Now in putting everything in subjection to him, he left nothing outside his control. At present, we do not yet see everything in subjection to him.
Why isn’t life easy? Our culture seems to have equated financial success with God’s favor and right-standing with Him. Undoubtably, God has given large resources to some to be used for His Kingdom and for enjoyment. But what favor is shown to those who suffer persecution and own nothing in the many countries where Christians are the persecuted minority? How are some Christians allowed to live in comfort while others live in desperate circumstances? How are some that we pray for healed while others are not? Why is some pain alleviated while other pain persists?
The writer of Hebrews gives us insight into this plight: “Now in putting everything in subjection to him, he left nothing outside his control. At present, we do not yet see everything in subjection to him.”
These words come on the heels of a quote from Psalm 110:1 (in chapter 1) and Psalm 8:4-6 (here in chapter 2).* These passages seem to contradict one another.* Psalm 110:1 looks to the future reign of Christ while Psalm 8:6 speaks as though everything has already been made subject to Him.* So which is it? Both!
We live in the necessary tension of the “now” and the “not yet” of His established Kingdom.* This uncomfortable space between the lifting up of Christ above all and the finalized realization of that reality has a very important purpose: to allow the Church to proclaim forgiveness in Christ to this world in fulfillment of God’s mission of reconciliation.* It’s a holy calling that requires us to pray that God’s Kingdom would come on earth as it is in heaven one person at a time, one moment at a time, today.
The difficulty of this space in which we live is that while the mission is necessary, the suffering that we experience in this life inspires us to cry out for the future fulfilled and realized reign of Jesus. We often ask, “why do bad things happen to good people?” or we ask, “why does God allow evil to be in this world if He has conquered it?”* The answer is that He is giving the world time to turn back to Him, and in the mean time, that means allowing evil to sit side-by-side with the opportunity for choice.*
Pray that the world chooses Him. Pray that your neighbor turns toward Christ. Ask God for the empowerment and opportunity to share with your neighbor about the saving grace of Jesus Christ.
The pain of this life is real. Suffering is present. But, because of the finished work of Jesus Christ in this present age, we can know that the finished work of Jesus Christ will be established in the age to come.* Take hope.
Ray Stedman offers this perspective:
Yet, says this writer in what must be the understatement of the ages, we do not see everything subject to him. No, there are many things fallen humans cannot control: the weather, the seasons, the instincts of animals, the tides, our own passions, international events, natural disasters, and on and on. The increasing pollution of the planet, the spread of famines and wars, the toll taken by drugs, accidents and disease, all tell the story of a lost destiny.
But almost with a shout the author cries, But we see Jesus! He is the last hope of a dying race. And that hope lies both in his deity and his humanity. He alone, as a human being, managed to fulfill what was intended for us from the beginning. When we read the Gospels, we are forced to ask, Who is this man who stills the winds and the waves with a single word; who multiplies food at will; who walks on the waves; who summons fish to bring up coins at his command; who dismisses disease with a touch; and calls the dead back to life? Who is he? He is the Last Adam, living and acting as God intended us to act when he made us in the beginning. It was the First Adam who plunged the race into bondage and limitation; it is the Last who sets us free in soul and spirit, so that we may now learn how to live in the ages to come when the resurrection gives us back a body fit for the conditions of that life.
Today, take a step.
Maybe today the one step God wants you to take is to take hope. Perhaps God wants you to breathe in the reality of His Kingdom come. Maybe God wants you to pray for His Kingdom to come today. Perhaps God would have you share with your neighbor about His forgiveness. Maybe God wants you to know that He loves you even when life is hard.
Whatever the step, ask God to direct it. Take a moment to take that step. Invite Him to speak. He will.
Life is a long road. Walk it with Jesus.
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*Stedman, R. C. (1992). Hebrews (Heb 2:5–9). IVP Academic.
Grindheim, S. (2023). The Letter to the Hebrews (D. A. Carson, Ed.; pp. 143–147). William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company.
France, R. T. (2006). Hebrews. In T. Longman III & D. E. Garland (Eds.), The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Hebrews–Revelation (Revised Edition) (Vol. 13, p. 49–53). Zondervan.
Guthrie, G. (1998). Hebrews (p. 96–105). Zondervan Publishing House.