Today’s Reading: 2 John & 3 John

We started in Genesis in January of 2022, and we have almost made our way through the Bible. We only have these two short letters and the book of Revelation left. Thank you for joining me on this chronological journey. Let’s finish strong.

Because the truth lives in us and will be with us forever. – 2 John 2

There was a lot of misinformation being passed around the region regarding the death and resurrection of Jesus. The disciples were called to spread the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ, and there was a strong camaraderie between them centered around this calling. They were brothers, comrades, and friends. They loved each other, prayed for one another, and shared generously across the body of Christ, treating each other like family.

How happy I was to meet some of your children and find them living according to the truth, just as the Father commanded. – 2 John 4

Some of the traveling teachers recently returned and made me very happy by telling me about your faithfulness and that you are living according to the truth. I could have no greater joy than to hear that my children are following the truth. – 3 John 3-4

The hope of those investing their lives in spreading the truth was that those who listened would become believers, and that by believing they might be saved. They wanted them to be faithful to God and live according to the truth they had been taught. So when news arrived that they were spiritually healthy, John wrote a letter in order to both encourage them and warn them.

PROVIDE GENEROUSLY FOR THOSE WHO ARE TEACHING YOU

Dear friend, you are being faithful to God when you care for the traveling teachers who pass through, even though they are strangers to you. They have told the church here of your loving friendship. Please continue providing for such teachers in a manner that pleases God. For they are traveling for the Lord, and they accept nothing from people who are not believers. So we ourselves should support them so that we can be their partners as they teach the truth. – 3 John 5-8

There was one among them who wanted to be a leader, but who was speaking ill of those who were preaching and teaching. He did not welcome them when they were in town, and he demanded that no one else in the church give money to them or help them in any way. This was not the example of generosity or love that John wanted the church to follow.

Dear friend, don’t let this bad example influence you. Follow only what is good. Remember that those who do good prove that they are God’s children, and those who do evil prove that they do not know God. – 3 John 11

I am writing to remind you, dear friends, that we should love one another. This is not a new commandment, but one we have had from the beginning. Love means doing what God has commanded us, and he has commanded us to love one another, just as you heard from the beginning. – 2 John 5-6

John encouraged them to respect those whose lives reflected the truths they had been taught, and to show love for one another. As an elder in the church, John was advising them not to blindly follow any leader, but to look for leaders whose talk was consistent with their walk. If one leader in the church is speaking ill of another leader in the church, ask God for discernment on which of those leaders is behaving in a way that is consistent with biblical teaching.

Father God, please help us as a church not to stray from the truth found in your word. May our relationship with you be evident in our attitudes towards one another and may we be generous with each other. May the preachers and teachers in our life be well taken care of as we show our appreciation to them for their time spent studying the scriptures so that we might fully understand the life you have called us to. Fill us with a spirit of generosity and give us the gift of discernment as we reflect your love and live out our faith. Amen.

Next month is Pastor Appreciation Month. I pray the Lord prompts you to express your love and appreciation to your pastor during this upcoming season. May they feel your support and be encouraged by your intentional words of gratitude.

Grace, mercy, and peace, which come from God the Father and from Jesus Christ — the Son of the Father — will continue to be with us who live in truth and love. – 2 John 3

Today’s Reading: 1 John 4:1-6; 5:1-21

This is one of my favorite quotes from Bob Goff’s book Everybody Always, and it goes perfectly with today’s scripture: “Do you want to do something amazing for God? Trade the appearance of being close to God for the power of actually being close to God. Quit talking a big game and go live a big faith.”

What a powerful challenge! When we authentically invest in our relationship with God, the time we spend in His word and worshiping in His presence changes us. He grows the faith He initiated in us and the way we live out that faith evolves. God loves us enough to mold us into who He created us to be. God When we remain in fellowship with Christ and the Holy Spirit is living within us, we begin to see these changes:

WE WILL GAIN DISCERNMENT.

When the Spirit lives within us, we will become more and more discerning of the truth. When we hear something that is not truth, the Spirit within us will warn us and we will experience uneasiness. The Spirit living within us is truth and is greater than the spirit who lives in this world. Because we belong to God, we listen to the Spirit and are able to DISCERN TRUTH from deception (1 John 4:1-6).

WE WILL GROW MORE PERFECT IN LOVE.

God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. This is REAL LOVE – not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.

Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other. No one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us, and God his love is brought to full expression in us God.

