Participants: Pr. C.A. Murray
Series Code: HHR
Program Code: HHR000006
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00:23 With all of your soul, with all of your mind.
00:27 In this quiet place with you 00:33 I bow before your throne 00:38 I bear the deepest part of me 00:42 to You and You alone 00:46 I have no secrets for there are no faults 00:52 you have not known 00:55 I give my best and all the rest 00:59 to You and laid them down 01:10 with all my heart, I want to love You Lord 01:19 and live my life, each day to know You more 01:27 all that is in me, is Yours completely 01:37 I so love You with all my heart 01:52 Hmmm Hmm Hmmm 01:57 You faithfully supply my needs 02:02 according to Your plan 02:06 so help me Lord to seek Your face 02:10 before I seek Your hand 02:14 I know You know what is best for me 02:18 when I just don't understand 02:27 and following will be the answer 02:34 in every circumstance 02:44 with all my heart, I want to love You Lord 02:53 and live my life, each day and know You more 03:01 with all that is in me, is Yours completely 03:08 I serve You only 03:17 with all my heart 03:26 Awwwh Awh Awh! 03:44 Amen and Amen! Thank you Kathy so very, very much. 03:47 Our subject for tonight, our discussion centers around Home 03:52 Depot, Just A Hammer and A Nail. 03:56 Home Depot, Just A Hammer and A Nail. 04:01 Shall we go to the Lord in prayer Father God, 04:04 we thank You so very much for Your word. 04:07 We thank You for Jesus, we thank You for this Sabbath day, 04:12 this time that You have set aside so that we can turn off 04:16 the cares, the hustle and bustle of the world and turn 04:20 our minds toward Jesus. 04:22 We asked Father that You would be pleased to give us Your 04:26 Spirit because we want know and understand Your will, 04:30 we want to do Your will and we thank you so 04:33 very much, in Jesus name Amen! 04:40 Book of Hebrews was addressed to Hebrew Christians to affirm 04:48 for them the idea or notion that Jesus Christ 04:57 was and is all sufficient. 05:02 The Hebrew Christians were in danger of falling back into 05:06 Jewish habits, Jewish ways, Jewish lifestyle and 05:12 so Paul wrote to the Hebrew Christians to let them know that 05:16 those things that you were doing before, which were so natural 05:20 for you, and so comfortable for you, have now found 05:25 their fulfillment in Jesus. 05:27 It is now all about Jesus, that this once and for all 05:33 sacrifice that Jesus made allows Him to be the Minister and 05:40 the Mediator of the benefits of His own sacrifice. 05:44 We see over and over in the book of Hebrews this term, 05:48 how much more and we'll touch on that term a little bit later but 05:53 over and again Paul says to them, well you did this, 05:57 and this worked for them but how much more better is it 06:00 that we have got the real thing. We have Jesus. 06:04 So the book of Hebrews was written over and over again 06:08 to say that Christ is all sufficient. 06:11 We can say that even today, can't we? 06:14 All we need is Jesus, and when you have Jesus you 06:19 really have all you need. 06:21 So the question was, and is, what then was nailed to 06:27 the cross, what was Paul trying to say in the book of Hebrews 06:32 as respects what Christ did, and what we now have to do? 06:37 I was in Home Depot some time ago, it is actually one 06:40 of my favorite stores because I'm not a shopper per se. 06:44 I tend to want to get into the store and get out. 06:48 I don't like to linger too much until I go to a store like 06:50 Home Depot, there is something about Home Depot. 06:53 Well there is one other store, I am a tie guy. 06:57 I like ties, when I am sad I buy a tie to drown my 07:01 sorrows, when I am happy I buy a tie to celebrate my 07:04 happiness, I like ties. 07:06 It's not too expensive like going out and buying a car. 07:08 A tie is fairly cheap, fairly reasonable. 07:11 You can't always buy a suit or pair of shoes that is a little 07:15 too much; but a tie, if you shop where I shop you can 07:18 usually get a tie pretty reasonable. 07:21 So I am a tie person, I will spend some time 07:22 lingering over ties. 07:24 I do like Home Depot and when we moved into our house sometime 07:28 ago, it was an older home and needed a lot of fixing so I 07:31 found myself at Home Depot a lot. 07:33 Plaster and paint and caulking. 07:35 I made my way to the section of fasteners, there is a section 07:39 in Home Depot called fasteners. 07:41 It is in the hardware section. 07:43 I found nails and screws and braces and clamps and hooks and 07:48 retainers and caulk and solder and Velcro and putty, Staples 07:54 and cement, silicone and asphalt. 