For over 1400 years, the people of Israel had followed the ceremonial law that God had given to Moses on Mt. Sinai. Well, off and on, anyway. The ritual of animal sacrifice for the atonement of sins came to an abrupt end in 70 A.D. when the temple was destroyed, but even before that time, many converted Jews who had come to faith in Christ struggled with the meaning of it all. Sure, Jesus was the “Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world,” but did that mean the temple worship was no longer valid or necessary? What was the relationship between the Old Covenant laws and the New Covenant grace they now experienced?
If you talk for any amount of time to Christians today, you’ll hear various interpretations of Christianity and its relationship to the Old Testament. Some throw out the Old Testament altogether, believing it has nothing to say to us today. Others cling to it, preferring to hold on to the laws, rituals, and traditions as if they were necessary for salvation. But is there something in-between?
I would contend that you cannot fully understand the New Testament (or the new covenant) without an understanding of the Old Testament (or old covenant). Everything that came before Jesus was meant to teach God’s people His principles, so they would understand the meaning of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection. Even many pastors today struggle to articulate the significance of the crucifixion and resurrection, mainly because they have divorced the Old Testament from the New and have discarded the entire context of Jesus’ work on the cross. So, His death is relegated to a nice example of how we should love one another – and little more!
The book of Hebrews, sandwiched between the books of Philemon and James in the New Testament, holds the key to understanding the relationship between Old and New. It deciphers the new in light of the old and puts us on a firm foundation for interpreting faith and salvation and redemption and atonement. As Christians, we no longer live under the old covenant, but neither are we to dismiss it as if it held no significance for today.
This series of messages on the book of Hebrews walks the line between overemphasizing the Old Testament and dismissing it. It brings to light who Jesus is, what He accomplished for us, the relationship He calls us to, and how we are to live out our faith, all while bringing the Old Testament and New Testament together to show one as the fulfillment of the other – vastly superior but dependent on the other for meaning and application.
Hebrews #1: Who Is Jesus?
Hebrews #1 – fillable note-taking guide
Hebrews #2: Entering His Rest
Hebrews #2 – fillable note-taking guide
Hebrews #3: Jesus Our High Priest
Hebrews #3 – fillable note-taking guide
Hebrews #4: The New Covenant
Hebrews #4 – fillable note-taking guide
Hebrews #5: The Final Sacrifice
Hebrews #5 – fillable note-taking guide
Hebrews #6: Confidence in Christ
Hebrews #6 – fillable note-taking guide
Hebrews #7: True Faith
Hebrews #7 – fillable note-taking guide
Hebrews #8: Final Admonitions
Hebrews #8 – fillable note-taking guide
My husband Dan David (also an ordained minister in The Wesleyan Church) and I shared this series of messages at our church in Florida several years ago. We’ve chosen to share these messages with you now because we believe God’s message is unchanging, regardless of the passage of time. Today, more than ever, we need the sure footing that comes from a correct understanding of Christ’s work on the cross and His resurrection. The principles in this series will keep us from becoming unmoored in an era when biblical truth is being discarded to placate an ever-more-sinful culture.
