Pastor preaching at a church lectern with an open Bible
Bible, Faith, Gospel, Hebrews, Scripture

PREACH THE GOOD NEWS

HEBREWS 4:2

“For indeed we have had good news preached to us, just as they also did; but the word they heard did not benefit them, because they were not united with those who listened with faith.”

When did you first hear the good news? I can recall hearing bits and pieces growing up in Sunday School and in church. Honestly, I don’t really remember a time when I was presented the full gospel before I was around 8 or 9. We had an evangelist visit our church, and he had a special program each day for kids called the Red Ant club. I have no idea why it was called that. I just know every kid wanted one of those red ant pins to take home. Isn’t it amazing how we compartmentalize the gospel message?

Most scholars agree that the “good news” mentioned in our verse today was not talking about the full Gospel message. Instead, the writer is still referring to the message of God’s rest which he has been talking about in the last few verses. In today’s verse he explicitly tells us that we too have received the same message the Hebrew children heard in the wilderness. We have been told that His promise of His rest is only for those who turn to Him and obey. He says they didn’t listen with faith.

ASK QUESTIONS (Command to Obey, Promise to claim, Sin to avoid, Application to make, Something new about God)

The Topical Lexicon says the Greek word “preached” “always stresses an authoritative, public declaration that demands a response of faith and obedience.” Therefore, in this verse we can see an Application to make. We have to choose to listen in faith and obey this message we hear. We have the benefit of hearing the entire Gospel today. It is available to us in so many different ways. We can read it, listen to it, stream it or google it. There really isn’t any reason why we can say we haven’t heard it.

I love what Paul wrote in Romans 1:15. “So, for my part, I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome.” Let me ask you a question. Are you eager to preach the gospel? Carl, I am no preacher. You don’t have to be a preacher to preach the gospel. You preach it by living it out every day. You preach it by simply telling what the Lord has done for you. There are so many ways to preach the gospel.

But let me hasten to say that any preaching of the gospel should give the audience an opportunity to respond. Once you deliver the message of the Gospel, make sure you let them know how they can respond to Jesus. We know it requires belief in and the confession of that belief (Romans 10:9-10). Be bold! Preach the gospel to anyone who will listen. God will give you the words. Just be His mouthpiece.

Lord, use me to preach Your Gospel message everywhere to whomever will listen.

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Lions and Rams football players collide during a nighttime game
Bible, Defeat, Hebrews, Promises, Scripture, Sin

COMING UP SHORT

HEBREWS 4:1

“Therefore, we must fear if, while a promise remains of entering His rest, any one of you may seem to have come short of it.”

Anyone who is an American football fan knows what a goal line stand is. It’s when one team has the ball right at the goal line ready to score, but the opposing team digs end and stops them. They cause the other team to come up short. While the defensive team may celebrate this achievement, the offensive team that was trying to score, perhaps to win the game, is dejected. Instead of a victory, they experience a defeat.

The writer of Hebrews expresses a similar event spiritually. There is the real possibility that people will “come short” of entering God’s rest (heaven). The Greek word for “come short” is hysteréō. HELPS Word-studies defines it this way – “(from hýsteros, ‘last’) – properly, at ‘the end,’ i.e. coming behind (to ‘be posterior, late’); (figuratively) coming behind and therefore left out; left wanting (falling short).” It is in the Perfect tense which implies completed action in the past that has lasting results. In other words, this “coming short” is a permanent thing once the end comes.

ASK QUESTIONS (Command to Obey, Promise to claim, Sin to avoid, Application to make, Something new about God)

May I suggest that we have a Sin to avoid here. We should do all we can to avoid coming up short. Hysteréō is used in Romans 3:23 where it says we all “fall short of the glory of God. It’s also used in the story of the rich, young ruler in Mark 10:21 where Jesus says, “‘One thing you lack: go and sell all you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.’” He lacked or fell short of entering His rest because of his wealth.

