Hebrews 13:1-19
Jesus the Same Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow
1 Keep on loving one another as brothers and sisters. 2 Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it. 3 Continue to remember those in prison as if you were together with them in prison, and those who are mistreated as if you yourselves were suffering.
4 Marriage should be honored by all, and the marriage bed kept pure, for God will judge the adulterer and all the sexually immoral. 5 Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said,
“Never will I leave you;
never will I forsake you.”
6 So we say with confidence,
“The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid.
What can mere mortals do to me?”
7 Remember your leaders, who spoke the word of God to you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith. 8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.
9 Do not be carried away by all kinds of strange teachings. It is good for our hearts to be strengthened by grace, not by eating ceremonial foods, which is of no benefit to those who do so. 10 We have an altar from which those who minister at the tabernacle have no right to eat.
11 The high priest carries the blood of animals into the Most Holy Place as a sin offering, but the bodies are burned outside the camp. 12 And so Jesus also suffered outside the city gate to make the people holy through his own blood. 13 Let us, then, go to him outside the camp, bearing the disgrace he bore. 14 For here we do not have an enduring city, but we are looking for the city that is to come.
15 Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that openly profess his name. 16 And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.
17 Have confidence in your leaders and submit to their authority, because they keep watch over you as those who must give an account. Do this so that their work will be a joy, not a burden, for that would be of no benefit to you.
18 Pray for us. We are sure that we have a clear conscience and desire to live honorably in every way. 19 I particularly urge you to pray so that I may be restored to you soon.
John 14:6-7
Jesus is Truth
6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. 7 If you really know me, you will know[a] my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him.”
Years ago I worked at a grocery store and only a handful of things were noticed to expire...But that has changed over time...Now when I go to the store, I notice that many things have a final date...Many things today have expiration dates stamped or written on them...In fact, many canned and glass packaged products now have a final date...Things age, and change, then expire...Even Coke and Pepsi are dated and have their final dates...And as they age they change in taste and their chemistry changes...They fade somewhat and lose some or much of their fizz or their CO2...Aging causes many things to lose their fizz and change, some if not a lot of their youthful chemistry...
Many non-believers believe that over time, we in the west have rightfully and knowledgeably have outdated Christianity...Many things such as the use of sacrifice are outdated...Somehow science has surpassed the word...Some believe that science is one of the main things that is putting a shelf life on the belief of Jesus and religion in general...The atheist and author Sam Harris writes "Science is the most durable and non-divisive way of thinking about the human circumstance...It transcends cultural, national, and political boundaries...You don't have American science versus Canadian science versus Japanese science."...Science, he believes is somehow transcending, and transcending us...
The author of Hebrews, I do not think knew much about expiration dates, but he knew much about Jesus...The author of Hebrews says that there is One thing that is always the same and that is Jesus...Jesus is the same...It is written that, Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever...This author believes that Jesus is transcending...This author told us not to be carried away by all kinds of strange teachings...It is good for our hearts to be strengthened by grace, not by other earthly things that have no benefit to those who do so...We have an altar and a cross where Someone is holy, who is set apart...Let us remember that Jesus suffered outside the town of Jerusalem to make the people holy through His own blood...Let us, then, go to Him wherever we are, bearing the disgrace He bore...For here we do not have an enduring city, but we are looking for the city that is to come...That city of heaven...Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that openly profess His name...Today let us continue this sacrifice of praise...And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased...
The words of the Hebrew author were written two thousand years ago, yet he believes Jesus is still here today...There are certain things that do not fade...Truth does not fade, age, or expire...