Devotional 23 May 2025

May 23, 2025 • Steve Torres

Hebrews 1:4-5.jpg

"Having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs. For to which of the angels did God ever say, “You are my Son, today I have begotten you”? Or again, “I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son”? (Hebrews 1:4-5, ESV)

At first glance, the phrase “having become superior to angels” might cause confusion. How could Jesus, the eternal Son of God, become anything? Was He not always superior? The answer lies in understanding that Hebrews is not describing a change in essence, but a revelation of identity.

Jesus did not grow into divinity: He revealed it. As Philippians 2:6–11 shows, though He was in the form of God, He humbled Himself in the incarnation, and was later exalted. His exaltation unveiled what had always been true: Jesus is Lord, King, and Son. Hebrews uses this pattern repeatedly, showing how God’s plan unfolds not by changing truth, but by disclosing it more fully over time.

Jesus inherited a more excellent name, not by promotion, but by right. As the Son, He is the heir of all things (Hebrews 1:2). That name, “Son” is not one of many, but monogenēs, “only begotten,” meaning unique and irreplaceable (John 1:14, 18). The angels, as messengers, served God’s purpose in the old covenant. But now the Son, the Word made flesh (John 1:1–3), speaks—not merely on God’s behalf—but as God.

This brings us to a deeper truth: Jesus didn’t come to abolish the Law, but to fulfill it (Matthew 5:17). The Law pointed forward, it held types, symbols, shadows. Angels may have mediated that covenant (Galatians 3:19), but it was always waiting for the day of fulfillment. Hebrews 8:13 says the old covenant is “becoming obsolete”—not because it failed, (Paulbalso makes this point in Romans 3:21), but because Jesus completed its purpose. He is the rest the sojourners awaited (Hebrews 4:8–10). He is the King God promised David would reign forever (2 Samuel 7:14). He is the Son of Psalm 2 who would inherit the nations.

So the message is clear: Jesus is not merely another in the line of prophets, kings, or angels. He is the revelation of God Himself. As Hebrews 1:1–2 says, “In these last days, [God] has spoken to us by his Son.” The Son who creates, sustains, redeems, and reigns. The Law testified to Him. The prophets hoped in Him. The angels worship Him.

And now, He is revealed to us.

-steve