“Once” [Matt's Messages]

“Once”

Fixing Our Eyes on Jesus

The Letter to the Hebrews

Lanse Evangelical Free Church

August 23, 2026 :: Hebrews 9:27-28  

Are you ready?

How many times do we hear those words every day? How many times do we say them?

Are you ready?

You probably said them or heard them today. Are you ready for church? Are you ready to go? Do you have your shoes on? Are you ready for breakfast? Are you ready for tacos? Are you ready for the bounce-house? Are you ready to rumble? Are you ready to worship?

Are you ready...to die?

Oh. That’s a question we all need to have answered. It’s a question that is hanging over all of our heads.  It’s a question we may not have heard recently or asked recently out loud, but it’s one that we all have to have answered before it’s too late.

And this short passage of holy scripture presses that question upon us and tells us how to know if we are.

Are you ready?

Are you ready to study it?  Hebrews 9:27&28.

Now, as a church family, we’ve been studying this sermonic letter to some scared Christians, called “The Letter to the Hebrews,” and we’re about three quarters of the way through. Some of you are just joining us, and most of us need a quick recap, because it’s been a few weeks since we were in Hebrews together. 

These primarily Jewish Christians were getting nervous about persecution. They were being threatened with trouble from their neighbors and from the authorities for following Jesus Christ. That may be hard for us to understand in modern day America where Christianity is currently tolerated and has historically in many ways been privileged. But it hasn’t always been that way in history and isn’t that way in many places around the world today.

Follow Jesus. Get in trouble. 

So, these Hebrew Christians were tempted to stop following Jesus. They didn’t want to be in trouble (who does?), and the easiest way out of that trouble was to simply stop chasing after Jesus Christ. They were tempted to just go back “to being Jews” and following what they  grew up on–the Old Covenant from the Old Testament, the Hebrew Scriptures.

But this wise pastor loved these Hebrew Christians enough to know that that was the exact wrong thing for them to do, so he sat down and wrote them this letter that draws heavily from their beloved Hebrew Scriptures to show them that there is no going back, that Jesus is greater, better, superior to everything in the Old Covenant, and in fact, is what everything in the Old Covenant was pointing to.

And he called the Hebrews to “fix their eyes on Jesus” and not look back. And that’s what we’ve been doing this year as we’ve studied this letter together. Fixing our eyes on Jesus.

For the last several months we’ve been studying the center of the letter which centers on how Jesus’ sacrifice is superior to the Old Covenant sacrifices and sufficient for our eternal salvation.

We’ve been talking a lot about blood. In fact, the last message was entitled, “Cleansed With Blood,” which sounds almost like a crazy thing to say. We don’t use blood to clean most things! Blood stains, right? Blood stains. 

 

But not sin. Blood cleanses sin. In fact, we’ve learned a fundamental rule of the universe, and that is: without blood there is no forgiveness for sins (see 9:22). 

And by blood, the book of Hebrews means “a sacrificial death.” Not so much the red stuff with corpuscles and so on, but what that red stuff stands for–the sacrificial death of an innocent living being in the place of a sinner. It takes a bloody death to get to a holy God. 

There was lots of blood in the Old Testament. We’ve been learning about the Old Covenant sacrificial system where bulls and goats and lambs were killed, and their blood was poured out on altars by priests. 

In particular, we’ve focused on the annual Day of Atonement, Yom Kippur, when the Levitical Aaronic High Priest took the sacrificial blood into the Holy of Holies, the Most Holy Place in the Tabernacle and sprinkled the sacrificial blood on the Mercy Seat, on the Atonement Cover, making atonement for the people of God (see Leviticus 16).  

That sacrifice was a great thing for the people of God. But now something better has come! 

Three words, right? We now have what?

Great. High. Priest.

We now have a greater high priest, Jesus the Son of God, Who has entered into a greater sanctuary (into the heavens!) the most holy place in the universe. The very throne room of God. And our greater high priest has entered there with a greater blood sacrifice. He has presented His very own blood!

The sentence right before our passage for today says (v.26), “[Jesus] has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of himself.”

Our great High priest is both the One who presents the sacrifice but is also the sacrifice Himself!

That’s what we’ve been learning. And that gets us ready to be confronted with the basic truths of Hebrews 9:27 and 28. These are some of the most fundamental truths that Christians believe. These are the facts. I believe every Christian who can should have these two verses memorized. I’ve preached them many times, especially at funerals. These are the basic facts. They may not teach them in public schools with  reading, writing, and arithmetic, but they are the fundamentals that everyone must grapple with. And they turn on this one word that is our sermon title for today, “Once.”

Once. In these two verses, I see two key “onces” and a “once again.”

The writer to the Hebrews loves this word, “once.” Perhaps a bit ironically, he uses it again and again.

He especially uses it with the words “for all.” “Once for all.” How many times have we seen that so far in Hebrews? Anita sang a song about it last time. It’s there in verse 26, and we’re going to see it again next week in chapter 10 when he really is going to give it to us, “once for all.”

But here in verses 27 and 28, it’s just “once.” As in “only one time and one time only.”

I’ve got three points for us this morning, and each one raises an important question for our hearts. 

#1. WE ALL WILL DIE ONCE.

Look at what he says in verse 27.

“Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment...”

Stop right there, in the middle of his logic. You can tell he’s got a bigger point he’s making with that “just as,” but he lays down as an unarguable fact that humans are destined to die once.

You and I are going to die once. Have you grappled with that fact?

Many people are ignoring it.

Many people do not want to think about it.

Many people are trying to avoid it altogether. 

There is a whole industry right now (immortalism, transhumanism) that is not just trying to keep people healthy as long as possible, but to elongate human lives without end. To eliminate death.

Good luck with that. The Bible says here, “man is destined to die once.”

Now, that’s talking about human death. The ceasing of human life. The heart stops. The brain stops. The body stops. The soul goes to judgment.

There is something in the Bible called, “the second death” which is the death of the soul, the eternal separation of the human soul from eternal God in the lake of fire (see Revelation 2:11, 20:6, 14, and 21:8). This isn’t talking about that when it says that humans will only die once. Some will die the second death.

And there are a few exceptions in human history. There is Enoch in the book of Genesis and Elijah in 2 Kings. And there are those believers who will be alive at the return of Christ and not "sleep" but will be changed in the blink of an eye at the last trumpet (see 1 Corinthians 15). They’ll skip that human death thing on their way to glory, and that group might include some of us if Jesus returns in our lifetimes. May it be so!

But aside from those few biblical exceptions, this is the general unalterable rule. 

We will all die once. We are all headed to our graves.

You are mortal. Do you know that? You are going to die. And you’re only going to die once.

This rules out reincarnation, doesn’t it? Life is not a great big circle where you live and then die and then come back as another life form (maybe a butterfly, maybe a cow, maybe Shirley MacLaine) and then die again and then live again and then die again and then live again. 

Life and death on constant repeat. 

Nope! That’s not how it is. That’s wishful thinking. It’s not like a video game where you “die” and then re-spawn. 

We’re not on a circle. We’re on a line. And on that line we’re inevitably headed towards death. Ever since Adam we’re inevitably headed towards death (see Romans 5:12). 

Once. And after that, judgment. After we die, we get judged. 

Have you grappled with that fact?

Many people do not.

Many people do not want to think about judgment. 

Many people are trying to avoid it altogether.

But it is coming.

You and are headed towards death and then judgment by a holy God. 

Question: Are you ready?

Because it’s coming. 

The word translated “destined” in the NIV is “apokeitai” in the Greek, and it can also be translated “appointed.” The King James, ESV, and CSB Bibles all use the word “appointed” in verse 27. That means that you and I have an appointment with death and judgment.

Do you like appointments?

I often do. It all depends on what the appointment is for.

My friend and former publisher Dave Almack called me this week and set an appointment for lunch on Friday, and he was paying! So I loved that appointment. I looked forward to it all week long, and then we got to catch up after a long time of no see.

But I don’t especially like an appointment with the dental hygienist. No offense, Renee, and I know it’s important, but I don’t especially like making an appointment for someone to poke around in my mouth with sharp instruments and spray guns.

So how about your appointment with death and judgment? Who is looking forward to that?!

