Hebrews 3:14-19
Will Not Enter In
(Time is Against Us, God is For Us, Each Second is Someone’s Final Call)
For we are made partakers of Christ, if we hold the beginning of our confidence stedfast unto the end; (Hebrews 3:14)
While it is said, To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts, as in the provocation. (Hebrews 3:15)
For some, when they had heard, did provoke: howbeit not all that came out of Egypt by Moses. (Hebrews 3:16)
But with whom was he grieved forty years? was it not with them that had sinned, whose carcases fell in the wilderness? (Hebrews 3:17)
And to whom sware he that they should not enter into his rest, but to them that believed not? (Hebrews 3:18)
So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief. (Hebrews 3:19)
The Key is to the Man of God
In these last five verses we have the Holy Spirit speaking to us from the depth of God’s grace. The Spirit of God wants to excite our hearts and souls in the things of the Lord Jesus. Our lead verse, verse 14, has caused much frustration among unbelievers and religionists. The key to verse 14 is not what man declares, but what the Spirit of God teaches us. In any declaration from unbelievers and religionists one must always return to the word of God, and understand that one word alone, or one paragraph alone, or one verse alone does not make a doctrine of scripture. We are to compare scripture with scripture. Paul told Timothy that all scripture is given by inspiration of God. All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: (2 Timothy 3:16) In verse 17 of 2nd Timothy, Chapter 3, we discover that verse 16 was addressed to the man of God. It was not addressed to the religionist, nor to the Pharisee, nor to the false professor, nor to the world. It was addressed to the man of God who was bought by the blood of Christ, and who knew the Spirit of God dwelled in him; and to the man of God who communed with the Lord Jesus Christ both on earth and in heaven. This gives the man of God complete authority by the Spirit of truth which is in Jesus Christ; consequently, when the world and the religionist and the false professors (those who have not the Spirit of Christ) make up lies concerning the scriptures the man of God must speak, or write through the Spirit of God.
The Call of God to Israel
In verse 14 of Chapter 3, the Spirit of God is addressing the nation of Israel as a whole. It was Israel that was given the law of Moses, and all the ordinances of sacrifices. Truly, they (Israel) were the depository of God’s truth; yet, when grace and truth came they rejected Him, and denied Him, and with Pilate and the Romans cast Him out of the world. The Spirit of God addresses the Jews for they had been partakers of God’s truth, yet, they had rejected the very Person of truth in Jesus Christ. We fail to approach the Book of Hebrews as the last call of the Spirit of God to the nation of Israel concerning faith in Jesus Christ. Yet, it is quite evident by the Spirit’s voice comparing the Old Testament beliefs with the New Testament reality that there were many who had heard the gospel and were in that way partakers of the truth, although they were still in unbelief. This (3:14) can be compared with verse 2 of Chapter 4, For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it. Once again, we are comparing scripture with scripture, line upon line, and precept upon precept. The Spirit of God through the apostle identifies all who hear the gospel. Our text was directed to the Jews. Paul included himself when he said for unto us was the gospel preached. Paul identified himself as hearing the gospel with them, even though he was saved he wanted them to know that the same gospel that was offering them life and liberty in Jesus Christ from the law was preached to all of Israel. And he also was a partaker of the glorious gospel that was preached; however, there were many in the wanderings in the wilderness of Israel that believed not, and they perished because the gospel that they heard was not mixed with faith. The apostle is exhorting them to believe, as he believed, because the gospel that he had received was mixed with the faith of Christ. Let us compare verse 6 of Chapter 3 to remind those who hear the truth and have knowledge of the truth, and in many ways give consent to the truth, but by their actions one can tell that they do not have the indwelling of the Spirit of God. They are not of the truth, and consequently, will fall as those who fell in the wilderness.
I add, was not Judas one of the twelve? Could any of the disciples tell him apart from themselves? The One who had chosen all twelve knew the traitor who was possessed by the devil. We are reminded that the devil entered into Judas, and by that Judas became the greatest heretic. He betrayed the Lord of glory openly. Did he not hear the truth? He saw the miracles, he was present when the Lord Jesus explained many of the parables, he had heard the declarations of the Son of God, and yet knowing the truth, sin blinded his eyes and he betrayed the Lord of glory. Pilate before condemning Christ to the cross, looked into the burning eyes of the Lord Jesus and asked him, What is truth? Grace and truth was before Pilate in the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ, and Pilate never came to the truth. Even the warning by Pilate’s wife did not change his direction. It is a terrible thing to be in the presence of truth and hear the gospel and not give oneself to Jesus Christ and the Spirit of God. Let’s return to Hebrews 3:7-11.
