The Superiority of Christ Hebrews Chapter 1. 2 Introduction In Hebrews 1, the writer declares the superiority of Jesus Christ He alone occupies the unique

The Superiority of Christ

Hebrews Chapter 1

2

Introduction

• In Hebrews 1, the writer declares the superiority of Jesus Christ

• He alone occupies the unique position above all creation, angels, prophets and all humanity

• He is the only one so uniquely qualified to be our Savior, Lord, King of the nations and high priest to God on our behalf

• He is indeed equal with the Father in nature

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Introduction

• Sadly many deny either Jesus’ Deity or some other aspect of His superior claims

• Or, they deny the New Testament is God’s final Word given through Jesus

• Examples of those false prophets include Muhammad, Joseph Smith, Ellen G. White and Charles Russell

• Let us examine Hebrews 1 to see Jesus’ identifying marks making Him superior to all, worthy of our praise and obedience

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1. Jesus is God’s greatest and final spokesman

2. Jesus is the living conqueror and heir of all things

3. Jesus is Creator and sustainer of all

4. Jesus is Deity, the Son of God

5. Jesus is our great high priest

6. Jesus is King of kings

7. Jesus must be worshipped

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Jesus Is God’s Greatest and Final Spokesman

Heb 1:1 God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways,

Heb 1:2 in these last days has spoken to us in His Son,

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God’s Complete Hidden Mystery Revealed and Confirmed In 1st Century

Joh 14:26 "But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.

Joh 16:12 "I have many more things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now.

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Joh 16:13 "But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come.

Joh 16:14 "He will glorify Me, for He will take of Mine and will disclose it to you.

Joh 16:15 "All things that the Father has are Mine; therefore I said that He takes of Mine and will disclose it to you.

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1Co 2:6 Yet we do speak wisdom among those who are mature; a wisdom, however, not of this age nor of the rulers of this age, who are passing away;

1Co 2:7 but we speak God's wisdom in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God predestined before the ages to our glory;

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1Co 2:8 the wisdom which none of the rulers of this age has understood; for if they had understood it they would not have crucified the Lord of glory;

1Co 2:9 but just as it is written, "THINGS WHICH EYE HAS NOT SEEN AND EAR HAS NOT HEARD, AND which HAVE NOT ENTERED THE HEART OF MAN, ALL THAT GOD HAS PREPARED FOR THOSE WHO LOVE HIM."

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1Co 2:10 For to us God revealed them through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God.

1Co 2:11 For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so the thoughts of God no one knows except the Spirit of God.

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1Co 2:12 Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God,

1Co 2:13 which things we also speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words.

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Eph 3:3 that by revelation there was made known to me the mystery, as I wrote before in brief.

Eph 3:4 By referring to this, when you read you can understand my insight into the mystery of Christ,

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Eph 3:5 which in other generations was not made known to the sons of men, as it has now been revealed to His holy apostles and prophets in the Spirit;

Eph 3:6 to be specific, that the Gentiles are fellow heirs and fellow members of the body, and fellow partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel,

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Heb 2:1 For this reason we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away from it.

Heb 2:2 For if the word spoken through angels proved unalterable, and every transgression and disobedience received a just penalty,

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Heb 2:3 how will we escape if we neglect so great a salvation? After it was at the first spoken through the Lord, it was confirmed to us by those who heard,

Heb 2:4 God also testifying with them, both by signs and wonders and by various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit according to His own will.

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Jud 1:3 Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints.

Gal 1:8 But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed!

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Jesus Is The Living Conqueror and Heir of All Things

Heb 1:2 in these last days has spoken to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things,

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Psa 2:8 'Ask of Me, and I will surely give the nations as Your inheritance, And the very ends of the earth as Your possession.

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Mat 16:18 "I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.

Eph 1:20 which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places,

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Eph 1:21 far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come.

Eph 1:22 And He put all things in subjection under His feet, and gave Him as head over all things to the church,

Eph 1:23 which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.

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Rev 1:5 and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him who loves us and released us from our sins by His blood--

Rev 3:21 'He who overcomes, I will grant to him to sit down with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne.

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Jesus Is Creator and Sustainer of All

Heb 1:2 …through whom also He made the world.

Heb 1:3 And He is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power.

Heb 1:10 And, "YOU, LORD, IN THE BEGINNING LAID THE FOUNDATION OF THE EARTH, AND THE HEAVENS ARE THE WORKS OF YOUR HANDS;

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Heb 1:11 THEY WILL PERISH, BUT YOU REMAIN; AND THEY ALL WILL BECOME OLD LIKE A GARMENT,

Heb 1:12 AND LIKE A MANTLE YOU WILL ROLL THEM UP; LIKE A GARMENT THEY WILL ALSO BE CHANGED. BUT YOU ARE THE SAME, AND YOUR YEARS WILL NOT COME TO AN END."

