For The BEST of BAPTISTS-III—Hebrews 7:1-10
Need:
The writer to the Hebrews described what was available in Christ Jesus to the religiously comfortable.
A higher plane is available to the religiously comfortable.
What heights are available to the religiously comfortable or the Best of Baptists?
7 Higher planes available to the Best of Baptists.
For the Best of Baptists, there is A Higher...
1. KING(:1a, 2)
2. MEDIATOR/Priest(:1a)
3. BLESSING(:1b)
4. INSULATION / BLOODLINE(:3)
5—For the Best of Baptists, there is...
A Higher HONOR(:4)
Explanation:(:4) Deposit/Statement
:4—“Now consider how great this man was, to whom even the patriarch Abraham gave a tenth of the spoils.”
It is the responsibility of the person being encouraged to “consider/observe” in particular the “great”ness of this Melchizedek & how this applies to & pictures the greatness of Christ.
Melchizedek’s greatness is obvious in that ‘the great patriarch,’ Abraham willingly & desirously surrendered “a tenth” of “the choicest spoils” which he had just re-captured from the 4 kings.
Abraham’s giving‘was a voluntary act revealing thanks to God.’—J. MacArthur
The spoils of war brought income & prosperity to any nation as a whole.
The OT gives specific guidelines as to what our giving should be. Goats, Sheep, Cattle, Grain, Drinks, etc.
The New Testament does not designate an amount or proportion but rather calls us to give offerings freely, cheerfully & generously or bountifully(2Cor. 9:6-11).
The backdrop of the OT tithe, & the offerings being added to that.
This type of giving would place comparatively greater importance & honor upon the giver’s God than upon his/her possessions.
2Cor. 9:5-11—“Therefore I thought it necessary to exhort the brethren to go to you ahead of time, & prepare your generous gift beforehand, which you had previously promised, that it may be ready as a matter of generosity & not as a grudging obligation. But this I say: He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, & he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work. As it is written: “He has dispersed abroad, He has given to the poor; His righteousness endures forever.” Now may He who supplies seed to the sower, & bread for food, supply & multiply the seed you have sown & increase the fruits of your righteousness, while you are enriched in everything for all liberality, which causes thanksgiving through us to God.”
To the Pharisees, tithing had become mechanical, so that it became a source of personal pride rather than a pride focused upon God. It had ceased to be an expression of love for their God but instead had become a blind conditioned aspect of mere obedience.
Mat. 23:23—““Woe to you, scribes & Pharisees, hypocrites! For you pay tithe of mint & anise & cummin, & have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice & mercy & faith. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone.”
And likewise:
Mk. 7:9-13—“He said to them, “All too well you reject the commandment of God, that you may keep your tradition. “For Moses said, ‘Honor your father & your mother’; &, ‘He who curses father or mother, let him be put to death.’ “But you say, ‘If a man says to his father or mother, “Whatever profit you might have received from me is Corban”--’ (that is, a gift to God), “then you no longer let him do anything for his father or his mother, making the word of God of no effect through your tradition which you have handed down. And many such things you do.””
“Spoils/Choicest spoils/Plunder”—akroqinion—Top of the heap, the first fruits, the best of either spoils or crops. Greeks would customarily offer the topmost portion of the collected plunder to their gods. properly (in the plural) The top of the heap, i.e. (by implication) Best of the booty:-- Spoils. Used 1X.
Argumentation:
Eccl. 11:1-2—“Cast your bread upon the waters, For you will find it after many days. Give a serving to seven, & also to eight, For you do not know what evil will be on the earth.”
We give not know when or how it will return to us yet knowing full well that it will!
Mat. 6:20-21—““But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, & where thieves do not break in or steal; for where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.”
Lk. 12:33-34—“Sell your possessions & give to charity; make yourselves purses which do not wear out, an unfailing treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near, nor moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.”
Mat. 13:44—““The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in the field, which a man found & hid; & from joy over it he goes & sells all that he has, & buys that field.”
