The hall of faith gives us something incredibly unique. It gives us a history of like-minded individuals that precede our time. They laid the foundation for what belief looks like. The author of Hebrews is recognizing this and presenting it to the reader to reframe their perspective of their current circumstances. It ought to stir the same up in us as well. We begin early on remembering Abel. Sure...

We now enter into an extremely famous passage that we have modernly coined the hall of faith. These are those that have gone before us in faith, having established a model for us to follow in. All of the greats that we would look upon, even some not so greats, are established by way of faith. For an author whose goal it is to reinforce the faith of those he writes to, sharing the testimony of thes...

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. 2 For by it the elders obtained a good testimony.3 By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible. 4 By faith Abel offered to God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained witness that he was right...

Grab a pen and a piece of paper. Take some time to reflect and write out times when the Lord showed up for you. Write how He brought you out of difficult situations or how He was there in the midst of suffering. Give thanks to God for those times.Now keep that paper and pull it back out when trials or tribulations hit again. Reflect once more on what the Lord has done for you and add to it as He w...

The ABIDE Young Adults group is currently going through the book of Matthew. As we have started to work our way through it, something that has caught my attention is the focus upon the Kingdom of God. This, of course, is not new news to me. But it is imposing a challenge to my mindset that complements what this week's devotion has challenged. Am I self-concerned or Kingdom-concerned?Jesus walked t...

Often, the devotions I am writing testify deeply to me as I am writing them. Yesterday's devotion really hit me like a truck. As I have grown in my relationship with the Lord and endured through ministry, I have found that one of the enemy's greatest traps he lays for me is discouragement. Thoughts of insecurity can plague me. "Am I doing enough? Is any of this actually effective? Am I just doing ...

There is no doubt that the Hebrew people were going through incredible trials and tribulations. The difficulty they were suffering was astronomical. They were being kicked out of their families. They were losing their communities. They were being killed. There was pressure on all sides to come back. They were getting hungry. They were thirsty. Eventually as all of this stacks up, they begin asking...

Many theologians have said it before, and many more will say after, "Context is key." Controversial passages like this one are essential to view in context of the surrounding message. If we are to take a verse like Hebrews 10:26 and quote it out of context, we all have a great reason to fear. However, when you view the verse in its proper context and connection to the surrounding passage, it begin...

We face yet another controversial passage in this week's reading. While it may be scary to consider some of these passages, I do not want the fear of what is in Scripture keep you from the beauty of what is written. We will cover the controversy as we go on through the week, but for today we will simply look at the text as written.Continuing on his path of reminding the Hebrew people of the greatn...

26 For if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, 27 but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and fiery indignation which will devour the adversaries. 28 Anyone who has rejected Moses’ law dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. 29 Of how much worse punishment, do you suppose, will he be thought ...

5 Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.-Romans 5:5The love of God reinforces that hope in our lives. Pray today that the Lord would pour His love into your heart by His Holy Spirit. Also, pray for your brothers and sisters in Christ that He may do the same for them. Remember that we are not on this journey al...

In light of hope, if the command is to hold fast to that confession of hope, then I think there may be a need to really get a grip on it. This is written to a people who are facing dire circumstances and engaged in the most hopeless of situations. Nevertheless, Scripture tells them to hold fast. I remember going to an event a long while ago hosted by an Evangelical group of powerlifters called the...

I have a confession to make. I have a hard time holding on to hope. I have been developed in a very pessimistic worldview. Growing up, we had a phrase that my family would bring up any time something mildly inconvenient or seriously rough would happen. "It's just Matus luck." Matus luck was the way we would represent this imaginary curse upon us that would say, "If it could go wrong, it will." The...

As we discussed in yesterday's devotion, it is apparent that the recipients of the Hebrews were being deeply challenged in their faith and the writer to the Hebrews wants to reinforce them to hold on. While he has offered so many instances in which Jesus is greater than their old covenant, he also offers another comfort. They can go to the Lord. We can see many instances where the Israelite people...

We have addressed all throughout the book of Hebrews what kind of state the readers were in. It was dire and it was uncomfortable. The risk was high and it left them having to ask if the reward was genuinely worth it. I am sure many of us have gone through it before as we reflect on old patterns of our past. "How bad is it actually?" We might ask ourselves. And when faced with life or death, some ...