3/16/14

From Gary... Punctuation, power and the blessedness of HUMILITY


There has been and probably always WILL BE a battle of the sexes. It is inevitable because of differences in endocrine systems, thought processes and instincts. And those differences are both wonderful and at the same time, troublesome.  Trouble often starts when a man tries to be domineering or a woman wants to be "Head of the house". Now, I fully realize that every marriage is different and often it takes decades to "iron out the differences", but I genuinely think marriages could be improved by applying Bible principles to the relationship. Since the subject is extremely complex, I will only address just one principle today...

Philippians, Chapter 2
 5  Have this in your mind, which was also in Christ Jesus,  6 who, existing in the form of God, didn’t consider equality with God a thing to be grasped,  7 but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being made in the likeness of men.  8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself, becoming obedient to death, yes, the death of the cross.

Humility: the sum and substance of being a genuine servant. If one partner is a genuine servant, marriage has a chance of succeeding.  If both have an attitude of preferential equality (that is, thinking of your spouse before yourself- or being humble), then that marriage has the potential of being a truly great. When things go wrong (and they will) a humble spirit will often tend to be a forgiving one as well.  In other words, both parties to the union do not have to worry about their punctuation (crossing all the t's and dotting all the I's). Lord, help us all to be more like Jesus!!!

From Mark Copeland... The Superior Sacrifice (Hebrews 10:1-18)

                      "THE EPISTLE TO THE HEBREWS"

                    The Superior Sacrifice (10:1-18)

INTRODUCTION

1. In showing the superiority of the New Covenant, we have seen the 
   author discuss...
   a. The better promises - He 8:7-13
   b. The better sanctuary - He 9:1-28

2. The author now reaches a climax in his discussion with a look at 
   "the better sacrifice"...
   a. Not that he hasn't already made mention of it - He 7:26-27; 
      9:11-14,24-26
   b. But now there is a contrast to the Old Covenant sacrifices in the
      clearest of terms

3. In this section, we will find the author...
   a. Bring together the main ideas he has alluded to earlier
   b. Add a further thought not stressed before

[In the first four verses of chapter ten, then, we find...]

I. THE SUPERIOR SACRIFICE:  ITS NEED (1-4)

   A. ANIMAL SACRIFICES DID NOT PROVIDE TRUE REMISSION OF SIN...
      1. The Law was only "a shadow of the good things to come"
         - He 10:1a
         a. Its gifts and sacrifices were a "copy and shadow" of the 
            heavenly things - He 8:4-5
         b. They symbolized what Jesus would actually do - He 9:11-12,
            24
         c. The "good things" included such things as:
            1) His better sacrifice
            2) The better hope
            3) The eternal redemption and the eternal inheritance
      2. The sacrifices did not make the worshippers "perfect" - He 10:
         1b-2
         a. Perfect in regard to the conscience - He 9:9
         b. The repetitive nature of the sacrifices prevented this

   B. ANIMAL SACRIFICES  PROVIDED A REMINDER OF SIN...
      1. Every year there was the constant reminder of sins - He 10:3
         a. In addition to the daily and monthly sacrifices, there were
            the annual sacrifices on the Day of Atonement
         b. The constant sacrifices reminded them of their sin and need
            for cleansing
      2. It was not possible for the blood of bulls and goats to take
         away sins - He 10:4
         a. The blood of animals could not really take away sin
         b. Their purpose was to impress upon the people their need, 
            and to foreshadow what would one day be accomplished in 
            Christ

[The sacrifices of the Old Covenant accomplished their purpose; they 
served as "a shadow of the good things to come".  Those "good things"
involved the sacrifice found in the New Covenant, of which we now 
read...]
         
