Have you ever wondered what it might have been like to sit in a home in ancient Ephesus (or Thessalonica or Corinth) and listen to an apostle open up the Old Testament and preach a Christ-centered sermon? What would it have been like for a Jew who recently came to believe that Jesus was the Messiah to hear a passage, such as Psalm 110, explained by one of the men who walked with Jesus during his short ministry on earth? What would it have been like for a Gentile, who recently left the pagan temples, to hear a Galilean fisherman or a former Pharisee speak of angels, priests, covenants, and faith’words that were just beginning to make sense to him as he learned the vocabulary of his new religion?
The writers in this issue believe we can capture a little bit of that experience by reading the Letter to the Hebrews. That enigmatic, anonymous, and soaring review of the Old Testament is presented here as an example of early, perhaps even apostolic, Christian preaching. It is one of the best examples we have of what it was like for the early church to hear the Scriptures (before there was a New Testament) expounded with Christ at the center.
We begin this issue with Welsh Presbyterian pastor Hywel Jones’s overview of Hebrews where he reminds us that, like the original hearers, we are being pointed to the supremacy of Christ. Next is Lutheran pastor Matthew Richard’s treatment of one of the most important triads of Hebrews: Jesus as the fulfillment of the Old Testament offices of prophet, priest, and king. Presbyterian pastor Chris Vogel unpacks one of the most beautiful sections of the sermon’the double promise of God in Hebrews 6:13-20’which follows the same storyline as the original preacher, weaving together Old Testament narrative, deep theological reflection, and practical hope-filled application that centers on Jesus. And Bobby Jamieson, a New Testament doctoral student at the University of Cambridge, takes a closer look at how the sermon addresses ministry issues that still confront Christian churches nearly two thousand years later.
Along with these main articles, through a series of sidebar articles, Professor Dennis Johnson presents a fascinating seminar on how this sermon interacts with the Old Testament. We conclude our review of this important book with Presbyterian pastor Ted Hamilton’s refreshing reminder that the heroes of Hebrews 11 are not so much examples to emulate as brothers and sisters pointing to the fulfillment of their hope and faith in Jesus.
If you’re in a Bible study group using our new study kit based on this issue and the corresponding White Horse Inn radio programs, try reading Hebrews out loud once or twice before diving into the study questions or reading the articles in this issue. Listen to the sermon that our fathers and mothers in the faith listened to so long ago, and pray that God would use this ancient word to establish and strengthen your faith in the finished work of Christ today.
