It’s All About Relationships (pt.2)
Hebrews 13:1-8
Emmanuel Christian Church 12.7.25
INTRODUCTION: Remember from last week? It’s all about
RELATIONSHIPS…
Matthew 22:37 Jesus (said): “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart
and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and
greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor
as yourself.’ 40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two
commandments.”
PROPOSITION: Your relationship with God, and your relationship with
your fellow man. On those two, we will all be weighed.
In the first eight verses of the last chapter of the book of Hebrews,
we discovered seven relationships of man. Last week, we considered the
first four: brothers, strangers, prisoners and the suffering. Three more
remain for our consideration this morning: MARRIAGE, MONEY and
LEADERS.
Let’s refresh our memories from last week’s Scripture and then move
on to this morning’s final three.
Hebrews 13:1 Keep on loving each other as brothers. 2 Do not forget to
entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels
without knowing it. 3 Remember those in prison as if you were their fellow
prisoners, and those who are mistreated as if you yourselves were
suffering.
Hebrews 13:4 Marriage should be honored by all, and the marriage bed
kept pure, for God will judge the adulterer and all the sexually immoral. 5
Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you
have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake
you.” 6 So we say with confidence, “The Lord is my helper; I will not be
afraid. What can man do to me?”
Hebrews 13:7 Remember your leaders, who spoke the word of God to
you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith. 8
Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.
MARRIAGE
- As in previous relationships listed, we find two commands given in
regard to the relationship of marriage.
- The first: “Marriage should be honored by all…”
- Why? Because it is the very first human relationship ordained by God.
- Why? Because it is a reflection of God’s relationship with us.
- Why? Because it is the foundation of the family formation and the
basic building block of society.
- What does it mean to “honor” marriage?
- From the Greek word “tim-eh” meaning to “cherish”.
- It is the same word used by the Apostle Peter back in 1 Peter 3:7:
1 Peter 3:7 Husbands, in the same way be considerate as you live with
your wives, and treat them with RESPECT as the weaker partner and as
heirs with you of the gracious gift of life, so that nothing will hinder your
prayers.
APPLICATION: How can we cherish the relationship of marriage? First,
by moving it up the list of priorities for our children.
Most people are called by God to be in a marriage relationship. It is
an exceptional and rare instance that God calls an individual to celibacy (1
Corinthians 7). In light of that fact, we should encourage our children to
prepare for entering into a Christian marriage relationship- especially
our daughters. Remember, the primary call upon Adam was to “work the
garden and care for it”, on the other hand, Eve was created for the express
purpose of fulfilling the role of Adam’s help-mate.
For several decades now, we have burdened our daughters with the
devaluation of their primary call by encouraging them to pursue a “career”
outside of the home. Three negatives have resulted: rates of marriage have
declined steadily, childbearing has decreased to below population
replacement levels and the family unit has become destabilized.
- “The marriage bed kept pure…”
- God is crystal-clear on the subject: in marriage, the man and the
woman become “one flesh” (Genesis 2:24).
- God is also crystal-clear on the subject of any third-party addition to
the marriage relationship- it is absolutely forbidden.
- Here’s an interesting note: the act of adultery is equated in Scripture
with apostasy (that is, the very denial of the faith- rejection of Jesus!).
APPLICATION: In our current, “pornographic” society, the marriage bed
has been kicked out into the street and dragged through the mud. Like an
indescribably beautiful painting that has been defaced with a can of spray-
paint- it has been horribly abused and viciously defiled.
As originally intended by God, the beautiful design of the marriage
bed is found in its exclusivity. In it, two souls are intimately welded
together for a lifetime.
MONEY
- Jesus spoke more about money and possessions than any other
subject! WHY? Because of this simple truth:
Luke 12:34 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
- On the other hand, Solomon (the wisest man to have ever lived) said:
Ecclesiastes 10:19 A feast is made for laughter, and wine makes life merry,
but money is the answer for everything.
- Is this a contradiction? Absolutely NOT! These are two indisputable
facts!
- What we “treasure” is what we holds priority in our heart, but money is
the means by which we can transmit to others the labor of our hands as
a labor of our love.
- So, the REAL issue when it comes to our money and possessions is
this: How can we use them to communicate our love for God and
others?
- In answer to that question God gives us two commands in our text:
“Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what
you have”
- “Keep your lives free from the love of money”
- Scripture again, is crystal-clear in warning us about the dangers of
loving money and possessions:
1 Timothy 6:10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some
people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced
themselves with many griefs.
Ecclesiastes 5:10 Whoever loves money never has money enough;
whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income. This too is
meaningless.
APPLICATION: Here’s the truth: if you love money and possessions, you’ll
have no room in your heart to love God or others. Love of money is
idolatry. Love of money is slavery. That’s why God says, keep your lives
FREE from the love of money! Instead, do as Jesus said:
Luke 16:9 I tell you, use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so
that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.
