During our discussion of Hebrews 1, we talked a lot about angels. However, it dawned on me that maybe we, or I at least, take them for granted in a sense. We know they exist, we know about them, but we do not spend much time thinking about these created beings. And honestly, rightfully so. Our attention needs to be on Christ. We must also realize that it is good to have a curiosity, as long as it does not become our focus, which the study of angels can for some. Just like other topics can for others. Some of us leave them at arm's length, some embrace them, and some forget about them. But what exactly are angels and why did God create them.

When we read Hebrews 1 and we see how the writer time and time again shows that Jesus is greater than the angels, we must pause briefly to understand why this is important. Why is the writer using this time and space to show the superiority of Jesus to these heavenly beings? Part of that is because some of the readers and the surrounding environment had people worshiping angels. Another part, and more substantial at that, is in showing the deity of Christ and His greatness to the angels, prophets, and priests.

In verses 10-12, the author quotes from Psalm 102 to further emphasize their point. The context of Psalm 102 clearly indicates that the “Lord” is the One who would appear in the future to Israel and the nations (Ps 102:12-16). Thus, the psalm can only refer to Jesus, the Second Person of the Trinity, the only One who would become incarnate. Jesus is God become man. The universe will perish (2 Pet 3:10-13; Rev 21:1), but the Son will remain forever. The universe will be changed, but the Son will remain the same (Heb 13:8). The psalmist was showing that only God provides stability and security. God is anchored like a rock, and we can anchor our lives to this mountain of immobility.

The seventh quotation comes from Psalm 110:1. Verse 13 shows that Christ’s ascension lifted Him to a place of authority and power at the Father’s right hand. Jesus claimed that this verse referred to Him (Mark 12:36). Although we live at a time when the Son’s enemies are not yet a footstool, the New Testament promises the Son’s complete victory at the end (1 Cor. 15:24–27).

Drawing heavily on the witness of Old Testament revelation, the writer demonstrated the uniqueness of the Son. The title of Son, and the prerogatives it entails, elevate Him above all comparison with the angels. Those who see in Hebrews ties with sectarian Judaism point to the highly developed angelology of the Dead Sea sect. These verses offer an effective rebuttal against any tendency to give excessive prominence to angels.

Hebrews 1:4-14 is comprised of seven quotations from the Old Testament, all of which prove the superiority of Christ to the angels. Scholars tell us that the writer quoted from the Greek version of the Hebrew Old Testament, known as the Septuagint. The word Septuagint is a Greek word that means “seventy.” Tradition claims that seventy men translated the Hebrew Old Testament into the Greek. The abbreviation for Septuagint is LXX, Roman numerals for seventy. However, the same Holy Spirit who inspired the Scriptures has the right to quote and restate the truth as He sees fit.

In a majestically constructed opening paragraph, the writer introduced their readers at once to the surpassing greatness of the Lord Jesus Christ. The writer declared the Son is the par excellence vehicle for divine revelation. In asserting this, the author implicitly contrasted Jesus with the prophets of old and explicitly contrasted Him with the angels.

Hebrews addresses readers who reverenced the Old Testament prophets and angels. When we think about Moses, Elijah, Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Amos, we must admit that the prophets were an impressive group. We aren’t surprised that some believers admired them, perhaps a bit too much. The author emphasized that Jesus was better than the prophets (vv. 1–3). God had spoken through the prophets at many times and in various ways. When God spoke through Jesus, He revealed the Son as Creator, Sustainer, and Redeemer. Isaiah could not be compared with Jesus. God had spoken bits and pieces of truth through Isaiah, but God revealed all His truth when He spoke through Jesus.

Some readers of Hebrews were also “carried away by all kinds of strange teachings” (Heb. 13:9). They may have become angel worshipers (Col. 2:18). Someone had to remind them how important Jesus was. That is when God used this author to provide some of the most amazing words about Jesus. Hebrews also emphasizes that Jesus is better than the angels (vv. 4–14). The very name Son made Jesus superior to angels (vv. 4–5).

Today, we start our journey in the book of Hebrews. Having finished our study on Galatians, we turn to look at the powerful book of Hebrews. As such, we must first set the stage for our study by looking at Hebrews as a whole. As with our study on Colossians, Galatians, and James, understanding the background, author, date, and context of the writing, will enhance our study and allow us to understand more about what the inspired writer was saying as well as its application to our lives.

Before we start our study on our next book, today I want to take a moment to share an article with you I wrote. This incorporates some biblical exposition and application, so I thought it was fitting for this podcast. This will be a short interlude to our study of Hebrews. As I studied leadership at seminary, one of my first tasks was to look at the life of Moses and make some observations about him as a leader. Moses is often studied as a model for leadership, both for good reasons and bad reasons. Looking at the life of Moses, I was asked to make 10-20 observations of timeless, relevant, practical leadership principles that I will be able to apply in my own life. Some of these principles will apply to you while others may not. The key is, what was Moses like as a leader and how can I learn from this biblical example of leadership. What can I glean from the life of Moses in the great ways he led, as well as what are things I can learn from his mistakes? As many of you know, many times are learning comes from mistakes. So as we look at Moses through Scripture, we get to go back and look at his life as a leader. Observations such as "Moses was born a Levite," or "Moses saw two Hebrews fighting" are indeed observations, but they are not leadership observations. In making the leadership observations, it was important to note where (book, chapter, verse) the observation is found, then state the leadership principle in a way that leaders (ministry, corporate, and lay) can implement it.

