We're Marching to Zion
Hebrews 12:18-29
In 1707, a hymn-writer named Isaac Watts wrote a hymn beginning with the words “Come ye that love the Lord.” It is a joyful hymn of praise which calls us to reflect on all God has provided for us. It also reminds us of the final goal of our Christian walk, that we might achieve the fairer worlds on high. Another writer of many gospel songs in the 1800’s, Robert Lowery, who wrote “Up from the Grave He Arose” added the refrain to this hymn which states: We’re marching to Zion, beautiful, beautiful Zion; We’re marching upward to Zion, the beautiful city of God.” It is always good to keep this final goal of our earthly pilgrimage in mind. In the midst of the dangers and toils of this life, we can appropriate the joy of our final blessed state in the here and now. Even though it says that this was a reflection of Jeremiah 31:6, the hymn also fits well with this morning’s text from Hebrews 12:18-29. Let us turn now to Hebrews 12, starting with verse 18 and read together the text.
When we come to this text in Hebrews, we are coming to the end of sermon. The purpose of the sermon was to encourage the flagging faith of the believers to whom the writer of Hebrews addresses. The church had gone through some difficult times, and even more difficult times faced them in the future. Earlier in the 12th chapter, we read: “You have not yet resisted unto blood, striving against sin (Hebrews 12:4) The verses which immediately follow in Hebrews 13, which is sort of a postscript to the sermon tells the church to entertain strangers, for some (Abraham, for example) had entertained angels. It seems to me that other Christians were being persecuted in other places and were either exiled from their communities or had to flee and had come to other churches seeking refuge. The wanderings of the Children of Israel is used to describe the struggle the Christians faced in and around the latter reign of the Emperor Nero who blamed Christians for the fire in Rome in 64 AD in which Christians were martyred in large numbers. Like the Children of Israel, they were dependent upon God for their sustenance. But this time, God chose other Christians to be His means of providing for these homeless pilgrims.
The difficulties of the trials of Israel in the wilderness showed the weakness of the faith of that generation, Their lack of faith was the cause of their undoing. It is in these times of extreme trial that the tempter comes to try to make believers lose their faith in the Lord. “Return to Egypt where at least you had food to eat” is what would say. And even when presented with a view of the Land of Canaan which the LORD had promised Israel, they thought it impossible to attain to because of the large size of the defenders and their iron chariots. They concluded, that the LORD was out to kill them, which was a fatal mistake to most of that generation who died in neither Egypt nor Canaan land. When we look at the severity of Israel in the wilderness as being the example of the difficulties the Christians were now facing, their trials must have been severe indeed. If they only would turn back from Christ, they could return to the Jewish communities they were excommunicated from, Or if they were Gentiles, they might have returned to the cities from which they were thrust out. Rome would seize the property of dissidents. But there was also the promise of restoration if they would only repent and reaffirm their faith in the Divine Rome and the Emperor which Rome claimed had provided them with the homes and goods they possessed.
The Book of Hebrews alternates between the scriptural exposition and exhortations to remain faithful. They were to follow positive examples of faith such as we read of in Hebrews 11 of those whose faith conquered adversity and to avoid the negative examples of unbelief. One of these exhortations is given just before this passage. The readers would have found the tone to be harsh, but the writer encourages them to accept the discipline of the Lord as proof that they were still His people. It is certainly challenging to be called to pursue holiness “without which no man shall see the LORD.” (Hebrews 11:15) This is followed by the negative example of Esau who sold his birthright for a bite of food.
This morning’s passage begins by reminding the readers of the text in Exodus 19 where Moses had been led by the LORD to Sinai with the people of Israel. The people were told to sanctify themselves at Sinai. The text says “You have not come to a mountain that can be touched” which sets up a comparison between Sinai and Zion. The statement presents a difficulty in interpretation. Is the writer implying that the first mountain was touchable (tangible) and Zion is invisible and untouchable? If one takes just a moment to look at the text, he should find this interpretation doubtful. the irony was is that Sinai could be seen and heard but NOT touched. If as much as an animal were to touch it, it was to be shot through with an arrow. The animal would become too holy to even be touched. Execution had to be by means of being shot. the same is true for any human except Moses (and Joshua) who were summoned to come up the mountain. The light and sound of God’s words themselves were more than the people could take. They asked the LORD to stop speaking to them directly, but implored that He speak through Moses. they would obey the voice of Moses as though God spoke to them directly. we can see in the following incident of the golden calf how well that worked!
The text in Hebrews goes on to say that the believers had come instead to Mt. Zion. The LORD had made Himself specially present for a season at Sinai, but the heavenly Zion serves as His permanent presence. The text says “you have come.” The Greek verb is in the perfect tense. the proper way to understand this Greek word is that they had arrived there at some point in the past and were still there. It would be easier to understand if the tense were a present which would have said “You are coming” as though we would eventually finish our journey there at some time in the future. This would imply that we are not there yet. But the text says that we have already arrived. How should we understand this? when we look around with these earthly eyes, it does not appear that we are in a heavenly place if I can make a severe understatement. It seems we are surrounded by devils more than angels. However, the truth is that the angels are here. the Lord is present. We might not yet touch this mountain in its tangible reality, but we can touch this Mt. Zion by faith. The time will come when the LORD returns that our faith shall be sight and our hopes fully realized. We can rest upon this promise because God has spoken it.
So we realize that this innumerable cloud of witnesses still speak of us and encourage us to press on. these witnesses are called “just men made perfect.” They have won the race and are presently part of the great assembly of the firstborn. these just men were not perfect. they were made perfect through the blood of the Lamb which speaks much louder than the blood of Abel. The work of Christ makes unjust men just. Sanctification through the Holy Spirit makes these just men holy. And in the end, we shall be perfected. Even when we feel that we have so failed the Lord, we take hope because this is the work of God in us and not our own works. This should encourage us to press on. We can see this great assembly in our hearts and yearn for the day in which we fully participate in the reality of this assembly.
Having expounded such a great promise to us, the writer of Hebrews returns to admonish us to continue in the faith. Mt. Zion is greater than Sinai as it is the permanent abode of God. It is a most holy place of which the holy place of the earthly tabernacle is just a type. The people who heard God’s word mediated through Moses and angels were severely punished for disobedience. But we have heard God speak from heaven to us directly though Jesus Christ. He warns us that because more has been given, the rejection of this greater revelation means even greater punishment if it is rejected. He goes on to remind us of what the prophet Haggai had prophesied some 2500 years ago. God promises a time of the most severs shaking. Even heaven will be shaken. This earthquake will remove all that can be shaken. Only that which cannot be shaken will remain, This is a reference to the end of this world and the revealing of the next.
What the writer asks of us is to have an unshakable faith in all circumstances. the church he writes to is about to be severely shaken by persecution. This is not the promised shaking by the LORD at the end of time, even though such persecution of the believers will be underway at the end of time when Jesus returns. We must endure this shaking. If we fail here, how shall we stand at the final shaking by the LORD? Our fear ought to be in the LORD and not man. But if we are in Christ, we should have no need to be in craven fear. We have the fear of respect instead to one who is Father, in whom we are in relationship to through the LORD Jesus Christ. The enemies might consign our bodies to be burned by flames. We might have to resist unto blood in our striving against sin. But let us remain faithful so we are not consumed by the fire of the LORD. Instead, let us be on fire for the Lord.
