Jesus Christ Is the Only Savior

Hebrews 1:1-14

To whom do you look to save you? Parents look to good schools or tutors to deliver their children from mediocre grades. Troubled spouses save their marriage by having children. The terminally ill look to miracle cures to deliver them from sickness. The dissatisfied look to attractions to excite them. We look to many things for salvation and comfort. But there’s only one savior and comforter - the Lord Jesus Christ.

The book of Hebrews was written to a group of Jewish Christians living in Rome. They were facing intense persecution. Rome was okay with Jews, but not Christians. Their fellow Jews also persecuted them. That’s why some thought they should return to Judaism. To them, they’d still worship the only living and true God. But they’d no longer be persecuted. But this letter told them that they couldn’t abandon Jesus or trade him for a better life; Christ is the only savior! But these Jews still thought they had other heroes - they had Moses and the prophets. They still had the law of God - given by Moses and angels. But the author told them that Jesus is the only savior. If you don’t have Jesus, you can’t be saved. And if you abandon Jesus, you’re still in your sins. He said this in 2 ways - Firstly, Jesus is better than all others. Secondly, he’s better because he’s a divine savior king.

Firstly, Jesus is better than all others. Verse 1 - “God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets.” He’s better than the prophets. In the past, God communicated his will to the prophets. He spoke to Adam in the cool of the morning, Moses from the burning bush, and Joseph had dreams. In turn the prophets spoke to the people. Moses wrote the law, David the Psalms, Isaiah wrote his prophecy. They taught the people how to be saved. Moses taught that they needed sacrifice. David taught they needed a perfect king. Isaiah said this king will suffer for sins. As great as the prophets were, Jesus was better.

Verse 2 says, “Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son.” Whereas God spoke to their fathers through prophets, he spoke now through his Son. In our Bibles, the word “his” is in italics, meaning it isn’t there in the original. Literally, it is “hath in these last days spoken unto us by Son.” This way of phrasing stresses the nature of the word Son. I call my mother “Mom” - I don’t call your mother “Mom.” Mom is special to me. Hence, by saying it this way, it shows how this Son is different. Compared to all others, compared to the prophets, he’s special. Their fathers had the prophets, Christians have Son. Prophets were ordinary men, Jesus was extraordinary. They’ve died, Jesus lives. They were only men, Jesus is Son of God. The prophets taught how to be saved; Jesus is Savior.

In Matthew 17, when Jesus took 3 disciples to a mountain, he gloriously transfigured. There, he spoke to Moses and Elijah. Peter was impressed! “My Master’s in the company of great men! Moses - the one who gave the law! Elijah - the one who taught other prophets! Wow! Jesus was as great as the other two!” Peter wanted 3 tents be built. It was good to stay there. But God spoke from a bright cloud - “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him.” Listen to him. Yes, Moses was a great deliverer - he saved Israel from Egypt. Yes, Elijah destroyed the Baal prophets. But Jesus was better. He was not another prophet, he was God’s beloved Son. That’s why they were to listen to him. You see, the prophets gave God’s promises of salvation but Jesus fulfilled those promises. 2 Corinthians 1:20 says, “For all the promises of God in Jesus are yea, and in him Amen.” Moses, Elijah, and all the other Jewish prophets are nothing in comparison to Christ. That’s why Jewish Christians could not give up Christ without giving up their salvation. They had thought they could look to Moses and the prophets. Just offer atonement in the temple according to Moses and I’ll be okay. Wrong. If you don’t look to Jesus alone, you have no salvation. Question 29 says salvation is not to be sought or found in anyone else. In the Medieval church, the people looked to saints for their salvation and well-being. But question 30 says that if you do this, you’re basically saying that Christ’s not a complete savior. And that’s what the Jews were saying - Christ was not the only savior.

And not only did they look to prophets, they looked to angel. But Jesus was better than the angels. Verse 4 - “Being made so much better than the angels, as he hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they.” Why did the writer have to say this? Because in the Jewish mind, angels were very great and important. They were involved in communicating with God’s people. Abraham, Jacob, Elijah, Daniel, Philip all came face to face with angels. At Mount Sinai, the angels were there when the law was given. But Jesus was better than angels. Verse 3 says that after Jesus did the work of salvation, he sat on God’s right hand and verse 4, he received a title far better than the angels. It says the same in Ephesians 1:20-22, “…when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, (these are the ranks of angels) and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come: and hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church.” What name or title was this? Verse 5 says, “For unto which of the angels said he at any time, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee” quoting Psalm 2. He’s Son, they are angels. Verse 7 God describes his angels as servants like wind and fire, quoting Psalm 104. But Jesus is Son. He’s better than the prophets and all the angels.

