Good morning. If you would like,
you can turn to Hebrews chapter eight this morning. I mean, Hebrews
13, excuse me. Hebrews 13. Just a few yesterdays ago, my
kids were younger, and we were at my parents' house. I don't
remember what they did exactly, but it was something that as
a boy, my parents would have jerked a knot in my tail for
doing. And as I was about to do the same thing to my children
that they had done to me, I'm interrupted by my parents. Oh,
it's all right. Don't be so hard on them. By
the reactions I'm seeing this morning, many of you can relate
to that, especially the part that I looked at them going,
who are these people and what have they done with my parents?
The answer, of course, is that they are now grandparents and
not parents. And that caused me to think.
When Jacob called his sons together before he died, part of the words
he spoke to Reuben were, unstable as water. Isn't that a good description
of all of us? We're unstable as water, constantly
changing, and left to ourselves, we will follow a religion that
is like unto us. That religion that says the God
of the Old Testament is a God full of vengeance, full of wrath. But the God of the New Testament
is a God of mercy and love who knows nothing of vengeance and
wrath. They change the immutable God
into something that he's not. And we would be just like him.
but how we thank God that he has revealed the glorious news
to some. Verse eight, Jesus Christ, the
same yesterday and today and forever. The author of the letter
to the Hebrews is coming to the close of his letter. And he's
summing up the message that he's been trying to convey. Throughout the letter, he declares,
Jesus Christ is better. He's better than the types. He's
better than the ordinances. He's better than the law. Jesus
Christ is better. He's declared Christ to be the
fulfillment of all the types and figures. In this letter,
he has declared Jesus Christ is, or who Jesus Christ is, and
here he declares that who Christ is yesterday is who he is today
and who he is tomorrow. With this in mind, let's walk
through this letter together and see some of what he's revealed
of our Lord. Turn with me to Hebrews chapter
one. God, who at sundry times and
in diverse manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the
prophets, hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son,
whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made
the worlds. who being the brightness of his
glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding
all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself
purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the majesty
on high, being made so much better than the angels, as he hath by
inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they. the first thing
we have declared about our Lord Jesus Christ is He is God. Specifically, He is God the Son. God hath spoken unto us by Son
the brightness of glory and the express image of God. Paul wrote
in another place, for in Christ dwelleth all the fullness of
the Godhead bodily. When we see our Lord Jesus Christ,
we see God. John 14, 8 and 9 says, Philip
saith unto him, Lord, show us the Father, and it sufficeth
us. Jesus saith unto him, Have I
been so long time with you? And yet hast thou not known me,
Philip? He that hath seen me hath seen
the Father. And how sayest thou then, Show
us the Father? As God our Lord is the great
revelator. Verse two. God hath in these
last days spoken unto us. Christ speaks to and shows us
the things of God. Again in verse two, Christ is
the creator. God hath spoken unto us by his
Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things. by whom also he
made the worlds. Christ is the creator of physical
worlds, such as the planets, the worlds of plants and animals,
the worlds of governments, and of spiritual worlds. Do you find,
as you go about the daily task of living in this present world,
a longing to escape? Do you look forward to how pleasant
and relaxing it is when we come together as a congregation and
the Lord is pleased to block out for at least a little time
this world of sin? When we come together to worship
and to contemplate the hope of the world that is to come, it
is Jesus Christ that made the world. Verse 3, Jesus Christ,
being the brightness of His glory and the expressed image of His
person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when
He had by Himself purged our sins. Our Lord Jesus Christ is
the one who purged our sins. He, the eternal God before the
foundation of the world, laid down his life for a sinful, rebellious
people that he loved. Jesus Christ, the same yesterday,
before the foundation of the world, Jesus Christ purged our
sins. Jesus Christ, the same today,
purged our sins today. Jesus Christ, the same forever,
purged our sins. Our Lord is the King of kings
and Lord of lords. Again in verse 3, who being the
brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person,
and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had
by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the
majesty on high." And then in verse 8, But unto the Son he
saith, thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever. A scepter
of righteousness is the scepter of thy kingdom. The first thing
we see of our Lord revealed in Hebrews is that Jesus Christ
is the Son of God, the revealer of the things of God, the creator
