WEBVTT 00:00:01.000 --> 00:00:07.379 Friends, it's a great delight for me this morning to have been asked by the pastoral team to preach from Hebrews chapter 8. 00:00:08.140 --> 00:00:13.540 I've come to Trinity on and off now for the last seven years. Whenever I'm in town, I come here to church. 00:00:14.220 --> 00:00:21.679 It's my spiritual home in the US, so to preach this morning is a great gift to me, and I pray for you as well. 00:00:22.519 --> 00:00:30.399 We're reading from Hebrews chapter 8, and I'll read from verse 1 to give us some context, though the sermon will be on the second half. 00:00:38.239 --> 00:00:41.439 So from Hebrews chapter 8, verse 1. 00:00:43.219 --> 00:00:46.379 Now the point in what we are saying is this. 00:00:47.320 --> 00:00:50.679 We do have such a high priest. 00:00:50.679 --> 00:01:17.700 Now if he were on earth, he wouldn't be a priest at all. 00:01:17.700 --> 00:01:26.740 Since there are priests who offer gifts according to the law, they serve a copy and shadow of the heavenly things. 00:01:27.780 --> 00:01:33.920 For when Moses was about to erect the tent, he was instructed by God, saying, 00:01:33.920 --> 00:01:39.659 See that you make everything according to the pattern that was shown you on the mountain. 00:01:40.920 --> 00:01:52.460 But as it is, Christ has obtained a ministry that is as much more excellent than the old as the covenant he mediates is better, 00:01:53.460 --> 00:01:56.040 since it's enacted on better promises. 00:01:56.040 --> 00:02:04.880 For if that first covenant had been faultless, there wouldn't have been occasion to look for a second. 00:02:04.879 --> 00:02:09.519 For he finds fault with them when he says, 00:02:09.519 --> 00:02:19.879 Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will establish a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. 00:02:19.879 --> 00:02:27.659 Not like the covenant that I made with their fathers, not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt. 00:02:28.299 --> 00:02:35.560 For they didn't continue in my covenant, and so I showed no concern for them, declares the Lord. 00:02:35.560 --> 00:02:45.879 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord. 00:02:46.599 --> 00:02:59.680 I will put my laws into their minds and write them on their hearts, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 00:02:59.680 --> 00:03:06.040 And they shall not teach, each one his neighbour and each one his brother, saying, Know the Lord. 00:03:06.480 --> 00:03:11.560 For they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest. 00:03:13.960 --> 00:03:23.080 For I will be merciful towards their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more. 00:03:23.080 --> 00:03:30.120 In speaking of a new covenant, he makes the first one obsolete. 00:03:31.380 --> 00:03:38.380 And what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away. 00:03:39.939 --> 00:03:41.120 So let me pray. 00:03:44.680 --> 00:03:52.200 Our gracious God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, please this morning wing these words to the deepest places of our lives. 00:03:53.080 --> 00:03:56.680 Please give us gifts that we're not expecting. 00:03:57.320 --> 00:04:00.780 Please surprise us with thoughts which are from you. 00:04:02.540 --> 00:04:07.760 Please may we learn this morning how to be your people in this world. 00:04:08.420 --> 00:04:09.500 For Jesus' sake. 00:04:10.439 --> 00:04:11.120 Amen. 00:04:15.460 --> 00:04:19.520 We all yearn for something bigger. 00:04:19.519 --> 00:04:24.199 We all try to connect to something bigger than ourselves. 00:04:24.899 --> 00:04:32.779 It's like the cinema in Melbourne where I live, which has been shaped like an Egyptian temple. 00:04:33.459 --> 00:04:39.719 Now, I think it's probably not like an Egyptian temple, actually, but there was an architect who was probably cheap on the day, 00:04:39.779 --> 00:04:44.799 and he made a movie house that is as good as he thought an Egyptian temple should be. 00:04:44.800 --> 00:04:49.100 You arrive and there are carvings of gods above the door. 00:04:49.540 --> 00:04:56.840 You walk through the long passageway and there are icons of movie stars leading you to the actual cinema. 00:04:57.560 --> 00:05:03.840 And, of course, when you get into the cinema, it goes dark and you're connected into a story much bigger than yourself. 00:05:03.839 --> 00:05:19.359 If it's not movies for you, perhaps it's that you like buying your coffee at Blue State and getting those wooden tokens and putting them in the jar afterwards and supporting some local cause. 00:05:19.439 --> 00:05:23.139 Or perhaps you think if you drink enough coffee you'll be able to alleviate world poverty. 00:05:23.139 --> 00:05:30.919 At least they know, selling us the coffee, that you want to buy into something bigger. 00:05:32.360 --> 00:05:39.659 Or you can buy pairs of glasses, which the companies give half of what you're spending to some worthy cause. 00:05:40.539 --> 00:05:45.899 The glasses are probably overpriced in the first place, but at least they know you want to buy into something big. 00:05:45.899 --> 00:05:57.500 Or it might be sporting fixtures, attending a football game with thousands and thousands of others screaming around you. 00:05:58.120 --> 00:06:07.359 The closest I get to that is turning up to a cricket match with 100,000 others each summer and turning up five days in a row with nothing happening. 00:06:07.779 --> 00:06:08.959 It's just brilliant. 00:06:08.959 --> 00:06:13.639 We want to connect into something bigger. 00:06:13.819 --> 00:06:17.500 It's part of the way we are as human beings. 00:06:19.120 --> 00:06:24.219 And I know as we've been reading through the book of Hebrews, the language is foreign. 00:06:24.479 --> 00:06:26.539 The details are odd. 00:06:27.699 --> 00:06:32.399 We've learned of priests and sacrifices, sabbaths, angels, blood, covenants. 00:06:32.399 --> 00:06:38.439 But effectively, in the end, though, this isn't the vocabulary we might choose to use day by day. 00:06:38.439 --> 00:06:43.779 The big theme of the book of Hebrews is this is the way you connect into something bigger. 00:06:44.240 --> 00:06:46.740 This is how you ought to worship. 00:06:48.199 --> 00:06:57.720 This is the way we're introduced to the transcendent, the eternal, the universal, the perfect, the things that make life worth living. 00:06:57.720 --> 00:07:05.520 The book of Hebrews is teaching us how to connect into something big. 00:07:05.519 --> 00:07:18.139 And as we heard last week, we have a great high priest seated at the right hand of God, ministering in the holy places. 