Will you please turn to Hebrews 12? Hebrews 12.
We will read from Hebrews 12:25-29.
See that ye refuse not Him that speaketh. For if they escaped not when they refused Him that warned them on earth, much more shall not we escape who turn away from Him that warneth from heaven:
Whose voice then shook the earth: but now He hath promised, saying, Yet once more will I make to tremble not the earth only, but also the heaven.
And this word, Yet once more, signifieth the removing of those things that are shaken, as of things that have been made, that those things which are not shaken may remain.
Wherefore, receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us have grace, whereby we may offer service well-pleasing to God, with reverence and awe:
For our God is a consuming fire.
The same book, Hebrews 3:1:
Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of a heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our confession, even Jesus.
May we look to the Lord.
Dear Heavenly Father, our hearts do rejoice, knowing that Thou hast given Thy beloved Son to us. We do praise and thank Thee that, even though all things around us are being shaken, yet Thou who art in us remainest forever.
We do praise and thank Thee that we can meet together this morning. We do commit this time into Thy hands and ask Thy blessing upon it, for Thy praise and glory. In the name of our Lord Jesus, amen.
The book of Hebrews was written before A.D. 70, before the destruction of Jerusalem and its temple. It was written to the Hebrew believers—that is, those Jews who believed in the Lord Jesus in the first century—as a preparation for the catastrophe that was going to fall upon that nation.
In other words, God was preparing His people for what was coming to them very soon.
Once, God shook the earth as He gave the oracles to the children of Israel. We know that happened at Mount Sinai, when God gave the law to the children of Israel.
God descended upon the mountain in fire, and the whole mountain shook. It was a terrible sight, and even Moses proclaimed that he was trembling and in fear.
But that was not to be compared with what God has promised: that yet once God will not only shake the earth, but He will also shake the heaven. We know that this is a quotation from Haggai 2:6.
Now indeed, that prophecy in Haggai 2:6—that yet once God will not only shake the earth but also shake the heaven—will finally and literally be fulfilled at the coming of our Lord Jesus to establish His kingdom upon this earth.
If you want to know how it will be fulfilled, you can read the book of Revelation, because there you will find how this prophecy will be finally and literally fulfilled.
But we know that this prophecy is partially and spiritually fulfilled in the destruction of Jerusalem and its temple.
Why is it so? Because, as we read the context of the book of Hebrews, we find that it was written to the Hebrew believers to prepare them for the great shaking that was coming to them in A.D. 70. Therefore, we know that this prophecy can be partially fulfilled and spiritually applied even to that time.
I believe it was John Owen, the great Puritan theologian, who mentioned that this can refer to the worship of the Mosaic order as the heavenly things. God will shake the heaven and the earth; the heaven refers to the Mosaic worship, and the earth refers to the political state of that nation at the time of A.D. 70.
So, brothers and sisters, we know that to the Jews at that time, Jerusalem and the temple were considered heavenly things. Why? Because Jerusalem was a city chosen by God Himself.
You remember Deuteronomy 12. God said that after they entered into the land of promise, He would choose a place to put His name there, and all the children of Israel must go to that place to offer their sacrifices.
So Jerusalem was chosen by God. In Psalm 132, we find: “I have chosen Zion to be a place of My habitation.” Therefore, to the Jews, Jerusalem was a heavenly thing, not just an earthly thing.
And also, the temple in Jerusalem. We remember how David, in his great love for God, desired to build God a temple. God did not allow him to build the temple because he was a man of war, and yet God was pleased with that idea.
God promised that his son Solomon would build that temple. So Jerusalem and its temple were always considered by the Jews as things of heaven, things that came from God.
But God said that one day He would not only shake the earth, but He would also shake the heaven. Not only earthly things would be shaken, but even heavenly things would also be shaken. Jerusalem and its temple would all be destroyed.
Now, why was this so? The reason was that both Jerusalem and its temple were shadows. They were to prepare the way for the substance, which is Christ Jesus.
All these things were set until the time when the Lord should come, and then the shadows would pass away, for the substance had finally arrived.
God gave the Jewish people Jerusalem, a place of worship. God gave them the temple, where they could enter and worship God. But all these were only preparations. They were not the eternal substance; they were imposed until the time of the coming of Christ.
