SUNDAY SOUNDS OF PRAISE-Hallelujah-Leonard Cohen

A Study in Esther Week 1

 (Get your Bible out and read the verses as we study ) 

The book of Esther has had its share of controversy. Some have said it does not belong in the Bible because it does not even mention the name of God. Others have used several of the “events” recorded in Esther to “prove” that God was at work.

The real reasons for the book of Esther being canonized are:

1) It reinforces the continuum that the rest of the Bible demonstrates.

2) If Haman had annihilated the Jews as he wanted to, the lineage of Messiah from God’s chosen people would have been interrupted and we would have had no Jesus Christ. Esther is the record of how that lineage was preserved by God.

The book of Esther MUST be read as a narrative. It is totally inappropriate to take a passage here and a passage there from Esther and apply it to our very dissimilar circumstances. Esther is a true story, in the end, about willingness to give one's life for God's cause.

The purpose of Esther is to demonstrate faithfulness to God in all circumstances. It is a post-exile story about Jews who stayed behind after most returned to Jerusalem after captivity. Babylon was conquered by Persia. Esther, because of her attractiveness to king Xerxes, becomes the queen of the land, and, by her selflessness, saves her people.

•    In chapter 1-2, Esther becomes the queen to Ahasuerus (Xerxes) of Persia. She was personally chosen by the King. “The king loved Esther more than all the women, and she found favor and kindness with him” (2:17), probably because of her beauty and intelligence.

•    Chapters 3-4, Mordecai (Esther’s guardian) refused to bow down and pay homage to Haman a high official of the king. Haman becomes infuriated and plots to destroy all the Jews in the kingdom because of his pride. Mordecai hears of the plot and reports it to his Esther. “For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place and you and your father’s house will perish. And who knows whether you have not attained royalty for such a time as this?” (4:14).

Often the phrase “for such a time as this” is used to try to inspire a person to rise above his circumstances. That might be a good catch-phrase but it does not refer to doing better. Nor does it support the idea that God has chosen you for a task relevant to today’s world. He might have, but such a thing is not indicated by this verse.

What Esther did was to place her life on the line to save her people.

The importance of laying down a life for God’s people should not be lost. It was through God’s people that the Christ, who would lay down his life for sin, came. He died for His people and for any who would repent of sin and turn to Him in faith, trusting in, and only in, His finished work at the cross of Calvary.

Furthermore, it was Christ who said, “…and anyone who does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” (Matthew 10:38-39), and “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it.” (Luke 9:23-24)

Esther said “…if I perish, I perish.” (Esther 4:16).

So the question today is not whether you have been chosen for some special purpose at this particular time. The question is whether you are willing to lay down your life for the cause of Christ. Will you stand up for Him in any circumstance, even if it costs you everything? 

That’s what God did for you.

A Study of Esther Session - 02

Here is an outline and brief commentary of Esther

I. Esther Replaces Vashti (1:1–2:18)

A. Vashti’s Insubordination (1:1–22) - Vashti was Xerxes' wife. She refused to appear at a banquet given by Xerxes and he became enraged. He banished her from his presence.

B. Esther’s Coronation (2:1–18) - King Exerxes was smitten with the Jewish girl, Esther and, at the urging of his advisers, put her in Vashti's former place as his wife and queen. She never told Xerxes that she was a Jew.

II. Mordecai Overcomes Haman (2:19–7:10)

A. Mordecai’s Loyalty (2:19–23) - Mordecai, of the House of Benjamin, who had brought up Esther, was loyal to Queen Esther. 

B. Haman’s Promotion and Decree (3:1–15) - Haman was an Agagite and was second in command to Xerxes. He ordered that everyone should bow to him (Haman). Mordecai refused to bow to Haman. Haman gets angry and plots to kill Mordecai. (While he was at it, he wanted all of the Jews wiped from the face of the earth. (Does that sound familiar?)

C. Esther’s Intervention (4:1–5:14) - Queen Ester went uninvited to the King. Approaching the king without permission was strictly forbidden. She asks for a banquet.

D. Mordecai’s Recognition (6:1–13) - Xerxes, unable to sleep, reads the record of Mordecai revealing the plot for his assassination and seeks to reward him in a special manner. 

E. Haman’s Fall (6:14–7:10) - Haman is forced to adorn Mordecai with special honors, which really was awkward. Esther reveals that her people had been set up for destruction, The king asks who did it and Esther points to Haman. Haman kneels before Esther to beg mercy but the king thinks he is making advances toward his wife. He orders Haman hanged.