- “be content with what you have”
- “Contentment” what’s the secret to that! TELL ME PLEASE! OK,
here you go…
1 Timothy 6:6 But godliness with contentment is great gain. 7 For we
brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. 8 But if
we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. 9 People who
want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and
harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction.
APPLICATION: The secret to contentment in this life is as simple as the
passionate pursuit of godliness! It is precisely what Jesus was talking
about when He said:
Matthew 6:28 “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies
of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29 Yet I tell you that not even
Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30 If that is
how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow
is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little
faith? 31 So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we
drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the pagans run after all these
things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek
first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be
given to you as well.
LEADERS
- Hebrews 13:7 Remember your leaders, who spoke the word of God to
you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith.
- Why should we be concerned about our relationship with leaders?
- BECAUSE all of us are FOLLOWERS!
1 Corinthians 11:3 Now I want you to realize that the head of every man
is Christ, and the head of the woman is man, and the head of Christ is
God.
- BECAUSE our spiritually fallen nature predisposes us to be BAD
followers!
Romans 8:5 Those who live according to the sinful nature have their
minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance
with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. 6 The mind
of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and
peace; 7 the sinful mind is hostile to God. It does not submit to God’s
law, nor can it do so.
- BECAUSE God calls us to practice becoming better followers!
Ephesians 5:21 Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.
- BECAUSE God commands us to FOLLOW our leaders:
Hebrews 13:17 Obey your leaders and submit to their authority. They
keep watch over you as men who must give an account. Obey them so
that their work will be a joy, not a burden, for that would be of no
advantage to you.
- Did you catch the three commands in regard to this relationship?
Remember, Consider, Imitate.
- “Remember”, that is to say- take the effort to actively bring to mind
your leaders. In other words, don’t take them for granted!
- “Consider”, that is to say- give some real thought to what they say
and why they say it. Grant that they are operating in your best interest
and that they have insight that you do not!
- “Imitate”- do what they do, in word, deed and attitude! Paul to the
Corinthians:
1 Corinthians 11:1 Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ.
CONCLUSION: Having made the point about our responsibility in
following leaders, our text for this morning ends with a simple statement
about our ultimate leader:
Hebrews 13:8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.
BROTHERS
STRANGERS
PRISONERS
MISTREATED
MARRIAGE
MONEY
LEADERS
It’s all about RELATIONSHIPS. If you want to get these right, you’ll first
need to get in right relationship with Jesus.
Ultimately, IT’S ALL ABOUT JESUS. AND, that’s what Christmas is really
all about!It’s All About Relationships (pt.2)
Hebrews 13:1-8
Emmanuel Christian Church 12.7.25
INTRODUCTION: Remember from last week? It’s all about
RELATIONSHIPS…
Matthew 22:37 Jesus (said): “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart
and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and
greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor
as yourself.’ 40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two
commandments.”
PROPOSITION: Your relationship with God, and your relationship with
your fellow man. On those two, we will all be weighed.
In the first eight verses of the last chapter of the book of Hebrews,
we discovered seven relationships of man. Last week, we considered the
first four: brothers, strangers, prisoners and the suffering. Three more
remain for our consideration this morning: MARRIAGE, MONEY and
LEADERS.
Let’s refresh our memories from last week’s Scripture and then move
on to this morning’s final three.
Hebrews 13:1 Keep on loving each other as brothers. 2 Do not forget to
entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels
without knowing it. 3 Remember those in prison as if you were their fellow
prisoners, and those who are mistreated as if you yourselves were
suffering.
Hebrews 13:4 Marriage should be honored by all, and the marriage bed
kept pure, for God will judge the adulterer and all the sexually immoral. 5
Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you
have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake
you.” 6 So we say with confidence, “The Lord is my helper; I will not be
afraid. What can man do to me?”
Hebrews 13:7 Remember your leaders, who spoke the word of God to
you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith. 8
Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.
MARRIAGE
- As in previous relationships listed, we find two commands given in
regard to the relationship of marriage.
- The first: “Marriage should be honored by all…”
- Why? Because it is the very first human relationship ordained by God.
- Why? Because it is a reflection of God’s relationship with us.
- Why? Because it is the foundation of the family formation and the
basic building block of society.
- What does it mean to “honor” marriage?
- From the Greek word “tim-eh” meaning to “cherish”.
- It is the same word used by the Apostle Peter back in 1 Peter 3:7:
1 Peter 3:7 Husbands, in the same way be considerate as you live with
your wives, and treat them with RESPECT as the weaker partner and as
heirs with you of the gracious gift of life, so that nothing will hinder your
prayers.
APPLICATION: How can we cherish the relationship of marriage? First,
by moving it up the list of priorities for our children.
Most people are called by God to be in a marriage relationship. It is
an exceptional and rare instance that God calls an individual to celibacy (1
Corinthians 7). In light of that fact, we should encourage our children to
prepare for entering into a Christian marriage relationship- especially
our daughters. Remember, the primary call upon Adam was to “work the
garden and care for it”, on the other hand, Eve was created for the express
purpose of fulfilling the role of Adam’s help-mate.
