Hebrews- Encouragement for a life of Faith
Part 15
“The mirrors of our faith”
Hebrews 13:1-7
This week Patti and I took the grandkids to the state fair of Texas
It has been years since we went
I am pretty sure it was Lilly’s and Xanders first time there
The smells and the sounds
Brought back memories of my childhood
When I was a kid
We never missed a year at the fair
One of my most vivid memories of the fair from my past
Is actually kind of silly
I remember how we laughed
Sometimes for quite a while
At those images in those trick mirrors
You know the ones I am talking about
They cause you to see a distorted image of ourselves
Some make us really tall and skinny
Others
Make us really short and fat
Some give us big heads
Huge faces
Others make us look like we have visited head hunters and had our head shrunken
I know
Maybe I am too easily amused
But
The thought of seeing a distorted image of myself in those mirrors still makes me laugh
Unfortunately
Seeing a distorted image of our Faith
Is not nearly as funny
As we continue our study of Hebrews this morning
We come to the final chapter and are nearing the completion of our study
In this great book
We have received encouragement
Correction
Instruction
Our writer has used the light of scripture to show us Jesus
And
To show us how we are to live like Jesus
He has used the sharp double edged sword of God’s word
To show us our weakness
And our strengths
Our commitments
And the lack of commitment
He has done this in an effort to keep us focused on what we are called to do
Keep us focused on what we have been delivered from
And though his writing
He has given us
A mirror
A true mirror
An undistorted mirror
One that shows
Us and our faith for what it is
Unfortunately
We often prefer the mirror of our minds
That like those goofy mirrors at the fair
That distort our views
Let’s read Hebrews Chapter 13
Beginning in verse 1 and reading though verse 6
We will finish up chapter 13 next week and then wrap up the whole book the following Sunday
Hebrews 13:1-6
Keep on loving each other as brothers and sisters.[a] 2 Don’t forget to show hospitality to strangers, for some who have done this have entertained angels without realizing it! 3 Remember those in prison, as if you were there yourself. Remember also those being mistreated, as if you felt their pain in your own bodies.
4 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.
5 Don’t love money; be satisfied with what you have. For God has said,
“I will never fail you.
I will never abandon you.”[b]
6 So we can say with confidence,
“The LORD is my helper,
so I will have no fear.
What can mere people do to me?”[c]
In this passage of scripture we see a mirror image of what we should be
Let’s look first at what we should be
This is how we should see ourselves
If we are truly surrendered to Christ
Verse 1
“Keep on loving each other as brothers and sisters”
We have discussed love many times on many occasions in many sermons
The Religious leaders asked Jesus in the book of Matthew
What the greatest commandment was
And he said
Love God—with all you have heart souls and mind
And love your neighbor as yourself
Here our writer confirms this teaching and continues it
As we look in the mirror of scripture
Do we see ourselves?
Continuing to love others as Jesus Commanded?
Are we treating all of them with love?
With respect
I want to say that every time I look in the mirror
This is what I see
But that would be a distorted image from my mind
Why
Because
I don’t always do that
Sometimes
I get grumpy
Sometimes
I get busy
Sometimes I get distracted
And sometimes I am plain just self centered
And all of these are feble excuses
The bad part is
Often I look into that scripture mirror
And like the older brother in the Parable of the prodigal son
I claim
I have always done this or always done that
But I am looking with skewed eyes
Because in reality
I am less than perfect
In reality I am as sinner
I am picking on myself here
But
I urge you to look into your own mirrors
What do you see?
Really
Do you love others as brothers and sisters?
Or is the refection distorted?
Loving others is a true sign of Salvation
Jesus himself said if there is no love in us
We are not God’s children
In order to change the images in those funny mirrors
Sometimes you have to move
Sometimes if you really want a change
You need to go to another mirror one that shows the truth
I urge you to look at your like through God’s mirror
His Holy Word
The next image our writer shows us comes from verse 2
2 Don’t forget to show hospitality to strangers, for some who have done this have entertained angels without realizing it!
We tend to think of hospitality as inviting someone over for supper
But
This verse in reality continues the theme of loving others
Showing hospitality to strangers
This includes at church
At home
At work
As we go about our lives
What this means is showing kindness
Compassion
Concern
Speaking love into someone’s life
Lending a helping hand when possible
An encouraging word or a prayer when needed
Remember the story of the Good Samaritan
How he helped someone
Tended to them with compassion
With mercy
With love
This is how we are to be
It might mean giving things
Food
Clothing
Money to someone in need
It might mean serving more
You never know who that stranger might be
Grand paw Jones from Hee Haw
Has a story that talks of this very thing
Let me read that for you now
It is called the Christmas guest
The man in the story shows kindness to strangers
And in doing so entertains Jesus 3 times
When we look in the mirror of scripture of our selves
Is this what we see?
Are we showing kindness and hospitality to strangers?
Or is the image distorted
Next is verse 3
He says that we are to remember those who are suffering
3 Remember those in prison, as if you were there yourself. Remember also those being mistreated, as if you felt their pain in your own bodies.