00:07:18.259 --> 00:07:28.379 Even today, we are connected into the heartbeat of the universe at this very moment because, friends, we have a great high priest. 00:07:28.379 --> 00:07:33.920 We all need a great high priest. 00:07:34.159 --> 00:07:37.800 Everyone in the room today needs a great high priest. 00:07:37.800 --> 00:07:48.159 And the wonderful, bold claim of Christian faith is that we have been given a great high priest in the person of Christ. 00:07:48.160 --> 00:07:59.220 But not everyone hearing these words from Hebrews 8 first read would have been entirely happy. 00:08:01.280 --> 00:08:10.060 For the first Hebrews who read this letter or who had it read to them loved their covenant. 00:08:10.060 --> 00:08:22.500 They had a God who had made a deal with them, who had handed down his law to his people, who gave order to the life of the nation, who gave them a constitution. 00:08:23.959 --> 00:08:32.100 And not only was this God giving to his people a gift of the law, God himself was committing to live by it himself. 00:08:33.480 --> 00:08:34.860 To be predictable. 00:08:35.419 --> 00:08:37.720 If you obey me, this will be the blessing. 00:08:37.720 --> 00:08:40.100 If you disobey me, this will be the curse. 00:08:42.160 --> 00:08:51.779 So when the first hearers were presented with this text, which reminds them from the prophet Jeremiah that God will establish a new covenant. 00:08:52.160 --> 00:08:55.180 Indeed, has established a new covenant through the Lord Jesus. 00:08:55.180 --> 00:08:57.500 You can imagine there's some muttering in church. 00:09:00.279 --> 00:09:02.300 What's been wrong with the way we've been living? 00:09:04.060 --> 00:09:06.759 Don't we have a special relationship with God anymore? 00:09:07.720 --> 00:09:11.560 Has God changed his mind about what he wants to do in the world? 00:09:14.200 --> 00:09:16.040 We're God's chosen nation. 00:09:16.180 --> 00:09:17.940 Surely we're God's treasured possession. 00:09:18.139 --> 00:09:19.800 We're the apple of his eye. 00:09:20.860 --> 00:09:25.240 How can he do this to us, pulling the rug out from under our feet? 00:09:25.240 --> 00:09:42.560 This new covenant that the writer to the Hebrews in chapter 8 describes wouldn't necessarily have been heard with overwhelming joy by many of its first hearers. 00:09:42.559 --> 00:09:53.639 But the writer points out that we've needed, or the people of God needed a new covenant because the first covenant had been faulty. 00:09:54.619 --> 00:09:59.879 There was something about it that didn't yet achieve God's purposes, according to verse 7. 00:10:00.579 --> 00:10:06.059 Indeed, verse 8, he finds that his God finds fault with them when he says. 00:10:06.059 --> 00:10:12.259 The old covenant wasn't perfect because it couldn't make people perfect. 00:10:13.379 --> 00:10:16.599 It gave those who were following no power. 00:10:16.739 --> 00:10:23.279 It gave them a path for living, but not yet the power to live it out. 00:10:23.279 --> 00:10:32.299 Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I'll establish a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. 00:10:33.120 --> 00:10:41.139 Not like the covenant I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt. 00:10:41.819 --> 00:10:44.039 God had certainly taken the initiative. 00:10:44.899 --> 00:10:48.000 God had certainly reached out compassionately his hand. 00:10:48.000 --> 00:10:54.259 God had certainly taken them out of the grip of Pharaoh and brought them through the Red Sea into the promised land. 00:10:54.419 --> 00:10:57.659 Certainly God had shown his great love and compassion. 00:11:01.980 --> 00:11:03.840 But we read on in verse 9. 00:11:03.840 --> 00:11:12.980 But they didn't continue in my covenant, so I showed no concern for them, declares the Lord. 00:11:12.980 --> 00:11:21.080 Though God gave the lead, the people didn't follow. 00:11:22.240 --> 00:11:28.960 And so they were punished, as we heard would be the condition in Jeremiah 7. 00:11:33.960 --> 00:11:40.300 Indeed, in verse 13, more explicitly, the writer says, in speaking of a new covenant, 00:11:40.299 --> 00:11:43.899 God makes the first one obsolete. 00:11:44.679 --> 00:11:49.819 And what's becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away. 00:11:51.179 --> 00:11:57.179 There's no clearer verse describing the relationship between the old and the new. 00:11:58.939 --> 00:12:08.279 But please, please recognise that it's not because the first covenant was bad workmanship or a wrong plan. 00:12:08.279 --> 00:12:12.319 It was the right plan, but just the first phase of production. 00:12:14.659 --> 00:12:18.659 The old covenant wasn't God's mistake. 00:12:19.980 --> 00:12:24.439 It was God's beginning to renovate the world. 00:12:24.440 --> 00:12:32.060 A few years ago, there was a Rembrandt exhibit in Melbourne, where I live. 00:12:33.100 --> 00:12:39.720 And as you walked in the door of the gallery, there were some Rembrandt charcoal sketches. 00:12:41.600 --> 00:12:42.840 Glorious in themselves. 00:12:43.720 --> 00:12:47.280 The figure of Jeremiah, or the figure of Peter, or the figure of Paul. 00:12:47.279 --> 00:12:53.339 And looking as you came in the door at these wonderful outlines, 00:12:54.480 --> 00:12:58.939 you were already taken by the expression on the face or the posture, 00:12:59.699 --> 00:13:02.059 the mood of the person being depicted. 00:13:03.039 --> 00:13:05.600 But so cleverly, the curators of the exhibit, 00:13:06.259 --> 00:13:08.459 after you walked past the charcoal sketches, 00:13:09.259 --> 00:13:13.220 you saw the actual portraits in full colour, 00:13:13.220 --> 00:13:16.240 three times larger, hanging on the wall. 00:13:17.279 --> 00:13:28.259 Rembrandt wasn't mistaken by first sketching a charcoal outline of his painting of Jeremiah. 00:13:28.459 --> 00:13:29.879 It wasn't in error that he did that. 00:13:29.919 --> 00:13:31.699 In fact, he had to do that first, 00:13:31.799 --> 00:13:35.059 in order that he had a better sense of how he might then construct 00:13:35.059 --> 00:13:40.679 the full-blown, full colour, large portrait with all its detail. 00:13:40.679 --> 00:13:49.339 You see, the covenant has built-in obsolescence. 00:13:51.039 --> 00:13:53.799 The old covenant is the sketch. 00:13:54.659 --> 00:13:57.719 The new covenant is what was planned from the outset. 