HEB 13:8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.

Dr Tong started by revising the lesson in the previous session. We are reminded to be thankful for those who brought us to Christ, and to learn from their lives, drawing strength if they persevered till the end, and catching the warning if they should fall. The LORD wants us not only to run quickly, He wants us to run further and ultimately finish the race. The LORD is not pleased with someone who falls backwards, or who gives up half way.

The author suddenly seems to change track, and made a bold declaration that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. This verse seems out of place, since the previous verse is about remembering past saints, while the next verse is about not being carried away by strange teachings. By putting a verse like this into these two verses, the author was affirming that in the midst of changes, Jesus Christ is the only foundation that does not change.

Dr Tong then analyzed the verse by referring to the philosophies of the world. About 400 years ago, the Greek philosopher Plato asked the question if we can find an unchanging foundation in an ever-changing world. Plato was a brilliant philosopher, and it has been said that within the minds of Socrates, Plato and Aristotle, all possible questions that humanity can raise had been raised and discussed. Plato believed that there must be something in this world that is eternal, perfect, most complete. But we all know that this world is not perfect, although ironically, imperfect human beings aspire for better things, or actions that surpass the self; in other words, imperfect human beings seek perfection. For example, everyone of us wants to marry someone who is beautiful or handsome, regardless of what we ourselves look like. We seek the in-contingent substance from a contingent world.

But is perfection a result of our quest, or is it something that came about suddenly? This idea of perfection, is it something that we can have faith in, or something silly and impractical, or maybe even superstitious? Plato believed that this perfect world cannot possibly exist in this imperfect world of ours, and must exist only within our concepts or minds. So his world was divided into two, a perfect world existing in the realm of imagination, and the present imperfect 'real' world. Since the perfect world cannot be proven through our usual methods, Plato believed that there must then be a god who will help the people believe in this world, and hence be easily controlled. All these are of course conjunctions by Plato, since he was never able to know of God's own revelation. He merely proposed all these concepts based on his best guess.

His student Aristotle, was also a brilliant philosopher, so much so that Plato said that his academy was formed only of two things: the entire student body, and the brain of Aristotle. Aristotle insisted in knowing the actual 'where' of this perfect world. He was not satisfied that it remains only in the realm of imagination, or within Plato's mind. Aristotle figured that since the mind of Plato that thought of this perfect world exists within the present world, there is no such thing as another world. He proposed instead that matter and form are the same thing, and there are no differences between the two world.

Dr Tong spent quite a bit of time talking about these approaches and philosophical development in history, all to point out that mankind had been trying hard to figure out this idea of perfection, of eternity in a temporal world. The author of Hebrews in the midst of human history made this most revolutionary proclamation. To the question if there is a perfection in an imperfect world, or if there is eternity in a temporal world, the author proclaimed that the eternal one Himself came to this temporal world. This historical Jesus Christ was not just a figment of our imagination, but the eternal one Himself, transcending all constraints of time-space, the same yesterday and today and tomorrow. In light of what we know from these great thinkers, we should understand then that the Bible is truly a remarkable book, the revelation of a wisdom unfound on earth.

This verse tells us that the solution to all our seeking lies in the fact that God has given us His grace from above. It is of His own grace, not the result of us seeking heaven from below. The Jesus Christ of yesterday was a historical fact, a human being born in the little town of Bethlehem. God came to live in the world that He has created. So eternity came to live within the temporal world, giving us a true hope. The eternal one also revealed Himself as faithful, and unchanging. So when we seek after eternity and are one with Him, we will not be placing our hope on a mere imagination, but the absolute and eternal one Himself.

Dr Tong said that the key is to note that the author used the words Jesus Christ. Not just Jesus, or just Christ; but Jesus Christ. The author was clear about the nature of Jesus Christ as fully man, and fully God. As Jesus, He lived among us and experienced every sorrow we have, except that He never sinned. As God, His divinity enables us to fully trust in Him and have our faith built upon this firm foundation. The Bible tells us that He is the creator, the sustainer, the revealer, the redeemer and the final judge. For all eternity, He would be the same and is therefore absolutely trustworthy.

Many preachers hold on dearly to this verse, but for the wrong reasons. Many preachers who advocate signs and wonders especially like to quote this verse, insisting that since Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever, then He will continue to do the same things as He did while He was on earth. So since Jesus Christ healed the sick back then, He must still be doing the same today because this verse says so. Dr Tong said that the simplest test on the fallacy of this assumption is to flow along the same argument. If this verse is to be interpreted as claimed by these people, then one needs to also remember that Jesus Christ raised the dead three times during His ministry on earth. Therefore, the proponents of such interpretation should also be able to raise the dead today, since Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. Obviously no one has been able to demonstrate this at all. Clearly, this interpretation is faulty. Dr Tong said that the fact is that this verse has far more significance than such superficial interpretation, for it affirm the fact that the in-contingent God came into human history, and will never ever change. Therefore, it does not matter what our circumstances may be, we can rest assure that Jesus Christ will reign, as He did yesterday and today and forevermore.

Dr Tong ended by giving a moving illustration. When He was preaching at Toronto, he was invited to go visit a lake named Port Hope. Dr Tong did not think much about the scenery. The host told Dr Tong that upon this lake long ago, a young man witnessed the drowning of his fiancée on the eve of his wedding, and yet the same man later wrote the great hymn "What a friend we have in Jesus" (I found out that the person was Joseph Scriven, whose second fiancée also died before they got married). Dr Tong said that he was greatly moved, because despite of the many setbacks in life, Joseph Scriven understood that Jesus Christ is faithful and unchanging, yesterday and today and forever. This, said Dr Tong, is really what this verse is all about, empowering us to weather all the storms of our life, confident in the faithfulness of our LORD who never, ever change and whose promises will surely be kept.

Disclaimer: This summary does NOT represent the official position of STEMI (Stephen Tong Evangelistic Ministry International), and is the personal opinion of the author, expressed without prejudice. Expressed opinions are meant for academic discussions only.