07:56 But my favorite in that section, was a thing called Gorilla Glue. 08:00 I love Gorilla Glue, Gorilla Glue will hold anything. 08:04 I believe Gorilla Glue, will hold a marriage together. 08:07 If you put Gorilla Glue on a husband and wife, it is my 08:11 favorite, Gorilla Glue will hold, Gorilla Glue is 08:14 better than Krazy glue. 08:15 So we have a big whole thing of Gorilla Glue at our house, 08:18 I love Gorilla Glue. 08:20 But I thought about nails, nail guns. 08:25 I did a project just a little bit ago in my wife's closet, 08:28 I put up one of those closet organizers deals. 08:32 You have to have a Ph. D. in physics to put those things 08:35 together, you follow the directions and you are drilling 08:39 holes, and fastening them A. to flange B., you are connecting 08:43 and trying to reconnect. 08:44 I said that I had a Masters degree in theology and almost a 08:48 Ph. D. in communications and I can't put this thing together, 08:51 it was tough. 08:53 But I thought about what was nailed to the cross. 08:57 What got nailed to the cross, in other words what did 09:00 Christ do to end the old system? 09:03 So my first text is Colossians 2 09:06 What book did I say? The book is Colossians. 09:09 Let's look at the term first and find where the term 09:12 was found, I'm in Colossians 2:14, 09:15 let's read the word of God: 09:35 so there we see the term. 09:36 There were certain things the Bible says that were 09:39 nailed to the cross. 09:41 And since the Bible is its best explainer, 09:44 the text says that there were certain things that 09:47 Christ took out of the way, nailing them to the cross. 09:50 The term simply means that there were certain practices 09:54 that were done in the Old Testament by the ancient Hebrews 09:58 that Christ brought to an end by His sacrifice on the cross, 10:03 Can you say Amen? Is that clear? 10:04 Alright are you with me? 10:06 So there are certain things that had their fulfillment in 10:09 Christ's death on the cross. 10:11 The idea is that at the cross, certain practices stopped, 10:16 they stopped because they had their 10:18 fulfillment in Christ, more accurately they had 10:22 their fulfillment in the death of Christ. 10:25 There were certain things that were going on, certain rules, 10:29 certain regulations, certain statutes that looked forward, 10:32 in Faith, to what Christ was going to do. 10:35 When Christ actually did it, then those things that looked 10:39 forward, in Faith, came to their end. 10:42 Now there are really five great laws in our universe, 10:46 in our world, five great laws. 10:49 The first we would call natural laws, or the law of nature. 10:53 The law of gravity is one of those laws. 10:57 If unaltered by any other circumstances, every time 11:01 I toss this microphone up is going to do what? 11:04 It is going to come down, and I need not to toss it 11:06 up too much because My technicians are having a 11:08 little worry because I may drop it. 11:10 So I will not toss it up too much. 11:12 Every time I toss this microphone up, the brethren 11:15 are looking at me, it is going to come down. 11:17 Because it is subject to the law of gravity. 11:20 That is a natural law. 11:21 There are many of those kinds of laws, there is friction, 11:24 there's traction, entropy, inertia. 11:27 There are certain kinds of laws of physics. 11:30 I did a little flying when I was a bit younger, 11:33 there is a law that keeps the plane in the air, 11:35 that deals with airflow, how air flows over a wing. 11:38 The air that is moving over top of the wing is moving faster 11:41 than the air under the wing which actually creates a 11:43 reversed gravity which lifts the plane up. 11:45 I cannot remember the name of that law, 11:47 but when you study flying and go to ground school, 11:50 you have to learn that law because it is a law that 11:52 keeps the plane in the air. 11:54 So there are natural laws that God has put in place 11:57 to keep our world regulated. 12:00 They are in movable, they do not change, 12:02 they are natural laws. 12:04 If you break natural law, you usually end up in 12:08 the hospital because natural laws are there 12:12 to keep you safe. 12:14 So if you jump out of a window that is 2 or 3 stories up, 12:18 natural law will take over and you are going to 12:21 end up in the hospital. 12:22 That is if you land on your feet, if you land on your head 12:25 something else may happen. 12:27 But those are natural laws. 12:29 Then the second great body of law is civil law. 12:33 We look at that Romans 13:1, Romans 13:1 tells us: 12:51 that justifies government, the idea of government 12:57 is God ordained. 