HEB 13:22 Brothers, I urge you to bear with my word of exhortation, for I have written you only a short letter. 23 I want you to know that our brother Timothy has been released. If he arrives soon, I will come with him to see you. 24 Greet all your leaders and all God's people. Those from Italy send you their greetings.25 Grace be with you all.

Dr. Tong started by giving thanks to God for allowing us to complete the entire book of Hebrews within the past 3 and a half years. He said that in the beginning, he was not sure what will happen to the expository preaching series, nor was he certain that he could live to finish preaching the last verse. But now that we are at the very last verse, we have all witnessed for ourselves how the LORD had brought us through, from the beginning to the end. We were not stopped by reasons of health, we were not stopped by political or any other reasons. From chapter 1 verse 1 to the last verse of chapter 13, the LORD had not allowed the evil one to have any opportunity to disrupt the preaching. We give thanks because many have now learned to appreciate the Truth of God in His WORD, and are able to have joy through learning about spiritual truth.

From the beginning, we knew that Christ is the central focus of the entire book. He far surpasses all creatures, angels, prophets or the saints. He has a part in the creation of the world, the sustenance of the world, and will have a part in the judgement of the world at its end. He is the Saviour who is more beautiful than anything else in this world. Towards the end of the book of Hebrews, we are surprised by the fact that this great Creator who sustains all things with His mighty word, this person who will inherit all of God’s eternity is also a Great Shepherd who would lead us. He has a home in the entire universe, and this home is His Church. All who live within this Church, the body of Christ belong to His flock. The Church is the will within God’s will; and the saints are the pupil of His eye. Those who belong to God are considered most precious, most honoured among all that God had created. For these people, the Father sent His Son to wash them clean with His own blood. And through His death and resurrection, we know that He is indeed victorious over Satan who holds power over death.

The concluding passages of Hebrews bring us great hope and the highest joy, in that this Great Shepherd will want to complete us and bring us into perfection. He had been tempted in all things, and understands us completely. His blood is the eternal covenant, and by Him, we enter into eternity to be with Him.

When the author finished with these statements, we would have thought that he would simply give glory to God and then end the entire book. But he concluded by giving important reminders to his readers. He reminded the readers to bear with his words of exhortation, to remember the words of warning. The author did this several times before. Time and again he issued words of stern warning. Relating to our attitude towards salvation, he asked, "If they did not escape when they refused Him who warned them on earth, how much less will we, if we turn away from Him who warns us from heaven?" (Heb 12:25)

The book of Hebrews does not contain the word ‘gospel’, but we do see the word ‘salvation’ appearing in many places. While it is true that the entire book of Hebrews is about the gospel, it is not about the gospel for non-believers, but about the gospel for people who have already believed. The author wanted to let his readers know that the gospel is the same from the Old to the New Testament. He wanted us to be certain that we need to respond correctly to this gospel. So while he explained the mystery of the gospel, he did not forget to issue stern warnings to people who would ignore the gospel.

Many people take sermons and the WORD of God for granted. As we listen to God’s WORD, we often take a mocking attitutide towards it. The author actually asked his readers to remember God’s word in a very humble tone. Dr. Tong said that he has reminded the audience many times that the author of Hebrews was so great that a few dozen doctorates would not do him justice. With three opening verses, the author was able to describe creation to the final judgement. His understanding of Christology was complete. He did not know Christ like a shadow in the Old Testament, or a historical Christ in the New Testament. He understood Christ correctly as the Creator who transcends time-space, the sustainer of all things and the inheritor of history. Although we may never know for certain who the author of Hebrews was, we can be certain that it was the Holy Spirit who inspired the entire book.

Despite of his greatness, the author was humble and gently urged his readers to heed his words of advice. Like a loving father, he persuaded the people. There was no compulsion, but gentle persuasion with the mercy of God.

Dr. Tong said that many of us are always in a hurry to tell God how we feel about things, but few of us are really willing to listen to Him. This is unjust. When a church spends lots of time singing hymns and praying, demanding that God listens to them, while at the same time refusing to listen to the WORD of God; this church can only continue to decline. Many churches are focusing on praise and worship, always demanding that God listen to them. But they spend little time in studying or preaching of God’s WORD.

