Real-Life Worship
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· 3 viewsLead Pastor Wes Terry preaches a sermon entitled “Enduring Honor” out of Hebrews 13:7-16.
Notes
Transcript
INTRODUCTION:
INTRODUCTION:
This morning we’re kicking of a new series entitled “Faith IRL.” For you boomers in the room, IRL stands for “In Real Life.”
What good is Christian faith if it doesn’t apply in a practical way? How true is biblical truth if it doesn’t work in REAL LIFE?
Real truth should really work in the real lives of real people. If Christian truth can’t help us at that level then why should be believe it?
Genuine faith isn’t theoretical, it’s practical.
Why? Because real faith gets fleshed out in real life.
I almost entitled the series “Faith in the Flesh.” Because that how real faith works.
We’ve seen this them in the book of Hebrews but it is especially driven home in the final few chapters.
What does real faith look like when it’s really fleshed out?
In the local church on Sunday morning and throughout the week?
In your home, at your workplace or even leisurely activities in the week?
That’s where we’ll be taking our attention for the next few weeks.
With that in mind, let’s pick up where we left off at the end of the last warning passage in Hebrews 12:28.
28 Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful. By it, we may serve God acceptably, with reverence and awe, 29 for our God is a consuming fire.
1 Let brotherly love continue. 2 Don’t neglect to show hospitality, for by doing this some have welcomed angels as guests without knowing it. 3 Remember those in prison, as though you were in prison with them, and the mistreated, as though you yourselves were suffering bodily. 4 Marriage is to be honored by all and the marriage bed kept undefiled, because God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterers. 5 Keep your life free from the love of money. Be satisfied with what you have, for he himself has said, I will never leave you or abandon you. 6 Therefore, we may boldly say,
The Lord is my helper;
I will not be afraid.
What can man do to me?
7 Remember your leaders who have spoken God’s word to you. As you carefully observe the outcome of their lives, imitate their faith. 8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.
Set the Table
Set the Table
For those of you new to the book of Hebrews, the original audience was a group of former Jews who converted to Christianity.
Some say they were being pressured to drift back into temple Judaism.
Some say there was a group of false teachers blending Christianity and Judaism.
In either case, salvation by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone was being exchanged for ritualistic self-reliance and tradition.
Hebrews 1-10 demonstrated why that was such a terrible idea. These concluding chapters present a better vision.
It’s just one practical application after the next. This is what faith in Jesus looks like when you flesh it out in real life.
Verses 1-6 focus on life outside of gathered worship.
Verses 7-16 focus on worship gatherings in particular.
Gathered Worship
Gathered Worship
We’re going to focus on verses 1-6 next week. This week, we’ll focus on verses 7-19.
One reason we’re starting here is because of what’s stated in Hebrews 13:7.
7 Remember your leaders who have spoken God’s word to you. As you carefully observe the outcome of their lives, imitate their faith.
What follows verse 7 is some general generalized instruction about what worship should look like in the local church and why that’s superior to what they experienced before.
Real faith should flesh out in our approach to gathered worship.
This includes the way we honor our spiritual leaders.
Just as they were encouraged to honor and remember THEIR former leaders, we want to do the same with Pastor Vernon this morning.
Last Sunday was Pastor Vernon’s last Sunday to preach at Broadview West.
It was also the last week for the worshippers of Broadview West to worship in that location.
In God’s providence, through Hebrews 13, the Lord is helping us address both realities.
We will honor Vernon as one of our spiritual leaders.
We will be reminded what Christian worship is really about.
So we’ll come back to verses 7-8 after we explain the surrounding context.
TRUE WORSHIP ESTABLISHED
TRUE WORSHIP ESTABLISHED
Verses 7 comes in a context of more generalized instruction about gathered worship.
The author paints a contrast between worship under the New Covenant with worship under the Old Covenant through the Law.
This is why the command to remember their leaders is followed by a statement about Jesus who never changes. (Heb 13:8)
The Greek doesn’t even supply a verb. It’s literally “Jesus Christ. Unchanging. Yesterday, today, forever.”
Even when our spiritual leaders step down or pass away. We have a heavenly shepherd who never leaves our side.
This never changing Jesus is contrasted with “strange teachings” from “bad leaders” who were leading people astray. (Heb 13:9)
9 Don’t be led astray by various kinds of strange teachings; for it is good for the heart to be established by grace and not by food regulations, since those who observe them have not benefited.
These “strange teachings” are undefined but probably entailed some blending of temple Judaism with Christianity.
