A Bible Study in EasyEnglish (2800 word vocabulary) on the Book of Hebrews
Keith Simons
EasyEnglish is a system of simple English designed by Wycliffe Associates (UK).
Last part: Good works by Christians (Hebrews 6:9-10)
One possible meaning of Hebrews 6:11 is that Christians should continue to show love (Hebrews 6:10). They should always be eager to do that. And so, in the end, they will receive everything that they hope for.
However, there is another possible meaning. The original readers of this book were strong in the love that they showed (Hebrews 6:10). But their hope and faith (Hebrews 6:12) were weak. That is why they found it difficult to listen to the author. (Hebrews 5:11 and Hebrews 6:11 use the same word to describe this problem.) But the author wanted them to become mature Christians (Hebrews 5:11-14). So he would teach them about hope (Hebrews 6:13-20) and faith (active belief and trust in God – Hebrews chapter 11) in addition to love (Hebrews chapter 13).
Faith, hope and love are very important in the lives of Christians. They are three qualities that last always (1 Corinthians 13:13). Faith, hope and love are the things that make Christians strong. And when someone joins three strong things together, the result is even stronger (Ecclesiastes 4:12)!
In English, we often speak about hope when something in the future is not certain. For example, we say, ‘We hope that all will be well.’ But that is not the meaning of hope in the Bible. By the word ‘hope’, the Bible means that something in the future is certain. We should be confident because God will definitely do those good things. We can expect them to happen.
There is a close relationship between faith and hope. We see faith in our actions when we trust God. We see hope in our attitude when we have confidence in him. Both faith and hope depend on God’s promises. The author of Hebrews mentions several occasions when God made a promise with an oath. An oath is a serious declaration that he will do those things. The promise gives us faith. We have faith when we trust God’s promises. And the oath gives us hope. God gave the oath so that we would have confidence (or hope) in him (Hebrews 6:17-18).
© 2012, Keith Simons.