The Seven Glories of the Son (Hebrews 1:1–4)

Big Idea: God has spoken finally and powerfully through his Son, who reveals his glory in seven ways: through his revelation, creation, authority, identity, power, purification, and supremacy.

Introduction

We are beginning a new sermon series this year in the book of Hebrews. We’re starting with the first four verses today, and these verses are going to blow your mind. I’m going to lay out for you seven incredible aspects of Jesus that we see in Hebrews 1:1-4. I hope you’re ready.

This week, I was reminded again of our need for eternal hope. We’ve all heard of the wildfires affecting Los Angeles. The fires are enormous and have affected so many. As of this morning, we know that at least 16 people have died, and that’s likely to grow. About 153,000 residents have been evacuated, and tens of thousands of structures have been destroyed.

You see the images on the news, and one news reporter described the aerial view as resembling a war zone after dropping a bomb. Block after block, thousands of homes are gone.

It reminds us of our need for eternal hope because of how temporary life is. The houses we have are temporary. The things we own are temporary. The life that we have is temporary. The devastation of the fires reminds us of how quickly temporary things can end and how devastating it is when our hope is in temporary things.

We mourn with those who mourn, and because there is no hope in the temporary, we fix our eyes on Jesus, the author of our faith and the one who is our eternal hope.

How can we remember to trust Jesus in all things? Hebrews 1:1-4 will give us seven reasons to trust Jesus in every area of life as we look at the seven glories of the Son. Please open your Bible to Hebrews 1:1-4.

Scripture Reading

Hebrews 1:1–4 CSB

Long ago God spoke to our ancestors by the prophets at different times and in different ways. In these last days, he has spoken to us by his Son. God has appointed him heir of all things and made the universe through him. The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact expression of his nature, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high. So he became superior to the angels, just as the name he inherited is more excellent than theirs.

Pray

As we begin Hebrews, the author starts with a profound reflection on who Jesus is.

Overview of Hebrews

I say the author because, as we begin the book of Hebrews, one of the interesting things about this letter is that we're not sure who wrote it.

If you look at the other epistles in the New Testament, they often begin with a greeting from the author.

All of the letters from Paul begin with a statement that the letter is from him. For instance, in Romans 1:1 “Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called as an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God—”

James starts his letter with his name in James 1:1 “James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ”

Peter does the same, and so does Jude.

However, in Hebrews, no one puts their name to the letter. Scholars have tried to attribute this letter to different people. In church history, many have tried to attribute this letter to Paul. However, the way the author says he learned about Christ in Hebrews 2:3 doesn't sound similar to Paul’s experience. So scholars have proposed other names like Luke, Barnabas, or Apollos.

The answer is: We don’t know. Only God knows. And even within that, there's a beauty here because if you do something that glorifies God and nobody else knows about it, you've received all the credit you need. After all, God knows.

This letter was written in the first century. The writer is familiar with Timothy, a companion of Paul. The earliest writings from church fathers refer to this book, Hebrews.

I believe this letter, the book of Hebrews, is probably a sermon. Many scholars have described it as a sermonic letter. It's structured like a sermon if you read through the letter.

A good sermon has a central theme. If you're reading the letter of Hebrews, the author will consistently return to the central theme that Jesus is greater. He will say:

Jesus is greater than the angels.

Jesus is greater than Moses.

Jesus is a greater high priest.

Jesus is greater than the Tabernacle and its sacrifices

Time and time again, the point of this sermonic letter is that Jesus is greater.

The first four verses of Hebrews are a mouthful. In these four verses, the author describes seven aspects of Jesus Christ's greatness, or, as I've titled this, “The Seven Glories of the Son.”

The Son of God is perfect in every way, and we will look into seven of his perfections that we see in Hebrews 1:1–4.

The first glory or perfection that we see of Jesus Christ in these verses is:

Transition

I. The Glory of Revelation: God Speaks Through His Son

Text: Hebrews 1:1-2

Hebrews 1:1–2 CSB

Long ago God spoke to our ancestors by the prophets at different times and in different ways. In these last days, he has spoken to us by his Son. God has appointed him heir of all things and made the universe through him.

“Long ago, God spoke to our ancestors by the prophets at different times and in different ways. In these last days, he has spoken to us by his Son.”

A. The Past Revelation Was Partial and Varied

The opening verses of Hebrews describe the partial and varied nature of revelation that the prophets received under the old covenant. It says God spoke to them at different times and in various ways.

