God, having of old time spoken unto the fathers in the prophets by divers portions and in divers manners,
hath at the end of these days spoken unto us in His Son.Having become by so much better than the angels, as He hath inherited a more excellent name than they.
For unto which of the angels said He at any time,
Thou art My Son,
This day have I begotten Thee?And again,
I will be to Him a Father,
And He shall be to Me a Son?And when He again bringeth in the firstborn into the world He saith,
And let all the angels of God worship Him.And of the angels He saith,
Who maketh His angels winds,
And His ministers a flame of fire.But of the Son He saith,
Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever;
And the sceptre of uprightness is the sceptre of Thy kingdom.Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity;
Therefore God, Thy God, hath anointed Thee
With the oil of gladness above Thy fellows.And,
Thou, Lord, in the beginning didst lay the foundation of the earth,
And the heavens are the works of Thy hands:
They shall perish; but Thou continuest:
And they all shall wax old as doth a garment;
And as a mantle shalt Thou roll them up,
And they shall be changed:
But Thou art the same,
And Thy years shall not fail.But of which of the angels hath He said at any time,
Sit Thou on My right hand,
Till I make Thine enemies the footstool of Thy feet?Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to do service for the sake of them that shall inherit salvation?
For He hath been counted worthy of more glory than Moses, by so much as He that built the house hath more honor than the house.
For every house is builded by some one; but He that built all things is God.
And Moses indeed was faithful in all His house as a servant, for a testimony of those things which were afterward to be spoken;
but Christ as a Son, over His house; whose house are we, if we hold fast our boldness and the glorying of our hope firm unto the end.
And inasmuch as it is not without the taking of an oath
(for they indeed have been made priests without an oath; but He with an oath by Him that saith of Him,
The Lord sware and will not repent Himself,
Thou art a priest for ever);
by so much also hath Jesus become the surety of a better covenant.And they indeed have been made priests many in number, because that by death they are hindered from continuing:
but He, because He abideth for ever, hath His priesthood unchangeable.Wherefore also He is able to save to the uttermost them that draw near unto God through Him, seeing He ever liveth to make intercession for them.
But now hath He obtained a ministry the more excellent, by so much as He is also the mediator of a better covenant, which hath been enacted upon better promises.
For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel
After those days, saith the Lord;
I will put My laws into their mind,
And on their heart also will I write them:
And I will be to them a God,
And they shall be to Me a people.
This is all that we are going to read for now. Let us pray.
Our Lord, we thank You and praise You because You give us another opportunity to come before You.
We thank You because in You there is the word of life. Outside of You, whom do we have?
This morning, once again, we open our hearts toward You, asking that You speak to us and that You appear to us. May You be supreme in the heart of every one of us, because only You are the greatest and the most supreme.
We commit this time, with great respect, into Your hands. May You bless it. In the name of the Lord Jesus, amen.
I think by now everyone knows the theme of this time: “But we see Jesus.”
We hope that this is not merely a theme. We hope that it is the experience of every one of us and the testimony of each one of us.
In the first meeting, we mentioned the person of Jesus. Before God, the person—or the identity—of Jesus is an extremely important matter.
Our Lord Jesus is the Son of the living God. He has the glory of the only begotten Son. Yet our Lord Jesus came to this earth to become a man. He is called the Son of Man, and He has the glory of the Son of Man.
This is the person, or the identity, of our Lord Jesus. If we know His identity as the Son of God, then we rise up and worship Him. If we know that He is the Son of Man, then we rise up and thank Him.
If today we do not know how to worship and do not know how to give thanks, it is because we do not know Who He is. When, from the depths of our heart and spirit, we see Who He is, we cannot but fall down and say, “My Lord and my God.” This is His identity.
In the second meeting, we mentioned the ministry of our Lord Jesus. In fact, ministry comes out from His person. What He is produces what He does.
In the world today, people often pay more attention to a man’s work than to what kind of person he is. A person may be able to do some work, yet his work does not necessarily correspond to his person. This is the way of the world.
But before God, every ministry of a man comes out from the person that he is before God. What God takes account of is what we are as persons, more than the work that we do for Him.
Otherwise, we may esteem work more than we esteem the person. We may say, “As long as I do some work for God, what kind of person I am is not important.” But in the eyes of God, your service and ministry are according to your person.
