A Better Messenger

Jason Self

The Message • Sermon • Submitted 3 years ago

Hebrews 1:14–2:4

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Messengers

Do you have any siblings? If you do you will relate--I grew up with a younger brother, and my parents would often relay messages through one of us to the other. But a message through a sibling only carries so much weight. My brother could tell me to clean my room all he wanted but I wasn’t going to take orders from the likes of him.

It carried a little more weight if he began the sentence with “Mom said”. A seven year old saying to his older brother “clean your room” doesn’t carry much weight, but “mom said — clean your room” was a little different. But only a little different.

Now, if my mom told my brother to tell me to clean my room. Then the expectation was that I was to clean my room. If I didn’t there would be consequences.

But, if my mom in person told me to clean my room, I was still expected to clean my room, but the expectation was that much more because my Mom in person told me to do it.

That is kinda what we are faced with in our passage this morning, and you will see what I mean as we move on. Turn with me to Hebrews 1 this morning and we are going to do something a little different, we are going to read through a chapter.

It’s important to remember when you are reading scripture that chapter and verse numbers aren’t inspired, they were added way later. The chapter divisions specifically were added around the year 1227 by Stephen Langdon, who at that time was the leader of the Anglican church, known as the Archbishop of Canterbury.

Occasionally we end up with weird chapter breaks like we have here. You kinda get the hint that it is a weird chapter break because the first word in chapter 1 is the word therefore. The only reason the word therefore is there for is to connect what is being said after the word therefore with what is before the word. So…we are going to read from v14 all the way through to verse 4 of Chapter 2.

Hebrews 1:14–2:4 KJV 1900

14 Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation? 1 Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip. 2 For if the word spoken by angels was stedfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompence of reward; 3 How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him; 4 God also bearing them witness, both with signs and wonders, and with divers miracles, and gifts of the Holy Ghost, according to his own will?

Our message this morning is entitled A Better Messenger

Pray

Mediation

Angels are Angels

All of Hebrews to this point has been discussing angels. And by angels we mean angels. The word ἄγγελος (angelos) does mean messenger. In some places instances of the word angelos simply mean a human messenger of some sort, not necessarily the spiritual being that we typically think of when we think of the world angel. But, you can’t make that connection here. If you remember Hebrews 1:7

Hebrews 1:7 KJV 1900

7 And of the angels he saith, Who maketh his angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire.

Our context is of spiritual beings, ministers who are a flame of fire. These aren’t humans, and as we progress further into chapter 2 we only will find this to be more and more evident.

They Key to Understanding

In order to understand the point of this passage you need to understand that angels here are angels but you also need to understand what is being referred to at the beginning of Chapter 2 verse 2

Hebrews 2:2 (KJV 1900)

2 For if the word spoken by angels was stedfast

What word is spoken by angels?

We get a hint of this elsewhere in the new testament.

Galatians 3:19 KJV 1900

19 Wherefore then serveth the law? It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator.

Now let’s look at Acts 7:53

Acts 7:53 KJV 1900

53 Who have received the law by the disposition of angels, and have not kept it.

And then earlier in Acts 7, which gives a

Acts 7:38 KJV 1900

38 This is he, that was in the church in the wilderness with the angel which spake to him in the mount Sina, and with our fathers: who received the lively oracles to give unto us:

So in Galatians 3:19 we get the picture of angels acting as a mediator, In Acts 7:53 we read that the law was given by the disposition or the instruction of the angels. And Acts 7:38 which provides the most puzzling addition to this subject of angelic mediation, that the law was spoken to moses at Sinai by an angel.

The problem with this is that when we read the account in Exodus where the law is being given to Moses and there is absolutely 100% no reference to angels even being on the mount much less giving the law. So, how can the author of Hebrews, and the Luke in the book of Acts and the Apostle Paul bring this up as if it were common knowledge?

Extra-Biblical Sources

There are also some references outside of scripture that suggest angels mediated the law to Moses.

There is a book entitled the book of Jubilees. What remained of it was not in the original Hebrew but of a translation written in Ethiopian and it was fragmented and is not counted among the cannon of scripture.

be holy.' And the angel of the presence who went before the camp of Israel took the tables of the divisions of the years -from the time of the creation- of the law and of the testimony of the weeks of the jubilees, according to the individual years

and continues

And the angel of the presence spake to Moses according to the word of the Lord, saying: Write the complete history of the creation, how in six days the Lord God finished all His works and all that He created, and kept Sabbath on the seventh day and hallowed it for all ages

Josephus in his writings quotes Herod to say

and we have learned the best of our doctrines and the holiest of our laws from the angels sent by God.