12:59 You have to have rules and regulations in order to run 13:04 society, so the idea that you have a governing body and people 13:08 are subject to that government come from God. 13:12 Now I need to hasten to say, all governments are not 13:17 ordained by God. 13:19 Hitler and the Nazi regime, that was not God ordained. 13:23 Stalin, who killed 25 million of his own people, 13:27 not ordained by God. 13:28 Khmer Rouge in Cambodia, that was not ordained by God. 13:32 So particular governments may not be doing God's will, but the 13:37 idea that there is a government that gives laws and regulates 13:42 for the people, that is ordained by God. 13:44 Remember back in Israel's time, in the days of the judges there 13:48 was, or before the days of the judges, Israel was a theocracy 13:52 getting direct orders from God through a system of Priests. 13:55 But they looked at the Canaanite tribes around them and said 13:59 they had kings and we want a king just like they have a king, 14:02 so God said I will give you what you want. 14:05 But you are not going to like it. 14:06 So, of course, the first king was King Saul and immediately 14:10 things began to go bad. 14:12 The idea of government comes from God, though every 14:16 particular government does not come with God's blessing. 14:20 Which is why God sets up King's and takes kings down 14:24 as He chooses and as He pleases. 14:27 Green light says go, red light says stop, 14:31 yellow light says caution. 14:33 That is a government law and if you obey those 14:36 laws you are fine. 14:38 What if you got up one day and determined, I think for me 14:41 red light means go, how far you going to go? 14:45 You are not going to go very far. 14:48 If you don't hit somebody the police will stop you, 14:52 they take a dim view of individuals who go on red. 14:56 I know, when I was younger I tried that once, 14:59 you get a very fat ticket for going on red. 15:01 They don't like that. 15:03 Speed limit 55 or 65, that is a government regulation. 15:08 Do you see what I am trying to say? 15:10 If we obey these things we are fine. 15:11 If we break civil law we go to jail, or we are fined, 15:17 or we are otherwise penalized by the government. 15:20 The third great set of laws are health laws. 15:24 They are laws that deal with how the world affects our body. 15:29 We talk about new start, nutrition, exercise, water, sun, 15:34 temperance, air, rest and trust in divine power are 15:37 laws of health. 15:39 If we do these things are lives are better. 15:41 We think clearer, we live longer, we are healthier, 15:45 we are more available to do the work of God while we are 15:47 alive, these are health laws that each of us needs to follow, 15:51 we talked about that the other night. 15:53 If we break the health laws we wind up in a hospital, 15:57 the sickbed or perhaps even the grave. 16:00 So all these laws have benefits and if we obey them, 16:04 and they have consequences if we break them. 16:07 When we speak of the Bible the laws generally fall into 16:13 two separate categories. 16:15 What did I say, how many? 16:17 Two, we speak of moral laws or the moral law and we also 16:26 speak of ceremonial laws. 16:29 They are two separate bodies of law, 16:32 but they are vitally important. 16:35 Now why do we make a difference? 16:38 Well I make a difference between those two because 16:41 God makes a difference. 16:43 He separates the moral law from the ceremonial law. 16:46 Let's go to the book of Nehemiah, what book did I say? 16:50 I'm a Nehemiah 9:13,14 the word of God says: 17:31 so we are making a difference because the word of 17:34 God makes a difference. 17:36 We are drawing a line of separation because the word of 17:39 God draws a line of separation. 17:42 There are moral laws and there are ceremonial laws. 17:47 There is the Sabbath and that group of laws and then there are 17:50 other laws that were given to God's people. 17:54 So the Bible does make a difference, he even makes 17:58 a difference, or the Bible rather makes a difference 18:01 in where the laws were placed in the Ark, 18:05 once they were written. 18:07 Let's go to the book of Deuteronomy, 18:09 what book did I say? 18:10 The book is Deuteronomy 31: 24-26, and let's read 18:14 from the word of God. 18:41 Now two things I want you to know here. 18:43 One is where this particular law is placed, it was placed 18:47 beside or inside of the Ark, on the side of the Ark and the 18:52 Bible said Moses said to them keep it there so it will be a 18:57 witness against you. 19:00 Now the reason we are highlighting that word against, 19:01 is because we are going to see it again. 