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I drove around in the car all day (Christmas shopping) and tried to think about “Why does chapter 11: “The Hall of Faith” follow chapter 10.  So I went back and read how it ended (I could not remember).  Two verses stuck out:

³⁴ You suffered along with those in prison and joyfully accepted the confiscation of your property, because you knew that you yourselves had better and lasting possessions. ³⁵ So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded.

and

³⁹ But we do not belong to those who shrink back and are destroyed, but to those who have faith and are saved.

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Christian persecution was getting intense under Caesar Nero.  How easy would it be to “shrink back” and blend in with the unbelieving Romans?  So easy for me to say they should “persevere” since the only form of persecution I go through is being “mocked” by family members for being a “born again Christian” as if I joined a cult.

Faith: “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. ² This is what the ancients were commended for.”

Faith is not a loophole to explain the unexplained.  It is knowing that The Lord’s promises WILL be fulfilled.  We have full confidence.  Some of these examples are about knowing His promises WILL be fulfilled…and we may not live to see it. There is a big picture because we serve a big God.  They will also be fulfilled regardless of our circumstances or the world’s circumstances.

The Israelites had Faith but lacked trust.  Think about that for a minute.  Ok, let me stop rambling….

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Chapter 11:

The first set: Pre-flood: Abel, Enoch, and Noah – They were all commended for their Faith.

The second set: The Patriarchs.  Their Faith, the best way I can think of it was “being blindfolded”.  They never looked back, they let God direct their path.  Amazing Faith and Trust!  They all went to the grave with unfilled promises of their generation, and they held their Faith to the grave that His Promises would be fulfilled in the generations to come.

The third set: The Exodus to the Conquest.  Time after time Israel’s deliverance was accomplished in defiance of seemingly insurmountable obstacles.  In the same section, ‘The Moses’ transitions to a gentile prostitute.  Oh I bet the Jewish Leaders reading this had an aneurism😂!  Salvation is not based on identity nor your history.  Salvation is based on Faith.

The next section says ³² And what more shall I say? I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson and Jephthah, about David and Samuel and the prophets….

What?  sure you do!  I was excited that I recognized all the names… (lies Patricia! 🤥  You had to look back to see who Jephthah was!). What did they have in common?  They had Faith yet made huge mistakes!  (See, there is Hope for everyone!)

So what is the point of this chapter??

³⁹ These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised, ⁴⁰ since God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.  

The entire chapter has been written as an encouragement to those being persecuted to preserve the view of the fact that God’s promise remains unfulfilled. Their Hope lay beyond the grave, and so do ours.  Chapter 11: “Hall of Faith” is not about the ancestors, it is about the God who keeps His Promises.

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Chapter 12

 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, ² fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. ³ Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, SO THAT you will not grow weary and lose heart.

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I think the rest of the read is really amazing, and I have babbled on long enough…Feel free to end hear, but my random ADHD thought are below.

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• (4-12)Discipline.  How we have made that un ugly word.  When you hear it do you think punishment??  I think it is important to reflect to discern the difference between discipline, consequence, and punishment.  Very different circumstances.
• (14-16)…or is godless like Esau, who for a single meal sold his inheritance rights as the oldest son. Esau, oh Esau.  Just like kids today!  He exemplifies the person who exchanges the “unseen future” for an “immediate pleasure”.
• (18-29) Ummmm that was like reading another language…very confusing.   I read it a few times and I pulled out the contrast between the Old Covenant and the New Covenant.  Fear verse Grace.

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The Conclusion (This conclusion is SO good, we could have skipped the 1st twelve chapters and just read this!

