Have You Been Cleansed by the Blood?

            Remember the Shiites in Iraq a few years ago? The news media transmitted pictures of pilgrims whipping themselves in rituals designed to address their guilt.

            I know Christians who live the same way. They spiritually whip themselves with guilt.

            Guilt can be a bad thing. Paul Harvey tells the story of a twelve-year-old boy named Addie, who was asked by his older sister to stay for a party that she was giving, to which some of her school friends were coming. 

            Addie stayed, but he found himself bored with the games of the high school kids.  Finally, one of the older boys casually mentioned to him that he had learned the manual of arms—an army drill, which involved the twirling of a rifle with crisp precision.  The only problem was, they needed a gun! 

            Then Addie remembered that his dad had a .22 rifle.  Quickly, he ran to fetch it.  After a demonstration by the "military expert", Addie decided he wanted to give it a try.  

            What followed remained locked in the mind of Addie until the day he died.  The eyewitness accounts varied. Some said that after the older boy showed Addie the manual of arms, Addie tried to duplicate his actions.  Others said that he was trying to put the rifle away, while one person swore that Addie "took the gun from the older boy...pointed it at one of the girls... and pulled the trigger."

            However it occurred, the gun was loaded and in Addie's hands when it was fired.  The resulting gunshot killed a young girl named Ruth Merwin. 

            In the years that followed, this incident was never mentioned by Addie.  He went on to have an outstanding career in public service, serving as governor of his home state, and twice being nominated for the presidency of the United States.  And there are those who say that had he run against anybody besides a certified world hero (Dwight Eisenhower), he would have won.

            Some who knew him well enough to know about that tragic event believed he could never shake the guilt.

            This story reminds us that:

            People were not built for guilt.

            In the excellent book, UNVEILED GLORY, authors Jeff Childers and Fred Aquino offer several points concerning the saving work of the Gospel; I want to offer three:

1. Power.

            Here are two verses that reflect this understanding:

9bGod lives fully in Christ. 10And you are fully grown because you belong to Christ, who is over every power and authority…. 15There Christ defeated all powers and forces. He let the whole world see them being led away as prisoners when he celebrated his victory. (Col. 2:9b-10, 15.) CEV

28 In the same way, the Son of Man did not come to be served. He came to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many people"(Matthew 20:28.) NCV

            The idea here is that Jesus is the cosmic Lord who defeats the powerful forces of evil and liberates us from the power of sin. We sing songs to celebrate this: “Faith is the Victory” and “The Battle Belongs to the Lord” are two examples.

2. Purpose

            Paul wrote, For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died (II Cor. 5:14.) NIV. Jesus’ love motivates us to do what he would have us to do, think like he would have us to think, and to live like he would have us to live.

3. Pardon.

            Childers and Aquino write concerning pardon, “The image of salvation as satisfaction widely stresses God's goal of addressing the cosmic effects of sin and restoring the divine order. Justice and salvation are tied together.”

            In this blog, we want to look at the pardon of God in Hebrews 9:1-10:18.

            I have found interest on occasion observing what theologians and philosophers consider the crucial questions of humanity. One consistent question is this: what can we do about our guilt?

            I find it interesting the way the Bible addresses guilt. Early on, God, through word and visual aids, taught people: for you to live, something must die. Go back to Genesis three. Adam and Eve sinned, and what did they try to do? Cover themselves with leaves, the products of their own efforts. But it wasn’t good enough. God provided them with the skins of animals. Innocent blood was shed. For Adam and Eve to live, something had to die. Blood had to be shed.

            Thus, begins a pattern throughout scripture. In the Old Testament, it was found in sacrifices such as the burnt offering, the sin offering, the guilt offering, the fellowship offering, the Day of Atonement, and even the Passover. (As the renowned Levitical scholar Jacob Milgrom wrote,) “[In the Bible] Blood is the ritual detergent.”

            Under the New Covenant, you had a change. Instead of—for you to live, something must die—it became: for you to live, someone must die. The Son of God shed his life-sustaining liquid on the cross. His blood marked an eternal difference—but what a high price!

            I always crack up reading about the time-worn story of a wealthy woman who was traveling overseas and saw a bracelet she thought was irresistible; she sent her husband this cable: "Have found wonderful bracelet. Price $75,000. May I buy it?"

            Her husband promptly wired back this response: "No, price too high." But the cable operator omitted the comma, so the woman received this message: "No price too high." Elated, she purchased the bracelet.             When she arrived back home, she was effusive in thanks to her husband. She proudly showed him the bracelet.