And God has given us his Spirit as proof that we live in him and he in us. – 1 John 4:9-13

And as we live in God, our love grows more perfect. – 1 John 4:17a

WE WILL OBEY OUT OF LOVE AND NOT FEAR.

Such love has no fear, because perfect love expels fear. If we are afraid, it is for fear of punishment, and this shows that we have not fully experienced his perfect love. We love each other because he loves us first.

If someone says, “I love God,” but hates a fellow believer, that person is a liar; for if we don’t love people we can see, how can we love God, whom we cannot see? And he has given us this command: Those who love God must also love their Christian brothers and sisters. – 1 John 4:18-21

WE WILL OVERCOME EVIL BY OUR FAITH.

For every child of God defeats this evil world, and we achieve this victory through our faith. And who can win this battle against the world? Only those who believe that Jesus is the Son of God. – 1 John 5:4-5

We know that God’s children do not make a practice of sinning, for God’s Son holds them securely, and the evil one cannot touch them. – 1 John 5:18

Sin will not overpower us. We don’t have to be afraid that we will sin when we remain in fellowship with God. We are children of God and no evil in this world is more powerful than him. BUT, we also have to keep our hearts devoted to Him and avoid situations or temptations that could weaken our resolve to remain in relationship with Him. We need to make sure that we do not start making other things in our life more important than Him. God wants more than just first place in our lives, He wants Lordship over everything in our lives.

Do not love this world nor the things it offers you, for when you love the world, you do not have the love of the Father in you. For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from this world. And this world is fading away, along with everything that people crave. But anyone who does what pleases God will live forever. – 1 John 2:15-17

John ends this first letter with great advice for us, and so I end my morning coffee pondering this verse.

Dear children, keep away from anything that might take God’s place in your hearts. – 1 John 5:21

Lord, thank you for the evidence we are already experiencing in our lives, evidence that you are at work and creating us into a new person. We thank you for Your perfect expression of REAL LOVE as demonstrated in your birth and in your death on the cross. Lord, continue to strengthen our faith in you and our love for others. Amen.

Today’s Reading: 1 John 4:7-21

We know how much God loves us, and we have put our trust in his love. God is love and all who live in love live in God and God lives in them. – 1 John 4:16

When the Spirit lives in us and when we remain in fellowship with Jesus Christ, our life produces love naturally. And when the love we show towards one another comes out of our growing relationship with Christ, it has a beautiful authenticity to it that we cannot create on our own. Compassion and mercy become a natural outflow of our relationship with Christ.

I am writing to remind you, dear friends, that we should love one another. This is not a new commandment, but one we have had from the beginning. Love means doing what God has commanded us, and he has commanded us to love one another, just as you heard from the beginning. – 2 John 5-6

THE LOVE CIRCLE

I love the circle that John creates in these verses. If we truly love God, we will obey whatever He commands. And what does He command? He commands us to love one another. So, if we truly love God, we will love one another. In fact, we show our love for God by loving others – demonstrated in word and action. And this verse in John’s second letter is consistent with what he wrote in his first letter:

But those who obey God’s word truly show how completely they love him. That is how we know we are living in him. – 1 John 2:5

When we begin living in relationship with Christ, His Spirit produces love in us. In response to His love for me, I live out my relationship by loving others with an authentic love I cannot produce on my own. And when I genuinely love others, His love living inside of me is brought to full expression and my relationship with Him grows. With this growth comes more love…graciously extended to others…fully expressed in me. With the momentum of that never-ending circle, God can show Himself to the whole world through His children.

Dear friends, let us continue to love one another, for love comes from God. Anyone who loves is a child of God and knows God. But anyone who does not love does not know God, for God is love. – 1 John 4:7-8

Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other. No one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us, and his love is brought to full expression in us. – 1 John 4:11-12

What a great reminder of what true obedience to God looks like – loving others in word and deed. I can say I love everyone and that my love for God is expressed in the way I love others, but then I need to consider when I complain and speak negatively about someone else. Does this express my love for God? Do I love God well when I’m avoiding someone or losing patience with someone.

Lord, forgive me for my lack of love for others. Lord, perfect YOUR love in me. I want to live a life of obedience and love. Please fill me with Your Spirit today and love through me! May your truth be evident in our actions today as we love each other just as You intended us to. Fill us with the kind of REAL LOVE John spoke of – the kind of authentic love that would give up our lives just as Christ gave up His life for us. Amen.

