Pray for the Martyrs

Heb 13:3 Remember them that are in bonds, as bound with them; and them which suffer adversity, as being yourselves also in the body.

Don't you just cringe when you see the Feed the Children commercials and others which depict the plight of starving children in Africa and elsewhere? I feel guilty for immediately turning the channel, but I must, I cannot bear their suffering.

It is also tough to bear in mind the sufferings of Christians worldwide whose testimony has caused them great persecution. How easy we have it to live for Christ in a country where Christianity is in vogue. To be a believer in most parts of the world means sure and certain retribution from the enemies of the cross of Christ. I receive daily reports via email lists and updates concerning the oppressed of the faith. It is heart-wrenching to know how bad my brothers and sisters have it in the Muslim, Hindu and Buddhist countries.

The Word constrains us to keep them in our thoughts and prayers as if we were in the prison cells with them. After all, if the heavy oppression were here in our nation and we were the ones being tortured for Christ, how much would we appreciate our fellow believers living in the lap of luxury, preaching health and wealth, partying as if Christianity was all fun and games? This very day, more than two to three hundred of Christ's followers will purchase the martyr's crown because they chose to bear the cross. The least we can do is to remember them in our prayers.

How to entertain an angel

Heb 13:2 Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.

Have you ever entertained an angel? Don't know? Me neither. But I suppose some of us have on occasion, because that's what this verse says. After all, there were only so many verses available in the Word and God wouldn't waste space on something that would never happen. So, we have this admonition, don't forget to be hospitable to those you meet whom you don't know.

Okay, so how do we practically do this? I mean, what's the down side if I fail to take care of an angel? Would my guardian angel cause me to stub my toe when I head to the head at 2 in the morning?

Should I always have the fixins on hand to whip up an angel food cake? Perhaps I should conjure up a batch of divinity fudge or heavenly hash. Would I offend my heavenly visitor if I offered him a deviled egg topped with a couple of drops of Devil's Spit Tabasco sauce?

How do we entertain them?

*One, take it for granted that anybody you meet could possibly be your mystery angel.

*Two, be kind to all strangers. Even if they are not an angel, you have shared the milk of human kindness and that never goes without reward.

*Three, if a stranger has a need and you have the resource, follow the leadership of the Lord in the matter. Whatsoever you sow, you will reap. By casting your bread upon the waters, you insure that it will come back to you.

*And four, talk to the strangers about the Lord, start witnessing. If their eyes begin to twinkle, you have probably met either a fellow believer or maybe, just maybe a powerful being that has been worshiping the King for the past 6,000 years.

What's is your Love Level?

Heb 13:1 Let brotherly love continue.

In my own strength, I can love the brothers, for a while anyway. But, I have to admit that it gets tough after a while.

Offences can add up and overload my ability to keep on loving. Loving the unlovable is a God thing. The Scripture tells us that God commended His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

When someone is kind to me, loves me, respects me, I have no trouble reciprocating. But let a person slight me or do me wrong, let them act in an unloving way, my flesh says, "en guarde!"

But the Saviour asks, "For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? Do not even the publicans (reviled tax collectors) the same?

Paul tells us to love the brotherhood. He writes that our love is to be without dissimulation. That is, let it remain sincere.

It takes the filling of the Holy Spirit so that we might exhibit the fruit of the Spirit. The top of the list of fruit? You guessed it, love!

How important is it that we let brotherly love continue? Love covers a multitude of sins. Love begets grace and mercy. Love gives and forgives.

Really, there is nothing more needful within the church as enduring, unconditional love. Not a love that our flesh works up, but constant expressions of God's agape love.

What is your love level to the brothers and sisters in the faith?

Eyes on the Prize

Heb 12:2 Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith;

Have you ever been challenged with the philosophical question: If you had to make a choice between being blind and being deaf, which would you choose?

Well, we would all say neither, but that's not an answer. The question was, "if you HAD to make a choice..."

The inability to hear has to be tremendously frustrating. Can you imagine not being able to hear the sweet voices of your children or your spouse? (Okay, no jokes here :<)

Think about no longer being able to hear the Word of God, the preaching and teaching of it. That would be tragic. Lord bless the hearing impaired. GIve them grace and patience!

But, to be blind, that's unimaginable. Often I sit at the table with food in front of me and I think about the plight of the blind. They can't see the things that I pick out fo my food; fat, impurities, ingredients I don't care for, etc. I suppose if they don't have someone to assist them, they just have to discriminate with their mouths and fingers. How tough is that?

Sunsets, mountain majesty, glorious hues, the beauty of a face, fine clothing, the sleek lines of a fine auto, all of these and more exist only in the imagination of the blind. That's tough to conceive.

However, we are all limited in our ability to sight our Saviour. The Word says that we now behold Him through a glass darkly. We see Him only by the eye of faith as we grope in the darkness of earth.

By reading the Word of the Lord, we catch glimpses of the Saviour. As we witness His hand at work in our lives, His face becomes a bit clearer. As often as we can sneek these peeks of His glory, we ought to let them lead us toward the finish line where He awaits us.