Why is he better? Secondly, he’s better because he’s the supreme Savior. There are 5 main reasons why Jesus is better - and why he’s the only savior - and why we can’t look to any other. From verses 2-14, we see that he’s heir, creator, God, sacrifice, and king. Each of these plays a part to show how there can be no other savior. Firstly, he’s heir. We’ve seen that compared to the prophets and angels, he’s Son. But the word that’s used in verses 2 and 4 is heir. Christ is appointed heir over all things. He has inherited a far better name than the angels. As Son, he owns all things. In fact, all things exist for him. Colossians 1:16 tells us that “all things were created by him, and for him.” We thank God for the beauty of nature - but God did not mean it for us but for Christ primarily. That blade of leaf and northern lights - not for you, but for him. He’s heir of all things. And we see how much of an heir he was. When he entered into heaven after completing his work, the angels sang. At creation, when God created the stars, galaxies, and nebulas, the angels sang. They also sang at the birth of Christ, before the shepherds - glory to God in the highest, peace, goodwill to men. What an amazing sight! But it was more phenomenal when he returned to heaven. Verses 6-7 - “And again, when he bringeth in the firstbegotten into the world, he saith, And let all the angels of God worship him. And of the angels he saith, Who maketh his angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire.” When Jesus entered heaven, the angels sang. The word “world” here doesn’t mean earth (cosmos) but the whole inhabited domain of the universe (oikoumene). He’s the firstborn - meaning, the heir of heaven. That’s why ALL the angels worship him. The Bible speaks of trillions of angels. None missed worship. Why? The heir of heaven was back. This would’ve reminded the Christians in Rome that they belonged to Jesus, as do we! Why would we ever seek salvation in any other when he’s heir of all things?

Secondly, he’s creator. Verse 2 says God made the worlds through Christ. Verse 10 says, “the heavens are the works of thine hands.” He’s heir because he’s creator. Yes, he created the stars, but he also created dust. And he did this all by speaking. The prophets never created anything by speaking. And this reminded the Jewish Christians that their life, time, money, children - all were created by him. So if they turned from Jesus, they were turning away from the one who gave them life. It’s the same with us - if we turn our children’s heart by emphasizing the creation more than the creator - then we’re turning them away from the only salvation there is. And if Christ created the world, it’s not hard for him to create a clean heart in us and fill us with spiritual pleasures. But as creator, he does 2 things.

He sustains and destroys. Just as he created the world with his voice, verse 3 says he “upholds all things by the word of his power.” Jesus sustains the universe. The sun’s temperature is 12,000 degrees. If we were closer, we’d burn up, and any further away, we’d freeze. If the earth didn’t have its tilt, there’d be continents of ice at each pole. If the moon were any closer, the earth would be flooded twice daily. If the ocean floors were any lower, the oxygen and CO2 imbalance would suffocate us. Why does God sustain? To give time for people to repent. But there will be time when he’ll destroy. This creation is slowly deteriorating. Verses 11-12 say, “They shall perish; but thou remainest; and they all shall wax old as doth a garment; And as a vesture shalt thou fold them up, and they shall be changed: but thou art the same, and thy years shall not fail.” Everything we see will be destroyed - like an old tattered rag will be rolled up and thrown away. Jesus said that heaven and earth shall pass away. Why? Because he will remake all things again for himself and his people. If you're not part of his people, you will not be in that new heavens and earth.

Thirdly, he’s God himself. Yes, he’s the son of God, he’s heir of all things, creator and sustainer. But he’s God himself. Verse 3 says, “who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person.” He’s the visible glory of God. These Jewish Christians understood this - they learned it growing up. God manifested his glory to Moses in the burning bush, he showed it every night as the fiery pillar rested in the tabernacle; but his full glory could not be seen - God told Moses he’d perish. But God revealed his glory in Christ. John 1:14 says, “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.” The full visible glory of God is seen in Christ. The disciples caught a glimpse at his Transfiguration and they fell down and worshiped. Saul encountered Christ and was struck blind. When Jesus revealed himself to John, at Patmos, John was petrified. Why were the Jewish Christians so enamored with Moses and the angels? Why are so many professing Christians obsessed with saints? In fact, why’s there so much idolatry in Reformed Christianity as well? Theologians and pastors are only men. Why settle for the glories here when Christ is God’s full glory? He’s also the express image or exact representation of God. In ancient times, a king would seal his commands with his signet ring - whatever image was on the ring, would be imprinted on the molten wax. It was an exact image. When we see Jesus, we see God’s very nature. If you want God, you must have Jesus. You can’t go through the saints, pastors, priests, etc. And that tells us something - Jews who worship God today, are not worshiping the living and true God, because they reject Jesus. Colossians 2:9 says, “For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.”

