A New Order of Priesthood

This morning we're looking at Hebrews chapter 7 verses 20 through 28.

Hebrews 7:20–28

If you're looking in one of the Pew Bibles, that is page 1004.

We are over halfway through February.

That means that spring is only one month and four days away.

Even though that may seem hard to believe, it will come.

Some of faith is believing what we don't currently see, but what we have reliable reasons to know will occur in the future.

Hebrews 7, starting at verse 20.

And it was not without an oath.

For those who formerly became priests were made such without an oath.

But this one was made a priest with an oath.

By the one who said to him,

The Lord has sworn and will not change his mind.

You are a priest forever.

This makes Jesus the guarantor of a better covenant.

The former priests were many in number.

Because they were prevented by death from continuing in office.

But he holds his priesthood permanently.

Because he continues forever.

Consequently, he is able to save to the uttermost.

Those who draw near to God through him.

Since he always lives to make intercession for them.

For it was indeed fitting that we should have such a high priest.

Holy, innocent, unstained, separated from sinners, and exalted above the heavens.

He has no need, like those high priests, to offer sacrifices daily.

First for his own sins, and then for those of the people.

Since he did this once for all, when he offered himself.

For the law appoints men in their weakness as high priests.

But the word of the oath, which came later than the law,

Appoints a son, who has been made perfect forever.

I've never particularly enjoyed going to the doctor.

But there have been a couple of times in my life when I am very thankful that I did.

One of those times was just about a year ago, last February.

I'd been in bed for two and a half days with a fever and stomach pain.

It felt sort of like the flu, but I wasn't throwing up.

And it just felt different.

I felt like it wasn't something I had had quite ever the same before.

So I called the doctor's office on a Thursday morning.

Got the last appointment on a Thursday afternoon.

Long story short, I was diagnosed with possible appendicitis.

I was sent to the hospital that night.

A CAT scan revealed my appendix had actually ruptured.

And if your appendix ruptures and you don't get any medical treatment, you could possibly die.

So it's quite serious.

The next day, Friday and Saturday, February 8 and 9, I think, of last year, was Blizzard Nemo.

Which, if you were in New Haven last year, you certainly remember that.

New Haven received three feet of snow in 24 hours, and the city was basically shut down for five days.

So I watched the snow come down from my hospital bed on the fifth floor of St. Raphael's Hospital.

While my wife, Jane, and our two young children, Nathan and Grace, were confined in our house for three days because our street wasn't plowed.

And there was no way to get out.

Now, looking back, I'm thankful for a lot of things.

Throughout the whole process, I was well taken care of by the doctors and hospital staff and nurses of various kinds.

But I'm also thankful that I made it.

And that I made it to the doctors that Thursday afternoon, because if I didn't go then, then I might not have made it before the blizzard began.

And then who knows what I would have done with a ruptured appendix for three days in a blizzard.

Once I left, thankfully, most of the bill was covered by our health insurance.

Without that, we would still be in debt.

Now, when you face real problems that you can't fix yourself, it makes a big difference whether or not you are covered, as we say.

If you have distressing physical symptoms and you don't know what's causing them, or you do know what's causing them and you know it's pretty serious,

in our society, it makes a big difference if you're covered by health insurance.

If you're covered by a good insurance policy, you feel the freedom to go see a doctor, pursue a diagnosis, and if necessary, get the treatment you need.

If you're not, it's possible that you might be tempted to deny the problem or delay getting treatment,

until, at least in my case, it might have been too late.

But the same is true, not only when we face problems that are bigger than ourself,

but also when we face a mission that is bigger than ourself.

For example, if you want to start a medical practice to help all the rest of us when we get sick.

Or the same example could apply if you're wanting to open a restaurant,

or revitalize a troubled neighborhood,

or rebuild a troubled marriage,

or train for the Olympics.

Any mission that is bigger than you can sustain by yourself,

you need to have resources outside yourself.

You need to have someone who's going to stand behind you and cover you,

as you go forward in your mission.

Somebody who's maybe going to loan you some money,

so you can rent a building,

and buy equipment,

and hire staff,

and advertise in the community,

and defend yourself against malpractice suits,

and all the other things that doctors have to consider.

If you're covered with the resources and the support that you need,

on an ongoing basis,

not only financially,

but also personally,

it makes all the difference.

If you aren't covered,

if you don't have what you need,

you'll tend to be either crippled by anxious pessimism,

or blinded by naive optimism.

Nothing's going to go wrong.

