This morning, we're gonna look
at some verses that were not gotten to when we looked at Matthew
17, the Mount of Transfiguration, and I've told people that I often
have a whole lot more notes than we have time for. Well, we're
gonna take some time today to do some of those notes we didn't
have time for. And the time that we're gonna
look in today are notes on Jesus only from Hebrews. And in chapter 17, reading down a few verses just
to start with once again, it says, and after six days, Jesus. taketh Peter, James, John his
brother, and bringeth them up into a high mountain apart, and
was transfigured before them, and his face did shine as the
sun, and his raiment was white as the light. And behold, there
appeared unto them Moses, and Elias talking with him. Then
Peter answered and said unto Jesus, Lord, it is good for us
to be here. If thou will, let us make here
three tabernacles, one for thee and one for Moses and one for
Elias. While he yet spake, behold, a
bright cloud overshadowed them. And behold, a voice out of the
cloud which said, this is my beloved son in whom I am well
pleased. Hear ye him. And when the disciples
heard it, they fell on their face and were sore afraid. And
Jesus came and touched them and said, arise, be not afraid. And when they had lifted their
eyes, they saw no man save Jesus only. And as we saw when we did
that, the lesson there in Matthew 17, when we did start that and
look into those things, we saw that, What was being said there, obviously,
and not so obviously in some ways, was that the law and the
prophets were very important to them, very important to them.
They were the ones that, in that manner, brought the gospel to
those people. by the Spirit, but they were
not the point of those things. They were just the messengers
of those things. Just as today, anybody that preaches
the gospel or brings the gospel is not the point of that, but
is pointed, the one that is, and our Lord is the one that
is the preeminent one in all things, and by all things were
they not only created and consist, but are for him and to his honor
and glory. And that was what was being said
there in quite a picture was that don't get sidetracked on
any other person or idea or thought other than what the Lord is to
his people. And that was quite a dramatic
picture when that they only saw him, saw Jesus
only when the cloud had lifted and not the other two. And it wasn't to say that the
other two didn't have an importance, but they weren't who the scriptures
were about. then none of the prophets would
say that that's what it was about. And the law and the books of,
that we have the law, the book of Moses, the books of Moses
that were given were the same thing. They were pointing to
the one that fulfilled those actual laws that were laid down,
those things. And by that was sin revealed
to then and now and, but not for their own sake, but only
for showing forth that the Lord is the only one in His righteousness,
the only one that could meet those demands of the law. So
that was what they were being taught and shown there, that
not to get sidetracked into other things that were important religiously
to them and important for what they had to say, but not for
their own sake. And they surely have no standing or equality with the
Lord himself in that regard. what Peter was saying there.
So that is the picture to them, them at that time and the picture
now at this time. Don't get sidetracked on by any
other ideas or thoughts or even for the sake of learning doctrines,
for the sake of learning doctrines. If it doesn't show forth and
support those things, that the Lord is and provides and all
that he does for his people in regeneration and salvation, then
they're just learning for the sake of learning. But we're gonna
look at some select passages in the book of Hebrews that speak
to this and to keeping the eyes and the thoughts on who the Lord
is and not the law and the prophets or any other any other thing
that might take away from that and from the true gospel. In
the book of Hebrews chapter one, and we're going to look at a
number of things this morning in the book of Hebrews primarily. In the first chapter it starts
out and it says, God who at sundry times and diverse manners spake
in times 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 he also 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
purged, by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand
of the majesty on high." And as it says here, and they had
him physically with them, but it says, half in his last days
spoke unto us by his son. had always spoken by the Son.
The Son gave the scriptures, created all things, and so had
always spoken by Him, but here, speaking about that they had
Him with them physically, and to hear Him and hear what He
had to say and what all the other scriptures, of course, had to
say. So I'd like to start another spot here in Hebrews chapter
four and keeping in mind what they heard and saw on the Mount
of Transfiguration and keeping him as preeminent and the other
things supporting and pointing to him only as their importance. In chapter four of Hebrews, starting
with verse one, it says, let us therefore fear, let us, a
promise being left us of entering into his rest, any of you should
seem to come short of it. For unto us was the gospel preached
as well as unto them, but the word preached did not profit
them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it. For we
which have believed do enter into rest, as he said, as I have
sworn in my wrath, if they shall enter into my rest, although
the works were finished. from the foundation of the world. For he spake in a certain place
of the seventh day on this wise, and God did rest the seventh
day from all his works. And in this place again, if they
shall enter into my rest, seeing therefore it remaineth that some
must enter therein, and they to whom it was first preached
entered not because of unbelief, Again, he limiteth a certain
day saying, and David, today after so long a time, as it is
said, today if he will hear his voice, harden not your hearts.
