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”?

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

“Let all God’s angels worship him.”

⁷ Of the angels he says,

“He makes his angels winds,
    and his ministers a flame of fire.”

⁸ But of the Son he says,

“Your throne, O God, is forever and ever,
    the scepter of uprightness is the scepter of your kingdom.
⁹ You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness;
therefore God, your God, has anointed you
    with the oil of gladness beyond your companions.”

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.^[a]
But you are the same,
    and your years will have no end.”

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”?

¹⁴ Are they not all ministering spirits sent out to serve for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation?

Hebrews 1:5-14

The author of Hebrews doesn’t want the reader to wonder for even a moment about the deity of Jesus Christ. After the unfathomable elements shared in the first four verses, he goes on to let scripture itself speak into the nature of Jesus, who is called Christ: 2 Samuel 7:14, 1 Chronicles 17:13, Psalm 2:7, Psalm 45:6-7, Psalm 102:22, Deuteronomy 32:43, Psalm 97:7, Psalm 104:4, and Psalm 102:25-27. The case is being built, the proofs are being laid out, and the distinctions are being made. Jesus is not some lower being, some created thing, simply an angel in men’s clothing. No, He is God, the only begotten Son of the Father, and none shall contest Him.

The author is intent on dispelling any arguments that Jesus is some man who was enlightened, and achieved perfection. He is working against lies and doubts that want to reduce the Son, so that we might feel a modicum of superiority over Him, or say “He is only such and such…” and demote Him and His work. No, we are forced to reckon with the fact that Jesus Christ is divine, and not a divine being, but THE Divine being. He is God, the great I AM. 

Angels seem mystical to human beings, usually unseen, but can be seen. They appear in form like to ours, but different. While radiant, and striking in appearance (having to tell us “Fear Not” every time we see them encounter one of us), they are lower than God, as are we, and as they are messengers and worshippers, so to a degree are we. But it is a mistake to think of Jesus Christ as less than He is, and this is apparent by these opening verse of this letter to the Hebrew people. 

The author wanted them to confront their own silent objections and rationalizations before they took another step. It is as though the author has opened the door to them in hospitality, but has stopped them before they cross over the threshold that he might explain the rules of the house to them prior to their entry. “In order for you to come in today, you must know this, and understand this, because only then will what you see inside come to light.” There is an absolute need to assent to the deity and Lordship of Jesus of Nazareth before moving forward. You can read without that understanding, but you will not have understanding without it. 

Jesus is the Creator. Jesus is the One worthy of the worship of Heaven. Jesus is seated on the throne there, and Jesus is higher than the angels as the infinite reaches of space are higher than the head an ant on the surface of the earth. He is greater still. And if we are going to receive what the author of Hebrews is getting ready to lay out for us in chapter two, and all the following, then we must come to grips with this. We must marinate in it, and digest what we are begin told. In the previous entry, we established this point of awe and wonder that is beyond our understanding, yet is necessary for knowing who Jesus is.

We must enter with a blanket of mystery and faith wrapped around our shoulders, comfortable, if not comprehending, and trusting that Jesus is who He says He is, who scripture and the prophets say He is, and what His works declare about Him. This is our foundation for coming to Hebrews. It is a book that requires assent, and in assenting, a willingness to know more and to pursue a maturation of our awe and respect of our Master, Savior, and as will be revealed, our Great High Priest.

The absolute sovereignty and sufficiency of Jesus is essential to our faith. We dare not diminish Him. We cannot reduce Him down to concepts and ideals that we, too, can achieve. He is and must be God, nothing less. Heresies are bred from the distortions that come from reducing Him for our own comfort, and for human willfulness. There is no “universal Christ” that we can come into, no lesser Jesus that still meets our needs. Instead, we either receive Him as He is, for Who He is, or we do not receive Him at all. In fact, the evidence stands in our heart in Who we declare Him to be as to whether He has called us at all.  Even Peter’s declaration of His deity could not have happened unless the Father had first given him that understanding.

So, as we enter into Hebrews, let us come humbly, under the arms of the Christ-Who-is-King, and acknowledge that Jesus is the only begotten Son of God, 

As it says in the Athanasian Creed, the definitive work on our understanding of the doctrine of our Triune God:

Whoever wants to be saved should above all cling to the catholic faith.

Whoever does not guard it whole and inviolable will doubtless perish eternally.

Now this is the catholic faith: We worship one God in trinity and the Trinity in unity, neither confusing the persons nor dividing the divine being.

For the Father is one person, the Son is another, and the Spirit is still another.

But the deity of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit is one, equal in glory, coeternal in majesty.

What the Father is, the Son is, and so is the Holy Spirit.

Uncreated is the Father; uncreated is the Son; uncreated is the Spirit.

The Father is infinite; the Son is infinite; the Holy Spirit is infinite.

Eternal is the Father; eternal is the Son; eternal is the Spirit: And yet there are not three eternal beings, but one who is eternal; as there are not three uncreated and unlimited beings, but one who is uncreated and unlimited.

Almighty is the Father; almighty is the Son; almighty is the Spirit: And yet there are not three almighty beings, but one who is almighty.

Thus the Father is God; the Son is God; the Holy Spirit is God: And yet there are not three gods, but one God.

Thus the Father is Lord; the Son is Lord; the Holy Spirit is Lord: And yet there are not three lords, but one Lord.

As Christian truth compels us to acknowledge each distinct person as God and Lord, so catholic religion forbids us to say that there are three gods or lords.

The Father was neither made nor created nor begotten; the Son was neither made nor created, but was alone begotten of the Father; the Spirit was neither made nor created, but is proceeding from the Father and the Son.

Thus there is one Father, not three fathers; one Son, not three sons; one Holy Spirit, not three spirits.

And in this Trinity, no one is before or after, greater or less than the other; but all three persons are in themselves, coeternal and coequal; and so we must worship the Trinity in unity and the one God in three persons.

Whoever wants to be saved should think thus about the Trinity.

It is necessary for eternal salvation that one also faithfully believe that our Lord Jesus Christ became flesh.

For this is the true faith that we believe and confess: That our Lord Jesus Christ, God’s Son, is both God and man.

He is God, begotten before all worlds from the being of the Father, and he is man, born in the world from the being of his mother — existing fully as God, and fully as man with a rational soul and a human body; equal to the Father in divinity, subordinate to the Father in humanity.

Although he is God and man, he is not divided, but is one Christ.

He is united because God has taken humanity into himself; he does not transform deity into humanity.

He is completely one in the unity of his person, without confusing his natures.

For as the rational soul and body are one person, so the one Christ is God and man.

He suffered death for our salvation. He descended into hell and rose again from the dead.

He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father.

He will come again to judge the living and the dead.

At his coming all people shall rise bodily to give an account of their own deeds.

Those who have done good* will enter eternal life, those who have done evil will enter eternal fire.

This is the catholic faith.

One cannot be saved without believing this firmly and faithfully.

This is Who He is. There is no other like Him.

May we enter into His presence with all deference, and gain greater appreciation of Him in doing so.

* [read as having received Christ, whose work is our goodness]

 

Prayer & Examine

Dear God, I am so small, and my understanding is so limited. Please give me faith to believe what I do not understand, and understanding so as to enhance my faith. Help me to trust in You, Jesus, in Your identity, and in Your power. I confess the limitations of my flesh, and the resistance to acknowledging Your Lordship in my day-to-day life. Help me to remember, and to see, what You have plainly revealed through Your wisdom, Father and through Your presence, Holy Spirit. May Your glory increase in my mind and heart, as you increase my understanding and relationship with You. I trust in You, though I will never fully understand You. I bless Your holy Name.
Amen.