Barnes gives four examples of who this verse relates to. “(1) Those who are professors of religion but who have never known anything of true piety. (2) those who are expecting to be saved by their own works and are looking forward to a world of rest on the ground of what their own hands can do. (3) those who defer attention to the subject from time to time until it becomes too late. They expect to reach heaven, but they are not ready to give their hearts to God ‘now,’ and the subject is deferred from one period to another, until death arrests them unprepared. (4) those who have been awakened to see their guilt and danger, and who have been almost but not quite ready to give up their hearts to God.”

We all know people who fall into one of those categories. Let’s do all we can to help them take that final step of trusting Jesus as their Savior and entering into His rest. I have family members who are in that situation. It is my prayer that I can say or do something to bring them to a saving knowledge of Jesus before they also “come short” of glory.

Lord, give us all the opportunities to share Your Gospel with those who are in this position of coming up short.

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Traffic signs reading “ONE WAY” and “DO NOT ENTER” beside a residential street
Bible, Disobedience, Entrance, Hebrews, Obedience, Scripture

NO ENTRANCE

HEBREWS 3:19

“And so we see that they were not able to enter because of unbelief.”

Have you ever been driving in an area where you saw a “Do Not Enter” sign? Those are posted to keep you safe from oncoming traffic. Usually, it is a one-way street that is coming your way. If you ignored that sign and entered that street anyway, you place yourself in danger of colliding with another vehicle. You could even be hurt or harm someone else.

The verse today is telling a different story. Instead of saying “Do Not Enter,” it is saying we cannot enter. Entrance is allowed only to those who have been granted access through Jesus. The Hebrew children in the wilderness were not allowed to enter the Promised Land because of their disobedience. I am reminded of

Matthew 7:13-14 where Jesus says, “13‘Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. 14 For the gate is narrow and the way is constricted that leads to life, and there are few who find it.’”

ASK QUESTIONS (Command to Obey, Promise to claim, Sin to avoid, Application to make, Something new about God)

What Ask Questions do you see in today’s verse? I see an Application to make. I need to make sure that I prepared to enter His rest. Don’t you want that? Jesus tells us in Matthew 18:8-9, “8‘And if your hand or your foot is causing you to sin, cut it off and throw it away from you; it is better for you to enter life maimed or without a foot, than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into the eternal fire. 9 And if your eye is causing you to sin, tear it out and throw it away from you. It is better for you to enter life with one eye, than to have two eyes and be thrown into the fiery hell.’” What could hold you back from entering His rest?

This same word for “enter” is used in Revelation 3:20. Don’t you love this? “‘Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me.’” Not only are we to enter into Him, but He is also entering into us. Wow! We know He has already entered into us at salvation through His Holy Spirit.

If you are a child of the King, you will never face a Do Not Enter sign between you and Jesus. However, He will place that sign for your protection in front of sinful temptations. Don’t push through that sign. Do exactly what it says. Turn and go the other way. That will take you into His rest. Amen?

Thank You, Lord, for allowing me to enter into Your rest and for placing roadblocks in my way to prevent wrong choices.

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Weathered sign reading “BELIEVE” and “UNBELIEF” beside a countryside path
Belief, Bible, Disobedience, Hebrews, Obedience, Scripture, Unbelief

THE FATE OF THE DISOBEDIENT

HEBREWS 3:18

“And to whom did He swear that they would not enter His rest, but to those who were disobedient?”

It’s one thing to disobey and another to not believe. Have you ever disobeyed someone because you didn’t believe they meant what they said? The little child may think Daddy won’t spank me because he loves me too much. Let me just tell you, that dad will spank his child because he loves him so much. Unfortunately, our disbelief of God isn’t so easily rectified. God doesn’t just “spank” us for disbelief. It’s much more costly.

The writer continues to compare how God dealt with the Hebrews in the wilderness with how He deals with us today. The Greek word translated “were disobedient” is apeitheó. It’s used 14 times in the New Testament and is interchangeable with “to disbelieve.” In Acts 14:2 we see it used that way. “But the unbelieving Jews stirred up the minds of the Gentiles and embittered them against the brothers.” This word equates disbelief with disobedience. In the case of the Hebrews in the wilderness, it had deadly consequences. All the adults over 20 died before they entered the Promised Land.

