10-27-19 Grace - Vail & Benson Sermon

Hebrews 2:9-18

[Welcome Home 1]

Pastor Ron Koehler

Grace—Vail, AZ

October 27, 2019

Welcome Home: The Need for Christian Community In the name of Jesus, dear brothers and sisters in Christ, My parents just sold their wonderful home in Florida. We won’t go back to that home anymore. There will be no more swimming in the pool and enjoying snacks and drinks on the back patio during “cocktail hour” and no more delicious dinners at the big table.

Our family has been through this before. There was the house on the lake we grew up in as kids…the main house at the northern Michigan inn they later owned, with its big stone fire places, woods in the back, and lake out front. Every house was special to go back to and each one was missed when it was gone.

But those feelings aren’t the predominant ones anymore because the truth is, wherever my mom and dad are—that’s where home is. Because that’s my family. Being with them wherever they live is being home. It won’t matter that our next visit with them in Florida will be in an entirely different place. Home is where your family is.

This is true of church too.

Maybe you’ve had a church in your past—somewhere in Arizona, maybe back in the Midwest or somewhere else. When you go there now, there is something nostalgic about it, good memories. It could be that you find it a little tough to get those sentimental feelings about a school multi-purpose room and a trailer full of church furniture and equipment that transforms a blank canvass of a room into your church.

But more important than a building is the family that that gathers here and the experiences they share here. That’s what makes this our “home” and that’s what our verses from Hebrews tell us today.

Home because our brother is here.

The most significant thing that draws us together as a church family is our Savior Jesus. He is the One through whom we are brought into the family of God. The author of the book of Hebrews explains that Jesus is our brother. Now, it’s possible that we might have a little trouble with that picture. Jesus is God! Jesus, along with God the Father and the Holy Spirit, created all things—including me! How can Jesus be considered my brother?!

Put those thoughts aside for a moment and think of this: The Father of Jesus is also “Our Father in heaven.” We know this. We accept this. It brings us comfort. We pray that very thing all the time in the Lord’s Prayer. Well, how did that come to be? It happened because the Son of God became like us, the Bible says. It says that he became our brother.

In Hebrews it says that Jesus was made lower than the angels for a little while, so that by God’s grace he might taste death for everyone. As true God, Jesus’ home is in heaven where he is surrounded by the angels who serve him and who watch over God’s people in this world. But in order to save sinful people, who would never be righteous and holy on their own and therefore would never enter heaven and live with God, Jesus did the most amazing thing.

He came down from heaven, took on human flesh and became lower than the angels, just as we are. These words explain that since the children share flesh and blood, he also shared the same flesh and blood. He became like his brothers in every way. Shortly after these words in Hebrews, we are reminded that the only exception was that Jesus did not have sin as we do, though he was tempted to sin, just as we are.

Human beings have flesh and blood, so Jesus took on that human nature in order to be like us. This had to be if Jesus was going to live a perfect life in our place before his heavenly Father and offer that life on the cross as a sacrifice that paid for the sins of all human beings. In order to die, Jesus had to be truly human as well as truly God. So his becoming like us makes him our brother. This letter clearly states: He who sanctifies and those who are being sanctified all have one Father. The sacrifice Jesus made in becoming like us, then dying on the cross and rising from death, perfectly satisfied our Father in heaven. The payment Jesus made was credited to a world of sinful people. Jesus accomplished our salvation and then returned to heaven, or as it says here, Jesus is now crowned with glory and honor, because he suffered death.

And so the One who is true God and true man, the Savior of the world, the One who gloriously reigns over the world and his Church, really is our brother, and he really has brought us into the family of God! But he is not merely far off in heaven! What a comfort it is for us to know that when we gather together for worship or anything else as a church family, Jesus, our brother, is here with us. Maybe we even remember that specific promise of Jesus: Where two or three have gathered together in my name, there I am among them (Matthew 18:20). What a comfort it is to view church as our home because Jesus, our brother has brought us into his family and is here with us!

Home because the rest of our family is here.

This is also home because the rest of our family is here. This is where people who trust in Jesus as their Savior gather every single week. We are brothers and sisters of Jesus. That means that we are brothers and sisters in faith. God is our heavenly Father and we are his children.

Just as a family’s home is where you expect to find the family gathering, church is where we expect to find the family of God gathering. We expect to see each other on Sunday mornings especially. And when we do, there are smiles and handshakes and hugs. Why? Because we’re a family and we are at home here in God’s house with our brothers and sisters in Christ.

Sure it happens that we miss a Sunday because we’re travelling–which is actually the case for a number of our members this morning. And sometimes we’re sick and can’t go anywhere, even to worship at church. And we all know that it happens—for all sorts of reasons—that people stay away from their church home and family. Or if they have no church home and no church family, they aren’t making an effort to find that.

