Reading Hebrews 2, there are many indications that Christ-followers are considered family to God, siblings even to Jesus. Have you ever truly contemplated this fact?
We can take it for granted that we are all brothers and sisters in Christ, but have you ever truly appreciated your role as a brother or sister TO Christ? Being siblings to one another is one thing and brings a sense of community, belonging and equality. We can easily understand and accept being family to one another as we have all experienced some kind of family in our lives. Being a sibling to Jesus, on the other hand - that’s kind of different, surely that breeds a sense of honour, respect and responsibility? It’s a level up to having a regular brother isn’t it?! Knowing that our brother is in fact the creator of the world, a perfect man and a loving, obedient son.
It makes me realise that I should be living with a different incentive, with a different sense of responsibility and respect for myself, others and God. If I take the fact that Jesus is my brother seriously, then I will consider his thoughts and feelings, his desires and expectations as well as my own. I don’t want him seeing my grumpiness when I’m tired, my late-night eating habits or moody rants at work. I don’t want him to have cause to feel sad, to feel disappointed in me. I am not saying he would, or that he would cause me guilt, but doesn’t being in the presence of someone greater than you inspire you to be greater? How much so then should the fact that we are elevated to the position of sharing the same father and family as Jesus?
Hebrews tells us Jesus is, ‘not ashamed to call them (us) brothers’ (v11), so no matter our faults and mistakes, Jesus doesn’t condemn us, he is not ashamed of us!
Yet are you living ashamed that Jesus is your brother?
I ask this as a challenge - is your life demonstrating that you are proud of your family heritage through Jesus or ashamed?
Do you acknowledge Christ in your daily life? Do you admit your relationship with Jesus, hide it or deny it? If you are wanting Jesus as your brother and saviour, then shouldn’t you be acting like it?! Jesus himself says that those who deny him now will be denied by him later (Matthew 10:33), are you willing to take that risk? Does your everyday life match up to your faith? Are you acknowledging Jesus as your brother in the way you live?
The good news folks is that although we should live aware and concerned about our faith, there is no need to be perfect. There is unfailing love and forgiveness freely available for us, but it doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try to overcome the things we know are issues for us. Nothing is too difficult for us, we shouldn’t excuse ourselves by accepting our sin or downplaying the strength of temptation. Jesus didn’t. Yes, I know Jesus was perfect, but, ‘he himself has suffered when tempted’ therefore, ‘he is able to help those who are being tempted.’ This is because, Jesus was, ‘made like his brothers in every respect’.
Jesus was just like you and me in his human flesh. He faced the same struggles with people, the world and himself. He battled temptation, he struggled to avoid sin. He sometimes desired his own way rather than God’s way. He struggled with conformity and individuality, he had to contend with the constraints of culture. Jesus suffered and was tempted. He knows what it’s like. Jesus gets it. He understands the overwhelming nature of temptation, the power and pull of self-preservation and self-satisfaction. He knows the expectations others have on us, the reality of peer pressure and the desire to be accepted and live the ‘normal’ life. Jesus understands the internal conflict and mental anguish we go through because he’s experienced it. He is like us, ‘in every respect’. Jesus knew the pain of rejection and persecution, the struggle of sin, the temptation for more, the desire to protect himself, the yearning to have a happy, healthy long life. Jesus was tempted to compromise like we are. Yet….. Yet, he chose to overcome all of the temptation, sin and compromise. He chose not his own life as paramount, but the will of his Father. He chose not what was best or easiest for him, but that which gave his brothers and sisters hope. Jesus, the son of God, our beloved brother, chose the path of obedience and purity. Jesus chose the path that we sometimes wander from. Jesus chose the way that God desired, and the way that led to our life, but to his own torture and death. This is our brother.
Jesus, our brother, knows pain and suffering. He knows the realities of being human. Jesus - completely human, but also completely God. He shares the same, ‘flesh and blood’ as us. He has the same Father, and is unashamed of us; his brothers and sisters.
We are living in such a privileged position, are you even aware of it? Are you allowing the truth of who you are to Jesus impact your life? Is your life reflecting the reality of who your brother and Father are?
‘He who sanctifies and those who are sanctified all have one source’.
Thursday 27 February 2020
Thursday 20 February 2020
how shall we escape?
Therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it. *2*For since the message declared by angels proved to be reliable, and every transgression or disobedience received a just retribution, 3 *how shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation?* * It was declared at first by the Lord, and it was attested to us by those who heard, *4*while God also bore witness by signs and wonders and various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.
Hebrews 2:1–4
Bearing in mind all we have read before, all we have discovered about Jesus, all we have be shown by angels and God, all that is written in the Old Testament and all that prophets have muttered, bearing all that in mind, surely we should, ‘pay much closer attention’ To what? You may ask -
Based on the evidence, we should focus our attention and not neglect the great salvation given to us.
