This letter was written by James, the brother of Jesus, who was a leader of the Jerusalem church (cf. Acts 15:13–29; Gal. 2:12). It may date from the late A.D. 40s, just after persecution scattered the members of the new movement (James 1:1; cf. Acts 8:1–3). If so, James would be the earliest of the New Testament letters. James’ focus was on how faith is to be expressed in a believer’s life. He concentrated on such issues as facing trials, dealing with temptation, showing favoritism, taming the tongue, patience, and prayer. The book continues to serve as a reminder that our faith is also a way of life, and as a guide to putting our faith into practice.
“We are sure that we have a clear conscience and a desire to live honorably in every way” (Heb. 13:18).Exhortations to honorable living grow naturally out of the most exalted doctrine.
Overview
The writer closes with exhortations (13:1–19), with one of the most powerful doxologies in Scripture (vv. 20–21), and with personal greetings (vv. 22–25).
Understanding the Text
“Keep on loving each other as brothers” Heb. 13:1. Nearly every New Testament letter contains an exhortation to love. This is only appropriate, as the night before His crucifixion Jesus emphasized his “new commandment” (John 13:33–34). Christ’s followers are to love one another as Jesus loved them. This verse, however, has a distinctive emphasis. “Keep on” loving. The emphasis is important. As we come to know others better and better, more and more of their flaws are likely to appear. How many a gal has come home, excited over meeting “the” man, only to become disenchanted a few weeks or months later. We Christians, however, don’t have the liberty of disenchantment. Or of disengagement. Someone born to my parents is my sister or my brother, not by my choice, but by virtue of shared parentage. We may choose our mates, but we don’t choose brothers and sisters. And somehow, despite everything, in most families siblings learn not only to get along, but to love each other as well. It’s like this in God’s family. We are family, not by our choice, but by God’s. We have the same Father, and so we all belong. Period. We can become disenchanted. But we can’t withdraw, or reject someone whom God has accepted. And so Hebrews 13:1 sets a distinctive challenge before us. “Keep on” loving. How good to know that, as we keep on loving, love will find a way. Through love we will be a blessing, and find blessing. “Do not forget to entertain strangers” Heb. 13:2–3. Hospitality was one of the most important of ancient virtues. No hotels or motels dotted the first-century countryside. Tired and hungry people often appeared in town or at one’s door, hoping for a place to stay. There are distinct aspects to the Christian’s relationships with others. We are to keep on loving Christian brothers. And we are to entertain strangers. Whether the people we meet are in or out of God’s family, we are to show loving concern. The writer went even further. The believer is to “remember those in prison.” A person in prison isn’t free to come to your church. He’s not free to knock on your door. You have to take the initiative and search out the person in jail. What’s more, it is uncomfortable to take that initiative. When someone comes to your house, you’re on your own turf. You are relatively secure. When you go beyond the places you normally frequent, you feel uncertain and unsure. There you can’t insulate yourself from others’ suffering. It’s unpleasant at the very least. But if we remember all that Hebrews tells about what God has done for us in Christ, we understand why we need to relate to brothers, strangers, and prisoners. Christ’s gift of redemption is a love gift offered to every man. Christ’s blood was shed for the stranger and the outcast as well as the brother. We need to go where Christ would go if He were here. “Keep your lives free from the love of money” Heb. 13:4–6. It’s easy to say. But how do we find contentment, when everything in our society shouts at us, insisting that we desire more? The answer is, remember that in God you already possess everything. The stock market can fall, and you will lose everything. Thieves can break in, and your possessions will disappear. The economy can crash and interest rates rise. In this world there simply is no security in wealth, or the things that money can buy. But when God is with you, and when you have His promise, “Never will I leave you,” you enjoy the ultimate security. God, the Creator of heaven and earth, the Owner of the cattle on a thousand hills, is your helper. There is nothing that can threaten the man or woman who walks hand in hand with the Lord. “Remember your leaders” Heb. 13:7. What a fascinating way to put