Heaven's Power Displayed in Serving the Saints

Well, I want to speak to you on something that just stood out to me a few weeks ago, but I hope will encourage Encourage you in the small things Let's pray Father we we know of that song That says this is the day that the Lord has made and I will be glad and rejoice in it and Lord We know that song is ultimately pointing to the cross And we're thankful that there was such a day As Calvary Lord we're thankful that we can sing that there was an old rugged cross. We're thankful Lord in Christ alone Father apart from your son apart from his work. We're not here this morning And we'd have absolutely nothing and so Lord we thank you for sending your son Lord.

We want to say with Paul For I've determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified Lord we want to say with Paul, but God forbid that I boast except in the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ First the world's been crucified to me and I did the world What we want to say with Paul it is my eager expectation and hope that we will not at all be ashamed Both full courage now as always Lord you will be honored in our lives And so Lord, I pray you'd use this this This piece of food this food. I've got here in this message to help feed these sheep Lord to help them keep taking the next steps in their lives of honoring you in all things And so Lord, we just ask for the help of your spirit And Lord be with us now in Christ's name Amen Amen All right, I've got a question to start this out with What does it look like when someone has truly experienced? The powers of the age to come you don't have to say it out loud, but something's gonna come to your mind And I want that I want something to come to your mind Probably what's going to come to your mind is the wrong thing And if that happens, that's a good thing Because then when I tell you the right thing it might have more of an impact on your life if you already had the right thing, then that's good at some point you already got impacted by This statement if you've not let me ask it another way if you've not only tasted the heavenly gift But you've actually partaken of it How does a biblical writer? Show what that power looks like in real life You understand what I'm saying? We talked about some power and people always want to know. Well, what does it look like in real life? Give me some practical reality of that power Now what passage am I talking about with those two phrases I've used Yeah, Hebrews 6 you can open your Bible to Hebrews 6 I Think you're gonna be surprised You might you might expect the evidence of partaking of the Holy Spirit You might expect the evidence of this power To be something very dramatic Something very spectacular, right? You're thinking really big Not not saying there aren't really big things that God does Imagine I Think that's the surprise It's not going to be as dramatic as you think Imagine if someone told you that I've tapped into the very power of the ages to come like I've tapped into that power You're saying wow, there's gonna be fireworks There's gonna be something extraordinary.

There's gonna just be this machinery moving That's just so advanced if you tapped into the power of the ages to come, but what do we actually see? And for the sake of just I'm not trying to avoid All the context here, but for the sake of time and the emphasis. I just want to read right at this moment Hebrews 6 9 and 10 and 11 and 12 so Hebrews 6 the writer he says though we speak in this way and The this way is some of the phrases are already mentioned if you look back at verse 4 That's what he's talking about people who verse 4 says enlightened Tasted the heavenly gift shared in the spirit Tasted the goodness of the word and it says the powers of the age to come Right. He just talked in this way where it sounds like he's describing true Christians But he's actually describing what you could experience and still apostatize and prove These people didn't know the Lord ultimately He makes that clear because he says in verse 9 though.

I don't we just spoken this way yet in your case beloved We are sure of better things things that belong to salvation So you're talking about the powers of the age to come and then you're gonna you're gonna articulate something About that power to a group of people who are still following the Lord. Wow. What's it gonna be? This has got to be dramatic, right? No, well, yes and no It should be viewed as dramatic.

Our problem is we don't view it as dramatic as it is verse 10 For God is not unjust Praise the Lord. We have a just God And here a specific area. His justice is seen.

He will not overlook your work And then he says this the love you have shown For his name and then he says how we show love for his name in serving the Saints and look what he says next as You still do These other people who tasted they had all this power. They had all this experience. They're not still doing that They're not still doing what? serving the Saints Serving the Saints is that is serving the Saints a dramatic thing in the Christian life It doesn't feel like it but it should be it should be viewed as something very dramatic And then why are we serving the Saints what came before that? The love you have shown for for who? for the Lord's name the Lord's name And so the writer to the Hebrews says a mark of salvation this fruit of the heavenly power is this a love for Christ name and What is the love for his name do it serves his people through ordinary ongoing acts of care? Hospitality generosity encouragement when Someone fixed a fridge and resolved a fridge problem for someone this week Did you think about the powers of the age to come being at work? Is that I mean, you know, you're there replacing this fridge For a widow in the church.