III. Israel Survives Haman’s Genocide Attempt (8:1–10:3)

A. Esther and Mordecai’s Advocacy (8:1–17) - Esther and Mordecai urge the king to spare the lives of the Jews by giving them the right to defend themselves in future conflicts.

B. The Jews’ Victory (9:1–19) - The Jews successfully defended themselves when their enemies attacked them. 

C. Purim’s Beginning (9:20–23) - Purim is from the Hebrew word for “lots” because Haman had cast lots to determine the day on which he would exterminate the Jews. to this day, a two-day holiday of feasting, rejoicing, food sharing, gift giving, memorial feasting as the Jews celebrate the fact that they were delivered from being exterminated.

D. Mordecai’s Fame (10:1–3) - Mordecai the Jew was second to King Xerxes and was great among the Jews and well received by the multitude of his brethren, seeking the good of his people and speaking peace to all his countrymen.”

So, although God is not mentioned in the book of Esther, we know He was the deliverer of His people the Jews. If he had not delivered them, we would not have had Jesus.

A Study Esther-Session 01

Esther – An introduction

Part 1

The book of Esther is an account written in story form. It would be very unfortunate to try to interpret any part of it without putting it in its place in the narrative.

The account of Esther took place between the events of Ezra 6:15 and Ezra 7:9.

How do we know God was in the book of Esther, even though His name does not appear in it? Three Old Testament passages lead to that conclusion:

Zechariah 12:10-14 "And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and supplication. They will look on me, the one they have pierced, and they will mourn for him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for him as one grieves for a firstborn son. On that day the weeping in Jerusalem will be great, like the weeping of Hadad Rimmon in the plain of Megiddo. The land will mourn, each clan by itself, with their wives by themselves: the clan of the house of David and their wives, the clan of the house of Nathan and their wives, the clan of the house of Levi and their wives, the clan of Shimei and their wives, and all the rest of the clans and their wives.”

Nehemiah 7:6-7 “These are the people of the province who came up from the captivity of the exiles whom Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had taken captive (they returned to Jerusalem and Judah, each to his own town, in company with Zerubbabel, Jeshua, Nehemiah, Azariah, Raamiah, Nahamani, Mordecai, Bilshan, Mispereth, Bigvai, Nehum and Baanah.”

Zechariah 3:8 "Listen, O high priest Joshua and your associates seated before you, who are men symbolic of things to come: I am going to bring my servant, the Branch.”

There are certain passages that are often used for inspiration. “…for such a time as this” (Esther 4:14) is one of those. While it is an inspirational line, in this instance it is to be applied to Esther. Hers was a significant and dangerous action. In this instance it indicates the importance of her decision where your salvation and mine are concerned.

Esther 4:14 does not place importance on my decisions because God has chosen me for such a time as this. It places importance on Esther’s decision to take the steps necessary to save the Jews from extinction. There is likely little any of us can do that will save the Jews from destruction. Esther’s decision changed the course of human history.

One important question will settle whether Esther should have canonized: What would have happened if King Xerxes had done as Haman wanted and killed all of the Jews?

We would have no Jesus. 

SUNDAY SOUNDS OF PRAISE-O Come, O Come Emmanuel-Piano Guys and Selah

A Study in Hebrews-Week 13

(Get your Bible out and read the verses as we study )Hebrews Chapter 13

The Verses
Verses 1-3 – We are to love each other. Paul also emphasizes the importance of loving strangers, in order that we might witness to them as he admonished us in chapter 12:15. That would not have occurred to many “religious” Jews.

Chapter 10 was the “privileges” chapter; chapter 11 was the “faith” chapter; was the “hope” chapter. And now we come to chapter 13, which is the “love” chapter. You will remember that it was chapter 13 of I Corinthians that was its “love” chapter. In Romans, it was chapter 12. In II Corinthians chapter 8 was the love-in-action chapter, as was Galatians 6. In Ephesians the practical aspect of love was emphasized. Paul was big on love. And so he is in Hebrews.

Jews had the idea that you should love your friends and hate your enemies. Jewish Christians might have had a hard time throwing off this concept. Jesus had taught “love your enemies” (Matthew 5:44). Here Paul addresses the need to love self, each other and strangers.

Verses 4-6 – Here Paul speaks of marriage as he did so often, particularly in Ephesians 5:21-32 and Colossians 3:16-25. Because he is speaking to Jews, he keeps it short and to the point: you be personally responsible for keeping your marriage honorable…free from adultery (in thought or deed), and don’t make money the central theme around which it is built.

