FBCWest 457 | Jesus Superior to the Angels
Recorded On: 06/27/2021
Bulletin
“God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship Him in Spirit and truth.”
Praise and Worship
SCRIPTURE READING – Revelation 5:11 - 14
“God So Loved”
“I am who You say I am”
Proclamation of the Word
Message by Pastor Joe
“Jesus Superior to the Angels”
PRAYER TIME / Time of Reflection
“No One Higher”
Giving of Selves and Our Offerings
“Praise Him, Praise Him”
OFFERTORY PRAYER
SPECIAL MUSIC – By Pru Hungate
Continued Praise and Worship
“Born Again”
“Miracle of the Moment”
Benediction “Egypt”
Acknowledgements and Announcements
Sermon Notes
Hebrews 1:4 Jesus is much greater than the angels
Hebrews 1:5 Because of title
Hebrews 1:6 Because He is to be worshipped
Hebrews 1:7 – 9 Because of Superior nature
Hebrews 1:10 – 12 Because of pre-existence
Hebrews 1:13 &14 Because of superior destiny
Scritpures
Transcript of Service
If you have your Bibles, turn to Hebrews chapter one.
We're going to kind of start in the middle of verse three, 'cause that's where the beginning of the sentence for four takes place.
And while you're turning there, let me tell you that.
The writer of Hebrews is is going to discuss a situation that initially I probably wouldn't have thought about discussing.
But then after thinking about.
Who people are and even who believers are.
I then see why he decided to make this part of this of the Scriptures.
The reason I believe that he makes part of the scriptures is that people have a tendency to not worship the creator.
But worship the created.
And so various religions where animals or have spirits or their ancestors or whatever. Or we worship the sun and the moon. And all these different things that are created. And we tend not to worship the creator. And so I think the writer of Hebrews understands that there's a tendency for that. And then even well meaning believers have a tendency. And I don't think they they do it intentionally, but.
Load into it. The sense of that that they minimize God.
Nugo
I don't think I minimized God. Well, let me give you an example.
You'll hear a number of people, and when I bring this up, if you've heard me in any number of messages, you will have heard this.
Complaint that I have are in Bible studies is that you'll hear people say about the power of prayer.
And they'll talk about the power of prayer.
An when I say.
What I'm going to say is, like I quote unquote, minimize the power prayer. Now, I believe in the power of prayer, and I believe that God wants us to pray as a matter of fact, I need to pray more. The scriptures tell us that we are to pray without ceasing, and all too often I cease.
So it's not a matter of that. I don't think you should pray. That's not my criticism.
Is that the emphasis is on the power of prayer rather than the power of God? So let me give you an A kind of a metaphor, a simile to kind of help lock it in your at home with a loved one and all of a sudden your loved one starts clenching their chest.
And they're in pain and their left arm is being affected and you go. I think they're having a heart attack and so you get your phone whether it's a smart one or a flip one or one that is connected to the wall that has a Rotary dial. Whatever type of phone you have, you call 911 and you say we need some assistance 'cause there's a health emergency.
And the paramedics show up and as they show up.
Your loved one.
Stops breathing and the heart stops so they take the defibulators they hit it. The heart starts up. They do some other.
Medical attention stick him in an ambulance and get him to the hospital an there well.
Now when we talk about the power prayer, that's like taking your phone and saying thank you phone. I so appreciate your phone. You're so awesome phone.
You should be thanking the paramedics, 'cause they're the one who came to deliver your loved one from their medical distress. But you see what we've done is we've taken our eyes off so it would be again instead of saying thank you for those who have saved us, we thank the mechanism that called them and all too often, instead of giving God the glory we take our eyes off of him and put it on mechanisms.
So just one of my I can't call it a pet peeve 'cause there's a lot of well meaning good people who who say these things. And I just say just think a little.
OK, so he's going to write this because we have a tendency to worship the created rather than the creator and we have a tendency to minimize God by doing other things. And so in the middle of chapter of chapter one, verse three, it says when he that being Jesus made purification of sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become as much better than the angels as he inherited a more excellent name than they.
So the writer of Hebrews is going to say Jesus is better than the angels. Now. That is why I would have never initially written this. 'cause I would go duck. That's obvious.
But apparently because we have a tendency to worship created things and we have a tendency to take our eyes off of God the Father he understands, and so during this time and in Jewish custom, another is that there was this kind of.
Mysticism about angels and this.
Appreciation of angels and this statement of angels. And so he's very aware that angels is kind of high on the list of those who are quote unquote spiritual, and if you will, into our day-to-day, you'll have those who don't believe in a God but are quote unquote, very spiritual. Or they talk about angels and spirits and all these types of things, because again, we tend to minimize God and maximize those other spiritual qualities. And so the writer of Hebrews says.