            Puzzled, he asked her WHY she purchased it. She answered, “You telegrammed me: no price too high.”

            Remember, God loved you so much, no price was too high.

            Many are growing to love Tim Keller’s writings. A relevant statement from them is this, “Here's the gospel: you're more sinful than you ever dared believe; you're more loved than you ever dared hope.”

Christ Is the Perfect Sacrifice

            Look how the Preacher of Hebrews cultivates his thoughts, 11 So Christ has now become the High Priest over all the good things that have come. He has entered that greater, more perfect Tabernacle in heaven, which was not made by human hands and is not part of this created world. 12 With his own blood—not the blood of goats and calves—he entered the Most Holy Place once for all time and secured our redemption forever.

 13 Under the old system, the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a young cow could cleanse people’s bodies from ceremonial impurity.

            Several years ago, I heard of a fund called “The Conscience Fund.” Perhaps, it is an urban legend, but supposedly, our government maintains this fund now holding over 3 million dollars.

            The people who fund it are those who formerly cheated on their income tax. The fund was founded in 1811 when a gentleman sent six bucks. The highest gift has been $14,250 from a person in London.

            The best statement I read was from one guy who sent fifty buck—"I can't sleep; my conscience is bothering me. Enclosed you will find a check for fifty dollars. If I still can't sleep, I'll send the balance.”

            When I think about that story, I think of Hebrews 9:13-14: The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean. 14How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!

            Remember those who could not get over their guilt? Years ago, biblical scholar Leon Morris noted that the word “blood” was found 460 times in the Bible: 362 in the Old Testament and 98 in the New Testament.

            What gives? Why so much emphasis on blood?

            I think there are several reasons. However, in chapter 17, dealing with how you kill animals for sacrifices or for food, you find a nugget of knowledge. In verse 11, the Lord says, “11 For the life of a creature is in the blood, and I have given it to you to make atonement for yourselves on the altar; it is the blood that makes atonement for one's life.”

            That sentence packs a lot of religious teaching and symbolism. The writer of Hebrews plays off that verse when he writes,“22 In fact, according to the law of Moses, nearly everything was purified with blood. For without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness” (Heb. 9:22).

            There are churches all around us though that, many years ago, began having trouble believing this. People became so sophisticated that they did not like the idea that blood needed to be shed to save us. There was something so “barbaric” about that a lot of people found it offensive. So you'll hear very little in many churches today about the blood of Christ.

            I remember years ago talking with a couple of graduate students who asked the same question, “Why blood? Why did the blood have to be shed to save us?” They were disturbed by that idea and could not buy into it. Something within them desired sophistication so much that they refused to believe blood would be important to God.

            One reason for their belief was they held a high view of humanity. It is a view that considers people to “not be that bad.” Oh, there are a few that are bad. But most people are very good. And most of us pretty close to being how we need to be.            

            So for us to be saved, all that needs to happen is for God to say “I forgive you.” That is it; no one needs to die for us.

            Here is the problem with that view. History does illustrate our goodness.

            100 years ago, throughout Europe and here in the United States, people in churches began to think, “At last, we're becoming what we were made to be. Man is getting better.”

            Then, an event happened that shattered that illusion–World War One. European kinfolk began fighting back and forth and lost a generation of young men. Millions of people died. People became disillusioned; Christians became disillusioned.

            But humanity started to pick up steam again and to move on. And people commenced to feel better about themselves. Then World War Two began. Then, the Korean War began. Then Vietnam. Then the Gulf War. Then Afghanistan and the Iraq war.

            On top of that you had in the twentieth century the “killing fields” of Cambodia, the tens of millions of murders committed by Stalin, and Hitler…

            Last time I checked, blood is still being shed.

            I don't think we’re getting better. These are problems humanity had at the very beginning. We all have the impulse to be God. And when we realize we can't do the job, we all have the impulse to try to get better at the job. We all have the impulse solve our sin problems ouselves.

            What you see here in Hebrews is the blood of Christ washing away sins. Over and over again the writer quotes God saying, “I am going to clean your conscience.”            

            I think those who are turned off by the need of the shedding of the Savior's blood are expressing subconsciously an unhappiness at the thought that they can stand before God condemned. They do not want to see themselves as sinners.

