How are you and God? When's the last time you asked that question? And how do you even begin to answer it? If we’re honest with ourselves, sometimes we are all over the place with our spiritual life, aren’t we? Why is there such a variation in how we ourselves feel about our spiritual health from one day to the next? Why is there such a variation in different people and how they seem to be doing spiritually? Jesus has an explanation for this. In the parable of the sower, Jesus taught that the key to bearing the fruit of the Kingdom of God is a heart that is receptive to the word of God.

We live in a world filled with anxiety, uncertainty, and spiritual drift. Many believers feel ill-equipped to live lives that truly please God. We often try to rely on our own strength, self-help strategies, or even religious routines rather than trusting the One who is greater than all our problems and needs. Some of us feel wounded, weary, or wandering. Like sheep, we easily go astray. What we need most is not more effort, but a greater Shepherd. That’s why today’s message is so important. The author of Hebrews closes with a benediction that points us to Jesus, our Great Shepherd, who alone can equip us to live lives pleasing to God. In the book of Hebrews 13:18-25, the author concluded his letter to the Jewish background believers by offering a benediction asking God to equip believers through Jesus, the Great Shepherd of the sheep, to live lives pleasing to God.

When it comes to leadership, people today are both skeptical and searching. Many have seen leaders fail, whether in politics, business, or even the church. The result is a growing distrust of authority. Yet, God designed His church to be led, not by celebrities or dictators, but by faithful shepherds under the authority of the greater, unchanging Leader, Jesus Christ. The Hebrew background believers were tempted to turn back to old covenant forms of religion and to disregard their Christian leaders. Today, believers still face the temptation to resist spiritual authority or follow popular voices instead of faithful shepherds. We need to remember that Christ Himself has appointed leaders for the good of His flock. In the book of Hebrews 13:7-17, the author exhorted Jewish background Christians, who were tempted to be led away from the gospel of grace, to faithfully follow the spiritual leaders that Jesus, the greater, unchanging leader had set over them.

We live in a world where love often grows cold—where relationships are strained, marriages are fractured, and people are lonely even when surrounded by others. What’s worse, our world has lost sight of what true love really is. It is not merely an emotion, but an act of the will. It involves commitment, sacrifice, and steadfast devotion. Yet we can’t manufacture this kind of love on our own. We need a greater love—Christ’s love—filling our hearts and flowing through us in every relationship. That’s exactly the kind of love the writer of Hebrews calls us to. In the book of Hebrews 13:1-6, the author, concluding his appeal for believers to live as grateful worshipers in God’s unshakeable kingdom, exhorted believers to demonstrate Christ’s greater love in all their relationships.

Today, we’re concluding our study of Hebrews chapter 12. And we’re nearing the finish line of a marathon—the race of faith that Hebrews 12:1-3 first began to describe to us. But just as a runner must not break stride, the author of Hebrews gives us some final, urgent warnings and overwhelming motivation to continue running for the goal. And what is the goal? It’s Christ Jesus and His Kingdom. Yet many of us are exhausted, distracted, and the world is always calling us to settle for less. Many of us are living as if the finish line is here on earth, pursuing things that are guaranteed to decay, rust, and ultimately pass away. At the same time, the world around us is “shaking”—economically, politically, morally. We need something greater, something unshakable. And this is exactly what the Lord is calling us to in Hebrews 12–– a greater, unshakeable kingdom! In the book of Hebrews chapter 12:14-29, the author challenged believers to stay faithful in running life’s race as citizens of Christ’s greater, unshakeable Kingdom.

Many believers start the race of faith well, but grow weary when trials come. We lose focus, stumble under the weight of sin, or misunderstand the Father’s discipline. Sometimes we feel exhausted, discouraged, or even tempted to give up. We see others running seemingly effortlessly, while we struggle to put one foot in front of the other. What we need is not more grit and self-effort, but a greater endurance. What can help us endure life’s challenges? In In the book of Hebrews chapter 12, after portraying the heroes of faith in chapter 11, who by faith endured hardship, the author of Hebrews exhorted weary believers to run their own race of faith with endurance—fixing their eyes on Jesus as their example and source of strength.

We live in a world that constantly bombards us with offers for immediate gratification— fleeting pleasures, temporary treasures, and the shallow status that money and influence can buy. These things distract us and actually weigh us down. For they only last for a moment and they never really satisfy. That’s the tension we’re going to see in today’s Scripture. For the OT people of God had to choose between seeking worldly pleasure or by faith, seeking the greater reward of Christ. In the book of Hebrews, the author encouraged Jewish background believers by reminding them how the saints of old faithfully looked beyond worldly success and suffering to the greater reward God promised and fulfilled in Christ Jesus. We can faithfully look beyond this life to the greater reward we have in Christ Jesus.

You’ve probably heard someone say, “Keep the faith.” In our culture, that usually means, “Stay positive,” or “Don’t give up hope.” But notice what’s missing—it never defines the object of that faith. No wonder so many today are “deconstructing” their faith, pulling it apart piece by piece until nothing remains, because if faith is only a vague feeling or a cultural inheritance, why hold on to it? But biblical faith is different. It’s not about how hard you believe—it’s about who you believe in. It’s not great faith in God that matters, but faith in a great God. And our faith is greater because its object—Jesus Christ—is greater. In the epistle of Hebrews, the Jewish background believers were encouraged not to shrink back from believing because of trouble and persecution, but to live by a faith that is greater because it rests in Christ Jesus as its fulfillment as the believers of old had done.

Jesus empowers us to be a witness to his work in our lives so others can experience his love. But it's also a key part of our own spiritual formation. Find out why this Sunday. In the book of Acts, Luke recorded that the first century believers were committed to witnessing to others about Jesus and the church exploded upon the scene, experiencing exponential growth in spite of persecution. We can cultivate a habit of witnessing to others about Jesus.

We live in a culture that prizes getting more than giving. Advertisers constantly tell us we don’t have enough, while inflation and bills pressure us to hold tighter to money and possessions. As God’s children, instead of a having a mindset of abundance, we often struggle with a mindset of scarcity, doubting God’s provision and anxious about having enough. Yet, God is generous! And we were created in His image to be generous too! In the apostle Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians, he urged them to them to excel in the grace of giving by pointing to the Macedonian churches, who, though poor and afflicted, gave generously beyond their means, and by reminding them of Christ’s supreme example of generosity. We can cultivate the habit of generosity to excel in the grace of giving.