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Hebrews 4:14-5:10

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Review

The Son by whom God has spoken is superior to angels
Pay attention to the message...Jesus has done a lot for you
Unbelief hinders entering God’s rest
Entering into the totality of God’s rest

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This slide shows a very concise summary of our journey through the first four chapters of Hebrews thus far. At this point, we’ve basically covered all of the “introductory” material in Hebrews, and now the author is going to transition into more specifics of his argument. There’s much more in the first four chapters than just what the bullet points on this slide can show, but the concise summary is:

Chapter 1 opens up by asserting that God has spoken, and specifically now (in these last days) by His Son. Chapter 1 then continues to show Jesus as superior to angels in many ways, identifying many key characteristics of Jesus.
Chapter 2 continues by emphasizing the importance of paying attention to this message delivered by the Son. The chapter gives many reasons to pay attention to this message, and it in particular emphasizes just how much Jesus has done for us as humans.
Chapter 3 illustrates through the Israelites how unbelief hinders entering into the rest that God offers.
Chapter 4 continued the theme of rest, directing it a bit more to us. Last week, we discussed the importance of entering God’s rest in its totality - from an initial entry into the rest, daily abiding in that rest, and into the final rest that God ultimately has in store for us who believe.

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Hebrews 4:12-13 (ESV)

For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account.

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Desirable Characteristics of a Solution

We need a solution that:

“deals with the reality of death and God and the devil and sin as they really are with no evasions or distortions or denials.”

https://www.desiringgod.org/messages/jesus-is-able-to-help-those-who-are-tempted

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Reading

Hebrews 4:14-16

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Discussion Question (Hebrews 4:14-16)

What comes to mind when hearing the phrase

“throne of grace”?

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What comes to mind when hearing the phrase “throne of grace”?

This is an interesting question because this is a bit of a peculiar phrase. For we Christians who are familiar with Jesus and the Bible, it may not seem that unusual. But to others, it almost could sound a bit like a paradox.

“Throne” generally has connotations of kingly sovereignty, power, authority, and maybe even judgment. At a first glance, that seems in contrast to the concept of “grace” - kindness, favor, etc. freely given.

But when you combine both, you get to something important about God. We can have confidence in what He is able to do because of His kingly role, but at the same time, we don’t have to fear Him (in an utter “terror” sense) because He offers something unique - grace (and mercy) - that is generally rare.

How does holding fast to our confession relate to boldly approaching the throne of grace?

Confession - https://biblehub.com/greek/3671.htm

It may be helpful to define exactly what our “confession” is that is referred to in verse 14. I think it’s effectively the totality of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, which the Bible (including Hebrews) describes in great detail (see Romans 10, 2 Corinthians 9, Philippians 2, Hebrews 10, 1 John 2, 1 John 4 for some specific statements related to the idea of “confession” in mind here). I’m not going to restate that here, but when looking for concise but fairly comprehensive statements of this confession, I tend to find Christian creeds or catechisms do a pretty good job here.

Anyway, what’s the relationship between holding fast to this confession that verse 14 mentions and boldly approaching the throne of grace that verse 16 mentions? I think it’s important and in many ways key to properly approaching this throne. Without keeping in mind the reality of what Jesus has done for us, that can hold people back in fear from approaching God (1 John 4:17-18). But when you recognize the true reality - when you have confidence in the totality and sufficiency of Jesus Christ - that provides the confidence to approach God’s throne. And recognition of our own state (which is a key aspect of our confession) helps us make sure to approach the throne with a proper posture.

This was according to the eternal purpose that he has realized in Christ Jesus our Lord, in whom we have boldness and access with confidence through our faith in him. - Ephesians 3:11-12 (ESV)

Why does it make sense to approach this throne of grace given the nature of our high priest of Jesus Christ?

