servant or son?

At the beginning of Hebrews 3 we see a great comparison of two great men of faith - Moses and Jesus.

The writer shows that both of these highly thought of religious figures were faithful in the house of God.
They were both obedient and faithful. Both are worthy of glory, they are honoured and revered by others. They both conversed with God and had a significant relationship with Him. They both have been essential in building up the household of God through their service and unending faith in God. They both knew who they were, their roles and responsibilities and they recognised the privilege they had in the household. Both Moses and Jesus were all in.

With so much similarity - what actually differentiates these two men?

One is a servant, the other a son. 

Moses knew who he was, he knew he was a servant, and he accepted the role and lived it well. He enjoyed the benefits of the household but realised the limits of his capacity. He served whole-heartedly and enjoyed a close confidential relationship with the master.
Moses was a great precursor to Jesus. He showed as best he could, how to be a part of the household of God. He was faithful and worthy, a honoured member of God’s house, but no matter how great and magnificent a servant he was, he could never own the house or gain the recognition a son does. Moses earned his position through faithful service, obedience and bravery. A servant earns their recognition and authority through acts of service whereas a son is born with it.

The son of God, Jesus, is not only born with authority, but he carries the very DNA of God and shares the same characteristics. The son carries the essence of the father inherently. As the son of the master, he is born to govern and serve and so carries a different authority and standing in the household than a servant.

However this in no way diminishes the role of the servant. A faithful servant is still a revered, loved and trusted servant. It is just that the role and responsibility of a servant and a son differ. Moses could in no way attain the glory of son-hood. Yet, those who trust and believe in Jesus can.

If you know Jesus is the son of God, and you place your life in his hands, as he placed his own life into the hands of the human race, and you know that he died as an innocent man with the weight of your sin on his shoulders, then rose again to prove that he truly is God, and he truly can absolve you of every nasty thing you’ve ever done - if you believe in all of that, then you have the blessed privilege of being in God’s household, not as a servant, but a son.

Are you living in the knowledge that you are no longer a servant but a son?
Do you take seriously the responsibility you have for God's household?
Are you accessing the privilege of access and relationship you are entitled to?

consider Jesus

‘Consider Jesus’….

This is what Hebrews 3:1 says we should do, so, do you?

Do you consider Jesus?
This means to direct your mind towards him. Ponder  him. Think and evaluate the person of Jesus.

What comes into your mind when you do consider him?

Take a few moments today to think about him.

Now, consider Jesus in terms of your life.
What decisions or actions would he be making if he had your life today?

Considering Jesus isn’t just about thinking about the incredible God-man that he is, but about the influence and impact that should have on us daily.

At the moment the world is a pretty scary and uncertain place. But Jesus isn’t. Jesus brings life and hope, he is not scary or uncertain. Are you living with that assurance? Are you demonstrating that hope to those around you? Are you showing through your life that you consider Jesus?

I encourage you today, to consider who Jesus is. Then consider how would he be working out your life? Are there some changes that need to be made? Is there some way you can reach out and be Jesus to someone today?

suffering temptation

‘For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted’
Hebrews 2:18.

Do you often consider that Jesus suffered?
Do you know that eventhough Jesus did not sin, he still underwent the same temptations as us?
The only time we really consider Jesus suffering is when he entered the last days of his Earthly life as he was; beaten, betrayed and crucified.
Yet, if Jesus was a regular human being, don’t you think he suffered in his daily life, like you? Isn’t there more suffering involved in life than death?

The verse above indicates that Jesus underwent the same everyday challenges and temptations that we do. Jesus had a normal human life. He experienced the life of a frustrated toddler, an inquisitive infant, and the terrifying teens! He knows the temptations of each of these stages of life. Jesus was an average Jewish boy, who lived with his parents, in a community, who learnt, played, worked and grew. He had to handle the same difficulties with people and self-control that we do. Jesus had to grow up in this world too. He had to deal with the emotions, hormones, peer pressure, frustrations and misunderstandngs that this life involves. The normal growing up process applied to Jesus. He had similar thoughts and persuasions to do the wrong thing. Jesus also had to overcome the battle in his mind as we do. The temptation to be selfish, popular and fulfilled existed for Jesus too. He was a normal human being. Therefore he had to deal with all the trials, testosterone, and temptations that brings!