this. The writer didn’t say, “Remember what your leaders taught.” He didn’t say “Remember what your leaders told you to do,” even though they “spoke the Word of God to you.” What the writer said was, “Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith.” We are to remember them, for their example teaches us something that their words cannot. As we consider the faith they live by, we learn to live by faith. “Our hearts to be strengthened by grace” Heb. 13:9–14. The ceremonial foods on Old Testament altars symbolized God’s sustaining grace. You and I, however, have no need of symbols. We have Christ Himself, who suffered to make us holy. Going “outside the camp” indicates breaking out of Old Testament faith and ritual. There is nothing left for us inside them, for with their symbolism fulfilled in Christ, they are now empty shells. And so the author said, “Let us then go to Him.” If you want your heart to be strengthened by grace, follow this prescription. Go directly to Him. “A sacrifice of praise” Heb. 13:15. Let’s not come empty-handed to the Lord. And let’s not rush into His presence, shouting out our needs and demanding attention without first paying attention to Him. What we bring Christ as our sacrifice today is praise. And He is worthy to be praised. Perhaps it’s not surprising, but even in this we find that God thinks of us, even as He asks us to consider Him. When we do focus our attention on the Lord, and praise Him for His great attributes, we pray with much greater confidence. Rehearsing His praises strengthens our faith, and faith is essential to answered prayer. “We have a clear conscience and desire to live honorably in every way” Heb. 13:18. If this is true of us, and reflects our heart’s desire, we will do more than praise God. Our lives will bring Him praises. “The God of peace” Heb. 13:20–21. These verses contain one of the most beautiful benedictions in the Old or New Testaments. It is a “must memorize”: a passage that can bring confidence as well as focus to your life.
DEVOTIONAL
Let Yourself Be Led(Heb. 13:17)
It’s almost hidden, tucked in with a number of other exhortations that the writer of Hebrews hurried to add as he closed his epistle. Most who do notice it seem to take it wrongly, as if the writer were encouraging a hierarchy of leaders, who had the right to demand obedience. I don’t believe the first readers had that impression for several reasons. In the Greek the phrase reads peithesthe tois hegoumenois hyman kain hypeikete. The Greek work peithesthe means, “Let yourselves be persuaded, or convinced.” A fair English paraphrase would be, “Open your hearts to the persuasion of your leaders.” The word translated “leaders” here is used for rulers and princes, but originally meant “to lead or guide.” The idea seems to be that spiritual leaders are to be those who have traveled the road of faith (see v. 7), and thus can serve as guides for others. The single word hypeikete is rendered by the English phrase, “Submit to their authority.” Originally it was used in classical Greek to describe soft and yielding substances. The root idea is not “give in,” but “be disposed to yielding.” Putting this together the instruction focuses on the attitude that you and I are to maintain as we travel the Jesus road, led by others who have traveled on farther than we. What the first readers would have understood is this charge: “In your relationship with those who are your leaders and guides to godliness, be sure you maintain a yielding disposition, and remain open to their persuasion.” It’s an approprirate exhortation here at the close of Hebrews. In Jesus we have a superior revelation, a superior High Priest, a better covenant, and a better faith. And we are called by God to experience, through faith, every blessing provided by the Son of God. How important, as we travel the Jesus road with others, to choose as leaders those who have gone on ahead—and to let ourselves be led.
Personal Application
Though responsible for your own choices in life, remain open, and let yourself be led by godly men and women.
Quotable
“The question, ‘Who ought to be the boss?’ is like asking, ‘Who ought to be the tenor in the quartet?’ Obviously, the man who can sing tenor.”—Henry Ford
DIVINE DISCIPLINE Hebrews 12“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” (Heb. 12:11).To benefit from discipline we must respond to it.
Overview
The example of Jesus stimulates us to struggle against sin (12:1–4). We are to view hardship as God’s discipline of dearly loved sons (vv. 5–11), and strengthen our resolve to live holy lives (vv. 12–17). For God has not spoken to us in a distant law, but in a nearby Christ (vv. 18–24), whose kingdom is not to be despised (vv. 25–29).