Today’s Reading: 1 John 2:29 – 3:24

Since we know that Christ is righteous, we also know that all who do what is right are God’s children. – 1 John 2:29

FELLOWSHIP WITH CHRIST LOOKS A LOT LIKE FAMILY.

See how much our Father loves us, for he calls us his children, and that is what we are! But the people who belong to this world don’t recognize that we are God’s children because they don’t know him. – 1 John 3:1

When we do what is right, we are a child of God. The righteousness of God works within us so that we begin to resemble our Father. The words we say and the way we live show evidence of the presence of His Spirit living and moving within us. We no longer embrace the sins of our past or the culture of our time, for we have been adopted into the family of God.

And you know that Jesus came to take away our sins, and there is no sin in him. Anyone who continues to live in him will not sin. But anyone who keeps on sinning does not know him or understand who he is. – 1 John 3:5

If we listen to the Holy Spirit living within us and if we remain in fellowship with Christ (as we talked about yesterday), it will be no problem for us to live the holy life John, Paul and Peter taught about. If we try to do it on our own, we will most definitely fail. Our humanity will be stronger than our will. But God has given us the Holy Spirit to prompt us when we should hold our words back, or when we need to apologize for what we have said or done. It becomes sin when we choose to ignore what the Spirit is saying to us, or when we ignore what we have learned while studying God’s word and enjoying fellowship with Him.

Remember, it is sin to know what you ought to do and then not do it. – James 4:17

FELLOWSHIP WITH CHRIST LOOKS A LOT LIKE HOLINESS.

Dear children, don’t let anyone deceive you about this: When people do what is right, it shows that they are righteous. But when people keep on sinning, it shows that they belong to the devil, who has been sinning since the beginning. But the Son of God came to destroy the works of the devil. Those who have been born into God’s family do not make a practice of sinning, because God’s life is in them. So they can’t keep on sinning, because they are children of God. So now we can tell who are children of God and who are children of the devil. Anyone who does not live righteously and does not love other believers does not belong to God. – 1 John 3:6-10

These are powerful words. God’s plan is to make us into who He created us to be. His grace gives us the strength to overcome sin, not just unmerited favor that looks the other way while we continue to submit to our sinful nature (James 4:6). When we respond in obedience to Christ as we live in relationship with Him, it looks like LOVE — to demonstrate our love for Him in our actions towards others.

FELLOWSHIP WITH CHRIST LOOKS A LOT LIKE LOVE.

This is the message you have heard from the beginning: We should love one another. – 1 John 3:11

When we live in fellowship with Jesus and His Spirit is dwelling within us, love goes from becoming what seems like an impossible demand to an authentic response. Our love for others is no longer a performance but a natural lifestyle, and the recipients of that love begin to sense that what they are receiving from us is real. Listen to these powerful words found in scripture:

We know what real love is because Jesus gave up his life for us. So we also ought to give up our lives for our brothers and sisters. If someone has enough money to live well and sees a brother or sister in need but shows no compassion—how can God’s love be in that person?

Dear children, let’s not merely say that we love each other; let us show the truth by our actions. Our actions will show that we belong to the truth, so we will be confident when we stand before God. Even if we feel guilty, God is greater than our feelings, and he knows everything.

Dear friends, if we don’t feel guilty, we can come to God with bold confidence. And we will receive from him whatever we ask because we obey him and do the things that please him.

And this is his commandment: We must believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and love one another, just as he commanded us. Those who obey God’s commandments remain in fellowship with him, and he with them. And we know he lives in us because the Spirit he gave us lives in us. – 1 John 3:16-24

And so we end right where we began — Our life is different when the Spirit lives in us and when we remain in fellowship with Jesus Christ. Our life produces this kind of love naturally as we live in obedience and relationship with our Savior. And when the love we show towards one another comes out of our growing relationship with Christ, it has a beautiful authenticity to it that we cannot create on our own. May authenticity be a word that describes our generous compassion towards others and may mercy flow from a place of genuine love.

Today’s Reading: 1 John 2:7-29

Dear friends, I am not writing a new commandment for you; rather it is an old one you have had from the very beginning. This old commandment – to love one another – is the same message you heard before. Yet it is also new. Jesus lived the truth of this commandment, and you also are living it. For the darkness is disappearing, and the true light is already shining. – 1 John 2:7-8

GOD IS LIGHT
GOD IS HOLY
GOD IS LOVE

God’s message from generation to generation, from the Old Testament to the New, is consistent – we are to LOVE ONE ANOTHER. In fact, God teaches us that the best way for us to show our love for Him is by loving others. He does not let us get by with saying – I love you, God, but I don’t love _______.

