Grace Fellowship Church
Staying the Course: An Introduction to the Epistle to the Hebrews
Staying the Course: An Introduction to the Epistle to the Hebrews
Hebrews 1:1-3a
June 10, 2007
Series 3 Sermon 1
Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by
the prophets, 2 but in these last days he has spoken
to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also
he created the world. 3 He is the radiance of the glory
of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the
word of his power.
Introduction
This past week as I have tried to sort through some issues in my own mind about church and how we should worship, I have come to realize that being a reformer is a very difficult task. To not tow the company line, to avoid doing what you have always done for the sake of easily solving an issue, is a very time consuming, mentally challenging proposition. I hope by now you have all noticed that Grace Fellowship is different than any other church that you have been involved in. That is intentional. We are striving to be as biblical as we can possibly be which means that in the time of difficulty we can not allow ourselves to simply fall back on old patterns of handling various situations.
Let me give you some examples.
We are a family integrated congregation. We see no biblical example or inference about having a nursery or children’s church. We believe that the preached Word of God is used by the Holy Spirit of God in the conversion of the lost and so our children are brought into the worship service with us. We also believe that the worship of God will be a part of their lives forever so we want them to begin to be in worship as soon as they are born. The temptation comes when the children do not behave the way they should. We might want to fall back on the old days and have the ladies rotate Sundays of keeping the smaller children out of the congregation so we are not disturbed by the children.
What about church growth? Could we be tempted to take back up the mantle of pragmatic ways of doing evangelism when it seems that God is working too slowly in converting sinners? Of course we could.
What about training our children? Could we be tempted to start VBS, Sunday School, and Awana so we can avoid teaching the kids ourselves? That is possible.
Staying the course is often a very difficult thing to do. It is hard to go against the trail already blazed in our day. If you want big pragmatic ministry then it is neatly packaged and easily accessible. If you want someone else to watch your children while you go to a yippy skippy happy clappy worship service that is very entertaining and you can get your spiritual aerobics in then there is practically a church on every corner offering that.
It takes conviction to stay the course. It takes a God given determination to avoid the pitfalls of simply doing what comes naturally. This spills over into the church services. We, by our very nature, want worship services that please our flesh. We want emotionalism. We like excitement and entertainment. Sitting through a 45 minute or an hour long sermon is a nightmare for many Christians. They like the three points and a poem. They enjoy the stories that are told. They want to be done with church by the time the game or the car race comes on. I saw an advertisement in the Kansas City Star a few years ago where a church was inviting people to their early Sunday morning worship service so that they could make their 10am Sunday Tee time at the golf course. It said, “Get your worship in before your 10am tee time at “Such and Such Baptist Church.”
So many churches have been pulled into the pragmatic thinking of our day and have embraced this type of thinking wholeheartedly and it has become so ingrained in them that they honestly believe they are doing what God wants them to do. And let me tell you to the fleshly human eye, it looks like they have succeeded. But have they really? No, they are simply in a long line of Protestants who have sacrificed biblical truth for earthly success and that is their reward.
Context
There have been some questions regarding the Epistle to the Hebrews that have not been answered in almost two thousand years of studying it. Those who received this letter originally knew who the author was. We do not. That has been lost in time. Even from the earliest days of the church there has been a debate over the authorship of this epistle. Some have attributed it to Paul, others James or Peter, some even to Luke. At this point it is safe to say that only Heaven knows for sure. I will avoid the debate and just refer to the person writing as the writer of Hebrews. If I slip up and say Paul or Peter then you know I am just experiencing momentary confusion.
A particular church in a particular city is not mentioned. But there are some things we can know about this congregation. Probably most of the audience were from Jewish descent. They were converts from Judaism to Christianity. There were probably some God fearing Gentiles who had converted in the mix as well. But the overarching them of the Epistle to the Hebrews is to stay the course and not go back to Old Testament Judaism.
What we will discover as we make our way through this letter is that these were people who were experiencing great difficulty. Things were not going the way they maybe thought it would. They were and had experienced persecution. Their property had been seized, their friends and fellow Christians had been thrown into prison and some were even killed. Some had defected from the faith and returned to Judaism. And they were being tempted to return as well.
The writer wrote to encourage this group to stay the course. He did so by showing the majesty and magnificence of Christ as the One superior to Old Testament Judaism. Christ is superior because first He is the Son of God and He is the fulfillment of all the pictures that Old Testament Judaism painted. The writer’s entire point can be summed up this way; “Why go back to what is merely a picture when you have the reality of that picture in Christ.”
