and read verses 9 through 12. 24:57 Here once again, the word "perfect" is used 24:59 in the same sense. 25:05 Here, Paul, I believe was behind the book of Hebrews, says, 25:08 "It," that is the old system, "was symbolic for the 25:12 present time in which both gifts and sacrifices are offered 25:17 which cannot make him who performed the service perfect 25:21 in regard to the conscience." 25:22 So could the old system make people perfect with 25:25 regard to the conscience? 25:26 Could it make their conscience free of sin and say, 25:28 "Okay, sin is taken care of." 25:29 Absolutely not. 25:31 Because every time, they had to sacrifice all over again. 25:34 Which meant that sin was not taken care of. 25:37 Because if sin was taken care of, one sacrifice would do it. 25:40 And the priests would die and they couldn't intercede anymore. 25:43 And then you had another priest. 25:44 It was an ongoing system. 25:46 But what the apostle Paul is saying here is that 25:49 in the Old Testament system, you had many sacrifices 25:54 and you had many priests. 25:55 But with regard to Christ, you have one sacrifice 25:58 and you have one eternal Priest. 26:01 And the Old Testament system could not make perfect 26:04 in regard to the conscience. 26:06 In other words, people knew that the blood of 26:08 bulls and goats could not actually legally 26:10 forgive their sin. 26:11 They believed that Jesus would come in the future, 26:14 and by His sacrifice sin would be legally forgiven. 26:17 But they knew that when they offered those sacrifices, 26:20 they were symbolic, or they were shadows. 26:22 Now notice what it continues saying. 26:24 Once again beginning at verse 9. 26:27 "It was symbolic for the present time in which both gifts and 26:31 sacrifices are offered which cannot make him who performed 26:34 the service perfect in regard to the conscience." 26:37 And why? 26:39 It says because these things were, "concerned only with 26:41 foods and drinks, various washings, 26:44 and fleshly ordinances imposed until..." When? 26:48 "...until the time of reformation." 26:50 When is the time of reformation? 26:53 By the way, it's not referring to Martin Luther. 26:56 It's the moment when Jesus Christ died on the cross. 26:59 So this ceremonial system was to exist until... When? 27:03 ...until the time of reformation. 27:04 In other words, until Jesus came. 27:06 Now verse 11 further explains this. 27:09 "But Christ came as High Priest of the good things to come." 27:15 Are you seeing the contrast between what was 27:17 and what was to be? 27:19 So it says once again, "But Christ came as High Priest 27:24 of the good things to come, with the greater and more 27:27 perfect tabernacle not made with hands, 27:29 that is, not of this creation. 27:32 Not with the blood of goats and calves, but with His own blood 27:36 He entered the Most Holy Place..." 27:38 As we've seen, the better translation, He entered 27:41 into the "Holy Place". 27:43 "...once for all, having obtained..." What? 27:46 "...eternal redemption." 27:48 So does Jesus have to continue dying and dying 27:50 and dying and dying? 27:51 Absolutely not. 27:53 It took place once for all. 27:54 Did Jesus, when He died on the cross, legally take care of sin? 27:58 Can people now say, "If I repent and I confess my sins 28:02 and I trust in Jesus Christ, I can have the assurance 28:05 that Jesus Christ forgives those sins and cleanses me 28:09 from all unrighteousness." 28:10 Absolutely. 28:11 Now let's go to Hebrews chapter 10. 28:14 Once again, the word "perfect" is used 28:16 with regards to God's people. 28:17 Hebrews chapter 10 and we'll read verses 1 through 4, 28:22 and then we'll jump to 11 and 12, and then 14 and 18. 28:26 Notice Hebrews 10 verse 1. 28:28 "For the law..." it's referring to the ceremonial system, 28:32 not the ten commandments. 28:33 " For the law, having a shadow of..." What? 28:37 What was the ceremonial system? 28:39 A shadow of what? 28:41 What are those good things to come? 28:44 Jesus Christ, that's right. 28:45 "...and not the very image of the things, 28:48 can never with these same sacrifices, 28:52 which they offer continually year by year, 28:55 make those who approach..." What? 28:57 "...perfect." 28:59 Is that talking about moral perfection? 29:01 Perfection of character? 29:02 No. It means that their sins could not legally be... What? 29:07 ...forgiven by the Old Testament system. 