God has an encouraging word for you and me today through the Bible-based preaching of Dr. Don Wilton and a message on blessings. The seven blessings, that's today's message from Dr. Don. We'll dive into Hebrews in just a moment, but know that we're here for you. Our phone number is 866-899-WORD and we're connecting online at theencouragingword.org. The Encouraging Word.
And now, Dr. Don Wilton. I'm going to ask you to open your Bibles this morning to Hebrews chapter 12. Now friends, as you open your Bibles, I've got some very, very, very important things to say to you as a congregation.
I preached a message entitled The Profile of a Christian. Many of you were able to worship with us and some of you were able to hear the Word of God in that regard. God spoke to our hearts, especially to me. I couldn't get over the number of people that I kept running into and people that would report to me about what God had to say in Hebrews chapter 12.
It really was very significant. I had heard comments like this. I've been a member of God's church most of my life. One man said, gone to many a Bible study, studied many a passage of Scripture.
But I will tell you in all honesty that there were things that I heard in that message that I have never heard about in my entire life. I had some people come and ask me to explain some of the things that were said from verse 14 through the end of chapter 12. And so by the time I got to Tuesday, I had already prepared to begin a wonderful series in chapter 13. Let me just tell you, I'm not preaching on chapter 13, but chapter 13 is the practical component of the book of Hebrews.
It's wonderful. We're going to be studying some major practical truths from God's Word when we get to chapter 13. But God began to speak to my heart and so I went back, began to take a second and then a third look. As it were, I think the Lord was saying to me, Don, get a shovel and I want you to dig below the surface, way deep. And so I've done that.
We're going to be focusing today and probably next week and maybe the next week after that, I don't know. On something in Hebrews chapter 12 that I've heard as many comments about as one could possibly imagine. These are precious truths.
They are very deep. I just share that with you. I know that as a congregation, we have a profound, deep and abiding belief that our business ought to be to study the Word of God. I pray God would forgive me if ever. I get up in this sacred pulpit and deliver sermonettes. And I pray God would find it in his heart to forgive me if I ever get up and deliver bubble and froth to my people.
And if ever I fall prey and victim to what some people are clamoring for. And that is to hear things that they want to hear, not what God has to say. And I pray that we will never be a church that skims over the surface and is never willing to wrestle and come to the truth of the Word of God. Now, for some of you, when I get into what we're about to get into, these things are going to be awfully deep. Some of it's going to be quite difficult.
I'm going to try to explain it. One of the things that I'm promising you right now is that I will not hurry through this. It doesn't matter how far we get. I'm not going to hurry through it because it's too important. Our subject this morning is entitled the seven blessings, the seven blessings.
John F. Kennedy said many years ago upon the occasion of his inauguration, he said, ask not what your country can do for you, but ask what you can do for your country. We've already in great detail tried to understand the difference between Mount Sinai and Mount Zion. And I just want to remind you that Mount Sinai was where God gave Moses the law.
We're not under law, we're under grace. And here juxtaposed in this passage is the difference between law and grace. On the one hand, there is Mount Sinai, untouchable. On the other hand, there is Mount Zion, God's grace. And the Bible tells us that these two ride side by side with one another and to the Jewish mind, Mount Sinai breathed threatenings and slaughter. It epitomized and symbolized the judgment of God. Not even an animal could touch the side of Sinai without fear of death. And the rituals associated with anyone who would seek to come into the presence of Mount Sinai are recorded for us, Exodus 19 and other places, notwithstanding, the only means by which any person could come to God, Mount Sinai, was through the priest. Moses was the only one who was enabled and had the authority to go up there. And then the Bible even tells us in this passage, he did so with fear and trembling because he understood he was coming into the presence of a righteous and a holy God.
So what happened? God, who in his great mercy, from before the foundation of the world, gave us Jesus Christ, the superior one. And Jesus became our high priest. We know about Mount Zion because God tells us about it. We know that when Solomon moved the temple to Jerusalem, that Mount Moriah was included in the definition of Mount Zion. We know that the New Jerusalem or Mount Zion is the place where God is. It was a practical place to the Jewish mind. They could see it.
They knew about it. That is why even today, Mount Zion, the area of the temple mound in Israel, if you look at pictures of Jerusalem, particularly from the mound of Ascension and you see the golden dome of the rock, one of the most disputable, most contentious areas in all the world. It's the place where all religions meet today under the control of the Muslims. The Israelis will not let it go. What is a common phrase for Israelis? It's the word Zionism. They are Zionists, right? They want that area. They're not going to let it go.
They will not let it be divided. That there, that place represents God and that's where God is. It's the place that God told the Jewish people. He said, I will make the place where I dwell Mount Zion. So the Jews understood this. So if you went to a Jew and you said to him, would you come to God?
