· We are enamored with superheroes from Superman, to Batman, Daredevil, the Hulk, Iron Man, the Fantastic Four, The Green Lantern, The Green Hornet, Captain America, Thor, Spider-Man, the X-men, to the Avengers.
· What lies behind this phenomenon is that we all want heroes. We all want someone to believe in or hope in. We like a good story, where good ultimately triumphs over evil, or at least gives us hope that good can triumph over evil, even if not completely yet.
· We want heroes and we know we need saving. We know we need help and we all want hope don’t we? Where is there real hope though?
· Real hope can be found only in someone who is superior to any superhero - superior to any angelic being
· Real hope is not found in fantasy but it is found in the reality of seeing who is Jesus Christ.
· For Christians, our salvation is great because it comes through someone greater. It comes from Jesus, who is greater than any comic book hero. Jesus is far more superior to the ultimate super-hero and He is far superior to any supernatural being. He is the ultimate hero and we can believe in Him because He is real, even though we cannot see Him any longer.
· The author of Hebrews is trying to get us to see just how great our salvation is; just how great the message that we have been given is. He is trying to get us to marvel at Jesus and so, the main idea of these verses is that “Jesus is much superior to angels”
Main Idea: Jesus is much superior to angels
·
Now, this might
seem strange to us, since most of us don’t think a whole lot about angels and I
doubt most of us have been seriously struggling with whether or not Jesus is
really greater than the angles.· I think most of us would acknowledge that Jesus is greater than the angels…
· But we can trivialize Jesus and we can minimize Him and we can tend to subtly look to other things for our hope and we can forget how great Jesus is.
· Jesus is no mere angel and as God the Son, He is far superior to the angels.
· He is the ultimate prophet, whom God has spoken through finally.
· He is the greatest priest, who has made final purification for our sins Himself.
· And He is the highest King, who sat down at the right hand of the majesty on high and He rules over all.
· The author of Hebrews is showing in these verses how Jesus is much superior to the angels, because angels themselves are impressive.
· In fact, the typical response to any angel’s appearance in the Bible was one of terror. They weren’t like the weird, little, chubby cherubs or pansy-looking angels we see in paintings.
· C.S. Lewis once wrote, in his book “The Screwtape letters” about a dialog between an older, experienced demon-uncle and his young trainee-nephew:
“Our policy for the moment is to conceal ourselves. Of course this has
not always been so. We are really faced with a cruel dilemma. When the humans
disbelieve in our existence we lose all the pleasing results of direct
terrorism and we make no magicians. On the other hand, when they believe in us,
we cannot make them materialists and skeptics. At least, not yet. I have great
hopes that we shall learn in due time how to emotionalize and mythologize their
science to such an extent that what is, in effect, a belief in us (though not
under that name) will creep in while the human mind remains closed to belief in
the Enemy” –Uncle Screwtape
·
But we need not
fear and we need not wonder about angels or fallen angels. The Son is superior
and He also became superior, just like the name He had was superior. · He has become as He already was
· The writer of Hebrews wants us to see that His name is more excellent than angles and that is the first point we come to in verse 5.
1.
His Name is More Excellent (Son of God)
ESV 5 For to which of the angels did God
ever say, "You are my Son, today I have begotten you"? Or again,
"I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son"? · The point he is making in these verses is that God never said any such thing of an angel
· He never appointed an angel to be at His right hand as His Son
· But Jesus has been appointed to the right hand of God and called God’s Son
· The name that Jesus has that is above the angels is the name Son of God
· Then, he moves on to his next point in verses 6 and 7. Not only is His name “Son of God” more excellent, He is worshipped by angels.
2. He is worshipped by Angels v6-7
6 And again, when he brings the firstborn into the world, he says, "Let all God's angels worship him."
· The author is quoting Deuteronomy 32:43 from the Septuagint’s version – the first century Greek version of the Hebrew Bible and he applies the verse to the Son
· The Son is worshipped by angels – but angels only worship God
· One only worships what is superior to themselves and so the angels worship Jesus because He is superior to them
· And in fact, the angels only worship God. So Jesus is God
· He is so superior to angels that angels worship Him
· Worship is important. Whether we worship Jesus as God or not is perhaps the biggest issue in our lives
· You see, Judaism and Islam and Mormonism and Jehovah’s witnesses don’t worship Jesus as God
· They either say Jesus is a son, in the sense of a man. Perhaps he was just a prophet or even the offspring of God relating with Mary, or they say that He is just an archangel as the Jehovah’s witnesses claim.
