The Final Word

Church Talk - an invitation

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Before we get into the word I’d like to have a little conversation with you about service.

First of all, thank you to everyone who is involved as a Sabbath School teacher, a prayer warrior, a deacon or deaconess, an elder or ministry leader, a helper at the food bank or homeless ministry, a 5F leader or social committee member, a participant in our worship services and so many other ways that you can serve. We are blessed to have an active church. In fact, the church office recently did a quick evaluation and we found that around 112 of the nearly 250 people who are attend our church regularly or semi-regularly are actively involved in service in some way! That’s 45%. If you’ve ever heard of the 80/20 principle where they say 20 percent of the people do 80 percent of the work, I think we can safely say that’s not the reality here.

So, thank you for your service.

Since you are such a service oriented group, I need to share something with you and ask that you step up and help carry the load.

Our lower division classes need your help—especially kindergarten and beginners. We need at least two more teachers in each of those classroom. Currently our kindergarten class only has one family who lead out which means that they have to be here every single week or else the class doesn’t happen. As a church, I don’t think that’s acceptable. We need to have kindergarten every week and we can’t put that responsibility on only one family. Our ministry placement committee has asked around, but so far we haven’t found anyone willing or able to step up. So, I’m asking for volunteers. Pray about it and ask the Lord if He is calling you to minister to the children. If you would like more information you can go to our ministry opportunity board in the hallway or email [e-mail].

Also, our youth and young adult sabbath school classrooms need teachers. Anna Northrup is our Young Adult leader but the Lord has called her back into the mission field this summer. And our youth class is led by me, and the youth will tell you that I’m going too many directions on Sabbath morning to lead that class as well as it deserves.

Please let me know if you have a heart for youth or young adult ministry.

We have thriving Sabbath School classes because of your dedication and passion, and I’m excited to see how God will call you into service.

Now, let’s get into the word.

Title Slide

Introduction

Imagine a time of political division and polarization. Extremes at both ends of the political spectrum.

Now imagine a religious element involved—a religious movement in politics. Do you have a picture in your head?

Now add a neutral party—a religious group that is caught in the middle of the religious and political polarization.

Does this sound familiar? I could be talking about our cultural moment in history.

But this has happened before, and the Bible has a whole book dedicated to the people caught in the middle.

Let’s go all the way back in the 50’s and 60’s AD. It’s the political and religious climate just before the destruction of Jerusalem. And while it isn’t an exact parallel to our day today, I think there are lessons from the Sermon that Paul wrote to the Hebrew Christians that apply directly to our lives today.

Let’s try to image ourselves in the everyday struggles of the people who originally received Pauls’ exhortation to the Hebrews.

Then

Judea under Roman rule was deeply divided. The Sadducees were the elite, pro-roman leaders. The Pharisees were the religious reformers. The Essenes were the separatists who preferred to get away from it all. And the Zealots were the anti-Roman revolutionaries. These groups all disagreed on governance, religious practices, and how to respond to Roman rule. This polarization fueled instability. The Zealots violently resisted the Romans which caused the Romans to see the Jews as terrorists. And the rest of the groups were immovable and uncompromising with escalating rhetoric between the factions that eroded social cohesion, making any external threat from Rome even more devastating.

Now

This sounds really familiar to my experience in the least few years. Pew Research did a survey that revealed that 80% of Americans view the other party as a “threat to the nation’s well-being.” Immigration, gun rights, election integrity, foreign policy and right to life issues are all flashpoints in politics and religion. The evangelical church is playing a key role in our current polarization with some even suggesting that our current president has been anointed by God much like king David once was.

Then

Now go back to Judea in the first century with all of its tensions, and zoom in to look inside the Christian community. They didn’t belong to any of the political or religious groups. They were a strange new sect of Judaism to the Romans, and fanatics to the Jews. They were caught in the middle.

Now

If we are truly following God’s Word today, then we live in a minority where we are ridiculed by scientists and social advocates on the left, and sidelined as a cult by the Christian majority on the right. There is a sense in which we don’t fit politically or religiously in our culture today.

We’re caught in the middle too.

It was to these caught-in-the-middle, Hebrew Christians that Paul decided to write an exhortation. And I believe this exhortation is for us today as well since Paul ties their time to ours when he says, “in these last days.”

As you turn to Hebrews chapter one, let me tell you a couple things about this unique book.

The book of Hebrews is different than the other letters in the new testament. It is not a gospel, but it is also not a letter. This is an exhortation. In Acts 13:15 the leaders of the synagogue in Antioch asked Paul and Barnabas to give them an exhortation—to speak words of encouragement. In other words, they were asking them to preach a sermon. And this is what Hebrews is—a sermon of encouragement for the Hebrew Christians. Some argue that Hebrews was not written by Paul because it lacks the signature of Paul at the end, like all of his other letters have. But if this is not a letter, than the form of writing makes more sense. And I’m pretty confident that this is Paul’s message to the Hebrews.

