Hebrews 13 and verse 1. Let brotherly love continue. Be not forgetful to entertain
strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares. The literal translation for verse
2 is concerning hospitality. Be not forgetful, for through
this, unawares, certain did entertain messengers." Now the context
we saw last week is talking about brotherly love. This word angels
is translated from a word which means one sent from God, a messenger
sent from God. So primarily the word to the
believer is concerning fellow believers. All believers were
once strangers and foreigners to God. And now all believers
are strangers and pilgrims in this world. So if anybody should
know something about what it is to be a stranger, believers
should know what that is. Having been called by His power
and grace, we are called on to be not forgetful to entertain
strangers. Back when the Lord's people were
persecuted in Acts, we saw that it resulted in them being driven
from their homes and having to seek refuge in the places in
which they were scattered. There was a great persecution
against the church which was at Jerusalem, and they were all
scattered abroad throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria.
Some traveled as far as Phoenicia and Cyprus and Antioch, and they
needed to be lodged. They needed somebody to take
them in, in the places where they went. Even now, in our day,
the work of an evangelist is an example, which according to
scripture is one who travels from place to place, preaching
the gospel, helping to plant churches. And these brethren,
they may prefer to lodge with other brethren than to stay in
a hotel or a motel somewhere. The first way, though, that's
mentioned for us to show brotherly love is by entertaining our brethren,
by being hospitable to our brethren, inviting them into our homes
and feeding them. 1 Peter 4.9 says, use hospitality
one to another without grudging. Without grudging. And this is
especially true of God's preachers. A bishop then must be given to
hospitality. A lover of hospitality. And it's
mentioned along beside lodging strangers, lodging the brethren
is mentioned, washing their feet and feeding them and clothing
them. We know washing their feet means
in that day you traveled and you wore sandals. And when you
ever been to the to the beach when it's really, really, really
hot, and you walk out there on the sand, and the sand is so
hot it burns your feet. And it's gritty, so it hurts
your feet. Well, travelers who had walked a long way in the
sand, in the heat, though they had sandals on, that heat and
that sand got in their feet. And when they'd get to somebody's
house, it was customary for a servant of the house, to come to them
with a basin of water and to get down at their feet and wash
their feet. That cool water would feel good
on those dry, hot, gritty feet and they would wash their feet.
Well, the believer washes one another's feet by being hospitable
to one another, by giving of ourselves to one another, by bending over backwards, as it
were, to be sure that our brethren are cared for and have everything
that they need. That's what washing feet is.
And these verses include showing hospitality and meeting the necessities
of those outside of the faith as well. Knowing what we were
when we were strangers to God and knowing that we're now strangers
in this earth and long to be with God, we know the heart of
a stranger, don't we? The exhortation here says, be
not forgetful. And that speaks as much to remembering
what we were and what we now are by God's grace as it does
to what we are to do in remembering to entertain strangers. Because
if we're not forgetful of what we were before God came to us
in grace, and if we're not forgetful of what we are now, that we're
pilgrims in this world, and how we're cared for by Him, we'll
be more apt to entertain strangers, to remember, to be hospitable
to our brethren. Look over at Leviticus 19.34.
This was the law of God concerning a stranger that dwelled in Israel. Leviticus 19.34. The stranger that dwelleth with
you shall be unto you as one born among you, and thou shalt
love him as thyself." Now here's the motivation, here's the reason
that God gives for this hospitality and this kindness to strangers. For ye were strangers in the
land of Egypt. am the Lord your God." There's
a two-fold reason here, isn't there? You were strangers in
Egypt and I'm the Lord your God. You were strangers and I delivered
you, God said. You were strangers and I set
you free. You were strangers and I brought
you out and now you're mine. Now you're strangers to this
world. So don't forget, what is a stranger? What is a stranger? Well, obviously a stranger is
somebody who we don't know them. We don't know who they are. And
they come our way and we're able to help them, to bring them into
our home and to give them shelter and a warm bed and clothing and
food and whatever they need. Well, Rachel and Leah said that
their father, Laban, treated them like strangers when he sold
them and spent all their inheritance? Would you feel like your father
treated you like a stranger if he sold you for money and then
took everything that was to be your inheritance and spent it
all himself? You'd think, my father treats
me like he don't even know me. Well, spiritually, Every believer
was sold and all their inheritance was spent when our father Adam
sinned in the garden. He sold us. Look at Exodus 23.9
with me. Exodus 23.9. Also, Thou shalt not oppress a stranger. That's all that we knew when
we were in our sin and our rebellion against God is oppression. Oppression. Oppressing others
and others oppressing us is all we knew. That's all we knew when
we were strangers to God. And he says, therefore, Don't
do that to a stranger, for you know the heart of a stranger.
