Hebrews 13:15-25 NKJV
15 Therefore by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name. 16 But do not forget to do good and to share, for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.
17 Obey those who rule over you, and be submissive, for they watch out for your souls, as those who must give account. Let them do so with joy and not with grief, for that would be unprofitable for you.
18 Pray for us; for we are confident that we have a good conscience, in all things desiring to live honorably. 19 But I especially urge you to do this, that I may be restored to you the sooner.
20 Now may the God of peace who brought up our Lord Jesus from the dead, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, 21 make you complete in every good work to do His will, working in you what is well pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.
22 And I appeal to you, brethren, bear with the word of exhortation, for I have written to you in few words. 23 Know that our brother Timothy has been set free, with whom I shall see you if he comes shortly.
24 Greet all those who rule over you, and all the saints. Those from Italy greet you.
25 Grace be with you all. Amen.
We have heard several times in the epistle to the Hebrews how Christ is the high priest of the New Testament. As our high priest, He offered prayers up for His people and made the atoning sacrifice for sins on the cross. As the epistle draws to a close, the author reminds us that believers, too, are priests before God who also offer prayers for others and make sacrifices.
The sacrifices we offer are not propitiatory, meaning they do not make atonement for our sins and earn forgiveness. Christ’s sacrifice on the cross alone accomplished that. The sacrifices Christians offer are sacrifices of thanksgiving and praise. “By Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name” (15). This sacrifice does not save us. We offer this sacrifice because Christ has sacrificed Himself for us and justified us by faith in His blood. We also do good and share with others, “for with such sacrifices God is well pleased” (16). Again, these sacrifices do not save us or earn forgiveness. We do them because we are priests of God and because our neighbor needs them. Doing good includes submitting to our pastor, whom God has placed over us to watch out for our souls (17) and praying for him that he lives and performs his ministry with a good conscience and a joyful heart.
Because we still live in the sinful flesh, our sacrifices are tainted with sin and incomplete. But the epistle ends with the blessing that the God of peace would, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make us complete in every good work and work in us what is pleasing in His sight. God does this by accepting our sacrifices, not because they are pure and complete, but because we believe in His Son. Not only does He accept our good works done in faith, but He also gives us His Holy Spirit so that He might increase His work in us to the praise of His name and the benefit of our neighbor.
Let us pray: We give You thanks, Lord Jesus, for sacrificing Yourself for our sins. Grant that we may always offer You the sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving and do good to our neighbor. Amen.