We can safely say that this book was written before the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70 because Paul assumes the presence of the temple in his writing about the sanctuary and the sacrifices. It’s also significant that Paul used the phrase, “In these last days,” because Jesus himself spoke of the destruction of Jerusalem and His second coming in nearly the same breath. They are both a “last days” scenario.

So, as we read imagine that we’re in the politically volatile moments before Rome comes and destroys Jerusalem. There would be economic pressures, political tensions, violence, and religious conflict swirling around everything. And I bet the Christians of that time would have had a lot of pressure to cave to one or another of the ideas that were being shouted from every corner of Jerusalem.

Now, let’s spend a couple minutes actually reading the first chapter of Hebrews together. Since we’re studying this book, we should have the words fresh in our minds. I’ll be reading from the New International Version for this reading, but we’ll reference a few different translations in our study today.

Hebrews 1:1–14 NIV

In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe. The 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. So he became as much superior to the angels as the name he has inherited is superior to theirs. For to which of the angels did God ever say, “You are my Son; today I have become your Father”? Or again, “I will be his Father, and he will be my Son”? And again, when God brings his firstborn into the world, he says, “Let all God’s angels worship him.” In speaking of the angels he says, “He makes his angels spirits, and his servants flames of fire.” But about the Son he says, “Your throne, O God, will last for ever and ever; a scepter of justice will be the scepter of your kingdom. You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness; therefore God, your God, has set you above your companions by anointing you with the oil of joy.” He also says, “In the beginning, Lord, you laid the foundations of the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands. They will perish, but you remain; they will all wear out like a garment. You 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.” To which of the angels did God ever say, “Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet”? Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?

Hebrews 2:1–4 ESV

Therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it. For since the message declared by angels proved to be reliable, and every transgression or disobedience received a just retribution, how shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation? It was declared at first by the Lord, and it was attested to us by those who heard, while God also bore witness by signs and wonders and various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.

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Let’s break this passage down it into three parts.

First, Paul sets God up as the ultimate expression of God—much greater and more direct than anything he ever communicated by the prophets before. In fact, the Son of God radiates God’s own glory and expresses the exact character of God.

The second section is a list of quotations where Paul quotes Psalm 2, 2 Samuel 7, Deut 32, Psalm 104, Psalm 45, and Psalm 102—all pointing to the same reality that Jesus is not one of the angels or the prophets, but Jesus is God himself, The Lord.

And finally, because Jesus is the final and perfect expression of God and because He is God himself, we must not drift away from the truth.

Why are these messages important? of course Jesus is God, and of course He’s not an angel, and of course he’s a better and more direct expression of God’s character than all the prophets before. Nobody is doubting that, right?

Then

It was a struggle for first century Christians to hold onto the truth. Notice how Paul says, “we must listen very carefully to the truth… or we may drift away.” The jews were saying Jesus wasn’t the Messiah and didn’t rise from the dead. The Romans were putting a downward pressure on everything, making it feel like the end of time, and the Christians were left in the middle with messages they had heard and a faint memory from those who had seen Jesus some 30 years before. Because of all the social pressures and influences, drifting away was a real possibility.

Now

Today our struggle is just as significant. How many different pressures are pushing at us as a faith community? There are whole groups of Christians that are focused on convincing us that we are legalists because we keep the Sabbath and that the true Gospel of grace frees us from anything related to obedience to the law. There are also the cultural pressures from social media, schools, scientists and politicians that undermine the fundamental principles of our faith. They say there is no creator God, that gender and marriage are only social structures, and that our beliefs actually undermine society by introducing bigotry and hatred towards people who don’t believe in our values. We can’t agree with our culture and stick with the Bible, and we can’t stick with the Bible and follow along with other churches who have chosen the traditions of men over the Word of God. We’re stuck in the middle, and drifting out of faith or into another faith community is a real possibility. And so, like the Hebrews, we must listen very carefully to the truth that has been passed down to us.

A summary of Adventist Doctrines

In his sermon to the Hebrews Paul reiterates several core doctrines that are mostly unique to the Seventh-day Adventist church in “these last days.” These are things Paul wanted the first century Christians to remember and hold onto and they are still very important today.

Our church teaches that death is a sleep where we await the resurrection. Paul nails down this doctrine in two segments of his sermon. In Hebrews 9:27 he says, “each person is destined to die once and after that comes judgment…” Many would suggest that this verse defends the straight to heaven or hell version of death that many Christians teach, but go to Hebrews 11 and you’ll find the rest of the story.

Hebrews 11:39–40 NIV

These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised, since God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.

Paul asked the Hebrews to cling to this faith that one day those who have been sleeping the long sleep of death will rise from their graves to see the Lord coming in the clouds and together with them we would rise up and meet the Lord in the air and go to the Promised Land that we have all been waiting for since the time of Adam and Eve. We all get to go to heaven at the same time, according to Paul.

