Hebrews 10:19-25 Don't Waste Your Life

Sam Bankman Fried was arrested late last year on fraud charges for deceiving investors into his crypto-currency company. He had celebrities endorsing his company and was telling his prospective clients that investing with him was a “sure bet.” At his high point, Sam Bankman Fried was was worth $15 billion dollars. And then, overnight, it was disrupted. If i understand the story correctly, one particular investor started looking at the books and realized the whole thing was a sham. He pulled his money out, which caused other investors to pull their money out and the company went into freefall mode. The aftermath is still being worked through, but we know that investors have lost fortunes, the whole thing was essentially a scam, and there is still between $1 and $2 billion dollars unaccounted for.

Personal

Life is full of investments. Not just of money. But more importantly of your time and your personal energy. We all choose every day where we are going to invest our time and energy. And in the midst of a culture that is screaming for your attention, the question we ought to be asking our selves is whether the places we are choosing to invest is the right investment strategy or not. There are a lot of deceptive investments out there. Scams, created and sold by the evil that do nothing but bankrupt you spiriutally. They promise life, and deliver misery. My passion in life, my whole aim as a Pastor, as your Pastor, is to see this Church, each of you hunger for God and invest your life well!

Context

Today we are going to be in Hebrews 10:19-25, and we are going to permit this text to drive help us become wise investors of our time and our energy. The author of Hebrews lays out in this text the basis of how we should think about our time (a premise) and then provides three clear investment strategies. Don’t waste your life.

Hebrews 10:19-25 “19 Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, 20 by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, 21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22 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. 23 Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. 24 And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, 25 not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.”

The Premise

First, the premise and foundation. Every good investment strategy needs a premise, something to ground reality in, in order for you to make wise decisions to guide your strategy. Verses 19-21 provide our premise.

Hebrews 10:19-21 “19 Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, 20 by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, 21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God,”

Twice in these verses we see the word since. Verse 19 since we have confidence. Then again in verse ‘since we have a great high priest...’ The author is setting up the ideas he wants to communicate by establishing his premise. Since these things are true in your life, then these things ought to be true as well. In other words, the three investments that we will discuss throughout the rest of this message, are natural outflows of a life that has truly understood the premise of these few verses.

Since We Have Confidence

First premise, “Since we have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus.” This language may sound unfamiliar but it is of vital importance for the Christian. The language hearkens back to the Old Testament, to the temple in Jerusalem. Under the Old Covenant, the days before Christ, the vital question that the Old Testament tried to answer was how could a sinful people in relationship with a holy God. How could a people who knowingly have broken many of God’s commands, maintain a relationship of love with God. And the answer has always been—simply by God’s mercy. He reaches out and invites us in.

God as Judge

It’s not quite that simple though, because God is a just God, a righteous God, a Holy God, there are legitimate and real consequence for every sin, great or small. From the tiniest impure thought, to the most outrageous outward action, God as a good judge holds us accountable. Under the Old Covenant God established a complex sacrificial system which was always designed to be a foreshadowing of a great sacrifice that would one day be made to put an end to all sacrifices. The most important of all these sacrifices, was the Day of Atonement. It was the day once a year when the High Priest would enter the Most Holy Place, a hidden room inside the temple that no one could enter except that one high priest on that one day to place blood on top of the Mercy Seat.

Nothing More Terrifying

This work of the High Priest was so terrifying that they used to tie a rope around the High Priests foot in case he died while in the presence of the Lord. In Jewish tradition it is told of one High Priest who lit the incence the incorrect way and died immediately after. It is also told that when a High Priest would finish his work in the most Holy Place, and come out alive, he would celebrate the fact that he was alive.

Illustration: I Don’t Deserve This

Now read our text again with me. “Since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus.” We have confidence to enter? The holy place? This is the heart of the gospel and its. I heard a pastor recently anecdotally say that people in hell and people in heaven have one thing in common. Both are saying, “I don’t deserve this.” The person in hell is saying, “How unfair of God to put me here, I was good enough.” But the person in heaven who sees the gospel clearly is saying, “How unfair of God to put me here, I didn’t deserve this. This is sheer grace.”