Before you get all misleaded on angels.
Jesus is better than them. Jesus is greater than them and he has inherited a much more excellent name than the so for instance.
Is that the name of Jesus that every knee shall bow is not at the name of Michael or Gabriel, or even Fatin that the knees will bow. It is at the name of Jesus that every knee shall bow, so he has been given a more excellent name.
And so it says four verse 542. Which of the Angels did he ever say? You are my son. Today I have begotten you and again I will be a father to him and he shall be a son to me. So the writer here is saying that Jesus has a greater title. He's been considered son, not an Angel. He is not a messenger, he's the son.
And just as in any household, your child is more important than the staff or the workers or visitors.
The writer here, saying Jesus because he's the son has.
Become that title.
In verse six it says.
And when he again brings the first born into the world, he says, and let the Angels of God worship.
So the second reason that the writer here is giving us a reason that Jesus is greater than the angels is better than the angels is because the angels are to worship him. He's not to worship the angels, and so in the scriptures you'll see even when angels show up an like in the John writes the Book of Revelation, or in other aspects, whether it's throughout the scriptures. When an Angel comes in a person kind of realizes they start bowing down to worship and in each time.
The Angel says stand up I'm I'm a fellow servant, just like you.
Angels are not entitled to be worshipped.
Jesus is.
That's what the scriptures tell. That's who he is. But yet again, we have this idea that angels are these somehow powerful things, and we want to have guardian angels, and we want all these things and we we focus on angels.
When they focus of angels.
Is on Jesus.
So he's better because he's worshipped.
Or seven and of the angels, he says, who makes his angels winds and his ministers a flame of fire? But of the sunny, says your throne, or God is forever and ever, and the righteous scepter is the scepter of his Kingdom. You have loved righteousness and hated lawlessness. Therefore God, your God, has anointed you the oil of gladness above.
Your companions.
So he is better than the angels because he has a superior nature. The Angels are ministers who are to ministere and to provide messages and to let you know what God is doing.
Jesus is on the throne. He is the one who reigns. He's the one who rules. He's the one who directs the angels what to do, and so he is better than the angels because he has a superior nature and superior position than they. But again, we want to get our eyes off of God and on to something else.
1st 10.
And all of these.
Verses that you see in large block when you're looking at your Bible is a quote from the Old Testament, the Scriptures.
Now.
We have a tendency to say well if you look at Psalms 68 verse whatever so that you can go there.
I believe the reason the writer of Hebrews doesn't tell us the position, the address, if you will, is one. I think he's expecting you to know it and 2nd.
To say.
As I've been referring, the writer of Hebrews, if he were to say well in David Psalm, we then start looking at David. It's the scriptures. It's the word of God. So again, he is making sure that we don't diminish the value of the scriptures by saying so and so wrote it.
And we do that in today. There are people who don't like to read Paul because they disagree with him.
Well, my my suggestion to you is take it up with Jesus.
If you don't like what Paul wrote, take it up with Jesus because he in the Holy Spirit and the Father are the ones who are the author of this as the beginning of the book says. As we started reading in this epistle in these last days he spoke to us through Jesus.
And so to avoid that, well, you know as the Sadducees would say, well, if it's not in the first five books of Moses, I don't care an and whatever he saying, this is the scripture. This is what it says, and so he's going to again quote Scripture says, and you Lord, in the beginning laid the foundations of the Earth. And the heavens are the works of your hands.
They will perish, but you remain and they will all become like.
All like a garment and like a mantle. 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.
We are to worship the angels, not to worship the angels in worship, because the angels again are created. But Jesus pre existed them.
He has pre existence and so because he's God he is greater than angels because he created the angels.
And not only did he there before this all got.
Started, he's going to be there long after it's all over with.
When this has been rolled up, he's still going to be God.
When I was a junior in high school.
I had an English teacher.
And she loved.
Herman Melville's Moby Dick.
So much so that I.
Not to her face would call her Moby Mayor and part of the reason I called her that was 'cause she was a little overweight. Now she was a lot overweight. But anyway, she loved that book.
But she made a statement to me that as a junior in high school could not reconcile and today I still cannot reconcile, she said.
The book Moby Dick was greater.
Then Herman Melville.
I go so you're saying he didn't write the book?
She goes no. I think he wrote the book. It's just that it was a greater work than he was capable of doing. And I said, then he. Then you're saying he didn't write the book because of its greater than he's capable of doing, then he couldn't have done it, and but that was her view and I and I never. But that's kind of the way people are. They look at the world and see how magnanimous it is and how awesome it is. And all of these things. And we said, well, there can't be a God.