If anyone claims, “I am living in the light,” but hates a Christian brother or sister, that person is still living in darkness. Anyone who loves another brother or sister is living in the light and does not cause others to stumble. But anyone who hates another brother or sister is still living and walking in darkness. Such a person does not know the way to go, having been blinded by the darkness. – 1 John 2:9-11

Then why do we hear so often of quarrels and arguments in the church or within Christian families? Why do we hear that someone isn’t talking with someone else or that two people do not get along so they avoid each other? Why do we ignore scriptures such as John’s letter or the words of Jesus that say:

“So if you are presenting a sacrifice at the altar in the Temple and you suddenly remember that someone has something against you, leave your sacrifice there at the altar. Go and be reconciled to that person. Then come and offer your sacrifice to God.” – Matthew 5:23-24

Now, it is okay for us to hate sin (Jude 23) but we must do so in a way that we do not show hate toward the sinner. We can and should be appalled by the things that happen in the world around us, but hating the person involved does nothing to change the situation or bring that person to an understanding of God’s love for them. We may really hate the way someone has treated us or words they have used to wound us, but God’s commandment does not change – we must LOVE ONE ANOTHER.

Anyone who hates another brother or sister is really a murderer at heart. And you know that murderers don’t have eternal life within them. – 1 John 3:15

GOD IS GRACE

Here’s the best part: God has equipped us for this commandment. He has given us a way to love people while hating sin, to love the world while hating the things of this world. Just as His love for us is expressed in His grace towards us, He equips us to extend grace to others through the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives.

John went on to warn his readers about the false teaching that had made its way into the body of believers. He spoke of how the Holy Spirit equips us with the truth. When those around us try to introduce new ideas that contradict the authority of Jesus, we are to remain faithful to what we have been taught from the beginning (2:24). We are to remain in fellowship with the Son and with the Father, standing courageously against those who want to lead us astray (2:26,28).

But you have received the Holy Spirit and he lives within you, so you don’t need anyone to teach you what is true. For the Spirit teaches you everything you need to know, and what he teaches is true – it is not a lie. So, just as he has taught you, remain in fellowship with Christ. – 1 John 2:27

In fellowship with Christ, sitting at His feet and listening to Him as I share my morning coffee time with Him☺ — What a great way to start my day. What a great way to survive my week! Lord, fill me with your Spirit and with your love! Reveal in me any hard feelings or hate I may have in my heart towards someone else. Show me any areas in which I need to make things right. Thank you for your fellowship and for the gift of your Spirit that helps us discern the truth. Give us ears to hear all that you want to hear, and a heart full of love that represents your love to this lost and dying world. Amen.

Today’s Reading: 1 John 1:1 – 2:6

We are down to our last few New Testament letters, all written by the apostle John, who often described himself as the disciple Jesus loved. He felt the love of Jesus so strongly and it comes out in his writings. John is believed to have been the only one of Jesus’ disciples still alive at this point and the only one to die of old age or natural causes.

The Bible does not tell us how each disciple died but information has been pieced together from other historical documents and legends. Like Paul, Peter was martyred in Rome during the reign of Nero (Paul was beheaded and Peter was crucified upside down by his request). Andrew took the gospel to what is now the Soviet Union, Turkey, Asia Minor and Greece, where he was crucified. Thomas took the gospel to Syria and India, where the spears of four soldiers took his life. Philip took the gospel to North Africa and Asia Minor, where he was cruelly put to death by a Roman proconsul who was angry that Philip had converted his wife to Christianity.

Some say Matthew was not martyred while others say he was stabbed in Ethiopia. There are varying accounts of how Bartholomew died, all stories of his martyrdom for the gospel. James is believed to have been stoned and clubbed to death, while Simon the Zealot was killed when he refused to worship the sun god. Matthias, the disciple who replaced Judas, was burned to death. [http://www.christianity.com/church/church-history/timeline/1-300/whatever-happened-to-the-twelve-apostles-11629558.html]

All of these men gave their lives for the sake of spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ. They were just common men who knew what it was to be loved by Jesus and were passionate about spreading Jesus’ message of salvation — no matter what. Their life was a response to His love. They had walked with him and talked with him, so they were willing to die for him.

