Hebrews 10: 11-25 A Closer Look

To You Who Are Beloved of our Lord Jesus Christ,                 

Our Scripture for this week is Hebrews 10: 11-25:

¹¹And every priest stands day after day at his service, offering again and again the same sacrifices that can never take away sins. ¹²But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, “he sat down at the right hand of God,” ¹³and since then has been waiting “until his enemies would be made a footstool for his feet.” ¹⁴For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are sanctified. ¹⁵And the Holy Spirit also testifies to us, for after saying, ¹⁶“This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, says the Lord: I will put my laws in their hearts, and I will write them on their minds,” ¹⁷he also adds, “I will remember their sins and their lawless deeds no more.” ¹⁸Where there is forgiveness of these, there is no longer any offering for sin.

¹⁹Therefore, my friends, since we have confidence to enter the sanctuary by the blood of Jesus, ²⁰by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain (that is, through his flesh), ²¹and since we have a great priest over the house of God, ²²let us approach with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. ²³Let us hold fast to the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who has promised is faithful. ²⁴And let us consider how to provoke one another to love and good deeds, ²⁵not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

Worship in the Old Testament came out of a practical working of obligation.  The High Priest stood in the role of the highest religious worker in the land, his job to be intercessor through the continuous offering of animal sacrifices to the Lord.  It was a process of atoning continually for ones sin’s.  I would invite you to look to the first seven chapters of Leviticus to see how wide ranging the sacrificial system was for the nation of Israel.

Then came Jesus.  He did not replace what came before, but fulfilled the law of Moses.  The book of Hebrews is rather unique in the New Testament because it focuses on this fulfillment, on what came before and how it exists now in Christ Jesus. 

In the process of worship, what came before was a High Priest who serves as the CSO (the Chief Spiritual Officer) of Judaism.  He is the spiritual intercessor.  But he is also a sinner, and sacrifice must be offered on his behalf as well.  Until Jesus. 

Worship then was also a system of obligation, ongoing animal sacrifice to seek atonement for the sins committed by the people.  Until Jesus.  He is the One Sacrifice that is once for all effective for all the Children of God.

This is laid out in verses 11-18.

Jesus flipped the system.  Instead of God accepting our sacrifices, we are called upon to accept God’s sacrifice, in Jesus Christ.  Worship is not a fear/threat response to being punished by an angry God.  It is rather a forgiveness/hope response from a loving God.   

In Jesus, salvation is a gift that is given to all the Children of God.  God has done everything and it is only for we, God’s Children, to accept the love that God offers. Verses 19-25 offer us a foundation for the power of real, loving, thankful worship for those who accept God’s gift.

One thing has not changed about worshipping God before and after Jesus.  It is the attitude that we bring.  Hosea is clear that God seeks mercy and not sacrifice.  True worship is not about going through the motions for the audience of our peers.  It is a true response of love in community to what God has done for us.

For worship, true worship, is a practice of discipleship in which we can experience the promise of God changing ordinary living into abundant life.  It is one of the keystone practices that our church has identified as we are sent out by Jesus into the world. 

Pastor Pete

 

How Do We, FPC Merchantville, Do Discipleship? Creatively, Wholistically, and Together

 

What does it mean to be a disciple of Jesus Christ?  Well, for the Named Twelve and the Rest who gathered around Jesus, it was a specific call and a process of transformation.  A disciple (which means follower) worked toward becoming an apostle (one who serves). 

But that is a really boring academic description of the MOST beautiful thing that could ever happen in our lives. 

So, to deconstruct the boredom, to catch the energy and the grace of being a disciple, how about this:

        GOD CHANGES ORDINARY LIVING INTO ABUNDANT LIFE THROUGH OUR PARTICIPATION IN WORSHIP, CHRISTIAN EDUCATION, FELLOWSHIP, AND SERVICE.

 Where does it mention the word ‘disciple’ in that statement?  In the actions of God.  “God changes ordinary living to abundant life.”  That’s what it means to be a disciple. 