19:03 It is going to come back again and we need to 19:07 make special note of it. 19:08 So then this body of work written by Moses contains 19:14 ceremonies, and rules, and regulations, and Feast days, 19:18 and festivals, and certain civil things that were to 19:23 be done in case they were infractions. 19:25 All of this body of law was written by Moses at God's 19:29 direction and placed in the side of the Ark. 19:33 Amen, do you understand? You're following me, very good. 19:36 Exodus 31:18, let's go to it very quickly. 20:00 Alright let's look at the difference one was a group of 20:05 laws and regulations written by Moses, written in Moses hand, 20:11 with Moses hand, at God's direction and placed in the 20:16 side of the Ark. 20:18 The second body of law was written by God Himself 20:23 on tables of stone, and given to Moses. 20:27 So we are talking about two separate bodies of law, 20:31 and I am laboring on that point because just the other day 20:34 I heard someone say that the ceremonial law and 20:38 the Ten Commandments are the same. 20:40 But the Bible makes it clear that one group of laws 20:44 were written by Moses and placed in the side, the second group 20:49 was written by God Himself on tables of stone 20:52 and given to Moses and placed under the mercy seat. 20:56 Is that clear? Do you understand that? 20:58 Do you accept that? If you do say Amen! 21:00 A little bit louder, praise the Lord, I know you are with me. 21:04 So we have two sets of rules and regulations. 21:07 Many of these having their fulfillment in 21:10 Christ on the cross. 21:12 Rules and regulations, including a group of rules and 21:17 regulations is a little thing found in Exodus 21 where it says 21:20 an eye for an eye, and a tooth for tooth. 21:22 That is in that other group of regulations and I was doing a 21:25 study on that and people often say an eye for 21:28 an eye and a tooth for tooth but the Bible is saying let the 21:31 punishment fit the crime. 21:33 In the Canaanite law, for almost any infraction you could 21:38 surrender your life. 21:39 If you make a little mistake, you have to die. 21:41 So the Bible was saying, an eye for eye. 21:44 If I break your arm, by mistake, don't take my life. 21:48 Punishment for punishment only eye for eye, 21:50 not a knife for eye, eye for eye, let the punishment 21:54 fit the infraction. 21:55 And that is part of that group of laws, eye for eye and tooth 21:58 for tooth, if you knock out a tooth well tooth for a tooth, 22:01 not life for a tooth. 22:02 Eye for eye, tooth for tooth, in other words 22:04 don't go overboard with the punishment, 22:05 do justly and love mercy. 22:07 That's part of that group of laws and it works 22:09 even until this day. 22:10 So these laws are beneficial to all men in all ages and we 22:14 don't need to stress the idea too much that the 22:17 Ten Commandments are transcript of the character of God. 22:22 They are as unchangeable as is God's character. 22:26 Malachi 3:6, it is a text we have used before and 22:30 we will restate it. 22:38 The Ten Commandments were written on stone by the 22:41 finger of God, the hand of God and they are an expression of 22:46 the mind of God and are as unchangeable as is God Himself. 22:50 It will always be wrong to lie, it will always be wrong to 22:54 steal, it will always be wrong to covet and do some of these 22:57 things mentioned in the Ten Commandments. 22:59 They were wrong when they were written, and ladies and 23:01 gentlemen they are wrong today, can you say Amen? 23:05 Aren't you glad that we don't serve a changeable God? 23:09 Aren't you glad that every time you go to God, He is the same? 23:12 And that God never has a bad day? 23:15 Anytime you go to Jesus He's there, He's willing, He's able, 23:19 and He is more willing, the Bible says, 23:20 to give us good gifts than our own earthly parents 23:23 are to do for us. 23:25 I'm so glad that I serve a consistent God. 23:28 One who does not change. 23:30 So then let's go to Revelation 22, what book did I say? 23:34 Now we have to move along, Revelation 22:14, 23:38 the word of God says. 23:49 Now of course the book of Revelation was written by John 23:51 the Revelator somewhere between 95 and 100 AD. 23:57 So Christ had been gone, ascended for about 65 years. 24:01 John is still writing about keeping the Commandments 24:05 and so John did not envision a time when the Commandments were 24:10 not to be kept because well after Christ had died and 24:13 ascended, at the close of the first century, John is writing 24:16 that we still ought to keep the Commandments of God. 24:19 So John never thought about a time when the Commandments were 24:22 not going to be kept. 24:23 Or that the Commandments were not going to be enforced. 