Dec. 4, 2024

Hebrews 12 and 70AD

Hebrews 12 and 70AD

We review a sermon on Hebrews 12:1-7 and try to put the passage into its proper historical context

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We review a sermon on Hebrews 12:1-7 and try to put the passage into its proper historical context

WEBVTT

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Looking at our world from a theological perspective. This is

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the Theology Central podcast making Theology Central.

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Good morning everyone.

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It is Wednesday, December the fourth, twenty twenty four. It

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is currently eleven twenty five am Central Time, and I

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am coming to you live from the Theology Central studio

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located right here in Abilene, Texas. And you can hear

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in my voice, hm, that's sounding a little rough, aren't

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I right? Not sounding not sounding very professional. Hopefully my

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voice will warm up here in a minute, right l

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la la la la la lo lo lo. Okay, nobody

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wants to hear that. Maybe my voice will warm up

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and I'll sound a little bit more professional. But thank

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you so much for tuning in. I always appreciate it.

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And if I'm going to be fully transparent here, I

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don't really know what to do. I'm struggling here. I thought,

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you know what, today is going to be a day

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of broadcasting, right, so all right, so let's let's do that.

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Then I sat down in front of the microphone. I'm like,

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I want to talk about well, I don't don't. I

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don't know about that. Oh I could talk about no, well,

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I kind of need to finish this well, yeah, that

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hasn't really been a lot of discussion about that. Do

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I need to add more to that? Have I kind

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of already well I could do that well. And it's

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just kind of a lot of back and forth and

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kind of just not nothing really working. But I know

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there's one thing. I know that there.

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Is one thing that I must do.

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With everything else we tried in twenty twenty four, other

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things we started and stopped, or we worked on a

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little bit and then we kind of hesitated.

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Of all the things.

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That we've tried to do in twenty twenty four, the

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one thing that has remained a constant. We have been

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consistent in it, and that is our sermons two point

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oh app sermon challenge.

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We have not waivered in that.

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I don't think there's been any inconsistency and that sermon challenge.

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If you really look back over all of twenty twenty four,

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the sermon's two point oh app sermon challenge has really

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driven the entire podcast if you really think about it,

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so many things, I mean, the entire Isaiah forty through

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fifty five series that.

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We're working on.

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How did that begin because of the sermon's two point

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oh app sermon challenge because of sermons. I started hearing

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all that work we did in what Psalm eighty three

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was because of the sermon's two point oh app sermon challenge.

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So many things.

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That has really that has been the catalyst, the engine

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for the podcast in twenty twenty four.

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And I didn't really.

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Necessarily see it as that that was going to be

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the way it went, but that's what's happened.

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So since it's really driven.

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The podcast, it would be foolish to be here on

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December the fourth, fast approaching the end of twenty twenty

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four and then just kind of just let you know

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we've we've got to drive the we got to drive

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the car across the finish line. We've got to bring

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the boat and the ship into the harbor, we got

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to bring the train into the station. Whatever illustration we

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want to eat. We've got to land this thing right.

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We've got to we've got to bring it to some

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kind of conclusion. Now, the last there's going to be

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very close to the end of December. I can't remember

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December the twenty eighth, the twenty ninth. I think I

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think the twenty eighth may be my last day to

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broadcast until like January something I'm gonna be I'm not

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going to be available for I don't know, four five

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six days right there, So we're not going to be

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like on December the thirty first, I'm going to be

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able to really have That's that's really frustrating, right because

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I really wanted it to be on December the thirty first,

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could really bring the year of broadcasting to a conclusion.

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But then how many people are actually listening on December

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the thirty first, So we'll have to do something prior

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to probably December the twenty ninth, or maybe early December

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the twenty eighth, somewhere around that time where we'll have

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to try to bring it all to a conclusion. I

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don't know what anyone else feels about their journey, they

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if they participated with us. Look, there's a lot of

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people who I mean, I just I got a comment

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on YouTube just a couple of days ago that someone

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just recently discovered the podcast. So we always have these

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new listeners coming in. But for everyone who's been with

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us through all of twenty twenty four, I don't know

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if they participated in the sermon's two point zero app

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sermon challenge. But if they did, I'm hoping they have

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something good to show for it, right, I mean I could,

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I could look at it from different perspectives. There's times

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I look back, going, man, that was a frustrating year.

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But then there's another part of like, but guess what

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it wasn't for the sermon's two point oh app? Would

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we have done that all that work and Psal many three?

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Would we be doing all this work in Isaiah forty

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through fifty five? Look of all the things that we

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spent considerable amount of time on because of the sermon's

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two point oh app because of listening to all of

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those random sermons. Those random sermons is what got us there.

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That's what got us into these discussions and these creating

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I mean, the work we did on James one, that

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was all because of the sermon's two point oh app

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sermon challenge. So so much of it has been as

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frustrating as it's been, it's also been the very thing

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driving these hopefully in depth exploration study discussion, coming up

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with new interpretations all the things that we've done. So

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I hope, at least from a podcasting perspective, it seems

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to be benefit from a personal spiritual perspective. I'm a

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little bit more skeptical there. I'm a little bit more

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jaded right after listening to all of these sermons? Am

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I better off spiritually speaking? And there I am? I'm

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not so sure of there. There, I'm a little bit skeptical.

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I don't know about you. I mean again, we could,

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we could have a bunch of discussions about that.

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So the point is, I haven't I've not known what

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to do.

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But since there's one constant, which is the sermon's two

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point oh app sermon challenge, then obviously you know what

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I'm about to say. I couldn't figure out what else

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to do, but I knew what to do. Grab the

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sermon's two point oh app look for a random sermon,

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and here we are.

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And the random sermon today.

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Is encouragement to endure. Encouragement to endure. Now, this fits

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with our discussion about false comfort, fake comfort. We talked

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about their anchor, our anchor, our anchor versus their anchor.

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That was from Hebrews chapter six, right where someone took

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Hebrews chapter six and made it about us. This sermon

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that we're gonna be reviewing is encouragement to endure, and

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it comes from Hebrews chapter twelve. Now is the encouragement

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to endure to the original audience or is the encouragement

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to endure to us?

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Well, we think we know which direction is going to go,

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but we're going to find out.

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Now. I'm a little nervous here. Earlier, while I was

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trying to figure out what to do, I did grab

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the sermon's two point zero app and I saw a

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sermon I think it was the Warnings of Wisdom from

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Proverbs chapter six, and I'm like, oh, okay, we've been

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working on Proverbs. We have an entire series on that.

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That'll be great.

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So I downloaded it and I started playing it, just

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making sure the audio was correct. And then I realized

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the person would speak in English, then they would speak

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in a different language, then they we'd go back to English,

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then then we'd go back to a different And I'm like, well,

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that that would not probably be the best for a

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sermon review. Okay, that would probably So I'm like, Okay,

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that's probably great for the people listening there, right, I

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think it was in the Philippines. It would probably be

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great for them, But for like me listening, He says

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it in English, then he says it in a different language,

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then he says it in English, then he says it in.

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A different language. That's just not.

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You know, that's not very beneficial from a review perspective,

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or even a listening perspective.

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So I decide I was ready to go.

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I almost just started, because you know what, I like

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to deal with the reviews, I don't listen to first,

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but that would have been a disaster, So I'm hoping

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this one is better. I do know that this one,

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the audio was way too low, so I had to

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artificially increase the volume. I think I have that ready

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to go. I know it's an encouragement to endure. I

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know it's supposedly on Hebrews chapter twelve. So other than that,

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I have no clue what's about to happen. I'm obviously skeptical,

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right I'm skeptical about how quickly the original recipients are

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pushed out of the way and we are inserted. I'm skeptical,

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but that's only because I've been doing this now. Well,

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I've been listening to sermons forever, but just we're in

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December after a very long journey, and so a lot

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of people may ask, some of you may care, may

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not care. So what are we going to do in

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twenty twenty five? I don't really know, but I do

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believe I'm going to continue encouraging and promoting and trying

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to do more with the you know, the sermons two

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point oh. App I still want to promote it and

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see it be successful, because again, it's just one of

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those resources we do. We just walk away from such

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an amazing resource. So we'll still we'll do some things.

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I'm not gonna I'm not gonna be too committed yet

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committed yet on what I'm going to do, but we

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will see. We will see where things go. But are

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you ready? I think we're going to go. Oh and

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by the way, I was mentioning this in the quote

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unquote pre show, we are at almost fifty thousand downloads

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right now for the last three days in December or

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December the first, second, and third. So I don't think

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today's numbers have even been processed yet. So for everyone

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who's been listening, streaming, downloading, we appreciate that. I don't

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know exactly what that means, right, what does that mean?

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I don't know.

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I'm hoping it's a good sign but we will see

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in the meantime. Though, numbers really don't matter, right, I mean,

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the numbers are great, but what really matters is just

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well trying to produce content that hopefully helps someone somewhere.

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So I don't know if these sermon reviews are helpful.

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But I mean I listened to sermons, so I could

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either listen to sermon in an empty room by myself,

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or I could listen to sermons in a room by myself,

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but with a bunch of people listening live all around

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the world. So that sounds more fun, right, because then

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I can talk about it with you. I mean, I

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guess I could talk about it to myself, but it's

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still more fun to talk about it with you, right,

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So we never I don't ever know if the reviews

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are beneficial. But some people seem to like them, some

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people seem to hate them, some people are indifferent. Some

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people completely misunderstand. You're just being mean, You're just being

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I'm just listening to a sermon talking. It would be

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one thing if I listened to the sermon, hated the sermon,

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then did the review right, then you would say, well,

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you have an agenda, you're trying to do something. But

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if I'm just listening to the sermon without any idea

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what's going to be said, I feel like that that

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puts me. You know, well, then you're just listening right now.

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Could you could argue, well, you picked one from Hebrews,

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you already have a pretty good idea that this is

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probably going to be Remove the original recipients insert us. Well,

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the bottom line is it doesn't matter what the passage is.

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If I listen to a sermon, almost inevitably it becomes

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about us and not so much about the original recipients.

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I mean, just we've learned that if you haven't learned anything,

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so we will see. Hopefully we'll find something beneficial. I mean,

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do we need encouragement to endure? Probably? We probably all

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need some encouragement to endure. Let's see what this encouragement

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is and what happens here.

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We go, Thank you Barfields for your ministry and song.

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This evening. We're taking our Bibles please and turning the

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book of Hebrews the twelfth chapter Hebrews Chapter twelve, Hebrews

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Chapter twelve, where we discover a message that provides encouragement

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for those who would endure. Hebrews Chapter twelve. We begin

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our reading. In verse one, word of God says, we'refore

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seeing we also are compassed about with so great a

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cloud of witnesses. Let us lay aside every weight and

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the sin which does so easily beset us. Let us

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run patience the race that is set before us, looking

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unto Jesus, the author and finish of our faith, who

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for the joy that was set before him, endured the cross,

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despising the shame, and set down at the right hand

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of the throat of God. For consider him then endured

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such contradiction of sinners against himself. Lest you be wearied

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and faith in your minds, ye have not yet resisted

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unto blood, striving against sin, And ye have forgotten the

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exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children. My son,

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despise not the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when

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thou art rebuked of him Hebrews twelve and verse six.

