Hebrews
1
Mike Barnett,
Hebrews 1:1-14 says:
1In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the
prophets at many times and in various ways, 2but in
these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all
things, and through whom he made the universe. 3The Son
is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being,
sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification
for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven. 4So he became as much superior to the angels as the name he
has inherited is superior to theirs.
5For to
which of the angels did God ever say,
"You are my Son;
today I have become your Father[a]"[b]? Or again,
"I will be his Father,
and he will be my Son"[c]? 6And again, when
God brings his firstborn into the world, he says,
"Let all God's angels worship him."[d] 7In speaking of the
angels he says,
"He makes his angels winds,
his servants flames of fire."[e] 8But about the Son
he says,
"Your throne, O God, will last for ever and ever,
and righteousness will be the scepter of
your kingdom.
9You have loved righteousness and hated
wickedness;
therefore God, your God, has set you above
your companions
by anointing you with the oil of joy."[f] 10He also says,
"In the beginning, O Lord, you laid the foundations of
the earth,
and the heavens are the work of your hands.
11They will perish, but you remain;
they will all wear out like a garment.
12You will roll them up like a robe;
like a garment they will be changed.
But you remain the same,
and your years will never end."[g] 13To which of the
angels did God ever say,
"Sit at my right hand
until I make your enemies
a footstool for your feet"[h]? 14Are not all
angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?
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It is not
clear who God used to write this letter.
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For many
centuries it was believed that the Apostle Paul wrote the book.
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Most Bible
scholars now agree that Paul did not write this book.
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The two
leading candidates are Barnabas and Apollos.
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Barnabas was
a Jew of the priestly tribe of Levi who became a close friend and mentor of the
Apostle Paul.
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The other leading
candidate is Apollos, whose name was first suggested by Martin Luther and who
is favored by many scholars today.
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Apollos an
Alexandrian by birth, was also a Jewish Christian with notable intellectual and
oratorical abilities.
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Luke tells us
“he was a learned man, with a thorough knowledge of the Scriptures”
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We also know
that Apollo’s was associated with Paul in the early years of the church in
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Both Barnabas
and Apollos were highly educated Jews who had a connection with the Apostle
Paul and are therefore the leading candidates to being the author of the book
of Hebrews.
·
Ultimately we
know that God is the author who wrote through a man.
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Hebrews was
written before A.D. 70.
·
This letter
was addressed primarily to Jewish converts who were familiar with the OT and
who were being tempted to revert back to Judaism or to Judaize the Gospel.
·
Some have
suggested that these professing Jewish Christians were thinking of merging with
a Jewish sect, such as the one at
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It has been
suggested that the recipients were from the “large number of priests who became
obedient to the faith”.
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The theme of
Hebrews is the absolute supremacy and sufficiency of Jesus Christ as revealer and
as mediator of God’s grace which is far superior than the Old Testament
prophecies that predicted this age.
·
The readers
are told that there can be no turning back to or continuation of the old Jewish
system, which has been superseded by the unique priesthood of Christ.
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In the past
God spoke through angels and the prophets.
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It was
through the angels that God revealed himself on Mt Sinai.
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In Jewish
culture, angels were exalted beings just below God.
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The point the
author is making is: The God who spoke in the Old Testament has now spoken
through Jesus his son.
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We see how
great the Son is by comparing him with the angels.
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Those who
disobeyed God’s angles at Sinai perished as described in Hebrews 3:7-4:11.
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How much
worse it will be for us if we disobey God’s gracious word through his Son.
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The rest of
Hebrews teaches us the importance of continued obedience to this revelation and
the means of obedience available through our high priest, Jesus Christ.
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The God who
revealed himself to His people in the Old Testament has now given His final
revelation in One who is his son.
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The speaker
is the same.
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The God who
spoke in the Old Testament has now spoken through his son. It is the same God!
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There is
continuity in those addressed: He spoke then to our forefathers (1:1) but now to us (1:2).
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Forefathers
includes all those in the Old Testament.
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Forefathers
is also a relational word. They are our spiritual fathers.
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Old Testament
truth was partial and preliminary. It was given at many times in various ways.
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That revelation
was partial and fragmentary, never complete in itself.
