Sermon Tone Analysis

The opening lines of a story signal something to us of the greatness and grandeur of what is to follow.

“Once upon a time.”

“In a galaxy far, far away…”

“It was the best of times; it was the worst of times…”

All of these tell us that something great and magnificent is about to follow.

Yet, all of these pales in comparison to these opening lines here in Hebrews…

“Long ago, at many times and in many ways…”

For what follows after is one the greatest exhortations of Christ.

There is no story that could ever compete in beauty and eloquence to the story of Christ for us that the author of Hebrews proceeds to encourage us with.

In this passage before us, we find an exhortation and encouragement to a struggling Church.

We find later in this book that they were about to face immense pressure in persecution and were being tempted to go back to ways of old.

In response to this, the author of Hebrews seeks to reorientate these Christians back to the supremacy of Christ.

It doesn’t matter how old we get; it doesn’t matter how much theology we know.

The realities presented to us in Hebrews get only sweeter and Christ presented therein, only all richer.

One commentator likened the way our understanding of Christ is here, to the scene in Narnia where Lucy meets Aslan again in Prince Caspian.

“Welcome, child,” he said.

“Aslan,” said Lucy, “you’re bigger.”

“That is because you are older, little one,” answered he.

“Not because you are?”

“I am not.

But every year you grow, you will find me bigger.”

[1]

I love the way that this little interaction illustrates how as we grow in Christ, our understanding and perception of Christ grows.

It is my hope that as we walk through this next little bit of Hebrews, that we would marvel at Christ and wonder at how He has grown for us.

Christ our Lord is the same yesterday, today and forever more, but may we behold Him with greater affection, reverence, and awe as we consider His person and work for us, His people.

In this passage before us, we will seek to do this under three headings

1. Christ as the fulfillment of God’s Revelation

2. Christ as the Embodiment of God’s Nature

3. Christ as the Object of Our Worship

Again, that’s Christ as the Fulfillment of God’s Revelation, as the embodiment of God’s nature, and the object of our worship.

Christ as the Fulfillment of God’s Revelation

Beginning in vs 1 let’s read.

Head

In answer to these questions about doubt, as encouragement in times of persecution, the author sets forth firstly how we are to understand God’s revelation.

We have a progression of revelation.

It is not from less true to more true.

Not in content but kind.

What we have now is the same in substance as those of old, but now we have the message full and clear in Christ.

In the days of old, God spoke in various ways.

He met with Abraham and revealed to Him His covenant.

God spoke face to face with Moses on Mt Sinai, meeting with him in thunder and cloud.

God spoke in a whisper to Elijah.

God says that he makes Himself known to prophets in visions and speaks to them in dreams.

He communicates to His people through, priests, Levites, kings, and prophets.

They knew of the Gospel through these many ways and yet, the revelation was shrouded in darkness and concealed in shadow.

By faith these saints of old all looked forward.

Abraham, “was looking forward to the city that has foundations, whose designer and builder is God.”

You can think of the way heaven is revealed to us like an artist making a picture.

The Old testament is like the initial sketch, it is an outline, lacking detail yet still the picture.

The New testament is like the completed picture with more clarity and detail.

And Heaven is like the actual landscape being painted.

It is like an artist looking upon a vast landscape.

God revealed to all these saints the things of heaven, but it was like this artist making an initial sketch.

The revelation of things was a true image of the full reality, but it was incomplete.

The fullness of things was veiled in type and shadow, just as the beauty of the artist’s picture is veiled in shadowy sketches of their pencil.

But now, says the author, in these last days, he has spoken to us in his Son.

What is revealed in type and shadow in the Old Testament, has now come down to us in the form of the Son, Jesus Christ.

What was a sketch in the times of our Fathers, is now a full, unveiled painting, displayed in all its glory.

As Paul says in 2 Corinthians 3,

“Now if the ministry of death, carved in letters on stone, came with such glory that the Israelites could not gaze at Moses’ face because of its glory, which was being brought to an end, 8 will not the ministry of the Spirit have even more glory?...

For if what was being brought to an end came with glory, much more will what is permanent have glory.”

Heart

The reason we can say these things is because of the one defining fact of all Biblical revelation.

It is the WORD of God.

Our confession says as much when it says,

“The Holy Scripture is the only sufficient, certain, and infallible (which means unable to be false) rule of all saving knowledge, faith, and obedience…”

and later it declares the basis of such a claim when it says,

“The authority of the Holy Scripture, for which is ought to be believed, depends not upon the testimony of any man, or Church; but wholly upon God…”

and then it says something fantastic, “Who is truth itself, the author thereof!”

*pause*

“And therefore it is to be received because it is the Word of God.”

So, you can see, we don’t accept the revelation of these things because of the various ways they were revealed.

The magnitude of revelation doesn’t require them to be heard.

Whether it was the booming voice of God in thunder on the mountain, or the still whisper in the cave.

The one, defining factor of all revelation and the reason we accept and believe it, is that it is God who speaks.

And now in this time, we have the final revelation of God in the person of Jesus Christ.

The One to whom all honour and glory is owed, humbled Himself in the form of a man.

In this man, despised and rejected by many, “all the promises of God find their Yes in Him.”

God has taken on our flesh, he has come down to us that we may be brought near to God.

What a wonderful thought this is for our weak minds.

Dreams and visions were inferior, the images and types in the temple were insufficient to bring about the fullness of the revelation we have in Christ that we are forgiven and redeemed.

Now we can be called children of God.

Hands

So, what are we to do?

If in Christ we have the fullest revelation and picture of the heavenly realities, then, we must not go any further than Christ.

In the face of persecution, hardship, and doubt, we must cling even more strongly to Christ.

Paul says to the Galatians, “But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed.”

We must instead come to Christ.

We must see Him as who He is, the final, full Word of God, declared to us.

As Christ Himself says to us, “Come to me all you who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”

This is the promise of God to you, Christ has come and through Him we have the forgiveness of sins and we have fellowship with God.

As the full, final revelation of God, Christ indeed can give you rest.

Christ as the Embodiment of God’s Nature

So, what qualifies Christ for this role?

Why is to Him we must come and why is it at Him we must stop?

The author goes on.

*Read vs 2b-3a*

Head

God has appointed Christ “the heir of all things.”

As a Son, the whole world is Christ’s to inherit.

Along with the whole world, Christ is also the heir of the new mankind as the first born, we are His for His own possession.