Jonathan Munson, Executive Director, RFTH
“The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of His being, sustaining all things by his powerful word.” Hebrews 1:3
Imagine you extended your arm and held up an average bottle of water.
How long do you think you could keep your arm outstretched?
A few minutes? An hour? Several hours?
Though the bottle doesn’t weigh that much, it would grow heavier with each passing moment. Sooner or later, your strength would give out, you’d lose your grip, and the water bottle would crash to the ground.
Now…imagine for a moment if you had to uphold not the meager weight of a plastic water bottle but the weight of the entire universe.
While impossible for us, it’s nothing for Jesus.
He sustains “all things by His powerful word” (Hebrews 1:3).
Jesus, the God who spoke the universe into existence (John 1:3 and Hebrews 11:3), didn’t merely set it all into motion and back away. He didn’t flip on a cosmic ‘autopilot’ switch and take a nap. On the contrary, Jesus remains very much in control. At this moment, He’s “holding all things together” (Colossians 1:17).
And “all things” means ALL things, from the tiniest subatomic particle to the vast expanse of billions of galaxies. Jesus is intimately involved in His creation.
The word for ‘sustain’ in this passage means that not only does Jesus hold the universe in His hands, but He’s also moving it along to fulfill His divine plan. In other words, His hands are on the galactic steering wheel, so to speak. He’s driving all things toward their ultimate destination for His glory.
Now think about this.
While our arm begins to shake after only a few minutes of holding up a bottle of water, Jesus isn’t tired. His arms aren’t trembling from sustaining the incomprehensible burden of all things. In fact, He’s as strong now and forever as He was in eternity past.
If we really let all this sink in, our hearts should explode in worship. The writer of Hebrews wants to expand our understanding of who Jesus is. He is the “radiance of “God’s glory” (verse 3) and the Author, Ruler, and Sustainer of the universe. Jesus is infinitely greater than the ‘box’ we often try and put Him in.
But let’s bring this down to our personal, everyday lives.
If Jesus easily sustains the weight of the universe, don’t you think He can sustain you?
As He says through the prophet Isaiah, “Don’t be overwhelmed, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand” (Isaiah 41:10).
I don’t know what you’re trying to sustain today. A business? A home? Responsibilities out in the community or at the office? Most likely, it’s a combination of things.
But here’s what I do know.
Sustaining anything is incredibly hard work.
Remember, it’s not your job to sustain everything; your job is to surrender everything.
So, take a moment to give your little ‘universe’ to Jesus. He’s more than capable of sustaining it for you.
“Jesus doesn’t need your strength; He has more than enough power on His own. He simply asks for your weakness; He has none of that Himself.” Charles Spurgeon
DIG DEEPER
Read “4 Reasons Your Troubles Lead You to Jesus” by Michael Kelley
