The Sufficiency of Jesus
In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things Hebrews 1:1,2
The earliest church was made up of Jewish background Christians, and even as the church grew, it still consisted largely of many who clung to an observance of the law and attended the temple or synagogue, though they trusted for their salvation in Jesus, the Messiah. The tension between Jewish Christians and traditional Judaism was fuelled by two other major factors:
(1) from the day of Pentecost, the universality of the gospel had been proclaimed (Acts 2:39). The Jew’s exclusive standing before God was now being challenged. The concept of uniting with Gentiles in a bond of common fellowship was not only foreign but repugnant to almost every Jew (cf. Acts 10:14,28).
(2) because Judaism as a religion and Judaism as a political system were one, the fall of Jerusalem in 70AD left the Jew without a temple, without a government and effectively, without Judaism as it had been known for generations. As had occurred in 587BC when the original temple had been destroyed, Judaism’s worship was now focused through the study of the law.
For a Jewish Christian to turn from law to grace, and from Jerusalem as the centre of worship to their own churches, was to be branded a traitor by their countrymen who were loyal to the law. But if they went back to the law, they would be abandoning Christ and would lose all that He came to bring.
The letter we know as ‘Hebrews’ was written to an unknown but specific group of (predominately) Jewish Christians, possibly a house church in Rome (13:24) that was opting out of relationships with the wider Christian community (10:25;13:7,17). The community was facing increased persecution (10:32-39;12:4) and probably some doubt as to whether Christ’s sacrifice was sufficient to secure their complete forgiveness.
Western Christianity faces a parallel problem with many believers holding loosely to Christ but turning away from the church.
There is no single answer to this problem but it needs to be said over and over: Jesus Christ is God’s sole and sufficient answer to all the spiritual needs of every man, woman and child.
The slide away from the church is not because of any lack on Christ’s part. He completely satisfies those who completely take hold of Him.
Nothing has to be added to Christ and nothing can ever be taken from Him.
To listen to this message, download in MP3 here