Hebrews 8 - Pastor Kyle Weeks - April 8th, 2026

Join us this week as Pastor Kyle Weeks continues our Wednesday night study through the Letter to the Hebrews. 

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:25

Remember when I was in middle school and my brother was in high school, and I noticed that all the freedom that he had in high school is much different than the freedom that I had in middle school. Um when he got a car, right? Now his freedom went to a whole lot more than I had, and he had to drive me around. But it was always looking forward to the next thing. When you were in middle school, you wanted to be in high school. Then when you're in high school, where'd you want to be? College. Man, I get to professors, I get to choose to go to class or not. I get three unexcused abstances, and my parents don't even know that I didn't go to class. Um, and so you know, you wanted to be in college. And then if if you were in college and you wanted to continue education, it was like, man, I can't wait till I have my master's, and I'm actually doing doing school focusing on what I really want to graduate with. And then when you're in your master's, you're just like, man, I'm just ready to be done with school. Like, I'm just I'm tired of it. Unless you were going on to be a doctor, to which at that point, you know, good for you. Um, but you're always looking to the next thing because that there was always the promise of the the next thing was going to be the better thing. And it always somehow seemed to either be underwhelming or not exactly what you thought it was going to be. What I hope that you've seen uh throughout our our study through the book of Hebrews, and especially from last week or the last few weeks into this week, is that better thing that has come is the clear and better thing than what was before it. What I mean by that is is that new high priest is so much better than the high priest that came before him. That that new system is so much better than the old system that came before it. That new salvation is so much better than the lack thereof salvation that we were stuck in before. Last week we looked at Jesus being that high priest in the order of Melchizedek. Melchizedek, his name means king of righteousness. His title was the king of peace or the king of Salem or Jerusalem later on, and so the king of peace. Um, and so, but that he is greater than Melchizedek because he is uh eternal. He he is the ultimate high priest because he will always continue to be from the time moment of the cross till now. He will continue to be uh the high priest making intercession for us. Uh, he has made the ultimate sacrifice and atonement for the pure purification for sin for us, and so that's what makes him this great high priest. But remember our audience. Our audience are what kind of people? Starts with a J. They're Jewish, they're Jews. What is the hope of the Jew? That their atonement would be made on the day of atonement by the high priest in Jerusalem. And as long as they go to Jerusalem and have atonement be made for them on their behalf by the high priest, then that is good until either next year or if they become unclean, they go back to that high priest, they buy something to make sacrifice for, and then they have a special sacrifice made for them to make them clean, and they go through all this ceremony of being clean and becoming spiritually clean. And then that it covers them until the next time that they need it. This is the system of the Jewish religious uh um uh system that that's in place at this time. And so it is a lot of back and forth, it's a lot of um need atoning, get atoning, live however best I can, mess up, need atoning, go back to get atonement, and then continue on uh and and all this whole system, this vicious cycle of seeking to be clean. So the writer is talking to Jewish people, and he's ultimately calling them to not go back to that old system, but calling them to trust in Christ. So, what he's doing during all of this is he's saying how much better Jesus is than what they would go back to if they decided to not follow Jesus and go back to following the law. Following this old system of sacrifice and atonement by a high priest and this author, and our author, which again, we we we don't know who it is. We can make guesses, but our author is calling them away from venturing back or drifting back towards that system, stating that Jesus is a greater high priest because he's the high priest that not only has made the one sufficient atonement for sin that will cover all sin, but that his intercession is not simply done as long as he lives, but he lives eternally, and so he will eternally make intercession for his children. Now, this evening, what we're gonna look at is he's a high priest of a better covenant. Now we have covenants all throughout the Old Testament. We first begin um with the covenant that God makes in the garden, um, with with the saying that the seed of the woman would come and crush the serpent's head. We have the Abrahamic covenant that that that God makes with Abraham, that his descendants would be blessed. Then we have the Noahic covenant, that God won't flood the earth again and take out his wrath like he did. We have covenants all throughout, the Davidic covenant, um, talking uh the Mosaic covenant, talking about being God's people, all throughout we we have covenants that God gives. And we know that when God makes a covenant, he keeps it. When God makes a promise, he doesn't break it. Even in the midst