Tag: God

Resurrection Likeness

1 Corinthians 15_49 new

Today’s section (I Cor. 15.35-49) is a bit longer but it answers an important question. What will our resurrected bodies be like? The questions arises in verse 35 “…with what kind of body do they come?”. Paul answers this question in verse 42 but before he gets there he provides two analogies, we’ll go over just one though. In verse 36 and 37 he uses the example of a seed. A seed is sown or planted one way then sprouts a different and new way and when comparing the body to a seed he says “you do not sow the body which is to be…”, in other words, what comes out of the ground at the resurrection is not what goes into the ground at death. Paul is saying, the body undergoes a change just like a seed transforms when it is planted then sprouts.

In verse 42 he connects the analogies with the concept of resurrection, “so also is the resurrection of the dead..”. He then proceeds to distinguish two types of bodies, the one that is sown (the one that goes into the ground dead) and the one that is changed (the one that comes out of the grave transformed). To help see the contrast, I put verses 42-44 in a table:

It is sown It is raised
A perishable body An imperishable body
In dishonor In glory
In weakness In power
A natural body A spiritual body

 

Paul then picks up again the Adam-Christ parallel we saw in verses 21-22 in verses 45-49. The First Adam became a living soul but the last Adam (Christ) became a life-giving spirit. Whereas the first Adam was given life, the second Adam gives life. Paul continues this parallel into verse 47, the first man (Adam) is from earth, the second man (Christ) is from heaven. Now verse 47 is not talking about location but rather about identification. Adam is identified with the earth while sin runs rampant and the body is broken and damaged (see chart above); but Christ –  he is identified with heaven, where God is and where he is untouched by the brokenness of his creation. This is not saying that Jesus personally came from heaven to earth. Rather just as Adam is from earth in identification, Christ is from heaven in identification. Remember the context Paul is talking about is resurrection not Jesus’ origin. Then in verse 49 he concludes just as we have borne the image of the earthly (adam) so too will we bear the image of the heavenly (Christ). Here’s another chart to see the parallels:

The first Adam The second Adam
The first man is from earth The second man is from heaven
“Just as we have borne the image of the earthly..” “…we will also bear the image of the heavenly”
We are sown We are raised
A perishable body An imperishable body
In dishonor In glory
In weakness In power
A natural body A spiritual body

 

Now what does this all mean? When we are found “in Christ” our whole being including our bodies will be conformed to Jesus. Whereas our earthly natural bodies are powered by flesh and blood and will die, our resurrected bodies will be empowered by the spirit of God and will be glorified and will reflect the image of heaven. We will maintain our physical bodies, they will just be regenerated and powered by God’s spirit, this is the meaning of a spiritual body. Lastly, just as all of us have shared, in Adam, our earthly bodies, all those in Christ will share in his victory and his resurrected likeness. Thank you for your patience in reading this longer post today!

Have a blessed day and live boldly for the kingdom of God and Jesus!

-Jacob Rohrer

Resurrection and Loyalty

 

1 Corinthians 15 22

In today’s section we’ll look at verses 20-28 of I Corinthians 15. Did you know that you’re a king or a queen? So many blessings and riches are made available to us “in Christ” and in today’s section Paul speaks of another gift that comes with being “in Christ” – resurrection.

Paul begins by affirming that Jesus has indeed been raised from the dead, given the sad reality of if he hadn’t (v. 12-19). He then proceeds in verses 21-22 to compare Adam to Christ. Just as by a man came death, so to by a man came the resurrection of the dead. Paul clarifies this saying in the next verse by identifying the two men. In Adam all die but in Christ all live. This is a critical teaching of Paul about the dichotomy between Adam and Christ. By default all of us are in Adam, that is, we are identified and participate in the sphere of Adam which is rebellious and God hating. This inevitably results in death. But you and I can go from being “in Adam” to “in Christ”. When we are found “in Christ” that is our new identity (II Cor. 5.17) and this inevitably leads to life, specifically, resurrection and immortality (II Tim. 1.10). The way we can go from being “in Adam” to “in Christ” is by repentance, acceptance of the gospel, and obedience to Jesus as Lord. For more on the Adam-Christ teaching read Romans 5.12-21 and all of Romans 6 for what it means to be “in Christ” (“in Christ” is a technical term found often through Paul’s epistles that is rooted in his understanding of Adam and Christ). But Paul specifies that there is an order to the resurrection: Jesus first then those who are his at his coming.

