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Christmas Series: THe One Who Brings Us To God, 2

Delight in Grace / Grace Bible Church / Rich Powell
The Truth Network Radio
December 24, 2024 10:00 am

Christmas Series: THe One Who Brings Us To God, 2

Delight in Grace / Grace Bible Church / Rich Powell

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December 24, 2024 10:00 am

As an illustration of the corrupting power of sin, let us consider a pitcher of pure, refreshing water. If we were to add even the slightest bit of sewage to that container, none of us would have any interest in drinking it. The entire pitcher is completely contaminated. Sin completely contaminates and corrupts our human nature. In the Old Testament, the sacrificial system became a picture, a foreshadowing of the only one who could cleanse us from that corrupting force wrapped around our souls. In that sacrificial system, animals were killed and their blood spilled out onto the altar, year after year. But Jesus would pay our debt once for all then sat down at the right hand of the Father, the ultimate and final sacrifice complete. This series from the beginning of the letter to the Hebrews unpacks all that Christ’s sacrifice and resurrection mean for us.

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Welcome to Delight in Grace, the teaching ministry of Rich Powell, pastor of Grace Bible Church in Winston-Salem. As an illustration of the corrupting power of sin, let us consider a pitcher of pure, refreshing water. If we were to add even the slightest bit of sewage to that container, none of us would have any interest in drinking it.

The entire pitcher is completely contaminated. Sin completely contaminates and corrupts our human nature. In the Old Testament, the sacrificial system became a picture or a foreshadowing of the only one who could cleanse us from that corrupting force that wraps itself around our souls. In that sacrificial system, animals were killed and their blood spilled out onto the altar year after year after year. But Jesus would pay our debt once for all.

Then He would sit down at the right hand of the Father, the ultimate and final sacrifice complete. This series from the beginning of the letter of Hebrews unpacks all that Christ's sacrifice and resurrection mean for us. You're listening to part two of a message titled, The One Who Brings Us to God.

It was first preached on December 8, 2024, at Grace Bible Church in Winston-Salem. The Lord Jesus came to deal with a cleanness on the inside, a righteousness, a righteous people to establish a righteous people. We talk about that some more. Before I go any farther, let's define what sin is, because some of us come from backgrounds and histories where we think sin is just a particular list. The problem with that is everyone has a different list. Right? So let's put it as a category.

All right? Sin is any thought or behavior that counters the character and purpose of God. Any thought or behavior that counters the character and the purpose of God.

We all deal with that. Every one of us in ourselves and its presence around us as well. And so we take the Old Testament law, and we were studying that in Deuteronomy, right?

We're going to finish that up in the new year. But in Deuteronomy, that in the law of Moses, there was a foreshadowing reminder of that which we celebrate at this time of year. It says in chapter 10, verse 3, in these sacrifices, there is a reminder of sins every year. The Levitical sacrificial system, it was a sacrifice of blood. What does the sacrifice of blood mean? The shedding of blood. It means this, a forfeiture of life.

The shedding of blood means a life form forfeited its life. And what it did under the Levitical sacrificial system, it was the covering, it covered the damage caused by the corrupting agents of sin and guilt in the people. And that's why they had to make sacrifices of animals without blemish. And the sacrifices restored man's relationship with God.

And it was a temporary, in a temporary sense. That's why they had to keep doing it over and over and over again to restore man's relationship with God. And the priest who is responsible for officiating those sacrifices, the priest was constantly standing, making sacrifices day after day.

First of all, for himself, because he too was an imperfect being and needed redemption, but also for the people. And it was a constant reminder of sin, that corrupting agent within us, and the necessary separation from God. All of this was a foreshadowing of the ultimate cleansing still to come. The ultimate cleansing still to come.

Why? Why did God do this? Because this is the reality of the matter. The wellness and success of one's life are determined by one's relation to God. You're listening to me here today as a believer, if you're here today as a guest and you don't know Jesus Christ, you don't consider yourself a Christian. If you're watching this live or sometime in the future, know this, know this. The wellness and success of one's life are determined by one's relation to God.

