Friday, December 20, 2013
Hebrews 13, the final section of our Hebrews study outline
Hebrews 13
1) Brotherly love is of primary concern: For unity within the Church; for witness to the world; for effective ministry.
Who is my brother? – Gal.6:10 – “Especially those who are of the household of the faith.”
Eph. 2:18-19 – “You are of God’s household.” I Jn.3:1-2 –“We (believers) are the children of God.” There is to be a special bond of love between the members of the Body of Jesus Christ that goes beyond earthly ties of brotherhood, or love of neighbor and certainly beyond love of enemies. Jn.13:35 – “By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
2) Hospitality for its own sake is in view here; the angel thing is secondary but important. Angels are real and they walk among us, period.
3) The prisoners in view here are the ones that have been in view all along (Heb.10:34); Christians who are persecuted and in prison for their faith in Christ. They are members of “the body” as the text states. If you want to visit criminals that are in jail for civil crimes that’s fine, it is just not a biblical mandate as some have interpreted it to be.
4) We live in a strange day when marriage is under attack and is no longer considered to be what it once was. The term marriage has been redefined and is no longer “honorable” as defined here in the bible. Surely this is a sign of the end of the age (II Tim.3:1-5) and of the demise of the Judeo-Christian ethic in America and of the perversion of morality in our modern world.
5) “Let your character be free from love of money.” (Not greedy but liberal and generous). Obviously this is something we can do or it wouldn’t be stated this way.
In other words – don’t be consumed with the pursuit of wealth to the point of losing sight of your dependence upon God’s desire, ability and promise to provide for your daily needs if you will ask Him. Our character is not set in stone. With the help of the Holy Spirit we can develop a more godly one. To lose sight of this is a trap to be avoided and one we can easily fall into. I Tim.6:6 – Godliness with contentment is great gain. II Cor.9:7- God loves a cheerful giver. Phil.4:11-13 - I have learned to be content...I can do all things through Christ (in all circumstances concerning want or in plenty). Phil.4:19 - My God shall supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus. Mt.6:11 – “Give us this day our daily bread.”
Jas.4:2-3 – You have not because you ask not... or you ask with wrong motives.
Mat.6:31-34 – “Do not be anxious then...about food, drink or clothing...God knows that you need these things. Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added to you.”
6) “What shall man do to me?” Ultimately, concerning eternal things, man can do nothing to the child of God; but here in this world and for now in this time, unfortunately, man can do much in many ways. We live in a world filled with evil and evil doers. We have God’s promises to sustain us, but do not be deceived by misapplying those promises. Christians are not exempt from the consequences of the actions of evil men in the world. Particularly of such men who may be in positions of worldly power. But remember – “I have overcome the world!” Jn.16:33.
7) Beginning with the Apostles and including evangelist, teachers and pastors. This admonition is predicated upon the fact that God is the one who appoints the proper leaders in the Church. Eph.4:11.
The immutability of Jesus Christ; an attribute of deity only. Heb.1:10-12. Any teaching that would alter or reinterpret the original teachings of Jesus is to be rejected. Gal.1:6-9
9) There seems to be no end to the strange teachings that keep coming around, to challenge our complete salvation and freedom in Christ. A tenacious and persistent strange teaching (the particular one in view here again) is the ever present call to return to the bondage of the Law, including the dietary restrictions.
10) The food that we partake of from our altar; (“our altar” is the cross symbolically, or more literally that which is in heaven – see Heb.9:12; Rev.1:5). Our food is the Bread of Life. Jn.6:35.
Those that find Christ’s sacrifice to be insufficient and desire to be under the Law have disqualified themselves from partaking of the true life giving Bread.
11-12) The historical prophetic parallel between Old Covenant animal sacrifice and the one final New Covenant sacrifice is illuminated. What may have seemed like an insignificant detail is highlighted as a profound foreshadow of the necessity of the separation of the old from the new.
13) Let’s follow Jesus and leave the old behind.
14) Again; this world is about to pass away; God has promised to provide a new and unshakable home for us in the world to come; how foolish to cling to this world and loose the next world, which is far better.
15) Our “sacrifice of praise” includes our personal testimony of faith in Christ, our public praise and thanksgiving to God for His grace and mercy and our sharing of the gospel with others.
16) Do good to all men, as much as lies within your control and share the blessings of God in your life with others. Heb.12:14; Ro.15:19;
17) God has established a hierarchy in the Church; in the home; and in government. Eph.5:23; Ro.13:1.
18-19) A personal request from the author; he obviously believed in the power of prayer and he sought the support of the brethren through prayer on his behalf, so should we.
