Hebrews begins with a magnificent prologue and then moves on to a section where Jesus is proclaimed as being greater than all who have come before Him. Let us review;
Jesus is greater than angels because;
• Jesus is the Son whilst the Angels are the Servants
• Because He Is Worshiped by the Angels
• Because He Is Sovereign - The ‘Anointed One of God’
• Because of His humanity
Jesus is greater than Moses because:
• Moses ministered in the house as a servant; Jesus owns the house
• Moses foretold the coming of Jesus.
• Moses failed to bring people into the ‘Rest of God’, Jesus died that we may know God’s ‘Rest’
This teaching has been interrupted by two warnings (We’ll have a third one in this session);
WARNING 1: “If Jesus is greater than any angel you better pay greater attention to Him than you would to any other who claims to be a messenger of God”
WARNING 2: “Don’t miss the ‘Rest of God’ though unbelief. Trust in God whose Word changes everything.
Jesus is greater than any High Priest (4:14-5:10)
In this study Jesus is pictured is greater than any priest, pastor, minister or servant of God whoever walked the face of the earth before or after His coming. This superiority of Jesus is outlined in a number of different ways.
His Position in Heaven (4:14)
He is a superior High Priest because of His position in heaven. Other priests worked in the temple, but Christ went directly into the presence of God
Hebrews 4 14 Since, then, we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast to our confession.
The image of the High Priest who “has passed through the heavens” evokes an image of the Jewish High Priest on the Day of Atonement. On this holiest of days the high priest would pass through the veil of the Temple and enter into the area known as the ‘holy of holies’. This was the place where God's presence, symbolized by the Ark of the Covenant which rested in the inner chamber of the tabernacle, was thought to especially dwell.
The idea of passing through the heavens, may also have reminded the original hearers of the ancient figure of Enoch. We read in Genesis 5:24 ‘Enoch walked with God; then he was no more, because God took him’. Also Elijah about whom we learn in 2 Kings 2:11 ‘As they continued walking and talking, a chariot of fire and horses of fire separated the two of them, and Elijah ascended in a whirlwind into heaven.’ Both Enoch and Elijah were regarded as exceptional men of God, but Jesus was greater!
Encouragement is given in the last part of the verse; “Let us hold fast to our confession”. In other words if we believe that Jesus is this great One of God, and declare Him so to be, then let us live in a way that shows it. ‘Holding fast’ meant ‘Get a grip’. Don’t let this idea go. Live by it. Let others know about it! Jesus is greater than all who went before because of His unique position in heaven. But there’s more. Jesus is also greater than any priest, minister or servant that came before Him because of:-
His Empathy (4:15-16)
15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who in every respect has been tested as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us therefore approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
Here the humanity of Jesus is again emphasized. Yes… He is the Son of God who has passed through the veil, but He is also the One who experienced all the force of what it meant to be human. Christ is ‘Fully God/ Fully Human.’
The writer is not suggesting that Jesus was physically weak, or that He suffered from sin as we do. On the contrary verse 15 emphasizes that He was ‘without sin’. What is being referred to is Jesus' unwavering firmness in His faithfulness to God. His being without sin does not lessen His capacity to sympathize with us. It is not by sinning that one is made empathetic but by being tested as we are tested.
Think of it this way. Because Jesus was made of the same human clay as that which we are fashioned out of, Jesus knows what its like to be us. Because He never succumbed to the temptations we fall to, He can help us through our temptations. The early Church Fathers expressed it like this: ‘He was as we are, and therefore He will help; He was not as we are, and therefore He can”
- He is a great High Priest because of His unique position in heaven.
- He is a great High Priest because He became human and can sympathize with our weaknesses.
The credentials of a High Priest are further expanded in verses 1-10 of chapter 5. We’ll look first at verses 1 -4.
Hebrews 5:1 Every high priest chosen from among mortals is put in charge of things pertaining to God on their behalf, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins. 2 He is able to deal gently with the ignorant and wayward, since he himself is subject to weakness; 3 and because of this he must offer sacrifice for his own sins as well as for those of the people. 4 And one does not presume to take this honor, but takes it only when called by God, just as Aaron was.
The first thing to notice about this passage is that the priest is chosen not by people, but by God… as the text says… ‘Just as Aaron was’. The story of Aaron’s calling is given in Exodus 4:27-30 “The LORD said to Aaron, "Go into the wilderness to meet Moses." So he went; and he met him at the mountain of God and kissed him. 28 Moses told Aaron all the words of the LORD with which he had sent him, and all the signs with which he had charged him. 29 Then Moses and Aaron went and assembled all the elders of the Israelites. 30 Aaron spoke all the words that the LORD had spoken to Moses, and performed the signs in the sight of the people.”