ASK QUESTIONS (Command to Obey, Promise to claim, Sin to avoid, Application to make, Something new about God)

Let me suggest an Application to make in today’s verse. Instead of following the example of those who disbelieved, let us believe in the Lord Jesus and obey His Word. Just listen to this warning in 1 Peter 4:17. We see apeitheó used here and translated as “do not obey.” “For it is time for judgment to begin with the household of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God?” I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to find out what the unbelievers face in judgment.

The good news is we don’t have to worry about that if we are obeying and following Jesus. The Topical Lexicon gives a great description of apeitheó. It says it, “expresses a settled refusal to be persuaded, an obstinate resistance that shows itself both as unbelief and as disobedience. In Scripture, trust in God and submission to His word are inseparable; therefore unbelief inevitably manifests itself in moral rebellion, whereas genuine faith demonstrates itself in obedience.”

What side of the fence are you on today? You can’t straddle the  fence on this one. Have you ever tried to straddle a wobbly fence? It’s practically impossible. Stand with Jesus on His side of the fence. There really is a fence between belief and unbelief, but Jesus can tear that fence down.

Thank You, Father, for giving me the gift of faith so that I can believe You and obey.

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Father sitting with two children on a patterned rug in a living room
Bible, Hebrews, Judgment, Numbers, Obedience, Scripture, Sin

WHEN GOD SPEAKS

HEBREWS 3:17

“And with whom was He angry for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose dead bodies fell in the wilderness?”

My dad didn’t mince words. What I mean by that is when he said something he meant it. If he told me and my siblings to do something, he expected us to do it. He taught us that early so when we got into those teenage years, we knew there was no reason to try to “negotiate.” When he said it, that was it. He had the final word on things.

God has the final word on everything. Today’s verse goes back to Numbers 14:28-30 when God laid down the law about His decision regarding those who rebelled against Him in the wilderness. It says, “28 ‘Say to them, “As I live,” declares the LORD, “just as you have spoken in My hearing, so I will do to you; 29 your dead bodies will fall in this wilderness, all your numbered men according to your complete number from twenty years old and upward, who have grumbled against Me. 30 By no means will you come into the land where I swore to settle you, except for Caleb the son of Jephunneh and Joshua the son of Nun.”’” And what He said came true. After 40 years, only Joshua and Caleb remained. Wow!

ASK QUESTIONS (Command to Obey, Promise to claim, Sin to avoid, Application to make, Something new about God)

Boy, if this isn’t a Command to Obey and a Promise to claim I am not sure what is. The command would be to obey what the Lord says. There is no need to question His word when it is clearly given. When God told Adam and Eve to not eat of the tree in the garden and they did, what did He do? Exactly what He said He would do. Death entered mankind. When God told the people of Israel to not worship other gods and they did, what did He do? Exactly what He said He would do. He judged them, often with an ungodly nation.

The promise He gives, though, is just as true. He promises us blessings if we obey. He promises us eternal life if we come to Him for salvation. He promises to care and watch over us if we follow His will. What are you going to do, rebel and suffer the consequences or follow the Lord in obedience? God is not going to change His mind. He stands for justice and truth. His integrity can never be challenged. Trust His word, whether to dispense justice or blessings.

I am reminded again of one of my favorite verses. It is found in Joshua 21:45. “Not one of the good promises which the LORD had made to the house of Israel failed; everything came to pass.” Keep in mind this was written AFTER the Numbers passage. After He had judged them in the wilderness, He kept His promises which He had promised them. All of them. He does the same for us. Obey Him and reap the blessings of His promises.

Thank You, Lord, for holding me accountable and also for blessing me as I obey You.

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Protesters confront riot police amid fire and smoke; wall reads “NO JUSTICE NO PEACE.”
Bible, Hearing, Hebrews, Listening, Provoke, Scripture

WHO ARE THE AGITATORS?

