Hebrews 3:1-6

Summary retelling of Hebrews 3:1-6

The author now turns to compare Jesus and Moses, and he asks those of us who consider ourselves subject to a higher calling to think about Jesus as God’s apostle and high priest who was as faithful as Moses.  We are then reminded that Jesus has more honor than Moses because Moses merely passed along what he heard and served in God’s house whereas the world and God’s people were created through Jesus.  Finally we are told that we are a part of God’ house if we hold fast to the faith.

Thoughts for Today

First Thought:

Remember that books of the Bible are named for either the author or the recipient.  {Examples: Matthew, Mark, Luke and John are named for their authors; Romans, Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians are named for their recipients.}  Hebrews, then, is a book named for its recipients.  This is a book written to a Jewish community regarding Christianity and Christian thought.  Given this, we should remember that there is nobody in Jewish thought who is greater than Moses.  Moses spoke to God face-to-face.  Moses received the Law directly from God.  For a Jew, Moses is the epitome of human closeness to God.  Thus, in this chapter the author of Hebrews is attempting to say a very powerful thing to a Jewish audience.  Jesus – the Jew who was rejected by the leaders of His own people – is closer to God and therefore a greater person than Moses.

In what way is this claim challenging to the audience?  In what way is this claim very radical to the audience?  Do we as Christians ever take for granted the claim being spoken here and miss out on the truly radical nature of the author’s words?  What does this passage tell us about not being afraid of the Gospel and promoting the Gospel to anyone anytime regardless of the risk?

Second Thought:

The author makes a really cool point.  Yes, Moses is great.  But all that Moses did was to be a servant.  It was God’s Law – Moses merely heard and repeated.  It was God’s tabernacle, Moses merely served within it.  Moses didn’t do anything original; he merely did what God told him to do.  {Which in itself is a great feat for a human, mind you.}  On the other hand, Jesus was a part of creation.  In dying on the cross, Jesus brought salvation and the Holy Spirit directly to the human people.  It wasn’t just God’s Spirit that he breathed upon the disciples; it was legitimately His Spirit as well.  Yes, Jesus absolutely obeyed the Father.  But Jesus wasn’t merely passing along the solution.  Jesus was the solution.

Have you ever thought of Jesus in these terms?  Why is it important to remember that Jesus is the solution and He is the answer?  Why is it important for us to realize that like Moses we are simply servants to His calling?

Third Thought:

We are a part of God’s house if we hold fast to the faith.  We must hold fast.  We must obey God.  Sure, there is sin and even after we receive Christ and His Spirit we are not perfect.  So we must also be truly repentant.  We are not saved by our works at all – we are saved by Christ’s work.  But God does have an expected response from those who are saved.

What is dangerous about preaching a Gospel of salvation without also preaching about our response?  What happens within people who are told they are saved but who are not challenged with expectation about how those who are saved should act?

Passage for Tomorrow: Hebrews 3:7-11