For several decades now, we have burdened our daughters with the
devaluation of their primary call by encouraging them to pursue a “career”
outside of the home. Three negatives have resulted: rates of marriage have
declined steadily, childbearing has decreased to below population
replacement levels and the family unit has become destabilized.
- “The marriage bed kept pure…”
- God is crystal-clear on the subject: in marriage, the man and the
woman become “one flesh” (Genesis 2:24).
- God is also crystal-clear on the subject of any third-party addition to
the marriage relationship- it is absolutely forbidden.
- Here’s an interesting note: the act of adultery is equated in Scripture
with apostasy (that is, the very denial of the faith- rejection of Jesus!).
APPLICATION: In our current, “pornographic” society, the marriage bed
has been kicked out into the street and dragged through the mud. Like an
indescribably beautiful painting that has been defaced with a can of spray-
paint- it has been horribly abused and viciously defiled.
As originally intended by God, the beautiful design of the marriage
bed is found in its exclusivity. In it, two souls are intimately welded
together for a lifetime.
MONEY
- Jesus spoke more about money and possessions than any other
subject! WHY? Because of this simple truth:
Luke 12:34 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
- On the other hand, Solomon (the wisest man to have ever lived) said:
Ecclesiastes 10:19 A feast is made for laughter, and wine makes life merry,
but money is the answer for everything.
- Is this a contradiction? Absolutely NOT! These are two indisputable
facts!
- What we “treasure” is what we holds priority in our heart, but money is
the means by which we can transmit to others the labor of our hands as
a labor of our love.
- So, the REAL issue when it comes to our money and possessions is
this: How can we use them to communicate our love for God and
others?
- In answer to that question God gives us two commands in our text:
“Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what
you have”
- “Keep your lives free from the love of money”
- Scripture again, is crystal-clear in warning us about the dangers of
loving money and possessions:
1 Timothy 6:10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some
people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced
themselves with many griefs.
Ecclesiastes 5:10 Whoever loves money never has money enough;
whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income. This too is
meaningless.
APPLICATION: Here’s the truth: if you love money and possessions, you’ll
have no room in your heart to love God or others. Love of money is
idolatry. Love of money is slavery. That’s why God says, keep your lives
FREE from the love of money! Instead, do as Jesus said:
Luke 16:9 I tell you, use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so
that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.
- “be content with what you have”
- “Contentment” what’s the secret to that! TELL ME PLEASE! OK,
here you go…
1 Timothy 6:6 But godliness with contentment is great gain. 7 For we
brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. 8 But if
we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. 9 People who
want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and
harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction.
APPLICATION: The secret to contentment in this life is as simple as the
passionate pursuit of godliness! It is precisely what Jesus was talking
about when He said:
Matthew 6:28 “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies
of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29 Yet I tell you that not even
Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30 If that is
how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow
is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little
faith? 31 So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we
drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the pagans run after all these
things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek
first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be
given to you as well.
LEADERS
- Hebrews 13:7 Remember your leaders, who spoke the word of God to
you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith.
- Why should we be concerned about our relationship with leaders?
- BECAUSE all of us are FOLLOWERS!
1 Corinthians 11:3 Now I want you to realize that the head of every man
is Christ, and the head of the woman is man, and the head of Christ is
God.
- BECAUSE our spiritually fallen nature predisposes us to be BAD
followers!
Romans 8:5 Those who live according to the sinful nature have their
minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance
with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. 6 The mind
of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and
peace; 7 the sinful mind is hostile to God. It does not submit to God’s
law, nor can it do so.
- BECAUSE God calls us to practice becoming better followers!
Ephesians 5:21 Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.
- BECAUSE God commands us to FOLLOW our leaders:
Hebrews 13:17 Obey your leaders and submit to their authority. They
keep watch over you as men who must give an account. Obey them so
that their work will be a joy, not a burden, for that would be of no
advantage to you.
- Did you catch the three commands in regard to this relationship?
Remember, Consider, Imitate.
- “Remember”, that is to say- take the effort to actively bring to mind
your leaders. In other words, don’t take them for granted!
- “Consider”, that is to say- give some real thought to what they say
and why they say it. Grant that they are operating in your best interest
and that they have insight that you do not!
- “Imitate”- do what they do, in word, deed and attitude! Paul to the
Corinthians:
1 Corinthians 11:1 Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ.
CONCLUSION: Having made the point about our responsibility in
following leaders, our text for this morning ends with a simple statement
about our ultimate leader:
Hebrews 13:8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.
BROTHERS
STRANGERS
PRISONERS
MISTREATED
MARRIAGE
MONEY
LEADERS
It’s all about RELATIONSHIPS. If you want to get these right, you’ll first
need to get in right relationship with Jesus.
Ultimately, IT’S ALL ABOUT JESUS. AND, that’s what Christmas is really
all about!