Here’s the question though: Are you ready for your appointment?

Because this is an appointment you’re going to keep. You and I don’t make these appointments, but we are going to keep them. That’s why “destined” is such a good translation in verse 27. Death and judgment are inevitably coming, and the question is not “Are you going to go to your appointment?”, but “Are you ready for it?” Are you ready for your date with death?

You don’t know when it’s going to be. We do not know who is the next person in this room that is going to die. We do know that every person in this room is going to die.

“...once [and only once], and after that to face judgment.”

Are you ready?

Are you ready for your heart to stop?

Are you ready for your lungs to stop?

Are you ready for your brain to stop?

And are you ready to be judged by a holy God?

Because we’ve learned that God is holy, holy, holy and cannot stand sin. Perfection is required.  Holiness is necessary. God does not let sinners stay in His presence.

We’re going to learn in the next chapter that, “It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God” (Hebrews 10:31).

Are you ready to face God?

Because there is no second chance. You don’t get a “do-over.” It says, “once,” it means once!  It’s die once and after that judgment. There’s no going back through the line again. So this is super-important: Are you ready?

Thankfully, we can be made ready by the blood of Jesus Christ! That’s what he is saying in verse 28. 

“Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment [now he finishes the logic], so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people...”

#2. CHRIST WAS SACRIFICED ONCE.

You see his logic? Once and then once?

All humans die once.  Jesus was a human. He died once. But His death was special. He died as an offering, a sacrifice.

What we’ve been learning in the rest of this chapter. He died in our place. He offered up His blood. And He did this for His people. It says, “to take away the sins of many people.”

Some versions say, “to bear the sins of many” (KVJ, ESV, CSB, etc). And that’s a echo of Isaiah 53, isn’t it? This pastor loves his Old Testament. And he knows that Isaiah 53 (written 700 years before He was even born) is all about Jesus:

“He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.

...Therefore I will give him a portion among the great, and he will divide the spoils with the strong, because he poured out his life unto death, and was numbered with the transgressors. For he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors” (Isaiah 53:3-7, 12).

This is how a sinner like you and like me could be ready to face death and judgment!

Because of the blood of Jesus Christ! Cleansed by His blood. Jesus died on the Cross as a sacrifice for sin, and His blood covers and cleanses all those who put their faith in Him.

So that raises the question: Are you trusting in the blood of Jesus Christ?

Jesus died once, and that’s all it took. He didn’t have to die over and over again. He died one time for all time. And His death saves all those who come to Him. 

Have you turned from your sin and put your faith in the blood of Jesus Christ? It’s gross. It’s gory. It’s hard to think about Jesus dying like He did. But there is no salvation without it. His blood is precious, and it’s our only hope. Jesus died and then He was buried, and then He came back from the dead! He was resurrected and lived once more! And then the Bible tells us that He ascended into heaven as our great high priest to intercede for us on the basis of His precious blood. 

So that our sins are taken away. What a wonderful thought that is! Our sins covered and cleansed and paid for and gone because of the blood of Jesus Christ.  Are you trusting in Him?

Those are the two “onces,” but there is also a “twice.”

In the last part of verse 28, we get a “second time.” Look at verse 28.

“...and he [Jesus Christ] will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.”

3. CHRIST IS RETURNING ONCE AGAIN.

Jesus is coming once more.

 

Verse 26 says that He appeared at the end of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of Himself. And where is He now? Church, where is Jesus now?

He’s at the right hand of the Majesty on High! But He’s going to appear once again here on earth. This time, “not to bear sin.” He’s not going to come and die again. He’s done that once and only once. Next time He comes, what’s He going to do? 

He’s going to bring salvation! What does that mean? It sounds really good. What does it mean? Don’t we have salvation already? Yes, we do, but we don’t have it in full now. We have it promised. We have our sins forgiven by the blood of Christ, but this is not as good as it gets. As good as the Back to School Bash is going to be, it’s not nearly as good as what the kingdom of heaven will be! We will be saved, not just from the penalty sin or even the power of sin, but we’ll be saved from the presence of sin!

Everything broken will be fixed.

Everything wrong will be made right.

Everything sad will come untrue.

When Jesus comes, salvation will come in all of its glorious fullness.

I can hardly wait. Can you?

Of course, we have to wait. Right? Because Hebrews 9:28 says that it’s those people who are waiting that will get the salvation that is coming! Look at verse 28 again.

“...and [Jesus] will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to [whom?] those who are waiting for him.”  

Are you waiting for Him?

The word for Greek word for “waiting” in verse 28 is “apekdecomenois,” and it means more than just sitting passively twiddling your thumbs. It has a flavor of eager expectation (see Romans 8:19, 23, 25, 1 Cor. 1:7, Col 5:5, 1 Peter 3:20). It’s waiting for something you can’t hardly wait for. You’re longing for it. 

Are you longing for the return of Christ? Do you want Him to come? Do you want to see Him? Do you want to be with Him? Are you doing the things we’re supposed to do when we’re waiting?

Last year in 2025, we focused on the return of King Jesus. We studied the Prophecy of the Wiseman Daniel and the promise of the victorious coming King of Kingdoms. And we also studied 1 and 2 Thessalonians about how to live in the meantime as we look for Jesus to return at time known only by God.

Our waiting is active. It’s not passive. We stay busy on the king’s business. And we don’t get all comfortable with the kingdom of this world. We go around living out the values of the kingdom to come as citizens of the kingdom that is coming, but we do it with one eye cocked to heaven. One ear listening for the trumpet.

Our hearts beating for the return of the king. 

As Paul said in Philippians 3, “But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await [same Greek word] a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body” (Philippians 3:20-21). 

So that our new bodies will never die again. That’s salvation! Are you waiting like that? 

You can know that you are ready if you are waiting.

You can know that you are ready for death and judgment if you are trusting in the blood of Christ and are eagerly waiting for Him to return. You can know that you are ready if you are waiting.

Some of the people that this pastor is writing to were in danger of stopping waiting.

They were tempted to give up on Jesus. They were going to stop waiting for Him. Stop thinking about His return. Stop hoping in His kingdom. Stop living out the values of His kingdom to come. It was just too hard.

But this pastor knows better. He knows that waiting for Jesus is the way to get through the hardness of this world. Waiting for Jesus is the way to resist temptation and to weather the storms, including the storms of persecution. Waiting for Jesus is the way to hold on.

Because when we’re waiting for JESUS. Not just for His salvation. Not just for what He will do for us for eternity–which will be wonderful. But we’ll be waiting for Him.

Have you ever longed for someone to come home? Maybe it’s a spouse who has been on a business trip? Often it’s a father or a mother who has been away.

I remember coming home from a ministry trip, and my kids just going wild. “Daddy’s home! Daddy’s home!”

That’s how I feel now when they come home. “Isaac’s home! Pete’s home! Macy’s home! Hooray!”

We’re looking forward to when we see Robin again. And Andrew. It’s been since January since we saw Andrew. We’re longing for him.

Are you longing for Jesus? 

I was taught something I had never heard before on this passage this week. A few of the commentators I read pointed out that how great the people of Israel felt when the high priest would come out of the Holy of Holies after applying the blood on the Day of Atonement.

Some of them were probably holding their breath to know if the high priest who had gone into the most dangerous place in the world with incense and  blood would safely come out again.

And then they’d rejoice like nobody’s business when he emerged from behind the veil to the Most Holy Place.

There are even historical accounts of this from the time between the testaments. Where the people rejoiced that their High Priest had returned bringing word of their forgiveness for another year.

How much more should we be longing for the return of our Great High Priest bringing salvation to those who are patiently (because we don’t know when) actively (because He doesn’t want us just twiddling our thumbs) and eagerly (because He is so worth it!) waiting for Him.

When He Comes, Our Glorious King

All His Ransomed Home to Bring

Then Anew This Song We’ll Sin:

Hallelujah! What a Savior!

- Philip P. Bliss (of Clearfield County, Pennsylvania!).

Once again: Fix your eyes on Jesus.

Get ready for Him.

