Hebrews - An introduction / Hebrews / Sermons

This morning, I would like us to begin looking at the New Testament letter of Hebrews. Hebrews is one of the most intriguing of all the letters found in the New Testament. But it is also one of the most important as it gives us the most profound discussion:

Of both the deity of Christ as well as his humanity.
Hebrews discusses Jesus as our "high priest", the one who offers sacrifices, as well as Jesus himself being the sacrifice for our sin.
Hebrews discusses the meaning and application of the "new covenant" which God made with humanity, the fulfilment of God's promise through the prophet Jeremiah, with the result that the “old covenant” no longer applies.
Not to mention that great discussion on faith, found in Hebrews 11.

But before we begin to look at these things in detail, one of the important things that we need to do in order to understand any of the letters in the New Testament is we need to look at why they were written. Not just the words that are written but what the historical circumstances were that caused them to be written.

According to the Jewish historian Josephus, in the year 66AD, a riot broke out in the city of Caesarea, along the Mediterranean coast. The riot was between Jews and Greeks, and it started when some Greeks sacrificed a bird in front of one of the Jewish Synagogues. The Roman soldiers, however, did nothing to stop the riot.

The Roman governor, Gessius Florus, used this as an excuse to send his troops into the temple where they confiscated seventeen talents of gold and silver.

But when the people mocked Florus for his greed, he had his soldiers attack, and they killed 3,600 men, women, and children.

In response, some attacked and conquered the Roman garrison at Masada, while the son of the High Priest convinced the others to stop the regular offering on behalf of Caesar, and a short time later the mob captured the Roman fortress in Jerusalem.

Following this, 20,000 Jews were massacred in Caesarea, and the Jews retaliated by taking towns and villages, killing all Syrians. The Syrians retaliated by taking villages and killing all Jews. Jews were also massacred in Alexandria.

In the face of riot and rebellion, Cestius Gallus, the Roman Legate of Syria, assembled around 30,000 soldiers, and marched into Galilee and Judea in an effort to restore control. Gallus quickly went through Galilee and dealt with the many problems there, and he finally came down into Judea, laid siege to Jerusalem, and nearly conquered the entire city.

For reasons which are not known, instead of conquering the city, he withdrew from Jerusalem and retreated to the coast, but on the way his army was trapped and defeated at the Battle of Beth Horon. The Romans lost 6,000 men in that battle, and what started out as a small riot in Caesarea over a bird sacrificed in front of a synagogue, turned into a full-scale war.

The Emperor Nero, who just two years prior to this had thrown blame for the great fire of Rome on Christians, and who had had both Paul and Peter executed, sent the future emperor Vespasian to lead three Roman Legions, plus the armies of other territories, to put down the rebellion, a total of some 60,000 soldiers. Little by little, Vespasian and his son Titus regained control of Galilee and Judea until they finally laid siege to Jerusalem in the year 70. For seven months the Romans besieged Jerusalem, until they finally breached the walls. Burned the city. Destroyed the temple. And either crucified or sent into slavery the defenders of Jerusalem. Josephus estimates that over one million people died in the siege of Jerusalem. By the time Jerusalem fell and the temple had been destroyed, they had experienced four years of war, suffering, and death. And it would be three more years until all of the fighting was done.

Now, you might be thinking that that is all a nice bit of history, but what does that have to do with the letter to the Hebrews? That's easy, for it is my conviction that this incident – from the riot in Caesarea in 66AD right up until the siege of Jerusalem in 70AD, all of this forms the historical backdrop to the letter to the Hebrews.

That is, these incidents help best to explain what the letter to the Hebrews contains.

And what we come to understand as we read the letter to the Hebrews is that it was written to a group of Jewish Christians who, because of the historical circumstances which existed in the years 66-70, these Jewish Christians were on the verge of abandoning faith in Jesus Christ, and turning back to Judaism.

Turning back to the temple.
Turning back to the law and the sacrifices.
And turning back to the priesthood of Aaron.

Hebrews was written to a group of Jewish Christians who, upon seeing all that was going on in Jerusalem.

Seeing all that was happening to their fellow Jews in Judea and Galilee.
Seeing the threat to Jerusalem and its temple.

