”Therefore, holy brethren, partakers of a heavenly calling, consider Jesus, the Apostle and High Priest of our confession; 2 He was faithful to Him who appointed Him, as Moses also was in all His house. 3 For He has been counted worthy of more glory than Moses, by just so much as the builder of the house has more honor than the house. 4 For every house is built by someone, but the builder of all things is God. 5 Now Moses was faithful in all His house as a servant, for a testimony of those things which were to be spoken later; 6 but Christ was faithful as a Son over His house—whose house we are, if we hold fast our confidence and the boast of our hope firm until the end.” NASB
“Therefore, holy brothers, who share in the heavenly calling, fix your thoughts on Jesus, the apostle and high priest whom we confess. 2 He was faithful to the one who appointed him, just as Moses was faithful in all God’s house. 3 Jesus has been found worthy of greater honor than Moses, just as the builder of a house has greater honor than the house itself. 4 For every house is built by someone, but God is the builder of everything. 5 Moses was faithful as a servant in all God’s house, testifying to what would be said in the future. 6 But Christ is faithful as a son over God’s house. And we are his house, if we hold on to our courage and the hope of which we boast.” NIV
The veneration of Moses by the Jewish people is not unfounded. Moses was declared at the end of Deuteronomy to be the greatest of the prophets, when it is written there that since him no prophet has arisen in Israel greater than Moses.
But I would like to read a passage to you from Numbers as we begin, because there, in chapter 12, we see the account of the rebellion of Aaron and Miriam against God’s anointed one, and God’s dealing with them over the event.
However, rather than focusing on the rebellion itself, what I want you to observe is that God Himself is speaking, and these are His own words about His man.
“Then the LORD came down in a pillar of cloud and stood at the doorway of the tent, and He called Aaron and Miriam. When they had both come forward, 6 He said, “Hear now My words: If there is a prophet among you, I, the LORD, shall make Myself known to him in a vision. I shall speak with him in a dream. 7 “Not so, with My servant Moses, He is faithful in all My household; 8 With him I speak mouth to mouth, even openly, and not in dark sayings, and he beholds the form of the LORD. Why then were you not afraid to speak against My servant, against Moses?” Numbers 12:5-8
Of course there is a great deal to learn from these verses. If we had included the opening verses of the chapter, for instance, we would see that Aaron and Miriam had reasoned with one another that the Lord could speak and had spoken through them as well, yet when God begins His pronouncement against them and His defense of Moses, He contradicts their claim saying, ‘If there is a prophet among you, I the Lord shall make Myself known to him in a vision, I shall speak with him in a dream’. This was apparently not true of these rebels and God put them down before He lifted Moses up.
Do we perchance find a word of rebuke here for modern day pulpiteers who would claim a special word from the Lord for the people?
Nevertheless, if from God’s own mouth we find Moses highly esteemed, referred to twice in as many verses as ‘My servant’, and called ‘faithful in all My household’, then we can hardly criticize the Jews for holding the prophet in the highest regard. Moses is certainly to the Jews as Mohammed is to the Muslims, and even greater.
Moses was divinely singled out to be the deliverer of God’s people from slavery, amid displays of great power. Moses communicated directly with God and from Him received the Law. Acting as a great historian he faithfully recorded the history of the children of Israel in the first five books of the Bible. And despite all of this glory and grandeur, someone added a parenthesis to Moses’ own record, in Numbers 12:3 – which we bypassed earlier – saying “(Now the man Moses was very humble, more than any man who was on the face of the earth)” What a testimony!
It should come as no surprise then, as we come to these verses of our text that the writer to the HEBREWS needed to set right the minds of these Jewish believers.
Having come to believe in Christ as the promised Messiah, there was still a tendency to continue holding Moses in the highest of esteem, for that is what they and the generations before them had always done.
On a much smaller scale this tendency has been witnessed many times in the church, when a highly regarded old minister of the Gospel steps down from his pulpit in retirement and yet stays in the church he has preached in for decades, and a younger man comes in to take his place. This often causes problems for the young preacher because people still see the old man as their pastor and continue to look to him for their teaching and guidance.
