LISTEN HERE:
WATCH THE INTRODUCTION HERE:
WATCH THE MESSAGE HERE:
READ THE BLOG HERE:
In 2010, when being interviews by Parade Magazine, Sir Elton John made this comment about Jesus: “I think Jesus was a compassionate, super-intelligent gay man who understood human problems. On the cross, he forgave the people who crucified him.”[i]
B-b-b-Benny and the Jets! Holy Cow! Gad zukes man! I THINK Sir Elton meant that to be a compliment, but somehow, unbeknownst to him, I think the pop icon did exactly the opposite! And I’m not sure which is the biggest un-compliment of all; being “gay,” or being “super-intelligent?”
Calling the Prince of Peace “gay” places Jesus squarely in the camp of sinners like the rest of humanity… and that is just plain appalling theology. It’s not even theology; it’s a corruption of the Scriptures and a complete re-reading of history. But denigrating Jesus by assuming that He is nothing more than “super-intelligent” is to compare the Son of God to a super successful game-show contestant on Jeapordy:
“I’ll take ‘humanizing Jesus’ for $100, Alex.”
“Name the president who cut ‘diamonds from the dunghill,’ to create his own Bible, complete with nothing but the Words of Jesus?”
(Beep, beep, beep) “Thomas Jefferson!”
Right. That’s Double Jeopardy for sure! There are so many contradictory portraits of Jesus available that the ordinary Christian cannot help but be confused. Nowadays the wildest speculations are eagerly aired on the Discovery Channel or published by “The Jesus Seminar” and obscure the genuine character of our Lord which is essential to Christian faith.
Was Jesus nothing more than a super-intelligent man, or was he the all-wise God? In the past, theologians have framed this theological issue by explaining Jesus two natures as “the hypostatic union of the theoanthropic person.” In laymen’s terms this means that Jesus two natures, divine and human, were combined in one person.
The book of Hebrews chapter one in an incredible commentary on just who Jesus is! In this chapter Jesus is compared to the angels. According to 1:4 he is better than angels. In verse 5, He is a Son, angels aren’t. In verse 6 Jesus is worshiped, angels are not. In verse 7-8, Jesus is reigning with God, angels are simply his subjects. In verse 10 Christ is the creator, and the angels? They are the created. So lets dig into this in a little more detail to see what we believe about the Son of God.
The Person and Work of Jesus 1-3
Verses 1-3 describe the words and works of Jesus Christ.
God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, 2 has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds; 3 who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,
This is a sublime summary of our amazing savior. Here is what we learn about Jesus:
He is God’s spokesman – “in these last days spoken to us by His Son” When Jesus speaks, God speaks.
He is the heir of all things – He owns it all.
He made everything.
He is the brightness of God’s glory and the express image of His person. (3) This verse is designed to state the dignity and exalted rank of the Son of God. Every word is employed with great importance.
GLORY: The word “Glory” means, “splendor, honor excellence, perfection, praise!” It is prefaced by the word “brightness,” the brightness of his glory! It is used of a reflection. Jesus reflects the Father’s glory! God is light and Jesus is the Light of the world. It is as though when you look at Jesus in the mirror, you see the incredible glory of the Father streaming back into the room.
EXPRESS IMAGE: The Greek word is one you will recognize: “character” Our English word is simply a transliterated Greek word. And it literally means the imprint, stamp or engraving, like those on a coin meant to be an exact resemblance of the bearer. In other words, when we look at Abraham Lincoln on the Penney, that is what he supposedly looks like! When you look at Jesus you see the spitting image of His Father! The writer of Hebrews wanted to be clear. Jesus and the Father are one!
We also learn from verse 3 that Jesus holds all things together.
He paid for our sins
He is sitting at the right hand of the Father.
That is a great summary, and we could spend a lot more time on these verses going deeper, but today, we are going for the big picture. We are going for the whole chapter.
He is the begotten Son of God 4-5
4 having become so much better than the angels, as He has by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they. 5 For to which of the angels did He ever say: “You are My Son, Today I have begotten You”? And again: “I will be to Him a Father, And He shall be to Me a Son”?
Muslims say that God is above having a Son. To say that God had a Son is a monstrous thing; at it the skies are ready to burst, the earth to split asunder, and the mountains to fall down in utter ruin that they should invoke a son for God. [ii]
How could the Almighty have a son? How is that evern possible? Well if God is a Father, I suppose He is named so, because He had a Son. And if God had a Son, what else would He have, certainly not a mere mortal. If Dogs beget dogs; and cats have cats; and if humans are born to humans, if God were to beget a Son, he would of necessity be divine.
The Nicene Creed explains it this way, “[we believe] in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten of His Father before all worlds, God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God, begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father.”
In other words, although Jesus was a fully human person, he also was and is fully God. He is God; who was made flesh.
He is Worshiped as God
6 But when He again brings the firstborn into the world, He says: “Let all the angels of God worship Him.”
For a Jewish writer to ascribe worship to Jesus Christ is unimaginable. Deuteronomy 6:13 commands, “You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.” Jesus Himself quoted that verse in the New Testament. It is one of the Ten Commandments. God and God alone is worthy of worship. Angels are not. Men are not. Only God is.
But Jesus accepted the worship of men. No wonder the Jews wanted to stone him! No wonder it is so difficult for a Jew to accept Jesus. But the writer of Hebrews claims that God the Father commanded the angels to worship Jesus! If that truly happened, it is a certain proof that Jesus is God.
It just so happens that it did. For there were shepherds abiding in the fields by night, and the glory of the Lord shown round about, and the heavenly host of angels worshiped and shouted, “Glory to God in the highest!”
He is enthroned as God 7-8
7 And of the angels He says: “Who makes His angels spirits And His ministers a flame of fire.” 8 But to the Son He says: “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Your kingdom. 9 You have loved righteousness and hated lawlessness; Therefore God, Your God, has anointed You With the oil of gladness more than Your companions.”
The statement I want us to ponder is one which God the Father Himself composed about Jesus; “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever!” God the Father called the Son, God! He led in the coronation of Jesus as the supreme ruler of the Kingdom! A place reserved for God alone, because it is God alone who takes the throne!
He is the Eternal Creator God 10-12
10 And: “You, Lord, in the beginning laid the foundation of the earth, And the heavens are the work of Your hands. 11 They will perish, but You remain; And they will all grow old like a garment; 12 Like a cloak You will fold them up, And they will be changed. But You are the same, And Your years will not fail.”
It was Jesus who laid the foundation of the earth! It was Jesus who made the heavens as the work of his Hands. Jesus is the creator! All things were made by Him, and without Him, nothing was made that was made. He is before all things, and by Him, all things consist!
The world is coming to an end. The universe is winding down. All things are growing old. Like a worn out coat, it will one day be cast aside. There is coming a new heaven and new earth that will be need to be created by Jesus Christ for those who love Him and Serve him.
Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea. 2 Then I, John,[a] saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 3 And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. 4 And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.”
5 Then He who sat on the throne said, “Behold, I make all things new.” And He said to me,[b] “Write, for these words are true and faithful.”
6 And He said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. I will give of the fountain of the water of life freely to him who thirsts. 7 He who overcomes shall inherit all things] and I will be his God and he shall be My son. (Revelation 21: 1-7)
[i] http://www.news-record.com/blog/52992/entry/83049 http://www.parade.com/celebrity/celebrity-parade/2010/elton-john-web-exclusive.html
[ii] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islamic_view_of_the_Trinity
Leave a Reply