When it comes to worshipping together, there are various practices among churches and even among the individual worshippers. Tim Hawkins helps us understand one of those practices hand raising in church. Take a look… (Show Video: Tim Hawkins on Hand Raising)
Anybody here go to a hand-raising church?
Who does not go to a hand-raising church? Some of you are trying, like “I can’t. I want to. I need to get some momentum…”
If you’re not used to going to a hand-raising church and you want to join us, feel free, but don’t feel like you have to join right in. Start slow. We got a lot of different hand raises that we use. We actually have names for our hand raises. I’m going to walk you through real quick. Tell you what they are. If you were at my church, music is rocking, start slow.
Hands in the pockets and flap your elbows…
Carry the TV… Go to big screen, little wider
My fish was this big… If you’re a liar, you can go out there. That’s okay. Jesus loves you.
The next one is “hold my baby.”
You got dueling lightbulbs.
You got goal posts. Every knows goal posts.
Throw in a heartburn. A lot of people like to do heartburn. Double heartburn. Go right back to goal posts.
What’s my favorite? Mufasa, Mufasa, that’s my favorite… Sing: “The Circle of Life.”
Tim, can you go higher? Yes, you can. With one hand you can do a bunch of different stuff. Pointer. Hatchet. Schoolroom.
Release the doves. Give the Lord a high five. Press it out. A lot of women like to wash the window, wash the window.
And when you’re comfortable there, go for the big three: Village People, Rocky, Touchdown. There you go. There’s your big three. You’re set. You’re a pro. (www.youtube.com/ watch?v=TK2_ezOBa2A)
Obviously, that’s all “tongue-in-cheek,” but it does show the absolute ridiculousness of focusing on the outward trappings of worship – whether it’s hand-raising, décor of sanctuary, or even style of music.
Sometimes, people forget what’s really important in worship, but that’s nothing new. People have been doing that for centuries. In the First Century, Jewish worshippers were impressed with the best seats in their synagogues, with their grand, ornate temple, and with their elaborate rituals.
But then Jesus came along to show us what’s really important and to show us a better way. If you have your Bibles, I invite you to turn with me to Hebrews 8, Hebrews 8, where we see how Jesus outshines any religious system, priest, or minister in the world.
Hebrews 8:1 Now the point in what we are saying is this: we have such a high priest, one who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in heaven… (ESV)
When it comes to real worship, don’t go after the best seats in the sanctuary. Instead…
SUBMIT TO CHIRST WHO SITS IN A BETTER SEAT.
Surrender to Jesus who sits in the place of all authority “at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in Heaven.” Bow before Jesus Christ, who has taken His place as the Sovereign Lord of all.
You see, the religious leaders in Jesus day liked to sit in the bests seats in the synagogue. These were seats down front that faced the congregation, and they were reserved especially for those who held the highest honor in the congregation (J. Macartney Wilson, International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, 1915).
Synagogues today still have those seats, but Jesus sits in an even better seat, a seat of higher honor. He sits at the right hand of God the Father, the highest seat there is! It is the place of all authority, which means that Jesus is the Sovereign Lord of the Universe!
There can only be one response, and that’s to submit to Him as your Lord. Humble yourself before Christ as this Muslim convert to Christ did.
He prayed, “O God, I am Mustafah the tailor, and I work at the shop of Muhammad. The whole day long I sit and pull the needle and the thread through the cloth. O God, you are the needle and I am the thread. I am attached to you and I follow you. When the thread tries to slip away from the needle, it becomes tangled and must be cut so it can be put back in the right place. O God, help me to follow you wherever you lead me. For I am really only Mustafah the tailor, and I work in the shop of Muhammad on the great square.” (Pamela Joy Anderson, You Are the Needle and I Am the Thread, WestBow Press, 2014, page xi; www.Preaching Today.com)
That’s real worship! Not what seat YOU sit in, but yielding to the One who sits in the Highest Seat. If you want to truly worship God this morning, then 1st, submit to Christ who sits in a better seat. 2nd…
REVERE CHRIST WHO SERVES IN A BETTER SANCTUARY.
Respect Jesus who ministers in heaven itself. Admire Jesus Christ who operates in the very presence of God Himself.
Hebrews 8:2 Jesus is… a minister in the holy places, in the true tent that the Lord set up, not man. (ESV)
Skip down to verse 4…
Hebrews 8:4-5 Now if he were on earth, he would not be a priest at all, since there are priests who offer gifts according to the law. They serve a copy and shadow of the heavenly things. For when Moses was about to erect the tent, he was instructed by God, saying, “See that you make everything according to the pattern that was shown you on the mountain.” (ESV)
The pattern shown Moses on Mount Sinai was only a copy of heaven’s sanctuary. God gave Moses a glimpse of heaven and told Moses to replicate what He saw when he built the tabernacle. So the tabernacle where the Old Testament priests served was only “a copy and shadow” of heaven. Jesus, however, unlike those earthly priests, serves in heaven itself!
