1 00:00:02,670 --> 00:00:13,630 Speaker 1: Life Audio Hello. Thank you for listening to your daily 2 00:00:13,680 --> 00:00:17,340 Speaker 1: Bible verse, the podcast that examines one verse each day 3 00:00:17,739 --> 00:00:19,940 Speaker 1: to learn more about God and His will for us. 4 00:00:20,760 --> 00:00:23,820 Speaker 1: I'm your host, Grace Fox, author of Names of God 5 00:00:23,940 --> 00:00:27,280 Speaker 1: Growing Strong. And after this short word from our sponsors, 6 00:00:27,720 --> 00:00:44,510 Speaker 1: we'll dive into today's Bible verse, Hebrews 10.35. Today's Bible 7 00:00:44,550 --> 00:00:49,540 Speaker 1: verse is Hebrews 1035. So do not throw away your confidence. 8 00:00:49,940 --> 00:00:53,920 Speaker 1: It will be richly rewarded. I grew up in a 9 00:00:53,960 --> 00:00:58,160 Speaker 1: strict religious environment where people rarely talked about the biblical 10 00:00:58,220 --> 00:01:02,330 Speaker 1: rewards promised to those who follow Jesus. other than forgiveness 11 00:01:02,370 --> 00:01:06,570 Speaker 1: of sins and eternal life, of course. Whenever discussions focused 12 00:01:06,630 --> 00:01:09,589 Speaker 1: on being a disciple of Christ, the focus landed more 13 00:01:09,650 --> 00:01:13,270 Speaker 1: on the cost of following Him. For a season in 14 00:01:13,310 --> 00:01:17,270 Speaker 1: my younger years, I understood that cost to mean I 15 00:01:17,330 --> 00:01:20,490 Speaker 1: couldn't attend school dances or watch a movie in a theater, 16 00:01:21,010 --> 00:01:24,240 Speaker 1: I couldn't wear makeup, have pierced ears, or listen to 17 00:01:24,300 --> 00:01:28,630 Speaker 1: music with a big beat. How unfair, right? I clearly 18 00:01:28,670 --> 00:01:31,710 Speaker 1: had no concept of the price many believers in other 19 00:01:31,750 --> 00:01:35,010 Speaker 1: parts of the world were paying to be associated with Jesus. 20 00:01:36,330 --> 00:01:40,130 Speaker 1: My limited perspective has changed over time and with experience. 21 00:01:41,110 --> 00:01:43,720 Speaker 1: When my husband and I were newlyweds, God led us 22 00:01:43,760 --> 00:01:48,100 Speaker 1: to volunteer for three years with a faith-based organization in Nepal. 23 00:01:48,820 --> 00:01:51,960 Speaker 1: It sounded to us like a grand faith-stretching adventure, and 24 00:01:52,100 --> 00:01:56,940 Speaker 1: it was, but that divine assignment cost us the opportunity 25 00:01:56,970 --> 00:02:01,030 Speaker 1: to to attend three of our siblings' weddings. I cried 26 00:02:01,190 --> 00:02:05,230 Speaker 1: countless tears on those days. For months, I struggled with 27 00:02:05,290 --> 00:02:10,419 Speaker 1: loneliness and culture shock. I struggled with repeated waterborne illnesses, 28 00:02:10,900 --> 00:02:14,260 Speaker 1: no matter how hard I tried to be careful. Worse, 29 00:02:14,639 --> 00:02:18,220 Speaker 1: my husband contracted a bug that baffled the doctors and 30 00:02:18,260 --> 00:02:21,750 Speaker 1: affected his health for years, even after we returned to 31 00:02:21,810 --> 00:02:25,150 Speaker 1: North America. And then there was the time I traveled 32 00:02:25,169 --> 00:02:28,250 Speaker 1: to Hungary, to speak at a conference before setting out 33 00:02:28,310 --> 00:02:31,510 Speaker 1: on a two-week trip to teach God's Word at women's 34 00:02:31,570 --> 00:02:35,669 Speaker 1: events across Eastern