by C E Lunden
The subject of Hebrews can be spoken of as "the way into the holiest." First of all, we call attention to the Person of the Lord Jesus. In Hebrews the name Jesus often comes before us. "Thou shalt call His name JESUS.”
Hebrews brings before us a Man. Walking down the corridor of a university building one day I saw on the bulletin board these words: "Give us a man." This world wants a man, and they are going to have a man after their own hearts. But if they knew Jesus, they would know that they had a man, and that Man is now seated in the heavens-the man Christ Jesus.
The Person
We have in Heb. 1 the glory of that Person, the Son of God. "In Him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily. And ye are complete in Him." Col. 2:9, 109For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. 10And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power: (Colossians 2:9‑10). What tremendous truth we have in the book of Hebrews: the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ-Jesus!
The foundations of Christianity!
We have them all here in Hebrews. About fifty years ago I was talking to an engineer who was beginning to construct one of the tallest towers on the Pacific Coast. It was so great they had to build a railroad to bring in the aggregate, cement and steel to build the foundation for this tower. It was to be a tremendous tower, but he did not tell me much about the tower; all he talked about was the foundation. If you want to have a tremendous tower, you will have to have a tremendous foundation.
Can you imagine a concrete foundation several yards thick, and spread out over a vast area? It was because it was built on sand. God says not to build anything on sand, because it will not last when the floods come. There are some foundations that are everlasting, foundations that will last when everything else passes away. We have them here in Hebrews.
Angels
We notice that the angels are spoken of in this first chapter, because it is written to the Jewish people and they admired angels. They had seen angels, and God had spoken to them by angels. But now we find that the Spirit of God is setting all the angels aside and Jesus is taking their place. He was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, but now He is exalted to the highest place.
In God's sight He is exalted, but not yet before the world. We have to wait a little while, and then the whole world will see the glory of that Person. In the second chapter, after we read "not yet" it says, "but we see Jesus" (v. 9). We don't see all His glory yet; we are going through the world in a path of rejection. "But we see Jesus." Is that enough for your heart, or do you want something else? Do you want someone who can fill and satisfy your heart now and for all eternity? That one is Jesus who is the manifestation of all the power and glory of God in His own Person as a Man. Think of it, Jesus!
Jesus Is Jehovah
“Thy throne, O God, is forever and ever" (v. 8). This is Jesus. Do you want any better foundation? Jesus is Jehovah, the Creator-God known to Israel. Over one hundred times He is referred to in the Old Testament. Yes, Jesus is the Jehovah of the Old Testament.
At the beginning of chapter 1, we find that He is the creator, the very One who made purgation for sins. He is the One who undertook that you might have eternal life. Then it says, "Being made so much better than the angels." That word "made" really is not the thought. He was never made; He was always the eternal God. But He could say to God, "A body hast Thou prepared Me." He prepared Him a body; He did not change His Person. He is the same Person, but He took on a body. The angel said, "Thou shalt call His name JESUS: for He shall save His people from their sins.”
He Sat Down
We read also at the beginning of chapter 1 that when He was finished with this work, He sat down in His own right at the right hand of God. As the Son of God He sat down. But at the end of the chapter we see that He is invited to sit down as Man beside the Father. You and I will never sit beside the Father, but we are going to sit beside Jesus, on His own throne! "Thy throne, O God, is forever and ever." That is Jesus. What are you trusting in? Is it that which endures forever and ever? In Hebrews we are given that which is forever and ever.
In the second chapter, the angels are entirely set aside. In that coming, millennial day, God has not put the authority in the hands of angels. No, He has put it in the hands of Jesus. There is a day coming (ch. 12) when the power of all those angels will be transferred to Jesus and the Church. Marvelous truth! They are called "His angels" (Matt. 13), when He sends forth His angels and He comes forth to cleanse the earth for the millennial day. A man, a race below angels, He took part with them. But now God has exalted Him above angels, His angels, and His servants with the Church. Oh, how marvelous!
