Jesus is better: than all the prophets

So we pray for your help in our time together.

We're praying in Jesus' name.

Amen.

So we'll think about the first three verses of this wonderful chapter,

this wonderful book, the book of Hebrews,

thinking about this theme of Jesus being better.

And I think here we will consider that Jesus is better than the prophet who came before.

This theme, Jesus is better, is important to our unnamed author

because the situation he is writing into is one in which there are Christians

who are being tempted back towards Judaism,

towards the old ways of temple and sacrifice and law-keeping in order to earn salvation.

There is pressure and there is opposition that is growing.

And so they're perhaps asking the question, is following Jesus worth it?

There's that temptation to drift back.

And so the author very powerfully through this letter brings this repeated emphasis

that Jesus is better.

Jesus completes all that has come before.

In our little series, we'll probably just look at the first four chapters.

And even in those four chapters, we'll discover Jesus is better than the prophets

and then the angels, then Moses and Joshua, better than the temple,

better than the priests of the Old Testament.

The author wants to make absolutely clear that God has spoken in His Son, Jesus.

Therefore, as the church, they and we ought to pay attention.

That Jesus is the foundation of our faith and we also want to make Jesus that anchor

so that we wouldn't drift away from the truth.

So today, just by looking at these first three verses,

we'll think about Jesus being better than the prophets.

In that sense that Jesus brings a greater revelation of God.

He is a new way of God communicating as He comes in His Son, Jesus.

And we'll also think about the fact that Jesus completes the story

that the prophets told, that the Old Testament told.

It needs resolution in Jesus.

So for the church then and for the church today,

we need to hear and we need to believe in Jesus

in order to have that complete picture of God's story of salvation

in order to belong to God and His kingdom.

And that was a very necessary lesson for them.

And it remains important for us, of course, today.

I mentioned this morning that one of the things I took on my holiday

was a bunch of different mission biographies.

And one of the things I guess that you notice when you go back to,

let's say, the 1800s where I was for the last couple of weeks

is when it came to communications,

there's been quite a lot of improvement, hasn't there?

200 years ago, a letter went by sea, by ships, perhaps by horseback.

It took a long time and not always a reliable means

of communicating with friends and family back home.

But now, if you're a missionary working anywhere in the world,

you have Zoom, you have FaceTime, you have mobile phones,

you have internet.

And we've seen that with our mission partners.

We've been able to communicate with them month by month.

And the point is that when it comes to modes of communication,

in this instance, that the new is better.

And I doubt if any of us would want to go back to snail mail

and getting our post delivered by a horse.

And then perhaps it'd be helpful for us to think about communicating a story.

As we come to the book of Hebrews,

one of the things the author wants to make clear

is that Jesus completes the story of God's mission of salvation.

But think about the stories that we enjoy.

Think about perhaps a TV series or perhaps a series of books,

even a series of films.

Quite often they will use the cliffhanger device.

We will build to a point of tension.

And then perhaps that'll be the end of a book or the end of a show.

And you're left waiting for resolution.

When will the hero arrive?

How will people be saved?

That kind of thing.

And the point of the cliffhanger

is that we always want the story to be resolved.

Perhaps we've had the frustration of a favorite TV show

being canceled in the middle of a series.

And so the story is left unfinished.

It's profoundly disappointing.

Well, the author is saying,

Jesus completes the story of God's salvation.

We cannot miss the coming of the hero.

We cannot leave him to one side.

Jesus is God's final, God's complete word.

There is nothing better than Jesus.

And so our author says to first century Jewish Christians,

don't go back to the old.

And the author would say to us,

let's not leave Jesus behind.

Let's not drift back to those other things

that perhaps we used to trust in

for satisfaction, security, and salvation.

So two points to show Jesus is better than the prophets.

We'll think first of all about how God speaks

because our author compares the old and the new.

In the first couple of verses.

And then we'll concentrate our attention

on who it is that God is speaking through

as we think about Jesus as the full and final revelation.

And the purpose is that we would worship Jesus.

