Study No. 4 Focusing on Jesus - Hebrews Chapter 3
Therefore ... because
of what we have just been emphasizing- Because Jesus is not just
another prophet, but is God and man, Creator, Saviour, and, in
relationship, brother ... Therefore you need to focus on Him.
Added to the list of who Jesus is to us ... is Apostle and High Priest. We have no way of knowing whether these 'scattered abroad' Hebrew Christians had previously heard that Jesus was both apostle and High Priest, but here the writer just mentions it as a statement of fact.
What is the significance of His being called an apostle? Just like there are elders and Elders (one being an office and other being an older person), so there are Apostles ...known as the twelve. And there are apostles who are not part of an official group but function according to the meaning of the word. The word, like many of the Greek words and terms, is compound. That is, it is made up of two words.
The first is the word 'apo' which means out, and the second word is the word 'stello' which means to send. Put them together and you get ... to send out. Usually this would mean to send on a mission. John the Baptist was called 'a man sent from God whose name was John'. Clearly he was sent on a mission – that of preparing the way for Christ. This means we easily could call him an apostle. But he was never called by that term, probably so that we would not confuse him with 'the twelve'.
Here we have Jesus being called an apostle. You likely have already guessed in what sense; He was sent to earth on a mission.
By the way, Jesus said, 'As my Father has sent me, even so send I you; Go into all the world and .... ' In that sense we are all apostles. We are an 'apostolic' church.
Jesus is also called, High Priest. This title was and is entirely unacceptable by anyone in the Jewish religion. For one thing, in the Jewish religion a priest had to have been part of the tribe of Levi. Jesus was from the tribe of Judah. These early believers may have heard something previously about the priesthood of Jesus, but they are about to hear a whole lot more.
But before the writer 'goes there' he now spends some time with one more reason to put Jesus in such a place of esteem in our lives that we would NEVER let Him fade from our day to day conscious thoughts.
He now uses the analogy of a house and builder ... Who gets the honor? The builder, of course. Moses is part of the house. Clearly the writer is not emphasizing a structure, but what he is talking about is household. Moses is part of the household. In that household he served ... faithfully, but still he was a servant. Jesus, on the other hand, put the household together (builder), and then related to it as a son, a member of the family.
Then comes the interesting note – whose house YOU are. He is talking about you and me. We are part of the household, just as Moses was. And we glorify Jesus for 'putting the household together'.1
We now have to read that last part of verse 6 ... To be part of the household, and remain to be part of the household, there is something we are supposed to do. We are supposed to 'hold something fast'. (I don't like the NIV version of this, 'hold on to your courage'. This is much too weak and does not convey anything specific.)
How much work is it to hold fast? First of all, do not form a picture of us hanging on to our salvation like a person hangs on to the edge of a cliff over which he has just slipped. He is clinging to the edge by his finger nails and we shout 'Just keep hanging on!'
An examination of two specific words will help us get the right picture. The words are
As we look at the context we will try to use the appropriate definition.
In verses 7-11 the writer gives a very vivid example of those who 'did not hold onto ... and finally threw away' their platform and foundation.
He refers to a period of history that had acquired a 'name'. It came to be called 'The Rebellion'. Literally the word is 'Provocation'. Rebellion sounds like an event. Provocation sounds like an ongoing situation that grows to such a point that it cannot be tolerated, and in fact, this was more the case. Verse 8 calls it 'the day of trial' or the 'time of testing'.
If you remember the history, the unbelieving men ... the ones who chose to believe the bad report of the ten spies rather than the good report of the two spies, ... these men of the general population of Israel were condemned to not enter the promised land. They would die in the wilderness. When you read the story you do not get the picture that it is a time of testing for them. Rather it is a time of waiting to die.
So, perhaps the time of testing refers to the people testing God's patience. It was a time that God went through, having to put up with a group of people who were continually testing Him. And this is indeed what verse 9 indicates.
What did God expect? God wanted them ... even though they would never physically enter the promised land, to live out the rest of their days loving Him, obeying Him and trusting Him. Even Moses was not allowed to enter the promised land ... physically. But as we will see in chapter 11, there is another promised land that they could still look forward to.
The bottom line of the discussion of these verses seems to be that many of these men ... spending 40 years grumbling and testing God ... finally reached the place where God assessed them of having 'thrown it all away.' They were physical Jews ... but spiritually ... they gave up on God. Their belief faded into nothing.
We wonder how they could reach that point, seeing evidence of God every day. Their shoe leather did not wear out. They had manna ... bread from heaven daily. Later they had quail to eat. They witnessed a pillar of cloud over that tabernacle by day. At night they saw a pillar of fire. Repeatedly they saw their enemies punished. But they stopped caring who God was to them.
Now, in verse 12 the focus turns back to the Christian Hebrews ... and to us. Turning from God is called an 'evil heart of unbelief'. Underline the word – unbelief.
