What Foundation?

Hebrews 13 begins with a reading from Hebrews chapter 12, verse 22. There we read, "But you are come unto Mount Zion and unto the city of the Living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect, and to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of the sprinkling that speaketh better things than that of Abel."

See that you refuse not him that speaketh. For if they escaped not who refused him that spake on earth, that would be Moses in the law, much more shall not we escape if we turn away from him that speaketh from heaven. Whose voice then shook the earth, but now he has promised again, saying, "Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven." This word, "yet once more," signified the removing of those things that are shaken, as of things that are made, that those things which cannot be shaken may remain.

Wherefore, we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear, for our God is a consuming fire.

Let's pray. Father, as we take time to look at this passage this morning, as we open Your Word, I pray once more that You'd open our hearts and that You'd speak very clearly to us. Lord, as Your Word says in Revelation, the Spirit is speaking, and he who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit would say to the church. Would You open our ears this morning and help us to hear Your voice and to understand the Scriptures, these pages that You've put before us? We ask in Jesus' name. Amen.

You can be seated. We began the book of Hebrews several weeks ago at Hebrews chapter 1, verse 1, where it says, "God, who at sundry times and in diverse manners spoke in times past unto the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken unto us by His Son." God has chosen in these last days that we are living in to speak to us by His Son, His only begotten Son, of whom we are told in John chapter...

He is the Word that became flesh and dwelt among us. God speaks to us through the Word made flesh, His Son, the Word of God. If anyone ever comes to you declaring that they are speaking on behalf of God and it contradicts what you read in the Word of God, then they are not speaking on behalf of God. This is how God has chosen in these last days to speak to us—through His Word.

If you sense that God is speaking in your heart about this or that, it will be confirmed in His Word. I believe His Word is powerful, as we saw in Hebrews chapter 4. It is living and sharper than any two-edged sword; it is able to cut deep. As you have read through the Word, and as I have, I'm sure you've seen that God can use His Word in a powerful way in each of our lives.

I am always amazed as I read through passages in my Bible that are underlined maybe once or twice, and passages that I've read many times. Yet, I read them again, and they come back to life in a new way, challenging me in a new area. God's Word is living and powerful, sharper than any two-edged sword. We are told here in Hebrews, at the end of chapter 12, that His Word, His voice, shook the earth. It shakes everything up.

As we've gone through these first ten chapters of Hebrews, we've seen that God's Word has the ability to shake things up. It was shaking things up in the Hebrew Church as the writer of Hebrews, whom I believe to be Paul, examines all the aspects of the Jewish faith. He shows that Jesus is greater than the angels, superior to Moses, and has a better and enduring priesthood. He presents a superior sanctuary and a sincerely better sacrifice.

The first ten chapters of the book of Hebrews demonstrate that Jesus is greater than all these things upon which the Jewish faith was built—those foundational elements of who they were, how they lived, and what they believed. The writer shows that Jesus is over those things; He is better, truer, and a more sure foundation. Yet, there were many who...

Many were continuing to build their lives on that unsteady foundation. There were many who were even tempted at this point in time, having come to the Lord and begun to follow Jesus. They were tempted to go back to that old foundation, to return to the old ways and follow after those old customs, rules, regulations, and feasts. The writer of Hebrews addresses this issue, stating that it is not a good foundation and questioning why anyone would turn back to those things.

Yet, the temptation in our day is also present. While it may not be a return to Judaism, as there are not many in this room today who come from a Jewish background, we are tempted as we follow the Lord to return to other things—other works—in an attempt to gain a better standing with God. We often sense or think in our minds and in our flesh that we need to do something more to make ourselves better before God. However, Scripture shows us that this is not the case. Still, many are trying to do just that, both within the church and in the world.

Jesus spoke to this in what I believe to be the greatest sermon ever given, the Sermon on the Mount, found in Matthew chapters 5, 6, and 7. If you turn in your Bibles to Matthew chapter 6, we will look at this a little more closely. In Matthew chapter 7, verse 21, Jesus speaks to His disciples, saying, "Not everyone that says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he that does the will of my Father which is in heaven."

He continues, "For many will say to me in that day, 'Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in your name? And in your name have we not cast out devils? And in your name done many wonderful works?' And then I will profess unto them, 'I never knew you; depart from me, you who work iniquity.'"

