Last Will & Testament

May 1, 2023

Notes from Scott Sutton's sermon on Sunday, April 30, 2023.

Sermon text: Hebrews 9:15-28



This week, again, reiterates and further establishes how and to what extent Jesus is

better!


v. 15-17 Jesus’ death brings an eternal inheritance (Read verses aloud)

What’s the “therefore” there for?

- Consider Pastor Shu’s sermon from last week… Because the old covenant was

limited in its ability to give us full access to God, and because it was ineffective in

meeting our biggest need, and because we have knowledge of past sins, and because

we have knowledge of our sinful nature, and because of our ongoing contact with

evil in the world, and because of the old covenant’s inability to purify our

conscience…

- THEREFORE Jesus is the mediator of God’s new covenant.

New Covenant:

- Jeremiah 31:31 “Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a

new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah.”

- Hebrews 8:10-12 “For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel

after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my laws into their minds and write

them on their hearts, and I will be their God, and they will be my people. And they

shall teach, each one his neighbor and each one his brother, saying, “Know the

Lord’, for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest. For I will be

merciful toward their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more.”

Last Will & Testament:

- Why would God utilize a “will” to help explain the new covenant? (Reminder of

what to look for when God uses something familiar to us to help us understand

him.)

- First, in the same way that a will does not take effect until the person it refers to has

died, so it is in the moment of Jesus’ death that the NEW COVENANT takes effect.

- Second, it is not negotiable. We don’t get to rework the terms of the New Covenant.

It is final. There is NO OTHER WAY for God’s will to be fulfilled than through the

blood of Jesus. There is NO OTHER WAY for one to be welcomed into forgiveness

than through the blood of Jesus.

o Consider that this letter was written to Jewish Christians. Before we ever ask

what this means to us, we have to simply ask what it means? In its original

context?

o We know from the rest of the letter that there is an inclination in these early

converts to hold onto certain facets and rituals from the Mosaic law. The

author is calling them out of the Old Covenant and into the New Covenant…

out of works-based salvation, and into salvation as a gift through which good

works would naturally flow… Ultimately, he is calling them to lean into God

through Jesus by embracing the good news of the Gospel.


- Third, the will explains the inheritance… and in this case, those who are called may

receive the promised eternal inheritance. It is the only inheritance that is not

fleeting, that is not able to be stolen or destroyed by moth and

rust!

v. 18-26 Jesus’ blood covers everything, ONCE FOR ALL (Read verses aloud)


Old Covenant (v. 18-22) (Under the Law):

- Was inaugurated with blood… Moses received the law from God, and to inaugurate

(establish) the old covenant he declares, “This is the blood of the covenant that God

commanded for you.”

- Then the blood of calves and goats was sprinkled on the book itself, the people, the

tent, the vessels of worship… everything.

- Almost everything is purified with blood

- Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins… indicating that if

there was no end to the sin of man, then there would be no end to the shedding of

blood that was needed for the forgiveness of man’s sins.

New Covenant (v. 23-36) (Freed from the Law):

- Was inaugurated with better blood… Moses purified the earthly copy of heaven.

Jesus purified heaven.

- Why would heaven need to be purified? The answer is found in verse 24. In the

same way that the worshipper would take the priest a goat or calf so that blood may

be used to purify their presence with God in the earthly tabernacle, so Jesus enters

into the more true presence of God, heaven. Why? ON OUR BEHALF! Heaven

needed to be purified from OUR SIN. And the blood of goats and bulls was wildly

insufficient. Sin separates us from God and from one another. Only the blood of

Jesus can bring us into the joy of our Master and our eternal inheritance.

- On this earth is the beginning of a desire for the Lord that is designed to grow

eternally. Go back to the New Covenant details that are inaugurated through the

blood of Jesus…

o The Law is inside of us… in our minds and written on our hearts. This is the

work of the HOLY SPIRIT. Our hearts of stone are replaced with hearts of

flesh that now overflow with love toward God in Christ and compel us

toward him and away from our own wickedness and fleshly desires.

o Through the blood of Jesus, God is merciful toward our iniquities. Mercy is

not receiving what you deserve. We deserve wrath, but Jesus propitiates or

absorbs that for us through His perfect blood, and instead we receive an

eternal inheritance.

o Through the blood of Jesus, God will “remember our sins no more”. The

first covenant failed because of us and our sin. The second covenant does not

fail, because Jesus’ blood brings both forgiveness and transformation. The

perfect blood of Jesus wipes out the remembrance of our sins with God.

v. 27-28 Jesus will come back to save those who are eagerly waiting for Him. (Read verses

aloud)

- He is not coming back to deal with sin.

- Judgment is coming.


Application… How do we eagerly wait?

1.) Draw closer to God

- Do you feel close to God?

- Ex. Books as old friends…

- Consider all that Christ has done and is doing to bring you near to God. He doesn’t

have to feel distant all the time. He invites you into fellowship with Him through the

blood of Jesus.

2.) Promote eagerness (Sabbath, Word of God, Prayer, weekly worship gathering,

supper)

3.) Keep Waiting (don’t give up, don’t bale out, don’t stray)

4.) Cover everything in the blood of Jesus (marriage, parenting, finances,

trials/struggles, decisions, friendships, conversations)


Questions for discussion:

1.) Why did God utilize a "last will & testament" to explain the inauguration of the New Covenant?

2.) What are some ways that the New Covenant is better than the old?

3.) How is Jesus' blood better than the blood of bulls and goats?