Then Paul says literally “then the end”, when Jesus hands over the kingdom to his God and Father when he has abolished all rule and authority. In other words, when Jesus comes back he will dismantle and overthrow every human authority and government and establish his Father’s rule and reign with him as king. Then concluding, Paul says after this happens Jesus will hand over the newly established rule to his God and father, being subjected to him, so that God may be all in all forever and ever.

To be “in Christ” means so much more than just ‘I’m saved’ it’s larger meaning is that we get to participate in the sufferings and victories of Jesus. Specifically, because Jesus was raised from dead, we will be raised from the dead (I Cor. 15.20,23). Because Jesus ascended to God’s right hand and has been given all rule and authority, we too are seated with Christ and share in Jesus’ power and authority (Eph. 1.20-21, 2.4-7). You are a king and queen in the making whom God is making ready to rule and reign through our Lord Jesus Christ by means of the resurrection!

-Jacob Rohrer

Wise Words Regarding Sin & Discipline

Hebrews 12

Hebrews 12 1b

Welcome back friends!

Today we’re talking about sin and discipline.  Very bright and happy topics I know!

To start off let’s take a look at verse 1: “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles.  And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us,”  I want to focus on the sin that so easily entangles.  We are told to throw off everything that hinders us because there is a great cloud of witnesses.  And if we remember from yesterday, we were just reminded that God has a perfect plan for us that will come someday, so this verse is reminding us to keep pushing and running the race until that day.  So why does the author specifically mention sin?  Wouldn’t that be included in the things that hinder us?

Now, obviously I am not the author of this book so truthfully, I don’t know exactly why it was written this way!  However, as I was reading it my eye was drawn specifically to the phrasing of “sin that so easily entangles us”.  I know for me personally at least, you almost forget that sin can creep into our lives SO easily!  People who grow up in the faith tend to recognize (and hopefully avoid) what we term as “big sins”, don’t we?  I’m talking things like sexual immorality, murder, drunkenness, etc… We are quick to recognize those and turn our nose up at them.  But what about things such as lying? Or jealousy, anger, greed, anxiousness and impure thoughts?  Sin is sin no matter what.  When we ignore the “smaller” sins, that’s when they easily entangle us!  The bigger issue is not that we are sinners, because everyone is and everyone has been offered the same grace.  The issue is when we fail to recognize our own sin and shake it off in order to keep running the race.

And now that we’ve covered sin… we get to move on to the discipline.  Yay?

Verse 6 reads “…Because the LORD disciplines the one he loves, and he chastens everyone he accepts as his son.”  This is a common message that is still hard for me to grasp at times.  God disciplines, corrects, humbles, however you want to word it, BECAUSE He loves us.  He is working to create a righteous and peaceful life for us (vs. 11).  Verse 8 even says that if we do not undergo discipline, we are not true sons and daughters!

I am not a parent, but I do have the joy of watching a lot of un-biological nieces and nephews, as I refer to them.  I love my kiddos!  Just the other day one of the kids I was watching kept trying to stick his finger in an electrical outlet.  I continued to swat his hand away and tell him no.  Not so surprisingly, he started crying with his head thrown back and huge tears falling from his eyes.  Obviously, my intent was never to upset him, but I also didn’t care!  I wanted to make sure he was safe and understood how dangerous that could be.  I think God works in similar ways.  He knows that our sins in our life are going to lead us to pain and suffering.  When I was watching that little boy, I could not believe how frequently he went back to the same outlet despite my corrections, almost like he didn’t even notice I was steering him away from it!  I wonder what God is thinking when we keep trying to go back to the same thing He knows is going to hurt us not matter how often He corrects us.

God loves us.  He loves us as sinners and disciplines us in order to protect us from ourselves.  He will one day give to us a kingdom that will not be shaken and because of that, we should worship Him with reverence and awe (vs. 28).  In what areas of your life is God correcting you?  Do you even realize it yet?  Although the discipline may be painful now, rejoice in what it will create later!