He said, let's go. And they went to Mount Zion because that's where the Ark of the Covenant was. That's where God is. And so we find here juxtaposed in this passage, Sinai untouchable, but God by His grace set us free in Christ Jesus.
Now touchable, now approachable. Sinai the law, Jesus Christ grace, Mount Zion. Sinai forbidding and terrifying, but Zion who is Jesus Christ inviting and gracious.
Sinai closed to all people, but Mount Zion opened to all people because God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever, it's open to all people, the grace of almighty God in Christ Jesus. Somebody say amen this morning. And so it's not withstanding here that we find the seven blessings. Bottom line summary, God saying you give your heart to Jesus Christ, you're going to get seven blessings. Number one, number one, you're going to have to listen carefully folks. All believers are guaranteed a place in heaven. Blessing number one, we are guaranteed a place in heaven. Now, we're going to notice something very interesting here. You need your Bibles, your pens, your notebooks and concentrate.
Ask the Spirit of God to speak to you. You're going to discover something here in verse 23. The Bible gives three different names for heaven in verse 22.
Let's have a look at these three different names because they provide some light. They shed light on what God is trying to tell us about this blessing. If all believers are guaranteed a place in heaven, what does it mean for me? Well, the first name that is used here is Mount Zion. Now, why do you suppose heaven is called Mount Zion?
We've talked about Mount Zion, but I'm going to submit to you that Mount Zion, my friends, and the significance of Mount Zion is tied into everything that Jesus Christ was. Now, we're not going to get confused here because we're going to discover very quickly that Jesus Christ actually is. But we're also going to discover very quickly that Jesus Christ and God our Heavenly Father always will be. But let's just take it one step at a time here. If I'm guaranteed in a place in heaven, I'm guaranteed a place in everything that God was.
Woohoo! Now, hold on now, folks. Now, who is God? God is from before the foundation of the world. He's sovereign. He's majestic.
He always has been. He is in the beginning. We're going to discover in just a moment that when we give our hearts and lives to Jesus Christ, we become joint heirs with Jesus Christ. That means that part of our inheritance is that we receive everything, not only that God will be.
We receive everything, not only that God is, but I receive everything that God always was. Mount Zion, the place where God made his dwelling place upon this earth. But then there's a second description of heaven. He talks about the heavenly Jerusalem. So number one description is Mount Zion talking about heaven, the place that God is. Second description, heavenly Jerusalem. Now, why is this place called heaven now suddenly called the heavenly Jerusalem? Well, folks, the answer here is quite simple yet very profound because that's the place where God is. Now, what do you mean that's the place where God is? And why is it heavenly and what has Jerusalem got to do with it? Well, when Mount Zion found itself situated in Jerusalem, what is Jerusalem? The city of God, Jerusalem, the place that is an exhibit of the peace of God and of the presence of God, the city of God. The book of Revelation talks about it very, very clearly. Now here's some big questions we've asked to them many times before.
All right, here it goes. Where exactly is heaven? Now, all right, I want all of you to point to heaven. Everybody, if you're not pointing at heaven, I don't think you're going there, brother. I'll tell you what, people have no problem doing this.
Say we number one when their football team wins a game. But have you noticed some people think it's the stupidest thing in the world to point to where heaven is? Have you noticed that? All right, everybody, if you know where heaven is, point there. Now, how do we know that's where heaven is?
Because the Bible tells us. Remember when Jesus died on the cross and he rose from the grave and he met with over 500 people? Then he went to the mount of ascension.
What happened to him? On the mount of ascension, Jesus went up. The Bible doesn't say the disciples looked down and said, uh-oh, where's he going? He went up. By the way, when he went up, he was caught in the clouds.
Where do you find clouds? Everybody point up in the heavens. Now, wait a minute, not only that, but in order to confirm this, the angel of God came down out of heaven, came down out of heaven, turned to the disciples and said to them, men of Galilee, why are you standing there like a bunch of dummies looking? Everybody look up, looking up because the same one who went up is going to come back down to earth again. There is a very clear cut discrepancy between heaven which is up and earth which is down. The Bible tells us that.
Now, watch this. Here, the writer to the Hebrews is telling the Jewish Christians about their number one blessing and he says it's guaranteed you've got a place in heaven. Number one, Mount Zion because that's the place where God is which is the way it was. But Jesus Christ has come. So the place where God is is no longer confined to this dome of the rock, to this place called Jerusalem. God now is where?
He's up. That is now the heavenly Jerusalem. It's no longer Mount Zion up there. It's no longer disputed. It no longer needs to be brought to the table for somebody like the United Nations to arbitrate and bring about an agreement. It's the place where God is, the heavenly Jerusalem.