They began to think:

Maybe we made a mistake in becoming Christians.
Maybe this is all the wrath of God upon us for following Jesus.
Maybe we should return to the 'old ways'. To the ways of Moses and the Law.

Now these were not "half-hearted" Christians. These were not "Christmas and Easter" Christians. These were believers in Jesus Christ, who had been faithful to Christ in the face of great suffering and struggle. We read about their faith and their faithfulness in Hebrews 10:32-34:

But recall those earlier days when, after you had been enlightened, you endured a hard struggle with sufferings, sometimes being publicly exposed to abuse and persecution, and sometimes being partners with those so treated. For you had compassion for those who were in prison, and you cheerfully accepted the plundering of your possessions, knowing that you yourselves possessed something better and more lasting.

These were men and women who, prior to everything that was happening in Judea and Galillee, these were men and women who had been faithful to the Gospel of Jesus Christ through the worst of persecutions and trials. And, if, like many scholars suggest, if this group were in Rome, then they would have suffered through the persecution of Christians brought about by Nero.

If we wanted to describe them by using Jesus' parable of the sower, these were not:

Hardened soil which refused to listen to the message.
They were not rocky soil, those who had received the message, but who were "shallow" in their faith, and who would not withstand "hard times". For we have seen that they were faithful in suffering, insults, persecution, and confiscation of property.
Nor were they the soil with "weeds" who were distracted by the pull of wealth.

No. These Christians were "good soil". These were those who had heard the message of salvation that we have through faith in Jesus Christ, and who had allowed this "good news" to sink deep within them and had produced fruit.

But if this is the case, then why were they now thinking of abandoning Christ, and returning to Judaism? After all, addressing that problem is the entire reason this letter was written.

Old Testament prophets such as Micah, Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel had all prophesied that, due to the sin and rebellion of the people in abandoning the worship of God, they had prophesied that God would send an enemy against them. An enemy who would lay siege to Jerusalem. Conquer the city. And destroy the Temple. And the writers of both Kings and Chronicles had shown how this had become a reality in the past history of the people.

And just after Solomon had finished building the first temple, dedicated it, and held a huge celebration in honour of God, God had said to Solomon in 2 Chronicles 7:19-22:

But if you turn aside and forsake my statutes and my commandments that I have set before you, and go and serve other gods and worship them, then I will pluck you up from the land that I have given you; and this house, which I have consecrated for my name, I will cast out of my sight, and will make it a proverb and a byword among all peoples. And regarding this house, now exalted, everyone passing by will be astonished, and say, ‘Why has the LORD done such a thing to this land and to this house?’ Then they will say, ‘Because they abandoned the LORD the God of their ancestors who brought them out of the land of Egypt, and they adopted other gods, and worshiped them and served them; therefore, he has brought all this calamity upon them.’

The Old Testament prophets regularly and consistently made it clear that if the people abandoned the worship of the Lord their God and turned and worshipped other gods, then the Lord would bring judgment upon their country and destroy their temple, which first happened in 586BC when Nebuchadnezzar attacked and captured Jerusalem, and destroyed the temple.

And although the temple was rebuilt during the reign of the Persians, and then totally rebuilt during the reign of Herod, as this group of Jewish Christians looked at the politics of their own day, they saw that the temple was in danger of being destroyed again.

And so, in the years 66-70AD, this group of Jewish Christians, who most probably lived in Rome, this group of people who had been born and raised within Judaism and who knew the message of the prophets, but who, when they heard the good news about Jesus Christ, had turned to him in repentance and in faith; when this group of people looked and saw all that was going on in Galilee, Judea, and Jerusalem, they stopped and asked themselves:

Is it our fault? Have we sinned? Is this because we turned from Judaism, and the temple, and the sacrifices, and the priesthood of Aaron and are now following Jesus?

After all, if turning away from the Lord brought about the destruction of the first temple, is our turning to Jesus bringing about the destruction of the second temple? And if this is the case, will our turning back to Judaism, the temple, and its sacrifices, will this change the situation that is going on in Judea at the moment?

