Jesus is the Heir of All Things (Hebrews 1:1-2)

The author of Hebrews begins, we might say, at the beginning. The beginning of what? The answer is about what God wants to speak about, which is his plan or his mission. This communication began in partial ways by the prophets, but in the recent past God communicated through his Son. This leads to another question, who is God’s Son? The answer to that question is provided in Hebrews 1:2-4 and we can almost imagine the author taking a deep breath before he began to write the answer. Because whatever else we say about his words, they describe someone totally unique.

The author mentions several details about the Son’s person and he also records some details about the Son’s activities. Regarding the latter he does so in a chronological order. Working back the way, he says that the Son sat down on heaven’s throne after he had purged our sins. Before purging our sins, as well as after, he upheld the universe. Prior to upholding the universe, he made it (the term ‘world’ does not mean the earth - it means the ages). But before making the worlds, he was appointed the heir of all things by the Father. So he is the heir of all things who creates all things, who controls all things, and gives himself as a sacrifice before ascending to heaven. That is an incredible CV.

We may be puzzled as to how the Son could be appointed to anything because as God he is equal with the Father and the Holy Spirit. The explanation given is of how this happened and why this happened. It is all to do with the plan that God sent prophets to speak about and about which the Son spoke about when he came. The Father appointed the Son as the heir, the role of the Son is to act as the heir, and the role of the Holy Spirit is to draw attention to the heir. Another way to speak about this is to think of Jesus as the Mediator whom the Father appointed, as the One who would work on behalf of the Father and fulfil the various requirements connected to his plan. 

Sometimes we read about someone who has a vast inheritance. Yet however vast their inheritance, it cannot be classified as everything. There is only one person who has such an inheritance and that is Jesus. As we have suggested the ‘all things’ means ‘the universe’ or the cosmos. Since Jesus is the heir, it means that there is a permanent connection between him and everything that there is. We can consider something of what this means by looking briefly at several Bible verses which connect Jesus and all things.

Jesus and ‘all things’

First, the apostle John tells us in his gospel regarding Jesus that ‘all things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made’ (John 1:3). That of course is an astonishing statement. Everything that exists was made by Jesus whether the biggest galaxy or the smallest insect or blade of grass. Everywhere we look, up or down, left or right, we see something in which Jesus was involved.

Second, Paul extends the truth of John’s words when he writes in Colossians 1:17 about Jesus: ‘And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together.’ This verse tells us that not only did Jesus create all things, but he also keeps them in existence. The reason why the sun fulfils its roles is because Jesus constantly enables it to do so. There is nothing in the whole of space outside the control of Jesus. The reason why satellites and spaceships can travel anywhere is because Jesus maintains everything in existence. This is why motor cars can speed down highways, why supermarkets can have have filled shelves, why the internet works, and why time passes at the same rate continually.

Third, in Ephesians 1:10, Paul after referring to various aspects of God’s plan says that it was ‘set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.’ Paul there tells us that all things are currently disunited, that they don’t exist in harmony, but that God has fixed a day when they will be united. He mentions one area of the discord, that between heaven and earth, but Jesus will yet bring them together. The disharmony has been caused by Adam’s sin and its consequences, but Jesus has been engaged in sorting out the disunity that exists in God’s creation because of sin. This he did when he suffered on the cross.

Fourth, later on in that chapter in Ephesians, Paul gives more details how that path to cosmic unity will happen. He says in 1:22-23 that the Father has ‘put all things under Jesus’ feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.’ Paul is probably referring to the ascension and enthronement of Jesus when he was given universal dominion by the Father, and one reason why he was given it was to build his church composed of sinners who were to be gathered from all the nations. So Jesus today has full authority to achieve this purpose.

Perhaps our minds go to the time after his resurrection when Jesus told his disciples that all authority had been given to him in heaven and on earth, and that since that was the case they could go anywhere in the world and make disciples. If that statement had been made by an ordinary mortal, we would conclude that he was deranged. But when made by Jesus it is a revelation of his supreme authority and power to bring about the ingathering of his people from all the nations of the world, an authority that was given to him before the worlds were created. 

