Hebrews #04: an exposition of Hebrews 2:5-9. This message by Pastor Rod Harris was delivered at Trinity Baptist Church on Sunday morning, April 27, 2014.
Intro:
They are haunting words from the English poet Shelley as he described the sad remains of a once great empire:
I met a traveller from an antique land
Who said: Two vast and trunkless legs of stone
Stand in the desert. Near them on the sand,
Half sunk, a shatter’d visage lies, whose frown
And wrinkled lip and sneer of cold command
Tell that its sculptor well those passions read
Which yet survive, stamp’d on these lifeless things,
The hand that mock’d them and the heart that fed.
And on the pedestal these words appear:
“My name is Ozymandias, king of kings:
Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!”
Nothing beside remains. Round the decay
Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare,
The lone and level sands stretch far away.
Shelly mocks the pride of man as he speaks of the fleeting glory of earthly kingdoms. Ozymandias was another name for Ramesses the Great, Pharaoh of Egypt, his statue boasting of the greatness of his kingdom now buried in the desert sands. So it is with all earthly kingdoms. They come and go. They rise and fall. They are like the mist that appears today and is gone tomorrow. Such is the fading glory of this world. Yet we lust for it. We strive for position, power, prestige and recognition. Oh you may not have the grand illusions of an Egyptian Pharaoh but there is the longing to be recognized. To be somebody, if not in the eyes of the world, at least to someone! There is the longing, the need to be prized or valued. No one seeks an anonymous existence. We all want to know that we matter to someone. That our life has meaning. We want to know that there is a purpose for our existence. It is not wrong to desire these things. The question is, “Where will you find it?”
You’ll not find it in that promotion at work. Contrary to that ad you saw a new car won’t do it either. Neither will a house, children or even your spouse. The secret to real, lasting, meaningful worth and significance comes from a much greater source.
They had been disowned by their family and friends. They were outlawed by the state. Religious and social outcasts they felt abandoned, isolated and alone. Some had left their new found faith. Others were on the verge of walking away. The writer of Hebrews is pleading with them to continue in the faith. Our text this morning is found in Hebrews chapter 2.
Text: Hebrews 2:5-9
It has been suggested that the role of the preacher is to comfort the afflicted and to afflict the comfortable. There is some truth to that. In fact the writer of Hebrews seems to have taken that proverb to heart. Throughout the book there are words of comfort and encouragement along with sharp rebukes and warnings. Both are pastoral. Both are born out of love for the flock. In the opening words of chapter 2 the writer warns of the danger of spiritual neglect. “We must pay much closer attention to what we’ve heard lest we drift away from it.” Now the writer seeks to encourage and bolster their sagging faith.
As we work our way through this passage we are reminded that…
Thesis: “Genuine worth, value and significance are found in God’s intent and design for His people secured for us in the person of the Lord Jesus.”
Where are you going to find meaning? In Christ.
Where will you find worth and personal value? In Christ.
Who is it that gives your life significance? Christ.
There are three things I want to point out in our text.
- God’s original intent for us is overwhelmingly grand. (2:5-8a)
- That intent became corrupted by our sinful rebellion. (2:8b)
- God’s original intent is restored and secured by Christ’s obedience. (2:9)