S – The crucible for silver and the furnace for gold, but people are tested by their praise.

Proverbs 27:21 CSB

O –  Commentary:
Heat both tests and refines silver (cf. 25:4) and gold, showing what the metals are really like. (This first line of 27:21 is identical with 17:3.) Praise tests a person in a similar way in that his reaction to it shows what he is really like. If he gloats over it, he shows himself to be arrogant; he “knows” he is good. But if he accepts the praise modestly, he shows his humility.

 The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures

A – In this area, there are two tests we must pass – the praise we receive and the ability to celebrate others.  Anything that moves us to pride is not healthy.  In my life, the best way to receive praise is to look that person in the eye and say, “Thank you.”  I know my challenges and things I am working on – it keeps me humble.

One tougher question is whether we genuinely celebrate others in their wins.  When you evaluate yourself, it will check to see if envy and insecurity are part of the equation.  I struggled with this when I was younger.  There is freedom when you can celebrate others without either of these.

R – Heavenly Father, you are worthy of all praise and honor.  Help us to walk in genuine humility – not false condescension.  We are grateful for the times we are praised, knowing you are the source of our gifts and talents.  Help us to authentically honor and value others.  It keeps us free from envy and insecurity.

S – As water reflects the face, so the heart reflects the person. 

Proverbs 27:19 CSB

O – The heart is our true identity.  The inner things eventually come out openly.  

A – Our hearts are the foundation for our relationship with God.  The OT focused on obedience to God’s laws.  The NT focuses on the heart and relationship with God.  We must continue to nurture a heart that is full of faith, hope and love.  

R – Heavenly Father, we reverence you.  Life is challenging and our hearts are barraged with good and bad.  Help us protect our hearts and guard them from any evil that wants to bring damage.  Strengthen our hearts to walk in faith, hope and love.

S – Therefore, since we also have such a large cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us lay aside every hindrance and the sin that so easily ensnares us. Let us run with endurance the race that lies before us, ² keeping our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith. For the joy that lay before him, he endured the cross, despising the shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Hebrews 12:1–2 CSB

O – With the history of believers who exercised faith when it was challenging, we should exercise ours uninhibited by things that stop us.  We should persevere focused on Christ.  He modeled this for us when he went to the cross and was resurrected to heaven.

A – The journey of a believer in Christ is a lifetime.  From the moment we choose Christ as our Lord, we begin “the race” to heaven.  It is a marathon and not a sprint.  Our faith is what sustains us in the good and the bad.  

R – Heavenly Father, you are the one, true God.  Thank you for being the role model of Jesus’ perseverance while on earth.  Let us also demonstrate that strength and courage in our walk with you.  Empower us today to live aligned with your will and the resolve to do what you ask of us.

S – For he considered reproach for the sake of Christ to be greater wealth than the treasures of Egypt, since he was looking ahead to the reward. 

Hebrews 11:26 CSB

O – Commentary:

endured for the sake of Christ By identifying with the people of God and sharing in their hardship, Moses ultimately served the cause of Christ

Faithlife Study Bible 

A – It is unusual to read that Moses’ faith was influenced by Christ.  Yet, it makes sense.  We impact God’s plan for ourselves and others.  What seems unique to Moses is actually part of a greater “tapestry” where all the strings weave into an amazing pattern and plan.  His obedience in faith is just as vital as ours is today.

R – Heavenly Father, we love and worship you.  You have a greater plan than we know.  Give us the courage to have faith that honors you and weaves together with others to bring your plans to fruition.  

S – Now faith is the reality of what is hoped for, the proof of what is not seen.

Hebrews 11:1 CSB

O – Commentary: 

Jewish people defined ultimate “hope” in terms of the future day of the Lord. This hope is, however, an unshakable conviction in the present: “assurance” (nasb, nrsv; “confidence”—niv) appears in Greek business documents with the meaning “title deed.” To the Greek reader, what was “not seen” was what was eternal, in the heavens; here it also means what was yet to happen, as in Jewish *apocalyptic expectation

The IVP Bible Background Commentary: New Testament

A – Life has enough difficulties to challenge our “unshakeable conviction in the present.”  That is where we grow our faith – in the challenge and wonder if it will come to reality.  When we don’t see it or can make it happen and still choose to believe in God, that is where it grows.  Looking at chapter 11 of Hebrews, some things were achieved and others did not.  Yet, God attributed faith to them because it was in God and not the outcomes.  That is the faith we want.

R – Heavenly Father, we worship you as the one, true God.  We put our faith in you for what you put in our hearts.  We seek you first and trust you with the results.  We know you love us and do what is best for us.