00:13:58.659 --> 00:14:02.419 The full-blown, three-dimensional, glorious gift 00:14:02.419 --> 00:14:07.419 that the old covenant just in some small way pointed to. 00:14:07.419 --> 00:14:11.799 And we get, living in a consumer society, 00:14:11.939 --> 00:14:15.819 that built-in obsolescence is part of the way marketers do their work. 00:14:16.979 --> 00:14:19.179 I'm told, though you might be able to correct me, 00:14:19.599 --> 00:14:22.639 that Apple computers, the icon of our age, 00:14:22.740 --> 00:14:25.360 actually are designed with built-in obsolescence. 00:14:26.099 --> 00:14:29.339 Because we want to choose cheap and light, 00:14:29.979 --> 00:14:33.699 they make the circuitry in a way that responds to our demands, 00:14:33.700 --> 00:14:36.820 though, of course, we know that if you get five years out of your laptop, 00:14:37.000 --> 00:14:37.640 you're doing well. 00:14:38.700 --> 00:14:40.700 Light bulbs have built-in obsolescence, 00:14:41.379 --> 00:14:43.060 so they could design them to last forever, 00:14:43.259 --> 00:14:44.560 or at least for a longer time. 00:14:44.620 --> 00:14:48.720 No, they're built in such a way that we will buy a new one when it blows. 00:14:50.400 --> 00:14:54.200 The pair of shoes I'm wearing I bought just three months ago in the US, 00:14:54.300 --> 00:14:56.120 and already the soles are worn down. 00:14:56.420 --> 00:14:57.680 The leather uppers are fine, 00:14:57.679 --> 00:15:03.719 but the shoe manufacturers know that they don't want me to have these shoes too long, 00:15:04.099 --> 00:15:06.359 or at least they want me to buy another pair. 00:15:07.239 --> 00:15:09.579 They all have built-in obsolescence. 00:15:09.939 --> 00:15:11.959 They're designed to last a certain time 00:15:11.959 --> 00:15:14.779 and then to give over to the better model. 00:15:17.319 --> 00:15:20.899 But lots of Christians find this very difficult to believe. 00:15:20.899 --> 00:15:26.600 I was on a committee a few years ago with a Roman Catholic nun, 00:15:27.480 --> 00:15:31.860 and she placed the argument in the room 00:15:31.860 --> 00:15:34.899 that all religions are basically the same, 00:15:36.120 --> 00:15:38.819 that really Jews are Christians, 00:15:39.240 --> 00:15:41.319 though they don't know they're really Christians. 00:15:42.240 --> 00:15:43.500 Muslims are Christians, 00:15:44.120 --> 00:15:45.759 though they don't really know they're Christians. 00:15:45.759 --> 00:15:45.919 Christians. 00:15:47.360 --> 00:15:51.720 I was horrified by her call, 00:15:52.139 --> 00:15:53.360 the argument she was mounting. 00:15:54.679 --> 00:15:58.519 One, it's pretty arrogant to tell to a Jewish neighbour, 00:15:58.620 --> 00:15:59.419 a Muslim neighbour, 00:15:59.679 --> 00:16:01.080 that they're really ignorant 00:16:01.080 --> 00:16:03.220 and they don't know that they're worshipping Jesus. 00:16:03.860 --> 00:16:06.679 I think that's just pure imperialism. 00:16:08.259 --> 00:16:09.439 But more than that, 00:16:09.500 --> 00:16:12.879 she hadn't recognised from Hebrews chapter 8 00:16:12.879 --> 00:16:17.139 that it's the Jewish prophet Jeremiah himself 00:16:17.139 --> 00:16:23.480 who says that the covenant will one day be obsolete. 00:16:24.439 --> 00:16:28.919 It's not like it's a Christian saying to a Jew 00:16:28.919 --> 00:16:30.919 that the covenant is inadequate. 00:16:31.039 --> 00:16:34.600 No, it's one of the greatest Jewish prophets of all time 00:16:34.600 --> 00:16:35.879 who's making this call. 00:16:35.960 --> 00:16:38.419 And, of course, you could turn to Ezekiel 36 00:16:38.419 --> 00:16:40.580 for the same kind of argument, 00:16:40.580 --> 00:16:44.139 that God one day will put a new heart within the people, 00:16:44.580 --> 00:16:47.900 a new heart that wasn't achieved under the old law. 00:16:51.740 --> 00:16:56.220 The Old Testament has within it built in obsolescence. 00:16:57.340 --> 00:17:00.340 It came home to me starkly a few years ago 00:17:00.340 --> 00:17:06.940 when I did a tour of the Holy Land of Israel and Palestine. 00:17:06.940 --> 00:17:10.640 Our tour leader, whose name was Anani, 00:17:11.080 --> 00:17:13.880 had been a Jew but was converted to Christ. 00:17:13.980 --> 00:17:15.240 He was a Messianic Jew. 00:17:16.400 --> 00:17:18.059 This is his story. 00:17:18.160 --> 00:17:19.059 It's quite remarkable. 00:17:20.240 --> 00:17:23.259 He was reading the law, Exodus and Deuteronomy, 00:17:23.620 --> 00:17:28.240 which describes how a servant could choose to live 00:17:28.240 --> 00:17:30.720 in the household of his master, 00:17:30.720 --> 00:17:33.539 even after his freedom has been granted, 00:17:34.140 --> 00:17:37.880 by allowing an awl, a sharp metal object, 00:17:38.039 --> 00:17:40.339 to be pierced through the lobe of his ear 00:17:40.339 --> 00:17:42.000 against the frame of the door. 00:17:44.519 --> 00:17:47.160 And Anani was reading these texts in the law 00:17:47.160 --> 00:17:50.600 and had no idea what it could mean 00:17:50.600 --> 00:17:55.200 that a servant's ear might be pierced with an awl. 00:17:55.200 --> 00:17:58.500 So he decided he had to read on 00:17:58.500 --> 00:18:00.600 and he read beyond the law 00:18:00.600 --> 00:18:03.480 and got to the end of the Old Testament scriptures 00:18:03.480 --> 00:18:05.140 and he was still frustrated. 00:18:05.700 --> 00:18:11.140 He still hadn't found what the point of this law was. 00:18:14.220 --> 00:18:18.259 And so in a moment that could only be described 00:18:18.259 --> 00:18:19.360 as inspired by God, 00:18:19.420 --> 00:18:22.559 he decided that he had to read the Christian scriptures as well 00:18:22.559 --> 00:18:26.139 and see if they provided some resolution to his question. 00:18:28.079 --> 00:18:28.960 And he did. 00:18:31.200 --> 00:18:32.480 And he became a Christian. 00:18:34.099 --> 00:18:38.519 He read on and discovered the climax of the story. 00:18:40.799 --> 00:18:44.940 Indeed, from Hebrews in the early chapters, 00:18:45.000 --> 00:18:45.879 I think it's chapter two, 00:18:46.019 --> 00:18:48.879 that Christ was a servant over all the household of God, 00:18:48.940 --> 00:18:49.819 unlike Moses, 00:18:49.819 --> 00:18:53.319 finding their understanding of what it might mean 00:18:53.319 --> 00:18:56.099 that the awl pierced the servant's ear. 00:19:00.579 --> 00:19:03.000 Friends, we ought to be praying 00:19:03.000 --> 00:19:05.399 for our Jewish friends and neighbours 00:19:05.399 --> 00:19:07.799 to read on in the story 00:19:07.799 --> 00:19:11.139 and discover its climax. 00:19:11.140 --> 00:19:19.560 But it's not just that God has big plans for the world 00:19:19.560 --> 00:19:20.900 and the language of covenant, 00:19:21.520 --> 00:19:23.160 the conceptuality of covenant, 00:19:23.580 --> 00:19:27.660 is part of that package describing God's great purposes. 