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Scripture Reading        : Hebrews 9

Theme                       : Superiority of Jesus Christ over Old Testament Rituals

1. A better sanctuary. The author once again reminds the Hebrews of the items of the Tabernacle. But his focus is on the “Most Holy Place”, where the high priest can only go in once a year, on the Day of Atonement, after first offering a blood sacrifice for his own unintentional sins, and then for the unintentional sins of the people. However, the blood of animals cannot remove the sins of man completely. Only by the blood of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, can a sinner be completely justified and declared righteous. By His death, Jesus “entered once for all into the holy places”, which was proven when “the curtain of the temple was torn in two” (Matthew 27:51), signifying that the way into God’s presence was now opened. Christ did not only enter the “Most Holy Place” of the earthly temple; He has entered “into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf.” (Hebrews 9:24)

2. A better sacrifice. The high priest brought animals as sacrifices and offerings to God, but the blood of animals did not offer a final solution to sin, since the high priest had to do it year after year. On the other hand, by shedding His own blood and dying on the cross, Jesus secured “eternal redemption” (9:12), and He only need to do it once (9:28). The concept of the superiority of Jesus’ sacrifice is further expanded by the author in Hebrews 10.

Praying the Scripture

1. The Old Testament rituals did not provide sinners with direct access to God. On the other hand, Jesus Christ, by His death, opened the way for sinners to draw near to God. Let us thank Jesus for opening the way to God by shedding His own blood to “purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God.” (Hebrews 9:14b)

2. Hebrews 9:27 says “it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment.” However, “Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for Him.” (Hebrews 9:28) Let us thank Jesus for putting “away sin by the sacrifice of Himself” (Hebrews 9:26), and also pray that we will eagerly wait for Him.

Theme                       : Superiority of Jesus’ Covenant over the Old Covenant

1. Superior promises. In the Old Mosaic Covenant, human priests offered sacrifices to God, but these rituals were “a copy and shadow of the heavenly things.” (Hebrews 8:5) On the other hand, Jesus’ covenant (the New Covenant – Hebrews 8:8) is “much more excellent than the old”, because it is “enacted on better promises.” The better promises here refer to the promises God made to Jesus in Hebrews 7. For example, Jesus’ New Covenant is permanent, while the Mosaic Covenant was only temporal.

2. Superintended by God. Hebrews 8:8-12 is a direct quotation from Jeremiah 31:31-34. The Mosaic Covenant was based on temporal and external rituals, while the New Covenant of Christ is personally fulfilled by God in the hearts of man. The New Covenant is in contrast with Deuteronomy 6:6-9, where the Israelites were to teach their children the law, and write the law on doorposts, etc. In the New Covenant, God will write His law on the hearts of man, and they will no longer need anyone to teach them, because “they shall all know” God.

3. Supercedes the Old Covenant. With the coming of Son of God, His death and resurrection, Jesus Christ has inaugurated the New Covenant. He fulfilled the requirements of the Law perfectly, and with it introduced a new law (Hebrews 7:12). The New Covenant of Jesus Christ has replaced the old Mosaic Covenant. This is the reason that Christians need not obey the Mosaic Law any longer.

Praying the Scripture

1. The Old Testament Law only served as “a copy and shadow of the heavenly things.” (Hebrews 8:5) Jesus comes from heaven, and is now “seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in heaven”. Let us thank God that He has revealed to us the New Covenant that is founded by Jesus.

2. In Deuteronomy 6:6-9, it is the responsibility of man to remember God’s law and teach it to their children. But in the New Covenant, God is the one who writes the Law in our hearts. Let us thank God for being merciful towards our iniquities, and for remembering our sins no more (Hebrews 8:12).

3. Let us thank God for the New Covenant, which is better than the old Mosaic Covenant, such that we do not need to observe the Mosaic Law any more. Pray that we will not return to “a foundation of dead works… and of instruction about washings.” (Hebrews 6:1-2)

Scripture Reading        : Hebrews 7

Theme                       : Superiority of Jesus Christ over Levitical Priest II

In Hebrews 6:19-20, the author returned to the topic of the priesthood of Melchizedek, because Jesus Christ has “become a high priest forever.” Jesus, as the High Priest, is just like Melchizedek, who is superior over the Levitical priests.

1. His permanence. There were many generations of Levitical priests, who served God and the Israelites, and after their death, they will be succeeded by the next generation. Jesus, however, “holds His priesthood permanently” (Hebrews 7:24). This is because He is God, “having neither beginning of days nor end of life” (Hebrews 7:3). The author compared Jesus Christ with Melchizedek, who is greater than Abraham, to show that Jesus is greater than the levitical priests who are descendants of Abraham.

