HEBREWS 12:12-242009 Teaching by Jerry B Simmons

Teaching Transcript: Hebrews 12:12-24

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 2009.

This morning we're looking at Hebrews chapter 12, an incredible portion of scripture again as we continue on. We're coming to a conclusion very rapidly in just a couple weeks we'll finish up Hebrews. But there's three points this morning, really two points and then a reason why as we look at verses 12 through 24 this morning.

We'll be looking at running diligently, looking carefully, and then the reason is that the new covenant is superior. But before we get into those things, the author of Hebrews is connecting the things we're studying today with the things that we talked about last week. You see there in verse 12, he starts out with the word, therefore.

this next statement and the next points with what he had just been talking about. And what we ended with last week and we're dealing with as we studied through Hebrews chapter 12 verses 1 through 11 was the subject of chastening. Now,

Now, chastening, we learned and we know from experience, is not something that we get really excited about unless it's us getting to chasten other people. That we enjoy a little bit more. But for us to go through chastening and endure chastening, well, the author of Hebrews says in verse 11, it doesn't seem joyful at the present. It's not something we get excited about. It's not something we're happy about. But it is something that we're called to endure. Because

Because chastening, as we discussed last week, chastening is not just the idea of punishment like we might think, but it's the whole process of raising a child. And so God, in dealing with us, he chastens us because he is interested in raising us up

to become men and women of God, to become the children of God that He desires us to be. And so He uses life and He uses situations. He uses difficulties and hardships, sometimes great pains that we go through. He uses all of those things in our lives to

to raise us up, to chasten us, to shape us into His image that we might become the children of God that He desires us to be.

And we looked at last week, He does these things for three reasons. First of all, it's proof that He loves us. When we experience chastening, when God is working and there's these difficulties in our lives and trials and situations that we face, it's proof that God loves us. It's proof that God is working in us because He has this desire, this passion for what is best for us.

And so we can take comfort in the midst of chastening, in the midst of hardship and difficulty, because it's proof that God loves us. It's also proof that we are His children. We saw that as well there in the ending verses of last week, the concluding verses.

God disciplines His children just as a father, an earthly father disciplines his own children. And so God disciplines us. He chastens us. He helps us grow in our relationship with Him. He helps us grow spiritually that we might grow up. He helps us grow that we might become men and women alike.

of faith as we saw many examples there in chapter 11. He helps us grow that we might run with endurance and make it to the end of the race because we're His children and He wants to see us succeed. He wants to spend eternity with us.

Well, we also saw that chastening is profitable forever. It's profitable for the rest of eternity. And so although chastening is not something that's very exciting for us to think about, and we don't, you know, as he says, can't really put it better than that, no chastening seems to be joyful for the present forever.

but painful. Yes, we would agree, we would say amen. But we are to endure chastening because we understand, we recognize that it's working in us something that is profitable for the rest of eternity. And so that is the subject, that is the ideas that the author of Hebrews is considering as he now says, therefore...

And we get into the first point this morning, which is to run diligently. He says, We're called to run with endurance the race that is set before us. We saw in Hebrews chapter 12, verse 1.

And so this morning, I want to encourage you to run diligently. And three things about running diligently that we need to do. In order to run with endurance this race that is set before us, first of all, there needs to be some strengthening. We need to strengthen the hands...

which hang down and the feeble knees. If we're to run diligently and to continue on in the race, enduring chastening, enduring trials and difficulties, then we need to strengthen the hands which are hanging down and the feeble knees. Chastening is not pleasant, but it is worth it. It's not done in anger, but it's done in love. And so therefore, he says, strengthen yourself. Now,

There is a temptation for us. There is a tendency on our part. When we are going through chastening, when we're going through difficulty, when we're facing opposition, when we have those chastening experiences in our lives, there's a tendency for us to drop our heads, drop our shoulders, let our arms kind of hang, and we just kind of slodge around like Christians that are defeated and dejected and disillusioned

The author of Hebrews is saying, listen, you're going through difficulty. You're going through painful experiences. You're going through hardship. You're enduring chastening. So strengthen your hands that are hanging down.

Don't walk around, don't live the Christian life like a depressed Christian that God hates you. Understand the purpose of chastening and understand that it's proof that God loves you and that you're His child and that it's working for you, something that will last for the rest of eternity. And so, therefore, strengthen your hands that are hanging down.

your discouraged and dejected spirit. Strengthen your hands. Strengthen your feeble knees where you're just barely walking. You're just barely making it. The word strengthen there means to raise up. So your hands are all hanging down. You're just kind of dragging them across the ground because you're a depressed and rejected Christian you feel like. And he says, no, understand and recognize the purpose and the point of chastening. And as you do, strengthen your hands.

