Saturday, October 20,
2012, 7:20 a.m. – the Lord woke me this morning with the song “For Our Nation” playing in my mind. Speak,
Lord, for your servant is listening. I read Hebrews 4 (NIV 1984):
Therefore, since the
promise of entering his rest still stands, let us be careful that none of you
be found to have fallen short of it. For we also have had the gospel preached
to us, just as they did; but the message they heard was of no value to them,
because those who heard did not combine it with faith. Now we who have believed
enter that rest, just as God has said,
“So I declared on oath
in my anger,
‘They shall never enter my rest.’”
And yet his work has
been finished since the creation of the world. For somewhere he has spoken
about the seventh day in these words: “And on the seventh day God rested from
all his work.” And again in the passage above he says, “They shall never enter
my rest.”
It still remains that
some will enter that rest, and those who formerly had the gospel preached to
them did not go in, because of their disobedience. Therefore God again set a
certain day, calling it Today, when a long time later he spoke through David,
as was said before:
“Today, if you hear
his voice,
do not harden your hearts.”
For if Joshua had
given them rest, God would not have spoken later about another day. There
remains, then, a Sabbath-rest for the people of God; for anyone who enters
God’s rest also rests from his own work, just as God did from his. Let us,
therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will fall by
following their example of disobedience.
For the word of God is
living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to
dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and
attitudes of the heart. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight.
Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must
give account.
Therefore, since we
have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of
God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high
priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has
been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet was without sin. Let us then
approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and
find grace to help us in our time of need.
Be Careful
God is still speaking here to the “holy brothers,” i.e. to
true followers of Jesus Christ; true Israel; the church; the Body of Christ. He
is speaking of the promise of entering into eternal rest with God, and he is warning
that we must be careful than none of us be found to have fallen short of it.
Ok, so how does that work exactly? If we have the promise of eternal life
sealed with the Holy Spirit, how can we fall short of it if we are truly part
of the “holy brethren”? Friday’s devotion on chapter 3, titled “Conditional
Salvation,” sets the stage for chapter 4 and for understanding this warning. I
will share a quotation from yesterday:
“These
scriptures, and others like them, make it quite clear that true faith is
continuous, faithful, enduring, believing, trusting, and does not continue in
willful sin. It is also quite clear that it is possible to believe in vain, if
we do not hold firmly (in thought, belief and practice) to the word (truths) of
God. They also make it quite clear that Christ will present us holy in his
sight, without accusation, “IF we continue in our faith, established and firm,
not moved from the hope held out in the gospel.” So, don’t take your salvation
lightly or think that God’s grace means you can live how you want and still
have your ticket to heaven. True faith chooses to leave our lives of sin behind
us and to turn to God in faithful obedience and surrender to his will and
purposes for our lives, and it lasts to the end.”
Not Combined
with Faith
As
I read through these difficult and often troublesome passages in Hebrews, and others
like them throughout the New Testament, it strikes me hard that God keeps
warning his church over and over again that they must continue firmly in their
faith to the end if they want to receive his eternal rewards. Many Biblical
scholars and theologians struggle with these passages of scripture, and there
are varied interpretations which you can easily find by Googling the scriptures
and “commentary.” I will share what I believe are the two strongest possible
interpretations for what God intended here.
God, through the writer of Hebrews, is expressing to us here
that it is possible to hear the gospel message but not to combine it with faith.
Yet, further on down in the passage he said to the “holy brothers” that they
must (“Let us”) make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will fall
by following their (the Israelites’) example of disobedience. In the context of
the rest of the book of Hebrews, especially chapter 3, and of the whole of the
New Testament, in particular post-Jesus’ death, burial, resurrection and
ascension into heaven, let me suggest to you these two schools of thought I
believe are presented to us, the church, in scripture, regarding our salvation
and eternity with God in heaven.
First of all, these letters were written to the church as a
whole. It is highly possible, as is true today, that there were people among
them who professed to be believers, who were not, or who were given a false
gospel message, so their faith was in a false hope to begin with, or who had
only superficial and shallow belief that never took root, and this is speaking
to them, warning them to make sure their faith is built upon truth and that it
is genuine.
