13: 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. 15 Through Him…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.
Chapter 13 of Hebrews is made up almost entirely of exhortations to perform various Christian duties…something you hear…what is expected of Christians…where is it outlined, how Christians are to conduct themselves.
…13:1 Show Hospitality to Strangers
…13:2 sympathy for Christians in prison
…13:3 fidelity in the marriage relation
…13:4 being content…nothing to do with the love of money
…13:5-6 submission to those in authority
…13:7-8 stability in the doctrines of religion
…13:9-15 superiority of the new Covenant
…13:16 obedience to those entrusted with office
After identifying these exhortations he adds a warning: do not be misled by diverse and strange teachings…keep these exhortations…don’t let anyone re-define or add a new meaning to them…as Christians we should have fixed points of belief…like the Apostle’s Creed…that is the standard for our beliefs.
The concern is not to yield to every opinion that comes along…abandoning what they have previously believed…or…hanging on to an opinion merely because we’ve always believed that way…or it’s an old opinion so it must be valid.
The exhortation is that Christians who believe in doctrinal truths as scriptural should not abandon those truths because of new information.
There is never a shortage of various and strange doctrines in the church that are masked by the idea that we’re more progressive now than those in the early church were…we need to be more flexible and accommodating because God would want it that way.
But really only a little more than one generation had passed before the church began to be inundated with false teachers who started perverting the truth.
It was causing serious trouble for those early Christians…they were being warned not to listen to those who were trying to steer them away from the true doctrines of God.
They were uninspired people who would have them believe new truths in regard to what the Apostles had been teaching them…in essence adding new “rules” by adding refinements to the Bible based off of faulty interpretations.
Be cautious of rules that do not originate with God…were never taught by God…nor can be found in the word of God…but are the result of human traditions and ideas.
Wherefore the author of Hebrews exhorts them not to be drawn in by their seemingly sound doctrines…examples of actual church beliefs that on the surface appear biblically sound until you look closer at what they’re suggesting.
We believe that the pattern of the New Testament church was to observe the Lord’s Supper each week. (Acts 20:7)
That each believer should give a generous gift of their income to God…We believe that the tithe (one-tenth) is the standard by which Christians determine if they are giving generously. (Malachi 3:10; 1 Corinthians 16:2; 2 Corinthians 9:6-7).
With respect to giving…tithing in regard to money is not even mentioned in the New Testament…the only place tithing is mentioned in the entire N.T. is in the book of Matthew where Jesus is using it as a way to condemn the religious leaders for the hypocrisy of their lifestyle…following every law to the letter, but neglecting the more important matters of mercy and faithfulness…has nothing to do with giving.
I’ve already read it to you…here’s what Scripture says about giving:
16 And do not forget to do good and to share with others,
There’s no mention of money…tithing…nothing about 10% of your income… it’s doing good and sharing with others…when you give money to the church it’s not the amount…it’s the idea that you’re sharing and doing good for others.
Then there’s the Church that believes God continues to reveal truths through members they claim are prophets…changing what the Bible says regarding certain issues…this begs the question… “If my understanding of belief ‘x’ has changed, how do I know that belief ‘y’ won’t change sometime in the future as well?”
In the ever-changing cultural trends of today the church needs to proclaim the eternal relevance and applicability of the Word of God…people may believe or disbelieve the Bible…but no one has the authority to change it…it is fixed…the Word of God was settled forever in heaven. This is profoundly essential.
In reference to our friends the Mormons…God wrote a Book—just one Book— in it He was able to say everything He wanted to say…He didn’t need to write a second book…no such thing as this in addition to that.
Private, subjective interpretations of the Bible effectively deny the sufficiency of God’s inspired Word… it presumes that there is more we need to know than what God has placed in Scripture…in the end, this anti-intellectual search for truth leads to chaos…disappointment…despair…and apostasy.
Notice that just before he warns us regarding being carried away by all kinds of strange teachings, he writes about something we talked about last week … ‘Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever.’
There’s a logical train of thought here…after he makes the statement regarding Jesus’ sustaining character…he instructs them to not be carried away by strange teachings…then immediately goes into a discussion regarding food.
What’s that all about?…Probably referring to the Judaizers and their teaching.
Know who these guys were…they were bad news…Judaizers were a group of Jewish Christians who insisted that Christians should follow the Mosaic Law regarding ceremonial observances and traditions…and that Gentile converts to Christianity must first be circumcised…these guys were a disruption.
The eating of foods was a big deal in the early church for two reasons:
1) the issue for these Christians is should I eat meat that has been offered as a sacrifice to foreign gods…you go to a friend’s house and just before you eat he tells you ‘you’re eating meat I had sacrificed to a foreign god.’
Here’s what Paul told them…it’s not food that brings us near to God…we are no worse if we do not eat, and no better if we do [1 Cor. 8:8] …it’s not an issue because idols don’t exist…BUT…if it’s going to offend another Christian who sees you eating it…then don’t eat it.
Just because we have the right to do something, does not make it right if it is going to offend…example drinking beer…know preachers who will not drink in public because of the harm it could do to a person who is struggling with alcohol…even though nothing in the Bible prohibits the drinking of beer.
The general rule for any Christian is…if it’s going to offend another Christian who sees you doing it…then don’t do it.
2) the mentioning of foods is probably in reference to returning to Mosaic ceremonies and laws that have been abolished…the mention of food is just an example…let me share with you how this works.
Today there is confusion over the issues of law and grace and the place the Mosaic law has in the life of a New Testament believer with some churches suggesting we return to those laws.