The Gospel

See, the good news, the news that separates following Jesus from every religion in the world, is that in Christ you can have “confidence to enter the holy place.” Why? Every other religion provides a pathway for you to earn favor with God. Visit this holy site. Pray these prayers. Do these acts of service. The end result is never confidence, you’re always left wondering have I done enough? I have said enough prayers? Am I holy enough? But this text tells us that Christians have a bold confidence because Jesus is both the High Priest who was perfectly accepted by God to make the final sacrifice. And he is the final sacrifice. His blood was shed on the altar, to fully forgive every sin: past, present, and future. The work is done. And God extends mercy freely to all who will receive it. When you truly receive it, not just give lip service to it, but truly receive the free forgiveness of all of your sins, it changes you forever. Perfect grace enters your life. And you’re marked different. It’s called being born again. Someone who has been born again has a rich confidence. Do you have a confident faith? Do you have a firm faith? This is the premise!

1 — Invest in Your Relationship with Christ

Now, with that premise, the author of Hebrews lays out three clear takeways, what I have labeled as three investments. The first is that we must invest in our relationship with Christ.

Hebrews 10:22 “22 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.”

Draw Near

The text tells us to draw near. To draw near is to approach something. It is to intentionally veer the course of your life into a specific and certain direction. In the context of this passage, it means to create meaningful time and space to enjoy God, to bask in his presence and the reality of the premise, that He has completed the work.

Full Assurance

How do we do this? First, the text says to do this with full assurance. That word is translated in other passages in the New Testament as fully convinced or fully convicted. It describing somebody that is not wavering in their faith. It describing somebody that has become certain. They have dropped their anchor on the rock that is Christ and no wind or temptation in this world will ever move it.

Sprinkled Clean from an Evil Conscience

I love the next bit of language. It says with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience. We use the word conscience quite a bit and we have a somewhat good understanding of what it means. Historically much has been written about what the conscience is. The conscience is a part of the human soul that every human being on the planet shares. It is locked into position, not by cultural sway or tradition, but by the morality of God. Historically—the 10 Commandments in the Bible are considered the sumnation of the Natural Law, the standard of truth that all people everywhere share even without the supernatural revelation of Scripture. All people everywhere deep inside know the 6th commandment, ‘do not kill,’ which is why when we have anger towards a person in our heart and we’ve hinted at harming a person even in our mind, our consciences weigh heavy against us, because we know we’re fighting against our very nature as image bearers of God. You can go through all 10 commandments.

Illustration: Demar Hamlin

This was clear this last week. The 1st commandment is that we are to have no other gods beside the God of the Bible. Last week on Monday night football a young 24 year old superstar nearly died from a heart attack on the football field. Many were, like me, watching the game live as these events unfolded. What did every person who commented in those first thirty do. They were so stunned, so shocked, the only word they could think of was ‘pray.’ Reports are coming in that the entire stadium was in prayer. The whole Bills team was in prayer. Announcers were in prayer. Why is it that when you get so shocked by the reality of death in this world, we all fall back on something deep within us. It’s because we cannot escape the 1st commandment even if we try. We have been designed this way. The old saying, ‘there are no atheists in the foxhole’ is correct, and we saw it on live tv last week.

Do You Have a Clean Conscience—Draw Near

Perhaps I can ask you a simple question. Are you walking in the joy of a clean conscience, or is there an area of your life where you simply sense the weight of heaviness upon you? Perhaps its a particular relationship, or something to do with your job, or even something to do with your relationship with God and how you prioritize or don’t prioritize it. Then hear the call of this verse, understand the investment you need to make, and draw near with a full heart. If you’ve believed in Christ, your great High Priest, your perfect sacrifice, then don’t stand at a distance but draw near daily to Christ because he cleanses you from that heavy conscience. The closer you draw the more you enjoy the fullness of the assurance offered to you in Christ.

