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Mills River SDA Church

Cory Reeves

A Study in Hebrews, Chapter 3: Partakers of Christ


You know, I've enjoyed going through Hebrews so far. I know we're only on chapter 3, but I pray that Christ speaks to each of us today to dive into a deeper relationship as we talk about partaking of Christ, partakers of Christ. It is all about a deeper relationship with Him. So, jumping right in, we're not going to mess around today, we're jumping right in to Hebrews 3, 1 through 2, and guess what? He starts out with, what's the word there?

Therefore. Paul keeps doing this over and over, doesn't he? What does therefore mean? In light, he's trying to say in light of what I already have said. What has he already said?

If you remember from Hebrews 1, he reminds us that God still speaks to you and me. He speaks through the life of Jesus, our Creator and our Sustainer, who is God, our Redeemer, our King, and the Eternal Lord, who is the inheritor of all things, and that inheritance as brothers and sisters, because of him becoming man, God made flesh, we get to be partakers of that as well. He is much superior to angels, but in chapter 2 he tells us that there is aid to the tempted. There is extreme danger in neglecting salvation. We must remember that Jesus willingly came to earth and underwent extreme humiliation just so he, Christ, could remove Satan's hold and set you and me free, amen?

Then we see the first glimpses of Christ as our High Priest. Christ has also forged a path for us. So he starts off Hebrews 3 with therefore because of all that we've learned in verse 1 or chapter 1 and 2, therefore holy brethren. I'm gonna keep pausing as we get through this first section but it's interesting here that this book was mostly written to who? Most likely the Hebrews, right?

The Jews? And the Jews, and more specifically, probably Jewish believers, people who believed in Christ. So he's calling them holy brethren because they have accepted or maybe a better word have been dedicated to Christ therefore holy brethren partakers I love this word partakers but it could maybe be sharers in another word. Sharers or partakers of the heavenly calling. We're going to go slow through this first section, but what is the heavenly calling?

The Greek word here means, also can mean invitation. So we are sharers in the heavenly invitation. What is our heavenly invitation? Huh? Salvation, right?

Is that our heavenly invitation? The salvation found in the free gift of Jesus Christ. So we are sharers in this free gift of salvation. Continuing, consider the apostle and high priest of our confession. This word consider I love as well.

And it can mean to perceive, remark, observe, understand, to consider alternately, attentively, fix, I love this part, fix one's eyes and mind upon. Isn't that neat? So we are to consider to fix our eyes upon, fix our mind upon the Apostle. The Apostle can also mean delegate or messenger and high priest of our confession, Jesus Christ, who was faithful to him, who appointed him, as Moses also was faithful in all his house. You see, The importance of this verse now turns to Jesus, who came as a messenger, the delegate for the Father, and now he is our high priest, working for us in heaven.

Jesus is faithful, amen? While he was on earth on his mission and I'm preaching to you today that he is faithful as our high priest, covering your sins in the sanctuary with his blood. And as Paul is speaking to the Jews, you have to remember, what did they think about Moses? He was about as high as they could get, right? He had written most of the scripture they had at that point.

He was, if you hear the law and the prophets, the law was all that Moses wrote. He was in some ways the founder of their Hebrew nation. And because of this, he starts out with Moses. So the Jews held Moses' faith as a pinnacle of faith. In our text, the high priest of our confessions, many Christians will say that all that was needed to happen for the plan of salvation was at the cross, or that once you confess at baptism, everything else is done, but it is so much deeper, amen?

The sanctuary message means so much more, and that's why it's so important, the series, mini-series that Pastor Bautist is coming to do, that we invite people to understand the sanctuary message. We're also talking about in our evangelism this fall, using the sanctuary as the pinnacle of our evangelism. But there's a text here. It makes me think of this text, Romans 10, 9, that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised him from the dead you will be saved. You notice there's 2 steps there.

There's confession and belief and what's amazing about our God is He can help us with both of those. We sometimes have to ask for that help, but this text reminds me that of the fact that there is nothing we can do except confess and have faith. It is a gift and we serve a God of love which means he won't force on our free will, but we must come before him, confess, accepting the gift and believing. So Jesus is our Apostle and our High Priest is the first point of Hebrews 3, partakers of Christ. Hebrews 3, 3 through 6, for this 1 has been counted worthy of more glory than Moses inasmuch as he who built the house has more honor than the house.

For every house is built by someone but he who built all things is God and Moses indeed was faithful in all his house as a servant for a testimony of those things which would be spoken afterwards but Christ as a son over his own house whose house we are we are if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm to the end." It's a lot, isn't it? But basically it is saying that Moses is great. He was faithful in God's house. Yet, you cannot compare him in whose house he was living because the 1 we're comparing him with is the 1 who built the house He is living, amen? He's doing a masterful job of pointing the Hebrews to Jesus.

He's stair-stepping them along, if you see it, he's almost taking, he's saying, yeah Moses is great, but, and we aren't bad in saying he is faithful and he did great things, but you can't compare him with the 1 who built the house Moses was living in and was faithful in. Does that make sense? There is no comparison to Jesus. And so we're gonna move through that second point pretty quickly. Jesus is greater than Moses.

