Sunday 12 July 2026: Hebrews 13:1-19

Concluding Exhortations

Throughout the book of Hebrews, the author has been seeking to persuade readers of the superiority of Jesus over Judaism, with one reasoned argument after another. But now at the close, they turn to a series of short, ethical encouragements, and the whole of chapter 13 is an uplifting read. For the purpose of my message today, however, I am going to focus on the first five verses of our reading. And I will start with a couple of rhetorical questions.

Have you ever wondered what it means to be a ‘practicing Christian’? And, what would we have to be, and what would we have to do for others to describe us as ‘practicing Christians’? 

We all know what a Christian is – someone who follows Jesus and believes that He is our saviour and is the Son of God. Or, someone who believes what is written in the Apostles’ Creed. Our doctrine at Ingaway is very similar to that Creed. We all have an idea of what a Christian is, but what about a ‘practicing Christian’? Maybe, that is a little harder to answer? 

But it is important, because all of us should want to be described by those who know us as practicing Christians. We should want to be people who not only believe in the teachings of Jesus, but who strive to live by them, and to put them into practice. 

In my preparation for the service this week, I came across a thought-provoking question that gets at this idea. If being a Christian suddenly became illegal in our country – and given the way things are going, that dreadful thought might even come true one day – would there be enough evidence to arrest and convict us? If the answer is ‘yes’, then we are most likely a practicing Christian. But, still, we might want to explore this further to be sure. 

Before I get to the answer provided in our reading today, I want to offer a more traditional answer, one that is founded in Baptism. We haven’t actually had a baptism in our church for a long time, so it is likely that most of us have already made that commitment. In doing so, we probably made some important promises, depending upon where, when and how it happened.

Making that commitment usually requires us to: make a statement that we believe and trust in Jesus; acknowledge that our sins have been forgiven; and, promise to do our best to follow the teachings of Jesus. I think that this is a pretty good answer to what it means to be a practicing Christian. A practicing Christian is a follower of Jesus who strives to live out their promises at Baptism. 

But in our reading today, we have other ways to think about what it means to practice our Christian faith. It is not a complete list, but it is a good list. And it is a list worth focusing on as we conclude our journey through this great book of Hebrews. There are five themes that I would like to draw out from the passage.

The first theme of a practicing Christian identified in this passage is arguably the most important: ‘keep on loving one another as brothers and sisters’. A practicing Christian is someone who loves. We practice our faith by loving God with our whole heart, mind, soul, and strength; and by loving our neighbour as ourselves.

Practicing Christians are, above all else, people who love one another, and who love others. It is the great commandment that Moses taught to God’s people. It is what Jesus called the “first and greatest commandment”. Peter teaches us that it “covers a multitude of sins,” and Paul shares with us that it is “the more excellent way.”

As Christians, the first and last thing we are taught to do is to love. To be a practicing Christian is to be a person who loves God and all that God made. And Christian communities, if nothing else, should be communities where it is obvious that people love one another. 

The second theme is to show hospitality to the stranger. 

But there is a possible pitfall for loving communities. And this pitfall is what the author of Hebrews addresses in the very next verse. Because when we form a loving community in a church, that very love that we have for one another can sometimes make it more difficult for new people to join our family. 

Maybe we ourselves have had the experience of joining, or visiting, a church for the first time, and being ignored. The hymns, the sermon, the Communion, might all have been good, but maybe no one greeted us, or even shared a polite smile?

And so, the author of Hebrews goes on to say in the very next verse, “Do not neglect to show hospitality to the stranger.” A loving community should always be welcoming and loving to the stranger, not just to each other. There should always be a seat open for that person. No matter who they are, they should be welcome here. And it is the job of all of us to make sure they feel that way.

The third theme is extending our love outward, because we should consider those who do not, or cannot, come into our Church community.

Hospitality can be passive, when you think about it. It waits for someone to come to us. But the Church is called to do more than that. We are also called to love those who cannot be here. And so, the next verse of this passage in Hebrews teaches us to “remember those who are in prison.” They, too, must experience our love.

When our reading says this, I apply a wide interpretation because it could mean anyone who cannot come to us. In particular, it could mean our persecuted Christian brothers and sisters at home and abroad, for whom we pray regularly. It is a reminder that we should take our love beyond these walls. 

This is also one of the reasons why, as a very small family of believers, our planned children’s fun day is so important. It is why our work as volunteers in many different capacities is so important. It is why our friendly smile and cheerful greeting to the person who has just pushed in front of us in the queue is so important!

These are all ministries devoted to extending our love beyond these walls. They are ways to show hospitality and love, not only to the stranger who visits us, but to those who don’t. 

The fourth theme is marriage and family where we should let our love continue. 

Now, if we are honest, there are probably few of us who can claim to be the same person at home as we are when we are out. After all, when we are at home, most of us will put our feet up, let our hair down, and relax.

But, marriage and family, when we think about it, is where community begins. And if we neglect our marriages and families, even if it is to show hospitality to strangers or to visit those going through tough times, then we are not really practicing our Christian faith.

Yet another lesson for me this week was that I read a story about an American Olympic athlete who was describing his family life when he was growing up. His father was a respected doctor in their small town, often making house calls, and not charging people who were finding it hard to make ends meet. A good, kind, and generous man to his town-folk. But when he got home at night, he was very different. He was abusive to his wife and to his children, in a way that the people of his community could not have imagined. He loved his neighbour, but not his own family. 

When the writer of Hebrews teaches that mutual love should continue, it is not just in our churches and in our communities. It is also in our homes, in our marriages, and with our families. 

The Fifth the theme is generous contentment where verse 5 tells us to “Keep our lives free from the love of money, and be content with what you have, for he himself has said, ‘I will never leave you or forsake you.’”

This verse is a bit of a change in direction from the others, it would seem, and teaches us to keep our lives from the love of money, and to be content with what we have.

But sometimes love means opening up our wallets or our purses. Love means being generous with what we have, helping those who are in need. And in order to be generous with what we have, this verse reminds us that two other things are necessary. 

First, we are taught that we must not love money. Paul reminds us of this, too, when he says that the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. It is not money itself that is the root of evil, but the love of money. We must love God, and love each other, and not love money.

And the other thing that is necessary to be truly generous is to be content with what we have. Because if we are not content, we will never have enough. There will always be something else that we feel we must have to be happy. And this need to accumulate prevents us from being truly generous. So, we are taught to keep our lives from the love of money, and to be content with what we have.

After sharing these five themes of a practicing Christian, the author of Hebrews reminds us of why we can do all of this: because Jesus has said, “I will never leave you or forsake you.”

Jesus promises to be with us, every step of the way: when we share our love with one another; when we show hospitality to strangers; when we visit those who are in prison, or who are otherwise unable to join us; when we love and honour our own families; and when we keep our lives free from the love of money, sharing generously with those who have less. 

We can do all of this because of the One who is always with us, Jesus our Lord and Saviour. May His love and presence in our lives help us to be Christians who practice their faith in ways that are evident to all – to the glory of our heavenly Father. 

Sunday 5 July 2026: Hebrews 10:19-39

A Call to Persevere in Faith

Our reading today contains one of the most sobering warnings that we Christians can ever receive. Although the passage encourages us to persevere, there is a section from verse 26 that warns us about deliberate and persistent sin of rejecting Jesus once we have the knowledge that He is our saviour.

For those of us who have travelled through an airport, we will be familiar with the question: “did you pack your bags yourself?” If the answer to that question is “no” then it is possible that we won't know what our bags contain. That answer might also arouse the suspicion of security staff who may then want to examine our luggage to ensure it contains nothing untoward. But if the answer is “yes” then we will be in difficulty if our bags are found to contain any contraband, because it will be easier to prove our guilty knowledge.

In the same way, our knowledge of the truth in respect of Jesus may convict us if we continue to deliberately and persistently live our lives for ourselves, rather than for Him.

We will come on to that sobering section shortly, but let us first consider the opening verses of our reading.

In verses 19 to 22, we are reminded about some of the earlier lessons we have learned together whilst exploring the book of Hebrews. 

We have learned that, in the Old Covenant, only the high priest could enter the most holy place in the temple once a year on the day of atonement. On this day, he would offer the sacrifice for the nation's sins. But now, under the New Covenant, it is Jesus’ death that removes the need for an annual sacrifice, because all believers may come into God’s presence through prayer at any time to seek forgiveness for their wrongdoing.

In verses 23 to 25, we are encouraged to persevere in our faith. We are invited to hold unswervingly to the hope that we have in Jesus. The writer urges us to spur one another on towards love and good deeds and not to give up meeting together. I am sure all of us here today can point to many occasions when being with like-minded folk in our Church family has encouraged us in our faith.

But are there also times when we get up on a Sunday morning and do not particularly feel like going to church? Perhaps an excuse comes our way, we take it, and we miss an opportunity to be together with our fellow believers. Then another week, the same thing happens again, and a habit begins to form. 

The writer knows this temptation and asks us not to give up meeting together, but instead to do so all the more as we see the Day approaching. 

To neglect Christian meetings is to give up the encouragement and help of other Christians. We gather together to share our faith and to strengthen one another in the Lord. As we come closer to the Day when Jesus will return, increasingly our faith will be tested. So, as those challenges arise for us, we should make an even greater effort to be faithful in our attendance in order to benefit from our unity in Jesus.

And so we come to those sobering verses about deliberate and persistent sin. We will all have heard of the phrase to ‘bury our head in the sand’. It is actually a famous myth that ostriches bury their heads in the sand to hide from danger. To ‘bury our head in the sand’ is an idiom that means deliberately ignoring a problem or refusing to face unpleasant facts, hoping they will just disappear. It describes avoiding a challenging situation instead of confronting it head on.

When we deliberately reject Jesus’ offer of salvation, we reject God’s most precious gift. We ignore the leading of the Holy Spirit, the one who communicates to us God's saving love. In the first week of our series on Hebrews, we learned of the warning that was given to Jewish Christians who were tempted to reject Jesus and return to Judaism. Although they knew of the saving love of Jesus, Judaism offered an easy way out from the persecution of being a new Christian. And so the first words of encouragement in this book were for those early Christians to stand firm and persevere in their faith.

We ourselves now receive encouragement in the same way, but also a stern warning because, having clearly understood the atoning work of Jesus and the Gospel’s teaching about it, we must not bury our heads in the sand hoping that our knowledge will be enough. When we know the Gospel, we are called to believe it and to be changed. If we know of God’s calling but ignore it, then we risk the gravest of consequences from sin against the Holy Spirit spoken of by Jesus in Matthew chapter 12 and Mark chapter 3.