Therefore, Jesus concludes, "Whosoever hears these sayings of mine and does them, I will liken him unto a wise man who built his house upon a rock. The rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat upon that house; and it fell not, for it was founded upon a rock."

Conversely, "Everyone that hears these sayings of mine and does them not shall be likened unto a foolish man who built his house upon the sand. The rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat upon that house; and it fell, and great was its fall."

The person described here illustrates the importance of a solid foundation in our faith.

Jesus is doing works and trying to be really spiritual, building their house ultimately on sand, on an unsure foundation of their own works, efforts, wisdom, and ways. In the day of Christ Jesus, when His word goes forth like thunder and shakes that foundation, it will be proven to be unsound. The life that they built up will fall; it will not stand the test of the storm that comes against it. When the rain comes down and the floods come up, that life built upon our own efforts, our own ways, and our own works is a life built on shifting sand and cannot stand before the Lord.

Yet, many are building upon that foundation. Some may even be tempted in this church to do that. During the time of the writer, during the time of Paul, there were those who were tempted to build on such a foundation. Paul is writing to them, encouraging them to follow after the Lord and to lay aside those things.

In Matthew chapter seven, it says there will be many in that day who will say, "Didn't we do these things?" There will be a multitude of people who stand before Him and say, "Didn't I do all these good works? Look at the way I lived, the things I said, and the things I gave my money to." Yet, the thundering voice of God will go forth and say, "I never knew you. Your life wasn't built upon Me. Depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness."

You may be a good Muslim, doing all the things that the Muslim faith says to do. You pray five times a day, fast, and perform good works. You might be a Mormon who goes door-to-door, doing good things in the name of who you believe Jesus to be, or a Jehovah's Witness. You could deny yourself of all worldly pleasures and follow Buddhism or Confucius. You could sit in the chair at Calvary Chapel for fifty years and do many things in the name of God. Yet, if your life or my life is not built upon the foundation that is Christ, it will not stand.

Then, in that day when we stand before Him, it won't hold up. That life, that building that's built up, may look really good to everybody else around. When other people pass by and appraise your life, they might say, "Man, look, they've got everything in order." Yet, the foundation is sand. When God's voice goes forward, as it has in the first ten chapters of the Book of Hebrews, it will shake everything up to show that that foundation is not a good foundation.

What's happened in the first ten chapters of the Book of Hebrews is that God's Word goes forth and shakes everything that the Jewish people held dear—all that was their foundation—to the point where it begins to crumble and fall down. They come to a place, as they did on the day of Pentecost when Peter preached in Acts chapter 2, where they say, as they were cut to the heart, "What must we do to be saved?" There have been some over the last several weeks, as we've been going through the Book of Hebrews, who have come to that point where they realize that the life they've been building on a foundation of good works and moral behavior is not a good foundation. They come to that place and cry out, "What must I do to be saved?" as the Word of God, like that sharp sword, cuts them to the heart.

If the Book of Hebrews ended at chapter 10, it would be a tragedy. Yet, we moved on a couple of weeks ago into chapter 11, where we read in chapter 11, verse 6, that without faith it is impossible to please Him. For he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is the rewarder of them that diligently seek Him. The person who comes to that place in their life, where they realize their poorness of spirit and their poverty of spirit, sees that the foundation of their life and all their good works are not going to stand up in the day of Christ Jesus. They come to a place where all they can do is cry out, "What must I do?" The answer is to come to God by faith, for without faith it is impossible to please Him.

The person who comes to God by faith leads us into chapter 12, as we did last week, where we see that now we need to begin to run the race in hope. The person whose life has been shaken by...

The very word of God and the core of their foundation is crumbled below them. They come to God, falling on their face, poor in spirit, mourning over their own sinfulness and their spiritual depravity. The question arises: What must I do to be saved? The answer is to come to God by faith and now run to Him in hope, looking unto Jesus, the author and the finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God (Hebrews 12:2).

