page 1004 end of hebrew 6 we're gonna look at verses 13 through 20 this morning
one of the things that we talk a lot about here at trinity if you've been around for a while is
the way in which the gospel uh gathers us together to god's self and into god's family and then sends
us out uh and isn't it awesome that this morning we got to see both of those things on display
that in membership god gathering us together and then giving us a heart for people who are on the
other side of the world just as god went out from himself to redeem a people for himself that were
far away so we then are sent out um so there it was the gospel on display before you i don't even
feel like i have to give a sermon this morning because you saw it already in membership and
admissions but anyway uh no we're going to preach this morning hebrew 6 13 through 20 let me read
this passage for us the writer of the hebrew says for when god made a promise to abraham
since he had no one greater by whom to swear he swore by himself saying surely i will bless you
and multiply you and thus abraham having patiently waited obtained the promise for people swear by
something greater than themselves and in all their disputes an oath is final for confirmation
so when god desired to show more convincingly to the heirs of the promise the unchangeable character
of his purpose he guaranteed it with an oath so that by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible
for god to lie we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope
set before us we have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul a hope that enters into the inner place
behind the curtain where jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf having become a high priest
forever after the order of melchizedek let's pray together father indeed we do pray that even now
as we come to this word of comfort that you would come by your spirit and show us more deeply the
promise of our savior lord jesus so that we might be strengthened and encouraged to hold fast in these
days lord we ask all this in christ's name amen uh so you probably didn't notice this uh but just last
month shell oil the big sort of oil conglomerate announced that they had completed the construction of
the hull of what is going to be the world's largest floating vessel uh it's they're going to call it
the prelude i don't know why they picked that name but when it's completed this thing is going to be
1600 feet long that's actually longer than the empire state building is tall it's huge this thing is massive
uh and it's actually not a ship in the traditional sense it's actually like a giant floating natural gas
facility uh but the the anchorage and the moorage on this thing is apparently so strong that the
prelude can withstand a category five cyclone
which is the way they sort of rank tropical storms in australia that's where this thing is going to be
imagine a system of anchors and moors that could keep a 1600 foot 600 000 ton floating vessel firm and
secure in the midst of the strongest kind of hurricane that there is incredible
uh now before shell oil decided to build this monstrosity uh the biggest vessel the longest vessel
before that was something appropriately called sea wise giant that was the name of the longest boat
before they built the prelude uh 430 plus meters long and it too had a massive anchor it's actually on
display in the hong kong maritime museum this anchor for this ship weighed 36 tons
that's 72 000 pounds or by my calculations about 900 middle school boys the size of this anchor
huh now it's obvious why a ship needs an anchor right anchors are there for stability for security
so that when the currents pick up and the tide shift or the winds start to rise you don't drift out to sea
or you don't crash into the rocks on the shore so that you can stay firm in the midst of the dangerous seas
and verse 19 of our passage today speaks about an anchor that is sure and steadfast
but this isn't an anchor for a ship it's an anchor for the soul
and that very idea raises an incredibly important question for each one of us as we come to our passage
this morning and the question it causes us to ask is this what exactly is it that anchors
my life after all your soul is just that it's the central part of your personality it's it's your
identity it's you it's your life your soul
and when the storms rise and when the winds blow and when the currents move
what keeps you from drifting and what keeps you from going under
because make no mistake you will try and i will try to anchor my life on something
it's unavoidable we will always more our sense of self our identity our purpose to something
so it causes us to think what have i tried to use to anchor my life what's the thing i think will
keep me secure and resilient and strong when the storms come
for some of us we've tried to make our career our anchor we think as long as i'm successful and
respected in my field as long as things are going well in my professional life
then i'll be safe and strong in the storms
but of course we know that the problem is what if you're no longer able to be successful
what if through a turn of events you can no longer do your work
through a disability or through a change in the markets or through a change in intellectual fads
what if your work is no longer seen as relevant
what if the storms of life end your career what then will happen to your soul
so then for some of us we've tried making a relationship an anchor as long as i have
this person in my life we think then i'll be steadfast
haven't you heard it said sometimes this person's my rock
but again what if the storms take that person away
what if the relationship ends
