Hebrews

Chapter One

Message Four

Heb 1

1 God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets,

2 Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;

3 Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high;

4 Being made so much better than the angels, as he hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they.

5 For unto which of the angels said he at any time, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee? And again, I will be to him a Father, and he shall be to me a Son?

6 And again, when he bringeth in the firstbegotten into the world, he saith, And let all the angels of God worship him.

7 And of the angels he saith, Who maketh his angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire.

8 But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom.

9 Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows.

10 And, Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of thine hands:

11 They shall perish; but thou remainest; and they all shall wax old as doth a garment;

12 And as a vesture shalt thou fold them up, and they shall be changed: but thou art the same, and thy years shall not fail.

13 But to which of the angels said he at any time, Sit on my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool?

14 Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation? KJV

This is our fourth message on the text of Heb. 1 and we have not yet touched on the doctrine of Christ. There is something that I am wanting you to see and that is that this text does not have as a primary focus His deity. It is true that many wonderful things are said about Him and we want to explore those. But notice the next statements after the ones that we just read.

Heb 2:1-3

1 Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip.

2 For if the word spoken by angels was stedfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompence of reward;

3 How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him; KJV

The primary reason that Jesus is being lifted up to us by the writer is that he is wanting us to pay serious attention to the things that God has spoken.

It is the excellency of Christ that makes His message so important and so filled with the authority of God.

The impact of this text is to bring us into a place of real and genuine awe concerning the message that God has communicated to us.

There is an interesting passage in Psalm 138 which speaks to this subject.

Ps 138:2

2 I will worship toward thy holy temple, and praise thy name for thy lovingkindness and for thy truth: for thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name. KJV

Now this is not said to take away any of the glory from the Person or the name of God or His Son. But the truth that He has communicated to men must be honored first. It is this truth that tells us Who God is and how He can be worshiped in truth. He cannot be worshiped apart from that which He has communicated. Therefore, His revelation to men must first be received as His Word or else men will either not worship Him at all or worship Him wrongly.

Consider what has happened in our culture as the Word of God has come to be held as something less than absolute truth. Consider what has happened to our government as it has sought to remove the Word of God from all public places and celebrations. Consider what has happened to our churches as they have turned from the clear teachings of the Word. Has any of them grown better? Are any of them more honoring to God than they were before?

To receive Him is to receive His word and to reject His word is to reject Him. Men must pay absolute attention to what He has revealed, take it seriously, and give themselves to Him according to the terms of His Word or else they are considered His enemies and the objects of His wrath.

The writer gives a number of really good reasons why we ought to embrace the Word of God as our Only Truth.

I. He is the absolute expression of the glory of God and the agent of our salvation.

Heb 1:3

3 The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. (from New International Version)

The Son is the completely accurate and totally comprehensive revealer of the Person and Being of Almighty God. There is nothing that we need to know about God that is left out in the revelation that has come to us through Jesus.

Not only that but He is the Sustainer of all Creation and does that by 'the word of His power,' or 'His powerful word.' If His word sustains the creation, then any of that word that is directed toward us is worthy of the most careful examination and consideration.

He is the One Who has 'purged our sins.' He is the One Who has taken upon Himself the task of walking that place between us and God and removing all of the hindrances that would keep God from accepting us. He is described as having purchased us, paid the debt of our sins, and redeemed us as one would redeem a slave to set him free.

We live in a day in which men stand in awe of nothing and expect all things to be given to them. We cannot and must not live that way. The One Who sustains all of creation has purged us from our sins and spoken to us so that we might know how to serve Him. We must stand in awe of Him and pay close attention to what he has said.

II. He is far above the angels in majesty, honor, and power.

Heb 1:4

4 Being made so much better than the angels, as he hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they.

The Jews stood in absolute wonder of the angels. It was considered a special act of grace on the part of God for an angel to appear to a man. His words were counted as the very words of God and heeded diligently.

His name, his authority, are: (1) obtained by inheritance (meaning that He is of the nature and substance of God); and (2) more excellent (of far greater value and worth) than anything possessed by any of the angels.

