If we say, Frank owned
him in that debate, we mean not only that Frank won and the other guy lost,
but we imply that Frank dominated and the other guy was humiliated. Same with
“she owned the former champion on the
tennis court today.” The former champion didn’t just lose a close match. She
was beaten like a drum.
So to start off this reflection by saying, Christ owns us may provoke unpleasant
feelings. And of course saying you own someone
could remind people of the ugliness of human slavery.With those disclaimers aside, it is still true: you and I
belong to Jesus even if we don’t follow Him. He owns us. And for that matter He owns all of creation.
The opening sentences of the book of Hebrews give us seven
great descriptions of Jesus Christ. But this time I’ll talk only about this
one: Jesus Christ is heir of all
things. We’re given that truth in the second verse of the first chapter: in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things.
“Heir” means everything belongs to Christ – everything – and
He can do with it whatever He wants. Every planet and star, molecule and
sub-atomic particle, every mountain and valley, every drop in the ocean, every grain
of sand and blade of grass – it’s all His. He owns every creature – millions of
birds and fish, insects and mammals– He is heir of them all.
And so too every person, old or young, rich or poor,
whatever race or ethnicity or language or country – Jesus owns every one of us.
You and I belong to Jesus even if we don’t follow Him.
Our self-centered, prideful, safe-space-demanding,
personal-rights-insisting culture hates this truth. Many people today insist
they are totally autonomous, that rights and values and gender, and even
reality itself, are entirely up to them. But this verse unflinchingly says, No,
all things belong to Christ, and everyone is accountable to Him.
Notice the verse says God appointed Him as heir. But didn’t Jesus already have these things?
How is He appointed? Answer: Christ’s
appointment as heir of all things is inextricably tied to the fulfillment of
His redemptive mission. Jesus Himself prophesied this truth ten centuries
before Bethlehem or Calvary.
You can see it in Psalm 2, vv. 7-9: I will tell of
the decree: The Lord said to me,
“You are my Son; today I have begotten you. Ask of me, and I will make the
nations your heritage,
and the ends of the earth your possession. You shall break them
with a rod of iron and dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.” (My
highlights)
Who’s speaking? God the Son, and He is
reporting a conversation with God the Father. I
[pre-incarnate Christ] will tell of the decree: The Lord [the Father] said
to me [the Son], “You are my Son; today I have begotten you. Ask of me, and I will
make the nations your heritage,
and the ends of the earth your possession.” The
Father promises the nations as His Son’s heritage and all the earth as His
possession.
Yes, God the Son was always heir as Creator of all things. But
Hebrews 1:2 is reporting His appointment based
on His completed redemptive mission. The plan that had been in the heart
and mind of God since before time began was to send Christ down into His own
creation as the atoning sacrifice for His people. “Today I have begotten you”
in Psalm 2:7 is actually speaking of Christ’s resurrection, not His birth. How do we know?
The Apostle Paul explained the connection in a sermon: And we bring you the good news that what God promised to the
fathers, this he has fulfilled to us their children by raising Jesus, as also it is written in the second Psalm,
“‘You are my Son, today I have begotten you.’" (Acts 13:32-33, my highlights).
Being appointed as heir is the culmination of His mission.
Just as He promised (in Psalm 2), the Father rewarded and honored the Son
because He died for His people and rose again.
Jesus owns us – both as the Creator and the Redeemer. Paul explains it this way in
Philippians 2:8-11: And
being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point
of death, even death on a cross.Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him
the name that is above every name, so that at the name of
Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God
the Father.
Here's the point: You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies (1 Corinthians 6:19-20).