Fourthly, he’s our sacrifice. Verse 3 says, “when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down…” Jesus purges sinners of their sins. Sin defiles us. It makes us filthy in God’s eyes. When Uzzah took hold of the ark so it wouldn’t fall to the ground, he forgot his hands were filthier than the ground. We can’t put our hands on God without atonement from sin. God had instituted an elaborate system of sacrifice in the Old Testament temple. No sacrifice? No atonement. And the priests worked tirelessly to make atonement. And looking at the furniture of the temple, with all the lampstands, incense altars, tables of bread, etc, and knowing the priests’ busy schedules, one furniture was absent. There was no chair. Why? The work of atonement was not complete. Priests could not rest! Only at the cross could Jesus, the Great High Priest, shout - “It is finished!” and for the first time in history, a priest was able to sit down. That’s why we don’t need anymore sacrifices. Christ’s work is complete. If we say we need saints, if we think our righteousness depended on our morality and spiritual disciplines, and if we say our standing before God depended on our church attendance, then according to question 30, we deny the only Savior. We don’t think he’s a complete Savior.

But he must be, because fifthly, he is also king. Verse 3 says that after he did the work of atonement, he “sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high.” The right hand of God is a place of honor. He is God’s regent - the king that God appointed. There, all the angels worship him. We see in verse 7 - “And of the angels he saith, Who maketh his angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire.” The angels are spirit, and the angels are ministers - servants. But what is the son? Verse 8 says, “But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom.” God called the angels servants. God called the son a king - thy throne O God is forever. The fact that God said this to him means that Jesus is not the most significant prophet, king, or angel, but he’s a divine king. The one who bled for you is almighty God. His purity exceeds your depravity. You know, when Satan reminds you of your already repented of sins, Jesus reminds you that he has forgiven them completely and forever. His throne is forever and ever. Christ will never be overthrown so his conquering of sin will be forever. He’s given believers righteousness and will reign forever. And he will rule with righteousness. Verse 8 says he has a scepter of righteousness. And verse 9 - “Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity.” The scepter was a symbol of power - it could execute judgment or mercy. But because Christ loved righteousness and kept all the law for us, we are free from the condemnation of the law. By his scepter he shows mercy. And that’s why he’s filled with joy. Verse 9 - “therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows.” He is joyful because he has accomplished salvation for his people

But because he hates iniquity, all those who have him not as savior and king, by his scepter, he will judge. He will mete out justice against unrighteousness. Spurgeon says, “In heaven above, and on the earth beneath, and in the waters under the earth, and on every star, he is supreme Lord and Master; and they that will not yield to him shall be broken with a rod of iron, he shall dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.” You see, either you submit to Christ as the Son of God, the heir of all things, your creator and sustainer, the Divine glorious God who saves and atones and now rules over you willingly and lovingly for what he has done for you, or you reject him as insufficient. There’s no middle ground. And when you do, you will never be a worshiper who bows down willingly. You will be a footstool. Verse 13 - “But to which of the angels said he at any time, Sit on my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool?” His believers will reign with him, but his enemies will be conquered by him. It was an ancient military practice for a defeated king to lie down prostrate at the feet of his conqueror and to kiss the feet. The conqueror would then place his feet on the neck of the one conquered - the enemy becomes a footstool. All of Christ’s enemies will be subject to him, and he will rule over them all. Every created being will bow to him, if not willingly on earth, they will become a footstool for his feet forever.

Jesus is your king, if you profess him. You can’t have it both ways - you can’t have Jesus as your purification and not have him as your king. No other thing saves. No saint, tutor, school, career, partner, children, leisure - nothing will give you salvation and comfort. In what ways, have you sought to run away from Christ? What is so great, so valuable, so important, and so utterly significant, that a person would readily trade Jesus Christ to possess it? There is nothing! Why then have you sought to resist him? Why would you even do that? Christ is God’s better revelation, God’s better way, God’s only way to satisfaction and abundant life now. He’s your savior and only comfort. This is God’s Word to you today.