Ever.

But if you are covered,

if you know that someone is standing behind you,

going before you,

protecting you from the dangers that you see,

as well as the dangers that you can't see,

you can go forward with freedom and confidence in your mission.

Now, what this morning's passage is telling us,

is that in our most difficult problems,

and in our most important missions,

there is one person who can cover us,

like no one else.

At the heart of this passage is verse 25,

which says,

consequently,

he, Jesus,

is able to save to the uttermost

those who draw near to God through him,

because he always lives

to make intercession for them.

In other words,

if you approach God through Jesus,

you are covered,

completely and forever,

to the uttermost,

without qualifications or limitations or exclusions.

Now, as we look into this verse,

and this passage as a whole,

we'll see three things.

First, why do we need to be covered?

Second, why Jesus is able to cover us,

and third, how he covers us continually.

So first, why we need to be covered by Jesus.

Now, the assumption of this passage

is that we need to be covered.

That every one of us is facing great spiritual dangers

that we cannot defend ourselves against.

Problems that we cannot fix on our own.

Verse 25 says,

Jesus is able to save us.

And it presents that as good news,

but that only makes sense

if there's actually something

that we need to be saved from.

You know, if you told me today

that I need to spend the next month of my life

in the hospital,

being treated by doctors,

my immediate reaction would be annoyance.

I don't want to spend the next month of my life

in the hospital.

I want to be home with my family,

and here at the church,

and out in the community,

and free to do what I want to do.

But if you told me,

and you really knew,

that I needed surgery tomorrow

to save my life,

and the doctors could do it tomorrow,

but I'd have to stay in the hospital

recovering for a month,

then I would gladly do it.

I'd embrace every single day

that I was in the hospital

as a precious gift,

and I would live the rest of my life

knowing that I had been rescued.

You see, it's basically the same way

with the Christian faith.

If you believe that you're basically okay,

and you don't need any outside help,

Christianity will feel like

an annoying imposition.

Right?

Like the new healthcare reform law feels

to a person

if you don't have any interest

in buying health insurance.

You feel like,

I'm perfectly fine without it.

I don't need it.

Well, why is there this law?

Right?

It feels constricting

and has all these rules

with penalties attached

that infringe upon your freedom.

And Christianity will feel the same way.

Or at best,

Christianity will be

an interesting enrichment activity,

a hobby to fill your time

until you find something better to do

on Sunday mornings.

But you know,

according to the Bible,

every one of us

is desperately in need

of spiritual help.

even if we don't realize it.

The prophet Jeremiah said,

the human heart

is deceitful above all things

and desperately sick.

In other words,

we're infected

with a deadly virus.

But one of the effects

of this virus

is to make us numb

so that we don't recognize

its symptoms.

And so especially

when our circumstances

are going well,

we may feel

very self-sufficient.

We might not feel

a great need for God.

But our present feelings

and our self-assessments

are not always

a reliable indicator

of our spiritual condition.

You know,

when I was single,

I thought that I was

generally a selfless

and servant-hearted person.

And then I got married.

And now there's at least

one person in the world

who knows otherwise.

The experience of marriage

has shown me

my self-centeredness

and my self-defensiveness

in ways that I wasn't

previously aware of.

It's not that marriage

made me a different person.

It just showed me

aspects of who I was

that I hadn't

seen before.

Sometimes when life,

or sometimes another thing

that can do that

is when life doesn't go

the way that we hope.

we become more aware

of our fallen

and needy human condition

more clearly than before.

You know,

think about the things

that make your life work

on a day-to-day basis,

that hold your life together,

that give you stability.

Physical health,

mental capabilities,

social connections,

a job,

a place to live,

a relationship,

your good reputation.

And then imagine

if over the next year,

just two or three

of those things

were removed

or seriously damaged.

On most Wednesdays,

I spend time talking

with people

at the Columbus House

homeless shelter.

And sometimes,

I'll ask people,

what brought you here?

Now, that's never

the first question I ask.

But as I get to know

people better

and they open up,

sometimes I will.

If it seems like

they're willing

to share about things.

And many people

have said to me,

I never expected

to be here.

I grew up in the suburbs,

a nice suburb.

My wife and I

had two cars.

I was going to college.

I was a mother of three.

I had a thriving business

and I was earning good money.

And then somehow,

over time,

my life fell apart

and here I am.

Now, if you've been through

a traumatic event

or a major loss,

you know deep inside

how vulnerable we are

at any time

to changing circumstances,

some of which are totally

beyond our control

and some of which we provoke

through our own foolish tendencies.