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For whom the Lord loveth, he chasteneth and scourgeth every

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son whom he receiveth. If you endure chastening, God dealeth

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with you as with sons. For what son is he

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whom the Father chasteneth not. But if you be without chastisement,

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whereof all our partakers, then he bascards are not sons. Furthermore,

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we've had fathers of our flesh, which corrected us. We

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gave them reverence. Shall we not much rent, rather be

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in subjection to the Father's spirits and live. For they

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verily for a few days chastened us for their own pleasure,

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But he for our prophet, we might be partakers of

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his holiness. Now no chastening, for the present seemeth to

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be joyous, but grievous. Nevertheless, afterward it yieldeth the peaceable

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fruit of righteousness, unto them which are exercised thereby. Wherefore,

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lift up the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees,

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and make straight paths for our feet, lest that which

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is lame be turned out of the way. But let

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it rather be healed. Follow peace with all men, and holiness,

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without which no man shall see the Lord looking diligently,

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Lest any man fail of the grace of God, Lest

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any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby

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many be defiled. Lest there be any fornicator or profane

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person as Esau who for one morsel of meat sold

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his birthright. For you know how that afterward, when he

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would have inherited the blessing, he was rejected, for he

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found no place of repentance, though he sought it carefully

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with tears. I understand that the official length of the

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Boston Marathon was set back in nineteen twenty one twenty

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six miles three hundred and eighty five yards. I'm aware

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that we have folks in our church family who have

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run the Boston Marathon, and I'm amazed and anyone who

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would be able to handle such a race of endurance.

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But the truth is, compared to some of the modern

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endurance races, the Boston Marathon has become something of a

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sprint the bad Water Ultra. The bad Water Ultra is

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one hundred and thirty five miles through Death Valley. Runners

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run three to six miles an hour in temperatures exceeding

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one hundred and twenty degrees. The trail rises some thirteen

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thousand feet and falls forty seven hundred feet, and winters

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run it less than forty hours. Then there's the Marathon

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of the Sands. It's helld in the Moroccan Sahara it's

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one hundred and fifty miles long, the runners run for

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seven days, carrying their own gear, and they're limited to

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nine leaders of water a day. Amazing.

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Okay, So his basic thesis, we're getting the idea this

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is all about endurance. So he's giving us all these

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examples of marathons where people have to endure, where people

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have to endure these long races, these difficult races, under

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difficult circumstances, and they have to endure. Now he's going

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to take this idea of endurance. What do you need

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in endurance? Obviously he's going to say, we need some

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kind of encouragement. Okay, endurance encouragement, all right, So the

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entitle of the sermon is encouragement to endure. So he's

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bringing the ideas to together. He's giving us these examples

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of endurance and encouragement. Now I'm assuming what he's going

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to do. This is just my prediction. He's going to

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flip this and instead of talking about races, he's going

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to talk.

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About the race of life. We all have to run

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this race.

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Called life, and we have to endure, and we need

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some encouragement to run this race. And he's going to

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make it about us. That's where I feel this is

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going to go. We'll see if I'm right, or we

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see if I am wrong. Maybe he will mention the

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original recipients. I'm assuming he will, and then but maybe

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he'll just mention them and go directly to us. I'm

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not saying that there is an application here, but we

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do need to at least consider the original recipients first, right,

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So we'll talk about them, hopefully here in a minute.

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Let's see if I'm right or if I'm wrong here.

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First Corinthians, chapter nine and verse twenty five puts such

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races into a perspective that we ought to consider this evening.

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Apostle Paul says in First Cristian's nine of verse twenty five,

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they do it to inherit a corruptible crown, to obtain

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a corruptible crown. But we we run to obtain an

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incorruptible crown, as we all in our Bibles this evening.

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In Hebrews chapter twelve, we find the author of the

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Book of Hebrews providing encouragement for those who would endure.

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It seems that endurance is the theme of the twelfth

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chapter of the Book of Hebrews. You'll find that the

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end of verse one were to run with patience, then

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we find in verse two, consider him that endured such

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controverstion verse three, rather such contradiction of sinners against himself.

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Again in verse seven, if you endure chastening, God deals

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with you as with sons. At the end of verse

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eleven we read that the peaceable fruit of righteousness is

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given to those who are exercised too, literally are enduring

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through the race. And finally, in verse twenty we read

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of some who could not endure that which was commanded

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of them. Here we listen to the voice of God.

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Good observation that Okay, I like that. So endurance is

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the theme of the chapter due to the repetition of

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the idea, the concept, and the phrase or the word

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endure endurance used multiple times in Hebrews Chapter twelve. So

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Hebrews Chapter twelve is a message of endurance. All right,

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That's that's really good. That's good observational work. Right. So

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that's awesome. He's pointing that out. Now, My point would be,

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what when it comes to the original recipients, how what

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what would be the message of it? Why would they

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need a message of endurance? Let me stay it that way.

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If we when we think of Hebrews chapter twelve, it's

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written to a specific people in a specific time. What

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message of endurance did they need to hear? Why did

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they need to hear a message of endurance? Now we'll

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talk about the historical how this connects to the historical

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context in a minute. I'm going to give him the

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opportunity to do so. Now, he's been very careful so

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far not to use us, are we He's not. He's

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not directly to us. He's made it somewhat more generic,

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which is good because that gives me hope that he's

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going to talk about the original recipients. But we will see.

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All right, So there's all these races, hey, Brewce twelve

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is about a chapter about endurance, all right, And that

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those races are run by people who are just trying

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to get an earthly reward, an earthly crown and earthly trophy.

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All right.

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So you can see.

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Where this how that he's getting ready to flip this, right,

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He's set this up. Now he's going to flip it

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and make it about us. Typically the way this is

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the way sermons are typically structured. It's following the typical way. Now,

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I'm assuming there will be at least a brief mention

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of the historical context. I believe he will at least

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mention it. Let's see if I'm right.

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As it's recorded for us in every page of the

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Word of God, and the Father speaks to us, and

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as the Father speaks to us as sons, he encourages

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us to endure. One step won't take you very far.

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You've got to keep on walking.

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Okay, Well, it didn't take long for us to get in. Okay,

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he was being kind of generic, and then immediately it's us.

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He then immediately.

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Draws in and puts the focus on us, on us,

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which it begins to insinuate, and he may not be

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explicit yet, but insinuating, Hey, this is a message to us,

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all right. Well it was a message to them before

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it was a message to us, all right, So we have.

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To get them before we we don't.

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We have to look to help what it meant to

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them before it means anything to us. We always put

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us before them. It's really weird and how preaching does this.

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But all right, let's let's see. So maybe, but I'm

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assuming he's getting ready to bring in the historical context.

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He's got to bring in the historical context, at least briefly,

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because almost most pastors at least.

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Know they have to at least mention it right.

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They have to at least mention the historical context at

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least a little bit.

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One word won't tell folks who you are. You've got

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to keep on talking. One inch won't make you very tall.

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You've got to keep on growing, won't. One deed won't

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do it all. You've got to keep on going. And

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when you ask how, and when your arms begin to

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dangle and your knees become weak, and when you're weary

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and well doing, we need to listen to the voice

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of God as found in Hebrews chapter twelve. God's given

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to us in this passage encouragements for those who would endure.

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What are the encouragements that are found here?

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All right, so we have to keep going, We have

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to keep moving, we have to keep growing, we have

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to keep doing. That's the thesis. So but how do

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we keep going? How do we keep going? Well? Hebrews

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twelve is going to give us the encouragement we need.

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So it sounds like the way we keep moving is

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we need encouragement. Hebrews twelve is encouragement. Now immediately, look

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what he's done. He's making Hebrews twelve a message of

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encouragement to you, an encouragement to me. That's that's that's

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clearly what's happening here. And I don't he may not

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even mention the historical context here. He may completely ignore

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the historical context. I'm gonna give it a second, because

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I think he's just going to immediately go into point

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number one boom, and it's about us. Point number two boom,

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it's immediately about us. Point number three, boom, it's immediately

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about us. That's where it looks like he's going. I

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could be wrong, but now I'm starting. I know I

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was pretty I sounded pretty positive that he would at

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least mention the historical context.

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But maybe maybe I was wrong.

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Let's see.

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We'll discover first that to endure, you must learn to

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focus your attention verse two, looking unto Jesus, the author

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and finisher of our faith.

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All right, So in order to endure, you've got to focus.

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All right, Now, maybe maybe here he's gonna mention the

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original recipients. Maybe here, So I'm gonna let this play

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I was just gonna go ahead and jump in and

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start going to the historical context. But maybe here he

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will say, Okay, how does this fit to the original recipients.

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Let's see.

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Let's see.

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Verse three. Consider him that endure such contradiction of sinners

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against himself. Truth is, if you put your eye on

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a man, if you put your eye on a movement,

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you'll find yourself very discouraged.

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Okay, maybe maybe he's not. Okay, well we'll come back.

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Now we're getting I know this is gonna take us

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away or it's going to take a minute for us

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to come back to this. So just remember where this

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is ending. He's like, Hey, if you want to be encouraged,

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you've got to focus. Don't focus on a man, don't

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focus on a movement. Focus on Jesus.

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Okay.

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That sounds good stuff for you know, preaching, and you

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know people and the congregation will love it.

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But let let's consider the.

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Context here, right, Let's consider the context. If you're going

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to read anything in the Book of Hebrews, you have

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to connect it to some level to the coming destruction

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of the Temple and Jerusalem and seventy a d. We've

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talked about this countless times. The Book of Hebrews cannot

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be interpreted without understanding it's written to a group of people,

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the Hebrews, to Jews, who are getting ready to face

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the total annihilation and destruction of their entire religious system,

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their religious identity, their nation.

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It's about to be I mean seventy a d.

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They're going to be wiped off the face of the earth.

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Earth for all practical purposes, the sacrificial system gone, the

467
00:26:04.119 --> 00:26:08.759
temple gone, the high priest gone, the genealogical record, Steven,

468
00:26:08.839 --> 00:26:10.079
know which tribe you're part of?

469
00:26:10.160 --> 00:26:10.519
Gone?

470
00:26:10.599 --> 00:26:15.480
It's all going to be gone no more. The entire

471
00:26:15.880 --> 00:26:20.920
thing is gone. It's the end of it all. That's

472
00:26:20.960 --> 00:26:23.839
got to be understood. When you're reading many of these

473
00:26:23.880 --> 00:26:27.240
warnings and things, and we immediately go into it and

474
00:26:27.279 --> 00:26:31.839
turn into some argument about things related to us, it's.

475
00:26:31.640 --> 00:26:33.880
Like, what about them?

476
00:26:36.359 --> 00:26:40.279
And I think we can see this connection in several ways,

477
00:26:40.440 --> 00:26:44.359
especially in Hebrews Chapter twelve one through seven. All right, Now,

478
00:26:44.400 --> 00:26:48.559
the text may not explicitly mention the event, but it's

479
00:26:48.599 --> 00:26:51.839
being written prior to the event, almost as if preparing

480
00:26:51.920 --> 00:26:55.240
them for it. The destruction of the Temple and the

481
00:26:55.240 --> 00:27:05.319
city of Jerusalem would have a profound philological and emotional impact.

482
00:27:05.519 --> 00:27:06.160
It would have a.

483
00:27:06.160 --> 00:27:13.400
Profound philological and emotional implications for Jewish Christians, for Jews

484
00:27:13.519 --> 00:27:19.759
in general. I mean, I think everyone can acknowledge that, right,

485
00:27:20.279 --> 00:27:22.880
everyone has to acknowledge that. I mean, that's not like

486
00:27:22.920 --> 00:27:26.599
what I'm saying here is not radical, it's not controversial,

487
00:27:26.839 --> 00:27:33.000
it's not like some far fetched theory. Jews, Jewish Christians,

488
00:27:33.279 --> 00:27:37.160
Jews in general. When the Temple in Jerusalem is destroyed,

489
00:27:37.319 --> 00:27:45.559
that has profound emotional philological implications. So let's let's just

490
00:27:45.599 --> 00:27:50.519
see how this connection could possibly be understood. Right throughout

491
00:27:50.599 --> 00:27:54.279
the Book of Hebrews, we do have warnings, right, and

492
00:27:54.359 --> 00:27:58.480
many of these warnings are against returning to Judaism. Hey,

493
00:27:58.799 --> 00:28:01.519
don't think about going back to Judaism. Don't think about

494
00:28:01.559 --> 00:28:04.400
returning to Judaism, because you're going to be left with nothing,

495
00:28:04.599 --> 00:28:08.400
no sacrifice, no anything. You're not going to have anything.

496
00:28:08.440 --> 00:28:10.720
Why because what your entire system is about to be

497
00:28:10.759 --> 00:28:13.480
wiped off the face of the planet.