• loving one another
• ² Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it.   👼🏼👼🏼👼🏼
• remember those in prison/mistreated as if it were you (have empathy)
• Honor your marriage (if you are currently married).  It is an oath you made.
• ⁵ Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said,

⁶ So we say with confidence,

• ⁸ Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.
• ⁹ Do not be carried away by all kinds of strange teachings. 
• Continually praise the Lord with your mouth
• ¹⁶ And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.
• ¹Have confidence in your leaders and submit to their authority
•  Pray

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Earlier I put a post about Melchizedek.  It will make Chapters 7 and 8 crystal clear if you read them before today’s read.

This book is from a Jew to a Jew, telling them not to be a Jew.  Remember the audience.  Since Moses came down the Mountain from Mt. Siani, the Jewish people had a priesthood.  Telling them to throw everything they ever knew out the window was hard. So it would be for you and me too.

Verse 1-7- the explanation.  I felt like the author says these seven verses without taking a breath!  Justifying why the Levitical line did not matter today and ending in verse 7 with…there weren’t even Levites when this even happened!

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So let’s put one of the arguments on the table: Verse 11

¹¹ If perfection could have been attained through the Levitical priesthood—and indeed the Law given to the people established that priesthood—why was there still need for another priest to come, one in the order of Melchizedek, not in the order of Aaron?

Let’s get the conversation out of the way about WHO Melchizedek is:

• Melchizedek was king of Salem and priest of God Most High. 
• He met Abraham returning from the defeat of the kings and blessed him, ² and Abraham gave him a tenth of everything.
• The name Melchizedek means “king of righteousness.”
• also, “king of Salem” means “king of peace.”
• Without father or mother,
• without genealogy, 
• without beginning of days or end of life,
• resembling the Son of God, 
• he remains a priest forever.

So is Melchizedek a Typology or a Theophany?

• A typology is a form of symbolism that is prophetic; for example, in Old Testament typology, people and objects may point to something yet to happen or someone (most often Jesus) who is yet to come.
• A theophany or Christ is a physical appearance of God/Jesus to a human being.
  • Non-human form (like the burning bush)
  • Human form (like when Jacob wrestled with the man in Peniel)
  • Angel form (Angel of the Lord)

I could argue both if I was on a debate team, but I have an opinion of my own.  Do you think typology or theophany?  I have heard many defend their side and love hearing it.

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Back to Hebrews 7 😁

Why do we need a NEW Priesthood??

1. ¹² For when the priesthood is changed, the Law must also be changed. (It was Changed.  From External Law to Internal Law, written on our hearts)
2. ¹⁶ one who has become a priest not on the basis of a regulation as to his ancestry but on the basis of the power of an indestructible life
3. .¹⁸ The former regulation is set aside because it was weak and useless ¹⁹ (for the Law made nothing perfect), and a better hope is introduced,
4. ²⁰ And it was not without an oath! Others became priests without any oath, ²¹ but he became a priest with an oath when God said to him:

“The Lord has sworn
    and will not change his mind:
    ‘You are a priest forever.’

²⁵ Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them.

Jesus as High Priest:

• one who is holy,
• blameless,
• pure,
• set apart from sinners,
• exalted above the heavens.
• He does not need to offer sacrifices day after day (first for his own sins and then for the people’s sins).
• He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself. ²⁸ For the Law appoints as high priests men in all their weakness; but the oath, which came after the Law, appointed the Son, who has been made perfect forever.

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Chapter 9 and 10: “Now the first covenant had regulations for worship and also an earthly sanctuary. ² A tabernacle was set up.”

Do you miss the OT as much as I do? (I mean studying it, I don’t want to be under the Law)😂

The Tabernacle was just a foreshadow of Christ.  That is why the blueprint was set up like a Cross.  Not just the furniture inside the Tabernacle, but the arrangement of the tribes by population.

The Tabernacle/Temple worship has been fulfilled!

¹¹ Day after day every priest stands and performs his religious duties; again and again he offers the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. ¹² But when this priest had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, ¹³ and since that time he waits for his enemies to be made his footstool. ¹⁴ For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.

¹⁸ And where these have been forgiven, sacrifice for sin is no longer necessary.