First off, note that the phrase “in time of need” in verse 16 (https://biblehub.com/greek/2121.htm) doesn’t (at least from my reading) have too strong of an actual meaning of “neediness”. That meaning’s not completely absent, but the more direct meaning involves “timely” or “well-timed” or “opportunely timed”. But the “need” idea can come more into play when you considered the larger context of these verses (such as the “help” word - https://biblehub.com/greek/996.htm).

So why does approaching this throne of grace make sense in the context of Jesus Christ, our high priest? Well, let’s first make note of why we’re approaching here - to find mercy and grace when we timely need it (when we need help). When might we need this help? Well, people need help when they’re facing challenges or struggling with something. And what is arguably the biggest problem we struggle with as humans? I’d argue that’s temptation to sin. And what does verse 15 say - it says that Jesus has been tempted like us but is without sin.

If you consider any area in life (business, art, etc.) where you want to become good at something, it’s natural to look to role models who already have expertise and success in that area to learn from them and get help from them. You’re not going to go looking for help from someone with no experience or who’s utterly failed at that particular endeavor. You ideally want to get help from someone who’s gone through the experience and has succeeded - conquered, had victory, in that arena. And that’s exactly what this section is showing us about Jesus - we have a high priest who has passed through the heavens to the throne of God and who has experienced temptations but had victory over them to escape sinning. So it makes sense to approach this throne for help.

This reminds me a bit of our discussion last week about daily entering God’s rest in our present lives, as mentioned in Matthew 11:28-30.

https://www.desiringgod.org/messages/draw-near-to-the-throne-of-grace-with-confidence

“A silly idea is current that good people do not know what temptation means. This is an obvious lie. Only those who try to resist temptation know how strong it is . . . A man who gives in to temptation after five minutes simply does not know what it would have been like an hour later. That is why bad people, in one sense know very little about badness. They have lived a sheltered life by always giving in . . . Christ, because He was the only man who never yielded to temptation, is also the only man who knows to the full what temptation means — the only complete realist.”

https://bible.org/seriespage/lesson-14-throne-grace-hebrews-414-16

“What is the difference between mercy and grace? They somewhat overlap, but mercy has special reference to God’s tenderness toward us because of the misery caused by our sins, whereas grace refers to His undeserved favor in freely forgiving our sins, which actually deserve His judgment”

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Priests

What is a priest?

Focusing mainly on Jewish priests today

Not other religions
Not priesthood of Christians

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Before continuing into chapter 5, we’re going to talk about priests. Why? Well, it’s important to have an understanding of what priests are, what they’re intended to do, as we head into more of Hebrews. And while some of you may have first-hand experience with priests (outside of Jesus or priesthood of other believers), I imagine many people may not (I certainly don’t). But the Jews (the initial primary audience of this letter) certainly did, and the notion of priests was important to them, so it’s useful to understand their perspective.

Now, we’re not going to cover everything about priests today - we’re specifically going to focus on Jewish history. So while we might touch on other kinds of priests (it’s not necessarily a specifically Jewish concept), we’re not really going to focus much priests in other religions nor the notion of Christian believers being priests (Romans 15:6, 1 Peter 2:5-9, Revelation 1:6, Revelation 5:10, Revelation 20:6). And this isn’t going to be a comprehensive treatment of the Jewish priesthood - we’re going to mainly focus on the most relevant parts for today.

