The book of Hebrews is a very challenging book to preach from, if not the most challenging of the New Testament, with the possible exception of Revelation. Part of the difficulty in preaching it is that it is itself presented as a sermon, and so to bite off a passage and try to present it as a stand alone message is difficult. The passages are designed to build upon the previous passage, and the whole book is series of arguments built one upon another, which reaches it’s grand summation in chapter 12.
But if there is a constant theme to the book it would be to consider Jesus. To look at Jesus intently. To study Jesus. He is the Message, He is the Messenger, He is our Creator, He is our Savior, He is our Redeemer, He is our High Priest, He is our example that we are to follow, and He is our Lord, to whom we must bow in obeisance and obedience. He is the source of life, the source of wisdom, and the solution to all life’s problems. So we must consider Jesus.
We have been looking in the previous two chapters at many of the characteristics of Jesus, and we will see even more this morning. In the essence of time I’m not going to review all that we have said in previous messages, but I will point out that in the first word of our text, “therefore”, we know that this passage is built upon the previous arguments of the last two chapters. You can read those chapters for yourself, or if you’re really industrious, you can read my previous messages on our website, thebeachfellowship.com, and you can hopefully learn all that “therefore” refers to.
In today’s passage, the Holy Spirit is telling us that Jesus is superior to one who was considered by the Jews to be the greatest prophet of all time, who was Moses. And I’m afraid that some in the church might not be all that familiar with Moses and his ministry. I’m afraid that a lot of people’s theology is informed by a movie called “The Ten Commandments” starring Charlton Heston who played Moses, or perhaps for our younger generation learned of Moses from an animated movie called the Prince of Egypt.
And I would just recommend in passing that in cases of where Hollywood has attempted to portray some person or event in the Bible on film, I would highly recommend that you skip the movie and read the book. I have yet to see Hollywood represent the Bible accurately. And if you’re basing your theology on some movie you have seen then you are probably sorely misinformed. So I urge you to read the Bible, of which the entire book, from Genesis to Revelation, teaches Jesus.
But as my Dad used to say, I’ve stopped preaching and gone to meddling. So let’s get back to our text. However, if we are to understand the significance of what the Holy Spirit is saying in comparing Jesus to Moses, then it behooves us to know a little about Moses. So as a refresher, let me say at the start that the Jewish people highly revered Moses above all other historical figures. He was the man to whom God spoke face to face. He was a man who saw the glory of God.
In Exodus 33 and 34 you may remember Moses saw the glory of God and it was reflected in his countenance so that when he came down from the mountain, his face shone so brightly that he had to put a veil over it. He was the one who led Israel out of Egypt. He was God's chosen instrument to liberate His people from captivity. But beyond that, Moses was the one who gave the law. Moses and the law were synonymous, and he is considered to be the author of the first five books of the Old Testament, called the Pentateuch.
And as I said earlier some Jewish rabbis even taught that Moses was greater than angels. Usually in the Old Testament we see that God spoke to prophets in visions, but to Moses, He spoke face to face. In Numbers 12, when God rebuked Aaron and Miriam for their jealousy of Moses, God said, "Hear now My words: If there is a prophet among you, I, the LORD, shall make Myself known to him in a vision. I shall speak with him in a dream. Not so, with My servant Moses, He is faithful in all My household; With him I speak mouth to mouth, Even openly, and not in dark sayings, And he beholds the form of the LORD. Why then were you not afraid To speak against My servant, against Moses?”
God spoke to him in the burning bush. He spoke to him out of heaven. He spoke to him on Sinai and wrote the commandments with the finger of God. God spoke directly to Moses almost daily in the Tabernacle. The hand of God preserved Him as a baby, and the hand of God dug his grave at the end of his life. And between these two points of his life, there is nothing but one miracle after another in the life of Moses. During the greatest time of Israel's history, it was Moses through whom God worked and God spoke. It was Moses who led the nation of Israel out of Egypt. It was Moses who led them through 40 years in the wilderness. It was Moses who instructed them from the mouth of God. And so no man was more highly regarded among the Jewish people than Moses, and arguably, no one more highly regarded by God.
Yet the Holy Spirit says through Hebrews that we are to consider Jesus as worthy of more glory than Moses. This word, “consider” is made up from the Latin term sidus which means, a star. In fact, combined with the “con” means to “observe the stars,” consider. That’s the English translation. Now, the Greek word is different. The Greek word is katanoeĊ, which means to fix the mind upon. The word means set your mind to gaze intently on Jesus. Consider Jesus.
