Persevere in Jesus LESSON VIII

REVIEW Survey – I Clement – the Epistle of Clement to the Corinthians—AD 95, cites Hebrews in a Scriptural manner – AND, there is no mention of the Fall of Jerusalem

REVIEW God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, 2 has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds; 3 who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, 4 having become so much better than the angels, as He has by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they. (Hebrews 1:1-4 NKJ)

REVIEW Vv. 1-3 Most recently, God reveals Himself to us, – not by a the scattered witness of the Prophets – but by the fullness of His Son – Who is Alpha and Omega, through Whom all was created Who is heir of all things – Who is the wisdom and Word of God – Who is radiance of His glory – Who represents Him perfectly – Who sustains all things – Who atones for sins – Who is honored at the Right Hand of Majesty

Concerning Angels Angels are ministers working powerful acts for God throughout the Scriptuers. – They worship Him forever. Jesus Christ is greater than the Angels: – Greater in His exalted divinity – Greater through His humiliated humanity – Greater in His work for, and direct effect upon our salvation in destroying death and the adversary in freeing the enslaved in setting the example of true love

A Long Look 1.God Spoke to us through Jesus. 2.Jesus is greater than angels. A.He is Begotten, not created (exalted divinity). B.He is born, dies, and is resurrected; He ascends, and sits on the right hand of the Father (exalted humanity). C.Therefore He is qualified for the High Priesthood. 3.Jesus is greater than Moses; He is the Son, not a servant. 4.Even in the Church, we are like the people whom Moses led out of Egypt. A.If we disbelieve, disobey, or defect, we, like they, will fall in the desert and not enter into His rest. B.Therefore we need a qualified High Priest.

Proceeding down the Jewish authoritative ladder. – God sent the angel – the angel appointed Moses (St. Stephen’s speech) – Jesus is greater than angels, – Jesus is greater than Moses The house. The Author uses the language of construction: – 9:2, 6; 11:7 – and the idea of a family The author will deepen the sense of – HOLD FAST for the next section NKJ Hebrews 3:1-6 Therefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our confession, Christ Jesus, 2 who was faithful to Him who appointed Him, as Moses also was faithful in all His house. 3 For this One has been counted worthy of more glory than Moses, inasmuch as He who built the house has more honor than the house. 4 For every house is built by someone, but He who built all things is God. 5 And Moses indeed was faithful in all His house as a servant, for a testimony of those things which would be spoken afterward, 6 but Christ as a Son over His own house, whose house we are if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm to the end. Moses

7 Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says: "Today, if you will hear His voice, 8 Do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion, In the day of trial in the wilderness, 9 Where your fathers tested Me, tried Me, And saw My works forty years. 10 Therefore I was angry with that generation, And said,`They always go astray in their heart, And they have not known My ways.' 11 So I swore in My wrath,`They shall not enter My rest.'" 12 Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God; 13 but exhort one another daily, while it is called "Today," lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. 14 For we have become partakers of Christ if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast to the end, 15 while it is said: "Today, if you will hear His voice, Do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion." 16 For who, having heard, rebelled? Indeed, was it not all who came out of Egypt, led by Moses? 17 Now with whom was He angry forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose corpses fell in the wilderness? 18 And to whom did He swear that they would not enter His rest, but to those who did not obey? 19 So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief. (Hebrews 3:7-19 NKJ)

For Us – The desert is a place of testing: God is testing the people to show the contents of their hearts. When the people start testing God, He has shown that their hearts are hard. – The Christian life is like the desert in this respect: God will use the situations we encounter to show us and others what our hearts are like. Do we have unbelieving hearts? Do we have hard hearts? We need to beware. We need to be watching ourselves and eachother to help keep us all from falling. We need to exhort one another, so that the deceitfulness of sin does not harden our hearts (3:13).

Therefore, since a promise remains of entering His rest, let us fear lest any of you seem to have come short of it. 2 For indeed the gospel was preached to us as well as to them; but the word which they heard did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who heard it. 3 For we who have believed do enter that rest, as He has said: "So I swore in My wrath,`They shall not enter My rest,'" although the works were finished from the foundation of the world. 4 For He has spoken in a certain place of the seventh day in this way: "And God rested on the seventh day from all His works"; 5 and again in this place: "They shall not enter My rest." 6 Since therefore it remains that some must enter it, and those to whom it was first preached did not enter because of disobedience,

7 again He designates a certain day, saying in David, "Today," after such a long time, as it has been said: "Today, if you will hear His voice, Do not harden your hearts." 8 For if Joshua had given them rest, then He would not afterward have spoken of another day. 9 There remains therefore a rest for the people of God. 10 For he who has entered His rest has himself also ceased from his works as God did from His. 11 Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest, lest anyone fall according to the same example of disobedience. 12 For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two- edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. 13 And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.

The Practical Point [...] let us fear lest any of you seem to have come short of [the promise of entering His rest]. Repeats the idea in verse 11. Just like there is still a promise, there is still a threat. some will enter (the promise remains [v.1]) some will not (I swore in my wrath...[v.3]) What is rest?

What is Rest? Genesis, Kistemaker points out that the six days of creation have “evening and morning,” but that the 7 th day has no time designations. Numbers, “some must enter” disobedience = disqualification David, roughly 500 years after Moses, David writes “Today...” and Joshua: partial fulfillment “another day...” So the Writer shows – that rest is more than just a time – that rest is more than just a place although the works were finished from the foundation of the world. 4 For He has spoken in a certain place of the seventh day in this way: "And God rested on the seventh day from all His works"; 5 and again in this place: "They shall not enter My rest." 6 Since therefore it remains that some must enter it, and those to whom it was first preached did not enter because of disobedience

What is Rest? Remember that the commandments were given in the Exodus. the people had just been slaves told to make the same number of bricks without straw their lives were made bitter with hard work This slavery is a figure of sin Likewise, without detracting from the historical truth at all, Canaan figures God’s presence (without wandering like in the desert). – This is what the Writer describes as rest. being in the presence of God, and being free from sin Therefore: – on the level of Justification we who believe are at rest – on the level of Sanctification we who believe strive to obey 7 again He designates a certain day, saying in David, "Today," after such a long time, as it has been said: "Today, if you will hear His voice, Do not harden your hearts." 8 For if Joshua had given them rest, then He would not afterward have spoken of another day. 9 There remains therefore a rest for the people of God. 10 For he who has entered His rest has himself also ceased from his works as God did from His.

Diligence We must continue in obedience to the Word of God. – 3:14 For we have become partakers of Christ if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast to the end There is no sin too subtle for God to find. No matter where it is in us, He will find it out. – We may be able to hide our failings from one another, but not from God. It is as though we are all naked before Him. For this reason Adam hid, and we are told to put on Christ. 11 Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest, lest anyone fall according to the same example of disobedience. 12 For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two- edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. 13 And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.

Homework Read Chapters 5 three times. Review Chapters 1 – 4 Read the whole Epistle once per month. Check a couple different translations if you can