Hebrews 13:1-25 | A Word of Exhortation Pt. 1

Brotherly Love as the First Exhortation in Hebrews 13

If you have your Bibles, please turn with me to Hebrews chapter 13. Again it is a blessing for me to stand before you today to proclaim to you the Word of God. As we enter into Hebrews chapter 13, we will be considering verses 1 through 25, but this will be the first part, part one of Hebrews 13, 1 through 25.

And today we will look at the first six verses. Let's pray. Glorious God in heaven, we your people gather together to hear from you. I did not come here to just hear my own thoughts, Lord, and your people has not gathered together today to hear my opinion.

I pray now like I have throughout the week that you are with me as I, you are with me through my study and you will be with me now, Lord. And I pray that what I present to your people, it's faithful and true to what you have revealed to us in scripture.

In Christ's name, I pray.

Amen.

All right, our theme for this Lord's day and for the next couple of weeks is a word of exhortation, a word of exhortation. What the writer is doing is he is urging his listeners to action. He has up until this point presented doctrine and now he gives a strong exhortation.

Since this doctrine is true, this is how you are now to live your life and walk. And you and I, if we are Christians, we will do well to listen to what the writer is urging them, his listeners, as well as us to do.

And the first thing we were told to do is love our brothers. We see this in verse 1, Hebrews chapter 13, verse 1, let brotherly love continue. Now, I know this isn't a shock, especially if you're on social media, that we as Christians, this is not something we see being done, right?

This seems like an easy thing to do, but in fact, it's the biggest failure of the church.

Today.

Love One Another as Christ Loved Us

And the gospel of John, chapter 13, verses 13 through 35, I'll go ahead and read that. I mean, 13, 34 and 35 says this, this is Jesus speaking, he says, a new commandment I give to you, that you, speaking to his disciples, love one another just as I have loved you.

So how are we to love one another? Just as he has loved us. You also are to love one another. By this, all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another. The love that is to be expressed here in verse 35 is specifically speaking about believers, loving believers.

How is the world going to know us, separated from all other tribes, if we are not loving? The way that we love is supposed to be an expression of the way that we are loved by Christ. The way that Christ loved us, we are to extend that love to our brothers.

And this is evident by verse 35, by this, by what, love, by love, all people will know that you are my disciples, if, there's a clause there, you have love for one another. And tragically, there's a reason behind the New Testament and the letters, because most of them all deal with this one thing, loving your brothers.

The dividing wall between Christianity at this time was Jewish Christians and Gentile Christians, which Jesus Christ destroyed the wall of hostility. We see this in Ephesians chapter 2, verses 11 through 16.

Paul reminds them, because in chapter 2, chapter 1, he goes through their predestination. Chapter 2, he reminds them where they were and how they got to where they are in Christ. And in verse 3, he explains, therefore, remember that you at one time, you Gentiles in the flesh, called the uncircumcision by what is called the circumcision.

So the Jews who were the circumcised called the Gentiles the uncircumcised. Those, the Jews considered themselves, those that were under the law, the uncircumcised were sinners. And remember, as we walk through Galatians, the separation and how Jesus approaches, Paul approaches this separation, and then he puts them both together and he says, now, all of y 'all are sinners.

We're all in the same boat. We all need Christ. He says, which is called circumcision, which is made in the flesh by hands. So what is made in the flesh by hands? Circumcision. Remember that you were at one time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope without God in this.

World.

But now in Christ Jesus, you who were once far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For he himself is our peace who has made us both one. So he's making, because of what he's did, he's made both Jew and Gentile one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in the ordinances that he might create in himself one new man in place of.

The two.

So making peace that he might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility. No longer was there to be Jew versus Gentile, but it was to be Christians. And yet we see in Scripture that there were Jewish Christians and there were Gentile Christians,.

Separated.

The letter is like he has broken down the wall of hostility. Stop separating yourselves. We are one. This wall of hostility in the old covenant, which is what he is speaking of, the wall of hostility today is a wall that we as individuals build up around our theology.

Right?

My theology is better than your theology. I mean, it is, but you know, whatever. If it like, like we kind of have this idea, if you don't think like I think, well, you must not have the spirit of God.

