http://www.esvbible.org/Hebrews+9/
The first promise God made, the one to Moses, had a holy place. In Leviticus, the Law describes a tent, which later became the more permanent structure of the temple. In the first part of the tent, there was a lamp, a stand, and the bread of presence. Any priest could go in here to do their job. The second part of the tent was the Holy of Holies, and only the chief priest could enter. This part contained a gold incense burner and the Ark of the Covenant. This ark is not a boat but a huge chest. In the ark was a jar of manna, Aaron's staff, and the tablets that had the promise written on them. Hence the name, Ark of the Covenant (promise). All of this is described in much more detail in Leviticus. The chief priest only ever entered the Holy of Holies once a year when he made a blood sacrifice for himself and then for all of the people. This sacrifice cleansed them of their sins, but we all know from living our own lives of sin that this cleanliness probably did not last long. The Holy Spirit used this to show that we could live in the holy place, the Promised Land, but we could not reach the Holy of Holies, Heaven. The Holy Spirit also lived in the Holy of Holies before the crucifixion. The first part of the tent represents the present because people brought their gifts but they could not be at peace about their relationship with God. In the same way, we can't be good enough to get to Heaven. It doesn't matter how much we give to God or to others. Christ as the chief priest went into the holiest pace, a place not even made by human hands. He used His own blood as the sacrifice instead of the blood of animals, and He settled our debt due to sin once and for all. The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of cows cleaned people's bodies and made them holy, but the blood of Christ, since He was perfect and sinless, had a greater effect. He cleared us completely from sin, and even cleared our conscience. Now we can serve the Living God. Christ offered Himself to God so that we can have a new promise from God. Because He died, we are free from the sins set out under the old promise. He gave us an inheritance that will last forever. For a will to take effect, the person who made the will must die. That's why Moses sealed the first promise with blood. He covered the tablets on which the promise was written in blood, and then he sprinkled blood on all of the things in the tent to make them clean because if no blood is shed, no sins can be forgiven. Blood is the price for forgiveness from sin. The things in Heaven had to be cleansed with something greater. Jesus went before God to ask forgiveness to our sins just as the chief priests went into the Holy of Holies each year. Christ only went before God once, however, because that was enough. People die once and then are judged. Christ died as a sacrifice, but when He comes again, He will come to save those who await Him.
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
Monday, April 16, 2012
Hebrews 8
http://www.esvbible.org/Hebrews+8/
We have the kind of chief priest that we need because we have Jesus. He now sits at the right hand of God in Heaven. He rules over everything. This chief priest had to offer something because all chief priests offer something. Jesus offered Himself. God even warned Moses to do everything in the way that He instructed. Jesus does work that is superior to the Levitical priests. He also brings a better promise, making the old one outdated. God said that He made a promise to the Israelites when He led them out of egypt, but they rejected Him, so He abandoned them. They found that His promise became impossible for them to keep their end of. When Jesus came, He brought a new promise that the laws are now in the people's hearts. We can all now be God's people. God through His Holy Spirit is no longer a distrant being housed only in the Holy of Holies in the temple, but He is close and personal and in our hearts. Everyone now has the opportunity to know the Lord. God made this new promise to replace the old one because it is outdated, and what is outdated will soon disappear.
We have the kind of chief priest that we need because we have Jesus. He now sits at the right hand of God in Heaven. He rules over everything. This chief priest had to offer something because all chief priests offer something. Jesus offered Himself. God even warned Moses to do everything in the way that He instructed. Jesus does work that is superior to the Levitical priests. He also brings a better promise, making the old one outdated. God said that He made a promise to the Israelites when He led them out of egypt, but they rejected Him, so He abandoned them. They found that His promise became impossible for them to keep their end of. When Jesus came, He brought a new promise that the laws are now in the people's hearts. We can all now be God's people. God through His Holy Spirit is no longer a distrant being housed only in the Holy of Holies in the temple, but He is close and personal and in our hearts. Everyone now has the opportunity to know the Lord. God made this new promise to replace the old one because it is outdated, and what is outdated will soon disappear.