-Sarah Blanchard

Full Assurance of Hope

Hebrews Chapter Six

Hebrews 6_19

Chapter six picks up where chapter five leaves off about elementary vs. mature doctrines.  As we talked about yesterday, the doctrine of Christ is supposed to be an elementary doctrine to go along with repentance, faith, washings, laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment.  Some of these the Church of God is better trained than others.  However, the author of Hebrews viewed these all as elementary.  I am going to assume that most of you who are disciplined enough to do devotions every day are ready to go on to the more mature doctrines.

Speaking of more mature doctrines and teachings, verses four through six are quite interesting.  It states that “it is impossible, in the case of those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, and have shared in the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come, and then have fallen away, to restore them to repentance.”  What this seems to be saying is that it is impossible to be saved, then fall away, and then be saved again.  I’m not sure exactly what I think about this, and I won’t pretend to have all the answers.  However, it is interesting nonetheless and could be looked at by all.

On Sunday when we introduced the book of Hebrews, I mentioned that one of the main purposes of Hebrews was to encourage the Jewish Christians.  These Jewish Christians were going through some tough times, and they presumably doubted their faith at times.  The rest of chapter six serves as encouragement for them and to reassure them.  Verse eleven encourages them “to have the full assurance of hope until the end.”  We aren’t to be pretty sure of what is to come in the age to come, but we are to have a FULL assurance of hope.  We are to be confident in the faith that we have.  It’s through this bold and confident faith that we can be imitators of those who inherit the promise of the Kingdom.  We can be sure of the promises set before us because “it is impossible for God to lie,” (Heb 6:18).  We can be encouraged by this.  God has promised us the Kingdom, and he is a promise keeper.  We just have to accept the free gift.

There has been a lot of content in the first six chapters of Hebrews. The author of Hebrews has provided a lot of reason for the Jewish Christians to be encouraged.  They, along with us, can be sure of the hope that we have.  God has promised us many great things, and he is a faithful God.  We have been granted a free gift of eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.  There has been a lot of talk on Jesus in the first six chapters.  We have seen Jesus being glorified repeatedly in the first six chapters.  He is our high priest.  Many times Church of God people can fail to give Jesus the credit that he deserves because they are too worried with trying to distinguish him from God.  Jesus is deserving of glory, and when he is glorified, God is glorified in him.  With that said though, many people in the Christian world give Jesus too much glory by making him equal with God.  Although Hebrews does a great job of giving Jesus the credit he is due, the author also does a great job distinguishing between God and Jesus.  There is a happy balance between giving Jesus glory and distinguishing him from God.  Overall I hope you have thoroughly enjoyed reading through the first six chapters of Hebrews.  It doesn’t slow down at all in the last half of the book.  I strongly encourage you to continue along with the reading of the devotions, as Sarah Blanchard will do a wonderful job dissecting the second half of the book.  I hope you all had a great week!

In Christian love,

Kyle McClain

 

Kingdom Ticket – Paid

Will You Accept the Gift?

Hebrews 5_8,9

Hebrews Chapter Five

Hebrews chapter seven is known for being the chapter about Jesus being our high priest.  However, that theme is found in previous chapters, including chapter five.  Jesus being our high priest is one of the main themes of Hebrews.  God appointed Jesus to be our high priest.  Verse one shows us that the purpose of a high priest is “to act on behalf of men in relation to God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sin.”  Jesus being our high priest acts on our behalf in relation to God.  He is our mediator between us and God.  Jesus being our high priest also offers a sacrifice for our sins.  A normal high priest like Aaron needs to offer sacrifices for his own sins and the sins of others.  However, Jesus had no need to offer a sacrifice for himself because he was sinless.  Rather, he offered himself up to be our permanent sacrifice for sins.  That is a sign of a high priest who loves us dearly.

One would think that since Jesus was perfect that he would not suffer.  However, Jesus “learned obedience through what he suffered,” (Heb 5:8).  Jesus truly did suffer when he was here on this earth.  Two examples that come to my mind are when Jesus wept when his friend Lazarus died and when Jesus sweat tears of blood in the Garden of Gethsemane before he was crucified.  It’s through experiences like this that Jesus learned obedience.  It’s through experiences like this that we too can learn obedience.  It’s often through the most difficult times in life that people draw closer to God.  Job is a great example of this, as he lost nearly everything he had in one day.  However, he responded by worshipping and praising God.  He was brought closer to God and learned obedience through his suffering.