So therefore you're not my brother. And because you're not my brother, I don't have to love you. First John would say that if we have this attitude towards our brothers, towards those that are in Christ, we are walking in darkness, living in sin.

Our prayers are not being heard. How's the world going to know we are Christians if we don't love those who disagree with us on certain points, right? Like we want to talk about Calvinism and stuff like that.

Look, well and good. Well and good. But if you hate your brother, you're walking in darkness. And it says, let brotherly love continue. So the context I would say for this, it's speaking to Christians, Christians who are struggling to love one another.

So he's speaking to Hebrew Christians.

And we know that this dividing wall is still standing between Gentiles. But specifically when he says, let brotherly love continue, I believe he's speaking about the Jew who has not received Christ. How are you going to love the Jew who has not received Christ if you're not loving those who are in the church?

How are we going to love the lost if we're not loving those in Christ? That's probably why we don't see a great evangelistic work today. That's why we're not seeing some kind of a great awakening take place.

It's because there's these dividing walls of hostility that we build around our theology. If you don't believe like I do, you're not a spirit of God, you're not a brother, therefore.

I don't have to love you.

Ladies and gentlemen, if we have that attitude, we're walking in darkness. How are we to love the lost? And at this time, the lost would have been the Jews, specifically to the Jewish Christians. This would have been their closest neighbor outside their church.

Hospitality, Prisoners, and Compassion for the Body

Look at verse two. Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unaware. At this time, which is much different than the time that we are in now, Jews would travel to Jerusalem for the feast days throughout the year.

So however many feast days that they had throughout the year, the Jews that were in the Roman Providence, the Orkumene, whenever a feast day would come, they would have to travel to Jerusalem to be a part of the feast days.

And Christians at this time would welcome the Jews who were traveling into their house as a way of witnessing the gospel to them. Let brotherly love continue. This was what he was speaking about when he says, let brotherly love continue.

Continue to invite the Jews into your home as they're traveling to Jerusalem for the feast day. And they were to be a witness to them in the gospel by way of word, Jesus is the Christ, and by way of deed, hospitality.

The writer is encouraging them to practice this, even go so far as to say that they could be entertaining angels. Several times in scriptures we see angels show up, particularly in the Old Testament and the New Testament, we see angels come into the earth and they're having dealings with men.

The first two chapters of this book deals with the supremacy and the sufficiency of Jesus Christ over the angels. And in chapter 12 we saw last week that we have come to Mount Zion, and by doing so we have come to the festival gathering of angels.

And now he is telling us, he's telling them, he's telling us to take every opportunity to witness, for by which we could be entertaining angels. Yesterday, I witnessed that young lady, witnessed the gospel, she could have been an angel.

I could have missed my chance to witness to her, right? We don't know what we don't know, right? We need to take every opportunity given to us to share what God has done for us in Christ. Them, it would have been the Jews at that time, us now, it's not just the Jews, but it's everyone.

Our closest neighbor outside of our church, right now, as we're planted in Tallahoma, I live in Tallahoma, Lynchburg, like we're just right wherever it is that you live, we need to, every opportunity we get to share the gospel, we need to do so.

Being hospitable and being someone who is approachable is a good way to have opportunity.

To share your faith.

Now, this is something that's been a problem in my life, mostly because of the way I look,.

Right?

I don't look like I'm approachable, you know, beard, tattoos, you know, I don't look approachable. I don't want to present that to people. I don't want, when people see me, I don't want them to think that they can't come and talk to me, so it's something that I struggle with.

Look at verse three. Verse three, remember those who are in prison as though in prison with them, and those who are mistreated since you also are in the body. The third exhortation is perfectly placed.

So the first exhortation, brotherly love, love the brothers. Second exhortation, be hospitable, share your faith. And at this time, we're going to kind of go back and look at it. At this time, sharing your faith was very dangerous, especially with the Jews.

They're told to share their, to love the Jews, share your faith with the Jews, but at this time it was very dangerous to do so because they were being betrayed by the Jews, and they were turning on them and having them put in prison.

