Okay, we would like to turn today to the 12th chapter of the book of Hebrews, so please open your Bibles to Hebrews chapter 12, and we are going to try to finish this 12th chapter today. We are just nearing to the end of this book, and I think it is a wonderful book that we have learned from so much so far, and we are just nearing now the end of the book. We are at the second half of Hebrews 12. There is yet one more chapter after this, so we can have a whole book, a whole letter that is being given to us to learn. And this is very important because the book of Hebrews was written to Jewish believers in the Messiah.

And we studying the Bible from a messianic perspective and we would like to see and teach how would those early believers would have felt and experienced when they have been under persecution, a troublous time and perhaps discouragement and misunderstanding and how would the writer, how would the Lord appeal to them and seek to reach them and help them as they have been walking with the Lord Jesus the Messiah the dangers that they have had that they have been facing and the lack of faith that they have had just like you and i have often time in our lives as believers and so beloved brothers and sisters today we are going to talk about the second half of Hebrews 12 beginning from verse 14 and here i began with the reading today the writer is saying to those Hebrew believers verse 14 follow peace follow shalom with all men and holiness or kdusha we say it in Hebrew without which no man shall see the Lord looking diligently lest any man fail.

Of the grace of God lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you and thereby many be defiled. Lest there be any fornicators or profane person as Esau who for one morsel of meat saw his birthright. For ye know how that afterwards when he would have inherited the blessing he was rejected for he found no place of repentance though he sought it carefully with tears for ye are not coming to the mount that might be touched and that burned with fire nor unto the blackness and darkness and tempest and the sound of a trumpet and the voice of words which voice they that heard entreated that the word should not be spoken to them anymore for they could not endure that which was commended and if so much as a beast touched a mountain it shall be stoned or thrust through with a dart and so terrible was the sight that Moses said, I exceedingly feel and quake.

But ye are coming to Mount Zion, or Harzion, and unto the city of the living God, to the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly, And the church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, to God the judge of all, and to the spirit of just men made perfect, and to Yeshua the mediator of the new covenant, the Brit Hadashah, and to the blood of sprinkling that speaks better things than that of Abel. Verse 25. See that ye refuse not him that speaketh, for if they escape not who refused him that spake on earth, much more shall not we escape if we turn away from him that speaketh from heaven, whose voice then shook the earth, But now he has promised, saying, yet once more shake I the earth only, not the earth only, but also the heavens.

And this word, yet once more, signifieth the removing of those things that are shaken, as of things that are made, that those things which cannot be shaken may remain. Wherefore, we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace whereby we may serve God acceptedly with reverence and godly fear. Why? In verse 29, for our God is a consuming fire. And that's how he concludes this part of the 12 chapters of the book of Hebrews. Now, let me here say something before I'm going to elaborate a little bit about those verses, verses 14 to the end. You remember that after the apostle mentioned to those early Hebrew believers, encouraged them by showing them this cloud of witnesses.

Who were the cloud of witnesses? That's the totality of chapter 11. The whole men and women of faith, all of them were actually only Old Testament saints. Most of them were Hebrews. And he was showing to them these clouds of witnesses, those believers who walked with God in spite of persecution and in spite of opposition. After he rehearsed before them the history of those men and women of God, Then he gave them three divine resources to continue on. Three resources to continue pressing on in living for the Lord in spite of tribulation, persecution, and rejection. And just like them of all, those early Hebrew believers, you and I need those three resources.

If we are going to continue to follow Yeshua the Messiah, if we are going to continue the life which we have begun, we also need those resources as believers. Why? Because we also get discouraged. We also get dismayed. We also get disappointed. And so you and I, like the Hebrews of old, need those three resources that are found in chapter 12. We have already covered two of them. Resource number one is looking unto Jesus, unto Yeshua the Messiah. That was the first few verses, verses 1 to 4 of Hebrews chapter 12. Looking unto Yeshua, as he has said to them in verse 2, the author and the finisher of our faith who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross despised the shame and he sat down on the right hand of the throne of God that's the first resource they needed those Hebrews those Jewish believers to look to the person of Yeshua you know when we look at him when we see how he lived here when we open the Scripture and we see the kind of a life that he lived it is encouraging us as believers it encouraged them those Hebrew believers to continue on because the loveliness of the person of Yeshua the beauty that is found in him and the willingness to take side with God against everything that was here before him in this world he is the first resource that those Hebrews and you and i need to always bear in mind when you get disappointed with yourself when you get disappointed with your brothers and sisters when you get.

