Jeremiah, Jer as he liked to be called, sat in his small lonely one-room accommodations as the evening shadows fell upon the city. No need for a light as he would slowly drift off to sleep while sitting in a chair. He had found himself doing that more and more recently as the numbing effect of depression gripped him.
When he became a convert to Christianity several months ago he found the good news of the forgiveness of sins through Jesus refreshing to his soul. But when he sought to share this good news of the Messiah with his Jewish parents they turned away with unusual cruelty saying, “Dead, our son is dead!” No one from his family has spoken with him since. The next day he found his tailor apprenticeship with his uncle was no longer available. And without a place to stay he had to leave the Jewish quarter of Rome to find a job somewhere else.
He did find work cleaning stables. He made barely enough to satisfy his appetite and provide a space to sleep. And this is where he found himself. Those at his church were sympathetic to his plight. They too endured hardship for the sake of Christ. They prayed for him but most of these too were poor to help him financially. If the loss of his family hurt, the daily ridicule of his faith at work hurt even more. Those he worked with described him as atheistic for saying there was only one God and only one way to Him. They ridiculed his lifestyle and his intelligence for worshipping a condemned criminal. As his depression deepened he found more and more excuses for not attending assembly with his fellow believers. And now as he thought about his family and their rejection he wondered if somehow he might be allowed back with them if he only remained quiet about Jesus.
The flame of forgiveness that ignited his heart not too long ago was about to be extinguished when a knock came at the door. It was his friend, Archippus, who continued to come by and pray with him even when he missed assembly. He told Jeremiah about a new letter that had just come to the church. It was a letter of encouragement for all the house churches in Rome. And it was just the thing Jeremiah needed to hear. Archippus told him, “It’s being read Wednesday evening before our usual prayer gathering and it’s entitled, ‘To the Hebrews.’ I thought you might want to hear it Jer.” Jeremiah decided that he would not miss another opportunity to be encouraged by the brethren. And when he heard what was read he was not disappointed.
This story illustrates the purpose of the book of Hebrews. The reason for it was to encourage those to persevere who have grown weary in the spiritual warfare called “the Christian life” by presenting Christ as the incomparable fulfillment to the Old Testament Scriptures. It was meant to lift those who after so long a time of difficulty and persecution were becoming weary and wondering if they might gain some respite by becoming innocuous and quiet about their faith. Perhaps they would continue to believe in Jesus but would cease meeting together with other believers. Perhaps they would seek to reestablish ties with their Jewish synagogue and yet still worship Christ quietly and unobtrusively.
But the author of Hebrews says, “No!” Do not go back to any system in which Christ is not supreme and His work finished and complete. It could be detrimental or even deadly to your faith that you claim to have. Why would you go back to a system in which there was only a shadow of the good things to come instead of the actual good thing. You may have heard the old song, “Give Me That Old Time Religion.” “It was good enough for Moses. It was good enough for Daniel.” But, the author of Hebrews says, “It is not good enough for me.” Let us lay aside any system or set of beliefs where Christ is not enough wherever we encounter it. If He doesn’t reign supreme and hasn’t completed His work on earth then don’t go there. Stop your backsliding before it results in shipwreck.
What is the message of the book of Hebrews? It is two-fold. First we see that it describes for us the superiority of Christ over all things. Secondly, we will notice that our perseverance is tied to our relationship with Christ. Now this is merely an introduction. We will look at these two topics only superficially. We will see, in brief, the two-fold thesis of the letter. In the coming weeks we will look at the letter in detail.
I. The Superiority of Christ over All Things
The first topic of the two-fold thesis is the superiority of Christ over all things. What the author of Hebrews wants us to understand is Christ is the final word on every matter. He is better than the prophets because, in Christ, He has summed up all of that which God wanted to say. In chapter 1, he notes, “in these last days [He] has spoken to us in His Son.” Christ is the final authority. He is the very Word of God. This doesn’t remove the necessity of what the Old Testament prophets have said. But it calls us to recognize that what was said in the Old Testament anticipated Christ. It was the shadow of better things to come.
In the rest of chapter one and the beginning of chapter 2 Jesus is described as better than the angels. As important as angels were as God’s messengers in the Old Testament they are not to be compared to Jesus. They are simply God’s servants; Jesus is God’s Son. He makes this clear by repeating the phrase, “To which of the angels did He ever say.” And though angels had handed down God’s Word, Jesus was God’s Word in the flesh.
In verse 6 of chapter 1, the author of Hebrews makes the distinction between Jesus and angels very clear. He says, “And let all the angels of God worship Him.” He is not just a VIP; He is not just a son of God; He is not just another angelic being. But the call from the Father to worship Jesus shows He is God Himself.