29-21) The beautiful Hebrews benediction;
Now the God of peace, who brought up from the dead the great Shepherd of the sheep through the blood of the eternal covenant, even Jesus our Lord, equip you in every good thing to do His will, working in us that which is pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.
22) He is saying “Please take to heart what I have said!” This expresses every teacher’s desire for his students. “I have written to you briefly.” I have kept it short, sweet and to the point. Or perhaps an alternate meaning could be to say “I have written to you with urgency.”
23) We are part of a great community of mutual care and concern. Circumstances are in flux.
24) Personal and corporate greetings from saints to saints.
25) “Grace be with you all.” May I add, Amen.
Hebrews 12:18-24 - chart
As we approach the last chapter of the book of Hebrews the author is focusing on some of the key topics that he has addressed within the letter. He is again emphasising the superiority of the New Covenant that is for the followers of Christ over the Old covenant of the Law. He uses an analogy, found in 12:18-24 to make his strong point. He compares the bondage of Mt. Sinai to the freedom of Mt. Zion.
I have covered this material in the previous outline (found below) but I thought a chart would be helpful to further illustrate the point. I have included a third mountain in my analysis, Mt. Calvary.
Gal.4:21-31 – Tell me, you who want to be under the law, do you not listen to the Law?
The present Jerusalem (slaves under the Law) and the Jerusalem above (free under grace).
Children according to the flesh and children according to promise.
Children of a bond woman and children of the free woman.
I have covered this material in the previous outline (found below) but I thought a chart would be helpful to further illustrate the point. I have included a third mountain in my analysis, Mt. Calvary.
Gal.4:21-31 – Tell me, you who want to be under the law, do you not listen to the Law?
The present Jerusalem (slaves under the Law) and the Jerusalem above (free under grace).
Children according to the flesh and children according to promise.
Children of a bond woman and children of the free woman.
Tuesday, December 3, 2013
Hebrews 12:14-29
Hebrews 12:14-29
14) The hallmarks of a child of God: Peace and Holiness. (At least they should be)
Peacemaker – pursue/ follow peace with all men.
Mt.5:9 – Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the sons of God.
Ro.14:4-23 – seek peace in relation to the weaker brother, for his sake.
Gal.5:22-23 – the fruit of the Spirit is peace, seek to develop the attitude of a peacemaker.
Eph.4:1-7 – be diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
I Thes.5:14-15 – help the weak, be patient with all men.
II Tim.2:22-26 – pursue peace and don’t be quarrelsome but gentle when correcting.
Jas.3:17-18 – But the wisdom from above is first pure (holy and undefiled), then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy.
And the seed whose fruit is righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.
I Pet.3:8-11 – seek peace and pursue it.
Sanctified life – pursue/ follow holiness; in order to see (know) the Lord.
I Pet.1:16 – “You shall be holy, for I am holy.”
Ro.6:22-23 – Having been freed from sin and enslaved to God, you derive your benefit, resulting in sanctification, and the outcome, eternal life. (Whereas before you lived under the curse of death as the result of your sinful actions, your wages; now it is God who is at work producing holiness and a sanctified life; eternal life); Christ is our sanctifier – Heb.2:10-11.
II Cor.6:17 – “Therefore, come out from their midst and be separate,” says the Lord, “And do not touch what is unclean.”
II Cor.7:1 – let us cleanse ourselves from all defilement of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.
Phil.3:7-14 – the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith ... Not that I have already attained it or have already become perfect ... I press onward toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.
I Thes.3:12-3 – may the Lord cause you to increase and abound in love for one another, and for all men ... may He establish your hearts unblamable in holiness.
Heb.12:10 – He disciplines us for our own good that we may share in His holiness.
I Pet.3:10-13 – What kind of people should we be?
Without sanctification and holiness one cannot see the Lord. (Now or in the future).
Mt.5:8 – Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.
I Cor.13;12 – Then we shall see face to face.
Eph.5:1-9 – no immoral or impure person or covetous man, who is an idolater, has an inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.
I Jn.3:2-8 – no one who practices sin has seen Him or knows Him.
Rev.22:3-4 – His bond servants shall serve Him; and they shall see His Face.
15) See to it! This is something that we must do ourselves.
Live in the fullness of the grace of God.
Be on the lookout for bitterness in the fellowship because it can defile many.
16) Esau desired the material world with its comforts and appetites over the spiritual realm and the promise of better things to come. Be aware that this same spirit of worldliness is alive and well in the Church today and it is deadly.
17) There is a point of no return and there are consequences to our choices and to our actions.
18-21) The characteristics of the Old Covenant are highlighted to remind those who were desirous of returning to it, of the grave consequences of failing to keep it perfectly.