The point of this is found is ch.2.

Heb 2:2-3

2 For if the word spoken by angels was stedfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompence of reward;

3 How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him; KJV

The Word of God communicated by angels was always steadfast and true. Every violation of the commands of God that came through them were profoundly punished by God Himself and that in sometimes cataclysmic fashion.

So what shall become of the person who neglects the Word of God spoken by the Lord from Heaven, the Lord Jesus Christ? How shall he escape the judgment of God? It is a rhetorical question. There will be no escape. There is another question also contained here. If there is no escape for those who neglect the Words of God through Jesus Christ, why would anyone neglect them?

The One Who spoke them is of far greater power and importance than any angel.

III. The proof of His superiority to the angels is found in the words that God spoke to Him and about Him.

5 For unto which of the angels said he at any time, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee? And again, I will be to him a Father, and he shall be to me a Son?

Ps 2:7

7 I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee. KJV

This appears to have been said by the Lord to David, but we find here that it is in reality a record of the Words of the Father to the Son in heaven.

6 And again, when he bringeth in the firstbegotten into the world, he saith, And let all the angels of God worship him.

This is actually a quotation from the LXX, which reads differently here than the Hebrew.

Psa. 97:1-7

1 The Lord reigns, let the earth exult, let many islands rejoice.

2 Cloud and darkness are round about him: righteousness and judgment are the establishment of his throne.

3 Fire shall go before him, and burn up his enemies round about.

4 His lightnings appeared to the world; the earth saw, and trembled.

5 The mountains melted like wax at the presence of the Lord, at the presence of the Lord of the whole earth.

6 The heavens have declared his righteousness, and all the people have seen his glory.

7 Let all that worship graven images be ashamed, who boast of their idols; worship him, all ye his angels.

To reference this text in regard to Jesus Christ, the writer is making a powerful statement concerning Who and What He is. It is extremely difficult to imagine the angels worshiping anyone who is less than God Himself.

7 And of the angels he saith, Who maketh his angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire.

8 But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom.

9 Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows.

He has indeed made His angels impressive, but they appear as less than a candle at noonday in comparison with the glory of the Anointed One of God.

He loved righteousness and hated iniquity in a far different setting than any angel ever did. He did it while occupying a body in which He might have sinned were it not for His profound love for the righteousness of God and His extreme hatred for all that is a violation of God's commands.

He has been exalted, in a great degree, because of His obedience.

Phil 2:9-11

9 Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name:

10 That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth;

11 And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. KJV

Continuing on, the writer of Hebrews further lifts up Jesus Christ by attributing to Him the very works of God.

10 And, Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of thine hands:

11 They shall perish; but thou remainest; and they all shall wax old as doth a garment;

12 And as a vesture shalt thou fold them up, and they shall be changed: but thou art the same, and thy years shall not fail.

Here He is affirmed as not only being present in the beginning but actually performing the acts of creation.

Col 1:16-19

16 For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him:

17 And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.

18 And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.

19 For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell; KJV

The writers of the New Testament without hesitation attribute the work of Creation to Jesus Christ Himself.

Next our writer turns to the place that has been given to Jesus Christ as proving His complete and absolute superiority to all created things.

13 But to which of the angels said he at any time, Sit on my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool?

14 Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation? KJV

While angels are 'deaconing' spirits, servants to serve the heirs of salvation, Jesus Christ occupies the throne on the right hand of God, the place reserved for Him Who operates in the full power and authority of the whole Godhead.

But in conclusion, it is not simply the superiority of Jesus Christ that we are to notice. We are to be brought to a place of being cast down before God in complete awe that He has come and spoken unto us the very Words of God.

Matt 4:17

17 From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. KJV

John 3:18-21

18 He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

19 And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.

20 For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.

21 But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God. KJV

"Repent of your sins and believe with all you heart on the Son of God." This, without question, is the very word of God to your soul.

Do you stand in profound awe of those words?

Have they gripped your very soul?

Have they cast you down in amazement before the throne of God?

Have you loved the light and come to it, embracing the truths of God without hesitation or reservation?