In verse nine, we see that “being made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him.”  Jesus truly was made perfect, and he was sinless.  He was the last person in the world who should have had to suffer on the cross.  However, because of his and our Heavenly Father’s great love, he did die and suffer on the cross.  Through his suffering on the cross, he became the source of eternal salvation!  Jesus paid our way to go to the Kingdom!  All we have to do is accept the free gift of God of eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.  Unfortunately, not everyone is going to accept that free gift.  Verse nine states that Jesus is “the source of eternal salvation to all WHO OBEY HIM.”  To accept the free gift of eternal life, we must obey Jesus.  We accept the gift through obedience and faith.  Similar to what we talked about yesterday, don’t belittle the consequences and meaning of sin because eternal salvation is granted to those who obey Jesus, not those who disobey.

Similar to the chapter break between chapters three and four, the chapter break between chapters five and six is an awkward break.  At the conclusion of chapter five, the author of Hebrews is talking about the difference between elementary and mature doctrines, and he continues the talk in chapter six.  The author compares the elementary and mature doctrines to milk and solid food.  A baby needs milk, and adults eat meat.  New Christians focus on the elementary doctrines, whereas the mature Christians should focus on the more mature doctrines.  Since it’s a weird chapter break, I also want to sneak peek to verse one as well.  Hebrews 6:1 states, “Therefore let us leave the elementary doctrine of Christ and go on to maturity.”  Throughout the first six chapters of Hebrews we have seen some good proof to suggest that the Trinity may be false.  This is good proof as well.  Many people who claim they believe in the Trinity cannot even explain the Trinity themselves because it is so confusing and complex.  They have to use extra biblical illustrations to describe the Trinity.  The Trinity is anything but an elementary doctrine.  It is one of, if not the most, complicated doctrines out there.  However, the author of Hebrews states that the doctrine of Christ is supposed to be elementary.  Jesus being the Son of God does sound like an elementary doctrine to me, not the Trinity.  This is just some food for thought (pun intended).

I hope you have a great day!

In Christian love,

Kyle McClain

Hold Firmly

Hebrews Chapter Four

Hebrews 4_14

There is a belief in the Christian world that some hold to called “once saved, always saved.”  Basically this means that if you come to a saving relationship with God and Christ, then you can never lose your ticket to eternal salvation.  This can be a dangerous perspective because it enables Christians to become complacent with where they are at if they believe they can never lose their salvation.  Worse yet, it can lead people to a life of sin and destruction if they do not take seriously the consequences of sin.  Verse six of Hebrews chapter four discusses this doctrine of once saved, always saved a bit by stating, “Since therefore it remains for some to enter it, and those who formerly received the good news failed to enter because of disobedience.”  The author is stating that some who receive the good news/gospel fail to enter rest because of their disobedience.  They initially accepted the promises of the gospel, but they failed to enter because of their disobedience.  In other words, they were once considered saved when they accepted and received the gospel, but they lost it when they disobeyed.  This verse suggests that maybe the doctrine of once saved, always saved is not founded in the Bible.

This should provide a wakeup call for us!  We need to take the sin in our lives very seriously.  We are to be sanctified and set apart from this world, so let’s act like it!  Let’s not become complacent and degrade the consequences of sin.  God hates sin.  The hardening of our hearts can lead us to sin, and again the author warns us of hardening our hearts in verse seven.  We should take this warning seriously since the author has repeated it three times in chapters three and four.

