PAULA WISEMAN

Faith and life meet in a story

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Posts that reference the book of Hebrews

Why Faith is Great

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seedNow faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. Hebrews 11:1

The dictionary defines substance as the ultimate reality.
The essence.
The meaning or usefulness.

I can’t touch hope.
Faith makes hope real, and meaningful.

With faith, hope is more than just a dream or a wish.
Evidence is defined as the outward sign.
The proof.

I didn’t see Jesus make the paid for my sin.
I didn’t see God declare me guiltless.

What proof do I have that the transaction was made?
Faith.

 

That’s why faith is great. It has nothing to do with quantity.

 

Faith is great because of what it does.

Faith is great because of the One in whom it is placed.

 

 

Angels

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cloudsFor indeed He does not give aid to angels, but He does give aid to the seed of Abraham. Hebrews 2:16

Angels are awesome. They have great power.

They can defeat armies (2 Kings 19:35). They can destroy towns (Genesis 19). They carry out God’s judgment (2 Samuel 24).

In Revelation 12, we read about Satan drawing a third of the angels of heaven into his rebellion.
A third. The Bible says there are unnumbered multitudes of angels, and a third of them rejected God.

And God let them go.

He let them go.

He has no plan to rescue, to redeem, to save the angels who rebelled. Not even one of them.

In Genesis, we read about Adam’s sin and God immediately — while the judgment was on His lips — set our redemption in motion.
He has a divine plan to rescue, to redeem to save the people who rebelled. Every last one of them.

The difference … God’s love.

He doesn’t love the angels. He loves us.

God’s love makes all the difference.

 

 

 

 

Like Us

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baby stepsTherefore, He had to be made like His brethren in all things, so that He might become a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. Hebrews 2:17 NAS

Like His brethren in all things.

Once I asked my Sunday school boys to imagine Jesus as a thirteen year old … hitting His growth spurt, watching for His mustache to come in, noticing that girl in town … They smiled and said it was a tough assignment.

We agree, we believe, that Jesus is “like us,” but often we have a hard time grasping it.

Sometimes it’s hard to picture Jesus laughing at a joke, delighting in the smells of the first flowers of springtime, or marvelling at the power of a thunderstorm. He was human, though. Perfect, yes, but also perfectly human.

Sometimes it’s hard to picture Jesus laughing at a joke, delighting in the smells of the first flowers of springtime, or marvelling at the power of a thunderstorm.

He was human, though. Perfect, yes, but also perfectly human.

Jesus knew what it was like to be tired and hungry. I’m sure as He worked with Joseph, He experienced tired muscles, difficult customers, deadlines, delays, and setbacks.
He was the son of an unwed teenage mother. In John 8:41, the Pharisees spitefully throw that fact up in His face. He’d very likely been the subject of ugly gossip and hateful slurs.
He experienced great loss. Joseph died sometime between Jesus’s trip to the Temple at age twelve and the beginning of His public ministry at age 30.
He dealt with economic pressures. We know His parents were poor based on the offering Mary brought when He was dedicated.
He coped with being misunderstood, with having the worst motives assigned to all of His actions.
His own family worried that He might have been mentally ill and tried to shut down His ministry.

He got angry at ungodliness. He lamented over countless people who preferred spiritual blindness. He had compassion for the suffering, for the marginalized, for the overlooked.

His knowledge of humanity isn’t theoretical. It is deep, intimate and experiential. It is perfect.

 

 

 

 

Study Tip: Ten Statements, Four Verses

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bible pencil and notebook paperNew Testament epistles are often very dense. By that, I mean they pack a great deal of information and theology into a very small space. Consider Hebrews 1:1-4. In those four short verses, there are at least TEN statements about the person and work of Jesus Christ.

1.  God spoke to us through Jesus.
2.  God appointed Jesus the heir of all things.
3.  Jesus made everything.
4.  Jesus has the same glory that God Himself has.
5.  Jesus is the express image of God.
6.  Jesus upholds everything by His power.
7.  Jesus erases our sin.
8.  Jesus is seated at the right hand of God.
9.  Jesus is better than the angels.
10. Jesus obtained a better rank than the angels because of His inheritance.

I can think of a few other spots in the New Testament where you can find a concise description Jesus and what He accomplished like this one in Hebrews. As you come across them in your studies, take the time to number the items in the text or list them in the margin. Then give praise for who Christ is and what He’s done.

The Express Image

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polaroid photo in hand“Who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person…” Hebrews 1:3

I could show you a picture of my son, and you could tell a great deal about him, like the color of his eyes and hair. If you looked closely, you might see evidence of an inside joke that privately amused him.

I could show you a video of him. You could hear his voice and his laugh. You could watch his mannerisms and expressions.

But he is so much more than what can be captured in an image, or even a series of them.

You’d have to meet him.

The exact perfect representation, the express image of Alan … is Alan himself.

 

We see images of God in the Old Testament. We hear His voice. We see Him move. But He is so much more than that.

And He made a way for us to meet Him, to encounter the exact perfect representation of Himself. His express image.

Jesus Christ.

 

 

Strive for Peace and Holiness

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Striving for the finishStrive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord. Hebrews 12:14 ESV

Strive is also translated pursue or follow.

It evokes an idea of a relentless chase,
of never letting up,
never resting,
never missing an opportunity.

Honestly, I think I’m more inclined to expect peace and holiness to catch me.

Yes, it is the Holy Spirit working in me who sanctifies me, who makes me holy, who brings peace.

Yes, it is His work and His responsibility …

But I am to pursue it as if it were solely on me.

Pursue it. Strive for it.