This sin against the Holy Spirit – or ‘blasphemy against the Spirit’ – is described in the Bible as the ‘unforgivable sin’. It refers to the deliberate, persistent rejection of God’s grace and the Holy Spirit's conviction, effectively attributing God's saving power to evil.

Can Christians commit this blasphemy against the Holy Spirit? Perhaps the answer is both "Yes" and "No." Christians who have declared that their only hope is the promise of Christ, who, when they find themselves sinning and failing, own up, and return to Him, and trust Him again; that kind of Christian can never commit the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit.

But Christians who sin and do nothing about it, who resent the Lordship of Jesus, who resist His authority, and do as they please regardless of what the Word of God says; that kind of Christian is in grave danger of this very thing. That is why this letter was written.

Our Bible passage today points us to conscientious self-examination, and to ask ourselves serious questions about what we believe and how we live out that belief. We need to be confident that Jesus is our only hope and that, when we find ourselves falling into sin, we repent sincerely and return to Him, and trust Him again.

This stern warning is not intended to place worry or panic in our hearts, but instead to ensure that no one is lost through complacency or worldly distraction. So, let me conclude with positive encouragement from our Bible passage today.

Believers are urged to persevere in their Christian faith and conduct when facing the trials and tribulations of life. We don’t usually think of suffering as being good for us, but it can build our character and our patience. During times of stress and anxiety, we may even feel God’s presence more clearly and find help from Christians we never thought would care.

Knowing that Jesus is with us in our suffering and that He will return one day to put an end to all our pain – and that day may be sooner than we think – can help us to grow in our faith and in our relationship with Him.

I look around our church family now with thankfulness that, over the time that I have known you, I have seen examples of perseverance in you all. This, in itself, is an encouragement, but there is so much more that we can offer to one another simply by being steadfast in our faith, by praying and praising together and by sharing our love for God’s Word.

So, let us never be diverted or distracted. Let us always support one another with faithful love when times are tough, and let us all share the joy of knowing Jesus and be thankful.

Sunday 28 June 2026: Hebrews 10:1-18

A Better Sacrifice

¹ The law is only a shadow of the good things that are coming – not the realities themselves. For this reason it can never, by the same sacrifices repeated endlessly year after year, make perfect those who draw near to worship. ² Otherwise, would they not have stopped being offered? For the worshippers would have been cleansed once for all, and would no longer have felt guilty for their sins. ³ But those sacrifices are an annual reminder of sins. ⁴ It is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.

The first four verses of this passage are focusing on the law in the Old Testament and being like a shadow. A shadow of course has no substance or form. It is not the actual thing itself but an image of the real thing. A shadow merely proves that something is there but is inferior to the thing that cast the shadow in the first place. What the author is doing here is saying that although we had the sacrifices that were made in accordance with the Law, they were not the real thing. They did not fix the problem. We know this as the author goes on to say that the sacrifices had to be repeated year after year, but even so they never quite did the job.

The sacrifices in the Old Testament were never meant to deal with someone’s sin once and for all, but were a way to remind people of their sinfulness year after year. If they did not have sacrifice, then perhaps they could just put it to the back of their mind and continue with their sinful lives. The sacrifices made public what they had done and although they were seeking to atone for their sins, the blood that was shed did not wash away their sin.

Jesus came to change all of that, and He did come to make perfect those who draw near to Him. The blood of our Lord Jesus Christ makes us perfect by cleansing us of our sin and removing it forever. Sacrifices in the Old Testament didn’t cure the problem, they just cover it over until the following year.

We can of course try to deal with sin in our own way. We can do good deeds, we can perform religious rituals, be nice to people, say sorry, etc. But we keep on sinning. This is why we need Jesus who is the only one through His sacrifice who can wash away our sins.

⁵ Therefore, when Christ came into the world, he said:

‘Sacrifice and offering you did not desire,
    but a body you prepared for me;
⁶ with burnt offerings and sin offerings
    you were not pleased.
⁷ Then I said, “Here I am – it is written about me in the scroll –
    I have come to do your will, my God.”’

⁸ First he said, ‘Sacrifices and offerings, burnt offerings and sin offerings you did not desire, nor were you pleased with them’– though they were offered in accordance with the law. ⁹ Then he said, ‘Here I am, I have come to do your will.’ He sets aside the first to establish the second. ¹⁰ And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

The writer of our Bible passage now turns our attention to Psalm 40:6-8: ‘Sacrifice and offerings you did not desire – but my ears you have opened – burnt offerings and sin offerings you did not require. Then I said, “Here I am, I have come – it is written about me in the scroll. I desire to do your will, my God; your law is within my heart.”’

The translation is slightly different between Psalm 40 and the writing of Hebrews, for in this version it talks about ‘a body you prepared for me’.

What the writer is doing is taking us from the ‘here and now’ to before the time that Jesus was born as a baby in Bethlehem. He is taking us back to the time before time when Jesus was there before the beginning of the world, when Jesus was not only the Son of God but was God the Son. He is taking us back to a time when Jesus was so perfectly prepared for us as a sacrifice and Jesus declared that He came to fulfil what was written in scripture. He declared that He came to do the will of God. Jesus was born as a baby for one reason only – to do the will of God. There are many great people who were here to do the will of God. But what happens? We all, even the great, fall short of the standard of doing the will of God. For we all sin and none of us are perfect, even those who appear to us as being perfect have on occasion sinned. That is why we need Jesus, why we need forgiveness. But Jesus on the other hand declares that He has come to do the will of God and is able to fully complete this task. Jesus is willing. He said, “Father send me, Father I will obey you.” He willingly went to the cross because that is why He came to earth, God as the son.

Verse 10 says, ‘And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ once for all.’

It is by His will that we have been made more holy, we are closer to God, we are following Him more closely. We are leading a more holy, a more obedient life. Think about it, we all should be progressing in our Christian life. The longer we have been a Christian, the closer and more obedient we should be. We should day by day be able to draw closer to Him. The key to this is that we walk closer with Him. It is not that we try harder or do things differently, it is that we spend more time with Him, more time in scripture so that we can draw near to Him. We need to abide in Him. That will enable us to start to grow in our ability to do the will of God. This enables us to become more mature in our faith.

¹¹ Day after day every priest stands and performs his religious duties; again and again he offers the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. ¹² But when this priest had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, ¹³ and since that time he waits for his enemies to be made his footstool. ¹⁴ For by one sacrifice he has made perfect for ever those who are being made holy.

The priests stand when they perform their duties. They do not sit down, for sitting down symbolises that they have done their work, but of course because the sins of the people could never be forgiven through the sacrifice of the blood of animals, their work was never done, hence they had to continue to stand. In contrast, the author draws our attention to the fact that Jesus, once He had made His sacrifice, was done. Mission accomplished. There was no more sacrifice needed hence He was able to sit.

Have you ever wondered about the significance of posture when it comes to worship? In Old Testament times, the priest would need to stand in the presence of God in the Tabernacle. If you read the Bible it goes into great detail about the Tabernacle and describing the curtains, the alter, the ark of the covenant, etc, but there is no reference to a chair or a bench. Why? Because they did not need one for their work was never finished and hence, they could not sit down in the presence of God. They repeatedly offered the same sacrifices to God, but it was a never-ending process. A conveyor belt in which sacrifices were offered for sins, but the sins could keep on coming and would need to be forgiven over and over again. Imagine what they must have felt like to know that although you are doing an important job, it is never enough.

But with Jesus, all this changed. Verse 12 says, ‘This priest had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God.’ Jesus finished the job once and for all, there need not be any more sacrifice for the ultimate sacrifice had been made, and once made Jesus was able to sit down and rest.

At the end of this part of the reading the author goes on to say, ‘For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.’ In some translations this says ‘being sanctified’. This means those who are being set apart to God from the world. They have been perfected for two reasons – one is that we now have a perfect standing before God and stand before Him in the acceptance of Jesus. Secondly, we have a perfect conscience as far as guilt and the penalty of sin goes because we know that the price has been paid once and for all and there will be no more sacrificing and no more payment to be made.

¹⁵ The Holy Spirit also testifies to us about this. First he says:

¹⁶ ‘This is the covenant I will make with them
    after that time, says the Lord.
I will put my laws in their hearts,
    and I will write them on their minds.’

¹⁷ Then he adds:

‘Their sins and lawless acts
    I will remember no more.’

¹⁸ And where these have been forgiven, sacrifice for sin is no longer necessary.

This part of the reading takes us right back to the first covenant in the Old Testament when it was prophesied that the Lord would make a New Covenant with His chosen people. Jeremiah 31:31 says, ‘“The days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel.” The old covenant was to be abolished with the coming of Jesus. No more spilt blood time after time to atone for sins that could never be clean, replaced by the blood of our Lord Jesus Christ that did the job once and for all. We are told that God is no longer going to remember our sins and this is something that the old covenant could never achieve. All those bad things that we have done wrong have been wiped from God’s memory. The slate has been wiped clean, and the amazing thing is that it keeps being wiped clean. What Jesus did for us is done. All of our sins have been atoned for at the cross, but not only the sins of our past, but the sins of our present and the sins of our future.

Reflecting back on verse 7 Jesus said, “I have come to do your will”. And He certainly did achieve that. What have you achieved? What have you done? When God asks you to come, do you go willingly and obey, or do you resist. We may sometimes feel that we can’t do what God asks of us, we are not good enough, or not skilled enough or even we are not brave enough. God knows that even before we do, which is why as we are told in verse 15, ‘The Holy Spirit also testifies to us about this.’ The Holy Spirit encourages us and speaks to us. He speaks to our heart directly about this gift, the gift of salvation, the gift of forgiveness, the gift of the sacrifice of our Lord Jesus Christ. We can confidently approach God without fear of condemnation, knowing that our sins have been permanently washed away. He made a New Covenant for us, once and for all. Let’s embrace it and accept it.

Sunday 21 June 2026: Hebrews 8:1-13

A Better Covenant

If we are not careful, we could easily become distracted or confused by the language in our reading today. There is talk of high priests, tabernacles and covenants; words and phrases that are not too often used in our society today, or even in our churches. To understand our Bible passage more clearly, perhaps we should first understand what these little-used words and phrases mean?

In the Old Testament, the high priest was the supreme religious and spiritual leader of Israel, appointed to act as the primary mediator between God and the people. Their primary duty was to represent the nation, offer sacrifices for sins, and lead the subordinate priests in worship. Although there is no direct comparison today, it might help our understanding to think of a high priest as, say, a bishop or archbishop or cardinal.

