Welcome back to our study of the book of Hebrews, today we’ll zero in on Hebrews 13:1-6, and learn how to live in order to please God.
We have to always remember that when the author was penning down his letter under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, there was no chapter division. Chapter 12 mostly dealt with how God treats those He calls his sons and daughters, the discipline of the Lord, which is meant to lead us to share in his Holiness. Chapter 11 dealt with the concept of faith, and in chapter 12, the writer basically showed us and the original readers how God works in our lives to bring about the Faith that pleases Him. Today we’ll begin Hebrews 13. The writer’s thought patterns continues in this chapter with more exhortations and reminders.
How To Please God
Hebrews 13:1-6
13 Let brotherly love continue. 2 Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares. 3 Remember those who are in prison, as though in prison with them, and those who are mistreated, since you also are in the body. 4 Let marriage be held in honor among all, and let the marriage bed be undefiled, for God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterous. 5 Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” 6 So we can confidently say,
“The Lord is my helper;
I will not fear;
what can man do to me?”
- Verses 1-3
After informing his original readers about the discipline of the Lord ( that works in us to bring about Holiness and a faith that pleases God) and warning them against unbelief ( using Esau’s rejection of His inheritance as an example), he encourages his readers again. This has been a recurring pattern in this letter, which reminds us of the love of God. He disciplines us for our good and doesn’t always accuse us. He isn’t out to condemn us but to convict us that we might repent. The pattern of warnings and encouragement should make us rejoice. It is set that way in order for us to live to please God.
Brotherly love is a must amongst believers and the writer starts his exhortation with that. What does this brotherly love look like. To find the answer to this, let us go to 1 John 5:2 -3
”2 By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and obey his commandments. 3 For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome”
The way we primarily love each other is by obeying God and by doing what pleases HIM before our brothers and sisters in Christ. In ancient times, hospitality was premium and the writer exhorts his readers to show a lot of hospitality to strangers. And to drive his point, he tells them and us that sometimes we even entertain angels without even knowing. The primary example of that was in Genesis 18 when the angel of the Lord accompanied by two others visited Abraham.
This was a time of persecution and some of the brothers and sisters had been put in prison. So the writer was exhorting his readers to continue to show their solidarity to those in prison ( by identifying with them). They could be visiting them, interceding for them and more importantly not giving up their profession of faith. Some were being mistreated as well so he was exhorting them to remain united in the cause of the Gospel of Christ. And we ought to do the same in our day and age. There are Christians worldwide being persecuted and the way we show our solidarity to them is by standing firm and not capitulate under pressure.
- Verses 4-6
He moves to more personal matters in verses 4-6. There may have been some who were being tempted to follow the perverted sexual ways of the time. So the writer reminds his readers and us about the Christ exalting marriage, it must be free of any impurities and full of loyalty. For more on this we can go to Ephesians 5:23-37. The marriage bed must be undefiled, there must not be any hint of sexual perversion within the marriage relationship. And both parties must not engage in any extra marital relationship, the marriage must be pleasing in the sight of God. And this exhortation comes with a warning, God will judge those who are sexually immoral and the adulterous ( see romans 1:24-27).
The next warning is against the love of money. Notice that the writer isn’t against money but the “love “ of money. Scripture warns us about the love of money in 1 Timothy 6:9-11
“9 But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. 10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.11 But as for you, O man of God, flee these things. Pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness.”
It is very interesting that he follows his exhortation against the love of money by teaching his readers about contentment. Solomon wrote a great deal about chasing after the wind in the book of Ecclesiastes. Contentment is being totally satisfied with the lot God has given us. It is a result of us finding our pleasure and satisfaction in God. It is coming to a place of rest where we no longer live to fulfill our own desires, but surrender everything we are and have to God. Paul teaches us in Philippians 4:10-13 how to be content. The writer was also either quoting Deuteronomy 31:6, 8 and Joshua 1:5 in verse 5 to tell them and us why we should be content. Since God himself promises to never leave nor forsake us , we ought to be content with the lot HE has given us. Why? Because God Himself has become our treasure, in Him we have everything that we need. Jesus talks about contentment in Matthew 6:19-34.
Because of God’s promise to never leave nor forsake His saints, the writer says that we can say with total confidence- the Lord is my helper, I will not fear , what can man do to me?
This is the bold statement of the rested believer. We can only speak like this when we’ve come to the place where we are totally surrendered to God. The original readers had grown weary, fearful for their lives. He wanted them to come to a place of peace, not a peace characterized by the absence of troubles and conflicts but a peace that says no matter what happens, God is sovereign, HE’s in control. This is the peace that Paul mentions in Philippians 4:6-7
”6 do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
The writer was quoting Psalm 118:6, he wanted his readers to realize a couple of things.
- The Lord was their helper. He that created the entire heavens and the earth, He who is sovereign over all things, He is the one who is their help.
- He personalizes it when using the word “my”. He isn’t just the whole congregation’s helper but each individual’s helper. HE is a personal God who is involved in the daily lives of His people. And there are many scriptures that back up that claim. Psalm 46:1, Matthew 10:30, Luke 12:7According to the writer because the Lord is our helper, why shall we fear anything or anyone? That’s a rhetorical question that we ought to answer ourselves.
PS: I started Tayibs.com for the sole purpose of exploring difficult questions about the Christian faith that most of us shy away from. All the content generated on this website is thoroughly analyzed prior to being shared. And the site is run solely by myself, your generous support is very much appreciated
My name is Tayib Salami and I started Tayibs.com for the sole purpose of exploring difficult questions about the Christian faith that most of us shy away from. In 2017, I entered a very dark time in my life and it’s only by the grace of the Living God that I’m still alive today. It led me to really go deeper in my faith and consider a myriad of questions that I never thought about asking myself or others before. Welcome and enjoy the ride with me.