Hebrews 7
http://www.esvbible.org/Hebrews+7/
The author of Hebrews keeps saying that Jesus is a priest in the way that Melchizedek is a priest. Now, the author finally begins to tell us who Melchizedek is. After God made covenants, or promises, with Abraham , Abraham defeated some kings in war. It was completely the work of God. Later, Abraham, the one person at that time who had a promise from God of being the ancestor of God's people, paid ten percent of everything he got from the kings to Melchizedek. Melchizedek's name means "king of righteousness," or he is called King of Salem, which means "king of peace." Melchizedek is a great mystery. No one knows much about him. They don't know anything about his family, lineage, when he was born or when he died. The author of Hebrews now reverses the comparison and says that like Jesus, Melchizedek continues to be a priest forever. Like everything else in the Bible, Abraham did not pay Melchizedek a tenth of everything he received by some arbitrary number. This number as it comes to possessions and payment to priests started at this payment and continued. Under Mosaic law, men from the tribe of Levi served as priests, and they were paid a tenth of everything. After Abraham paid Melchizedek, Melchizedek blessed Abraham. Blessing is something that a person of higher importance does to a person of lower importance. Priests from the tribe of Levi received a tenth of everything but dies, but the author of hebrews says we know Melchizedek lives. Later, the people started the Levitical priesthood based on God's instructions. If this system had been perfect, that would be the priesthood we know today, yet there is another priest, Jesus Christ, who the author of Hebrews compares to Melchizedek. Jesus is quickly recognized as a different type of priest because He is not from the tribe of Levi but from the tribe of Judah. Jesus is a priest not because He meets the human requirements to be one but because He came to Earth as God. He is a preist like Melchizedek because the way the Jewish people chose priests was insufficient and flawed for recognizing the priest. Melchizedek was not chosen in the way that other chief priests were chosen. He did not meet any human requirements because the human requirements did not yet exist, but Abraham knew it was the will of God to make a payment to this man, and he did so. There has been a long succession of priests because when the mortal priests die, they are unable to continue to serve, but we know that Jesus never dies; therefore, He is priest forever. We need a priest that is pure, holy, righteous, set apart. In the past, all of the priests made sacrifices of the clean to cover their uncleanliness first, and then sacrificed to save the people. Jesus did not need a sacrifice for Himself, so He sacrificed Himself so that the requirement for sacrifices was complete forever.
The author of Hebrews keeps saying that Jesus is a priest in the way that Melchizedek is a priest. Now, the author finally begins to tell us who Melchizedek is. After God made covenants, or promises, with Abraham , Abraham defeated some kings in war. It was completely the work of God. Later, Abraham, the one person at that time who had a promise from God of being the ancestor of God's people, paid ten percent of everything he got from the kings to Melchizedek. Melchizedek's name means "king of righteousness," or he is called King of Salem, which means "king of peace." Melchizedek is a great mystery. No one knows much about him. They don't know anything about his family, lineage, when he was born or when he died. The author of Hebrews now reverses the comparison and says that like Jesus, Melchizedek continues to be a priest forever. Like everything else in the Bible, Abraham did not pay Melchizedek a tenth of everything he received by some arbitrary number. This number as it comes to possessions and payment to priests started at this payment and continued. Under Mosaic law, men from the tribe of Levi served as priests, and they were paid a tenth of everything. After Abraham paid Melchizedek, Melchizedek blessed Abraham. Blessing is something that a person of higher importance does to a person of lower importance. Priests from the tribe of Levi received a tenth of everything but dies, but the author of hebrews says we know Melchizedek lives. Later, the people started the Levitical priesthood based on God's instructions. If this system had been perfect, that would be the priesthood we know today, yet there is another priest, Jesus Christ, who the author of Hebrews compares to Melchizedek. Jesus is quickly recognized as a different type of priest because He is not from the tribe of Levi but from the tribe of Judah. Jesus is a priest not because He meets the human requirements to be one but because He came to Earth as God. He is a preist like Melchizedek because the way the Jewish people chose priests was insufficient and flawed for recognizing the priest. Melchizedek was not chosen in the way that other chief priests were chosen. He did not meet any human requirements because the human requirements did not yet exist, but Abraham knew it was the will of God to make a payment to this man, and he did so. There has been a long succession of priests because when the mortal priests die, they are unable to continue to serve, but we know that Jesus never dies; therefore, He is priest forever. We need a priest that is pure, holy, righteous, set apart. In the past, all of the priests made sacrifices of the clean to cover their uncleanliness first, and then sacrificed to save the people. Jesus did not need a sacrifice for Himself, so He sacrificed Himself so that the requirement for sacrifices was complete forever.
