trusted online casino malaysia
Realizing the presence, promise, and power of the Kingdom of God.
The Scriptorium

Remember Where You've Come

We have come to a place of blessing. Let us not drift.

Hebrews 12 (5)

Introduction
The first readers of the book of Hebrews were, under the pressure of persecution, drifting back to Mt. Sinai and a Law that could not save. But if they were truly saved, this is not where the Lord had brought them. They needed to get the eyes of their understanding rightly focused if they were going to run their race with endurance.

Read Psalm 48.

Read Hebrews 12.18-24.

Think it through.

1.  The underlying affection arising from verses 18-21 is that of fear. How can you see that? What were those Israelites afraid of, and why? Fear was causing the first readers of the book of Hebrews to draw back from Jesus and drift from their great salvation. Why did the writer remind them of Israel’s experience at Mt. Sinai? Is it ever helpful to our walk with the Lord to look back to our life as it was before we came to know Him? Can it also be unhealthy to do so? Explain.

2.  Those first readers had not come to a place of fear and drawing back. They had arrived at some place altogether glorious, awesome, unshakable, safe, strong, and holy. So have we. What is that place, and how much does it encompass? How does the psalmist describe the Church (“Mt. Zion”) in Psalm 48? This is where we have come, says the writer (v. 23). But coming to the Church is not an end in itself; it is – or should be – the means for coming increasingly to God Himself and to Jesus “the Mediator of the new covenant.” How should a church do that? The end of verse 24 creates an inclusio with Hebrews 11.4. That is, these two verses are “bookends” for everything in between, tying this entire section of Hebrews into a single message. How would you summarize that message? How should Christians use this message to encourage one another?

Meditate.
“There you find dread, he is saying, here on the contrary festival and assembly. The former happens on earth, the latter in heaven; there thousands of people, here tens of thousands of angels. There unbelievers and lawbreakers, here church of the firstborn enrolled in heaven and spirits of the just who have been made perfect; there an old covenant, here a new one; there a slave as mediator, here a Son; there blood of brute beasts, here blood of a rational lamb. The phrase ‘speaks more graciously than the blood of Abel’ means communicating through deeds and betraying its own activity: while the blood of Abel is celebrated, this blood is responsible for the salvation of human beings.” Theodoreet of Cyr (393-466 AD)

Therefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers: that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what isthe exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come. Ephesians 1.15-21

Lord, open the eyes of my understanding to see the greatness of Jesus and the salvation He has secured for me, and I will…

Pray Psalm 47.
Tell back to the Lord the things you see as you meditate on Him there, exalted in His holy throne room, gathering His people to Himself, and subduing all the nations. Praise and thank Him accordingly. 

Psalm 47.1-9 (Truro: Shout, for the Blessed Jesus Reigns)
O clap your hands, you peoples all,
With joy to God your songs intone!
Shout out to Him, and on Him call,
He is the mighty, sovereign One!

High is the Lord, O, fear His Name!
He rules, a King o’er all the earth.
Nations and peoples He has tamed,
The heritage of His holy worth.

God has ascended with a shout,
The Lord with sound of trumpet bold!
Sing praise to Him, let praise ring out!
Let praise through all the world be told!

God is the King of all the earth,
Sing praise to Him with glorious psalms!
He rules the nations by His worth,
And on His throne receives their alms.

Princes of peoples gather all
To Abraham and to our God.
Exalt the Lord, and on Him call – 
The earth is His, so praise our God!

T. M Moore

Do you receive our twice-weekly teaching letter Crosfigell? Here the wisdom of God’s Word and that of our Celtic Christian forebears speaks to us of how to follow Him in our day. Begin reading Crosfigell by clicking here, then use the pop-up on the home page to subscribe. Crosfigellcomes out on Tuesday and Thursday.

For a better understanding of the book of Hebrews, and all the books of the Bible, order a copy of the workbook, 
God’s Covenant, from our online store. The studies in this workbook will show you how the parts of the Bible connect with one another to tell the story of God’s redemption and glory (click here). To learn more about Christ in His exaltation, order the book, The Kingship of Jesus (click here).

Please prayerfully consider sharing with The Fellowship of Ailbe through your giving. You can contribute to The Fellowship by clicking the Contribute buttonat the website or by sending your gift to The Fellowship of Ailbe, 19 Tyler Drive, Essex Junction, VT 05452.


Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. All psalms for singing adapted from The Ailbe Psalter. All quotations from Church Fathers from Ancient Christian Commentary Series, General Editor Thomas C. Oden (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2006.

T.M. Moore

T. M. Moore is principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He and his wife, Susie, make their home in the Champlain Valley of Vermont.
Books by T. M. Moore

Subscribe to Ailbe Newsletters

Sign up to receive our email newsletters and read columns about revival, renewal, and awakening built upon prayer, sharing, and mutual edification.