Hebrews 2:5-9
WHO DO YOU SEE? A.M. 12/7/03
“One day a 35 year-old insurance salesman came to the Vision Rehabilitation Clinic in Providence, Rhode Island. He had only 1% vision since age ten. He had gone through life in a gray shadow. When a pair of magnifier glasses was slipped into place, his jaw dropped in amazement. Then he exploded, ‘Oh praise God, look at what I can see!” After all these years, it’s a miracle, the greatest thing that ever happened!’ Minutes later he phoned his wife and said, ‘Honey, I’m coming home to see what you really look like!”
Morning Glory, Sept.-Oct. 1997, p. 25, http://www.bible.org/illus/s/s-98.htm
Gutzon Borglum, the sculptor, was once working on a head of Lincoln. A woman who was sweeping out his studio wondered what he was doing. One day she finally recognized the face of Abraham Lincoln emerging from the stone. Very much surprised, she turned to Borglum and asked, "How did you know that Mr. Lincoln was in that piece of stone?" --James S. Hewett, Illustrations Unlimited (Wheaton: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc, 1988) p. 40. Bible Illustrator 3.0
One of the greatest physical gifts that we have from God is our vision. The ability to see is so important and so wonderful. We see the beauties of nature and the beauty of our loved ones. We see the road so we can drive, the food so we can cook it, and the job so we can do it.
Seeing, however, often goes beyond physical sight. To truly “see” something means that we understand or grasp it. When we truly “see” something it means that we understand how something works or why someone does what they do. True sight includes insight!
God has always been concerned that our seeing go beyond the physical and enter into the spiritual. God wants us to see the things that concern Him and are about Him.
And it is possible to have poor physical vision, but great spiritual vision.
In order for someone to see physically they must have light.
In order for someone to see spiritually, they must have light.
God has provided us with light to see through his Son.
John 8:12 - Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.
In order for you to see spiritually, the Lord Jesus has sent us his Holy Spirit to indwell those who have trusted Jesus as their Savior.
John 14:12-14 - Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father. [13] And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. [14] If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.
One of the tools that the Spirit of God uses to guide us into all truth, is the Word of God. The more we see in the Word of God the more Spiritual insight we will have.
This morning we return to the Book of Hebrews. This is the Book of the Bible which talks of things which are better. In the verses before us this morning, Hebrews 2:5-9, the author is showing us that Jesus is better than the Angels. He also shows us three things that we need to see, if we are going to have Spiritual sight, perspective, and/or understanding.
We need to see:
GOD’S INTENTION
MAN’S INDISCRETION
CHRIST’S INTERVENTION
Vs. 5 – One of the recurring themes of the Book of Hebrews is Christ’s superiority. In chapter 1, Jesus is shown to be superior. One of the ways He is superior is to the angels, God’s spirit-being servants. After a brief interlude to warn us not to drift spiritually in verses 1-4, the author of Hebrews returns to the theme of Christ’s superiority to the angels.
In verse 5 we are told that reign in the world to come will not be under the rule of angels. Of course, the world to come will be under the rule of God the Son. But it is important for you to see that God the Son is a man. He is both God and man.
Why is this important? To understand the importance of Jesus being a man please,
SEE GOD’S INTENTION – Vss. 6-8a
Vs 6 – The author of Hebrews is quoting Scripture. The location of the quote was not important to the author of Hebrews as he wrote although it is obvious that he knew where to find it. It is actually a quote from Psalm 8.
David is amazed at God’s kindness to man. And it you think about it, it is only because of God’s kindness that anyone exists at all. But God did not stop at just creating man. It is the position that he gave man that is amazing!
Vss. 7-8a – Man was made a little lower than the angels.
How is man a little lower than the angels?
Angels are spiritual beings and have far more freedom to get around. Although there is a spiritual side of man, he has a spirit, man is primarily a physical being.
But God crowned man with glory and honor. Man has the glory and honor of being superior to every other being.
Genesis 2:7 - And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.
Genesis 1:27 - So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.
It is only said of man that he became a living soul.
It is only man who is created in the image of God.
And it is man who God appointed to rule over God’s creation, and to put all things under his subjection.
In fact, listen to what God has to say in Genesis 1:26
And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.
God’s intention from the very beginning was that man would rule the earth.
SEE GOD’S INTENTION
SEE MAN’S INDISCRETION – Vs. 8b
Hebrews 2:8 - Thou hast put all things in subjection under his feet. For in that he put all in subjection under him, he left nothing that is not put under him. But now we see not yet all things put under him.