The concept of rest is repeated a lot in this chapter.  What exactly is the author referring to when he is talking about rest?  Let’s take a look at what this rest is described as in chapters three and four:

  1. Israelites unable to enter God’s rest because of their disobedience and unbelief (3:18-19)
  2. The promises of entering God’s rest still stand (4:1)
  3. We who believe enter the rest (4:3)
  4. God swore that some will not enter his rest (4:3,5)
  5. God rested on the seventh day (4:4)
  6. Remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God (4:9)
  7. Whoever enters God’s rest also rests from his works (4:10)
  8. Strive to enter the rest (4:11)

Here’s what I get from all of this.  God offered the Israelites during the exodus a chance to rest, but they were not able to enter God’s rest because they were disobedient.  The author then compares the rest that was offered to the Israelites to the coming Kingdom.  I come to this conclusion because the promises of entering God’s rest still stand.  There is still a chance to enter God’s rest.  However, not everyone will attain that rest, only the people of God.  In fact God swore that not everyone will enter his rest.  If we are disobedient and unbelieving, then we will not enter God’s rest.  However, if we are a people after God’s own heart, then we surely will enter God’s beloved rest in the coming Kingdom.  Hallelujah! Praise God! Amen!  Therefore, continue to strive toward the Kingdom and bring as many people with you as possible because one day you will enter God’s rest in the Kingdom.

Chapter four ends with talk of Jesus being the great high priest.  We truly do have a great high priest in Jesus.  One of the awesome things about Jesus being our high priest is that he is able to sympathize with us.  Jesus was tempted just like we are, but fortunately he did not sin.  He knows what we go through when we are faced with trials and temptations.  He is no stranger to struggle and suffering.  We can seek refuge in our high priest when we face these temptations because he is able to sympathize with us and plead our case to our Heavenly Father, YHWH.  Jesus being tempted is also more great proof against the trinity.  James 1:13 states, “God cannot be tempted with evil.”  If Jesus were God as well, then James and the author of Hebrews would be contradicting one another.  It cannot be possible for the word of God to contradict itself.  Jesus can’t be tempted, and never have been tempted at the same time.  It doesn’t work that way.  It logically does not make sense.  Jesus was indeed tempted like us, and being our high priest, he is able to sympathize and help us.

To close out today’s devotion, I want to point out Hebrews 4:12, “For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.”  I hope you have gotten benefit from reading these posts.  However, if you don’t get anything else, I want you to know and fully understand that the word of God is living and active.  We are beyond blessed to have the Bible today.  If it weren’t for God’s supervision, there would be no stinking way that we should have it because of the numerous attempts to rid the world of the Bible.  The Bible has only flourished though.  It is truly a divine miracle that we all have access to a Bible, God’s word.  I want to encourage you to keep up the awesome work in delving into God’s word through these devotions.  You are truly doing a great deed.  Keep up the awesome work, and truly believe in your heart that these words are living and active.

-Kyle McClain

HARD Hearts

Hebrews Chapter Three

Hebrews 3_15

Similar to chapter one, chapter three starts with Jesus being compared to someone else.  In chapter one, we saw Jesus being compared to both the angels and prophets.  The author raised Jesus above the angels and prophets.  In chapter three, the author compares Jesus to Moses.  Moses, above anyone else, was absolutely adored by the Jews.  He was the one, under God’s provision and guidance, who led Israel out of Egypt and delivered the law to them.  Moses is a central piece of the Old Testament.  The comparison between Moses and Jesus would have helped the Jewish Christians gain or keep their affection for Jesus.  Not only is Jesus compared to Moses, their hero, but Jesus’s given more glory than Moses by the author.

In verses three through six, we see a beautiful illustration by the author about a house.  There are four parts to this illustration: God built the house, Moses is the servant for the house, Jesus is the ruler of the house, and we are the house.  This illustration helps show how Jesus is counted more worthy than Moses.  We are God’s beloved creation.  Moses served the Israelites when he led them out of slavery and delivered the law to them.  He was a phenomenal help to them.  Christ is also a great help to us, but not only that, he is the ruler of us.

Verses seven and eight read, “Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says, ‘Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion, on the day of testing in the wilderness.’”  First thing I want to point out is that the Holy Spirit is talking.  In verses nine through eleven, the Holy Spirit talks in first person as well using pronouns me, my, and I.  It is interesting to see that the Holy Spirit is talking here and talks in the first person.  It is something to mull over.  What I want to highlight though is the focus to not harden your heart.  This is repeated in verse fifteen.  The author must be trying to make a strong point that we are to not harden our hearts.  The Israelites who Moses led out of Egypt hardened their hearts, and they rebelled against God when God continually provided for them.  It was because of their hardened hearts that they did not obey God, and they had unbelief.  This caused their generation to not enter the rest in the Promised Land.  The author of Hebrews is urging us to learn from the Israelites, as they hardened their hearts.  If we harden our hearts, then we too will not be able to enter God’s rest.

