Uniqueness & Superiority of Christ

Transcript

GRM 714
12/17/2000
Uniqueness and Superiority of Christ
Hebrews 1:1-3
Gil Rugh

Turn in your bibles to Hebrews chapter 1. There are several passages through the Scripture that specifically focus attention on Jesus Christ in such a way that we return to them on regular occasions to remind us and encourage us regarding the person and work of Jesus Christ. The opening verses of Hebrews is one of those passages for me. It sets the tenor of the whole Book of Hebrews. The Book of Hebrews is about the superiority of Jesus Christ. One of the key words in the Book of Hebrews is the word better, and it is emphasizing that Jesus Christ is superior or better to everything associated with Judaism. It’s written to the Hebrews. The Hebrews being Jews who had professed faith in Christ but were now under pressure and difficulty, wavering and wondering whether they could return to Judaism. What the writer to the Hebrews is unfolding for them is that there is no return for those who have genuinely trusted in Jesus Christ. He demonstrates that there is no alternative to Jesus Christ because He is better, far more superior to everything and every aspect of Judaism. He’ll talk about the priesthood, which is the heart of the issue. The Levitical priesthood is far superseded by the Melchizedekian priesthood of Christ who offers better sacrifices in a better temple. He’s better than the angels and on it goes. A dozen or more times that emphasis on Christ and His provision being better. It’s a good reminder for us in our day, even though our background is not Judaism. In this demonstration we are reminded that Jesus Christ is superior in every way to every religious system that has ever come in to existence and He is the only alternative. Besides Him there is nothing else. There are many religions. There are many beliefs. You hear people say my religion is as good as your religion and that’s true, but all must be brought into subjection to Jesus Christ.

That’s what the Book of Hebrews is about and we’re going to focus on the opening verses. He launches right into his theme because he’s going to demonstrate that Jesus Christ is superior to the prophets. The prophets were the vehicles; the instruments that God used to reveal His truth through Old Testament periods, but Jesus Christ is far superior even to the prophets. He’ll move right in to verse 4, “having become as much better than the angels.” He moves quickly to establish his point: Jesus Christ is superior to all and that means Jesus Christ is the only answer, the only solution and the only One in whom there is salvation.

The writer begins, “God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, in these last days has spoken to us in His Son.” There has been revelation given from God. This is foundational. You know the problem with the religions of the world, Protestant, Catholic, Jewish and then moving out to the variety of religions in the world? They get corrupted by men’s thinking and men’s ideas. But you understand everything and anything of importance in the religious or spiritual realm must be revealed and made known by God. What I think about God is not really relevant. What you think about God is not really of great importance. We all have our ideas, our convictions, our beliefs as we might call them. But really what matters is, if there is a God has, He revealed Himself so that we have something outside of ourselves that will enable us to know Him and understand Him? The Bible claims that there is a God, and that God has revealed Himself; and the Scripture assumes the reality and truthfulness of that. It does not try to prove it.

Hebrews begins in chapter 1 verse 1, “God, after He spoke long ago.” There’s no argument that He did speak, no question of whether He did. The fact is assumed, and it is absolutely essential if religion is to have any significance and meaning. I am always amused at churches and religious groups that are undergoing discussions and battles and taking votes on what their doctrines and beliefs will be. All we have is an organization that men have established based on their thinking and their ideas. But God has spoken and that is clearly emphasized here, both in what He has done in the prophets through Old Testament history, and what He has done now in His Son, Jesus Christ. God has spoken. In the past He spoke through the prophets to the fathers.

He’s writing to Jews. Their ancestors through what we have as the Old Testament received the message of God through prophets who then spoke to the people. That has been recorded as our Old Testament Scriptures. He spoke in a variety of ways. We are told He spoke to the prophets “in many portions and in many ways.” He used visions and dreams, on occasion angels and so on. There were many prophets and there were a variety of way that God spoke. It was God’s truth and it happened over a period of time. The revelation given in what we have as our Old Testament Scriptures was given over a period of about a thousand years. The first part of our Bible was written by Moses, the human instrument, and he was a prophet the Scripture tells us. God spoke to Moses and Moses wrote the first five books of the Old Testament. That was around 1400, 1450 BC. The last of the Old Testament prophets was Malachi, who wrote about 400 years before Christ. From the time Moses wrote the first portion of the Old Testament Scriptures to the time Malachi wrote the last portion is a period of about a thousand years. Over that time God was progressively unveiling and revealing more of Himself through His prophets.

