Hebrews 3-4
Notes
Transcript
Hebrews
Hebrews
Hebrews 3 “Therefore, holy brothers and sisters, partners in a heavenly calling, take note of Jesus, the apostle and high priest whom we confess, who is faithful to the one who appointed him, as Moses was also in God’s house. For he has come to deserve greater glory than Moses, just as the builder of a house deserves greater honor than the house itself! For every house is built by someone, but the builder of all things is God. Now Moses was faithful in all God’s house as a servant, to testify to the things that would be spoken. But Christ is faithful as a son over God’s house. We are of his house, if in fact we hold firmly to our confidence and the hope we take pride in. Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says, “Oh, that today you would listen as he speaks! “Do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion, in the day of testing in the wilderness. “There your fathers tested me and tried me, and they saw my works for forty years. “Therefore, I became provoked at that generation and said, ‘Their hearts are…”
HEBREWS 3, Introduction, Prayer,
Exordium.
Disclaimer. I plan on stepping on some toes this morning theologically.
I want to talk about some major theological issues this morning that quite frankly you might not agree with.
As we look at Hebrews chapters 3 and 4, we need to talk about the idea that a person is saved by Faith Alone.
So to preface I want to remind those of you here who have already heard my speal (and for those who have never…)
What kind of Church this is, where our authority comes from, how we go about understanding truth.
ACC is a church that truly and sincerely uses the Bible alone as the sole source of Doctrine for The church.
Every church says that. But one of the things that Makes ACC and churches like us unique is that we take that seriously. We don’t have any creeds. We don’t have any confessions. We don’t have any cachtecisms.
A lot of Churches, even ones that place a heavy emphasis on scripture, at the end of the day have some sort of creed or confession of faith that is the core of their doctrine. Whether that’s the Nicene creed, or the westminster confession of faith, or the book of common prayer, or a church cathecism.
We just have the Bible.
That’s important. Because the Doctrine of Faith alone is NOT found in the bible. It’s inferred into a lot of creeds and confessions, but the phrase “faith alone” is not one we find in scripture.
Second, and this is important.
I as the preacher am no more of an authority on Scripture than anyone else.
which means when I preach I encourage HIGHLY encourage you not to just take my word for it.
This book is the ultimate authority. I have an open invitation for anyone to disagree with what I say in my sermons. And I truly mean that.
IF you bring scripture.
If you bring scripture and say “hey, what about this”
And I will sit down with you and the Bible and talk through any issue you want.
Because I truly believe that we can only have unity if we both are centered around scripture seeking truth.
Narratio
Hebrews 3:1-3
Hebrews 3:1-3
Therefore, holy brothers and sisters, partners in a heavenly calling, take note of Jesus, the apostle and high priest whom we confess,
who is faithful to the one who appointed him, as Moses was also in God’s house.
For he has come to deserve greater glory than Moses, just as the builder of a house deserves greater honor than the house itself!
For us as modern day Christians, this seems like a no brainer. Of course Jesus Christ is greater than moses. We are called “Christians” , followers of Christ, it’s it’s litterally in the name.
But when this was written, this would have made their ears perk up.
Moses was the, for all intents and purposes, the human founder of Judaism.
Abraham Isaac and Jacob were the fathers, Literally, of Israel. the Jewish Ethnic group.
But moses was the human founder of the Jewish “Religion”
We all know, and they all knew, that God ultimately is the founder of the Jewish Religion,
But you understand what I’m getting at.
It was moses who God chose to bring the Law to the people. The law is literally called the “Law of Moses”
So when Hebrews says that Jesus is Greater than Moses, this is a Huge claim.
This new sect of Judaism, this new Denomination of Judaism that centered not around the Law of Moses, but on Faith in Jesus
For every house is built by someone, but the builder of all things is God.
Now Moses was faithful in all God’s house as a servant, to testify to the things that would be spoken.
But Christ is faithful as a son over God’s house. We are of his house, if in fact we hold firmly to our confidence and the hope we take pride in.
Confidence and Hope. Later on in Chapter 11, the book of hebrews is going to use very similar language to define the word “Faith” And then in Chapter 11 it’s going to use a bunch of different stories to “Describe” the word faith.
Partitio
Here’s the main idea I want us to wrestle with.
This is the thing that I really want to dive into.
Hebrews 3:6 here the bible makes it plain and clear we are a member of God’s household If we hold firmly to our confidence and hope.
These are faith words.
We are saved by faith.
But the number one rule of reading the bible, don’t ever be satisfied by just reading one verse.
What exactly do we mean when we say that?
The idea that we as Christians are saved by “Faith alone” is very dangerous if we’re not extremely careful to unpack exactly what we mean by “Faith” and exactly what we mean by “faith alone”
Confirmatio
Hebrews 3:7-11
Hebrews 3:7-11
Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says, “Oh, that today you would listen as he speaks!
“Do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion, in the day of testing in the wilderness.
“There your fathers tested me and tried me, and they saw my works for forty years.
“Therefore, I became provoked at that generation and said, ‘Their hearts are always wandering, and they have not known my ways.’
