Hebrews 8 Lesson

THE “MAIN POINT” OF HEBREWS

The Hebrew writer begins chapter 8 with a summary of, as he puts it, “The main point.”

• “Now the main point in what has been said is this: we have such a high priest, who has taken His seat at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens, a minister in the sanctuary and in the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, not man.” – Hebrews 8:1.

A BETTER COVENANT ENACTED ON BETTER PROMISES

The Hebrew writer leaves no doubt that Jesus is our High Priest, seated at the right hand of God, in the true tabernacle, which was established by God. In chapter 8 we once again see the use of the word, “Better.”

• “He is also the mediator of a BETTER covenant.” – Hebrews 8:6(a).

• “Enacted on BETTER promises.” – Hebrews 8:6(b).

JESUS FULFILLED THE LAW

Jesus said in Mathew Hebrews 5:17:

• “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.”

To see how Jesus fulfilled the Law and the Prophets, we will go to the book of Jeremiah from the Old Testament:

• “Behold, days are coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, not like the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, although I was a husband to them,” declares the LORD. “But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days,” declares the LORD, “I will put My law within them and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. They will not teach again, each man his neighbor and each man his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them,” declares the LORD, “for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.” – Jeremiah 31:31-34.

CONSISTENCY BETWEEN THE OLD AND NEW TESTAMENT

You will notice that the words used by Jeremiah are the exact same words the Hebrew writer uses in Hebrews 8:8-12.

Isn’t that interesting?

Considering the fact that the book of Jeremiah was written approximately six hundred years before the book of Hebrews, which is amazing! What Jeremiah prophesized about in 600 B.C., the Hebrew writer saw fulfilled in Jesus some six hundred years later!

It is not every day that a prophet speaks about something happening, and then it is fulfilled more than six hundred years later, exactly as it was prophesized! God knew all along that Jesus was going to become our High Priest. It was part of His plan from the beginning of time. This serves as an important reminder that God sees things that we cannot see and is able to do things that we cannot even imagine doing. As it says in the book of Isaiah:

• “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways, My ways,” declares the Lord. “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts.” – Isaiah 55:8-9.

CONCLUSION

Jesus is the mediator of the “better covenant” that was prophesied about in the Old Testament. It is a better covenant enacted on better promises (Hebrews 8:6).

We will end today’s lesson with five verses that talk about how Jesus is seated at the right hand of God and will remain there for all eternity:

1. “From now on the Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of the power of God .” - Luke 22:69,
2. “Fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God .” - Hebrews 12:2,
3. “Christ Jesus is He who died, yes, rather who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us .” - Romans 8:34,
4. “Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God .” - Colossians 3:1,
5. Jesus said to him, “You have said it  yourself; nevertheless I tell you, hereafter you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of Power, and coming on the clouds of heaven.” - Mathew 26:64.