What kind of person you are before God determines the work that you can do for God.
Our Lord Jesus is the Son of God, and He is also the Son of Man. Therefore, His ministry is that of Apostle and High Priest.
The reason He can be the Apostle of God is because He is God. He comes from God. Yet He has also come down to earth as a man. Therefore, He can fully represent God, come to earth, accomplish the work of redemption, and lead us into glory.
It is His person that gives Him this ministry. Today He is our High Priest because He is the Son of God. He is ever living; therefore, He is able to save us to the uttermost.
Our High Priest has been a man on this earth. He has been tempted in all things, sin apart. On this earth He learned obedience through suffering and was perfected. Therefore, He can be the assurance of all those who depend upon Him.
Because He has this glorious person, He can do things that other men cannot do. Brothers and sisters, person brings in ministry.
This morning we would like to see a third matter: the place, or position, of Jesus.
On this earth, people often think that position is the most important thing. They think that if they have a position, then they have an identity; and if they have an identity, then they have an office and can do things.
This is true not only among ordinary people. Sadly, it is also found in the church. We see it even among the disciples of the Lord.
The twelve disciples had been chosen out of many disciples. They had been with the Lord for a long time. They ate with Him, walked with Him, observed His work, and were with Him day and night.
Yet each one of them, without exception, had one desire: Who is the greatest? Who can occupy the highest position?
They often argued among themselves concerning position. Why did they argue for position? They thought that if they had position, then they would have identity; and if they had position, then they could do things. To them, position was the most important thing.
Even when our Lord was going to Jerusalem for the last time, the disciples were still occupied with this question.
James and John were contending with the other disciples concerning who was greatest and who would have the better position. They could not resolve their dispute.
They regarded this as their last opportunity. The Lord Jesus was going to Jerusalem, and they thought that He was going to receive His kingdom. They could not lose this opportunity.
So they brought in their mother. Every mother wants her children to succeed. Their mother was also related to the Lord Jesus according to the flesh, and the word of a relative can be powerful.
The wife of Zebedee brought her two sons before the Lord and said, “Lord, I have one request. You must grant it.”
The Lord asked her, “What do you want?”
She said, “Command that in Your kingdom these my two sons may sit, one on Your right hand, and one on Your left.”
No wonder the other ten disciples became indignant. James and John had tried to gain the upper hand over the others.
But how did our Lord answer? He said, “Are ye able to drink the cup that I am about to drink? Or to be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?”
At that time, James and John had no idea what the cup and baptism meant. There was only one thing in their mind: as long as they could have positions, anything would do.
They said, “We are able.” The Lord said, “Ye shall drink indeed of My cup, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with: but to sit on My right hand, and on My left hand, is not Mine to give, but it shall be given to them for whom it hath been prepared of My Father.”
In the thinking of the disciples, if they had position, then they would have everything. They thought that position would give them identity and ministry.
But where does position come from? Yes, some will sit on the right and some will sit on the left. The Father will give such positions. But what are the qualifications?
The qualification is according to the cup that one drinks and the baptism that one receives.
Simply put, the cup is the cup that our Lord Jesus drank in the garden of Gethsemane. It means that He would do the will of God.
The baptism is the death of the cross. If you do the will of God, if you obey unto the cross, then you can have such a position.
Identity and ministry do not come out from position. Position comes out from what you are and what you do.
Brothers and sisters, what is the implication for us today? Are we also competing for positions? This is not only the way of people in the world; it can also be found among God’s children.
Sometimes we think that if we have a position in the church, then we have identity to do things. If we have no position, then we say that we have no responsibility.
Often, when brothers and sisters are asked to rise up and serve, they may serve energetically if they are given a position and a title. But if no position is given, they may sit without doing anything, saying, “If I do not have a position, how can I do anything?”
Brothers and sisters, let us be clear about one thing: position comes out from person and ministry. Do not argue for a position.
If, before God, you are the person you ought to be, and if before God you do your duty, then the position will be given by the heavenly Father.
Before we speak further about the place and position of the Lord Jesus, we need to mention this: today, among God’s children, we often do not see the position of Jesus.
We may put it this way: we put the position of our Lord Jesus too low. In our hearts and minds, the Lord Jesus may not have much position, while other things outside of the Lord occupy much position.