Understanding the Text
“A great cloud of witnesses” Heb. 12:1–3.
Some consider this a reference to saints and angels observing us, as the crowd in a great stadium cheers on those on the playing field. Others see us observing the saints of ages past, taking heart from their consistent testimony (witness) to God’s faithfulness. Either understanding motivates us to “throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles.” What a great responsibility, to know that what we do impacts others’ commitment to Jesus Christ. “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith” Heb. 12:2–3. Jesus is the “pioneer” (author) of our faith, in that He followed the path of faith all the way to its end. He trusted all the way to death, and then broke out of the grave to open the way to glory. Jesus is also the perfecter of faith. In Jesus we see faith’s ultimate nature perfectly expressed. Perfect faith is complete trust in God, however awesomely death and destruction crowd in around us. No wonder the writer said, “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus.” When we are frightened, seeing Jesus will enourage us to keep on trusting. When we are tired, seeing Jesus will give us strength to go on. When we want to turn back, focusing on Jesus will reassure us that the glory ahead is well worth the present pain. “In your struggle against sin” Heb. 12:4. One of history’s great saints, John Chrysostom, whose exile inA.D 403 was caused by his denunciation of powerful churchmen for their pretentions and lack of charity, wrote from exile: “there is only one thing to be feared, Olympias, only one trial, and that is sin.” Jesus as faith’s pioneer and perfecter reminds us that we are better off to choose suffering rather than to choose sin. Christ resisted choosing sin “to the point of shedding His blood.” You and I are most unlikely to have so grim a choice to make. So let’s not feel sorry for ourselves when suffering comes. Let’s rejoice that whatever our suffering, we have not and will not choose sin in order to avoid it. “The Lord’s discipline” Heb. 12:7. As the early decades of the Church Age passed, Christians found themselves under increasing pressure. There was often hostility from neighbors. In some localities there was unofficial persecution. In others there was official persecution by Roman authorities. So the Book of Hebrews, written as it seems to have been toward the end of the 60s, speaks as do other later New Testament epistles, of suffering and pain. Here the writer of Hebrews asks us to view hardship and suffering as discipline. God has not abandoned Christ’s followers. God is simply treating them as any wise father treats dearly loved sons. It may seem strange, but this perspective makes any hardship we face so much easier. We no longer have to cringe away, wondering what we’ve done that God should punish us so. Instead we reach up in our pain, convinced that even our suffering is an expression of the love of God. If you know God loves you, you can endure almost anything. And if you ever doubt that God could permit His loved ones to suffer, consider Jesus. The pioneer and perfecter of our faith suffered the ultimate anguish, though He is God’s dearly beloved Son. “God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in His holiness” Heb. 12:7–13. Two things reassure us when God disciplines. We remember that Jesus suffered first. And we remember that God has graciously explained His motive for discipline. One thing that bothers us is not knowing “why.” We lose our job, and in our fears about the future cry out, “Why?” We lose a loved one, and agonize, “Why him, and why not me?” We suffer from a lingering illness and, try as we may, we can find nothing “good” in it. We begin to doubt Romans 8:28, and again we ask, “Why?” God doesn’t give us reasons for specific hardships. But He does explain, carefully, what He is doing. God is treating us as any good parent treats his own children. God is disciplining us “for our good, that we may share in His holiness.” Don’t expect an economic benefit from the loss of a job, an emotional benefit from the loss of a loved one, or a health benefit from a serious illness. But do expect a spiritual benefit from any hardship. If you and I submit to God (v. 9), He will work in our lives, and through suffering we will grow in holiness. Even more, we will reap a rich “harvest of