Hebrews 13

Hebrews 13:1-6 “Keep on loving each other as brothers. Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it. Remember those in prison as if you were their fellow prisoners, and those who are mistreated as if you yourselves were suffering. Marriage should be honored by all, and the marriage bed kept pure, for God will judge the adulterer and all the sexually immoral. Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you." So we say with confidence, "The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?"

My Bible calls this section “General Christian Obligations” and it’s full of well known phrases. Let’s look at the first one: brotherly love. The Bible tells us we are all brothers in Christ. We should be kind to one another: not look for faults or be unsympathetic.

The next part says we should practice hospitality. The ancient world loved and honored hospitality. Back then inns were nasty places. There used to be a system called “guest friendships” where families, even if they had lost touch years before, knew if they needed to, they could stay with each other. People were always being invited in for a cup of water or a meal. I think one of the reasons people looked forward to company like this was the lack of newspapers and TV. Talking to others, telling stories and spreading news, was entertainment.

In the early church, preachers and prophets needed places to stay and Christians needed to provide those places. Christianity should still be a religion of the open door.

Next we are told to have sympathy for those in trouble. Back when this was written Christians were often in jail; for their beliefs or their debt. The early church would go into action to supply for persons in need, or if they could, get the person out of prison.

Next: purity. Respect for marriage vows. The Bible couldn’t be any more clear, could it? Marriage should be honored by all, and the marriage bed kept pure, for God will judge the adulterer and all the sexually immoral.

And then contentment. One commentator wrote, “The Christian must be content with what he has. And why shouldn’t he be? For he possesses the continual presence of God!
The author of Hebrews quotes 2 great Old Testament passages to show that the man of God needs nothing more than God’s presence and help.

Joshua 1:5 “No one will be able to stand up against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you.”

Psalm 118:6 “The LORD is with me; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?”

To be content we need to thank God daily for our blessings. Keep our eyes focused on Him and not TV commercials or the Jones everyone keeps trying to keep up with!

We would do our children an enormous favor if we could help them learn to be content. None of us needs as much stuff as we have!

Hebrews 12:25-29

Hebrews 12:25-29 "See to it that you do not refuse him who speaks. If they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, how much less will we, if we turn away from him who warns us from heaven? At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, "Once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens." The words "once more" indicate the removing of what can be shaken—that is, created things—so that what cannot be shaken may remain. Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our "God is a consuming fire."

Moses relayed the law to the people. He was the one who warned the people on earth and those who refused to obey did not escape. Jesus is the one who warns from Heaven and the author says if the punishment is so severe for breaking the law; know that it will be much more severe for not listening to Jesus!

We are actually under a double responsibility. Those back under the law only knew part of the truth. Because of Jesus, we know God’s full truth and should have no excuse for not obeying Him. It’s like the saying, “To who much is given, much is expected.”

When the first law was given, the world shook!

(Exodus 19:18) (Psalm 114:7) (Psalm 68:8) (Psalm 77:18)

The author says, someday the world will shake again. Everything that can be uprooted will be destroyed. The only things that will remain will be what can’t be shaken: our relationship with God. Jesus spoke in Matthew about the importance of building on a firm foundation.

We must worship God with reverence. We must serve Him with fear. The author ends this passage by quoting Deuteronomy 4:24 “For the LORD your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God.”

Moses told the Israelite this, but it’s true for us too. God must be first in our lives. Having a relationship with Him, being able to approach Him now, doesn’t change that. If we put God first and our faith remains unshakable – when the end comes, whether Christ comes back in our lifetime, or we die of old age - we will be safe and secure. We have a choice!

Hebrews 12 Part 4

Hebrews 12:18-24 You have not come to a mountain that can be touched and that is burning with fire; to darkness, gloom and storm; to a trumpet blast or to such a voice speaking words that those who heard it begged that no further word be spoken to them, because they could not bear what was commanded: "If even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned." The sight was so terrifying that Moses said, "I am trembling with fear."

But you have come to Mount Zion, to the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of the living God. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the judge of all men, to the spirits of righteous men made perfect, to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.

This section contrasts the old and the new. The difference between getting the law on Mt. Sinai and the new covenant of which Jesus is the mediator. The first part is a bunch of phrases and remembrances from the story of the giving of the law.

(Deuteronomy 4:11, Exodus 19:12-13, Deuteronomy 5:23-27)

3 things were stressed in the giving of the law.

1. The sheer majesty of God and the story says nothing about His love.
2. His absolute unapproachability. In fact, those who tried to approach Him died.
3. The sheer terror they had of God. They were even afraid to look at or listen to Him.