Let Us Draw Near: Practical

First investment—Draw near to Christ. Now, I told you I was going to try to make this a very practical beginnig of the year sermon for you. So how do we do this. Permit me to give a few suggestions.

#1 Put Your Faith in Christ

First, genuinely put your faith in Jesus. in a room like this there are three types of people. There are those who have genuinely put their faith in Christ and are on a journey of growing deeper and deeper with God. On the other side are two different types of people. There are some who have never chosen to follow Christ, who perhaps have been agnostic or atheistic or simply never put much thought into it at all. For you, don’t let today go without making the most important investment of your life. Turn. Change Course. Believe in Jesus. There are others who have are cultural Christians. Cultural Christianity is not Christiniaty. If you take the title Christian but there is very little effort in your life to draw near to God, to know god, then you might not know him at all. Don’t settle for cultural Christianity. Invest in the real thing. Believe in Jesus and pursue him with the kind of confidence and assurance this passage speaks about.

#2 Deepen Your Devotion Life

Secondly, make this the year you deepen your devotion life. One of the ways you increase your investment in your relationship with God is by prioritizing a daily devotion. Typically this looks like setting aside time. For some its 15 minutes. For others its an an hour fifteen. And in that time you prioritize Christ. You read the Bible, because the Bible is God’s Word—that’s how he speaks. You reflect on it. You journal about it. And you pray. And this rhythm of daily devotions with God is mandatory for a Christian. It must become like eating and drinking. You can’t go a day without it. On the back table today I have copies of the Bible Reading Plan I use. It goes through the Old Testament once and the New Testament and Psalms twice in a year. It’s a daily rhythm. If you’re looking for a way to

First, draw near to Christ.

2 — Invest in the Renewal of Your Mind

Second investment. Invest in the Renewal of Your Mind. I know that sounds strange but this is critical. Verse 23 reads

Hebrews 10:23 “23 Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful.”

Hold fast the confession of our hope. What is the confession of our hope. Our confession is the

Hold Fast - Without Wavering

The text begins, “Let us hold fast the confession of of our hope without wavering.” There is so much richness to pull out of this text. The term “Hold fast” is more than simply saying “believe.” The text does not say, “Let us believe in our confession,” It says, “Let us hold fast the confession.” The image that comes to my mind is of a ship in a stormy sea, the waves are billowing over the side of the boat, it’s dangerous, but as long as you hold fast to the rail, you will be safe. This is what is meant. We must cling to, we must guard, and we must protect the confession of the faith without wavering. To waver is to be unsure. To waver is to live in a place of constant doubt and skepticism, and to never truly believe, to never truly bank it all on God’s word. We are to hold fast to the confession, and to be unwavering in that pursuit.

Confession

And what are we to hold fast? It is our confession. A confession is an outward proclamation of what we believe. A confession cannot be private. It is a public position. It is a declaration. The same term is used by Paul in 1 Timothy 6:12 when he says:

1 Timothy 6:12 “12 Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called and about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.”

Notice how he says the “confession you made in the presence of many witnesses.” A confession is outward, it marks you as one who has made allegiance to Jesus and His Kingdom.

Our Current Cultural Moment

We are living in a very unique moment, and as Christians living in Chicago we are living through that moment in a very unique place. We must train ourselves to hold fast our confession in the midst of a culture that truly detests God and all that is written in Scripture. I don’t say that lightly. There is a war taking place over ideas, the ideas that shape us, and that shape our children. These ideas come in all sorts of shapes and sizes. What is marriage? What is sexuality? What is government? What is a man or a woman? When does a fetus become a human? What is the role of a parent? What place does God have in society? What centrality should the Church have in shaping society? What standard do we use to measure whether a law is a just law or an unjust law? What is a Pastor?

