A Merciful High Priest (Hebrews 2:16-18)

You turn to Hebrews chapter 2, please. Hebrews chapter 2 and before we begin let's Ask the Lord's blessing on this time. I father one of the greatest joys and delights that you can give to your people those who are called by your name is that We would be able to see you the Lord Jesus Christ the Holy Spirit in the pages of Scripture.

We thank you that you have revealed the truth to us. You have put it down in language that we can understand. Given it to us in a written form so that it may not be altered or edited. You have passed it down to us and preserved it for us so that we might be here this day with your word open in Our laps before you to learn from you and to be taught by the Spirit of God.

That is what we pray would happen here today. Use this time and bless your word the preaching of it our hearing together our worship together and our meditation upon these truths to the end that we may present obedient hearts before you and To you and that you would be glorified through us and through our understanding grant us that we ask the name of Christ our Lord.

Reading Hebrews 2:10-18 and the Structure of Christ's Help

Hebrews chapter 2 we're going to read together Beginning at verse 10 and we'll read through the end of the chapter. Hebrews chapter 2 verse 10 for it was fitting for him. For Whom are all things and through whom are all things in bringing many sons to glory?

To perfect the author of their salvation through sufferings. For both he who sanctifies and those who are sanctified are all from one father for which reason he is not ashamed to call them Brethren saying I will proclaim your name to my brethren in the midst of the congregation.

I will sing your praise and again, I will put my trust in him and again behold I and the children whom God has given me. Therefore since the children share in flesh and blood he himself likewise Also partook of the same that through death he might render powerless him who had the power of death That is the devil and might free those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives.

For assuredly he does not give help to angels, but he gives help to the descendant of Abraham. Therefore he had to be made like his brethren in all things. So that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God to make propitiation for the sins of the people.

For since he himself was tempted in that which he has suffered. He is able to come to the aid of those who are tempted. Last week together we looked at two effects of the death of Christ that he has destroyed him who had the power of death.

That is the devil. He has removed that power from him and destroyed his works and then second We saw that he has freed us who were subject to slavery all of our lives. He has freed us from that fear of death fear of death, which was over us and kept us in bondage all of our lives.

We've been set free from that we talked about some of the implications of that and today we're moving on to yet two more effects or consequences results of the death of Christ and I it's not an overstatement to say that.

There is nearly I can't think of anything in reality. That is not tied back to in some way the life the death the burial and the resurrection of Jesus Christ. I can't think of any doctrine of scripture that is not connected to that central event.

So if I were given the the rest of my life to preach on Just the death of Christ and the implications of it and the effects of it and what it accomplished. I don't even think that even after a lifetime of preaching on such a subject that you could even say that I Would have touched the hem of his garment as it were or even come close to expounding upon all of it.

It's just it's so rich. There's so much to do with it and there's so much about the death of Christ that is even explained in the book of Hebrews. And today we're just looking at yet two more effects of the death of Christ.

For his people and things that he accomplished in that death and we're gonna see today that in the death of Christ. He has propitiated Satisfied the wrath of God on behalf of his people and he has become a merciful and faithful high priest so that he may come to Our aid.

So before we jump into the passage We're gonna be looking today verses 16 through 18 and we are gonna finish up chapter 2 today. I want you to notice something of the structure of the passage in verse 16.

It says that he gives help not to angels but to the descendants or the seed of Abraham. We look at a moment and what that means the descendants of the seed of Abraham. But this help that Christ offers to us his people comes in two forms first in verse 17 he has become a merciful and faithful high priest and things pertaining to God to make propitiation for the sins of the people and Then in verse 18 to come to the aid of those who are tempted.

So he makes propitiation for his people and he comes to the aid of those who are tempted. Both of these things Have to do or pertain to what is accomplished in the death of Christ and what he has done and both of them have to Do with our sin.

In one case? He's taken our sin out of the way and another case He has come to help us in fighting sin and resisting sin for those who are tempted. So that's verse 16 through 18 a little bit of the structure.

You'll notice in verse 16 the reference to angels for assuredly. He does not give help to angels. This is the last reference to angels until we get to chapter 12. Some of you will be dead buried and speaking to angels face to face before we ever get to the next reference to angels but these first two chapters have all been bet on been about that first comparison Jesus being greater than the angels and.