of worlds, the one who purged our sins, and the mighty king. Next, we see Jesus Christ, the
man, Hebrews 2, 9. But we see Jesus, who was made
a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death. We need to pause here. When Abram
was about four years old, we were out doing some yard work
and he looked up at me and he said, Daddy, can God die? What a glorious question to meditate
upon. Can God die? We have just seen
declared Jesus Christ is God, the eternal living God, having
no beginning, and no end, and now we see Jesus Christ suffered
death. How can it be? Jesus Christ the
same yesterday and today and forever is a man. Paul wrote,
without controversy, great is the mystery of godliness. God
was manifest in the flesh, justified in the spirit, seen of angels,
preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up
into glory. Jesus Christ is the God-man. He's not half God and half man. He is God manifest, meaning to
make visible or known what has been hidden or unknown. Christ is God manifest as man. Mankind, due to our fall and
rebellion against God, cannot approach unto God. should he consider a man, in
and of this man's sinful flesh, who has been ruined by the fall,
who is dead and trespasses in sin, he would consume that man,
this man, in justice and wrath. Our Lord took on our nature. He, as a man, fulfilled the law
of God. Then to satisfy the law that
we had broken and held in disdain, he took our sin and shame upon
himself. And he endured to its satisfaction
the just punishment of our sin. Hebrews 2, verse 9. But we see
Jesus. who was made a little lower than
the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory
and honor, that he, by the grace of God, should taste death for
every man. For it became him, for whom are
all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons
unto glory. to make the captain of their
salvation perfect through sufferings. For both he that sanctifyeth
and they who are sanctified are all of one, for which cause he
is not ashamed to call them brethren, saying, I will declare thy name
unto my brethren. In the midst of the church will
I sing praise unto thee. And again, I will put my trust
in him. And again, behold, I and the
children which God hath given me. For as much then as the children
are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took
part of the same, that through death he might destroy him that
had the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver them
who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to
bondage. For verily, he took not on him
the nature of angels, But he took on him the seed of Abraham. Wherefore in all things it behooved
him to be made like unto his brethren, that he might be a
merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God,
to make reconciliation for the sins of the people. For in that
he himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able to succor
them that are tempted." Jesus Christ God the Son is Jesus Christ,
the Son of Man. Hebrews 3, 1, Wherefore, holy
brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle
and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus. Christ is the Apostle. the messenger of God. If we are
to know God, it is Christ who must reveal him to us. Our Lord
said in Matthew 11, 27, all things are delivered unto me of my father,
and no man knoweth the son but the father, neither knoweth any
man the father save the son, and he to whomsoever the son
will reveal him. As God the Son, Christ is the
revealer of God. As man, he is the apostle, taught
of God with the message of God. Continuing here in verse one,
consider the apostle and high priest of our profession. Christ
Jesus is our high priest. Turn over to chapter four, verse
14. Seeing then that we have a great
high priest that is passed into the heavens, Jesus, the Son of
God, let us hold fast our profession. For we have not an high priest
which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities,
but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Jesus Christ, the same yesterday
and today and forever, is our High Priest. He is our unchangeable
High Priest. Go over to chapter 7, verse 24.
Chapter 7, verse 24. But this man, because he continueth
ever, hath an unchangeable priesthood. Wherefore, he is able also to
save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing
he ever liveth to make intercession for them. For such an high priest
became us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners,
and made higher than the heavens, who needeth not daily, as those
high priests, to offer up sacrifice, first for his own sins, and then
for the people's. For this he did once, when he
offered up himself. For the law maketh men high priests
which have infirmity, but the word of the oath which was since
the law maketh the son who is consecrated forevermore. Now,
of the things which we have spoken, this is the psalm. We have such an high priest,
who is set on the right hand of the throne of the majesty
in the heavens, a minister of the sanctuary, and of the true
tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, and not man. What is the responsibility
given to the high priest? Verse 3. For every high priest
is ordained to offer gifts and sacrifices. Whereof, wherefore,
it is of necessity that this man have somewhat also to offer."
