Colossians 3:18-4:6 New Living Translation… Wives, submit to your husbands, as is fitting for those who belong to the Lord. 19 Husbands, love your wives and never treat them harshly. 20 Children, always obey your parents, for this pleases the Lord. 21 Fathers, do not aggravate your children, or they will become discouraged.

22 Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything you do. Try to please them all the time, not just when they are watching you. Serve them sincerely because of your reverent fear of the Lord. 23 Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people. 24 Remember that the Lord will give you an inheritance as your reward, and that the Master you are serving is Christ. 25 But if you do what is wrong, you will be paid back for the wrong you have done. For God has no favorites.

1 Masters, be just and fair to your slaves. Remember that you also have a Master—in heaven. 2 Devote yourselves to prayer with an alert mind and a thankful heart. 3 Pray for us, too, that God will give us many opportunities to speak about his mysterious plan concerning Christ. That is why I am here in chains. 4 Pray that I will proclaim this message as clearly as I should.5 Live wisely among those who are not believers, and make the most of every opportunity. 6 Let your conversation be gracious and attractive so that you will have the right response for everyone.

Introduction: Since Jesus is Lord, then His lordship must invade the ordinary space of our existence.

Transition: Paul is teaching us that if Christ is sovereign over everything, there is no part of life where we get to tell Him, “You cannot reign here.”

Exposition:

–Christ’s sovereignty rearranges our relationships… 3:18-21

• Jesus must be Lord of how we treat the people closest to us.
• Kingdom authority should reflect the love and character of Christ.

“When Christ becomes Lord of your heart, God starts rearranging your house.”

“You cannot be captivated by Jesus and remain comfortable mistreating people closest to you.”

–Christ’s sovereignty redeems our work… 3:22-4:1

• Our work becomes worship when it is done for the Lord.
• Sovereignty produces excellence and integrity even when nobody is watching.

“Your supervisor may sign the check, but your ultimate audience is Christ.”

“Sovereignty produces integrity when nobody is looking.”

–Christ’s sovereignty deepens our prayer life… 4:2-4

• Prayer aligns us with what God is doing, even when circumstances do not change.
• God can create opportunities for ministry in the middle of difficulty.

“A closed prison door cannot stop an open gospel door.”

“When you are captivated by sovereignty, prayer becomes less about controlling outcomes and more about aligning yourself with the purposes of God.”

–Christ’s sovereignty shapes our witness… 4:5-6

• The lordship of Christ must govern both our behavior and our speech.
• Truth should always be communicated with wisdom, grace, and love.

“You cannot say, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and then give your tongue unrestricted authority.”

“We can win an argument and lose an opportunity.”

Conclusion: Where am I still resisting His lordship?

If He is Lord at all, He is Lord of all!

Let Jesus reign in every aspect of your life.

NOBODY LIKE HIM

Hebrews 8 — A Better Covenant

Central Truth: Jesus does not merely improve our access to God; as our heavenly High Priest, He establishes a better covenant in which God draws near, transforms the heart, creates genuine relationship, and completely deals with sin.

Lesson in a Line: In Jesus, God does not simply give us better rules to live by—He gives us a better relationship to live from.

Opening Questions…

–What is the difference between knowing what God requires and actually wanting what God requires?

–Why are people often more comfortable with religious systems, traditions, and routines than with genuine transformation?

-When God says, “I will be their God, and they will be my people,” what should that relationship look like in everyday life?

The writer wants us to understand three major truths:

● We have a better Priest

● We have a better ministry

● We have a better covenant

Jesus is not simply another priest within the old system.

Jesus fulfills what the old system was pointing toward.

–We Have a Priest in a Better Place… Hebrews 8:1–5

Jesus is seated in the place of honor beside God and ministers in the true heavenly sanctuary.

The earthly Tabernacle was a copy and shadow of the heavenly reality.

Hebrew Bible Connection

Exodus 25:8, 40

God instructed Moses to build the Tabernacle according to the pattern shown to him.

The Tabernacle revealed an important truth:

God desires to dwell among His people.

But under the old covenant, access to God’s presence was limited by priests, sacrifices, curtains, and sacred boundaries.

Jesus changes the picture.

