NAMES AND TITLES OF CHRIST
THE FIRSTBORN
DR. JIM DIXON
HEBREWS 1:1-6
APRIL 20, 1997
In the Bible, in the book of Colossians, the first chapter, the 15th verse, Jesus Christ is called The Firstborn of all creation. In Colossians, the first chapter, the 18th verse, Jesus Christ is called The Firstborn of the Dead. In the book of Revelation, the first chapter, the 5th verse, in a similar passage, Jesus Christ is called The Firstborn from the Dead. In Romans, chapter 8, verse 29, Jesus Christ is called The Firstborn of Many Brothers and Sisters. In our passage of scripture for today, in Hebrews, chapter 1, verse 6, Jesus Christ is simply called The Firstborn.
Now, biblically this title, The Firstborn, means two things. First of all, it means that Jesus Christ is preeminent. He is preeminent. He has authority. He is The Firstborn. Now, this was understood in Judaism because in Judaism the firstborn was given preeminence. We see this in the book of Genesis, chapters 25-27, when we look at the whole story of Jacob and Esau. The Bible tells us that Jacob and Esau were twins. The Bible tells us that they struggled against each other, and that struggle began in the womb. What was that struggle about? It was about the birthright. It was about the preeminence of the firstborn. And so even in the womb, Jacob and Esau, these twins, struggled together, struggled against each other to see who could be born first.
The Bible tells us that Esau was victorious. He came first into this world, and he was born with bright red hair. Etymologists tell us that the name Esau means hairy. Now, Jacob was born immediately thereafter. He came into the world clutching the heel of Esau. Etymologists tell us that the name Jacob means “to clutch the heel.” And so, Esau was the firstborn. But the battle was not over. I think most of you know that Esau became a hunter. He was the favorite of his father Isaac. Jacob, on the other hand, became a farmer and a lover of peace and he was the favorite of his mother, Rebekah.
In the course of time, Esau came in from the hunt and he was famished. He was starving. Jacob was cooking some stew and Esau said, “Give me some of that stuff, that red stuff.” That’s a literal translation of the Hebrew. “Give me some of that stuff, that red stuff.” Jacob said, “I’ll give you some of this stuff if you’ll renounce your birthright, if you’ll give me the preeminence of the firstborn.” Esau said, “What good is my birthright if I’m dead?” Incredibly he renounced his birthright. And you know the story. You know how Isaac gave Jacob the blessing of the firstborn. Listen to the words of the blessing of the firstborn. “May all people serve you. May all nations bow down to you. May you rule over your brothers and may your mother’s children bow down to you. Cursed be everyone who curses you and blessed be everyone who blesses you.” This was the blessing of the firstborn. The firstborn child was preeminent.
Now, of course, this isn’t true in our culture. This is not true in our world today. I am the youngest of three children, the youngest of three brothers. My brother, Gary, is the firstborn. My brother, Greg, is the middle born and I am the last born. There were certain privileges that were given to my oldest brother Gary as the firstborn. Certainly, whenever we traveled anywhere, Gary had a special privilege. My parents would take the front seat and the three sons were in the back seat. This was true, of course, whether we were going to church or to the store or to school or if we were on vacation and we were traveling across the country. But Gary, as the firstborn, was given the first choice and he always chose the window on the left side. Greg, as the middle born, was given the second choice and he always chose the window on the right side. This was true no matter where we went at any and all times.
I was given the choice of the trunk or the middle of the back seat, the hump. You see, certain privileges given to my oldest brother as the firstborn. But he was never made preeminent. Not in our culture. I mean it wasn’t like Mom and Dad came to me or Mom and Dad came to Greg and said, “You will serve Gary all the days of your life.” That would have been a bummer but, you see, we don’t give preeminence to the firstborn but in Judaism the firstborn was given preeminence.
And so, in the Bible when Jesus Christ is called The Firstborn it doesn’t mean that He had a point of origin or a beginning. The Bible says “He has neither beginning of days nor end of life. He is eternal with His Father.” But it does mean that He is preeminent, and it means He is preeminent, and it means he is preeminent over the children of God. He is preeminent over the family of God. I think for us this morning as we sit in this worship center, the only important question—I mean the truly important question is this. Are you a member of the family of God? Are you a child of God?