The Voice of God to Israel
Wherefore (as the Holy Ghost saith, To day if ye will hear his voice, (Hebrews 3:7)
Harden not your hearts, as in the provocation, in the day of temptation in the wilderness: (Hebrews 3:8)
When your fathers tempted me, proved me, and saw my works forty years. (Hebrews 3:9)
Wherefore I was grieved with that generation, and said, They do alway err in their heart; and they have not known my ways. (Hebrews 3:10)
So I sware in my wrath, They shall not enter into my rest.) (Hebrews 3:11)
They had heard His voice, notice that the Holy Spirit proclaims of Himself that He was that voice. They not only heard the voice of God, but they saw His works for 40 years. When they (Israel) said, All the words which the LORD hath said will we do, they gave consent to the word of God. And Moses came and told the people all the words of the LORD, and all the judgments: and all the people answered with one voice, and said, All the words which the LORD hath said will we do. (Exodus 24:3)
Notice their consent to the word of God in that they proclaimed that they would be obedient to the words that God had spoken. Yet, according to Hebrews 3, they were not faithful to their own words, or to the words of God. For the gospel that was preached unto them was not mixed with faith, thus, they perished in the wilderness. They were without God in this world, and they would be without God for eternity. They all perished in unbelief.
The Voice of God to the Gentile
When we consider the time period that this epistle was written to the Hebrews, we see the entire epistle as a warning of the Holy Spirit of God to the people of Israel after they had seen the Lord of glory, undoubtedly, there was still those there who had heard the words of the Lord Jesus and saw His miracles according to Hebrews, Chapter 2. Yet, the majority of the Hebrews were still in unbelief. The Spirit of God told them, You have heard the gospel the center of the gospel, Jesus Christ walked among you. All this they knew, yet, they believed not. Today, the Spirit of God says, If you will hear His voice. This goes for all of Adam’s children. The gospel did not profit them for it was not mixed with faith. But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. (Hebrews 11:6) This verse teaches us the impossibility of unbelief, for if one is to come to God, to salvation in Jesus Christ, to have the indwelling of the Spirit of God within them, they must begin by believing in God, and believing by God. And believing God, we believe the gospel because we believe in God. The second part is believing by God for He has given the truth that we might believe, and this truth is given for us to have faith in His dear Son. So then faith [cometh] by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. (Romans 10:17) The faith of Christ must be mixed with one’s belief. Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness. We need to compare Galatians 3:1 with our text in Hebrews 3. O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you?(Galatians 3:1) The epistle to the Galatians was written to Gentile believers, yet, Paul had doubts about their sincerity in the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ; for they were ignoring the gospel and embracing the law. We should understand this was not the law of Moses in it’s purity, but a hodge-podge of law of the Jews of the day. Notice the second word in Galatians 3:1 foolish, does not this remind you of the psalmist, The fool hath said in his heart, [There is] no God. (Psalm 14:1) It doesn’t get any better in the next few words, for the apostle said, who hath bewitched you. I am sure the apostle was pointing back to the garden when the serpent deceived Eve, and then Eve gave the fruit of the tree to Adam, her husband. The Galatians had been under the direct preaching of Paul, he described his confrontation with Peter concerning the law. This was leading the way for the law and the traditions of men to have a superior position over the gospel of Christ. Paul said of the Galatians, for I stand in doubt of you. (Galatians 4:20) I desire to be present with you now, and to change my voice; for I stand in doubt of you. The corruption was at such a point that Paul doubted their belief in the Lord Jesus Christ. Paul addressed them in Chapter 4, verse 16 Am I therefore become your enemy, because I tell you the truth? (Galatians 4:16) I believe that there were many in Galatia who actually held that Paul was an enemy of the faith. They could not absorb or handle the truth of God’s eternal grace through the Lord Jesus Christ. This bitterness towards Paul was directed because he told them the truth. We have a similar situation with the Gentiles that the gospel was preached to them and it was not mingled with faith. They had given mental consent to the truth, as the children of Israel did in the wilderness. And might I remind you of king Agrippa, when Paul preached the gospel, and declared the love of God through Jesus Christ; the king gave mental consent that he understood the truth, and yet told Paul, Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian. (Acts 26:28) Little did king Agrippa realize that this was probably his final call. He was exposed to the truth of God, and would not believe and trust in Jesus Christ. He had a head knowledge, and he exposed himself by acknowledging that knowledge, but there was no faith in his heart to respond to the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. The Galatians had not only heard the truth, but the letter that Paul sent to them scolded them for not obeying the truth. They had three areas that they lacked in: (1) they believed the law more than grace; (2) even the law was mixed with the traditions of men; and (3) they trusted in the flesh, and not in the Spirit of God. (Galatians 4)
The Consent to the Gospel
Chapter 3:1 of Galatians declared the opposite of belief and faith in Jesus Christ. In this condition one cannot hold the truth, for they are in denial of the very truth of God. The result of this condition is found in Hebrews, Chapter 3 in our study text. By not obeying the truth they are unable to enter into God’s rest, which we will deal with in Chapter 4 in the Book of Hebrews. Once again, both the Hebrews and the Galatians heard the truth, yet, they both turned from the truth. And the gospel (not being mixed or mingled with faith) did not bring life in them for they were dead in their trespasses and sin.