The only clue we have is that it involved food restrictions that failed to benefit those who tried to keep them.
The author compares that approach to worship with something better through the person and work of Jesus.
Their worship wasn’t true worship. It was false worship.
Judaism wasn’t true worship. Ceaser worship wasn’t true worship.
True worship is exclusively defined by the person and work of Jesus Christ.
True worship is enabled by the cross of Jesus Christ.
He goes on to explain that truth by comparing Old Testament worship with the New Testament worship in Jesus.
A Better Altar
A Better Altar
He begins in verse 10 with a description of a better worship altar.
10 We have an altar from which those who worship at the tabernacle do not have a right to eat.
When you hear the word “altar” what do you think? If you grew up in church like me you think it means the steps to the stage at the front of the church.
But that’s not what the original audience imagined when they heard these words.
An altar is just a large flat service for offering up a a sacrifice to God.
In the Old Testament tabernacle, there two altars of note: the brazen (bronze) altar and the altar of incense.
OT priest would offer animal sacrifices on the Brazen Altar and then take the blood of those sacrifices and wipe it on four horns at each corner.
In certain circumstances, the priests were allowed to eat the meat of those sacrificed animals. (Lev 6:25-29)
This eating was FORBIDDEN for other types of sacrifices (depending on nature and severity of the sin involved.) (Lev 6:30)
The Day of Atonement
The Day of Atonement
There was one day, however, where the animal sacrifice wasn’t just uneaten but was also burned outside the camp.
That day was called the Day of Atonement, the stipulations for which are recorded in Leviticus 16.
That is what the author references in Hebrews 13:11.
11 For the bodies of those animals whose blood is brought into the most holy place by the high priest as a sin offering are burned outside the camp.
On the Day of Atonement, the animal sacrifice would have his blood wiped by the priest on the four corners of the Bronze Altar, sprinkled on the mercy seat in the Holy of Holies and then wiped on the four horns of the altar of Incense outside the Hoy of Holies in the “Holy Place.” (Lev 16:15-18)
While certain portions of this animal were burned on the Brazen Altar (fat, kidneys, liver), the rest of the carcass was taken “outside the camp” to be burned by fire (as a symbol of unholiness and sin leaving the camp of God’s people.) (Lev 16:25-27)
The Altar of Christ
The Altar of Christ
The author is contrasting that Old Covenant process and worship at the altar with our New Covenant worship through the person and work of Jesus.
In worshipping Jesus we eat from a better altar.
What is the altar from which we eat under the new covenant in Christ? The altar is the cross of Christ!
The author of Hebrews already established how Jesus serves us as a better priest.
He was an eternal sinless priest who made atonement of the same. Not just for the sins of Israel but for the sins of every person.
Those who put their faith in Jesus have his atoning death applied to their life.
Not only are they forgiven of sin, they’re united to Christ in his priestly service. That’s what gives us the permission to eat!
This is exactly what we celebrate when we take the Lord’s Super. (though I don’t think the author of Hebrews had this in mind.)
When we eat of the bread and drink of the cup we are partaking of Christ’s through faith what he accomplished for us on the cross.
That’s why the Lord’s Supper is so central to Christian worship. Our altar is the cross of Christ and because of his work we all now serve as priests before God.
Unlike the priest in the OT who were not allowed to eat on the day of Atonement. We are encouraged to “take and eat” so that we might remember what Christ has done.
We don’t “eat” from this altar in a physical sense but we spiritually partake of the person and work of Christ.
Why It’s Better
Why It’s Better
How does this make Christian worship superior?
Worship isn’t localized to a particular kind of place nor is it restricted to particular types of people.
Because our altar of worship is the cross of Jesus Christ we can worship God in any place no matter who we are.
The cross of Jesus welcomes ALL because through it he made atonement for ALL.
We don’t have to be from the priestly line of Aaron. Through the death of Jesus, we become a holy priesthood before God.
Because the death of Jesus tore the veil in the curtain - genuine worship is no longer in a temple.
There’s no need for special instructions about the size of the altar or fabrics of the curtain.
Jesus abolished the old and established something NEW.
A Better City
A Better City
But it’s not just that we have a better altar from which to eat. We also have something else that makes worship in Jesus much better.
Remember, the sin sacrifice on the day of atonement was taken outside the camp to be burned so that God’s people could be “holy.”
