Not A Copy

Please stand in honor of God's word.

I'll be reading from Exodus chapter 25.

Beginning in verse 31.

You shall make a lampstand of pure gold.

The lampstand shall be made of hammered Work.

Its base its stem its cups its calyxes and its flowers shall be of one piece with it.

And there shall be six branches going out of its sides three branches of the lampstand out of one side

Out of one side of it and three branches of the lampstand out of the other side of it.

Three cups made like almond blossoms each with calyx and flower on One branch and three

cups made like an almond blossom each with calyx and flower on the other branch.

So for the six branches going out of the lampstand and on the lampstand itself there shall be four cups made like

almond blossoms with their calyxes and flowers and A calyx of one piece with it under each pair

of the six branches going out from the lampstand.

Their calyxes and their branches shall be of one piece with it and the whole of it a single piece of hammered work of pure

gold.

You shall make seven lamps for it.

And the lamp shall be set up so as to give light on the space in front of it.

Its tongs and their trays shall be of pure gold.

It shall be made with all these utensils out of a talent of pure gold and See that you make them

after the pattern for them which is being shown to you on the mountain.

The New Testament reading is found on Acts 7

44 through 50 page 915 and the pew Bible.

This is the Word of our God our fathers Had the tent of witness in the wilderness.

Just as he who spoke to Moses directed him to make it according to the pattern that he had seen.

Our fathers in turn brought it in with Joshua when they Dispossessed the nations that

God drove out before our father.

So it was until the days of David who found favor in the sight of God and asked to find a dwelling

place for the God of Jacob.

But it was Solomon who built a house for him.

Yet The Most High does not dwell in house made by hands as the Prophet says Heaven is

my throne and the earth is my footstool.

What kind of house will you build for me says the Lord or what is the place of my rest?

Then did not my hand make all these things.

You may be seated.

Take your Bibles.

Let's return to the book of Hebrews chapter 8.

Hebrews chapter 8 Our text for this morning.

Is found in verses 1 through 6.

You follow as I read?

Now the point in what we are saying is this We have such a high

priest one who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in heaven

a Minister in the holy places in the true tent that the Lord set up

not man.

For every high priest is appointed to offer gifts and sacrifices.

Thus it is necessary for this priest also to have something to offer.

Now if he were on earth, he would not be a priest at all.

Since there are priests who offer gifts according to the law they serve a copy and

shadow of the heavenly things.

For when Moses was about to erect the tent He was instructed by God saying see that

you make everything according to the pattern that was shown you on the mountain.

But as it is Christ has obtained a ministry That is as much

more excellent than the old as the covenant.

He mediates is better Since it is enacted on better promises.

Let's pray.

Lord God as We do every Lord's Day when we open your word

We ask we must ask That you would open the eyes of

our hearts To the truth of this text that your spirit would make it come alive for us

in our hearts That you would challenge us that you would help us

give us understanding not so we know more but give us understandings that we serve you better and

that we rely on you and your son more and To that

end Lord.

We ask that you help us.

Amen,

I was walking down the street in the city of Tirana.

Albania some years ago and I saw a fast -food place that had these broad

bright red and white stripes and I thought Wow

Kentucky fried chicken.

And as I got there, I saw this fast -food place called Albanian fried chicken.

Okay, walk down the street a little bit more and came to an Apple Store.

Which.

Looked like an Apple Store.

But it really wasn't an Apple Store and was selling products that looked like

Apple products but they were not.

A.

Couple of days later. I was in another city and I saw the Golden Arches.

But they were not McDonald's.

Now in Albania you can copy things without getting into any legal

trouble and So they did there was all kinds of copies of things that I was familiar with all over that

country.

But they're not as good as the original.

You know what that McDonald's? Was a disappointment.

It just wasn't the real thing.

Now in our text this morning as We've just read we're going to

see how important the original is and how this all relates to Jesus.

Now our writer directs our attention once more to Jesus our high priest.

Remember God wants you to embrace Jesus as your greatest and your

only hope.

And Like the people back then We have a tendency we contend

to drift away and even Abandon Jesus if we're not careful.

But.

Jesus is vastly superior to anyone or anything that claims to have the

answers for us to things like guilt and shame and how to truly relate to

God.

Again, he wants you to find your only hope in Jesus who is as we have seen throughout this book

The final the best the superior high priest.

Now as we come to chapter 8 we begin another section of this book another argument of this

book.

We've come up to this place so far now in chapter 8 verse 1 all the way to chapter 10 verse 31 He

engages us in another discussion and in this section our writer will discuss three

important ideas.

