Hebrews time!
1 -- The Setting of Hebrews
2 -- The Cast of Characters
3 -- The Context at Corinth/Ephesus (13:22-25)
4 -- Closing Clues (13:1-19)
5 -- The Main Takeaway (4:14-16; 10:25-31)
6 -- Remember the Good Times (5:11-6:2; 10:32-39)
7 -- The Impossibility of Repentance (6:3-8; 10:26-31)
8 -- The Rhetorical Strategy of Hebrews
9 -- An Eternal Priest (Hebrews 5, 7)
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1. "So," Tertius said, "you will spend some time showing that Jesus is the only effective high priest, the only heavenly high priest. The others were only foreshadowings of the one effective sacrifice for all time."
"Yes," Apollos answered. "As a priest after the order of Melchizedek -- the only one there ever was -- he inaugurates a change of priesthood" (7:12).
"And thus a change of law too," Tertius added.
"Indeed. In fact, he inaugurates the new covenant that Jeremiah foresaw" (Jer. 31:31-34).
"Paul wrote a little about the new covenant in one of his letters to Corinth," Tertius mentioned. "Isn't that an Essene concept?"
"Yes, and thus it was also part of the teaching of John the Baptist. It was a significant part of the Baptist teaching I followed when I was only a follower of the Baptist. Many believers think of what Christ did as inaugurating the new covenant of Jeremiah."
Apollos continued. "I think I will quote that Jeremiah passage extensively. Somewhere about half way through the sermon" (Heb. 8:8-12).
"Is that the passage where God says he will write his law on Israel's hearts?" Tertius asked.
"Yes," Apollos agreed. "It is something God does through his Holy Spirit. We are living in the last days, the days that Jeremiah said were coming. God's people will keep this new covenant."
"I do have a question," Tertius began. "Is the covenant already here or is it only almost here?"
"We are living in a brief middle time," Apollos answered. With Christ having made his one time offering, with him seated as King at the right hand of God, the old covenant is obsolete. It is disappearing" (Heb. 8:13).
"That makes sense," Tertius agreed. "And I suppose the destruction of the temple is a sign of that fact."
"Yes," Apollos answered. "While many are already planning for it to be rebuilt, I'm not sure that God will let that happen. I believe Christ will return a second time (9:28) before those in Jerusalem will have the opportunity to rebuild it."
"So, in a sense, we are in between the ages," Tertius said.
"You might even say we are living in both ages simulaneously," Apollos quipped. "There is the new age that has already begun in heaven, and there is the old age that is near disappearance down here in the created realm."
"That's a powerful image!" Tertius said.
"Yes, we have such a great high priest who sits at the right hand of God (8:1-2). Heaven is the true Holy of Holies. It is the inner sanctum of the true, heavenly tent."
"Do you mean that literally?" Tertius asked.
"Well, I'm not saying that there is an actual temple building in the highest heaven. But you might say that the skies between us and the highest heaven are something like the outer room and outer courts of the heavenly tabernacle."
"And the highest heaven is like the inner sanctum?" Tertius added.
"Yes. It's a valid picture. When God told Moses to build the tabernacle, he designed it to mirror the cosmos. The heavenly sanctuary was the pattern of which the earthly tabernacle was a shadowy illustration" (8:5).
"That's brilliant!" Tertius said.
"It is the deeper meaning of Scripture," Apollos said. "Jesus wouldn't be a priest if he were on earth. But in heaven, he is the truest priest of all" (8:4).
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