The book of Hebrews might honestly be my favorite book of the New Testament. Every time I read it I’m struck anew by the hopeful, but entirely realistic outlook. Time and time again, Hebrews hits on the ways the Christian life is full of hope while acknowledging just how hard life can be this side of the grass. Whoever wrote this book was no stranger to hardship.
But what struck me most on a recent revisit was the pace of the whole book.
There is a rhythm to Hebrews in the back and forth between acknowledging the struggle and rejoicing in what’s to come. It’s almost like the book breathes in hardship and breathes out hope. Whatever struggle goes in comes back as endurance. The rhythm alone of Hebrews is a brilliant instruction to us on how to live in this world as we hope for the next.
Sometimes we Christians slip into all or nothing modes of living, very much to our own detriment. Some of us are prone to fear and mourning of the present state of the world. This has a place certainly. Things are bad. Horrible things happen. God’s creation is hurting. God mourns these things and we are wise to mourn them with him.
However, if that’s the only attitude we adopt we become hysterical Christians. The type that panics at every new headline in world news and thinks the world is going to end every day. The kind of Christian who sees evil around every corner and points to everything they don’t like or that makes them uncomfortable as one more piece of evidence for how broken the world is. How effective is this believer?
But then there’s the opposite side. Those of us who lean more towards an emphasis on joy and the coming hope. It is good to rejoice in God’s goodness, God encourages our praise and joy. We are hardwired for it. When we express joy in God’s goodness we delight our creator. This is a good thing.
But similar to the hysterical Christian, the joyful Christian if taken to the extreme becomes the blind, naive Christian. The kind of Christian who is made uncomfortable when others are struggling and would rather get back to their praising. The kind of Christian who tells the hurting to cheer up, or suggest that they’re not being faithful enough. They point to a lack of joy as the source of every affliction and believe that if you just pray more you wouldn’t be so down. How effective is this believer?
Hebrews reminds us that we need wise acknowledgment of both the hard and the hopeful to endure this life.
Christ embodied both sides and we’re meant to be behaving as closely to him as we can. Jesus embodied confident joy. He kept the wine flowing and refused to be panicked by storms. He told his followers time and time again not to worry and made sure they were well fed. But Jesus also cried at the tomb of a dear friend. He used the word “woe” to describe the state of the world more than a few times. He was scared and grieving as he prayed before his arrest, stressed to the point of sweating blood. Jesus was the embodiment of holding the woe of the world in tension with the joy of hope and he wants us to do the same.
For what purpose? I’d argue that the enemy hates nothing quite so much as a Christian who honestly acknowledges how much they’re suffering and still finds room in their heart for joy and hope in the Lord. That is a knockout blow to the enemy of incredible, holy force. More than that, the world takes notice of our endurance and the volumes it speaks to God’s glory, and glorifying God is kind of our major job.
Life will be hard, but it won’t be without hope. That is the breath and rhythm of Hebrews that we need to hold onto. So “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. 2 We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne.” (Hebrews 12:1-2)
Let’s find some joy,
A
Avalon Robinson Author 