Monthly Archives: March 2015

Galatians is unlike any other epistle of Paul’s authorship. Usually he gives the audiences praises and encouragements. But here we find that Paul doesn’t give a glowing salutation, but a condemnation. He immediately speaks to the Galatians as foolish. The foolishness is contained in the “easily being bewitched” to another Gospel. Galatians is a good example of the opposition that Paul dealt with in trying to start and build up churches. The Judaizers were still telling “believers” that the LAW of Moses was still effective and must be observed.  Paul and Barnabas addressed some of the issues about observing the LAW in Acts 15 Council. The Jewish believers felt that the LAW still stood, and needed to be observed by the Gentiles, to included specifically being circumcised. This could be looked at just a transition from Judaism to Christianity, but the implications were deeper than that alone.

Paul instructs the Galatians that there isn’t another Gospel; and if someone [even them] preaches another Gospel that they are to be cursed. [anathema]  The point of argument comes down to simply – are we saved by the Law or Grace? The liberty found in the Gospel of Grace often gets shackled by “religiosity” even today. The  point of Paul is God has redeemed you from the tyranny of the Law. The Law is beneficial, only as a schoolmaster; in other words to teach us that we are sinners and in great need of salvation. The Law is no longer needed after is has brought the true repentance necessary for salvation. Once a person has confessed and repented of sin, and are saved under Grace, the Law is set aside. The issue here is not salvation but sanctification. Sanctification is what we do after we are saved. The Jews were incarcerated to a works mentality.

In Christ we have freedom, we have been set free from the “righteousness by works.” This does not mean we are free to violate the Word of God; it means that we are no longer under rituals and regulations in “attempt to gain favor with God.”  The Council at Jerusalem did not find any fault with Paul’s preaching to the Gentiles, in fact they added nothing to his message of salvation to the Gentiles.

Paul also had to defend his Apostleship to the Galatian believers. The Judaizers were trying to discredit Paul and his preaching. Paul in his defense tells that his Gospel did not come from the Apostles or the “men of reputation” in Jerusalem, but from God.  The contention of trying to make the Gentile believers become Jews hits a high point when Paul had to confront Peter’s hypocrisy. Peter would engage in the freedom of eating and fellowshipping with Gentile believers, yet separated himself from them when prominent men from Jerusalem came down.

Paul comes straight to the point – “Oh foolish Galatians having begun in the Spirit are you now going to walk in the Flesh?” If we have been set free from the “works of the Law” at salvation, why would we want to be re-shackled to”performance oriented Christianity?

We have died to the Law, so we can live in the joy of Faith!

In our reading of Hebrews we find that the writer is convincing the Jewish believers to stay the course. He uses the Old Testament understanding of sacrificial Law and the Greater provision found in Christ Jesus.

Jesus is the Greater High Priest; after the “Order of Melchizedek” , the one whom Abraham gave homage and tithe too. In that Abraham gave tithe to Melchizedek, while Levi was still in His loins so to speak, reveals that Abraham was lesser than This High Priest and King of Salem.  Just as Melchizedek did not have a beginning or end, even so Jesus Was in the beginning and will be in the end. Jesus is the Alpha and Omega, the first & Last. To return back to the Levitical Law/Priesthood, would be returning to a lesser Priesthood.

Jesus was a greater High Priest, in that He didn’t have to offer a blood sacrifice for His sins, before entering in the Holy of Holies to offer sacrifice for the people. Also Jesus was a Greater, better sacrifice, in that He did not have to repeat His sacrifice, in that His blood was greater for His blood Cleansed sin, not just covered.

The work of Jesus was based on a Better Covenant.  Better Promises were the result. The Old Covenant, was conditional on the actions of the Israelites; we have a New covenant ]written in our hearts] based upon unconditional love.

Jesus has a greater ministry – for His ministry was not bound to earth like the Priests on earth [whose ministry was but a shadow of things in Heaven], whereas Jesus ministry was just that the ministry in, to and of Heaven.

Hebrews 10:19; the Therefore; since all these things are true, what manner of people should we be? We should “draw near” with a confidence and boldness to the Throne of God in prayer; we should “Hold Fast the confession of hope;”finally we should “consider how to stimulate each other” towards love and good deeds.

