we're going to read the bible together now so if you'd like to open up to hebrews
chapter 10 james if you could come up and read that'd be great
so that was hebrews chapter 10 reading from verse 1 to 18
since the law has but a shadow of the good things to come instead of the true form of those realities
it can never by the same sacrifices that are continually offered every year make perfect
those who draw near otherwise would they not have ceased to be offered since the worshippers
having once been cleansed would no longer have any consciousness of sins but in these sacrifices
there is a reminder of sins every year for it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to
take away sins consequently when christ came into the world he said sacrifices and offerings you have
not desired but a body you have prepared for me in burnt offerings in burnt offerings and sin offerings
you have taken no pleasure then i said behold i have come to do your will o god as it is written
of me in the scroll of the book when he said above you have neither desired nor taken pleasure in
sacrifices and offerings and burnt offerings and sin offerings these are offered according to the law
then he added behold i have come to do your will he does away with the first in order to establish the
second and by that will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of jesus christ once for
all and every priest stands daily at his service offering repeatedly the same sacrifices which can
never take away sins but when christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins he sat down
at the right hand of god waiting from that time until his enemies should be made a footstool for his feet
for by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified
and the holy spirit also bears witness to us for after saying this is the covenant that i will make
with them after those days declares the lord i will put my laws in their hearts and write them on their
minds then he adds i will remember their sins and their lawless deeds no more where there is forgiveness
of these there is no longer any offering for sin
oh good afternoon everyone yep mic's on uh good to see you all my name is dave
well i don't know if you're like me how you feel when coming into this place
having your temperature checked at the door
being asked about symptoms and where you've been lately it's a bit intrusive
there's there's a part of me that fears that that temperature gun is going to go off
and it's just going to flash red the alarm's going to go off and it's just going to say to me get out
you are not allowed in here you are unclean you are defiled people need to stay away from you
leave there's just a small fear in me that it's going to happen it hasn't happened yet
i think perhaps more than ever i'm appreciating a bit more now what it means to be unclean
and being unclean restricting us from places and more painfully from people
we can't holiday interstate or overseas we can't feel completely safe when shopping or at the coffee shop
i had to watch a friend's wedding via youtube last week but they didn't even know i was there
really i couldn't clap um i couldn't cheer
just a lot of funerals must be even harder
as a church we've been split in two by this the distance there
and no doubt those who are who are on zoom every week feel the distance even more
being close to me is no longer an expression of intimacy it's an expression of lack of love for me
figure that one it's so strange isn't it
we're restricted in our singing it's just so unnatural not to express our praise of god our love of god
with the lord's supper today we can't share in the one bread gluten-free bread that the wongs make
an expression of intimacy in christ but we have these um little wafer things
it's different all because of this virus the potential to be unclean
i now think twice about hugging family members
i have to decide with extended family members whether they're too unclean for me to see them
and today might be hitting you hardest of all father's day for me personally it's hard that my dad is still in new zealand
this virus is to differing degrees restricting our access to places and more painfully to people
so what about being relationally close to god can you access his presence as you are
if you think you can why do you think that
because god says our sin has made us unclean we are defiled
that's a big problem because god is holy
how can we come near to him
how can we approach him there's only one way because god has prescribed a way for us to come to him
in the days of the jewish temple in the old testament god prescribed a way for people to live
with god and access his presence
he prescribed daily sacrifices but most important of all
was the sacrifices on the day of atonement
it was the most important thing to make unclean people
to be able to access a holy god
so we learn about this day of atonement in leviticus 16
i really encourage you to read it sometime leviticus leviticus 16 and we can find out more detail about
