HEBREWS 1
Ques You were here when we spoke of Hebrews following Luke: perhaps you would help us at the beginning of this epistle?
CAC It was thought that Luke presented what was of priestly character, the Lord being carried to heaven in priestly attitude. This epistle follows suitably on that; it presents the Lord to us definitely as in heaven, and as exercising priesthood there, the thought being that the service of God is sustained according to divine pleasure.
Ques Is the thought that in the measure in which God’s speaking becomes effective, in the same measure there is response Godward?
CAC That is the key to this epistle; the service takes character from the speaking. It was so in the service of the tabernacle; this epistle is built up on the model of the tabernacle service. The first thing that God had in mind in setting up the tabernacle system was that there should be a place from which He could speak — the mercy-seat. The whole service was ordered from the divine speaking, and God would speak from a spot that set Him free. The speaking in Exodus was from the mercy-seat, and the service was regulated and took character from the divine speaking. It is so now, the speaking being of the highest character and connected with the thought of the Son, which is the highest thought. The service must have an elevation and character that corresponds with it.
[p. 2] Ques If the speaking is in Son, only those brought into sonship can understand it. If that is understood, is priestly service taken up in the enjoyment of sonship?
CAC Yes. We find that priesthood, even in Christ, is dependent on His Sonship. We read in Hebrews 5, “Thou art my Son”, and then, “Thou art a priest”, shewing that priesthood according to divine pleasure is only taken up in sonship, as the thought of God’s delight enters into it. The thought of a Son in relation to God is very precious. The great thought that has come before the blessed God is an Object of delight and satisfaction.
Ques In the covenant we read, “I will be to them for God, and they shall be to me for people” (chapter 8: 10), but in this chapter we have, “I will be to him for father, and he shall be to me for son”. Is that not much higher?
CAC Yes, I think it is, though the two are intimately connected. When Israel was to be brought into the blessing of the new covenant it is said, “In the place where it was said unto them, Ye are not my people, it shall be said unto them, Sons of the living God”, Hosea 1: 10. That shows that in connection with the covenant God has a great thought of sonship in His mind. In Deuteronomy Moses addresses the people as “sons of Jehovah your God”, shewing that when God introduced the thought of the covenant to His people they were not to stop short of what was in His mind — sonship. So today the covenant comes in in connection with what is the cherished delight of God’s heart; He has one Object before Him to fill His heart with satisfaction, and in which His love has found full delight; that is the thought in the Son. That becomes the standard, it is the measure of what is in the heart of God.
Ques Is there any difference between sonship for Israel and for us?
CAC They came into sonship as a people on earth; we [p. 3] come into sonship in what takes character from Christ in heaven. The blessing in Hebrews takes on a heavenly character. The blessing known by the saints today goes far beyond the covenant that will be known to Israel. He is bringing many sons to glory now; that is, they are being brought to the consummation of all that is in the heart of God.
Rem The more we enter into it the more response there would be to it.
CAC Yes, I am sure of that. God is the Speaker; we should ever keep that before us. The end in view is that we should be brought to God, brought to the blessedness that is in God Himself.
Ques Would sonship be more for God Himself, although we get the joy of it?
CAC Yes. Sonship is for God, and the inheritance is for the sons. Hebrews helps much because it gives intelligence in the thoughts and ways of God. The idea of sonship is that we have intelligent capacity to enter into things of interest to God; that is the great thought in being brought into sonship. God is pleased, not in our telling Him we are sons, but in our being able to speak to Him in a way that shows we are sons. The spirit of sonship does not occupy us with itself; the spirit of sonship cries, “Abba, Father”. That is, the blessedness of God known in love and in conscious relationship is before the soul. We are not just to be occupied with the dignity of it but with the blessedness of it. What was the prodigal occupied with inside the father’s house? We are to enter into what the Father is and what is delightful to the Father. It is a great matter to any earthly father to have his son enter into his thoughts, purposes and delights; that is the thought of sonship. As sons we enter into those things which are pleasurable to God, and we rejoice in Him. “Abba, Father” is an adoring utterance — we think of the blessedness [p. 4] into which we are brought, and we enjoy it affectionately, so there is the rapturous expression of that in the cry, “Abba, Father”. That is what the Father delights in.