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Our church also teach that there will be an investigative judgement—a period just before the return of Jesus where God would vindicate his decision to save His followers. This would be the heavenly “day of atonement” with Jesus as our high priest. Paul underscores this idea in many places such as Hebrews 9:23-28 and Hebrews 4:14-16 when he talks about Jesus entering the most Holy place of the heavenly sanctuary to minister as our high priest and purify “heavenly things” with the blood of a better sacrifice than sheep and goats since He brought His own blood into the heavenly sanctuary.

In Hebrews 10:19-22 Paul tells us that because Jesus is pleading our case before the throne of grace in heaven, we can come before God with confidence. This judgment will be made in favor of God’s children and its not something to be afraid of because Jesus is in charge.

Paul also touched on the Sabbath in Hebrews 4:1-11 pointing out that the rest of Sabbath continues to be an important gift that God gives His church as we wait for the ultimate rest of the Promised Land of heaven.

Next

He draws the attention of the Hebrews to the Hope of Jesus Second Coming in Hebrews 9:28 “so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.”

And those are just a few key ideas. In this sermon Paul is reaching through time and speaking to us today saying, “Don’t drift away from the things that have been handed down to you.”

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The supremacy of Christ

The most significant theme in Hebrews is the exalted nature and perfect work of Jesus. This is the theme that starts off the sermon and it takes up the entirety of chapter one, so let’s consider this.

One of the tempting theories that is trying to draw away the hearts of our modern-day believers is the idea that Jesus is not fully God.

The official teaching of our church is that Jesus is fully God and fully human—the son of God and the son of man. Like John 1 teaches, we believe that Jesus existed with the Father and the Spirit before anything was ever created, and that it was His voice that spoke and said, “let there be light” and his hands that molded the dirt into the first man and His lips that gave Adam the divine kiss of life. John 1:3 says that “all things were made through Him and without him was not anything made that was made.” Jesus has neither a beginning or an end because with the Father and the Spirit He has existed forever. He is life itself.

John 1:4 ESV

In him was life, and the life was the light of men.

Hebrews affirms this reality when it says,

Hebrews 1:10–12 ESV

And, “You, Lord, laid the foundation of the earth in the beginning, and the heavens are the work of your hands; they will perish, but you remain; they will all wear out like a garment, like a robe you will roll them up, like a garment they will be changed. But you are the same, and your years will have no end.”

But there are people who argue that Jesus did, in some way, have a beginning. They point out that some people back in the early part of the Seventh-day Adventist church didn’t believe that Jesus was God. They teach that Jesus is a subordinate divine being. And some, without realizing what they are doing, suggest that Jesus took our fallen human nature with every inclination towards sin. Basically, that he was just like you and me in every regard, including our bent towards pride and greed and lust.

We’ll talk more about Jesus role as the perfect human in next week’s presentation. What I want you to recognize is that we have similar pressures on us as the Hebrews did when Paul wrote them his encouraging sermon. And so we should take special note of How Paul introduces the character and divinity of Jesus.

Paul uses the argument that Jesus is more than a prophet, suggesting that one of the views people were pushing in his day, was that Jesus was another Moses or another Elijah. But Paul said, “no, Jesus is the creator God.”

He also argued that Jesus was more than an angel, quoting several texts where God identifies the qualifications and responsibilities of angels, but then he contrasted the angels with how the Father speaks about Jesus.

Hebrews 1:7 ESV

Of the angels he says, “He makes his angels winds, and his ministers a flame of fire.”

Hebrews 1:8–9 ESV

But of the Son he says, “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever, the scepter of uprightness is the scepter of your kingdom. You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness; therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness beyond your companions.”

Jesus is God. God himself said so. Did you catch it? God says TO the son, “Your throne, O God…” Paul’s belief is that Jesus is God himself, and he is inviting us, just like he invited the Hebrews of the first century, to not let go of our faith in the divine nature and the supremacy of Jesus Christ.

Conclusion

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Like the Hebrews we are smashed in between the secular culture of the world and the religions of men. Following Jesus, honoring His word, and telling the world about His soon return is kind of weird. Its tempting for us to think that this Jesus thing isn’t really that important. Or to undermine the significance of the beautiful doctrines that God’s word gives us. We can drift off into the world, or drift into the culture of evangelical Christianity, but Paul is telling the Pasco Riverview Seventh-day Adventist church:

Pay much closer attention to what you have heard so that you don’t drift away.

The gospel message and the bible truths that we know were first declared by angels and then prophets and then by Jesus Himself. And God bore witness about this gospel by signs and wonders and miracles and the gifts of the Holy Spirit.

So, don’t drift away. Don’t let yourself drift away.

Jesus is the all-suficient savior. He must remain the supreme object of our desire and the focus of our life.

As we continue to study through the book of Hebrews we’re going to find that the total focus of Paul is on the saving work of Jesus. He is our all in all. We must keep our focus on Him and follow Him.