of unfaithfulness, even in the midst of wandering, even if his people run incomplete rebellion against him, his ultimate covenant with his people, he keeps. They might break it, but he won't. So we see in this passage that we're going to be in tonight that Jesus is the high priest of a greater covenant. Let's look at verse 26. This will be not supplemental reading, but this will just kind of tie in from what we looked at last week as we look into to verse 8. Chapter 7, I'm sorry. Verse 26 of chapter 7. For it was indeed fitting that we should have such a high priest, a perpetual high priest, who's able to save the uttermost to those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them. It was indeed fitting that we should have such a high priest, holy, innocent, unstained, separated from sinners, and exalted above the heavens. He has no need, like those high priests, to offer sacrifices daily, first for his own sin and then for those of the people, since he did this once for all when he offered himself up. Again, he doesn't have to keep making sacrifices like high priest does, not only for himself, because he is innocent, he is holy, but he doesn't have to keep making sacrifices because his one sacrifice is sufficient to cover all when he offered himself up. For the law appoints men in their weakness as high priest, appoints men in their weakness as high priest. But the word of the oath which came later than the law points appoints a son who has been made perfect forever. Now, the point in what we are saying is this. So this is the main point of chapter eight. This is the main point of why the author is going through this um whole uh um talking about this great high priest in chapter seven, is that we have such a high priest, one who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the majesty in heaven, a minister in the holy places, in the true tip that the Lord set up, nor not man, for every high priest is appointed to offer gift and sacrifices, thus it is necessary for this priest also to have something to offer. Now, if we were on earth, he would not be a priest at all, since there are priests who offer gifts according to the law. They serve a copy and shadow of the heavenly things. For when Moses was about to erect the tent, he was instructed by God, saying, See what you see that you make everything according to the pattern that was shown you on the mountain. But as it is, the reason that we're doing all this, Christ has obtained a ministry that is as that um that is as much more excellent than the old, as the covenant he mediates is better, since it is intact or enacted on better promises. For if that first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no occasion to look for a second. For he finds fault with them when he says, Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will establish a new covenant with the house of Israel and with those with the house of Judah. Remember, Jeremiah chapter 31. Not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, for they did not continue in my covenant, and I showed no concern for them, declares the Lord, for this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord. I will put my laws into their minds and write them on their hearts, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people, and they shall not teach each one his neighbor and each um and they shall not teach each one his neighbor and each one his brother, saying, Know the Lord, for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, for I will be merciful toward their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more. In speaking of a new covenant, he makes the first one obsolete. And what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away. The first thing that I want us to go back and see this morning is that we have a high priest in the true tent. Now you remember the tabernacle was erected, a tent of meeting where Moses would meet with the Lord, and it was evident when Moses would meet with the Lord because he would go in and after he would come out, what would happen, what would his appearance be like? Face was so shiny, everybody it freaked everybody out, basically. I mean, that's what the Bible says. They said it in a much nicer way, but everybody was really freaked out that he came out and his face was so shiny. So he would put a veil on, but when his veil was on, it was to show that he had gone in and met with the Lord. And he was the intermediate between the Lord and the people. Remember, every time someone got upset with Moses on what would happen, what would they do? They would go to Moses and complain. You brought us to a place with no water, you did this. So then what would Moses do on behalf of the people? God bless him. We'd go to the Lord. Lord, send water, Lord, send food. And God would God would bless and do that. And so when we looked at this again, Friday, when the serpents came into the camp because of God's wrath, Moses was the one that mediated between the Lord, and it was Moses' request to the Lord that led to the Lord, saying, All right, make a bronze serpent, lift it up, when the people look at it, they'll be saved. So so this is this is this mediator that we see between the Lord. And it was Moses that would meet with the Lord in that tent. And then as the the tabernacle was erected and and and would go about, but then David decided that he wanted to do what? He wanted to build a temple. Let's build a temple so that it would be in the temple where the Holy of Holies would be, and a