Covenant sacrifice.

Sanctuary, those are the three things are going to occupy His eyes.

Occupy our attention for the next few chapters and even in these verses he touches on them ever so

lightly.

But in a way that points us to Jesus He brings these ideas to the fore

in order to move us to a steadfast hope in Jesus.

Now again, I can't say this enough this book

Is intended to move you to a steadfast hope a steadfast faith in one person

and that's Jesus.

That you don't go looking anywhere else but to Jesus.

Now in our text you are told first of all put your hope in

The heavenly high priest verses 1 2 and Then put your hope in the ultimate

high priest verses 3 through 5 and Finally put your hope in the superior high priest.

Verse 6.

Put your hope in the heavenly high priest.

He tells us in verses 1 2 now the point in which now the point in what we are saying

is this we have such a high priest one who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the

Majesty in heaven a Minister in the holy places in the true tent that the Lord set up

not man.

The writer begins here by saying here's the main point.

Here's what I want you to grasp.

We have Such a high priest the high priest.

He says I've just described and as we've looked at in chapter 7.

The one who brings a better order.

The one who has a better Qualifications.

The one who offers a better hope who has a better oath who offers better Intercession and

finally who is perfectly suited to meet our needs.

We have that high priest.

That's the one we have and that's the one whose benefits we enjoy.

But he goes on to say that's not all this high priest sits on the right hand of the Majesty in

heaven.

He is seated at the right hand of God himself.

Not only do we have such a high priest as the one I've described for you.

Though all these wonderful things these qualities that belong to him.

Not only do we have such a high priest?

But He is seated at the right hand of God himself.

He is the promised priest to whom God said in Psalm 110.

Remember we've been mining the depths of Psalm 110.

It is in Psalm 110 that God promised this one that he must

sit at his right hand.

This is the priest King who rules from heaven.

This is the priest King who transcends all earthly corruptions and limitations.

This is the priest King who exercises transcendent power.

This is the priest King that we have.

And not only that he says not only is he ascended to God but look where he serves he serves there.

Look where he serves now oftentimes.

We.

Gauge the effectiveness or importantness of a ministry by where one ministers.

Someone says Tim Passama ministers in the room and another says love what?

Another person says Tim Keller Ministers on Manhattan in New York City.

Everybody's going.

Wow, that's impressive.

Now whether or not we're right or wrong.

Normally, we're wrong and Evaluating ministries that way whether we're right or wrong in that what we see here

is Jesus this high priest.

Ministers in the holy place that is the very sanctuary of God where he ministers really

tells us that it's an important ministry.

He is in the very sanctuary of God.

He is in the place where God himself dwells.

That is to say he's in the sanctuary.

That is the true tabernacle the one set up by the Lord not one built with human hands.

Now, please understand all of heaven is not constructed like the tabernacle if we as a congregation

today could ascend to heaven.

We wouldn't find a bunch of people milling around in an outward court with a giant labor and a giant

Altar and we wouldn't walk into the holy place and then walk in one more step into the holy of

holies To find out ha there's God.

He's not saying that rather.

This is the sanctuary the dwelling place that God himself Constructed this is his

heavenly dwelling place.

This is the very sanctuary of God now.

You remember that God made his presence known at the tabernacle in the Old Testament and he made his presence

known by that great She kind of cloud Resting on the tabernacle go back and read the

stories.

Here is this great pod.

You remember the cloud of fire?

The pillar of fire and the cloud cloud and day Fire at night that would lead the people whenever they had

to travel that would lead them Where he God wanted to take him when they stopped and they erected the

tabernacle that great cloud Settled on the tabernacle and if you would if you had the ability

which you couldn't but once a year if you could go in To the very holy of holies you would see the brilliance

of God's glory There in the holy of holies.

It was to represent God's dwelling place among men.

All right.

But that tabernacle was derived it was built by men.

It was a derived tabernacle.

It was a temporary residence for God.

This isn't where he permanently resided.

It was a temporary residence and it could never rival God's heavenly dwelling place

in fact When the temple was built the next thing that did rival the glory of the tabernacle when the temple

was built.

You remember Solomon said at its dedication ceremony as he prayed, but will God indeed dwell on the

earth?

But will God indeed dwell on the earth?

Behold heaven and the highest heaven cannot contain you how much less this house that I

have built.

So we're talking about this this heavenly dwelling that nothing could rival this

earthly dwelling.

This tabernacle shared the defilement of its builders and had to be cleansed

With the blood of animals it was subject to decay like all the other

Pieces that that exist in creation, but the sanctuary in which Jesus

serves is Eternal incorruptible

Undefiled Dwelling place of God.