Why? Because you were created by him and you were created for him. He is the point of your existence. That's why Christ coming was necessary in the purpose and plan of God, for whom and by whom all things exist.

Jesus said it very clearly. We have a whole different definition for success. We define success in material terms.

Listen to me, please listen to me. That is a false definition of success. Jesus said it plainly. What does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses his own soul?

That's a failure. That's why Jesus came. So here we have the final cleansing because God's whole point in all of this is what Paul says in 2 Corinthians 5 19. God was in Christ doing what reconciling the world to himself.

And so here we have the final cleansing. The one who up the universe by the word of his power did what? He made purification for sins. Two very, very important aspects here. Two very important facts about the sacrifice that Jesus made. First of all, it was the forfeiture of a perfect life.

A perfect life. You see, no animal could say that. Because animals are all moral creatures.

They eat each other. They are all moral creatures. The son came to us from the father. He came to us from the father in human form. We read it Philippians Chapter two. Animals don't have morality. Also, because of that, they cannot finally atone.

They cannot. It was a temporary foreshadowing of the ultimate final cleansing that would come through Messiah. But here's the second one. All right. The first one was the perfect life forfeited.

The second one is this. This sacrifice was made willingly. It was made willingly. No animal in the history of all sacrifices jumped up and down with joy and hopped up on the altar.

It had to be bound, had to be dragged, had to be bound. The son of God went willingly. I have come to do your will, he says of the father. Remember when he prayed in the garden? Nevertheless, not my will, but yours be done.

He went willingly. He emptied himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death on a cross. And the word purification here is katharismos means cleansing. We find it in Second Peter one in verse nine. Those who are shortsighted have forgotten that they've been cleansed from their former sins. But also at First John one seven, the blood of Jesus Christ, his son does what cleanses us from all sin. That's what this verse is talking about. Purification for sins. It is the removal of the corrupting agent. He says in Chapter nine, verse twenty six, he says he has come to put away sins.

Cast it off, put it away. And in ten seventeen, he says, I will remember their transgressions no more. Now, think about that. Now, let's remember what God is like. OK, he has infinite knowledge. God doesn't forget.

OK, there's not anything he does not know. He doesn't forget, but when it says I will remember them no more. That's the biblical idea of remembering. Remembering is not just recalling to mind.

Remembering means there is further action to take. That's why when we come to the Lord's table, where we come to remember him, he has completed the work. So how do we remember him? By living in the newness that he has established for us. He remembers our sins no more. In other words, there's no further action for him to take.

Raymond Brown put it well. He says no repetition of this saving act will ever be necessary, nor can anything that we do serve to procure our own salvation. Three times, it says it in Hebrews, the sacrifice of Jesus Christ.

How good was it? Once for all. You got that? That's clear, isn't it? Nothing more to be done.

Nothing more to be done. It says it three times in Hebrews. And it says then afterwards, he says he sat down, after making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the majesty on high. The significance in there, first of all, sitting down is a position of rest.

What does that mean? When you're at rest, it means the work is what? Done. And because he's at rest, then we can enter into that rest. There is no longer any work to be done for us to be able to receive the righteousness that God requires so that we can be reconciled to him.

The work is done. Not only is it a position of rest, but it is a position of honor. The son has gone back to the father, and he sits at his right hand. And get this, Ephesians 2, 6 and 7, he raised us up with him and seated us with him in heavenly places in Christ Jesus. Stop right there. Who's he talking about? He's talking about you and me. We are raised with Christ. We are seated with Christ. You want to know God's perspective of you? You are seated in that rest and in that honor right there next to Jesus Christ, next to the very throne of God. That's God's perspective of you. Thanks for joining us here at Delight in Grace. You've been listening to Rich Powell, the lead pastor at Grace Bible Church in Winston-Salem. The Delight in Grace mission is to help you know that God designed you to realize your highest good and your deepest satisfaction in him, the one who is infinitely good. We hope you'll join us again on weekdays at 10 a.m.
Whisper: medium.en / 2024-12-24 12:09:29 / 2024-12-24 12:13:43 / 4

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