Practical Conclusions
Heb. 10:19-25

Intro.:
l. Every great ideological work has significant conclusions that arise out of the body of the text. The Communist Manifesto talks about the problems of the working classes, and the conclusion calls for various proper changes in society, nationalize banking, industry, and other items. In a similar vein we have gone thru some of the great ideas of the book of Hebrews and now we come to some practical considerations.

2. We have seen that: l. Christ is the last revelation, a process that began with God speaking in a variety of ways from the time of Abraham, to Moses, thru the prophets, and now in these last days he has spoken thru his Son. 2. Christ is the New High Priest. The Old High Priest was a temporary appointment, but now Jesus the Son of God is the High Priest of our faith who is eternal. 3. A New temple is the center of our attention, a heavenly temple rather than an earthly one. Worship is not directed to Jerusalem the earthly city, but the heaven city of God. 4. A final sacrifice is made. Daily animal sacrifices are replaced by one final absolute sacrifice that brings
us into the presence of God. 5. A new covenant replaces the old covenant.

3. With these facts drawn out, we nick up the phrases, " v.19 "Therefore, brethern, since we have confidence to enter the sanctuary by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way which he opened for us, thru the curtain, that is, thru his flesh, and since we have a great high priest over the house of God...let us .... Now comes some practical exhortations for our benefit. Let us look at them.

I. Let us drawn near. v.22.

l. The call is to draw near to God. How do we go about this? There are a couple of points in the verses that we have. A. "Our hearts sprinkled clean" refers to our turning from sin and seeking God's forgiveness. There is no cleansing of the heart without a turning from sin. There is no forgiveness without a seeking of forgiveness. There have been many reasons why people may be upset with former President Nixon. But there is a certain common sense insight in their reaction to the pardon issued by Ford. A pardon implies a crime, a wrong, and if there is no admission of guilt there is nothing to pardon. Any anguish that the president may have suffered
need not be related to a pardon. If he made poor decisions then there is no necessity for a pardon for no crime has been done. But if crime has been accomplished, then a pardon is meaningful. The first fact we must recognize is our own sinfulness.
If there is sin, it can be forgiven. If we do not recognize our sin, then a pardon is meaningless. If  we are to draw near to God near to God, then we must examine our  sin. We cannot draw near without dealing with our sinfulness. We must come to him in repentance and accept his forgiveness.

B. "Our bodies washed with pure water may refer to baptism.If he does, we have a second and that is obedience. Baptism is a first step in the beginning Christian life. In baptism we life-style that we are going to follow--a life dead to the world and alive to Christ—a life committed to following Christ and a life turning from the claims of the world.

 2. Dating is an awkward experience of young people. What are you supposed to do on the first date? There is no real help. You have to experience it. I remember one of the first dates I had and I didn't know what was expected of me. I went to hear Merv Rosell in Chicago. The girl was a Christian girl and as we walked back to the car, I appropriately touched her hand to hold it, and she pulled it away. Needless to say
this was a breach of what she expected of me, and made a long evening for us both. I was embarrassed and rebuffed. When I dated another girl, I made sure my reaching out  for her hand would be accepted. What we have here is God's holding out his hand with the invitation to clasp it.    Our sins, our intentions, cane make us rebuff God’s hand, but He holds out his hand with the words, draw near.

 3. Drawing near is something related to a disciplined habit of worship each day. Periodically, from the pulpit you hear the call for daily worship, a time between you
and God around the Bible, a time of self-evaluation, a time of confession of sins, a time of looking at the use of your time, a time of see if you are making progress spiritually. Some of you have periodic evaluations in your work. These reviews are important for growth, efficiency, and there is need for the same in the Christian life.
Let us draw near…

II. Let us hold fast our confession of hope. 23.

l. In 1933 Nicholas Berdyaev wrote, "We are entering into the realm of the unknown and the unlived, and we are entering it joylessly and without much hope." The 40 years since that time has brought us to the point of seeing little hope in the world around us. We have come to the point that our involvement in world inflation gives us little hope of conquering it ourselves. The problems of the world seem bigger and more complex than every dreamed of before, and there seems to be little hope of turning back the tide. The over-populated nations do not seem inclined to deal with the issue. The Communist bloc countries see population as power, and what looms ahead appears to be hunger, starvation, and the death of hope. A much more dismal picture can be painted, but that is needless.

2. The basis of the confession is "he who promised is faithful," Our lives are lived in terms of God's promises. This theme Has  occurred already in the book of Hebrews, but we encounter it again and it re-occurs in the rest of the book. A promise is worth no more than the ability of the promiser to bring it to past. Shakespeare has a line, I believe about Henry VIII, that "His promises were, as he then was, mighty; But his performance, as he is now, nothing." We have all been given mighty promises--promises that never have the possibility of fulfillment. Promises can be pipe-dreams
stories that we love to hear, but have no basis of fulfillment if they are not capable of fulfillment. A legal document is designed to eliminate "promises" because a man is reluctant In a general way, to sign something he cannot fulfil. He may promises you the world in a gold platter as long as he doesn‘t have witnesses or as long as he doesn’t have to sign anything. But a binding contract is the kind of thing that discern the binding from the fiction.
The nature of God's promise is such that it involves a testament, a legal way of viewing life. God has promised in a definite way, and he has the ability to deliver on his promise, and because he is faithful we are called to hold fast to our confession of hope.
3. Clutching  on or hold fast is a good term to mediate on. When we were walking the stations of the cross in Jerusalem the guide told us to hold firmly to our  cameras, wallets and purses.   Pick-pockets or purse snatchers are possible. If you hold on to something firmly, you know when it is pulled out. If you do not hold it, you are not aware when it is gone. In a general way my hip pocket is quite sensitive. If I put on a pair  of pants without my wallet, I am aware of it quickly I feel like I am not dressed without the pressure of my wallet. It would be difficult for me to think of losing my wallet for several days without knowing about it. Now, would it be possible to lose your confession, your hope, without being aware of it. If you faith in Christ has no meaning to you, if there is nothing you can cling to, you may not have any relation to Christ at all.

