Hebrew Series God’s Last Word 2/12/14 Heb. 1:1-3
Introduction
A Hebrews is, in my opinion, one of the least studied & preached books in the N.T.
1 Hebrews was written while the Temple in Jerusalem was still functioning. (Prior to 70 A.D.)
a The audience Hebrews was written to were Jewish people who had been saved upon hearing the gospel preached by the disciples who had labored alongside our Lord.
aa As the first generation of Jewish Christians were dying out, some of the newer Jewish converts began to drift back into Judaism. (Ritual, sacrificeable system)
bb When they initially embraced Christ, they left behind their traditions, rituals, holy days.
cc Many, after getting saved, had been disowned, forsaken by their families.
b Not only were they ostracized by family, but possibly experienced persecution socially, economically, because of their faith in Yeshua.
2 They had started strong in their faith, but now their growth was stunted, & the service they were rendering was “sluggish.”
Hebrews 6:12 (NASB) 12 so that you will not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.
a Hebrews was meant to encourage the saints.
aa Hebrews 3:3 (NASB) 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.
Hebrews 10:25 (NASB) 25 not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near.
Hebrews 12:5-6 (NASB) 5 and you have forgotten the exhortation which is addressed to you as sons, "MY SON, DO NOT REGARD LIGHTLY THE DISCIPLINE OF THE LORD, NOR FAINT WHEN YOU ARE REPROVED BY HIM; 6 FOR THOSE WHOM THE LORD LOVES HE DISCIPLINES, AND HE SCOURGES EVERY SON WHOM HE RECEIVES."
Hebrews 13:22 (NASB)22 But I urge you, brethren, bear with this word of exhortation, for I have written to you briefly.
bb As they ran their race, be assured they were not running it alone.
b Some saints were ready to give up/in as they longed for the security/comfort of Judaism & faced the uncertainty of persecution.
B The question of authorship has always been an issue of debate.
1 Most likely Paul, but not 100% certain.
a Other possibilities:
aa Clement of Alexanderia, (153 A.D.) Paul wrote it in Hebrew, Luke translated it into Greek.
bb Origen (185 A.D.) Luke
cc Tertullian (155 A.D.) Barnabas
dd Martin Luther (1483) Apollos
ee Adolf Von Harnack (1851) Aquila & Priscilla
ff Sir William Ramsey (1852) Philip.
b I believe it was Paul. (who was the Apostle to the Gentiles) His heart always had a burden for the Jewish people.
2 Whoever penned the book, their quill’s dripped the inspired Word of God as given by the Holy Spirit to a discouraged lot of converted Jews.
a The author gives hope & encouragement to those who have chosen to run the race, put their hand to the plow - depending on Jesus/ dedicated to uphold His cause no matter what influences are around them.
b This is why we under take Hebrews now.
aa Christians - detractors are loud.
bb Church - Easier to travel the old road of traditions than be a pioneer who blazes a new trail.
C Hebrews 1:1-3 (NASB) 1 God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, 2 in these last days has spoken to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the world. 3 And He is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power. When He had made purification of sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,
1 Hebrews doesn’t begin with which writer authored the letter, but rather God has been speaking to this audience for a very long time.
a How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.
aa For generations, God had been giving the Jews His revelation one bite at a time.
bb Spoke like thunder through Moses on Mt. Sinai; Whispered to Elijah on Mt. Horeb, Isaiah in the Holy Place.
cc Spoke through the law, prophesy, history, Psalms, type, parables.
b God had been speaking bits of revelation but not giving the full revelation to any one person at any one time.
aa The Jews were like people listening to a clock striking the hour, always getting neared to the truth but obliged to wait till the whole thing is heard.
bb For over a 1,000 years between Moses & Malachi, God’s Word was witnessed, recorded & declared.
c Yet standing in the wings of history was God’s final Word man.
Luke 1:31 (NASB) 31 "And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name Him Jesus.
Luke 2:11 (NASB) 11 for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.
2 Although we don’t “see” Jesus until the N.T., He’s shadow is cast throughout the O.T.
a All of the revelation, prophesy, law, sacrifices, ritual, appointed feats, customs are like tributaries that dump into a might river, merging into the last word of God to man, Jesus.
b All of the voices of the first testament merge together in one triumphant shout, “Glory to the Son of God.”
c The God of the O.T. is the God of the N.T.
aa “Prophets” were people who acted as the mouthpiece for God.
bb With the arrival of Jesus, God’s Son, he full revelation of God is made manifest/known.
cc There is now no such thing as “New Revelation.”
3 Jesus is a prophet, but very different than prophets like Moses, Elijah, Jeremiah, Hosea etc. And different than anyone else in history - Period.
a Prophets spoke the Word, Jesus was/is the Word.
b God’s final Word to humankind wasn’t given through words, but through a Personality.
aa Who in all that He is/He does, revels the Father.
bb Jesus expresses all that the Father is.
John 14:9 (NASB) 9 Jesus said to him, "Have I been so long with you, and yet you have not come to know Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; how can you say, 'Show us the Father'?