https://bible.org/seriespage/lesson-15-kind-priest-you-need-hebrews-51-10

“Until one gains an adequate sense of the overwhelming majesty of the thrice-holy God and simultaneously a true sense of one’s sinfulness and unworthiness (as Isaiah did [Isa. 6:1-5]), one is not in a position to understand or appreciate the importance of priests and their work. Our failure on these two points probably is what makes the idea of priesthood unfamiliar and without apparent significance or meaning. One of the reasons that the Old Testament is indispensable to understanding the New Testament is exactly here, since on the one hand, it provides us with a sense of the sovereignty, majesty, and power of God, and on the other hand, it confronts us with the reality of human failures and needs. In the light of these two points, the importance of sacrifices and priests readily emerges.”
“This is one of the most important spiritual truths that you can learn: Growth in the Christian life requires gaining a clearer understanding of who God is and who you are, which drives you in desperation to the cross of Jesus Christ. This is why Paul gloried in the cross (Gal. 6:14): he saw God as the one who dwells in unapproachable light, he saw himself as the chief of sinners, and he saw the cross as the place where he found mercy (1 Tim. 6:16; 1:14-16).”
“… [M]an never achieves a clear knowledge of himself unless he has first looked upon God’s face, and then descends from contemplating him to scrutinize himself. For we always seem to ourselves righteous and upright and wise and holy—this pride in innate in all of us—unless by clear proofs we stand convinced of our own unrighteousness, foulness, folly, and impurity. Moreover, we are not thus convinced if we look merely to ourselves and not also to the Lord, who is the sole standard by which this judgment must be measured.”
“And, you will find that a deeper appreciation of God’s holiness, your own sinfulness, and the sufficiency of Christ’s sacrifice is one of the most practical doctrines in the Bible, because it humbles your pride. Pride is at the root of every relational conflict and just about any sin that you can name.”
“Note that these offerings were “for sins.” The entire Jewish sacrificial system, but especially the Day of Atonement, underscored the problem of human sinfulness in the presence of the holy God.”
“Although in the first century the Jewish high priesthood had degenerated into a political appointment, the author overlooks that and goes back to the original intention. God called Aaron to the office of high priest (Exod. 28:1-3), and he served as the example for all that followed. God’s appointment of Aaron to this office was confirmed during the rebellion of Korah, who accused Moses and Aaron of appointing themselves (Num. 16:1-35). God showed the rebels and all of Israel that He had appointed Moses and Aaron by causing the ground to open up and swallow the rebels and their households. When some in the congregation grumbled at this judgment, a plague broke out and killed over 14,000.”

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Melchizedek - First Priest in the Bible

And Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine. (He was priest of God Most High.) And he blessed him and said, “Blessed be Abram by God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth; and blessed be God Most High, who has delivered your enemies into your hand!” And Abram gave him a tenth of everything. - Genesis 14:18-20 (ESV)

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Origin of Jewish Priesthood

“Then bring near to you Aaron your brother, and his sons with him, from among the people of Israel, to serve me as priests—Aaron and Aaron's sons, Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar. And you shall make holy garments for Aaron your brother, for glory and for beauty. You shall speak to all the skillful, whom I have filled with a spirit of skill, that they make Aaron's garments to consecrate him for my priesthood. These are the garments that they shall make: a breastpiece, an ephod, a robe, a coat of checker work, a turban, and a sash. They shall make holy garments for Aaron your brother and his sons to serve me as priests. - Exodus 28:1-4 (ESV)

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The Ephod

And you shall set the two stones on the shoulder pieces of the ephod, as stones of remembrance for the sons of Israel. And Aaron shall bear their names before the Lord on his two shoulders for remembrance. - Exodus 28:12 (ESV)
So Aaron shall bear the names of the sons of Israel in the breastpiece of judgment on his heart, when he goes into the Holy Place, to bring them to regular remembrance before the Lord. - Exodus 28:29 (ESV)

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Holiness

a golden bell and a pomegranate, a golden bell and a pomegranate, around the hem of the robe. And it shall be on Aaron when he ministers, and its sound shall be heard when he goes into the Holy Place before the Lord, and when he comes out, so that he does not die. - Exodus 28:34-35 (ESV)
“You shall make a plate of pure gold and engrave on it, like the engraving of a signet, ‘Holy to the Lord.’ And you shall fasten it on the turban by a cord of blue. It shall be on the front of the turban. It shall be on Aaron's forehead, and Aaron shall bear any guilt from the holy things that the people of Israel consecrate as their holy gifts. It shall regularly be on his forehead, that they may be accepted before the Lord. - Exodus 28:36-38 (ESV)