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Joh 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

Joh 1:2 He was in the beginning with God.

Joh 1:3 All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being.

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Joh 1:14 And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.

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Col 1:15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.

Col 1:16 For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities--all things have been created through Him and for Him.

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Col 1:17 He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.

Col 1:18 He is also head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything.

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Two Ways In Which The Word Firstborn Is Used

Deu 21:17 "But he shall acknowledge the firstborn, the son of the unloved, by giving him a double portion of all that he has, for he is the beginning of his strength; to him belongs the right of the firstborn.

Psa 89:27 "I also shall make him My firstborn, The highest of the kings of the earth.

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Jesus Is Deity, The Son of God

Heb 1:3 And He is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power. When He had made purification of sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,

Heb 1:4 having become as much better than the angels, as He has inherited a more excellent name than they.

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Heb 1:5 For to which of the angels did He ever say, "YOU ARE MY SON, TODAY I HAVE BEGOTTEN YOU"? And again, "I WILL BE A FATHER TO HIM AND HE SHALL BE A SON TO ME"?

Heb 1:6 And when He again brings the firstborn into the world, He says, "AND LET ALL THE ANGELS OF GOD WORSHIP HIM."

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Heb 1:7 And of the angels He says, "WHO MAKES HIS ANGELS WINDS, AND HIS MINISTERS A FLAME OF FIRE."

Heb 1:8 But of the Son He says, "YOUR THRONE, O GOD, IS FOREVER AND EVER, AND THE RIGHTEOUS SCEPTER IS THE SCEPTER OF HIS KINGDOM.

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• Jehovah’s Witnesses falsely claim Jesus is Michael the archangel

• Muslims falsely believe that for God to have a son, he would have to have sexual relations with Mary

• But, the Scriptures claim Jesus is God, the Son of God

• He has always been God before, during and after He came to earth

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Jehovah’s Witnesses Claim Jesus Is Michael The Archangel“Previous to the Son’s coming to earth as a man he was not known in heaven as Jesus Christ, but as Michael; when we read in Jude 9 about Michael the archangel, we are to understand this expression as a designation of Jesus Christ in his prehuman state.” (New Heavens and a New Earth, pages 28-30, Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society, Brooklyn, NY).

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Muslims Misrepresent and Mock Idea of God Having A Son

“They say: ‘(God) Most Gracious has begotten a son!’ Indeed ye have put forth a thing most monstrous! At it the skies are ready to burst, the earth to split asunder, and the mountains fall down in utter ruin, that they should invoke a son for (God) Most Gracious. For it is not consonant with the majesty of (God) Most Gracious that He should beget a son” (Qur’an, Sura 19:88-92).

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Jesus Is God

Heb 1:3 And He is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power….

Col 1:15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.

Col 2:9 For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form,

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Jesus Is God

Joh 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

Joh 1:2 He was in the beginning with God.

Joh 1:14 And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.

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Jesus Is God

Php 2:5 Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus,

Php 2:6 who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped,

Php 2:7 but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men.

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Jesus Is God

Luk 1:34 Mary said to the angel, "How can this be, since I am a virgin?"

Luk 1:35 The angel answered and said to her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; and for that reason the holy Child shall be called the Son of God.

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While On Earth Jesus Claimed and Confirmed He Is God

Joh 20:30 Therefore many other signs Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book;

Joh 20:31 but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.

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Joh 5:8 Jesus *said to him, "Get up, pick up your pallet and walk."

Joh 5:9 Immediately the man became well, and picked up his pallet and began to walk. Now it was the Sabbath on that day.

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Joh 5:14 Afterward Jesus *found him in the temple and said to him, "Behold, you have become well; do not sin anymore, so that nothing worse happens to you."

Joh 5:15 The man went away, and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had made him well.

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Joh 5:16 For this reason the Jews were persecuting Jesus, because He was doing these things on the Sabbath.

Joh 5:17 But He answered them, "My Father is working until now, and I Myself am working."

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Joh 5:18 For this reason therefore the Jews were seeking all the more to kill Him, because He not only was breaking the Sabbath, but also was calling God His own Father, making Himself equal with God.

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Mat 16:15 He *said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"

Mat 16:16 Simon Peter answered, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."

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Mat 16:17 And Jesus said to him, "Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.

Mat 16:18 "I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.

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Mat 16:21 From that time Jesus began to show His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised up on the third day.