That we would have a confident faith in Jesus as Lord

as we recognize his identity and his mission.

That we would listen and we would stick close to Jesus.

So let's think first of all briefly about how God speaks.

And let's notice how our author compares

the old and the new ways.

Verse one and two.

In the past, God spoke to our forefathers

through the prophets at many times and in various ways.

But in these last days, he has spoken to us by his son.

Now our starting point, and it's a wonderful starting point,

is that we have a God who speaks.

We have a God who makes himself known.

We have in Christianity a faith that is top down.

It's based on God's revelation, not human speculation.

We are reminded even in these opening words

that we don't have a God who is silent and uncaring and distant.

Rather, he speaks and he speaks so that we would know him.

Speaks so that we would know his salvation.

So having seen that we have a God who speaks,

let's look at how the author contrasts

how this speaking God has chosen to communicate.

So he looks at two different eras.

So notice verse one begins in the past.

So we think all the way back to Genesis one.

We discover from the beginning, our God is a speaking God.

He speaks the universe into existence.

But in the past here is really thinking

about the whole Old Testament period.

Before Jesus, that's in the past.

So that was in the past for the church

that our author was writing to.

That's in the past for us too.

Compare that with, but in these last days.

So there was the past and now this new era is the last days.

This is the time in between the first

and the second coming of Jesus.

So this is the era in which we find ourselves in today.

Jesus has come and now we await his return.

So it's a new era.

And then he draws attention to the fact

that there are different recipients in view.

So verse one, in the past,

God spoke to our forefathers, to our ancestors.

Here he's thinking about Old Testament Israel.

So in the past, God spoke to Old Testament Israel.

And we discover that all through the Old Testament.

But in these last days, he has spoken to us.

There he has in view the church that he's writing to.

But by extension, God has spoken to us in the last days,

in our period of time.

And we know, don't we, that there was that period of silence

between the Old Testament and the New Testament, 400 years.

But that silence has been broken, broken decisively

as God sent his son, Jesus,

in that new way to speak his glory, his salvation to his church.

And we are those who receive that message.

Notice too that he draws attention

to the different agents that God spoke through.

So in verse one,

In the past, God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets.

Who were the prophets?

Prophets were God's Old Testament mouthpieces.

The Old Testament prophets were famous for saying,

thus says the Lord.

They received messages from God

that they communicated to the people.

They functioned as middlemen between God and his people.

But now in this new era,

verse two,

But in these last days,

he has spoken to us not by prophets,

but by his son,

the great prophet.

There is no middleman as God speaks

in this decisive new way.

And when we remember how Jesus spoke,

Jesus didn't say,

thus says the Lord.

Jesus would say,

truly, truly, I say to you.

Jesus spoke with the authority of God

as God the son.

And then in these two different eras,

there were different ways in which God communicated.

In the past,

God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets

at many times and in various ways.

So throughout Old Testament history,

we discover God revealing himself

and speaking to the prophets.

A variety of ways.

The burning bush.

God appearing in visions and dreams.

God speaking audibly.

But now,

in these last days,

he has chosen one decisive way.

He has chosen to speak to us

by his son.

So the whole of Jesus coming

is God speaking.

Here is God in the flesh.

Here is Jesus preaching the truth of God

with the authority of God

as the son of God.

And then we think about Jesus on his mission.

And that mission reveals the salvation of God

as he comes to die in the place of sinners

that all who believe in him would have eternal life.

And in all of those ways,

God is speaking to us about himself

through Jesus, his son.

So the author begins very clearly

by saying Jesus is better.

This new way of God speaking

is better than the old.

Not that the old was unreliable.

It's just God is speaking in a new way.

In our modern world,

I guess we are intrigued

and fascinated in many ways

by what is new

and by what is novel.

And we can discuss,

and maybe you have been in discussions,

but is the new always better?

Well, when it comes to God speaking,

there's no debate in this argument.

It is better that God has spoken

through his son Jesus.

Now, what does this mean for a church?

What does this mean for us?