righteousness and peace” from the training hardship is intended to provide. “See to it that no one misses the grace of God” Heb. 12:14–17. The very hardship which is intended to bless can ruin us. Whether suffering strengthens or weakens us depends on our response to it. If we look at suffering only as an evil, and become bitter, the discipline God intended as a love gift will become a burden and a thorn. Such people miss the grace of God. No, not the grace expressed in bringing the specific trial. But the grace that marks our entire relationship with God, and the grace that is available to strengthen us in our difficulties. A focus on God’s grace will lead to an experience of God’s grace in our situation, and that will free us from bitterness, and we will grow. “You have not come to a mountain that can be touched” Heb. 12:18–24. When the people of Israel gathered at Mount Sinai to receive the Law, lightning flashed and thunder grumbled threateningly. The people drew back in fear, and Moses alone approached the Lord. It was hard to sense the grace of God there. But we Christians come not to Sinai but to Zion. There we meet Jesus Himself, as thousands of angels sing for joy. We come to God through Jesus, and experience an intimacy that was only dreamed of in Old Testament times. Let’s be careful that we do not refuse the God we know so well when He speaks. If those who knew Him less well suffered for ignoring His Word, how much more will we lose; we who know Him so intimately? “A kingdom that cannot be shaken” Heb. 12:25–28. God shakes the earth. The image reminds us how insubstantial and unstable the material universe is. Out of all that is, only human beings will exist out beyond time and into eternity. Everything else will disappear. How good God is, then, to permit us to suffer in this world, if the benefits of holiness and righteousness that divine discipline develops will persist long beyond time. God is good. And when He disciplines us, it is for our good as well.
DEVOTIONAL
Child Abuse!(Heb. 12:5–11)
Kids pick up on things so quickly. I suspect that’s why one parent we know was threatened by her 11-year-old. “Make me do it,” he said to his mother, “and I’ll call 911 and tell them child abuse.” Mom kept cool. “Go ahead. I may spend a couple of days in jail. But they’ll put you in a foster home. No Nintendo. No color TV in your room. No stereo. No tapes or CDs. No room of your own.” The boy thought for a moment and then said, “OK, Mom.” It wasn’t like that when I was a boy. I suspect some of the things that happened to me would have raised cries of concern today. Like the time Dad took me out in the garage and whipped me with a leather belt. Or the time I ran away, again, and my disgusted father took the collar off my dog Ezra and put it around my neck! “I can trust Ezra more than I can trust you,” he told me, and drove away. I sat outside that warm summer morning, totally crushed, until Dad returned from his mail route and let me go. But even then I would never have cried, “child abuse.” Even then I was perfectly aware that Dad loved me, and that what he did was not so much an expression of his anger as it was an expression of his concern. Dad disciplined me, not for his pleasure, but for my benefit. And somehow I knew. How wonderful it is for you and me, when tragedy strikes, to be able in our misery to look up and know that we are loved. How wonderful it is, when we can’t understand “why,” to know we’re not the victims of child abuse, but the recipients of love. Children today who shout “child abuse” when loving parents discipline them reject one of Mom’s and Dad’s greatest love gifts. They will surely be the poorer for it. And Christians today, who utter that same shout when troubles come, have forgotten the depths of God’s love, and miss out on one of life’s greatest gifts: the certainty that God is with us, always. And that He cares.
Personal Application
Let God’s discipline of believers serve as a model for your nurture of your boys and girls.
Quotable
“Troubles are often the tools by which God fashions us for better things.”—Henry Ward Beecher
“These were all commended for their faith” (Heb. 11:39).Faith is more clearly expressed in the way people live than in what they claim to believe.
Overview
The nature and value of faith are revealed (11:1–3) and illustrated in this honor roll of Old Testament saints (vv. 4–40).