Was there a process that ended in losing their 'belief'? Yes there always is a process. In Psalm 1:1 ¶ Blessed is the man Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, Nor stands in the path of sinners, Nor sits in the seat of the scornful; In this verse it goes from walking, then standing, to sitting. It seems to draw our attention to bad choices and actions.
There is another important passage that looks more at failure to act. This speaks of the danger of doing nothing. 2Pe 1:3 as His divine power has given to us all things that [pertain] to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue,
4 by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.
5 ¶ But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge,
knowledge,
6 to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness,
7 to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love.
8 For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
9 For he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins.
The Hebrew travellers focused on self. They grumbled about what they no longer had. They grumbled about Moses' right to lead them. In spite of evidence of God everywhere ... their care of self surpassed caring about God. They stopped caring whether there was even a God. Their unbelief produced disobedience. Disobedience produced hardness of heart and blindness of mind. And all of this brought down the judgment of God upon them.
Prevention:
Here is Young's Literal Translation (Greek word for word) Heb 3:16 for certain having heard did provoke, but not all who did come out of Egypt through Moses;
Is faith work? Our next study: Resting in Jesus.
1Eph 3:21 to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.
Added to the list of who Jesus is to us ... is Apostle and High Priest. We have no way of knowing whether these 'scattered abroad' Hebrew Christians had previously heard that Jesus was both apostle and High Priest, but here the writer just mentions it as a statement of fact.
What is the significance of His being called an apostle? Just like there are elders and Elders (one being an office and other being an older person), so there are Apostles ...known as the twelve. And there are apostles who are not part of an official group but function according to the meaning of the word. The word, like many of the Greek words and terms, is compound. That is, it is made up of two words.
The first is the word 'apo' which means out, and the second word is the word 'stello' which means to send. Put them together and you get ... to send out. Usually this would mean to send on a mission. John the Baptist was called 'a man sent from God whose name was John'. Clearly he was sent on a mission – that of preparing the way for Christ. This means we easily could call him an apostle. But he was never called by that term, probably so that we would not confuse him with 'the twelve'.
Here we have Jesus being called an apostle. You likely have already guessed in what sense; He was sent to earth on a mission.
By the way, Jesus said, 'As my Father has sent me, even so send I you; Go into all the world and .... ' In that sense we are all apostles. We are an 'apostolic' church.
Jesus is also called, High Priest. This title was and is entirely unacceptable by anyone in the Jewish religion. For one thing, in the Jewish religion a priest had to have been part of the tribe of Levi. Jesus was from the tribe of Judah. These early believers may have heard something previously about the priesthood of Jesus, but they are about to hear a whole lot more.
But before the writer 'goes there' he now spends some time with one more reason to put Jesus in such a place of esteem in our lives that we would NEVER let Him fade from our day to day conscious thoughts.
He now uses the analogy of a house and builder ... Who gets the honor? The builder, of course. Moses is part of the house. Clearly the writer is not emphasizing a structure, but what he is talking about is household. Moses is part of the household. In that household he served ... faithfully, but still he was a servant. Jesus, on the other hand, put the household together (builder), and then related to it as a son, a member of the family.
Then comes the interesting note – whose house YOU are. He is talking about you and me. We are part of the household, just as Moses was. And we glorify Jesus for 'putting the household together'.1
We now have to read that last part of verse 6 ... To be part of the household, and remain to be part of the household, there is something we are supposed to do. We are supposed to 'hold something fast'. (I don't like the NIV version of this, 'hold on to your courage'. This is much too weak and does not convey anything specific.)
How much work is it to hold fast? First of all, do not form a picture of us hanging on to our salvation like a person hangs on to the edge of a cliff over which he has just slipped. He is clinging to the edge by his finger nails and we shout 'Just keep hanging on!'
An examination of two specific words will help us get the right picture. The words are
-
confidence - (Grk
parrhesia) Heb 3.6 and 10.35 (NIV has courage
in 3.6 and confidence
in 10.35)
-
confidence – (Grk
hupostasis) Heb 3.14
In 3.6 we are supposed to 'hold on to it'. In 3.14 we are to 'hold it firmly to the end'. In 10.35 we are not supposed to 'throw it away'.
The two words are close in their meanings, but they are not identical. The first word conveys thoughts like freedom in speaking, fearless open confidence, having a deportment or behaviour that causes our confidence to show publicly.
The second word carries the thought of our confidence being similar to that which we would have if we were on a platform, foundation or base. One word seems to be more active and the other more a state of being.
As we look at the context we will try to use the appropriate definition.
In verses 7-11 the writer gives a very vivid example of those who 'did not hold onto ... and finally threw away' their platform and foundation.
He refers to a period of history that had acquired a 'name'. It came to be called 'The Rebellion'. Literally the word is 'Provocation'. Rebellion sounds like an event. Provocation sounds like an ongoing situation that grows to such a point that it cannot be tolerated, and in fact, this was more the case. Verse 8 calls it 'the day of trial' or the 'time of testing'.
