Our Great Savior (Hebrews 2:5-18)

Let us recap the message of Hebrews thus far. We learned in Chapter 1 that God is speaking to us. God has spoken to us in the past through the prophets, but now He is speaking to us through His beloved Son. Jesus is far greater than the prophets so we had better listen to Him. We have also learned that Jesus is greater than the angels. Angels are ministers of God who “render service for the sake of those who will inherit salvation” (Heb 1:14) and Jesus is the Son who is worshipped and rules as “Lord of lords and King of kings” (Rev 17:14). After showing the superiority of Jesus over the prophets and the angels, we are counseled to “pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it” (Heb 2:1). Then, we are given this solemn warning: “How shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation?” (Heb 2:3). In the rest of Chapter 2, we are encouraged to not neglect such a great salvation by remembering our great Savior.

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Our Great Savior Humbled Himself

As we reflect on our great Savior, we have to address a very important question: “If Jesus is the Lord of Lords, why has He suffered so much?” To answer this, we are told that God the Father “made Him [Jesus] for a little while lower than the angels” (Heb 2:7). We see in this verse a similar teaching found in Philippians 2:1-8 where Paul spoke of Jesus–the Son of God–who “did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men” (2:6-7). Jesus humbled Himself. All the privileges that were His as God the Son, He gave them up to become a Jewish baby. Also, “being born in the likeness of men…being found in human form, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross” (Phil 2:7-8). Remember, Paul’s main reason for referencing Christ in this section of Philippians is that Christ came to earth in humility. In humility, He did not look to His own interests, but to ours. Jesus knew we needed a Savior and He willingly came to “seek and to save the lost” (Luke 19:10). All of these actions are voluntary. Jesus chose to come into this world and chose to become obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross (Phil 2:8).

Jesus is God the Son who took on human flesh and was for a little while lower than the angels (Heb 2:7&9). We are told that Jesus endured the suffering of death (Heb 2:9). He was made perfect through suffering (Heb 2:10), He shares in flesh and blood along with other humans (Heb 2:14), He is made like His brothers in every respect (Heb 2:17). We are also told in Hebrews 2:18 that He suffered when tempted. The Bible does not teach that Jesus stopped being God when He took on human form and became like us; but that He added human nature to His Divine nature and thus has two natures. This sounds complex, but we must remember that our belief about Jesus is derived from Scripture. This is referred to as the hypostatic union: the term used to describe how God the Son, Jesus Christ, took on a human nature, yet remained fully God at the same time.

Our Great Savior Has Been Exalted

Jesus humbled Himself in order to secure eternal life for all who believe. As a result of His work of redemption, Jesus has been exalted by God the Father. Hebrews 2:7-8 says, “You have crowned Him with glory and honor, and have appointed Him over the works of Your hands; You have put all things in subjection under His feet.” Once again we see a parallel in Philippians 2:9-11, “Therefore, God also highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

Everything has been put into subjection to Jesus, but we currently do not yet see everything in subjection to Him (Heb 2:8), but we know that everything exists for Him and by Him (Heb 2:10). Jesus reigns as King and one day all things will be subjected to Him. 1 Corinthians 15:23-27 tells us that when Jesus returns for the second time, “then comes the end, when He delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power. For He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death. For God has put all things in subjection under His feet.” Currently, not everything is subjected to Jesus, but we know the day is coming when everything will.

Our Great Savior Helps Us

The apostle Paul wrote to Timothy saying, “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners” (1 Tim 1:15). Jesus is the author of our salvation (Heb 2:10). Later in Hebrews, Jesus is called “the author and perfecter of our faith” (Heb 12:2). Our Great Savior brings many sons to glory (Heb 2:10) and is not ashamed to call them brothers (Heb 2:11). Jesus submitted Himself to death in order to “render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil” (Heb 2:14). He frees us from the fear of death and provides us eternal life.

Why did Jesus humble Himself? He did so to help the offspring of Abraham (Heb 2:16). Hebrews 2:17 tells us “He had to be made like His brethren in all things, so that He might become a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people.” Jesus is our Redeemer, our Savior, and our Faithful high priest who helps us in our time of need. You can trust Jesus. He loves you and cares for you. If you are not a Christian, surrender to Jesus. Confess that He is Lord. Confess your sins and acknowledge that you are a sinner. Ask Him to save you and He will. Romans 10:13 says, “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” If you are a Christian, see Jesus as your faithful high priest who cares for you, loves you, and intercedes for you.