God is speaking in Son, so the speaking comes from the centre of God’s delight and love.
Ques Can it be fully expressed in human language?
CAC I do not suppose it can. As far as we are concerned sonship is only taken up in the Spirit. It is not what we have heard, or even what is in Scripture, but the ability to take up in the power of the Holy Spirit the relationship in which we are filled adoringly. There is a glorious Person introduced to us here, and that gives the spirit of worship.
God is giving expression to Himself and His own thoughts in such a way that they are not limited by the vessel that conveys them. There would be a limitation in what God made known to Moses, but there is no limitation in God speaking in Son. Everything can come out that it is possible for the creature to know. A great deal has come into expression which is beyond the power of the creature to apprehend.
These opening verses of the epistle are to give us a very great thought of the Son, the immense glory that attaches to Him.
Ques In verse 4 it speaks of a more excellent name. Is that ‘The Son’?
CAC Yes, that is an inherited name. As soon as He was born He inherited every title that belongs to the Messiah; and among those titles was the glorious name of Son.
In the first few verses He is representative of God; the first thing said of Him is that God has established Him Heir of all things; He is competent to take up all things as God’s representative, as succeeding to all the rights of God. Being Heir of all things suggests a great thought of wealth, and shews the immense value that He is going to [p. 5] confer on all, so they become the portion of the Son assigned to Him by God, that which will constitute His property and wealth eternally. All being committed to the hands of the Son to effectuate heirship goes along with sonship. We talk more of sonship, but I do not know why we should, for they go together. The thought of heirship in Christ goes along with His sonship. He is Son and He is Heir; we come in as joint-heirs. As sons we should be greatly interested in the inheritance; we should be interested in what love has assigned to us. What a beautiful character it has! All is made suitable to be the inheritance of the Son, without a defect or a blemish but a universe of bliss! The inheritance will be relieved of all that has come into it to spoil it for the divine pleasure. The thought of the Son being introduced as Heir of all things shews what a character the blessed God is going to give to the universe; He introduces the greatest thoughts of His love. Taking that up intelligently belongs to the service of God in the assembly, it is part of it. We should look at these things that are spoken of in connection with the Son as matters we have to take up affectionately and intelligently so as to be able to speak of them reverently and becomingly to God for His pleasure; it enters into the service of the assembly. I am afraid our worship often is in a restricted area, but God would not have it to be so. Think of the greatness of it! To be able to speak to God of His great thoughts in connection with His Son!
Ques What about “the effulgence of his glory and the expression of his substance”?
CAC It shews everything takes up the glory of God — His effulgence in the Son. He is the effulgence of His glory and the expression of His substance. It does not follow we can take it all in. There is a great deal expressed mediatorially in the Son that is beyond creature power to apprehend. In the end of Revelation we find He has a [p. 6] Name and it is written, but no one knows it. There is the expression in the Son of all that belongs to the glory of God; it pleased God to set it forth mediatorially, but a good deal that is set forth mediatorially is beyond the compass of the creature. “The Son” is a mediatorial title, but we are told that no one knows the Son but the Father. By the Son God made the worlds. Creation was a mediatorial action, but it is inscrutable; we know nothing about creation; it belongs to God. We see the product but we cannot understand the power that made creation. Creation has a mediatorial character. In creation the Son was the Actor, one Person in the Deity was acting on behalf of the Others. The Word was with God, a distinct Personality. In creation the Son was the acting Representative on behalf of God. He could not have created if He had not been God. He was with God, He was God. All received being through Him; all belonged to His mediatorial glory. As this enters into our souls spiritually, worship is produced. Faith understands, though it is inscrutable. The Son is inscrutable; the sense of that is essential to worship. When we think of the Son there are no limitations; what comes into the mediatorial creation is without limit. The effulgence of His glory, the expression of His substance — His substance and Being are expressed in the Son. As creatures we have limitations, but there are no limitations in the Son; the effulgence of divine glory is there, and there is not a ray of divine glory that is not there. What an elevation this gives to the worship of the assembly! All this is brought before us to prepare us for the worship of God in the assembly! We do not leave out of the service of the assembly the praise of God as Creator; that belongs to the assembly. The only assembly prayer recorded is one that belongs to creation (Acts 4).