Is that what comes to your mind? Wow I just witnessed the power of the ages to come at work He's saying that's that's how he's trying to describe this power in one way right here in Hebrews 6 and we should take We should take note of this Yeah at first glance you might say well, wait a minute that Why mention that is some great evidence that they're still doing in their lives Well, because it is that big of a deal the decisive evidence of being a Christian is not simply a past taste of God's gift or an emotional experience the apostate group had that Right, but it's a present ongoing love for his name and that love for his name the proof of love for his name Expresses itself through your love and service of the Saints What verse does that make you think about in first John? Yeah love not in word only but indeed in in truth What else in first John? Talks about one of the reasons we can even have assurance that we're Christians By this, you know That you're saved Wow, what's he gonna say? By this, you know, you've passed from death to life that you love the brethren. It's an incredible emphasis of the Scriptures So that's the main point I want you to take away today I want you to by the end of this message to be gripped with there is a group of people Who are still doing these things and there's another group had all these dramatic Experiences they're not still doing this They've actually abandoned the Lord and that this is something that is highly valued in God's perspective And you know why why we can know that this often isn't highly valued because the text actually says God is not just so as to do what? overlook Why would the author even need to put that in the passage and make a statement about God not overlooking your service for the Saints? Because that often very much so happens right Jesus himself made statements like this Whoever gives one of these little ones even a cup of cold water Because he is a disciple truly I say to you he will by no means lose his reward One cup of water that's not impressive about that You're saying that heaven keeps books on cups of water Imagine I mean the angels are going through this library, and they're looking at you know the titles and they see one cups of water Like that's recorded like that detail would actually God would look at that and not overlook it and record it Wow That's that's incredible So I've got six thoughts I want to share from these two verses three verses right here Six thoughts so number one This passage creates this question whose reputation drives the work you do Whose reputation drives the work you do is it your own reputation or Christ reputation and I get that obviously from Verse 10 he mentions right there your work and love you've shown for his name. That's just an another way of Saying for the Lord's reputation for the Lord's reputation Whose name are you really building up if no one knew you did some specific service would you still do it? If no one had any idea would you still do whatever that service is? Look at look at Philippians 2 I know I preached out of this years ago, but this has always been an amazing passage Philippians 2 I Think one of the challenging questions we face as Christians is just do we really believe our father who sees us in secret sees us? Do I actually believe that? Philippians 2 verse 19 Well When you think about Serving for the Lord's name and not your own name Right that deals with is my love genuine and look what he says in verse 19 I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon So that I too may be cheered by news of you and then he describes Timothy and this all has always just taken me back for various reasons Before I have no one like him who would be genuinely concerned for your welfare That's a very that's kind of a discouraging statement like the mighty Apostle Paul actually makes us I mean imagine if you're not Timothy and you read this letter and you're one of the other guys and It sounds like Paul's saying you don't you're not genuinely concerned for people's welfare Now Context matters.

What letter is this in or Philippians? So that was the wrong question what else happens in this letter that could inform how we understand the statement What happens in chapter 1? There's many preaching Christ out of selfish ambition Right. So I think that's what he's contrasting Timothy with this other group And I don't think Paul kind of like in 2nd Timothy when he says all have deserted me I don't Paul's point is in every Christian deserted him. He's talking about Rome specifically.

And so I think in Philippians He's talking about Philippi or this letter. He's writing to the Philippians From jail, he's being more specific But then he goes on to say Philippians 2 they all seek their own interest not those of Jesus Christ So you see Hebrews 6 Love for service for his name Right. This is about serving the Lord's name, but notice what Paul does here.