Now, for our age, the gospel has been brought forth all over the world: many, many times in many places. Have you not met people who have been in consent to the gospel, they claim that they are saved, and yet they know nothing about the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ, nor the process of their salvation, nor the indwelling witness of the Spirit of God. They know nothing of the word of God. One day you see them and they are saved, a few days later you see them and they are not saved. I call this roller-coaster salvation of unbelief. One minute they are high and singing the hymns in the church, the next minute they are low and in despair of their salvation. This type of the religious person has not faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. There is no such thing as a nominal Christian, for in Christ the true Christian is a new creation, and there is nothing nominal about that creation. What is sad about today’s condition of Christendom is that the majority of professors do not have the Spirit of God within them. One day they will say before the Lord, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?
Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them. (Matthew 7:20)
Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. (Matthew 7:21)
Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? (Matthew 7:22)
And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.(Matthew 7:23)
The Ground of the New Creation
Now this I say, by the Spirit of God: the flesh in man is a deceiver, and no flesh will enter into heaven. Only the Spirit in the glorified body in the glorified body of Christ will enter into His glory. That which is of flesh is flesh, that which is of Spirit is Spirit. They are not mingled in the new creation; for the new creation is separated from the flesh. We walk in the Spirit because we are of His Spirit. Adam has been put out of the way, he has gone out of our life forever. We stand on the holy and righteous ground of salvation by Jesus Christ in His grace by His faith. If we had our spiritual glorified body now, the world would not be able to understand or comprehend the magnitude of the new creation. As the two witnesses in the Book of the Revelation, the world would put us to death. In fact, in this world, the closer we, as children of God, gets to the Lord Jesus Christ (in his heart and in his soul) the more likely the world, religious leaders, church members, and religious organizations will hate us and despise us for our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ; and yes, they are not above putting us to death, as they did Stephen, and Antipas. They were both put to death for their faithfulness to the Lord Jesus Christ. If we walk after the Spirit and do not please the flesh even our very flesh will become a burden to us. The man of the world wants to be acknowledged by the world, the man of faith wants to proclaim to the world and yet remain in all humility faithful to the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. Each one of us should always hear, Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:. (Philippians 2:5) What comes with the mind of Christ? Tribulation, rejection, suffering, trials, and sorrow comes with the mind of Christ, of course, this is not what we have today in modern Christianity. We are supposed to be in a continuous state of joy and happiness, all this while our neighbors are going to hell. Does this sound right to you? When the Lord Jesus stood over Jerusalem, He viewed the city not only as an earthly stranger, but as a heavenly monarch, and yet, He was the rejected King. How many times in the history of Israel, and in particular the history of Jerusalem the Lord Jesus wooed her unto Himself by His prophets. Many times He sent prophets to Israel and to Jerusalem to proclaim His message through the Holy Spirit of God. They were given the truth, that they might obey the truth, and they would not. O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not! (Matthew 23:37) Behold, your house is left unto you desolate. (Matthew 23:38) Notice the finality of these two verses for not obeying the truth the city of Jerusalem would be in continuous desolation.
