First Presbyterian Church of Blackwood
21 E. Church Street Blackwood, NJ 08012 Sermon Notes (Sunday, March 26, 2023) Rev. Dr. Mouris A. Yousef, Pastor “Run with Your Eyes on Jesus!” Isaiah 40:27-31; Hebrews 12:1-6 The Bible teaches very clearly that life is a race. Some people get to finish that race really well, while others, unfortunately, do a poor job finishing that race. I meet people all the time that get waylaid, sidetracked, distracted. They get disqualified. For one reason or another, they die with unfulfilled dreams, with unrealized potential and without ever becoming what God intended their life to become. That is a real tragedy. I also meet other people who know that God has a purpose for their lives; people who know that they are in a race. They are always trying to find ways to run the race well. They are aware of the dangers around them. They are willing to make commitments. They are willing to make sacrifices so that God’s purposes in their lives are fulfilled. The Greek word for race in Hebrews 12:1 is “agona” from which we get the English word “agony”. The image here for runners in a race, in a marathon, in the ancient Greek world. The race was an agonizing, grueling ordeal, exhausting, tiring; and winning required self-discipline, stamina, strategy, and patient endurance. For the Hebrew Christians, that was an important message to hear. They had believed the Christian message, but because of persecution, discrimination, ostracization, and false teaching, they were tempted to quit the race. They got sidetracked. Here comes the author of Hebrews with an encouraging message to them, and to us, to keep going. After reminding them of the great heroes of faith in Hebrews chapter 11; those wonderful men and women of God who have finished the race of faith well, the author hands us the torch. That great cloud of witnesses reveals to us that our God is reliable and that fight is worth fighting; that race is worth running. He has called us and He will give us sufficient grace to finish the race. As we wrap up our study in the letters to the Hebrews, I would like to offer a few rules if we are to run the agona, the race set before us. Three important rules: First: Lay aside Every Weight and the Sin “Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely” Hebrews 12:1. The first rule for running well is to get rid of anything that will slow you down on the race that God has put before you. What are we to get rid of? The writer mentions “the sin that clings so closely.” Sin is so deceptive. We think that sin is harmless, but we don’t realize that it’s weighing us down. It’s keeping us from winning the race that God intends. Sin sucks our energy. It distracts us. It fills us with a sense of guilt. You don’t have to run with a weight on your back. There is a Savior who has borne our grief and carried our sorrows. Second: Run with Perseverance “Let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us” Hebrews 12:1. The Christian “race” is a race which must be run with perseverance. It’s a tough race. It’s agonizing. The Christian life is not a sprint; it is a marathon. How many people have set out to follow Christ, but have turned aside after some period of time? How many people have decided to really commit themselves to God, but didn’t keep up the commitment? We live in a culture that doesn’t appreciate patience and endurance. We want things done yesterday. But good things take time; it takes time to cook a good meal; it takes time to craft a fine work of art; it takes time to grow a garden — there are no shortcuts for these things. But we think we can “microwave or instant” our church, or our spiritual growth, and we can’t. Perseverance, persistence, endurance are necessary for our race even when we see no immediate fruit, we need to keep going. Third: Stay Focused on Jesus This third rule is the most important part of our God-given strategy for keeping on in hard times. It actually encompasses all of those other parts of the strategy. Hebrews 12:2 spells it out: “Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith.” We either look unto Jesus or the obstacles down the road. On one hand, having already trusted Jesus as our Lord and Savior, as believers we’re to look to Him as the ultimate and sufficient source of our strength throughout the whole journey. He is our companion, friend, and guide. Not only that, but Jesus is also our supreme example. “Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God” Hebrews 12:3. Whatever you and I might face, Jesus faced worse, yet He persevered. So, when you and I feel like the going is tough, remember what all Jesus put up with. He was falsely accused, rejected, deserted by His friends, ridiculed, spat upon, beaten unmercifully, and nailed to a cross, not for any faults of His, for He had none, but for your sins and mine. In our race, we always need to look to Jesus as our example, as well as our true source of strength. Friends, may our spirits be refreshed today knowing that God has given us all the tools to finish the race of faith that is set before us. Let’s lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely. Let’s run with perseverance. And most importantly, let’s fix our eyes on Jesus. May we never give up when life gets hard. God is working even when it feels like He is far away. He is never confused or surprised by the things that happen in life. He is constantly working in circumstances to bring us to Him. There will be hills and valleys, there will be good times and bad times. There will be people cheering and people criticizing and attacking. All these things are part of the race. The Prophet Isaiah reminds us that “God gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young people stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint” Isaiah 40:29-31. Run with your eyes and heart on Jesus. Run with your hope in Jesus. In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.Top of Form\
