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Observations from today’s readings and today’s S-WOD, Tuesday, 10 September 2024:
Hebrews 13:2 — Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.
The Bible expects you to be like the Good Samaritan to strangers. God may test you with a stranger in need.
- Matthew 25:31-46 — “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’ Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ Then they also will answer, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?’ Then he will answer them, saying, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’ And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
Hebrews 13:4, 5 — Let marriage be held in honor among all, and let the marriage bed be undefiled, for God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterous. Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”
Family issues and financial issues are the biggest causes of stress and discontentment in most people’s lives. The Bible says that the key to both these areas of life is to honor God with both and to be grateful for and content with what God has given you, dedicating everything to His glory. What you do with relationships and resources reveals what your really believe about God and what is really in your heart.
All sexual immorality is forbidden and will be judged, but how casually we take sexual sin today.
Discontentment is disrespect to God. Discontentment is a sin that gives birth to more sin. Discontentment is not the same as desire. You can be content and still desire more if what you desire is what God desires. Godly desires lead to growth, fruitfulness. For example, you can be content in your relationship with God, a family member or close friend, grateful for the blessings God has bestowed upon you in relationships and yet still desire to grow in intimacy. You can be grateful and content when you face challenges in life, seeing those challenges as God’s gift to you to grow your character into Christlikeness, yet still desire a positive outcome as long as your ultimate desire is Go’s will fulfilled, regardless of your feelings, for your desire to be His desire. Remember, Jesus was content in His relationship to the Father and the circumstances God and ordained in His life, yet He prayed, “If it be possible, let this cup (the Cross) pass from me,” yet His ultimate, thankful prayer remained, “not as I will, but as you will;” and “for the joy that was set before him [Jesus] endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.” (Hebrews 12:2)
- Matthew 26:39 — And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.”
Hebrews 13:10 -16 — We have an altar from which those who serve the tent have no right to eat. For the bodies of those animals whose blood is brought into the holy places by the high priest as a sacrifice for sin are burned outside the camp. So Jesus also suffered outside the gate in order to sanctify the people through his own blood. Therefore let us go to him outside the camp and bear the reproach he endured. For here we have no lasting city, but we seek the city that is to come. Through him then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name. Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God.
The Book of Hebrews ends in chapter 13 with some overall principles of how to live the Christian life and to offer “sacrifices pleasing to God.” (Isaiah 56:7; Hebrews 13:6) The chapter starts with how to treat others – with love, hospitality, empathy, and compassion. (Hebrews 13:1-3) Then, the chapter talks about how we should live personally – with purity, satisfaction and steadfastness. (Hebrews 13:4-9)
Then Hebrews expands upon how we are live our lives in Christ by encouraging us to live by “faith… strengthened by grace” and warning us not to be led away by empty, ritualistic, works-based, powerless religion with its practices “which have not benefited those devoted to them.” (Hebrews 13:9) What follows are some of the most difficult verses to understand in the entire book – Hebrews 13:10-16. These verses refer to the Old Covenant sacrificial system for atonement of sin in order to proclaim the “Good News” of the perfect and ultimate sacrifice of Christ on the cross for our eternal atonement and life in Him, the ultimate and perfect sacrifice which put an end to the old system, a sacrifice which isn’t ritualistically representative but is real, a sacrifice which isn’t brought by us and cannot be fulfilled by earthly priests, a sacrifice not of the blood of animals but rather the blood of Jesus, the Son of God; a sacrifice that not only pays the penalty for our sin but overcomes sin, a sacrifice which lives eternally in Christ and provides eternal justification (Christ’s justification given to us), and a sacrifice which gives us eternal life with God, which begins not when we die, but immediately upon accepting this gift of grace through Jesus. (John 17:3) Above all else, the writer of Hebrews wants us to remember and live by the awesome truth and power of the Gospel –
“God, through the perfect life, atoning death, and bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ, rescues all his people form the wrath of God into peace with God, with a promise of the full restoration of His created order forever – all to the praise of the glory of His grace. Salvation from the judgment of God into fellowship with God is all of God. It is not of us. That is good news indeed!” (The Gospel, Ray Ortlund)
“Therefore let us go to him outside the camp and bear the reproach he endured. For here we have no lasting city, but we seek the city that is to come.” The author of Hebrews exhorts us to leave our old ways of sin and religion based on works, legalism or merit, and live by faith, trusting in salvation through grace, through Christ alone. He encourages us to “go with him outside the camp and bear the reproach he endured” reminding us of Jesus’ words — “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.” (Luke 9:23) This is a call not just to understand the Gospel but also to live the Gospel and to proclaim the Gospel, regardless the cost, trusting God with the circumstances with the hope of our eternal reward.
The author of Hebrews encourages us to continually offer sacrifices to God with both the “fruit of our lips” and good works, “for such sacrifices are pleasing to God.” (Hebrews 13:15-16). This is the “ministry” and “message” of reconciliation (2 Corinthians 5:18-19), which always go together (ministry or message alone is not enough). We are called to demonstrate the love and grace of Christ in relationships with others as His ambassadors, ministers and messengers of reconciliation, ‘bearing the reproach he endured’ as sinful people naturally treat us sinfully, continually praying on their behalf, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” (Luke 23:34) As we interact with others in this broken world, we are called to “continually” praise God, acknowledging His Name, sharing the Gospel, and doing good works in His Name as new sacrifices, sacrifices of genuine love, which are pleasing to Him.
In a world polluted with sin, we don’t place our hope in worldly systems, but we “seek the city that is to come,” we “seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness (Matthew 6:33),” and we live by the motto “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven” as we eagerly await Christ’s return and His final restoration. While we await the new creation, the new heavens and earth that will be ushered in by Christ, we live today as new creations and Kingdom citizens, proclaiming the kingdom that is at hand but yet to be fully revealed – “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” (2 Corinthians 5:17)
“Cross” Fit S-WOD (Spiritual Workout of the Day) – 10 September 2024: Today, live by faith strengthened by grace, live today as Kingdom citizens, and proclaim Christ both in word and deed.
Defenders Bible Reading Plan 