00:19:28.759 --> 00:19:32.020 It's not just that God has a great plan, 00:19:33.400 --> 00:19:34.520 a big plan, 00:19:34.519 --> 00:19:37.440 it's that God's big plan 00:19:37.440 --> 00:19:41.839 is also about the depths of my heart. 00:19:42.839 --> 00:19:45.859 It's not just that God's plan is big for the whole world, 00:19:46.379 --> 00:19:48.539 it's that God's big plan for the whole world 00:19:48.539 --> 00:19:50.440 is anchored in me. 00:19:52.859 --> 00:19:54.639 For this is the covenant I will make 00:19:54.639 --> 00:19:56.539 with the house of Israel after those days, 00:19:56.619 --> 00:19:57.299 declares the Lord. 00:19:57.440 --> 00:20:00.559 I will put my laws into their minds, 00:20:00.559 --> 00:20:03.940 I will write them on their hearts 00:20:03.940 --> 00:20:07.619 and I will be their God 00:20:07.619 --> 00:20:09.500 and they shall be my people. 00:20:09.759 --> 00:20:13.659 It's not merely that God wants to work in history, 00:20:13.879 --> 00:20:15.679 he wants to work in you. 00:20:18.639 --> 00:20:20.339 In our hearts, in our minds, 00:20:20.619 --> 00:20:22.139 writing our law there, 00:20:22.339 --> 00:20:23.079 living there, 00:20:23.339 --> 00:20:26.720 just like God lived in the Holy of Holies 00:20:26.720 --> 00:20:28.779 above the tablets of the law. 00:20:30.559 --> 00:20:31.779 God wants to get in, 00:20:31.919 --> 00:20:32.899 God wants to get close, 00:20:33.059 --> 00:20:34.079 God wants to get intimate, 00:20:34.279 --> 00:20:36.460 God wants to get personal with me. 00:20:42.460 --> 00:20:43.779 I will be their God 00:20:43.779 --> 00:20:45.659 and they shall be my people, 00:20:45.779 --> 00:20:46.399 he says, 00:20:46.899 --> 00:20:49.539 drawing on some phrases 00:20:49.539 --> 00:20:53.419 which are scattered throughout the Old Testament. 00:20:54.519 --> 00:20:56.440 There's only really one covenant, 00:20:57.159 --> 00:20:59.539 a relationship with the Lord. 00:20:59.539 --> 00:21:02.879 But this new phase of the covenant 00:21:02.879 --> 00:21:06.420 sees God getting really, really close. 00:21:09.019 --> 00:21:10.440 And they shall not teach, 00:21:10.539 --> 00:21:11.659 each one his neighbour 00:21:11.659 --> 00:21:13.519 and each one his brother, 00:21:13.639 --> 00:21:13.899 saying, 00:21:14.019 --> 00:21:14.579 know the Lord, 00:21:14.980 --> 00:21:16.440 for they shall all know me 00:21:16.440 --> 00:21:18.399 from the least of them to the greatest. 00:21:19.180 --> 00:21:22.399 And this new heart knowledge of God 00:21:22.400 --> 00:21:28.160 is not merely an understanding of law. 00:21:29.380 --> 00:21:32.060 This new heart understanding of God 00:21:32.060 --> 00:21:34.840 is not something academic presented to our ears, 00:21:34.920 --> 00:21:37.440 but it's personal experience of God 00:21:37.440 --> 00:21:39.840 in our hearts for everyone 00:21:39.840 --> 00:21:41.500 from the least to the greatest, 00:21:42.380 --> 00:21:43.860 such that there'll be no need 00:21:43.860 --> 00:21:45.980 of an elite class of people 00:21:45.980 --> 00:21:47.040 to do the teaching. 00:21:47.039 --> 00:21:47.700 Indeed, 00:21:48.139 --> 00:21:49.059 the book of Hebrews 00:21:49.059 --> 00:21:50.920 is itself teaching us. 00:21:52.700 --> 00:21:53.879 The writer to the Hebrews 00:21:53.879 --> 00:21:54.720 is himself 00:21:54.720 --> 00:21:57.000 explaining and teaching. 00:21:57.220 --> 00:21:58.099 He doesn't think that 00:21:58.099 --> 00:21:59.279 there's going to become a day 00:21:59.279 --> 00:22:00.480 when you don't need people 00:22:00.480 --> 00:22:01.700 giving sermons 00:22:01.700 --> 00:22:02.379 or leading discussions. 00:22:03.579 --> 00:22:04.299 It's just that 00:22:04.299 --> 00:22:05.359 in that day, 00:22:06.000 --> 00:22:07.680 everyone has a responsibility 00:22:07.680 --> 00:22:08.339 together 00:22:08.339 --> 00:22:09.399 of making sure 00:22:09.399 --> 00:22:10.159 that God's word 00:22:10.159 --> 00:22:11.500 is heard and obeyed. 00:22:11.500 --> 00:22:16.400 there's no elite priesthood 00:22:16.400 --> 00:22:17.640 anymore. 00:22:19.220 --> 00:22:21.079 Everyone can know God. 00:22:22.220 --> 00:22:22.740 And in a sense, 00:22:22.779 --> 00:22:23.319 in our age, 00:22:23.460 --> 00:22:24.619 we hear this language 00:22:24.619 --> 00:22:25.880 of intimacy 00:22:25.880 --> 00:22:27.099 and closeness 00:22:27.099 --> 00:22:29.880 and most of us 00:22:29.880 --> 00:22:32.000 feel encouraged. 00:22:34.579 --> 00:22:35.839 We live in a world 00:22:35.839 --> 00:22:38.380 where close connections 00:22:38.380 --> 00:22:39.299 are desired. 00:22:41.500 --> 00:22:43.119 But just remember 00:22:43.119 --> 00:22:44.059 that for those 00:22:44.059 --> 00:22:45.299 hearing Jeremiah 00:22:45.299 --> 00:22:46.559 speak these words 00:22:46.559 --> 00:22:47.640 for the first time 00:22:47.640 --> 00:22:49.160 or the writer to the Hebrews 00:22:49.160 --> 00:22:50.400 speaking them later, 00:22:51.440 --> 00:22:53.160 they felt differently 00:22:53.160 --> 00:22:54.220 about closeness 00:22:54.220 --> 00:22:55.200 than we might. 00:22:56.720 --> 00:22:57.759 We kind of like 00:22:57.759 --> 00:22:58.680 the thought of intimacy. 00:23:01.299 --> 00:23:02.839 But in the Old Testament, 00:23:03.640 --> 00:23:04.680 intimacy with God, 00:23:04.819 --> 00:23:05.619 closeness with God 00:23:05.619 --> 00:23:06.440 was very, 00:23:06.640 --> 00:23:07.539 very dangerous. 00:23:08.720 --> 00:23:09.900 They'd remember Uzzah 00:23:09.900 --> 00:23:11.200 who touched the ark 00:23:11.200 --> 00:23:11.860 of the covenant 00:23:11.860 --> 00:23:13.200 when he stumbled 00:23:13.200 --> 00:23:14.059 and died. 00:23:15.120 --> 00:23:16.160 Or they might remember 00:23:16.160 --> 00:23:17.660 Nadab and Abihu 00:23:17.660 --> 00:23:19.380 who offered 00:23:19.380 --> 00:23:20.620 unauthorized fire 00:23:20.620 --> 00:23:21.400 in the temple, 00:23:21.900 --> 00:23:22.680 in the tabernacle, 00:23:22.799 --> 00:23:23.319 I beg your pardon, 00:23:23.400 --> 00:23:24.220 in Leviticus 10 00:23:24.220 --> 00:23:25.160 and were consumed. 00:23:25.740 --> 00:23:26.580 No, you can't get 00:23:26.580 --> 00:23:27.460 too close to God. 00:23:27.539 --> 00:23:28.319 Getting close to God 00:23:28.319 --> 00:23:28.980 is dangerous. 00:23:29.340 --> 00:23:29.920 Our God 00:23:29.920 --> 00:23:31.620 is a consuming fire. 00:23:35.819 --> 00:23:36.860 Yet the promise 00:23:36.860 --> 00:23:37.900 is closeness. 00:23:37.900 --> 00:23:41.480 How can we have 00:23:41.480 --> 00:23:42.200 closeness 00:23:42.200 --> 00:23:44.780 and safety? 