Hebrews 13:1 Commentary - Dr Peter Masters

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Hebrews 13:1

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There is a series of very practical verses in this chapter, largely exhortations, but one or two very emphatic statements – to encourage us, and to drive some truth home to our minds. We could entitle this ‘the duties of love’, or ‘love’s accomplishments’. The first five verses are all about love, different forms of love, or different objects of love.We need to remind ourselves of the necessity of brotherly love. It is love towards the Lord’s people that is primarily addressed here. In another way, this is all about participating in the life of a church, participating with the family of God’s people, because we cannot exercise brotherly love, love among believers, if we are only on the very edge of a church, and its life and fellowship. To be complete believers, and to honour the Lord, and to allow even the very nature of God to be expressed through us, we must be in fellowship with other believers. It is the will of God. It accomplishes great things for him, and great things in our lives. If, perhaps, we love the Lord but because of circumstances, or because of human frailty, we find ourselves gathering in a company of Christians just on the fringe. We are worshipping sincerely, and delighting in his word, feeding on it and building ourselves up on it, and yet we are allowing life to carry us away, so that we are not really part of that fellowship. We are not really drawing from it, or contributing to it in any way, even with fellowship and love. Without being further involved, and participating within the life of a fellowship, we are not doing the will of God. What is brotherly love? It is to appreciate, to respect, to be united one with another. It is to bind ourselves one to another in helpfulness, to protect, to encourage, to admonish, and to console one another. It is a duty and a grace. But it is never to be artificial. ‘Without dissimulation,’ says the apostle Paul in his letter to the Romans, without pretence, without it just being put on. ‘Continue,’ says the inspired writer. It suggests two things to us. First, that brotherly love is a starting grace or gift given to us at conversion. When you first came to the Lord, you had this strange intuition of oneness with other believers. You felt close to them. You felt a special kinship to those who witnessed to you, and to those who drew you in under the sound of the word. You realised that you were a member of the family of God’s people. But did you continue in it? There was this inherent affection, and respect for other Christians, but it may be that circumstances conspired against you to some degree. Perhaps, you have been carried away, and now you are virtually on your own, and you are just there on the edge. Well, the exhortation to you is to let that starting grace, that feeling of family and oneness continue to be expressed. The word, ‘continue’ also suggests that this is something we have to work at all the time. It is like fresh food. If you leave it too long, it deteriorates. It is like tending a garden. If you stop weeding too long, all your past labour is reversed. Brotherly love has to be considered all the time. You cannot have one month, when you really praise God for your fellowship with other people and you make your contribution, and then you say this will just carry on automatically. It isn’t arduous. It is quite easy actually, but nevertheless it has to be done.

Application

Why is there to be brotherly love? Is it so that we can enjoy ourselves, in order that we can have many happy times together? No, brotherly love is enjoyable, but that is not the reason. Is it given us so that we can wander about, talking together in a bubbling manner, and have fun? Some people think so, but no. In fact, there are Christian organisations today who make this big mistake. They base their whole method of evangelism, and their whole approach to church growth on this foundation – you give people a fellowship, in which they can enjoy one another, and need each other, so that church life becomes a continual round of comfort, solace, fun, and enjoyment. They will be converted, it is thought, because this will be so attractive to them. They will never want to leave your church, and it will build up rapidly. Sadly, that is even the prime motive behind a very well-known method of evangelism, by small group Bible study today. It is not so much the Bible study that is the big factor; it is the fellowship and the friendship. There is nothing wrong with fellowship and friendship, but to manipulate it as a method of securing people’s affection for the gospel, is wrong. Young people’s groups often are like this. ‘I come to church and I expect as my basic human right: fun, enjoyment, friendship. Is that what is meant by brotherly love? Well, we have to get this right from the very beginning. All those things may be very nice spin-offs, and agreeable side-effects, but that is not the fundamental purpose. The fundamental purpose behind brotherly love is that we are one body for the glory of Christ. How are you going to be a sacrificial Christian, and say, ‘No, I am not going to have fun tonight. I am going to visit the community’, or ‘No, I am not going to have fun tonight, I am going to read the word’, or ‘No, I am going to be involved in preparing my Sunday School lesson.’ Because you are making sacrifices for the Lord, you may need the encouragement of the God, and brotherly love will be one of the many means God uses to uphold you. Why do soldiers have comradeship in an army? It is so that they can neglect the enemy, and just while away the time, having fun? No, comradeship gives morale and helps in the battle. It is to the end that we should be strengthened, bound together for the service of the Lord. As a believer, I am in a battle against the world, the flesh and the devil, and don’t I know it. And what helps me in that battle is that there are others in that battle with whom I stand. Yes, there is enjoyment, there is recreation, there is simply enjoying company for the sake of it, but that is not the chief purpose.

What stops us from exercising true forbearance, and respect, and affection one for another? Self-love. When we love ourselves, then we have no room in our emotions for real interest in others. My mind spends much too much time, perhaps, on my problems, and my affairs, and my difficulties. Self-pity is another obstacle. It gets into the mind, and starts going round and round, continually thinking about what this one has done to me, and what that one has done, and how hard this is and that is. Those are the things you have got to fight. Avoid a critical spirit like the plague, that stops you loving others. Avoid envy. Avoid smouldering bitterness. If you have been offended, try to get it out of your heart, and pray to God to help you. Avoid laziness, so that you never trouble to make any arrangement to those with whom God has linked you. Intercede, pray for others.

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Hebrews 13:1 Commentary and Bible Study