Latest / Chapel Talks / Jesus our Brother | Hebrews 2-3 | Assistant Bishop Lee McMunn

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Jesus our Brother | Hebrews 2-3 | Assistant Bishop Lee McMunn · Chapel Talks

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  I'm sure you know that in stadiums around the
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  world, it's pretty common to hear the same rousing
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  anthem after a sports team wins the competition.
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  I'm not singing to you. I am tone deaf. So I
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  will spare you from that. But you know the lyrics.
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  We are the champions, my friends, and we'll keep
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  on fighting till the end. We are the champions.
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  It's not a difficult one to learn. We are the
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  champions. No time for losers. Because we are
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  the champions of the world. And it starts to
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  be played. And when the song booms out from the
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  speaker system, you notice that it's not just
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  the players on the pitch, is it, who join in,
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  but the fans at home, the fans in the stadium.
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  Suddenly, everyone is shouting, we are the champions.
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  Pretty normal behavior. But when you stop and
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  think about it, it is a bit weird. What right
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  do the fans have to sing We Are The Champions?
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  We haven't done anything. We haven't put in the
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  effort. We haven't suffered the blows. We haven't
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  scored any goals. However, despite our passive
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  observation at the victory that has been secured
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  by other people, we still feel the right, don't
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  we? As we put down our can of Coke and our crisps
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  and our Maltesers, we... We have the right to
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  sing at the top of our voices. Not you are the
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  champions, but we are the champions. And I'm
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  glad we do this. I really am. Because despite
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  the focus in this country, not just this country,
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  but around the world, on the individual, despite
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  that, there does seem to be another story hardwired
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  into our bodies. And that is the joyful truth
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  that we can... rightly experience glorious benefits
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  from the victories secured by other people. There
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  is another story, or put another way, we do not
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  always have to be a personal champion. Isn't
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  that lovely? The good news is you don't have
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  to ace everything. You don't have to get 100
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  % everywhere. The good news is that we can have
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  representative... Champions who do the work for
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  us and through whom we benefit. Now, what you
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  see in Hebrews chapter 2, we meet the perfect,
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  fulfilled champion that all of the Bible is preparing
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  us to meet. His name is Jesus. Jesus Christ,
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  the eternal son of God in human flesh. Jesus,
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  the victorious savior who secures a future. for
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  us that is both glorious and good jesus the one
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  who because of his victory does enable us to
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  sing we are the champion now i want to get us
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  to dive in let's dive in and let's enjoy i mean
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  let's enjoy the details like chapter two verse
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  Five, it is not to angels that he has subjected
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  the world to come, about which we are speaking,
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  but there is a place where someone has testified.
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  Don't you love that little sentence? You know,
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  when you forget the Bible reference, just, oh,
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  there is a place somewhere where someone has
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  tested. Put that in your exam, okay? What is,
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  you'll fail, but put it anyway. What is mankind
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  that you are mindful of them, a son of man that
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  you care for him? You made them a little lower
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  than the angels. You crowned them with glory
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  and honor and put everything under their feet.
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  So what you find in these verses is God's inspiring
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  vision for the place of humanity in the created
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  universe. And it is both amazing and surprising.
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  So we're told in the Bible that humanity is to
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  have a key role in the ongoing stewardship, flourishing,
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  and cultivation of the created order. We are
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  supposed to live in God's world. We're supposed
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  to enjoy a relationship with him, with each other,
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  and with the planet around us. And that honored
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  position, and it is an honored position, is not
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  because of our size, is it? It is not because
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  of our strength. We are tiny and weak. Now, our
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  honored position is because God has said it.
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  Because God has spoken. And we see the beginning
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  of that significant status at the very beginning
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  of the Bible, the opening chapters. of genesis
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  so genesis chapter one you read through the account
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  and god made this and it was good it was good
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  it was good and then you get to the creation
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  of humanity but no it's not just good it is very
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  good you get into genesis chapter two and then
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  all the animals are paraded before adam and all
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  sorts of reasons for that but but adam does name
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  them he does have authority over them he can
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  name them We mustn't misunderstand, of course,
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  God's loving stewardship for us over his creation.
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  It's not an excuse at all for tyranny, for pillaging,
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  for abuse. It is responsible leadership for the
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  created order. Now, at this point, you think,
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  wow, that is amazing. It's surprising. It's amazing.