But what is the position of Jesus in the heart of God? If we read the Word of God, we see that the position of Jesus in the heart of God is unique.
You may ask, “What about my position?” Brothers and sisters, your position is found in the position of the Lord Jesus. Outside of the position of the Lord Jesus, you have no position in the heart of God.
This is My beloved Son, in Whom I am well pleased; hear ye Him.
In Colossians 1:19, we are told that all the fullness dwells in Him, so that He may have the preeminence in all things.
In Ephesians 1, we find that the time will come when God will sum up all things in Christ—things in the heavens and things upon the earth. The church is the fullness of Him Who filleth all in all.
Therefore, in the heart and will of God, Jesus Christ, the Son of God, has a unique position.
The question is this: What position does the Lord Jesus have in our hearts? This is a great problem for us.
Why were there divisions in the church at Corinth? Some said, “I am of Paul,” and others said, “I am of Apollos.” In their hearts, Paul or Apollos had a higher position than Christ.
Paul asked, “Was Paul crucified for you? Or were ye baptized into the name of Paul? Is Christ divided?”
Why was there such division among the believers in Corinth? Because they had not clearly seen the position of the Lord Jesus.
Why could they tolerate sins which were not even found among the Gentiles? Why did one brother bring another brother before the Gentiles? Why did they use spiritual gifts to boast of themselves? Because they had not seen the position of the Lord Jesus.
The Colossian church had not seen the position of Jesus. Therefore, they considered Christ insufficient and looked for things outside of Christ—philosophy, mysticism, and other teachings.
We find the same difficulty among the Hebrew believers. In their minds, the position of the Lord Jesus was not enough. This is why they wanted to return to Judaism. They thought that the things of Judaism could satisfy them.
Dear brothers and sisters, what is the position of the Lord Jesus among us? If we see the position that God has ordained for Him, then we shall see that outside of Him there is no other position.
In the book of Hebrews, one word appears again and again: better.
We know that “better” is a comparative word. We say that one thing is better than another, or that one thing is higher than another. But when the Bible uses this word concerning the Lord Jesus, it is not merely making a comparison. It is declaring that He is incomparable.
Because we are human, if we do not make comparisons, it seems that we cannot comprehend the incomparable quality of our Lord Jesus.
God compares the Lord with other things because of our weakness, so that through comparison we may receive some impression. Yet God is really telling us that His Son cannot be compared.
You know the story of the transfiguration. When the Lord was transfigured, His glory was so great. Immediately, two men appeared with Him: Moses and Elijah.
Moses represents the law, and Elijah represents the prophets. Together they represent the whole Old Testament testimony.
They were conversing with the Lord concerning His departure—His exodus—which He was about to accomplish at Jerusalem. The Lord Jesus had come to this earth, full of grace and truth; now He was about to depart from the earth and return to His Father.
Moses and Elijah came to speak with the Lord concerning this departure. While they were speaking, the three disciples fell asleep. The glory was so great that their flesh could not bear it.
When they awoke, Peter saw this majestic scene. He did not know what to say, but he feared that if he said nothing, the moment would be over.
So Peter blurted out, “Lord, it is good for us to be here. Let us make three tabernacles: one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.”
Before Peter had finished speaking, the heavenly Father interrupted him.
This is My beloved Son: hear ye Him.
Peter was not to speak; he was to listen. The Son is unique. Moses and Elijah cannot be placed on the same level as Him.
Our God is a jealous God. Whenever we put any man, any matter, or any thing on the same level as our Lord Jesus, God immediately interrupts. God does not allow it, because our Lord Jesus is unique in the heart of God.
God also desires that in our hearts the Lord Jesus would be all and sufficient. This is the eternal will of God.
Let us consider some of the “betters” in Hebrews. In Hebrews 1:1–2, God spoke in many parts and in many ways through the prophets, but at the end of these days He has spoken to us in the Son.
Here we see that the Lord Jesus, as the Son, is more complete than the prophets.
The prophets are very important. They have an important position in the economy of God. Through them, God revealed His will.
The prophets did not prophesy according to themselves. Holy men, moved by the Holy Spirit, spoke from God.
However, God used many prophets because one prophet could not fully express God. God also used many different ways to express His will. What God showed through the prophets was partial: a point here and a point there. It was not complete.
But in the end of the days, God sent His Son to speak for Him. Indeed, God speaks through His Son.