Discouraged from the path the best place to look is away from self away from others to the person of the Lord Yeshua the Messiah but he doesn't stop there because the second resource he gave them from verse 5 to verse 13 is the second resource that we must bear in mind and that resource is the love of God for you and i bear in mind that in spite of who you are in spite of who we are there is unchanging love of the father that is presented before us every day of our life look what he is saying to them in verses 5 to verse 13 which we have covered whom the Lord loveth verse 6 he chastens and he scourges every son whom he received don't forget when you go through trials and problems in your life that the one that love us the one who love us so much God the father he cares for us and he deals with us as children he doesn't deal with us anymore as.

Creatures only but he deals with us as children of God whom the Lord loveth he scourges and he chasteneth and he scourges every son every daughter whom he received you and i became children of God John 1 12 as many as received him to them he gave the rights to be called the sons the daughters of God and so now God deals with us as children as sons and daughters and we should bear this in mind that's what he told those Hebrews he says look back at your history read the book of Proverbs the book of mishle as we call it in Hebrew and in the book of mishle the book of Proverbs Solomon already Shlomo king Solomon have taught that God is chastening his own children And He needs to chasten us.

You and I, if we wouldn't be chastened by God, we would not be called and reckoned the sons of God. You and I become sons and daughters of God. And sometimes we need to be disciplined. We need to be spanked, if you will. And God uses His rod in order that you and I will be drawn closer to Him. And oh, beloved, how we need that, and we know this very well. Because we are prone to wonder we are prone to leave the one who loves us so much and therefore God sometimes chasing us and discipline us as a father discipline his own children so this is so precious why he disciplined us because he wants fruit to come out of our lives and so you know he could take us to heaven immediately but he left us here in this world so we will live for him and be a testimony for him and once the time is ready then he is taking this son or this daughter outside of this scene and that's why he's saying to them in verse 13 make straight the path of your feet lest that which is lame be turned out of the way but let it rather be healed another way he said walk in faith continue to appreciate the love of the father for yourself when you sometimes feel like nobody love you just go to your closet and read the portion from the Scripture and you will.

See that someone loved you so much that he was willing to give his well-beloved son so you and I will become children of God. So that is the second resource that we have to continue on to walk the life which we are called to live. Now in the third resource is found right now here in these verses verses 14 to 29 and within this third resource there is also a warning the fifth warning that is found in the book of Hebrews and this is verses 25 to 29 it's the fifth warning that was given to those early first century Hebrew believers and so let's look at this third resource what is that third resource and the third resource is simply this not only that you are to look at the Lord Yeshua as the example verses 1 to 4 not only that you are recognized and be assured of the love of God the father this is verses 5 to 13 but here in these verses be assured that there is grace available for you to continue on there is grace available.

For the believer to continue on to walk with the Lord in spite of rejection persecution and misunderstanding and so look what he's saying now first of all what is the goal that we are to have in mind here in this world it's found in verse 14 it says listen follow peace with all men and holiness without which no man shall see the Lord now that is the goal in verse 14 we have the goal that God have left us here in this world to live for and to be here he wants us number one to follow shalom that is peace with every man follow peace with all men but notice he add and holiness peace shalom holiness it's dakar or kdusha as we say in Hebrew we are to seek to follow peace and to seek to live a life that is pleasing to the Lord you know there is those two areas which is rather in this world in which we live in is exactly the opposite.

