The author begins chapter two with a warning that connects the nature of man to the nature of the fallen angels. We begin with angels, disobedience, transgressions, and punishments. Verse one starts with a word that connects us back to the first chapter. It begins with the word, 'therefore,' meaning because. In other words, because of all that was bodied forth in chapter one, “we ought to give the more earnest heed.” We should really sit forward and pay attention. It is not some light matter that has been brought up but something intrinsically fundamental to our path through life and, especially, to our outcome.
We have been handed something we need for our own edification. Can we afford to let it slip through our fingers? The full verse states, “Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip.” Things slip, things we would normally consider to be rock solid. Things slip and there are always consequences. If the very angels of God are punished for oversights, do you think we will fare any better? One would figure the word spoken by angels to be dedicated and reliable. They speak for God. Right? Yet, we are assured that even the fallen angels were handed something vital to their relationship with God. They let it slip. We know that if God will punish those even closer to him than ourselves, “every transgression and disobedience” will receive a “just recompense of reward.”
If angels did not escape, how shall we? Verse three. That thing we have been handed is neither mean nor common. It is called great. For each of us, personally, it is a thing of the highest order, a vital necessity, like air or water for the body – something we just can not do without. We have been handed our own salvation. We did not have to work for it, it was given. All we have to manage to do is hold on to it and not let it slip through our fingers. A good start for such a labor is understanding. We must understand what it is and why we need it so much. We must understand what losing it means. This small task on our part will lead us to faith. A man who believes in nothing else believes in fire on a cold night. A man who believes in nothing else believes in water in a dry land. A man who believes in nothing else believes in air when over his head in the deep.
What is the history of that vitally important thing we have been handed? “At the first,” it was communicated by the Lord. Jesus told us. Then, those people who first heard the word of salvation confirmed it to others. A chain of communication began which has been uninterrupted to this day. The very same information has come down through the ages to our own ears. It has neither changed nor become less important. It is fire to the cold, water to the parched, and light to those who stumble through the dark. Accepting salvation is like coming up from the depths and breathing in the needful air we did not have below. The history of that wonderful gift we have been given, which we can ill afford to let slip through our fingers, came to us in a straight line from the source. Not only has that message gone forth unimpeded, but it has also received the corroborative support of God in signs, wonders, miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit.
Verses five through eight. The author, in speaking about the world to come, clearly states that it has not been placed in the hands of angels. The world to come is a world of saved men and women, it has been put “in subjection,” not of the angels but of men and women. Let us examine the word, subjection. Synonyms for the word include such as domination, control, and mastery. The gist of the argument is that it is a work in progress. We do not presently see the full outcome but we are in control. It is a thing of our making. The sons of men were made “a little lower than the angels” but we were, from the beginning, set up to share the glory and honor that is above that of the angels. Sin is a fallen state and we share that in common with the fallen angels but salvation is not an issue for angels. It is a concern only for mankind. It is, after all, men and women, you and I, the unredeemed who must consider what is at stake. What is it to say that we are unredeemed? It is to say that we are absent, adrift, misplaced, lacking, and astray. We are not properly aligned to receive what is ours.
Verses nine through thirteen. To fallen mankind is offered salvation. Salvation may be seen as a state of proper alignment that will allow us to achieve the goal we were set up for. We do not, at present, see the whole world that is to be placed under us but we see Jesus. Jesus was made a little lower than the angels. That is to say that he was made a man to suffer death for absent mankind. Death was the work. The prize, both for Jesus and for mankind through Jesus, was and is a crown of glory and honor by the grace of God. Jesus already had it. He was with God from the beginning. All things are his and all things are of his making – “by” and “for” – but he was made the captain of our salvation so, for it all to work and for it all to be above-board, it had to be done in a manner beyond reproach. It had to be perfect. Jesus had to be made perfect. That was accomplished through suffering.