The tabernacle was a portable, tent-like sanctuary built by the Israelites in the wilderness. It was commissioned by God through Moses, and it served as the physical location where God’s divine presence resided among His people and acted as the central place of worship and sacrifice. Because the Israelites were nomadic during the Exodus, they needed a sanctuary they could easily pack, transport, and reassemble. Whenever they made camp, God's presence was visibly marked by a cloud by day and a fire by night. After the Israelites settled in the Promised Land, King Solomon replaced the portable tent with a permanent, stone-built Temple in Jerusalem.

A covenant is a solemn, binding agreement or promise between God and humanity that establishes a relationship. Unlike a modern legal contract, a biblical covenant is a deeply personal, life-changing commitment that binds two parties together.

So, our reading centres on Jesus as our heavenly High Priest and mediator of the New Covenant. The text explains that Jesus’ ministry is better than the old system, because He ministers in a true, heavenly place and gives us better promises that make the old covenant obsolete.

The passage can be broken down into three key themes. First, relating to verses 1 to 6, the author’s main point is that we have a High Priest – Jesus – who sat down at the right hand of God. Unlike earthly priests whose work is never finished, Jesus’ sitting down indicates His sacrifice is complete and perfect. His ministry comes from the true heavenly tabernacle, not its earthly, man-made copy.

Second, the old covenant, referred to in verses 7 to 9, which was made between God and Moses at Mount Sinai, was temporary because humanity could not keep it. God found fault with the people's disobedience, proving that a system of laws alone could not save or transform the heart.

And third, in verses 10 to 13, the writer quotes Jeremiah 31:31-34 to outline the New Covenant. Under this new agreement, God's laws are written directly onto the hearts and minds of believers. It guarantees complete forgiveness and personal intimacy with God for all who believe.

Not only is this wonderful New Covenant better than the old, but it goes beyond Israel and Judah to include all Gentile nations. It offers a new way to forgiveness by faith and grace, rather than through animal sacrifices.

When we accept Jesus into our hearts, our hearts are changed by Him. What may previously have been a chore in following what we understood of God’s rules and laws, now brings us our greatest joy, because the Holy Spirit gives us new desires which help us to want to be obedient servants.

Under the New Covenant which Jesus brings to us, God’s law is written inside us. It is no longer an external set of rules and principles. The Holy Spirit reminds us of all of the things Jesus said and did so that we can follow Him better. It activates our consciences so that we understand right from wrong. And it influences our desires so that we want to live our lives in obedient service to Jesus.

Let us all, then, gratefully accept, as a gracious gift from God, the better Covenant of superior promises and the eternal priesthood of Jesus as our mediator with the Father. 

Sunday 14 June 2026: Hebrews 4:14 to 5:10

Jesus the Great High Priest

In the book of Hebrews, Jesus is referred to as the High Priest 17 times. Hebrews is the only book in the Bible that uses this exact title to refer to Jesus. The word ‘Priest’ carries a couple of primary meanings. Firstly, it means one who mediates in religious services, and it also means one who is holy or set apart to perform those services.

We are first introduced to a High Priest in the book of Genesis 14. Abraham had entered into a battle to rescue his nephew, Lot, who had been captured by the army of Elan. On his return, Abraham was met by Melchizedek, King of Salem and priest of the Most High God. This man, whose name means the “King of righteousness”, blessed Abraham and the Most High God who gave victory to Abraham. In return for his blessing, Abraham gave a tithe (10%) of all the spoils of war to Melchizedek. It was by this act that Abraham acknowledged Melchizedek’s high position as the priest of God.

Years later, Abraham’s great-grandson, Levi, was singled out by God to be the father of the priestly tribe. When the Law was given on Mount Sinai, the Levites were identified as the servants of the Tabernacle, with the family of Aaron becoming the priests (Exodus 28). The priests were responsible for making intercession to God for the people by offering the many sacrifices that the law required. Among the priests, one was selected as the High Priest, and he entered into the Most Holy Place once a year on the Day of Atonement to place the blood of the sacrifice on the Ark of the Covenant. By these daily and yearly sacrifices, the sins of the people were temporarily covered until the Messiah came to take away their sins.
 

When Jesus is called our High Priest, it is with reference to both of these previous priesthoods. Like Melchizedek, He is ordained as a priest apart from the Law given on Mount Sinai.

Under the Old Covenant, the High Priest was a human mediator who represented Israel before God. Under the New Covenant, Jesus permanently fulfils and supersedes this role.

In the Old Covenant, the High Priest would have been selected by men from Aaron’s lineage, meaning that he must belong to the tribe of Levi. Hebrews 5:1 says, ‘Every high priest is selected from among the people’.

The office of priest was not something that men could choose as a vocation. The priests had to be called by God, and God’s call was limited to Aaron and his descendants. No one outside of the family could serve in the tabernacle or the temple.

In the New Covenant, Jesus did not come from the line of Levi but from the tribe of Judah. However, in Hebrews 5:6 it says, ‘You are a priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek’. In chapter 7 of Hebrews, we learn that Melchizedek is without father or mother, without genealogy, therefore affirming that Jesus holds a superior, eternal priesthood that is not based on ancestry.

There were many high priests appointed, but none were ever called great. Jesus is greater than any other priest, so He is called our “Great High Priest”, and that gives us the boldness to come to “God’s throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy, and find grace to help us in our time of need” (Hebrews 4:16).

In the Old Covenant, the high priest operated in a physical place known as the Tabernacle and was the only one who could enter the Holy of Holies. This was the place at the very centre of the Tabernacle. The Tabernacle is a large tent made of heavy curtains and is described as a sanctuary for God where he can dwell among his people. Exodus 26:33 says, ‘Hang the curtain from the clasps and place the ark of the covenant law behind the curtain. The curtain will separate the Holy Place from the Most Holy Place’. The high priest would only enter the Holy of Holies once per year on the Day of Atonement.

In the New Covenant, Jesus did not operate in the physical place, He did not need a Tabernacle or curtain to enter into the presence of God. Jesus operates in a heavenly Tabernacle. Jesus entered heaven and passed directly into the true presence of God and was seated at His right hand. He serves in the true, spiritual sanctuary set up by God and is not bound by physical barriers and restricted to certain times of the year.

In the Old Covenant, one of the key rituals that a high priest had to carry out was to make sacrifices for himself. This act was important to ensure that the high priest had cleansed himself from his own sins before helping others. Leviticus 4:3 says, ‘If the anointed priest sins, bringing guilt on the people, he must bring to the Lord a young bull without defect as a sin offering for the sin he has committed.’

Jesus on the other hand, did not have to offer a sacrifice for Himself because He remained completely sinless and holy. Jesus was without sin (2 Corinthians 5:21 – He knew no sin), (1 Peter 2:22 – He committed no sin), and (1 John 3:5 – there is no sin in Him).

It was impossible for Him to sin, either as God or as a man. Jesus was the perfect man, was absolutely obedient to the Father who would not have led Him to sin. If Jesus was able to sin as a man, what then would stop Him from sinning in heaven? He did not leave His humanity behind when He ascended to heaven and sat at the Father’s right hand. He was sinless on earth and is sinless in heaven.

In the Old Covenant, the high priests offered sacrifices. They were appointed to act for men in relation to God and one of the principal functions was to offer both gifts and sacrifices for sins. Gifts are any offerings that were presented to God, whilst sacrifices were those special offerings in which the blood of an animal was shed as atonement for sins.

Like the Levitical priests, Jesus offered a sacrifice to satisfy the Law of God when He offered Himself for our sins. But unlike the Levitical priests, who had to continually offer sacrifices, Jesus only had to offer His sacrifice once, gaining eternal redemption for all who come to God through Him.

The high priests service would always be temporary, after all, they are men and therefore appointed to serve until the day they die, and on that day they would be replaced by a new high priest who had been selected by men. We have all seen how this works with the selection of the Pope where the Cardinals are locked away in the Sistine Chapel until they have agreed upon a new Pope and we see the white smoke rise from the Vatican.

But Jesus is eternal. He will never be replaced as the Great High Priest. Jesus lives forever and intercedes continually for believers. Hebrews 5:6 says, ‘You are a priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek’.

One other important point about Jesus’ priesthood is that every priest is appointed from among men. Jesus, though God from eternity, became a man in order to suffer death and serve as our High Priest (Hebrews 2:9). As a man, He was subject to all the weaknesses and temptations that we are, so that He could personally relate to us in our struggles. Hebrews 4:15 says, ‘For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathise with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are – yet he did not sin’.

No one can truly sympathise with someone unless they have been through a similar experience themselves. Our Lord Jesus throughout His earthly life shared some of the same experiences and testing that we endure and therefore He can understand our struggles. Jesus was tempted in the same way that we are tempted but He did not give in to this temptation and sin in the same way that we fall away.

Now the author of Hebrews gives us some valuable instructions in how we should conduct ourselves in the matter of faith.

Firstly, we are instructed to ‘hold firmly to the faith we profess’. The early Christians and us are being encouraged to stubbornly cling to, declare and live out our belief in Jesus as our Lord and Saviour. Jesus who is our great high priest to be a sacrifice for our sins and to enable us to be close to the Father.

Secondly, we are told to ‘approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.’

Our confidence is based on the knowledge that He died to save us and that He lives to keep us. We are assured of a loving welcome because He has told us to come.

In the Old Testament times, people could not draw near to God. This was reserved for only a select few, among them the high priests. It would only have been the high priest who could approach God in the Holy of Holies, and this would only happen once per year. Can you imagine not being able to talk to God, to have a conversation with God, to listen to God and to tell Him your troubles and ask for blessings. But of course, everything changed with the Great High Priest, our Lord Jesus Christ. Through Him we are able to go into His presence at any time of the day or night on any day of the year and from anywhere. Through Jesus we suddenly have God on speed dial and can call Him up at any point and obtain mercy and find grace to help in times of need. His mercy covers the things we should not have done, and His grace empowers us to do what we should do but feel that we do not have the power to do it. Let us therefore rejoice in the Great High Priest. 

Sunday 7 June 2026: Hebrews: 3:1-6

It is important to keep in mind that the book of Hebrews was primarily written to Christians who, themselves or their families, had recently converted from Judaism. At that time and in that culture, it seems that there was a lot of pressure, probably from family and surrounding community, to abandon faith in Jesus and return to Judaism.

This pressure likely came with some kind of persecution, whether that be physical, social, or emotional threats. And it seems that the author is writing to a population that is wrestling with whether clinging to the Christian faith is really worth it.

Perhaps, it would be easier just to give in and go back to the old ways. And the author has several main arguments against this. First, there is no going back, because Jesus fulfilled and did away with the Old Covenant and that it is no longer an option. And second, even if it were an option, Jesus is vastly superior in every way to the Old Covenant, so what reason could there possibly be to go back?