But now, verse 2 tells us, “In these last days He has spoken to us in one who is a Son.” These last days that’s a significant expression in Old Testament Scripture. We have considered it in our study of Acts chapter 2. The last days in the writings of the Old Testament prophets were the days when the Messiah would come. So, as the writer to the Hebrews uses this expression “in these last days” he draws their attention immediately to the fact, these are the days anticipated by the Old Testament prophets. These are the days that God spoke of when He spoke through the prophets. We now are living in these days. These are the days of the Messiah. He immediately calls their attention to the significance of this period of time. God has spoken in these last days “to us” and it becomes very personal because it’s absolutely crucial that attention be paid even in a more special way to what has now been revealed because God has spoken to us in His Son. The contrast “long ago in the prophets” “in these last days in His Son”, the contrast is between what was given through prophets, what’s given through the Son. The very fact the Son is the One in whom God is now speaking elevates the significance of what God is revealing. It’s like if you work in a business and the owner of the business communicates often to the people in the business in a variety of ways, through letters, through lower-level personnel, the instructions are passed along. But then you’re told on this date the owner of the company will have himself a meeting. All of a sudden you say, “This must be very important.” What was said before was true and correct, but now the means used to communicate is greatly heightened in importance. Here, the Son is coming to speak. That means that something of even more overwhelming importance is being revealed and made known.

The revelation in the Son, what he’s going to unfold, is the fullest most complete revelation of God you can get, and there is a uniqueness and finality about this revelation and understanding this should settle any issue of whether there are any alternatives or any possibility of returning to Judaism or the old religious ways. God has spoken to us in His Son. That summarizes really what the emphasis of the Book of Hebrews is—God has spoken in His Son—and so there is a finality in that revelation.

What I want to spend our time with today is looking at what God says about the Son. Since it’s His birth that we celebrate and in all that goes on around the holidays as we call them, it’s of utmost importance that we be clear on the Son of God. It’s so sad that so much of what takes place in the context of Christmas is just sentimental. You know, so many of the songs that are promoted and that are just sentimental to give you a warm feeling and often a sad feeling, a nostalgic feeling about the holiday season. We have to understand the substance of the message of Jesus Christ, what is totally unique about Him.

In verse 2 and in verse 3 of Hebrews chapter 1 the writer to the Hebrews gives seven facts concerning Jesus Christ which demonstrate His absolute superiority to everyone and everything that establish clearly His greatness, His uniqueness and thus demonstrate that there is no hope for anyone in the world anywhere apart from Jesus Christ. There is salvation in no one else anywhere, and it’s a matter that the writer to the Hebrews will tell us, as we’ll see, that we must pay closer attention to. Even we, as believers, get fuzzy on the edges sometimes with the passing of time sometimes concerning Jesus Christ and His uniqueness.

I’m reading a book written by a man who’s training and present position you would well recognize. But he’s writing the book claiming that we ought to take a broader view of our Christianity, break down some of the walls and barriers, be more understanding of those who have differing opinions. But what the writer of the Hebrews establishes very clearly is that we’re talking about a narrow way, a unique Person and there are no alternatives, and it is very narrow, it is totally unique, but you understand it is God who is speaking and so what I think of it or what someone else thinks of it is not really a determinative issue.

