Exhortations from Hebrews

Thursday 5 February 2009 at Cheddington

Epiphany 4

Reading Hebrews 12

The Mountain of Fear and the Mountain of Joy

¹⁸ You have not come to a mountain that can be touched and that is burning with fire; to darkness, gloom and storm; ¹⁹ to a trumpet blast or to such a voice speaking words that those who heard it begged that no further word be spoken to them, ²⁰ because they could not bear what was commanded: "If even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned to death." ²¹ The sight was so terrifying that Moses said, "I am trembling with fear."

²² But you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, ²³ to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the Judge of all, to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, ²⁴ to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.

Gospel Mark 6

John the Baptist Beheaded

¹⁴ King Herod heard about this, for Jesus' name had become well known. Some were saying, ^[c] "John the Baptist has been raised from the dead, and that is why miraculous powers are at work in him."

¹⁵ Others said, "He is Elijah."
       And still others claimed, "He is a prophet, like one of the prophets of long ago."

¹⁶ But when Herod heard this, he said, "John, whom I beheaded, has been raised from the dead!"

¹⁷ For Herod himself had given orders to have John arrested, and he had him bound and put in prison. He did this because of Herodias, his brother Philip's wife, whom he had married. ¹⁸ For John had been saying to Herod, "It is not lawful for you to have your brother's wife." ¹⁹ So Herodias nursed a grudge against John and wanted to kill him. But she was not able to, ²⁰ because Herod feared John and protected him, knowing him to be a righteous and holy man. When Herod heard John, he was greatly puzzled; yet he liked to listen to him.

²¹ Finally the opportune time came. On his birthday Herod gave a banquet for his high officials and military commanders and the leading men of Galilee. ²² When the daughter of Herodias came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his dinner guests.

    The king said to the girl, "Ask me for anything you want, and I'll give it to you." ²³ And he promised her with an oath, "Whatever you ask I will give you, up to half my kingdom."

²⁴ She went out and said to her mother, "What shall I ask for?"
       "The head of John the Baptist," she answered.

²⁵ At once the girl hurried in to the king with the request: "I want you to give me right now the head of John the Baptist on a platter."

²⁶ The king was greatly distressed, but because of his oaths and his dinner guests, he did not want to refuse her. ²⁷ So he immediately sent an executioner with orders to bring John's head. The man went, beheaded John in the prison, ²⁸ and brought back his head on a platter. He presented it to the girl, and she gave it to her mother. ²⁹ On hearing of this, John's disciples came and took his body and laid it in a tomb.

Sermon

Hebrews and extended series of homilies – chapter 12 starts with a homily on endurance. ¹ Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, ² fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. We are to endure hardship as discipline. God disciplines those he loves in the same way as a father or mother disciplines their children.

Here the author of Hebrews is talking about persecution and the shedding of blood, not perhaps other forms of hardship. If you saw the BBC play with Julie Walters A Short Stay in Switzerland you might hope such words of exhortation do not also apply to someone with a long and painful illness, or the suffering of a child. The context of running the race set before us, and living a life holy and at peace with everyone marks this passage out as applying to a very different situation.

So we come to today’s reading, and we are invited to compare the God of the OT, burning with fire on a holy mountain, so terrifying that even an animal that strayed had to be stoned to death, with the same God of the new covenant in the heavenly Jerusalem.

You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, ²³ to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the Judge of all, to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, ²⁴ to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant.

Faced with the holiness of God we must still revere him and approach him with awe, but not in the way Moses did, who trembled with fear. For Jesus, the kingdom of God began with his ministry. For the writer of Hebrews, God’s rule was inaugurated by the exaltation of Jesus Christ. For us, our response should be thanks in the community of worship, and that is the way today’s reading ends.

The final chapter of Hebrews contains exhortations. We are to love one another as brothers and sisters. We are to show hospitality to strangers, and live holy and blameless lives especially in relationships such as marriage. We are to follow the truth and not be diverted by strange teachings. We are to continually offer to God our sacrifice of praise through Jesus Christ his son and openly profess his name. Then the epistle ends with a blessing:

²⁰ Now may the God of peace, who through the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, ²¹ equip you with everything good for doing his will, and may he work in us what is pleasing to him, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.