The Gospel of the God of Peace

[0:00] But we're going to turn to our Bibles now and to read this morning. We've come to the very end of the book of Hebrews and we're going to be reading the last paragraph there, but it gives us something of an overview, a summary of the book as a whole.

[0:14] So I want to read in a few places this morning, but beginning, first of all, in the first paragraph, chapter 1. And then we'll read in a couple of other places before finally coming to the end of chapter 13.

[0:26] Hebrews begins this way.

[0:57] After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the majesty on high, having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs.

[1:12] Over the page to chapter 2 and verse 1.

[1:47] God also bore witness by signs and wonders and various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will. Now skip on to chapter 10 and reading at verse 19.

[2:03] Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Holy Places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, by means of his flesh.

[2:16] And since we have a great high priest over the house of God. Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith.

[2:27] With our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us keep holding fast the confession of our hope without wavering.

[2:38] For he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works. Not neglecting to meet together as is the habit of some.

[2:52] But encouraging one another and all the more as you see the day drawing near. And now in chapter 13 at verse 20.

[3:04] And now may the God of peace who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, by the blood of the eternal covenant. May he equip you with everything or better.

[3:18] May he make you perfect or complete in all goodness. And now on your heart is the nameenes. Lord Jesus, the great shepherd. focus on this being. that which is pleasing in his sight through Jesus Christ.

[3:31] To whom be glory forever and ever. Amen. I appeal to you, brothers, bear with my word of exhortation.

[3:42] For I have written to you briefly. You should know that our brother Timothy has been released. With whom I shall see you. If he comes soon. Greet all your leaders and all the saints and those who come from Italy send you greetings.

[3:57] Grace be with you all. Amen. And may God indeed bless to us his word.

[4:12] Hebrews chapter 13 then at verse 20. Now when a passage begins like this with a heading benediction, you might be tempted to think, well that must be the end of the service already.

[4:26] Time to switch off and go home. Well, I suppose that is if you weren't already at home. But don't switch off because these verses are far from an afterthought.

[4:37] And in fact, benedictions in the Bible are very, very important. The writer here is turning his whole message into a prayer for his readers in the church. Like, well it is the prayer at the end of a sermon.

[4:50] He's praying the message in and he's saying, Lord, will you do this for them and do this in them? And this benediction in particular is a marvelous treasure. It's filled with the riches that the writer wants us to read, to mark, to learn, to inwardly digest, to help us really ground his message in the whole of our lives.

[5:12] Hebrews is, as verse 22 says here, it's a word of exhortation. It's a sermon applying great swathes of scripture to the church.

[5:25] He says, by the way, it's brief. Well, it's taken us quite a fair time to digest it all. But it contains many challenges for a church that's facing real pressures, real struggles, struggles with suffering, struggles with shame in society, struggles with their own sinfulness.

[5:45] And so they're in danger of drift, drift even into outright apostasy. And friends, all Christians through the ages and today face those same pressures.

[5:57] And yet, these challenges, not to drift, but to keep on running the race with endurance, they're rooted, as we've seen, in great comfort.

[6:08] In fact, as chapter 8, verse 1 proclaimed, remember, that's the main point, he says, of the whole message, that we have a steadfast hope and anchor in our great high priest, who ministers for us forever in the majesty of heaven.

[6:25] We have, as we saw last time in chapter 13, verse 10, we have an altar to strengthen us continually and to go on strengthening us always forever through God's grace alone.

[6:42] We have it all in Jesus alone and in Jesus forever. So keep looking to him, he says. Keep running with him. Keep going through him to the throne of grace for all the grace and the mercy and the help that you'll ever need.

[6:58] And you won't stumble and fall. You'll be strengthened always and forever through Jesus Christ. So it's no accident, is it, that right at the end here, we have as the very last word that same word of grace through Jesus Christ.

[7:16] Verse 21, everything is through Jesus Christ. So verse 25, grace can be with you all. And this marvelous little benediction in verses 20 and 21 sums up the whole message of Hebrews.