And the book of Hebrews is a list of such comparisons. He's greater than the angels. Remember next chapter chapter 3. He's greater than Moses and we get in chapter 4 and 5. He's greater than Aaron. It's greater than the Old Testament priesthood.

It's greater than sacrifices. There is this series of comparisons between Jesus and these different elements of the Old Covenant. The first one was the angels who were mediators of the Old Covenant and now we come to the very last mention of angels as we are rounding up chapter 2 the reference here To angels is to remind us that angels are not provided for in the atonement that Christ offered In in the redemptive plan of God angels are not in view.

At least in terms of what has been provided to redeem those who are fallen. It is only a fallen humanity that is provided for and redeemed in the death of Christ. No provision at all has been made for the angels.

The fallen angels are damned. Their damnation is fixed. Their damnation is certain there is no repair for them. There's no redemption for them. There's no payment for their sin. There's no provision of what Christ did for the angels and the fact that he Redeems men and not angels is evidence that he is not an angel.

Remember, that's part of the point of what he has said so far in these first two chapters. Jesus is not an angel he's greater than the angels and In terms of his deity he is infinitely above the angels in terms of his humanity.

He is made for a little while lower than the angels. So as Jesus greater than or less than the angels he is greater than the angels. But in terms of his status remember he has made for a little while lower than the angels.

Now if the death of Christ were to Save the angelic hosts who are fallen the demons the evil spirits if the death of Christ were to save them. Then it would be evidence that Jesus is an angel because he would be able to do something for angels.

But he has not done anything for angels, which is an evidence that he is not an angel that he was a man. See it was not an angel that I needed to live a perfect life and to obey the law in my stead. Angels could never do that.

No angel could ever obey the law on my behalf. No angel could ever suffer the punishment that I deserve because he's an angel and not a man. No angel could stand in the presence of God and represent me and offer a sacrifice sufficient to pay the price for my sin.

No angel could ever do that. And so therefore there is no provision for the angels in the atonement of Christ. All the provision in the atonement of Christ is for mankind. It is for those amongst Adams followed race who will embrace and respond to the gospel of Jesus Christ.

That is for whom the provision is made. So the fact that there is no provision. It's not the angels that he helps as evidence that he is not an angel. Whom does he help? He helps the descendants of Abraham.

So what I needed in my salvation for my salvation. Was somebody to stand in my stead and to obey the law in my place? To represent me before God to represent God to me and then to pay that price that I owe and no angel could ever do.

And this is why the deity and the humanity of the Lord Jesus are so essential and it is essential that we keep those two things. Together they they must and always do go together. We refer to it as the hypostatic union the union of two natures in one person.

He is both God and he is man. And here's why he had to be both God and man. He had to be and so he could represent mankind. What we needed was somebody in the human realm who was who was unfallen and sinless.

But yet a man to represent mankind because we are the ones who owe the debt and so we had to have somebody who would pay the debt on behalf of us you and I and In order to do that to pay the debt that you and I owe he had to be a man.

But the debt that you and I owe is too great and too infinite and too eternal and too Magnificent to be paid by a mere man. So he had to be God. The debt that was owed was owed by man alone. But the debt was so great that it could only be paid by God alone.

So we needed somebody who was of infinite value and worth. To pay an infinite price that we as fallen and finite humans owed before a holy god so that is why both the death and the.

Or sorry.

That is why both the humanity and the deity of the lord Jesus christ are essential to who he is and what we believe about him now. What does he mean when he says he does not give help to angels but gives help to the descendant?

As some translations say the descendants or the seed plural of abraham. What is the seed or the descendant of abraham? Is he just referring here to physical jews. The word That's translated descendant or seed is the word for offspring.

Aspermatos is the word it refers to descendants or offspring of abraham. And so is is the author here just referring to the physical descendants of abraham? In other words is what he did only good for the jews and not for gentiles alone.

Is salvation only made available to those who are the physical descendants of abraham or has christ done something on behalf of all jews? And all jews inclusively without doing anything for gentiles. And if if he's referring to the physical descendants of abraham.