Understanding the Text
“Faith is being sure of what we hope for” Heb. 11:1–3. To our society “faith” seems insubstantial: it is persistently holding on to notions that can’t be proven and thus are flimsy and unreal. In Scripture, the reverse is true. Faith is confident expectation that what we cannot see is more solid and real than the material universe. The root of this kind of faith is our conviction that “the universe was formed at God’s command.” God has priority over things we can taste and touch and see and feel. God is more real than they are, because God is the source of their existence. The ancients, and believers today, are commended for such faith. When you and I realize that God is the ultimate reality, and act on this conviction, we have a faith which makes a difference in our life, and will enable us to triumph. Anything less than conviction translated into action falls short of biblical faith. “By faith Abel offered God a better sacrifice” Heb. 11:4. Genesis 4 indicates that both Cain and Abel knew God required animal sacrifice. Why else would God speak to Cain after rejecting his sacrifice of fruits and vegetables, saying if he “did well” he could still be accepted? The difference between the two is that Abel responded to God’s word. Only Abel did as the Lord required. This is the first evidence of a true faith. We respond to God’s Word, and choose to do the things that please Him. It’s striking that Abel’s act of faith led directly to his death. His brother’s jealous anger was stimulated by Abel’s obedience. But it is even more striking when Hebrews tells us that by faith Abel “still speaks.” Abel is dead as far is this world is concerned; his body dust. Cain too is long dead. But Abel, pronounced righteous by God on the basis of his faith, “still speaks.” Abel’s faith brought him the gift that faith brings you and me: eternal life. “By faith Enoch was taken from this life” Heb. 11:5–6. Abel exhibited saving faith; and Enoch a faith that holds the believer close to Lord. We know little of Enoch from the Old Testament except that he “walked with God” and after a time “he was no more, because God took him away” (Gen. 5:24). How does the writer know so much about Enoch from such brief mention? Simply by virtue of the fact that Enoch did please God, and “without faith it is impossible to please God.” No one can approach God without faith. It takes faith to believe that God exists when He cannot be seen. And it takes even more faith to believe that God rewards those who seek Him, when rewards so often are delayed. Anyone who walks with God will find his faith tested. When you and I flip a light switch, the light goes on. When you turn the faucet, water flows. Push the “on” button, and your TV screen is filled with flickering pictures. The reward of our actions is immediate, and invariable. But many times you and I pray, and it seems no answer comes. We cry out to God, but our troubles persist. It takes very little faith to expect a light to go on when it always does. It takes much more faith to walk with God. For your belief that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him will be sorely tested again and again. But don’t be discouraged. As each hero in this hall of fame demonstrates, your faith will make a difference in the way you live your life. And in the blessings you enjoy. “By faith Abraham . . . obeyed and went” Heb. 11:8–10. Some people find it almost impossible to take risks. “I’d like to try,” they think, “but what if I failed?” Abraham reminds us that faith frees us to venture confidently into the unknown. Too fearful to pray aloud? Too unsure to express your opinion? Like to try a new job, but frightened to leave the old? Want to share a word of witness, but anxious about how others might react? Faith frees us to step out even when, like Abraham, we don’t know where we are going. How does faith help? Faith reminds us that God, who guides and directs us, also goes with us. We need not fear risks when faith tells us that the Lord is by our side. “They were longing for a better country” Heb. 11:13–16. There is such a thing as heavenly dissatisfaction. The Old Testament saints on this honor roll experienced it. They just didn’t feel at home in this world. Somehow something was lacking. Archeologists have shown that Abraham lived in Ur during a vital and prosperous age. Ur offered luxuries and wealth, and Abraham possessed both. But Abraham wasn’t satisfied, and so set out in search of something better. This is one evidence of a growing faith: we become dissatisfied with the things of the world. We can be thankful for all the good things God has given us. But faith makes us aware that nothing we have is enough to satisfy our deepest needs. The text says that these people were “living by faith when they died.” They never found the completion or fulfillment they searched for. You and I won’t either, for we were created for heaven, not for earth. We too may spend our lives “longing for a better country.” But, through