29:09 Because Jesus had not become qualified yet 29:13 in order to do that. 29:14 And so it continues saying, "For the law, having a shadow of 29:18 the good things to come, and not the very image of the things, 29:20 can never with these same sacrifices, which they offer 29:24 continually year by year, make those who approach perfect. 29:29 For then would they not have ceased to be offered?" 29:33 In other words, if they made a person perfect then why 29:35 continue offering and offering and offering and offering? 29:38 "For the worshipers, once purified, would have had 29:41 no more consciousness of..." What? 29:43 "...sins." 29:44 They would say, "Sins are taken care of. 29:46 We don't have to worry about it anymore." 29:47 Verse 3, "But in those sacrifices there is a..." What? 29:52 "... a reminder of sins every year. 29:56 For it is not possible that the blood of 29:59 bulls and goats could..." What? 30:01 "...take away sins." 30:02 Did the Old Testament system legally forgive 30:05 the Old Testament saints? 30:07 No, not legally. 30:09 But only on the basis of what? 30:11 Of the promise of the coming Messiah. 30:13 God accepted their faith in the coming Messiah. 30:16 And then we're going to notice that when Jesus came, 30:18 those sins were taken care of and their record 30:22 was made perfect. 30:24 Now let's continue reading at verse 11. 30:27 "And every priest stands ministering daily and offering 30:32 repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never..." What? 30:36 "...which can never take away sins." 30:38 See, there's the idea again. 30:39 "But this Man, after He had offered one sacrifice 30:44 for sins forever, sat down at the right hand of God. 30:48 For by one offering He has..." What? 30:51 There's the word again. 30:52 "...He has perfected forever those who are being..." What? 30:57 "...sanctified." 30:58 What does it mean that, "He has perfected forever 31:00 those who are being sanctified?" 31:01 Is he saying that He's giving them a perfect moral character 31:04 that doesn't sin anymore? 31:05 No, what he's saying is that their life record 31:09 has been... What? 31:10 ...legally taken care of. 31:12 Because the sins were written in the books 31:15 and when people repented and confessed their sins, 31:18 Jesus basically said, "I'll pay." 31:21 But there was an IOU. 31:24 Are you following me? 31:25 An IOU is written and Jesus said, "I'll take care of it. 31:29 I'll pay for it." 31:30 Were they saved on the basis of the promise 31:33 of the coming Messiah? 31:34 Absolutely. 31:35 Now notice once again verse 14. 31:37 "For by one offering He has perfected forever 31:41 those who are being sanctified." 31:42 Verse 18, "Now where there is remission of these..." 31:46 The word "remission" means forgiveness. 31:48 "Where there is 'forgiveness' of these, 31:50 there is no longer..." What? 31:52 "...an offering for sin." 31:53 Jesus does not have to, what? 31:55 He does not have to die again. 31:57 Because when He died, He made perfect provision for 32:00 God's people to be perfected, in the sense of the record 32:03 of all these Old Testament saints being set straight 32:07 and their sins legally forgiven. 32:10 In other words, all of the IOU's wiped out. 32:13 Raise your hand if you're understanding what I'm saying. 32:15 Praise the Lord. 32:16 So this word "perfect" is very important, isn't it. 32:20 Now let's notice another couple of passages 32:23 that we find, one in Romans and the other in Colossians, 32:27 that help us understand this particular concept. 32:30 Romans chapter 3 and verses 25 and 26. 32:35 Romans 3:25-26 32:37 And Romans 3 is the great chapter on 32:40 righteousness by faith. 32:42 Here is where the apostle Paul uses the example of Abraham 32:46 to show that Abraham was justified by faith. 32:49 Now notice Romans 3 beginning with verse 25. 32:54 Actually, let's begin with verse 24 for a little bit of context. 32:57 It says there in verse 24, "Being justified..." 33:02 That means forgiven, by the way. 33:03 Same thing as forgiven. 33:05 "Being justified freely by His grace through the redemption 33:10 that is in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth as a 33:14 propitiation by His blood, through faith..." 33:18 Now, Jesus shed His blood. 33:20 Why did He shed His blood? 