He used he does something he uses Your genuine concern For others welfare and then he restates it in another way and he says your genuine concern For others welfare is the same thing as having genuine concern for what? What is what is he interchanged with right there at the end of verse 21? You showing genuine concern for someone's welfare he restates it and says you're doing what you're showing interest for who? for the Lord That's very encouraging So kind of back to Hebrews 6 He's saying the powers of the age to come are showing love for the Lord's name And that love is through serving the Saints as you still Do so you can you can flip back to? Hebrews, so that's that's point one whose reputation drives the work we do If no one knew what you did in specific areas, would you still do it? Well point two Point two is this. Are you a firework or a furnace? Are you a firework or a furnace and I think we find here in Hebrews 6 Scriptures the scripture prizes steady service for the Lord over dramatic proofs Those in Hebrews 6 they had a lot But it cannot be said the people at the start of Hebrews 6 those who apostatized it cannot be said that they still serve the Saints as this other group still does and If you've been around The church long enough and Christians long enough. You will find there are a lot of people who crave dramatic proofs and They crave that at the same time.

They can neglect daily love And this topic of loving the Saints here. It doesn't stop in Hebrews 6 He at the very closing chapter in 13 He says let brotherly love continue and he talks about hospitality there. So this is a big deal on his mind throughout throughout this letter from here on out at least And so what I mean by firework or a furnace There's a big difference between fireworks fireworks.

They explode They've got color noise. They draw everyone's attention. They're spectacular What's their problem what's the problem with a firework that doesn't last it's got very short longevity a Furnace by contrast burns quietly Steadily, it's not as flashy I'm tell you a wood stove at his mother's house.

Well now his sister's house is not as flashy Compared to a fireworks display But the fireworks aren't going to warm you up throughout the entire winter Right is short-lived And so the fire the fireplace causes this constant warmth needed to sustain you through a long winter My point is genuine faith is not measured by a momentary spark, but by enduring heat that's being emitted and coming from your life I mean some of the people who are the most helpful and beneficial for the growth of the church are those whose warmth is like the furnace Where there's this constant warmth of Christ Coming off of their life a constant love and service for the Saints Even in the smallest of things the things that God doesn't overlook that man might overlook And so we get that from Hebrews 6 right you You shared in the Holy Spirit you tasted of the goodness of the word you had the powers of the age to come from verse 5 They had all of that and they fell away, but these other people right here who they're not a firework. They're a furnace They're still serving the Saints as they still do and they're still in the race That's point two point three What man overlooks God remembers and esteems? What man overlooks God remembers and esteems and you see that right there in verse 10? God is not unjust so as to overlook your work and the love you have shown for the Saints Man though is often unjust Unjust not righteous they don't elevate things properly I Mean we probably have all done that to some extent We look at two situations and we elevate one higher than the other and we minimize one and God actually looks at in a completely different perspective Right When we overlook or belittle quiet services Who are we not being like? If I overlook a quiet service of the Saints that one of you do Whose character am I not reflecting by overlooking that quiet service that you're doing? I'm not being like God I'm not imitating his character if he's a God who's not unjust and doesn't overlook these things we should neither So to minimize serving the Saints is to minimize what God esteems This is us loving one another and being the bride of Christ and the body of Christ It's it's an outwork of eternal life being lived out in our lives What are some examples in the Bible of something someone did that was overlooked? By those around them Say again, what's a Mordecai okay Yeah Right and he in amazingly he's getting overlooked for preventing the King from being assassinated and Then one day ironically what gets opened? Right in the middle not a book That's it. That's an interesting picture of heaven right there.

Maybe right you do something in this life No one knows about it. The King of Kings one day opens the book What else who else Yeah, the widows two mites or two coins For kids who think mites or mice two coins others saw almost nothing, but Jesus said she gave more than they all did right perspective Mary's ointment Right. How did the disciples view it? Why are you wasting? Why are you wasting this? There's a better use for we could have sold it got all this money Amazing right? What was Christ perspective? He called it what? Beautiful right Beautiful Center so even in the person of Christ on this earth in those examples You see something that his disciples were overlooking and he's looking at it in a right perspective and calling it beautiful So you could even ask that in our own church In your life as a Christian Reflect maybe there's something someone has done for you That you're overlooking and you could actually share a word of encouragement to them About how much of an impact whatever that is has had upon your life Think of this have you ever pulled back from ordinary service because it just felt beneath you Have you ever not done something because it just felt like yeah, I'm not gonna go that low Ask God to make you view yourself as small as you are And then you will be glad to serve in all these different ways and it won't be an offense to you You'll see it as an opportunity to be like Christ So that's number three number four from Hebrews 6 number four.

