This letter shows how the earliest Christians gleaned writings from the Jewish Scriptures that predicted the coming of the Messiah and King to restore the glory of the Jewish people, their traditions and beliefs. The author delves into the five books of Moses, the psalms and the prophets finding scripture texts that were meaningful and significant to their burgeoning faith in Jesus as the Messiah King and Son of God.
The author’s profound intuitions about the central points of Christian belief make this letter one of the most important books of the Christian Testament.
One of my favorite texts from the letter, actually from all Christian scriptures:
“Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was made from things that are not visible”. Hebrews 11:1
“Things hoped for; Things not seen.” A thing is anything that is or may become an object of thought. A reality is a thing which exists independent of human awareness or which exists independently of ideas concerning it.
For me, faith is the assurance of realities hoped for, the conviction of realities not seen.
The “Things” the author writes about are realities for me. I consistently use the word "reality" in describing what I believe in my faith as a Christian.
I believe things we know from God’s self-revelation are absolute true realities; intrinsic to God’s very nature and being. Realities which stand by themselves as truths and of themselves are independent of any human thought or idea.
I believe this describes how utterly dependent we are on God’s grace. Only God’s gratuitous gifts of faith and hope can give us the assurance and conviction that is beyond our human capacity to achieve without the help of the Holy Spirit.
I believe our lives are full of sacramental realities whether we are aware or not. Outward and visible signs in our lives that make concrete the inward and spiritual grace springing from the in-dwelling of The Holy Spirit.
The author of the letter speaks of Jesus, as the eternal High Priest and offers up for us a prayer to Him:
“. . let us approach with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast to the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who has promised is faithful” 10: 22-23
Note: For Biblical scholars, the authorship is cannot be determined and not really important to the significance of the letter. I believe the author is Apollos, an Alexandrian Jew and Paul’s missionary companion. In Luke’s Gospel he is described as “an eloquent man with a sound knowledge of the scriptures* . . . he was accurate in all the details he taught about Jesus.” Acts 18: 24-25
*The Jewish Scriptures
The author’s profound intuitions about the central points of Christian belief make this letter one of the most important books of the Christian Testament.
One of my favorite texts from the letter, actually from all Christian scriptures:
“Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was made from things that are not visible”. Hebrews 11:1
“Things hoped for; Things not seen.” A thing is anything that is or may become an object of thought. A reality is a thing which exists independent of human awareness or which exists independently of ideas concerning it.
For me, faith is the assurance of realities hoped for, the conviction of realities not seen.
The “Things” the author writes about are realities for me. I consistently use the word "reality" in describing what I believe in my faith as a Christian.
I believe things we know from God’s self-revelation are absolute true realities; intrinsic to God’s very nature and being. Realities which stand by themselves as truths and of themselves are independent of any human thought or idea.
I believe this describes how utterly dependent we are on God’s grace. Only God’s gratuitous gifts of faith and hope can give us the assurance and conviction that is beyond our human capacity to achieve without the help of the Holy Spirit.
I believe our lives are full of sacramental realities whether we are aware or not. Outward and visible signs in our lives that make concrete the inward and spiritual grace springing from the in-dwelling of The Holy Spirit.
The author of the letter speaks of Jesus, as the eternal High Priest and offers up for us a prayer to Him:
“. . let us approach with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast to the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who has promised is faithful” 10: 22-23
Note: For Biblical scholars, the authorship is cannot be determined and not really important to the significance of the letter. I believe the author is Apollos, an Alexandrian Jew and Paul’s missionary companion. In Luke’s Gospel he is described as “an eloquent man with a sound knowledge of the scriptures* . . . he was accurate in all the details he taught about Jesus.” Acts 18: 24-25
*The Jewish Scriptures
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