No Mere Angel

Please forgive my two-day hiatus.  I had "Hebrews shock", lol!  Seriously, I knew that this book was going to be quite a challenge, but it has taken me a couple of days to process.  The last blog post took me four hours at least, to write.  And, I simply cannot allow a morning devotion (and blog) consume that much of each day.  So, after reflecting, I realized that I need to pare down the amount of Hebrews for each morning and, accordingly, each post.  That being said...here we go!

Our text for today is Hebrews 1:5-6 (ESV).

5For to which of the angels did God ever say,

“You are my Son,

today I have begotten you”?

6And again, when he brings the firstborn into the world, he says,

“Let all God’s angels worship him.”

The central focus of this verse is its laser-beam focus on the Father-Son Godhead relationship.  This was established in the Old Testament in Psalm 2:7, in 2 Samuel 7:14 and later in Mark 1:11. Although these verses can also find fulfillment in the physical, human lineage of David, this is merely a type (or representation) of the relationship between the first and second Persons of the Trinity.  In one sense, the writer of Hebrews is making the point that Jesus was no mere angel.  But, beyond that, he was teaching the readers deep truths about the Godhead, the Three-in-One.

There are a couple of things that, on the surface, make this verse confusing.  At various places throughout scripture, the angel band was referred to as "sons of God".  (See Genesis 6, for example, which describes the angels who rebelled.)

But, these verses underscore that huge difference between being called "a son" and "the only begotten Son", the latter which the angels worship as God (because Jesus IS God).  See Deuteronomy 32:43.

Even more troublesome that that is the statement, "This day have I begotten Thee" (King James Version).  Was Jesus not God until that "day" when He presented Himself before the Father's throne? (See Revelation 5) --- if you have time, go read it right now!)  Was Jesus "created"?  This verse would seem to convey both of these heresies....

Again we find our human selves so very influenced by and blinded by the concept of Time.  It is a construct that God has provided to us so that we might make order and sense of our physical world. In the spiritual world, however, there is a disconnect.  The spiritual world transcends Time and basically makes it largely irrelevant outside our physical existence.  God is not bound by Time, nor is He overly concerned with it.

For example, I was born over 50 years ago.  But, don't you know that God knew me before I was conceived in my mother's womb?  The Gena that is my spirit, my true self, He knew prior to my conception.  He chose me to be born to Betty and Gene all those years ago.  He designed this body which houses me.  I was Betty and Gene's appointed daughter long before my birth onto this Earth.  I will be their daughter after my mother's death, as I am my deceased father's daughter even now. However, when my father passed on to be with the Lord, I inherited material blessings from him. When my mother passes on, I will inherit materially from her.  Does this make me any more their daughter? Only in the sense that I did receive and will receive the prerogatives and full material benefits of "daughter-ship".

Similarly, although the comparison is somewhat ridiculous, Jesus was God's Son "from before the beginning until past the end" - - "Alpha and Omega", Jesus said of Himself.  However, as Bruce puts it, ...
"...he who was the Son of God from everlasting entered into the FULL exercise of all the prerogatives implied by his Sonship when, after his suffering had proved the completeness of his obedience, he was raised to the Father's right hand." (emphases mine..)

Yet, in John 3:16, we read, "For God so loved the world that He gave his only-begotten Son...." God's decision to "give" was made before man was ever created!  And, the Son was "only-begotten" even then!
Yes, the Son was "begotten" from "the time that was no time" and He will remain the beloved, only-begotten forever.
"From everlasting to everlasting, You are God!"  (See full text of Psalm 90:2).  Oh well, here it is! (ESV)

Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.

Hallelujah!  What a Savior!  Let's savor and celebrate these magnificent truths today!

Father, thank you for Your holy Scriptures, which You divinely put together to teach us the truth about Yourself, Your Son and Your Holy Spirit.  Those of us who worship You in spirit and in truth praise You today for who You are, in all your majesty and power and glory!  To Him, whose Name is above every name, is due all our humble adoration and praise.  Amen.

Sources:

Bruce, F. F. The Epistle to the Hebrews. Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans, 1990. Kindle edition. 

Cockerill, Gareth Lee. The Epistle to the Hebrews. Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans, 2012. Kindle edition. 

Heirs by Adoption

It is popular to say, "We are all God's children", in reference to humanity in general.  While that may provoke warm, fuzzy feelings, it is not a true statement.  We are all created in the image of God, but simultaneously born with the taint of sin deeply imbedded into our natures.   The sin nature, resulting from the fall of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, prevents us from becoming God's children by our birth.  Therefore, it could be said that we are God's creation, His "offspring" even, but not His children, in our unregenerate state.

