Series:  Jesus is Greater

Title:  Listen Up!

Scripture: Hebrews 2:1-4

Audience: Sunday Morning, December 11, 2022 at Trinity Baptist Church, Findlay

Subject: Revelation

Central Theme: Listen to God’s Revelation

Objective Statement: :  We should be extremely careful to listen to God’s Revelation through His Son for three reasons.

Keyword: Reasons

Points:

1. The Drift. (v.1)
2. The Penalty. (v.2)
3. The Witnesses. (v.2-4)
   1. The word spoken by angels.
   2. The word spoken by Christ.
   3. The word spoken by the Apostles.
   4. The word spoken by the Father.
   5. The word spoken by the Father and the Holy Spirit.

Introduction:

Connection:

• Have you ever talked to someone and felt like they heard what you said, but they didn’t really listen to what you said?
• More introspectively, have you ever heard someone talking, but because your focus was on something else you couldn’t recite back to them what they had said to you.
• This happens all of the time in my house. I’m focused on something I am reading or watching, and my kids or my wife say something to me and by the time I look up I see their face looking for an answer.
• Now, I have a choice in this moment.
• I can pretend like I heard them and answer. Now this can be dangerous because who knows what they asked me permission to do.  I could say yes, and now they have permission to paint the dogs nails on the carpet in the living room.  I could say no, and maybe they just asked me to read or play with them and I miss out on an opportunity to make a real memory with them.
• I can acknowledge that I wasn’t listening and deal with the frustration that will inevitably come. But then I get to focus on what they said and give my full attention to what they needed to tell me.  That is called listening.
• There is so much that fights for our attention, that this seems to be something of real value.
• The power to focus and actually listen is an important skill. It helps relationships.  It helps productivity.  It helps with decision making.
• There are so many things competing for our attention that listening to and focusing on the right things- the essential things- is so important.
• It is key that we focus on the essential few at the expense of the trivial many, rather than focusing on the trivial many at the expense of the essential few.

Tension:

• In the book of Hebrews we have learned that God has spoken.
• In the past He spoke to us through the prophets unto the fathers in the many portions of the Old Testament.
• We learned that He has supernaturally revealed Himself through His Son.
• That His Son is how He has spoken and this Son is a better revelation. He’s better than the angels because He has a better name, and a better position.  He created everything and He rules everything.
• It is by His Son that we were created and by His Son that we are redeemed.
• So as we get to this passage today, the Holy Spirit says something important to us.
• The Holy Spirit says, “Listen!”
• God spake. God hath spoken.  Listen!
• Here is why you should listen to me today. The Bible tells us that we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities and powers.  Namely, there is a spiritual battle going on in our world and in our culture.
• You have an enemy.
• His objective isn’t necessarily to make you evil.
• His objective doesn’t have to be to make everyone wild eyed, Satanic, serial killers.
• His objective need only be to so distract you from what God has said to not heed it.
• His objective need only be to get you to hear without listening.
• His objective for Christians is to get you distracted so that others may not hear or listen to the Truth you and I are supposed to be speaking.
• So, Listen up!

We should be extremely careful to listen to God’s Revelation through His Son for three reasons.

Reason #1- The Drift.  (v.1)

Hebrews 2:1-4
(1)  Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip.

Explain:

• “Therefore”
• This incredible word ties what has been said to what is about to be said.
• What has been said I that God has been on the move.
• God created the world, and then has been revealing Himself to the world.
• In times past He revealed Himself to the Fathers by the prophets.
• In the last days He has spoken to us by His Son, by whom He made the words.
• This Son is the heir of all things.
• He is greater than the angels, who are superior in the created order to man, for several reasons:
• He has a better name- He’s the Son. They are worshippers.
• He has a better position- He is the King. They are servants.
• He has a better origin- He is creator. They are created.
• He has a better role.- He is the ruler. They are ministers.
• Because God has revealed Himself in the person of His Son, and because His Son is superior in every way to the angels, the author tells us to take “earnest heed” to the things we have heard.
• The words translated “Earnest heed” give the idea of a superabundance of regard or attention. This is about giving an abundance of focus to the revelation of God in and through Jesus.
• Then he gives the reason why in the rest of the paragraph.
• He says “lest at any time we should let them slip”. The picture can be given of these words of a ship tied to the dock.  The idea is if you are not secured to the Truth of what is revealed in the person of Jesus Christ- His identity, and His Gospel, there will be the opportunity to drift.
• If you extend that thinking and that picture all of the way in all of its implications, the person who does not take earnest heed to stay moored to the truth of the Gospel will experience a shipwreck. If not in this life, then in eternity.
• The rest of the paragraph explains why this drift is so important to avoid. But we must realize that the drift is possible.

