Text: Hebrews 13:8–16
Preacher: Pastor Brian Sauvé

The Right Kind of Reproach

Last week, we began to handle this section of text from Hebrews 13:7–19, which is applying the central teaching of the whole book about the total supremacy of Christ to Christ’s people, this new humanity being remade in his image by grace and through faith. Particularly, this section teaches the church how to relate to her leaders.

And I told you that we’d take two weeks to cover this section, because the author makes two main points that, though both related to the issue of the leadership of the church, are each worth their own focused look. In verse seven, and then verses seventeen to nineteen—which we took up last week—he directly addressed the duties of the local church to the elders of the local church, namely, to submit to and obey the elders.

Now in the middle of that section, from verse eight to sixteen, he gives a parenthetical look at one of the reasons that it is so important that the church submit to the elders—because if they don’t, they will be in danger of being “…led away by diverse and strange teachings.” 

So we will unpack that part today, and see an example of a diverse and strange teaching that was particularly tempting to the Hebrew Christians the letter was initially addressed to.

So this morning, we will focus particularly on verses eight to sixteen, but I will read all the way from verse seven to verse nineteen to make sure we set the section in its context. This is the Word of the Living God:

“Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God. Consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever Do not be led away by diverse and strange teachings, for it is good for the heart to be strengthened by grace, not by foods, which have not benefited those devoted to them. We have an altar from which those who serve the tent have no right to eat. For the bodies of those animals whose blood is brought into the holy places by the high priest as a sacrifice for sin are burned outside the camp. So Jesus also suffered outside the gate in order to sanctify the people through his own blood. Therefore let us go to him outside the camp and bear the reproach he endured. For here we have no lasting city, but we seek the city that is to come. Through him then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name. Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God.

Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you. Pray for us, for we are sure that we have a clear conscience, desiring to act honorably in all things. I urge you the more earnestly to do this in order that I may be restored to you the sooner.”

-Hebrews 13:7–19

Thus ends the reading of God’s Word; may he write it on our hearts by faith. Let’s pray.

Elders are Guardians of Truth

Here’s how we’re going to handle this text, because on first glance, it might not be a section that is easily understood by us today. 

First, we’ll establish the main point that controls the whole section—that one of the reasons the church needs to be under the leadership of qualified elders whom they submit to and obey is because there are always going to be false teachers trying to lead sheep away from Christ with what he calls diverse and strange teachings.

Then, we’ll unpack an example of a diverse and strange teaching that the author would particularly warn the Hebrew Christians receiving this letter to be wary of.

Finally, we’ll ask the question that should come to mind as we do all that: What diverse and strange teachings do we need to beware of today? So first, see how the the main point is framed in verse 7 to the first part of verse 9,

“Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God. Consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. Do not be led away by diverse and strange teachings…”

-Hebrews 13:7–9a

Here’s the main point to see: One of the reasons the church ought to submit to and obey their elders is because of what the elders are. Elders are guardians of truth.

There are many places we could see this in the Scriptures, but one of the clearest is in Titus 1 and 2. In Titus 1:9, Paul tells Titus that an elder, “…must hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught, so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it.”

Then he gives Titus a whole lot of practical theology he is to instruct the local church in obeying, and finally closes the whole section with this command:

“Declare these things; exhort and rebuke with all authority. Let no one disregard you.”

-Titus 2:15

The elders of the church are tasked with keeping a guard on the doctrine and teaching of the church. Why? Because, as Paul tells us in 1 Timothy 3:15, the church is “…the pillar and buttress of the truth.”

The Church emphatically is not a mere social organization. It is not a mere political organ intent on a certain public policy. It is not a kind of club, all gathered around a useful spiritual fiction in pursuit of some kind of religious utopia. No, the Church is nothing if it is not the very living, assembled body of Christ, who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. The Church exists to believe, defend, embody, and multiply the cosmic truth of the God Man, Jesus, who is the truth.

So big idea here in our text today: Submit to qualified elders, because they are tasked with guarding the truth, and there are many waves of doctrine that will aim to break over you and wash you off of this great buttress of truth.