There is very little holiness in this world or righteousness in this world and you know very well there is next to none peace it is found here in this world shalom in this world it is everywhere you look and you turn your television on and you open the news on the radio and you open the newspaper go on the internet every time you're opening those avenues whereby we get information you can see that we live in a world that is unrighteous and we live in a world that have no shalom no peace in it people talk about peace people talk about justice but things such as this is next to none existing here in this world it is only the believers that are empowered by the grace of God in the power of the holy Spirit of God that somehow can bring a measure of this here into this world and so the goal that those Hebrews and you and i as well are exhorted to have.

Is to follow shalom to follow peace and holiness life that is pleasing to the Lord this is the aim this is the goal and you see what he's saying in the same verse without shalom and without holiness no man shall see the Lord you know what does he mean here when he's writing this to those Hebrews does he mean that if a person is not perfectly holy in his life and perfectly peaceful in his life he's never going to be now saved and going to be with the Lord Jesus in heaven no that is not what he means here you see he knows that you and i are unholy by nature and we know you and i are at war by nature this is our nature our nature is sinful corrupted our nature is the kind of a nature that is unholy that's why we need a Savior but he's talking about the desire of the life of the believer by the grace of God is to seek to live a life that is pleasing to the Lord so we.

Should seek to follow after this we should seek to live this time of life and what does he say here without which no man will see the Lord let me say this when we live a life that is not pleasing to the Lord and it is an unholy life we are unable to live to enjoy the things of the Lord in a way that the Lord wants us to enjoy because we live a life that is unholy we cannot enjoy the things of God the Lord cannot be satisfied even with his own children when we sin come into our life sin separate us from God and we don't judge sin and we can't enjoy the relationship that we have with the Lord and that's why he says listen which without which no men will see the Lord if we live a life that is unpleasing to the Lord we can't expect from him to present himself to us to reveal himself to the believer to his own children even because a life that is not pleasing.

To the father will cause a separation will cause a lack of enjoyment of the things of the Lord we can see it in Scripture and many times for example the prodigal son he was a son of the father he was always a son of the father but what happened when he went astray and he went away from the father he didn't enjoy the relationship that that belongs to him as a son because he have gone away from the father once he have returned to the father and the father have killed the fattest calf he gave him shoes on his feet he gave him ring on his hand he gave him a garment put upon him and the relationship had been restored and he could have fellowship again with his father and so that's what the writer is saying he's saying follow peace with all men and follow holiness without which no man shall see the Lord he's not talking about now the unbeliever of course the unbeliever.

Will never see the Lord if he's rejecting the Messiah but the believer this is you and i this is the Hebrews of first century he's saying to them you follow shalom you follow peace and you follow holiness without which you are not going to see and experience and enjoy the relationship that you have with God but there is not the enjoyment because of the lack of seeking to live a life of shalom and a life of holiness and now in verses 15 16 and 17 he's telling them look at the example that we have in your history look at the example in the life of Esau look what happened with Esau and you notice what he's saying here about Esau in verse 15 16 and 17 he says this looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you and thereby many will be defiled lest it says now in verse 16 let there be any fornicator and profane person as isa who for one morsel of food of meat he sold his birthright.

For you know how that afterwards when he would have inherited a blessing he was rejected for he found no place of repentance though he sought it carefully with tears you see he's taking us back to the past those Hebrews knew their Scriptures very well they knew their history and he taking them back to the passage we have read in Genesis 25 and Genesis 27 he said to them you better look diligently very carefully in verse 15 he says watch carefully to get God's grace be careful Hebrews that you will not fail of the grace which God is providing for you you know brothers and sisters there is a needed grace for the believers if they are to walk with the Lord we cannot do it on our own they could not do it on their own they needed the grace of God but we have to be careful to be watchful like they have been exhorted to look diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God what does that mean fail of.

The grace of God you know that the grace of God never fails but we are guilty in failing to appropriate the grace of God the grace of God is always there for us but you see sometimes there things that creep into the life of the believer that causes him not to go forward and asking God for grace and asking God to help him or her in the walk with the Lord and that's what he's saying to them you watch it be diligent in getting grace lest and now he's telling them lest any root of bitterness will spring up and trouble you you see perhaps those Hebrew believers could easily get bitter at their brethren at their things of God because they were persecuted and they were rejected by their own people by their own Jewish brothers and so on and perhaps they could become very bitter you know like sometimes you and i can become bitter against each other and against the people around us we can be very bitter and angry and you know what bitterness does when we become.

