The message will come out of
Hebrews chapter three this morning, verses one through six. The apostle
starts out and he says, wherefore holy brethren, partakers of the
heavenly calling, consider the apostle and high priest of our
profession Christ Jesus. In the book of Hebrews, Jesus
Christ is set forth as superior over the prophets, superior over
the angels, he's superior over Moses, he's superior over Aaron,
the high priest. That being so, we are to consider
him above all things and all persons. No one is compared to
Jesus Christ. Now the exhortation here is to
consider. A.W. Pink said, this means to
thoroughly think of the matter so as to arrive at a fuller knowledge
of it. Consider who he is. This is very
important. Our Lord said in one place, who
do men say that I am? Some said you're Elijah, they
said, and some say you're that prophet. But he said, but Peter
said, thou art to Christ, the son of the living God. Jesus
Christ is the well beloved and only begotten son of God, full
of grace and truth. We who believe are sons of God
by adoption. We are sons of God by election.
We are sons of God by new birth. But Jesus Christ is the Son of
God by an eternal generation. He has no beginning of days or
end of life. Who is Jesus Christ? He is Jehovah
Jireh in Genesis 22, the Lord will provide. He is Jehovah Rapha
in Exodus 15, the Lord that healeth. He is Jehovah Nissi in Exodus
17, the Lord our banner. He is Jehovah Shalem in Judges
six, the Lord our peace. He is Jehovah Raya in Psalm 23,
the Lord is my shepherd. He is Jehovah Sidkenu in Jeremiah
33, the Lord our righteousness. He is Jehovah Shema in Ezekiel
48, the Lord is present. Jesus Christ is Jehovah of the
Old Testament. He is Jehovah manifested in the
flesh, that's who he is. Jesus Christ is not some sentimental
reformer trying to win the heart of the people. He is the sovereign
God of heaven and earth. Now let's consider for a minute
here his authority and power. The Jesus that is being preached
today has no authority except what you give him, but not so
with the Jesus Christ revealed in the word of God. He said in
Matthew 28, 18, all power is given unto me in heaven and in
earth. The scripture says all things were created by him and
for him. He has all power over creation. He commands the sea.
and the winds and the waves to be still and they're still he
has all power over the angels and all principalities and powers
it says in colossians 2 15 having spoiled principalities and powers
he made a show of them openly triumphing over them in it when
he cast demons out none of them said no they all came out satan
himself has no power except what the lord gives him allows him
to have then he has all power over all men can say to one go
and he go he will go and he can say to one come and he'll come
when he called his disciples and he said come follow me and
they got out of the ship and followed him the power went with
his command and they followed him pilot said don't you know
that i have the power to release you and the power to let you
go and the lord said you have no power at all against me except
it be given thee from above Our Lord not only has all power and
authority because of who he is, but he bought the right. He bought
the right to rule and reign over all this world. It says in John
17 too, and it's our Lord's praying to the Father. This is his high
priestly prayer. He says, as thou has given him,
that is, Father, as thou has given to Christ power over all
flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou has given
him. He says in John 5, 26, 27, for as the father has life in
himself, so has he given to the son to have life in himself and
has given him authority, the power, the right to execute judgment
also because he's the son of man. He has the power to save
and he has the power to damn. It's all in his hands. Our lives,
our fate is not in our hands. It's in the hands of Jesus Christ.
We lost our lives in Adam. That's why we must shut men up
to Christ. We must shut him up to him and him alone. He's the
sovereign. He has all power over all flesh. All men and women are in his
hands to do with as he will. No one is on neutral ground somewhere
between now and the time they die. They've got to make a choice
for Jesus or the devil. No, the scripture says we come
into this world lost. And if we are saved, we are saved
by the grace of God. And that's the only way we are
saved. God has turned this whole world over to Jesus Christ as
a mediator to run and to rule over moment by moment. And everyone
in it is in the hands of the man, Jesus Christ. Now let's
consider the honor that's due his name. It's written over in
Revelations 5, 12. Say with a loud voice, worthy
is the lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and
wisdom and strength and honor and glory and blessing. What
honor is due the name of Jesus Christ? He is the only one who
is God. He is the only one who is God
and man in one person. He is God, very God, and yet
he's a very real man, just like I am, except he knew no sin. What honor is due his name? What
praise and what esteem and what glory is due the name of Jesus
Christ? There is no other name given
under heaven whereby we must be saved than the name Jesus
Christ. It's because of failure to consider Christ that causes
us to let these things slip as the apostle speaks of in chapter
two. The reason why we know so little about Christ is because
we don't consider him as he's revealed in the scriptures. We
are too taken up with everything else. Now to consider Christ
means to behold him, not with just a glance, but with the heart. Salvation is a heart work. It's
a heart obsessed with Jesus Christ. Lord said where your treasure
is there will your heart be also in Colossians 3 12 it is written
set your affection on things above set your heart your mind
on things above where Christ sits at God's right hand now
let me give you some motives for considering the Lord Jesus
Christ First of all, we consider him because he is the one through
whom deity is now fully and finally manifested. In Hebrews 1.12,
he is the brightness of his father's glory. And then here's another
motive because he has by inheritance obtained a more excellent name
than name because of who he is. He is above all created spirits.