Fifth, when was Jesus given all things? John tells us that ‘The Father loves the Son and has given all things into his hand’ (John 3:35). That sounds like the occasion when Jesus was given everything, his commission as it were, but when was it? That statement also points to what we could call the certainty of the Father that his Son would know all the consequences of being given all things. After all, when an heir is given an estate or something like that for an inheritance, it is assumed that he will know what to do with it. And Jesus, since he is eternal wisdom, would possess the knowledge to arrange and govern all things. 

So perhaps the order of events is this. The Father gave all things that would yet be to his Son. Then the Father through the Son made all things at the beginning. But disharmony caused by sin brought about disunity in the all things. So the Son had to work to restore the unity, which he did by becoming a man, dying on the cross, rising from the dead, ascending to heaven and receiving authority to reign over all things. 

Sixth, what will happen next in the big scale of things? Recall what is said in Revelation 21:5: ‘Behold, I am making all things new.’ The Creator becomes the Re-creator. It looks as if it is the Father who is speaking here, but maybe he will make the new created order in the same way as he made the first, through his Son. In any case, here is the perfect inheritance announced by the Father, an inheritance that had been predicted by the Old Testament prophets and the New Testament apostles as they spoke of a new heavens and new earth that would be created in which all would be perfect. The implication of the statement is that it is an invitation to observe what God is doing. And if the morning stars sang for joy at the first creation, what will the joy be like as the family of God observe the coming of the new order in which there never will be disharmony again?

Jesus speaking about it

In Matthew 11:27-30, Jesus says, ‘All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.’ We are used to reading verses 28 and 29 and perhaps ignoring the preceding context in which Jesus says that his Father has handed all things over to him. 

But what does Jesus want to do as the One to whom all things have been given? He wants weary sinners to become his disciples, to learn from him as he teaches them in a gentle and humble manner. It is the case that they should accept his yoke because he is the One who has been given all things. But he indicates to them that their experience of his grace will be one in which he will remove the burdens that were imposed upon them by the religious leaders, burdens that did not take them an inch closer to his inheritance that is marked by liberty and freedom.

We can move on to another occasion in the ministry of Jesus, indeed to the last evening of his life on earth. John begins his account of what took place in the upper room by reminding his readers about how Jesus has been given all things. He says in John 13:3-4: ‘Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was going back to God, rose from supper. He laid aside his outer garments, and taking a towel, tied it around his waist.’ John reminds us that Jesus knew what had been given to him and he knew where he was going. So what does the Possessor of all things do? He gets up from the table, removes his outer garments, takes a towel and commences to wash his disciples’ feet. We know what the disciples were considering at that time. They were focussed on which of them should be regarded as the greatest. Well, the One who is the greatest dons the role of a servant and performs the task that was usually delegated to the lowliest slave. Here we have an example of how Jesus made himself of no reputation.

Paul speaking about it

In Romans 8, Paul reminds us that God has more than one heir when he says that those who believe in Jesus have become the sons of God and joint-heirs with Christ. He also says in 1 Corinthians 3:21-22: ‘For all things are yours, whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or the present or the future—all are yours, and you are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s.’ The Corinthians had been boasting in men. Paul asks them, ‘Why?’ They all belong to Jesus and since they do, they already have all things. Spurgeon preached a sermon on this verse and described it as an inventory of the Christian’s possessions. Some people like to look at the list of their possessions. We should encourage one another to take a look frequently at what we have through Jesus. 

Us speaking about it

There are different ways for us to speak about it. We can sing about it together, even when we use Psalm 8 because we are told in Hebrews that it describes the creation as the inheritance of Jesus. We can speak about it in fellowship as we consider together the things of Christ, the various roles that he fulfils. We can speak about it with astonishment when we think that the Heir of all things speaks to us about his kingdom. We can speak about it with admiration as we recall how the Heir humbled himself and made himself of no reputation in order to rescue us from the penalty of our sins. We can speak about it with anticipation as we look ahead and see that one day the ‘all things’ will be perfectly restored and we will live in the new heavens and new earth.