If we wanted to start an argument, not that any of us would of course, but if we wanted to start an argument, all that we would have to do is to go into any pub in Australia, or sporting club, or even church for that matter, and shout out at the top of our voice:

The 1992 West Coast Eagles were a better side than the 2013 Hawthorn Hawks.

Or any other two championship teams you could think of.

And within seconds the arguments would start. And most of the arguments would be in the form of "comparisons". Comparing this player with that player in an attempt to figure out "which team is better".

And if you were a real football fanatic you would argue about possessions, disposals, marks, goals, goal kicking percentages, tackles, speed, stamina, and whether or not the other guy was able to get up again after being knocked down.

In comparing two sporting teams, you couldn't just say, "this team is better than that team", you would have to give some pretty good reasons for what you are saying. Kicking on goal. Defence. Midfield. Ruck. Getting the ball out of the middle. You couldn't just use emotion or loyalty, instead you would use every statistic possible, every fact possible, to prove what you are saying.

And in the struggles and challenges facing a group of Jewish Christians in the late 60's of the first century, Hebrews 1, in fact, all of the letter of Hebrews, is that statistic, those "facts", that show that Jesus, and following Jesus, is "better". And the conclusion that the author wants us to go away with is that we need to stay close to Jesus, and we need to remain faithful to Jesus. Jesus isn't simply "a way", he is "the only way".

But why does the writer have to show that Jesus is better? What was going on at that time which caused this group of Jewish Christians to question their faith in Jesus? Let's go back for a minute and revise what we looked at a couple of weeks ago. Remember, that Hebrews was written to a group of Jewish Christians, who probably lived in Rome. This group of Jewish Christians had been faithful to Christ through some pretty severe hardships, as Hebrews 10:32-34 says:

Recall those earlier days when, after you had been enlightened, you endured a hard struggle with sufferings, sometimes being publicly exposed to abuse and persecution, and sometimes being partners with those so treated. For you had compassion for those who were in prison, and you cheerfully accepted the plundering of your possessions, knowing that you yourselves possessed something better and more lasting.

But even though they had been faithful through the severest trials, as they looked at what was happening in Judea and Jerusalem during the Jewish rebellion against Rome they began to wonder, "did we make a mistake in turning from Judaism to Jesus"? They asked themselves:

Did our turning from Judaism and the temple with its sacrifices, did our turning from Judaism to Jesus bring about this judgment of God upon Jerusalem? And if we returned to Judaism, if we returned to the priests and sacrifices, would the wrath of God be lifted from Judea, and would all be well?

The letter of Hebrews is the answer that they were given. And in this answer, everything comes down to that one word, "better".[1] A word which regularly appears in Hebrews as the author seeks to show this group of Jewish Christians that what we have in Christ is better than what they had in Judaism, so why return to it?

And in the thirteen chapters of this letter he shows those things that make Jesus better, and he shows those things that make continuing to follow Jesus better than returning to Judaism. And he begins this by answering the question, "Who is Jesus?" Hebrews 1:1-4 says:

Long ago God spoke to our ancestors in many and various ways by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by a Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom he also created the worlds. He is the reflection of God’s glory and the exact imprint of God’s very being, and he sustains all things by his powerful word. When he had made purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs.

The first thing that we notice here is that Jesus is a "Son"[2]. That which makes Jesus greater than both the prophets and the angels is the fact that Jesus, is a "Son". In the past, God had spoken by his prophets. In the past, God had sent his angels,[3] his messengers, to make known to the people his will and plans. But now, in and through Jesus Christ, God has sent, and God has spoken to us, in a Son.

God spoke by the prophets, that is certain and vital. God has also operated in the world through his angels, that is certain and vital. But prophets and angels are only servants, as verse seven says:

Of the angels he says,

He makes his angels winds,

and his servants flames of fire.

Angels and prophets are "messengers", but Christ is a "son". And being a "son" makes his word, his person, his being, his authority far greater than that of either prophets or angels.

Jesus talks about this in his Parable of the Tenants in Matthew 21. At first, the owner sent his servants, who were rejected. Then he sent more servants, who were also rejected, but, as Matthew 21:37 says:

Finally, he sent his son to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’

And notice how the writer words this in Hebrews 1:1-2:

Long ago God spoke to our ancestors in many and various ways by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by a Son.

In the past, God used messengers, angels, and prophets, but now God has sent someone even better, with more authority and more dignity than even the prophets and angels, for he has sent, "a son". And because he sent a "son", we must, as Hebrews 2:1 says:

We must pay greater attention to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away from it.