Verses 7-8 – This love is to extend to your leaders (and here he is talking about your church leaders). You owe “followship” to your spiritual leaders, so long as they do not lead you away from God’s Word, into illegality or to immorality.

Verses 9-10 – DO NOT BE INFLUENCED BY THOSE WHOSE DOCTRINS ARE DERIVED FROM SOME PERVERSION OF THE MEANING OF GOD’S WORD OR BY SOME VISION OR “SPECIAL” REVELATION. 1 Timothy is ALL about being sure to teach right doctrine and to pick leaders who will do so.

Christian fellowship is when we gather around the Word of God and it brings you to the person of Christ.

Verses 11-14 – The priests of the Old Covenant made their sin offerings in a specific place, at the altar in the temple. There is no New Covenant altar. Our altar is the sacrifice of ourselves at the Throne of Grace. Jesus made His sacrifice outside of the city. He was the sin offering. We are to go to Him.

Verses 15-16 – The only sacrifice we have is ourselves as living sacrifices (Romans 12:1-4) and our praise that confesses His name.

Verse 17 – We are to make our pastor’s work an absolute joy. We are to help him and stand beside him.

Verses 18-19 – Paul desired the prayers of God’s people.

Verses 20-21 – Paul asks that God would equip us with everything we need to accomplish His will, and that we will strive to do what is pleasing to Him.

Verses22-25 – Paul actually had much more to say, but he wanted to get this much out immediately. He reminds the reader to lovingly greet their leaders and God’s people from Italy, who send their greetings. He closes with a prayer for God’s GRACE to be with every one of them.

That’s love.

The case for Paul’s authorship of Hebrews.

The writer was known by the readers            Paul was known by the readers

The writer was in Italy                                     Paul was in Italy

The writer knew Timothy                               Paul knew Timothy (and was his spiritual father)

The writer had to understand Judaism         Paul would have understood the Hebrew mind set

The writer had converted from Judaism        Paul converted from Judaism going to Damascus

The writer followed Paul’s usual pattern       Hebrews is a perfect commentary to Jews on Romans

Let Me Live!

Famous People We Are Glad Were Not Aborted

Stevie Wonder

Ludwig van Beethoven

Albert Einstein

It's Thanksgiving Day

Don't Be a Cheap Preacher

John MacArthur writes: "(A) fatal path is to be like the preacher who says, I've already got a sermon; I just have to find a verse for it. He starts with a preconceived idea and then gathers some verses to support it—a case of the tail wagging the dog. True biblical sermons don’t drive the biblical text, they are driven by the biblical text. I know if I try to manufacture a sermon, I wind up forcing Scripture to fit my ideas. But when I try to comprehend a passage, the message flows out of that understanding."

Such an unfortunate use of Scripture occurs with dyed-in-the-wool conservative, strict plenary, and with "Bible preaching" interpreters. Preachers with seminary degrees, Bible school degrees and those with secular degrees are not immune to this erroneous way of preaching. They preach a philosophy or theosophy that contains some truth and back it up with Scripture verses from here or there. 

The problem with that type of sermon is that absolutely ANY philosophical position can be supported with selectively chosen verses. Just because a preacher is making true statements (which not all do) and "supports" them with Bible verses does NOT mean he is preaching the Bible. That's exactly what cults and apostates do. They sprinkle truth in their speech, attach Scripture to their topic and proclaim that God has said such-and-such. Their congregations respond as though something profoundly spiritual has been preached.

MacArthur continues: "I heard a sermon on 'they cast four anchors…and wished for the day' (Acts 27:29 KJV); the anchor of hope, the anchor of faith, and so on. Those Acts 27 anchors were not anchors of anything but metal.

"Most interpretive challenges can be resolved through studying the passage within its wider context. 'God is not a God of confusion' (1 Corinthians 14:33) and He does not have a problem explaining Himself. The problem is usually with us—whether it be a personal objection to what Scripture says, a cultural gap between us and the text’s original setting, a refusal to obey, or a lack of broader biblical knowledge. Whatever the case, skills in Bible interpretation can be acquired and applied."

Remember, every verse of scripture must be interpreted in terms of the word used, the chapter it's in, the chapter it's in, the book it's in, the covenant that applies and the Bible as a whole.

Anything else is just cheap.

