Be Confident (Hebrews)

Live by Faith, Not by Sight

Warren W. Wiersbe

• Publisher: David C Cook
• Year: 2009
• ISBN:
  9781434703132
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Biblical Commentary

Hebrews—written by Christians, to Christians, and for Christians—is loaded with spiritual truth accessible to any believer looking to grasp the importance of faith. Penned at a politically unstable time, Hebrews targets believers tempted to abandon their faith and slip back into the rules and regulations of Judaism.

In our politically unstable day of "wars and rumors of wars" (Mark13: 7), we can all understand the quest for stability. But there is only one source of rock solid security.

There was a time for rules and sacrifices. Then Christ came as the perfect, spotless Lamb to atone for sin once and for all. Respected pastor Dr. Warren W. Wiersbe will show you that by focusing on the reality of the unseen first, an overwhelming desire for intimate friendship with God will follow.

Chapter One

Is Anybody Listening?

(Hebrews 1:1–3)

A man from Leeds, England, visited his doctor to have his hearing checked. The doctor removed the man’s hearing aid, and the patient’s hearing immediately improved! He had been wearing the device in the wrong ear for over twenty years!

I once asked a pastor friend, “Do you have a deaf ministry in your church?” He replied, “There are times when I think the whole church needs a deaf ministry—they just don’t seem to hear me.”

There is a difference between listening and really hearing. Jesus often cried, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear!” This statement suggests that it takes more than physical ears to hear the voice of God. It also requires a receptive heart. “To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts” (Heb. 3:7–8).

Many people have avoided the epistle to the Hebrews and, consequently, have robbed themselves of practical spiritual help. Some have avoided this book because they are afraid of it. The “warnings” in Hebrews have made them uneasy. Others have avoided this book because they think it is “too difficult” for the average Bible student. To be sure, there are some profound truths in Hebrews, and no preacher or teacher would dare to claim that he knows them all! But the general message of the book is clear and there is no reason why you and I should not understand and profit from it.

Perhaps the best way to begin our study is to notice five characteristics of the epistle to the Hebrews.

1. It Is a Book of Evaluation

The word better is used thirteen times in this book as the writer shows the superiority of Jesus Christ and His salvation over the Hebrew system of religion. Christ is “better than the angels” (Heb. 1:4). He brought in “a better hope” (Heb. 7:19) because He is the mediator of “a better covenant, which was established upon better promises” (Heb. 8:6).

Another word that is repeated in this book is perfect; in the original Greek it is used fourteen times. It means “a perfect standing before God.” This perfection could never be accomplished by the Levitical priesthood (Heb. 7:11) or by the law (Heb. 7:19), nor could the blood of animal sacrifices achieve it (Heb. 10:1). Jesus Christ gave Himself as one offering for sin, and by this He has “perfected for ever them that are sanctified” (Heb. 10:14).

So the writer was contrasting the Old Testament system of law with the New Testament ministry of grace. He was making it clear that the Jewish religious system was temporary and that it could not bring in the eternal “better things” that are found in Jesus Christ.

Eternal is a third word that is important to the message of Hebrews. Christ is the “author of eternal salvation” (Heb. 5:9). Through His death, He “obtained eternal redemption” (Heb. 9:12), and He shares with believers “the promise of eternal inheritance” (Heb. 9:15). His throne is forever (Heb. 1:8) and He is a priest forever (Heb. 5:6; 6:20; 7:17, 21). “Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever” (Heb. 13:8).

When you combine these three important words, you discover that Jesus Christ and the Christian life He gives us are better because these blessings are eternal and they give us a perfect standing before God. The religious system under the Mosaic law was imperfect because it could not accomplish a once-for-all redemption that was eternal.

But why did the writer ask his readers to evaluate their faith and what Jesus Christ had to offer them? Because they were going through difficult times and were being tempted to go back to the Jewish religion. The temple was still standing when this book was written, and all the priestly ceremonies were still being carried on daily. How easy it would have been for these Jewish believers to escape persecution by going back into the old Mosaic system that they had known before.

These people were second-generation believers, having been won to Christ by those who had known Jesus Christ during His ministry on earth (Heb. 2:3). They were true believers (Heb. 3:1) and not mere professors. They had been persecuted because of their faith (Heb. 10:32–34; 12:4; 13:13–14), and yet they had faithfully ministered to the needs of others who had suffered (Heb. 6:10). But they were being seduced by teachers of false doctrine (Heb. 13:9), and they were in danger of forgetting the true Word that their first leaders, now dead, had taught them (Heb. 13:7).

The tragic thing about these believers is that they were at a standstill spiritually and in danger of going backward (Heb. 5:12ff.). Some of them had even forsaken the regular worship services (Heb. 10:25) and were not making spiritual progress (Heb. 6:1). In the Christian life, if you do not go forward, you go backward; there is no permanent standing still.

“How can you go back into your former religion?” the writer asked them. “Just take time to evaluate what you have in Jesus Christ. He is better than anything you ever had under the law.”

The book of Hebrews exalts the person and the work of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. When you realize all that you have in and through Him, you have no desire for anyone else or anything else!

2. It Is a Book of Exhortation

The writer called this epistle “the word of exhortation” (Heb. 13:22). The Greek word translated “exhortation” simply means “encouragement.” It is translated “comfort” in Romans 15:4, and “consolation” in 2 Corinthians 1:5–7; 7:7. This word is related to the Greek word translated “Comforter” in John 14:16, referring to the Holy Spirit. The epistle to the Hebrews was not written to frighten people, but to encourage people. We are commanded to “encourage one another daily” (Heb. 3:13 NIV). It reminds us that we have “strong encouragement” in Jesus Christ (Heb. 6:18 NASB).

At this point we must answer the usual question: “But what about those five terrible warnings found in Hebrews?”

To begin with, these five passages are not really “warnings.” Three basic words are translated “warn” in the New Testament, and the only one used in Hebrews is translated “admonished” in Hebrews 8:5 (where it refers to Moses) and “spake” in Hebrews 12:25. Only in Hebrews 11:7 is it translated “warned,” where it refers to Noah “being warned of God.” I think that the best description of the five so-called warning passages is the one given in Hebrews 13:22—“exhortation” (KJV), or “encouragement” (AB). This does not minimize the seriousness of these five sections of the book, but it does help us grasp their purpose: to encourage us to trust God and heed His Word.

The epistle to the Hebrews opens with an important declaration: “God … has spoken to us in His Son” (Heb. 1:1–2 NASB). Near the close of the book, the writer states, “See to it that you do not refuse Him who is speaking” (Heb. 12:25 NASB). In other words, the theme of Hebrews seems to be “God has spoken; we have His Word. What are we doing about it?”

With this truth in mind, we can now better understand the significance of those five “problem passages” in Hebrews. Each of these passages encourages us to heed God’s Word (“God … has spoken”) by pointing out the sad spiritual consequences that result if we do not. Let me list these passages for you and explain their sequence in the book of Hebrews. I think you will see how they all hang together and present one message: Heed God’s Word.

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