Mk. 12:41-44—“Now Jesus sat opposite the treasury & saw how the people put money into the treasury. And many who were rich put in much. Then one poor widow came & threw in two mites, which make a quadrans. So He called His disciples to Himself & said to them, “Assuredly, I say to you that this poor widow has put in more than all those who have given to the treasury; “for they all put in out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty put in all that she had, her whole livelihood.””
A mite” was equal to about ⅕ of a cent & that miniscule amount was her “whole livelihood.”! Why? Her love for the Lord!
1Cor. 10:31—“Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.”
2Cor. 4:15—“For all things are for your sakes, that grace, having spread through the many, may cause thanksgiving to abound to the glory of God.”
Illustration:
Giving your best in Honor of our gracious God:
I’ve witnessed churches have a drive for new toys or clothing to give to those less privileged/Inevitably some give used, worn out, unwanted items!/This is the same as giving a blemished animal of the flock for an animal sacrifice/*Your giving is a blatant statement of how you really feel about the G(g)od to whom you sacrifice/Higher HONOR
If you give to the Associational Christmas food giveaway/Don’t give your out of date food—even if you would eat it yourself!
Would you give to others less than the best?
Would you want a gift that is less than the best?—Why?—What would it say to you as its recipient?
What does this say about common human dignity?
This is about giving your best!/Higher HONOR
Application:
?Your Deposit the Higher HONOR/Deposit?
?You the Best of Baptists?—Are you Christian?
6—For the Best of Baptists, there is...
A Higher GRACE(:4-7)
Explanation:(:4-7)
:4—“Now consider how great this man was, to whom even the patriarch Abraham gave a tenth of the spoils.”
The entire focus of the discussion is to take you to the point of recognizing the High Priesthood of Jesus(according to the order of Melchizedek(:11)) for who He really is. To recognize His divinity/deity & thereby, His Greatness.
Now if He is great enough to receive our voluntary tithes, then He is great enough to bless(grace) the giver!
:5—“And indeed those who are of the sons of Levi, who receive the priesthood, have a commandment to receive tithes from the people according to the law, that is, from their brethren, though they have come from the loins of Abraham.”
Melchizedek is greater than Levi & Aaron because he is greater than Abraham the progenitor of them both.
The Aaronic high priesthood were all sons of Levi thru Kohath(Gen. 6:18-20). & the priesthood totally was from Levi thru his other sons, Gershon & Merari(Gen. 6:16).
Those in the position of priest, are given specific “Commandment in the Law to collect a tenth from the people”, i.e., their brethren. This is declared even though they are all descended from Abraham.
The New Testament never specifies any definite proportion of money that individuals are to give.
BUT...giving is neither 1)Optional nor 2)Dependent upon whim or feeling.
Giving should be driven by one’s Love, Thankfulness & Devotion to God.
Lev. 27:30-32—“‘Thus all the tithe of the land, of the seed of the land or of the fruit of the tree, is the LORD’S; it is holy to the LORD. ‘If, therefore, a man wishes to redeem part of his tithe, he shall add to it one-fifth of it. ‘And for every tenth part of herd or flock, whatever passes under the rod, the tenth one shall be holy to the LORD.”
Num. 18:21—““Behold, I have given the children of Levi all the tithes in Israel as an inheritance in return for the work which they perform, the work of the tabernacle of meeting.”
*Mal. 3:8-12—““Will a man rob God? Yet you are robbing Me! But you say, ‘How have we robbed Thee?’ In tithes & offerings. You are cursed with a curse, for you are robbing Me, the whole nation of you! Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house, & test Me now in this,” says the LORD of hosts, if I will not open for you the windows of heaven, & pour out for you a blessing until it overflows. Then I will rebuke the devourer for you, so that it may not destroy the fruits of the ground; nor will your vine in the field cast its grapes,” says the LORD of hosts. And all the nations will call you blessed, for you shall be a delightful land,” says the LORD of hosts.”
:6—“But he whose genealogy is not derived from them received tithes from Abraham & blessed him who had the promises.”