There are successful ways for both the retiree and the new pastor to work together for a smooth transition, but I am talking today about the problem, not the solution; just drawing a parallel for your understanding.
Had Moses been present in the infant church, he himself would have pointed to Jesus and said, ‘This is the One I was telling you about back there in Deuteronomy 18:15, when I said “The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your countrymen, you shall listen to him”.’
He would have deferred to Christ with the same spirit in which John the Baptist had said “He must increase, but I must decrease”. John 3:30
JESUS IS HELD UP HIGHER
So in chapter 2 the writer talks about this One God has raised up from among their countrymen, identified with them in every way but sin, and now he says, “Therefore, holy brethren, (sanctified ones), partakers of a heavenly calling, (or as JB Philips paraphrased it, ‘who share the highest of all callings’), consider Jesus, the Apostle and High Priest who we confess”
Now he is not aiming at this point to direct their minds away from Moses entirely, since he is going to showcase Moses next to Jesus for comparison’s sake. However it is important to point something out in the structure of the text here, so that we can be clear on who the real ‘Star’ is in what is being taught.
This is something I alluded to in a previous sermon in this series – I repeat it to you today.
In verse one when the writer exhorts his readers to ‘consider Jesus’, he is using a term with very strong emphasis. It is a word that would be used of astronomers, gazing intently and undistracted at the stars for the sake of learning all they can from what they see.
Some of your translations say “…fix your thoughts on Jesus”.
John MacArthur explains it by saying, ‘The idea is, “Put your mind on Jesus and let it remain there, that you may understand who He is and what He wills”.’ The MacArthur New Testament Commentary – HEBREWS, J. MacArthur, Moody Press, 1983
It is the drifting away from this singularity of focus that gets us in trouble, Christians, whether it be from the pulpit or in our everyday living. Our own selfish tendency, sometimes but not always aided by the influences placed before us by the enemy of our souls, would constantly turn us to worldly ways to solve our problems, worldly men to counsel us in distress, worldly thinking to reason out a dilemma, charismatic personalities to fawn over and exalt.
Fix your thoughts, gaze intently, as it were, on Jesus. It is He who is the Apostle and High Priest whom we have confessed and thus been redeemed and saved for Heaven.
JESUS IS THE BUILDER
Now the writer declares the faithfulness of Jesus, in comparison referring back to the words we read from Numbers a few minutes ago establishing that Moses was faithful in God’s household, and this is the theme he will continue to build upon through these first six verses.
Whereas Moses is a part of God’s creation – part of His universe, Jesus is the builder of the universe – the Creator of all, including Moses.
Every house is built by someone, but the builder of all things is God.
In the same way that the builder of a house is more important than the structure he has erected, so the Builder of all things is worthy of honor and glory as the one who built all things.
It should be obvious to all and yet it goes sinfully unnoticed in a downward spiraling world, that each one of us owes our very existence to the Builder of all things. In Him we live and move and exist, said the Apostle to the philosophers, and we must go farther here to acknowledge that only by the Builder’s patience and mercy does any of us go on existing. He holds all things together by the power of His word. God is not willing that anyone should perish but that all should come to Him in repentance. We have no lack of scriptural evidence that God preserves us by His grace, saving all who will respond to the call and believe.
It behooves us therefore, to remind ourselves also that He has established a certain future day in which He will judge the world in His righteousness, through His Man whom He has appointed to judge, His Man, Christ Jesus.
He is the Builder of the universe, the Apostle, or sent one from the Father, and the High Priest of our faith, and the One who comes to Judge in righteousness over all His creation.
Let us go now to see what else He has built. Verse 6 of our text has these words: “…whose house we are…” He is speaking of the church.
In Matthew 16:18 Jesus responded to Peter’s confession of Him as the Christ, saying,
“And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it”
There are several New Testament references to the church as a building, although we know that the authors are not talking about physical structures at all, but to the souls that make up Christ’s body of believers.