[7:32] It draws together the great themes in a quite remarkable way to articulate so concisely the great gospel of the God of peace.

[7:44] God has spoken in his son the word of ultimate grace. And in doing so, he's sealed forever his eternal covenant of peace.

[7:55] And that brings us, and it will ultimately bring to the whole cosmos, ultimate peace. Not just the absence of hostility and war, but the totality of all God's blessings, his everlasting kindness, overflowing with everlasting joy in the life of his glorious kingdom, the life of righteousness forever and ever.

[8:19] That's the salvation, which is the consummation of his eternal covenant promise in Christ. And that, and nothing less than that, is what we have in the gospel through Jesus alone and through Jesus forever.

[8:36] So don't ever look back. Don't ever turn back from the gospel of Jesus is his message. And that's his prayer. And that must be also our prayer for one another, if we've understood the message of this book at all.

[8:51] So for one last time in Hebrews for the moment, I want to focus on this benediction to help us summarize Hebrews and its message, and to turn it into a prayer as we pray it for each other, to remind one another of a joyous privilege that we have as believers in these last days.

[9:11] Because what we have in the gospel of Jesus is the full and the final revelation of the sovereign God and his great salvation forever. And the Son of God is our great Savior forever.

[9:24] And the Spirit of God is our great sanctifier forever. So first then, we have through Jesus alone and in Jesus forever, we have the promise of the sovereign God fulfilled in his great salvation forever.

[9:41] God has kept his everlasting covenant, a covenant of peace. Verse 20, the God of peace, who brings the dead to life, he says, through his eternal covenant, which has now been sealed forever in Jesus.

[9:59] Now from the beginning, long ago, Hebrews begins, God spoke by the prophets, and his word was a word of promise of salvation, an everlasting promise, an everlasting, an eternal covenant, about the plan and the purpose of the sovereign Lord to restore this world forever from the curse of sin.

[10:21] But now, you see, in these last days, he says, the promise of that eternal covenant is being fulfilled forever. Forever, the salvation that God promised, the ultimate peace of God has been won for this world forever.

[10:36] The eternal covenant has been sealed in blood. Now this is the only place actually in Hebrews where the eternal covenant is explicitly called that.

[10:49] But the concept of eternal reality permeates the whole book, as we've seen. The throne of the Son, chapter 1, is forever and ever. His years will have no end.

[11:02] And Jesus, by his death, has become the source, chapter 5, verse 9, of eternal salvation. He's a priest forever, like Melchizedek in chapter 7.

[11:12] He's entered the holy places once for all to save and to bring an eternal redemption through the eternal spirit so that his people might receive the promised eternal inheritance, chapter 9.

[11:26] And chapter 10, for by a single offering, he has perfected for all time, eternally, those who are being sanctified.

[11:36] And so as we saw last time, right at the end in chapter 13, verse 8, Jesus and his gospel brings us grace yesterday and today and forever, eternally.

[11:50] And that was the covenant promise of God right from the very beginning. When in days long ago, through the prophets of old, God revealed his promise and his purpose to save us.

[12:01] It was an eternal covenant. And so the Christian faith, you see, going right back to Genesis, has never, ever been a promise merely for this world.

[12:14] It's always been a promise for a new world, for the world to come, for the everlasting kingdom of God's peace restored. It's not an earthly kingdom, eating and drinking and things like that, as Paul, the apostle, puts it in Romans 14.

[12:31] But no, it's about righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit forever and ever. So beware of people in the name of Christ who promise you nothing but present blessings.

[12:46] Who have a gospel that focuses on present health and present healing and present wealth and great victories now in this world. No, no, no, no. The true gospel of the real Jesus is an eternal covenant.

[13:00] And true believers have always lived for eternity. We saw that all the way through Hebrews 11, didn't we? Abraham lived for the resurrection and the eternal city of God.

[13:12] Moses lived with his eye not on the treasures of this world, but the reward in Christ. All the saints of old lived for that heavenly country, a better country, not for this present world.

