CapChurch » Hebrews

Expecting

Paula — Sun, 15 May 2011 22:18:06 +0000

(May 15, 2011 – Sarah Williams)

EXPECTING
This has been such a rich ―History Month here at CapChurch! Two weeks ago, Sarah Williams began a series of three devotional reflections on history. Using Hebrews 11 as a foundational text, we have talked about―remembering as a basis for identity in the community of faith, and at how ―listening to the past reshapes our experience in the present. Today, on Sarah’s final Sunday with us, she will consider what it means to allow our shared history to fuel our ―expecting of what God will do in the future.

Hebrews 7: Going the Distance

admin — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 23:41:34 +0000

(Nov 22, 09 - Mike Nichols)
When Glenn Cunningham was 8 years old his legs were very badly burned in a schoolhouse fire and his 10 yr old brother died. When doctors recommended amputating Glenn’s legs, he was so distressed, his parents wouldn’t allow it. The doctors predicted he might never walk normally again. He had lost all the flesh on his knees and shins and all the toes on his left foot. Also, his transverse arch was practically destroyed. His great determination, coupled with hours of massages given him by his parents, enabled him to gradually regain the ability to walk and to run. In 1919 he first tried to walk again, roughly 2 yrs after the accident. He had a positive attitude as well as a strong religious faith. His favorite Bible verse was Isaiah 40:31: “But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.” He was considered by many the greatest American miler of all time. He received the James E. Sullivan Award as the top amateur athlete in the US in 1933. Glenn set a world record for the mile and indoor world records for the 1.500 meters and the mile. He was on the 1932 & 1936 Olympic teams.

What does Glenn have to do with Hebrews 12—he well illustrates Hebrews 12:1-2: Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfector of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Hebrews 6: A Hunch? Absence of Doubt? Leap in the Dark? Or…

admin — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 04:08:29 +0000

(Nov 15, 09 – Mike Nichols)
The chorus to a popular country western song by Toby Keith goes like this:

I wanna talk about me
Wanna talk about I
Wanna talk about number one
Oh my me my
What I think, what I like, what I know, what I want, what I see
I like talking about you you you you, usually, but occasionally
I wanna talk about me

It sometimes feels like people believe that history began with their birth. It also seems that vision in politics, economics, and even faith often ends at the horizon. Sometimes it literally gets stuck on the horizon with no “big” perspective. If you can identify with that when it comes to faith, then Hebrews chapter 11 is a certain cure for such myopia. Today we get to figure out what the life of faith is all about. (Mike Nichols)

Hebrews 5: Confidence with God — Connection with Others

admin — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 06:21:56 +0000

(Nov 8, 09 – Rod Wilson)
Based on Hebrews 10:19-25. Throughout this series on Hebrews we have learned that Jesus is central. He has made it possible for us to come before God and to do it with confidence and boldness. While our natural tendency would be to be fearful and to worry about God’s response to us we find ourselves in a place where we have guilt-free freedom and hope. But there is more. Not only is there a vertical trajectory moving us toward God, there is a horizontal trajectory moving us toward others. With our understanding of the gospel and our appropriation of it we now have a responsibility to spur others on and encourage them.

Hebrews 3: Holding On Until the End

admin — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 04:07:25 +0000

(Oct 25, 09 – Kim Pierrot)
I tend to think of “having faith” as a passive thing… just sit back, let things happen, and trust God that it’ll all turn out OK. But the book of Hebrews tells us that a life of faith is an active, all-encompassing endeavor. Living a life of faith is like being in physical training–the goal is always to get stronger, or faster or more skilled. Even if you simply want to maintain the level that you are at, you still need to work at it. And so today we are asked by the writer of Hebrews: will we continue to go forward in our faith? Can we hold fast to Jesus for the long haul? Or will we be content just to drift away?

Hebrews 4: Living in the Tension

admin — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 16:46:44 +0000

(Nov 1, 09 – Kim Pierrot)
Today, our 4th Sunday in the Book of Hebrews, we fix our eyes on Jesus. It stretches our minds and hearts to consider this Jesus: both God and human at the same time, tempted in every way, but without sin, all-knowing and yet learning obedience from his time on earth. The Bible is full of this kind of tension, as is the Book of Hebrews. Instead of shying away from it, we are going to sit with it today, and see how the Spirit is working in the midst of, maybe even because of the tensions inherent in God’s Word, and in our own lives. (Kim Pierrot)

Hebrews 2: Is Jesus the Answer or the Question?

admin — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 21:51:23 +0000

(Oct 18, 09 – Mike Nichols)
Is Jesus really the answer? Here are a couple of interesting web posts: The Mysterium Dei blog notes: I recently saw a bumper sticker that read “Jesus is the Answer”…. Jesus isn’t the answer, he’s the Question. What do we do with him? How do we respond to him? What was his message & how do we respond to it? It’s so tempting to get caught up in finding the right sound bite & bumper sticker slogan. Unfortunately, we so often miss the forest for the trees. Jesus didn’t come to make me happy, he came to make me whole–by following his example of emptying, humility, and self-sacrifice–so that I can know God. He came to reveal the Father and call us to be sons [and daughters] in the Son, filii in FIlio. When we finally begin to wrap our heads around the idea that the Gospel isn’t about us, that salvation isn’t about us,that being a Christian isn’t about us, but about God then we can really start to understand what it means to be a disciple, to be a community, a family of God.
On Facebook, Louis Brittz writes: No, Jesus isn’t the Answer…Firstly, because He never said that He is. …Secondly, because if Jesus were the answer, there would be no relevant questions left. Hmm. Maybe Hebrews 2 will help us figure out if Jesus is the answer or the question.

Hebrews 1: Jesus Is Better

admin — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 06:08:13 +0000

(Oct 11, 09 – Corey Smith)
Welcome to the first of our seven-week series on the book of Hebrews: a New Testament epistle in which Jesus is the topic of just about every paragraph. This rich book seeks to demonstrate Jesus’ superiority over prophets, angels and priests, and declares that Jesus is the fulfillment of God’s story of salvation. But if Jesus is the answer, then what are the questions? And how does this make a difference to us today? Corey Smith kicks things off for us this morning, and wants to encourage us to go forward in our faith, and not to go backwards, or simply be content with what we already know of Jesus.