All right, so we've got was and is taken care of. But he doesn't leave it there. He says in the third place, you've come to the city of the living God.
Well, what in the world is that? City of the living God? Why is now Mount Zion changing its designation from Mount Zion to the heavenly Jerusalem to the city of the living God? Because that's the place where God is.
Now, just hold a thought here for a moment. We talk about Mount Zion, number one, the heavenly Jerusalem, which is right now, the city of the living God, which is talking about what will be, and I'm gonna show you why, present, past, present, and future, all right? What is the common denominator of all of these things? Zion, the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of the living God.
Common denominator number one, the only common denominator. All three talk about the place where God is. Now, let me just tell you something, folks. You wanna know where heaven is? It's where God is.
Any questions? But the Bible tells us exactly where that is. Now, the word of God tells us not only is he omnipresent and omni-powerful and omniscient and all these other great characteristics of Almighty God, but the Bible tells us that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, he's the same today, he's the same forever, he's eternal, he's immortal, he's invisible, he's wise, he's alpha and omega, he's beginning and he's end, he's first and he's last, he's Mount Zion, he's heavenly Jerusalem, he's the city of the living God. When I trust Jesus Christ, I trust him past, I trust him present, I trust him future. It is an eternal thing that God does for me. That is why I have eternal life. That's what it is all about.
Well, how does this fit into our scheme of things? Well, when we trust him as Savior, folks, listen to me very carefully. We trust him in three ways, all meaning the same thing. Number one, we receive him past tense. We receive Jesus Christ past tense. In other words, when I give my heart to Jesus Christ, I receive what Christ has done for me, Mount Zion. I received the crucified Christ over 2,000 years ago. Number two, when I receive Jesus Christ into my heart, I receive him present tense.
In other words, the heavenly Jerusalem. Now, if I receive him present tense, it means that my citizenship is present tense in Christ. I'm a proud American, folks. I am deeply grateful to be an American.
This country that has adopted me and that means the world to me, but I'm going to tell you as proud as I am to be an American. According to Paul the Apostle, you and I are aliens sojourning in a foreign land. This is not the place of our citizenship. This is not our home. Our home is in Christ Jesus.
It's up there. It's in the heavenly Jerusalem. And when I die, what does God tell me? I am going to be taken home to be with him. It's a beautiful expression when our loved ones die. We say, well, the Lord came to take them home. What am I doing here then? Well, I'm an ambassador.
That's what Paul said. We are ambassadors. I am a representative of the King who sent me. I am deputizing for the one that sent me from my homeland into a strange land to carry forth the good news under the instructions of the banner of a righteous and a holy God. He's the one who gives me orders.
He told me, go into the world, teach, preach, make disciples, be about my business, but my citizenship is in heaven. And then number three, we accept him. We receive him future tense. That's the city of the living God. We receive him future tense. Why is the city of the living God future tense?
Because that is what will be. He say to me, pastor, how do you know these things? Let's turn very quickly to Revelation chapter 21. Revelation 21. Now, friend, you're gonna need your Bible. You're not gonna understand these things.
You need to see them for yourself. I'm going to say some things to you. Many of you know that I'm writing a book entitled The Absolute Certainty of Life After Death. I've written over 300 pages. Every time I think it's finished, God tells me something else, and it's about life after death, what actually happens according to the scriptures, but I've written it in a novel form. But I'm right at the end, and I'm in a very interesting stage.
I'm trying to write things so that people can understand these things and the reality of our own life interpretation, who we are, the lives of real people. What if I told you that I believe that heaven is gonna be right here on earth? Wait a minute now, pastor, you've just told us that when we die, we're going up there.
Yeah, that is what is. If I die today, guess what's gonna happen to me? I'm going where? Up there, and I'm gonna be up there until the end of the age. But folks, at the end of the age, something happens, and it's led me to draw some very important conclusions. I don't believe I've got a corner on this.
I'm trying to study it and understand it, and I probably will never understand it. And by the way, I don't really worry about it because however it works out, it's gonna be the place where God is, and that's good enough for me, amen? But I just wanted to say this to you today. I've accepted Jesus Christ past tense. I accepted what he did, Mount Zion. I've accepted him present tense. I'm a participant in the heavenly Jerusalem. That is who I am in Christ. I've accepted him in what will be the city of the living God.
Future tense. When we come to Revelation chapter 21, there are some very interesting things, and I don't have time to do this, but I want to contextualize this for you. Remember, there's a lot of events that have taken place, and people have varying thoughts on these, but basically, the rapture of the church has taken place. The seven-year tribulation has taken place.
