1:1 God, having in the past spoken to the fathers through the
prophets
at many times and in various ways,
1:2 has at the end of these days spoken to us by his
Son,
(A) whom he appointed heir of all things,
(B) through whom also he made the worlds.
(C) 1:3 His Son is the radiance of his glory,
(C*) the very image of his substance,
(B*) and upholding all things by the word of his
power,
when he had by himself made purification for our sins,
(A*) sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on
high;
1:4 having become so much better than the
angels,
as he has inherited a more excellent name than they have.
1:5 For to which of the angels did he say at any time,
"You are my Son, Today have I become your father?"(Ps
2:7)
and again,
"I will be to him a Father, And he will be to me a
Son?"
(1Ch 22:10)
1:6 Again, when he brings in the firstborn into the world he says,
"Let all the angels of God worship him." (Ps 97:7)
1:7 Of the angels he says,
"Who makes his angels winds, And his servants a flame of
fire."
(Ps 104:4)
1:8 but of the Son he says,
"Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; The scepter of
uprightness
is the scepter of your kingdom. 1:9 You have
loved
righteousness,
and hated iniquity; Therefore God, your God, has anointed
you with the
oil of gladness above your fellows." (Ps 45:6,7)
1:10 And,
"You, Lord, in the beginning, laid the foundation of the
earth. The heavens are the works of your hands. 1:11
They
will perish, but you continue. They all will grow old like a
garment
does.
1:12 As a mantle you will roll them up, And they will be
changed;
But you are the same. Your years will not fail." (Ps
102:25-27)
1:13 But of which of the angels has he said at any time,
"Sit at my right hand, Until I make your enemies the
footstool
of your feet?" (Ps 110:1)
1:14 Aren't they all ministering spirits,
sent out to do service for the sake of those who will inherit
salvation?
2:1 Therefore we ought to pay greater attention to the things
that
were
heard, lest perhaps we drift away.
2:2 For if the word spoken through angels proved steadfast, and
every
transgression and disobedience received a just recompense;
2:3 how will we escape if we neglect so great a salvation--
which at
the first having been spoken through the Lord, was confirmed to
us by
those
who heard;
2:4 God also bearing witness with them, both by signs and
wonders,
and by various works of power, and by gifts of the Holy
Spirit,
according
to his own will?
Discussion Questions
How does Jesus Christ differ from an Old Testament prophet?
What are the characteristic differences between Jesus Christ and
angels?
Why should we especially pay attention to the message?
And having heard and allegedly "believed", why need we continue to
pay attention to it?
(What might be the consequences if we don't).
What evidence are we given that gospel of salvation is the word of
God?
Comments
Now God speaks by his Son
Heb 1:1,2 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, whom he
appointed
heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe.
The first part of Hebrews speaks about who Jesus is and who he is
not.
Notice here that Jesus is not categorized among the prophets, as
Islam
falsely proposes, as if he were mere a prophet. Indeed "Jesus has been found worthy of greater honor than
Moses, just as the builder of a house has greater honor than the
house
itself. For every house is built by someone, but God is the
builder of
everything." Hebrews 3:3,4 For "Through
him
(Jesus) all things were made; without him nothing was made
that has been made." John 1:3 Yes it was through
Jesus
that all things were made. "He is the image of the
invisible
God, the firstborn over all creation. For
by Him all things
were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and
invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or
powers.
All things were created through Him and for Him. He is before all things, and
in him all things hold together." Col
1:15-17
One
cannot claim to "believe in Jesus" without believing this fact about
him.
The Son the Radiance
Heb 1:3 The Son is the radiance of
God’s
glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all
things
by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins,
he
sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.
As the light that comes from the sun is the radiance of the sun, so
Jesus is the radiance of God. And just as we see the light that
comes
from the sun and call that "the sun", so also when we see Jesus we
see
the Father. Jesus said, "Anyone who has seen
me
has seen the Father." John 14:9 For "No one has ever seen God, but God the One and
Only,
who is at the Father’s side, has made him known." John
1:18
How are all things sustained? It is by the powerful word of Jesus
Christ, the Son of God that all things are sustained. Understand
that
this is heresy to the Muslim and Jew. Yet these facts about the
person
of Christ are central to the gospel.
As for his work on earth, Christ died for sins. "Now,
brothers,
I
want
to
remind
you of the gospel I preached to you, which
you received and on which you have taken your stand. By this
gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to
you.