But you know,

this isn't only the experience

of someone

who's become homeless

or experienced

a major loss.

A few months ago,

I received an email

from a guy who I had known

when he was in college.

And he gave me permission

to share this.

He graduated from

a top-tier college.

He moved to New York,

found a high-paying job.

He's been very successful

in his field.

But he wrote this.

This email came to me

completely out of the blue.

He hadn't been in touch

for a couple years.

He said,

I really enjoy my current job.

I love the people I work with.

Unlike my last job,

I also have time.

I have time to spend

with family and friends

and to pursue other things

I enjoy.

But I feel very strongly

that something is missing.

I was raised Catholic.

The way I was taught growing up,

you are what you do.

You will ultimately be judged

by the sum of your actions,

good and bad.

And that became the source

of my self-worth.

Until approximately

junior year in college,

my sense of self-worth

was tied to a few

specific things.

Athletic performance,

academic performance,

and my relationship

with the girl I had been

seeing for some time.

One by one,

all of those things

went downhill.

Some of it was my fault,

but not all of it.

My life had essentially

been one big victory lap

up until that point.

I had always tried

to do right by others,

and I thought that good things

happened to me

because of that.

And now I did not understand

and couldn't accept

what was now happening.

Nothing was going my way.

I felt lied to.

I was angry

and turned away

from the Catholic Church

and religion in general.

Embraced the philosophy

of Ayn Rand.

But I felt so strangely

unfulfilled ever since.

Prestigious job,

lots of money,

expensive clothes,

nice apartment.

None of it means

very much to me.

And none of it

has substituted

for whatever it was

I was missing.

You see,

whether your life

has totally fallen apart

and you're forced

to depend on others

for your basic needs,

or whether you

achieve everything

that you hoped

and realize

that that still

isn't enough,

sometimes God uses

the circumstances

of our lives

to awaken us

to our spiritual need

that we cannot

fix on our own.

our need for something

outside ourselves.

And as we get older,

the signs alerting us

to our own dependence

only increase in frequency

because the older we get,

the closer we come

to the one reality

that is 100% sure

for every one of us,

which is death.

When every one of the things

that hold our life together

and that we hold dear

will finally be taken

out of our hands

and everything

that held us together

will fall apart.

Every one of us

will face death alone.

We can take nothing

and no one with us.

And Hebrews 9 says

it is appointed

for human beings

to die once

and after that

comes judgment

when each one of us

will give an account

of our lives

to a holy

and pure God

whose presence

is like a consuming fire.

And on that day

there will be nowhere

to hide.

All our illusions

about ourselves

and our own self-sufficiency

will disappear

in the blazing light

of God's all-knowing,

all-searching,

all-revealing gaze.

And when we come

into the holy presence

of God,

we will recognize ourselves

to be sinners.

Maybe for the first time

we will recognize

that we rightly deserve

to be forever excluded

from His presence.

And on that day

there will be only one person

who can help us

in any way at all.

Now the good news

of this passage

and the point

of this passage

is that unlike anyone else,

Jesus Christ

is able

to cover us.

He's able

to save us

to the uttermost.

That means completely

and forever

in this life

and in the life to come.

for all who draw near

to God

through Him.

And you know,

when it says

Jesus is able

to save us completely,

it's not merely

presenting

a hypothetical possibility.

It's not saying

Jesus might

possibly save you

if you come to Him.

It's saying

He is powerful

to save

completely

those who come to God

through Him.

The same phrase

is used

three other times

in Hebrews

to describe

the work of Jesus

or God.

In chapter 2,

verse 18,

it says Jesus is able

to help

those who are being

tempted

and He does.

4.15 says

Jesus is able

to sympathize

with us

in our weakness.

Chapter 5,

verse 7 says

God was able

to save

Jesus from death

and He did

in the resurrection.

And the point is

Jesus is powerfully

able to save us

and He has proved

His willingness

to do so

for everyone

who draws near

to God

through Him.

Unlike anyone else,

He is qualified

to cover us

completely

and forever.

Now you might ask

what makes Jesus

able to do this?

How can I know

that He will?

How can I have

confidence

to trust

that this isn't

just an empty promise

like all the other

empty promises

out there in the world?

Well, this passage

gives three reasons

why Jesus is able

to save us.

Verse 20-22,

it says that God

Himself is guaranteed

that Jesus is able

to save us.

In last week's passage

we saw how the ceremonial

law of the Old Testament

was set aside.

