“All ye All Ye All Come Free”
By
Pastor M.L. Maughmer, Jr.
Hebrews 10:19-25 “Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, By a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh; And [having] an high priest over the house of God; Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the profession of [our] faith without wavering; (for he [is] faithful that promised;) And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some [is]; but exhorting [one another]: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching”.
This is a very familiar scripture and so many times we use this scripture especially the 25th verse as the scripture for church attendance. I have done it and it is a very good scripture to use for that purpose; however, when we limited to just church attendance we miss the true beauty of the scripture and what the writer of the Book of Hebrews was truly trying to get the people to whom he was talking to and even for us today understand and do.
There was a game that we use to play as kids, back in the time when kids actually went outside to play. Parents would tell kids go outside and play and we would have a great time. As a matter of fact we would have such a good time playing outside that we hated for the street lights to come on –WHY- because that meant it was time to come inside. The name of the game that we use to play was called Hide-N-Seek; some may remember it as touch the tree or kick the can.
The premise or concept of the game was this person that was it would cover their face against a tree and count to 100, everyone else would run and hide. The person who was it once they counted to 100 would then try to find the ones that were hid. The ones that were hid it was their goal to get to the tree and touch the tree without getting caught or tagged by the person that was it, if they made it to the tree without getting caught then they were safe, but if the person that was it touched them before they touched the tree then they became it and had to count to 100 and find the ones that were hid.
I didn’t care much for this game because I was the chunky kid and couldn’t run very fast so when I was it I was it all day. However, there is a part of the game that ties very well with this message tonight and that was the part of the game that went like this – “All ye All ye All Come Free”. This was said when someone was caught before they touched the tree and others were still out away from the tree, they hadn’t made it to the safe zone yet. WATCH THIS- because of what happened to this person everyone else was granted free access to the tree. They didn’t have to worry about being caught and tagged as it, they could touch the tree by walking right pass the one who was it and didn’t have anything to fear because of what happened to somebody else. So the call went out because of what happened to somebody else.
The call was “All ye All ye All Come Free” by it became slang as “Ollie Ollie Oxen Free”.
Well we find in our text here today that the call of “All ye All ye All come free” has gone out –WHY- because of what Jesus Christ has done.
BACKGROUND:- The Book of Hebrews was written between 30 and 60 years after the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. There has been a lot of debate over who wrote the Book of Hebrews, some say that it’s not Paul and others say it is. The fact of the matter is not so much who wrote it but why it was written – purpose, and what benefits it produced –outcome or destiny.
Hebrews is an Epistle. An Epistle is a formal letter intended to provide instruction. So the Book of Hebrews is instructions to a group of believers that had been persecuted and who have seen some stuff that were becoming discouraged and where ready to go back to what was comfortable because of the persecution they were experiencing. They wanted to go back to their old way of life because they felt that they were in control of their lives. What they came from was comfortable and people like to be comfortable. The song writer said it like this “Nobody told me that the road was going to be easy, but I don’t believe He brought me this far to leave me”. Nobody told them that the road was going to be easy, but they were losing faith and didn’t believe that God was still with them as well as beginning to view Jesus Christ and what He did in low regard. They were beginning to let their traditions and customs, rituals and supercilious superstitions have greater superiority then the works of Christ.
They were putting more emphasis and regard in what Moses did and the Tabernacle then Jesus Christ. Sound familiar people today put more value in and give more respect to what man has done than what Jesus Christ has done.
From Adam to Moses is about 2500 years, from Moses to Malachi is about 1100 years so for 3600 years from creation the Prophets and men of God spoke about God but man’s knowledge of God was in part.
From Malachi to John the Baptist there was 400 years of silence, the Word of God was not spoken, the John comes on the seen as a voice crying in the wilderness and he is preaching repentance, his message was “Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and [with] fire Whose fan [is] in his hand, and he will throughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.” Jesus comes, He’s God manifested in the flesh and in Him He reveals to man just who He is and how to be in relationship with Him.
He said I come not to destroy the law or the prophets, I am not come to destroy but to fulfill – Matt 5:17. Everything in the Tabernacle point to Jesus and the works that He would do. The sacrifices represented Jesus as the ultimate sacrifice, the priest represented what Jesus would do.