And he continues with this emphasis on the "sonship" of Jesus in Hebrews 1:5-6:

For to which of the angels did God ever say, “You are my Son; today I have begotten you”?

Or again,

“I will be his Father, and he will be my Son”?

And the answer, of course, is "none of them". He then continues:

When he brings the firstborn into the world, he says, “Let all God’s angels worship him.[4]

The son is greater than the angels. The son is to be worshiped by the angels. Therefore, we need to listen to Jesus, who is the "Son".

We see this same thing on the Mount of Transfiguration in Matthew 17. What we read there is that Jesus took Peter, James, and John with him up the mountain. While they were there Elijah and Moses, both of them prophets of God, Elijah and Moses came and talked with Jesus. Peter, James, and John are overwhelmed by what they see, and Peter wants to equally honour all three. But as soon as Peter mentions this to Jesus, we read in Matthew 17:5:

Suddenly a bright cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud a voice said, “This is my Son, the Beloved; with him I am well pleased; listen to him!”

Did you notice that? Here we have the great Moses, the giver of the law, and the one through whom God had delivered Israel out of Egypt. Here we have the great Elijah, easily the greatest of the Old Testament prophets, through whom God worked miracles and gave his word to the people. But God says to Peter, James, and John:

This is my Son . . . listen to him.

• Listen to my son because he is greater than Moses.
• Listen to my son because he is greater than Elijah.
• Listen to my son because he is greater than Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Malachi.
• Listen to my son because he is greater than any prophet, or angel, or any other messenger,
• Listen to him because he is my Son!

God has spoken to us in the past through the prophets, but now he has spoken through a son.

The next thing that we read in verse 2, is that Jesus is the "heir".[5] This is the same word that is used back in the Parable of the Tenants in Matthew 21:38. When the labourers see the son, who had been sent by the father, they say: "this is the heir". They said, "This is the one who is the rightful possessor and ruler, the one to whom the Father will give all things, this is the heir", as Paul mentions in Colossians 1:16:

For in him all things in heaven and on earth were created, things visible and invisible, whether thrones, dominions, rulers, or powers—all things have been created through him and for him.

Stephanie and I have a lot of friends. A lot of people who are very special to us. But when we die, there is only one person who gets everything, and that is our son, James. James is the "heir". Everything is "for him". And in that same sense, although, of course, God the Father will not die, but in that same sense, everything that the Father has, belongs to the son. It is "for the Son". As Jesus said in John 17:10:

All mine are yours, and yours are mine.

And, again, in John 16:15:

All that the Father has is mine.

Just as everything was created "through Jesus", which we will look at in a moment, but just as everything was created "through Jesus", so also everything was created "for Jesus".

• We were not created for ourselves, to live independently from God, doing as we please. We were created for him.
• We were not designed to live for ourselves and for our own pleasures, but to live for him.
• Because Jesus is the "heir" of all things, we were created to be his, not ours.

And notice that the writer says that Jesus is the "heir" of all things, the possessor of all things. It isn't like, as we sometimes see, where the child gets this, but the nephew gets the hunting rifle, and the niece gets the vase, and the best mate gets the painting that hung over the mantel piece. No. Jesus is the "heir" of all things. It is all, every last bit of it, it is all his.

This is further emphasised by his use of the term “firstborn” in Hebrews 1:6:

And again, when he brings the firstborn into the world.

When we use the term “firstborn” we mean it with the idea of “the first to be born”. Stephanie is the firstborn in her family. Our son James is our firstborn. Nessa is his firstborn.

But in biblical times, particularly in Old Testament times, the firstborn was also the one who was to inherit everything and rule the family.

• And so Isaac was the firstborn,[6] even though Ishmael was the first one to be born.
• Jacob and Esau fought over the “rights of the firstborn”.[7]
• Reuben was Jacob’s firstborn, but because of his actions, Joseph was treated as the firstborn.[8]

We also read in 1Chronicles 26:10 that:

Hosah, of the sons of Merari, had sons: Shimri the chief (for though he was not the firstborn, his father made him chief).

And so when Hebrews says that Jesus is the “firstborn”, it is simply another way of saying that Jesus is the heir, the heir of all things. The one who is to rule.

Paul further emphasises that in Colossians 1:15-16, when he says that Jesus:

Is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.

And why is he the firstborn? Why is he the ruler of all creation?

for in him all things in heaven and on earth were created, things visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or powers—all things have been created through him and for him.

