Category: Devotions

Sunday 28^th

Hebrews 3

NIV (v3) – ‘Jesus has been found worthy of greater honour than Moses, just as the builder of a house has greater honour than the house itself.’

ESV (v3) – ‘For Jesus has been counted worthy of more glory than Moses—as much more glory as the builder of a house has more honour than the house itself.’

I have jumped a chapter today, but we will return to chapter 2 later this week.

Our text today shows to us that Jesus is greater than Moses, the author uses two words that help us to understand what the difference between Moses and Jesus were, we are fortunate in the English language that they both begin with the same letter, which is helpful for those of us who preach or teach the word of God, he uses the words SERVANT and SON verses 5-6 ‘Now Moses was faithful in all God’s house as a servant, to testify to the things that were to be spoken later, but Christ is faithful over God’s house as a son.’

There is key word that is used concerning both Moses as a servant and Jesus as a son and it is found in the opening verses of this chapter, faithful. Verse one reminds us that Jesus was faithful to him who appointed him, (God) and Moses was faithful in all of God’s house. So, both are described as faithful, they were obedient in the tasks to which God had appointed them. We know what Moses was appointed to do; he was called by God. While shepherding his father-in-law’s flock, God appeared to him in the bush that burned and was not consumed and commissioned him to go down to Egypt and command Pharaoh to release the children of God from their bondage and to allow them to eventually arrive into the place that God had prepared for them , the promised land. And Moses was obedient in his calling and so proved himself faithful in God’s house. The term God’s house is referring to the community of God’s people, back then God’s house were the people of God (Israel) and Moses had been faithful in God’s house as a servant. But when it comes to Jesus, he was faithful over God’s house as a son. There are two differences between Moses and Jesus which make Jesus as being greater than Moses, there is the servant – son as already mentioned, but also the words in and over, Moses was faithful IN God’s house, Jesus was faithful OVER God’s house. The community of God’s people by the time we get to the book of Hebrews has now included all who have become a part of God’s family through reason of new birth, for as we read in Hebrews there is a new and living way, made available through Calvary and Moses had been faithful as a servant in God’s house, but Jesus had been faithful as a son over God’s house, in other words, Moses was in the house and thus himself a part of the community, but Jesus is over the house, not a part of the community as Moses was, but as the one who has formed or created the community and thus over and above it, and therefore as verse 3 says Jesus is worthy of much more honour and glory, perhaps we can understand it more by referring to Philippians 2 which reminds us that Jesus was also obedient to the commission of his Father, to come to this world to bring about our deliverance, he took on the form of a servant, but was always at the same time still the son, and thus as a result of his obedience he is over the house as the one seated in the place of honour as King of kings and Lord of Lords. Moses never achieved anything near that status, as we know he never even entered the promised land through a later act of disobedience, but Christ was faithful in every way, even unto the point of death, even death on a cross.

Therefore, the Son is greater than the angels and he is greater than Moses.

We can also draw a conclusion from the thoughts today that Jesus being greater than Moses also means that he is greater than any of the other prophets as well. Another of the reasons why the author has highlighted Moses is because he was considered among the Jewish community whom the author was writing to, to be the greatest of all the prophets, but the Hebrew writer needed to remind them that Jesus is even greater, he is now our focus.

I have spent a long time just trying to expound the verses, but feel it is important that we learn a lesson from it, a practical application, and it is this, we too as members of God’s house, need also to learn what it is to be obedient and faithful. Tomorrow we will consider some of the verses of Scripture that implicate what we are and what we should be as the household of God.

Saturday 27^th

Hebrews 2:5-18

NIV (vv14-15) – ‘Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might break the power of him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil—and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death.’

ESV (vv14-15) – ‘Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery.’

I ended yesterday by saying that I would continue today with another outcome of Christ having tasted death, and it is here in these verses, ‘that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is the devil’! The devil has been overcome he is a defeated foe! In 1 John 3:8 we read, ‘Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil.’