24:25 Even half-century later John is saying Blessed are 24:29 they who do, who do what? Who do, who do, say it, 24:34 say it again, who, one more time, who, who, 24:38 who do His Commandments that they may have a right to 24:42 the tree of life. 24:43 John realized the eternal and unchanging nature of the moral 24:48 law, the Ten Commandments, ladies and gentlemen 24:52 are still enforced today. Can you say Amen? 24:56 James calls them the law of liberty. 25:00 James says that they do not bind you down, they free 25:03 you from this world and from the penalty of sin. 25:07 Paul says the Commandments are holy, they are just, 25:11 and they are good. 25:13 It will always be wrong to lie, always wrong to cheat, always 25:17 wrong to steal and nobody has any problem with that, why then 25:21 do we have a problem with little ole Commandment number four? 25:33 We except one, two, three, five, six, seven, eight, nine, what 25:40 is the matter with four? 25:45 The Commandments are not like a Chinese menu, 25:47 you take them all, and James says if you break one, 25:51 you break them all. 25:54 But what about those regulations that were put in the 25:59 side of the Ark? 26:00 I think you understand and accept with me that the 26:03 Commandments are still in force. 26:06 The question comes up that other body of laws placed 26:10 in the side of the Ark. 26:11 What about these ordinances, these feasts, these sacrifices, 26:14 these meat, drink, and grain offerings that look forward to 26:18 the sacrifice of Christ. 26:19 Let me give you an example, I am in the book of Leviticus, 26:21 what book did I say? 26:22 I am in Leviticus 5:5-7, turn with me in Leviticus. 26:32 Let's read the word of God. 27:20 Leviticus says that there are certain regulations 27:25 we have to do if we have sinned. 27:27 Has anybody brought with him tonight a lamb? 27:34 Any turtledoves? Pigeons? Goats? 27:37 Why have you not done that? Because it is unnecessary! 27:46 Why is it unnecessary? Because someone has done something 27:54 to make that unnecessary. 27:58 The someone is, Jesus. 28:01 What did He do? He sacrificed His life! 28:06 Jesus died, Jesus made a sacrifice that was complete 28:11 and thorough so now when I sin, instead of going to church, 28:17 dragging a lamb, or a ram, or dove, or a sheep, 28:23 I go to Jesus. Amen! 28:26 I fall on my knees at the feet of the Savior, and the moment 28:32 I fall down, if I confess my sins, the Bible says 28:37 He is faithful and just to forgive and to cleanse. 28:41 Praise God! You see that ought to make you happy. 28:44 If I were a jumping preacher I would jump right down 28:47 off this pulpit right now. 28:48 Because that is a good piece of news, it says I do not have to 28:52 slip the throat of a poor lamb and drain out it's blood, 28:54 all I have to do is get down on my knees and say 28:58 Jesus I have sinned. 29:00 I have made a mistake would You please forgive me? 29:03 The Bible says the moment I come to Jesus in faith, 29:07 Jesus writes down next to my name in heaven, 29:09 P A R D O N E D, pardoned. Amen! So it is not necessary now. 29:19 Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy are full of rules 29:23 and regulations and sacrifices and offerings and ordinances 29:27 that were entered into in faith. 29:31 They were done in faith looking forward to what 29:34 Jesus was going to do. 29:35 But Christ then would be the true sacrifice. 29:37 So let's jump over to the book of Hebrews, I'm in Hebrews 9, 29:44 remember I told you that the book of Hebrews was written to 29:46 Hebrew Christians who were in danger of sliding back 29:49 into the old Jewish ways? 29:50 So Paul wrote to the Hebrew Christians and one of the most 29:54 important things he said is in Hebrews 9:11, 12. 30:26 Can you say Amen? Praise God! 30:29 Paul is stressing the point, he is begging the point. 30:32 He is saying over and over again, you had bulls and goats 30:36 and rams and lambs and doves, now we've got Jesus. Praise God! 30:42 We have got Jesus and those rams and lambs and bulls and goats 30:47 could not really cleanse from sin. 30:50 It was a stopgap measure, it was a tie-over measure. 30:55 It was something to keep you until the real thing came along. 30:59 I had a student in Oakland College we went to visit 31:02 this lady that was famous for cooking meals. 