God has only one "begotten Son", and that is the God-man, Jesus Christ (John 3:16).  Why, then, does Paul elaborate on the truth of Christ-followers, Believers, being "heirs," "sons"?  He makes the distinction in Galatians 4, that we are God's sons by adoption.

Now, the Jews believed themselves to be God's children by birth, by virtue of the fact that they were descended from Abraham in the physical sense. While the Jews are His chosen people, a fact established millennia ago and not negated in the Church era, this does not confer on anyone, Jewish or not, spiritual "sonship".  It is plain in Paul's inspired writings that sonship is conferred in the spiritual by God's grace, specifically and exclusively through faith in Jesus Christ as Savior. (Ephesians 2:8-9)  Unbelievers know nothing of this grand adoption.

It is important to note that the entire Trinity is present in our becoming sons/daughters of God.

4 But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law,

5 To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.

6 And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father.

7 Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.

Galatians 4:4-7 KJV

Do you see Them?  The Father began the process of adoption, reclaiming those whom He foreknew before time began would choose Jesus.  The Son, Jesus, obediently put on flesh and came to earth to fulfill the Father's redemption plan.  The Spirit is sent by God into the hearts of all who accept Jesus, the Son. The third Person of the Trinity completes the circle of love.  It is He who bears witness that we belong to God, to Christ, by His intimate cry of "Abba", the most personal name for the Incomparable, Incomprehensible One.  (See Romans 8:15 for comparison.)

"The Bible uses adoption as a picture of what God has done for us. We were dirty, diseased, impoverished street urchins, with no one to care for us. We were not there as helpless victims, but rather because of our deliberate rebellion against God. But one day He showed up at the cardboard shack that we were sleeping in and in love chose us to be in His family. He cleaned us up, removed our rags, clothed us in the righteousness of Christ, fed us with the nourishing truth of His Word, and guided us in His paths of righteousness and wisdom. He brought us into His family, where we have brothers and sisters to share our burdens and our joys. And He made us His heirs, so that throughout eternity we will enjoy the unfathomable riches of Christ."2
Steven J. Cole

God the Father chose to adopt us, as fathers and mothers may choose to adopt a child who is not biologically theirs.  It was not something He had to do.  He could have chosen to make us "foster children", perhaps.  But no! Our adoption is something ONLY He could do, something His very nature compelled Him to do, that aspect of His infinite, unfathomable love.

Now, what is our inheritance in Christ?  What are our riches as adopted sons/daughters?

Here are a few.  I am sure there are many of which we have no knowledge, as yet. The inimitable Charles Spurgeon said, "No man living has ever realised to the full what this means." In general, I am listing them from my memory as a daughter, without scriptural references.  I may come back and add scriptural proofs later.

1.  Justification
Being made right eternally with God, as He confers Jesus Christ's righteousness upon us
2.  Freedom
Being set free from the bondage of working to earn salvation (which cannot be earned)
Being set free to worship, adore, revere and serve the Boundless, Limitless Lord from a heart overflowing with love  ("For the love of Christ compels us...." 1 Cor. 5:14)
3.  Access
Having unlimited and unrestricted access to the heart of God through prayer, as a result of our Father/Child relationship.   The indwelling of the Holy Spirit in our hearts facilitates this.
4.  Sanctification
Being molded more and more into the image of Jesus Christ
5.  Blessings, Promises Covenants of God
Receiving all of them, revealed in the Bible, from Genesis to Revelation
6.  Citizenship in Heaven
Anticipating our "forever home", with Him

"Abba, Father" ... Spurgeon points out that the Hebrew word is "a babe's lisping", as it even sounds like the first sounds a baby makes, and that it represents how we are allowed to be natural and informal with our Father God.  It is a warm, affectionate, loving word which some have said is more like "Daddy" than "Father".  The same cry of the Savior to His Father in the agony of the Garden of Gethsemane (Mark 14:36) is the cry the Spirit of the Son makes from the heart of the Believer, of the child of God.

No longer servants, but Sons, Daughters, Heirs, Children of the Highest!  From servitude to sonship! Praise His name forever!



Sources:

1   http://www.spurgeon.org/sermons/1435.htm

2   https://bible.org/seriespage/lesson-48-adopted-heirs-god-romans-817

Be One

Good morning,

We have this thing in education lately called the "flipped classroom".  Basically, it works like this: the teacher's whole-group instruction (fancy name for "lecture" or "demonstration", usually) is video-recorded.  Students are then asked to watch it at home, where they can start, stop, re-wind and re-watch, etc.  Then, in the classroom, small-group instruction that is more hands-on and application-focused is done with the teacher's supervision and guidance.  I like it!  I'll come back to this in a moment.