This should give us comfort and hope.

Jesus does truly understand our troubles. He knows the power of the devil, who comes along uninvited and often in our weakest moments, to tempt us to sin or forget who we really are. Jesus knows the very real battle we have within ourselves to do what we want verses what God wants. He knows the persuasion to get up to things when no-one is looking or could ever find out. He battled temptation too - the verse above tells us that. Jesus suffered temptation. It was not easy for him either, he struggled with it just like we do. Jesus understands the very real internal war we have each day for:

‘We do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathise with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need’.
Hebrews 4:15

Jesus can understand and come alongside us in our temptation and troubles because he has gone through the same mental battles, yet, he fought temptation and he was victorious every time. Jesus lived the everyday fight for purity, he battled against his own desires and the torments of the devil just like we do, and he won. He knows what it’s like. He understands the mental anguish, heart-felt prayers, battle of the heart and mind to do what is right. He suffered the agony of denying self to accept God. That’s why we can trust him to help us out.

We don’t have to be embarrassed by our troubles, no matter how secret we have kept them. Jesus knows the torture of the tempted mind. He has lived it too, and he has overcome, so we can trust him with our troubles, our fraught mental processes and anguished hearts. We can know that we have a brother who can lead us out because he lived free from the sin that we can so easily entangle ourselves in. Jesus can relate because he engaged in the same battle ‘in every respect’. He knows the reality of the human temptation. He knows the level of mental strife. He knows the power and pull of temptation. That is why we can confidently approach him with it all. Jesus acknowledges our suffering, he has also lived it and he has a story of victory to share. Today you can, ‘receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need’ because Jesus has been there. He can sympathise and give you the power to change. The question is - do you want to?

I am not small. You are big

When you’re a child, everything is big.
You know you’re small and weak, you rely on the big people to help you, guide you and keep you safe. The big people are good at it, and so good at so many things that some of these big people become your heroes. They are bigger and better than you, they can run faster, they are stronger, less afraid and more clever. You look up to these giants because you see great capability, skills and fun in them. They can achieve far more than you and you are in wonder. You learn to trust these big people because it is not hard to see that they are more capable and stronger than you, and you love spending time with them. You ask them all sorts of questions and depend on them for real answers. You enjoy their company, their time and make use of the fact that they are greater than you. You can see there is yet much more to learn and experience, and you often want to grow up to be like one of your heroes.

As adults, one of the big people, we smile at the young's admiration and inquisitiveness, we regard it as sweet and cute, but isn't it much more than that really? Is it no wonder that Jesus tells the little children to come to him?! Can you imagine their reception of him? They’d love his stories, they’d be clambering all over him, wanting to follow him and play with him, copy him and ask all sorts of questions, and Jesus encouraged it.
Jesus wanted children around him. There's something more profound in the loving acceptance and enjoyment of children. They recognise things in people that are worth looking up to, they are grateful for the small things, they give everyone a chance and see good in people. These children were captivated by Jesus, they wanted to hang around with him, listen to him and he wowed them! He made time for them and they flocked to him. Is t no wonder Jesus wanted to spend time with the kids?! The children clearly saw something in Jesus that was worth looking up to. They could appreciate Jesus’ significance, their reception of him and perception of who he is was accurate. He is someone worth looking up to, he is captivating and fun to be around. He was a big person. Not just bigger in size, but he capable of so much more, and the children were filled with wonder. They were aware of their smallness, but not afraid to clamber towards someone who's so much bigger.

So, what happens as we grow up? When do we stop feeling small?

