Today we will be reading from Hebrews 13. For most of the book of Hebrews, the author has been talking about the supremacy of Christ and the new covenant over the old Covenant. The entire book has been largely theological, up to this point. The only strong instructions we’ve gotten were to not drift, draw near to God, study the word of God, keep meeting up as a church and encourage each other. Chapter 13 is very practical and focused on application of this knowledge. The theology is important; because we have a better Covenant in Jesus Christ, we can draw near to God, Because we draw near to God, we can do the following things.
Keep on loving one another as brothers and sisters. 2 Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it.
The author begins Hebrews by saying to love one another. This is not a new command. This is a command from the old testament. Scholars of the law would ask Jesus what the most important command was, and next to loving God with all our hearts, minds and souls and strengths, loving our neighbors as ourselves was the next instruction. In fact, Jesus’ entire parable of the Good Samaritan was intended to expand the idea of who our neighbors are, and what it takes to be a good neighbor. Showing love and demonstrating compassion is how to be a good neighbor., and since the one who helped the person in need was a Samaritan, even historical enemies can be good neighbors, sometimes even more so than people who share your beliefs. John implored the churches he wrote to to love each other. We show the world what a loving God we serve when we can extend love to each other. Loving each other is a form of evangelism, a simple demonstration of a profound spiritual change in our hearts. But the benefit of loving someone doesn’t just extend to the people we show love to. Loving others helps us to live at peace and foster friendships and relationships that enhance our lives. A network of friends has been shown through various scientific studies to correllate to a longer life span. Being a loving person can help to create a great network of friends. And what’s the worst case, or the downside? Even if our love is not reciprocated, it is very instructive. We understand God’s love towards humanity better when we try to love people who are our enemies or who don’t appreciate our love. Loving each other is a way to understand doctrine. In the context of a church, it’s God’s will for us to come here and learn, but also to grow together. Think about that for a second. The primary way God reveals Jesus Christ to us is by having us live a portion of our lives together here. Yes, there are evangelists, yes there are a few people called to a traveling ministry, but for the majority of people, and that includes nearly everyone Paul wrote to, they were grouped in local churches, and small groups of people, local ministries. It’s God’s will to place an interesting mix of strangers together, people from all ages and backgrounds, all different interests, and create a family out of it. We can be different in every way imaginable, but before God, we are all sinners who need a savior. We encourage each other and have each other’s best interests in mind like family. The author wrote love one another as brothers and sisters. It’s the kind of love that siblings have for each other. This kind of love usually takes time to develop, but in the context of a church family, we should try and show that kind of welcoming hospitality and familial friendliness to guests or the newest strangers. The author reminds the readers to treat strangers well and show hospitality. The author reminds us that some people have shown hospitality to strangers, and those strangers had in fact been Angels. A few examples come to mind. Abraham showed hospitality to strangers in Genesis 18, when he learned God’s plan to bless him and Sarah with a child. Another story that comes to mind is Lot, in Genesis 19 how he showed hospitality to the two Angels who had appeared in Sodom. He brought in two Angels and fed them, intending for them to stay over and depart the next morning. Remember God used to use angels as messengers to explain his will and his prophesies. Now he uses his Son. The author is saying that some people have shown hospitality to strangers who turned out to be angels. We shouldn’t necessarily expect that God will continue to have angels appear in our midst as strangers. But showing loving hospitality, the act of being hospitable, is an interaction God uses to reveal himself to others. Instead of receiving God’s message when we show hospitality, like Abraham or Lot did, we transmit or give God’s message to the strangers when we show hospitality. In Exodus 22 and 23, God gives instructions to not mistreat or oppress a foreigner or stranger. We should treat them with love, and the type of love is phil -adelphos
3 Continue to remember those in prison as if you were together with them in prison, and those who are mistreated as if you yourselves were suffering.