place for the people to go. You know what's crazy about the Holy of Holies in the temple? Because David obviously wasn't the one that erected it. Who ultimately built the temple? Solomon. Did you know that the curtains in the temple stood 60 feet tall? And they were almost 10 inches thick, this fabric. It took 300 men to hoist this thing up and and set it into place. And on this uh on this fabric would be depictions of the seraphim. Now you remember if you've read your Bible in Isaiah chapter 6, the Isaiah has a vision of seeing the Lord, and he he sees the seraphim flying around, and they had six wings, with two they covered their face, with two they covered the feet, and then two they flew. And so there were depictions of the seraphim almost like it was around the throne of God. And who could go behind the curtain? Just the high priest. Do you know what they would do with the high priest? They would tie a rope around him. That way, if the high priest went in and he went in and mouthed off, you know, I mean, or he went in unclean, he went in whatever way, so that no one would have to go in and get his body. They could just kind of like pull him out, you know. Like I just think of like the sand lot. Do you remember the movie The Sandlot and the kids are trying to get the baseball? And they're like, that's what I imagine. Like they're like, get him out! They try to try to pull him out. But but this is this is how serious this job was. How serious it was to be to be called a high priest. Our our high priest is sitting at the right hand of God in the truer tent, which is his ultimate presence for all of eternity. And he is always able to be in the presence because he is righteous in and of himself, and he is holy because he is also God. The second person of the Godhead in Christ Jesus intercedes on our behalf to the first person of the Godhead, being God the Father, and that first and second doesn't equate to position, but just how we walk through the Trinity. And so this is the intercession that's being done by our high priest who was the forerunner before us, who has ultimately gone before us into heaven and set our hope, a steadfast anchor in heaven because of his intercession that he does sitting at the right hand of the Father. If you remember back to Hebrews chapter 6, verse 19, we have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enter a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf. That is why it is significant in Matthew chapter 27, when Matthew records, all three in the synoptics record this, but when Matthew records that upon Jesus' death, that veil in the temple is torn. Now let's let's go back and think of that veil, 60 feet tall, 10 inches thick. Symbolic of if you don't, if you're not supposed to be back there, you ain't supposed to go. But that veil being torn is symbolic for those that are in Christ Jesus, and it was a very symbolic thing for those in the early church. That's why they wrote about it, because that is exactly what Jesus has done. He has torn that veil to where all who come to him have access to the Father. They have communion again, and they don't need a man-made intermediate to go to the Father on their behalf, but through Christ Jesus, they have access to God. That they can take their petitions, that they can take their requests, that they can take their thanksgiving, they can take their praise and take it fully to God the Father, because that is the access that they have been given through the high priest, the ultimate high priest who has who intercedes for them in the true tent. This is why Catholics and Christians are not the same. Because any person that tells you that you can't go to the Father on your own, that you need an intermediate to go to him, is ultimately denying Jesus' authority as the ultimate high priest, who has made atonement for all and who has made access for intercession for all who come to him. This is the good news that we see in the gospel is that that I can approach the throne, as verse or chapter 12 says, or chapter 4 says, I'm sorry, verse 12, I can approach the throne with confidence, because I have confidence in the authority and the finished work of Christ Jesus, being that ultimate high priest. John tells us that that as his children, that that not only he is our ultimate high priest, but but he is our advocate before the Father. If you remember John chapter, first John chapter 2, verse 1, my little children, I am writing things these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Christ Jesus the righteous. I don't have to go to confession and confess it to somebody else, who then goes on my behalf to Jesus, who then goes to the Father, but I can go straight to God the Father through my intermediate Christ Jesus and confess those sins, seek forgiveness for those sins and confess those sins. And this we have received in Christ Jesus because, verse 2, he is the propitiation or the appeasement of the wrath of God for our sins and not for ours only, but for also for the sins of the whole world, all who trust in Christ Jesus, and by this we know that we have come to know him if we keep his commandments. A high priest in a true tent. His dwelling place is heaven, his dwelling place is with God the Father, and where he intercedes for us is at the right hand of God the Father. But the second thing that we see is that shadows are never better than the true thing. Shadows are never better than the true thing. Verse five, talking about the high priest, they serve a copy and shadow of heavenly