We look at the universe and the billions of stars and galaxies. Now there can't be a God we could talk about aliens.
Going all over the place, which in our understanding.
Everything is too far to get where but, but we'll believe in aliens.
But we can't believe in a God.
It's.
We love to look at created and.
He is greater as he existed before. He will exist after.
And then the final reason that he's going to give.
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?
Jesus has a far superior destiny.
He is going to sit at the right hand in front as we started this reading it said that he sat down at the right hand and Jesus is told stay there.
I'm going to make your enemies.
Effort store you're going to rest your feet on your enemies.
That's his destination. That's his destiny.
That's what God has ordained for him.
And then he says in verse 14, are they not all ministering spirits sent out to render service for the sake of those will inherit?
Salvation.
So he says Jesus is going to sit on the throne rule and reign and those who are enemies are going to be his foot stools. But angels, they have a job. Their job is to minister to you and me.
So there's a couple of examples where they ministere to you and I and there's a couple of. There's an example where they ministered to Jesus.
During Jesus is 40 days in the wilderness as he.
Fasted and prayed.
When that was over and the Satan came and tempted him, and he had his spiritual battle with Satan and Satan left for a time.
And a lot of times we think when we battle Satan in we get the victory that the battles over the war is over. But the battles keep going and he's going to show back up and for a time he goes away. But the angels ministered to the Lord.
'cause that's their job.
That's what they do.
And even though the writer of Hebrews doesn't tell us this, I am. There is another reason. See their ministering to Jesus. So Jesus is superior.
Daniel.
When he's been received a vision an it's so bothered him by not knowing what it means and and finally he praised to such an extent that he is in a weakened physical, an almost spiritual situation.
And angels comes administers and strengthens him and encourages him. But says I gotta go back and 'cause the only person helping me fight this spiritual battle is Michael. And the reason it took me awhile to get here is because we've been having some spiritual battles. But he came to Ministere too.
Daniel.
That's what the angels do.
But again, we have this tendency. So when an Angel comes and visits us.
As we say, sometimes entertaining angels unaware, we put our emphasis on the Angel, the messenger rather than the person who sent them.
So these are a number of reasons that the.
Writer of Hebrews tells us.
Daddy Jesus is better.
Let me give you a couple more.
Which Angel ever died for your sins?
Which Angel ever gave you freedom?
From the slavery of sin.
Which Angel ever rose again from the dead?
To prove.
That he delivered what he said.
Which Angel not just brought the word of God?
But Jesus was the word of God.
An Angel would come and say, Abraham, I have a message for you or Daniel. I have a message for you or.
Elijah, I have a message for you. Jesus is the message.
He is greater than the angels.
Which Angel?
Is going to come back for you whether you're alive or dead.
It's Jesus.
Now there's some angels who are going to blow some trumpets, and there's some angels who and one Angel is going to be issued in order to take Satan and throw him into the fiery pit.
An Angel, not a whole bunch. You see, when God says do something, Satan has no power.
So the one person we are so afraid of because he's like a rock lion roar ensta seeking someone to devour.
An Angel.
Throws him in the pit.
So get our eyes off of the angels and on to God.
Because Jesus.
Is coming back and whether I'm alive or I'm dead, he's coming for me. No Angel is.
In which Angel?
Has ever given me the ability to say?
I am a child of God.
So much so that later in this episode we're going to see that Jesus calls us. Brethren were brothers and sisters of his.
What Angel ever gives us that opportunity?
And so the writer of Hebrews writes these things.
Because I would never have thought of it because I just assume everybody knew that Jesus is greater and higher.
And more to be praised and worship than anything else.
But then I forget the evilness of man's heart.
Now we always want to give credit.
To anyone other than God.
Or anything other than God.
And so the writer of Hebrews warns us.
Never ever ever ever think.
That there's anything or anyone superior to Jesus.
He is the author and perfecter of our faith, not the Angels.
They look to see what's going on. We have the ability. Once this life is over with and we're in heaven to sing the song of the redeemed because we're experiencing something that they never have experienced.
And they never gave us that, right?
'cause they know nothing of it.
There is.
No one higher.
There is no one greater.
And we should always be on our guard.
To make sure that, even unintentionally.
That we take off the emphasis of who Jesus is and what he is done.
You see, when you say, well, I think if we're just kind of good enough we can all get to heaven.
Then Jesus died needlessly.
You've removed his power.
If we talk about.
Chariots of fire.
And forget about the power that's in his knee.
We do not do well.
And this world has a tendency to seduce us into thinking.
Well.
Jesus is cool.
It is not all that.
In the scriptures tells us Jesus is not only all that.
He's more.
And all God's people said.