From the very beginning at Mt. Sinai it was a fearful thing; ominous and threatening- Ex.19:10-25; 20:18-22.
As we have seen throughout this entire epistle, this was a constant issue with these folks (Hebrew believers), they wanted to return to the familiarity of the Law.
Unfortunately, this problem has not gone away; many who declare themselves to be members of the blood bought Church of Jesus Christ are still seeking to be justified or to maintain their justification by keeping the Old Covenant laws, or by following some other set of rules and regulations.
It is the age old question of salvation by Grace alone through Faith in Christ alone versus Salvation through some kind of self performed works (Autosoterism/ self- salvation).
Ro.319-20 – No one will be declared righteous in His sight by keeping the Law.
Ro.6:14 – You are not under the Law.
Gal.2:15-21 – A man is not justified by observing the Law... I do not set aside the Grace of God,
For if righteousness could be gained through the Law, then Christ died for nothing.
Gal.3:6-14 – All who rely on observing the Law are under a curse.
Deut.27:26 – The Law requires complete obedience and conformity to all of its requirements. It is not possible for one to be justified by keeping the Law imperfectly; No man, with the exception of Jesus Christ, ever kept the Law perfectly. Therefore, no man outside of Jesus Christ can ever be justified by keeping the Law. Only cursing can come from trying and failing to keep the Law.
Ro.10:4 – Jesus Christ is the end of the Law for righteousness to everyone who believes.
22-24) For the purpose of contrast; the characteristics of the New Covenant are highlighted.
The differences between the dispensation of the Law and the dispensation of Grace are striking and obvious to see.
We have come to Mt. Zion and the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem.
Phil.3:20 - Our citizenship is in heaven
Lk.10:20 – “Rejoice that your names are recorded in heaven.”
Eph.1:4 – He chose us, in Christ, before the foundation of the world.
Rev.13:8 – The names of the saved have been written in the Lambs Book of Life since before the foundation of the world.
(This is the correct understanding of this text. The order of the sentence structure in the Greek has caused some confusion as to the proper translation into English.
A proper smooth translation reads – “And all who dwell on the earth will worship him, everyone whose name has not been written from the foundation of the world, in the book of Life of the Lamb who has been slain.”)
25) “Do not refuse Him” (Jesus, the mediator of a New Covenant); “Take heed to the warning.” The implications are obvious; we are required to respond to the call of God and equally obviously we are capable of refusing to do so. “Do not turn away from Him who warns from heaven.”
Gal.4:21-31 – Tell me, you who want to be under the law, do you not listen to the Law?
The present Jerusalem (slaves under the Law) and the Jerusalem above (free under grace).
Children according to the flesh and children according to promise.
Children of a bond woman and children of the free woman.
26) His voice shook the earth then – Ex.19:18.
He has promised – Yet once more I will shake not only the earth, but also the heavens – Hag.2:6.
II Pet.3:10 – The heavens and the earth will pass away with a roar.
27) “Yet once more” – A removing of the old (world) and the replacing with the new (heavens and earth) – Hag.2:1-7 – The new will be far better than the old. (Just like the temple).
Heb.1:10-12 – He created them in the 1st place and He will recreate them. They will be changed.
Is.13:13; 34:4; 65:17; Ezek.38:20; Joel 3:16; Mt.24:35; Rev.21:1-7, 20-22.
28) Therefore; we have reason to rejoice like never before!
Rev.11:15-19 – “The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of His Christ; and He shall reign for ever and ever.” This is a prophecy that has yet to be fulfilled.
(The entire 2nd half of the Great Tribulation period is released at the blowing of the 7th trumpet. All of the bowl judgments are “contained”, as it were, in the 7th trumpet. This declaration by the voice and that of the 24 elders are proleptic, they are made in the aeviternal heaven and amount to a declaration of the certainty of the outcome; following the initiation of the events mentioned, by the blowing of the trumpet. The statements are in the aorist tense, indicating a completed action that continues into the future; this is an affirmation that all of this will come to pass without fail.)
Mt.6: 10 – “Thy kingdom come!”
Mt. 25:34 – Come, now, finally, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.
It is an eternal, unshakable kingdom – Is.9:7; Dan.2:44; 7:14, 27; Lk.1:33; I Pet.1:4-5.
Let us show gratitude to God, in practical ways.
Ro.12:1-2 – I urge you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship...
With reverence and awe.
Ps.2:11 – Serve the Lord with fear, and rejoice with trembling.
Ps.89:7 – God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints, and to be had in reverence of all them that are about Him.
Rev.15:1-4 – Who shall not fear thee, O Lord, and glorify Thy name? (Before the bowls).