Strengthen your feeble knees. It's interesting that many times what's necessary to gain strength is just a decision that needs to be made.

You ever have to correct someone or correct yourself perhaps who's walking around and shuffling their feet, you know, especially like if they got flip-flops on or something and sometimes it's really annoying, isn't it? You hear someone that just, you know, you can't really hear it up here, but you can hear them shuffling their feet the whole time and it's like, hey, pick up your feet, right?

And all it takes is a decision. It's not generally the case where, you know, there's literally no capability to raise the foot. It's just, it's an attitude. It's a mentality. And a person walks around shuffling their feet. And if you say, if you remind yourself, hey, pick up your feet.

Well, you can strengthen those knees. You can strengthen those legs and you can walk correctly. In the same way, make a decision because you know what discipline is all about and what chastening is about and trials and hardship and how it's proof that God loves you and proof that you're His child and it's profitable forever. So make a decision. Strengthen your hands. Don't just kind of slodge around like a rejected Christian. I don't know if slodge is a real word, but it fits really good, doesn't it?

Don't just drudge around, dragging your feet and barely living the Christian life, barely living the Christian walk. Strengthen those arms. Strengthen those hands. And walk the walk that God has called you because He's allowing these things in your life because He loves you and He wants what's best for you. So to run diligently, we need to strengthen. But we also need to straighten. Look at verse 13.

He says, and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be dislocated, but rather be healed. Not only do we need to strengthen, but we need to straighten. And we need to straighten because, well, very often we make crooked paths for ourselves. And especially we do this when we're going through difficulty. Now, remember the

Author of Hebrews is writing to Christians who are struggling in their walk. They're facing persecution. They're persevering but wavering and wondering maybe they should go back to the old system, back to the old covenant.

And when you and I are in similar circumstances, when we're facing great opposition, great difficulty, when we're depressed and our shoulders are slouching and our hands are dragging on the ground, very often we make crooked paths for ourselves.

We determine because, well, life is already a bummer and everything is already so difficult, so I might as well just do whatever I want and live in sin and it's okay. And it's very often in those times that we give in very easily to temptation. Here the author of Hebrews says, make straight paths for your feet so that what is lame may not be dislocated but rather be healed.

Because sometimes we make crooked paths. We allow things into our path that ought not to be there. Things that cause us to stumble. Things that hinder us in our walk rather than help us. And we make it difficult sometimes by these things that we add into our lives. We make it difficult to get to church. We make it difficult to get into the Word. We make it difficult to fellowship.

He's saying, look, you're already weak. You're already struggling. You're already having these difficulties and you're enduring chastening. Don't put obstacles in your path. Don't add to it by putting those things in your way that hinder you, that slow you down, that tie you up or trip you up. And you could think of it this way. When you were young, if you were like me, your bedroom was probably always a disaster.

Anybody? Anybody relate to that? Okay, not everybody. Just me. Okay, so just me. So when I was young, my bedroom was a disaster. Now, the thing about that was, when your bedroom is a disaster and it's your bedroom, you know, or at least I know, that you're going to have a disaster.

where everything is. So much so that even if it's in the middle of the night and it's dark and I wake up and I need to go to the restroom, my feet kind of know, okay, I need to kind of go high there and sideways there and I can make my way through the clutter in order to get out the door. But there were those times, there are those times, and I'm sure you've experienced this. You're walking through a dark place, you kind of think you have it all mapped out in your head and

And you misjudge a stride. You misjudge a step. You step on something that is sharp or painful or you stub your toe against the table or the bed or something. And you know what that's like and you get tripped up, especially in the middle of the night. And that's the idea that he's talking about here. There's those obstacles that we can put in our way. But you can also make the path straight.

Recently, Kim and I, we went to one of our favorite restaurants and we had a good dinner. And usually when we go eat somewhere, I will get something different than her. But then while we're eating, I'll be like eyeing hers and thinking, man, I should have got that. That really looks good. Mine's pretty good, but that looks good. So this time I ordered the same thing as her.

Well, it just so happens at that time, something was wrong with the food and we both end up with food poisoning. And you know what that's like. And when you have some type of food poisoning or something going on, you want to make sure that there's a straight path, right? You understand what I'm saying? Sometimes there's urgency that, you know, requires there's a straight path. You don't want obstacles in your way. You want to be able to move quickly. I don't know if I should share those kind of things, but you know...

You get the point, right? To make a straight path. And that's the same thing we're talking about here in your spiritual life. You're already struggling, he says. You're already going through difficulty. You're already kind of just moping around, barely making it.

Make a straight path. Don't make it difficult to get into the Word. Don't fill your life with clutter and fill your life with things that take away from you in a relationship with God. Don't put in your life things that compete with your time in fellowship with other believers or compete with your time in the Word or distract you or stumble you or keep you from those things that you know that God has called you to do. Make a straight path for your feet. Clear the way so

so that you're able to walk through it easily, that you're able to continue on and run diligently. So we need to strengthen. We need to straighten. I'm still laughing about the story. Okay, and then we need to pursue. Verse 14, he says, "...pursue peace with all people and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord."

We need to strengthen. We need to straighten. So we're strengthening ourselves. We've got a clear path ahead of us. And now we need to run down that path. We need to pursue two things. We need to pursue peace and we need to pursue holiness.

To pursue means to run swiftly in order to catch. It means to earnestly endeavor to acquire. It's the idea of this intensity of going after something in order to reach it. And what are we to chase after? What are we to pursue? He says, you need to pursue peace. Pursue peace with all people. Pursue peace. In order to run this race diligently, to continue on to press forward,

We need to pursue, we need to chase after and desire peace. Sometimes within the body of Christ, within our lives, there can arise great contention, great difficulty in relationships. And things that should not bug us about each other, sometimes they do. And things that should not cause much division, sometimes they cause great division. And it takes an effort on our part to

to pursue peace in order to heal those relationships and live in harmony with those that God has placed in our lives, to live in unity in the way that God has called us to. Paul said in Romans 12, verse 18, If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men. If it's possible. It is possible that no matter what you do,

A particular person is just not going to like you because you're a Christian, because you were born, because you're in their way, whatever reason. There is those rare cases that they're not going to like you. But as much as depends on you, to the best of your ability, as much as you have control, he says, live peaceably with all men. That's the idea here, to pursue peace, to do the best you can, to give it all you've got in order to have peace with people.

Not to just write them off easily and just say, hey, well, we have personality conflicts and leave those things unresolved. Pursue peace. Make amends. Write those relationships. Don't be the kind of person that needs to have drama and conflict all the time. Pursue peace.

Pursue peace. Some of the shows that are on TV, some of the attitudes and mentalities that are around today really kind of breeds and cultivates this idea of everything's drama. Everything is just over-exaggerated. And everything's a fight. And there's some people that thrive on that. Don't be that kind of person. Don't be one stirring the pot. We're called to pursue peace. To do the best we can as far as it depends on us. To make amends and to live peaceably with all men.

When I was young, I had a friend that lived across the street from me, and we were good friends. We hung out all the time, and as good friends do, you know, we often fought. But there was this one particular time that we had some kind of fight, and I have no idea what it was about. But what I do remember is that we were fighting. We were, you know, kind of mad at each other. We were upset at each other. And it was even to the point that our parents were around. Our parents got involved.

We refused to apologize. We refused to make up and to be friends again. We refused. We were both being stubborn. And finally, the friend I had said, okay, I'll apologize. But it was after I said, well, I'll apologize if you apologize first. You ever done that? So he says, okay, fine. I'm sorry.

And then it was still hard, but I said, okay, I'm sorry too. And so then we were friends again. But later on, my dad rebuked me. And he said, son, he's not a Christian. You're a Christian. And that was a very bad witness that you just displayed there. Being so unwilling to make peace, being so stubborn that you're not willing to say you're sorry. And sometimes it's so simple as that. And yet we're so stubborn.

And instead of pursuing peace, we're insisting our way, we're insisting they have to say this and say I'm right and blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. Paul says, look, pursue, run, desire to catch, earnestly acquire, have intensity to have peace, to make peace with all men.

But we also need to pursue holiness. So pursuing peace, that's our relationships with one another on the horizontal plane. But pursuing holiness, that's our relationship with the Lord on the vertical plane. He says, "...pursue holiness without which no one will see the Lord." Holiness is very important. Holiness is essential. In order to see the Lord, there must be holiness, he says. Without holiness, no one will see the Lord.

And so we need to pursue holiness. What is holiness? Well, holiness means to be set apart.

To be set apart from something, but also to be set apart unto something. So we're to be set apart from sin. The sin which so easily ensnares us as we saw in Hebrews 12.1. We're to be set apart from the things of the world. We're to be set apart from corruption. And we're to be set apart unto the Lord. Amen.

to be used specifically for His purposes, for His glory, for His will, for His plans, for His purposes. We're to be devoted to, dedicated to Him, consecrated for. Pursue holiness. Pursue separating yourself from sin. Chase after separation from sin. Are you just waiting for holiness to happen?

Just kind of sitting there in the same place, doing the same things, just waiting for one day I'm going to wake up and then I'm going to be holy and I won't struggle with these issues anymore. I won't have this sin in my life anymore. One day I'm going to wake up and it's all going to be different. Are you just waiting for holiness to happen?

Well, that's not how it happens. How does it happen? He says, pursue peace with all people and holiness without which no one will see the Lord. We're to pursue holiness, to chase after it, to put some distance between yourself and that sin and that corruption and that thing which defiles you.

As we shared last week, we talked about Jesus, how he told us to cut out those areas of our lives. If this causes you to sin, cut it out. Do whatever you need to do. Get rid of it. Take care of it. In the same way, we're to pursue holiness, to separate yourself by purposefully fleeing from it, to run away, put some distance between you and those things so that you do not continue to practice them and participate in them.

but you're also to pursue holiness, which means to be set apart unto God. And so you're to run, you're to endeavor, you're to desire, you're to have an intensity that I want to be devoted to the things of God and consecrated for God. I want to be used for His purposes and for His glory. You need to pursue the things of God and seek to set yourself apart for Him.

And so this morning, the author of Hebrews encourages us to run diligently. And to do that, we need to strengthen, we need to straighten, and then we need to pursue. We need to strengthen ourselves in our walk. We need to clear the way so that we can walk with Him, so that we don't make it difficult for ourselves. And then we need to run with endurance the race that has been set before us, down this path that we've cleared for ourselves in a relationship with God.

But it's not just about us. And it's not just about me and what I need to do for myself and my relationship with the Lord. Now he goes on in verses 15 through 17 to encourage us, to challenge us, to command us to look carefully and be involved in the lives of the people around us, the Christians around us. Look at verse 15. It says,

Looking carefully, lest anyone fall short of the grace of God, lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled, in verse 16, lest there be any fornicator or profane person like Esau, who for one morsel of food sold his birthright. Here he challenges us now to look carefully. To look carefully. To look carefully at what? Well, he's...

sharing with us a very important point. It's not something new that he's never talked about before. We've discussed it in the book of Hebrews, but he's emphasizing again the importance of you and I ministering to one another, to look around, to look carefully, and to pay attention to what is going on around us and the lives of the people around us that God has placed us

next to each other on purpose that we might care for and minister to one another. You see, you have a responsibility within the body of Christ to look carefully after the members that are around you. We saw this in Hebrews chapter 10 verses 24 and 25, where there he told us not to neglect, not to forsake the gathering together of the saints and

How important it is to gather together, to meet with other believers, to spend time with them and fellowship with them. And how important it is to consider one another, to stir up love and good works within each other. There's an importance, there's a necessity of you and I being involved with other believers. Because God has designed His church in such a way that He is able to call it the body of Christ.

And he's able to call it the body of Christ, and he calls it the body of Christ, to paint for us this picture that we would be able to understand how we're to relate to one another, how we're to minister to one another and work alongside one another, how the body is to function. We can look at our bodies and use them as an example. And the scriptures use our bodies as an example of how the church is to function several times.

You can check it out for yourself in Ephesians chapter 4, in 1 Corinthians chapter 12, and also Romans chapter 12. There is, the Apostle Paul talks about the body of Christ in those different portions. He uses the body as an example, as an illustration that we might learn how the church is to operate because the church is the body of Christ.

And as a body, we have responsibility for the members around us. We have a responsibility to care for, to minister to, to strengthen, to help, to look after, and to look carefully at those who are around us. Now, looking carefully does not mean

that we're to be private investigators or sin sniffers and we're to go around and point fingers and try to find the faults in everybody's life. That's not what he's talking about. But what he's talking about is with an attitude of love, to look around, to pay attention and love people enough to help them, to encourage them, to minister to them and to protect them from dangerous situations and pitfalls. Now, this morning...

Maybe you've noticed. Maybe it's been bothering you. My shirt is not buttoned correctly. I did that on purpose. Yes, Patty. It's not just that Kim didn't see me before I walked out the door today. That's not it. I did it on purpose after I got here to illustrate the point. Were you looking carefully? Now, I did it so that we could consider, would you look carefully and would you love me enough to come up and say...

Hey, your shirt's not buttoned very well. Let me help you. And you get the idea there, and perhaps you've had to do that from time to time. That's the attitude, that's the heart of what we're talking about when we're talking about looking carefully. It's about paying attention and caring for and loving people enough to say, Hey, you know, this area is misaligned.

in your life. There's this difficulty that you're going through and there's this area of error. There's this area of weakness that you have and let me help you correct that. Let me strengthen you and show you how to get through this. It's the idea of coming alongside because we love one another in order to help each other overcome and make it to the end that we would all run with endurance and make it to the end of the race.

And that's what we're talking about when we say, look carefully. We're to look carefully. To be concerned with and pay attention to the people around us and love them enough to help them through some of the dangers, through some of the weaknesses, through some of the things that they struggle with. It's not condemnation. We'll deal with that in just a moment. But

Here the author of Hebrews gives us three specific things that we're to look carefully for, to prevent these things from happening. So the first thing he says, look carefully, lest anyone fall short of the grace of God. There's a danger, there's a warning that he is giving here. There's a reason that we're to look carefully for.

Because there's a danger of someone falling short of the grace of God. And you and I, as members of the body of Christ, we have a responsibility to look around at the people around us, at those Christians that God has placed in our lives. We have a responsibility to care for and love them such so that we watch out that they do not fall short of the grace of God.

Now, how does a person fall short of the grace of God? What is he talking about here? Well, I would reverse it for a moment and we can get some information from that. How does a person, first of all, experience God's grace? Well, you experience God's grace by receiving it in faith. God's grace is given. It's given. It just needs to be received. And in order for it to be received, it needs to be done by faith.

To fall short of the grace of God is the opposite of that. And specifically, what I believe the author of Hebrews is talking about is protecting each other against legalism. There's a danger for Christians of getting caught up in a legalistic relationship with God. There's a natural tendency that we have. We tend to revert to a works-based relationship.

We like systems, we like rules, we like the structure that we have to do this and this and this and then we're okay and then God will bless us. And so there's a natural draw and it's a constant battle for us to not walk in that type of legalistic relationship with God. And there's a great danger of heading down the path of legalism. In the book of Galatians, the Apostle Paul writing to the churches of Galatia, well, they were dealing with this issue and they were...

well, at least some among them, were getting involved in legalism. And they were having a works-based relationship with God. And Paul writes some very stern and challenging things in the book of Galatians. In Galatians 5, verse 4, he says, "...you have become estranged from Christ, or strangers from Christ. You who attempt to be justified by the law, you have fallen from grace."

Paul tells these people who seek to be or attempt to be justified by the law, they've involved themselves in a legalistic relationship. He says, you have fallen from grace, you've become strangers from Christ. And so there's a danger, there's a danger of falling from grace. There's a danger of falling short of the grace of God. And so he says, look carefully, lest anyone fall short. Look around. Look around.

Are there Christians in your life? Are there people in your life who are getting caught up in legalism? Who are headed down that path? It's a dangerous path because the end result, Paul says, is you have fallen from grace and become estranged from Christ. And so the point is that we're to love them enough to share with them. You know, sometimes if someone begins to be involved in legalism, well, it can be rather uncomfortable.

Because a person doesn't usually just involve themselves in legalism. They begin to try to apply those things to the people around them. And so it's very easy then for you or I, well, we just start to avoid that person. Just kind of, you know, reorganize our lives so that we come into contact with that person as least as possible.

So that we don't have to deal with that confrontation and struggle with those things and fight over those things and talk about those things. It's just a lot easier to not deal with it. But what he's saying is, look, you need to love them enough to share with them. Not just starting to avoid them, not just kind of going out of your way to not come in contact. That's a member of the body of Christ. Love them enough to share with them, to encourage them, to help them grow.

See the grace of God and the need to receive the grace of God by faith. It might take some time. It might take some effort. But look carefully because there's a great danger. The other danger he warns of, the next danger, also there in verse 15, is the danger of bitterness. He says, "...lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled." There's a great danger of bitterness even in the body of Christ.

So he says, look carefully, pay attention. Notice the words that he uses here, a root of bitterness. All it takes is a little bit, a little seed there, a little root. And what happens? It springs up. Although it's just a little bit, it quickly becomes an explosion. And the result is that many are defiled. It springs up quickly and it affects many people. All it takes is a little bit.

And it comes up very quickly. And then many, many are affected. And so we're to look carefully. We're to look carefully because of the specific person or persons involved, the bitterness that is dangerous to them, but also for the rest of the members that would be affected by any bitterness that would develop, we're to look carefully. To love them enough to address the situation, to address...

the difficulty, the potential bitterness, so that those people are not defiled, so that bitterness does not spring. Very often within the body of Christ, as it has existed, as it's happened throughout history, there's problems between people, problems between believers. Look carefully. Do you know of some? Do you see some? Are you part of some animosity, some bitterness that perhaps is growing between people?

believers in Jesus Christ. We have a responsibility as members of the body of Christ then to go and address the situation and to bring unity there. We have a tendency to want to choose sides, of course, but that's not our priority. It's not so important that we choose sides. We're not to go and, you know, we see the situation and so we kind of stir the pot and make it a little bit worse.

See what will happen. Let's see what I'll do. You know, let's see some steam really get going here. What will it take for them to blow? You know, that's wickedness. But sometimes we delight in those things, don't we? Nowhere to go and to bring unity to that situation, to those believers that are struggling. And it's not about choosing sides. That's why things like church splits happen. Because there's some difficulty between a couple people...

And then everybody else comes in and they got to choose sides. They get to decide, well, I'm on this side. Well, I'm on this side. And they get to decide and prove the other party wrong or person wrong and causes division and schisms within the body. And God hates that. It's painful. Just as if there's a literal physical division within your body, your arm becomes separated from the rest of your body. It's painful. It's hurtful. It's tragic.

In the same way in the body of Christ. It's tragic when there's this types of division. And when bitterness comes as a result of those things, it defiles many. There's a great danger.

And so we're to look carefully to be a peacemaker, to seek unity. In Ephesians chapter 4, Paul the Apostle said that we're to walk worthy of our calling. And one of the ways he said we're to do that is we're to be endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit and the bond of peace. Again, be pursuing peace. Look carefully around you. Pursue peace in the body of Christ. Look carefully so that bitterness does not grow up.

does not have a chance to take root. In Philippians chapter 4, Paul the Apostle, he's writing to the church of Philippi and addressing several different things, but then he calls out two ladies by name. And I always mess up their names, so I'm not going to say it. So lady number one and lady number two, he says, Hey, be of the same mind in the Lord. I implore you, I beg you, be of the same mind. Make amends. Let's get these things right.

And then he calls though in Philippians chapter 4 verse 3 and he says, I urge you also, true companion, help these women who labored with me in the gospel. There is the need for other people around them to get involved and help them overcome this situation. Not to just sit on the sidelines and watch it grow, watch it explode, watch what would happen, but to look carefully and to take preventative measures.

so that bitterness does not take root, so that there is not this defilement of many within the body of Christ. Look carefully. Love one another enough to address those situations and bring peace and unity within the body. One last scripture in regards to that. Colossians 3, verse 13.

There, Paul says, is where to put on the new body, where to be like Christ. He says, where to bear with one another and forgive one another. And if anyone has a complaint against another, even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do. If there's a division, if there's a schism, if there's some type of animosity or conflict within the body, this is the way to approach it. This is what must be done. If anyone has a complaint against another...

As Christ forgave you, so you also must do. There needs to be forgiveness. And if you have a complaint against someone else, or someone else has a complaint against another person, don't be like me when I was young. Well, if they apologize first, well, then I'll apologize. No. Pursue peace. Forgive, just as Christ has forgiven you. So the first warning, we're to look carefully, lest anyone fall short of the grace of God. Then we're to look carefully, lest a root of bitterness spring up,

And thirdly, we're to look carefully lest there be any profane person. Verse 16 again says, lest there be any fornicator or profane person like Esau, who for one morsel of food sold his birthright. So a profane person is a godless person or a secular person. One who lives disregarding who God is and what God has said. And he gives us an example of Esau from Genesis chapter 25 and 27.

And there Esau disregarded his birthright. He was the firstborn son. He had the right as firstborn son to certain privileges, responsibilities, but he didn't care much for them. And so he comes in hungry one day. You probably are familiar with the story. Jacob there has a pot of soup that he has made and Esau is really hungry. And so he says, I'm starving. I'm going to die if I don't eat. Give me that bowl of soup.

And Jacob says, well, I'll trade it for you, or trade it with you for your birthright. Your rights and privileges, the rights that you have as firstborn son, you hand over those rights to me, I'll give you the bowl of soup. And he says, oh yeah, that's worthless to me, I'm going to die anyway, so give me the bowl. So he ate the soup. He disregarded and sold his birthright for a bowl of soup. Well, later on, he regretted this decision. In verse 17 it says,

For you know that afterward, when he wanted to inherit the blessing, he was rejected. For he found no place for repentance, though he sought it diligently with tears. So afterwards, after he realized what the consequences were going to be, as he realized the cost of the decision that he made, he diligently sought the blessing with tears. He sought repentance. He sought, well, how can I? But it says there was no place.

Even though he sought it diligently with tears, afterwards it was, well, it was too late. Now we've seen quite a few warnings in the book of Hebrews, but this warning is a little bit different, because this warning is for you to care about others enough and minister to them so that they don't find themselves in Esau's shoes. We've seen the warnings, very serious and stern warnings in Hebrews that cause us to examine ourselves and

Make sure that we're in the faith, as 2 Corinthians 13 says. But here we're to look carefully. We're to love one another enough to say, I don't want to see you in Esau's shoes. And you're going down a path where you're despising your birthright. We have a birthright. We have certain rights and privileges that come with being a child of God. We need to be careful not to despise our birthright.

not despise what God has given to us through a relationship with His Son, Jesus Christ. And so he says, look carefully. Love people enough to help them inherit the blessing. If they're living in sin, if they're walking away from God, walking away from the things of God, love them enough to help them. Don't just think, well, Pastor Jerry will take care of that. Or, Pastor Cisco, that's his job, and he talks to that person, so let him do it.

or that's some leader or elder, or that's someone else's responsibility. Understand that you are responsible, just like the rest of us, for the health of the body of Christ. It teaches that very clearly. Again, Ephesians 4, 1 Corinthians 12, Romans 12. Read and understand that you have a responsibility in the body of Christ. And God has arranged the members of the body of Christ in such a way that

That they would be able to minister to one another. And it's not one person's responsibility to meet the needs of everyone. It's all of our responsibility to meet the needs of those that God has placed around us and put in our lives. Think about it with your own body. When a part of your body is wounded, hurt, broken, maybe going the wrong direction, when a part of your body is messed up, it's the members directly around you

that particular member that minister to it the most, that bear the most weight, that compensate most for that particular injury or difficulty. The whole body is affected. The whole body is involved. And yes, it's important, but it's those members that are directly around it. You stub your toe, it's the rest of your toes, the rest of that foot.

that compensate, that take care of, and make sure that that member is taken care of, and that member doesn't get hurt or injured anymore. And it's the same in the body of Christ.

It's not just the pastor's and leader's responsibility. You have responsibility in the body of Christ. And God has placed other people in your lives, other Christians in your lives, and you're to look carefully. Are they going astray? Deal with that situation. Approach that. Are they living in sin? Are they going through some great difficulty? Are they going down a doctrinal error path? You're to deal with it.

address it, approach it, love them enough to say, hey, your shirt's not buttoned correctly. Let's take some time. Let's look at what the Word of God has to say. Let's work through this together. Again, it's not a go in condemnation and beat them up and tell them they're not saved anymore. No, but it's to go and say, hey, I love you and I want what's best for you. Man, there's some things that really need to be taken care of in your life.

This is what the Word of God says. It's not that you're judging them. The Word of God is doing that work. You can come to them with what the Word says and share with them the situation according to the Lord's perspective. And so this is a warning that you and I, we need to care for others enough to minister to them so that they don't find themselves in Esau's shoes. That we stop it from them going the full distance to where they...

are then in a position where they've despised their birthright, but now, even if they seek it diligently with tears, it's too late. Don't let people go to that state. Some people will, because that's what they've chosen to do. But we're to love one another and look carefully so that they have an opportunity to come back, to repent. In Galatians chapter 6...

Verse 1, Paul says, Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual, restore such a one in the spirit of gentleness. And that's very key. It needs to be done in the spirit of gentleness. He says, Considering yourself, lest you also be tempted. With love, with gentleness, we're to come alongside one another and say, Hey, brother or sister, in humility, and also being aware, Hey, I'm subject to the same temptation. Let's work through this together.

Let's get through this because I don't want to see you end up like Esau. It's not just the job for pastors. In James chapter 5 verse 19 and 20, James says there, If anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone turns him back, someone turns him back, it's any member of the body of Christ. Every Christian is a member of the body and every Christian then has a responsibility for the members around them to look carefully

Lest anyone fall short of the grace of God. Lest there be a root of bitterness that springs up. And lest there be any profane person, godless person, who wanders away from the things of God and lives a life contrary to the things of the Lord. So we're to run diligently and we're to look carefully. Now why? Well, the rest of our portion this morning is the answer to that. And we're not going to spend as much time as we've spent already. But just looking very briefly at

what this passage has to say because we've already studied these things in depth throughout the rest of Hebrews. The reason why we're to run diligently, the reason why we're to look carefully is because the new covenant, the relationship that we have with God through Jesus Christ is far superior to the old covenant. Look at verse 18 and 19.

For you have not come, he says, to the mountain that may be touched and that burned with fire and to blackness and darkness and tempest.

and the sound of a trumpet, and the voice of words, so that those who heard it begged that the word should not be spoken to them anymore. Verse 20, For they could not endure what was commanded. What was the command? It says, And if so much as a beast touches the mountain, it shall be stoned or shot with an arrow. And so terrifying was the sight that Moses said, I am exceedingly afraid and trembling.

So the author of Hebrews goes back and reminds us of Exodus chapters 19 and 20, where there God descends upon Mount Sinai. And there's this dark cloud that descends upon Mount Sinai as God descends. And there's earthquakes and thunderings and lightnings. It's this incredible, terrifying show. This demonstration of the power of God.

And there's an emphasis on the holiness of God and that anybody who touches the mountain will there to be put to death immediately. The command was given. And so the people, it says, they could not endure. They were freaked out and even Moses said, I am exceedingly afraid and trembling. Now the point here that the author of Hebrews is making is that this was a fearful experience and disobeying God in regards to this covenant was, well, the penalty was death.

It was a fearful thing. You don't want to disobey God. As he descended there upon Mount Sinai. Also the point that he's making is that this covenant was, well, it was a mountain that could be touched. Now, you weren't supposed to touch it when God had descended upon it, but it was a physical mountain. It was based upon that location. It was something, therefore, that was temporary. That mountain will not last forever.

The first covenant, the old covenant that God delivered there upon Mount Sinai is a lesser covenant than what we have in Jesus Christ. Look at verse 22. But you have come to Mount Zion. So again, verse 18. For you have not come to the mountain that may be touched. You've not come to the mountain that may be touched. You've not come to Mount Sinai. You've not come to the old covenant.

Verse 22, But you have come, here's what we have come to, we have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, to the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly of the church and the firstborn who are registered in heaven, to God the judge of all, to the spirits of just men made perfect, that's all of heaven, all the righteous men who have gone before us, the heavenly Father, the judge of all earth,

The whole church, the innumerable company of angels, the whole heavenly scene. But also verse 24, to Jesus, the mediator of the new covenant and to the blood of sprinkling that speaks better things than that of Abel. Yeah, the blood of sprinkling which speaks of grace and forgiveness.

And so he's reminding us of what he spent the first 10 chapters of Hebrews telling us. The new covenant is far superior. Not only is it not based on the material things, but it's based on eternal things. You've come to Mount Zion, the city of the living God. You've come to the very presence of God. What we have in Jesus Christ under the new covenant is far superior. Now this is important because...

Many Christians make and come to a false conclusion that since we are under the new covenant, since we're under the covenant of grace, there is therefore, they say, they think, that there is therefore a lesser importance regarding holiness and obedience. We say, hey, it's under grace. It's okay. If I fail, I mess up, whatever. It's okay. Grace. And there's times in our lives, there's Christians who live their whole lives this way. We think, hey, under the new covenant,

Anything goes, because it's all about grace. But the author of Hebrews, he's shared it several times, but he's reminding us again. If the first covenant was fearful, and if the punishment of the first covenant, of breaking the first covenant was real, how much more for the second covenant, which is far superior. You remember in Hebrews chapter 10 verse 29, just prior to verse 29, it says, under the old covenant,

A person was put to death on the testimony of two or three witnesses. And so in verse 29 he asks the question of how much worse punishment do you suppose? Will he be thought worthy who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, counted the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified a common thing, and insulted the Spirit of grace? Disregarding the new covenant is far worse than disregarding the old covenant. There's a greater danger of

trampling upon the Son of God and counting the blood of this new covenant as a common thing, insulting the Spirit of grace. And this is the reason why we're to run diligently and we're to look carefully. Because we are, in reality, dealing with eternal life and eternal death. So we need to strengthen those hands that are hanging down. We need to make straight paths for our feet. And we need to pursue peace and we need to pursue holiness.

Because the covenant that we've become a part of, the mountain that we have come to, is far superior to what was available under the Old Covenant. And we need to look carefully. We need to look carefully and take responsibility for the members of the body of Christ that are around us because the covenant that we're involved in is far superior to the Old Covenant.

Now, if you would be willing to come and tell me, hey, your shirt's buttoned crooked, how much more should you be willing to love me enough to come and tell me and say, hey, your life is crooked and you're going down the path of Esau? I mean, how much more important is a shirt being buttoned incorrectly? Is it, or how much less important is it than eternal life, than the things of God, than holiness? It's much more important, so you should be much more willing to address those things.

If we were back under the old covenant, back there in that scene in Exodus 19 and 20, and I decided, hey, I want to go touch the mountain of God. Would you have tried to stop me? How much more then, how much more should we be looking carefully to the believers around us that they don't go down the path of Esau? Because the covenant that we have in Jesus Christ is far superior to that mountain that can be touched.

How much more shall we be looking carefully so that no one falls short of the grace of God, so that no root of bitterness springs up and defiles many and affects many in the body of Christ? We need to be diligent, faithful as members in the body of Christ to look carefully and to address those needs within the body of Christ because the new covenant is far superior to the old covenant. So let's run diligently and let's look carefully. Amen?

Let's pray. Heavenly Father, I pray that You would help us, not just to hear these things, but Lord, help us to live them. Lord, Your Word says, You told Your disciples that the world would know that we are Your followers by our love for one another. And so God, I pray that You would give us this kind of love for one another. This unconditional, overwhelming love that

Lord, that we would be willing, that it would overcome our excuses, that it would overcome our complacencies. Lord, that it would overcome our fears and that we would be willing to minister to one another and to deal with difficult situations and to help other members of the body of Christ get back on track and right where you want them to be.

Lord, that we could all run diligently together. That we could all run with endurance this race that you've set before us. Lord, that we could all make it to the finish line and enjoy the rest of eternity with you. So Lord, give us this love. Fill us by your Spirit, we pray. In Jesus' name, Amen.

We pray you have been blessed by this Bible teaching. The power of God to change a life is found in the daily reading of His Word. Visit ferventword.com to find more teachings and Bible study resources.