Truths to boggle your mind

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

My computer tells me that the verses I have quoted – the first three verses of the Letter to the Hebrews – consist of 87 words. That’s not a lot, really, is it? – not much longer than the Lord’s Prayer. But they are truly remarkable, because the writer (whose identity we don’t know) has managed to pack into them a whole list of claims about Jesus.

And what claims they are!

People who are what you might call “vaguely religious” are often prepared to say that, yes, all right, Jesus was a good man, possibly a prophet, who spread kindness and love wherever he went, and who died a heroic martyr’s death.

And they would be sort-of right: Jesus is indeed those things. But to affirm only them is to affirm only a millionth part of the truth! He is so much more. The word “Wow!” isn’t one I tend to use – I’m not really a “Wow!” person – but in this case – well, I’m not sure I can find a better one, for in these 87 words the writer lists no less than eight truths about Jesus. Let me just highlight each of them…

1. He is the living word of God (verses 1-2a).

This letter was written to Christians who had a Jewish background, and the Jews, of course, believed (and still do) that God is a God who speaks. In earlier times he had spoken mainly through prophets, divinely inspired messengers like Isaiah, Elijah or Ezekiel.

But now, says the writer, he has spoken to us “by a son” (the word “his” has been added by the translators) – a reference, of course, to Jesus. To borrow an expression of John, Jesus is “the word who was made flesh” (John 1:14).

God’s truth, then, is not just something we read off a page or even hear through our ears: no, God’s truth is a person we meet. If the Bible is the written word, then Jesus is the living word. Which means that while knowing the Bible is vital to growth in the Christian life it is never an end in itself; the purpose of the written word is to point us to the living word.

This prompts a question for all of us. I may know the Bible very well; but do I know the person of whom it speaks?

2. He is “the heir of all things” (verse 2b).

In many cultures, even to this day, the eldest son inherits the family estate from his father. Whoever, then, is the Son of God inherits all of creation from God the Father.

In making this claim, is the writer harking back to Psalm 2, a psalm addressed to Israel’s anointed king, where we read (verse 8), “I will make the nations your inheritance, the ends of the earth your possession”? Very likely: but if he is, he goes even further than the psalmist, talking not just of “the nations” but of “all things”, presumably including also non-earthly realities.

This is a thought to juggle with! – for we read elsewhere in the New Testament that we who belong to Christ are “co-heirs with him” (Romans 8:17).

Another question: Have you ever seen yourself in this light? – a fellow-heir with Jesus! Can you imagine a greater privilege?

3. He is God’s agent in creation (verse 2c).

It was “through” the Son that “God made the universe”. This is where my mind really begins to boggle. The person we know as Jesus was present at creation…? He was active at creation…?

The first verse of the Bible tells us that “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth”. Well, that seems straightforward enough (putting aside questions about evolution, of course!). But now the Bible is telling us that “the Son” was there!

This isn’t, of course, the man Jesus of Nazareth, complete with his carpenter’s tools and apron, for the Son didn’t take on human form until his birth at Bethlehem. But he was there, all right; and he was involved.

Commentators point us to Proverbs 8:22-31, where “Wisdom” speaks to all who will listen, and states: “I was there when he [‘the Lord’] set the heavens in place, and marked out the horizon on the face of the deep…” (verse 27). And they suggest that this is a kind of prophecy which is fulfilled in the person of Jesus, who is the true wisdom of God.

Well, perhaps so. All I can say is that this is something I simply accept with amazement even though I find I can’t even begin to imagine it.

But we can sum up these last two claims like this: The Son was present before the Beginning, for he was active in creation; and he will be there after the End, for he is the heir of all things.

Do you see what I meant about the “Wow!” word?

I said that these verses contain eight claims about Jesus, and I have only managed to fit in three. But perhaps that’s enough to be going on with!

Why not soak your mind in these extraordinary claims? – and then join me next time for the other five.

Lord God, thank you for all that is down to earth and familiar about Jesus – his words, his compassion, his tears, his suffering. But thank you too for these staggering truths about his eternal being. Please enlarge my understanding of him, so that I may love and worship him better. Amen.