Hebrews 6:10 For God is not unjust so as to forget your work and the love which you have shown toward His name, by having served and by still serving the saints.
In this letter the writer is addressing Jewish Christians possibly in Rome. He encourages them to be strong in their faith. Although much of early church history attributed it to Paul- the author is unknown. It was written between 62 and 69 AD. The Jewish Christians as well as all Christians were living under Nero. Nero was determined to wipe out all Christians. For the Jewish Christians, they could be safe if they renounced their Christian faith and returned to their Jewish faith because under Roman law it was an established religion. There was much pressure on them during Nero’s reign. This is the time of Christians being killed in the games. Many of Christians were crucified. These were hard times.
Hebrews was written to encourage the Jewish Christians to stay the course. Chapter six speaks to the dangers of falling away from Christ. It is hard words in which the writer says that when you turn from Christ it is like you have shamed him.
But this was a temptation for these people, I understand that completely. They had family. What would happen to them and would it also happen to their families. They were deeply torn for they had a safe escape, but it wasn’t. The writer points out they have “been made partakers of the Holy Spirit.”
But then he says to the Jewish Christians, God will bring you better things. He then says God is not unjust and does not forget your work and the love you have been giving to others. God will honor those who serve Him…
What does that mean to us?
Back in the 70s, I remember a person who told us that Russian Christians prayed for us to have hard times so that we would know how to make our faith strong in Christ. In Russia during those times, churches were closed by the government. In many countries living under communism they could not even buy or own Bibles. There was a man who smuggled Bibles behind the iron curtain. If he had been caught, he would have been imprisoned. We didn’t live in those times then, and yet I understand their reason for those prayers.
In the last sixty to eighty years, Christians in our country have become complacent. Many things caused it. People stopped sitting down to supper and saying grace. Children stopped seeing their parents read the Bible and hearing their prayers. Many began to go to church on Sunday, and fail to follow the directions of love thy neighbor as thyself. The rest of the week. They chose to look the other way when they saw an injustice. The next generation rarely went to church… usually on Easter and Christmas. They called themselves Christians, but they did not practice what Jesus told us to do. Their grandchildren didn’t bother to go to church. They weren’t bad people just became slack. Their great grandchildren stepped even farther away, and many began to believe that the equity under Marxism was better than being a Christan and being free.
Why is that? Because we do one thing that Jesus told us belongs to God alone and that is judgement of people. We judge so much that it seems to be a good thing to do. But what did all that judgement of people do? It taught them to judge us. We now live in an era where we are judged not on what we have individually done but on what is perceived by others as what Christians do which is CONDEMN OTHERS.
I will be the first to say that I have been one of those Christians. God was not an easy teacher when it came to this. I know this one might rub some of you wrong, but I write what I am led to write. I was planning to make this one short, but it is not.
We need to get back to what this verse is telling these Christians who were in a tough place. We need to get back to doing what we are told to do and that is to love without the judgements of others. In these times we need to be patient with those who do not believe as we do. Then there is a promise, God will not forget us. Just as the writer in the times of Nero said in Hebrews 6:9 “But, beloved, we are convinced of better things regarding you, and things that accompany salvation, even though we are speaking in this way.”
Remember the promises of God, they will keep you strong…
Today’s Question:
Could you stand firm in your faith if you were persecuted for being a Christian?
Mary Elizabeth Todd
February 7, 2024 & May 7, 2024
Ruhamah United Methodist Church Bible Verses 