· But the thing that separates what we believe from these religions is that Jesus is not just a man or a divine offspring or only an earthly prophet or an archangel – He is worshipped by the angels and He is God.
· So, the question for us is, “how do we worship Jesus?” “Do we want everyone to see how great He is; how mighty He is; how He is our only hope and that He reigns over all?”
· “Do we worship Him for who He is in all that we do?”
· Verse 7 shows us that He tells the angels what to do – He makes them winds and ministers of fire – they serve Him
3.
He is God -v8
·
As a descendent of David, God had promised that the throne of the Messiah
would last forever· The most remarkable thing about this is that in Psalm 45,it is referring to the Davidic kingdom but the king himself is called God, whose God is God.
· God is God and the Son is God.
· But no other earthly king’s throne had lasted, even though someone from David’s line sat on the throne for about 400 years
· So the point of verse 8 is that Jesus is God. He is the one who rules as God.
· His throne is forever and ever
· And He is the completely righteous ruler.
· Then, even though Jesus was God the Son, verse 9 alludes to what we will unpack later in Hebrews, that Jesus also earned the right to be called the son of God because He loved righteousness and hated wickedness and this was the joy set before Him – His exaltation and His bringing into the kingdom many sons of glory
· Then, in verses 10-12 we can see the forth point the author is making - that Jesus is the Eternal Creator.
· He is much superior to the angels because He is the Eternal Creator.
4. He is the Eternal Creator - v10-12
It says, 10 And, "You, Lord, laid the foundation of the earth in the beginning, and the heavens are the work of your hands; 11 they will perish, but you remain; they will all wear out like a garment, 12 like a robe you will roll them up, like a garment they will be changed.1 But you are the same, and your years will have no end."
·
Because Jesus is God, the writer of Hebrews quotes Psalm 102:25-27 which is
referring to God the Creator and he applies it to the Son because the Son of
God is God.
·
If you saw a clay pot, you would know that it was made by a potter and this
is the image that is shown here. The heavens are the work of the hands of the
Son of God.· The Son of God made those with His hands, speaking figuratively, and this shows us just how great and creative Jesus is.
· At the same time, one day this whole universe, which appears so great and seems infinite to us, it will all just perish. But Jesus will remain and if our hope is found in Him, we too will remain with Him.
· The whole universe will be rolled up like a robe and taken off and put away after it has worn out and fulfilled its purpose.
· It is no more difficult for Jesus to do this and recreate all things than it is for you or me to change clothes. We take old worn out clothes off and put new ones on.
· Jesus is so great that it will be like Him changing clothes. Everything else will change but God will be the same and His years will have no end.
· So what are we to do with this truth? How are we meant to respond?
· We are to see Jesus as much superior and to worship Him and trust in Him
· We aren’t to treat Jesus as if He is trivial or His name as something to joke about or make into a swear-word.
· He is the holy Son of God, worshipped by angels; the Creator of all.
Isaiah 6:2-4 Above him stood the seraphim. Each
had six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet,
and with two he flew. 3 And
one called to another and said: "Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts;
the whole earth is full of his glory!"1 4 And the foundations of the
thresholds shook at the voice of him who called, and the house was filled with
smoke.
·
Jesus is the Holy One· The one who called was an angel and the foundations of the threshold of the throne shook, but this powerful and mighty being, this seraphim who called out “Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord of hosts, the whole earth is full of His glory”, still covered his face and feet. This was a sign of the fact that the angels are beneath this exalted Lord of Creation. Even the angels worship Jesus.
· Then the last point of our passage in Hebrews is that He is king over His servants
5.
He is King over His Servants (angels) v13-14
13 And to which of the angels has
he ever said, "Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool
for your feet"?· In this passage, the author is saying that if Jesus is over all and that includes his enemies (fallen angels) and angels are his ministering spirits too, then clearly, Jesus is King over His servants and much superior to the angels.
14 Are they not all ministering spirits sent out to serve for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation?
· Notice something interesting here. It says that angels, these powerful and mighty beings, are sent out to serve for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation.
· Angels are sent out to serve Christians.
