Last fall, after Hurricane Helene had ravaged parts of Western North
Carolina, I had the opportunity to help take care of my sister’s youngest kids
for a few days. I brought them here to stay with me for a week or so, while
their parents stayed back and focused on the recovery effort in the
immediate aftermath of the storm.
These kids had been through so much, and now they were being
displaced, and I just wanted to give them a week full of fun! My plan was to
show them all the best fall things that central Indiana has to offer. My
nieces are mountain girls. They were born in the Blue Ridge Mountains.
That means, all they know are mountains! To them, our vast expanse of
Indiana flat land - is wildly exotic! Particularly our corn fields!
These girls were utterly enchanted with CORN! They had this game
they played in the car, where they would ‘collect’ the things they saw on our
road trip. Horses, or cows, or goats - things like that. And they’d yell -
HORSE COLLECT!!! GOAT COLLECT!!! And it was adorable. Until they
decided that corn was also a valuable commodity in this game, and if one of
my nieces saw a corn field on THEIR SIDE OF THE ROAD, they would yell
loudly - CORN COLLECT!!!! And as you can imagine - a road trip through
Indiana in the fall - all I heard for miles and miles: CORN COLLECT! CORN
COLLECT!!! And the cuteness wore off almost immediately!
So, one day, I decided that my 2 little corn enthusiasts needed to visit
an apple orchard, a pumpkin farm - one with all kinds of corn related fun! So
I found a place where they could do the hayride and the apple picking and
roll around in the corn silo.
And I’d say we had a great time, for the most part. It was a super fun
afternoon! There was, however, a memorable low point in our day. It was
getting to be about lunch time, and I said, “Let's do the corn maze, and then
we’ll have lunch!” Mind you, these 2 small girls were 3 and 7 years old. And
this was no small corn maze. It was GIGANTIC! Long and winding. But this is
the thing you do at an apple orchard, right?! The great Indiana corn maze is
a time-honored tradition - it’s all part of the harvest time fun - and for 2
girls who were essentially discovering corn fields for the first time - I thought
“this will be such a great memory!”
Here’s a picture of us entering the corn maze. All smiles, wide eyed
and eager to navigate - the fun…
CornMaze.jpg
I promised them it would be fun.
And I wish I had a picture of what these 2 bedraggled, pathetic little
humans looked like when we finally made it out of that dizzying labyrinth -
but suffice it to say - they were spent! I was spent! We were tired. Hungry.
And more than anything - THIRSTY! All 3 of us were so thirsty! That corn
maze was way bigger than I had anticipated, and we only had one small
sippy cup between us to share! I was rationing water as the maze twisted
and turned and we hit frustrating wall after wall, dead end after dead end -
leaving us completely disoriented!
We had no idea where we were! No idea if this path we were on would
lead us toward the exit or prolong our arduous journey with more false hope
and more dead ends! We were wandering and wandering for what felt like
forever! Those initial smiles devolved quickly into whining, and agony, and
the theatrics of a tired 3-year-old who was so completely over this ‘fun corn
thing!’
Near the center of the maze there was a footbridge. And it was just
tall enough to give us a peek above the tall corn walls - it gave us a moment
of clarity.
Footbridge.jpg
The view from above the maze promised us that this labyrinth would
not go on forever. We could see its winding pathways a little clearer. It was
a welcomed moment of reprieve, lifting our eyes above those tall cornstalk
walls - a moment of clarity that gave us a renewed perspective on the
situation.
The view from the elevated footbridge revealed that we were about
halfway through the maze, and while there was still a long way to go with an
already hungry and overtired 3-year-old, we were closer to the end than we
thought we were. We weren’t as deeply lost as we thought we were.
Closer to the exit, and freedom, and food, and most importantly –
closer to that sweet sweet promise of an apple cider slushie!
Slushie2.jpg
The footbridge gave us the gift of perspective. Lifting our eyes above
our present circumstances.
A moment of perspective can go a long way in helping us
to endure!
We’re in the 4th week of our 5-week series all about endurance. Each
week of this series we’ve taken a closer look at what the Bible has to say
about how to endure in this life, how to withstand hardships and trials of all
kinds. In week one, Pastor Amy introduced us to the Greek word
“hypomonē.”