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  It's honored. But how is it going for us? How
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  are we doing at that role? Are we winning or
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  are we losing? Or put a different way, what do
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  you see when you open your eyes? Well, I guess
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  it depends, doesn't it? It depends what kind
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  of eyes we're talking about. Are we talking about
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  the eyes of sight or the eyes of faith? Do we
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  start with the eyes of sight? What do they reveal
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  to us when we use these eyes to look at the world
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  around us? We'll look at how verse 8 continues.
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  In putting everything under them, God left nothing
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  that is not subject to them. Yet at present,
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  we do not see everything subject to them. So
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  we do not see everything subject to them. Yep,
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  that is our everyday reality, isn't it? Whether
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  it's fires or floods or winds or earthquakes
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  or diseases, any one of those has human beings
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  running very far away. We are powerless, we are
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  puny, we are scared. We human beings, we're not
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  living in harmony with God, with each other,
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  or the rest of creation. All around us, open
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  your eyes, you know it, we experience it. Chaos,
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  carnage, confusion, all around us. We are in
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  trouble, and no human committee, no human plan,
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  no human president has the power and the wisdom
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  to sort out the mess. With the eyes of sight,
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  we see a bleak picture that isn't getting better.
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  So what about the eyes of faith? And when I say
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  the eyes of faith, I don't mean the eyes of make
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  -believe. That's not what the eyes of faith are.
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  The eyes of faith is our convictional response
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  based on what God has said, what God has revealed
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  in the Bible. And therefore, the eyes of faith
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  means that we see through what he has said. That's
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  what it means, the eyes of faith. God says something,
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  you believe it by faith, and then you see the
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  world through what God has said. So what do we
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  see with the eyes of faith? Look at verse 9.
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  What do we see? We see Jesus, who was made a
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  little lower than the angels for a little while,
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  now crowned with glory and honor. because he
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  suffered death so that by the grace of God he
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  might taste death for everyone. It's the first
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  time in the book of Hebrews that the name Jesus
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  appears. It's quite significant, quite appropriate
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  actually, because the focus of Hebrews chapter
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  2 is on why it was so essential for the eternal
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  divine Son of God to take on human flesh. And
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  the name Jesus becomes so significant because...
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  There is the name that the God's son is called
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  after his incarnation, Jesus. God the son with
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  human flesh. So what do we see about Jesus with
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  the eyes of faith? Well, first of all, what do
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  we see? We see Jesus fulfilling the original
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  purpose of humanity. Jesus is crowned with glory
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  and honor. And one day, one day, glorious day
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  it will be, everything will be under his feet.
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  Yes, he is currently ruling the universe, but
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  one day every knee will bow before the Lord Jesus
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  Christ. There will be no rebelling against his
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  loving authority at all. What a day. What a day.
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  And of course, Jesus Christ is in this position
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  as the God -man. Okay, that's because... Jesus
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  didn't strip off his flesh during the ascension.
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  So it's not that you have the incarnation, he
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  takes on human flesh, he lives, we've had the
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  cross, the resurrection, and then at the ascension
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  he goes, I don't need this anymore. No, he goes
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  as the God -man to heaven, which means right
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  now there is a human being at the heart of the
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  heavenly control tower. Now as great as that
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  is, and it is great, it isn't the only truth
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  we see with the eyes of faith. Look at verse
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  10. In bringing many sons and daughters to glory,
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  it was fitting that God, for whom and through
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  whom everything exists, should make the pioneer
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  of their salvation perfect through what he suffered.
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  Both the one who makes people holy and those
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  who are made holy are of what? Of the same family.
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  So Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers
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  and sisters. He says, I will declare your name
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  to my brothers and sisters. In the assembly,
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  I will sing your praises to whom? To my brothers
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  and sisters. In other words, Jesus' great plan
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  is to bring sons and daughters to glory. And
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  I haven't even quoted that properly. His plan
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  is to bring how many? Many sons and daughters
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  to glory. And in the context of Hebrews chapter
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  2, That is more than getting us to heaven. It
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  is to bring us to the position of glory, the
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  position of glory that has been announced, trumpeted,
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  and expected in Psalm 8, where humanity is crowned
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  with what? Glory and honor. Jesus is bringing
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  many sons and daughters to that place, to glory.
