Thankfulness and Praise in Hebrews 1:9

“…of the Son He says, ‘…You have loved righteousness and hated lawlessness; therefore God, Your God, has anointed You with the oil of gladness above Your companions’” (Hebrews 1:8,9).

I am thankful for the Son’s passion for absolute truth and its application in judgment and righteousness – and that as a result of this the Father has enthroned His Son with a Spirit-filled gladness.

As the Father continues speaking of His Son in the letter to the Hebrews, the Holy Spirit gives us the words of Psalm 45:7.

While in Hebrews 1:8//Psalm 45:6 the Father calls the Son “God,” in Hebrews 1:9//Psalm 45:7 the Father self-identifies as the God of the Son. Father and Son are both God. They are not two gods, for the Bible is abundantly clear that there is only one God. The Father is not the Son and the Son is not the Father. They are distinct Persons Who are both the one God.

A lot of people, including people who do not believe in Him or the Scripture which bears witness to Him, try to make statements about what Jesus is. They tell us that Jesus only helped people, affirmed people, never issued statements about sin or judgment, and was the very model of tolerance for today’s anything-goes society. However, the Bible – the only source for authoritative truth about Jesus – does not tell us of a Jesus Who looks exactly like the government-enforced tolerance of today. It tells us of a Jesus Who was zealous for the Law of His Father.

In the first sermon we have recorded from Jesus in “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father Who is in heaven will enter. Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; [as it says in Psalm 6:8] depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness’” (Matthew 7:21-23). The Son, Who hates lawlessness (Hebrews 1:9), does not have a relationship with the lawless, and will not permit them in His royal presence in “the kingdom of heaven.” They won’t be there if they spurn the Law of God. Those who truly call Jesus “Lord” have a different relationship with the Law of God than the lost world: “…just as you presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness, resulting in further lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness, resulting in sanctification” (Romans 6:19).[1] Further, they have a different relationship with the world of the lawless: “Do not be bound together with unbelievers; for what partnership have righteousness and lawlessness, or what fellowship has light with darkness? Or what harmony has Christ with Belial, or what has a believer in common with an unbeliever? Or what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God; just as God said, ‘“I will dwell in them [Leviticus 26:12] and walk among them; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. Therefore, come out from their midst and be separate [Isaiah 52:11],” says the Lord. “And do not touch what is unclean; and I will welcome you. And I will be a father to you, and you shall be sons and daughters to Me,” says the Lord Almighty’” (2 Corinthians 6:14-18).

A day will come when the King Who hates lawlessness will separate pretenders out of His Kingdom: “The Son of Man will send forth His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all stumbling blocks, and those who commit lawlessness, and will throw them into the furnace of fire; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then [as it says in Daniel 12:3] the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear” (Matthew 13:40-43).

Is this discussion only about Law – are we moving our Christianity into that hated camp of “Legalism” with all this talk of lawlessness and Jesus’ hatred of it? No.

In our congregation, we observe the Lord’s Supper every week. When we hold up the cup together, we hear Jesus’ words with that cup: “This cup is the new covenant in My blood; do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me” (Luke 22:20; 1 Corinthians 11:25). We make a claim to the new covenant (and its promises) at the Table, a claim sealed by the blood of Jesus alone. One of those promises graciously frees us from our lawlessness: “And the Holy Spirit also testifies to us; for after saying [in Jeremiah 31:33], ‘“This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days,” says the Lord: “I will put My laws upon their heart, and on their mind I will write them,”’ He then says [in Jeremiah 31:34], ‘“And their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more”’ (Hebrews 10:15-17).[2] We do not preach legalism as the remedy from lawlessness. We lift up the cup, make a claim to the new covenant by faith, and rejoice in God’s promise to write His Law on our hearts by His Spirit and embrace the forgiveness from lawlessness which is ours by faith in Jesus Christ. Rejoice. “…to the one who does not work [deeds of the Law to earn salvation], but believes in Him Who justifies the ungodly, his faith is credited as righteousness, just as David also speaks [in Psalm 32:1,2] of the blessing on the man to whom God credits righteousness apart from works: ‘Blessed are those whose lawless deeds have been forgiven, and whose sins have been covered. Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord will not take into account’” (Romans 4:5-8). This “blessing” is a covenant blessing. It is ours not because we obey the Law. It is ours because of the saving work of Jesus Christ. The other covenant blessing is that the Law is written on our hearts. Law-keeping is not an obligation that keeps us in covenant – only the Holy Spirit seals us in the covenant which is inaugurated by the blood of Jesus. Law-keeping is not a condition. It is a benefit, a blessing. In this new covenant, our lawlessness is forgotten and the Law is written on our hearts. That which the King hates is removed from those united to the King in a covenant that has all its conditions met by the King Himself. Praise Him with great praise!