If you remember the history, the unbelieving men ... the ones who chose to believe the bad report of the ten spies rather than the good report of the two spies, ... these men of the general population of Israel were condemned to not enter the promised land. They would die in the wilderness. When you read the story you do not get the picture that it is a time of testing for them. Rather it is a time of waiting to die.
So, perhaps the time of testing refers to the people testing God's patience. It was a time that God went through, having to put up with a group of people who were continually testing Him. And this is indeed what verse 9 indicates.
What did God expect? God wanted them ... even though they would never physically enter the promised land, to live out the rest of their days loving Him, obeying Him and trusting Him. Even Moses was not allowed to enter the promised land ... physically. But as we will see in chapter 11, there is another promised land that they could still look forward to.
The bottom line of the discussion of these verses seems to be that many of these men ... spending 40 years grumbling and testing God ... finally reached the place where God assessed them of having 'thrown it all away.' They were physical Jews ... but spiritually ... they gave up on God. Their belief faded into nothing.
We wonder how they could reach that point, seeing evidence of God every day. Their shoe leather did not wear out. They had manna ... bread from heaven daily. Later they had quail to eat. They witnessed a pillar of cloud over that tabernacle by day. At night they saw a pillar of fire. Repeatedly they saw their enemies punished. But they stopped caring who God was to them.
Now, in verse 12 the focus turns back to the Christian Hebrews ... and to us. Turning from God is called an 'evil heart of unbelief'. Underline the word – unbelief.
Was there a process that ended in losing their 'belief'? Yes there always is a process. In Psalm 1:1 ¶ Blessed is the man Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, Nor stands in the path of sinners, Nor sits in the seat of the scornful; In this verse it goes from walking, then standing, to sitting. It seems to draw our attention to bad choices and actions.
There is another important passage that looks more at failure to act. This speaks of the danger of doing nothing. 2Pe 1:3 as His divine power has given to us all things that [pertain] to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue,
4 by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.
5 ¶ But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge,
knowledge,
6 to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness,
7 to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love.
8 For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
9 For he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins.
The Hebrew travellers focused on self. They grumbled about what they no longer had. They grumbled about Moses' right to lead them. In spite of evidence of God everywhere ... their care of self surpassed caring about God. They stopped caring whether there was even a God. Their unbelief produced disobedience. Disobedience produced hardness of heart and blindness of mind. And all of this brought down the judgment of God upon them.
Prevention:
-
Beware–rather, be
aware of the potential ... in you ... of turning (gradually and
surely) away from God.
-
Think of others. -
Exhort one another. (Once a week on Sundays and also on Tuesdays?)
Daily. I think most of us fall a bit short on this one. Here is just
a short note regarding the word exhort. Ready for another Greek
word? Parakaleo is the English spelling. Another compound word,
para means 'beside' or 'alongside'. Kaleo means
'call'. Put them together and we get 'to call (someone) alongside
(of you). That is what exhort is. This is what Paul was doing in
the following verses: I Cor 4:16, 1:11, and Php 3:17.
Sin is deceitful and it hardens our spiritual arteries. When you see someone becoming involved in sin ... and they seem to be getting used to it and even defend it, gently, lovingly call them alongside to your Biblical way of thinking.
-
Remember what you
really are – a partaker of Christ. And here again is that
very serious warning ... if ... you hold on, stay based on
the foundation. Being grounded on Him is our confidence.
The writer goes back to the Old testament story and adds this ... not everybody during Moses time provoked God. Heb 3:16 For some, when they had heard, did provoke: howbeit not all that came out of Egypt by Moses. This verse is important to examine ... because other translations have taken the liberty of adding a couple of words and changing its meaning. The above verse is KJV.
Here is Young's Literal Translation (Greek word for word) Heb 3:16 for certain having heard did provoke, but not all who did come out of Egypt through Moses;
Not everybody let go of the foundation. Verses 17 and 18 say it was the ones whose unbelief was evident in their actions and attitude. Belief and unbelief is what everything hinges on. True belief. Genuine belief. How do you know when you have it?
Let's take a quick look at James 2:19 You believe that there is one God; you do well: the devils also believe, ... and tremble. James was addressing the bold claim that all we need to do is say we believe, James says, there is more to it than just saying you believe something ... you must show some evidence.
The demons believe in God ... what is their evidence? They tremble. The implication is that true belief has some evidence. In the time of Moses there were those who showed no evidence at all of faith/belief2.
They not make it into the promised land (some 40 years earlier) and it sounds like they will not make it into the eternal rest in Heaven. Moses did not make into the promised land ... here on earth ... but he is in the eternal promised land.
Is faith work? Our next study: Resting in Jesus.
1Eph 3:21 to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.
-
2The
Greek word (pisteuo) for belief and the word for faith ...
is the same word. The writer of Hebrews is very strong on the word
faith. He says in 11:6 without faith it is impossible to
please Him (v 19).