Chapter 5 ended with a discussion of milk vs. solid food. That conversation continues into chapter 6, in which we are encouraged to continue on to maturity, graduating past knowledge of simple, elementary truths about Christ. We are called to be "land that drinks in the rain", absorbing the blessing of knowing Him in life-changing ways. We follow Him, are transformed by Him, commit wholeheartedly to Him, and increasingly become able to obey Him and His teaching in our lives.
At the end of the chapter, we again see the picture of Jesus as our High Priest, the one who approaches the Father on our behalf, earning for us that which we could not earn for ourselves. His sacrifice makes atonement for our sins, serving as the "anchor" that secures our standing before a Holy God.
Friday, September 27, 2013
Friday, September 20, 2013
Hebrews 5 - Our High Priest and the Quest for Solid Food
Jesus has been appointed by the Father to represent us in matters related to God. He is our advocate. He is our defense attorney. And we are assured that His prayers on our behalf are heard because of His reverent submission.
Verse 9 strikes me as odd, where it says that Jesus "learned obedience from what he suffered, and once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him." I like the idea of Jesus being the source of our eternal salvation, if we choose to receive Him. I don't know quite what to make of Jesus needing to learn obedience or be made perfect. I guess it's time to do more digging on those ideas.
OK, just got back after using Google to see what ideas are out there. Found this and it makes sense to me...
Verse 8 refers to Jesus learning experientially what He would do to fully obey God's will for mankind. He became aware through experience what being obedient to God's will would entail for Him.
Verse 9 It was not until Jesus suffered the ordeal of the Cross that God fully qualified Him as the one sent to carry out to completion God's Redemptive Mission. This is specifically true of Christ's priestly duties in carrying out the redemptive mission.
The chapter ends with a pretty stern warning or chastising of those who ought to be further along in their understanding of the "elementary truths of God's word". I love the milk/solid food analogy. I don't want to live on milk but rather strive for maturity as God's grace enables me to comprehend more of who He is.
Verse 9 strikes me as odd, where it says that Jesus "learned obedience from what he suffered, and once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him." I like the idea of Jesus being the source of our eternal salvation, if we choose to receive Him. I don't know quite what to make of Jesus needing to learn obedience or be made perfect. I guess it's time to do more digging on those ideas.
OK, just got back after using Google to see what ideas are out there. Found this and it makes sense to me...
Verse 8 refers to Jesus learning experientially what He would do to fully obey God's will for mankind. He became aware through experience what being obedient to God's will would entail for Him.
Verse 9 It was not until Jesus suffered the ordeal of the Cross that God fully qualified Him as the one sent to carry out to completion God's Redemptive Mission. This is specifically true of Christ's priestly duties in carrying out the redemptive mission.
The chapter ends with a pretty stern warning or chastising of those who ought to be further along in their understanding of the "elementary truths of God's word". I love the milk/solid food analogy. I don't want to live on milk but rather strive for maturity as God's grace enables me to comprehend more of who He is.
Friday, September 13, 2013
Hebrews 4 - Approach With Confidence
The promise of entering his rest still stands (v. 1) for those who have believed (v. 3). Which reaffirms the idea from chapter 3, quoting the Psalms, "Today if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts". (v. 7).
We are reminded of the power of God's Word, that it is living and active (v. 12) and penetrates to judge the thoughts and attitudes of a person's heart (v. 12). We understand that God knows and sees all (v. 13) and that one day we will indeed give an account of our lives to Him (v. 13).
That sounds scary, doesn't it? And maybe it is. At the same time, "we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are -- yet was without sin. Let us approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need." (v. 15-16).
Life is hard. He is good.
We are reminded of the power of God's Word, that it is living and active (v. 12) and penetrates to judge the thoughts and attitudes of a person's heart (v. 12). We understand that God knows and sees all (v. 13) and that one day we will indeed give an account of our lives to Him (v. 13).
That sounds scary, doesn't it? And maybe it is. At the same time, "we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are -- yet was without sin. Let us approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need." (v. 15-16).
Life is hard. He is good.
Friday, September 6, 2013
Hebrews 3 - Do Not Harden Your Hearts
Verse 6 of this chapter - But Christ is faithful as the Son over God’s house. And we are his house, if indeed we hold firmly to our confidence and the hope in which we glory.
Think about that. We are His house if we hold firmly to our confidence and hope in Him. Nothing we do can earn this status for us, we simply must held faithfully to our hope that He is our Savior and our Redeemer. He is our King. He is infinitely good and desires to be in relationship with us more than we can imagine. Verses like this make me wonder if we won't be shocked when we enter His presence and begin to grasp just how in love with us our God really is.
Therefore it's repeated twice in the chapter, "if you hear his voice do not harden your heart". How often have I ignored his voice or hardened my heart against our Savior because of my lack of understanding and immaturity? My prayer for us all is that we would respond to His voice and our hearts would not be hardened, that we might all come to share in Christ (v. 14).
Think about that. We are His house if we hold firmly to our confidence and hope in Him. Nothing we do can earn this status for us, we simply must held faithfully to our hope that He is our Savior and our Redeemer. He is our King. He is infinitely good and desires to be in relationship with us more than we can imagine. Verses like this make me wonder if we won't be shocked when we enter His presence and begin to grasp just how in love with us our God really is.
Therefore it's repeated twice in the chapter, "if you hear his voice do not harden your heart". How often have I ignored his voice or hardened my heart against our Savior because of my lack of understanding and immaturity? My prayer for us all is that we would respond to His voice and our hearts would not be hardened, that we might all come to share in Christ (v. 14).
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