Europe. While eating breakfast the morning after 35 00:02:35,710 --> 00:02:39,010 Speaker 1: landing in Budapest, I received a phone call from home 36 00:02:39,230 --> 00:02:43,180 Speaker 1: saying that my father had just died. Keeping my commitment 37 00:02:43,200 --> 00:02:48,480 Speaker 1: to multiple event planners who had already rented venues, received registrations, 38 00:02:48,560 --> 00:02:52,639 Speaker 1: and translated my materials seemed the right thing to do, 39 00:02:53,260 --> 00:02:57,280 Speaker 1: but this meant missing my dad's memorial service. I cried 40 00:02:57,460 --> 00:03:01,810 Speaker 1: countless tears that day too. The community of Jewish Christians 41 00:03:01,870 --> 00:03:05,230 Speaker 1: to whom the book of Hebrews was written knew firsthand 42 00:03:05,350 --> 00:03:09,530 Speaker 1: about the cost of following Jesus. Hebrews chapter 10 verses 43 00:03:09,530 --> 00:03:15,589 Speaker 1: 32 to 34 tell us that these people were suffering persecution, imprisonment, 44 00:03:15,850 --> 00:03:19,530 Speaker 1: and the confiscation of their property for their faith. Some 45 00:03:19,590 --> 00:03:23,150 Speaker 1: counted the cost too great, so they abandoned their association 46 00:03:23,169 --> 00:03:27,900 Speaker 1: with Jesus and returned to traditional Judaism. the writer of 47 00:03:27,980 --> 00:03:33,070 Speaker 1: Hebrews encouraged them to not throw away their confidence. That 48 00:03:33,130 --> 00:03:38,070 Speaker 1: word confidence infers boldness and assurance of faith rooted in 49 00:03:38,170 --> 00:03:43,390 Speaker 1: Christ's sacrificial death on the cross. Amid the persecution they faced, 50 00:03:43,830 --> 00:03:47,040 Speaker 1: he urged them to remain steadfast and strong in their 51 00:03:47,080 --> 00:03:50,720 Speaker 1: faith and to not revert to their former beliefs and behaviors. 52 00:03:51,440 --> 00:03:55,060 Speaker 1: He said that if they persevered and remained committed to 53 00:03:55,120 --> 00:04:00,320 Speaker 1: Christ despite the cost, they would receive a reward. In 54 00:04:00,340 --> 00:04:05,280 Speaker 1: the original Greek language, the word translated as reward communicates 55 00:04:05,320 --> 00:04:07,960 Speaker 1: the idea of wages being paid for work done. A 56 00:04:09,000 --> 00:04:12,180 Speaker 1: worker could expect to be paid fair wages for the 57 00:04:12,220 --> 00:04:16,460 Speaker 1: labor he'd performed for his employer. One scholar points out 58 00:04:16,500 --> 00:04:19,690 Speaker 1: that the original word used here is actually a compound 59 00:04:19,730 --> 00:04:24,090 Speaker 1: word that expands the meaning of reward. Not only does 60 00:04:24,130 --> 00:04:27,180 Speaker 1: the worker receive fair wages for his work, but he 61 00:04:27,260 --> 00:04:33,469 Speaker 1: receives reimbursement for costs, damages, or losses incurred while doing 62 00:04:33,510 --> 00:04:37,370 Speaker 1: that work. Within the context of today's Bible verse, then, 63 00:04:37,410 --> 00:04:42,030 Speaker 1: it seems the writer is telling the community of persecuted 64 00:04:42,070 --> 00:04:46,080 Speaker 1: Jewish believers to hold on to their faith because God 65 00:04:46,140 --> 00:04:49,520 Speaker 1: would not only reward them for persevering, but he would 66 00:04:49,580 --> 00:04:54,300 Speaker 1: also repay them for their pain and losses for associating 67 00:04:54,339 --> 00:04:58,779 Speaker 1: with Jesus. The cause for following Jesus was great, but 68 00:04:58,820 --> 00:05:01,620 Speaker 1: the reward yet to come for remaining faithful to Him 69 00:05:02,200 --> 00:05:07,950 Speaker 1: would be far, far greater. The relationship between remaining committed 70 00:05:07,990 --> 00:05:11,550 Speaker 1: to one's faith amid hardship and later receiving a reward 71 00:05:12,070 --> 00:05:16,830 Speaker 1: is mentioned frequently in Scripture. In Matthew 5, 11-12, Jesus said, 72 00:05:17,410 --> 00:05:20,890 Speaker 1: Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you, and 73 00:05:20,970 --> 00:05:25,240 Speaker 1: falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 74 00:05:26,000 --> 00:05:29,559 Speaker 1: Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, 75 00:05:30,080 --> 00:05:32,960 Speaker 1: for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who 76 00:05:32,980 --> 00:05:38,420 Speaker 1: were before you. James wrote, Paul wrote to the Galatian believers, 77 00:05:38,440 --> 00:05:56,370 Speaker 1: Let us not become weary in doing good, For at 78 00:05:56,390 --> 00:06:00,070 Speaker 1: the proper time we will reap a harvest if we 79 00:06:00,120 --> 00:06:04,260 Speaker 1: do not give up. Galatians 6.9 And in the book 80 00:06:04,300 --> 00:06:08,560 Speaker 1: of Revelation, Jesus said, Be faithful even to the point 81 00:06:08,600 --> 00:06:11,880 Speaker 1: of death, and I will give you life as your 82 00:06:11,940 --> 00:06:20,020 Speaker 1: victor's crown. Revelation 2.10 My friend, following Jesus is costly. 83 00:06:21,279 --> 00:06:23,880 Speaker 1: Maybe you've been the brunt of someone's jokes or criticism. 84 00:06:24,670 --> 00:06:28,970 Speaker 1: Perhaps someone you love has disassociated themselves from you. Maybe 85 00:06:29,029 --> 00:06:33,219 Speaker 1: following Jesus has meant losing your job or leaving the 86 00:06:33,260 --> 00:06:36,260 Speaker 1: familiar and the safe to serve him in an unfamiliar 87 00:06:36,600 --> 00:06:42,940 Speaker 1: and not-so-safe space. Maybe your association with Jesus has even 88 00:06:43,000 --> 00:06:44,870 Speaker 1: led to you having to go to court for something. 89 00:06:46,170 --> 00:06:51,290 Speaker 1: Whatever your circumstances, do not throw away your confidence. Instead, 90 00:06:51,550 --> 00:06:54,130 Speaker 1: ask God for courage and for strength to hold on 91 00:06:55,250 --> 00:06:58,529 Speaker 1: And find hope in knowing that He will reward you 92 00:06:58,589 --> 00:07:03,530 Speaker 1: for remaining faithful. Somehow, in some way beyond our understanding, 93 00:07:04,170 --> 00:07:07,779 Speaker 1: He will make up for the pain and the losses incurred. 94 00:07:08,820 --> 00:07:13,320 Speaker 1: Let's pray. Jesus, your love for us, even while we 95 00:07:13,380 --> 00:07:17,820 Speaker 1: were still sinners, cost you everything. And yet you paid 96 00:07:17,850 --> 00:07:22,470 Speaker 1: the price without a murmur of complaint or self-pity. Help 97 00:07:22,650 --> 00:07:26,750 Speaker 1: us willingly endure whatever cost comes our way for loving 98 00:07:26,790 --> 00:07:30,770 Speaker 1: you in return. And thank you for the promise of 99 00:07:30,830 --> 00:07:36,810 Speaker 1: a reward for remaining steadfast in faith. You are gracious indeed. 100 00:07:37,790 --> 00:07:39,750 Speaker 1: In Jesus' name, amen.