498
00:28:14.839 --> 00:28:16.480
One of the.

499
00:28:15.920 --> 00:28:21.680
Central themes in the Book of Hebrews is the superiority

500
00:28:22.720 --> 00:28:26.519
of Christ, the superiority of the New Covenant.

501
00:28:28.839 --> 00:28:29.880
And I think that this.

502
00:28:29.759 --> 00:28:34.119
Is demonstrated countless times. I think this is demonstrated countless times.

503
00:28:34.680 --> 00:28:34.839
Now.

504
00:28:34.920 --> 00:28:40.200
The coming destruction of the temple would signify the end

505
00:28:40.240 --> 00:28:43.920
of the sacrificial system. As I've already mentioned, it would

506
00:28:43.960 --> 00:28:48.039
also bring an end to temple based worship of Judaism.

507
00:28:48.240 --> 00:28:52.039
The whole temple based worship, the entire sacrificial system was

508
00:28:52.079 --> 00:28:55.880
going to be gone. So for a Jewish Christian, or

509
00:28:55.880 --> 00:28:58.160
for Jews in general, the letter would serve as a

510
00:28:58.200 --> 00:29:01.480
strong encouragement not to reat turned to a system that

511
00:29:01.720 --> 00:29:06.240
was obsolete and aging and about to pass away.

512
00:29:07.079 --> 00:29:10.480
Hey, don't go back. So any of the if you.

513
00:29:10.480 --> 00:29:13.880
Want to see encouragement, the encouragement was, don't go back,

514
00:29:14.319 --> 00:29:18.200
move forward. Don't look back to the temple, to the

515
00:29:18.240 --> 00:29:21.759
sacrificial system. Look to Jesus. If you want to look

516
00:29:21.759 --> 00:29:25.240
at this section right here, all right, look at this

517
00:29:25.519 --> 00:29:28.759
looking unto Jesus, the author and finishing of our faith.

518
00:29:28.960 --> 00:29:30.480
If you want these people.

519
00:29:30.240 --> 00:29:32.640
Needed to be encouraged to look forward.

520
00:29:32.680 --> 00:29:36.839
Hey, everything around you, your identity, your nation, it's all

521
00:29:36.880 --> 00:29:38.279
going to be destroyed.

522
00:29:38.440 --> 00:29:39.359
What do you need to do?

523
00:29:39.519 --> 00:29:41.599
You need to look to Jesus because all of this

524
00:29:41.680 --> 00:29:44.119
is about to disappear, it's going away.

525
00:29:44.440 --> 00:29:45.559
This would have that.

526
00:29:45.680 --> 00:29:48.839
When you put the words in their original context. Wow,

527
00:29:48.960 --> 00:29:51.359
this is powerful. Right, Hey, you got to look here

528
00:29:51.720 --> 00:29:56.400
because everything else is about to go away, all right.

529
00:29:56.559 --> 00:29:59.160
So it'd be a warning against returning to Judaism. I

530
00:29:59.160 --> 00:30:02.440
think it would be an would be speaking to endurance

531
00:30:02.480 --> 00:30:05.240
in a time of crisis, of real crisis. This is

532
00:30:05.279 --> 00:30:09.680
not enduring. Hey, you've got a bad boss and your

533
00:30:09.759 --> 00:30:12.200
kids are getting on your nerves, and you're having some

534
00:30:12.240 --> 00:30:15.599
financial problems. Well go to Hebrews twelve and this will

535
00:30:15.599 --> 00:30:19.720
give you some encouragement. This is about encouraging real crises,

536
00:30:19.920 --> 00:30:23.799
the entire destruction of your nation, and your entire religious

537
00:30:23.839 --> 00:30:30.759
identity and your cultural identity, everything being destroyed. The historical

538
00:30:30.799 --> 00:30:34.240
pressures faced by Jewish Christians were likely compounded by the

539
00:30:34.319 --> 00:30:38.559
rising tensions in Judah leading up to seventy AD. The

540
00:30:38.640 --> 00:30:44.400
political unrests, coupled with persecution from both Jewish and Roman authorities,

541
00:30:44.640 --> 00:30:49.279
created a climate of uncertainty. I think that's an understatement.

542
00:30:50.240 --> 00:30:53.880
See Hebrews Chapter twelve, verses one through seven encourages them

543
00:30:53.920 --> 00:30:58.640
to persevere in their faith in Christ, to persevere, to preserve,

544
00:30:59.279 --> 00:31:03.359
to hold on to their faith in Christ, reminding them

545
00:31:03.359 --> 00:31:05.720
that He is the fulfillment of what the temple symbolized.

546
00:31:05.920 --> 00:31:08.519
Even if the temple were destroyed, their faith would remain

547
00:31:08.559 --> 00:31:12.880
secure because Jesus is the ultimate high priest and sacrifice. Hey,

548
00:31:12.880 --> 00:31:14.519
you're not going to have a high priest. You're not

549
00:31:14.519 --> 00:31:16.240
going to have a sacrifice, you're not going to have

550
00:31:16.240 --> 00:31:18.440
a temple. But Jesus fulfills it all.

551
00:31:18.680 --> 00:31:20.200
So look to him.

552
00:31:20.759 --> 00:31:23.720
Don't look back, don't look to the burning building, don't

553
00:31:23.720 --> 00:31:26.480
look to the crumbled.

554
00:31:25.359 --> 00:31:26.960
City, don't look to any of that.

555
00:31:27.079 --> 00:31:30.240
While you're fleeing and you're being scattered abroad and you

556
00:31:30.359 --> 00:31:34.839
no longer have a national identity, look to Jesus.

557
00:31:38.200 --> 00:31:40.680
So this would be Hebrews.

558
00:31:40.160 --> 00:31:43.000
Would provide them a warning don't go back to Judaism.

559
00:31:43.160 --> 00:31:46.519
Number two would be endure in this time of crisis.

560
00:31:46.599 --> 00:31:50.400
I think number three maybe this would also demonstrate God's

561
00:31:50.440 --> 00:31:58.200
discipline within the historical event, the mention of discipline in

562
00:31:58.279 --> 00:31:59.720
Hebrews chapter twelve.

563
00:32:00.079 --> 00:32:00.799
Don't we see that?

564
00:32:02.440 --> 00:32:06.599
Look at verse five and you and you have forgot,

565
00:32:06.880 --> 00:32:09.960
and you have forgotten the exhortation which speaks to you

566
00:32:10.039 --> 00:32:13.599
as sons, my son, do not despise the chastening of

567
00:32:13.640 --> 00:32:16.960
the Lord, nor be discouraged when you are rebuked by him.

568
00:32:17.279 --> 00:32:21.400
For whom the Lord loves, he chastens and scourges every

569
00:32:21.480 --> 00:32:25.160
son whom he receives. If you endure chastening, God deals

570
00:32:25.160 --> 00:32:27.920
with you as with sons. For what son is there

571
00:32:28.000 --> 00:32:30.359
whom a father does not chasten. But if you are

572
00:32:30.359 --> 00:32:34.799
without chastening, of which all all have become a partakers,

573
00:32:34.839 --> 00:32:40.079
then you are illegitimate and are not sons. This may

574
00:32:40.279 --> 00:32:43.759
indicate that what's happening in this historical event, which is

575
00:32:43.759 --> 00:32:46.759
getting ready, which is already under which is already building,

576
00:32:47.000 --> 00:32:50.960
the things are already developing. But as you get closer

577
00:32:51.000 --> 00:32:54.559
to seventy eight, I mean the city is under siege.

578
00:32:54.599 --> 00:32:58.160
We've talked about all the things that transpire within seventy eighty.

579
00:32:57.880 --> 00:33:01.759
Every Christian needs to be an expert on seven. What

580
00:33:01.960 --> 00:33:03.839
I think this is almost saying, hey, you may want

581
00:33:03.880 --> 00:33:07.359
to perceive God's hand in this as being a form

582
00:33:07.400 --> 00:33:14.440
of discipline. This might this mention of discipline might be

583
00:33:14.480 --> 00:33:16.720
interpreted as God's way of preparing his people for the

584
00:33:16.759 --> 00:33:20.200
coming judgment on Jerusalem. The author calls the recipients to

585
00:33:20.279 --> 00:33:23.279
view their current trial to the part of God's refining process,

586
00:33:23.480 --> 00:33:27.319
helping them to trust Christ rather than the templar sacrificial system. Hey,

587
00:33:27.599 --> 00:33:31.000
you trust in Christ, trust in the because I'm taking

588
00:33:31.039 --> 00:33:33.480
everything away from you, and see that I'm doing this

589
00:33:33.559 --> 00:33:39.279
in a chastening way. The destruction of Jerusalem could be

590
00:33:39.359 --> 00:33:42.440
understood by some as a divine judgment on the old

591
00:33:42.480 --> 00:33:51.680
covenant system, reinforcing the urgency of staying faithful to Christ. Possibly,

592
00:33:51.759 --> 00:33:56.359
but chasening is involved. Israel, over and over and over

593
00:33:56.640 --> 00:33:58.880
did not do what they were supposed to do. They failed,

594
00:33:58.880 --> 00:34:02.240
they failed, they failed, they failed, they failed. Well, guess what.

595
00:34:02.839 --> 00:34:05.839
All of that old system is going away, and now

596
00:34:05.880 --> 00:34:08.880
you need to put your focus in Christ. That's where

597
00:34:08.880 --> 00:34:11.360
you needed to be pointed to, and you could think

598
00:34:11.360 --> 00:34:13.639
about it. In some ways, they have failed to see

599
00:34:13.719 --> 00:34:17.800
Christ when he came. So this is chastening. And I'm

600
00:34:17.800 --> 00:34:19.760
going to take all of these other things away that

601
00:34:19.880 --> 00:34:22.599
pointed to Christ because Christ now has come and He

602
00:34:22.639 --> 00:34:25.360
has fulfilled all of these things. You missed the entire

603
00:34:25.559 --> 00:34:27.960
thing that they were pointing to. You missed it, You

604
00:34:28.039 --> 00:34:31.480
missed everything. Now there's chasening. But that doesn't mean God

605
00:34:31.559 --> 00:34:34.079
is done with Israel, because we believe God will then

606
00:34:34.119 --> 00:34:36.960
still fulfill his promises at a later time. But in

607
00:34:37.000 --> 00:34:39.480
the meantime they've been set aside so that the Gentiles

608
00:34:39.519 --> 00:34:41.760
could being crafted in. We could go to Romans and

609
00:34:41.800 --> 00:34:45.559
we could talk about all of that. So this chasening

610
00:34:45.599 --> 00:34:47.480
here would be more directed towards it. I know we

611
00:34:47.599 --> 00:34:49.880
like to make it about us, but it's more within

612
00:34:49.920 --> 00:34:52.880
that context. It's referring to that. I think the chasening

613
00:34:52.920 --> 00:34:55.840
that they are enduring, which is about to be seventy

614
00:34:55.880 --> 00:34:56.880
eight d.

615
00:35:00.119 --> 00:35:01.320
Another thing that could be.

616
00:35:01.280 --> 00:35:06.559
Possibly mentioned here is Hebrews often uses language it would

617
00:35:06.559 --> 00:35:09.840
be more associated with eschatology, kind of an end Times

618
00:35:10.000 --> 00:35:14.719
kind of language. At times it talks about warnings, it

619
00:35:14.760 --> 00:35:19.039
talks about impending judgment. It the emphasizes the need for

620
00:35:19.159 --> 00:35:24.079
faith and perseverance. This kind of language is used at

621
00:35:24.079 --> 00:35:29.039
different times in Hebrews. Now the destruction of Jerusalem in

622
00:35:29.079 --> 00:35:33.880
AD seventy would be seen, I think, not just it

623
00:35:33.920 --> 00:35:36.800
would be I'm going to try to be politically correct here.

