Hebrews 1
By Pastor Brad
A Sacred Gathering of Men
I was born and raised in the United States and have very little understanding of what it means to live within a Monarchy. The authority of kings and queens is foreign to me, unlike most other countries in our world today. Throughout scripture you will read about kings, rulers, judges, magistrates, masters and servants. For there are those who lord, and those who serve.
I love my country and I love the opportunity that these freedoms have provided for me. But I don’t know what it means to submit to a king. I think that my western culture has in some ways diminished the “awe factor” of royalty for me. My understanding of nobility has only been from what I see in the movies and in the media.
In Hebrews chapter one we can see a vivid picture of the supremacy of Christ. Jesus is seated at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven, while all of God’s angels worship him. Wow!
I’ve had one life experience that pales in comparison to this passage of scripture. But it’s mine.
Thirteen years ago a group of 12 men left Broken Arrow, Oklahoma to join with other men across America as we all made our pilgrimage to our nation’s capital. We were on our way to participate in a one day Promise Keepers event on October 4, 1997 for a sacred gathering of men called, “Stand In the Gap”.
We arrived at The Mall in Washington D.C. early enough to take a brief tour before staking our claim on a 20’ x 20’ piece of grass. As I was walking with my friend Chris I told him it would really be cool if we saw someone that we knew. He told me not a chance.
It wasn’t but a few minutes after that when I heard someone calling my name. I turned to Chris and said, “That’s Tyler, we were in Male Chorale together at PLNU.” We briefly chatted, posed for a picture and then continued around The Mall.
As you can see in the photo there were close to one million men of faith gathered to worship God. Our little piece of real estate was quickly reduced to 12’ x 12’. It was a little tight for a guy like me.
Shortly after the opening song, which was electric by the way, we were guided in a time of humility before the Lord. We were asked as men of God to enter into His presence in total submission.
To lie prostrate silently before the Lord with close to one million other men of faith is a God moment memory that is forever engraved in my mind. The only sound I heard in those brief minutes of silence was the soft sound of footsteps on a gravel path as bystanders of the event were passing by.
In that instant I was before my King. My heart was exploding with love for my Master. For me, it was a taste of what it will be like as we all gather together with the angels before the Majesty in heaven.
The song We Fall Down by Chris Tomlin takes me back to that moment.
We fall down, we lay our crowns At the feet of Jesus; The greatness of mercy and love At the feet of Jesus.
And we cry, “Holy, holy, holy.” And we cry, “Holy, holy, holy.” And we cry, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lamb.”
I’d like you to try something today. Lie on the floor face down and be silent before God. After a few moments while still lying on the floor, read today’s passage. Do that often.