S – Let us hold on to the confession of our hope without wavering, since he who promised is faithful

 Hebrews 10:23 CSB

O – Commentary:

This exhortation to “hold fast” is important given the opposition the readers face. Their critics insist that they return to the ritual observances practiced by other Jews in their city and compromise the absolute sufficiency of Christ.

The IVP Bible Background Commentary: New Testament

A – The commentary gives a good insight.  The book of Hebrews is written to the Jewish people.  Their opposition wasn’t just those against God but also those who didn’t believe in Jesus as the Messiah.  With hundreds of years of culture, it would be easy to revert to the traditional way of approaching God.

This is our challenge as well.  We have people who don’t believe in God and those who do but in different practices.  We must hold onto our beliefs and disciplines as God reveals them.  It is our relationship with God that will move us toward growth.

R—Heavenly Father, we surrender and worship you. Thank you for the uniqueness of our relationship with you. We don’t take it for granted. Instead, we step toward you to know you more and follow your plans for us.

S – For by one offering he has perfected forever those who are sanctified.

 Hebrews 10:14 CSB

O – The crucifixion on the cross and the resurrection from the tomb was the sacrifice that changed the world.  It provided the opportunity for those who believe in Him to be free from sin.

A – The cross never loses its gravity and meaning.  As believers, it is the most important act to our faith.  We should never forget the price that was paid for our freedom and relationship with God.

R – Heavenly Father, we reverence you today.  Thank you for the cross and the price that was paid on it securing the opportunity we have in our relationship with you.  We want to know you more intimately.  Reveal more of you as we yield more of us.

S – “How much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, cleanse our consciences from dead works so that we can serve the living God?”

Hebrews 9:14 CSB 

O – Commentary:

But the blood of Christ can do much more. His was a sacrifice of infinite value because through the eternal Spirit He offered Himself unblemished to God. With this lovely assertion, the writer of Hebrews involved all three Persons of the Godhead in the sacrifice of Christ, which magnifies the greatness of His redemptive offering. “Unblemished” (amōmon) fittingly describes Christ’s perfection (cf. 4:15; 7:26) for it is also used of spotless animals brought for sacrifice.

Such a great accomplishment ought to cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, but the expression “acts that lead to death” is literally “dead works” which in this context seems to refer to the Levitical rituals that, in contrast with the work of Christ, can never impart spiritual life.

“Hebrews,” in The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures

A – Old Testament rituals served for the ceremonially unclean and only made them outwardly clean. Jesus’ blood cleans us from the inside.  It is that cleansing that leads to spiritual life and relationship with God and the Holy Spirit.  The depth and power of the cross continue to unfold in our lives as we pursue God.

R – Heavenly Father, we praise and magnify your name.  Thank you for the blood of Jesus that was shed on the cross on our behalf.  We draw into your presence, peace and power as a part of the covenant we share with you. We also surrender and yield our will so that we may align with you.

S – The Holy Spirit was making it clear that the way into the most holy place had not yet been disclosed while the first tabernacle was still standing.

Hebrews 9:8 CSB

O – Commentary:

The most holy place) had not yet been disclosed. That at least was the message the Holy Spirit intended to communicate by this arrangement. The Levitical arrangements were designed to convey the idea that the true way to God did not lie in them. What this indicates for the present time is that the Old-Covenant sacrificial system did not meet human need at its deepest level. It could not clear the conscience of the worshiper. Hence the regulations which formed part of the observant worshiper’s adherence to this system were chiefly concerned with externals which were only meant to apply until the time of the new order.

“Hebrews,” in The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures

A – The OT did not meet the need on the inside.  We still face this today.  We can do and say the right things but there has to be genuine transformation of the heart.  That comes when we have an authentic relationship with Christ.  Only He can do the work on the inside that comes through salvation and nurtured with the assistance of the Holy Spirit.

R – Heavenly Father, we surrender our hearts to you today.  Thank you for the gifts of salvation and relationship with you through the cross.  Help us to grow in our understanding and intimacy with you.

S – The wounds of a friend are trustworthy, but the kisses of an enemy are excessive. 

Proverbs 27:6 CSB

O – Commentary:

An enemy (lit., “one who hates”) may seem to be a friend by his many kisses, and a true friend (lit., “one who loves”) may seem to be an enemy by the wounds he inflicts (probably inner hurts that come from being rebuked or criticized; see v. 5). Yet, ironically, the rebukes may actually be more genuine expressions of friendship.

The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures

A – What constitutes a “genuine expression of friendship?”  When someone cares authentically with honesty, transparency and care.  A real friend loves you enough to bring all three qualities to the relationship.  

R—Heavenly Father, we honor and praise you today. Help us nurture authentic relationships that will accurately reflect our actions.  Please give us the courage to hear their words and continue to grow closer to you.