The Power of an Indestuctible Life

Hebrews 7.1-19

You have heard people say this (perhaps you have said it or at least thought of it), "I have to get away from it all," or "I just want to go to a deserted island where no one can find me."

People look for peace in escape. Advertisers use this to their advantage. Vacations packages are sold based on it. Back in the 1970's there was a commercial which had the words, "Take me away Calgon." Peace is not found in escape- not true lasting peace.

People look for peace in evasion. Some poor souls go through great lengths to avoid certain people. If they see them coming they will go another way. If they hear they are going to be at a certain event they will not attend themselves. There may be no confrontation in that approach but there is also no peace. The loss of a loved one can be handled that way. The "experts" in grief counseling call it postponing grief. It is very unhealthy. People that say, "I am going on with my life," after such a loss or really saying, "I can't handle this!" People handle illness like this at times. They don't face the inevitable. Some of the anti aging techniques used today ignore gravity. They evade the truth!

Melchizedek is called the King of Peace. That is one of the meanings of his name. v.3 like the Son of God he remains a priest forever.

When Jesus was dying on the cross, His life not look indestructible. When He shed His blood it didn't look like He would be alive forevermore (Revelation 1.18) but He is and He holds the keys of death and of hell. He said in John 8.58 Before Abraham was born I am and now He is seated at the right hand of God and He always lives to intercede for us (Hebrews 7.25)

In Genesis 14 and again in the scripture in Hebrews we read this morning we are told of the meeting of Abraham and this Melchizedek. There is much more I would love to know about this mysterious King-Priest from Jerusalem but this is what we are told.

1. The Tithe is the LORD's. vs.1-10
Abraham gave 10% of the spoils of this battle to Melchizedek, priest of God.
Genesis 14.21-24
The tithe is a tangible acknowledgment of God in your life. Abraham's victory over the kings he fought against was a miracle. He knew it. He knew God provided it. He had to acknowledge God.

Abraham tithed before the law was given- 400 years before!

1-Melchizedek brought out bread and wine.- Genesis 14.18
The connection to the LORD's Supper here centuries before Christ came.
2-Melchizedek blessed Abraham- vs.19-20a
3-Abraham gave Melchizedek a tenth of everything. -v.20b

Look at Jesus' words about money Matthew 6.19-21, 24

2. The Priesthood of Melchizedek is Unique. vs.11-17
*It is royal priesthood because Melchizedek was a king.
I Peter 2.9 But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a people belonging to God.
Christ is our Great High Priest- all believers serve as priests.
*Melchizedek and Jesus' priesthood is different from the Old Covenant.
The Old- Aaron and his descendants- it died out, but before it did it was fulfilled by Jesus.
The New and Eternal- like Melchizedek, Jesus is a priest forever.
Neither Melchizedek nor Jesus were Levites or descendants of Aaron.

3. Our Hope is in Christ vs.18-19
John 11.25 I am the Resurrection and the Life. He who believes in Me will live, even though He dies.
He gives us everlasting life. John 5.24-26
He comforts us. Job 19.25 I know that my Redeemer lives
He satisfies John 4.10

You can live by the power of His Endless Life- the power of the Resurrection!
John 14.19 Because I live you also will live.

The power of an indestructible life is ours in Christ!

The Anchor For The Soul

Hebrews 6.13-20

I love the terms used to describe Christ Jesus: Son of God, Son of Man
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace
Bread of Life, Rock, Ancient of Days, Lily of the Valley, Morning Star
That Great Shepherd of the Sheep, Alpha and Omega

Here in the Scripture this morning He is described as an anchor for the soul. We need to hear this today.

1. In Times Like There We Have Hope. v.16-20
Thankfully our anchor isn't in the economy. Wall Street's performance this week gave investors high blood pressure and other stress related maladies.
Our anchor isn't tied to how well things are going because as the old hymn says, "I don't borrow from it sunshine for its skies may turn to gray."
Our anchor isn't tied to anything other than Jesus Christ. We've anchored our soul in the Haven of Rest!

Bread, a group from the 70's did a song called London Bridge (it could have been written for today):
I know the times are to bear,
Its hard to find someone to really care.
The changes taking place are everywhere,
The centuries past have nothing to compare.

The greatest changes the world has ever experienced since Creation are taking place right now- rapid fire change.

It is easy to sense the loss of stability as the world spins out of control.
We have hope because we have an anchor for the soul.

A hymn of years ago could have been written for today!:
In times like these we need a Savior.
In times like these we need an anchor.
I'm very sure. I'm very sure.
My anchor holds and grips the Solid Rock.
This Rock is Jesus, Yes He's the One.
This Rock is Jesus, God's only Son.
I'm very sure. I'm very sure.
My anchor holds and grips the Solid Rock.