But, then the second half! The Christian has a new covenant. A new relationship with God. And the author lists the new glories that await the Christian and are open to him:

1. The New Jerusalem. The heavenly Jerusalem. This world will be gone some day and we’ll live in a new, perfect world. If you want to learn more about this place, you can see here
2. The angels will rejoice in our joy!
3. This will happen to God’s first born His elect. The ones whose names are written in God’s book.
4. God is still our judge and we will face Him as our judge some day.
5. We will join the honor roll o f faith, like the people in Hebrews 11.
6. And finally, the author says Jesus makes all this possible. It was Jesus who took away the terror and gave us a new relationship with God. It was Jesus, the perfect priest and perfect sacrifice who make the unapproachable approachable. The author contrasts the blood of Abel and the blood of Christ. Genesis 4:10 says when Abel died – when he was slain – his blood upon the earth called for vengeance. But, Jesus’ blood called for reconciliation.

Hebrews 12 Part 3

Hebrews 12:12-17 Therefore, strengthen your feeble arms and weak knees. "Make level paths for your feet," so that the lame may not be disabled, but rather healed. Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord. See to it that no one misses the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many. See that no one is sexually immoral, or is godless like Esau, who for a single meal sold his inheritance rights as the oldest son. Afterward, as you know, when he wanted to inherit this blessing, he was rejected. He could bring about no change of mind, though he sought the blessing with tears.

Most people can come through in a pinch. But it’s the day in day out of living our faith that can be hard. This section deals with a Christian’s daily life and struggle. The author tells us to strengthen ourselves so we can strengthen others. Christians have a duty to God, but they also have a duty to man: that they don’t mislead him.

Our example needs to make it easier for others to believe in and follow Christ. If we say one thing and do another it confuses people. And that’s wrong. Christians should live a life above reproach. One commentator said, “A man must offer his heart to God and his service and example to his fellow men.”

Where is says we should make every effort to live in peace means we should pursue it. It requires effort. Peace to the Hebrews was not just freedom from trouble. It meant 2 things. First, it was everything which makes for a man’s highest good: it meant the highest welfare man could enjoy and that (as the Hebrews saw it) could only be found in obedience to God. So the Christian must aim at that complete obedience to God in which life finds its highest happiness, its greatest good and its peace.

The second meaning is a right relation between men. Where man only seeks good for his neighbor. Love, forgiveness, service…no hatred. So, tying this together; the peace we strive for comes from obedience to God’s will, which enables us to live in and produce right relationships with our fellow man.

Going on in this verse we are also to aim for holiness. The intense pursuit of holiness is to be the predominant priority of every Christian. The pursuit is a spiritual mindset. If someone is spirit-filled, there will be a burning thirst to experience God’s holiness in every corner of his being. Daily, serious Bible reading and prayer are the primary means by which we pursue such purity and growth. In Matthew 6:20 Jesus said we are to “seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness.” The entire book of Leviticus was written so the Israelites would learn how to be holy. God tells us to “Be Holy because I am Holy. Remember that holy means to be separate, different and that the world’s standards are not ours.

Our ideal is different, our reward is different. We are not holy now, but holiness is our destiny. (1 John 3:2-3) Our lack of holiness is what causes most of our problems in life though and that’s why we need to strive to be holy now. Ask yourself, “What changes must I make to live a holy life?” That would be a good way to spend quiet time with God, a pencil and paper. Then check yourself on it everyday.

We’re also told not to let a root of bitterness spring up. Bitterness comes when we allow disappointment to grow to resentment or when we nurse grudges over past hurts. Bitterness is ugly and it causes jealousy, dissension and immortality. But the Holy Spirit can heal us from the hurt that causes it if we ask Him.

The author uses Esau in the next verse as a man who put his earthly comfort and pleasure above God and lost his inheritance. Any man who lives just for this world throws away his birthright – eternity. Remember how God promised Abraham that He would make him the father of a great nation and that people would be blessed through him? And that Jesus was the fulfillment of that? He was the one from Abraham’s lineage that would come and save people. The promises to Abraham were what Isaac was passing on to his eldest son. He didn’t have any land to speak of. His birthright was still in the future. In a previous post I wrote that the great people of faith who were listed in Hebrews 11 died without seeing all of God’s promises fulfilled, but they kept their faith. They kept God first so they, including Abraham (Esau’s grandfather), Isaac (Esau’s father) and Jacob (Esau’s twin) were listed in the “honor roll of faith” but Esau is in Hebrews 12:16 called a godless man. It says that later he sought his birthright, but was rejected because he didn’t repent. Remember Judas went back and tried to un-do the sin he had committed too. But saying you’re sorry and truly repenting (changing your action and your attitude and your life!) are two different things.

