Sermon: Why the Son of God was Incarnate Hebrews 2:14-18
Why the Son of God was Incarnate
Hebrews 2:14-18
Truth Taught- Jesus partook of flesh and blood to deliver us from lifelong slavery
Introduction
Jesus Christ, the Son of God is both God and man. He is eternal God with no beginning and no end. Jesus, the Son of God has always been and always will be.
Nicene Creed 325AD
And in one Lord Jesus Christ,
the only Son of God,
begotten from the Father before all ages,
God from God,
Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made;
of the same essence as the Father.
Through him all things were made.
For us and for our salvation
he came down from heaven;
he became incarnate by the Holy Spirit and the virgin Mary,
and was made human.
He was crucified for us under Pontius Pilate;
he suffered and was buried.
The third day he rose again, according to the Scriptures.
He ascended to heaven
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again with glory
to judge the living and the dead.
His kingdom will never end.
The Son of God has always been. The Son of God took on flesh and was born of the Virgin Mary.
Hebrews 2:10–18 (ESV)
10 For it was fitting that he, for whom and by whom all things exist, in bringing many sons to glory, should make the founder of their salvation perfect through suffering. 11 For he who sanctifies and those who are sanctified all have one source. That is why he is not ashamed to call them brothers, 12 saying,
“I will tell of your name to my brothers;
in the midst of the congregation I will sing your praise.”
13 And again,
“I will put my trust in him.”
And again,
“Behold, I and the children God has given me.”
14 Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, 15 and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery. 16 For surely it is not angels that he helps, but he helps the offspring of Abraham. 17 Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. 18 For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.
1. Jesus Christ, Divine in Every Way, is Not Ashamed to Call Us Brothers and Sisters
10 For it was fitting that he, for whom and by whom all things exist, in bringing many sons to glory, should make the founder of their salvation perfect through suffering. 11 For he who sanctifies and those who are sanctified all have one source. That is why he is not ashamed to call them brothers, 12 saying,
“I will tell of your name to my brothers;
in the midst of the congregation I will sing your praise.”
13 And again,
“I will put my trust in him.”
And again,
“Behold, I and the children God has given me.”
God, the Son is not ashamed to call us brothers and sisters because our salvation brings glory to the Father. He is not ashamed because He took up our humanity that we might see and share in His glory. He is not ashamed because we are His given to Him by the Father.
These truths are so profound, that the writer of Hebrews quotes three OT passages as a means of prophetic proof texts to show us this is a fact and has always been in the mind of God.
The first quotation comes from the Psalm we have looked at for two weeks already and so we will see what the suffering and death of Jesus accomplished for His people…those whom He’s not ashamed and those who are slated to be His brothers and sisters…
Psalm 22:22 (ESV)
22 I will tell of your name to my brothers;
in the midst of the congregation I will praise you:
After the cross and Jesus’ death, this Psalm keeps going. Through it, God promises His Son who is dying on the cross that after His suffering is over there will be untold peoples, families and nations that will be brought to the Father through the suffering of the Son.
Psalm 22:27–28 (ESV)
27 All the ends of the earth shall remember
and turn to the Lord,
and all the families of the nations
shall worship before you.
28 For kingship belongs to the Lord,
and he rules over the nations.
Next the writer of Hebrews quotes two passages from Isaiah.
13 And again,
“I will put my trust in him.”
And again,
“Behold, I and the children God has given me.”
Isaiah 8:17–18 (ESV)
17 I will wait for the Lord, who is hiding his face from the house of Jacob, and I will hope in him. 18 Behold, I and the children whom the Lord has given me are signs and portents in Israel from the Lord of hosts, who dwells on Mount Zion.
Much like Psalm 22 that promises Jesus a people these verses in Isaiah are promising the Prophet Isaiah a future people who will listen to the Word of God. Listen beloved, we are those people.
Because the Son of God died, God will give to Him a people who will follow, obey and believe. Therefore, our Lord is not ashamed to call us His brothers and sisters.
2. Jesus Christ, Divine in Every Way, Partook of Flesh and Blood
14 Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, 15 and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery. 16 For surely it is not angels that he helps, but he helps the offspring of Abraham. 17 Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. 18 For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.
This passage tells us why Jesus, the Divine Son of God had to be born. It tells us why the Son, God of very God, begotten not made had to take on humanity. Hebrews highlights that through death our Savior would accomplish glorious things for us. When God becomes man, He accomplishes the four things mentioned here in this wonderful passage…
A. Through His death, the Son of God destroys the one who has the power over death, the Devil
that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil,
Not only did the death of Christ save but the death of Christ also destroyed. The power of Satan has been destroyed. He no longer has the power he once had. For God’s people, Satan is like a chained dog who may bark a lot but has no power over us any longer. The death of Jesus destroyed the power of the Devil.
B. Through His death, the Son of God delivers those who were slaves.
15 and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery.
This sounds so much like the Exodus miracle where God delivers the Israelites from slavery in Egypt. Here, the death of the Son of God delivers all of God’s people from slavery to the Devil and slavery to sin.
Why did Jesus come into the world? Why was He born in Bethlehem to Mary? Why were there wise men and shepherds worshipping Him? He was born into the world to die in order to overthrow Satan’s dominion and set His people free.
Since the fall of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden mankind has been subject to death and dying. This is one of the devil’s greatest weapons he uses against us. People will often do anything to keep from dying. They will commit great sins to ward off death. Satan has often controlled humanity with this fear. However, in Christ what does the Bible say, we fall asleep. The sting of death for God’s people has been removed. Oh we still die but that’s when life gets really good. We do have people we love here on earth but I pray none of us are afraid to die. The thought of death brings most anxiety. Just about everything we do is to direct our attention away from the fact that we will all someday die. Death is not only an event that awaits us but a power that rules over us. Our frenzied efforts to keep our minds thinking of other things rob us of peace and contentment.
One author tells us that death is the rod of Satan’s rule. When Jesus died on the cross, He removed Satan’s rod of power that he held over us.
2 Timothy 1:10 (ESV)
10 and which now has been manifested through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel,
C. Through His death, He serves as our faithful high priest
17 Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people.
Jesus became a man to die for our sin and so free us to live for God. He is our wonderful and faithful High Priest. Jesus’ sacrificial death actually takes away our sin because our sins have been paid for.
As our High Priest, Jesus bears us to God in our righteous state. Like the earthly high priest had the names of the twelve tribes sewn unto his garment so he carried the name of the people to God. Jesus brings us to God and also represents God to us being fully God Himself.
D. Through His Suffering, He is Able to Help Us
18 For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.
Jesus became like us to be suitable to help us. He knows what it’s like to live as a man in our sinful world. He knows what weakness feels like. Our High Priest has real sympathy when we are tempted because He has lived in our sinful world.
Conclusion
Jesus was made like us to be for us and He is not ashamed to be with us and to save us. His work to destroy the works of the devil and to deliver us from a lifetime of fear and sin by dying our death for us to be a propitiation, He serves as our High Priest whose sacrifice actually removes sin and because He has experienced life in our sinful world as a man, He has real sympathy and can help us in our struggle with sin.
Resources Used:
Hebrews by Richard Phillips