faith, we will spend eternity enjoying it! “By faith Abraham, when God tested him” Heb. 11:17–19. There comes a time in each of our lives when God will test us. And the test will be like that of Abraham, when God demanded he sacrifice his son, Isaac. This is the test of full surrender. It is the test that calls on us to give up our heart’s desire, because God asks us to. Only a unique faith will enable us to do this, and to surrender all. What is that unique faith? The Old Testament text tells us that when Abraham went up to Mount Moriah to offer Isaac, he told his servants to wait, saying that “the lad and I” will return. Hebrews explains. Abraham had been promised descendants through Isaac. Abraham was so thoroughly convinced God would keep His promise that he believed God would raise Isaac from the dead if that was necessary. God has promised us His very best. He has assured us that all things work together for the good of those who love Him. We are able to surrender all when we have the faith to believe that, if God asks it, renouncing our heart’s desire is both right and good. How close Abraham must have been to God, to trust Him so. Let us stay close to the Lord too, that we too might have a faith that surrenders all. “By faith Moses” Heb. 11:24–28. Moses’ life too exhibits faith. As the “son of Pharaoh’s daughter” Moses was in line for the throne of Egypt, or at the least high position in that affluent land. No pleasure would have been denied him. Yet Moses spurned the “pleasures of sin” and chose to identify himself with God’s people, even though they were then a race of slaves. Let’s identify ourselves with God’s people too, no matter how popular it may be to ridicule the “born again.” Disgrace for the sake of Christ still has higher value than all the treasures of this world. “By faith the prostitute Rahab” Heb. 11:31. Faith rules no one out, but draws a great circle that encompasses all. Whatever our past, faith opens the door to relationship with God and a new, righteous life. “God had planned something better for us” Heb. 11:32–40. Faith does not guarantee anyone a life free of stress or pain. Many over the millennia have suffered and even died for their faith. Yet faith won for each the commendation of God. Faith wins even more for you and me. The Old Testament saints looked forward to a salvation they could not understand. We look back to a salvation assured by Calvary. And through the Spirit of God we enjoy a relationship with the Lord which can be more real to us than to the Old Testament saints.
DEVOTIONAL
Earthquake Zone(Heb. 11:1–7)
A sports columnist, reporting from San Fransisco on an upcoming football game between the 49ers and another team, wrote of the silence. That city, usually bursting with tourists, was all but deserted. The earthquake that struck in October 1989 frightened visitors away. What’s surprising was that it seemingly hadn’t shaken many residents. Throughout California millions continue to live along earthquake fault lines, with never a thought of moving to avoid the devasting tremors that they must know will certainly come. This was what made Noah such an unusual person, and a rightful recipient of God’s commendation. Noah had never even seen rain, for in his day springs watered the earth (Gen. 2:6). But when God announced that a great Flood would destroy life on earth, Noah built the ark in which his family and animal life were preserved. The Hebrews 11 honor roll has helped us define faith. Faith views God as more real than the material universe He created (vv. 1–3). Faith saves, for Abel “still speaks” even though his body is long dead (v. 4). Faith enables us to walk with God, even when visible rewards of seeking Him are delayed (vv. 5–6). But now the writer contrasts the wisdom of faith with the foolishness of unbelief. Noah took God’s warning of an utterly unknown danger seriously. In “holy fear” he acted on it. Noah had never experienced floods or rainfall. But he believed God when he was warned. His response “condemned the world,” in that his faith exposed the utter unbelief of those whom Noah continually warned while he and his family labored on the ark (cf. 1 Peter 3:20). What a stunning portrait of today. The Gospel shouts out the Good News that in Christ we can be saved from coming judgment. Those with faith respond with “holy fear,” and hurry to Christ for refuge. But the unbeliever scoffs, and continues to ignore warning of imminent disaster. The fact that so many choose to stay on in California’s earthquake zones reminds us how unreal the future is for most human beings. Most of us live as though today were everything, and tomorrow unreal. But Scripture tells us that there, just over the horizon of tomorrow, a juggernaught of judgment waits. It is unwise to live on a fault line in an earthquake zone. But it is utterly foolish to remain outside of Christ, exposed to the judgment that most surely will come.
Personal Application
Tomorrow is real. Take it into account as you live today.