Let’s look at what he says about this Son in whom God has spoken in these last days. He says first of all He is the One in whom or “whom He has appointed heir of all things.” That’s the logical connection to His being a Son. The Son is the heir. Uh, back up to the Book of Galatians in your Bible, chapter 4. The Apostle Paul writes and says, “But when the fullness of time came, God sent forth His Son.” All that the prophets wrote about, all that they anticipated, now the time is full. We have come to the last days, the days of the Messiah. God sent forth His Son to provide redemption through His death on the cross. The end of verse 5, “that we might receive the adoption as sons.” Through faith in the death of Christ we are born into God’s family, and we too become sons of God through faith in Jesus Christ by virtue of our relationship to Christ. So, he says in verse 6, “Because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, ‘Abba! Father!’” Abba being the Aramaic word for Father, then Father as we have it being translation of the Greek word. “Therefore, you are no longer a slave, but a son.” Now note this. “And if a son, then an heir through God.” The point that he has been making is that you and I can become sons of God through faith in Christ. Then He gives us the Spirit of Christ and we become heirs. You see the connection. If you are a son, you are an heir.

In Hebrews chapter 1 we are told that Jesus Christ, who is the unique Son of God, the Son of God in the way that none other ever was or ever will be, is the heir of all things. Then as we saw in Galatians, as a result of His work on the cross in providing salvation, all who believe in Him are placed as sons and become heirs of God through Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is the Son who is the heir of all things.

Now the background for this is found in the Old Testament. Go back to Psalm chapter 2. You have to read this thinking as a Jewish reader would. This is written to Hebrews and their connection to what is written would go back to the Old Testament Scriptures and they would be well versed in those Scriptures. So that when he says that God has spoken in these last days, the writings of the prophets who have talked about the Messiah coming in the last days would come to their minds and he writes that God has appointed Him heir of all things; the Old Testament makes clear in its writings that the Messiah would be heir of all things. Look in Psalm 2 verse 7. “I will surely tell of the decree of the Lord: He said to Me, ‘You are My Son, today I have begotten You. Ask of Me, and I will surely give the nations as Your inheritance, and the very ends of the earth as Your possession.’”

You see what is promised to this unique Son of God? Everything, all the nations, all the earth is His inheritance. It belongs to Him, and ultimately, he will rule over it. The command is given in verse 12 of Psalm 2, “Do homage to the Son,” kiss the Son, literally, “lest He be angry, and you perish from the way.”

Look at the Book of Daniel chapter 7. The prophet Daniel was given a great vision by God. Here’s one of the times that God spoke in a variety of ways. Here He speaks through a vision to His prophet, Daniel. Daniel sees a vision of God the Father sitting enthroned in the glory of heaven. The end of verse 10 we are told, “Thousands upon thousands were attending Him; myriads upon myriads,” ten thousands of ten thousand. You have this innumerable hosts of angelic beings surrounding the throne of God in its awesome glory. Then in verse 13, “I kept looking in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven One like a Son of Man was coming.” Here is the Son of God who is also the Son of Man. “He came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before Him. To Him was given dominion, glory and a kingdom, that all the peoples, nations, and languages might serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion which will not pass away; His kingdom is one which will not be destroyed.” Anticipating the yet future time when Jesus Christ will return in glory and take possession of the creation that is His inheritance by His work of redemption.

Come back to Hebrews chapter 1. You note, there is no one apart from Christ that matters because He is the heir of all things. To turn to a man’s centered system, to go back to a religion or a system that men are pleased with puts you outside of the realm of the inheritance because any inheritance has to be found in Christ because He is the heir of all things. Any inheritance that you or I might receive must come through Christ because there’s nothing outside of Him to receive cause He’s the heir of everything. So, you see when you turn back from Christ, turn away from Christ, you have abandoned everything of any importance and significance.

The second thing that is said about Christ in Hebrews chapter 1, verse 2 is that God the Father through Christ made the world, through whom also He made the world, or literally the word in the Greek text is, “ages” he made the ages. All the periods of time with everything that is in them. It all came about as the created work of Jesus Christ. The Bible is clear from beginning to end that the world and everything in it was made by a personal God. Teachings of evolution and so-called science in this area by and large an attack on what God has revealed about Himself. God says that He made the world, the ages and everything that exists in time through Jesus Christ. That is an awesome statement that Jesus Christ is the heir of all things, and He is the one who created all things. In John’s gospel chapter 1 verse 3 we are told all things were made by Christ and without Christ not anything was made that has been made. It’s a comprehensive all-inclusive declaration that Jesus Christ created all things. So, you read in Genesis chapter 1 verse 1, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” You understand God the Son brought all things into existence.