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Rom 1:3 concerning His Son, who was born of a descendant of David according to the flesh,

Rom 1:4 who was declared the Son of God with power by the resurrection from the dead, according to the Spirit of holiness, Jesus Christ our Lord,

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Jesus The Son of God Given All Authority Over Heaven and Earth

Psa 2:6 "But as for Me, I have installed My King Upon Zion, My holy mountain."

Psa 2:7 "I will surely tell of the decree of the LORD: He said to Me, 'You are My Son, Today I have begotten You.

2Sa 7:14 "I will be a father to him and he will be a son to Me; when he commits iniquity, I will correct him with the rod of men and the strokes of the sons of men,

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Psa 110:1 A Psalm of David. The LORD says to my Lord: "Sit at My right hand Until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet."

Psa 110:2 The LORD will stretch forth Your strong scepter from Zion, saying, "Rule in the midst of Your enemies."

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Psa 45:6 Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; A scepter of uprightness is the scepter of Your kingdom.

Psa 45:7 You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness; Therefore God, Your God, has anointed You With the oil of joy above Your fellows.

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Act 2:33 "Therefore having been exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He has poured forth this which you both see and hear.

Act 2:34 "For it was not David who ascended into heaven, but he himself says: 'THE LORD SAID TO MY LORD, "SIT AT MY RIGHT HAND,

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Act 2:35 UNTIL I MAKE YOUR ENEMIES A FOOTSTOOL FOR YOUR FEET."'

Act 2:36 "Therefore let all the house of Israel know for certain that God has made Him both Lord and Christ--this Jesus whom you crucified."

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Act 2:37 Now when they heard this, they were pierced to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, "Brethren, what shall we do?"

Act 2:38 Peter said to them, "Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

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Act 13:32 "And we preach to you the good news of the promise made to the fathers,

Act 13:33 that God has fulfilled this promise to our children in that He raised up Jesus, as it is also written in the second Psalm, 'YOU ARE MY SON; TODAY I HAVE BEGOTTEN YOU.'

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Act 13:34 "As for the fact that He raised Him up from the dead, no longer to return to decay, He has spoken in this way: 'I WILL GIVE YOU THE HOLY and SURE blessings OF DAVID.'

Act 13:35 "Therefore He also says in another Psalm, 'YOU WILL NOT ALLOW YOUR HOLY ONE TO UNDERGO DECAY.'

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Act 13:38 "Therefore let it be known to you, brethren, that through Him forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you,

Act 13:39 and through Him everyone who believes is freed from all things, from which you could not be freed through the Law of Moses.

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Jesus Is Our Great High Priest

Heb 1:3 …When He had made purification of sins, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,

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Function and Failure of Levitical Priesthood

• Main function of priests was to intercede between God and the people through various offerings including many animal sacrifices

• The animal sacrifices were temporary and insufficient to take away sins

• The Levitical priests were also temporary and in need of the sacrifices for themselves since they were also sinners

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Animal Sacrifices Not Sufficient To Forgive Sins

Heb 10:1 For the Law, since it has only a shadow of the good things to come and not the very form of things, can never, by the same sacrifices which they offer continually year by year, make perfect those who draw near.

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Animal Sacrifices Not Sufficient To Forgive Sins

Heb 10:2 Otherwise, would they not have ceased to be offered, because the worshipers, having once been cleansed, would no longer have had consciousness of sins?

Heb 10:3 But in those sacrifices there is a reminder of sins year by year.

Heb 10:4 For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.

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Levitical Priests Subject To Sin and Death

Heb 5:2 he can deal gently with the ignorant and misguided, since he himself also is beset with weakness;

Heb 5:3 and because of it he is obligated to offer sacrifices for sins, as for the people, so also for himself.

Heb 7:23 The former priests, on the one hand, existed in greater numbers because they were prevented by death from continuing,

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• Jesus, being the sinless Son of God, offered the perfect sacrifice of His blood once and then sat down at God’s right hand ruling as King

• He is able to be priest and King at the same time because He is a priest like Melchizedek under a new and better covenant

• Melchizedek preceded the Law of Moses and was unrelated to the twelve tribes

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Heb 10:10 By this will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

Heb 10:11 Every priest stands daily ministering and offering time after time the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins;

Heb 10:12 but He, having offered one sacrifice for sins for all time, SAT DOWN AT THE RIGHT HAND OF GOD,

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Heb 7:11 Now if perfection was through the Levitical priesthood (for on the basis of it the people received the Law), what further need was there for another priest to arise according to the order of Melchizedek, and not be designated according to the order of Aaron?

Heb 7:12 For when the priesthood is changed, of necessity there takes place a change of law also.

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Heb 7:15 And this is clearer still, if another priest arises according to the likeness of Melchizedek,

Heb 7:16 who has become such not on the basis of a law of physical requirement, but according to the power of an indestructible life.