***

Messages in this Series:

01. "The Son" - Hebrews 1:1-4
02. "Superior to the Angels" - Hebrews 1:5-14
03. "Such a Great Salvation" - Hebrews 2:1-4
04. "We See Jesus" - Hebrews 2:5-9
05. "Flesh and Blood" - Hebrews 2:10-18
06. "Fix Your Thoughts on Jesus" - Hebrews 3:1-6
07. “Today, If You Hear His Voice” - Hebrews 3:7-19
Bonus Historical Message: The Gift of My Rest - A Fictional Letter of Sabbath Theology
08. "A Sabbath-Rest for the People of God" - Hebrews 4:1-13
09. "Great High Priest" - Hebrews 4:14-16
10. "The Source of Eternal Salvation" - Hebrews 5:1-10
11. "On To Maturity" - Hebrews 5:11-6:3
12. "We Speak Like This" - Hebrews 6:4-12
13. "An Anchor for the Soul" - Hebrews 6:13-20
Bonus Message: "Fix Your Eyes on Jesus" - 2026 West Branch Baccalaureate
14. "In the Order of Melchizedek" - Hebrews 7:1-19
15. "A Priest Forever" - Hebrews 7:20-28
16. "Better Promises" - Hebrews 8:1-13
17. "By His Own Blood" - Hebrews 9:1-14
18. "Cleansed with Blood" - Hebrews 9:15-26

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“Great Is Our Lord” [Matt's Messages]

“Great Is Our Lord”

Lanse Evangelical Free Church

August 9, 2026 :: Psalm 147:1-20

Hallelujah!

Who can translate that for us? Who knows what the Hebrew word “Hallelujah” means in English?

“Praise the LORD.”

That’s right! We’ve got some Hebrew scholars here this morning!

“Hallelu” (praise) “jah” (short for “Yahweh,” the covenant name for God).

Hallelujah, praise the LORD. That’s the theme and the chief application of Psalm 147. 

In fact, that’s the theme of the last five songs in the Psalter. Psalm 146, 147, 148, 149, and 150 all both begin and end with the Hebrew, “Hallelujah.” Our Challenge group probably learned that a month ago because they studied the psalms in Kansas City. These five songs begin and end (like bookends) with a call for the LORD’s people to praise Him. And they give many good reasons to do it, too.

Our God is worthy of our praise. He doesn’t just demand it. He is worthy of our praise. We have good reason to say, “Hallelujah.”  

In this psalm, those good reasons are summed up in verse 5 which says, “Great is our Lord.” That’s the title for this message, and it’s says a lot in just a few words. “Great is our Lord.”

He is great.

He is Lord.

And He is our Lord.

“Great is our Lord.”

Interestingly, this is the only place in the Bible that has those particular words in that particular order. “Great is our Lord.” The idea is all over our Bibles, and we’ve been singing about it all morning, “How great is our God!” But those words in that order? Only here in Psalm 147. 

The Hebrew is “Gadol Adonai-nu.” “Great is our Lord.”

So you know that you’ve gotten this Psalm into you in the right way if you find yourself wanting to praise our Lord because He is so great.

Let’s see if we can’t get there together. Let’s start in verse 1.

“Praise the LORD. [Hallelujah!] How good it is to sing praises to our God, how pleasant and fitting to praise him!”

That’s a good way to start, isn’t it? The psalmist says that it’s so good and so right to praise the Lord. It just feels good! He says, “how pleasant” it is. How enjoyable. How happy it makes us to fill our mouths with praise. 

Now, I know that we don’t always feel that way. Sometimes, we have to tell ourselves this to get our hearts in gear. You know what I mean? How does that song “Gratitude” that they brought back from Challenge say it, “Come on, my soul, don’t you get shy on me. Lift up your song...” That’s what verse 1 is trying to do, too. To remind our souls how good it even feels to praise God.

Did you feel it this morning as we were singing, “Bring praises! Bring praises forever to the Lord! Bring praises! Bring praises together!”

It is good and pleasant to sing praises to our God. It’s good and right to do so. This is what we were made for. You and I were made to praise God.

And God is worthy of our praise. “Great is our Lord.”

Now, there are two important themes that run throughout this whole psalm like two threads that are tied together and should not be untied.

The greatness our our Lord in Psalm 147 is in both the big and the small.  Not just one but both together. his Psalm goes big! It shows the gigantic power of God especially in His creation. And it also goes small. It shows the compassionate caring of God for His people.

It’s a lot like the other two psalms that we have studied together this summer. Remember at Family Bible Week we studied Psalm 8 and saw God’s majesty...and all of His mindfulness? And then after Challenge we studied Psalm 139–the inescapable God who is everywhere and also knows us intimately, down to our very thoughts?

Psalm 147 is like those. It sings of an unimaginably powerful God who is at the very same time unbelievably caring for His covenant people. We see this right from the beginning, in verse 2.

“The LORD builds up Jerusalem; he gathers the exiles of Israel. He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. He determines the number of the stars and calls them each by name. Great is our Lord and mighty in power; his understanding has no limit.”

Do you see how he goes both big and small? When I read this, I’m immediately drawn to verse 4. 

“He determines the number of the stars and calls them each by name.”

Do you know how many stars there are? No, you don't. No human being does!

I looked it up this week. NASA says that there are more than 100 billion stars (including our own sun) in the Milky Way galaxy alone. But that’s just one galaxy. Astronomers estimate (nobody knows but God) that there are (ready for this?) one septillion stars in the universe.

Anybody know how many is a septillion? It is a trillion trillion! One trillion times one trillion is one septillion. That’s a 1 followed by 24 zeroes.

Psalm 147 says that the LORD determines then number of the stars and calls them each by name!

He not only made them (He made the stars!!!!), but He’s got His own name for each one! Does that make your brain bubble? He makes them all and remembers them all!

I can’t remember where I put my car keys. He remembers where He put all of the stars, and what all of their names are! “Great is our Lord and mighty in power; his understanding has no limit.”

The Hebrew word for “limit” is the same as the word for “number” in verse 4. He can number the stars, but we cannot number his understanding! He is all powerful and all wise.

Hallelujah!

He is the star-maker, and the star-knower. The LORD is all powerful and all wise.

But don’t forget verses 2 and 3! Don’t jump over verses 2 and 3! The God who numbers the stars–who does He care about?

“The LORD builds up Jerusalem; he gathers the exiles of Israel.”

Oh, He cares about Israel. And not just Israel, but Israel whom He had sent into exile. Point number one of three this morning. Great is our Lord:

#1. IN RESTORATION.

Most scholars think that this psalm was written late in the time of the Old Testament, after Israel’s return from the exile. So this wasn’t written in King David’s time or Solomon’s, but much later after the end of 2 Kings, after Daniel, after Esther when God’s people had broken the covenant and been sent off in discipline for their idolatry and rebellion. After the books of Ezra and Nehemiah, when the Lord in His grace brought them straggling back from Babylon and Persia. And then this psalmist wrote this song. “The LORD builds up Jerusalem; he gathers the exiles of Israel.”

It’s a song of restoration.

“He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.”

Isn’t that interesting? When you think about this powerful God who creates stars, and you think about who might be on His mind, do you think about brokenhearted people?

Do you think about exiles? Do you think about grieving people? Hurting people? Traumatized people?

I’m reading a book right now about trauma. It’s called When It’s Trauma, and it’s about walking with people who have seen great suffering. The brokenhearted. 

That’s who is on the LORD’s mind! He sees their grief. He knows what they have been through. He knows how they are hurting. And He’s helping them to rebuild.

And that same God is the God you and I belong to in the New Covenant. And He sees your grief. He sees your trauma. He sees your broken heart. And He’s here to help you rebuild. To bind up your wounds and heal. The same God who numbers the stars sees your pain.

“Great is our Lord and mighty in power; his understanding has no limit.”

He doesn’t just understand the stars. He understands your pain.

And we know, because of what we’ve been learning in Hebrews, that He understands it personally in the Person of Jesus Christ. 

“For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are–yet was without sin” (Hebrew 4:15).

He knows what it’s like from the inside. “His understanding has no limit.” It is limitless. Infinite. All of that star-making power, and it is concentrated on those who do not deserve His help and can’t help themselves. Look at verse 6.

“The LORD sustains the humble but casts the wicked to the ground.”

