But of doing good and communicating [of your substance] be not forgetful, for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.
Hebrews ends by naming what Christians still offer God, now that Christ has made the one sacrifice for sin. Verse 16 gives the second half of that answer: beside praise, there is a sacrifice of plain kindness and shared possessions — and God calls it pleasing.
Two Kinds of Sacrifice
The verse opens with "but", linking it to the praise of verse 15 and marking it as something different. One writer ranks the two without cancelling either:
The apostle speaks of two sorts of sacrifices. The first is beyond compare in importance and value. The lower form is doing good and sharing here below, yet it flows from the same faith and love. The spiritual ones are the delight of God; those on the human side are well-pleasing to Him.
Praise Upward, Goodness Outward
The two sacrifices are not options to choose between. They belong to one person. One commentator argues you will never find the first without the second:
Putting both together, we have what we may call the upper and the lower side of the Christian's character — praising God and doing good to men. One thing is certain: they will always go together. Show me a man whose heart is full of praise to God, and I will show you one whose heart is open to every form of human need. He may not be rich in this world's goods. He may have to say, like one of old who was not ashamed to say it, "I have no silver and gold." But he will have the tear of sympathy, the kind look, the soothing word. These things touch a sensitive heart far more than an open purse and the jingling of silver and gold.
Why "Do Not Neglect"
The wording is worth weighing. Praise gets a command; this second sacrifice gets a warning against forgetting. The same writer explains why we forget:
He does not say, "But to offer the sacrifice of praise forget not." No. But we may be so happy in our place and portion in Christ that we forget we are passing through a scene of sorrow and need, trial and pressure. So the apostle adds the healthy warning about doing good and sharing… The Christian, as God means him to be, stands with one hand lifted up to God, offering the sacrifice of praise, and the other hand filled with the fragrant fruits of genuine goodness to meet every needy person.
What Sharing Means Here
The older word here is "communicate". Its other uses in the New Testament settle what it means:
To share in these passages so plainly means the gift of money or other material things that one cannot understand any other meaning being read into the expression in Hebrews 13:16.
Not Every Gift Is a Sacrifice
Money changing hands does not by itself qualify. What turns words into praise also turns a gift into an offering:
But remember: mere giving — a grudging gift, for example, or one given only because someone pressed for it — would not make the gift a sacrifice. As in the sacrifice of praise, the gift must be presented through Christ, to God, in the power of the Spirit. Only such gifts can be called "a fragrant offering, a sacrifice acceptable and pleasing to God."
Small Gifts, Great Value
God's pleasure does not depend on the size of a gift. One writer weighs two gifts the world would call small:
See how the apostle speaks of the material help the Philippians gave for his need. It may have been small when measured by the world's standards. But it was of immeasurable value to God, because the Spirit of Christ produced it… Nothing can be small or of slight value to God which has the fragrance of Christ with it. The "two small coins" of the widow have reached every place where the fragrance of His name is made known.
The Only Sacrifices Left to Offer
This verse does not bring back the altar. It names what Christians still offer, now that the work for sin is done:
We have read of the one perfect sacrifice offered up once for all, so never to be repeated. There can be no more sacrifice for sins… Yet do Christians have no sacrifices to offer? Certainly they have, and ones which God will accept… To care for others, serving them in their need, is a feature of Christian sacrifice, and an acceptable one. … To offer these, no priest, no altar, and no fresh victim is needed. Doing good is the activity of the Divine nature shown in the believer — the practical display of Christian love.
Summary
- Finished — Christ offered the one sacrifice for sin once for all. Nothing is left to atone for. What remains is sacrifice of a different kind.
- Two hands — One hand lifts praise to God. The other is filled with help for people in need. Commentators hold that the two always go together.
- Substance — Sharing here means handing money and material goods to people who lack them.
- Through Christ — A grudging gift, or one squeezed out by pressure, is no sacrifice. It becomes one when you offer it to God through Christ in the power of the Spirit.
- Pleasing — The world may call such gifts tiny. They carry the fragrance of Christ, and God says He is pleased with them.