Key Truth

Jesus is already in the presence of God on our behalf.

Our access to God does not depend upon how successfully we reach God.

It depends upon what Jesus has already accomplished for us.

Notice This

Jesus is seated.

Old Testament priests continually stood because their work was never completely finished.

Christ is seated because His priestly work is sufficient.

Student Note

My confidence with God is based upon Christ’s position, not my condition.

–We Have a Priest with a Better Ministry… Hebrews 8:6–7

Jesus has been given a ministry that is superior because He mediates a better covenant based on better promises.

Key Word

Covenant — Berit

In the Hebrew Bible, covenant describes a binding relationship involving:

● Promise

● Commitment

● Loyalty

● Responsibility

● Identity

God established covenant relationships throughout Scripture, including with Noah, Abraham, and Israel.

The Problem Was Not God’s Instruction

God’s law was good.

The problem was the human heart.

People could possess God’s commands without possessing a heart committed to God’s ways.

Key Distinction

Information is not transformation.

We can know what God says and still resist what God wants.

We can know Scripture and still need our desires changed.

Student Note

God does not simply want me to know His will. He wants to transform my heart so that I desire His will.

–We Have Been Given a Better Covenant… Hebrews 8:8–13

Hebrews 8 quotes directly from Jeremiah 31:31–34.

Long before the coming of Christ, God promised that a new covenant would come.

Hebrew Bible Connection

The Hebrew expression for “new covenant” is:

Berit Chadashah

Jeremiah announced this promise during a time of national crisis, judgment, and covenant failure.

Yet God declared:

“The day is coming…”

God was not finished with His people.

Four Promises of the New Covenant

1. God Promises Inward Transformation

“I will put my laws in their minds, and I will write them on their hearts.”

Under the old covenant, God’s instruction was written on tablets.

Under the new covenant, God writes His will upon the heart.

Key Truth

God does not merely want external compliance.

God desires internal transformation.

Ask Yourself

Am I only doing what is right because I know I should, or is God changing what I actually desire?

Student Note

Spiritual maturity occurs when God’s will moves from the tablet to the heart.

2. God Promises Covenant Relationship

“I will be their God, and they will be my people.”

This phrase appears repeatedly throughout the Hebrew Bible.

It expresses God’s desire for relationship with His people.

The Big Biblical Story

From Eden, to the Tabernacle, to the Temple, to Christ, and finally to the new creation, Scripture reveals one continuing desire:

God wants to dwell with His people.

Student Note

God’s ultimate goal is not merely religious activity. God’s goal is relationship.

3. God Promises Personal Knowledge

Hebrews says that God’s people will truly know the Lord.

Key Hebrew Idea

The Hebrew word often translated “know” is:

Yada

Biblical knowledge is more than information.

It describes relational, personal, experiential knowledge.

Important Question

Do I simply know facts about God, or am I actually growing in relationship with God?

You can know:

● Church culture

● Christian vocabulary

● Scripture quotations

● Religious traditions

and still fail to truly know God.

Student Note

Christianity is not merely knowing about God. Through Christ, we are invited to know God.

4. God Promises Complete Forgiveness

“I will forgive their wickedness, and I will never again remember their sins.”

This does not mean God experiences memory loss.

It means God chooses not to hold forgiven sin against His covenant people.

Key Truth

The debt has been addressed.

The guilt has been dealt with.

The failure no longer defines the relationship.

Student Note

My relationship with God is not sustained by pretending I have never failed. It is sustained by trusting the finished work of Jesus.

The Repeated Phrase: “I Will”

One of the most important features of Hebrews 8 is God’s repeated declaration:

I will make a new covenant.

I will put my laws in their minds.

I will write them on their hearts.

I will be their God.

I will forgive their wickedness.

The Heart of the Lesson

The new covenant begins with God’s initiative, not human achievement.

God is doing for humanity what humanity could never accomplish for itself.

Bringing Hebrews 8 Home

Hebrews 8 challenges us not to settle for external religion when God is offering internal transformation.

It is possible to:

● Attend worship without surrendering the heart

● Know Christian language without knowing Christ deeply

● Memorize commandments without allowing God to change our desires

● Practice religion without experiencing transformation

Jesus offers something deeper.