No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, Who is in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared Him.
Because our Lord Jesus is the Son, He is one with God. When He speaks, it is the Father Who speaks. He is the Word of God.
The prophets prophesied concerning Him. They did not prophesy to declare themselves or to say, “See how great I am.” The true prophets point people to the Lord Jesus.
After His resurrection, the Lord explained to His disciples, beginning with Moses and all the prophets, the things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures.
A false prophet does not declare Christ; he points to himself. A true prophet points people to Christ.
Among the prophets, none was greater than John the Baptist. Yet what did John say?
I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness.
He that cometh after me is mightier than I,
Whose shoes I am not worthy to bear.
He must increase, but I must decrease.
This is a true prophet. The Lord Jesus is more complete than the prophets, and He is greater than every prophet.
Yet this was the difficulty among the Hebrew believers. They esteemed the prophets more than the Son. Even believers in Christ can esteem a servant of God more than the Lord Himself.
Do we not see the same situation today? If we see the position of the Lord, then we see that all the prophets and all the apostles point to Him.
The spirit of prophecy is the testimony of Jesus. If a person’s prophecy makes the Lord Jesus smaller, then that is false prophecy. But when a person is a true prophet, the more he prophesies, the more clearly people will see that Christ is great and that the prophet decreases.
Our Lord is greater and more complete. What He says is the final word. Nothing can be added to what He has said.
The name our Lord Jesus has inherited is more excellent than the name of angels.
The Jews greatly honored angels. Although today we may not think much about angels, among the Jews their position was very high.
Even when Moses gave the law, Scripture tells us that the law was ordained through angels. Therefore, angels had a high position among men.
According to creation, angels are higher than men. They were created before man, they are spirits and are not limited by the flesh, and they possess greater wisdom and power than men.
But the Bible tells us that our Lord Jesus is more honorable than angels. To which of the angels did God ever say, “Thou art My Son; this day have I begotten Thee”? To which angel did He say, “I will be to Him a Father, and He shall be to Me a Son”?
When the Firstborn came into the world, God said, “Let all the angels of God worship Him.” Angels are ministering spirits and servants of God. When the Son comes, all angels must worship Him.
His kingdom is without end. Heaven and earth shall pass away, but He continues forever. Our Lord Jesus is more honorable than angels.
The first rebellion in the universe was led by a chief archangel. God had given him identity, office, and position. But he did not remain in his position. He wanted to steal the position of the Lord.
He said, “I will exalt myself. I will be equal with God.” But who can be equal with God? Only the Son of God is equal with God.
This archangel wanted to compete with the Son of God. The result was that he was cast out of heaven and became Satan, the devil. The position of the Son of God is far above all angels.
Even today, people may exalt angels above the Lord Jesus. Satan can disguise himself as an angel of light. We must be careful not to be attracted merely by mysterious or spectacular things.
The angels are sent to serve those who shall inherit salvation. Let us see the position of our Lord Jesus clearly and properly in our hearts.
You may say, “I would never worship an angel.” Do not be so sure. When you read Revelation, you see that John himself was tempted in this way.
In Revelation 19, when the angel proclaimed that the bride had made herself ready and that the marriage of the Lamb had come, John fell down to worship the angel.
But the angel said:
See thou do it not:
I am a fellow-servant with thee,
And with thy brethren that hold the testimony of Jesus:
Worship God.
In Revelation 22, John was overwhelmed again by the glory of the New Jerusalem that God revealed through the angel. He fell down again to worship the angel, and the angel again said, “Do not do this.”
Even if an angel brings you good news, even if the message is accurate, remember that he is only a servant. He brings the message so that you may worship God.
The whole world will worship the beast because Satan is an angel. Therefore, we must remember that our Lord is more honorable than angels. We can worship only the Lord Jesus Christ.
In Hebrews 3, we see that our Lord Jesus is worthy of greater glory than Moses.
Moses was the greatest leader in the eyes of the Jews. They said to the Lord Jesus, “We are disciples of Moses. We follow Moses and learn from him.”
Indeed, Moses was raised up by God to be a great leader. He was faithful in the household of God. But he was only a servant.
Our Lord Jesus is the Son. He is the Builder of the house, the Owner of the house, and the One Who rules over the house. Which one is greater?