Otherwise, you have believed in vain. For what I received I passed
on
to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins
according
to the Scriptures ..." 1Cor 15:1-4
"He is the atoning sacrifice for
our sins, and not
only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world." 1John
2:2
Being seated indicates his work is finished and his throne
established.
The Angels Worship Jesus
Heb 1:4-6 So he became as much superior
to
the angels as the name he has inherited is superior to theirs. For
to
which of the angels did God ever say, "You are my Son; today I
have
become your Father"? (Ps 2:7)
Or
again, "I will be his Father, and he will be my
Son"? (1Ch 22:10) And again,
when
God brings his firstborn into the world, he
says, "Let all God’s angels worship him." (Ps 97:7)
That is, he was made out to be much superior to the angels as shown
in
his inheritance. For angels, while children of God in the sense of
being God's creation, just as Paul spoke of all men being his
offspring, yet they are not sons in a literal sense. In fact the
angels
were to worship Jesus. So who does that make Jesus out to?
I, John, am the one who heard and saw these
things. And when I had heard and seen them, I fell down to worship
at
the feet of the angel who had been showing them to me. But he said
to
me, "Do not do it! I am a fellow servant with you and with your
brothers the prophets and of all who keep the words of this book.
Worship God!" Rev 22:8,9
The phrase "Let all God’s angels worship him."
is
found
word
for
word
in
Ps 97:7 in the LXX (the Septuagint),
which is the Greek translation of the Old Testament used widely
among
the Jews at the time of Christ. But notice how it starts, "The Lord reigns". The word "Lord" is
Jehovah.
It's a term used for God. In fact if you look at all the verses in
the
New Testament which quote the Old Testament making claims about
Jesus,
you will notice that the New Testament writers believed that the
word
"Lord", as in Jehovah as it says in the Hebrew was in fact Jesus
preincarnate. And we will see more examples in this chapter. Jesus
is
not simply a lord, he is THE LORD. Jesus is God
Heb 1:7-9 In speaking of the
angels
he says, "He makes his angels winds, his servants flames of
fire."(Ps 104:4) But about the Son he
says, "Your throne, O God, will last for ever
and ever, and righteousness will be the scepter of your
kingdom.
You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness; therefore
God, your
God, has set you above your companions by anointing you with the
oil of
joy."(Ps 45:6,7)
The quote starting "Your throne" is from Ps 45:6,7 Here it
is
declared explicitly that Jesus is God. The word "God" is elohiym in
the
Hebrew text or simply Theos in the Greek, which are common terms for
God. Now this is a paradox, much as John 1:1 is a paradox.
But
notice you see this paradox in this Old Testament reference. For how
could the Psalmist say, "Your throne, O
God"
and yet later says, "therefore God, your
God"?
The
paradox
is
resolved
in
the concept of the trinity. Likewise notice
how the Psalm continues, "Listen, O daughter,
Consider and incline your ear; Forget your own people also, and
your
father’s house; So the King will greatly desire your beauty; Because
He
is
your
Lord,
worship
Him." Ps 45:10,11 This is
speaking of the LORD Jesus. Because he is LORD, worship him. Jesus is the LORD
Heb 1:10-12 He also says (about
Jesus), "In the beginning, O Lord, you
laid
the foundations of the earth, and the heavens are the work of
your
hands. They will perish, but you remain; they will all wear out
like a
garment. You will roll them up like a robe; like a garment they
will be
changed. But you remain the same, and your years will never
end."(Ps 102:25-27)
As mentioned a number of times in the New Testament, Jesus is the
Creator. And here is yet another example of the New Testament
teaching
us that Jesus is the LORD spoken of in the Old Testament. You want
to
know more about Jesus? Read what the Old Testament says about the
LORD.
This verse and the preceding ones are very good to use against those
who claim that the New Testament does not teach about the deity of
Christ. Yes it does. It's quoting from Ps 102:25-27. Read that
Psalm.
And in particular note verse 24 which says, "Do not take me away, O my God, in the
midst of
my days; your years go on through all generations." By the
author applying these verses to Jesus he is saying that Jesus is God
and Jesus is the LORD.