The author uses different approaches as a means of encouragement and persuasion. Jesus is compared with the different facets of the Old Covenant to show His superiority, and the new Christians are urged to press on and keep going because it is worth it. But there are warnings, too.

Our passage today starts with one of those comparisons. Jesus is compared to Moses. For a Hebrew, Moses was ‘the main man’. Next to God, Moses was the chief prophet; the one through whom God communicated His Law and Covenant. But we are told that Jesus is even more important than Moses. At that time, such a claim would likely have been enormously important and impactful.

Our reading begins with ‘therefore’ and many of you will remember that we have had a number of readings in recent months that started in the same way. It tells us that the previous verses or passages are to be taken into account when considering what the author writes next. In this case, it relates to the lessons from the last two weeks that we have looked at together: that Jesus is the creator and sustainer of the universe; He is greater than the angels; He is the exact representation of God; and, that He is Himself God.

That is what the ‘therefore’ is there for. Because of all that, we are urged to fix our thoughts on Jesus. We should fix our thoughts on Jesus because of who He is and what He has done. Yes, Moses was great. Yes, Moses was important, but he was only ever a servant in the house. Jesus is the builder of the house. Jesus is the master of the house. We should, therefore, pay attention to Jesus.

As we all know, there are many important figures that feature in the Old Testament. They include the likes of Abraham, David, Isaiah and Daniel, but none is greater than Moses. He was truly a national hero and a focal point of Judaism.

There are remarkable parallels between Moses and Jesus, especially in the circumstances surrounding their respective early years. Both Moses and Jesus were God’s appointed means to bring about deliverance and redemption for God’s people. Both were threatened by a ruling monarch. In Moses’ case, it was Pharaoh, and for Jesus, it was Herod. In both instances, Moses and Jesus survive, while other infants are slaughtered. The parents of Moses deliver him from Egypt, whereas the parents of Jesus deliver him into Egypt.

An important passage in the Old Testament tells us how highly God regarded Moses and how intimate he was in his relationship with God. The passage is in Numbers 12:6-8 where it says, “And he [God] said, ‘Hear my words: If there is a prophet among you, I the Lord make myself known to him in a vision; I speak with him in a dream. Not so with my servant Moses. He is faithful in all my house. With him I speak mouth to mouth, clearly, and not in riddles, and he beholds the form of the Lord. Why then were you not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?”

With all that being said about how highly God regarded Moses, there are four points where our reading compares and contrasts Moses with Jesus in order to establish the superiority of Jesus.

First, whereas both Moses and Jesus were ‘faithful’ to God, only Jesus was altogether obedient and never sinned or disobeyed. It isn’t that Moses was bad and Jesus was good. It is simply the contrast between a man, on the one hand, who is faithful, but still a sinner who occasionally fails and disbelieves and disobeys, and Jesus, on the other hand, who is perfectly faithful and, although tempted in all things like us, never sinned.

Second, Moses was faithful in God’s house, whereas Jesus built it! The ‘house’ is a reference to the people of God. The reason Jesus is worthy of greater glory is that Moses was only a part of that house, a member of it. Jesus, on the other hand, is the builder of the house. He created it. Moses is himself one of the people of God. Jesus is the Creator, Saviour, and Lord of all such people.

Third, Moses was faithful as a servant of God, but Jesus is the Son! It is true that both Moses and Jesus serve the people of God. But what sets them apart is that Jesus is more than a servant of God’s people: He is God’s Son! He is the Saviour of God’s people! The Son, by way of inheritance, owns the house and is lord and master over the house. He provides for the family within it and protects them from danger and destruction.

Fourth, Moses testified and prophesied of greater things to come, and Jesus is the fulfilment of all that he said! The second half of verse 5 in our reading tells us that Moses would ‘bear witness to what would be spoken by God in the future. Things that were to be spoken later.”

The author of Hebrews does not argue for the superiority of Jesus and the New Covenant by denigrating or disregarding Moses and the Old Covenant. Moses has been rightly praised as a faithful servant of God. But the covenant under which he lived was temporary. Its purpose was to point forward to something greater and more lasting and more glorious. Moses did a wonderful job of testifying “to the things that were to be spoken later.” And what are those “things”? Jesus, and all that He brought to us in the New Covenant!

And here is the whole point of these verses: Jesus is like Moses, only better and greater.

If Moses inspired a nation because of his faithfulness, and people trusted what he said and believed the promises he spoke on behalf of God, then how much more should we, who have now received promises and hope from Jesus the Son of God, trust, obey and follow Him? Jesus is like Moses, only better and greater.

If we are members of the family of God, then we are those who share in a calling which comes directly from Heaven. That calling is encouraging us to hold fast to the confidence and hope we have in Jesus.

When we are wandering in the wilderness, our confidence and hope can start to slip. We could and should have listened to Moses. And now someone greater than Moses is here. Our reading today is an invitation to take all of the confidence, trust, and obedience, which Moses should have received from his followers in the desert, and to give it now to Jesus.

Jesus is just like Moses, only better and greater.

Sunday 24 May 2026: Hebrews 1:1-4

Many of us are searching for something better. We want better grades at school. We look for better jobs with better pay and better career prospects. We buy better cars and better homes. We want better entertainment. Basically, we want a better life.

We desire wellbeing, pleasure, and peace. And we’re fearful of disappointment and failure if our desires are unfulfilled. This quest for ‘better’ can sometimes make us worried and anxious, leaving us restless and discontented. It can sometimes fill us with envy, greed, and selfishness. Worst of all, our quest for a better life can potentially draw us away from God and the Gospel. All this begs the question: how might we be tempted to chase after other things that we think are better than Jesus?

We are beginning a new series on the book of Hebrews which was originally written to Jewish, probably second generation, Christians. These believers were in spiritual danger. To avoid the trials and troubles they were experiencing as Christians, they were tempted to stop believing the Gospel and to return to Judaism.

Like that original audience of Hebrews, we can also be tempted to turn away from Jesus if we imagine ‘better’ to mean wealth, success, or anything similar. Turning away from Jesus doesn’t always involve a dramatic departure. More often than not, it is a gradual decline in our love for Jesus, and our interest in Him. We don’t necessarily need to DO something to turn away from Jesus, we just have to do nothing. And this was the case for these early Hebrew Christians.

Now, I know there are some of you here who like a good jigsaw puzzle. Personally, I don’t have the patience for it, but I can see that, for those who are avid jigsaw puzzlers, it is a great form of relaxation. One thing I do like is seeing the end result when a beautiful picture has been put together. But I have also seen the immense frustration when the end is reached and a piece is missing!

In a sense, that is what the Bible is without Hebrews. We can pretty much see the whole picture, but Hebrews is the final piece that brings it all together. It helps us to see the whole picture of the story of redemption. With Jesus, that picture is full, beautiful, and everything makes sense.

Hebrews helps us understand how the whole Bible fits together, by showing us how Jesus fulfils the Old Testament prophecies. The author warns and encourages us, urging us to press on and not give up. Hebrews is calling us to hold fast to the Gospel. It wants us to see the glory of Jesus, that we might treasure Him more. Only by seeing the glorious Son, will we continue in faithfulness to Him.

Hebrews’ main message can be summed up in three words: Jesus is better. We should continue on in Jesus because He is better than the Old Covenant law. He is better than any sin or idol that we are tempted to cling on to. He is better than anything we try to replace Him with.

Hebrews jumps straight in without any greeting or introduction. The opening verses set the scene for the rest of the book by stating upfront that Jesus is better.

Some think that even if God exists, He is distant, disengaged, and disinterested. Others think we are meant to figure God out on our own – He is who we make Him out to be. But the first two verses of our reading today refute both of these ideas. God is not far from us. He is not silent. He has graciously taken the initiative to make Himself known to us. These two verses differentiate between how God spoke in the past and how He has now spoken “in these last days”.

Basically, God has spoken in two stages. In the first, which is the era of the Old Testament, God spoke by the prophets at various times and in various ways. The point is not that the Old Testament is irrelevant or wrong, but that it is incomplete. The Old Testament is an unfinished story that awaits an ending.

But now, the second stage of God’s revelation has arrived: He has sent His Son to finish the story. Jesus is God’s supreme revelation. He is God’s final word, completing God’s revelation. All the promises, expectations, and hopes of the Old Testament are fulfilled in Jesus. Hebrews wants Christians to realise how much better we have it now than folks did in the Old Testament times. We have the amazing privilege of living in the age of fulfilment when Jesus has already come into the world. God has kept His promises and has spoken to us through His Son.

So, we should not give up the Gospel for anything else; we won’t find anything better. It is a personal message for you and me: God calls us to repent and believe in His Son.

The Old Testament looks forward to Jesus’ coming; the New Testament looks back on His earthly ministry and also looks forward to His second coming. Now, Jesus continues to speak to us through His finished word, the Bible, which is our final authority. The Bible is sufficient. It is enough to equip us for every good work, to live a life that is pleasing to God. Jesus leads us through His word. This is how we know God’s will for us.

Our reading presents to us seven glorious truths about Jesus, packed in to just two of its verses:

1. He is the heir of all things (verse 2)

2. Through Him, the universe was created (verse 2)

3. He is the radiance of God’s glory (verse 3)

4. He is the exact representation of God’s nature and glory (verse 3).

5. He sustains all things by His powerful word (verse 3)

6. He has provided purification for sins (verse 3)

7. He has been exalted to God’s right hand in heaven (verse 3).

These seven truths reveal that Jesus is the King, Prophet, and Priest we need.

Jesus is the King we need.

Jesus’ kingship is described in three ways. First, God has appointed Jesus “the heir of all things”. Jesus fulfils the covenant God made with David in the Old Testament, that one of David’s descendants would rule as king forever.

Second, God created the world through His Son. King Jesus rightfully rules over all things because He made all things. He is fully God because only God can create something from nothing. John’s Gospel makes a similar point about Jesus: “The Word was God . . . All things were made through Him, and without Him was not anything made that was made.”

Third, Jesus not only made all things, but He also “sustains all things by His powerful word”. The Son’s word is powerful. It literally sustains everything. Without Jesus, everything falls apart.

Maybe sometimes we like to imagine the world revolves us. We like to think we can control our own lives, and even the lives of others. But here, we are reminded of this basic truth: we owe our lives and existence to King Jesus. He sustains us, and even the entire universe we live in.

All things were created by Jesus, all things are sustained through Him, and all things will reach their intended end in Him.

