Marching Upward to Zion, Part 2

So, if you have your Bible, turn to Hebrews chapter 12. We're going to look once again at that fifth and final warning in the book of Hebrews. And the context of it is very important because in Hebrews 11, we have the definition of faith. Hebrews 11, verses 1 and 2. Following that, we had the demonstration of faith by looking at all the different people that the writer of Hebrews would show us lived a life of faith. That took us all the way to chapter 12, verse number 3.

From the demonstration of faith, we had the discipline of faith. And that's how God disciplines his own. From there, we looked at the determination of faith to follow God and to finish well all the way to the end. But this fifth warning that follows the book of Hebrews in Hebrews 12 verse number 18 talks to us about faith's decision. There's a decision that we must make as we begin to understand God's call upon our life. And the decision is very simple, and he illustrates it by two different mountains: Mount Sinai and Mount Zion.

Now, we told you last week that Mount Zion is very, very important. And how you understand Mount Zion helps you understand Judaism. Helps you understand what the listeners would be hearing when he describes Mount Zion in verses 22 and following. And so we took you back last week, for those of you who were not with us, to go back and look at Mount Zion and tell you that Mount Zion is a particular property with a specific hill, with a sacred mountain, and a significant city.

It's a property that was taken over by King David in 2 Samuel chapter 5. When he destroyed or came and took over the Jebusites and named that city Zion. Okay, the city became the city of Jerusalem. But David took over the city, and as he did, that became the place of authority, because that's where David the king would rule. Soon he would bring the ark to Mount Zion, and that ark was representative of God's presence among his people. So Zion began to represent authority and glory, the authority of a king who would rule, and the glory of God who was present there on Mount Zion.

Because one day that mountain will rise above all the other mountains, according to Isaiah chapter 2 and Micah chapter 4, that mountain will rise above all the other mountains. And there, the Son of David, the Messiah, will sit and rule with authority. And his glory will be seen by all, because he is the all-glorified king of Israel. And so it's all prophetic.

So we told you that Mount Zion was a particular property, but it was also a people. We told you that Zion is also a people in Isaiah chapter 49 and Isaiah 62. It's also a plan that God has to return his people to Israel. It's also a proclamation of good tidings that God announces salvation in Israel. We told you also was a prophecy about the salvation of the children of Israel and the prophecy of Messiah coming to rule and reign on Mount Zion.

But we also told you that Zion is a place, a very unique place, unique above any other place on the planet. And we told you that because the Bible says in Isaiah chapter, I mean, sorry, Psalm chapter 132, verse number 13 says, "For the Lord has chosen Zion, he has desired it for his habitation. This is my resting place forever. Here I will dwell, for I have desired it." So, whatever you think about Mount Zion, you have to realize that God says, I'm going to dwell here forever.

In Psalm 133, verse number 3, it says that out of the mountain of Zion, the Lord commanded blessing and life forever. And we told you that Isaiah chapter 18, verse number 7 says that Zion is the place of the name of the Lord of hosts. So much so that in 1 Kings chapter 11, God says this: "I will give one tribe to my son, my servant David, that he may have a lamp always before me in Jerusalem, the city where I have chosen for myself to put my name." That's very important.

Then over in chapter 14, verse number 21, it says, "Now Rehoboam the son of Solomon reigned in Judah. Rehoboam was 41 years old when he became king, and he reigned 17 years in Jerusalem, the city which the Lord had chosen from all the tribes of Israel to put his name there." What does that mean? Well, I'm going to show you what that means. Turn the lights off just a little bit for me and put it up on the screen. I'm going to show you what that means.

You will note that we showed you last week about this is the city of David, right? That David conquered from the Jebusites. That city would move up the hill to incorporate all of Mount Moriah. So that all became the city of Jerusalem. And it's surrounded by three unique valleys. That is, the Tyropoeon Valley, or what you call the Central Valley. The Kidron Valley, or the Valley of Jehoshaphat, the Valley of Jehoshaphat, and then the Hinnom Valley. Okay? Three valleys.

God says, I have chosen this place to put my name. What name did he put in Jerusalem? The name Shaddai. For the Hebrew letter Shin represents Shaddai, and that is the Hebrew letter, what the Hebrew letter Shin looks like, and those three valleys surrounding the city of David and Mount Moriah is God's name literally placed in the topography of the land. This is where I've chosen to put my name. Now that's very important. That's extremely important. Because God wants to show you that this is my place. This is my dwelling place forever.

