Confession of Hope

Heb. 10:19-25

19 Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, 20 by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, 21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. 23 Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. 24 And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, 25 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.

• How does your anchor of hope give you confidence to approach God?
• What is the new and living way to the holy places?
• Why should we hold fast to our confession of hope?
• What is the difference between having hope and confessing hope?
• What is the reason for meeting together?
• Considering Hebrews 3:12-14, how should faith, clean conscience, and hope impact how we interact when we meet together?
  

Harold's Musings: When I was growing up, it seemed that Heb 10:25 was the really important part of this passage, with the emphasis on "not neglecting to meet together" as the key point. Over the years, this passage has become much more rich and enlightening to me. Here I see Jesus carrying the anchor of hope as he opened the way to the holy places. There are several challenges here as well. For the moment consider the challenge of holding to your confession of hope. Someone heard you say what you hope in. You have heard others confess their hope. Too often we see this confession as a one time event, but this confession is to a large degree a mission statement, a statement that guides what you do and say. When you meet with another Christian, is your conversation about your joint mission or something else?