I believe this is a serious issue in today’s church because
so many of today’s pastors are teaching a false watered-down gospel message
which is only half true, and thus is a lie. They are teaching people that all
they have to do is “believe,” though they don’t really teach what it means to
believe. They teach, either by omission or commission that we don’t have to
repent of our sins and that we don’t have to obey Christ for salvation and that
God is pleased with us no matter what we do. Because they don’t teach what “faith”
in Jesus Christ really means (death to sin and self and new life in Christ set free
from slavery to sin), then the people are not combining the gospel with true
faith because they don’t know the meaning of true faith, so they are still lost
in their sins, without hope.
Make Every Effort
The other possibility here is that God is saying that it is
possible to begin with true faith, but somewhere along the line to turn away
from God and to follow the way of disobedience instead of listening to and
following the way of faith, repentance and obedience to Christ. This would
explain why there are so many warnings to the church with so many “IF” clauses
in them telling the church that they will only receive eternity with God in
heaven IF they endure to the end; if they hold on to the faith they had at
first; and if they hold firmly to the end the confidence they had at first;
etc. And, this is assuming that the faith and confidence with which they began
was true faith based on the true gospel.
I know this is not a popular doctrine, and I understand that
it appears contradictory to other passages of scripture on the hope we have of
eternal life with God, yet the more I read of the New Testament, the more I am
seeing that our salvation is a life-long process and that we must remain in
Christ; we must remain faithful and committed to the cross of Christ; we must
be steadfast and hold on to our hope to the end; and we must not live sinful
lifestyles, but we must daily die to sin and obey Christ Jesus. None of us will
obey perfectly all the time, but we must keep moving forward in our walks with
the Lord and in our faithful obedience to him. Many of the New Testament books
are filled with warnings to believers against falling away from the faith due
to sinful, unbelieving hearts, and because of disobedient lifestyles. I find it
harder and harder to explain away these warnings!
Thoughts and
Attitudes
Only God truly knows who are his and who are not; who have
combined the gospel with genuine faith, and who have not; or who began well
with true faith but overtime were led astray and who turned away from God and
who did not endure to the end. And, only God and his word can penetrate to the
depths of our minds, hearts and souls in Holy Spirit conviction power in
showing us if our faith is genuine or not, or if our faith is somehow in jeopardy.
So, it is not up to us to judge other people’s hearts or their relationship
with Jesus Christ. We can judge sin, though, and the church is responsible to
judge unrepentant sin existing within the church which is in danger of working
like yeast in the dough and ruining the whole batch. And, we are responsible
before God to expose the deeds of darkness and to call the people of God to
repentance and genuine faith in Jesus Christ.
Yet, knowing very well that nothing is hidden from God, and
that his word is able to judge our thoughts, attitudes and relationships with
Jesus Christ, and knowing that there are these warnings to the church, with “IF”
clauses in them, all throughout the New Testament, it should behoove us to get
on our knees before God and to do some self-examination, and to inquire of God
concerning these difficult passages of scripture and how they apply to our
lives. And, we should willingly accept what the word teaches concerning our
salvation, and what is required of us, and that God still has standards he
expects us to follow, and that he desires a continuous and submissive
relationship from us with him. And, we should hold firmly to what we have
learned and are learning is the true gospel of salvation, knowing that Jesus
Christ is there to help us through every step of the way and to give us all we
need to live these faithful, committed, obedient and continuous relationships
with him.
So, ask the Lord Jesus to open your eyes to the truths of
his word and for the strength and power of the Holy Spirit to obey the truth
you are given, and keep on keeping on in true faith in Jesus Christ. Don’t be
deceived by false doctrines that would lead you astray from your pure devotion
to Jesus Christ. Also, don’t be deceived by political figures who promise you
the world and who vie for your trust in them, but keep your trust in the Lord
alone, because people are human and as humans are subject to failure. Follow
Jesus and the true gospel. Persevere, continue in your faith, and never, ever
give up!
For Our Nation /
An Original Work / September 11, 2012
Bombs are bursting.
Night is falling.
Jesus Christ is gently
calling
You to follow Him in
all ways.
Trust Him with your
life today.
Make Him your Lord and
your Savior.
Turn from your sin.
Follow Jesus.
He will forgive you of
your sin;
Cleanse your heart,
made new within.
Men betraying: Our
trust fraying.
On our knees to God
we’re praying,
Seeking God to give us
answers
That are only found in
Him.
God is sovereign over
all things.
Nothing from His mind
escaping.
He has all things
under His command,
And will work all for
good.
Men deceiving: we’re
believing
In our Lord, and
interceding
For our nation and its
people
To obey their God
today.
He is our hope for our
future.
For our wounds He
offers suture.
He is all we need for
this life.
Trust Him with your
life today.
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