Better by Far - 3
The Excellency of Christ in the Book of Hebrews
We turn our attention today to Hebrews chapter three. We saw last time in chapters one and two that Jesus Christ is better than angels. The book of Hebrews was written to give reasons why the Jewish converts to Christ should remain faithful to Him and not to yield to the temptation to go back to Judaism. The writer continues his argument in chapter three by showing the superiority of Jesus Christ the Moses. No other Old Testament character was held in such high esteem as Moses. When we say that Jesus is superior to Moses we're not degrading Moses. Moses was a man of God. He was the chosen instrument of the Lord. Hebrews chapter three demonstrates why Jesus must be regarded as superior to Moses.
First, in Verse one Jesus is referred to as 'the Apostle'. The word Apostle simply means 'one sent on a mission'. Moses was sent on a mission to deliver the Israelites from Egypt. He also brought God's word of command to Pharaoh. Jesus did a greater work, in that He came to deliver a lost world from sin and darkness. Jesus didn't simply bring the word from God. He was the very word of God incarnate. The difference is between the King sending an ambassador and him coming himself. Second, He's called the 'high priest' in Verse one. Moses sometimes served as a priest. We read in Psalm 99 v 6, "Moses and Aaron were amongst His priests". Moses never served as the high priest. That title belonged to Aaron.
In Hebrews Chapter 4 v 14 Jesus is called, "a great high priest". The high priest and sacrifice in one. Notice Paul says at the end of Verse one that Jesus is the "high priest whom we confess". We confess Him now. How is that possible? Moses is dead but Jesus is alive and interceding for you and me in heaven. Third, Jesus is the builder of the house. The word 'house' refers to God's redeemed people. What has more honour, the house or the builder or the house? The builder of course. Moses was part of the building. Jesus brought the building into existence. Verse 3 says, "Jesus has been found worthy of greater honour than Moses, just as the builder of the house has greater honour that the house itself". In making that statement Paul unveils an important truth why Christ has to be seen as superior to Moses. We read in Verse 4, "For every house is built by someone, but God is the builder of everything". If God builds every thing then as the builder of the house Jesus must be God. Fourth, Jesus is referred to as the Son. In Verse 5 we read, "Moses was faithful as a servant in all God's house". We read in Verse 6, "but Christ is faithful as a Son over God's house". Who is more important, the Son over the house or the servant in the house? Obviously, the answer is the Son. So Hebrews clearly proves the superiority of Jesus Christ over Moses.This third chapter also encourages us to be faithful to the Lord. We see the example of faithfulness in both Jesus and Moses. Verse 2 says, "Jesus was faithful to the one who appointed Him, just as Moses was faithful in all God's house". The Jews mustn't go back to Moses and the Law. They must go back to Moses and his example of faithfulness. In Verses 7 - 19 this is applied to us as believers. We're taken back to the wilderness wanderings of the children of Israel. We discover in this passage the principles that both will hinder and will help faithfulness to Jesus Christ. Israel was renowned for her unfaithfulness and unbelief. What can we learn from Israel's behaviour? Hindrances to faithfulness include procrastination. Verse 7 says, "Today if you hear His voice". When God speaks you must listen and then apply what He's said. Don't put off the challenge of God's word to another day. There must be diligent hearing and immediate response. Verse 8 reveals another problem. It says, "do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion". When you fail to be sensitive to God's word and ignore it then obedience becomes more difficult the next time. The root of hardening is rebellion. You fail to treat God's word with the proper respect and urgency it deserves. Unbelief hinders a faithful heart. Unbelief is damaging to spiritual growth. It makes the word unprofitable. It shuts us out from blessing. It hinders prayer. It leads us to false gods. Another hindrance is highlighted in Verse 13. We read, "that none of you be hardened by sins deceitfulness". Sin looks pleasurable and appealing but in the end it stings like a poisonous snake. It's deceptive. It appears to offer everything you desire but leaves you empty and disappointed.
We also find some guidelines to help us to be faithful to the Lord. Verse one says, "fix your thoughts on Jesus". Consider His life of faithfulness and copy it. You can't do this in your own strength but you will as you draw your strength from the Lord. The Lord Jesus said in Matthew Chapter 11 v 29, "Learn from Me for I am gentle and humble in heart". Meditate upon Christ. Contemplate Him in all that He is and all that He's done. Study His life in the Gospels. See how He conducted Himself in all situations. Follow Him. We can help one another to be faithful. Verse 13 says, "encourage one another daily". We see the importance of meeting together. We can't encourage one another if we rarely see each other. Be sure to attend your church regularly. What do you talk about when you meet? Is your conversation mostly about trivial matters? There's much we can say to each other about how the Lord has blessed us. The word 'encouragement' in the original Greek means' a strong word of encouragement' It's the word used of a commander building up the morale of his troops. He uses heartening stirring words. Let's do the same. The least help to faithfulness is in Verse 18. We read, "to whom did God swear that they would never enter His rest if not those who disobeyed". Israel missed the blessing of entering into their rest because of disobedience. When we do as God asks we'll enter into all the blessings that He has for us in Christ. Verse 15 repeats Verse 7, "Today if you hear His voice". It's one thing to hear. We must also obey. Jesus said in Matthew Chapter 7 v 21, "Everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock". Your life will be marked by faithfulness as you put into practice all that God has said to you.
Moses was outstanding in faithfulness to the Lord. Verse 5 says, "Moses was faithful as a servant in all God's house". No one amongst God's people was as faithful as Moses. You can be like him. Simply follow the principles for faithfulness we've looked at today and may the Lord bless you and use you as you do.