Sunday Night Bible Study Hebrews 6:9-20 April 17, 1994 Hebrews 6:9-20 Hebrews 6 Intro Hebrews 6 (the more I study, the less I know!) Last week we covered that amazing passage that gives us the idea that it just might be possible for a person to have known the Lord, and then totally walk away from Him. That it just might be possible for them to get to the point where they might even lose their salvation. We don't even want to get close to that line! 9. But, beloved, we are persuaded better things of you, and things that accompany salvation, though we thus speak. 10 For God [is] not unrighteous to forget your work and labour of love, which ye have shewed toward his name, in that ye have ministered to the saints, and do minister. :9 things that accompany salvation If the whole scary portion we studied last week was not about the possibility of a person losing their salvation, then why does the writer here contrast these "better things", and "things that accompany salvation" with the former passage? These things which accompany salvation are a part of the evidence concerning whether a person is saved or not. It doesn't guarantee that a person is saved, but without these things, you sure have the right to question a person's salvation. What are these things? :10 your work and labour of love Done in His name, and especially to other believers. Joh 13:34 A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. 35 By this shall all [men] know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another. :10 God [is] not unrighteous to forget If we are following Jesus instructions on how to do good works, we sometimes get to feeling sorry for ourselves, thinking, "Nobody notices, nobody cares...". Mt 6:1 Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven. But the truth is, we are to do them for God, and HE NOTICES! Col 3:22 Servants, obey in all things [your] masters according to the flesh; not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but in singleness of heart, fearing God: 23 And whatsoever ye do, do [it] heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men; 24 Knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ. Lesson: God notices your works. He'll reward you. 11 And we desire that every one of you do shew the same diligence to the full assurance of hope unto the end: :11 shew the same diligence The writer has assured them that he doesn't see the things in them that speak of total apostacy as in the first part of the chapter. But he's not completely satisfied with their growth as believers either. Earlier, he told them that they were immature, even still babes in the Lord when they should be mature adults in the faith. :11 unto the end Again, the idea of perseverance. We need to persevere in our walk with the Lord and not turn our back on the Lord. 12 That ye be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises. :12 slothful sluggish, lazy slow to get around to the things of God :12 followers of them Abraham is going to be the example given. God always has people ahead of us to follow after. There are many people written about in the scriptures who have blazed many a trail ahead of us. There are people even in our own body here who can be examples of faith and patience to us. Lesson: Look for good examples to follow. My wife was noticing how Timothy picks up so much by watching his older brothers around him. God has built into us this ability to learn by watching and copying those around us. What kind of examples do you keep around you? :12 through faith and patience inherit the promises faith - Heb 11:1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. Even though you don't see heaven, even though you don't see the end to your particular trial, you still trust in God and that He's going to see you through. patience - makrothumia 1) patience, endurance, constancy, steadfastness, perseverance 2) patience, forbearance, longsuffering, slowness in avenging wrongs It's a word that's used specifically in relationships with other people. It's learning to put up with people who give you a hard time. Jas 5:10-11 Take, my brethren, the prophets, who have spoken in the name of the Lord, for an example of suffering affliction, and of patience. 11 Behold, we count them happy which endure. Ye have heard of the patience of Job, and have seen the end of the Lord; that the Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy. The patience of Job - not just having a lot of physical problems, like the boils and such. But putting up with such jerks as friends. Lesson: Keep holding on! 13 For when God made promise to Abraham, because he could swear by no greater, he sware by himself, 14 Saying, Surely blessing I will bless thee, and multiplying I will multiply thee. 15 And so, after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise. :13 to Abraham Now we're going to get into our example of someone who through faith and patience inherited the promises of God. :13 he sware by himself We don't see this directly in our text in Hebrews, but it's back in Genesis: Ge 22:15 And the angel of the LORD called unto Abraham out of heaven the second time, 16 And said, By myself have I sworn, saith the LORD, for because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only [son]: 17 That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which [is] upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies; 18 And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice. :15 after he had patiently endured I believe that because of the context of the passage, the writer is alluding to Abraham's near sacrifice of Isaac on the altar. Abraham went through even that most difficult of times, because he trusted in God's promises. Abraham is often a great example of faith. Romans 4 18 Who against hope believed in hope, that he might become the father of many nations, according to that which was spoken, So shall thy seed be. 19 And being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body now dead, when he was about an hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sara's womb: 20 He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God; 21 And being fully persuaded that, what he had promised, he was able also to perform. 