what happened on this day in the jewish mishnah which was a jewish writing in the second century a.d
so what we're going to do now is just transport back in time
and walk in the footsteps of the high priest
and see what god prescribed so that people can access god's presence and be in fellowship with him
so the day of atonement
the mishnah instructs the high priest to leave his house and sleep in the temple for seven days before the day of atonement
just to keep himself from any accidental uncleanness
i think we're all familiar with quarantine at the moment
a deputy was ready to step in in case the high priest became unclean
and on the third and seventh day he was sprinkled with the blood of a heifer
just in case he had some uncleanness that he wasn't aware of
why all this precaution
because it is dangerous
to approach god
it is dangerous
to come close to god
the very first high priest aaron
learned this painfully
his sons nadab and abihu
went into the temple with unprescribed offerings
and fire came out and killed them
it is dangerous
to approach a holy god
if you read leviticus
you might get tired of all the detail
people who read the bible from the beginning
they can get stuck
at leviticus because of all the detail
but the detail is what's so profound
because it's yelling at us
warning us
you need to be careful how you approach god
you cannot approach god on your own terms
and yet how many of us try to
we can be flippant
with the lord as if he is lonely and needy
and just whatever we offer him will be acceptable
god is light
in him there is no darkness at all
for us to be in even a bit unclean
a bit of darkness
to come near him
is dangerous
but all the detail in leviticus
also says something else
it says
god wants us to come to him
he wants to provide a way for us to come to him
to restore fellowship
to be near to him
and so he graciously provides a way for us to do that
and the day of atonement was critical
in dealing with people's sin
so the jewish calendar
it had many feasts
to celebrate
but on this day
all the people fasted
the mishnah says
the high priest
fully bathed five times
and washed his hands
and his feet
a further ten times
to be clean
instead of wearing his majestic
priestly robes
he wore white linen garments
to represent the humility
that should be characterizing the priest
and the people
then taking a bull
the priest
laid his hands on the head of the bull
confessing his sin
and his family's sin
and then sacrificed the bull
collecting some of its blood
and then the moment came
that would have just gripped everyone with anticipation
the priest went inside
not just to the outer holy place
but the most holy place
behind the curtain
this only happened
once a year
Aaron
the first high priest
is warned in leviticus 16
2
by the lord
not to come at any time
into the holy place
inside the veil
before the mercy seat
that is on the ark
so that you may not die
not even Aaron
could come whenever he wanted
only on this day
only bringing blood
only for this purpose
so taking some of the bull's blood
he approaches
first
he puts incense
on hot coals
so that the most holy place
is filled with smoke
so that the ark
which represents
God's presence
can't be seen
by the priest
protecting the priest
and then he sprinkles
some of the bull's blood
once on the ark
on the mercy seat
and then seven times
he sprinkles it
at the base
by doing this
the blood of the bull
has been a substitute
for him and his family
and they are atoned
for their sin
so atonement
is about cleansing
from impurity
atonement when it comes
to objects
is about cleansing
that object
to set it apart
for service
for the Lord
but when it comes
to people
it's about cleansing
that person
to set them apart
for service
of the Lord
and bring them
into fellowship
with the Lord
so after making
atonement
for himself
and his family
the priest
again goes outside
this time
two goats
are brought to him
lots are cast
to see which goat
is going to be
the sin offering
and which is going
to be the scapegoat
the one that's
a sin offering
the priest
puts his hand
on its head
and confesses
all the sin
of the nation
while having his hand
on the head
of that goat
and then sacrifices
the goat
and collects
the goat's blood
and again
once more
he returns
inside
behind the curtain
and sprinkles
the blood
once on the ark
seven times
at the base
the priest
goes back outside
and with the other goat
puts his hand
on the goat's head
and again
confesses
the sin
of all the people
now this time
instead of sacrifice
the goat
is led away
by another person
outside
away from
God's presence
away from
God's people
the community
cut off
from life
and blessing
into the wilderness
where we get
our idea
of scapegoat
from
as the
people
watch
that goat
leave
the community
they would
be watching
their sin
to be taken
away from
them
so after
atonement
is made
the high priest
bathes again
and the
solemn
mood
of the day
is replaced
with relief
and joy
he gets
dressed
in his
majestic
robes
and offers
burnt offerings
in worship
of the Lord
when the
day was
done
the
mishnah
says
that
the
high
priest
went
home
