Shiloh Bible Church
Hebrews 1:2-3
Way Better!
Introduction
The University of Maryland. Their main campus at College Park is not far from Washington Bible College. When I was studying at the seminary, my roommate and I would go to Maryland U and do personal evangelism. We would engage students in conversation and seek to share the gospel with them. We always found that the students were willing to share with us their opinion on religious matters. And so we would often begin by asking a student, “Who is Jesus?” The responses we received were varied. Some would say that He was a talented teacher or a powerful prophet. Others would say that He was a kind rabbi who happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time. And a few students with a Christian upbringing would say that He was the Son of God.
In explaining to these students who Jesus is, we would often go to the gospels and show how Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John portrayed Him. This morning I would like to answer the question, “Who is Jesus?” But instead of turning to the gospels for the answer, I would like us to turn to one of the New Testament epistles. Two verses tucked away in the introduction to the book of Hebrews reveals who Jesus is. Please turn with me in your Bibles to the book of Hebrews chapter 1.
The first 3 verses of Hebrews 1 focus on Jesus Christ. And there the writer of Hebrews tells us that Jesus is better than even the great prophets of the Old Testament. And He is better than the prophets because of who He is. And who is Jesus? The writer of Hebrews tells us that Jesus is …
1. HEIR
We begin at Hebrews 1:1: “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.”
Jesus Christ is heir—heir of all things. At creation, God gave our first parents dominion over the earth. In Genesis 1:28, God told Adam and Eve, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground.”
But Adam and Eve lost their dominion and their right to rule when they sinned against God. But one day Jesus—the perfect Man—will have dominion over the whole earth. In the second Psalm, the Lord says to Jesus, “Ask of me, and I will make the nations your inheritance, the ends of the earth your possession. You will rule them with an iron scepter.”
Now, when will this psalm be fulfilled? When will Jesus rule the earth with an iron rod? The answer is: during the millennial kingdom. Jesus will return to earth and establish His kingdom. And He will rule and reign for 1,000 years.
Now, this concept is extremely important for our understanding of the book of Hebrews. Remember, the writer is encouraging these Hebrew Christians not to abandon their faith in Christ and return to their old religion of Judaism. And one of the ways he seeks to motivate his readers to move forward in their relationship to Christ is to remind them of all they stand to gain if they persevere and remain faithful to the Lord. And what did they have to gain? The privilege of ruling and reigning with Christ in His kingdom.
Listen carefully to what Paul says in Romans 8:17: “Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.”
If you have trusted in Christ as your Savior, then you are God’s child. And if you are God’s child, then you are His heir—you have eternal life—and you will enter Christ’s kingdom when He establishes it here on earth.
But the rest of the verse states: “and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.”
If you want to be co-heirs with Christ—if you want to share in His glory, ruling and reigning with Him in His kingdom—then you need to share in His sufferings—you need to persevere in the faith and remain obedient to Him.
Entering Christ’s earthly kingdom is a free gift that is accepted by faith. But ruling with Christ in His kingdom is a reward for faithful followers. Paul said in 2 Timothy 2:12: “If we endure, we will also reign with Him.”
So, if you want to reign with Christ in His kingdom—if you want significant duties to fulfill in the millennium—then you must continue to follow Christ.
Who is Jesus? He is the Heir of all things. We also learn from verse 2 that Jesus is …
2. CREATOR
At the end of verse 2 we read, “and through whom he made the universe.”
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Jesus Christ is the Creator. He made the world. John 1:3 tells us: “Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.”
Have you ever considered Christ’s creative power?
The power it took to create our planet?
The power it took to create our solar system?
For example, think of the comparative size of the planets in our solar system. The earth is larger than Venus, Mars, Mercury, or Pluto. Yes, I realize that “poor” Pluto is out of the game now!
But our planet is smaller than Uranus, Neptune, Saturn, or Jupiter.
Jupiter is the largest planet. But it pales in comparison to the sun.
Now, compare the sun to some other stars in our solar system.
The size of our sun pales in comparison to Sirius, Pollux, and Arcturus.
The size of our sun is one pixel on this slide. Compare its size to Rigel, Aldebaran, Betelgeuse, and Antares.
Cambridge physicist Stephen Hawking has been called the most brilliant theoretical physicist since Einstein.
In his best selling book A Brief History of Time, Hawking says that our galaxy is an average-size spiral galaxy. And that it looks like a swirl in a pastry roll to other galaxies. And that it is over 100,000 light-years across—about 600 trillion miles.
Hawking states, “We now know that our galaxy is only one of some hundred thousand million that can be seen using modern telescopes …
each galaxy itself …
containing some hundred …
thousand million stars.”
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Isn’t that incredible? The creative power of Jesus Christ is incomprehensible!
In Colossians 1:16 we read: “For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him.”
Who is Jesus? He is the God of creation. He made it all! In addition to being the Creator, Jesus is also the …
3. SUSTAINER
Drop down to the middle of verse 3. There we read: “sustaining all things by his powerful word.”
