Commentary
by Walter Albritton
We May Be
Saved Because Jesus Shared Our Humanity
Hebrews 2:5-18
Key Verse: For
this reason he had to be made like his brothers in every way, in order that he
might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he
might make atonement for the sins of the people. – Hebrews 2:17
As children we
learn that Jesus is our shepherd and friend. Then as we grow older, we learn
that he is, in fact, much more than our gentle, caring friend. He is indeed the
King of this world and the world to come. When Christ returns, all things will
be subject to him because God has decreed it.
Faith remains
in the kindergarten stage for adults who think of Jesus as a kind friend but
refuse to acknowledge him as the King of the world. When Jesus is simply a
“buddy” or a “co-pilot” who condones our sinful ways, then all we have is a
counterfeit Jesus fashioned by our own cleverness. Such a Jesus bears little
resemblance to the New Testament Jesus. Moreover, such a Jesus cannot save us
from our sins.
There is an
awesome majesty about the Jesus described by the writer of Hebrews. Even the
mighty angels will be subject to the authority of Jesus even though God made
Jesus “a little lower than the angels” when he became a man. Jesus shared our
humanity as part of God’s great plan to provide for our salvation. God allowed
him to suffer death to atone for our sins and deliver us from the paralyzing
fear of death.
As a man, Jesus
was tempted by Satan to sin in every way that we are tempted, but he did not
sin. That is why we love to sing, “No one understands like Jesus.” We know that ”no one else can take the sin
and darkness from us.” Only Jesus can truly feel our pain. He hurt just like we
hurt, and because of that “he is able to help those who are being tempted.” He
understands, and thank God he does, because often our friends do not
understand.
Jesus was
obedient to the Father even to the point of taking our sins to the cross.
Because Jesus suffered and died as a sacrifice for our sins, God made him “the
author” of our salvation, and in so doing made him “perfect through suffering.”
For this, God crowned Jesus with “glory and honor.” Then He welcomed Jesus
home, to sit on heaven’s throne at the Father’s right hand. This is a noble and
inspiring understanding of Jesus, one elevated far above the juvenile concept
of Jesus as a “buddy” or “the Man Upstairs.”
The writer of
Hebrews explains why Jesus “had to be made like his brothers in every way.”
This was necessary in order for Jesus to “become a merciful and faithful high
priest in service to God.” Here are at least three great truths:
1) As believers we are “brothers” of Jesus. He became like us so that we could more
readily identify with him. As brothers of Jesus we belong to the Family of God.
To understand who we are as children of God and brothers of Jesus is
liberating. It sets us free from the curse of low self-esteem.
2) Jesus reveals to us the mercy of God. Praise God Jesus is our “merciful” high priest. We
all need mercy, not justice. Jesus is “full” of mercy and grace, ready to
forgive when we genuinely repent of our sins.
3) Jesus is our “faithful” high priest. In the Old Testament the high priest
offered sacrifices for the sins of the people. He bridged the gap between sin
and the Father. Now Jesus is himself the sacrifice for our sins, making
possible our reconciliation with God. High priests of old were not always
faithful compared to the perfect, eternal faithfulness of Jesus. The phrase,
“he is able” in verse 18, tells us all we need to know about the faithfulness
of our Lord Jesus.
A friend of
mine was born in
This precious
girl, shown the unmerited mercy of loving parents and friends, has blossomed
like a flower since she embraced Jesus as her Savior. Jesus has given her a
radiant, contagious, million-dollar smile. Her transformation is a beautiful
example of the power of grace in the human heart.
Because Jesus
shared our humanity, God’s merciful salvation is available to all, especially
the unlovely and unwanted. This is the good news of the gospel. We need no longer think of ourselves as
pitiful orphans cut off from God’s love. We can plead for mercy and he will
welcome us into the family of God. Saved from our sins, we need no longer fear
death. Our brother Jesus, the King of this world and the world to come,
defeated Satan, hell, and death when he died on the cross.
We have a home
on the other side. The grave is not the end. The Father waits over the way to
say, “Welcome home my child, there is a place for you in my home, so come on
in!” That beats by a mile anything the world has to offer – and it is all ours
because Jesus shared our humanity and became our merciful, faithful high
priest. Glory!
+ + + + (Contact Walter at walbritton@elmore.rr.com)