I Jesus is the ruler of the universe. (Vs 2)
A An heir is one who receives an inheritance from another.
1 Jesus has received the title deed to all things from the Father.
a Matthew 28:18 (NASB) 18 And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.
Philippians 2:9-10 (NASB) 9 For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus EVERY KNEE WILL BOW, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
b Moses, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Isaiah, Jeremiah could not make that claim!
aa Then the prophets spoke, it was merely as a mouthpiece.
bb When the Son spoke it was God Himself who spoke.
2 Jesus was appointed dominion over all things.
a Genesis 1:26 (NASB) 26 Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth."
The dominion was promised to Adam, yet later lost in the fall into sin.
b What the first Adam lost was reclaimed by the last Adam. (Jesus) Through His incarnation, vicarious death, victorious resurrection.
c In the future Messianic Kingdom, the Lord Jesus as messiah will reign over a perfect earth & be glorified, heir of all things.
B Jesus is the owner of all!
1 he has a rightful claim to your life & mine.
a Revelation 11:15 (NASB) 15 Then the seventh angel sounded; and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, "The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ; and He will reign forever and ever."
b He is Kind, Lord, Sovereign.
2 He is the final word! King forever!
a Greater than all the prophets of the O.T. messages, methods, messengers.
b Just what they needed to hear!
II Jesus is the reason for God’s creation. (Vs. 2)
A “World” is also “ages” - reminds us that He orders the very epochs of time. (God of history: history is His story)
1 “Through Him (Jesus) the world was made.”
a Jesus was the agent of creation.
aa What God the Father said, God the Son carried out.
bb John 1:3 (NASB) 3 All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being.
Colossians 1:16 (NASB) 16 For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him.
b He shows Himself to us according to the conditions of time & space.
aa Time & space do not exist outside, independently from the Creator.
bb He is the Creator of the physical universe (space) & history (time)
2 We didn’t just crawl out of primordial slime, evolve into people with smartphones.
a We are/were created by Jesus. (Only God can create)
b Scientist vs. God: “Gotta use your own dirt.”
B Sir John C. Eccles (Nobel lacerate in neurophysiology) said, “The odds against the right combination of circumstances occurring to have evolved intelligent life on earth are highly improbable.”
1 He believes they did, however.
a “I believe it did happen, but it could never happen again on any planet or in any other solar system.”
b If we don’t recognize a Creator we’ve quite a problem explaining how this marvelous, intricate universe came into being.
2 Where did it all come from? Who conceived it? Who made it?
a It wasn’t by accident - somebody had to make it, & the Bible tells us the make was Jesus Christ.
b He is the reason for creation.
III Jesus is the radiance of God’s glory. (Vs. 3)
A The glory of God is the manifestation of all His divine attributes - the shining forth of His glorious person.
1 When jesus came, He was (and is) the embodiment of the Shekinah glory that hovered over the Ark of Testimony.
a Jesus doesn’t “reflect” the glory, He is the glory.
b The sun cannot exist or a lamp burn without radiating light.
aa No one can see God: no one ever will - But we do see His glory - Jesus.
bb We can’t touch the son - we can touch/see it’s light.
2 Jesus transmits the light of God’s glory into our hearts.
a Without the Son of God, there is only darkness.
b 2 Corinthians 4:6 (NASB) 6 For God, who said, "Light shall shine out of darkness," is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.
aa The devil wants to blind men to the truth, keep the gospel from shining on them!
bb When Jesus shines in our life He gives us purpose, meaning, happiness, peace, joy, fellowship... forever.
IV Jesus is the King of Glory.
A Psalm 24:7 (NASB) 7 Lift up your heads, O gates, And be lifted up, O ancient doors, That the King of glory may come in!
1 God’s glory touched earth when Jesus was born.
2 When we have an encounter with Jesus, we are transformed into the same image from glory to glory.
B Jesus, & Jesus alone is this King of Glory. (Not the prophets)
V Jesus is the revealer of God’s character. (Vs. 3)
A He is the “exact imprint.”
1 The Greek word used here is where we get our word, “Character.”
a Means “image.”
aa Refers to an engraving that creates an exact impression or replica of something.
bb Jesus perfectly displays the character of the Holy God.
b Only Jesus could say, John 14:9 (NASB) 9 Jesus said to him, "Have I been so long with you, and yet you have not come to know Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; how can you say, 'Show us the Father'?
2 When you see Christ, you see the glory of God.
John 1:14 (NASB) 14 And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.
B Jesus is the perfect personal imprint of God in time & space.
1 MaCarther says, “Jesus Christ is the reproduction of God.”
a Colossians 1:15 (NASB) 15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.
b “Image” is Eikon - icon.
aa Means a precise copy, exact reproduction.
bb Colossians 2:9 (NASB)9 For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form,
2 He’s not just the ethereal glory of God - Bodily copy of His glory.
a He perfectly displays the charter of Holy God.
b Jesus sets forth the holiness, love, mercy, justice & grace of God.
c There is no need to wonder what God is like, or who God is - we have seen God in the person Jesus Christ.