That's where he serves no longer.

No longer in a derived temporary defiled decaying

Sanctuary he doesn't serve there.

He serves in the eternal undefiled Incorruptible dwelling place of

God where God Has always been in where God is and so our

high priest serves us in the very presence of God.

He is our heavenly high priest.

Don't miss what he's saying here.

He is our heavenly high priest.

He represents you in the very presence of God face to face with this

eternal universal King.

He transcends all limitations and all corruptions that you find on earth.

And this priest can never fail to have God's attention.

Because he's in the sanctuary where God dwells.

This is where your priest serves.

He's a heavenly high priest.

Put your hope in this heavenly high priest.

No longer in the priests that serve in in this derived corruptible tabernacle.

But in the priest who is actually in the very presence of God who serves in this heavenly sanctuary.

Put your hope in him.

Put your hope in him not in earthly things.

But in this one that serves in the heavens.

He goes on to say to put your hope in the ultimate high priest.

Verses 3 through 5.

For every high priest is appointed to offer gifts and Sacrifices.

Thus it is necessary for this priest also to have something to offer.

Now if he were on earth, he would not be a priest at all.

Since there are priests who offer gifts according to the law.

They serve a copy and shadow of the heavenly things.

For when Moses was about to erect the tent He was instructed by God saying see that you make

everything according to the pattern that was shown you on The mountain.

Put your hope he says now in the ultimate high priest.

Since Jesus has been appointed.

He says to the office of priests He serves a particular function and that function is to offer

gifts and sacrifices.

Gifts for worship sacrifices for atonement.

Here is the duty the essence the function of any priest to bring

you access to God.

To bring you access to God.

And because Jesus has been appointed to be a priest He has to serve the same function as all

other priests and that is He has to offer sacrifice in order to give you access to

God.

He has to serve the function of just like any other priest since he is a priest.

That's what priests do.

That's what he does or did.

But he says in verse 4 he cannot serve that function in the same way as other priests.

He can't serve it in the same way as other priests if he were on earth.

He would be subject to the Levitical law that law had genealogical requirements

remember and Jesus could never meet them.

A descendant someone who's descended from Judah Could not do the work of a

priest because he was not descended from the tribe of Levi.

So if you're on earth He'd be subject to the Levitical law the the law that they used to offer the sacrifices and he

wouldn't be able to do that.

Only those descendants of Levi could offer the sacrifices.

Judah's descendants were not allowed to offer sacrifices on the altar or Sprinkle the blood on the Ark

of the Covenant on the Day of Atonement.

Only the Levites only the high priest coming from Levi could do that.

But remember that he is a high priest after the order of Melchizedek.

He has been he is an exalted priest at God's right hand.

Who's been appointed a priest on entirely different grounds?

This is one because of his qualifications who serves here and not here.

If he served here He wouldn't meet them but he is one he is the Melchizedekian priest who's been

Exalted and he serves here and his requirements are different.

His qualifications are different.

Remember what they are better oath, right.

An Indestructible life.

All these things that we've noticed.

This is what equips him to be our priest.

He is God's promised heavenly priest.

And so he's not subject to the law of other priests.

Now if he would serve on earth, he could not be a priest at all, but he doesn't.

He doesn't not only that but he could not serve as a priest on earth

because earthly priests serve in a replica of the true.

Sanctuary.

He would have to serve then in a replica of the true sanctuary not in the real sanctuary now several years ago.

I Remember I was a little church down in Asheville, North Carolina

would ask me I think asked me about three or four times to come out and do come down and do a Bible conference for them and

and There was a guy in the congregation.

His name was Werner.

He was from Germany.

But Werner worked at the Biltmore mansion.

Near near Asheville, and so the Biltmore mansion was this Incredible place that the

Vanderbilts owned and it had times.

I mean just incredible acreage all around it it was almost like a castle with

all its All the people serving it and Werner worked there and so we have we're on a tour of the grounds and we

came to this one particularly luxurious part of the Of the grounds and

there was a White House.

They had been filming a movie there and they thought these grounds kind of looked like DC.

And so they erected a replica of the White House on these grounds.

So there was the White House.

It's probably made out of plywood if that Right.

It was just made for this movie.

It was a replica, but I'll tell you what We would never think of bringing the commander and the chief the

commander -in -chief.

Or the president of the United States to that replica in order to carry out the duties of his office.

He's in the real deal.

He's not gonna come and do it in the replica.

And so it is that Jesus could not should not or would not serve in a replica

of the heavenly places.