An example is 1 Peter 2:4-5
“And coming to Him as to a living stone which has been rejected by men, but is choice and precious in the sight of God, 5 you also, as living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house for a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
Moses himself, though an Old Testament saint, is part of this house that has been built. This is confirmed to us later in this letter to the HEBREWS, when it is written:
“By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, 25 choosing rather to endure ill-treatment with the people of God than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin, 26 considering the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures of Egypt; for he was looking to the reward.” 11:24-26
Now we understand of course that Moses could not have known the name of Messiah when He would come, but remember that ‘Christ’ is the Greek equivalent of ‘Messiah’, and we are being told here simply that Moses exercised faith that the Messiah would come and rejected the wealth and comforts of Egypt, and therefore the world, to be identified even in suffering, with the people to whom Messiah would come.
So while Moses, as a faithful servant of God’s household, resides in it, Jesus is the Builder of God’s household, and as Son presides over it.
JESUS IS THE SON
Andrew Murray’s works are rich for their devotional help. He writes about verse 6:
Jesus is “Faithful as Son over His house. But He must be Master in His own house. Not only an honored guest, while thou hast the keys and the care. So it is with many Christians. So it may not be. No, give Him the keys; give Him entire control over the whole being; as Son over His house. He will blessedly prove how faithful He is to God and to Thee.” Andrew Murray, The Holiest of All Revell, 1894
Let’s talk about the differences inherent in being son or servant in any household.
Now it may seem more than a stretch to draw from a modern fantasy tale for my illustration, but the story line of Batman offers very good examples of our point.
In that story, the boy who will eventually become the crime-fighting Batman, named Bruce Wayne, loses his parents at a young age to a cold-blooded murder.
He is left alone in the world with only the faithful family servant, Alfred, and the family estate consisting of a mansion, a successful business and millions of dollars.
The boy, being the son in the family, is technically master and owner of all by virtue of his bearing the family name. The servant, though having served the family for several generations and now the elder of the household, remains yet a servant with claim to nothing other than his charge to be faithful to the son.
In the fullness of time Bruce, the son, would come to take control of the business and truly be master of all things in the house. The servant, while having access to all the comforts and conveniences of the house, uses them, cares for them, keeps them in order, yet is owner of none of it.
Moses was faithful in all God’s house as a servant. Jesus was faithful as Son. The servant faithfully testified of what was to come; the faithfulness of the Son fulfilled what was attested to.
So since the Son is Master and owner, we would do well to go now and discover precisely what about Him designated Him as faithful.
JESUS IS FAITHFUL
We get our information to answer this question back in verse 1 of our text, when the writer tells us to study Jesus, the Apostle and High Priest of our confession.
Jesus is the Apostle, meaning ‘sent one’ and High Priest that we confess. What do we confess?
We confess the truth pertaining to this Jesus Christ who in faithfulness to the Father, came to seek and to save that which was lost, and accomplished that salvation by the sacrifice of Himself, as High Priest who entered the heavenly Holy of Holies with His own blood in propitiation for our sins.
This priesthood, made mention of in verse 1 is going to be explained in much greater detail later in this epistle.
As to the designation of Apostle, we consider the Gospel of John, whose intent it was to establish the Deity of Christ, and we look briefly at the emphasis he has put on the fact that the Messiah entered into the world from another place and for a specified purpose.
Jesus said, “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to accomplish His work”. “My judgment is just, because I do not seek My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me” “The very works that I do testify about Me that the Father has sent Me” “My teaching is not Mine, but His who sent Me” “I know Him because I am from Him and He sent Me”.
That is only a smattering of the many references Jesus made to Himself as the Son of Man who was sent from the Father into the world to do His will and finish His work.
Jesus chose, trained and sent His own Apostles. They testified of Him and did the works He gave them to do. But Jesus is the Apostle from the Father, and the Prophet of whom Moses spoke. He testified of the Father and said the things the Father gave Him to say, and accomplished the works the Father gave Him to do.
The faithful Son, Jesus, fulfilled the prophets (as Apostle) and the Law (as High Priest). He is the fulfillment of which Moses and Aaron were types.