Very bitter the word bitter is very clear is mar mar it's come from the word mara that we have it in the Scripture we can become so bitter that we are no longer enjoying what God has in mind for us and we cannot enjoy each other than enjoy believers we are not a happy believers happy Christians a happy Messiah followers and that's what he's saying you need to watch diligently lest any man any one of us any one of those early Hebrew believers any men fail of the grace of God you see the grace of God is that which enable us to continue on by the way the grace of God saved us the grace of God keep us the grace of God lead us it is the very same grace that we need that we have received to be saved is the same grace that we need to receive believe as we walk with the Lord day by day, beloved brothers and sisters.

Things are difficult at times. People are not easy. We are not easy. Our behavior is not always the right behavior. What we say and what we think and what we do, it's not always the right thing. And then we need so much grace from the Lord. And so if we don't take this grace, we can become very bitter. And you know what happens when we become bitter? Look what he's saying. Lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and notice what it does, and thereby many will be defiled. You see what happens? When you become bitter, when I become bitter, do you think bitterness remains right inside myself?

Well, if somebody wants to get bitter and stay alone with it, that's fine but you know what happened with our bitterness we immediately use our bitterness to spread it around like cancel we start to talk about other people we run other people down we cut them down you see we try to elevate ourselves but everybody else has to be dropped down and that's what root of bitterness does to any one of us if we are not careful to draw on the grace of God and that's what those Hebrews were in danger he's saying to them look diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God lest any root of bitterness spring up you see bitterness spring like a flower that grows like a thorn that grows and then other people are get affected by that that's how there is a splits in congregations that's how there is a destruction in families.

That's how there is a broken down relationship between husbands and wives, parents and children, friends for years. When bitterness creeps into the life of the believer, he spread it or she spread it around and it's become like a thorn. And others and then things are getting out of hand. And you know why? It is because we fail to glean from the grace of God. Why do we need the grace of God? We needed the grace of God, first of all, because we are failing people. We needed the grace of God because we have sinned before God. The law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus the Messiah.

And we needed the grace to be saved. We need the same grace to continue on in our life as believers. And you see what he does here. He brings before them that man by the name of Esav. We call him Esau. See what Esau did? Esau had it all made. He was the firstborn child. His father loved him and wanted to give him the blessings of the firstborn, the rights that the firstborn received. But Esau blew it. Esau thought. He despised what was belonging to him, Even though God had intended to give it to Jacob, Esau did not appreciate what he has. And so in verses 16 and 17, he said to those Hebrews, do not be like Esau.

Let there be any fornicator or profane person. By the way, profane person is an ungodly individual. You see, Esau has no room for God. He wanted everything else, but he just didn't want God in his life. He wanted to receive the blessings to receive the birthright but he didn't want the God who give those things and isn't it true sometimes we are in danger of we want the blessings of God you see we want to be saved we are saved we want to go to heaven we are going to heaven we want the blessings of God and the mercies of God that he gives us here on earth but we don't want God in our lives because he is troubling me because the ways i want to go it's not the way that is pleasing to him and i don't want him there that's the human heart even in the believers beloved brothers and sisters so he says you watch it he says let's be any fornicator or profane person as isa who for one morsel of meat he sold his birthright he sold it for one morsel of meat he sold it and we read it by the way in in Genesis chapter 25 verses 27 and all he sold it and you know the verses there in.

Genesis chapter 27 say it very clearly what isa thought about the birthright it says in the end the last words of Genesis 25 thus isa despised his birthright you see he did not recognize the things that associate with his birthright and he despised it he says what's the use i don't need it it is not important for me i don't care about the birthright and so on and then the writer of the book of Hebrews reminding those Hebrews in verse 17 for you know he's saying to them and they knew that because Esau and Jacob is in the history of our nation of the nation of Israel it's Jacob the father of the nation of Israel he says he reminds us of you know how that after when he would have inherited the blessings he was rejected for he found no place of repentance though he sought it carefully with tears you see he's warning those Hebrews believers you learn from what happened to isa the brother of your forefather Jacob how he despised his.

