In chapter three of the letter to the Hebrews the inspired author tells the readers that Jesus is superior to Moses. This is significant in many respects, and the writer does this to remind them of their new faith and responsibility to the gospel.
Moses And The Old Covenant
In doing this the writer uses his great Old Testament knowledge and referenced Numbers 12:7-8 and Psalm 95:7-11 in Hebrews 3:3-5. This selection from the Pentateuch describes Moses as the agent by which God gave his revelation to the Israelites.
This particular story recounts the rebellion of the house of Israel, and parallels the disobedience of the recipients of the letter. Hebrews 3 is motivational in nature, and is building the case from history that those who rebelled did not see the promised land.
Christ “The Builder”
In the beginning of the chapter the writer points out that Moses and Christ both function in the house of God. However, Moses was a servant in the house and Christ is the builder of the house. As a result of him being the builder he is entitled to more superiority than the house itself.
This is important for the hearers to understand because it bring in an important typology between his letter and the Moses account.
Moses led the people through the desert for forty years. However the people were disobedient and he was not able to lead them into the promised land.
Christ “Greater Than Moses”
Christ is described as faithful, and as a result will lead his people to Heaven if they remain faithful and persevere. The purpose that Moses served was to point to further revelation, and the fullness of that revelation is found in Christ.
Jesus says this himself in John 5:46 when he says, “If you believed Moses, you would believe me, for he wrote about me.” The implications for Christians today are very similar to the recipients of the letter. We are to hold to the hope that can be found only in Christ.
We see examples of everyday of those who profess Christ, but who do not mature and do not know their faith. When the first sign of difficulty comes along they are no longer seen in church.
The world today is becoming more and more hostile to the Christian faith, but we must be bold and stand for the truth. Just like the Hebrews, we will be considered part of the people of God if we hold fast to the Christian Faith.
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