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Front & Center (Hebrews)
Introduction to Hebrews
Group Resources
For the Week of November 2, 2014
Purpose: This week serves as an overview to the Epistle to the Hebrews. The purpose is to provide a big picture look at the Epistle and get a grasp of the context within the New Testament.
General note. Hebrews is one of the more difficult books in the New Testament to fully understand, yet, at the same time, it was one of the more doctrinally rich books in Scripture and provides a stunning view of Jesus Christ as the author and finisher of our faith.
To help your Lighthouse get a good overview to Hebrews, I am providing a short video by R.C. Sproul. This is part of his From Dust to Glory teaching series that serves as an excellent survey of the entire Bible. This is the episode on Hebrews. (The entire series is available via RightNow Media.) The video is 23 minutes long. This is your Lighthouse lesson for the week of 11/2.
IMPORTANT: The video is available in the following formats:
- Streaming via RightNow Media:
https://www.rightnow.org/Media/Series/3200 - Streaming directly (password = see leader email or contact Chris):
https://vimeo.com/108940931 - DVD Video copy. NOTE: If you want a DVD copy of the video to show to your Lighthouse, let me know (via email) and I will get you a copy.
Be sure you have a way to show the video to your Lighthouse.
Read Portions of Hebrews Aloud
Hebrews is referred to as a “sermonic letter.” While the text refers to this as an epistle (Heb. 13:22), the format of the text is much more like a sermon that would have been delivered in the First Century Church. Obviously, without the mass media we have at our disposal today, the early Christians relied on contemporary means to communicate. Many of Paul’s letters to the various churches would have been hand copied and then read aloud to the congregation.
To get a feel for what a First Century church service would have been like, take some time to read portions of the first four chapters of Hebrews during your Lighthouse. You can either have one person read the text or take turns. Explain to your Lighthouse that this is a good recreation of how the early Church would have first heard the words of Hebrews.
Sermon in a Sentence: “Hebrews teaches us that God has spoken historically, and finally through Jesus, for He is the ultimate and greatest expression of God’s voice—the Son, the Creator, the Revealer, the Sustainer, the Savior, the Victor—God incarnate!”
This Week’s Resources:
- The Compass Bible Study
- Sermon Notes & Discussion Guide FFCA | FFCB
- Lighthouse Leader Study Guide
ChrisEller.org | Connect the dots. 