SUPREME IN HUMILIATION
Opening Prayer
Lord, thank You for tasting death for me.
Read HEBREWS 2:1–9
Warning to Pay Attention
2 We must pay the most careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away. 2 For since the message spoken through angels was binding, and every violation and disobedience received its just punishment, 3 how shall we escape if we ignore so great a salvation? This salvation, which was first announced by the Lord, was confirmed to us by those who heard him. 4 God also testified to it by signs, wonders and various miracles, and by gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.
Jesus Made Fully Human
5 It is not to angels that he has subjected the world to come, about which we are speaking. 6 But there is a place where someone has testified:
“What is mankind that you are mindful of them,
a son of man that you care for him?
7 You made them a little[a] lower than the angels;
you crowned them with glory and honor
8 and put everything under their feet.”[b][c]
In putting everything under them,[d] God left nothing that is not subject to them.[e] Yet at present we do not see everything subject to them.[f] 9 But we do see Jesus, who was made lower than the angels for a little while, now crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.
Footnotes
- Hebrews 2:7 Or them for a little while
- Hebrews 2:8 Psalm 8:4-6
- Hebrews 2:8 Or 7 You made him a little lower than the angels;/ you crowned him with glory and honor/ 8 and put everything under his feet.”
- Hebrews 2:8 Or him
- Hebrews 2:8 Or him
- Hebrews 2:8 Or him
New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Meditate
‘I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in Me and I in you, you will bear much fruit.’ (John 15:5). Renew your commitment to stay with Jesus.
Think Further
Sometimes we seem to be surrounded by warning signs. The temptation is to ignore them, but some are too important to ignore – and that is the case here. This is the first of several warnings in Hebrews. The writer’s pastoral heart moves him to ensure that his readers do not miss out. The old covenant came with health warnings (eg., Deut 28), and when the Israelites failed to keep their side of the agreement, they brought judgment on themselves. Salvation under the new covenant, brought by Jesus, testified to by God and confirmed by the activity of the Spirit (3,4), is therefore that much greater. To drift away will have more serious consequences. Some people make one conscious decision to give up on faith in Jesus; most take a series of little steps away from Him, each one almost imperceptible until they find that they have lost their love and motivation. We are to be on our guard, lest we fall (1 Cor 10:12).
How do we do that? By paying attention to what we have heard (1) and by remembering our status and our destiny (vs 5–8). Humans are designed to rule (Gen 1:28), not in the sense of unhealthy domination but of wise leadership. This was lost through sin, but will be restored in Jesus, who became lower than the angels and tasted death so that we might know life. In ideas reminiscent of Philippians 2, the writer reminds us that Jesus, having taken human flesh and died, is now exalted. Only in Him will we realize the future that God has for us. So: hold on. It seems that the writer was not personally acquainted with Jesus during his life (3); since we are in the same position, we may find special encouragement in this.
Apply
Pray for any you know who are in danger of drifting, asking that they may be able to refocus on Jesus.
Closing prayer
Lord, enable us to retain the things that we have heard throughout the years concerning Your kingdom so that we may remain steadfast.
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