Well the Hebrews had endured severe persecution, they had suffered public ridicule and insults, their homes and personal property was confiscated and they were suffering the same reproach and disgrace from their fellow Jews that Christ Himself had suffered and they began to become fearful of their own martyrdom (death), they were becoming weak and dispirited, their faith began to waver and they were at the point that they were about to abandon their Christian faith and throw it all away in favor of reverting back to Judaism, because they felt they would not suffer. They felt that the Tabernacle and what Moses did was a better way instead of trusting in Jesus.
Some had already abandoned the faith, turned their back upon Jesus and become apostate.
Apostate is one who turn from their belief, renounces their belief, a defector of the faith.
So the writer of this letter begins to express the superiority of Jesus Christ and Christianity compared to the Laws of Moses and Judaism.
He starts with Christ is superior to the prophets and angels.
The superiority in His divine person, His saving grace.
He shows Jesus’ purpose in delivering people.
He shows how Christ is superior to Moses.
Warns them of the devastation of unbelief, the results of unbelief, and the remedy for unbelief.
He begins to talk about the Priesthood of Christ. As a matter of fact Hebrews is the only boo that mentions the High Priestly office of Jesus.
He talks about how He is superior in all things.
Sure the Tabernacle and Temple were beautiful, the overlays of Gold, the beautiful embroidery, the colors of blue purple and scarlett.
The sacrifices cover the sins of the people for a while.
The priest were there to take your sacrifice and offer them up to God for the people.
The Ark of the Covenant was hid behind the Veil, but because of what Jesus done on Calvary’s cross you don’t have to go to a priest but you can boldly go to God for yourself.
You don’t have to be afraid. Because of what Jesus did you all have free access to the throne of God for yourself. He’s the High Priest; therefore, Let us draw near to God.
WATCH THIS:- Draw near to God – the word Draw near describes the work of the priest. The priest were servants of God in the Tabernacle and Temple whose job it was to take your sacrifice and present it unto God for you. But because of what Jesus did you don’t need a priest to offer up a sacrifice for you, but you have the right to draw near to God and present your body a living sacrifice. Because of what Jesus did All ye All ye All Come Free. Look at somebody and say DRAW NEAR.
How do we draw near to God. You draw near to God with a true heart – not half stepping but out of Love.
Full of Assurance of Faith – I fully trust God even when I can’t trace Him.
Having our hearts sprinkled from evil conscience – my mind is transformed.
Our bodies washed with pure water – the priest had to wash with pure water before they entered into the Holy Place, we must be baptized in Jesus name before we can draw near to Him.
He says HOLD FAST the profession of your faith without wavering for He is faithful that promised. HOLD ON – God is faithful He will not let you down hold fast. Get a good grip and stand having done all to stand stand without wavering, don’t be wishy washy, don’t be sometimy. Hold on know that God will make a way.
Let us consider one another to provoke unto love and good works. WATCH THIS- when we come to church we must encourage other don’t always think that it is all about you, I gotta get my praise on, because the Word tells us to consider one another, encourage someone that is going through you can make it.
Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together as the manner of some is but exholting one another much more the same as you see the day approaching.
WATCH THIS – Assembling ourselves together is more than just coming to church, but it carries a purpose with it. You must understand that you can’t forsake the assembling yourself with purpose, not just coming to church.
The purpose we gather together is to worship and praise God and the Bible says that He inhabits our praise, if you come to church because you think this scripture is talking about church attendance and you fail to praise God and make a habitation for Him to dwell that you have forsaken the assembling of yourselves together.
This assembling together is like this if you got on an airplane and you looked out the window and saw one of the wings wasn’t there you would become nervous and upset, question the stewardess asking where is the other wing because you know that the other wings serves a purpose. If the stewardess said oh it’s o.k. they it just failed to show up today everything is alright. Look at her and say the devil is a lie, it serves a purpose and when it is not operating in its purpose it has forsaken the assembling of itself.
See this scripture is more than church attendance, but when I fail to fulfill my purpose. I am like the Hebrew were that were ready to go back to their old ways.
But when I think about what Jesus has done, I must not forsake the assembling of myself with those that understand what Jesus has done so that we make work together and fulfill our purpose.
It’s not about you, but because of what Jesus had done. I am going to tell the world All ye All ye All Come Free.
Is it going to be easy – NO - but God is faithful.