It is odd that the “Light affliction” was causing them to want to go backwards; especially in light of Hebrews 10:32-35. The had already endured suffering, public spectacle, reproaches and tribulations. They had partnered with others who were going through hardship as well. Chapter 11 is a wonderful passage; it gives a short historical narrative about those who had gone before and had endured “through faith” the adversity and tribulation which accompanies the Gospel when lived out. When I read Hebrews 11:32-40; I get emotional; for those who lived not their own lives for the furtherance of the Gospel; enduring great human atrocities, yet did not waiver. We hear of persecution today in other parts of the world; we pray for them, but also pray we won’t have to go through such things.  How very selfish and cowardly we are!

Hebrews 12:4-6 and James 1:2-4 explains the reason we have tribulations in our lives. Will we let the “perfecting of our faith” be accomplished? Will we let the Father “prune” us for greater fruit for the Kingdom of God, or will we like many fall away from the “real living of the Christian life?”

Paul said, in 2 Corinthians 12:9 ff, that he would rather boast about his weakness, that the Glory of God would dwell in Him.

May we say as Paul, “Phil 3:10 -11,  that I may know Him and the fellowship of His suffering being conformed to His death, that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead!”

I know that is probably a weird title, but I don’t know how else to describe what I feel when reading the book of Hebrews! It is so rich, I feel it is a masterpiece within the New Testament.

I will get right to the question that everyone will ask me – who wrote Hebrews?

That is a question that has been debated over and over again. I have researched this a few times, the bottom line is we just don’t know. There are possibilities, but nothing is conclusive. We know that whoever it was had a command of the Jewish practice of worship and Temple service. The writing within the book is some of the most eloquent Greek found. So the person had to be an educated person. The writer is fully acquainted with both the Old Testament and New Testament, and has the great ability to draw substantial references to back up his writings.

Some of the candidates for writing the book are, Barnabas, Paul, Luke, Priscilla or Aquila, or Apollos.

If you must know I cast my vote for Apollos.

Now with the book. Hebrews was written to a predominant Jewish congregation. The problem was that they had been experiencing a mild persecution [boy is that conflict in terms!]. Anyway they were seriously contemplating returning back to their Jewish ways to get out of the persecution lime light. These Jewish believers were withering under the heat of opposition from possibly Judiazers or pagan rulers.

The book’s central message is “press on” – the mild persecution can and should be expected for anyone who wants to live godly. [2 Tim 3:12] We have to be careful not to judge too harshly or quickly. I am sure many of us can think of times when we may have shrank back from giving testimony for Jesus because of fear of repercussions from others.

The writer is eloquent in the first chapter in describing God’s work in history, specifically how that Jesus is the Messiah, His only begotten son. Parallel passages of interest are : 1 John 1:1-4; Col 1:15-18; John 1:1-12.  The writer establishes Jesus as the promised Messiah, and God’s Son. He will for the next 10 chapters establish how that Jesus is Superior to anything that the Jewish religious practices had to offer. The word “Better” will be used again and again. For Jesus is a better sacrifice, High Priest, and administrator of a superior covenant.

The Jewish believers were in danger of drifting away from the truths of scripture and the salvation they professed. We might call it backsliding, but this was far worse, they were going to renounce Christ for comfort while on earth. The writer let them know that they hadn’t suffered unto blood yet. In other words, they hadn’t really experienced anything, and if they were going to fall back after such a mild persecution, then they really were not up for the task of serving the Lord. He is not trying to beat them up and guilt trip them. But he was trying to encourage and challenge them to live for Christ who was far superior to anything they thought of returning too.

In chapter 4, we find a very interesting presentation of “rest” – if the Jewish believers thought they could find rest by going back, the writer wanted them to know that rest was not to be found there. Joshua did not give them rest by entering the Promise Land.  In chapters 3 and 4, we find the repeated phrase – ” Today if you hear His voice, Do Not harden your hearts.”

The case made of Jesus being far superior is a message we must remember today; often I have had to counsel with people who withered under the “heat” of the world.

We will have to tackle a few questions along the way in this book, but it is so rich in apologetics of Jesus as the Christ – the only Way – John 14:6!