A Little Bit of Jesus from Hebrews 2

A Little Bit of Jesus in Hebrews 2

This chapter of Hebrews contains a couple of passages that require careful reading because they can seem frightening. Then it tells the story of God giving dominion over the earth to humanity and humanity’s loss of it at the hands of the evil one. As is His way however, Father works to restore what was lost. He does this through our lovely Lord Jesus. Let’s dive into this incredible story.

Hebrews 2 (KJV 1900)

1 Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip. (or drift away from them)

2 For if the word spoken by angels was stedfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompence of reward;

The word for disobedience here is not the usual one. This one has the sense of hearing amiss, being inattentive (in Biblical terms, failing to incline one’s ear), or being unwilling to hear. It reminds us of those Jesus says do not have ears to hear. This is rebellion, refusal to believe, disobedience in the truest sense.

Disobedience and unbelief are tightly linked in scripture both conceptually and linguistically. John 3:36 and Ephesians 2:2 provide an example of this linguistic link.

John 3:36 says, “He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not (GK: apeitheō) the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.”

Then in Ephesians 2:2 we read, “Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience.” (GK: apeitheō)

I’m pointing this out because it helps us understand what New Covenant obedience looks like. Without this understanding it can be hard to grasp the full ramifications of verses like these:

Romans 7:6 “But now we are delivered from the law, that being dead wherein we were held; that we should serve in newness of spirit, and not in the oldness of the letter.” (KJV 1900)

2 Corinthians 3:6 “Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.” (KJV 1900)

The obedience being discussed here, and in the New Testament generally, is the obedience of faith. (see Romans 1:5 & 16:26)

The obedience of faith is what God asks us to do. John 6:29 “Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent.” (KJV 1900)

The obedience of faith is the only source of eternal life. John 17:3 “And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.” (KJV 1900)

The obedience of faith is the way to live a godly life. Galatians 5:16 “This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.” (KJV 1900)

Picking back up in Hebrews 2 at verse 3 “How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him; 4 God also bearing them witness, both with signs and wonders, and with divers miracles, and gifts of the Holy Ghost, according to his own will?”

Some find this passage scary. It seems to them like a threat toward those who are in Christ. This is a warning to those who would rebel against, disobey, neglect, or fail to hear, Father’s wonderful offering of salvation.

I love the way Holy Spirit put this. He says that the great salvation “first began to be spoken by the Lord”, meaning Jesus. Then He makes the point that the message was confirmed to those who actually heard Him in person through all the things God did by and through Jesus.

Jesus began talking about the way that salvation would be made available. He talked about things like springs of living water, never hungering or thirsting again, eating His flesh and drinking His blood. This is not the typical way we think of the Gospel. Jesus said all this to the Hebrew people who were living under the Law of Moses, but He knew that while His earthly mission was only to the Jews, the good news was for all people. He only began to tell this news. The Apostles were sent to preach the Good News of Jesus Christ to the world.

Understanding this is very helpful when we encounter differences between the teaching in the Gospels and the teaching in the Epistles. The Apostles illuminated the truth Jesus began to present. They were given revelation about the full ramifications of the work Jesus did at the cross and the epistles expound on that and make clearer what Jesus began.

Earlier I said that this passage is not a threat toward those who are in Christ. This is a warning to those who would choose not to believe Him. I said that because all of us who are in Christ only got there because we did not neglect the great salvation brought by Jesus Christ. Had we neglected that salvation, we would not have the same Spirit that raised Christ from the dead living in us. Consequently, this passage cannot be a warning to believers, but instead is a warning to those who are on the fence or simply choose not to believe.

Picking back up now in verse 5 we read, “For unto the angels hath he not put in subjection the world to come, whereof we speak. 6 But one in a certain place testified, saying, What is man, that thou art mindful of him? or the son of man, that thou visitest him? 7 Thou madest him a little lower than the angels; thou crownedst him with glory and honour, and didst set him over the works of thy hands: 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.

My goodness is that the truth. All we need to do is go out in our fields and see all the Ironweed and Autumn Olive. Alternatively, we could remember floods, tornadoes, earthquakes, and wildfires. These things are artifacts of the fallen state of the world and demonstrate that we are most certainly not in control.

These verses quote from Psalm 8:4–6 “What is man, that thou art mindful of him? And the son of man, that thou visitest him? For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, And hast crowned him with glory and honour. Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; Thou hast put all things under his feet.” (KJV 1900)

God gave dominion over the earth to humankind, but we lost it in the garden and turned it over to the enemy. Genesis 1:26–28 “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. 27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. 28 And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.” (KJV 1900)

After eating from the terrible tree of the knowledge of good and evil, that old snake took over. Now he is referred to as the god of this world and the prince of the power of the air. He is a deceiver and has blinded the minds of many as we read in 2 Corinthians 4:4 “In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.” (KJV 1900)

Now as we pick up our Hebrews 2 passage with verse 9 we begin to see the glorious majesty of our lovely Lord Jesus.

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.

Romans 6:23 tells us that the wages of sin is death. In Romans 3:23 we read that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Resolving this problem was the reason that Jesus came and laid down His life. He did this for “every man”, every person. Because He is fully human and fully God, His death propitiates, or fully satisfies, the debt for every human being who has or will ever live. He is the mercy seat of God.

