God Sent His Son--Hope -- Hebrews 6:16-20

Introduction

I have always been a firm believer that as long as there is life, there is hope.

As with any universal statement, there are exceptions to this, but on the whole, as long as we are breathing, there is always hope. There is hope that tomorrow will be a better day, that things will go well.

When God sent His Son into our world, it was with the distinct intention to give us hope.

Background

The writer of Hebrews wanted his readers to understand that, in every way, the New Covenant created through Christ is superior to the Old Covenant that came through Moses. He compares Jesus to the angels, to Moses, to the Law—everything his readers are familiar with, and shows that Jesus is superior in every way.

The book is an excellent source for in-depth truths. It shows us that faith is better than the Law, and reminds us that our obedience is one of trust instead of obligation. The reason for this is that the writer understands his readers are “slow to learn.” He says, “In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God’s word all over again” (Hebrews 5:12).

In this particular passage, The writer reminds the readers that God made a promise to Abraham, swearing by Himself since there is no once greater to swear by. The writer then goes into the significance of oaths and what God’s oaths mean to us. He reminds us what makes the Gospel so compelling and so reliable—it is God’s promise to us through His Son whom He sent to live among us, to teach us, to minister to us and, finally, to die for our sins.

But then God punctuated the crucifixion with an exclamation point by resurrecting the Savior of the world. By showing us that Jesus is eternal, we who believe in Him will also have this eternal life. With that eternal life, we find hope. Hope in the Father; hope in the Son.

Central Truth: The hope we find in God’s Son is “an anchor for the soul.”

Our hope in Christ:

1. Is based upon the reliable nature of God (16-18)

Apparently, in the days when this letter was written, oaths were taken more seriously than they are today. When people swear that what they’re saying is true, I always wonder if maybe my skepticism is justified. Although, as I think about it, such people don’t need to make oaths because I know I can trust them to be honest and above-board in all matters.

But the writer tells us that an oath confirms what is said and puts an end to all argument. Perhaps he’s thinking of solemn, serious moments in life, like a court of law, or an oath before God that isn’t tossed off, but is heart-felt and sincere.

For whatever reason the writer believes the oath, he uses this to draw us to God and the oath He makes to us. God made an oath with us for the reason that He wants to make His purpose crystal clear. I like the way the writer puts it: “Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of His purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised, He confirmed it with an oath.” So God made a promise to us with an oath that we shall be joint-heirs with Christ in the promise of eternal life and fellowship with Him.

The writer than reminds us that it is impossible for God to lie. Again, I know some very trustworthy people, people I would trust without a second thought. But I also know that these people, as honest and trustworthy as they are, are all capable of lying. Maye it would be a half-truth, but a half-truth is just as misleading as a lie.

With God, though, He cannot lie; it is impossible for Him to do so. That’s why all His promises are “yes” in Jesus Christ (cf. 2 Corinthians 1:18-22). God made this oath “greatly encourage” us. This great encouragement is rooted in the hope we have in Him through Christ. This hope that we will be the beneficiaries of all His promises is secured in the oath of God that we who confess that Jesus Christ is Lord will inherit eternal life, not just in this life, but in the life to come.

Before Christ came, the popular thought was that life after death was sort of a twilight existence, more like a place with soft lights and quieted voices. The greatest part of life, in the thinking, was in the life we lived here on earth. As a result of this thinking, it only made sense that God would bless us in this life, since this was the main part of living. That’s why the disciples were so surprised by Jesus’ words about a camel, an eye of a needle and the impossibility of the wealthy getting into heaven.

But when Christ came, the promise is that the greatest part of living is not just this life, though it certainly is a wonderful existence since we walk with Christ today, but, as Paul wrote to the Corinthians, now we see through a glass darkly, but then face-to-face. In others words, as wonderful as this life is in our fellowship with Christ, it will be nothing compared to the glories that await us all when we ascend into His presence. That’s why the hymn writer said, “Oh, that will be glory for me!”

It is this glory we hope for, and we have the very clear promise of God to greatly encourage us in that hope.

1. Is firmly rooted (19)

“We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure.” What a great line, and what a great promise for us.

When we lived in Port O’Connor, there was a major drop in the stock market. It lost something like 20% of its value. Overnight, pensions were drastically affected. People who were counting on the income from their investments were having to think again. There was a great deal of uncertainty and wringing of hands by those who had all their money in the exchanges.