The author also tells the reader to remember those who are in prison as if you were there with them. Remember those who are afflicted or mistreated as if you yourself are suffering. All of these instructions are complementary to Jesus instruction to love your neighbor as yourself. To love someone that much, you need to really put yourself into that person’s shoes. Somebody is in prison, remember them as if you were there with them. If someone is mistreated, remember as if you yourself are suffering. It gives God glory when we extend that type of love to one another, and it stands out because it’s surprisingly uncommon. It’s almost cool to not care about each other. It’s easier too. If someone is going through something, it’s easy to just say, “well, good luck with all that.” Seinfeld made that line popular, but it’s a prevalent attitude. There is a certain degree of empathy that you just don’t see much. I am actually spoiled because my mother is really compassionate. It’s like a super hero skill of hers. If I tell her something I am going through, she really listens, and makes a point to try and understand. You can see her feeling all the grief or frustration and almost sharing it or at least trying to endure it together with you. Sometimes I can’t bring myself to complain to her about something I am going through because I feel like she will truly suffer with me; maybe even more so than what I am going through. And I don’t want her to have to endure that unnecessarily. My dad is a bit different, he’s more analytical and comes up with solutions or case studies from his experience. But both of them, in their own ways, are great at putting themselves in my shoes. Often if somebody is telling me something they are going through, I feel bad for them but sometimes I don’t know what to say. As Christians we should try to bear each others burdens and remember those who are going through things. This is exactly what is said in Galatians 6:2 Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.
It’s also important to notice that the author is saying to remember people you aren’t even with. Being sympathetic and compassionate is important for you to do, whether the person you’re being sympathetic to or compassionate towards is even around to know and recognize you are doing that. There is also the idea that people who are wrongfully imprisoned or mistreated no longer have a voice in society, and if you keep them in your thoughts, you can change the laws and the society to be more humane, more forgiving, more honoring to God. People shouldn’t fear imprisonment, persecution, or being mistreated when they do what they believe to be right. In the time this was written, people were imprisoned for preaching the word of God. It’s reasonable to assume the author is talking here about people who are wrongfully imprisoned, or at least unfairly imprisoned. There might even be enough context clues at the end of this chapter to indicate the author himself was in prison or at least restricted from moving freely to be with the people he was writing to. Check out Hebrews 13:18-19
18 Pray for us. We are sure that we have a clear conscience and desire to live honorably in every way. 19 I particularly urge you to pray so that I may be restored to you soon.
He asks for their prayers and discusses the clear conscience he has, which indicates he’s tried to live honorably and do the right thing, but had an unfavorable outcome. He also asks for prayers to be restored to them soon, meaning he might not free to travel to them as he desires. It could be potential persecution that he is asking for prayers because similarly, in his concluding statements he wrote that Timothy, was recently released from some form of captivity, and if he arrives, the author will attempt a visit
23 I want you to know that our brother Timothy has been released. If he arrives soon, I will come with him to see you.
When the author says to remember those in prison, we don’t need to restrict that to people wrongfully imprisoned. Even people who are serving time for doing wrong should be remembered and in our prayers. There are many churches that have prison ministries. Pastors and teachers will run Bible studies or church services for the inmates. The goal is to preach repentance and love to fellow sinners, which is the same good news that we hear. The message of the Cross is that all are guilty, and need a savior; sometimes those who are most prepared to admit this truth are people who have been pronounced Guilty and are imprisoned by the state with the intention rehabilitation and a change of life.
4 Marriage should be honored by all, and the marriage bed kept pure, for God will judge the adulterer and all the sexually immoral.
