November 11, 2017 - Church at Worship

Sermon: "Solus Christus" Here We Stand (Part 4 of 5) by Randy Roberts

Pastoral Welcome: Miguel Mendez

Children’s Feature: Roy Ice

Scripture Reading: Hebrews 4:14-5:6, TNIV read by Carly Leggitt and Logan Villarreal

Sermon Notes:

The adolescent, hoping that a trip to Disneyland might be in the offing, but fearing that her father would nix the idea, begged her mother: “Mom, please! You talk to him! Talk to him for me! He’ll say yes to you!” “Honey, you’re old enough now to fight your own battles. You need to talk to your father yourself. Just ask him. If your grades are OK—as you say they are, and if you’re up-to-date on your chores—as you say you are, he’ll listen to you. Just talk to him.” The girl turns away in discouragement, feeling certain her dad will say no to her, still believing her dad might say yes if it’s her mom who asks. Most of us can remember such an incident in our lives. Whether it was with a parent, a boss, a teacher or someone else, there came a moment when we felt a need for someone to intervene, to speak on our behalf, to act in our place. Religious history is replete with examples of people calling on priests and saints and other intermediaries to speak to God on their behalf. In fact, it was into such a context that Martin Luther and other reformers stepped with a message of solus Christus. In other words, Jesus only. “You need no other intercessor than Jesus. You can come to God directly—needing no other person to intervene for you. And you can do it because of Jesus. He provides access to God. He is your high priest.” Here’s how the writer to the Hebrews put it: Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need (Hebrews 4:14–16, TNIV). That message assures us that Jesus stands beside each one of us. And because of that, God is only a prayer away. Randy Roberts, Senior pastor