Looking unto Jesus in hope and running to Him, that person who has had their foundation shaken has turned to God and come to Him by faith. Now they are running to Him in hope. In chapter 13, we read in verse 1, "Let brotherly love continue." Three foundations to our life as believers are faith, hope, and love. These are the last three chapters of the book of Hebrews and are also spoken of in 1 Corinthians 13. "Now abide these three: faith, hope, and love, but the greatest of these is love" (1 Corinthians 13:13).

So, that person whose foundation has been broken down has come to God by faith, is running to Him in hope, and is now called to live in love. Let brotherly love continue. As a person comes to the Lord by faith and begins to run to Him in hope, God begins to do a work in that individual. The fruit of the Spirit, as mentioned in Galatians 5, is love; it is the very first one mentioned there. As God, by His Spirit, begins to work in the believer—who has come to God by faith and is running to Him in hope—He begins to build His love into that person.

An exhortation is given here in chapter 13, verse 1, to let brotherly love continue. How is that brotherly love displayed in the life of the believer? How is it seen in the life of that person whose foundations of old have crumbled as they come to God?

Faith is running to Him in hope, and now God is building in them His love. How is it seen? Verse 2 says, "Be not forgetful to entertain strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unaware." One of the first things that shows us and reveals God's love in an individual—a person who has come to Him by faith, running to Him in hope—is that this person begins to be hospitable.

We are reminded not to be forgetful to be hospitable or to entertain strangers. The writer here says some have actually entertained angels unaware, not realizing that the stranger who came to them was actually a messenger of God. He emphasizes the importance of being hospitable.

Now, I don't know about you, but I know myself somewhat well. I have found that in my flesh, as Paul said in Romans chapter 7, dwells no good thing. Apart from God, I am not the most hospitable person. In fact, apart from the Lord, I probably don't want anything to do with others. I want to keep my things to myself. Maybe you've experienced the same thing in your life as well.

However, as we come to the Lord and begin to follow Him by faith, running to Him in hope, He builds in us and perfects in us His love. He creates in us a desire to be hospitable, to reach out to strangers, and to help those in need. As we read in verse 3, "Remember them that are in bonds as bound with them, and them which suffer adversity as being yourselves also in the body."

So, that person who has God's love perfected in their life—having come to Him in faith and running to Him in hope—begins to reach out to those who are suffering, seeking to aid them. We need to be not forgetful to entertain strangers, to be hospitable, and to reach out to those who suffer. Jesus even told us that in doing so, we have done it to one of the least of these; we have done it unto Him. When you gave that person a cold glass of water, clothed that person who was naked, or helped that person who was in prison, you did it unto one of the least of these.

As God perfects His love in the life of the believer, it is seen in their hospitality.

They reach out to those who are in need and who are suffering. In verse 4, it states that they are committed to their covenants. "Marriage is honorable in all, and the bed undefiled; but whoremongers and adulterers God will judge." The believer, the one who has come to God by faith and is running to Him by hope, has God's love perfected in them. This love is seen in their commitment to their covenants, especially that of marriage.

It is a sad shame upon the church, upon our church in America today, that the divorce rate within the church is almost equally as high as that in the world. Yet, I do see that God is still doing a great work in perfecting His love within the church. I see many marriages, even within this church and among people I know, where God has restored and reconciled relationships in a beautiful way.

My aunt is living with me right now because she and her husband have been going through a very difficult time in their marriage. They have been married for a long time, but he is not a believer while she is. In the last year or so, this has caused a lot of problems, and she has come to stay at my house while they navigate this situation. In the last few months, the Lord has done an incredible work of restoration. My uncle has come to the Lord, he is reading the Word, and he is going to church. Just yesterday, she asked me as she was leaving the house if I wanted to go over to their house for dinner last night. I couldn't because I had to be here, but what a beautiful testimony of what God is doing in their marriage as He restores and builds it up.

First, He had to bring both of them to a place of being broken in their lives, turning to Him in faith and running to Him in hope. Then, He begins to build that love. My older brother, a couple of years ago, and his wife went through a very difficult time in their marriage. My brother had done some pretty stupid things, and she had a lot of reasons to want to divorce him. She was moving in that direction, yet both of them came to a place where God broke them. They turned to Him in faith and began to run to Him in hope. Now, God has completely restored their marriage, and just a few months ago, they had their...