things. For when Moses was about to erect the tent, he was instructed by God saying, See that you make everything according to the pattern that was shown you on the mountain. But as it is, Christ has obtained a ministry that is as much more excellent than the old, as the covenant he mediates is better, since it is enacted on a better promise. Shadows are are never better than the true thing. Um I'm quoting movies tonight. I usually don't like doing doing that. But but do you remember The Lion King? You ever watch The Lion King? I mean, if you have grandkids in here, you'd probably watch The Lion King from time. If you had kids during that time, you watch The Lion King from time to time. Cool movie, right? Super sad in the middle. Don't want to spoil it for you. I mean, it's 30 years old, but don't want to spoil it. But but there is a scene where Simba um goes to a place where he's not supposed to go. It's an elephant graveyard, and and the reason he's not supposed to go there is because there's hyenas there, and hyenas are scavengers, and hyenas, you know, hyenas will eat anything. And and and so he goes, and the hyenas kind of trap him, and and uh he goes to to growl at him, and and and what comes out? Little, yeah, yeah, like a little kitten growl, right? So then they're like, oh, let's hear it again. And he growls again, and the day kind of goes up the best again, all of a sudden he opens his mouth, but you hear this roar. And all of them are like, this little cub didn't make that roar, and all of a sudden, who comes in? Mufasa, like this super awesome lion that just can can take and trap all of them, and and all the authority that he has, all the power that he has. In that moment, while Simba looked like dad, that's a lot different than actually being dad jumping into the scene. Though the high priest of old looked like a shadow of what was to come when Jesus comes on the scene, that's a much better high priest of a much better covenant and a much better atonement. The shadows were never meant to supersede what they were a shadow of. This is important for a Jewish audience to understand because we talked about this on Wednesday night as well. We talked about this during the book of Ruth. Remember, there are shadows and types all throughout the Old Testament that were not meant to be glorified on their own, but those shadows and types were meant to point us to Christ Jesus. Jesus tells us in John chapter 5, verse 39, he says to the Pharisees, You search the scriptures because in them you believe you have eternal life. But what I tell you is all of Scripture points to me. If you walk through the I am statements, all of those things point to Christ Jesus. Again, we talked about this on Friday night. Jesus said, I am the bread of life. What bread is he referring to in the Old Testament? Say it. Manna. Manna in that wilderness that God, through his provision, gave to his people. That's why the people said after he had fed them with two, this kid's lunchable, right? Two two loaves of bread and five fish, or is it the other way around? I can't remember. Um in I have dyslexia. So it's two loaves of bread, five fish, right? Five loaves of bread, two fish. Thank you. So, so, but, but they say, show us the sign. Uh Moses provided manna in the wilderness for our forefathers, so you show us through providing us with food. Jesus said, Well, first off, it was God who provided the manna in the wilderness, number one, and and that that manna that your forefathers ate, they still ate it and died. But but I am the true bread of life that has come, that all who partake of me have eternal life. So he's pointing that he is this greater, this greater shadow type in the Old Testament. It it points to him. If you remember when Jesus said, I'm the light of the world, he said it during the Feast of Booze of the Feast of Tabernacles, when they would raise up these candelabras in the top of the temple, and it would shine the whole city, and it was to remind the people of God's shekana glory that came down with their forefathers, and it was a call and a festival for God to bring his shekana glory back down. And what Jesus says as he stands up in front of everybody in the middle of the courts, he says, I am the light of the world. Like I am that light that you're looking for. I am the very embodiment of the presence of God. Everyone who walks in me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life. Remember that this is what Jesus came to give is life, spiritual life and eternal life. The same thing that we that the author reminds his audience to go into is God's rest, right? His spiritual rest that comes through salvation, through the life that Christ Jesus gives and his eternal, their eternal rest, life forever with the Lord. All of those things in the Old Testament were meant to point to Christ Jesus. So the audience is hearing that the system that they trusted in was not the end all, be all for the way to have sins forgiven, but it was pointing to a greater system to come that would come through a new covenant, a better covenant, through a better mediator. Sacrifices were never the final destination. Why do you think that is? Why is just simple sacrifices? Let's let's have a conversation. Why just simply doing sacrifices? Why is that not the final destination or not not ultimately resulting in the best means of atonement? That's not a payment in full. That's not a pain in full. It's a partial payment, right? It's it's it's an installment payment over time, right? What else?