Then it seems that he would mean all of the physical descendants of abraham and not just a few of them. If he did this for the seed of abraham, then wouldn't it be all jews included in that mix? That would be the recipients of these blessings.

In other words He has propitiated and he intercedes and he has offered a sacrifice on behalf of the jews and the jews alone but not the gentiles or so it's either that option or. The author here is referring to seed of abraham in a very pauline sense.

And paul uses the term or the phrase seed of abraham. And this is one of the arguments that people use for saying that paul was the author of hebrews that this is a pauline Approach to this term. Paul uses the term seed of abraham to refer not just to the physical descendants of abraham.

But to those who are his descendants spiritually speaking by virtue of faith in christ. So for instance in galatians chapter 3 paul says even though abraham believed god. That's faith and it was reckoned to him as righteousness.

Therefore be sure That it is those who are of faith who are the sons of abraham and paul's not limited. They're just the physical offspring. He's saying it is those who are of faith who are the sons of abraham.

Why. Because abraham believed god and it was credited him for righteousness and you and I are commanded to do what? Believe god so that we may have righteousness credited to us. So abraham and you are saved on the same grounds.

Faith. If abraham is credited righteousness by faith. You can be credited righteousness by faith. And if you are credited righteousness by faith in the son or the one who is of the seed of abraham. That is the lord jesus christ.

Then you are included in abraham's covenant. You're included in his promise and you are spiritually speaking a descendant or an offspring of abraham. Abraham becomes our father by faith. Not by virtue of our physical descent from abraham.

But by virtue of the fact that we like the father abraham have believed in him. So we inherit all of the blessings that are given to abraham because of by virtue of our faith. So paul says in galatians 3 the scripture foreseeing that god would justify the gentiles by faith preached the gospel beforehand to abraham saying All the nations will be blessed in you.

That's us all the nations will bless you abraham. So then those who are of faith are blessed with abraham the believer. Paul makes the same argument in romans chapter 4. Where he says that abraham is the father of all who believe without being circumcised.

That righteousness might be credited to them. So who is our spiritual father? Spiritually speaking in this realm. Our spiritual father is abraham. So what is it that the author of hebrews is saying? I think the author of hebrews is saying this.

God has not made any provision or done anything to help angels. Why. Because jesus is not an angel. He's greater than angels. He's both god and man. She's not done anything on behalf of angels. He has done something on behalf of those who are the seed the descendants of abraham that would include.

Any who are physical descendants of abraham who have faith in god and are credited with righteousness? And that would include anybody who is among the nations whom god promised to bless who also have faith in abraham and are thus Credited with righteousness we become the descendants of abraham in that sense.

And we are the ones those who believe in him who are the seed of abraham now. Why does the author to the hebrews? Use this phrase seed of abraham and not just simply say the the spiritual descendants or the spiritual seed.

Well, who are the who are the ones to whom he is writing? The hebrews. So all he is doing is using a phraseology or terminology that would make it very personal to them. Right. Remember that he has not given help to angels.

He has sent the one who is the descendant of abraham the lord Jesus christ to give help and aid to those who are spiritually or physically abraham's descendants who like abraham have faith in god. So we have in verse 16 then this promise that or this this this contrast Between the help that is given to abraham and abraham's descendants and the help that is given to angels.

There's no help given to angels. All that is provided for in the atonement is provided for those who are the seed or the offspring of abraham. That is us and notice again that it is a a narrow slice of people that he is describing here.

He doesn't say that god has offered or provided in the atonement of christ for all the sons of adam. That would be everybody who's ever lived. But who? The provision of the atonement is for whom? It is for those who are the spiritual descendants of abraham.

He is describing here a work that christ has done on behalf of those who are in that covenant by faith the seed of abraham. So verse 17 there we have now the reference to three themes that are woven all the way through these first couple of chapters and particularly chapter 2 the theme of incarnation the theme of Identification and the theme of the death of christ and I just want you to see these three themes.

He says in verse 17 therefore he had to be made like his brethren in all things. This is a statement of the incarnation. Christ has been made like his brethren in all things notice the theme of his identification again.

