Hebrews INTRODUCTION notes from November 3, 2013

Notes from our INTRO week #1.

Basic Class Information

Facebook Group: www.facebook.com/groups/chapelclasshebrews

Twitter: www.twitter.com/HebrewsClass

Notes also posted at: www.adamstalks.blogspot.com

Specific Questions EMAIL: Kristina.burhans@thevineyardchurch.us

This will be our schedule:

    ·      Week #1 – November 3

    ·      Week #2 – November 10

    ·      NO CLASS – November 17 Adam preaching

    ·      Week #3 – November 24

    ·      Week #4 – December 1

    ·      Week #5 – December 8

    ·      Week #6 – December 15

Second Semester: 2014

·      We will start again on January 12^th.  The following is a planned schedule, things may adjust as we are expecting twins in February.

   ·      Week #7 – January 12

   ·      Week #8 – January 19

   ·      NO CLASS – January 26 Phil Strout national director in town.

   ·      Week #9 – February 2

   ·      Week #10 – February 9

   ·      Week #11 – February 16

   ·      Week #12 – February 23

   ·      Week #13 – March 2

·      We have the chapel reserved on March 9^th and March 16^th in case we have to adjust the schedule.

INTRO

Adam’s Conviction: The Road to Emmaus (Luke 24)

Crescendo: Why study Hebrews today?

   ·      If you are not captivated by Jesus, then you’re only captivated by knowledge and theology.

   ·      If you are not captivated by Jesus, then you will never grow.

   ·      If you are not captivated by Jesus, then something else has become an idol in your life and you’ve forgotten what is important.

   ·      NTW page 80.

Jesus is better than anything else: If after I said that, you thought, “I need something deeper than just the story of Jesus.” Then, you don’t understand AT ALL how amazing He truly is.

The Revelation of Jesus is all through the Bible & rest of the Word is all throughout the book of Hebrews.

Read John 1:1-18

MUST READS:

·      Genesis 14 - Melchizedek

·      Exodus 25-31 – the tabernacle

·      Psalm 95

·      Psalm 110

·      Jeremiah 31 – new hearts

·      2 Corinthians 3 – the unveiling

Key areas to at least be familiar with:

·      The book of Genesis

·      The book of Exodus

·      Leviticus 4

·      Numbers 8 and 16

·      1 Samuel 15

·      2 Samuel 7

·      Psalms 2, 8, 22, 33, 40, 45, 94, 95, 97, 102, 104, 110

·      Proverbs 3:11-12

·      Isaiah 1, 35, 53

·      Hosea 6

·      Habakkuk 2, 3

·      The book of Matthew

DATE: Between 65-70 AD (After Paul’s death and before the fall of Jerusalem.)

AUTHORSHIP

Who is suggested?

   ·      Paul

   ·      Barnabas

   ·      Apollos

   ·      Priscilla and Aquilla

   ·      Luke

   ·      Clement of Rome

   ·      Peter

   ·      Origen said the thoughts were Paul’s, but not the words. His conclusion was that God alone knew for certain.

Why NOT Paul?

   ·      Hebrews 2 (STEDMAN “…verse 3 suggests that the writer of Hebrews did not personally hear the good news from the lips of Jesus, he says it was confirmed to us by those who heard him.”)

   ·      Translation of the Greek OT

   ·      Written to Jews only.

   ·      Written after he died.

   ·      Not accepted as cannon originally.

Why a contemporary of Paul?

   ·      Some similar themes (though many new).

   ·      A similar closing.

   ·      Continues the thought of the previous epistles and was originally put into the cannon as part of Paul’s epistles.

Adam’s best guess: SILAS

·      A leading member of the church at Jerusalem.

·      Roman citizen.

·      Clearly a preacher (Acts 15).

·      Clearly a partner in Paul’s gospel (Acts 15-18).

·      Clearly a friend of Timothy (Acts 16:1, 17:15, 18:5).

·      Clearly an author with Paul & Timothy (2Corinthians 1:19, I & II Thessalonians).

·      Clearly an author with Peter (Acts 15, 1Peter 5)… who wrote to the Jews.

What are other sources saying?

   ·       (WW 19) These people were second-generation believers, having been won to Christ by those who had known Jesus Christ during His ministry on earth (2:3). They were true believers (3:1) and not mere professors. They had been persecuted because of their faith (10:32-34,12:4, 13:13-14), and yet had faithfully ministered to the needs of others who had suffered (6:10). But they were being seduced by teachers of false doctrine (13:9), and they were in danger of forgetting the true Word that their first leaders, now dead, had taught them (13:7). The tragic thing about these believers is that they were at a standstill spiritually and in danger of going backward (5:12ff). Some of them had even forsaken their regular worship services (10:25) and were not making spiritual progress (6:1). In the Christian life, if you do not go forward, you go backward; there is no permanent standing still.