It was the devil who in the form of the serpent came and beguiled Eve and as a consequence Adam as well, and in coming to Adam and Eve afterward, God spoke to the serpent and said, ‘I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring: he shall bruise your head and you shall bruise his heel.’ There was always going to be conflict between the offspring of the woman and with the serpent, the devil, but the good news to be found in this text is that the day would come when the offspring of the woman would bruise the head of the serpent, and it happened at Calvary, for Jesus being the offspring of the woman (and not of the man) died, it was firstly for the sins of mankind, but he was also dying to bruise the head of the devil. He was dying to deal the death blow to the devil, he was dying to destroy the devil and all his works and all the hosts that rebelled alongside him in the presence of God.

And we can rejoice that the devil is a defeated foe, for Christ triumphed victoriously, by defeating death, and as a result the devils days are numbered, he is on a leash and he can do nothing unless God allows him, Scripture says that he is the prince of the power of the air, but Scripture also says that because Christ has tasted death for every man and came through as the victor that he is seated in heaven far above all principalities and powers, that is the authorities that are on earth, under the earth and in the heavenlies, He is the King of kings and he is the Lord of lord and every power is subject to him, even the devil, and the final destruction will take place when the devil and his angels will be cast into the lake of fire, which burns day and night and will never go out. (Revelation 20:10)

This is a reminder to us who are the redeemed of the Lord that we need to learn to live in the victory that is ours in Christ Jesus, we need to be persuaded that nothing – absolutely nothing will be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord, (Romans 8:37-39) as we bow the knee to him, we are surrendering our lives into his keeping and protecting power. The devil will come after us, what we need to do is to be sober minded and watchful, resisting him by standing firm in our faith, (1 Peter 5:8-9) we need to continually draw near to God and he will draw near to us. (James 4:7-8)

‘Jesus hath died and hath risen again, pardon and peace to bestow; fully I trust him; from sin’s guilty stain Jesus saves me now. Sin’s condemnation is over and gone, Jesus alone knoweth how; life and salvation my soul hath put on; Jesus saves me now. Jesus is stronger than Satan and sin, Satan to Jesus must bow, therefore I triumph without and within; Jesus saves me now. Sorrow and pain may beset me about, nothing can darken my brow; battling in faith I can joyfully shout: Jesus saves me now.’

‘For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?’  1 Jn 5:4–5

Friday 26^th

Hebrews 2:5-18

NIV (v9) – ‘But we do see Jesus, who was made lower than the angels for a little while, now crowned with glory and honour because he suffered death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.’

ESV (v9) – ‘But we see him who for a little while was made lower than the angels, namely Jesus, crowned with glory and honour because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.’

We have already mentioned in an earlier devotion the reference to Jesus being made a little lower than the angels, the writer citing from Psalm 8:4-6, in our text today he makes it abundantly clear why Jesus was made a little lower than the angels, why he became a man, or took on flesh, it was ‘so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.’

Death is the enemy of mankind; death is that which resulted from the disobedience and transgression of our fore parents Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden. After placing them in the garden, God had given a clear command ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it,’ and with a very clear verdict should they not heed it, ‘lest you die.’ We know the story, they disobeyed and thus death became the curse that was placed upon mankind, spiritual death took place immediately and physical death would follow later. ‘”By the sweat of your face  you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return.”’ (Genesis 2:15-17, 3:17)  

As a result of man’s disobedience, it is appointed that every man and woman will die, and after death the judgement. But God was not willing to leave us to the fate of eternal death, he had a plan, and the plan involved his Son, it was a perfect plan, which would be carried out to perfection, no detail missed out and its success would mean that that which was lost in Eden would be restored at Calvary, life, eternal life. Spiritually and physically. But for it to happen someone would need to die, someone would need to taste death and come through it victoriously, and the one who would fit the bill was to be the eternal Son of God, for in being made a little lower than the angels he took on flesh, he became a man, this is why our understanding of the Virgin birth is so important, for he needed to become flesh miraculously and not through the seed of a man, so that he would be perfect (sinless) to be able to fulfil the perfect plan. And he lived a perfect life, to become the perfect sacrifice and thus by going to Calvary and into the grave he tasted death for every man and came through victorious. And we have the good news recorded for us by the apostle Paul, first in regard to being made spiritually alive, Ephesians 2:4-5 ‘But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved,’ and also physically as recorded in1 Corinthians 15, ‘For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive’, and ‘When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.” “O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?” The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.’ (vv21-22, 54-57)

Did you notice the link from Ephesians 2:5 and our text for today, ‘’The grace of God’, God’s plan perfected through Christ is all as a result of his amazing grace, God could have just left us in our sin, left us to languish forever in hell, but he didn’t, he chose instead to reach out and to extend his grace toward us, and he has done it through the Lord Jesus Christ. As a result Christ has tasted death for us, he has removed its sting and the day will come when all that have died ‘in Christ’ will be raised and we who are alive at the same time will be caught up to be forever with our heavenly Father and with our great Redeemer.