Saturday, April 14, 2012
Hebrews 6
http://www.esvbible.org/Hebrews+6/
The author of Hebrews says that he shouldn't have to keep going over the elementary things because, while they are an important foundation to start with, there is so much more that we should learn in order to fulfill our highest potential in Christ. Some people once found salvation, and they even experienced God and what the powers of His love can do; however, they ended up deserting Christ. By disgracing Him publicly, the author of hebrews compares it with crucifying Christ a second time. He also says that they cannot be led back to Christ. Once they've been there, and they turn away for some reason, they are lost forever. You cannot convince them to make right with God. God blesses the Earth and often lets rain fall on it. This rain produces useful crops; however, if it produces thorns and thistles, they are worthless and will be burned. If God pours into you, and you use that to praise Him, worship Him, and pour into others, you are useful to Him. On the other hand, it He pours into you, and you turn away from Him with a hard heart, nothing can help you. You will eventually end up in Hell.
Even though the author of Hebrews seems to be convicting his audience, he says he only does so because he knows that God has great things in store for these people. They have done great things, and God will remember that. God will remember the things you do for Him and reward you based on your intentions. We should all work hard to prove that we are confident in what we have placed our faith in. Then, we won't be lazy but will follow the example of those who receive the promises with faith and patience. When God first made an oath to Abraham, He had no one on whom to make the oath, so He made it on Himself. People make oaths on people higher than themselves to set up credibility. If they don't fulfill the oath, the oath breaker has to respond to the higher authority. There is no one greater than God, so He can only make oaths on Himself. God cannot break His oaths, and He has proved this because He never has. God made His oaths to encourage us, that we have the chance of one day living in His presence. Those of us who believe hold onto these constants as anchors for our lives.
The author of Hebrews says that he shouldn't have to keep going over the elementary things because, while they are an important foundation to start with, there is so much more that we should learn in order to fulfill our highest potential in Christ. Some people once found salvation, and they even experienced God and what the powers of His love can do; however, they ended up deserting Christ. By disgracing Him publicly, the author of hebrews compares it with crucifying Christ a second time. He also says that they cannot be led back to Christ. Once they've been there, and they turn away for some reason, they are lost forever. You cannot convince them to make right with God. God blesses the Earth and often lets rain fall on it. This rain produces useful crops; however, if it produces thorns and thistles, they are worthless and will be burned. If God pours into you, and you use that to praise Him, worship Him, and pour into others, you are useful to Him. On the other hand, it He pours into you, and you turn away from Him with a hard heart, nothing can help you. You will eventually end up in Hell.
Even though the author of Hebrews seems to be convicting his audience, he says he only does so because he knows that God has great things in store for these people. They have done great things, and God will remember that. God will remember the things you do for Him and reward you based on your intentions. We should all work hard to prove that we are confident in what we have placed our faith in. Then, we won't be lazy but will follow the example of those who receive the promises with faith and patience. When God first made an oath to Abraham, He had no one on whom to make the oath, so He made it on Himself. People make oaths on people higher than themselves to set up credibility. If they don't fulfill the oath, the oath breaker has to respond to the higher authority. There is no one greater than God, so He can only make oaths on Himself. God cannot break His oaths, and He has proved this because He never has. God made His oaths to encourage us, that we have the chance of one day living in His presence. Those of us who believe hold onto these constants as anchors for our lives.
