FBC Morning Light – September 2, 2022

Well, a good Friday to you. Here we are wrapping up another work week, looking forward to the weekend, looking forward to this coming Lord's Day. Hope you are, this Labor Day weekend, and it's traditionally a time for holiday celebrations and getting together with people and so on and so forth, but I hope that you won't lose sight of the Lord's Day and what it is supposed to be, a day set aside to worship and serve Him, a day for rest and refreshment from the work of the week, but really a Christ-centered day, a God-focused day.

So I say that just to encourage you not to neglect God's house on Sunday, but instead make it a point to get to the Bible study time, get to the worship service, and meet with the Lord. Certainly have some good time celebrating the holiday, but don't miss out on worshiping the Lord and putting Him first in the weekend.

We're, of course, doing something a little different with a church family on Sunday evening. One of the church families is having a camp out at their property, and so we'll have a fellowship time at their property, a meal together, a devotional time, and those that want to spend the night, they're going to camp out at that farmette, and then on Monday for Labor Day, have some activities planned as well.

But it's going to be a good weekend, and I hope, again, I hope that it starts off well Sunday as we meet together to worship the Lord. Well, I want to wrap up this week with giving some thanks to the Lord, specifically for the Lord Jesus Christ, and I want to use Hebrews chapter 2.

Christ's Sacrifice, Deliverance, and Priesthood in Hebrews 2

Three things in Hebrews 2 that are spoken of that Christ has done for us, for which we must be profoundly grateful. The first is that He sacrificed Himself for us. Look at verse 9 in Hebrews chapter 2.

It says, we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels. That's talking about His becoming man, God becoming man and dwelling among us. Made a little lower than the angels. Why? Why did Jesus become a man?

For the suffering of death, for the suffering of death, that He, by the grace of God, might taste death for everyone, for everyone whom He has redeemed, He's tasted that death. He has died in our place.

Let's give thanks today for the Lord Jesus, who died in our place, who died for us, who died as our substitute. Secondly, in verses 14 and 15, let's give thanks to Jesus today for His deliverance. Listen to what verses 14 and 15 says.

It says, inasmuch as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, Jesus Himself likewise shared the same. Here again, He's referring to the incarnation, the fact that God the Son became a man. He became the God-man.

He Himself likewise shared in the same. Why? That through death, a death He died, back in verse 9, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is the devil, and deliver those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.

So let's give thanks today for the Lord's deliverance, for Jesus' deliverance. His death destroyed the one who had the power of death. He destroyed Satan's power over us. Death no longer has any dominion over us.

And consequently, He also, by doing that, delivered us from the fear of death, that we would be subject to, the bondage that we'd be subject to all of our lives were it not for the sacrificial work of Jesus.

In His death, He destroyed the destroyer, and He delivered us from that fear of death. We don't have to live in fear of death throughout the remainder of our lives. Let's give thanks to Him for that. And then thirdly, the last couple of verses, let's give thanks to the Lord Jesus for His priesthood, for His intercession for us.

Listen to these two verses. It says, therefore, in all things, He, Jesus, had to be made like His brethren. He had to become a man. God the Son had to become a man, that He might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God.

We needed Jesus to become a man so that in His priesthood, He could, as the verse says, make propitiation for the sins of the people. He could satisfy God's justice, God's wrath against sin, and He did so by the sacrifice of Himself.

So as our priest, He's also the sacrifice that satisfied the wrath of God against our sin. But verse 18 goes on to say, for in that He Himself has suffered, being tempted, He is able to aid those who are tempted.

So our high priest, Jesus, not only satisfied the wrath of God against our sin by His death on the cross, in all the things He suffered, that gives Him the ability to be a faithful priest sympathizing with our infirmities, sympathizing with our testings and weaknesses.

He is able to aid us who are tempted. Oh, how thankful and grateful we ought to be today for the Lord Jesus Christ. Is He your Savior? Has He redeemed you from your sins? Do you see that He's died in your place?

Have you accepted that sacrifice and offering that He made for your sins? And as such, has He delivered you from that bondage to the fear of death in which you were enslaved before Christ? And has He become your faithful high priest, satisfying the wrath of God against your sins and now serving as a great intercessor in your behalf, helping you, aiding you when you're enduring testing and trials and temptations?

Oh, I trust He has. And if He is your Savior, you have much, much to be grateful for today. Let's pray and give thanks. And so, our Father, we are thankful for God the Son. Thank you, Lord Jesus, for sacrificing on that cross in our behalf, satisfying the wrath, the just wrath of God against our sins, and continuing to serve us by interceding in our behalf.

We thank you, Father, that we no longer have to live the rest of our life in fear of death. But though we certainly don't want to go through the process, we don't have to fear the aftermath. Thank you for that deliverance.

And we praise you today in the name of Jesus, our Savior. Amen and amen. All right. Well, again, have a wonderful Labor Day weekend. I trust the Lord will bless you in it, give you some time for rest and refreshment.

Maybe a good time together with some family, some friends on the holiday itself, and especially a good Lord's Day. God bless.