When Times are Tough . . .

We are facing difficult times that are seemingly unrelenting. A worldwide pandemic is followed by a needless war. Times are tough but the hope of every believer is not based on external events but internal assurances. The apostle Peter was facing tough times but took the time to share hope that is as current as today. Let’s take a few moments to consider

1 Peter 2:9-10, But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.

Peter takes the readers of his epistle to important reasons why Christians can not only survive tough times but thrive. First, we have a special relationship to God. The first part of verse 9 list words that identify why we are special to God. They flow freely like a mountain stream: a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for His own possession. Take time to comprehend the role we play in the work of God.

• A chosen race: We have been chosen by God as His people. Roger Raymer, The responsibility once solely trusted to the nation of Israel has now, during this Age of Grace, been given to the church.

• A royal priesthood: We sinners who have been saved by grace are a royal priesthood. Thomas Constable, . . . every individual Christian is a priest before God. We function as priests to the extent that we worship, intercede, and minister.

• A holy nation: We as the body of Christ are a holy nation. Warren Wiersbe, We have been set apart to belong exclusively to God. Our citizenship is in heaven (Phil. 3:20), so we obey heaven’s laws and seek to please heaven’s Lord.

• A people for his own possession: We, individually and as the church are God’s possession. Roger Raymer, Christians are a special people because God has preserved them for Himself.

Second, we have a special responsibility. The second part of verse 9 gives reason for our existence in this alien world. Consider the important work God has placed on His children, those who have placed faith in Christ alone.

• That you may proclaim the excellencies of Him: We are to give public praise to who God is and what He has done. Wayne Grudem, To declare God’s excellencies is to speak of all he is and has done.

• Who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light: We are to remember and proclaim God’s goodness to us. Peter Davids, . . . the praise is based on what God has done for them.

Despite tough times, Christians can make a difference in this world. God has tasked us with the responsibility to make Himself known to this desperately needy world. We can do it because we have been changed. Consider the amazing statements of verse 10, Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.

• Now you are God’s people: We have been made special by God’s grace. Charles Spurgeon, We were not His people; we were sinners of the Gentiles, not the chosen Hebrew race. In times past, we were not worthy to be called a people, but we are now the people of God.

• Now you have received mercy: We have not received what we deserve so we can proclaim undeserved grace to others. Wayne Grudem, All the foregoing privileges are to be traced only to the undeserved favour of God: now you have received mercy.

When times are tough, people need to hear that there is hope. We can make a difference. We are God’s ambassadors to a world whose only hope is Jesus because He alone can take people from despair to hope and from death to life. Let’s commit to sharing whose we are and what has been done for us.

The study of 1 Peter may be found under the Books of the Bible tab. Scot McKnight, In order to appreciate Peter’s perspective on the church of Christ, it is important to grasp what constituted that church: a group of sinful people who had come to Christ for salvation and who were committed to walking in obedience. And that is no different from our churches today.

The Beauty of Grace!

In the midst of the current pandemic, it is encouraging to be reminded of what is in store for those who have placed faith in Christ alone. Hebrews 12:18-24 is a wonderful place to find peace in any storm. This passage is a comparison of two places, Mount Sinai and Mount Zion. Mount Sinai represents the Old Covenant based on human works. Mount Zion represents the New Covenant based on the grace of God. Take a moment to read this amazing passage:

Hebrews 12:18-24, For you have not come to what may be touched, a blazing fire and darkness and gloom and a tempest and the sound of a trumpet and a voice whose words made the hearers beg that no further messages be spoken to them. For they could not endure the order that was given, “If even a beast touches the mountain, it shall be stoned.” Indeed, so terrifying was the sight that Moses said, “I tremble with fear.” But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering, and to the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.

Verses 18-21 reveal Sinai as a place of terror. The reality of God’s presence based on human effort is frightening. Donald Hagner, The manifestations of God’s presence on Sinai were tangible, that is, they could be experienced by the senses. The fire, darkness, gloom, and storm made a vivid impression on the Israelites. This experience may be read in more detail in Exodus and Deuteronomy. H. D. M. Spence, God was, indeed, revealed to man, but still as unseen and unapproachable, terrible in his wrath against sin, and surrounded by sounds and sights of fear. William L. Lane rightly declares, Sinai was not an occasion for revelation so much as for dread.

The encounter with God at Sinai revealed the absolute holiness of God. Donald Hagner, The awesome and absolute holiness of God's presence was unapproachable. Even an animal was to be stoned if it touched the mountain . . . At that moment, the nation of Israel sensed the utter separation of man from God. R. Kent Hughes, To understand that God is holy and that one is a sinner is to stand at the threshold of grace . . . the great problem with the trip to Sinai was that while men and women could come to see God's holiness and their sinfulness, the Law provided no power to overcome sin.

What is so encouraging about this text begins with a conjunction, but. What is on one side of but doesn’t compare with what’s on the other side. Verses 21-24 reveal Zion as a place of ultimate joy. It pictures the absolute grace of God. William L. Lane, The atmosphere at Mount Zion is festive. The frightening visual imagery of blazing fire, darkness, and gloom fades before the reality of the city of the living God, heavenly Jerusalem . . . An overwhelming impression of the unapproachability of God is eclipsed in the experience of full access to the presence of God and of Jesus, the mediator of the new covenant . . . Amazingly, the test pictures those who are in Christ are already citizens of the place to be described but currently ambassadors in a foreign land.