624
00:35:37.199 --> 00:35:39.239
I think I'm gonna I'm actually I'm not gonna be

625
00:35:39.280 --> 00:35:42.800
so politically correct. I think anyone who actually reads Matthew

626
00:35:42.880 --> 00:35:48.000
twenty four and cares at all about context and reading

627
00:35:49.719 --> 00:35:53.760
reading comprehension would understand that Matthew twenty four was a

628
00:35:53.800 --> 00:35:56.679
warning about the coming destruction of the temple in A

629
00:35:56.840 --> 00:35:59.119
D seventy You may say there's parts of that that

630
00:35:59.199 --> 00:36:02.199
go beyond A and I can agree with that, But

631
00:36:02.239 --> 00:36:06.519
the primary focus on Matthew twenty four is about what's

632
00:36:06.559 --> 00:36:09.719
going to happen in seventy a D.

633
00:36:10.960 --> 00:36:12.360
And in Matthew twenty.

634
00:36:12.119 --> 00:36:15.280
Four you have clearly the description of the fall of Jerusalem,

635
00:36:15.360 --> 00:36:19.679
possibly with future events tied to eschatology.

636
00:36:20.039 --> 00:36:21.280
You have the two concepts.

637
00:36:21.320 --> 00:36:26.039
So Hebrews uses sometimes language associated with eschatology, but because

638
00:36:26.079 --> 00:36:29.239
in many minds I mean, I mean, seventy a D

639
00:36:29.519 --> 00:36:33.079
is an event in eschatology that anyone's going to study

640
00:36:33.159 --> 00:36:34.440
eschatology has to know.

641
00:36:34.519 --> 00:36:35.199
Seventy a D.

642
00:36:35.440 --> 00:36:39.960
Why because so many times we take passages and we say, oh,

643
00:36:40.199 --> 00:36:42.440
that's prophesying the end times. They're like, no, that was

644
00:36:42.480 --> 00:36:45.400
actually prophesying seventy a D. Oh, oh, this is about

645
00:36:45.400 --> 00:36:47.679
the fut that's actually talking about seventy a D.

646
00:36:48.400 --> 00:36:50.360
So many times that gets completely forgotten.

647
00:36:50.400 --> 00:36:52.440
Seventy eight D is like one of these events every

648
00:36:52.519 --> 00:36:53.480
Christian has to know.

649
00:36:54.239 --> 00:36:55.159
Matthew twenty four.

650
00:36:55.400 --> 00:36:57.599
Everyone wants to run to it for Bible prophecy, but

651
00:36:57.679 --> 00:36:59.800
it was primarily prophesying what was going to happen is

652
00:36:59.800 --> 00:37:02.440
say and Dad. So in a sense, seventy eight was

653
00:37:02.440 --> 00:37:08.760
a fulfillment of biblical prophecy. And so Hebrews uses lots

654
00:37:08.760 --> 00:37:12.159
of language that would be associated with eschatology because seventy

655
00:37:12.159 --> 00:37:16.679
eight is a fulfillment, a major fulfillment within Biblical eschatology.

656
00:37:19.119 --> 00:37:22.920
For the original audience, then to run with endurance and

657
00:37:23.000 --> 00:37:25.679
remain faithful to Christ would be critical as they face

658
00:37:25.760 --> 00:37:31.840
not only persecution but also philological upheaval of the Temple's destruction.

659
00:37:32.639 --> 00:37:33.920
So run with endurance.

660
00:37:34.079 --> 00:37:38.239
Yeah, you're gonna have to endure because well, this absolutely

661
00:37:38.320 --> 00:37:43.119
crazy thing is about to occur. So when we look

662
00:37:43.119 --> 00:37:46.719
at Hebrews twelve and all of it, there's a warning

663
00:37:46.719 --> 00:37:49.800
against don't go back, move forward, a warning againts returning

664
00:37:49.880 --> 00:37:53.639
to Judaism. There's a call to endure in a time

665
00:37:53.679 --> 00:37:57.239
of crisis. That crisis is the coming destruction seventy eight D.

666
00:37:57.920 --> 00:38:03.199
See God's discipline and chastisement within these horrible events. And

667
00:38:03.239 --> 00:38:06.480
when you see this language that may sound like eschatology

668
00:38:06.559 --> 00:38:08.880
or in times, it's primarily saying.

669
00:38:08.960 --> 00:38:10.800
It's using this language because.

670
00:38:10.559 --> 00:38:15.239
Seventy a D is a major event in eschatology, right,

671
00:38:17.119 --> 00:38:21.039
and then well, I could do more here, but then

672
00:38:21.079 --> 00:38:22.400
it gets later into the chapter.

673
00:38:22.719 --> 00:38:24.079
So I think we could say this.

674
00:38:24.440 --> 00:38:27.320
The destruction of the Temple and Jerusalem would underscore the

675
00:38:27.320 --> 00:38:31.679
philological arguments of Hebrews that Christ is the true high Priest,

676
00:38:31.719 --> 00:38:34.559
the perfect sacrifice, and the mediator of a better covenant.

677
00:38:35.000 --> 00:38:38.800
While Hebrews twelve one through seven primarily addresses perseverance and

678
00:38:38.840 --> 00:38:41.719
the face of persecution, it's a message of enduring faith

679
00:38:41.719 --> 00:38:45.079
and reliance of Christ. Would also fortify the recipients as

680
00:38:45.119 --> 00:38:49.559
they face the cataclysmic events of seventy a d and

681
00:38:49.679 --> 00:38:55.880
the definitive end of the old covenant system. It would

682
00:38:55.880 --> 00:38:59.199
be gone. There would be no old covenant system to

683
00:38:59.239 --> 00:39:06.320
go back to. That's the context here, that's the content.

684
00:39:06.480 --> 00:39:09.440
I know, it sounds like if I try to teach

685
00:39:09.480 --> 00:39:10.639
it that way, everybody's like.

686
00:39:10.679 --> 00:39:11.760
No, no, no, no.

687
00:39:12.039 --> 00:39:14.559
I've heard a million sermons on Hebrews twelve and I know,

688
00:39:14.599 --> 00:39:20.599
and they're all about you. So what he is saying, Hey, guys,

689
00:39:20.599 --> 00:39:23.800
we need to endure. We need encouragement to endure.

690
00:39:24.320 --> 00:39:26.800
And what's that encouragement? Look to Jesus.

691
00:39:27.119 --> 00:39:30.639
Well, okay, first it applies to the original recipients.

692
00:39:30.719 --> 00:39:31.920
How does it apply to us.

693
00:39:31.960 --> 00:39:35.480
Well, we'll see if we can offer some application to it.

694
00:39:35.599 --> 00:39:37.519
But we got to be very careful what we do

695
00:39:37.599 --> 00:39:39.920
with this. Let's see what he has to say.

696
00:39:41.800 --> 00:39:43.400
But if you put your eye on the Lord Jesus

697
00:39:43.519 --> 00:39:46.760
Christ and follow after him, you'll be able to endure.

698
00:39:47.159 --> 00:39:49.239
Hebrews Chapter twelve, verses one to four.

699
00:39:51.480 --> 00:39:55.519
Okay, now that's a dogmatic statement. If you put your

700
00:39:55.599 --> 00:39:59.679
eyes on Jesus, you will have the strength to endure.

701
00:39:59.800 --> 00:40:03.239
You'll be able to endure. Now, what do you see.

702
00:40:03.440 --> 00:40:06.920
We talked about false comfort, We've talked about that. That's

703
00:40:06.960 --> 00:40:12.960
just a dogmatic claim. There's no explanation. So what does

704
00:40:12.960 --> 00:40:16.039
that mean? Hey, hey, if and again, I know I

705
00:40:16.199 --> 00:40:19.519
use these extreme examples that nobody in church likes to

706
00:40:19.559 --> 00:40:22.960
talk about because it makes people very, very uncomfortable. And

707
00:40:23.000 --> 00:40:25.400
I know you people get very defensive when I say

708
00:40:25.440 --> 00:40:29.719
these things. But I'm sick and tired of people not

709
00:40:30.440 --> 00:40:32.800
being willing to look at the real world. All right,

710
00:40:33.000 --> 00:40:35.840
So just to imagine this, all right, Hey, Hey, I

711
00:40:35.920 --> 00:40:39.800
know you're currently being molested by maybe a religious leader,

712
00:40:39.840 --> 00:40:42.599
you're being molested by a family member. Hey, just look

713
00:40:42.679 --> 00:40:47.159
to Jesus and you can endure it? Does looking to

714
00:40:47.239 --> 00:40:56.960
Jesus help you endure being molested? Just last night we

715
00:40:57.039 --> 00:41:03.320
got news of someone who they're one year old, had

716
00:41:03.360 --> 00:41:13.559
a seizure and the one year old died. Just look

717
00:41:13.599 --> 00:41:16.360
to Jesus and you will endure. How does looking to

718
00:41:16.519 --> 00:41:25.199
Jesus help you endure that? Now, looking to Jesus for

719
00:41:25.280 --> 00:41:29.400
the people in the context of Hebrews twelve makes sense.

720
00:41:29.679 --> 00:41:32.159
Look to Jesus because all this stuff that's going to

721
00:41:32.199 --> 00:41:35.920
be destroyed, your entire religious system is about to be destroyed.

722
00:41:35.920 --> 00:41:39.239
But Jesus fulfills it. He's a better priest, he is

723
00:41:39.280 --> 00:41:41.360
a better sacrifice.

724
00:41:40.679 --> 00:41:43.320
He's a better Ah. See now that makes sense, right,

725
00:41:43.800 --> 00:41:44.159
But we.

726
00:41:44.280 --> 00:41:47.639
Take it like, hey, you've got cancer, Just look to

727
00:41:47.760 --> 00:41:51.519
Jesus and you will endure it. So I get what happens?

728
00:41:51.559 --> 00:41:53.840
I look at you, I'm looking to Jesus. Get Do

729
00:41:53.920 --> 00:41:55.719
I get physical strength?

730
00:41:57.840 --> 00:41:58.559
What do I get?

731
00:41:58.840 --> 00:41:59.039
See?

732
00:41:59.039 --> 00:42:01.320
If you're gonna tell me, If I look at Jesus,

733
00:42:01.400 --> 00:42:02.360
I can endure.

734
00:42:02.599 --> 00:42:03.639
How does that work?

735
00:42:03.719 --> 00:42:07.559
Do I get supernatural spirit? Do I get physical strength?

736
00:42:07.719 --> 00:42:13.679
Do I get more medical What do I get? Hey?

737
00:42:13.840 --> 00:42:16.719
If you're suffering, look to Jesus and you can endure it.

738
00:42:16.840 --> 00:42:18.840
Like, what does that mean? What does that even I

739
00:42:18.840 --> 00:42:20.000
don't even know what that means.

740
00:42:20.159 --> 00:42:22.239
That sounds like a little cliche we put on a

741
00:42:22.280 --> 00:42:26.400
bumper sticker. Look to Jesus and you can endure Okay, great,

742
00:42:26.679 --> 00:42:28.320
I look, I'm looking at you. How do I look

743
00:42:28.320 --> 00:42:32.079
to Jesus? Do I just say Jesus, Jesus, okay, our

744
00:42:32.119 --> 00:42:34.320
bad things are happening. I know I've got cancer and

745
00:42:34.400 --> 00:42:37.360
I'm gonna be I'm gonna slowly my body is gonna

746
00:42:37.400 --> 00:42:40.480
just fade away, and I'm gonna get weaker, and it's

747
00:42:40.519 --> 00:42:43.400
gonna have devastating impacts on how I look, on how

748
00:42:43.400 --> 00:42:45.960
I feel. I'm gonna be throwing up. I'm gonna be

749
00:42:46.159 --> 00:42:48.360
all these I'm just gonna look to Jesus, look at

750
00:42:48.400 --> 00:42:49.880
I can endure it. I can endure it. I can

751
00:42:49.960 --> 00:42:50.199
endure it.