[13:27] And that's what we saw in chapter 4 of Hebrews. He urges all believers today to live not for earthly rest and peace, but for eternal rest and for the peace of the everlasting kingdom of God.

[13:41] God's eternal salvation. And that was the promise right from the very start, way back in Genesis chapter 3 to Adam and Eve after their rebellion.

[13:55] The ultimate forever reversal of the curse was promised and the ultimate triumph over the serpent by the seed of the woman whom God promised.

[14:06] And every historic renewal of God's promise throughout the history of his people in the Bible promised that same eternal salvation.

[14:19] God established with Noah, didn't he? An everlasting covenant in Genesis 9, 16. And he gave the rainbows a sign of it. And then he established with Abraham in Genesis 17 an everlasting covenant.

[14:32] And then with Israel under Moses, it was the same everlasting covenant that God established with the whole nation of Israel at Sinai. Just let me read to you from Psalm 105 in verse 8 about that, because sometimes some people get confused and they think that God made a very different kind of covenant with Moses and Israel from the covenant with Abraham.

[14:56] No, no. Psalm 105 says this. God remembers his covenant forever. A single eternal covenant. The word that he commanded for a thousand generations.

[15:07] The Bible's way of saying forever. The covenant that he made with Abraham. His sworn promise to Isaac, which he confirmed to Jacob as a statute. That's at Sinai.

[15:18] To Israel. An everlasting covenant. The same covenant. You see the everlasting covenant. And the same covenant. And the same covenant.

[15:28] Again, the same covenant is reaffirmed and established with David. For God has made with me, he says, an everlasting covenant. Ordered and in all things secure.

[15:40] To Samuel 23 verse 5. And of course the prophets. All of them longed for the final flourishing of that everlasting promise of God.

[15:52] Despite his people's sin and their constant disappointment. But at last they knew these things would take place. And all things, as God had promised, would be made at last new.

[16:04] In the great day of the Lord they spoke of. The latter days. The day of his great salvation. That's what Jeremiah saw. And longed for.

[16:15] When he said that at last. At that time. In those days. The latter days. The last days. God will establish a new covenant. And he also calls it the everlasting covenant.

[16:29] It's not new at all in what it promises. Every covenant. Every covenant of God expressed right from the very beginning. That same eternal promise.

[16:40] But what's new. Is that at last the day of salvation will finally come. And at last God's cosmic peace for the whole world.

[16:53] Will be restored. Read that in Jeremiah chapter 31 to chapter 33. He speaks about God's people being planted forever in God's place.

[17:05] To dwell forever in peace. There would be a peace with God. And righteousness and peace would be everywhere throughout the whole world. And that cosmic peace you see.

[17:16] God's shalom. Is the Hebrew word. It's the sum of all the blessing of everything that's right and good and wonderful and perfect. Forever.

[17:27] In life. Eternal. That is the promise of God's salvation. Nothing less than that. And the promise of that peace.

[17:38] It's absolutely central. To the biblical prophets. In fact. Isaiah and Ezekiel call the everlasting covenant. The covenant of peace. I don't have time to look it all up.

[17:51] But read later on in Ezekiel chapter 34 or chapter 37. Where he talks of God establishing one people under one king. A new David forever.

[18:02] And he says I will make a covenant of peace with them. And it shall be an everlasting covenant. And you know very well don't you. The words of Isaiah. What he promises in the latter days.

[18:13] In these last days. That the mighty God himself. The prince of peace. Will be born as a child. As a shoot from the house of David.

[18:25] And he will sit on David's throne forever. And of the increase of his government. And of peace. He says. There will be no end. Remember the wonderful words.

[18:37] Later on in Isaiah 52. How beautiful on the mountains. Are the feet of him who brings good news. Who brings gospel. Who publishes peace. Who publishes salvation.

[18:50] Who says to Zion. Your God reigns. And all the nations. Shall see the salvation of our God. You see the reign.

[19:00] Of God's everlasting peace. That is salvation. And in Isaiah 54. Just a bit further on. He says. My covenant of peace.

