The Personality of Christ remains unchanged from eternity. But His manner of living, opportunities, and fruit have increased greatly. Also, a Wife, a fullness, is being created from His body and blood—body and blood He did not possess prior to His birth of the virgin.

Christ has been with the Father from the beginning. Yet we have the expression, "this day have I begotten thee." And the declaration, "let all the angels of God worship him" was spoken by the Father when He brought His firstborn Son "into the world"; not during past eons, but when He brought Christ into the world.

One key to the mystery can be found in the second Psalm:

Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen [nations] for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession. (Psalms 2:8)

Consider that Christ had made the nations and also the farthest reaches of the earth. Why would the Father invite Him to pray to receive what He Himself had created? If Christ had created the nations and the farthest reaches of the earth (and He had), why, then, did He not own them? Why would He be required to pray that they be given to Him?

Perhaps the answer to this question will reveal the reason for the concern of the writer of Hebrews regarding the lack of diligence of the Hebrew Christians.

We found, in the first chapter of the Book of Colossians, that Christ is both "the firstborn of every creature," and also "the firstborn from the dead" (verses 15 and 18).

His being "the firstborn of every creature" means He created every creature and thing. He was before all things.

His being "the firstborn from the dead" signifies He is the first of the new creation, which is the Kingdom of God.

We are dealing here with two separate creations: the first creation, consisting of the heavens and the earth that have been and yet are; and the second creation, which is the Kingdom of God, the new creation—that which began when the Lord Jesus Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father.

In the spiritual heavens, prior to the creation of the heavens and earth with which we are familiar, there was a rebellion against the Father. Satan and a large number of angels decided to live according to their own will, not according to the Father's will.

During this rebellion a number of the angels stood true to the Father and continued to perform His will. The Word of God, whom we know as Christ, also stood true, loving the Father's righteousness and hating wickedness. Because of His stand for righteousness, God anointed the Word, the Expression of His Personality, His Son (if that relationship was conceived of before man was created), with the oil of gladness.

Thou lovest righteousness, and hatest wickedness: therefore God, thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows. (Psalms 45:7)

Who Christ's "fellows" are we do not know, unless the Spirit is referring to those who one day will be the brothers of Christ (Romans 8:29), or possibly to some kind of angels that at one time were referred to as sons of God (Job 1:6; 38:7).

To be continued.