Jesus not only created the world, but He also sustains the world. His power holds it all together. The Deists believed that God created the world and then walked away. But that’s not what the Bible portrays. The Bible teaches that Jesus is actively involved in His creation. His sustaining power maintains the world. And we see this with our own planet.
Jesus keeps the sun at just the right distance from the earth—about 93 million miles—for proper warmth and heat. So, it’s not too cold or too hot to sustain life on this planet.
And He keeps the moon at just the right size and distance from the earth—about 240,000 miles—to keep things in balance such as the tides.
And He keeps the earth at just the right tilt—about 23 degrees—to provide the seasons that we enjoy.
And so Colossians 1:17 states, “He [Jesus] is before all things, and in him all things hold together.”
Who is Jesus? He is the Sustainer. Fourthly, I see from this passage in Hebrews that Jesus is …
4. REVEALER
Jesus Christ reveals what God is like.
Verse 3 states, “The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being.”
Two key words here—the first is “radiance.” There is a difference between radiance and reflection. We know that the sun radiates light to the earth. Now, the moon does not radiate light. Rather, the moon reflects the light of the sun. Jesus is not the reflection of God’s glory, but rather the radiance of God’s glory—because He Himself is God.
The second key word is “representation.” That word means “exact reproduction.” The word is used to describe the impression made by a die or a stamp. Jesus Christ is the perfect personal imprint of God in time and space.
Colossians 1:15 says, “He is the image of the invisible God.” Jesus said to His disciples, “He who has seen me has seen the Father.”
So, Jesus is the radiance of God—the perfect manifestation of God outwardly. And Jesus is also the representation of God—the absolute character of God inwardly.
So, Jesus is the Revealer—He reveals God to us. Next, the writer of Hebrews tells us that He is …
5. REDEEMER
In the middle of verse 3 we read: “After he had provided purification for sins.”
How did He do that? How did He provide purification for sins? By dying on a cross for our sins. You see, we cannot pay for our sins by our good works. The good that we do does not cancel out the wrong that we’ve done. A sinless person must do for us what we cannot do for ourselves. And so Jesus Christ—the sinless Man—offered Himself up as a perfect sacrifice to God for our sins. When Jesus was hanging on the cross, He took the sins of the world upon Himself. He paid the debt of our sin. And He offers us forgiveness of sins and eternal life as a free gift. And all you need to do is to accept this gift from Him. By faith, trust in Jesus Christ as your Savior.
Jesus is Redeemer. And finally, the writer of Hebrews tells us that Jesus is …
6. PRIEST
The end of verse 3 states: “… he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.”
As our great high priest, Jesus Christ offered Himself up as a sacrifice for our sins.
Now, in Old Testament times, priests were continually offering sacrifices. It was a never-ending process. Turn over a few pages to chapter 10 and notice what the writer of Hebrews says. Look at 10:11: “Day after day every priest stands and performs his religious duties; again and again he offers the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But when this priest [that is, Jesus] had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God.”
Jesus Christ our high priest completed His earthly work by offering the one, perfect sacrifice for sin. And when He did, His work of redemption was finished. So He sat down.
Conclusion
In the first few verses of the book of Hebrews, the writer compares the Old Testament prophets to Jesus—the Son of God. And He concludes that Jesus is better. Why? Because of who is Jesus!
· Jesus is Heir. The Old Testament prophets predicted the coming kingdom. But it is Jesus who will actually inherit the kingdom and rule over it.
· Jesus is Creator. The Old Testament prophets were part of creation. But Jesus Christ is the Creator Himself.
· Jesus is Sustainer. He sustains all things by the power of his word. This could never be said of the Old Testament prophets.
· Jesus is Revealer. He is the very radiance and representation of God. No Old Testament prophet could ever claim that.
· Jesus is Redeemer. He provided salvation from sin. The Old Testament prophets did not.
· Jesus is Priest. When His work of sacrifice was completed, He sat down at the right hand of the Father—a place that no Old Testament prophet could occupy.
So, Jesus is better! He is better than anyone or anything that you can experience. And so He is worthy of your complete devotion and allegiance.
Let’s pray.
Before I give you a moment for silent prayer, let me ask you: Are you an heir of God? Do you want to enter the kingdom that Jesus will establish here on earth? If so, then right now—if you’ve never done it before—place your trust in Jesus as your Savior.
Now, if you have already done that—if you are a believer in Christ—then let me ask you: Are you a co-heir with Christ? Do you want to rule with Him when He sets up His kingdom here on earth? If so, then reaffirm Christ’s Lordship over your life today.
Take a moment to meditate and to talk to the Lord.
(Silent prayer)
Lord Jesus, the writer of Hebrews has painted a wonderful portrait of you in these two short verses we examined this morning. Indeed, you are better—better than anyone or anything that we can experience. Receive our praise, we pray. We acknowledge that you are Heir. You are Creator. You are Sustainer. You are Revealer. You are Redeemer. You are Priest. And you are much, much more! We love you. And we do appreciate all that you’ve done for us. Receive our thanks, we pray, in your name. Amen.
