Where God Meets You

Transcript

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[0:00] We're continuing in Romans, and I want to thank Victoria for preaching the last two weeks, one because it was her turn and the other because I was away. But now this is our fourth in a series on Romans.

[0:11] And as we know, the Apostle Paul wrote the letter to the Romans, written to the people in Rome. But to who exactly? It seems to be to the church in Rome, which is composed of both Jewish and Gentile people. Why did he write it? Well, it kind of keeps coming out that Paul is really hoping that the gospel will be accepted by Jewish people who haven't accepted it yet. And he's hoping that the church will help them with that, and he's hoping that they're going to come around. And in some sense, he can't get why they're not loving it. You know, as we talked about a few weeks ago, there are all these reasons why they weren't really loving the gospel, because it didn't seem like good news to them. They had invested so much in the... So the change to the new covenant was going to be a big challenge for them. And Paul is trying to pull them along, sort of hold their hand along this path.

[1:07] So the first week we looked at the gospel and why it matters. It's the good news of God. It's the righteousness of God has been revealed. Not necessarily from God, but also of God, from God, but not necessarily for righteousness. We talked a little bit about that. We'll get into that later in other parts of this series. But there's bad news with the good. The good news is that this is the gospel. We're spreading it all around. The bad news is that God is anger, in a lot of anger and wrath about the state of the world. And if he came back now, I think he'd find just as many things to be angry about because the world is a total mess. Have you noticed? So God would show up and say, this world is terrible. You know, I'm really angry about it and I need to bring my justice into it. And that makes God a good God. Because he really sees injustice and brokenness and sin and evil. And he wants to do something about it, which is also in its own way good news. But it's bad news because the people doing all of those things are right in front of me right now. That's you guys. And if I had a mirror, I would look into it and I would go like that. Because we all sin and fall short of the glory of God, which is another quote from Romans, right?

[2:20] So his answer to all of that injustice in the world is to justify the world, to declare it righteous. And to make it just, but also that his wrath will also come out. And then we saw that Paul's really, really invested in this idea that only God can judge sin. If we judge other people's sins, we're probably judging them for things that we do ourselves.

[2:46] And that's probably true. In fact, we probably notice the sins in others that we're most likely to do ourselves. Or... But the ones we say, I will do. And the ones we say out loud are the ones that we don't think we're doing. Because that way, if anybody says anything about it, we could say, well, we don't do that. So I don't steal cars. But all the car thieves out there, you know. Until now, next, you're going to see me arrested for grand theft auto one of these days. And you'll be like, oh, see? I knew it. That guy, he just loves cars.

[3:20] So one burning question that seems to consume Paul. Why are his fellow Jews so reluctant to receive God? Why are they so reluctant to receive this revolution? Revelation, pardon me. And so we'll continue to think about that. We're going to keep thinking about that as we go. He's thinking about it. He's thinking about it a lot in this letter. And he's going to try to connect the gospel to what Jewish readers may be thinking. That's why we read from Exodus today. Because there's a lot going on in that passage that's really related to our reading today. I want you to remember that the law of Moses and everything that, almost everything that happens in Exodus. Think about how important Exodus is to Jewish people. They're delivered from slavery. They go out into the wilderness. There they meet God at Mount Sinai. Moses goes up the mountain. He receives the two tablets with the law on it. The first draft at least. Then he comes down, finds them doing a bunch of things they shouldn't do. So he breaks them. Remember that? He's all mad. And then he has to deal with their idolatry. He has to go up the mountain again and get another copy. 2.0. Still all the same words. But tablet 2.0. Comes back down again. They build the Ark of the Covenant, which we read about.