This King Who hates lawlessness has, as a result of His faithfulness to the Father’s Law, has been anointed with the Spirit of gladness. This is part of the text from another of Jesus’ early sermons: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He anointed Me to preach the Gospel…” (Luke 4:18//Isaiah 61:1; see also Acts 10:38). This Spirit produces a Gospel-purpose, a Christ-centeredness – and a God-given gladness.

We see this God-given gladness at least twice in the New Testament:

• “At that very time [the Son] rejoiced greatly in the Holy Spirit, and said, ‘I praise You, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth’” (Luke 10:21).
• Peter quotes Psalm 16 in Acts 2:25-31. He tells us that David “was a prophet” and was speaking about the resurrection of Jesus Christ. He gives us this testimony of the Son concerning the resurrection: “…my heart was glad and my tongue exulted” (Acts 2:26//Psalm 16:9).

The Son-King’s hatred of lawlessness results in the Father’s eternal giving of His Spirit of gladness to the Son – and through the Son to those united with the Son by faith. With Jesus, let us love God’s Law by the Spirit He has given those who believe in Him. There is gladness here. Praise Him with great praise!

Looking toward Signal Peak from Tadpole Ridge,
Gila National Forest, New Mexico, U.S.A.

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[1] “For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men, instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age, looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus, Who gave Himself for us to redeem us from every lawless deed, and to purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds” (Titus 2:11-14).

[2] Notice that the Holy Spirit is speaking (present tense), though the writer of Hebrews is quoting Scripture over six centuries old. The Holy Spirit’s speaking through the text He authored is always now.

Choking on the Psalm

“O LORD, do not rebuke me in Your anger,

Nor chasten me in Your wrath.

Be gracious to me, O LORD, for I am pining away;

Heal me, O LORD, for my bones are dismayed.

And my soul is greatly dismayed;

But You, O LORD - how long?

Return, O LORD, rescue my soul;

Save me because of Your lovingkindness.

For there is no mention of You in death;

In Sheol who will give You thanks?

I am weary with my sighing;

Every night I make my bed swim,

I dissolve my couch with my tears.

My eye has wasted away with grief;

It has become old because of all my adversaries.

Depart from me, all you who do iniquity,

For the LORD has heard the voice of my weeping.

The LORD has heard my supplication,

The LORD receives my prayer.

All my enemies will be ashamed and greatly dismayed;

They shall turn back, they will suddenly be ashamed” (Psalm 6:1-10).

Me. My favorite topic. That’s how I consistently want to read the Scripture – through the interpretive framework of the most important person in the universe. Me, me, me. Then I get to verse 8a, where the Psalmist says, “depart from me, all you who do iniquity.” My first instinct is to think of all those workers of iniquity I’d like to banish from my presence. Nasty sinners. Mean people. Insensitive grumps. Ignorant Philistines. That’s the instinct. My self-centered, self-righteous, foolish, and sinful instinct. Because even as I try to pray this phrase as my own, I hear a much more authoritative Voice speaking these words...

“Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes nor figs from thistles, are they? So every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. So then, you will know them by their fruits. Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father Who is in heaven will enter. Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; [as it says in Psalm 6:8a] depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness’” (Matthew 7:15-23).

