Mark 9:43 "If your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter
life crippled, than, having your two hands, to go into hell, into the
unquenchable fire"
Yesterday we consider three big problems that can
arise if we deny the existence of Hell, namely we would have to deny: God’s
Justice, God’s Love and the Cross. I’ll
admit the difficulty of writing of these particular blogs, since thinking on the
subject of eternal punishment causes grief over the destiny of those who die
without Christ. With that said, the doctrine of hell and eternal judgment has the positive effect of making the Christian be more greatful for their salvation. It is for
that reason that we should warn loved ones and all people alike to escape the
wrath of God and be reconciled to Him through Jesus Christ. In today’s blog we continue on discussing
four more big problems that can arise from denying Hell’s reality.
In other words, if we
were to deny the reality of hell, what else would we have to deny?
1. To deny hell is to
deny the need for missions
What is the primary burden of
all missionary work? Be saved from the wrath of God, repent of your sins! In
Matthew 3:7 John the Baptist states - "But when he saw many of the
Pharisees and Sadducees coming for baptism, he said to them, "You brood of
vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?" Or how
about 1 Thesslonians 1:10 "and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he
raised from the dead--Jesus, who rescues us from the coming wrath."
(NIV)
The urgency of missions would
be lost if we were to wholesale deny the existence of Hell. Look at other
movements who have made such a decision. All mainline denominations who have
went liberal in their theology - (meaning the denial of the supernatural, the
miraculous and unseen aspects of the Christian faith - including the destiny of
unbelievers) - are either doing very little or no missionary work. To not do missions is to
disobey a fundamental command of the Lord Jesus Christ - the Great Comission of
Matthew 28:18-20. To do that would be to deny what makes Christianity
Christianity.
2. To deny Hell would
be to deny the Bible's inerrancy
Jesus mentions Hell and its
reality 17 times. As a biblical doctrine it is mentioned some 95 times. If Hell
is not real, and is nothing more than a "state of mind" or
"other people" or "me just having a bad day", then we would
have to deny the Bible as being without error and without authority. Closely related to inerrancy is the Bible's infallibility - meaning its inability to lead anyone astray. If the Bible is wrong on Hell, and if Hell is not a place, then the Bible is fallible - it is no better than any other religious book. Jesus states in John 10:35 that the scripture cannot be broken - thus infallibility. Proverbs 30:4-5 states that the Bible is pure - free from error. You lose far more than you ever hope to gain if you deny the reality of hell.
3. To Deny Hell would
be to Deny the existence of Heaven
Heaven was created at the
same time as earth. (Genesis 1:1). When Lucifer rebealled and led 1/3 of the
angelic hosts astray, the Bible states that Hell was created originally for the
Devil and his angels. (Isaiah 14:12-14; Ezekiel 28; Matthew 25:41; Revelation
12:3-7). From what we can discern, Lucifer's rebellion took place shortly after the creation week, meaning Hell was made separately. This is a crucial point - since Genesis 1 states seven times that all that God made was "Good".
Lucifer and some of the demonic hosts are roaming to and fro over the face of the earth, aggrevating and tormenting people. (1 Peter 5:8). If Hell did not exist, what
would become of the demonic realm and the future judgment of Satan?
The Bible
indicates nowhere of Satan nor the demonic realm being restored or repenting.
The current place called "Hell" is the holding place for unbelievers and some of the demonic realm who had rebelled. (2 Peter 2:4) Thus without hell and the even worse lake of fire spoken of in the book of
Revelation, they would have to go somewhere.
Without a place to
demonstrate the justice of God, in an ironic but true sense - the reality of
Heaven would have to be denied. Think about it - Habakkuk 1:13 for example
tells us that God cannot stand to look upon sin in His sight. Historically when
Hell's existence has been denied, Christianity has become more centered on
"this world" and less on "the world to come". The Eternal
perspective that marks out true biblical Christianity is lost - reducing
Christianity to another self-help philosophy to survive this life. The
nineteenth century liberalism of Germany is a prime example of this fact.
4. To Deny Hell would
be to Deny Human responsibility/free will
If all people, demons and
Satan himself are going to be saved no matter what - then in reality our
responsibility to repent and believe is nothing more than a mirage. In Rob
Bell's book "Love Wins", he states that giving enough time - people
will learn to love God, since His love for them will win them over. In
attempting to assert the Sovereignty of God, Bells over plays his hand and ends
up denying the biblical teaching of human responsibility.
In ways we may not fully
comprehend, but nonetheless can know - the Bible asserts the compatibility and
dual truths of Sovereignty and Human responsibility. If I deny Sovereignty - I
have fallen into the ditch of proclaiming a message devoid of God's grace in
the Gospel. If I deny human responsibility - I affirm fatalism, which teaches
that man is but a chess piece on God's Chess board.
All who believe on Jesus
Christ and go to heaven do so because of God's grace calling them and setting
them free to choose Jesus. Whereas all of those who die and go to hell do so
because of their freedom to reject. (Compare Acts 13:46-48).
Revelation 20:12-15 And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and
books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of
life; and the dead were judged from the things which were written in the books,
according to their deeds. 13And
the sea gave up the dead which were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead
which were in them; and they were judged, every one of them according to
their deeds. 14Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake
of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. 15And
if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into
the lake of fire.
For the past couple of days we have been focusing on the doctrine of Hell, noting the man who went to hell (Korah, Numbers 16); the man suffering in hell (The Rich man, Luke 16) and the man who avoided it through faith in Jesus (The thief, Luke 23). The Bible clearly asserts its reality and awful nature. In today's blog I want us to think about the consequences that denial of hell can have on core doctrines of the Christian faith.
