How Firm A Foundation

How Firm a Foundation

Hebrews 13:1-8

In 1787, a man named John Rippon published the hymn: How Firm a Foundation, ”which he attributed to the pen of “K”. who this “K” was is uncertain, although some have been a London minister of music named Robert Keene. As this hymn addresses the certainty of our faith in uncertain times, we wonder what difficulty occasioned the hymn. We may never know the answer to this, but the Church has been strengthened in difficult times by this wonderful hymn. The writer took inspiration from this passage from Hebrews which we read this morning. He quotes Hebrews 13:5 at the end of the hymn: “That soul, though all hell should endeavor to shake,

‘I’ll never, no never, no never forsake!’” So let us take a deeper look into the passage.

Hebrews 13 serves as sort of postscript to the Epistle to the Hebrews. His main argument ends at the end of chapter 12. chapter 13 contains some general admonitions for the church itself. Even so, some of the best known verses in the Bible come from this chapter. Hebrews admonished the believers to whom it was originally written to stand fast to the Gospel and not desert the faith. It is a well-reasoned arguments to bolster this admonition as to why we should stand fast. when we get to chapter 13, we come to a practical application of the sermon itself. What does standing fast and being faithful look like. But even in this chapter are the warnings to avoid apostacy and the sureness of our faith in Jesus.

One of the practical concerns the church was facing appears to be an influx of Christian refugees from other churches. The church was to show hospitality to these refugees who had to flee persecution or who had been cast out from their homes. They were to be treated as though they were angels. When we remember the extravagance which Abraham showed to the three men who were traveling to Sodom one of whom was actually the angel of the Lord, we get the idea that our receiving of fellow Christians must not be grudging but should allow these refugees to find rest from their toils. This is a practical application of the Sabbath rest which the main section of Hebrews spends so much time elucidating. We who labor to enter the true Sabbath rest must also be the providers of Sabbath to others. these Sabbaths serve as a down payment which points to the ultimate fulfillment of the Sabbath at the end of time.

The church was to remember that many of their fellow-believers were suffering far more than they were at that time, even though it seems that this was about to change. They were to remember those who were currently in prison. Later on in the chapter, he mentions that Timothy had been set at liberty. It also implies that the writer of the epistle was currently in bonds himself, though he hoped to be released soon and return to them. Hebrews tells the believers to have empathy for those who were suffering. Empathy is more than mere sympathy. Empathy is felt. It puts itself in that person''s place and feels the pain. We in the church today should also be empathetic. Are we sorry that so many of our fellow believers are suffering persecution only to say: “Thank God it is only them who are suffering!”. Empathy means we feel the confusion and hurt they are in. It is like when you stub your toe. The toe is the source of the pain, but the whole body feels it.

Verse four stands out boldly. Why is an admonition about the honorableness of marriage and the admonition to remain faithful to one’s marriage bonds appear here? It is obviously an important Christian doctrine, but it seems to break up the flow of the argument. We all have a tendency to get off on a rabbit trail, but the writer of Hebrews is an expert in the Greek language and rhetoric. He intentionally placed this verse here.

If we were to look back to the wilderness experience of the Children of Israel with which the writer of Hebrews spends so much time developing, we start to see the relevance here. When Moses went up on the mountain and stayed a long time. the Children of Israel took him for dead and cajoled Aaron to make them a golden calf to lead them back to Egypt, The people ate and got drunk. They danced and then they started to commit all kinds of sexual immorality. This angered God greatly, and grave punishment followed in which many died. The Children of Israel also committed spiritual adultery by mixing the true faith in Yahweh with the worship of Baal and other gods. This too angered God and led to the Northern Kingdom being taken captive by the Assyrians and Judah be the Babylonians.