God is able to do that restoring work, and we see it take place as brotherly love is kindled in our hearts, perfected by God. The love of God is seen in the life of the believer in verse 5, where we read, "Let your conversation or your conduct be without covetousness." Apart from God, in and of my own strength, I am covetous; yes, I admit it. Maybe you too look at your neighbor and see something they have, and you say, "I don't even know what that is, but I want it. Why do they get to have it and I don't? I want it."

Our own nature, our sinful nature, is filled with covetousness. But as we come to the Lord broken and we turn to Him in faith, running to Him in hope, He builds His love in us. One of the fruits of that love is that our conduct is completely transformed and changed. He removes that wicked nature, and in its place, He begins to make us content.

"Be content with such things as you have." I have to admit to you that several weeks ago, I was reading something—I believe it was a devotional I had in my office. As I was sitting there, it was on contentment, and as I got to the end of it, I had to admit, "Lord, I don't know a whole lot about this contentment. Teach me to be content." Paul the Apostle said he had learned to be content, and so I was praying, "Lord, teach me what that means."

As God's love is perfected in my life and in yours, He teaches us to be content with the things we have. For He has said, "I will never leave thee nor forsake thee." As you walk with the Lord, turning to Him in faith and following Him in hope, He begins to build in you His love. As He perfects His love in you, you begin to see that He is all you'll ever need and that He will never leave you nor forsake you. That, I believe, is where contentment begins to spring from—seeing Jesus as your all-in-all and recognizing that He will never leave you.

Boldly say, "The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me." There are a lot of people in our world, especially in our nation, who are fearful and afraid. Yet the Scriptures tell us that perfect love casts out all fear. As God's love is perfected in you and imperfect in me, He begins to remove that fear because we realize that He is our helper. We understand that what can man do to us? There is nothing that he can do.

So, we take our lives to live as Christ, and to die, as Paul would say, is gain. Whom shall I fear? What can man do to me? As God's love is perfected in the life of the believer, we read in verse 7, "Remember them which have rule over you, who have spoken unto you the word of God, whose faith follow, considering the end of their conversation or their conduct."

Now, apart from the Lord, no one rules over me. I am my own boss; I am the master of my own destiny. Don't get in my way—lead, follow, or get out of the way. I would much rather you get out of the way. Apart from the Lord, there is no one that rules over us. We are our own boss; we are it. Yet, as God's love is perfected in us, we begin to realize that there are those who have been put over us, and we are to remember them who rule over us and to follow their example as they follow the Lord by faith.

This is not something that is our natural tendency. Yet, as we come to the Lord, He begins to work it in us and through us by His love. Verse 8 says, "Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, today, and forever." There are many people in our church, in our city, in our state, and in our nation who have been hurt by people who have let them down. Maybe your hope was built upon the governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, but perhaps he has let you down. Or maybe, even closer to home, your husband or your wife has let you down. Your closest friend has let you down; they didn't do what you expected.

They said they do, but they didn't act in the way that you felt they should. Yet, Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever; He changes not. As we live in love with the Lord, we begin to see that He doesn't change and that what He said is true. When He said, "I will come for you," He meant it. We are strengthened in that as we learn to walk in love with Him. His love, being perfected in us, helps us to be stable.

Verse 9 states, "Be not carried about with diverse and strange doctrines, for it is a good thing that your heart be established with grace." As God's love is perfected in my life and yours, as we follow Him by faith and run to Him in hope, He creates in us a stability. He establishes us in His grace so that we are not tossed to and fro by every wind of doctrine or by diverse and strange things any longer. We are not established by foods, feast days, or any other traditions; we are established and made stable by God's grace. Those other things, whatever they may be, have not profited those who have been occupied there. Those who have gone after those things find that it doesn't satisfy or establish. Only Christ can establish you and make you stable.

Isn't it amazing how God has taken some very shifty people, even in this room, and made you stable in Him? As you have followed Him by faith, as you've run to Him in hope, and as you have had His love perfected in you, we have an altar. In verse 10, it says, "Whereof they have no right to eat which serve the tabernacle." Those who are serving an old system, a religious pattern or belief system of some sort, cannot come to the altar that Christ has set up. They cannot come boldly into the throne room of grace to obtain mercy and grace in their time of need apart from coming through the only way: Jesus Christ.

