Hebrews
3:1-11
In Hebrews
3:1 is a command which ties together first six verses of chapter 3. The command is "consider Jesus." That is very strong command. The word translated "consider"
carries ideas of strong attention, continuous observation, and intense
focus. The word doesn't merely mean to
look. It means to look and understand, to
look and learn, to look and see the real implications of that on which you are
focusing. One writer says the command "consider
Jesus" means, "Put your mind on Jesus and let it remain
there, that you may understand..."...
With that in
mind, look at Hebrews 3:1-6.
At the very outset of our study of Hebrews I told you the primary theme
of this book is the superiority of Jesus Christ. In the first two chapters the writer pointed
out that Jesus is superior to --
--the
prophets of the Old Testament which the Jewish recipients of Hebrews revered...
--the angels
which many of the Jewish recipients of this book worshipped...
Now, in chapter 3 argues that Jesus is superior to Moses. This is an important argument because the
Jews esteemed Moses far above any other person.
He was the one to whom God had spoken face to face. He was the one through whom the law came to
Israel. He was the one who lead the
nation to freedom. He was the one who
gave the plans for the Tabernacle and the Ark of the Covenant. If Jesus were really the Messiah sent by God,
it would have to be conclusively demonstrated that Jesus was superior to
Moses. And that's what the writer of
Hebrews does in these six verses.
This passage begins with a significant statement about us. We are--
"holy brethren" - This phrase blends two
thoughts we explored from the last part of chapter 2...
--We saw that Jesus has made us holy in the eyes of God...when God looks
at us does not see our frailty, our mistakes, our shortcomings, our sins...sees
the sacrifice of Jesus on our behalf...and even though may not feel holy or
even at times act holy, in God's eyes we are holy because of Jesus...
--We also saw that Jesus has made us part of a great spiritual
family...we are brothers and sisters in Christ under the Fatherhood of God...
Now, the
writer begins ch.3 by saying, "Now remember who you are! As you consider Jesus, don't forget what He
has made you. You are holy brethren!"
1 The implications of that are
many and certainly one of the implications has to do with how we treat each
other in the fellowship of faith...when you look at your fellow believers, you
should see them as God sees them... people who are made holy through
Jesus...and people who are you brothers and sisters because of our common
spiritual heritage...
2. And because of that, of all
the places in the world the fellowship of the church should be permeated with
an atmosphere of love, acceptance, understanding, tenderness, and
compassion...we ought to treat each other/every member of the fellowship as "holy
brethren" because that is what we are in Christ...
3. No doubt you've heard or read
the phrase "partisan bickering" many times in the media during
recent works...used to describe what has been going on for some time in the
current political environment in our nation...a bitter, divisive spirit seems
to have infected our national leadership in both major political
parties...surveys indicate that vast majority of Americans are tired of the "partisan
bickering" and desire a return of civility in our national debates...
4. And certainly, as the church
of the living God, we should have no partisan bickering among ourselves because
we are have been made "holy brethren" by Jesus...
“partakers
of a heavenly calling” - This concept is used in several ways: (1) Israel was called
by God to be a kingdom of priests to bring the world back to God (cf. Gen.
12:3; Exod. 19:5). In the OT this was a call to service, not individual
salvation, and a corporate call (national Israel) to an assigned task
(worldwide evangelization); (2) individual believers are called (cf. John 6:44,
65) to an eternal salvation; and then (3) every individual Christian is called
to serve the body of Christ through spiritual giftedness (cf. 1 Cor. 12:7, 11).[1]
The word
translated "partakers" can also be translated "partners"...the
exact same word is used in Luke 5 to describe the relationship between Peter,
Andrew, James, and John in the fishing business...they functioned as partners
in the business...
It is our “heavenly
calling” that keeps the church from disintegrating into self-serving
special interest groups...