Apply:

• In life there can be the tendency to get distracted from what is essential.
• The trivial seems to outpace the essential in our culture because we have so much available to us.
• Prosperity is a difficult thing to steward, because it makes more options available to us.
• If we are not careful, we will lose sight of the centrality of the Gospel, of Jesus Christ, and of our faith.
• If ware not careful, the families, churches, neighborhoods, and businesses that we steward will get unmoored from the truth of the Gospel.
• Then we are in danger of being that man that Jesus warned us about. “What shall it profit a man if gains the whole world and loses His own soul, and what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?
• It’s an important word.
• We must avoid the drift that pulls us out to destructive waters.
• We must pay “earnest heed”, because the Truth of the Gospel drift from our focus so easily.

We should be extremely careful to listen to God’s Revelation through His Son for three reasons.

Reason #2- The Penalty. (v.2-3a)

(2)  For if the word spoken by angels was stedfast,

Explanation:

• The word “steadfast” here means legally binding.
• Whatever the angels said had to be followed.
• Where was the word spoken by angels? Was it not that they were part of revealing the first covenant? The author of Hebrews described previous revelation as “from the prophets”.  Now he is speaking of that same kind of revelation that was mediated by angels.

Galatians 3:19
(19)  Wherefore then serveth the law? It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator.

• What does it mean that the law was ordained by angels?
• Stephen, in the book of Acts, gives us a little more insight into that.

Acts 7:52-53
(52)  which of the prophets did not your fathers persecute? and they killed those who declared before about the coming of the Righteous One, of whom now ye betrayers and murderers have become,(53)  who received the law by arrangement of messengers, and did not keep it .'

• “who received the law by arrangement of messengers, and did not keep it.” The angels were used to communicate the law, even at Mount Sinai.  Stephen is telling the Jewish authorities that they did not do what the law said.
• So, back to our text. The word that was spoken by angels here refers to the law.
• By delivering the message they show that they agree with the message. They are ordaining the message in that sense.
• Here is the point that the author is making. The law that was brought through angels, and written and articulated by the prophets was binding.
• That meant that the next phrase was true.

(2b) and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompence of reward;

• Every sin will be punished. Every disobedience gets a reward.

“The wages of sin is death.”

• “Transgression” here speaks to overt commitment of sin. The Hebrew word for disobedience here speaks to ignoring God’s Word and not doing right.
• Sins of commission and sins of omission are in view here.
• This is “just”. Sin must be punished.  Injustice comes when someone is punished for something they did not do, or when they are not punished for something we did do.
• Every sin of commission and omission receives a just reward.
• He has just made the case that Jesus is greater than the angels.
• Now he is making the case that the law mediated or messaged by angels was binding. Violating that law would have consequences.
• Certainly, though the prophets were great men, they were men. Yet the law mediated or given by men had a reward- a wage for violating that law.

(3a)  How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation;

• Here is the end of the thought. If the angels and men communicated a law that was so binding that there were just punishments that came from what they proclaimed, how do we think we will escape if we neglect “so great salvation”?
• If God who spoke in times past unto the prophets would justly punish those who ignored the partial revelation given to men and angels, why do we think we will escape punishment now that we have seen the full revelation of Christ Himself?
• He is offering us mercy, grace, truth, and peace? Why do we think that it is ok to neglect it?
• Why do we think it is ok to drift from that very truth?

Application:

• And we do drift!
• It is so easy to get caught up in so many temporary things.
• This has always been Satan’s strategy.
• Look at Christmas. The world is consumed with Christmas the registered trademark, and not with the Christ of Christmas.
• As Pastor Corey mentioned last night, the word “Christ” means anointed one or Messiah.
• If we are not careful we even drift in our celebration of the day. God became man.  Why?  So that He could shed His blood for our salvation.
• There will be consequences to neglecting so great a salvation.
• God became man! Let the nations rejoice.
• God became man! He died in our place.
• God became man! He knew no sin so that He could give us His righteousness.
• God became man! He will rule and reign forever!
• Glory to God in the highest and on earth, peace, good will toward men!

We should be extremely careful to listen to God’s Revelation through His Son for three reasons.

Reason #3- The Witnesses. (v.2-4)

Highlight:

(3)  How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him;  (4)  God also bearing them witness, both with signs and wonders, and with divers miracles, and gifts of the Holy Ghost, according to his own will?

• How shall we escape if we neglect so great salvation?
• The question is posed, as we have observed, with an assumption that we understand the inevitability of failure.
• The answer he is looking for is- We can’t escape. We won’t escape.  We won’t escape God’s judgement if we neglect Jesus.
• Why would it be inevitable?
• There are too many witnesses against us if we neglect that salvation that has been offered.
• The case is laid out almost like a case in a courtroom.
• If someone were accused of crime for which the eyewitness testimony came by the police, the mayor, the governor, the surveillance video, the security guard that monitors that video, and another 200 people, there would be too many witnesses for you to escape the just result of the penalty for your crime. It would be unjust for that court to let the person go with all that evidence.
• Who are the witnesses that are brought to bear on us?

