Good morning. Back to
Hebrews: that there be no immoral or godless person like Esau, who sold his own
birthright for a single meal. Even afterwards, when he desired to inherit a
blessing, he was rejected, for he found no place for repentance, though he
sought for it with tears. Now with our usual understanding of repentance, I
used to think that he was seeking for his own change of heart with tears. But
the word translated repentance actually means after thinking about it, you
change your mind. He was not seeking to change his own mind, but rather his
father Isaac's mind with tears; so that he could receive a blessing. Then he
talks about; we have not come to a mountain like the children of Israel did on
Mt. Sinai. We have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the
heavenly Jerusalem, and to myriads of angels, to the General assembly and church
of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven. We have not come to a physical
mountain but rather a spiritual one. We are enrolled in heaven. And it is the
church of the firstborn, Jesus Christ. Father thank You that we are enrolled in
heaven in the church of the firstborn. Thank You that we have an inheritance
with all the saints.
Therefore I exhort you, be imitators of me
Good morning. Paul then gives a list of a lot of things that he has gone through as an apostle. I do not write these things to shame you, but to admonish you as my beloved children. For if you were to have countless tutors in Christ, yet you would not have many fathers, for in Christ Jesus I became your father through the gospel. There could be many people that you listen to either in church or through the Internet or other means; but there was only one person (as a general rule it was a person) that lead you to Christ. Therefore I exhort you, be imitators of me. He was saying that just like a child imitates his or her father, they were to imitate him. He says that again seven chapters later. Since it is easy to forget some things about people we have not seen in a while, Paul says that he sent Timothy to them to remind them of his ways which are in Christ, just as he taught everywhere in every church. Some have become arrogant, as though I were not coming to you. I shall find ou...
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