But We See Jesus

10-6-24

Hoonah-Hadley

Hebrews 1:1-4, 2:5-12

Call to Worship Psalm 26

Daily Verse Hebrews 2:9

“But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, for the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, that He, by the grace of God, might taste death for everyone.” For some reason a required reading in college, John Berger’s “Ways Of Seeing” immediately comes to mind. On the front cover of Berger’s study is this quote: “Seeing comes before words. The child looks and recognizes before it can speak.” Berger goes on to say “We only see what we look at. To look is an act of choice.” Berger’s book is not a Christian production, it leans heavily on capitalism, using pictures to prove, either positively or negatively, that virtue in this world is rewarded by social and financial success. Berger’s way of seeing is not wrong, in fact it is pretty accurate. With the internet, tv and billboards everywhere we are inundated with the world and programed to see as the world sees.  It seems to be working. We are habitual shoppers, we have so much stuff we have to rent a storage unit to keep all our junk in. Garages which were initially intended to park our $80,000 vehicles, are so full of worthless stuff, our vehicles, likely our second biggest investment, sit out in the sun and rain and snow. If you have decent vision and your eyes are opened, you can’t help but see what the world sees. And mostly what we see are advertisements, signs whose sole purpose is to get us to vote, buy, eat, go to the ball game, spend, spend, spend. Interestingly enough, a “billboard” in many other parts of the world is called a “hoarding”. Shocking! With all the world’s rubble, we’re nearly bankrupt in God’s economy.

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To paraphrase the penman of Hebrews, he begins chapter 1:1-4 “God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in times past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds; who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power…sat down at the right hand…on high, having become so much better than the angels…obtained a more excellent name than they.” This is a royal introduction, the Master Painters finest portrait, the Name that is above all other names, this is Jesus, God’s Son, the Savior of the world. The remainder of chapter 1 goes on to exalt this Jesus with 7 quotes from the Old Testament, namely from the Psalms and prophets, this is God, speaking to the angels and speaking to His Son. Should we read from each of these and study the Artist’s every stroke, we would exhaust our life, leaving the task to a thousand generations hereafter. There is no end to His Kingdom, and less we do not finish what we started, we’d be better off simply pondering the splendor of it all in awesome wonder. Herein is the grandest work ever wrought, begun before the foundation of the earth and Whose hour there is no end. The chapter ends with this from Psalm 110:1, “But to which of the angels has He ever said: ‘Sit at My right hand, till I make Your enemies Your footstool.’”  If anyone ask’s you if you believe in angels, tell them to read Hebrews chapter 1. Vs. 14 “Are they not all ministering spirits sent forth to minister for those who will inherit salvation? The angels are servants of Christ, but also to His people who inherit salvation through union with Him. Psalm 103:20 “Bless the Lord, you His angels…who do His word.” The Lord employs angels on our behalf that we might be saved, But we see Jesus. 

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As Berger’s “Way’s of Seeing” caters to the world, the Gospel of John 20:29 sees with spiritual eyes. “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” The “seeing” referred to in our lesson in Hebrews 2:9 is a matter of the heart, the way of faith, spiritual sight. There were those who lived during the 30 + years that Jesus walked the earth, who actually saw Him physically, in the flesh, yet did not believe. They had eyes but could not see. Jeremiah 5:21 “Hear now this, O foolish people, and without understanding, which have eyes, and see not…” Isaiah 44:18 “They have not known nor understood; for He hath shut their eyes that they cannot see; and their hearts, that they cannot understand.” Mark 8:18 “Having eyes, do you not see?” The blessing is in the believing, the seeing with spiritual eyes. You know the saying, “They just don’t get it”? If you don’t understand, if you can’t seem to “see” the gospel truth, keep knocking, keep asking, keep seeking, literally and physically get on your knees and plead, beg, raise your voice for understanding, cry out for insight, that Christ might open the door and let you in, it is a matter of heaven and hell.  Biblically speaking, sight, or seeing is often used as an illustration or symbol. Faith is the eye of the soul. “Seeing” Jesus is past, present and future, it is continuous, keeping Him ever before you in all things, at all times. He truly is our only hope. In Him we will never thirst. In Him we will find rest. In Him there is light, He will open the eyes of our heart that we might see. Without Him, no rest, no light and no water. According to those who have gone to hell and come back to tell about it, the darkness itself, in short order will give you chest pains, and in this there is no rest, not to mention not a drop of water, and that eternal. When Christ asks us what we want, please Lord, we beg you, give us eyes that see You, hearts that understand You and what You have done for us.

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Hebrews 2:6 “What is man that You are mindful of him, or the son of man that You take care of Him? You have made him a little lower than the angels; You have crowned him with glory and honor, and set him over the works of Your hands. You have put all things in subjection under his feet.” This is an Old Testament quote from Job 7 and Psalm 8. The penman list 4 entities if you will here, “man” or humanity, “You”= God, “son of man” is Jesus and “angels” are, well, angels. I guess we could list a 5th entity here as “all things”, that is to say, the earth and all that is in it. We could say this is the big picture. If we could somehow gather it all in and have even a small portion of understanding it, it literally takes our breath away, it is massive, all consuming. At the heart of it, the earth, angels, Jesus, God and us. If that doesn’t get your heart racing, we, humanity is at the center of all of it, God is mindful of us! Lord have mercy on us! Open the eyes of our hearts Lord, open the eyes of our heart, we want to see you! Vs. 8 continues, “For in that He put all in subjection under Him, He left nothing that is not put under Him. But now we do not see all things put under Him.” Fact: everything is subject to and under Christ. Psalm 24 “The earth is the Lord’s, and all its fullness, the world and all those who dwell therein.” Don’t be discouraged by what you see with your eyes, hear with your ears but be fully confident that God is sovereign over all things, all things. What verse 8 is saying is, yes, all things are subject to Him, but it sure doesn’t look that way. We, that is humanity, sure has made a royal mess of it. The broad gate that leads to destruction (Matt. 7:13-14), the many that enter it have bought the lie. God has shut their eyes that they cannot see, and their hearts, that they cannot understand. John 21:22 “…what is that to you? You follow Me.”  Heb. 2:9 “But we see Jesus.” Not as the world sees Him, but as the eyes of your heart sees.