Ye know the heart of a stranger, seeing you were strangers in
the land of Egypt. So when the Holy Spirit exhorts
us here in Hebrews to be not forgetful, be not forgetful of
the heart that was in you when you did not know God. That will
help us to be long-suffering to those who don't know God.
When you're trying to teach somebody the grace of God, teach them
the Word of God, and they begin to argue with you, they can't
help it. They cannot help but rebel against
what you say. Because all they know is oppression. All they know is oppression.
They don't know anything at all about liberty. They know nothing
at all about being free in Christ. And so therefore, don't oppress
them. Don't treat them as the stranger
that they are, even though they don't know God, because don't
you remember what it was to be a stranger? Don't you remember
what it was to not know Him and the foolish feelings of your
own heart? Possessed with fear when we didn't
know God that's what a that's what a stranger to the covenant
of grace. He's possessed By fear it owns
him and holds him and possesses him not godly fear fear terror
fright of God and of men and of his own self he's afraid remember
the inward distress of your soul and You didn't even want to think
about God. You didn't even want to think
about the Scriptures. You didn't want to go to church.
You didn't want to open this Bible and read it. Proof was
when you got out away from those who made you do those things,
you didn't do them. Because you were out from under
their hand a little bit and you didn't have to do them anymore.
You proved that if it wasn't for you making me do these things,
I wouldn't do it. You had distress of soul. Remember
the anxiety of your mind? I can remember just being so
afraid that my grandfather was going to ask me some question
directly about what he preached that day. I can remember Sunday
afternoon, I didn't want to ride home with him. I didn't want
to go see him for at least two days because I wanted it to be
off his mind and off my mind so that if he asked, I'd at least
have a reason why I didn't know the answer. And then when it
got time around for the service to begin again, next service,
I didn't want to go around him the day before or ride with him
in the car to the service. I was afraid he'd ask me something.
And when I got to the service, I sat in the farthest back row
as I could get away from him because it just was anxiety,
just nervousness. consumed with it, that I just
was fearful that he'd ask me some question. You remember the
grief and the sorrow and the broken and contrite spirit you
had when God revealed Christ in you? When He made your sins
known to you? and you begin to behold what
you are by nature and you begin to behold it that you're far
off from God that you don't know God and you became all those
same feelings but now multiplied magnified because now When you
had those feelings before God made you to truly know what your
sins were, you at least had some kind of refuge. You had some
kind of hope of something. Something you did, something
you've done in your life that may give you a little bit of
glimmer of thinking that you'd probably be alright. At least
you could put it off for a little while. But when He came and He
made known to you what you are, then He stripped away from you
little bit of hope you had that little bit of Confidence you
put your refuge you put your trust in and now he just left
you out there standing in the open naked and ashamed and Terrified
and afraid and you remember how cast down you were you remember
how frightful it was But then remember this look at Ephesians
2 with me Ephesians 2 11 and This is the word of grace to
the Gentiles, but the Gentiles, really brethren, those who didn't
have God, who didn't know God, who had no hope in this world,
they're just a mirror image for you and I of what we were before
we ever knew Christ, even though we in ourselves are Gentiles.
But the Jews are the same way. This is how they were, who even
though they had the oracles of God and didn't know Him, But
look here, verse 11, wherefore remember, remember, be not forgetful,
that ye being in time past Gentiles in the flesh, who were called
uncircumcision, because they didn't have the law, by that
which is called the circumcision in the flesh made by hands, that
is by the Jews, that at that time ye were without Christ. being aliens from the common
wealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise.
You were strangers from God's covenant promise, having no hope
and without God in the world. But now, now, now here's the
flip side of it. This is how the believer is now
made a stranger and a pilgrim in this earth. Before, when we
were strangers and foreigners to God, we were friends with
the world, and the world would have everything. They loved us,
but now this is how we became the friend of God, and the world
hates us. We're strangers to the world.
Look, but now in Christ Jesus, ye who sometimes were far off
are made nigh by the blood of Christ. You see, He didn't treat
His children like strangers. He came to where we were, and
He shed His own blood to draw us into His household. For He
is our peace, who made both one, and hath broken down the middle
wall of partition." That wall that was between the Jew and
the Gentile was the law, and God broke it down. Just like
He broke down the middle wall, that was the middle wall that
was between us and God. That's the wall that's between
you who don't know Him and God. And listen now, having abolished
in His flesh the enmity, you know how that enmity was aggravated? You know how the hatred we had
for God and for God's people and for one another, you know
how that enmity was aggravated? By the law of commandments. That's
what the strength of sin is, the law. But look, even the law
of commandments contained in ordinances. And he took it away
for to make in himself of two one new man. And so he made peace
that he might reconcile both Jew and Gentile unto God in one
body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby. And He came
and preached to you which were far off and to them that were
nigh. And through Him, we both have
access by one Spirit unto the Father. This One who came to
where we were, came to us like the good Samaritan that He is,
and found us in the ditch, found us almost dead, half dead, and
dead in trespasses and in sins, but he came to us and he put
us on his own beast and he took us to his end and he paid the
price. He paid the price to keep us
there. And it says now we're no more
strangers and foreigners, not to him. not with his brethren,
but fellow citizens with the saints and of the household of
God. He brought us into his house.