            Have you ever met somebody and took an instant dislike to him or her? And then you have a mutual friend who says to you, “I don't see why you cannot get along. You two are just alike.”

            Bingo! You see your flaws in the other person, and you don't want to see them in yourself. You do a pretty good job of ignoring those.

            I think this vision of blood is a betrayal of the fact that we do not like seeing ourselves as we really are. We don't want to feel the need to be forgiven. We want to think there's not much sin within us. But we have to go before the Father, by going to the cross; we have to kneel at the cross, and with a confessional attitude, and an attitude of repentance, we must say, “You, God, are holy and I'm not. I do not deserve the eternal life of heaven. I do not deserve to live with you forever. I need the blood of Jesus.”

            This brings to the surface a lot of verses that talk about cleansing of sin, for example I Peter 3 talks about baptism being an appeal for a clean conscience.

            Saul is told in Acts 22:16, “And now what are you waiting for? Get up, be baptized and wash your sins away, calling on his name.’”

            We can take solace in the fact that we have been saved once and for all. We have been forgiven once and for all. Jesus did not have to die over and over again. At one point in history, on a cross, an act was performed by which he has forgiven us.

            Years ago, back when the British soldiers were redcoats, they participated in a parade. A little boy in his father’s shop looked up and said, “Dad, look at those white coats.”

            The father said, “Son, those aren’t white coats.” And the son said, “Those are white coats.”

            The father kneeled down to where the son was, and he looked up and he saw that the son was viewing those coats through a prism of red glass. That glass, coupled with the sunlight, created an optical illusion. Those coats appeared white.

            In a sense, God says, “When I look upon you through the blood of my son, you are white. You are spotless.”

            Looking again to Hebrews, 14 For by that one offering he forever made perfect those who are being made holy (Heb. 10:14.)

            We stand before God and perfection, so bloodshed is important. 17 Then he says, “I will never again remember their sins and lawless deeds.”

 18 And when sins have been forgiven, there is no need to offer any more sacrifices (Heb. 10:17-18.)

Here’s the result:

            You can know you are forgiven;

            You can know God has forgotten.

            You can enjoy a life free of guilt.

            What is the response of a cleansed of people? The Preacher asked these Christians in Hebrews, “Why would you want to leave a group of people who have been freed from sin by the shed blood of Jesus for a group of people who have not? Why would you leave a group of people who have clean consciences to join the group of people who don't?”

            Don’t you want to set aside time each Sunday to reflect on this in the Lord’s Supper? For example, aren’t you are applying this when you partake of the grape juice? Aren’t you remembering the work of the blood?

            Twice in my life I have been to Ford's Theatre in Washington, DC. The last time was two years ago with my daughter, Abby, and some of members of her class.

            On the bed where Abraham Lincoln died was a pillow and on this pillow was a stunning, huge red stain. It was a bloodstain. Now why in the world would somebody keep a pillow stained with blood? Because that was the bloodshed by Abraham Lincoln. He shed it to help free an enslaved people.

            There is one who shed his blood 2000 years ago. He did so to free an enslaved people, enslaved by sin, and by it he said, “You are free.”

            Back in 1944, Japanese forces were fighting American forces on an island in the Pacific. A Japanese soldier realized the battle was being lost. And so, refusing to surrender, he decided to hide in a cave. He stayed there 22 years. He lived on bugs and other items. Having never heard the war was over, he continued fighting the war. Finally some hunters found him. They told him the war was over. They rescued him. They gave him freedom.

            This is a tragic story. Here was a guy living a life that was based upon past sins; he was not even taking advantage of the atonement that was offered for him. The war was over. He was free. The Japanese and the Allied forces were enemies no more. They were friends and allies. But he did not live like it.

            I talk with people like that every day. If you are a Christian, you need to know the war with sin is over. There is atonement. You no longer have to be an enemy of Jesus. Reconcile with his forces.

Christ-Confidence

There’s a Stirring # 9   

            For years I have had students write their spiritual autobiographies. I started this back at ACU when I was teaching there. I cannot tell you how many times I had students who seemed to “have had it all together”—world class athletes, beautiful young women, handsome young men—yet beneath the surface, they struggled with self-confidence.

            That was not necessarily a bad thing. Let me explain.

            In his book, ASK HIM ANYTHING, Lloyd John Ogilvie wrote that the word confidence comes to us from the Latin. Con means “with”, which you may recognize from Spanish. Fidere means “faith” or “trust”. So confidence means an all-together faith.