The Bible tells us that the people of this world are not by nature children of God. Did you know that? The Bible tells us that the people of this world are not by nature in the family of God. We are separated from God because of sin. The Bible says if we would become children of God, if we would enter the family of God, then we must be born into that heavenly family. The Bible tells us that as assuredly as we must be born into our earthly families, so we must be born into the heavenly family. Therefore, the Bible tells us we must be born anew. This is what our Lord Jesus Christ tells us. We must be born again. We must be born from above. The Greek words are “anagennao” or “gennao anothen.” Both of these phraseologies mean “to be born anew,” “to be born again,” or “to be born from above.”
The Bible makes it very clear how we can be born anew, how we can be born from above. We are born anew; we are born from above when we embrace Jesus Christ as Savior from sin and as Lord of life. When we do that, we are born into the family of God. We become children of God, sons and daughters of God and we recognize Jesus Christ as The Firstborn, preeminent over the children of God, the family of God, the household of God.
Now, there is a false teaching in the world today and in some of the churches of Christ, a false gospel, that you can become a Christian, that you can enter the family of God simply by asking Jesus Christ to be your Savior, simply by asking Jesus Christ to save you from your sin, to acknowledge that you’re a sinner, ask Jesus Christ to forgive you, receive Him as Savior, and you’re a child of God, a son of God, a daughter of God. This is a false teaching because it is only part of the gospel. It is not the whole gospel. There are countless people out there, perhaps some in this worship center, who have asked Jesus Christ to be Savior but you’re not in the family of God. You are not sons or daughters of God because you’ve not received Christ as Lord. You see, the full gospel message is very clear biblically. You can’t enter the family of God; you can’t become a child of God unless you ask Jesus Christ not only to be your Savior, but you accept Him as Lord.
Oh, I know that His Lordship in our lives is not full. His Lordship is not complete. I know we are in process, and I know that we need grace, and we need mercy, and we are not saved by works but we are saved by grace through faith. But, you see, if you really have faith, then you have embraced Christ as Lord and you are engaged in a struggle to please Him, day-by¬ day. If you’ve not embraced Him as Lord, don’t kid yourself. Don’t claim to be a child of God. Nominal Christianity is worthless. Join the family of God.
You know in Matthew’s gospel, the 13th chapter, there are many parables that Jesus told. One is the Parable of the Dragnet. In this parable, Jesus tells us that the gospel of the kingdom is like a great net that is taken through the sea of life. It gathers fish. The gospel of the kingdom gathers in its net fish of every kind. At the end of the day, the fish must be sorted good and evil or good and bad. Jesus said “So shall it be at the end of the day, at the end of the age. There will be the saved and the lost.” How can this be since they’re all in the net? How can that be since in some sense they all responded to the gospel of the kingdom. Why must they be sorted? Because, you see, not all have responded to the true gospel. We have this caution in scripture. The Holy Spirit gives this caution to us today. Are you really a daughter of God? Are you really a son of God? Have you entered the family of God?
Last night we had a gathering of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes right here in the worship center. Coach Tom Osborne, coach of Nebraska, spoke. He really shared the gospel in simplicity. That was wonderful. We had high school kids come up onto the stage. They filled the whole stage, and they made a commitment to live for Christ as Christians in high school, alcohol and drug free. Why did they make that commitment? All over this nation there are youth rallies where kids come forward and make a commitment to live in sexual purity, making a commitment to be a virgin until they join their lives in marriage. Why do they do that? They do that because they want Jesus Christ to be the firstborn, preeminent in their lives.
I know that we transgress, and I know that we sin and that we’re sinners and we need grace and mercy. But… Is it not true, if we’re truly Christians, we’re seeking day-by-day to live for Christ. Jesus is The Firstborn, and He is preeminent over the children of God.
