By: REV. DR. ISAIAH ROBINSON, JR.
Scriptural text: HEBREWS 13: 9-21
INTRODUCTION: In the lesson text, the Hebrews were being influenced by other religions. There is the mark of brotherly love. Let brotherly love continue. The love existing among believers is a special kind of love. It is a “brotherly love,” it’s that kind of love that binds each other together as a family. It nourishes and nurtures each other. Believers who have been born again by the Spirit of God through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. And when they receive this new birth, Good gives them a new spirit that melts and binds their hearts and lives in love for all the family of God.
LOVE OBEYS (HEB. 13:9-17). The supreme mark of Christian conduct is guarding against strange doctrines or teachings (. 9-11). Th e doctrines of the false teachers were wrong for placing too much emphasis on the physical aspects of religious worship and not on a person’s heart. Following the way of Christ was different from other religions in Rome. When one follows the pattern of Christ, it pleases God. The Greeks used four words for love: romantic love (eros), friendship
Love (philia), familial love (storge), and unconditional love (agape). Love is a central theme in the Bible – Christians are commanded to love one another. However, God’s command to love is on a higher plane than humanity’s understanding. Agape love is the love that God demonstrated toward humanity by sacrificing His Son to redeem us (John 3:16). This chapter warns against being misled by strange teachings emphasizing empty rituals over God’s grace (v. 9). The Hebrew Christians discovered that an overemphasis on dietary rules would not save them. They had to learn that salvation was the result of giving one’s heart to Christ.
Strange teachings do not profit the person who follows them. Strange teachings are. Based on the wrong sacrifice, even the sacrifice of the old covenant, can make a person pure and acceptable to God.
LOVE CARES ( A SACRIFICE OF PRAISE THAT IS PLEASING TO GOD HEB. 13:18-21). The Hebrews must have noticed how people worshipped using sacrifices upon altars. The Jews understood that on the Day of Atonement, the high priest made an animal sacrifice for the sins of Israel. They believed that when that blood was sprinkled on the mercy seat, God would see the blood and forgive the congregation of their sins. The rituals of the Day of Atonement had to be done yearly
According to the law. Jesus became that permanent sacrifice upon the altar of the cross. Believers who have the correct understanding of the Lord’s sacrifice are to follow Him spiritually outside the camp of the world’s powerless belief system. As the faithful look to Christ, they understand that this earth is not their final home. Christians look for a city beyond this world that has foundations whose builder and maker is God. God is the source of peace, the God of resurrection and life, and Jesus Christ is the great shepherd of the sheep who established an eternal covenant between God and humankind. through His shed blood
God gives the church pastors who feed the people with knowledge and understanding. The leader has a God ordained assignment to equip the people for proper ministry. These leaders have two functions of watching for souls and giving an account to God. The pastor must take his or her assignment very seriously as God assigns them to care for their members. The pastor must learn the ways of Christ and model it before the congregation. They must teach, train, correct, rebuke, and. Inspire members to stay on the path to eternal life.
The benediction upon departing is a prayer of blessing that prays for the God of peace to remain active in everyone’s lives. The benediction declares who God is and what He has done and what He will continue to do forever. God accepts no praise in any way other than through the Lord Jesus Christ.