“As I swore in my anger, ‘They will never enter my rest!’ ”
This is fascinating. Because verse 7-11 and then the text that follows is the text from a psalm. The author of Hebrews is giving a sermon point on a passage of scripture.
This is from Psalm 95.
Psalm 95 was a psalm written about another passage of Scripture from Numbers 20.
So think about this, right now you all are listening to a sermon about another sermon, which was about an instructive psalm..in other words a sermon set to music…about the nation of israel wandering in the desert.
Sermon about a sermon about a sermon.
In the book of Numbers, what this Psalm is talking about is how the israelites had been wandering in the desert, they had received the Law from mount sinai, they had built the tabernacle.
And they rebelled against God. In many different ways.
Moses himself disobeyed God when God told him to speak to a rock and it was going to produce water. And instead he went and hit it with his stick.
That may not seem like a big deal, but it displayed his trust not in God, but in himself
And ultimately the people would make it all the way to the border of the promised land the promised “Rest” that God had sworn to give to them. And God told them to send out scouts, and go and take the land. And instead what they did was come back and give a false report
They convinced the people that God couldn’t do it.
They disobeyed God.
And God said, fine. You’re not entering my rest. My promised land.
You made it this far. But when the rubber met the road, you lacked faith. And you missed your chance.
The book of Hebrews uses this example and says
Hebrews 3:12-14
Hebrews 3:12-14
See to it, brothers and sisters, that none of you has an evil, unbelieving heart that forsakes the living God.
But exhort one another each day, as long as it is called “Today,” that none of you may become hardened by sin’s deception.
For we have become partners with Christ, if in fact we hold our initial confidence firm until the end.
He repeats exactly what he said back in verse 6.
You made it this far. You had faith in Christ.
Don’t quit now. Don’t rebel against God. Don’t fall away.
Hebrews 3:15-17
Hebrews 3:15-17
As it says, “Oh, that today you would listen as he speaks! Do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion.”
For which ones heard and rebelled? Was it not all who came out of Egypt under Moses’ leadership?
And against whom was God provoked for forty years? Was it not those who sinned, whose dead bodies fell in the wilderness?
In other words, It was our people the jewish people, who God promised the promised land, but at the end of the day they lacked faith. And so God revoked their inheritance.
Verses 18 and 19 I want us to pay very close attention to. This is critical.
Hebrews is making the comparison of the Christian faith with the israelites in the desert.
And he says
And to whom did he swear they would never enter into his rest, except those who were disobedient?
So we see that they could not enter because of unbelief.
-Why couldn’t they enter the promised land?
Was it because of their disobedience? or was it because of their “unbelief” their lack of “faith”
Was it because they didn’t do good “works of obedience” or was it because they didn’t have faith.
The idea of separating faith from obedience is non-nonsensical. It’s a category error.
It’s like saying “dry water”
Faith without obedience is not a thing.
Therefore we must be wary that, while the promise of entering his rest remains open, none of you may seem to have come short of it.
Just like the israelites, don’t let your unbelief and your disobedience keep you from entering God’s rest.
The isrealites had to have had some faith. They don’t have the best track record for sure.
But they had a bare minimum amount of faith to follow God out of Egypt.
They had a bare minimum amount of faith to walk through the red sea.
They had a bare minimum amount of faith a “mustard seed” of faith that got them to the border of the promised land.
It wasn’t much. But they had to have had at least a little bit.
But when it came down to it, they rebelled. They fell short. They didn’t trust God. They didn’t obey God.
Don’t fall short, finish well.
For we had good news proclaimed to us just as they did. But the message they heard did them no good, since they did not join in with those who heard it in faith.
They didn’t put their money where their mouth was.
This verse is a little bit of a tricky one. Different English translations render it slightly differently. I want to read a couple so that we can get the basic idea here.
For good news came to us just as to them, but the message they heard did not benefit them, because they were not united by faith with those who listened.
For we also have had the good news proclaimed to us, just as they did; but the message they heard was of no value to them, because they did not share the faith of those who obeyed.
For we who have believed enter that rest, as he has said, “As I swore in my anger, ‘They will never enter my rest!’ ” And yet God’s works were accomplished from the foundation of the world.
For he has spoken somewhere about the seventh day in this way: “And God rested on the seventh day from all his works,”
God has been consistent. God has been faithful God has wanted us to enter his rest since the beginning of the world.
And we fail to obey. We lack faith.
And we can’t separate those two ideas. Faith and obedience, obedience and faith, they’re not different things.
but to repeat the text cited earlier: “They will never enter my rest!”
Therefore it remains for some to enter it, yet those to whom it was previously proclaimed did not enter because of disobedience.
But there’s a second chance.
Hebrews 4:7-9
Hebrews 4:7-9
So God again ordains a certain day, “Today,” speaking through David after so long a time, as in the words quoted before, “Oh, that today you would listen as he speaks! Do not harden your hearts.”
For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken afterward about another day.
Consequently a Sabbath rest remains for the people of God.
Remember, again, he’s talking to Jews.