Tim Scates is a member of our church. Many of you know Tim. He’s a friend of mine and I know a friend of many of you. Tim is an attorney. He’s one of our church attorneys. Tim is afflicted with a disease called myasthenia gravis. It’s a very serious disease. Tim just recently had surgery where his thymus was removed. They’ve done this in hope of preventing the spread of this disease in Tim’s body. Tim is recovering well and we’re all praying for Tim. I went to see Tim at the hospital, and he told me a little story that I want to share with you. I asked Tim if I could share this story with you. He said no. No, he actually said “Go ahead!” This concerns what happened when Tim went under the anesthetic before the surgery when the anesthesiologist gave him the medicine.
After the surgery, the doctor, with a smile on his face, said “You won’t believe,” Tim, “what your final words were as you went out from the effect of the anesthetics.” Tim said, “What did I say?” The doctor said, “It was all about food.” Your final words were “I’ve eaten at some of the finest restaurants in the world. I’ve eaten at Charles Court at the Broadmoor, the Swan Court in Maui, Anastasia’s …” Then there was a pause and Tim’s final word before passing out from the effect of the medicine was the word “Denny’s.”
You see, we say strange things in moments like that. It takes me back to a time when I had surgery as a teenager. I was having my wisdom teeth extracted and the anesthesiologist gave me the anesthetic. When I woke up from the surgery, the doctor was not only smiling but he looked at me and he laughed. He said, “You won’t believe the last thing you said just as you passed out.” I said “Well, what did I say?” He said, “Your final words were ‘I am a Presbyterian.’”
Well, you see, this is more than 30 years later and I’m still a Presbyterian but who cares? I mean who cares whether you’re a Presbyterian? Who cares whether you’re a Baptist? Who cares whether you’re an Episcopalian or a Methodist or a Lutheran? Whether you’re Pentecostal or whether you’re a Catholic? Who cares? You see, what really matters is you in the family of God? Have you become a child of God? Are you a daughter of God, a son of God? What Jesus has by nature is offered to us through adoption if we would receive Christ as Savior and as Lord because He is The Firstborn. He is preeminent.
There’s a second meaning to this title and it is this. Jesus Christ is not only preeminent, but He is the prototype. To say that He is The Firstborn means He is the prototype. He is prototypal. He is prototypical. If you look in the dictionary at the word prototype, it refers to the original. It refers to the model upon which everything else is patterned. The prototype is the original, the model upon which everything else is patterned. You see, in the family of God, the children of God are patterned after the model of The Firstborn, you understand. This is not true in earthly families. This is only true in the heavenly family.
In 1870, Dr. Alfred Adler, well known medical doctor and psychiatrist, became the first to theorize that there might be a relationship between birth order and personality traits. In our time, this theory has become very popular. So, in 1984, Dr. Kevin Lehman wrote that well known book called “The Birth Order” book. In the wake of that book, there have been countless articles in magazines and periodicals on the relationship between birth order and personality type. The idea is this. If you’re a firstborn, you tend to be the most responsible. If you’re a firstborn, you become a responsible person typically. But the downside is, you tend towards perfectionism, and you might be a little uptight.
Now, if you’re the last born, typically you are the most fun-loving and easy going but the downside is you tend towards irresponsibility and attention-getting behavior. Now, if you’re a middle born, it’s a little more difficult, according to the theory. You’re more difficult to stereotype but you tend to be very different than the firstborn. Whatever the firstborn is like, you’re going to be different, according to this theory, because the middle born says “I’m going to be different. I’m not going to be like the firstborn.”
This may be true in earthly families. I mean it is stereotypical and it’s overly simplistic but there may be elements of truth to this, but this is not true in the heavenly family. In the heavenly family, we all want to be like The Firstborn. We want to be like The Firstborn because He’s the prototype. We want to have His character; the character of The Firstborn is described in the fruit of the spirit. Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness, self-control. If we’re children of God, if we’re sons and daughters of God, we want to be like that. We want the character of The Firstborn. When we say He’s the prototype, it not only means that we want His character. The meaning is far more profound than this. I mean it means that everything that is true of Him will become true of us.