One Such Strange Teaching

Now let’s look at one such strange teaching the Hebrew Christians are warned to be ready for in particular in verses 9–16. We’ll walk through this section a few sentences at a time and make sure we follow the argument, because it may be unfamiliar to some of us. Verse 9,

“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. Do not be led away by diverse and strange teachings, for it is good for the heart to be strengthened by grace, not by foods, which have not benefited those devoted to them.”

-Hebrews 13:8–9

Christ doesn’t change, so don’t be led astray by any shiny new doctrinal innovation that strolls across your path. This is the foundation of our faith, that our Lord doesn’t change. If you stand on him, are found in him, anchored to him, you are anchored to something more solid than the Universe itself. If, as Paul assures us, our lives are hidden with God in Christ, then though every molecule disintegrate and every atom of creation be de-created, our lives are secure.

We aren’t Mormons, with doctrine as malleable as warm butter. We don’t follow merely human prophets who can tell us when God decides to change his mind even on what the holy Scripture say. Our God is unchanging, and his Word is sure.

Now, what is going on with the food stuff here in this passage? That it is good for the heart to be strengthened by grace, not by foods, which have not benefited those devoted to them?

Well, one such diverse teaching these Hebrew Christians were tempted by was to return to the food laws under the Old Covenant Mosaic Law. These laws all pointed to Christ—that was their whole point. And since Christ came, they have been fulfilled and are no longer in force.

Keep reading and we’ll understand this in more detail; look at verse 10:

“We have an altar from which those who serve the tent have no right to eat. For the bodies of those animals whose blood is brought into the holy places by the high priest as a sacrifice for sin are burned outside the camp. So Jesus also suffered outside the gate in order to sanctify the people through his own blood.”

-Hebrews 13:10–12

Here’s the basic point: Don’t go back to the old food laws, because what we have in Christ is far better. In the Mosaic economy, only the priests could eat from the altar—and even then they weren’t to eat the atonement offering, offered outside the camp (see Leviticus 16:22). But all those offerings, including the atonement offering, pointed to Jesus—the true scapegoat, who bears our curse; the true Lamb of God who takes away sin. He went outside of the camp of Jerusalem to be crucified and bear our curse.

And in Christ, we are a Kingdom of Priests who are welcomed to the altar to feast on Christ. That’s what we are doing at the Lord’s Table. The point is that it would be folly to return to the shadow sacrifices and shadow altar you couldn’t even approach once you have feasted on the substance, on Christ himself, and welcomed to an altar you are now eternally worthy to approach, having been cleansed, forgiven, and adopted as a son.

And so, verse 13–16, 

“Therefore let us go to him outside the camp and bear the reproach he endured. For here we have no lasting city, but we seek the city that is to come. Through him then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name. Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God.” 

-Hebrews 13:13–16

The Hebrew Christians were being tempted to shrink back to Jerusalem, whether to abandon Christ for the Old Covenant or to try to marry the ceremonial law to the New Covenant. The author of Hebrews would have them see that his is utter folly!

He’s saying, “I know you are bearing the reproach of your Jewish brothers. I know they’re saying that you are apostates and false Jews worshiping a false Christ. But don’t shrink back to the camp of Jerusalem to avoid their reproach. Rather, follow the Lord outside that God-forsaken camp and have his approval, even if it comes with their reproach. That city, that camp, is in the way of judgment. You have a better city: The heavenly Zion. Don’t be moved!”

The Play They Keep Running

So there it is: We need qualified, doctrine-guarding elders and churches in submission to those elders, because there are those who would tempt you away from Christ with false teachings. 

And that brings us to the last thing we need to do, something that if we don’t do it, we haven’t fully handled this text. We need to recognize that we are made of the same stuff as our brothers and sisters who first heard this letter read aloud in their congregations. And we need to see how this same play might be run on us. Ok?

They were tempted to abandon Christ because of the reproach that came with identification with Christ. For them, it was a very literal thing: There was a literal city, Jerusalem, the camp of Jerusalem. 

