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1 Let mutual love continue. 2 Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by doing that some have entertained angels without knowing it. 3 Remember those who are in prison, as though you were in prison with them; those who are being tortured, as though you yourselves were being tortured. 4 Let marriage be held in honor by all, and let the marriage bed be kept undefiled; for God will judge fornicators and adulterers. 5 Keep your lives free from the love of money, and be content with what you have; for he has said, "I will never leave you or forsake you." 6 So we can say with confidence, "The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can anyone do to me?" 7 Remember your leaders, those who spoke the word of God to you; consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith. 8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. 15 Through him, then, let us continually offer a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that confess his name. 16 Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God. (Hebrews 13:1-8, 15:1 NRSV)
May this be a wonderful and terrific Tuesday for you and yours, dear Reader is my prayer! If you brought your bulletin home from church, please look up the prayer list and pray for those names on there. Pray for one another, pray for yourselves.
As sometimes happens in recommended Lectionary passages, one sometimes finds at least two or three different sermons that a preacher would want to preach on; and this is one of those passages. But calm down, I'll limit it to two. (Fingers crossed!).
Verse one is a sermon in and of itself. Love one another. It's even a commandment from the Lord Jesus. But the understanding of the writer is that love was already present and each one was loving the other in equal ways. Thus, he writes that it is important that "mutual love continue."
Verse two: You can sense the excitement of the writer saying, "Friends, we all know there are angels and some people have entertained them just by being hospitable to one another! If the writer is Paul as I suspect, he was an excitable man! He saw Jesus and for three days was exposed to some very deep revelations; I think he may have seen an angel or two in his visions, but he was excited to see one in person. And the cost of admission for this face-to-face encounter with one? Just be nice and help someone out.
Verse three: Identify with anyone in need. Pray for them. Visit them if you can. And help them if you can.
Verse four: Hold your marriage vows sacred. God takes it very seriously and judgment awaits those who break them and the ideals of purity outside of marriage.
Verse five: Live life for the joy of love - that which we receive from God and for those whom you love. Material goods and possessions serve only to distract us from the true purpose of life.
Verse six: You have God on your side to help and bless you. Join those who can say, "The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can anyone do to me?"
Verse seven: Be inspired and encouraged by the mentors in your life. Live a life that makes them look good in having shared something with you.
Verse eight: Jesus never changes. His love, faithfulness, etc. will never forsake us.
Verse fifteen: Allow Jesus to inspire your worship of God, even to the point of sharing a word of hope and encouragement with others.
Verse sixteen: Live a life that blesses others, never stopping the doing of good for others. Every act of good is like a sacrifice offered to God.
It occurs to me if we hold to these teachings, we ourselves may be the angels that people see! An angel of mercy you may be to someone in need. Your spouse may see an angel of love renewed by new love in you placed there by the hand of God. Your children and grandchildren may see the Jesus who never changes by your words and example. Your church blessed by a new and renewed faith in you. Yes, we are indeed surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses and we have entertained angels among us.
PRAYER: Heavenly Father, make us worthy to be your servants among us. May our actions reflect angelic intentions and blessings. This we pray in Christ Jesus' strong name, amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord! Be an angel in a world that needs them!
Blessings of love,
Pastor Eradio Valverde
Please share this with someone in need. Forward it to the person you know who might need to hear this word. Please pray for me and for my family. Pray for the ones in your prayer list and for those who seem to go against you. Your prayers that these messages reach others go far! Support of this ministry is also appreciated. paypal.me/eradiovalverde is one way to help. May the Lord bless you and keep you.
