Activate High School Ministry's Blog

The Word: “God is not so unjust as to overlook your work and the love that you showed for His sake in serving the saints, as you still do” (v.10).

The Breakdown: The writer of Hebrews is encouraging the Christians to persevere in serving the saints. In order to do this, he reminds them of their own salvation (v.9) and assures them that their service will not be overlooked by God. He then tells them to resume the work they are doing with all earnestness, faith, and patience so that they do not become sluggish (vv.11-12).

Activate: This passage expresses that any service that is done to the saints is shown as work and love for God, which is why He will not overlook such service. In Matthew 25:31-46 Jesus explains that any type of service done to others is ultimately done to Him. Therefore, when you serve the saints you are serving God. Therefore, strive to serve the saints!

A Thought: The Hebrews were encouraged to not grow sluggish in their service simply because it’s easy to do so, especially when others overlook it. Even though others can overlook your service, don’t grow sluggish, for God will never overlook your work and love that you show for His sake. God is just and will always recognize the work you do, even if it is small (Matt.10:42).

The Word: “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.”

The Breakdown: It is the shepherd’s job to lead his sheep to the places they need to go. The sheep need to follow the shepherd in order to be led to the places where they can eat, drink, rest, and sleep; and they need to be led so they can be protected from thieves, wolves, and hazardous terrain. David writes that God is his shepherd. He doesn’t try lead himself, but he follows God, the one who leads him in paths of righteousness. He recognizes his role as a sheep—he is to listen to the shepherd and follow Him at all times.

Activate: The society expects you to have your whole life planned out from a young age, which is why many people try to lead themselves on their own paths and not listen to the Lord. But as Christ’s sheep you are to be different. You are to listen to Him and follow His leading, for you’re not the leader of your life. Let Him lead you in paths of righteousness!

A Thought: When thinking about future decisions in regards to college, careers, or your spouse, ask the Lord to lead you and guide you. There are many different paths that you can take in the future, but make sure you take the path that the Lord is leading you to, for He will lead to paths of righteousness for your good and His glory. Follow your shepherd!

The Word: “For when Solomon was old his wives turned away his heart after other gods, and his heart was not wholly true to the Lord His God” (v.4).

The Breakdown: After faithfully completing all that work on the temple, Solomon blessed the assembly of Israel, saying, “Let your heart therefore be wholly true to the Lord our God, walking in His statutes and keeping His commandments, as at this day”  (1 Kings 8:61). When Solomon said this, he would have never guessed that his own heart would be turned away and not be wholly true to God. But that is exactly what happened, for Solomon loved many foreign women (v.1)—700 wives and 300 concubines to be exact!—even though he knew that God told Israel that their hearts would be turned away from Him if they entered into marriage with such women. The result was that Solomon did what was evil in God’s sight, which caused God to be angry with him and therefore decide to tear the kingdom from his son (except for one tribe) and raise up an adversary against him.

Activate: The clear message from Solomon’s actions is that sin causes your heart to not be wholly true to God because it turns your heart away from God to pursue after other false gods. Let Solomon’s example cause you to turn away from the sin in your life before it causes you to turn away from God; and let it remind you that sin has consequences.

A Thought: Is your heart wholly true to God, or is it turned after other false gods due to sin in your life? Turn from your sin before your sin turns you from God!

The Word: “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of My hand.”

The Breakdown: In regards to Christians having the hope and assurance of going to heaven, this is one of the clearest Scriptures on the topic. As the good shepherd, Jesus states that He intimately knows His sheep and gives them eternal life. He gives His sheep eternal life as a free gift (Romans 6:23), for no one can do anything that is worthy enough to earn salvation. Since Jesus is the giver of eternal life, He promises that those who have obtained it will never perish and that no one will be able to separate them from Him.

Activate: It is a blessed promise to know that if you are one of Christ’s sheep then you are safe and secure in the pierced hands of Christ. No one will be able to take you away from your Savior, for He is your good shepherd and will lead you through the narrow gate to heaven. Thank the Lord that because He has given you eternal life, you will absolutely never perish or be plucked out of His hands. Rest assured in this wonderful promise!

A Thought: Notice the characteristics of Christ’s sheep: they listen to His voice, follow Him, and receive eternal life from Him. Is this true of you? Are you one of His sheep?

The Word: “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to Myself, that where I am you may be also.”

The Breakdown: In this passage Jesus provides the remedy for a troubled heart. The disciples were confused and troubled because Christ previously told them that He was leaving and that they couldn’t come. But then He tells them that their troubled hearts can be cured by having faith in God and by thinking upon the fact that they will be with Him one day in His Father’s house in a place that has specifically been prepared for them. Jesus wants them to wholeheartedly believe this message because He wouldn’t be saying it if it were not true. Jesus calls His disciples to trust in His promise that He will take them to be with Him one day in heaven.

Activate: Do you have a troubled heart? Then believe in God and trust in Christ’s promise that He will take you to Himself where you will dwell in a place that has been specifically prepared for you. Jesus says that He wouldn’t say this if it wasn’t true. Believe in what He says and does!

A Thought: When you think about how Christ is preparing a place for you, your troubled heart will turn into a longing heart that desires to be with the Lord; you’ll be focused on heaven!

The Word: “How then can I do this great wickedness and sin against God?” (v.9).

The Breakdown: Day after day Joseph was tempted by the seduction of Potiphar’s wife. She continually commanded him to have sex with her, but Joseph recognized that if he committed such an act then he would disrespect and betray his master (v.8) and sin against God. His greatest reason for not committing sexual sin wasn’t that it would probably get him in trouble by getting caught, but it was that he would be sinning against God. Although he would have wronged others, such as his master, he knew that the ultimate crime is to sin against God, which David also confessed (Psalm 51:4). Joseph resisted temptation by considering the worth of God.

Activate: Joseph considered God to be more valuable and pleasing than a promiscuous affair with Potiphar’s wife, who was extremely seductive and probably very attractive. He knew that it would cause more pain to sin against God than to experience the passing pleasure of sin.

A Thought: Memorize Joseph’s response, for it will give you a proper perspective of the wickedness of sin and provide you with encouragement to flee and run from sin (v.12) during times of temptation. When temptation arises, let your response be the same as Joseph’s!

The Word: “Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy, to God our Savior, who alone is wise, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and forever. Amen.”

The Breakdown: At the close of his epistle, Jude includes some incredible spiritual truths and promises in his doxology, which is an ascription of praise to God (literally, “the glory of God”). Jude writes that God is able to keep you from stumbling, meaning that He is able keep you from destructive false teachings and keep you in the truth, which is the theme of Jude’s epistle. Also, he writes that God will present you faultless before the presence of His glory, which refers to the imputed righteousness that you receive through faith in Christ, making you sinless. God does this with “exceeding joy,” which shows how joyous He is to love you and forgive your sins!

Activate: Since God will present you before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy, you should receive this incredible blessing with exceeding joy—you should be excited and joyous about the fact that your sins are forgiven and that you will be blameless before Him!

A Thought: Because God will keep you in the truth and present you without fault, respond to God like Jude does, and ascribe glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and forever!