The entire book of Hebrews is rich with reasons why Jesus came. In our why Jesus came series we’ll look at Hebrews 2:8-18 today.
Here are reasons Jesus came we find in these verses:
* Every person is subjected to death because of sin, and Jesus came, as the author of Hebrews says, to “taste death for everyone.”
* Jesus came to bring us to glory. Now that’s one for us to look into another time.
* I love the phrasing we see here. “It was fitting (or appropriate)” The author seems to be saying, well, from this side of the resurrection, what Jesus did makes perfect sense. This is the author’s way of saying that hindsight is 20×20. It makes perfect sense that Jesus, the one for and by whom everything exists should also be the one who creates salvation. He did this through suffering.
* Jesus came to bring us back into God’s family.
* Jesus came to sanctify us in himself.
* For all these things to happen, the devil needed to be rendered ineffective. Many translations say destroy or break his power. The word destroy here is best rendered “to put out of work,” “to put out of business,” or “to render ineffective.” Jesus came to put the devil out of work.
* Jesus came so that he could then “free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death.” We were all separated from God (dead), and Jesus came to rescue us. He had to remove the devil’s power of slavery over us first.
* You see, the author says, Jesus had to be made just like us. This is another hindsight comment. It now makes perfect sense that Jesus had to be made like us. Jesus is the sacrifice for our sins, as well as our priest, as well as our intercessor, as well as the one who brings us home to God. The author is saying, “It all makes sense now.”
* And then here is that word again that we saw in 1 John. Jesus came to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins. This word is translated as atoning sacrifice, the mercy seat in the temple, and to have mercy. If your translation uses the word, propitiation, then in your mind insert the phrase atoning sacrifice.
* Jesus came to suffer and be tempted, so that he is able to help those who suffer and are tempted. This is not an isolated reference about Jesus’s ability to help us when we face trials. The author expands on this reason in chapter 4. Paul even tells us in 1 Corinthians 10:13 that the Lord provides a means of escape with every temptation. To experience the escape, we need to turn to Jesus and seek his cleansing power.
This passage gives us another amazing list of reasons why Jesus came. Think through them, especially what they mean for how we live right now.
Passages referenced in this video:
Hebrews 2:8-18
1 Corinthians 10:13
1 John