00:23:50.780 --> 00:23:51.860 Well, the prophet 00:23:51.860 --> 00:23:53.360 explains it in verse 12. 00:23:55.600 --> 00:23:56.780 For I will be merciful 00:23:56.780 --> 00:23:58.500 towards their iniquities 00:23:58.500 --> 00:24:01.180 and I will remember 00:24:01.180 --> 00:24:02.380 their sins 00:24:02.380 --> 00:24:03.880 no more. 00:24:06.339 --> 00:24:07.559 I will be merciful 00:24:07.559 --> 00:24:08.759 towards their iniquities. 00:24:08.920 --> 00:24:10.000 I will remember 00:24:10.000 --> 00:24:10.940 their sins 00:24:10.940 --> 00:24:12.160 no more, 00:24:13.079 --> 00:24:14.480 says the Lord. 00:24:17.480 --> 00:24:18.079 God 00:24:18.079 --> 00:24:19.400 comes close 00:24:19.400 --> 00:24:20.279 and it's safe 00:24:20.279 --> 00:24:20.819 for God 00:24:20.819 --> 00:24:21.500 to come close 00:24:21.500 --> 00:24:22.099 because he's made 00:24:22.099 --> 00:24:22.539 a promise 00:24:22.539 --> 00:24:23.279 under the new covenant 00:24:23.279 --> 00:24:24.660 that when he comes close, 00:24:24.839 --> 00:24:25.500 he will always 00:24:26.099 --> 00:24:27.559 forgive our sins. 00:24:27.559 --> 00:24:29.639 He will always 00:24:29.639 --> 00:24:30.879 show his mercy 00:24:30.879 --> 00:24:32.079 towards our iniquity. 00:24:32.399 --> 00:24:33.159 He will never 00:24:33.159 --> 00:24:34.440 remember our sins 00:24:34.440 --> 00:24:35.079 and hold them 00:24:35.079 --> 00:24:35.960 against us. 00:24:37.659 --> 00:24:38.700 Our conscience 00:24:38.700 --> 00:24:40.079 is cleansed 00:24:40.079 --> 00:24:42.000 as the writer 00:24:42.000 --> 00:24:42.539 of the Hebrews 00:24:42.539 --> 00:24:43.500 says in a number 00:24:43.500 --> 00:24:44.399 of other places. 00:24:45.740 --> 00:24:46.639 We're washed. 00:24:48.379 --> 00:24:49.500 Sin's not remembered. 00:24:49.659 --> 00:24:50.379 It's wiped. 00:24:50.759 --> 00:24:51.440 When Christ 00:24:51.440 --> 00:24:53.279 died on the cross, 00:24:54.000 --> 00:24:55.279 he called out, 00:24:55.440 --> 00:24:56.720 it is finished. 00:24:57.559 --> 00:24:59.339 Tetelestai. 00:25:00.319 --> 00:25:00.980 Tetelestai 00:25:00.980 --> 00:25:01.659 being the word 00:25:01.659 --> 00:25:02.419 that you stamped 00:25:02.419 --> 00:25:03.259 on contracts 00:25:03.259 --> 00:25:04.059 in the ancient world 00:25:04.059 --> 00:25:05.119 meaning paid 00:25:05.119 --> 00:25:06.099 in full. 00:25:09.440 --> 00:25:10.799 Sin has gone. 00:25:12.099 --> 00:25:13.179 It's been dealt 00:25:13.179 --> 00:25:13.539 with. 00:25:14.679 --> 00:25:15.759 It will not be 00:25:15.759 --> 00:25:16.319 remembered 00:25:16.319 --> 00:25:17.980 by the Lord. 00:25:17.980 --> 00:25:18.079 God. 00:25:23.079 --> 00:25:23.700 Now this 00:25:23.700 --> 00:25:24.920 imagery 00:25:24.920 --> 00:25:25.380 of being 00:25:25.380 --> 00:25:26.000 washed, 00:25:27.059 --> 00:25:27.860 cleansed 00:25:27.860 --> 00:25:29.940 in our conscience 00:25:29.940 --> 00:25:30.759 in the deepest 00:25:30.759 --> 00:25:32.099 part of our life 00:25:32.099 --> 00:25:33.680 is for me 00:25:33.680 --> 00:25:34.599 such an important 00:25:34.599 --> 00:25:37.240 and passionately 00:25:37.240 --> 00:25:38.180 held belief. 00:25:39.400 --> 00:25:40.500 I didn't grow up 00:25:40.500 --> 00:25:41.559 in a Christian home. 00:25:42.640 --> 00:25:43.360 My parents 00:25:43.360 --> 00:25:43.920 were God 00:25:43.920 --> 00:25:44.620 fearers 00:25:44.619 --> 00:25:46.419 but they 00:25:46.419 --> 00:25:46.739 weren't 00:25:46.739 --> 00:25:47.219 Jesus 00:25:47.219 --> 00:25:47.819 believers. 00:25:49.239 --> 00:25:50.239 It was first 00:25:50.239 --> 00:25:51.500 at high school 00:25:51.500 --> 00:25:52.419 I was 13 00:25:52.419 --> 00:25:52.839 I think 00:25:52.839 --> 00:25:53.899 13 or 14 00:25:53.899 --> 00:25:54.919 when I was 00:25:54.919 --> 00:25:55.199 introduced 00:25:55.199 --> 00:25:55.959 to Christ. 00:25:57.979 --> 00:25:58.759 It was a 00:25:58.759 --> 00:25:59.419 lunchtime 00:25:59.419 --> 00:26:00.779 Bible discussion 00:26:00.779 --> 00:26:02.939 and a video 00:26:02.939 --> 00:26:03.419 was being played. 00:26:03.500 --> 00:26:03.699 In fact 00:26:03.699 --> 00:26:04.639 it wasn't a video 00:26:04.639 --> 00:26:05.139 because we didn't 00:26:05.139 --> 00:26:05.919 have videos then 00:26:05.919 --> 00:26:06.479 but it was a 00:26:06.479 --> 00:26:07.219 reel-to-reel 00:26:07.219 --> 00:26:08.279 Super 8 movie 00:26:08.279 --> 00:26:08.959 if that means 00:26:08.959 --> 00:26:09.779 anything to anyone. 00:26:09.779 --> 00:26:12.859 And a magician 00:26:12.859 --> 00:26:13.720 took 00:26:13.720 --> 00:26:15.440 a dirty 00:26:15.440 --> 00:26:16.039 cylinder 00:26:16.039 --> 00:26:18.700 and placed 00:26:18.700 --> 00:26:19.379 over the top 00:26:19.379 --> 00:26:19.759 of it 00:26:19.759 --> 00:26:21.319 a scarlet 00:26:21.319 --> 00:26:22.339 blood-coloured 00:26:22.339 --> 00:26:22.839 cylinder 00:26:22.839 --> 00:26:25.259 and then 00:26:25.259 --> 00:26:25.859 removed 00:26:25.859 --> 00:26:26.519 the outer 00:26:26.519 --> 00:26:27.039 cylinder 00:26:27.039 --> 00:26:29.539 and the 00:26:29.539 --> 00:26:29.899 internal 00:26:29.899 --> 00:26:30.379 cylinder 00:26:30.379 --> 00:26:30.799 was 00:26:30.799 --> 00:26:31.940 white as 00:26:31.940 --> 00:26:32.379 snow. 00:26:36.139 --> 00:26:37.019 And he 00:26:37.019 --> 00:26:37.579 explained 00:26:37.579 --> 00:26:39.079 that's what 00:26:39.079 --> 00:26:39.939 happened 00:26:39.939 --> 00:26:40.639 when Christ 00:26:40.639 --> 00:26:41.159 died. 00:26:41.879 --> 00:26:42.119 You were 00:26:42.119 --> 00:26:42.480 made 00:26:42.480 --> 00:26:43.299 white. 00:26:44.039 --> 00:26:44.339 You were 00:26:44.339 --> 00:26:45.079 made clean 00:26:45.079 --> 00:26:45.579 on the 00:26:45.579 --> 00:26:46.179 inside. 