Well, it certainly has implications

for how we read God's story, doesn't it?

The Bible is deliberately Jesus-centered.

And Jesus himself invites us

to read it this way.

After his resurrection,

as he spoke to his disciples

on the Emmaus Road,

he began with Moses and the prophets,

and he explained that the whole Old Testament

was pointing forward to him.

So when we read the Bible at home,

or when we read the Bible

and teach it in church,

we are looking to see

how this passage of the Old Testament

connects us to the Lord Jesus,

his person and his work.

So we understand that we don't want

to throw the Old Testament to one side.

And in fact, the whole book of Hebrews

draws repeatedly from the Old Testament.

We recognize that it is true,

it's reliable, it's inspired,

but it's incomplete until Jesus comes.

So that shapes how we read God's story

as the people of God.

It also, I think, reminds us, doesn't it,

of our privilege and our responsibility.

The prophets who are being compared here,

they longed for what we now enjoy.

And we discover them eagerly

wondering who this promised Christ would be,

who this suffering servant Messiah would be.

We know.

We've been given that privilege

on this side of the cross.

We have heard God speak of his love

in a new way in the sending of Jesus.

That's our great privilege as the church.

But that brings with it, doesn't it,

a new responsibility.

To respond to that word

and to respond with urgency,

to respond with faith and obedience.

One of the implications,

as the author of Hebrews will bring out,

is that we are not to drift away,

not to become complacent,

not become tired of our faith

and to move on to something else.

Rather, we are to enjoy it ourselves.

And as we come to taste and see

that God and God's son Jesus are good,

that we are then responsible

for sharing that gift as the church,

we are to be about mission.

And in that light,

one of the other things that we recognize,

as we look at the world around us,

we think about the society we live in,

we recognize that Jesus is the answer

to the spiritual search

that so many people are on today.

People who have decided the church

has nothing to say to them,

no interest in picking up the book,

but they're still deeply spiritual,

still looking to connect with the divine,

whatever that might mean,

still wanting to hear from God.

Spirituality is a multi-billion pound industry.

People are still searching,

still want to hear from God.

Perhaps we have friends like this,

seeking meaning, seeking connection,

trying different pursuits and practices

in order to try and find that higher meaning.

In Jesus and in God's Word,

we have the answer

to the deep longing of every human heart.

Because what we have is a God

who in love speaks

and speaks in the sending of His Son, Jesus.

And Jesus invites us in.

That we can hear God in His Word.

So right from the beginning,

there is a big point

that our author wants to make clear.

And it's simply that He is the speaking God

who wants to speak to His church,

to His world,

and He does that by sending His Son, Jesus.

Therefore,

as a church,

as an individual,

we want to be people who listen.

We think about every effort at communication,

every part of technology involved in communications.

There is a responsibility on our part

to pick up and to respond.

And God is speaking

so that we would respond to Him,

that we would be drawn in.

So Jesus is better,

that this new way of speaking

is better than the old.

Let's think too about the reality

of who God speaks through.

Because this is where the author chooses to focus

from the second half of verse 2 into verse 3,

to recognize Jesus as the full and final revelation from God.

See, it seems like the author knows

that the church,

the Christians that he's writing to,

and indeed every church in every generation,

will face opposition

and will then have that temptation,

the temptation to going back,

to departing from Jesus and His truth,

to drifting away from faith.

Our temptations won't be the same

as a first century Jewish Christian.

Perhaps we will be tempted

to place our sense of salvation and security

in our bank balance

or in our status, in our job.

Perhaps we're looking to a relationship,

imagining that that's the one thing

that we really, really need.

And we can easily displace Jesus

from the throne of our hearts,

just as they were tempted to.

Well, the author knows their thinking,

and his response is, you know,

one and a half verses

of incredibly rich theology.

He gives them seven ways

to confirm in their hearts,

in their minds,

that Jesus is better.

He doesn't just want to say

Jesus is better than the old.

He wants to persuade.