unknown 27:07

It's just a practice.

SPEAKER_00 27:10

There we go, right there. That's one of the major things, right? Now, let's take and apply that to Sunday today. A sacrifice that that most people trust in with their life, that they can do without really being a heart issue or being a result of the heart, but just an act of works is what? Um I can go to church. There's my sacrifice to the Lord. Sacrifice my sleep on Sunday morning, sacrifice my time. And so then that's good, right? That doesn't come from a heart that delights in the Lord, that just comes from a heart that wants to be covered, right? And so so it can it can be my heart's really not in it, and because my heart's not in it, I'm just gonna keep going back and back, and that atonement isn't gonna be covering me because I'm gonna need it again, but the heart's not in it. It can be done without faith. Psalm 51, verse 16, David is broken over his sin. He desires the Lord to create in him a clean heart. He desires the Lord in verse 12 to restore to him the joy of his salvation. Right? That's the ultimate call away from sin is Lord, help me to restore to me the joy of my salvation so that so that I don't fall into sin. But look at what he says in verse 16, 17. For you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it. You will not be pleased with a burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a what? anybody remember? Broken spirit, a broken spirit and contrite heart, a heart that is repentant. Oh God, you will not despise. So God doesn't despise a broken spirit and a contrite heart, but do you know what he does despise? Isaiah chapter 1, verse 11. What to me is the multitude of your sacrifices, says the Lord. I have had enough of burnt offerings of rams and the fat of well-fed beasts. I do not delight in the blood of bulls or lambs or goats. When you come to appear before me, who has required of you this trampling of my courts? Bring no more vain offerings. That's what he hates. Vain offerings. He says that. Incense is an abomination to me. New moon and Sabbath and the calling of convocations, I cannot endure iniquity and solemn assembly. The sacrificial system was to point to a new covenant made by a new way, not meant to be the forever way that one's sins could be atoned for, because it was an insufficient system. It wasn't complete. But under Christ Jesus, that atonement has been purchased in full. That's complete. His place in high plea high as high priest is forever, because he lives forever, so that's complete. And the place that he does this is at the right hand of God in the true tent of meaning, which can never be taken away and which will never change. So that's complete as well. All of that has been made complete in Christ Jesus. So then the question for the Jew in that moment is this why would I go back? Like what better thing is there for me back here? The realization of how much better it is under this new system than the old system would cause someone to go, why would I go back to this way? But it's the same way for all of us and every person that's come to Christ Jesus, that Paul reminds us of, that Christ Jesus calls us away from. Listen, don't fall back into the old way of living, trying to earn that righteousness, right? For freedom Christ has set you free. Do not put yourself under another yoke of slavery, Paul tells us in chapter 5, verse 1. And now he's calling the people that have found freedom in Christ in the context that he tells us that is because the Judaizers came in and said, Hey, you can follow Jesus too, but you still got to keep the law and you still got to follow the dietary restrictions, and you still got to go to the temple, and you still have to have sacrifice made. And the question is, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. All that's been covered under Christ Jesus. All of that has been taken care of under Christ Jesus. Don't submit yourself to another, another form, uh yoke of slavery. But the same thing is true for us. In Christ Jesus, he has covered your sin fully, so that when you mess up, you don't have to run from him and go, well, I just got to try harder next time and I got to do some things that kind of help help the Lord out a little bit in his forgiveness because he might, you know, really not want to forgive me anymore. But no, you have a high priest who covered your sin, past, present, and future, with his blood, and that payment is sufficient for all of eternity, and his intercession for you when you do mess up is for all of eternity. That shadow is never going to be better than the true thing. And the true thing is a mediator and a better covenant, a truly better covenant. Now let's look really quick again. Again, this is um Jeremiah chapter 