What does he mean by that? God gave the people of Israel the Law through Moses. God spoke through David in songs. God spoke in words of hope and warning through Isaiah and Jeremiah. The Old Testament gives us a mosaic of God using people's passions and personalities to speak through them to the people of Israel.

God always knows how to speak to people at the right time, and the Bible shows God speaking to Israel at the right time and place. God knows how to get our attention. Yet the Old Testament contains progressive revelation, shadows of a fuller reality about to come, an anticipation of something greater.

B. The Final Revelation Is Complete in the Son

Where the past revelation was partial and varied, a final revelation comes through Jesus Christ. He is the greater revelation. He says, “In these last days,” or in this final time, God “has spoken to us by his Son.” There is no need for more revelation. Jesus Christ is everything humans need to know about God.

A couple of Christmases ago, I got a few puzzles as Christmas presents. I started putting them together. When you pour out the puzzle pieces on the table, it looks like random pieces. The pieces start to fit together, but the picture is still somewhat vague. But as it comes together and you put in the last piece, you can see everything fully.

God has done that for us in Jesus Christ. He is the final piece that connects everything. God has made the picture of who he is clear in Jesus Christ.

The second and third glory of Jesus that we see in this text is,

Transition

II. The Glory of Creation and Authority: Jesus Creates and Inherits All Things

Text: Hebrews 1:2

Hebrews 1:2 CSB

In these last days, he has spoken to us by his Son. God has appointed him heir of all things and made the universe through him.

“God has appointed him heir of all things and made the universe through him.”

A. Jesus Is the Agent of Creation

Jesus is not only the one through whom God speaks but also the one through whom God creates. When you look up and observe the universe, the Bible says that every galaxy, star, and molecule was made through Jesus Christ.

You see this in other places in Scripture. In John 1:3, the apostle says,

John 1:3 CSB

All things were created through him, and apart from him not one thing was created that has been created.

There is not a singular thing that you can observe in all creation that was not made through the person and power of the Son of God, Jesus Christ. When Jesus Christ took on flesh and dwelt among us, as it says in John 1:14, he came to dwell among his creation.

B. Jesus Is the Heir of All Things

Not only were all things created through Jesus, but he is also the purpose for which all things were created. That's what it says in Colossians 1:16, where Paul says,

Colossians 1:16 CSB

For everything was created by him, in heaven and on earth, the visible and the invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities— all things have been created through him and for him.

Jesus is the heir of all things because he is the purpose for which all things exist. As the Creator of all things, he has absolute ownership and right over everything he has made.

The Bible also speaks of a glorious inheritance that Jesus Christ has in his redeemed people. It says in Ephesians 1:18,

Ephesians 1:18 CSB

I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened so that you may know what is the hope of his calling, what is the wealth of his glorious inheritance in the saints,

Through the cross, if you are a Christian today, you were bought by the blood of Jesus Christ. You are part of his glorious inheritance in the saints.

Here is a question: If Jesus is the heir of all things, and you are part of his glorious inheritance, do you see yourself as completely his?

What does that mean?

Do you see your relationships as completely his?

Do you see your time as entirely belonging to him?

Do you see your resources as his alone?

When you submit to Jesus Christ as Lord, you submit all you have and are to him.

So far, we’ve seen the glory of Jesus in revelation, creation, and authority. The fourth glory of Jesus that we see in this text,

Transition

III. The Glory of Identity: Jesus Reveals God’s Glory

Text: Hebrews 1:3

Hebrews 1:3 CSB

The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact expression of his nature, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high.

“The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact expression of his nature.”

A. Jesus Is the Radiance of God’s Glory

When considering God’s glory, we think of his perfection, beauty, majesty, and holiness—qualities beyond human comprehension. God's perfections and glories radiate from Jesus Christ. Jesus is the outshining of God’s very essence, who made the invisible God visible to us. This is what it says in John 1:18,

John 1:18 CSB

No one has ever seen God. The one and only Son, who is himself God and is at the Father’s side—he has revealed him.

How did Jesus Christ reveal God to humanity? He revealed God to mankind through the very essence of who he was: the God-man. He is the radiance of God’s glory, and his radiance causes us to be in awe of who he is.

B. Jesus Is the Exact Expression of God’s Nature

Jesus was not merely similar to God. He did not have some things about him that resembled God; Jesus was the exact impression of God’s being.

The Greek term translated as "the exact expression" refers to an engraver who mints coins. The author was trying to find a way to describe God's exact perfection in Jesus Christ, and he settled on the picture of an engraver.