What did he offer? Look back in chapter seven, verse
27. Who? Our Lord Jesus Christ. needeth not daily, as those high
priests, to offer up sacrifice, first for his own sins, for our
Lord has no sin. As verse 26 says, he is holy,
harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher
than the heavens. And then for the peoples, He
has no need to offer up a sacrifice for his own sins and then for
the people's. For this, the offering of sacrifice
for the people's sin, he did once when he offered up himself. Jesus Christ himself is our sacrifice. Turn over to Hebrews 9 verse
11. Hebrews 9, 11, But Christ, being
come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more
perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not
of this building, neither by the blood of goats and cows,
but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place,
having obtained eternal redemption for us. Skip down to verse 24. For Christ is not entered into
the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the
true, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence
of God for us. nor yet that he should offer
himself often, as the high priest entereth into the holy place
every year with the blood of others? For then must he often
have suffered since the foundation of the world. But now, once,
in the end of the world, hath he appeared to put away sin by
the sacrifice of himself. And as it is appointed unto men
once to die, but after this the judgment, so Christ was once
offered to bear the sins of many. And unto them that look for him
shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation. Not only is he our sacrifice,
but he is our effectual sacrifice. Hebrews 10 verse 11. And every priest standeth daily,
ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices which can
never take away sins. But this man, after he had offered
one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down on the right hand of
God, from henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his
footstool. For by one offering he hath perfected
forever them that are sanctified." Our Lord Jesus Christ is God
the Son, the man, the apostle, the high priest who offered himself
as the sacrifice. And because his sacrifice is
accepted, he is our rest. Hebrews 4, 9 to 11 says, there
remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. For he that
is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own
works. as God did from his. Let us labor,
therefore, to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after
the same example of unbelief. Because his offering is accepted,
he is our surety. Hebrews 7, 19-22 says, For the
law made nothing perfect, but the bringing in of a better
hope did, by the which we draw nigh unto God. And inasmuch as
not without an oath he was made priest, for those priests were
made without an oath, but this with an oath by him that said
unto him, the Lord swear and will not repent, thou art a priest
forever after the order of Melchizedek. By so much was Jesus made a surety
of a better testament. He is our rest. He is our surety. He is our mediator. Hebrews 9.13-15
says, For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of
an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifyeth to the purifying
of the flesh, how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through
the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your
conscience from dead works to serve the living God? And for
this cause He is the Mediator of the New Testament, that by
means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions that were
under the First Testament, they which are called might receive
the promise of eternal inheritance. Christ is our rest, our surety,
our mediator, and He is our faith. Hebrews 11, verse 32. And what
shall I say more? For the time would fail me to
tell of Gideon, and of Barak, and of Samson, and of Jephthah,
of David also, and Samuel, and of the prophets, who through
faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises,
stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the violence of fire,
escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong,
waxed valiant in flight, turned to fight the armies of the aliens. Women received their dead raised
to life again, and others were tortured, not accepting deliverance,
that they might obtain a better resurrection. And others had
trial of cruel mockings and scourgings, yea, moreover, of bonds and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn
asunder, were tempted, were slain with the sword. They wandered
about in sheepskins and goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, tormented,
of whom the world was not worthy. They wandered in deserts and
in mountains and in dens and caves of the earth, And these
all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the
promise, God having provided some better thing for us, that
they without us should not be made perfect." Verse 2 of chapter
12, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of faith. who for the joy that was set
before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set
down at the right hand of the throne of God." Now turn over
to chapter 13, verse 7. Jesus Christ, our Lord, is our
faith. Chapter 13, 7, Remember them
which have the rule over you, who have spoken unto you the
word of God, whose faith, not the man who spoke, but the faith,
or the Christ, whose faith follow, considering the end of their
conversation. What is the end of their conversation? Where did the pastors, the teachers,
the apostles, the Old Testament saints, where did they place
their faith, their hope? Jesus Christ, the same yesterday
and today and forever. One final thought. How important
is it to our salvation that our Lord Jesus Christ is the same
yesterday and today and forever? It is the only hope we have.
Malachi 3.6 records our Lord saying, for I am the Lord, I
change not. Therefore, because I change not,
ye sons of Jacob, Jacob, that supplanter, that trickster, Jacob,
the son of the promised seed, Jacob, the son of the friend
of God. I change not, therefore ye sons
of Jacob are not consumed. Jesus Christ. God the Son, who
speaks to us the things of God, the Creator, the One who purged
our sins, the Mighty King. Jesus Christ, the Man, the Apostle,
the High Priest, the Sacrifice. Jesus Christ, our rest, our surety,
our faith. Jesus Christ the same yesterday
and today and forever. To those he chose, called, justified,
and sanctified, what is our response? Chapter 13, verse 10. We have an altar whereof they
have no right to eat which serve the tabernacle. He is our altar. As our high priest, he took his
sacrifice himself and offered it upon his altar himself. And now we have an altar, adding
nothing to it lest we pollute his finished redemptive work. We come to our altar, in verse
15, We come to our altar by Him, therefore let us offer the sacrifice
of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips,
giving thanks to His name. Jesus Christ, the same yesterday
and today and forever. Amen.