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First Presbyterian Church of Blackwood
21 E. Church Street Blackwood, NJ 08012 Sermon Notes (Sunday, March 19, 2023) Rev. Dr. Mouris A. Yousef, Pastor “Don’t Throw Away Your Confidence!” Psalm 27:1-10; Hebrews 10:32-39 Trust is foundational for healthy relationships. The absence of trust is the root for serious issues in our family dynamics, professional relationships, and our spiritual walk with the Lord. Trust gives reassurance and security. It helps to heal hurts and overcome obstacles. Trust is the foundation for any relationship. Without trust, our relationships will be shaky and will eventually fail. Lack of trust is the main reason relationships fall apart. Over these past few weeks, I had the chance to explore with our Bible Study groups and to reflect on Christ’s three temptations in the Judean wilderness. The issue of trusting God is at the heart of the three temptations. In the first temptation, Jesus declared to Satan that food or no food, He trusts His Heavenly Father. In the second temptation, Jesus refused to put the Lord to test by throwing Himself off the pinnacle of the temple. He didn’t need a proof that His Father in heaven cares for Him and loves Him. In the third temptation, Jesus refused to bow down and worship Satan trusting God that, in due time, God will exalt Him with honor and glory. Having presented his case and his defense of the supremacy of Christ, the sufficiency of His righteousness, and the completeness of His mission and work for our redemption, the author now exhorts his audience, the Hebrew Christians, to fully trust Christ. This is the most logical conclusion. “So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded,” says the author in Hebrews 10:35. This trust, this confidence in the Lord, calls the believers to two things. It works in our lives in two different ways: First: It Calls us to Hold Fast to our Confession At the heart of the message to the Hebrew community is a continued invitation to hold fast to Jesus; to hold fast to our confession. That is what the author says in Hebrews 10:23, “Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful.” In our life, we get pulled and pushed in so many different directions. There are so many voices we hear every day that demands our allegiance. There are so many things in life that will try to separate us from God’s love in Christ. The verb “hold fast” in Hebrews 10:23 (as well as 3:6, 14) is katechō, which literally means “to adhere firmly to traditions, convictions, or beliefs, hold to, and hold fast.” Notice also the how, the way in which we are to hold on: unswervingly, without wavering. The adjective aklinēs is a compound word which means “not to lean, not to bend.” We are to stand firm. The uplifting truth for us today is that when you and I get weary and fail to hold fast onto Christ, Christ Himself will not let go of us. I heard the story of a little girl who was crossing a bridge with her dad. The dad was kind of scared, so he asked his little daughter, “Sweetheart, please hold my hand so that you don’t fall into the river.” The little girl said, “No, Dad. You hold my hand. “What’s the difference?” asked the puzzled dad. “There’s a big difference,” replied the little girl. “If I hold your hand and something happens to me, chances are that I may let your hand go. But if you hold my hand, I know for sure that no matter what happens, you will never let my hand go.” Second: It Calls us to Encourage One Another At least two times in the letter to the Hebrews, the author states that a life that is secured and rooted in the faith is a blessing to others. Earlier in Hebrews 3:13 we read, “But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness.” Then here in Hebrews 10:24-25, “And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.” Both passages stress the need for mutual encouragement as well as the urgency of doing so. This is not an option but a command. It is this Christian encouragement that helps us stay our course. I bet so many of us are in Christ today because of the encouragement we have received from the body of Christ. They lifted us to the throne of grace when we couldn’t lift ourselves. They brough us to the Lord when we couldn’t bring ourselves. The question the Lord asked Cain in Genesis 4:9 is still valid today, “Where is your brother Abel?” “I don’t know,” he replied. “Am I my brother’s keeper?” We are to consider one another. We are to stimulate one another. We are to ignite the passion for Christ and His kingdom in the heart of each other. Christianity is not designed as a hermit-oriented faith, but one with intense love and concern for one another. Faith is a journey that is meant to be traveled in community. Friends, may we never throw away our confidence and trust in the Lord especially when everything around us calls us to do the opposite. King David is a good example for that. The words of Psalm 27 are words of confidence and assurance. Most scholars believe that King David penned these words when he had been in exile. He was being chased by King Saul. His life was in danger. Yet, he says in Psalm 27, “The Lord is my light and my salvation— whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life—of whom shall I be afraid? … Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear; though war break out against me, even then I will be confident.” Where did he get this confidence from? Certainly from holding onto his faith; from God’s faithfulness. Our trust in the Lord is two dimensional. It calls us to hold fast to our confession, to the hope we have in Christ, as well as encouraging those around us to stay the course and to keep running the race ahead of us. “Therefore do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward. For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God you may receive what is promised. For, “Yet a little while, and the coming one will come and will not delay” Hebrews 10:35-37. In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.Top of Form \ First Presbyterian Church of Blackwood