Because there is Nobody Like HIM, we have: A better Priest, A better ministry, A better covenant and Better promises.

Probing Questions for Reflection

1. What parts of my Christian life have become external habits without corresponding internal transformation?

2. Is God’s Word merely something I know, or is God increasingly writing His will into my desires, decisions, attitudes, and relationships?

3. Do I relate to God primarily through guilt and performance, or through confidence in the finished work of Jesus?

4. What is one area of my life where I need God to move His Word from my head to my heart?

5. If God truly desires relationship with me, what needs to change about the way I pray, worship, obey, and live?

Key Takeaways

The old covenant revealed God’s will.

The new covenant transforms the heart.

The old system contained shadows.

Jesus is the substance.

Religion can provide information.

Jesus provides transformation.

God does not merely want our compliance.

God wants our hearts.

We do not live trying to reach God.

Through Christ, God has drawn near to us.

Closing Thought: Jesus did not come merely to renovate religion. Jesus came to transform relationship. The law moves toward the heart. Distance gives way to relationship. Information gives way to knowing God. Guilt gives way to forgiveness. Shadows give way to substance. The message of Hebrews 8 is not simply: Something better has come. The message is: Someone Better Has Come. And there is Nobody Like HIM.

Colossians 3:1-17 New Living Translation… Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits in the place of honor at God’s right hand. 2 Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth. 3 For you died to this life, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God. 4 And when Christ, who is your life, is revealed to the whole world, you will share in all his glory.

5 So put to death the sinful, earthly things lurking within you. Have nothing to do with sexual immorality, impurity, lust, and evil desires. Don’t be greedy, for a greedy person is an idolater, worshiping the things of this world. 6 Because of these sins, the anger of God is coming. 7 You used to do these things when your life was still part of this world. 8 But now is the time to get rid of anger, rage, malicious behavior, slander, and dirty language. 9 Don’t lie to each other, for you have stripped off your old sinful nature and all its wicked deeds. 10 Put on your new nature, and be renewed as you learn to know your Creator and become like him. 11 In this new life, it doesn’t matter if you are a Jew or a Gentile, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbaric, uncivilized, slave, or free. Christ is all that matters, and he lives in all of us.

12 Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. 13 Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. 14 Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony. 15 And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful.

16 Let the message about Christ, in all its richness, fill your lives. Teach and counsel each other with all the wisdom he gives. Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts. 17And whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through him to God the Father.

Introduction: Sanctification is the ongoing work of God in which the life we have received in Christ increasingly becomes visible in every aspect of our mortal lives. Sanctification progressively shapes us into the likeness of Christ.

Transition: Paul writes Colossians 3 to people who have already been saved, but now they must learn what salvation looks like as it integrates into their everyday lives. Christianity is not merely about getting people into heaven. It is also about getting heaven into people.

Exposition: And if we become captivated by Christ, sooner or later we must become captivated by sanctification, because you cannot continually behold Jesus without eventually being confronted by everything in you that does not look like Jesus. So…

LOOK UP — Remember Who You Are… verses 1–4

Paul says, in effect, “If you have been raised with Christ, start looking in the direction of your new life.”

The Christian life is not merely about trying harder. It is about seeing Christ more clearly. When Christ captivates the mind, He begins transforming the life.

STRIP DOWN — Remove What No Longer Belongs… verses 5–11

Once Paul establishes who we are, he becomes very direct about what must change. He says, “Put to death the sinful, earthly things lurking within you.”

Sanctification involves mortification. That is the theological word for putting sin to death. Sanctification means I stop asking only, “What do I want?” and begin asking, “What does Christ want to produce in me?”

Reference Hebrews 12:1 “…let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us”!

SUIT UP — Put On What Looks Like Jesus… verses 12–17

Holiness is not simply the absence of bad behavior. It is the presence of Christlike character.

Every Christian lives beneath the shadow of a cross where Jesus absorbed a debt we could never pay.

Christians can be wounded without becoming defined by the wound.

Love is the outer garment that holds everything together.

Conclusion: Paul brings the entire passage together in one sweeping statement: “Whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus.”

There’s Nobody Like Jesus!

Systemic Change: The salvific system was flawed, fixed, and now we accept it by faith to be free and faithful.