HEBREWS 3:16

“For who provoked Him when they had heard? Indeed, did not all those who came out of Egypt led by Moses?”

Recently, in part of Europe we have seen some civil unrest which resulted in riots. What may have begun as a peaceful march escalated into burning buildings, looting businesses and destroying property. The authorities have traced most of this back to a certain group of agitators who provoked others into these actions. It’s amazing how a small number can have such a huge impact on a crowd that is leaning a certain way.

That is exactly what the writer of Hebrews is referring to in today’s verse. He asks a question and then answers it. Who heard God and then provoked His wrath by their disobedience? It was the whole crowd. Murmur after murmur against Moses was heard. We want water. We want bread. We want meat. God had just rescued them from 400 years of slavery and they still complained.

ASK QUESTIONS (Command to Obey, Promise to claim, Sin to avoid, Application to make, Something new about God)

An Application to make is seen in our verse. We must avoid the trap of hearing but not listening. Did you catch that? It’s the difference between a cat and dog. You can call a dog by name and usually he will come to you. Cats, on the other hand, expect you to come to them. Lol. The Hebrews in the wilderness heard God when He spoke through Moses, but they refused to listen to what He said. Time and time again they bucked His commands. It’s no wonder God threatened to wipe them all away.

The Greek word translated “provoked” is only used here in the New Testament. It’s the Greek word parapikrainó from para (alongside) and pikraino (to embitter). It means to exasperate. Have you ever tried to teach someone something and they just couldn’t do it? You can easily get exasperated, can’t you? The Topical Lexicon says, “By choosing this rare verb the epistle deliberately reaches back to the Greek of Psalm 95:8 in the Septuagint, fusing Israel’s historical defiance with the present danger of Christian apostasy.” There’s our application!

Let me encourage you today to take the time to truly hear God and listen to what He is saying. As my wife and I start down this road of another physical trial in my health, we are straining to hear His voice. We only want to do what He wants us to do. It doesn’t do any good to pray to hear the Lord and then refuse the answer He gives. Accept His answer with humility. After all, the God of the universe loves you enough to talk to you. Isn’t that amazing in itself?

Speak, Lord, and help me to truly listen to Your guidance.

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Open Bible with coffee and reading glasses on a wooden table
Bible, Hard, Hebrews, Provoke, Psalms, Scripture

WORTH REPEATING

HEBREWS 3:15

“while it is said, ‘TODAY IF YOU HEAR HIS VOICE, DO NOT HARDEN YOUR HEARTS, AS WHEN THEY PROVOKED ME.’”

Sometimes saying the same thing twice is a good thing. Preachers do this all the time when they are delivering a sermon. They will tell you what they are going to say, they say it and then they tell you what they said. Repetition helps us remember things. In the ministry I am a part of, we teach men when they memorize a verse to quote the reference before they say it and after they say it because learning the reference can be the hardest thing.

Obviously, the writer of Hebrews felt it was important to repeat Psalm 95:7 again. He had just quoted it earlier in this chapter. He warns us once again to not harden our hearts so as to provoke the Lord once we have heard His voice. This is important. If you claim to have heard from the Lord and then refuse to obey, you can expect the Lord to deal with you. Let’s look at this admonition again.

ASK QUESTIONS (Command to Obey, Promise to claim, Sin to avoid, Application to make, Something new about God)

We are given a couple of crystal clear Commands to Obey. The verse says, “do not harden your hearts” and also that we should not “provoke” the Lord. How do we do that? Simple, by refusing to listen to His voice or to obey Him once we have heard Him. What do you think the writer was referring to? The readers of this letter were a mainly Jewish audience. They had the Scriptures in which the prophetic statements regarding Christ were written. They would be held responsible for knowing those truths and not responding.