The chapter ends at an awkward break, as the talk about rest continues into chapter four.  Personally I don’t understand the purpose of the chapter break between chapters three and four.  It’s important to note that the chapter and verse breaks were not included in the original writing.  Therefore, the author of Hebrews did not intend for people to stop reading at this section.  Therefore, you should stick around for tomorrow, as we continue the talk on God’s rest.

Have a great day!

Sincerely,

Kyle McClain

A Powerful and Caring Savior

Hebrews Chapter Two

death was arrested

Let’s jump right into chapter two of Hebrews.  I want to start off in verse four.  Verse four states that “while God also bore witness by signs and wonders and various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.”  God can witness to us in a number of ways.  God is constantly working in and around us.  He is constantly witnessing to the world that he is LORD of all.  We have to keep our eyes and ears open to what God is doing both in and around our lives.

To continue, we again see the theme of Jesus being glorified.  God has placed “everything in subjection to him, he left nothing outside his control.”  That is some high praise.  God has placed everything in subjection to Jesus.  With the Church of God being so strong on the oneness of God, sometimes we may fail to give Jesus enough credit in trying to distinguish him from God.  Hebrews is full of great passages that glorify Jesus.  What is important to note is that when Jesus is glorified, God is glorified in him.  We see this in John 13:31, as it states, “Now is the Son of Man glorified, and God is glorified in him.”  On the other hand, Jesus wasn’t always glorified.  Verses 7 and 9 state that Jesus was made lower than the angels.  This is great proof that Jesus is not coequal with God or God himself.  Although Jesus gets a lot of high praise in the book of Hebrews, it is still evident that he is not equal with God.

If we jump ahead to verse fourteen, we see that through Jesus’ death on the cross “he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil.”  This reminds me of the song Death was Arrested.  The final verse of Death was Arrested reads as followed:

Our Savior displayed on a criminal’s cross

Darkness rejoiced as though heaven had lost

But then Jesus arose with our freedom in hand

That’s when death was arrested and my life began

Now you can think of this verse every time you sing this verse in Death was Arrested.  It’s beautiful how the death of our Lord and Savior ends up being the sign of victory through his resurrection.  One could not write that any better than what took place about 2,000 years ago.

We have been talking (well I have been talking) a lot about how Hebrews glorifies Jesus.  It is awesome to hear of these great things about Jesus, and also hear things such as “he helps the offspring of Abraham,” (Heb 2:16), and “For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted,” (Heb 2:18).  The same Jesus that is ascribed to have so much power and authority in Hebrews, is also described as helping us out!  We have a Lord and Savior who is powerful and caring at the same time.  He helps us out, as Galatians 3:29 points out that we being Christians are Abraham’s offspring.  Let this encourage you as you go along the rest of your days.

Sincerely,

Kyle McClain

 

At the Majesty’s Right Hand

Hebrews 1 3

Hebrews Chapter One

Hello all! Today we will be covering the first chapter of Hebrews.  For those of you who suffer from short-term memory loss or haven’t read the post yesterday, one of the main purposes of Hebrews was to reassure the Jewish Christians that Jesus is necessary.  We see this purpose played out in chapter one, as the author describes the importance and glory of Jesus in chapter one.

To start off the book and chapter, the author compares Jesus to the prophets of the Old Testament.  The Jews loved and adored the prophets of the Old Testament, and they viewed their words very sacredly.  Therefore, it makes total sense that the author would begin by comparing Jesus to the same prophets that the Jews love.  Not only does he compare Jesus to the prophets, but he raises Jesus above the prophets by saying he was “appointed the heir of all things.”  The prophets are crucial to both us and the Jews, but Jesus is even more important.  Jesus is described as being the “radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature.”  That’s some pretty high praise.  This should begin to reassure the Jewish Christians of the importance and necessity of Jesus Christ.

