The Strand Study Bible

HEBREWS

HEBREWS

2057

Bruce Bickel and Stan Jantz in Bible Answers to Life’s Big Questions note: Everything in the universe has a cause. If something doesn’t have a cause, it doesn’t exist. But what caused the causes? In other words, when you go back in the string of causes, there must have been a first cause to get all of the other causes going. An infinite string of causes would be impossible. And the first cause must itself not be caused. It must have preexisted. It is reasonable to believe that the first cause is God, who has always existed. 1 The human race is not some uncreated, uncaused material process from sea slime (pre-biotic soup) that came from nothing and is going nowhere ( Job 26:7 ). Although no one can categorically prove that God exists (it’s impossible to reduce God to a science experiment), the fact that things exist in a created fashionable order points to one of the four reasonable evidences for His existence ( Deut 29:29 ). 2. The testimony of His Word (Heb 1:1, Lk 16:31 and Psa 19:7-11) God’s Word, which has come to us via three vehicles: (1) The Spoken Word ; (2) The Written Word ; and (3) The LIVING WORD , has been a witness to God’s existence long before Grecian thought ( atheism , evolution and humanism ) infiltrated human history. In fact, the first book of the Bible (Job), followed by Moses’ account (Gen-Deut), proves that God was testifying of His existence long before Judaism (c. 1400 BC), Hinduism (c. 1000 BC), Buddhism (c. 500 BC), Grecian thought (from 600-400 BC), Catholicism (c. AD 300-700), Islam (c. AD 622), and other modern religions and philosophies crept into the human chronicle. Interestingly enough, two of the four reasonable evidences for His existence deals with His Word/ WORD ! 3. The testimony of history ( Exo 20:3 and Psa 19:12-14). One of the greatest proofs of God’s existence lies in the historical fact that religion (man’s innate desire to know a supreme Being) existed long before man ever argued against the existence and reality of God ( Religious Note on Atheism after Daniel 1:21). No Bible ever produced religion. Men sought out God’s existence long before Moses and the other prophets ever wrote the Scriptures. Men like Adam, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Job, and Moses all worshipped God before the Bible was ever written. The fact that most men everywhere believe in the existence of a God and/or gods to whom they are morally responsible is evidence enough in favor of its truth. Bruce Bickel and Stan Jantz in Bible Answers to Life’s Big Questions note:

The very fact that you and everybody else thinks about God points to His existence. If you were the only person who thought about God, then we could just say that you have an imaginary friend. But everyone thinks about God. That’s more than just a coincidence. 1

Ironically, even the atheist, with his extreme hatred of the idea of a personal God, thinks a lot about God. Why else would he write volumes against the subject? I mean if God doesn’t exist, why spend so much time and effort thinking about Him? NOTE – Not only does history point to the proof of God’s existence, but historians point to it as well. William Whiston (1667-1752), the translator of The Works of Josephus (the Jewish historian, whose works include The Jewish Wars and The Antiquities of the Jews and Against Apion ), quoted Josephus, who spoke of Jesus as if Jesus was God. Note what Josephus had to say concerning CHRIST :

Now, there was about this time Jesus, a wise man, if it be lawful to call him a man, for he was a doer of wonderful works–a teacher of such men as receive the truth with pleasure. He drew over to him both many of the Jews, and many of the Gentiles. He was [the] Christ; and when Pilate, at the suggestion of the principal men amongst us, had condemned him to the cross, those that loved him at the first did not forsake him, for he appeared to them alive again the third day, as the divine prophets had foretold these and ten thousand other wonderful things concerning him; and the tribe of Christians, so named from him, are not extinct at this day. 2

What is so utterly amazing about Josephus’ account of JESUS CHRIST is how Josephus (a strict Pharisee) spoke positively of Him. Josephus, born the son of a priest in AD 37 (just four years after the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ), joined the Pharisees (the very religious group that had condemned Christ) when he was nineteen (AD 56). Although, as far as we know, Josephus never became a Christian, he did record for us the account of the life of Christ as a historical fact. He even went so far as to admit that Jesus had to be more than just a man. 1:3 This word ( express image ) is the Greek word FDUDNτKU ( charakter ) from which we derive our word “character.” It denotes a tool that is used for engraving, stamping or impressing and literally means “ to cut into .” CHRIST is the express image (imprint, photo copy) and representation of the essence and nature of God (Jn 14:7-9,19 and Colo 2:8-9). To know CHRIST is to know God. 1:6 CHRIST was the “first” ( first begotten ) to be raised from the dead to be alive for evermore (Rom 8:29, Colo 1:15,18 and Rev 1:5 & 3:14). 1:9 Written some thirty years after Jesus died on Calvary for our sins, the author of Hebrews here is not saying that Jesus has a God ( thy GOD ), as some cults teach ( Jn 20:17c ). The FATHER , the SON , and the HOLY SPIRIT are three distinct, co-eternal persons, called the Godhead ( Gen 1:1c,26 a , Deut 6:4 and Rom 1:20b ). They are all equally God and each One is worthy of our worship ( Jn 4:20-25 & 9:35-38 and Acts 5:4 ). What the author of Hebrews is emphasizing here when he says “ thy GOD ” is the enormous eternal price that Jesus was willing to pay in order to save us. According to I Corinthians 15:28 , Matthew 27:46 and Mark 15:34a , Jesus was willing to give up certain aspects of his eternal authority with the FIRST and THIRD Persons of the Triune Godhead and forever place Himself in a lower order ( rank ) under them as a part of the eternal price He was willing to pay for us on Calvary.

1 Bruce, Bickel and Stan Jantz. Bible Answers to Life’s Big Questions . Eugene, OR: Harvest House Publishers, 2006. Print. 2 Whiston, William. The Works of Josephus . Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Pub. 1987. Print