what then becomes of our soul what then keeps us from drifting or sinking beneath the waves
so some of us not wanting to anchor our lives in anything external and changing outside of us
have tried to make personal integrity our anchor something inside of us we think as long as i'm a
person of values of principles as long as i do what is right and live a moral life
or as long as i follow my heart and do what i know to be true for me
a different kind of principial living isn't it as long as i do these things then i'll be steadfast in the storms
then whatever happens outside of me the winds won't rock me the waves won't overturn me
but you know this turns out to be just as insecure doesn't it because even then what if you find
that your best version of you still doesn't live up to your standards
no matter how hard you try what if the storms of life start to show you that you can't always be the
thoughtful creative caring person you wish you were or the moral upright person you know you should be
it turns out even that anchor is not enough for the soul
and the list could go on and on as we consider all the faulty things that simply that simply can't keep us secure
all the anchors that can't possibly keep our souls firm
but as we think about these things doesn't verse not verse 19 of our passage come ringing out with
incredibly good news we have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul there is an anchor that holds
there is something that can keep our soul secure when the storms come
and verse 18 tells us what the this is it's the hope set before us
of course at first it seems like that can't be right
how could hope be an anchor i mean in our common way of thinking doesn't hope seem like one of the
most ephemeral and fleeting things that there is isn't hope just wishful thinking isn't hope the word
that you use when you're just not sure whether something's going to be the case but you really
like it to be anyway like i really hope i get a parking spot downtown next to the restaurant we're
going to because it's really cold and rainy and snowy outside you don't know you're gonna find a
parking spot you probably won't it's new haven right
you've got no guarantee so okay so how could any mere hope be an anchor for my soul
well friends that's where we have to see that the hope that we're speaking of here is completely
different that hope in the new testament isn't something we merely wish will happen
no the language of hope is what describes the certain future the certain future of those who
place their trust in christ in fact the word hope nine times out of ten in the new testament
is almost never used as our sort of act of hoping our subjective hoping it's almost always used as the
concrete objective reality and you see it here the hope set before us it's the thing that's there
that is for us in the future that we look forward to
friends you see the book of hebrews was written to christians who needed an anchor for their souls
they were a fledgling community for whom storms and winds have come along and they rocked their boat
and they were almost feeling like they were lost at sea where do we go what do we do
and in this section of the book the thing that this section we've been looking at at the last two
weeks if you kind of think back if you've been with us the writer of hebrews has been telling them
press on to spiritual maturity that was two weeks ago and last week what greg showed us keep on showing
your love for the name of god in service to the saints don't let these things flag press on in other
words he's been emphasizing their responsibility but now in this passage he's going to show us god's provision
so that we might do those things the divine enablement so that we might press on so that we might keep
loving and show that steadfast zeal and faithful endurance and patience
and what we see here is that god has given us a sure and steadfast anchor of hope that will sustain us
and to the extent that we realize how certain that hope is that is how resilient and secure we will be in
the storms of this life in other words a life without hope is like a ship without an anchor
but when we have a robust sense of the hope set before us in christ then our lives will be enabled
and strengthened and fueled to hold fast and press on no matter what comes in other words certain hope
is the anchor that allows us to faithfully persevere
and what what the writer of the hebrews is doing in this section is showing us how utterly and absolutely
rock solid certain our hope it truly is and we need to know that don't we because we doubt
when circumstances take a turn for the worse we question god's promises and we start to wonder
whether the hope will really play out in the end we start to question whether god will do
what he promises he will do but hebrews is pointing us to something that will give us as he says strong
encouragement to hold fast
and they're big basically this passage falls into two halves and this is how we're going to look at
it this morning in verses 13 through 18 we see that our hope is utterly certain because god
has sworn it and then in verses 19 through 20 we see that our hope is utterly certain because christ
has accomplished it so that's where we're headed so first let's consider this first half that god
has sworn it as you look through the first part the first number of verses of our section you have to
admit that it's a little strange isn't it for god to be taking an oath i mean why do human beings
typically swear oaths you know you imagine the guy with a boston accent i swear my mother's grave
why because the guy's probably not that trustworthy right he's probably not telling the truth most of
the time but now he really wants to know let you know that he's telling the truth we swear oaths