If you could turn to go to the next slide, Don, for me, would you please show it a little different way? This is a different view looking from the south to the north. And so you see, this is the valley of Jehoshaphat, the valley of the Kidron. This is the central valley or the Tyropoeon Valley. This is the valley of Hinnom. This is the city of David, conquered by David. We conquered the Jebusites that moved up the mountain to incorporate all of Moriah, right? And Calvary would be right here because Calvary was a part of Mount Moriah. God put his name here. He wants you to understand that.

And so, seven times in the Old Testament, God says, I've chosen Jerusalem to put my name there. Because he wants to be known as the Almighty God of the universe. You ever seen a mezuzah? A mezuzah is a small instrument that means doorpost. And the Jews have put a mezuzah on the doorposts, going into every room in their house, except for the bathroom and a closet. And that mezuzah has on it the shin. Why? Because it's a term of protection, a term of blessing, a term of mightiness, the mighty power of God. Shaddai.

Oh, by the way, Shaddai mentioned 48 times in the Old Testament, 31 times in the book of Job. Thirty-one times in the book of Job, God is mentioned as the Almighty One. Why? Because everything about Job is the power of God. That's why God never explains to Job the things that He does. He just reveals to him that he's the all-powerful God of the universe because that's all that matters. That's all that matters. That's all that matters for Job. Not that he's sick, not that he lost everything, but that God in his almighty power is all-sovereign over everything, controls everything, and you need to subject yourself to the mighty power of God Almighty.

Job then says, "What? I have heard of you with the hearing of my ear, but now I have seen you." What is he seeing? He has seen the power of Almighty God. So, when you think of Zion, every Jew, why do we show you this stuff? Because Jews, see, they know this stuff. This is not new to a Jew. They understand this. God says to put my name there. Yeah, they understand the three valleys that surround Mount Zion. They understand that his name is there. That Jerusalem is his place forever, right? They get that.

But it goes beyond that. Listen to this. Psalm 48 says this: "Walk about Zion and go around her. Consider her towers. Go through her palaces that you may tell it to the next generation." In other words, whatever you do, if you don't tell the next generation about this, you're failing as a father. You're failing as a father if you don't tell your children about Zion and all that it means. Count her palaces. Go through her rooms of her palaces. Understand it. Why? Listen to what he says. Verse 14, Psalm 48. "For this is God, our God, forever and ever. He will guide us until death."

The psalmist knew because he says earlier, "This is the city of our God, His holy mountain, beautiful in elevation, the joy of the whole earth. It is Mount Zion in the far north, the city of the great king. God has made himself known in her palaces. God made himself known as a stronghold or as a refuge." Why is he a stronghold and a refuge? Because he's represented by the Shin, which stands for Shaddai, wraps around the city. And you need to tell every generation that follows who God is, because this is, this is God. Why? Because God's a protector. He's a provider. He's the all-sufficient God. He's almighty. And I've had the privilege of taking all my children to that place and explain this to them and to show it to them that they would understand first hand the importance of Mount Zion.

So, having said that, put the lights back on, please. The contrast that the writer of Hebrews makes is a contrast that, in a Jew's mind, would understand Zion and Mount Sinai. And he contrasts them. There's a contrast, and then there are characteristics, and then there's the call to come. And balance of objection. Why? Because everyone in the room is either going to stay at Sinai or go to Zion. Everyone in the room.

You have to understand that Sinai represents the law, and Zion represents the gospel, the grace of God. You got to realize that Sinai represents thunder and lightning, and darkness, and gloom, and judgment. But Zion represents forgiveness and grace and mercy and love. Sinai represents man working his way up to God. Zion represents man depending upon God because he knows he's not good enough to get to God. Sinai represents human achievement. Zion represents divine accomplishment. There's a great stark contrast that's there. And the writer of Hebrews is talking to this Jewish nation saying, You need to come. Need to leave Mount Sinai and come to Zion, the city, the heavenly city of God. This is where you need to be.

So let's look at it together. Hebrews chapter 12, verse number 18. "For you have not come to a mountain that can be touched and to a blazing fire," verse 22, "but you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God." There's a contrast there. He wants them to understand what they need to come to. It says, "blazing fire to darkness and gloom and a whirlwind and to a blast of a trumpet. And the sound of words, which sound was such that those who heard begged that no further word be spoken to them, for they could not bear the command, if even a beast touches the mountain, it will be stoned. And so terrible was the sight that Moses said, I am full of fear and trembling."

Now you see, every Jew knows Sinai. And all you gotta do go back to Exodus chapter 19, Exodus chapter 20, Deuteronomy chapter 4, and realize everything you need to know about Mount Sinai. It's a place where God gave the law. It's also called Mount Horeb. That's where God gave the law to Moses. And when God gave the law to Moses, he made sure that no one would go around that mountain and touch that mountain. Because if you touch the mountain, you would die. If an animal escaped and touched the mountain, you touched the animal, it would die. So, in order for you not to die, you had to stone the animal from a distance, because if you touched the animal that touched the mountain, you would die. Why? Because God gave his law. And all around that mountain was smoke, and thunder, and lightning, and fire.