What a comfort we have in those words! Jesus is ever-working His sovereign will for the eternal good of His people. Because He upholds all things, He will not fail to complete the work He began in us, and it will ultimately end well for God’s people.

We are safe in the hands of King Jesus. He is our assurance, hope, protection, and security. Jesus is the King we need.

Jesus is the Prophet we need.

The Old Testament prophets were God’s messengers. They revealed God by faithfully speaking what God told them to say. But Jesus does more than that. He perfectly and fully shows God to us because He Himself is God. For example, if we want to get to know someone really well, the best thing to do is to directly hear from that person. So, who better to reveal God than God Himself?

Verse 3 states two key truths about who Jesus is: “He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact representation of His nature.”

Exodus 34 tells us how Moses’ face shone because He had been talking with God, so much so that the people were afraid to come near. Jesus’ glory is even greater. Unlike Moses, Jesus doesn’t merely reflect glory, He radiates it, for He Himself is glorious.

The way for us to know God is by knowing His Son. Jesus is the Prophet we need because only He can reveal God fully to us. Only the Son can show us the Father’s glory: His grace, mercy, steadfast love, patience, compassion, faithfulness, holiness, and righteousness.

Therefore, we should pay careful attention to Jesus. At the Transfiguration, God the Father said this of Him, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to Him.”

Jesus is the Priest we need.

Because of our helplessness, we need Jesus the true King to rule over us. Because of our ignorance, we need Jesus, the ultimate Prophet, to reveal God to us. Because of our guilt and shame, we need Jesus, the perfect Priest, to save us.

We have all sinned against God, who made us to worship Him. But instead of glorifying Him, we have turned aside to our own ways. As long as we are not right with God, we will keep searching for ways to deal with our guilt and shame. Some may try to harden their conscience by denying their wrongdoing. Some may throw themselves into their work. Some may try to distract themselves with pleasure. Others may try to do good works, hoping to earn enough merit.

Jesus is better than any of our attempts at self-help. God has spoken to us through His Son, not just in word, but also in action, because Jesus took upon Himself the sin of all who would repent and believe in Him.

God, whose grace reaches undeserving sinners like us, has sent His beloved Son to save the guilty. When we trust in Jesus to save us, He exchanges our guilt for His perfect righteousness. Only Jesus can make us truly clean and right with God.

Jesus is the perfect Prophet, Priest, and King who meets our deepest need. Let us lay our burdens at the feet of Jesus and rest in His finished work. God has spoken to us through His Son. Let us not neglect such a great salvation, or trust or hope in anything else. Jesus is better. Jesus is enough. 

Sunday 17 May 2026: Daniel

We can see Jesus in the book of Daniel through key prophecies and visions that we can interpret as referring to Jesus.

Daniel 9:24-26

²⁴ “Seventy ‘sevens’ are decreed for your people and your holy city to finish transgression, to put an end to sin, to atone for wickedness, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy and to anoint the Most Holy Place.

²⁵ “Know and understand this: From the time the word goes out to restore and rebuild Jerusalem until the Anointed One, the ruler, comes, there will be seven ‘sevens,’ and sixty-two ‘sevens.’ It will be rebuilt with streets and a trench, but in times of trouble. ²⁶ After the sixty-two ‘sevens,’ the Anointed One will be put to death and will have nothing. The people of the ruler who will come will destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end will come like a flood: War will continue until the end, and desolations have been decreed.

This prophecy dictates a timeline of seventy weeks which lead up to the coming of the Messiah who would be put to death and predicts Jesus’ suffering and death to our sins.

The “seventy weeks” prophecy is one of the most significant and detailed Messianic prophecies of the Old Testament. This chapter begins with Daniel praying for Israel, acknowledging the nation’s sins against God and asking for God’s mercy. As Daniel prayed, the angel Gabriel appeared to him and gave him a vision of Israel’s future.

Almost all commentators agree that the seventy “sevens” should be understood as seventy “weeks” of years, in other words, a period of 490 years. These verses provide a sort of “clock” that gives an idea of when the Messiah would come and some of the events that would accompany His appearance.

Daniel 10:5-6

⁵ I looked up and there before me was a man dressed in linen, with a belt of fine gold from Uphaz around his waist. ⁶ His body was like topaz, his face like lightning, his eyes like flaming torches, his arms and legs like the gleam of burnished bronze, and his voice like the sound of a multitude.

Daniel saw a vision of a man dressed in linen whose appearance was dazzling and is understood to be a pre-incarnate appearance of Jesus – that means it is an appearance before His physical birth as a baby in Bethlehem. The description also resembles the description of the Lord Jesus in Revelation 1:13-16.

Revelation 1:13-16

¹³ and among the lampstands was someone like a son of man, dressed in a robe reaching down to his feet and with a golden sash around his chest. ¹⁴ The hair on his head was white like wool, as white as snow, and his eyes were like blazing fire. ¹⁵ His feet were like bronze glowing in a furnace, and his voice was like the sound of rushing waters. ¹⁶ In his right hand he held seven stars, and coming out of his mouth was a sharp, double-edged sword. His face was like the sun shining in all its brilliance.

Daniel 3:1-25

¹ King Nebuchadnezzar made an image of gold, sixty cubits high and six cubits wide, and set it up on the plain of Dura in the province of Babylon. ² He then summoned the satraps, prefects, governors, advisers, treasurers, judges, magistrates and all the other provincial officials to come to the dedication of the image he had set up. ³ So the satraps, prefects, governors, advisers, treasurers, judges, magistrates and all the other provincial officials assembled for the dedication of the image that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up, and they stood before it.

⁴ Then the herald loudly proclaimed, “Nations and peoples of every language, this is what you are commanded to do: ⁵ As soon as you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe and all kinds of music, you must fall down and worship the image of gold that King Nebuchadnezzar has set up. ⁶ Whoever does not fall down and worship will immediately be thrown into a blazing furnace.”

⁷ Therefore, as soon as they heard the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp and all kinds of music, all the nations and peoples of every language fell down and worshiped the image of gold that King Nebuchadnezzar had set up.

⁸ At this time some astrologers came forward and denounced the Jews. ⁹ They said to King Nebuchadnezzar, “May the king live forever! ¹⁰ Your Majesty has issued a decree that everyone who hears the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe and all kinds of music must fall down and worship the image of gold, ¹¹ and that whoever does not fall down and worship will be thrown into a blazing furnace. ¹² But there are some Jews whom you have set over the affairs of the province of Babylon – Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego – who pay no attention to you, Your Majesty. They neither serve your gods nor worship the image of gold you have set up.”

¹³ Furious with rage, Nebuchadnezzar summoned Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. So these men were brought before the king, ¹⁴ and Nebuchadnezzar said to them, “Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, that you do not serve my gods or worship the image of gold I have set up? ¹⁵ Now when you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipe and all kinds of music, if you are ready to fall down and worship the image I made, very good. But if you do not worship it, you will be thrown immediately into a blazing furnace. Then what god will be able to rescue you from my hand?”

¹⁶ Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to him, “King Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. ¹⁷ If we are thrown into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand. ¹⁸ But even if he does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.”

¹⁹ Then Nebuchadnezzar was furious with Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, and his attitude toward them changed. He ordered the furnace heated seven times hotter than usual ²⁰ and commanded some of the strongest soldiers in his army to tie up Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego and throw them into the blazing furnace. ²¹ So these men, wearing their robes, trousers, turbans and other clothes, were bound and thrown into the blazing furnace. ²² The king’s command was so urgent and the furnace so hot that the flames of the fire killed the soldiers who took up Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, ²³ and these three men, firmly tied, fell into the blazing furnace.

²⁴ Then King Nebuchadnezzar leaped to his feet in amazement and asked his advisers, “Weren’t there three men that we tied up and threw into the fire?”

They replied, “Certainly, Your Majesty.”

²⁵ He said, “Look! I see four men walking around in the fire, unbound and unharmed, and the fourth looks like a son of the gods.”

In the account of what happened to Daniel and his friends Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego through demonstrating their total faithfulness to God, we get another glimpse of Jesus. Nebuchadnezzar sees a fourth man in the fiery furnace and describes the man as looking like the son of God. Just as the fourth figure protected the three young men, Jesus is viewed as the one who steps into the "fires" (trials and sufferings) of life to walk with, sustain, and deliver His followers.

Daniel 7:2-18

² Daniel said: “In my vision at night I looked, and there before me were the four winds of heaven churning up the great sea. ³ Four great beasts, each different from the others, came up out of the sea.

⁴ “The first was like a lion, and it had the wings of an eagle. I watched until its wings were torn off and it was lifted from the ground so that it stood on two feet like a human being, and the mind of a human was given to it.

⁵ “And there before me was a second beast, which looked like a bear. It was raised up on one of its sides, and it had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth. It was told, ‘Get up and eat your fill of flesh!’

⁶ “After that, I looked, and there before me was another beast, one that looked like a leopard. And on its back it had four wings like those of a bird. This beast had four heads, and it was given authority to rule.

⁷ “After that, in my vision at night I looked, and there before me was a fourth beast –terrifying and frightening and very powerful. It had large iron teeth; it crushed and devoured its victims and trampled underfoot whatever was left. It was different from all the former beasts, and it had ten horns.

⁸ “While I was thinking about the horns, there before me was another horn, a little one, which came up among them; and three of the first horns were uprooted before it. This horn had eyes like the eyes of a human being and a mouth that spoke boastfully.

⁹ “As I looked, “thrones were set in place, and the Ancient of Days took his seat. His clothing was as white as snow; the hair of his head was white like wool. His throne was flaming with fire, and its wheels were all ablaze.

¹⁰ A river of fire was flowing, coming out from before him. Thousands upon thousands attended him; ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him. The court was seated, and the books were opened.

¹¹ “Then I continued to watch because of the boastful words the horn was speaking. I kept looking until the beast was slain and its body destroyed and thrown into the blazing fire. ¹² (The other beasts had been stripped of their authority, but were allowed to live for a period of time.)

¹³ “In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. ¹⁴ He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all nations and peoples of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.

The Interpretation of the Dream

¹⁵ “I, Daniel, was troubled in spirit, and the visions that passed through my mind disturbed me. ¹⁶ I approached one of those standing there and asked him the meaning of all this.

“So he told me and gave me the interpretation of these things: ¹⁷ ‘The four great beasts are four kings that will rise from the earth. ¹⁸ But the holy people of the Most High will receive the kingdom and will possess it forever – yes, for ever and ever.’

