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. 

Image Inexplicable

Most Bible commentators I've read believe that Paul wrote his letter to the Colossians because that little church was being unduly influenced by Gnostics.  (Sounds like a group of aliens from Star Trek, doesn't it?)  We'll look more deeply into the beliefs of Gnosticism later, but let's start by confronting a couple of their false beliefs.  The first is that Jesus Christ was merely one of God's manifestations (appearances, emanations) to an evil, material world.  Gnostics also believe that all physical matter is evil and that God could have no contact with it.1

Because of this alarming incursion of Gnosticism into the Colossian church, Paul launches into a series of verses in which he describes who Jesus Christ actually was and is.

15He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation,

16for all things in heaven and on earth were created by him – all things, whether visible or invisible, whether thrones or dominions, whether principalities or powers – all things were created through him and for him.

17He himself is before all things and all things are held together in him.

18He is the head of the body, the church, as well as the beginning, the firstborn from among the dead, so that he himself may become first in all things.

19For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in the Son

20and through him to reconcile all things to himself by making peace through the blood of his cross – through him, whether things on earth or things in heaven.

Paul begins with establishing the deity of Christ by detailing His various interactions with mankind, as you see in the verses above.

Today, we are going to focus on verses 15-16:  incarnation versus emanation.

I do not fully understand the mystery that happened between God the Father and God the Son, when the decision was made to give the Father "form" - - material, physical form.  This is not fully explained in the Bible, perhaps because we don't have the capacity to understand.  Most certainly, this occurred before any other created thing was created, because both verses 15 and 16 state that it occurred prior to creation AND that Christ WAS the creator of ALL things.  So, in a move that runs totally counter to Gnosticism, we see the Creator God the Son making the material and constructing the spiritual realms.  The apostle Peter also confirms this in 1 Peter 1:20.

He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was manifested in these last times for your sake. 
(NET)

A little bit ago, I was musing...does God the Father or Son or Holy Spirit EVER in the Bible manifest as any created thing?  Oh, He inhabits created spaces, such as when "His glory filled the Temple".  In other scriptures He is referred to (in his Christ form) as "the angel of the Lord".  But, He never manifests as an eagle or a bear or a serpent (as Satan did).  He is called the Lion of the Tribe of Judah, and C.S. Lewis portrayed Him as the lion, Aslan, in his fictitious allegory series, The Chronicles of Narnia.  But....He always takes the form of a man, the God-Man, whom we learned at his birth to call, Jesus.

Man was created by Jesus Christ, the God-Man, in His image.  Jesus is the image of God the Father, who Himself is Spirit, invisible. And we are created in His (Jesus') image.

"Through him and for him" - - -

Having expounded upon the first, let's consider the last.  We, mankind, were created FOR God, for Jesus Christ, who knew what the future held for Him, who knew that, even in creating us we would fall into sin; we would need a Redeemer, and that He was the only One who could save us.

"Slain, from the foundation of the world".... 

(Revelation 13:8 KJV)

Not only did He create all things, He became us, became a human, ultimately the human named Jesus Christ, fully God and fully Man.  The incarnation (the "en-fleshing", encasing in human flesh) of the invisible God.  The human body is not evil, as Gnostics claim.  If it were, Jesus would never have incarnated Himself into one!

As a result of The Fall, all human love, all of it, is tainted by self-interest.  I am unable to conceive of a love like Jesus Christ's, a love so pure and holy.   A love that could not bear to see us forever lost, forever separated from Him, a perfect love which constrained Him to snatch us back from the pit of Hell at an incalculable personal cost.

This is not an aloof, removed God, afraid to get His hands dirty.  This is a God who not only plunged right into the fallen world, to abide with us, but who also longs to be with each of us in every way, every day, even now.  This is a God who finished redemption's work so that all of Gnosticism's rule-following is rendered void, and replaced those heresies with grace, pure grace alone.

Hallelujah for that!

https://youtu.be/YnM3lc-LyzY


Source:

1   Wiersbe, Warren W., and Warren W. Wiersbe. The Wiersbe Bible Commentary: The Complete New Testament in One Volume. Colorado Springs, CO: David C. Cook, 2007. Print, p. 659.