Hebrews - Cloud of Witnesses
Readings for this week August 7 - 11
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Day 1 – Back to Hebrews
Silence, Stillness and Centering before God (2 minutes)
Scripture Reading – Hebrews 10:36-39
We return to Hebrews. We have seen that this (likely) extended sermon written down and turned into an epistle to followers of Jesus, replete with signs, symbols and meanings resonant with the story of God and his people laid out in the Hebrew bible, is a deeply Christocentric book, but also one that encourages and exhorts the followers of Jesus into greater levels of trust in God. The salvific work accomplished by God in Christ, his role as both the once-and-for-all sacrifice and the only high priest interceding for his people before the Father, show that God has done everything possible – everything necessary – to redeem creation and prepare his people to be stewards of his love, and examples of his grace.
Everything revealed in the book so far now moves into its final completion in these remaining chapters. It has built to this point, reminding the Hebrews of the faithfulness of their God, his care and concern for them, the centrality of Christ in creation and also in their lives, and the way that the coming of the crucified and risen one was the glorious culmination of God’s redemptive plan for creation. The task is now to live faithfully in the power of the Holy Spirit as God’s redemptive community on earth, loving each other, a witness to the world, persisting when persecuted – and at all times relying on the transforming power of Christ in us to facilitate our ability to continue his work. This is the call to faith, to live faithfully in the promises and for the purposes of the living God.
Questions to Consider
What have you learnt so far from our Hebrews series? How has it deepened your understanding of God’s love and his purposes for us?
Prayer
Heavenly Father, continue to speak to me through your word. Show me how to live a more faithful life, how to rely on your more and more, and how to see more of your movement in the world. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Conclude with Silence (2 minutes)
Day 2 – Determined to have Faith
Silence, Stillness and Centering before God (2 minutes)
Scripture Reading – Hebrews 10:19-35
To live as God’s kingdom people in a society and world that does not acknowledge its creator and his claim upon it is not easy. This was one thing the writer of Hebrews was well aware of, as the recipients of this epistle themselves had in the past been on the receiving end of ridicule, harassment and persecution from those around them, and so he had offered them words of encouragement about the promising-making and promise-keeping God who was always with them no matter the circumstances. Though they may not see the goodness yet, though they may not be living in a society that loves and acknowledges God yet, and though the hand of God is sometimes difficult to see, yet having confidence in these things not seen is part of the call to discipleship.
In such circumstances it sometimes requires a determined effort to trust that God is with us and that the promises he has made are still on the table, never mind coming to fruition. And this applies to large, world-encompassing events and purposes as well the smaller, but no less crucial, events and hopes and promises of everyday life. But we have God’s own personal assurance – personalised in the incarnate Jesus – that these things, these promises, will come to pass. Faith is trusting in God for his promised goodness and provision. Faith is living as future kingdom people now in the light of the full promised restoration to come. Faith is a gift from God himself, one he is more than willing to lavish on us in those times when trusting and believing is hard.
Questions to Consider
How is faith itself a gift from God? How do you see your faith in this way?
Prayer
Lord God, thank you for the gift of faith, without which I would be lost. Help me trust you more and rely on your wider, deeper vision more than on my own limited view – yet also show me more of all you are. Amen.
Conclude with Silence (2 minutes)
Day 3 – The Hall of Faith
Silence, Stillness and Centering before God (2 minutes)
Scripture Reading – Hebrews 11:1-2
“People commended for their faith.” “The people of faith.” “The triumphs of faith.” “Great examples of faith.” The headings in our bibles are not an inspired part of holy scripture; rather they are attempts to provide a description of what follows. Above are some of the titles chosen by publishers as a description of the content of Hebrews 11, a chapter sometimes colloquially referred to as the hall of faith – great examples of biblical characters who demonstrated great faith in God, in the promises that he had made, and in his ability to fulfil those promises no matter how distant, unlikely or impossible they seemed. Of the many names mentioned here, some are more well known than others, even outside the three monotheistic faiths that claim common heritage from Abraham, who features prominently in the chapter.