            To have confidence in its truest sense means you have complete faith in something that is totally consistent and reliable. Therein lies the problem.

            How many of you have ever been totally reliable? How many have never made a mistake?

            To be self-confident is impossible in the purest sense. You will let yourself down. You will break down over time. It is more pressure than you were built to bear. So, these college students who lacked self-confidence had a chance in life because they did not have to unlearn some things that are hard to unlearn.

            Have you ever heard of brokenness? Brokenness occurs for a lot of reasons. Sometimes, it arrives when a person is placing confidence in himself, and his “self” lets him down.

            I’ve made this mistake before. When I went to college, I was surging with self-confidence. I had to be taken down a peg or two.

            When I went to Argentina as part of a team to do mission work, I had enormous self-confidence. I went to Argentina with all of the answers. I left five and half years later with a lot of questions. That experience changed my life forever.

            What about you? I have seen guys bully men who have had affairs, only to later have one themselves.

            I have seen people savagely treat a Christian going through a devastating divorce. That would never happen to them!

            It did.

            I wonder if Paul was thinking about self-confidence when he warned us to put no confidence in the flesh.

            Now, you may be wondering—what (or who) do we put our confidence in? I’m glad you asked.

Let Me Tell You the Story ‘bout a Man Named Mel

            There was an ancient king of Salem named Melchizedek. Let’s call him, Mel.

            Mel was highly thought by Jesus’ people, the Jews. He was a “mystery man. All we know is that he was the King of Salem when Abraham sought to honor him with ten percent of his plunder after defeating some evil kings in a brief war. We never read of Mel dying.

            The Preacher in Hebrews writes this about Mel, “…the Melchizedek story provides a perfect analogy: Jesus, a priest like Melchizedek, not by genealogical descent but by the sheer force of resurrection life—he lives!—"priest forever in the royal order of Melchizedek.” (Heb. 7:15-17) THE MESSAGE

         In other words, after comparing Jesus to Mel, the Preacher says, “The former way of doing things, a system of commandments that never worked out the way it was supposed to, was set aside; the law brought nothing to maturity. Another way—Jesus!—a way that does work, that brings us right into the presence of God, is put in its place” (Heb. 7:18-19.) THE MESSAGE 

         The old system of sacrifices never worked because we cannot keep the Law. The Law taught us that. Ever had a parent tell you NOT to do something, and then you do it?

         The Law taught us that we couldn’t hack it. It taught us that we have a problem. It taught us to put no confidence in our ability to be good.

          “The problem with self-confidence is that the self is not either consistent or constant.”—Lloyd John Olgilvie

         “Earlier there were a lot of priests, for they died and had to be replaced. But Jesus' priesthood is permanent. He's there from now to eternity to save everyone who comes to God through him, always on the job to speak up for them.“

         Jesus came and took care of our problem of our sinful selves. He was the perfect go-between—between God and us.

Mediation

         Okay, put on your thinking caps.

            Everybody wants a mediator.

            When I was in the third grade, I liked a girl. I wanted her to like me. I wanted to know if this girl liked me. However, I knew instinctively that I could not be so bold as to go up to her and say, “I like you–do you like me?” Instead, I knew I needed a mediator.

            That's why I knew I needed to seek the help of her good friend, and mine, so I approached this friend and I asked, “Would you serve as my mediator? Would you enter this girl’s awesome presence, and express my supreme affection for her? And would you do so in order that she and I might have a closer relationship?” (My words were probably not that precise, but that was the general idea.)

            Imagine my excitement when my mediator complied with my request, and the aforementioned girl became my girlfriend. We began a beautiful relationship that lasted—three days.

            Human beings instinctively understand their need for a mediator. We have always understood the need to have someone else go before God in our place.             

            The world religions throughout history have displayed this understanding–even if they did not know who Jehovah was, they understood that there was a great being, more supreme, out there in the universe. So throughout history, in the world religions, you will find the shaman, the holy men, or the priests to go in front of the people, for the people—before God.

            We observe this on a junior level with human royalty. Prince William and Princess Kate have been the fad lately. Many people would love to enter into their presence. However, you cannot simply walk up to them. There is an elaborate etiquette to be observed.

            Here are a few basic tips of royal protocol:

Once you are formally introduced, you may address the Princess as “Mam” and the Prince as “Sir.”

Please do not initiate conversation.

During conversation, if you want to ask a question, say, "Begging your pardon, Mam, may I ask a question?”