I guess it’s when we get older, we get more experience, we see things that once seemed huge and now they are not as big and scary. We lose a sense of wonder and appreciation of the things around us, let alone of God. We find less to appreciate and captivate us about others and we get too busy to concern ourselves with stories and games.
Our vision of who we are increases as we gain more skills and opportunities, we gain a greater awareness of our own capabilities as we now become the big people. We see ourselves as more able and less reliant. We know we are no longer small and maybe joke about our childhood fancies and foolishness. We have grown up. But is that such a good thing? Yes, we have gained responsibilities and abilities and we are no longer small. Sadly, that means our perspective of who we are changes as well as our recognition of others and God. The big things lose their significance with us too. The God who seemed awe-inspiring and wonderful, magnificent and magical wanes in our vision.Our perception of things changes as we grow and that includes our perception of who God is.

We can lose some of the sense of awe, significance and greatness of God. We no longer rely on him for the small things that we are now capable of achieving, but do we really rely on him for much now we are bigger?

Is it no wonder we are told to come to God like children? They have an accurate sense of their own smallness in relation to God, they are enthralled with whatever is bigger, stronger and more capable than them - that doesn’t have to change as we ‘grow up’.

I like this image, because I think this is how we should see ourselves as adults. We are no longer small, but instead of realising how big we are now, God is still enormous! No matter how much we grow, how 'unsmall' we feel, God will always remain big. It is time to recapture some of that childhood wonder. It is time to reflect on the enormity of the God you know. It's time to reflect;
Is your God big?
Is He bigger than your circumstances? Your life?
Is He so big that he captivates your attention?

Maybe you are no longer small, but do you realise that God is still big?!

Is Jesus your brother?

Reading Hebrews 2, there are many indications that Christ-followers are considered family to God, siblings even to Jesus. Have you ever truly contemplated this fact?

We can take it for granted that we are all brothers and sisters in Christ, but have you ever truly appreciated your role as a brother or sister TO Christ? Being siblings to one another is one thing and brings a sense of community, belonging and equality. We can easily understand and accept being family to one another as we have all experienced some kind of family in our lives. Being a sibling to Jesus, on the other hand - that’s kind of different, surely that breeds a sense of honour, respect and responsibility? It’s a level up to having a regular brother isn’t it?! Knowing that our brother is in fact the creator of the world, a perfect man and a loving, obedient son.
It makes me realise that I should be living with a different incentive, with a different sense of responsibility and respect for myself, others and God. If I take the fact that Jesus is my brother seriously, then I will consider his thoughts and feelings, his desires and expectations as well as my own. I don’t want him seeing my grumpiness when I’m tired, my late-night eating habits or moody rants at work. I don’t want him to have cause to feel sad, to feel disappointed in me. I am not saying he would, or that he would cause me guilt, but doesn’t being in the presence of someone greater than you inspire you to be greater? How much so then should the fact that we are elevated to the position of sharing the same father and family as Jesus?

Hebrews tells us Jesus is, ‘not ashamed to call them (us) brothers’ (v11), so no matter our faults and mistakes, Jesus doesn’t condemn us, he is not ashamed of us!
Yet are you living ashamed that Jesus is your brother?
I ask this as a challenge - is your life demonstrating that you are proud of your family heritage through Jesus or ashamed?
Do you acknowledge Christ in your daily life? Do you admit your relationship with Jesus, hide it or deny it? If you are wanting Jesus as your brother and saviour, then shouldn’t you be acting like it?! Jesus himself says that those who deny him now will be denied by him later (Matthew 10:33), are you willing to take that risk? Does your everyday life match up to your faith? Are you acknowledging Jesus as your brother in the way you live?

