An Address by A. H. Stewart

Let us read verses 8-16 of the Epistle to the Hebrews, last chapter:

"Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, and to-day, and forever. Be not carried about with divers and strange doctrines; for it is a good thing that the heart be established with grace-not with meats, which have not profited them that have been occupied therein.

"We have an altar whereof they have no right to eat which serve the tabernacle; for the bodies of those beasts whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by the high priest for sin are burned without the camp. Wherefore Jesus also, that He might sanctify the people with his own blood, suffered without the gate. Let us go forth therefore unto Him without the camp, bearing his reproach; for here have we no continuing city, but we seek one to come. By Him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name. But to do good and to communicate forget not; for with such sacrifices God is well pleased."

The last words express what is in view:"God is well pleased." I am sure that it is the desire of every sincere Christian to be true to Christ, that it may be said of us, "God is well pleased." He opened the heavens to declare of Christ, as He came out in His public ministry, "This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased" Surely we would be delighted if in any measure He could say the same of us. Enoch had this testimony (before he was translated) that "he pleased God."

Now I want you to get a photographic or mental view of the whole Epistle to the Hebrews, and at the end we will see how we can please God. But first we must get the correct view-point if we are to understand the Epistle.

Have you ever thought of it in this way?-Here was a company of Hebrew Christians, a people that had a religion instituted by God, and who now professed to accept Jesus Christ as the Messiah. They had separated themselves from their former ritualistic religion and were now associated with a Saviour rejected and despised by their nation. They had nothing external now to show to people. Of old they could say,"Here is the wonderful temple where we worship, and everything inside is of pure gold; the sweet incense fills the holy place; musical instruments delight our ears; our eyes behold gorgeously robed priests busily engaged about the altar and temple." But now they had lost all this! You can imagine the devil saying, "You have lost a whole lot; what have you got in their place? You have nothing for your eyes to look upon. Oh, you are great losers! And you cannot even trace your religion very far back. A man has just come a few years ago, and you have accepted His religion with an intangible something which you call faith!'"

The apostle, and the Holy Spirit through him, answers, "We have what is far, jar greater for those who receive Jesus as the Sent One of God;" and the whole Epistle is his argument, in which he contrasts persons and things of the old economy with the grand realities now come and realized in Jesus Christ. They were but figures:He is the great reality to whom they pointed. The argument therefore is that the Lord Jesus is superior to everything and everyone under the Levitical economy.

As you know, this Epistle to the Hebrews is the one book in the Bible that starts with "God." "God, who at sundry times and in divers manners"-"God" begins the Epistle. With that majestic opening he takes them back to the prophets. He says, "God spoke in days gone by through the prophets in fragmentary ways to the people; but now, God has spoken to us in His Son."

Here begins the argument. You will find the proofs are complete. (1) For instance, was not Moses a great servant of God? Yes, surely. But if God Himself comes down, is He not infinitely greater than Moses? This means, clearly, that the One called Jesus is God who has come down in the Person of the Son. Will there ever be a greater speaker than God manifest in the Son? No! That is the first argument. Look at the men in the days gone by, God's ministers bringing a message. But, surely, infinitely greater is God Himself in the Person of His Son.

(2) Next, angels are spoken of-messengers of God sent down to deliver messages time and time over again- to Gideon, to Manoah, to Daniel, to Zechariah, and many others. The Hebrews consequently held angels in reverence and awe, and the apostle shows that Jesus whom they had accepted as Saviour is greater. Men, indeed, were saying of Jesus, "As for this fellow, we know not from whence He is;" but of Him God says, "Let all the angels of God worship Him." Here is the argument again:Angels never would allow anyone to worship them; but here is a Man of whom God says to the angels, "Worship Him." Who is the greater?-the one who worships or He who is worshiped? Ah, He is the Father's delight, and the angels bow before Him and reverence Him. In Revelation, when John falls down to worship an angel, he says, "See that thou do it not; I am thy fellow-servant… .worship God" (Rev. 22:9). Nor did Peter allow anyone to worship him, though an apostle; he says to Cornelius, "Stand up; I myself also am a man."