because we're not completely truthful and reliable if everyone always kept their word we wouldn't make
oaths but we aren't reliable so we make vows that bind us to keeping our word
but god is in a totally different position friends we're told here in this passage that it is
impossible for god to lie
when god makes a promise or gives his word that settles it
he doesn't need to make an oath over and above that he's perfectly faithful and truthful
and yet here we see that god does swear an oath and he swore an oath to abraham
and we're told why god does this in verse 18 to show more convincingly to the heirs of the promise
the unchangeable character of his purpose you see it wasn't any weakness or unreliability in god
that made him to swear this oath but it was a weakness in us god swore this oath because we are often too
slow to believe god's promises and to take him at his word aren't we often so much quicker to believe
the things that we feel rather than the things that god has said
we are programmed in our post-romantic individualistic culture to just believe our feelings
that for us is the standard of truth isn't it how much more quickly do we believe those things
than what god has said and yet god knowing our weakness in utter kindness and condescension
stoops and swears an oath
swearing on himself because there's no one greater by whom to swear
just so
we will realize
and get it
that he means
what he says
think about that
the one
that than which
nothing greater can be thought
as anselm said
the one
who no one is greater
the most majestic
perfect
utterly holy god
compared to which
everything else is less
than nothing
and dust
has sworn an oath
to you and me
on the basis of his own
righteous character
and so now
there are two unchangeable things
hebrews says
god's promise
and god's oath
and if human oaths are sufficient for confirmation as verse 16 says
how much more confirmation is it when god himself takes an oath
answer
infinitely so
now
verses 13 through 15 the beginning of our section tell us
exactly what promise and which oath we're talking about
here hebrews takes us back
all the way
to abraham
in genesis chapters 12 through 25
we're told abraham's story
how god chose abraham
to be the one
through whom
god's blessing
would come to the world
god meets abraham
calls him out of his pagan past
and says abraham i'm going to bless you
and make your name great
and give you an offspring
and cause your offspring to inherit the land
and through your offspring
the entire
world
will be blessed
but as we learn
abraham's
faith
in god's promise
is almost immediately put to the test
and the first test
if you remember the abraham story
is that abraham and sarah are old
and childless
and they remain that way for some years
even after god has given them this wonderful promise
and at one point abraham even cries out to god
and says oh lord
what will you give me
for i continue childless
and the heir of my house is eliezer of damascus
but
even in abraham's
wrestling
to trust god's promises
god continues to confirm his promises to him
in chapter 15
god tells abraham
that his descendants will be like the number of the stars
and again in 17
god says to abraham
your offspring will come
and will inherit the land
and though he's not perfect
through all this
abraham patiently waits
and at last receives a son
isaac
he endures
and finally obtains
what was promised
but then a second test comes
and this one
seemingly unthinkable
isaac has been born
and god tells abraham
to sacrifice
his one and only son
that he loves
and abraham
in us
in a way that seems utterly incomprehensible
in faith
takes god at his word
believing
as hebrews will later said
that god
can still keep his promise
even if it means raising isaac
from the dead
but as soon as abraham
raises the knife
an angel stops him
and provides a ram instead
and it's at that point
the climax
of the abraham story
in the bible
that god issues the oath
that we read here
in hebrews 6 14
by myself
i have sworn
declares the lord
that's how this
section starts
that was quoted here
by myself
i have sworn
declares the lord
i will surely bless you
and i will surely
multiply you
so what are we to make
of all this
this going back
to abraham
now on the one hand
i think it's this
hebrews
hebrews here is telling us
the story of abraham
to encourage us
that with god's promises
it is possible
to faithfully persevere
even through the most
trying circumstances
you see even when
old age
and infertility
come crashing in
like storms
into abraham's life
and even when god
threatens to take away
the thing
that you hold
most precious
even then
his promises
can cause us
to stand firm
in our trust
we are not
without an anchor
after all
verse 12
right before our
section says
imitate those
who through faith
and patience
inherit the promises
and here is abraham
a great exemplar
of trust
if abraham can do it
then by god's grace
and with god's promises
he will enable us
to do it as well
and isn't it true
that knowing that
others have run
the race set before us
that it's a great
encouragement to us
to persevere
and to press on
but you know
there's more going on
than just that
it's more than just
abraham as example
hebrews is bringing
us back
to this promise
and oath
made to abraham
not just so that we
can see abraham's
example but more
importantly because
this oath
and because this
promise
were made for
our sake
isn't that abundantly
clear from verses
17 and 18
you see when god
swore on oath
to bless abraham
and to multiply him
to make his family
as numerous as the
stars in the sky
he was looking ahead
not merely
to those who would
be abraham's
physical descendants
but ultimately
to those who would
be his spiritual