The Book of Colossians chapter 1, look at verse 16, “For by Him,” Christ, “all things were created both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authority, all things have been created by Him, through Him, and for Him.” You note, not just the physical creation, but angelic beings brought into existence by Christ—all things. “He is before all things and in Him all things hold together. Keep verse 17 in mind, we are going to come to that in Hebrews in a moment. In Him all things hold together, He is before all things. John’s gospel chapter 1 verse 1 says, “In the beginning was the Word,” referring to Jesus Christ. He’s the Word of God. Why? He is the very expression of God. He is the one through whom God has made known. “In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” Jesus Christ was in the beginning with God the Father because Jesus Christ is God, and he has created all things.”

Come back to Hebrews chapter 1. See how quickly we establish the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in His superiority to everything. I mean He is the Son. The relationship to the Father there is totally unique and distinct from all others. He is the one who has created everything. Can any be considered on His level? Is there any competition with Jesus Christ? The prophets were wonderful, Isaiah, perhaps the greatest of the writing prophets of the Old Testament, but what is he compared to the Son, who created everything. Jesus said John the Baptist was the greatest of the Old Testament prophets. John the Baptist said I’m not worthy to even unlatch His sandals. We are talking about the One who is the Son, the One who has created everything. The third thing he says about Jesus Christ in Hebrews chapter 1 in the beginning of verse 3. “He is the radiance of His glory.” “The radiance of His glory.” Jesus Christ is the full display unveiling of the magnificence of God on earth. Again, the Old Testament would be the background for this. These Jewish readers could immediately connect it. The glory, we talk about the shekinah glory in the Old Testament. We are talking about the glory of God’s presence. Now look back at just one passage, Exodus chapter 24. This was written by the prophet Moses; it was one of the times where God communicated with Moses. We’re told in Exodus 24 verse 15, “then Moses went up to the mountain and the cloud covered the mountain.” referring to the display of the glory of God’s presence. “And the glory of the Lord rested on Mount Sinai.” Now we are told that Jesus Christ is the radiance of His glory. What He is declaring is the fullness of God’s presence is displayed in Jesus Christ. He is the shekinah. The presence of God, His glory, is in the person of Jesus Christ. Come to the New Testament in John’s gospel chapter 1. We referred to the opening verses of this book. “In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being by Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being.” Look at verse 14. “And the word became flesh and dwelt among us.” The word dwelt is literally tabernacled among us, again for those of a Jewish background—immediate connection. The Old Testament system the tent of meeting where God met with Israel. “We beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten of the Father full of grace and truth,” the grace and the truth the glory of God was revealed more fully, more clearly in Jesus Christ than had ever been done before. He is the unique Son of God, the only begotten Son of God; He is the radiance of the glory of Christ.

