I have not proof read these sermon notes from this morning so forgive me any misspellings or words left out.
Vic Bottomly
Feb. 6, 2013
Heb. 10:21-31
God promised that He would have a people. How can he have a people when we are all sinful? Through the high priest, a mediator, Jesus Christ. A mediator stands between hostile parties. Moses acted as a mediator. Christ is the true mediator while Moses was a type or shadow of the true Mediator. Christ stood as a mediator between us and God, offering Himself as the one sacrifice for all time.
We have been encouraged to not forsake the gathering together because God works through means and this is the means for us to encourage each other to draw near to God.
Used to be that the high priest went in to the holy of holies once a year alone. No one else could go in. But now the veil is opened and we are commanded to come boldly into the presence of God. We can now stand in fellowship with Holy.
All of that was background. Now we come to some solemn verses.
verse 26 is frightening. These are very serious words. We don't want to hear this. There exists the possibility that some of us might in fact not be believers and will be forever barred from the throne of grace. We do believe in the perseverance of the saints, but there are some who are tares in the congregation....we must put on the armor of faith.
This passage is talking about those who with knowledge and full understanding turn away from the truth.
What about Peter? He denied Christ three times but he was forgiven. How about Paul? He killed Christians...but he was forgiven.
The sin that can not be forgiven is a hardness of heart that is beyond redemption. We can not know who these people are, but we are to guard ourselves from willful sin.
Numbers 15:30 and also in Lev. there are many different kinds of sin. Some mistakes done our of ignorance. But willful sin of blaspheming God...those people were cut off from the people.
Heb. 3:12 Take heed....
Heb. 6:4-6
Somber warnings are expression of truth....certain people who want to come to church, read the Bible and learn theology and impress others by making a good appearance yet persist in a sinful life-style and eventually draw away from the congregation. May God keep us from this sin!
This warning applies to apostates but gives us some warning as well. But when we cry out in repentance, He will forgive. He will not lose His sheep!
v. 28-29 We have a desire to willfully sin. Praise God He restrains us from gross sin. What does it look like when we turn away and indulge the sin that tempts us? We are dragging the Son of God through the mud. We are treading under foot His sacrifice for us.
Two kinds of fear:
1. Reverence
2. Fear of knowing there is a judgement and knowing you deserve it and there is no relief from it.
One sacrifice. What happened when we believed? The sign of Jonah was Christ being put to death. In Romans we saw that baptism unites us into Christ's death. What is that death? Christ's one sacrifice once for all time for all those who would be saved. We who profess Christ...that sacrifice belongs to us. If we willingly go off to sin what are we going to do....go look for another sacrifice since we ignored the first one?
When we sin we need to repent. But do we treat sin as a sacrifice? We should just ask God for forgiveness.
Apostasy is when you play games with the truth and eventually are so hardened that God removes from you the ability to ask for forgiveness. This was the plight of the man in the iron cage in Pilgrim's Progress.
The Gospel is a serious thing that we should not trifle with.
Knowledge is important but it must be accompanied by faith. The object of our faith is not what we know but who we know~God and Jesus Christ. Understand theology will not save you. We can be prideful about our knowledge and we can see it working in people often. Often people are puffed up with their knowledge and will leave a church to go somewhere else where people will listen to them.
There remains no more sacrifice for those who tread the Gospel under after knowing and understanding it. There is only one sacrifice for sin. They can not find another sacrifice for their sin.
The warning against apostasy is a help for those of us who are believers. The primary purpose of this chapter is directed at Hebrews who were tempted to return to the temple sacrifices. This is a warning to us of how serious this is. We are sinners. In our own nature we can not stand before God. If we go on sinning having professed that we believed we are indeed troding Christ under
foot. We need to repent and thank God for His sacrifice in Christ Jesus on our behalf.
Be careful! It is all too easy to treat the holy God and His grace with an attitude of carefree rejection. We do have a hard time comprehending God's salvation, but let us grasp what we can and hold on to it.
The encouragements:
v. 32 Call to remembrance...you have endured a great fight of afflictions.
We are most at risk of falling away when we are most complacent. We need to recall and look back! Recall the fruits of the faith that God has given us already. Recall the joy when you first understood the words of Christ! Don't leave your first love. Revelation talks about this.
Verse 35 Cast not away your boldness (confidence). We have a responsibility to hold fast on to that confidence. God gives it to us but we are to cultivate it and keep it. Drill yourself and teach yourself Christ's commands and promises.
We are apt to treat our boldness lightly and we are apt to become impatient. We have need of patience. v. 36 This speaks of the fulfillment of the promise of the gospel.
Work, diligence, avoiding casting away what we have and patience are all required of us. God would have us be obedient. In our own natures we rebel against that will.
We are called to do the will of God. God has created us to have a will. There is something called a free will but many misunderstand that. Prior to salvation you have freedom but it is freedom to chose how to sin but not to choose God because you are an enemy of God. Those who call upon The Lord for salvation are given a different kind of will. Sometimes indwelling sin makes that will to please God difficult. May God grant that we would increase in our obedience!
We may fall into sin and ask, "Am I an apostate?" Remember if you are thinking these things, then call upon Christ and call upon Him quickly because the very fact that you are thinking these things is a good sign. Only Christ alone can save us. Look to Him alone.
Marsha
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