Quotable
“We should all be concerned about the future because we will have to spend the rest of our lives there.”—Charles F. Kettering
“When this priest had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, He sat down at the right hand of God” (Heb. 10:13).Christ’s work is completed in heaven. But it continues in you and me.
Overview
Repeated Old Testament sacrifices could not perfect worshipers (10:1–7), but we are made holy by the completed sacrifice of Jesus (vv. 8–18). We must hold firmly to our hope in Christ (vv. 19–25), resist deliberate sin (vv. 26–31), and persevere in doing good till Jesus comes (vv. 32–39).
Understanding the Text
“Make perfect those who draw near to worship” Heb. 10:1–7. A critical question for any religion is not what it asks you to do, but what it does in you. Even Old Testament faith, with all its required sacrifices, only covered the sins of worshipers. The repeated sacrifices of the Old Testament could not make anyone perfect. This was the one, devastating flaw in that system. And so Christ came, to do God’s will, and offer up Himself as a perfecting sacrifice. My youngest son was remarking yesterday that the Sunday School teacher of his singles’ class has the notion that if a person is a true Christian, he’ll stop sinning, and never even slip. To him any deviation from the ideal is evidence the person was never saved. That is an oversimplification. Any living, growing thing requires time to mature. The spiritually immature, like the physically immature, have a tendency to do things that a mature adult never would. And even the mature make choices at times that are not just unwise, but wrong. Even so, Christ came to make a specific difference within worshipers. His was a perfecting sacrifice, for He came to perfect us: to make us suitable within and without to worship the holy God. There is nothing we can do to repay God for the gift of His Son. But the least we can do is open our hearts to His Spirit, and live that changed life which is appropriate for worshipers of Jesus Christ. “We have been made holy through the sacrifice . . . of Jesus Christ once for all” Heb. 10:8–10. Holiness is a somewhat frightening concept. Until we remember that “holy” has the basic meaning of being set apart to God, and that holiness has two primary aspects. The ceremonial aspect, so important in Old Testament worship, has now been dismissed as irrelevant. What is left is the personal dimension of holiness: a dynamic moral quality of active goodness that characterizes God Himself. What the writer of Hebrews tells us is that God in Christ has acted to set us apart as His own. But if we are to be God’s, we must be holy too. And so God has infused something of Himself within us. Jesus died that we, like God, might be energetically good. Not passively good, in the sense of just refraining from evil. But actively good, in the sense of expressing in this world the compassion and love that marked Jesus in His incarnation. The most important thing that you or I can do in life, recognizing that we are holy, is to be holy. “He sat down at the right hand of God” Heb. 10:11–14. The Old Testament priest always stood as he ministered. The fact that Jesus sat down after He offered Himself as a sacrifice indicates that His work was done. There were no more sacrifices to offer. Jesus “made perfect forever those who are being made holy.” Through Christ’s death you and I have been perfected. And we are being made holy. We are in the process of becoming what we are. This is an exciting truth. You can pick up an acorn, hold it in your hand, and know for sure that if it is planted a mighty oak will grow. That acorn won’t become a reed, or a stalk of corn, or a geranium. It will become an oak, for though it looks very different from a mature tree, it is an oak, and in time will become one. You and I may look very different from Jesus today. Yet God has placed Christ’s own nature in us. We are Christian now, and in time we will be Christian. We are holy now, and in time we will be holy. Some fat folks post pictures of themselves on the refrigerator, to remind themselves of how they look. It usually just makes them feel bad, and doesn’t help at all. How much better God’s way is. He posts His portrait of the ideal “you” in your heart, and tells you to act like the person you are. As we act in harmony with the vision of our ideal self, that is what you and I become. Never let yourself be discouraged about the slowness of your spiritual growth. God sees you perfected, standing in His presence with a character like that of His own Son. This is who you are—and it is who you most certainly will become. No wonder the passage says that those “He has