Hebrews 3:1-19

Teacher: Rusty Kennedy
Series: Hebrews

Rusty's Notes

OUR APOSTLE AND HIGH PRIEST
HEBREWS 3
1 Therefore, holy brothers and sisters,

• You are holy.
• You were a sinner saved by grace.
• You received total forgiveness… not partial.
• Now you are a saint.

who share in a heavenly calling,

• Philippians 3 – Citizens of heaven

consider Jesus,

• Pursue intimacy with Jesus.

the apostle (sent with w a message… the message of grace) and high priest of our confession.

• There was a priestly order.
• Priests approach God on the behalf of men.
• Jesus died so He could approach God on our behalf.

2 He was faithful to the one who appointed him, just as Moses was in all God’s household.

• Appointed as a prophet… when He came to earth.
• Currently serving as the High Priest for our sins.
• Will return as king.
• Moses was considered a faithful leader of the Jewish nation… but he was sinful.
• Jesus is the faithful leader and without sin.

3 For Jesus is considered worthy of more glory than Moses, just as the builder has more honor than the house.

• Hebrew 1:3 - The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact expression of his nature, sustaining all things by his powerful word.[1]
• John 1:14 - The Word became flesh and dwelt among us. We observed his glory, the glory as the one and only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.[2]
• Exodus 34 – Moses went to the top of Mt. Sinai.
• When he came down, the Glory of God was shining on his face.
• 2 Corinthians 3:7-11 - Now if the ministry that brought death, chiseled in letters on stones, came with glory, so that the Israelites were not able to gaze steadily at Moses’s face because of its glory, which was set aside, 8 how will the ministry of the Spirit not be more glorious? 9 For if the ministry that brought condemnation had glory, the ministry that brings righteousness overflows with even more glory. 10 In fact, what had been glorious is not glorious now by comparison because of the glory that surpasses it. 11 For if what was set aside was glorious, what endures will be even more glorious.[3]
• Jesus created the nation of Israel. Because He is the Creator.
• Is the Creator greater than the creation?

4 Now every house is built by someone, but the one who built everything is God.

• Hebrews 1:2 - In these last days, he has spoken to us by his Son. God has appointed him heir of all things and made the universe, through him.[4]
• Colossians 1:16 - For everything was created by him, in heaven and on earth, the visible and the invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through him and for him.[5]
• Jesus is God, but at the same time His own individual.

5 Moses was faithful as a servant in all God’s household, as a testimony to what would be said in the future.

• Moses was the greatest Jew alive in his time.
• Deuteronomy 18:18 - I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their brothers. I will put my words in his mouth, and he will tell them everything I command him.[6]
• Numbers 20:7-11 - The Lord spoke to Moses, 8 “Take the staff and assemble the community. You and your brother Aaron are to speak to the rock while they watch, and it will yield its water. You will bring out water for them from the rock and provide drink for the community and their livestock.”
• So Moses took the staff from the Lord’s presence just as he had commanded him. 10 Moses and Aaron summoned the assembly in front of the rock, and Moses said to them, “Listen, you rebels! Must we bring water out of this rock for you?” 11 Then Moses raised his hand and struck the rock twice with his staff, so that abundant water gushed out, and the community and their livestock drank.[7]
• When Moses struck the rock rather than speak to the rock, this was disobedience.
• 1 Corinthians 10:3-4 - They all ate the same spiritual food, 4 and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank from the spiritual rock that followed them, and that rock was Christ.[8]

6 But Christ was faithful as a Son over his household. And we are that household if we hold on to our confidence and the hope in which we boast.

• Moses was a servant.
• Jesus is the son.
• Who is the greatest?
• “And we are that household” – They needed the confidence of what they had already come to believe.
• They were being pressured to change their mind about their faith.
• They were being pressured to believe what they had already experienced and moved on from… continual sacrifices.
• We are constantly challenged in our faith… in what we believe.
• My Mom was always faithful to remind me about Jesus.
• She also reminded me about my behavior.
• But if I just focus on Jesus… He is going to take care of my behavior.

 
WARNING AGAINST UNBELIEF
7 Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says:

• Scripture is inspired by God.

Today, if you hear his voice,
8 do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion,
on the day of testing in the wilderness,
9 where your ancestors tested me, tried me,
and saw my works 10 for forty years.
Therefore, I was provoked to anger with that generation and said, “They always go astray in their hearts, and they have not known my ways.”
11 So I swore in my anger,
“They will not enter my rest.” (Psalm 95:7-11)

• That generation died in the wilderness, except Joshua and Caleb.
• In Numbers, they wanted to return to Egypt, but God never let them return, because He was responsible for saving them.
• This is the “redemption rest” we talked about 2 weeks ago.
• They were supposed to enter into “Canaan rest” – Overcoming the evil one.
• Learning to fight spiritual battles with spiritual weapons.

12 Watch out, brothers and sisters, so that there won’t be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God.

• Lose salvation? NO!
• Unbelieving hearts could not enter into the land of Canaan.

13 But encourage each other daily, while it is still called today, so that none of you is hardened by sin’s deception.

• Redemption rest, Canaan rest and Sabbath rest.
• Salvation/forgiveness, overcoming the evil one, walking intimately with the Creator (rest from our own works)

14 For we have become participants in Christ if we hold firmly until the end the reality that we had at the start.

• If we can live in Sabbath rest, the world will know Jesus and want the same.

15 As it is said:
Today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion.

• 64-66 AD – before the destruction of the temple.

16 For who heard and rebelled? Wasn’t it all who came out of Egypt under Moses?

• This is not about salvation… but about Canaan rest.

17 With whom was God angry for forty years? Wasn’t it with those who sinned, whose bodies fell in the wilderness? 18 And to whom did he swear that they would not enter his rest, if not to those who disobeyed? 19 So we see that they were unable to enter because of unbelief.[9]

• This is not about salvation.
• This is about living an abundant life that was promised to us here on earth.
• It is not about doing things in our own strength, such as obeying the Law.
• It is about walking in the Spirit and allowing Him to work through us.
• It is figuring out that we can live this life by allowing God to even breathe for us.
• To live our lives by another source other than ourselves.

[1] Christian Standard Bible (Heb 1:3). (2020). Holman Bible Publishers.
[2] Christian Standard Bible (Jn 1:14). (2020). Holman Bible Publishers.
[3] Christian Standard Bible (2 Co 3:7–11). (2020). Holman Bible Publishers.
[4] Christian Standard Bible (Heb 1:2). (2020). Holman Bible Publishers.
[5] Christian Standard Bible (Col 1:16). (2020). Holman Bible Publishers.
[6] Christian Standard Bible (Dt 18:18). (2020). Holman Bible Publishers.
[7] Christian Standard Bible (Nu 20:7–11). (2020). Holman Bible Publishers.
[8] Christian Standard Bible (1 Co 10:3–4). (2020). Holman Bible Publishers.
[9] Christian Standard Bible (Heb 3:1–19). (2020). Holman Bible Publishers.