God’s intention was that man rule over the earth.
It is obvious that man does not rule now.
If the deer we hunt were subject to man it would be “no contest”. It would be very easy for us to get a prize buck.
If wild animals were subject to man, Roy, of “Seigfried and Roy”, would not have been mauled by a Tiger.
And when it comes to agriculture, just because we plant and weed and fertilize, there is no guarantee of a perfect crop! If we were truly in charge of the earth things would grow wonderfully all the time.
And man as being in charge of the earth has not done a great job ecologically. Often man has not ruled well, causing pollution and even destruction of certain animals so they are non existent or almost non existent.
Man is obviously not ruling over the earth today.
It was God’s intention that he did rule.
What happened?
God had given man one basic rule.
Genesis 2:15-17(Comment) - And the Lord God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it. [16] And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: [17] But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.
Genesis 3:1-6 (Comment) - Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? [2] And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: [3] But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. [4] And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: [5] For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil. [6] And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.
So man blew it.
When man disobeyed God he lost in many ways his dominion over the earth.
Genesis 3:17-19 - And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; [18] Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; [19] In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.
Genesis 3:23-24 - Therefore the Lord God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken. [24] So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubim, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.
Man, through Adam lost his kingdom.
And worse man, through Adam lost his soul.
Death entered the world through Adam’s sin.
Physical death entered through Adam and Spiritual death entered through Adam.
Like Adam, we have sinned.
Because of our sin we have no right to reign on the earth.
Because of our sin we have no right to eternal life.
Oh, we haven’t eaten forbidden fruit, but we have failed to love the Lord our God with all our hearts, souls and minds.
We haven’t eaten forbidden fruit but we have listened to the devils’ subtle temptations to lie, steal, cheat, deceive and explode in unrighteous anger.
Ezekiel 18:4 - Behold, all souls are mine; as the soul of the father, so also the soul of the son is mine: the soul that sinneth, it shall die.
Humanly speaking we have no hope.
Because of our indiscretions we have not only lost our rule of the earth but life itself!
SEE GOD’S INTENTION
SEE MAN’S INDISCRETION
SEE CHRIST’S INTERVENTION – Vs. 9
Hebrews 2:9 - But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man.
The first word in this verse is what I call a “blessed but”.
Man blew it big time. His indiscretion is inexcusable.
There needs to be punishment because man blew it! He failed God.
You deserve punishment because you blew it! You failed God.
The blessed “but” turns us away from man’s indiscretion and turns us to see Christ’s intervention.
But we see Jesus!
It is one thing to say man was made a little lower than the angels, but quite another to say that Jesus was made a little lower than the angels.
For Jesus to be made lower than the angels, it was a definite demotion. Jesus is God!
John 1:1-2 - In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. [2] The same was in the beginning with God.
And why was Jesus made a little lower than the angels?
He was made a little lower than the angels so that he could die for your sins.
Philippians 2:6-8 - Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: [7] But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: [8] And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.
Jesus tasted death for you, so that you can live.
He has paid for your sins.
He wants your trust. If you but trust that He died for you, He will give you forgiveness and eternal life.
1 John 5:11-12 - And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. [12] He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.
Have you trusted Him? Do you have life
But what about the earth?
It was God’s intention that man rule.
Christ is a man, the God-man.
Through His death for sin, he has regained for man the rule of the earth. He is crowned with glory and honor.
Jesus will return to earth and set up His Kingdom.
His kingdom will again have man in control of the earth.
Isaiah 11:6-9 - The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them. [7] And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together: and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. [8] And the sucking child shall play on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the cockatrice' den. [9] They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.
Through Jesus man will reign on the earth.
But what about you and I?
What will we be doing while Jesus reigns?
We will be reigning with him!
Revelation 5:9-10 - And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation; [10] And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.
Revelation 2:26 - And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations:
Do you see Jesus as the one who died for you?
Have you trusted Jesus as your Savior?
If you have, you are in an awesome position.
You will one day reign with Him!
Are you acting like a future ruler?
Are you acting like a child of God?
Are you appreciating your position enough to live like the king you are?
In a one sense your kingdom is future. You will reign with Christ.
In another sense your kingdom is now. As a child of God, God gives us victory in this life.
Romans 6:10-14 - For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God. [11] Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. [12] Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof. [13] Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God. [14] For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.
How’s your eyesight this morning. I pray that it’s good enough to
SEE GOD’S INTENTION
SEE MAN’S INDISCRETION
SEE CHRIST’S INTERVENTION