It’s a word used 32 times in the letters of the apostles, and it means
‘steadfast’ or ‘patient endurance.’ It means perseverance! It comes from the
Greek word for under, combined with the Greek word for stay - it implies
this idea of steadily waiting, remaining constant.
Biblehub.com - which is a great study resource by the way - puts it this
way:
“In the New Testament, (hupomoné) is used to describe a quality of
steadfastness and endurance, particularly in the face of trials and difficulties.
It conveys the idea of remaining faithful and patient under pressure,
maintaining one's faith and hope despite challenges.”
Anybody facing any challenges this morning?
Well, we’ll be looking at what the writer to the Hebrews has to say
about this hypomonē - so if you would grab a Bible and turn with me to
Hebrews chapter 10, that’s on page 1,015 if you're using a house Bible.
And as you’re turning there, I want to give just a brief overview of
what this letter is all about! I want to help us get our bearings here with this
letter. Who wrote it? Who is it addressed to? And why was it written?
Well for starters, we don’t know who wrote it. The author of the letter
to the Hebrews is anonymous! Scholars debate whether it was Paul or
maybe Barnabas, or Silas, or Apollos - but at the end of the day, we just
don’t know. The writer is anonymous.
The intended audience is also somewhat unclear. Other letters like
Philippians or Corinthians are clearly addressed to the corresponding
churches in those regions. But Hebrews - that’s not a clearly defined region,
or church - it’s very general. So, we don’t know where these Hebrews lived,
but what we do know is that the audience who received this letter
apparently knew A WHOLE LOT about the Old Testament!
The writer of this letter goes to great lengths to compare and contrast
the Old Covenant with the New Covenant that is in Christ Jesus. It appears
that the letter was written to Christian Jews, who had initially believed the
Gospel message with their whole heart! They’d even suffered persecution
because of their decision to follow Christ.
But along the way, some began to shrink back from their devotion to
Jesus - some out of fear of facing more persecution, and others caved to the
social pressures around them, choosing to return to the comfort of the
familiar and more widely accepted old covenant - as though Christ’s death
on the cross wasn’t enough.
The writer of Hebrews knew all of this. He knew about the pressure
these new Christians were facing, and how tempting of an idea it was, to
turn back. For this reason, the writer crafted this letter with 2 main
objectives in mind -
Two main objectives of The Letter to the Hebrews:
1. To re-establish the supreme authority of Christ, who is
‘the exact representation of God.’
He is higher than the Angels. He is greater than Moses. He, alone, is
our GREAT High Priest, above all earthly priests who came before! He is our
Chief Priest! And - He is THEE ultimate sacrifice - OUR ultimate sacrifice for
sin! Christ Jesus! Above all things! Christ Jesus! The fulfillment of the law.
The second objective of this letter is to
2. Encourage readers to keep pressing on, even in the face of
persecution!
He warns them not to turn back under pressure, but to remain steadfast in
their obedience to Christ! He tells them they need some hypomonē! He says,
in my paraphrase version: ‘what ya’ll need is some endurance!’
So, read along with me in Hebrews chapter 10, we’re going to start at verse
verse 32:
Hebrews 10:32
Think back on those early days when you first learned about Christ.
Remember how you remained faithful even though it meant terrible
suffering. 33 Sometimes you were exposed to public ridicule and
were beaten, and sometimes you helped others who were suffering
the same things. 34 You suffered along with those who were thrown
into jail, and when all you owned was taken from you, you accepted it
with joy. You knew there were better things waiting for you that will
last forever.
The writer begins this passage with a challenge: to think back on those
early days when you first learned about Christ. This is a retrospection, a
looking back. He says REMEMBER how you remained faithful. And I think the
way we read this verse is important. I don’t think it’s “remember how you
remained faithful?” As if to say, “remember that that time when you were
faithful?” I think the emphasis is on the how - remember HOW you
remained faithful!
How did they remain faithful?? Through all the severe persecution that
they’d endured, being beaten and publicly ridiculed - how did they do it?
How did they remain faithful, when they were stripped of everything they
owned and put in jail?!