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  See, at the heart of... Jesus' plan is to bring
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  us to join him, our older brother, in the presence
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  of his father as we rule the world together.
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  Now to achieve that, at the heart of his plan
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  is his personal suffering. And you'll see that
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  repeated. Hear it as Chloe read the Bible to
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  us in Hebrews. Let me read out a few verses.
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  You'll hear, you'll see the consistent theme.
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  So verse nine, but we do see Jesus who was made
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  a little lower than the angels for a little while,
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  now crowned with glory and honor because he did
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  what? He suffered death so that by the grace
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  of God, he might taste death for everyone. Verse
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  10, in bringing many sons and daughters to glory,
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  it was fitting that God for whom and through
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  whom everything should make the pioneer of their
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  salvation perfect through what he. or verse 14,
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  since the children of flesh and blood, he too
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  shared in their humanity so that by his death,
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  he might break the power of him who holds the
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  power of death. And if you haven't got it yet,
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  it's verse 18, because he himself suffered when
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  he was tempted, he's able to help those who are
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  being tempted. In other words, our champion,
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  the Lord Jesus Christ achieves his glorious victory
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  through his sacrificial death. And that is because
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  we need a savior. Not just an example. Because
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  we've got debts. We've got debts that need forgiveness.
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  And so before he could bring many sons and daughters
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  to glory, Jesus had to take our place on the
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  cross. But praise the Lord. He has. And therefore
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  our future is secure. I don't know what. God
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  has in store for you. Many of you will enter
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  into some sort of pastoral ministry in churches.
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  I don't know if anybody's ever told you this
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  before. Christian ministry can often look unspectacular
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  and unimpressive. It can frequently feel draining,
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  dull, and discouraging. I hope someone has given
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  you that pep talk. I hope there's another pep
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  talk as well, but there is a reality to this.
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  But I want to say to you, as you get involved
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  in pastoral ministry, when you live through those
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  days that are draining, discouraging, unspectacular,
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  unimpressive, and your mind begins to wander
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  and... You begin to ask the question internally
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  because you're not brave enough to ask it externally
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  just yet. Why should I stay? Why should I continue?
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  Why should I endure? Well, here is an answer.
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  For those days, for the deepest part of your
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  soul, everything you do is heading to that future.
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  Okay? That's where it's going. That is the reality
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  through the eyes of faith. Everything you do...
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  is part of the plan of Jesus Christ to bring
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  many sons and daughters to that glorious day.
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  And that keeps you going. It really does. How
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  do you keep your focus on that future day and
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  a highly pressurized existence where you're notified
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  all the time and distracted by everything? We'll
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  look at chapter three, verse one. Thank you,
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  Chloe, for reading chapter three, verse one.
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  Isn't it beautiful? Therefore. Therefore, holy
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  brothers and sisters who share in this heavenly
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  calling, what are we going to do? Fix your thoughts
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  on Jesus. Quite simply, fix your thoughts on
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  Jesus. Notice what it doesn't say. It doesn't
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  say occasionally when you've got a moment, glance
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  your thoughts on Jesus. No, you're to lock onto
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  him. like a missile defense system and never
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  let him out of your sights because Jesus is the
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  one who needs to be at the center of our existence.
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  Quite simply, we need less of us and more of
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  him. And that's because he's the victorious champion.
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  So I don't know the next time you're going to
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  hear it, what sporting fixture you'll be at or
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  you'll watch on the TV and you hear the sound.
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  We are the champions. Can I encourage you to
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  do something? Next time you hear those words,
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  just remember who is the champion. Just remember
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  what he's done. And because of what he has done,
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  there'll be one day that you will stand in a
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  greater stadium. In the presence of Jesus, your
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  older brother, in the presence of his father,
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  and we will sing properly in tune. with better
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  lyrics that we are the champions of the world.
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  Amen? Let's pray. Have a moment. What has God
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  been teaching you today? Although we thank you
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  for the bull. perfect salvation, once for all
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  sacrifice of the Lord Jesus. Thank you for his
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  perfect obedience and thank you for our unity
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  in him. Thank you for this glorious vision of
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  the future and thank you that we can be part
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  of it because of Christ to help us this day by
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  the power of your spirit to fix our thoughts
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  on Jesus. Amen.