Introduction
Are you letting the culture define human worth, or are you letting Scripture shape how you see yourself, your neighbor, and Jesus? The central teaching of Hebrews 2:5–9 is this: God crowned humanity with glory and honor and destined us to share in His coming world, but because we fell under the curse of death, we only recover our true destiny by fixing our eyes on Jesus, the true Man, who became “a little lower than the angels” to taste death for everyone and lead many sons to glory.
Hebrews has already lifted our eyes to Christ’s supremacy, even over angels. Now the Spirit presses a question that matters more than ever: “What is man?” (Psalm 8, quoted in Hebrews 2). Underneath debates about morality, dignity, justice, suffering, and hope is this question: What are humans for? What are we worth? Where are we going?
Main Points
Are you letting the culture define human worth, or are you letting Scripture shape how you see yourself, your neighbor, and Jesus? The central teaching of Hebrews 2:5–9 is this: God crowned humanity with glory and honor and destined us to share in His coming world, but because we fell under the curse of death, we only recover our true destiny by fixing our eyes on Jesus, the true Man, who became “a little lower than the angels” to taste death for everyone and lead many sons to glory.
Hebrews has already lifted our eyes to Christ’s supremacy, even over angels. Now the Spirit presses a question that matters more than ever: “What is man?” (Psalm 8, quoted in Hebrews 2). Underneath debates about morality, dignity, justice, suffering, and hope is this question: What are humans for? What are we worth? Where are we going?
The World To Come Is Not Angel-Run
Hebrews begins this section with a surprising clarification: God “has not put the world to come… in subjection to angels” (Heb. 2:5). Angels are real, majestic, and significant in God’s purposes, but they are not the rulers of God’s future kingdom.
Why does that matter? Because some people drift from Jesus by thinking, “He’s just a man, surely angels are more impressive.” Hebrews won’t allow that. To understand Jesus rightly, we must understand God’s design for humanity and where the story is going: the restoration of all things, the world to come, the new creation. Christians should be the most hopeful people on earth because we’re not living only for today; God is actively moving history toward His promised future.
Crowned With Glory And Honor
The writer then quotes Psalm 8, David’s worship-filled meditation under the night sky:
- “What is man that You are mindful of him…?”
- “You have made him a little lower than the angels; You have crowned him with glory and honor.” (Heb. 2:6–7; Psalm 8)
I want you to feel the tension Scripture gives us. Yes, humans appear “lower than angels” in created rank and visible splendor. If an angel stood in front of us, we’d be overwhelmed. Yet God says something breathtaking about mankind: He crowned us with glory and honor.
This is where I lovingly challenge you to think and live differently: you must become a light in a dark world by refusing to treat humans as insignificant, disposable, or merely accidental. The world swings between two damaging instincts, seeing people as meaningless at best or monstrous at worst. But Scripture gives us a better vision: humans are flawed, yes, but still stamped with God-given dignity.
Made In God’s Image, Male And Female
The Bible doesn’t leave “glory and honor” vague. It grounds human dignity in creation itself:
- “Let Us make man in Our image…” (Gen. 1:26)
- “So God created man in His own image… male and female He created them.” (Gen. 1:27)
This is the imago Dei, the image of God. Every person you meet bears God’s fingerprint. That means:
- In marriage, I’m called to treat my spouse as an image-bearer, not a tool, enemy, or accessory.
- In parenting, I must see my children as more than problems to manage; they carry glory and honor bestowed by God.
- In society, we stand on a rock-solid foundation for why murder is wrong, slavery is wrong, abuse is wrong, and exploitation is wrong, because people are not things.
Hold this in your heart: there are no ordinary people. You’ve never talked to a “mere mortal.” The “dullest” person you encounter may one day be radiant in glory by God’s redeeming power.
Dominion Without Creation-Worship
Psalm 8 also says God set man over the works of His hands (Heb. 2:7–8; Psalm 8), echoing Genesis:
- “Let them have dominion…” (Gen. 1:26)
God made the earth for humanity’s stewardship, joy, and responsible rule under Him. This guards us from an ancient temptation: worshiping creation rather than the Creator. Creation is meant to lead you to worship God, not replace Him.
So I want you to re-order your thinking:
- Enjoy the world God made, mountains, oceans, animals, without treating nature as ultimate.
- Exercise stewardship with gratitude, not guilt-driven idolatry.
- Remember: you were created to rule under God’s authority, not to be ruled by created things.