GOD IS LIGHT.

John’s message, like the messages of Paul and Peter, speaks strongly of salvation and holiness. There is no darkness in God because God is light. This speaks to the holiness of God and the holiness that he calls each one of us to. If you say you have fellowship with God but continue living in spiritual darkness, you are not walking in the light of God.

But if we are living in the light, as God is in the light, then we have fellowship with each other, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses us from all sin. If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness. If we claim we have not sinned, we are calling God a liar and showing that his word has no place in our hearts. – 1 John 1:7-10

GOD IS HOLY.

John is saying that God is holy – He is light and there is no darkness in Him at all. God does not sin and cannot sin because He is the definition of holiness. So, we cannot say that we have fellowship with God if we willfully keep sinning because sin separates us from God. Sin in our lives is spiritual darkness and God is light.

We are all sinners. But, here’s the good news – the message the disciples were willing to die in order to spread: We do not have to continue living in sin. We have a choice. God not only forgives us of our sins, He also cleanses us from all wickedness. He does a work in our lives and in our hearts, making us into a new creation. We are no longer slaves to sin but have been given the Spirit. Instead of giving into our sinful urgings, we can give into the urgings of the Spirit (Romans 8). It is then that we are able to experience fellowship with God – living in the light, as God is in the light.

LIVE IN THE LIGHT AND WALK IN HIS HOLINESS.

We have all sinned (1:8) and, because we are human, we are imperfect. But, when we live by the Spirit, the Spirit speaks to us when attitudes are creeping in or when our words are not pleasing to God. We have a choice in that moment to yield to the urging of the Spirit and not continue with our sinful attitude. We can stop speaking immediately or humbly apologize for what has already been said. Or we can ignore the Spirit and give into our sinful urgings. That is when we sin and that is when we choose spiritual darkness that separates us from God. God is holy and He is calling us to be holy, just as He is equipping us with His Spirit in order to live a holy life.

My dear children, I am writing this to you so that you will not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate who pleads our case before the Father. He is Jesus Christ, the one who is truly righteous. He himself is the sacrifice that atones for our sins—and not only our sins but the sins of all the world.

And we can be sure that we know him if we obey his commandments. If someone claims, “I know God,” but doesn’t obey God’s commandments, that person is a liar and is not living in the truth. But those who obey God’s word truly show how completely they love him. That is how we know we are living in him. Those who say they live in God should live their lives as Jesus did. – 1 John 2:1-6

To live as Jesus did — that’s a tall order. That is what the disciples did. They lived as Jesus lived and they died as Jesus died, willingly giving their lives for the sake of the advancement of God’s Kingdom. And we are all called to live for God in obedience – whatever He asks us to do. I’m so thankful that I am not on my own to complete this assignment.

Thank you, Jesus, for being my advocate – my truly righteous sacrifice. I choose today to respond to your love in obedience to the Holy Spirit. My desire is to live IN You instead of living FOR me. May I be a conduit of your light in the midst of the spiritual darkness of this world, and may your righteousness be evident in my life — not for my glory but for yours. Amen.

Today’s Reading: Jude

In this next letter, we hear from another sibling of Jesus who struggled to believe in who Jesus was until after Jesus was resurrected from the dead. Jude humbly introduces himself as a slave of Jesus Christ and a brother of James. He is now a devoted brother and follower of Jesus, and is concerned about the direction the church is headed.

False teaching had made its way into the church and Jude wrote a short letter to point them back to the basics of their faith and back to holy living. He reminded them in his introduction that they have been called by God, who loves them and keeps them safe in the care of Jesus Christ. He encouraged them to be there for each other during this difficult time, to be concerned about their brothers in Christ, and to encourage them to stay true to their faith.

Dear friends, I had been eagerly planning to write to you about the salvation we share. But now I find that I must write about something else, urging you to defend the faith that God has entrusted once for all to his holy people. I say this because some ungodly people have wormed their way into your churches, saying that God’s marvelous grace allows us to live immoral lives. – Jude 3-4a

DEFEND THE FAITH

Jude also urged the church to defend the faith God had entrusted to His holy people. There were people in the church saying that God’s marvelous grace allows us to live immoral lives, but Jude was warning them not to believe this false teaching. He used several examples of how God’s people were punished for their sins:
1. After rescuing the nation of Israel from Egypt, Jesus later destroyed those who did not remain faithful (v.5).
2. The angels who did not stay within the limits of authority God had given them are being kept securely chained in prisons of darkness, waiting for the great day of judgment (v.6).
3. The cities of Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed by fire for their immorality and sexual perversion (v.7).