He serves in the real deal.

He's in the original.

Not the replica and notice the words to describe this Tabernacle the tabernacle that we read

about in the Old Testament.

This applies as well to the temple in which he says there.

But copy a copy and a shadow of the heavenly things and that

Moses had to follow a pattern.

Okay a pattern that was shown him on the mountain and and he quotes in fact

Ezekiel, I'm sorry Exodus chapter 25 verse 40.

Where where we read how God says build it like I tell you because I show you

the pattern now you need to do it.

So it's a copy.

It's a shadow.

It's a pattern of the true heavenly thing.

So the writer quotes those instructions that God gave Moses.

He was to build a replica of the heavenly realities.

What does that say?

What does God reveal to us then about that?

Earthly sanctuary, this is a copy.

This is a shadow of the original.

Okay.

From the very beginning.

From the very beginning of its construction.

It's obvious that the tabernacle signified a greater.

Reality.

From the very beginning by God saying You got to make this after a pattern that

I'm going to show you.

It became clear that that signified a greater reality.

It was intended to be temporary.

It was intended to be in place for only a limited time in

salvation history.

God intended it to be a Pointer a pointer to a greater

reality the greater reality of the heavenly sanctuary.

So then Jesus is the ultimate high priest.

Since he serves in the ultimate sanctuary He serves in the ultimate sanctuary.

Why?

Listen, why abandon your hope in Jesus for a hope in the shadow in the copy

in the temporary?

That's the point.

Let me ask you.

What sort of temporary hopes do you have?

Where do you place?

Your hopes.

Think about that.

We're doing this all the time.

We have to be caught up short.

We're putting we all have temporary hopes.

We're all Staking our happiness on certain things.

I'm staking my happiness on the way people treat me.

I'm staking my happiness on my reputation.

I'm staking my happiness on whether I I gained so much money or

resources or.

Pleasure.

We have temporary hopes this is our only permanent one.

This is the ultimate high priest.

Only he can give us the things that we That we tend

to desire and not to give him.

He doesn't serve us by giving the things we want.

But he gives us the permanent sorts of things that God intends for us.

Here's the last thing he says in verse 6.

Put your hope in this superior high priest.

Verse 6 but as it is Christ has

obtained a ministry that is as much more excellent than the old as the covenant.

He mediates is better since it is enacted on better promises.

Put your hope in the superior high priest now.

Jesus serving in the real Original sanctuary as the heavenly and the ultimate high priest

has obtained a more Excellent ministry than that than there ever was before Than

that of the Old Covenant.

You can say that the ministry of Jesus has excelled anything proposed for you today.

He is a superior high priest because of this most excellent ministry.

He obtained it because he mediates a new covenant now.

Moses was the mediator of that Old Covenant under which Israel lived.

And if you're here in Sunday school today We talked a little bit about that and we saw if you want to look

at it.

It's in Exodus 24 we saw how Moses assembled the people how he read the

book of the covenant to those people and then he offered a Sacrifice to ratify it and he took

the blood and he sprinkled it on the people which brought that Covenant

into force.

This is now the rule of life for them.

This is now there if you will Constitution it constitutes them as the people of God

and what's expected of them.

But Jesus revealed a new covenant to God's people.

He shed his blood to ratify that covenant and we have been Sprinkled with

that blood to bring us under that new covenant to bring that covenant into force.

You remember Peter in Pete and first Peter chapter 1 identifies us as God's elect according to the

foreknowledge of God the Father in the sanctification of the Spirit for obedience to

Jesus Christ and for Sprinkling with his blood.

We have all been sprinkled with the blood of Christ and that thus he has brought into being.

He has brought into force.

He has brought us into a new covenant.

Now we're inclined to think that new always means better.

Frankly, if you get old like me you get kind of tired of that Young people being

better.

No.

We we live in a culture that tells us new always means better.

Okay, if I were to go out regardless of what you think of Honda's, okay.

Regardless of what you think of Honda's I would go out and buy a brand new Honda

Accord.

I think I Would probably be thinking this is a better car

than my 2005 Toyota Corolla.

It's almost blasphemy in this congregation I know.

But you get the point.

Right.

It's brand new.

It's better.

But the covenant that Jesus mediates is not better just because it's new.

New doesn't always mean better.

New doesn't always mean better.

New sometimes means worse.

But it's not better just because it's new.

It's better because it's been enacted on Better promises than that old one.

There are better promises in this one.

Now our writer is going to go into detail about those better promises in the rest of the chapter to which we

will return.

The rest of the chapter we will look at that next.