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Let’s clarify a point:  Levitical sacrifices in the OT did not take away sins.  However, the faith that the sacrifice was an atonement (a covering) did.  Both Covenants relied on faith.  However, the Old Covenant was temporary and required continual sacrifice.  Salvation is the same before the Cross and After.  Your sin was covered by FAITH that the shedding of blood from something innocent covered your sin.

The New Covenant fulfilled all the rituals and regulations of the Law.  The Perfect Sacrifice was made to cover the sin of those with faith, but it was done once and for all!

To reject the sacrifice in both the old and the new systems leads to death.

²⁶ If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, ²⁷ but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God. ²⁸ Anyone who rejected the Law of Moses died without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. ²⁹ How much more severely do you think someone deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified them, and who has insulted the Spirit of grace? ³⁰ For we know him who said, “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” and again, “The Lord will judge his people.” ³¹ It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

This is a very serious passage!  A reality check!✅

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9 days left

 

Think of this post as a movie trailer for Chapters 7 and 8.  I will give the background to the mysterious chapter 7 of Hebrews (because we are human and curious), but the whole time the focus is not on Melchizedek; it is on the Lord.

Genesis 14- (Oh, how I wish we could now go back and reread the entire Bible…the gems we would see now)

Background: Before Genesis 14, Abram (Abraham) left his home and headed to Canaan (obeying the Lord).  He took with him his nephew Lot.  They had too many possessions, and to avoid arguments, they split the company.  Lot, being young and wild, headed towards the region of Sodom, the party town.

In the meantime, rulers and kings were fighting for land called.  For about 12 years, 4 kings:—Elam, Shinar, Ellasar, and Goiim—had ruled in and around Canaan. Finally, the five kings of Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, Zeboiim, and Zoar have gathered their forces to stand against the eastern kings.  To make a long story short (too late), the 5 kings defeated the 4 kings.  HOWEVER, Lot got swept up in the plunder in all the chaos.

A survivor comes and tells Abram what has happened. Then, without hesitation, Abram—who is more than seventy-five years old, gathers a mere 318 men trained for the battle to save Lot.

What could Abram’s small army do against this force that had conquered all in their path without a loss? With God’s help, they could win. They do so in one night! Abram’s forces chase down the enemy and retrieve Lot, all of his possessions, and everything else the eastern kings had plundered along the way.

As Abram returns home, two kings come out to meet him.

• One is the king of Sodom (Genesis 13:13), who survived the battle.
• The other is a mysterious figure identified as Melchizedek, the king of Salem and priest of God Most High.
  • Melchizedek, whose name means “king of righteousness,” was a king of Salem (Jerusalem) (Peace) and priest of the Most High God.
  • Melchizedek brings Abram bread and wine and a blessing from God.
  • Abram immediately responds by giving ten percent of all the plunder to God’s priest.
  • Melchizedek is both a High Priest AND a King.

Why are we talking about Melchizaeke in Genesis, and why does he get a whole chapter in Hebrews? (chapter 7)

Read part of Genesis 14: (Click here to read the chapter…it’s so good)

¹⁷ After Abram returned from defeating Kedorlaomer and the kings allied with him, the king of Sodom came out to meet him in the Valley of Shaveh (that is, the King’s Valley).

¹⁸ Then Melchizedek, king of Salem, brought out bread and wine. He was the priest of God Most High, ¹⁹ and he blessed Abram, saying,

Then Abram gave him a tenth of everything.

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The LAST scripture in yesterday’s read (Hebrews 6) was: He (Jesus) has become a high priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek.

Here are what we know and some questions…

• The priests in the Old Testament come from the line of Levi (Melchizadek does not)
• The High Priest comes from Aaron’s (Moses’ brother) descendants (Melchizadek does not)
• If God put the Levitical priesthood in place- why would we need a Priest from a different order?
• Was the old order weak and flawed?
• Finally, who is this guy??

