Hebrews 13 - Christian Life and Hope

I love Hebrews.  I love its encouragement.  It gives us clear instructions for Christian living.  I love the explanation of what Jesus Christ, the Great Shepherd, ratified with His blood: the eternal covenant of God.  It explains God's wrath fulfilled; His gift to His people, given in love.

I love the reminder that this world is not our permanent home.  We have an eternal home yet to come.  

This letter is serious.  It is a matter of life and death.  It is a matter of the eternal destination of our souls.  Yet it is pastoral and practical.

        It is encouraging, motivating, and enlightening.  It makes clear that the old Hebrew system is obsolete - replaced forever with a much better system and promise.  It confirms the Jewish system is no longer in effect - and never will be again.  It was just a shadow of the real thing.  It could not clear a guilty conscience.  It could not make us right before God.  It could not take us from one realm to the other, from darkness to light, from worldly wickedness to the Kingdom of the dear Son.

But God's plan of salvation, the new covenant that He planned before time began, does what the law could not do.

        We are transferred indeed to God’s Kingdom, by faith in Jesus, by God’s grace.  We are new creations by the power of the Holy Spirit.  Holy indeed for there is no spirit like the Holy Spirit.  Our strength comes from the Spirit of Christ, Almighty God himself.  We have no King but Jesus Christ.

It’s a chapter of faith, from start to finish.  Hebrews tells us what every farmer, fisherman, and mother of a newborn can tell you.  Crops will grow - takes time.  Fish will bite, but it takes wisdom and ability.  Newborns are a gift from God the Creator.  Precious new life, made in the image of God.

        We must have faith and confidence that what we hope for will actually happen (11:1).  And note in Hebrews that not only does it take faith to understand that Jesus Christ created the entire universe by His command.  We are also to have faith that God will shake the heavens and earth to remove everything (yes, creation will come to an end) so that God will create new heavens and earth (Hebrews 12:27).  It is a grave act of disbelief to put all your eggs, your treasure if you will, in the things of this earth.

And this letter is a charge for the Christian to work.  Work like never before.  We must stop playing church.  We are the church.  We must put our love into action.  No sitting back.  No more worldliness.  We are a hard pass on what the world has to offer.  No thanks!  Genuine Christians rightly value worldliness as empty.  We are satisfied with God - more than satisfied.  Content with a determined commitment to the cause of Christ.

        Of all the famed passages of Hebrews I find this final chapter to be the most encouraging and powerful.  It's the essence of the earlier verse, “Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works” (10:24).  That’s what pondering Chapter 13 does.  It encourages us in how we are to live for Christ because of the great promise of Christ to shake the created and create the unshakable.

So, dust yourself off.  As Hebrews says, take a new grip and set a new straight vision for the rest of your life.

        Have the mindset of a servant leader so that no one falls behind.  We are called to love and to be known for our love.  Don’t accept any other standard.  You can tell a genuine Christian by who they want to hang out with (the ordinary person).

        We are commanded not to think more highly of ourselves than we should.  You hear the so-called church sages today wax on about how they only want to hang out with “influencers.”  I had a wealthy Christian tell me recently (a good man who gives a lot of his considerable net worth to church organizations) that he can’t even get a meeting with the sages - they used to pay him attention, but now their focus is on Billionaires - lowly millionaires are so passe.  

        Jesus came to save sinners.  Why seek worldliness when we already have the greatest treasure:  God himself alive in us.  We are to help the poor.  We are to give generously.  Hospitality is second nature for the Christian as is helping foreigners, those in prison, and the mistreated.

        We feel the pain of the afflicted and treasure the opportunity to help our neighbors.  We seek no recognition as we have all we need from God.

        Lord Jesus, thank You for Your Scripture.  Please strengthen us this week to pay attention to Scripture and to serve well.  Amen.

With the kids and grandkids Easter 2024.