He wants to give evidence

so that God's people would continue

to persevere in faith,

to recognize Jesus

as that full and final revelation.

So we're going to really just blast

through these seven ideas.

But let me encourage you this week

to read them again,

to think through them,

to pray over them,

to think how they connect

with the Old Testament,

that it'll be clear in our minds

that it will lead us to worship Jesus,

to recognize just how great He is.

So to help us,

let's group this into three categories

to show also how Jesus fulfills

the big story of the Old Testament.

We'll think about the three roles of Jesus

as king, as prophet, and as priest.

So let's remind ourselves

from God's Word of Jesus, our King.

So look with me at verse 2.

Having said in these last days,

He has spoken to us by His Son.

Our author then goes on to say,

whom He appointed heir of all things.

Who is Jesus?

He is the heir of creation.

Brings us back to Psalm 2 this morning.

God's King has been installed.

This King has the right to rule

and to judge the nations

that this creation belongs to the Father

and the Son is the heir of it all.

And so we should listen

and we should honor

and we should obey.

Continuing in verse 2,

this Son is the one

through whom God made the universe.

The Father is the source of creation.

Jesus, the Son,

is the agent of creation.

Some of us, I know,

are good at making things,

good at crafting things.

Boys and girls,

perhaps that's something that you enjoy,

you have enjoyed.

It's amazing to just stop and reflect,

even for a moment,

on the fact that Jesus can look out

over the whole universe

and He can say,

I made that.

The pride that we take

in our DIY projects,

Jesus made the solar system.

And then in verse 3,

King Jesus, we're told,

sustains all things

by His powerful words.

Not only does He make them

as the agent of creation,

He sustains all things.

We don't have time,

but it'd be worth looking at Psalm 104,

which tells us that growth

and life and seasons,

they're all managed

by the word of the King.

King Jesus creates,

King Jesus sustains all life.

God has spoken by His Son,

His chosen King,

and Jesus is ruling today.

Therefore, what's the implication?

We're being invited again

to trust Him.

Think about the folks

that are getting written to here.

They were facing trouble,

persecution.

They were anxious.

They're being called back

to trust God

in life and in death,

to trust in King Jesus.

When we think about our church,

when we think about the church,

perhaps we can be anxious.

Perhaps we can feel

so weak and powerless.

We wonder what's going to happen.

We're invited to trust King Jesus.

He's building His church.

The gates of hell

will not prevail against it.

We're being invited

to trust the word of this King.

We're invited to faith and obedience

because He is God's chosen King.

To trust His word,

to trust His promises.

Jesus is not one of those

who promises the moon

but fails to deliver.

Jesus doesn't make promises

and then forget all about them.

No, our King can be trusted.

And so our author here

is saying to us,

don't drift.

Keep trusting.

Don't give in to doubt.

Don't give in to fear.

Rather, honor Jesus as King.

And then let's think next

about Jesus as prophet.

A couple of things here

in verse 3.

We begin there.

The sun is the radiance

of God's glory.

So if you remember back

to Exodus 34,

we were reading there

of Moses face to face

in the presence of God

and after being in God's presence,

his face was shining.

It was radiant.

But we need to understand

and Moses understood

that that was a reflected glory.

That wasn't a glory

from Moses himself.

It was a reflected glory

and it was a fading glory.

He put the veil on

because he knew

that that glory would fade.

But by contrast,

Jesus, God's great,

true, final prophet,

he shines with the glory of God.

That's not reflected.

That belongs to him.

We can think of

the Mount of Transfiguration.

Jesus takes James, Peter, and John

up a mountain

and there he's transfigured.

There he shines with brightness

and with glory.

And remember,

who else is there?

Moses is there.

But Moses is not shining with glory.

Jesus is.

Jesus is better.

Jesus is the radiance of God's glory.

Then continuing in verse 3,

he is also the exact representation

of his being.

We might like to think of

a stamp

where the imprint

is a perfect match.

What our author is saying

is that Jesus looks

exactly like God the Father.

We want to know

what God is like.

We can look to Jesus.