[19:11] Shall not be removed. Because of God's great compassion. He makes an everlasting covenant. Even with such sinful people. And he will save them.

[19:23] And that was God's promise. Right from the beginning. And all through. The former days. But now. Says Hebrews. In these last days. The God of peace.

[19:35] Has established. His eternal covenant of peace. And he's brought all of that. To fulfillment. Through. Jesus Christ.

[19:47] The day of God's eternal salvation. Is here. It's begun. God has kept his promise. And we can be absolutely. Certain of that.

[19:57] Why? Well. Because he has brought back. He's led out. From the dead. Our Lord Jesus. The firstborn. Into that new.

[20:07] Heavenly world. Of salvation. As he calls him. In chapter 1 verse 6. Human flesh. Exalted. Above all angels. Angels bowing down. And worshiping him. Say that again.

[20:19] In chapter 12 verse 23. The assembly. Of the firstborn. Worshipping him. The great fulfillment. Of the promise of God. That's what old. Zechariah.

[20:29] John the Baptist father. Saw. Remember. And sang about. In Luke chapter 1. About the birth of Jesus. As he spoke. By the mouth of his holy prophets of old. That we should be saved.

[20:40] From our enemies. To remember. His holy covenant. And that meant. Remember what Zechariah said. Deliverance from all enemies. That we should serve him.

[20:51] In holiness. And peace forever. That the light of life. Should come. To those who walk. In the shadow of darkness. And of death. And he sums it up.

[21:02] Do you remember at the end. By saying this. Guiding our feet. Into the path. Of. Peace. And all because. The knowledge of.

[21:12] Of salvation. Has come to God's people. In the forgiveness. Of their sins. The knowledge of God. The knowledge of God. The knowledge of God. The knowledge of God. Zechariah knew.

[21:23] Didn't he. That. God's salvation. Was ultimately. All to do. With dealing with that. Great and ultimate problem. The problem of human sin. And that.

[21:35] That means. God's peace. And God's salvation. Involves. Very great cost. Now prophets also saw that.

[21:46] Didn't they? You know. They expressed it. In different ways. Isaiah. Speaks of the coming reign. Of God's peace. As we said. Of the good news. Of the gospel. Of salvation. But he immediately goes on.

[21:57] In chapter 53. To tell us how that salvation. Will come. It'll come through the servant. Of the Lord. The one who's high. And lifted up. In Isaiah.

[22:08] That refers only to God himself. But. That one. High and lifted up. Will be wounded. For his people's transgressions. For their sin. On him.

[22:19] On him. Was the chastisement. The punishment for sin. That brought us. Peace. He says. Here in Hebrews 13.

[22:32] I think perhaps it's the prophet Zechariah. In Zechariah chapter 9. That's most closely alluded to. Because if you read there.

[22:42] You'll see that the prophet speaks about the coming of God's king. With righteousness and salvation. In great victory. To speak peace. He says to all the nations. To establish his gracious rule.

[22:53] From sea to sea. To the very ends of the earth. Because he says. Of the blood. Of my covenant with you. I will set your prisoners free.

[23:05] From the waterless pit. From the place of death. And that's what's echoed here. Isn't it? In the blood. Of the eternal covenant. Which secures the promise.

[23:18] Of the eternal covenant. The promise of salvation. Of life from the dead. Into God's everlasting peace. And you see. That leads us to the second great theme.

[23:30] Indeed. The central theme. Of the whole of Hebrews. Which is the promise. Of the sovereign God. Fulfilled. In the person. Of the son of God.

[23:41] The person of the son of God. Who has become. Our great savior. Forever. Jesus. Is the uniquely qualified.

[23:52] Priest. King. Who has redeemed. His people forever. And. Who will reign over. His people forever. He has made the great sacrifice. And he is.

[24:03] The great shepherd. He's a great savior. First. Because in the son. The great sacrifice. Was made forever. The priestly sacrifice.

[24:13] For sin. Which brings peace. With God forever. By the blood. Of the eternal covenant. He was writing to the Colossan church. That the apostle Paul.

