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Mills River SDA Church

A Study in Hebrews

Cory Reeves

A Study in Hebrews 1: God Still Speaks

So as we get started here, if you guys can see, I'm just gonna guess I'm on the right slide.

As we get started here, I would recommend you open your book, your Bible, your book, the book, to Hebrews 1 and kind of leave it there.

We're gonna jump around in the Bible quite a bit today.

But I would keep a bookmark in Hebrews 1 because there's times when I'm gonna refer back to a phrase or a statement.

And if you wanna look and study along, I think that's gonna be the best way for you.

So the book of Hebrews is full of gold, if you've read through it.

And we're gonna start a series today trying to dig through and find some of that gold.

Many theologians actually argue over who was the author.

Spirit of Prophecy tells us Paul wrote it.

We also know, obviously, it was to the Hebrews.

Was it to Hebrews that already believed in Christ or were they on the edge or where were they?

Exactly the other thing you're gonna see today is when I get through the first 3 verses, you're like, are you gonna keep us here all day?

We're gonna spend a lot of time in the first 3 verses, and then I'm gonna fly through the end.

So bear with me, don't get too freaked out when I'm on verse 2 and we've already spent 25 minutes.

I would recommend as well, just because we've gone through it here, go home and Read it.

There's actually an excellent book by E.J.

It's an excellent way to start understanding Hebrews more.

He actually is a pretty controversial figure.

At the time, he was referred to by some as the Antichrist.

Others said he was the greatest leader in Russian history.

He began his reign at age, any guesses how old he was?

He died from gangrene from a bladder infection at age 52.

1 of the unique features of this man that made him stand out in a crowd is he was 6'8".

Part of what drew my attention to this story, let me tell you some story here.

He became very interested easily in industry, particularly shipping and boats.

He cared little about his rank or who anyone was around him, but he wanted to look at things.

He would go up to people who understood how things worked, and he didn't care who you were, he would sit down and talk to you and try to learn from you.

He would make a companion of anyone, high or low.

1 day when he was 16 years old, he was wandering about 1 of his country estates when he saw an old building in the yard.

And this kid, being the kind of person he was, is, I want to see the rubbish.

He gets inside and sees a boat with the bottom upturned.

But it was different than the kinds of boats that they used in Russian rivers.

What's the difference between an English boat and a Russian boat, Peter demanded.

His guide said, if you fit this boat with sails, it can go not only with the wind, but it can go against the wind.

Peter was incredulous, I can't say that word.

Incredulous, thank you, And demanded to know how a boat could steer against the wind.

He got it out and it was rotten to the core.

He was so interested in it, he had the boat rebuilt and got it out on the river.

The river was so narrow, but he was having a blast.

He was going upstream until he ran into the shore.

Determined to figure out more about this boat, he ordered for a bigger boat to be built, so he could take it out on a larger lake.

It was some years later when Peter was the Tsar.

He saw his own country was far behind other European countries.

He was determined to visit Western countries and learn some of the arts of civilization.

He cared little for the display and finery of his courts and determined to travel as an ordinary person as far as he could.

This was a little town devoted largely to fishing and boats.

It had multitude of cottages, which workmen lived, half hidden in the trees, while the multitude of windmills with sails was always in motion, showing the industry and the thrift of people.

Peter came and found quarters in a small farm.

His companions attracted attention and they often wondered what was going on and why was he there, but he worked and lived on his shipbuilding salary.

They say when people visit that village today, they have kind of carved out where he lived in the little town, and he was basically sleeping on like a shelf nailed into the wall.

The czar of a country, Just curious about how it worked, wanting, they said, he had a love for his Russian people and wanted to learn and progress his country.

The Tsar of Russia chose to live among and like a common person.

He did it because he loved, he didn't do it because he loved the people there, but because he loved to learn and wanted to help his people find progress.

Friends, as we study Hebrews today, it is about the 1 who chose to live in filth much worse than Peter the Great did.

He chose to give up a much higher kingdom, all for the love of you.