The author says that Esau despised his birthright. He deliberately rejected God. Therefore God rejected Esau. We too have a spiritual birthright. We may have been born into a Christian family, but we still, when we reach the age of accountability, must choose God. We may know the facts, we may know the promises, we may know the only way to receive eternal life is through believing that Jesus died and rose again for our personal sins. But if we are acting any other way then the way God calls us to be we are despising our birthright.

We live in a land where there are Bibles and we have the freedom to read them. If we don’t, we despise our birthright. We can belong to a church, but when we stay at home on Sundays to enjoy the weather, or whatever, we despise our birthright. We make daily choices whether we think about them or not. God wants us to take our birthright seriously.

Hebrews 12 Part 2

Hebrews 12:3-4 Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood.
We need to realize that walking with God doesn’t guarantee we will be free from opposition. Otherwise we will become discouraged. Suffering does help us mature as Christians.

Where it says they “haven’t resisted to the point of shedding your blood.” The author’s readers were living in a time of persecution, but they were reading his words. They were alive. They hadn’t yet died for their faith like Christ and other saints and martyrs. And he was telling them to not give up. It cost other people their lives and a thing which cost so much cannot be taken lightly. A tradition like that is not a tradition a man can let down. We should show ourselves worthy of the sacrifices that men and God made for us.

Hebrews 12:5-11 And you have forgotten that word of encouragement that addresses you as sons: "My son, do not make light of the Lord's discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son."

Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father? If you are not disciplined (and everyone undergoes discipline), then you are illegitimate children and not true sons. Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of our spirits and live! Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.

Does God discipline us? Well, it says right here in the Bible He does! The first part of this section is a quote from Proverbs 3:11-12. As parents do we show our love of our children by letting them run wild?

Even if it hurts us to let them bear the consequences of some action; we know we have to so they can grow. So they can become mature, stronger, better people; able to not only get along better in life, but to have compassion and wisdom for other people. All of these things come out of a good suffering!

This verse says God disciplines us so we may share in His holiness. And admits with us that disciple isn’t pleasant and we may respond to it in several ways:

1. We can accept it with resignation
2. We can accept it with self-pity (thinking we don’t deserve it.)
3. We can get angry with God or resentful
4. We can accept it gratefully – knowing it shows that God loves us like a Father and He is growing us.

Hebrews 12 Part 1

Hebrews 12:1-2 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

The cloud of witnesses is the group of faithful people we just read about in Hebrews chapter 11. Remember the author wrote about them to inspire us, encourage us and remind us of our responsibility as a Christian. Many times in the Bible a Christian’s life is described as a journey or a race. Our goal is to someday be like Christ and be in His presence. And every night we should ask ourselves if we are closer to that goal. If we are going to travel far – we must travel light. And the author tells us to “lay aside every weight and sin that clings.”

Ask yourself what’s holding you back on your journey to be more like Christ? A bad habit, some sin you can’t repent from, some sin you have repented from but can’t forget? Selfishness? We can get rid of these things and we can finish our race, if we keep our eyes on Jesus.

He had trials, a lot more than most people ever will, but He got through them – not around them. And He was able to because He put God first and kept Heaven foremost in His mind. And that’s what we’re supposed to do. One commentator said about this passage: “Jesus is not only our goal at the end; He’s our companion along the way.

Hebrews Chapters 11 Part 7

Hebrews 11:32 -40 And what more shall I say? I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel and the prophets, who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions, quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword; whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies. Women received back their dead, raised to life again. Others were tortured and refused to be released, so that they might gain a better resurrection. Some faced jeers and flogging, while still others were chained and put in prison. They were stoned; they were sawed in two; they were put to death by the sword. They went about in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, persecuted and mistreated— the world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains, and in caves and holes in the ground. These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised. God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.

These verses summarize the lives of other great men and women of faith – some experienced great victories in their lives – some were mistreated and even killed. Steadfast faith doesn’t guarantee us a carefree life. On the contrary our faith almost guarantees us some type of trial or abuse from the world. While we are on earth we may never see the purpose of our suffering, but, we know God’s promises will come true in His time.

There are too many people listed in this section to talk about in a short post, but it is a list of people who faced incredible odds for God. Who were in God’s minority rather then the world’s majority. Men who accepted God-given tasks. And they are in Hebrews to be an example for Christians. The writer of Hebrews is seeking to inspire new courage and a new sense of responsibility by making his readers remember their past.

God’s power hasn’t grown less over time. What He did once, he can do again. The God of history is the same God we worship today. They died before the Messiah came. We may die before He returns, but someday these people of the Old Testament will stand with us before Christ. Old and New Testament believers will be glorified together.