We have this familial term of of brethren and that is just like up in verse 12. In verse 11 where he's not ashamed to call us brethren and he speaks of us as brethren in verse 12 in verse 13. There are children whom god has given to us where the children are given to christ.

We are the children mentioned in verse 14. So there's this familial language that is used in other words christ became one and of one family with those whom he came to save. And then there is the theme of his death.

Which he speaks of in relation to propitiation of the sins of the people so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest. And things pertaining to god to make propitiation. For the sins of the people and then he mentions his suffering in verse 18.

So these three themes the incarnation christ becoming a man. His identification with us as being of one brethren and of one family with those whom he came to save. That identification with us is necessary.

And then third the death of christ and what that has accomplished in making propitiation for the sins of the people. So let's look at this the the language here of the incarnation. Therefore. He had to be made like his brethren in all things.

He had to be made like his brethren. And again, the the idea here is that in taking upon himself humanity. He was made as humanity. Deity and humanity together remember but as humanity just like you and I in all things.

And this was necessary that he take upon himself a human nature. Why would the author? Make so much of this you notice how it's repeated all the way through chapter 2 or so much of chapter 2. You notice the repetition of it, right?

He had to be verse 14 since the children share in flesh and blood he himself likewise also partook of the same. It speaks of him being made lower than the angels in verse 9 of him being perfected through sufferings in verse 10.

It speaks of him being of one father in verse 11. It speaks of him being our brethren in verses 12 and 13. Why the repetition of this emphasis on the humanity of the lord? Jesus christ and it's really simple is because of the emphasis of chapter 1 and what was the emphasis of chapter 1?

Unequivocally and without compromise that jesus christ is fully divine. That was the emphasis of chapter 1. He is called god in chapter 1. We have the father calling him god in chapter 1. We have him worshiped by the angels as god in chapter 1 and so having having stated unequivocally.

And clearly and without compromise or any confusion the full Deity of the lord. Jesus christ that he is fully god in chapter 2. He is emphasizing over and over again that this one who is called god is also our brethren our brother.

This one who was worshiped by angels is perfected through suffering. This one who is the exact radiance of god's glory. Is at the very same time a partaker of flesh and blood like you and I are so there has to be this dual emphasis.

And anything that compromises in our theology or causes us to question in our theology. Either the full deity of the lord. Jesus christ or his full and unblemished humanity. Anything that causes that is false doctrine.

We hold both of those to be true. He is fully god. He is fully man. That is orthodox christian teaching. Now what he says that he has made like us or like his brethren and again, that is us in all things.

What does he mean by all things?

Well.

I'm a wicked hard-hearted rebellious sinner by nature. Was jesus made like me in that regard. Was he also made a in made a wicked and rebellious and hard-hearted sinner by nature? Right. I struggle and have to mortify sinful desires on a daily basis.

So do you? Was he made like you in that way so that he has sinful desires that he has to mortify and put to death as well? Is he made like you in all things or just in some things. What does he mean by all things.

Does by all things. He really mean all things. No, he doesn't say this is an example in scripture. And there are lots of examples of this where all doesn't always mean all where universal language is used.

But it does not describe an actual universal condition. We saw this up in verse 9 which says he tasted death for everyone and we asked what does it mean that he tasted death? For everyone is talking about everyone who has ever lived or is he talking about everyone as defined by this context?

And everyone doesn't always mean everyone and all doesn't always mean all. We use universal language to communicate non-universal truths or non-universal conditions all the time. See I just did it in that sentence.

I said all the time, but I didn't mean all the time because i've been doing this for all the message. And I haven't used it that way. I just did a sentence right there. So we use the term all to not mean all.

A lot.

Not all the time.

And so the author is doing the same thing here. He is saying he has made like us in all things. But what does the all things pertain to it means in all of the aspects of humanity? That are relevant to the discussion.

He was a sharer with us in those things and he was made just like us. Not that he was made a sinner because being sinful is not an essential element of humanity. You can be human without being sinful.

Adam was for a period of time You and I will be at some point in the future fully human. But without the taint of sin and without any inclination to sin i'm looking forward to that. No desire to sin no thought of sin.

No no propensity to sin no weakness towards sin. No leaning towards sin. In any way i'm looking forward to that state when we will be fully human. But not have any of our sinfulness any of our sinful the remnants of our sinfulness at all.