The Painful Reality: We Do Not Yet See It
At this point, Hebrews anticipates your objection, and it’s an honest one:
- “But now we do not yet see all things put under him.” (Heb. 2:8)
We don’t see Eden. We see disease, addiction, poverty, conflict, exploitation, and death. Instead of mastery, we often feel mastered. Instead of ruling, we see slavery. Instead of glory, we see shame.
Here is the Bible’s diagnosis: humanity was given everything, and humanity lost it all. The curse entered through sin, and the final enemy reigns over our world: death. The darkness around us isn’t proof that God is absent; it’s proof that the fall is real and that we desperately need rescue beyond ourselves.
Fix Your Eyes On Jesus, The True Man
Now comes the turning point, the hope that holds everything together:
- “But we see Jesus…” (Heb. 2:9)
This is where I want your faith to land. We don’t yet see everything restored, but we do see Jesus, and He changes what “man” means.
Hebrews says Jesus was also “made a little lower than the angels” (Heb. 2:9). The Son of God took on human nature, entered our cursed world, and did what we could not do: He fulfilled God’s plan for humanity by becoming the representative Man.
Why? “For the suffering of death… that He, by the grace of God, might taste death for everyone.” (Heb. 2:9)
Jesus didn’t merely sympathize from a distance. He went lower:
- Born in humility.
- Lived as a servant.
- Obedient unto death.
- Entered the grave under the curse, on purpose.
And He did it to break the reign of death. Romans 5 explains the story’s backbone: through Adam, sin and death reign; through Jesus Christ, grace and righteousness reign, and we are brought into life (Rom. 5:17).
So when you ask, “What is man?” the Christian answer becomes even clearer: you are someone God is mindful of, someone worth the Son becoming man to save, someone invited to be restored and to reign in life through Jesus Christ.
Conclusion
So I’m urging you to hold both lenses at once:
- Your glory and honor: You are not an accident. You are an image-bearer. There are no ordinary people.
- The world’s curse: We do not yet see all things in proper order; suffering and death still intrude.
- The decisive hope: But we see Jesus. He entered our low place, tasted death for everyone, and opened the future, the kingdom of God, the world to come, where God dwells with His people and Jesus reigns on the throne.
If you’ve been drifting, come back to the center. If you’ve been despairing, lift your eyes. If you’ve been defining people by usefulness, politics, attractiveness, or tribe, repent and learn again to see the image of God, and to see Jesus as the fulfillment of God’s plan for humanity.
There is no other hope. The kingdom of God is the future. Fix your eyes on Christ.
Father, You are mindful of us, and we confess we often forget that. Forgive us for treating ourselves or others as insignificant, and forgive us for the pride that ignores Your design. Thank You for crowning humanity with glory and honor, for making us in Your image, and for giving us purpose in Your world.
Lord Jesus, we praise You that we can truly say, “We see Jesus.” Thank You for becoming man, for being made a little lower than the angels, and for tasting death for everyone by the grace of God. Strengthen our faith to trust You when we do not yet see all things restored. Teach us to honor every person as an image-bearer and to live with hope in the world to come.
Holy Spirit, make us new. Anchor us in Christ, keep us from drifting, and shape us into disciples who reflect Your love and truth. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Conclusion
So I’m urging you to hold both lenses at once:
- Your glory and honor: You are not an accident. You are an image-bearer. There are no ordinary people.
- The world’s curse: We do not yet see all things in proper order; suffering and death still intrude.
- The decisive hope: But we see Jesus. He entered our low place, tasted death for everyone, and opened the future, the kingdom of God, the world to come, where God dwells with His people and Jesus reigns on the throne.
If you’ve been drifting, come back to the center. If you’ve been despairing, lift your eyes. If you’ve been defining people by usefulness, politics, attractiveness, or tribe, repent and learn again to see the image of God, and to see Jesus as the fulfillment of God’s plan for humanity.
There is no other hope. The kingdom of God is the future. Fix your eyes on Christ.
Closing Prayer
Father, You are mindful of us, and we confess we often forget that. Forgive us for treating ourselves or others as insignificant, and forgive us for the pride that ignores Your design. Thank You for crowning humanity with glory and honor, for making us in Your image, and for giving us purpose in Your world.
Lord Jesus, we praise You that we can truly say, “We see Jesus.” Thank You for becoming man, for being made a little lower than the angels, and for tasting death for everyone by the grace of God. Strengthen our faith to trust You when we do not yet see all things restored. Teach us to honor every person as an image-bearer and to live with hope in the world to come.
Holy Spirit, make us new. Anchor us in Christ, keep us from drifting, and shape us into disciples who reflect Your love and truth. In Jesus’ name, amen.