Back to Hebrews Chapter 1, related idea, and the fourth fact about Jesus Christ. “He is the radiance of His glory, and the exact representation of His nature.” His nature, His very being. Some of you have done some reading on the doctrinal conflicts that took place in the early part of church history. One of them you find this word, hypostasis, the very nature of Christ. The word here translated nature means His substantial nature, His very essence, His actual being, He is the exact representation of His very nature. The word translated exact representation; the Greek word is character—character. We talk about the characters of the alphabet. The word basically meant the impressions made by a dye or a seal. We would look at our coins and we see the exact representation; the image has been stamped there. We are told in Jesus Christ you have the exact stamp of God’s character, a perfect manifestation of the very essence and nature and being of God. That’s why Jesus told Thomas in John 14 verse 8, Thomas said “Oh show us the Father, and that will be enough.” Jesus said, how can you say such a thing? “He who has seen Me, has seen the Father.” Does that mean that Jesus Christ is the Father? No. But He is the exact representation of the very being and character of the Father. God the Father is a Spirit. He does not have physical form. Jesus Christ took upon Himself humanity in a human body. But in that human body is contained the very essence and nature of deity. Colossians chapter 2 verse 9 says, that “in Christ, in His body, was all the fullness of deity. In Him all the fullness of deity dwells in bodily form.” That’s remarkable. You think about it. That baby born at Bethlehem, that human body that could be held in the arms, contained the fullness of God’s essential nature and being. Everything that makes God the Father God, was also contained in God the Son. We call them the immutable attributes of God. They are immutable in that they cannot be changed. They are His attributes. They that which make Him God. Essential to His very being and nature as God. If any of them were lacking, He would not be God. That baby born, here you have all the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature contained in a human body. That’s hard to imagine. That’s not hard to imagine, it’s impossible to conceive.

Now I know it’s true there are certain parts of it we understand. We know that Jesus Christ was fully human, we know He was fully divine. He was not a human person and a divine person because He is only one person. But He is fully human and fully divine as one person. You understand that? No, you don’t. None of us do. But that shouldn’t cause us a problem. Is it possible for our finite minds, for we as finite beings, to encompass an infinite God with our understanding? No. That’s why the foolishness of man. He keeps trying to create a God in His own image when I must come to the Scripture and find the true and living God who reveals Himself. and there is much that I don’t understand. There’s much that my mind cannot put together. I receive it by faith. We referred to the fact that it was through Christ all things were created. You say, well you’re not very scientific and if any of you know me very well you know that I’m not very scientific. My mind does not work well in the scientific and technical areas. But you know what? I have complete knowledge of how things were created. It was created by God the Father through God the Son. How can you be so sure if you haven’t studied Science? I’ve read Hebrews chapter 11 verse 3, “By faith we understand, that the worlds were created out of nothing.” I’m not saying there’s not a place and benefit in science, but that cannot replace God’s revelation. Everything must be subjected to truth. I don’t understand that by examination even of the evidence, it’s by faith I understand it happened like this. How do you put together the hypostatic union, which is simply referring to the union of the joining together of humanity and the deity in one person? Not detract from the deity or have anything less than a complete human being? I just don’t know, and there is nothing to compare it to. This is totally unique. What took place at Bethlehem is something that never happened in all eternity and will never again happen through all future eternity. God has taken upon Himself humanity and He is the God man. Fully God and fully man. One person. I just don’t understand it. I know it’s true I can explain the facts to you, I can tell you, but to put it together with my finite mind. I don’t understand it, and it is going to get more incomprehensible. You understand He is the exact representation and nature of God, He’s outside the realm of creation. We call this the transcendence of God. He is apart from His creation. He is the creator—the imminence of God. He is involved with His creation, but He is distinct from His creation.

We go on to the fifth characteristic brought out about Christ or the fifth fact. He is upholding all things by the Word of His power. That word upholds in the middle of verse 3, is a present participle, present tense. That is something that is ongoing. Now I’ve really gotten to a place I don’t understand because that baby born at Bethlehem is the One who is upholding all things by the word of his power; the One who would grow in understanding and knowledge; the One who created everything and brought everything into existence and continues to uphold all things. That word to uphold carries the idea of carrying something. It’s not a static word, it’s not just shouldering a burden, but it’s carrying something as you move it towards its appointed goal. Jesus Christ created it all and He upholds all things. I said, remember that verse in Colossians chapter 1 whereby Him all things hold together. That’s who He is. His sovereign power holds it all together. Why don’t all the stars and the heavenly bodies have great cataclysmic explosion as they slam into one another? Maybe someday we’ll have a nuclear explosion and creation will disintegrate and this is something you ought to lose sleep over at night. Not me. Why? Well, I know the One who carries it all, who’s moving it all towards it’s appointed goal is the One who created it—Jesus Christ.