One of the most important things God said to the Hebrews was, “Hear, O Israel”. How can we know what God wants if we refuse to listen to Him? Believing comes from hearing. A person’s spirituality is determined by the manner in which he listens to the WORD of God. Is it with a obedient, submissive and gentle attitude? Through the prophet Isaiah, God said to the world, “ Listen O earth, for the LORD has spoken" (Isaiah 1:2). Do we want revival today? We need to start from just one word, the word ‘listen’. We need to listen carefully to the WORD of God for revival to come. Many people already realise this, but there are so few of God’s servants who can really preach the WORD. So we need to pray that the LORD of the harvest send forth his labourers.

Dr. Tong reminded all that we are not determined by what we know, nor what we think about. The Greek philosopher Xenophanes said that ‘a man is what he eats’. The rationalists said that ‘a man is what he thinks’. Some said that ‘a man is what he feels’. Others said that ‘a man is how he behaves’, or what he does. These are all not biblical teachings. Dr. Tong’s own definition is ‘a man is what he hears from the WORD of God’. You are whatever you hear from God. The WORD of God has been preached to many people, but each person hears different things. We are what we hear from the WORD of God.

Dr. Tong related a story he read from a newspaper he read while on a plane. There was a 8 year old child who was crossing the road with his parents. He refused to be held by his parents, and rushed across the road. He was knocked down by a 16-tonne lorry, and both his legs were amputated. When he awoke from his surgery, he cried to his mother, and said that he would be obedient from now onwards, and he would want to listen to his mother. But it was too late.

The most important thing is not whether we are listening to the words of man. What is most important is for us to listen to the WORD of God. The most important moments in our lives would be those moments when we hear important words from the true servant of God. These moments would be moments that could transform our lives and establish our faith. Do we hunger for God’s WORD like a deer that pants for water? Or do we fulfill what scripture says about the last days being times when people would create for themselves false teachers, because they are itching to hear different messages.

The second definition that Dr. Tong gave was ‘a man is equal to how he responds to God’. A person’s response to God would determine the type of person he is. Isaiah became a great prophet because when God called him and asked, ‘who can we send?’, Isaiah responded immediately, ‘send me.’ Many people heard the calling of God, but few would really respond to Him positively. We need to respond by God’s will. The Bible promises in xxx, that whoever hears the word of God and responds is blessed.

When the puritans read the Bible, they would often pray first. And they would use pens of different colours to mark the verses, segregating them into words of warning, words of command, words of promises and others. In this manner, they would continue to ask themselves if they have been obedient to the WORD of God. Such a manner of response to the WORD of God resulted in the type of spirituality they displayed.

One day, we may not have the opportunity to listen to God’s WORD any more, or to study in the same manner as the Hebrews expository preaching. Then God would ask us if we have taken all our opportunities for granted. He would want to know if we have taken His words of warning seriously. Dr. Tong asked if we have relegated the sancturary as a place for community meeting, or a place for us to show off our lastest fashion. We need to put the WORD of God in our hearts, on our foreheads, tying it upon our arms. All the Israelites knew that those who meditate upon the WORD of God day and night are blessed. Like a tree planted by the waterside, they will always be green and well-nourished.

The author also wrote about Timothy, which meant that they were co-workers. Timothy was like a son to Paul, and Paul loved him greatly. But the Bible did not record many things that Timothy did. Here we see that he was in prison, which means that he suffered for the LORD the way his spiritual father Paul did. He was persecuted, and went to prison for the LORD. What about us? Do we serve only because it brings us good things? Only those who had suffered would know what true joy is when they have been released from their sufferings.

The recent black out in New York created a situation when a person living in the 21st century was compelled to live as if he was living 3000 years ago. All public transportation became unavailable, and many did not even bother to go home. 19 million people who trapped in darkness for 29 hours. We take all these conveniences in life for granted, until one day we suddenly lose them. In the same manner, we take the WORD of God for granted, until we cannot have it anymore. Timothy was not like this. He bore his cross and suffered.

The author followed by sending words of greetings, but only to 2 groups of people. The first was the leaders, and the second was the saints. The leaders are not mere rulers, but people who led without by example, forging a way forward in self-sacrifice. The greeting to the saints was not directed at all Christians, but towards those who truly were set apart. We need to lead truthfully, be set apart in holiness; never to be a Christian in name only.

Dr. Tong concluded the entire series of expository preaching of the book of Hebrews by leading the audience in reading verses 22 – 25, giving special thanks to God for His provision.

Disclaimer: This summary does NOT represent the official position of STEMI (Stephen Tong Evangelistic Ministry International), and is the personal opinion of the author, expressed without prejudice. Expressed opinions are meant for academic discussions only.