Podcast 121, Hebrews, “Pt 2, Ch 21”

It is wonderful how all the apostles and prophets testify of Christ, yet they still have a singular voice. For example, we recognize the writings of David or Isaiah or John or Paul.

Paul’s life changed forever when, on the road to Damascus to persecute the Church organized by Christ, he received a personal vision of Christ. Upon the instant, from tormenting the saints, he became a converted Christian, and from that point on he used that same enthusiasm that drove him to persecute the church to build and strengthen the church. He was formerly a Pharisee and Old Testament scholar. Before he used his knowledge as an excuse the destroy the church; now he uses that same knowledge to prove that Jesus is the looked for Messiah. Paul is a teacher, and he uses every opportunity to teach of Christ and of his commandments and doctrine. For example,

Hebrews 2:1

Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip.

He is admonishing us to give greater heed to the words of the prophets that we may avoid slipping into apostasy and be drawn away from the faith. If that was true in his day, it is doubly true in ours where Christianity is once again under attack, and even people in high government positions are doing everything they can to remove Christ from government, even from America by attacking the icons, traditions, and laws of Christian churches. Some wish to remove The Ten Commandments from court houses. That is not a small thing since our laws are based on the Ten Commandments: thou shalt not kill, though shalt not steal, thou shalt not bear false witness, though shalt not commit adultery. Those same antichrists wish to remove the cross, the Bible, the Christmas Creche, even the name of God from government buildings and coins. They wish to take away the motto “In God we trust.” They want to take “One Nation under God” from our pledge of allegiance. Some even censor sermons that go against popular movements. On a national level we are letting the things of God slip from our traditions. Christians are even being penalized in schools, in government, in social media, and even in the workplace for being Christian.

Paul is asking Christians to stand for Christianity.

Hebrews 2:2-3

For if the word spoken by angels was steadfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompence of reward; How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him;

Paul is speaking of the law of justice when he said, “and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompence of reward.” Two of the greatest laws of the gospel are The Law of Justice and the Law of Mercy. The law of justice is absolute and irrevocable. God must be just or he would cease to be God. It is because of the nature of the law of justice that the law of mercy was necessary. Without the law of mercy, justice would condemn us all forever which means that we would live forever outside the presence of God and become subjects of Satan. Paul is teaching of the atonement of Christ.

Hebrews 3:4

God also bearing them witness, both with signs and wonders, and with divers miracles, and gifts of the Holy Ghost, according to his own will?

Signs, wonders, miracles, and gifts of the Holy Ghost are only possible because of Christ’s atonement. Paul understood the atonement of Christ because he was, by his own admission, on the road to perdition by assenting to the murder of Steven and by persecuting and imprisoning Christians merely for their belief in Christ. He was saved by Christ himself from continuing down that dreadful road.

Paul, a learned man, even before his conversion believed in the coming Messiah, though he didn’t accept Jesus as that true Messiah until he received that miraculous witness. Unlike the Sadducees, Paul also believed in the resurrection. Pharisees were not priests. They were teachers and they strictly obeyed the law. After his conversion he used that same knowledge to prove that Jesus was the true Messiah. He quotes David.

Hebrews 3:5-8

For unto the angels hath he not put in subjection the world to come, whereof we speak. But one in a certain place testified, saying, What is man, that thou art mindful of him? or the son of man, that thou visitest him? Thou madest him a little lower than the angels; thou crownedst him with glory and honour, and didst set him over the works of thy hands: Thou hast put all things in subjection under his feet. For in that he put all in subjection under him, he left nothing that is not put under him. But now we see not yet all things put under him.

Let’s consider the original statement by the Psalmist, David.

Psalm 8:3-6

When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him? For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour. Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet:

I don’t remember when I first learned the story of David and Goliath or the stories of David killing a lion and a bear with his sling. Those stories seem to simply be inherited, but I do remember when I first read the Book of Psalms. I was ten years old. Every night, sitting by a fire in an old farmhouse deep in the woods of Cherokee County, South Carolina, I read a Psalm while my family watched our black and white TV

I started with Genesis. It was winter when I got to the Psalms. I read all 150 of them. I wish I could say it was a wonderful experience and I was somehow visited by angels and was transported. If there were any angels in the room, they were very quiet, perhaps watching TV. For me it was a dreadful experience. I didn’t understand anything and I dreaded reading the Bible. Nonetheless, I felt compelled to read the Bible, certainly not by my parents nor by my church nor by any individual. It came from within, I started reading the Bible when I was Ten years old and finished when I was a teenager. I read from Genesis to Revelation.

Fortunately for me I didn’t abandon my quest. Though I got nothing out of it as a teenager, I remained attracted to the King James Bible my entire life. I learned to love not only the stories but also the beautiful poetry, among which David was the best.

In examining Psalm 8:3-6, one finds it has a double meaning. There are two questions, not just one. The first question is, “What is man that thou art mindful of him?” The second question is, “What is the son of man, that thou visitest him?” The first man refers to mankind. It reflects back to the story of creation.

Genesis 1:26

And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

The second man, called “son of man” is Jesus Christ. It is of Christ he is speaking when he said, “For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour. Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet:”

Paul teaches us.

Hebrews 2:9

But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; “that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man.”