The author says that Moses was no match to Jesus either, as great as Moses was, and think about how great he was. He delivered the Ten Commandments to Israel. He inaugurated a covenant between the Lord and the people. God spoke with him face to face. He spent 40 days with God and saw His glory. And yet he was only a servant. He was only a vessel used by the Lord. Chapter 3 says, “[Jesus] was counted worthy of more glory than Moses, by just so much as the builder of the house has more honor than the house. For every house is built by someone, but the builder of all things is God. Now Moses was faithful in all His house as a servant…but Christ was faithful as a Son over His house.”
In chapter 4, he makes a contrast between Joshua and Jesus. Joshua brought the people into the promised land and carried out a successful conquest of the land. He brought the people a physical rest from their enemies. But it was not a permanent or complete rest. It may have given them some temporary physical security but did not result in spiritual rest. Only Jesus could give this. And the rest He provides is not partial or temporary. It is whole and permanent.
There is an interesting analogy between Joshua and Jesus. First, they have the same name. Joshua or Yeshua is Jesus’ real name (Jesus is the Greek counterpart to His name). Joshua means “The LORD saves.” And by analogy, what Joshua did in the physical realm, by giving rest or salvation from their enemies Jesus did in the spiritual realm. He has provided a rest for those who trust in Him. As great as a physical respite from enemies may be it cannot compare to the complete spiritual rest from our works that Jesus has given us.
In the following chapters the author describes how the priesthood is not satisfactory for the forgiveness of sins. In chapter 10 he says “It is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.” These were a shadow of the good things to come for the people of God. But the shadows could not take away sin. It was the substance that took away sin and that substance was Jesus having been offered for the sins of the world.
The author also says the need for priests is made null and void for their service is ineffective. He says, “If perfection was through the Levitical priesthood . . . what further need was there for another priest to arise?” Jesus was the high priest whose service was always effective. Why was this? The author gives us two reasons for it. First, Christ offered the sacrifice of His shed blood in heaven itself not on a man made altar. He went into heaven where real atonement for sin had to be made. This is the only place in which it could achieve real forgiveness between God and man. Secondly only Jesus effectively ministers as a priest because He lives forever. Man made priests cannot save anyone because they keep dying off. The question we ask is, “Who is going to be faithful to watch over your soul?” The Scripture says that He is able to save completely those who come to God by Him because He ever lives in making intercession on our behalf.
Don’t give me that old time religion. It might have been good enough for Moses and Daniel. But it is not good enough for me. God’s entire redemptive plan for mankind is summed up in Christ. And if you want to slink back to an old time religion that cannot take away sin then the author wants you to understand there is no spiritual rest or salvation in that. The ritual cannot save you and so the author of Hebrews says it right well.
This is the truth found in chapter 11. These Old Testament figures understood the necessity and finality of faith in the Messiah. And though they did not see His coming physically they understood it and believed it. And by their faith they were counted righteous. The old time religion cannot do that. And if you do not have complete explicit faith in the Christ who did it all for your salvation then you cannot have true spiritual rest. And if you don’t have true saving faith then you will fall away.
II. Our Perseverance Is Tied to Our Relationship with Christ
And this brings us to the second topic of the two-fold thesis of Hebrews. That is, our perseverance is tied to our relationship with Christ. In other words, whether we continue to follow Christ is an evidence of whether we have real saving faith.
The warnings of falling away are real warnings to those who may be following along the “Christian pathway” but do not have a saving faith. And the author of Hebrews tells us to make sure we are resting in Jesus alone and not setting our confidence anywhere else. For if we do the time will come when our confidence is shaken and we find ourselves in a place of cold indifference to the things belonging to Christ and faith in Him.
Let’s look at some of the words to describe the warnings. In 2:3 we see, “How will we escape if we neglect so great a salvation?” There is no escape for those who, after having heard the Gospel, would neglect to put their trust in Jesus Christ as their Savior. The Gospel isn’t something we can put aside like an important paper we may need in the future. We don’t conform the Gospel to fit our lives and our schedule we fit our lives to conform to the Gospel. There are no weekend warrior Christians. Those who stuff church into their schedule instead of allowing God to rule their lives are no Christians at all. Those who can conveniently neglect God and the Bible all week and get their fix on Sunday are perilously close to the neglect of this verse and they had better seek room for repentance. Is not what God has done for us through Jesus Christ so great a salvation? Then how can anyone hear of it and neglect it.
An English novel of some years ago describes how a little boy named Bron goes to church for the first time with his private tutor. He watches with interest every part of the service and then the preacher climbs into the high pulpit and Bron hears him give out a piece of terrible news. It is about a brave and kind man who was nailed to a cross, ferociously hurt a long time ago, who feels a dreadful pain even now, because there was something not done that He wants them to do.
Little Bron thinks the preacher is telling the story because a lot of people are there and they will do something about it. Bron is sitting impatiently on the edge of the pew. He can scarcely wait to see what the first move will be in righting this injustice.
Little Bron weeps but nobody else seems at all upset. The service is over, the people walk away as if they had not heard such terrible news, as if nothing remarkable had happened.
As Bron leaves the church, he is trembling. His governess looks at him and says, “Bron, don’t take it to heart – someone will think you are odd.”
