PROVIDES A PLACE OF SAFETY
Opening Prayer
Thank you, Father, that all of your promises are “Yes” in Christ and that you make me stand firm in him. (2 Cor. 2:20, 21)
Read HEBREWS 6:13–20
For additional translations of the passage, use this link to Bible Gateway.
The Certainty of God’s Promise
13 When God made his promise to Abraham, since there was no one greater for him to swear by, he swore by himself, 14 saying, “I will surely bless you and give you many descendants.”[a] 15 And so after waiting patiently, Abraham received what was promised.
16 People swear by someone greater than themselves, and the oath confirms what is said and puts an end to all argument. 17 Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of his purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised, he confirmed it with an oath. 18 God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope set before us may be greatly encouraged. 19 We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain, 20 where our forerunner, Jesus, has entered on our behalf. He has become a high priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek.
Footnotes
- Hebrews 6:14 Gen. 22:17
New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Reflect
It is too easy for politicians to make promises for the future that they cannot fulfill. That can make us cynical or insecure. Who can we trust?I am writing in the early summer when conditions in the English Channel encourage refugees to risk crossing the busiest shipping channel in the world in overloaded, flimsy boats. They are desperate to enter the UK, longing for something better. They have no guarantee of gaining it.
This contrasts with the image in Hebrews of Christian hope that is 100 percent secure. When God makes an oath, it is inevitably guaranteed. There is nothing and ‘no one greater’ than he to deflect or water down his promises (v. 13). The writer illustrated this truth with reference to God’s guaranteed promises made to Abraham. Abraham’s grounds for confident hope would reappear in 11:8–19. The writer built on his insistence that God’s people needed to persevere as they journeyed with God—who had ‘fled to take hold of the hope set before us’ (v. 18)—so that they too could be certain of entering God’s presence. A firm, reliable anchor prevents drifting away (v. 19). Very beautifully, we’re told that Jesus has already arrived to welcome us to this place of safety (v. 20).
Apply
Find time to reflect on what it means to you that God’s promises are 100 percent safe.
Closing prayer
Father, I ask for your protection over those who are fleeing from danger. Please make yourself, their true and eternal safety, known to them.
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