And as they thought about these things, they started to "drift" away from Christ, and they began to "drift" back to Judaism. And notice that they began to "drift". They didn’t simply turn and reject Jesus. Instead, they took their eyes off of Jesus, and they began to "drift". They began to allow the tide of circumstances, life, politics, and the pressures of this world to overwhelm them, and they began to "drift". This is why he says in Hebrews 2:1:

Therefore, we must pay greater attention to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away from it.

And as part of their "drift" from faith in Christ, some began to refuse to meet with other followers of Jesus, and so we read in Hebrews 10:25 that they were commanded to:

Not neglect to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

And because they were cutting themselves off from the rest of the church, they were told in Hebrews 13:1-2:

Let mutual love continue. Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by doing that some have entertained angels without knowing it.

And as they started to drift from faith in Christ, they began to reject the teaching and encouragement of the pastors and leaders in the church, and so we read in Hebrews 13:17:

Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls and will give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with sighing—for that would be harmful to you.

And because they had started to drift from faith in Christ, the writer says to them in Hebrews 3:12:

Take care, brothers and sisters, that none of you may have an evil, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God.

Because they had started to drift from faith in Christ, their hearts were beginning to be hardened to the good news of Jesus, and so the writer says in Hebrews 3:13:

But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” so that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.

And notice that he says that to reject Jesus is to "turn away from the living God". To reject Jesus is to become the "hard soil" found in the parable of the sower. To turn away from Jesus is to be deceived by sin.

Because they were starting to drift from faith in Christ, they were told in Hebrews 10:32 to:

Recall those earlier days when, after you had been enlightened, you endured a hard struggle with sufferings.

Because their eyes and affections were on Judea, Jerusalem, and the Temple, they were told in Hebrews 12:2-3:

Looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the sake of the joy that was set before him endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such hostility against himself from sinners, so that you may not grow weary or lose heart.

Because they were feeling weak and helpless, they were told in Hebrews 12:12 to:

Lift up your drooping hands and strengthen your weak knees,

And because they were wondering if they needed to return to the temple and its sacrifices, they were told in Hebrews 13:16:

Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God.

Not the sacrifice of animals but the sacrifice of love and compassion.

The letter to the Hebrews was written to a group of people who were asking themselves, "should we continue to follow Jesus, and if so, 'why'"?

It is my conviction that this helps explain the background to this letter. It is my conviction that this is the entire reason this letter was written. The people were confused and distressed because of the events that were going on in the Middle East. The people were questioning their decision to follow Christ. The people were asking themselves:

Is what is happening there because of us?

Have we abandoned the true worship of God to follow Jesus?

Is that why all of this is going on?

And as the author seeks to help and encourage these believers, these Jewish Christians to maintain their faith in Jesus Christ, he repeatedly uses one word: "better".[1] He informs us, he teaches us, and he encourages us with the fact that what we have in Jesus is "better".

When I was a boy, seven, maybe eight years old, an old army buddy of my dad's came to visit. I don't remember the guy's name. I don't remember what he looked like. And I don't remember how long he stayed with us.

What I do remember, and about the only thing that I remember, is that he drove a Model "T" Ford. Beautiful cars. The wheels had wooden spokes. Leather seats. 2.9 litre, four-cylinder engine. Between 1917 and 1923, over 15,000,000 Model "T" Fords were produced, and the price actually dropped from $850 in 1909, to $260 in 1920. And this, in spite of the fact that Henry Ford nearly doubled his workers’ wages to $5 per day, with the result that one of his workers could buy a Model "T" with only four month's pay. I am not sure if we can do that with one of today's cars.

But do you know what? As beautiful as a Model "T" is, and they are beautiful cars to look at. As much as I wouldn't mind owning one. As marvellous as it would be to take one for a spin around the block every now and then. I would never want to drive one for any great distance.