The world, even the so called Christian world, offers us many things for our consideration. There are many things constantly battling for our attention. Things that are appealing to us in our flesh. There are so many possible topics that I could preach on this morning which would find a greater interest perhaps in the congregation. Things like “How to live your best life now.” “10 steps to fulfillment.” “Dealing with family problems.” Etc, etc. But the problem with those kind of topics is that while they are appealing to us, they are all about us. And oftentimes it is nothing more than spiritualized self help doctrine.
This kind of self interest doctrine is kind of like having underdeveloped taste buds. Good taste is an acquired thing. The world offers up all kinds of things for us to taste, to eat of. But what the world offers never really satisfies. It offers up sweet things that may give you a sugar rush, but in the long run will leave you searching for more. The things of God are an acquired taste. You have to be taught to appreciate them. But the more you consider the things of God, the more you appreciate it. And the more you grow spiritually mature. The more you feast on spiritual food the less you find you have an appetite for physical things.
When you’ve got problems, when you’re discouraged, when you experience broken relationships, when you’ve got health issues, whatever the situation, whatever the heart ache, the answer is not to consider yourself, but to consider Jesus. Set your mind on Him. There used to be an old hymn that we sung at church when I was a boy, “Turn your eyes upon Jesus.” And a line in particular promised that when you turn your eyes upon Jesus “ the things of earth will grow strangely dim, in the light of His glory and grace.” Turn your eyes upon Jesus. Fix your gaze upon Jesus. Consider Jesus.
Hebrews 12 teaches that as believers we are running a race. And the key to running the race and finishing it well is to get your eyes off yourself. Fix your gaze on Jesus, and stay the course. That’s what this author is really saying here, especially at the end of vs6. Finish the course. Stay focused on the author and finisher of our faith. Run the race with patience and endure to the end. Keep you eyes fixed on your captain. He has gone before us, so we can follow in His footsteps. We know where to run, and how to run, by keeping our eyes on Jesus.
Now in instructing us to consider Jesus, the Spirit is going to say that Jesus is superior in His office, superior in His work, and superior in His person as contrasted to Moses. Superior in His office, He is the apostle and high priest, whereas Moses was just an apostle. Superior in His work, because He is the builder of the house, whereas Moses was a servant in the house. And superior in His person, because He is the Son whereas Moses was a servant.
Now let’s look at each point in a little more detail. First of all, the Holy Spirit says Jesus is superior to Moses in His office. Hebrews has said in the previous 2 chapters that we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for just a little while. He said that He's the captain of salvation. He said that He's the sanctifier. He said that He calls us brother. He said that He destroyed Satan and death. He said that He could deliver us out of bondage.
Now He gives Him two titles and this is where we're going to see His office. He says that we should consider Jesus because He is the Apostle and the High Priest of our confession. But in getting to this point, the author incidentally gives us three things that characterize us as believers. And I don’t want to brush over these, because I think that they are instructive. Notice first that He calls us three things; holy, brethren, and partakers of a heavenly calling.
Let’s consider what it means to be called holy. We are considered holy because we are considered righteous. Justification by grace is that God has counted our sins towards Jesus, and transferred His righteousness to us, that by faith we might be righteous, holy towards God. But as we said last week, being holy refers to being consecrated, sanctified. All of those words simply mean set apart. God has set us apart from the world, to be used for worship in the heavenly tabernacle.
In the tabernacle of the Jews, the utensils and instruments used in priestly service were first of all sprinkled with the blood of the sacrifice, which made them holy, set apart for temple service. It was no longer to be used for common things, but holy things. That is sanctification in a nutshell. It is being set apart by our justification through Christ’s blood for holy things.
And because we are sanctified, Jesus is not ashamed to call us His brethren. Heb. 2:11 “For both He who sanctifies and those who are sanctified are all from one [Father;] for which reason He is not ashamed to call them brethren.” Jesus also was sanctified or set apart for the work and purpose of God. He came not to do His own will, but the will of Him who sent Him.
So Jesus’s work of redemption has made it possible for us to be part of the family of God. Brothers and sisters of Christ. Children of God. And that leads to the third characteristic that we have, which is partakers of the heavenly calling. That means partakers of salvation. We have answered the call of God by faith in Christ, and received the inheritance of the kingdom of God. Now all of that comes through Jesus Christ. Christ working for us, and in us, and through us.
So seeing all that we are and will be in Christ, consider Jesus, the Apostle and High Priest of our confession. He is the Apostle, in bringing the message of God to us, and He is the “High Priest,” bringing us before the Lord God and guaranteeing our acceptance. Apostle simply means sent one. Jesus sent out 12 apostles to preach the gospel. But Jesus was the foremost Apostle, sent from the Father to bring the message of the gospel, the word of God. John 12:49 "For I did not speak on My own initiative, but the Father Himself who sent Me has given Me a commandment [as to] what to say and what to speak.”