Tomorrow we will continue to see another outcome of Christ having tasted death, as we move to verses 14 and 15.

Thursday 25^th

Hebrews 1:5-14

NIV (v5) – ‘For to which of the angels did God ever say, “You are my Son; today I have become your Father”? Or again, “I will be his Father, and he will be my Son”?’

ESV (v5) – ‘For to which of the angels did God ever say, “You are my Son, today I have begotten you”? Or again, “I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son”?’

As we continue from yesterday we move into these remaining verses in Hebrews chapter 1 which tell us that Jesus is greater than the angels, (a) because he has a name that is superior (v4), (b) because he is the Son of God (v5), (c) Because he is to be worshipped (v6), (d) because he is enthroned as God forever (v8), (e) because he was involved in creation (v10), (f) because he is eternal (v12) and (g) because he sits at God’s right hand (v13). Nothing that is said about the Son can be said about the angels, and the writer then concludes this chapter with the question that answers itself about angels, ‘Are they not all ministering spirits sent out to serve for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation?’ (v14)

What a chapter this first one of Hebrews is in showing us who the Son is through  whom God is speaking to mankind in these last days. And what a Son he is, the one who although equal with God, did not think equality something to be grasped, but humbled himself to be born of a woman so that he might become our redeemer Saviour and that we in responding could become heirs of salvation, purchased of God, born of the Spirit, washed in his blood.

The writer refers to the Old Testament as he puts forward his theology in this chapter concerning the Lord Jesus Christ,(the word used for this is Christology – the doctrine of Christ) He has referred to Psalm 2:7, 2 Samuel 7:14, and most commentators seem to agree that he refers to Deuteronomy 32:43. I have these references handwritten in my Bible with handwritten notes (I don’t know where from) to remind me that in his Christology, the writer refers back to the writings, the prophets and also to the law, it is a reminder for us that in our preaching and teaching of the word of God we should always check out Scripture with Scripture and see that what we preach is in harmony with the whole of the word of God.

We can readily conclude from this chapter and the various ways in which we see that the Son is superior to the angels is what we read in another epistle, ‘Great indeed, we confess, is the mystery of Godliness: He was manifested in the flesh, vindicated by the Spirit, seen by angels, proclaimed among the nations, believed on in the world, taken up in glory.’ (1 Timothy 3:16)

I conclude our meditation from chapter one by sharing the opening verses of the next chapter, 2:1-4 ‘Therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it. For since the message declared by angels proved to be reliable, and every transgression or disobedience received a just retribution, how shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation? It was declared at first by the Lord, and it was attested to us by those who heard, while God also bore witness by signs and wonders and various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.’

To sum it up, if the law which was delivered by the angels was reliable and meant what it said and resulted in the outcomes that it portrayed, how much more should we be accepting and believing what God has spoken and done through his Son? In these last days as he is continuing to speak through his Son, that is through his accomplished work at Calvary, how will we escape if we neglect to believe and accept. I close with these words, if you have not responded to the call of the gospel and have not yet committed your life to the Lord Jesus Christ, think on it today, for behold, now is the accepted time, now is the day of salvation.

Wednesday 24^th

Hebrews 1:1-4

NIV (v4) – ‘So he became as much superior to the angels as the name he has inherited is superior to theirs.’

ESV (v4) – ‘. . . having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs.’

This verse is a continuation of what has already been said in the previous three verses, but at the same time it also takes us into the next train of thought. This is that Jesus is superior to the angels and has a name that is more excellent than theirs.