Birthright and later on you know how it is we are sometime what is called coming later when we remember when things were fine and we had been walking with the Lord and then we started to turn away from the things of the Lord and how we started to neglect God and just you know despising the many blessings that God had given to us and later on when we wanted back isa had to be told by his father that the blessings have been already given over to Jacob he shall be blessed and he sought it with tears and if you remember if you read in the book of Genesis father he says bless me also bless me also father he begged his father to bless him but the blessings that will belong to him to the firstborn have been given to the one that God have intended to give and that is Jacob Yaakov and God had given the blessings to him and he actually made Jacob he made Jacob who was not.

Born first but he gave him the blessing of the firstborn yes Jacob was not right in what he did and how he got those blessings but we know it when we studied this already earlier that God have intended that the elder shall serve the younger and that he intended that the nation of the Jacob will become a greater nation than a nation that will come out of Esau and that the elder will ultimately serve the younger God has his purposes but nevertheless when God gives us so much how we need to be careful not to fall away from the grace of God to thank God for his grace to thank God for what he has done for us and not to neglect it because somehow eventually we are going to lose out on the enjoyment that God has for his own people.

Esau was not interested in the things of God, though they were right at reach at his hand. He could have them, but he rejected them, he was not interested in them, and therefore later on he sought it carefully with. Tears. And there was not a change, did not happen. Jacob received the blessing of the firstborn. And so in verses 15, 16, and 17, he's telling them, just look back from your history, Hebrews. See what happened to Esau. You be careful to depend on the grace of God. And brothers and sisters, we do need to depend on the grace of God. We need to seek to live a life of shalom with all men, and to seek to live a life of holiness that is pleasing to the Lord, but we can only do so with the help of God, with the grace of God.

On our own, we are unholy and unpeaceful people. We are never going to be able to do it on our own. And so now, he does in the next verses. From verses 18 to 24, he is telling them, not only that you are to look back to the history and the life of Esau, to learn a lesson from that. Now he says, look forward. Look forward to where you came to. And he's telling them now, look towards heaven. Because now those Hebrew believers of first century, you and I as well, now we have become citizens of heaven, heavenly citizens. In fact, the Bible teaches us that our citizenship is not from here any longer.

Heaven is our home. Where the Messiah is, that is the home of the believers. And so, in these verses, verses 18 to 24, he gives them the contrast between Mount Sinai, which represent the law, and Mount Zion, which represent grace. Mount Zion represent grace, Mount Sinai represent the law. And you see, verses 18 to 21, He tells them how God's law demanded holiness, and they fail. Israel failed. Then He takes them to Mount Zion, provides grace through the Lord Yeshua the Messiah, and that is the new covenant, the covenant that God has made with the house of Judah and with the nation of Israel. We have in Jeremiah 31, the new covenant, which is represented here with Mount Zion.

Look at those verses. Let me read them to you. First of all, verses 18 to 21. For you are not come into the mount that might be touched, and that burned with fire, nor unto the blackness and darkness and tempest, and the sound of trumpet, and a voice of words, which voice they that heard entreated that the word should not be spoken unto them anymore. For they could not endure that which was commended. And if so much, as a beast would touch the mountain, it shall be stoned or thrust through with a dart. And so terrible was the sight, that Moses said, I exceedingly fear and quake.

See, he's first of all telling them where they did not come unto. He said to them, you did not come unto the mount. This mount has a reference to Mount Sinai, as we call in Hebrew, Har Sinai. What happened in house Sinai Mount Sinai you remember in Mount Sinai God gave to our people Israel of all he gave the law to the forefathers of those Hebrews to whom the writer is writing and if you look back at the history what happened in that mountain when God gave the law there was thundering there was trumpet he told the people of Israel to stay at the distance they couldn't come and touch the mount, if anybody would come closer and touch the mount, they will be stoned, they will die.