When I think of those in prison I have mixed emotions
Let’s be honest
Some people are in prison because they truly belong there
And in my heart and mind
I am glad they are there
As they are no longer a threat to society
They have done something wrong
And they are getting what they deserve in the eyes of the law and of society
But
I try to use this knowledge
To excuse or justify my lack of concern
But
In the mirror of scripture there is no excuse for my not praying for them
No excuse for not asking God to show himself to them
To change them by changing their hearts
Also we must remember that there are many types of prison
Some are still prisoners to their sins
Others prisoners in their own bodies due to health issue
So our writer is telling us that when we look into the mirror of scripture
We should see compassion for those who are suffering
Those in prison – justly or unjustly
That we should show compassion and concern for those who are suffering
Whatever the reason
Do we?
The next image he shows us is found in verse 4
“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.”
Give honor to marriage and be faithful to each other
Let’s look at honor first
Are we faithful to our spouses by honoring them?
If we look in the dictionary
The word honor has many meanings
All of them should apply to our spouses
The first is high respect or esteem
Are you treating your spouse with high respect and esteem?
What does the mirror show?
The next is privilege
Do you consider it a privilege to be with this person who God has placed into your life
Do they see that you feel that way?
The next definition is regard with deep respect
This means admire, appreciate, value, cherish, adore;
Do you see that in the mirror?
Next is fulfill (an obligation) or keep (an agreement)
Are you keeping your promise?
Your covenant agreement
Does the mirror show this?
In real simple terms
Are you men
Are you women
Treating your spouse’s with kindness
With humility
Do your words and actions say I love you?
Can we truly say we place their
Wants?
Needs
Desires ahead of our own
Our write in verse 4 goes on into the topic of adultery and immorality
The topic of sexual immorality and adultery seem to come up a lot in the sermons around here
They should come up more often in many more churches around the world
Why?
Because they come up a lot in scripture
And
I believe if the truth was taught and learned
The world would be a much better place
Listen
God is serious about his commandments
When he says stay away from sexual immorality
He means it
When he says He will punish adultery
He means it as well
Today is not a message about adultery
But I need you to know
God’s punishment comes in many forms
And if you are living this life
At the minimum the Holy Spirit should be convicting you of these sins with a shameful heart
And a lack of peace may be plaguing your life
I know most of you are being true to your spouse’s at least on the outside
But
What does the real mirror show?
Jesus says that thinking about others with desire in your heart is the same as cheating
What does the mirror show when you look in
One more image we need to address this morning
And this one may affect more of us than any of the other
This image can actually be looked at with a distorted view by all around us
Let’s look at verse 5a
“Don’t love money; be satisfied with what you have.”
In this dog eat dog world
Society and as a result many well meaning Christians
Place way too much value on money and possessions
The world sees a large bank account
A new car
A huge house as signs of success
As a result of that
Many focus too much on the things that can fade
Remember last week’s sermon
We focus too much
Place too much value on
Place too much faith in
Shakable things such as money and possessions
Money in of itself is not evil
We should work hard to get ahead
But
The love of money
Actually changes the monetary to deity in our minds and in the mirrors of our hearts
The love of money and things
Elevate those things into positions they should not hold
God says we are not to worship idols
Few of us would even consider bowing down to a statue of image of a make believe God
But
With money
We quickly bow down
How you may ask
Choosing money over God
Working instead of going to church by choice
Choosing money over God in terms of tithing
Our money is a gift from God ‘
And when we are stingy with it
It can become a god itself
Choosing money over God in terms of fellowship
I could go on for days about how we place money in a place it does not deserve
Pause
The image in the mirror is often not what I want to see
Sometimes the image I see is distorted
Sometimes I fail to see my own faults
Thinking I am somehow better than I am
Sometimes
I see too many faults thinking I am worse than I am
So we must learn to see the real image
In order to do this
First we must
Look at the right mirror
God’s word is the true mirror we should be viewing our lives n=by
It shows us right from wrong
It gives a clear picture of our weaknesses
But also gives a clear picture of our strengths
We need to look at this mirror
With the right mind
By prayed up
Studied up
Have humble
Repentant moldable hearts
We need to look into this mirror
With the right attitude
Paul says in Romans 12:3
“Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us.”
He says not to think we are something we are not
He also means don’t think too little of yourself
Here is what I need you to understand
God loves you
But you were created in his image
He is not created in yours
Though Jesus Christ and his sacrifice’ he has changed your image
He has made you into a new creation
He has forgiven you and redeemed you
It is time to look at ourselves in that light
And become the image that is shown in the mirror of God’s word
I heard someone say this
In order to see ourselves in the proper image
We should say’
There is a God
And I am
Not Him
But I
Know the one who is
And he created me
And he loves me
And He gave me Jesus to make me perfect in spite of my imperfections
Let me close with verse 6 from our passage today
Hebrews 13:6
“I will never fail you.
I will never abandon you.”[b]
6 So we can say with confidence,
“The LORD is my helper,
so I will have no fear.
What can mere people do to me?”
Close from the heart
Pray