So they were letting, they were told to love them when they travel into town, bring them into your home, preach to them the gospel, let them see your deeds. The Jews would leave their house, turn them into the Pharisees, the Pharisees would have them arrested, put into prison.

But yet he's telling them to continue to do this, even though that happens. You could be entertaining angels. Pretty hard stuff, right? We have no idea. And a good way to show your love to your brothers, so it's talking about again, showing love to your brothers, so right here we'll be speaking of Christian brothers, would be to provide for their needs.

So if your Christian brother who was supposed to be loving the Jews, and as they travel into town, was betrayed and was put into prison, a good way of loving them was to provide for.

Them.

Even taking risk of you getting put into prison for providing for them. How would you provide for them? Well, at prisons at this time, they did not feed you, and they did not clothe you. So if your brother's in prison, you would have to bring him clothing.

You would have to bring him food, and by doing so, you're taking a risk of being known of as a Christian and being put in prison, which then you would need food and clothing. Also they would have a family.

So you would need to provide for their wife and kids. And it says to remember those who are in prison, as though in prison yourself with them, and those who are being mistreated, since you also are in the body.

We are to be a body of Jesus Christ. Hebrews chapter 10, we kind of looked at this already, but this is an exhortation. Because this is true, this is true also. Chapter 10, 32 -34. It says, But recall the former days when, after you were enlightened, you endured hard struggles with suffering, sometimes being publicly exposed to reproach and affliction, and sometimes being partners with those so treated.

For you had had compassion on those in prison, and you joyfully accepted the plundering of your property, since you know that you yourself have a better possession, an abiding one. Speaking about our eternal home in Christ.

And so what the writer is, the exhortation is this, you have had compassion, now continue to have compassion. You are already doing this, continue to do this. Love your brother, witness to the Jews, and if they're put into prison, they're a part of your body, you need to take care of them, and you need to take care of their family, even if it means you being put into prison.

Again, remember, I said that this is a time unlike our time. But it might not be a time unlike our future, we don't know, but we as a church, we need, this is an exhortation to us. Look at verse four.

Again, I believe all these go together, and we'll tie them up in a bow later. Let marriage be held in honor among you. You had Christians being put into prison, you are to take care of the family, you're not to pursue their wife, you're not to pursue the husband of the one that is lost.

Let marriage be held in honor among you, among you all. Let the marriage bed be undefiled, for God will judge the sexual and moral and the adulterous. There seems to be three things taking place in the text of verse four.

We have biblical marriage, protecting the marriage bed, and judgment on those who dishonor these things. Now, of course, in our near context, it would be speaking of your brother that's in prison or your sister that's in prison, and you are not to pursue their house in that way.

You're to provide for them, but you're not to pursue, you're not to covet what they have in that way. But in another context, in the idea of marriage, we have what's called biblical marriage. A marriage is between one man and one woman.

Biblical Marriage, Sexual Purity, and the Marriage Bed

And even at this time, a lot of people really don't get in this, but the Jews were struggling with biblical marriage between one man and one woman. This is not something new for our day. It's not something new for our day.

Those who knew God and rejected Him ended up worshiping animals, and God gave them over to their debased mind. This is not something new for us. The Bible tells you what a biblical marriage is in Genesis 2, verses 20 through 25.

So, God had made man, in verse 20 we see God, the man gave names to all livestock, the birds of the heavens, the beast of the field, but Adam, who was the first man, there was not found a helper fit for him.

So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon him, fall upon the man while he slept, he took one of his ribs, closed its place with flesh, and the rib that the Lord had taken out from the man, he made into a woman and brought her to the man.

The man, then the man said, this at last is bone of my bone, flesh of my flesh. She shall be called woman, you get it, woman, woman, because she was taken out of man, woman, right? Like it's very simple.

Even a kid can understand it. Therefore, a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife and they shall become one flesh, the two shall become one. The man and his wife were both naked and were not ashamed.

Now this is not only true for the Christian, this should also be true for the non-Christian, the ones who have not been married under a Christian marriage, that wedding, that Christian wedding, that marriage is to be held in honor.

