FBC Morning Light – October 4, 2022

Well, good Tuesday morning to you.

How's your October going?

Got off to a good start I trust.

And again, here we are in the last quarter of the year, last eighth

of our Bible reading chart.

And today we're reading in Hebrews chapter 13.

And these few verses that begin that chapter, they really stand in stark contrast

to the culture in which we live.

We're exhorted to behave in certain ways that are quite contrary

to the emphases of our culture.

For example, we live in a culture that tells us to love ourselves, to have all

of our focus, the bulk of our attention, first and foremost, on ourselves.

And in the face of that culture, verse one says, let brotherly love continue.

We live in a culture that is marked by selfishness and rugged individualism.

And yet, verse two says, do not forget to entertain strangers.

For some, by doing so, have unwittingly entertained angels.

That means express hospitality, show hospitality to others.

You live in a culture that is selfish and focuses on

individualism.

We're not inclined to be hospitable to people that are not our

very close friends.

And then our culture is a culture of injustice and violence.

And yet, verse three says, remember the prisoners as if chained with them,

those that are mistreated, since you yourselves are in the body also.

So we need to, in contrast to our culture of withholding, we need to with

all of its fascination with violence and the injustice that's

really rampant in our day, we are to show sympathy to those who

are oppressed and those who are wrongly treated.

And that's what verse three is really talking about.

He's not so much focusing on prisoners that are

suffering for crimes that they've committed, but more prisoners that are suffering for the faith,

prisoners that are oppressed and are there because of injustice.

So then in verse four, we live in a culture that, as you well know,

is marked by rampant wholesale immorality.

And it's becoming an anything goes.

Right now it's an almost anything goes, but it's becoming an almost anything goes

culture when it comes to sexuality and morality.

But in contrast to that, the writer of Hebrews tells us that marriage is honorable and all, and

to bed undefiled, but fornicators and adulterers, God will judge.

And so we need to maintain moral purity in the face of the

culture in which we live.

And then we also live in a culture that is marked by materialism and

just a desire to acquire more.

One of the really disgusting YouTube commercials that I see

from time to time is one, I think it's for a thing called Instacart.

I haven't paid that much attention to it.

I delete it as soon as I, I click past that ad as soon as I possibly can.

But it shows this person, this woman kind of soaking

in a bubble bath with her phone and she's able to just click and

get stuff and it kind of just drops out of the air.

And it's the whole point of the ad is you can get whatever you want, whenever you want it with this thing,

with this app.

I think it's an app called Instacart.

The most ridiculous thing I've ever seen.

Just promulgating the whole notion of materialism and consumerism.

Well, in the face of that, the writer of Hebrews says, let your conduct be without

covetousness and be content with such things as you have.

Be content with what you have.

We don't live in a culture that encourages contentment.

In fact, we live in a culture that encourages just the opposite, encourages discontentment.

Because the only way that a consumer economy can thrive is if people

just keep buying and buying and buying and buying and buying.

Keep getting more and more and more and more stuff.

Well, you see how these opening verses are just really

challenging us to live counter -culturally?

Really when you get right down to it, that's the Christian life, isn't it?

The Christian life is a counter -cultural way of living.

And these are just a few examples of that very thing.

So as you go through the course of your day today, let's think and ask ourselves,

am I being seduced by the culture or am I standing against the culture?

Am I counter -cultural?

I hope we'll be counter -cultural in this day and age in which we live.

So our Father and our God, we thank you for this challenge today because truly,

truly we live in a culture that is no friend to your word and no friend to the biblical

principles.

Help us, Lord, to live faithfully before you.

We pray in Jesus' name.

Amen.

All right.

Well, have a good rest of your Tuesday.

I hope the Lord will bless you in it.

Good day.