Rev’d Mark B. Stirdivant, Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Yucaipa, California
✝ sdg ✝
What’s it like to bear the Christian name? What is true worship like? How shall we act from day to day when we are confident in Christ of the forgiveness of all our sins? What’s going to happen to us, now that the world is getting stronger in its opposition to the Christian confession of faith? You thought those were questions we have had only recently in our day. Well, those questions were on the minds of the Hebrews, too. They had to survive as best they could in a very hostile environment, which might likely have been in the city of Rome itself. It’s true, our society in the 21st century is growing more and more impatient with our Bible and morals—that’s not what people believe anymore, we’re told—well, Christians who formerly were Jews, they were a lot farther down that road than we are today. It was very difficult for these Hebrew Christians, also.
That’s why this letter to the Hebrews, our epistle, was written to them. It was exactly the Word of God’s comfort and encouragement that they needed at the time. It’s also what you need, too, right now because the world counts you and your Savior as a stranger, His statements in Scripture are discounted as weird, totally out of style for today, and it’s up to us to remain firm on our convictions, not because we have what others like to call “deeply held beliefs,” as if there’s something wrong with that, but it’s really because we cannot, we must not, veer off the path our Lord has marked out for us on our way to life everlasting.
This is the fourth week this time around that our church year calendar schedule has had us hear from the letter that was written to the Hebrews. Whether it’s Paul that wrote it, or someone who was well acquainted with Paul, it doesn’t matter. What does matter is that this was a very timely sermon. Quite some time has passed by since the Christian Church had its magnificent start after Pentecost. People were at this point getting a little nervous, some even a bit despondent, because it doesn’t seem likely from the looks of things that the church will survive. Thanks to the persecution of Nero and other Roman emperors, Christians were thrown into prison for no reason, their homes broken into and ransacked by the army. Jewish families were disowning their converted relatives, so many were traveling and wandering into big cities as homeless vagrants. Some were resisting their pastors and defying their teaching because the great generation of Jesus’ disciples and the founding pillars of the church were dying off and the following generation seemed to be weaker, even though they were still preaching the truth. Others were getting careless in living their lives because they had twisted the Gospel to mean that it would be okay to sin some more because they could always go back and get forgiveness. A reaction was building against that from the other side, and that wasn’t much better: they thought the Christian Church should go back to following the Jewish ways and started enforcing anew the purity laws of this is clean and that is unclean, hoping that by reenacting their old ceremonies they would get God back on their side again.
Hebrews was written for Christians who have real questions, who are really concerned about what lies ahead. They, and we, need to hear that the powerful God of the past is the very same God who is with us now, and will guide us as we encounter our future. Hebrews began with these familiar words: “In many and various ways, God spoke to His people of old by the prophets, but now in these last days, He has spoken to us by His Son.” And we heard in today’s reading a great verse to keep and learn by heart: “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, and today, and forever.” God has not changed. Our environment may have changed, new difficulties may have arisen that we haven’t had to consider in the past, but it’s not going to be insurmountable. Jesus Himself said we must be ready for some important changes that are bound to come as we approach closer to that Glorious Day of His Return.
Hebrews was also written partly to explain to Jewish Christians that their many Old Testament rituals and laws and holidays and remembrances had a much deeper dimension. The requirement to do those outward actions had come to an end, but the real things of which these were just shadows, they are still going on in a hidden realm of reality. Instead of a high priest entering a tent or temple, there’s now Jesus, with His resurrected body ascended into heaven, constantly bringing our prayers before the Father and pleading our guaranteed forgiveness on the basis of His once and for all blood payment. He suffered through the hard work of accomplishing our salvation, and now He has given us the real Sabbath rest that the first Sabbath requirement back in Moses’ time only hinted at. We will have times of suffering in our Christian race of life, too, but our Lord and Savior is suffering through it with us, feeling our every pain and weeping for our every setback. You are not alone. Do not fear.
Hebrews was finally written to encourage those who dearly missed those mighty and bold Christians of the previous generations. For these past few weeks we have read from the letter the classic explanation of what faith is: Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. We have remembered great examples of faith from the Old Testament history: the creation, the sacrifice of Abel, the heavenly walk of Enoch, the fearless preaching of Noah while he was building what looked like a useless ark. Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, Joseph, Moses, the Israelite nation, Rahab, Gideon, Samson, all those who, as Hebrews depicts, are filling up heaven’s Olympic stadium as it were with excitement and cheering you on as you keep running your race. Don’t grow weary now, the Hebrews were encouraged, strengthen those weak knees! Thanks to Jesus Christ and His death on the cross, you have received a kingdom that cannot be shaken.
