HEBREWS 1:1

The Bible says in Hebrews 1:1-2, “God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds.” These two Bible verses tell us many things about God. They tell us that God “spake.” Speech is made up of words. God gave words in a very definite and precise way so that human beings would know the truth about God. The words are important. We must have the words that God gave in order to know the truth about God. God did things to make sure that we have His Word. In verse one the words that are translated “sundry” and “divers” are from the same word that means literally “many.” God gave His words many times and in many ways. We know that there were times when God spoke audibly to certain individuals. God spoke to Moses face to face, as a man would speak to his friend. We know that the Old Testament was written over a period of about one thousand years, so during that time God was speaking and giving His word to different individuals. Those individuals often wrote down God’s Word by the process that is called divine inspiration. Somehow when these prophets wrote words, they were the very words of God.

When Malachi penned the last word of his book, the Old Testament was completed. And then hundreds of years passed without additional revelation from God. But a new era dawned, and a new voice was heard: the voice of Jesus Christ. God sent forth his Son, born of a woman, to bring truth to the human race. There was a time when God had spoken to the human race by the prophets. God did this many times and in many ways, but the day came when God chose to speak to us by his Son. Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.”

These two verses in the book of Hebrews say that Jesus is the heir of all things. This is an emphasis on the deity of Jesus Christ. Jesus is God to the same degree that the Father is God. They are both God in every sense of the word, and so is the Holy Spirit. In the first chapter of the book of Hebrews Jesus is being given His proper place of preeminence. It is very important that Christians be reminded that Jesus is God, and that Jesus is to be given a place of honor above all other beings. False doctrine will ultimately attack Jesus and His place as God. Notice that verse two says concerning Jesus: “by whom also he made the worlds.” We know that the first verse of the Bible says in Genesis 1:1, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” It would be just as accurate to say, “In the beginning Jesus created the heavens and the earth.” That is what is being said here in the book of Hebrews. It is also what is being said in John 1:1-3, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not anything made that was made.”

Hebrews 1:1-2 shows the superiority of Jesus over the prophets. Of course, God is superior to anyone. We have a very good example in this world of a group that failed to understand this important truth. The religion of Islam teaches that Mohammed is a prophet and that Jesus is another prophet. Because of that false teaching, they have committed many other errors also. If only they had understood the first two verses of Hebrews chapter one, much less evil would have taken place in the world.

Hebrews 1:3 continues on the subject of Jesus being God. It says, “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 on the right hand of the Majesty on high.” This verse says a lot about Jesus Christ. It says two things concerning who He is, and it says three things concerning what He does or has done. Jesus Christ is the “brightness” of God’s glory. We know that there is a great glory associated with the very existence of God. The glory is so great that it could blind a man: it could kill a man. The glory of God emanates from Him. The glory of God is bright and beautiful and full of the most brilliant light. All the colors of the rainbow and all the brightness of the brightest stars are in the glory of God. In the God-head of three persons, the three are One, and yet the three have their own individuality. It seems that one of the purposes of the Son in the Godhead is to be the manifestation of God. Knowing God comes through Jesus Christ. Understanding God comes through Jesus Christ. Seeing God comes through Jesus Christ. Jesus is the Truth. Jesus is the manifestation of God. Jesus is God in the flesh. Jesus is the “brightness of his glory.”

Jesus is also “the express image of his person.” The word that is translated “person” is a word that refers to God’s underlying substance. It is a word that refers to all that God is. The word that is translated “image” refers to being an exact image. If you have seen the one, then you have seen the other. Jesus is the exact image of all that God is, because Jesus is God. It is no wonder that Jesus said “If you have seen me, you have seen the Father.”

Because Jesus is God, He upholds “all things by the word of his power.” God is all-powerful. Therefore, Jesus is all-powerful. Jesus said, “All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.” It is interesting to note that the power of Jesus comes through His Word. God spake, and the worlds were created. He said, “Let there be light, and there was light.” The same almighty power of Christ that brought the universe into existence upholds the universe. Somehow the universe is kept in place, kept together, and continues to be what it is by the Almighty power of Christ. This power of Christ is found in His Word. It is called “the word of his power.” No wonder that the preaching of the word of Christ is so important. The word is characterized by power. If you have the word of Christ, then you have power. Without His Word there is no spiritual power. That is why there is a constant attack on the Word of God. Some theologians are tempted to become liberal theologians, who do not believe that the Word of God was given by inspiration of God and do not believe that the Word of God is without error.