Imagine a ravine to be crossed. It is filled with scalding water. We have a rope and we can easily all cross to the chosen side but first, we need a captain, someone to wade through the scalding water to the other side and tie off the rope. Then, the one who suffered is also already there to reach out and pull in the first to safely make it over. The first, then, are deputized to act in the captain's stead and reach out to those who follow and pull them to safety. I used the word deputize but the writer used the word sanctify. In acts of ordination, the ones who ordains and the ones who are ordained are both officially one. The sheriff and the deputy are both the law. As the writer puts it, “For both he that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all one.” On this wise, the writer then connects the dots through both the old and new covenant. “For which cause he is not ashamed to call them brethren, saying, I will declare thy name unto my brethren, (Psalm 22:22) in the midst of the church will I sing praise unto thee. And again, I will put my trust in him. And again, Behold I and the children which God hath given me. (Isaiah 8:18)” This is in reference to certain assertions made by Jesus in his last supper prayer.
Verses fourteen through eighteen. The type of death required to effect salvation is explained here. We must ask ourselves, what kind of salvation was secured? It was a salvation for flesh and blood mankind. Would there have been any value in a spirit climbing up on the cross? How about an angel? A heavenly being, who can neither suffer nor perish, would have achieved nothing by crucifixion. It would have only been an act. Jesus, the son of a spiritual God, had to partake of the nature of flesh and blood in order to truly suffer and truly die. In that manner, alone, could salvation be realized, be real. Christ, as a spiritual being, could have snapped his spiritual fingers and destroyed the devil and death in an instant but what good would that do non-spiritual beings?
For such destruction, we must consider the angle of attack. For all of our physical existence, we have been in bondage to death, and the devil has had power over every aspect of our being. The central reason for this bondage is mankind's “fear” of death. I speak of a matter that stands outside the realm of opinion. Fear is not an opinion, it is not a philosophical predisposition. Fear of death is a matter of our innate nature. Fear is a flesh and blood reality – it is just as much physical as it is spiritual. The eyes will blink, the body will flinch, the heart will race. Salvation for physical mankind will never make sense until one realizes it with his or her full nature. We must understand that when Jesus went to the cross, he faced death with his full nature, being both spiritual and physical. He did not flinch at the approaching death but let it wash over him. He conquered his death both in his mind and in his body. He defeated the innate fear of death and broke the chain of bondage. A flesh and blood man did that as the captain for each and every one of us who finally realizes that it takes death to defeat death.
Jesus could have taken on the nature of angels but he chose a more perfect plan. In all matters that pertain to God and to reconcile mankind with God, the spiritual son of the spiritual God made himself able to suffer and die so that he could be to us both a merciful and faithful high priest. Let us examine the word reconcile. It is not, surprisingly, one of those 'religious terms' with little practical application to reality. It is, in fact, quite the common word as its meaning is this: 'to restore friendly relations' or again, 'to make compatible and coexist in harmony.' Those are things we do every day in our small and common lives. Families, marriages, societies, all of these fail without a deliberate effort toward harmonious coexistence. We fall apart, then we make up. When we do, the marriage is saved, the family is united, and society moves forward. It is true that when we return to the simple core issues, we go above and beyond.
For mankind, the fear of death is both real and physical. When we look for help in our turmoil, invariably, we seek out those who have suffered in ways similar to our own suffering. We look for people who know what we are going through. Our bodies fear death. We avoid it at every turn. Biological fail-safes are hardwired into our physical natures. When I throw my hand suddenly in front of your face, you blink. When you sneeze, your body closes your eyes for protection. When the body is infected with a virus, it produces antibodies for defense. Even our death throes are defensive measures enacted by our biological fear of death. A drowning body spasms and gasps defending itself from death. We drive down the road and a single sneeze can cause us to run into a tree. If I learn to hold the wheel with one hand and hold open one eye while I sneeze, I can help another overcome the same distress. Verse eighteen tells us this about the real nature of the real help that Jesus, as savior, offers mankind: “For in that he himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able to help them that are tempted.”
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