For if Jesus, and that's speaking of Joshua, had given them rest,
then would he not afterward have spoken of another day? 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. And remember in the, all those
generation that died off in the wilderness because of unbelief
and a remnant entered into the promised land there that, and
it speaks here of unbelief that they entered not because of that,
because the word was preached to them, but it wasn't mixed
with faith from God that they could not enter in. And down
here, it speaks about the rest, that Joshua could not give them
this rest, but our Lord does. There remaineth a rest, therefore,
the people of God, verse nine, He that has entered into his
rest, he hath also ceased from his own works as God did from
his. Speaking of a couple of different
things here, primarily of ceasing from any kind of works towards
righteousness that man can do, those works have got to be ceased
from because if those have any value entering into God's rest,
then there's a problem. that cannot be from any works
that we have done. And he only can cause us to cease
from doing or seeking to do works that are gonna get us closer
to the goal. And if it's not all in him, if
there's any of the law and prophets type thinking entered in, mixed
in with him, then the rest cannot be had. We can't enter into that
rest because that work can never be done. You can't say I've rested
from the work if he's not the one that you're resting in. A couple more years and I'll
have these problems taken care of. Yeah, everybody's thought
that. Whether it's problems with your
house or personal problems in facing God that We'll have it
all straightened out, then I'll be ready, you know, when the
time comes. That time will never come if
we are not ceasing from our works and resting in His work and seeing
only what He can do. In Hebrews chapter 6, And these
are just, these are selected passages. You have to read the
connecting parts. So they're in the, the book of
Hebrews is, was an eye-opener and is an eye-opener. to us as
far as putting in correct perspective some of those things in the Old
Testament that may be confusing in how things connect together,
but it straightens them out and keeps him as the one that's in
mind and nothing else that we can see, and it was given to
the Hebrews to straighten those people out at the time of some
things that they were still looking to, and not to Jesus only. And so it was a great benefit
to them, and all believers of all time have whether of the
Jewish faith and getting straightened around from that or Baptist religion
or wherever we may be in that, it straightens out a lot of things
and it's a wonderful book to God's people and I think as all
the scriptures are so highly valued. But in chapter six, starting
with verse 13, It says, for when God made promise
to Abraham, because he could swear by no greater, he swore
by himself, saying, surely, blessing, I will bless thee, and multiplying,
I will multiply thee. And so after he had patiently
endured, he obtained the promise. For men verily swear by the greater,
and an oath for confirmation is to them an end for all strife. wherein God, willing more abundantly
to show unto the heirs of promise the immutability of his counsel,
confirmed it by an oath, that by two immutable things in which
it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation
who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before
us. Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure
and steadfast, and which entereth into that within the veil, whether
the forerunner is for us entered, even Jesus, made in high priest
forever, after the order of Melchizedek." And looking to Jesus only for that strong consolation,
it says here, the consolation of Israel, and the hope that
was set before us that he is entered in for us, the forerunner,
even Jesus. And he is the one to look to
that, for that. He is our forerunner. He is our, and it says here,
strong consolation. And it does, you know, consolation
brings to mind, in modern times, if you have the consolation prize,
well, that's the, you know, you didn't win, but everybody gets
a medal now, so you got the, you're the first loser or whatever
it might be. That is not what it's speaking about. It's a strong
consolation to God's people of the consolation being the prize
we win is by what we have by nature and that is not a high
attainment. That is a terrible spot and the
consolation that we have as God's people is we have We have him
and he is the one that is done all things as he said, it is
finished when he. was actually the physical lamb
slain before the foundation of the world. When that took place
and those things were done, that's strong consolation to God's people,
it's done. And you have to look back to
what we looked at in chapter four, that work has been finished.
It was seen as finished by God before the foundation of the
world, but it was finished in time when our Lord was sacrificed,
was the Lamb slain for our sins. And it looks back to that, that
those things were done, that all things were accomplished.