For Jesus told us in John chapter 14, as He spoke to His disciples, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man comes to the Father except through Me." There is no other thing in this world that will establish you, make you stable, or bring you into a place of security.

True worship of God is through Jesus Christ; He is the only way. As the writer continues in verse 11, we read, "For the bodies of those beasts whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by the high priest for sin are burned outside the camp." When they made certain offerings in the old Levitical system, one of them being the offering of the red heifer, it was to be taken and sacrificed outside of the city, outside of the gates, and burned outside. However, the blood was brought into the sanctuary, into the tabernacle, for an atoning sacrifice.

In much the same way, verse 12 tells us that Jesus also, that He might sanctify, cleanse, and atone for the people with His own blood, suffered outside the gate. He too went outside the city walls, carrying His cross to the place of the skull, Golgotha, Calvary. Did you know that you can go to Skull Chapel? It's nice, but He went outside the gate to sanctify the people, leaving the old system, the old structure, and the old form behind. He went outside to sanctify, to atone, and to cleanse for sin.

In verse 13, we read, "Let us go forth therefore unto Him." Underline that in your Bibles. Let us go forth therefore unto Him. Paul writes to this group of people who were tempted to go back inside the gates, to return to the tabernacle, to the structure, to the form, to the religion. As they were tempted to return to all of those things, he reminds them that Jesus went outside of all that because it wasn't enough. It's not sufficient; it's not a sure foundation. He went outside the gates to cleanse, to sanctify, and to atone for the people. He suffered out there, and therefore, let us go out unto Him, without the camp, outside the camp, bearing His reproach. Even if your family looks upon you and says you're a fool, even if your business associates think you're nuts, we bear His reproach as we go outside that old structure.

Form is not enough to save, redeem, sanctify, or cleanse. We are exhorted to go outside of that to Christ. Let us go forth, therefore, unto Him, apart from all that structure and all that form, for we have no continuing city but seek one to come. Leaving behind those old dead works and broken foundations, we go out to Him, seeking a new city.

As Abraham followed the Lord by faith, we are reminded in Hebrews chapter 11 that he looked for a city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God. He did not seek a city or a life in some sort of ritual, form, or religion here; he looked to the Lord and left all that behind, seeking after a city with true foundations.

First Corinthians chapter 3, verse 11 tells us that there is no other foundation that can be laid except that of Jesus Christ. There is only one foundation that is true and will stand when the shaking of God's voice comes. We saw in Hebrews chapter 12 that He shook the earth and promised to shake the heavens to prove that His foundation is the only one that will stand. His is the true, solid, and sure foundation.

We have no continuing city here; we have no foundation that will work for us on earth. No structure that man can devise, no form of religion or system of beliefs that man creates, will ever stand before God. Only one way will work, and it is the way that God ordained through His Son, Jesus Christ. If we try to build our lives on any other foundation, it will not work in that day. He will look upon you and say, "Depart from me; I never knew you."

I have met some Muslims who have built a life that looks really good. They pray five times a day, do all kinds of good works, fast, and follow their faith. I am not talking about the radicals who fly planes into buildings, believing they are serving God. I am referring to some Muslims in our own town who live a very righteous-looking life; their houses are well painted.

Everything's in order; they've got it all set up, and yet the foundation is sand. It's works, and it's not going to work. We need to be able to boldly say, as Paul does in this book, that it's not going to stand up before the Lord.

There are a lot of Mormons that come to your door and my door. I see them walking down the street all the time with their little name tags on. They have a form of religion that may look really good, and they have a life that seems to look nice. Everything's in order. Have you ever been over to someone's house where you walk in and everything looks perfect? I mean, it looks like a museum. Everything is just right. My house is not like that, but everything looks so perfect and nice.

There are some who have a form and a pattern of religion that looks so perfect. There are even some within our church here, or the Calvary chapels as a whole, or any of the Christian churches, who look really good. However, it has nothing to do with Christ. It has to do with them setting up a good moral standard in their life, and they think that’s what biblical Christianity is all about. Yet, it's founded upon their works, their own efforts, and their own system of beliefs. It cannot and will not stand when the voice of God shakes it and says, "What foundation is this built upon?"