31:04 She could satisfy any college student, you know when you're in 31:07 college as a student, Pastor Jim, you know when you were a 31:11 freshman until the time you graduate you are 31:12 hungry all the time. 31:13 You are never satisfied, any boys in college you are hungry 31:16 for 4 years, you never get enough food. 31:17 And this lady was famous for being able to satisfy young 31:22 college men, so we went her house one day. 31:24 Four of us and we said bring it on, the contest begin. 31:28 She went in the kitchen and she did little rumbling 31:30 and came out with a little plate of macaroni and cheese, 31:32 and a little plate of something else, a little plate of 31:34 vegetarian meat and we sat back and said, are you kidding? 31:36 This little bit of food. How is this going to satisfy us? 31:39 And we laughed at her, but you see what she was doing that 31:42 which is the stopgap measure, a little thing to hold us over 31:46 until she loaded the big gun. 31:48 So we cleaned up those little plates and they were 31:50 just gone and sat back and said this is ridiculous, 31:53 we are still hungry. 31:54 And then she came out with a big pan of macaroni and cheese, 31:58 and a big pan of collard greens, and big pan of greens, 32:01 and a big pan of vegetables, and a big pan of vegetarian 32:04 meat and we ate until we had to wave the white flag 32:07 and say we can't take anymore. And then she brought in the 32:10 desert and we slid under the 32:12 table because there was just so much food. 32:14 Well that is what the Bible is saying here, those goats, and 32:19 the lambs, and Rams, that was an appetizer, a stopgap measure 32:24 until the real thing was to come along. 32:27 That real thing which Jesus Himself. 32:30 When the real thing came along there was no need for the 32:33 appetizers anymore because the main course was being served 32:37 ladies and gentlemen, after the main course, dinner is through. 32:44 So Paul is saying that once and for all Christ made this 32:46 sacrifice and there is no need for any other because He is the 32:49 complete and total sacrifice. 32:51 The blood of bulls and goats and rams could never do it, 32:54 but Jesus could. 32:55 Let's go back to Hebrews 9:9, 10 this time. 33:36 So God is saying to his people, these things were good, 33:40 but when Christ came they are no good anymore. 33:43 When the full meal comes you don't want just a little 33:46 appetizer, you want the real thing and that of course, 33:49 is Jesus Christ. 33:51 The Living Bible paraphrases so well and in fact the Living 33:54 Bible does say, it is like a little appetizer, 33:56 a little faith before the real meal. 33:58 So they were types, they were shadows, they were looking 34:04 forward to the coming of Christ. 34:05 But I say again that when Christ came these things came to an 34:11 end. Is that clear? Do you understand me? 34:13 Are you with me on that? 34:14 I need you to understand that because there is a lot 34:16 of things going around today. 34:18 These things indeed did come to an end, but these do not touch 34:23 on the Ten Commandments of God which are eternal, 34:26 ladies and gentlemen, which came right on through. 34:28 Christ didn't died to bring an end to the Ten Commandments, 34:32 He lived up to the dictate of the Ten Commandments and then 34:35 ministers in our behalf and heavenly courts to this day. 34:39 So we have two things equally important. 34:43 We have the Ten Commandments and we have laws and ordinances 34:48 and I want to go now to the book of Colossians 2, let's jump 34:53 to Colossians, again, 2:14, 15. Here we go. 35:44 Now what is this text saying? 35:45 Simply that those ordinances, that we have just discussed at 35:51 length, those practices that look forward to the coming of 35:57 Christ, met their fulfillment in Christ and then as such ended 36:02 when Christ gave His life on the cross. 36:05 I need that to be thoroughly understood. 36:08 This text does not envision the Ten Commandments. 36:12 Can you say Amen? 36:13 Now there's some scholars that define this text as the hand 36:18 writing of a sin debt, and that is true. 36:22 Christ did indeed blot out and take care of and an annulled our 36:26 debt of sin on the cross, but it does not nullify the fact 36:31 that it also encompasses and accepts the fact that Christ 36:35 also ended those things which looked forward to His 36:39 death on the cross. 36:41 Why are they against us? Because if you are doing things to 36:47 try and earn favor of Jesus, or be acceptable to God, 36:51 that is legalism and unacceptable to God. 36:55 If Jesus says, simply come to Me and confess your sins and your 37:00 are still dragging around lambs and rams and doves and goats, 37:05 you are saying to Jesus, Your sacrifice is not 37:09 good enough for me. 37:10 You are saying I am going to have to do something on my 37:14 own to gain favor with God. 37:16 Jesus has said I am the way, I am the truth, I am the life, 37:23 no one comes to the Father except through Me. 37:27 So if you are trying to go to God any other way except through 37:30 Jesus, you are not going to get there ladies and gentlemen. 