To be sure, that old tabernacle was an impressive place to worship. So was the temple that replaced the tabernacle. I imagine the Jews were very proud of their temple in the First Century. In the time of Christ, they were in the middle of a huge remodeling project, which took nearly a hundred years to complete.
Even today, huge, beautiful sanctuaries are still very impressive, but none can even come close to comparing with heaven itself, and that’s where Jesus ministers! So when you come to worship, don’t focus on the building; focus on Jesus Christ!
If you want to truly worship God this morning, 1st, submit to Christ who sits in a better seat; 2nd, revere Christ who serves in a better sanctuary; and 3rd…
RELY ON CHRIST WHO OFFERS A BETTER SACRIFICE.
Trust Jesus who sacrificed Himself on the cross for your sins. Depend on Jesus Christ whose shed blood cleanses you from all sin.
Hebrews 8:3 For every high priest is appointed to offer gifts and sacrifices; thus it is necessary for this priest also to have something to offer. (ESV)
This priest is Jesus, who offered Himself once and for all. All the other priests offered many animal sacrifices, which could only temporarily cover sin. Jesus’ sacrifice of Himself “cleanses us from all sin” forever!
I remember as a kid when mom told me to clean up my room. I’d throw a lot of the junk under the bed and then make the bed with the covers hanging down over the side. I was covering the mess, hoping to appease my mother. Somehow, though, she always knew where to look, and I ended up having to clean it all up anyway. My blankets covered the mess, but they could not clean it up.
In the same way, the old animal sacrifices could only cover the mess in people’s lives. They could only conceal the sin for a short while, hoping to appease a holy God. On the other hand, “The blood of Jesus Christ [God’s] Son cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1:7). Jesus’ one act of sacrifice sets us free from sin forever!
In 2005, Shin Dong-hyuk, became the only person to ever escape from a “total-control zone” internment camp in North Korea and live to tell his story. Because Shin was born in the prison, he knew no other life. In his mind, the entire world was Camp 14, and there were only two types of people in the world: prisoners and guards. You were born as one or the other, and you lived your entire life that way. He later said that he never considered escape because he always assumed that “the society outside the camp would be similar to that inside the camp.”
Every day, Shin was told what to do and he did it. For twenty-three years, he was always hungry and tired from daily hard labor.
But Shin said everything changed in one day. A new prisoner named Park was brought to Camp 14, and with him came tales of a different world on the other side of the electric fence. He talked about living in cities and traveling to China. But one particular thing Park talked about defined freedom in Shin Dong-hyuk's mind more than anything else: broiled chicken. Park told him that outside the electrified fence of his world was another world where you could eat broiled chicken—and you could eat it anytime you wanted.
Shin had never eaten chicken. But he knew what chicken tasted like: freedom. This quest for broiled chicken led Shin and Park to attempt to escape over the electrified fence. Park touched the fence first and immediately died. An untold number of volts coursed through his body and stopped his heart. His body became a bridge over which Shin was able to climb to freedom. That day he became the only person to ever escape from [a “total-control zone” internment camp in North Korea] and live to tell the tale.
Shin Dong-hyuk is no longer a prisoner. He now lives in South Korea and eats broiled chicken whenever he wants. This chicken, along with his freedom, was purchased by a friend who gave his life for him. (Noel Jesse Heikinnen, Unchained, David C. Cook, 2017; original source: C.J. Green, "The Taste of Freedom," Mockingbird blog, 6-1-17; www.PreachingToday.com)
In the same way, Jesus’ sacrifice of Himself on the cross purchased your freedom from sin. His dead body on the cross became a bridge for you into a new life you never dreamed possible, here you can enjoy God’s blessings whenever you want. All you have to do is cross that bridge by faith. Trust Jesus with your life and let Him give you a whole new life!
If you want to truly worship God this morning, 1st, submit to Christ who sits in a better seat; 2nd, revere Christ who serves in a better sanctuary; 3rd, rely on Christ who offers a better sacrifice; and 4th…
REMAIN WITH CHRIST WHO PROVIDES BETTER SERVICE.
Stay with Jesus who administers a better covenant. Follow Jesus Christ who supplies a better way of relating to God.
Hebrews 8:6-9 But as it is, Christ has obtained a ministry that is as much more excellent than the old as the covenant he mediates is better, since it is enacted on better promises. For if that first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no occasion to look for a second. For he finds fault with them when he says: “Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will establish a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt. For they did not continue in my covenant, and so I showed no concern for them, declares the Lord. (ESV)
The old way of relating to God was conditional: The law said, “Obey and God will bless you.” However, no one could “continue in that covenant”. That is to say, no one could keep on obeying all the rules all the time, so God broke off the relationship. There was nothing wrong with the rules. It’s just that nobody could follow the rules. So God provided for a new way to relate to Him. It’s called the “new covenant”, and Jesus administers that covenant, which is much better than the old.
