Christ is greater than the angels: Jesus is better

0:00Thanks for tuning in to Manna, a short daily meditation to feed hungry souls with God's Word. These episodes were prepared by our day ministers for a radio broadcast called Voice of the Church and are now republished by the Reform Perspective Foundation, a Canadian charity that applies biblical truth to the issues of our time, here's today serving. Well hello listeners and welcome back to our series in the Book of Hebrews on how Jesus is better. Today is part two of our meditations and we're considering how Jesus is better than the angels. We're considering that from Hebrews chapter 1 verses 5 through 14. Beginning in verse 5 we read from God's Word, 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 first born into the world he says, let all God's angels worship him.

1:00And of the angels he says he makes his angels wins and his ministers a flame a fire. But of the sun he says, your throne O God is forever and ever. The scepter of uprightness is the scepter of your kingdom. You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness. Therefore God, your God has anointed you with the oil of gladness beyond your companions. Well how big is your view of Jesus? You know often times throughout the day are focused can so easily be on our cell. What am I going to eat for lunch or how attractive is my social media accounts or how am I going to spend my time today or my money? The great performer Martin Luther once said the essence of sin is being curved in on ourselves. Here in our text today God gives us one of the remedies to our self-centered condition. He holds out before us Christ who is infinitely exalted over all things. The preacher does that to help focus our eyes on the greatness of Christ and to pull us

2:05out of ourselves as we are encouraged in the pilgrim journey that we are on. Our text shows us the majesty of Christ by comparing him with the angels who are also amazing creatures of God. And so we see here first the greatness of the angels. And then second we'll see the greater greatness of Jesus Christ. But notice the greatness of the angels, verse 7. We read of the angels he makes his angels wins and his ministers a flame of fire. These are amazing creations of God. We notice from that text that they have an evanescent nature given by God, meaning that they are able to vanish or go out of sight quickly. These angels are spirits and his ministers a flame of fire. They can suddenly appear before someone like a flash of lightning. Think about how the angel Gabriel suddenly came before Mary in Luke chapter 1 to speak to her. But we're told here as well in the same verse they're also ministers or servants.

3:10They bring God's revelation to his people. They are the ones who mediated the law of God and the Old Testament when the Ten Commandments were given. And in the New Testament in the book of Luke, remember they appear to the shepherd saying, behold, I bring glad tidings of great joy which shall be for all the people. They're not only ministers who reveal God's Word, but they're also ministers in how they care for God's people. Think about how the angels help the apostles when they were in prison in the book of Acts and help set them free in Acts chapter 5 and Acts chapter 15. They also minister to Jesus when he was in the wilderness in Matthew chapter 4. The angels came down and minister to the Lord in his time of temptation. In Beloved the text here tells us the same angels that served Jesus and his people in the scriptures are sent by God to help us. Verse 14, They are sent forth to minister for those who will inherit salvation.

4:11Well, perhaps we wonder how do angels serve us today? That seems like an odd thought. Well, Psalm 34 verse 7 tells us they provide protection. The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him and he delivers them. Again in the scriptures, the angels brought deliverance to earthly trials. Second Kings chapter 6 verse 15 through 17, you remember Elijah, praise that his servants eyes would be open to see God's protection in a time of battle. And by God's spirit he was able to see that those who were with him were greater than those who were against him. He saw the angels all around him. You know, we live in a day of scientific advancement which is a blessing in many ways. But we can lose the ability even as Christians to believe in those things that are unseen. And one of those things are angels. Verse 12 tells us they not only deliver us, they not only help us, but they actually worship

5:13with us. That when we come to a corporate worship, Hebrews says you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, to the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels and festival gathering. Now we can't say exactly how God will use his angels in our lives to help us. But we are told here that they are with us in our earthly pilgrimage. They are part of the means that God uses to preserve all of those who will inherit salvation. And so who knows how God will choose to use his angels to help his people. But here although we see the greatness of the angels, the focus here is on the greater greatness of Christ. We see that in verse 5. What of the sun he says, your throne, O God, is forever and ever. The scepter of a brightness is the scepter of your kingdom. I wonder if you've ever gotten to a theological debate with someone in part of your tactics