This is why I have prayerfully chosen this letter to preach through for our fellowship here. As we near in just a couple of weeks our one year anniversary of the official organization of Grace Fellowship Church I think it would be good for us to shore up our commitment to Christ and His Word in ordering our footsteps both in life and in congregational life.
Today, I would like to take the first few verses of the Epistle to the Hebrews and begin by showing you the superiority of Christ as the write has done so masterfully.
But before we do that we need to look at the very first verse. Look at verse 1 with me.
Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by
the prophets,
Here we have an affirmation that God has indeed spoken. Specifically God has spoken through the Old Testament prophets. He did so in several ways over a very broad time frame. God spoke to Adam and Eve, to Cain, to Noah, to Abraham and from there we begin to see the history of the Jewish people through whom God spoke. God gave the Jewish people the three sections of the Old Testament, the Law, the Writings, and the Prophets. All of which were penned by prophets of God. As we saw in the reading of our confession we have the same Old Testament that the Jews had in the first century.
The writer does not stop there. Look at verse 2.
2 but in these last days he has
spoken to us by his Son
Notice the contrasting word “but” in the text. God has spoken but now God has done something very special. What has He done? Look at verse 2 again.
2 but in these last days he has
spoken to us by his Son
Before, God spoke through the prophets. Now we have received direct revelation from the Son of God. And as a side note the write of Hebrews uses the term “last days” here in the text. I want you to understand as you here the modern day prophets of doom proclaim that we are living now in the last days remember that this letter was written prior to 70ad and that writer calls the era in which he lived the last days. So when someone tells you that we are now living in the last days remind them that the writer of Hebrews said that long ago. Plus I don’t think he had the same intention as the modern dooms dayists.
What I think the writer means is that God speaking to us through His Son is the final or last speaking. The word escaton means last or final. In other words there is no other revelation needed. Christ is the fulfillment and the embodiment of all the revelation of God.
PNP
Today from our text I would like for you to see five proofs that God speaking through His Son is God’s final and full revelation to man.
This morning I want you to understand what the writer of Hebrews is not saying. Throughout this letter he is not saying that Old Testament Judaism is a false religion. What he is saying is that Old Testament Judaism is a completed religion. There is continuity in the Old and New Testament but at the same time there is a completion. At the crucifixion of Jesus the veil that separated humanity from the Holy of Holies was rent in two from top to bottom. The Lord Jesus spoke from the cross, “Te Telesti!” or “it is finished.” Because of the Lord Jesus and His sacrifice God is no longer interested in the sacrifice of animals. For the readers of this letter to return to Judaism would be to leave the reality for the picture of what was already there. It would be like a man or woman preferring to talk to the picture of their spouse rather than talking directly with their spouse.
Purpose
My purpose in preaching this passage is to show you these proofs so that you will be assured that the message of the Lord Jesus Christ is the full and final message from God and that there is no other.
RPNP
So look with me at these five proofs that God speaking through His Son is God’s final and full revelation to man.
1. The first proof is that God has made His Son the heir of all things.
Look at verse 2.
2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things
The writer of Hebrews begins proving that the word from Jesus of Nazareth was indeed God’s Word by first showing that the Lord Jesus is the one who is in control. This is a picture of supreme sovereignty. What you are going to find as we move through this letter is a plethora of Old Testament allusions and quotes. Here the writer is calling our attention to the second Psalm.
Listen to Psalm 2:7-8.
7 "I will surely tell of
the decree of the LORD: He said to
Me, 'You are My Son,
Today I have begotten You. 8 'Ask of Me, and I will
surely give the nations as Your inheritance, And the very ends of the earth as Your possession.
Here the Lord declared through David that the Messiah would be the heir of all things. He will have the nations as an inheritance and the very ends of the earth as a possession. This is the idea of dominion. The Lord Jesus told His disciples as He was about to ascend to Heaven that “all authority has been given to Him in Heaven and in earth.” As a result they were to go and make disciples.
This was a good reminder for those who received this letter. After all, they could not see this dominion happening that quickly. They had lost property, friends and family and were persecuted. They were thinking about turning back because the situation was difficult. I am sure at times it seemed impossible.
Have you ever felt like that? Have you ever thought about giving up and going back to the old ways of doing things? Do you think that it would be easier? It may be easier but the right way is not usually the easy way. Most of the time it is the most difficult way.
The reminder that these Christians needed and what we need to be reminded of is that Christ is the heir of all things. Ultimately He possesses all and works everything according to His will. He has dominion. And sometimes in His sovereignty He allows things to look bleak for His children.
This is why missionaries go to what seems to be the most difficult places. That is why we keep evangelizing and preaching and teaching because Christ has dominion.
It is because He is the heir that He has all things for Himself including the ability to save. It is in the context of ultimate ownership that the Lord Jesus offered salvation. Listen to Matthew 11:25-30.
25 At
that time Jesus said, "I praise You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth,
that You have hidden these things from the
wise and intelligent and have revealed them to infants. 26 "Yes,
Father, for this way was well-pleasing in Your sight. 27 "All
things have been handed over to Me by My Father; and no one knows the Son
except the Father; nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and anyone
to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.
28 "Come to Me, all who are weary
and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. 29 "Take
My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS.
30 "For My yoke is easy and My
burden is light."
The first proof that God speaking through His Son is God’s final and full revelation to man is that God has made Christ heir of all things.
2. The second proof is that God through Christ has created all things.
Look at the rest of verse 2.
through whom also he created the world.
The agent by which all things were created was the Lord Jesus Christ, God the Son. As creator, the Lord Jesus is the natural heir. This truth of Christ as the Creator and the Redeemer is the testimony of the New Testament.
Listen to John 1:10.
10 He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him.
Colossians 1:16. 16 For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him.
The first proof that God speaking through His Son is God’s final and full revelation to man is that God has made Christ heir of all things and the second proof is that God through Christ has created all things.
3. The third proof is that Christ is the revealed glory of God.
Look at the beginning of verse 3.
3 He is the radiance of the glory of God
The most important person in Old Testament Judaism was
Moses. Moses wrote the first five books
of the Bible referred to as the Torah or Law.
He was highly revered by all the Old Testament saints. He was used by God to lead the Israelites out
of
But in Christ we see the actual glory. We see in bodily form what Moses, Isaiah, and Ezekiel either had to be shielded from or saw in a vision. The writer of Hebrews says as good as that was, it pales in comparison to the One who is the radiance of the glory of God.
If you remember last week, when we looked at Lazarus’ resurrection, the Lord told Mary and Martha that if they believed they would see the glory of God. Springing to the mind of the Old Testament trained Jew would be Moses’ glimpse of the glory of God.
Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 4:6, “For God, who said, "Light shall
shine out of darkness," is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the
Light of the knowledge of the glory of
God in the face of Christ.”
During the Lord’s earthly ministry, He took James, Peter, and John up on the mountain of transfiguration. Turn over to Matthew 17 with me.
And after six days Jesus took with him Peter and James, and John his
brother, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. 2 And
he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his
clothes became white as light.
It has been said of these verses that what happened in the transfiguration was simply what was on the inside of Christ shining on the outside. He was briefly glorified before these three disciples.
But look further for an illustration of what verses 1 and 2
of Hebrews 1 says. Remember the
passage? Long ago, at many times and in
many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, 2 but
in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son,
Look what happens in verses 3-8.
3 And behold, there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him. 4 And Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good that we are here. If you wish, I will make three tents here, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah.”
Peter recognized what was taking place. Present before them was Moses, the Law giver,
Elijah, the great prophet of
5 He was still speaking when,
behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and a voice from the cloud said,
“This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.” 6 When
the disciples heard this, they fell on their faces and were terrified. 7 But
Jesus came and touched them, saying, “Rise, and have no fear.” 8 And
when they lifted up their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus only.
The Law and the Prophets all pointed to the One that would fulfill them both, the Lord Jesus Christ. Listen to Matthew 5:17.
"Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I
did not come to abolish but to fulfill.
There is a reason for this and it is the fourth proof.
4. The fourth
proof is that Christ is God among us.
Look at verse 3 again.
3 He is the radiance of the glory
of God and the exact imprint of his nature,
The Old Testament prophets right up to John the Baptist spoke for God. God gave them the message and they were called to deliver that message. But the Lord Jesus did not deliver the message for God He is God and thus carried with Him great authority.
I want you to listen to some passages that illustrate this. Matthew 5:20 says:
20 "For
I say to you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the
kingdom of heaven.
