“10 For God is not unjust so as to overlook your work and the love that you have shown for his name in serving the saints, as you still do. 11 And we desire each one of you to show the same earnestness to have the full assurance of hope until the end, 12 so that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises. 

13 For when God made a promise to Abraham, since he had no one greater by whom to swear, he swore by himself, 14 saying, “Surely I will bless you and multiply you.” 15 And thus Abraham, having patiently waited, obtained the promise. 16 For people swear by something greater than themselves, and in all their disputes an oath is final for confirmation. 17 So when God desired to show more convincingly to the heirs of the promise the unchangeable character of his purpose, he guaranteed it with an oath, 18 so that by two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us.

19 We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain, 20 where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, having become a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.”

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When we are baptized into Christ, sharing in His death, we lay a hold of the promise that was made from the beginning, that God would redeem those who had faith in Him. We understand that Jesus was that final sacrifice, that no more animals were needed or would ever be used again to help cover the sins of man. But instead, that God Himself had provided the way through His own Son. In this faith, we are called and should be compelled to action, not laziness, or sluggishness. Those characteristics are not equated with the saved, but rather with the deceived and the worldly. Again, in the author’s own, Spirit-led words, we are to be “imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.”

This is why God has provided this steadfast anchor for the soul, that our heart/mind/soul would be tethered to Him and His truth in faith. That in rough times, our certainty would be unwavering. That in easy times, that our passion would be undying. We have been given something beautiful in our faith, but it is something that must be maintained with vigilance, with conviction and in loving thankfulness. The Christ-follower who is passionate does not need to be reminded of their passion very week. The Christ follower who is operating under conviction does not need to be cajoled into good works and service to others. The passionate Christian should not need to be ‘guilted’ into living each day for Christ.

Instead, the passions firmly secured in Christ, faithfully, patiently waiting and working in God’s timing, we press forward in maturity. Not seeking to be entertained, but rather, seeking what we might do to serve our King. And again, not in an effort to earn our salvation, as if our works could repay the blood of Christ, but simply done in love and thanksgiving, passionately performed so that others might see and hear the hope of salvation that we have found in Him. We know that Jesus has indeed gone on ahead of us, defeating sin and death, living and serving as our Great High Priest, our sole mediator before God the Father. Distinct yet the same with Him, Christ is our defense, our hope and our refuge. He is our guardian and the assurance of peace rather then wrath. And in that knowledge and faith, we passionately and in certainty live out His footsteps every day, in His Name and for His glory, as we GoLove others.