Earlier we were talking about brotherly love or philadelphia love, now we are talking about eros, or romantic love. There’s a way to ensure that type of love is Godly. Last chapter in 12:16 the author was talking about sexual immorality and how we should see to it that nobody is immoral or GodLESS like Esau. When you praise God with your mouth, but live as if God doesn’t exist, there is a certain amount of dishonesty happening. You can’t praise God but not His commandments; you can’t love God but not His Word. If that happens, you are disregarding his truth, and praising something that you’ve created, and it isn’t really God. You are worshipping something else, which is a form of idolatry. The sexually immoral are worshipping comfort, their flesh, their desires, and their personal view of how the world should work. That person is acting as if they don’t believe God will judge them, and there will be no consequences of their action. Maybe they are worshipping a God who doesn’t care about marriage and purity. But the real God does. God gives commands about how marriage should be honored and respected. It’s not a command made to restrict us; its a command given to bless us. The marital union is a gift from God, it should give joy and companionship to us while we live on this earth, but it should also reflect heavenly things, like Christ and His Bride, the church. When people break God’s commands on marriage, they pollute those blessings and their relationship with God. But there is collateral damage on earth and other people are left with heartbreak, hurt, sadness, loss. Around the same time the author was talking about Esau and godlessness in chapter 12, he mentioned not stirring up a bitter root. This covetousness is similar to sexual immorality, but is directed towards objects and wealth instead of other people.
5 Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.”[a]
6 So we say with confidence,
“The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?”[b]
Last time, when we talked about the bitter root that the author mentioned, I referenced Philippians, where Paul said the secret to being content regardless of circumstance, whether having a lot or having nothing is the same. I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength. Paul’s message was that he can endure differences in physical condition because Christ gives strength. The author of Hebrews has a bit of a different message on contentment here. He starts by saying free yourself from the love of money. Paul had agreed in another of his letters that The love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. It becomes an idol and a snare. The ancient Greek Poet Anacreon wrote about 500 years before Christ:
Cursed be he above all others
Who’s enslaved by love of money.
Money takes the place of brothers,
Money takes the place of parents.
Money brings us war and slaughter.
It’s interesting he wrote that money takes the place of brothers and parents. Especially when we contrast that with the first verse of Hebrews 13, which is to love one another as brothers and sisters. We talked about types of love, eros, phileal, but the love of money is a perversion. Contentment is the enemy to the love of money. But why should we be content? Paul doesn’t say the why, as much as the How. He is able to be content in every situation because Christ gives strength. But the Author of Hebrews says we are content because God has said He is with us. He won’t leave us or forsake us. Contentment means recognizing that we don’t need anything more. God is with us. That’s the most important thing. Being in the presence of God, that Togetherness, that communion, that fellowship. That’s the most important thing that anyone could need or want. And we have it. We already have that. And we always will have that forever. We should be content because God is with us, and will be with us. A lot of times the love of money is about fear. Fear that God won’t provide or fear we won’t have enough. God isn’t just with us, he’s our helper. There’s nothing we need to fear on this earth. Mortals can do nothing to us. We can proclaim His word boldly, we can stand up for people who are oppressed or wronged. We can be patient and wait on God when the world tells us we need something now.
