Hebrews- A Regenerated Spirit

Now may the God of peace who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, by the blood of the eternal covenant, equip you will everything good that you may do his will, working in us that which is pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen. 

Hebrews 13:20-21 (ESV)

We’ve come to it at last, the final chapter Hebrews.  Jesus is better.  He is a better priest of a better covenant that God had given the Israelites because it depends on the work of Christ, not the ability of the people to follow the law.  It is grace personified, eternal, unconditional favor and secure relationship for God’s people. 

As we close Hebrews, chapter 13 reads like a heavenly to-do list. It’s tempting to read these passages and think, if I act this way, God will be pleased with me. If my life is marked by these habits, I will be able to show God I’m good.  It’s possible that as we read the passage, a false promise that we can earn our righteousness lies underneath.  A major premise in the book of Hebrews, is the case to Jewish Christians that following the law something they had been trained to do since childhood,  is impossible!  Instead,  we needed a better system than personal righteousness to gain access to God and freedom from sin.  We cannot at the end forget the message of the first 12 chapters.  Instead, let us put this list of ways of living out the faith in perspective.  This chapter is not a set of instructions but a descriptor of the attitudes and actions of one who has fully embraced that Jesus is better and is being transformed into His image.  It shows a picture of what the one who has been changed by Christ looks like and by grace, what Jesus is changing us to from glory to glory. 

Brotherly love

As the benediction of verses 20 and 21 explain, we are shepherded and equipped to live in a way that is pleasing to God once the sacrifice of Jesus pays our spiritual debt.  One who has experienced this transformation is now part of God’s spiritual family.  They have spiritual brothers and sisters.  The guidance to how we should treat those who we worship with on Sundays is familial.  As we unpack chapter 13, we will see that the guidelines that close this book of the Bible are a summary of brotherly love.  How do we engage with our local church in a way that elevates how Christ is better?  The next verse in chapter 13 detail how the spiritual attitude of brotherly love can show itself in practical ways. 

Hospitality

Hospitality is not a Pinterest worthy home.  It is a heart and attitude of welcoming others into community, especially people you don’t know well who feel like strangers. 

Recently I found myself in a situation where I was hosting to a party of people I didn’t know.  A colleague of my husband was needing a place to host a birthday party for his wife.  Out at dinner while getting to know this couple, I had in a light-heartedly offered to host.  What I love is that when the day grew closer, they had remembered my comment and asked if I actually would host the party!  Since I was entertaining people I didn’t know, I had to be in tight communication with the couple to meet their preferences or provide what their guests could enjoy.  

I typically love hosting but it felt different to prepare a place when I didn’t know the attendees.  I felt my anxiety grow a bit in picturing if I could host well without having relationships with those attending.  My feelings intensified when we were asked to show a local football game, as some of the guests wanted to watch it.  The space in our home that would best facilitate this request was a room that was being updated, specifically the carpet.  It was well worn and stained and I was very embarrassed to picture people I didn’t know being in that space.  Where I don’t tend to think critically when close friends and family were there, I found myself not wanting to capitulate to this request based on the condition of that space.  In that moment, God showed me the true state of my heart—I was more worried about my reputation than meeting the needs of others. 

I think that is a key point to why the author mentions hospitality as a tangible way to express brotherly love.  When we open up our home and invite people in, what is our primary motivation?  Are we thinking about the people coming and their desires or what they may think about our ability to entertain.  We mistakenly think hospitality is about the decor, the food, the easy of conversation, the hope of being invited in return.  Yet true hospitality is advancing the kingdom of God through viewing your resources as a way to serve others.  Travel in the ancient world was hard and those who were serving as missionaries had to rely on unknown Christian community to safely move from place to place, strengthening the church and spreading the gospel.  

Today, that need is decreased, with the common use of hotels, and technology that allows communication between churches.  Yet we need biblical hospitality more than ever.  With the rise of social media connection seems easier, but is less authentic.  Anxiety and loneliness are on the rise as we become dependent on apps with unrealistic content to spend time together, not in person encounters.  Welcoming people into Christian community can feel awkward and uncomfortable.  In my previous small group, our leader would typically invite new people to the church into our group.  He showed this heart of hospitality, which is helping people on Sundays to go beyond a service and enter into authentic relationships. If we are a family in Christ, what are ways we can make new faith-baed relationships feel like coming home? 

Remember those who are mistreated

Being part of the modern church and living in a country that protects my religious freedoms, I enjoy many rights that the original church didn’t experience.  At the time of this letter, Christians were persecuted for having faith and many thrown in prison for their beliefs.  The author reminds the readers that we are all one body.  Elsewhere in 1 Corinthians 12:25-26 Paul writes: 

That there may be no division in he body, but that the members may have the same care for one another.  If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together.