In June of
1941 Winston Churchill stood before the House of Commons in England and said, "I
have only one purpose, the destruction of Hitler..."...and the
people of England were bound together by that purpose...focusing on our “heavenly
calling” and remembering that we are partners in that is what keeps the
church together…
After identifying
his readers (this is usually done in the first verse of a letter, but his is
more a sermons than a letter), the writer makes the case for Jesus being
superior to Moses. Essentially, he says
three things. Jesus is superior--
In His office...He
is Apostle and High Priest (v.1)
“the
Apostle and High Priest” These two titles deal with
Jesus’ superiority over Moses as official messenger and Aaron as the Levitical
high priest. Chapters 3 and 4 deal with Jesus’ superiority over Aaron. Since
the Greek terms for “messenger” and “angel” are the same, “apostle,” which was
a Greek term “to send,” may relate to both angels sent by God to serve those
being saved (cf. 1:14) and to Jesus sent by God to redeem those who are being
saved (cf. John 3:17). This is the only place in the NT that Jesus is called
“the Apostle,” although John uses the verb over and over to refer to Him being
“sent” from the Father (cf. John 3:17, 34; 5:36, 38; 6:29, 57; 7:29; 8:42;
10:36; 11:42; 17:3, 18, 21, 23, 25; 20:21).
©
“Apostle” This comes from the verb
“to send” and was used by the rabbis in the sense of one sent as an official
representative of another. Moses served in the house of God as a servant while Jesus was “a son,” a family member. God
called Moses to serve, but sent Jesus from heaven.
©
“High Priest” Hebrews is the only
book of the Bible to call Jesus high priest. It takes an extensive rabbinical
argumentation to convince first century Jews that Jesus, from the tribe of
Judah, really was a priest. The Dead Sea Scrolls community expected two
Messiahs, one royal (tribe of Judah) and one priestly (tribe of Levi, cf. Deut.
18:18; Ps. 110:4; Zech. 3).
©
“our confession” This is the Greek
term homologia, which is a compound of “to say” and “the same.” The readers had
made a confession of their faith in Jesus Christ. Now they must hold fast this
confession/profession (cf. 4:14; 10:23). This is one of the main issues of the
book.[2]
In His work...while Moses served in God's house, Jesus is
the builder of God's house (vv.2-4)
“House” is used six times in this paragraph, sometimes with
the connotation of a building and sometimes of a family. The argument seems to
run as follows: (1) Moses was part of God’s house/household, but Jesus was the
builder of that house, (2) Moses is a servant, while Jesus is a family member,
(3) Moses failed to bring in God’s rest, while Jesus will not fail.[3]
In His person...Moses was a servant of God but Jesus is
the Son of God (vv.5-6)
Jesus the Son (cf. 1:2; 5:8; 7:28) is contrasted with Moses,
the servant (cf. 1:2; 5:8; 7:28). Moses was faithful (cf. Num. 12:7), but Jesus
was a family member![4]
“…if
we hold fast our confidence and our hope until the end…” – Third
class conditional clause assuming the condition will be met…i.e., “….since we will hold fast…”
·
“hold fast” – Carries the idea of staying on course…continuing in the
right direction… It is used in nautical circles in the meaning of “holding
one’s course toward.” Luke uses it in Acts 27:40 where the storm-tossed ship
held its course toward shore…If these Hebrews would hold their course in life
steadfastly along the lines of their present profession, that would show that
they were saved. If they veered away from that course, that would show that
they never had been saved, but that their profession of Messiah had been, not
one of the heart but of the head.[5]
[1]
Utley, R. J. (1999). Vol. Volume 10: The Superiority of the New Covenant: Hebrews.
Study Guide Commentary Series (34). Marshall, Texas: Bible Lessons
International.
[2]
Utley, R. J. (1999). Vol. Volume 10: The Superiority of the New Covenant: Hebrews.
Study Guide Commentary Series (34). Marshall, Texas: Bible Lessons
International.
[3]
Utley, R. J. (1999). Vol. Volume 10: The Superiority of the New Covenant: Hebrews.
Study Guide Commentary Series (35). Marshall, Texas: Bible Lessons
International.
[4]
Utley, R. J. (1999). Vol. Volume 10: The Superiority of the New Covenant: Hebrews.
Study Guide Commentary Series (36). Marshall, Texas: Bible Lessons
International.
[5]
Wuest, K. S. (1997). Wuest's word studies
from the Greek New Testament: For the English reader (Heb 3:6). Grand
Rapids: Eerdmans.