2. His perfection. The human high priests had to offer sacrifices for their own sins first, before offering sacrifices on behalf of Israel (Hebrews 7:27). Unlike the levitical high priests, Jesus has no need to offer any sacrifices for His own sins, since He is perfect and sinless. By His perfection, Jesus completely fulfilled the Law (Matthew 5:17), and thus abrogated the Law.

3. His promise. It is God Himself who confirmed Jesus as high priest. Quoting from Psalm 110:4, the author shows that God promised with an oath to make Jesus the Great High Priest forever.

Praying the Scripture

1. Because of His permanence, Jesus is “able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.” Let us thank God for the permanence of Jesus’ priesthood, so that we need not depend on one human after another human to make intercession for us.

2. Because Jesus fulfilled the requirements of the Law perfectly, He is able to impute His perfect righteousness onto us. If not for Jesus’ perfection, we will all perish, because there is no way we can ever fulfil the Law by our own strength. Let us praise God for His perfection and thank Him for fulfilling the Law on our behalf.

3. God is the One who sent Jesus, the perfect and great high priest, who offered Himself as the sacrifice. He provided the solution to the problem of sin that no other human priest could. Let us thank God for offering His own Son as the sacrifice for us.

Scripture Reading        : Hebrews 5:11 – 6:20

Theme                       : Salvation by Faith

1. Exhortation to grow. After believing the Gospel, the Hebrews became stagnant and did not grow spiritually. They have been exposed to the Gospel truth, and ought to be passing this knowledge to others, but they were regressing spiritually and needed to be taught again. The “word of righteousness” refers to the message of the Gospel of salvation by faith.

2. Example of apostasy. The author warns the Hebrews that spiritual stagnation is actually a sign of apostasy (rejecting the faith). This passage has often been cited as proof that a Christian can lose his salvation, but such a concept is not biblical. A true believer will never lose his salvation (John 10:27-29; Romans 8:35; Philippians 1:6). The more accurate understanding of this passage is that some people gladly accept the Gospel when they first heard it, but end up rejecting the truth, which results in God’s judgment.

3. Exhortation to persevere. From Hebrews 6:9, the author now turns back to addressing true believers, and encourages them to persevere in good works. The motivation behind the Christian’s perseverance is founded in the faithfulness of God. God did not only promise salvation, which is sufficient in itself, but He also “guaranteed it with an oath” that He will fulfill His promise.

Praying the Scripture

1. The characteristic that all healthy living things ought to have is growth. Lack of growth may show a deeper problem – lack of life. Pray that we will not be stagnant in our spiritual growth, and that we will not be “unskilled in the word of righteousness”.

2. Those who “tasted the goodness of the word of God” but “have fallen away” are just like the path, rocky ground and thorns in the parable of the sower (Matthew 13:1-9). Even though they heard the word of God, these people did not become true believers, because they did not bear fruit. Pray that we will not reject the truth and we will not crucify “once again the Son of God”.

3. God is faithful and He not only made a promise, but guaranteed it with an oath. If we had ever doubt God’s goodness, let us repent from this sin, and pray that God will help us to persevere in good works.

Scripture Reading        : Hebrews 4:14 – 5:10

Theme                       : Superiority of Jesus Christ over Levitical Priests I

Progressing from Moses to the Sabbath, the sign of the Mosaic Covenant, the author of Hebrews continues to show that Jesus is superior compared to the levitical priesthood in the Mosaic Law.

1. Sympathizes with our weakness. Jesus was “tempted as we are” “in every respect” (4:15), enabling Him to identify fully with sinners. And it was because He identified fully with sinners that He went through baptism by John the Baptist, even though He had no need to be baptized (Matthew 3:13-15). Some theologians argue that since Jesus is God and He cannot sin, He cannot understand the struggles that sinners face on a daily basis. Nothing is further from the truth, since the Bible clearly teaches that Jesus was tempted in every way, and He sympathizes with our weaknesses.

2. Even though Jesus was tempted “in every respect”, He did not sin. Again, some theologians argue that since Jesus is God, He could not possibly have sinned, and so His temptation is only symbolic. This is definitely not what the Bible teaches. It is actually harder for a perfect person to resist temptation than for a fallen sinner to resist temptation. Therefore, for Jesus to be tempted in every way and still remain sinless is really an achievement that gives Him full and complete victory over sin.

3. Source of salvation. Jesus is God and He is the One who saves. Jesus was “made perfect”, referring to His obedience despite being tempted. It does not refer to Jesus as a created being (He is eternally God, the Creator), nor does it refer to Jesus’ imperfection that needed any correction.

Praying the Scripture

1. Many people like to use the argument, “I had no choice.” It becomes a convenient excuse to sin. However, the Bible tells us that Jesus resisted temptation in every way, and we as His followers must imitate Him. Let us pray that God help us to resist temptation to sin.

2. Because Jesus remained sinless even though He was tempted in every way, He achieved complete and full victory over sin. Let us thank God that He has the power to overcome sin, and pray that He will help us live holy lives.