Now that Christ had come, the substance had arrived. But these Jews who believed in the Lord Jesus still clung to the shadows.
On the one hand, they believed in the Lord Jesus. On the other hand, they still held on to Moses. On the one hand, on the Lord’s Day they gathered together to break bread; but on the Sabbath, they went into the synagogues to worship God.
So you find that in those days these Hebrew believers were actually holding on both to Christ and to Moses—to the substance and to the shadow—to the extent that the shadow became a hindrance to entering into the fullness of Christ.
In view of that, God was going to do something to free these Hebrew believers from the bondage of Judaism into the liberty of Christ. That is the reason why this book was written: to prepare them.
When Jerusalem and the temple were destroyed, these believers knew what God intended to do. They would not be in despair; instead, they would be freed from all bondage and enter into the full liberty of Christ.
So this is the background of the book of Hebrews. Now, brothers and sisters, we do feel that this book is very relevant to our days. In other words, we feel that this book has something to say to us today.
Why? Because our situation is very similar to the situation of the Hebrew believers in the first century.
We are also living in a day of great shaking. I believe everybody knows that this is not something in the future. Actually, we today are already in the time of great shaking.
Not only is the earth being shaken, but even the heaven is also being shaken. When we look around us—whether we look at international situations, national situations, political situations, economic situations, or moral situations—we find that everything around us seems to be greatly shaken.
Those standards that were set up long ago are no longer honored. You find everything around us just crumbling down. We are in a time of great shaking.
You know, this time when I was in Hong Kong, I told a brother, “Of all things upon this earth, we find that nothing is real but one, and that is real estate.” We think that is real. Everything will change; currency will change; but real estate—now that is real.
But this time when I was in Hong Kong, real estate was no longer real because of the possibility of Communist China taking over Hong Kong—perhaps in fifteen years, or perhaps earlier than that.
When this news began to come out, you found real estate just became unreal. Nothing on this earth is real. The whole earth is being shaken. There is nothing that you can hold on to as though it will continue.
Now everything upon the earth is being shaken. But, dear brothers and sisters, not only is the earth being shaken; even the heaven is being shaken—not literally, though one day that will happen, but spiritually.
Whatever we call heavenly things is now being greatly challenged and greatly tested, and we find great shaking everywhere—not only without, but even within.
Even within Christianity today, you find that in theological seminaries all these modern ideas are coming out: “God is dead,” or whatever it may be. You find our very faith is being tested.
And without, of course, you find persecutions over a great part of this world. If you are the Lord’s, even if you acknowledge yourself as a believer, it is considered a crime, and you will be forced to deny your faith—to see whether your faith is real or unreal.
You remember what our Lord Jesus said: “Will there be faith when He shall return?” It is because lawlessness prevails upon the earth that the love of many shall grow cold.
Dear brothers and sisters, you find even our faith, our love—everything that we consider heavenly things—is now being tested and contested. We live in a time of great shaking.
Now, brothers and sisters, when the world notices what they are going through today and what is coming to them, of course they are filled with fear.
But the Bible says, “When you see these things coming, lift up your head, for your redemption draweth near.” Dear brothers and sisters, I do believe that we are in a time of great shaking, but we need to thank God for the great shaking because God wants us to inherit the kingdom that cannot be shaken.
I think it is right for us to understand this, because there are many things that we hold dear which may be shaken off. Why? Because they are shadows; they are not reality.
It is good for us to see that whatever is not real will be shaken off, that we may inherit that which is eternal.
So, brothers and sisters, we feel that today we are in a day of great shaking. Why does God allow these things to happen to us? It is because Christianity today has become so Judaized that, instead of being a living faith—a revelation from above—it has become an institution, a religion.
Just like the Jewish faith: in the beginning it was revelation; in the beginning it was a living faith. But gradually, you find that it became Judaism—an ism, a religion.
Christianity is the same. In the beginning, it was a revelation. In the beginning, it was a living faith. But today, it has become so Judaized that it has become an institution, a religion.
In view of the soon coming of our Lord Jesus, He has to deliver us from that which is unreal to that which is real. He has to deliver us from outward appearance into inward reality.