Do not place an emphasis upon giving tithes to those designated per biblical Law, habit or compulsion of men. Because there is a Higher Law than the Law(a mere tutor to bring us to Christ!(Gal. 3:, 23-25)), habit & compusion of men(Jn. 1:12-13)!
Our tithes are to honor Christ Jesus, by whom we are Blessed in being saved.
?What has God collected from you?
?Is He Honored by your giving....Are you GRACED by Him?
:7—“Now beyond all contradiction the lesser is blessed by the better.”
There is thus no “contradiction/dispute” that can be levied against the fact that “the lesser”(Abraham) “is blessed by the better”(Melchizedek).
The picture here is that Christ Jesus is indeed the greater, as was Melchizedek prior to the coming of the Law.
Yes, the same sun shines & the same rain falls on the good & the bad alike(), both are indeed blessed. But there is a higher GRACE to be had thru a personal relationship with this God of all that is natural.
Mat. 5:44-48—““But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, & pray for those who spitefully use you & persecute you, “that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil & on the good, & sends rain on the just & on the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet your brethren only, what do you do more than others? Do not even the tax collectors do so? Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.”
“Contradiction/Dispute”—antilogia—1) Gainsaying, contradiction; 2) Opposition, rebellion. Strong—Dispute, disobedience:-- Contradiction, gainsaying, strife.
“Lesser”—elasswn—Less, worse.
“Blessed”—eulogew—To praise, celebrate with praises.
“Better/Greater”—kreittwn—More useful, more serviceable, more advantageous; More excellent. From —kratov—Force, strength, power, might, dominion.
Argumentation:
Rom. 11:6—“But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works, otherwise grace is no longer grace.”
Eph. 2:4-10—“But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), & raised us up with Him, & seated us with Him in the heavenly places, in Christ Jesus, in order that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith; & that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, that no one should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”
Lk. 17:11-19—“Now it happened as He went to Jerusalem that He passed through the midst of Samaria & Galilee. Then as He entered a certain village, there met Him ten men who were lepers, who stood afar off. And they lifted up their voices & said, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!” So when He saw them, He said to them, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” And so it was that as they went, they were cleansed. And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, returned, & with a loud voice glorified God, & fell down on his face at His feet, giving Him thanks. And he was a Samaritan. So Jesus answered & said, “Were there not ten cleansed? But where are the nine? Were there not any found who returned to give glory to God except this foreigner?” And He said to him, “Arise, go your way. Your faith has made you well.””
Illustration:
East Rowan Soccer game in Charlotte/Mallard Creek/Man parked along road illegally/‘No Parking’ signs on opposite side but none where he parked/Policeman pulls up & soon a wrecker pulls up to tow the car/Man illegally parked runs over to the site/Police required another supervising police officer so had to wait for him to arrive/They remained beyond the time of two soccer games!/Waste of time & money for a questionable parking violation/Served the law but Needed a Higher GRACE
Gracious to give to those whom we deem deserving/ Govt.—Poor—Work—Family—Church/Higher BLESSING
Application:
?Your Grace the Higher GRACE?
?You the Best of Baptists?—Are you Christian?
7—For the Best of Baptists, there is...
A Higher ACCOUNTABILITY(:8-10)
Explanation:
:8—“Here mortal men receive tithes, but there he receives them, of whom it is witnessed that he lives.”
Accountable to our earthly mediators....But they will die & pass their accountability to others, whereas Melchizedek(as does Christ) “lives” continuously.
