PROPER 28B 2009
Text: Hebrews 10:19-25
Scholars believe that the book of Hebrews was written to a group of Christians that were now experiencing some from of persecution. There is no agreement on exactly where these Christians lived. The book is, in some sense, written like a homily, or sermon, whose main point is to demonstrate the superiority of Jesus over Moses and the old covenant laws and rituals.
As the writer – who some say was the Apostle Paul, but most modern scholars say wasn’t him but someone else – as this writer, like a good preacher, sets forth his theology, he also follows it up with exhortations, or challenges in how they should live. These challenges have to do with their need to persevere in the faith--- to continue in their Christian life, even though they are now facing new challenges.
Our lesson this morning continues the argument that the writer is making on how Jesus is, in the words of one of our Eucharistic hymns, both “priest and victim”. Jesus is the fulfillment of the whole sacrificial system of the old covenant. All of the bloody sacrifices offered in the life of the people pointed to, or were a type, of the one and final sacrifice that Jesus would make on the cross. Jesus is both the high priest, who offers up the sacrifice, and he is the sacrifice itself. It is my belief that all the bloody sacrifices of the different religions of the world reflect the human awareness of the awfulness of sin --- or at least our human awareness that something is wrong in this life. It is primal, or if you will, a primitive awareness, but real none the less.
The teacher of this letter explains that now, because of what Jesus has done, there is no more need for bloody sacrifices.
Hebrews 10:12 ( NRSV ) But when Christ had offered
for all time a single sacrifice for sins, “he sat down at the right hand of
God,”
Earlier the writer says:
Hebrews 9:26 ( NRSV ) 26 ….. But as it is, he has
appeared once for all at the end of the age to remove sin by the sacrifice of
himself.
Now, since Jesus has done all this, the writer challenges his readers that they need to persevere in their faith. Then, as now, many people begin the Christian journey, but never make it to the end. Jesus told us this would happen. It seems in the case of the Hebrews of this letter that now new forces were coming against them, and they were being tempted to give up on this whole Christian life. It was not worth the trouble or the sacrifices that were needed. I have been in the church for many years, and have seen many, many people drift away from their faith. Often it is simply the cares and concerns and the pleasures of the world which rise up and choke the life out of people. Over and over again I have been called into people’s lives at the end, when they face death, and I hear how once they were involved in church, but for the last 20 or 30 or 40 years they have had other things to do.
I liken the Christian life to a
So he encourages them with three ways they can do persevere in their faith. He writes “Let us.” Three times
Lets consider these Let us for a moment.
First: Let us approach.. This is a theme the writer has mentioned before. We can have confidence, and even boldness – as we say in our liturgy – to come into God’s presence because of what Jesus has done.
Hebrews 10:19-20 ( NRSV ) Therefore, my friends,
since we have confidence to enter the sanctuary by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for
us through the curtain (that is, through his flesh)… let us approach.. or draw
near.
In the old way of worship, only the priest could go directly into God’s presence. But now don’t need a priest between us. We don’t need a sacrifice to be made before we pray or worship. Jesus has opened up the way for us to enter boldly into God’s presence. This encouragement is, in its essence, the need to maintain a living relationship with God through worship, prayer, learning, and action. It is, using the image of Jesus, abiding in the vine. If we don’t stay connected to him, we wither and die.
As this teacher points out, we can have a real and healthy relationship with God because Jesus, as one of us, knows us, and, in Jesus, we are accepted and loved by God. Have you ever tried to hide from God? By this I mean, you kind of do things, or think things, that you sort of, kind of, think God isn’t noticing? We all do this in some way. But the truth is, as we say in our opening prayer every Sunday --- to God, all hearts are open, all desires known, and no secrets are hid. and yet, God still loves us. This love gives us the safety and security we need. We can, therefore, come boldly, or in the words of the song, just as we are, into God’s presence. We don’t need to hide our sins, or our real feelings and thoughts. God already knows. It is from this foundation that we can build a vital and living spiritual life, one that can endure.
All prayer and worship flows from honesty. When we are in denial and pretend that God doesn’t really know what we think or feel, we cannot grow, and our relationship with God is blocked.
The image of us coming boldly into God’s presence requires of us an open and honest spirit. Otherwise, even our prayers and our worship will not strengthen us and help us.
Second, Let us hold fast to the
confession of our hope without wavering, for he who has promised is faithful.
I love this image of “holding fast.” We have all seen the movies where the good guy is holding onto the ledge of the tall building, desperately clinging by just his hands. This is an image that helps me in my faith, for, at times, it seems that all I can to in my faith is to hold fast to the hope of Jesus. We can be confused by doctrine. We can be frustrated by the actions of Christians around us and the different denominations. We can be hurt by people in our church or in our families. We can feel like we are in the hurricane of life, with the wind and water blowing on us.
And all we can do is hold on. So often we let the minor things in life affect the major things. I have heard many times how people leave a church because of one incident or because of person. In essence, they leave their faith over something minor. It happens all the time. But this writer knew that we will not continue in our faith if we do not hold fast to our hope in Jesus. This is the major thing. This is what will help us keep going when the clergy are jerks, the people in the church aren’t perfect, nobody appreciates me, finances are tough, work is a drag, the dog won’t obey, my kids graduate from college and then move home, my family is falling apart, the democrats or the republicans drive me crazy, or I don’t understand all this doctrine stuff …….. and on and on and on.
In the face of all that life can bring, sometimes the only thing we can do is hold onto our hope and faith in Jesus, trusting that God is good and loves us and that, somehow, someway, if we can hold on… all will be well, if not in this life, in the one to come.
Finally, this preachers says to his hearers.
And let us consider how to provoke one
another to love and good deeds, not
neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one
another, and all the more as you see the Day approaching. Hebrews 10:24-25
( NRSV )
In this exhortation to these early
Christians the writer emphasizes the importance of Christian community. In
essence, he says, we need each other if we are going to make it as Christians
in this life. I really like the phrase here: “provoke
one another to love and good deeds.”
Central to what we do when we gather together on Sunday, through the singing and the preaching and the hearing of the Bible read and the taking of the bread and the wine is provoking, or challenging, or encouraging one another to live according to our higher nature, to be better people, to be the people God wants us to be, and not to live according to our lower, selfish, sinful nature. We are challenged to love and to good deeds.
We need each other, we need to provoke each other to love and good deeds on a regular basis because the world around us does not do this. Of course to a certain extent this can happen at school or on the job or with friends, but not to the same, radical degree. The rantings to bomb and kill our enemies are challenged by Jesus saying that we are to love our enemies. Our natural desires to protect and care for ourselves are challenged by the scriptures which call us to care for the stranger and the widow and the orphan.
In truth, we cannot live the Christian life without the community of faith. Many believe they can, but the Bible is clear, from beginning to end, that living a faithful Christian life means living it within the people of God. We need other Christians to keep our spiritual life alive just as much as we need food for our bodies.
So to wrap this all up: The Christian life is not a sprint, but it is more like a marathon. Living the Christian faith often can be a struggle. We are often tempted to give it all up as not being worth it. Since this is the case:
Let us all draw near to God with open and honest souls and heart, knowing that he loves and cares for us.
Let us hold fast to our hope in Jesus, even when we are confused and feel weak.. let us simply hang on.
And finally, Let us care for one another enough that we provoke each other to strive to love and to live more Christian lives. Let us not forsake regular worship for other things, for in so doing we will only weaken our faith. Let us know one another enough so that we can encourage each other in the Christian life.
May God give us the grace and strength to persevere to the end, for the one who endures to the end, will be saved. AMEN!