Our big God is a God of justice. He will, in the end, see that is made right in the world. The wicked will be cast down to the ground, to the grave, to judgment. And the wicked here are seen as proud. The proud will be humbled.

But the humble will be sustained. What a glorious word that is! “The LORD sustains the humble.” That’s the needy ones and the ones who know they are needy.

Do you know that you are needy? Do you feel small? That’s good. Because this big God has His big eyes on the small. On the needy. 

Jesus said, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 5:3). The Apostle James said, "Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up” (James 4:10).

Because our God is not just a God of justice, but a God of grace. Great is our Lord in restoration.

What’s the application of that? Praise the Lord! Look verse 7.

“Sing to the LORD with thanksgiving; make music to our God on the harp.”

And the guitar and the electric keyboard, and every other instrument you can tune to His praise, especially the human voice.

“Sing to the LORD with thanksgiving!”

That He would think about you and me and restore us? After what we’ve done to Him and what has been done to us? That He would bend His attention to restoring us?

And not just restoring but sustaining us, preserving us.

Great is our Lord...

#2. IN PRESERVATION.

Verse 8 through 11 emphasize God’s provision for all creation and especially for His covenant people.

Verse 8, again, goes big:

“He covers the sky with clouds; he supplies the earth with rain and makes grass grow on the hills. He provides food for the cattle and for the young ravens when they call” (vv.8-9).

Sounds like Shaggy’s song, doesn’t it? “You’re in Everything I See.”

I see clouds. Those come from God.

I see rain. God.

I see grass. God.

I see cows fed. God.

I see birds fed. God.

It’s a step down from the stars, we’re in the atmosphere and the hillside, but it’s all of the weather and all of the food chain. It all comes from Yahweh. If anyone (or anything) eats today, it’s because God fed them.

Scientists can track the weather. They can describe the water-cycle. Meteorologists can tell us the probabilities of the weather. They can’t predict the weather, but can tell us the chances.

But God can control the weather. God is behind the weather. He created the water-cycle. He keeps it going. And He directs it whichever way He wants. If you want a certain kind of weather, don’t talk to the weather-man, talk to God. I’ve been talking to Him about the Cruise-in for Saturday. I’ve been asking for no rain this year. But He knows best. He is so powerful! And He uses that power to provide. 

And who does He delight to provide for?

Who would you guess?

I think we would naturally guess that He delights to provide and preserve the great. The strong. The popular. The powerful. The wealthy. The big. That’s who we are often impressed by.

He is great, so we might assume that He is attracted to greatness.

But we would be wrong. Look at verse 10.

“His pleasure is not in the strength of the horse, nor his delight in the legs of a man; the LORD delights in those who fear him, who put their hope in his unfailing love” (vv.10-11).

Now, he’s not saying that God doesn’t like a strong horse or a fast running man. Isn’t not that God doesn’t like the horses at Miracle Mountain Ranch or that God doesn’t like soccer.

He made the strong horse, and He gives fast running men their strong legs. The song is saying that God is not impressed by them. Like we are. We are impressed by the strength of a horse. This is probably a war horse. We count up how many war horses we have on our side. The legs of a man? A soldier. We count up how many soldiers we have on our side.

Or how many are on their side. And we start to get worried.

We count up how many dollars are in our account.

How much we can bench press.

How long our resumes are.

How many in our family.

Or how many dollars are in their account.

How much they can bench.

How long their resume is.

How many in their family.

That’s what impresses us.

But not God. He doesn’t need all of that.

He’s got Himself! And, we’ve got Him, too.

So that’s what gives pleasure to God. That’s what delights the LORD.

He delights in our trusting in Him. Look at verse 11 again.

“The LORD delights in those who fear him, who put their hope in his unfailing love.”

Do you want the LORD to delight in you? Do you want the LORD to take pleasure in you? Do you?

Here’s how you impress the LORD. You trust Him. You fear Him. That’s not abject terror. Like screaming and running away. It is fear though. It’s your heart trembling before a holy God. It’s not treating Him lightly with contempt or ignoring Him. It’s your heart bowing before Him and running towards Him. Those who fear the Lord want Him.

Here’s how you delight the LORD. You hope in His unfailing love.

The Hebrew word is “hesed.”

It’s almost impossible to translate because it’s so wonderful. It’s love, but it’s not just love. It’s loyal love. It’s gracious love. It’s merciful love. It’s steadfast love. Our LORD delights to give grace to those who place their hope in His grace.

Now, let me flip this around: Are you putting your hope in His unfailing love? Are you?

If you are, then the LORD is delighting in you! Yes, you heard me right. The LORD, Yah, Yahweh, is delighting in you right now. He is pleased with you!

I don’t know about you, but this blows my mind more than the fact that He numbers the stars. He is preserving His people, those who put their hope in His “hesed.”

And He is just loving it! He doesn’t need us. He doesn’t need us to be strong. He needs us to know our weakness and to hope in His strong love. 

What’s the application of that? Praise the Lord! Look verse 12.

“Extol the LORD, O Jerusalem; praise your God, O Zion, for he strengthens the bars of your gates and blesses your people within you. He grants peace to your borders and satisfies you with the finest of wheat” (vv.12-14).

Now, again, this was written for people of God under the Old Covenant who had recently returned from exile. Especially the city of Jerusalem which was built on Mt. Zion and often called “Zion” itself.

Jerusalem had been burned. It had been ransacked. It had been overrun by Babylonians. And the temple destroyed in 586 BC. It’s citizens were dragged off into captivity.

But years later, their grandchildren and great grandchildren were back and were rebuilding. They rebuilt the temple. They rebuilt the wall around Jerusalem.

And the LORD Himself strengthened the bars of its gates and once again blessed the people within them. He gave them "shalom" just as He had promised when He said, “For I know the plans I have for you...plans to prosper you [shalom you, give you peace], and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future (Jeremiah 29:11).

He did that. In part then, and He will do that in the future when He restores Zion to the fullest extent.

We learned earlier this year when we studied Psalm 87 that “Zion” is a picture of heaven. It’s poetic and prophetic, and it’s talking not just about those people then in physical, geographical Jerusalem but the Zion to come. 

We’re going to see that again even more clearly when we get to Hebrews chapter 12. We can sing this song because we are Zion, too.

But the focus here in Psalm 147 is on how good God is being to Jerusalem.

He is blessing them.

He is sustaining them.

He is prospering, “shaloming” them.

He is satisfying them.

He is preserving them.

And He’s doing it with a word. 

The focus on these last few verses is on God’s command. God is doing all this, but He doesn’t have to like run around doing everything. “Okay, I’m going to go up to the gates and strengthen the bars now. Okay. Strengthen, strengthen, strengthen. Okay it’s time to make the wheat. Growing wheat, growing wheat, growing wheat.” 

No, He says the word and it happens. Look at verse 15.

“He sends his command to the earth; his word runs swiftly. He spreads the snow like wool and scatters the frost like ashes. He hurls down his hail like pebbles. Who can withstand his icy blast? He sends his word and melts them; he stirs up his breezes, and the waters flow” (vv.14-18).

Do you see it? Do you feel how God is ruling the world by simply saying the word? 

He rules the world by saying the word.

I love all of the weather in this song. We all care about the weather, but we can’t control it. The LORD can. It’s all the weather. You’ve got snow and frost and hail and icy winds. That’s all winter, and it’s coming. I know it doesn’t feel like it today, but just you wait.

But God isn’t just the God of autumn and winter. He says the word, and it’s spring and summer. The ice melts, the rivers run, April showers bring May flowers. Just because God says so!

And what will be the kicker for this song of God’s glorious power? What would you make be the last verse of this song that celebrates the God who numbers the stars and controls the weather?

The psalmist says, “Oh, here’s a great miracle! He gave us His words.”

He doesn’t just command creation, he has revealed His covenants. Look at verse 19.

“He has revealed his word to Jacob, his laws and decrees to Israel. He has done this for no other nation; they do not know his laws. Praise the LORD.”

The psalmist is not bragging. We know that by now. 

At first, whenever I read this, I feel like he’s bragging. “We’ve got the law, and the pagan nations don’t.” But, no, he’s overwhelmed that the creator God would do this for them.

