The first verses of the Book of Hebrews are an alternate 2nd reading appointed for Christmas Day. As such they are paired well with the opening verses of John's gospel which declare the supreme majesty of the Christ. Both of these passages beg the question, "Why this great emphasis upon the complete 'otherness' of the Christ?" Was there a concern in the early Church about Jesus being less than divine? It will be the preacher's task to speak a witness to the majesty and power of the Christ - no small assignment.
(The following questions are best used in conjunction with other fine sets of questions available to exegetes. These questions are concerned with the function of the Word in the text, a central concern of Law and Gospel preachers. For more on this method and on Law and Gospel preaching in general, see my brief guide, Afflicting the Comfortable, Comforting the Afflicted, available from wipfandstock.com and amazon.)
1. How does the Word function in the text? This text (verses 1-12) is a witness to the utterly unique divinity and majesty of the Christ. This is a statement of God's work on behalf of the world, a Gospel function.
2. How is the Word not functioning in the text? There is no word of Law here, but it is certainly implied. If the intended readers were not tempted to unbelief regarding the divinity of Christ, would this rhetoric have been used? An example is in verse 5, "For to which angels did God ever say, 'You are my Son; today I have begotten you'?" This implies that the reader needed to be convinced that the Christ was God's Son.
3. With whom are you identifying in the text? We can identify with the first readers as people who are tempted to doubt the divinity of Christ. Indeed, the world around us is glad to revere Jesus as a wise rabbi of old, who gave us the Golden Rule, but divine? No way.
4. What, if any, call to obedience is there in this text? This text is a call to faith, not a call to obedience.
5. What Law/Gospel couplet is suggested by this text? From what has been argued above, one might think of some obvious couplets: unbelief/faith; doubt/surety; wandering/homecoming.
6. Exegetical work: Many, many ancient theologians celebrate the claims made in these verses regarding the divinity of Christ. Second century theologian, Origen of Alexandria, serves as a representative: "In my opinion, the Son is the reflection of the total glory of God, according to Paul who said, 'He reflects the glory of God,' anticipating, however, a partial reflection on the rest of the rational creation from this reflection of the total glory. For I do not think that anyone except the Son can contain the whole reflection of the full glory of God." (Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture, NT, vol. X, p. 10). Luther also had much to say in his lectures on these verses. Commenting on verse 6, he said, "Although we read that the angels were worshipped by Moses, by Lot and Abraham, and by Joshua and other prophets,...yet nowhere do we read that angels worshipped any angel or man. Therefore there is firm proof that the man Christ is true God, because it is recorded that He is worshipped by the angels, not only by some but by every one of them." (Luther's Works, "Lectures on Titus, Philemon, and Hebrews," p. 115). Tom Long, in his contemporary commentary, makes an argument for the state of the first readers of this epistle: "Evidently the first readers of Hebrews were undergoing some sort of distress... and, as a consequence, they were having trouble holding on to their faith. They were weary and disheartened. All they could feel was exhaustion; all they could see was trouble. As for Jesus, he appeared to be of precious little help or comfort..." (Interpretation series, Hebrews, p. 20).
7. Consider the insights of the pioneers of the New Homiletic? If we consider the position of the earliest readers as one of "disequilibrium" and the attempt of the writer of this epistle to provide some "equilibrium," then we are following the advice of Eugene Lowry, who always recommended making this movement in a sermon.
Blessings on your proclamation!
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