Read the Bible in a Year (18DEC19)

DAILY REMINDER – Today, December 18’s Bible reading is Hebrews 1-6.

NEXT DAY REMINDER – Tomorrow, December 19’s Bible reading is Hebrews 7-10. May God bless you with the reading of His WORD.

 

HEBREWS Introduction

The early church was experiencing heavy persecution during the time that this book is believed to have been written – around 67 A.D.  Biblical scholars have not been able to say with certainty who the author of this book may be. There is no identifying evidence within its text regarding such; although, the original audience knew exactly who the author was, for we can tell from reading Hebrews 13:23. There have been a few suggestions made over the centuries such as Barnabas, Paul, Silas, and others. Unfortunately, nothing concrete has ever been able to be established. Despite the anonymity of the author, Hebrews was written to encourage the Jewish Christians and others who might have been considering abandoning their faith and returning to Judaism. Its theme supports the supremacy of Jesus Christ and His superiority of revelation, over angels, Moses, Aaronic Priests, and being the ultimate sacrifice. The author pleads for the believers to persevere in their faith and cling to the promise of salvation.

HEBREWS MOMENT – (18DEC19) “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. So he became as much superior to the angels as the name he has inherited is superior to theirs” (Hebrews 1:3-4). The author of this book wanted to help his readers understand the supremacy of Jesus who had come to do a mighty work on the cross for us to be saved. At the time this book was written, the early church was under heavy persecution and some had begun to doubt their faith. The author wanted to encourage them by letting them know that their faith had not been in vain and that Jesus had become lower than the angels although He was God to help save mankind from death. He had been given authority that no other angel nor man had been given because He humbled Himself to the Father and became human to pay for our debts. He serves as our Advocate and High Priest because he suffered and was tempted in every way that we are, but He never sinned and did what Adam was unable to do.

The author tells his audience that Jesus was superior to Moses because God declared Him as the Faithful One over His house as His Son with whom He was well pleased. The generation who was with Moses was not able to enter God’s rest because of their rebellion, but God tells us today to not harden our hearts and enter His rest for in Jesus, there is Salvation. This Sabbath’s rest is not about a calendar day, but knowing that one day, we will be free from all the pains and challenges of this life by which we are now subjected to. The Bible says: “Never again will they hunger; never again will they thirst. The sun will not beat down on them, nor any scorching heat. For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; he will lead them to springs of living water. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes” (Revelation 7:16-17). Therefore, when we enter His rest, we are entering into the promise of having an eternal peace from all the worries of this world.

Just as the early church had to be warned against apostasy, we too must be careful to not give up when things get hard on our Christian journey. The enemy wants nothing more than to have a once faithful believer to turn his or her back to what they have known to be true. The author of Hebrews spoke of believers needing to be on solid food instead of being infants on milk. What he was saying is that many of us should be able to digest the Word of God as spiritually mature adults – not in age, but in the matters of God rather than still walking as spiritual infants on milk being unwise to God and His Word. The author of Hebrews was not admonishing this to compare one’s walk with that of another, but he was encouraging the believers to strive towards spiritual maturity daily in Christ. The Bible says: “We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised” (Hebrews 6:12). Let us not give up but continue to strive towards the Prize of the High Calling of Christ our Savior. In the end, all that we have encountered down here on earth and the sacrifices we have made will pay off in the end when Jesus says, “Well Done.” Something to ponder….