As I walk on a sidewalk, I can close my eyes and still see the details of the path in my mind for several seconds. I can continue to walk in the right direction, even though my eyes are closed.

When the Lord has been revealed to me in the Word or by His work, soon, life obscures His face. But I need to still remember the details of His visage and walk in the right direction until I can catch another glimpse of Him. This is walking by faith, just as the saints of Hebrews, chapter 11 did.

Perhaps yesterday, you saw Jesus as He made a way where there was no way. Now, today, you can't see Him, but He is still there at the finish line - walk in the same direction - looking unto Jesus, the Author and Finisher of your faith.

Home or Away?

Heb 12:1 Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us,
Heb 12:2 Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. As

I work as a chaplain at the Nebraska games, I am repeatedly impressed by the power of the crowd. There have been a few times when it seems the whole crowd is hooked up to an adrenaline pump. The energy is almost electric. "Husker!" shouts the east side of the stadium, 40 thousand strong. "Power!" respond the other 40,000 voices. They are all in unison, all at the top of their lungs. It's as if the concrete of the stadium is moving at the chorus. It is truly an experience.

Is it any wonder that when a team plays at home, they are much more likely to emerge victorious? The cheering of the crowd encourages the players and intimidates the opponents.

Up to now, you may have felt you were behind enemy lines, playing an away game. Not so! If you think about it, only a couple of hellish imps are booing you at any one time. The voices of opposition are relatively few. However, the crowd raucously cheering you on from heaven's bleachers numbers in the thousands, perhaps tens of thousands. Some of the crowd have been listed in the 11th chapter of Hebrews. Among them are; Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Rahab, Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, the prophets, persecuted women, and many "others." That catch all designation of "others" no doubt includes those in heaven which have a personal interest in your life; saved ancestors, spiritual mentors, church members with which you have served, etc.

So, run the race, play the game, fight the fight, enjoy the battle and win the victory to the heavenly cheers of thousands, half shouting "Heavenly" and the others responding, "Power!"

The Substance of Faith

Heb 11:1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

I am hoping for a lot. The word "hope" here means to expect.

I expect the Lord to call me up to the clouds soon, and then conducting me on to glory.
I expect God to deliver on His promises.
I expect a home in heaven.
I expect a judgment seat where I will be rewarded.
I expect a judgment seat where I will suffer loss.
I expect all my needs to be met according to His riches in glory.
I expect that I will reap what I have sown.
I expect to reap of the Spirit for what I have sown to the spirit.
I expect to reap of the flesh for what I have sown to the flesh.
I expect to come rejoicing, bringing my sheaves with me because I have gone forth, weeping, bearing precious seed.
I expect to have tribulation in this life.
I expect that Jesus will never leave me, nor forsake me, even/especially during that tribulation.
I expect to overcome that tribulation as a victorious warrior of God.
I expect that all will work out well for me and for God's kingdom because I love the Lord and have been called according to His purpose.
I expect my children not to depart from the ways of the Lord because we are bringing them up in those ways.

Well, I am expecting a lot, aren't I? That's where faith makes its entrance. I have absolutely no doubt about any of my expectations listed above because they are fully guaranteed by the Word of God...and He always keeps His Word. It has never failed! The faith that I have is not even my faith, it is the faith He has granted me, which makes it doubly availing.

I thank my Lord today that my life is full of substance.

Be Patient

Heb 10:36 For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise.
Heb 10:37 For yet a little while, and he that shall come will come, and will not tarry.
Heb 10:38 Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him.
Heb 10:39 But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition; but of them that believe to the saving of the soul.

God has promised us so many things, among them heaven, reward, rest.

But, in our suffering, our setbacks and our subsequent impatience, we give up. Giving up usually amounts to losing faith in the One Who promised. Though we would never admit our unbelief, we evidence it by our living. We live as if this were the only life. That there is not a better one to follow, of which the present one is only preparation.

We exist in an instant society where we want to reap what we have sown the same day. Even nature teaches that a season must pass before the harvest. In the meantime, watering and cultivation are needed.

The verses here tell us, "For yet a little while..." It takes some perspective to understand that a little while to God and to us can mean very different things. The author of Hebrews had already gained a heavenly perspective through an "out of body" experience. I am referring to Paul's stoning which allowed him to be caught up to heaven for a time. Imagine if you were allowed to see the glory that awaits the believer. If you could pass through the gates of pearl, walk the street of gold, behold such glorious and holy sights that you would feel it improper to even mention it all, could you implore believers to be patient? Could you serve God with a boldness as Paul did without fear of death because you knew what awaited? I think so. And, wouldn't you feel that any amount of earthly suffering was inconsequential in comparison to future glory?

Perhaps you could pen words such as, "For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us." Rom 8:8.

Hebrews 10:36 and 37 make sense when you consider that the author had already witnessed much of the promise.

So, be patient. Let your faith remain strong. Keep on keeping on. Serve the Lord with gladness and don't succumb to the temptation to draw back from the promises of God.