how kingdoms and empires used to be. Even if they were fortunate enough to have a clear successor to the throne, the king or queen could be embroiled in war for decades trying to get the various parts of the empire under subjection. The average people on the street may not even know who the current king was—or even if there were one. All they would know is the chaos and confusion that keeps life in constant turmoil. Imagine them saying, “I thought King John was on the throne. Why are there still bandits on the road, crooked tax collectors always increasing rates, and the quality of life spiraling down. Who’s in charge?” The answer comes back, “King John is on the throne, but it takes time to get everything under control. Just wait until he comes again, then he’ll set everything right.”
Granted, it’s now been awhile. For the author of Hebrews, it possibly had only been a few decades. Just give it time, he could say. Now it’s been several millennia and, as a pastor, I am obligated to tell you, just keep holding on. Not yet, but soon you will see everything under subjection. It may not look like anyone’s in charge, but you need to look a little closer.
But it does look like Jesus is taking charge (2:9)
We don’t see everything in subjection, but we do see Jesus crowned with glory and honor. For about thirty years he was lower than angels, but now he has been exalted. Why was he exalted? Because he suffered in death. It was by God’s grace that Jesus would taste death for the benefit of everyone.
Imagine in our make-believe kingdom that the soon-to-be-King John has discovered a plot to overthrow the kingdom. Let’s say it’s suspected that someone has poisoned all the wine to be used at the inaugural ceremony the following day. If the people are allowed to drink the wine, they might all die. In an act of selfless bravery, King John himself tastes the wine. The next day he rises from bed unharmed, the wine is safe, the people are saved. After the ceremony, a man is returning home and is stopped along the way. The question is asked, “Who’s in charge?” The traveler replies, “King John.”
“How do you know,” asks the townsperson.
“Because I saw him crowned,” he responds.
What makes the difference between Christians committed to God and people who are without spiritual and religious commitment? They question, they blame, and sometimes they seek revenge. Why are we able, they might ask us, to live in peace and tranquility, to have love in our hearts, to experience joy, to worship and honor Almighty God, when all around us is tragedy, violence, and loss of life? Three words make the difference for us—or at least they should: We see Jesus. The circumstances of life are the same for us. We too are stunned by the destruction and loss of life that comes from a tsunami, a hurricane, or an earthquake. We too are disgusted by the many who die each day in a war nearly half-way around the world. We too are brought to tears when we hear of the astounding numbers who are dying in areas of Africa. We are able to live in peace and tranquility, to have love in our hearts, to experience joy, to worship and honor Almighty God, because . . . we see Jesus. Jesus has come to the throne. We don’t see everything in subjection yet, but we will.
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Who’s in charge? Scripture says it’s not the angels, in fact it doesn’t look like anyone is in charge, but it does look like Jesus is taking charge. One of my favorite series of books of all time has been The Chronicles of Narnia. I love the way C. S. Lewis portrayed Jesus as the lion Aslan in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. Under the rule of the white witch, it’s always winter and never spring. When her reign is broken and Aslan has come to power, the children first see Father Christmas. Then the snow begins to melt, the stream begins to flow again. The world begins to come alive. Aslan is coming!
How do you see the world? Do you see the world under the domination of evil? Or do you see the glimpses of life that bring hope? Do you see Jesus? Jesus on the throne at the right hand of God? Jesus crowned with glory and honor? The one who tasted death for you? It may not look like it at times, but God has set Jesus in charge and he is coming.
Jesus Helps His Siblings (2:10–18)
There are ways in which life is easier when you have an older sibling. Older siblings are good to have, because they experience life a few years before you do. Older siblings learn how to do things, and they can teach you, or you can learn from watching them. When you get in a predicament or someone is trying to hurt you, an older sibling might be able to stand up for you, help you, or protect you. You might be less fearful than you would have been otherwise. Sometimes older siblings even take the blame for you.
In chapter one of Hebrews, Jesus is described as one who is appointed to be God’s Son. These verses in Hebrews build on that theme in order to relate Jesus’ role as Son with his function as High Priest. We might think of this as Jesus being our big brother, for Hebrews shows how Jesus has led the way for his siblings. He is intimately acquainted with all the experiences that his siblings have. It’s because of this that Jesus can be the High Priest par excellence. Jesus, our big brother, is willing to have us for his siblings (2:10–13), he handles the biggest problems we face (2:14–16), and he is able to help us by putting everything right (2:17–18).
Our Big Brother Has Us for His Siblings (2:10–13)
According to Hebrews, God, the one who is in charge of this entire universe, wants to lead his children home to heaven. To do that, God chose Jesus to be the pioneer—the point person, the big brother—in this work of saving God’s children (2:10). Jesus had to grow up like anyone else, experience the temptations of life, suffer the same kind of pain we have to experience. God made Jesus into the perfect big brother, for he and we have the same Father. Jesus claims us as his brothers and sisters (2:11). The Old Testament quotations (Ps 22:22; Isa 8:17, 18) confirm for the author of Hebrews that Jesus chose us and willingly became our big brother (2:12–13).
The difference is, kids don’t usually have a choice who their siblings are. At the beginning of every school year, I hear my younger kids tell stories about a teacher who says, “Are you Emily’s sister,” or “Are you Lauren’s sister?” The way siblings feel about each other, they usually want to say, “No, we’re not related.” The teacher might not believe that there are two families with the last name of Seid in the same school and they are unrelated!
When God looked at us and saw what a problem we were, Jesus said, “That’s my kid brother; that’s my little sister.” Jesus acted the part of big brother to lead the way. He claimed you and me and went through life and death ahead of us, so that he could bring us home.
Our Big Brother Handles Our Biggest Problems (2:14–16)
The biggest problem we face in life is death. These bodies of flesh and blood are prone to disease and injury, they need constant care and nourishment, and they seem to demand all sorts of things that aren’t good for us. In order for Jesus to be our big brother, he had to share in the same human experience. If he had intended to be the leader of the angels, he wouldn’t have needed a body. But as an embodied and incarnate person, he was here to help humans. Jesus does battle with the biggest bully of the universe, the devil. The devil is depicted as having the power of death and humans are held captive to the fear of death. Jesus is to destroy the devil and set us free from the fear of death.
My brother was too much older than me to have been any help on the school playground. If you had a sibling only a few years older, you might have been able to tell bullies that your big brother or sister would stand up for you. My brother did help me out once, unknowingly. It was spring time and for some crazy reason I went out for cross country. We hit the road after school and ran out into the country. We were joking around and trying to make the best out of running miles in the cold and wet. We saw a car driving down a rode parallel to us. I thought I would be a tough guy for my friends, so I made an obscene gesture to the car. Everyone laughed and I got a little rep’ for being so bold. A few minutes later the car drove up to us, stopped, and several big guys got out. I was immediately identified as the one who—let’s be honest—flipped them off. Under that pressure, I became the world’s greatest actor and liar. I made up a story about how I thought it was my brother, that he drove a car exactly like that. I convinced them that I wouldn’t make that gesture to people I didn’t know. I was so calm and acted so