With the help of my dad, my first job was with the U.S. Forest Service. I was between my sophomore and junior years of high school. As I stood in the office of the supervisor, I was asked if I would like to spend the summer in the Flathead Wilderness, now known as “The Bob.”
I knew very little about this region though I was raised right in its shadow. Thus it was that I was at the city airport and flown into the wilderness with a plane full of supplies. I was to be there until Labor Day. Initially, I was assigned to trail maintenance. In the later part of June, the Ranger at Big Prairie called me aside and wanted to know if I would like to spend the summer in Jumbo lookout. “Jumbo” was considered the premier lookout of the system. I was given basic instructions on how to use the Osborne fire finder, how to use the small weather station, and report on the weather system. At the end of an eight-mile hike, there sat the lookout, perched precariously on a rocky summit.
There was one issue: they had never told me how to use the dry cell two-way radio. So, there I sat. I could get their transmission, and the dispatcher tried for two days. The radio squawked, “this in Big Prairie to Jumbo lookout, do you read me?” I was alone and isolated.
It seems to me this is happening in our world. God has spoken, but we as a human race are unable to communicate back to Him. Hebrews 1:1-3 says, “God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many ways and in many portions, in these last days has spoken to us through His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the world. And He is the radiance of His glory and the exact representative of His nature and upholds all things by the word of His power. When He had made purification for sin, He sat down at the right hand of His Majesty in heaven.”
God has spoken in the past. All we need to do is read the Old Testament and read of Noah, Abraham, Moses, and a host of others. As we follow the text, Hebrews 1:1-3, we will find 7 statements about the Son and His relationship to creation, humanity, and God.
The first of these seven statements is in verse 2: “…He is the heir of all things…”. This statement is verified through a host of other scripture verses throughout the Bible. The key word is “heir.” It is a wonderful thing to be named as an heir of a significant estate, but Jesus Christ has been appointed, by the Father, as the heir of all that the Father has done.
Second, in the same verse, it is said of Jesus, “through whom He also made the world.” A diminishing majority of today’s generation believes this. Many do not believe that God is the creator of matter, out of which came the world.
The third thing said of Jesus is in verse three: “…He upholds all things by the Word of His power.” Listen to what Paul says to the church at Colossae “And He is before all things, and in Him all things are held together.” He is the creator of the universe, and he is the one that maintains the order of the universe.
The fourth thing the author says about Jesus is, “and He is the radiance of His glory.” Close on the heels of that statement it is said Jesus is “the exact representation of His nature.” These are not the same, but they represent two different facets of the nature of Jesus. First, “Jesus is the radiance of God…”. The word “radiance” refers to reflecting. Jesus reflects the glory of God. Remember Moses when he came down from Sinai? His face shone, so he had to wear a veil. He reflected what he had seen. We enjoy the radiance of the sun and its warmth and light spread over the earth.
Then the same verse says, Jesus is the exact representation of the nature of God. This tells me that Jesus not only manifested God, but it also tells me that He was God in substance. Hebrews says, “He was the exact representation of His nature.” The term “representation” translates from the Greek term that is used for an impression made by a die or a stamp that is used like that of a notary. Colossians says, “He is the image of the invisible God.”
Do you ever ask, “what is God like?” You will find Him perfectly expressed by Jesus Christ. Is He forgiving? Is He compassionate? Is He gentle? Is He just? That is a picture of God.
The sixth statement these verses make about Jesus is, “When He had made purification for Sin He sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high.” There are two statements made here. The first deals with incarnation: God clothed in human flesh to take our sin. The second deals with His exaltation. When He is finished, He sits at the right hand of the Father. When Jesus died on the cross, the final words that He uttered were, “it is finished.” Then, he breathed His last breath. Now we find Jesus in a place of honor; He sits at the right hand of the Father, and His job of mercy and forgiveness is finished.
Some years ago, Roberta and I visited Virginia City, Nevada. It is famous for the Comstock Lode, where millions of dollars of silver were extracted and it is used even to this day. We took a tour deep into one of the tunnels. In the darkness of the dark, the tour guide turned off the lights. The darkness was absolutely stunning. After a few minutes, the guide lit a match. It was amazing the amount of light that a match gave in that darkness. Then he lit a candle, and its flame flickered in the darkness. Then, he turned on a flashlight. It was amazing how much light came from that handheld instrument. But then, he turned the main switch on. The power of light was blinding.
God, in times past, lit a match in the midst of man’s darkness. Then a candle came on, through the prophets. Then, He illuminated God, and the light came on.
Are you bowing before a match, a candle, a flashlight, or has the “light of the Word” illuminated your pathway?
