Last week we began this section of the book of Hebrews which encourages the Hebrews to look back at their past faithfulness and look forward to their reward to encourage them to continue in faithfulness to Jesus Christ.
That passage is Hebrews 10:32-34.
32 But recall the former days when, after you were enlightened, you endured a hard struggle with sufferings, 33 sometimes being publicly exposed to reproach and affliction, and sometimes being partners with those so treated. 34 For you had compassion on those in prison, and you joyfully accepted the plundering of your property, since you knew that you yourselves had a better possession and an abiding one. 35 Therefore do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward. 36 For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God you may receive what is promised. 37 For, “Yet a little while, and the coming one will come and will not delay; 38 but my righteous one shall live by faith, and if he shrinks back, my soul has no pleasure in him.” 39 But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who have faith and preserve their souls.
Not only had these Jewish Christians been persecuted themselves, they had also unashamedly supported other believers who had undergone persecution in the same way; they became “partners with those so treated.”
Here their spiritual athleticism leaps forth, because they transcended the normal tendency to be passive and actively joined in suffering together. What gallantry and honor! “I stand with my brothers and sisters here. If you insult them, you insult me!” Side-by-side, with arms locked, they chose to face persecution together.
They stood by them. They embraced them in solidarity. They didn’t turn and run away in fear but said, “We are here for those you are abusing. We stand with them. They are our brothers and sisters in Christ. We are not afraid to declare ourselves partners with them.”
Can you think of someone who is being publicly attacked today who might need you to stand with them and support them?
This word here in v. 34, “partners,” is the word we find normally translated “fellowship,” koinonia. We talk about Christian “fellowship” today but usually mean no more than that we shared a meal together or hang out in a small group or enjoyed sitting next to another Christian in a church service like this one. But for these people it went much deeper. Their unity and sense of community displayed itself in their open and willing identification with those who suffered worst of all.
Community is not just a place for the suffering to find comfort but for the comfortable to find suffering. Together we join Christ in his suffering, and as a result, as 2 Corinthians 1:4 says, “we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.”
Dietrich Bonhoeffer, in his great little book Life Together, pointed out: ““The Christian, however, must bear the burden of a brother. He must suffer and endure the brother. It is only when he is a burden that another person is really a brother and not merely an object to be manipulated. The burden of men was so heavy for God Himself that He had to endure the Cross. God verily bore the burden of men in the body of Jesus Christ. But He bore them as a mother carries her child, as a shepherd enfolds the lost lamb that has been found. God took men upon Himself and they weighted Him to the ground, but God remained with them and they with God. In bearing with men God maintained fellowship with them” (Life Together).
What we see, and like to see, is cure and change. But what we do not see and do not want to see is care: the participation in the pain, the solidarity in the suffering, the sharing in the experience of brokenness. And still, cure without care is as dehumanizing as a gift given with a cold heart” (Henri J. M. Nouwen, Out of Solitude (Ave Maria Press, 2008), pp. 35-36).
Jerry Bridges, in his book Trusting God, writes: “There are many elements that go into the total concept of fellowship, as it is described in the New Testament, but the sharing together in suffering is one of the most profitable. It probably unites our hearts together in Christ more than any other aspect of fellowship.” Most of us aren’t out looking for suffering, but we can deeply appreciate the fellowship we enjoy when we share it with others.
We enjoy the deepest fellowship with Jesus Christ as we join him in the “fellowship of his sufferings” (Philippians 3:10). We enjoy our deepest fellowship with one another as we go through suffering together.
Next, in verse 34, he says, “you had compassion on those in prison.” That is, they literally had a “fellow-feeling” for or with those in prison. The same word is used in 4:15 of Christ’s sympathy for us as our high priest! They lived out the later exhortation in Hebrews to “remember those who are in prison, as though in prison with them” (13:3).
Even more, this was not imagined sympathy—it was real, because they visited their comrades in prison.
In the world of the first century the lot of prisoners was difficult. Prisoners were to be punished, not pampered. Little provision was made for them, and they were dependent on friends for their supplies [including food]. Without them, they would likely starve. For Christians in the early church, visiting prisoners was a meritorious act (Matt 25:36). But there was some risk, in fact it could be dangerous, for the visitors became identified with the visited. However, the readers of the epistle had not shrunk from this. It is not pleasant to endure ignominy, and it is not pleasant to be lumped with the ignominious. They had endured both.
It’s entirely likely that those arrested had been severely beaten and were left untended and hurting. In any case, the rest of the Christians had to make a decision: Do we keep our mouths shut and lock our doors and say and do nothing? Or do we go to our Christian friends and provide the help they need and in doing so very likely expose ourselves to the same mistreatment they’ve suffered? Let’s not forget, we’ve got families too. What will become of our homes and possessions and our jobs and our reputation if we step out to help them?
Evidently, when the light of God’s grace shone in their hearts to give them the knowledge of Jesus Christ, among the many things that they experienced was a transformation from being selfish and self-protective to being compassionate! They were so burdened by the burdens of their fellow believers that they simply couldn’t remain silent or keep still. The compassion that Jesus himself displayed toward the sick and hurting and abused and the outcasts of his day came alive in their hearts as well.
