Above the Angels
Notes
Transcript
We are going to study the Book of Hebrews over the next several weeks. Now Hebrews has a lot that we could talk about, and you could easily spend and entire year just in Hebrews, there is so much there.
Hebrews is included in the Epistles or Letters of the New Testament
But it lacks many of the features of a letter.
All the other letters in the Bible begins with - Who is writing the letter - who the letter is being written to, and some sort of Greeting.
And then they tend to end with other personal matters - greetings from mutual friends etc.
Not Hebrews. It jumps right into the content of the message,
Almost like a sermon that was written down as it was being given.
And Because of this, We do not know who wrote Hebrews.
It might have been Paul,
or perhaps Barnabas
Or one of the other apostles,
What we do know is that this person was very familiar with the Old Testament, and the operations of the temple in Jerusalem.
Hebrews is all about Who Jesus is - especially in regards to the Old Testament Law, and what that means for his followers moving forward.
Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs.
And so the sermon begins,
God has spoken at many times in many ways
As a voice
through dreams
via angels,
in a burning bush
through a donkey
But he has primarily spoken to us through His Son Jesus
And Because Jesus is by all accounts equal with God, and has forgiven sins as only God could do, and now is seated at the right hand of the Father - The author of Hebrews concludes that Jesus has been made superior to the angels.
Now many of us might say - well that is obvious. God is higher than angels.
But we don’t have the same mindset of the people in the ancient middle east.
In The Old Testament, there are a group of Spiritual beings called the Sons of God - who are subservient to God
Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came among them. The Lord said to Satan, “From where have you come?” Satan answered the Lord and said, “From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking up and down on it.”
So there are Spiritual beings, or angels that go about through the world and then report to God. Even Satan, the devil reports to God.
And the common understanding was that the strongest of these “sons of God” ruled over the different nations, and some were worshipped as gods.
But even the false God’s were subservient to the One true God.
So when the disciples said that Jesus was the “son of God” some people assumed that they meant that Jesus was one of the angels.
And there are some people today who still make this argument.
Mormons believe that Jesus and Satan are brothers who are fighting each other.
But Hebrews claims that Jesus isn’t just one of the “Sons of God” he is THE Son of God, and is higher than any other spiritual being.
And he backs this claim up with Scripture
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”? And again, when he brings the firstborn into the world, he says, “Let all God’s angels worship him.” Of the angels he says, “He makes his angels winds, and his ministers a flame of fire.”
There is nowhere in the Bible where it says that the angels are born of God, or begotten of God.
That description is only ever given to Jesus.
The Angels are called to Worship the Son of God and where as Jesus is the same in essence to God the father - the angels are created beings made of wind or fire - both things connected to the Spiritual but have no form.
But that’s not to say they are not Impressive, the Bible is full of stories with angels doing amazing things!
Rescuing Daniel from the Lion’s Den,
Feeding Elijah in the Wilderness,
Striking people blind in Sodom and Gomorrah
But they are Not on the same level as Jesus. who is God’s only Son
And John 3:16 confirms Jesus is the Only son of God and in the King James it uses that word - Begotten - a point which the KJV only People love to point out.
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
So Jesus is not just one of the Angels.
He is the SON of God.
The author of Hebrews continues this argument for several verses, contrasting Jesus with the Angels,
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”? Are they not all ministering spirits sent out to serve for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation?
So Jesus is now seated at the right hand of the Father in heaven, and the angels serve him and for our sake.
So what does that mean for us?
Therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it. For since the message declared by angels proved to be reliable, and every transgression or disobedience received a just retribution, how shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation? It was declared at first by the Lord, and it was attested to us by those who heard, while God also bore witness by signs and wonders and various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.
If we trust in the messages that were provided by Angels throughout the old testament, How much more should we trust in the teachings of Jesus who is far superior to the angels, which were given to us by eye witnesses, and attested to by God via signs and miracles and the Holy Spirit.
