THE
SON IS THE RADIANCE OF GOD’S GLORY
Introduction: Let me share a story of a wealthy man and
his son, who loved to collect rare works of art. They had everything in their
collection, from Picasso to Raphael. They would often sit together and admire
the great works of art. When the Viet Nam conflict broke out, the son went to
war. He was very courageous and died in battle while rescuing another soldier.
The father was notified and grieved deeply for his only son.
About
a month later, just before Christmas, there was a knock at the door. A young man stood at the door with a large
package in his hands. He said, “Sir, you don’t know me, but I am the soldier
for whom your son gave his life. He
saved many lives that day, and he was carrying me to safety when a bullet
struck him in the heart, and he died instantly. He often talked about you and
your love for art.
The
young man held out his package. “I know this isn’t much. I’m not a great
artist, but I think your son would have wanted you to have this.” The father
opened the package. It was a portrait of his son, painted by the young man. He
stared in awe at the way the soldier had captured the personality of his son in
the painting. The father was so drawn to the eyes that his own eyes welled up
with tears. He thanked the young man and offered to pay him for the picture. “Oh, no, Sir, I could never repay what your
son did for me. It’s a gift. “The father hung the portrait over his mantle.
Every time visitors came to his home; he took them to see the portrait of his
son before he showed them any of the other great works he had collected.
The
man died a few months later. There was to be a great auction of his paintings.
Many influential people gathered, excited over seeing the great paintings and
having an opportunity to purchase one for their collection. On the platform sat
the painting of the son. The auctioneer pounded his gavel. “We will start the
bidding with this picture of the son.
Who
will bid for this picture?” There was silence. Then a voice in the back of the
room shouted. “We want to see famous paintings. Skip this one.” But the
auctioneer persisted. “Will someone bid for this painting? Who will start the
bidding? $100, $200?” Another voice shouted angrily. “We didn’t come to see
this painting. We came to see the Van Goghs, the Rembrandts. Get on with the
real bids!” But still, the auctioneer continued.
“The
son! The son! Who’ll take the son?” Finally,
a frail voice came from the very back of the room. It was the longtime gardener of the man and
his son. “I’ll give $10 for the painting.” Being a poor man, it was all he
could afford. “We have $10, who will bid $20?” “Give it to him for $10. Let’s
see the masters.” “$10 is the bid, won’t someone bid $20?”
The
crowd was becoming angry, and they didn’t want the picture of the son. They
wanted the more worthy investments for their collections. The auctioneer
pounded the gavel. “Going once, twice, SOLD for $10!” A man
sitting on the second row shouted. “Now, let’s get on with the collection!” The
auctioneer laid down his gavel. “I’m sorry, the auction is over.” “What about
the paintings?” “I am sorry. When I was called to conduct this auction, I was
told of a secret stipulation in the will. I was not allowed to reveal that
stipulation until this time. Only the painting of the son would be auctioned.
Whoever bought that painting would inherit the entire estate, including the
paintings. The man who took the son gets everything!”[1]
It
is so often like the crowd in the illustration we make wrong calculations and
miss out on the very things that have eternal value. In our three-part series
on “The Son,” today, we will look at how the Son radiates the glory of God, and
in Him we have everything.
God
sent His Son, over 2,000 years ago, much the like the auctioneer His message
today is, “The Son, the Son, who’ll take the Son?” Because you see, “Whoever
Gets the Son Gets Everything.” Let’s
read our text together, Hebrews 1:2-4, 2. “And now in these final days,
he has spoken to us through his Son. God promised everything to the Son as an
inheritance, and through the Son, he created the universe.
3.
The Son radiates God’s own glory and expresses the very character
of God, and he sustains everything by the mighty power of his command. When he
had cleansed us from our sins, he sat down in the place of honor at the right
hand of the majestic God in heaven. 4. This shows that the Son is far
greater than the angels, just as the name God gave him is greater than their
names.” Let’s unpack the rich theology that is tucked in these two verses.
I. JESUS IS THE
RADIANCE OF GOD’S GLORY
Vs.
3, “The Son radiates God’s own glory and expresses the very character of God (“the
exact representation” NIV the exact imprint ESV), and he sustains everything by
the mighty power of his command. When he had cleansed us from our sins, he sat
down in the place of honor at the right hand of the majestic God in heaven.”
In
this verse, the author highlights the divine nature of God’s Son. The Greek
word used for “Radiance” here occurs only once in the N.T, referring to the
person of Jesus Christ, meaning light or splendor emitted from a shining body.
Jesus the Son radiates or shines forth God’s glory. As the brilliance of the sun is inseparable from the sun itself, so
is Son’s radiance is inseparable from God as He himself is God. Consider these
scriptures to a better understanding of this concept, Jesus being the Radiance
of God’s glory. John 1: 4-5, “The Word gave life to everything that was
created, and his life brought light to everyone.
The
light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it.” Vs.
14-18, “So the Word became human and made his home among us. He was full of
unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen his glory, the glory of the father’s
one and only Son.
Vs.