Why? Deuteronomy 4:24 tells us our God is a consuming fire. It tells us in Exodus chapter, I'm sorry, not Exodus. Deuteronomy 33, verse number 2: "from his right hand went a fiery law." Everything about Sinai is judgment. Condemnation. Why? Because the law is given, and no man can meet the standards of the law. No man can. And God makes it very clear that no man can ever make his way to God by keeping the law of God.

And so it says back in Exodus chapter 20, verse number 18: "All the people perceived the thunder and the lightning flashes and the sound of the trumpet and the mountain smoking. And when the people saw it, they trembled and stood at a distance. Then they said to Moses, Speak to us yourself, and we will listen, but let not God speak to us, or we will die. Moses said to the people, Do not be afraid, for God has come in order to test you, in order that the fear of him may remain with you, so that you may not sin. So the people stood at a distance while Moses approached the thick cloud where God was."

Moses says, Listen, God just wants you to understand the law so you don't sin. But see, man can't do that, man still sins. And the law in and of itself, Romans 7, is good, it's holy, right? It's just. Galatians 3 tells us that the law of God was like a schoolmaster, like a teacher, a tutor that would move us to the gospel. Why? Because everything about Sinai is judgment and condemnation and thunder and lightning and smoke and fire and the realization that I cannot keep the law of God. That's why you've got to come to Mount Zion. Because Mount Zion is all about divine accomplishment, God's work on Calvary, what Christ did for the soul of man. So important.

So, back on Sinai, which every Jew would understand because it would be passed down from generation to generation. In fact, in Deuteronomy chapter 4, it says these words. Verse number 10. "Remember the day you stood before the Lord your God at Horeb, Horeb is another name for Sinai, when the Lord said to me, Assemble the people to me, that I may let them hear my words, so that they may learn to fear me all the days they live on the earth, and that they may teach their children. You came near and stood at the foot of the mountain, and the mountain burned with fire to the very heart of the heavens. Darkness, cloud and thick gloom. Then the Lord spoke to you from the midst of the fire. You heard the sound of words, but you saw no form, only a voice. So he declared to you his covenant, which he commanded you to perform, that is, the Ten Commandments. And he wrote them on two tablets of stone. The Lord commanded me at that time to teach you statutes and judgments that you might perform them in the land where you were going over to possess it."

So Moses reiterates in Deuteronomy chapter 4 what took place at the Exodus at Sinai. When God gave the law, he didn't give the law to them in Egypt, right? He didn't give the law to them in the promised land, in the land of Canaan. He gave the law to them in the middle of a desert. In a place of isolation where there were no distractions, so they would come face to face with the mighty power of the living God. And the law that he demanded them to keep, that he knew and they knew they could not keep.

And that's why Mount Sinai represents an unapproachable God. But Zion represents an approachable God, one that you can approach, one that you can enter His presence. At Sinai, you couldn't because he was a God of consuming fire. In fact, Paul says in 2 Corinthians 3, verse number 7, that The law was the ministry of death written in letters, engraved in stone. Everything was about death. Why? For the wage of sin is death. All have sinned and come short of the glory of God. What's the glory of God? The Ten Commandments, the personality, the presence, the nature of God is written in stone. And no man can attain that kind of perfection. You just can't because you're a sinner.

And even when they brought the tabernacle, the Ark of the Covenant, and they built a temple on top of Mount Moriah. God was still unapproachable. He was behind what? A veil in the Holy of Holies. And only the high priest could go in there once a year. But he had to make sure that he was all confessed up, that he was truly clean. Because if he went in there and there was sin that was unconfessed, he would die immediately. That's why they would tie a rope around his foot. Because if he died, they couldn't go in and get him. They'd die. They had to drag him out if he died inside the Holy of Holies. He only went in once a year. Why? Because it symbolized how unapproachable God was until what? The resurrection. And the temple, the veil in the temple was torn in two. So man would know he has full access to the presence of God through the death of Christ on Calvary.

Calvary's mountain, which is, by the way, Mount Zion, which, by the way, is Mount Moriah. It's all the same long mountain. See? That's why it's a place of refuge. That's why it's a place of safety. That's why it's life forever. That's why God says, I put my name here. Why? Because I want you to know that the Almighty God rules and reigns supreme over everything and everyone. That's who He is, that's what He does.