Angels are important in the purpose of God, but we need to remind ourselves that they are created beings, whereas Jesus is eternal, he always has existed as the Word of God. Angels have been created to fulfil a particular role, we see this in various places in Scripture, where firstly we are reminded they do the bidding of God, they are God’s messengers, Psalm 103:20-21 ‘Bless the LORD, O you his angels, you mighty ones who do his word, obeying the voice of his word! Bless the LORD, all his hosts, his ministers, who do his will!’ they are also represented in Scripture as being assigned to protect God’s people and to bring deliverance, ‘For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways.’

Psalm 91:11, ‘But during the night an angel of the Lord opened the prison doors and brought them out, and said, “Go and stand in the temple and speak to the people all the words of this Life.”’ Acts 5:19–20. In the Old Testament they were involved in giving the law to the children of Israel, Hebrews 2:2 ‘For since the message declared by angels proved to be reliable, and every transgression or disobedience received a just retribution . . .’ (see also Acts 7:53, Galatians 3:19)

Angels are involved in the revealing of God’s will, we see this in Daniel 9:20-23 where the angel Gabriel comes to bring an answer to the prayer that Daniel had made, he said to Daniel, ‘I have come to give you insight and understanding.’ In the book of Revelation we see how the angels are going to be involved in the bringing about the wrath of God upon the nations for example in the context of the seven trumpets (see Revelation 8:6). Because they are created beings, angels are not to be worshipped, rather they worship God, Revelation 7:11-12 ‘And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures, and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, saying, “Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honour and power and might be to our God forever and ever! Amen.”’

As we can see the angels are amazing creatures, but they are not on the same level as the triune God, they are not to be considered on the same level, and in regards to the Lord Jesus Christ, the Hebrew writer is reminding us that although Jesus humbled himself and became a man, that is in his manhood, he was made a little lower than the angels, (Hebrews 2:7) after he had provided purification for sin, he ascended to sit at the right hand of God and is exalted far above the angels, he has been crowned with glory and honour. There is not one angel who will ever be exalted to such a position or place, as I mentioned yesterday, the place of highest honour belongs to Jesus, it is his by sovereign right.

As we continue this theme tomorrow, we will see through the rest of Hebrews chapter one and through chapter two  why Jesus is superior to the angels. For today as we close, our text says that regarding the angels he has a name that is superior, (NIV) more excellent, (ESV, KJV, CSB) greater than (NLT) they. His name is Jesus, he is the Christ, he is the King of King, He is the Lord. And one day every knee will bow, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.

Ephesians 1 tells us that after God had raised the Son from the dead he seated him at his right hand ‘far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come.’

‘Far above all, far above all, God has exalted him far above all, crown him as Lord at his feet humbly fall, Jesus, Christ Jesus, is far above all.’

Tuesday 23^rd

Hebrews 1:1-4

NIV (v3) – ‘The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.’

ESV (v3) – ‘He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high.’

Verse 2 ends with, ‘whom he (God) appointed heir of all things, through whom also he created the world.’ So immediately we discover that the Son whom God is speaking through in the last days, (a) was present at creation, (b) is the radiance of the glory of God, or as the KJV puts it, ‘the brightness of his glory and the express image of his person’, (c) upholds or sustains all things (d) is powerful (e) the purifier of sin and (f) sits at the right hand of God. This is an amazing person! And it is none other than our wonderful Lord and Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Let’s just look briefly at each of these points with some further clarification from Scripture. They are also important points regarding our understanding of the deity of the Lord Jesus Christ.

(a) The Son was present at creation. We are reminded elsewhere in Scripture, that Jesus was present at creation, I have touched on this a few times with the devotions, for example we have: ‘In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made.’ (John 1:1–3) and  ‘For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him.’ (Colossians 1:16).

There is another important verse found in 1 Corinthians 8:6 that says, ‘yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist.’ This verse puts both God the Father and Jesus the Son as being present already, that is pre-existing before anything was, confirming the eternality of the Father and of the Son.

