Christ the True and Better - Hebrews 3:1-6 - The True and Better Prophet pt.1

All right, here we go.

Hebrews 3, 1 through 6.

Therefore, holy brothers, you who share in a heavenly calling, consider Jesus, the apostle

and high priest of our confession, who was faithful to him, who appointed him, just as

Moses also was faithful in all God's house.

For Jesus has been counted worthy of more glory than Moses, as much more glory as the

builder of the house has more honor than the house itself.

For every house is built by someone, but the builder of all things is God.

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.

And we are his house if we indeed hold fast our confidence and our boasting in our hope.

Three basic principles I'm going to be sharing with you and some supporting statements that

go along with that scripture and other things.

So let's go.

First principle number one, Christ the builder and faithful delegate to the family of God

reminds us of our heavenly calling.

Christ the builder and faithful delegate of the family of God reminds us of our heavenly

calling.

You guys remember that wonderful hymn?

Turn your eyes upon Jesus.

Look full into his wonderful face and the things of earth will go strangely dim in the

light of his glory and grace.

There's a verse in there that says this, his word shall not fail you, he promised.

Believe him and all will be well.

Then go to a world that is dying, his perfect salvation to tell.

Helen H. Lemel, 1922.

Now in Hebrews, when we're dealing with this issue of Christ the better prophet, there's

some clarifications that are being said here I want you to pay attention to.

It says therefore holy brothers, holy brothers.

This means the brethren in Christ or those exalted to the same heavenly place.

That's important because there's this term right afterwards that says you who share in

a heavenly calling.

Now what's interesting is A would imply that there would be many heavenly callings but

there's only one.

It's actually I think the right translation, the right word that should have been used

there is if we as holy brothers, those who are exalted to the same heavenly place as Christ,

we are with him in his heaven and that he sits at the right hand of God the Father,

then we who share in that heavenly place have what we share is the heavenly calling, the

heavenly calling.

There is one heavenly calling.

That heavenly calling is the calling to salvation.

It's like I don't have a different calling than you.

God doesn't have a purpose for my life and he has a purpose for yours.

It's the same purpose.

It's the same calling.

Eternity with Christ, the eternal calling.

It's important that we understand this because when he says consider Jesus, you'll understand

that this word consider means to fix one's mind or eyes upon.

So when you're running a race and you want to finish the race and you feel like you want

to give up, the reason why you finish the race and you run hard is because you see the

finish line.

You know there is a goal and so you're striving so he is our prize as we have stated before.

Fix one's mind or eyes upon Jesus.

Consider Jesus.

Do you think about Jesus?

Are you looking to Jesus, the author and perfecter of your faith?

Very important as we are considering him, as we are fixing our minds upon him.

Why should we fix our minds upon him who is our heavenly calling?

Well, because he is the apostle.

He is the delegate and messenger.

He is the first apostle.

He is the better apostle.

You can only be an apostle if you have, one, if you're Christ, two, if you've been taught

directly by Christ, have seen Christ and have walked with Christ.

Very important.

No one else can claim that.

There's no other apostles on the earth.

So if there's a denomination that teaches you, hey, that's apostle such and such, run.

There is no other apostle.

The apostles that all of the Word of Faith movement and the Charismatic movement keep

pushing apostleship.

There aren't no apostles.

There are no apostles.

I know aren't no is a double negative.

That's why I said it.

That means no, no, no more.

Okay?

That's not good English, but as a preacher, I think we can get away with the aren't no

or as they would say the ain't no.

All right?

Now if Christ is the apostle and the high priest of our confession, then you understand

why we should fix our eyes upon him.

He's the message and he is the messenger.

He is the high priest, the one who on our behalf goes before the father and cares for

us, deals with our sin.

He is the advocate for you.

What is this confession?

The word confession here also means the profession.

What do we profess?

Christ crucified.

Paul says, I have known nothing before you except Christ and him crucified.

The gospel is our confession and the gospel is what we profess.

So if this is true, then we don't need anything else and I don't need.

You like that?

All right.

Good.

He is our apostle and high priest.

Now what's interesting is verse two, who was faithful to him who appointed him?

In other words, God, the father has set before time, he who would be our propitiation.

Do you remember we talked about that last week?

That's why he is the one who was faithful to accomplish what the father has planned

perfectly.

This is not by surprise.

This was by design.

You're like what?

God has designed salvation.

He is the creator of it.

He's the one who plans it.

He's the one who established it.

He's the one who sets it up and has fulfilled it.

It's an amazing redemptive work of God.

And if this never happened, if man never sinned, you would never experience the amazing character

of God's redemption.

It's necessary.

So much bigger than our minds can ever imagine.

So when he says, just as Moses also was faithful in all God's house, meaning God's family,

who's more faithful?

So this word God's house is the family of God.

It's not a building.

You are that building.

You are the living stones.

You are the household of God, the family of God.

Two, as believers.