This is incredibly good news for the human race and every member of it. Jesus however, is so glorious that this does not even begin to scratch the surface of all He is and has done. Let’s look at verse ten.

10 For it became him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings.

OK, this is a little confusing. We know that Jesus is God. We know that God is perfect. Ergo, Jesus is perfect. If He were imperfect, He would not be God, so what does it mean that Jesus was perfected through suffering?

Honestly it might be a bit tempting to simply gloss over this thinking it is just some kind of “Bible-talk” or maybe hyperbole. That idea doesn’t hold water however, because later in Hebrews we have another troubling verse that stands in the way of that idea. Hebrews 5:8–9 Watch now, because this gets interesting. “Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered; And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him;” (KJV 1900)

Here we find that not only was Jesus “made perfect”, but that He learned something. God is omniscient. He knows everything. How can all these statements about Jesus be true? Wonderfully, more wonderfully than is at first apparent.

Jesus learned experientially what it is to obey—remember His prayer at Gethsemane, “let this cup pass from me… nevertheless not my will, but thine be done.” Jesus experienced physical life in the fallen world with all the negativity, pain, distrust, and betrayal that includes. In this way Jesus learned and was perfected, or made complete, through suffering.

Think about it. How could the God of the universe possibly truly experience what it is to obey in the face of pain? How could He identify with how difficult it is for us to live in the fallen world and face temptation of every kind? The only way this could happen is for God to become a human person.

He did that.

He did that for us.

He did that so we would not be left without hope.

He did that so we would know that understands us at the deepest level.

He did that so we would be able to trust Him.

He did that so that we would know He loves us.

Now to Hebrews 2:11-12 “For both he that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one: for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brethren, Saying, I will declare thy name unto my brethren, in the midst of the church will I sing praise unto thee.”

Here it is. The reason Jesus took on flesh and dwelt among us. The One who is full of grace and truth living among those who are judgmental and who lie. He is the one who sanctifies us, sets us apart to God, and He chose to be one with us. Because He is a human person, He calls us His sisters and brothers. This was foretold in Psalm 22, which is quoted here, and contains a lot of prophecy about Jesus.

So profound is this familial relationship that, as those of you who read or heard A Little Bit of Jesus from Hebrews One may recall, we share in His inheritance.

Hebrews 2:14-15 Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil;

15 And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.

Jesus is fully human and fully God. This was necessary to the redemptive plan of God. Romans 5:12-15 help us see this. Verses 12 and 15 in particular show the problem and its solution.

Romans 5:12 (KJV 1900)

12 Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:

Romans 5:15 (KJV 1900)

15 But not as the offence, so also is the free gift. For if through the offence of one many be dead, much more the grace of God, and the gift by grace, which is by one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many.

Humankind sinned and owed the wages of that sin, which is death. Therefore, humankind needed to pay the wages. This is what Jesus the man did. Because He is also God, He did it perfectly. What I mean is that He is a Lamb without blemish, the only one that has ever existed. His blood brought full forgiveness, not just temporary covering of sins.

Hebrews 2:16 For verily he took not on him the nature of angels; but he took on him the seed of Abraham.

In speaking here of the seed of Abraham, this verse is talking about two things. First, Jesus took on humanity. He is flesh and blood like we are. Secondly, He lived by faith-walking, just as Abraham did.

Abraham believed God and it was credited to him as righteousness. Jesus lived His earthly life by faith, depending on the Father for everything. He said as much in John 12:49–50 “For I have not spoken of myself; but the Father which sent me, he gave me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak. And I know that his commandment is life everlasting: whatsoever I speak therefore, even as the Father said unto me, so I speak.” (KJV 1900)

Hebrews 2:17-18 “Wherefore in all things it behoved him to be made like unto his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people. For in that he himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able to succour them that are tempted.” (KJV 1900)

The word “behoved” means obligated or indebted. Today we might say that Jesus had to be made like us. The reasons given for this include His ability to be a high priest who could be merciful and show compassion for us. The example provided makes this very clear in saying that He suffered temptation and can therefore come to our aid when we are tempted. He knows what we are going through and just how difficult it is.

Hebrews 4:15 further clarifies this point. Hebrews 4:15-16 “For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.”

Jesus, we are told, was tempted in all points as we are. I do not understand this to mean that He was tempted with exactly the same temptations we face today. Some of the temptations we face are related to technology not present when He walked the earth. Rather, He faced temptation in all the same categories or of all the same types. Physical pleasure, the draw of popularity, the pain of betrayal, and so on.

We can take great comfort in this. Because He has been through the same difficulties, we can trust Him not to be condemning or judgmental when we come to Him for help, or even when we come to Him with our head hanging down in shame.

The very next verse says it this way, Hebrews 4:16 “Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.” (KJV 1900) Incidentally, the word translated “help” here is the one translated “succor” in verse 18 of our text in Hebrews 2.

Jesus loves us and wants what is best for us. He knows how to comfort and help us, and we can trust Him with the deepest and darkest secrets of our lives. With Him we can be ourselves because He has known us forever and He knows our pain and sorrow.