[4:29] That was the center place for their worship. They build this tabernacle, this roving temple that would go with them wherever they went. And the law tablets were kept in that Ark of the Covenant. And so all of that, all of that history, all of that culture, all of that tradition was really central to how Jewish people understood themselves. And Paul knows that because he's Jewish himself. So he's going to, today he's really going to connect this with the good news of Jesus. We're going to see how. Let's go to our reading though. Our reading is Romans 3, 21 through 31. The Apostle Paul writes this. He writes, But now, apart from the law, the righteousness of God has been disclosed and is attested by the law and the prophets. The righteousness of God through the faith of Jesus Christ for all time. For all who believe. For there is no distinction since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. They are now justified by his grace as a gift through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward. Now pay attention here. Whom God put forward as a sacrifice of atonement by his blood, effective through faith. He did this to demonstrate his righteousness because in his divine forbearance,

[5:53] he had passed over the sins previously committed. It was to demonstrate at the present time his own righteousness so that he is righteous and he justifies the one who has the faith of Jesus. Then what becomes of boasting? It is excluded. Through what kind of law? That of works? No. Rather, through the law of faith. For we hold that a person is justified by faith apart from works prescribed by God. Or is God the God of Jews only? Is he not the God of Gentiles also? Yes, of Gentiles also. Since God is one and he will justify the circumcised on the ground of faith and the uncircumcised through that same faith. Do we then overthrow the law through this faith? By no means. On the contrary, we uphold the law. Let's pray. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, thank you for this word and we ask that you would add your blessing to it. In Jesus' name. Amen.

[7:01] So, remember that ark? Remember that golden ark? And I cannot think about the ark without thinking of Raiders of the Lost Ark. So this is just my thing. I just cannot think about it looking any other way. Although when I was a kid, there was of course a Bible dictionary and it was this golden box with the long poles and, you know. And it really was a holy object. So there was that one time when someone said, some people were carrying it and it almost fell over and somebody reached up to touch it, to study it, and he died. You know, it was like really scary stuff. Like this is a really holy thing. So then when they go to, when Indiana Jones goes to the island, you know, and the stupid Nazis open it, he's like, I know what's going to happen next. So then all the Nazis die and miraculously all their ropes come off their arms and they, and you remember how the ark disappears? It goes into this government warehouse which is just vast and clearly it's been lost, you know, it's in some government warehouse. Anywhere, somewhere anywhere. But this ark is this really holy thing. It's this really holy, you know, box. It has, it's a box. It's a box. But with a cover. There was a lot. Did you notice how much attention was paid to the cover of the box in the reading of Exodus?

[8:09] And we're going to talk about the cover of the box, right? Now, all these instructions on how to make it. You think about, like you read the Bible like that and it's like a verbal blueprint, right? All these measurements, all these dimensions, all the cherubim have to be made. They have to be hammered out of gold. They, their wings have to kind of go up to the heavens or face and the cherubim have to face each other. These are like angels. This is all on the cover of the ark. And what does God say at the end of that reading from Exodus? There at the cover, I will come and I will meet you there. And I will give you my law. I will give you my commandments. So the understanding of the ark for the people of Israel was that on the top of it there, between where the cherubim were kind of facing each other, was this area in between the cherubim on top of the ark. And in some pictures, there's even a tiny little chair there, like a really tiny chair. But it's kind of, you have to think of like, almost like a, I don't know if I could make it like this. Like, kind of like that. Like this little chair would be sitting up there. But the chair wasn't there because it's not in the, it's not in the blueprints, right?

[9:31] But some artists have put the little chair there because they thought that that's where God would sit. In fact, one of the translations for this area in between where the cherubim are is the mercy seat. This is where God would sit. Now, isn't it interesting that the mercy seat is where God dispenses the law? But the law is a mercy. The law is life, but also could be the mercy seat is the place where God forgives you for not keeping the law.

[10:02] Now, this is a quiz. I love, you do love quizzes. Remember a few weeks back, I tried to teach us all a new phrase, hapax legomenon. Does anyone remember it? We're going to give you extra brownies to the extra cookies. Who remembers what hapax legomenon means? Yes, Michael.