We are not to pursue someone else's husband, someone else's wife. Marriage is to be held in honor. Marriage was given to us by God to where a man and a woman can enjoy the company of one another without shame and without diseases.

A good way to understand sexually transmitted diseases is that they're not staying committed to one person. You're putting yourself out there whether male or female, you're not living a life that's not unashamed but shamed and you could be receiving sexually transmitted diseases.

And although unbelievers may be given to do such things, the Christian is not to do so. Again, I kind of alluded to it a second ago, but if you look at Romans chapter 1, Romans chapter 1, we'll read verses 18 through 28, and you see what happens whenever we, you know, we shake our fist at God thinking we know better.

Verse 18, for the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and the unrighteousness of man who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known by God is plain to them because God has shown it to them for his invisible attributes, namely his eternal power and his divine nature, have been clearly perceived ever since the creation of the world in the things that have been made.

So they are without excuse. That takes us back to Hebrews chapter 11, right? The things that are made is the evidence of the Creator. The created things point back to someone creating them. God has given us everything we need to know to understand that there is a Creator.

Shake your fist at this, deny this, and we see what happens. Verse 21, for although they knew God, they know there's a Creator, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him because they become futile in their thinking and their foolish hearts were darkened.

Claiming to be wise, they become fools and exchange the glory of the immortal God for images resembling birds, man, mortal man, birds, and animals, and creepy things. If you read Psalm 105, this is speaking of the Jew.

We see this taking place in Exodus. They worshiped a cow. Therefore, God gave them up to the lust of their hearts, to the impurity, to dishonor their bodies among themselves because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, which is blessed forever, amen.

For this reason, God gave them up to the dishonorable passions for their women exchanged natural relation for those that are contrary to nature, women and women, and men likewise gave up natural relations with women who were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty of their error.

And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done. Marriage is to be held in honor and it is done by one man and one woman. Now the context that we're looking at here in Romans, it seems to be speaking of the Gentile, right?

When you look at verse two of chapter one, it says, therefore, you have no excuse, O man, every one of you who judges for impassioned judgment on another, you condemn yourself because you, the judge, practice the same thing.

The rebuke is to the Jew. The Jew is over saying, yeah, them nasty Gentiles, they're, they're, you know, they're, they're men and men, women and women, you know, they know that there's a God because of creation.

We are, we know that there's a God, we're your people, Lord, we're your people. And he's saying, you did the same things. Because the, because although he's saying these things, if you follow the cross references, the only people that it's talking about is the Jews.

The Jews were struggling with same sex attraction and, and going outside the marriage bed. He says, you did the same things. Marriage is to be held in honor, one man and one woman. The second portion is talking about the protecting of the marriage, but protecting the marriage.

Bed.

Again, we got to go to verse four, let marriage be held in honor. Let the marriage bed be undefiled. The question is, is how is the marriage bed undefiled? The answer is in two ways, again, sex outside of marriage and same sex marriage.

The two things defile, these two things defile the marriage bed. We live in a society to where these two things are normal. And if you hold to traditional biblical marriage, you are seen as weird, right?

Hallelujah, am I the only one like, all right, you're seen as a Bible thumper and a homophobe. And I don't know about you, but when someone has a phobia of something, that means they're scared of something, right?

If you are, if you have arachnophobia, that means you're scared of what? Scared of spiders, right? If you are claustrophobic, what does that mean? So if you're homophobic, does that mean that we're scared of homosexuals?

Well that's what that means, right? That's not what we are. We love all people, love them so much we're willing to be looked at as different and calling them to tell them what God has done for us. We do not have to fall and live in our sins.

God has redeemed us. He has put an end to sin. The day of atonement, he has done away with it. He has done what we could not do. He has kept the law. We in love are reaching out to them. I have never, not one time, had a witness in conversation with a homosexual to where they walked away not knowing that I love them and actually not being grateful that I was willing to tell them.

It's the way that I've done it, the manner that I've done it, because I don't hate them. I don't. This is also dealing with sex with self, right? Pornography is one of the worst things that has hit us.

What our fathers looked at in magazines, we saw on film, and if it keeps developing, there'll be some kind of virtual reality for our children to walk in. And by doing so, it's defiling the marriage bed.