3. Jesus alone is the unblemished “Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29) Pray that we will trust Him fully to take away our sin, because Jesus is the “source of eternal salvation.”

Scripture Reading        : Hebrews 4:1-13

Theme                          : Superiority of Jesus Christ over the Sabbath

After showing that Jesus Christ is far superior that Moses, the author of Hebrews proceeded to argue that Jesus is superior compared with the Sabbath, which was a very important weekly day of rest for the Jews, because the Sabbath was the sign of the Mosaic Covenant.

1. Jesus is the true rest. Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt, but it was Joshua, his successor, who led the Israelites into the Promised Land. However, the Promised Land was not to be the true rest for God’s people (Hebrews 4:8), because there is a greater promise, the true rest that is only found in Jesus (Hebrews 4:9).

2. True believers enter the rest. For believers, God’s rest includes His peace “which surpasses all understanding” (Philippians 4:7), confidence of salvation (1 John 5:13), and the hope (and fulfillment) of eternal life in heaven. However, entering the rest is not easy, because believers must “strive to enter that rest” (4:11). By believing and obeying God’s Word, believers continue striving in this life.

3. Disobeying Jesus brings judgment. To disobey God’s Word is the same as disobeying Jesus. Many professing believers are deluded, thinking that by simply calling Jesus “Lord” will give them a ticket to heaven. But the Bible has always been clear that disobedience will bring judgment (e.g. Matthew 7:21-23; James 1:22). Hebrews 4:12-13 shows that the very Word of God that unbelievers rejected/disobeyed will be the standard used to judge them in the end.

Praying the Scripture

1. The Israelites thought that by keeping to a strict observance of the Sabbath (including NOT doing good deeds – Mark 3:1-6), they would be resting as God commanded them. In many ways, professing Christians today think that by coming to church every Sunday, it is good enough to earn our salvation. Let us pray that we will not trust in our own works (e.g. coming to church, keeping the Sabbath, etc.), but “enter that rest”, which is the true rest, by trusting fully in Jesus.

2. We must obey the Word of God (e.g. love one another, serve the church, obey our leaders, etc.), which is how we “strive to enter that rest.” Let us pray that we will not be deluded like the “workers of lawlessness” (Matthew 7:23), but show our faith by our works (James 2:18b).

3. “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the Word of Christ.” (Romans 10:17) We cannot obey the Word that we do not know. Let us pray that we will be diligent in reading and studying the Bible, so that we may know His Word, in order that we many obey it.

Scripture Reading        : Hebrews 3

Theme                          : Superiority of Jesus Christ over Moses

Moses is the most important prophet in Israel’s history, being the one who led Israel out of Egypt and to the edge of the Promised Land. However, Jesus Christ is far superior that Moses.

1. Jesus is God’s Son. Moses, though faithful, was ultimately still a human servant of God. Jesus, on the other hand, was not only faithful, but He is also God’s Son, and therefore is “worthy of more glory than Moses.”

2. Jesus is God’s Voice. Those who heard Moses’ voice in the wilderness of Sinai, the Israelites who came out of Egypt, rebelled against Moses over and over again (Exodus, Leviticus and Numbers). Now, God is speaking to us through His Son, who is God Himself. If God judged the Israelites who disobeyed Moses, all the more He will judge those who disobey His Son.

3. Jesus is God’s Rest. Those who perished in the wilderness could not enter the earthly rest in the Promised Land. In contrast, whoever obeys the Voice of God will receive true rest in Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

Praying the Scripture

1. Moses was a very godly man, but no man should ever be regarded as more important than Jesus Christ. Let us pray that, while we ought to respect our leaders, that we will not esteem any human more highly than Jesus Christ.

2. If God judged the Israelites in the wilderness for disobeying His human servant, He will certainly judge more severely those who disobey His Son. In fact, Jesus Himself said, “But I tell you, it will be more bearable on the day of judgment for Tyre and Sidon than for you.” (Matthew 11:22) Let us pray that we will obey Jesus’ Word, that is the Bible, so that we will not incur God’s judgment.

3. Let us pray that we will not be satisfied with coming to church regularly, reading our bibles regularly, etc, but truly enter the heavenly rest by trusting in Jesus and obeying His Word.

Scripture Reading        : Hebrews 2

Theme                          : Salvation by Jesus Christ

Having shown that Jesus Christ is superior over angels, the author now writes about salvation through Jesus Christ.

1. Jesus subjected everything. God had made man the ruler of everything that God created (Genesis 1:26-28), but due to the fall, mankind was not able to fulfill that command. But when Jesus became “obedient to the point of death” (Philippians 2:8-9), Jesus fulfilled man’s purpose, and is now “crowned with glory and honor.”