[24:24] Speaks of that. That great victory. Over the powers of darkness. That brought redemption to man. As being a triumph. That was through. The cross. Of Jesus. Deliverance.

[24:35] Redemption comes. He says. In the forgiveness of sins. And that reconciliation. Between man. And God. He says.

[24:48] Was through Jesus Christ. The one. Through whom. All things were created. And for whom. All things were created. And in whom.

[25:00] The fullness of God. Was pleased to dwell. He. Says Paul. Made peace. By the blood of his cross. And we've seen.

[25:11] Haven't we. That is the message. At the very heart. Of the book of Hebrews. At the heart of everything. That spoils this world.

[25:22] That destroys peace. In this world. The world over. In every kind of relationship. That there is on earth. Personal relationships. Social. Political. National.

[25:33] Global. The thing that destroys. All of these. Is the great problem. Of human sin. And that from. The very beginning.

[25:43] And ever since. Is what. What causes the distance. Between God. And man. That's what removes. The peace of God.

[25:54] From the whole realm. Of our existence. So from the very beginning. Of man's story. After the curse of sin. Brought its blight. To the world. The only way. For man to come. Anywhere near God.

[26:04] To know him. To have fellowship with him. To know his blessing. The only way. Was to come. Through sacrifice. For sin. Not just any old sacrifice.

[26:15] Not just any way. Man chooses. Remember Cain. That we read off. We just thought. He would do it his way. No. Only God's way. Through his.

[26:26] Appointed sacrifice. sacrifice. And the whole. Of. Of. Of Israel's. Old Testament. Elaborate code of worship. Was centered. Therefore. Around the altar.

[26:37] And the sacrifices. Atonement. Peace. And fellowship. With God. Could. Could be summed up. Really. In those three words. In Hebrews chapter 9. Verse 7.

[26:47] Never. Without. Blood. Never. Without. Blood. God. And every time. The. The faithful of God. Sought God. They were reminded.

[26:57] Of their sin. And the terrible. Consequences of sin. Which are death. Because death. And sin. Always go together. So yes. They were reminded.

[27:08] Of God's grace. Providing. The way of peace. Through his. Prescribed sacrifice. But also. They were reminded. Every single time. In their own conscience.

[27:20] That is chapter 10. Verse 4 said. It is impossible. For the blood. Of mere bulls. And goats. To actually. Take away. Human sin. And so.

[27:30] It was a reminder. To them. Wasn't it? That all their hope. Had to be focused. On God's promise. That one day. According to his. Eternal covenant.

[27:40] Of peace. He would. Deal with their sin. Once and for all. And forever. Not through mere. Human priests. Who live and die. Like all the rest. And who are beset. With their own sins.

[27:50] Like all the rest. But through a wholly. Different kind of priest. All together. One who would resemble. That extraordinary. Mysterious figure. Way back in Genesis.

[28:01] Melchizedek. A kingly priest. A priest who would be forever. Who would bring forgiveness. Therefore. Forever. And in the person.

[28:11] Of the son of God. Made man. Made in every respect. Like his brothers. The Lord Jesus Christ. The Lord Jesus Christ. Became a merciful. Faithful. High priest. To make propitiation.

[28:24] For the sins of the people. Chapter 2. Verse 17. And being made perfect. He. Became the source. Of eternal. Salvation.

[28:35] For all who obey him. Chapter 5. Verse 9. His blood. The blood of Christ. As chapter 9 says. Does. At last. Purify. Our consciences.

[28:46] From dead works. To serve. The living God. He's appeared. Once and for all. At the end of the ages. To put away sin. By the sacrifice. Of himself.

[28:57] Forever. The blood. Of the everlasting. Covenant. The blood of Jesus. By which we. Now have opened to us.

[29:08] A new. Way to life. So that we can. Draw near to God. Forever. Remember. Old Zechariah. Saying. We have. Knowledge of our salvation.

[29:20] In the forgiveness. Of our sins. And the Lord Jesus. Has led us. Into that way. Of peace. Peace with God. Through our Lord Jesus Christ.