Is this serving the Saints? leads to assurance of salvation Some of you Might have wrestles rest be wrestling with assurance of where you're at with the Lord and Amazingly if you if you look right here, he wants people to have Look at verse 11. We desire each one of you to show the same earnestness to have The full assurance of hope until the end Yes, he's talking about looking to the promises. But what did he just say? They're still doing serving the Saints and Remember the verse from 1st John 3 14 But we quoted earlier by this, you know, you pass from death to life.

You love the brethren the Bible actually speaks of assurance of salvation Growing and being more a part of your life as you're loving those to whom Christ has died for So Hebrews 6 makes a sharp contrast right here What marks the heirs with Christ your work and love that you've shown for his name and serving the Saints as you still Do that gets more assurance than the spectacular experiences that he mentioned earlier on in Hebrews 6 That's incredible You think he would say you're gonna get assurance if you keep tasting to the Spirit and the powers of the age to come you Think yeah, that's where he assurance. He's actually saying you're gonna get greater degrees of assurance as you serve the Saints Wow, all right number five Turn to Hebrews 13 number five God equips you for what he commands the serving of the Saints this loving the brethren It's not a self-effort program. You look to Christ you're empowered through him to go and do such Again, just if you don't know verse 1, let's just read verse 1 and then we'll go further in Hebrews 13 Let brotherly love continue Then he gives how do not neglect showing hospitality to strangers then he gives another way to let love continue verse 3 remember those who are in prison as Though in prison with them and those who are mistreated Why should we remember those who are mistreated since they are also in the body? So he gives multiple examples there of how brotherly love continues, but then look at verse 20 The benediction has an incredible truth here Now may the God of peace who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus the great shepherd of the sheep by the blood of the eternal covenant Equipped you with everything good That you may do his will working in us That which is pleasing in his sight through Jesus Christ to whom be glory forever and ever Amen verse 21 Paul's praying That God would equip you with everything good that you may do his will and he's working in you to do that Very well, where else is the Bible talk just like that Philippians to Work out your salvation with fear and trembling Why would Paul make a statement like that? Because it is God who works in you both to desire and to work for his good pleasure Both passages teach the same route.

This is God. God's doing this. God puts those desires in our hearts a supernatural And so don't you you and I we have the equipment to love All right number six What's happening right here in Hebrews 6 is called to serve the Saints.

It's just ultimately a call to be like Christ It's just a call to be like Christ for the Son of Man came Not to be served but to do what? To serve and in what way did he come to serve? To give his life is a ransom for many loving each other's just Being like Christ you can sum it up in that way be like Christ Be like the Lord Jesus. I Mean if we see this as true sanctification We'll read every word of Jesus on humility with great eager eagerness No place is gonna seem too low No task in our life will seem too humble Not not none of us are gonna be the Son of God leaving glory with the Father None of us are ever gonna get called to do something lower than that. Would you all agree with that? Would you all agree with that? So anything you and I are called to it can't it can't as they say hold a candle to the humiliation that Christ Has already done No task too humble.

No stretch of service too long Right Jesus even calls going the extra mile uses that language as someone shared recently about the Romans And them being able to in a way take advantage of a Jew and Christ is encouraging them go beyond what's even asked of you And so brethren serving the Saints it might look simple Not dramatic not a firework, but a furnace Generosity encouragement, but the Scriptures exalted these ordinary acts are not ordinary you can't do it apart from the grace of God and Their proof that eternal life is within you That you've passed from death to life there are great evidence and There's so many ways we could picture this in examples, but one example that came to my mind That just kind of pictures this kind of quiet Christlike service Was about John Bunyan Who knows what was the last thing? Bunyan did Prior to the Lord taking him to the heavenly realm Does anyone know? Yeah Yeah, listen to this. It's incredible This is an example of serving the Saints God does not overlook this and This was a great way To depart it's not like Bunyan when I've never read it yet But it's not like when Bunyan sees the Lord the Lord is looking and saying well You could have picked a better way to you know to finish the race with no God's not doing that a Father had been deeply upset with his son He had threatened to disinherit his son to prevent both the sorrow of a father Dying angry and the harm of the son losing the inheritance Bunyan the week already took up his usual work of making peace He rode on a horseback to ready the only way to travel at that time and Bunyan was successful in restoring peace between the father and the son On his way back stopping in London to share the good news. He was caught in heavy rains Exhausted he found shelter in the home of a Christian friend Mr. Sturdwick where Bunyan came down with his fatal fever This great man of God who wrote pilgrims progress that was his last act Seeking to help a father and a son be reconciled Serving they serve in the Saints.