That is what this author is showing us. If God has put so much effort into making Jesus known, since the beginning of time, then surely he is someone worth knowing about and the key message that he brings is the revelation of salvation.
Since the beginning of time it has been made clear - considering the angels proclamations, prophets messages, disciples experiences, sacred writings, and God’s owns declarations - who Jesus is.
Each individual source is reliable and trustworthy in it’s own right, so how about all of these accounts put together?! It is an undeniable truth that Jesus lived, that He is God and that he died then three days later rose again. There are documented accounts, witness reports - These things are established truths. Real experiences reported and evidenced by signs and wonders, testimonies as well as the fulfilment of prophecy and the occasional angelic visitation.
How then can we not believe?!
Sources that collaborate over centuries have all led to the same conclusion, different people, different eras - one message - Jesus is the son of God who brings salvation.
You have no excuse to not recognise the truth of who Jesus is. So, what are you doing about it?
We can be in danger, as the writer points out, of neglecting such a great salvation. We become accustomed with the privilege of salvation, take it for granted, so much so that it doesn’t really have an impact on our everyday lives. This great and marvellous privilege that has taken centuries to fulfil has lost the gravity of importance in our lives.
Are you complacent about the reality of your salvation?
Do you need reminding again of the significance of all Jesus is and all he did in order for the life you have?
Are you living aware of your salvation or do you keep it tucked away from others so much so that even you are not even sure about it’s influence?
This great salvation was bought at a hefty price. One that none of us would be able or willing to pay, but Jesus did. This great salvation means that we no longer have to be enslaved to sin or fear, this salvation means that we can know an eternal relationship, discover our true identity and have security for our future was well as help and comfort in our present. It means we can walk tall, knowing we are loved and forgiven, wanted and never alone. This great salvation has even greater purpose than his temporal Earth can offer - but are you neglecting it?
We can get blinded and distracted but all the Earth offers - the people in it, the weather, the work that is required, and the problems we see in it. Life can and does get in the way of our faith, but shouldn’t it be the other way around?!
We will have no excuses available on that great and powerful day when we meet Jesus face to face - what will you or I be able to say then?
‘how shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation?
Hebrews 2:1–4
Bearing in mind all we have read before, all we have discovered about Jesus, all we have be shown by angels and God, all that is written in the Old Testament and all that prophets have muttered, bearing all that in mind, surely we should, ‘pay much closer attention’ To what? You may ask -
Based on the evidence, we should focus our attention and not neglect the great salvation given to us.
That is what this author is showing us. If God has put so much effort into making Jesus known, since the beginning of time, then surely he is someone worth knowing about and the key message that he brings is the revelation of salvation.
Since the beginning of time it has been made clear - considering the angels proclamations, prophets messages, disciples experiences, sacred writings, and God’s owns declarations - who Jesus is.
Each individual source is reliable and trustworthy in it’s own right, so how about all of these accounts put together?! It is an undeniable truth that Jesus lived, that He is God and that he died then three days later rose again. There are documented accounts, witness reports - These things are established truths. Real experiences reported and evidenced by signs and wonders, testimonies as well as the fulfilment of prophecy and the occasional angelic visitation.
How then can we not believe?!
Sources that collaborate over centuries have all led to the same conclusion, different people, different eras - one message - Jesus is the son of God who brings salvation.
You have no excuse to not recognise the truth of who Jesus is. So, what are you doing about it?
We can be in danger, as the writer points out, of neglecting such a great salvation. We become accustomed with the privilege of salvation, take it for granted, so much so that it doesn’t really have an impact on our everyday lives. This great and marvellous privilege that has taken centuries to fulfil has lost the gravity of importance in our lives.
Are you complacent about the reality of your salvation?
Do you need reminding again of the significance of all Jesus is and all he did in order for the life you have?
Are you living aware of your salvation or do you keep it tucked away from others so much so that even you are not even sure about it’s influence?
This great salvation was bought at a hefty price. One that none of us would be able or willing to pay, but Jesus did. This great salvation means that we no longer have to be enslaved to sin or fear, this salvation means that we can know an eternal relationship, discover our true identity and have security for our future was well as help and comfort in our present. It means we can walk tall, knowing we are loved and forgiven, wanted and never alone. This great salvation has even greater purpose than his temporal Earth can offer - but are you neglecting it?
We can get blinded and distracted but all the Earth offers - the people in it, the weather, the work that is required, and the problems we see in it. Life can and does get in the way of our faith, but shouldn’t it be the other way around?!
We will have no excuses available on that great and powerful day when we meet Jesus face to face - what will you or I be able to say then?
‘how shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation?
Thursday 13 February 2020
what is real?