22 And therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness. He is our great example of how he achieved "righteousness" simply by believing in God against all odds. But was Abraham so "perfect" in his faith? Did he ever have doubts? Did he ever wonder just a little bit? Ge 16:1 Now Sarai Abram's wife bare him no children: and she had an handmaid, an Egyptian, whose name [was] Hagar. 2 And Sarai said unto Abram, Behold now, the LORD hath restrained me from bearing: I pray thee, go in unto my maid; it may be that I may obtain children by her. And Abram hearkened to the voice of Sarai. Sometimes we think that Abraham must have achieved some kind of perfection as to believing in God. We get to feeling condemned when we have our periods of doubt. But Abraham had his moments too. But he also went back to trusting God. Lesson: God isn't looking for perfect faith, but growing faith! 16 For men verily swear by the greater: and an oath for confirmation [is] to them an end of all strife. :16 men verily swear by the greater This is because of our human weakness. When somebody starts to get a reputation for lying, they have a hard time getting people to believe them. So things get said like, "If I'm telling a lie, may my mother give birth to a horse" Or, "May lightning strike me..." Jesus said, Matthew 5 33. Again, ye have heard that it hath been said by them of old time, Thou shalt not forswear thyself, but shalt perform unto the Lord thine oaths: 34 But I say unto you, Swear not at all; neither by heaven; for it is God's throne: 35 Nor by the earth; for it is his footstool: neither by Jerusalem; for it is the city of the great King. 36 Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, because thou canst not make one hair white or black. 37 But let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay: for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil. Jesus was trying to get us to become people who keep their word. People who have a reputation of being reliable. Lesson: Is your word reliable? :16 an end of all strife "You stole my cookie". "No I didn't." "Yes you did." "I swear I didn't". Gen 21 - Abraham and Abimelech Disagreements over land usage. Servants quarrelling over water rights They each took an oath that they knew nothing of the problem, and that they wouldn't intentionally cause any more problems. They named that place "Beersheba", or, "Well of the oath" Their oath put an end to the fighting among their servants. 17 Wherein God, willing more abundantly to shew unto the heirs of promise the immutability of his counsel, confirmed [it] by an oath: 18 That by two immutable things, in which [it was] impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us: :17 Wherein "in the same way..." Just as people take oaths to end any doubts or disagreements, God wants to end all doubts in our minds about His intentions toward us. :17 willing more abundantly to shew unto the heirs of promise You think that God was dealing honestly and trustworthily to Abraham? God is even more so to us. :17 the immutability of his counsel RWP: "the unchangeableness of his will." :18 by two immutable things What are the TWO things? Look back in verse 17: His counsel and His oath. :18 in which [it was] impossible for God to lie Nu 23:19 God [is] not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do [it]? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good? :18 we might have a strong consolation The author's point is that he wants his readers to endure and keep on trusting in Jesus, even though they may be going through trying times, times that make them want to just give up on this whole Jesus thing. We may be going through hard times, but God's intentions toward us have never changed. We may be facing persecution, but God doesn't take back His promise of heaven to us. Lesson: God is on your side! He wants you to win the race, not lose it! :18 who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us Two Old Testament pictures here: Fleeing to a city of refuge if you were accidently involved in manslaughter. De 4:42 That the slayer might flee thither, which should kill his neighbour unawares, and hated him not in times past; and that fleeing unto one of these cities he might live: A person running to the tabernacle and taking hold of the horns of the altar, crying for mercy. 1Ki 1:50 And Adonijah feared because of Solomon, and arose, and went, and caught hold on the horns of the altar. :18 to lay hold upon the hope Salvation through Jesus. Living in Jesus. It's not always an easy thing to do. That's what this passage is all about. We need to follow the examples set before us, to keep on holding on to Jesus. 19 Which [hope] we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and stedfast, and which entereth into that within the veil; :19 an anchor of the soul There are times when the currents all around us want to sweep us out to sea. But Jesus keeps us safely anchored in God's harbor. RWP: The ancient anchors were much like the modern ones with iron hooks to grapple the rocks and so hold on to prevent shipwreck. Lesson: When we really get a hold of the fact that God is on our side, it takes us through the storms. Do you feel a little shakey? Ro 8:31 What shall we then say to these things? If God [be] for us, who [can be] against us? 32 He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? :19 both sure and stedfast RWP: or lose its grip (ebaia from ain“ to go, firm, trusty)This anchor of hope will not slip :19 which entereth into that within the veil Speaking of the veil outside of the Holy of Holies. The doorway into the very throne room of God. Our hope is able to get in through the veil. Because we trust in Jesus, we have access to the very presence of God. RWP: The anchor is out of sight, but it holds. That is what matters. Sometimes we feel like our prayers only go as far as the ceiling. But when we trust in Jesus, we're getting through whether we feel like it or not. I think of the lady who "died" on the operating table, and found herself before the throne of God. And all the prayers of Christians that were coming up before God's throne. Even the little ones. 20 Whither the forerunner is for us entered, [even] Jesus, made an high priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec. Jesus has gone past the veil, making the way possible for us to do it too.