Daniel had a vision of four beasts – a lion, a bear, a leopard and a terrifying fourth beast – each of these beasts are thought to represent four fallen Empires. Then in the vision Daniel sees a little horn that is thought to represent the anti-Christ and spoke boastfully. Almost as if in response, Daniel receives a vision of the thrones of heaven and in that he saw the Ancient of Days come to take His place at the throne. The throne was flaming with fire and a river of fire was coming out from before Him. The vision describes the vast number who stood before Him and when the court was seated, the books were opened. Daniel goes on to describe that he continued to watch the vision because of the boastful words that the horn was speaking, and continued to watch while the beast was slain and thrown into the fire.

Then we come to the vision of Jesus in verses 13 and 14 that Daniel saw. This is the picture and prediction of the ascension of Jesus from heaven’s perspective. That was the prophetic vision but now let's look at it from an earthly perspective.

The account of the ascension in Luke 24:50-53 is rather short and succinct.

Luke 24:50-53

⁵⁰ When he had led them out to the vicinity of Bethany, he lifted up his hands and blessed them. ⁵¹ While he was blessing them, he left them and was taken up into heaven. ⁵² Then they worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy. ⁵³ And they stayed continually at the temple, praising God.

However, the account in the Book of Acts Chapter 1 is rather more descriptive:

Acts 1:6-11

⁶ Then they gathered around him and asked him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?”

⁷ He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. ⁸ But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

⁹ After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight.

¹⁰ They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. ¹¹ “Men of Galilee,” they said, “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.”

In this account we see Jesus rising up from a hill near Bethany where a cloud hid him from sight of those on earth. In Daniel’s vision we see the lord coming with the clouds of heaven and being led into the presence of God where he was then given authority, glory and sovereign power. This vision describes the everlasting dominion that will see Jesus reign for ever and ever and the prediction that all nations and people of every language will worship him.

I find it quite astonishing that starting with just a few followers in just one part of the world, Christianity could have become so widespread and reached almost all parts of the world, although we know that not all nations accept and allow Christianity to be practised as a religion.

What a vision it must have been for Daniel to see. A vision of Jesus ascending into heaven and being seated at Gods right hand. From the earthly perspective, the apostles only saw Jesus disappearing into clouds, but Daniel saw Jesus appearing from the clouds. Of course, both are true – Jesus did disappear from earthly view but remains visible in the heavenly realm and firmly reigns forever as the King of Kings.

We can learn a lot from the Book of Daniel:

1. Daniel 9:24-26 – From this passage we can see the promise God makes and fulfils. This gives us the confidence that we can trust God’s ultimate plan and trust that this is perfectly made. If we feel lost or unsure, we can rest in the knowledge that God has a plan for us.

2. Daniel 10:5-6 – Daniel’s vision was an answer to 21 days of fasting and praying earnestly. This should be an encouragement to us to remain persistent and faithful in our prayers even when the answers to our prayers are delayed in our eyes or go unanswered.

3. Daniel 3:1-25 – There was no hope for the three Jews when they were thrown into the fiery furnace, but the Lord was there with them. When we are faithful and cry out to the Lord, he is either saves us from our troubles, or he is with us in our troubles. (Deuteronomy 31:6 – Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.)

4. Daniel 7:2-18 – The vision of the Son of Man that Daniel received encourages us that in times of distress, God remains faithful. It shifts our focus from earthly anxiety to eternal hope and reminds us of the reality of Jesus’ past, present and future reign. Jesus is ‘t just a past king or a future king – he holds dominion, glory and the kingdom right now, so we need to obey Him in everything we do. 

Sunday 10 May 2026: Isaiah 53:3-12

One of the great advantages of having the Old Testament and the New Testament in one Bible is that they give support to each other. Together, they strengthen our faith that both are God’s Word.

So, if you are Jewish, or come from a Jewish background, your confidence in the Old Testament may be strong – and with good reason. And so when we see the amazing fulfilments of the Old Testament in the life and ministry of Jesus Christ, and His teachings, and the movement of Christianity that He set in motion, our confidence in the New Testament is made stronger.

Or, if you have only ever read the New Testament, then you discover that Jesus embraces and endorses the whole of the Old Testament as true and reliable Scripture. You will find in Matthew 5:17 that Jesus said, “Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfil”. This, and other similar references, will grow your confidence in the Old Testament because of the New Testament.

And that is how things work all through the Christian life. The better we know Jesus Christ, the better we know the roots of His life and ministry in the Old Testament where God was at work to prepare for the coming of His Son into history. And the better we know the Old Testament, the better we know the meaning of Jesus Christ and what He came to fulfil that God had been planning for so long.

So, perhaps it would deepen our understanding and strengthen our faith if we considered the resurrection of Jesus as it was described by the prophet Isaiah 700 years before it happened? Here, in Isaiah 53, we will see the content and the confirmation of the resurrection of Christ – content, because the precious meaning of it for our lives is opened-up to us; and confirmation, because it was predicted 700 years before it happened.

This is the significance of our text from Isaiah 53 this morning. This chapter was not written by Christians after Christ’s coming, trying to distort, or failing to understand, what really happened on Good Friday and Easter. This chapter was written by a Jewish prophet 700 years before Christ came. And what he saw in the future was not a Messiah who escapes death and resurrection, but a Messiah who dies – and dies in the place of sinners – and then rises again to intercede for those who are redeemed and forgiven and justified people forever.

So, our reading gives us the prophecy that the Servant of the Lord, the Messiah, would die and rise again, and that this death and resurrection are planned by God, and necessary. As we look at this, let us keep in mind that it has to do with us here and now, and for the rest of our lives and eternity. What becomes clear from this chapter, and from its fulfilment in the New Testament, is that our sins can be forgiven, we can be declared righteous before God, and we can have eternal life with the risen Christ in everlasting joy.

First, let’s notice that the promised Servant of the Lord was to die, and why.

The death is made explicit in verse 8 where it says, “By oppression and judgment he was taken away. Yet who of his generation protested? For he was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgression of my people he was punished.”
To say, “He was cut off out of the land of the living,” is to mean He was killed. It was execution, not accidental.

Then, verse 9 makes the death clear by referring to His burial: “He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death, though he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth.” He died, and He was buried, which allows us to focus simply on the fact that the death of God’s redeeming Servant is predicted clearly.

And there is one more confirmation from the first part of verse 12, which says: “Therefore I will give him a portion among the great, and he will divide the spoils with the strong, because he poured out his life unto death.”

Now, why did He die? Ten times we are told why. Before I mention them, let us note what it says in verse 10, “Yet it was the Lord’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer.” This death is not a historical accident. It is the purpose and plan of God. So, as we hear these ten statements of why He died, let us keep in mind that these are God’s purposes, not human accidents, and they are an expression of God’s love to us. Here are ten reasons why God planned for His holy Servant to die:

1. Verse 4: “Surely he took up our pain.”
2. Again, in verse 4: “He bore our suffering.”
3. Verse 5: “He was pierced for our transgressions.”
4. Verse 5 again: “He was crushed for our iniquities.”
5. Further in verse 5: “The punishment that brought us peace was on him.”
6. Lastly in verse 5: “By his wounds we are healed.”
7. Verse 6: “The Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.”
8. Verse 8: “For the transgression of my people he was punished.”
9. Verse 11: “He will bear their iniquities.”
10. Verse 12: “He bore the sin of many.”

In a sense, this is the essence of Christianity. This is the heart of it. All of us have gone astray. All of us have turned to our own ways, and have sinned. But God was not willing to leave us in this guilty and condemned condition. He planned from ages past to send a Suffering Servant, the Man of Sorrows.

He sent Him to bear our sins as a substitute for us. “The Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.” This is the heart of Christianity. Jesus Christ came into the world to fulfil this prophecy – and many others besides – but this one is central and basic. He came to die. He came to die in our place. He came to die for our sins. This is our hope. And the New Testament is all about how this happened and how it affects our lives now, and in the time to come.

Now, what about the resurrection? At least three times Isaiah tells us that the sacrifice the Suffering Servant made in dying results in a resurrection triumph. He does not use the word “resurrection,” but the reality is plain.

First, in verse 10, it says: “The Lord makes his life an offering for sin,” from which three things result: “(1) He will see His offspring; (2) He will prolong His days; and, (3) the will of the Lord will prosper in his hand.”

In other words, if He dies for others as a guilt offering and as a substitute, He will (1) live to see His offspring which is those whom He has saved by dying for them; (2) live for a long time; and, 3) God’s great purposes will triumph in His hands. This is a picture of the Messiah who was dead and is alive, and victorious forever as the Lord of all those who receive His salvation.

Then, we see in verse 11 that triumph comes from death. “After he has suffered, he will see the light of life and be satisfied; by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many, and he will bear their iniquities.”

Again, there are three outcomes from His dying for sinners: (1) He sees the fruit of His death and is satisfied. He is not dead, but living. His work is complete, and He is glad; (2) He justifies all those who trust in Him. If we trust in Him, we are declared just and righteous before God. That is what “justify” means. And (3) “He will bear their iniquities.” He bore these iniquities when He died, and He continues doing so forever in the sense that, as long as He lives, it is sufficient to pay for all our sins.

He is satisfied. We are justified. And all our sins are carried by another forever. We will never bear them again.

Finally, in verse 12. God says, “Therefore I will give him a portion among the great, and he will divide the spoils with the strong, because he poured out his life unto death.” His death was a great triumph in war where the spoils are divided among His chosen ones.

Let us end on this note. The resurrection of Jesus happened for His sake, as well as for ours. It was for His sake because verse 11 says: “He will see it and be satisfied.” Christ was raised from the dead for His satisfaction. Let us praise Him and glorify Him for His great work of salvation on the cross! 

But what is the Son satisfied with? Part of Jesus’ satisfaction in the resurrection is looking out on a great assembly of people from every race, language and nation who have trusted Him and been forgiven and justified. And with tremendous joy He walks among them now and in the ages to come. And He divides the spoils of His triumphs with them all. This is what He loves to do. This is His satisfaction. He delights to save. He loves to bring people from death to life so they can enjoy His majesty forever.

Are we in that company whom Jesus delights to save? We can belong to that great and strong company, even though we are unworthy and undeserving. That is the whole point of the death of Christ. He died in our place. And all who trust Him as their Lord and Saviour will be forgiven and justified and live forever with Him. 

Sunday 26 April 2026: Exodus 12:1-14

If we want to know what Christianity is all about, the obvious place to start would be with the four Gospels in the New Testament. That’s where my personal journey with God began in earnest. I had already been confirmed by then, and I was given a confirmation gift of a New Testament by the vicar at the time.

I had found myself in a difficult place in my teenage years, but turning to my New Testament helped me start to make sense of things. The four Gospels told me, from a number of different perspectives, about the life of Jesus. It was a great place to learn about Him and what His life, death, and resurrection mean.

