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Jesus is described in verse 26 as heavenly royalty, unlike the human race. Who of us is blameless, sinless and exhalted above the heavens? In this verse, He is far beyond what the eyes can see and what the mind can know. Jesus differs from human priests because of 1) His permanency with the Father and 2) no human priest is sinless and 3) royalty sits on the right hand of the Father, issuing redemptive grace and mercy on my poor whining soul! Having a permanent High Priest as Jesus allows me to put my faith into something bigger then what I can see with my natural eye. And from a natural realm of things, there are some manipulating, uncaring, sinful priests with ugly mannerisms walking around this city! ;-)

Jesus is able to save completely because He is the complete sacrifice and satisfying Intercessor to the Father. Because His priesthood is alive for all generations (unlike the old, superficial ancestory way of names or heritage or kingship)...there is no other complete way to the Father, except through His Son, Jesus. The essential function of a priest is to guide us closer to the Father; for we know not what we do, therefore, we seek the advice, guidance and closeness of the Father, through the priest. Being a priest means that you honor the Word of the Lord and you live according to the commands of the Lord. As a priest, your life in Christ should reflect scripture and all that God has ordained you to be--from His Word. This brings you closer and closer to Holiness with the Most High God and allows you to become a vessel, a messenger, and an intercessory prayer warrior--in order to help save the lost, out of Love--which is the way of a priest. A priest is the image of God.

Jesus is the guarantor of the New Covenant for the sense of security. Since God swore Jesus was priest forever, He lives forever! He guarantees power of life that cannot be destroyed--unlike ancestory law where nothing was ever made perfect or guaranteed to last. There is nothing on earth or in man that has the power to secure life. With God swearing to it, enough said.

Lowly places happen when we try to do life on our own, resulting in broken promises or finding little hope. I seek the face of God here on earth, and seek refuge or flee to my grantor of Grace because I recognize how powerless I am. While holding God as my refuge, I will stand on His promises, and I stand on the guarantee that man cannot live by bread alone, much less use one another as refuge. Christian hope dffers from man's hope (hoping for truth) by 'life everlasting'. Man may be able to throw a lifejacket to another man, but man cannot save another man's soul. Actively holding and embracing God in our lives means that we trust in Him and not ourselves. This embrace puts us in union with the anchor Himself and this embrace becomes our own 'oath' of a future to Him, for Him and with Him. Therefore our hope belongs to Him and not ourselves, resulting in life everlasting, joy, peace, good health and righteousness in all things. How encouraging!

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Part of keeping in good health is with exercise. With our Christian life, exercising patience and faith for the long haul means that no matter what time period we need to use it or have it, we must exercise it no matter what. I dont think you can borrow faith for just anytime or take it out on loan. The long haul to me means through it all! The perspective it gives us is that through anything, we shall not fear and we shall not want. We will have built ourselves up to be in good health and not wimp out on the overall objective here - eternity! Saying "pfffft" in the midst of a storm wont get you anywhere but disappointed with God. And since he is the author and finisher of our faith, the perspective should be to accept it, release it and move on. Let Him finish it! Thats exercising it. Once its turned over to Him, patience comes. That is if you truly let it go. The hard part is exercising our own will in letting him have it, in order to keep our Christian life fit. We can resist the temptation of thinking negative about our salvation by offering supplication.

A spirit-filled Christian today recieves all that is in verse 4-5; enlightenment, sharing in the Holy Spirit, goodness of God and powers of the coming age. I beleive the writer describes it this way in order to show us what we can choose to have or to show us what we can loose out on. It is either a closeness with God or else a distant relationship with Him. Being spirit-filled resembles what a pillow is to a mattress. It assists with its covering. For heavens sake, just sharing in the Holy Spirit alone is miraculous, and incredibly a gift that isn't wrapped in a box or with a bow!

First off, we need to determine what is meant by milk? If we cannot live by milk alone, or as the writer said: Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. Milk is simply something that fills the belly; it also offers calcium, and other vitamins needed to start a new life. And It may look good, it may last for a little while, but you can bet your baby bottle, that in a few hours, we will be starving and screaming for more! It only lasts a little while. Milk helps carry us in the beginning, yet makes us full over and over and over. We will never be completely satisfied with just milk. Sooner or later, our brain will need something new, our hair will need new nutrients, our bloodstream will need more vitamins. Yes milk is good for a new start but, we can not stay alive without having many deficiencies on just milk and we will eventually lack other growth harmones and our strength will wither away. Or as the chapter is titled, Fall Away. How do we become mature? We grow by eating the PROPER food and swallowing it; not throwing it up; not finding ways to stay slimmer; not reducing calories; not staying away from bread and potatoes ( of course ths is an example); not cheating ourselves of the proper teachings of scripture. In other words, we do not use man's diet, we use Gods diet to mature. Things we can do to mature in the word is: 1. Take hold of a bible. Hold it for a while. You may not have a glimps of whats inside, but at least commit to it. Keep it in mind and on your mind while driving, while riding the bus, at lunch, and while in the shower. Keep it in mind when jogging. When at your relatives. Think on it, even if you havent ever read it. 2. When the time arrives, open it. Read one paragraph at a time or as much as you can contain, retain and sustain. Close it. 3. Sit still, Listen to what you read. Ask yourself, do you know what you read? If you didnt know what it meant, close your eyes. 4. With your eyes closed, ask God this: " God, in all your power and mercy, please speak to me. God, reveal to me what the paragraph in your word means" Say this: "please Lord, I come to you with my heart open, my mind is clear and I need you to show me what it is you want me to learn. Help me Lord to mature in your word and to grow up strong. Take me off this milk Lord, that I can be a strong witness for you. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen". 5. Pick up the phone, call someone you know who can go over the chapter with you. If the other person is not available, close your eyes. 6. Sit still. Say this: "Dear Lord, take all of me. Use me to better do they will. Help me with scripture and your word so that my food makes me strong and so that it gives you all the glory" 7. Lastly, before you stand, stretch out your hands as far as they will reach and say" thank you Lord, I know you heard my prayer and I will be listening - thank you" and dont ever doubt that you will not mature by asking. Milk fills the belly but, solid food (the word) fills the soul and provides maturity and growth. We simply cannot get it by man alone or milk alone or any other way; alone or not.

