The blood of animals could only cover sin. Jesus' blood erases sin! We sometimes speak of the "Atonement," meaning Christ's sacrifice, but a better word is Propitiation. It means that, by the death of our Substitute, our debt of sin is paid, and God's wrath is turned away. As we start a new week with a new sermon, the author of Hebrews continues to hammer his point: that the old sacrificial system was a mere shadow of what Jesus has done for us.

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Sometimes you have to keep telling yourself, "It's only a movie!" We can get caught up in a drama and forget that what we're seeing is a story, designed by a playwright and performed by actors who have other names and other lives. As we open Hebrews 9 we'll see a unique drama. The divine Author used it to communicate His "inner life," if you will, to us. The stage was the Tabernacle; the players were priests; and the meaning of the presentation is what we'll discuss today. But never forget - as some of the early Jewish Christians did - that "it's only a movie."

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The Old Covenant system dealt only with physical, time-bound things. Even its place of worship was a replica! We're getting to the heart of the book of Hebrews. Through 7 chapters the author has contrasted the limitations of the old system with the excellences of the new. If he can help us see the infinite superiority of Jesus' spiritual ministry and the terms of the New Covenant, Satan will never be able to tempt us to go back to skin-deep religion. Here's Pastor Jim with Part 1 of the sermon, God's Best Offer.

This message can be purchased, unsegmented for broadcasting and in its entirety, for just $7 on a single CD by calling +1 (800) 984-2313, and of course you can always listen online or download the message for free.

The writer of Hebrews is about to "drop the mic." The New Covenant is a better covenant - with a better hope and a better sacrifice. And its priesthood was here first. We're continuing our study of Hebrews with a closer look at the argument made in chapter 7. Whether you're looking for fellowship with God, eternal life in heaven, or even human completeness, you can't get there from Mount Sinai. Jim calls this passage "unsurpassed" in all the Bible. Here's Part 1 of his message, Older than the Old Testament.

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Is Abraham our spiritual great-great grandfather? Or might it be someone "greater?" There is someone "greater than Abraham" in the Old Testament. His name is Melchizedek. We don't know much about who he was, but we can see what he stood for. And, for those Hebrew Christians tempted to fall back into the Jewish system, he is a powerful symbol of something better, deeper, and permanent. Our quick Hebrews series has brought us to chapter 7. Today we'll hear the first part of a message called, Meet Mysterious Melchizedek. Jim starts our conversation by asking, "What's in a name?"

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We joke, "The only constant is change," but that's not true about everything. That saying goes all the way back to Greek philosopher Heraclitus, who said, "Panta rhei" - "Life is flux." But we know that God is constant, and so are His promises. That's going to be important to us as we press on through our own inconsistencies and failures. And pressing on is exactly what the writer of Hebrews wants us to do. Before our Easter break we read the first part of chapter 6, full of dire warnings. Now we turn to the second half of that chapter, and God's good, unchangeable plans for us.

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Is it possible for someone "once enlightened" to fall away? The writer of Hebrews gives us the disturbing answer: Some people who have started to walk with Christ haven't finished. They've turned from His path before they completed the journey. We'll have to fit that into our theology however we can, but his warning remains clear: we'll inherit the promises of God only by faith...and patience. Today, as we continue our short series in Hebrews, Jim has a new message for us, called The Peril of Drifting.

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Something's wrong in the nursery! Today Jim will open a sermon called Problems in the Nursery, and I think the main problem is that we have 45-year-olds in the cribs! It's a comforting place, the nursery, with no responsibilities and everyone catering to our needs. But it's a dangerous place to stay, or to return to, spiritually speaking. For our own sake, as well as for the sake of the kingdom of God, the writer of Hebrews will tell us to "Grow up!" Pastor Jim's message is taken from Hebrews, chapters 5 and 6.

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Job cried, "For He is not a man, as I am, that I may answer Him, and that we should go to court together. Nor is there any mediator between us, who may lay his hand on us both." We're back in the book of Hebrews for a new series, but I quoted Job because he stated the problem perfectly: Any arbitrator between God and man would have to understand the viewpoint of a perfect being, and also understand the viewpoint of - well, us. We need The Ultimate Insider.

This message can be purchased, unsegmented for broadcasting and in its entirety, for just $7 on a single CD by calling +1 (800) 984-2313, and of course you can always listen online or download the message for free.