descendants through
faith
you see think of it
this way
when god took
abraham
out of his tent
in his moment of
weakness and doubt
took him out of his
tent and said
abraham
look at the stars
can you count them
that is what i'm going
to do through you
and through your
seed
friends when he was
pointing at those
stars he was
pointing at you
and me and all of
those who have placed
their trust in christ
that was the promise
after all
that in you all the
nations will be
blessed
that your family will
span the nations
paul puts it this
way in galatians he
says the promises
were made to abraham
and to his
offspring
it does not say
into offsprings
referring to many
but referring to one
and to your
offspring
who is christ
in christ jesus you
are all
sons of god
through faith
and if you are
christ's then you
are abraham's
offspring
heirs according
to the promise
that sounds familiar
doesn't it
right here in hebrews
so that the heirs
of the promise
might have a strong
encouragement to hold
fast
so friends we are the
recipients of this
oath-bound promise as
well and christ's
promise is for us
and what is the hope
that this oath
guarantees
what is it that god
is so deeply
condescended and
sworn to us
that he'll give us
it's that we will
live
eternally
under god's
blessing
and not under
his curse
surely
i will bless
you
and of course
this blessing
doesn't mean
material prosperity
or a life of
comfort and ease
here and now
it's not that
the very fact
that we need
an anchor
presupposes that
the life of faith
is going to be
hard
no
god's
blessing
is much
more profound
and much
more satisfying
than any
material possession
because you see
to receive god's
blessing
is to be counted
righteous
in his sight
and to be adopted
into his family
that when abraham
believed god
and it was
counted to him
as righteousness
that the same
is true for all
who share the
faith of abraham
this hope
that we have
this hope
of god's
eternal
blessing
is to know
that your future
will be one
not of god's
just condemnation
and judgment
for your sin
but one of his
acceptance
and one of his
freedom
forever
and friend
without that
hope
that god
says i will
bless you
and nothing
will remove it
without that
hope
you won't
survive the
storms of this
life
because without
that hope
the hope
of blessing
the hope
of righteousness
you will
always wonder
in hard times
when things do
not go your
way
you will
always question
whether or not
god is punishing
you
or angry at
you
or abandoning
you
and what it
is that you
have done
to turn god's
favor against
you
when the winds
come raging
you will question
his fatherly
love for you
and you will
live in guilt
and doubt
and uncertainty
nearly all your
days
but here
is his promise
and his oath
two unchangeable
things
in which it is
impossible for god
to lie
his promise
and his oath
i will surely
bless you
and that is an
anchor for the
soul friends
that his judgment
has been satisfied
in christ
that in him
you are accepted
as a child
verse 18
describes believers
as those who
have fled
for refuge
have fled
from sin
and self-righteousness
and fled to
god's mercy
and grace
in christ
and if that's
true of you
if you have
fled for refuge
to the son
then god's promise
and oath
made thousands
of years ago
to abraham
and to everyone
of faith
since then
is for you
and he will
never change
his mind
and he will
never go back
on his word
he will never
renege his
promises
or decide
one day
that bets
are off
no
it's impossible
for him
to do so
his purpose
is unchangeable
so what makes
our hope
in christ
an anchor
for the soul
what gives
it such
certainty
first
hebrews
says
the fact
that god
has sworn
it
and god
cannot lie
second
the fact
that christ
has accomplished
it
look again
at verses
19 through 20
and try to
follow the
metaphors here
as we read
picture it
in your mind
we have this
as a sure
and steadfast
anchor of the
soul
a hope
that enters
into the inner
place behind
the curtain
where jesus
has gone
as a forerunner
on our behalf
having become
a high priest
forever after
the order
of melchizedek
isn't this
strange and
bizarre language
when you first
read it
aren't anchors
meant to be
sunk into the
depths of the
sea
and yet here
hebrews is telling
us that this
anchor as
weighty and as
deep and as
immovable as
god's oath
has been taken
and driven
into the heart
of heaven
never to be
moved
you see where
this anchor has
taken hold
he says it's the
inner place
behind the
curtain
and that was a
way of speaking
about the temple
or the tabernacle
which inside was
basically two rooms
the holy place
and the most holy
place and there
was a big thick
curtain and veil
in between them
and in the holy
place the first
room the outer
room there was
some incense and
there were some
lamps and there
was some bread
and the priest
went in there a
bunch and prayed
and did their
thing but in the
most holy place
one person went
once a year on
the day of
atonement that
place was
representational of
the very presence
of god
friends that room
was a symbol of
heaven on earth
of god's dwelling
place in the midst
and not just that
but as we'll see
in hebrews coming
up that that room
was a picture of
the future
when god would
dwell with his
people and be
all in all in the
new heavens and
the new earth
so you see
figuratively
hebrews is saying
that in the true
temple of god's
presence our anchor
of hope has been
driven into god's
presence and into
his future
friends don't you
see that there is
an unshakable and
an unbreakable
connection between
us and the
intimate fellowship
and communion with
god that you were
created for
that what
christ
is and offers
to us
is that very
thing that your
soul longs for
to know and to be
known by god
in an immediate
way
to have the veil
between you and
god's presence