I don't need to teach you guys that, I hope, but you can see how he's speaking to the Hebrews. Hebrews 3, 7 through 11. Therefore, he starts out again, but this time I believe it's in view of what is said in 1 through 6 concerning Christ as the apostle and high priest of our profession and our confidence and hope in him. So therefore, as the Holy Spirit says, Paul is getting ready, pausing again, getting ready to quote from Psalms 95, and he's giving credit for Psalms 95 to the Holy Spirit, but I also believe he is giving credit for the Holy Spirit when he's writing, saying, you know what, you should use Psalms 95 right here. Does that make sense?

So he's giving credit to the Holy Spirit for these words. Today, if you will hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion in the day of trial in the wilderness where your fathers tested me tried me and saw my works 40 years therefore I was angry with that generation and said They will always go astray in their hearts, and they have not known my ways. So I swore in my wrath, they shall not enter my rest." You know, this quote from Psalms 95, it's actually verse 7 through 11 as well, is speaking of Israel in the wilderness. Verse 8, harden not your hearts. It's a call to soften our hearts and their hearts to God's voice.

The rebellion refers to Israel when they complained and doubted and tested God even after He had delivered them. Verse 9, your father saw my works 40 years. God provided for Israel for how long in the wilderness? 40 years, right? Did they have need of anything?

They had everything provided to them, right? Food, their clothes and shoes didn't wear out. They had everything they needed. They saw daily miracles in manna, in water, the cloud, in the fire at night, and in their deliverance. Then you get to verse 10, they always go astray in their heart.

The real issue is not intellect sometimes, friends. It's our heart, our unbelief. We have to believe what is here. It's a heart problem, a rebellion, a pride, an unbelief. They refuse to know God's ways, His characters, His mercy and His faithfulness.

Verse 11, they shall not enter my rest. Friends, this is a sobering judgment. The generation of unbelief was denied entry into Canaan. I don't want to be denied entry, friends. We have to have belief.

Spiritually, it points to missing eternal rest in Christ if we persist in this unbelief. So Paul, quoting Paul, or so Paul quoting this is giving a warning of unbelief to the Jews and I believe to us today. And I think that has to be our third point. Do not harden your heart. Christ has shown us who He is.

He has given us enough evidence. Don't make the same mistakes as the forefathers and in the people of the Bible who made those mistakes. Do not let unbelief in the light of all the evidence hard in your heart. Hebrews 3, verse 12 through 13. Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief.

It's a warning. You and I, we need to believe, not, to not fall away from the faith of Jesus. So beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God by exhort 1 another, but exhort 1 another daily. So this word exhort, what does exhort mean? Encourage?

Lift up? That's pretty good actually, you guys. I had to go look this up. So I'm pretty proud of this group. But it can mean a lot of different things.

You can see it up there on the screen. It's to abominate, abominate, abominate, thank you. I can't pronounce that for some reason, exhort, to beg, to entreat, to encourage, to strengthen, to instruct, and to teach. So it's kind of an interesting word. So he says, but exhort, to beg, I like that word, that version, to beg, to counsel, to instruct, to teach 1 another daily while it is called today.

Why is today important? It's interesting, the Seventh-day Adventist Bible commentary says on this word right here, that use of word today, that is, while the day of probation lasts and while the merciful invitation to enter into God's rest is still being made. Friends, when does probation close? We don't know, right? Life is short, right?

We know that. Sadly, we, 1 of us might not be here next Sabbath even. Probation for each of us could end today. Friends, it is important that we encourage each other, that we teach each other, that we work with each other, when? Today, now.

But exhort, beg, instruct, teach 1 another daily while it is called today, lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin." I want to read the commentary 1 more, I think 2 more times today, but 1 more time right now. Men are lured into sin because it appears attractive and desirable. It was when Eve saw that what God had warned her not to eat, what appeared good, pleasant and desirable, that she stepped across the line that separates righteousness from sin. The sincere Christian will do well to beware when anything that God has warned against begins to appear attractive and desirable. When what God has said is all wrong begins to look all right, the Christian must know that he stands on Satan's enchanted ground, where things appear to be the opposite of what they really are.

That's pretty deep right there, isn't it? Or sobering that when things that you know that we know are wrong, When they start looking okay, it's telling us that we know we are on Satan's ground then. Friends, we hold this above this. Does that make sense? We are to listen to the Holy Spirit, this Hebrews, back to Hebrews 3, 12 through 13, but we're also to help 1 another, to beg to instruct 1 another, today not tomorrow, before it's too late, before our hearts become heartened from Satan's alluring temptations.

So we are to teach, we are to exhort each other daily is number 4. Hebrews 13, 14 through 19, for we have become partakers of Christ, The title of our sermon. The word partakers in the Greek means sharing in, partaking. It means a partner. The commentary on this term sharers in Christ or partakers in Christ adds, that Christian shares in the victory and character of his blessed Lord, and may partake of the benefits and blessings that are his to enjoy as a result of Christ's great sacrifice upon the cross.

His ministry is high priest in the courts above. Union with Christ here and now is a precious experience. This is the rest into which we are to enter. Friends, aren't we blessed? We get to enter into the experience, the rest of Christ.