He’s singing about their exile.

He’s singing about their brokenness.

He’s singing about their humility, their smallness.

He’s singing about their weakness.

He’s singing about how they don’t deserve all of these unbelievable blessings from this incredibly powerful God.

“Why has God been so gracious to us? He has done this for no other nation!”

“He has given us the Law!”

Great is our Lord....

#3. IN REVELATION.

Not just in creation but in revelation.

God has revealed His word to His people!

He’s told us Who He is.

He’s told us what He wants.

He’s told us what He wants for us.

He’s not been quiet.

He’s revealed Himself and His will to His people.

What an wonderful gift that is! The psalmist is just shaking his head in wonder at God’s gracious condescension. 

And if that’s how this songwriter felt about the Old Covenant? How much more should we be amazed at God’s grace in giving us the New Covenant? The one mediated by our Great High Priest Jesus Christ. The final Word. The final Revelation of God to human beings like you and me.

The God who kindled the stars humbled Himself and became a human being Himself. And then He lived a perfect life and died a sacrificial death to save us from our own sins. And then He came back to life to give us life. And He ascended to the right hand of the Majesty on high and always lives to intercede for us.

That’s unfailing love! And it is our only hope.

What’s the application of this truth for those who are hoping in Him?

Praise the LORD!

He is great!

He is LORD.

And He is ours.

HALLELUJAH!

***

Bonus Message on Psalm 147: "Encounter the God of the Universe" FBW, July 2015

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“Cleansed with Blood” [Matt's Messages]

“Cleansed with Blood”

Fixing Our Eyes on Jesus - The Letter to the Hebrews

Lanse Evangelical Free Church

July 26, 2026 :: Hebrews 9:15-26  

I think I have a pretty easy job this morning.

You tell me. I think I have a relatively easy job in this message because my job today is to convince you of something you already believe.

At least, I assume you believe this because you’re here, and we’ve been singing about it all morning. Anita just sang about it in her song which, by the  way, was written by Philip Bliss who was born right here in Clearfield County. [He lived from 1838 to 1876. For all we know he might have attended the Clearfield County Fair (which began in 1852)!]  “Once For All”

My job is to convince you of something you already believe. Let me ask you. Do you believe this?

Do you believe that the sacrifice of Jesus Christ is superior and sufficient?

Do you believe that the sacrifice of Jesus Christ is superior to the sacrifices of the Mosaic Covenant and sufficient for your eternal salvation? Yes? ... Okay then. My job is done! That was easy. Let’s all go home. Let’s sing the last song.

Ok. Not so fast. It still might be worthwhile for us to study this passage of holy Scripture anyway. Because we don’t always act like the sacrifice of Jesus Christ is superior and sufficient. And we might need reminded of why it’s superior and how it’s superior and why it’s sufficient and how it’s sufficient. So that we can truly appreciate what Jesus Christ has done for us. And live accordingly.

We’ve reached the part of the letter to the Hebrews that emphasizes blood.

There’s blood everywhere in this section. Blood, blood, blood, blood, blood. I think we said last time that he uses the word “blood” 22 times right here. It shows up 7 times just in the 11 verses we’re looking at this morning, and the concept is there more than the word.  Blood, blood, blood, blood, blood. A sea of blood. Blood everywhere.

“Blood” in the book of Hebrews stands for a sacrificial death. It’s not just the red stuff with corpuscles but how that red stuff was shed. A sacrificial death. A violent death. Not a peaceful one. But a death where blood was spilled on purpose. Where the one who died was killed. Where something or someone was sacrificed in place of another. That’s what “blood” means in Hebrews.

And, yes, it’s gory. There’s no getting around it. It’s not pretty.

We sing about it all the time as Christians. How many worship songs can you think of that mention blood? Maybe your family could do that this afternoon? Count up how many Christian songs you can all think of that mention blood? We sing it about, but it is not pretty.

Yet it is precious. And it is necessary. I think, perhaps, the most important word in this passage is the word “necessary.”  It really jumped out at me as I studied it for this message. “Necessary.” Look for “necessary” or “required” we read it.

And the other word that jumped out at me in this passage was “cleansed.” Like in verse 22, “The law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood...”

“Cleansed with Blood” 

What a strange idea! That blood could be cleansing. Purifying. 

Moms, do you use blood when you do your laundry? “Oh, you got that dirty? Bring it here. I’ll put some blood on it. I’ll run it through the machine with a little blood. Clean it right up for you.” 

No, we don’t do that. But, apparently, the right kind of bloodshed is purifying for the right kind of dirt.

The right kind of blood (sacrificial death) can be cleansing for a special kind of filth that we call “sin.” In fact, it’s necessary.

Now, unlike this church, the Hebrews were not necessarily convinced that the sacrifice of Jesus Christ was superior and sufficient. 

Remember, they seemed to be tempted to turn back and fall away. They seemed to be tempted to take their eyes off of Jesus and fall back on what seemed more safe and familiar–all of what they knew from their Old Testaments. Moses, Aaron, the Law, the Levitical Priesthood, all of that. The old covenant. The old sanctuary and the old sacrifices.

And that was dangerous! So this pastor wrote them this letter to exhort them to fix their eyes on Jesus and to convince them that Jesus was worthy of their attention. Jesus was greater, much greater, than everything they had ever learned in their Old Testament. Including how much greater was His sacrifice.

He’s been on about this since chapter 4. We’ve learned that chapters 4 through 10 could be summarized with three keys words. What are they? I’ll give you two chances because there are two sets of repeated three key word phrases. 

Great High Priest! That’s the one I’m looking for. You might have guessed (and it wouldn’t be wrong), “Once For All.” We’ll see those precious words again today, too.

But first, Great High Priest. Jesus is the Greater High Priest, who–according to what was just read for us–went through the greater and more perfect tabernacle but not with the blood of bulls and goats and calves (like the Levitical High Priest on Yom Kippur), but with and by His own blood.

Verses 11 through 14 taught us that the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer would cleanse the outside of the Israelites, so that’s good. But it only went skin-deep. However, the blood of Jesus Christ goes deeper. It goes inside and cleanses our consciences!

Which brings us to verse 15. Look at our first verse for today. Verse 15.

“For this reason [because His blood cleanses our consciences] Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance–now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant.”

I’ve got three points this morning to summarize what the blood of Jesus Christ has done which makes it superior and sufficient. Here’s number one.

Jesus died a bloody death:

#1. TO PROVIDE OUR INHERITANCE.

Jesus died a gory sacrificial death to provide our eternal inheritance.

That’s some good news right there!

Verse 15 says that Jesus Christ is the “mediator” of a new covenant. He’s been talking about the new covenant a lot since chapter 8. Remember, it was full of “better promises” than the first covenant, made with Moses.  Deeper change, wider knowledge, full forgiveness. Jesus is the mediator of that New Covenant.

Now, that doesn’t mean that Jesus was a kind of negotiator between two parties. God and us. Trying to get the two parties to agree on something. “You give a little bit. You give a little bit. Meet in the middle.”

No, He wasn’t that kind of a mediator, but He was and is an intermediary. Jesus announced that the New Covenant was here, and He inaugurated it by His own blood. Remember what He said in the Upper Room? “This cup is the new covenant in my blood.” And then He died, and that kicked the covenant into effect!

Now, before we think about what good news this is for us, I want us to notice how good this was for the Hebrews. Notice in verse 15 how it says that Jesus died as a ransom (a payment) to set people free “from the sins committed under the first covenant.”

Isn’t that interesting? I would have guessed that it sets people from the sins under the new covenant. And it does! We’ll see that in just a second. But this is saying something different. This is saying that the sacrifice of Jesus Christ also operates retroactively.

Did you ever wonder how people got saved in the Old Testament? If the blood of bulls and calves can only cover sin on the outside, how did the Old Testament people ever expect to be forgiven eternally and live with God forever?

Well, the answer is by grace through faith in the promises of God.

Salvation has always been by grace alone through faith alone in the promises of God alone. And it’s always been by the blood of Jesus Christ. All of those sacrifices in the Old Testament were pictures of and foreshadowings of His sacrifice to come.

