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.

HIS SON …. greater than angels. Greater than any part of creation, in fact he is not part of creation himself because it was through Jesus that God created and sustains the universe. Hint of who Jesus is here, creating in the OT was exclusively the role of God. Therefore he is greater than any created being, so … He is

as much superior to the angels as the name he has inherited is superior to theirs.

ILLUSTRATION FROM SUNSHINE
the radiance of God’s glory …. The writer takes us outside into the sunshine to help us understand who Jesus is. When we feel sunshine, we are feeling the sun itself in the same way when we encounter Jesus we encounter God, we encounter God’s glory, God’s character in a form we understand. This picture emphasises that Jesus and God are one in nature.

ILLUSTRATION FROM LEGAL WORLD
” the exact representation of his being,” …. Another world we don’t really understand any more. On legal documents, seal carried authority and when a seal was pushed into hot wax it left behind an exact representation of itself.

IILLUSTRATION FROM THE TEMPLE
one who provides purification …. HIGH PRIEST … Offered a sacrifice to atone for the sin of the people.

What does all this tell us …..Jesus is one with God in being and yet in a sense distinct from God. 100% God in nature, not a diminished form of God.

Why we are not Jehovah’s witnesses or Jesus only pentecostals.

WHAT HE DOES
“he has spoken to us by his Son,”
“he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven.”

HUMANITY HAS TWO GREAT PROBLEMS

Ignorance …. God is so much greater than we are, we cannot conceive who God is let alone understand him.

“MY thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are my ways, your ways” Isaiah 55

Great gulf between

Creator —-> Creation
Infinite —–> Finite

God came in form we can understand, in a human life, to reveal himself fully to us

Jesus is God’s authorised audio visual aid to understand himself.

GOD HAS nothing left to say about himself.

Jesus reveals all we need to know about God.

“It is as if God the Father is saying to us: “Since I have told you everything in My Word, Who is My Son, I have no other words that can at present say anything or reveal anything to you beyond this. Fix your eyes on Him alone, for in Him I have told you all, revealed all, and in Him you will find more than you desire or ask. If you fix your eyes on Him, you will find everything, for He is My whole word and My reply, He is My whole vision and My whole revelation.” –Anthony M. Coniaris

GULF IS GREATER NOT JUST THAT WE CAN’T UNDERSTAND GOD BUT THAT WE CAN’T COME TO HIM

Sin …. cuts us off from God. God’s holiness and our sin cannot co-exist

Jesus Deals with our sin

HE SAT DOWN …. his work was finished, complete

Jesus by his death and resurrection once and for all our dealt with our sin

“Finished work of Christ” …. no need to repeat sacrifices. No need for priests today.

WHY IT MATTERS

“Apart from Jesus, the chasm between God and us is impassible. Its our human finitude on one hand, and our self centred rebellion on the other. By ourselves we can neither know God nor reach him. Only one bridge spans this otherwise unbridgeable gulf. This bridge has been thrown over from the other side. That bridge is Jesus Christ, God’s own son, who entered our world. became a human being, lived our life. and then died our death, the death we deserved because of sin. So we can can now come to God and know God.” John Stott

“HAS SPOKEN” …. Jesus provides final revelation of God

“HAS SAT DOWN” .… Jesus provides a finished redemption from God

Implications? …. We can come to God and know God. This why evangelicals have always spoken about having a personal relationship with him.