752
00:42:50.280 --> 00:42:52.400
I can do I can I endure it better than

753
00:42:52.440 --> 00:42:53.840
someone who doesn't have Jesus.

754
00:42:53.960 --> 00:42:57.599
Because I've known atheists who've gone through horrible things and

755
00:42:57.639 --> 00:43:02.159
they endured it pretty good. I've known people of other

756
00:43:02.239 --> 00:43:04.320
religions who have gone through horrible things.

757
00:43:04.480 --> 00:43:06.199
They seem to endure it really well.

758
00:43:07.559 --> 00:43:10.400
I've seen Christians who who go through horrible things and

759
00:43:10.440 --> 00:43:14.440
they have very difficult times and sometimes fall apart. Well,

760
00:43:14.559 --> 00:43:20.679
did they not look to Jesus? See, it's it's just

761
00:43:20.719 --> 00:43:25.519
a it's just a look to Jesus and you can endure. Well,

762
00:43:25.719 --> 00:43:28.239
maybe maybe we'll slow down, slow down. Now, you're right.

763
00:43:28.760 --> 00:43:32.480
If I look to Jesus, I can't endure the entire

764
00:43:32.599 --> 00:43:36.639
destruction of a religious system that will not save me.

765
00:43:37.199 --> 00:43:37.519
I can't.

766
00:43:37.679 --> 00:43:38.840
Yeah, I can endure that.

767
00:43:48.239 --> 00:43:50.239
See, I know if some of you getting very defensive

768
00:43:50.320 --> 00:43:53.360
right now, I know you're you're like, what do you say?

769
00:43:53.559 --> 00:43:54.760
If I look at Jesus, I.

770
00:43:54.679 --> 00:43:58.639
Can adore anything. Okay, well go good for you, But

771
00:43:58.800 --> 00:44:01.760
maybe just don't be so agmatic, and maybe maybe don't

772
00:44:01.760 --> 00:44:03.840
be so judgmental when some other person seems to be

773
00:44:03.840 --> 00:44:07.199
struggling because they may not quite have figured out what

774
00:44:07.199 --> 00:44:08.960
it means to just look to Jesus and all of

775
00:44:09.000 --> 00:44:10.400
a sudden, dun dun du du.

776
00:44:11.079 --> 00:44:11.920
I can endure it.

777
00:44:13.679 --> 00:44:16.440
I can make it through it. I have no power,

778
00:44:17.400 --> 00:44:20.000
I see. You know, I'm very critical of that way

779
00:44:20.039 --> 00:44:22.800
of thinking. That's why we have that entire series on

780
00:44:23.119 --> 00:44:25.599
false comfort. In fact, I may have to put this there.

781
00:44:25.679 --> 00:44:27.440
I need to put this in the sermon's two point oh,

782
00:44:27.480 --> 00:44:34.320
app series, it needs to be in both places. But

783
00:44:34.840 --> 00:44:37.559
he gave that in a very sorry I can't help

784
00:44:37.599 --> 00:44:39.400
you with that. Oh yeah, I know you can't help

785
00:44:39.400 --> 00:44:40.920
me with that. See, Sirih can't help me with that.

786
00:44:40.960 --> 00:44:42.639
Sirih can't help me. I know, I know she can't

787
00:44:42.639 --> 00:44:45.159
help me. Nobody can help me because there's not a

788
00:44:45.199 --> 00:44:51.159
good answer here. Okay. Unfortunately that that occurs sometimes because

789
00:44:51.400 --> 00:44:55.679
it's always listening to me. But I know it makes

790
00:44:55.679 --> 00:44:58.360
people uncomfortable. I know people don't like when I say

791
00:44:58.400 --> 00:45:00.960
things like this. You can always feel like I'm in

792
00:45:01.000 --> 00:45:03.719
a room. I don't I'm not anywhere near any of you,

793
00:45:03.880 --> 00:45:06.760
but I can feel the temperature change. Right, It's like

794
00:45:06.800 --> 00:45:09.159
a cold front moves in and I'm like, go oh,

795
00:45:09.199 --> 00:45:12.039
I just ticked off half the audience. But would you

796
00:45:12.079 --> 00:45:14.320
want would you do you want me to be just?

797
00:45:14.440 --> 00:45:18.599
Do you want me to just give church talk church speech?

798
00:45:18.880 --> 00:45:21.280
Or would you rather be honest and realistic?

799
00:45:27.400 --> 00:45:27.599
Now?

800
00:45:27.719 --> 00:45:32.159
If I so, if I look to Jesus during horrible situation,

801
00:45:34.239 --> 00:45:36.599
a couple of just note how this can all backfire,

802
00:45:36.760 --> 00:45:39.079
or you're going through this horrible situation, just look to

803
00:45:39.199 --> 00:45:41.400
Jesus and you can endure where a person say, I'm

804
00:45:41.440 --> 00:45:43.880
looking to Jesus and he's not fixing my situation.

805
00:45:44.119 --> 00:45:46.480
I'm looking to Jesus, he's not making it better. I'm

806
00:45:46.519 --> 00:45:47.280
looking to Jesus.

807
00:45:47.400 --> 00:45:49.920
He's not healing this person. I'm looking to Jesus and

808
00:45:49.960 --> 00:45:52.480
the person still died. I'm looking to Jesus and my

809
00:45:52.559 --> 00:45:56.119
situation got worse. That could backfire. Some people say, well,

810
00:45:56.119 --> 00:45:59.119
you told me to look to Jesus and they still died.

811
00:45:59.320 --> 00:46:00.280
It didn't get better.

812
00:46:00.480 --> 00:46:02.760
See that's the problem with telling people to look to

813
00:46:02.840 --> 00:46:07.000
Jesus without any explanation. Now, if I say, look to Jesus,

814
00:46:07.280 --> 00:46:09.679
and when you look to Jesus, you will see that

815
00:46:09.760 --> 00:46:12.760
he has died for you, and that his righteousness has

816
00:46:12.800 --> 00:46:16.559
been imputed to you by faith alone. Therefore you are

817
00:46:16.719 --> 00:46:19.239
guaranteed that there will come a time there'll be no

818
00:46:19.280 --> 00:46:22.000
more pain, no more suffering, and no more death. Now

819
00:46:22.360 --> 00:46:25.320
that may give you the hope of there's a hope

820
00:46:25.559 --> 00:46:28.440
some twenty years from now, forty years from now, fifty

821
00:46:28.519 --> 00:46:30.199
years from now, depending on how old you are when

822
00:46:30.239 --> 00:46:32.599
you're going to pass away, or if Jesus returns. But

823
00:46:32.679 --> 00:46:34.960
that's for somewhere down the road. It may give you

824
00:46:35.119 --> 00:46:39.079
endurance for that but you can't say that looking to

825
00:46:39.159 --> 00:46:41.559
him is going to what's going to help you endure

826
00:46:41.679 --> 00:46:44.599
the current situation. It may lead you to more despair.

827
00:46:44.840 --> 00:46:48.960
That everyone's going to be honest with that. I mean,

828
00:46:49.000 --> 00:46:51.679
people told me to look to Jesus when I got

829
00:46:51.679 --> 00:46:54.480
the tragic news of my mother being in the hospital,

830
00:46:54.599 --> 00:46:56.920
and I look to Jesus. I left the hospital and

831
00:46:56.960 --> 00:47:00.920
spent twenty four hours inside a church begging and pleading God,

832
00:47:01.079 --> 00:47:03.639
and my mother died. So I looked at Jesus and

833
00:47:03.679 --> 00:47:08.599
it did not make it better, and which I was

834
00:47:08.639 --> 00:47:11.239
confused by it. At that point, I'm like, wait a minute,

835
00:47:11.239 --> 00:47:13.480
I've become a Christian. I'm no longer doing this. I'm

836
00:47:13.480 --> 00:47:15.559
no longer doing this. I'm trying to do the right thing.

837
00:47:15.559 --> 00:47:18.039
I'm not doing it perfectly, but I'm trying. I'm reading

838
00:47:18.079 --> 00:47:19.760
my Bible, I go to church. I don't miss the

839
00:47:19.840 --> 00:47:23.280
church that I read the Bible more than anybody. I'm studying.

840
00:47:23.320 --> 00:47:26.320
I'm doing Bible studies, I'm doing devotionals, I'm listening to

841
00:47:26.400 --> 00:47:28.800
Christian music. I'm trying to live a godly life, and

842
00:47:29.000 --> 00:47:31.800
boom when things go wrong. I looked at Jesus and

843
00:47:31.840 --> 00:47:40.000
my mom still dies and I'm young. Oh, but Jesus

844
00:47:40.000 --> 00:47:40.840
helped you endure?

845
00:47:43.119 --> 00:47:44.719
Is that what I was supposed to take from that?

846
00:47:45.679 --> 00:47:45.880
How?

847
00:47:46.079 --> 00:47:47.800
How? How did he help me endure that?

848
00:47:55.079 --> 00:47:56.519
See that?

849
00:47:56.519 --> 00:47:59.119
That's just a it's just a I know, this is

850
00:47:59.159 --> 00:48:01.440
the way preaching is supposed to be done. I understand.

851
00:48:01.480 --> 00:48:04.119
You're just supposed to look at everyone. Hey, everyone, no

852
00:48:04.119 --> 00:48:07.199
matter what you're going through, look to Jesus and you

853
00:48:07.239 --> 00:48:09.599
can endure it. I know that's what you're supposed to

854
00:48:09.639 --> 00:48:13.400
say in a sermon. But that's why I'm so frustrated

855
00:48:13.440 --> 00:48:15.159
with the sermon structure.

856
00:48:17.760 --> 00:48:18.960
What does that mean?

857
00:48:19.199 --> 00:48:21.800
Is he going to explain it?

858
00:48:21.840 --> 00:48:25.920
Places us in the colosseum, if you will here in

859
00:48:25.920 --> 00:48:29.320
this text in very picturesque terms, the spirit of God

860
00:48:29.760 --> 00:48:33.800
surrounds us with many witnesses as we begin the running

861
00:48:34.119 --> 00:48:37.920
of our race. Hebrews twelve, verses one through four paints

862
00:48:37.960 --> 00:48:40.760
a picture for all of us, a picture so that

863
00:48:40.800 --> 00:48:44.920
we can understand that we're compassed about with many witnesses. Wherefore,

864
00:48:45.000 --> 00:48:47.920
seeing we are compassed about with so great a cloud

865
00:48:47.920 --> 00:48:51.039
of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight in the

866
00:48:51.079 --> 00:48:54.519
sin that does so easily beset us. The passage speaks

867
00:48:54.760 --> 00:48:59.599
of a great cloud. The word here translated great cloud

868
00:48:59.639 --> 00:49:05.599
is the green nephosfole. It means a massive cloud. And

869
00:49:05.639 --> 00:49:09.239
the witnesses that are spoken of here? Who might these

870
00:49:09.239 --> 00:49:13.719
witnesses be? Well? In studying this particular verse, there are

871
00:49:13.719 --> 00:49:17.320
two strong opinions when we ask the question, who are

872
00:49:17.320 --> 00:49:21.719
the witnesses that form this cloud that watch us in

873
00:49:21.800 --> 00:49:25.440
our race? Some hold to what we would consider to

874
00:49:25.480 --> 00:49:30.039
be the spectator view. The spectator view. The spectator view

875
00:49:30.119 --> 00:49:34.960
recommends that perhaps the cloud of witnesses represents the witnesses

876
00:49:35.000 --> 00:49:39.320
who are watching us from heaven. After all, Verse one

877
00:49:39.400 --> 00:49:42.960
begins with that word wherefore, And if we know our Bibles,

878
00:49:42.960 --> 00:49:46.679
we're supposed to pause and ask what is it? Therefore? Well,

879
00:49:46.719 --> 00:49:49.239
when we look at what this wherefore is there? For

880
00:49:50.199 --> 00:49:52.920
we're reminded that we've just come through Hebrews chapter eleven,

881
00:49:52.920 --> 00:49:55.639
which is the Great Hall of Faith. And in that

882
00:49:55.679 --> 00:49:58.599
great Hall of faith, eighteen great champions of the faith

883
00:49:58.639 --> 00:50:03.000
are named for us to consider their witness, the witness

884
00:50:03.000 --> 00:50:06.440
of those who have gone before us, and perhaps say

885
00:50:06.559 --> 00:50:12.119
some they are now having run their race in heavenly places.