21 E. Church Street Blackwood, NJ 08012 Sermon Notes (Sunday, March 12, 2023) Rev. Dr. Mouris A. Yousef, Pastor “Superior Covenant … Better Promises!” Jeremiah 31:31-34; Hebrews 8:1-6 Our journey in the letter to the Hebrews brings us this morning to Hebrews chapter eight where we get to see how the new covenant is superior to the old one. This is a very rich and deep discussion and I certainly hope that every one of us will be able to grasp the greatness of God’s mercies and grace as we reflect on the scripture passage before us today. The discussion about the new covenant versus the old covenant reminds us of two great things. First and foremost, it reminds us that our God is a covenantal God. He is a God who offers us an opportunity to permanently commune with Him. The Old Testament often refers to God as “The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.” This name emphasizes the covenant that God made with Israel and the Israelites. The Bible introduces God as a covenantal God. In the Upper Room, right before his crucifixion, Jesus invited His disciples to a new covenant which He has established with the Father in heaven. In Luke 22:20, we read, “In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.” But there is another aspect to this discussion of the old covenant versus the new and it has to do with the faithfulness of God to the terms of the covenant and the unfaithfulness of humans. While God has always been faithful and committed to His people, we humans have miserably failed to be faithful to the covenant. The prophet Hosea says these words in Hosea 6:4 & 7, “What can I do with you, Ephraim? What can I do with you, Judah? Your love is like the morning mist, like the early dew that disappears … They have broken the covenant; they were unfaithful to me.” In Hebrews chapter 8, the writer zooms in on how Jesus provides a better covenant than the old one did. In what ways, the New Covenant, the Covenant of Grace, is superior to the old, the Covenant of Works? As we examine Hebrews chapter 8, we are given three reasons; three evidences that there’s a better covenant in Jesus Christ: First: The New Covenant is Given by a Superior High Priest This is what the Bible says in Hebrews 8:1-2, “Now the main point in what we are saying is this: we have such a high priest, one who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens, a minister in the sanctuary and the true tent that the Lord, and not any mortal, has set up.” The emphasis here is on the finished work of our High Priest. Our redemption is complete, and our eternal destiny is sealed and secured. “We have such a high priest, one who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens,” says the writer in Hebrews 8:2. Under the Old covenant, the High Priest never sat because their mission was never completed. They had to keep offering sacrifices to atone for the sins of the people. In the Old Testament tabernacle, there were no seats. Yet, Christ, after finishing His work on the cross, He shouted, “It’s finished!” Therefore, He is seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens. Second: The New Covenant is Given in a Better PlaceThe second reason of the New Covenant superiority over the Old Covenant is that it was given in a better place. Listen to what Hebrews 8:5 say, “They offer worship in a sanctuary that is a sketch and shadow of the heavenly one; for Moses, when he was about to erect the tent, was warned, “See that you make everything according to the pattern that was shown you on the mountain.” All the Old Testament rituals, priesthood and ceremonies were nothing but “a sketch and shadow of the heavenly one.” All the Old Testament stipulations were only a copy. Christ is the true source; they’re only a shadow. Why we go back to the shadow if the original is already here? It’s like building a house. It would be like living on the blueprint instead of in the house itself. If you’re given the chance to own Leonardo de Vinci’s Mona Lisa, why would you choose a replica? Third: The New Covenant is Founded on Better Promises “But Jesus has now obtained a more excellent ministry, and to that degree he is the mediator of a better covenant, which has been enacted through better promises,” says the author in Hebrews 8:6. The new Covenant is founded on better promises. This world is full of overpromising and underdelivering. Every product, car, and service is the best ever, and you should buy them… until they’re not. But Christ never fails; He overpromises and overproduces. No wonder that the Prophet Jeremiah, some 600 before Christ, longed for the coming of the New Covenant. He longed for the covenant of grace. He longed for genuine internal covenant written on people’s hearts not written on stones. He longed for forgiveness for a broken nation where God will remember our sins no more. Friends, let me ask you this morning: which covenant are you clinging to, the old or the new, the Covenant of Works or the Covenant of Grace? There is a superior covenant with better promises, will you embrace it with all your heart today? why are we clinging to the shadows when the reality is here? The things that we chase after in this world such as peace, joy, security, and fulfilment are nothing but shadows of the real blessings the Lord offers us in Christ. The New Covenant promises a deep and intimate relationship with the Lord our God. It promises a full access to God’s throne of grace. Let’s draw near to a God who made a way where is no way. Let’s give praise to our God who in Christ is the covenant maker and covenant keeper. In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen. First Presbyterian Church of Blackwood