Moses was a type of the things to come. He testified concerning Christ, the One Who was to come. Moses said that a prophet would arise, and the people must hear Him. This refers to our Lord Jesus.
Yet there were those among the Hebrew believers who honored Moses more than they honored the Lord. Although they had believed in the Lord, they wanted to return to Moses and to the law.
What is our situation today? Throughout the generations, God has raised up many spiritual leaders, and we thank God for them. But they are only servants.
Paul planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase. Paul is nothing, and Apollos is nothing. Only the Lord is all in all.
Yet people have a desire to worship leaders. They say, “I follow this person.” Dear brothers and sisters, let us remember that they are only servants.
The Builder of the church is the Lord Jesus Himself. The Lord said:
I will build My church;
And the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.
Our Lord Jesus is the Son. He rules over the house of God. We are His house if we hold fast the boldness and the glorying of our hope firm unto the end.
The position of the Lord Jesus is greater than Moses. Is the position of the Lord Jesus in you greater than that of any leader? Do you see a leader with your eyes, or do you see the Lord Jesus? Do you follow the Lord Jesus, or do you follow a leader?
We thank and praise God: our Lord Jesus is the Son, and He is worthy of greater glory than Moses.
Our Lord Jesus is the great High Priest. His ministry as High Priest is greater and more perfect than the ministry of Aaron.
The order of Aaron was established by God, but the men who served in that order were weak. They had to offer sacrifices for their own sins as well as for the sins of others.
They also died, and others had to continue after them. Therefore, that priesthood was never perfect.
The sacrifices they offered could not truly bring people to God. On the Day of Atonement, the high priest entered the Holy of Holies with blood and sprinkled the blood upon the mercy seat to make atonement for the people.
But the atonement was not perfect. Every year they had to do it again, because the blood of bulls and goats could not cleanse the sins of man. It could only cover sin; it could not take sin away.
But our Lord Jesus is High Priest after the order of Melchizedek. That order is higher than the order of Aaron, and He continues as High Priest forever.
Once for all, for our sins, He offered Himself. He became the source of eternal salvation. Because He offered Himself once for all, we can be sanctified forever.
The ministry of our Lord Jesus as High Priest is far above the ministry of the order of Aaron. His position is higher because He is absolutely perfect.
Yet some Jewish believers wanted to go back to tradition. They acted as though the position of the Lord Jesus as High Priest were not adequate, and they desired again the descendants of Aaron to be their high priests.
Today, it is the same with us. Dear brothers and sisters, is it not enough that the Lord Jesus is our High Priest?
We do not need any mediator. We do not need any person to stand between us and God. Through the Lord Jesus, we can come before God, and He will save us to the uttermost.
Do not hope that there will be someone like Aaron to help you draw near to God. You do not need that. The Lord Jesus is your High Priest.
He should have a unique position in your heart.
For the sake of time, let us mention one final matter. The covenant which our Lord Jesus established with His blood is more excellent.
The old covenant is the law. It says, in effect, “You must do.” But because of the weakness of man, we cannot do it. Therefore, we are all condemned.
The new covenant is greater because it is all done by God. He has done it all. All we have to do is believe and receive.
He will cleanse our sins and remember our transgressions no more. We shall know the Lord.
This knowing is not merely outward knowledge. Under the new covenant, from the least to the greatest, each one shall know the Lord from within.
There is an anointing within you. In all things, He will teach you. The law of God is now written in your heart.
This is not merely thousands of written letters, nor merely the Ten Commandments. It is the law of the Spirit of life.
The law of the Spirit of life is within us, giving us the power to overcome the law of sin and death.
This is the better covenant, established by our God.
We also have a country. Who does not desire to go home? Our home is the New Jerusalem, which God has prepared for us and which our Lord is building.
Dear brothers and sisters, is not our Lord more beautiful? Should He not have all the position in our hearts that He has in the heart of God?
Our Lord, we worship You because You are unique in the heart of the Father. Besides You, nothing can compare with You. All is in You.
We confess that within us, and outside of our Lord, there are many other things as though they have taken Your position.
O God, You are a jealous God. Be jealous in our hearts.
May Your Son be supreme in all things. May He have supremacy in the church and supremacy in the heart of every one of us, so that Your kingdom may come and Your glory may be fulfilled.
In the name of the Lord Jesus, amen.