Dr. Sinclair B. Ferguson
A friend, his face wrinkled in a cheerful grin, described a conversation he had overheard at the end of a conference address I had given. One hearer, apparently full of the blessings of the passage that had been considered, turned to his neighbor, a stranger to him, and made some positive comments on the experience of the preceding hour: “Wasn’t that great?” He received a somewhat chilling reply: “Didn’t do anything for me!”
I suspect that if one were to do a kind of New Testament Random Letter Association Test (to be known among evangelicals in the future as the NTRLA Test!), Philippians (“full of joy”), Romans (“full of the doctrines of grace”), and even James (“full of practical counsel”) would fare well. But the mention of Hebrews might evoke a substantial number of “Does nothing for me” responses.
Is it too different, too alien in thought? Whatever the reason, Hebrews rarely stands high on the list of beloved parts of the New Testament—apart, of course, from the occasional memorized verse about temptation, faith, or looking to Jesus.
Yet there is no letter in the New Testament that tells us more about Christ and His work; chapter after chapter unfolds—ten in all—before we come to the hinge that brings the unknown author from exposition of Christ (“holy brethren…consider the Apostle and High Priest of our confession, Christ Jesus” [3:1]) to application (“Therefore,… let us…” [10:19, 22]).
So few things would do the evangelical church more good than a baptism into the letter to the Hebrews! But why? Here are several reasons.
Christ, the Key to the Old Testament
Hebrews reveals Christ as the key to understanding the Old Testament. Gentle reader, that is 75 percent of your Bible! Hebrews acts as a master interpreter, taking you through the pages of the Old Testament and highlighting its central message. It provides a sure-footed guide to the way in which various elements in the Old Testament combine to lead to Jesus—history, liturgy, typology, and prophecy are all woven together into a harmonious portrayal of the significance of His ministry. The whole book unfolds the statement with which it opens: “God, who at sundry times and in divers 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…” (1:1–2).
The Old Testament message is:
In time past
multifaceted revelation
expressed through the prophets
given to the fathers
The New Testament message is:
Now, in the last days
focused revelation
expressed in Christ the Son
given to us
The two are related, as Hebrews explains, as promise and fulfillment, type and antitype, shadow and reality. They are bound together by one promise, one plan of salvation, one way of grace, one Savior. Therefore, understand Hebrews and you will be able to read the Old Testament with spectacles that will help you to see how it all makes unified, glorious, Christ-centered sense!
Christ Jesus, the Great One
Hebrews displays the greatness of Jesus Christ. The New Testament never despises the Old, but sometimes its language seems to verge on the pejorative. The reason for this is simple. In the light of the full, magnificent revelation of God’s grace in Christ, everything that preceded it fades by comparison.
So Hebrews is at pains to point out the superiority of Christ over angels, Moses, Joshua, Aaron and the priesthood, the tabernacle, and sacrifices—in fact, over everything and everyone revered for a role in the giving and effecting of the “old” Mosaic covenant. This, of course, harmonizes with Pauline teaching. Our Lord Jesus is simply “the Greatest!”
The Humanity of Jesus
Hebrews emphasizes the theological and practical importance of the humanity of Christ. This emerges again and again in the letter.
Underline this thought: assurance, peace, access to God, knowledge that He is our Father, and strength to overcome temptation all depend on this: the Son of God took our flesh and bore our sins in such a way that further sacrifice for sin is both unnecessary and unintelligible. Christ died our death, and now in His resurrection He continues to wear our nature forever, and in it He lives for us before the face of God. He could not do more for us than He has done; we need no other resources to enable us to walk through this world into the next.
You and I need a Savior who is near us, is one with us, understands us. All of this the Lord Jesus is, Hebrews affirms. Fix your gaze on this Christ and your whole Christian life will be transformed.
The Nature of True Faith
Hebrews emphasizes the nature of true faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. The unnamed first recipients of this letter were under pressure to return to their old ways and their old religion. The author, however, was convinced that despite the temptations, despite their failures, salvation was theirs because they had the kind of faith that would persevere to the end (Heb. 6:11). In this they were one with the great heroes of faith in the past, from Abel onward, all of whom, according to the extent of God’s revelation given to them, looked forward to the fulfillment of all His promises in Christ.
If studying Hebrews had that effect on us, it would be time well spent, don’t you think? How do you feel about Hebrews “doing” that for you?
Dr. Sinclair B. Ferguson is a prolific author, conference speaker, and lecturer who now resides in Scotland.
Published by The Banner of Sovereign Grace Truth, used with permission.