Think of what Jesus did:
Angels struck the men of Sodom blind, Jesus opened the eyes of the blind
Angels fed Elijah in the wilderness, Jesus fed 5000 people,
Angels were able to purify the lips of Isaiah burning away his sin, Jesus forgave the sins of all upon the cross.
Angels were often sent to kill the enemies of God, Jesus came to give life and life more abundant, and defeated death and the grave.
So we need to trust the message of Jesus, what is that message? The Gospel,
That Jesus died for us to forgive us of our sins.
But how does that work?
For it was not to angels that God subjected the world to come, of which we are speaking. It has been testified somewhere, “What is man, that you are mindful of him, or the son of man, that you care for him? You made him for a little while lower than the angels; you have crowned him with glory and honor, putting everything in subjection under his feet.” Now in putting everything in subjection to him, he left nothing outside his control. At present, we do not yet see everything in subjection to him. But we see him who for a little while was made lower than the angels, namely Jesus, crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.
When God created mankind he made them “Lower than the Angels” but only for a time, God’s love for mankind was such that When he took the form of a man, as Jesus, He changes the order of things,
Because Jesus is God yes, so he is higher than the angels, but he is also fully Man.
And so a Man was crowned with Glory and set above the angels.
And Jesus died for us - tasting death for us all.
And because Jesus As God was perfect, and he tasted death for us all as a man, he can be the perfect sacrifice for our sins.
Which does something interesting for us.
For it was fitting that he, for whom and by whom all things exist, in bringing many sons to glory, should make the founder of their salvation perfect through suffering. For he who sanctifies and those who are sanctified all have one source. That is why he is not ashamed to call them brothers, saying, “I will tell of your name to my brothers; in the midst of the congregation I will sing your praise.” And again, “I will put my trust in him.” And again, “Behold, I and the children God has given me.”
Here Jesus talks about brothers. Who are his brothers? or the Children God has given him?
It’s not the angels - the spiritual beings
It’s us! - Those who are Redeemed by the Blood of Christ, and sanctified by the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives.
And So church let me ask you this, if we are the brothers, the siblings, of the son of God, what does that make us? Children of God.
Hold that thought.
Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery. For surely it is not angels that he helps, but he helps the offspring of Abraham. Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people.
Jesus took on flesh, became a man, become less than the angels for a time, so that he could die in our place, and in doing so destroy the power of death itself.
So now death is no longer the end for those who trust in Jesus, because he has defeated death.
And when he comes again those who have died in Christ will rise again just like he did.
Church: God became a son of man, so that mankind could become sons of God.
And if we are Sons and Daughters of God, shouldn’t we live like it?
Paul put it like this in Galatians
In the same way we also, when we were children, were enslaved to the elementary principles of the world. But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God.
We were slave to elementary principles - This could also be translated elemental spirits - What did we say the spiritual beings were made of? Wind and fire - elements.
We were below the angels! Subservient to the spiritual beings
But then God sent his Son, to redeem us, so that we could be adopted as sons,
And we have His spirit inside us, and so we are no longer slaves, but we are children of God.
And if We are children of God, brothers and sisters of Jesus the Son of God, then we are now like him, above the angels.
So Church what are we to do with this.
First while Angels are cool, and they are still messengers of God in heaven, and they still take part in the spiritual warfare all around us, we should never worship them. That honor belongs to Christ alone.
If we follow Jesus, then we are adopted as Children of God, we ought to live it, which mean if we call ourselves Christians, we are then representing God.
And while we are not perfect, we should strive to overcome sin in our lives,
to help with this the Author of Hebrews gives us this last bit of wisdom.
For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.
So when we are facing any sort of temptation, all we need to do is turn toward Jesus who faced every sort of temptation we face, and overcame it all. And now he can help us overcome the temptations we face.
Sanctification belongs only to those who put their faith in Jesus. Jesus died once for all, but you have to accept his grace.