Here’s the protocol if you are if you are invited for a meal with the Queen:

You sit when the Queen sits, and rise when she does.

When the Queen stops eating, you stop as well.

You no longer have to back completely out of the room; however, you do need to take two or three steps back before you turn to leave.

And don't forget to pen a personal “Thank You” note within 72 hours. The Queen may never see it herself, but her social staff will make note of it.

         All of this is for entering into the presence of human royalty! What about entering into the presence of eternal royalty?

            In the Old Testament, that’s what the tabernacle was for. Their tabernacle was the place where the King of the universe resided. For humans to meet with God, royal protocol had to be followed. The High Priest served as mediator and chief protocol officer for the people of Israel. He entered into the presence of the King on behalf of the people.

            When I preached this passage, my church placed a tabernacle set on the platform in our auditorium. The set included articles that were mentioned specifically in Hebrews chapter nine.  For fun, I had one of our young people pretend he was the High Priest and walk through the tabernacle in our congregation’s behalf. We imagined he had been trained in all of the rules of divine protocol.

            Every time this young man made a movement that was counter to the biblical etiquette of the High Priest, I would interrupt him and point out the proper procedure. This brought chuckles.

            I then told him we forgot to act according to rabbinic tradition, so I brought out a rope and tied it to his ankle. I reminded him that Jewish tradition emphasized that he was entering into the presence of a holy God. One false or incorrect move, and God was going to kill him. Indeed, accounts in Jewish tradition inform us that God struck an occasional high priest dead for violation of divine procedure. (When I started to tie the rope around his ankle, he showed a real reluctance. That got some laughs.)

            I hoped to make a point. Jesus, the Greatest High Priest, changed the ballgame! Because of his work, God could write a new covenant on our hearts. God would no longer remember our sins: 26-28 So now we have a high priest who perfectly fits our needs: completely holy, uncompromised by sin, with authority extending as high as God's presence in heaven itself. Unlike the other high priests, he doesn't have to offer sacrifices for his own sins every day before he can get around to us and our sins.

         He's done it, once and for all: offered up himself as the sacrifice. The law appoints as high priests men who are never able to get the job done right. But this intervening command of God, which came later, appoints the Son, who is absolutely, eternally perfect (Heb. 7:23-28.) THE MESSAGE.

            Not only can Jesus go in our behalf before God, because of his sacrifice, he also can take us with him! Israel had not remained “faithful to my covenant, 
so I turned my back on them, says the LORD. 
 10 But this is the new covenant I will make 
with the people of Israel on that day, says the LORD:  I will put my laws in their minds, 
and I will write them on their hearts. 
I will be their God, 
and they will be my people…(Heb. 8:7-10) NLT 
 

         12 And I will forgive their wickedness, and I will never again remember their sins” (Heb. 8:12.) NLT

         Jesus changed the divine protocol!

         To sum up where we are:           

            All of us have a sin problem.

            So all of us have a God problem.

            Which means all of us have a SELF-problem.

            All of us have sin problem, which means we cannot go into the presence of God. God cannot allow sin to come into his presence. Consequently, we all have a self-problem. So where do we put our trust?

            Lloyd John Ogilvie writes that as a native Californian, he rarely had to wear gloves. On a trip to Detroit, he arrived during a blizzard, and the weather necessitated the purchase of a pair.

            Being a good preacher, he immediately observed a useful illustration. He noticed that without his hands inside the gloves, the gloves were “listless, inanimate, motionless.” However, when he inserted his hands inside, the gloves became “alive, vital, energized.”

            Ogilvie applied his observation in this way: the empty glove represents our self. Our self was created by God to be filled so that we might fulfill his purpose. When we are baptized into Christ, and the Holy Spirit fills us, we are empowered to be bold and confident.

            What does this look like? It means we can overcome sin. It means God can use us in powerful way. It means God can do great things through us. However, in each scenario, the emphasis is not on us, it is on Him.

Our self was created by God to be filled so that we might fulfill his purpose.

When we are baptized into Christ, and the Holy Spirit fills us, we are empowered to be bold and confident.

The gift of God is Christ Confidence.

            Our daughter, Haleigh, is a freshman at Harding University. A few weeks back, she said goodbye to some of her friends on a Friday afternoon to leave for spring break.

            Six of her friends traveled in two cars. Haleigh diverged paths from them at the city of Texarkana, TX. She traveled to Tyler on Interstate 59. They continued on Interstate 30 toward Fort Worth.

