November 9 – Our Promised Eternal Inheritance

Therefore he is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance, since a death has occurred that redeems them from the transgressions committed under the first covenant.”  Hebrews 9:15 (ESV).

The practice of offering a sacrifice to cover for our sins is not an obligation for those adopted by God. Through our faith in Jesus, God’s wonderful provision was made once by Jesus and is for all who belong to His family.  Our Bible verse today reminds us of this provision. God has also  promised that Jesus will be our go between, our arbitrator before God. Jesus is our perfect mediator. There’s also a promised inheritance for us who belong to His family. Normally inheritances are planned in advance and there is a document to specify what it will be.  Well, that is the case with the promise we are considering here. This inheritance, is our salvation in its fullness, nothing lacking. God’s promise is the ‘document’ which seals forever our eternal inheritance.  It will never run out, never decay, and never be taken away from us.  It is an inheritance more precious than we are able to imagine.  Friends, if you have believed in Jesus, you are God's child.  You are free from any condemnation and He is preparing to bring you to heaven where you will forever enjoy what our verse tells us about. 

 

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October 4 – Discernment Now and Always.

 “But solid food is for the mature, who because of practice have their senses trained to discern good and evil.” – Hebrews 5:14 (NASB)

“ And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment,” – Philippians 1:9 (ESV)

So suppose you are on a journey in a country you don’t know like your home country. On the road before you are crossroads. Without a map or anyone to ask for help. You must now discern to the best of your ability what the best choice is. Discernment is sometimes a fearful thing because it requires one to think of what the options and outcomes are before them. But discerning the right way to live is an important step in toward making the best choices. In our Christian lives, we are called to be discerning. But doing so requires more than going according to our feelings. Using emotions as a guide is not the best way. That is why the writer of the book of Hebrews boldly told his readers that it takes solid spiritual food to gain the maturity to know God’s Word. Mature believers practice discerning good from evil.  So the Apostle Paul encourages us to work toward abounding in Christian love more and more with knowledge and all discernment. Without the process of discernment, a good amount of knowledge and wisdom is overlooked. Let’s discern the wisdom of his words and follow it.

 

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May 30 – Of the House of Yahweh*

“Now Moses was faithful in all God’s house as a servant, to testify to the things that were to be spoken later,  but Christ is faithful over God’s house as a son. And we are his house, if indeed we hold fast our confidence and our boasting in our hope.” -  Hebrews 3:5-6 (ESV)

There are many pictures in the Bible to represent our relation to our God and also to His Son our Savior. The phrase “we are His house” uses the word ‘house’ in a way similar to ruling aristocratic houses. A close example: Queen Elizabeth II is in the line of The House of  Windsor.  Our verse today paints a mental picture of a household – of a family. It says that we are God's house. This doesn't mean a physical building. It includes the people who have been born spiritually into God’s family. It is also a picture of a household in which a father placed his son in charge of things. We are God's house, adopted as full sons and daughters into His family, and His Son Jesus Christ is in charge. Let's not forget that Jesus is watching over us, praying for us, mindful of our needs and meeting our needs each day.  This is the way it really is, let's rejoice in the knowledge that we are a part of this family and this household today. Let’s hold firmly to our confidence in that hope of the glory of God.

* Yahweh - Name of God

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May 17 – Equipped With Everything

“Now the God of peace, who brought up from the dead the great Shepherd of the sheep through the blood of the eternal covenant, even Jesus our Lord, equip you in every good thing to do His will, working in us that which is pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.” Hebrews 13:20-21 (NASB)

The selected verses for today’s promises are so often used as a benediction they may be familiar to some. They are packed with so much we will highlight just a few. Does it sometimes seem difficult to live the Christian Life in such a way that we will please God? The very long sentence begins with six words of the statement and then at the ending promise. We learn that it is the God of peace who raised Christ – our great Shepherd – from the dead. The power to do that is the power we have to live a life pleasing to God.  We cannot and  shouldn't try to live such a life by our own effort. We will never make it on our own. We do not have the ability. God knows that we do not possess what we need within ourselves. God doesn't expect it of us so He equips us with what we need. Our God makes us complete and He wants us to recognize that He will bring the changes in our lives to live godly lives. This is a promise and the result brings glory to God – it’s our reason for our existence. 