18, “No one has ever seen God. But the unique one, who is himself, God, is near
to the father’s heart. He has revealed God to us.” If it were not for Jesus, we
would not know who God is, his nature, and plans for humanity. The Son radiates
the character and the glory of God. Only through the Son, may we come to know
and see God and by no other means.
This
is how Jesus explained to Philip. John 14:8-10, Philip said, “Lord, show us the
Father, and we will be satisfied.” Jesus replied, “Have I been with you all
this time, Philip, and yet you still don’t know who I am? Anyone who has seen
me has seen the father! So why are you asking me to show him to you? Don’t you
believe that I am in the father and the father is in me? The words I speak are
not my own, but my father, who lives in me, does his work through me.”
Jesus
claimed to be God by saying to Philip if you have seen me, you have seen God
because the father and I are one. In the end, these claims got him into trouble
with the Pharisees. John 10:31-33, “Once again the people picked up stones to
kill him. Jesus said, “At my Father’s direction, I have done many good works.
For which one are you going to stone me?”
They
replied, “We’re stoning you not for any good work, but for blasphemy! You, a
mere man, claim to be God.” Many days later, Jesus was brought before the
council and was wrongly convicted. The high priest said, “I demand in the name
of the living God—tell us if you are the Messiah, the Son of God.” Jesus
replied, “you have said it.” Matthew 26:63-64
It was construed as blasphemy. Even
today, many Jews and Muslims reject that claim saying that God could not have
children. In Islamic countries, blasphemy carries the death penalty.
I
could go on with scripture after scripture, trying to prove to you that Jesus
Christ, the Son, was the radiance of God’s glory. But if you determine not to
believe in the end, you will be the biggest loser. But for all those who
believe in the truth that Jesus the Son radiates God’s glory, you will stand to
gain everything. God not only created everything in the world through and for
the Son but also entrusted everything to the Son. What does this mean for us
today?
II. WHOEVER GETS
THE SON GETS EVERYTHING
Vs.
2-3, “And now in these final days, he has spoken to us through his Son. God
promised everything to the Son as an inheritance, and through the Son, he
created the universe…and he sustains everything by the mighty power of his
command.” In the ESV, it reads, “and he upholds the universe by the word of his
power.”
The
author cleverly employed these two scriptures to affirm one popular Jewish
belief and debunk another Greek mythological understanding of who holds the
world together. The Jews of ancient times were used to sing how this beautiful
world was made and sustained. Psalm
33:6-7, “The Lord merely spoke, and the heavens were created. He breathed the
word, and all the stars were born. He assigned the sea its boundaries and
locked the oceans in vast reservoirs.” In their minds, they were certain that
God spoke and everything was created.
According
to Greek mythology, “Atlas one of the Titans held the world upon his shoulders.
The writer of the Hebrews debunks this mythology by saying, it is the Son who
upholds the universe by the word of his power. So, it is not Atlas, but Jesus
Christ, the Son who holds and inherits everything in the universe together by
His powerful words.
You
may be saying this is all great. But what this have to do with me during this
COVID-19? I am laid off from work and struggling to manage financially. Can God
help me find a Job? Can I trust Him with my future? I am tested positive with
COVID, can Jesus the Son heal me?
Can
I entrust all my problems to Him today? The answer to all these and whatever
questions you might have regarding your life’s concerns is Yes. You can and
must trust and entrust all your problems to Jesus because He cares for you. The
truth of this message is that “Everything is in the Son,” which means the
provision, healing, guidance, forgiveness of sins, and the assurance of
salvation. If you take hold of the Son, you will inherit all things in Him.
In
Proverbs 8, we read about the wisdom’s call. Wisdom in this chapter is no one else
but Jesus Christ the Son. The Apostle Paul in I Cor 1:30 emphasizes the fact
that Christ is our wisdom. Hear the wise words coming out of the mouth of
Jesus, the Son
Proverbs
8:33-36Listen to my instruction and be wise. Don’t ignore it. Joyful are those
who listen to me, watching for me daily at my gates, waiting for me outside my
home! For whoever finds me finds life and receives favor from the Lord. But
those who miss me injure themselves. All who hate me love death.” Oh, what
powerful and life-giving words?
These
words of the Son, many during His time on earth, did not understand and
believe. “But to all who believed him
and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God.” John 1:12. The
Apostle Paul goes one step further and says in Romans 8:17, “And since we are
his children, we are his heirs. In fact, together with Christ, we are heirs of
God’s glory. But if we are to share his glory, we must also share his
suffering.” We have covered a lot of facts today.
In
closing, Jesus the Son is the radiance of God’s glory. In Him, we inherit
everything not only in this life but eternal life in the life to come.
Therefore God, by the power of His Holy Spirit, is crying out and witnessing
with our spirit saying, The Son, The Son! Whoever gets the Son will get
everything. The Son himself is saying to us, “The one having the Son has life;
the one not having the Son of God does not have life.” I John 5:12. My appeal
to you is that if you heard God’s voice today, don’t delay, get the Son, and
you will get all things in Him. Amen!