He continues the analogy in Hebrews 13:12-14
12 Therefore, Jesus also suffered outside the gate, so that he might sanctify the people by his own blood. 13 Let us, then, go to him outside the camp, bearing his disgrace.
Put yourself in the shoes of this Jewish audience. When he says Jesus suffered “outside the gate” you immediately have a picture painted in your mind.
He’s linking the crucifixion of Jesus “outside the city gates” (of Jerusalem) with the burning of the animal sacrifice “outside the camp” (on the Day of Atonement.)
It was burned “outside the camp” so the camp could be holy. Outside the camp was where “unholy” things were. Those who went outside had to be consecrated before coming back in. (Lev 16:28)
Outside the Gates
Outside the Gates
Similarly, Jersualem was thought as the most holy city. It was home to the Jewish temple, the center of Jewish worship.
It was the holiest place for the holiest people for the holiest worship on the holiest days.
But Jesus didn’t make atonement in that city or in the temple. Jesus made atonement “outside the gates” on a Roman cross.
Instead of being welcomed into Jerusalem as the savior of the world, he was beaten, tortured, dragged outside the city.
He was falsely accused and convicted through a mock trial. Then he executed for crimes he never committed.
Death by crucifixion was the most gruesome of deaths reserved for the worst kind of crimes.
But Jesus didn’t suffer because HE was unholy. He suffered outside the gates because WE are unholy.
Jesus wasn’t dying for his crimes but for ours. He died in an unholy place to save an unholy people.
In doing so, Jesus communicated the message of salvation by grace. We could never “do enough” to meet God’s standard. So he love he accomplished what we could not do ourselves.
That’s what makes Christian worship superior.
Worship isn’t about “what we do.” It’s about what God, in Christ, has DONE FOR US.
Instead of making worship about climbing a ladder to the heights of heaven. He made worship about Heaven’s God descending down to take on flesh and die for us.
In love, he DIED FOR US so we could LIVE IN HIM.
A Better City & Better Temple
A Better City & Better Temple
On that cross, outside the gate, Jesus was consumed by the fire of God’s wrath for unholy sinners. (Just like burnt animal on the Day of Atonement)
He was consumed by fire so that we wouldn’t have to be. He was judged by God so that we could be accepted.
And if were going to “worship Jesus” we must meet him where he is. We must go “outside the gates.”
For that original audience that meant they had to leave the safety and security of “worship as they knew it.”
They had to abandon their traditions and cultural expectations. They had to abandon their Saturday night (or our Sunday morning routine.)
They even had to bear the shame reproach of worshipping a “crucified Messiah!”
Why? Because our altar for worship is the cross of Christ and it’s hung outside the city.
Why on earth would somebody do that? Why would you leave the traditions and safety of Judaism and suffer the reproach of the cross?
The author answers that question in Hebrews 13:14.
14 For we do not have an enduring city here; instead, we seek the one to come.
In other words, worship isn’t about a physical location it’s about the person and work of Jesus and the better city he is building.
Though worshipping Jesus we inherit a better city.
Remember what Jesus said to the Samaritan woman? Worship isn’t about geography (this mountain or that mountain)
The Father is looking for worshipers who worship in Spirit and in Truth. True worship is centered in Jesus outside the gate standing at the foot of the cross.
For some of you this morning, the physical location of worship has changed.
But the altar of Christian worship isn’t 6502 Military Dr. NOR is it 2500 South 27th.
It’s the cross of Jesus Christ who died to set us free as we anticipate and New Jerusalem that will one day come down from heaven.
You can eat from that altar no matter where you worship.
You can receive from that shepherd and he will never leave your side.
Which Are You?
Which Are You?
So there are two kinds of worship and two kinds of worshippers. Only ONE kind of worship is acceptable before God.
To truly worship God you’ve got to come to the right altar and fix your eyes on the right city.
We eat from a better altar (from which they will never eat).
We inherit a better city (which they will never enter)
The altar is God’s table of grace at the Cross of Jesus Christ.
The city is the heavenly Jersualem yet to be revealed.
In coming to Jesus you must leave the earthly Jersualem.
We’ve got to abandon our former notions about “worship” that is pleasing to God.
We might even bear his reproach and suffering as we go to meet him outside those city gates.
But fear not in leaving the old because Jesus has established something better. That old system has passed away along with those committed to it’s practice.
TRUE WORSHIP EXPRESSED
TRUE WORSHIP EXPRESSED
Having established the superiority of true worship through Jesus, he goes on to explain how we express it in our lives.
Just like the priests under the old covenant had duties to perform, our priestly service requires certain things from us.
