Another Look at Jesus

1. Jesus the Divine Son

“In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by His Son.” – Hebrews 1:1-2

The first two chapters of Hebrews beautifully balance each other in that chapter one gives us a portrait of Jesus Christ the divine Son, while chapter two adds a portrait of him as the human being. Hebrews one speaks of his uniqueness. It tells us five major truths about Christ. First, Jesus Christ is the climax of God’s revelation. Of course, God has been revealing himself throughout history through prophets, but it was in a way that was partial and progressive, whereas his self-revelation in Christ was final and complete. So Jesus Christ is God’s last word to the world. It is inconceeivable that there could be a higher or fuller revelation than he has given us in his Incarnate Son. No, Jesus Christ is the climax of his revelation.

Second, Jesus Christ is the Lord of Creation. God has appointed him “heir of all things” (v.2), since through him he had made the universe. So he is its beginning and its end, its source and its heir, and in between he is “sustaining all things by his powerful word” (v.3).

Third, Jesus Christ is the Son of the Father. He is both “the radiance of God’s glory” (light from light, one in being with the Father) and “the exact representation of his being” (distinct from the Father as an impress is distinct from the seal) (v.3).

Fourth, Jesus Christ is the Savior of sinners. Having finished the work of purification for sins, he sat down at the Father’s right hand.

Fifth, Jesus Christ is the object of the angels’ worship. Indeed, he has become “as much superior to the angels as the name he has inherited is superior to theirs” (v.4). Angels are doubtless great and glorious beings, but they do not compare with Jesus Christ. The author now collects and quotes a chain of OT texts that speak in different ways of his supremacy. For example, “Let all God’s angels worship him” (v.6). The author concludes this section with a solemn warning that we must pay careful attention to the message of the apostles, lest we drift away from it (2:1-4).

2. Jesus the Human Being

’Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity.” – Hebrews 2:14

Unique as Jesus Christ is in his divine glory, which we considered a moment ago, this is only half the story. If we were to stop there, we would be guilty of serious heresy, affirming his deity but denying or neglecting his humanity. Hebrews 1 emphasizes that Jesus Christ is on with the Father sharing his being); Hebrews 2 emphasizes that Jesus Christ became one with us (sharing our being). He who is in every way superior to the angels became for a while inferior to them. Indeed, there is a fundamental appropriateness in the Son of God becoming human: “In bringing many sons to glory, it was fitting that God…..should make the author (pioneer) of their salvation perfect” (v.10). Four main truths are spelled out.

First, he entered into our humanity. He took our “flesh and blood” to himself (v.14). He experienced the frailty and vulnerability of a human being. For he had a real humanbody (eating, drinking, and getting tired) and real human emotions (joy and sorrow, compassion, anger).

Second, he entered into our temptations. “He himself suffered when he was tempted” (v.18). Indeed, he was “tempted in every way, just as we are” (4:15). By his incarnation he laid aside his immunity to temptation and exposed himself to it. And his temptations were real, like ours, except that he never succumbed to them and so never sinned.

Third, he entered into our sufferings. God made the pioneer of our salvation “perfect through suffering” (2:10). Not that he was ever imperfect in the sense of being sinful, but that his identification with us in our humanity would have been incomplete if he had not suffered as we suffer.

Fourth, he entered in our death. “We see Jesus…..now crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone” (v.9). It is not that he needed to die, for he had no sin of his own. But he bore our sins, and it was for our sins that he died. As a result of the incarnation, Jesus Christ can represent us to the Father and can sympathize with our weaknesses.

Some thoughts from Hebrews,

pcraig