Please read chapter 1 of the Letter to the Hebrews with the following prompts in mind...

1.  What does it mean in verse 2 that God speaks to us through Jesus?

2. Ponder on how verse 10 gives Jesus such a central role in the Creation of the Universe. How does this impact your understanding of who Jesus is?

3. What might a First Century Jew have felt reading this chapter talking about a man who died around 50 years before?  

Please read chapter 2 of the Letter to the Hebrews with the following prompts in mind...

1.  Find a couple of instances in Scripture where human beings encounter Angels eg. Rev 22:8-9, Gen 19:1, Luke 2: 8-10. Take note of their initial response to the Angels and what they do with the message the Angels bring. 

2. Who are those people in your life whose input you respect and value enough to make sure their words make a difference? 

3. If you were given an opportunity to address the Nation for 5 minutes, what would you say and how would you prepare for the moment?

Please read chapter 3 of the Letter to the Hebrews with the following prompts in mind...

1. What was the role of a Priest in the Jewish tradition?

2. What could God have meant by ‘They shall not enter my rest.’?

3. Is an unbelieving heart the same as a hard heart and what do these concepts look like in our lives?

Please read chapter 4 of the Letter to the Hebrews with the following prompts in mind...

1. Read Genesis 2:1-3 and spend a moment thinking about what a Sabbath (seventh day) rest means to you.

2. Read Hebrews 4:9-11. How does rest help us avoid sin?

3. Do you think entering God's rest just means not working and relaxing in front of the TV? What else could it mean?

Please read chapter 5 of the Letter to the Hebrews with the following prompts in mind...

1. Read Hebrews 9:1-7 and Leviticus 16:1-19 and think about the significance of the Day of Atonement.

2. What do you understand to be the function of a Priest or Pastor? Perhaps you've had different experiences of this in the past?

Please read chapter 6 of the Letter to the Hebrews with the following prompts in mind...

1. This is a very meaty chapter. Try find a commentary that could give you some perspective. Enduring Word is helpful.

2. In which areas of life are you feeling encouraged? In which areas are you discouraged? Think about where you have placed your hope and how that impacts your courage?

Please read chapter 7 of the Letter to the Hebrews with the following prompts in mind...

1. Look up all the references to Melchizedek in the Bible.

2. Watch this video from the Bible Project.

3. Think about why it is important that Jesus is not from the tribe of Levi and order of the Israelite Priests, but of the tribe of Judah and order of Melchizedek.

Please read chapter 8 of the Letter to the Hebrews with the following prompts in mind...

1. Read Exodus 19:5, the introduction to the Mosaic Covenant.

2. For the Jews, the High Priest essentially mediated (go between, agent) a Covenant between God and His people through gifts and sacrifices on the basis of God's Law.

3. Read Luke 22:20 where Jesus introduces the New Covenant.

4. As you read Hebrews 8 look for the comparisons between Jesus and the Old Testament High Priest. 

Please read chapter 9 of the Letter to the Hebrews with the following prompts in mind...

1. Set aside time this week to read Exodus 24 through 27. This is where the Mosaic Covenant and the temple are both described.

2. As you read through Hebrews 9 think about the significance of Christ's sacrifice. It is a little difficult for us to relate to the whole system but imagine being a Jew whose whole culture centers on the extreme requirements for relationship with God.

3. What does the 1500 years of the temple and sacrificial system being a shadow of what Jesus actually did for us, tell us about who God is and who we are to Him?

Please read chapter 10 of the Letter to the Hebrews with the following prompts in mind...

1. What does it currently mean to you that you have a Great High Priest and can confidently come before your Creator.

2. Can you think of any ways this truth should impact our lives in terms of who we are and how we relate to others.

3. Would you say most of your time is spent responding to urgent demands or are you able to be intentional and specific with your resources?

Please read chapter 11 of the Letter to the Hebrews with the following prompts in mind...

1. Think about how we can experience something without actually seeing it.

2. What makes faith different from hope? It is related to the fact that hope can exist without it affecting your actions.

3. Read these examples of faith referenced in Hebrews 11.

   • Abel (Genesis 4:1-7)

   • Abraham (Genesis 12:1-9)

   • Rahab (Joshua 2 and 6:17–25)

Please read chapter 12 of the Letter to the Hebrews with the following prompts in mind...

1. Can you picture your life as a race? Think about where might you be in terms of the analogy eg. runnning up a hill, settled in a comfortable pace, sprinting etc.

2. Does discipline have a negative connotation for you? Would you say you are a disciplined person?

3. When did you last think about eternity? How does considering that future reality impact your current context? 

Please read chapter 13 of the Letter to the Hebrews with the following prompt in mind...

1. There are several final instructions in this chapter. Some require a decent amount of time to come to grips with. Start by taking the time to think about what 'continuing in brotherly' love might mean. Then choose one more instruction and try and picture what obedience in that area would look like in your day to day.