Look in the book of Hebrews, the 12th chapter. There is this beautiful section there in the 12th chapter of Hebrews where we’re told about three groups that will be in heaven. The first group is described as innumerable angels in festive gathering. The angelic hosts. I know it’s no surprise to any of you that angels will be in heaven. The second group is described as the spirits of just persons made perfect. Bible scholars agree that this is a reference to the Old Testament saints from the patriarchs to the judges to the prophets. All of those who sought to live for God, honor God and seek justice on the earth. The third group is called the assembly of the firstborn enrolled in the heavens. The word assembly in the Greek is the word “ecclesia” which is normally rendered “church,” church of the firstborn enrolled in the heavens. This is a reference to the church of Jesus Christ WILL BE in heaven with the angels and with the Old Testament saints.
But the word firstborn in Hebrews 12 is not strictly speaking a title of Christ because it’s in the plural. Instead of prototokos, it’s prototokoi. This is the plural form. And so, it literally means “church of the firstborns.’ The idea is that all of us who are in the church, all of us who are in the assembly, all of us who are children of God in a sense are, through Christ, firstborns because what’s true of Him as the prototype will become true of us. He is the heir of the father because He is The Firstborn. He is the heir of the Father but in the Bible we are called co-heirs, “sunkleronomos,” co-heirs with Christ because He is the model upon which we are patterned. He is the heir of the Father, but we will share that inheritance with Him.
What an incredible promise because Jesus Christ will inherit all things in the heavens above and the earth beneath and we will share that inheritance with Him, and we will share in the resurrection with Him because He is the prototype. That’s why He’s called The Firstborn from the Dead or The Firstborn of the Dead. He rose from the dead and he rose in a resurrected body. That was the prototype. We will all receive resurrected bodies just like his and what an incredible promise. If that’s not a precious promise to you, then you must be very young. But if you’re getting along in years, you recognize how much you look forward to the promise of heaven and the renewal that is there. If you’ve lost loved ones and you’ve felt the pain of that, you know the greatness of the blessed hope. The Bible tells us that, as Christians, we don’t need to fear death because He is The Firstborn of the Dead.
I want to tell you a little story. This is a true story. It took place a long time ago in the icy waters of the North Atlantic. There was a ship, and it was idle. The ship was called the Californian. It was on its way to Boston Harbor 1,500 miles away, but it was idle, and its engines were shut off because it was in the midst of a field of ice. It was 12 Midnight and the second officer whose name was Herbert Stone… the second officer went up to the bridge for his watch. It was his turn to be on duty. He brought his binoculars with him.
Shortly after midnight, Herbert Stone looked out from the bridge with his binoculars. He thought he saw another ship in the distance. He thought he saw the lights of the masthead and the afterdecks of a distant ship. Maybe ten miles away. Maybe a little further. He wasn’t sure.
Suddenly he saw, in the night, a rocket flare just burst into light in the sky above this distant ship. He thought “What’s going on? Is this a distress signal or are they just playing games? Is there some kind of a drill?” He called for the Captain of the Californian. The Captain’s name was Captain Lord. He came up to the bridge and he looked out. He looked through the binoculars and he said “I think there is a ship out there. I don’t think that those rocket flares could be distress calls because we’d have heard or something in the radio room.” He said, “However, why don’t you use Morse lamp and try to signal the distant ship.” So, Herbert Stone began to use Morse lamp but there was no response.
He did see more rocket flares. At 1:40 AM, he saw the eighth and final rocket flare burst into light in the sky. And then, not too many minutes later, Herbert Stone saw the distant lights just disappear. He didn’t know that the rocket flares were distress signals. He didn’t know that. He didn’t know that that distant ship was sending radio messages of distress. He didn’t know that because in the radio room of the Californian, the radio operator was asleep. He didn’t know, he couldn’t know that he was looking at one of the greatest disasters in the history of the world because, you see, it was early in the morning April 15, 1912, and Herbert Stone watched the sinking of the Titanic. He said later, how he couldn’t sleep at night just realizing that he had watched a great ship go down and more than 1500 lives lost. Hard to live with that.