But before you judge them, so will we. We have the benefit of having the full Scriptures, all 66 books of the Bible. Every book points toward Jesus. We can’t escape that fact. When we read the Word, we are listening to the voice of God. You may have heard it said, “If you want to hear God’s voice, read the Bible out loud.” How true. So, if you read it and hear Him, are you obeying or have you hardened your heart?

Carl, my heart isn’t hard. I believe in God. It’s not about belief. It’s about obedience. Go back and read verses 13 and 14 along with today’s verse. This is the picture the writer is painting for us. His warning was worth the repeat, wasn’t it? Psalm 95:7 didn’t just apply to those in the Old Testament. It has as much relevance today as then. Do not harden your heart and do not provoke the Lord.

Father, I want to obey You and keep my heart as soft as putty in Your hands.

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Marcus Johnson signs National Signing Day 2024 papers for University of California Berkeley
Bible, Commitment, Hebrews, Loyalty, Partakers, Scripture

KEEPING OUR COMMITMENT

HEBREWS 3:14

“For we have become partakers of Christ if we keep the beginning of our commitment firm until the end,”

In this day and age, it is a rare thing to find someone who will keep their commitment. One of the most glaring examples of this is the college football scene. In the past, a player would commit to a school, keep that commitment and play for three, four or even five years (if they received a red shirt year). Students didn’t hop from school to school. Now, if a player keeps their original commitment to a school it is celebrated. Gone are the days of loyalty to a school that spent time and energy recruiting that player.

The writer calls us out in today’s verse. He basically says if we don’t keep our original commitment to follow Jesus, we never really belonged to Christ. In Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible it is written regarding this “beginning of our commitment,” “by ‘confidence’ is meant faith, which is an hypostasis, or subsistence, which is the word here used; and is so called, because it gives a kind of subsistence, substance, or being, to things it is concerned with, Hebrews 11:1 and because it is a great support to believers, under their various exercises; and is that by which they have an open, spiritual, and comfortable subsistence, and abiding in Christ:” I know, that’s a mouthful. Gill is saying that this “beginning of our commitment” is our initial faith in Jesus. We cannot desert that.

ASK QUESTIONS (Command to Obey, Promise to claim, Sin to avoid, Application to make, Something new about God)

There is a Promise to claim in today’s verse. Look at the verse again. It says, “we have become partakers of Christ.” The Greek word for “partakers” is métoxos “(from metéxō, ‘share in,’ derived from metá, ‘with change afterward’ and éxō, ‘have’) – properly, change due to sharing, i.e. from being an ‘active partaker with.’” (HELPS Word-studies) Did you get all that? This means we are changed due to sharing. We are changed by Christ by sharing with Christ. Wow!

But this promise is contingent on us keeping the faith, keeping our original commitment. I am reminded of the warning given to us by John in 1 John 2:19. “They went out from us, but they were not really of us; for if they had been of us, they would have remained with us; but they went out, so that it would be evident that they all are not of us.” Have you known people like that? They have a religious experience and get involved for a while in church, but the first sign of difficulties and they disappear. They were not partakers of Christ, or they would have been changed.

So, we need to keep the faith. There’s a Command to Obey and an Application to make for you. Can you do that? Lean into Jesus. He is all you need. Reflect back on the excitement and zeal you experienced when you first surrendered to Him. Make that your motivation each day and live for Him. Amen?

Father God, thank You for making me a partaker with Jesus and sustaining my faith day by day.

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Bulldogs fans cheering during a youth baseball game
Bible, Comfort, Encouragement, Family, Hebrews, Listening, Scripture

ENCOURAGE ONE ANOTHER

HEBREWS 3:13

“But encourage one another every day, as long as it is still called ‘today,’ so that none of you will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.”

Everyone likes to be encouraged. Isn’t that true? Think of all the parents at the ballfields during football, soccer or baseball seasons. Why are they there? To encourage their child(ren) to do their best and to lift them up if their team falls short of the victory. It’s a proven fact that children whose parents regularly attend their games play harder and better. Just ask the coaches.