Somebody Explain Evolution's Requirement for this Behavior

For Those Who Think the Bible is Too Long to Read

The Bible in a Nut Shell

The Holy Bible (Condensed Standard Version)

GENESIS

God: All right, you two, don’t do the one thing. Other than that have fun.

Adam & Eve: Okay.

Satan: You should do the thing.

Adam & Eve: Okay.

God: What happened!?

Adam & Eve: We did the thing.

God: Guys…

THE REST OF THE OLD TESTAMENT

God: You are my people and you should not do the things.

People: Okay. We won’t do the things.

God: Good.

People: We did the things.

God: Guys…

THE GOSPELS

Jesus: I am the Son of God and the Great I Am. Even though your have done the things, the Father and I still love you and want you to live. Turn from the things and follow me.

Healed People: Okay! Thank you.

Other People: We've never seen Him do the things, but He probably does.

Jesus: I have never done the things.

Other People: We’re going to put you on trial for claiming to be the Great I Am.

Pilate: Did you threaten to take over Rome?

Jesus: No.

Pilate: He did nothing I can kill Him for.

People: Kill Him anyway.

Pilate: OK.

Jesus: Guys…

THE CRUCIFIXION:

Jesus: Father, forgive them. Today is your day of salvation. John, take care of Mary. My God, Why have you forsaken me? I’m thirsty. Everything that needs to be done is now complete. Father, Now I can  join you.

PAUL'S LETTERS PART I

People: We did the things.

Paul: Jesus still loves you and because you love Him, He will forgive you and help you stop doing the things.

People: Okay.

PAUL’S LETTERS PART II

People: We keep on doing the things.

Paul: Guys…Listen to God’s Holy Spirit.

People: Okay.

REVELATION

John: When Jesus comes back there will be no more people doing the things. In the meantime, keep following Jesus’ Word and God’s Holy Spirit.

THE END

(Adapted from Joshua Riddle, Co-founder of Young Conservatives)

SUNDAY SOUNDS OF PRAISE-Thank You-The Katinas

A Study in Hebrews-Week 12

Hebrews Chapter 12 - Part 2 (Get your Bible out and read the verses as we study )

(As you study this chapter, try to put yourself in the place of a Jewish reader. Try to understand this passage from a Jewish perspective.)

The Verses

Verse 14 – Living in peace with one another does not come easily, automatically or by magic. It takes work. We must strive to overlook and forgive one another’s foils and fables. This was taught in the Old Covenant, but the Jews never really grasped it.

Our holiness comes from God through Christ, and is not the result of our own efforts.

Verse 15 – We are to be a constant witness of the grace of God to everyone. The Jews thought salvation was just for them.

Verse 16 – We are our brothers’ keepers. If they are not saved, we must introduce them to Christ. The Jews would have had a hard time realizing that Jesus is Messiah.

Verse 17 – There is a point at which it is no longer possible to reach some people because they have rejected God’s Spirit so often that their hearts are hardened to the gospel. Few Jews accepted Christ and know nothing of His Holy Spirit.

Verses 18-21 – Here is reference to Moses at Mt. Sinai. Mt. Sinai represents the Old Covenant. A believer is not brought back to the legal system of the Old Covenant (see Exodus 19).

Verses 22-24 – “You have come to Mt. Zion, “Ye are come” indicates position. A believer, whether Jew or Gentile, has come to the New Covenant. A Jew would have understood these references:

(1)    “Mt. Zion”refers to the heavenly city;

(2)     It is the “city of the living God”.

(3)      It is the “heavenly Jerusalem”.

(4)      In the city are “angels” in joyful assembly.

(5)      This would have been new to Jewish Christians, the“general assembly and church of the first-born” — New Testament church.

(6)     the Lord Jesus Christ “God, the Judge”.

(7)    “spirits of just men made perfect” — evidently a reference to Old Testament saints;

(8)    “Jesus, the mediator of the New Covenant,” A difficult concept for Jews (and many Christians today).

(9)     The blood of Jesus — better than Abel’s blood.

Verse 25 – This is a warning against failing to hear the voice of Jesus through the Holy Spirit, both for the unsaved and the saved. We are to pay attention to God’s voice in our hearts and lives.

Verses 26-27 – This reminds us that privilege creates responsibility. God has nothing more to say. The Word of Jesus is final. There is danger of not hearing Him. He is shaking the world that men might see some things unshakeable.

Verse 28-29 – We are reminded that what we have in Christ is “earthquake proof.” It is set on a firm foundation (who is Christ), and therefore we should fall down in worship with reverence and awe.