And we're built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets,
Jesus Christ himself being the chief cornerstone. And in Him,
where all the building is fitly framed together, and groweth
unto a holy temple in the Lord, in whom ye also are builded together
for a habitation of God through the Spirit." Now, our fellow
brethren, when they're traveling, this same heart is often within
us because we're away from our loved ones. and we're in an unfamiliar
place. But the word to us is, let us
remember what Christ has done for us. Let us remember, be not
forgetful of what Christ did to us when we were strangers,
when He was a stranger and we didn't know Him. And now that
we've become strangers in this world, let us remember how that
He's brought us into His household. He's given us access to the Father. He's clothed us and He feeds
us with the bread of life. Clothes us with the garment of
righteousness. He settles us with Him and comforts us in the
fact that we're of His household. When you tell somebody that's
Seems a little uncomfortable when they walk into your house
at first? Make yourself at home. Treat this house like it's your
house. That's what Christ did for his people. He said, this is your house. I've made this God's house your
house. His household is your house.
And he comforts us with fellow saints. He uses our fellow brethren
to comfort us. And so now he tells us here,
be ye not forgetful to entertain strangers. Comfort them. Bring
them in. Clothe them. Feed them. Give
them shelter. Make them feel at home in your
house. Do for them physically what I've done for you spiritually.
And then what about angels unawares? What does this mean? Let's turn. I want you to read
this. I want you to see it. Genesis 18, 1 through 8. This is probably the best example. There's several in Scripture,
but this is one most folks are familiar with. Genesis 18, 1
through 8. Verse 2 says, this was Moses. He's sitting in the door in the
heat of the day of his tent, of his house. And it says, he
lift up his eyes and looked, and lo, three men stood by him,
strangers. He didn't know who they were.
And when he saw, he ran to meet them from the tent door and bowed
himself toward the ground. and said, My Lord, if now I have
found favor in thy sight, pass not away, I pray thee, from thy
servant. Let a little water, I pray you,
be fetched, and wash your feet, and rest yourselves under the
tree. And I will fetch a morsel of bread, and comfort ye your
hearts. This is how we show hospitality. You see what he did here? And
he says, After that ye shall pass on, for therefore ye come
to your servant. for therefore are you come to
your servant. This is why you came here, Abraham
said, is for me to fetch water and to wash your feet and to
feed you and to give you some rest and to comfort you. And
they said, So do, as thou hast said. And Abraham hastened into
the tent unto Sarah, and said, Make ready quickly three measures
of fine meal. Knead it, and make cakes upon
the hearth. And Abraham ran unto the herd, and fetched a calf,
tender and good, and gave it unto a young man. And he hasted
to dress it. And he took butter and milk,
and the calf which he had dressed, and set it before them. And he
stood by them under the tree, and they did eat. Now look back
at verse 1. And who does it say this was?
And the Lord appeared to him in the plains of Mamre as he
sat in the tent in the heat of the day. It says here the Lord
was among these men that came to him. And then again we find
a place over in chapter 19 there in verse 1. Let me say this before we move
on to chapter 19, but whenever these men were there, these men
made it known, they made it known that this verse 10, look at verse
18, chapter 18, verse 10. And he said, I will certainly
return unto thee according to the time of life, and lo, Sarah
thy wife shall have a son, as Sarah heard it in the tent door
which was behind him. But now listen, the point I want
you to hear is this. Abraham didn't know this. Abraham
had no idea that he was about to be told that his wife's gonna
bear a son and that the one who's come to him is gonna make it
happen. All he saw was was some strangers. And he said, for this reason,
you've come to my door, for me to bring you in and feed you
and wash your feet and comfort you and clothe you. And Scripture
tells us, the Lord came to him. And the Lord said, Abraham, at
the time of life, I'm going to return and your wife's going
to have a son. That son's a type of Christ.
That son is, Isaac's a son of promise, a type of our Lord Jesus
Christ in whom Abraham's seed would be called. So the point
of the message is, is when Abraham simply gave Look what He got
in return. Manifold. In manifold ways from
what He gave to them. The message that the Lord is
saying here when He says, some have entertained strangers unaware.
Wherever you go in Scripture, I won't have you turn there.
