The Confession of Our Hope (Hebrews 3 and 4)
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Slide 1 Heb 3:1-6
Therefore, holy brothers, you who share in a heavenly calling, consider Jesus, the apostle and high priest of our confession, who was faithful to him who appointed him, just as Moses also was faithful in all God’s house. For Jesus has been counted worthy of more glory than Moses—as much more glory as the builder of a house has more 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 were to be spoken later, but Christ is faithful over God’s house as a son. And we are his house, if indeed we hold fast our confidence and our boasting in our hope.
In this letter, the author of Hebrews is encouraging Jewish believers of Jesus,
While at the same time, he's making a case for his gospel.
Which is, Jesus Christ is the Son of God, the messiah the Jews have longed for,
and was killed, buried, and rose again
Paul asserts that Jesus isn't only a sent one (which is what apostle means)
Or a high priest (one anointed and consecrated, set apart to make atonement for our sin)
But is in fact THE GREATEST one sent who makes atonement for us
"worthy of more glory than Moses"
These are the kids of claims that would get believers stoned or thrown in prison
But the author is not backing down, in fact he's just getting warmed up.
Notice the author doesn't claim that Moses isn't worthy of glory,
But in comparison he is as a servant in the house when compared to Christ the Son.
Jesus is worthy of even more glory.
Now, take note of this line here in verse 6.
"if indeed we hold fast our confidence and our boasting in our hope"
We'll come back to this passage in a bit
Slide 2 Heb 3:7-11
Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says,
“Today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion,
on the day of testing in the wilderness,
where your fathers put me to the test
and saw my works for forty years.
Therefore I was provoked with that generation,
and said, ‘They always go astray in their heart;
they have not known my ways.’
As I swore in my wrath,
‘They shall not enter my rest.’ ”
Here the author is citing Psalm 95 for us.
In that Psalm, God meant to give His people rest in the land of Canaan
This was after God had delivered them from slavery to Egypt.
But their fear and unbelief didn't allow them to enter the Promised Land
God had already worked miracles in Egypt to deliver them, not requiring them to lift a finger against their enemies.
God did everything for them.
They only had to follow and obey.
If they would follow God, the fire by night and cloud by day, He would win every single victory and overcome every single obstacle that they'd face.
Just believe.
But unbelief resulted in an additional 40 years of waiting and wandering as consequence.
But even under punishment in the desert God did not allow their sandals to wear out,
and would provide for them daily mana to eat. That was a DAILY miracle that the people of God were given grace to experience.
How crazy is it that even when we're waking up to magic bread and unlimited sandal traction
we can still harden our hearts towards the God who sustains us?
The sandals are especially interesting to me since I slipped and hurt my back in Thailand because my cheap sandals had worn out
-The author offers a remedy to hardness of heart, rooted in unbelief.
Slide 3 Heb 3:12-19
Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God. But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. For we have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original confidence firm to the end. As it is said,
“Today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion.”
For who were those who heard and yet rebelled? Was it not all those who left Egypt led by Moses? And with whom was he provoked for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies fell in the wilderness? And to whom did he swear that they would not enter his rest, but to those who were disobedient? So we see that they were unable to enter because of unbelief.
What is that remedy?
Christian community
Only in godly community can we receive godly exhortation from brothers and sisters who are fighting for your heart.
"Exhort one another every day"
Question- Who do we exhort? (one another)
How often? (every day)
The wisdom here is to fight for one another's hearts so that we don't fall away,
The root cause is the same as it was for Moses' people 3,000 years ago.
It's disobedience, resulting in unbelief.
And their unbelief had consequences…it resulted in a whole generation (40 years) missing out on entering rest
-This is hugely important for us.
Because if God's commands and warnings against disbelief thousands of years ago still standtoday,
YOU BETTER BELIEVE that so do HIS PROMISES!
Slide 4 Heb 4:1-5
Therefore, while the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us fear lest any of you should seem to have failed to reach it. 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 who have believed enter that rest, as he has said,
“As I swore in my wrath,
‘They shall not enter my rest,’ ”
although his works were finished from the foundation of the world. For he has somewhere spoken of the seventh day in this way: “And God rested on the seventh day from all his works.” And again in this passage he said,
“They shall not enter my rest.”
We are promised His Rest, found in our Hope, Christ Jesus.
