To Do God’s Will 

Hebrews 10: 1-10 

Today is the last Sunday to prepare for the birth of Jesus; we listen to what Mary, his mother, is reported to have said about God. 

[50] God’s “mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation.” Mary’s theological understanding is pretty much standard for the First Century.

Mercy is for those who fear God. The concept of “fear” in the Bible carries a wide range of emotions. “The fear of God” is a complex experience which is connected with the perception of the awareness of the sacred; it produces reverence, awe, dismay, dread, distress, trouble, terror, and horror. And Mercy, Mary suggests, is only for those who fear God. It is only for those who live in response to their encounters with the Sacred. 

As difficult and desperate as life was for most people during the First Century, Mary proceeds to affirm Israel’s belief and hope stated as if it has already happened. 51God has shown strength with his arm – that is, God has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts. [52]God has brought down the powerful from their thrones and lifted up the lowly; [53]God has filled the hungry with good things and sent the rich away empty. Hence, this is a prophesy of God’s bringing in the kingdom of Heaven through the Baby she is carrying. 

We will leave Mary’s quick summation of her sense of God’s actions in her life and turn to the Book of Hebrews, also assigned to this fourth Sunday of Advent. The author of the Book of Hebrews is unknown, writing sometime around year 100. He or she, like Mary, affirms commonly understood Christian ideas and teachings, but unlike Mary, he develops them independently of the general theology and understandings of the day. 

He assumes that the Old Testament law is still in force – sort of – but he says that 1“the law has only a shadow of the good things to come;” it is “not the true form of these realities.” This sounds very much like Plato’s analogy of the cave – and it may well be because it was written in very good Greek; the writer probably read and was influenced by Plato. 

Plato writes that our experience and understanding of the world is like we are in a cave where we cannot see people carrying real objects in front of a bright fire; all we can ever see are the shadows of those real objects on the walls of the cave. So, all of our observations are only of shadows of the real objects. Everything we see, all of our living is not the “real” thing, but only a shadowy representation of it. 

In a similar sense the writer of Hebrews says that the (Old Testament) law is only a shadow of the good things to come; it is not the way to real salvation. While Jesus said that he came to fulfill the law not to abolish it Matthew 5:17, this writer emphasizes that the sacrifices specified by the law are offered continually, year after year; they can never make perfect those people for whom they are offered.

Those sacrifices only remind us of our sin; they do not purify us of it. Indeed, if the sacrifices really produced complete cleansing of sin they would never need to be repeated because we would no longer have any consciousness of sin, we would no longer have any propensity to sin. 

If we put that into today’s church environment, someone who has been saved or touched by the Holy Spirit and forgiven for his or her sin would be – should be – cleansed of selfish, self-centered, self-righteous actions and even thoughts – so much so that he or she would never ever again sin and therefore need again to be forgiven. In our theological systems we want to affirm Hebrews. But we usually begin our worship and reflection with prayers or thoughts of confession followed by requests for forgiveness – again and again. 

Hebrews’ sense of purification and purity are unique extensions of the standard ideas of forgiveness and salvation. Jesus said that he came to fulfill the law. St. Paul wrote that we are saved by faith in Jesus, not by means of keeping the law. The Letter of James says that those Gentiles who do not keep all of the law may be saved but only to a substandard salvation. Hebrews argues that forgiveness purifies us so that we are now free of all past and future sin: Forgiveness and salvation are once and done – if they are in fact real forgiveness and salvation. 

Hebrews writes that Jesus uses the words of Psalm 40, verses 6 through 8, 5“Sacrifices and offerings you (God) have not desired, but a body you have prepared for me; 6in burnt offerings and sin offerings (offered according to the law) you have taken no pleasure.” Rather, as Jesus quotes the Psalm, 9“I have come to do your will.” Hebrews argues, then, that Jesus abolished the first order – the law – in order to establish that 10”it is by God’s will that we have been sanctified (purified) through the offering of Jesus Christ . . . once for all” so that with Jesus we can do God’s will in and with our lives, too. 

Purified, we have left the ways of the world; we have, as it were, entered into the kingdom of heaven, we have become like Jesus. We, too, are to do God’s will. 

I am not sure that Hebrews would say that “we become like Jesus,” but that seems to be the implications of his arguments. And, that is a pretty clear but difficult standard. Having been purified, as Hebrews puts it, like Jesus, we, too, certainly are to do God’s will -- just as Jesus did. 

Have you noticed how often our lessons have called on us to live “The Way” of Jesus? Every gospel lesson that is not just a little connecting narrative has this emphasis. I didn’t go searching for lessons that would emphasize doing rather than talking Christianity. We read the assigned passages for a year and a half; for a year and a half being and doing Christianity and following and acting like Jesus has been the bottom line in understanding the texts. 

Ever since I have been studying the Bible and theology and then preaching, I have been overwhelmed by the prevailing message of doing and being Christian – not just feeling and saying the church’s claims. Being and doing Christianity, following the way of life that Jesus seems to have taught and shown is clearly much more important than articulating the faith is classical terms. 

And I invite you – all of you -- to listen to these lessons and to study them. I invite you to consider how you are living your Christianity now and to explore acting out your faith more explicitly. 

This week we complete our preparations for Christmas – for receiving the Christ into our lives. Take some time to think on these things, on these lessons and on the Bible’s teachings. 

Friday evening you are invited here to listen to the Christmas lessons, to sing Christmas carols, to receive communion, and to receive God’s messenger and message into your life. This week prepare the way of the Lord -- into your way of living. Your life does not have to be the way it has been; you can change it. Prepare yourself so that this Friday evening can open you to new life in Christ – new ways of thinking and of living and of doing your Christianity. Prepare the way of the Lord into your daily life. 

Let the Christ be born anew into your life. Begin again to follow Jesus’ way of living. Let your Christian values and opportunities change your life. Let us this year really experience and celebrate Christmas. And let Christmas change us this year. 

Amen 

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Children’s Sermon 

Hebrews 10: 1-10 

What do you remember hearing about Jesus? 

Loved God and Loved neighbors 

Helped people who were having troubles 

What will happen later this week – next Saturday? 

Celebrate Christmas – 

Toys and Santa Claus, yes. 

Jesus is the Reason for the Season 

Time to let “Jesus” into our living: 

Love (care about other people) 

Do things for them, help them as we can 

Kids is school, teachers, neighbors, parents 

Just as Christmas gifts are given to you, 

You be a “Christmas gift” to people around you. 

Making them happy by your actions 

Just like the toys make you happy. 

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