But now, I can also turn to other places in the Bible. It was only this week, whilst researching what I would say today, that I discovered certain people refer to a ‘fifth gospel’. Have you ever heard of that? Well, those people suggest the fifth gospel is Exodus. Why? Because Exodus, and the four Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, describe a mediator chosen by God to save His people. They all involve a covenant where God establishes a new way for His people to relate to Him.

In the four New Testament Gospels, Jesus is the mediator, but in Exodus, that mediator is Moses.

So, if we want to know what Christianity is all about, we might be able to get an idea from the Book of Exodus in the same way that we would from Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. In fact, we could look in a single chapter of Exodus – chapter 12 – part of which we are looking at today, because it provides us with essential insights about ourselves and God. Potentially, it could be enough to change our lives. It could be enough to help us grasp the overarching principles of the Bible. It gives us a rich understanding of who we are, of what God wants from us, and of what God has done for us.

In this passage about the Passover, I suggest we discover three things that all of us need to know about God and about ourselves.

1. We need a new beginning

I wonder what we see as the most important date in our lives? Is it our birthday? Our wedding anniversary? Or a date that nobody else knows about, but which is significant because something important happened? Could it be an event that marked us and, because of what happened, we will never be the same again? Nowadays, with our phones, tablets and computers, we might even get a photo or a message popping up to remind us about that special day.

When Exodus was written, cultures varied in how they organised their calendars. Apparently, the most common way to organise the year was around the harvest because, when whole lives revolve around farming, then that becomes the thing that shapes life and time.

In this passage, though, God changes that, because He gives His people a new beginning. He has redefined their calendar, giving them a new, important, reference point.

Verses 1 and 2 say, ‘The Lord said to Moses and Aaron in Egypt, “This month is to be for you the first month of your year.” And verse 14 says, ‘This is a day you are to commemorate; for the generations to come you shall celebrate it as a festival to the Lord – a lasting ordinance.’

God is saying it is a new beginning that must never be forgotten. From now on, the Passover will be the thing that defines the year. Just as some in England celebrated St George’s Day this week, Israel would celebrate the Passover forever. It is the day that God gave them the deliverance that they needed, and Jews today continue to observe and celebrate the Passover.

The night before Jesus died, He celebrated the Passover with His friends. As He did so, He took some bread and said, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” He then took the cup, and said, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.” At this Passover meal, Jesus told us that He was offering us a new beginning.

Although our current calendar suggests otherwise, Jesus’ death and resurrection for us, as Christians, is the first month and the defining date for the rest of our lives.

We need a new beginning. The ‘fifth gospel’ according to Moses tells us that God gives us new beginnings, a fresh start in which He delivers us, and from which nothing will ever be the same. 

I read this week that someone suggested: “Christianity isn’t about making nice people. It’s about making new people.” Have we experienced this new beginning? If we have never come to the cross and had our burdens removed, and then being forgiven and renewed, then we can experience that new beginning today. If we confess our sins before God and ask Him to do for us what we cannot do for ourselves, we can have that new beginning right now if we come to Jesus.

We need a new beginning. But that’s not all we learn in this passage.

2. We are all the same

We know the formula. In most films, there is a good guy and a bad guy. The good guy isn’t perfect. He or she has to struggle so we can relate to them. But they have to be basically good and likeable. And the bad guy isn’t usually all bad. But it is clear that one is basically good, and the other is basically a villain. That’s the way most stories work.

And that’s how it is in Exodus. The book sets us up to see Israel as the good guys and Egypt – particularly Pharaoh – as bad. Israel is the nation that God has chosen, whilst Egypt is the oppressor, keeping them in slavery. Pharaoh refuses to let them go, and he keeps making life harder for them.

In the passage for today, God levels the playing field. God deals with the bad guys. He says in verse 13, “And when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and no plague will befall you to destroy you, when I strike the land of Egypt.”

This is to say the Israelites deserve the judgment of death just as much as the Egyptians. They were sinners deserving of death. So, the Israelites had to daub the blood on the doorposts precisely because they were as guilty as the Egyptians, and needed a substitute to die in their place if they were to avoid the judgment of death. The blood is daubed around the doors, not because God can’t tell who is inside the house, but because He can! He knows there are sinners inside.

On many occasions, I have suggested we are unique because each of us has a particular talent or offering to make that marks us out as special – and we are. But, today, I am also suggesting we are all the same. There are no truly good people, because all of us have sinned. All of us, in some way, have fallen short of God’s glory. There is no room for us to be proud, because we have all been corrupted by sin.

But this is also why there is hope for all of us. Because we are all sinners, there is hope for all of us in the forgiveness that Jesus offers. His grace and mercy are sufficient for us all.

We need a new beginning. We are all the same. Then we learn one more thing:

3. We need a Substitute

In the early verses of our reading, God gives specific instructions about how Israel is to celebrate the Passover. They are to take a lamb, and the lamb has to be perfect, without blemish. At twilight, the entire nation is to kill their lambs together. They are to take some of the blood and put it on the sides and tops of the door-frames, and then they are to eat the lamb in haste.

Why does there have to be a lamb without blemish? And what’s with the blood smeared on the posts? It actually has to do with what happens that night. Further on, in chapter 12, verse 29, it says, “At midnight the Lord struck down all the firstborn in Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh, who sat on his throne, to the firstborn of the prisoner, who was in the dungeon, and the firstborn of all the livestock as well.”

Every house experienced death, and the death count was the same. The only difference was who died – a lamb or a child? The lamb became a sacrifice, a substitute. The lamb died in place of someone else. It paid the penalty for the judgment that the house rightly deserved.

Of course, we all know that a lamb – even a spotless lamb – is not a fair exchange for a human life. We need a better substitute, someone who can really take our place. That’s why John the Baptist looked at Jesus one day and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” There is a Lamb who is spotless, who is able to act as our substitute, taking the death that we deserve!

Peter, one of Jesus’ closest followers, in 1 Peter 1:19-20 said, “You were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot.”

We need a new beginning. We’re all the same. We need a substitute. We need deliverance, and God responds with deliverance. He gives us the new beginning that we need. He provides the substitute so that we can be free from the judgment of God. He delivers us.

God not only responds by delivering us, but He reminds us. In fact, a little later in our worship, we are going to allow Him to remind us once again as we celebrate part of the Passover meal as Jesus commanded us. Just as God gave Israel the Passover, He has given us Communion so that we never forget. We are going to remember: this is what Jesus has done for us.

If we trust in Jesus, then we can rejoice in what He has done for us. If we haven’t yet, then we can come to the cross today. Lose our burdens. Be forgiven. Let today be our new beginning. 

Sunday 19 April 2026: Genesis 22:1-19

Today’s passage is one of the most remarkable accounts in the entire Bible. It is likely to conjure-up for you, as it does for me, all sorts of curious feelings, thoughts and emotions. But when we examine in a little more depth what is going on here, perhaps we will see God’s greater purpose revealed?

Abraham is commanded to sacrifice Isaac as a burnt offering. How would we react if God told us to do such a thing? I can only begin to imagine the horror of such a command if it were given to me. All of us who are parents would surely lay down our own lives rather than see our children perish.

Would God tell someone to do this today? I suggest not, because the question to Abraham, and his response, were unique – a one-off – in the history of human relationships with God. It was for a specific purpose, and once and for all fulfilled.

But let us also note that, in giving this command to Abraham, God described Isaac as: “Your only son, whom you love”. Does that sound at all familiar? If John 3:16 came to your mind, then you had the same thought that I did. Whilst God did not allow Abraham to follow through with the sacrifice of Isaac, He did follow through with the sacrifice of His own Son, Jesus, whom He loved. God gave us a human story of a father being prepared to sacrifice his only son so we would understand God’s great sorrow when sacrificing His only Son whom He loved.

We learn that Abraham rose early in the morning and saddled his donkey. There is not the slightest hint of hesitation on Abraham's part. Abraham got up early, but how could he have slept at all that night? Might he not have been pacing the room, wringing his hands with worry, praying hard for a reprieve? Abraham is trusting God, even when he does not understand. He did not ask questions or speak to anyone else about it. He knew what he had to do and he did not delay.

They went to the mountain that God had chosen – a region that is now modern-day Jerusalem, which is significant. Then, on the third day – another parallel with events concerning the death of Jesus – Abraham lifted his eyes and saw the place in the distance. Abraham tells his accompanying servants to wait while he and Isaac go to worship – the first mention of ‘worship’ in the Bible.

In the final words of verse 5, Abraham tells his servants, “We will come back to you.” His use of ‘we’ instead of ‘I’ tells of his faith that, should he kill Isaac, God would raise him from the dead, because God had promised that Isaac would live to have children and continue Abraham’s line. Abraham knew anything was possible, but also that God would not break His promise.

We then see Isaac carry the wood up the hill for his own sacrifice, just as Jesus carried His wooden cross up the hill for His own crucifixion. And Abraham took the fire and the knife, signalling his full intention to obey God’s command, but also his faith that God would provide a way out.

Imagine the horror of Isaac at the prospect of the being the sacrifice. But he doesn’t question what is about to happen. He doesn’t try to overpower his father and escape – although surely he could, being so much younger and fitter. No, he willingly lies down on the altar, just as Jesus willingly laid down His life for us.

Then, in verse 10, we read that “Abraham reached out his hand and took the knife to slay his son.” We must believe that Abraham was fully willing to plunge the knife into Isaac, because his faith was in God's ability to raise Isaac from the dead. Abraham showed his love for God in that he was willing to give his only son. God shows His love for us in the same way, by giving His only Son.

By God seeing Abraham’s willing obedience and love, the actual sacrifice is no longer necessary. The Angel of the LORD instructs Abraham not to lay a hand on the boy, and Isaac is spared. Instead, a ram, caught in a nearby thicket, is provided for the sacrifice.

We learn that it was not God’s intention that Isaac should die, but that Abraham, in his heart, should be prepared to sacrifice his only son to prove his love and obedience to God. When put to the test in this way, Abraham was not found wanting.

When we are tested, it is so that our character will be strengthened and our commitment to God will be deepened. We will come to be assured that the timing of God’s blessings and provision is perfect. 

Sunday 12 April 2026: Genesis 3:1-20

In this chapter of the Old Testament, we get our first glimpse of Jesus and the promise of His coming. In chapter 2, we read that God commanded the man and woman to rule over the creatures of the earth and that they were free to eat of any tree in the garden, except the tree of knowledge of good and evil. But when the serpent entered the garden, things changed. Verse 1 says, ‘Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made’. What was different about the serpent than the other animals is the link made to Satan, and we can read this in Revelation 12:9.