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May 5 – Able to Sympathize

“For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” – Hebrews 4:15-16 (ESV)

 

As we look at the promises in today’s passage, let’s glance back just a bit at our promises from yesterday and remember our sleeping savior. On the stormy sea, the disciples were fearing for their lives. Experienced fishermen had to have been in storms before so to frighten them this had to be a really serious storm. Jesus needed sleep, he finds a cushion for comfort and goes to sleep unbothered by the storm. The very fact that Jesus needed to sleep reveals that He had a real human body that knew the feelings of fatigue and thirst and hunger. Hebrews tells us our high priest, is able to sympathize with human weaknesses. If Jesus had not known the weaknesses and temptations of humanity, He would not be a sympathetic High Priest, capable of offering us mercy and grace from the heavenly throne. But He does know our weaknesses because His experienced weaknesses too. He knew the pain of rejection: “He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him” (John 1:11) There’s no pain or insult we might know that Christ hasn’t had—and because He knows such struggles, He invites us to come to Him.

 

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March 2 – All Things Engaged Forever

“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.” ” – Hebrews 13:5 (ESV)

The author of Hebrews drew this promise from God’s words in Deuteronomy 31:6 or Joshua 1:5. Charles Spurgeon, preached to thousands in England in the 19th Century. He wrote something similar to this*. “Have courage to believe, for God has said, 'I will never leave you, nor forsake you.' In this promise, God gives to his faith believers everything. It is the LORD who is I AM promising us. Then no attribute of God can cease to be engaged for us. Is He mighty? He will show himself strong on the behalf of them that trust him. Is He love? Then with lovingkindness God will have mercy upon us. Whatever attributes may compose the character of God, every one of them to its fullest extent will be engaged on our side. We can trust that there is nothing we can want, there is nothing we can ask for, there is nothing we can need in time or in eternity, there is nothing living, nothing dying, there is nothing in this world, nothing in the next world, there is nothing now, nothing at the resurrection-morning, nothing in heaven which is not included in this promise—'I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.'”

*C. H. Spurgeon, Morning and Evening: Daily Readings, (London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1896).

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January 22 – Resting While Working

“So there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God. For the one who has entered His rest has himself also rested from his works, as God did from His.” Hebrews 4:9-10 (NASB)

Resting is trusting in the midst of trials and testing. It’s well for us to be aware of the benefits Christian faith which God gives us to experience. In these days as attacks on our faith by the enemy grow more and more overt, we can find a promise of rest in today's verse. This concept of resting began a long time ago. God rested after the creation of the universe. In the Old Testament God wanted His people to rest on His promise to take care of them. They often disappointed Him by trying to work things out their own way. God is still eager for us to rest upon His promises. We rest on His promise to give us eternal life when we believed on Jesus as our Savior. He wants us to know that our ultimate promised rest is not realized fully during this life on Earth. That rest is ours today and it will be fully realized in the Messiah’s Kingdom. Now we hold an earnest of the promise. Instead of worrying about things, let's rest on God goodness and love today and remember the promise that has been given to each of us.  

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January 21 – A Promise of Promises

“Therefore do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward. For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God you may receive what is promised.” Hebrews 10:35-36 (ESV)

The promises God has made us and blessings He’s given us in these promises will never fail. We are reminded in today's verses that we need to continue to believe and have faith in what God has promised. Hold on to our confidence in the face of whatever God allows to be put in our path of our lives. Due to persecutions, the recipients of this letter to the Hebrews were tempted to run away from their outward identification with Christ and Christians and to apostatize. His promise in the Bible is that He gives us the confidence and the endurance we need each day. It is His will for us to not lose the reward He’s promised. Each day we come closer than ever to our promised eternal reward. It’s no time to turn back. We don’t receive the great reward through our own effort of being good enough but by trusting each day in what God has promised. Our promise today is that we will receive what is promised by doing the will of God — which is to trust in Christ fully by living daily in the will of the Father.