In his mind, he pictures the process of making a coin, of how a coin engraver would carefully carve a dye with the exact image he needs to stamp onto the metal. When he presses in on the metal, the dye leaves an accurate impression that perfectly mirrors the original.

This is the closest he can get to describing God's perfect and flawless imprint in Jesus Christ. To see and know Christ is to see God in his fullness.

This is important: When you look at Jesus, you are not looking at a reflection or a shadow of God. You are looking at God himself—his glory, nature, and love.

The question is, when you see Jesus, are you in awe of him? Does the radiance of God’s glory in Jesus Christ cause you to worship him?

A fifth and sixth glory of Jesus that we see in this text is,

IV. The Glory of Power and Redemption: Jesus Sustains All Things and Purifies Sins

Text: Hebrews 1:3

“The Son is... sustaining all things by his powerful word. After making purification for sins...”

A. Jesus Upholds the Universe by His Powerful Word

Not only were all things created through Jesus Christ, but Jesus is now actively sustaining the universe. It says in Hebrews 1:3 that the Son is “sustaining all things by his powerful word.” Jesus's work in the universe did not begin and finish at creation. Jesus’ sustaining work is active at this present time. Jesus makes this exact point about himself in John 5:17, where he says,

John 5:17 CSB

Jesus responded to them, “My Father is still working, and I am working also.”

Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is actively working to sustain everything.

An example of this is in the Sermon on the Mount. In Matthew 6, Jesus addresses our tendency toward worry by pointing to God's active work in the world. 

He asks us to think about the birds in the sky. He describes them as animals who don't sow, reap, or gather in barns. Birds are not farmers. They don't cultivate the ground. Yet, they have food every day because the Father feeds them. God is actively sustaining their presence through his work. Jesus points to the wildflowers and their beauty. Flowers don't labor or spin thread. God is actively maintaining their beauty. Then he gets to Matthew 6:31–33, where he says,

Matthew 6:31–33 CSB

So don’t worry, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’ For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be provided for you.

If we recap what we've learned about Jesus in these verses in Hebrews, we see that he is the radiance of God's glory, the exact expression of his nature, and he sustains all things by his powerful word. We also look back at John, where Jesus says, "My Father is still working, and I am working also."

The Son of God is a person in the Triune God, actively working in and around you with his sustaining work to care for you. He does this through the power of his sustaining word. You need to be in communion with God, feasting on his word, because his word is powerful to sustain your life.

B. Jesus Purifies Us Through His Sacrifice

Jesus sustains the universe in the physical world and spiritually through the purification from sin he provided at the cross. The phrase “after making purification for sins” in Hebrews 1:3 speaks of a particular moment when purification from sin was made final and complete. The cross was one sacrifice for sin that covered every time and every age completely.

We hear this and sometimes act as if more purification is needed.

Imagine you have a perfect white carpet and spill grape juice on it. You try everything you can to get rid of the stain. You scrub it on your hands and knees, using every cleaner you can find. You go on YouTube trying to research how to clean stains. You go on Amazon and buy the best cleaner on the market, but the stain is still there.

Your last ditch effort is to call a professional cleaner. The cleaner arrives, someone who can clean stains from white carpets. With his expertise, the stain is completely removed. It is as if the spill had never happened.

Now imagine that after the professional has left, you return with your scrub brush and try cleaning it again. It’s already been fully cleaned, but your actions show that you don’t believe it’s clean.

This is what happens when we act as if Jesus’ sacrifice wasn’t enough to purify us from sin. His work on the cross is complete. He didn’t leave a single sin behind. You are entirely pure in Jesus Christ.

Are you resting in Jesus Christ's pure and complete work, or are you still trying to clean yourself up? Do you doubt that God has forgiven you?

Trusting in the complete work of Jesus:

Assures you of forgiveness.

Gives you confidence in eternal security.

Give you power for daily living.

Motivates you to worship and obey Jesus.

You need to rest in the complete work of the cross.

We’ve spoken about six of the glories of Jesus that we see in Hebrews 1:1–4, the glory of his revelation, creation, authority, identity, power, and purification. The picture of Jesus is getting greater and greater and greater. Now, a seventh and final glory that we see in Hebrews 1:1–4 is,

Transition

V. The Glory of Supremacy: Jesus Reigns Above All

Text: Hebrews 1:3-4

Hebrews 1:3–4 CSB

The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact expression of his nature, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high. So he became superior to the angels, just as the name he inherited is more excellent than theirs.

