Hebrews 13:1-17
August 31, 2025
I believe we have a good understanding of what a sacrifice looks like. A baby is born and it takes time to care for that child. Middle of the night feedings, diapers need to be changed, and all kinds of equipment from car seats, to cribs, to developmental toys need to be purchased. It’s expensive. Parents make a lot of sacrifices in time and money and energy to raise a child. Two soldiers are in battle. Their intense and exhaustive combat training has prepared them for this moment. Their mission is to protect each other and the people around them. But all of a sudden a grenade lands between them. One immediately jumps on it and sacrifices his life for the other soldier. Soldiers will give their lives to protect others. A man living in a Muslim country becomes a Christian. He will sacrifice his family, his work, his freedom, and maybe even his life for his Christian faith. These are all examples of what sacrifice looks like today.
Now if we were to go back thousands of years to the days of the Old Testament, making a sacrifice was a huge part of worship. When people came to worship in the temple they would make all kinds of sacrifices. They sacrificed animals, such as sheep, goats, and pigeons. They sacrificed grain and crops. They had sacrifices to give thanks, sacrifices for peace, sacrifices to go with prayers, and sacrifices to take away sin and guilt.
But then the day came when all those animal and crop sacrifices that God required of His people were no longer needed. The day came when one sacrifice was made that made all those other sacrifices obsolete. The day came when Jesus made a once-for-all sacrifice when He gave His life on the cross for our sin. Can you imagine what that sacrifice looks like? There are many pictures that artists have drawn or painted that depict Jesus on the cross. In this picture that I found in a simple internet search it shows Jesus with His head bowed, a crown of thorns on His head, and perhaps He is taking His last few breaths. In this picture, everything looks peaceful as
Jesus may have already committed himself to His father in heaven. And His death then marked the end of the sacrifice for our sins.
But everything before that moment was violent, painful, and agonizing. Jesus’ back had been beaten. He had to carry His own cross and had gotten so weak from the beatings that another man was forced to carry Jesus’ cross. His face probably had blood coming down it from the crown of thorns, there would have been blood on His hands and feet from the nails, and there would have been blood rolling down His side from the spear that was thrust into Him. While this picture may look very peaceful, we should never lose sight of what Jesus’ sacrifice looked like and why Jesus made this sacrifice.
He did this to take away the sin of the world. He willingly took the punishment for our sin onto Himself and sacrificed His life so that we might live forever with Him. On that cross His blood was shed so we could be clean and holy in God’s eyes. So we come into God’s presence today only because Jesus has made us holy, He has washed away our sin by His holy blood shed on the cross. Jesus’ sacrifice is a once-for-all people and for all time sacrifice. No longer do we have to sacrifice animals or crops for our sin.
However, our second lesson for today from Hebrews makes it clear that the time for making sacrifices is not over. It is over for gaining forgiveness, for making ourselves acceptable in God’s eyes. Those sacrifices for forgiveness are done, because we cannot add any sacrifice to what Jesus did on the cross to save us. But other sacrifices are still to be made by us. In verses 15-16 it says, “Through him then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name. Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God.” We still make sacrifices to God: namely the sacrifice of praise with our lips, the sacrifice of doing good, and sharing what we have with others. So what do those sacrifices look like?
The sacrifice of praise with our lips takes place every Sunday morning when we sing together, share the “peace of our Lord” with each other, and speak the words of the Apostles’ Creed as we confess our faith. The sacrifice of praise with our lips takes place when we bow our heads in prayer before we enjoy a meal at home or at a local restaurant. It takes place when we tell someone about Jesus at work, at school, or when we are out in our neighborhood; and when we say “Thank you, Lord’ throughout the day for the wonderful gifts He gives to us.
Now for the sacrifice of doing what is good, the writer of Hebrews actually gives us a list of good things to do, ways to give of our time, money, and energy to God in the way we live. For example, in Verse 1 it says, “Let brotherly love continue.” We said last week that the Church is a family, as we care for each other as brothers and sisters in Christ. We sacrifice time and money to make Holy Cross our church home. We donate food for food needy children at one of our local elementary schools, and we donate our time by volunteering to pack and deliver bags of food to that elementary school through our “Backpack Buddies” ministry. We give of ourselves in worship by ushering, greeting, and reading Scripture; and we give of ourselves in caring for those who mourn the death of a loved one. (Beginning next Sunday and over the next few weeks, you will hear more about how you can support and be involved in these ministries.)
Verse 2 says “Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers.” So we provide clothing, food, and financial gifts to our Matthew Ministry to support the homeless. We give offerings to our local Crisis Pregnancy Center. And we show hospitality when we invite or welcome a visitor to worship, or when we check in on a neighbor and offer encouragement to others.
Verse 3 says, “Remember those who are in prison.” Even those who’ve done what is wrong need to be cared for and treated with decency, for they are still children of God. Supporting Christian ministries for those in prison is what our sacrifice of doing good looks like today. This
is a challenge, because we can easily forget about those in prison as we relax in our cars, homes, and comfortable surroundings.
In Verse 4, the author writes, “Let marriage be held in honor among all, and let the marriage bed be undefiled.” God’s Word is very clear. Marriage is to be treated with respect, honor, and as an institution of precious value. In a world of rampant pornography, television shows where marriage is ridiculed, and a society where sex outside of marriage is seen as the norm, these words about keeping the marriage bed pure may seem old fashioned or out of step with reality. But they are God’s Words, and it’s what our sacrifice of doing good looks like today when we honor those words.
Verse 5 says, “Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have.” Have you ever woken up in the middle of the night worrying about a bill that needs to be paid or debts you’ve built up? Instead of focusing on what you owe, give thanks to God for everything He has given to you. I am not suggesting that you should ignore your debts, what I am saying is counting your blessings rather than fretting over bills makes for a better night’s sleep.
Or have you ever caught yourself wanting something new or better than what you have now? It could be a car, a house, an electronic gadget, or different clothes. Being content is hard. Advertisers tell us that we deserve better. But once again, the secret is to thank God for what we have. Being content and not loving money is what our sacrifice looks like today.
Are you getting the picture of what our sacrifices look like today? I hope so, because the writer of Hebrews has summarized them very well. Jesus made the once-for-all sacrifice for us on the cross so we can live with Him forever, and now that Jesus’ sacrifice has made us holy and acceptable to God, together we live lives of sacrifice - with our words, by doing what is good in God’s eyes, and sharing what God has given to us with others.