VI Jesus is the regent of God’s power. (Vs. 3)
A “Uphold” means “to bear the load.” - Speaks of support.
1 It’s the same word used in Mark 2 to describe when the disciples carried the paralytic man to Jesus.
a Jesus is the administrator of God’s word in the world.
b Jesus Himself bears all the promises of the Word of God on the strength of His power.
2 He’s not Atlas, He is not just holding the whole world in His hands.
a Colossians 1:17 (NASB)17 He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.
b He’s not just maintaining, He’s also moving!
B he holds the world, universe together by His power.
1 The oceans are held in their beds, rivers run down into the seas, heavenly bodies hold their orbits.
a He is not an out-of-touch God watching things wind down.
b The universe came into being by the Word of God and is sustained by that same Word.
Hebrews 11:3 (NASB)3 By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things which are visible.
2 Things do not happen in our universe by accident - it didn’t start that way & it won’t end that way.
a Without Him our cosmos would be chaos.
b Without Him our lives would be chaos too!
c We are saved & kept by the Word of His power.
aa We are supplied by the Word of His power.
bb We are comforted, healed, & helped by the Word of His power.
VII Jesus is the redeemer of God’s people. (Vs. 3)
A In the O.T. the priests never sat down - the constantly were offering sacrifices for themselves & the people.
1 Their job was never done, finished, completed.
a When Jesus yielded up His spirit on Calvary, He cried out, “It is finished.”
John 19:30 (NASB) 30 Therefore when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, "It is finished!" And He bowed His head and gave up His spirit.
b Not only is the greatest of the prophets, He is also our Great High Priest. (Offered Himself as a sin offering & the sacrifice was accepted!)
2 It was a wondrous work when Jesus created the world, sustains the world, time & space, but it’s not His crowning achievement. (IMO)
a When He took my sins to Calvary & brought them under the blood of forgiveness - That’s His best/greatest miracle to me.
b He dealt with the sin problem once and for all.
aa Whoever will accept His sacrifices, believe in Him, receive Him - Their sins are purged, wiped out.
bb If we reject Jesus there is nothing in the universe that can take away our sin & we will die in it.
B To the Jew, the cross was a stumbling block.
1 Hebrews highlights it!
a 1 Peter 1:18-19 (NASB) 18 knowing that you were not redeemed with perishable things like silver or gold from your futile way of life inherited from your forefathers, 19 but with precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ.
b Jesus brought the cure for the fatal disease of sin.
2 Once you’ve received the cure, you’re healed!
a His death cancelled out debt once & for all.
b He sat down!
aa A formal, solemn act.
bb Every time a sinner comes to Him by faith He applies the blood that was shed 2,000 years ago - The blood never loses it’s power.
VIII Jesus is the recipient of God’s honor. (Vs. 3)
A Jesus didn’t stay in the grave, he sat down on the throne.
1 He sat down in a position/place of honor.
a This proves that He is equal with God the Father.
b No mere created being could ever sit at God’s right hand.
2 When Jesus sat down, four things are signified.
a Sign of honor.
aa Philippians 2:11 (NASB) 11 and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
bb What an honor indeed!
b Sign of authority.
aa 1 Peter 3:22 (NASB) 22 who is at the right hand of God, having gone into heaven, after angels and authorities and powers had been subjected to Him.
bb He sat down as a ruler.
c Sign of rest.
aa Hebrews 10:22 (NASB) 22 let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.
d To make intercession.
aa Romans 8:34 (NASB) 34 who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is He who died, yes, rather who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us.
B He is a prophet, Priest, King!
1 Some try to explain away Jesus as a great teacher of morality, philosophy.
a He said He was Messiah.
aa Liar.
bb Lunatic (Lying and He didn’t know it)
cc Lord
b What’s that mean to us? Everything!
2 Rejecting Him shuts us out of His presence & into eternal hell.
a Receive Him we enter into all He is & has.
b There are no other choices.
Conclusion
A Jesus came from the bosom of the Father to the bosom of a woman.
1 He put on humanity so we could put on divinity.
a He became the Son of man so we could be sons of God.
b He left the splendor of heaven for the poverty of this earthly sod.
aa He has no wealth, no influence, didn’t go to the best schools.
bb His relatives were inconspicious, uninfluential.
c When He was a baby He startled a King; In His boyhood He puzzled the most learned Rabbis; in manhood He ruled the course of nature.
aa He walked upon the billows & hushed the sea to sleep.
bb He healed the multitudes without medicine - free of charge.
cc He never wrote a book & yet all the libraries in the world could not hold the books about Him.
2 He never wrote a song, yet He has furnished the theme for more songs than all the songwriters together.
a He never founded a college, yet all the schools together cannot boast of as many students as He has.
b he never practiced medicine & yet He has healed more broken hearts than all the doctors have healed broken bodies.
B This Jesus is the star of Astronomy, Rock of Geology, the Lion & the Lamb of Zoology, the harmonizer of all discords, the healer of all diseases.
1 Herod could not kill Him; Satan couldn’t seduce Him.
a Death could not destroy Him.
b The grace could not hold Him.
2 He will be the name I sing in glory!
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