Joh 14:6—“Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, & the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”
Rev. 1:10-18—“I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s Day, & I heard behind me a loud voice, as of a trumpet, saying, “I am the Alpha & the Omega, the First & the Last,” &, “What you see, write in a book & send it to the seven churches which are in Asia: to Ephesus, to Smyrna, to Pergamos, to Thyatira, to Sardis, to Philadelphia, & to Laodicea.” Then I turned to see the voice that spoke with me. And having turned I saw seven golden lampstands, & in the midst of the seven lampstands One like the Son of Man, clothed with a garment down to the feet & girded about the chest with a golden band. His head & hair were white like wool, as white as snow, & His eyes like a flame of fire; His feet were like fine brass, as if refined in a furnace, & His voice as the sound of many waters; He had in His right hand seven stars, out of His mouth went a sharp two-edged sword, & His countenance was like the sun shining in its strength. And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as dead. But He laid His right hand on me, saying to me, “Do not be afraid; I am the First & the Last. I am He who lives, & was dead, & behold, I am alive forevermore. Amen. And I have the keys of Hades & of Death.”
:9—“Even Levi, who receives tithes, paid tithes through Abraham, so to speak,”
& on top of this, Levi actually paid tithes even though he was the recipient of them. And he did this through Abraham because “he was still in the loins” of Abraham when Melchizedek met him.
:10—“For he was still in the loins of his father when Melchizedek met him.”
?Consider Your beginnings—To whom was your father accountable? To no one but himself....To the one true God(of the Bible)...To some other disjointed deity??
Are you part of that accountability? & if so, why?
?To whom is Your foremost accountability?
?What & Why are they worthy of receiving recognition from you?
Now if we truly HONOR our God in Christ, & if we are truly GRACED by God in Christ, then we will surely make ourselves ACCOUNTABLE to Him!
Argumentation:
1Chron. 28:9—David to Solomon—““As for you, my son Solomon, know the God of your father, & serve Him with a loyal heart & with a willing mind; for the LORD searches all hearts & understands all the intent of the thoughts. If you seek Him, He will be found by you; but if you forsake Him, He will cast you off forever.”
Jer. 17:9-10—““The heart is deceitful above all things, And desperately wicked; Who can know it? I, the LORD, search the heart, I test the mind, Even to give every man according to his ways, According to the fruit of his doings.”
Mat. 6:33-34—““But seek first the kingdom of God & His righteousness, & all these things shall be added to you. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.”
We are accountable to God first & foremost & above our own wants. Is your accountability real, serious or feigned?
*Mat. 7:21-23—““Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. “Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, & done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’”
*Heb. 4:13—“And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked & open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.”
Rom. 3:19-24—“Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, that every mouth may be stopped, & all the world may become guilty before God. Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin. But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law & the Prophets, even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all & on all who believe. For there is no difference; for all have sinned & fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,”
If we are guilty before God on account of sin, then we are absolutely accountable to this same God for the manner in which we live our lives!
*Mat. 28:18—“And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.”
Illustration:
Janet Boynes who grew up in a four-father home/One of them sexually assaulted her/Lived for 14 years as a lesbian/Eventually took God seriously & made herself accountable to God regarding her aberrant lifestyle/Higher ACCOUNTABILITY
2000 Enron Corporation claimed revenues of $101 billion/By 2001, revealed that its “revenues” thru the 1990s were maintained merely by fraudulent accounting practices!/At the time it was the largest chapter11 bankruptcy in history/Enron executives made themselves the ultimate accountability/Padded their own pockets at others expense/Enron no longer exists because they had a Higher ACCOUNTABILITY than themselves
You ACCOUNTABLE only to those who hold power over you? Only free as long as you comply?
Do you love them & make yourselves ACCOUNTABLE?
Application:
?Your Accountability the Higher ACCOUNTABILITY?
?You the Best of Baptists?—Are you Christian?
CONCLUSION:
Action:
For the Best of Baptists, there is...A Higher...
5. HONOR(:4) Deposit/Statement
6. GRACE(:4-7)
7. ACCOUNTABILITY(:8-10)
1. KING(:1a, 2)
2. PRIEST(:1a)
3. BLESSING(:1b)
4. INSULATION-BLOODLINE(:3)
?Presented 03/13/2011am to:
Needmore Baptist Church
1620 Mt. Vernon Rd.
Woodleaf, NC 27054
Presented 08/08/04pm to:
Providence Baptist Church
975 Providence Road
Whigham, GA 39897
