Recap

So far in Hebrews, we've read through the comparison between Jesus and the angels and Torah. Likely written in the 60s CE to Jewish Christians, the letter demonstrates how everything in the Old Testament pointed to Jesus.

The letter opened establishing the supremacy of Jesus in all things. Where previously God spoke to his people through his prophets, he now speaks through Jesus. The author then started to compare Jesus to angels. While angels served as ministers and messengers, Jesus was the Son of God, the reflection of God’s glory, and the exact imprint of God’s being. Through Jesus, God created the world, and now he sustains all things. Angels served, but Jesus ruled as king.

The author then issued a warning. The Torah was delivered by angels and was binding. It brought judgement to those who rejected it. Therefore, how much greater would the consequences be for rejecting the salvation brought by Jesus? Unlike the Torah, which emphasised law and judgment, Jesus’ message was confirmed by miracles, the work of the Holy Spirit, and the witness of those who had seen him. Jesus brought freedom and redemption, offering a far greater covenant than the one delivered through angels.

The author also explored the role of humanity in God’s plan. Humans were created to rule over creation. Jesus, by taking on humanity, fulfilled this role. He became temporarily lower than angels, suffering and dying to defeat death and the devil. Through his resurrection, Jesus led humanity into glory, making believers his brothers and sisters. 

Hebrews 3-4

Next the authors compared Jesus to Moses. Jesus is the one who was sent by God and serves as high priest, standing on behalf of believers. And he is faithful in that role.

Moses also filled the role of prophet and priest. We don’t think of Moses as a priest much, but he was from the tribe of Levi and is named as a priest in Psalm 99:6. Moses faithfully served God’s house, the tabernacle.

But Jesus is greater than Moses. While Moses served in the tabernacle, Jesus is the temple of God. The place where the people can meet God. Moses was a servant in God’s house but Jesus is a son. Those that believe and have confidence in Jesus can also be part of God’s household.

Then comes the warning of this section. Moses’ main goal was to lead the people through the wilderness into the promised land. It was for his people to experience rest there.

But the Israelites’ hearts were hard. They tested God, and God swore they would never experience the rest found in the promised land. The author references Psalm 95:7-11 which looks at the Israelites’ time in the wilderness as an example of the consequences of rebellion.

In the same way, believers should be careful to not let their hearts be hardened and rebel against God if they want to experience his rest.

In fact, as brothers and sisters, believers should encourage and support one another so that so that no ones rebels or turns away from God, or lets their hearts be hardened.

Believers are partners with Jesus and therefore have a hope of rest to hold on to. Again the author quotes Psalm 95:7-8. Believers should hold on to what they hear from Jesus.

But surely someone who has heard from Jesus could not rebel? The author challenges this idea. The Israelites were the ones that had been led by Moses who saw God. He led them out of Egypt with miracles. But despite they still rebelled.

They had experienced freedom from slavery, and that wasn’t enough to protect their hearts. They had a hope of rest in the promised land, but that hope was not enough for them.

Their rebellion doomed them to life in the wilderness, never experiencing the rest of the promised land that had been offered to them. Their lack of faith and trust in God was their failing.

Now, believers have the hope of rest in a restored kingdom of God, and it is up to each believer to take care that they don’t reject that hope and miss out on that rest, just as the Israelites did.

The writer then pivots to describe the rest not just as the promised land, but now as the sabbath that was established by God. When God created the world, he rested on the seventh day.

There has always been pockets of rest for God’s creation, but they rebellious never enjoyed it. The ultimate rest that believers have hope in can also be experienced in the now. It is part of that now-but-not-yet.

But more than that, it shows how much greater the final rest of Jesus is. Even those who did enter the promised land and who experienced its rest were still invited to hear God’s voice and experience his sabbath.

There was still more rest to experience, even in the promised land. But Jesus’ ultimate rest and hope will be eternal. Just as God worked hard six days and rested on the seventh, if believers will faithful in their work for God, they can experience Jesus’ eternal rest.

Believers shouldn’t think they can get away with pretending to be faithful. The word of God in believers and in scripture is active and alive. It can cut through all things to get to the truth of the matter. All creation will have to give an account for how it has served God, including believers.

Pointing back to Jesus, the author again affirms that Jesus is a high priest. As believers have this high priest in heaven, they should hold fast to the faith they claim. This doesn’t mean that believers have to be perfect.

In fact, in Jesus, believers have a high priest who has experienced and is sensitive to all the weaknesses and struggles that are part of being human. He makes up for all failings and weaknesses. In that case, believers should come close in confidence and boldness, knowing that in Jesus they have mercy and grace for their weaknesses.

Jesus is a great prophet and priest than Moses. The rest and promise is greater than the rest and promise that Moses led people into. And so the call to believers is to hold tight to Jesus so they can experience that rest and promise, and not rebel and miss it like many of the Israelites did.

Psalm 24

This psalm is attributed to king David and falls into the category of a royal psalm. Royal psalms are psalms that are focused on either God as king or on a human king. If Psalm 23 celebrates God as a shepherd, Psalm 24 celebrates him as king.

It is likely that this psalm was used as liturgy in a worship service. As the people got ready to enter God’s presence, they reminded themselves who it was they were coming before. 

Psalm 24:1-2 - The Lord is creator of all the earth

Psalm 24:3-6 - Those who are pure may enter his presence

Psalm 24:7-10 - The Lord is the King of Glory

If there is a king, then there is a kingdom. This psalm opens by establishing the boundaries of God’s kingdom. In short, there are none. When it comes to God, all the earth is his kingdom. Everything in it belongs to him. 

When faced with such a mighty king, who can enter his presence? In the same way that someone cannot just walk up to the king, or the President of the United States, there are expectations upon entering God’s presence. Those that enter God’s presence must be of pure heart and committed to truth. Those that meet this requirement will be blessed and made righteous before God. 

Now ready to enter God’s presence, the psalm builds to bring praise to God. Not only is he king over all the earth, he is a strong and mighty king. So make way for him and allow him to enter.

Much like Psalm 15, Psalm 24 seeks to remind us of the awesomeness of God, so that we never take the fact that we can enter into his presence lightly.