And by the way, accepting Jesus as the LORD is a precondition for
salvation, as it says, "That if you confess
with
your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God
raised
him from the dead, you will be saved." Rom 10:9
There
once again it's referring to the LORD God. In fact a few verses
later
in Romans Paul uses an Old Testament cross reference to support his
statement. It says, "That if you confess with
your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God
raised
him from the dead, you will be saved." which is a quote
from
the Old Testament prophet Joel chapter 2:27-32 which starts
off "I am the LORD your God"
and goes on to
say, "everyone who calls on the name of the LORD
will be saved" of which the New Testament writers view
as
referring to Jesus. Must a person believe in the deity of
Christ
to be saved? Yes he must. Jesus is the LORD. To believe otherwise is
not to believe in the Biblical Jesus. In Service to Jesus
Heb 1:13,14 To which of the angels did
God ever say, "Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a
footstool for your feet"? (Ps 110:1) Are not all angels ministering spirits
sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?
Angels are servants. They are not Lord. They do not have a throne.
They
do not rule. Jesus is not an angel. Jesus rules with his Father.
Interesting to note that Ps 110:1 starts,
"Of David. A psalm.The LORD says to my Lord ...". Yet it
says, "The LORD will be king over the whole
earth. On that
day there will be one LORD, and his name the only name." Zec
14:9 For here we see shades of the Trinity - the Elohim. Then
God
said, "Let us make man in our image".
Gen
1:26
The angel Gabriel announced the coming of the LORD Jesus, and when
Mary
visited her cousin, Elizabeth said, "Why am I
so
favored, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?" Luke
1:43 As David reckon Jesus Lord over him, so Elizabeth
reckoned the
unborn child Lord over her. (Talk about respect for the unborn!)
Angels are servants, serving those who will inherit salvation. In
contrast of the LORD Jesus it says, "He died
for
all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but
for
him who died for them and was raised again." 2Cor 5:15 Drifting
Away
Heb 2:1We must pay
more
careful attention,
therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away.
The content of Hebrews will answer the question as to what they may
have not been paying attention to. But notice that so far in the
first
chapter the writer focused on the person of Christ - his deity, his
Lordship. What I would infer is that these Christians were losing
their
focus on Christ. For as Christians we can so get caught up in the
living of the Christian life, much as Martha busied herself with the
particulars and lose our focus on Christ. "Martha, Martha, you are worried and
troubled about many things. But one thing is needed, and Mary has
chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her."Luke 10:41,42
Now while later the writer will speak of "falling away", here he
speaks
literally of "drifting away". It's not so much an intentional thing.
It's an effect of losing our focus. You may not realize it is
happening. But if you stop listening CAREFULLY to the word, you will
drift away. Mary chose to listen. That's the choice each Christian
has
to make. It's a lifestyle choice, as "pay attention" is in the
present
tense, indicating lifestyle, while "drift away" is in the aorist,
indicating simply a frame in a person's life..
But in particular careful listening leads to application.
How shall we escape?
Heb 2:2-3aFor if the message spoken by angels
was
binding, and every violation and disobedience received its just
punishment, how shall we escape if we ignore such a great
salvation?
By "the message spoken by
angels"
he's referring to the Law of Moses. The first Christian martyr,
Stephen, said this, "you who
have
received the law that was put into effect through angels but have
not
obeyed it."Acts 7:53
For "Moses was in the assembly
in
the desert, with the angel who spoke to him on Mount Sinai, and
with
our fathers; and he received living words to pass on to us."Acts 7:38 "The law was put into effect
through
angels by a mediator."Gal
3:19b
Reading the Law one is struck by its strictness and severity. Yet
this
is the character of God. He is serious and He is severe."See to it that you do not refuse
him
who speaks. If they did not escape when they refused him who
warned
them on earth, how much less will we, if we turn away from him who
warns us from heaven?"Heb
12:25
Else "while
people are saying, "Peace and safety," destruction will come on
them
suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not
escape." 1Th 5:3
"Ignore" here is more precisely "to make light of", as the same
Greek
word is used in Mt 22:5 which in response to the Lord's
calling, "they made light of it and went
their
ways, one to his own farm, another to his business." While
these are not like "the rest who seized his servants, mistreated them and killed
them." Mt 22:6, yet they likewise are not qualified
to
be saved. So let us not make light of this great salvation the Lord
has
provided. Forensic Evidence Affirming Jesus
Heb 2:3b-4 This salvation, which was
first announced by the Lord, was confirmed to us by those who
heard
him. God also testified to it by signs, wonders and various
miracles,
and gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.