· And as the angels serve us against our enemies of demonic forces, false teaching, evil people, sinful desires, then God’s enemies are made a footstool for Jesus.
· In revelation 5, we see a picture of Jesus who has conquered all and is more worthy than all.
Revelation 5:1-14 Then I saw in the right hand of him
who was seated on the throne a scroll written within and on the back, sealed
with seven seals. 2 And I saw
a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, "Who is worthy to open the
scroll and break its seals?" 3
And no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll
or to look into it, 4 and I
began to weep loudly because no one was found worthy to open the scroll or to
look into it. 5 And one of
the elders said to me, "Weep no more; behold, the Lion of the tribe of
Judah, the Root of David, has conquered, so that he can open the scroll and its
seven seals." 6 And
between the throne and the four living creatures and among the elders I saw a
Lamb standing, as though it had been slain, with seven horns and with seven
eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth. 7 And he went and took the scroll
from the right hand of him who was seated on the throne. 8 And when he had taken the
scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before
the Lamb, each holding a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the
prayers of the saints. 9 And
they sang a new song, saying, "Worthy are you to take the scroll and to
open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for
God from every tribe and language and people and nation, 10 and you have made them a
kingdom and priests to our God, and they shall reign on the earth." 11 Then I looked, and I heard
around the throne and the living creatures and the elders the voice of many
angels, numbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, 12 saying with a loud voice,
“Worthy is the Lamb” who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and
might and honor and glory and blessing!"
13 And I heard every creature in heaven and on earth and
under the earth and in the sea, and all that is in them, saying, "To him
who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and
might forever and ever!" 14
And the four living creatures said, "Amen!" and the elders fell down
and worshiped.
·
All of the angles fell down and worshipped the
lamb – the Son of God, their King· And then, how did John respond at the end of Revelation? How did he respond when he had seen and heard the things about Jesus and His exaltation and His coming return?
Revelation 22:6-9 And he said to me, "These words
are trustworthy and true. And the Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets,
has sent his angel to show his servants what must soon take place. " 7 "And behold, I am coming
soon. Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book." 8 I, John, am the one who heard
and saw these things. And when I heard and saw them, I fell down to worship at
the feet of the angel who showed them to me,
9 but he said to me, "You must not do that! I am a
fellow servant1 with you and your brothers the prophets, and with
those who keep the words of this book. Worship God."
·
Angels aren’t comfortable to be around. They aren’t like the characters in “Touched
by an Angel” or Michael Landon or like you’d see in a renaissance painting· Even John, who had seen Jesus ascend into heaven, fell down and worshipped the angel who showed him the revelation of Jesus
· But the angel corrected him and said he must not do that – because he was a fellow servant of Jesus
· Jesus is much superior to the angels. So what should our response be?
· Our response should be to worship Jesus. Our response should be to want to live for Him. To see Him as Holy and to lift His name up on high. To be grateful for Him and the gift that He has come to give us and to see Him as worthy of worship and our lives.
· When we see Jesus, how can we not have hope in His Promises and live our lives as His Disciples
· Does this make you want to follow Him with all that you are? Doesn’t this make you want to get to know more about Him? Don’t you want to worship Him?
Potential Application Questions:
1. How do we subtly minimize Jesus’ superiority over all things in our lives?
2. Is there anyone or anything (including ourselves) that we are trusting or hoping in?
3. What does it mean that Jesus has a name above every name? How does this affect the way we approach Jesus, as the Son of God?
4. How does seeing how great angels are increase your appreciation of just how much greater Jesus is?
5. Is there anywhere you have even unintentionally minimized the power or ability of Jesus in your life?
6. Do we worship Jesus in all we do? How did this passage and message help you want to worship Jesus more?
7. How does seeing Jesus as superior help you in how you view your circumstances and troubles in life?
8. When you think of Jesus as the almighty Creator, the Son of God, whom angels worship and obey, how does this affect your appreciation for the great news of the gospel that we have and Jesus’ sacrifice on our behalf?
9. When you think about an area of sin that you’ve struggled with for a long time and you don’t seem able to beat – how does seeing Jesus as superior give you hope?
10. When you are aware of a failure or weakness or struggle in your life, why is it important that we focus on just how great Jesus is?
11. How can we worship Jesus in our lives in response to how Great He is?
