Hebrews 13: 9-16 Paul invites us to go to Jesus, who is outside the “camp” (the temple, the tabernacle, and the city), bearing His reproach. To follow Christ, we must lay down pride, possessions, and “rights”. We must be willing to give of our time and money and control our reactions to people around us. We must sometimes get out of our comfort zones and minister to others.

Hebrews 13: 5-6 Are you controlled by greed? By fear of not having enough? Do these affect your giving to those in need? How do you find contentment with what you have, so that you are able to extend giving to others in need?

Hospitality expands to so many areas of our lives: our world, our church, our home, and our hearts. The Gospel of Matthew tells us how we can serve Christ by being hospitable to others. The goal of hospitality should be to reveal to someone their worth and value to God and bring them to the point where they realize their need for Jesus Christ in their lives. Hebrews 13:1-3; Matthew 25:33-40

Power of His Resurrection-Philippians 3:10 Paul wanted to know the power of Christ’s Resurrection. Do you know the power of Christ’s Resurrection? Do you know that you know that you will go to Heaven when you die? Brother Mike tells you how you can be sure.

Brother Mike speaks of two Zions-the earthly Zion (Jerusalem) and the heavenly Zion (New Jerusalem). Zionism as an organized movement is generally considered to have been founded by Theodor Herzl in 1897. However, the history of Zionism began earlier and is related to Judaism and Jewish history. In 1948, the United Nations re-established Israel as a nation. There is no other example in human history of a "nation" being reestablished after such a long period of existence as a diaspora. Brother Mike points out highlights of the history, but makes a point that we are not to look to the earthly Zion. We are to keep our eyes fixed on the heavenly Zion to which Jesus calls us.

Hebrews 12: 1-5, 7, 11 Brother Mike continues to explain what it means to “grasp the Cross”. He speaks of the Theology of Glory and the Theology of the Cross and how we need a balance of these in our lives. The Theology of the Rose-you have to get through the thorns in life to get the beauty of the flower-is how we find this balance.

Hebrews 12:1-4 To be truly able to grasp the cross, there are 4 areas we must endure. As Christians, we must endure shame, hostility, temptation, and our conscience. Christ also had to endure shame, hostility, and temptation but he never had to endure conscience because he never sinned. Today we cover enduring conscience and shame.