Paul spent the remainder of chapter 8 and all of chapter 9 expounding on His theme of giving.  See, this is how it worked back then.  Each small, local church first shared their resources to support each other.  Then, once their members' basic needs were met, they donated heavily of their overflow to support other local churches in the Asia Minor and Mediterranean areas.  The missionaries, such as Paul, Titus, Barnabas, Mark and others transported the gifts to the other local churches.

So, this morning, we are going to "flip" the Scripture passage, in a sense.  We are going to start at the end.  Here's the passage first:  2 Cor. 9:6-15 (NET)

6 My point is this: The person who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and the person who sows generously will also reap generously. 7 Each one of you should give just as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, because God loves a cheerful giver. 8 And God is able to make all grace overflow to you so that because you have enough of everything in every way at all times, you will overflow in every good work. 9 Just as it is written, “He has scattered widely, he has given to the poor; his righteousness remains forever.”10 Now God who provides seed for the sower and bread for food will provide and multiply your supply of seed and will cause the harvest of your righteousness to grow. 11 You will be enriched in every way so that you may be generous on every occasion, which is producing through us thanksgiving to God, 12 because the service of this ministry is not only providing for the needs of the saints but is also overflowing with many thanks to God.13 Through the evidence of this service they will glorify God because of your obedience to your confession in the gospel of Christ and the generosity of your sharing with them and with everyone. 14 And in their prayers on your behalf they long for you because of the extraordinary grace God has shown to you. 15 Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!

What is this "indescribable gift" Paul mentions at the end of the chapter? It is not a "what"; it is a Person, Jesus Christ!  He is God's indescribable gift to us.  In 8:9 together with 9:15, Paul bookends this exposition on the importance of charity by pointing out the main reason the Christians give generously:  because God gave so lavishly to us.  John 3:16 comes to mind.  For He SO loved....!

I'm very excited about doing Ann Voskamp's Advent devotionals, starting December 1.  It's called, Unwrapping the Greatest Gift, which is what made me think of it right now.  Last year, I did John Piper's.  What a blessing!  If you want to check his out, download to your phone or iPad the app called, "Solid Joys".  Excellent!

Anyway, back to the topic at hand.  There is a very powerful giving principle expressed in 9:6, an agricultural principle that was familiar to most of the people of that day.  If you don't plant much seed, you won't harvest much fruit!  Applied to giving, we are similarly encouraged to give lavishly. I wrote a little note to a young brother this morning who was leading a small group Bible study that did not have have "gangbusters" attendance.  I reminded him that we never see on this mortal plane the full outcomes of our obedience and faithfulness.  So true!  And, the same is true of our giving.  When we get to Heaven, I believe we'll get to see a fuller picture of what our obedient service has produced. You see, it's not just about giving your money, although that's what Paul was dealing with here.  It's about giving from all your resources - - - including your time and your God-given talents.  "It's time to get our hands dirty."

Verse 7 has another excellent principle.  If you give because you feel "guilted" into it, you might as well not give at all.  That is not a gift, it is a tariff.  This kind of giving does not honor God.  I'll be straight with you:  if you don't give of your money and serve the Lord, and do it cheerfully, there is something wrong in your walk with God.  Those who truly "see" what God has so freely given to them give back to Him out of a cheerful heart.  Because He is our "enough", (vs. 8), we "overflow to every good work".

Natalie Grant has a new album out, and the title cut is called "Be One".  That's what I'm talking about!  "Calling all hearts, calling all hands....we can be the arms that don't let go...why wait around for a miracle to come, when we can be one?"   And, the people of God said, "Yes!  So be it!"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iq-6pXBHCZM

Dear Father, you know, I was thinking about that awful dream I had last night, where in it I committed a crime.  Even though I walked it back in the dream, it showed me just how deeply depraved my sinful nature is (and also that I should not eat sweet potato pie right before going to bed!)  That's why I'm so thankful for your "indescribable gift" of Jesus, who washes ALL my sins away.  Because of Your generosity, I am set free...free to "be one".  Thank you for another of Your precious promises, found in verse 10.  Yes!  You provide seed for the sower and not only that, You multiply it, causing righteousness to grow in me, the only true righteousness, the fruit of the Holy Spirit.  In the only Name, the precious name of Jesus, amen.