Realise Your Privileges and Responsibilities (Hebrews 12:18-29)

This sermon was preached on 29/12/2013

Sometimes we can over-estimate the importance of a significant event in the past. This can happen in many ways. The inventions of modern technology have rendered useless many of the discoveries that previous generations utilised. Yet some people prefer the machines from the past and when we see people doing so we smile and perhaps feel sorry for them because they could have something far better. Progress in modern health care has caused previous remedies to be discarded, and if we saw a sick person insisting on old treatments we would not smile because we would know that they are only harming themselves.

We can do this with regard to church history as well. Important actions had to be taken which were justifiable at the time, but we can so respect those that made the sacrifices that we do not stop to ask whether or not their actions have relevance for today. Some will want to ignore the past completely whereas others will try and ignore the present.

The original readers of the Book of Hebrews were in danger of putting a very significant event from the past above their present privileges, the event connected to the giving of the law at Mount Sinai. One reason why they did so was because their fellow countrymen were chiding them for having abandoned the practices of their forefathers in general, practices that were stipulated in the Old Testament. Another reason why they did so was because the significant event was a magnificent revelation of the awesome presence of God. We can imagine their chiders saying to them, ‘We can see why you might wish to give up the details of the rituals regarding what kinds of clothes to wear, but how could you ever give up the significance of what occurred at Mount Sinai when our forefathers were brought into a covenant relationship with God?’

So how did the author of the letter deal with this problem? His answer was simple. He did not deny that God appeared on Mount Sinai in a powerful way. Instead he said that what the Jewish Christians had as Christians was far better than what their non-Christian Jewish countrymen were boasting in as Israelites. In order to show how this was the case, he contrasted what had happened at Sinai with what the Lord was now blessing them with.

Before we look at some of the details, we should observe one obvious difference between the event from the past and the superior blessings of the present and that is that the event from the past was temporary, almost momentary, in contrast to the permanence of the situation in the present. The event at Mount Sinai only lasted for a short time and once it was over it could not be re-enacted. God himself had brought the occasion to an end. This realisation highlights the folly of the non-Christian Jews – they were boasting in an event in which it was impossible for them to participate in now.

The problem with Sinai (vv. 18-21)

As we look at the author’s description of the giving of the law we can see three difficulties: (a) the people did not want God to speak to them because his words contained warnings of severe judgement; (b) the people could not draw near to God because of his overwhelming splendour; and (c) even the leader of the people, Moses, who was functioning as the Mediator between them and God, was himself petrified, particularly when the Israelites worshipped the golden calf. Such responses don’t take away from the glory of the occasion. Their responses were appropriate to it. God had appeared in his glory and they did not know if he would punish them for their sins. What else should they have done?

Yet that event had happened two thousand years before. Was it to be the final appearance of God among his people? Had he chosen to reveal himself in another way? We know the answer to those questions, because we can say that God appeared in the person of Jesus Christ and revealed that he was approachable and that sinful people could be his friends. Yet it may be the case that we do not give much thought to the great privileges that accompany salvation, privileges which the author now proceeds to mention.

The privileges of the new covenant (vv. 22-24)

The author mentions blessings that believers have. They are blessings that they have permanently. We may imagine that the writer is only describing a spiritual alternative to what we can visibly see when we come to church each Lord’s Day. So we can say today, ‘I have come to the church building to worship God but at the same time I am worshipping him in heaven.’ That is true. But the writer wants his original readers, and us, to realise that spiritually we are in heaven all the time if we are Christians. Note that he reminds his readers that they ‘have come’ to Mount Zion. This is where they live in a spiritual sense.

The writer says three things about the location before he goes on to mention the inhabitants. He says that the location is Mount Zion, it is the city of the living God and it is the heavenly Jerusalem. What does he mean by those descriptions? Here are some suggestions. Mount Zion points to God’s rest because the literal Mount Zion became his abode symbolically when the ark of the covenant was located there after its various temporary sites in the wilderness and in the promised land – rest refers to delight in his achievements, in this case the work of Jesus; ‘city of the living God’ points to God’s presence among his people in a communal manner; and ‘heavenly Jerusalem’ points to its permanence in contrast to the earthly city which had been conquered and destroyed frequently and its inhabitants enslaved. The capital city of Britain is London but it is not possible for us to live there and in Inverness simultaneously. Yet we can live in God’s city at the same time as we live in our earthly residence.

Then the writer speaks about the inhabitants. First, there are innumerable angels. Angels were present at Mount Sinai, but they were not there in a celebratory manner. There was a separation on that occasion between the angels and the Israelites because of the latter’s sin and disobedience. Yet they are now present with God’s people in a joyful way.