7 Remember your leaders, who spoke the word of God to you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith.
The author is instructing the readers to remember their leaders, those who spoke the word of God to you. This is interesting. Remember what we’ve said since the beginning of Hebrews 1. God used to use prophets to speak to us, but now he uses his Son. Alone, that could mean that pastors and elders and church leaders are obsolete too. If we no longer need a prophet or a messenger, why does a pastor need to come up and talk? Personally, it would make my life much easier. Everything that God wants to say, he’s said in the past through messengers, prophets, and now through His Son. We could just come up here and say, “open your Bibles and read. See you next week. The End.” And actually I think I try to encourage the congregation to read on their own at some point in every sermon. But I know it doesn’t always happen, and if it does, not everyone is reading the same thing at the same time. I think it’s important to read through this book both individually and together. You need to hear the word of God spoken, so do I. We need to hear it together, and have a shared foundation so we are consistent in our faith, our beliefs, and our doctrine. So what’s the role of leaders? Some leaders are good at presenting God’s word and cross referencing one part of scripture with another. The author of Hebrews is one who remembers so much of the Old Covenant, and is comfortable referencing it in his letter. Some leaders are good at answering questions and explaining the meaning of various passages. At my church we read the Book of Acts before a Baptism last month. There was a man named Philip who met an Ethiopian official, and explained a passage from the book of Isaiah. Philip’s faith led him to this stranger, but God used his knowledge of scripture, and his ability to teach and answer questions to minister to the Ethiopian. It was so effective, it led the man to request a baptism at the next body of water they saw along the road. Some are better at studying, some at speaking, and others are better counseling. Some are good at living a life in such a way that it is consistent with what the Bible says. These leaders might not lead with sermons and bible studies, but they lead because they are the first to volunteer to help. They are good at loving their neighbors and living in such a way that demonstrates that they care about reflecting God’s love to a fallen world. Our model for leadership should be Jesus Christ himself, regardless of your gifting. Remember, Jesus delivered the eloquent sermon on the mount, he taught in the synogogue, but he also led by washing his disciples feet, and instructed his disciples to lead by serving. Living your life like a servant really takes faith, because you are demonstrating confidence in something unseen that you are hoping for. True faith leads to action, and that action is usually illogical since it’s based on hope for something unseen. That’s why I think leaders who act as servants are more rare. An unbeliever might do a reasonable job at explaining the various meanings of a verse in the Bible, and having an opinion on which one is consistent with scripture. But it takes a true leader who believes and has faith in what is unseen to love and serve. The author says to remember the leaders, consider their lives, and imitate that faith. So basically the instruction is to be good followers by imitating good leaders. Let’s jump ahead one more time to see one other mention of leadership.
17 Have confidence in your leaders and submit to their authority, because they keep watch over you as those who must give an account. Do this so that their work will be a joy, not a burden, for that would be of no benefit to you.
The Bible has a lot of exhortations for how to be a good leader. The letters to Timothy are full of such instruction. As a pastor, it is sobering to read through those, and to know that leaders will have to give an account, and it will be different than the account that others will have to give. Because leaders have the additional role of keeping watch over a flock, there’s more responsibility and more potential to spread error or truth. In the context of this verse, it’s written as instruction to people who will be following. Have confidence in your leaders, submit to their authority. I’ve heard this verse taken out of context in some ways. This isn’t a blanket instruction to just shut up and do what you’re told. The writer of Hebrews is first and foremost writing to some group of people who he knows, so he knows the leadership personally. This is an important disctinction to make. The author is familiar with the doctrine and the teaching, and is probably friends with the leaders that he is saying to submit to. I wouldn’t say that every church should listen to and follow what their pastors are saying without question. Submitting to general authority without question is actually very unbiblical, and if you stop and think about it, many of the epistles and letters were written from someone (usually Paul) imprisoned for their faith. So there’s an implicit understanding about what authority to submit to and what authority to resist. You probably all know by this point what is the true test. Is the instruction Biblical? Is this authority being used to promote behavior consistent with following God’s law and God’s nature, or is it promoting lawlessness. Is the motivation for following God’s law love, or is it instruction that is teaching salvation by works? The author has spent the last 12 chapters talking about theology, so I think the doctrinal groundwork has been laid. The tone here is not to say shut up and submit. The goal is to make your leader’s lives a bit easier. It’s hard to be a leader of people who don’t want to be led. In English we call it herding cats. It’s hard to herd cats, because they just do whatever they want. Leadership turns from a joy into a burden to keep telling people to do things that they should know to do already. It’s a drag to be seen as the bad guy or the one who’s always saying “no, don’t do that.” And the author wants to remind the readers that its no benefit to be a follower who needs to be told everything to do. I read that good leaders don’t make followers, they make more leaders, and that’s the tone here. There are a few more things in Chapter 13 that are worth a bit of time, so I will end here. We will finish up chapter 13 and end the book of Hebrews next post.