In Hebrews, the next chapter, in chapter 17, and go down about, Verse 19, we have to think here,
there's a lot of, the book of Hesiod speaks about the priesthood
and those things that were done and how those were not done just
to get some religious duties done, but how that was, all those
things were, many, many, many pictures together of who the
Lord is to his people and what he has done, and from all different
aspects that it covers. And the book of Hebrews deals
with that in great detail about the priesthood and the sacrifices
and those things. And starting in the verse 19
of chapter seven, It 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 prophets. 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. And up here, the law made, verse
19, nothing perfect, but the bringing in of a better hope
did by the which we draw nigh unto the God. He is that better
hope. He is that only hope that we
have. They had no hope that brought sacrifices to God except by doing
that as a sign of what was needed to be done. All those sacrifices,
they didn't take care of a problem. Not even for an instant did they
really take care of a problem, only in that it was required
in the picture as the scapegoat and the picture of what the Lord
actually and truly does for his people. So in that way, there
was no real hope from that other than a picture of who their hope
was. And the Lord himself is the true
hope of his people and the only hope of his people. And as the
priesthood showed pictures of him, he fulfilled those things
in all regards. He's the true high priest to
his people. In chapter eight of Hebrews, starting with verse six, it says, now hath he obtained a more excellent
ministry by how much also he is the mediator of a better covenant,
which was established upon better promises. For if that first covenant
had been faultless, then should no place have been sought for
the second. For finally fought with them,
he said, behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make
a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house
of Judah, not according to the covenant that I made with their
fathers, in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them
out of the land of Egypt, because they continued not in my covenant,
and I regarded them not, saith the Lord. For this is the covenant
that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith
the Lord. I will put my laws in their mind
and write them in their hearts, and I will be to them a God,
and they shall be to me a people. They had the old covenant, it
said was, they remember that when they brought those things
down from the mount, all that stuff was talked about, what
they would do and what would come and they said, we will do
them. How many times did Moses or any
of the prophets come to them and say, God says, this must
be done. We will do it. And they'd turn
around, The same instant they turn around and man does not have the capability. We can promise all kinds of things,
the ability we do not have. And on spiritual level, we have
absolutely negative on that. It's not just zero. We have trouble
keeping physical promises. Those are the things we have
no hope. of ourselves of doing, and it just cannot take place. The eternal covenant that Adam
and Eve, Abel, on down, that's the only hope that we, or they
ever had and could ever have, and that covenant that God has
a people that he'll put these things in their mind to be, in
his heart to be. Circumcision of the heart that
he does, as believers, we can't do those
things that need to be done to be like we need to be. But
because of what he has done and where we stand in him, we have
that hope, and that is our hope and our standing that we have.
is a God to his people and we are a people to him and by his
doing. And as it goes on and says in
verse 12, I will be merciful to their unrighteousness and
their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more. The
law didn't say that, the law couldn't do that. The law could
not say, well, you try a little bit, no problem. The law said,
if you don't do it and you fail or any shadow of it, You're done,
you're dead. There's no hope. There's no hope
and the law cannot be kept. We could not keep any of it. And the Lord even made it tougher
when he said, if you've even thought these things, if you
thought about things in your heart against your neighbor that
wasn't, or anybody, and there's, you know, people may say that,
but I have a real doubt about anybody that's never thought
those type of things. He said, if it's in the heart
or in the mind, that's where the problem is. It's not just
in the outwardly that you're cranky with your neighbor. Much
better to be that than inward, what our heart is like. And he's
the only one that can deal with that. And he puts that in his
people and causes us to have that standing and that faith
that only he can put in there. put that life in his people,
and only in our heart can we truly love God. And that's the only way it can
be done. We don't have the faculties other
than what he gives to his people. By his grace, we are what we
are spiritually, and by his grace, we are what we are physically,
what he restrains and causes us to be. So, the everlasting
covenant is the only one to look to. The other covenant, it just
reveals what man is like. Incapable, he's dead, completely
dead. And regardless of what happened
in the garden and what Satan said, you won't surely die. These
surely died. We surely died in Adam in that
instant. And the everlasting covenant
is the only hope and remedy for that. In chapter nine, In chapter 9 of Hebrews, starting with verse 11, it says, but Christ being come
in 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 calves,
but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place,
having obtained eternal redemption for us. For if the blood of bulls
and goats and the ashes of a heifer sprinkling the unclean sanctify
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. And here, stating once again,
that all those other things were to no avail. That tabernacle
was only a picture of the true, and the true has come. And those
calves and goats and sheep, they were only a picture of those
things. They were only a shadow of the come. And if they said,
if that could take care of the conscience as far as doing those
things outwardly, 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 he says, that is the only
sacrifice, the only blood by his spirit that can take care
of the problem, that can purge your conscience truly from dead
works to serve the living God. And those works were the ones
that we spoke about earlier of resting from any works that we
can do because there are no rest in those works. There's no rest in that and only
in the true sacrifice. And by the means of that, Can we have a rest and have a
hope and have a standing? And then in the same chapter,
starting with verse 24, starting with verse 22, sorry,
it says, and almost all things are by the law purged with blood
and without shedding of blood, there's no remission. It was
therefore necessary that the patterns of things in the heavens
should be purified with these, but the heavenly things themselves
with better sacrifices than these. For Christ is not entered into
the holy places which are 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 entered into the holy place every