Life apart from Christ the Solid Rock, the Anchor for the soul, is full of uncertainties. It is outside the plan and purpose of God.

2. We Have Fled To Him! -v.18
Proverbs 18.10 The Name of the LORD is a strong tower; the righteous run into it and they are saved.
This word "run" means to swiftly dart, to move quickly, to hurry
The word, fled, means to seek safety by flighty, to escape safely out of danger.
We are in the shelter of His wings. He protects us.

An anchor is not seen when it is at work but it is felt and the effects it produces are very visible.

3. This Anchor For The Soul Is Firm and Secure.- v.19-20
It takes hold of the unseen and eternal- the Holy of Holies.
Our Great High Priest is in the heavens. Jesus fulfilled the Old Testament Priesthood and sacrificial system.

He is our Anchor:
*In the Day of Trouble
Psalm 27.5 For in the day of trouble, He will keep me safe in His dwelling. Evil times, bad things coming, pain, misery, fiery trials
*In the Day of Adversity
Proverbs 17.17 A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.
Straits, distress... When all around my soul gives way
*In the Day of Death
I Corinthians 15.55 O death where is your victory?
The loss of a loved one. For believers in Jesus Christ: "Death is not the extinguishing of the light.
It is putting out the lamp because the dawn has come."

We have an Anchor for the Soul!

Rest in Him Today!

A Balanced Spiritual Diet

Hebrews 5.11-14

One of the most popular topics today is in one word, "diet". With our sedimentary life style weight loss has become a huge industry. A great deal of money and energy is spent on trying to keep fit these days.

Diet is much more than weight loss. It is the whole of what we ingest. What is true in the physical area is true in the spiritual realm. We need a balanced diet.

When I grew up in the church we emphasized a lot of what we should avoid spiritually. That is important too. We did not put nearly enough emphasis on what we should take in for a balanced spiritual diet.

God's Word instructs us as to what this is. There are specific physical foods mentioned a number of times in the scriptures which correlate to spiritual nourishment.

1. Milk I Peter 2.2-3
*No beverage contains so many nutrients.
*Young children need it for bone mass and skeletal development.
*It is easy to digest. It doesn't tax the digestive system.

Spiritually milk is the basics of the faith.
We need to continue to take it in. Human beings are the only animals/mammals which continue to take in milk after full development.

We are to be childlike in our faith. The Word of God has milk. We are to crave it like new born babes. Long for the time in God's Word each day. Pursue it with love and hide it in your heart.

Now we know that children do not stay on an all milk diet. They begin to desire solid food. Milk no longer satisfies alone. They still need milk but they also need:

2. Meat I Corinthians 3.1-2
As teeth begin to develop, children want something they can sink their teeth into, something more than just milk.
As we mature as believers we long for the vast wealth of God's Word to make us strong.
Both the Corinthians and the Hebrews had arrested spiritual development. The Corinthians were bickering with jealousy in their hearts over which minister of the gospel was the best and over spiritual gifts. Sins within can cut off the desire for solid food. There are so many spiritual analogies here but we cannot get into all of them. Sins like jealousy and envy and bitterness affect us physically, particularly in our bone health and our digestive system. Godliness with contentment is great gain. I Timothy 6.6

We need meat (Solid food) to develop - Peter tells us to first rid ourselves of things that prevent spiritual development. (I Peter 2.1) Think about envy. If I am focused on what someone else has I can't give my full attention to becoming like Christ. I can't digest meat/solid food. There is an immaturity to all these inner sins... we see it with children (I have more sprinkles on my ice cream than you!) but when we grow up it is so unbecoming!

We need milk, we need meat and we also need

3. Manna John 6.30-40
Daily provision for food for the body. Daily provision for spiritual food for each day: "Give us this day our daily bread."
This has to do with a Person to person relationship- personal insight. Christ= the Anointed One, The Truth, The Way, The Life. I had an experience of this nature this week- The Gardens of Jesus last hours: Gethsemane, The Garden Tomb, Paradise: The Struggle, Suffering, Pleasure for Eternity.

Milk, Meat Manna- Let's Eat!

Because of Christ

Hebrews 4.14-16

One of the themes of Hebrews is the benefits of the New Covenant. We live under great blessings because of Christ Jesus Our LORD. Those who know Christ as their Savior are blessed by the LORD.

Part of our spiritual growth is coming to understand more of what the LORD has provided for us as we journey to heaven. If we do not grow in understanding of these things we will not experience the full blessing of the LORD.

Hebrews is a book of exhortations.

1. Let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. - v.14
Make that profession as possession!
Seize it! Keep it carefully.

The Old Covenant had a High Priest. Aaron, his sons, his descendants.
The High Priest had to atone for his own sins first before offering sacrifices for the sins of the people he carried on his shoulders and heart.