And when Jesus died, His death was not just sufficient to forgive us all of our sins, but theirs, too. The sins committed under the first covenant. (And the ones before that, too!)

That’s some retroactive cleansing power! 

“Oh! Precious is the flow

That makes [Old Testament saints] white as snow!

No other fount I know,

Nothing but the blood of Jesus.”

    - Robert Lowry, 1876

Jesus died, and He fulfilled the promises of the Old Covenant and kicked in the promises of the New Covenant. 

The key word in verse 15 is “inheritance.”

“Those who are called (that is genuine Christians) may [now because of the precious blood of Christ] receive the promised eternal inheritance.”

What is that? That’s all of the promises that were given to Abraham and his believing children. He wrote about this back in chapter 6, and He’s going to come back to it in chapter 11.

“The promised eternal inheritance.”

I love that word “inheritance.” It means all the good stuff you and I are going to get. It means heaven. It means the kingdom. It means joy and peace. And knowing God intimately. It means blessing!

It’s all ours. In part now, and soon, in full forever. It’s all been promised. 

Only one thing stands in the way of our coming into our inheritance...Somebody has to die.

That’s the problem with an inheritance, right? The normal way you inherit something is that the person who is leaving it to you has to leave. That’s the point of verse 16.

“In the case of a will, it is necessary to prove the death of the one who made it, because a will is in force only when somebody has died; it never takes effect while the one who made it is living” (vv.16-17).

Now, it’s not obvious in the English, but the word for “will” in verse 16 and 17 is the same word as “covenant” in verses 15 and 18 and 20. It’s the Greek word, “diathaykay.”

And some people think that verses 16 and 17 are talking about how in a covenant in the ancient world both parties had to stake their lives on their word in the covenant. That’s why covenants were sealed with sacrifices. The parties passed between the carcasses to say “Let this happen to me as well if I break this covenant.” And that’s true and could be what verses 16 and 17 are pointing to–the high stakes at play.

But I tend to lean into the word “inheritance” in verse 15 when I’m interpreting verses 16 and 17.

I think that he’s talking here about a last will and testament. They used the same word “diathaykay” for both.

When do you get your inheritance when you are named in a will? 

When the will-maker dies, right? That’s the point of all of those murder mysteries out there, right? Because people are waiting for someone to die so that they can get their inheritance, and sometimes they just can’t wait!

Did you see the word “necessary” in verse 16? “In the case of a will, it is necessary to prove the death of the one who made it...” We won’t get the eternal inheritance unless the will-maker dies. 

Jesus had to die for us to get the promises! He had to shed His blood. Verse 18.

“This is why even the first covenant was not put into effect without blood.”

Now, that’s a double negative which is a no-no in English, my Mom taught me, but it’s valid in the original Greek. Boil it down. The first covenant (the one that came through Moses) was put into effect with blood. Necessarily. It took blood. Lots of blood. Verse 19.

“When Moses had proclaimed every commandment of the law to all the people, he took the blood of calves, together with water, scarlet wool and branches of hyssop, and sprinkled the scroll and all the people. He said, ‘This is the blood of the covenant, which God has commanded you to keep’” (vv.18-20).

He’s taking about Exodus chapter 24. You might want to pull it out and read it this afternoon. Exodus chapter 24. It’s after God gave Moses the Law, and they are going to solemnize the Mosaic Covenant.  Moses reads the whole thing. And then the nation of Israel says “Everything the LORD has said we will do.” (Which is kind of funny/not funny if you know how the story turns out.)

And then the next day, they build an altar, and they start sacrificing bulls. They set up a slaughterhouse. One bull after another. And they take half the blood, and they put it in bowls. And the other half they put on the altar. The altar is covered in blood. It’s gross. Can you imagine the smell?

But the blood in the bowls...what do they do with that blood? Moses sprinkles it on the scroll. He puts the blood on the book! And Moses sprinkles it on the people.  Thousands and thousands of people there. I don’t know if they were all sprinkled that day or just representatives of the twelve tribes. It says, “all the people.” Either way, it’s a lot of blood!

“This is the blood of the covenant, which God has commanded you to keep.”

The blood is on them. Death was necessary. And that’s not all. Look at verse 21.

“In the same way, he sprinkled with the blood both the tabernacle and everything used in its ceremonies.”

There was blood everywhere. Last time, we talked about all of that gleaming gold inside the Holy Place and the Most Holy Place? All of that gold had blood on it. [See Leviticus 8 & 14, Numbers 19, and Exodus 40 places that Hebrews is probably referencing for this practice.]

There was blood everywhere. A sea of blood. Verse 22.

“In fact, the law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.”

That’s point number two. The blood was necessary:

#2. TO PAY FOR OUR RELEASE.

Verse 22 says that “nearly everything” was required to be “cleansed by blood.”

There were other sacrifices in the Law. There was flour and there was gold. You could give up some of your wheat and some of your wealth as a sacrifice for some things. But mostly it was blood. 

And here’s why. It’s a fundamental rule of God’s world:

“Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.”

That’s another double negative. Boil it down. It takes the shedding of blood for there to be forgiveness. For someone to be forgiven by God, someone or something else must die.

Do you know that? Do you know that fundamental rule of the universe? We may not like it. We may not want it to be true, but it is. God is holy, holy, holy, and to satisfy His justice, either we die or Someone else dies in our place. “Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness." That’s why Jesus sacrificed Himself. He had to. For us to be reconciled to God, Jesus had to shed His blood for us. For us to receive our promised eternal inheritance, Jesus had to bleed.

“What can wash away my sin?

What can make me whole again?”

“Nothing but the blood of Jesus.”

“Nothing can for sin atone

Naught of good that I have done.”

“Nothing but the blood of Jesus.”

I cannot earn my way out of this. Somebody’s got to die.

“Oh! Precious is the flow

That makes me white as snow;

No other fount I know,

Nothing but the blood of Jesus.”

Without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness. I almost titled this message, “No Forgiveness.” Because it’s unthinkable how terrible that would be. What if there was no way for you and me to be forgiven? The Greek word there in verse 22 is “aphesis” which means to be released from bondage or imprisonment or punishment and came to mean “forgiven” of a debt and released. 

The old King James word is “remission,” being let go from your sins. But what if there was no remission? What if there was no forgiveness? Then there would be no hope.

Do you feel that? Are you walking around today with no forgiveness? You know you’ve sinned and fallen short of God’s glory. You can feel it in your bones. Even if you say you don’t, you know deep down that you’re guilty. And you know you’re in so deep you can’t get out on your own. And the rule of the universe is that it takes blood to get out. It takes blood to get to God.

Good news! Jesus Christ has shed His blood. 

Verse 22 has stated the rule, verse 23 explains the logical conclusion. Verse 23.

“It was necessary, then, for the copies of the heavenly things to be purified with these sacrifices, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. For Christ did not enter a man-made sanctuary that was only a copy of the true one; he entered heaven itself, now to appear for us in God's presence” (vv.23-24).

What’s he talking about? Can you see his logic? 

What does he mean in verse 23 by saying the “copies of the heavenly things” need to be purified? What are the “copies?” We saw this last time (cf. Hebrews 8:5 and 9:1-5). 

The copies are the original tabernacle (and its successor ,the temple). Moses was given blueprints for the tabernacle. “Make it like this.”  Because it was like a prototype teaching us that access to a holy God required blood, sacrificial death. So, Moses was supposed to sprinkle blood all over the copies.

But (verse 23), “...the heavenly things themselves [were necessarily purified] with better sacrifices than these.”

What’s he talking about? “Heavenly things” that needed to be purified? Is heaven dirty? What are the heavenly things that need purified?

Theologians have suggested several different plausible ideas. See me after  church for a short list.

But I think the most likely thing is that you and I are the heavenly things that need purified by the better sacrifices!

You and I would get heaven all dirty. We don’t belong there with our sin. But Jesus has cleansed us with His blood.

“What stream can sweep away

My sins just like a flood

Nor lets one guilty blemish stay?

‘Tis Jesus precious blood.”

- William Irons (1812-1833)

Look at verse 24. 