            Shortly thereafter, the six students were involved in a chain reaction collision. One of the young men got out to see if the person in front was okay. Getting back to his pickup, he was hit and thrown over 50 feet in the air.

            The prognosis was grave. Two of his buddies held him in their arms there by the Interstate until medical help arrived to care-flight him to a hospital that specialized in the treatment of victims of brain trauma.

            Haleigh, another one of my daughters, Abby, and I had a chance to go visit the families at the hospital waiting room. The atmosphere there was one of confidence in the work of Jesus. Everyone knew if a Christian young man died, he would be with Jesus forever.

            That mood was different than other waiting rooms I have been in. The confidence was lacking, and for good reason. If one is not in Christ, I cannot offer hope. What a difference it makes if one has faith in Jesus.

            What does Christ-confidence look like?

            It means God can overcome sin in us.

            It means God can use us in a powerful way.

            It means God can use us to do great things.

            But, it will be God who is working through us. Without him, we would be nothing.

            Therefore, let us then be Christ-confident, not self-confident for as Ogilvie states, “The secret of lasting confidence lies in his indwelling resourcefulness.”

Will Your Anchor Hold?

There’s a Stirring # 8   

 

             

            Picture this situation. You got a group of people stranded on a deserted island. A young woman says, “Everyone listen up! I found the plane’s radio equipment. I think we can get off this island.”

            Then a guy calls from down the beach. “Everyone listen up! I found the plane’s beverage cart. It is full of Bud light.”

            The pilot says, “Here we go!” He and all of the passengers, with great joy, go running madly toward the beverage cart.

            They are partying and celebrating with sheer exuberance. They start grabbing the bottles of beer and opening them up.

            One of the passengers fondles a beer bottle and says with deep emotion, “We're going to be okay.” And then he screams, “We're going to be okay!”

            Meanwhile, the woman who had found the radio equipment looks at the rest of passengers with an expression that says, “I cannot believe this. I can get us off this island, except for the fact I'm surrounded by a bunch of morons.”

            This was a commercial presented by BUD LIGHT during the 2010 Super Bowl. (To view the clip, click this link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Dmpi0ydX0U

            Now, before we get too hard on them, remember this: that is the story of humanity.

We see this commercial acted out in the Bible over and over again. Moses comes out to God’s people and announces, “Great news! We have the opportunity to have salvation, fellowship, relationship, and communion with the Holy God!” Meanwhile, somebody else comes out and shouts, “Hey, I’ve got some gold, and I can make a golden calf!” The people shout, “Yahoo!” and head toward Aaron.

            Or Moses proclaims to the people, “Great news, you can walk with the Holy God, and he will feed you manna and quail and take care of you.”

            Someone else calls out, “Hey, they’ve got cucumbers and onions back in Egypt.”

            “Wahoo!” and the crowd heads back to Egypt.

             Throughout scripture there are like-minded people, abandoning the greatness of God for ___________. Read the Bible; fill in the blanks. There are literally dozens of examples.

            Here’s the catch, we all have a blank. What’s in your blank?

            Each one of us has a blank that consists of something that will get us so excited we will chase it, and lose sight of God. In God’s eyes, this is every bit as frivolous as people on a beach pursuing a beverage cart instead of turning toward their only hope of deliverance: a radio.

            What’s in your blank? I have had various ones in my life. Now, it might be that I love to preach at Shiloh. I have no dream job I am holding out for; this is my dream job. I can’t imagine retiring. Retire to what? However, if I live long enough, I will have to retire. Then what? If my blank is preaching at Shiloh, I will be in trouble.

            I cannot define myself by this job. I’ve seen people do that in various fields, haven’t you? It never ends pretty.

            As nice as it is, my job won’t save me. My ministry won’t save me. My ministry pales in comparison to salvation and the chance to relate to the Heavenly Father, and to His Son, by the ministry of the Holy Spirit.

            What’s in your blank? Parents often fill in their children’s blanks with the wrong things. Deut. 6:6-9 addresses the issue of what to place inside the blanks of our children: 6 These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. 7 Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. 8 Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. 9 Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates. NIV 1984

            Parents have the chance to share with their children the saving message of Jesus, equip them to walk with Jesus forever, and, just like the commercial, somebody calls all out to them, “Hey, I just found the plane’s beverage cart…” The parents then go running over to the “beverage cart” with their kids, and they leave behind the plane’s radio, which will help rescue their kids from the shipwreck of a fallen world.