Shall we be odd to not neglect so great a salvation? Shall we be odd to repent of our self-absorbed lifestyle before the King of the universe who gave Himself for us? The truth is how shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation.
In chapter 3 the author says that we are part of Christ’s house (that is we belong to Him) “if we hold fast our confidence and the boast of our hope firm unto the end.” What is he saying here? It is not that we somehow belong to Christ if we hold firm until the end. The idea is: what shows we truly belong to Christ is that we hold fast to the end. If we are His we will hold fast to our confidence in Christ. You must understand that our confidence is never in ourselves. It is not “I can do it.” It is “Christ is my only confidence. In Him alone I can endure.” This is the difference the author makes between those who have real faith and those who have a professed faith that is not genuine.
Then in chapter four the author says, “Therefore, let us fear if, while a promise remains of entering His rest, any one of you may seem to come short of it. For indeed we have had good news preached to us, just as they also (that is the Israelites who came out of Egypt with Moses); but the word they heard did not profit them, because it was not united by faith in those who heard. For we who have believed enter that rest, just as He has said.”
What is being described here is that just as many followed Moses and heard the good news of salvation not all of them truly believed. That means there is a good chance that there are some of you here who have followed along with Christ but have never put your trust in Him alone and been born again. You have never put off trust in yourself, or man made programs to save you from sin and have relied only on the Word of God and Spirit of God. A higher power just doesn’t cut it. The trappings of religion just won’t do it. Good works won’t work. You may have heard the good news, time and time again, but unless it is filled with your trust in Christ to save you, you are lost and need to be saved. That is why he says, “Let us fear if any one of you may seem to have come short of it.” There will be many who stand before the Lord in judgment and He will say depart from me you who work iniquity. Jesus said in Matthew that people will stand there and say, “Lord, Lord, did we not [preach] in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?” They followed Jesus and did all these things in His name but they never came to trust in Him as Savior. They still looked to their works to save them. Could that be you? Are you still adding up all the things you are doing for God instead of relying what He has done for you? This is a strong warning. Let us not be deceived lest we fall short of the eternal life we had hoped to obtain. It is too late to do anything about it when you are standing face to face with God. You may be running after this eternal life but not resting in it.
Then in chapter 6 the author says, “For . . . those who have once been enlightened and have tasted of the heavenly gift and have been made partakers of the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, and then have fallen away, it is impossible to renew them again to repentance.”
What he describes in this passage is those who have had some introductory and cursory involvements with the things of Christ and when it came to making a decision for Christ they turned away and sought to find a road not so straight and narrow. They looked for something to assuage their strained conscience but not something so stringent as saying Christ is the only way. These people who reject this after their cursory involvement with the things of Christ lose their opportunity to be saved. Don’t ask me who can and cannot come to repentance. I’m glad that is God’s job. Our job as believers is simply to proclaim the truth. If you are wondering if you have gone to far away from Christ and can no longer repent let me say to you that if you still have the desire to come to Christ you have not reached that point. When you reach that point you will no longer want to hear about Him. You will no longer be sensitive to the Scripture. You will be cold and indifferent. But neither can I tell you how long you will remain responsive to Christ’s call either. And this is why the author of the letter gives such stern warning about falling away. You will never know how or when you will until that time you lose interest and then it will be too late.
But at the end of chapter 6 he says, “This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and steadfast.” He describes that we who have saving faith in Christ have a real rest in Him that involves a hope both sure and steadfast. And that real rest in Christ is through faith. From beginning to end it is faith alone. God hasn’t given us twelve steps to Him. He has given us one step, faith. He hasn’t given us sacraments to make us holy in His sight He has given us His Son, once for all. And we who have understood this and been born again have this rest. We have this peace in our soul for God has transformed us from sinners to saints.
The last verse we will look at is 10:39. There he says, “But we are not of those who shrink back to destruction, but of those who have faith to the preserving of the soul. In chapter 10 he describes that there are two types of people who follow Christ. There are those with an inauthentic faith that results in destruction, that is, a faith that does not save and there are those who have a saving faith that reaches to the preserving of the soul.
Now time will not permit me to look at all the warnings here this morning but the writer says we must be diligent and not sluggish in our faith. We must show endurance in the face of hostility against Christ and His Word. There will be hostility against you if you want to live for Christ wholeheartedly. Paul says in 2 Tim 3:12, “Those who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.” The writer also says, “Do not grow weary or lose heart.” He says that you may have to resist in your faith to the point of shedding blood, that is, of dying for your faith. And he says we must not despise the Lord’s discipline but allow Him to discipline us unto holiness. And finally he says that we must understand, in living for Christ, we are going to bear His reproach.
So remember Christ is superior over everything else. Let us not grow weary in our walk with Him. And let us understand the difficulties that we experience because of our faith in Christ are merely the path to godliness as we rely on His grace to overcome sin and live in the rest Jesus gives us through faith in Him. Let Him be the anchor of your soul as you continue to persevere in the faith.