For believers that are being treated unfairly, our response should be to unite with them in how they are feeling.  If we know that others are being mistreated for their faith, that should arouse suffering in our own spirit.  

Because of when and where I live, I enjoy legal freedom, but am also surrounded by disrespect because of my beliefs.  At our workplaces, my husband and I have both experienced being mocked and excluded for believing in Christ.  This is a small price to pay for the sacrifice and torture that Christ went through for me, but it stands to reason in the “last days” that I can expect more persecution for my beliefs and that someday my religious freedoms won’t be protected. 

Love and Money

The author now shifts to a section on his lists of brotherly love that are temptations often found within the believer—covetousness.  As he asks the readers to honor marriage and remain content, he is outlining two common temptations humanity faces, following carnal desires and using our money to pursue what we think will offer life to us.  

People find many ways to express covetousness with their desire for another person.  Sometimes it is looking to someone else outside marriage to fulfill relational longings-physical or emotional. It is not a popular idea that marriage is an institution to treat with reverence; to stick with the commitment to one another for life.  Divorce is common and adultery is widespread.  When we uphold our marriage vows, forsaking all others, we honor God and our spouse.  In my own marriage, we have had ups and downs and times were we didn’t want to be married, but because of our faith in God and his promise that fidelity and commitment are precious in His sight, we stuck with it.  This year we will celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary and I can say that our time together now is better than the intense days of infatuation.  Like gold, our lives have been refined by one another as God grows us in faith and character.  I can’t image going through the sorrows we’d had to face in life without one another. If you are married, I don’t know your specific situation right now.  I pray you are experiencing more joys than sorrows with your spouse, but if it’s possible, I encourage you to stick through the challenging times.  It’s God’s design that we practice loving one another, the way He loves us through this sacred covenant.  

Another way covetous is expressed is through how we manage our money.  As a bible teacher, there are times where I share out what the text is teaching me, knowing that God will use it in a meaningful way in the future, and times where Scripture smacks me in the face!  For the past few days, an undercurrent of anxiety has been sifting my heart.  I am currently in the middle of remodel project, where we are changing major areas of our home that need repair (painting, floors, deck, etc).  Though we have saved for this project and are working with professionals, I have had anxiety about making decisions and spending big amounts of money.  Gratefully, anxiety is not something I typically struggle with and I’ve been prayerfully asking God for relief and to know the source of this unfamiliar mental burden.  The truth found in verses 5 and 6 of our chapter became an answer for prayer as I read about the need for contentment because God will never leave me. 

How often do I misdirect the love I should show my spiritual family by loving what they have and trying to compete.  This envy is defined as sin in the Ten Commandments.  When I consider why I strive to have a nice house, clothes, resume, etc. I can admit that deep down I don’t think people will like what they see if I don’t have the outward appearance of worth.  Yet God redirects my desire to use money to protect myself and my discontentment with a reminder that He will never leave me or forsake me.  If I use worldly influence to draw people to myself, who am I asking to stay close?  If I’m living with anxiety because I want people to love me because of what I have, I will ultimately be disappointed in those relationships.  Yet God promises to never leave me or forsake me.  I can lean into contentment because He will always be with me.  I will never be lonely or rejected so I can turn away from the worship of money, a resource that promises the life I want that is false, instead trusting God for real security.  

Follow the leader

Often when we think of loving our Christian family, we think about our spiritual “equals,” then men and women sitting beside us in the pews each Sunday,  But do we think of our pastors, elders, and leaders and our peers?  As people God has called to care for us who also need care? As people as part of our family? 

Though my husband has been in lay ministry for many years, he was recently ordained as a pastor at our local church.  Shortly after, he and I started a new community group that meets weekly to pray for one another and discuss the sermon.  I was afraid that because he was a pastor, we might be treated differently and feel separated from this new community we were trying to build.  I also wondered if those attending would be able to be open and vulnerable as one of there pastors were leading the discussion.  Would this be a safe place for my spouse to share his weaknesses and struggles as well.  In God’s grace, the five couples that we meet with weekly for fellowship have been able to love my husband by seeing him as a brother in Christ.  They’ve shared struggles, fears, and questions and let him do the same.  

A practical way to love those in ministry is submit to their leadership as they submit to Christ.  Make there shepherding a joy by loving others well, listening to their counsel, and coming to them when you are hurting or have questions so they can care for you.  Remember they are speaking the words of God to you.  If you have found a leader who demonstrates humility and lovingly shares scripture, imitate their faith as they live out the gospel. 

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