31 that's being quoted here, verses 8 through 12. So let's read it again. For he finds fault with them when he says, Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will establish a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. Not like the old covenant I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, for they did not continue in my covenant, so I showed no concern for them, declares the Lord. For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord. I will put my laws into their minds and write them on their hearts. I'm gonna change them. I'm going to change their hearts. We have a term for this in theology. It starts with an R, and that is that there's gonna be a regeneration of the heart, a circumcision of the heart. It is going to be done internally, not externally, but internally. I will put my laws on their minds and I'll write them on their hearts, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. And they shall not teach each one his neighbor and each one his brother, saying, Know the Lord, for they shall all know me from the least of them to the greatest. For I will be merciful towards their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more. How is this possible? This is the mystery, right? This is like what we talked about on Sunday morning. The the problem that all of us have is how does a sinner be made righteous by the Lord? The mystery is how does that work? That new covenant, how does that, how does that work? For I will be merciful towards their iniquities and remember their sins no more. How does that work through this new system? It's not a, or this old system, it's not an old system, it's a new system. Within the new covenant, we see a new system of of atonement and forgiveness, and we ultimately know that that comes through Christ Jesus. It is through his sacrifice that he will be merciful towards their iniquities and will will remember their sins no more. It is through his salvation and and the work of the Holy Spirit where where he will, as he says in verse 10, put his laws into our minds and write them on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people, sealed with the Holy Spirit. We know this. This is how the Lord has worked in the salvation that Christ Jesus has brought to us. It is a covenant based on a truer sacrifice. Not one of rams, not one of goats or bulls, but the sacrifice of God Himself in Christ Jesus. That's the that's that's the big thing when it comes to the cross is how does God forgive sin? Well, he takes the punishment in Christ Jesus. Christ Jesus is the spotless Lamb to be slain, but that's not some random person that God created for this purpose. It was God Himself in the form of flesh that came and did that for us. It is Jesus who did that because the payment for sin is to who? Thomas Aquinas was really famous in making this known. Who's the payment of sin to? God. It's not paying the devil. Devil doesn't have any any buy-in to the to this thing. There's the the there's it's a payment to God because it is God that has old the sin has been an offense against, and it is God that that has that whose glory has been tarnished by sin. So it's the payment to God for sin. So God sent Himself to make His payment. It's why the story or the parable of the unforgiving servant is so such a massive parable to understand. When the king lets the servant who owed a ton of money, this this day and age it would be in the trillions. But he owns that much money. When the king forgives him, who takes the justice for what the guy owed? The king does. Because he just takes that loss. He's the one that took that that punishment. He he's the one that that that it was owed to, but he's the one that cleared the debt. It's the same way of what God does in Christ Jesus, a covenant based on a truer sacrifice. But we also see a covenant based on an imputed righteousness. That's a theological term, if you if you haven't heard it, imputation, to to input, to to to give. On the cross, this is what God did in Christ Jesus, and this is how Paul explains it in 2 Corinthians chapter 5, verse 21. He made him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf. So what where did our sin go? On Jesus. So there's the first imputation, and that is us to him, our sin to him, so that we might become the righteousness of God in him. There's the second imputation, and who receives Christ Jesus' righteousness? We do. So there's the transaction. It's the worst transaction of all of history if you looked at it from an unbiased way, and it's the most beautiful transaction in all of history for the sinner. And that is that they have received a righteousness from Christ Jesus alone, and He He gives us that righteousness while at the same time