So he says this in verse number 22. This is so beautiful. Listen to this. "But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem." Wow. Now he's saying, look, this was a mountain that could be touched, it was a physical mountain. But Mount Zion is not one you can physically touch, although we know we can touch Mount Zion today. He's talking about the heavenly city, the beautiful city of the living God. Revelation 21 talks about it being a holy city. Psalm 48 says it's the joy of the whole earth. When you come to Zion, you come to the heavenly city. When you come to Zion, you come to a place that's forever, not temporarily. You need to come to Mount Zion because it's the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem.

And when you come, you come to myriads of angels to the General Assembly. You come to a myriad of angels. Now, remember, the Bible tells us in the Psalms and in the book of Deuteronomy that there were angels present on the mountain at Sinai. But here, when you come to Zion, you come to a myriad of angels, to a literally a festival gathering. A festive gathering, a celebration. Doesn't the Bible say that there is joy in heaven over one sinner who repents? And the joy comes from all the angels who sing the praises of God. You're coming to a festival gathering. When you come to Zion, you are coming to the greatest celebration known to man.

That's why Jesus said in Luke chapter 10, verse number 20. When the disciples came back and they were so excited about they had seen so many wonderful things happening in their ministry, people were being healed, people were receiving the gospel. It was so great, and Christ says, "Hey, hold on a second. That's a great thing. But if you want to rejoice in something, rejoice in this: that your names are written down in heaven." That's what you need to rejoice over. Because that's where the joy is. That's where the presence of angels who gather together to celebrate the beauty of salvation.

When you come to Zion, you come to the city of the living God, you come to the heavenly Jerusalem, to myriads of angels, to the general assembly, and to the church of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven. Who's the church of the firstborn? That's us. That's church age saints. The firstborn, the proto, is who? It's Christ Himself. He is the preeminent one. It's the church of Christ, the church of the firstborn. He is the preeminent one.

Oh, by the way, he says, look, this is so good. He says, "to the church of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven." When were you enrolled in heaven? Not when you got saved. Have you ever enrolled for Little League? Or enrolled for school, right? You enroll early. And when the time comes, they call your name to make sure you're present there. Well, you were enrolled in eternity past. Your name was written down in the Lamb's Book of Life before the foundation of the world. The church of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven. Think about that.

Peter says it this way in 1 Peter chapter 1. He says this. He says "to those who reside as aliens or foreigners scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, Bithynia, who are chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, by the sanctifying work of the Spirit, to obey Jesus Christ and be sprinkled with his blood, may grace and peace be yours in fullest measure." We received the mercy of God. We were able to understand that God chose us before the foundation of the world. That's where our names were written down in glory. See? That's why there's a Lamb's book of life.

God's a judge, right? And you're judged on the basis of two books. Two books. One, The Lamb's Book of Life. Which means that you've received the gospel, you're believing in the Lord Jesus Christ, or, as Revelation 20 says, the other books. And the other books record all the deeds of all the unsaved who have ever lived. Because at the great white throne judgment, that's where they'll be judged. And the books are opened. And man is held accountable to what he knows about Christ. And his deeds are matched against the perfect law of the living God. And men always fall short because man cannot save himself. And man who stays at Sinai, thinking that he can earn his way to glory, that he can somehow make his way up the mountain to God, that somehow I can do enough good things to get to God, will be damned forever. Because you can't.

But Zion says, God's approachable, God's available. When you come to Zion, you come to the city of the living God, the heavenly city. When you come to Zion, you come to a myriad of angels who are involved in a celebration of the saving work of God in your life. When you come to Zion, you come to the church of the firstborn who are enrolled already in heaven. He says this, "and to God, the judge of all."

You come to God. Now, a Jew knows he can't even say the name God for fear that he'd be judged by God and damned by God. So he doesn't even mention his name. The writer of Hebrews says you can come to God the judge, the righteous judge. Why? Because your sins were judged. Mount Zion. Your sins were judged at Calvary. Christ bore in his body, your sins. Christ died for you. So God judged his your sins in his Son so that you would bypass all that judgment and enter into the presence of the glory of God, Mount Zion, the heavenly city, the holy city, "and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect."