Now you see what he is establishing the totally uniqueness of Christ. To whom will you compare Him? Remember God and His revelation through the prophets in the Old Testament required, called and said, “To whom will you compare me?” That’s what we are doing here in Hebrews. He unfolds who Jesus Christ is. To whom are you going to compare Him? Well, no one. Well, you understand the practical application of that then. How can you talk about turning from Him to go back to your former religious practices? Well, my family’s put great pressure on me. I have been disinherited. No one talks to me. So? You understand who Jesus Christ is. Oh, but you don’t understand we were always a close family. No, you don’t understand, you know who Jesus Christ is. So, you see why he is starting out on this very direct and clear note as he writes to the Jews. You understand family was at the heart of everything. The whole social structure is built around their family, their personal relationships. Now they are undergoing intense persecution, pressure, and being cut off. You have to understand who Jesus Christ is. This puts everything in perspective.

The sixth fact about Him. This becomes amazing because it’s almost jarring because everything said to this point is amazing, but the next statement is even more amazing. He made purification for sins. You have the One who is the Son, the one who is the heir of all things here, the One that made the world, the One who is the radiance of His glory, the One who is the exact representation of His nature. The One who upholds all things by the word of His power. He is the One, who has made purification of sins, past tense. Something He did by His sacrifice on the cross, which will be thoroughly developed and the argument of the book of Hebrews. He made purification of sins.

Look in Hebrews chapter 9 verse 14. Talks about in verse 13 the blood of bulls and goats in the Old Testament system. Verse 14. “How much more will the blood of Christ who through the eternal spirit offered himself without blemish to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works, to serve the living God.” End of verse 22 we are told “without the shedding of blood there is no remission of sins.” Verse 26; break into the second part of verse 26, “but now once at the consummation of the ages He has been manifested to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself.” You see He made purification of sins. That all systems apart from Jesus Christ are a denial and attack on Jesus Christ. That oh, we have an ongoing purification, oh we are by our works going to get to heaven. What audacity, to say that what Jesus Christ the Son of God has done is not sufficient, not adequate, and I don’t accept it. The Jews are saying we’re going back and offer animal sacrifices. Well, you can go back and offer animal sacrifices, but you understand you will have nothing from God but condemnation. He made purification of sins if you understand having established that He is the Son and this is the truth concerning Him, and He made purification of sins. You understand what a significant issue is at stake when you have religious systems developed that are going to invite you to believe what they teach. You can be saved by your good works and it’s terrible to tell anyone that they’re lost, and they’re sinners. That they’re on their way to hell. That’s too narrow. That’s too exclusive. But Jesus Christ is the Son of God. “He said I am the way the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father but by Me.” That’s as narrow as you can get. There is only one way to experience purification of sins through Jesus Christ. This is the revelation God has given.

Come back to Hebrews Chapter 1. When He had made purification the seventh thing said about Him, is that He sat down at the right hand of the majesty on high. We won’t turn back but you can read Hebrews chapter 10 verse 10. Verse 12. Where He made one sacrifice for sin for all time, He sat down in the furniture of the tabernacle, and the temple in the Old Testament there were no chairs provided for the high priest. Do you know why? When he went about that work he wasn’t done. That was a reminder. The ongoing sacrifices. An ongoing ministry. But Jesus Christ sat down at the position of honor, the right hand of His Father. Why? What He had done finalized and settled it all. It’s done. Now these Jews are thinking you know I think I will go back to Judaism with their sacrificial system. You know I won’t deny Christ, I will just turn back there. It will take some of the family pressure off. Who knows? Maybe then with my Jewish friends and family I will be able to be a witness.

We will get today, today out of the paganism, out of Protestantism which has become just a variety of religious system of works and they think they get saved and say oh no I’m not going to leave my church. You get saved out of Roman Catholicism but oh well I couldn’t leave Roman Catholicism; you can’t be saved on that basis. Understand that? That’s the message, which is being proclaimed here from God in His Son. I want to go back to a system and we’re going to have the mass and re-sacrifice Christ regularly. That’s better than Judaism? Which He has been establishing you can’t do that? Well, I’m going back to my other church I know they really have a lot of emphasis on works and it’s really…but you know I think it will help. We don’t understand who Jesus Christ is. This is a matter of eternal significance. You know what the book of Hebrews says five times in its warning passages, if you go back, you have no part in Christ. If you go back, it demonstrates you never really did understand and believe in Him.