[29:33] That's why Peter. Told Cornelius. In Acts chapter 10. That the mission. That God. That Jesus. Had given to him. To go to the world. Was to preach. The good news. Of peace. Through Jesus Christ.

[29:43] My peace. I give to you. Is what Jesus. Had said. Because the great sacrifice. Had been made. Forever. And we have.

[29:54] Peace with God. Forever. And not only. Is the great sacrifice. Been made forever. In Jesus. He's our savior. Secondly. Because in the son. The great shepherd.

[30:05] Long promised. Has come forever. The powerful sovereign. Who will lead us. In the peace of God forever. Our Lord Jesus. The great shepherd.

[30:16] Of the sheep. Don't be. Don't be. Don't be. Misled by sentimental images. Of shepherds. And fluffy lambs. In the Bible. The shepherd. Is the great ruler.

[30:26] The leader. He's the king. God. Is the great shepherd. Of Israel. Psalm 80. Begins like this. Give ear. O shepherd. Of Israel. You. Who lead.

[30:36] Joseph. As a flock. You. Who are enthroned. Upon the cherubim. God. Is the great shepherd. But all the earth. The kings of Israel.

[30:47] Served. As under shepherds. And David. Of course. Was the great shepherd king. After him. So many of them. Alas. Were fools. And failures.

[30:58] And the prophets. Longed. For a day. When at last. God's promise. Would be fulfilled. There would be a new. David. A powerful. Sovereign. The Messiah king.

[31:09] To shepherd his people. Forever. In the eternal kingdom. Remember Isaiah chapter 40. Where he speaks of the Lord's might. Coming to rule. To tend his flock.

[31:19] Like a shepherd. And Jeremiah speaks of the. The consummation. Of the everlasting covenant. The new covenant age. As being God. Regathering his scattered people.

[31:30] From all the world. As a shepherd. Gathers his flock. Ezekiel. Speaks all through. Chapter 34. Of his prophecy. Of God's scattered sheep. Neglected.

[31:41] Terribly. By the earthly shepherds. The kings. But being gathered. At last. By God himself. I. Will be their shepherd. He says. When he makes his covenant.

[31:52] Of peace. At last. And yet. He adds. That in that day. A new David. Will be over them. As a prince. And as a shepherd. Perhaps.

[32:03] Best of all. You remember. The prophecy. We always read at Christmas. From Micah. Chapter 5. That speaks about Bethlehem. And one day. From Bethlehem. Will come forth. One.

[32:13] Who will be a ruler. In Israel. Yet. Who was from ancient days. And he. Will shepherd. The flock of God. To the ends. Of the earth. And he. Shall be.

[32:24] Their. Peace. I could go on and on. But you see. If you got an NIV version. You'll see that here.

[32:35] It says. Our Lord Jesus. That. Great. Shepherd. Of the. Of the sheep. And that makes a point. Doesn't it? Jesus Christ. Is. That. Great.

[32:45] Shepherd. Come at last. The promised one. To lead his people. As a powerful sovereign. Into God's. Everlasting peace. His salvation. The phrase here.

[32:58] Brought again. From the dead. Or better. Led out. From the dead. The great shepherd. It's. It's. Quoting. It's echoing. The Greek Old Testament. From Isaiah. Chapter 63. Verse 11.

[33:09] Which speaks about God. Leading up. Out of Egypt. And through the sea. Moses. The shepherd. Of the flock. And of course. Moses was. The first great shepherd.

[33:20] Of Israel. Under God. Who led them. Out. Of bondage. And through. The wilderness. And to. The land of promise. And Hebrews gives great. Honor.

[33:30] Doesn't it. To. To. To Moses. As a faithful servant. In God's house. But it proclaims. Jesus. The son of God. As the one who is.

[33:42] Over. All God's house. The sovereign ruler. Forever and ever. He's the king. At last. Forever. The great shepherd. Of the sheep. Having made.