“For Christ did not enter a man-made sanctuary that was only a copy of the true one; he entered heaven itself, now to appear for us in God's presence” 

And that means that we can now enter His presence. That’s point number three and last. Jesus died:

#3. TO PURIFY US FOR GOD’S PRESENCE.

He’s talking again about Jesus as our Great High Priest. What does our memory verse say He did? He has “gone through the heavens.” He went to the Most Holy Place in the universe to “appear for us in God’s presence.” He is representing us “before the throne of God above.” We are cleansed with His blood.

Think about this!  Jesus could be His own executor of His will. Normally, you can’t be the will-maker and the executor, too. But Jesus made the will, died to put the will into effect, and then takes the case to the judge Himself to probate the will! 

Yes, I think that Jesus’ sacrifice is superior. And I think that the Hebrews were beginning to see it, too.

Believe it or not, in verse 25, the writer kicks it up another notch. Look at verse 25.

“Nor did he [Jesus] enter heaven to offer himself again and again, the way the high priest enters the Most Holy Place every year with blood that is not his own. Then Christ would have had to suffer many times since the creation of the world. But now he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of himself” (vv.25-26).

Jesus’ sacrifice is superior because it is sufficient. In the old covenant, the High Priest had to enter the Holy of Holies once a year with blood that wasn’t his own. But that’s not what Jesus did. He not only came by dint of His blood, but He also came once for all. 

Say it to your neighbor again, “Once for all.”

If Jesus had to do it the other way, He would have had to be sacrificed over and over and over again from Adam and Eve to today.

Do you see the logic? If he was the old style of high priest, once a year from creation on, He would have to suffer and die again and again and again.

“Oh, they sinned again? Okay. Here we go.”

But He’s not that kind of a high priest. He’s greater than that! He has “appeared once for all at the end of the ages to do away with sing by the sacrifice of himself” (v.26).

We are cleansed with His blood. Once and for all! His sacrifice is sufficient. The last days have begun. Jesus has come and Has sacrificed Himself on the Cross and has come back to life and entered into heaven itself to appear before God as our high priest.

And He will not ever do it again. Because He doesn’t have to do it again. Our sin has been removed. Once for all. Once for all. 

“Oh happy condition. Jesus has bled, and there is remission.”

- Phillip Bliss

What do we do about this? How should we respond? I through of three things which I’ll give you 1-2-3.

- Receive.

If you are convinced that Jesus’ sacrifice is superior and sufficient, then receive His cleansing today.  Come for your cleansing. Receive Jesus as your saving high priest and be washed in the blood. Put your hope in the sufficiency of His sacrificial death. And receive the promised eternal inheritance of all who are called. Answer the call and receive His cleansing today.

- Rejoice.

I don’t know about you, but this passage is so incredibly encouraging to me. I don’t like all of the blood,. I don't glory in the gore, but I’m so grateful for it. To think of what Jesus did for me!

There’s a reason why there are thousands of worship songs that sing about the blood. The blood of Jesus is worth singing about!

“Redeemed how I love to proclaim it! Redeemed by the blood of the Lamb.”

“There is power, power wonder-working power in the precious blood of Lamb.”

“O perfect redemption, the purchase of blood! 

To every believer the promise of God; 

The vilest offender who truly believes, 

That moment from Jesus a pardon receives.

Praise the Lord!

Praise the Lord!

Let the people rejoice!”

Rejoice.

You are receiving the inheritance.

You are released in forgiveness.

You are purified to be in the very presence of God.

We have every reason to rejoice.

- Remain.

If you are convinced that Jesus’ sacrifice is superior and once-for-all sufficient, then... 

Fix your eyes on Jesus.

***

Messages in this Series:

01. "The Son" - Hebrews 1:1-4
02. "Superior to the Angels" - Hebrews 1:5-14
03. "Such a Great Salvation" - Hebrews 2:1-4
04. "We See Jesus" - Hebrews 2:5-9
05. "Flesh and Blood" - Hebrews 2:10-18
06. "Fix Your Thoughts on Jesus" - Hebrews 3:1-6
07. “Today, If You Hear His Voice” - Hebrews 3:7-19
Bonus Historical Message: The Gift of My Rest - A Fictional Letter of Sabbath Theology
08. "A Sabbath-Rest for the People of God" - Hebrews 4:1-13
09. "Great High Priest" - Hebrews 4:14-16
10. "The Source of Eternal Salvation" - Hebrews 5:1-10
11. "On To Maturity" - Hebrews 5:11-6:3
12. "We Speak Like This" - Hebrews 6:4-12
13. "An Anchor for the Soul" - Hebrews 6:13-20
Bonus Message: "Fix Your Eyes on Jesus" - 2026 West Branch Baccalaureate
14. "In the Order of Melchizedek" - Hebrews 7:1-19
15. "A Priest Forever" - Hebrews 7:20-28
16. "Better Promises" - Hebrews 8:1-13
17. "By His Own Blood" - Hebrews 9:1-14

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*Even Here [Matt's Messages]

*Even Here - Challenge 2026

Lanse Evangelical Free Church

July 19, 2026 :: Psalm 139

Thank you, Challenge Team, for sharing about your week in Kansas City. It sounds like it was an incredible time of learning and fun and spiritual growth. I’m so glad we all could have a part in sending you with our gifts and especially with our prayers.

All week long, I used the prayer guide that Challenge sent us of what to pray for you every day which included what Psalms you were learning about each day.

The theme this year was *Even Here: Experiencing God in the Psalms. And every day you studied at least one Psalm together with 4,000 of your closest EFCA friends. I saw Psalm 19, 73, 51, 13, 100, Psalm 10, and Psalm 145. What wonderful songs to take into your heart!

Today, for the sermon, I thought we might take a short break from Hebrews and look at a Psalm together, specifically Psalm 139 which I think inspired the theme for Challenge this year. 

Psalm 139 ends with this prayer request. “Search me.”

“Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”

Isn’t that a great prayer? “Search me.” Have you said that to God this week? I’ll bet the Challenge Group has. “Search me.”

That’s not a snide remark like, “What are you bringing to the picnic on the 2nd?” “I don’t know! Search me!”

No, it’s a prayer for God to look into our hearts and to see what is truly there. It’s an invitation for God to know us as we really are and to move us to become who He wants us to be. “Search Me.”

How did King David get to the point where he could and would ask God to search him in that way? I think King David got to that point by knowing what kind of God He truly is. And Psalm 139 sings it to us. Let’s look at together. Verse 1.

“For the director of music. Of David. A psalm.”

We don’t know much more about the context of this prayer–many scholars believe that David has been accused by someone else of being unfaithful to the Lord, and he is seeking vindication here. I’m not sure if that’s true. I’m not sure at all what the historical setting was for this Psalm. I’ll bet they said at Challenge that sometimes it’s better not to know those details because the application feels even more immediate to our lives now.

Regardless of the setting, it’s a psalm of King David meant to be sung by others like you and me and applied to our lives today. 

David ends the Psalm by asking God to search him, but he begins the psalm by stating that he knows the LORD already has searched him. V.1

“O LORD, you have searched me and you know me.”

I’ve got four points this morning that are actually four prayers that we can pray back to the Lord ourselves. 

#1. YOU KNOW ME.

David can end up asking God to search him, because he already knows that the LORD has already done so. You know me.

“O LORD, you have searched me and you know me.”

That word for “search” means “to examine.” In our computerized world, we use the word “search” all the time these days. Often, we set a computer going to find some piece of information that we lack. We “google” things nowadays. Right? The ubiquitous “search bar.”

But this is not an impersonal search for a trivial piece of information. This is being known. This is being examined. This is a Person taking a close look at another person. It’s more like a trip to the doctor than putting a query into ChatGPT.

“God, You have checked me out. You know me.” 

David is amazed at how well God knows him. V.2

“You know when I sit and when I rise;”

Up or down. You know it. And not just what position I’m in. What I’m thinking! “...you perceive my thoughts from afar.” God is a mind-reader. V.3

“You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways.”

We just sang those words together. “All my ways are known to you.” Whether I get up and head out on a walk in the morning or come home and go to bed, you know all of my doings. My patterns. My ways.

And this is not just impersonal information. It’s not just that God has a database of factoids about me. I’m not just in His spreadsheet. He knows me. He is familiar with my ways.