And as the heir of all things, we all, whether we acknowledge it or not, we are all his. On the one hand we are his because he created us, and on the other hand we are his because he redeemed us, as Paul said in 1 Corinthians 6:19-20:

Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, which you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you were bought with a price; therefore glorify God in your body.

And so, in just two verses, the writer of Hebrews has shown the greatness of Jesus because he is a son, and because Jesus is the heir of all things. But we then go on to read in verse two that Jesus is "better", "greater", because Jesus was God's agent in creation. That is, everything was made "through him",[9] as Hebrews 1:2 says:

In these last days he has spoken to us by a Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom he also created the worlds.[10]

And the writer of Hebrews isn't the only who shows us that Jesus was God's agent in creation, the one "through whom" God the Father made everything. We read in John 1:3 that:

All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being.

And John 1:10:

He was in the world, and the world came into being through him; yet the world did not know him.

Paul says the same thing in 1 Corinthians 8:6:

Yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist.

As we previously read in Colossians 1:16:

In him all things in heaven and on earth were created, things visible and invisible, whether thrones, dominions, rulers, or powers—all things have been created through him and for him.

Through him, for he is God's agent. For him, because he is God's heir.

Time after time the Bible makes it clear that God the Father created the entire universe, (all that is seen, and all that we cannot see), and also that all of it was made through the agency of Jesus.

And so, in Genesis 1, when we read that "in the beginning God created the heaven and the earth", the teaching of John, Paul, and the writer to the Hebrews shows us that God the Father performed that creative act through the agency, by means of Jesus, the son of God. And so Jesus is the heir of all things because he is the creator of all things.

And when Hebrews is stating that Jesus is the agent of God in creation, the one through whom all things are made, it is making a bold statement about the identify of Jesus. He is indicating that Jesus is God, for:

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

And in making it plain that Jesus is totally, and completely God. In making it plain that Jesus is the agent of God the Father in creation, the writer of Hebrews is making it abundantly clear why we must listen to Jesus, trust in Jesus, and follow Jesus. Not because Jesus is a good man from Galilee. But because Jesus is God, who came into this world and lived as a human being.

The doctrine of the deity of Christ isn't something "made up" centuries after the fact, as some claim. Some claim that it was only at the Council of Nicaea in 325 that the church "made Jesus into a god". This is not correct. The doctrine of the deity of Christ is the clear teaching of the New Testament itself.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.[11]

We wait for the blessed hope and the manifestation of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ.[12]

Simeon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who have received a faith as precious as ours through the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ.[13]

The clear evidence of John, Paul, Peter, as well as the writer of Hebrews, is that the man Jesus is in fact more than a man. He is God, become a human being.

But why did they say this? What happened between Jesus' death and the thirty to forty years later when each of these letters in the New Testament had been written and distributed which convinced them that Jesus is God? Paul's statement in Romans 1:4 gives us the answer.

[He] was declared to be Son of God with power according to the spirit of holiness by resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord.

The resurrection of Jesus proved to this group of fearful disciples the reality of the fact that Jesus, the man they knew, had walked with, learned from, and followed, this same Jesus is more than just a man, he is "God become flesh". He is, as John 1:14 says, he is:

The Word became flesh and lived among us.

As Thomas also said when he saw the risen Jesus:

My Lord and my God![14]

And the writer of Hebrews joins in this confession of the deity of Jesus Christ when, in Hebrews 1:8, he quotes Psalm 45:6:

But of the Son he says,

“Your throne, O God, is forever and ever,

and the righteous sceptre is the sceptre of your kingdom."

And again, in Hebrews 1:10, he quotes Psalm 102:25, and directs this towards the person of Jesus, saying:

In the beginning, Lord, you founded the earth,

and the heavens are the work of your hands.

In the New Testament, when we read the word "Lord", we understand it as referring to Jesus. "The Lord Jesus". But in the Old Testament, when we read the word "Lord", it almost always refers to God. It almost always translates the divine name of God.

But notice here in Psalm 102:25 and following, notice what he says about who this "Lord" is:

• He is the one who laid the foundations of the earth.
• He is the one who created the heavens.
• He is eternal, and his years are without end.
• This "lord" is unchanging.

This Psalm was clearly referring to the God of Israel, but here, in Hebrews, the writer says that this is the voice of God the Father speaking to, and about, Jesus the Son.

No angel had this said to him. This is only what you say to one who is God. We were never told to bow down before the angels, but we do read in Hebrews 1:6:

And again, when he brings the firstborn into the world, he says,

“Let all God’s angels worship him."