The author presses them to remember those early days, when they
first believed, and then reminds them of HOW they were able to withstand
all that suffering - He reminds them in verse 34 that they were able to
endure terrible suffering - with joy - because he tells them:
Hebrews 10:34
You knew there were better things waiting for you that will last
forever.
Think back to those early days, when you knew that there were better
things waiting for you!
In the early days, when these Hebrews had first encountered the good
news of Jesus, that hope was fresh and contagious, and it spread far and
wide! Hope - of those “better things”, the things that will last forever, was
enough to carry them through that initial persecution.
But now, their hope was waning. Their faith was weakening. Some
were turning back. If they were to ever mature in their faith, it was time for
another virtue to rise up within them. Steadfastness. Perseverance.
Hypomonē!
We’ll pick up in verse 35:
35 So do not throw away this confident trust in the Lord. Remember
the great reward it brings you! 36 Patient endurance is what you need
now, so that you will continue to do God’s will. Then you will receive
all that he has promised.
THEN you will receive all that He has promised! Patient endurance, the
writer says, hypomonē is what you need right now, so that you will continue
to DO God’s will - this is active - DO God’s will, remain obedient, remain
faithful! Think back to those early days when you knew that there were
better things waiting for you that would last forever! Then you will receive
the promises! Endure, obey, and receive His promises.
The writer says in verse 37:
Hebrews 10:37-39
“For in just a little while,
the Coming One will come and not delay.
38
And my righteous ones will live by faith.
But I will take no pleasure in anyone who turns away.”
This is a callback reference to Habakkuk chapter 2, a reference these
devout Christian Jews would have recognized. The writer is saying, you know
that line in Habakkuk? About how the righteous will live by FAITH? That’s
you! That passage was referring to us in the future!
The prophet Habakkuk declared in Habakkuk chapter 2:3
This vision is for a future time.
It describes the end, and it will be fulfilled.
If it seems slow in coming, wait patiently…
By the way, that word for wait patiently - Habakkuk is an Old Testament
prophet so he uses a Hebrew word, but guess what Greek word it corresponds to
- hypomonē!
Habakkuk says in verse 4:
4 “Look at the proud!
They trust in themselves, and their lives are crooked.
But the righteous will live by their faithfulness to God.
The righteous will live by their faithfulness to God. The writer to the Hebrews
is illuminating that Old Testament prophecy! He’s bringing it to life!
He says in Hebrews 10:39
39 But we are not like those who turn away from God to their own
destruction. We are the faithful ones, whose souls will be saved.
He says we are not like the proud ones Habakkuk had prophesied,
whose paths are crooked, who only trust in themselves and turn away from
God. Not so with us! We are in that other group he prophesied about. We
are the ones who live by faith - the faithful ones whose souls will be saved!
Now, I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately, but our culture at large does
a poor job of emphasizing the significance of our souls. We don’t talk enough
about our souls.
Wellness wheel.jpg
I was at a college orientation with my daughter recently, where they
introduced us to this ‘Wheel of Health’ from Duke University. And I get what
they were trying to convey to these incoming undergrad students - make
sure you take care of yourself - your whole self - while you're a student
here. Academics are important, but self-care is equally important so … take
your vitamins and remember to exercise and get plenty of sleep.
And while I agree that all 6 of these things depicted on this wheel of heath
are important for one's overall health, noticeably missing is the importance
of soul care!
So, let's talk about the soul for a minute. I spoke with my grandmother over
the phone earlier this week.
grandmother.jpg
She is 99 years young. And she would tell you, her body ain’t what it
used to be. But her soul – I’ll tell you, her soul is stronger than mine. She
outlifts me! She outlifts me in the Spirit.
My grandmother has always been a praying woman. I stayed with her
overnight one-night last summer, and she insisted that we pray together
before bed - holding hands, face to face, praying to God.
You see, I was with her that night because her only daughter, my
aunt, had suffered a heart attack and was not expected to make it. My
grandmother insisted we pray for healing! And I agreed with her prayer! Yes
Lord, you can restore my aunt Karen completely. We pray for a healing
miracle!