The State of the Rejected Nation Israel
Since their rejection of the Lord Jesus Jerusalem has been burnt, rebuilt, destroyed, rebuilt again, and destroyed; as a people they have been cast all over the world, living in some of the most destitute conditions, and being hunted by the Gentile world. Even now, in our age, Jerusalem is divided, and the Jew does not have complete control of his city. He is continually at war with Ishmael, and Ishmael despises the Jew from the dome of his temple. Being cut off from God in this world is a horrible thing. For the children of Israel shall abide many days without a king, and without a prince, and without a sacrifice, and without an image, and without an ephod, and without teraphim: (Hosea 3:4) Can we not see the fulfillment of this verse through Israel’s history?
Empty Worship Outside of the Grace of God
How much more is the desolation and judgment of the lake of fire? In the lake of fire, there will be wailing and gnashing of teeth, the soul that sinneth will die the second death, and be punished without restraint through all of eternity. How sad to walk so close to the grace of God, and never partake of it because it is not mixed with faith. But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men. (Matthew 15:9) We live in the last days of this world. Political powers that boast of these powers will be brought down to the ground. The kingdoms of men will fail and man will continue to struggle in his darkness until the Lord returns to take His kingdom by force. The Lord Jesus in Spirit was meek and lowly when He walked among men. He came in all humility to take His throne, and they rejected Him. They cried out, We will have no king but Caesar. And Caesar has been driving them ever since. They have been driven into the outermost parts of the earth, and will not be gathered in until the King of righteousness comes with healing in His wings. In the last days we also have the complete failure of the professing church. At the end of the Lord’s letter to the church of the Laodiceans, He does not address the whole professing church, but stands outside the door of one individual, He knocks on that door and asks that the door would be opened. If you in your heart open that door today He will come in and sup with you, and He will tell you out of the law and the prophets, and out of the gospels all things concerning Himself.
The First Days and the End Days
The world has cast God off, they hate God in the political arena that all public buildings are not to display anything that has to do with the true God of heaven and earth. As the Jews told Pilate to take down the inscription that Pilate had placed on the cross of Christ, that He was the king of the Jews so also the political tyrants today removed the 10 commandments, and everything that relates to a One supreme God, and that God, Jesus Christ. We are warned of these days in both 1st and 2nd Timothy.
Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils;(1 Timothy 4:1)
Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron;(1 Timothy 4:2)
This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. (2 Timothy 3:1)
For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, (2 Timothy 3:2)
Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, (2 Timothy 3:3)
Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God;(2 Timothy 3:4)
Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away. (2 Timothy 3:5)
I would like to write about two kingdoms: (1) we have the kingdom of God (which is the kingdom of righteousness) for God is Righteous; (2) we also have the kingdom of sin, and this kingdom is ruled by the diabolical deception of Satan. Satan twists the minds of men to do his diabolical acts. Remember that I mentioned Judas, but Judas was not the only deceiver in the history of men. It all began with Cain who was the evil seed of Satan. Cain was the first born of Adam and Eve, he was the first murderer, and that was brought about by his desire to have dominion over his brother Abel; this mind-set has passed throughout history to our present day. World governments are ruled by tyrants, they are the evil personification of Satan himself. It is through the camera’s lens of the media system, and the back rooms of government palaces and agencies where the futures and lives of the populace are decided. This system will fail because sin will erode it to it’s very foundation. When studying the Book of the Revelation of Jesus Christ, we see that in the kingdom of the beast, and the false prophet, even though Satan lifts him up, his kingdom implodes because of it’s wickedness. When the cup of evil is full God will come, and God will cast this wicked reign down to the ground just as Satan was cast out of heaven in Isaiah, Chapter 14.
Witnesses and Types Through the Ages
When God displayed Himself to the children of Israel in the wilderness they cast Him off for the gods of Egypt. May I remind you that all the gods of Egypt were derived by the influence of Satan. Jannes and Jambres were the first evil prophets of Satan to be displayed and revealed in the word of God by name. When Moses withstood them, they copied the miracles that God had performed through Moses and Aaron, but they could only go to a certain point, then they were stopped by God. It was Aaron’s rod that devoured their serpents just as God will devour that old serpent, the devil, in the last days. Egypt has always been a type of the most evil world governments, and it pictures the evil kingdom of the beast. There are two witnesses sent from God (in Revelation) as was Moses and Aaron in the Book of Exodus. In the end time God will not cease to have a witness of His righteousness on earth, these two witnesses will be sent from God to reveal the wickedness of man on the earth.