As you will see today, this is all about Hebrews, what Hebrews 1 is all about.

God, who at various times and various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets.

You know, it reminds me about how important it is when God speaks.

How pow—excuse me, how powerful it is when God speaks.

Genesis 1, 1 through 3, in the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

The earth was without form and void, and darkness was on the face of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.

A Study in Hebrews Chapter 2: Aid to the Tempted

Hebrews 2, I'm going to refer back to the text quite a bit.

And so if you'll keep your Bibles or a mark there, we'll kind of refer back and forth, even though I'm moving on in slides.

Andy, are you able to get my slides up front for me?

And that was kind of a trick question because the story's not just about Andrew Jackson.

It was December 6th of 1829, 2 men, George Wilson and James Porter, robbed the United States mail carrier in Pennsylvania.

The laws were a lot more strict then and both men were captured and tried.

And on May 1, 1830, both men were found guilty on 6 indictments, including robbery of the mail and putting the life of the driver at jeopardy.

They didn't kill him, but he was in jeopardy.

On May 27, both George Wilson and James Porter received the sentence of execution.

The sentences were to be carried forward out on July 2nd, 1830.

So by today's standards, that does seem a little harsh, but that's where they were in the 1800s.

Shortly before the set date, there was a number of influential friends he had and they petitioned who?

They petitioned Andrew Jackson and they were influential enough that President Jackson issued a formal pardon.

Wilson might have to serve a few years, but, and this is an important exception here, The case had to go all the way to the Supreme Court.

Wilson was returned to the court as they attempted to force the pardon upon him.

It was recorded that George Wilson chose to waive and decline any advantage or protection which might be supposed to arise from the pardon referred to.

Incredibly, George Wilson refused the pardon.

And when the case got to the Supreme Court, the Attorney General made the following comment, the court cannot give the prisoner the benefit of the pardon unless he claims the benefit of it.

In other words, Wilson committed a crime, he was tried and found guilty, he received the sentence, the president gave him a full pardon, and George chose to refuse the pardon.

And I bet a bunch of you are like, man, that guy is a fool.

We don't say those words very often in church.

But I would tell you that some are the same way and I would hate to say it but maybe even in this church.

How could anyone refuse a pardon for a death sentence?

The gift of eternal life is worth so much more than what this man gave up.

And there are people every day walking away from it.

By chance, There might be a few of you walking away from it too.

And I hope and pray none of you are fools and don't accept it.

So, last time we looked at Hebrews 1, and we talked about God still speaks.

He still speaks to you and me in many different ways through the Bible, through our prayer time, through Jesus.

He was made in the express, or not made, I'm sorry.

He is the redeemer, the king, and eternal Lord, the inheritor of all things, and he was superior to the angels so let's jump right in Hebrews 2 verse 1 therefore and I'm gonna stop right there already.

How do you start a sentence, why would you ever start a sentence with therefore?

Paul is saying because of everything I just said, because of Jesus being greater than the angels, because of Jesus' position in the universe, in God's kingdom.

He says, therefore, we must give the more earnest heed to the things we have heard lest we drift away.

Paul is warning us that we need to be more earnest.

We need to remember and practice what we have heard lest we leave the faith of Jesus.

He's told us all this good news, and then he says, wait, wake up.

It feels like Spirit of Prophecy gives us a similar warning in Evangelism, page 30.

Time is so short and I personally don't want to be a fool.

I want the free gift of salvation, don't you?

I don't want to be George Wilson and reject the free gift.

Our first point today is that there is extreme danger in neglecting the plan of salvation.

For if the word spoken through angels provided steadfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just reward.

First, we're not going to finish a sentence here, but first, let's look at the word spoken through angels.

Galatians 3 19, What purpose then does the law serve?

It was added because of transgression, till the seed should come to whom the promise was made, and it was appointed through angels by the hand of a mediator.

The law, as Galatian tells us, was appointed through angels.

So in Hebrews we can see that the law is the word spoken through angels.

