 Hebrews 3
There are few things I enjoy more than resting. It allows me time to recharge and relax. Hebrews chapter 3 deals primarily with Jesus, as the rest for the wanderers in the desert that they missed when they were following Moses. It’s the rest that everyone in the world needs. A rest from striving for perfection. A rest from anxiety, fear, and doubt. The writer of Hebrews now focuses on Jesus’ supremacy to the greatest prophet of Judaism, Moses. Moses was the man who “spoke with God, face to face, as a man speaks to his friend” (Ex. 33:11). Moses was the one whom the came though to the people, and to the people of Israel the Law and Moses were synonymous. Even as great as Moses was, Jesus is far greater, of infinitely greater importance. Moses was just part of God plan, just a part of the community or house that was being built. (Heb 3:2-5) The writer now draws the attention of the readers and us to consider Jesus. To give complete and total attention to the superiority of Christ. The law cannot save, religious effort cannot accomplish what Christ has won for us on the cross. Only through Christ can we experience the fullness of Gods plan for us. Moses was simply a man used by God to point to Christ. He worked in cooperation with God to prepare for Christ coming. Now we can experience the fullness of rest that God has promised. There is a stern warning in this passage to not miss what God has provided by being distracted with something else. God has called you through Jesus to salvation. Don't let your flesh your your worldly mind distract you from this truth. There is no other way except that which goes through Christ. Matthew 11:28-30 says “28 Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” Jesus is callus to find rest from our fruitless and unending effort to save our selves by our own works. Specifically, here in Hebrews, to be saved from the requirements of the law. In our spiritual poverty it is impossible to ever achieve what the law demands, and until you realize your own efforts won’t save you, you will continue to wander with a heavy burden. The call is to come fully to Christ. To find “rest for our souls”. To permanently rest in God’s grace offered through Christ that is apart from works. My prayer is that everyone who reads this will truly experience what is taught n this passage. There is a rest for your weary wanderer. Where the outcome is not based on your actions or achievements. You can take the gloves of and stop fighting in your own power and rest in our beautiful savior. Pastor Max Myers Living Word Evangelical Free Church Elmira, NY
0 Comments
You Can Build A Christian Empire Without God."
“Therefore we must pay closer attention to what we have heard, let we drift away from it.” Hebrews 2:1 “You can build a Christian empire without God.” (KB, The Art of Drifting.) That lyric should terrify you. Maybe you don’t classify our small church that has had an average attendance in the 30’s since the pandemic as a “Christian Empire.” Whether or not you realize it, you are part of building something, not just in your local church. Your life is building something. At your home when you are sitting around the dinner table, you are building something. When you go to work, complete tasks, and converse with coworkers, you are building something. At school, the way you carry yourself from class to class is part of building something. You are building a culture, a reputation, a way of life. Hopefully if you classify yourself as a follower of Christ, whatever it is that you are building you would consider to be “Christian.” This does NOT mean you are doing it with God. The author of Hebrews thought it very important that his readers have a proper understanding about the person of Jesus. It was a matter of life or death. He later instructs them to “leave the elementary doctrine of Christ and go on to maturity…” (6:1). Why does all this information matter? Why does the author find it necessary that we understand Christ’s superiority over angels? Or that we understand something like the personal union of two natures in one person (1:3)? He gives the answer to start chapter 2: that we would not drift away from it. What is “it”? It is the message spoken to us by the Son (1:2) and the angels (2:2). The message that His conquering of death makes purification for sins, that He ascended to heaven and is eternally worthy of your worship (1:3-4). You are doing either one of two things. As you progress throughout your life as a Christian, you can be paying closer attention to the gospel message that saved you, learning to adore and praise Jesus more and more as God reveals more knowledge of Him to you, or you can be drifting away from it. We don't get the sense from the passage that the author believes you could be remaining in the same place. Time and time again, we have seen teachers, preachers, musicians and “Christians” in all areas of life, fall short of their calling. We have seen it personally, and we have seen it on a large scale. People in the spotlight, selling out stadiums, selling books, etc.… getting caught in sin with an unwillingness to repent. Drifting away from the gospel that saves. The gospel they know and have heard time and time again, even taught to people thousands of times. Yet losing the person of Christ throughout the process, never growing in their knowledge and intimacy of their Savior. You may have heard this message before. You know about the gospel, about Jesus, even have dozens of verses memorized. You may have been a Christian 40 years, maybe just 4. Hebrews reminds us that we are not safe. You are never safe from temptations to sin. As long as you are in the flesh, temptation and sin is real and we must fight against it. Jesus is the destroyer of the devil (2:14). He satisfied the wrath of God that we deserve because of our sin by being our propitiation (2:17). Hebrews is teaching us this: how can you expect to escape punishment for your sins if you neglect the message that saves you? Paying “much closer attention” to the person and work of Jesus should be the highest priority in your life at all times. Having a right thinking about Christ matters. Deepening our understanding of what God reveals to us in scripture matters. We say in Sunday School every week “doctrine matters.” Bobby Jamieson stated, “Sound doctrine isn’t an information archive that serves to preserve facts. Rather, it’s a road map for our pilgrimage from this world to the world to come.” (Sound Doctrine, 18) So on your pilgrimage to the world to come, what are you building? Are the things you are involved with and doing paying “closer” attention to Jesus? Or are you drifting away from it? You can be drifting and not even notice. You can be building a “Christian empire without God.” That is a terrifying reality in the world we live. Stay close to Him and His message. Preach the gospel to yourself daily. Love and prioritize quality Bible intake. Study the word. Meditate on scripture. Redeem the wasted hours of your days. Repent of your drifting. His person is mysterious, and His works are majestic. He is the source of our sanctification. Stay close to the God who sent His own Son for the sake of drawing you to Himself. Pay closer attention to the gospel today than you did yesterday. Pastor Liam Grzasko Living Word Evangelical Free Church Elmira, NY.  In this series on the Book of Hebrews, we will be surveying through each chapter. Our prayer is that you will find this as a helpful tool to use as your work your way through this book!
Hebrews Chapter 1 The book as well as this chapter starts by solidifying the fact that God does indeed speak to His creation. God is a personal God who desires not only for his creation to know Him, but also for His creation to know His will. His primary source of His communication was through prophets, but now as the writer establishes the supremacy of Christ, He has spoken to us through His Son, Jesus. The author of Hebrews now transitions into the person of Christ and his supremacy over all created things. We learn 6 unique descriptions of Jesus
Verse 5 cites Psalm 2:7 and 2 Samuel 7:14. These verses prove that Jesus is not the same as an angle but is rather named as “the Son of God”. 6-7 Teach us that angels are servant beings. They were created to worship and to serve God and act in the way that God commands them to. The angels have no authority of their own. Verses 8 through 14 Jesus is revealed to be eternal and unchanging. Deserving to be worshiped rather than to worship others. The distinction between Christ and angels are clear. Pastor Max Myers Living Word Evangelical Free Church Elmira, NY |
AuthorPastor Max Myers Archives
June 2022
Categories |
RSS Feed