The Old Testament priests came from the tribe of Levi…if you weren’t from the tribe of Levi you couldn’t be a priest…these human priests from the tribe of Levi offered daily sacrifices for the sins of the people and for themselves because as a man they were also sinners and must offer up sacrifices for themselves as well.
But Jesus was from the tribe of Judah…so technically He couldn’t be a priest…
So how is it that Jesus is referred to as the High Priest?
Without getting really deep in this let me simplify this…God promised that the Messianic king would be a priest forever…Jesus is the ultimate priest because He offered the perfect sacrifice—Himself…because He was sinless, He is the perfect and eternal high priest.
He is the ultimate priest because by His death He ratified a new covenant…what that means is the priesthood of Aaron and the Mosaic law are no longer in force…Christians no longer live under the old covenant.
Here he’s warning these Roman Christians to beware of uninspired people… both Jews and Gentiles…whose teaching was detracting from the supreme sacrifice of Jesus.
Peter makes mention of these people [2 Peter 2:1-3]:
1But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign LORD who bought them…bringing swift destruction on themselves. 2Many will follow their depraved conduct and refusing to acknowledge the way of truth. 3In their greed these teachers will exploit you with fabricated stories.
The author gives a description of the believer’s position before God…God has done away with all earthly ordinances…sacrifices…and the ceremonies of the Mosaic law…as believers in Jesus our worship is spiritually through Jesus.
So instead of a morning and evening animal sacrifice Christians are called to offer to God a continual sacrifice…how?
15 Through Jesus…let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that openly profess his name.
BUT…isn’t it interesting how the Church has reverted back to the observance of ceremonial holidays:
Advent (begins) — The season before Christmas (December 1st through December 25th).
All Saints’ Day — Honoring all known and unknown saints within the Church.
All Soul’s Day — Remembrance of the faithful who have departed with prayer.
Ash Wednesday — The first day of Lent, the period of 40 days before Easter.
Christmas Eve — Day before Christmas. Preparations for the Christmas Day celebrations.
Christmas Day — Celebration of the birth of Jesus.
Palm Sunday — Last Sunday of Lent. It begins the Holy Week and commemorates Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem.
Maundy Thursday — Commemorates the Last Supper and falls on the Thursday before Easter.
Good Friday — Marks the day of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. This is the Friday before Easter.
Holy Saturday — Day before Easter. Time is spent anticipating the resurrection of Jesus.
Easter — Most important of the Christian festivals celebrating Jesus’ resurrection.
St. Stephen’s Day — Celebration of the first Christian martyr.
Week of Prayer for Christian Unity — Celebrates the feasts of St. Peter and St. Paul. Prayers to find unity in all things.
In addition…at the Council of Trent (1545–63), the Roman Catholic Church formally fixed seven sacraments…could be entitled…things to do…as signs of Jesus’ presence in our lives and a means of receiving his Grace.
I’d say the church has expanded the simple concept of …continually offering to God a sacrifice of praise…by the institution of these holidays.
But verse [15] is the KEY…through Him let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise…TWO THINGS:
1) the words—let us continually—is a good translation…this verse is saying if you want to offer a sacrifice to God…offer one of praise…in the Greek it is in the present tense meaning something done daily…not just on Sunday.
2) He says—through him—a reminder that all things are from Him…through Him…and to Him.
An easy to prepare Sunday School lesson…or a personal Bible study… look up the over 30 verses that deal with how everything in life is ‘through Him.’
Jn 1:3 [NIV reads “through Him”], Jn 1:7, John 1:10, Jn 3:17, Jn 14:6, Acts 2:22, 3:16, Acts 7:25, Acts 10:43, Acts 13:38, 39, Ro 5:9 [note], Ro 8:37 [note], Ro 11:36 [note]; 1Co 8:6, Ep 2:18 [note], Php 4:13 [note], Col 1:20 [note], Col 2:15 [note], Col 3:17 [note], Heb 7:25 [note], Heb 13:15 [note], 1Pe 1:21[note], 1John 4:9
For more study…the N.T. uses the parallel phrase through Jesus (or similar phrases – “through Whom”, “through our Lord”,
John 1:17, Acts 10:36, Ro 1:4, 5– note; Ro 1:8–note, Ro 2:16–note, Ro 5:1–note; Ro 5:2–note Ro 5:11–note, Ro 5:21–note, Ro 7:25–note, Ro 16:27–note, 1Cor 15:57, 2Cor 1:5, 3:4, 5:18, Gal 1:1, Eph 1:5–note, Php 1:11–note, 1Th 5:9–note; Titus 3:6–note, He 1:2–note; He 2:10–note, Heb 13:21–note, 1Pe 2:5–note, 1Pe 4:11–note, Jude 1:25)
If you are a believer in Christ, you are God’s priest…the sacrifice that you are to continually offer is—the fruit of your lips—our lips are to bring forth pleasing spiritually “fragrant” fruit…or they will bring “foul-smelling” unwholesome “fruit” [Ep 4:29]…what kind of fruit did your lips produce this week?
But…he’s not just suggesting praising God in what we say…the fruit of lips that openly profess his name…ties everything together…lip service must be accompanied by life service…our praise and sacrifice ought to be done out of gratitude…obedience…worship…and by doing good for others.
The fruit God seeks in human beings is expressed in righteous and loving acts as outlined in this last chapter of Hebrews…acts that bring peace and harmony to each other and to society…summed up in verse 16.
16 …for with such sacrifices God is pleased
Praise that pleases God is the fruit of our lips…not just our thoughts…worship which truly pleases God doesn’t center on rituals…or doing things…genuine worship is authenticated not in words but on a relationship with and through Jesus…that is God pleasing worship.