33:22 Well, so that people could be saved. 33:23 But what had God done in the Old Testament period? 33:26 Let's continue reading. 33:28 Verse 25 again, "...whom God set forth as a propitiation 33:32 by His blood, through faith..." 33:34 Now listen carefully. 33:36 "...to demonstrate His..." What? 33:39 "...His righteousness, because in His forbearance..." 33:44 Do you know what forbearance means? 33:46 In His patience, in His long suffering. 33:50 "...God had..." What? 33:52 "...passed over the sins that were previously committed." 33:57 What had God done during the Old Testament period? 34:00 He had passed over what? 34:02 He had passed over the sins that were previously committed. 34:05 But when Jesus died, is the righteousness of Christ shown 34:09 to take care of those sins? 34:11 Absolutely, the text is clear. 34:12 And then it says in verse 26, "...to demonstrate at the 34:16 present time His righteousness." 34:18 See, the contrast is, He passed over all these sins, 34:21 they were not legally taken care of. 34:24 But now it says He did this when He died on the cross 34:27 "to demonstrate at the present time His righteousness, 34:31 that He might be just and the justifier of the one 34:35 who has faith in Jesus." 34:37 Are you following the argument of this passage? 34:39 What did God do in the Old Testament period? 34:43 The blood of bulls and goats cannot take away sin. 34:45 So what did God do? 34:46 God said, "I'll forgive you on the basis of the promise, 34:51 but it's not legally taken care of. 34:53 You have faith in the coming Messiah." 34:55 He passed over those sins. 34:57 But when Jesus dies on the cross, are all those sins 35:00 definitively taken care of? 35:02 The faith that all those Old Testament saints had in Jesus. 35:05 Absolutely. 35:06 Sin is dealt with once and for all. 35:08 And are the records of those individuals set straight? 35:12 Next to those sins is written the word... What? 35:14 ...forgiven by the blood of Jesus Christ. 35:17 Are those people made perfect? 35:19 They're made perfect, absolutely. 35:21 Now there's another passage that we need to take a look at. 35:24 Colossians chapter 2 and verse 14. 35:27 And I'm reading this in the English Standard Version, 35:31 which is becoming one of the more popular versions. 35:33 It's not a paraphrase, it's actually a translation. 35:37 And it's a very good translation, if I might say so. 35:42 Colossians chapter 2 and verse 14. 35:47 And Let's read verse 13 for the context. 35:49 We always want to get a little bit of the context. 35:52 It says there, the apostle Paul speaking to the Colossians, 35:56 "And you, who were dead in your trespasses..." 36:01 What were they? 36:02 Dead in their trespasses. 36:04 "...and the uncircumcision of your flesh, 36:07 God made alive together with Him, having..." What? 36:11 "...forgiven us all our trespasses..." 36:16 So what has Jesus done? 36:18 He has forgiven us all our trespasses. 36:21 Now how did He do this? 36:23 Verse 14, "...by canceling the..." What? 36:28 "...the record of debt..." 36:30 This is the ESV. 36:32 And by the way, many of the modern versions 36:33 have similar translations. 36:35 "...by canceling the record of debt that stood against us 36:40 with its legal demands. 36:43 This He set aside, nailing it to the cross." 36:48 Now this word "cheirographon" that is used here, which is 36:53 translated in the King James Version, 36:55 the handwriting of ordinances... 36:57 See, when the King James translators translated 36:59 this word, there were certain archeological discoveries 37:03 that had not been made yet. 37:04 But it's been discovered that this was a commercial word 37:07 that was used in the days of Christ. 37:10 Basically what the word means is, a bond of debt. 37:15 What is a bond of debt? 37:19 Do you know what a bond of debt is? 37:21 It's an IOU. Right? 37:24 Now in the Old Testament, what happened when a person 37:27 confessed their sins and they repented of sin 37:30 and they sacrificed the animal, and through the blood of 37:35 the animal they looked forward to the sacrifice of Christ. 37:38 What did Jesus say? 37:41 "Okay, this is an IOU. 37:44 I'll sign it, I'll be the co-signer. 37:47 I'll take care of it." 37:48 What did Jesus nail to the cross? 37:50 Jesus took all of the IOU's, the bonds of debt if you please, 37:55 that had accumulated. 