Many of you have pets. Do you know “the ways” of your pet? If you come home and your pet is nowhere to be seen, do you have a good idea where they could be found? You know the ways of your pet. Their comings and goings and habits. It’s not just that you could look it up in an Encyclopedia. “This is what cats generally do.” You know this pet and how he or she acts. You are familiar with their ways.

How much more is God familiar with our ways? He knows us much better than we know ourselves. V.4

“Before a word is on my tongue you know it completely, O LORD.”

Sometimes my wife knows what I’m going to say before I do. I thought I just came up with that sentence, but Heather was way ahead of me. Not necessarily because we think alike, but because she knows me. How much more does God know us! 

Do you see how personal this Psalm is? David is saying, “You know me.” Completely. And not just as a bunch of facts but personally, intimately, deeply, truly, relationally. You know me. V.5

“You hem me in–behind and before; you have laid your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain.”

“I just can’t grasp how much you know me, God!”

David is filled with wonder that he is known in this way. Does that same truth fill us with wonder today? 

Most people desperately want to be known. I think that’s one of the major reasons for much of what we see, for example, on social media. People are saying, “Know me! I’m putting myself out here. Know me!”

Church, you are known! By the One that matters the most. V.6

“Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain.”

#2. YOU’VE GOT ME.

That’s what David was saying in v.5 with “You hem me in–behind and before; you have laid your hand upon me.”

You’ve got me. I’m trapped! There is no escape from behind–no back door. And there is no escape from before–you’ve arrested me. You’ve laid your hand on me.

It’s not clear whether or not David wants to escape from God. Perhaps, that feeling of being known also gives him a touch of the willies and fosters an urge to escape. Or maybe he’s just saying that even if he wanted to get away, he knows that he can’t. Either way, there is no. hiding. from the Lord. V.7

“Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.”

We sang those words this morning, too. “You will hold me fast.” There is no getting away from God. He is everywhere. 

If verses 1-6 were about God’s omniscience, verses 7-12 are about God’s omnipresence.

But it’s not just that God is there and standing around like some absent-minded professor. “Oh yes, he’s here, but he’s not all here.”

No, this is saying that God is present. He is relationally with David wherever David would run to.

The sky? Check.

The ocean floor? Check.

Flying at the speed of light? He’s there.

On the other side of the world? He’s there, too.

You can’t get away from God. You can run, but you can’t hide. Not even in the darkest place. V.11

“If I say, ‘Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,’ even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you.”

For the God who is light, there is no place that is dark.

What’s the upshot of that? 

Well, at first, it might not seem like good news. Who wants inescapable supervision? Somebody watching you all of the time? Kind of sounds like prison?

But David knows that it is good news. V.10 again.

Wherever I am, “...even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.”

“Even there.” 

“Even here.” I’ll tell you who wants inescapable supervision...sheep do. Or at least if they don’t want it, they need it. Sheep need a shepherd. You and I are needy people, and we need a good shepherd to keep a guiding hand on us all of the time. It’s so good to be able to say, “You’ve got me.”

Have you prayed that this week? Perhaps you’re going through something right now that is really painful. Have you thanked the Lord that you are not alone in that pain? Have you given yourself and your situation over to Him?

I talked to someone this week who just wasn’t willing to say that to the Lord this week. “You’ve got me.”

“Lord, you’ve got me. I know that I can’t get away from you, and that’s  such a good thing! I’m yours.” Because...

#3. YOU MADE ME. 

Verse 13. 

“For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.”

This is how deep this relationship goes: David knows that he is the Lord’s own creation. God is not just omniscient and omnipresent. He is the Creator. The Maker. God didn’t just come to know David over time. He has known David all along, from the beginning. Because He made him!

This is the verse that we quote every January around Sanctity of Human Life Sunday. And that’s right. It’s all about that. It’s all about how God is intimately involved in making us. He designed us. He designed each of us personally, and that bestows a heaping measure of dignity to every human life.

But David is saying something even more profound. He’s saying that in making us, God knows us and has every right over us. V.15

“My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place [the womb]. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.”

I think that David uses the image of “the depths of the earth” to describe the most hidden place that he can think of. They didn’t have any ultrasounds back then. The womb was, for David, the most hidden place a person could be alive on earth. But God saw into the womb. God was there, and God was directing that new life.

“All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand. When I awake, I am still with you.”

David just lives in amazement. He can’t hardly believe how fearfully and wonderfully he is made, and he can’t hardly believe how sovereign God is over his life, and he can’t hardly believe how deep and long and wide are the thoughts of God. Thoughts that make and create. Thoughts that are so awesome they cannot be numbered!

Now, scholars are divided over what that last sentence in verse 18 means.

“When I awake, I am still with you.”

Does that mean that David has been exhausted by these innumerable thoughts and then wakes up at that point? Or does it go back to the first section and mean that even in the mornings when David gets up, there is God? “Even there.” Some scholars even think it means awakening from resurrection. Even when we come back from the sleep of death. 

Any way about it, the point is “I am still with you.”  There He is! There God is. God is not absent. God is present. And I am with Him. *Even here.

Now, how “with Him” am I? How with God am I? He’s all here, but...am I all His? I think that’s the point of the next four verses.

For many of us, these four verses feel like an intrusion. Like they don’t fit. But they flowed very naturally for King David. Look at verse 19.

“If only you would slay the wicked, O God! Away from me, you bloodthirsty men! They speak of you with evil intent; your adversaries misuse your name. Do I not hate those who hate you, O LORD, and abhor those who rise up against you? I have nothing but hatred for them; I count them my enemies.”

That’s what we call an “imprecatory” prayer. The Challenge Group learned about that on Thursday when Pastor Stephen Love preached on Psalm 10.  It’s an imprecatory prayer is a prayer for justice to be done by the Lord. *Even here.

Now, we tend to stumble over these verses because they can seem so far from our Lord Jesus’ command to love our enemies. And there is something new about our Lord’s command that at least modifies what is going on here in these verses. 

But the emphasis here is not on personal hatred of those who are our enemies. The emphasis is on loyalty to God over against those who are His enemies. David is saying that he does not side with those who side against God.

“Do I not hate those who hate you, O LORD, and abhor those who rise up against you?”  

Another way of saying it would be to say, “I am not on Satan’s side. Not one bit.”

I’m on the LORD’s side!

I’m on Yahweh’s side.

I do not identify with the enemies of God. I hate them.

Do you see how that works? It’s not saying that we shouldn’t love our enemies. God loves His own enemies! But there is a right way to love our enemies and even a right way to hate them. If the choice is between loving them and their ways or loving God and His, then we side with God every time.

In other words, David is saying:

#4. YOU CAN COUNT ON ME.

How’s that for a prayer? Can you pray that today?

“You can count on me, Lord. You know which side of the battle You will find me on.”

I know that you know me.

I know that you’ve got me.

I know that you made me.

And so I’m yours. I’m completely yours. So, yes, go ahead–search me. V.23

“Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”

Go ahead, Lord. 

I know that You already know what You’ll find.

Search me. Know my heart.

Test me. Examine me.

Listen to my thoughts.

Some of them, I admit, are very anxious. This generation of young people is marked by anxiety.  And so am I.

And if I’m really honest? Yes, I’m anxious about You, too, God. 

"Lord, sometimes You worry me. Sometimes, I feel like I want to escape, to hide, to get out of Your gaze. But I know there is nowhere to go. And when I think about it the right way, I know that there is no place I’d rather be than. with. You. And to the degree that this is not true for me today, please forgive me. See all of the offensive ways in me, and cleanse me by the precious blood of Jesus Christ."

King David knew that God knew his sin. It was ever before him. And David knew (we know from Psalm 51, which Pastor Eric Rivera taught at Challenge on Tuesday) that David knew what it means to be forgiven.

And we know that forgiveness comes from the work of our Great High Priest the Lord Jesus Christ.

Who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself unblemished to God to cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death so that we may serve the Living God.

Search me, O God, and cleanse me God, I pray.

*Even here.

***

People with sharp memories may remember earlier forms of this message preached in 2013 and 2020. What a joy that Psalm 139 is all true all the time!

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