finally opened
so that your
true self can
emerge in the
light of god's
glory
in verse 20
we're told how
our anchor
comes to be
driven there
and it's because
of jesus
because he has
gone ahead of
us on our
behalf as our
forerunner he
says which is a
beautiful image
it's actually an
image from the
military or from
athletics this idea
of a forerunner
it was the captain
who went ahead of
the rest
blazing the way
leading the way
carving out the
path through
danger and
harm so that
all those who are
his could come
streaming in his
path and follow
surely behind
you see
friends because
christ is our
forerunner on
our behalf
because he has
gone through
death and into
god's presence in
the resurrected
life that all
those who are
united to him by
faith are
guaranteed that
we too will share
in that destiny
that our captain
that our king
has gone before
us securing the
path that will
bring us into
god's presence
you see he has
taken it there
in some sense as
you read this
passage isn't it
clear that this
anchor and this
hope are they
christ himself
as the metaphors
start to spin and
turn in this
passage isn't the
anchor jesus who
is gone and
planted himself in
the father's
presence on our
behalf as our
forerunner and
as our high
priest and
because christ is
there i too will
be there that it's
finished that it's
done that he is
there and so i
shall be
now what's what's
coming up in
hebrews as we
look forward to
the winter and
spring where we're
headed in this
series in some
sense friend this
passage that we're
at right now is
setting the stage
in verses 7 8 9
10 in some sense
hebrews is saying
buckle your seat
belt because i'm
going to show you
how secure this
hope actually is
i'm going to show
you how rock solid
the work of christ
is for you so that
nothing will shake
you it's secure and
it's efficient that's
where we're going but
right now as we
finish up this
morning just think
friend if you've
placed your trust in
christ then what
your future holds
according to this
passage is
fellowship and
intimacy intimacy
with god forever
that those storms
rage now there is
perfect peace to
come and depths of
delight like you
cannot imagine that
those sorrow as the
psalmist says may
last for the night
joy comes in the
morning that when
the wind and the
waves finally cease
our ships will be
brought safely home
into the harbor and
if that is true what
sacrifice or what
hardship couldn't you
face with courage now
what difficulty or
change in circumstances
couldn't you face with
courage if you knew
for sure that the
morning held the
sunrise of god's new
creation and that you
would be a part of it
because christ has paid
for your sins and gone
as a forerunner on your
behalf what wouldn't you
be able to withstand
endure go through if
you knew that was ahead
of you even if your
career were wrecked on
the storms of life and
you lost everything that
you had worked for during
your professional life
that like so many great
academic books they end
up as door stops and
giveaway boxes in front of
people's offices and all
the things that we labored
for just end up being
dust or even if close
relationships gave way
and friends betrayed you
and a spouse never came
and even if your self
image that pristine
picture of yourself that
you try so hard to keep
up even if that got
shattered on the reality
of your heart you could
endure the fiercest
storms the most brutal
winds because you have an
anchor Jesus Christ who
has taken hold of you and
all your sin and
selfishness and gone as a
forerunner on your behalf
into God's future into God's
presence
you know in the tomb of
some of the earliest
Christians in Rome you can
actually go visit them one is
called the catacombs of
Priscilla if you go there and
you see a few hundred years
of Christian leaders and
Christian martyrs and even
just loved ones sort of
buried there down in the
depths underneath the earth in
secrecy and you know what you
find over and over again
painted on those tombs one image
again and again and again and
again an anchor an anchor over
this tomb and this tomb and this
tomb of believers the anchor
you see they're there as a
declaration of hope as a
defiant claim in the face of
death in the face of Rome in the
face of anything that stands
against us that our hope in
Christ is sure and steadfast and
not even death can rock us from
our destiny in Christ because our
forerunner has gone before us and
our place in the presence of God is
secure so you see friends our hope
the hope that will maintain our
souls is sure because God has sworn
it and because Jesus has
accomplished it and if you hold fast
to that no matter what storms you
face you will persevere and in the
morning joy let's pray
father help us to see the
certainty of the hope before us
that our Lord and Savior shed his own
blood to secure for us God that your
oath your covenant your blood support
us in the whelming flood that when all
around our strength gives way you are
all our open stay or that our anchor
holds within the veil God for my
brothers and sisters here this morning
who are wrestling with doubts and
fears and uncertainties for whom the
storms of life have been raging and
pounding Lord would you support them
this morning help them to see the
anchor of Christ in their life and
Lord for those who do not know you
who've been trying to find an anchor
to support them and have found it to
be bankrupt God open their eyes to
take hold of Christ the one anchor that
will not fail we pray all this in
Jesus name amen well friends we're going
to sing a song that picks up all these
themes of this passage and you'll hear
them we're going to sing this as a great
declaration of our hope in Christ so
let's stand and let's celebrate what we
have in him
mind you
you
yeah
you
My