Jude described these people as following their own natural instincts instead of following God’s Spirit within them (v.10,19). Those who want to redefine God’s expectations of a godly life are like “dangerous reefs” that can shipwreck us or like “shameless shepherds” who care only for themselves. They are like “clouds blowing…wild waves of the sea…wandering stars.”

They are like trees in autumn that are doubly dead, for they bear no fruit and have been pulled up by the roots. – Jude 12b

DEFEND THE FAITH

When we begin to embrace a theology that ignores God’s call to righteousness, our roots begin to pull away from the vine. Instead of humbly submitting to what His word defines as sin, we begin to put our faith in our own instincts instead of the truth found in scriptures. Our hearts are moved with compassion and love toward those who are caught up in sin, and we use mercy as an excuse to embrace their sin rather than help them find freedom from it. But if their sin will lead them to separation from God, how is it mercy to encourage it?

And you must show mercy to those whose faith is wavering. Rescue others by snatching them from the flames of judgment. Show mercy to still others, but do so with great caution, hating the sins that contaminate their lives. – Jude 22-23

Now that’s mercy! Do not just write off nominal Christians and those who have completely turned away from the faith. Let your heart respond to their weakness and reach out to rescue them from the path they are headed down. In other words, love the sinner even while hating the sin they are living in. And care enough about the believer who is settling for less than all God has for them to invite them to truly encounter God.

Jude also makes it clear that we are not to be judgmental. Even Michael, the mightiest of all of the angels, left judgment in the hands of God (v.9). Jude’s prayer for the church was that God would give them more and more mercy, peace, and love (v.2). But Jude also made it clear that we can show mercy towards others without redefining the role of grace in the sinner’s life.

But you, dear friends, must build each other up in your most holy faith, pray in the power of the Holy Spirit, and await the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ, who will bring you eternal life. In this way, you will keep yourselves safe in God’s love. – Jude v.20-21

DEFEND THE FAITH

Jude’s warned the church that there would be scoffers whose purpose in life was to satisfy their own ungodly desires, creating divisions among those in the church (v.18). John had a similar warning for the Church in his third letter: Dear friend, don’t let this bad example influence you. Follow only what is good. Remember that those who do good prove that they are God’s children, and those who do evil prove that they do not know God. – 3 John 11

Father God, we thank you for the truth we have found in scripture this morning. We thank you for the grace we experience through the redemption made possible through Jesus, even though we do not deserve it. We place our confidence in the power of your Spirit to help us overcome sin in our lives, rather than settling for less than the life to which you have called us. God, we pray for the Church today. We see evidence of this kind of false teaching and the divisions it is causing across congregations and denominations, and we pray for mercy for the Church. Lord, we humbly pray that all believers will submit to your authority, showing mercy to others while allowing you to be the One who defines sin. We ask for you to reveal your truth to every heart, healing the divisions in the Church and keeping your leaders rooted in your truth. Amen.

All glory to him who alone is God, our Savior through Jesus Christ our Lord. All glory, majesty, power and authority are his before all time, and in the present, and beyond all time! Amen. – Jude 25

Today’s Reading: Hebrews 13

ENDURE IN YOUR LOVE FOR OTHERS.

Keep on loving each other as brothers and sisters. Don’t forget to show hospitality to strangers, for some who have done this have entertained angels without realizing it! Remember those in prison, as if you were also there yourself. Remember also those being mistreated, as if you felt their pain in your own bodies. – Hebrews 13:1-3

Be authentic in your love for others. Be sympathetic with their situation instead of judging their situation. Consider what they must be going through, and keep on loving them as if they were family.

ENDURE IN YOUR MARRIAGE.

Give honor to marriage, and remain faithful to one another in marriage. God will surely judge people who are immoral and those who commit adultery. – Hebrews 13:4

ENDURE IN YOUR CONFIDENCE IN GOD.