Something you need to know about me and my grandma - our prayers
can get loud. We held hands, and our prayers grew louder and louder, and
more and more impassioned, until my grandmother lowered her voice, and
in almost a faint whisper, she cried,
“Lord, give me the strength for what I’m about to go through…”
We prayed for healing. But my grandmother’s 99 years of hard-won wisdom
told her that no matter the outcome – she was going to need supernatural
strength once again. Because she’d been through this before, 41 years ago
when she buried my father.
Her soul had already done some heavy lifting. And now in her late 90’s she
knew that her soul needed that kind of strength once again.
My aunt passed away 3 days later. And for her homegoing service my
grandma requested that I sing a song called, “He’s been Faithful” by Vickie
Yohe. The song says:
“In my moments of fear,
Through every pain and every tear,
There’s a God who’s been faithful to me.
When my strength was all gone and when my heart had no song
Still in love, he was faithful to me.
Every word he promised was true
And what I thought was impossible I’ve seen my God do.
He’s been faithful. Faithful to me. Looking back, his love and mercy I see.
In my heart I have questioned you’re there, even failed to believe
But you’ve been faithful! Faithful to me!”
This was a profound song choice! In my grandmother’s wisdom she knew
that what she needed was perspective. “Looking back” the song said, “his
love and mercy I see! Though at times I have questioned you’re there, even
failed to believe, Still God’s been faithful! He’s been faithful to me!”
My seasoned grandmother knew that even in her loss – she buried 2 of her 3
children - even in her grief, even in her suffering, she could grab hold of the
promises of God! Her favorite promise is found in
Psalm 91
91 He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under
the shadow of the Almighty.
2 I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will
I trust.
The greatest lesson she has learned in her 99 years on this earth, is
that her soul will find refuge and strength, beneath the shadow of the
Almighty! She has learned to trust in his promises!
Hebrews 10:35 So do not throw away this confident trust in the Lord.
Remember the great reward it brings you! 36 Patient endurance is
what you need now, so that you will continue to do God’s will. Then
you will receive all that he has promised.
Paul wrote to the Corinthians:
“So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner
self is being renewed day by day. For this light momentary affliction is
preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we
look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For
the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are
eternal. 2 CORINTHIANS 4:16-18
What are these eternal things? These things that are unseen? The things
we saw mentioned earlier in Hebrews chapter 10
Hebrews 10:32,34
You knew there were better things waiting for you that will last forever.
What are those things?
Early Christians came to faith in Jesus, because they heard and believed the
good news. The Gospel message of salvation that was proclaimed by the
apostles.
They spoke of Jesus’ death and resurrection - and His promise of eternal life.
They bore witness to the things Jesus said and did. Like the time he said:
“I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in me will live,
even after dying.”
He said this to Martha when her brother Lazarus had died. He said:
“Anyone who believes in me will live, even after dying. Everyone who lives
in me and believes in me will never ever die. Do you believe this, Martha?”
Do you believe this? Do you realize that there are better things waiting for
you that will last forever?
Put your name in the story.
“Anyone who believes in me will live, even after dying. Everyone who lives
in me and believes in me will never ever die. Do you believe this,
________?”
Do you believe this, Maron? Do you believe this, ________?
This is what the writer to the Hebrews was getting at!
“You [know] there are better things waiting for you that will last forever.
So do not throw away this confident trust in the Lord. Remember the great
reward it brings you! Patient endurance is what you need now, so that you
will continue to do God’s will. Then you will receive all that he has
promised.”
Holding onto the promises of God is like that elevated footbridge in the
middle of the corn maze.
Footbridge.jpg
When you can’t see clearly where you’re going, when the unexpected
twists and turns of life leave you bewildered, disoriented, and weak from
exhaustion - Lift your eyes.
Oh my friend. Lift your eyes! I said it before, and I’ll say it again!
A moment of perspective can go a long way in helping us to endure!
Lift your eyes. Look to God and ask Him, what are your
promises? Where are these promises?!
I needed to be reminded of His promises this week, and maybe you do, too!
Lord, what are your promises?
I sat alone with God and I asked him to remind me. And He’s faithful,
so he did! He called to my mind one of my all-time favorite promises! I knew
it as a song before I knew it as a scripture:
“The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases! His mercies never come to an
end! They are new every morning, new every morning. Great is Your
faithfulness O Lord! Great is your faithfulness!”
It’s a beautiful promise, buried deep within a heartbreaking lament.