37:57 He grabbed all of these IOU's and He nailed them to the cross, 38:01 legally, because His blood truly could forgive sin. 38:05 And so basically, what the apostle Paul is saying is that 38:09 the record of sin was canceled, the debt was canceled, 38:14 "that stood against us with its legal demands." 38:16 He set this aside, nailing it to the cross. 38:19 He didn't nail the ten commandments to the cross. 38:22 He nailed our bond of debt to the cross. 38:26 Now I need to go to a few other issues relating to 38:30 chapter 12 of the book of Hebrews. 38:33 It's interesting to notice that in Hebrews chapter 12 38:37 and verse 24, it says there that the blood of Christ 38:43 speaks better than the blood of Abel. 38:46 In all translations that I checked, it says that the 38:50 blood of Christ speaks better things than the blood of Abel. 38:55 But I need to tell you something very interesting. 38:58 The part of the translations, and it's all of the translations 39:03 that I could find, all of the known translations today, 39:06 there's a portion of this that is not in the original text. 39:10 The part of the verse that says, "speaks better things 39:15 than the blood of Abel," the part that says, 39:20 "than the blood of," is not in the original text. 39:26 It's added by the translators. 39:28 In other words, the translators think that the contrast 39:31 is between the blood that Abel was shed as a martyr 39:35 and the blood of Jesus Christ. 39:37 And basically, many translations say that the blood of Abel 39:41 cries out for vengeance and the blood of Jesus satisfies 39:45 what Abel cried out about. 39:47 In other words, they say that the contrast is between 39:50 the blood that Abel shed and the blood that Jesus Christ shed. 39:54 But once again, I must tell you that the text does not say, 39:59 "than the blood of Abel," 40:01 "that speaks better things than the blood of Abel." 40:03 It actually says, "it speaks better things than Abel." 40:09 It doesn't say, "than the blood of Abel." 40:11 Are you understanding my point? 40:12 Now you say, why is this important. 40:14 Allow me to read you a very interesting statement by 40:16 a Bible commentator. 40:18 He's not an Adventist. His name is Albert Barnes. 40:21 And he understood very well what this is talking about. 40:24 Albert Barnes. 40:26 Notice what he had to say. 40:28 And let me see here, I might be missing a page here. 40:36 Oh, here it is. Okay. 40:39 This is what he says. 40:40 "The meaning here is that the blood of Jesus," 40:44 listen carefully, "the blood of Jesus speaks better things 40:49 than Abel did. 40:51 That is, that the blood of Jesus is the reality 40:56 of which the offering of Abel was a type. 41:01 Abel proclaimed by the sacrifice which he made, 41:05 the great truth that salvation could be only 41:08 by a bloody offering that he did. 41:12 This only in a typical and obscure manner. 41:16 Jesus proclaimed it in a more distinct and better manner 41:21 by the reality." 41:22 Let me read that again because it's a very important concept. 41:25 Barnes says the meaning here is that, "the blood of Jesus 41:28 speaks better things than Abel did. 41:31 That is, that the blood of Jesus is the reality 41:34 of which the offering of Abel was a type. 41:38 Abel proclaimed by the sacrifice which he made, 41:42 the great truth that salvation could be only 41:46 by a bloody offering. 41:47 But he did this only in a typical and obscure manner. 41:51 Jesus proclaimed it in a more distinct and better manner 41:57 by the reality." 41:59 In other words, the contrast is not between the blood 42:02 that was shed by Abel... 42:03 In other words, his blood that was poured out as a martyr. 42:06 ...and the blood of Jesus. 42:07 The contrast is between the sacrifice that Abel offered 42:13 in comparison with the sacrifice that Jesus Christ offered. 42:17 Now you're saying, did Abel offer a sacrifice? 42:20 He most certainly did. 42:21 Notice Hebrews chapter 11 and verse 4, the context. 42:28 It says here, "By faith Abel offered to God a..." What? 42:35 "...a more excellent sacrifice than Cain." 42:38 Now what kind of sacrifice did Abel offer, if you go back to 42:41 Genesis chapter 4? 42:43 He offered a what? 42:45 A blood sacrifice of an animal. 42:47 Was that sacrifice good? 42:50 Yes it was, it was good. 42:52 Was there a sacrifice that was better than that one? 42:55 Absolutely. 