[33:53] For them. The great sacrifice. For his sheep. And what Jesus said. I'm the good shepherd. Who lays down his life. For the sheep. He loved us.

[34:04] To the last. Through the blood. Of the eternal covenant. And now. He'll lead us. To the last. Having been led out. From the dead.

[34:14] To lead the way. For us. As our forerunner. Do you remember? Chapter 6. Verse 20. Our forerunner. Who anchors our hope. Solidly. Behind the curtain. In the glory.

[34:25] Of the life. Of the world. To come. Where he's leading us. Forever. He's bringing many sons. To glory. He's the champion. Of our salvation. He reigns on high.

[34:36] Enthroned in the heavens. Word of the father. Exalted for us. So we have a hope. Which is steadfast. And certain. Gone through the curtain. And touching the throne.

[34:48] The promise. Of the sovereign God. Fulfilled. In the person. Of the son of God. Who made the great sacrifice.

[34:59] For us. And is now the great shepherd. For us. Forever. Leading us. To the eternal joy. Of God's promised kingdom. Of peace.

[35:11] But it's not just. The work of God. In the past. And the eternal life. In the world to come. That Hebrews puts. Before us. Is it? Look at verse 21 again.

[35:23] Here's the third thing. In these last days. We have the power. Of the spirit of God. Who's our sanctifier. Forever. The spirit. Whose power.

[35:34] Led out Jesus. From the dead. Now. Is at work. In our once dead hearts. Leading us. In newness of life. Forever and ever. He who brought again. From the dead.

[35:44] Our Lord Jesus. Verse 21. Equip you. Or better as the. New English Bible has it. Make you perfect. In all goodness.

[35:56] To do his will. Working in us. That which is pleasing. In his sight. Through Jesus Christ. Already. He's saying. The power of God.

[36:06] Is at work. In us. Restoring us. To the very destiny. That we were created for. To image. The glory of God. In all of our life. Forever and ever.

[36:18] And that is being done. Now. We're being restored. As the Holy Spirit. Applies to us. All that. God's covenant grace. Has won for us.

[36:28] In Jesus Christ. You read through Hebrews. And you'll see. The Holy Spirit. Is not obtrusive. But he is there. All the way through.

[36:39] Speaking about Christ. Leading to Christ. Christ. And exalting Christ. That is the Holy Spirit's ministry. Revelation. Comes. By the Spirit. God has spoken.

[36:49] From the very beginning. And when God spoke. Finally. In the Son. As chapter 2 said. The Holy Spirit. Bore witness. In signs and wonders. And mighty works. And the Holy Spirit.

[37:01] Is still speaking to us today. Through the scriptures. That he first gave. Chapter 3. Verse 7. Today. If you hear his voice. Don't harden your hearts. And he continues.

[37:12] To bear witness. In all the scriptures. Chapter 10. Verse 15. In many other places. Divine revelation. Comes through the Spirit. And the Holy Spirit. Is also active. In the divine redemption.

[37:24] Chapter 9. Verse 14. Jesus. Offered himself. Without blemish. To God. Through. The eternal spirit. And here. It's God's spirit. His power.

[37:35] That raises. Jesus. From the dead. That's what Paul says also. In Romans 8. Verse 11. And we receive salvation. Through sharing.

[37:47] In the gift of the Spirit. Chapter 6. Verse 4. And verse 21. Here you see. Is saying that we also. Are being shaped. By the Holy Spirit. As he works.

[37:57] Personally. In us. So that we. Can be. Well pleasing. To God. That is a wonderfully. Comforting truth.

[38:07] Isn't it? God commands us. We saw it in chapter 12. Verse 28. To offer acceptable worship. Pleasing worship. To him. And again. In chapter 13.

[38:18] Verses 15 and 16. We have to. To continually. Offer to him. A sacrifice of praise. To God. From lips and lives. With generous goodness. With sharing. To bring these.

[38:28] Sacrifices. Living sacrifices. That are truly. Pleasing to God. And we can. Be. Pleasing to God. Pleasing in his sight.

