CROSS The Meaning of 'Baptisms' in Hebrews 6.2 171
The letter to the Hebrews was sent to a group of Christians experiencing
a crisis of faith and who were at the point of abandoning their faith. Writ-
ten to a church of second generation Christians (2.3-4),^36 the problems
facing them appear to have included ostracism from society and the threat
of persecution (12.4; 13.13-14). As a result, a major theme which perme-
ates the whole of the book is the privilege and costliness of Christian
discipleship, and the author calls on both the example of Jesus Christ and
the heroes and heroines of the faith (ch. 11) to encourage and inspire the
church's faithfulness under persecution (12.2-4).^37
The focus of Hebrews' Christology is the high priesthood of Christ.
'The main argument of the book is that the Old Testament priestly insti-tution was only a shadow of reality and could not deal with the problem of
sin. The heavenly reality has come near in the death of Jesus by which he
put away sin once for all.'^38 In the course of the author's development of
this theme, there occur many references to Jesus' suffering and sacrifice
(principally in chs. 7-10, though the broader discussion spans chs. 3-10).
A clear contrast is drawn between the inadequacy of the sacrifices underthe law with the effectiveness and finality of Jesus' sacrifice (10.1-18). His
sacrifice to God is a vicarious one (7.27), by which sin is put away (9.26)
and purification for humanity's sins is made (1.3). Having tasted death for
all people (2.9) he has accomplished the atonement for humanity's sins
(2.17). The author uses this Christology to exhort the Christian community
to keep the faith in the face of persecution (cf. 10.32 and 12.4) and not to
fall away. This gives rise to the extended parenetic passages of the letter
(2.1-4; 3.7-4.13; 5.11-6.12; 10.19-39 and 12.14-29), within and around
which the author frequently sets the example of Christ before his readers.
Jesus was like them in every way (2.17) and like them suffered when
tempted (2.18 and 4.15). There is no suggestion of docetism in Hebrews,
for Christ's suffering was very real, for, as 5.7 says, during his earthly life- See Attridge, Hebrews, p. 12.
- Attridge, Hebrews, p. 13: 'it would appear that the author conceives of the
threat to the community in two broad but interrelated categories, external pressure or
"persecution" (10.36-12.13) and a waning commitment to the community's confessed
faith. To the first he responds with his stern warnings and his exhortations to faithful
discipleship. To the second he proposes a renewed and deepened understanding of the
community's confession that will inspire covenant fidelity.' - G.E. Ladd,^ Theology of the New Testament (London: Lutterworth Press, 1974),
p. 578: see the whole of his discussion of Christology, pp. 577-84. See also B. Lindars,
The Theology of the Letter to the Hebrews (NTT; Cambridge: Cambridge Universty
Press, 1991), pp. 58-101, on the priesthood and sacrifice of Christ.