3:12, 13 The author addresses his readers in terms of their confession of faith (v. 1) as “brothers,” yet also recognizes that some within the Christian fellowship may have an “evil, unbelieving heart” (cf. 12:15–17). Christ saves completely those who come to God through Him (7:25), but Christians must guard their own and each other’s endurance by encouraging one another (10:24, 25), as the author does throughout this letter (13:22).