So, today we have the writer of Hebrews telling us through the Holy Spirit to do that very thing for each other. He writes, “encourage one another every day.” We’ll look at some other spots in the New Testament where this is also mentioned. But look closely at why he tells us to do this. He says, “so that none of you will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.” You see, living the Christian life isn’t meant to be a solo sport. You need teammates to come alongside you. In fact, the Greek word for “encourage” means exactly that. It means to come near or to comfort. That’s what encourages us, right?

ASK QUESTIONS (Command to Obey, Promise to claim, Sin to avoid, Application to make, Something new about God)

We see here a clear Command to Obey since “encourage” is in the Imperative. That’s the Greek command voice. It’s also in the Present tense which means to continue doing it. We should do this every day. Don’t stop. Keep encouraging! In 1 Thessalonians 5:11, Paul uses this same command. “Therefore, encourage one another and build one another up, just as you also are doing.” Earlier in the same book, Paul writes in 1 Thessalonians 4:18, “Therefore, comfort one another with these words.” The word “comfort” is the same word translated as “encourage” in our text today and in 1 Thessalonians 5:11.

In Hebrews 10:24-25, the writer gives us the same admonition. “24 and let’s consider how to encourage one another in love and good deeds, 25 not abandoning our own meeting together, as is the habit of some people, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near.” I think you can see this is important for us to do for each other.

Is there someone you need to encourage today? Maybe someone is going through a hard, physical challenge right now and just needs to know you are praying for them. Recently, when I went through one of those, I had friends and family reach out to me to encourage and pray for me. What a blessing. And that makes me want to reach out to others also. Ask the Lord to show you who He would have you encourage. Then do it. Call them or text them. Let them know they are in your prayers. Encourage one another.

Thank You, Lord, for sending others into my life to encourage me. Help me do the same.

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Two people walking toward a stone church beside a village cemetery
Bible, Evil, Heart, Hebrews, Scripture, Unbelief

EVIL, UNBELIEVING HEART

HEBREWS 3:12

“Take care, brothers and sisters, that there will not be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart that falls away from the living God.”

What makes a person evil? Is it imbedded in their DNA? Do they learn the behavior? We know that since the fall of Adam and Eve in the garden, every person born is born into sin. But there are many good, lost people. What changes them into evil human beings? In today’s verse we are able to see the cause.

The Greek literally says “an evil heart of unbelief.” Barnes says, “An unbelieving heart was the cause of ‘their’ apostasy, and what worked their ruin will produce ours. The root of their evil was ‘a want of confidence in God’ – and this is what is meant here by a heart of unbelief.” The Greek word for “evil” is poneros which is more than evil. It’s a degenerative, hurtful evil that goes totally against God’s design. And the Greek word for “unbelieving” is apistia which is the negated form of pistis (faith).

ASK QUESTIONS (Command to Obey, Promise to claim, Sin to avoid, Application to make, Something new about God)

There is an Application to make here that tells us to guard ourselves from this evil, unbelieving heart so we don’t fall away. The Greek word for “falls away” means “instigate to revolt; usually (reflexively) to desist, desert, etc. — depart, draw (fall) away, refrain, withdraw self.” (Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance). It’s used fourteen times in the New Testament in a variety of ways. In 1 Timothy 4:1 we see it used in a similar way as in today’s verse. “But the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons,…”

You see, the evil, unbelieving heart which has no confidence in God can easily be lead astray. If you do not believe in God and in the saving power of Jesus’ death and resurrection, you have no hope. Having no hope will cause you to do all sorts of things. Do you have confidence in God? Do you believe? Then rest in that and you will not fall away.

You could also list this verse as a Sin to avoid for we know that unbelief is sin. Unbelief is the surest way to find evil. Unbelief is the one sin that is unforgiveable. God cannot ignore sin. We know that. But if we confess our sins, He is faithful to forgive us (1 John 1:9). But the sin of unbelief puts us outside the realm of His forgiveness. We must believe in order to receive forgiveness. Aren’t you glad you believe?

Thank You, Lord, that I know I am standing on solid ground with You and am forgiven.

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