He's not even going to need to huff and puff to blow the house down. All He's going to do is say, "Well, let's see," and there goes wood, hay, and stubble—the works of men's hands. There is no continuing city here on earth; there is nothing here that can continue and stand the test of God's voice. He is, as we saw in the last verse of Hebrews chapter 12, a consuming fire. When we come before Him, if our life is built on anything else other than Him, it will all go up in smoke.

You guys probably remember a few years back, I believe it was 1997. It was at the very same time that we were building this sanctuary. A lot of different people were helping out down here. We were down here with buckets and sponges in the footings of what this building is now, trying to get all the water from El Niño out of those footings so that it could get inspected and they could pour the foundation. We were trying to sop it all up. You guys remember seeing on TV during El Niño those beautiful...

Million-dollar homes up in the Bay Area are incredible. You could see them featured on shows like "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous." This countertop is imported granite from Italy. Oh wow, these tiles were $300 a piece, and we imported them from Madagascar. Oh wonderful, this faucet is 24-karat gold!

But then, as the rains came down and the floods came up, those houses were built upon sandstone. Real smart, right? Why? So you could have a really nice view. Oh look, there's the ocean! Oh look, there's my house in the ocean! There are people who have their lives just like that house, built up. It looks really good, and you could do a walkthrough and appraise it, thinking, "Wow, this life has got everything in order."

Then the storm comes, or God's Word is brought into that life, and the foundation is shaken to the point where it all comes crashing down. It all falls apart. Hopefully, that happens here and now, and not on the day that they stand before the Lord.

The book of Hebrews was written to a group of people who were still tempted to go back to that condemned house where the foundations were broken. They were thinking, "Oh, but 24-karat gold faucets! The water just comes out so much nicer out of gold." They were tempted to go back to those old things, but the foundation had been condemned. It had been shown in the first ten chapters of Hebrews to be insufficient and unsound.

My dad is an ironworker; he builds big buildings and stuff. I remember a few years ago, they were constructing a building near LAX. With the standards we have in California because of earthquake safety, when they weld everything, different groups come out to inspect all the welds. They had a group come out, and there were these microscopic air bubbles—things that the ultrasound found—just a few air bubbles in these welds.

They had to rip out all the welds off this building and redo it all. It cost a lot of money because when the shaking would come, it would buckle and break. Although it might look really good, microscopic air bubbles are not good enough. You may have a structure in the form of religion that looks really good, but it will not stand up if it's not founded upon Christ. That's the message we have here in the Book of Hebrews.

When we realize this and examine our lives in the light of God's Word, we understand that the structure we've been trying to live in—doing good works and having moral behavior—is not going to work. This realization brings us to a place of brokenness; it cuts us to the heart. We should cry out, "What must I do to be saved?" It should bring us to the point we see in Matthew chapter five in the Sermon on the Mount. The very first words of Jesus in that message are, "Blessed are the poor in spirit."

This realization should lead us to understand the poverty of our spirit. What we've been trying to do to gain access to eternal life, fulfillment, or enlightenment is not enough. We are spiritually depraved and poor in spirit. Blessed is that person who comes to that place—oh, how happy they are! For theirs is the kingdom of heaven. That is the person who can begin to grasp hold of the kingdom of God, which has foundations.

When a person's life has been shaken and examined by the Word of God, and the foundation begins to fall, the house is teetering, and everything seems to be going downhill quickly, they are poor in spirit. They begin to mourn over it. "Blessed are they that mourn," as stated in Matthew chapter five, verse four. They weep and cry deeply over what has happened. They realize they are spiritually bankrupt and mourn over it. Blessed are they—oh, how happy are they—which mourn, for they shall be comforted.

At that point in time, the person who is poor in spirit and mourning over their sinfulness and spiritual deadness experiences the comfort of God's Holy Spirit, described in John chapters 14, 15, and 16. The Holy Spirit comes and begins to comfort that life, and as the Spirit of God begins to work in that life, that person is broken.

The house that crumbles is a metaphor for those who are blessed. Blessed are they that are meek—a true brokenness brought about only by the Spirit of God. The person looks at themselves and says, "Me? Ick." They realize that there is nothing good in them, as Paul declared in Romans chapter 7: "In me, that is, in my flesh, dwells no good thing." Oh, wretched man that I am! Who shall deliver me from this body of death?