You can go to Genesis 19 and look there. You'll see when they
came to Lot, some men came to Lot. They were angels of the
Lord. And Lot brought them in. and entertained them. And you
know what ended up happening for a lot? He was delivered out
of Sodom. You know what happened to those
two on the road to Emmaus? When the Lord was walking with
them and they didn't know it was Him and He acted like He
was going to go on and they invited Him into their house and they
fed Him and lodged Him. He revealed Himself in them.
The point is this, brethren. God is not going to God's gonna
honor them that honor Him. And here's the point, have you
ever given anything whereby the Lord didn't use it to teach you
how much He has given you in Christ Jesus infinitely more
than anything you ever gave? That's why scripture tells us
it's better to give than to receive. What's the big deal if you entertain
somebody and you're hospitable to somebody when you're rolling
in the dough and everything's good? But when you are still
that same way to them when you've got nothing and you're down to
just a few cakes and a little oil. There's one case where Elijah
came, remember that? And he came and she said, all
I've got in the house is a little oil and some dough. And he said,
go in and fix me something from that. And she went in and fixed
him something from that and said, and they ate. From then on, her
and her household ate a long time and weren't even hungry. The Lord is teaching us, brethren,
that do everything you can for His people. Do everything you
can for those that He did everything He could for. All things are
yours. And you're not going to want
for anything. You're not going to want for anything. And it
may just be that He uses one of those through their mouth
to say something to you to teach you that word of grace you need
for that hour that will cause you to behold Christ in a way
you've never even beheld Him before. It'd be worth it ten
times over, wouldn't it? It'd be worth it ten times over.
I had a friend that when we were in music, he wrote a song called,
What If He's an Angel? And he called me one night and
he was saying, he said, I got that out of a verse of scripture
in the Bible. And he said, I can't remember
where it came from. And the whole song was, you know, about you
pass by this fellow on the side of the road there by the exit
and he's holding a sign, we'll work for food, because he's too
lazy to work and he wants you to give him some money so he
can go buy a fifth of whiskey. And he said, the whole point
of the song was, what if that's an angel? And he sent down to
see that you're doing your part, making sure that you're doing
what you're supposed to do. That's not what this means. That's
not what this means. God don't send down, He don't
send down folks to check on you and to keep tabs on you to make
sure you're doing what you do. He can speak a word and make
you willing to do what He wants you to do. He's given you and
I a privilege, a privilege to know without a shadow of a doubt
that all things are ours because of Him. To know that we shall
lack for nothing. And He's given us the privilege
to prove it by providing for those He brings to our door.
And brethren, the faith that will argue with you tooth and
nail over doctrine, and yet will not lay down its life for the
brethren, is the same faith devils have. They know there's a God. They can quote doctrine to you
better than you can quote doctrine to them. The devils could argue
doctrine with you about Christ more than you could argue doctrine
about Him. But they don't believe Him. But the believer, you know
what? breath is. You know what breath
is to a person? It's life. You know what works
are to a believer? Evidence that there's life there,
just like breath is. It's evidence that our faith
is genuine, that it's real, that God really has done a work of
grace because we truly trust Him. If it's our last little
bit of oil and somebody comes to our door, we trust I'll give
it to him. I'll give it to him. I trust
he'll provide for me. He gave me that little bit of
oil. I thought of this the other day. I'm going to close here.
I thought of this the other day. I thought, you know, if you will,
I tell you what, be turning with me to Hebrews 6. Hebrews 6. I thought of this the other day.
I thought, y'all gave Melinda and I that gift for last week. last weekend. And I thought about
some of my brethren that are in need when I received that
gift. And just as soon as I began to
think about my brethren in need, and I began to think about that
money, the thought occurred to me, well now, you may need that
money. You better hang on to that. And
I thought, 24 hours ago, I didn't have it. 24 hours ago, I didn't even have
it and didn't miss it. And now I got it and I'm acting
like I'm not going to make it if I don't let it go. You see
what I'm saying? He's the one that gives it. He's
the one that gives whatever he's given us so that we can be hospitable.
First and foremost, the grace in the heart to do it. But the temporal thing. And where
do we think they're going to come from after we've given them
away? They're going to come from Him. Same place they came from
the first time. Here's what He's saying when
He says this about entertaining angels unaware. Verse 10, Hebrews
6.10, God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labor
of love which ye have showed toward His name. in that ye have
ministered to the saints and do minister. And we desire that
every one of you do show the same diligence to the full assurance
of hope until the end. That's what this diligence is.
It's showing that we really have a full assurance of hope. That's
what it is. And those who aren't hospitable,
who don't love their brethren, show that no matter what they
say with their lips, They're declaring, I really don't have
that assurance of hope. I really don't have it. But he
says, we desire that you show this same diligence to the full
assurance of hope until the end, that you be not slothful, but
followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the
promises. This is, this is how a believer is. They love
their brethren because Christ loved them and gave himself for
them. And they love him that begot,
and they love them that are begotten of him.