Why? Because #1 the New Covenant provides unconditional blessings. I.e., God promises to bless His people without any stipulations. Look at it!
Hebrews 8:10-12 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my laws into their minds, and write them on their hearts, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. And they shall not teach, each one his neighbor and each one his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest. For I will be merciful toward their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more.” (ESV)
Five times in these verses, God simply declares what HE will do: “I WILL put my laws into their minds…” “I WILL write them on their hearts…” “I WILL be their God…” “I WILL be merciful…” And “I WILL remember their sins no more.” God promises to do these things without any preconditions, so the New Covenant is NOT based on MY faithfulness to God; it’s based on GOD’s faithfulness to ME! I can’t always count on MY faithfulness to God, but I can sure count on HIS faithfulness to me! That’s why it’s a much better covenant.
Albert Tomei, who died just this last fall (September 22, 2017), was a justice of the New York State Supreme Court. In 1997, a young defendant was convicted in Judge Tomei's court of gunning down another person execution style. The murderer had a bad record, was no stranger to the system, and only stared in anger as the jury returned its guilty verdict.
The victim's family had attended every day of the two-week trial. On the day of sentencing, the victim's mother and grandmother addressed the court. When they spoke, neither addressed the jury. Both spoke directly to the murderer.
“You broke the Golden Rule—loving God with all your heart, soul, and mind. You broke the law—loving your neighbor as yourself. I am your neighbor,” the older of the two women told him, “so you have my address. If you want to write, I'll write you back. I sat in this trial for two weeks, and for the last sixteen months I tried to hate you. But you know what? I could not hate you. I feel sorry for you because you made a wrong choice."
Judge Tomei writes: “For the first time since the trial began, the defendant's eyes lost their laser force and appeared to surrender to a life force that only a mother can generate: nurturing, unconditional love. After the grandmother finished, I looked at the defendant,” Judge Tomei said. “His head was hanging low. There was no more swagger, no more stare. The destructive and evil forces within him collapsed helplessly before this remarkable display of humaneness." (“Touching the Heart of a Killer,” New York Times, 3-7-97; www.PreachingToday.com)
Unconditional love did for this hardened criminal what the law could never do. It softened his heart. And God’s unconditional love can do the same for you if you just accept it.
That’s what Jesus offers to you this morning. So stop trying to earn God’s love, and accept the unconditional love Jesus offers to you right now. He provides a better service than any old religious system. That’s because He administers a New Covenant, which provides unconditional blessings.
More than that, the New Covenant provides internal righteousness. It puts God’s law in your heart and mind. It makes God’s character instinctive within you.
In verse 10, God says, “I will put my laws into their minds and write them on their hearts.”
In the Old Covenant, God wrote His law on tablets of stone. In the New Covenant, God writes His law on people’s souls, so that it becomes a part of who they are, not just something they must do.
Author and teacher Rebecca Pippert talks about the time she audited a graduate-level course at Harvard University, called “Systems of Counseling.” At one point, the professor presented a case study in which therapeutic methods were used to help a man uncover a deep hostility and anger toward his mother. This helped the client understand himself in new ways.
Pippert then asked the professor how he would have responded if the man had asked for help to forgive her. The professor responded that forgiveness was a concept that assumed moral responsibility and many other things that scientific psychology could not speak to. “Don't force your values… about forgiveness onto the patient,” he argued.
When some of the students responded with dismay, the professor tried to relieve the tension with some humor. “If you guys are looking for a changed heart, I think you are looking in the wrong department.” However, as Pippert observes, “the truth is, we are looking for a changed heart.” (Tim Keller, Making Sense of God, Viking, 2016, page 15; www.PreachingToday.com)
That’s something that secular psychology, nor any religious system, can provide. Only Jesus can do that. Only Jesus can give you the love you need to love your enemies. Only Jesus can help you truly forgive from the heart, so look to Him!
He provides a better service in that He administers a New Covenant. It’s a covenant which provides unconditional blessings and internal righteousness.
More than that, the New Covenant provides an intimate relationship with God. It gives you the opportunity not just to know ABOUT God, but to KNOW God personally.
Hebrews 8:11 And they shall not teach, each one his neighbor and each one his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest. (ESV)
The New Covenant opens the way for everyone to a personal, intimate relationship with the God of the universe! Whether you’re the chief of state or a child, you can be a friend of God.
The banquet hall was filled. To speak for the occasion, the organizers brought in a world-famous orator; and after a wonderful meal, he mesmerized the crowd with his voice as he recited poetry and famous selections of speeches.
