Remember those earlier days after you had received the light, when you stood your ground in a great contest in the face of suffering. Sometimes you were publicly exposed to insult and persecution; at other times you stood side by side with those who were so treated. You sympathized with those in prison and joyfully accepted the confiscation of your property, because you knew that you yourselves had better and lasting possessions.
In the face of persecution, the author of Hebrews calls the readers back to the beginning of the struggle. I think the author knows that sometimes we get so far down the path that we lose sight of the beginning; we forget how we got on the path to begin with. The writer reminds us of the "good old days," when nothing could stop us or slow us down.
Still the focus of the recipients’ activity is steadfastness. They did not defeat the enemies in a great contest, they "stood (their) ground in a great contest." The community held firm in the past, but now they are slipping. In calling these people to hold on, the writer reminds them of when they did hold firm.
You stood side by side with those who were so treated. The readers of Hebrews know a little bit about what the readers of this devotional go through. Sharing our boys' pain can be emotionally and spiritually draining, as the text indicates here. Back when the readers were full of fire they stood beside those who were suffering, but now that their zeal has cooled they are just hanging on.
The author is also sure to point out why they stood firm - they stood firm because they knew they had something worth holding onto. Although they were glad to let their material possessions go, the community made sure to hold firm their faith because they knew that they had something worthwhile at the end of all their labor.
So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised. For in just a very little while,
"He who is coming will come and will not delay.
But my righteous one will live by faith.
And if he shrinks back,
I will not be pleased with him."
Here is the refrain of all our meditation so far - hold on! Don't throw away your confidence, don't let go. Throwing away is really the opposite of holding on - we are to clutch our confidence tightly rather than carelessly tossing it out the window. When we persevere, we know that we will receive the promise. The coming one will get here in a hurry, and he will know who has held on and who has let go, the author tells his audience.
But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who believe and are saved.
(Heb. 10:32-39, NIV)
Here is our call to endurance. We are not one of those who let go, but instead we are among those who hold firm to the faith. By remembering the former days, we know that we have come to share in Christ, and so we can hold on.
Blessings,
Greg and Tiffany