The serpent was devious and clever, and he was able to put doubt into the mind of Eve when he asked, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?” The serpent caused Eve to doubt God for the first time, but what was clever about the deceit of the serpent was that he started by exaggerating God’s command. He knew that Adam and Eve had only been forbidden to eat from one tree, but the serpent asked whether God said that they must not eat from any tree.

After Eve clarified what God had said, the serpent comes right back with an explanation as to why God had forbidden them to eat the fruit, thus putting temptation in Eve’s mind. At this point, Eve has a choice to make. She can either believe God without question, or she can believe the serpent. There is nothing in the scripture to suggest that God had ever given Eve a reason to doubt His word and His character, but the serpent had cleverly tempted Eve by making the fruit desirable and something that would benefit her. This suddenly made the fruit more attractive. It looked good and therefore would probably taste good as well, and if what the serpent said was true, the fruit would make Eve wise like God. And that was when the fall happened. Eve plucked the fruit, ate it and then gave some to Adam.

The serpent was the one who deceived Eve which caused her to sin, but both Adam and Eve needed to take responsibility for disobeying God. This is where the blame shifting starts. Adam blamed Eve and Eve blamed the serpent. However, we then come on to both judgement and hope. God judged all three of them, but the distinct difference between the judgement of Adam and Eve and the judgement of the serpent, is the hope and promise through Jesus.

God said ‘And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.”

God promised the serpent that a serpent crusher would come one day. The serpent was told that although he would strike the heal of him, the woman’s offspring would deal a fatal blow to him.

Genesis 3:15 is called the Protoevangelium – it is the first announcement of the Gospel – the Good News. It predicts the perpetual hostility between Satan and the woman who represents all mankind, and between Satan’s seed and her seed, which is the Messiah. The seed of the woman would go on to destroy the serpent, in other words would crush Satan. It is the first Gospel, representing the earliest proclamation of God’s redemptive plan for humanity following the fall into sin. The serpent will cause the offspring to suffer (but only a little bit), but the suffering offspring will destroy the serpent. This took place at Calvary when Jesus decisively triumphed over the Devil and defeated death. Satan, in turn, would bruise the Messiah’s heel, which here speaks of suffering and even physical death but not of ultimate defeat. Christ suffered on the cross and died, but He arose from the dead, victorious over sin and Satan.

This passage points to the promise of Jesus’ birth, His redemption and His victory over Satan. The woman’s offspring is Jesus, and being born of a virgin this literally makes Him the offspring of a woman. Being the Son of Man, Jesus is the perfect representative of all of humankind. The devil’s offspring are evil men and evil forces, who, just like the serpent, lay in wait for the Saviour and strike Him.

Matthew 12:34 says, ‘You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good.’

This was Jesus addressing the Pharisees, whose venomous conspiracy condemned Jesus to be crucified. But of course, the serpent strike did not take down Jesus, for even though He died, He rose again on the third day, thus breaking the power of death and winning the ultimate victory. It was through the cross that Jesus crushed the head of the Devil that would defeat him forever.

Satan is still active in this world, picking his prey and feeding sin. But his days are numbered. Revelation 20:10 says, ‘And the devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulphur, where the beast and the false prophet had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night for ever and ever.’ Until that time comes, there will continue to be enmity between Satan and God’s children.

The judgement placed on Adam and Eve also contained hope. Although Eve would suffer through painful childbirth, this would bring new life into the world. Although Adam would have to endure painful toil, it would bring forth food that would sustain life.

1 John 3:8 says, ‘The one who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work.’

God is a merciful God. He could have placed judgement over Adam and Eve and severed the relationship completely, but God already knew this would happen before it happened. God already had a plan in place to send Jesus to save us right from the very start, from the very moment that sin entered the world. Isn’t that incredible? It wasn’t something that God decided to do at the last minute; it was carefully planned so that we could be reconciled to God. Satan was forming his plan to use the serpent to deceive Eve, but God was way ahead of him, having already planned for the serpent crusher, Jesus, to perfectly and ultimately fulfil God’s mission. 

Sunday 5 April 2026: Luke 24:1-12

Easter Day

The pyramids of Egypt are famous because they contain the mummified bodies of ancient Egyptian kings. Westminster Abbey is famous because, within it, rests the remains of the good and the not so good of notable Britons. The huge war grave sites in Belgium and northern France are famous because thousands of allied troops are buried there.

So, a rhetorical question to ask is: “Why is The Garden Tomb in Jerusalem famous?” Because, unlike any of those other famous burial sites I have just mentioned, this tomb is empty.

Just like the empty cross that we considered a little earlier in the service, the empty Garden Tomb means that the body of Jesus is not there. He rose on the third day as promised! And His resurrection is now the cornerstone of our faith. 

Without the resurrection, you and I would not be here in a Christian church today. Remember the despair of the disciples after Jesus’ crucifixion? They were thinking that the past three years they had spent with Him had all been in vain. The Apostle Paul tells the Corinthians in his first letter at chapter 15 verse 4: “If Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith.” But the resurrection changed everything.

Verse 8 of our reading from Luke contains just five words which could easily be overlooked. It comes after the moment when the two angels told the women who had gone to tend the body of Jesus that He had risen, and reminded them that Jesus Himself had predicted this would happen. Verse 8 says, ‘Then they remembered His words.’ Everything changed. Grief and sorrow turned to excitement and joy.

In an instant, perhaps those women realised the power and significance of the resurrection? Perhaps they immediately understood Jesus’ victory over sin and death, because they remembered His words?

The resurrection of Jesus is unique. Whist other religions have their own scriptures, ethical beliefs, and thoughts about the afterlife, it is only Christianity that has a God who became human, who physically died for His people, and was raised in glory to reign for ever!

The first witnesses to the Easter miracle was that group of women. What an honour this must have been! And we might wonder why God chose women.

The women made the discovery because they were the first people who tried to render a service to their crucified Lord. They went to the tomb to anoint the body with spices, as was the Jewish custom, and discovered that Jesus had risen. The fact that women were the first witnesses of Easter is powerful evidence for the authenticity of the resurrection account.

In the Jewish culture of that time, a woman’s testimony was not accepted, except in rare circumstances or if accompanied by a man. So, if the four Gospels were fabricated stories, their writers would surely have placed men disciples at the tomb, and not a group of women. Incidentally, these were the same women who had stayed at the cross with Jesus when most of the disciples had fled.

We will all know that sceptics of every age have trouble with the resurrection. They will ask questions like, “Do you want us to believe that a dead man walked out of his grave?” Sadly, that was also the attitude of Jesus’ disciples when they first heard the news. But something earth-shattering happened on that first Easter Sunday morning and any objective observer can tell that.

Within a short period following the death of Jesus, this little band of depressed, perhaps even cowardly, men was transformed into a courageous and charismatic team of evangelists who spread the resurrection news right across the world. Ten of the original disciples were killed for their beliefs. Their lives would have been spared if they had just denied that Jesus rose from the dead. But they would not.

According to Luke’s account of what happened on that first Easter morning, two men in dazzling white clothes met the women at Jesus’ tomb. As the women bowed in fear and awe, the angels gave them certain instructions. What they told the women, and by extension you and me, is how to follow the resurrected Jesus. And what are these requirements?

First, we must know where to find Jesus. The angels told the women that they were looking for Jesus in the wrong place. “Don’t search for the living among the dead,” they said. But at least the women were searching. Which is more than we can say for the disciples. They were huddled in fear and despair behind locked doors.

There is a beautiful promise in the book of Jeremiah about those who search for God: ‘You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart;’ declares the Lord. That is what the women were doing and that is what is needed of us – to seek the Lord earnestly among the living; among those we encounter in our everyday lives; among those we serve and worship with in our churches – and there we will find Him.

Second, we must remember God’s words. The angels said to the women, ‘Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee: “The Son of Man must be delivered over to the hands of sinners, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.”’ And what follows is those five words from verse 8, ‘Then they remembered his words’.

Jesus Himself said: ‘Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.’ Today, we are blessed in that we have His words always with us in our Bibles. But we would be well advised to read them; to understand them; and, to recall them – as our comfort, our guide, our inspiration, and our hope.

Third, we must believe the Good News. Those who were here last week will remember the ‘God-incidence’ of Phillip meeting the Ethiopian eunuch who was reading aloud about the suffering Messiah from the book of Isaiah as he passed by. Philip heard him and went to explain its meaning. Immediately, the Eunuch believed the Good News about Jesus and asked Philip to Baptise him.

In a similar way, the moment the women at Jesus’ tomb heard the Good News that their crucified Lord had risen, they believed it! But that wasn’t the case for the disciples. We all know that one of them, Doubting Thomas, went as far as to say that he would not believe unless, and until, he saw and touched Jesus’ wounds. Later Jesus showed Thomas his wounds and then said: ‘Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.’

I don’t know how that makes you feel, but perhaps Jesus’ statement is of great comfort to us? Jesus is speaking to you and me. We have yet to see Jesus in this life. We have not had the chance to put our fingers in His wounds. We do not have the physical proof that He was raised from the dead. So, Jesus understands it is harder for you and me to believe than for Thomas, and He counts us as blessed for that.

Finally, we must share the Good News. The women on that first Easter morning did exactly that. In our passage we heard that they told the Eleven and others all the things the angels had told them. In other words, they spread the Good News.

Very recently, over a period of a few weeks, I received some suspected scam calls on the church phone. This would be where the caller says ‘hello’ a few times and I would say ‘hello’ back, and then the caller would disconnect, as if to indicate they couldn’t hear me. I think they want you to call back, and then the scam starts.

Well, I put up with it a few times, but then I had an idea. I waited for the next call and, after a couple of days, the scammer duly obliged. I answered as usual, ‘Ingaway Church, hello’. Then the caller said ‘hello’ and then I replied, “If you love Jesus, say hello”. ‘Hello’ came the response. “Good man,” I said. And then, surely realising what had just happened, he disconnected!

Strangely, I haven’t had any similar calls since – and hopefully that means he is busy trawling through his contacts spreading the Good News! So, if you get a call from someone who asks, “If you love Jesus, say hello,” well – say ‘hello’. And take every other opportunity to share the Good News, too.

Because that should be our attitude, today, tomorrow and always, because we are witnesses to God’s saving grace, and are successors to the disciples.

Easter is the greatest surprise in history: an empty tomb that filled the world with hope. Every time we share this hope with others, we become part of this incredible story that started on that first Easter morning.

So, may the joy and hope of Easter fill our hearts today and always, and may the peace of the risen Christ be with us all. Christ is risen. He is risen indeed! Alleluia!