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Anointing & Passing Down

“For Aaron's sons you shall make coats and sashes and caps. You shall make them for glory and beauty. And you shall put them on Aaron your brother, and on his sons with him, and shall anoint them and ordain them and consecrate them, that they may serve me as priests. You shall make for them linen undergarments to cover their naked flesh. They shall reach from the hips to the thighs; and they shall be on Aaron and on his sons when they go into the tent of meeting or when they come near the altar to minister in the Holy Place, lest they bear guilt and die. This shall be a statute forever for him and for his offspring after him. - Exodus 28:40-43 (ESV)

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Here we see the idea of the priests being specially anointed by God. And if you go into Exodus 29, you see more specifics of the anointing and consecration - it involved sacrifices. We also see the the priesthood being passed down through Aaron’s descendents.

“Now this is what you shall do to them to consecrate them, that they may serve me as priests. Take one bull of the herd and two rams without blemish,...You shall bring Aaron and his sons to the entrance of the tent of meeting and wash them with water...and you shall gird Aaron and his sons with sashes and bind caps on them. And the priesthood shall be theirs by a statute forever. Thus you shall ordain Aaron and his sons. - Exodus 29:1-9 (ESV)
Then you shall take part of the blood that is on the altar, and of the anointing oil, and sprinkle it on Aaron and his garments, and on his sons and his sons' garments with him. He and his garments shall be holy, and his sons and his sons' garments with him. - Exodus 29:21 (ESV)
“The holy garments of Aaron shall be for his sons after him; they shall be anointed in them and ordained in them. The son who succeeds him as priest, who comes into the tent of meeting to minister in the Holy Place, shall wear them seven days. - Exodus 29:29-30 (ESV)
They shall eat those things with which atonement was made at their ordination and consecration, but an outsider shall not eat of them, because they are holy. - Exodus 29:33
“Thus you shall do to Aaron and to his sons, according to all that I have commanded you. Through seven days shall you ordain them, and every day you shall offer a bull as a sin offering for atonement. Also you shall purify the altar, when you make atonement for it, and shall anoint it to consecrate it. Seven days you shall make atonement for the altar and consecrate it, and the altar shall be most holy. Whatever touches the altar shall become holy. - Exodus 29:35-37 (ESV)
It shall be a regular burnt offering throughout your generations at the entrance of the tent of meeting before the Lord, where I will meet with you, to speak to you there. There I will meet with the people of Israel, and it shall be sanctified by my glory. I will consecrate the tent of meeting and the altar. Aaron also and his sons I will consecrate to serve me as priests. I will dwell among the people of Israel and will be their God. And they shall know that I am the Lord their God, who brought them out of the land of Egypt that I might dwell among them. I am the Lord their God. - Exodus 29:42-46 (ESV)
Then you shall bring Aaron and his sons to the entrance of the tent of meeting and shall wash them with water and put on Aaron the holy garments. And you shall anoint him and consecrate him, that he may serve me as priest. You shall bring his sons also and put coats on them, and anoint them, as you anointed their father, that they may serve me as priests. And their anointing shall admit them to a perpetual priesthood throughout their generations.” - Exodus 40:12-15 (ESV)

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Importance of Appointment by God

They assembled themselves together against Moses and against Aaron and said to them, “You have gone too far! For all in the congregation are holy, every one of them, and the Lord is among them. Why then do you exalt yourselves above the assembly of the Lord?” - Numbers 16:3 (ESV)
And Moses said to Korah, “Hear now, you sons of Levi: is it too small a thing for you that the God of Israel has separated you from the congregation of Israel, to bring you near to himself, to do service in the tabernacle of the Lord and to stand before the congregation to minister to them, and that he has brought you near him, and all your brothers the sons of Levi with you? And would you seek the priesthood also? - Numbers 16:8-10 (ESV)

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Note that we see the importance of appointment by God taken very seriously in the incident of “Korah’s rebellion” in Numbers 16.