What some might consider reckless and irresponsible behavior on their part, the Bible calls compassion!
And they did it willingly—and in doing so some visited Christ who said, “For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink . . . I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me” (Matthew 25:35, 36).
In all of this they had done well, but most amazingly to me is the next statement: “. . . and you joyfully accepted the plundering of your property, since you knew that you yourselves had a better possession and an abiding one” (v. 34b). Apparently their willingness to stand in solidarity with Christians who were being persecuted is that they experienced economic persecution as well.
Perhaps they burned their homes or broke out their windows and stole their furniture. Or it might refer to official fines. Whatever it was, showing sympathy with their suffering brothers and sisters cost them their possessions.
You can’t tell from the word whether it’s official confiscation of property, or whether it’s unofficial vandalism. One way or the other, their property was ruined and taken.
They didn’t just grimly endure the loss of their property; they accepted it joyfully! Many modern Christians would rage at such unfair treatment and file a lawsuit to recover what they lost, plus damages for emotional suffering! But these new believers had such profound joy in knowing Christ that they sang the doxology as the mob hauled off their belongings and leveled their houses.
Now, imagine your small group. Half of a small group went to jail, and the other half had a meeting and prayed, and they made decisions about costly love. They went and identified with the prisoners, and while they were gone people wrote, “Christians get out!” all over their houses and took their furniture and burned it in the streets. And you gather your small group in a circle and sing a song of joy that you had been counted worthy of such abuse for the sake of the Name (Acts 5:41). The author of Hebrews says that is how they responded: “You joyfully accepted the seizure of your property knowing that you have for yourselves a better possession and an abiding one.”
Now, the human tendency is to hold on as hard as we can to what we have and we only let go of it kicking and screaming.
We may believe that the way to really enjoy the good things in life is to hold onto to them as hard as we could for as long as we can.
R. Kent Hughes relates this story:
I once came across an ad that appealed to the desire of many to keep their household pets, which unfortunately do not have a lengthy life expectancy. The advertisement was for freeze-drying! According to the ad, most people who have their pets freeze-dried do so because they want to “keep their pets around a little longer.” The process takes several months, and the pet will remain natural-looking for up to twenty years after being freeze-dried. The price for this service ranges from $400 for a small pet up to $1,400 for a pet the size of a golden retriever (“Freeze-dried Pets Article Legitimate,” The Bloomington Indiana Herald-Telephone (December 26, 1985). So, if your wish is to hang on to everything—even your dead dog—here’s your chance!
But there is a better way, a way that will lead to greater joy, and that is to ‘joyfully accept[ed] the plundering of your property.”
They had also been willing to suffer material loss because they looked forward to a better inheritance in the future (cf. Luke 21:19). Moreover, they had done this joyfully, not grudgingly.
You accepted it “with joy” (joyfully), the writer says. The preposition “with” denotes the attendant circumstances of something that is taking place. Here that loss of possessions is “with” the feeling of excitement, filled with “joy” (chara). The word “accepted” has the idea of welcoming something, of treating it like a welcome guest, or eagerly receiving someone. It expresses the idea of expectant waiting where a person is ready and willing to receive all that is hoped for.
“Thankfully, joy is an all-season response to life. Even in the dark times, sorrow enlarges the capacity of the heart for joy. Like a diamond against black velvet, true spiritual joy shines brightest against the darkness of trials, tragedies and testing” (1 and 2 Thessalonians, Christian Focus Publications, 1999, p. 54).
“The eternal inheritance laid up for them was so real in their eyes that they could lightheartedly bid farewell to material possessions which were short-lived in any case. This attitude of mind is precisely that ‘faith’ of which our author goes on to speak” (F. F. Bruce, The Epistle to the Hebrews, p. 270).
Though losing their possessions they found themselves exhilarated by the loss! Why? Because they knew they “had a better possession and an abiding one.” They believed Jesus’ words, “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven . . .” (Matthew 6:19, 20). They were “seek[ing] the city that is to come” (13:14)—“the heavenly Jerusalem” (12:22).
They made it through the time of persecution by keeping a heavenly perspective, an eternal perspective. The writer to the Hebrews’ point is clear: you can make it through this present time of discouragement also.
There are a number of passages in Scripture that command us to have joy in the face of trials and troubles and persecution, and in every case it is based upon something that we know. There is always a good reason. All of these passages have to do with the trials or persecution we go through and all of them command us to rejoice and all of them give us a great reason to rejoice.
Look at these passages. First is James 1:2-4.
2 Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, 3 for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. 4 And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.
We are to count it “all joy,” or “pure joy” whenever we meet trials and verse 3 gives us the reason we can rejoice in our trials, and that is “because you know” something, you know “that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness” and when we continue to be steadfast, it produces spiritual maturity.
