Remain True - Hebrews 3:1-15

Here is the third chapter in a nutshell. The writer asked us how we organize our lives to put first things first, and how we show that we know who is in charge of our lives and the events of the world—history of the past—and events of the future. Then he answers by saying that we give top attention to Jesus Christ; and then place everything else under that priority. The third chapter tells us that Jesus is superior to Moses because Jesus served as a son over God’s house; while Moses was a servant in God’s house [Heb. 3:1-6]. Paul tells us that a son with authority is more significant than a servant without authority—therefore rejecting Jesus is more serious than rejecting Moses [Hebrews 3: 7-19]. Then Paul used an example that the Hebrew people would understand because of their past history. He said that the generation of Israelites who wandered in the wilderness had rejected God’s commands and then paid a stiff price for their rejection. Then he reminds all of us that the sons of Christ should not repeat their mistake. Now, the following is a more detailed verse by verse explanation of the third chapter.

The first verse in our lesson today begins with the word “Therefore” which means—for that reason or because of that—and it refers you back to what you have learned in the first two chapters. We learned that Jesus is our High Priest and that when we accept him as savior we become brothers to him and that is why he calls us “Holy brothers” are the redeemed Hebrews [and Christians] that now share in the heavenly calling because [as has already explained] they are now the ‘sons’ of God and that makes them a brother to Christ who is also God’s Son. Paul tells them that they must now fix their thoughts on Jesus—that is, they are to look to Jesus as their new high priest. Why? Because, for them, while they were under the old covenant, the highest authority was the high priest, the only one authorized to go behind the vale into the Holy of Holies and offer a sacrifice for the sins of the people. And now under the new covenant… the “Apostle and High Priest whom we confess as Jesus Christ. Jesus is referred to as an apostle because He was the one sent…an advocate sent to intercede for the people.

Verse two says that Jesus was faithful to the one who appointed him to be our intercessor or advocate…He was faithful to God, the Father who appointed him…in the same way that Moses surrendered to the call of God to lead the people out of their bondage in Egypt and was faithful to God’s house. In the first two chapters Jesus was found to be greater or superior to angels…in the third verse Paul says that Jesus has been found worthy of even greater honor than Moses who was faithful in God’s house—“Just as the builder of a house has greater honor than the house itself.” [Note: We are the house and Christ built us—the true church.]

Paul uses these different picture words to explain the relationship we have with Jesus. 1] He is the apostle…one sent from God, to who we should listen. 2] He is our High Priest through whom we go to God. 3] He is the ruler over God’s house and we must obey him. Moses was a hero to the Hebrews ancestors; he led them out of Egyptian bondage. He had also written the first five books of the OT, and was the one through whom God had given his law to his people—the Israelites. Moses was a mere man as we are but Jesus is the I Am, was and will always be God. Moses led people out of bondage for a time; but Christ leads man out of the bondage of sin for ever.

The 4th verse says a house is built by someone…But God is the builder of everything. Then the next two verses explains that Christ is over God’s house and that we, all Christians, are his house. He is using the word ‘house’ because it is the antitype of the tabernacle—or true church—the one and only church that is made up of every converted person from the beginning of time to the end time…when Christ will return to claim it for his own. This is the house that Jesus is building—BC people look forward to his coming and AD converts look back to Christ on the cross. Moses was a servant of the house…Christ is the Son over the house. In Ephesians Paul had written that Christ was the head over all things and then to show this same connection he wrote…”Whose house are we” or whose house we are. He said “Ye are God’s building” and “Ye are the temple of God”—and that refers to the spiritual house which Christ built.

There are many places in the scriptures where we are warned not to harden our hearts and now again here he warns the Hebrews not to harden their hearts as the Jews did during the rebellion when they decided to build the golden calf and worship the idol instead of the God Moses told them about. There were other times while they spent forty years in the desert where they tested and tried God. It cost them forty years and none of the original rebellious ones were allowed to enter the Promised Land—this thought is in verses 7-11. The Hebrews should not make this mistake again and the Faith Builders Class in Heber Springs must make the mistake the first time.

To just be a member of the house [church] depends on the individual’s own heart…the church can not judge you…you are accepted as a member based on your credible profession of Christ as Lord. Other members are not to judge…they may not know for sure…but Christ knows your heart and can judge therefore it is important that you harden not your heart…Christ will know!

There are some who are weak and therefore they have doubts as to their status in God’s sight. I sincerely hope that I am the only one in this class that has ever had doubts about our standing in God’s sight, but somehow I fear that I am not the only one. One thing is sure; our status does not depend upon what we think…neither your doubts nor your confidence makes any difference in your standing. The church at Laodicea had no doubts…they did not have a sense of need. They had reached a position of comfort and ease and did not realize that God had found them lacking and would spew them out of his mouth. The more we study God’s word and believe what it says about being secure in Christ, the less doubts will enter our minds. The plan of salvation is so simple it causes some to have doubts. Growing faith removes the doubts. Read your Bible…learn what it says and believe it is true—then stand firm and confident. “Standing! Standing! I am standing on the promises of God.”

The following part of this commentary is more of a summary and conclusion of the third chapter. The author of Hebrews wrote this chapter to warn professing believers [both the Hebrews and Christians of all remaining time] who did not have their priorities straight. Having made a commitment to Christ, the Hebrews were considering returning to the empty rituals of Judaism under the old law. They knew more about Moses and thought highly of him as the founding father of Judaism…but Jesus Christ was and always will be superior to Moses.

The chapter tells us that Jesus’ son ship shows his superiority to Moses and reminds us that rejecting him has more serious consequences than rejecting Moses. Their rejection of Moses cost one complete generation forty years of wandering and barred their access to their Promised Land. The rejections of Christ will cause all future generations to wander in this world wilderness of sin, and will bar all rejecters from their Promised Land…Heaven.

There is a first and only in this chapter. This is the first time that the word apostle is applied to Christ—and this is the only time anywhere in the Bible that calls Christ an apostle. Most New Testament references to the word apostle apply to people called of God to proclaim the gospel with special authority. Christ fits this description very well.