to his
family
and had
a feast
to celebrate
that he
didn't die
that the
priest
survived
going into
the most
holy place
and the
whole people
were celebrating
as well
their sin
had been
dealt with
and the
women danced
to express
that celebration
as a
community
so that's
the day
of atonement
what would
have been
understood
by this
special day
i think
these things
would be
understood
sin
is deadly
serious
it
separates
people
from
god
it
must
be
dealt
with
and it
must
be
dealt
with
in the
way
god
prescribes
i think
another thing
that people
would have
understood
as well
the day
after the
day of
atonement
the most
holy place
was again
shut
access
is denied
even to
the high
priest
the presence
of the
lord
could only
be accessed
by one
man
once a
year
for one
purpose
and he's
got to
get out
this
pandemic
that we're
in
has to
one degree
or another
made us
all afraid
and it's
interrupted
life
with its
blessings
and we
might be
tempted to
believe
along with
the rest
of the
world
that if
only a
vaccine
was
available
that took
the virus
away
then life
in all
its blessings
would return
but i want
to do a
simple
comparison
to just
regain some
perspective
i don't want
to make
light of
covid of
course it
is serious
of course a
vaccine
should be
searched
for
let's just
do a
simple
comparison
okay
as of
yesterday i
looked up
the numbers
and total
covid cases
was close
to 27
million
people
27
million
serious
but as
of yesterday
total and
active cases
of sin
was approaching
8 billion
covid has
tragically
taken close
to 900
000 people's
lives and
devastated their
families
it's horrible
but just
consider for a
moment how
many people in
the world are
dying in their
sin and are
going to be cut
off from the
life of knowing
god
sin is
deadly
serious
it
separates
people from
god
it must
be dealt
with and
it must
be dealt
with in
the way
god
prescribes
so in
the past
god
graciously
provided the
day of
atonement but
as hebrews 10
verse 1
says
this day
along with
the rest
of the
mosaic law
was only
ever a
shadow
of the
real things
to come
it was a
blueprint
for the
real thing
and the
real thing
has come
this is the
good news of
hebrews this
is a good
news for us
this afternoon
the author
wants us to
hear that
you can
access god
with confidence
confidence
not fear
but only
through
the once
for all
sacrifice
of christ
the old
sacrifices
could only
point forward
to forgiveness
they couldn't
deal with
sin
otherwise
would they
not have
ceased to
be offered
since the
worshippers
having once
been cleansed
would no
longer have
any conscience
of sin
but they
repeated
year
after year
all that
was doing
is
saying a
reminder
that sin
is here
sin must
be dealt
with
it was
pointing
forward
to the
true day
of atonement
when christ
came
so why
couldn't the
blood of
animals
deal with
sin
because it's
impossible
for the
blood of
bulls and
goats to
take away
sins
animals could
not be
an adequate
substitute
for you
a human
being made
in the
image of
god
so jesus
was sent
here not
to offer
more animals
but he
was given
a body
like us
to represent
us so that
he could
offer it
in our
place
unlike the
high priest
in the
old testament
he didn't
need to
offer
sacrifices
for his
own sin
because he
was sinless
he's the
only man
who fully
pleased the
father
so not
repeated
sacrifices
but one
not animals
but a
man not
just any
man but
the son
of god
his body
wasn't taken
away from
him by
force like
the animals
his body
was offered
willingly
in obedience
to his
father
so emma
and i had
the privilege
of going
to japan
in december
it feels
weird saying
that that
seems like
years ago
so much
has happened
this year
in kyoto
there's lots
of shinto
shrines
and buddhist
temples
up in
a hilly
mountainous
area
overlooking
the city
and we
went up
there
walking
in the
bushland
it was
just
so
beautiful
we didn't
quite go
in autumn
with the
bloom
but just
afterwards
and gee
it's
stunning
the air
was so
crisp
it was
so quiet
all i could
hear was
my own
footsteps
and in
the background
i could hear
the chanting
of buddhist
monks
and the
temples
are just
these
beautiful
wooden
beams
and the
curved
roofs
of the
tile
it's
just
it's
stunning
and and we
went inside
one of these
temples
took off our
shoes
and a man
was in there
on his knees
bowing and
praying to
buddha
now it felt
like a special
place it felt
like a holy
place
i could see
the appeal
to it
but that's
nothing
compared to
what christ
offers you
and i
hebrews
9 24
christ
has entered
into heaven
itself
now to
appear in
the presence
of god
on our
behalf
he didn't
go into
a temple
made by
human hands
in the
bible
that kind
of phrase
is is
really about
false gods
false temples
christ has
gone into
heaven itself
if you want
to be in
the presence
of deity
christ has
gone there
he is
there
the good
news of
that is
no matter
where you
are on
earth
whether
you're in
your office
or you're
at home
with sick
and crying
children and
the house
is a mess
you are in
the presence
of god
in heaven
through faith
in christ
you don't
need to
be on
a mountain
christ has
gone into
heaven itself
the very
presence of
god
and in
japan