The second type of inhabitants is the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven. They are distinct from the spirits of the righteous made perfect (v. 23). The assembly of the firstborn is a name the author gives to all God’s people on earth. He mentions three things about them. First, there are only one people of God on earth and they have been called out by him to worship and serve him. Second, their names are all recorded in the heavenly register, which is a reminder that they belong to the heavenly city even if they are still also on earth. Third, ‘of the firstborn’ could mean that they belong to the firstborn, that is Jesus (the firstborn is another title for a king), or it could mean that the church or assembly is composed of those who are firstborn (all God’s people are royalty). Perhaps the author meant both.

It is also possible that ‘firstborn’ refers to the status of the firstborn in a family who received a double portion of the inheritance. In the heavenly family, all the members receive the same inheritance as the Firstborn. Another possible way of understanding ‘firstborn’ is connected to the necessity in the Levitical ritual of the firstborn son having to be redeemed, after which he was consecrated to God. Perhaps the author meant us to understand these possible meanings as well.

The next inhabitant that the author mentions is God the Father in his capacity as the judge of all. This description does not mean that he will be the Judge at the last day (that role will belong to Jesus); instead it means that he is judging what is happening each day. He judged the Israelites for their sins and they, not surprisingly, responded with great dread towards God. In amazing contrast, believers in Jesus can draw near to the Judge because they have an advocate with him constantly, Jesus himself.

Then the author refers to another set of inhabitants, the spirits of the righteous made perfect. This is a description of all those who have died in the Lord. Although they were sinners, their souls are now perfect in holiness. It is important to note that although we come to the same city as them it is not possible for us to interact with them in any way, although it is possible that they are aware of what is happening to the church on earth. The wonderful feature about them all is that they are now completely sinless and are waiting for the day of resurrection when their souls will be united once again with their bodies.

The final inhabitant is the Lord Jesus and he is described in his role as Mediator whereby he gives to his blood-bought people all the blessings of the new covenant. Clearly the writer could have mentioned other activities performed by the exalted Christ, although this description of him as Mediator covers them all if it is unpacked. As Mediator, he functions as our prophet, our priest and our king. And he does it all justly because of his own sacrifice, here called the blood of sprinkling that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel. The latter called out for vengeance whereas the blood of Jesus speaks of pardon and peace and provision.

The response required (vv. 25-29)

The writer goes on to mention five aspects that together compose a proper response to the blessings he has just described. It would be possible to respond with a lack of spiritual energy and merely accept them. But such a response would be evidence that we do not have them. The true and necessary response is very difficult.

First, they have to listen to God’s warnings about treating his grace in a wrong way. This is what the Israelites, who had been delivered from Egypt, had done. They rebelled and complained and committed idolatry. The result was that he punished them. We are not to respond to this requirement by entering into a pointless discussion about whether or not a person redeemed by Christ can be lost. The answer to that question is that they cannot. Instead we should realise that God deals with us according to our profession. If we keep following Jesus and trusting in him, we shall be saved. If we stop doing so, we shall be lost. After all, we know from the Bible and from our own experience of church life that some people give up following the Saviour for various reasons. It is our responsibility as individuals to heed the warnings that God gives.

Second, they have to remember that the God who spoke at Sinai and terrified the onlookers with the effects of his presence will one day shake the whole universe (the author is quoting a verse from the prophet Haggai). The Lord will dismantle the current universe in order that his own kingdom will continue into eternity. This description is another way of referring to what will happen when Jesus Christ returns and the shaking will include the resurrection, the final judgement and the formation of the new heavens and new earth.

Third, their response to the promise of this future kingdom should be one of gratitude. The author reminds them that they have already received this kingdom, details of which he had listed when describing their privileges. What is a Christian? He is a person marked by gratitude to God for salvation past, present and future. As John Brown comments in his exposition of Hebrews, gratitude ‘is the soul and the sum of the Christian’s duty. Where it is absent no duty can be performed aright; where it is present, every duty will be performed aright.’

Fourth, they have to offer to God acceptable worship. Such worship has three elements: gratitude, reverence and awe. We can see right away that acceptable worship is internal primarily and is not merely concerned with what occurs in church gatherings. Obviously, the outward form in a church service must be according to the Bible, but the outward form there without the internal is merely a pointless ritual. The writer is reminding his readers that all of their lives should be marked by this kind of devotion wherever they are.

The fifth detail they are to remember is that ‘our God is a consuming fire’. This is a very vivid description of the Lord. Despite the common use of it when describing the fate of the unconverted, here it is used to stimulate Christians to a life of grateful and reverent service, whatever their circumstances. God is more to be feared than all earthly powers that could be against the Hebrew Christians in the first century and the contemporary Christians in the twenty-first century.