Hebrews 7 New Living Translation

Lesson in a Line – Jesus does not merely help us get to God; Jesus guarantees that we can come to God.

Central Truth: Because Jesus is our eternal High Priest, our relationship with God rests on what Christ has permanently accomplished—not on what we can temporarily achieve.

INTRODUCTION — Beneath all of the theological detail of Hebrews 7, is one basic argument: Jesus is better. Why go backward when God has given you something better?

The issue is not that the old covenant was evil. The issue is that it was incomplete. It pointed forward to something/covenant (Ephesians 2:8-9) — and Someone/Christ—greater.

The Old Testament priesthood could temporarily address humanity’s problem. Jesus permanently solves it.

1. JESUS HAS A SUPERIOR PRIESTHOOD… verses 1–10

Melchizedek was both: King of Salem and Priest of God Most High

2. JESUS BRINGS A BETTER HOPE… verses 11–19

If the Levitical priesthood could have brought humanity into complete relationship with God, why was another priest necessary? That question exposes the limitation of the old system.

3. JESUS GUARANTEES A BETTER COVENANT… verses 20–28

References… When you are weak (Luke 22:31-32) and confused (John 11:21-27), even you stumble (Mark 14:27-31, 66-72; 16:7), when your faith is fragile (John 14:1-14), and when you cannot find the words to pray (John 8:1-11)—Jesus is interceding.

—TRUTHS TO TAKE HOME

1. Christ is sufficient. Stop trying to add to what Jesus has already completed.

2. Christ is permanent. People change. Systems change. Seasons change. Jesus remains.

3. Christ gives us access. You do not have to hide from God because Christ has opened the way for you to approach God.

—QUESTIONS TO PONDER

1. What religious habits or traditions can become substitutes for actually trusting Jesus?

2. Where am I still trying to earn from God what Christ has already made available by grace?

3. How should knowing that Jesus continually intercedes for me change the way I respond to failure, fear, and uncertainty?

—Conclusion

Hebrews 7 does not simply ask us to admire Jesus. It asks us to trust Jesus completely.

Whatever season you are walking through, remember:

You have a Priest who understands.

You have a Savior who is sufficient.

You have an Advocate who is active.

You have a covenant that is better.

And you have a Christ who is forever.

Colossians 1:21-2:15 New Living Translation… This includes you who were once far away from God. You were his enemies, separated from him by your evil thoughts and actions. 22 Yet now he has reconciled you to himself through the death of Christ in his physical body. As a result, he has brought you into his own presence, and you are holy and blameless as you stand before him without a single fault.

23 But you must continue to believe this truth and stand firmly in it. Don’t drift away from the assurance you received when you heard the Good News. The Good News has been preached all over the world, and I, Paul, have been appointed as God’s servant to proclaim it.

24 I am glad when I suffer for you in my body, for I am participating in the sufferings of Christ that continue for his body, the church. 25 God has given me the responsibility of serving his church by proclaiming his entire message to you. 26 This message was kept secret for centuries and generations past, but now it has been revealed to God’s people. 27 For God wanted them to know that the riches and glory of Christ are for you Gentiles, too. And this is the secret: Christ lives in you. This gives you assurance of sharing his glory.

28 So we tell others about Christ, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all the wisdom God has given us. We want to present them to God, perfect[g] in their relationship to Christ. 29 That’s why I work and struggle so hard, depending on Christ’s mighty power that works within me.

I want you to know how much I have agonized for you and for the church at Laodicea, and for many other believers who have never met me personally. 2 I want them to be encouraged and knit together by strong ties of love. I want them to have complete confidence that they understand God’s mysterious plan, which is Christ himself. 3 In him lie hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

4 I am telling you this so no one will deceive you with well-crafted arguments. 5 For though I am far away from you, my heart is with you. And I rejoice that you are living as you should and that your faith in Christ is strong.

6 And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to follow him. 7 Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness.

8 Don’t let anyone capture you with empty philosophies and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the spiritual powers of this world, rather than from Christ. 9 For in Christ lives all the fullness of God in a human body. 10 So you also are complete through your union with Christ, who is the head over every ruler and authority.