And one way, listen, one way that we can protect the marriage bed as Christians is to be a witness against the world by living the word of God in our marriage. One man, one woman, right? Go back to Hebrews chapter 11, look at verse 7, speaking of Noah, Noah, it says, By faith Noah being warned by God concerning events as yet unseen, in reverent fear, constructed an ark for the saving of his household.

By this he condemned the world and became an heir of righteousness that comes by faith. We saw Peter says that he was a herald of righteousness. Matthew 24 tells us that no one knew what was going to happen until it happened.

And so it was the idea that Noah living his life in faith, constructing the ark, was a witness against the world. You and I as Christians are living our life in faith. In biblical marriage, one man and one woman is a witness against the world.

By continuing to believe and trust Christ, living in faith, doing what the Bible calls us to do, one man, one woman, that this is a witness against the world, and it is one that will rise up in judgment against them on the last day.

Judgment, Sexual Immorality, and the Body of Christ

Look at the third one.

Speaking of the judgment. And judgment on those who dishonor these things. Again, verse 4, Let marriage be held in honor among all, and let the marriage bed be undefiled, for God will judge the sexual and moral and the adulterous.

So this portion is speaking about this last portion, it says, for God will judge the sexual and moral and the adulterous. You go, you know, your brother's in prison, your sister's in prison, and at that time if they would go and try to provide for the needs, but in doing so, covetousness would take place, adulterous would take place, you're chasing after the wife.

He's saying, God is going to judge you. He's going to judge you.

You say, oh, but they're Christians.

I don't care if God's going to judge them.

He's going to judge them.

You and I, today, if that's our attitude in life, God is going to judge us. If we, if our, if our selfish, if our motive to help the brother is to pursue their husband or wife, God is going to judge us.

Now I'm not saying you're going to go to hell, but it's a judgment that I don't want to undergo. We need to remember that all other sins are outside of the body. You know, when you steal, whatever it is, all other sins are outside of the body, but sexual immorality is done to the body.

If you yoke yourself with a prostitute, the Bible says you are one with the prostitute, same way that Adam was one with Eve. If you go to a prostitute, the Bible says you are one, the same way that Adam was one with Eve, you are one with the prostitute.

And if you are in Christ, you are a part of the body of Christ. We are one with Christ. And if that is true, sexual immorality not only harms your physical body, you being one with the prostitute, but you're harming the body of Christ.

You're not just hurting yourself, you're hurting the body, right? If you're not praying like you ought or living like you ought, you're a hand to the body that's numb. It doesn't work. The brain functions for the fingers to move, but you're not moving because you're living in sin.

The Bible calls us to flee from sin, especially that sin because it's one that you're doing.

To the body.

Contentment, God’s Promise, and Faith in Christ

Verse five, keep yourself free from the love of money and be content with what you have. For he has said, I will never leave you nor forsake you. These two go together, the love of sex and the love of money are in fact the fastest.

Way to lose yourself.

The two of them, in and of themselves, sex and money are not bad, right?

Right?

They're not. If you're married, do what you do, right? Husband and wife, do what you do. No, go any further, right? You have a job, you're working to make a living, but sex and money, what they do is they expose.

Our evil.

Sex and money are the two things that show us how evil we are because we're not using them the way God gave them to us. Sex is good in bonds of marriage between one man and one woman. Money is good inside of the bonds of working, earning a living, and providing for your family.

But if your heart is bent toward money, now listen to how this correlates together. If your heart is bent towards money, then you will not love your brothers who has been put into prison because you are called to love one another.

The love that you have for your money is greater than the love that you'll have for your brother to help him with his, at this time, food and clothing and the need for his home. If your eyes are dollar signs, you will not risk losing your money to care for your brothers.

Again, God is not against you making money. But He is against you putting money before your brothers and most of all before Him. And this is what God really wants, even if you have money. I don't care how rich you are, this is what He wants for you, for you to have your dependence.

On Him.

It doesn't matter how much money you've got, He wants your dependence to be upon Him and not what you have, right? Even your relationships, your financial stability, whatever it is that you have, He wants your dependence to be upon Him.