The Leader
There is the beast of the kingdom which relates to Pharaoh of Egypt, and he will be exalted by the false prophet who is the end time figure of Jannes and Jambres. Now as Jannes and Jambres withstood Moses, so do these also resist the truth: men of corrupt minds, reprobate concerning the faith. (2 Timothy 3:8) But they shall proceed no further: for their folly shall be manifest unto all men, as theirs also was. (2 Timothy 3:9) In 2 Timothy, Chapter 3, verse 1 begins with the last days. This is where we are going to find this type of person. They will be driven by the diabolical evil of Satan himself, as were both Jannes and Jambres, but God will manifest their folly by exposing them by His word.
The Failure of Christendom – A Delusional Faith
As I have said before, We are in the last days of Christendom. And it stands in failure today because of evil men who usurped their will and power over the state of the Church. They brought in damnable heresies, and those heresies caused a delusional faith. A faith that has nothing to hold on to, a faith that has the absence of Christ Himself. It is a delusional faith without the power of the Holy Spirit of God. They have traded the unseen for the seen. They have traded the Spirit for the flesh. They have walked away and turned their backs on the true Sovereign of creation, the Lord Jesus Christ. If you are shocked at what you have just read before you condemn the writer pick up your King James Bible and study it, and pray that the Spirit of God will open your eyes, not only to salvation but to all the wickedness around us. We see the failure of the Israelites in the wilderness, they failed because they did not follow God’s word. They perished because of unbelief, and they perished in the commendation of their souls.
The Succession of Truth
In 1st and 2nd Timothy we have the epistles written by Paul, inspired by the Holy Spirit to Timothy his son in the faith. This designation is very important, it does not foster apostolic succession, it reveals to us the work of the Spirit of God in the new birth and the succession of the truth preserved and presented by the Spirit of God. Timothy is called by Paul, thou man of God, thus, reassuring us that in the last days of Church history there will be men raised up who will stand by faith in the truth of the Almighty God, and that above all reproach they will do the will of God according to His truth. Man, in Adam, will always be a failure. They will always pollute the truth of God, but that which is true, that which is holy will endure by the Holy Spirit of God. Man has done despite to the Spirit of grace, and they have counted the blood of the cross an unworthy sacrifice. Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace? (Hebrews 10:29)
Consider Today
In Hebrews 3, verse 15, we get an unction from the Spirit of God concerning the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ. While it is said, To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts, as in the provocation. Consider today, consider everything around you, everything that you possess, everything you hold dear, lay that aside in your heart, and make room for the King of kings and the Lord of lords. Let the Spirit of God enhance His voice and show you the gift of God which is Jesus Christ. This gift is more precious than all the treasures of the world, and for many of my past brethren these treasures were more precious than life itself. There is no other man like Christ Jesus. In Adam’s knowledge and wisdom we only find sin and death, but if we hear the voice of Christ, and we listen to it He will open our hearts to the truth of the word of God. The Spirit of God says to all today, Harden not your hearts, as in the provocation. Drink of the water of life in Christ Jesus. Not only live in Him, but live by Him. Now we approach the most sorrowful part of Hebrews 3, verse 16, For some, when they had heard, did provoke: howbeit not all that came out of Egypt by Moses. There are some men who will hear His voice, but they will provoke, they will mock the truth, they will deny it, and they will do all in their power to overthrow the truth and the faith once delivered to the saints. Some of them will be your friends, some will be Pharisees, some will be religious leaders, some will be the ministers of Satan, but the truth of the living God will prevail. For the word of God is alive in Jesus Christ, He is the living word and upholds all by the word of His power. His word will prevail against evil.
For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. (Hebrews 4:12)
Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do. (Hebrews 4:13)
The Majority and the Minority
In verse 16 of Chapter 3, we have a remnant who obeyed the word of God, even though the majority provoked the Almighty God. Not all who came out of Egypt by Moses were in opposition to faith, this denotes a small remnant for the Lord. We should remember that although Moses did not enter into the land, he was considered faithful in his work for Jehovah. Not only a faithful servant, but the Holy Spirit declared that he was faithful in all his house. The Lord Jesus told the Jewish leaders,
For had ye believed Moses, ye would have believed me: for he wrote of me. (John 5:46) The Lord Jesus brings up the writings of Moses, and in those writings they spoke of the Son of God, they revealed faith, and that faith was revealed to the people of God. There has always been a remnant who have received the truth, and who have proclaimed their faith in God. We begin with Abel and Seth, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, and we move on to Moses, and through the history of Israel to the days of the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God. There was only a remnant waiting for the consolation of Israel and their king.