taking our sin and putting him on, putting it on Himself. The lamb, the bull, the Ram, it it covered for a moment those sins, but it didn't take the full, the full payment of a person's sin upon it. But what Christ Jesus has done is he has taken that full weight of sin for all who would trust in him, and all the wrath of God towards that sin was laid upon him on the cross, and he died because of it, because the wages of sin is death. He dies, he is dead for three days, but then he or he dies, he is dead, but on the third day he raised, he he rose from the grave, he he walks in victory, holding the case over sin and death because he has fully purchased that sin and is not like every other person that has promised the keys to eternal life, who's died and stayed dead, but but but he conquered death by rising from the grave. His sacrifice is better because he is the better sacrifice. His sacrifice is sufficient for all of eternity, it covers for all of eternity. And it will, as Andre Kraut said, it'll never lose its power. A true, a covenant based on an imputed righteousness, a covenant based on a truer sacrifice, but a last thing we see, a covenant that is secured forever. 13. In speaking of a new covenant, he makes the first one obsolete. And what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away. You know what's obsolete today? Rolodexes. Why? Well, you got a phone. Cell phone. Your Rolodex is in your cell phone now. You know what's obsolete today? Disc drives. Remember those floppy disks? Man, those little ones like that go right in the machine. They're obsolete now because your phone has more memory than a disk drive does. Uh your computer now has more RAM than a disk drive does. And on top of that, there's these little things called thumb drives. You know why they're called thumb drives? Because there's a the size of your thumb, and some of them hold up to 500 gigabytes worth of data. That's what makes them obsolete. There's something better that came along. This old covenant has now been obsolete because it has been replaced by a new, newer covenant established by God by the ultimate high priest who is over that covenant as he continues to walk in authority. Jesus says in Matthew 26, I think it's verse 28, when he's given the Lord's Supper, he takes the cup and he says, drink of it, all of you. For for what? The forgiveness of sins. And I tell and I tell you, I will not drink again of this. I'm sorry, let me I'm butchering this. Because he mentions this new covenant within Matthew chapter 26, starting in verse 26. This is what? Man, 26 of 72 verses. Now, as they were eating, Jesus took the bread and after blessing it, broke it and gave it to the disciples, and he said, Take, eat, this is my body. And he took a cup. When he had given thanks, he gave it to them, saying, Drink of it all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. I tell you, I will not drink again of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you and my father's kingdom. This covenant will last all the way until the marriage supper of the Lamb. This covenant will last all the way until all the saints are in heaven for all of eternity worshiping the Lord. This covenant that is secured forever because last week he is the perpetual high priest. So, what does this scripture mean for you and I? There's a couple of things. The first one is this our advocate. And our intercessor is in heaven at the right hand of God, interceding on our behalf to God the Father. And we have access to God the Father because of our intercessor, not through anybody else. You, as a child of God, can go before the throne and pray to the Lord and have just as much access as any other child of God. Now, this sometimes is mind-blowing for people because for some people that don't get this, I've had many people come up to me and said, Well, preacher, can you can you pray for me? Because the Lord hears your prayers more than he hears my prayers. I don't know how to nicely tell them that that's not anywhere in Scripture. But the mentality is that, oh, well, there's some people that the Lord hears their prayers more than they hear my prayers. Doesn't say any hit where the where the intercessor has a list of uh a hierarchy where he goes, All right, I listen to this guy more than I'm listening to this guy over here. My father-in-law made a joke whenever he, and and again, I I always try not to Jesus juke anybody. When my father-in-law made a joke and he said, Um, you know, I know you're marrying my daughter, you're going to um into ministry. Um, and if the Lord wants to send you to Africa, that's fine. But just know um I've been praying longer, and um, and so uh he'll hear my prayer before he hears yours. And I was like, ha ha, that's