God Has Spoken

"Jesus is the radiance of God's glory..." That is an interesting phrase. The Greek word for radiance is, "avpau,gasma" (apaugasma). The word means, "reflected brightness, of Christ in that he perfectly reflects the majesty of God, or of a light coming from a luminous body." Jesus is the embodiment of the majesty and glory of God. No one can see God, no one ever will, but He has made Himself to known to us in His Son Jesus. Oswald Chambers once said, "The characteristics of God Almighty are mirrored for us in Jesus Christ. Therefore if we want to know what God is like, we must study Jesus Christ." (Oswald Chambers 1874-1917)

The fourth aspect of Jesus that is important for us to understand is that He is the exact representation of God's being. Another interesting phrase that it is used is, "the exact representation of his being." Jesus is the exact representation of God. The Greek word for "representation" is the word, "carakth,r" (character), and it means, "express image, the instrument used for engraving or carving, the mark stamped upon that instrument or wrought out on it, a mark or figure burned in or stamped on, an impression, the exact expression (the image) of any person or thing, marked likeness, precise reproduction in every respect."

We see a similar phrase used in Colossians 1:15,15 "He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation." Also, in Colossians 2:9, 9 "For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form..." Saint Ambrose, who lived from 340-397 A.D. once said, "As the print of the seal on the wax is the express image of the seal itself, so Christ is the express image-the perfect representation-of God."

The fifth aspect of Jesus that helps us to understand His uniqueness is His sustaining power. The Epistle to the Hebrews allows us to know that it is Jesus that is sustaining creation even now. He writes that Jesus is, "sustaining all things by his powerful word." The Greek word that is used is in the present tense meaning that Jesus is not only sustained when He created the universe, but He is sustaining every molecule of creation even now.

God often quickens my mind to the fact that I would not be able to take one breath without His help. He is sustaining my life

The sixth aspect of Jesus' uniqueness is that He has provided for purification of our sins. We spoke at length last week about the function of the High Priest in the Temple and his duty to make sacrifices for the sins of the people of Israel. We spoke of how the priest had to continuously make sacrifices since the sin of the people had to always be dealt with by God. When Jesus came He was the perfect High Priest of God who offered His own life, a spotless and perfect sacrifice, to deal once and for all time with the problem of sin. For those who have received Jesus as Lord and Savior, our sins are taken away never to be brought before us again.

I don't know if you noticed it or not, but as we come to the sixth aspect of the uniqueness of Jesus' work we move from the transcendent to the eminent. We've looked at Jesus as the heir of all things, the Creator of the universe, the Radiance of God's glory, the exact Representation of God's Being, and the Sustainer of everything that is, Creative work. As we move to the sixth we see the eminent, or personal relationship of Jesus with His creation. Jesus is the One who makes provision for the sins of the people He has created, those who have sinned against Him.