37:34 And so lambs and rams and goats and doves don't suffice 37:38 anymore because we have Jesus and that is what the whole book 37:42 of Hebrews is all about. It is now all about Jesus, Amen! 37:46 Let's go back to Deuteronomy, we are going to do a little 37:50 Bible hopping, Deuteronomy 31:26. 38:06 Do you remember we talked about that word against you? 38:09 Where did we see against you? 38:11 We just saw in Colossians 2, let's do a little 38:16 bit of work here. 38:18 Moses said in Deuteronomy 31, put this body of work in the 38:24 side of the Ark to serve as a witness against you. 38:29 Colossians says 2:14, "blotting out the hand writing of the 38:36 requirement, or ordinances, that was against us. " 38:40 See the same terminology? 38:42 Same terminology, so then that body of law that was against us 38:48 was put in the side of the Ark. 38:51 That body of law that stopped at the cross was against us, 38:57 do you see the same words? 38:58 So then that body of law, that was against us, that was put in 39:04 the side of the Ark, was the ceremonial law. 39:07 Does that make sense? Is it clearer? 39:10 It is the ceremonial law not the Ten Commandments. 39:14 So those who say that the Ten Commandments and the ceremonial 39:18 law are the same simply don't understand this point. 39:22 They were placed into different parts of the Ark, because God 39:26 wanted them to be separate, because God knew that one of 39:29 them would come to the end the day Jesus bowed His head 39:32 and died and said, "it is finished". 39:35 The other one would be eternal. 39:37 The other one would go on as long as there was a God 39:40 there is always going to be a law. 39:41 Just like you can't change who you are without power 39:43 of God, you are who you are or what God is making you. 39:46 God is what He is, God doesn't change and His law does not 39:49 change, praise God! 39:53 So then these laws are done away with, that includes the 39:59 feasts, the washings, all of those things that are part 40:04 of the ceremonial system. 40:06 Let's to Hebrews 1, I am going to skip a couple texts 40:08 because my time is getting away from me. 40:13 Hebrews 1:1, 2. Let's read the word of God. 40:34 So Hebrews, right out of the gate as it were, puts the weight 40:39 on Jesus, it is not about sacrifices anymore, 40:41 it is not about feast days anymore, it's not about 40:44 regulations and regimes and working and cutting and bleeding 40:50 it's about the shed blood of Jesus Christ. 40:53 Do you understand that? 40:54 It is very crucial because there are those who are trying to 40:57 say you need to work your way to heaven. 40:59 You need to try, you need to fight against sin. 41:01 You do not need to do that, it is like that lady said before, 41:04 how do I surrender? 41:05 That is the key, it is giving your life over to Jesus and 41:08 allowing Jesus to work in you, and through you, 41:11 and to you, and with you, and allowing God to do for 41:14 you what you cannot do for yourself. 41:17 And that is to save you in His kingdom. 41:20 He has in these last days spoken to us by His Son. 41:22 So Paul sets the foundation right there in the very 41:25 beginning, he is saying it is all about Jesus. 41:28 They had grain, lambs, rams, and pigeons, and doves. 41:32 Praise God we got Jesus. 41:36 Christ is better, Christ is the better sacrifice, 41:42 Christ is the complete sacrifice. 41:44 God gave His Son, Jesus is truly heaven's greatest 41:48 gift ladies and gentlemen, and when God gave us Jesus, 41:52 He gave heavens all, can you say Amen? 41:56 Hebrews 8:12, just a couple more texts. 42:28 He is saying, this is it. 42:31 This is all there is, it is all about Jesus. 42:35 Now let's harmonize that with Colossians 2:16, 42:39 we have a lot of text, I hope you are writing them down. 42:41 Colossians 2:16, let's go to Colossians 2:16. 42:57 Now that goes back to something we talked about the other 43:00 night, therefore, therefore let one judge you, 43:04 eat, drink, Sabbaths, new Moons. 43:08 There are those that say this means you can eat anything, 43:12 you can drink anything, and the Sabbath is done away with. 43:16 I want to pull out the pins from under that right now. 43:20 Because you always have to look at the context in which 43:24 something is written. 43:26 The context are sacrifices and festivals. 43:31 So when we talk about food and drink is talking about drink 43:37 offerings, meat offerings, not eat and drinking per se, 43:42 does that make sense? 