Here the Lord Jesus tells people what the requirements are
for entering the
21 "You
have heard that the ancients were told, 'YOU
SHALL NOT COMMIT MURDER'
and 'Whoever commits murder shall be liable to the court.' 22 "But
I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty
before the court; and whoever says to his brother, 'You good-for-nothing,'
shall be guilty before the supreme court; and whoever says, 'You fool,' shall
be guilty enough to go into the
fiery hell.
Then four more times in that same chapter the Lord uses the same formula to show Himself superior and one with great authority. Do you think the people missed this truth? Do you think the Pharisees missed this? Listen to Matthew 7:28-29.
28 When
Jesus had finished these words, the crowds were amazed at His teaching; 29 for
He was teaching them as one
having authority, and not as their scribes.
Why could the Lord do this? What gave Him the authority to lay down commands and to teach as if the ideas were His and not just a message from God that He was to deliver? Look again at verse 3.
3 He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature,
Notice the “is” in the verse. This verb tells us that nothing has changed. It is a present tense verb and Christ still is all that He ever was. And what He is is God the Son. The radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of His nature. The word for exact imprint was used in classical Greek to denote an engraver’s tool or a die. It would make an impression like on a coin and it was the exact imprint of the tool. This is metaphorical language showing the divinity and superiority of Christ.
The Lord taught this about Himself. Remember John 10? “I and the Father are One.” John 14:7, If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also
The writer of Hebrews is laying down proof that it would be fruitless and useless for these Christians to go back to Old Testament Judaism. They have in the Lord Jesus God on foot. He is the ultimate revelation of God to man and the only one able to save.
Listen, that is why you can’t run with the pluralism crowd. They believe there are many ways to God or that all religions are equal. There are even Christians who will deny the exclusivity of Christ and what is obvious is that they have never come into contact with Scripture that teaches Jesus was not just a philosopher or a prophet or a miracle worker, or a good teacher. Scripture teaches that He is God with us. He is greater than all and therefore must be paid the utmost allegiance. Anything less is unworthy of such a great Savior.
So far we have seen four of the proofs that God speaking through His Son is God’s final and full revelation to man. The first is that God has made Christ heir of all things and the second proof is that God through Christ has created all things. The third proof is that Christ is the revealed glory of God and the fourth proof is that He is God among us.
Finally,
5. The fifth
proof is that Christ is the present sustainer of the universe.
Look at the next part of verse 3.
and he upholds the universe by
the word of his power.
The writer of Hebrews has built his argument up to a crescendo. The final blow to putting the Lord Jesus on the same footing as the prophets has been struck.
The Lord Jesus has already been accredited with creation. But now He is credited with its ongoing life. He is the sustainer of the Universe. No further proof is needed. The Lord Jesus is in ultimate control of all that there is and notice how. Look at the end of verse three again.
and he upholds the universe by the word of his power.
If His word is this powerful to sustain something as large and vast as the universe, then His words are true and binding on all humanity. To deny the Lord Jesus Christ His rightful place in worship and in life is to deny the Sovereign of the Universe.
That is why this letter was written. To go back to Judaism would be the worse thing these believers could possibly do. Quite literally they would be walking away from the real Lord of the Universe for something that had been made of no effect. Something that had been ultimately fulfilled by the Lord Jesus is no longer of use to those who had been saved by the sacrifice of the Lord Himself.
And now for us. When you have tasted biblical preaching. When you have tasted God centered worship. When you have tasted the joys of true Christian love and fellowship, how could you go back to what most of us came from and that is mere human centered pragmatic ministry that exalts man and appeals to the human flesh? The answer is, you can’t. Even when its difficult. Even when new challenges arise and make our lives difficult we can’t go back.
What about in salvation? Wasn’t it much easier to handle temptation and sin when you were a lost person? You just did what pleases you and felt no remorse until maybe later. Now you sin and you know that you have grieved the Holy Spirit and you must come to Christ in confession as a Law breaker when what your renewed spirit wants to do is not sin.
These early Christians experienced the same thing. They sinned and it seemed easier to bring a turtledove or a lamb or goat to the priest and watch him butcher it and sacrifice it, sin covered. But now you know the One you have offended in sin and you know that He is sovereign and He loves you because He laid His life down for you. And the message is, never go back because in Christ you have the superior and everything else is inferior. Nothing even comes close to the majesty and glory or Christ and we have been privileged to experience Christ as our Lord and our Savior.
God help us stay the course.
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