Principle number two, unless the Lord builds the house, those who build labor in vain,

Psalm 127, one.

Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain, Psalm 127, verse one.

Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be a wise man who built

his house on the rock.

Matthew 7 24.

That's what Jesus says.

Jesus is the builder.

He is the rock.

Now in Hebrews three, three and four, it says this, for Jesus has been counted worthy.

Really, really an amazing word.

Axial.

Axial means deserving, fit or right.

In other words, he is the one who is deserving.

He is the only one who is fit and he is the only one who is right of more glory than Moses.

Now why would the writers say this?

Because understand, apart from Moses, there is no greater prophet in the mind of a Jew.

He is in their minds the pinnacle.

Because many times you would see in the conversation that Jesus has, well you're greater than our

father Abraham or you're better than Moses.

Yes, he is.

And that's the point.

He is the only one who is deserving, fit or right of more glory than Moses.

Moses is so unique that out of all the prophets, a prophet would receive a word from God by

vision or dream.

That's how he would hear from God.

Moses, though, on the other hand, is the only prophet that God spoke face to face.

That's how unique Moses is.

And what the writer is saying, what the father is saying here is Jesus is the one who is

more deserving, fit and right of more glory than that.

Why?

Because he is the one who spoke to Moses.

Here check it out.

He says, as much more glory as the builder has or of a house has more honor than the

house itself.

In other words, Christ is the builder and if Christ is the builder, the house doesn't

get more glory.

The builder gets the glory.

I wonder if we really understand that.

Because there's a lot of houses of worship, quote unquote, being built in the name of

God, but it's not in the image of God.

And so this word builder means to equip, prepare or make ready, to erect or construct.

See he is the only one who is worthy, who is capable of equipping his people, preparing

his people, making ready his people, building a temple of his people and constructing that

temple.

He is the one who carasculco a Zeus.

And that house, the builder has more honor than the house itself.

But what do we talk about when we talk about churches?

Do we talk about Christ, the king of the church?

Or we talk about man, you got to go to that church.

It's amazing.

That music is awesome.

You ever notice that?

Churches are recognized for the music they play, not for the Christ they reflect.

Isn't that interesting?

You know, I mean I have to go to Elevation Worship, that music is banging.

But then you look at their life and go, your life is trash.

But that's church.

People want churches that fit their taste buds, but they don't want churches that are biblically

sound.

We are committed as a part of the body and the family of God to reflect Christ in everything

we do.

Everything.

And sometimes that's going to make people uncomfortable.

And that's okay.

So if this is true, look what it says in verse 4.

For every house is built by someone.

There's a lot of people building houses, but the builder of all things is God.

And what's interesting is, if God builds it, he can also take it down.

What's amazing about the church, in the church that he's building is, not even the gates

of hell can prevail over her.

That building of people is firmly established.

Why?

Because anyone who builds a house on the rock is wise.

Wise.

Third principle.

Christ the true heir and rightful owner and deed holder of all that was promised.

Christ is the heir of the promise.

Christ is the rightful owner of the promises and he is the deed holder of the promise.

I want you to get that.

It's very important.

Think about this.

Christ comes, gives his life, pays the price, his world, his land, his city, and then we

go, no, it doesn't belong to him.

It actually belongs to, you guessed it, the Jews.

And that's not biblical.

If he's the one who fulfilled the rightful promises, if he's the one who accomplished,

if he's the one who fulfilled the deed that's required for it, then he's the one who owns

it.

And that's clarified here.

Here's the scripture.

All things have been handed over to me by my father.

All.

What's all things?

All things have been handed over to me.

In other words, I am the owner.

I am the heir and I am the deed holder.

Mine.

He has the right to that.

He is the one who is fit and right to receive all of those things.

He is the faithful.

Now if all of this is true, it continues to say in Matthew 11, 27, and no one knows the

son except the father and no one knows the father except the son and anyone to whom the

son chooses to reveal him.

Interesting.

Many people claim rights to something they don't own.

God owns it all.

This is important because in verse five through six, we clarify this.

Now Moses was faithful in all God's house as a servant.

Moses was faithful in all of God's family as a servant.

What is a servant?

He's a slave.

His job is to serve.

He is the one to serve.

He's to serve the owner.

Now what's interesting about this particular word in the Greek, this word is theropon.

Theropon.

Now theropon is, what I liked about this particularly is it speaks especially to Moses.

It's like one word that's not, it can apply to many others, but specifically when you're

talking about the servant Moses, this is his word.

Out of all the words, this is the word that they would associate servant Moses, theropon.

The word means an attendant or discharging the duties committed to him.

Isn't that interesting?

Out of everyone, Moses was the servant of God.

Moses was the deliverer.

Moses was the redeemer.

Moses was the high priest.

Moses was the what?

The general leader.

He was all these things to the people of Israel.

But nonetheless, he was not the builder owner.

He was the servant.

He was the theropon.