4.) Discuss how we can specifically draw closer to God... how we can specifically promote eagerness daily, how we can persevere and keep waiting...

5.) Discuss what it looks like to cover your marriage in the blood of Jesus? Your parenting? finances? trials and struggles? decisions? friendships, and conversations? 

Freed to Serve

April 28, 2025
Notes from Scott Sutton's sermon on Sunday, April 27, 2025. Sermon text: 1 Peter 2:11-17 This is the beginning of a section addressing how God's people now function in this world. It begins with aliens and exiles and continues with servants, wives, husbands, and finally, all of you. 1.) Our identity defines our actions. We are sojourners and exiles (temporary, passing through, not at home) We have a heavenly citizenship Actions We abstain from the passions of the flesh Keep conduct among the Gentiles honorable (our conduct is for the benefit of other people) Honorable conduct wins souls… sojourners, exiles, and soul winners “Peter’s point is that believers’ behavior creates a context in which people will listen to God’s word. He is not teaching that ‘good deeds’ in themselves convert unbelievers, but they establish an environment for the Gospel-word to do so.” -Barnett 2.) Our identity defines our expectations (Unbelievers will respond to honorable conduct in 1 of 2 ways) Some will speak evil against us as though we are evildoers Some will see our good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation 3.) Our identity defines our view of authority (Does anyone here ever just want to do whatever you want to do, whenever you want to do it? That’s why laws exist) Be subject to every human institution (for the Lord's sake) This includes governors and emperors (no distinction between good/bad) The will of God... by doing good, we silence the ignorance of foolish people 4.) Our identity defines our view of freedom Don't use freedom as a cover-up for evil We are freed to serve God Honor, Love, and Fear Discipleship Questions: 1.)Why is it so important to understand our identity before talking about our behavior? 2.) How might this reality impact your parenting? For real, what are 3 ways that you can apply that this week? 3.) How is good conduct a form of evangelism? 4.) What do these verses say that we can expect from others? 5.) How can we honor a government that isn't always honorable? Seriously, what are 5 things we should immediately stop doing and 5 things we should immediately start doing? 6.) What are some tangible ways to honor others? Love the brotherhood? Fear God? Honor the Emperor? 7.) Should we fear the Emperor?

Cornerstone

April 22, 2025
Notes from Ky Martin's sermon on Sunday, April 20, 2025. Sermon text: 1 Peter 2:4-10 Everyone must accept or reject Jesus. He is the cornerstone. We choose to accept Him as the foundation of our lives or toss the truth aside. When we come to Jesus… We become part of His People 1 Pe 2:4-5 As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, 5 you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. The cornerstone is The New Temple. From this we learn that following Christ entails joining his community, the church…The freelance Christian, who follows Jesus but is too good, too busy, or too self-sufficient for the church, is a walking contradiction. -Daniel M. Doriani We join a royal, holy, priesthood 1 Pet. 2:9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Because of who Jesus makes us. We receive God’s mercy Fallen man is not simply an imperfect creature who needs improvement: he is a rebel who must lay down his arms….Now repentance is no fun at all. It is something much harder than merely eating humble pie. It means unlearning all the self-conceit and self-will that we have been training ourselves into for thousands of years. It means undergoing a kind of death. Acts 17:30-31 The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent, 31 because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed; and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead.” Discipleship Questions: Why is it impossible to be neutral about Jesus? Why do you believe that Jesus truly is the Son of God? Do you ever have doubts about this? If yes, what are they? According to 1 Peter 2:9, who are we after we come to Christ? Why does Paul say (in 1 Corinthians) that if Christ is not risen, our faith is in vain?

Born Again

April 16, 2025
Notes from Scott Sutton's sermon on Sunday, April 13, 2025. Sermon text: 1 Peter 2:2-3 Why do our souls ache for certainty? We are so eager for certainty that we will look for it in all the wrong places. - Certainty in our Finances [show slide from news] - Certainty in our Jobs [Acts 17:24-27] - Certainty in our Health [Covid] - Certainty in our Abilities [Ecclesiastes 3:11 “God has put eternity into man’s heart, yet so that he cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end.”] “Things that have never happened before are happening every day.” -Morgan Housel In these verses, God gives us what our souls ache for! 1.) You must be born again of imperishable seed - We have all been born of perishable seed o Impure souls o Disobedient to truth o Unloving insincerity toward others o Lack of loving effort o Impure hearts - We are withering grass and falling flowers - The imperishable seed is the living and abiding Word of God o Does not wither o Does not fall o Does not let us down o It remains forever o It MUST BE PREACHED! But still, how can we be certain that we have been born again? 2.) If you are born again, hope will be seen in your relationships When your relationship with God changes, God changes your relationships! - Sincere brotherly love - Love earnestly - Put away… o Malice o Deceit o Hypocrisy o Envy o All Slander 3.) If you are born again, hope will be seen in your appetite for God’s Word - Like newborn infants - Long for the pure spiritual milk Discipleship Questions: 1.) Where are some unhealthy places where you look for certainty? 2.) Why do you do that? 3.) What were some evidences of your perishable seed before you came to Christ? Any of that still lingering that needs to be repented from? 4.) Why does Peter call the Word of God the imperishable seed? 5.) In light of the text, how would you describe being "born again" to a 5-year-old? 6.) How has imperishable hope proven itself in your relationships? OR How might it if you lean into loving others earnestly? 7.) Why does Peter tell us that hope will be seen in our appetite for God's Word?
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