God Feels
In verse 17 of Hebrews 3, the Spirit of God awakens us to His feelings, But with whom was he grieved forty years? was it not with them that had sinned, whose carcases fell in the wilderness? We see the feelings of the Spirit of God in that He was grieved, and He was grieved and longsuffering with the people of Israel out of Egypt for 40 years in the wilderness. We are exhorted by the word of God to grieve not the Spirit of God. And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. (Ephesians 4:30)
The Seal
It is the work of the Spirit of God to not only create a new creation but He has been given to us as a seal of our redemption. When we are born of the Spirit there is no going back to Adam. There is nothing we can gain from the world, for our life is hid in Christ in God; and that has been sealed by the Holy Spirit of God. We should keep our lives in spiritual order with the Spirit of God, and keep our lives in order by the Spirit of God: one is our subjection, the other His direction. He has bestowed upon us a new creation, this new creation was created specifically for His presence.
Hereby know we that we dwell in him, and he in us, because he hath given us of his Spirit. (1 John 4:13)
And he that keepeth his commandments dwelleth in him, and he in him. And hereby we know that he abideth in us, by the Spirit which he hath given us. (1 John 3:24)
We have this seal of the Spirit of God as a permanent seal. It can never be rescinded. The Spirit of God has translated us into the kingdom of God’s dear Son. This is a permanent position of grace, and grace can never be rescinded. The Spirit of God is the promise that the Lord Jesus gave to us. It is only the Spirit of God who can lead us into all truth. In the day of Moses, the minister of God, those who sinned without repentance fell in the wilderness. God declared that those who fell were nothing but carcasses: such is man, he is only dust without God. Only the new creation in Jesus Christ is that which is eternal, and dwells within the Lord Jesus Himself.
The Rest of God is Conditional
In verse 18 of Chapter 3 we see the theme of God’s rest, but those who have heard God’s truth and refused it could not enter into God’s rest because of unbelief. In verse 19 of Chapter 3 we have an echo of the voice of the Spirit of God. He is confirming in this last verse, their unbelief. We see also a warning to all those who will not believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. The children of Adam have always been united in unbelief. It is the same today: they unite together in their schemes, and in their diabolical acts to remove faith and the word of God from their presence.
When the children of Israel were in the wilderness they heard the words of the Almighty God and could not abide by it, and beseeched Moses that he would go and receive God’s words because they could not bare to listen. While Moses was in the mountain of God, they prepared a golden calf in unbelief. They had expressed their fear of God, but they turned their backs immediately to worship the gods of Egypt. It was only God’s mercy that spared any of them, and God’s mercy still applies today. Although this world unites in a hatred for God, He will continually display His mercy, and by faith He will call out His children, and this remnant will seek the truth, and the truth will set them free. Your eternity is based on belief or unbelief. On Abraham’s part he believed God and it was counted for righteousness. Enoch believed God and walked with God, and he was not for God took Enoch home.
And what shall I more say? for the time would fail me to tell of Gedeon, and of Barak, and of Samson, and of Jephthae; of David also, and Samuel, and of the prophets: (Hebrews 11:32)
Who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, (Hebrews 11:33)
Quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of the aliens. (Hebrews 11:34)
Women received their dead raised to life again: and others were tortured, not accepting deliverance; that they might obtain a better resurrection: (Hebrews 11:35)
And others had trial of cruel mockings and scourgings, yea, moreover of bonds and imprisonment: (Hebrews 11:36)
They were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain with the sword: they wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins; being destitute, afflicted, tormented; (Hebrews 11:37)
(Of whom the world was not worthy:) they wandered in deserts, and in mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth. (Hebrews 11:38)
And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise: (Hebrews 11:39)
God having provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect. (Hebrews 11:40)
What better way to end Chapter 3 then to walk with men of faith. They subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained the promises of God, they stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, and out of weakness were made strong. This list would humble any true believer, yet without Christ they would not be made perfect. In God’s holy word we are made perfect in Him who loved us, and gave Himself for us. He has washed us in His own blood; the blood that was shed for the remission of sin. God the Holy Spirit has declared these truths over and over throughout the history of man. God has always been a merciful God, and His mercy endureth forever. Amen.
That they without us should not be made perfect in Jesus Christ.
© Copyright 2016, Michael Haigh
Article may be used, but not for gain. Freely ye have received, freely give.
All Scripture references are from the Authorized King James Bible. (KJV)