Jesus said that.

John 14,

John 14:9

verse 9,

He who has seen me

has seen the Father.

He who has heard Jesus

has heard the Father.

Our Westminster

shorter catechism

is helpful on this.

Thinking about

how does Christ

execute the office

of a prophet?

It says there,

Catechism 24,

for those of you

who have good memories,

Christ executes

the office

of a prophet

in revealing to us

by his word

and spirit

the will of God

for our salvation.

That's the message

of the prophet Jesus.

Here is this announcement

from heaven

of a God of love,

of a God

who has graciously

provided a way

to be saved.

From our sin,

from our guilt,

from our fear of death,

Jesus takes our sin,

our guilt,

he dies in our place

so that by faith

we can know salvation

and we can receive

eternal life.

John Calvin on this verse

says that God has

in Christ

stamped for us

the likeness

to which he would

have us conform.

Jesus is the one

perfect human being.

He is the true

image of God.

We are made

in the image of God

as people

because of sin

that image

has been defaced.

Jesus is the perfect

image of God

and God is at work

in us

in order to make us

little by little bit

by bit more

like Jesus

with the promise

that when we are

with him in glory

we will be made

like him

and we will see him

as he is.

So to be most

ourselves

as people

and to live out

our true identity

as people

is to live

like Jesus.

What does that look like?

It looks like worship.

Worshipping

God the Father.

It looks like

enjoying

God's glory

above all else.

It looks like

hating

sin,

dying

to self,

pursuing

God's will

in

our lives.

Jesus

speaks

of God's

salvation

and Jesus

speaks of

how God

would have

us to live

and God

is conforming

us to that image

when our faith

is in Jesus.

We're given

the Spirit

and the Spirit

is at work

in us

to sanctify us.

And let's think

about Jesus

as our

priest.

half way

through

verse

three

we read

after he

had provided

purification

for sins

he sat

down

at the

right hand

of the

majesty

in heaven.

Jesus

our great

priest

has provided

purification

purity.

This is

day of

atonement

language.

You can

read about

the day

of

atonement

in

Leviticus

16.