886
00:50:12.519 --> 00:50:17.360
The spectators who are looking down and watching us as

887
00:50:17.400 --> 00:50:20.960
we run. And those who hold to that view would say,

888
00:50:21.480 --> 00:50:24.760
don't you realize that? In Luke chapter fifteen, the Bible

889
00:50:24.800 --> 00:50:28.280
talks about joy in the presence of the angels over

890
00:50:28.360 --> 00:50:32.559
one sinner, one earthly sinner who's come to repentance, and

891
00:50:32.599 --> 00:50:36.840
don't we realize that? According to Matthew seventeen, Moses and Elijah,

892
00:50:36.840 --> 00:50:39.599
who had already been transported into heaven, were back on

893
00:50:39.639 --> 00:50:43.719
the Mount of Transfiguration having a conversation with Jesus about

894
00:50:43.760 --> 00:50:47.039
earthly things. In other words, people in heaven are aware

895
00:50:47.079 --> 00:50:49.320
of what's going on on earth, and so this cloud

896
00:50:49.360 --> 00:50:52.639
of witnesses, say some is a cloud of heavenly witnesses.

897
00:50:52.679 --> 00:50:57.760
First Samuel chapter twenty eight tells us that Saul was

898
00:50:58.519 --> 00:51:01.800
having a difficult time in battle, and so he went

899
00:51:01.840 --> 00:51:05.880
to the Witch of Endor, who conjured up Samuel and Samuel,

900
00:51:05.880 --> 00:51:07.920
who had already gone into the presence of the Lord

901
00:51:08.480 --> 00:51:12.880
in heaven. Samuel came back and spoke to Saul about

902
00:51:12.920 --> 00:51:18.280
things on her In his commentary on Hebrews, Seiss says

903
00:51:18.960 --> 00:51:23.599
the text intimates that the spirit existence after death is

904
00:51:23.639 --> 00:51:27.199
so nearly related to the present life that the sainted

905
00:51:27.360 --> 00:51:33.960
dead are cognizant of the actions of the living. This

906
00:51:34.039 --> 00:51:38.000
is the spectator view. I have to tell you when

907
00:51:38.000 --> 00:51:40.599
my mother passed away, way back in nineteen eighty two,

908
00:51:41.880 --> 00:51:45.800
my wife was expecting her first, my mother's first grandchild.

909
00:51:47.159 --> 00:51:50.440
My mother had already been informed that her granddaughter would

910
00:51:50.519 --> 00:51:54.559
have her name. But my mother passed in March, and

911
00:51:54.599 --> 00:51:58.840
that grandchild was born in June. The question that crossed

912
00:51:58.880 --> 00:52:01.679
my mind, as I'm sure it was cross yours, was this,

913
00:52:02.480 --> 00:52:05.400
does my mother, who's now in heaven, know that she's

914
00:52:05.440 --> 00:52:09.039
become the grandmother of a granddaughter who carries her name?

915
00:52:09.719 --> 00:52:13.400
Did she know? Some would say yes, and they would

916
00:52:13.480 --> 00:52:18.920
put there yes in this great cloud of witnesses.

917
00:52:20.199 --> 00:52:29.880
That see, that's emotional. That's what would be the word.

918
00:52:29.920 --> 00:52:36.079
It's emotional. It tugs on our heart, right, this idea.

919
00:52:36.119 --> 00:52:42.440
But Hebrews twelve is not about your grandmother, your mother

920
00:52:42.599 --> 00:52:46.360
seeing the birth of her grandchild. It's not about someone

921
00:52:46.440 --> 00:52:50.320
seeing the birth of a grandch It's not about that.

922
00:52:50.400 --> 00:52:53.199
This great cloud of witnesses has something to do with

923
00:52:53.239 --> 00:52:55.960
these people and the encourage. And if you're going to

924
00:52:56.000 --> 00:52:58.480
say this is encouragement, something they need to know with

925
00:52:58.519 --> 00:53:02.000
what they're facing, which is the coming destruction of Jerusalem

926
00:53:02.039 --> 00:53:06.480
and seventy a d now this turns into a discussion

927
00:53:06.519 --> 00:53:09.960
about so. Now, when you talk about that, then guess what. Ever,

928
00:53:10.000 --> 00:53:12.480
when people listening to this sermon, what they're going to

929
00:53:12.559 --> 00:53:16.239
talk about is, oh, no, I believe that. So and

930
00:53:16.280 --> 00:53:19.119
so they passed and they watch and they see what

931
00:53:19.199 --> 00:53:21.960
I do. They're in heaven and they see what I do.

932
00:53:22.039 --> 00:53:25.039
And I find great comfort that they see what I'm doing.

933
00:53:25.719 --> 00:53:28.679
Well do they see everything? I mean? Like, I like,

934
00:53:29.960 --> 00:53:33.239
so we've got all these people watching us, like, and

935
00:53:33.280 --> 00:53:39.440
now it becomes about us. Now, if we interpret Hebrews twelve,

936
00:53:40.599 --> 00:53:43.559
verse one and light of the coming destruction of Jerusalem

937
00:53:43.880 --> 00:53:48.920
and the temple destruction obviously seventy eight, I think it

938
00:53:49.039 --> 00:53:53.920
takes on a more of a sense of urgency and

939
00:53:54.239 --> 00:53:57.239
a more specific theological focus. Say, if we turn it

940
00:53:57.280 --> 00:53:59.880
into oh wait, with this cloud of witnesses, could be

941
00:54:00.199 --> 00:54:02.280
and could be this and wait, it could be about uh,

942
00:54:02.320 --> 00:54:05.199
it could be about people who went before us watching us.

943
00:54:05.360 --> 00:54:08.880
In that comforting to know, yes they saw you graduate

944
00:54:08.880 --> 00:54:11.639
from high school. Yes they saw that, they saw you

945
00:54:11.719 --> 00:54:12.679
what you accomplished.

946
00:54:12.719 --> 00:54:13.719
They're proud of you.

947
00:54:14.320 --> 00:54:21.440
I know that gives us some kind of sentimental emotional feelings.

948
00:54:21.480 --> 00:54:23.679
But I just don't know if that's what the text

949
00:54:23.880 --> 00:54:28.559
is about. This verse seems to be calling the original

950
00:54:28.559 --> 00:54:33.599
recipients to perseverance and faithfulness, which would have course been

951
00:54:33.800 --> 00:54:38.360
very relevant as they faced the impending collapse of the

952
00:54:38.480 --> 00:54:42.840
old covenant system and the destruction of the temple, which

953
00:54:42.840 --> 00:54:48.480
would have taken away everything. So how would we interpret

954
00:54:48.519 --> 00:54:50.599
it if we if we interpret Hebrews twelve to one

955
00:54:50.679 --> 00:54:55.360
more in light of its original context, Well, we are

956
00:54:55.400 --> 00:54:59.440
surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses. Well, the

957
00:54:59.480 --> 00:55:02.159
witnesses would seem to me to refer to the people

958
00:55:02.480 --> 00:55:09.079
listed in Hebrews Chapter eleven. These individuals suffered well, uncertainty,

959
00:55:09.280 --> 00:55:15.239
they suffered persecution, and they trusted in God's promises even

960
00:55:15.280 --> 00:55:19.440
when those promises were not fully realized in their lifetimes.

961
00:55:19.440 --> 00:55:21.840
And we see that in Hebrews chapter eleven, verse thirteen,

962
00:55:22.000 --> 00:55:25.360
and verses thirty nine through forty. There was promises, There

963
00:55:25.400 --> 00:55:26.280
was things given.

964
00:55:26.239 --> 00:55:27.639
They didn't see the fulfillment of.

965
00:55:28.000 --> 00:55:32.000
They saw a lot of difficulty, pain, suffering, failure, death,

966
00:55:32.079 --> 00:55:34.440
they saw a lot of other things, but they held

967
00:55:34.480 --> 00:55:35.519
on to these promises.

968
00:55:35.599 --> 00:55:36.400
Could this not be?

969
00:55:36.519 --> 00:55:40.119
Hey, guys, look at them, and in similar way, you

970
00:55:40.360 --> 00:55:44.079
are Jews, right, you were Hebrews just like they were

971
00:55:44.159 --> 00:55:47.559
Jews in Hebrews, right, They just like they were giving promises.

972
00:55:47.760 --> 00:55:50.880
You've been given promises. God is not done with Israel.

973
00:55:50.960 --> 00:55:53.559
But you're gonna go through some difficult times. There's gonna

974
00:55:53.559 --> 00:55:57.400
be uncertainty, there's gonna be persecution, there's gonna be chastisement.

975
00:55:57.679 --> 00:56:01.599
But hold on by faith, look to Christ because he

976
00:56:01.679 --> 00:56:04.719
takes care of because that's what everything has been pointing to. Anyway,

977
00:56:04.920 --> 00:56:08.039
and remember the covenant promises that has been made with

978
00:56:08.079 --> 00:56:16.800
you see, for the original audience, those witnesses would be

979
00:56:17.239 --> 00:56:21.800
examples that reinforce the call to faith, especially as they

980
00:56:21.840 --> 00:56:26.239
face social, religious, and political pressures during the volatile years

981
00:56:26.360 --> 00:56:31.400
leading up to seventy a d. The destruction of the

982
00:56:31.440 --> 00:56:36.960
temple would have been catastrophic to them, but the faithful

983
00:56:37.039 --> 00:56:40.960
witnesses remind them that God's promises do not depend on

984
00:56:41.039 --> 00:56:46.159
earthly institutions. These faithful witnesses in Hebrews eleven would have

985
00:56:46.199 --> 00:56:50.000
been like, hey, hey, hey, God's promises survive no matter

986
00:56:50.039 --> 00:56:55.639
what institutions are there. Not there arise fall, God's promises

987
00:56:55.719 --> 00:57:06.480
remain well. Israel has very specific promises. The destruction of

988
00:57:06.519 --> 00:57:10.000
the temple would have been a perceived wit I think

989
00:57:10.039 --> 00:57:12.280
I think this is an accurate statement, would have been

990
00:57:12.320 --> 00:57:14.920
perceived as the end of God's covenant with his people.

991
00:57:15.320 --> 00:57:17.440
That would have felt like it's over. God has done

992
00:57:17.480 --> 00:57:19.239
with us. God has finished with us.

993
00:57:20.440 --> 00:57:23.559
But by pointing to the witnesses and Hebrews eleven, the

994
00:57:23.599 --> 00:57:28.840
author would be highlighting that faith has always transcended physical location, rituals,

995
00:57:28.880 --> 00:57:33.639
or institutions. Just as the witnesses trusted in God's ultimate plan,

996
00:57:34.039 --> 00:57:37.880
so should the readers of Hebrews trust that God is

997
00:57:37.920 --> 00:57:39.599
working through the coming judgment.

998
00:57:42.519 --> 00:57:45.280
Those specific witnesses would have had.

999
00:57:45.119 --> 00:57:49.280
Specific meaning to the original recipients, especially because they were Jewish.

1000
00:57:49.400 --> 00:57:56.880
Because they were Jews. I don't think this turns into way,

1001
00:57:57.079 --> 00:58:00.400
so who who are the witnesses now? I think the

1002
00:58:00.440 --> 00:58:03.039
witnesses would have to be Hebrews chapter eleven. I mean

1003
00:58:03.119 --> 00:58:05.400
it starts with therefore it has.

1004
00:58:05.280 --> 00:58:07.039
To go back to Hebrews chapter eleven.

