2012Dec23 from Richard Waldschmidt on Vimeo.

December 23, 2012 - Advent 4 - Sermon by Pastor Paul Eckert
Sermon text - Hebrews 10:1-14
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 If it could, would they not have stopped being
offered?  For the worshipers 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 because it is impossible for
the blood of bulls and goats to take away 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, O God.’”  8 First
he said, “Sacrifices and offerings, burnt offerings and sin offerings you
did not desire, nor were you pleased with them” (although the law
required them to be made).  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.  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 Since that time he waits for his enemies to be made his
footstool,  14 because by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever
those who are being made holy.
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    When I started preparing for this sermon I first had the thought of
making the theme: “Why Jesus Had A Body.”  That made me think
about a song.  The opening words are “I ain’t got nobody.”  Then I
thought of changing “nobody” into two words, “no body.”  That
makes it “I ain’t got no body.”  That isn’t good English, of course. 
    But as I kept thinking about those words from a song that goes way
back to 1915, I thought of using a car engine as an illustration.  Picture
something.  Picture me going out into a garage and there is an engine
there.  We start talking together.  The engine says to me, “I’m
supposed to pick up my neighbor and take her to the grocery store
across town.  But I ain’t go no body.  My pistons are good.  My belts
are good.  I have oil in my oil pan.  But I ain’t got no body.  I need
something else.  I need a body, a body that has a gas tank, a body that
has a drive shaft to some wheels, a body that has a steering wheel to
get me going in the right direction.  Without that I’ll never get my
neighbor to the grocery store.”
    Before you start worrying about me talking to car engines, I’ll
tell you that I am quite sure you get my point.  The point is not about a
car getting someone to a grocery store, but about our Savior wanting
to get us to heaven.  So I could have made the theme “Why Jesus Had
A Body.”  But instead I’ll make the theme “What Does Christmas
Celebrate?” and then speak of The Old Testament Shadow, The New
Testament Fulfillment, and The Eternal Glory That will Be Ours.
WHAT DOES CHRISTMAS CELEBRATE?
I    THE OLD TESTAMENT SHADOW.  (1-4)
    1. There were various Old Testament laws. (1a)
The law is only a shadow of the good things that are coming - not
the realities themselves. 
        a) Think of Israel’s food laws - for example not eating pork.  The
purpose was to keep Israel from mixing with the surrounding pagan
nations, to keep Israel separate until God’s promise of a Savior from
the nation of Israel in a town named Bethlehem would be fulfilled.
        b) Then think of the animal sacrifices required of Israel, all kinds
of sacrifices and offerings, lambs and bulls that had to face death.
    2. None of these laws could take care of the problem of sin. (1-4)
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.  If it could, would they not have
stopped being offered?  For the worshipers would have been
cleansed once for all, and would no longer have felt guilty for their
sins.  But those sacrifices are an annual reminder of sins, because
it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.
        a) Eating or not eating certain foods can’t take away a single sin.
        b) If we built an altar here large enough to slaughter a thousand
lambs in each of our services, that would just be an awful mess.  Yes,
that could be a reminder that because of sin blood had to be shed, but
animal blood couldn’t remove even a speck of a sin from us.
    3. Instead they were a shadow, a reminder. (1a,3)
The law is only a shadow of the good things that are coming - not
the realities themselves.  ---  But those sacrifices are an annual
reminder of sins, ---.   
        a) If you see a shadow you know that something real is causing
the shadow.  The shadow itself is not the real thing. 
        b) So the Old Testament animal sacrifices were intended to be a
shadow of what was real, of a real sacrifice that would actually take
care of paying for sins.
    4. With fulfillment the shadow would pass away.  (1a)
The law is only a shadow of the good things that are coming - not
the realities themselves. 
        a) We don’t have to observe food laws or sacrifice animals today.
        b) Listen to these words of the Apostle Paul in his letter to the
Colossians: “Do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or
drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon
celebration or a Sabbath day.  These are a shadow of the things
that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ.”
        c) Shadows serve a purpose.  But Christ is the reality!