   ·      The answers to their persecution was the revelation of Jesus!

   ·      (Stedman 19-20) …some have viewed Hebrews as a formal address, perhaps even a sermon. This idea finds support in 13:22, “my word of exhortation.” …The author intends to present a series of arguments for the superiority of Jesus over all rival claims to allegiance, which his readers were feeling, and hearing.

   ·      Its called brief, but you can tell there is even more to Jesus.

   ·      (NT Wright) The letter to the Hebrews is one of the most bracing and challenging writings in the NT. People often find it a bit difficult, because it uses ideas that are strange to us. But, like meeting a new friend, we will get to know that it is full of interest and delight, with a powerful message that comes home to today’s and tomorrow’s church as much as it did to yesterday’s.

   ·      Hebrews is only hard or strange if your eyes come off of the cross… off of the Word… off of Jesus!

   ·      (Mirror 206-209) It may not be Paul, but it is Paul’s message: the revelation of our restored innocence based on the finished work of the cross.

o   Sabbath is now a place of God’s unhindered enjoyment of man and man’s unhindered enjoyment of God.

o   The moment we cease from our own efforts to justify ourselves by yielding to the integrity of the message that announces the success of the cross, God’s word is triggered into action.

o   The gospel is the revelation of the righteousness of God; it declares how God succeeded to put mankind right with Him. Christ now defines our original design and our restored innocence. We find our identity and our destiny there.

o   Jesus gives definition to God’s eternal love-dream of our unhindered union with Him, forever free from the obstructive consciousness of sin.

Hebrews is a book of resting in how good Jesus is.

It’s a book of resting in how good we’ve got it now, because of jesus’ work.

The revelation of Jesus is ongoing.

The Father is infinite.

Jesus is the revealed Father.

The Spirit shows us Jesus (guides us into all truth).

I believe we will learn something new every time we are together!

Outline of Hebrews Class

THE REVELATION OF JESUS: He’s better than anything!

Jesus is The Word of Power (1:3).

• ·      Jesus is better than the prophets. (1:1-4)
• ·      Jesus is better than the angels. (1:4-2:18)
• ·      Jesus is better than Moses. (3:1-3:19)
• ·      Jesus is better than Joshua. (4:1-13)
• ·      Jesus is better than Aaron. (4:14-5:10)

Jesus is The Word of Righteousness (5:11-6:12).

• ·      Jesus is a better promise. (6:13-20)
• ·      Jesus is a better priest. (7:1-28)
• ·      Jesus is a better covenant. (8:1-13)
• ·      Jesus is a better tabernacle (9:1-28)
• ·      Jesus is a better sacrifice. (10:1-18)

Jesus is The Word of Faith (10:19-11:3)

• ·      He shows us a better reward. (11:1-40)
• ·      He shows us a better kingdom. (12:1-28)
• ·      He shows us a better way to live. (13:1-25)

BIBLIOGRAPHY

·      Bauer, Walter with Arndt & Gingrich. A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature (The University of Chicago Press 1979).

·      Douglas, Bruce, Packer, Hillyer, Guthrie, Millard, & Wiseman. New Bible Dictionary (Inter Varsity Press 1962).

·      Du Toit, Fancios. The Mirror Bible (Francois du Toit 2012).

·      ESV. The Holy Bible, English Standard Version (Crossway 2001).

·      Hewitt, Thomas. The Epistle to the Hebrews: An introduction and commentary (The Tyndale Press 1960).

·      Keener, Craig S. The IVP Bible Background Commentary: New Testament (Inter Varsity Press 1993).

·      Peterson, Eugene H. The Message: The New Testament in Contemporary Language (NavPress 1993).

·      Rogers Jr. & Rogers III. The New Linguistic and Exegetical Key to the Greek New Testament (Zondervan Publishing House 1998).

·      Stedman, Ray C. Hebrews: The IVP New Testament Commentary (Inter Varsity Press 1992).

·      Wiersbe, Warren W. Be Confident: Live By Faith, Not By Sight.(Victor Books 1982).

·      Wright, N.T. Hebrews for Everyone (Westminster John Knox Press 2003).

·      Wright, N.T. Hebrews: 13 Studies for Individuals and Groups (Inter Varsity Press 2010).