Gary Gleans

For when God made a promise to Abraham, since he had no one greater by whom to swear, he swore by himself, saying, “Surely I will bless you and multiply you.”     And thus Abraham, having patiently waited, obtained the promise.     For people swear by something greater than themselves, and in all their disputes an oath is final for confirmation.     So when God desired to show more convincingly to the heirs of the promise the unchangeable character of his purpose, he guaranteed it with an oath, so that by two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us.     We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain, where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, having become a high priest forever after the order of ...

Though we speak in this way, yet in your case, beloved, we feel sure of better things—things that belong to salvation.     For God is not unjust so as to overlook your work and the love that you have shown for his name in serving the saints, as you still do.     And we desire each one of you to show the same earnestness to have the full assurance of hope until the end, so that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises. In light of the previous passage about the potential for counterfeit Christians, the author wants to assure the true believers that they are secure in Christ.  Satan not only wants to produce a false faith but he wants to instill in true believers a false fear.  Assurance that we are in the faith is important for every believer.  The author of Hebrews shares two reasons that demonstrate their faith is genuine.  This is clearly not ...

Therefore let us leave the elementary doctrine of Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God, and of instruction about washings, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment.     And this we will do if God permits.     For it is impossible, in the case of those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, and have shared in the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come, and then have fallen away, to restore them again to repentance, since they are crucifying once again the Son of God to their own harm and holding him up to contempt.     For land that has drunk the rain that often falls on it, and produces a crop useful to those for whose sake it is cultivated, receives a blessing from God.     But if ...

About this we have much to say, and it is hard to explain, since you have become dull of hearing.     For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the basic principles of the oracles of God. You need milk, not solid food, for everyone who lives on milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, since he is a child.     But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil. There are believers who are immature in the spiritual walk and there are those who are mature in Christ. Unfortunately, time alone is not the determining factor between maturity and immaturity.  Certainly, it is understandable that a new believer will demonstrate signs of immaturity.  However, too often, those who have been believers for a long time continue to demonstrate immaturity.  This passage contrasts t...

So also Christ did not exalt himself to be made a high priest, but was appointed by him who said to him, “You are my Son, today I have begotten you”; as he says also in another place, “You are a priest forever, after the order of Melchizedek.”     In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to him who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverence.     Although he was a son, he learned obedience through what he suffered.     And being made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him, being designated by God a high priest after the order of Melchizedek. The previous passage described the work of the high priests that represented the nation of Israel before God.  This passage describes the work of Jesus as he represents all people before God.  Jesus is superior to the high priests in every...

For every high priest chosen from among men is appointed to act on behalf of men in relation to God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins.     He can deal gently with the ignorant and wayward, since he himself is beset with weakness.     Because of this he is obligated to offer sacrifice for his own sins just as he does for those of the people.     And no one takes this honor for himself, but only when called by God, just as Aaron was. Jesus is our High Priest.  There are ways in which He is similar to the priests that served the nation of Israel and there are ways in which the differences between the two of them are stark.  The author of Hebrews describes what Israel’s priests were like in this passage so we can see some of these similarities and differences. PRIESTS REPRESENT MEN BEFORE GOD: The basic job description of a priest is to represent God to the people and the people before God. ...

Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession.     For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.     Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. This passage contains two exhortations based on three declarations.  The exhortations are to hold fast our confession and draw near to the throne of grace with confidence.  These instructions are particularly helpful in light of the revelation the author has made about Jesus being our Judge who knows all our deeds, words, thoughts, and motives.  We would naturally tend to flee or hide from such a judge.  Instead, we should hold fast and draw near to him.  The reason we shou...

Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience.     For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.     And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account. Since the goal is to enter the eternal rest that God has promised, we must pay close attention to the teaching of this passage.  We are warned again that it is possible to fall short of entering that rest.  God has provided His Word to show us how to make proper preparations by studying His Word.  Because, one day we will stand before Christ and give an account. WORK TO ENTER REST BY OBEDIENCE: Salvation is by grace through faith alone and not by any works that we can d...

Since therefore it remains for some to enter it, and those who formerly received the good news failed to enter because of disobedience, again he appoints a certain day, “Today,” saying through David so long afterward, in the words already quoted, “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts.”     For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken of another day later on.     So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God's rest has also rested from his works as God did from his. The availability of rest does not guarantee that we will experience it.  There are many who hear the promise but do not experience God’s rest for a variety of reasons.  The author of Hebrews warns of this possibility and wants to prepare his readers so they can avoid these pitfalls.   DON’T DISOBEY: The children of Israel were given a promise but failed to receive what was promised to them ...