Who's that? Those are Old Testament saints. The spirits of the righteous made perfect. All those who died. Remember Abraham? We looked at him. He was looking for a city whose builder and maker is God. Right? What's the city? It's the heavenly city. It's the heavenly Zion. It's the promise of God. That's the city that Abraham was looking to. He was anticipating the presence of God, living in the presence of God. That's why I love John 14 so much. When the Lord says, "In my Father's house are many mansions," right? In other words, there are many dwelling places. We don't all have a mansion in heaven, right? Where you have a mansion on D Street, and you have a mansion on B Street or C Street or this street of gold or that street of gold. There's only one street of gold. They're not streets of gold. The Bible says there's a street single, singular of gold. And in that place, there is a house of God. And the house has many dwelling places, many rooms in the house. And God goes and prepares a place for you that where he is, there you may be also. See, that's Mount Zion. That's the beauty of the love and grace and mercy of God.

There was nothing at Sinai about pardon, nothing at Sinai about forgiveness, nothing about Sinai about grace. It was just law, law, law, law, law. Why? Because the law was given to show man that he can't save himself and lead him to cry out for the mercy of God to be merciful to him that he might accept him into his kingdom. So Sinai represents an unapproachable God, whereas Zion represents the approachable God. Why is God unapproachable at Sinai? Because human achievement can never get you to God. Why is God approachable at Zion? Because divine accomplishment gets you into his kingdom. God does all the work. He did the work at Calvary. He enrolled you in his book of life, the Lamb's book of life, in eternity past. He did all his work at Calvary to cleanse you from your sin that you might enter into the presence of the living God, God the judge.

Then it says this. "And to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant." When you get to heaven, when you come to Mount Zion, what do you get? You get Jesus. What do you get? The mediator of a better covenant because Sinai represents the old covenant. Zion represents the new covenant. See? And so you come to Jesus, the mediator of a better covenant, the new covenant. That's why there's one mediator between God and man, the man Christ Jesus, 1 Timothy chapter 2, right? So we understand that there's one person between you and the judge, and that's his Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord. That's why Christ could say, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man comes unto the Father but by me."

But in Revelation chapter 2, Revelation chapter 22, guess what? "I, Jesus, am the bright and morning star, the bright and morning star." Revelation 2:28. Revelation chapter 2, he says, "the overcomer receives the morning star." You receive Jesus. What's the value of Christianity? Jesus is yours, He's all yours forever because He indwells you. He encompasses you, Christ in you, the hope of glory. See? So when you come to Mount Zion, you come to Jesus, the mediator of a better covenant, and then he says this. "And to the sprinkled blood, which speaks better than the blood of Abel."

Wow, now you go all the way back to Hebrews 11, and the very first person in the hall of faith was Abel. Right? And Abel offered a sacrifice that was pleasing to God. Why? Because he offered a blood sacrifice. His brother Cain did not offer a blood sacrifice, it was not pleasing to God. But Abel offered a blood sacrifice that was pleasing to God. By faith, he did this. But when you come to Jesus, you come to the sprinkled blood of his blood that is far better than the blood of Abel. Why? Because when Abel offered a sacrifice. The blood that was shed would only atone for his sins, no one else's. But when Jesus shed his blood on Calvary, His blood would atone for all those who would one day believe in him. It was an immeasurable atoning, it was a fantastic atoning. So when you come to Jesus, you're coming, what? 1 Peter 1, 18 and 19, the precious blood of a lamb. Right? The most precious blood of a lamb, that was shed for you and for me. And so the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from all of our sin. There's no more sacrifice to be made. It's done. Christ's finished work on Calvary accomplished it all.

So when you come to Zion, you come to the living God. You come to God, the judge. You come to Jesus, the mediator of a better covenant. You join the church age saints. You join the Old Testament saints. You join everybody. When you come to Zion. So he says this: "see to it that you do not refuse him who is speaking." He says, here's the call. Here's the challenge. "See to it that you do not refuse him who is speaking. For if those did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, much less will we escape who turn away from him who warns from heaven." In other words, if those who were killed because they disobeyed the law in the Old Testament? You think that's bad? Refuse the call of the king to come to Mount Zion? You will be consumed forever. Because he ends quoting the book of Deuteronomy, the 4th chapter, in verse number 29, he says, "Our God is a consuming fire."

This warning is important because if you're here today and you haven't come to Mount Zion, that means you're still at Sinai. It's dark, it's gloomy. It's fiery. It's all about judgment and condemnation because it's all about the law, the law, the law. And although that law is good and holy because it's given to us by God, it should drive you to Zion. It should drive you to the place the heavenly city of the living God, to drive you to the holy God of the universe, who gave his son as a mediator of a better covenant, that we might enter into the glory and presence of God.

Let me pray with you. Father, we thank you for today and the opportunity you give us to study your word. So much yet to cover. Yet, Lord, it's a reminder of the grace of Almighty God to save us from our sin. Today we celebrate that. We look back and say, Lord, thank you. Thank you for dying for me that I might enter into the presence of the living God forever. In Jesus' name, amen.