7 Facts About Jesus
Hebrews 1: 2-3
2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe.
3 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 1:2-3 (NIV)
The main idea of Hebrews is that Jesus is Greater. Greater than anyone or anything. Here are seven great facts about Jesus.
- Jesus Owns Everything.
He is the heir. God has given him everything as his inheritance.
People don’t always know what their inheritance will be until someone dies. And then they learn that they got a toaster, their sibling gets the sports car, and the cash. Jesus made off a bit greater than that, he actually gets everything.
Everything on earth, everything in heaven, he gets it all. Jesus Christ is God in the flesh. He owns it all and secondly He made it all.
2. Jesus Created The Universe.
Hebrews 1:2 says, “through whom he made the universe.”
The Jews that received this letter knew that God created the universe. When the author named Jesus as creator they immediately understood the implications. Jesus is God.
Remember the first verse of the bible? God created the heaven’s and the earth in Gen 1:1. Then in Gen 1:26, “Let us make human beings in our image, to be like us.”
Why did God use the plural to describe himself? God is the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Jesus didn’t just suddenly appear one day, he has always been.
Jesus is part of the mysterious union that we call the Trinity.
It’s important to remember that Jesus made claims about Himself that no other religious leader claimed. He said in John 8, “Before Abraham was, I am.” Jesus was present at the Creation of the Universe. In John 1 the Bible says, “Though him all things were made; without him nothing was made that was made.”
This is supported by what we read in Colossians 1, “For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.” Colossians 1:16-17
Not only is Christ the heir and the creator,
- Jesus is the Radiance of God’s Glory.
The word “radiance” refers to the Shekinah glory of God. The word Shekinah means “brilliant shining glory.” It was the word used to describe the presence of God in the Holy of Holies in the Temple. Since the Shekinah is no longer in the Temple, the shining presence of God is in Jesus.
I got my dad one of those really bright LED flashlights for Christmas. One of my kids started shining the light in people’s faces. And you know what they said, “that’s bright!” What is bright? Is it the bulb or the beams of light?
No one asks that question. No one says “that bulb is way too bright and it’s sending bright beams into my eyes because the bulb and the light are technically different but practically one in the same.
And so it goes with Jesus. God is glorious and the Son radiates the glory of God. It is truly one of the mysteries of our faith
- Jesus is the Exact Representation of God.
A picture may not always give us an accurate likeness. A lady went to a photography studio to have some pictures made. When she got the proofs, she didn’t like any of them. She stormed back into the studio and said to the photographer, “I don’t like these pictures, they don’t do me justice!” To which the photographer said, “Lady, you don’t need justice, you need mercy!”
God is Spirit, and therefore, He is invisible to the human eye. But God chose to reveal Himself to us, and He did it by putting on flesh and walking in our midst. No man has ever seen God, but many people saw Jesus Christ. But when men looked at Jesus, they saw a good representation of God. Once the apostle Phillip asked of Jesus, “Show us the Father!” Jesus said, “If you have seen me, you have seen the Father.” (John 14:9)
- Jesus Sustains Everything
This is supported by what we read in Colossians 1 “For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.” Colossians 1:16-17
Not only is Jesus the creator of all things, the Bible also says, “in him all things hold together” The word is sunestimei, which means “to stick together; to cohere.” It means Jesus is the super glue of all matter. He is the duct tape of the Universe.
Have you ever wondered what keeps the universe together? Why doesn’t the earth go spinning off into space, or why doesn’t the moon crash into the earth? Why doesn’t all of matter just explode or implode into some black hole?
That’s a question scientists have been studying for many years. They claim all matter large and small is composed of particles, atoms, which are broken down into smaller particles called neutrons, protons and electrons. Nuclear physicists have discovered even smaller particles called quarks. These quarks provide the cohesion for the atomic structure.
Physics is a very complicated science, but let me give you a physics for dummies review. Scientists have examined what holds matter together and they have come up with a combination of four forces. These are often called the Four Fundamental Forces. They are identified as Electromagnetism, Weak interaction, Strong Interaction, and Gravitation. They don’t really understand HOW and WHY the strong force holds things together; they just know that something or someone is exerting a massive force binding atoms, molecules, and matter.
For decades, Christian scientists have seen a connection between this strong force and Colossians 1:17 where the Bible says that in Jesus, all things hold together.
For thirty years Stanford graduate Dr. Lambert Dolphin performed research in physics. Here’s what he thinks about this strong force: “This passage can be applied to the structure of the atom, for example. The nucleus of every atom is held together by what physicists call ‘weak’ and ‘strong’ forces. God dynamically sustains the universe, including the atoms themselves. They are ‘stable’ only because force from the spiritual realm is being supplied into the physical nuclear binding fields. Whatever we may think of God and physics, the Bible leaves us with no room to doubt that God does care about the sparrow that falls to the ground, the widow, the orphan, and the homeless. He does not lose track of His children and watches over them with infinite, patient, intimate Fatherly care. He sustains the universe by His mighty word of power.” (What Holds the Universe Together?)
Jesus made the world and everything in it, and He sustains it by his power.
- Jesus Provides Purification for our Sins
Hebrews 1:2, “After he had provided purification for sins…” We’re going to see in this book that the blood of bulls and rams could NEVER make atonement for sins. Only a sinless sacrifice could cleanse us.
Let’s think about the words pure and polluted. I wouldn’t drink polluted water; I crave pure water. The problem is we’re all polluted from the inside out: That’s sin. Jesus is the only man who walked on the planet who was morally and spiritually pure. He took our pollution into his pure body and in exchange gave us His purity. His grace; His forgiveness.
We’re all sinners. I’m so glad God didn’t send us a do-it-yourself clean up kit. Although that’s what a lot of people try to do. “I’m going to clean up my act.” We can’t clean up our act. Only the blood of Jesus can clean up our lives.
- Jesus Sat Down at the Right Hand of God
This passage concludes with the statement, “He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.” I know many travelers in Texas are all excited about the Buc-ee’s service stations. They are huge. Have you ever asked where are the tables? There are no tables and no place to sit! They want you to fill up on gas/food/ and drinks and then keep on moving. I’m going somewhere with this story. There was something unusual about the Temple in Jerusalem you might not have known about. There were no chairs. There was no place to sit down in the Temple. There were different instruments and implements for worship, but no seats where the priests could sit. The reason was that they never finished their work. They were always making sacrifices and performing the duties—but no sitting down on the job!
But when Jesus made the final sacrifice as our High Priest, He did something no human priest had ever done. He sat down! He was finished. The job was done! And today, Jesus sits at the right hand of the Father waiting the time when the Father says, “Son it’s time for you to go and claim your bride and bring her home!” He sits on a throne in heaven to indicate His absolute authority over the universe. He rules. He reigns!
I heard about a church bulletin that had a typo for that song, the bulletin added an “s” and it said, “Our God resigns!” Nope, He reigns and He’ll never resign!
So what’s the take away truth? Knowing Jesus gives us confidence to live a life of faith. As our world implodes around us, we must have a faith that can’t be shaken, and that only comes from knowing Jesus.
Darrell
Upwards Church 