Hebrews 12:18-29
18 You have not come to a mountain that can be touched and that is burning with fire; to darkness, gloom and storm; 19 to a trumpet blast or to such a voice speaking words that those who heard it begged that no further word be spoken to them, 20 because they could not bear what was commanded: “If even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned to death.” 21 The sight was so terrifying that Moses said, “I am trembling with fear.”
22 But you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, 23 to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the Judge of all, to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, 24 to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.
25 See to it that you do not refuse him who speaks. If they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, how much less will we, if we turn away from him who warns us from heaven? 26 At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, “Once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.” 27 The words “once more” indicate the removing of what can be shaken—that is, created things—so that what cannot be shaken may remain.
28 Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, 29 for our “God is a consuming fire.”
As we approach another Thanksgiving, I like to ponder all the "thanks" verses in the Bible. I was surprised by all the "He gave thanks and blessed the food" verses referring to Jesus. After all the years of praying before eating, I feel like my kids view it as a religious ritual that could be done away with like women covering their heads in church. I must confess, I also do it as a rote prayer not even thinking about God but more like placing a napkin on my lap preparing for the food. This year I'm struck by how often Christ did it and He sets the example for us to be grateful for food that sustains our lives through the common grace of God. If Jesus took it seriously so should I. Another thankful verse that strikes me is in the above passage which I must say has escaped my notice as I normally land on Colossians or the Psalms at this time of year.
According to this passage, what are we to be thankful for? The first thing I see is that we are under the New Covenant not the Old. In the Old we would be trembling with fear in the presence of a God who could consume us with fire if He wanted to because of our sin. The fire of His wrath has been poured out on His Son on the cross so now we no longer need to be afraid of Him but can come boldly into His presence, approaching the mountain ,so to speak, and gladly hear His voice which speaks gently to us rather than deafeningly like the man behind the curtain. Having delivered a lot of babies for policemen, I'm always grateful when I get pulled over, which unfortunately is too often, and I recognize the policeman as my friend. The encounter is completely different when I don't know the officer and they don't know me. This is like the difference between the Old and New Covenant. I am thankful for a God who loves me as a Father not a God who I need to be afraid of like the vice principal.
Secondly we should be thankful that "the sprinkled blood of Jesus speaks a better word than the blood of Abel." What exactly does that mean? What does Esau's blood cry out from the ground? "Justice!" What does Christ's blood cry out? "Justice met!" In the Old Covenant, we would have had to offer animal sacrifices on a regular basis to temporarily appease the justice of God. It was like swiping a credit card to pay knowing that the full debt was building and building amounting to a debt we could never pay. Christ came and His blood once and for all met the justice of God. I know of a guy that owes me $9000. He will occasionally send me a small check but when we run into each other there is the uncomfortable tension between us because the debt has not been paid. I'm thankful that the shame of a debt not paid does not stand in the way between me and God because of the sufficient blood of Jesus.
Lastly we should be thankful that there is a New Heaven, a New Earth, and a New Jerusalem waiting for those of us whose sins have been paid for by faith. Not only that but we aren't going to the Old Covenant's Abraham's Bosom like lay away at Macy's, but a place where Christ has been preparing for us for 2000 years now. God is a consuming fire and He is going to consume the old earth which shakes with earthquakes, tornadoes, floods, tsunamis, famine, drought, erosion, death, disease, and pandemics, and He will replace it with an Earth that has none of that. We think this earth is beautiful yet it is cursed by sin. Just think how amazing the New Earth is going to be. In Sunday School this week someone mentioned how every color known to man comes from just 3 colors. She said, "I think God is going to reveal a lot more colors to us." Someone else said, "You know how we only use about 10% of our brain? I think in Heaven God is going to open up that unused part that He is blocking now." Someone else said, "I think we are going to be able to taste the color blue." Kind of blows the mind doesn't it? I'm thankful I'm going there - aren't you?
Secondly we should be thankful that "the sprinkled blood of Jesus speaks a better word than the blood of Abel." What exactly does that mean? What does Esau's blood cry out from the ground? "Justice!" What does Christ's blood cry out? "Justice met!" In the Old Covenant, we would have had to offer animal sacrifices on a regular basis to temporarily appease the justice of God. It was like swiping a credit card to pay knowing that the full debt was building and building amounting to a debt we could never pay. Christ came and His blood once and for all met the justice of God. I know of a guy that owes me $9000. He will occasionally send me a small check but when we run into each other there is the uncomfortable tension between us because the debt has not been paid. I'm thankful that the shame of a debt not paid does not stand in the way between me and God because of the sufficient blood of Jesus.
Lastly we should be thankful that there is a New Heaven, a New Earth, and a New Jerusalem waiting for those of us whose sins have been paid for by faith. Not only that but we aren't going to the Old Covenant's Abraham's Bosom like lay away at Macy's, but a place where Christ has been preparing for us for 2000 years now. God is a consuming fire and He is going to consume the old earth which shakes with earthquakes, tornadoes, floods, tsunamis, famine, drought, erosion, death, disease, and pandemics, and He will replace it with an Earth that has none of that. We think this earth is beautiful yet it is cursed by sin. Just think how amazing the New Earth is going to be. In Sunday School this week someone mentioned how every color known to man comes from just 3 colors. She said, "I think God is going to reveal a lot more colors to us." Someone else said, "You know how we only use about 10% of our brain? I think in Heaven God is going to open up that unused part that He is blocking now." Someone else said, "I think we are going to be able to taste the color blue." Kind of blows the mind doesn't it? I'm thankful I'm going there - aren't you?
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