It's a service. That's God's not going to overlook that well a few Questions here to ask ourselves. How should us elders cultivate a Congregation that prizes hidden faithfulness over dramatic impressions It's a question I had to ask myself Do we prize that I mean you guys are the body If we had a survey what what do the elders prize? I know it's kind of a difficult question as it is, but but just to say it happened.

What are the elders prize? And in the way they talk it's like wow, they really prize this Right, would you say Little things serving the Saints would that be one would that be one of the statements Obviously, how do we cultivate this one by preaching on it, which is what I'm doing right now I hope this is helping cultivate this reality Second I think by the way, we speak about different ministries and activities Sometimes without realizing it we could exalt something that's more visible or dramatic in such a way that it diminishes Something that's a quiet service So our words can emphasize or reinforce the value of hidden faithfulness or we could I could unintentionally minimize Some area you're being faithful right now as a Christian. I could make statements from here that just minimize it Where God doesn't want me to minimize it. God is not overlooking it.

God is prizing that Another question. I don't know how applicable this is, but we got to ask ourselves this is there anywhere in my life I'm tempted to chase some spotlight Rather than just be a faithful steward. It's a valid question to ask Another question.

What does it look like when someone is truly tasted of? Of the powers of the age to come why current I tried to already answer that It's not fireworks. It's not visions. It's not dramatic proofs it's a furnace a steady heat a steady love for the brethren a Steady being a faithful member in the body a steady giving little words of encouragement And all of that you're doing it out of a love for the Lord's name There is a name above every name There's a name that one day every knee will bow in heaven on earth and under the earth Every knee will bow and confess that Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father and By me Serving one of you in the littlest of ways and by you serving another one of his loved ones even with a cup of water You're honoring that name That is above every name and so remember those words right there in Hebrews 6 10 at the end in serving the Saints as you still do You know how there's phases in our lives someone I say to someone Do you still hunt? No, I don't still do that.

I don't hunt May it never be said of us that we can't say serving the Saints. Oh, yeah, I still do that. I think I've improved There any of you all improving and loving each other serving the Saints Anything any more like Christ in some way Maybe you can't see it kind of like our kids they grow up.

We got to let them know sometimes Hey, you're getting taller buddy. You're getting stronger We should do that as shepherds as we see you all growing in your ability to serve the Saints So brother that was really encouraging the way you serve that person and you saw that need you went after it Then when we act that way we're like God who is not unjust and never forgets one act of love done for his name So I ask you I guess these are the final things out of my last page here Yeah, whose name are you serving yours of the Lord's And just asking Lord, is there anywhere? I've grown sluggish. He mentions that right there goes on in verse 11 He's talking about being earnest verse 12 so that you may not be sluggish But imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises And he goes on to speak about Abraham and these promises So yes, we're looking to promises.

We're looking to the Lord and in the midst of everything Well, who can you give a cup of water to this week, right? We should be looking for those opportunities. Is that what I think it in Hebrews 13. Is it actually mentioned? Where does it mention? It points out the distinction of you're not being passive.

You're looking for ways to serve and to share Is that in Hebrews 13 does anyone know? Verse 16, I guess. Yeah, that kind of hits it Hebrews 13 16 do not neglect to do good So this is all this is something we could neglect and to share what you have And look again the same idea this God really is pleased with this for such sacrifices of sharing are pleasing to God So kind of back to the the cup of water example You're going to offer a sacrifice to God. It's amazing.

