TPT The Book of Hebrews (eBook)

LESSON 1

Jesus Is Better Than…

The great Scottish minister William Barclay once said, “When we come to read the Letter to the Hebrews we come to read what is, for the person of today, the most difficult book in the whole New Testament.”2 Good to know we’re in good company when it comes to approaching this rather enigmatic book!

Chances are you probably have heard very few sermons on Hebrews and probably have had few chances to engage the book yourself, either in a group or personal study. This is understandable as the letter is filled with obscure names like Melchizedek and ancient customs related to temple sacrifice. Yet the message this book bears is ripe for the church today, offering modern Christians revelation-insight into the very heart of God, for it unveils a remarkable unfolding of his revolutionary rescue plan for all the world through Jesus Christ.

The book of Hebrews presents the magnificent Jesus on every page, showing how he is better than everything that had come before and that would come after him. Hebrews is written for every believer today, for we have passed from darkness to light, from shadows to substance, and from doubt to the reality of faith. What once was a sign has now become substance; all the pictures and symbols of the Old Testament have found their fulfillment in Jesus.3

Hebrews is a divinely inspired composition given to show us the magnificence of Jesus as our glorious High Priest, better than the merely human high priest. He is better than the law, the angels, the system of temple worship, and greater than any high priest or religious structure. Because our royal Priest gave his sacred blood for us, we now have unrestricted access to the holiest place of all. With no veil and nothing hindering our intimacy with God, we can come with an unbelievable boldness to his mercy-throne where we encounter enough grace and mercy to empower us through every difficulty. We find our true life in his presence.4

Engage heaven’s words that are now before you, reading them with spiritual hunger and a passion to embrace their truth, exploring the glory and grandeur of Jesus they describe, and living them out by his grace.

Authorship

Though Hebrews’ authorship is debated today, many of the earliest church fathers taught that the apostle Paul wrote the letter to and for Jewish Christians.

In the Western church, ancient church historian Eusebius (CE 260–339) refers to an even earlier church father, Clement of Alexandria (CE 150–211), who confirms without question that Paul wrote Hebrews in the Hebrew language for the Hebrew people. Clement also thought that Luke then translated the book into Greek. Apologist and theologian Tertullian (160–215) attributed the book to Barnabas, while Bible scholar Jerome (345–419) and theologian Augustine (345–430) believed that Paul wrote Hebrews. Meanwhile, the Eastern church had all along accepted the letter as one of Paul’s, and after Augustine, so did the Western church.

Paul’s authorship of Hebrews then went unquestioned until the Protestant Reformation when Martin Luther, John Calvin, and others began to challenge it and propose different authors, such as Apollos or Clement of Rome. Along with Barnabas, Apollos, and Clement of Rome as possible authors, more contemporary scholars have suggested Priscilla, Luke, or another one of Paul’s close associates.5

The bottom line is that Pauline authorship has never been disproved, the early church accepted the book of Hebrews as God’s inspired Word, and the truth of its message has stood the test of time. If Paul did not write the letter, the Spirit still inspired it, and God’s people still embraced it as divine revelation.

Date of Composition

The book of Hebrews was most likely written sometime around CE 50–68, within two to three decades of Jesus’ death and resurrection, and to a community of believers who had been Christians for a while. It had to have been written prior to Clement of Rome citing it as inspired Scripture (CE 95) and before the Roman war that destroyed the Jerusalem temple in 70 because the major themes in the book point to a group of Jewish Christians who may have been getting cold feet, wondering if the old temple system of worship and sacrifice was still relevant.6 However, if the temple had already been destroyed, there wouldn’t have been anything for these early believers to go back to. In fact, the writer assumes that the temple and the practices conducted in it are still taking place because he refers to them in the present tense (Hebrews 8:4–5, 13; 10:8–11; 13:10–11). As Bible commentator Philip Hughes says:

Had the Jerusalem temple been in ruins and its ministry abruptly ended, the use of the past tense would have been expected throughout [the book of Hebrews]. Moreover, it would be incredible that the author should not then insistently have drawn his readers’ attention to the striking fact that both temple and priesthood now belonged to past history, since this would have clinched his argument with visible proof that the former covenant had given way to the new, the Aaronic order to that of Melchizedek.7

•What do you suppose may have been the draw to Jewish Christians to return to the religious system centered around the Jerusalem temple?

•Do you think you need to be in a building or have certain religious symbols nearby for you to worship God? Why or why not?

Recipients of Hebrews

The inscription placed on the original document is “To the Hebrews,” and its major themes point to a group of Jewish Christians who may have been tempted to return to Judaism. This sermon-letter is steeped in ancient Jewish practices—practices that would have been quite familiar to Jews who had converted from Judaism to Christianity. And yet, the letter still speaks to us today, whether we are converted Jews or gentiles, showing us why we can rest assured that by faith in Jesus Christ, we have entered into a new and better covenant with the one God through Jesus Christ.8

•How familiar are you with the ancient Jewish practices and teachings that form the background of the book? Very familiar? Somewhat familiar? Or about as unfamiliar as one can be?

•What questions do you have about the connection between Judaism and Jewish practices and Jesus’ fulfillment of them?

•As you come to the book of Hebrews, what are you hoping to get out of your study of it?

THE BACKSTORY

Although this New Testament epistle was “To the Hebrews,” who were the Hebrews during the first century, during the time of Jesus and the apostles? There were several Hebrew groups at this time, namely the Pharisees, Sadducees, Zealots, Sicarii, Herodians, and Essenes.

The Pharisees were distinguished by their strict observance of the Jewish law, whether it had to do with the Sabbath, food, or ritual cleansing practices. They also worked against priestly control of Judaism and moved several ceremonies from the temple and placed them in Jewish homes. This group held the spiritual high ground among the Jewish populace, exercising the greatest influence over congregations and “all acts of public worship, prayers, and sacrifices.”9

The Sadducees were similar to the Pharisees, but they were far more political. The Sadducees were an aristocratic class that controlled the temple, and many of them were members of the Sanhedrin, the Jewish ruling body. They accepted only the written law of the Torah as binding while rejecting Jewish oral tradition. They also denied the resurrection of the dead and the existence of angels. They found favor with Roman authorities while frequently bowing to the Pharisees because of their great influence on the populace.

The Zealots were revolutionary and patriotic Jews with an active zeal for Jewish tradition. They wanted to use force to overthrow the Roman occupation of Palestine. According to scholar H. Wayne House, the Zealots “refused to pay taxes and terrorized their political opponents and Roman rulers.”10

The Sicarii were an extreme Zealot group. They not only opposed Roman rule but also would linger in large crowds and use daggers to kill individuals who were friendly to Rome. Their name comes from the Greek word for “daggerman.” They led the Jewish uprising against Rome in 66 CE, which ended with the destruction of the Jerusalem temple, their flight to Masada, and their deaths in 73.

The Herodians were Hellenistic Jews who derived their name from their political support of Herod and who wanted to restore the kingdom of David. They tended to be wealthy and had a good deal of political influence. They were not a religious group.

Finally, the Essenes, some of which may have lived at Qumran (the location of the Dead Sea Scrolls discoveries), rejected the worship at the temple as polluted, had more rigid Sabbath-law requirements than the Pharisees did, and strictly observed ceremonial washings, daily prayers, and the continuous study of the Old Testament. They believed in communal property and generally refrained from marriage.11

•Just as there were a variety of Hebrew groups in Jesus’ day, so there is a diversity of Christian groups today. What are some of these, and what are some of the differences you see between them?

•What are some of the beliefs and practices these Christian groups...