i also
saw that
with shinto
beliefs
to keep
evil spirits
away
to stop
them wreaking
havoc
in your
life
they would
go to
the shrines
of their
ancestors
they would
wash their
hands
they would
bow
in respect
and clap
to drive
the evil
spirits away
and repeat
that again
but the real
problem
says god
is not
the evil
that is
outside
but the
evil that
is inside
it's what's
inside
that defiles
a person
jesus said
this in
mark 7
it's what
comes out
of a person
that defiles
him
for from
within
out of the
heart of
man come
evil thoughts
sexual
immorality
theft
murder
adultery
coveting
wickedness
deceit
sensuality
envy
slander
pride
foolishness
all these
evil things
come from
within
and they
defile
a person
the problem
is in
here
in me
not out
there
you can
try and
clap
evil away
you can
try and
drink a lot
of alcohol
to numb
the pain
of your
conscience
but jesus
offers you
a real
way to
cleanse your
conscience
because he
actually deals
with your
sin
his blood
actually pays
for your
sin
he came
as a sin
offering
in your
place
a scapegoat
to take
your sins
away from
you
and so
unlike the
priests of
many religions
around the
world who
are still
standing and
offering
sacrifices
unlike the
jewish
priests who
stood every
day in the
temple
christ is
sitting down
not because
he's lazy
but because
his work
is done
you can't
do anything
for the rest
of the day
that can add
to your
cleansing
before god
he's done
it
it is
done
so he's
sat down
but don't
think that
you can
approach god
on your
own
that you
don't need
a priest
that david
isn't a
priest
bow and
adam rob
none of us
are priests
well we're all
priests in christ
but none of us
are high
priests
but don't
think you can
just waltz
up to god
you need
someone to
represent you
but that
person is
christ
he is our
high priest
and he is
sitting at
the right
hand of the
father you
can't get
any closer
by faith
in him
you have
access
direct access
to god
the father
and all
this is
offered to
us only
because
god wants
to have
fellowship
with us
it's his
idea
we we
aren't
searching
for it
we haven't
been asking
for it
we don't
even want
it
he took
the initiative
he promised
a day
would come
when he
would fully
and finally
forgive
so that
relationship
can be
restored
verse 10
says that
christ came
and by
that will
the father's
will to
save
we have
been sanctified
we have
been made
clean
we have
been made
holy
through the
offering
of the
body
of jesus
christ
once for
all
that
promised
day
of
cleansing
is
today
if you
rely on
christ
as your
scapegoat
as your
sin
offering
and the
lord says
to you
i will
remember
their sins
and their
lawless
deeds
no more
how good
is that
so a
man
named
charles
simeon
was
converted
by reading
the story
of the
day of
atonement
because
when he
read that
when the
priest
confessed
the sin
while
having his
hand on
the head
of the
bull
and the
goat
it just
clicked
with him
has god
really
offered
a way
for my
sin to
be
transferred
to
someone
else
and the
answer is
yes
and so he
gave his
life to
christ
friends you
too can
transfer
your sin
your uncleanness
your defilement
to someone
else to
jesus christ
he's the only
one who can
bear it
and you
must
transfer it
you must
if you
are to
know god
nothing
is as
urgent
nothing
will give
you more
joy and
delight
than to
confess
your sin
and ask
christ
to take
it from
you
matthew
records in
his gospel
that when
jesus
breathed
his last
breath
this
happened
behold
the curtain
of the
temple was
torn in
two from
top to
bottom
the most
holy place
the real
presence of
god in
heaven itself
is now
completely
open to
us
full access
all the
time
through
christ
alone
and so
we're
urged
in
hebrews
9
10
19
therefore
brothers
and
sisters
since
we have
confidence
to enter
the holy
places
by the
blood
of
jesus
by the
new
and living
way
that he
opened
for us
through
the
curtain
that is
through
his
flesh
and since
we have
a great
priest
over the
house of
god let
us draw
near
with a
true
heart
in full
assurance
of faith
with our
hearts
sprinkled
clean
from an
evil
conscience
and our
bodies
washed
with pure
water
don't bring
with you
as you
come to
god any
fear of
punishment
don't bring
anything in
your hand
to offer
him to let
you in
christ has
done it
all
his once
for all
sacrifice
for your
sin
your
uncleanness
your
cleansing
is complete
so god
calls you
to come
to him
and know
him as
your father
forever
that's the
good news
will you
pray with
me
please pray
with me
father we
we praise
you that
you have
provided a
way for
us to
come back
to you
we praise
you that
you took
the initiative
to draw
us back
to yourself
we pray
we praise
you that
you didn't
or you
sent your
son to
take our
place
lord
without you
we wouldn't
even be
aware of
our sin
thank you
for the
cross of
jesus that
that shows
us a sin
but at the
same time
shows that
our sin
is dealt
with
thank you
lord jesus
for being
willing to
die in our
place
father help
each one
of us
to know
that we
truly are
clean
so that
we can
live
close to
you
that we
can serve
you
with a
clear
conscience
we thank
you for
your great
love for
us
in jesus
name
amen
for
an
ALK