29) Our God is a consuming fire! (Deut.4:24).
Ex.24:17 – Like a devouring fire in the eyes of the children of Israel.
Ps.97:1-6 – A fire goes before Him and burns up His enemies.
Is.66:15-16 – For behold, the Lord will come in fire,
The Lord will execute judgment by fire and by His sword on all flesh.
Out with the old and in with the new.
All things that defile God’s good creation will be done away with.
Back to II Pet.3:1-18 – But by His word the present heavens and earth are being reserved for fire, kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.... But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up. Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be destroyed by burning, and the elements will melt with intense heat! But according to His promise we are looking for new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells.
All of the biblical writers are emphasizing the same thing; we have tremendous reasons to be grateful to God for our future inheritance of the eternal, unshakable, holy and pure kingdom of God. This should serve to inspire us and cause us to want to offer back to God our very best worship and service. This world is not our final home; there is a better one coming for us, soon!
14) The hallmarks of a child of God: Peace and Holiness. (At least they should be)
Peacemaker – pursue/ follow peace with all men.
Mt.5:9 – Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the sons of God.
Ro.14:4-23 – seek peace in relation to the weaker brother, for his sake.
Gal.5:22-23 – the fruit of the Spirit is peace, seek to develop the attitude of a peacemaker.
Eph.4:1-7 – be diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
I Thes.5:14-15 – help the weak, be patient with all men.
II Tim.2:22-26 – pursue peace and don’t be quarrelsome but gentle when correcting.
Jas.3:17-18 – But the wisdom from above is first pure (holy and undefiled), then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy.
And the seed whose fruit is righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.
I Pet.3:8-11 – seek peace and pursue it.
Sanctified life – pursue/ follow holiness; in order to see (know) the Lord.
I Pet.1:16 – “You shall be holy, for I am holy.”
Ro.6:22-23 – Having been freed from sin and enslaved to God, you derive your benefit, resulting in sanctification, and the outcome, eternal life. (Whereas before you lived under the curse of death as the result of your sinful actions, your wages; now it is God who is at work producing holiness and a sanctified life; eternal life); Christ is our sanctifier – Heb.2:10-11.
II Cor.6:17 – “Therefore, come out from their midst and be separate,” says the Lord, “And do not touch what is unclean.”
II Cor.7:1 – let us cleanse ourselves from all defilement of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.
Phil.3:7-14 – the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith ... Not that I have already attained it or have already become perfect ... I press onward toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.
I Thes.3:12-3 – may the Lord cause you to increase and abound in love for one another, and for all men ... may He establish your hearts unblamable in holiness.
Heb.12:10 – He disciplines us for our own good that we may share in His holiness.
I Pet.3:10-13 – What kind of people should we be?
Without sanctification and holiness one cannot see the Lord. (Now or in the future).
Mt.5:8 – Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.
I Cor.13;12 – Then we shall see face to face.
Eph.5:1-9 – no immoral or impure person or covetous man, who is an idolater, has an inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.
I Jn.3:2-8 – no one who practices sin has seen Him or knows Him.
Rev.22:3-4 – His bond servants shall serve Him; and they shall see His Face.
15) See to it! This is something that we must do ourselves.
Live in the fullness of the grace of God.
Be on the lookout for bitterness in the fellowship because it can defile many.
16) Esau desired the material world with its comforts and appetites over the spiritual realm and the promise of better things to come. Be aware that this same spirit of worldliness is alive and well in the Church today and it is deadly.
17) There is a point of no return and there are consequences to our choices and to our actions.
18-21) The characteristics of the Old Covenant are highlighted to remind those who were desirous of returning to it, of the grave consequences of failing to keep it perfectly.
From the very beginning at Mt. Sinai it was a fearful thing; ominous and threatening- Ex.19:10-25; 20:18-22.
As we have seen throughout this entire epistle, this was a constant issue with these folks (Hebrew believers), they wanted to return to the familiarity of the Law.
Unfortunately, this problem has not gone away; many who declare themselves to be members of the blood bought Church of Jesus Christ are still seeking to be justified or to maintain their justification by keeping the Old Covenant laws, or by following some other set of rules and regulations.
It is the age old question of salvation by Grace alone through Faith in Christ alone versus Salvation through some kind of self performed works (Autosoterism/ self- salvation).
Ro.319-20 – No one will be declared righteous in His sight by keeping the Law.
Ro.6:14 – You are not under the Law.
Gal.2:15-21 – A man is not justified by observing the Law... I do not set aside the Grace of God,
For if righteousness could be gained through the Law, then Christ died for nothing.