year with 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 that 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. Here
it said, those heavenly pictures, or the earthly pictures had to
be purified with the earthly blood sacrifice, but the heavenly
with better blood than that, better sacrifice than that. And
as it says here, he's not entered into the holy place made with
hands. That blood wasn't just put on an altar somewhere. That
was indeed into heaven itself. It said to appear in the presence
of God for us. And with that, That sacrifice
was accepted of God for his people. It says that, once offered to
bear the sin, verse 28, of many, and to them that look for him
shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation. And
here the phrase that often uses Christ's second coming, and I
prefer the phrase or like the phrase, Christ at his coming,
the second time. We're gonna see him for the first
time physically, but he's coming the second time. And that's a
hope that we have, whether it is in this life or In passing,
we will be with him. And those that are nearing to
that, that's the hope we have and that's
the promise that we have. In the book of Titus, turn to
the book of Titus for just a little bit here. Titus chapter two. And starting with verse 11. This is getting down to the end
of the book of Titus, speaking about some things and not giving
heed to Jewish fables, it says, and other teachings, but to the
Lord himself. But verse 11, Titus chapter two says, for the grace
of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared unto all men, teaching
us that denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live
soberly, righteously, and godly in this present world. looking
for that blessed hope and the glorious appearing of the great
God and our Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us that
he might redeem us from all iniquity and purify unto himself a peculiar
people zealous of good works. These things speak and exhort
and rebuke with all authority. pardon me, let no man despise
thee. And this, by God's grace, has
this been revealed. By his grace, not only outwardly
is the gospel preached, but by his spirit, by his grace, does
he reveal himself to his people and make that a living word to
them. And then in chapter three, starting at verse three, And before that, it's known to
be people to be subject to the magistrates and powers that God
puts there and not to be brawlers and et cetera. But it says in
verse three, Titus chapter three, it says, for we ourselves are
also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving
divers lust, pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful and
hating one another." And just a second before I, I'm sure there's
a lot of people read that and say, I'm not that in that group
there. Well, if we're honest with ourselves,
we probably fit in there pretty well, as the other believers
of all times have. And not just talking about the
Cretans here, then what they were like, what he comments on
them. But we, what I'm saying is, we lived according to the
sinful nation in the world, even if we were good people as we
view it and stuff, we still fit into some of those things and
we were not serving the living God for certain. And then verse four and following
it says, but after that, the kindness and love of God, our
savior appeared toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness
which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us by the
washing of regeneration and the renewing of the Holy Ghost, which
he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior, that
being justified by his grace we should be made heirs according
to the hope of eternal life. This is a faithful saying, and
these things I will that thou affirm constantly, that they
which have believed in God might be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and profitable,
but avoid foolish questions and genealogies, contingent strivings
about the law, for they are unprofitable and vain. A couple of things
here in these couple of verses here, reaffirms what the gospel
and what God's people stand in is that by his works of righteousness
that he has done and by his mercy that we are justified by his
grace and by what our Savior has done. And he says here in
verse eight, this is a faithful saying, and these things I will
that they affirm constantly. That speaking and he goes on
and says not to get confused with other things, but that we
affirm constantly by the preaching of the gospel and whatever passage
or portion we are in. that it is him that we stand
in, and as here, the rest that, and the hope of eternal life,
and the rest that it spoke of in Hebrews, that is what the
rest is in, is in him. And these things, and that should
constantly be affirmed, and that the gospel, the true gospel of
how God's people are redeemed is that which is preached, and
then, in Hebrews chapter 12. Hebrews chapter 12. The first
couple of verses of Hebrews chapter 12 after Hebrews chapter 11,
the faith chapter that speaks of all the things that men did
and how they stood, and it was in faith, and that faith was
that which God gave to them, and not just a stiff upper lip
type of faith, but God giving them strength and the faith to
do those things that was needful and needed to be done. In chapter
12, it says, seeing wherefore, seeing we are also come past
about with so great a cloud of witnesses. Let us lay aside every
weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us
run with patience the race that is set before us, looking unto
Jesus, the author and finisher of our 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. And again, that phrase that goes
so well there with Matthew is looking unto Jesus, the author
and finisher of our faith. And it could just as well said,
looking unto Jesus only, the author and finisher of our faith.
And I think that is by the scripture at least implied, but he is the
one to look for. He is the author of it, and he's
the one that carried it out and the finisher of that. And then
in chapter 13, and I've got enough time to finish and not have notes
left over. Hebrews chapter 13, verse 20 and 21, It says, now the God of peace
that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd
of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant,
make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working
in you that which is well-pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ,
to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen. And I think those... verses here at the end speak
well, and just two verses of who had, as it says here, brought
again from the dead our Lord, through the blood of the everlasting
covenant, make you perfect in every good work to do his will,
through Jesus Christ to whom be glory forever and ever. There's
no doubt in the scriptures, but no doubt in... this couple of
verses here in the book of Hebrews, what our standing and who our
standing is in and what to look for and who to look to. And anytime
we're a little bit confused about what is might being said, we
know that it's in looking to Jesus, the author and finisher
of our faith. And that is what God directs his people to
and what is our whole comfort and our whole rest is in him.
We have a lot of work to do.