This passage reveals the residents of Zion which stands for heavenly Jerusalem. There are angels in a joyful assembly, William L. Lane, Heavenly Jerusalem is a place of blessing, where the redeemed can join with “angels and archangels, and with all the company of heaven” in celebratory worship of God. There are the redeemed whose names are written in the book of life, we who are alive and those who died and are even more alive. There is God, the Judge of all, R. Kent Hughes, . . . we come before him in awe because he is the Judge. But we do not come in craven dread, because his Son has borne the judgment for us. This is our highest delight—to gather before God! It is a miracle of grace. There are those who awaited Christ’s resurrection and join those who came to faith after that glorious fact that He is risen. Of course, there is Jesus. Raymond Brown, . . . through the ministry of Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, we draw near with confidence.

Christians don’t approach God with terror but with joy because of Jesus, our Redeemer and High Priest. William Barclay, Once, human beings were under the terror of the law; the relationship between them and God was one of unbridgeable distance and shuddering fear. But after Jesus came and lived and died, the God who was distant and unapproachable was brought near, and the way opened to his presence. Times may be tough but they are temporary our home in heavenly Jerusalem is forever.

Join the study of Hebrews under the Books of the Bible tab. Only a fool would try to approach God by his or her own merit. Don’t make the wrong turn to Sinai. Head straight for Zion.

Faith as a Race!

The transition from Hebrews chapter 11 to 12 is one of encouragement not discouragement. Chapter 11 was not written to compare heroes of the faith to those suffering Christians in Rome or to us. It is a declaration of the faithful work of God in the lives of all of His children. Raymond Brown, Ours is a strenuous race demanding steady perseverance. We must surely be encouraged by the fact that we are surrounded by former contestants who are witnesses to us of the faithfulness of God.

Verses 1-2 of Hebrews 12 call Christians to an enduring life of faith. Donald Hagner, They show that it is possible to live by faith. The verses are a transition from information to application. The testimonies of the heroes of the faith demanded appropriates responses of the readers in the 1st century, and today. Let’s consider what Christians need to do in the race of faith.

We must lay aside every weight. William Barclay, No one would attempt to climb Mount Everest weighed down with a whole load of unnecessary baggage. If we want to travel far, we must travel light. There is in life an essential duty to discard things. There may be habits, pleasures, self-indulgences or associations which hold us back. We must shed them as athletes take off their tracksuits when they go to the starting blocks; and often we will need the help of Christ to enable us to do so. The weight to be discarded is different for every Christian. It is the work of the Holy Spirit and the Word of God through prayer that unnecessary weights become obvious. Ray Stedman, Each runner must honestly judge what hinders faith for him or her and resolutely lay it aside, even though others seem to be unhindered by the same thing.

We must lay aside . . . sin which clings so closely. Consider Hebrews 3:13, But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. Ray Stedman, Do not take God’s Word lightly. Do not excuse any sin as all right for you, but forbidden to others. Do not feel you can evade God’s discipline or judgment. Don’t play games with sin because it will win.

We must run with endurance the race that is set before us. Hebrews 10:36, For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God you may receive what is promised. The Christian life is not a sprint but a marathon. Make the commitment that a life in Christ is for the long-haul. Warren Wiersbe, One of the best ways to develop endurance and encouragement is to get to know the godly men and women of the Old Testament who ran the race and won. If you are having problems with your family, read about Joseph. If you think your job is too big for you, study the life of Moses. If you are tempted to retaliate, see how David handled this problem. Take to heart the words of Ray Stedman, The race, of course, is life itself . . . We are all here for a purpose, and that purpose is to live our lives in fulfillment of God’s intent for us.

The words of verse 2 transition from application back to observation. Our supreme example of faith is Jesus. We are to submit to Jesus because of Who He is. The writer of Hebrews says we are to look to Jesus. That word used for looking is that which means to deliberately look away from other things. Our focus is to be on Jesus because He is the founder of our faith. We are in the heavenly race because of Who Jesus is, fully God and fully man, what He did, made payment for our sins, and what He is doing, interceding for us at the throne of God.

Also, Jesus is the perfecter of our faith. Raymond Brown, He brings the faith of the former saints (11:40) and ours to triumphant completion. He makes it all perfect and he alone. Our moral integrity is essential, but that cannot bring our faith to completion. Our devoted service is valuable, but that cannot perfect our faith. Our spiritual experiences can be inspiring and illuminating, but Jesus is faith’s only consummator. Paul clearly pictures our utter dependence upon Jesus in Philippians 1:6, And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.

We are to follow Jesus’ example of faith. Jesus viewed His journey to Golgotha as joyous. John 17:4, I glorified you on earth, having accomplished the work that you gave me to do. The Christian life is a struggle but it still should be joyous. Who else has the words of eternal life? Who else shows us that the journey to heaven is available for all who place trust in Jesus alone? Who else gives meaning to life in a world that is meaningless for so many?

Jesus endured suffering and shame for us. Philippians 2:8, And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Raymond Brown, When we feel that we cannot summon another ounce of energy for ‘the race that is set before us,' we must think of the race that was set before him. He endured, though his course was incomparably more difficult than ours. Jesus triumphed and, in his strength, so can we.

Jesus finished His journey and is seated at the Father’ right hand. Hebrews 10:12, But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God. Raymond Brown, His redemptive work complete, he waits for the consummation of the ages and for the great moment when every tongue shall confess his lordship. Jesus completed His task and He will enable us to complete ours which is being conformed to His image.

Join the study of Hebrews under the Books of the Bible tab. The wonderful instruction from the Epistle to the Hebrews contains application needed for the race before us.