That He is going to be Heir gives an idea of what is going to be the inheritance of this great and glorious Person. We [p. 7] obtain an inheritance with Him; we are to be joint-heirs with Christ; that is what belongs to children and sons. Paul says, ‘If you are children you are joint-heirs with Christ’ (Romans 8: 17). If we were interested in sonship we should like to know the assigned portion. I think our stature as sons is largely determined by the way we enter into the inheritance.
Ques Why is the purification of sins brought in?
CAC It is to assure our hearts that all this mediatorial glory that belongs to the Son stands in relation to a condition of things marked by sin. He has made purification of sins for the satisfaction of God in this chapter, not for the relief of sin. “Having made by himself the purification of sins”. It is effected. If God is free His people may well be free.
Ques Does God speak from above the mercy-seat?
CAC Yes, it is God as known in relation to a system of things where the question of good and evil has been raised. Before the fall God put the tree of the knowledge of good and evil and the tree of life into the garden of Eden. God has been made known to us; we serve and worship God who has spoken in Son, but He has spoken in relation to an order of things where this question of good and evil has been raised — our worship largely takes account of that.
Ques What is the meaning of the word ‘mediatorial’?
CAC It is the way in which God has been pleased to work so that even in creation one Person in the Godhead has acted on behalf of the Godhead. The idea of one person acting on behalf of others is mediatorial. “God is one, and the mediator of God and men one, the man Christ Jesus”, 1 Timothy 2: 5. It has pleased God to approach men in grace in the Mediator. God does not put Himself directly in contact with men; He has a Mediator; and there is a Mediator too of the new covenant.
Rem All that we are brought into in relation with God [p. 8] mediatorially stands in contrast with what divine Persons enjoy in Themselves.
CAC That is so. The relations which subsist between divine Persons as such are not revealed, but there are some that are. Our knowledge of divine Persons depends on what is revealed. This system has the glory of God in it, and our worship depends on our being intelligent in this great system.
Ques Would an ambassador convey the thought of a mediator?
CAC An ambassador does not sufficiently convey the greatness and dignity of the person. If you could fancy the king himself becoming an ambassador it might convey the thought.
Ques Does the Lord have this place eternally?
CAC Surely. Then we have, “Upholding all things by the word of his power”. How inscrutable it is! All these things are introduced, not merely informally or even lightly, but for worship in the assembly. We worship in the light of them; we shew we are sons by our ability to apprehend and speak to God about these things. How wonderful to speak to God about His great thoughts and His things which are all substantiated in the Son! The best specimen of sonship in the Bible is seen in Ephesians 3. We see a man there who is speaking to the Father, and who has an astonishing acquaintance with all that is delightful to the Father. If we want to know sonship we should listen to Paul and see how he speaks to the Father: he speaks in spiritual intelligence of all that is delightful to the Father.
Ques Would John 17 be an example of sonship?
CAC Yes. I did not refer to that because I was thinking of sonship as we see it. The highest expression of sonship is the Lord’s prayer in John 17, where the Son speaks to the Father in the simplest way in holy intimacy. How delightful to the Father must have been every word [p. 9] of that prayer, and how truly the Father could say, “My beloved Son”!