Jesus learned obedience by Gods hand. As scripture reads, no one takes this honor upon himself. Men do not choose to suffer this way. Who would designate themselves to be lashed at as Jesus did? We do not offer ourselves as sarifices to be hung, beaten, ridiculed. In fact, we do all in our power to not suffer this way. By Jesus taking on the burden of Gods will for him to save us, he learned obedience without a fight. Thats a sheer sense of humility and acceptance. Something we all have trouble with. Jesus learned obedience from the sense of accepting his chosen position. I never once read where Jesus tried to take off running from his perpertrators--or hide from them or did he ever call the police.

Hello again fellow students of Hebrews. Although I'm laggin' behind with the studies, I wanted to stop in and share the news. If you havent already read or heard about it, it is exciting! Click here for the report - http://edition.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/meast/09...l.ap/index.html Be blessed.

We should come to the throne with confidence like the ambassadors that we are: joyful in heart & with gladness because our confidence testifies that we are walking in light and victory. Boldness is a sign that we agree with His Holiness and that we accept his promises as the truth. Otherwise, coming to the throne with doubt or with my head hanging down would mean that I may not have accepted the Written Word as it was written. Or perhaps that I may need to read it again. For we are saved by His grace - no matter what. Its pretty simple. Its glorious! Coming to the throne with confidence is evidence that I trust His Word, that He carrys me, that He forgave me, that He had mercy on me, as imperfect & as sinful as I am. The promise is that no matter what my needs are, Jesus went through it in every way & although he was without sin, He 'has gone through the heavens'. Since God offers me mercy & grace for my sins when I repent of them (and 13Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account) & once I agree, accept and seek the throne, the promise is once my heart is laid bare, I will want to be sinless, like Jesus. As a result, the basis is that God is a giver of Life, not death. Therefore justice is served to everyone, so that we may all receive it. Precisely why 12 'the word of God is living and active'.

Q2. (Hebrews 4:15) In what ways did Jesus share our weaknesses? In what ways was Jesus' tempted? Because we know he didn't sin, were his temptations easier or more difficult than ours? Do we have any temptations he didn't have? Why does it comfort us that he can sympathize with our temptations and weaknesses? Some ways Jesus was tempted or shared our weaknesses are: 1. In insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. 2. He was made like his brothers in every way (testing of our faith, lacking wisdom, believing and not doubting) 3. When we do not know what we ought to pray for (Rom8: 26) and at the last hour, we cry out to GOD.

(Mark13:37-40 He answered, "The one who sowed the good seed is the Son of Man. The field is the world, and the good seed stands for the sons of the kingdom. The weeds are the sons of the evil one, and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels. As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world.) We hold fast our confession because weeds grow fast/multiply and will choke & smother the good fruit, or harvest. We hold fast, to constantly be prepared for attacks by the sons of the evil one. We confess in order to stand as sons of the kingdom and to claim our place in the kingdom of God. And to not be a tare. Our confession of faith is that Jesus hung alive, on the cross, and died for our sins. And on the 3rd day, he rose again and ascended into heaven to sit at the right hand of the Father. Our confession is that we say with our mouth as Pastor said - that Jesus is Lord. Its when we wont keep what we said with our mouth. Then we are in trouble. Why is maintaining this confession so vital? Dueteronomy 23:21-23 says: If you make a vow to the LORD your God, do not be slow to pay it, for the LORD your God will certainly demand it of you and you will be guilty of sin. But if you refrain from making a vow, you will not be guilty. Whatever your lips utter you must be sure to do, because you made your vow freely to the LORD your God with your own mouth. I believe professing, confessing & asking Christ into my heart is a vow. He reigns over my life and so if I ask Him to guide me, surely I promise to be what he asks me to be. This assures (verse 13) " ...all things are open and exposed" but, to God.

'For the Word of God is living and active' relates again to TODAY. It is our means of provision today, our means of forgiveness of sins today and our true sword to combat death and sin today. The Word is living and alive to assist us in gathering lost sheep and is again, for beleivers who labor (hear and do), in order to enter rest. It is for sinners who need to find rest. It is so that we may ALL give account to Him. And by Him judging our thoughts and attitudes, we are to labor even more at being more like Christ. We need to continually expose ourselves to the Word, as the writer says: "so that no one will fall by following their example of disobedience" or so we will not fall into the way of the world, even though we are in it.