Hebrews 13:15-16

Therefore by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name. But do not forget to do good and to share, for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.

Personal Challenge

What is one of the more critical forms of sacrifice that our Lord wants from us? It is the sacrifice of praise to Him. But we must not stop there in this verse. What qualifies as a sacrifice of praise to Him? It is not just what we do during our liturgies and worship services on Sunday’s. The fruit of our lips, all of the time, is our sacrifice of praise. Does my language carry put-downs or derogatory and cutting remarks toward people, all people? Then that is not a sacrifice of praise to God. Do I express anger in my conversations, talk about others, tell off-color jokes, or anything else that I would be embarrassed about if I looked over my shower and saw Jesus standing there. Then that is not a sacrifice of praise to God. Do I do any of these things on Facebook, or Instagram, by email, or any other means by which I can say, “Nothing came out of my mouth.”? Then I am still not offering a sacrifice of praise to God. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Forgive us of our sins!

Hebrews 12:28

Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear.

Encouraging words

We believe that the Kingdom of God is unshakeable. It cannot be breached by the enemy and it cannot be infiltrated. We also believe that the Kingdom of God exists today and that we are citizens of it even though we are ambassadors in temporary tents in this world. It is this belief that drives out all fear and trepidation with the things that are happening in this world. Through this belief, we too can be unshaken. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

Hebrews 12:1-2

Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, 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 has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Encouraging words

Every time that I step into an Orthodox church, I step into the presence of all of the saints that are presented in the icons around me. No, we do not worship these saints or the icons that are written about them. No, these are not graven images. God, Himself, is the ultimate iconographer in that when He created mankind, He created us in His image. When Jesus took on human form and became God incarnate, He became an icon of God the Father for He said, “He who has seen me, has seen the Father.” The icons of the saints that we surround ourselves with bring them into our lives and us into theirs. That is what this passage is telling us. We are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses that are there with us while we run this race of life. They are rooting for us, coaching us, interceding for us so that we might end the race well and hear, “Well done, My good and faithful servant.” Glory be to God!

Hebrews 11:17-19

By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, of whom it was said, “In Isaac your seed shall be called,” concluding that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead, from which he also received him in a figurative sense.

Personal challenge

Our faith is not only in God but also in the promises that He gives. We must be careful to not make those promises more important than God. God had promised Abraham that his offspring would be numbered greater than the sands on the beach. He saw the beginning of that promise when very late in his life, God gave him His only son, Isaac. Then, when Isaac was a young boy, God asked Abraham to do the unthinkable, to offer him up as a sacrifice to show God how much he loved Him. This was hard for Abraham, but he had so much faith in God and the promise that God had made to him, that he saw through the death of his son to the promise that a great nation would rise up through Isaac. His faith made it possible for him to be willing to do the impossible, just as God’s love for us was able to take Him to the point of having His son die for us. Glory be to God!

Hebrews 11:13-16

These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off were assured of them, embraced them and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. For those who say such things declare plainly that they seek a homeland. And truly if they had called to mind that country from which they had come out, they would have had opportunity to return. But now they desire a better, that is, a heavenly country. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared a city for them.

Encouraging Words

The saints that have gone before us have shown us what it is to both live and to die in faith. Many of the modern preachers teach that by putting our faith in Jesus we will get what we desire now, in this present life. This is the prosperity gospel and it is a lie, a heresy. We do not put our faith in Jesus for things of this world. We put our faith in Him for that promised Kingdom which is not of this world. We do not stop there. We also choose to not look back to the things of this world that we have left behind, for if we do, we will be drawn back to them. Our hope is in Jesus. Our hope is in His Kingdom to come. And we are willing to go to the grave knowing that this hope will be fulfilled someday after this life. We are willing to die in our faith. Glory be to God!

Hebrews 11:8

By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to the place which he would receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going.

Personal Challenge

Faith is not just a state of mind. Faith is also the actions that flow from that state of mind. Abraham believed in God, but the faith that was attributed to him came from his willingness to obey God and to leave his homeland in search of the promised land of God. Our faith is not fully consummated until we put actions to it. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

Hebrews 11:6

But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.

Personal Challenge

Today, all around the world, millions of Eastern Orthodox Christians are celebrating Pascha as we have for over 2000 years. Pascha, our Easter, is the highest recognized feast and celebration of our church. We participate in the resurrection of our Lord from His death. And if we have participated in the great Lent leading up to this event, as well as our Holy Week celebrations, we will have also participated in the entire history of mankind from the creation in Genesis through to Jesus walking through the streets of Jerusalem, His betrayal, and death on the cross. But none of this means anything if we do not have faith in Jesus, who He is, and what He has done, or faith in His Father. It is this faith that changes us. It is this faith that gives us a desire to please Him. If we find that we are just going through the motions of worship, faking our love for Him, not paying attention to Him when He is calling out to us when we are in His liturgy, then we must ask ourselves if we really do have faith in Him. He will change us… if we let Him. He will draw us to Himself and we will find ourselves totally mesmerized on Him whenever we are in His presence… if we let Him. He will reward us… if we seek Him. When we truly know Him, we will be changed and we will please Him. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner?

Hebrews 11:1

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

Encouraging Words

Most of my life, I saw this verse as the definition of faith, but in reality, it is more of a description of how faith works. Throughout the history of the church and God’s chosen people, faith has been exhibited, especially in hard times, through countless people looking forward to the fulfillment of the promises of God. Entry into the promised land. A Messiah to lead them. The coming of the Kingdom of God. Most of these people did not receive or encounter what they were hoping for, but their faith kept them going. Faith perseveres because of who it is that we put our faith in. Glory be to God!

Hebrews 10:35-36

Therefore do not cast away your confidence, which has great reward. For you have need of endurance, so that after you have done the will of God, you may receive the promise:

Personal challenge

If we are going to make it to the end of the race, let alone be in the lead of the pack, then we must have endurance. Endurance gets its strength from practice and exercise, but it gets its resolve from confidence. Our confidence is in our Lord and we must keep that confidence in order to endure to the end. Glory be to God!