I remember this because one of my church members, who was a wealthy man and had a lot of money invested wasn’t worried at all. Having no money in the market, I wasn’t concerned either, but I asked him why he wasn’t worried. His take on it was that the market goes up and down, and if a person waits it out and doesn’t panic, the market will rebound, the losses will be turned into gains again and everything will be as it was before. And he was right.

But even if the market seems to always be climbing, there is still a degree of uncertainty in investments and in the future.

Not so in our relationship with Jesus and in the promises we receive from God. The Father’s oath in Christ gives us a stability that cannot be shaken. Imagine how stressful life would be like if, at any given moment, we couldn’t be sure where we stood with God. If our relationship with Him depended on whims or actions on our parts, if it relied solely on our obedience to Him, how certain could we be? What if our life came to an end when we were at a downturn in our walk with Him? Would we suddenly be told that we fell short, and that we didn’t make it? How could we live like that?

But God swore that our life in Christ is rock-solid. The writer tells us that, as a result of God’s oath, we have a hope like an anchor for our soul, firm and secure. It is more than a hope—it is a dead certain guarantee that what God has promised us will be given us, not because of anything we have done, but because of His grace, His goodness, His reliability. God has made His promise, and that gives us more than hope—it gives us certainty. That is why we can face tomorrow, why we can face each day with confidence and assurance.

1. Is found in Christ Himself (20)

When God instructed Moses about the creation of the Tabernacle, He instructed Moses to partition a portion of the tent with a curtain from ceiling to floor. This place was called the Holy of Holies, and it contained the Ark of the Covenant, upon which sat the Mercy Seat. Only the High Priest was allowed to enter the room, and then only on the Day of Atonement. On that day, God’s presence would descend on the mercy seat, and there the sins of Israel would be taken away. This was later continued with the building of the temple in Jerusalem.

A remarkable thing happened on the day of Jesus’ crucifixion. When Jesus commended Himself to the Father and lay down His life—when He died—the curtain that separated the Holy of Holies from the rest of the temple was torn, from the ceiling down. Now, understand that this was heavy curtain, made of thick, heavy cloth and embedded with symbols made of solid gold thread. It would take more than gust of wind to even begin to move this curtain. Yet, on the day of Jesus’ crucifixion, this curtain was split in half, opening the Holy of Holies to all who worship the true Christ.

It is this idea that the writer uses in this verse. Our hopes enters into the presence of God, where Jesus awaits us to minister on our behalf before the Father. It is here that Jesus performs His High Priest functions, interceding with God for the removal of our sins, providing the atonement through the shedding of His own blood. In Hebrews 10, the writer demonstrates that Jesus’ atonement is the perfect atonement, only happening once, unlike the annual atonements of the Law.

Jesus not only intercedes on our behalf, but we are able to enter the most sacred area and stand in the presence of God. Right now, we do this through prayer and worship, but when our hope becomes fulfilled, we will stand in the presence of the Father Himself and worship Him. It is at the end of this chapter that the writer of Hebrews introduces the idea of Jesus as superior to Mechizedek.

Melchizidek is someone who is mentioned only one other time in the Bible. Abraham’s nephew, Lot, is taken prisoner by raiders, and Abraham sets out with his men to rescue Lot. After a battle, Abraham is successful. As a result of the victory, there is quite a bit of plunder that Abraham and his men have. The battle took place near Jerusalem, and it is near there that Abraham encounters Melchizidek. Melchizidek, as the writer tells us, was a high priest of the community and Abraham gives a tithe of the plunder to him. Melchizidek is referred to as “the king of Salem,” or the “king of peace. There is nothing else known of Melchizidek.

The point of the Melchizidek reference is that, just as in everything else in this letter, Christ is superior to Melchizidek. He is our true Prince of Peace, our true Lord, and one truly worthy of worship. He is our source of hope, and He is the oath of God fulfilled.

Our hope is built on nothing less than Jesus and His righteousness. God sent His Son and gives us hope.

Conclusion

I believe the saddest thing is when there is no hope. As long as there is hope, there are always possibilities. As long as there are possibilities, then there is always the very real truth that things may change for the better.

No matter what our circumstances, though, God has given us His Son. Jesus, born of a virgin, born under the law at the time God deemed to be the right time, is our gift of hope in this season. And that hope is ours for as long as we live.

Walk in the hope that anchors the soul. Walk in Christ.