 

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God has used prophets and various ways (vision, dreams, even through the mouth of a donkey) to speak to people.  But now He speaks to us through Jesus. So why does this book open with this?  False teachers during this time were preaching that we could only approach God through angels.

Then the author begins to quote from the Old Testament often.  One specific quote was from Psalm 102:

²⁵ In the beginning you laid the foundations of the earth,
    and the heavens are the work of your hands.
²⁶ They will perish, but you remain;
    they will all wear out like a garment.
Like clothing you will change them
    and they will be discarded.
²⁷ But you remain the same,
    and your years will never end.

Greek Philosophers were teaching that the Earth was indestructible and permanent.  The Hebrew author says:

12 You will roll them up like a robe;

Oh, it will happen, my friends….in Revelation 21. 🌎

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The last verse in chapter 1 should rock your world and fill your heart!!

¹⁴ Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?

Is this where we get the lingo “Guardian Angel”?  I am so so so careful not to think of anything but the Trinity even though I obviously know there are angels.  However, as a Christian, angels: under God’s authority, minister to us, serve us!  How amazing is that!!

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So what do we know about them? (Other than my husband thinks I am one 😜👼🏼)

We know that angels are significant in God’s plan. Thirty-Four books in the Bible mention angels:

Over 300 references to Angels in the entire Bible

The New Testament uses the Greek word “angelas”-meaning “one who is dispatched or a messenger.”

Other terms they are called in the Bible:

• Holy Ones (Psalm 89)
• Watchers (Daniel 4)
• Dominions, principalities, powers, and authorities (Paul’s Letters)
• Cherubim (‘special agent’ angels) were guards in Eden and on the tabernacle,
• Seraphim- musically talented
• Living creatures (in Ezekiel and  Revelation)-they were the ones with the 4 faces
• Ministering Spirits-Hebrews

Three are called by a name:

1. Michael (Archangel, top-ranked)
2. Gabriel (I call him the “Public Speaker”)
3. Lucifer (his name before his fall)-means son of the morning, the light bearer, morning star,  or shining star.

We don’t know how many there are, but they are referenced as a ‘multitude’ or ‘innumerable,’ so I think A LOT!

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Ok, off-track…Back to Hebrews.

Chapter 2 continues to distinguish Jesus from angels. The chapter includes Old Testament quotes to make these points. In addition, the writer of Hebrews warns against the dangers of ignoring the message of Christ and refers to the way Jesus became human to perfectly serve as our ultimate high priest. An angel could not experience true humanity—they cannot call us “brothers.” Christ became a man to completely destroy the Devil’s power of death and sin over us.

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Now that he taught Jesus was superior to angels, the author needs to tackle another topic: Moses.  Moses was revered and honored among Jews (Hebrews).

 

Yes, Moses’ works were important but he doesn’t compare to Jesus. Moses pointed to the great things that God would do, but Jesus actually did those great things.

Remember the audience of the book. The recipients of this book were NOT at Pentecost.  (maybe as very young children).  It was 35ish years ago.  They are just like the recipients of Deuteronomy; after the wandering in the desert, they did not have a 1st hand account; they had to TRUST the scriptures. Unfortunately, the Hebrews did not trust the Lord, and 40 years of wandering was the consequence.  This author is warning the readers of the same possible outcome, figuratively.

The author is speaking to Christain Jews (already converted). This kind of doubt does not imply a loss of salvation. In the book of Exodus, “salvation” is represented by the Passover escape from Egypt. God did not send Israel back to the Egyptians when they doubted it. Instead, He withheld from them the victory of entering the Promised Land (an abundant life, a Rest, A Sabbath from their hard work).

Think about that.  Re-read that.

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Chapter 4.  We, as believers, read the Scriptures, believe them, obey them by trusting in Jesus.   Our ‘rest’ is our Peace because we have Hope.  We trust his Word.  There was a time God said to their ancestors: