HEBREWS 32008 Teaching by Jerry B Simmons

Teaching Transcript: Hebrews 3

You are listening to FerventWord, an online Bible study ministry with teachings and tools to help you grow deeper in your relationship with God. The following message was taught by Jerry Simmons in 2008. Looking at Hebrews chapter 3 as we continue our study together, I want to continue to encourage you to take these things and be spending some time on your own to consider them and meditate upon them and allow God to continue to speak to your heart.

We're covering all of chapter 3 today and it's kind of the broad stroke of the chapter. There's much more depth and there's much more meat than we'll be able to get into today. But there is much more there and I do encourage you that God wants to speak to you.

And it's one of the reasons why we give now in the bulletin those weekly assignments because I'm praying that you would be faithful, that you would take it upon yourself to dig in on your own and to allow God to speak to you, that you would pursue hearing from the Lord and putting into practice the things that He has been speaking to you.

I encourage you again to pick up the book Holiest of All and begin reading through that and read along with us as we go through the book of Hebrews because it's just a great challenge. This is an incredible book and God has so much to say here and there's much more than we can get into.

on a Sunday morning and sometimes people have asked why we're covering so much verses. A lot of times in 1st Timothy and 2nd Timothy we'd only cover 2-3 verses sometimes but here in the book of Hebrews we're seeking to, the Lord's just put upon my heart to try to keep the context of what is being said so that we don't get lost

in covering the details, we could spend, you know, from now until the rapture, just looking at the book of Hebrews, segment by segment, phrase by phrase, there's so much there. But there's also so much there that God wants to speak to us in understanding the context and the broad stroke of what the passage is talking about. And so I encourage you to take it deeper on your own and spend time meditating on these things and allowing God to speak to you further.

Well, as we look at chapter 3 this morning, there's four main things that I would like to point out to you. Four main things that I believe is the intent of the passage to exhort us to put into practice. Things that we should take with us and then live them out. They're not just things that we learn, but things that we do.

And the first of those things is to consider Jesus. We are to consider Jesus, to pay Him some attention, to give some time thinking about who He is and what He has done for us. We start in verse 1, it says, Therefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the apostle and high priest of our confession, Christ Jesus.

As we start out this morning, I would call to your attention who the audience is that the author of Hebrews is writing to. Who is he saying these things to? Who is he calling to consider Jesus Christ? He starts out saying, therefore, holy brethren. By this we know that the author of Hebrews is not writing to unbelievers. The author of Hebrews is not writing to those who have not been born again, those who have not been saved.

converted yet. He's writing to those who have been born again. He's writing to the Hebrews, those Jewish people who have believed in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. They've received Him and accepted Him as their Messiah and they seek to walk with Him and follow Him. They've made a commitment and devoted their lives to Him.

And so now the author of Hebrews is calling those same people, those believers in Jesus Christ, to consider Jesus Christ. He says, holy brethren. Now, brethren is a word, it speaks of family. And you and I as believers in Jesus Christ have become a part of the body of Christ and a part of the family of God. And so as brothers and sisters in the Lord, we are the brethren. We are the family of God together.

And the holy brethren are those who are set apart. Those who are devoted to or consecrated to the things of God. This is who we are. We're a family that's been gathered together and consecrated and devoted to the things of God.

And it's important to understand as we start out here in Hebrews chapter 3, the author is not intending, although of course this speaks to every person, whether they believe in Jesus Christ or not. And there's great opportunity for you if you have not made a real commitment to follow Jesus Christ and receive Him. There's great opportunity for you as well to consider Jesus Christ.

But the primary audience that is intended is those who are believers in Jesus Christ, of those who have committed their lives to Him and made a decision to follow Him. He says, We're partakers of or participants of this heavenly calling. The heavenly calling is not just a call to heaven.

But it's a heavenly calling. That is the calling that you and I have received, although yes, it includes heaven, the future eternity that God has in store for us, there's also a heavenliness about the calling that you and I have today. That today we experience a peace of heaven by living,

living in and walking in relationship with God. We get to experience a hint of what God desires to do later for us in eternity in the abundant joy that He will pour out in our lives as we walk in this calling that He has given to us. As we walk in obedience to Him and in fellowship with Him, we have this peace. It's a hint of peace, but it's overwhelming peace and it's just a hint of what is yet to come.

as we get to look forward to eternity with God. We're partakers of a heavenly calling. Not to be just completely bankrupt in life, having nothing and being empty in life, but we have a heavenly calling. We have a full abundant life that God promises for us.

It's a heavenly calling that has been given to us. And these are the people that the author of Hebrews is writing to. Those who have participated in this heavenly calling. Those who are the holy brethren. Hopefully that includes you. As we seek to walk with God, as we seek to be part of His family, He says, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our confession, Christ Jesus. Consider Jesus Christ.

This word consider means to consider carefully so as to understand fully. It's not just a passing consider or, you know, take a few seconds to think about. But it's the type of consider really that you have to devote your life to. Devote your heart to. Devote your mind to. Spend some good, solid time considering Jesus Christ. That you might understand who He is.

Because understanding who He is, well, it impacts who we are, where we stand with God. Understanding who He is is the key to understanding God's plan for us. And giving us this call to consider, the author of Hebrews gives us two things about Jesus that we can start with, things that we can start to consider, that He is our Apostle, but also the High Priest of our Confession.

Our confession that Jesus Christ is Lord, it's the testimony of our mouth, it's the testimony of our life, and Jesus is the apostle and the high priest of that confession. The apostle, it means one who is sent. Jesus Christ was sent by God to this earth and to you and I today. Jesus is our apostle in that he represents God to man, to humanity.

Jesus said, I am the Father, I am one. If you've seen me, you've seen the Father. He has come to clearly express, to declare for us the Heavenly Father. He was sent by God to represent God, to be the model of God for us. He is the Apostle of our confession. But He's also the High Priest. The High Priest, it goes the other direction in that He represents man before God.

He ministers on our behalf. He intercedes on our behalf. He offered Himself as a sacrifice on our behalf. He is the High Priest. And so, in both directions, Jesus Christ is the mediator. We are to consider Jesus Christ because it is who He is

that makes him able to mediate between God and man. You see, through Jesus, we have peace with God. There's no other way to have peace with God. It's only through Jesus Christ. It's through Jesus that we have relationship with God. It's through Jesus that we have the outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon our lives. It's through Jesus Christ that we have the hope of resurrection and eternity with God. Consider Jesus Christ. Understand...

Who He is. His role in the salvation plan of God. Consider Him so as to understand fully who Jesus is. I know it's a big task. There's a lot to understand because Jesus Christ being God became a man. It's a great mystery. But you've got all eternity to do this. So take your time and get started right away. There's a lot of work to do. Consider Jesus. Get to know Him. Know Him fully. It's what God desires for us.

The author of Hebrews goes on to give us a few examples of things that we can consider about Jesus Christ. The first thing to consider about Jesus is that he was faithful as Moses was. In verse 2 he says, Who was faithful to him who appointed him, as Moses also was faithful in all his house. Jesus was faithful to God who appointed him, just as Moses was faithful in all of God's house.

And so we're seeing here, laid side by side for comparison, for analysis, Jesus Christ and the man Moses. We had been looking at in chapter 1 and chapter 2 of the book of Hebrews, all about Jesus in comparison with angelic beings and how Jesus is far superior to angels.

Well, as we look at Jesus and compare him with the man Moses, we see the same thing, that in comparison, Jesus Christ is far superior to this man Moses that played such an important part in bringing God's covenant, God's law to the people of God early on in their history. He looks at Moses and he says, Moses was a man who was faithful in God's house. Now, when we're talking about the house of God, he mentions it several times in the following verses.

The house of God is not a building. It's not this place. It's not the tabernacle that the children of Israel had in the wilderness. It's not the temple that was later built by Solomon. The house of God is the people of God. God has always desired relationship with us. His purpose and His plan is to dwell with us. The house of God is the people of God and it's not a building. It's the people who walk in fellowship with Him.

And Moses was a man who was faithful in that. He was faithful in bringing people into right relationship with God and being a mediator of the old covenant, of bringing the people the law so that they could come to God upon His terms, that they could offer the sacrifices, that they could know how to get their sins taken care of and covered so that they could dwell in relationship with God.

Moses was faithful in all of that. He faithfully brought them the law. In Deuteronomy chapter 5, the children of Israel are freaked out. God has appeared on Mount Horeb, Mount Sinai, and the dark cloud has descended. There's thunderings and lightnings, and Moses goes up there. He spends time with the Lord. He comes down, and the people say, Listen, Moses, you go up, and you talk with God, and you come back and share with us what He says.

We don't want to hear him. It's too scary. He's too powerful. It's too... Well, we can't do it, Moses. You go on our behalf. Hear from the Lord. Come back and tell us. And we'll do whatever he says.

And so Moses did that. He went before the Lord and he heard what the Lord would say to the people. He heard the law that God desired to bring to the people, the Ten Commandments and all of the sacrifices and ordinances of the law so that people could walk in relationship with God.

The first five books of the Old Testament is a testimony of Moses' faithfulness. Genesis through Deuteronomy. Moses is accounting all the faithfulness really that he practiced and that he recounted for the people. He brought the people the word of God. He gave to them what God had delivered to him. He faithfully gave the law. Moses also faithfully built the tabernacle.

The tabernacle was the place that they would be able to offer the sacrifices to participate in the old covenant and have right relationship with God. And so he faithfully had the tabernacle built according to the pattern that God had given to him on the mountain. And God was very clear. He told Moses, you got to make sure that you do it exactly according to the pattern that I give to you. And as we read through the book of Exodus,

Sometimes we can get a little bit bogged down or unnerved as we read through the book of Exodus because we're reading about Moses, he's up there on the mountain, and there's this long detailed account of Moses receiving from God the instructions for how the tabernacle was to be built. And then a couple chapters later, we read all those exact same instructions again, and

as it records for us Moses sharing those same things with the people. So he receives it from God, he tells it to the people, we read about all the details both times, and then a third time, we read all those same details all over once more again, because now it's recording for us the actual constructing of and putting together of this tabernacle that God had commanded. And so three times we read about all these details that sometimes we think are meaningless, and

Why is there this extensive account all three times, all the details about the tabernacle? Well, it's evidence, it's a testimony that Moses was faithful to build the tabernacle exactly the way that God had commanded. And it was completed the way that God had given to him there upon the mountain. So Moses was faithful in all God's house. He faithfully fulfilled the work of God there among the people of God.

The author of Hebrews, though, is not asking us to dwell upon this person of Moses, but just using Moses as an example so that we can see just as Moses was faithful, Jesus was faithful to him who appointed him. Or Jesus was faithful to the one who sent him. Jesus was faithful to God the Father.

And all that God had commanded Jesus, He fulfilled. All that God had given to Jesus, He fulfilled. Moses faithfully brought the law. Jesus faithfully brought grace. Undeserved favor and kindness. That no longer do we approach God on the basis of keeping the law and our works.

But now we approach God by the basis of faith in the work that Jesus Christ has already done upon the cross and what He has already accomplished for us. Jesus not only faithfully brought grace, but He faithfully fulfilled the tabernacle. The tabernacle was just a picture. It was a foreshadowing of the One who is to come that would be the tabernacle of God among men. And that's what John chapter 1 tells us that

The Word, Jesus Christ, became flesh and dwelt or tabernacled among us. Jesus Christ fulfilled the tabernacle. All those details that sometimes we think are meaningless are all details that foreshadow and point to and prophesy of the Messiah who would come.

Jesus Christ. And now, as people in the Old Testament would go to the tabernacle to have relationship with God, to get right with God, they would go through the tabernacle and be able to have relationship with God that way. Now, Jesus Christ fulfilling the tabernacle, it's through Jesus Christ that we must come in order to have relationship with God, to get right with God. That's why Jesus said, I'm the way, the truth, and the life, and no one comes to the Father but by me. It's only through Jesus Christ that

He faithfully fulfilled the tabernacle, faithfully fulfilled the means by which we may have relationship with God. He did not fail in any aspect of his ministry, in any aspect of his calling, in any detail. Jesus did not fail. He was faithful. And so if you want to consider Jesus, consider his faithfulness something worthy to be considered.

The second thing he gives us to consider about Jesus is that Jesus was worthy of more glory than Moses. We see that in verses 3 and 4. He says, So he says the second thing to consider about Jesus is to consider that he's worthy of more glory than Moses.

Moses was a man who experienced much. I mean, he dwelt there in the presence of God. He would come down the mountain and his face would be shining like

With the glory of God, reflecting the glory of God, almost like glow-in-the-dark pieces, they stay in the sun and then you bring them down into the darkness and then they continue to illuminate that light. That's kind of how Moses' face was. He'd go and spend time in the presence of God. He'd come out and his face would be just showing the glory of God.

He got to experience God put him in the cleft of the rock and God passed by, but he allowed Moses to see the afterburn or the aftershining of his presence. I mean, there was incredible things that Moses got to take part in, and yet Jesus is worthy of more glory than Moses. And he gives the example of a house. Even as the one who built the house is worthy of more honor than the house itself,

Jesus has more glory than Moses because Jesus is the one who built the house. Moses is simply a part of the house. Moses was a part of God's people. But Jesus Christ, he is the builder of the house. We learned in Hebrews chapter 1 verse 3 that Jesus is the outshining of the glory of God.

Moses got to experience the glory of God, but there was a problem. As he would come down the mountain, and although his face would be shining, that glory would fade. And so he would put a veil on so the people would not see that glory fading. He got to experience great things, this man Moses. Relationship with God in a way that no one else had experienced. But Jesus Christ far exceeds this man Moses.

He does not just reflect the glory of God. He is the outshining of His glory. His glory does not fade. It's an everlasting glory. In John chapter 17, Jesus was praying to the Father and He says, Glorify Me with the glory I had before the world began. He is the outshining of the glory of God. So consider this.

His faithfulness, consider that he is worthy of more glory than Moses, but also consider that he is the son over his own house, verses 5 and 6. And Moses indeed was faithful in all his house as a servant for a testimony of those things which would be spoken afterward, but Christ as a son over his own house, whose house we are if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm to the end.

Jesus is the son over his own house. Not only is he the builder of the house, but he is the lord of the house. He is the heir of the house. He is the one who owns the house. Moses, he says, was faithful as a servant in God's house. And that is absolutely true. Moses was a faithful servant. The things that he spoke and the things that he served, well, they were the things that God had commanded.

But those things that he participated in there in the old covenant were the testimony of the things which would be spoken afterward. They were the foreshadowing of the new covenant and the relationship with God that you and I could have by faith in Jesus Christ. Jesus said in John 5.37 that all of the scriptures testify of him. All of those things previously written were pointing to and foreshadowing Jesus Christ and fulfillment.

of all of God's plan for relationship with humanity. The sacrifices, they're a picture of Jesus Christ. The tabernacle, it's all a picture of Jesus Christ. Moses was a faithful servant, but understand that Jesus, He is the faithful Son. Moses was a part of the house. He was serving within the house. But Jesus is the owner of the house. He's the owner of God's people. We belong to Him.

He says there in verse 6, Now there's a couple of these statements. First of all, let's consider that we are His house. We are His house, He says.

He's the owner of the house and we are His house. He's faithful over His house and we are His house. Jesus Christ is faithful over you. He's a faithful Lord and Master. He's a faithful owner. Just as we see in Philippians 1, verse 6, that we can be confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will be faithful to complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.

He's a faithful owner. He's faithful. He's going to complete the work that He began in you if you've given your heart to Him. But there's a condition here, whose house we are if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firmly to the end. What does this condition mean? It's given great trouble to many Christians throughout the years. And there's a couple of these statements here in chapter 3 that are troubling to people and

This morning it's not our intent to get into the details and have the debate about eternal security, whether eternal salvation is true or false, and the different doctrines that we could debate. There's a couple of things, though, I want you to consider. First of all, it's easier to debate a passage or doctrine than it is to apply it and be obedient. So sometimes people will just debate something

and fight over the meaning of a particular passage, rather than simply apply the meaning of it and live it out in their lives. And I want to encourage you, this is one of the reasons why we're not going to get into the details. The point here is perseverance. The need to persevere. There's one group of people that says, those who hold fast to the end prove that they are God's house. So if you do not hold fast...

What they would say is that it proves that you were never a part of God's house to begin with. Although you may have appeared to be part of God's house and maybe you appeared to be part of God's work, you never really were and you demonstrated that by not holding firm to the end. That's what they would say. The other side would say those who do not hold fast are not God's house any longer. Although they may have been part of God's house,

For a season, for a time, they accepted his offer of salvation, they walked with him, but they didn't continue to hold fast, and so they walked away, and so now they're no longer part of God's house. And there's this endless debate that has gone on since the author of Hebrews wrote the book of Hebrews, and it's not going to be solved here this morning. I apologize for that. But 2,000 years of arguments and debates cannot be resolved in a single message.

So you can study those things on your own and come to your own conclusions. But again, look at the point. The end result is there needs to be the firm to the end. The point is that there needs to be perseverance. Whichever side you want to fall on and whichever way you want to debate it, I would encourage you, don't even get involved in that. You don't need to. Apply it. Hold fast firm to the end. Hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope that you have in Jesus Christ. Don't let it go.

But hold fast to what God has given to you. Because we're His house. And He's faithful. He's not going to let us down. He's not going to, it's not going to, you know, where we get to eternity and He goes, oh man, there's a couple more things I meant to do in your life. I so forgot. I'm sorry. Forgive me. He's faithful. He's going to complete the work. He's faithful. He's going to carry you through. He's faithful. He's going to accomplish His purposes in you. He's faithful. Don't sweat it. Hold fast His confidence.

Trust in the Lord. He's a faithful son over his own house. And so the first thing the writer of Hebrews encourages us to do this morning is to consider Jesus. Again, I want to encourage you to apply it. Live it out. Take some time. Consider Jesus Christ. Number two, he'll go on to share with us that we need to hear his voice in verses 7 through 11. It says...

Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says,

As the author of Hebrews continues, now he quotes from Psalm 95, verses 7-11. And there in Psalm 95, verses 7-11, the author of the Psalm is thinking back, is recounting the time that the children of Israel were in the wilderness...

And they came to the border of the land that God had promised to them, but they refused to enter in. I'm sure you remember the story. They send in 12 spies. The 12 spies come back. Oh, yeah, the land is great. I mean, it's plentiful. It's the land of milk and honey, just as God promised. Now, 10 of the spies added on, however, to the end of their report. The place is great. It's awesome. However...

The men there are mighty. They're giants in the land. And they're strong and their cities are fortified. And these ten spies said, we can't do it. There was two, Joshua and Caleb, who were with the spies there in the land of Canaan. They came back and said, yeah,

The land is great. Yes, the men are big. The cities are fortified. Let's go. There was only two who said, God can do this. God can have the victory. God can be faithful to the promise that he gave to us to give us this land. So let's go for it. But the people did not listen to those two, Joshua and Caleb. They listened to the ten who said, we can't do it. And so they wandered in the wilderness as a result of their unbelief, as a result of their disobedience.

God said, this generation will not enter in. You're going to wander in the wilderness until this generation passes away. And then the next generation will go into the land. And that's indeed what happened through Joshua later on in Israel's history. So considering who Jesus is, coming back to Hebrews chapter 3, how should it impact our life? The author of Hebrews says, well, we should hear his voice.

knowing that Jesus Christ is the mediator between God and man, the one who communicates to us what God has for us, the one who reveals God the Father to us, then today, if you will hear his voice, he says, do not harden your hearts. See, the whole point of Jesus Christ is relationship with God. Hebrews chapter 1, we saw that in these last days that God has spoken through his Son. It's through his Son that God desires to speak to us and have relationship with us.

And so knowing who Jesus is and that it's through His Son that He desires to speak to us, He says, if you want to hear His voice, here's how to do it. Have you heard His voice today? Has God been speaking to you this day? He uses the word today several times throughout this passage and giving the emphasis that it's a daily relationship with God, a daily walk with God.

In looking at the need for perseverance, we should understand that perseverance starts with hearing His voice today and each day, walking in daily relationship with God. And he says the key to that, the key to hearing God's voice and hearing what God is saying, the key is do not harden your heart. Today, if you will hear His voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion. What is the rebellion? When they refused...

to go into the promised land. When they refused to go into the land of Canaan that God had said, I'm going to go before you, I'm going to give it to you as an inheritance. But they got to the border and they refused. What does it mean to harden your heart? It means just that. To hear what God has said and refuse to do it. It's just like Pharaoh hardened his heart. Remember there in the book of Exodus, God gave the command, let my people go.

And what did Pharaoh do? He hardened his heart. He hardened his heart. He chose, I'm not going to do that. And although God gave him many opportunities, he continued to harden his heart and become more firm and more resolute. I'm not going to do that. I'm not going to be obedient to God. If you want to hear God's voice, don't harden your heart. Don't make the choice. Don't make the decision that you're not going to do what God has said.

If you're reading along with us through the Bible in a year, we read through Ezekiel chapter 33 this week. And God is speaking to Ezekiel about a similar type of situation. He says to Ezekiel,

Indeed, you are to them as a very lovely song of one who has a pleasant voice and can play well on an instrument. For they hear your words, but they do not do them. Here's what God says to Ezekiel. Ezekiel, my people, they come and they sit before you just like people normally do. It's their normal routine. But as you're giving out my word, Ezekiel, they're just considering how well you speak.

They walk away thinking, man, that guy Ezekiel, he's so funny. I love listening to him talk. It's great. Apparently they had a great time at worship.

You're just like a lovely singer. It's just entertainment for them. They hear it, but God says, though they hear your words, they do not do them. This is the problem. They're just coming. They're hearing. They're being entertained. They're being enlightened perhaps. Their feelings are being evoked. Their mind is being stirred, but that's not enough. There's got to be a change of heart and they do not practice what they're hearing and what I'm speaking through you, Ezekiel. Today, if you...

would like to hear from the Lord, if you would desire to hear from God, be committed to obeying Him. Be convinced that you do not need to question or doubt Him. Decide to follow every word that He speaks to you. When Israel was in the wilderness before they entered into the land of Canaan or before they were supposed to, they saw God work miraculously.

I mean, they saw the ten plagues that brought them out of Egypt. They saw the parting of the Red Sea. They saw His daily provision with manna. They saw His daily leading with the cloud overhead by day and a pillar of fire by night. They saw His presence descend upon Mount Sinai. I mean, they saw incredible works of God. And then they get to the border and they say, we don't believe that God can do this.

That's not the words that they used. The words they used were, you know, those guys are big and their cities are fortified and we can't do it. That's the words that they used. But what they said, what they meant, what was in their heart was we don't believe God can do it. And there's a great danger for us when we hear the word of God. When we acknowledge it, we recognize it, we believe it's God's word, we've seen him work, and we say, I don't think God can do that.

And it's evidenced by we refuse to be obedient. And God says, love your enemy. And we say, I don't think I can do that. What does that mean? I don't think God can do that in me. God says, trust in me. Have faith. Walk with me in relationship with me. I don't think I can do that. I don't believe God can do that work in me. That's what we really say. If you would like to hear from God, God wants to speak to you. He's not standing off and secretive and, man, I hope they don't find me and hear what I'm trying to say.

The whole point of creation, the whole point of Jesus Christ, the whole point of everything is to have relationship with you. He wants to speak to you. If you want to hear Him, be committed to obeying Him. Be convinced that you do not need to question or doubt. Decide right now to follow every word that He speaks to you because God desires to reveal Himself to you. But they would not. They're in the wilderness and so God said, they will not enter my rest. And we're going to deal with that subject in chapter 4, so I'm not going to get into it right now.

But to boil it down, they did not receive the blessings that God had in store for them because they hardened their hearts and tested God. And you and I can miss out the same way. We can miss out on what God has in store for us and the blessings that He wants to pour out upon us if we harden our hearts and are not obedient to what God has called us to do. So number two, hear His voice. Because of who Jesus is, because of what He's done for us, hear His voice. Number three,

The thing that we need to apply, the thing that we need to put in practice in our life is we must believe. Verse 12, Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God. We must believe. He says, beware. This is a strong warning that he has given. Beware of a heart, an evil heart of unbelief.

Now again, I would ask you, I've called to your attention, who is the audience? Who is he speaking to? He says, beware brethren. Again, this is to those who have professed to know Jesus Christ. This is to those who have walked with God. Those who are part of the body of Christ. He says, beware. Have you beware lately? Seriously, have you beware lately? Have you taken this warning to account lately? Take an inventory of your heart lately.

of where you stand with God. Because believe is more than just an intellectual acknowledgement. To believe really means to accept it and to live accordingly. A lot of people say, I believe in God. In James 2, verse 19, James responds to that. He says, you believe that there is one God, you do well. Even the demons believe and tremble. James essentially says, you believe in God, well, you're in good company or perhaps bad company.

Even the demons can acknowledge the presence of God. To believe in God is not just an intellectual decision or choice or understanding that we have. To believe in God is to be obedient to Him and to live according to what He has said. To believe in God, well, if you want to see it lived out, if you want to see some examples of it, you can turn later on to Hebrews chapter 11, the hall of faith. And it says, by faith, so and so did this.

And by faith, another person did that. And by faith, they did this. And by faith, they lived and walked with God and had a hope of eternity. By faith, they lived. They did these things. Believing in God is not just knowing that God exists. That's not enough. That's not enough to save you. That's not enough to take you into eternity. Even the demons believe that. But it means to live it out. To put it into practice.

to respond to what He has said and to live by faith. An evil heart of unbelief departs from the living God or stands apart from the living God. But a believing heart walks in obedience to God. Unbelief is not a weakness of faith. It's not having doubts here and there. It's an opposition to faith. It's a choice to not believe. When you hear His voice...

Beware that you do not have an evil heart of unbelief. Make sure that you believe God when He speaks to you and that you put it into practice, that you live it out. Live according to what God has said. Now this last phrase here, departing from the living God, this is another one of those things we could debate endlessly and discuss all the various aspects of it.

There are those who say those who depart, they were never saved to begin with. They showed that because they departed. There are those who say they were saved, but then they departed, and so now they're not saved any longer. There's another group that says this isn't talking about salvation, but just missing out on the glorious Christian life, the victorious Christian life that God intends.

And you can study and meditate on those things all you want. But here, again, let's not miss the point so that we could debate all the finer things. The thing we need to do is take these things and apply them. This is a warning that is given. Warnings are not given without reason. God has given us a warning because He wants us to pay attention that we would beware that there would not be an evil heart of unbelief in us and departing from the living God. We need to beware.

We need to pay attention. We need to take heed. Are you believing in God? Walking in obedience to Him? He's not just wasting these words. It's not a hypothetical situation. He's talking to Christians. Have you beware lately? Number four, He calls us to exhort one another daily. To exhort one another daily. So we're to consider Jesus. We're to hear His voice. We're to believe. And we're to exhort one another daily.

He says there in verse 13, But exhort one another daily while it is called today, lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. Verse 14, For we have become partakers of Christ if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast to the end. While it is said, Today, if you will hear His voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion. Today, hear God's voice. And each day as you hear God's voice, exhort...

One another, he says. As long as it is called today. Is it still called today? And you know what, tomorrow? It'll still be called today. And Tuesday will still be today. And Wednesday will still be today. See, again, we're looking at and talking about a daily relationship with God that we hear from God, hearing His voice.

believing God, putting into practice the things that he is saying, but it's not just left to that. Now we're also called to exhort one another with those things that God has been speaking to us and ministering to us. We comfort others with the comfort that we ourselves have received from God, Paul says in 2 Corinthians 1. Here, the author of Hebrews is highlighting that we have a responsibility not only for our own selves, but also for each other.

The warnings that he gives there in verse 12, he says, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief. Not just lest there be in you, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief. Here in verse 13, he says, lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. These warnings are not just for us personally to beware of our own selves, beware in our own lives.

But your spiritual life depends upon the spiritual life of others around you because we've become partakers of Christ, he says in verse 14.

We've become partakers or participants of Christ in that God has called us to be and He's made us into the body of Christ. And as a body, each member relies upon the members surrounding it and the rest of the members in the whole body. We could get into that, but that's in Romans chapter 12, 1 Corinthians 12. It goes into all that detail. There's a need for us within the rest of the body.

But there's also a need within us for the rest of the body. We are interdependent. We need to beware not only for our own selves. We're not in this on our own independently. It's not just me and Jesus. Because Jesus has made me a part of the body of Christ. And he's put people that I'm responsible for and accountable to and he's put them alongside of me that I may encourage them, that they may comfort me, that we may exhort one another daily as long as it is called today.

And so again, I ask you, have you beware lately, not for your own self, but for the people around you, that they would not have an evil heart of unbelief, that they would not be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. We are God's house, both individually and corporately. We're the body of Christ. God has designed me to need you and you to need me, that we would minister to one another. He says, exhort one another daily.

This word exhort means to call to one side in order to comfort, to strengthen, or to encourage. To call to one side to comfort, to strengthen, or encourage. It's more than just a casual hello or God bless you. This is more than what takes place when I encouraged you earlier to greet one another. This is a serious encouragement. It's taking time to come alongside one who is hurting, one who's been deeply wounded, and comfort them.

To spend some time with them, to bring them into restoration, to bring them back to good health spiritually. It's coming alongside to strengthen someone, to help carry their burden, to help them through tough times or difficult times. It's building up and encouraging. It's investing in one another's lives. I'll put it this way. To exhort is to be a real source of help and strength to other believers.

Does that describe you? Are you a real source of help and strength to other believers? And how often are we to do this? Once a week on Sundays? Or maybe on Wednesdays since we have the time of ministering to one another? No, he says exhort one another daily. On a daily basis. Are you a real source of help and strength to other believers? Exhorting one another is important for the people around us.

that their spiritual life may continue, may thrive. But you know, it's also important for ourselves. See, as we exhort others so that they are not hardened by the deceitfulness of sin, it also helps us not to be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. As we exhort others not to have an evil heart of unbelief, it also exhorts us, it helps us and strengthens us and comforts us.

so that we do not have evil hearts of unbelief. We are encouraged and strengthened as we encourage and strengthen others. He talks about being hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. Sin is deceitful. It's a very dangerous aspect of our lives. It messes with our heads. It messes with our hearts. It darkens our understanding. It confuses us and clouds our judgment. It disconnects us from God. Sin is a great danger.

Do you believe this? Then exhort one another daily. As long as it's called today, that means it still applies to you and I. And it's not just once a week, it's not just once in a while. Daily, pass on what God is speaking to you. Daily, reach out and help others around you, other believers in Jesus Christ that need to be strengthened because we've become partakers of Christ. We're all in this together. We're part of the body of Christ. As long as it's still said today.

As long as it's still called today, exhort one another daily. Every day. I want to encourage you to take this as literally as you possibly can. Every day, encourage another believer. Comfort another believer. Strengthen another believer.

Whether it be in person, whether it be on the phone, sending a missionary an email, man, there's great need there. On the website, you can just go to the missions page and click on the link and type them an email and it brings great encouragement. There's a few I know just off the top of my head this last week, there's been some communication and there's great need for encouragement to be strengthened and comforted in the things that they're experiencing. Exhort one another every day.

Take it as literally as possible. Be a real source of help and strength to other believers. Let's finish this off. Verses 16 through 19. He says, For who, having heard, rebelled? Indeed, was it not all who came out of Egypt, led by Moses? Now with whom was he angry forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose corpses fell in the wilderness? And to whom did he swear that they would not enter his rest, but to those who did not obey? So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief.

He closes this portion, well really it continues into chapter 4 and we'll get into that more next week, but he gives us this final example in considering Moses. And it's really because God knows our hearts. Because we would often look at these things and say, that wouldn't happen to me. I would never depart from the living God. It would be very easy for us to say, I won't have an evil heart of unbelief. I've known God for this many years.

in a church, I come to church, I read my Bible, this is not going to happen to me. But he gives these last questions as really a challenge to our hearts so that we would take heed to the warnings that he has given. He asks the question, for who, having heard, rebelled? Who was it that even though they had heard what God said, rebelled? And he answers this question, indeed, was it not all who came out of Egypt led by Moses?

Who was it that rebelled? It was every single adult that saw the deliverance from Egypt, that saw the parting of the Red Sea, that saw the daily provision, that heard God there on Mount Sinai and said, oh man, that's scary, Moses, you talk with him. It was every single adult except for Joshua and Caleb that rebelled. Every single one.

Who rebelled? They heard God's voice. They saw God do these miraculous things. They were led by Moses, this faithful man of God. And although Moses was faithful, the people were faithless. He goes on again. He asks the next question. Now with whom was he angry forty years? And again he answers it. Was it not with those who sinned, whose corpses fell in the wilderness? Who was he angry with? Those same ones who rebelled. They received the discipline, the judgment, the punishment, the punishment,

As a result of their sin. Moses was faithful. The people were faithless. And he asked the final question in verse 18. And to whom did he swear that they would never enter or that they would not enter his rest? And again he answers it. But to those who did not obey. Those who were not obedient to them he swore, you will not enter my rest. You are going to miss out on my plans for you. The blessings that I have for you, you're going to miss out on.

because you are disobedient. Moses was faithful. The people were faithless. But we're not considering Moses. We're considering Jesus. We're considering Jesus and His faithfulness in comparison with Moses. And we can see on all aspects that Jesus was faithful in all that God called Him to do. The point here the author of Hebrews is making is that just as the people were faithless,

there in the wilderness, even though they had a faithful leader. You and I can be faithless even though we have a faithful Savior. See, Jesus' faithfulness does not absolve us of our free will or our responsibility to walk in relationship with Him. We need to be warned. We need to put these things in practice. It's why it's so important. Because even though they heard God's voice, even though they saw these great things, they were disobedient and they rebelled.

And you and I need to be protected from the idea that that would never happen to us. No, indeed, that could happen to you and I. I don't care how long you've walked with the Lord. None of us are too old in the Lord to be past rebellion. We all have that capability. So we must beware. We must live it out. We must practice these things and walk in relationship with God. And so this morning I challenge you.

to make a difference, to make a change, to really live the Christian life. Number one, consider Jesus. Give some time to think about Him, to meditate on who He is, what He's done for us. Consider Him, to understand Him fully. Don't be satisfied until you have the complete understanding of Jesus Christ and it's not going to happen in this lifetime. You're never going to arrive and say, I know all of Jesus, I ever could be known and that all I ever need to know. Today,

Consider Jesus. Today, hear His voice. God wants to speak to you this day, every day. That's called today. He wants to speak to you. Hear His voice. Don't harden your heart, but come to Him with the desire to be obedient to Him, with the determination, I'm going to follow Jesus Christ. No turning back. I'm going to follow Him and believe, taking what He has said, taking His word.

and putting it into practice in our lives, living it out, and exhorting one another daily. Would you do that? Would you walk with God this week, considering Jesus, hearing His voice, believing Him at His word, and exhorting the people around you? That's what God desires from us. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, as we come before You this day, God, we ask for strength. Forgive us, Lord, for our unfaithfulness. Lord, many times we've been like those people

People there in the wilderness who rebelled, Lord, many times we've hardened our hearts. Many times we've been deceived by sin. Lord, many times we've not believed. But God, I pray today as we look to you that you would pour out your spirit upon us. Lord, that you would be faithful in us, your house. Help us, God, to consider you. God, I pray that you would speak to us boldly and clearly. Lord, that you would give us soft hearts to hear what you're saying. And Lord, you'd strengthen our faith that we might believe you.

and be obedient to all that You put upon our hearts. Lord, whether it's big or small, Lord, You promise that when You call us to do something, You'll also equip us. And so we can't say the giants are too big and we won't be successful. Lord, if You've told us to do it, help us to trust You, to believe You, and to do it. And God, I pray that You would use us to minister to the people around us, to those Christians that You've placed in our lives, the Christians that You've made us a part of. Together, we're the body of Christ.

Help us, Lord, to exhort one another every day. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.