Christ is where he should be

The scripture in Hebrews 1:3b-4 states, "After making purification of sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs." This scripture gives the account of what Christ did and what came about because of that.

Christ made purification for sins. No one else. No angel or created being or creature could do what only God could do. Titus 2:13c-14 - Our Great God and Savior, Jesus Christ...gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.

Purification was to redeem us, to purify us, to possess us so that we strive and desire to do the work of the Lord.

Hebrews 9:23-28 give us the clear understanding that Christ had to be sacrificed to purify all things. Christ is not sacrificed continually over and over as people come to repentance of sins. Christ died once for all. Jesus was the better sacrifice to which all things have been redeemed.

After making purification, Christ sat down at the right hand of God. He was exalted back to where he emptied himself from. He emptied or vacated the seat beside the Father. Did he cease being God? No. Attributes to which would have hindered or not allowed him to step into time were emptied. God stepped out of limitless to being limited. The second person of the trinity could not be at all places at times, in that brief span of history to which God became man.

Christ's sitting down does not mean inactivity. It is the sign of a completed work or task. Christ died once for all as stated in Hebrews 9. I used an illustration by asking one of my youth to help me move a monitor from the back of the stage to the front. When he was done, he sat back down is his chosen seat. Just like that illustration, the Father sent his Son to accomplish a task and when it was complete, he sat back down where he was before.

Hebrews 10:12-14 and Hebrews 12:1-2 also give account to Christ completing his work and sitting at the right hand of God.

Something interesting to note: there were no seats in the temple or tabernacles. The priest was to continually bring sacrifice after sacrifice, over and over again.

Next week, I will give an overview of the next passage of scripture, Hebrews 1:4-14, in which I will debunk the cult beliefs of the Jehovah Witnesses.

Study God's Word, it is living and active. Let it bring you to life and make you active.
Blake

Who is this Christ?

Hebrews starts like a Star Wars movie (ESV) with the words, "Long ago...God spoke to our fathers by prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also he created the world." God used the agent of his word to speak in the past to the patriarchs and the prophets. God moved one step closer to humanity after the fall by sending his Son as the Great Communicator. Jesus speaks to us today, on an individual basis. No more of the priests going on our behalf but now Jesus is our high priest who entered into the Holy of holiest not created by the hands of man but more sanctified than those.

God appointed him the heir of all things. Christ will supersede all creation when his task of redemption is complete. This has taken place. The Old Testament gives an account in Psalm 2:6-8 of God speaking about what he was going to do for His Son. Revelation 5 gives the account of the heir taking the will of the Father and opening it. No one can open the will (the future desires and requests) of God except God.

The next phrase explaining Christ says that God created the world through Him. The word in the ESV, "world" is better translated, "the ages". This encompasses not just the physical earth but the responsibility of creating time, space, energy and matter. This Christ, Jesus Christ; Jesus of Nazareth, is the agent, heir and sustainer of all things in this age and the age to come. What a concept to grasp. Bless you and I encourage you to study God's word. It is living and active and it is God-breathed.

Parents: This is a short snippet of the Bible study of April 7th. I hope to update on Wed. mornings so please look for this and read for yourself and study along with your students.

I will try to create a rating system to rate the depth or comprehension of the subject taught very soon, and note that at the top of each blog.

Blake

A New Beginning

Let me say this is my first time to blog. I'm excited about a new avenue in which to keep parents informed and students engrossed in the ministry of Lift Student Ministry (Farmstead Student Ministry). This will also be a place of my thoughts, studies and exerts from Bible studies. I hope you will find this helpful and will follow along as we follow Christ together.

God Bless,
Blake