The Sacrifices that Please God
Hebrews 13:7–16 – Jesus Is Better
8th Sunday in Ordinary Time – July 19th, 2026 (am)
Greeting then Intro
Almost 25 years ago when Betsy and I were attending this church, I was in a graduate class on biblical theology with Scott Hafemann; we learned the importance of Genesis 1–3; what is the first story that follows?
Cain and Abel bring offerings to the Lord; one pleased God and the other did not; this rather cryptic passage sets up a massive question that is explored throughout Scripture: What is it that pleases the Lord? There may be no more important question; what do you give to the person who has everything?
Can we really please God? C.S. Lewis “The Weight of Glory” preached in 1941, two years into World War 2:
It is written that we shall “stand before” [God], shall appear, shall be inspected. The promise of glory is the promise, almost incredible and only possible by the work of Christ, that some of us, that any of us who really chooses, shall actually survive that examination, shall find approval, shall please God. To please God . . . to be a real ingredient in the divine happiness . . . to be loved by God, not merely pitied, but delighted in as an artist delights in his work or a father in a son—it seems impossible, a weight or burden of glory which our thoughts can hardly sustain. But so it is.
I agree with Lewis and love the way he describes this “weight”; the passage we will consider this morning describes four basic ways in which we can please God; Hebrews is filled with warnings against falling away but also exhortations of what to do (positively).
Hebrews 13:7–16 (ESV) — 7 Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God. Consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith. 8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. 9 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. 10 We have an altar from which those who serve the tent have no right to eat. 11 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. 12 So Jesus also suffered outside the gate in order to sanctify the people through his own blood. 13 Therefore let us go to him outside the camp and bear the reproach he endured. 14 For here we have no lasting city, but we seek the city that is to come. 15 Through him then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name. 16 Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God.
Last Sunday Kipp mentioned some aspects of the background.
Quick Note about Background
I favor traditional interpretation: this letter written to a mostly Jewish audience probably in Rome before the destruction of the Jerusalem temple in AD 70
Recipients tempted to return to Jewish practices for legal protection and “religious comfort/confidence”; Judaism offered what you could touch, smell, see, even taste; we see evidence in this passage of foods (verse 9), “tent” (10), sacrifices (11), and city (14); appeal of a grounded religion
In Java and Bali, Islam and Hinduism are also very physical and earthy religions; same struggle today with reliance on “science”
Throughout Hebrews there is an emphasis on faith, the unseen, the heavenly realities, the spiritual worship; we live primarily by our ears rather than our eyes
So if God is no longer pleased with old covenant religion, what now does please the Lord?
What Pleases God: the Death of Jesus
Jesus’ blood sanctifies his people (verse 12) = definitive cleansing from sin, allows people to approach God
His death established a new “altar” (verse 10), not a reference to the Lord’s Supper (as Catholics tend to view it) but new connection point between heaven and earth; Jesus is the altar, the sacrifice, the high priest; he provides it all and replaces the entire temple system
Don’t miss “through him” (verse 15); as Lewis said “the promise of glory is . . . only possible by the work of Christ”
The preciousness of this truth (which we sometimes take for granted) becomes all the more sharper in my Indonesian context; there is no mediator in Islam; the Qur’an repeatedly says: “No bearer of burdens shall bear the burden of another”; regarding Idul Adha, the Qur’an explicitly says: “Neither their meat nor their blood reaches Allah, but your piety reaches Him” (22:37); your deeds will be weighed in the final judgment
“Jesus is better; remain faithful to him”
What Pleases God: When We Follow the Faithful
7 Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God. Consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith. 8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. 9 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. 10 We have an altar from which those who serve the tent have no right to eat.
Main exhortation: “remember your [former] leaders”; they spoke the Word and lived it, it was their way of life; faith was the driving force of their life; Hebrews 11:6 without faith it is impossible to please God but by faith we may please him
The need for intergenerational churches and seeing leaders finish well (especially considering recent failure of leaders)
Verse 9: the inverse is “don’t be led away”; unclear what the Jewish practice was here, perhaps ritual meals; partaking in the Lord’s supper strengthens you by grace
Verse 8: Grammatically concise and without any conjunctions, like a free-standing pillar in the middle of this section is the beloved verse 8, literally, “Jesus Messiah, yesterday and today, the same, and into the ages”
How logically related? Jesus can be relied upon from generation to generation, former leaders trusted in same person, no need for new modes of spirituality
Resurgence of interest in Eastern Orthodoxy and Catholicism among younger generations, a yearning for something stable and unchanging; but what they should really seek is Jesus himself, not traditions; we follow the faithful as they follow Jesus
What Pleases God: When We Suffer with Jesus
11 For [“Now”] 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. 12 So Jesus also suffered outside the gate in order to sanctify the people through his own blood. 13 Therefore let us go to him outside the camp and bear the reproach he endured. 14 For here we have no lasting city, but we seek the city that is to come.