42:56 Which one? That of Jesus Christ. 42:58 And so it says, "By faith Abel offered to God a more excellent 43:02 sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained witness 43:05 that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts; 43:09 and through it he being dead still speaks." 43:14 So are you understanding what the contrast is here? 43:16 The contrast is not that the blood of Abel was shed 43:21 as a martyr, and then the blood of Jesus was shed on the cross. 43:25 That's not the contrast. 43:26 The contrast is between the offering that Abel offered, 43:30 the blood in the offering that Abel offered, 43:32 and the blood that Jesus offered on the cross. 43:36 Does the blood of Jesus Christ speak better things 43:40 than the blood that was offered by Abel? 43:43 Absolutely. 43:44 Does this fit with the theme of the book of Hebrews 43:46 where you have a contrast between the Old Testament 43:49 sacrificial system and the New Testament death of 43:52 Jesus Christ on the cross? 43:53 It fits much better than thinking that it's comparing 43:56 the death of Abel with the death of Jesus Christ. 43:59 Now let's put the icing on the cake. 44:02 Go with me to Hebrews chapter 11 and verse 39. 44:09 Hebrews chapter 11 and verse 39. 44:12 And let's notice something very very interesting here. 44:18 It says there, speaking about all of these heroes 44:21 from the Old Testament. 44:22 If you look at the context, you're going to see all of these 44:26 Old Testament heroes. 44:27 By the way, not only men but also women are mentioned 44:31 among those heroes. 44:32 And that's why it's important to realize that 44:34 in Hebrews chapter 12, the word "men" does not appear; 44:38 where it says "the spirits of righteous men made perfect." 44:41 The word "men" is added by the translators. 44:44 Really it's, "the spirits of the righteous made perfect." 44:47 In other words, it refers to both male and female. 44:51 The word "men" is not used there. 44:53 There are females in the list of heroes from the Old Testament. 44:56 So after mentioning Abraham and Moses and Enoch and Abel, 45:02 and all these great heroes, and Noah, 45:04 notice what we find in verse 39. 45:08 "And all these, having obtained a good testimony 45:12 through faith, did not receive the promise." 45:19 What promise? 45:22 What promise didn't they receive? 45:24 They did not receive the promise of the Messiah. 45:27 In other words, they looked at the promise from afar. 45:32 They saw the Messiah in the symbols and in the figures 45:35 and in the shadows of the Old Testament. 45:37 But they did not, what? 45:39 They did not receive the promise. 45:40 So let me ask you, was their experience incomplete? 45:43 In the sense that their sins were not definitively 45:46 legally taken care of. 45:47 Absolutely. 45:49 They looked forward to it, but it had not taken place legally. 45:55 Now I want you to notice verse 40. 45:56 Verse 40 is a critically important verse. 45:59 In the next verse, we're told that we have something 46:03 better than they did. 46:06 What do we have better than they did? 46:10 Well, we have Christ in fulfillment. 46:13 Notice what it says in Hebrews chapter 11 and verse 40. 46:18 Let's read verse 39 for the context. 46:21 "And all these, having obtained a good testimony through faith, 46:24 did not receive the promise, God having provided 46:28 something..." What? "better for..." Whom? 46:32 "...for us..." 46:34 And now this is a critically important phrase. 46:36 It says, "...that they..." Who does that refer to? 46:40 The Old Testament saints. 46:41 "...that they should not be made..." What? 46:45 "...perfect apart from us." 46:52 Are you understanding what the apostle Paul is saying here? 46:55 They could not be made perfect apart from us. 46:59 Now are we the ones who make them perfect? 47:01 No. 47:02 When does Jesus make us perfect in Him? 47:06 When He died on the cross and when we claim Him as our Savior, 47:10 and we receive His life and His death. 47:13 Then is my record clean? 47:16 Am I legally forgiven? 47:18 Absolutely. 47:19 That's something better for us. 47:22 But they were not made perfect until Jesus, what? 47:26 Until Jesus died on the cross. 47:28 Then they were made complete or whole or qualified for salvation 47:33 because the death of Jesus truly dealt with sin. 47:37 Raise your hand if you're understanding what I'm saying. 