not true, but okay. Like uh, I mean, what okay, that's fine. You and I have an advocate in Christ Jesus and an intercessor in Christ Jesus who gives us full access to the Father because of his blood, and it's no different than every other person that has come to know the Lord Jesus. You have the same amount of access as Billy Graham, as John MacArthur, as Jonathan Edwards, any other great Christians that you that you want to try. Now, there are some people who take advantage of that advocate more than you do, and that is true. All of us, though, have the same access. It's just how how committed we are to enjoy and benefit from that access with the Lord. The second thing that that this scripture means for you and I is that um because of this, we can absolutely reject a works-based salvation. You you came to know the Lord, not because of that you're awesome, not because you had just a little bit of righteousness and that God just kind of had to supplement a little bit. No, no, no. You you have received salvation simply because the the great high priest has purchased it for you for all who enter in through him. So you can try to try harder, or you you can go through life thinking that you're helping God out or doing him a solid by also doing these things that aren't required of a follower of Jesus, but just make you feel better. But at the end of the day, his atonement's sufficient, not your works. I I have, I mean, I have a cousin who is an independent fundamental Baptist, and and he has fallen into the snare that um you have to read a certain translation and and and wear a certain thing to church and live in a certain way and call out certain things in order to be seen as righteous. And that's a lie straight from hell, because it's not based on any of those things that we've received salvation, and it's not based on any of those things that our faith salvation is secured. You you diminish the cross of Christ and and and the authority that He is, that He has of a high priest when you try to add anything on top of it, thinking that that's really what saves you. And it doesn't. And that's why we call those that are trying to work their way through life and and try to becoming a better person, and maybe it's their good works that get them into heaven. If you don't have the intercessor of the great high priest, you you have nothing, nothing to breathe. And then the last thing the gospel really is good news. It really is good news. Because what we've seen in this passage is that is that did any of it say how you did anything? No, like none of it says how like you, you, you with your works along with this high priest, or or you um, you know, with your um just great intellect along with this high priest is why you've received no no no. You you've received all of this we know by grace through faith, but all of this access that you've you have obtained now to go before the Lord, and all of this blessing that you have received is because of what Christ Jesus did, not because of what you did. And that's good news. That's not bad news. That doesn't make you lazy, makes you a child of God. That's one of the hardest things for in in Western culture, especially for us, when it's we live by this mentality of pulling yourself up by your bootstraps, or we have that false teaching that people say that's in the Bible, which is God helps those who what? Help themselves. Crud. That's malarkey. I'll try to find another word that I mean just to get across. That that's garbage. That's not true. You couldn't help yourself and God helped you. God saved you. You couldn't do anything. You were dead, and God made you alive in Christ. But again, the gospel requires obedience and faith, but it produces what? Or I'm sorry, it requires repentance and and faith, but it produces what? Obedience. I'm not saved by my works, I'm saved for works, and not for works to bring about salvation, but for works of walking in obedience with him. And is that walking in obedience a performance-based walk? That if I don't walk in a particular amount or a particular percentage of obedience, that that all of a sudden my high priest and my advocate's just gonna kick me to the curb? No, that answer is no. Jesus says, Not one that you have given me, that the Father has given me, or Father has given him, has he lost. He's the good shepherd and he's the great high priest. The gospel really is good news. So as we wrap up this evening, we we sit back and we just appreciate all that we have in Christ Jesus. And it leads us to like what we're gonna pray, like we're gonna see this Sunday in Paul's prayer, that we would know the height and depth of God, that we would seek Him more because of all that He has done for us. To God be the glory. Let's pray.