Truths to boggle your mind (3)

In the past, God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe. The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.  Hebrews 1:1-3

This is instalment three of my posts on Hebrews 1:1-3 – and, I promise, the last! As I said at the beginning, the writer manages to pack so much into these verses that it takes a little time to open them up. Well, so far I’ve tried to explain the first six, so there’s just two to go: two more great truths about the person of Jesus…

7. He has “provided purification for sins”.

With these words the writer reaches the central theme of the whole letter: how Jesus has made a complete, perfect and final sacrifice for sin.

Sin – disobedience which leads to separation from God – is the essence of our human problems, pinpointed in the tragic Adam and Eve story at the start of the Bible. And the writer’s great concern is that his readers, having been saved from it, are in danger of falling back into it.

The Old Testament spells out that, after generations of continuing failure, God chose the people of Israel to, in effect, kick-start human history again and to show the whole world what it means to be a pure and holy nation. And he made special provision for dealing with sin: a system of blood-sacrifice whereby the people were cleansed and reconciled to him.

These sacrifices were carried out by an order of priests, chosen by God. They were offered either in the “tabernacle” – the movable shrine the Israelites carried with them before they settled in the land of Canaan – or in the temple built by King Solomon in Jerusalem once they were settled there.

Once a year they celebrated a “day of atonement”. This was a solemn occasion when special sacrifices were made, and the only time of the year when anyone – it would be the chief priest, of course – was authorised to enter “the Most Holy Place”, the innermost compartment of the temple, regarded as the earthly dwelling-place of God. (You can read all about this in Leviticus 16.)

This is the background to what the writer to the Hebrews is talking about when he says that Jesus “provided purification for sins”. And this is what the rest of the letter is mainly about.

Putting it very simply: Jesus is not only the great high priest – he is also the offering! His death on the cross, involving the shedding of his blood, is the once-for-all sacrifice required to deal with the sins of all humankind. And this is why faith in what he did that first Good Friday is all that is needed to purify each of us from sin.

And so we come to the last of these great truths…

8. He has “sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven”.

Jesus died. And Jesus rose again. But because his work on earth was now complete he then returned to heaven – the event Christians call “the Ascension” (described in Acts 1:1-11). This is where he is now – seated in honour at the right hand of God.

It’s important that the writer emphasises that he is sitting, for that implies rest after work. No more sacrifice need be offered – or, indeed, can be offered. This too is something the writer will stress as the letter unfolds.

Not that Jesus is inactive in heaven. Oh no, he still has a ministry, but no longer a sacrificial ministry. His ministry now is one of prayer for his people who are still on earth. As the writer puts it in 7:25: “He always lives to intercede” for us. And Paul in Romans 8:34: he is “at the right hand of God… interceding for us”.

So… Jesus has offered a perfect sacrifice for our sins; and now, in heaven, he never stops praying for us. Doesn’t that make you feel good?

Let’s pull these eight truths together. Who is Jesus?

• The living word of God.
• The heir of all things.
• The agent of creation.
• The radiance of God’s glory.
• The exact representation of God’s being.
• The one who sustains all things.
• The one who provides purification for sins.
• The one who is now enthroned in heaven.

Just think: These extraordinary claims are made about a carpenter’s son, who just thirty or so years earlier was walking the hillsides of Galilee and mixing with others as an ordinary man.

Didn’t I say that these truths are mind-boggling! They certainly demonstrate that it’s hopelessly inadequate to say, as many who are vaguely religious might, that Jesus was a good man, a great example who spread love wherever he went and who died a heroic death. No! That just won’t do!

This Jesus, the fully-orbed Jesus, is the true Jesus; and he is worthy of our love, our obedience, our trust and our worship.

Which just leaves the question: Does he have yours, and mine?

Lord God, as I reflect on these things, please enlarge my vision of the Lord Jesus Christ, so that I might love him more deeply, trust him more fully, and serve him more faithfully. Amen.