III. Let us stir up one another to love and good works. 25

l. There is a phrase in the KJV that we have taken literally-- let us provoke one another...period. There is one ingredient that is a catalyst for the three ideas here. Let's look at the first.

l. "not neglecting to meet together" We might say, "not deserting the assembly." This often gets translated into go to church on Sunday morning at 11 a.m." The assembly was far more than a brief 11 a.m. meeting. We are surrounded in mid America by good decent people both Christian and pagan. But imagine that you are alone with a small group of people who have become Christians. You are peculiar and strange to
those around you. You have no position or prestige. There are not public relations offices telling everyone to go to the church of their choice. Rather you are few in numbers, convinced that Jesus is the Saviour of the world. Can you imagine how important getting together was for these people.

My early years of my Christian life were spent in Chicago. There were three guys who were part of my life and look back with appreciation for how they helped. They were a little island in a sea of paganism. They were my real friends. We were soul brothers and looked forward to seeing each other  at school; we went to different churches and would often  visit one another‘s churches. They helped me to become conscious of my need to witness to others. They helped me to read my Bible daily, and they were a source of help when I was confronted with some problem or temptation. In this relation there was no thought of deserting one another. If one was
absent, there was a real loss. This is what the fellowship of Christ is about.  It is
lonely in this building when there is no one here. It is a harsh way of expressing it, but that is what is means--if you desert the fellowship that meets in this building--you are robbing the rest of a vital part of life.

2. Stirring up to love and good deeds. Love cannot exist without  a meeting of lovers.  Any separation of lovers is temporary until they can meet again.  If you never express love, it is the death of love. Agape-love is the only kind that can be
stirred up--the word means to make sharp, or rouse up. This kind of love--agape--to will the welfare of others can only be done in a fellowship, in contact with one another. There are legalistic ways of promoting church attendance, but they are not the best.  Your regularity in this fellowship is required for what you can do to stir up love, and challenge one another to good works. Love unexpressed is sham love.

3. Encouraging one another... I wrote a letter once to a choir director who did a tremendous job in putting together a cantada involving a motley crew of people who did not have great talent. But he brought the best out of them, and they sang with great inspiration. Following this, I wrote him saying that he brought musical respect to this little church that needed to do something good and successfully. He needed
a word, and it did a great deal for his attitude. Encouraging another means a pat on the back, a soft touch, a word of encouragement, a brief note, or a lingering conversation.

Conclusion:
l. We began the Scripture passage with the idea of confidence-- confidence that we have a way into the presence of God. We can also conclude on the word of confidence (35) where we are told: "Therefore do not throw away your confidence, which has great reward." If you throw away the idea of drawing near to God,
you are casting aside confidence toward God. If you let slip your confession of hope, your confidence in the future is gone. If you desert the fellowship of God's people, you are giving up a source of confidence. You accept me, and it gives me a feeling of gratitude and appreciation. Your acceptance gives me confidence and I am encouraged as I hope that you are encouraged. Do not throw away your confidence .

2. Le Roy Hogue met the little fellow on a train going to Ft. Worth. He was probably 3 years old, a little on the small side, dark-haired and wearing rather thick lensed glasses. Hogue smiled as the boy sat down with a young woman and a little girl across the aisle. He was trying to study but the occasional questions were such that he stopped working and just talked. He was from a children's home operated by a church group, and he was going to spend two weeks on a "vacation" in the home of
some people who had evidently shown some interest in the children. His dad had gone to jail "because he did a lot of mean things and stole some stuff” and his mother went to live in another town.
Then the little boy said, "would you like to have me?" Hogue said at first, "well, I already have three of my own." and then seeing the slightest suggestion of disappointment on his face, he said, "Why sure, if it were possible, I‘d like to
have a boy like you." Quickly, he replied, "it wouldn‘t be very hard to get me." When Hogue explained that another baby was expected at their home and the two-bedroom house was already crowded, he said, with simple, child-like logic, "Couldn't
you add on another room to the house." After a silence, he said, "I‘d sure like to live with you."

3. There is a truth about this boy that is common to all of us. We are orphans, trying to find a place where somebody will take us in. God has enlarged his family. He has
enlarged his house, and there is an extra place for us. Would you come to him. Will you reach out to take his hand? Will you be a regular part of this fellowship.  Will you love and be loved in turn? This morning I invite you to come forward to receive Jesus as your Saviour?