But this is not a POOF BOOM moment.  It is a creative process.  The Named Twelve and the Rest followed Jesus for three years.  Three years in the presence of THE Rabbi.  For the rest of us, how about a lifetime?

Discipleship, following Jesus, not just a creative process, it is a wholistic process.  Looking into our life as a congregation, FPC Merchantville has identified four threads to be woven together into the process called discipleship.

Worship

Christian Education

Fellowship

Service

It is not just a creative process.  It is not just a wholistic process, it is a group process.  We are a worshipping community, a learning community, a fellowshipping community, a serving community.

Over the summer, we walked through our understanding of the individual Christian.  Our call is simple, Love God and Love Neighbor.  With Heart, Soul, Mind, and Strength.  Being a Mystic, a Contemplative, a Steward, a Theologian, a Pastor, and a Social Worker.  But all from the heart of the law, Jesus’ death and resurrection for all of us.

But Jesus did not give us the gift of salvation to hold and nurture and change us as individuals.  Yes we are Saved, but we are also Sent.

Jesus sent out the disciples, that first bunch and every bunch to this day and this church.  Yes, God changes ordinary living into abundant life.  It is how we open our lives to allow God to do this work within us.

This Sunday, we talk worship. 

Pastor Pete

Hearing the Word of the Lord for Sunday, September 6, 2026: Hebrews 10: 11-25

 https://youtu.be/dSwoPqFlSV8

Our Scripture for Sunday, Sept. 6 is from the letter to the Hebrews.  In this passage, we move from how things were done in the time of the Old Testament to how Jesus, as both Sacrifice and High Priest, has once for all brought salvation and forgiveness to humanity.  

We move from how worship was offered to the Lord-by sacrifices to seek the Lord's favor; to how worship is offered to the Lord, in joyful gratitude for what Jesus has done for us.

In Jesus, there is one, forever sacrifice by which all humanity, all the Children of God, are saved.  The gift stands as an offering for all of us to reach out and accept what God has done on our behalf.

Pastor Pete

https://youtu.be/dSwoPqFlSV8

Hearing the Word of the Lord for Sunday, August 30, 2026: John 2: 1-12

https://youtu.be/Q2qoCLV3eVM 

Our Scripture Lesson for this coming Sunday is the story of Jesus turning the water into wine.  We read it in anticipation of considering what it is that we are called to, as Jesus' disciples, in carrying out our love for Neighbor with all our strength.

The question this passage raises for me is this, "How far does the work we do for our neighbors, does the love of neighbor, extend?"  Never really considered Jesus to be a Sommelier, but, never know where we might be called.

Peace,

Pastor Pete

https://youtu.be/Q2qoCLV3eVM

Hearing the Word of the Lord for the Lord's Day, Aug. 23, 2026: Luke 13: 10-17

 https://youtu.be/3yRjn2SlHac

Our Scripture Lesson today is the story of Jesus healing a woman crippled and bent over by arthritis for eighteen years.  He does so on the Sabbath.  When Jesus is called out for His behavior, apparently breaking Sabbath law, Jesus' response is swift and overwhelming.

Luke 13: 10-17 shall be the passage for our healing service this coming Sunday, where we remember again that healing is the ministry of Christ Jesus, and for us.

Peace be with you.

Pastor pete

https://youtu.be/3yRjn2SlHac

Looking At Sunday's Scripture: Luke 6: 17-36

To You Who Are Beloved of our Lord Jesus Christ,                

Our Scripture for this week, August 16, 2026 is Luke 6: 17-36:

¹⁷ He came down with them and stood on a level place with a great crowd of his disciples and a great multitude of people from all Judea, Jerusalem, and the coast of Tyre and Sidon. ¹⁸ They had come to hear him and to be healed of their diseases, and those who were troubled with unclean spirits were cured. ¹⁹ And everyone in the crowd was trying to touch him, for power came out from him and healed all of them.

²⁰ Then he looked up at his disciples and said: “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. ²¹ “Blessed are you who are hungry now, for you will be filled. “Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh.