[10:20] Yes. Yes. Sort of. Yes. It's a word that's only used once. And so we have a word that's only used once today, again, and that is that sacrifice of atonement. But that word underneath it is the Greek word hilasterion. And you only find it once in the New Testament here. You also do find it, though, in the Greek translation of the Old Testament, which is called the Septuagint. And where would you find that word? When they're describing the mercy seat between where the cherubim sit. So in the Greek translation of the Old Testament, the hilasterion is right there on top of the ark. But now let's go back to Exodus.

[11:11] And I had, I had, oh, I'm sorry, not Exodus. Let's go back to verse 23. And you don't need to put it up there, Steve. I'm just going to read again. Verse 23 of Romans 3. Since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, they are now justified by his grace as a gift through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. Now, verse 25 is where we really want to pay attention. Whom God put forward as.

[11:38] Actually, let's put it up there. It'd be the last one, the last slide. One more, one more back. There we go. It's in there somewhere. Whom God put forward as. And translators have had such a hard time with this next phrase. The NRSV says a sacrifice of atonement. But the word underneath that word sacrifice of atonement is the word hilasterion, which is the mercy seat of God in Exodus, where the angels are in between where the cherubim are facing. So we could really read this as through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as the mercy seat, effective through faith. But that doesn't make sense, does it? We'd be scratching our heads even more if we read that Jesus is the mercy seat, right? Well, let's put it this way.

[12:29] Jesus is now, Paul is saying to his Jewish audience especially, Jesus is now that place where God meets humanity. In a place of mercy, in a place of law, in a place of his expectation for us to act justly. Right?

[12:51] So, pardon me. Now I got ahead of myself, so I have to go back and figure it out. Yes. So I want to, so isn't that exciting? I'll just say that. Isn't that exciting? So God, you know, Paul is really putting this connection between the good news of the gospel, the righteousness that comes from the faith of Jesus, the righteousness of God, this justification that comes to us. Not by keeping the law, but by faith. Right? This comes to us through this sacrifice of atonement or the mercy seat where God enters the world. The Israelites thought that God would come and sit on that ark at least once a year. Right? In the temple, in the tabernacle. God would come on a regular basis and be with his people. Paul is saying now God is here all the time in Jesus. So super exciting.

[13:45] And this is what he's hoping will seal the deal. With his Jewish readers. Right? I'm going to read a little bit of some of the definition. I'm going to put my glasses on. This is a little fuzzy today. So one translation for Romans 325, which is often translated as sacrifice of atonement, is the location or place where sins are forgiven. In traditional translations, it's rendered as mercy seat. So sometimes it is rendered mercy seat. The place of forgiveness or the place where sins are forgiven. And then in actually Hebrews 9.5, without using this word, in Hebrews 9.5, it says, Above the box were the glorious winged creatures spreading their wings over the place where sins are forgiven. So there's this sense that the cover of the ark is the place where sins are forgiven. So then Jesus is this place where sins are forgiven. The mercy seat.

[14:50] According to Exodus 25, here's another definition. There is to be set up on the ark of the covenant a hilasterion. Right? Of pure gold. Like the ark, this is to be two cubits and a half long, one cubit and a half wide. This is the cover. The other dimension is not given. At both ends are to be cherubim. The cherubim are to protectively cover it and their faces towards it. There Yahweh will meet Moses. And from above the cover, or the hilasterion, from the space between the two cherubim, he will speak with Moses and give him his commandments.

[15:26] That's really great. So, as much as possible, Paul, I'd say, is holding the hands of his fellow Jews. I don't know if he's holding hands, but he's kind of dragging them. He's kind of dragging them towards the gospel. Now look, this thing that is really important to you, this ark, which is lost. I think it's a good thing that it's lost. It got lost somewhere. It probably got captured by the Assyrians. It was gold. Maybe it was in one of their museums. Maybe they melted it down and turned it into something else. It's gone. It's not in a government warehouse. The Ethiopians, the Coptic church in Ethiopia says they have it, but they're not going to show it to anyone. So, we're skeptical. We don't think it's around anymore. And that's good. Because that's like, right? Jesus is the living. Cover of the ark. We don't need the ark anymore. So, it's not, I mean, it's a loss. It would be a beautiful thing to actually see it. But we, it's actually good that it's gone. You know, so the raiders of the lost ark were on a false quest. It's gone. It's gone. It got melted down. It's gone. It's too tempting. But it's gone. But he's saying, look, the ark is gone. The ark is gone. You know? And what's taken its place? Not even taken its place.