And as our High Priest, Jesus is God’s representative to man, manifesting the exact nature and character and truth of God, and He is man’s representative to God, having become like us in all things, yet without sin. He is the bridge from man to God, and from God to man. Moses, you will recall, was God’s man through whom He spoke, but Aaron was the High Priest. Jesus is better than Moses in that He fulfills both offices perfectly. So Jesus is superior in His office.
Secondly, in vs2, the Spirit says that Jesus was superior in HIs work. And here is a simple comparison of the work of Jesus with that of Moses to show Jesus is superior. The most obvious conclusion is that Moses was a type of Christ, a picture of Christ, whereas Jesus is the completion of that picture. He is the fulfillment of all that Moses prefigured.
Notice first that He says in vs2, that Jesus was faithful to Him who appointed Him, as Moses also was in all His house. Jesus was faithful to His mission from God. John 6:38 “For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.” Jesus always did the Father's will. He was faithful unto death. I believe that we will be judged on our faithfulness. I think one of the marks of sanctification is faithfulness. Faithfulness in little things is a big thing in the eyes of God. Jesus said in Luke 16, if you are faithful in little things, you will be faithful in great things.
It’s interesting that Moses is not compared to Jesus on his weakness, but on his strength. He says that Moses was faithful. For 40 years, Moses was faithful to God as he led the children of Israel in the wilderness. And so the author compares Jesus to Moses in a favorable light, that both were faithful to God.
But notice that it says Jesus was faithful to Him who sent Him, as Moses was faithful in all his house. What is meant by all his house? It means household. It speaks of the household of God, the believers. The Old Testament believers of Israel. Moses was faithful in God's household. He was a steward or the keeper of Israel. It says in 1 Corinthians, "Moreover brethren it is required in stewards that a man be found faithful.” Now a steward is somebody who doesn't own the house, he manages it for the owner. God owns the house of Israel, Moses ministered to the house. He was in charge of dispensing the word of God to the people of Israel. And Moses was found faithful.
And Christ also was faithful to His house. Who is Christ's household? The answer is found in Ephesians 2:19. "Now therefore you are no more strangers and sojourners, but fellow citizens with the saints and of the household of God." The household of God then is the church. We're the house of Christ.
1Peter 2:4-5 “And coming to Him as to a living stone which has been rejected by men, but is choice and precious in the sight of God, you also, as living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house for a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.”
What a tremendous thing it is to be a part of Christ’s household. To be a part of the family of God. We are made holy, righteous, even a holy priesthood, so that we might offer up spiritual sacrifices which are acceptable to God, all because of what Jesus has done for us. So Jesus is superior in HIs work because His work is superior to that of Moses. Moses was faithful to his house, Israel, but Jesus is faithful to the church universal. And that’s far superior.
If Jesus has done a mighty work in you, that you have been made part of a royal priesthood, offering up sacrifices to God, then I trust that it might be said of you that you are faithful in your house. You are faithfully employing the gifts and resources that God has given to you as spiritual sacrifices to God.
I am reminded of the story of DL Moody. Moody was a poorly educated, unordained, shoe salesman who felt God's call to preach the gospel. Early one morning he and some friends gathered in a hay field for a season of prayer, confession, and consecration. His friend Henry Varley said, "The world has yet to see what God can do with and for and through and in a man who is fully and wholly consecrated to Him." Moody was deeply moved by these words. He later went to a meeting where Charles Spurgeon was speaking. In that meeting Moody recalled the words spoken by his friend, "The world has yet to see what God can do with and for and through and in a man who is fully and wholly consecrated to Him." Varley meant any man! Varley didn't say he had to be educated, or brilliant, or anything else. Just a man! Well, by the Holy Spirit in him, Moody determined to be one of those men. Then suddenly, in that high gallery, he saw something he'd never realized before. It was not Mr. Spurgeon, after all, who was doing that work; it was God. And if God could use Mr. Spurgeon, why should He not use the rest of us, and why should we not all just lay ourselves at the Master's feet and say to Him, "Send me! Use me!”? D. L. Moody was an ordinary man who sought to be fully and wholly committed to Christ. God did extraordinary things through this ordinary man. Moody became one of the great evangelists of modern times. He founded a Bible college, Moody Bible Institute in Chicago, which sends out men and women trained in service for God. And my prayer is that you too might be a person that is wholly consecrated to God, that He might do a mighty work through you.
Thirdly, Jesus is superior in His person. His person is superior verses 5 and 6. Verse 5, “Now Moses was faithful in all his house as a servant.” In Exodus 40, eight times it refers to Moses’ obedience to do all that God commanded him. That's pretty amazing. In Exodus 35 to 40, 22 times it refers to Moses faithfulness to obey all that God commanded him. Can you say that about your life? Could God say of you that He obeyed all that I commanded him or her to do?