Oh. This isn’t my Psalm. It’s my Lord’s song and prayer. A Psalm of David, the prophet of the risen Lord Jesus (Acts 2:30,31). Now I have to go back and re-read the Psalm, hearing my Master and Savior pray it in the long dark nights between dealing patiently with the needy and slow-to-believe. I have to hear His voice as He is hounded by the religious proud in their schemes. As He is rejected. Condemned. Scorned. Shamed. As He receives the cup – my cup (the one place I can say “me” is in the deserved wrathful dregs) – from His Father. As the Father rejects Him because of my iniquity, my lawlessness.

It’s not my song. It’s His.

“Return, O LORD, rescue my soul;

Save me because of Your lovingkindness.

For there is no mention of You in death;

In Sheol who will give You thanks?” (6:4,5).

And because it’s the song of His perfect, sinless, beloved Son, the Father hears the prayer and there is a third day, a resurrection day, the Lord’s Day.

“In the days of His flesh, He offered up both prayers and supplications with loud crying and tears to the One able to save Him from death, and He was heard because of His piety” (Hebrews 5:7).

He sang the song, and He was heard. Hallelujah, He was heard!

“For the LORD has heard the voice of My weeping.

The LORD has heard My supplication,

The LORD receives My prayer” (Psalm 6:8b,9).

In the midst of this is the command to “depart from Me, all you who do iniquity.” When the Lord quotes it to His disciples, He says, “you who practice lawlessness” (those whose religion is the twisting, perverting, ignoring, and breaking of God’s Law).

The Psalm teaches us that the resurrection is an announcement of judgment against the enemies of the risen Christ. He will give command that His angels remove the lawless from His Kingdom (Matthew 13:41), for He hates lawlessness (Hebrews 1:9, quoting Psalm 45:7).

Lest this “Lord’s Prayer” become a cause of deep grief, beloved...

...remember the blessing: “But to the one who does not work [for his salvation], but believes in Him Who justifies the ungodly, his faith is credited as righteousness, just as David [in Psalm 32:1,2] also speaks of the blessing on the man to whom God credits righteousness apart from works: ‘Blessed are those who lawless deeds have been forgiven, and whose sins have been covered. Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord will not take into account.’ Is this blessing then on the circumcised, or on the uncircumcised also? For we say [with Genesis 15:6], ‘faith was credited to Abraham as righteousness.’ How then was it credited? While he was circumcised, or uncircumcised? Not while circumcised, but while uncircumcised; and he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had while uncircumcised, so that he might be the father of all who believe without being circumcised, that righteousness might be credited to them, and the father of circumcision to those who not only are of the circumcision, but who also follow in the steps of the faith of our father Abraham which he had while uncircumcised...now not for his sake only was it written that it was credited to him, but for our sake also, to whom it will be credited, as those who believe in Him Who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead, He Who was delivered over because of our transgressions, and was raised because of our justification” (Romans 4:5-12,23-25).

...remember the great purchase: “...our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus...gave Himself for us to redeem us from every lawless deed, and to purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds” (Titus 2:13,14).

...remember the covenant with every lifting of the cup (for the cup points to the blood of the covenant, Luke 22:20; 1 Corinthians 11:25): “And the Holy Spirit also testifies to us; for after saying [in Jeremiah 31:33,34], ‘“This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days,” says the Lord: “I will put My laws upon their heart, and on their mind I will write them,” He then says, “And their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.” Now where there is forgiveness of these things, there is no longer any offering for sin. Therefore, brethren, since we have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which He inaugurated for us through the veil, that is, His flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He Who promised is faithful; and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near” (Hebrews 10:15-25).

Ah, the daily reading of the Psalms for this sinner: taking a big, deep breath to sing it out loudly from a self-centered heart, only to have the words get caught in my throat, choking on the Psalm, as I realize the Lord prayed them concerning me, the sinner, and then to realize that in the Father answering this petition from the Son through resurrection, I have life, too. It is beautiful beyond art and infinitely wiser than merely human words. It is gracious beyond what even the most perfect me I can imagine could ever deserve. It is the barest of tastes of how the days of eternity will be spent, for “in the ages to come He [will] show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus” (Ephesians 2:7).