6:16that you piled scripture on top of scripture to support your argument. You know, sometimes we could do that, but not in the most loving way. But the book of Hebrews does that here, but in a very pastoral way. The pastor here gives seven quotations from the Old Testament that show us the superiority of Christ. And how is Jesus superior and greater than the angels? First we're told here in his relationship to God. His relationship to God is greater than the angels. In verse 4 we're told that he has inherited a name more excellent than the angels. And what is that name? It is the name of God's son. But how did Jesus inherit that name? Perhaps we ask the question, he has eternally been the son, co-eternal with the father, so how would he inherit that name? But this verse is speaking about the son receiving his name in a different way. The word tells us here, you are my son.

7:18Today I have begotten you. And this is a quote from Psalm 2. The Psalm looked forward to the Messiah who would come and rule in a royal position as king. The language of being begotten is not speaking of Christ's origin, but of his resurrection from the dead in ascension into heaven. Consider Acts 13, verse 33, when Paul preached at Antioch, he said these words, We declare to you glad tidings that promises were made to the fathers, God has fulfilled for us and their children. Then that he has raised up Jesus. And it is also written in the second song, you are my son. Today I have begotten you. Now after Jesus lived and died as God's obedient son, the father rewarded him and bestowed on him the name that was above all names. He raised his son from the dead and declared to the world that this is indeed his royal messianic son.

8:18Jesus was always the son of God, eternal with the father, but because of his obedience, he now rules as God's son and thrown over all creation. And the amazing reality is that when we come to trust in Christ, we bear his name and take on a new identity as royal sons and royal daughters with Jesus. For Jesus's relationship to God is greater than the angels, but second, his position is greater than the angels, verse 6. We're told that he is the firstborn. This word firstborn highlights his exalted position as the special son of God. In Hebrew culture, the firstborn son was in a position of favor in the house. He received a double portion of the inheritance and other privileges as the firstborn. Well, as the firstborn son, Jesus is worshipped by the angels. This also shows us his greatness. He receives worship, not only from people on earth, but from the angels in heaven.

9:24Remember at his birth and the gospel of Luke, we're told that the angels said, glory to God in the highest. They worship Jesus when he was exalted into heaven in Revelation 5, saying, worthy is the lamb that was slain. The angels are incredible and majestic creatures of God. They are so glorious that humans can be tempted to worship them. Think of the Apostle John in Revelation 19 who fell down before an angel in worship, but the angel lifted him up and said, don't do that. Worship God alone. Worship is for God alone. And so why are the angels worshipping Christ? Why do we worship Christ as Christians? The angels worship Jesus, and we do as well because He is Almighty God. And that's the third way that He is greater than the angels, not only in His relationship, not only in His position, but also in His being.

10:25We're told here in verse 8, your throne, O God is forever. The angels are amazing creations of God, but Jesus is God's divine Son, who is indeed the Lord. And as the Lord were told here in this text, He will not change, and His kingdom will have no end. We read in verse 11 and 12 about the world they will perish, but you will remain. They will all wear out like a garment, like a robe, you will roll them up, like a garment, they will be changed, but you are the same, and your years will have no end. These verses look forward to the final day when this world is shaken, along with all of the other kingdoms of this earth. All of the nations on this earth will perish, but we're told here Christ's kingdom will remain. God will roll up this world like a garment, and fold it up, and put it away.

11:26You know, even now the world around us is changing, and we see ourselves changing. We get old, and one day we're going to die. But if we belong to Jesus, although we may die, we too will remain forever with Him. The preacher to the Hebrews gives us this big view of Jesus that we might cling to him. He is the all-powerful King who guards His people in their journey. And although we can't see him now with the physical eye, we can know from God's word that he is indeed the Lord. Right now he is on the throne on the right hand of his father, being worshipped by the angels of heaven. In the question for us is, will we acknowledge and confess him as our Lord, and will we bow down and worship King Jesus along with the angels of heaven? May he indeed reign supreme in our hearts today, as you trust in him. Thanks for listening to Part 2 in our four-part series in the Book of Hebrews on Jesus is

12:30better. Look forward to meditating on Part 3 as we consider how Jesus is the better rest that we need. Have a great day.