And Jesus was literally taken out of that city by its inhabitants, who reviled and cursed him, and there they crucified him. They didn’t realize that Christ was bearing far more than just their reproach—he was bearing our reproach as well.

But these Jewish Christians were being tempted to return to Jerusalem, to that camp, to all of its old ways, lest they continue to bear that same reproach which the Lord bore. They face rejection by their brothers and neighbors if they would not reject Christ.

Friends, this is the play that is being run, and will be run over and over again, on you. What are we particularly tempted by? Whose approval would we be tempted to abandon Christ for? Which cultural cool-kids-table might be a temptation for us to join? Because that’s how this works, make no mistake. 

Listen to Jesus in John 15:19,

“If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.”

-John 15:19 

And the warning of the Apostle in James 4:4,

“You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.”

-James 4:4

Think of all of the strange and diverse teachings that would threaten you with reproach if you reject them! There are ten-thousand idols crying out for your love in our cities right now, and you and I need to refuse them one inch of ground. 

We need to look them in the eye and say, “I would rather bear your reproach with Christ outside of all of your inner rings than bear his reproach for all of your approval.”

We could get painfully specific, couldn’t we? What are some idols clamoring for your love? What strange and diverse teachings would aim to draw you away from Christ right now? There are many. And what they would have you do is either abandon Christ for them, or often even worse, attempt to syncretize them with Christ and end up with a useless kind of religious pluralism that ends up being neither thing well.

This is Islam, claiming to expand upon and correct what the Bible says. Maybe you don’t know this, but Mohammad said that the Bible was the word of God, and that Jesus was a prophet of God. But then there was the hook: Christianity has perverted the doctrine of Christ. Let me tell you how to restore it.

This is Mormonism, again claiming to expand upon and correct what the Bible taught. Your Bible has been corrupted. All the churches are apostate. Let me, Joseph Smith, recast a restored gospel for you that God revealed to me directly.

Or going right to the news, this is the racialized religious ideology of Critical Race Theory and Intersectionality, which would have you rewrite a new doctrine of original sin through the lens of Marxist/Leninist power religion. Now the original sin is belonging to oppressor groups like maleness or whiteness or heteronormativity. Now salvation is adopting woke terminology, a new political correctness, a new doctrine of history, a new law, etc. 

It’s tempting because they are able to point at real sin and real, massive historical oppression. It is able to point at real suffering and things that actually are the doctrine of demons—like ethnic partiality, man-stealing, and lots of other things forbidden in God’s Law.

But the doctrine of demons cannot cast out the doctrine of demons. New idolatry cannot solve old idolatries. What we need and what our neighbors need is repentance and faith and Christian fruitfulness, not strange and diverse teachings.

The point is that with that and every other strange and diverse teaching, the invitation to join the worship comes with the threat of reproach if you don’t, right? If you don’t signal this way, put up this picture on your social media, march in this thing, adopt this new vocabulary—then you cannot be saved, and you will bear our reproach. 

Bearing His Reproach

But look back at verses 12–14 with me, and I’ll close with this:

“So Jesus also suffered outside the gate in order to sanctify the people through his own blood. Therefore let us go to him outside the camp and bear the reproach he endured. For here we have no lasting city, but we seek the city that is to come.” 

-Hebrews 13:12–14

Our perennial temptation will be to avoid the reproach of this world by shrinking back from identifying with the Lord Jesus, who suffered outside the gate. Your flesh wants the approval and acclaim of the gods of this age. It wants to be loved, liked, adored, worshiped, and accepted. It would have you bow to whatever idol is being worshiped today in order to have that acceptance.

Listen: Don’t believe the lie. Better by far to suffer with Christ and bear the reproach of the world than to have the praise of men and be judged by Christ with them. Don’t worship the gods of this age; theirs is a false peace, a false gospel, a false joy. The Lord offers a true peace, a true gospel, and true joy. Seek his city, the one that is to come.

This is why verse 15 follows these instructions with, “Through him then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name.” 

When idolaters threaten you with reproach, respond by singing louder to the true God. Bear their reproach with him rather than his reproach with them.