the key to the code is Jesus

Andrei Rublev, Christ in Majesty (1410-1415)

Proper 22 (October 8^th)
Heb 1:1-4, 2:5-12

NIV Hebrews 1:1 In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, 2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe. 3 The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven. 4 So he became as much superior to the angels as the name he has inherited is superior to theirs.

As believers we know something that millions of people longed to know for thousands of years. We know how the story reaches its climax: Jesus sits down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven. This very same Jesus is one of us. In fact, he calls us his brother!

At first, the book of Hebrews can be hard to understand because it’s so Jewish. Yet there is a simple step you can take to understand it. Before you read, pick up an imaginary Jewish skull cap and put it on your head. You may be able to think more jewishly than you know just based on the cultural exposure that you’ve likely had to it. With your skull cap on, the Jewish pieces of the Old Covenant start to fit hand and glove with the Christian pieces of the New Testament, as their divine author intended for them.

One common understanding of Hebrews is that it was a sermon. I don’t think so. I think it was an apologetic written to convince Hellenized Jews that Jesus had to be Messiah and that only through Him can the plan of God or the purpose of our lives be grasped. A respected evangelical scholar once said to me on the phone, “The key to understanding the Old Testament is that there is no central message, but only a collection of disparate themes.” I disagree. There are disparate themes, to be sure, but they come together in Messiah Jesus, and Hebrews is both the proof of this and the key to this. The key to the code is Jesus.

Hebrews chapter 2 makes the point that while Jesus was fully divine he was also fully human. This is good news for us: this guy gets it! He faced the same temptations we faced and can therefore empathize. At the same time, He himself secured our deliverance from sin and invites us to come boldly into His presence. You can do this: he knows it, because he did it first. Rest, rejoice in your forgiveness, and enter into the victory of trusting in Him.

Serenity Prayer in a Psalm

Reinhold Niebuhr (1892 - 1971)

Psalm 54 (Proper 20)

One of my favorite and frequently recited prayers is the Serenity Prayer. It’s the prayer recited by members of Alcoholics Anonymous but written by 20th century theologian Reinhold Niebuhr (a name I find notoriously hard to spell). The theology of the Serenity Prayer is of one accord with the theology of this Psalm: God will save us and vindicate us if we continue to trust in him. The Serenity Prayer ends, “. . . trusting that you will make things right if I surrender to your will, so that I may reasonably happy in this life, and supremely happy with you forever in the next.” So says David in this Psalm even amidst the desperate circumstances in which he finds himself.

I’m part of a small “Life Transformation Group” at work. We meet once every two weeks over lunch to read Scripture together, hold one another spiritually accountable, and pray for unchurched co-workers. I've started bringing to this group passages that I’m going to blog on to see what observations, questions, and applications arise. What follows are some of the observations two of us made at this week's meeting with a few additional comments sprinkled in.

In Psalm 54, part of the time David is speaking to God and part of the time he’s probably just speaking to himself. The Psalm's introduction notes that it was written while David was hiding among the Ziphites, who had apparently gone to Saul to rat him out. These superscriptions are now considered part of the inspired biblical text (by those believing in inspiration) and were presumably added by an editor after the Psalm itself was composed. (Even editors can be inspired!).

In speaking to God David prays some very wise and appropriate things. For example, he says, “Save me, O God, by your name” (v. 1). How important it is for us to remember that we are totally unable to save ourselves from the predicaments of our lives: only God can do this. How important for us to remember too that the way God will do this is by his name. David’s prayer anticipates the promise of Jesus made to his followers (John 14:12-14):

12 I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. 13 And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. 14 You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.

Yet while speaking to God in this Psalm David also spends a good amount of time talking to himself. Psychologists talk about the importance of engaging in positive self-talk. Herein one finds possible biblical justification for this idea. David’s self-talk is not only positive, but more importantly, true. “Strangers are attacking me (v.3), (but) he has delivered me from all my troubles, and my eyes have looked in triumph on my foes.” Oh for more of us to have this sense of indomitable victory and to have it more consistently. What predicament are you facing today that God hasn’t already delivered you from through the death of his Son on a cross on your behalf?

will continue

After some reflection I've decided to continue with this project. People in today's secular western culture are starving for spiritual substance and orientation. At the same time, the Revised Common Lectionary is a tremendous resource to the church. Maybe this blog can be a small step toward meeting the need with the joyous hope of the gospel.