One of the features of Presbyterianism has been to stress the notion of ‘call’. One is called to exercise a ministry within the church, not just as a pastor, but that call extends to elders, deacons, indeed every member is encouraged to discover their place in the body. God has made us all different. Moses needed Aaron to fulfill his call and Aaron needed Moses to fulfill his. We need each other to fulfill our calling. Christianity is a team game!
The second thing to notice about this passage is the character of the priest. There is a tendency to put those the church employs as its leaders upon a pedestal, as though somehow they were stronger at resisting temptation or more easily able to commune with God than the rest of humanity.
This passage stresses that those whom God calls are not suddenly endued with all the faculties of a super-hero. It tells us that the priest himself is nothing more than flesh and blood and therefore ‘subject to weakness’ and just as much a sinner as those whom he seeks to represent before God. ‘He must offer sacrifice for his own sins as well as for those of the people. ‘
The third thing to notice about the priest in this passage is that those who lead God’s people are not called to ‘Lord’ it over them, but to lead through service. ‘He is able to deal gently with the ignorant and wayward’. Such a passage pictures the Good Shepherd of Psalm 23 who deals gently with the sheep.
The easiest thing in the world to do is complain about people’s ignorance or criticize them for their behavior. It is not so easy to seek to change people through our devoted service of them. ‘They let us down’. ‘They just don’t get it’. “They don’t understand’. They are just using us’. Too many times we use such phrases rather than staying with people through their highs and lows. To ‘deal gently with others’ is not a soft option, but takes true strength of character and a heart that desires to serve.
Verses 5-11 speak of how Jesus was called by God and of how He wrestled and struggled with fulfilling a call that would involve suffering and faithful obedience.
So also Christ did not glorify himself in becoming a high priest, but was appointed by the one who said to him, "You are my Son, today I have begotten you"; 6 as he says also in another place, "You are a priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek." 7 In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to the one who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission. 8 Although he was a Son, he learned obedience through what he suffered; 9 and having been made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him, 10 having been designated by God a high priest according to the order of Melchizedek.
The priestly role was not one that Jesus claimed for Himself but One to which He was appointed by His Father God. It was not a status symbol but an opportunity to minister. It was not a sign of importance but a designation of office that carried great responsibility.
The privileged position Jesus had as Son of God did not prevent Him from experiencing all that being human implies. He could not get through all He was called to do without prayer. He cried out to God with ‘supplications’.
The Greek word (i`kethri,a) ‘hiketeria’ for supplications has an interesting background. A ‘suppliant’ was somebody who approached a higher authority seeking for favor. It was a custom in such circumstances to take an olive branch (a symbol of peace) and entwine it with white wool (indicating surrender and acceptance) with which one would signify to the king or high power the desire to approach the throne.
As one approached a place of power and authority there was no question of making demands yet one could, once granted an audience, make a heartfelt plea. As far as any answer that may be given, the suppliant had no option but to accept the will of the One they were approaching. Verse 7 includes the words about Jesus that ‘He was heard because of his reverent submission’
The passage also talks of the prayers of Jesus as being made with ‘loud cries and tears, to the one who was able to save him from death’ taking us to the Garden of Gethsemane where we are told that Jesus sweated blood as He prayed, “Father, Let this cup of suffering pass from me”. Whatever glory there was in being the Son of God, the price to be paid was something that even He pleaded not to have face and there is an intense power in His words “Yet not my will, but Thine be done”. As verse 8 tells us ‘Although He was a Son, He learned obedience through what He suffered.’
This passage twice mentions another old Testament Priest about whom the author will have a whole lot more to say, namely Melchizedek. The teaching about to be given regarding Melchizedek is not the easiest to get your mind around. And the writer knows it! So it’s time for warning number 3.
WARNING 3: The Need for Solid Teaching (5:11- 6:12)
Hebrews 5:11 - 6:12 11 About this we have much to say that is hard to explain, since you have become dull in understanding. 12 For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the basic elements of the oracles of God. You need milk, not solid food; 13 for everyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is unskilled in the word of righteousness. 14 But solid food is for the mature, for those whose faculties have been trained by practice to distinguish good from evil.
Hebrews 6:1 Therefore let us go on toward perfection, leaving behind the basic teaching about Christ, and not laying again the foundation: repentance from dead works and faith toward God, 2 instruction about baptisms, laying on of hands, resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. 3 And we will do this, if God permits. 4 For it is impossible to restore again to repentance those who have once been enlightened, and have tasted the heavenly gift, and have shared in the Holy Spirit, 5 and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come, 6 and then have fallen away, since on their own they are crucifying again the Son of God and are holding him up to contempt.