15 Therefore, through him let us continually offer up to God a sacrifice of praise, that is, the fruit of lips that confess his name. 16 Don’t neglect to do what is good and to share, for God is pleased with such sacrifices.
Pleasing God under the Old Covenant required strict adherence to God’s Law.
It had to be a certain kind of sacrifice, from a certain kind of person, done in a certain kind of way, or God would not be pleased.
But Jesus changed everything through his death and resurrection.
Jesus completed through his life making atonement for sin. That sacrifice is DONE.
We don’t need the temple. We don’t need the Brazen/Golden Altar.
We don’t need the table of showbread or 12 candle Menorah.
The only thing that remains is an expression of gratitude so that your life is wholly surrendered to God.
True worship is expressed though a surrendered life.
As Paul said in Romans 12:1-2. “In view of God’s mercies we should offer up our bodies as a living sacrifice holy and acceptable to God. This is our reasonable act of worship!”
At the end of the day, worship is fundamentally about “ascribing worth” to God.
When you understand that God is not just holy but he’s merciful and gracious it moves you to a place of absolute awe.
He loved us so much that he sent his son to save us from ourselves. He gave everything FOR US so we could be reconciled to him BY GRACE.
The only reasonable response to that mercy is a life fully surrendered to his will. We die to ourselves so we might live for him.
Life of Gratitude
Life of Gratitude
I know that seems theoretical so let me put some meat on those bones. The author of Hebrews gives two practical examples.
The first includes Christ-exalting gratitude the second includes self-denying generosity.
Let’s begin with Christ-exalting gratitude.
Through Jesus, let us continually offer up to God a sacrifice of praise.
What does that look like, practically?
According to the author “it’s the fruit of lips that confess his name.”
Gratitude is expressed verbally, personally and publically through the word of our testimony.
This was no small price to pay for those 1st Century Jewish believers.
If they continued to confess the name of Jesus it would result in persecution.
But that’s a small price to pay for what Jesus died to purchase. He laid down his life so we could be set free.
How could we hold back from him when Jesus paid it all? What right do we have to deny him when he paid such a tremendous price?
Jesus paid it all - All to him I owe. I’d rather have Jesus than anything this world affords to give.
Are you willing to confess the name of Jesus even when it costs you? Or will you speak a different name to make life easier for yourself?
It was their unwillingness to confess the name of Jesus that caused their spiritual drifting.
It was why they neglected corporate worship. It was why they stopped visiting the prisoners. It was why they stopped supporting those who suffered.
Its directly related to what the author mentions in Hebrews 13:1-6.
It was the source of their complaining. It was cause of their spiritual immaturity.
The absence of gratitude in your life will result in much the same.
Life of Generosity
Life of Generosity
The second visible demonstration of worship is self-denying generosity.
Pastor David used to say the proof of the pudding is in the tasting. Well, when it comes to Christianity the proof of faith is in the giving.
I think the reason Jesus talked so much about giving is because giving is the ONE THING you can measure about your spiritual maturity.
So many other things in the Christian life are nuanced and immaterial. (joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, self-control… these things can be demonstrated but their harder to measure)
Generosity is much easier to measure. You know you’re being generous when you compare what you HAVE with what you’re willing to GIVE AWAY.
Jesus said the defining mark of a disciple wasn’t GIVING but it was LOVE. I think that’s true.
While you can give without loving you cannot love without giving.
Love is fundamentally self-denying which is why the Bible links it with Christian worship.
Does your life demonstrate generosity or something else? Are you oriented inwardly or outwardly? A taker or a giver?
True worship expresses itself through Christ-exalting gratitude and self-denying generosity.
You can SAY you worship Jesus but it SHOWS though how you live.
TRUE WORSHIP ENTRUSTED
TRUE WORSHIP ENTRUSTED
Which brings us back to where we started this morning.
These instructions about worship fall between two commands to honor our leaders.
7 Remember your leaders who have spoken God’s word to you. As you carefully observe the outcome of their lives, imitate their faith.
17 Obey your leaders and submit to them, since they keep watch over your souls as those who will give an account, so that they can do this with joy and not with grief, for that would be unprofitable for you.
On the surface these feel like two separate discussions. What does a life of worship have to do with church leadership?
I would be tempted to think the same had the author treated them separately. But he doesn’t do that. He puts them together like a theological sandwich.
Like everything else in the book of Hebrews, this is done for a particular reason.