Being poor in spirit and mourning over it leads to a state of brokenness by the Spirit of God, making one meek. Oh, how happy are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth! Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled.

At that point in time, a person whose life has been examined and shaken by the Word of God finds that their foundation has fallen. The house has fallen down; they are poor in spirit, mourning over it, and they have been broken. They begin to hunger and thirst and ask, "What must I do to be saved?" If what they have been doing—these works they have been building—is not a sure enough foundation, then what? They hunger and thirst after righteousness; they hunger and thirst after a right standing with God. It is declared that they shall be filled.

It is at that moment that God begins to build. Blessed are the merciful, as stated in Matthew chapter 5, verse 7. Moses, in Exodus chapter 34, asks the Lord, "I want to see your glory." God responds, "You can't see my glory; if you see me, you'll die. But I'll pass by you and show you my afterglow, my presence passing by, and I'll declare my name to you." The Lord declares His name in Exodus 34, saying, "The Lord, the Lord God, merciful."

The very first thing that characterizes and defines our God is that He is merciful. He takes a poor, broken sinner who has been trying to build their life but has found that it is not going to happen. They mourn over it and come to the place where God has broken them. They hunger and thirst for righteousness, and God begins to impart His character and nature to that person. Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.

Then, as Jeremiah described in the latter chapters of the book of Jeremiah, God removes from that person the stony heart and gives them a new heart of flesh, on which is written the Word of God. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. He takes that person who is poor in spirit, who has mourned over it, and who has been broken.

Hunger and thirst after the Lord, and be filled. Be made merciful and given a pure heart. He makes them a peacemaker. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God. That's what God desires to do in every life, and that's what He's done in many of your lives—hopefully all of you. It's what He's done in my life as well. He brought me to that place where His word shook the foundation and revealed that it wasn't enough. Only Christ can save.

Matthew chapter 5, verse 10 tells us, "Blessed are they that are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." You will be persecuted; you will suffer the reproach if you go outside the camp that the rest of the world lives in. If you go outside the standard that the rest of the world is following—trying to live a good life, a moral life, or some sort of form of religion—and you begin to follow Christ, you're going outside the camp, bearing His reproach.

But you're leaving that city that will never be able to stand. It's not a continuing city, and you're going after the one that is to come. Just like Abraham, the father of our faith, he sought a city that hath foundations, whose builder and maker was God.

In verse 15 of Hebrews chapter 13, we read, "By Him therefore let us offer a sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips, the giving of thanks to His name." You see, when a believer—a person—comes to that point where their life is broken and they begin to come to God by faith, running to Him in hope and living in love with Him, they can't help but begin to praise Him.

Sometimes we wake up on a Sunday morning and say, "I don't want to sing songs today. I'll just come in late. I don't want to sing those songs. They sing that same song every week. Can't they come up with a new one? Can't they sing that one song that I really like? It's in my key, and my voice sounds really good. People around me look at me and go, 'That's really nice.'"

That time of singing, that time of praise, is not for us. We're offering a...

We offer a sacrifice of praise to Him because of what He has done in saving us, and He is so worthy of it. In verse 16, we are reminded to do good and to communicate. We should not forget to live a good life and share with others. Communicating with others is important, for with such sacrifices, God is well pleased.

After Paul has shown in the earlier chapters of Hebrews that all these other sacrifices, such as bulls and goats, are not what God desires, he emphasizes what truly pleases God. A well-pleasing sacrifice to God is when a person comes to Him, follows Him by faith, runs to Him in hope, and lives in love with Him. As brotherly love is perfected in their life, they do good to others out of the overflow of the love of God that has been poured into their lives. That is a well-pleasing sacrifice to God.

In verse 17, we are encouraged and exhorted to obey those who have rule over us and to submit ourselves to them. The life that is established upon God's love and perfected in God's love is one that yields to others, submitting ourselves to one another in the fear of God. There is a saying that only the strong survive, but I believe only the strong submit. It takes a truly strong person, filled with the love of God, to submit themselves to someone who is over them. Therefore, Paul instructs us to obey those who have rule over us and to submit ourselves, for they watch out for our souls as those who must give an account. They should do this with joy and not with grief, for that would be unprofitable for us.