Different contrast is drawn in this section; Jesus’ death outside Jerusalem compared to burning of animal sacrifices on the Day of Atonement
Main exhortation in verse 13: “let us go to him outside the camp in order to bear the reproach he endured [participle]”
When the situation heats up, with whom are you going to side?
Running to Jesus often involves running to his people who are suffering
Chapter 10: “32 But recall the former days when, after you were enlightened, you endured a hard struggle with sufferings, 33 sometimes being publicly exposed to reproach and affliction, and sometimes being partners with those so treated.”
Chapter 13: “3 Remember those who are in prison, as though in prison with them, and those who are mistreated, since you also are in the body.”
Big question for the “traditional church” in Indonesia; question also for the American church; does our interest in global affairs center around our prices at the gas pump? Are we ourselves prepared to suffer with Jesus if following him becomes unpopular again?
The motivation to do so is verse 14; why a “city”? there is a place where we will belong; “Country Roads” song
What Pleases God: When We Praise His Name
15 Through him then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name.
Our sacrifices have been transformed, the incense of prayer, an offering of song, a public testimony of praise; can be given any time and anywhere; in fact the altar of our personal worship should always be burning (like bronze altar in temple)
Why the added phrase “that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name”? God is pleased with the praise that comes from those who publicly acknowledge him in costly situations; if you sing his praise on Sundays while indirectly denying him throughout your workweek, God will not be honored
What Pleases God: When We Share with His People
16 Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God.
What sacrifices are pleasing to God? Doing good, specifically “sharing what you have,” being generous, taking care of God’s people
Similar logic to Matthew 25 and description of the judgment of the sheep and the goats (34 Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, 36 I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ 37 Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? 38 And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? 39 And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ 40 And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’)
We give to God when we give to his family, especially the Christian poor; incredibly, as Kipp noted last week, the recipients are likely poor because plundered! Reminds me of 2 Cor 8:2, “in a severe test of affliction, their abundance of joy and their extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part”
Verse 16 literally, “Do not neglect [two nouns:] the doing of good and κοινωνία (“fellowship” or maybe better “partnership”); not having a good time hanging out with Christians but early church, book of Acts like sharing of resources in a common mission; this pleases God; I don’t need to hoard resources for myself, I can trust that God will provide what I need so I can be generous with others for the advancement of God’s kingdom
Perfect note in which to say “thank you” for partnering with us in the advancement of God’s kingdom in Indonesia; it brings joy to us and we believe that it pleases God
In summary, we no longer offer animal sacrifices like Abel or old covenant saints, we no longer present our offerings in a temple in Jerusalem; yet we still may please the Lord by following the faithful, suffering with Jesus, praising his name, and sharing with his people; I pray that the glory of this seemingly impossible reality would weigh heavily on us this morning; pray.
Argument Diagram of Hebrews 13:7–16
7a Remember your leaders,
7b those who spoke to you the word of God.
7c By considering the outcome of their way of life,
7d imitate their faith.
8a Jesus Christ, yesterday and today the same, and into the ages.
9a Do not be led away by diverse and strange teachings,
9b for it is good for the heart to be strengthened
9c by grace,
9d not by foods,
9e which have not benefited those who walk in them.
10a We have an altar from which those who serve the tent have no right to eat.
11a Now 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.
12a So Jesus also suffered outside the gate
12b in order to sanctify the people
12c through his own blood.
13a Therefore let us go to him outside the camp
13b in order to bear the reproach he endured.
14a For here we have no lasting city,
14b but we seek the city that is to come.
15a Through him then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God,
15b that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name.
16a Do not neglect to do good
16b and to share what you have,
16c for such sacrifices are pleasing to God.
NEXT SUNDAY: That You May Do His Will, Hebrews 13:17–25