A Model "T" had a three-speed transmission two forward gears, and one reverse.
It achieved a top speed of seventy kilometres per hour.
They got only sixteen miles per gallon of gas, which is less than seven kilometres per litre of petrol
A Model "T" didn't have a starter motor, so you had to hand crank the engine, and if you did it wrong, the hand crank could kick back and break your arm.
Because you had to start the cars in neutral, and the fact that the brakes were poor and didn't hold well when they were wet, when it was raining they had a bad habit of rolling while you tried to start them, and they were known to crush you.
The only air-conditioning was rolled down windows – if, that is your model had any windows.
No power steering.
No power brakes.
No automatic transmission.
No air bags when you ran into something.
No turn indicators.
No radio.
No CD player.
No suspension except some cheap old springs.

As beautiful as they were, and they were beautiful cars, why would I ever want to drive one of those things when I could drive something today that is so much "better".

And as we read Hebrews the author shows us that, although the temple with its priests and its sacrifices was "good" what we have now received in Jesus is "better". In Jesus, we have a better revelation than in the prophets, and we will look at this next week. In Jesus, we have a better revelation than the angels. And Jesus has a better name than the angels.

In Jesus, we have a "son", while in Moses, we only had a "servant".

In Jesus we have a better high priest than Aaron, for Aaron died, but Jesus lives forever.

In Jesus, we have a better hope. A better covenant. A better ministry. A better sacrifice which was made in a better tabernacle, a heavenly tabernacle.

In Jesus we have a better country, a better possession, a better resurrection, and a better message. Or, as our reading in Hebrews 7:11 talked about, in Jesus, we have "perfection". A perfection which, Hebrews 7:19 says, the law was incapable of bringing, and a perfection through which we can draw near to God.

In Jesus, everything is “better!”

And with all of the "better" things that Jesus brings, why would we want to go to anything else, because in Jesus, we already have that which is "better".

Why would we want to go back to driving a Model "T" across Australia in the middle of summer, when we could drive a Mercedes "S" class?

And with the “betterness” of Jesus, with the superiority of Jesus, with the greatness of Jesus, the author of Hebrews tells us that the old covenant with its temple, and priests, and sacrifices is all “obsolete,” as he says in Hebrews 8:13:

In speaking of “a new covenant,” he has made the first one obsolete. And what is obsolete and growing old will soon disappear.

And in this way he was saying to them:

Don’t worry about what you hear is happening in Jerusalem. The temple, the priesthood, the sacrifices, they are all part of the “old,” and they will soon disappear. Instead, keep your eyes on Jesus, the “new,” the one who is “better.”

The world is a dangerous place. A challenging place. And, at times, a very confusing place. And in this world of dangers, challenges, and confusion, many things try to sway us and persuade us to leave Jesus and follow them.

Many people try to tell us that they have all the answers, and if we just give our loyalty to them then they will make the world right.

Political parties and causes (the environment, or human rights, or even world peace) they all try to tell us that they are the means to a better world and all we need to do is follow them.

The worries of this world seek to overcome us.

The economy.
Yet another war in the Middle East
The ongoing war in Ukraine.
Famine in Africa.

And they all try to say that they are all-important, and we need to leave everything that we are doing, give ourselves to them, and follow them. They all try to say that we need to leave our current loyalties and follow them.

But this anonymous letter to a group of Jewish Christians reminds us that, in Jesus, we have "better". A better life. A better way. A better path. And a better future. And what we need is not to go rushing around from here to there, back and forth. What we need is to keep:

What we need is to:

Pay greater attention to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away from it.[3]

In the face of all of the challenges in this world, what we need is to:

Exhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” so that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.[4]

What we need is to:

not neglect meeting together, as is the habit of some, but encourage one another, and all the more as you see the Day approaching.[5]

And over the next, however long it takes, that is what we are going to do as we examine more carefully this great letter which was written to Christians in troubling times, just like our world is a troubled and confusing world.

And we will look at this letter which was written to encourage both them and us to an even greater faith in, and faithfulness to Jesus Christ.

Jesus: the one who is better.

[1] κρείσσων. Hebrews 1:4; 6:9; 7:7, 19, 22; 8:6; 9:23; 10:34; 11:16, 35, 40; 12:24. Thirteen of nineteen occurrences of κρείσσων are in Hebrews.

[2] Hebrews 12:2

[3] Hebrews 2:1

[4] Hebrews 3:13

[5] Hebrews 10:25