That’s the key to sanctification, by the way. It’s obedience. Obedience to the word of God. Rom. 6:19 “For just as you presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness, resulting in [further] lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness, resulting in sanctification.” Obedience to righteousness results in sanctification.
So Moses was faithful. Moses was faithful as a servant to the house. But Jesus is faithful because He is the builder of the house. Vs.3, “For He has been counted worthy of more glory than Moses, by just so much as the builder of the house has more honor than the house.For every house is built by someone, but the builder of all things is God.” And so we see that Hebrews declares that Jesus is God, and thereby greater for He created all things.
Notice verse 5. “Now Moses was faithful in all His house as a servant, for a testimony of those things which were to be spoken later.” In other words, Moses was faithful as a testimony to those things which were yet to be said in Christ. Moses was a type. Jesus was the fulfillment. We can learn a lot about Jesus through Moses. But not completely. Jesus is the completeness of the picture we see in Moses.
Jesus said Moses wrote of Him. John 5:46, “For had you believed Moses, Jesus said, you would have believed me for he wrote of me." And so it is that the word of God tells us in Hebrews 3:5 that Moses was only a servant who pointed to something which would come after that. He was a steward of another's house.
Verse 6, "But Christ," "not a servant, but a Son" over His own house, whose house are we." Do you know who Christ's house is? You say this church building or that church building is the Lord's house. No, a building is not the Lord's house. "Whose house we are.” We are the Lord's house. We are built together, Ephesians 2:22 says, for an habitation of the Spirit. We are the Lord's house. 1Cor. 3:16 “Do you not know that you are a temple of God and [that] the Spirit of God dwells in you?”
How can we be sure that we're really His house? Verse 6, "whose house we are, if we hold fast our confidence and the boast of our hope firm until the end.” Now this statement causes some concern to those who may not be familiar with the full teaching of scripture in regards to salvation. But the truth of salvation is that you couldn't save yourself, it is a gift of God, not of works, lest any man should boast. Salvation is by grace.
So in the same manner, you couldn't keep yourself saved. If your salvation depends on you keeping yourself saved then none of us have a hope. What is it saying then? It's saying this, "whose house are you if you hold fast our confidence and the boast of our hope firm until the end.” That simply means that the continuance of your faith is the proof of the reality of your faith.The continuance of your faith is evidence that you are really saved. Falling away is evidence that you were never of the faith. 1 John 2:19 it says, "They went out from us, but they were not of us." Listen to this, "For if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us, but they went out that they might be made manifest that they were not of us.” You may stumble from time to time, you may get off track from time to time, but the fact that you continue to follow after the Lord is evidence that you are the Lord’s.
Now in addition to that premise, remember what I said last week about salvation. We are justified, sanctified and glorified in our salvation. All three elements are essential. And in a kind of subliminal way I think this passage today we’re looking at is speaking of sanctification. Sanctified is the second stage of salvation. I think it’s possible to be saved, and yet fall away from our purpose, from our salvation, not to eternal destruction, but to a lost reward. Not to losing our citizenship in the kingdom of God, our place in God’s family, but in losing our purpose; our sanctification. And that is going to result in our being saved, yet though as by fire.
And part of the sanctification process is that God will discipline those that are HIs children, that they might be obedient, and that they might be kept from destruction. Heb. 12:6-8, 11 “FOR THOSE WHOM THE LORD LOVES HE DISCIPLINES, AND HE SCOURGES EVERY SON WHOM HE RECEIVES." It is for discipline that you endure; God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom [his] father does not discipline? But if you are without discipline, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate children and not sons. ... 11 All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness."
So discipline is the means by which we bear fruit. John 15:1-2, "I am the true vine and my Father is the vine dresser. Every branch of me that bears not fruit, He takes away. Every branch that bears fruit, He purges it that it may bring forth more fruit.” So the goal of sanctification is that we might bear fruit, that we might be faithful, that we might be obedient and fulfill our calling in Christ Jesus.
So in conclusion, ladies and gentlemen, consider Jesus. Consider Him first of all as your Lord and Savior. If you have not truly become part of the household of God by faith in Jesus Christ for the remission of sins and to be made holy and a child of God, then I urge you today to receive Him as your Savior. Salvation is the free gift of God. Call on Him to forgive you, to remake you, and convert you, to adopt you into the family of God.
Secondly, to you who are Christians already consider Jesus. Learn to live your whole life with your eyes on Him. As we look steadfastly upon Jesus, the things of this world start to grow dim. And we find that He is sufficient for every need. He is superior to every temptation, to every trial. He is worthy of our worship and our service. He is worthy of all glory and honor. Let us give Him our all, and may we be found faithful when He comes.
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