The radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature

Hebrews 1 from the daily reading in the One Year Bible

God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, ² in these last days has spoken to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom He also made the world. ³ And He is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power. When He had made purification of sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, ⁴ having become so much better than the angels, to the extent that He has inherited a more excellent name than they.

⁵ For to which of the angels did He ever say, “You are My Son, Today I have fathered You”? And again, “I will be a Father to Him And He will be a Son to Me”?

⁶ And when He again brings the firstborn into the world, He says,

“And let all the angels of God worship Him.”

⁷ And regarding the angels He says,

“He makes His angels winds, And His ministers a flame of fire.”

⁸ But regarding the Son He says,

“Your throne, God, is forever and ever, And the scepter of righteousness is the scepter of His kingdom. ⁹ You have loved righteousness and hated lawlessness; Therefore God, Your God, has anointed You With the oil of joy above Your companions.” ¹⁰ And, “You, Lord, in the beginning laid the foundation of the earth, And the heavens are the works of Your hands; ¹¹ They will perish, but You remain; And they all will wear out like a garment, ¹² And like a robe You will roll them up; Like a garment they will also be changed. But You are the same, And Your years will not come to an end.”

¹³ But to which of the angels has He ever said,

“Sit at My right hand, Until I make Your enemies A footstool for Your feet”?

¹⁴ Are they not all ministering spirits, sent out to provide service for the sake of those who will inherit salvation?

In Amos 3:7 it says: Certainly the Lord God does nothing Unless He reveals His secret plan To His servants the prophets.  In today’s text it says:  God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, in these last days has spoken to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom He also made the world. And He is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power.  God reveals His plan, His will and His character through His word, the written word of scripture, the living word spoken through the power of the Holy Spirit and also through His Son, Jesus, the word made flesh. In John 1:1-5;14 it says: In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him not even one thing came into being that has come into being. In Him was life, and the life was the Light of mankind. And the Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not grasp it… And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us; and we saw His glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. In John 10:30 Jesus says: “I and the Father are one.”  Jesus is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature.  In Matthew 5:17-18 Jesus says: “Do not presume that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish, but to fulfill. For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke of a letter shall pass from the Law, until all is accomplished!”  Jesus is not only the representation of the Father’s character, He is the fulfillment of the Father’s will.

Many people argue and debate what Jesus would do and say regarding our culture and society today. Some say that if He were here today He would tolerate and even embrace the immorality and lawlessness of our culture. Rather than speculating about what Jesus would do or say, we should look at and listen to what He did and said. Hebrews 13:8 says: Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today, and forever.  In Revelation 1:8 the Lord says: “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”  Jesus is unchanging. He would not change to suit the whims and lust of our society and culture. If we look at what He said, we will see that from the beginning of His ministry on earth, His message was: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” (Matthew 4:17) In Luke 5:32 He says: “I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.”  If we look at what Jesus did, we will see that He sacrificed Himself on the cross for our sins. Isaiah 53:4-6 says: Surely He has borne our griefs And carried our sorrows; Yet we esteemed Him stricken, Smitten by God, and afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; We have turned, every one, to his own way; And the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.  How could anyone possibly argue that Jesus would embrace the very things He suffered and died to free us and redeem us from. 2 Corinthians 5:17-18 says: If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ.  Jesus has not changed His mind about sin. He gave His life on the cross and was raised from the grave so that we could change and no longer be bound by sin.

The text says: Regarding the Son He says, “Your throne, God, is forever and ever, And the scepter of righteousness is the scepter of His kingdom. You have loved righteousness and hated lawlessness; Therefore God, Your God, has anointed You With the oil of joy above Your companions.” And, “You, Lord, in the beginning laid the foundation of the earth, And the heavens are the works of Your hands; They will perish, but You remain; And they all will wear out like a garment, And like a robe You will roll them up; Like a garment they will also be changed. But You are the same, And Your years will not come to an end.”  In John 19:30, when Jesus was on the cross, He said: “It is finished!” He fulfilled the law and the prophets through His life, His death and His resurrection.  He has not yet though fully fulfilled the will of the Father. He will come again and He will again be the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature. Revelation 19:11-16 says:  I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse, and He who sat on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and wages war. His eyes are a flame of fire, and on His head are many crowns; and He has a name written on Him which no one knows except Himself. He is clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God. And the armies which are in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, were following Him on white horses. From His mouth comes a sharp sword, so that with it He may strike down the nations, and He will rule them with a rod of iron; and He treads the wine press of the fierce wrath of God, the Almighty. And on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written: “KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.” Revelation 21:1-8 says: Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is among the people, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.” And He who sits on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” And He said, “Write, for these words are faithful and true.” Then He said to me, “It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give water to the one who thirsts from the spring of the water of life, without cost. The one who overcomes will inherit these things, and I will be his God and he will be My son. But for the cowardly, and unbelieving, and abominable, and murderers, and sexually immoral persons, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, their part will be in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.”  Finally, Revelation 22:12-21 says: “Behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to reward each one as his work deserves. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.” Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they will have the right to the tree of life, and may enter the city by the gates. Outside are the dogs, the sorcerers, the sexually immoral persons, the murderers, the idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices lying. “I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you of these things for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star.”  The Spirit and the bride say, “Come.” And let the one who hears say, “Come.” And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires, take the water of life without cost… He who testifies to these things says, “Yes, I am coming quickly.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus. The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all. Amen.  Your kingdom come. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.  Amen.