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January 12 – No Fear!

“Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery.” – Hebrews 2:14-15 (ESV)

What do we fear the most in our lives? There is no need because there really is for us a state of NO Fear!  However most people have a certain level of fear of death. Maybe for no other reason than the fact that we don’t know exactly what’s next. We who by faith believe because of the gift of God can rest with assurance that God will fulfill the promises regarding our life with Him after we die. But that doesn’t always come without questions and even doubts. For the believer, “death is swallowed up in victory,” (1 Corinthians 15:54). What Jesus Christ did as the Founder of Salvation, was to bring an end to the fear of death and its spiritual bondage. That’s a promise we can trust and which can change our lives. This is the ultimate purpose of the incarnation: Jesus came to earth to die. By dying, He was able to conquer death in His resurrection (John 14:19). By conquering death, He rendered Satan powerless against all who are saved. Are you saved by grace through faith that God has given to you? Your death holds no mysteries that cause you to fear.

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December 14 – Praising, Thanking, Sharing

 “Through Him then, let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that give thanks to His name. And do not neglect doing good and sharing, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.” - Hebrews 13:15-16 (NASB)

 

During the days of observing Christ’s birth which we call Christmas we hear about the angels who sang praises to God when Jesus was born. It was a multitude of angels (we don’t know exactly how many but Revelation 5:11 suggests that the number of the angelic host may be too large for the human mind to fathom.). We know that angels do sing praises to God in heaven and the Bible urges us to sing His praises too. That is the message of our verse today. The reason the angels keep singing praises to God is because they know how great and wonderful He is. The more we know about our Lord, the more we will want to praise Him. Let's be watchful during these days of activity before Christmas that we do not let the lights and the beauty of decorations and the crush of commercialism distract us and cause us to forget God's greatness and His love for us. As we sing carols let's be sure to remember to really pour out praise to our God with all our hearts. Let’s make it a time of truly praising and thanking God.

 

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December 4 – For the Joy

“For consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.” Hebrews 12:3 (NASB)

Our verse today follows two other very strong verses for a Christian’s life. The admonish us to fix our eyes on Jesus because He is the author and the perfecter of faith. He gives to us that faith and that faith is what saves us. Jesus did all things required in the Law without sin and was killed because of that. Jesus is the supreme example of willingness to suffer in obedience to God. He faced “hostility” and endured even the cruel cross. The same opposition is faced by all who follow Him. These words were written to encourage Christians when they are tempted to give up. Sometimes we may be tempted to think that it is not worth all the trouble involved in following close to the Lord Jesus. Then we should remember that Jesus came to earth to do his Father's will and He encountered a lot of suffering. Believers’ pressures, exhaustion, and persecutions are as nothing compared to Christ’s. He endured it all for us, in order to receive the joy that was set before Him. We too are promised that same joy with Jesus in heaven. Let's fix our eyes on Him today.

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September 6 – Heir of All Things

“God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, in these last days has spoken to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the world.” - Hebrews 1:1–2 (NASB)

The promises we consider each day come from the Word of God and are God’s inspired words. The Bible is trustworthy as the God’s word to us. While the literary form and style of the Bible varies as it was scribed by different people, it was and is always God’s revelation of what He wanted us to know. The Old Testament was written over a span of as many as 1,800 years.* Many portions: there are 39 different books during different historical times, locations, cultures, and situations. Many ways: included visions, symbols, and parables using both poetry and prose styles. Last days: Jews in the first century understood the reference to “last days” to mean the time when Messiah (Christ) would come. The messianic prophecies fulfillment began with the arrival of the Messiah in Bethlehem and was revealed by Jesus during his ministry on the earth. Since then, that is since He came until this day, it has been the “last days.” God’s message of redemption was spoken through the Messiah, His Son who is heir of all things. So, everything that exists will eventually come under the control of the Son of God.

