Hebrews 1:1-3

July 29, 2012 Theres a lot of discussion about who authored Hebrews, and I think thats kind of ironic because the book is about how Jesus is better than all things. I think by leaving that part blank it just highlights that Jesus is even greater than the writer. Hes better than the angels, better than creation, better than Moses, better than the tabernacle, better than the priests, you know, Hes better than everything. Even when we read about all the men and women of great faith in chapter 11, it tells us in chapter 12 that Jesus is the author and finisher of our faith. So, Hes better than Abraham and Adam and David and all the men and women at any time in history. And the author doesnt even waste time telling us anything else; he just jumps right in with that thought: God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, 2Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, From Adam to Malachi we read about how God spoke to His people through the mouths of prophets. Some of those men were distinctively great. Enoch and Elijah were translated into heaven. I mean, you dont get any better than that, right? Moses delivered the Law. Abraham is called the father of the faith, but this writer sort of lumps them all into one big heap and says, God used to speak to us by them, but now we have His own Son. The only one who really deserves distinction is Christ who is the ultimate Prophet and Apostle. This is the One, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, What does this verse mean? Look at this verse: For the law maketh men high priests which have infirmity; but the word of the oath, which was since the law, maketh the Son, who is consecrated for evermore (Hebrews 7:28). Maketh means to appoint. The law appointed sinful priests to carry out Gods purposes, but the word of the oath appointed the Son who is consecrated (perfect) forevermore. Okay, he says its by the word of the oath. What does that mean? Go to Psalm 110: The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool. 2The LORD shall send the rod of thy strength out of Zion: rule thou in the midst of thine enemies. 3Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power, in the beauties of holiness from the womb of the morning: thou hast the dew of thy youth. 4The LORD hath sworn, and will not repent, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek. 5The Lord at thy right hand shall strike through kings in the day of his wrath. 6He shall judge among the heathen, he shall fill the places with the dead bodies; he shall wound the heads over many

countries. 7He shall drink of the brook in the way: therefore shall he lift up the head. The Father makes an oath to the SonYou are My Priest forever. And the language of this Psalm is so rich. It shows Jesus Christ existing even before His incarnation in the beauties of holiness. And from the womb of the morning that is, from the beginning of creation He has been beautifully holy. Thou hast the dew of thy youth; He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. And so His people are willing to submit to Him as King and Priest. And of course His enemies hate Him, but Hes the heir of all things: The LORD shall send the rod of thy strength out of Zion: rule thou in the midst of thine enemies. He shall judge among the heathen, he shall fill the places with the dead bodies; he shall wound the heads over many countries. He is the rightful owner of both salvation and judgment; He is the heir of all things and as such He sits at the right hand of God. by whom also he made the worlds; Skip down a little and compare this verses 10-12: And, Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of thine hands: 11They shall perish; but thou remainest; and they all shall wax old as doth a garment; 12And as a vesture shalt thou fold them up, and they shall be changed: but thou art the same, and thy years shall not fail. The point of Hebrews is to show us that Christ is better than all things. Hes The Prophet and The Heir of all things and The Priest of God and The Creator of everything. If Hes creations Creator, then we have to say that Hes better than creation. He laid the foundations. Its the works of His hands. They die, but He lives. The get old, but He remains the same. Hes greater than creation.
3Who

being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person,

Lets start by looking at the brightness of His glory. Another word for brightness is radiance. Its something that shines brightly. Think of the verse that says that God dwells in the light which no man can approach unto (I Tim. 6:16). Think also of John 12:44-46Jesus cried and said, He that believeth on me, believeth not on me, but on him that sent me. 45And he that seeth me seeth him that sent me. 46I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness. Jesus perfectly reflects the glory of His Father. He is the express image of His person. Express image is (charakter). The Greek means either a tool used for engraving something or even better, a stamp which perfectly resembles the mark. In John 1:1 we read that Jesus is the Logos of

God. Our English word for logo comes from this Greek word. A logo is a sign or character representing a word.1 Jesus is the Logo of Godthe express image of His person. Now heres a wonderful Greek word: (hypostasis). Its basic meaning gives the idea of something thats actual. Its used to describe a foundation under a houseits not a house on sand, but a house on something solid. The word is also translated as substance: Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen (Hebrews 11:1). Its the same Greek word. Jesus is the brightness of Gods glory, and the exact image of His substance. He is the visible manifestation of God. Now why is this important? Not that any man hath seen the Father, save he which is of God, he hath seen the Father. (John 6:46) No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us. (I John 4:12) If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him. 8Philip saith unto him, Lord, shew us the Father, and it sufficeth us. 9Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Shew us the Father? (John 14:7-9) [Jesus] shall shew, who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords; 16Who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto; whom no man hath seen, nor can see: to whom be honour and power everlasting. Amen. (I Timothy 6:15-16) Now think about one more: And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent (John 17:3). How could we know God if not for Jesus Christ being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person? How could we have life eternal if we dont know God? The Word became flesh and dwelt among us (Jn. 1:14) for God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son (Jn. 3:16). Theres no one and nothing like Him in all existence. He is not less than God; Hes not in between angels and GodHe is God the exact image! Its no wonder were so severely warned to never make for ourselves a graven imageGods Son is the ONLY image.

http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?allowed_in_frame=0&search=logogram&searchmode=none

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: See how great He is: Hes holding all of creation together by His word, and yet He purges2 our sins by His own body and blood. He is God (unchanged and alive and keeping all things alive) and He is Man (laid into a grave). And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory (I Tim. 3:16) and was seated at the place of honor with the Majesty on high. He is so much better than all things within creation! He is not just God, and He is not just ManHe is God in the flesh. What a great mystery, and what a great blessing! http://newgracebaptist.blogspot.com/

An interesting note is that the Greek word here is (katharismos) which is where we get our English word catharsis, which means to cleanse or purge.
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