Don’t love money; be satisfied with what you have. For God has said, “I will never fail you. I will never abandon you.” So we can say with confidence, “The Lord is my helper, so I will have no fear. What can mere people do to me?” – Hebrews 13:5-6

Do not put your confidence in the things of this world that do not last, but keep your focus on Jesus, who is the same yesterday, today and forever (13:8). Look at the example set before you of the saints and teachers — people God has placed in your life to answer your questions and cheer you on to your eternal reward.

ENDURE WITH THE HOPE OF HEAVEN

For this world is not our permanent home; we are looking forward to a home yet to come. Therefore, let us offer through Jesus a CONTINUAL sacrifice of praise to God, proclaiming our allegiance to his name. And don’t forget to do good and to share with those in need. These are the sacrifices that please God. –- Hebrews 13:14-16

How do we do this?
How do we live this kind of generous and holy life?
It seems impossible to endure through everything life throws at us.
It seems unlikely that we can meet this high mark.
It is impossible without God’s help.
God, who is unshakable.
Jesus, who is the same yesterday, today and forever.
The Spirit, who daily guides us and produces righteousness inside of us.
HE will equip you.
HE will produce in you every good thing that is pleasing to God.

Now may the God of peace –
Who brought up from the dead our Lord Jesus,
The great Shepherd of the sheep,
And ratified an eternal covenant with his blood –
May he equip you with all you need for doing his will.
May he produce in you,
Through the power of Jesus Christ,
Every good thing that is pleasing to him.
All glory to him forever and ever! Amen. – Hebrews 13:20-21

God, we thank you for all we have learned about you as we have soaked in the truth found in Hebrews. Our hearts are grateful for the gift of your Son, and the sacrifice that paid for our sins once and for all. We are forever changed because of the access we now have to you. Thank you for the power of your written word that encourages us and gives us examples of those who walked in faith through difficult situations. We pray that you will give us the endurance we need to run the race you have set before us with our eyes fixed on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith. Amen.

So then, since we have a great High Priest who has entered heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to what we believe. This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin. So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most. – Hebrews 4:14-16

Today’s Reading: Hebrews 12:5-29

So take a new grip with your tired hands and strengthen your weak knees. Mark out a straight path for your feet so that those who are weak and lame will not fall but become strong. – Hebrews 12:12-13

The writer of Hebrews challenges his readers to ENDURE God’s discipline; to not give up when He corrects you because he loves you as a Father loves His child. Instead come away from God’s discipline stronger, more determined than ever to help others grow stronger as well.

For our earthly fathers disciplined us for a few years, doing the best they knew how. But God’s discipline is always good for us, so that we might share in his holiness. No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening – it’s painful! But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in this way. – Hebrews 12:10-11

LIVE A LIFE OF ENDURANCE

We endure God’s discipline so that we might share in His holiness, which looks like this: Work at living in peace with everyone, and work at living a holy life, for those who are not holy will not see the Lord. Look after each other so that none of you fails to receive the grace of God. Watch out that no poisonous root of bitterness grows up to trouble you, corrupting many (Hebrews 12:14-15).

The writer of Hebrews points us to the example of Esau and his response to God’s discipline. Let’s look again to this story of rivalry between brothers, focusing on Esau’s response to the discipline that could have drawn him closer to his Heavenly Father.

Abel offered his VERY BEST to God when he prepared his sacrifice. He did not see it as a waste to gather together the best of what he had and give it to God, but He gave in faith – trusting and considering it a privilege to give his best to God.

Abel was the second son born to Adam and Eve, born after his brother Cain. Abel became a shepherd while his brother, Cain, became a farmer. When it was time for the harvest, Cain gathered together some of his crops and gave them to the Lord as a gift. His labor produced crops — that’s what he did and so that’s what he had to give to God. That wasn’t the problem. The Lord rejected Cain’s gift because Cain did not offer his best to God, which is what God required.

Second, celebrate the Festival of Harvest, when you bring me the first crops of your harvest…As you harvest your crops, bring the VERY BEST of the first harvest to the house of the Lord your God. – Exodus 23:16,19a

Abel, who was a shepherd, gathered together all of his firstborn lambs from his flock. Imagine taking special care to know what sheep have given birth for the very first time and setting these lambs aside in order to recognize them as special. Abel then selected the VERY BEST of his firstborn lambs from his flock and gave his offering to the Lord, who accepted Abel’s gift because it was his VERY BEST.

