Preparing for the Lord's Day
Jesus is Better
Swimming is always a big part of our family’s summer activities. We go to the ocean and swim in the surf. We go to the lake and swim off the dock. We go to friends’ pools and cool off from the summer heat. This year our youngest, Josie, has taken a big step in swimming. When the summer began, she was nervous about going into the water above her head. We assured her that her life jacket would keep her afloat, but she was unconvinced. As the summer has progressed, she has grown more and more comfortable. At first, she would not go into deep water, even if I held her. Eventually, she became comfortable with being held in deep water but would not let go and float on her own. The next step was to supplement her floaty with two noodles. She held one noodle under each arm and began to float around the pool independently. And finally this week she took the final step of letting go of the noodles and began to trust that her life jacket was enough to keep her head above the water. Finally, she had the freedom to go around the pool by herself. It took a while, but she grew to trust her life jacket over time.
Trust and assurance work in this manner. To grow in assurance you must put your trust to the test. You must let go of all the other floats, as it were, and have full assurance that the life jacket will keep you up. To use another example, you trust that a bridge will hold your weight and will only grow to assurance when you step out onto the bridge and experience its strength.
In our passage for this morning, the author is seeking to show us how we might have the assurance of God’s grace to save us. He has warned us of the danger of abandoning the faith. He has comforted us with words of assurance. Now he encourages us to step out in faith so that we might grow in our assurance. And what we will see is that if we would grow in our assurance of salvation we must patiently wait for God’s promise, we must hold fast to God’s oath, and we must boldly follow God’s Son. To come prepared for the sermon take time this week to read and to meditate upon Hebrews 6:13-20, Genesis 22:16-17, Exodus 32:13, Numbers 23:19, Psalm 110:4, Isaiah 45:23, Romans 8:24-25, and Westminster Confession of Faith 18.
As we gather to worship our loving Father this Lord’s Day, we will join our hearts in song, singing the Hymn of Praise “Vast the Immensity, Mirror of Majesty.” the Acclamation of Praise “Jesus! What a Friend for Sinners!” and the Hymn of Response “By Grace Alone I Am an Heir of Heaven.” Let us come to worship this Sunday prepared to hear God’s Word, to receive it in faith, to love and treasure it in our hearts, and to practice it in our lives that we may continue to glorify and enjoy Him!
Sermon Information
Text: Hebrews 6:13-20
Title: An Anchor of Assurance
Outline:
- Every Christian Must Wait for God’s Promise (vv. 13-15)
- Every Christian Must Hold Fast God’s Oath (vv. 16-18)
- Every Christian Must Follow God’s Son (vv. 19-20)