The author doesn’t only compare and raise Jesus above the prophets, but he does it to the angels as well.  In verse 5, the author rhetorically asks “For to which of the angels did God ever say, ‘You are my Son, today I have begotten you’?”  The answer to that question is none of them.  No angel is God’s son.  This verse is detrimental to the Jehovah’s Witnesses because they hold the belief that Jesus is the archangel Michael.  We know though that Jesus is the Son of God.  Therefore, sorry Jehovah’s Witnesses, but no angel, including the archangel Michael, is God’s son.

We continue along in the chapter, and verse eight reads, “But of the Son he says, ‘Your throne, O God, is forever and ever.”  Hold up.  Wait a minute.  Put a little SAY WHAT?!  The Church of God is so strong on the doctrine that God is one, and Jesus is the Son of God, not God the Son.  Do we have it wrong though?  Upon first look, it appears Jesus is God.  Let’s take a deeper look at this then.

First off first, this is quoted from Psalm 45.  Psalm 45 is about a king, not God.  This isn’t trying to dictate any sign of deity, rather a sign of authority.  For surely the Psalm writer of Psalm 45 wasn’t trying to give the king any form of deity.  Furthermore, verse nine states, “therefore God, your God, has anointed you.”  First, God doesn’t need anointed.  If Jesus were God, then he wouldn’t need to be anointed.  Second, the king in Psalm 45 that has the word “God” ascribed to him has a God.  God can’t have a God.  There is no higher being than God.  Jesus can’t be God and have a God.  Therefore, we can read verses eight and nine, as attributing authority to Jesus, not Jesus actually being God.

Another tidbit to point out, the ESV uses the phrase, “But of the Son he says,” in verse eight.  However, a more accurate interpretation of the Greek reads, “with respect to the Son.”  This is important in verses 10-12, as those verses aren’t talking about Jesus.  It is in respect to the Son, Jesus.  Verses 10-12 talk about the magnificence of YHWH.  The author of Hebrews does this because in verse thirteen, he quotes Psalm 110:1 (the most quoted Old Testament scripture in the New Testament).  By glorifying God in verses 10-12, the author is also glorifying Jesus because Jesus has the sole privilege of sitting at God’s right hand.  Jesus is sitting at the right hand of the Creator of the heavens and the earth!  That’s a huge privilege to have, and that privilege is held by Jesus and Jesus alone.

The final verse of Hebrews chapter one is quite possibly my favorite.  It reads, “Are they (the angels) not all ministering spirits sent out to serve for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation?”  The angels are sent out to serve for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation.  Uh, hello!  That’s us!  We are the ones who are to inherit salvation.  The angels are sent out to minister to you!  Isn’t that awesome?!

The author of Hebrews reassured the Jewish Christians of the importance of Jesus.  The author also encouraged them by stating the angels are sent to minister to them!  Again, I hope this passage can impact you in the same manner that it would have for the Jewish Christians, “for the word of God is living and active,” (Just a teaser for Thursday’s reading).

I hope you all had a grand Sunday and have a great Monday!

In Christian love,

Kyle McClain

Fun fact of the day: the first four verses of Hebrews is one long sentence in Greek.  Wow!

 

Imitate What is Good

3 John

3 John 11a

Some people have virtually the same accent their entire lives, simply based on where they grew up. Others, like me, pick up accents faster than they can say the word “time.”

Right now, I am living in the South with people from Georgia, Indiana, Canada, Michigan, New York, and Ohio – to name a few. Needless to say, my accent gets confused a lot. The moment when I say time, house, and you guys in one sentence and it comes out in a Southern, Canadian, Michigander accent you know that it can be a little much sometimes.

The same goes for us as individuals. Jim Rohn said, “You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.” Like my crazy conglomerate of accents, we all are influenced by the people we spend the most time with.

Have you ever noticed how you start talking like the people around you? How you pick up their behaviors? How you start saying those little phrases? You are imitating the people you spend time with – without even noticing you are doing so! This can be a great thing or a terrible thing.

If you hang out with people who always are making poor decisions, chances are you’ll eventually join in. On the other hand, if you hang out with people who are following God to the best of their abilities, chances are you will start changing as well.

Be purposeful in imitating what is good and in avoiding evil things.

Spend the most time with the people you want to be like, and imitate what is good.

– Madison Cisler