47:40 Now, what does this have to do with our text? 47:44 Let me provide an example so we can understand this clearly. 47:48 We're all acquainted with one of those great heroes 47:51 that is in this list. 47:52 Moses. 47:55 The story of Moses is very interesting. 47:57 You know, he's the only person in the Bible where we're told 48:00 that God buried him. 48:05 And there's something else that's strange about Moses. 48:07 It says that nobody knew where his grave was. 48:12 Interesting. 48:13 Because, the Jews, they marked the graves of their heroes. 48:16 Everybody knew where Abraham was buried; 48:19 in the Cave of Machpelah. 48:20 They knew where David was buried; there in Jerusalem. 48:23 They kept a record of where their heroes were buried. 48:26 But the Bible says that God buried Moses, 48:28 and nobody knew where his tomb was. 48:31 That's in Deuteronomy chapter 34 verses 5 and 6. 48:34 Let's read it. 48:35 "So Moses the servant of the Lord died there in the 48:37 land of Moab, according to the word of the Lord. 48:40 And He" that is God, "buried him in a valley in the land of Moab, 48:44 opposite Beth Peor; but no one knows his grave to this day." 48:50 But the interesting thing is, the Bible tells us that when 48:53 Moses died, there was a battle over his body. 48:57 Do you think God fights over dead corpses? 49:00 Do you think God is some kind of heavenly vulture 49:02 that comes and fights with the devil over a dead body 49:04 that's in the process of decomposing? 49:06 Absolutely not. 49:09 Notice Jude 9. 49:13 It says, "Yet Michael the archangel, in contending 49:17 with the devil, when he disputed about the body of Moses..." 49:22 What was the devil disputing over? 49:24 The body of Moses. 49:25 What had Michael, the archangel, come to do? 49:29 He had come to resurrect him. 49:30 We're going to see that in a few moments. 49:32 "...dared not bring against him a reviling accusation, 49:35 but said, "The Lord rebuke you!" 49:38 Now what was the devil's argument? 49:39 What the devil was saying is, "Moses sinned when he 49:43 killed the Egyptian. 49:44 And Moses sinned when he struck the rock twice. 49:48 And therefore, because he sinned, he's mine." 49:53 And God said to the devil, Jesus said to the devil, 49:56 "True, Moses did sin. 49:58 But I have promised to offer My life to legally 50:03 take care of his sin." 50:04 And the devil says, "But You haven't done it yet, have You." 50:07 He says, "But I'm going to do it." 50:09 And so the Bible tells us that Moses was taken, where? 50:15 He was taken to heaven. 50:16 And the devil railed against God and railed against Jesus, 50:20 because They had taken Moses to heaven when his sins 50:23 had not legally been taken care of yet. 50:26 That was the devil's argument. 50:28 Jesus said, "But I will take care of them. 50:30 Moses trusted in Me in the future sacrifice." 50:34 Interestingly enough, when Jesus was on this earth, 50:38 both Moses and Elijah appeared to Christ on 50:41 the Mount of Transfiguration. 50:42 So Moses must have resurrected. 50:45 In fact, let's read in Luke 9:30-31, 50:48 what it was that Moses and Elijah spoke with Jesus about. 50:54 This was about six months before the death of Jesus Christ. 50:57 Let's see what their topic of conversation was. 50:59 Luke 9 verses 30 and 31. 51:04 Here, Jesus is on the mount and it says, "And as He prayed, 51:07 the appearance of His face was altered, and His robe became 51:11 white and glistening. 51:13 And behold, two men talked with Him, who were Moses and Elijah, 51:18 who appeared in glory," and now listen carefully, 51:21 "and spoke of His..." What? "... of His decease." 51:26 What were they talking to Jesus about? 51:28 About His decease. 51:29 In other words, His what? 51:30 His coming death. 51:33 "...which He was about to accomplish..." Where? 51:36 "...in Jerusalem." 51:37 What do you suppose Moses and Elijah said to Jesus? 51:42 "Well Jesus, You know we're up here 51:45 based on what You're going to do. 51:48 If You don't do it, we'll have to get a return ticket. 51:52 And not only us, but every person who has every claimed 51:56 Your name during the Old Testament period, 51:58 they will remain incomplete and they will be lost. 52:01 But if You go through to the cross and You die, 52:03 and You legally forgive sin, You'll be able to bring 52:06 all of Your people home." 52:09 Ellen White, in Early Writings, page 164, had this 52:12 incisive statement. 