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When you face the new day, do you just get up and get going, doing what needs to be done – or do you think about the coming day and ask yourself, “How will I make a difference today?” God did not put you and me here to drift aimlessly from day to day, or to let our lives be dictated by random circumstances. St. Paul reminds us that God has created and saved us for His purposes, namely for those good works that He has prepared in advance for us to do (Ephesians 2:8-10).
God has saved and created us to make a difference, to use the days of our lives to bless others. Think of Jesus, who used his short time on this earth to make an eternal difference. Each and every day wasn’t easy and fun-filled, but knowing what He was sent and meant to do, Jesus was energized. His joy was to fulfil the Father’s will.
When you know God’s purpose for you and then live to fulfill that purpose, your heart sings, your spirit soars with the YESSSS! of God’s energizing joy. How does a person actually do this?
The writer of Hebrews lays it out for us in our scripture today, Let us hold fast to the confession of our hope without wavering. Hold fast! This is not something you can do with your hands. It’s something you embrace with your heart. You can be a hope-embracing, hope-holding person because you know God’s promises to you. You can be hope-filled because you know God is faithful. He keeps His word.
But that’s not enough. It’s not enough to just hold this hope, to curl up under the covers and hope in God all day in bed. Even if you are bed-ridden, hope is something to be made visible! Hope is meant to bring glory to God as it has a concrete effect on your daily life.
So here is what you aim for day and night: Let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works. Here is where hope takes on flesh. It’s not merely a directive to love each other and do good works. Your aim is to consider how to stimulate each other to love and good deeds. How can you intentionally think, act, talk, work and play to stimulate others to these good things? We need this in our times, don’t we?
And here’s how we’ll do it. We’ll do it together. We’ll do it by not neglecting to meet together; we’ll gather in groups, large and small. We’ll do it as we worship together on Sunday mornings. We’ll do it as we meet in small groups and micro-groups with friends from the neighborhood, from our church, from our workplaces. The language here is “mutual language,” something mutual, together is going on: not neglecting to meet together as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.
We need each other. We can’t live in isolation. Those Lenten suppers and services are vital for group health! The micro groups during the week are how we encourage one another! The Bible study group in the neighborhood or at church is where we share joy and comfort and hope!
The key to all this is found back in verse 23: He who promised is faithful. HE is faithful! HE keeps His promises – all the way to the Cross and the Empty Tomb and His throne in heaven. While I may not always “hold fast,” and often may let go in my weakness, I am thankful that HE will hold me fast! He will hold you fast!
As the chorus of the beautiful Gospel hymn assures:
He will hold me fast
He will hold me fast
For my Savior loves me so
He will hold me fast.
That’s the good hope I confess daily!
Listen to the song “He Will Hold Me Fast” on YouTube.
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