[38:39] Because. The power of God's spirit. The power of the risen Lord Jesus. Is working. In us. What is pleasing. In his sight. So that we can do it.

[38:52] Literally. Verse 21. Says. He is doing. In us. What is pleasing to God. So we may do. The will of God. And that's the wonder. Isn't it. Of God's grace.

[39:02] In Jesus. That he grants us. The grace. To do. What he commands. So Paul says. To the Philippians. Obey God.

[39:13] Work out. Your salvation. For. It is God. Who works. In you. Both to will. And to work. For his good pleasure. And so it is here.

[39:24] We can. Please. God. And we shall. Please God. And we will glorify him forever. Which is our chief end. This is a whole destiny.

[39:35] Of our creation. And now of our recreation. In Christ. We are his workmanship. Remember Paul. Says to the Ephesians. Created. In Christ Jesus.

[39:46] For good works. Which God. Has purpose. Beforehand. That we should walk in them. Pleasing. In his sight. Through.

[39:56] Jesus. Christ. That's our destiny. It's what we're created for. And now we've been redeemed for. And it's begun. Now. Through.

[40:08] His Holy Spirit. Working in us. Through the grace. That's ours. In the glorious. Gospel. Of the peace of God. That's what Hebrews. Is telling us.

[40:20] God has spoken. In Jesus Christ. Forever. The word of his power. Chapter 1. Verse 3. Says. The power that upholds. The whole universe.

[40:31] The word of his power. Is. The word of his grace. To us. In Jesus Christ. By the grace. Of God. Chapter 2. Verse 9.

[40:41] He tasted death. To bring us. Forgiveness of sins. So that at his throne. Of grace. Chapter 4. Verse 16. Now we can constantly find.

[40:52] Fellowship with God. Grace and mercy. And help. And by grace. In Christ. Chapter 13. Verse 9.

[41:02] We are strengthened. Through faith in God. So don't turn away. Don't drift back. From the Lord Jesus. Don't do that.

[41:13] Don't outrage. The spirit of grace. He said. Do you remember chapter 10. Verse 29. Don't fail to obtain. The grace of God.

[41:24] Seeing his face. Sharing his joy. Chapter 12. Verse 15. No. He says here. Right at the end. Bear with. Listen to. Accept. Receive.

[41:34] My word of exhortation. It's all about grace. That's his last word. Literally. Verse 25. Grace.

[41:46] It's all about grace. Because it's all about Jesus. Jesus alone. Jesus forever. God's grace. God's grace. Is to be found.

[41:58] For all who seek it. Only in him. But always. In him. And so Hebrews. Exhorts. Those first century Christians.

[42:09] Amid all their. Problems. All their persecution. All their pain. Just as he. In the same way. Exhorts all of us. Today. Don't neglect.

[42:19] Such a great salvation. Don't neglect. The grace of God. God. In Jesus Christ. Don't neglect. The glory. Of the gospel. Of the God of peace. And that means.

[42:32] Doesn't it. For all of us. As he said. Repeatedly. All through. His sermon. Keep. Listening. To the word of God. Today.

[42:43] Don't harden your hearts. Hear his voice. Keep loving. The people of God. Don't neglect. Meeting together. As some have got. Into the habit of doing. Keep living. For the kingdom.

[42:53] Of God. Grateful. For receiving. A kingdom. That will never be shaken. Not. Seeking the treasures. Of this passing world. And above all.

[43:04] Keep looking. To Jesus. The champion. Of our salvation. The pioneer. And the perfecter. Of our faith. God. And keep running. And keep running.

[43:14] With endurance. The race. That's marked out. For us. With him. Right to the very end. Keep. Looking to Jesus.

[43:24] Alone. Keep looking to Jesus. Forever. Forever. And the God of peace. Who brought back from the dead. Our Lord Jesus. The great shepherd of the sheep. By the blood of the eternal covenant.

[43:37] He will. Make you complete. With all goodness. To do his will. Accomplishing in us. What's pleasing to him. Through Jesus Christ.

[43:49] And to him. Be glory. Forever. Amen.