`Come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh'. `This shall be a token unto thee, that I have sent thee'.

`I AM hath sent me unto you'.

`The LORD God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you'

(Exod. 3:10,12,14,15).

It is possible that Moses had the promised Messiah in view when he said to the Lord, `Send, I pray Thee, by the

hand of Him Whom Thou wilt send' (Exod. 4:13). The immediate result of this continued hesitancy on the part of

Moses is the mention of Aaron, destined to be the High Priest. Moses apparently forfeited this office, and instead of

holding the office both of apostle and High Priest, this was now to be shared with his brother. Great as Moses was,

and great as every Jew held him to be, all must confess who know the truth that He who combined the two offices in

His one Person was greater. Thus it is that Moses is introduced in chapter 3. Christ has already been seen as greater

than angels.

He is now seen as greater than Moses: then greater than Joshua, greater than Aaron, and greater than all the

offerings of the law.

Christ is here called the Apostle and High Priest of our `profession'. What is the idea contained in the word

`profession' (homologia)? Hebrews uses the word three times:

`The Apostle and High Priest of our profession' (3:1).

`Let us hold fast our profession' (4:14).

`Let us hold fast the profession of our faith' (10:23).

Seeing that it is the profession of faith, the word indicates something which is subsequent to faith, parallel with

`the things which accompany salvation'. We view Christ here not as Redeemer, but as Apostle and High Priest of

our profession. This profession is further illustrated by use of the cognate homologeo.

`These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them,

and embraced them, and CONFESSED that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth' (Heb. 11:13).

`Let us go forth therefore unto Him without the camp, bearing His reproach. For here have we no continuing city, but

we seek one to come. By Him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of

our lips giving praise (CONFESSING) to His name' (Heb. 13:13-15).

Here the two references emphasize the stranger and pilgrim character of this profession of which Christ was

Apostle and High Priest. For this other-worldly character see 1 Timothy 6:12,13:

`Fight the good fight of faith (fight is the same word `race' as in Heb. 12:1) ... and hast professed a good

profession before many witnesses (witnesses, same word as Heb. 12:1) ... Christ Jesus, Who before Pontius Pilate

witnessed a good confession'.

It is evident by the balance of the words that the `good fight' is parallel with the `good confession'; and seeing

that the `fight' is the same as the `race' of Hebrews 12, the titles `Apostle and High Priest of our profession', and

`The Captain and Perfecter of faith', have much in common. As the Captain, He was the Apostle, the Sent One. As

the Perfecter, He was the High Priest, Who went back to God. The `profession' being the profession of `faith', is

another view of the particular aspect of faith exhibited in Hebrews 11; in other words the whole theme revolves

around the idea of pilgrim walk and perfecting. The holy brethren are exhorted to `consider' Christ as the Apostle

and High Priest of their profession. In close association with the final reference (10:23) recurs the word `consider'.

This time, however, the exhortation is to `consider one another' in view of the approaching day.

These holy brethren are addressed as `partakers of the heavenly calling'. It is essentially in harmony with the

perfecting of the pilgrim character, that those addressed should be called `partakers of the heavenly calling', and that

heavenly calling needs no further exposition than is given in Hebrews itself to make its scope and position clear to

A Partakers

Partakers of heavenly calling.