Do we view those things as sacrifices to the Lord? Well, that's all I have we got we do have a baptism and we got the kids in the Sunday school I don't know. Does anyone else have a thought to add Jeff you have anything comes to your mind? What are other passages maybe I could have brought up in what we just looked at does anyone have another passage from Scripture or another example from the Bible about something that Someone did but the but was overlooked That's a good point. Yeah, maybe yeah, that's that is interesting One of the things that really comes up in Job's life is that he did seek out the poor I Don't think of that the wealthiest man.

This has the wealthiest man in all of Us or has it work? Yeah, and yet his life is involved with using those resources for the poor. Yeah, Tim Yeah Right. I remember when Kathy brought in that huge bag I'm like what's in this bag and it's all these crochet knitted Hats for cancer patients who've lost their hair and it's kind of what? Dorcas Tabitha was doing there.

Yeah, Chris Yeah, no, it's very yeah, very good point I mean the same idea comes up in the picture of Judgment Day in Matthew 24 This service of people and these small things and someone called the church phone yesterday. It was a lady at a nursing home in her 60s Unable to go to church and She and I just fellowshiped on the phone and I told her I said boy I wish you were down here in San Antonio in the nursing home that the brethren are going to Cuz she was a sister And so yeah, if she has no church, you know Someone a sister in our church could take her number get her number from me and call her once a month and Talk to this lady who really needs people to talk to and that's a way to serve That it could seem small but God won't overlook God knows everything Any other examples? Yeah, Jenny Yeah, we just read that out loud Romans 12 Virgil start verse verse 7 If service are in our serving The one who teaches in his teaching the one who exhorts in his exhortation the one who contributes in generosity The one who leads with zeal the one who does acts of mercy With cheerfulness Kind of like hospitality and Peter with cheerful or not with a do without grumbling right verse 9 Let your love be genuine abhor what is evil hold fast to what is good. Love one another with brotherly affection And then he he creates a competition.

Oh, man Paul really outdo one another I Don't think he means I can do anything you can do better or whatever that song is I don't that's his point now do one another showing honored do not be slothful In zeal be fervent in spirit serve the Lord rejoice and hope be patient tribulation constant in prayer contribute to the needs of the Saints And seek to show hospitality and I know I didn't even hit on that but how did he just call the Christians right here? He called them by what name? Saints it's the same term in Hebrew 6 brethren. God has a very high view of you You're a saint. You're a set-apart one.

You're a holy one You know what who uses that term the Catholics and They treat their Saints with supposed reverence well, you all really are the Saints and the beloved of God and And that deserves a treatment you are the body of Christ Every member matters and so yeah, these are very important truths All right. Well, it's about 10 50s. All right.

There's a glare up there. Let's pray father Lord, we want the love of Christ to compel us. We want to be people gripped with your love for us Or do we want to show love for your name your name Lord people blaspheme your name people trample on your name We want to show Love and works for your name For your name Lord, we're thankful for your blood that even in our weak attempts to serve And we're not perfectly like your son Lord your blood Cleanses us Lord.

Thank you. Thank you Lord Lord I pray you'd give us more love Lord is John 1334 says Lord to love as your son has loved Lord that bar is so high in the New Covenant Lord it's so much higher than the Ten Commandments It's your son Lord help us To Lord I pray as Paul did for the Philippians Lord, may our love abound more and more With knowledge and all discernment we want discernment With knowledge and all discernment so that we might approve. What is excellent and So be filled with the fruit of righteousness for the day of Jesus Christ Lord, I pray help our love abound more and more Lord help my own love For you, and then it overflows and love for these dear precious believers Lord help our love abound more and more Lord help us to it to be said of us.

We're still doing we're still we're still doing it. We're still serving the Saints We're still crocheting Making clothes like Dorcas did We're still taking something valuable and not really caring and pouring it out in honor for someone Lord that we're still giving it our all Because your son did again Lord. We thank you for the Lord Jesus Father there's no love like your sons to love us your enemies Scarcely would one die for a righteous person though you died for us Father show us more of Christ And help us to show more of Christ to one another We thank you in Jesus name.

Amen