Look in Hebrews chapter 2 verse 1. Here is one of those warning passages. “For this reason,” we are going to break into the flow of his argument, he’ll do this five times through the book as he shows the superiority of Christ. He’ll break in and say now pay attention here. What this means regarding your eternal salvation, “for this reason we must pay closer attention to what we have heard.” That’s a message that we need to grab onto today. The church of Jesus Christ is trying to soften its image in the world, take the edges off of it, not be viewed so narrow and so exclusive, try not to have such a sharp cutting edge. But what can I say? To every other system of beliefs, every other religious system, do you know what I have to say? You’re wrong. You’re so wrong you’re going to hell, that no one else in the whole world is right but Jesus Christ and what is revealed concerning Him in the Scriptures. That’s too narrow for people. But remember it is God who has spoken. We must pay closer attention to these things. “Lest we drift away from it.” Well, you know maybe we don’t have to be so exclusive. Maybe we don’t have to be so narrow. Maybe we can be more tolerant of people who say they believe in Christ, but they also want to offer the mass. Or they also want to believe that it will take their works in addition to faith to get them to heaven. Don’t drift away from the finality of this truth.

“If the words spoken through angels proved unalterable.” That is what God revealed through the Old Testament. He used angels and He held everyone accountable for every word. Every transgression and disobedience received a just recompense. “How shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation.” It’s a salvation revealed after it was first spoken by the Lord Himself and then confirmed to us by those who heard. The message of Jesus Christ is the most important and significant in all the world.

Number 1 that has to be resolved—have you understood who Jesus Christ is? Have you understood He and He alone is the only Savior, and the only salvation comes from placing your faith in Him alone. If you love father and mother more than Me you cannot be my disciples, Jesus said. He demands your total faith, your total commitment. There are no alternatives. Do you understand that every man, woman, and child must hear this? I wonder, we as true believers we call ourselves true believers. We believe the truth of this we say Amen to it. Do we really believe it? We will be in conversations with people and talk to people and not even share with them the only message that will bring them life. Even at a season like this we get so busy it’s hard for us to have time for that which is of eternal importance and significance. The busyness of the holidays runs over our life and people go on to hell and we say but oh I really believe this is true, but we drift away from it. Does anything else matter? In a hundred million years it won’t matter what presents I gave my kids or anything else or whether everybody liked the turkey or didn’t. But it will matter if the men and women heard the message of Jesus Christ and He is the only way of salvation. It’s narrow. He is the only way. But it’s plenty broad enough. Because “Jesus said come unto me all ye who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” It’s narrow in that it centers in Jesus Christ in Him alone. But it’s broad in that Jesus Christ has provided a salvation sufficient for all who will believe Him. Do we really believe this? Is this the conviction of our heart and mind? Have you experienced the salvation that comes through faith in Him? Are you drifting away from your firm commitment and conviction to that? So that it is not as compelling for you to share it with family and friends when the opportunities sit right on our doorstep? May God grip our hearts with the truthfulness of the Son the wonder of the celebration of His birth and the uniqueness of who He is and why He came? Everything in our lives we come to believe in Him is redone and restructured around Him and Him alone.

Let’s pray together.

Thank You, Lord, for Your grace in the giving of Your Son, Lord, truths that go beyond what our frail finite minds can grasp. Yet You have revealed this truth for us to believe. Lord, I pray that our faith might be settled in the Son of God the One who loved us and died for us. Lord, may we not drift from this truth and may the passion grip our hearts, that we would be burdened for every single man, woman, and child, that we have contact with, that they hear this message, to know of the Son of God, that they might receive life through faith in Him. We pray in His name. Amen.
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