So you can be a human without in any way being a sinner. And in that way jesus christ was a share with us all of the elements of humanity that are not tied. Or expressions of sinfulness he shared in those things.

He doesn't need To be a sinner in order to sympathize with those who are sinners. He just needs to be tempted to sin which in a moment you're going to see he was tempted in all ways just as we are. But he doesn't need to be a sinner in order to sympathize with me in my sinfulness.

So and it says that he is a shared with us or became like us in all things. It's not talking about sin talking about the aspects of humanity that you can partake of without being sinful. It means that he had to learn how to walk.

It means that for a period of time he was dependent upon the breast of his mother for milk and daily sustenance. It means he had to have his diaper changed. It means he had to learn to talk. He had to learn to use proper grammar.

He had to learn the law. He had to learn the customs and the culture of his time. He had to learn proper grammar. I mentioned that he had to learn animal husbandry and about the natural world. And who his relatives were and how he was related to those people.

He had to learn all of those things just because you don't know that doesn't mean you're a sinner. Just means that you don't know that. And not only that but he experienced the things or or or yeah. Experience the things that you and I would experience that are not necessarily tied to sin.

He got angry.

He.

Thirsted.

He hungered he got tired. He was perplexed. Scripture says he was amazed at the unbelief of the people around him. He knows what it means to be betrayed by a friend to abandon by his family to have his brothers and his sisters Mock him and jeer him and taunt him and not believe his claims.

He knows what that is. He knows what it means to to to be a teenager and be under the authority of his parents perfectly. So and to obey them and to honor them in all things. Typically teenagers think that they know more than their parents and they're better than their parents.

And they don't need to be in subjection to their parents. There's only one teenager ever who has ever lived who fits that description and it is not anybody in this room. It was the lord jesus christ and yet in that condition though He's the one man who actually did know better than his parents.

He submitted to them in all things and honored them perfectly. He honored And respected and obeyed his sinful parents who needed him to atone for their sin. He knows all of that. He knows what it means to stub his toe in the dark.

He knows what it means to cough to sneeze to have his eyeballs itch to get something in his eye that he can't get out to have a runny nose. He knows what these experiences are. So all of those things you and I can experience Without being sinners.

He experienced all of those aspects of humanity the the sore muscles.

Getting sunburned.

Blistered fingers and hands sore feet. Walking a long distance and being tired. What does it say in john chapter 4? He and his disciples were passing through samaria and it was about the middle of the day and what happened?

He got tired and he was thirsty and so he sat down to rest by the well. That's full humanity. None of that is sinfulness. Even being angry is not sinful. You can be angry in a non-sinful way and jesus was angry in a non-sinful way.

So all of these expressions all of these experiences and these passions. He experienced all of that and he was made like us in all of those aspects of humanity. So he knows what it is to experience all of those things and this was necessary so that he might be sympathetic And compassionate and so that he might represent us to the father and that he might represent the father to us this incarnation this identification and his His experience and understanding.

And living through all of humanity was necessary and it was a necessary part of it. Now, why was it necessary so that he might make propitiation for the sins of the people? And so that he might become a faithful merciful high priest and come to the aid of those who are so tempted.

That's the rest of verse 17 to 14. So after that long introduction We now come to the first thing that he does to help us the first of two points that he makes propitiation for the sins of the people.

This is in verse 17. He had to be made like his brethren in all things that he might become a merciful And faithful high priest and things pertaining to god. To make propitiation for the sins of the people and then verse 18 deals with the second one.

To come to the aid of those who are tempted now both of these both of these things coming to the aid of those who attempted and making propitiation that is to say that His current ministry on our behalf as well as what he did on the cross.

These two things become the subject matter of the rest of the book of hebrews. So at this point i'm not going to dive too deeply into propitiation of what was accomplished through the death of christ on the cross and i'm not going to jump too deeply into His his aid to those who are tempted and what it meant for him to be tempted.

Because we're going to deal with both of those elements as we get in further into the book of hebrews. If this were the only mention of these two things in all the rest of the book I would you know how I roll I would stop right here I would pause and I would say we're going to the next five weeks on propitiation.