And when the law was given and God was coming to the mount, it put the nation at a distance. If you will look carefully in Exodus chapter 19 and 20, you will notice, look what it says about the mountain there in Exodus chapter 19 it says in verse 16 and it came to pass on the third day in the morning that there were thunders and lightning and a thick cloud upon the mount and the voice of the trumpet exceeding loud so that all the people that was in the camp. Trembled Moses be brought forth the people out of the camp to meet with God and they stood at the nether part of the mount you see they didn't come closer they couldn't come closer the law kept our people of all at the distance it says in verse 18 and Mount Sinai was all together on a smoke because the Lord descended upon it in fire and the smoke thereof ascended as the smoke of a furnace and the whole mount quick greatly and you see what a fearful experience that have been for our nation the nation of Israel and so the apostle the writer to the Hebrew believers is telling him listen you didn't come to this mountain you didn't come now to the law the law and the demand of the law produce in you failure another proven that you could not keep the law it put you in a distance not because there is a problem with the law not at all Romans 7 teaches.

Us the law is good the law is righteous the law is holy because God is holy but the problem was with the nation of Israel the problem was with the nations of the world we the nations of the world mankind is sinful he or she cannot withstand the holiness of God cannot rise up to the demands of the holiness of God and that's why he's saying to them you have not come into this mount that might be touched and that it burn with fire unto the blackness and darkness and tempest he said to them no you did not come to Mount Sinai because Mount Sinai brought about proven the holiness of God put a separation between sinful men and the holiness of God.

God's law demanded perfection for men, but men, but Israel, but you and I had not been able to rise to God's holiness. That's why God also gave the sacrificial system to our people of old Israel, because the sacrifices that been offered were pointing to the Messiah pointing to the grace that would come in the future. That once and for all the question of sin will be dealt with and so Mount Sinai represent God's law God's demand holiness and it is speaking to us about the old covenant that God have made with our people Israel of all. But then is the second, in verse 22 to 24, he's speaking about another mountain.

And you notice to this mountain they came, those Hebrew believers, they came to Mount Zion, to Mount Zion. And you see verse 22, he's saying, but ye are come unto Mount Zion, And unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to the innumerable company of angels, and to the general assembly, and the church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirit of just men made perfect, and to Yeshua, the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling that speak better things than that of Abel. You see, he does, he gives us a contrast here between Hal Sinai, Mount Sinai, and Mount Zion.

Now let me say this, Mount Zion is existing today, by the way, in the land of Israel, and Mount Zion is another word of the city of Jerusalem. If you will notice, if you will read Scripture and you will notice that Mount Zion really is speaking to us about the city of Jerusalem. But here he is now leading those Hebrew believers who are in the land, in Israel, in the Jerusalem area. He is telling them now that they have come to the heavenly city of Jerusalem. Not only to the earthly city of Jerusalem, which was awaiting the messianic kingdom, the messianic age, when the Messiah will reign, but they have come to the heavenly city of Jerusalem.

And so what he does here, he's piling information about that Mount Zion. What is that Mount Zion? What is it involved with this Mount Zion? And you notice the list that he gives us in verse 22, 23, and verse 24. Mount Zion speaks no longer of the law, but it speaks of the grace of God. It speaks not anymore of what men or what God demand for men, but what God had provided for men. And you can see what he said. Ye are come, number one, unto Mount Zion. And then he tells them, what is that Mount Zion? Unto the city of the living God. And he tells them what this city is.

It's the new Jerusalem. So you see what happened. The new Jerusalem really is the place where redeemed people will be for eternity there. A redeemed company that will be there in that new Jerusalem. The heavenly city that will come down. Rid of it of course at the end of the book of Revelation the heavenly city that will come down out of heaven out of God down towards this earth and in a sense he's speaking about the relationship that they have been brought into as believers in Yeshua the Messiah look at this they're piling up Mount Zion the holy city the heavenly Jerusalem and he continued to an innumerable company of angels In this city, the innumerable company of angels.