Hebrews 5
http://www.esvbible.org/Hebrews+5/
Our chief priests here on Earth are chosen from humans to represent humans before God. They offer gifts and sacrifices for sins. The chief priest is someone who is gentle and kind to those who are ignorant and easily deceived because he knows he also has weaknesses. Because of his weaknesses, he also offers sacrifices for himself. This paragraph gives some more proof to Jesus being the highest of chief priests. He does not have weaknesses. He does not need to make sacrifices on His own behalf, but He made the biggest sacrifice on behalf of all the people. No one chooses themselves to be chief priest, but God calls them, just as He called Aaron. Today, God still calls men and women to pastor churches. They don't choose to do so without a calling, and if, for some reason, they do, they fail. In the same way, Jesus dod not choose to be the highest among chief priests. Instead, God chose Him when He said Jesus is His son. In another place, He says that Jesus will be the high priest. Jesus prayed to God, and God listened to Jesus because of His obedience. Another important lesson to learn from Jesus is obedience. An important note about obedience is that it is not required to receive salvation, but it is something that we do if we truly believe and have received that salvation. Jesus even learned how to be obedient through suffering. Many times, people fall away from God when they experience suffering, but it is in those moments when we should hold onto God and our devotion to Him the strongest. Because of Jesus' great obedience, it is through Him that salvation comes.
The author of Hebrews wants to explain so much more to the Hebrew people who have converted into Christianity, but he says they are not ready because they are lazy. He tells them that they should be ready to teach others at this point, but they have not grown in their faith, so they stay spiritually as infants. For this reason, quiet time is important because it is a time when a lot of learning occurs. It is also why church is important because we get to hear the truth that God has placed on a pastor's heart to teach to you on that day. If you are spiritually an infant, you still can only take in the basics, and you can't really learn the stuff that's very deep. With spiritual maturity comes the ability to apply God's teachings and see the differences between right and wrong.
Our chief priests here on Earth are chosen from humans to represent humans before God. They offer gifts and sacrifices for sins. The chief priest is someone who is gentle and kind to those who are ignorant and easily deceived because he knows he also has weaknesses. Because of his weaknesses, he also offers sacrifices for himself. This paragraph gives some more proof to Jesus being the highest of chief priests. He does not have weaknesses. He does not need to make sacrifices on His own behalf, but He made the biggest sacrifice on behalf of all the people. No one chooses themselves to be chief priest, but God calls them, just as He called Aaron. Today, God still calls men and women to pastor churches. They don't choose to do so without a calling, and if, for some reason, they do, they fail. In the same way, Jesus dod not choose to be the highest among chief priests. Instead, God chose Him when He said Jesus is His son. In another place, He says that Jesus will be the high priest. Jesus prayed to God, and God listened to Jesus because of His obedience. Another important lesson to learn from Jesus is obedience. An important note about obedience is that it is not required to receive salvation, but it is something that we do if we truly believe and have received that salvation. Jesus even learned how to be obedient through suffering. Many times, people fall away from God when they experience suffering, but it is in those moments when we should hold onto God and our devotion to Him the strongest. Because of Jesus' great obedience, it is through Him that salvation comes.
The author of Hebrews wants to explain so much more to the Hebrew people who have converted into Christianity, but he says they are not ready because they are lazy. He tells them that they should be ready to teach others at this point, but they have not grown in their faith, so they stay spiritually as infants. For this reason, quiet time is important because it is a time when a lot of learning occurs. It is also why church is important because we get to hear the truth that God has placed on a pastor's heart to teach to you on that day. If you are spiritually an infant, you still can only take in the basics, and you can't really learn the stuff that's very deep. With spiritual maturity comes the ability to apply God's teachings and see the differences between right and wrong.
Hebrews 4
http://www.esvbible.org/Hebrews+4/
God made a promise that anyone who believes can enter into His place of rest. Some people think it is impossible to reach God's place of rest. A lot has to do with the Gospel. We hear the same Good News that people heard from the Old Testament, but it didn't help those people because they didn't believe. At that time, believing meant obeying all of the Laws of Moses. Today, it takes accepting Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. Because of the lack of belief and first sin, God declared that people cannot enter His place of rest. He did this after He finished creating the world and began His own rest on the seventh day of creation. God put such strict laws in place in order to enter His place of rest that very few people from the Old Testament times, if any, actually made it. God set up this time, in the present, as the time when anyone can enter His place of rest. You can only do it through Him, so if you hear God rising up in you, don't be stubborn. He means only to save you. A place of rest and worship with God exists. The people who are there did their work on Earth, and now they get to join God in His resting. We should do everything we can to enter the place of rest. God's word knows all. As we saw in John, God's word can mean the Bible and Jesus. He knows all, and all will have to answer to Him. When Judgement Day comes, no one can hide.