In contrast to the Law being announced by mere angels, the Lord
Jesus
himself, who made the heavens and the earth, announced the gospel -
the
good news of salvation. Mr 1:15 "The
time has come," he said. "The kingdom of God is near. Repent and
believe the good news!"
But, unlike so many who would falsely make much of themselves, Jesus
provide forensic evidence of who he was. In fact in the first
Christian sermon Peter starts, "Men of
Israel,
listen to this: Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to
you by
miracles, wonders and signs, which God did among you through him,
as
you yourselves know." Acts 2:22 Such evidence is
essential to the gospel message. And this is one of the main distinctions between Christianity and all other religions. Whenever the gospel is preached in
the
Bible, the resurrection of Christ is mentioned as forensic evidence
supporting the claims of the gospel. Such evidence is based upon
eyewitness testimony, as one would expect in a court of law. "You killed the author of life, but
God raised him from the dead. We are witnesses of
this."
Acts 3:15
Further evidence affirming the gospel is the spiritual gifts given
to
the Christian community. These are not the kinds of things you can
make
up. You can't generate them youself. God distributes just as he
wills. "He gives them to each one, just as he
determines."
1Cor 12:11b
Hebrews 1:1-2:4 Notes
A Model for the Trinity
God is like the sun in the sky. It is separate from the earth by a
vast
distance, just as God is separate from his creation. He is far away
in
heaven. But what we call the sun in the sky is not really the sun,
but
we see the light that comes from the sun and we call that light the
sun.
Jesus is as the light that comes from God.
"The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact
representation
of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word." Hebrews
1:3
Is the light that comes from part of the sun? It depends on how you
define
the sun. The object in space is like God the Father. The light that
comes
from that object may be considered part of that object. For even
those
who don't accept that the light that comes from the sun is part of
the
sun, will nonetheless look up in the sky and say, "There's the
sun.",
referring
to the light that comes from the sun as if it were the sun. Perhaps
this
is what Jesus meant in John 14:9
Jesus answered: "Don't you know me,
Philip,
even after I have been among you such a long time? Anyone
who has
seen
me has seen the Father. How can you say, 'Show us the
Father'?
And how do we get to God? I once heard a rumor that NASA scientist
had
proposed to send a mission to the sun. In response to the question
as
to
how they would deal with the intense heat, they replied, "We'll
travel
at night!"
You cannot get to God unless you follow the light, as Jesus says,
Jesus answered, "I am the way and the
truth
and the life. No one comes to the Father except
through
me." John 14:6
And what of the Holy Spirit? He is like the heat that comes from the
sun.
So even in darkness, for those who don't have the light of Christ,
the
Holy Spirit is yet at work. He is what we can experience about God.
And
though God is far away in heaven, separate from His creation, yet He
is
itimately integrated into it in the Holy Spirit as Paul says,
"For in him we live and move and have our being." Acts
17:28
MODALISM
This illustration of the trinity is different than "modalism", which
illustrates
the trinity something like the three forms (modes) of water - steam,
water,
ice. This I believe is incorrect. For the Father didn't become Jesus
at
one point in time, for who was Jesus talking to when he prayed? And
Jesus
didn't go on to become the Holy Spirit. Rather the scriptures treat
these
three as distinct individuals and not as different forms of the same
individual.
He is the radiance of God's glory
He is the exact representation of God's nature
His Authority
He inherits all things
He sits at the right hand of God
His Work
He made the universe
He sustained the universe
He repaired the universe (by providing purification of
sins)
Is Jesus Christ an Angel?
Jesus
Angels
Son of God
yes
no
Can be worshipped
yes
no
Ruler
yes
no
Created all things
yes
no
Sits at God's right hand
yes
no
Warning !
The More You Know,
The More You Will Be Held Responsible For
What to do: Pay careful attention that you not drift
away
(forgetting or deviating from the essentials and getting caught up
in peripheral issues like angels, or putting symbolism over
substance,
or defining God differently than He defines Himself in the
scriptures.)
Col 2:18"Let no man beguile you of your reward in a
voluntary
humility and worshiping of angels, intruding into those things
which
he
hath not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind,"
How to do it: Study the Bible noting that it is there
that
The Lord testifies
The Lord's eyewitnesses testify
Their testimonies are affirmed by the historic documentation of
miracles.
