Back in Nineteen-Eighty-Six…

as a final-year student in Veterinary Science…

one of our subjects was “Veterinary Epidemiology”.

Now, to be perfectly honest––

more than thirty-five years later––

I don’t remember a lot of what we were taught in it.

Most of it related to the spread of diseases in the context of herds and flocks…

that is…

in dealing with farm animals;

which I never did, working as a vet.

But I vaguely remember covering a whole bunch of stuff about water sources…

respiratory droplets and airflow…

and hygiene practices.

But I still have one quite vivid memory from the very first day of that course.

Our seasoned and sagacious lecturer began by posing a hypothetical scenario.

“You’ve been called out to a dairy farm…

where there seems to have been an outbreak of some infectious disease.

But the farmer’s description of the symptoms is a little vague.

So, you’ve driven out to investigate.

As you approach his property…

what’s the first thing that you’re going to be looking for?”

He paused… 

and waited for our somewhat-educated guesses.

“Types of discharge”;

“particular symptoms”;

“any pattern in the animals affected”…

were the first responses.

“Before that”, our lecturer responded.

“What they’re eating;

what pasture crops are in the paddocks”…

responded someone who obviously hadn’t failed agronomy as I had.

“Better”, our lecturer responded, “but before that”.

“I’d look at the dairy itself”…

a suggestion probably offered by the class’s bright spark.

“Better”, our lecturer responded again, “but even before that”.

An uncomfortable silence spread over the class.

When it was obvious that no one had a clue…

our wise old lecturer explained…

“as you’re driving to the property the first thing you need to observe are the fences”.

There were a few sniggers…

then he continued…

“Because the state of the fences tells you a lot.

They’re a symptom of the care that the farmer takes in managing his herd;

or the lack of it.

That’s your starting point.

If he doesn’t look after his fences…

then he won’t be looking after his paddocks…

and he won’t be maintaining his dairy…

and he won’t be managing his herd properly.

And your job, in trying to work this out, just got much harder”.

 

Of course, it was just a ‘rule of thumb’––

a general principle based on experience, which isn’t necessarily a ‘hard-and-fast rule’.

But there certainly was a logic to it:

an attitude of carelessness…

or apathy… 

isn’t generally going to be restricted to just one area.

Or, to put it another way…

despite what we might think or realise… 

our attitudes and values have a habit of manifesting themselves in practical, concrete terms.

And we see that all the time, don’t we?

If someone’s home is spotlessly clean and tidy…

with manicured lawns… 

and a magazine-worthy aura…

it tells you something about their attitudes, values, and priorities in life…

as much as if their house is cluttered and unkempt.

How we live…

how we act…

what we devote our time and energies to…

and what we do…

all say something fundamental about who we are…

what our values and beliefs are…

what we aspire to…

and what we give priority to.

And, sometimes… 

how we live, and how we act, speak more clearly and unmistakably…

about who we are…

what we believe…

and what are values are, than what we actually profess.

 

In our reading this morning…

at the end of the book of Hebrews…

our author finally turns to practical advice.

Up to this point, he has offered a long-winded exposition of who Jesus was––

as the ‘pioneer’ of our faith;

and our ‘great high priest’…

who offered himself as a sacrifice to end all sacrifice;

and who now intercedes for us with God;

and, after an exhortation for us not only to emulate Jesus…

but also the faithful who have gone before us––

and who…

like a cheering crowd…

continue to urge us on…

to be faithful to the end of our race––

here…

in our reading this morning…

the author makes some suggestions about how we ought to respond;

about how we ought to live, given all that God has done

for us in Christ.

Now, in part, what he says is fairly traditional.

Thus, we get encouragement to be faithful in marriage.

We get encouragement not to be greedy…

and to be content.

Encouraging both of these would also have served something of an apologetic purpose.

Many of the early Christians were accused of things like sexual immorality…

because of how some of their language, practices, and rituals were understood––

or misunderstood––

by those outside the church.

And we know from what the author has said previously––

as well as his comments here about ‘remembering’ “those in prison”…

or, “those who are being tortured”––

the community of faith is suffering.

So, in part, he wants them to live in such a way that they dispel the rumours and hearsay.

But, at the same time––

when he tells them to ‘remember’ as though they, themselves, were experiencing it––

he’s calling for a profound sense of empathy…

which manifests itself in practical action.

Thus…

unlike prisons today…

prisoners back then were not provided with any food, clothing, or bedding.

So, he’s encouraging them to offer genuine, practical support.

 

And yet…

among his encouragements there’s one injunction that’s really quite staggering:

“Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by doing that some have entertained angels without knowing it”.

Now, there are two things that are remarkable about this.

First, it’s his use of the term that’s translated as “hospitality”.

In the Greek, its root meaning is ‘love of strangers’.

The hospitality he envisages, then, is offered to people who are not known…

who aren’t related…

who aren’t, possibly, even members of the faith community.

That’s quite an extraordinary expectation for people who are suffering…

feeling oppressed…

and possibly tempted to turn in on themselves…

or retreat into some sense of imagined safety.

The author encourages the opposite.

Be generous to those who come to you in need––

to people you don’t know;

people to whom you don’t automatically owe anything;

people who may not be able to reciprocate.

Then, second, he suggests that… 

in so welcoming them…

they might ‘entertain angels’.

In other words… 

in welcoming strangers––

by inviting them in and offering them help––

you may, in fact, have a profound spiritual encounter;

these people may, in effect, manifest God to you;

while, at the same time––

although he doesn’t spell it out––

you may manifest God to them.

It’s a shame…

isn’t it…

that the so-called “Christian” leaders of our country haven’t shown that attitude… 

towards those who have come here seeking our help and protection!

 

And then, finally, the author concludes:

“Let us continually offer a sacrifice of praise to God…

Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God”. 

In effect, it is by doing good to others––

sharing what we have…

and acting in love––

that we actually offer worship to God.

How we live our lives is…

in the end…

how we truly worship God––

more than what we do in church on Sunday mornings.