21 E. Church Street Blackwood, NJ 08012 Sermon Notes (Sunday, March 5, 2023) Rev. Dr. Mouris A. Yousef, Pastor “It’s Time to Grow Up!” Psalm 1; Hebrews 5:11-14 If you examine your walk with the Lord, you will find yourself either growing up or going backward. There is no such a thing as being static in our spiritual development because we either move forward or slip back. It is almost impossible to stand still. It was this very concern that prompted the writer to the Hebrews to interrupt his treatise on Christ being the believer’s High Priest in order to exhort his readers to grow up. It seems to me that this was of great concern to the writer. And why not? You and I know that one of the classic evidences of life (of any kind) is growth. When something ceases to grow it is usually dead, and this is the writer’s great concern. The writer of Hebrews has warned his audience of the danger of neglecting so great salvation. The Hebrew community has heard the truth and it is now their responsibility to embrace the truth. Sadly, they have been sluggish in doing so, and so, rather than advancing in the faith, they are now regressing. This, of course, is always a lurking danger for the Christian, for if we are not like Christian in John Bunyan’s, The Pilgrim’s Progress, then we may find ourselves like Demas in C. S. Lewis’, The Pilgrim’s Regress. The passage we are examining this morning, Hebrews 5:11-14, makes this abundantly clear. My goal this morning is to encourage, exhort and equip us to grow up in Christ, specifically by a willingness to openly identify with Christ, regardless of the cost. The author of Hebrews wouldn’t let it go. He wanted to address this issue. “We have much to say about this, but it is hard to explain, since you have become sluggish in hearing,” says the writer in Hebrews 5:11. “Sluggish in hearing … or dull of hearing.” As a preacher, and after all those years, I can tell when my audience lose interest or become sluggish in hearing. Though the Hebrews writer is having one of those moments, he pauses to challenge them, among other things, to pay attention and examine their interest in Christ. Their dullness of hearing was hindering their ability to see Christ in the old covenant and was affecting their appreciation of the glory of the new covenant. The problem is that dullness, that sluggish, that disinterest, will certainly hinder our growing up in our love for and devotion to Christ. We need to regain our appreciation of the gospel of the grace of God. Only then will we have the aptitude to grow up. God’s will for each and everyone of His children to mature in Christ. In our everyday life, we can be prone to a life of spiritual laziness where our desire and zeal to mature in Christ gets pushed to the back burner. Two observations as we reflect on this topic this Second Sunday in Lent: First: To Grow in Christ, We Must War against Spiritual Laziness “We have much to say about this, but it is hard to explain, since you have become sluggish in hearing,” says the writer in Hebrews 5:11. The Lord has so much in store for us, but we will never attain it unless we war against spiritual laziness. There is a discipleship crisis in the church that has left many Christians with an immature faith that fails to glorify God and starves them from experiencing the joy of salvation and fullness of life that Christ promised his people. The dullness of hearing isn’t an ear issue, it’s a heart issue. It’s important to notice that the author of Hebrews says, “they have become dull of hearing.” That means they weren’t always this way, but it was something they had allowed to happen. And because they had allowed themselves to become dull of hearing because of their lack of urgency to live out their faith, something terrible happened in their spiritual growth. Growing complacent in our faith, floating along, giving little attention, giving less effort to following Jesus is deadly. May we war against spiritual laziness. Second: To Grow in Christ, We Must Feed on God’s Word The Word of God is instrumental in our spiritual growth. It’s our spiritual nourishment. When we were infants in the faith, the truth of God’s Word was our diet. Over time, we should be growing and maturing enough to start some solid food. We grow from the ABC’s of Christianity to the core doctrines that are foundation of our faith. It’s the believer’s craving for deeper truths that enrich and deepen our understanding of the things of God. So solid food in the life of the Christian is not new theology, per-say, it is deeper, richer theology. Let me give you an example of what we mean by the milk and solid food. The milk would be the truth that Jesus atones for our sins. The solid food is seeing Jesus as our Great High priest who atoned for our sins once and for all, and therefore, He is superior to all the Old Testament priesthood and rituals. The Word of God, the word of righteousness, helps us to discern good from evil. It helps us to discern right from wrong. It helps us to mature as followers of Christ and grow in Christlikeness. The more we study, the more we spend time in God’s Word, the more our powers of discernment will be trained. The more we come to church and hear the preaching of God’s Word, the more we will be able to differentiate good from evil. Don’t underestimate the cumulative effect of coming to church on Sunday, and on reading your Bible every day, and engaging in some spiritual disciplines. There is power in repetition and training that comes with that. Friends, let’s keep growing in our knowledge of the truth. Keep growing as a follower of Jesus. The great enemy of the Christian faith isn’t apostasy; it’s stagnancy. There is simply no such thing as a static Christian. We either move forward or fall back. We are either climbing or falling. We are either winning or losing. Static, status quo Christianity is a delusion!” Spiritual growth doesn’t happen automatically; it takes deliberate effort along with God’s enabling. In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen. |
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