The Bible tells us that we’re all physically sinking ships. I tried to explain this at Fiddler’s Green. I mean physically we’re all going down. Everyone you look at around you is a sinking ship. When you look in the mirror, you see a sinking ship physically. I mean every second, three people die in this world. Every minute, 200 people. Every year, 100 million people. Every decade, a billion people die. People die but, you see, if you’re a Christian, if you’re a member of the assembly of The Firstborn, if you’ve become a child of God, you don’t view death as the world does. It’s not the same for you. And you know as you look to the future, you know beyond death for you there is eternal life, and you know that you are promised a resurrection body just like the resurrected body of Jesus because He’s the prototype. He’s The Firstborn.
We’re told in I Corinthians 15 that that resurrected body will be spiritual, be of a higher order than these carnal bodies we have now. It will be a spiritual body, able to do things these bodies are not able to do. You realize Jesus Christ was able to pass through walls in His resurrection body. We’re told that resurrection body will be a heavenly body, “epouranoi,” “fit for the heavens.” We’re told it will be indestructible, “aptharsia” which means “not subject to decay.” I mean isn’t that an amazing promise? A body not subject to decay.
If you’ve lost a loved one, you know how we look forward to that. These bodies, we’re told, will be powerful, “dunamos” from which we get the word “dynamite.” It also says in I Corinthians 15 there will be glorious, “doxa” which means “worthy of praise.” We have these promises in Christ Jesus and they’re all for the assembly of The Firstborn, the children of God.
As we close, I just want to tell you a little story that I found in a book called Fabulous Fallacies by Tad Tuleeha. In that book, Tuleeha says that there are five fallacies concerning the Titanic. The first fallacy, of course, is that it was unsinkable. The second fallacy is that the crew maintained order until the end. That’s just not true. There was total chaos. The third fallacy is that the men on the Titanic gave their positions on the lifeboats to women and children. That was sometimes true and there were an inordinate number of women and children in the lifeboats but many men, even many married men and many fathers, thought only of themselves in the midst of that crisis. The fourth fallacy is that icebergs were rarely found in that portion of the North Atlantic and that just wasn’t true. The fifth fallacy is that the band on the Titanic played its last song as the ship went down and that last song was Sarah Adams’ great hymn “Nearer My God To Thee.” It didn’t happen. It’s a great story but it didn’t happen.
The truth is as the ship went down, the band did play a final song and it was an Episcopalian hymn called “Autumn.” All the witnesses testified to that, but it just seems so nice to think that the band played “Nearer My God To Thee.” In the Hollywood version of the movie TITANIC, that’s what the band played, “Nearer My God To Thee.” In the British version of a movie about the Titanic, that’s what the band played, “Nearer My God To Thee” but it just isn’t true.
You see, the truth is for a lot of those people going down into that watery death, for a lot of those 1500+ people, they weren’t going nearer to God. You see, only the family of God on death draws nearer to God. Only the family of God is bound for heaven. Through the gospel, Jesus Christ invites everyone in the world to join the family of God, to receive Christ as Savior yes and as Lord because He is The Firstborn, and he is preeminent. We’re going to give you a chance to enter the family of God this morning.
I want to conclude with a reminder for those of you who are Christians that you’re called to take this gospel to the nations, and you’re called to take this gospel to your community.
Did you know that when the Titanic went down, on the Arts and Entertainment Network, just yesterday there was a two-hour special on the sinking of the Titanic. They showed how many of the lifeboats were only half-full. The testimonies of survivors and children of survivors said that they could look back and hear the screams of the people who were dying. In fact, one person in his 90s said he could never go to a baseball game because whenever he heard the crowd yell, it reminded him of the horrible scream of all the people that went into the water when the ship went down. And yet some of those lifeboats were only half-full and they didn’t go back. They didn’t go back and the reason they didn’t go back is many of them thought there’s so many people. They’ll overwhelm our boat, and they’ll take us under with them. That is the truth. How tragic.
Here we are with the gospel. Are you content to just be saved or do you care? There’s a call on the church of Christ, you see, to rescue the perishing to the gospel of Jesus Christ. Let’s close with a word of prayer.