There are four reasons why He came to die:
(1) atonement,
(2) to fulfill the counsels of God,
(3) to annul him who had the power of death,
(4) and to become a faithful High Priest in things pertaining to God. That really introduces the subject which follows—the priesthood.
Priesthood
He is a Priest, but He could not be a priest after the order of Aaron for He was not of the family of Aaron. He is after an entirely new order, not the order of a commandment, but in the power of an endless life. That is the difference in the two priest-hoods. The priesthood is seen in three types:
First: Phinehas (Num. 25), where it is a question of atonement and everything rests upon this. In Heb. 8, if one were to be a priest he would have to have something to offer. In chapter 7 it says that this He did, when He offered Himself. He is the priest, and He is the sacrifice, the man Christ Jesus.
Second: after, not the order, but the type of Aaron. Why? Because of our infirmities. We have infirmities and He is acting now after the type of Aaron.
The Lord Jesus was here and He entered into the very things that you and I enter into and He felt them. We know, of course, that He is God, but I am speaking now of the practical side of things. Was He ever deceived? He said of Judas, "Mine own familiar friend, in whom I trusted... hath lifted up his heel against Me." Have you had that experience-a good friend suddenly turns against you? He has had that. Have you had sorrows that you can hardly bear? He had them; He knows how you feel. Have you had the loss of a loved one? He felt it. Think of His weeping at the grave of Lazarus! Yes, the Lord Jesus knows how to comfort those who have infirmities, trials, and difficulty.
Third: the priesthood is after the order of Melchisedec. He is a Priest who has made atonement and who now is here taking care of our infirmities. But Melchisedec is a priest that has no beginning or end. He abides a priest continually, and does not die as Aaron died. We have eternal consolation from this, because the foundations are secure in this Priest who will never die.
When Melchisedec met Abram, he was in the position where he had a tremendous decision to make. He looks and there is Melchisedec. Does Melchisedec say anything to him about what he has to do? Not one thing. He just spreads out the bread and the wine. What does that mean? The sovereign grace of God comes in to meet us in our need and He brings us that which we need for all eternity! The wine speaks of joy, eternal joy; the bread speaks of eternal sustenance. It is all eternal in its character. Melchisedec spreads it all out before Abram, the father of faith. That is our portion; our Melchisedec abides a Priest continually.
In chapter 6, God gives us two immutable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, that "we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us” (v. 18). Then in chapter 7 verse 17 He swore for that forerunner, "Thou art a priest forever after the order of Melchisedec." He never swore in the other priests; but this priest was sworn in for eternity-the Man Christ Jesus, "after the order of Melchisedec." Are you resting on solid foundations for your faith, on a priest who made atonement?
A Royal Priest
One thing more about Melchisedec: he was a royal priest. He was king on a throne at the same time, King of righteousness and King of peace. And Jesus will be that for all eternity!
In chapter 8 we see that if there has to be a priest after a new order of an endless life, there would have to be a new covenant also. Because the old covenant depended on men down here in weakness, and they failed. The new covenant depends upon the priest who comes after the power of an endless life. This has a special application for Israel. The book of Hebrews was written to Israel, but it is for us.
Forever
Would it not be nice to be in a position where you would never again think of nor remember one single sin that you had ever committed? I will tell you something: God does not remember them-He said so! "Their sins and iniquities will I remember no more." But do you know what you have in virtue of what Jesus has done? You have a purged conscience (Heb. 9:1414How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? (Hebrews 9:14)). What does it mean to have a purged conscience? It means that all which was on the conscience is gone forever! In Hebrews we have what is forever—a purged conscience. Unless we realize this, we have no liberty in the holiest.
In the first chapter the Lord Jesus sits on an eternal throne. In the fifth chapter we have eternal salvation. In the seventh we have a priest—eternal. In the eighth it is a covenant for Israel. We do not have covenants in heaven. In the ninth chapter notice verse 12: "Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by His own blood." Oh, how precious the thought, by His own blood! "He entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us." Redemption is the completion of all His works. It is the fullness of Him that filleth all in all. The bride is spoken of in that way too, because she is connected with that redemption (Eph. 1:2323Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all. (Ephesians 1:23)). Yes, redemption completes all His works. Oh, what a Savior we have.