[16:42] This is what was always there. This was always the place where God was going to meet you. And it's in the embodied. Personhood of Jesus Christ. Who is the sacrifice of atonement. Who makes you right with God. He's the place where God meets you. Okay.

[16:56] In a way, it's like he's saying, the landlord's coming back to the vineyard. And he expects justice and mercy. And he's going to bring justice and mercy. And he does it. How is he going to do that though? He's going to do it through the son. He's going to do it at this place. The mercy seat. So, this one's a little shorter today. But I'm going to just say, what is, what should we do with this? What should we do with this somewhat ethereal information about the ark and where God meets? You know what? This is really for us. I'm going to say. I mean, it sounds like this was really an argument that Paul was making to bring Jewish people into the faith. And it was. But for us, we have to have this definitive understanding of what Jesus does. And this is really kind of a restatement of the gospel. Jesus enters the world in the flesh. And he is put forward as God.

[17:59] Right? Right? do, right? And also, if we think there's a few things that we did do that may not appear on the list because we got away with them, that's not going to happen either. That list is going to be complete and accurate and completely fair and true, right? So he's going to come and judge our sin with complete fairness and impartiality, but he's also going to forgive our sin at the mercy seat. This is the work of Jesus Christ on the cross. And I'm talking about this in the future, but it's an actual already thing that has happened to us, okay? And his plan then, which is now revealed, is for us to live in righteousness and to have our lives be marked by right relationships. And that's so often what Paul is really getting at too when we're talking about justification and righteousness in Romans. It's not necessarily only about our salvation and that we have a clean slate, but it's actually a pervasive change in us so that our relationships with every world are not just a matter of how we live our lives, but that we have a clean slate. Around us are marked by justice and are marked by right relationships with each other. You could call this shalom in one particular way. You could say this is the or the beloved community. You know,

[19:25] this is what God is intending to have for us through the work of Jesus Christ at the mercy seat. So this is now revealed. God has, it's for us to live in this way and have our lives be marked by right relationships. And for us, specifically, Specifically, once we get all that, then you've become a Christian. Once you understand all that, now you're a Christian. He says, now your task is, in some small way perhaps, to be that same incarnation of God. That place where God meets humanity isn't just on top of a golden box that doesn't exist anymore. It is in Jesus Christ, but it's also in you. As you go out into the world as an incarnate, as Christ with Christ is in you, right? Christ within you. So we go out then. So we go out and we call for justice and we try to live in right relationships. We understand and repent of our own sins. And the most important is to be the incarnation of God to those parts of the world that have not yet experienced the good news. And so this is sort of this gift that keeps on giving. So why is it? Why is it important to us? Because of all those things. Because this is what Jesus does for us. And now this is what Jesus expects for us. To somehow, in some way, embody that place in which God enters the world with life.

[20:52] You go out of here and you carry that with you. And now the newsflash, which I think you know, but it's worth repeating. This is the role of the church. That's why you're here this morning. You just thought you were here to sing, but you're not. Or you thought you were here to hear my funny jokes, which aren't funny. You're not here for that. You're here to learn all of this stuff so that you can go out and proclaim it. And so you're here to be trained as disciples. And I am too, by all means. To live that news into the world. So that's it. That's all I'll say. Let's pray. Father, thank you for this word. And we thank you that Jesus is this place of mercy.

[21:33] Father, send us into this world in the same way. Amen.