Gal.3:6-14 – All who rely on observing the Law are under a curse.
Deut.27:26 – The Law requires complete obedience and conformity to all of its requirements. It is not possible for one to be justified by keeping the Law imperfectly; No man, with the exception of Jesus Christ, ever kept the Law perfectly. Therefore, no man outside of Jesus Christ can ever be justified by keeping the Law. Only cursing can come from trying and failing to keep the Law.
Ro.10:4 – Jesus Christ is the end of the Law for righteousness to everyone who believes.
22-24) For the purpose of contrast; the characteristics of the New Covenant are highlighted.
The differences between the dispensation of the Law and the dispensation of Grace are striking and obvious to see.
We have come to Mt. Zion and the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem.
Phil.3:20 - Our citizenship is in heaven
Lk.10:20 – “Rejoice that your names are recorded in heaven.”
Eph.1:4 – He chose us, in Christ, before the foundation of the world.
Rev.13:8 – The names of the saved have been written in the Lambs Book of Life since before the foundation of the world.
(This is the correct understanding of this text. The order of the sentence structure in the Greek has caused some confusion as to the proper translation into English.
A proper smooth translation reads – “And all who dwell on the earth will worship him, everyone whose name has not been written from the foundation of the world, in the book of Life of the Lamb who has been slain.”)
25) “Do not refuse Him” (Jesus, the mediator of a New Covenant); “Take heed to the warning.” The implications are obvious; we are required to respond to the call of God and equally obviously we are capable of refusing to do so. “Do not turn away from Him who warns from heaven.”
Gal.4:21-31 – Tell me, you who want to be under the law, do you not listen to the Law?
The present Jerusalem (slaves under the Law) and the Jerusalem above (free under grace).
Children according to the flesh and children according to promise.
Children of a bond woman and children of the free woman.
26) His voice shook the earth then – Ex.19:18.
He has promised – Yet once more I will shake not only the earth, but also the heavens – Hag.2:6.
II Pet.3:10 – The heavens and the earth will pass away with a roar.
27) “Yet once more” – A removing of the old (world) and the replacing with the new (heavens and earth) – Hag.2:1-7 – The new will be far better than the old. (Just like the temple).
Heb.1:10-12 – He created them in the 1st place and He will recreate them. They will be changed.
Is.13:13; 34:4; 65:17; Ezek.38:20; Joel 3:16; Mt.24:35; Rev.21:1-7, 20-22.
28) Therefore; we have reason to rejoice like never before!
Rev.11:15-19 – “The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of His Christ; and He shall reign for ever and ever.” This is a prophecy that has yet to be fulfilled.
(The entire 2nd half of the Great Tribulation period is released at the blowing of the 7th trumpet. All of the bowl judgments are “contained”, as it were, in the 7th trumpet. This declaration by the voice and that of the 24 elders are proleptic, they are made in the aeviternal heaven and amount to a declaration of the certainty of the outcome; following the initiation of the events mentioned, by the blowing of the trumpet. The statements are in the aorist tense, indicating a completed action that continues into the future; this is an affirmation that all of this will come to pass without fail.)
Mt.6: 10 – “Thy kingdom come!”
Mt. 25:34 – Come, now, finally, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.
It is an eternal, unshakable kingdom – Is.9:7; Dan.2:44; 7:14, 27; Lk.1:33; I Pet.1:4-5.
Let us show gratitude to God, in practical ways.
Ro.12:1-2 – I urge you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship...
With reverence and awe.
Ps.2:11 – Serve the Lord with fear, and rejoice with trembling.
Ps.89:7 – God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints, and to be had in reverence of all them that are about Him.
Rev.15:1-4 – Who shall not fear thee, O Lord, and glorify Thy name? (Before the bowls).
29) Our God is a consuming fire! (Deut.4:24).
Ex.24:17 – Like a devouring fire in the eyes of the children of Israel.
Ps.97:1-6 – A fire goes before Him and burns up His enemies.
Is.66:15-16 – For behold, the Lord will come in fire,
The Lord will execute judgment by fire and by His sword on all flesh.
Out with the old and in with the new.
All things that defile God’s good creation will be done away with.
Back to II Pet.3:1-18 – But by His word the present heavens and earth are being reserved for fire, kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.... But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up. Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be destroyed by burning, and the elements will melt with intense heat! But according to His promise we are looking for new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells.
All of the biblical writers are emphasizing the same thing; we have tremendous reasons to be grateful to God for our future inheritance of the eternal, unshakable, holy and pure kingdom of God. This should serve to inspire us and cause us to want to offer back to God our very best worship and service. This world is not our final home; there is a better one coming for us, soon!
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