(3) Next Joshua is brought before them. Joshua was one of their greatest leaders. As long as he led them, they went from victory to victory, with the one exception at Ai. But Joshua died. He died, and stays there. He meets an enemy he is not able to overcome. David was another in whom the Hebrews boasted. He slew Goliath and led his people to victory over their foes. But they had to confess, "His sepulcher is with us to this day" (Acts 2:29). Three things are spoken of death in ch. 2 of Hebrews:The fear of death; the power of death; and the suffering of death. The fear of death was upon the people of God; the power of death was wielded by the devil; and the suffering of death came upon our Saviour. Here is an awful enemy that faces the people of God. When death gets hold of a man, no matter how great he may be, he must submit, and stay there. So Joshua and David met an enemy they could not overcome. The fear of death kept the people of God in bondage all their lifetime. But the Leader and Captain of our salvation goes into death, the stronghold of the devil, and annuls his power.

"Up from the grave He arose,
With a mighty triumph o'er His foes-
He arose a victor from the dark domain,
And He lives forever with His saints to reign,
He arose! He arose!
Hallelujah, Christ arose!"

And now we see Jesus, crowned with glory and honor. He is the Captain of our salvation. Hebrews of old Testament days, have you any captain like that? And you, Christian Hebrews, have you lost anything? Or have you a better leader than they? Ah, yes! He comes into the very stronghold of Satan and brings life and incorruptibility to light by the gospel. Angels, principalities and powers are subject to Him, God "has put all things under His feet and given Him to be head over all things to the Church which is His body." He lives! Is there any other leader who has died of whom it can be said that he lives? No! They all died, but our Captain is the living One. We see that "same Jesus," on the throne of God. He meets him that had overcome every other one, and annuls his power. As long as Joshua lived there was victory. And as long as Jesus lives there will be victory for the Church of God:"The gates of hell shall not prevail against it" (Matt. 16:18). It can not be otherwise. He it is, who is bringing many sons to glory. He will land them all safe there-every one of them. He has never lost one of His sheep, and never will. He has gone into death and annulled its power and now He lives for us!

(4) "Every house is builded by some man; but He that built all things is God" (ch. 3:4). They honored Moses after he died. They resisted him while he lived. Now that he was dead they say, "Give God the glory. We know that God spoke unto Moses;" but of Jesus they say, "As for this fellow, we know not from whence he is" (John 9:29). Now Paul says that Moses was faithful in God's "house as a servant;" but he speaks of "Christ as a Son over his own house, whose house are we." Notice:Moses a servant in God's house; Christ, the Son, over His own house. Here is the argument again.

If I were going to England, and saw Lloyd George, one of the servants of the kingdom, then the Prince of Wales; who is greater, I ask, Lloyd George or the Prince of Wales? Who is greatest in your house?-your servant or your son? There is One ruling over the house of God; it is Christ who is greater than Moses, worthy though he be, and greater than the House of which He is the Head and Lord.

(5) See Him next as the High Priest. You can hear the Hebrews say, "Why, you Christians have no official priest!" What says the apostle? Just look at your Levitical priesthood; none of your priests were allowed to continue because of death, but our High Priest, Jesus, continues for ever.

A Hebrew might say, "I am going to see Aaron the priest," and he goes down. Aaron sympathizes with him, and the man goes away comforted. Years later he says to himself, "I am going down to speak with him again. He helped me so much." On the way he meets an acquaintance who asks, "Where are you going?" "I am going to see Aaron the Priest." "Oh! have you not heard that Aaron died? But his son is in his place, and he is a fine man." "But I don't know him," says the other. "He will never understand me as Aaron did." Ah, what a difference it makes to go to someone you know, and who knows all about you!

Then, Aaron was made priest without an oath, but Jesus is declared, with God's oath attached to it, "Thou art a Priest for ever after the order of Melchisedek." The Hebrews never thought of going to Genesis to prove their priesthood as an abiding one, but God goes back to Genesis to point Him out, as typified by Melchisedek- not of an Aaronic order, but after the order of Melchisedek-that of unending priesthood, "Having neither beginning of days nor end of life." "Wherefore He is able to save to the uttermost," is the way it is often quoted, but it reads, "Wherefore He is able also to save to the uttermost." That word "also" is a connecting link:that is, He has saved your soul; "You have received the end of your faith, even the salvation of your soul," but He is able also to save you all the way home, to preserve you unto God from all the occasions of falling by the way, because "He ever lives." For the Christ we know is not a dead Christ, but a living Christ in the glory. "Wherefore He is able also to save all the way through (to the end of the journey) them that come to God by Him." Have you, Hebrews, anyone like that in your Aaronic priesthood? No; your priest cannot even guarantee himself, he failed; he was "encompassed with infirmities" and at one time needed one to intercede for him.

(Concluded in next number.)