Hold Fast

Around our culture right now, you and I are engaged in a war involving these ideas. And we must be trained to hold fast the confession of our hope. An unwavering, resolved, determination that Christ and His Word shapes everything. An unwavering, resolved, determination that we truly are the salt of the Earth, the light of the world, and that it would be a sin to keep the truth of all these questions people are asking hidden under a barrel, when the answers the world is providing to these questions will lead us and our children to further devastation, further pain, further depression, and death.

My Role & The Academy

Historically, the role of the Pastor, my role, is to equip you to be able to hold fast. And that is my passion. Let’s get practical. How can you strengthen your grip on your confession in 2023? Last year one of our big projects was creating the Academy at Park. This entire project is designed to put simple tools in your hands as Christians in order to genuinely strengthen your grip. This is a series of classes, both in person, as well as available to do online at your own pace. What we’re trying to do is to take deep rich theology from Scripture and make it accessiblel and simple and meaningful for you. Last semester I taught a 10 week class called The Confident Christian which focused on the evidence and the reasons why Christianity must be true. We’ve taught classes on theology, on different books in the Bible. For some of you, you need to attend a class. They’re 10 weeks. On January 11th we are kicking off a new class, Spiritual Formation which will focus on how does a person truly grow in their faith over a lifetime. Sign up—be a part of that.

Go Through It With Somebody

But for others who can’t make in person—use the online curriculum with another person to grow together. We’ve taken all the material, the video lectures, the readings, the discussion questions, and we have bundled it all in an online classroom experience. Let’s say you’re sitting here saying ‘I really want to do this.’ First step is to ask somebody to do it with you. Then sign up. You’ll get Josh, our Pastoral Resident who will serve as your guide through all the material, and together you can disciple each other and grow in your knowledge nad love of God.

#2 Invest in the Renewal of Your Mind

3 — Invest in Sanctifying Relationships

Third, invest in ‘Sanctifying Relationships.’ What is a sanctifying relationship? To sanctify is to become more like Christ. It is to experience progress in the depth of your faith. All of us have many friends and groups that we are a part of across the city, from work, to travel, to play. But the Church is not only unique in the purpose of these friendships, it’s also unique in the power of these friendships.

Hebrews 10:24-25 “24 And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, 25 not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.”

Stir One Another Up

The text tells us to to “stir one another up to love and good works.” Notice that that God gives us serious responsibilities when it comes to the spiritual care of other souls in this Church. You and I will be held responsible for how we live this out. We are to take responsibility for each other. What this means is that there is an intentional investment in each other’s lives that is marked by a pursuit of Christ here within this Biblical Community. When you are invested meaningfully in sanctifying relationships there is a stirring up of, a provoking of your heart and your mind and your imagination for the things of God. Two people filled by the power of the Holy Spirit ought to be experiencing and pushing each other towards the reality of the manifest presence of God in their midst.

Love & Good Works

And what are you stirring each other up towards? Towards love and good works! I love this. You konw a Christian friendship is healthy when you spend time with that person and you just want to know Christ more? You leave, not just thinking—that was fun. But you leave thinking—they love Christ and something about the way they love Christ makes me want to love Christ in that way. This is why attending the Sunday gathering is essential, “Do not forsake meeting together regulalry.” This Sunday is not an option. It’s the one place a week we all come together and push each other towards Christ, celebrate all that God is up to, and challenge each other to deeper walks with Jesus.

Let Me Stir You Up

So permit me to “stir you up to love and good works, “Becoming a Safe Families babysitter… explain.

Invest in Sanctifying Relationships

Closing

Today we’ve discussed three investments. First was investing in your relationship with Christ. Second was investing in the renewal of your mind. Third was investing in sanctifying relationships. Let me close by encouraging you to take a step today. As you know, forming new habits is difficult, thats why many people start year long bible reading plans and never finish them. Forming new habits and weeding out old habits is difficult. That’s why you need the Church. Don’t leave today without making an investment. At the very least—let us know you’re here so we can follow up with you. Or take a bigger step, get plugged in and sign up to serve, or grab a copy of the Reading Plan. May 2023 be a year that you prioritize your walk with God.

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