So right now he's saying that he's talking here in Hebrews, sorry there we go, oops, he's speaking here in Hebrews that if the angels gave us this, the spoken word through angels, the law that every transgression and disobedience received would receive its just reward.

So basically, this second verse is saying, by the law, we are all disobedient, right?

And we all are going to receive what we deserve.

Verse 3, how shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord and was confirmed to us by those who heard him." This seems to be a question that we already know the answer to rhetorical in nature.

Can any of you, does anyone in this room, I wanna know, does anyone in this room have the power to escape the law on their own?

And if we neglect our salvation, can we escape the law-breaking?

I love how the SDA commentary puts this part.

It reads, great in that God is its author, great because of its cost, the life of the Son of God, great in its accomplishment, the renewal of the body, soul, and spirit, and the exaltation of mankind to a place in heaven above." You see, this is the great plan to save you and save me." This great gift.

Now in the line in verse 2, spoken by angels, but now in verse 3 you can see it says, spoken by the Lord.

If you remember back last week, I know some of you weren't here, and some of you that's a long time ago, but in Hebrews 1, 1 and 2, it said, God hath in the last day spoken to us by his Son." Right?

This is speaking to us of the same message that was proclaimed by Christ during his earthly ministry.

This message we discussed last time was the, remember the term, the brightness of His glory?

And we looked at that term, and we discovered that it was the greatness of His love.

This is the great message spoken to you through Christ coming to the earth to die for you.

This text ends with the message that we are to confirm it.

So God shared the message of his great love, he shared it through Christ, but then we are to confirm it.

A Study in Hebrews, Chapter 3: Partakers of Christ

You know, I've enjoyed going through Hebrews so far.

I know we're only on chapter 3, but I pray that Christ speaks to each of us today to dive into a deeper relationship as we talk about partaking of Christ, partakers of Christ.

It is all about a deeper relationship with Him.

So, jumping right in, we're not going to mess around today, we're jumping right in to Hebrews 3, 1 through 2, and guess what?

He starts out with, what's the word there?

Paul keeps doing this over and over, doesn't he?

In light, he's trying to say in light of what I already have said.

If you remember from Hebrews 1, he reminds us that God still speaks to you and me.

He speaks through the life of Jesus, our Creator and our Sustainer, who is God, our Redeemer, our King, and the Eternal Lord, who is the inheritor of all things, and that inheritance as brothers and sisters, because of him becoming man, God made flesh, we get to be partakers of that as well.

He is much superior to angels, but in chapter 2 he tells us that there is aid to the tempted.

There is extreme danger in neglecting salvation.

We must remember that Jesus willingly came to earth and underwent extreme humiliation just so he, Christ, could remove Satan's hold and set you and me free, amen?

Then we see the first glimpses of Christ as our High Priest.

So he starts off Hebrews 3 with therefore because of all that we've learned in verse 1 or chapter 1 and 2, therefore holy brethren.

I'm gonna keep pausing as we get through this first section but it's interesting here that this book was mostly written to who?

And the Jews, and more specifically, probably Jewish believers, people who believed in Christ.

So he's calling them holy brethren because they have accepted or maybe a better word have been dedicated to Christ therefore holy brethren partakers I love this word partakers but it could maybe be sharers in another word.

Sharers or partakers of the heavenly calling.

We're going to go slow through this first section, but what is the heavenly calling?

The Greek word here means, also can mean invitation.

So we are sharers in the heavenly invitation.

The salvation found in the free gift of Jesus Christ.

So we are sharers in this free gift of salvation.

Continuing, consider the apostle and high priest of our confession.

And it can mean to perceive, remark, observe, understand, to consider alternately, attentively, fix, I love this part, fix one's eyes and mind upon.

So we are to consider to fix our eyes upon, fix our mind upon the Apostle.

The Apostle can also mean delegate or messenger and high priest of our confession, Jesus Christ, who was faithful to him, who appointed him, as Moses also was faithful in all his house.

You see, The importance of this verse now turns to Jesus, who came as a messenger, the delegate for the Father, and now he is our high priest, working for us in heaven.