Almost as bad as liberal theology is another modern theology that accepts some of the theories of liberalism. This false theology is in regards to the translation of the Bible and the texts from which the translations are made. God gave His Word, and then He promised that His Word would be preserved for every generation. Jesus said in Luke 21:33, “Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.” A Christian who will be faithful to God’s Word must describe and believe in the texts in a way that stands upon the promises of Christ about His Word. God inspired the writing of the original texts, and then God also preserved His Word providentially through the copies of those texts that were made. That is the value of the textus receptus and of using the textus receptus as the basis for translation. Those who compiled and published the textus receptus were used of God in His process to preserve His Word as He promised. Those who use modern textual criticism are basically saying that there are errors in the Bible that only the scholars with their theories can evaluate. Of course, these scholars never have a final word. They are always looking for more corrections to make. What they really believe is that the words of Christ have not been preserved. Of course, such teachings will ultimately destroy faith. Faith is based upon the truthfulness of God’s Word. If you cannot read the Bible knowing that every word is true, then your faith will fall to pieces. You will not have the power of God’s Word. You will in effect be a humanist.

Hebrews 1:3 says that Jesus “had by himself purged our sins.” To purge means to cleanse. Everyone needs to be cleansed from their sins because everyone is a sinner. “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” To cleanse from sin is to take away the guilt and the punishment. Jesus did a wonderful thing when He went to the cross of Calvary to suffer for everyone in the world. Because He loves us, He did for us what we could not do for ourselves. That is why this phrase in Hebrews 1:3 says that “he had by himself purged our sins.” Salvation is accomplished by Jesus Christ alone: not by a religious ceremony, not by a priest or a preacher, and not by one’s own efforts.

The work that Jesus did on the cross paid the full price for sin. There is nothing more to be done now that Jesus has purged our sins, and so the phrase says here that He “sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high.” To sit down is a picture of ceasing from one’s labors. The great work of Christ was to pay for the sins of the world. “Jesus paid it all, all to Him I owe.” There is no more sacrifice to make. Jesus Christ was one final sacrifice for sins with everlasting results. This theme will be expanded upon in much detail in the book of Hebrews. Jesus sat down at the throne of God. Only God sits at the throne of God.

In Hebrews 1:1-3 Jesus is declared to be much greater than the prophets. In the rest of Hebrews chapter one Jesus is declared to be much greater than the angels also. Hebrews 1:4 says, “Being made so much better than the angels, as he hath by an inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they.“ This verse says that the greatness of Jesus Christ is obvious from His name. His superiority over the prophets was based upon His word, and now His superiority over the angels is based upon His name. Jesus has “a more excellent name.” The name of Jesus means “Savior.” Christ means “anointed one.” Much has been said about the name of Christ and how wonderful it is. The prophet Isaiah said in Isaiah 9:6, “And his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.” At His birth an angel said to Joseph in Mathew 1:21, “And thou shalt call his name Jesus: for he shall save his people from their sins.” “There is none other name given among men whereby we must be saved.” There is no name like the matchless name of Jesus. Forever we will praise His name.

The superiority of Christ can be seen by comparing what God said to His Son to what God said to the angels. It says in Hebrews 1:5-6, “For unto which of the angels said he at any time, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee? And again, I will be to him a Father, and he shall be to me a Son? And again, when he bringeth in the firstbegotten into the world, he saith, And let all the angels of God worship him.” Each of these three statements made by the Father in regards to Jesus refer to the birth of Jesus into this world. It shows how important the birth of Christ really was. Of course, we know that Jesus existed before He was born into the world. The Bible is very clear about that. John 1:1 says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” But it was extremely important that God be made flesh and dwell among us. True Christmas is a celebration of that great event. No angel was capable of being that one born into the world. Only Jesus was qualified as the eternal Son of God.

Notice that the Father said in the last phrase of Hebrews 1:6, “And let all the angels of God worship him.” The Father commanded the angels to worship. Only God should be worshipped by angels or by man. Jesus is God. If you worship the Father only, then you are disobeying the commandment of the Father, and you fail to be involved in the true worship of God. The true worship of God is to worship Jesus Christ. The Father commanded His creatures to worship Christ. The apostles worshipped Jesus. Thomas bowed at the feet of Jesus and said, “My Lord and my God.”

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