We read here that even the angels were told to bow down and worship, the son of God.

Now we know that we are to worship the Lord our God only, but here, the angels were told to "worship, the son of God". Why? Because Jesus, the son of God, the heir of all things, through whom, and for whom all things were created, this same Jesus, in his very nature, he is God.

And as the son of God, and as God the Son, we read in Hebrews 1:3, that Jesus is the "radiance of God's glory".[15] This is the only time in the entire Bible that this word “radiance” appears. But what does it mean?

When early church leaders and teachers sought to understand the relationship between the Father and Son, they used the illustration of the "sun in the sky" and the "light which shines from the sun in the sky". And they said that, just as the light is the radiance of the sun, so also is Christ the "radiance" of God the Father.

When we look up and see this giant fiery ball in the sky, we do not see "the sun in the sky", but only the "radiance of the sun". And the early church Fathers, as they sought to understand and describe the relationship between Christ and God the Father, they said, "just as we know what the sun in the sky is like because of the "radiance" of the light, so also we know what God the Father is like, because we see his "radiance" in the person of Jesus Christ, as Jesus said to Philip in John 14:9:

Whoever has seen me has seen the Father.

"To see me", says Jesus, is to see God". "To know me, is to know God". “To follow me, is to follow God". “To trust me, is to trust God".

And this idea continues in his next phrase in Hebrews 1:3, when he says that the son is "the exact imprint" of his being.[16] The word here is used for the:

Imprint that a seal makes on a surface, [so that] what has been engraved on the seal appears also on that into which the seal has been pressed.

In our day we use "glue" to seal a letter. But back then they used melted wax, perhaps from a candle, and a carved seal. They would melt the wax over the letter, and then they would stamp their seal into it, partly to show that the letter hadn't been opened, and partly to prove that this letter was a genuine letter from the sender. And what we notice is that the " imprint " is exactly like the seal. And I can know exactly what the seal is like, by looking at the imprint it makes. That is the word used here when he says that the son is:

the exact imprint of God’s very being.

Everything the imprint is, the seal is. To look at the one, is to see the other, and the Lord Jesus is the "exact imprint,” the NIV says, "the exact impression” of God the Father, the "exact representation" of who God is, and what God is like.

Elsewhere in the New Testament, Paul uses the term "image",[17] to say the same thing. In Colossians 1:15 he says that:

He is the image of the invisible God.

And in 2 Corinthians 4:4 he says that:

The god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.

• At his trial, Pilate asked Jesus, "who are you"?
• When they saw his miracles, the disciples asked one another, "who is this"?
• When they heard his teaching, the crowds asked, "who are you"?

And so far in this look as to why Jesus is "better", and why we must listen to, trust in, and follow him, we have seen that:

• Jesus is the Son of God
• Jesus is the heir of God.
• Jesus is agent of God in creation.
• Jesus is the radiance of God's glory.
• And Jesus is the exact representation of the nature of God, that is, he is the image of God.

Who is Jesus?

Jesus is God, born into this world as a human being.

• And because of who he is, we must turn to him.
• Because of who he is, when there are questions we cannot answer, we need to cling to him.
• Because of who he is, when life gets rough, we need to trust in him.
• Because of who he is, when the world tries to pull us in its direction, we need to follow him.

Because of who he is, Jesus: the son of God, the heir of God, the agent of God, the radiance of God, and the exact representation of God, because of all of this, Jesus is "better", and we need turn nowhere else, or, as he says in Hebrews 2:1:

We must pay greater attention to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away from it.

 

[1] κρείττων Hebrews 1:4; 6:9; 7:7, 19, 22; 8:6 (x2); 9:23; 10:34; 11:16, 35, 40; 12:24

[2] υἱός

[3] ἄγγελος

[4] Hebrew: הִשְׁתַּחֲווּ־ל֝וֹ כָּל־אֱלֹהִֽים. “Let all the gods worship him”.

[5] κληρονόμος

[6] Heb בָּכַר Gk: πρωτοτόκος

[7] Heb: בִּכְרָה

[8] 1 Chronicles 5:1-2

[9] δι’ οὗ

[10] ἀϊών “ages, eternity.”

[11] John 1:1

[12] Titus 2:13

[13] 2 Peter 1:1

[14] John 20:28

[15] ἀπαύγασμα - NRSV “Reflection”

[16] χαρακτὴρ

[17] εἰκωn