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It was like a
puzzle that no one could put together because the most important pieces were
missing – namely Jesus Christ.
1) God has always tried
to communicate to people - In ancient days before Christ, God used prophets and
angels to tell people what was going to happen in various ways. V.1
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“These days”,
the time since Christ has come, are the last days when the Word of God’s
prophets are fulfilled.
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All earlier
revelation has looked forward to what God has now revealed!
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The prophets
looked forward to a fulfillment.
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Now, however
God has spoken through one who is his Son.
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The finality
and fullness of God’s revelation are guaranteed because of the quality and
nature of the person through whom he has revealed himself.
2) God has appointed
Jesus, heir of all things in the Universe which includes everything that is visible
and invisible. V. 2
3) God worked through
Jesus to create the Universe and God will work through Jesus to bring about
it’s end as we know it today because Christ is the Alpha and the Omega
(Beginning and end). V. 2
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This
affirmation of the son’s role in creation establishes His preexistence and
points toward His eternal deity. V. 2
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Whereas the
prophets and angles revealed partial truth – Christ has given the final and
complete truth. Vs.1-2
John 8:31–32 says:
31To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said,
"If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. 32Then
you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."
4) God still speaks today
through the written and complete Word known to us today as the Bible and
through the Holy Spirit. V. 2
5) God is seen and known
through the personhood of Jesus Christ.
V. 3
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The Son is
the radiance of God’s glory and the
exact representation of his being.
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God’s glory
is like a great beacon light.
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The Son is
the radiance, the rays of light, that shine out of that beacon.
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Just as the
radiance of light is one with the light and yet distinct from it, so the Son is
One with the Father in essence.
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Just as the
light rays reveal what the light truly is because they are part of that
reality, so the Son reveals what God truly is because He is one with the
Father.
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The son is
the exact representation of God’s essential being.
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The son is
the perfect image of God.
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If you want
to know what God looks like, then study the life of Jesus.
ILLUSTRATION. Water’s chemical
make up is known as H2O and as three forms.
1. Liquid
2. Gas
3. Solid
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The son is
involved not only with the Father in the creation and consummation, but also in
the sustaining and governing of the world.
6) Purification and
freedom from sin is a finished work completed solely by Jesus, the Son. V.3b
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The Son’s
purification for sins includes both forgiveness of past sins and a heart
cleansing that empowers Christians to live a life of holiness.
Hebrews
14How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who
through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our
consciences from acts that lead to death,[a] so that we may serve the living God!
Hebrews
10And by that will, we have been made holy through the
sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all
5) Jesus is superior to
the angles and so are his disciples that confess faith in Him. Vs. 4-14
John 14 says:
Thomas said to him,
"Lord, we don't know where you are going, so how can we know the
way?"
6Jesus
answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the
Father except through me. 7If you really knew me, you
would know[b] my Father as well. From now on, you do know
him and have seen him."
8Philip
said, "Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us."
9Jesus
answered: "Don't you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you
such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say,
'Show us the Father'? 10Don't you believe that I am in
the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you are not just
my own. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work. 11Believe me when I say that I am in the Father and the Father
is in me; or at least believe on the evidence of the miracles themselves. 12I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do
what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am
going to the Father. 13And I will do whatever you ask in
my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. 14You
may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.
15"If
you love me, you will obey what I command. 16And I will
ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever— 17the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it
neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and
will be[c] in you. 18I will not
leave you as orphans; I will come to you. 19Before long,
the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live, you
also will live. 20On that day you will realize that I am
in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you. 21Whoever
has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me
will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to
him."
John 10:34-36 says:
34Jesus answered them, "Is it not written in
your Law, 'I have said you are gods'[a]? 35If he called them
'gods,' to whom the word of God came—and the Scripture cannot be broken— 36what about the one whom the Father set apart as his very own
and sent into the world? Why then do you accuse me of blasphemy because I said,
'I am God's Son'?
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To most Jews,
angels were exalted beings, especially revered because they were involved in
giving the law of Sinai, and to the Jews the law was God’s supreme revelation.
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The
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It appears
that the original recipients of the book of Hebrews were tempted to assign
angels a place above Christ.