The gospel that we proclaim is the good news that God saw us in our hopeless and sinful condition and acted on our behalf. He has given us a redeemer, Jesus, the Son of God, who makes it possible for us to experience forgiveness and reconciliation with God. And all who put their faith in the crucified and resurrected Jesus will experience God’s forgiveness and will have eternal life in fellowship with God.
But we do see Jesus, who was made lower than the angels for a little while, now crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.
Hebrews 2:9 NIV
And this verse is the gospel in a nutshell. It begins with the incarnation; Jesus became fully human (Heb. 2:17)—made lower than the angels. He suffered and died on the cross, tasting death for everyone. And God has crowned Him with glory and honor, and now He sits at the right hand of God (Heb. 10:12).
It might be tempting to think that after Jesus’ death, resurrection, and ascension, He left his human nature behind, becoming what He had been from eternity past. But He did not. It is the human Jesus who was crowned with glory and honor. It is the human Jesus who is now sitting at the right hand of God. He is not any less the divine Son, the second person of the Trinity. But He is now also the firstborn of a new creation—a new humanity. And He invites all who are willing to share in that new humanity with Him. And that is the good news.