Now if Moses is the one who is the attendant or the discharging of the duties committed

to him, specifically speaking of Moses, what was he discharged to do?

Well that's a good question because it's right there in the verse.

To testify of the things that were to be spoken later.

What things?

Jesus talks about this when he's on the road to Emmaus.

Does he not?

A couple guys come around and he says, have you not learned all that Moses and the prophets

had spoken about me?

These are the things that were to be spoken later.

These are what Moses was pointing to.

Moses the servant, the faithful witness, was pointing to someone greater than him.

He was pointing to Jesus the better.

That's the point.

And so we read in verse 6, but Christ is faithful over God's house as a son.

If Moses was faithful over God's house as a slave, as a servant, as a theropon, then

Christ is faithful over God's house as the heir, the owner.

No matter where you go, you can go to verse after verse after verse.

If God has given him all things and he is the rightful heir of the inheritance of God,

then why in the world would he exclude one particular thing?

The land of Israel.

Does that make sense?

Oh no, it doesn't make sense.

As a matter of fact, he clarifies this because you see what he is talking about.

It's never been about the land.

Look what it's about.

The second part of verse 6, Christ is faithful over God's house as a son and we are his house.

You are his inheritance.

You.

Everything he has is for himself to be with his people for eternity.

That's the point.

He is far better than Moses ever could be.

And Moses knew this.

I mean, can you imagine you go up to Mount Sinai and you stand there and you're watching

a bush not burn and the one standing in the midst of the bush is one who was the son of

man.

Jesus is standing in the bush.

Conversation.

He goes, he comes back, he meets with them again on Mount Sinai and what's he do?

Has a conversation.

Let me see your glory.

No, you'll die, buddy.

Well just let me see the back.

Okay.

And then he meets with Jesus face to face and have a conversation.

I mean, it's an amazing thought.

You think Moses didn't know?

Of course Moses knew.

He knew exactly who he was talking to.

And so Moses was always pointing to the one who he spoke to face to face.

See Jesus.

See Jesus the better tabernacle.

See Jesus the better sacrifice.

See Jesus the better prophet, the better messenger.

See Jesus.

See Jesus the one who was to be lifted up.

Your salvation.

It's always been pointing to him and Moses knew this.

And so if Christ is faithful over God's house as a son and we are his house, what's the

proof that we are his house and here it is.

You ready?

Last part.

If indeed we hold fast and are boasting, right?

With confidence and are boasting in our hope.

So here it is.

If we, if we indeed hold fast, this word hold fast means to keep secure or firm possession

of.

Let's the scripture say that in the last days will happen.

Many will fall away from the faith.

What is the faith?

The gospel.

What do you see all over the place?

Anybody preaching the gospel?

No.

And so many have fallen away.

They're not, they're not holding their confidence.

So if we indeed hold fast, keep possession, firm possession of our confidence, parousia

is the word here.

Parousia, if you want to roll the Rs.

Free and fearless confidence.

Do we really live in a way where it is free and fearless confidence?

How confident are you in Christ in his gospel?

Right?

So when we're looking at this reality of the fear, the free and fearless competence, do

we really walk in that with that kind of, that kind of, uh, of, uh, boldness.

And then he uses the word of our boasting.

This boasting means that of which one glories.

Do you glory in your hope?

Do you have confidence in the hope?

If you have confidence in the hope, fear, free and fearless confidence.

If you glory in the hope, what is your hope?

Now what's interesting about this word hope is this word hope means joyful and confident

expectation of salvation or he who is its foundation.

Oh, so he's the better builder.

It's his house.

And if he builds his house, he builds his house on him who is the cornerstone and the

servant do thereupon points to the builder and says, he is the better.

And we who are his building, who are his house, we who, who, who, who are his family, we need

to make sure that we have established firmly our confidence and our boasting our glories

in the one who is its foundation.

Christ is the cornerstone.

He is the beginning.

Christ is the foundation, which the prophets and the apostles have left for us.

He is the truth, the foundational.

He is the sound doctrine that we walk in.

Can there, can there be anything that will blow this house down?

No.

Why?

Because if he has established her on the rock, then we will be strong and firm.

The wise man who built his house on the rock, who's the wise man?

Jesus is that wise man.

So why is Christ the true and better prophet? because Moses can't even compare.

He's a candlestick compared to the, the brightest glory you can imagine.

So let's get ready for a little walk in the Old Testament next week to clarify this out

more as we look at the servant Moses and his pointing to Jesus.

So we can see the real, true and better prophet.

Father, I want to thank you so much for your faithfulness and goodness.

Thank you that you, Lord Jesus, are the true and better.

That you in your wisdom have built a house that is firmly established upon you and upon

your doctrine, your truth, and that you are continually building her up and that we are

your family, that you in your loving grace not only elect us and call us into your home,

but that you sanctify us and purify us that we may be presentable, washed by the water

of the word and be presentable to you for when you come.

May you be honored and glorified in Jesus name.

Amen.