But then Hebrews has more to say. It’s here in this final chapter that we see a list of brief commands and encouragements. What the author seems to be doing is taking the Ten Commandments and then applying them specifically to the Hebrew-speaking Christians’ own situation. It would have not worked to start the letter with these directions, but now that it has been fully demonstrated that Jesus has achieved completely our forgiveness and eternal life by His blood, these closing words can answer those questions that remain in the minds and hearts of these fearful, confused and embattled members of God’s kingdom.
He leads off the modified Ten Commandments with a simple theme: Let brotherly love continue. You baptized and redeemed children of God have already received God’s love. Now your love for others will be seen in clear and obvious ways. People will be able to tell that you have affection for each other. You treat one another as dear brothers and sisters of one family. Welcome strangers and give them lodging. These are likely fellow Christians who will have nowhere else to go. The commandment, You shall not steal, also means helping others keep what is theirs and You shall not murder, also means assisting and sustaining the life and physical needs of your neighbors. Who knows? People in the past were hosting angels and they were unaware of it. Don’t pass up an opportunity to be just as blessed when you help someone who is in need. The Sixth commandment, You shall not commit adultery, expands to let marriage be held in its proper honor in every possible way. You see all around you that, just like among the Hebrews long ago, marriage today is also being dishonored, twisted into what it is not, and faithful Christians need to continue teaching what Hebrews clearly says in print: Sex is good, but outside of one-man, one-woman, God-blessed and life-long marriage sex becomes a perverted and harmful degradation to society. Love of money and lack of contentment is the prelude to both stealing and coveting. Any billionaire can tell you that all they want is an extra million, just like you catch yourself saying I’d make ends meet a whole lot better if I just had $100 more a week. Instead, believe what God promises you: I will never leave you nor forsake you. The Lord is my helper, I will not fear; what can man do to me? When you worship, don’t try to add your own version of sacrifices, whether it’s the former Jews trying to restart the ceremonial laws, or it’s the voices of today saying there needs to be something better on Sunday morning than handing out forgiveness. Instead, let God open your lips with the truth about Jesus, so that your mouth may declare His praise.
Finally, Hebrews reminds these frustrated Jewish Christians with a specific meaning of the fourth commandment: Remember your leaders, obey the Word that your pastors preach to you. Those God-fearing saints of the past would be honored in no greater way than if you also believed as firmly in Jesus as they did. Imitate that faith, and be ready to make a bold stand when your time to make a good confession has come. Be ready to suffer exclusion, unfairness, resistance, because that happened to Jesus, too. You don’t belong to the earthly city, you should follow Christ in a spiritual march to the cross every day. At His altar, from which those who do not believe should not commune until they are fully catechized, you receive His Blood that makes you holy, and you are made citizens of the city of which we pray, Thy Kingdom Come. Remind yourselves that you have called pastors to keep watch over your souls, to lead you with God’s Word, and they owe God an explanation of how they did in the role of shepherd and forgiveness-distributor. It would serve to your advantage if you support and pray for their work, even if you sometimes feel you have a reason to point out their faults.
What’s it like to be a Christian? What do we do in our daily life, knowing that we belong to the Lord? Seems like it’s the same for you now as it was for the Hebrews many centuries ago. As our Synod President Matt Harrison said recently, This is our moment to be bold. We are entering an exciting time to confess the true Christian faith, and share the merciful love of Jesus toward those who are seeking genuine answers to life’s most important questions. Will you be that bold? Will you leave behind, as you turn and follow the holy cross of Jesus, the temporary, crumbling city of this world? God’s love and forgiveness to you in Christ will never fail. He will not leave you, and He has placed among you a well of love for one another that He promises will never run dry.
In the Name of the Father and of the ✝ Son and of the Holy Spirit.
Green Altar Parament
Readings:
Prov. 25:2–10 It is the glory of God to conceal a matter
Psalm 131 LORD, my heart is not haughty, Nor my eyes lofty.
Heb. 13:1–17 Do not be carried about with various and strange doctrines
Luke 14:1–14 whoever exalts himself will be humbled