            Let’s think about some of the ways we parents fill in the blanks for our kids today:

Sports

            Guys, if you are on the road, you honor the spirit and call of the book of Hebrews, and you take your family to meet with a local church for worship and encouragement; or you serve as a missionary. You host a worship service in your motel room. You commit to leading your family in this and make it an opportunity for mission work. You invite other players and families to come enjoy a Kingdom blessing.

            Do not lead your kid in some athletic competition that he or she will someday have to give up, all the while neglecting your spiritual leadership responsibility to equip your family.

            Listen, I appreciate the value of sports. I have arisen at five in the morning and played full-court, one-on-one basketball with one of my kids, and I will do it again if another kid wants to. I make myself available to my kids for practice. However, can I give you some free advice? Statistically, your kids are not going to receive an athletic scholarship.            

            If they do, it is not going to be because you went all over the country and obsessed over that sport. Talent trumps everything.

            I had to learn this the hard way. My college football coach said I always had a place on the team because I was the team’s hardest worker. I always had a place—on the bench. That was, of course, if I paid my way through college.

            No one obsessed more and worked harder on sports growing up than I did. And I missed out on a lot because of it. If your kid has the talent, you don’t have to play him in twenty different leagues. The scouts will find talent.

            Why do you think colleges are in trouble all of the time for having athletes on their teams with police records longer than Al Capone’s? These athletes are not working out hard in their respective sports. They are too busy doing the things that land them in jail. Yet, they receive scholarships… because they have talent. Talent triumphs everything.

            If your kid has talent, I guarantee you he’s going to get a scholarship, even if he has a well-balanced life. If he does not, I don’t care if you work him out twelve hours a day; it’s not going to matter. Plus-you will have collateral damage to deal with from dragging him all around the country.

            Do you know how many talented high school athletes I have known who have received full scholarships to major universities who have walked away? They were simply burned out.

            To recap, I’m not telling you to forgo a trip to the Youth Soccer World Cup, I’m just saying balance your child’s life. And don’t lose sight over what is more important.

School/Academics

            Home school, public school, and Christian school-- I’ve tried them all with my kids. All have strengths and weaknesses.

            Here is the test: if your children are not growing spiritually stronger with their local church’s youth group because they have so much going on with their school’s activities, they’re blank is filled with the wrong item.

            We lived in a place one time, where I felt sorry for the youth minister. He could never get any kid to go a youth activity because they had committed everything to the public school.

            Home school can be wonderful as long as you remember it is a para-church organization. Some parents substitute the home school or co-op for the church. Folks, there is no “home school heaven.” There are no homeschoolers in heaven, who bypassed the church. After the cross, the only humans the Bible speaks of as being in heaven are those of the church. Many seem to ignore this.

            The same goes for Christian schools. I teach a senior Bible class at a Christian school called East Texas Christian Academy. I love ETCA, but there is no “ETCA heaven.” I’ve seen parents who have equipped their kids to spend a lifetime in the community of ETCA, but not to spend a lifetime in the community of Christ—His church.

            Godly parents, who love their children, equip them to love the Lord and love His church.

            Let’s transition now to the individual level. How about the blank of:

Personal Happiness

            For some people, the blank is a happy life—as pain free as possible. The talk of Hebrews is disturbing because it signals we might live lives of toil and pain for the Lord.

            And, if your blank is filled with a desire to live a pain free life, ended by dying in your sleep, you want to avoid a call of Jesus that can mess that up.

            I’ve got to admit this is tempting to me too. I want to live a fulfilling, pain-free life, and die in the pulpit. If not that, then die in my sleep.

            Here’s the problem, I’ve known people who went to sleep and then did not wake up. For the Christians, it was great; they went to heaven. But their families were devastated—“If I could have only said, ‘Goodbye….’”

            The alternative is something I have seen more—if you live long enough, and you don’t die in your own bed in your sleep, your body will eventually wear out. A lot of times these people have lived lives I would love to live, but it takes a long time for their bodies to die.

            Your body will not want to let go if you live long enough. You will end up in a hospital bed, and it will take your body a long time to let go of life. Your family will gather around your bedside, and they will hear a machine make this relentless sound: “BEEP. BEEP. BEEP.” They will watch a dot rise and fall, while waiting for it to flat-line. That will be hard on your family. It could be hard on you too.

