Hebrews 1:1-4

Long ago God spoke many times and in many ways to our ancestors through the prophets.  And now in these final days, he has spoken to us through his Son.  God promised everything to the Son as an inheritance, and through the Son he created the universe.  The Son radiates God’s own glory and expresses the very character of God, and he sustains everything by the mighty power of his command.  When he had cleansed us from our sins, he sat down in the place of honor at the right hand of the majestic God in heaven.  This shows that the Son is far greater than the angels, just as the name God gave him is greater than their names.

This short passage packs quite a punch.  There is enough theology in it to cover several devotions or even a few sermons.  The writer of Hebrews wants you to know exactly who Jesus is and he doesn’t miss a beat.  However, he doesn’t start the passage with some grand descriptive statement about Jesus, like “the supreme power,” or “the ultimate authority,” or even “the savior of the world.”  He begins with these words, “Long ago God spoke through the prophets.”  Why do you think he thought it was important for the reader to know this?  Perhaps an effective way to imagine the answer is to think about a cell phone.  Picture yourself and a friend, enjoying an evening of Christmas activities.  Your friend’s cell phone rings.  He answers it, letting you know it’s Jesus.  He continues his conversation and then hangs up.  Out of curiosity, you ask, “Well, what did Jesus say?”  Gradually, your friend begins to share with you what he heard Jesus tell him.  This was what it was like in the Old Testament days of the Prophets.  This was the only way you could know or hear from God. 

Here is what makes this passage so powerful and important for us.  No longer is God a voice on someone else’s phone that we can’t hear, see, or touch.  God has made himself accessible to each of us.  The promise of Jesus is that God is now present with us.  Let’s take the scenario I presented earlier with you and your friend; however, this time instead of God calling your friend, God simply shows up.  He spends the entire day with you, doing what you are doing and enjoying what you are enjoying.  He is present.  There is no degree of separation between you and God.  He is completely accessible.  The old way of God communicating with us has passed away forever.  Now, in the person of Jesus, God has a new way of communicating with us – and it is through his active presence.

It really is an incredible thing to think about: that on one day, long ago in human history, God steps down from heaven and clothes himself in human form – flesh and blood – in order to become one of us; that even in his humanity, Jesus radiates the brilliance of God and embodies the very character and glory of our Heavenly Father; and that through Jesus, everything in creation is sustained. 

To sustain… think for a second about the meaning of that word.  To sustain means “to strengthen or support; to undergo or suffer an experience; to uphold, affirm, vindicate…”  God’s presence, through Jesus, strengthens and sustains us as we journey through life; God’s presence, through Jesus, brings us forgiveness, through his suffering and death on the cross, where our sins were paid for in full; God’s presence, through Jesus, brings grace, as Jesus vindicates us before God, declaring us innocent.  God’s presence brings peace.  How are you letting God’s presence sustain you today?  Please keep in mind that even in the busyness of this season, God isn’t a distant person on the other side of a cell phone – HE IS HERE WITH YOU!