The word spoken by angels.

(2)  For if the word spoken by angels was stedfast

• Angels were involved in the giving to us the law. We have already seen that.
• Angels were also involved in declaring to us the birth of Jesus.
• Angels were involved in declaring unto us the resurrection of Jesus from the dead.

The word spoken by Christ.

(3)  How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord,

• Jesus Christ made it clear that He was coming to provide salvation. It was declared by Him in many times and in many ways.

John 3:16-19

(16)  For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.(17)  For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.(18)  He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.(19)  And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.

• The way to be saved is through Jesus. To deny Jesus is to receive condemnation.

John 14:5-7

(5)  Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way?

(6)  Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

(7)  If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him.

• Jesus Christ- this only Begotton of the Father- declares that He and He alone is the way to salvation. He is a witness to this salvation, and if we deny it we will not escape.

The word spoken by the Apostles.

(3)  How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him;

• Another set of witnesses that speak to this salvation through Jesus Christ is the apostles.
• They still speak to us today through the Words of Scripture.
• There are no apostles today because the scriptures says in Acts 1 that their ministry was to be eye witnesses of the first coming, ministry, death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
• They saw His works. They saw Him die.  They saw Him rise again.
• They observed the Gospel in History.
• This is what Paul alludes to in that great passage that defines the Gospel for us.

1 Corinthians 15:3-9

(3)  For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; (4)  And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:

(5)  And that he was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve: (6)  After that, he was seen of above five hundred brethren at once; of whom the greater part remain unto this present, but some are fallen asleep.

(7)  After that, he was seen of James; then of all the apostles. (8)  And last of all he was seen of me also, as of one born out of due time. (9)  For I am the least of the apostles, that am not meet to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.

• Peter Himself says this in his epistle.

2 Peter 1:16-18

(16)  For we have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of his majesty.

(17)  For he received from God the Father honour and glory, when there came such a voice to him from the excellent glory, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.

(18)  And this voice which came from heaven we heard, when we were with him in the holy mount.

• The apostles were eyewitnesses to the salvation that God has made available through His Son Jesus Christ.
• They even got to spend time with Him after His resurrection hearing that all of the scriptures point to Christ.

Luke 24:44-49

(44)  And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me.

(45)  Then opened he their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures,

(46)  And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day:

(47)  And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.

(48)  And ye are witnesses of these things.

(49)  And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.

• Jesus Christ was affirmed to be salvation through His death, burial, and resurrection for our sins by the apostles.

The word spoken by the Father and the Holy Spirit.

(3)  How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him;  (4)  God also bearing them witness, both with signs and wonders, and with divers miracles, and gifts of the Holy Ghost, according to his own will?

• Another confirmation of the salvation that comes through Jesus is God the Father Himself.
• He confirmed that Jesus is salvation, and that the words of the apostles are true by allowing the message of the apostles to be confirmed by “signs and wonders” and “divers miracles, and gifts of the Holy Ghost”.
• How did they know that the apostles were testifying that which God affirmed? They were doing signs and wonders by the power of the Holy Spirit.
• Miracles were done to confirm their word. This was always a part of the point of the miracles.  It substantiated the message of those who did them.
• We know that the message of the apostles about Jesus was steadfast because God allowed them, of His own will, to perform these miracles of the Holy Ghost.
• The greatest of these miracles was the penning of the words of the Holy Ghost into the scriptures we hold in our hand today.
• Peter said this in the passage I quoted earlier.

2 Peter 1:16-21

(16)  For we have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of his majesty.

(17)  For he received from God the Father honour and glory, when there came such a voice to him from the excellent glory, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.

(18)  And this voice which came from heaven we heard, when we were with him in the holy mount.

(19)  We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts:

(20)  Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation.

(21)  For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.

• The message of the whole of Scripture- the Word of God- penned by the Holy Ghost is this: Salvation is needed.  Salvation has come.  Salvation is not an idea.  Salvation is a person- Jesus Christ.

Conclusion:

• The theme of this whole message is this: You can’t ignore what has happened. We must give urgent heed to this salvation because there is a tendency to drift.
• The scripture has been laid out like evidence in the courtroom.
• There is a penalty for neglecting salvation.
• We know that this salvation is real, true and available because of the witness…
• …of angels
• …of the apostles
• … of God the Father
• …of God the Holy Spirit,
• …and of the Lord Jesus Christ.
• HE has ordered all of Human History, the law and the prophets…
• God spake…God hath spoken… through His Son.
• If you neglect it, how are you going to escape?