Let's look again at that verse, keep your life free from the love of money and be content with what you have for He who said, I will never leave you nor forsake you. So focusing in on I will never leave you or forsake you, this is a quotation from Joshua 1, verse 5, and I'll read that real quick, it says, no man shall be able to stand before you, this is God speaking to Joshua, all the days of your life, just as I was with Moses, so I will be with you, I will not leave you or forsake you.

In Christ, you and I have the promise that was given to Moses and Joshua. God is with us, He will not leave us, and He will not forsake us. That's what this scripture says. He's reminding us, don't depend on money.

You have the promise given to Joshua, I will not leave you. Just as I was with Moses, I'm going to be with you, I will not leave you and I will not forsake you. If you're a Christian, that's a promise that you can hold on to.

God will not leave me, God will not forsake me, because I'm a Christian, He has given.

Me that promise.

And our dependency should not be on ourselves, and it should not be to please our own desires. It should not be on ourselves in the function of money, and it should not be on our pleasing our desires in the forms of some kind of sexual gratification.

But our dependence should be on God, and on living a life pleasing to Him. So you ask, how do you please God? We've walked through this, it's faith, faith is how you please God. Hebrews 11, 6, without faith it's impossible to please God.

Faith in what? Faith in Christ. Faith in Jesus Christ. Trusting and believing in the redemption that God has set forth through the promise of sending someone, the Messiah, to live the life that we couldn't live, and to take our punishment.

Faith in that is how you please God. Look at verse 6. So we can confidently say, those who are living, pleasing God in faith, this is what you can say, so we can confidently say, the Lord is my helper.

I will not fear what can man do to me. You will sometimes hear me say this. I usually say it in like three ways, right? Sometimes I hear me say, the same gospel which you believed and are justified is the same gospel by which you are sanctified.

The gospel that you believe that justifies you is the same gospel that you believe that sanctifies you. That not only does God faith us, gives us faith to believe, but God gives us faith to.

Live for Him.

Right?

How does He do that? Because the same gospel that saves us is the same gospel that sanctifies us. Not only does He give us faith to believe, but He gives us faith to live for Him. That's the sanctification part of it.

Not only does God faith us, but He repents us. And this is done for His glory. That's why it says, the Lord is my helper. I will not fear what can man do to me. This also is a quotation, it's from Psalm 118 .6.

And as we're closing, I felt it necessary to read all of this Psalm. I think there's a, probably has, I don't know, I've probably read it 10 times this week. It's definitely become dear and near to me.

Psalm 118. Listen to this. Let Israel say, his steadfast love endures forever. Let the house of Aaron say, his steadfast love endures forever. Let those who fear the Lord say, his steadfast love endures forever.

Out of my distress, I called on the Lord and the Lord answered me and set me free. The Lord is on my side. I will not fear what can man do to me. The Lord is on my side as my helper. I shall not look and triumph over those who hate me.

It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in men. It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in princes. All nations surround me. In the name of the Lord, I cut them off. They surround me, surround me on every side.

And in the name of the Lord, I cut them off. They surround me like bees. They went out like the fire of thorns. In the name of the Lord, I cut them off. I was pushed hard so that I was falling, but the Lord helped me.

The Lord is my strength and my song. He has become my salvation. Glad songs of salvation are in the tents of the righteous. The right hand of the Lord does violently, violently, violently, excuse me, it's a hard word for me.

The right hand of the Lord exalts. The right hand of the Lord is violently. I shall not die, but I shall live and recount the deeds of the Lord. The Lord has disciplined me. Chapter 12, the Lord has disciplined me severely, but he has not given me over to death.

He has opened to me the gates of the righteous that I may enter through them and give thanks to the Lord. This is the gate of the Lord. The righteous shall enter through it. Listen to the gate. I thank you that you have answered me and become my salvation.

The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. This is the Lord's doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes. This is the day of the Lord. The day of the Lord has made. Let us rejoice and be glad in it.

Save us, we pray, oh Lord, oh Lord, we pray. Give us success. Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. We bless you from the house of the Lord. The Lord is God. He has made his light to shine upon us.