Two Thought Provoking Videos

Does Your Church Preach Repentance and Faith to Achieve Salvation?

Look, I am quite aware that the primary purpose of the church gathering each Sunday is for worship and to celebrate the resurrection of Christ. The latter is why we meet on Sunday instead of Saturday.

That said, there is a legitimate question to be asked: If an unsaved person visited your church, would he (or she) know what the "fuss" is all about?

Would he know of his condition in relationship to God?

Would he know that repentance is absolutely necessary to establish a relationship with God?

Would he know that salvation is a gift of God's grace and is realized by faith in, and only in, the finished work of Christ at the cross of Calvary?

Proper understanding of and application of Scripture will always lead to the need for repentance, for confessing Christ as Lord and for belief in what He has done through His death burial and resurrection. That is the sum-total of what Scripture is about.

ANY sermon that does not reveal every person's sin problem and the solution to that problem in Christ has failed to fulfill God's desire for that sermon.

Every service should involve worshiping God. Every service should involve celebrating Christ's resurrection. Every service should also include why we need salvation and how repentance and belief in Christ is necessary to achieve it.

SUNDAY SOUNDS OF PRAISE-He Covers Me - Steve Camp

A Study in Hebrews-Week 11

(Get your Bible out and read the verses as we study )

Hebrews Chapter 12 Part 1

As your study this chapter, try to put yourself in the place of a Jewish reader. Try to understand this passage from a Jewish perspective.

The Verses

Verse 1 – Once again Paul uses his signature connective “Therefore” (“Wherefore” in KJV). Since all of these Old Covenant people had joined us in their faith in Messiah, as “witnesses” (not spectators, but active in their lives), we are to throw off those things that attach us to the world.

Verse 2 – “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus” is a continuation of the “therefore” in verse 1. He is the Pioneer (KJV “author”). That is He is the originator of and the focus of our faith. He authored our faith before the beginning of time. He is also the “Perfecter” (KJV: “finisher”) of our faith. He has finished the work of redemption and now sits at the right hand of God.

Verse 3 – Believers are now in both a contest and a conflict. Jesus knows our struggle and the hurdles we have to overcome.

Verse 4 – There is still a struggle with sin in our lives and we are tempted just as He was in His 40 days in the wilderness. But the shedding of our blood is insufficient to cover sin.  Only the shedding of HIS blood is adequate.

Verse 5 & 6 – We have been made God’s children.

It is a mistake when the world says, “We are all God’s children.” Only those who have received the gift of His salvation through faith in, and only in, the finished work of Christ at the cross of Calvary are His children.

Here Paul quotes from Proverbs 3:11 & 12.

The word “discipline” does NOT mean “punishment.” It is the same root as “disciple,” one who trains Himself to follow Christ. However the word for “punishment” used in verse 6 means to train (Greek-paideuo) and the word “punishes” or “scourgeth” (Greek-mastigoo) means to press into your mind by force, in a whip-like manner.

(NOTE: Almost all translations try to make this verse mean “gives a whipping to,” which is not the picture it is conveying).

Verse 7 – This really clears the matter up, as it is a continuation of the same thought and tells us that when hardships occur we should see them as opportunities to deepen our faith.

Verse 8 – Further explains that if you are not disciplined (properly trained), you are a fake Christian. (Could this be a strong argument for a Discipleship Training Ministry?)

Verse 9 – Fathers discipline [train (as in Proverbs 22:6)] their children. Properly disciplined (trained) children respect their fathers more than untrained children do. Likewise, we should be trained by God and should submit ourselves to His training.

Verse 10 – As with high school or college, there is an end to the training period, but the learning never stops.

Verse 11 – Discipline is hard to endure. An football player must train for his sport with weight lifting, running, pushing the blocking sled, etc., and it is tough. But the rewards are great when he gets to play in the Super Bowl. Discipline in God’s ways produces “…a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who are trained by it.”

Verses 12-13 – Do what it takes to strengthen yourself so you can be useful in the healing of others by introducing them to God’s salvation.

Reading the Bible to Make Real Sense

Romans 8:12 "Therefore, brothers, we have an obligation-but it is not to the sinful nature, to live according to it."

So, what is the obligation of which Paul speaks? The first hint is in the latter part of verse 13, ..."but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live,..." That's certainly true, but it still does not tell us what the obligation is.

Then Paul seems to abandon the subject and goes off in different directions. Some seem to think he was spacey and disjointed. Nothing could be further from the truth.

