A Christianity Worthy of Christ

You may have noticed there has been a resurgence in people going to church in America, particularly young people and young men especially. They are going to churches that are high church, liturgical, or more formal. I don’t know all the reasons for that, but I do know the testimonies of some who are going to quite formal churches. Their testimonies have been that they went to seeker-sensitive churches and felt it was not substantive. You can argue for or against that, but some of the voices I have heard say that going to church with more liturgy and formality is more substantive.

The truth is that what we need is not something more or less formal, but something that is substantive. If I think that I as a preacher am going to be more entertaining than professional entertainers, I have another think coming. That is not going to happen. God has not called me to amuse people; He has called me to help them think. He has not called me to entertain, but to give the helpful truth of the God’s Word that is the need of every human heart.

So, I have noticed that whether a person is an intellectual or an entertainer, whether they are Jew or Gentile, whether they attend a high church or seeker-sensitive, there has been a resurgence of interest in Christianity. The question is, “What kind of Christianity do we need today?” I would say that it is time for a Christianity worthy of Christ, one that can actually clear our conscience.

Hebrews contrasts the old Mosaic covenant with the new one brought in by Jesus Christ. In contrast to the priestly system that had to repeatedly make sacrifices for sin, Hebrews 9:14 says, “How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself.” It is not temporary; it is eternal. It is not through man; it is by the Spirit. It is not the sacrifice of an animal; it is sacrifice of God the Son. It continues, “Without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?” Dead works here is talking about good works that are unable to reach God. They are dead as opposed to the living God. It is time for a Christianity worthy of Christ. One that can actually clear our conscience and give us peace with God.

Hebrews 8:1 says, “Now of the things which we have spoken this is the sum.” It goes on to talk about the Lord Jesus. Christianity is Christ. It is not merely a religion. It is a person, Jesus. It is time for Jesus’ people to live out a Christianity worthy of Christ. There are a couple words that might describe such a Christianity as you find in the book of Hebrews. First, it is authentic. That is a word we often say and has often been abused. By that I mean it is not simply the figure or pattern of something, but the thing itself.

Chapter 9 talks about the difference between the figure of the priestly system that could not make the priest that did the service perfect as pertaining to the conscience.  Verses 23-24 talk about the pattern of things and then about a better sacrifice. So, when we speak of an authentic Christianity, we are not talking about gravitas shown by our liturgy. We are talking about a Christianity that is patterned after the heavens. It is authentic. It is real.

People can’t see heaven, but they can see those who are on their way to heaven. So, are we living a life that depicts who God is, who Christ is, and what they would do? The fact of the matter is, I can’t live the way I should. I want to, but I can’t. Only Christ can live the life of Christ. Only Jesus is perfect. He was a perfect sacrifice and God’s perfect Son, and He is willing and able to live His life through me if I will be submissive, humble, and openhearted to what He has for me. I don’t need to be better than others or get the argument right in every case. What I need is to be a person who is a channel of the Lord Jesus. So, it is time for a Christianity worthy of Christ that is authentic, patterned after heaven.

Second, this is a living Christianity. Verse 14 says that we are to cease from dead works, empty religion, to serve the living God. He is alive. The Bible tells us in Hebrews 10:31, “It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.” This God sent His Son, and two things are clear, the sacrifice that Jesus’ made was of His own self. It is exclusive. Nothing I can do will be anything other than dead in contrast to the living Jesus. So, the work that was necessary is Jesus’ own work and that work done only once. In other words, it is not many priests many times sacrificing animals. It is the living God in the person of God the Son sacrificing Himself one time for our sins. This is a living Christianity. Jesus Christ is alive. So said the apostles, the disciples, the church, and God’s people today. It is a living Christianity.

Finally, it is better. Verse 11 says, “But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building.” Verse 23 says that Jesus is a better sacrifice than these. So, Jesus is better than the angels who announced His birth, the prophets who prophesied His birth, and Moses and Abraham. Jesus is God incarnate, the Son of God. That is the kind of Christ that we need to show to a world that is desperate for the truth, not my truth or your truth, but the truth of God, what God actually says for Himself in His Word.

Today, what kind of Christianity do we need? We need a Christianity that is substantive. One that is worthy of our Lord Jesus that is authentic, living, and better than anything that humanity could do because the work is of God Himself.