So what does the author of Hebrews mean in 3:6 when he mentions "we hold fast our confidence and our boasting in our hope"?
(slide 2, please)
Uniquely it doesn't say that we hold fast to Christ,
though the Law does call for us to "hold fast" to God.
But for thousands of years, and countless dead prophets and kings,
how faithful was the human race in faithfully holding fast to God?
Not very, right?
But what the Gospel promises us isn't that we hold fast to him…
But Jesus holds fast to US….
through the power of his blood and atoning sacrifice.
And his steadfast love for us, His kids.
We hold fast to our confession, which is
Christ died for ME, for US.
He holds ME fast.
He will not abandon me, his mercies are new every morning.
Even when I'm dealing with the consequences of my own desert of sin and brokenness
He is still faithful, never to abandon me
I obey him and follow where he goes.
The pillar of fire by night
Chapter 4:2-3 say we're "United by faith and belief" in his promise of salvation.
And he holds ME fast. Amen?
One of my favorite bible commentaries brought that discovery to my attention.
SLIDE 5
"If the Reader will notice the words a little more closely, he will discover, through divine teaching, that it is our confidence, and our rejoicing which we are said to hold fast, and not our interest in Christ… My happiness, and my enjoyment of my interest in Christ, will indeed be more or less, as, through grace, I find strength, to hold fast my confidence in Christ. But my safety in Christ is in the Lord's holding me fast; and not I him."
Hawker, Robert. A Poor Man's Commentary . Kindle Edition.
Let's keep going…
Slide 6 Heb 4:6-8
Since therefore it remains for some to enter it, and those who formerly received the good news failed to enter because of disobedience, again he appoints a certain day, “Today,” saying through David so long afterward, in the words already quoted,
“Today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts.”
For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken of another day later on.
-QUESTION What is 'his voice' to the people in Moses' day? (The Law, spoken to/recorded by Moses)
What was 'his voice' for David and the people of God hundreds of years later? ( Wisdom literature/ Psalms, decrees by the prophets)
So today, a primary way we hear the voice of God is through the written, spirit-breathed word.
Matt Brown, one of the authors at the ministry 'Desiring God' once wrote
“Don’t say God is silent when your Bible is closed.”
But I don't want to skim over this detail too quickly in Hebrews.
The author of Hebrews is quoting Psalm 95 of David written 1000 years before.
…David is citing Moses from Exodus, written 500 years earlier…
And now Hebrews is speaking to us 2000 years later.
Isn't that crazy?
That is
Christopher Nolan Inception-level stuff
Let’s keep going
Slide 7 Heb 4:9-13
So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from his works as God did from his.
Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience. For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account.
God resting from his works speaks of creation being finishedon the 6th day.
You can also look to Jesus being the author and the 'perfector' of our faith.
But it's not that God exhausted all of his strength and needs to take a nap.
Sabbath is God modeling and prescribing restfor us, especially in bali bali Korea,
this is a gracious gift of mercy to our weak, bodies made of flesh.
And sabbath keeps us humility, since we cannot outpace God in our work,
even if we try way-too often
If we do not prioritize resting in Christ, we do so to the detriment(or destruction) of our physical and spiritual lives.
Here denying rest is called disobedience of the'same-sort' that Hebrew's in Moses' time fell into in the desert.
Remember, rest is not a suggestion but a command.
Because you are not greater than God,
or greater than any of the spiritual fathers and mothers of the past 3500 years who devoutly honored sabbath.
Slide 8 Heb 4:14-16
Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
With the old covenant, priests were appointed to make sin offering on our behalf.
The priest had to make them every day, because we sin every day.
But Jesus here is proclaimed as the GREAT HIGH PRIEST.
His blood offering isn't nullified after a day, but is once and forever.
Jesus' finished work of cleansing us from sin through His blood.
That is what we hold fast to; His work, and the power of His blood.
Jesus was tempted in every way we've been yet was sinless.
V 15 says He sympathizes with us in our struggle.
And He loves us immensely.
He bought your freedom with the greatest ransom price ever asked. The Son of God's holy life.
Our rest, is found in Christ,
because he's already won, and he is our hope.
Our past, present, and future hope.
SO what is our confession of hope?
What is it that we can hold confidence in?
Jesus says it best in Matthew.
Slide 8 Matt 11:28-30
Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”
"28 Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart,
and you will find rest for your souls.
30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” - Matthew 11:28-30"