11 When you came to Christ, you were “circumcised,” but not by a physical procedure. Christ performed a spiritual circumcision—the cutting away of your sinful nature. 12 For you were buried with Christ when you were baptized. And with him you were raised to new life because you trusted the mighty power of God, who raised Christ from the dead.

13 You were dead because of your sins and because your sinful nature was not yet cut away. Then God made you alive with Christ, for he forgave all our sins. 14 He canceled the record of the charges against us and took it away by nailing it to the cross. 15 In this way, he disarmed the spiritual rulers and authorities. He shamed them publicly by his victory over them on the cross.

Objective: To know Christ, to understand truth as opposed to heresy, and to make progress by living transformed lives.

Introduction: We live in a culture that constantly tells us, “You are not enough, and what you have is not enough.”

Transition: Paul writes to the church at Colossae because believers were being exposed to teachings that suggested Christ was significant, but that Christ was not sufficient. They were being tempted by philosophies, religious regulations, mystical ideas, traditions, and spiritual systems that implied, “Jesus is a good beginning, but if you really want to be complete, you need something more.”

The lesson is simple: Jesus is not merely enough to get us started; Jesus is enough to get us through.

Exposition:

1. CHRIST IS SUFFICIENT FOR OUR STANDING… Colossians 1:21-23

You cannot appreciate reconciliation until you understand alienation.

2. CHRIST IS SUFFICIENT FOR OUR BECOMING… Colossians 1:24-2:10

Paul is teaching us that Jesus is not just the doorway into Christianity. Jesus is the entire house.

3. CHRIST IS SUFFICIENT FOR OUR VICTORY… Colossians 2:11-15

Christianity is not rehabilitation. It is resurrection!

Conclusion: Since Christ is sufficient, I do not need another savior, another mediator, or another sacrifice. Jesus is enough!

There’s Nobody Like Jesus!

Advice for Advancement

Hebrews 6 New Living Translation

Lesson in a Line – Because our hope is anchored in the finished work and faithful promise of Jesus Christ, believers are called to mature in faith, persevere through difficulty, and confidently trust God’s promises.

Central Truth: Christian maturity is not moving beyond Jesus; it is growing deeper in Jesus.

INTRODUCTION — FAITH WAS NEVER MEANT TO STAY IN INFANCY

Hebrews 6 opens with a challenge: “So let us stop going over the basic teachings about Christ again and again. Let us go on instead and become mature…” — Hebrews 6:1 

The writer of Hebrews is speaking to Christians who have received significant spiritual instruction but are in danger of becoming stagnant.

There is nothing wrong with being a spiritual baby when you have just been born again. The problem is staying a baby. Babies must be fed, carried, and babies must constantly be reassured.

But eventually, healthy children grow. The writer is essentially saying, You have learned the ABCs of the faith. Now it is time to start forming sentences.

God does not simply want us saved. God wants us sanctified (set apart for God’s purposes). He does not merely want conversion. He wants maturity.

That’s why Hebrews 6 moves us through three important spiritual realities:

We must progress toward maturity.

We must persevere in faithfulness.

We must possess confidence in God’s promise.

⸻I. PROGRESS TOWARD MATURITY… Hebrews 6:1–3

The chapter begins: “Let us go on instead and become mature in our understanding.”

Notice that the writer does not say abandon the foundations of Christianity, rather, build upon them.

You never graduate from: repentance, faith, resurrection, judgment, obedience, and dependence upon Christ.

But mature believers learn how those foundational truths shape everyday life.

Maturity means moving from information to transformation.

It is possible to know Bible verses and still be spiritually immature.

It is possible to attend Bible study and still be spiritually immature.

It is possible to have been in church for thirty years and merely have the same year of spiritual growth repeated thirty times.

Spiritual maturity is demonstrated when truth begins changing: how we respond, how we forgive, how we handle disappointment, how we manage temptation, how we treat people, and how deeply we trust God.

Paul gives a similar picture when he tells believers to grow into the likeness of Christ. Reference Romans 8:28-29

Christian maturity does not mean becoming more impressed with ourselves. It means becoming increasingly dependent upon Christ.

Question to Ponder… Where should there be greater spiritual maturity in my life today than there was a year ago?