II    THE NEW TESTAMENT FULFILLMENT.  (5-10)
    1. Animals could be a shadow, a reminder.
        a) After the world fell into sin God said death was the penalty. 
        b) And God proclaimed or pictured that with every sacrifice.  All
of the blood shed was a reminder, a shadow of a death to come, blood
that would be shed, that would have the power to defeat death.
    2. For this a real body was needed. (5-7)
Therefore, when Christ came into the world, he said: “Sacrifice
and offering you did not desire, but a body you prepared for me;
with burnt offerings and sin offerings you were not pleased.  Then
I said, ‘Here I am - it is written about me in the scroll - I have
come to do your will, O God.’”         
        a) Here Jesus, God’s eternal Son, says, “Animal bodies can’t do
it.  So I have come to do your will, O God.    But for that I need a
body, a body that has blood to shed, a body that is subject to death.”
        b) Yes, Jesus said He was willing to leave eternal glory, ready to
humble Himself and to become obedient to death for us.
    3. Jesus’ incarnation met this need.  (8-9)
First he said, “Sacrifices and offerings, burnt offerings and sin
offerings you did not desire, nor were you pleased with them”
(although the law required them to be made).  Then he said,
“Here I am, I have come to do your will.” He sets aside the first to
establish the second. 
        a) Could animal sacrifices, ceremonies pay for our sins?  Never!
        b) Jesus set that shadow aside, and established the second, the
reality of His presence on this earth, born in Bethlehem clothed in our
flesh and blood, in order to bring the sacrifice that truly pays for sin.
    4. And this is the reality. (1a,10)
The law is only a shadow of the good things that are coming - not
the realities themselves.  ---  And by that will, we have been made
holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. 
        a) Jesus grew up, went from the manger to the cross, and
satisfied God’s justice with His innocent death in place of the guilty.
        b) How clearly Jesus proclaims that to us each time we come to
the Lord’s Supper and hear Him say to us personally, “I gave My body
for you, I shed my blood for you.  Because of that you are forgiven.”
        c) The shadow is fulfilled.  The reality is ours.  Our Savior gave
His body into death so that we might have true life.
III THE ETERNAL GLORY THAT WILL BE OURS.  (10-14)
    1. There is glory right now. (10)
And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of
the body of Jesus Christ once for all. 
        a) Jesus didn’t have to come back visibly to this earth to be
sacrificed over and over again.  His one perfect sacrifice stands before
God as the payment for each and every one of our sins.
        b) That is why God looks at you and me, believers in what His
Son did, and sees us as holy, without sin, in His sight.  What a glorious
Christmas gift, a priceless gift!
    2. Rejoice in our victoriously ascended Savior.  (11-12)
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.  But when this priest had offered for all time
one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God.
          a) Jesus left His throne above, humbled Himself to take on
Himself a body on the first Christmas, a body that was sacrificed once.
        b) Victorious, for you and me, He again ascended into glory.
    3. Now we wait for our full glory. (13)
Since that time he waits for his enemies to be made his footstool, -. 
        a) How long will that be before Jesus ushers in the end?
        b) That won’t be set by a Mayan calendar or any human being.
That time will be set by our God whose wisdom has given us salvation.
    4. Now we know He surely cares for us. (14)
-- because by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who
are being made holy.
        a) Do you remember the song I referred to in the beginning, the
song that has the words, “I ain’t got nobody”?
        b) Do you know what the second line is?  This is it: “And nobody
cares for me.”   Yes, “I ain’t got nobody, And nobody cares for me.”
        c) Jesus would change that into: “I got a body, and I most
definitely cared and care for you.  I died for you.  I have forgiven you.
And one day I’ll welcome you into glory with me.”

    Do you see what Christmas really celebrates?  It is our
salvation by God’s eternal Son made flesh in Bethlehem.  Yes, Jesus
had a body because He really did and does care for us.  May we keep
that foremost in our thoughts as we celebrate Christmas.