Verse 18-19 says

because it was weak

and useless.

And in the person

of Jesus,

God had introduced

a better hope.

But you know,

the people who first

read this letter

were most likely

Jewish Christians

who had lived

most of their lives

under the Old Testament

law.

And for them,

this would have felt

tremendously destabilizing.

Right?

God Himself

had given Moses

the law

at Mount Sinai

and instructed him

to build the tabernacle

and establish the priesthood

in the line of Aaron.

And now,

they might wonder,

wait a minute,

God is doing away

with what He Himself

established?

If that is so,

how can we really trust

that anything God says

is His final word?

Maybe Jesus is just

a precursor

to another prophet

to come.

Maybe we should

keep our eyes out

for something else

that God might send

to us.

Maybe it's like

an operating system upgrade

and Jesus is just

one of many

forthcoming upgrades

to your Mac OS

or your Windows

operating system.

But the author of Hebrews

is saying no.

He says,

when you read

the Old Testament

carefully,

it points forward

to something greater

than itself.

And it's an unfinished story

crying out

for a lasting resolution

and Jesus is

that lasting,

eternal resolution.

And He will not

be replaced.

God commanded Aaron

and his sons

to be priests

in the temple

but there was never

any oath involved.

In other words,

there was never a sign

that it was absolutely

unchangeable

and would never

point forward

to anything else.

God never swore

an oath to them.

By contrast,

in this verse

that He quotes

from Psalm 110

which talks about

a different kind

of priest,

not in the order

of Aaron

but in the order

of Melchizedek,

God did swear an oath.

So the point is,

Jesus is this priest

whom God has guaranteed

will be there forever.

So God has guaranteed

that Jesus is able

to save us.

That's the first reason.

The second reason

is because Jesus lives

forever.

This is verse 23 and 24.

The second contrast,

the former priests

were many

and they were many

because they all died.

But Jesus is the one

who lives forever.

And God has guaranteed

that Jesus is able

to save us

and He has demonstrated

that by raising Jesus

from the dead.

You know,

if you are not sure,

if you doubt

that Jesus is powerful

and able to save,

consider the fact

of Jesus' resurrection.

If you doubt

that it really happened,

look into the historical evidence.

It's quite strong.

There's a booklet

on the back table.

If you want to read

something short

or if you want to read

something long,

you can read N.T. Wright's

800-page book,

The Resurrection

of the Son of God,

which is a powerful case

by a leading scholar

for the bodily resurrection

of Jesus.

You know,

one of the most remarkable

aspects of the gospel accounts

about the empty tomb

is that the first witnesses

were women.

Now, at that time,

women were not allowed

to be legal witnesses

in either Jewish courts

or Roman courts.

They were seen as,

there was one writer

who said,

women are inferior to men

in every way.

And that was just

a common statement.

Nobody really challenged

him on that.

So if you were going

to make up a story

back then

that somebody had been

raised from the dead

and you wanted people

to believe it,

you wouldn't make up

this detail that women

were the first witnesses

as all the gospels do

unless it really happened

that way.

You see,

you would never make that up

back then in that context

unless that's how

it really happened.

And they really went

to the tomb

and it was really empty

and Jesus had really risen.

You see,

the early Christians

were confident

in the resurrection

of Jesus

because they were convinced

by reliable witnesses,

by women and men

who testified

that it really happened.

Even the early opponents

of Christianity

admitted that the tomb

was empty.

Nobody claimed

that Jesus' body

was still there.

That would have been

the easiest way

to disprove it.

You could go on and on.

But the more you look

into it,

the historical evidence

is strong,

pointing to the reality

of Jesus' resurrection.

And because Jesus

lives forever,

we can be confident

that he is able

to save us

forever,

unlike anyone else.

So God has guaranteed it.

Jesus lives forever.

And third,

the third reason

that we see

that Jesus is able

to save

is that he is

our exalted brother.

This is verse 26

through 28.

Jesus wasn't only

raised from the dead

to live on earth,

he was exalted

to the right hand

of God

in heaven,

the position

of ultimate authority

over everything

in the universe.

Verse 26 and 28

describes Jesus

as fully identified

with God

in his moral perfection,

holy,

innocent,

unstained,

separated from sinners,

the son who has been

made perfect

forever.

And yet,

verse 27 says

he is fully identified

with us

as our brother,

that he offered himself

up as a sacrifice

on behalf of sinful people

once for all.