00:26:47.240 --> 00:26:47.839 Now no one 00:26:47.839 --> 00:26:48.399 had ever 00:26:48.399 --> 00:26:49.319 explained that 00:26:49.319 --> 00:26:49.960 to me. 00:26:50.960 --> 00:26:51.639 Why had no 00:26:51.639 --> 00:26:52.039 one ever 00:26:52.039 --> 00:26:52.539 explained that? 00:26:52.559 --> 00:26:53.079 I knew that 00:26:53.079 --> 00:26:53.639 Christ had 00:26:53.639 --> 00:26:54.279 died because 00:26:54.279 --> 00:26:55.079 I'd seen 00:26:55.079 --> 00:26:55.779 people wearing 00:26:55.779 --> 00:26:56.559 crosses around 00:26:56.559 --> 00:26:57.639 their neck 00:26:57.639 --> 00:26:58.179 with a man 00:26:58.179 --> 00:26:58.579 on it. 00:26:59.579 --> 00:27:00.359 But no one 00:27:00.359 --> 00:27:00.599 had ever 00:27:00.599 --> 00:27:00.960 explained to 00:27:00.960 --> 00:27:01.619 me why 00:27:01.619 --> 00:27:02.379 Christ 00:27:02.379 --> 00:27:03.240 died. 00:27:04.039 --> 00:27:04.899 To make 00:27:04.899 --> 00:27:05.859 me clean 00:27:05.859 --> 00:27:06.939 in the 00:27:06.939 --> 00:27:07.259 deepest 00:27:07.259 --> 00:27:07.919 parts of 00:27:07.919 --> 00:27:08.599 my life. 00:27:12.500 --> 00:27:13.319 So I 00:27:13.319 --> 00:27:13.919 went home 00:27:13.919 --> 00:27:14.799 that night 00:27:14.799 --> 00:27:15.119 and knelt 00:27:15.119 --> 00:27:15.459 by my 00:27:15.459 --> 00:27:15.959 bedside 00:27:15.959 --> 00:27:17.299 and prayed 00:27:17.299 --> 00:27:18.500 that Christ 00:27:18.500 --> 00:27:19.059 would wash 00:27:19.059 --> 00:27:19.679 me on the 00:27:19.679 --> 00:27:20.219 inside. 00:27:21.319 --> 00:27:21.740 And I 00:27:21.740 --> 00:27:22.339 became a 00:27:22.339 --> 00:27:22.719 Christian. 00:27:24.799 --> 00:27:25.740 Oh happy 00:27:25.740 --> 00:27:26.639 day, oh 00:27:26.639 --> 00:27:27.419 happy day, 00:27:27.939 --> 00:27:28.839 you washed 00:27:28.839 --> 00:27:29.519 my sin 00:27:29.519 --> 00:27:29.899 away. 00:27:31.159 --> 00:27:32.000 Oh happy 00:27:32.000 --> 00:27:33.519 day, I 00:27:33.519 --> 00:27:34.059 will never 00:27:34.059 --> 00:27:35.079 be the same 00:27:35.079 --> 00:27:36.099 forever I 00:27:36.099 --> 00:27:36.879 am changed. 00:27:37.480 --> 00:27:37.919 When I 00:27:37.919 --> 00:27:38.399 stand in 00:27:38.399 --> 00:27:39.000 that place 00:27:39.000 --> 00:27:39.519 free at 00:27:39.519 --> 00:27:40.839 last, meeting 00:27:40.839 --> 00:27:41.439 face to 00:27:41.439 --> 00:27:42.059 face, I 00:27:42.059 --> 00:27:42.879 am yours, 00:27:43.299 --> 00:27:44.819 Jesus, you 00:27:44.819 --> 00:27:45.759 are mine. 00:27:46.879 --> 00:27:47.399 What a 00:27:47.399 --> 00:27:48.679 glorious day, 00:27:49.359 --> 00:27:49.839 what a 00:27:49.839 --> 00:27:51.039 glorious way, 00:27:52.259 --> 00:27:52.779 what a 00:27:52.779 --> 00:27:53.939 glorious name. 00:27:55.579 --> 00:27:56.319 Oh happy 00:27:56.319 --> 00:27:56.779 day. 00:28:01.460 --> 00:28:02.519 It's why I 00:28:02.519 --> 00:28:03.539 describe myself 00:28:03.539 --> 00:28:04.639 as an 00:28:04.639 --> 00:28:05.039 evangelical 00:28:05.039 --> 00:28:05.700 Christian. 00:28:07.259 --> 00:28:07.639 For 00:28:07.639 --> 00:28:08.019 evangelical 00:28:08.019 --> 00:28:08.819 Christians in 00:28:08.819 --> 00:28:09.700 the last few 00:28:09.700 --> 00:28:10.480 hundred years 00:28:10.480 --> 00:28:11.319 have worked 00:28:11.319 --> 00:28:12.099 really hard to 00:28:12.099 --> 00:28:12.859 keep reminding 00:28:12.859 --> 00:28:13.740 the church 00:28:13.740 --> 00:28:14.859 that the 00:28:14.859 --> 00:28:16.359 internal life, 00:28:17.099 --> 00:28:17.960 the life of 00:28:17.960 --> 00:28:18.779 our heart, 00:28:19.659 --> 00:28:20.339 must be 00:28:20.339 --> 00:28:21.299 addressed and 00:28:21.299 --> 00:28:21.839 protected. 00:28:22.480 --> 00:28:23.859 We aspire to 00:28:23.859 --> 00:28:25.440 godliness with 00:28:25.440 --> 00:28:26.339 power, 00:28:27.379 --> 00:28:28.680 not merely 00:28:28.680 --> 00:28:29.559 trusting in 00:28:29.559 --> 00:28:30.639 outward forms 00:28:30.639 --> 00:28:33.559 or outward 00:28:33.559 --> 00:28:34.200 religion. 00:28:36.539 --> 00:28:37.519 We have 00:28:37.519 --> 00:28:38.419 been washed 00:28:38.419 --> 00:28:39.359 and forgiven 00:28:39.359 --> 00:28:40.359 so that we 00:28:40.359 --> 00:28:41.099 are no longer 00:28:41.099 --> 00:28:42.279 merely observers 00:28:42.279 --> 00:28:43.440 at a cricket 00:28:43.440 --> 00:28:44.980 match or 00:28:44.980 --> 00:28:46.619 observers at 00:28:46.619 --> 00:28:47.319 the movies. 00:28:48.240 --> 00:28:48.799 Friends, we 00:28:48.799 --> 00:28:49.299 are no longer 00:28:49.299 --> 00:28:50.899 observers, we 00:28:50.899 --> 00:28:52.679 are participants. 00:28:54.319 --> 00:28:54.879 We are 00:28:54.879 --> 00:28:56.220 deeply connected 00:28:56.220 --> 00:28:57.220 to the life of 00:28:57.220 --> 00:28:58.259 God now and 00:28:58.259 --> 00:28:58.839 forever. 00:28:59.579 --> 00:29:00.200 But too 00:29:00.200 --> 00:29:01.519 often, you 00:29:01.519 --> 00:29:02.319 and I and 00:29:02.319 --> 00:29:02.920 people we 00:29:02.920 --> 00:29:03.380 meet are 00:29:03.380 --> 00:29:04.019 content with 00:29:04.019 --> 00:29:04.799 just watching 00:29:04.799 --> 00:29:05.480 the world, 00:29:05.860 --> 00:29:07.140 observing life 00:29:07.140 --> 00:29:07.900 go by. 00:29:09.140 --> 00:29:09.680 But we've 00:29:09.680 --> 00:29:10.200 actually not 00:29:10.200 --> 00:29:11.700 been invited 00:29:11.700 --> 00:29:12.500 just to stay 00:29:12.500 --> 00:29:12.819 on the 00:29:12.819 --> 00:29:13.380 sidelines 00:29:13.380 --> 00:29:13.940 watching the 00:29:13.940 --> 00:29:14.279 game. 00:29:15.319 --> 00:29:15.900 We've been 00:29:15.900 --> 00:29:16.740 invited down 00:29:16.740 --> 00:29:17.380 onto the 00:29:17.380 --> 00:29:18.240 victory lap 00:29:18.240 --> 00:29:19.220 with the 00:29:19.220 --> 00:29:19.700 team that 00:29:19.700 --> 00:29:20.120 we've been 00:29:20.120 --> 00:29:20.600 supporting. 00:29:21.900 --> 00:29:22.740 We might 00:29:22.740 --> 00:29:23.100 not have 00:29:23.100 --> 00:29:23.980 ourselves 00:29:23.980 --> 00:29:24.860 contributed to 00:29:24.860 --> 00:29:25.339 the victory, 00:29:25.480 --> 00:29:25.819 but the 00:29:25.819 --> 00:29:26.360 victory having 00:29:26.359 --> 00:29:26.759 been won. 00:29:26.919 --> 00:29:27.199 We're 00:29:27.199 --> 00:29:27.839 invited to 00:29:27.839 --> 00:29:28.439 participate 00:29:28.439 --> 00:29:29.000 with the 00:29:29.000 --> 00:29:31.819 team and 00:29:31.819 --> 00:29:32.599 enjoy the 00:29:32.599 --> 00:29:33.399 great glory 00:29:33.399 --> 00:29:34.159 that comes 00:29:34.159 --> 00:29:34.619 with being 00:29:34.619 --> 00:29:36.039 connected to 00:29:36.039 --> 00:29:36.579 Christ. 00:29:39.339 --> 00:29:40.379 God's big 00:29:40.379 --> 00:29:41.379 plan for the 00:29:41.379 --> 00:29:42.119 universe will 00:29:42.119 --> 00:29:42.919 succeed, but 00:29:42.919 --> 00:29:43.439 God's big 00:29:43.439 --> 00:29:44.059 plan for the 00:29:44.059 --> 00:29:45.259 universe involves 00:29:45.259 --> 00:29:46.579 your heart. 00:29:47.959 --> 00:29:48.479 Intimately, 00:29:48.819 --> 00:29:49.240 gently, 00:29:49.839 --> 00:29:50.259 deeply, 00:29:50.599 --> 00:29:51.559 satisfyingly, 00:29:51.659 --> 00:29:52.059 wholly. 00:29:52.059 --> 00:29:57.220 decide today 00:29:57.220 --> 00:29:59.179 to be a 00:29:59.179 --> 00:30:00.539 new covenant 00:30:00.539 --> 00:30:01.919 believer. 