⸻II. PERSEVERE IN FAITHFULNESS… Hebrews 6:4–12

This is one of the most debated passages in the New Testament.

Hebrews speaks about people who have been enlightened, experienced heavenly gifts, participated in the life of the covenant community, and yet fall away.

The warning is severe.

But we must understand why the warning is here.

The writer is addressing people tempted to abandon their confession of Christ and return to a religious system that ultimately rejects Him.

The issue is not a struggling Christian who sins, repents, and comes back to God.

If every failure meant irreversible apostasy (abandonment or renunciation of faith), Peter would have been finished after denying Jesus.

David would have been finished.

Mark would have been finished.

And frankly, all of us would be finished.

The warning concerns decisive, persistent rejection of Jesus Christ after receiving extraordinary exposure to the truth.

The agricultural illustration matters.

Hebrews says land that receives rain and produces crops receives blessing.

But land receiving the same rain and producing only thorns demonstrates that something is wrong with the soil.

The rain is the same.

The difference is the fruit.

In other words: Spiritual privilege must eventually produce spiritual fruit.

Jesus taught the same principle: You recognize a tree by its fruit (Matthew 7:16, Luke 6:44).

The author then gives readers reassurance in verse 9: “Dear friends, even though we are talking this way, we really don’t believe it applies to you.”

That sentence is critical. The warning is real, but so is the writer’s confidence in the believers.

Faithful Christians have historically interpreted Hebrews 6 differently.

Some believe the passage teaches that genuine believers can ultimately abandon salvation.

Others understand the passage as describing people who experience the blessings and influence of the Christian community without ever possessing saving faith.

Still others understand the warning itself as one of God’s means for preserving genuine believers in faith.

I believe the author to mean that those whom God truly saves, God preserves—and those God preserves will persevere.

Perseverance does not earn salvation, but it demonstrates the reality of saving faith.

Jesus is not merely able to save us initially. He is able to keep us.

Hebrews 6:11–12 gives the pastoral application.

The writer wants them to demonstrate the same diligence until the end.

Then he says: “Then you will not become spiritually dull and indifferent.”

That may be one of the greatest dangers facing believers.

Not persecution, atheism, or opposition.

Indifference is a great danger to believers. The danger of slowly reaching the place where the things of God simply do not move us anymore.

Prayer becomes casual. Worship becomes routine. Scripture becomes optional. Sin becomes tolerable. Service becomes inconvenient.

Hebrews says: Stay awake. Stay diligent. Keep trusting.

Question to Ponder… Have I become spiritually comfortable in an area where God is calling me to remain diligent?

⸻III. POSSESS CONFIDENCE IN GOD’S PROMISE… Hebrews 6:13–20

The chapter shifts from warning/prohibitions to tremendous encouragement/exportation.

Abraham becomes the example. God made Abraham a promise. But Abraham had to wait. That is important because faith is often lived somewhere between what God promised and when God performs it.

Hebrews says: “Then Abraham waited patiently, and he received what God had promised.”

Our problem is often not believing God can do something.

Our problem is trusting God while we wait for Him to do it.

The writer reminds us that God’s promise rests upon God’s character. God cannot lie.

Therefore our hope is not built upon: circumstances, feelings, predictions, people, politics, finances, health, or education. Our hope rests upon the character of God.

Then Hebrews gives one of the great pictures in Scripture: “This hope is a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls.”

An anchor does not stop the storm. An anchor keeps the storm from carrying the ship away. Reference My Hope is built…

Hope does not mean you never cry. Hope means your tears cannot carry you away.

Hope does not mean you never struggle. Hope means your struggle cannot separate you from Christ.

Hope does not mean circumstances cannot shake you. Hope means circumstances cannot ultimately uproot you.

And where is the anchor secured?

The text says our hope reaches behind the curtain into God’s presence, “where Jesus has already gone in before us.”

That is the gospel. Jesus is our forerunner. A forerunner does not merely enter somewhere for themselves. They enter anticipating that others will follow.

Under the Old Covenant, the high priest entered the Most Holy Place temporarily and repeatedly.

But Jesus entered God’s presence permanently on behalf of His people.

His priesthood, sacrifice, and intercession is not temporary.