Eternal Things
In chapter 9 there are three things that are eternal. We have eternal redemption—brought back and set free (v. 12). We have an eternal Spirit (v. 14). And we have an eternal inheritance (v. 15). We have in Hebrews that which is eternal. It never changes!
Eternal inheritance, what is that? There is a day coming when we will be His companions. It is not the bride here; that is Ephesian truth. In Hebrews it is companions. Is it not blessed! Can you picture yourself going with the Lord Jesus out over the vast universe that belongs to Him as a man? He became a man so that you and I might share it with Him. Can you picture that—going hand in hand, shall we say, with that blessed Savior out over that vast inheritance of all created things that belong to Jesus? You might be in it tomorrow. Yes, you might if He came today! Is it going to be a real disruption in your life—a tremendous change that takes place? Or is it a part of your everyday life already?
In this book of Hebrews, when the Lord Jesus comes, He just sets aside everything that belongs to the old Jewish order. Figures and ordinances are all gone. The tabernacle is gone. He is the tabernacle, Priest, King; He is everything. What do we have left that we can see? The natural heart wants something religious to see, but is it all gone? No, there is one thing left, one thing that you can see. Turn to chapter 13:10, "We have an altar." That is Jesus. You might ask how we can see that? Chapter 2:9 says, "We see Jesus.”
Heavenly Things
In Hebrews we have heavenly things. The Jew was occupied with earthly things. In the third chapter we have our Apostle and High Priest in connection with heavenly things. The Lord, when He speaks to Israel in this book, does not say, "Who were dead in trespasses and sins"; He says "brethren". Why? Because they were already in relationship with Him. But they needed something better; they needed heavenly things. The remnant of faith in Israel belonged to Him, but they did not know about heavenly things. He calls them brethren. Then He shows them by the Apostle Paul that all these types and shadows have to do with heavenly things. "We see Jesus" by faith; He is now in the heavens.
This is the heavens as they are now. In the Old Testament the heavens were clothed in thick darkness: there was no revelation to man. But now the heavens are opened. We see a man seated in the heavens, surrounded with glory on every hand. His very Person is the fragrance that fills all heaven-Jesus, the man Christ Jesus. What will the heavens be like in the eternal state? Still Jesus, and all because He fills all things. Would you want to have your hearts filled? You have a longing now for satisfaction. There is not one thing in this world that will satisfy your heart. If Jesus is going to satisfy your heart forever, can't He satisfy it now?
Rest
I purposely skipped something in chapter 4, and will call your attention to it now. "There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God." Heb. 4:99There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. (Hebrews 4:9). This verse may not mean as much to some of the younger ones as it does to many who are older. Rest! The Sabbath day was the connection of the Jews with their Messiah. In the fourth chapter we find that after God had done all His work, He rested on the seventh day, but our rest is on the eighth day. It is the new day, where everything is new. When we get to heaven, everything will be new, except that we know that Jesus will be there. Rest! Oh, how precious is the thought of rest.
We can speak of all those precious truths in connection with the Father's house from Ephesians, but here we have it from another aspect entirely. It is a rest that remains for the people of God. It is not a rest of conscience; we have that already, because in the tenth chapter we learn that the way into the holiest is through the blood of Jesus. That is all, the blood of Jesus; there is no other way. You say, how can I get into the holiest? You are there! You are there if you are under the blood of Jesus. Do we act like we are in the holiest? How we need to hang our heads. That is our home—our eternal home.
But what about the rest? It remains for the people of God. Are you one of the people of God? Are you resting on these solid foundations we have been speaking about, that are immovable? In Heb. 12:2828Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear: (Hebrews 12:28) we have a "kingdom which cannot be moved." Are you looking for something else in this world? You won't find anything that will equal this, that there remains a rest for the people of God. How precious for the laborer on his way home as he gets nearer that rest, he thinks of that fireside, he thinks of the table set with a lovely meal, he thinks of those arms around him, and the kiss of his loved ones. That is what we are going to have. "There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God."