You see,

Jesus is perfectly qualified

to stand before

a holy God

because he is morally pure

and without blemish,

unlike anyone else.

And he is perfectly qualified,

unlike the angels

or other heavenly beings,

he is perfectly qualified

to represent us

because he took on

our human nature.

And on the cross,

he paid the price

to cover us

completely and forever,

to pay the debt

that we owed

for our sin.

And when Jesus

ascended back into heaven,

you know,

he didn't just

leave his human nature

behind on earth.

He carried it with him

into the very presence

of God.

And so Jesus stands today

in the very presence

of God,

not only as the eternal

Son of God,

but also as

our brother,

our fellow human being.

And him standing

in God's presence

is a sign

that he is perfectly

and powerfully

able to save us

with whom he identified

and bring us

with him

into God's presence

forever.

Jesus is able

to save us

completely

and forever.

Well, finally,

this passage describes

how Jesus continually

carries out

his work

of covering us,

of saving us.

Verse 25 says,

he always lives

to make intercession

for us.

Now, to intercede

for someone

means to approach

an authority figure

with an appeal

or a request

on behalf

of someone else.

So what this verse

is saying is that

Jesus,

our exalted brother,

our ever-living Savior

and Lord,

is continually

approaching God the Father

with requests

and appeals

on our behalf.

Now, you might wonder,

what does that look like?

Well, you know,

we can actually get a clue

of what that looks like,

even though we can't

look into heaven

directly

and hear what Jesus

is saying to God the Father.

But when you read

in the Gospels,

there's some

records of the prayers

of Jesus

that he prayed

for his disciples.

So Luke 22,

31 and 32,

Jesus says to Peter,

he says,

Simon,

Simon,

behold,

Satan demanded

to have you.

Satan was out

to get you.

He wanted to sift you

like wheat.

But I have prayed

for you

that your faith

may not fail.

And when you have

turned back,

strengthen your brothers.

Jesus prays for us

that our faith

in him

might not fail.

because it's not

something that we

can sustain on our own.

He prays to God

the Father

that our faith

would not fail.

And when we do

stumble

and fall

as Peter did

when he denied Jesus

that very night,

Jesus continues

to intercede

for us

that we might

not only turn

back to him,

but then strengthen

our brothers

and sisters.

John 17,

15,

Jesus prayed

for his disciples.

He said,

I do not ask

that you take them

out of the world,

but that you keep them

from the evil one.

Sanctify them

in the truth.

Your word

is truth.

Jesus does not

promise

to shield us

from the harsh realities

of life

in this world.

Jesus does not pray

that nothing bad

would ever happen

to us.

But he does pray

that in all the things

that happen to us

that we would be kept

from the evil one.

That even through

our greatest trials

and our hardest temptations

that we would be set apart

for holy service

to God.

That's what sanctify

means.

To be set apart

for a holy purpose

by the truth

of his word.

Perhaps the most famous

prayer of Jesus

is what we now call

the Lord's Prayer

in Luke 11.

And actually,

the context of that

is Jesus was praying.

And back then,

most people

prayed out loud

a little more

than we do today.

If you think

if you find somebody

praying,

you might expect

that they're praying

quietly.

But it's probably

Jesus was praying

out loud.

His disciples heard him

and they said to him,

Lord, teach us to pray.

And then he taught them

based on what he was praying.

And then the second half

of the Lord's Prayer,

he makes three requests

on our behalf.

He says,

give us each day

our daily bread.

He's praying for what

that we would be provided

with what we need

on a day-to-day basis.

Second, he says,

forgive us our sins.

Now clearly,

Jesus isn't praying

for himself there.

Right?

But even when he's

on earth,

Jesus is already

praying to God the Father

that our sins

would be forgiven.

And third,

lead us not

into temptation.

Even while Jesus

was on earth,

he was already

praying for his disciples

before the Father.

And how much more

since he is in heaven,

since he has completed

the work of the cross,

which paid the price

for our forgiveness

and for everything else

that we need.

So in summary,

what does Jesus pray for?

Well, Peter O'Brien,

a commentator on Hebrews,

summarizes it this way.

He says,

Jesus prays for anything

and everything

that might prevent us

from receiving

the final salvation

that he has won for us

at the cross.

In other words,

through Jesus dying

on the cross

once for all,

he has accomplished

our redemption.

And through his

continual intercession

on our behalf,

he applies to us

all the benefits

that he has won

and paid for

in his death

and resurrection.