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Heb 7:24 but Jesus, on the other hand, because He continues forever, holds His priesthood permanently.

Heb 7:25 Therefore He is able also to save forever those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.

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Heb 7:26 For it was fitting for us to have such a high priest, holy, innocent, undefiled, separated from sinners and exalted above the heavens;

Heb 7:27 who does not need daily, like those high priests, to offer up sacrifices, first for His own sins and then for the sins of the people, because this He did once for all when He offered up Himself.

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Heb 7:28 For the Law appoints men as high priests who are weak, but the word of the oath, which came after the Law, appoints a Son, made perfect forever.

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Jesus Is King of Kings

Heb 1:8 But of the Son He says, "YOUR THRONE, O GOD, IS FOREVER AND EVER, AND THE RIGHTEOUS SCEPTER IS THE SCEPTER OF HIS KINGDOM.

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Jesus Is King of Kings

• Jesus, being God, the Son of God, now rules the nations

• Those who deny He is God deny the plain teaching of Scriptures

• Jesus is both Priest and King at the same time as the prophets had foretold

• Those who deny He is reigning now while He is Priest are following error

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Jesus The Son of God Is Now King

1Ti 6:14 that you keep the commandment without stain or reproach until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ,

1Ti 6:15 which He will bring about at the proper time--He who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords,

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Jesus The Son of God Is Now King

1Ti 6:16 who alone possesses immortality and dwells in unapproachable light, whom no man has seen or can see. To Him be honor and eternal dominion! Amen.

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Jesus The Son of God Is Now King and Priest

Psa 110:1 A Psalm of David. The LORD says to my Lord: "Sit at My right hand Until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet."

Psa 110:2 The LORD will stretch forth Your strong scepter from Zion, saying, "Rule in the midst of Your enemies."

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Psa 110:3 Your people will volunteer freely in the day of Your power; In holy array, from the womb of the dawn, Your youth are to You as the dew.

Psa 110:4 The LORD has sworn and will not change His mind, "You are a priest forever According to the order of Melchizedek."

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Zec 6:13 "Yes, it is He who will build the temple of the LORD, and He who will bear the honor and sit and rule on His throne. Thus, He will be a priest on His throne, and the counsel of peace will be between the two offices."'

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Jesus Must Be Worshipped


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Jesus Must Be Worshipped

• Men are forbidden to worship men and angels

• Men are to worship God only

• Since Jesus is God, He is worthy of and receives worship from both men and angels

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Men Are Forbidden To Worship Men And Angels

Act 10:25 When Peter entered, Cornelius met him, and fell at his feet and worshiped him.

Act 10:26 But Peter raised him up, saying, "Stand up; I too am just a man."

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Men Are Forbidden To Worship Men And Angels

Rev 22:8 I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I heard and saw, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who showed me these things.

Rev 22:9 But he *said to me, "Do not do that. I am a fellow servant of yours and of your brethren the prophets and of those who heed the words of this book. Worship God."

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Men Are To Worship God Only

Mat 4:8 Again, the devil *took Him to a very high mountain and *showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory;

Mat 4:9 and he said to Him, "All these things I will give You, if You fall down and worship me."

Mat 4:10 Then Jesus *said to him, "Go, Satan! For it is written, 'YOU SHALL WORSHIP THE LORD YOUR GOD, AND SERVE HIM ONLY.'"

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Jesus Being God Receives Worship From Men and Angels

Joh 9:35 Jesus heard that they had put him out, and finding him, He said, "Do you believe in the Son of Man?"

Joh 9:36 He answered, "Who is He, Lord, that I may believe in Him?"

Joh 9:37 Jesus said to him, "You have both seen Him, and He is the one who is talking with you."

Joh 9:38 And he said, "Lord, I believe." And he worshiped Him.

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Heb 1:5 For to which of the angels did He ever say, "YOU ARE MY SON, TODAY I HAVE BEGOTTEN YOU"? And again, "I WILL BE A FATHER TO HIM AND HE SHALL BE A SON TO ME"?


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Rev 5:11 Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne and the living creatures and the elders; and the number of them was myriads of myriads, and thousands of thousands,

Rev 5:12 saying with a loud voice, "Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing."

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Rev 5:13 And every created thing which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all things in them, I heard saying, "To Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, be blessing and honor and glory and dominion forever and ever."

Rev 5:14 And the four living creatures kept saying, "Amen." And the elders fell down and worshiped.

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Documents

The Superiority of Christ Hebrews Chapter 1. 2 Introduction In Hebrews 1, the writer declares the superiority of Jesus Christ He alone occupies the unique