Praise the Lord! The Lord has been good to us throughout the past week. Although we experienced time to time ups and down in our life, the Lord kept us safe and secure and blessed us with everything we needed for life. As we have entered in to the last quarter of this year [Oct-Dec 2026], let us live rest of this year as well as rest of our life with a grateful heart and thankful attitude. The Lord God who called us is faithful and will neither leave us nor forsake us.

The Lord has blessed us with a hope-oriented Scripture passage for our SftW meditation this week that is taken from the epistle to the Hebrews 10:35-36 (mentioned above). The context of this passage derives out of author’s comparison of the Old Law/Covenant established through Moses [who was faithful as a servant in all God’s house / Hebrews 3:5] with the New Law/Covenant established through Christ [who is faithful as the Son over God’s house / Hebrews 3:6]. The law given through Moses requires the offering of sacrifices time and time again to keep one from being condemned, but Christ’s once-for-all sacrifice on the cross justifies the guilt of one who believes in Him and reconciles the person with God the Father and declares the person as righteous. In addition, the new covenant established through Christ assures that the penalty for one’s sins will be fully paid off at the moment one accepts Him as the Lord and Savior of their lives and there is no additional sacrifice for sin is needed to forgive and declare the person as righteous (refer to: Isaiah 53:6; John 1:29; Colossians 2:13-14; Hebrews 10:18; 1 Peter 2:24). However, the [faith] life they chose to live in Christ Jesus will have to face many trouble as they begin to walk with Christ on a day-to-day basis as the author noted here:

Remember those earlier days after you had received the light, when you endured in a great conflict full 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 suffered along with those in prison and joyfully accepted the confiscation of your property, because you knew that you yourselves had better and lasting possessions (Hebrews 10:32-34).

This indicates that choosing a life to live with Christ [living a life the way Christ lived and shown to His followers in real time and real world context] and obeying His righteous commands and all that He taught is not an easy mission but needs patience, perseverance, and tolerance, which was the reason the author urged the believers of his time and beyond not to lose heart or give up in the face of the troubles and trials that threatens their faith based life-journey (Hebrews 10:35). Jesus encouraged His disciples to be brave and take heart as He warned them in advance that they will have to face trials and troubles and sufferings and other unfavorable situations in this world, as it is mentioned: In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world (John 16:33). With such an assurance from Jesus, the author urges his readers not to throw away the confidence they have placed in Jesus because it will bring a great reward for them in the due time (Hebrews 10:35). The confidence we have here is that Jesus who has come down from heaven as a human being and lived in the world just like one of us and saved our lives by giving up His very life and now seated on the right hand of God interceding for us will never fail us, as God promised to Joshua through Moses Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you (Deuteronomy 31:6; also refer to: Hebrews 13:5). Apostle Paul wrote: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners (1 Timothy 1:15) and while we were still sinners, Christ died for us (Romans 5:8) and now seated at the right hand of God interceding for us (Romans 8:34). Therefore, let us draw closer to God confidently, as it is written: Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need (Hebrews 4:16; also refer to: Ephesians 3:12; Hebrews 10:19-22). Jesus said: Look, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to each person according to what they have done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End (Revelation 22:12-13). As we are called by God to do His will and live for His purpose, let us trust God and do good to everyone who come across our life and He will give us the desires of our hearts, and bless us beyond measures (Psalm 37:4).

Dear friends in the Lord, as we conclude our this week’s meditation, let us place our trust and confidence in the Lord our God even if we face severe sufferings in a similar way the first century Christians faced in their life, such as: physical and mental persecution, imprisonment, starvation, social injustice, the seizure of their belongings including property, and so on. And, let us hold on to our confidence in the Lord and persevere in our faith journey and He will reward us what our works deserve, as the author of Hebrews urged us: 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 (Hebrews 10:35-36). May the Lord Almighty bless us all! Amen!