Cain reacted poorly. In jealousy, he became angry and “looked dejected.” In other words, he was pouting. God saw that Cain was angry and feeling sorry for himself. He gave Cain a very stern warning, a warning that if heeded would have changed the course of Cain’s life forever. Instead, he let his anger be self-serving, bringing a curse upon himself. He had a choice, just as we do, and Cain chose to hold onto his anger.

“Why are you so angry?” the Lord asked Cain. “Why do you look so dejected? You will be accepted if you do what is right. But if you refuse to do what is right, then watch out! Sin is crouching at the door, eager to control you. But you must subdue it and be its master.”

One day Cain suggested to his brother, “Let’s go out into the fields.” And while they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother, Abel, and killed him.

Afterward the Lord asked Cain, “Where is your brother? Where is Abel?”

“I don’t know,” Cain responded. “Am I my brother’s guardian?”

But the Lord said, “What have you done? Listen! Your brother’s blood cries out to me from the ground! Now you are cursed and banished from the ground, which has swallowed your brother’s blood. No longer will the ground yield good crops for you, no matter how hard you work! From now on you will be a homeless wanderer on the earth.” – Genesis 4:6-12

God’s warning is also for us. Watch out for sin, jealousy, anger, self-pity! Sin is crouching at the door, eager to control you. But you must subdue it and become its master before it becomes yours! Submit to God’s discipline in your life and allow it to make you stronger.

Be careful that you do not refuse to listen to the One who is speaking…
Since we are receiving a Kingdom that is UNSHAKABLE, let us be thankful and please God by worshiping him with holy fear and awe. For our God is a devouring fire. – Hebrews 12:25a, 28-29

Today’s Reading: Hebrews 12:1-5; Psalm 22

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. – Hebrews 12:1

RUN THE RACE WITH ENDURANCE.

I love the word ENDURANCE. When I hear it, I think of courage and strength even in the most difficult of situations. I think of a determination to not give up but to finish strong. And what does a runner do if they want to run their fastest and cross the finish line? They take off everything that could possibly weigh them down. Even if it is not against the rules, even if others are doing it successfully, if it is inhibiting my pace, I must shed it. Even if it is not listed in the ten commandments, even if there is not a bible verse that strongly prohibits it, I must avoid it if the Holy Spirit is warning me of its unhealthy affect on my life.

What is God telling you to strip away because it is slowing you down? Perhaps it is a relationship or a job; maybe it is a hobby or even an unhealthy habit. What if there is something I am putting in my body that is compromising my health, limiting my availability to the many ways in which God wants to use me today. Or maybe it is my earthly possessions that have distracted me from God’s call on my life. The writer of Hebrews has great advice for how to run this race God has set before us.

We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. – Hebrews 12:2a

IF IT SLOWS YOU DOWN OR TRIPS YOU UP, GET RID OF IT!

We need to get rid of everything that is distracting us from our purpose in life and focus our eyes fully on Jesus. Get rid of that which is slowing you down and the sin that is tripping you up! Consider all that Jesus suffered on the cross so that you do not have to live a life of struggle against sin. Consider the victory our Champion displayed when he conquered death and rose from the grave. Jesus, who initiated our faith, wants to perfect our faith.

And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him. – Hebrews 11:6

Let’s consider again the crowd of witnesses the writer of Hebrews is referring to, and all that they shed in order to give their lives fully to God.
Abel intentionally gave the best of his harvest to God.
Enoch lived a life that pleased the Lord.
Noah received a righteousness that comes by faith.
Abraham, Isaac and Jacob placed their faith in the inheritance that God promised them.
Sarah believed God would keep His promise.
Joseph believed that God would rescue His people from Egypt.
Moses kept his eyes on the One who is invisible.
The people of Israel walked through the Red Sea on dry ground, and marched around Jericho until God caused the walls of the city to fall.
Rahab hid the spies, and then spent the rest of her life living among God’s people.
Gideon reduced his army so that God would get the glory.
David trusted in God, stepping into his royal calling.
Daniel kept his allegiance to God and the mouths of lions were closed.

Our ancestors trusted in you,
and you rescued them.
They cried out to you and were saved.
They trusted in you and were never disgraced. – Psalm 22:4-5

If they can do it, so can you. If God was faithful in their life, He will be faithful in yours. If God sets your feet on a path that requires faith, run with endurance the race marked out for you! Ask the Spirit to reveal if there is anything in your life that is slowing down your growth or keeping you from being fully focused on Jesus — the Champion of your faith!

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. – Hebrews 12:1