Near the end of the program, he asked if anyone had a favorite selection that they would like for him to recite. From the back of the room, an old preacher stood up and kindly asked if he would mind reciting the 23rd Psalm. The speaker said that he would be glad to do it if, when he was finished, the old preacher would recite it, as well. The old preacher nodded his head and sat back down.
In a beautifully trained voice that resonated throughout the great room, the speaker began, “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures…” When he was finished, there was thunderous applause and a standing ovation.
He then looked at the old preacher and said, “Alright sir, it is your turn now.”
In a trembling voice that was cracked by time, the old man began to recite, “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want…” When he was finished, there was no applause, but neither was there a dry eye in the building.
After the event, someone asked the famous orator, “What made the difference?” The orator replied, “I know the psalm; he knows the shepherd.” (www.heavenlyheartburn.wordpress.com/ 2006/09/26/do-you-know-the-shepherd)
Do you know the Shepherd? Do you know the Lover of your soul personally? You can, but only through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Don’t look to some religious system with its rules and regulations. At best, that can only teach you ABOUT God. Instead, look to Jesus, through whom you can KNOW God personally.
He provides a better service than any other religious leader, in that He administers a New Covenant. It’s a covenant which provides unconditional blessings. It provides an internal righteousness. It provides an intimate relationship with God.
And finally, the New Covenant provides the forgiveness of sin. It gives you the opportunity to escape punishment for your sin. It makes it possible for you to avoid paying for your own sins.
Hebrews 8:12 For I will be merciful toward their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more.” (ESV)
When God chooses to forget your sin that means he also chooses to forgive. I like the way Corrie Ten Boom once put it. “He casts our sins into the deepest sea, and He posts a sign: No Fishing!” (Tramp for the Lord) Romans 8:1 says, “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”
It’s like receiving a “Get Out of Jail Free” card, only better, because a “Get Out of Jail Free” card only works when you’re playing Monopoly. It doesn’t work in real life. At least, that's what a man in Minnesota found out last spring (June 2017).
An officer pulled him over and saw that the man wasn't wearing a seatbelt. The officer also noted that the car he was driving “was registered to someone who was wanted on a warrant.” It turned out that the driver himself was also wanted—and as he was being searched, he “pulled out the infamous Monopoly card.”
The card may have “provided a few laughs for law enforcement, [but] the man still landed in jail.” The county sheriff's office posted on social media about the incident, saying, “We appreciate the humor! … 'A' for effort!” (Brian Lisi, "Minnesota Man Tried Handing Deputy Monopoly 'Get Out Of Jail Free' Card, Did Not Get To Pass Go," New York Daily News, 6-28-17; www.PreachingToday.com)
That Monopoly “Get Out of Jail Free” card is like all religious systems. It only works when you’re playing the game of religion, but it won’t work when you stand before a holy God! For that, you need Jesus Christ. He already paid the penalty for your sins on the cross, so God doesn’t have to punish you for your sins. All you have to do is accept that payment on your behalf.
Jesus indeed provides better service than any old religion. That’s because He administers a New Covenant. It’s a covenant which provides unconditional blessings. It provides internal righteousness. It provides an intimate relationship with God, and it provides the forgiveness of sins.
Hebrews 8:13 In speaking of a new covenant, he makes the first one obsolete. And what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away. (ESV)
The Old Covenant is obsolete. It’s rotting away. Trying to live by the law is just doesn’t work. So, please, stop playing religion, and let Christ do something new in your heart today.
If you want to truly worship God this morning, 1st, submit to Christ who sits in a better seat; 2nd, revere Christ who serves in a better sanctuary; 3rd, rely on Christ who offers a better sacrifice; and 4th, remain with Christ who provides better service.
A rural area near Eskridge, Kansas, just 15 miles southwest of Topeka, once housed a nuclear warhead. Now, 65 years later, the former missile base has been adapted into a 5-star resort and is available for rent for only $140 a night. Named the Subterra Castle, the property has been classified as an “underground mansion,” with multiple apartments including full kitchens, bathrooms, and fireplaces. The base has been featured on National Geographic, Oprah and other television programs, and it includes 18,000 square feet of underground space, a pond, a grass airstrip and castle towers. Mathew Fulkerson, who manages the site, says, “The underground missile site has a fascinating Cold War history for you to discover. Guests will also be inspired by the story of its transformation from a bunker into a home.” (Phil Anderson “Former underground nuclear missile silo in Wabaunsee County now an Airbnb site”, The Topeka Capital-Journal, 11-12-17; www.PreachingToday.com)
That’s a picture of what Christ wants to do for you if you let Him. Please, trust Him with your life and let Him begin the transformation process today!