The good news folks is that although we should live aware and concerned about our faith, there is no need to be perfect. There is unfailing love and forgiveness freely available for us, but it doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try to overcome the things we know are issues for us. Nothing is too difficult for us, we shouldn’t excuse ourselves by accepting our sin or downplaying the strength of temptation. Jesus didn’t. Yes, I know Jesus was perfect, but, ‘he himself has suffered when tempted’ therefore, ‘he is able to help those who are being tempted.’ This is because, Jesus was, ‘made like his brothers in every respect’.
Jesus was just like you and me in his human flesh. He faced the same struggles with people, the world and himself. He battled temptation, he struggled to avoid sin. He sometimes desired his own way rather than God’s way. He struggled with conformity and individuality, he had to contend with the constraints of culture. Jesus suffered and was tempted. He knows what it’s like. Jesus gets it. He understands the overwhelming nature of temptation, the power and pull of self-preservation and self-satisfaction. He knows the expectations others have on us, the reality of peer pressure and the desire to be accepted and live the ‘normal’ life. Jesus understands the internal conflict and mental anguish we go through because he’s experienced it. He is like us, ‘in every respect’. Jesus knew the pain of rejection and persecution, the struggle of sin, the temptation for more, the desire to protect himself, the yearning to have a happy, healthy long life. Jesus was tempted to compromise like we are. Yet….. Yet, he chose to overcome all of the temptation, sin and compromise. He chose not his own life as paramount, but the will of his Father. He chose not what was best or easiest for him, but that which gave his brothers and sisters hope. Jesus, the son of God, our beloved brother, chose the path of obedience and purity. Jesus chose the path that we sometimes wander from. Jesus chose the way that God desired, and the way that led to our life, but to his own torture and death. This is our brother.

Jesus, our brother, knows pain and suffering. He knows the realities of being human. Jesus - completely human, but also completely God. He shares the same, ‘flesh and blood’ as us. He has the same Father, and is unashamed of us; his brothers and sisters.

We are living in such a privileged position, are you even aware of it? Are you allowing the truth of who you are to Jesus impact your life? Is your life reflecting the reality of who your brother and Father are?


‘He who sanctifies and those who are sanctified all have one source’.

how shall we escape?

Therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard,  lest we drift away from it. *2*For since the message declared by angels proved to be reliable, and every transgression or disobedience received a just retribution, 3 *how shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation?* * It was declared at first by the Lord, and it was attested to us by those who heard, *4*while God also bore witness by signs and wonders and various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will. 

Hebrews 2:1–4

Bearing in mind all we have read before, all we have discovered about Jesus, all we have be shown by angels and God, all that is written in the Old Testament and all that prophets have muttered, bearing all that in mind, surely we should, ‘pay much closer attention’ To what? You may ask -
Based on the evidence, we should focus our attention and not neglect the great salvation given to us.
That is what this author is showing us. If God has put so much effort into making Jesus known, since the beginning of time, then surely he is someone worth knowing about and the key message that he brings is the revelation of salvation.

Since the beginning of time it has been made clear -  considering the angels proclamations, prophets messages, disciples experiences, sacred writings, and God’s owns declarations  - who Jesus is.
Each individual source is reliable and trustworthy in it’s own right, so how about all of these accounts put together?! It is an undeniable truth that Jesus lived, that He is God and that he died then three days later rose again. There are documented accounts, witness reports - These things are established truths. Real experiences reported and evidenced by signs and wonders, testimonies as well as the fulfilment of prophecy and the occasional angelic visitation.
How then can we not believe?!
Sources that collaborate over centuries have all led to the same conclusion, different people, different eras - one message - Jesus is the son of God who brings salvation.

You have no excuse to not recognise the truth of who Jesus is. So, what are you doing about it?

We can be in danger, as the writer points out, of neglecting such a great salvation. We become accustomed with the privilege of salvation, take it for granted, so much so that it doesn’t really have an impact on our everyday lives. This great and marvellous privilege that has taken centuries to fulfil has lost the gravity of importance in our lives.