(b) The Son is the radiance of the glory of God or as the KJV puts it, ‘the brightness of his glory and the express image of his person.’ Colossians 1:15, ‘He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.’ I have already quoted from John 1:1 ‘. . . the Word was God’ This is an affirmation that the Son is God, and in the person of Jesus he was ‘God in the flesh’ thus both fully God and fully man, (John 1:14) and in the words of Jesus himself, (who we remember from Matthew 17:5, God said we needed to listen to) we have, ‘Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else believe on account of the works themselves.’ (John 14:9–11). Then we have the words of Philippians 2:6 ‘. . . who though being in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped . . .’

(c) and (d) Upholds or sustains all things by his powerful word. Colossians 1:17 ‘And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together.’ The very evidence of creation speaks of the power of the Godhead, the very fact that all things continue in an exacting way also demonstrates the power of the Godhead, sustaining all things. It is a confirmation of the unity of the Father and the Son, neither working nor acting apart from the other. Imagine the chaos if the Father and the Son were to act out of accord with one another!

(e) The purifier of sin. The eternal Son humbled himself to bring about God’s eternal plan of redemption, and through his obedience and suffering he has become the One who has made the purification of sin possible. ‘. . . waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Saviour Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.’ Titus 2:13-14) Because of his obedience and his bringing about the purification for sin he now:

(f) Sits at the right hand of God. He holds the highest place that heaven affords, as we have in the hymn, ‘The head that once was crowned with thorns, is crowned with glory now; a royal diadem adorns the mighty Victor’s brow. The highest place that Heaven affords, is his by sovereign right; the King of kings, the Lord of lords, and Heavens eternal light.’ Philippians 2:8-9, ‘And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore, God has exalted him . . .’ Mark 16:19 ‘So then the Lord Jesus, after he had spoken to them, was taken up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God.’

‘Lord I lift your name on high, Lord I love to sing your praises, I’m so glad you’re in my life, I’m so glad that you came to save me. You came from heaven to earth, to show the way, from the earth to the cross, my debt to pay, from the cross to the grave, from the grave to the sky, Lord I lift you name on high.’

Monday 22^nd

Hebrews 1:1-4

NIV (v2) – ‘but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe.’

ESV (v2) – ‘but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world.’

It is going to be difficult to go through this book too quickly, for if I were to limit a day or two to each chapter, we would miss out on so much. In this first chapter alone, we discover so much about the Lord Jesus Christ. The writer commences in verse 1 to remind the readers that in the past God had spoken to mankind, many times and in many ways. My memory always goes back to the King James Version, ‘God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets.’ God has always been a speaking God, we know he spoke and creation took place, and since then he has continued to speak to mankind, he speaks through what he has created, he speaks through his action and dealings with mankind, he speaks through his written word, our Scripture, and as we have seen in this first verse he has spoken in many varied ways through the prophets, in particular to the children of Israel, for in verse one it says ‘spoke to our fathers’, therefore we can draw a conclusion that initially this epistle was written to a Jewish community, and thus perhaps the reason why there is so much mention through the epistle of the sacrificial system.

How did God speak through the prophets ‘at sundry times and in divers manners’? Well our answer comes in the record we have in the Old Testament of the different men who God raised up to be his spokespeople, who he would use as channels to speak to the children of Israel, we can easily recall the names of so many of them as we have the books named after them, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel etc, and Moses who doesn’t have a specific book named after himself but is considered the author of the first five, and we have the divers ways in which God spoke through them, for example, Daniel was used as a prophet to speak God’s word by revealing what the dreams of an individual meant, Daniel 2,  Ezekiel was used as a prophet by having what we consider to be strange visions or pictures that revealed the word of God to the people, for example the whirling wheels in Ezekiel 1 or the valley of dry bones in Ezekiel 37, and Hosea had to marry a whore to bring the word of God to his people! Hosea 1. But when we get to the epistle before us today, the writer says, that is how God spoke in times past, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Now, it doesn’t mean that God has stopped speaking in other ways, neither does it mean that we can forget or ignore what he has spoken in the Old Testament, but what it does mean is that in speaking through his Son he has brought about a new era or a new dispensation, and the good news is that the way he spoke in the past dealt with only the nation of Israel, but this the latest and the last way in which he will speak is to the whole world. He still speaks through creation, he still speaks through his word, he can still speak through the prophetic, but more importantly he has spoken through his Son and is still speaking through his Son.