That great

ceremony

where there

was the

burnt

offering

that was

sacrificed

the scapegoat

that was

said to

carry the

sins

of God's

people

into the

wilderness

and the

outcome

of that

verse 30

of Leviticus

16 tells

us

on this

day

this day

of atonement

on this

day

atonement

will be

made

for you

to

cleanse

you

then

before

the

Lord

you

will

be

clean

from

your

sin

so

the

point

of

the

day

of

atonement

is

cleanness

before

God

by having

sins

dealt

with

but see

the thing

is

that day

of

atonement

was an

annual

ceremony

for the

people

of God

because

those

animal

sacrifices

could

never

fully

deal

with

sin

Jesus

comes

as a

better

priest

and

then

he

offers

the

better

sacrifice

not

animal

sacrifice

needing

to be

repeated

rather

he

gives

himself

as that

perfect

once for

all

sacrifice

at the

cross

where

full

and final

forgiveness

is

purchased

where

God's

people

are

made

clean

and

then

we're

told

having

provided

purification

he sat

down

the

point

is

the

work

is

done

his

work

is

completed

that

sacrifice

has

been

accepted

forgiveness

is

ours

by

faith

in

Jesus

access

to

God

is

ours

by

faith

in

Jesus

and

now

Jesus

has

the

place

of

honor

and

glory

as

king

sitting

at the

right

hand

of the

majesty

in

heaven

seven

ways

our

author

says

Jesus

is

better

than

the

old

seven

ways

in

which

our

author

wants

to

say

to

us

don't

be

tempted

by

anything

less

than

Jesus

so

that

we

might

not

lose

sight

of

our

good

our

salvation

is

that

we

would

see

again

the

beauty

of

the

gospel

when

we

think

about

it

and

Davy

was

talking

about

it

this

morning

we

as

people

naturally

choose

to

rebel

against

God

our

king

we

spark

revolution

in

our

sin

our

desire

to

rule

and to

decide

for

ourselves

how

our

life

is

going

to

go

we

are

those

who

by

nature

reject

God's

word

the

prophets

that would

speak to us

we would

naturally

choose to

reject

we don't

we don't

listen to

to

God's

voice

and

God's

authority

and yet

how does

God

respond

he responds

in sending

Jesus

who comes

as our

great

high priest

who dies

to wash

us clean

us rebel

sinners

sinners

who

disregard

his

word

he comes

to

overcome

our

sin

to

speak

that

word

of

grace

and

love

to

our

hearts

so as we

look at the

gospel

we understand

Jesus is

better

Mike

Kruger

who's

written a

really

helpful

little

book

on

Hebrews

says

we have

the

honor

and

privilege

of living

in the

age of

Christ

through

whom

God

has

fully

and

finally

spoken

and

because

that's

true

we are

urged

not to

drift

away

not to

go back

not to

look

elsewhere

but rather

to pay

attention

as God

speaks

through

Jesus

his

son

let's

take a

moment

to

pray

together

Lord

our

God

and we

thank

you

for the

rich

truth

that we

find

throughout

your

word

we thank

you

for

this

part

of

Hebrews

and this

reminder

of how

wonderful

Jesus

is

that

reminder

that he

shines

with the

glory

of God

that he

speaks

with the

authority

of God

he has

come

on a

saving

mission

from

God

that he

is

our

true

prophet

priest

and king

and may

you help

each one

of us

whether we're

here in

the building

whether we're

listening

online

may you

help us

to hold

on to

Jesus

to come

to him

in faith

not to

turn away

to think

the old

is better

not to

think there

is some

greater

source of

satisfaction

not to

give up

on Jesus

when we

face

persecution

or opposition

or suffering

Lord may

you keep

our eyes

fixed

on Jesus

our great

saviour

so that we

might

praise him

and live

for him

we ask

it in

Jesus name

Amen

Now we'll

close our

time

hearing

the hymn

that we

heard

a few

weeks ago

Forever

Jesus

My hymn

of praise

shall be

forever

Jesus

my firm

foundation

in shifting

sands

my strength

and hope

through many

fears and

failures

the

disappointments

of the

past

His

constant

love

has

held

me

fast

So

for all

my

days

I will

sing

my

praise

to the

King

Forever

Jesus

Though

the storms

may rage

He is

strong

to save

He's

the King

Forever

Jesus

My

song

of joy

shall be

forever

Jesus

who bore

the suffering

who made

way

His life

a gift

His

death

the precious

ransom

that

wipes

the

sinner's

guilt

away

and

turns

our

night

to

glorious

days

So

for all

my

days

I will

sing

my

praise

to the

King

Forever

Jesus

Though

the storms

may rage

He is

strong

to save

He's

the King

Forever

Jesus

My

final

prayer

shall be

forever

Jesus

when shadows

lengthen

before

my eyes

My

Lord

and

friend

companion

through

the valley

where

dearest

ones

are

left

behind

His

hand

will

lead

me

to

the

light

So

for all

my

days

I

will

sing

my

praise

to

the

King

Forever

Jesus

Though

the storms

may

rage

He is

strong

to

save

He's

the

King

Forever

Jesus

When I

meet

His

gaze

I

will

sing

my

praise

to

the

King

Forever

Jesus

All

my

sorrows

past

I

am

home

at

last

with

my

King

Forever

Jesus

With

my

King

Forever

Jesus

With

my

King

Forever

Jesus

We

stand

together

for our

closing

prayer

prayer

You

can use

Revelation

Revelation 5:12

5

verses

12

and 13

praying

that this

song of

the angels

and every

creature in

heaven

and on

earth at

the end

of time

would be

the song

of our

hearts

as well

worthy

is the

lamb who

was slain

to receive

power

and wealth

and wisdom

and strength

and honour

and glory

and praise

to him

who sits

on the

throne

and to

the

lamb

be praise

and honour

and glory

and power

forever

and ever

Amen

and

and

all