Hebrews 4:14-5:10
Notes
Transcript
Lord, here we go again!
Pray. Think myself empty. Read myself full. Write myself clear. Pray myself haught.
Be myself. Forget myself.
Lord, let this message be a beacon for you. Let me be forgotten and invisible. Let them see and know you, only you.
“Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.”
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The word Gospel means “good news”. It’s pretty important to understand that. The Bible is not a book that tells us what we have to do to earn salvation, it is a book that tells us what God did to earn our salvation.
What he did was send Jesus. Jesus did for us what we could never do for ourselves and he paid for what we had done in his body on the cross.
God created human beings and intended for them to be ruling creatures. We were supposed to be under God but over everything else. We were supposed to rule over creation under the guidance and authority of God’s Word and to function as conduits for all the blessings of heaven.
That’s how it was supposed to be, but unfortunately, the Bible tells the story of how our first parents, Adam and Eve, fell into sin by choosing to rebel against God’s Word in order to become autonomous ruling creatures. Basically, they wanted to be gods unto themselves, deciding good and evil.
From that point on, humanity has been on a downward spiral moving further and further away from God and our original design and glory.
The heart of the Gospel is the Good News that Jesus has come as God in the flesh and has obeyed God perfectly and has therefore won the right to all the blessings God originally intended to give to men and women. Furthermore, through his sacrificial death on the cross, he has paid the debt that we owed to God for disobeying his commands.
There is therefore no need anymore for us to hide from God. In Jesus, we can come home and we can be restored. The climax of the Gospel is the great news that he rose from the dead and ascended into heaven where he now intercedes on our behalf.
He gives the Holy Spirit to all his people and he slowly but surely, changes our hearts, reforms our desires and teaches us how to be the children of God we were always intended to be.
For now, Jesus remains in heaven, changing the world one person at a time, but one day he will return and judge the world in righteousness. He will remove from this world all sin and all causes of sin and he will restore the cosmos to a state of peace, prosperity and flourishing and all those who have received him as their Lord and Savior will participate in his rule and enjoy his goodness forever.
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PRAY
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I find it difficult sometimes to read the Bible. It’s difficult because there are things that are beyond my understanding because I haven’t lived in that context. Washing of feet is one of the things because we don’t have to wash our feet off when we go into someplace, not usually anyway. Because we don’t understand the context, we have to have things explained to us in greater depths. Much like the game we played where you were asked to identify objects that were unfamiliar with, Without some context, you’re blindly guessing.
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Read the Greek Bible.
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Someone smart come up and read the passage today....oh, you can’t read Greek.
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Stand for the reading
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14 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. 15 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. 16 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.
1 For every high priest chosen from among men is appointed to act on behalf of men in relation to God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins. 2 He can deal gently with the ignorant and wayward, since he himself is beset with weakness. 3 Because of this he is obligated to offer sacrifice for his own sins just as he does for those of the people. 4 And no one takes this honor for himself, but only when called by God, just as Aaron was.
5 So also Christ did not exalt himself to be made a high priest, but was appointed by him who said to him,
“You are my Son,
today I have begotten you”;
6 as he says also in another place,
“You are a priest forever,
after the order of Melchizedek.”
7 In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to him who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverence. 8 Although he was a son, he learned obedience through what he suffered. 9 And being made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him, 10 being designated by God a high priest after the order of Melchizedek.
I’d say by now, you should have an idea of who Jesus is. If you’ve been in church for any length of time, then there are going to be some things that you have familiarity with. If not been in church, these may be completely foreign.
This section tonight is about the supremacy of Jesus. If you recall, we talked about Jesus being superior over angels, Moses, Joshua, etc. Tonight were’ looking at how Jesus is the Great High Priest.
Apostles Creed
Nicene Creed
HIGH PRIEST
HIGH PRIEST
This concept for the Hebrew audience was familiar. They knew the Old Testament Law, which deals to a large extent how the priests would make atonement for the sins of the people. and lays out the priests role, responsibilities, and actions to cover the sins of the people.
Let me give you a brief list of just some of the things the Levitical priests were responsible for:
Only enter the Most Holies once a year
had to be wearing certain clothes
had to have sacrifices for others and themselves
Maintenance of the Temple
Collect tithes
over purification ceremonies
Judging cases
Administering blessings
“Only they were allowed to approach the alter, and then only within the context of a complex series of rituals and while wearing specific vestments that symbolized their holiness.” -John MacArthur- Hebrews
Despite all of the things that the priest did, they still sinned and they still had to make atonement for their own sins.