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*(from Job to Nehemiah, circa 2200 - 400 B.C.)

August 07 – Unchangeable Among Change

“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” – Hebrews 13:8 (NASB)

Think for a moment about the changes in your life over the past twenty years.  Then the past ten or even five years? Much has changed hasn’t it? Things change in our lives and there is little we can do about much of the change. The only thing we can do is adjust to the changes. “Times change” is the excuse for many changes we make in our own lives. The reasons are many. Can we identify the causes? Sometimes we can but most times we can only speculate because unconnected events and forces bring about changes. Who could have predicted the changes in global life that a pandemic would bring? But amongst all the changes in our lives, we have a promise of one who is unchangeable. Jesus Christ never changes. He is the same always, yesterday, today and forever. ‘Yesterday’ relates to the work of Jesus as our mediator on earth which is proclaimed and confirmed to us by those who saw, heard, and worked with Him. ‘Today’ refers to the intercessory work Jesus performs in heaven, where he represents the believer in God’s presence. ‘Forever’ pertains to the priesthood of Christ. He is our priest forever.

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August 02 – The Seekers’ Rewarder

 
“And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.” – Hebrews 11:4 (NASB)

Let’s look at the Hall of Faith chapter found in Letter to Hebrews, 11. Every person (except Cain) who is mentioned in this chapter have a testimony as faith believers. Faith is essential for salvation. Faith is vital and indispensable. If we desire to know God. Even to be able to approach God in prayer, we must have the faith which Enoch had. He was the first person who was “taken up” to be with God was Enoch. By faith Enoch walked with God and pleased God. Without such faith it is not possible for anyone to “walk with God” or “please Him.” Our promise is that knowing God is for those who by faith believe that He is; the emphasis here is on “He,” the only true God. Genuine, a gift from God, does not simply believe that a divine being exists, but that the God of Scripture is the only real and true God who exists. Many people believe in the existence of a Supreme Being and some call Him “the man upstairs” without ever by faith believe that He is the one and only God. Our promise is that He is a rewarder of God seekers.

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July 29 – Assurance + Conviction = Faith

“Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” – Hebrews 11:1 (NASB)

We consider some of the narratives found in our Scriptures. Those narratives have prophecies, revelations and promises from God’s Word. The key to receiving these promises and the blessings they bring is ‘faith.’  We all have a kind of faith and exercise it every day. We have faith in a light switch, but not when our supply of electricity has been cut off. However, a promise from God in which we have hope and are convinced it will be is because of our faith. When we learn of a promise from God it is by faith that we have assurance of its fulfillment and that is where our hope is. By faith believing in what God has promised, we have assurance and conviction even of things we cannot see. Hope in God’s promises and convictions that what is promised is true even if we cannot see it, feel it, or touch it, is because we have faith. Heaven, is a promise. Jesus Christ coming back one day is a promise and we have hope and conviction in its truth. What promise of God will be good to have faith in today? Let’s do so and we will not be ashamed.

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June 09 – A City In A Better Country

“But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared for them a city.”- Hebrews 11:16 (ESV)

Our verse today records a promise that God made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and many others in the Scriptures. He promised that He was “not ashamed to be called their God.” Wouldn’t we want very much for God to say the same to us; “I am not ashamed to be called your God?” This possibility is surrounded by one reason before and one reason after. Take the one after, first: “…for he has prepared for them a city.” This first reason is that God has worked for us by doing something for us. He made us a city — the heavenly city “whose designer and builder is God” (Hebrews 11:10). It is not the other way around. Now, consider the reason he gives in the front. It goes like this: “They desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God.” The word “Therefore” signals that a reason has just been given for why God is not ashamed to be called our God. The reason is we desire a better country — a better country than the earthly one we live in. We desire a heavenly one where God is.