While he was on earth on his mission and I'm preaching to you today that he is faithful as our high priest, covering your sins in the sanctuary with his blood.

And as Paul is speaking to the Jews, you have to remember, what did they think about Moses?

He was about as high as they could get, right?

He had written most of the scripture they had at that point.

He was, if you hear the law and the prophets, the law was all that Moses wrote.

He was in some ways the founder of their Hebrew nation.

And because of this, he starts out with Moses.

So the Jews held Moses' faith as a pinnacle of faith.

In our text, the high priest of our confessions, many Christians will say that all that was needed to happen for the plan of salvation was at the cross, or that once you confess at baptism, everything else is done, but it is so much deeper, amen?

The sanctuary message means so much more, and that's why it's so important, the series, mini-series that Pastor Bautist is coming to do, that we invite people to understand the sanctuary message.

We're also talking about in our evangelism this fall, using the sanctuary as the pinnacle of our evangelism.

It makes me think of this text, Romans 10, 9, that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised him from the dead you will be saved.

There's confession and belief and what's amazing about our God is He can help us with both of those.

We sometimes have to ask for that help, but this text reminds me that of the fact that there is nothing we can do except confess and have faith.

It is a gift and we serve a God of love which means he won't force on our free will, but we must come before him, confess, accepting the gift and believing.

So Jesus is our Apostle and our High Priest is the first point of Hebrews 3, partakers of Christ.

Hebrews 3, 3 through 6, for this 1 has been counted worthy of more glory than Moses inasmuch as he who built the house has more honor than the house.

For every house is built by someone but he who built all things is God and Moses indeed was faithful in all his house as a servant for a testimony of those things which would be spoken afterwards but Christ as a son over his own house whose house we are we are if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm to the end." It's a lot, isn't it?

But basically it is saying that Moses is great.

Yet, you cannot compare him in whose house he was living because the 1 we're comparing him with is the 1 who built the house He is living, amen?

He's doing a masterful job of pointing the Hebrews to Jesus.

He's stair-stepping them along, if you see it, he's almost taking, he's saying, yeah Moses is great, but, and we aren't bad in saying he is faithful and he did great things, but you can't compare him with the 1 who built the house Moses was living in and was faithful in.

And so we're gonna move through that second point pretty quickly.

I don't need to teach you guys that, I hope, but you can see how he's speaking to the Hebrews.

Therefore, he starts out again, but this time I believe it's in view of what is said in 1 through 6 concerning Christ as the apostle and high priest of our profession and our confidence and hope in him.

So therefore, as the Holy Spirit says, Paul is getting ready, pausing again, getting ready to quote from Psalms 95, and he's giving credit for Psalms 95 to the Holy Spirit, but I also believe he is giving credit for the Holy Spirit when he's writing, saying, you know what, you should use Psalms 95 right here.

So he's giving credit to the Holy Spirit for these words.

Today, if you will hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion in the day of trial in the wilderness where your fathers tested me tried me and saw my works 40 years therefore I was angry with that generation and said They will always go astray in their hearts, and they have not known my ways.

So I swore in my wrath, they shall not enter my rest." You know, this quote from Psalms 95, it's actually verse 7 through 11 as well, is speaking of Israel in the wilderness.

It's a call to soften our hearts and their hearts to God's voice.

The rebellion refers to Israel when they complained and doubted and tested God even after He had delivered them.

Verse 9, your father saw my works 40 years.

God provided for Israel for how long in the wilderness?

They had everything provided to them, right?

Food, their clothes and shoes didn't wear out.

They saw daily miracles in manna, in water, the cloud, in the fire at night, and in their deliverance.

Then you get to verse 10, they always go astray in their heart.

The real issue is not intellect sometimes, friends.

It's a heart problem, a rebellion, a pride, an unbelief.

They refuse to know God's ways, His characters, His mercy and His faithfulness.

The generation of unbelief was denied entry into Canaan.

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A Study in Hebrews 1: God Still Speaks

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