2. Jesus suffered for sinners. Because Jesus suffered on behalf of sinners, He now calls them “brothers”. This means that Jesus identified Himself fully with sinners (which include all of mankind) in order to save them.

3. Jesus satisfied God. Unlike some wrong teachings that supposed that Jesus died to pay a ransom to Satan, in order to redeem sinners, the Bible clearly teaches that Jesus died in order to pay the price of sin to God. Instead of paying a ransom to Satan, Jesus actually “destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil”. The word “propitiation” means to “satisfy”. By dying on the cross, Jesus satisfied God’s wrath on sinners, so that God might fully forgive those who trust in His Son, Jesus Christ.

Praying the Scripture

1. Jesus alone subjects everything under Him. Let us pray that we will look to no other means of salvation, but to trust in Jesus alone.

2. Our sins are so serious and abhorrent to God that no one else is capable of suffering on our behalf, except the Son of God. Let us thank God that He sent His precious Son to suffer on our behalf, and let us pray that we will abhor/hate sin.

3. Jesus alone is worthy as a propitiation to satisfy the wrath of God, and “all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment.” (Isaiah 64:6) Let us pray that we will not trust in our own righteous deeds to satisfy God, but trust in Jesus alone as the only propitiation for our sins.

Scripture Reading        : Hebrews 1

Theme                          : Superiority of Jesus Christ over Angels

The author of Hebrews is unknown. The book is filled with references and quotations of the Old Testament and Jewish practices, since it was primarily written to Jewish believers. The author might have chosen to remain anonymous in order to attribute the authorship ultimately to the Holy Spirit. For example, when quoting from Psalm 95:7-11, the author wrote that “the Holy Spirit says” (Hebrews 3:7). In the first chapter, the author argues that Jesus Christ is superior over angels due to at least three reasons.

1. Jesus is God. In the Old Testament, God spoke to Israel through prophets. Jews understood “last days” to refer to the coming of the Messiah (or Savior). The Messiah, Jesus, is not just another human prophet who has received God’s anointing; He is God’s Son, and He is God (Hebrews 1:3, 8). Jesus is eternally the Son of God (John 1:1-3), having no beginning, just like God. Hebrews 1:5 does not refer to Jesus becoming the Son of God at a certain time in history, but simply conveys the fact that Jesus is God. That is the reason why the Jews wanted to kill Jesus for claiming to be God’s Son, since that is the same as claiming to be God (John 5:18).

2. Jesus is the King. Jesus’ throne will last forever, indicating that He is the eternal King, who will rule and judge the unrighteous. No angel is given this authority to judge, and His enemies will be made to submit and bow down to Him (Hebrews 1:13).

3. Jesus is the Creator. Hebrews 1:10-12 shows that Jesus is the One who created all things (John 1:1-3, Col 1:16). Angels have no power to create, because they are “sent to serve”.

希伯来书的作者是不明的。既然这本书主要是写给犹太信徒的，因此它充满了旧约引文及犹太的习俗与做法。作者选择不留名，或许是要将这份名义最终归给圣灵。例如，在引用诗篇95:7-11时，作者写道“圣灵有话说”（来3:7）。在首个篇章中，作者辩说耶稣基督远超过天使，而其因至少有三：

1. 耶稣是神。在旧约里，神借着先知向以色列说话。犹太人晓得“末世”指的是弥赛亚（或救主）的降临。那位弥赛亚——耶稣，并不只是另一位受到神恩膏的人类先知；祂是神之子，也是神（3, 8节）。耶稣永远是神的儿子（约1:1-3），没有开始，同神一样。5节指的不是耶稣在历史的某个阶段成为神的儿子；它传达的仅是耶稣是神这事实。这就是犹太人为什么因耶稣称自己是神的儿子想杀祂，既然这同等于说明自己是神（约5:18）。

2. 耶稣是王。耶稣的宝座是永永远远的，说明祂是永恒的王，要掌权并审判不义。审判的权柄不是天使能领受的，而祂的敌人总有一日会被迫顺服并向祂屈膝（13节）。

3. 耶稣是创造主。10-12节表明耶稣是造万物的（约1:1-3，西1:16）。天使没有创造的能力，因为他们是“奉差遣…效力”的。

用经文祷告

1. 耶稣在马太福音13:17说：“我实在告诉你们：从前有许多先知和义人要看你们所看的，却没有看见；要听你们所听的，却没有听见。”让我们感谢神借着祂的儿子向我们说话，而祂的话已为我们记载在圣经上了。

2. 耶稣是“喜爱公义，恨恶罪恶”的王，而神会使祂的仇敌做祂的脚凳。让我们祷告我们能趁现在就是顺服祂的权柄，作祂的子民，以免后悔已晚，在审判之日作祂的仇敌，被逼顺服。

3. 耶稣远超过天使（及一切），因为祂是神、君王及造主。让我们在祷告中赞美敬拜祂。