Those who have the mark of the beast on them have worshiped the beast and the false prophet. The second coming has taken place. Jesus has returned to this earth with all those who are with him in the heavenly Jerusalem. The battle of Armageddon has taken place. The thousand-year reign has taken place. The great white throne judgment has taken place. God has settled it. It is over. The end of the age, the end of everything that we know.
I'm going to ask you a question. What did this world look like before sin came into this world? According to the book of Genesis, the Garden of Eden was what? It was a perfect place. There was no sin. What happened to it? Sin came into the life of man through Adam and Eve.
When it did, what did they do? They ran, they hid from God. Where was God in all of this? Well, God was on the earth. The Bible tells us he walked around with them in the cool, fresh, early morning breeze.
In fact, he came down to try and find them when they sinned, and they hid from him, and he said, Adam, where are you? Sin marred all of that. A separation was set up, a sea, a divide came between the holiness of God and the sinfulness of man.
Mount Sinai was that kindergarten effort. It was the precursor to Mount Zion because God in Christ Jesus is the only one who has the capacity as mediator to bridge that gap. That is why he is the mediator of the new covenant who is Christ Jesus. And here in Revelation 21, all is said and done.
God tells us how it's going to happen. So let's have a look at it. Let's read it.
Here's John sitting on the Isle of Patmos. This is what he says. He says, then I saw what? Everybody say that word, new heaven.
You got that? And I saw a new heaven, but it doesn't stop there. And I saw a new earth. Do you know that there is not one single passage in scripture that says earth will be obliterated? Not a passage in scripture that says earth is going to just vanish. I'm talking about earth. The Bible does say there will be a new heaven and a new earth. If earth no longer existed, why does God tell us there's going to be a new earth? And what is a new earth? And if we understand the significance of that, newness can only be defined in the gospel of Jesus Christ by the blood that was shed for us because it is the blood of Jesus Christ that makes all things become what?
Brand new. All right, now stick with me. Nobody leave.
Stick with me. Here's what he says. He says, I saw a new heaven and I saw a new earth for the first heaven, the heavenly Jerusalem, and the first earth, the sinful earth, the existence of earth as man knows it had passed away and there was now no longer any sea. There was no separation between heaven and earth. Now what exists is earth and the heavenly Jerusalem. The stars that you see at night are the floorboards of heaven now as it is. That's where we're going when we die should Jesus tarry.
But now at the end of the age, the Bible says this. In verse two, I saw the holy city. Now remember Hebrews talks about the city of the living God. John reports under the inspiration of the Spirit. He says, I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem.
Now wait a minute. Now it's called the new Jerusalem, the heavenly Jerusalem, which was Mount Zion became the heavenly Jerusalem. Now it's the new Jerusalem, but we're gonna discover that the new Jerusalem is not going to stay where the heavenly Jerusalem was and is as we speak right now.
So here's what happens. I saw the new city, the holy city, the new Jerusalem, watch this, coming down out of heaven. Anybody not understand what it means to come down? Coming down out of heaven from God. Why from God? Because that's where God is at this point. Prepared as a bride, beautifully dressed for a husband.
What a wonderful picture. And I heard a loud voice. Here's the explanation, whose voice? Well, it comes from the throne of God. Nobody can sit on the throne of God, but God himself. So God himself explains to us what's going on.
He says, and I heard a loud voice from the throne saying now as of this moment in time, this is a chronological development that is taking place. Now the dwelling place of God is where? With men, listen to this, and God himself will live with them. They will be his people and God himself will be with them and be their God. And what is this place gonna look like? The new heaven and the new earth, which has no boundary, which mean heaven is going to be earth and earth is going to be heaven.
There are no boundaries in eternity in heaven because God is everywhere. And he says to us, because this earth is going to be new, it's going to be a place where every tear has been wiped from their eyes. There will be no more death, it's brand new. There will be no more mourning or crying or pain.
The old order, the old order has completely passed away. And in verse five, he was seated on the throne said, I am making every thing brand new. What if I told you that if we're up in the heavenly Jerusalem at the end of the age, we with him, we gonna come for a ride like we've never had. I think we could possibly land back where Jerusalem is because it's a city and God said off you go. Is it possible that I might live in Spartanburg for the rest of time and eternity? It's a beautiful place, you know, this world that God has created with one difference. Whether I live in Spartanburg, Jerusalem, Chicago, London or Cardiff, Wales, it's going to be perfect.
Everything is going to be new. Now watch this, blessing number one. I'm guaranteed a place in heaven. What a blessing.
There's so much more to come tomorrow. We've finished the seven blessings message Dr. Don started today. And I pray that you be aware of the fact that you are indeed blessed. Even on the lowest of our valleys, you are blessed. If you want to talk with somebody, don't forget, 866-899-WORD. Till tomorrow, take care and God bless.
