Long ago in alexandria They learned that Jesus is enough

Once upon a time… there was a jewish community Careful observers of Moses’ Law. Remembered all God had done. Worshipped God freely without experiencing interference. Used a translation of the Torah in their own language. Thought of themselves as modern people.

Until one day… The “out-of-towners” came. They came with the strange report:

“messiah has come at last!!!” (They had heard this kind of talk before.)

They were careful… Many said, “don’t let your hopes get too high!” “False messiahs had come and gone before. They never passed the right tests!” “Make sure you don’t get fooled!!!”

But things were different this time… Messenger’s good character… Their message passed the right tests… They said that the true Messiah had made purification for sins and that His kingdom was being established…

Did they live happily ever after? Living for Jesus in Alexandria?

I wish I could say they did. But we just don’t know. Not all their Jewish friends believed as they did. The local authorities humiliated them. They lost their property and their life savings because they followed the Way.

It was a bittersweet time… It was not all bad: good things were happening. They handled the persecution with dignity. They felt joy in the midst of chaos. Some decided to become missionaries—one special person in particular…

Right after this the rumblings started… It started small…just a few people began to grumble. Then some good folks started to feel there was something missing, too. Some began to notice the same old nagging sins cropping up in their lives. They knew what to do as Jewish people, but they didn’t know what Christian folks would do.

Then it got worse… What about the sins they committed SINCE they became followers of Jesus? They began to fall into the trap of finding lists of things to do. They wanted to feel they were working hard to earn God’s favor!!! (self-vindication) Their leaders tried to assure them Christ had paid for all their sins, but they weren’t sure they could trust them. Oh, how THEY MISSED JUDAISM!

SO SOME BEGAN TO GO BACKWARD … WOULD THIS SPELL THE END FOR THE LITTLE CHURCH IN ALEXANDRIA???

And then it came to them… What about their missionary/native son? He was eloquent and well-respected—they would listen to him! He knew the Scriptures and spoke their language! So…they wrote him a letter and told him what was going on. HELP! They asked a dependable fellow to carry the message across the sea…to Italy.

When the missionary got the letter, there was great concern. There was no way to pull away from the work he was doing. So he composed his best, most carefully crafted sermon. He instructed that it be read to the house churches in Alexandria.

He wanted to tell them… “Hold on to your confession with all its hope: Jesus is enough.” 1.Jesus paid it all. 2.“Do’s” and “Don’ts” are not just off, they are downright dangerous. 3.You need Christian community: no one else, no matter how kind otherwise, will ever remind you that you are forgiven.

How did it end? We don’t know. But someone must have loved the oration he wrote.

It’s in the Bible: The Book of Hebrews

Jesus is enough 1.Jesus paid it all—the penalty for all our sins: past, present, and future. 2.“Do’s” and “Don’ts” are not just off, they are downright dangerous. 3.You need Christian community: no one else, no matter how kind otherwise, will ever remind you that you are forgiven. Read all about it in Hebrews chapter 13.