Following The Captain

Hebrews 2:5-13

Following the Captain of our Salvation

Introduction

1. This year as part of our vacation we planned a camping trip to Sudbury to see Science North (the northern version of Ontario Science Centre) and to experience family camping along the way.

2. Our destiny was Science North, but in order to get there we had to plan and experience a whole series of events along the way.

3. We studied the maps and planned the route.

4. We made phone calls and reserved campsites along the way.

5. We bought or borrowed any camping equipment and supplies we would need along the way.

6. Then we had to actually travel the road and set up camp and experience the journey of getting there.

7. In some ways our vacation experience can be compared to the experience of our salvation.

8. Just like our ultimate vacation destiny was Science North, God’s Word has revealed to us that our ultimate destiny in salvation is for us to be presented to God in the presence of His glory, completely and perfectly free from sin forever.

9. But also, just like we had to travel and experience the journey to arrive at Science North, in order to arrive at God’s ultimate destiny for us, there is a whole series of things that have to happen in the process of our salvation before that glorious moment will finally become reality.

10. Salvation is more than a one time event or experience when we first put our faith in Christ.

11. Salvation is journey, an ongoing process, that will not be complete until we have been presented before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy.

12. Another illustration of salvation as a process is the story of Pilgrim’s Progress.

13. It is an allegory written by John Bunyan, who was a Puritan pastor in the 18th century.

14. Pilgrim’s Progress describes the journey of a pilgrim named Christian, from the time that he first believed and left the City of Destruction and began his journey towards the celestial city.

15. It is a wonderful story packed with spiritual truths and I would strongly encourage everyone to take the time to read it.

16. But in our Bible text today, we see the ultimate destiny of our salvation and the process that is required along life’s journey to arrive at that destiny.

17. In this passage we see that Jesus is our Representative, our Captain, the Pioneer who has gone before us, to pave the way.

18. The Greek word for “captain” carries the meaning of a leader, a ruler, or one who begins something as the founder, the one who leads the way, a pioneer.

19. The choice of words helps us to see Jesus as one who trod this earth before us, as He established the way of salvation, making it clear for all who would follow, until He leads us to our ultimate destiny.

20. Jesus Christ is the Captain or the Pioneer of our salvation, and we are called to follow Him.

Context

1. You will recall from previous messages that Hebrews 1 shows us Jesus Christ in His awesome deity.

2. He is the Son of God and far better than the angels.

3. In chapter one we considered the credentials of His deity and the titles ascribed to Him that declare His deity.

4. Then, in chapter 2:1-4, the author of Hebrews pauses in his doctrinal explanation of who Christ is to slip into an urgent exhortation and warning to believers to pay careful attention to our great salvation, lest we drift away.

5. For those of you who were not here or who have lost the handout from the last message, there are copies available at the back that show the pattern between exhortation and doctrine in the book of Hebrews.

6. Now, in our passage for today, as we seek to understand the teachings of Hebrews for our lives, we see that the author of Hebrews comes back to the subject of who Christ is.

7. But now, instead of showing us the matchless glory of the divinity of Christ, he shows us the humanity of Christ.

8. He shows us Christ’s qualifications to be our great High Priest.

9. In order to show us that Christ is perfectly qualified to be the High Priest of all humanity, he demonstrates that Jesus, the Son of God, is truly one with our human nature.

Proposition: So we see in this passage that God is calling us to follow Jesus, the Captain of our salvation, as He leads us towards our ultimate destiny in the presence of His glory forever.

· We are on a journey.

· We are like strangers and pilgrims in a foreign land.

· We are citizens of heaven and we are traveling towards our heavenly destination.