From Romans 8:14 through Romans 11:36 Paul is setting the stage for the obligation. He says that since the Holy Spirit testifies about Jesus, since Jesus willingly died to save us and sent His Holy Spirit to encourage us, since we who know Jesus are more than conquerors, and so on, we have an obligation and he reveals that in chapter 12:1 - "...present your bodies as living sacrifices."

Paul actually states specifically what our obligation is, but he wants us to know why we have the obligation. That's the reason for the parenthetical explanation in between the "...we have an obligation..." and the statement of the obligation: to "present your bodies as living sacrifices..." The sentence, without the parentheses, reads like this: We have an obligation to present ourselves as living sacrifices...

That is why reading Scripture as a narrative, instead of little pieces here and there, is so important. If we do not read it as a narrative, we stand the chance of drawing many different conclusions, many of which are not even related to the point.

Often the chapter and verse divisions of the Bible (which are not part of God's inspiration) hinder us from understanding the point. Without the point, the Scripture might very well be improperly applied.

God did not design the Bible for proof-texting. No part of the Scripture stands alone. It all has to be understood in terms of the word used, the verse it's in, the chapter it is in, the book the chapter is in, the covenant to which it applies and to the Bible as a whole. Anything else cheats the meaning of any passage.

Learn to read the Bible as a narrative rather than a series of proverbial thought. Then it always demonstrates continuity. It makes sense!

Veterans of the USA - The Goads

Hebrews 12 Preview

Great Cloud of Witnesses

Sometimes we start out in Hebrews understanding that it was written to people of Jewish background. By the time we get to chapters 11, 12 and 13, though, we forget about the Jewishness of the book and begin to think it is written to Gentiles as well.

Let's be clear. Hebrews was written FOR both Jew and Gentile, but it was written TO Christians of Jewish descent. That is why it is called The Letter to the Hebrews.

When we get to chapters 11, 12 and 13, we do well to remember to whom the book is written or else we will miss some of its more salient points. To find out more about chapter 11, read the posts below. For this post we will focus on a preview of chapter 12.

Chapter 12 is often treated as though it is a change of subject. It is not. The narrative of chapter 12 is a continuation of the thoughts of chapter 11. The "great cloud of witnesses" refers to those Paul (whom I believe wrote Hebrews) listed in chapter 11. Their witness would have been understood by both Jews and Christians of Jewish descent. The "hinders" of verse 1 refers to the ceremonial and legalistic practices of the Jews that would have caused them to resist the New Covenant in Christ.

In verse 2 we see the continuation of the absolute focus on the person of Jesus. This represented a great change for those of Jewish culture. They were used to rules and regulations. Jesus brought freedom and release from the Law.

The "shedding your blood" phrase in verse 4 reminded the Jews that their sacrifices of bulls, lambs and doves had been replaced with Jesus' perfect blood sacrifice. It also reminds them that there is nothing they can do, not even sacrificing their own blood, to achieve salvation. Salvation comes through Jesus or it does not come at all.

When Jews believed in and turned to Christ in repentance, they would face monumental hardships. Their families would disown them and their friends would forsake them. If they had any resources they would lose them. They would be disciplined by their father by being cut off from the family and treated as though they had died. This is presented in verses 7-11. In verses 12-13, the Jewish converts were being encouraged to prepare themselves for the persecution they would inevitably suffer.

In verses 14-27, Paul lays the groundwork for the glorious freedom from the Law that Jews would experience through the grace of God in Christ. Theirs is not a mountain that can be defiled by animals, but rather it is Mount Zion, the beautiful city of God. Jews who trust in Christ will see the heavenly Jerusalem, not some earthly Jerusalem that is subject to wars and destruction. They would be among the angels and those who were part of the church of the first born (Christ)...those whose names would be written in the Lamb's Book of Life.

Jews and Christians of Jewish heritage are told that this heaven will be a kingdom that cannot end. They are to rejoice and revel in this new kingdom and should worship the God who provided all of this for them in reverence and awe.

What Paul was telling Christians of Jewish heritage is the same thing he told Christians in Rome. In fact, Hebrews is actually a commentary to the Jews on the book of Romans.

When we understand that, we are faced with a whole new perspective on the book of Hebrews and its hero, the Lord, Jesus Christ. To Him both Jew and Greek can turn in repentance, trusting in, and only in, His finished work at the cross of Calvary. Therein, and only therein we find eternal life.