JESUS-THE GREAT HIGH PRIEST
JESUS-THE GREAT HIGH PRIEST
The Author reminds the readers that Jesus, the Great High Priest, passed through life in to the heavens—died as a man—sinless—(the perfect atoning sacrifice, ascended to the right hand of the Father. He covered our sins. Jesus didn’t have to wait to the day of atonement to talk to God in special place, with special clothes, and through a properly executed ritual prayer. He had constant communication with God!
Our confession—both the reader and our own—is found in that Jesus is the Great High Priest.
Not only was Christ tempted, he felt pain, he had emotions, he exhibited all qualities of man EXCEPT SIN.
STORY
Let’s say for a minute a man has a successful business that he started from the ground up. He started small and built it into a multimillion dollar company. He’s getting up in years so his son is in line to take over.
His dad, proud of his company and wanting to make sure it is left in good hands, hires his son.
“Tomorrow will be your first day to learn this company and how to run it.” he says to his son.
The son comes in to sit in a big office and enjoy the lifestyle of business lunches, golf outings, foreign trips...
Big Office, travel, corporate perks, etc.
But the father made sure that the son learned the business from the ground up
Work with the mechanics
Visit the suppliers to see where the raw materials come from
Experience working hard to get the right price
—Floor
Salesman and how hard it is to convince the suspicious world that this was a product they needed
Share in the work of the financial department on how complicated business finances can be
Only when he had thoroughly understood every aspect of how the business was he even given an office of his own.
Now he would have to lean both how to lead and how to manage a workforce as well as how to represent the business in the wider world. He had to learn what it meant to be the son or his father...
source materieals
hr
finincial
Like the workers know that the son has experienced what it’s like to work, Likewise the son know’s how to care for the people.
EXPERIENCE IS THE GREAT TEACHER
Hold fast --to your profession of faith.
Hold fast --to your profession of faith.
“Here the writer is urging believers to cling tenaciously to their confession of Christ. Cling now and keep on clinging.” (A.T. Robertson, Word Pictures in the New Testament, “The Epistle to the Hebrews,” vol.5, 365.)
In Jesus Christ, God has shown us His face. In Jesus Christ, God has bared to us His heart. In His loving presence, we “receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need” (v. 16). Our “time of need” is always. Thank God for His grace which supplies every need we have according to His riches in glory through Christ Jesus (). He is ever eager to supply our need. Let us then approach him with Confidence. (Shepherds Notes, Hebrews pg. 34)
Jesus is the superior, holy and sympathetic High Priest appointed by God the Father
Jesus is the superior, holy and sympathetic High Priest appointed by God the Father
Jesus is the holy and sympathetic High Priest appointed by God the Father
Jesus is the holy and sympathetic High Priest appointed by God the Father
Jesus is the holy and sympathetic High Priest appointed by God the Father
Christ is to suffer for the sake of others so that they may received the gift of eternal salvation.
Christ is to suffer for the sake of others so that they may received the gift of eternal salvation.
Faithfulness is the proper response to all that Christ has done for us.
Faithfulness is the proper response to all that Christ has done for us.
Called by God (v. 1-3)
“ exalts Jesus Christ, the sinless Son of God, as the appointed sympathetic High Priest in the order of Melchizedek.
Called by God (v. 1-3)
Aaron’s Priesthood (v. 4)
“To be especially chosen, appointed, or ordained is to be entrusted with special responsibility by the one choosing, appointing, or ordaining. The writer mentioned Aaron because the priestly line began with him. Aaron served with prominence and distinction as the first one to be particularly consecrated or set apart for what God called His priesthood ().: Shepherd Notes
The Priesthood of Christ (5:5-10)
Jesus Christ, our great High Priest under God’s New Covenant, also was called by the Father. Nor did He exalt Himself to do the hight priestly work. The father exalted Him (v. 5). His special ordination from God was, ‘ Your are a priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek” (v. 6). “ First referecne to Melchizedek but eight others to follow in .
Quick Look: Melchizedek
identifies him as “King of Salem” and as a priest of “God Most High.” To him Abraham, the father of the faithful, gave tithes.