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June 5 – Running With Our Perfecter

“…let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” – Hebrews 12:1b-2 (ESV)

We are to look to Jesus as the object of faith and salvation. Why are we to look to Him? Because He is both the Author and Perfecter of our faith. The word “author” is a term that means originator or even the preeminent example; it suggests that Jesus “pioneered” the path of faith Christians should follow. He also “perfected” the way of faith since He reached its end successfully. The term expresses the idea of carrying through to completion. It also might mean ‘maturity’ of the kind that is moral completeness. It is only in Christ that we find a faith that is perfect and it is only through Christ that that perfect faith become a reality for us. For those reasons, we live our lives in His and through Him our faith is perfect. On our own it is nothing more than daydreaming or wishing. We fix our eyes on Jesus and because of what he did, enduring the cross despising the shame He sits at the right hand of the throne of God. We are there too seated with Him (Ephesians 2:4-6) because God gave us a gift of faith which led to our salvation. (Ephesians 2:8-9)

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June 4 – Learning From Witnesses

“Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race…” – Hebrews 12:1 (ESV) 

 The word “therefore” is frequent in the Bible. When we come across it we find out what it is there for. This time it bridges a transition between Chapters 11 & 12 of Hebrews where is a list of deceased people whose lives witnessed the value and blessing of living by faith. The author of Hebrews is giving us reassurance that is drawn from the saints in the past who faithfully believed in the LORD God. We are encouraged to rid ourselves of sin because sin entangles us and inhibits our ability to live with endurance. We are all on a path that is a race of sorts, not against each other but against the wickedness of Satan who is set on causing us to stumble and fall and fail to reach our goal. The Apostle Paul (Philippians 3:13-14) explains this, and like him, we have a goal that we are straining forward to reach. A life pleasing to God. Therefore we are pressing on toward the goal God has set before us. Sin entangles us and misdirects us and causes us to miss out on the prize of blessings God has set for us.

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May 19 –First Believe, Avoid the Impossible

“And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.” - Hebrews 11:6  (ESV)

We all lose things from time to time. They are misplaced is likely the main reason but sometimes just forgetting where it is even supposed to be. We look earnestly, even frantically. How many times do we go to the same places we have already looked because we’re convinced that is where our item is supposed to be?  We keep looking until we find it because we believe we will. We believe it still exists in our world. Seekers who are looking for the Truth will find it where God is and has spoken – like the Bible. But finding God’s Truth requires our belief that He is real, that He exists because He does. Believing in the existence of God and His word is how our search must start.  He is the God of the Bible. So when we believe that the God who reveals Himself in the Bible really exists and is there for us, it pleases God. Then too, we must believe that God responds to our desire to find Truth, to know Him, and He hears our prayers. That also pleases Him and He rewards our faith – He meets our needs. 

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April 18 – Don’t Weave on The Path

“Therefore, strengthen the hands that are weak and the knees that are feeble,  and make straight paths for your feet, so that the limb which is impaired may not be dislocated, but rather be healed.” -  Hebrews 12:12 (NASB)

The unusual visual of the language in our verse is drawn from a prophecy given in Isaiah 35. This is a picture of what will happen for the believers when the Lord comes again. The next sentence encourages those who are discouraged to ‘Be strong and don’t be afraid. This is a common experience – weak hands and feeble knees – especially as we get older. But even the young have weak faith and drooping arms with week knees. How are we to strengthen our hands and knees? Listen to the author’s encouragement as a coach. There is more of the race left to run, it is not the time to allow weakness and feebleness so, don’t quit yet. Take care to watch where we are walking and follow the path that is level. God will make our path straight (Proverbs 3:6). Throughout our lives we have choices of which paths we will walk. If we make sure to take the level path or to make our way level and straight, then all our ways will be sure (Proverbs 4:26-27). As we walk we are told to not swerve back and forth. No flip-flopping. And, very important, let’s turn away from evil. 

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