At the same time, note the tremendous responsibility associated with the gift of the priesthood:

So the Lord said to Aaron, “You and your sons and your father's house with you shall bear iniquity connected with the sanctuary, and you and your sons with you shall bear iniquity connected with your priesthood. - Numbers 18:1 (ESV)
And you and your sons with you shall guard your priesthood for all that concerns the altar and that is within the veil; and you shall serve. I give your priesthood as a gift, and any outsider who comes near shall be put to death.” - Numbers 18:7 (ESV)

If you think back to when we covered Hanukkah a while ago (https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1hScD3VLxyZNLt_uJVKt6os77fyCF-6IwmAJNB8jNy78/), you can see some problems that occurred with the priesthood then.

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Main Duties of the Priests

Offerings/sacrifices

“the priest shall make atonement for” (or similar phrases) occur at least 31 times in Leviticus
Culmination in “Day of Atonement” (Yom Kippur) in Leviticus 16

Pronouncing clean/unclean (Leviticus 12-15)
Valuation (Leviticus 27)
Judgment (Numbers 5, Deuteronomy 17-24)

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Hebrew word for atonement - https://biblehub.com/hebrew/3722.htm

https://www.desiringgod.org/interviews/why-does-atonement-disappear-in-the-new-testament

With the idea of offering gifts/sacrifices and making atonement, “forgiveness of sins” is also frequently used in Leviticus.

As an interesting note (and I’m certainly not familiar with offerings/sacrifices across all religions), if I think about religions outside of the Abrahamic ones, I find it interesting that they often offering gifts/sacrifices often to “get things” (rain, good harvest, etc.), whereas that seems to not really be a focus of the sacrificial system instituted for the Jews. While some other religions may have some kind of offerings for atonement of sins, it doesn’t necessarily seem to be the primary focus.

(Note the description of Jesus as high priest in Hebrews 2:17)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yom_Kippur

Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy discuss many of the duties of the priests. The duties on the slides aren’t exhaustive but simply highlight many of the main ones from these books of the Bible.

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Reading

Hebrews 5:1-10

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Discussion Question (Hebrews 5:1-4)

What “qualifications” appear to be listed here for high priests?

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Hebrews 5:1-10 (ESV)

1 For every high priest chosen from among men is appointed to act on behalf of men in relation to God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins.

2 He can deal gently with the ignorant and wayward, since he himself is beset with weakness.

3 Because of this he is obligated to offer sacrifice for his own sins just as he does for those of the people.

4 And no one takes this honor for himself, but only when called by God, just as Aaron was.

5 So also Christ did not exalt himself to be made a high priest, but was appointed by him who said to him, “You are my Son, today I have begotten you”;

6 as he says also in another place, “You are a priest forever, after the order of Melchizedek.”

7 In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to him who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverence.

8 Although he was a son, he learned obedience through what he suffered.

9 And being made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him,

10 being designated by God a high priest after the order of Melchizedek.

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Okay, so what’s going on with this section? What’s the point the author is trying to make here? It wasn’t obvious to me at first, but I’m going to propose that the purpose of a lot of this section is to show that:

Jesus meets all of the qualifications for high priest
Jesus does it better

So this section is somewhat a call to (1) examine what “regular” high priests have done and then (2) compare/contrast that with what Jesus has done.

First thing to notice from a careful examination of this text is that there appears to be a bit of a “reverse” structure to the argument - the author lists a bunch of qualifications/characteristics of a high priest, and then he tackles how Christ relates to them by tackling them in reverse order - backing out (kind of like a stack - last in, first out - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stack_(abstract_data_type)). This structure is a little bit loose, but I do think it’s there. I’m going to walk through that now.

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