And so, as we return to finish off our journey through the book of Hebrews, we will be taking the time over the next weeks to take a closer look at some of the people listed in this great catalogue of the faithful, both the well-known and the more obscure. We will be looking at some of the famous episodes referred to, but also some lesser known moments in their lives; moments of great faithfulness, but also moments of failure – not in order to point the finger at them, but to remind ourselves that they, just like us, are human too, and that God can move in all lives, and that even more central than our variable human faith is the forever faithful One in whom we are called to place our trust.
Questions to Consider
Who are the great biblical figures of faith for you? Who stands out? Why?
Prayer
Gracious God, I thank you for those who came before me, those around me, and those who will come after. Teach me through the lives of others; give the wisdom to see what you are saying to me though others. Amen.
Conclude with Silence (2 minutes)
Day 4 – The Real Hero
Silence, Stillness and Centering before God (2 minutes)
Scripture Reading – Hebrews 11:3
Some of them seem like giants, others less so; some seem almost angelic in their rectitude, others more like cunning rascals always pushing – and perhaps breaking – boundaries. Even the ‘perfect’ ones were not perfect. Even those who showcased great moments of faith, precarious moments of trust in God, fell down at other times. We will see that they are, all of them, human. As heroic as they are, they are still human, and to look to them for the ultimate in heroic faithfulness is to ever so slightly miss the point, to fail to look up and take just one more step...
Because the real hero of the story – of every story – is God. He is the one who loves, creates, redeems and calls. He is the one who promises, and makes good on those promises. As good as we humans can be and as faithful as we sometimes are, our goodness and faithfulness are only faint images of his, and are only possible because of his presence in us, transforming us into his likeness – increasing our capacity for such goodness and faithfulness, for such faith. It is all, and only, possible through him. As much as these stories are about people of great faith, who trusted God against all the odds that seemed stacked against them – and against God’s plan – all of these faithful triumphs point back to the God who promises and who makes good on those promises; the One who called a people, made promises to those people and who delivered on those promises, and ultimately did so in the person of Jesus, the One who is God’s promised “Yes!” to us all.
Question to Consider
How is God the real hero of your faith journey?
Prayer
Loving Father, I praise and bless your name for your goodness to me and to our world. Thank you for all you have shown me and taught me, and all that I have yet to learn. May I be attentive and willing. Amen.
Conclude with Silence (2 minutes)
Day 5 – Waiting in Hope
Silence, Stillness and Centering before God (2 minutes)
Scripture Reading – Mark 9:17-27
Like the father in this story, all of us are waiting for something, are hoping for something, a sign, an answer, strength for something that seems utterly beyond us as we are now. We all, at some point, about something, struggle with the possibility of maintaining faith in God and his promises. We find it hard to trust, whether about things big or small or both. Faith is not always easy, is not always comforting. Whatever season we are in, we look to the God revealed in scripture, to his dealings with others in similar circumstances, to remind ourselves of his goodness, to remind ourselves again of the solidarity found in the community of his followers. As we read about these people of great faith, we can look for echoes of our own struggles, our own triumphs, and the presence of the same faithful God with us as with them.
Whether you are standing expectantly, confidently hopeful that God’s good answer to all you seek is waiting just around the corner, or whether you are desperately hanging on by your bloodied fingernails, unsure if God is even aware that you are about to fall and need to be caught, over the next few weeks read these accounts of others in similar situations with an open heart, prayerfully seeking God’s word to you and your community. Pray that your faith might be strengthened; pray that others would strengthen you as you strengthen them. Pray for a deeper encounter with God, and a greater understanding of what it means to live faithfully and faith-filled. “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief.”
Questions to Consider
What are you waiting for? What are you longing for God to do?
Prayer
Almighty Lord, I wait for you to move, I wait for your miraculous power, I wait in hope that you will answer my prayer and move towards me and rescue me and redeem your child. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Conclude with Silence (2 minutes)