And this is what He was faithful in, friends and family. He was faithful to preach repentance from sin to a people who love sin and love to sin. He was faithful to proclaim the Good News to a people held captive to the fear of death. He was faithful to give a good testimony before Pilate, knowing full well it would seal His crucifixion, declaring that He was indeed a King, and that He had come into the world to testify to the truth. He was faithful to endure the rejection of His nation and of men in general, who spat on His face and yanked out His beard and beat Him and whipped Him, and yet refrained from calling a legion of angels to destroy the world and rescue Him. He was faithful to drink to the last drop the cup His Father gave Him to drink; to allow evil men to hammer His flesh to the cross and then hang there enduring the pain, ignoring the shame, pouring out His blood to pay the penalty in full for your sin and mine.
But even more, He was faithful to keep His promise and rise from the dead in triumph over sin and darkness – over principalities and powers – over the decree of debt that condemned us to eternal fire.
JESUS IS WORTHY OF GLORY
There is one more sense in which Jesus excels all others, in which He is worthy of honor and glory. It is that He sits at the right hand of the Father and reigns as the King of Heaven.
We have talked about Him being the Son who presides over the house of God and over all that has been built, being Himself the builder of all things.
Now we remember that after His resurrection He assured His chosen apostles, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth” Matt 28:18
And we remember that as He walked the Emmaus road with two of his confused and doubtful followers He asked the thought-provoking question, “Was it not necessary for the Christ to suffer these things and to enter into His glory?” Lk 24:26
And we remember the opening words of His High Priestly prayer on the night He was arrested, which began:
“Father, the hour has come; glorify Your Son, that the Son may glorify You, even as You gave Him authority over all flesh, that to all whom You have given Him, He may give eternal life. This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent. I glorified You on the earth, having accomplished the work which You have given Me to do. Now, Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was.” Jn 17:1-5
Then we go to John’s revelation of things to come and we get a peek into the Throne room where we will all one day be brought to enjoy Him forever, and we witness this glorious scene:
“And when the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to Him who sits on the throne, to Him who lives forever and ever, the twenty-four elders will fall down before Him who sits on the throne, and will worship Him who lives forever and ever, and will cast their crowns before the throne, saying,
“Worthy are You, our Lord and our God, to receive glory and honor and power; for You created all things, and because of Your will they existed, and were created.” Rev 4:9-11
And again in the very next chapter:
“Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne and the living creatures and the elders; and the number of them was myriads of myriads, and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice, “Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing.” And every created thing which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all things in them, I heard saying, “To Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, be blessing and honor and glory and dominion forever and ever.” Rev 5:11-13
And I want you to know and consider carefully today that what we have just read says “…every created thing which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all things in them…” will in that day declare blessing and honor and glory on the One who sits on the Throne, and will confess His everlasting dominion over all. Not just believers, not just the saints, no one who has ever lived or will ever have life will be excluded.
Because the One who sits on the Throne and lives forever and ever is none other than the Apostle and High Priest of our confession, who accomplished what He was sent to do and stands between the Throne and the sinner as High Priest, whose blood of sacrifice applied the mercy and grace of God to our souls and makes us to stand forever in His righteousness.
Christian, sinner, you can not be good enough. You can never bring yourself to a habit of Godly behavior that will make you right with Him.
Moses was, by the declaration of the scriptures, the most humble man who ever lived, and God spoke to him face to face.
King David was lustful, prideful, impetuous, an adulterer and murderer, yet God called him “a man after My own heart”.
Saul was a self-righteous, legalistic murdering nemesis of the infant church but God made him to be Paul, the greatest evangelist and apostle to the nations.
How could He do this? How could He change hearts and give eternal worth to ruined lives through the centuries and even today and yes, tomorrow?
Because of the perfect finished work of the Apostle and High Priest of our confession, who is worthy of more glory than Moses, or David, or Paul, indeed, worthy of all our praise and worship and honor forever, as the Builder of the Household of faith, the Son who presides over His church, the King who sits on the Throne pouring out justice and mercy, forgiveness and grace, blessedly proving forever His faithfulness to God, to Thee.
AMEN!