There is an important verse in Mathews gospel, which we find during the time when Jesus went up to the mountain and was transfigured in the presence of Peter, James and John, and  Moses and Elijah appeared before them, It is the words that God spoke at that moment which are so important, ‘This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him.’ (Matthew 17:5) Note the words ‘listen to him.’

There are many voices that clamour for our attention, but the most important voice we should be listening out for is the voice of Jesus. Now, for us it means that we need to pay attention to what Jesus has said, what he taught, for everything that he preached whether in parables, sermons, instructions etc is God speaking through his Son in these last days to the world, but perhaps of even more importance, if I can put it this way, is that God has spoken through his Son at the Cross. Now of course these opening verses open up another important subject which I have already jumped the gun and answered in my thoughts so far, and it is this, ‘who is the Son that God has chosen to speak through?’ And it as we go through this epistle, we discover it is Jesus. It is not until we get to chapter 2:9 that we read the name Jesus, but in running towards that verse the writer tells us so much about ‘the Son’ who he is etc. which we will discover as we continue

Sunday 21^st (February)

Hebrews 1

We move this week into the book of Hebrews. This is the one book in the Bible of which we do not know who the author is. But that matters not, as it is the content of the book which is important. As I read through this book, if I was to draw a short and simple conclusion it would be that it is a book about Jesus, who he is, 1:1-2 ‘Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world.’ what he has done, 9:12 ‘. . . he entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption.’ what he is doing, 9:24 ‘For Christ has entered, not into holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true things, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf.’ and what he will do. 9:28 ‘. . . so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.’

Toward the end of the book, in the final chapter, the author writes, ‘Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.’ (13:8) He has commenced the book by telling us that the Son is the one through whom God is speaking to the world in the last days, he reminds us that Jesus is greater than the angels and greater than Moses, he talks of Jesus as being the one who has suffered for our sins, and he is the one who is seated as our great high priest in the presence of God interceding for us, and that he will come again.

There are of course, some verses in this book that we probably are very familiar with, for example Hebrews 4:12, concerning the word of God, ‘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.’ Then almost straight after we have verse 16 that reminds us of the throne of grace, ‘Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.’  In chapter 11 we have verse 1 ‘Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen’, which continues with the list of men and women who we call the heroes of faith, and then in chapter 12 verses 1-2, ‘Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.

I trust that as we go through this book we will be encouraged further in our Christian walk and that our relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ of whom it is all about and that we will be enriched further. I will make the verse in Hebrews 12 our key verse as we go through this book, ‘. . . looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. (v2) May we always keep our focus on Jesus, looking to him as our Saviour and looking for him as our coming King.

SATURDAY 20^th

Today is a day to pause and have reflection. I will share a verse from Psalm 116:12, ‘What shall I render to the LORD for all his benefits to me?’

As we have gone through the first 40 psalms over the last few weeks, they remind us of so much of what the Lord has done for us, what he is doing for us and what he yet has in store for us. His granary is full, full to bursting with the many blessings which he has prepared to bestow upon those who trust in him.

In farming one of the important tasks of the farmer in the summer months is to ensure that there will be plenty of hay, silage etc stored up ready to feed the livestock during the winter months, for the farmer is never sure of when the winter will arrive and for how long it may last. It may be a good winter, on the other hand it may be a long, hard, and cold winter where the reserves will need to last longer.

It matters not in many ways whether the winter is short or long, the important thing is for the farmer to be prepared. There is a sense in which we all hit the pandemic completely unprepared, no one knew how long it would grip the nations of the world, and even now, nearly twelve months later we still do not know, and because we were unprepared we have had to muddle along, the governments of the world have had to muddle along, seeking to find the best way to move forward and to come out of it. But even though we were caught out, individually and nationally and world-wide, God was not caught out, and even though this pandemic has seemed to be like what a long hard winter would feel like to the farmer, God was not caught out and even before the pandemic arrived, the storehouse of heaven was full, fully prepared for the pandemic and from out of his granary, God has never failed in any way to bless, he has continued to pour his blessings upon the Church and upon his people throughout this period. And even though he has been pouring out, his granary is still full.

