Sermons on Hebrews

These concluding remarks from the author of Hebrews remind the Church that they are to be 1) a loving community 2) in a hostile world 3) with a faithful God. Because God is faithful, we can give our lives for him, knowing that we won’t be forsaken or abandoned.

What would you expect a meeting with God to look and feel like? It all depends on whether grace is present. Three contrasts occur in this passage: between the earthly meeting and the heavenly meeting (reminding us of how grace enables us to draw near to God), between the earthly warning and the heavenly warning (reminding us to not let God’s message pass us by), and between the earthly shaking and the heavenly remaining (reminding us to live for the right kingdom, the only kingdom which…

This passage shows us the high standard of sexual purity for the believer, and the sad example of Esau, who exemplifies sexual immorality and ungodliness. In order to honor marriage and live lives of purity, we should not delay marriage unnecessarily, not demand that it be more than God intended it to be, not demean the alternative calling of singleness, and not despise the sexually broken, but rather hold out the grace of Jesus which we all need.

In human relationships, conflict abounds because people are sinners. And so, peace doesn’t come easily but is something that we need to strive after. Relationships get messy, and confession and forgiveness are needed. The gospel enables us to own up to our own sin, and empowers us to extend forgiveness when we’ve been wronged. In fact, the gospel is all about peace: that when we were God’s enemies, he reconciled us to himself through Christ, to make us his beloved sons…

This passage challenges us to find God’s strength in a long race, and to see God’s hand in hard times. The Christian life is described as a long race, in which we need to strive with endurance; which we can only do as we look to Jesus for empowerment and strength. Further, it encourages us that hard times for the believer is God’s loving discipline, the presence of which assures us that God is our Father and is working for our good.

This famous chapter recounts the lives of God’s faithful people in the Old Testament. Here we learn the Core of faith, the Content of faith, and the Cost of faith. These heroes of faith trusted in God’s promises and took God at his word, such that they could live as though God’s promises were certain even when their fulfillment seemed impossible, and as though God’s truth was ultimate even when obscured by their circumstances. Even when living by faith comes with a…

This passage warns of God’s judgment towards those who forsake Christ, and of the world’s persecution towards those who remain faithful to Christ. The author of Hebrews encourages his audience to endure – to press on in faith, even when it is costly, by looking to God’s reward – the “better and abiding possession” than anything they could gain or lose in this life.