Mediation of Angels

What came from these sources is a doctrine called “The Mediation of Angels”. The idea that God gave the law to Moses through angels delivering the message. In the same way that prophets gave the word of God to the people they were prophesying to. Since the very word angelos itself, literally means messenger, it isn’t hard to make that connection. And that doesn’t necessarily mean that the 10 commandments themselves were given to Moses through the angels, only that the law, the first 5 books of the Old Testament was conveyed to Moses by angels.

Controversial

The Rabbi’s refuted the idea of a mediated law and it is specifically defended against repeatedly in much of the rabbinic writing in the Midrash. This turned out to be a pretty controversial subject for the early church as a debate with the rabbinic Jews of the time.

And while it is true that there is little evidence to support the angelic mediation of the law in the Old Testament, and most of the support that we can find comes from extra-biblical sources, sources that we do not believe were written under the inspiration of God. We have to admit, that the New Testament alludes to, over and over, that the law of God was given to moses not directly by God to Moses — but from to Moses via the mediation of Angels.

A Great Salvation

And so we have to ask this question. What does it matter to spend this much time in our study of Hebrews, to talk about the role of the angels in the giving of the law? Well, if we are going to understand this passage…everything!

Follow with starting in Hebrews 1:14 as I paraphrase a bit to make the point:

Hebrews 1:14–2:4 KJV 1900

In v14 we read that the angels are spirits who minister to the heirs of salvation, the elect if you will.

In v1 it’s pointed out that we should give our utmost attention the instruction given by the angels, lest we falter in obeying that instruction

v2 tells us that the word of the angels was stedfast, meaning that it was true and reliable. And it continues that every violation of the law that they delivered would be justly punished.

But the point comes in v3 — If the law given to man by way of angels has proved to be true — and if disobedience to that law has serious and severe consequence — How much more seriously should we take the message of Jesus Christ — God incarnate, who delivered this message in person — and displayed his authority by signs, wonders and spiritual gifts.

v3 says if we neglect this message. How shall we escape?

The Superiority of Christ

Turn with me to Galatians 3:23-26

Galatians 3:23–26 KJV 1900

23 But before faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed. 24 Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. 25 But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster. 26 For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.

Schoolmaster παιδαγωγός (paidagōgos) in the Greek. It’s where we get the english word today pedagogue. In english this word refers to an old fashioned and strict teacher but for the greeks, there was a slightly different meaning. paido means child and gogos means guide.

In ancient Greece a when a wealthy boy came to the age of schooling a special type of slave was hired to attend to him. This slave accompanied the boy wherever he went especially to school and to the gymnasiums. This slave carried the boys books and his tablets. He served as a tutor. and was to instruct the boy in good manners. This slave was even permitted to spank the child if need be. This is what a pedagogue is.

What Paul is writing to the Galatians is that the law came along side mankind to guide them in righteousness and to chastise them when they were of course. It was a tutor to us in godliness showing us the way to Christ.

A child comes to a point where he no longer needs constant supervision to maintain manners. A child comes to a point where his education is over and it’s time to function in the world as an adult. And what Paul is telling the Galatians is that the law leads us and instructs us to Christ but once we have come to faith we no longer under the guidance of the law because our faith now guides our actions.

Take Heed

Until the cross, the law alone guided mankind on the path to righteousness. It ordered the footsteps of the obedient and was the standard for justice for the disobedient. Its purpose is to guide us towards faith, revealed fully to us through Christ Jesus.

As we read through our new testament we read the words of Christ, and the witness of those who have heard Christ’s instruction first hand. Perhaps you are listening to this message and you don’t believe. Maybe you look at the law of God and you can see the moral value in it, and you can identify the social good the comes from Christian values. Maybe.

But please understand that the good of the law is so important that it was delivered to mankind, by angels, sent from God. And the law is just and accompanied by a justice system, just as any other set of laws.

But the message of Christ is grace. And it is a message of a salvation not of obedience or works or following all of the rules but a salvation that knows you can’t live up to the standard and loves you anyway. It is a message of how to love God with all of your heart — and a message on how to love others.

This isn’t another message mediated by angels, but a message that was delivered by the second person of the Godhead Himself. A message so important that our God was incarnated as a man, lived a life as a man, taught as a man, and then died a death on the cross to deliver.

If it is important for us to heed the messages of the angels, how much more important for us to heed this message. Let me put it another way: If we reject the law given by angels and there are consequences for doing so, how much greater if we reject Jesus Christ.

If you want to know more this morning about the message of Christ, and the grace of salvation, or if you have any other question this morning I want to encourage you to see me after the service, I would love to tell you more about our savior. If you are watching from home, you can always send me a direct message and I promise that our conversation will remain private. In either event, please do not neglect this opportunity to realize this great salvation.