These are the angels that did not fall with Satan. The angels that serve God. The angels that are obedient to God. These are the ones that he's speaking about. And he continues, to the general assembly. What is the general assembly? Where all the assembled individuals from every dispensation are going to be assembled there. It's the place where the gathering place, where the Lord Yeshua the Messiah is the center of this city. To the general assembly and others, and the church of the firstborn. The church is the ecclesia. You and I today, those Hebrews of first century, were part of the ecclesia, the church of the firstborn.

Now, it's interesting that that word here, firstborn, is mentioned. Why it is so interesting is because the Lord Jesus was not born first. When he entered into this world, he was not the one who was born into this world first because others have been born before him. But he received the title as the firstborn. In title, in position, in authority, he is the firstborn. The firstborn of all creation. That's the place that God had given to him. It's interesting because in contrast to what we just read about Esau, Esau was born first. But Esau was born first physically, but Esau because of who he was disobedient to God never wanted God in his life he was set aside and here coming another one who actually was not born first but God had given him the firstborn title and position because the Lord Jesus, the Messiah said my food is to do the will of him that sent me and to finish his work He was the one that God had given him the title and the position of the firstborn.

So, you and I have come to the church of the firstborn, in verse 23, which are written in heaven. And then he continued, And to God the judge of all. You see, we came into God, we belong to the judge of all. The judge is none else but God himself. And to the spirit of just men made perfect. This is Old Testament saints that have been made perfect positionally because of their faith in God, the faith in the Messiah. And then verse 24, and to Yeshua, and to Jesus, the mediator of the new covenant. You see, brothers and sisters, what he's saying to those Hebrews? Listen, you didn't come to Mount Sinai, you came to Mount Zion.

You didn't come to the law. You came to grace. You didn't come to what God demanded from you. You came to that which God had provided for you. You have come to be related to Yeshua the Messiah on the basis of the new covenant. And if you read carefully in your Bible, you will find out that the new covenant was actually made with the house of Israel God himself have made this covenant in Jeremiah chapter 31 and verse 31 we read behold the days come says the Lord that i will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah not according to the covenant that i made with their fathers in the day that i took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt which covenant they broke although i was a husband unto them says the Lord but this shall be the covenant that i will make with the house of Israel after those days says the Lord i will put my law in their inward parts and i will write them in their heart and i will be their God and they will be my people you see what he's saying here the new covenant is based upon the work that God will do through the person of the Messiah.

Israel have not entered into it yet, but the Hebrew believers of first century and you and I, believers in the church age, have entered already into the blessing of this covenant that God had made with the house of Israel in the house of Judah. The house of Israel is still waiting for that the people of Israel are still waiting for this covenant to enter into this covenant but you and I have already entered into the blessing of this covenant already today and so he's saying to them you have come to Jesus to Yeshua the mediator of the new covenant and to the blood of sprinkling What is that blood?

Beloved, never forget that the blood of Jesus the Messiah, God's Son, has cleansed us totally, completely from all unrighteousness. He has cleansed us, and that's the basis upon which you and I can stand before God. That's the blood. It is the blood that makes and atonement for the soul. Without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness of sins. And so that's what he's telling them. You have come to all this, and he highlighted at the end, to Yeshua the mediator of the new covenant and to the blood of sprinkling. Now, he's adding here at the end of verse 24 that blood that speaks better things than that of Abel's blood.

What does it mean here? If you remember, when Abel was murdered by Cain, his brother, God appealed to Cain. And he said, Cain, where are you? He asked him, where is your brother, Abel? He said, am I my brother's keeper, he said. And God told him, you read in chapter 4, the blood of your brothers crieth from the ground. Abel's blood was crying from the ground. What was he crying for? What was that blood crying for? It was crying for justice. It was crying for vengeance. That's what the blood of Abel was crying. But here he says, You came to the blood that is sprinkled, that speaks better things than that of Abel.

That is the blood of the Messiah, Yeshua. You know what the blood of the Messiah, Yeshua, speaks? It doesn't speak to us of vengeance. It doesn't speak to us of justice. You know what it speaks? It speaks of grace and love towards you and I. That's the one we came to. It is the blood of the Lord Jesus, the Messiah, that had been shed, that it speaks of better things than what Abel's blood was speaking. It speaks of the grace of God. It speaks of the love of God towards you and I, that God had provided for us a way whereby we can enter into a relationship with him.