00:30:04.019 --> 00:30:04.879 Decide 00:30:04.879 --> 00:30:06.799 today to 00:30:06.799 --> 00:30:07.579 be a new 00:30:07.579 --> 00:30:08.200 covenant 00:30:08.200 --> 00:30:09.299 believer. 00:30:12.099 --> 00:30:13.319 For it's a 00:30:13.319 --> 00:30:14.339 glorious life. 00:30:15.019 --> 00:30:16.000 It's a 00:30:16.000 --> 00:30:16.779 glorious life 00:30:16.779 --> 00:30:17.819 living in 00:30:17.819 --> 00:30:18.599 this way. 00:30:18.599 --> 00:30:19.679 for if you 00:30:19.679 --> 00:30:20.359 belong to 00:30:20.359 --> 00:30:20.699 the new 00:30:20.699 --> 00:30:21.099 covenant, 00:30:21.639 --> 00:30:22.139 if you 00:30:22.139 --> 00:30:22.579 have placed 00:30:22.579 --> 00:30:23.139 your trust 00:30:23.139 --> 00:30:23.480 in that 00:30:23.480 --> 00:30:24.159 great high 00:30:24.159 --> 00:30:24.639 priest, 00:30:24.959 --> 00:30:25.379 if that 00:30:25.379 --> 00:30:25.919 great high 00:30:25.919 --> 00:30:26.459 priest has 00:30:26.459 --> 00:30:27.079 written his 00:30:27.079 --> 00:30:27.679 law in 00:30:27.679 --> 00:30:28.299 your mind 00:30:28.299 --> 00:30:28.719 and in 00:30:28.719 --> 00:30:29.279 your heart, 00:30:29.599 --> 00:30:30.519 you are 00:30:30.519 --> 00:30:31.240 free. 00:30:33.019 --> 00:30:33.799 It's quite 00:30:33.799 --> 00:30:34.199 extraordinary 00:30:34.199 --> 00:30:34.599 that when 00:30:34.599 --> 00:30:36.199 Paul describes 00:30:36.199 --> 00:30:36.679 the new 00:30:36.679 --> 00:30:37.779 covenant in 00:30:37.779 --> 00:30:38.399 2 Corinthians 00:30:38.399 --> 00:30:39.459 3, 00:30:40.000 --> 00:30:40.719 it's the 00:30:40.719 --> 00:30:41.219 freedom 00:30:41.219 --> 00:30:41.959 language he 00:30:41.959 --> 00:30:42.799 turns to. 00:30:42.799 --> 00:30:44.119 I think 00:30:44.119 --> 00:30:44.379 I should 00:30:44.379 --> 00:30:45.200 read it. 00:30:48.579 --> 00:30:49.319 Paul writes 00:30:49.319 --> 00:30:49.559 in 2 00:30:49.559 --> 00:30:49.839 Corinthians 00:30:49.839 --> 00:30:50.279 3, 00:30:50.379 --> 00:30:50.700 6, 00:30:51.440 --> 00:30:52.299 God has 00:30:52.299 --> 00:30:52.680 made us 00:30:52.680 --> 00:30:53.279 sufficient to 00:30:53.279 --> 00:30:53.700 be ministers 00:30:53.700 --> 00:30:54.180 of a new 00:30:54.180 --> 00:30:54.539 covenant, 00:30:55.500 --> 00:30:56.240 not of the 00:30:56.240 --> 00:30:56.619 letter of 00:30:56.619 --> 00:30:57.159 the spirit, 00:30:57.299 --> 00:30:57.559 for the 00:30:57.559 --> 00:30:58.200 letter kills, 00:30:58.460 --> 00:30:58.799 but the 00:30:58.799 --> 00:31:00.139 spirit gives 00:31:00.139 --> 00:31:00.940 life. 00:31:05.099 --> 00:31:05.799 Reading on 00:31:05.799 --> 00:31:06.460 from verse 00:31:06.460 --> 00:31:07.379 7, 00:31:07.519 --> 00:31:07.879 now if the 00:31:07.879 --> 00:31:08.339 ministry of 00:31:08.339 --> 00:31:08.919 death carved 00:31:08.919 --> 00:31:09.259 in letters 00:31:09.259 --> 00:31:10.000 on stone came 00:31:10.000 --> 00:31:10.359 with such 00:31:10.359 --> 00:31:10.980 glory that the 00:31:10.980 --> 00:31:11.339 Israelites 00:31:11.339 --> 00:31:11.919 couldn't gaze 00:31:11.919 --> 00:31:12.319 at Moses' 00:31:12.319 --> 00:31:12.740 face, 00:31:12.799 --> 00:31:13.139 because of 00:31:13.139 --> 00:31:13.579 its glory 00:31:13.579 --> 00:31:14.220 which was 00:31:14.220 --> 00:31:14.700 being brought 00:31:14.700 --> 00:31:15.200 to an end, 00:31:15.460 --> 00:31:16.019 will not the 00:31:16.019 --> 00:31:16.519 ministry of 00:31:16.519 --> 00:31:16.940 the spirit 00:31:16.940 --> 00:31:17.480 have even 00:31:17.480 --> 00:31:18.519 more glory? 00:31:18.819 --> 00:31:19.379 For if there 00:31:19.379 --> 00:31:20.240 was glory in 00:31:20.240 --> 00:31:20.680 the ministry 00:31:20.680 --> 00:31:21.579 of condemnation, 00:31:21.680 --> 00:31:22.039 the ministry 00:31:22.039 --> 00:31:22.659 of righteousness 00:31:22.659 --> 00:31:23.419 must far 00:31:23.419 --> 00:31:24.159 exceed it in 00:31:24.159 --> 00:31:24.500 glory. 00:31:26.159 --> 00:31:26.559 Indeed, 00:31:26.779 --> 00:31:27.619 in this case, 00:31:27.720 --> 00:31:28.519 what once had 00:31:28.519 --> 00:31:29.440 glory has come 00:31:29.440 --> 00:31:29.919 to have no 00:31:29.919 --> 00:31:30.779 glory at all 00:31:30.779 --> 00:31:31.919 because of the 00:31:31.919 --> 00:31:32.399 glory that 00:31:32.399 --> 00:31:33.240 surpasses it. 00:31:34.039 --> 00:31:34.559 For if what 00:31:34.559 --> 00:31:35.139 was being brought 00:31:35.139 --> 00:31:35.559 to an end 00:31:35.559 --> 00:31:36.419 came with glory, 00:31:36.799 --> 00:31:37.940 how much more 00:31:37.940 --> 00:31:38.519 will what is 00:31:38.519 --> 00:31:40.059 permanent have 00:31:40.059 --> 00:31:40.519 glory? 00:31:40.519 --> 00:31:40.599 glory. 00:31:42.200 --> 00:31:42.559 And from 00:31:42.559 --> 00:31:43.359 verse 17, 00:31:43.859 --> 00:31:44.480 now the 00:31:44.480 --> 00:31:45.440 Lord is the 00:31:45.440 --> 00:31:45.900 spirit, 00:31:46.619 --> 00:31:47.359 and where the 00:31:47.359 --> 00:31:48.220 spirit of the 00:31:48.220 --> 00:31:48.839 Lord is, 00:31:49.420 --> 00:31:50.339 there is 00:31:50.339 --> 00:31:51.180 freedom. 00:31:53.180 --> 00:31:53.740 Important, 00:31:53.859 --> 00:31:54.059 isn't it, 00:31:54.059 --> 00:31:54.660 that Paul, 00:31:54.859 --> 00:31:55.900 when describing 00:31:55.900 --> 00:31:56.859 the ministry 00:31:56.859 --> 00:31:57.420 of the new 00:31:57.420 --> 00:31:57.799 covenant, 00:31:58.680 --> 00:31:59.879 has to conclude 00:31:59.879 --> 00:32:00.720 with a description 00:32:00.720 --> 00:32:01.579 of the freedom 00:32:01.579 --> 00:32:02.700 that we enjoy 00:32:02.700 --> 00:32:04.019 belonging to 00:32:04.019 --> 00:32:04.460 the new 00:32:04.460 --> 00:32:04.819 covenant. 00:32:04.819 --> 00:32:04.960 covenant. 00:32:06.159 --> 00:32:06.559 And Paul, 00:32:06.679 --> 00:32:06.919 as well, 00:32:06.980 --> 00:32:07.460 if you go to 00:32:07.460 --> 00:32:08.119 Romans 8, 00:32:08.200 --> 00:32:09.519 describes our 00:32:09.519 --> 00:32:10.000 life, 00:32:10.119 --> 00:32:11.179 no condemnation 00:32:11.179 --> 00:32:11.939 for those in 00:32:11.939 --> 00:32:12.539 Christ because 00:32:12.539 --> 00:32:13.220 we've been set 00:32:13.220 --> 00:32:15.019 free from the 00:32:15.019 --> 00:32:15.679 law of sin 00:32:15.679 --> 00:32:16.299 and death, 00:32:19.059 --> 00:32:19.879 free from 00:32:19.879 --> 00:32:21.859 external temples, 00:32:22.159 --> 00:32:23.059 for we are the 00:32:23.059 --> 00:32:23.439 temple, 00:32:23.799 --> 00:32:24.740 free from an 00:32:24.740 --> 00:32:25.879 elite priesthood 00:32:25.879 --> 00:32:26.879 because we have 00:32:26.879 --> 00:32:27.740 a great high 00:32:27.740 --> 00:32:28.139 priest, 00:32:28.539 --> 00:32:29.419 free from sin 00:32:29.419 --> 00:32:30.200 because we have 00:32:30.200 --> 00:32:31.539 a sacrifice who 00:32:31.539 --> 00:32:32.679 has been enough. 