Christ’s Humanity (v. 7)
Christ’s Humanity (v. 7)
Combining the high priesthood of Aaron and the unique high priesthood of Melchizedek, Jesus prayed and made earnest supplication to God. In His complete identification with humanity, Jesus prayed as we pray. He petitioned God as we do. He cried aloud as we do in times of personal crisis. He wept as we sometimes do. As with all who truly trust God, Jesus “was heard because of his reverent submission” (v. 7).
Christ’s Suffering (v. 8)
Christ’s Suffering (v. 8)
Although God’s only begotten Son, Jesus “learned obedience from what he suffered” (v. 8), the creative pain of suffering taught Jesus obedience to the Father and subjection to His will.
Christ’s Perfection (v. 9)
Christ’s Perfection (v. 9)
Jesus, “once made perfect… became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him” (v. 9). The treasure chest of Hebrews is open again, and another priceless jewel is flashing here in verses 8-9. The perfection that Jesus achieved was accomplished though His death and resurrection.
Christ’s Obedience
Christ’s Obedience
God appointed Him, and he responded with absolute faith, complete obedience, and redemptive suffering. His obedience was not a conditioned response to external stimuli. It was rather a supremely moral, absolutely responsible response to the Father’s leadership. Though Jesus was God’s Son, His humanity was so total that He actually “learned” obedience throught e things that He sufferd along life’s way, such painful experiences as the great temptation, Lazarus’s death, Jerusalem’s refusal to know the things that make for peace, the disciples’ petty jealousies, Peter’s denial, Pilate’s harsh sentence, and the agony of Crucifixion.
“ God appointed Aaron as a high priest to represent people before God. Because Aaron was surrounded with weakness, he was able to have compassion on other weak, sinful people. Christ also faced hardship, and he learned the value of obedience by his commitment to God’s will. He is the source of eternal salvation for all those who obey Him.” Shephard’s notes
The eternal salvation which has Jesus as its source is given to “all who obey him” (v. 9). The divine imperative is for us to obey him. there is no other way out of the dark valley of sin and death except the high and narrow way of obedience to Him. Shephard’s notes
“As the high priest on earth entered the holy of holies, so Jesus has entered the heavens on our behalf.”
Hold fast --to your profession of faith.
Hold fast --to your profession of faith.
“Here the writer is urging believers to cling tenaciously to their confession of Christ. Cling now and keep on clinging.” (A.T. Robertson, Word Pictures in the New Testament, “The Epistle to the Hebrews,” vol.5, 365.)
In Jesus Christ, God has shown us His face. In Jesus Christ, God has bared to us His heart. In His loving presence, we “receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need” (v. 16). Our “time of need” is always. Thank God for His grace which supplies every need we have according to His riches in glory through Christ Jesus (). He is ever eager to supply our need. Let us then approach him with Confidence. (Shepherds Notes, Hebrews pg. 34)
Jesus is the superior, holy and sympathetic High Priest appointed by God the Father
Jesus is the superior, holy and sympathetic High Priest appointed by God the Father
Christ is to suffer for the sake of others so that they may received the gift of eternal salvation.
Christ is to suffer for the sake of others so that they may received the gift of eternal salvation.
Faithfulness is the proper response to all that Christ has done for us.
Faithfulness is the proper response to all that Christ has done for us.
Called by God (v. 1-3)
Aaron’s Priesthood (v. 4)
“To be especially chosen, appointed, or ordained is to be entrusted with special responsibility by the one choosing, appointing, or ordaining. The writer mentioned Aaron because the priestly line began with him. Aaron served with prominence and distinction as the first one to be particularly consecrated or set apart for what God called His priesthood ().: Shepherd Notes
The Priesthood of Christ (5:5-10)
Jesus Christ, our great High Priest under God’s New Covenant, also was called by the Father. Nor did He exalt Himself to do the hight priestly work. The father exalted Him (v. 5). His special ordination from God was, ‘ Your are a priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek” (v. 6). “ First referecne to Melchizedek but eight others to follow in .
Quick Look: Melchizedek
identifies him as “King of Salem” and as a priest of “God Most High.” To him Abraham, the father of the faithful, gave tithes.
Closing
“ exalts Jesus Christ, the sinless Son of God, as the appointed sympathetic High Priest in the order of Melchizedek.