And then we're going to spend five more weeks on that out of the temptation of christ but we're not going to do that here because Chapters five six seven eight nine and ten all deal with those subjects as those two themes are woven together.

And you're going to get sick of hearing me talk about it before we're done with the book of hebrews. In fact, some of you will be dead and buried and talking to the angels face to face. About the time that the rest of us are sick of hearing about what?

About the death and the priestly benefits of christ's work. So we have lots to go through in those next five chapters today. We're just going to deal with these in a very general fashion as they're mentioned here in the passage all right, so.

These two characteristics first he makes are these two ways of helping us first. He makes propitiation for the sins of his people. When we talk about a high priest today, this is something that would have been common to a first century jew.

But you and I are probably not as familiar with as a first century. Jew would be with the idea of what a high priest is. Chances are good that most of us here have never met. A judy a high priest of judaism somebody who served in that capacity.

That chances are a hundred percent that you have never met a high priest of the judaistic religion. So you you would not understand what that means like a first century. Jew would understand that it means.

Here's what a high priest did. The role of a high priest was twofold he was to. He was to represent god to men. And he was to represent men to god depending on what he was doing at the time. So once a year the high priest would first make an atonement for his own sins.

Then he would offer the sins and make a sacrifice for the sins of the people and then he would go behind the veil. Into the holy of holy and over the mercy seat. He would he would sprinkle that blood to make atonement or provision for the sins of his people and he would make that offering For the covenant people of the nation of israel.

And in so doing he did something on behalf of men on behalf of the people. He offered a sacrifice before god that was to appease or satisfy the wrath of god against them for their sin. And he was also to do something on behalf of men that is to provide that sacrifice godward.

And so he would he would offer that to god and then on behalf of god. He would represent god to the people and in doing so he was to display The character and the grace of god in all of his doings and he was to represent that.

That that mediator between man and god that was his role to represent god to men and men to god. Now the old testament priests they were sinners. And so they were sinners representing sinners and the old testament priest because he was a sinner.

He could understand the foibles and the failings and the sinfulness and the propensity of the people. And so when he prayed to god on behalf of the people and they interceded for them as their representative.

He could sympathize with them. He was compassionate. Somebody came to him and said look i'm struggling with this a priest because he has struggled or would have struggled with the same Thing he could be compassionate and sympathetic to that individual.

High priest in those days knew what it meant to to lose somebody close to them and to deal with disease and to To watch somebody suffer. He understood those things. He understood human suffering. Well christ is a high priest who is even greater.

Because he is not a sinner representing sinners. Christ is a sinless son who represents sinners so he can sympathize with us in our weaknesses. He can sympathize with us in our experiences. But rather than having first to offer a sacrifice for his own sins.

And then to go in and offer a sacrifice on behalf of the people this one the lord. Jesus christ offers one perfect sacrifice. That forever finally and perfectly accomplishes all that it was intended to accomplish.

It is a perfect work and he does this on behalf of his people as a representative of the people toward god. And he does it as he represents god to us. So that's the idea of a high priest. Now. Those two characteristics were typical of high priests they were supposed to be merciful and faithful high priests that is that they were merciful and They were merciful in the sense that they could sympathize with the people and they were faithful and they're calling in their duty.

Before god christ is both of those things. He is merciful in that he understands us and he can sympathize with us. And he was faithful to god even in the midst of his suffering and faithfully and perfectly fulfilled what the father sent him to do.

And so in those two elements being merciful and faithful in things pertaining to god christ has made propitiation for the sins of the people. Now what in the world is propitiation? That's a big word. Chances are good that you have not used that word in the last seven days.

Right unless your talk around the water cooler has to do with substitutionary atonement. Of the death of christ and its connection to the old testament priesthood. If that's your typical everyday conversation in your house, then you may have dropped the word propitiation.

Once or twice in the last seven days, but chances are good that you probably have not. So what is a propitiation? A propitiation. Is something that is offered in order to propitiate god so that he might be propitious.

Does that help?

No, not at all.

To be propitious is to be favorable or favorably inclined disposed to favors or disposed to forgive. So let's let's back up at the back of the definition and work our way up to propitiation. What is it that makes god propitious is god?