Most importantly, we need to hold onto the fact that our chief priest is someone who has been to Heaven. Our chief priest is Jesus. He can sympathize with our weaknesses because He was tempted in every way, just as we are. We can go to God's throne and receive mercy and kindness.
God made a promise that anyone who believes can enter into His place of rest. Some people think it is impossible to reach God's place of rest. A lot has to do with the Gospel. We hear the same Good News that people heard from the Old Testament, but it didn't help those people because they didn't believe. At that time, believing meant obeying all of the Laws of Moses. Today, it takes accepting Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. Because of the lack of belief and first sin, God declared that people cannot enter His place of rest. He did this after He finished creating the world and began His own rest on the seventh day of creation. God put such strict laws in place in order to enter His place of rest that very few people from the Old Testament times, if any, actually made it. God set up this time, in the present, as the time when anyone can enter His place of rest. You can only do it through Him, so if you hear God rising up in you, don't be stubborn. He means only to save you. A place of rest and worship with God exists. The people who are there did their work on Earth, and now they get to join God in His resting. We should do everything we can to enter the place of rest. God's word knows all. As we saw in John, God's word can mean the Bible and Jesus. He knows all, and all will have to answer to Him. When Judgement Day comes, no one can hide.
Most importantly, we need to hold onto the fact that our chief priest is someone who has been to Heaven. Our chief priest is Jesus. He can sympathize with our weaknesses because He was tempted in every way, just as we are. We can go to God's throne and receive mercy and kindness.
Wednesday, April 11, 2012
Hebrews 3
http://www.esvbible.org/Hebrews+3/
We saw this in the writings of Paul. Some Christians thought that they still had to follow Moses' teachings to get to Heaven. This belief was apparently a widespread one. Multiple Christian leaders are trying to help the people see their errors. The author of Hebrews gives a good illustration. Jesus is faithful to God; in fact, God appointed Him. In the same way, Moses was faithful when he served God. This is good foundation because the author of Hebrews is not saying that Moses was a false prophet. Moses did what God asked of Him in setting forth the laws. Moses is super important. But Jesus is more important. He has more credibility than Moses. Look at it in that the builder of a house deserves more praise than the house itself. The house didn't do anything for itself except what the builder told it to do. Moses served as a servant in God's house faithfully, but Jesus is the Son in charge of the house. He makes the rules. We should listen to Him over a servant. We must be careful to listen because God led the people out of Egypt, but they turned away from Him, mistrusted Him, and even stopped believing in Him. God punished them, let them die in the desert, and did not allow them entrance to His Kingdom. We can learn from their mistakes. To get to the Kingdom of God, we must trust God and Jesus and not other people.
We saw this in the writings of Paul. Some Christians thought that they still had to follow Moses' teachings to get to Heaven. This belief was apparently a widespread one. Multiple Christian leaders are trying to help the people see their errors. The author of Hebrews gives a good illustration. Jesus is faithful to God; in fact, God appointed Him. In the same way, Moses was faithful when he served God. This is good foundation because the author of Hebrews is not saying that Moses was a false prophet. Moses did what God asked of Him in setting forth the laws. Moses is super important. But Jesus is more important. He has more credibility than Moses. Look at it in that the builder of a house deserves more praise than the house itself. The house didn't do anything for itself except what the builder told it to do. Moses served as a servant in God's house faithfully, but Jesus is the Son in charge of the house. He makes the rules. We should listen to Him over a servant. We must be careful to listen because God led the people out of Egypt, but they turned away from Him, mistrusted Him, and even stopped believing in Him. God punished them, let them die in the desert, and did not allow them entrance to His Kingdom. We can learn from their mistakes. To get to the Kingdom of God, we must trust God and Jesus and not other people.
Hebrews 2
http://www.esvbible.org/Hebrews+2/
We must heed what we've been told, so that we do not drift away from the Truth. Remember that the angels bring a reliable message. They are completely of and for God. Everything they do is ordained by Him. They are His messengers. How do we know this? First, Jesus Himself came and declared these things. Since He left no written record personally, those who followed Him wrote what they learned from Him through His message, and thereby confirmed what Jesus had said. Finally, God performed miracles through these people as confirmation that they had His favor. The author of Hebrews again discusses how the angels are not as powerful as many people think. The world is not under their control. God put the world under Jesus' control, and when He did so, He left nothing out. Nothing on this Earth exists that is outside of Jesus' control, even pain and suffering that seem like they can only come from evil. Be reassured that Jesus does not give you more than you can handle or are ready for. After all, how would we know how great the good times are if we didn't have a few bad times here and there. I love when the author of Hebrews says that we do not yet know everything that is under Jesus' control. Think of all there is left to come. All of it is under Jesus' control. Nothing escapes Him; nothing surprises Hi. We serve an all powerful God who is so in control that He beat even death. As Jesus says in Matthew, "I have overcome the world."