Paul encourages us to pray for him, as he trusts that he has a good conscience in all things and is willing to live honestly. The person who has God's love perfected in them will ultimately become an intercessor. We discussed this in the prayer class on Monday night, where we noted that Jesus is the greatest intercessor, as seen in Hebrews chapter 7, verse 25. He always lives to make intercession for us. As we follow Him by faith, run to Him in hope, and live in love with Him, He creates in us a desire to intercede and pray on behalf of others. Thus, Paul asks us to pray for him, and he beseeches us to do this so that he may be restored to us the sooner.

God of peace, verse 20, states that He brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant. He makes you perfect in every good work to do His will, working in you that which is well-pleasing in His sight through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.

The God of peace is the one who makes us perfect. Your form of religion that you tried in the past, the good works that you thought might perfect you and give you a better standing before God, will not do. It is a foundation that has cracks. Although they may be microscopic little air bubbles, when the voice of God comes in, the shaking starts, and it will fall. He is the one that makes us perfect; He is the one that makes us able to work His will.

Philippians chapter 2, verse 13, says, "For it is God who works in you to will and to do for His good pleasure." He is the one that works in us, but He can only do that when we stop trying to do it on our own. We must go outside the camp and approach Him by faith, running to Him in hope and living in love with Him. Then He begins to do this work in us.

This is the great mystery about the Christian faith and the relationship we have in Him. In Christ, we have the hope of glory. He is the one in us doing it, and yet so many of us, myself included, try and try to do more things so that we can be more accepted by God. You are more accepted right now than you will ever be based on what He did. You must go outside the camp of doing all those other things to try and gain a good standing to approach Him, as do I every single day.

He is the one who makes us perfect in every good work to do His will. He is the one that works in us to make us well-pleasing in His sight through His Son, to His glory and not mine. It's all about Him and the work that He does in the life of the person who comes to Him poor in spirit, mourning over their own sinfulness, broken by the Spirit of God, and hungering and thirsting after His righteousness. He fills them up; He gives them His merciful nature, a new heart, and the ability to be a peacemaker, the ministry of reconciliation.

He sets them on His path of good works, which He prepared before the foundation of the world, that we would walk in them. Yet, there is persecution that will come to that person. In the world, you will have much trouble, but be of good cheer. Jesus said, "I have overcome the world."

This, I believe, is an essential message from the book of Hebrews for us in the church today. I think there are many of us, myself included, who need to get out of the way and let God do His work in us. We need to stop trying to say, "Oh, I got this one; let me take care of it." We need to take the training wheels off and recognize that we can’t do it alone. The Lord is gracious, and He allows us to try to do things on our own for a period of time so that we see that our foundation didn’t work as well as we thought it would.

He is such a good God that when we turn to Him, He is there to help. I love the verse in the Psalms that says He will deliver you from the snare of the fowler. What that means to me is that you are walking in a place you shouldn’t have been and got trapped. Yet, the Lord is able to deliver us from those places.

God wants to work in you and in me, but some of us may have some sort of form of religion or works that we are trying to do to gain a better standing with God. God is saying through His Word, "All I want you to do is come to Me by faith." It is the only way you can be well-pleasing to Him. For without faith, it is impossible to please Him. He who comes to Him must believe that He is God and that He is the rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.

So, you begin to run to Him by hope, and He begins to build and perfect in us His love, which overflows into good works to His glory. Amen.

Let's pray. God, what a great portion of Scripture the book of Hebrews is, and a message that each of us probably needs to take heed to this morning. I ask that You would plant these words deep in our hearts. Even now, as the enemy, like a bird, is seeking to try and take away that seed that has been sown this morning, I pray that Your Spirit would do a work of planting it deep.

Father, we bind the work of the enemy in this place. God, perfect the work in us that You desire to do. I thank You that we can be confident of this very thing: You who began this good work will complete it until that day when we stand before You.

I thank You, Lord, that You are a sure foundation; You are our solid rock. As we are founded upon You, in that day when the shake-up comes, when the storm begins, we will be founded upon the rock. Thank You, Lord. We praise You in Jesus' name. Amen.