Jews who throughout their history had been given their land, then had it taken away, then given it, and then they were taken away into babylon. And then they were given back to the land but then the Greeks came and took it away. Then they fought back and took back their land only to have the romans take it away.
And he’s telling them, the sabbath rest, the promised land, not just a chunk of dirt in the middle east, a true promised land. a true land of rest still is on the table. a heavenly rest.
Jesus says come to me all who are weary come to me and I will give you rest
For the one who enters God’s rest has also rested from his works, just as God did from his own works.
And if you read just this one verse out of context it sound a lot like “faith alone” We have entered God’s rest, we don’t have any more “work” to do
But the very next verse says
Thus we must make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by following the same pattern of disobedience.
-We have to obey the word of God.
For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any double-edged sword, piercing even to the point of dividing soul from spirit, and joints from marrow; it is able to judge the desires and thoughts of the heart.
And no creature is hidden from God, but everything is naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must render an account.
obedience to the word of God is neccecary for us to enter that rest.
That’s uncomfortable.
Saying that is the kind of thing that makes us go, Oh, man, Josh I don’t think I can live up to that standard.
Judging the desires and thoughts of the heart? You mean to tell me that the Bible tells us that We still ahve to render an account to God.
Yeah, that’s what it say. In multiple places.
Well I don’t know if I can live up to that. That scares me.
I don’t want you to walk away thinking that the bible teaches salvation based on merit. That’s not it at all.
There’s no score-card, it’s not like that.
God wants your heart. He wants your faith. Not the kind of faith that’s here (head) but the kind of faith that’s here (Heart) and here (hands)
the kind of faith that says Christ is King. And I will follow the king and swear allegience to the king, and do everything in my power to obey the king. Because I worship the king.
He wants a faithful heart. He wants an obedient heart. And those two things go hand in hand.
People with faithful obedient hearts still fall short. Perfect obedience is not possible.
Moses was disobedient. He had an obedient heart but he had moments where he fell short.
And yet, God still says
No prophet ever again arose in Israel like Moses, who knew the Lord face to face.
You don’t have to fret about “am I doing enough, am I good enough” that’s not it.
You just have to give God your heart.
At the very beginning of this passage Hebrews started out by talking about Jesus as high priest. And in verse 14 we’re going to get the payoff. The so what. God wants an obedient heart, God wants you to continue in the race, God wants you to follow through.
Don’t get all the way to the border of the promised land and then rebel and fall away.
And in verse 14 it says
Therefore since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast to our confession.
For we do not have a high priest incapable of sympathizing with our weaknesses, but one who has been tempted in every way just as we are, yet without sin.
Therefore let us confidently approach the throne of grace to receive mercy and find grace whenever we need help.
Peroratio
When we talk about Grace, and faith, and works, and obedience.
It gets sticky.
Because there is a certain segment of Christianity that holds the idea of being saved by “Faith Alone” as a sacred cow that you’re not allowed to push over.
-But I think it’s important.
-We went to the horizon music festival last weekend.
-And during the show they had some messages, and some sermons up on the stage.
-And all in all, most of the people who spoke were pretty good.
-But there was one message.
The gentleman at the end of his message told the crowd.
-If you haven’t put your trust in Jesus, I want you to say a little prayer with me.
-He said I want you to pray that you believe in Jesus, and you believe that he died for your sins, and that you believe you’re a siner.
-and he said, “if you prayed that prayer, you have been saved” You don’t have to go to church, you don’t have to read your bible, you don’t have to be baptized, you don’t have to do anything.
-Because you are saved by Faith alone, not works.
-This faith alone concept can be downright dangerous.
-How many people heard that message, and prayed that prayer, and went on with their lives living in sin because they were given false assurance.
How many people went home and never submitted to Christ as King, never died to their sins, never grew in the Lord, never experienced transformation,
I pray to God that they followed up and grew in their faith.
But this kind of talk that says “you don’t have to do anything, all you ahve to do is think a thing and say a prayer, that is just irresponsible.
If you’re going to use that term Faith alone, you had better be absolutely clear about what exactly it is you mean by faith.
If by faith alone what you mean is obedient faith. Faith that put Christ as King. Faith that swears allegience, faith that says “take up your cross and follow me” faith that says “if you love me, you will follow my commands.”
Faith that says “show me your faith without works and I will show you my faith by my works”
Faith that requires a response...
Faith that doesn’t try to separate itself from obedience...
If that’s what you mean by faith, then I feel confident that we’re talking about the same thing.
If that’s what you mean when you say the word “Faith” then you can say we’re saved by faith alone.
But if “faith” you mean I went to a concert one time, and I prayed a prayer, and the guy up on the stage told me I didn’t have to do anything else. I didn’t have to get baptized, I didn’t have to go to church, I didn’t have to read my bible, I didn’t have to become transformed.
That ain’t it.
That’s just enough faith to get you killed out in the desert.
Jesus told his disciples EXACTLY what he expected of his disciples.
He said they were to go into all the world
1)Make disciples
2)Baptize them
3)and teach them to obey.
Have an obedient heart.
And when you fall short, and you WILL fall short, confidently approach the throne of grace to receive mercy and find grace whenever you need help.
PRAY