Session 22 – September 1, 2020 – Men’s Morning Hebrews Haverim
Our Men’s Haverim group is reading through and discussing the book of Hebrews during the months of August and September. For more information, see this blog post.
8 Now the main point of what we are saying is this: We do have such a high priest, who sat down at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in heaven, 2 and who serves in the sanctuary, the true tabernacle set up by the Lord, not by a mere human being.
6 But in fact the ministry Jesus has received is as superior to theirs as the covenant of which he is mediator is superior to the old one, since the new covenant is established on better promises.
Hebrews 8:1-2, 6 New International Version
Summary:
- The author summarizes his argument of Jesus’s superiority to all before him with his “main point”: we do have Jesus as such a high priest, who sat down at the right hand of the throne in heaven and serves in the true tabernacle next to God.
- The high priest is appointed to offer gifts and sacrifices, and Jesus also needed to make an offering. However, if it was to make an offering on earth, it would be unnecessary since there were already priests doing that.
- Earthly priests serve in a tabernacle that was built by human hands. Moses was instructed to carefully follow all the details, because the earthly tabernacle was to be a copy or shadow the true heavenly tabernacle.
- The author then introduces his next point – that Jesus’ ministry is superior because it is based on a better covenant with better promises.
Other Thoughts:
- The author starts this next section with a summary – “here is my main point”. He uses the phrase “sat down” here and previously used it in a similar description of Jesus in the first few scriptures of Hebrews (1:1-3), which indicates that he has started and is concluding a major point of the letter. The point, which he’s argued very thoroughly, is that Jesus and his message are superior to all the ways that God has spoken to the people in the past.
- The priests always stood while ministering in the tabernacle and temple, but the author tells us that Jesus sat down at the throne or mercy seat. Jesus’ work is perfect and complete (“telios”), as the author has pointed out, with no further work of sacrifice to make. However, Jesus still serves as our mediator and intercedes for us in the true tabernacle of heaven.
- The author points out that true tabernacle is not like the one built by human hands, and that since the earthly tabernacle was a copy or shadow of the true one, that Moses was given the warning to make it exactly like the pattern he was shown on the mountain when God spoke to him (Exodus 25). Several chapters in Exodus (26-30) go into great detail about the design and construction of the tabernacle. Even with such a detailed plan and diligent construction by the Israelites, the earthly tabernacle was still far inferior to the true one in heaven.
- While the gospels and book of Acts tell us what Jesus did while on the earth, here in Hebrews we get a glimpse of what he is doing since ascending to heaven. Hebrews 9:2 says he’s ministering in the true tabernacle and v. 6 says he is mediating for us with a new covenant that is superior to the old one. These aspects of Jesus’ ministry are also seen in the view of heaven John writes in Revelation – Jesus at God’s side in Revelation 4:1-11 and opening the scrolls, in effect mediating and advocating for those written in the scroll in Revelation 5:1-14. Jesus continues to minister to us, a very active priesthood both now and in heaven.
- The new covenant is superior to the old covenant because it is established on better promises. As Christians, we have amazing promises from God: forgiveness of our sins, salvation, the Holy Spirit. However, the author has in mind the better promises laid out in the next section (see the next post).
- The book “Hebrews: Living by Faith” mentions that there are two words translated as “covenant” (see the book for more details). One is more like a marriage, between two parties, but the word used here is more like a will, where one party gives direction or instructions to be bound on all the other parties upon a death. Jesus’ death was a sacrifice that binds upon us God’s “will” and we are heirs of all the promises he makes for those who are in his family.
- Jesus is the High Priest of the new covenant, one founded on better promises and he ministers in the true tabernacle, not the copy or shadow built by human hands? Do you put your faith in religious things that are just copies, or in the real truth of Jesus?