I believe it is for this reason that God allows such great shaking around the world today among His own people.
Probably a word should be said about Judaism. Now, what is Judaism?
Judaism is formed by five elements.
Number one: a definite place of worship. In Judaism, worship was limited to one place, and that was Jerusalem.
Every year, three times a year, all the males among the Jewish people must travel to Jerusalem to worship God. They were not allowed to offer sacrifices anywhere else in the world, but only in Jerusalem and in the temple. That was the one place of worship.
Number two: in Judaism, they had a set of laws. God gave them the Ten Commandments, and with the Ten Commandments, all the statutes, ordinances, and precepts. They had a set of laws to govern them.
Number three: they had an intermediary class—the Levites and the priests. The people were not allowed to worship God directly. They had to worship God through that intermediary class called the priesthood, the Levites.
Number four: they had a group of earthly promises. If you read the Old Testament, you find that God promised the Jewish people that if they loved Him and kept His covenant and commandments, then God would bless them.
All the blessings you find in Judaism are earthly and material. If they loved and feared God, God would bless them with many children; God would bless their cattle and their sheep; God would give them a full basket. All these blessings were earthly and material blessings. That is Judaism.
Aside from these four things, the one thing that really made it Judaism was the fifth one: the traditions of the fathers.
God gave the children of Israel the law. But how was the law to be interpreted, and how was the law to be applied to daily life in detail?
Through the years, great rabbis and teachers arose. They began to interpret and explain the law of God, and they began to apply the law of God to the details of life.
Then another generation came. More teachers and rabbis arose, and instead of interpreting the law of God, they began to interpret the interpretations of the rabbis before them.
Then another generation came, and great teachers arose to interpret the interpretations of the great teachers of the law of God.
So throughout the years, you find that there gradually accumulated a great body of traditions called the traditions of the fathers.
The traditions of the fathers became so strong that even at the time of our Lord Jesus, you remember the Lord said, “You keep the traditions of the fathers, and you violate the law of God.”
In other words, the commandment of God was buried and hidden under a pile of traditions. That is how the living faith among the Jews became a religion. Institutional religion became Judaism.
Now, brothers and sisters, you can see very clearly how Christianity today has been completely Judaized.
Number one: a definite place of worship. You know, when we think of worship, we say, “Now let us go to church.” What do you mean by church?
Probably what you mean by church is a building—built of brick, or built of stone, or, if you are in some uncivilized country, perhaps made of mud. But anyway, you find that we say, “Now we go to the place of worship.” That is, we mean that we go to a definite place, a building, and that building is called a place of worship.
Now, when we talk of worship, we think of Sunday because Sunday is a day of worship. In other words, to many believers today, worship is a matter of place and time.
There is a definite place called a place of worship. There is a certain time called the time of worship. In a bulletin, you find “Worship: Sunday morning, ten o’clock to eleven o’clock.” That is worship.
What is worship actually? When you go there, you find that you are being entertained. God is not worshiped; you are entertained. If you are not well entertained, probably you have to go to another place of worship to be better entertained.
You find that even with lots of so-called believers, they go to worship perhaps once a year on Christmas Day, and, if they are better, perhaps twice a year on Easter too.
But anyway, you find that today worship in Christianity is restricted to place and time.
But when you read John 4, you remember our Lord’s conversation with the Samaritan woman. When the conscience of the Samaritan woman was awakened by the Lord, she began to ask about this matter of worship.
She inquired of the Lord and said, “We Samaritans worship on this mountain, that is, Mount Gerizim; but you Jews worship in Jerusalem, in the temple. Now, which is correct? Where shall we worship?”
You remember the Lord said:
Woman, the hour cometh, and now is, when neither in this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, shall ye worship the Father.
God is a Spirit: and they that worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.
Dear brothers and sisters, what is our faith? Our faith is that we worship the Father in spirit and truth. It is no longer limited to a place or to a time.
In other words, we worship Him all the time; we worship Him everywhere. We worship Him in spirit and truth. It is true that sometimes we come together to worship Him, but that does not mean that when you are alone, you do not need to worship Him.
It is no longer a matter of place or time; it is spirit and truth.
But unfortunately, to many Christians today, worship is still a matter of time and space. It is as if you worship God on Sunday, but from Monday to Saturday it is your time and you can do whatever you like.
You can worship Mammon if you want to, but on Sunday you come to worship God. But the Bible says that a man cannot serve two masters. You cannot serve God and Mammon.
Christianity has been Judaized. It has become a religion instead of a living faith.
Second: in Judaism, you find a set of laws. God gave them the Ten Commandments and all the precepts, ordinances, and statutes. Now, do we have these in Christianity?
Does God give us eleven commandments? Is our life as Christians to be governed by rules and regulations?
If you read the Bible, you find that with us there is only one law, and that is the law of the Spirit of life. In other words, God has put His Holy Spirit in us, and the Spirit of life is the law that governs our living.
But, dear brothers and sisters, today how many believers are still governed by the rules and regulations of the church to which they belong, instead of being ruled by the Spirit of God within?
They still walk in an outward way of rules and regulations. That is Judaized Christianity.
Number three: in Judaism, you find an intermediary class called the priesthood. But in the New Testament, we are told in 1 Peter 2:5 that, as we come to the Lord, we are all living stones, being built up together as a spiritual house, a holy priesthood.
In other words, in the new covenant there is the universal priesthood of believers. Every believer is a priest. We do not have an intermediary class between us and God.
Our Lord Jesus is the only Mediator between us and God. Today, through our Lord Jesus, we can come directly to God. We can worship Him and serve Him, because all of us believers are priests.
But, dear brothers and sisters, is this true in Christianity today? You find that in Christianity today there is still the so-called sacred class and the laity.
In other words, you are the layman, and all that the layman is required to do is pay their dues and attend a Sunday meeting. All the spiritual work is monopolized by a class of people called the sacred. They are set apart to do all the things for you.
Dear brothers and sisters, this is not living faith. This is religion. This is Judaized Christianity.
Number four: in Judaism, you find there is a group of promises. But all these promises were earthly, physical, and material because the children of Israel are God’s earthly people.
But we who are the Lord’s today are God’s heavenly people. Dear brothers and sisters, do you notice in the New Testament that God has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenlies in Christ Jesus? Ephesians 1:3.
God has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenlies in Christ Jesus. Why? Because we are God’s heavenly people. So God’s blessings to us today are heavenly and spiritual.
Now, that does not mean that God does not supply us with our daily bread. Certainly, He still takes care of our physical needs. But remember that the blessings God has promised to His church are spiritual and heavenly.
But today, dear brothers and sisters, does it sometimes confuse you when you hear what is very popular in this country, called the prosperity gospel? In other words, if you believe in the Lord Jesus, then God will prosper you financially and prosper you materially. You do not need to drive a Chevrolet; you can drive a Cadillac.
Now, this is Judaized Christianity. Brothers and sisters, Christianity in the beginning was a revelation from above. The heavenly Father revealed His Son to us. It is a living faith.
But today, we find there is very little revelation known among God’s people, but there is a lot of tradition.
In other words, the way that we act, the way that we do—why do we do it this way? Why do we gather this way? Whatever is connected with your so-called religious life is actually based on tradition.
It is because your fathers have been doing that, and your grandfathers have been doing that. You do not have a living revelation from God.
Everything is based on tradition, not on revelation. Now, we do not mean that today you can have new revelation extra to the Bible. Of course not. All the revelation of God is contained in the Bible.
We cannot have new revelation extra to the Bible. But still, whatever is revealed in the Bible must be revealed to you too. That is revelation. Then it will be real.
The word of God, the logos of God, has to become rhema to you; it has to become a living life to you. But today, dear brothers and sisters, unfortunately you find that many believers live on traditions. They do not have that revelation from above.
It is for this reason that Christianity today has been totally Judaized. Instead of giving us Christ, it has become a substitute for Christ.
God is very jealous about it. You remember the story on the Mount of Transfiguration. There you find our Lord Jesus took His three disciples to that mount, and He was transfigured.
It was a preview of the kingdom that cannot be shaken. Moses and Elijah appeared, and they talked with our Lord Jesus about His departure—how He would leave the world.
You remember how Peter, as if he had just awoken from his slumber, saw that scene. It was so wonderful that he blurted out, “It is good to be here. Let us make three tabernacles: one for You, Lord; one for Moses; and one for Elijah.”
He thought he was being very generous because he, John, and James were just sleeping in the open air. But the moment he said that, God took away Moses and took away Elijah.
A bright cloud covered them, and they heard a voice:
This is My beloved Son: hear ye Him.
When they opened their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus only. Why? It is because God is very jealous for His Son.
When Peter tried to put Moses and Elijah on the same footing as the Lord Jesus, God said, “No, you cannot do that.” Not only can you not substitute Moses for Christ, or Elijah for Christ; you cannot even put Moses and Elijah on the same footing as Christ.
God took away Moses and Elijah because God said, “This is My beloved Son: hear Him.”
Oh, brothers and sisters, the same jealous God is jealous for His Son today. I believe it is for this reason—at least, this is one of the reasons—why God is shaking the heaven and shaking the earth today.
God wants to free us from Christianity as a religion into the fullness of Christ. Christianity has become a substitute for Christ today. Christianity has deceived us into thinking that we have Christ.
But, dear brothers and sisters, we need to wake up and see that all things considered as Christianity are being shaken today.
You will not have Christianity anymore. There are many places in the world where you cannot find a definite place of worship. You cannot go to a place called the place of worship.
There are many places in the world where there cannot be a fixed time of worship. If you want to worship God, you have to worship Him in spirit and truth.
Whatever is external, whatever is an ism, whatever is a religion—you will find that it will go. It will no longer exist. Why? Because God wants us to get the reality.
We are in a day when rules and regulations will not hold anymore. It is the Spirit of God within us, and He never leaves us nor forsakes us.
We are living in a day when God will take away all those people upon whom we depend, as if our faith in God depended upon these people. But God will take them away.
You have to see that you have to worship God and serve Him directly.
We are living in a time when you find even our property—everything—will be taken away from us. Even our life is in jeopardy. Will you still believe God? Will your faith still be vibrant and living?
We are living in a day when traditions will all crumble down. They will not be able to support you unless you have revelation from above, and that will keep you through any trial and persecution.
Brothers and sisters, we believe that God allows this great shaking to happen in the world today for our good. It is time for us to wake up, to see, and to let all these things that can be shaken be shaken away.
Do not cling to these things. Let all these things go, because sooner or later they will go.
Oh, how we thank God that anything made, anything belonging to the old creation, anything belonging to man—all these things will be shaken away. Only that which is God, which is of Christ, will remain forever.
So it is time for us to understand what is going on in this world today, that we may not despair but instead press on into that to which God has called us.
Now, brothers and sisters, as we are in this time of great shaking, what should we do?
You find in Hebrews 3:1:
Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of a heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our confession, even Jesus.
When we are in great shaking, it is a time for us to consider. Now, is it time for us to consider? Surely it is. But what are you to consider?
Some people consider and say, “Well, probably there will be a nuclear war coming, so flee to the desert. If you live in a city, probably you will be hit; but if you live in a faraway desert, then you can be saved.”
Other people say, “Great famine will be coming. What will you do? Store food.” Then it becomes a great big business. Dehydrated food becomes a big business.
But the thing is, if you have food and nobody else has it, are you able to eat it? Then you say, “Well, my guns—to protect yourself, to protect your food.”
Brothers and sisters, you find that not only worldly people, but even Christians, are considering all these things. Is that not foolish? Amen.
What shall we consider? The Bible tells us, “Consider.” Yes, we need to consider. But what shall we consider? We should consider not all these things, but one Person: Jesus.
This is a time when we should consider Jesus, the Apostle and the High Priest of our confession. Brothers and sisters, there is nothing that can save us through this great shaking but the Lord Jesus.
Consider Jesus. Now, who is this Jesus whom we must consider? He is the Apostle and the High Priest of our confession.
Our Lord Jesus is the Apostle of our confession. What does it mean? An apostle means one who is sent—one who is sent on a mission.
Our Lord Jesus is the Apostle of our confession. He is sent by God into this world as an Apostle to represent God.
No one has ever seen the Father, but the Son has declared Him. The Lord Jesus said, “If you see Me, you see My Father.” Why? Because He is the Apostle of God. God has sent Him into this world to represent Him.
What a representation! What a perfect representation He is. He has not misrepresented God in any way. You find that He has represented God perfectly. By seeing the Lord Jesus, we see God the Father.
He is the Apostle of God. He was sent on a mission to fulfill the work of redemption. As our Lord Jesus was on the cross, before He died, He said, “It is finished.”
What is finished? His mission is fulfilled; it is accomplished. What God sent Him to accomplish has been accomplished. He has died for us. He has fulfilled the work of redemption.
Not only that, but the Bible says that He has risen from the dead and has now entered into heaven as our Leader. In other words, He has opened a way for us to heaven.
Dear brothers and sisters, consider our Lord Jesus as the Apostle of our confession. In considering Him as the Apostle of our confession, what should we do? Very simply: hear Him. Hear Him.
He is the Apostle of God; therefore, hear Him. Listen to Him. What He says to us is true. What He has done for us is true. What He has opened for us is true.
Just hear Him, believe Him, and follow Him, because He is the Apostle of our confession. Do not follow man. Do not hear what man says, but hear Him and follow Him. He is the Apostle of God.
But He is not only the Apostle of our confession; the Bible says He is also the High Priest of our confession. When He was on earth, He was the Apostle of our confession. Now He is in heaven, and He is the High Priest of our confession.
Brothers and sisters, as Apostle, He represents God toward man; but as High Priest, He represents us before God.
Most of us know Him as the Apostle because we know what He did on earth. But probably many of us are not very well acquainted with Him as High Priest. What is the Lord doing today in heaven?
I remember a story about an elderly sister. When she wanted to be baptized, it was the custom in those days that she had to go through a kind of examination of her faith.
So she was brought before a group of elders sitting there. Of course, she was frightened, and they began questioning her faith and asking her various questions.
One of the questions asked was, “What is the Lord doing in heaven today?” This sister really did not know, so she answered, “The Lord is standing in heaven, looking down upon the earth and looking at me to find fault with me.”
That was what she thought the Lord Jesus was doing in heaven today. Of course, we know that is not true.
Our Lord Jesus is seated at the right hand of the Father. What does it mean that He is seated? It means that the work of redemption is done. If the work of redemption were not finished, He could not sit. He would have to stand.
But now you find that our Lord Jesus sits at the right hand of the Father. Why? Because on earth He has finished the work of redemption. It is finished.
But that does not mean He sits there and takes a nap because He has nothing to do. Everything is done? Not at all.
The Bible says He sits at the right hand of God; He lives forever, making intercession for us. He is able to save those who come through Him to God—to save them to the uttermost.
Dear brothers and sisters, our Lord Jesus is very, very busy in heaven today—not because His work on earth is unfinished. It is finished. But because there is something more to be done.
He is there representing you and me. Thank God for that.
Brothers and sisters, do you know that if you do not know Christ as the Apostle, you will never be saved? Do you know that if you do not know Christ as your High Priest, you can never live a Christian life?
Why are there so many believers today who believe in the Lord Jesus, are saved, and yet struggle through their Christian life? It is because they do not know the Lord Jesus as their High Priest.
Remember, you have Christ Jesus representing you in the very presence of God the Father. He is there for you, representing you. He is there making intercession for you.
You may not know how to pray for yourself, but He knows. Even when you are not praying, He is praying for you. Where your prayer is weak, He adds His prayer to your prayer.
Brothers and sisters, do you not know that He is there, able to save you to the uttermost?
What is meant by a priest? What is meant by the High Priest? It means that through Him you are able to enter, live in the very presence of God, and please God.
By yourself, you cannot. Lots of believers today are trying to live by themselves, to live the life of Christ by themselves. They try to live up to a standard. They want to be good Christians, but it is all self-effort.
They mean well, and they really put their whole being into it. But the more you try, the more you find it is impossible. You cannot do that.
But do you not know that you have a High Priest—One who is now in heaven, but who once came to this earth? He is sympathetic with you, because He was tempted in all things just as we are, yet without sin.
He is not only able to sympathize with you; He is able to support you. He is able to carry you through. He is your High Priest.
Brothers and sisters, depend on Him. Through Him, by Him—that is something we need to learn. You cannot live as a Christian if you do not live by Him, if you do not depend on Him.
Oh, come to Him. Look to Him. He is your High Priest. Cry to Him. Approach Him with boldness, and you will find mercy. You will receive grace for seasonable help.
Brothers and sisters, consider Him. Consider Jesus, your High Priest.
What do you mean by knowing Him as your High Priest? Sometimes we think that He is a High Priest sitting in heaven, far, far from us, praying for us. Is that all He does—just pray for us?
Well, you do not know the power of prayer. As He prays for us, do you know what happens? As He prays for us, the Holy Spirit within us begins to work.
You must not see Christ as the High Priest as separated from the ministry of the Holy Spirit. As a matter of fact, His being High Priest is connected with the ministry of the Holy Spirit.
Because when He ascended on high, God anointed Him. In Psalm 133, you find the oil comes down from Aaron’s head—that is the high priest—and the anointing oil begins to flow down through the whole body, even to the hem of the garment.
So you find that His being High Priest is closely related to the ministry of the Holy Spirit in us. As our Lord Jesus prays—and He prays according to God—the Holy Spirit begins to work in our lives.
Sometimes we pray and do not know what we pray for. We pray according to this or that. But when He prays, He prays according to God. God hears Him, and the Holy Spirit begins to work in our lives.
Dear brothers and sisters, the working of the Holy Spirit in our lives today is the result of the high-priestly function of our Lord Jesus. The Holy Spirit is working in you, and as He works in you, He is bringing you into Christ.
Our Lord Jesus is a High Priest according to the order of Melchizedek. That is, He is a High Priest in the power of an indissoluble life, in the power of eternal life.
That is the way He is our High Priest. Oh, brothers and sisters, you can experience this. How? You can experience the power of eternal life within you.
Oh, thank God, there is His life in you. This life is eternal life, indissoluble life. This life is a conquering life. This life is a glorious life. This life is a life that has been tested and proven.
Brothers and sisters, this life is in you, and you experience the power of this life in you through the Holy Spirit. That is the work of our Lord Jesus as our High Priest.
Brothers and sisters, He is representing us before God, and through His prayer and through the working of the Holy Spirit, He is bringing us into maturity. He is bringing us into glory.
Everything around us is shaken. But, brothers and sisters, if it is Christ, it is unshakable.
What is the kingdom that we ought to inherit? What is the kingdom? On the Mount of Transfiguration, you can see the principle of the kingdom. The principle of the kingdom is the Son, Christ.
He is the principle of the kingdom. He is the kingdom. That kingdom cannot be shaken.
So, dear brothers and sisters, if you find something being shaken off from you, do not worry about it. If it can be shaken, it will be shaken sooner or later. It is much better that it be sooner, that we may not be deceived any longer.
But thank God, dear brothers and sisters, we know there is something in us that cannot be shaken. God has given us Christ. He is a kingdom that cannot be shaken.
Oh, that we may enter into that kingdom abundantly. Do not enter into that kingdom as one barely saved, but, as Peter said, let us enter into the kingdom abundantly.
What does that mean? It means with much of Christ. Oh, that we may know Him. Let us consider Him. Let us think about Him. Meditate on Him. Commune with Him. Ask Him to fill us, because He is the only One who cannot be shaken.
Thank God, He is yours. Shall we pray?
Dear Heavenly Father, we do praise and thank Thee as we see all things around us being shaken, and oftentimes we find ourselves being shaken. But we thank Thee that we know there is something in us that cannot be shaken: it is Thy Son, our Christ.
Oh, our Father, we do pray that Thou wilt open our eyes. Deliver us from anything that is merely traditional or religious. But, Lord, we pray that we may have the reality; we may have that which is eternal.
We ask Thee, O Lord, teach us how to consider Jesus, the Apostle and High Priest of our confession. We pray that we may know Him and the power of His resurrection, in fellowship with His sufferings, conformed to His death, that we may also arrive at our resurrection from among the dead.
O our Father, we pray that Thou wilt put Thy Son before us, that we may not consider this or that thing, knowing that all this or that will be shaken away.
But Lord, we pray that we may consider Thy Son, our Lord Jesus. Oh, give Thy Son to us abundantly. We want Him and Him alone. In the name of our Lord Jesus, amen.