“Moving on?”
By Rev. Michael Stonhouse
Meditation – Wednesday, January 19, 2022
Hebrews 6:1-12 (Forward, p. 83) CEV p. 1262
Interestingly, the Letter to the Hebrews wasn’t necessarily written for us, or at least of people who are in our precise situation. It was written to and for a group of Christians, baby or immature Christians, who, when faced with increased opposition and pressures, were in danger of abandoning the Christian faith. So, is that us? And, perhaps more to the point, are the lessons and admonitions that our author makes appropriate to us today?
In today’s passage, there are three things that our author wants his audience to know:
First of all, he wants them to ‘move on’, to dispense with the initial doctrines, the first lessons, of the Christian faith, not in the sense of ridding ourselves of them but in the sense of not having to lay again or review these fundamental doctrines. Surely, he says, these are our foundations and should be taken for granted so that we can grow and become more perfect, more like Christ. In these, he mentions the following six things:
-repentance, turning from useless or dead works;
-faith toward God, trusting and believing in Him;
-teachings on baptisms or purification ceremonies;
-teachings on the laying on of hands;
-people being raised from death, the resurrection of the dead
-future, eternal judgment
His point is that there are certain things which can be assumed to be basic and foundational, but then be the basis for future group, for moving on in the faith.
But this is only his first point. The second is much more serious in import. Some people, he alleges, have abandoned, turned away, fallen away, from their faith in Jesus Christ. He asks whether it is possible for such people that have tasted the goodness of God and His gifts to return, to repent once again. He questions whether this is possible given that by their departure they have crucified Christ afresh and insulted Him and exposed Him to public shame and abuse. (This, by the way, was not an idle question for the early Church, given the severity and prevalence of persecution both by the Romans and official Judaism.)
Then there is a final admonition to his readers. He encourages his readers to continue with the love and help they have shown to their fellow believers. He encourages them not to grow lazy or relax but to patiently and diligently keep at it. In fact, he suggests that by so doing, they are actually honouring and blessing God and demonstrating, showing, their love for Him. By all this, he says, they are showing just how strong and lasting their hope is in Jesus Christ and how strong their faith is in His great promises.
Forward notes: “And we want each one of you to show the same diligence so as to realize the full assurance of hope to the very end, so that you may not become sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises” (verses 11-12).
“The fight for justice, for the sake of the widow, orphan, and poor, requires us to honour and learn from those who came before us in the struggle for liberation. Prominent liberation theologians like Ada María Isasi-Díaz and James Cone, to name a few, advocated for justice, access, and equity for the marginalized. If we stay the course and continue their good work, we will see the fruit of our labours in the end.
“Even if things do not change right now, the injustices we face or fight will begin to unravel over time. If we imitate the peace and justice makers before us, through faith, we inherit the wisdom of training our eyes on Jesus and guarding our spirit from becoming sluggish in the work set before us.”
MOVING FORWARD: “Research liberation theology and its focus on social justice and liberation. Is God calling you into this work?”