00:32:32.680 --> 00:32:34.600 friends, 00:32:34.720 --> 00:32:35.759 we are free. 00:32:38.759 --> 00:32:39.759 Of course, 00:32:39.960 --> 00:32:40.759 the alternative 00:32:40.759 --> 00:32:42.039 is slavery 00:32:42.039 --> 00:32:45.380 and despair. 00:32:47.960 --> 00:32:49.019 But the new 00:32:49.019 --> 00:32:50.060 covenant wants 00:32:50.060 --> 00:32:51.140 to spare us 00:32:51.140 --> 00:32:52.940 that great 00:32:52.940 --> 00:32:55.060 evil. 00:32:57.060 --> 00:32:58.060 But we're not 00:32:58.060 --> 00:32:58.640 just free, 00:32:59.600 --> 00:33:00.600 we're also 00:33:00.600 --> 00:33:01.279 therefore 00:33:01.279 --> 00:33:02.500 bold. 00:33:03.360 --> 00:33:04.279 We're bold 00:33:04.279 --> 00:33:05.299 because we're 00:33:05.299 --> 00:33:05.460 free. 00:33:05.539 --> 00:33:06.100 We're bold 00:33:06.100 --> 00:33:07.080 to approach 00:33:07.080 --> 00:33:07.779 the throne 00:33:07.779 --> 00:33:08.340 of grace. 00:33:08.460 --> 00:33:08.980 We're bold 00:33:08.980 --> 00:33:09.840 to come to 00:33:09.840 --> 00:33:10.160 God. 00:33:10.279 --> 00:33:10.860 We're bold 00:33:10.860 --> 00:33:11.560 to come even 00:33:11.560 --> 00:33:12.080 to God's 00:33:12.080 --> 00:33:12.779 table this 00:33:12.779 --> 00:33:13.160 morning. 00:33:14.400 --> 00:33:15.120 We're bold 00:33:15.120 --> 00:33:15.920 because look 00:33:15.920 --> 00:33:16.200 at all the 00:33:16.200 --> 00:33:16.600 things that 00:33:16.600 --> 00:33:17.340 God has done. 00:33:17.799 --> 00:33:18.420 He says in 00:33:18.420 --> 00:33:18.860 this passage, 00:33:19.000 --> 00:33:19.600 I will make 00:33:19.600 --> 00:33:20.100 this covenant. 00:33:20.340 --> 00:33:21.100 I will engrave 00:33:21.100 --> 00:33:21.600 my laws. 00:33:21.880 --> 00:33:22.539 I will be 00:33:22.539 --> 00:33:23.100 their God. 00:33:23.279 --> 00:33:24.080 I will teach 00:33:24.080 --> 00:33:24.539 them all. 00:33:24.799 --> 00:33:25.440 I will make 00:33:25.440 --> 00:33:26.160 myself known 00:33:26.160 --> 00:33:26.680 to the least 00:33:26.680 --> 00:33:27.060 and to the 00:33:27.060 --> 00:33:27.340 greatest. 00:33:27.500 --> 00:33:28.080 I will be 00:33:28.080 --> 00:33:28.500 merciful. 00:33:28.720 --> 00:33:29.880 I will forget 00:33:29.880 --> 00:33:30.460 their sins. 00:33:30.660 --> 00:33:31.539 If God has 00:33:31.539 --> 00:33:32.539 done all that, 00:33:32.680 --> 00:33:33.799 what is 00:33:33.799 --> 00:33:34.440 holding us 00:33:34.440 --> 00:33:35.000 back? 00:33:41.000 --> 00:33:41.960 For if one 00:33:41.960 --> 00:33:42.519 of the great 00:33:42.519 --> 00:33:44.039 distractions of 00:33:44.039 --> 00:33:44.519 the Christian 00:33:44.519 --> 00:33:45.080 life is 00:33:45.080 --> 00:33:45.820 despair 00:33:45.820 --> 00:33:47.140 because of 00:33:47.140 --> 00:33:47.740 slavery, 00:33:48.580 --> 00:33:49.340 another great 00:33:49.340 --> 00:33:50.120 distraction in 00:33:50.120 --> 00:33:50.539 the Christian 00:33:50.539 --> 00:33:51.880 life is 00:33:51.880 --> 00:33:52.519 panic 00:33:52.519 --> 00:33:54.120 because of 00:33:54.120 --> 00:33:54.660 timidity. 00:33:54.660 --> 00:33:54.740 humility. 00:33:55.940 --> 00:33:56.560 When we 00:33:56.560 --> 00:33:57.220 panic, we 00:33:57.220 --> 00:33:57.700 stumble. 00:33:58.080 --> 00:33:58.380 When we 00:33:58.380 --> 00:33:58.920 panic, we 00:33:58.920 --> 00:33:59.340 don't keep 00:33:59.340 --> 00:33:59.820 our eye on 00:33:59.820 --> 00:34:00.240 the goal. 00:34:00.580 --> 00:34:00.880 When we 00:34:00.880 --> 00:34:03.060 panic, we 00:34:03.060 --> 00:34:03.880 express our 00:34:03.880 --> 00:34:04.600 fear that 00:34:04.600 --> 00:34:05.100 there's something 00:34:05.100 --> 00:34:05.640 bigger than 00:34:05.640 --> 00:34:06.340 God in this 00:34:06.340 --> 00:34:06.759 world. 00:34:09.559 --> 00:34:10.019 Please, 00:34:10.139 --> 00:34:10.579 friends, don't 00:34:10.579 --> 00:34:11.260 pretend that 00:34:11.260 --> 00:34:12.039 your timidity, 00:34:12.559 --> 00:34:13.180 sorry, don't 00:34:13.180 --> 00:34:13.579 pretend that 00:34:13.579 --> 00:34:14.280 your humility, 00:34:15.340 --> 00:34:15.980 no, I've got it 00:34:15.980 --> 00:34:16.420 right the first 00:34:16.420 --> 00:34:16.659 time. 00:34:16.980 --> 00:34:18.460 Please don't 00:34:18.460 --> 00:34:19.079 pretend that your 00:34:19.079 --> 00:34:19.740 timidity is 00:34:19.740 --> 00:34:20.240 really just 00:34:20.240 --> 00:34:20.740 humility. 00:34:20.739 --> 00:34:23.819 humility is 00:34:23.819 --> 00:34:24.479 one thing, but 00:34:24.479 --> 00:34:26.299 being fearful 00:34:26.299 --> 00:34:27.159 and timid is 00:34:27.159 --> 00:34:27.779 quite another. 00:34:30.139 --> 00:34:31.000 We are 00:34:31.000 --> 00:34:33.119 free, we're 00:34:33.119 --> 00:34:33.979 free to be 00:34:33.979 --> 00:34:37.279 bold, confident 00:34:37.279 --> 00:34:38.439 to come to 00:34:38.439 --> 00:34:39.079 God in full 00:34:39.079 --> 00:34:39.879 assurance of 00:34:39.879 --> 00:34:40.739 faith without 00:34:40.739 --> 00:34:42.219 wavering to 00:34:42.219 --> 00:34:43.359 find the life 00:34:43.359 --> 00:34:44.079 that's worth 00:34:44.079 --> 00:34:44.539 living. 00:34:47.399 --> 00:34:47.619 And 00:34:47.619 --> 00:34:48.539 indeed, by 00:34:48.539 --> 00:34:49.079 taking the 00:34:49.079 --> 00:34:49.659 bread and the 00:34:49.659 --> 00:34:50.619 wine this 00:34:50.619 --> 00:34:51.319 morning, you 00:34:51.319 --> 00:34:52.059 can enjoy 00:34:52.059 --> 00:34:53.639 the closeness 00:34:53.639 --> 00:34:54.440 of God. 00:34:55.599 --> 00:34:56.279 For Christ 00:34:56.279 --> 00:34:57.579 said, this 00:34:57.579 --> 00:34:58.259 cup that is 00:34:58.259 --> 00:34:59.139 poured out for 00:34:59.139 --> 00:35:00.579 you is the 00:35:00.579 --> 00:35:01.480 new covenant 00:35:01.480 --> 00:35:03.579 in my 00:35:03.579 --> 00:35:04.319 blood. 00:35:08.799 --> 00:35:10.639 Bold by 00:35:10.639 --> 00:35:11.359 the blood. 00:35:13.159 --> 00:35:15.319 Bold by 00:35:15.319 --> 00:35:15.940 the blood. 00:35:17.900 --> 00:35:19.699 Bold by 00:35:19.699 --> 00:35:20.259 the blood. 00:35:20.619 --> 00:35:21.539 blood. 00:35:21.539 --> 00:35:21.699 This is 00:35:21.699 --> 00:35:22.099 the message 00:35:22.099 --> 00:35:22.639 of Hebrews 00:35:22.639 --> 00:35:23.039 8. 00:35:24.440 --> 00:35:25.460 Amen.