But for now you have to see the foolishness of hoping in anyone or anything else.

Because this priest is superior on account of the superior covenant that he mediates.

The very rule of life that we live under is better than that old covenant.

It's better.

Suppose you lived in a country Where only particular members of a certain

tribe could be citizens?

Where only one religion was allowed to be practiced and You had to just obey

the decrees of the royal family.

Suppose there was a revolution and there was a new Constitution put into place a Constitution that said

if you live within these borders, you're a citizen and

You can have you can worship as you want.

We're not going to force you to worship in a particular way and All your laws have to be

passed by an elected assembly.

Would you consider that a superior Constitution?

Yeah, we would consider that a better one.

Why would you want to go back to the old one then?

Why would you possibly what could possibly move you to go back to the old one?

And so it is don't go back to the old ways.

You have a superior priest because he is his priesthoods enacted on a

superior covenant.

Now none of you here are tempted to go back under the old covenant that once governed Israel.

I mean, I can't help but imagine some of you gonna have pork barbecue this afternoon.

Or tonight because this afternoon will be over there.

I don't know what we're having but You know what you want to go under an old covenant where you can't go to city

barbecue anymore.

Right, I'm gonna go back under a covenant.

You know, we're after you give birth to a child you got to stay away from everybody for so many days.

You want to go back under that covenant?

You want to go back under a covenant where someone?

You bring you know.

Where the Parkers would bring one of their goats over and you'd slit its throat and put it on an altar and burn it.

Right.

Is that what you want to go back to you see?

No, none of us are tempted to go back to that.

But listen, you are tempted to go back to the old ways.

And if you're not careful those old ways.

Especially when going back to the old ways is going to cost you

less than following Jesus those old

ways of the flesh and the world entice you and.

Say.

Why are you going to stand for righteousness when everybody else around you?

Your friends in high school.

Your friends where you are think that you are a narrow -minded

harsh bigot.

Because you don't believe that if a girl says she wants to be a boy.

She shouldn't become a boy.

She shouldn't even try.

What kind of person are you and the temptation is going to be to

abandon this superior?

High priest to go back to those old ways because it costs too much to give my allegiance.

To one who's given me something better.

But it's gonna cost me.

This is a superior high priest because he has a covenant.

That's so much better.

It's better than those old ways that are enticing you back.

It's better than those ways.

There is nothing left for you in the old ways.

There is nothing there that will deal with your shame, there's nothing there that will deal with your

guilt.

There's nothing there that will help you relate to God.

There's nothing there.

Why do you want to give up that for those old ways?

Don't go back.

Put your hope in this superior high priest because his Covenant still has

better promises than anything else that beckons you with its promises from the old way.

And so here is Jesus.

Once more he brings us to focus on Jesus and he says here is Jesus

the heavenly high priest.

Representing you in the sanctuary of God.

Here is Jesus the ultimate high priest who offers for you the perfect sacrifice.

Here is the superior high priest who?

Enacts a new covenant.

Some of you here.

You're believers and you know what honestly some of you here.

Some of you today may be here.

You're a believer.

But man, you're in a wrestling match right now.

You're in a wrestling match that says oh.

Those old ways they look good.

They look good and and there's something about it.

There's something about where you are in life.

There's something about your experience.

There's something going on where you're toying with the idea of Thinking.

I don't know if this is worth it.

Listen.

Listen to me.

There's no hope.

There is no hope in any other way.

There's no hope in any other way.

Jesus is your greatest and your only hope in all of life.

Some of you here.

Some of you here may not buy any of it just saying yeah, you know pastor team you talk about Jesus

and I come and I listen and you know, it's.

Sometimes it's interesting.

I Don't know if I buy it.

Let me tell you something you who have not ever bowed the knee to Jesus.

Listen.

There is no hope for you without him.

None.

No.

You may be sitting here Thinking when is this guy gonna be over?

I want to I want to beg you to listen to me.

There is no hope in this world without this priest.

Count on it.

Count on it because God says he's your greatest

and your only hope.

Let's pray father.

Father.

You know every heart here and there are people on the

spectrum from.

I don't buy any of it.

I'm totally committed to this Jesus God wherever Wherever

hearts are on that spectrum.

I beg you to work in those hearts.

Give those hearts something to think about.

Give those hearts something to glory in.

Something to hope in the very least something to seriously

consider.

So God move in the hearts that are here today in the way that seems best to you.

We're asking you to move in heart so every heart here

will say Jesus is My greatest and my

only hope.

Grant it.

We pray for your glory and the good of your people in

the name of our high priest Jesus.