43:44 The context is festivals, and the reason I know is because 43:49 later on it says, new moons and Sabbaths. 43:53 That is not the Sabbath, it's Sabbaths, 43:57 which were festival days, which were part 44:00 of that ceremonial system. 44:02 This is a little technical but it is something that 44:05 is important for us to know. 44:07 So this text does not say, as some have tried to make 44:11 it say, Christ died that you can eat squid, and octopus, 44:15 and lobster, or anything you want. 44:18 And you can drink alcohol and coffee and caffeinated things 44:22 which injure your body, that is not why Jesus 44:25 went to the cross. 44:27 He did not go to the cross to make alcohol acceptable. 44:30 He went to the cross to make you acceptable. 44:34 He didn't go to the cross to clean up the lobsters 44:37 and crayfish and crabs and oysters. 44:40 He went to the cross to clean up you and me, Amen! 44:43 This text does not say that, it is talking about 44:47 that ceremonial system. 44:49 It is say let nobody judge you in those things. 44:51 Don't get hung up upon those things anymore because Christ 44:54 has died now and you are free from all that. 44:58 You have got Jesus, can you say Amen? 45:01 Alright let's go quickly to Romans 8:34, and I have 45:05 to move really fast. 45:06 Romans 8:34, I am turning to a real quick in my Bible. 45:23 Praise God and we thank the Lord for that. 45:24 So Jesus now has made a complete sacrifice and He's in heaven 45:30 giving us the benefits of that sacrifice. 45:36 Back to Colossians, I know we are jumping back and forth but 45:39 we have to use all these texts so I hope you are writing them 45:41 down so that you can study them when you get a chance. 45:43 I'm in Colossians 2:16. 46:00 Oh is that 16, alright let's try to pull it together. 46:03 So let no one judge you in these things, new moons or 46:07 Sabbaths because they are done away with at the cross. 46:11 It is not the Sabbath, I want to re-emphasize, it is not the 46:14 Sabbath but a Sabbath, and those Sabbaths were done 46:19 away with at the cross. 46:20 Romans 7:23, and I think it will be my last text of the night, 46:23 Hebrews 7:23. 46:26 Here we go, Hebrews 7:23 and we are going down to 25. 47:05 That is the text that deserves to be underlined, 47:08 ladies and gentlemen. 47:09 Christ is making intercession for you, you don't have to make 47:13 intercession for yourself. 47:14 God is listening to His Son, pleading your case and mine, 47:20 and when we sin, we go to Jesus, Jesus intercedes to the Father 47:24 and we are forgiven and are right standing with God. 47:27 Amen! No more bulls, no more goats, no more lambs, no more 47:33 rams, only the Lamb that takes away the sins of 47:37 the world, your friend and mine, our Savior Jesus. 47:41 Do you let Him tonight? Do you really love Jesus? 47:45 Would you rather have Jesus? 47:48 Listen to the words of this song. 48:13 I'd rather have Jesus then Silver or Gold 48:24 I'd rather be His, then have riches untold 48:36 I'd rather have Jesus then houses or lands 48:47 I'd rather be led by His nail pierced hand 48:57 Than to be the king of the vast domain 49:08 or to be held in sins dread sway 49:19 I'd rather have Jesus then anything 49:28 this world affords today. 49:44 How many would truly rather have Jesus? 49:48 Do you think it is unreasonable for Jesus to ask you to turn 49:53 your back on the world and give Him your heart? 49:59 Do you think it is unreasonable when Christ says give Me one 50:03 seventh of your time? Give me 1 day out of 7? 50:08 I will give you blessings enough to keep you through the other 6. 50:15 Do you think it is unreasonable when Christ says, 50:20 give Me your body, give Me your life, keep it in good 50:26 working condition so that I can use you to touch somebody 50:32 who doesn't know about Me? 50:34 Do you think that is unreasonable? 50:37 Christ says give it to Me. 50:41 Than to be the king of vast domain 50:49 or to be held in sins dread sway 51:01 I'd rather have Jesus then anything 51:11 this world affords today 51:22 Do you really love Him? Stand with me if you do. 51:24 Stand with me 51:29 or be held in sins dread sway 51:41 would you rather have Jesus then anything 51:50 this world affords today, 52:00 this world affords, 52:10 this world affords today. 52:21 Shall we pray, Father God, we ask You to give us Jesus and 52:27 only Jesus, please take the world and give us Jesus. 52:32 We thank you that we are released from the past and 52:37 can look forward to a bright and gloriously future. 52:41 In Jesus name! Amen! |
Revised 2014-12-17