1005
00:58:07.280 --> 00:58:09.400
I don't know if this turns into well, do people

1006
00:58:09.400 --> 00:58:12.639
in heaven see what you're doing? I don't know what

1007
00:58:12.800 --> 00:58:16.039
that's not. Look, you can have that discussion. I don't

1008
00:58:16.039 --> 00:58:19.639
think that's the point here. We are surrounded by these

1009
00:58:19.679 --> 00:58:24.440
witnesses in the sense that we have, remember the Old Testament.

1010
00:58:25.880 --> 00:58:29.519
These stories have been written, they've been preserved, they've been recorded,

1011
00:58:29.960 --> 00:58:32.360
they've been talked about, they've been taught, they've been preached.

1012
00:58:33.480 --> 00:58:35.519
That's how we're surrounded by them.

1013
00:58:35.880 --> 00:58:37.679
I don't think this has any idea that they're sitting

1014
00:58:37.679 --> 00:58:39.960
in heaven going hmmm, they're watching me.

1015
00:58:40.880 --> 00:58:44.119
No, I've got their witness I've got the stories of

1016
00:58:44.199 --> 00:58:47.920
their lives, those specific things being mentioned about them. Now,

1017
00:58:48.000 --> 00:58:50.880
how does that fit in with people getting ready to

1018
00:58:50.920 --> 00:58:52.000
Phase seventy a D.

1019
00:58:56.760 --> 00:59:00.000
After all, doesn't the Bible tell us in Revelations, chapter

1020
00:59:00.239 --> 00:59:03.679
six of the Tribulation, saints who are under the altar,

1021
00:59:03.760 --> 00:59:06.400
clothed with white raiments and crying out with regard to

1022
00:59:06.440 --> 00:59:09.079
the affairs on earth, How long, oh Lord, faith and true,

1023
00:59:09.800 --> 00:59:12.920
until you avenge our blood? And God tells them to

1024
00:59:12.960 --> 00:59:15.519
go their way and be quiet for just a little while.

1025
00:59:16.440 --> 00:59:19.360
They were interested, these who were in heaven, of the

1026
00:59:19.400 --> 00:59:23.079
things happening on earth. Others say, no, we're not talking

1027
00:59:23.119 --> 00:59:26.599
about heavenly witnesses who are watching from the battlements of heaven.

1028
00:59:27.320 --> 00:59:30.000
We're talking more in this passage than about the witnesses

1029
00:59:30.119 --> 00:59:33.760
who are watching from earth. And there are many passages

1030
00:59:33.800 --> 00:59:36.920
in the Bible that remind us of the necessity of

1031
00:59:36.960 --> 00:59:41.039
being careful about our example, letting our lights so shine

1032
00:59:41.079 --> 00:59:43.159
before men, that they might see our good works and

1033
00:59:43.199 --> 00:59:46.760
glorify the Father which is in heaven. And so, seeing

1034
00:59:46.800 --> 00:59:49.480
we're compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses,

1035
00:59:50.199 --> 00:59:52.159
we should lay aside the weight and the sin that

1036
00:59:52.440 --> 00:59:55.719
does so easily beset us, and run with patients, knowing

1037
00:59:56.000 --> 01:00:03.280
there's someone always watching, there's someone always impacted. That's the

1038
01:00:03.400 --> 01:00:06.519
view that we would call the spectator view. But there's

1039
01:00:06.559 --> 01:00:11.280
also the spokesman view. Well, what's that. Well, back in

1040
01:00:11.320 --> 01:00:13.679
Hebrews chapter eleven and verse four, we read about the

1041
01:00:13.679 --> 01:00:18.039
death of Abel, and with the death of Abel, we

1042
01:00:18.079 --> 01:00:24.159
read this important phrase, he being dead, yet speaks. And

1043
01:00:24.199 --> 01:00:25.920
so there are those who would say, when we see

1044
01:00:25.920 --> 01:00:29.159
the wherefore in chapter twelve, we're supposed to go back

1045
01:00:29.239 --> 01:00:31.599
seeing what it's there for. And we go back to

1046
01:00:31.639 --> 01:00:34.840
Hebrews chapter eleven, and the Hebrews chapter eleven and verse four,

1047
01:00:35.119 --> 01:00:38.760
we recognize that Abel bears a testimony. Even though he's dead,

1048
01:00:39.079 --> 01:00:44.719
he yet speaks, and they're eighteen noteworthies in Hebrews chapter eleven,

1049
01:00:44.880 --> 01:00:50.440
whose lives bear testimony to us. Every day, there witnesses

1050
01:00:50.480 --> 01:00:54.519
to us of the necessity and the joy and the

1051
01:00:54.559 --> 01:00:59.719
blessing of persevering in our spiritual walk. Hebrews twelve and

1052
01:00:59.800 --> 01:01:00.559
verse one.

1053
01:01:00.400 --> 01:01:05.760
Said they were witnesses, and they spoke encouragement to those

1054
01:01:05.800 --> 01:01:06.960
facing seventy a d.

1055
01:01:07.559 --> 01:01:12.159
They were, Oh, I, why why do we?

1056
01:01:12.440 --> 01:01:16.039
Why are we so just unwilling to let the text

1057
01:01:16.119 --> 01:01:19.400
be about who it's about. I don't understand. I'm not

1058
01:01:19.480 --> 01:01:22.920
saying there's application for us, but we're This goes straight

1059
01:01:22.920 --> 01:01:25.159
to application and ignores context.

1060
01:01:25.480 --> 01:01:26.920
He's going to say a couple of more things.

1061
01:01:26.920 --> 01:01:29.079
But but I know we're already at an hour. But

1062
01:01:29.159 --> 01:01:33.519
I want to get to the the because let us

1063
01:01:33.599 --> 01:01:36.320
lay aside every weight and the sin which so easily

1064
01:01:36.400 --> 01:01:39.079
ensnares us. I want to get to that because I've

1065
01:01:39.119 --> 01:01:41.599
heard a million sermons on that, and none of them

1066
01:01:42.159 --> 01:01:44.760
puts it in its historical context. None of them do.

1067
01:01:44.920 --> 01:01:46.679
I don't think I've ever heard of sermon put it

1068
01:01:46.559 --> 01:01:49.159
in its historical context. So I'm going to try here

1069
01:01:49.280 --> 01:01:52.320
just to end this. But let him just finish this statement.

1070
01:01:53.360 --> 01:01:57.440
As in other words, these are witnesses to you that

1071
01:01:57.519 --> 01:02:02.599
you too can run this race effectively. When Napoleon brought

1072
01:02:02.639 --> 01:02:06.639
his troops to Egypt, he stood with the French troops

1073
01:02:06.679 --> 01:02:11.639
before the pyramids and he said, forty centuries are bearing

1074
01:02:11.679 --> 01:02:17.519
witness to your valor today. Much like Napoleon spoke. Some

1075
01:02:17.599 --> 01:02:19.639
say the author of the Book of Hebrews is saying,

1076
01:02:19.920 --> 01:02:22.320
there are those who have gone before us, and their

1077
01:02:22.400 --> 01:02:27.119
testimony speaks to us today. So which is it, Pastor Phelps.

1078
01:02:28.400 --> 01:02:33.079
Is this great cloud of witnesses, spectators in heaven, spectators

1079
01:02:33.079 --> 01:02:37.119
on earth are simply the spokesman the testimonies of those

1080
01:02:37.159 --> 01:02:41.480
who have gone before us. I'm not going to answer

1081
01:02:41.519 --> 01:02:46.639
it for you, because that's not the point of the passage.

1082
01:02:48.280 --> 01:02:51.800
Oh okay, Now I do agree there. That's not the

1083
01:02:51.840 --> 01:02:54.679
point of the passage. I do agree with that. Okay,

1084
01:02:54.800 --> 01:02:56.719
So we're in complete agreement there. So what is he

1085
01:02:56.800 --> 01:02:57.960
going to say?

1086
01:02:59.440 --> 01:03:02.400
The point of the passage is there's a great cloud

1087
01:03:02.440 --> 01:03:08.719
of witnesses. You're being watched, you're being challenged.

1088
01:03:10.760 --> 01:03:14.039
No, no, no, that's not the point of the pass

1089
01:03:14.159 --> 01:03:15.719
The point of the passage is not there's a great

1090
01:03:15.719 --> 01:03:17.840
cloud of witnesses and you are being watched.

1091
01:03:17.960 --> 01:03:20.599
The point was there's a great cloud of witnesses that.

1092
01:03:20.599 --> 01:03:24.320
We're speaking that to the people who were getting ready

1093
01:03:24.320 --> 01:03:28.239
to face the absolute destruction of Jerusalem, of the Temple,

1094
01:03:28.400 --> 01:03:31.440
of their entire nation, and bringing to it the end

1095
01:03:31.679 --> 01:03:33.639
of the old Covenant system.

1096
01:03:34.079 --> 01:03:38.840
That's what it was speaking to. So in light of this,

1097
01:03:39.159 --> 01:03:40.320
what are they called to do?

1098
01:03:40.679 --> 01:03:44.440
So let us lay aside every weight and the sin

1099
01:03:44.800 --> 01:03:51.760
which so easily ensnares us. Now, typically you're now are

1100
01:03:51.880 --> 01:03:56.079
young people. You're running the race of your Christian life.

1101
01:03:56.159 --> 01:03:58.960
You need to identify what are the weights that are

1102
01:03:59.000 --> 01:04:02.280
holding you back. Maybe it's a boyfriend. Maybe it's a girlfriend.

1103
01:04:02.400 --> 01:04:04.880
Maybe it's the music you're listening to. Maybe it's the

1104
01:04:04.880 --> 01:04:07.800
movies you're watching. Maybe it's that video game system. You

1105
01:04:07.880 --> 01:04:09.599
got to get rid of it. Oh, you've heard these

1106
01:04:09.679 --> 01:04:12.039
kind of sermons, right, Hey, what is that sin? There

1107
01:04:12.119 --> 01:04:16.960
is a sin that is ensnaring you? What is that weight?

1108
01:04:17.199 --> 01:04:19.960
What is that sin? I have preached that a million

1109
01:04:20.039 --> 01:04:24.000
times myself. But guess what, because I preach because I

1110
01:04:24.159 --> 01:04:27.719
followed the rules of preaching instead of following the rules

1111
01:04:27.880 --> 01:04:30.639
I don't know studying the Bible. So let's put it

1112
01:04:30.719 --> 01:04:35.519
somewhat in a historical context. What could throwing off the

1113
01:04:36.119 --> 01:04:40.440
weight that and let us lay aside every weight. What

1114
01:04:40.440 --> 01:04:43.800
could that weight be referring to? Well? Could it be

1115
01:04:44.239 --> 01:04:49.880
everything that hinders could metaphorically be referring to the continued

1116
01:04:49.920 --> 01:04:56.760
reliance on the temple system, which the audience might have

1117
01:04:56.800 --> 01:05:01.440
been tempted to revert to for safety or comfort. Could

1118
01:05:01.480 --> 01:05:04.760
this warning align with the broader message of Hebrews that

1119
01:05:04.840 --> 01:05:09.519
the old Covenant is obsolete. The recipients are being called

1120
01:05:09.519 --> 01:05:14.079
to release their attachment to the temple its practices, recognizing

1121
01:05:14.079 --> 01:05:16.880
that these are simply shadows and are the reality is

1122
01:05:16.880 --> 01:05:17.800
fulfilled in Christ.

1123
01:05:18.000 --> 01:05:19.239
Stop holding on.

1124
01:05:19.400 --> 01:05:24.199
To your judaism, Stop going back to the sacrifices, stop going.

1125
01:05:23.960 --> 01:05:26.920
Back to that, Let that go, Let that weight go.

1126
01:05:27.119 --> 01:05:29.360
It's only gonna pull you back and guess what You're

1127
01:05:29.400 --> 01:05:31.800
gonna hold on to it, and it's all about to

1128
01:05:31.960 --> 01:05:36.320
just burn to the ground. You've got to move forward.