            So unless the Lord returns and burns up this earth (destroying the blanks of many other people), you and I are going to have a difficult way out.

             (I did read about a guy in Weatherford a couple of years ago, who was still practicing law. He was one hundred years old. I'll cut him some slack!)

            Hebrews talks about a person’s blank, 16 See that no one is sexually immoral, or is godless like Esau, who for a single meal sold his inheritance rights as the oldest son. 17 Afterward, as you know, when he wanted to inherit this blessing, he was rejected. He could bring about no change of mind, though he sought the blessing with tears (Heb. 12:16-17.)

            Isaac had said to Esau in “Bud Light” language, “We are stranded on this planet, but I found a box that I think can get us off.”

            Then Jacob hollered, “Hey, I’ve got some soup!”

            And Esau said, “Here we go!”

            The preacher of Hebrews talks to these Christians about what should be in their blanks. It has to do with a promise of hope. He talks about the hope God offers. Look at Hebrews chapter six, 13 For example, there was God’s promise to Abraham. Since there was no one greater to swear by, God took an oath in his own name, saying:  14 “I will certainly bless you, and I will multiply your descendants beyond number.”           

 15 Then Abraham waited patiently, and he received what God had promised.

            These Christians needed to know that their hard way of life—facing persecution—was all headed toward a good goal. What they were tempted to do was to abandon Jesus for false hopes and mirages. It was like finding salvation in the plane’s radio and abandoning it for the illusion of a good time to be found in the beverage bin.           

            The preacher reminds them of the story of Abraham. God made a promise to Abraham. He fulfilled that promise. It took a long time, but God came through.             These Christians were becoming discouraged because they expected their hopes to be fulfilled instantly. (I'm glad we don't have that problem anymore!)            

            Abraham, according to verse 15, had to patiently endure. Maybe you are feeling that way right now; maybe you are having to endure for the hope. If so, listen to these words, 16 Now when people take an oath, they call on someone greater than themselves to hold them to it. And without any question that oath is binding. 17 God also bound himself with an oath, so that those who received the promise could be perfectly sure that he would never change his mind. NLT

           

            Then the Preacher of Hebrews says that you can count on God delivering, 17 So when God desired to show more convincingly to the heirs of the promise the unchangeable character of his purpose, he guaranteed it with an oath, 18 so that by two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us.

            These Christians felt like refugees, and they needed something to hold on to. So the Bible in verse 19 uses an image that it uses nowhere else–an anchor. That anchor for the Christians is God's promise. It is rock solid.

            He says, “God has promised to get you off of this planet. You place a relationship with the God of this promise, in your blank.” Furthermore, he adds this, 19 We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain, 20 where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, having become a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek. ESV

            He calls this hope an anchor. What is an anchor for? In a boat, it is what holds you steady in a storm.

            Where is your anchor? Can I recommend the one other place we can turn?

            (Warning! Sarcasm Alert!)

            How about your retirement? That is safe, isn’t it?

            How about in your government? They will take care of you, because they care, right?

            Listen, if you think you can trust fallen human beings to take care of your health, you are sadly mistaken. Even with the best intentions, it will not happen.

Beware of Ungodly Expectations.

            You know who are the biggest threats to civilization: those who have nothing to lose--those who have sold out to a cause higher than themselves.

            Since they are focused on a cause greater than themselves, they are not focused on themselves. They have nothing to lose, which means they have low expectations. That means they can withstand anything.

            That is why terrorists who have these qualities are so dangerous. That is why we lost the war in Viet Nam. The Viet Cong was willing to fight until literally the last man, woman, and child was dead.

            We American Christians, on the other hand, chase our frivolous blanks and get diverted. We have anchors that cannot hold. When our expectations are unmet because we are chasing after frivolous blanks, and our paper anchors don’t hold, we lose our Kingdom effectiveness. We can even cease to function in the Kingdom.

           

            Ungodly expectations are nothing more than elevated idols.

            When they are unmet, we have trouble coping.

            What if we had nothing to lose because we sold it out to Jesus?

            What if we could withstand everything because of the hope of what we have to gain?

            There is a song in our church song book based on Heb. 6:19-20. It asks the same question this preacher does:

Will Your Anchor hold in the storms of life,

When the clouds unfold their wings of strife?

When the strong tides lift, and the cables strain,

Will your anchor drift or firm remain?

            Your anchor is your blank.

            What are you putting in your blank?

            Will your anchor hold?