made perfect forever” are even now “being made holy.” “This is the covenant” Heb. 10:15–16. Use any word you want. Use pledge, promise, bond, compact, contract, agreement, deal, pact, pledge, treaty, or oath. Use any of these words, or any other, to convince yourself that you truly have been forgiven, and that God no longer remembers your sins or lawless acts. Convince yourself that your past no longer stands between you and God. Once you are convinced, you’ll be able to stop worrying about your past, and dedicate your future to serving God as the holy person you are. “He who promised is faithful” Heb. 10:19–23. When I was a young teen I plowed with a handheld plow pulled by a team of horses. At first I made ragged, twisting furrows as I struggled to hold the plow steady. Then my dad showed me that to plow a straight furrow, I needed to stop looking at the ground ahead of me, to fix my eyes on a pair of landmarks, and keep them lined up as I moved across the field. We have landmarks to guide us as we approach God. We see Jesus, our cleansing sacrifice. And we see Jesus standing before God’s throne, our High Priest. When we hold unswervingly to the hope this provides, we will “have confidence to enter the most holy place” at any time. “Spur one another on to love and good deeds” Heb. 10:24–25. The classic American is John Wayne as Rooster Cogburn, riding alone toward his foes, guns blazing. The rugged individualist attracts us, and serves as a cultural ideal. It may be American, but it’s not Christian. We don’t achieve holiness alone, rushing in rugged defiance toward our enemies of sin, Satan, and temptation. We achieve holiness as we share our lives with others, give and receive encouragement, spurring one another on to love and to good deeds. Don’t try it alone. God has given us Christ’s church for support and assistance. And He intends us to keep on meeting with others throughout our whole life. “If we deliberately keep on sinning” Heb. 10:26–31. This part of the third major warning found in Hebrews (vv. 19–39) is based on the writer’s presentation of Jesus as the perfect sacrifice. It is a warning addressed to those considering a return to Judaism. Under the old system, individual sacrifices could be made for unintentional sins, but the only sacrifice for deliberate sins was that offered on the Day of Atonement by the high priest. But the writer has shown that even those sacrifices were ineffective, while the one sacrifice by Jesus of His own blood perfected His worshippers, and thus never needs repeating. If those who rejected Moses’ Law were stoned, the writer asked, what do you think a person who treats the blood of God’s own Son with contempt (v. 29) deserves? There’s a thought in this for us. Whenever we feel uncertain, or inclined to doubt our ability to live a holy life, let’s remember that Christ died to make just this possible. Surely He did not shed His blood in vain. Surely you and I will find the strength to live as God desires.
DEVOTIONAL
How Do Holy People Live?(Heb. 10:19–39)
That word “holy” keeps popping up in Hebrews. Christ has cleansed us from sin, and made us holy. His sacrifice has perfected us forever, and we “are being made holy” (v. 14). That’s great. But it doesn’t help unless we can visualize how holy people live. Here’s a checklist with some characteristics of holy people, drawn from verses 19–39. * Holy people draw near to God in full assurance of faith (v. 19). * Holy people hold unswervingly to the hope Christians profess (v. 23). * Holy people spur each other on to love and good deeds (v. 24). * Holy people meet together regularly to encourage one another in the faith (v. 25). * Holy people don’t sin deliberately (v. 26). * Holy people are willing to suffer insult and persecution when these are offered (v. 33). * Holy people stand by those who are mistreated (v. 33). * Holy people accept confiscation of their property, without throwing away their confidence (vv. 34–35). * Holy people simply try to do the will of God, deeming this the most important thing in this present life (v. 36). * Holy people joyfully expect Jesus to come in just a little while, and are satisfied to wait for rewards until then (vv. 36–39). That doesn’t seem so hard, does it? Not for those cleansed by the blood of Jesus Christ.
Personal Application
Set out to be holy because you are holy.
Quotable
“Practical holiness is the only holiness of any value in this world, and the only kind the Holy Spirit of God will endorse.”—Oswald Chambers
This is my personal collection of thoughts and writings, mainly from much smarter people than I, which challenge me in my discipleship walk. Don't rush by these thoughts, but ponder them.
Milo 