Are you complacent about the reality of your salvation?
Do you need reminding again of the significance of all Jesus is and all he did in order for the life you have?
Are you living aware of your salvation or do you keep it tucked away from others so much so that even you are not even sure about it’s influence?

This great salvation was bought at a hefty price. One that none of us would be able or willing to pay, but Jesus did.  This great salvation means that we no longer have to be enslaved to sin or fear, this salvation means that we can know an eternal relationship, discover our true identity and have security for our future was well as help and comfort in our present. It means we can walk tall, knowing we are loved and forgiven, wanted and never alone. This great salvation has even greater purpose than his temporal Earth can offer - but are you neglecting it?

We can get blinded and distracted but all the Earth offers - the people in it, the weather, the work that is required, and the problems we see in it. Life can and does get in the way of our faith, but shouldn’t it be the other way around?!

We will have no excuses available on that great and powerful day when we meet Jesus face to face - what will you or I be able to say then?

 ‘how shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation?

what is real?

From the previous verses we have established the superiority of Christ. He is the creator of all things, powerful and majestic, the ‘exact imprint’ of God, worshipped by angels. After we have established these facts, we now encounter the everlasting nature of Jesus;

“You, Lord, laid the foundation of the earth in the beginning,
and the heavens are the work of your hands;
*11* they will perish, but you remain;
they will all wear out like a garment,
*12* like a robe you will roll them up,
like a garment they will be changed.
But you are the same,
and your years will have no end.”

 Hebrews 1:10–12.

What do you notice as you read the verses above?

Does reading this give you comfort or make you a little scared?

Both reactions are understandable as there are two guarantees in these verses - that the world will end and Jesus will outlast it.
Be honest with yourself - which do you notice first?

Considering your response to these promises shows something about your natural mindset. If you see the world ending as a predominant theme then you are probably someone who is quite aware of life’s risks, concerns and disappointments. This awareness can correspond to feeling fearful and worried about the future.

Take comfort in the verses that follow. If you have faith in God, if you know Jesus is the one who; made, sustains and finishes it all, then surely strength and hope will follow.

Jesus is in charge.  He always has been, he currently is, and he always will be. Concentrating on this and the truth of who Jesus is builds trust in him for our lives now as well as for the future. Jesus is clearly shown as being everlasting in these verses. So, for us, if we are tempted to despair at the thought of the world ending, considering Jesus and his part in it all must surely bring hope. Focussing on the eternal God rather than the temporal Earth will inspire and breed confidence in not whet we can; see, hear and touch, but in the one who made all of these physical things.

We have been indoctrinated from birth to believe in the validity and security of this world. To trust in all that is around us that we can acknowledge with our senses. But all of these things we can experience are created entities. They are all part of the world, and as lovely and string as they are, they all have a beginning and an end. The things we have trust in are temporal things that are going to perish. The world that we walk upon, that we trust to be there as we wake up each day will cease to exist, all that we know, see and understand will one day be gone. What will we have to believe in then? What will be left?

These verses cause me to question the strength of my own faith. They challenge me to consider the strength of my trust in God. Is my faith in God greater than my trust in the world around me? It is hard to judge, we are so used to worldly things, we are accustomed and expectant that everything we see and know will still be present tomorrow, but what if it’s not?

What if the reality of the world isn’t as real and assured as we have been indoctrinated, from a young age, to believe?

This ‘real’ world is destined for destruction, why should we trust it?  If the ‘real’ world is so fragile and temporal, why do we waste time and effort trusting in it’s solidity? If it’s strength and solidity are transient, why should we trust in all that it offers?
This world is going die, it is clear, we can see it in the news, look out our windows and see the decline, yet we still hold onto it. Yet, isn’t it like clinging onto a sinking ship? If we hold onto something that is perishing - what hope is there for us?

What worldly practices or assurances are you holding onto? Do you have the confidence and faith to hand them over? Do you have a faith and trust in Jesus that is greater than all you know and experience?

Are you trusting more in this world than in the promises of the eternal one?