From the previous verses we have established the superiority of Christ. He is the creator of all things, powerful and majestic, the ‘exact imprint’ of God, worshipped by angels. After we have established these facts, we now encounter the everlasting nature of Jesus;
“You, Lord, laid the foundation of the earth in the beginning,
and the heavens are the work of your hands;
*11* they will perish, but you remain;
they will all wear out like a garment,
*12* like a robe you will roll them up,
like a garment they will be changed.
But you are the same,
and your years will have no end.”
Hebrews 1:10–12.
What do you notice as you read the verses above?
Does reading this give you comfort or make you a little scared?
Both reactions are understandable as there are two guarantees in these verses - that the world will end and Jesus will outlast it.
Be honest with yourself - which do you notice first?
Considering your response to these promises shows something about your natural mindset. If you see the world ending as a predominant theme then you are probably someone who is quite aware of life’s risks, concerns and disappointments. This awareness can correspond to feeling fearful and worried about the future.
Take comfort in the verses that follow. If you have faith in God, if you know Jesus is the one who; made, sustains and finishes it all, then surely strength and hope will follow.
Jesus is in charge. He always has been, he currently is, and he always will be. Concentrating on this and the truth of who Jesus is builds trust in him for our lives now as well as for the future. Jesus is clearly shown as being everlasting in these verses. So, for us, if we are tempted to despair at the thought of the world ending, considering Jesus and his part in it all must surely bring hope. Focussing on the eternal God rather than the temporal Earth will inspire and breed confidence in not whet we can; see, hear and touch, but in the one who made all of these physical things.
We have been indoctrinated from birth to believe in the validity and security of this world. To trust in all that is around us that we can acknowledge with our senses. But all of these things we can experience are created entities. They are all part of the world, and as lovely and string as they are, they all have a beginning and an end. The things we have trust in are temporal things that are going to perish. The world that we walk upon, that we trust to be there as we wake up each day will cease to exist, all that we know, see and understand will one day be gone. What will we have to believe in then? What will be left?
These verses cause me to question the strength of my own faith. They challenge me to consider the strength of my trust in God. Is my faith in God greater than my trust in the world around me? It is hard to judge, we are so used to worldly things, we are accustomed and expectant that everything we see and know will still be present tomorrow, but what if it’s not?
What if the reality of the world isn’t as real and assured as we have been indoctrinated, from a young age, to believe?
This ‘real’ world is destined for destruction, why should we trust it? If the ‘real’ world is so fragile and temporal, why do we waste time and effort trusting in it’s solidity? If it’s strength and solidity are transient, why should we trust in all that it offers?
This world is going die, it is clear, we can see it in the news, look out our windows and see the decline, yet we still hold onto it. Yet, isn’t it like clinging onto a sinking ship? If we hold onto something that is perishing - what hope is there for us?
What worldly practices or assurances are you holding onto? Do you have the confidence and faith to hand them over? Do you have a faith and trust in Jesus that is greater than all you know and experience?
Are you trusting more in this world than in the promises of the eternal one?
“You, Lord, laid the foundation of the earth in the beginning,
and the heavens are the work of your hands;
*11* they will perish, but you remain;
they will all wear out like a garment,
*12* like a robe you will roll them up,
like a garment they will be changed.
But you are the same,
and your years will have no end.”
Hebrews 1:10–12.
What do you notice as you read the verses above?
Does reading this give you comfort or make you a little scared?
Both reactions are understandable as there are two guarantees in these verses - that the world will end and Jesus will outlast it.
Be honest with yourself - which do you notice first?
Considering your response to these promises shows something about your natural mindset. If you see the world ending as a predominant theme then you are probably someone who is quite aware of life’s risks, concerns and disappointments. This awareness can correspond to feeling fearful and worried about the future.
Take comfort in the verses that follow. If you have faith in God, if you know Jesus is the one who; made, sustains and finishes it all, then surely strength and hope will follow.
Jesus is in charge. He always has been, he currently is, and he always will be. Concentrating on this and the truth of who Jesus is builds trust in him for our lives now as well as for the future. Jesus is clearly shown as being everlasting in these verses. So, for us, if we are tempted to despair at the thought of the world ending, considering Jesus and his part in it all must surely bring hope. Focussing on the eternal God rather than the temporal Earth will inspire and breed confidence in not whet we can; see, hear and touch, but in the one who made all of these physical things.
We have been indoctrinated from birth to believe in the validity and security of this world. To trust in all that is around us that we can acknowledge with our senses. But all of these things we can experience are created entities. They are all part of the world, and as lovely and string as they are, they all have a beginning and an end. The things we have trust in are temporal things that are going to perish. The world that we walk upon, that we trust to be there as we wake up each day will cease to exist, all that we know, see and understand will one day be gone. What will we have to believe in then? What will be left?