Paul, in Romans 5 says something very similar. In the midst of five great benefits of being justified by faith, Paul says…
3 More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, 4 and endurance produces character, and character produces hope,
We not only rejoice in our “hope of glory” in the future, being transformed into Christlikeness, but now “we rejoice in our sufferings,” and why? Because we know “that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope.” Again, we rejoice in our sufferings because through them God brings about Christlike character.
Peter chimes in as well. In 1 Peter 1 he looks back upon his own experiences with trials, likely reflecting back upon the time that he denied his Lord three times after claiming that he would stand up for Christ. He says…
6 In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 so that the tested genuineness of your faith–more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire–may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. (1 Peter 1:6-7)
He doesn’t use the word “know,” but he does reveal that the purpose of trials is “so that the tested genuineness of your faith….may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” In other words, when we go through the testing of our faith through trials, the end result is reward in the presence of Christ.
That is what Jesus focused upon when he told His disciples in Matthew 5:10-12.
10 “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11 “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. 12 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”
The word “blessed” means to be in a state of utmost happiness and this can be experienced even in persecution. Thus, Jesus tells them to “rejoice and be glad” (and that word “be glad” has the idea of jumping for joy). And why? Because “your reward is great in heaven.”
Like Peter, Jesus focused on the future benefits of suffering now—it results in greater rewards in heaven.
Paul also addresses this in Romans 8 and 2 Corinthians 4 when he says “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us” (Romans 8:18). As we look at our current sufferings, no matter how painful and prolonged they may seem, they are “not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.” Do the math, Paul says. Whatever you lose now we result in far greater gain in glory.
In 2 Corinthians 4 Paul says it like this. “For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison,” (2 Cor. 4:17).
Christ also would endured the shame and pain of the cross “for the joy that was set before him” (Heb. 12:2). He endured the present pain by looking forward to future reward. In Hebrews 11, Moses will do the same. I love these verses.
25 choosing rather to be mistreated with the people of God than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin. 26 He considered the reproach of Christ greater wealth than the treasures of Egypt, for he was looking to the reward.
And now look back at Hebrews 10:34.
When you know that you have a better and a lasting possession, you are not paralyzed by loss. Now that’s not nearly strong enough is it? When you know that you have a better possession and one that lasts forever, you’re not paralyzed by anger when you lose something. That’s not nearly strong enough either, because it’s not just that they weren’t paralyzed, (and I didn’t write it, Christian hedonist that I am, God wrote it) it says they rejoiced. Evidently, there must be a possession which is so much better and long lasting that if you have it, and you lose something in the name of it, that’s okay.
The key to indomitable joy that produces love and good works that share the loss of property others have experienced is “knowing that you have for yourself a better possession and an abiding one.” When you know that you have a better and a lasting possession, you are not paralyzed by loss. If that better possession is great enough, you will even be able to rejoice in loss.
So what is this possession? Well, it’s everything the book of Hebrews is about. This book is written to help believers love their treasure, their reward, so deeply that this lifestyle emerges. From the end of Chapter 10, everything left in this letter is about living by faith by falling in love with this possession.
What is it? Well, it’s the triumph over death (2:15). It’s the final resting for the saints (4:9). It’s the subduing of all of our enemies that Christ accomplished (10:13). It’s the perfection we enjoy by the one sacrifice, Jesus Christ, and it’s the ultimate goal of drawing near to God and having him be our God forever. That’s the new covenant. “I will be among them. They will be my people. I will be their God forever.” That’s our treasure, our possession. God, our God, our portion, our Savior, our Refuge, our hope, our King.
A better possession and an abiding one is not a thing. Don’t ever try to get your hope from a thing in heaven, or from a gift instead of the giver. Our true possession is fellowship with God. It’s being accepted by God and being loved by God and being embraced by the Father. And, it’s better. Don’t miss those two words. Don’t fly over words when you read the Bible. Stop and meditate. T he two words I’m pointing you to are “better” and “abiding.” We have a better possession, verse 34, a better possession and an abiding one.
I love to link that up with Psalm 16:11. At the end of the Psalm it says, “Thou wilt show me the path of life; in thy presence is fullness of joy.” Mark the word fullness. “At thy right hand are pleasures forever.” That’s lasting. If you take those two words, fullness and forever, and compare them with verse 34, you see how they correspond: We have a better possession and an abiding one. Better corresponds to fullness and abiding corresponds to forever. What’s the reward? It’s God. “In thy presence is fullness of joy. At thy right hand are pleasures forevermore.” (https://www.desiringgod.org/messages/the-present-power-of-a-future-possession)
For a Jew to confess the faith of Christ Crucified brought on him the loathing and disgrace of his compatriots, the ruination of his business, and even expulsion from the family circle. This would particularly be the case in the Jewish homeland, and it goes a long way toward explaining the extreme poverty of the Christian community in Jerusalem, which caused Paul to give such prominence to the collection of relief funds among the Gentile churches. (Philip Edgcumbe Hughes, A Commentary on the Epistle to the Hebrews, 427)
So our author is encouraging his readers to stay faithful, to endure sufferings. They had done it until know, they have need of continued endurance.
We may have begun well and now want to end well. If so, part of the secret is to remember well.
Grace Still Amazes 