March 3, 1996
When Joan Osborne wrote the song “What If God Was One of Us?,” her question wasn’t too far from the truth. Alistair Begg shows us that while God is mercifully different from us in His sinlessness, the incarnate Christ can sympathize with us. Christ’s combined humanity and holiness is a perfect reminder that He is our only salvation. In Him we can find true freedom from sin and fear.
5For it was not to angels that God subjected the world lto come, of which we are speaking. 6It has been testified somewhere,
m“What is man, that you are mindful of him,
or the son of man, that you care for him?
7You made him for a little while lower than the angels;
you have crowned him with glory and honor,1
8putting everything in subjection under his feet.”
Now in putting everything in subjection to him, he left nothing outside his control. At present, nwe do not yet see everything in subjection to him. 9But we see him owho for a little while was made lower than the angels, namely Jesus, pcrowned with glory and honor qbecause of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might rtaste death sfor everyone.
10For it twas fitting that he, ufor whom and by whom all things exist, in bringing many sons vto glory, should make the wfounder of their salvation xperfect through suffering. 11For yhe who sanctifies and zthose who are sanctified aall have one source.2 That is why he is not ashamed to call them bbrothers,3 12saying,
c“I will tell of your name to my brothers;
in the midst of the dcongregation I will sing your praise.”
13And again,
e“I will put my trust in him.”
And again,
f“Behold, I and the children gGod has given me.”
14Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise hpartook of the same things, that ithrough death he might jdestroy kthe one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, 15and deliver all those who lthrough fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery. 16For surely it is not angels that he helps, but he mhelps the offspring of Abraham. 17Therefore he had nto be made like his brothers in every respect, oso that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest pin the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people.
Copyright © 2024, Alistair Begg. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The ESV text may not be quoted in any publication made available to the public by a Creative Commons license. The ESV may not be translated in whole or in part into any other language.