II. THE SUPERIOR SACRIFICE:  ITS PROVISION (5-9)

   A. IT WAS PROVIDED BY GOD...
      1. From Ps 40:6-8, we see the attitude of Christ when He came
         into the world
      2. Burnt offerings and sacrifices did not meet His Father's 
         ultimate desire - He 10:5-6
      3. But what did meet God's desire, God provided Himself:  a body 
         - He 10:5
      -- This reminds us that propitiation for sin was provided by God,
         not man - 1Jn 4:10

   B. IT WAS OFFERED FREELY BY CHRIST...
      1. Christ came as prophesied to do the will of God - He 10:7-9a
      2. Here is a striking difference between Christ's sacrifice and
         the animal sacrifices...
         a. Animal sacrifices were offered against their will
         b. Jesus freely offered Himself in accordance with His 
            Father's will! - cf. Jn 6:38

   C. IT ESTABLISHED A NEW COVENANT...
      1. In doing the will of His Father, Jesus has taken away the 
         first covenant - He 9:9b; cf. Col 2:14-17
      2. Making it possible to establish the second covenant, of which 
         He is the mediator - cf. He 9:15

[So what animal sacrifices could not accomplish, God did by the sending
of His Son who freely accepted the task of offering Himself for sin.  

But was His sacrifice adequate?  Read on...]

III. THE SUPERIOR SACRIFICE:  ITS ALL-SUFFICIENCY (10-18)

   A. IT PROVIDES TRUE SANCTIFICATION...
      1. We have been sanctified through the offering of His body - 
         He 10:10
      2. Its sufficiency is seen in that He only had to offer it "once"
         a. The repetition of the daily sacrifices illustrated their 
            inadequacy - He 10:11
         b. But with Jesus, it was "one sacrifice for sins forever" 
            - He 10:12-13
            1) Illustrated by His sitting down at God' right Hand 
               - cf. He 1:3; 8:1
            2) Where He waits (and reigns - 1Co 15:25-26; Ps 110:1-2)
               till all His enemies are made His footstool
      3. Thus "by one offering" He has provided true sanctification 
         - He 10:14
         a. "He has perfected forever" (doing what animal sacrifices
            could not - He 10:1)
         b. "those who are being sanctified"
            1) Note the present tense - sanctification is an on-going 
               process - He 2:11
               a) In one sense we have been sanctified - 1Co 1:2; 
                  6:11; He 10:10,29
               b) In another sense we will be sanctified - 1Th 5:23
            2) Made possible by the one-time sacrifice of Christ - 1Jn 1:7-9

   B. IT PROVIDES TRUE REMISSION OF SINS...
      1. As the Holy Spirit bore witness through Jeremiah in Jer 31:
         31-34 (quoted earlier in He 8:8-12) - He 10:15-17
      2. With true remission of sins, there is no need for repeated 
         sacrifices for sin - He 10:18

CONCLUSION

1. By providing complete sanctification and remission of sins, the 
   sacrifice of Jesus is truly "The Superior Sacrifice"!
   a. Why would anyone want to return to sacrifices...
      1) That did not make the worshiper "perfect"?
      2) Were there is the constant reminder of sin that weighs heavy 
         upon the conscience of man?
   b. With the sacrifice of Himself, offered freely keeping with the 
      will of God, Jesus provides what the Law could not!

2. With verse eighteen, we come to the end of the two main arguments in
   this epistle...
   a. That Christ is superior, for He is: 
      1) Better than the prophets, as a much better Spokesman - He 1:
         1-3
      2) Better than the angels, by virtue of His Deity and humanity 
         - He 1:4-2:18
      3) Better than Moses, for He is the Son who provides a heavenly 
         rest - He 3:1-4:13
      4) Better than Aaron, as His priesthood is a superior one - He 4:
         16-8:6
   b. That the New Covenant is superior, for it is:
      1) Based upon better promises - He 8:7-13
      2) Based upon a better sanctuary - He 9:1-28
      3) Based upon a better sacrifice - He 10:1-18

The purpose of the author has been to encourage his Hebrew brethren to
remain true to Jesus Christ.  Though one may not be a Hebrew by race,
the same arguments should encourage all Christians to remain true to 
Jesus and abide by the conditions of the New Covenant of which He is
the Mediator!

xecutable Outlines, Copyright © Mark A. Copeland, 2011

From Jim McGuiggan... THE MERCIFUL GOD KNOWS

THE MERCIFUL GOD KNOWS

I confess to being self-critical beyond what’s healthy. Self-examination is a good thing but a little of it, if it’s genuine, goes a long way. Before long it becomes toxic and self-centered. Nothing should take the place of God at the center of our thoughts—nothing! Certainly not me—not for any reason.

