September 4, 2022 Preaching | Bro. Matt Dela Serna
The final chapter of the book of Hebrews offers instructions for Christian living expounding on love, charity, purity and contentment. The author reinforces what has been previously mentioned in Hebrews 10:22-25, that is to draw near to God with a sincere heart, with full assurance that faith brings, and to hold unwaveringly the confession of hope and to spur one another in love and good deeds.
Why is brotherly love very important?
- It is a Command, the second greatest command.
In Matthew 22:36-40, Jesus said that the second greatest law is to love our neighbour as ourselves. This is not an option for believers, we are commanded to love one another (John 15:12-17, 1 John 4:7-8).
- It is a Confirmation, evidence of being a disciple of Jesus.
In John 13:34-35, Jesus confirms that people will know that we are His disciples if we love one another.
- It is the Fulfilment of the Law.
Romans 13:8-10, says the one who loves his neighbour has fulfilled the Law.
Convinced then that brotherly love is important, how should one show love to one another? Love is shown by honouring one another. Hebrews 13 complemented with 1 Peter 2:17 instructs on how to show love: honour all people, love the family of believers, fear God and honour the king.
Honour strangers by showing hospitality (Hebrews 13:2).
There are three things to remember why showing hospitality is important:
It is a mark of being a true believer (Acts 6:15, Acts 16:34),
It is one of the qualifications of an elder (1 Timothy 3:2),
Because it is the right thing to do (Proverbs 3:27-28).
Honour the prisoners by visiting and remembering them (Hebrews 13:3).
Let us remember our brethren in other countries who are being persecuted because of their faith.
Honour marriage by keeping the marriage bed undefiled (Hebrews 13:4).
The word honour means precious, expensive, and of great value. Marriage is precious because it is instituted by God (Genesis 2:23-25). As Christians, marriage is honoured when both husband and wife honour (treasure) their God-given mates as a gift of great value. (With reference to Christ and the church – Ephesians 5:22-23).
Honour the brethren by respecting everyone (Hebrews 13:4).
God designed physical intimacy to be within the context of marriage. To honour our brothers and sisters, means to show respect to one another knowing that our physical bodies belong to God and physical gestures should be proper, honourable, and bounded by the blessing of marriage. For God will judge the sexually immoral. 1 Thessalonians 4:3-9, says that God’s will for you is that you become holy, that you keep away from sexual immorality and that you know how to possess your own body in holiness and honour.
Live an honourable life by not being covetous (Hebrews 13:5).
Covetousness means having an overwhelming desire to possess something belonging to someone else or showing intense selfish desire for wealth or power. The antidote to covetousness is to keep our lives grounded in God’s Word and free from the love of money, content and thankful with what we have been blessed with. Ecclesiastes 5:10, King Solomon, the richest man who ever lived warns us that the one who loves money will never be satisfied, this is meaningless. For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil (1 Timothy 6:6-10).
Be content with what you have (Hebrews 13:5b-6).
Let us not worry about anything because of the assurance that God knows our needs. He has said will not leave or abandon us. We can confidently say that God is our helper and we should not be afraid.