He's the son of God. And then another motive is this,
that he by himself has purged us from our sins and is seated
at the right hand of the Father. Everyone for whom Jesus Christ
died for, he purged them from their sins. Now, brethren, he
died for a multitude of sinners no man could number. If it were
not for the Father choosing a people and giving them to Jesus Christ,
no one would be saved. We'd be like the fallen angels.
We would all be lost and perish. election is an election of grace.
There's a remnant according to the election of grace. God chose
a people by grace and here's another motive because there's
no other name given under heaven whereby we must be saved. Now
in this verse, we are especially exhorted to consider Jesus Christ
the apostle and high priest of our profession. Now he said to
be an apostle which has respect to his office as a prophet which
means one sin of God, a messenger said as he said as my father
has sent me so i send i you it is christ who teaches us of the
father christ eclipses all the other apostles he wrought more
miracles than them all he had the spirit without measure and
listen there is no office that we hold in in the church there's
no office in the church that jesus christ is not the head
of But here in chapter three, verse one, I believe that the
weight of the message is put upon his priesthood. Consider
Christ Jesus, the high priest of our profession, is what he
says. In the Old Testament, men approached God through the high
priest, the sacrifice and the blood. The sacrifice would be
offered and the high priest would take the blood and under the
veil once a year and make atonement. There was never a general atonement
made in the Old Testament. It was always for the people
of Israel. It was always for a particular people. I don't
know where these preachers get a general atonement. It's not
taught in the Word of God. The atonement was always for
somebody. When Jesus Christ died for the
sins of people, he died for those sins belong to someone. now listen
now seeing that christ is our high priest he's ordained of
god he too must have something to offer it says over in hebrews
8 3 consider what it was that he offered it was not the blood
of bulls and goats that he offered for the blood of bulls and goats
cannot cannot take away sin it was his flesh and blood that
he offered for the life of his chosen was his blood and soul
that he was offered in isaiah 53 when thou shalt make his soul
an offering for sin christ himself is the the offering he's the
sacrifice says in galatians 1 4 who gave himself for our sins first
corinthians 5 7 christ our passover is sacrificed for us Hebrews
9, 12, neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his
own blood. He entered him once into the
holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us. He obtained
eternal redemption from multitude of sinners. And they shall have
it. They shall have it. Now consider
to whom the sacrifice was offered. It wasn't offered to men. It's
not offered to angels, the angels that fail. It's offered to God.
Hebrews 9 14 says how much more shall the blood of Christ who
through the eternal spirit offered himself at that spot to God perjure
conscious from dead works to serve the living God he offered
himself up to God God needed the blood God needed the sacrifice
in order to have anything to do with me it was offered to
God against whom sin is committed and whose justice must be satisfied
That's why Jesus Christ was set forth to be the propitiation
for sin. This way he could declare the righteousness of God and
show forth God's justice and render satisfaction. The blood
was always before the Lord and unto the Lord. You take the people
in Egypt. When they put the blood on the
doorpost, they couldn't see the blood. They were inside, but
God said, when I see it, because it was for him. Calvary is not
a shot in the dark. It's not a rescue attempt on
men. It's purposed of God to save a multitude of sinners and
populate heaven with a people just like his son. That's what
salvation is all about. It's not trying to save you from
going to hell. It's making a sinner one again with God. That's what
it is. Now consider for whom it was offered. It wasn't offered
for himself. He didn't need any. He shall,
the scripture says in Daniel 9, 26, he shall be cut off, but
not for himself. It was not offered for the fallen
angels. God spared them not. No, was it offered for everybody
in hell? It was offered for his sheep. You go through the scriptures
now. Listen, you go through the scriptures.
You will not find Jesus Christ dying for goats. It always says
he died for his sheep, his children, his church, sinners. sinners
scripture says in romans 5 he died for the ungodly if you're
ungodly if you're ungodly if you're a sinner i can say christ
died for you it's hard to find a sinner it's hard to find anyone
that that will not make an excuse for why they do what they do
and why they are what they are listen to john 10 11 i am the
good shepherd the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep
not for goats for the sheep Acts 20 28 take heed therefore unto
yourselves and to all the all the flock over which the holy
ghost hath made you overseers to feed the church of god which
he hath purchased with his own blood my friends if that's if
god has purchased you with his own blood he's going to have
you now he's going to have you now let's consider the excellency
of his sacrifice above all others it is a full and sufficient sacrifice
nothing needs to be added to it nothing lacking It is written
in Hebrews 10, 14, for by one offering he hath perfected forever
them that are sanctified. All other sacrifices were not
sufficient, but his sacrifice is. It is an unblemished sacrifice. Christ knew no sin. He is the
lamb without spot and without blemish. It was a free and voluntary
sacrifice. No man taketh my life from me,
he said. In John 10, no man taketh my life from me. I lay it down
of myself. He laid his life down willingly
and freely. let me close with this consider
the blessings that flow from christ the high priest over the
church of god first of all there's full atonement for sin no more
sacrifice needed brethren if god has put away your sin they're
gone you don't have any now i know i have sin and i know i sin but
now as far as god's concerned are gone and then here's another
blessing he has put away sin forever and made reconciliation
for you people we are reconciled unto god through the through
and in and by the Lord Jesus Christ. Here's another one. Perfect righteousness and complete
justification is brought in. And then we have in him the forgiveness
of sins, past, present, and future. The whole of the message is this. Consider the Lord Jesus Christ,
the apostle and high priest of our profession. Well, I pray
that the Lord bless this message to you. Till next time, God bless
you.