Jesus, Exalted Over All

For anyone in need of a fresh lift of hope and a boost of encouragement in times of trouble, the New Testament book of Hebrews delivers that and so much more.

Into the dryness of the human heart, the writer of this powerful letter declares with certainty that the ultimate hope and final word from God to you and to this world is found in Jesus Christ.

Yet, Jesus offers so much more than simply the mere spoken Word of God! He has been appointed by God the Father as the “heir of all things” (v. 2). Everything created, known and unknown, visible and invisible: all things in the seen and unseen universe, belong to Jesus, God’s Son, the final Word. And not only does everything in the universe belong to Jesus, but everything was also created by Him, for Him, and through Him.

The Old Testament reveals to us that God gave to Adam, the first human, dominion over all of creation (Genesis 1:26). But Adam was no mere gardener or caretaker of rose gardens and vineyards. God gave Adamdominion, which has to do with rulership. God placed all creation under his care and rule. Initially, Adam ruled over creation with immense power and likely supernatural abilities. Yet, he lost all of that when he rebelled against God. When sin entered Adam’s heart, he relinquished his God-ordained dominion over the earth.

When the Lord Jesus came to this earth, He became a man. He performed miracles in every realm. He ruled over the afflictions of the human body. He had control of nature—He calmed storms, and He fed countless hungry people. He recovered what Adam had lost. The Lord Jesus exists as the ultimateheirof all things. Ultimately, Jesus Christ is the One who inherits everything in all of creation. No prophet in the Old Testament was ever promised anything like that. Jesus Christ is superior to everything and everyone God ever used to reveal His plans and purposes for the world.

Jesus not only rules over the world and the entire universe...He created all of it. In fact, that creation extends not only to the physical world and all things seen and unseen but also to the ages. Jesus’ creative power means He ordains and governs the unfolding of all human endeavors, activities, seasons, as well as all times past, present, and into the eternal future. He not only made the world, but He also made the ages to come and holds in His power the purposes for everything.

Feeling like your life has no purpose? You, more than ever, need the truth found in this wonderful book. God, in Jesus, has a program and purpose in everything—especially for your life.

Just as surely as the sun rises to open your day and the moon sparkles above to close your evening, Jesus faithfully and graciously watches over your life. Think you are living in some mad, out-of-control, unpredictable universe? Think again. Everything belongs to Jesus. And He holds all things perfectly in place “by the word of His power” (v. 3). And that includes your life, too. He is speaking. Are you listening?

Next: Learn more about the majesty and deity of Jesus, God’s Son.

1. Why do you think God changed from speaking to the world through prophets and preachers, to speaking through His Son?

2. What does it tell us about God that He doesn’t keep His character a secret, but that He reveals Himself to us?

3. How should the knowledge that God’s Word was written by an incredibly diverse group of real people with real problems, just like all of us, change your attitude toward the words God inspired them to write?

4. The writer of Hebrews wants us to know that Jesus didn’t just tell us about God; He showed us God in the flesh. How should this change in God’s methodology change our willingness to obey Him?

5. If you truly believed that everything in the universe belonged to Jesus, what would you ask Him for in prayer?

6. All of God’s creation was for a purpose. What do you think were some of God’s purposes in creating you?

7. Imagine God had consulted you before He began his work of creation. What would you have asked Him to do differently? How do even the parts of creation we don’t like or understand (sickness, mosquitos, earthquakes, etc.) show us something about God?