Sacrifices were made daily. It was not complete. It pointed to the Everlasting Covenant where Christ is the High Priest and the Sacrifice! Sinless, once for all and perfect.

The Hebrews were sliding back to what they had left years before: The Old Covenantal System.
Too many believers today are not holding firmly to their faith. Many times it is at best a half hearted effort. We are in a battle for eternity.
Ask the LORD to give you discernment in these last days in which we live.
Because of what Jesus has done and Who He is, hold firmly to the faith you profess.

2. Let Him sympathize with your weaknesses. -v.15
He was tempted as the Son of God. He faced the full power of temptation.
We are children of God by being born again.
We face the temptation:
*to get something good by the wrong means.
*to make a display of His power for our glory
*to accomplish the purposes of God in a way that would dishonor Him.
*to speak rashly Luke 11.53-54 Aim to be like Him in speech.
*to abandon the cross Matthew 27.40-43
The temptation to quit is such a subtle constant one. At times we breathe out this prayer in desperation: I Kings 19.4 He prayed that he might die. I have had enough LORD. Take my life. I am no better than my ancestors.
Hebrews 5.7 During the days of Jesus' life on earth, He offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the One Who could save Him from death, and He was heard because of His reverent submission.

3. Let us approach the Throne of Grace with confidence.- v.16
Because of what Jesus did- that thick woven veil was torn in two from top to bottom (Matthew 27.51) God did it. The way to His Presence was fully opened to all who come through Christ.
We have come to receive great gifts:
Mercy- God not treating us as our sins deserve. His compassion on us.
Grace- God treating us with kindness poor and sinful though we be.

He is here to help us at the right time with tenderness. He helps us in times of struggle.

His help is based on understanding and ability of Him as our Great High Priest

Because of what Jesus did, what He is doing now, we can make it victoriously. We are on the way to heaven if we have Christ in our hearts!

CHRIST, The Faithful Son

Hebrews 3.1-6

Hebrews shows how the New and Everlasting Covenant is far superior to the Old.

Moses was a faithful servant in God's House He built the tabernacle according to the specifications the LORD gave him on Mount Sinai. He built it for Abraham's physical descendants that they could become a nation with priests whereby all people on the earth could have access to through the written code to God. Moses, the faithful servant. He stands as an example for all who lead in God's House. He wasn't perfect but he was faithful.

Christ is a faithful Son in the House of God His Father. This is vastly from the Old Covenant. Jesus said, "I will build My Church" Matthew 16.18 The word build refers to a family. Christ is building His church through people coming into God's family by being born again.

Moses used material (and we know the details of it) to build the tabernacle and the things necessary for the priests to carry out worship. Under the New Covenant we are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. I Peter 2.5 He is the Living Stone, the Rock upon which we are being built.

For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.
The law showed us our sin; Christ forgives our sins and shows us the Father.

1. He is the Son Of God. -v.6
His Only Son. - John 3.16
His Kingdom is an everlasting kingdom- different in all the kingdoms on earth.
For example: Psalm 116.15 Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of His saints.
Not totally in our sight because we don't have clear vision. We see a poor reflection, through a glass dimly. What a glad welcome those who held firmly to their faith receive- wonderful!
He is in very nature God. Philippians 2.6, John 1.1
Christ became a man- Jesus Christ the LORD. He was born to Mary but when He was just 12 He made a clear distinction of where He had to be.

2. He is in His Father's House.
Luke 2.41-50 Didn't you know I had to be in My Father's House?
John 14.1-3 He is Home With His Father now that His Work on Earth is done.

3. He cleansed His Father's House on Earth. John 2.13-17
He cares for it.
We are His Body. We are His house on earth.
Before the New Covenant He cleansed the house Moses built-Solomon
John 2.16 He has zeal for it.
His House, we His church, a place of prayer for all nations Matthew 21.13

4. He is going to bring all who believe and v.14 hold firmly till the end the confidence we had at first to His Father's House in Heaven.
*Rejoice in that Blessed Hope today!
*Keep yourselves in the love of God.
*Be merciful to those who doubt.
*Snatch others from the fire.
*Build yourselves up in the faith (God's Word) Pray in the Spirit!

You are in Christ, God's Faithful Son. Remain in His Love!

Our Wonderful LORD

Hebrews 1.1-12



The new covenant that Christ Jesus brought into effect is more wonderful than we can imagine. The Book of Hebrews speaks of this.

The opening section of this letter give us an overview of Who Jesus is.


1. The Son of God vs.1-2a

The Old Testament was from Moses to Malachi

John 1.17 For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.