I think its done to highlight the relationship between gathered worship and spiritual leadership.
True Worship is enabled by the person and work of Jesus.
True Worship is expressed through the offering of our lives.
True Worship is entrusted to those called by God to lead.
Three Types of Trust
Three Types of Trust
When I say that worship is a trust for spiritual leaders I don’t mean they’re the only ones who worship.
Worship is a trust for leaders in that they’re responsible for whether or not it happens.
You can’t have gathered worship if you don’t have a congregation. You can’t have a congregation without spiritual leadership. This is by God’s design.
A healthy church is like a healthy home. It has a hierarchy of spiritual authority.
In the local church, that authority is invested to those that lead.
If combine verse 7 with what is stated in verse 17, these leaders have a three-fold stewardship of three different domains.
They must preach the Word of God.
They must practice what they preach.
They must pastor those they lead.
Preaching Domain
Preaching Domain
First, they steward the preaching of God’s Word.
They were to remember their former leaders because of how they spoke the Word of God to them.
Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God.
There is no “true worship” without faith in Jesus. There can be not “faith in Jesus” if the Gospel is not preached.
That why God has called certain individuals to vocational ministry. The primary calling of any pastor worth following is his responsibility to preach the Gospel.
In this regard, we want to honor Pastor Vernon because he has committed his life to preaching that Gospel.
If there’s anything for which Pastor Vernon will be remembered its his focus on Jesus and God’s grace in the Gospel.
Personal Domain
Personal Domain
But it’s not enough for leaders to simply “preach” the Word of God. They must also practice what they preach.
This is why a person can’t serve as a pastor just because they think they’d be good at it.
There are conditions to be met to qualify for that office. When those conditions aren’t, they’re no longer qualified to serve.
One of the most challenging things about pastoral ministry is the fishbowl. “I always feel like somebody is watching me!”
Some people despise that or act like it shouldn’t be but it’s biblical! It’s by God’s design. You should never put your pastor on a pedestal of sinless perfection (only Jesus can do that.)
But your pastor should be able to say, “Follow ME as I follow JESUS.” If he can’t or he won’t he probably should be in that role.
Imitate their way of life because they are a living example of what following Jesus should look like.
And in this way - we honor Pastor Vernon. He’s not a perfect person but he has been a living example of what following Jesus should be.
Jesus revolutionized his life and he never got it over it. He went to from drinking and reckless living to preaching and a life of surrender.
Pastoring Domain
Pastoring Domain
So leaders must preach the Word of God and practice what they preach. But it doesn’t stop there.
Leaders must also “pastor those they lead” for they will given an account to God one day.
Hebrews 13:17 “Obey your leaders and submit to them, since they keep watch over your souls as those who will give an account…”
During our New Member class I joke with people this is the verse that keeps me up at night.
We have a membership process so I can be prepared for judgment day. If you join our church, our pastoral team takes on responsibility for your soul.
That doesn’t mean God holds us guilty for your sin. It DOES mean he holds us accountable for our care.
Just like a husband is to lead his family and ensure the spiritual flourishing of his home; pastors must shepherd their people for the spiritual flourishing of their soul.
And Pastor Vernon has been a faithful and effective shepherd. For that, he deserves our honor.
CONCLUSION:
CONCLUSION:
When our physical shepherds leave us, our heavenly shepherd remains.
When our earthly leaders fail us, our heavenly shepherd never does.
So we never worship our leaders because true worship is in Jesus.
But we honor our leaders who’ve been entrusted with that task. And in honoring our leaders we celebrate pastor Vernon.
We’ll have a special time to honor pastor Vernon in our service this evening, but this morning I want to give you the opportunity to communicate your love.
As we remember and honor Pastor Vernon for his leadership in our church, we also stop to remind ourselves why our worship is what it is.
True worship is all about Jesus. He’s the unchanging, resurrected, great and mighty shepherd!
Is your life characterized by that kind of worship? Or has worship become about something else?
It’s not about a place. It’s not about a particular type of person. It’s not even about living a good so you can go to heaven when you die.
It’s about exalting the name of Jesus for who He is and what he’s done.
He has set a table for us at the foot of the cross. A table of God’s grace that is open to all. No matter who you are. Not matter what you’ve done. His invitation is open for you.
Will you surrender your life to him? If you have received this grace are you demonstrating the evidence of a grateful and generous life?
That’s what real faith looks like when its fleshed out in real life.
So lets commit ourselves to genuine worship and genuine faith in the Risen Lord Jesus.