We share it with those around us. But friends, when you think about it, have we done any Good to the salvation? Have we added anything to salvation? We've only taken away, yet we get to partake. Isn't that amazing?

Probably 1 of my favorite texts is Galatians 2.20. I have been crucified with Christ, and It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. And the life which I now live in the flesh, I live by the faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me." Isn't that a beautiful scripture? It is about Christ in you, the hope of glory. Partakers of Christ is about His glory, His love living in us and through us and shining out to this world.

This is the perfection of us. It is Christ, not us. Back to Hebrews 3, For we have become partakers of Christ if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast to the end while it is said. And then Paul again is repeating the Psalms quote he just gave us. Today if you will hear his voice do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion?

For who, having heard, rebelled? Indeed, was it not all who came out of Egypt led by Moses? Now, with whom was he angry 40 years? Was it not those who sinned, whose corpses fell in the wilderness? And to whom did he swear that they would not enter his rest, but to those who did not obey?

So we see that they could not enter in because their unbelief. Friends this is a warning for you and me. It's a warning Do we have belief? Do we have the faith of Jesus that he came as a messenger from heaven? To share his love for you so much love that he died for your sins Do you have faith even now that He is in heaven as your High Priest?

Do you have belief that He wants to fill you with the Holy Spirit dwelling in your life? And that is 0.5 of Hebrews 3, partakers of Christ. Hold fast in faith until the end. It's a beautiful message, But I have a sad story for you today, and I couldn't let you go without, do you know who this is? Anybody?

You don't know your 1845 explorer history? It's British explorer Sir John Franklin. He led an expedition to find the Northwest Passage. He had 2 ships fitted out, and they had the finest China. They had beautiful sterling silver flatware.

They had a pipe organ. They had 1, 200 volume library. And you see, this was not a luxury cruise. This was an expedition in the cold Arctic. And they seemed to grossly underestimate the harsh Arctic conditions.

They packed a minimal supply of coal, they lacked appropriate survival gear, they packed 3 years' worth of tin-preserved food supplies. The tin food preserved was supplied by a cut-rate provisioner who was awarded the contract at the last minute, so they had a few months to pack up the supplies, for 3 years. The provisioner used a patent, a sound patent process, but in their haste, because it was so short, the thousands of cans of food were sloppily put together. The beads of solder on the cans, interior edges, allowed lead to leach into the food. Additionally, the water distillation system, they used lead piping and lead solder there as well.

And as the ice closed in, as they made it up, they actually got trapped there in the Arctic. Over the next 2 years, sadly, I'm not going to go into details on this, but every person on that ship passed away. On the 2 ships. It appeared from studies afterwards that it was a combination of bad weather, years locked in the ice, poisoned food, botulism, starvation, and disease, including scurvy, killed everyone in the party. You see, church family, Sir Franklin could have prepared better, right?

We can all agree with that. He probably didn't need the finest china. You could argue that Maybe he didn't know. So maybe, but in our case, do we have an instruction manual, friends? Do we know better?

Do we have what we need for the faith of Jesus? To have Christ in our hearts. To be partakers in Jesus. The thought of waste had me think of John 6, 51. And This isn't in your study guide, so if you want to write it down, that's fine.

I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I shall give is my flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world. Do we have any bakers in the room? How many people have made bread before?

We'll ask it that way. Have you, and now leave those hands up, hi. Be proud that you've made bread before. Just for a minute, it's okay. If you've made bread before, how many people in the room have had made a beautiful loaf of bread and no 1 ate it and it got moldy?

There's quite a few of you still, it's okay. It's happened, I've made bread. Is there anything more frustrating than making a perfect loaf of bread and letting it just go to waste? All that kneading, all that supplies, and it looked really good, but you got busy with something else or someone didn't feel like eating bread that meal and they wanted burritos and the bread just goes to waste. A quote from May I Know Him, that I may know him, page 107.

Bread cannot benefit us unless we eat it. Unless it becomes a part of our being, a knowledge of Christ will avail nothing unless we become like Him in character, bearing the same likeness and representing his spirit to the world. Christ is of no value, guys, this is serious, Christ is of no value to us unless he is formed within The hope of glory. If we do not know him as our personal Savior, a theoretical knowledge will do us no good. Water will not quench thirst unless we drink it.

Bread will not satisfy hunger unless we eat it. If we are feeding spiritually upon Christ, we are partakers of His nature. We are called not to harden our hearts, but put our faith in our Savior and High Priest? To feed spiritually on Him? Are we like the explorers, trusting in the appearance and comfort rather than the truth and preparation of Christ in Christ?

Are we letting the bread of life mold on our shelves? Are we carrying it around, not giving it out when the world is starving around us for the truth? Let us not be like the generation of Israelites that died in unbelief, but let us follow Jesus through faith and obedience until the end. Amen church? And I would ask if that is your desire, if you want to be a partaker of Christ, not just a carrier of Christ around, but you want to be a partaker of Christ, have Christ in you, the hope of glory, will you stand with me as we sing our closing hymn.

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A Study in Hebrews, Chapter 3: Partakers of Christ

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