Hebrews 3, verses 1 to 6, consider Christ Jesus

 

Hebrews 3:1 ¶  Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus; 2  Who was faithful to him that appointed him, as also Moses was faithful in all his house. 3  For this man was counted worthy of more glory than Moses, inasmuch as he who hath builded the house hath more honour than the house. 4  For every house is builded by some man; but he that built all things is God. 5  And Moses verily was faithful in all his house, as a servant, for a testimony of those things which were to be spoken after; 6  But Christ as a son over his own house; whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end.

 

Paul moves now from his glorifying of Christ and the gospel to the example of Moses. Jesus was God in the flesh and was of more importance than even Moses as the one who builds the house is greater than the house. Moses was faithful and a trusted servant of God who spoke of things which should come after him and his time. But from Christ is generated a different kind of house than men build.

 

Psalm 22:30  A seed shall serve him; it shall be accounted to the Lord for a generation.

 

We are that house, that family of God.

 

Ephesians 2:21  In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: 22  In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit.

 

1Timothy 3:15  But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.

 

1Peter 2:5  Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.

 

Ephesians 3:14 ¶  For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,

15  Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named,

 

Verse 6 can be perplexing. If we hold fast seems like a conditional phrase that suggests salvation can be lost. However, later, Paul will state that it is impossible to get saved, lose your salvation, and then get saved again. Commentators like John Gill insisted that they that have true confidence and faith will keep them to the end. Now John Gill is said to have been a staunch Calvinist so his belief would have been then that those who are truly saved will stay saved and stay faithful to the end. However, we know many cases of children coming to God, then falling away, and then returning later in life. My point is that we cannot judge whether a person is truly saved. We can only know that if they go to their death rejecting Christ, even after having prayed a prayer for salvation years before their apostasy, they probably weren’t serious and weren’t truly saved in the first place. That’s simple logic. A prayer of salvation is not a magic chant and has no power in itself if the person who prays it is not sincere or doesn’t understand what they have prayed.

 

So, sadly, if the person you love professed Christ as a child, then turned away for much of their life, and rejected Christ to their death, they probably weren’t serious and had no commitment in their heart when they prayed the prayer of salvation. Perhaps they wanted to please somebody, assuage some guilt, and get some physical relief from a problem or a sickness but they had no true foundation in faith in Christ.  

 

Apostasy, reaching for salvation and falling away without it is one theme in Hebrews. We should consider it when we pray with someone and then abandon them to the flesh, the world, and the devil. Did they even know or consider what they said with their lips, in their heart. How can they be true to Christ?

 

What is the condition of the following as described by these verses?

 

Matthew 13:24 ¶  Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field: 25  But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way. 26  But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also. 27  So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares?

28  He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up? 29  But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them. 30  Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn.

 

Matthew 13:37  He answered and said unto them, He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man; 38  The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one; 39  The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels. 40  As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world. 41  The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; 42  And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth. 43  Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.

 

Matthew 7:21 ¶  Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. 22  Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? 23  And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.

 

2Timothy 2:12  If we suffer, we shall also reign with him: if we deny him, he also will deny us:

13  If we believe not, yet he abideth faithful: he cannot deny himself.

 

We will see that it can be possible to consider the gospel, to reach for it in a manner of speaking but without understanding or true submission, to even do the work of the church and what are considered good Christian works in general and not be saved. We must consider the importance of the commitment we made when we prayed asking Christ to take over our lives. Did we even intend that? Or are we fooling ourselves? Examine your own heart. What exactly do you believe?

 

Revelation 2:7  He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.

 

1John 5:4  For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. 5  Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God?