You see,

Jesus has not only

saved us by dying

on the cross

in the past,

he continues to save us

by interceding

for us in the present.

And one day,

Hebrews 9, 28,

says he will appear

a second time

to save those

who are eagerly

waiting for him.

In other words,

he has saved us

by his death

on the cross

in the past,

he continues to save us

in the present

and he will one day

bring us to glory

and complete that.

That's what the

Romans 8 passage

that Kyle read

earlier this morning

is all about.

Called,

justified,

sanctified,

glorified.

He doesn't miss anything.

He carries us

all the way through.

So if you approach God

through Jesus,

Jesus says,

I've got you covered

completely and forever.

I've forgiven you

of your past.

I'm upholding you

in the present

and I hold your future

in my hands.

That's what it means

that he makes intercession

for us.

Finally,

if you know

that you're covered

by Jesus,

let me end with

three brief applications.

Number one,

if you know

that you're covered

by Jesus,

we can honestly

deal with

and face

our spiritual

sicknesses,

our besetting sins.

We don't need

to live in denial

or fear

that our problems

will be too great

to handle

or too much

for us

to pay for.

We can examine

our own hearts.

We can even receive

critical feedback

from others

without becoming

angry and defensive

because we have

a remedy

that is available

to us.

We have free access

to our great physician

who is already seen

into the depth

of our sin-sick heart

and paid the price

to bring us

the healing

and forgiveness

that we need

so we can face

our spiritual sicknesses,

our sin.

Second,

we can go forth

confidently

into the mission

to which God

has called us.

When Jesus prayed

for all who had come

to believe in him,

you know,

surprisingly,

perhaps,

he didn't only pray

about our problems.

Sometimes our problems

themselves can seem

totally overwhelming

and especially

when we see them

in the light

of God's presence

but Jesus not only

prayed about our problems,

he prayed about our mission.

He prayed for his disciples

that we might be one,

that they may all be one,

just as you, Father,

are in me

and I in you,

that they may also be in us

so that the world

may believe

that you have sent me.

So for those of you

who are involved

in,

for one example,

for those of you

who are involved

in the church plan

in New London,

Jesus is interceding

for you

that you may be united

with one another,

that you may enjoy

rich fellowship

with Jesus and the Father

and that you may declare

the unsearchable riches

of Jesus

to New London

and that people

in that part of the world

would come to believe

and love Jesus

as a result.

And you know what?

That's already happening

because Jesus has already

been interceding

on your behalf.

And so go forward

and continue in your mission

prayerfully and humbly

but also boldly.

For those of us

who are here in New Haven

and if you're not planning

to move to New London,

the same thing applies

to the mission

that God has given us

here in New Haven.

He has brought us together

as one body in Christ

and Jesus is constantly

interceding for us

that we might be

united to declare

to the world

how awesome He is

and that others

might come to believe

in Him.

So go forward

in the mission

that God has given you

with confidence.

Third,

finally,

in all the trials

and temptations

that we face,

be encouraged.

because even

if you don't know

what to pray

or how to pray

or if you feel like

your prayer life

is weak,

you have someone

who is praying

for you.

You have Jesus

who is praying

for you.

Louis Burkhoff

wrote this.

He said,

that it is a comforting

thought

that Christ

is praying for us,

that He is presenting

to the Father

those spiritual needs

which were not present

to our minds,

which we often neglect

to include in our prayers,

and that He prays

for our protection

against the dangers

of which we are not

even conscious

and against the enemies

which threaten us

though we do not notice it.

He is praying

that our faith

may not fail

and that we may come out

victoriously

in the end.

So be encouraged.

Let's pray.

Lord Jesus,

we thank You

this morning

that You are able

to save us.

And we thank You

that You are

continually carrying out

that work

by interceding for us

at the right hand

of God the Father.

That we may know

that You may apply

to us all

of the benefits

that You purchased

for us

in Your death

on the cross.

Lord,

this morning

we join together

in the prayer

that You taught us

to pray

that reminds us

of how You are

praying for us.

Our Father,

who art in heaven,

hallowed be Thy name.

Thy kingdom come,

Thy will be done

on earth

as it is in heaven.

Give us this day

our daily bread.

Forgive us

our trespasses

as we forgive those

who trespass against us.

Lead us not

into temptation,

but deliver us

from evil.

For Thine is the kingdom

and the power

and the glory

forever.

Amen.

Amen.

As the music team

comes forward,

we're going to

join together

in one last song

that speaks of Christ

as interceding

for us

before the throne

of God above.