Articles
“Who Jesus Is”
He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power.
Hebrews 1:3
The practical goal of the book of Hebrews is to encourage the original audience to continue trusting in and following Christ. Some were tempted to escape persecution (Heb. 10:32-34) by renouncing their faith in Christ and reverting to Judaism. The writer challenges them to remain faithful to Jesus with a number of arguments which all make the same basic point: Jesus is superior. Jesus is greater than the angels and Moses, the Mosaic priesthood and sacrifices. Jesus is preeminent. Therefore, serve him with a whole heart.
While we may not be tempted to turn from Jesus to Judaism, we may subtly turn from him by mentally diminishing his exalted status. This is a real temptation in a culture set on “taming” Jesus by speaking of him as a mere human, a prophet, or an ethical teacher on par with others. Dorothy Sayers once wrote of this watering-down of Jesus in her Letters to a Diminished Church
“The people who hanged Christ never, to do them justice, accused him of being a bore—on the contrary, they thought him too dynamic to be safe. It has been left for later generations to muffle up that shattering personality and surround him with an atmosphere of tedium. We have efficiently pared the claws of the Lion of Judah, certified him “meek and mild” and recommended him as a fitting household pet for pale curates and pious old ladies.”
In this one verse (Hebrews 1:3), the writer makes three astonishing claims about who Jesus is.
He is “the radiance of the glory of God.” Jesus is to God as the rays of light are to the sun. “Glory” refers to the luminous manifestation of God’s presence (Ex. 16:7; 33:18; Isa. 40:5; 60:1-3). “Radiance” is the splendor and intense brightness that his glory brings. Just as the brightness of the light cannot be separated from the light itself, to see Jesus is to see God’s glory (Jn. 1:14; 2:11; 8:12; 17:5).
He is “the exact imprint of his nature.” Jesus is to God as the wax impression is to the signet ring. Though all humans are stamped with the divine image (Gen. 1:26-27), Jesus was the only human in whom that divine image was not obscured and defaced by sin. The “imprint” or the essential nature of God is seen perfectly in the face of Jesus (Jn. 1:2, 18; 14:9; Phil. 2:6; Col. 1:15).
Finally, “he upholds the universe by the word of his power.” Jesus is both the agent (Heb. 1:2) and sustainer of creation. “All things were created through him and for him… and in him all things hold together” (Col. 1:16-17; Jn. 1:3). The universe was created by the word through the Son (Heb. 1:2; 11:3) and continues to be managed and governed by that same powerful word. Just as all creation originated from him in the beginning, all creation will be subjected to him in the end (Heb. 1:13; 2:5, 8; 1 Cor. 15:28).
Let’s put this into perspective. The distance between the earth and the sun is about 92 million miles. Let’s represent that 92-million-mile distance with the thickness of a sheet of paper. If the thickness of a sheet of paper represents 92 million miles then the distance from here to the nearest star would be a stack of papers 70 feet high and the width of our galaxy would be a stack of papers 310 miles high. This is just our galaxy, the Milky Way. How vast is our universe? How many galaxies does it contain? Our Lord Jesus knows and is able to hold it all together by the “word of his power.”
Who, then, is Jesus and who are we in relation to him? He is not someone we simply invite into our lives if it pleases us. He is nothing less than the Lord of the universe. God help us to remove all limits of our devotion and love toward our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