52:28 She says, "Satan railed bitterly against God, denouncing Him 52:33 as unjust in permitting his prey to be taken from him. 52:37 But Christ did not rebuke His adversary, though it was 52:41 through his temptation that the servant of God had fallen. 52:45 He meekly referred him to His Father saying, 52:48 'The Lord rebuke thee.'" 52:51 So this is a real life example of the relationship between 52:54 those who lived in the Old Testament and the 52:57 need for Christ to die so that they could legally have a right 53:01 to be in the heavenly kingdom because their sins 53:03 have been taken care of. 53:05 Now let's return to the expression that 53:07 we have been studying; 53:08 the spirits of just men or righteous men, 53:12 righteous, not men, but righteous, made perfect. 53:16 Do you understand what this text is really saying now? 53:18 What is the spirit? 53:21 The spirit is their what? 53:23 Their life record, 53:25 their identity, 53:27 their biographical record in the heavenly books. 53:30 Did that record need to be cleared, 53:34 did all the sins need to be legally forgiven in it? 53:39 Absolutely. 53:40 And so, the spirit is the life record. 53:43 The righteous are whom? 53:45 Hebrews 11 says that the righteous are the 53:48 Old Testament saints. 53:51 And in what sense was their life record made perfect or complete? 53:58 It was made perfect because their sins were legally... What? 54:02 ...because their sins were legally wiped out. 54:06 Is this passage saying anything about disembodied spirits 54:09 being in heaven and hovering over there and singing praises 54:15 to the Lord up there? 54:16 Absolutely not. 54:17 The passage clearly says that the church of the first born 54:21 are written in heaven. 54:24 It does not say that they are in heaven, 54:26 or that the spirits are in heaven. 54:29 It simply says that their names are... What? 54:32 ...their names are written in heaven. 54:36 Now to conclude, I'd like to read 1 Thessalonians chapter 4 54:39 and verses 15 through 17. 54:41 Do you know, on the Mount of Transfiguration, 54:43 you really have a mini kingdom. 54:46 You have a kingdom in miniature. 54:48 You have three persons standing on the Mount of Transfiguration, 54:52 which have great symbolic meaning or symbolic value. 54:55 You have Jesus Christ and you have Moses and you have Elijah. 55:01 Moses died and resurrected and went to heaven. 55:05 Elijah was translated to heaven from among the living. 55:09 And Jesus Christ is the One who made all of this possible. 55:14 1 Thessalonians 4 brings this to mind when the apostle Paul says, 55:18 "For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who 55:21 are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by 55:24 no means precede those who are asleep." 55:26 See, there you have Elijah representing the living 55:28 and Moses representing those who died in Christ. 55:31 Verse 16, "For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven 55:35 with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, 55:38 and with the trumpet of God. 55:39 And the dead in Christ will rise first." 55:42 And then notice verse 17, "Then we who are alive 55:46 and remain shall be caught up together with them..." 55:48 That is with those who died and resurrected. 55:50 "...in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. 55:53 And thus we shall always be with the Lord." 55:57 And who made all of this possible? 55:59 Jesus Christ. 56:01 Will there be Old Testament saints there? 56:03 Will there be New Testament saints there? 56:05 All of the heroes of Hebrews 11. 56:07 Because when Jesus died on the cross, He set 56:10 the record straight. 56:11 He got rid of the bond of debt. 56:14 And since Jesus has died, when we confess our sins, 56:18 when we repent, and when we trust in Jesus, 56:20 our sins are also forgiven by the great sacrifice that 56:25 Jesus Christ made on the cross. 56:27 So those who interpret this passage as being 56:30 disembodied spirits are taking the text out of context, 56:34 and they're injecting in the text what is not in there. 56:37 Because they have an agenda. 56:39 They already believe that the soul of man is immortal. 56:43 Praise the Lord that we have a wonderful Savior who saves us. |
Revised 2014-12-17