He is good, and His merciful covenant-love endures forever and ever and ever...

Give Them the Sermon

Let me get this straight: lawyers from a major U.S. city subpoena sermon notes & recordings concerning anything said in the pulpit concerning a controversial law and/or the major who supported the law and/or anything topically related to the content of the law, and the general majority response of the church and pastors is basically, “h**l no, we won’t go”?!

Dr. Moore (whom I normally enjoy reading) of the S.B.C.’s Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission even managed to dig up a Bible reference to defend this attitude: “The churches, and pastors, of Houston ought to respond to this sort of government order with the same kind of defiance the Apostle Paul showed the magistrates in Philippi. After an earthquake, sent by God, upturned the prison where Paul and Silas were held, Luke tells us that the officials sent the police to tell Paul and Silas they could go. Paul replied. ‘They have beaten us publicly, uncondemned men who are Roman citizens and have thrown us into prison; and do they now throw us out secretly. No! Let them come themselves and take us out’ (Acts 16:37).”

Seriously? Why are we surprised by these subpoenas? Are we still so theologically thin that we think unbelievers will always act with logical consistence, clarity of thought, reason-guided passions, and true “liberty and justice for all”?

First, regardless of where you stand on apocalyptic biblical texts, it seems clear that just a cursory reading of them indicate difficult times for believers, be it in the past, present, or future (Daniel 7:17-26; Revelation 11:3-7; 12:17; 13:6,7; cf. John 15:19-21; 16:33; Acts 14:22; 2 Timothy 3:12). “He will speak out against the Most High and wear down the saints of the Highest One, and he will intend to make alterations in times and in law; and they will be given into his hand for a time, times, and half a time” (Daniel 7:25). “They will be given.” Who does the “giving”? Who measures the “time, times, and half a time”? Who’s in charge?

Secondly, and – most importantly from a Great Commission standpoint - why in the world wouldn’t we joyfully turn over every single sermon we’ve ever written and preached (they’re probably all on these churches websites for all to access anyway)?

“Whoever does not receive you, nor heed your words, as you go out of that house or that city, shake the dust off your feet. Truly I say to you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city. Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves; so be shrewd as serpents and innocent as doves. But beware of men, for they will hand you over to the courts and scourge you in their synagogues; and you will even be brought before governors and kings for My sake, as a testimony to them and to the Gentiles. But when they hand you over, do not worry about how or what you are to say; for it will be given you in that hour what you are to say. For it is not you who speak, but it is the Spirit of your Father who speaks in you. Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child; and children will rise up against parents and cause them to be put to death. You will be hated by all because of My name, but it is the one who has endured to the end who will be saved” (Matthew 10:14-22).

“But be on your guard; for they will deliver you to the courts, and you will be flogged in the synagogues, and you will stand before governors and kings for My sake, as a testimony to them. The gospel must first be preached to all the nations. When they arrest you and hand you over, do not worry beforehand about what you are to say, but say whatever is given you in that hour; for it is not you who speak, but it is the Holy Spirit. Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child; and children will rise up against parents and have them put to death. You will be hated by all because of My name, but the one who endures to the end, he will be saved” (Mark 13:9-13).

“But before all these things, they will lay their hands on you and will persecute you, delivering you to the synagogues and prisons, bringing you before kings and governors for My name’s sake. It will lead to an opportunity for your testimony. So make up your minds not to prepare beforehand to defend yourselves; for I will give you utterance and wisdom which none of your opponents will be able to resist or refute. But you will be betrayed even by parents and brothers and relatives and friends, and they will put some of you to death, and you will be hated by all because of My name. Yet not a hair of your head will perish. By your endurance you will gain your lives” (Luke 21:12-19).