Therefore our hope is not temporary.

Our anchor is not beneath us. Our anchor is above us!

We are anchored in heaven because Christ is there.

That means the security of the believer ultimately rests not in the strength of our grip upon Jesus, but in the strength of His grip upon us.

⸻CONCLUSION — THREE COMMANDS FROM HEBREWS 6

Hebrews 6 gives us three simple instructions:

1. GROW UP.

Do not remain spiritually stagnant.

Move beyond merely knowing Christian truth toward living Christian truth.

2. HOLD ON.

Do not allow spiritual dullness, disappointment, temptation, or difficulty to pull you away from Christ.

Keep trusting. Keep serving. Keep believing.

3. LOOK AHEAD.

God keeps His promises.

Abraham waited. The saints waited. And sometimes we must wait.

But our hope has an anchor. And that anchor is Jesus Christ.

⸻Final Question… What would change in your life this week if you truly believed your soul was securely anchored in Christ?

Introduction: To be captivated, requires the arresting of one’s attention.

Paul writes to the believers at Colossae because competing voices are attempting to reduce Jesus to simply one spiritual option among many.

Paul does not merely tell them to think more positively about Jesus. He exalts Jesus above everything, because his supremacy demands it!

Transition: Paul wants the church to understand that Jesus is not simply a part of the Christian message, because Jesus is the message.

Exposition:

-“Christ is the visible image of the invisible God.” Jesus is the exegesis/explanation of God.

-“He existed before anything was created and is supreme over all creation.” Jesus was begun before the beginning ever began to be.

-“For through him God created everything in the heavenly realms and on earth.” Everything was created through Jesus and for Jesus.

-“He existed before anything else, and he holds all creation together.” Christ does not simply create. Christ sustains.

-“Christ is also the head of the church, which is his body.” The church belongs to Jesus Christ alone. The will of Jesus must be our way!

-“The beginning, supreme over all who rise from the dead.” Because He lives, death does not have the last word.

-“For God in all his fullness was pleased to live in Christ.” Jesus is the God-man… completely human and completely divine.

-“Through him God reconciled everything to himself.” “He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth by means of Christ’s blood on the cross.”

Supreme over Creation • Supreme over the Church • Supreme over Death • Supreme in Redemption

Conclusion: Jesus must govern our lives. When you recognize His supremacy, the only appropriate response is surrender. In everything — He is supreme!”

There’s Nobody Like Jesus!

The Priest We Need and the People We Must Become

Hebrews 5 New Living Translation

Lesson in a Line – Because Jesus is the perfect High Priest, we can approach God with confidence—but following Him requires us to grow beyond spiritual infancy.

Central Truth: Hebrews 5 shows us that there is nobody like Jesus because He does more than represent us before God as mediator/attorney. Jesus understands our weakness, accomplished our salvation through obedient suffering, and now calls us into spiritual maturity.

Introduction: Jesus is the High Priest nobody else could ever be.

A priest stands between God and humanity. In ancient Israel, the high priest carried the responsibility of representing the people before God. He offered sacrifices. He prayed for the people. He entered holy places on their behalf.

Hebrews 5 does not merely tell us something about the position of Jesus. It tells us what kind of Savior we have—and then challenges us to consider what kind of disciples we are becoming.

–Jesus understands our weakness… verses 1-4

Reference I Corinthians 15:10, Matthew 10:8

–Jesus obeyed through suffering… verses 5-10

Reference Psalm 2, Psalm 110, Luke 22:42

–Jesus expects us to grow… verses 11-14

Life Application: Jesus is presented as both our priest and pattern. He accomplished something we could never accomplish. He demonstrates the kind of obedient maturity God desires to develop within us.

-We never suffer before a Savior who cannot understand suffering.
-His obedience did not disappear when life became painful.
-Grace meets us where we are, but grace does not intend to leave us where we are.

Questions to Ponder:

1. Am I bringing my real struggles to Him, or am I trying to appear stronger than I actually am?
2. What has God taught me in difficulty that comfort could never have taught me?
3. What evidence can I identify that my relationship with Christ is producing greater obedience, discernment, and maturity?

Conclusion: Since there is nobody like Him, we should refuse to remain the same while following Him.