I said it is a day to pause and for reflection – spend some time today considering the faithfulness in God’s provision toward us, yes some days have been dark, many days we may have felt lonely, even we could say frustrated, but God has not failed, he has still provided, through our limited fellowship, through his word, through the videos, etc. And just as the cattle and sheep would receive a fresh supply of hay or silage in the morning from the farmer, even on the coldest and darkest of the winter days, so also God has fed us with our daily bread, both physically and spiritually.

‘What shall I render to the LORD for all his benefits to me?’ This is a question therefore it demands an answer, I will bring the answer from the words of David himself, ‘Praise the LORD, all nations! Extol him, all peoples! For great is his steadfast love toward us, and the faithfulness of the LORD endures forever. Praise the LORD! . . . Oh give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever!’ (Psalm 117:1–118:1)

That is the answer, praise the LORD, give thanks for his faithfulness and his steadfast love. 

Reflect today on the mercies of God, they are new every morning, great is thy faithfulness and give thanks.

Tomorrow we will move into the New Testament and the book of Hebrews.

FRIDAY 19^th

Psalm 40

NIV (vv1-3) – ‘I waited patiently for the LORD; he turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire, he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see and fear the LORD and put their trust in him.’

ESV (vv1-3) – ‘I waited patiently for the LORD; he inclined to me and heard my cry. He drew me up from the pit of destruction, out of the miry bog, and set my feet upon a rock, making my steps secure. He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God. Many will see and fear, and put their trust in the LORD.’

We come today to the last of the Psalms in the first section, chapters 1-40, it seems to have been a little like a marathon getting through them! But what good verses to be ending this section with, for David it was his testimony of how the LORD God had come and delivered him from his many enemies, but at the same time it is a wonderful declaration of the testimony of every individual who has put their faith and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ.

Think of the words found in verse 2 ‘He drew me up from the pit of destruction, out of the miry bog . . .’ Something similar is found in Psalm 103:4 ‘. . . who redeems your life from the pit . . .’ The term ‘pit of destruction’ is a good description of where we were outside of the grace of God, for we were helplessly stuck, without any hope, and doomed for eternal destruction. It was a horrible place to be, imagine what it must have been like for Joseph when his brothers threw him down into the pit, dark, alone, fearful, and of himself unable to get out, I can imagine he may have tried to grip the sides with his fingers and tried to pull himself up, but every time he seemed to lift himself up a few inches, the pit wall would crumble and he would crash back down to the floor, but help came from an unlikely source, and they paid a price to buy Joseph and they hauled him out and off he went, no longer to do his own thing, for he had been purchased and he now belonged to someone else. And we were in our pit, but thank God that someone came to purchase us and to lift us up out of the pit, any attempts we had made to save ourselves were useless, but a Saviour came who paid the price to redeem us, and he purchased us with his precious blood, and we are no longer free to do our own thing, we belong to him. The good news about Joseph was that he went on to find himself in high places and we too as we have been brought up out of a horrible pit have been lifted to a high place, for we are seated with Christ in heavenly places. (Ephesians 2:6)

But there is more, for we are not only seated with Christ, in the words of the psalmist our feet have been set upon a rock, in fact we need to spell it with a capital R and change it to the Rock, who is Christ Jesus. We are on a secure and solid foundation, in fact if we go back to what David said in Psalm 27:5, we read, ‘. . . he will lift me high upon a rock.’ Our high place is both to be seated with Christ in the heavenlies and to be lifted high upon the Rock. What a place to be found, what a transformation from being in a pit of destruction, surely it is something worth celebrating, and David continued, ‘. . . He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God.’ Do you have a song in your mouth? Do you have a song of praise to our God? Every one of us who has been lifted out of the horrible pit should be singing the praises of our God, for he is worthy, he reached down and picked us up, he has done so much for us that he is worth every ounce of praise we can muster up, and so much more. I love singing, my voice might be croaky and ropey, but the words I sing are an outward expression that reflects the joy that is in my heart because of what the Lord has done for me.

‘Oh, for a thousand tongues to sing my great Redeemer’s praise, the glories of my God and King, the triumphs of his grace’.

‘Now in a song of grateful praise, to thee, O Lord, my voice I’ll raise: with all thy saints I’ll join to tell, my Jesus hath done all things well.’