Therefore, he is telling them, Hebrews, he says, not only look back at the example of Esau and don't be like him, look forward to where you have come to. You have come to the mountain called Harzion, Mount Zion, the mountain of the grace of God. And in conclusion now of this chapter, look what he's telling them at the end. Verses 25 to 29, he gives them a warning, and this is important, beloved brothers and sisters. He says, listen, there is coming in the future an immovable kingdom, And you, he's telling to those Hebrews, you need to see that you are setting aside the thing that can be shaken and follow after the things that cannot be shaken.

He's saying to them in verse 25, see that ye refuse not him that speak. For if they escape not, who refused him that spake on earth, much more shall not we escape if we turn away from him that speaketh from heaven. See what he's telling those Hebrew believers? And you notice that the writer includes himself. He is a child of God, and there were children of God. He was a Hebrew believer, and they were Hebrew believers. He's telling them, you better see to it. He said that you refuse him not. Don't refuse him. Don't harden your hearts, he is saying. Be careful, be watchful. Don't refuse him that speak to you.

You know, it's like son or daughter that their parents speak to them and give them warning and tell them, listen, you be careful. Listen, be careful. Don't go that way because you're going to get hurt and eventually will need to be disciplined. That is exactly what he gives the warning to those Hebrews. He said to them, don't refuse him that speaks. He said to them, those that he spoke to them on earth, they did not escape his discipline. Don't you think for a moment that you are going to escape the one that speaks to you from heaven, whose voice shook the earth, verse 26. But now he that promised, saying, yet once more I shake not the earth only, but I also shake heaven.

And this word, yet once more signifying the removing of those things that are shaken, as of things that are not made, that those things which cannot be shaken will remain. He's telling them, listen, the things that are not right, take it aside. Don't follow those things that are not pleasing to the Lord because they're shaken. They're going to be removed one day. Stand firm on the things that are not going to be shaken. Stand firm on the things of the Lord, he's saying to them. And in verse 28, he says, Therefore we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be moved. Let us have grace whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear.

He says, listen, he's saying to them, we are going to one day, we have come into a kingdom that are not going to be shaken. There is a kingdom that is coming, the kingdom of God, that none will shake that kingdom because the Lord Jesus the Messiah is the one who is the King of Kings and Lord of lords. And therefore, he says, let us have grace. Notice again he mentioned grace. This passage is really enveloped with grace. Grace in the beginning and grace at the end. Verse 15, lest any man fail from the grace of God. Verse 28, let us have grace whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and with godly fear.

That's what God wants from those Hebrews. That's what God wants from us as well, to have the fear of God. Why, beloved brothers and sisters? He's concluding this, and he says, why? Because God is a consuming fire. And if God judged them of all, he will also judge his very own people if God judged in the past under the law he will also judge under grace his own people and therefore he will discipline and therefore let us as he says let us have grace whereby we will serve God acceptably that which is acceptable to him How? With reverence, on the one hand, and also with godly fear, on the other hand.

That's the challenge that he gives those early first century Hebrew believers. And so, if we'll sum up now that chapter, 12th chapter of Hebrews, three resources that the believer should look into. Number one, look at Yeshua as the author and the finisher of our faith. Number two, look and be sure of the love of God. And be assured that God loves you and cares for you. And he really, when he disciplines you, he disciplines us because of his love towards us. Thirdly, be assured of the grace of God which is available for the believer as he or she walk in this world, running the race, focusing on the goal that is set before the believer.

And so, with this, he concludes chapter 12. And next time, beloved brothers and sisters, we're going to see how he's developing now, how we are to behave and how those Hebrews to behave in a world in which they live and how they conduct themselves further in a world in which we live until they are going to be taken to be with the Lord Jesus in heaven. So may God bless these thoughts to us all and may God encourage us to lean hard on the grace that is available for you and I. Can you say Amen? Amen.