I interpret these passages to be exclusively about the events leading up to and including the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans in A.D. 70, but I know that most people understand these passages to refer to the “end times.” Given that popular approach to these red-letter passages, where do we find the civil disobedience as far as sermon material goes? Don’t we find the opposite, whether we interpret this to be general principle or specific command? Doesn’t the Lord tell us we will be brought before the government for the purpose of the Trinity (Father, Matthew 10:20; Son, Luke 21:15; Spirit, Mark 13:11), that He might speak through us as a testimony? Why wouldn’t we want city lawyers and their masters to hear the Word? Hopefully somewhere in these sermons the Gospel was presented and the Word faithfully taught – if not, why were any other things said in the pulpit?

Hopefully we have faith that the proclamation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ is a means of saving grace through the effectual calling of God the Holy Spirit when and with whomever He sovereignly chooses to extend it. After all, we were saved by it. These who oppose are not greater sinners than we ourselves were, are they? They are not deader in their transgressions and sins (Ephesians 2:1), more committed to being enemies of God (Romans 5:10), more faithful to dad the devil (John 8:43,44), are they? If so, we have a more serious problem – you don’t have a Christian view of the lostness of humanity and the grace of God, but ultimately have a thinly-veiled merit-based religion. I don’t believe that to be true of any of you protestors in this situation (I write this way by means of illustration). We believe in the Gospel of Jesus Christ, that – by the power of the Spirit – saves absolutely dead human beings from their sin and the wrath of God against that sin and brings them into right relationship with their Creator through the work of Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit unto rebirth and eternal life by His great and amazing grace through faith. The dead – be they us formerly or massive cities of the lost with their democratically-elected leaders presently – can be brought to life by the Word of Christ. Give them the Word.

“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances” (Amendment I, December 15, 1791). Our confidence must not be in the Bill of Rights, magnificent as it is for a man-created document. The lostness of humanity and the Scriptures teach us that, apart from the divine imposition of general grace, there can be no legal or logical consistency when it comes to the people of God in Christ. We will be hated because they hated our Lord first (John 15:18). We need to be cautious about filtering our response through either American convictions or warrior bravado more than we do through Scripture. The Church is, and always will be, “the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and support of the truth” (1 Timothy 3:15). We are far more than non-profit incorporations under the laws of this government or that government. We are something eternal and unstoppable. And we have the only message of life, life, eternal life.

I appreciate these pastors so much and all who speak out as heralds of the truth of the Word of God (despite how my over-use of rhetorical questions may skew perception of my attitude). I don’t think I’m bringing up Bible verses these guys (or you) have never read or heard. Of course not. Sometimes, though, in the emotional reaction to lawlessness (which is what these subpoenas are) and astoundingly corrupted logic, we momentarily get shifted on our firm theological/biblical foundations. Brothers and sisters, the lost cannot think or act with consistent justice or logic (2 Kings 17:15; Romans 1:21; Ephesians 4:17,18). I am reminding us that the same Word which declares the folly of the world to be lawless sin also clearly lays out the consequences for proclaiming that Word and being faithful to its Author. Keep fighting, but be sober and prayerful, not shocked and dismayed. May we preach “faith in Christ Jesus” (which Acts 24:24,25 says includes “righteousness, self-control, and the judgment to come”) even more firmly anchored to the Word with “great sorrow and unceasing grief” (Romans 9:2) for their ensnarement to “the devil, since they have been held captive by him to do his will” (2 Timothy 2:24-26). This is a spiritual battle - the legal and political is necessary but not ultimate. Prayerfully proclaim the truth louder and stronger with hearts broken for those still in absolute darkness.

Give them the sermon.

The Hatred of the Son of God

“But of the Son He says, ‘you have...hated LAWLESSNESS...’” (Hebrews 1:8,9, quoting Psalm 45:6,7).

“For by one offering He [the Son] has perfected for all time those who are sanctified. And the Holy Spirit also testifies to us; for after saying, ‘This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, says the Lord: I will put My laws upon their heart, and on their mind I will write them," He then says, ‘And their sins and THEIR LAWLESS DEEDS I will remember no more’” (Hebrews 10:14-17, quoting Jeremiah 31:33,34).

Son of God, thank you for saving us from that which You hate – and saving us from Your hate!