“He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high. So he became superior to the angels, just as the name he inherited is more excellent than theirs.”

A. Jesus Is Seated in Authority

Hebrews 1:3 ends with the statement that Jesus “sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high.” Culturally speaking, sitting at the right hand of majesty symbolizes authority. If you sit at the king’s right hand, you share his rulership. Jesus has complete authority.

There is a progression that happens from Hebrews 1:3-4. Jesus does the purifying work of salvation of sins on the cross. Then, after making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand. He took his throne.

What the author is referring to is the completion of Jesus’ authority. Now, you may ask, what do you mean? When sin entered the world and death through sin, death itself became a kind of final authority, a final barrier between man and God. Something was in the way, a barrier that man could not pass.

To have authority means to have control, and death itself had power over God’s desire to be with us and man’s ability to be with God. For Jesus to have final authority and control over his creation, he had to take on the death penalty for man’s sin so that even death could not separate man from God.

The fact that he is seated means redemption is complete, death has no more power, and he reigns above all. This is why Jesus says these words on the cross in John 19:30, “It is finished.” It is why he gives these words of his authority in Revelation 1:17-18, where Jesus says,

Revelation 1:17–18 CSB

When I saw him, I fell at his feet like a dead man. He laid his right hand on me and said, “Don’t be afraid. I am the First and the Last, and the Living One. I was dead, but look—I am alive forever and ever, and I hold the keys of death and Hades.

Holding the keys shows his control over death itself. He sustains everything by his complete authority, which includes the fact that death is no longer a barrier between man and God.

B. Jesus Has a More Excellent Name

Hebrews 1:4 says that Jesus became superior to angels. We’ll get more into angels next week as we finish Hebrews 1. I want us to see the second part, which says that “the name he inherited is more excellent.” In Scripture, a name can symbolize one’s nature, authority, and role. For instance, in Isaiah 7:14, the virgin will give her son the name Emmanuel. That name symbolizes who the baby is, God with us.

In Hebrews 1:4, the more excellent name refers to his position as the Son of God. We’ve been talking about his position as the Son of God throughout Hebrews 1:1-4. In Hebrews 1:2, “He has spoken to us by his Son.” In Hebrews 1:3, “The Son is the radiance of God’s glory.” As the Son of God, Jesus is exalted.

Jesus as the Son of God is a fulfillment of Psalm 2:7,

Psalm 2:7 CSB

I will declare the Lord’s decree. He said to me, “You are my Son; today I have become your Father.

The title of Son of God is a position of complete superiority. He has a more excellent name than all names, as it says in Philippians 2:9-11

Philippians 2:9–11 CSB

For this reason God highly exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow— in heaven and on earth and under the earth— and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

The name Jesus inherited is a name that ties directly into his redemptive work, as it says in Acts 4:12

Acts 4:12 CSB

There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to people by which we must be saved.”

Jesus has a more excellent name. It is a name that causes us to worship him because there is no other name by which we can be saved.

Transition

Conclusion

So often in the world, people seem great when you hear about them, and then you meet them, and they’re not as great as you thought. That’s not the case with Jesus. Meet Jesus. To meet Jesus is to meet someone greater and greater and greater. The more you know of Jesus, the more you are in awe of him.

So what is your response? How do you respond to Jesus? Do you live under his authority, trusting in his salvation? Do you honor his name with worship and obedience?

Jesus is not just a figure in history. He is the reigning King who sustains all things and saves completely. Come to Jesus today and worship him.

Prayer

Last Song

Doxology

Numbers 6:24–26 CSB

24 “May the Lord bless you and protect you; 25 may the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; 26 may the Lord look with favor on you and give you peace.” ’

Jude 24–25 CSB

24 Now to him who is able to protect you from stumbling and to make you stand in the presence of his glory, without blemish and with great joy, 25 to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, power, and authority before all time, now and forever. Amen.

You are dismissed. Have a great week in the Lord!

Sermon Reflection Questions

What seven aspects of Jesus are highlighted as the 'Seven Glories of the Son' in the sermon?

What role does the author of Hebrews claim Jesus plays in creation?

How does the sermon define the significance of Jesus sitting at the right hand of the Majesty on high?

What implications does the sermon suggest for our lives if Jesus is the heir of all things?

How does the sermon illustrate the idea of trusting in Jesus' complete work on the cross?