7 Ground that drinks up the rain falling on it repeatedly, and that produces a crop useful to those for whom it is cultivated, receives a blessing from God. 8 But if it produces thorns and thistles, it is worthless and on the verge of being cursed; its end is to be burned over. 9 Even though we speak in this way, beloved, we are confident of better things in your case, things that belong to salvation.
10 For God is not unjust; he will not overlook your work and the love that you showed for his sake in serving the saints, as you still do. 11 And we want each one of you to show the same diligence so as to realize the full assurance of hope to the very end, 12 so that you may not become sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.
The author pauses before his lesson on Melchizedek. It’s going to be a tricky one. Yet it’s also a necessary one if they were going to grow in their spiritual lives. In not so many words he is telling them, “You need to grow up!” It was time that they had become teachers of others, instead of having to keep going over and over the basics again. It was time they had some solid food.
He makes the point that when things in the natural world don’t grow they produce a bad harvest. He speaks of how hard it was to restore to faith those who had fallen away. If the readers do not make progress in the Christian life, they will regress to a state in which there is such hardness of heart that there will be no chance of repentance. That’s not the example to imitate. Rather they were to be imitators of ‘those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.’
It wasn’t that God was displeased with them. On the contrary God was a just God who had seen all the good things that had been happening in their midst, the work they were doing, the love they were showing to others and the service they were giving. But they needed to keep it up. Laying the foundations and leaving the building at the level just didn’t make the grade. God is looking not for starters, but finishers. And as an example we are given the example of Abraham.
Abraham and Promises (6:13- 6:20)
Hebrews 6:13-20 13 When God made a promise to Abraham, because he had no one greater by whom to swear, he swore by himself, 14 saying, "I will surely bless you and multiply you." 15 And thus Abraham, having patiently endured, obtained the promise. 16 Human beings, of course, swear by someone greater than themselves, and an oath given as confirmation puts an end to all dispute.
17 In the same way, when God desired to show even more clearly to the heirs of the promise the unchangeable character of his purpose, he guaranteed it by an oath, 18 so that through two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible that God would prove false, we who have taken refuge might be strongly encouraged to seize the hope set before us. 19 We have this hope, a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters the inner shrine behind the curtain, 20 where Jesus, a forerunner on our behalf, has entered, having become a high priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.
When Abraham heard about the promise of God’s blessing, and how it may be obtained, he stuck it out until the blessing was given. As the text says; ‘Abraham, having patiently endured, obtained the promise’. When people make promises they say things like, “I swear on my life that I’ll do this for you”. But when God makes a promise God does it though His Word, and through His Son.
Jesus is our promise. He is our security. He is, as the wonderful imagery of this passage declares,’ a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul’.
Will Your Anchor Hold
Will your anchor hold in the storms of life,
When the clouds unfold their wings of strife?
When the strong tides lift, and the cables strain,
Will your anchor drift, or firm remain?
Chorus: We have an anchor that keeps the soul
Steadfast and sure while the billows roll;
Fastened to the rock which cannot move,
Grounded firm and deep in the Savior’s love.
Will your anchor hold in the straits of fear,
When the breakers roar and the reef is near?
While the surges rage, and the wild winds blow,
Shall the angry waves then your bark o'erflow?
Chorus
Will your anchor hold in the floods of death,
When the waters cold chill your latest breath?
On the rising tide you can never fail,
While your anchor holds within the veil.
Chorus
Will your eyes behold through the morning light,
The city of gold and the harbor bright?
Will you anchor safe by the heavenly shore,
When life's storms are past for evermore?
Chorus
Words: Priscilla Owens (1829-1899)/Music: James Kirkpatrick (1838-1921)
The Message bible transliterates the last few verses of our passage;
“We who have run for our very lives to God have every reason to grab the promised hope with both hands and never let go. It's an unbreakable spiritual lifeline, reaching past all appearances right to the very presence of God where Jesus, running on ahead of us, has taken up His permanent post as High Priest for us, in the order of Melchizedek”
So our argument continues to be developed;
• Jesus is greater than angels
• Jesus is greater than Moses
• Jesus is greater than any High Priest
As we are digging deeper we have been given 3 warnings, to make us ‘wake up and pay attention’.
WARNING 1: “If Jesus is greater than any angel you better pay greater attention to Him than you would to any other who claims to be a messenger of God”
WARNING 2: “Don’t miss the ‘Rest of God’ though unbelief. Trust in God whose Word changes everything.
WARNING 3: “Don’t be a spiritual baby. Unless you are nurtured on solid food, you could die!”
Next time… the Mysterious Melchizedek!