My Ethel knew me well and when one more time I’d express a needless offering of relentless self-criticism she’d eye me with a steady gaze before telling me: “If you criticized me as much and as severely as you do you someone should take you aside and rebuke you. You are no more your Lord than you are mine. You need to stop it!”

         That degree of self-rebuke isn’t humility! It might be arrogance. Who do I think I am? Michael the Archangel? Am I so wonderful that I to be above making mistakes? There’s a strange inconsistency about me. From one angle I see myself as a worm, worth nothing and at the same time I act as though I should be able to live as though free from sin and stupidity? So, what am I? Worm or archangel? 

Whether I like it or not I’m just another little human, sinful and vulnerable and in need of forgiveness and understanding.
   
       If I see someone in need of a cup of cold water, in need of clothing or food or a place of shelter—in need of what I can supply—clearly I ought to offer it. What if it turns out that the one who needs the cup of cold water is myself? What if I’m the naked, hungry and lonely one? 
  
        I’m not wise enough or consistent enough to know how to live this complicated life in a truly balanced way. I’ve no wish to go to either extreme—a flinty righteousness on the one hand or a weak-kneed-indulgence on the other. I don’t want to be Hugo’s policeman, the stony Javier nor do I want to be the irresponsible [but more likeable] Mr. Micawber of Dickens’ Copperfield. You must understand that there’s a lot in me that can justly be criticized so you mustn’t see me as simply humble. This ambivalence I experience is a real issue and not just a topic for discussion; it is confessional as well as an element of confusion.

         But the problem is bigger than my own concerns. What if it’s the case there is someone who loves me dearly and with whom I have a great deal of influence and what if she sees me refusing to give myself any leeway and thinks, “If that’s how life is to be lived then I must be very much harder on myself than I have been”? What if I leave no room for my blunders and wrongs—will she feel compelled to make no allowance for hers? Will I make a prisoner of her by being a prisoner myself? Or should I “giver her permission” to be merciful to a sinner by being merciful to me—the sinner?

          I confess I want to rest in GK Chesterton’s grand appeal to God to help him to see more than the ordinary in himself. He asks God to so sever him from himself that he can see the wonder that he is [his bones, his blood, his eyes and his life] and the needy person that he is. I’ll close with this. 

         Write me if you wish.

                               THE SWORD OF SURPRISE
SUNDER ME FROM MY BONES, O SWORD OF GOD
TILL THEY STAND STARK AND STRANGE AS DO THE TREES
THAT I WHOSE HEART GOES UP WITH THE SOARING WOODS
MAY MARVEL AS MUCH AT THESE.

SUNDER ME FROM MY BLOOD THAT IN THE DARK
I HEAR THAT ANCESTRAL RIVER RUN
LIKE BRANCHING BURIED FLOODS THAT FIND THE SEA
BUT NEVER SEE THE SUN.
GIVE ME MIRACULOUS EYES TO SEE MY EYES
THOSE ROLLING MIRRORS MADE ALIVE IN ME
TERRIBLE CRYSTAL MORE INCREDIBLE
THAN ALL THE THINGS THEY SEE.

SUNDER ME FROM MY SOUL, THAT I MAY SEE
THE SINS LIKE STREAMING WOUNDS,
THE LIFE’S BRAVE BEAT
TILL I SHALL SAVE MYSELF AS I WOULD SAVE
A STRANGER IN THE STREET.

©2004 Jim McGuiggan. All materials are free to be copied and used as long as money is not being made.

Many thanks to brother Ed Healy, for allowing me to post from his website, theabidingword.com.