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As our study winds down, the end of Hebrews adds a few rich layers to the “Don't give up!” message that we have already considered. The major argument has now been concluded, but there is still much to be said, many exhortations to be made that together form a picture of faithfulness in fairly concrete terms. While the message to this point has been the importance and validity of perseverance in faith and obedience, the writer now turns to describe with greater particularity what it looks like to be a person of faithful obedience. These last chapters provide details of discipleship. As such, they are simpler to interpret, and may seem more immediately useful or applicable than some of the theological material that we have already waded through. It is important to note though that all of this material is predicated on the theology that precedes it. While we read more concerning our behavior here, that behavior is based on the beliefs described in the rest of the book. Whenever we attempt to change behavior without examining our beliefs, we run the risk of fostering shallow faith. On the other hand when we examine our faith and train our behavior to flow from that faith, we deepen our faith-lives.
This whole text is not about details of discipleship, though. We have embedded in the middle of all these moral exhortations a strong, poetic section about obedience to God.
Understanding the Text12:14-17
The text opens with a pari of exhortations, to live at peace with everyone, and to be holy. These two must be held in balance, because if we are speaking of living at peace with outsiders, our holiness must at times be something that is in conflict with their lives of unbelief. Nonetheless, our holiness cannot be sacrificed for the sake of even relationships. We must somehow remain holy while maintaining peace. This is not only possible, but a necessary part of being holy. Holiness doesn't go around looking for a fight! It searches out peace instead. I find the phrase “make every effort” particularly compelling and haunting in this verse. It is also significant that “without holiness no one will see the Lord.”
The next phrase, “see to it that no one misses the grace of God” indicates both the possibility of not laying hold of what God has given. It also contains a strong communal aspect, placing a burden on the community to hold its members up. The next exhortation flows from this, because bitterness within the community holds the possibility of keeping some from laying hold of grace.
Sexual immorality adds another dimension to this set of exhortations, speaking both to one form of unholiness and also perhaps a test of personal discipline. The “godlessness” of Esau points towards the concept of disciplined godly priorities. Esau abandoned the valuable for what was desirable in a moment, and this may specifically be a pointer towards sexual morality. Some things can't be taken back.
12:18-29
The next section may seem like a sudden shift, but it draws upon the tradition of Exodus 19, God's meeting with the people. Thus, the idea of holiness before God is very closely tied to the whole image. Verses 14-17 are about preparing ourselves as holy people before the awesome, holy God that 18 and following describes. The description of the God whom we come to meet serves to heighten the expectation of holiness even beyond that experienced in Exodus. Our meeting with God is even purer than that incredible encounter. The powerful language of 22-24 is not just inspiration, but humbling. It also subtly gives reference to themes and motifs that have already been in place through the letter: angels, judgment, sanctification, covenant mediation, and even Abel are all mentioned before hand, but here are placed in the context of our experience of God's presence.
The context of the people's meeting with God in Exodus is not a chance, random encounter, though. It is a covenant-making meeting. The acceptance or rejection of God's covenant is a matter of life or death, and the author here is giving us another form of his basic exhortation to remain faithful. This is “don't give up” in other words. The powerful prose with this section continues with a sidebar about the permanence of God's kingdom before concluding with the observation that God is a consuming fire. Thus he is to be approached humbly, and deserves our worship. Approaching God should not be done lightly.
What we can take away This text shouldn't be too difficult to immediately apply. It's opening verses contain some straightforward moral exhortations, and the latter verses contain some extremely inspirational prose. This is a great text! Here are some suggestions to ways that your class might have further discussion.
First, you might ask which of the moral exhortations seem the most challenging. What is it in this section that is provoking, something we might do well to write on our bathroom mirrors and the dashboards of our cars? What is difficult for us that we need more constant encouragement to follow? These verses can help us look at our own paths of discipleship, and see where we may need to give more attention.
Secondly, the latter section can give us a whole new perspective on what it means to come before God. How does this match up to our experience? Do we perceive the reality of our meeting with God as being this significant? While this section isn't limited to the corporate worship context, it certainly has something to say about that context. Should every sunday morning feel like Exodus 19, or more significant? That's challenging!
Also, this text is primarily about refusing God. What are the ways that we refuse god, or are in danger of doing so?
Finally, the connection between the two sections offers us another place of discussion. What is the relationship between our meeting with a holy God and our own pursuit of holy living? What is our connection between Sunday and Monday, or to ask the question slightly differently, between Saturday and Sunday?
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