1129
01:05:36.320 --> 01:05:41.639
You've got to put your focus on Christ. What about

1130
01:05:41.639 --> 01:05:46.320
the sin? The sin lay aside every weight, and the

1131
01:05:46.519 --> 01:05:53.920
sin which so easily ensnares us? Could the sin that

1132
01:05:54.079 --> 01:05:57.000
so easily entangles could it refer to the sin of

1133
01:05:57.119 --> 01:06:01.400
unbelieve or turning away from Christ, which Hebrews frequently warns against.

1134
01:06:01.480 --> 01:06:05.320
Hebrews Chapter three, Hebrews chapter ten, don't go back, don't

1135
01:06:05.360 --> 01:06:08.760
return to because maybe they struggled with their do we

1136
01:06:08.800 --> 01:06:11.920
believe in Christ? Is Christ truly the Messiah? They may

1137
01:06:11.960 --> 01:06:16.400
have struggled and returned back to Judaism. In the context

1138
01:06:16.400 --> 01:06:19.039
of seventy a. D. This could include the temptation to

1139
01:06:19.079 --> 01:06:22.800
abandon Christ to seek refuge in the old Covenant system,

1140
01:06:22.920 --> 01:06:25.360
which would soon be judged and dismantled.

1141
01:06:26.400 --> 01:06:28.480
Hey, you've got to get rid of this weight. You've

1142
01:06:28.480 --> 01:06:29.079
got to get rid.

1143
01:06:29.039 --> 01:06:31.719
Of this sin. We've got to move forward to Christ.

1144
01:06:31.760 --> 01:06:35.679
And look what immediately assays to do. Look what let

1145
01:06:35.800 --> 01:06:38.199
us run the with endurance, the race that has set

1146
01:06:38.239 --> 01:06:44.159
before us, looking on to Jesus. The weight, the unbelief.

1147
01:06:44.599 --> 01:06:49.119
Israel was constantly condemned for their unbelief. They were constantly

1148
01:06:49.159 --> 01:06:50.920
condemned for things. Stop.

1149
01:06:51.159 --> 01:06:52.159
You've got to let it all go.

1150
01:06:52.400 --> 01:06:55.760
Everything in the old covenant system, you've got to let go.

1151
01:06:56.000 --> 01:06:58.480
It's the weight, the sin of unbelief. You've got to

1152
01:06:58.480 --> 01:07:02.239
look to Jesus. You've got to look to Jesus. Stop

1153
01:07:02.280 --> 01:07:05.119
with your doubting, stop with your struggle. I know you

1154
01:07:05.199 --> 01:07:08.000
may be being persecuted for your faith in Jesus, but

1155
01:07:08.079 --> 01:07:11.199
you've got to hold on to him because everything is

1156
01:07:11.239 --> 01:07:19.280
about to burn to the ground. That's what the text

1157
01:07:19.320 --> 01:07:29.000
is about. Now we'll just let him finish and then

1158
01:07:29.039 --> 01:07:32.159
we'll stop. See what happens when you put it back

1159
01:07:32.159 --> 01:07:36.320
in its original context, it changes it dramatically.

1160
01:07:37.280 --> 01:07:40.079
It changes it dramatically for us.

1161
01:07:43.480 --> 01:07:47.320
You need to endure, seeing we also are compassed about

1162
01:07:47.360 --> 01:07:50.480
with this great cloud of witnesses. The challenge of this

1163
01:07:50.679 --> 01:07:55.159
passage is will you endure in the race? Will you

1164
01:07:55.239 --> 01:07:58.159
live for the Lord day by day? And as you

1165
01:07:58.239 --> 01:08:01.159
live for the Lord day by day, realizing we're compassed

1166
01:08:01.159 --> 01:08:04.159
about with these great cloud of witnesses, this text verse

1167
01:08:04.199 --> 01:08:08.239
one challenges us to lay aside the weights that's so

1168
01:08:08.360 --> 01:08:14.119
easily beset us. Author of the Book of Hebrews here says,

1169
01:08:14.480 --> 01:08:18.399
throw aside, literally cast aside the weight like a baseball

1170
01:08:18.399 --> 01:08:21.960
player or a softball player who's hit the ball and

1171
01:08:22.239 --> 01:08:27.399
tosses aside the bat to run effectively down the stripe

1172
01:08:27.439 --> 01:08:30.640
to get to the base. Don't let any weight slow

1173
01:08:30.680 --> 01:08:33.439
you down. And the weights that are spoken of here

1174
01:08:33.520 --> 01:08:37.399
speak of that which may be surplus. Any runner knows

1175
01:08:37.479 --> 01:08:40.000
that you're not going to win. If you're running the

1176
01:08:40.079 --> 01:08:42.800
race with too much weight, you're not gonna wear army

1177
01:08:42.800 --> 01:08:46.479
boots to run a sprint against somebody else who's wearing

1178
01:08:46.520 --> 01:08:49.720
feather lights with spikes on the front. You have to

1179
01:08:49.760 --> 01:08:53.560
look at what you're carrying, try to find the lightest

1180
01:08:53.880 --> 01:08:57.439
equipment possible to win this race. And even so, every

1181
01:08:57.520 --> 01:09:00.840
Christian is being challenged in this passage. It may be

1182
01:09:00.920 --> 01:09:06.399
a job that's slowing you down from being that all

1183
01:09:06.439 --> 01:09:09.479
that you should be in your Christian walk and before

1184
01:09:09.520 --> 01:09:13.319
your family. It may be those people in the employment

1185
01:09:14.039 --> 01:09:18.920
whose suggestiveness you're not able yet by point of maturity

1186
01:09:19.079 --> 01:09:23.560
to bear up under lay aside this weight. It may

1187
01:09:23.560 --> 01:09:26.840
be a relationship that's sapping you from the spiritual strength

1188
01:09:27.000 --> 01:09:30.279
that you need to run the race effectively. It may

1189
01:09:30.319 --> 01:09:33.640
not even be something that's bad necessarily, it's just not

1190
01:09:33.760 --> 01:09:37.720
something that's best. This passage speaks of another weight. It

1191
01:09:37.760 --> 01:09:39.920
speaks of sin, the weight of.

1192
01:09:41.600 --> 01:09:45.399
Seeing none of that even acknowledges the context, none of that.

1193
01:09:46.399 --> 01:09:49.399
It could be a relationship. It could be your Job's

1194
01:09:49.600 --> 01:09:50.760
nothing to do with that.

1195
01:09:51.760 --> 01:09:55.960
It's for them. Now, how does it apply to us?

1196
01:09:56.039 --> 01:09:59.119
It has application, and we could work that out, but

1197
01:09:59.199 --> 01:10:00.720
it has to stay true.

1198
01:10:00.520 --> 01:10:01.479
To the text.

1199
01:10:01.600 --> 01:10:04.159
Now, I will let you consider that for now because

1200
01:10:04.159 --> 01:10:06.119
I want you to just focus on Hebrews twelve one

1201
01:10:06.199 --> 01:10:13.479
through seven, and it's proper context. I know I just

1202
01:10:13.600 --> 01:10:17.000
ruined every sermon you've ever heard on Hebrews chapter twelve.

1203
01:10:17.199 --> 01:10:20.560
I know I've just challenged how everyone interprets it. But

1204
01:10:20.640 --> 01:10:25.680
my interpretation is based on the original context in which

1205
01:10:25.840 --> 01:10:29.680
it was written. This is why Hebrews has been used

1206
01:10:30.000 --> 01:10:33.640
to draw all kinds of weird doctrines about losing your salvation.

1207
01:10:34.159 --> 01:10:39.199
It completely misses the point. All right, I'll stop there

1208
01:10:39.199 --> 01:10:42.000
where it's seventy minutes, so that was supposed to be

1209
01:10:42.039 --> 01:10:45.119
about thirty minutes, and well we didn't get there. The

1210
01:10:45.159 --> 01:10:49.000
name of that sermon is encouragement to endure. Go listen

1211
01:10:49.039 --> 01:10:50.840
to the rest of it. Please let them get the

1212
01:10:50.840 --> 01:10:54.720
download and stream and you can hear their perspective. Remember,

1213
01:10:55.119 --> 01:10:58.720
I just offer a counter perspective. I'm not telling you.

1214
01:10:58.199 --> 01:11:01.159
You can go believe that and say that that was

1215
01:11:01.239 --> 01:11:03.960
right and I'm completely wrong. That's up to you. My

1216
01:11:04.119 --> 01:11:07.000
job is just I'm listening to sermons, just sharing thoughts,

1217
01:11:07.319 --> 01:11:10.119
and I obviously I have a different way of interpreting things.

1218
01:11:10.279 --> 01:11:13.920
So my way of interpreting things tend to be based

1219
01:11:13.960 --> 01:11:17.680
off the text and the historical context, especially in a

1220
01:11:17.680 --> 01:11:21.880
book like Hebrews with historical context is like it's a

1221
01:11:21.920 --> 01:11:27.239
shadow overshadowing the entire thing. Seventy a D. Seventy a D.

1222
01:11:27.560 --> 01:11:30.560
It is coming, I mean, this is written. Depending on

1223
01:11:30.600 --> 01:11:32.880
what sources you look at, I'm almost all have somewhere

1224
01:11:32.920 --> 01:11:35.399
between sixty four sixty five I think some I have

1225
01:11:35.439 --> 01:11:37.880
them all the way up to sixty seven sixty eight AD,

1226
01:11:38.600 --> 01:11:40.079
literally right before.

1227
01:11:40.119 --> 01:11:42.640
And it's called Hebrews.

1228
01:11:42.399 --> 01:11:46.359
It's a Jewish audience and it's all about Christ.

1229
01:11:46.439 --> 01:11:46.760
Is better?

1230
01:11:46.880 --> 01:11:50.439
Why because there's a temptation to go back. Well, guess what,

1231
01:11:50.600 --> 01:11:53.479
get rid of that weight. It's all going away, get

1232
01:11:53.600 --> 01:11:57.119
rid of that sin of unbelief, focus on Christ, because

1233
01:11:57.359 --> 01:12:02.560
everything of your Jewish identity will not exist. What was

1234
01:12:02.600 --> 01:12:06.359
the date of seventy eighty the destruction was in August?

1235
01:12:06.439 --> 01:12:08.239
I think it was in August to seventy eight D.

1236
01:12:08.520 --> 01:12:10.439
I don't have it in front of me when it was.

1237
01:12:11.079 --> 01:12:14.880
Maybe the siege began in August. I don't remember currently,

1238
01:12:14.920 --> 01:12:17.199
but you can look up the dates of it. The

1239
01:12:17.239 --> 01:12:19.920
siege lasted for a while. And we talked about depending

1240
01:12:19.960 --> 01:12:23.920
on which sources you look to. Josephus I think has

1241
01:12:23.960 --> 01:12:26.800
over a million people dying. Some people say that he

1242
01:12:26.920 --> 01:12:31.119
exaggerated the number. We have horrible reports of possible cannibalism

1243
01:12:31.199 --> 01:12:32.960
going on while the city was being siege.

1244
01:12:33.319 --> 01:12:35.359
Just a horrific event.

1245
01:12:36.039 --> 01:12:38.640
And that's what Jesus was ultimately pointing to in Matthew

1246
01:12:38.680 --> 01:12:41.960
twenty four seventy eight D. Can't I know for us

1247
01:12:42.000 --> 01:12:44.560
it doesn't mean anything. So we are like, hey, we

1248
01:12:44.640 --> 01:12:46.520
got to get rid of that weight of a job

1249
01:12:46.880 --> 01:12:51.239
or a relationship. I think I had bigger context here,

1250
01:12:55.600 --> 01:13:02.880
all right, enjoy read Hebrews twelve. Now look at it

1251
01:13:02.880 --> 01:13:05.920
from that perspective, Go finish that sermon, and uh, well

1252
01:13:06.680 --> 01:13:10.560
we'll talk at some point again. Thanks for listening, God

1253
01:13:10.560 --> 01:13:10.880
bless