The Unshakeable Kingdom
July 10, 2023
Notes from Scott Sutton's sermon on Sunday, July 9, 2023.
Sermon text: Hebrews 12:18-29
1.) You have NOT come through Christ to Sinai! Read aloud 12:18-21...
- The Hebrew church needs to be reminded of Sinai and what the Mosaic Covenant of the Law looked like for their ancestors. To say it another way, The Hebrew church needs to understand that Jesus is not leading them back to the Law.
- Sinai is darkness and gloom and terror.
- Sinai is unbearable horror and unendurable order
- Sinai invokes trembling with fear
- Sinai is what God's presence looks like without a mediator
2.) Through Christ you have come to an eternal and unshakeable Kingdom! Read aloud 22-
24...
- A new heavenly Zion/Jerusalem have been anticipated by God's people for generations.
- Isaiah 62... "For Zion's sake I will not keep silent, and for Jerusalem's sake I will not be quiet... On your walls, O Jerusalem I have set watchmen; al the day and all the night they shall never be silent. You who put the Lord in remembrance, take no rest, and give no rest until he establishes Jerusalem and makes it praise the earth."
- Revelation 21... "Then I saw a new heavens and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God."
- The unshakeable heavenly Zion/Jerusalem is what God's presence looks like with Jesus as our mediator.
- The dwelling and judging place of God
- Innumerable angels in festal gathering
- Assembly of the firstborn... [Make the connection to Esau... Though an actual firstborn, Esau sought a blessing but did not seek it through repentance. Jesus is the true firstborn, and through repentance and faith, we are seated among the firstborn of heaven.]
- We have access to and fellowship eternally with the spirit of the righteous followers of God from all generations. An eternal heritage...
- While Abel's blood cries out for revenge, Jesus' blood cries out for forgiveness and atonement. It cleanses us and makes us right before God. This is the Kingdom you were brought to! It is unshakeable!
3.) Do not refuse the unshakeable. Read aloud 25-27...
- Jesus is warning us from heaven
- Some refuse him by holding too tightly to temporary things... sexual immorality, materialism, desire for fame and influence...Some refuse him through idolatry, serving other gods... our little golden calves... controllable and not so scary... seeking stability without God…
- Some refuse him through flippancy, not giving hardly any thought at all to who God is and what He is doing... [like MS with the bear]… often treating those pursuing the Kingdom of God as if they are ridiculous, shallow, zealots who are sad little sheep...
- v.26 PROMISE from GOD "Yet once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens." This comes straight out of Haggai 2:6-9 "For thus says the Lord of hosts: Yet once more, in a little while, I will shake all nations, so that the treasures of all nations shall come in, and I will fill this house with glory, says the Lord of hosts. The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, declares the Lord of hosts. And in this place I will give peace, declares the Lord of hosts." Haggai 2:21-23 "...I am about to shake the heavens and the earth, and to overthrow the throne of kingdoms. I am about to destroy the strength of the kingdoms of the nations, and overthrow the chariots and their riders. And the horses and their riders shall go down, every one by the sword of his brother. On that day, declares the Lord of hosts, I will take you, O Zerubbabel my servant, the son of Shelatiel, declares the Lord, and make you like a signet ring, for I have chosen you, declares the Lord of hosts."
- There will be ONE MORE FINAL SHAKING. Through it, all shakeable things will be eternally removed. And through it, the unshakeable kingdom of God will be forever established. Don't refuse Jesus. Don't refuse His offer. Don't refuse His warnings. Don't be like Esau, flippantly welcoming irreversible and eternal consequences because you didn't take the Christ at His Word.
4.) Receive Christ with Lives of Worship. Read aloud 28-29...
- The Kingdom is ours NOW! (not just in the future)
- God calls you to lives of acceptable worship that are marked by reverence and awe (opposite of Esau)
- Romans 2:4 "Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance?" Do not presume upon God's kindness and patience. Why? Our God is a consuming fire... As members of an unshakeable Kingdom, that consuming fire will not consume you.
Questions for discussion:
- Are you presuming upon God's kindness?
- Are you presuming upon God's patience?
- Are you refusing God's warning?
- Are you refusing what Jesus is offering us from heaven?
- What temporary things are you holding too tightly to?
- In what ways are you being flippant and not giving enough thought to who God is and what He is calling you to?
- How does the reality of ONE MORE FINAL SHAKING quicken you to live lives of reverence and awe toward our God who is a consuming fire?
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?
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?
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?