As Paul brought the Galatian letter to a close, he again emphasized some of the great issues discussed throughout the epistle. The conclusion contains both a summary and final statement of the issues the apostle felt so strongly about. Paul concludes his epistle to the Galatians by contrasting the improper motives of the legalists with his proper motives.

After dictating a letter, it was Paul’s custom to take the pen and write his own farewell. His standard signature was, “The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you” (1 Thes. 5:28; 2 Thes. 3:17–18). But Paul is so concerned that the Galatians get the message of this letter, that he takes the pen and writes an entire concluding paragraph with his own hand.

Why did Paul write this paragraph, and why did he use such large letters? The Holy Spirit inspired him to add these closing words to give one more contrast between the legalists and the Spirit-led Christians, to show that the Spirit-led believer lives for the glory of God, not the praise of man.

Paul does not have anything good to say about the legalist. He describes them in four ways: (1) they are arrogant boasters (v. 12a, 13b); (2) they are compromisers (v. 12b); (3) they are persuaders (v. 12a); and (4) they are hypocrites (v. 13).

From the very beginning of the church, sharing was one of the marks of Christian experience (Acts 2:41–47). The Greek word, koinonia, simply means “to have in common,” and refers to our common fellowship in Christ (Gal. 2:9), our common faith (Jude 3), and even our sharing in the sufferings of Christ (Phil. 3:10). But often in the New Testament, koinonia refers to the sharing of material blessings with one another (Acts 2:42; 2 Cor. 8:4). It is this that Paul has in mind in these verses.

Most of us are naturally selfish and must overcome this fault as we mature. Paul shows how grace frees us to share financially with others. He begins in verse 6 with a precept on generosity. He says that we must share our financial resources with our spiritual leaders. When a pastor-teacher shares instruction, then the student is to reciprocate by sharing all good things. Pastoring and teaching is time-consuming and is sometimes a thankless job. Let us share our appreciation for these pastors and teachers.

But we must realize the spiritual principle that lies behind this precept. God does not command believers to give simply that pastors and teachers (and missionaries, Phil. 4:10–19) might have their material needs met, but that the givers might get a greater blessing (Gal. 6:7–8). The basic principle of sowing and reaping is found throughout the entire Bible. God has ordained that we reap what we sow. But God has also told us to be careful where we sow, and it is this principle that Paul deals with here. He looks on our material possessions as seed, and He sees two possible kinds of soil: the flesh and the Spirit. We can use our material goods to promote the flesh, or to promote the things of the Spirit. But once we have finished sowing, we cannot change the harvest.

Paul turns from dealing with the believer’s responsibility for sin to address the spiritual restoration of sinners (6:1) and overburdened brothers and sisters (v. 2) before further consideration of personal responsibility (vv. 3-5).

The Spirit-led believer approaches the matter of restoration in a spirit of gentleness and love, while the legalist has an attitude of pride and condemnation. The legalist does not need to consider themselves because they pretend they could never commit such a sin. But the believer living by grace realizes that no person is immune from falling. The believer has an attitude of humility because they realize their own weaknesses.

We see a couple of contrasts in this section. First, we see the contrast between the spiritual person seeking to restore a fellow believer in love, while the legalist or immature person would exploit the other Christian. A second contrast is a Spirit-led believer knowing the love of Christ in their heart, while the prideful Christian or legalist would aim to make themselves look better and deceive themselves. such comparisons are sinful and deceptive. It is easy to find somebody worse off than we are, so that our comparison makes us look better than we really are. Christian love would lead us not to expose a fellow believer’s failures or weaknesses, no matter how much better it would make us look.

In verses 19-21, we saw the peril of victory over sin, meaning the Christian may fall prey to the sins the sinful nature produces if they do not live by means of the Spirit. In verses 22-23, Paul provides the power for victory over sin. In contrast to the “acts of the flesh” in the previous verses, those who are obedient to the Holy Spirit produce beautiful, nourishing spiritual fruit. It is important to note that the fruit in this passage is called the fruit of the Spirit, not the fruit of self-effort. This fruit the Holy Spirit produces in the life of a faithful Christian. Only the Holy Spirit can produce the fruit, but He will not do so unless we are striving to the best of our ability for them in faithful obedience. These fruits of the Spirit are in harmony with and not opposed to the law. However, they are not produced by the law or by works but rather by the Spirit working through the believer’s faith.

The struggle between our flesh and our new nature is real. Yet there is more truth to help us win this battle. Paul explains that those who know Jesus Christ do not have to respond to the flesh because they have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. This crucifixion refers to our identification with Christ in His death and resurrection (Gal. 2:20). When Christ died, our flesh was judged. This does not mean our propensity to sin has been eradicated or rendered inoperative. We must understand that our old nature has died with Christ and that as new people we have an increasing power to resist sin (Rom. 6:10–12).

We must keep in step by following the Holy Spirit’s direction and guidance. Finally, Paul challenges the Galatians to live a life of harmony. Conceited legalism sees no need for the Spirit’s help and thinks it has accomplished salvation apart from the Spirit. The negative traits in verse 26 point to the divisions in the church caused by the legalists. The only answer to such disharmony is love empowered by the Holy Spirit.