Jesus= Yeshua, Joshua, Deliverer/Savior; Christ=the Anointed One

His Son- God in the flesh v.6


Later in our walk through Hebrews we will read Hebrews 4.14-15
sympathize= to be affected with he same feeling as another, to feel for, to have compassion on
our weaknesses= lack of strength, to restrain from corrupt desires, bear trials and trouble

Jesus has compassion on you, where you are weak, where you lack strength. He never sinned but He was tempted in those areas. He understands our struggle against sin. He is praying for you. Romans 8.34 Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus Who died, more than that is also risen is at the right hand of God making intercession for us.


Listen to His words to Peter after Peter says that even if everyone denies Him he will not.
Luke 22.31-32 "Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, Simon that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.


2. Christ Jesus is the Heir of all things.
All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me- Matthew 28.28

Psalm 24.1 The earth is the LORD's and everything in it, the world and all who live in it.

Heir= One who receives His allotted possession by right of Sonship.
Galatians 4.7b since you are a son, God has made you also an heir.
II Timothy 2.12 if we endure, we will also reign with Him.

3. Christ Jesus is the Creator of the Universe.
All things were made through Him.- John 1.3
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth
Isaiah 40.26-27 Stop looking down, look up!
Colossians 1.16
Revelation 4.11

4. In Christ we see the Father.
The Son is the Radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of His Being.
John 14.5-14 If you have seen Me, you have seen the Father.

5. He finished the work of redemption on the cross.
He provided purification for sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in Heaven.
All offerings in Leviticus were fulfilled in Christ's death. His Work was completed.
Now He is working through us. Acts 1.1 All that Jesus began...

He is with us. He is working through us by His Spirit. He is praying for us. He is coming for us!

The Heart's Disease

Leviticus 13.1-17

Heart disease is the leading cause of death for men and women in the United States. Under its umbrella is coronary heart disease, heart attack, congestive heart failure and congenital heart disease. Keys to prevention include quitting smoking and exercising. Stress (bitterness and unforgiveness as well) is a "hidden" factor.

It is not the physical organ we are looking at this morning. It is the spiritual part of us called the heart. In the scriptures there are physical terms which have to do with spiritual matters.

The skin diseases we read about in Leviticus 13 revolve around the dreaded on of Biblical times- leprosy. Leprosy is an infectious disease. It is characterized by disfiguring skin, sores, nerve damage and progressive debilitation. It basically eats away the body's tissue and nervous system.

Leprosy typified sin and its effects on the human reference. What the leper experienced physically and emotionally is similar to what the person living in sin experiences spiritually for the person breaking God's law "it is a sin problem not a skin problem"- Pastor Al Brown

As leprosy affects the body so sin affects the heart and soul of man.

There is a clear line drawn in John 9 between sin and sickness when they they encountered the man born blind the disciples asked Jesus (vs.2-3), "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents that he was born blind?" "Neither this man nor his parents sinned, "said Jesus, "but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life."

1. Sin Goes Deep Into The Heart of Man- v.3
Proverbs 4.23 David's son, Solomon, speaking to his son:
Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.
Beware of curiosity concerning sinful things. Curiosity is not evil, it can lead to discoveries that benefit humanity (uncovering what God knows about disease for example) but it can lead to sin if it is focused on something bad.

2. The Washing of Clothes (mentioned a number of times in this section) Points to the New Covenant. -v.7

Colossians 3.12 Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.

I Peter 5.5 Young men, in the same way be submissive to those who are older. Clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.

Romans 13.14 Rather clothe yourselves with the LORD Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the sinful nature.

3. The Sinful Heart Affects Every Area of our Lives. vs.9-11, 45-46
Personally- it affects attitudes and perspectives.
Relationally Everyone we know, many we do not know.
v.45 Sin dishevels us, makes us an outcast, removes God's blessings.
It can disable us spiritually.
Two men who overcame sin:
J.C. Penney after the 1929 Crash put himself in the Battle Creek Sanitarium. One Sunday morning he was wheeled into the chapel. After hearing the hymn, "God Will Take Care of You" he asked Christ to forgive his sins and take away the bitterness he had towards people. In a short time he came out and regained his health. He became the father of what we know today of the enclosed mall.
The other was a cartoonist who while vacationing in New York had his small company taken over hostilely by his partners. On the way home on the train from New York he came up with a new character, a talking mouse. That cartoonist was Walt Disney.

4. Jesus Cured Lepers and He Forgives Sins.- Mark 1.40-45
Christ is filled with compassion whenever a needy soul comes humbly to Him.
He is not willing that anyone perish but for all to come to repentance. II Peter 3.9
The cure for a sin diseased heart is the Blood of Jesus Christ.

John 6.37 All that the Father gives Me will come to Me and whoever comes to Me I will never drive away.
KJV- I will in no wise cast out.

Jesus, What a Friend of Sinners!