Jesus makes people holy when they come to Him, and since all who are holy have God as their Heavenly Father, He is not ashamed to call us His brothers and sisters. Jesus says that He brags about us and praises our good works through Him. Since we, the sons and daughters that God gave Jesus, are flesh and blood, Jesus became flesh and blood to save us. How could He save those He did not empathize with? The biggest moment of all of this is when He defeated death and the one who has power over it. The author of Hebrews indirectly asks a question that the Holy Spirit asks all of us who shy away from things: What are you afraid of? Why are you afraid of dying? Jesus conquered everything. He was tempted, just as we are tempted. He experienced the same trials and emotions that we go through. The devil himself had a conversation with Jesus to mar Jesus' holiness. Jesus defeated him. Jesus defeated everything that defeats us. Now, He can defeat it for us. If you struggle with something or are a slave to something, go to Him, and He will free you. That's why He came in the first place. Don't take away from His glory. Also, everybody dies. There are all of three people who never died. One is of course, Jesus Himself; one is a descendant of Adam and Eve, who "walked to Heaven with God;" and one is Elijah. That's it! You're gonna die. But it doesn't matter because when Jesus came, He made us right with God. Through Him, we can live in God's presence forever. What's so scary about death now? Jesus gave His life for us. Why are we not willing to do the same for Him?
We must heed what we've been told, so that we do not drift away from the Truth. Remember that the angels bring a reliable message. They are completely of and for God. Everything they do is ordained by Him. They are His messengers. How do we know this? First, Jesus Himself came and declared these things. Since He left no written record personally, those who followed Him wrote what they learned from Him through His message, and thereby confirmed what Jesus had said. Finally, God performed miracles through these people as confirmation that they had His favor. The author of Hebrews again discusses how the angels are not as powerful as many people think. The world is not under their control. God put the world under Jesus' control, and when He did so, He left nothing out. Nothing on this Earth exists that is outside of Jesus' control, even pain and suffering that seem like they can only come from evil. Be reassured that Jesus does not give you more than you can handle or are ready for. After all, how would we know how great the good times are if we didn't have a few bad times here and there. I love when the author of Hebrews says that we do not yet know everything that is under Jesus' control. Think of all there is left to come. All of it is under Jesus' control. Nothing escapes Him; nothing surprises Hi. We serve an all powerful God who is so in control that He beat even death. As Jesus says in Matthew, "I have overcome the world."
Jesus makes people holy when they come to Him, and since all who are holy have God as their Heavenly Father, He is not ashamed to call us His brothers and sisters. Jesus says that He brags about us and praises our good works through Him. Since we, the sons and daughters that God gave Jesus, are flesh and blood, Jesus became flesh and blood to save us. How could He save those He did not empathize with? The biggest moment of all of this is when He defeated death and the one who has power over it. The author of Hebrews indirectly asks a question that the Holy Spirit asks all of us who shy away from things: What are you afraid of? Why are you afraid of dying? Jesus conquered everything. He was tempted, just as we are tempted. He experienced the same trials and emotions that we go through. The devil himself had a conversation with Jesus to mar Jesus' holiness. Jesus defeated him. Jesus defeated everything that defeats us. Now, He can defeat it for us. If you struggle with something or are a slave to something, go to Him, and He will free you. That's why He came in the first place. Don't take away from His glory. Also, everybody dies. There are all of three people who never died. One is of course, Jesus Himself; one is a descendant of Adam and Eve, who "walked to Heaven with God;" and one is Elijah. That's it! You're gonna die. But it doesn't matter because when Jesus came, He made us right with God. Through Him, we can live in God's presence forever. What's so scary about death now? Jesus gave His life for us. Why are we not willing to do the same for Him?
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