These verses cause me to question the strength of my own faith. They challenge me to consider the strength of my trust in God. Is my faith in God greater than my trust in the world around me? It is hard to judge, we are so used to worldly things, we are accustomed and expectant that everything we see and know will still be present tomorrow, but what if it’s not?
What if the reality of the world isn’t as real and assured as we have been indoctrinated, from a young age, to believe?
This ‘real’ world is destined for destruction, why should we trust it? If the ‘real’ world is so fragile and temporal, why do we waste time and effort trusting in it’s solidity? If it’s strength and solidity are transient, why should we trust in all that it offers?
This world is going die, it is clear, we can see it in the news, look out our windows and see the decline, yet we still hold onto it. Yet, isn’t it like clinging onto a sinking ship? If we hold onto something that is perishing - what hope is there for us?
What worldly practices or assurances are you holding onto? Do you have the confidence and faith to hand them over? Do you have a faith and trust in Jesus that is greater than all you know and experience?
Are you trusting more in this world than in the promises of the eternal one?
Thursday 6 February 2020
Jesus is more
Just in case we need further proof that Jesus is higher than even the heavenly beings, we come across these verses at the beginning of Hebrews;
When he brings the firstborn into the world, he says,
“Let all God’s angels worship him.”
*7*Of the angels he says,
“He makes his angels winds,
and his ministers a flame of fire.”
*8*But of the Son he says,
“Your throne, O God, is forever and ever”
Hebrews 1:6–8.
Here we have a comparison of Jesus, God’s son (the ‘exact imprint’ of God) and the angels. This passage clearly shows us that angels, like us, are created beings. They were made by the God the Father and Jesus the son.
It can seem strange to consider angels, they seem like far-away beings, maybe more fitted for a fairy tale rather than the book of truth. Yet we do hear stories about them, either from the Bible or people’s experiences. We often end up in awe as we comprehend the encounters people have meeting these holy, heavenly messengers of God. When we hear of such meetings, they fill us with wonder.
Can you imagine meeting an angel? It would be incredible!
Gideon met one, Daniel knew they were fighting for him, Elishah saw an army of them, Mary spoke with one and Joseph saw one in his dreams. These accounts have lasted thousands of years. These stories amaze us, as they retell supernatural experiences that influenced everyday human lives. These accounts have inspired and amazed countless generations. However, angelic encounters are not just historical events. People today also have the privilege of meeting them. We can read stories or watch videos of people retelling their experiences and when they do, we end up in awe. These stories build our faith and help to open our eyes to the supernatural dimension.
How amazing it must be to encounter an angel - a heavenly being from the presence of God stepping down into our world - can you imagine?!
Verse 14 of Hebrews 1 tells us that angels are, ‘all ministering spirits sent out to serve for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation’. Don’t you think that, too, is amazing? All angels are tasked with supporting those who are on the path to salvation. That’s right, angels are around to support, encourage and minister to us! Angels exist because we do.
Sometimes, rarely, a mere human being has the opportunity to see one of these heavenly messengers. These stories inspire us and instil hope, joy and faith into hearts. I have heard different stories, read different accounts, as I am sure you have, and I am grateful, inspired and maybe a little jealous — how cool would it be to meet an angel?! I mean, a powerful, heavenly being being sent to Earth with a message for you, or a job to protect you, warn you, help you, fight for you - how awesome would that be?! How incredible to meet a creature from heaven!
Do you realise we live, each one of us, with the reality that we can encounter a heavenly being? Not as a once in a lifetime opportunity, but we have the opportunity to connect with heaven each moment of our lives.
Angels do inspire much awe, wonder, hope, joy and faith - how much more should the one who created them?
We have the opportunity each and every day, each and every hour, even each minute to connect with someone even greater than the angels. One whom even the angels worship (v6)! Should we not be over-awed by that? By the fact that, we may not be able to connect with an angel today, but we can connect with Jesus!
I think we have become accustomed to the fact that Jesus was a man and walked around like you and I. He lived on this Earth like us, was born like us. We have lost something of the awe and wonder of who Jesus is. We take for granted that he is approachable and relatable. We have lost something in overemphasising his humanity above his divinity.
Jesus is not just fully human, but fully God. As much as we admire and are in awe of angels, shouldn’t that instil in us a greater wonder and awe of the one who invented them?! An inventor is always greater than his invention. Let alone the fact that Jesus is the one whom angels worship!
As inspiring and hope-building angels are, and stories about them can be - Jesus is more.
As powerful and holy angels are - Jesus is more.
As mighty and awesome angels are - Jesus is more.
Today, remember who Jesus is. He is more than all you see and experience. He is greater than the greatest man. He is greater than the most powerful angel. He is God!
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