²² “Blessed are you when people hate you and when they exclude you, revile you, and defame you on account of the Son of Man. ²³ Rejoice on that day and leap for joy, for surely your reward is great in heaven, for that is how their ancestors treated the prophets.

²⁴ “But woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation. ²⁵ “Woe to you who are full now, for you will be hungry. “Woe to you who are laughing now, for you will mourn and weep. ²⁶ “Woe to you when all speak well of you, for that is how their ancestors treated the false prophets.

²⁷ “But I say to you who are listening: Love your enemies; do good to those who hate you; ²⁸ bless those who curse you; pray for those who mistreat you. ²⁹ If anyone strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also, and from anyone who takes away your coat do not withhold even your shirt. ³⁰ Give to everyone who asks of you, and if anyone takes away what is yours, do not ask for it back again. ³¹ Do to others as you would have them do to you.

³² “If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. ³³ If you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. ³⁴ If you lend to those from whom you expect to receive payment, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to receive as much again. ³⁵ Instead, love your enemies, do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return. Your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High, for he himself is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked. ³⁶ Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.

          We are saved by Jesus, saved from our sins, gifted with eternal life, restored fully as Children of God.  We are called upon to love God as the first and greatest commandment because God first loved us.  Our salvation is the expression of that love, love from God’s heart, love we return with all our heart. 

          The second commandment like unto it is to love our neighbors.  That love begins from the heart, from the center of God’s being to the center of our being in the grace given in Jesus.  It is that same love we are called upon to share with our neighbors.  How we show that love reflects then from how we love our neighbor with all our soul.

          We love God with all our soul by basking in the joy of our salvation.  We love our neighbor with all our soul by deciding how then we will share that joy.  How shall we take God’s love to them?  How will Love decide and guide our actions?  What is right and what is wrong in our outreach to our neighbors?  What does Jesus teach us, and through the lens of Jesus, what does the Bible teach in how we shall love our neighbors?

          It is something to struggle with.  Love your enemies is a key theme in our passage from Luke.  Let them hit you, let them take your stuff, offer them more of your stuff.  Is that love or victimhood?  It’s not a simple call to make.  Jesus says turn the other cheek.  Does that mean I should offer up my cheek to be slapped?  Go looking for trouble?  Seek to avoid trouble?  Or is this where I take my stand?  Loving our neighbors…and the ‘how’ of it.

          Life in Christ is a whole new way of being.  Different from how the world exists.  Are we ready to dig into our faith and make the decisions needed to live that new way?

Pastor Pete

   

Preparing For Worship, Hearing God's Word in Anticipation of the Lord's Day, Sunday, Aug. 16, 2026 from Luke 6: 17-36

https://youtu.be/72BVzdThu20

 As we are called upon to love God with our whole heart, soul, mind, and strength, so do we seek to love our neighbor with our whole heart, soul, mind, and strength.  As we continue our sermon series this week, we are considering the love of neighbor with all our soul.  

Leading to that, to love God with all our soul is to be overwhelmed and embraced by what has been done for us in the death and resurrection of Jesus.

We are fed from the River of Life.  New life, the glory of the Lord, total love, these are ways to try and describe what it means to be made new in Christ Jesus.  To love our Neighbor with our soul, that then demands a decision.  How will we choose to treat people in the Name of Jesus?  In the embrace of God's love and our response to loving God?

Each decision we make in the love of God (or not), every attitude we choose to take as Christians, this comes from the soul, from where we know the joy of Jesus and where we choose how we shall pass it along.

The $5 Christian word for that is "theology".  "theos-", meaning God and "-ology", meaning science.  The Science of God.  But as imposing as that sounds, of the millions of pages that have been written in theological books and tomes, at its foundation, theology is simply described as how I, as a Christian, will bring my faith into how I deal with the world and all that is therein.

For that, as with all of life, shall we let Jesus be our guide?

Pastor Pete

https://youtu.be/72BVzdThu20