Disgraced

Read Hebrews 13:7-19

In Leviticus 16, the bull and the goat that were offered as a sin offering had to be taken outside the camp, and their bodies burned. Separately, a goat burdened with Israel's sins was sent into the wilderness. In both cases, the symbolism showed God's people that to properly deal with sin, it must be taken away from them to a shameful place. Yet no one could have imagined that God himself would personally bear this disgrace. Jesus' sacrifice is so great that we cannot help but praise him. The leaders of this community not only spoke God's words, but also their lives were worthy of imitation. If we could have seen how they lived, we would have noticed a striking resemblance to Jesus. For the sake of joy, they served the members of this community to help them learn the ways of Jesus. They are like the authors of this letter, who lived honorably with a clear conscience. When they asked for prayer, it was for the opportunity to be together, to serve one another, and to encourage each other to bear Jesus' disgrace. Going to funerals has taught me that everyone is fully committed to something. The details change, but there are always strange teachings of every kind. Whether it's keeping food regulations or looksmaxxing, we're always searching for a way to improve ourselves. But God designed our hearts to live by grace. When his grace is the operating system of our community, we can handle social shame. We have what we need to live faithfully. When grace is our starting point, generosity becomes our instinct. We want to do good to others because God has done good to us. We share what we have because God shared his life with us. We praise God together because God has satisfied us. We suffer faithfully, knowing that we're not suffering alone. The steadiness of our lives comes from the faithfulness of Jesus. He alone is the same yesterday, today, and forever. He sustained the faith of the leaders who came before us. He's just as able to handle our problems as he was then. And he is the one who welcomes us into the city that is coming. He went all-in first, and he's the one who helps us to be all-in, too.