And let’s be honest, they are usually not good reasons.  We might be mad at our heavenly Father for allowing this or that into our life.  We might have lost confidence in Jesus as our Savior.  We might not appreciate the undeserved love of God enough to go to his house to thank and praise him and have him speak to us in his Word.  We might not understand God’s will that we have a family of believers to support us and that we might encourage and serve.  We might have been burned by another church or a pastor once upon a time so we think that they’re all like that. Or that’s the excuse we use.  We might be more interested in other things in life rather than prioritizing God as number one in our lives.  We might—in a warped way—“test” the love of our church family members by purposely staying away to see if they missed us.

Oh, the list of reasons why we or others have stayed away from the family of God can go on and on—and there are some ugly reasons on that list! Some of us have been there. Or maybe we’re there now and today is a happy exception.

But here’s the thing—actually two things:  First of all, Jesus paid for those sins, just like he paid for the sins of every person who does show up at God’s house on Sundays. We’re all sinners who need God to not count our sins against us and to shower us with love that we don’t deserve.

We all need to be forgiven…and our brother Jesus does forgive us.  Secondly—and maybe you know this from experience—when we come back to church after being away, our brothers and sisters in Christ are so happy to see us! That is absolutely true and it is heartfelt because, after all, we are family under God and with God. A Christian family genuinely wants to have the family all together every week, just like people enjoy having the whole family together for a holiday or for special family celebration.

Church is home because the rest of our family is here, and we love it when we are all here. It pleases God when we are, and it pleases all of us too.

Home because of family events and occasions are experienced here.

It makes us happy because there are all kinds of family events and occasions and support that are experienced here. Just think of the things we share!

When we are grieving, when we are suffering, when life has thrown challenges at us or we have put obstacles in our own paths, we have people who know what it is like to deal with those things while possessing a trust in God. There are people who care about us because we are family, so they’ll help us if they can. They are people who know what God says and can steer us in the right direction and will offer prayers to our heavenly Father for us. Our brothers and sisters in Christ actually hurt with us when we are hurting.

We also find here among God’s family, people who are truly happy when we share the good news of our life too—babies and grandchildren and new jobs and engagements and anniversaries and fun trips we take and all the little victories of our lives! Our brothers and sisters in Christ are actually happy when we are happy!

Christians are not self-centered; simply using our family for our own good; we offer our support and encouragement too. We look to serve each other, just as Jesus served us and encouraged us to serve one another. We follow the command of God to “bear one another’s burdens (Galatians 6:2)” and “love your neighbor as yourself (Galatians 5:14). We willing follow the Lord’s directive in Romans to rejoice with those who are rejoicing; weep with those who are weeping. Have the same respect for one another. Do not be arrogant, but associate with the humble. Do not think too highly of yourselves (12:15:16). These are all things that Jesus, our brother, did for us and we, as brothers and sisters in Christ, do these things for each other. Sunday mornings are often our “meeting point” where we touch base and catch up and check in as we see our family members face-to-face under the roof of our church home.

Here we experience together the love of God as he speaks through his Word and as pastors help us to understand the things God tells us. Here we are touched with God’s forgiveness as he meets us in Holy Communion. Sinners are welcomed into the family of God through Holy Baptism as the Holy Spirit creates and strengthens faith. We pray together here. We sing praises to our Savior together here. We share the occasional meal together here. We find our unique ways to serve the family of Christ here as we set up communion, play music, teach Sunday School, help with outreach, serve food, set up for church and put things away when worship is over, and any number of other things.

This place is home because of the many things we, as a family, experience together here—big things like life changes and eternal life-changing things.

(If you have no church family that you are part of right now, we’re glad you’re here.

Perhaps this is the family of God with whom you’ll put down roots.)

This is a home where all are welcomed, so it is a home where you are welcomed. As we enjoy our brother and Savior Jesus—what he has done for us and given to us—and as we enjoy the friendships and fellowship that come from a shared faith in him, realize that this is a home that gives us an idea, a glimpse, of what our home in heaven will be like. What is beautiful here, even though it is imperfect, will be perfectly glorious there, where the whole family of God will join to celebrate for all eternity. What a day that will be when Jesus, our brother, says, “Welcome Home!” We prepare for that day each week when we welcome each other into our church home. May God continue to richly bless our church family as we do that. Amen.

Now the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

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But we look to Jesus (the one who was made lower than the angels for a little while, so that by God’s grace he might taste death for everyone), now crowned with glory and honor, because he suffered death. 10 Certainly it was fitting for God (the one for whom and through whom everything exists), in leading many sons to glory, to bring the author of their salvation to his goal through sufferings. 11 For he who sanctifies and those who are being sanctified all have one Father. For that reason, he is not ashamed to call them brothers. 12 He says: I will declare your name to my brothers. Within the congregation I will sing your praise. 13 And again: I will trust in him. And again: Here I am and the children God has given me. 14 Therefore, since the children share flesh and blood, he also shared the same flesh and blood, so that through death he could destroy the one who had the power of death (that is, the Devil) 15 and free those who were held in slavery all their lives by the fear of death. 16 For surely he was not concerned with helping angels but with helping Abraham’s offspring. 17 For this reason, he had to become like his brothers in every way, in order that he would be a merciful and faithful high priest in the things pertaining to God, so that he could pay for the sins of the people. 18 Indeed, because he suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.