JESUS CHRIST IS THE SAME YESTERDAY AS HE IS TODAY AND AS HE REMAINS FOR EVER

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday as He is today and as He remains for ever.

 

 

By Fr. Felix (African Times Guest Writer)
The reading from Hebrews 13:1-8, the  last two readings from the

book of Hebrews turn to practical advice, not so much theological

argument as a series of imperatives, ‘Do this, do that’. From the first

few verses we can learn a vast amount about the early Christian

communities. The first two qualities recommended, or rather

demanded, are philadelphia and philoxenia. There is no single

English word for either of these, and a paraphrase considerably

weakens their force. The Greek expression phil- as in bibliophile

(lover of books) or philosopher (lover of wisdom) is a useful short-

hand. Perhaps the neatest way is to translate them ‘love of the

brothers’ and ‘willing hospitality’. This is a reminder that the early

Christian communities were continuously on the move, with

apostles and other representatives of the communities moving

between different communities. All the New Testament letters end

up with little items of news and hospitality. Open-hearted

hospitality was vital for this interchange, here reinforced by the

allusion that ‘some have entertained angels unawares’, no doubt

referring to Abraham’s hospitality to the Angel of the LORD in

Genesis 18, or perhaps to Gideon’s entertainment of an angel in

Judges 6.19.

 

More complicated, but also more striking, is the charge to

‘remember those in prison as though in prison with them’. Perhaps

‘in detention’ would be a safer translation, since there was no such

arrangement as a prison with locks and bars. Instead, there was

only a sort of holding-operation. Arrangements for those awaiting

trial were fairly flexible. The detainee was entrusted to a

trustworthy person as a temporary measure. Second-century

documents make mention of Christians joining those awaiting trial,

and even staying overnight with the detainees to give them some

company and re-assurance.

 

Another charge which is difficult to render neatly concerns money

(v. 5): ‘your way of life must be a-philarguros’, so ‘without-love-of-

money’, free from concern or care about money, the opposite of

interested and concerned about money. The message is to be free of

material concerns and confident in God’s care.