Hebrews 1 - The Danger of Angelogy!

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God’s Final Word: His Son

1 In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, 2 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. 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. 4 So he became as much superior to the angels as the name he has inherited is superior to theirs.

The book of Hebrews focuses on the person, work, and all-suffiency of  Jesus Christ. It is written to Jewish Christians who were tempted to go back to the Mosaic law. Yahweh had spoken through the prophets in the Old Testament, but this was all leading to how he would reveal himself in the person of His Son, Jesus. 

We see the writer right away claims the divinity of Jesus. The Son is the heir of all things. The Son is the exact representation of the Father. The Son sustains all things by His powerful Word. The Son provided purification for sins, and sits at the right hand of Yahweh in heaven. The Son is even superior to angels, because the Son is God and angels are messengers and servants of God. 

The Son Superior to Angels

5 For to which of the angels did God ever say, “You are my Son; today I have become your Father”?

This is from Psalm 2:7. The Psalm contain many prophetice passages which predict the coming of the Messiah, Jesus. That fact the God called Jesus, "His Son", shows they were of One essence. 

Or again, “I will be his Father and he will be my Son”?

This verse comes from 1 Samuel 7, where Nathan says to David this word from the Lord concerning his son, Solomon who would build the temple

6 And again, when God brings his firstborn into the world, he says, “Let all God’s angels worship him.” 

This from the Song of Moses in Deuteronomy. Again the writer is pointing out that Jesus is superior to the angels, because they worship him, which we see when Jesus is born in Bethlehem. 

7 In speaking of the angels he says, “He makes his angels spirits, and his servants flames of fire.”8 But about the Son he says, “Your throne, O God, will last for ever and ever; a scepter of justice will be the scepter of your kingdom. 9 You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness; therefore God, your God, has set you above your companions by anointing you with the oil of joy.”

And from Psalm 45, we see the kingship of Jesus and his power. In Isaiah's day, Israel had forsaken the Lord and had been adopting the practices of its sinful neighbors. So Isaiah's words were giving the Messianic hope of Jesus. While Israel was looking for a temporal throne, Isaiah is foreshadowing an eternal one. 

Griffith Thomas linked together the descriptions of Jesus given in these first few verses, culminating in Hebrews 1:4:

· Christ the Heir.

· Christ the Creator.

· Christ the Revealer.

· Christ the Sustainer.

· Christ the Redeemer.

· Christ the Ruler.

· Christ Supreme.

10 He also says,“In the beginning, Lord, you laid the foundations of the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands. 11 They will perish, but you remain; they will all wear out like a garment. 12 You will roll them up like a robe; like a garment they will be changed. But you remain the same, and your years will never end.” 13 To which of the angels did God ever say, “Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet”? 14 Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?

As the writer of Hebrews concludes chapter 1, he continues to show how Jesus is the all-sufficient Savior of the World and is most importantly truly God and truly man. He has focused specifically how Jesus is far superior than the angels, using the Psalms as the scriptural background. Since the New Testament had not been finalized, he is relying on God's word to assure the Jewish Christians of who Jesus was. 

Then we have to ask the question, "Why did he spend so much time doing this?"

1. By focusing on angels, he was probably confronting some false teaching about angels. I.e. Angelogy. Note, we still see this today with some sects in Christianity getting into angelogy. I.e. ascribing more power to angels than are afforded in scripture. I.e. everyone has their personal angel. 

Angels do have power, and they do watch over us. They played a powerful role in minstering before God and communicating God's message in important situations. I.e. The birth of Jesus and Gabriel's message to Mary. 

2. Somehow they were compromising the divinity of Jesus. I.e. Jesus is just a man not really God. This is at the heart of every heresy. If Jesus was only man, he could not have done the miracles he did. I.e. raising Lazarus from the dead, feeding the 5,000, turning in water into wine. 

These were all signs showing he was the Messiah. He was God. He was God, so he could die for our sins. If he were only a man he would be born of sinful Adam and would need his own sins forgiven. This is why the focus is on the fact that Jesus was with God at the beginning. Although the earthly Jesus was born on this earth, the divine Jesus existed before the world began. I.e. John 1 

In theological circles we teach Jesus is the "pre-existent Word". This gives insight into why John says in his gospel, "The Word become flesh and dwelt among us full of grace and truth!" 1:14 

John, the 4th gospel writer, was confronting similar heresies at the end of the 1st century about the nature of Jesus as God and man. 

We will learn more in the coming chapters how Jesus is the all sufficient Lamb of God who ended the sacrificial system. 

Though this was written to the Jewish Christians in the 1st century it is every bit as relevant to us today. Many in our church's history have tried to make Jesus "only a man". Even some progressive far left churches today  border on teaching this falsehood. 

The fact that Jesus is truly God and truly man is probably the most important tenet of our Christian faith and it distinguishes Christianity from all other religions!  I.e. All of their prophets are only human.