Lamentations 3
“I am the one who has seen the afflictions that come from
the rod of the Lord’s anger.
He has led me into darkness, shutting out all light.
He has turned his hand against me
Again and again, all day long.”
This is a poem of deep, crushing sorrow and despair. Lamentations 3 goes
on to say:
“He has walled me about so that I cannot escape;
He has made my chains heavy;
Though I call and cry for help,
He shuts out my prayer;
He has blocked my ways with blocks of stones;
He has made my paths crooked.”
He’s describing a labyrinth! A maze! He feels walled in with no escape!
Blocked not with thin walls of corn stalks, but with blocks of stones.
Imposing. Fixed firm and immovable. The writer says ‘He has made my
paths crooked.”
There is no clear path forward. He’s trapped. He’s stuck. And even
though he cries out for help, God, he says, shuts out his prayer! He feels like
his prayers are not just going unheard – he feels like they are being
intentionally ignored.
He says in Lamentations 3:18
“My endurance has perished;
So has my hope from the Lord.
Remember my affliction and my wanderings…
My soul continually remembers it and is bowed down within me.”
And there! Right there in the middle of the labyrinth – right there in
the middle of it all, when endurance has failed and hope is gone – a
footbridge!
footbridge.jpg
A brief moment of elevation – an opportunity to see beyond the stone
walls of his suffering. Even if just for a moment, he lifts his eyes! He lifts his
eyes!
He lifts his eyes and dares to speak the promises of God into his dark place:
“But this I call to mind,
and therefore I have hope:
The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases;
his mercies never come to an end;
They are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.
“The LORD is my portion,” says my soul,
“therefore I will hope in him.”
The LORD is good to those who wait for him,
to the soul who seeks him.”
We don’t do enough talking about the SOUL! The Lord is my portion
says my soul! Therefore, when my body is weak, when my mind is lost,
when my heart fails me, MY SOUL has wings! My soul Though my outer self
is wasting away, my inner self, my soul, is being renewed day by day. When
my mind plays tricks on me, and tells me that God has shut out my prayers,
my soul knows the truth! My soul can out lift my feeble body any day of the
week!
“The LORD is my portion,” says my soul,
“therefore I will hope in him.”
The LORD is good to those who wait for him,
to the soul who seeks him.”
Church, how’s your soul doing? Have you checked in with your soul
lately? I can’t hide the fact that I know that many of you are in the middle of
your own labyrinth of lament. And if that’s you, would you lift your eyes. Call
to mind the promises of God! And if you don’t know what they are - go and
find them! Know them for yourself like my Grandmother does! Search God’s
word on your own, AND ask those around you for help!
Dave talked about it last week, we cannot endure alone!! Reach out!
Reach out to that person you sit next to in church, that person in your men’s
life group, women’s life group, or mom’s life group. Reach out to that person
in your small group. That pastor you’ve been meaning to talk to.
And ask for help!
My nieces and I eventually made it out of that corn maze, but not
without the help of a young boy and a young girl who had already
successfully navigated their way to freedom. We were going in circles,
hitting wall after wall, but they looked like 2 people who knew what they
were doing! They were walking swiftly and with confidence, so we asked
them for help. Listen, I don’t know HOW MUCH MORE TIME WE WOULD
HAVE WASTED wandering aimlessly if we didn’t ask for help!!! Are you
hearing me?! We asked for help, and we followed after those who knew the
way, because they’d been there before!
Christ goes before us. Christ leads the way. We follow Christ, because
he’s been there before! He was despised and rejected— a man of sorrows,
acquainted with deepest grief.
We follow Christ, and as we follow Him, we are joined by others who
walk with us, side by side. Others who are following Christ. And as we walk
together, we spread the light and the love and the hope of Christ to
everyone we encounter on our journey through the labyrinth of life.
Together, we endure, lifting our eyes toward the One we follow, trusting in
God’s promises - until he leads us home to eternity – to those better things
waiting for us that will last forever!
Jesus said. “Everyone who lives in me and believes in me will never ever
die. Do you believe this?”
Christ goes before, Christ leads the way, Christ will help you endure, the
question is are you following him? Are you following Him? Lift your eyes.
Who are you following?