In other words, if we were to deny the reality of hell, what else would we have to deny?
1. To deny Hell is to deny the Justice of God.
The prophet Habakkuk says these words in Habakkuk 1:3-4 "Why do You make me see iniquity, and cause me to look on
wickedness? Yes, destruction and violence are before
me; Strife exists and contention arises. 4Therefore the law is ignored And
justice is never upheld. For the wicked surround the
righteous; Therefore justice comes out perverted." To deny the doctrine of final judgment or hell would mean denying final justice and judgment.
If there is no final way of judgment, then in the realm of this life, evil will truly prevail, and God's justice in the visible realm could never be upheld. Without Hell, scriptures such as Psalm 89:14 would not be true: "Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Your
throne;
Lovingkindness and truth go before You." Clearly if Justice is not fundamental to God's character, then there is no basis for objective morality nor truth.
2. To deny Hell is to deny the love of God
This point may sound truly shocking, since many of those today who deny hell's existence claim that they are upholding the love of God. Rob Bell, a one time evangelical pastor, shocked the world of Christianity earlier this year with his controversial book entitled "Love Wins". In the book he proposes that in the end, God's love will triumph and all beings, even satan, will be saved. That heresy, called "universalism", has been around since the second century of the church. Ironically, when we deny the reality of hell and judgment, we also have to deny the love of God.
Consider the passage I quoted earlier, Psalm 89:14 - "Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Your throne;
Lovingkindness and truth go before You." The Bible clearly shows that because God is a Good and righteousness God, He is also fair. Because He is a fair God, He knows what is proper to love. Since He is a truthful God, He also knows what is proper not to love (i.e sin, injustice). God's Wrath is not out of control anger as popularly believed. Rather wrath is His holiness expressed negatively towards what is opposite of His goodness; whereas His love is His holiness expressed positively toward what He deems to be in allignment with His goodness. If God loved everything, He would have to also love sin. Hell, whether people like it or not, demonstrates the reality of God's justice. Without Him being a Good and Just God, He could not also be the loving and fair God revealed in the Bible.
3. To deny Hell is to deny the need for the cross
Why did Jesus come to die? To suffer the wrath of God and to save all those who would believe on Him from such wrath. (Romans 5:6-10). On the cross, Jesus Christ bore the wrath of God, so that all who by grace through faith believe on Him would not have to. Consider John 3:36 “He who believes in the Son has eternal life; but he who does not obey the Son
will not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.”
If there were no such place as Hell, then we could simply conclude God was going to save everybody. The meaning of the cross would radically change, since Christ's death would no longer be about fulfilling the demands of justice or prolonging the wrath of God. John 3:16 would be emptied of it reality and truth. The possibility of perishing would be nothing more than Divine saber rattling.
Universalism, the belief that all creatures will be with God in eternity, including the unrepentant and the demonic realm, is an incoherent theology when it tries to proclaim the cross. This is why all forms of universalism throughout church history have been deemed heretical. This is why Universalism has never been considered true to the character and heart of of the Gospel.
I know that these truths are heavy - my own heart breaks at writing these blogs. To think about all of those dying without Christ, and the reality of Hell, is no doubt difficult to imagine. However to deny such truth leaves Christianity in far greater jeopardy than when we affirm it. May we be spurred onto renewed urgency to share Christ with those who need Him.
Luke 23:33 When they came to the place called The Skull,
there they crucified Him and the criminals, one on the right and the other on
the left.
The last guy you would expect to see going to Heaven
For the past two days we have looked closely at the doctrine of hell. We have noted two men who went to hell and are still there: namely Korah from Numbers 16 and "The Rich Man" in Luke 16. We noted that both of these men would had been regarded by many in their day as religious men or men of influence. In both cases, they would had been the last guys you would expect to see in Hell.
But now we are going to meet a third man, the thief on the cross. Of all people, surely this guy is going to be in hell. Indeed when we look at Matthew and Mark's account, no mention is made of this criminal talking to Jesus. However Luke gives us this touching portrait of God's grace working that day in the life of a man that would have no chance of ever giving back. Crucifixion was reserved for the most vile offenders. Yet the thief gives us a portrait of a man who avoided hell.
How did the thief avoid hell? Korah was a man of influence and religious position, yet by his rebellion and non-repentance he went to hell. The rich man, also a man of influence, and perhaps considered by some to have had some measure of righteousness based upon his wealth, also died and went to hell. Yet this thief, who had neither, was afforded access into Heaven. How? Consider the thoughts below:
1. The thief believed God's Word Luke 24:38-39
What had they written on the board above Jesus' head? "THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS". By fulfilling prophetic scripture, Jesus Christ indeed was the crucified King. The soldiers mocking and the other thief's taunts were in response to the words written. The Jews had begged Pilate earlier to take it down, but Pilate told them in John 19:22 "what I have written, I have written". The repentant thief had a quite different response. In seeing and hearing those words, which undoubtedly were part of sacred scripture, the thief's attitude was changed from one of ridicule to repentance.
2. The thief was repentant Luke 23:40-41
The thief states in Luke 23:41 "And we indeed are suffering justly, for we are receiving what we deserve for our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong." Only God's Sovereign grace could show this thief the awfulness of his own sin and the awesomeness of Jesus Christ. (2 Timothy 2:25-26) This thief repented, ignored the crowd and the other thief, and chose to look to Jesus.
3. The thief had faith in Jesus. Luke 23:41-42
What did the thief come to believe about Jesus? That he was first of all without sin (verse 41). Second, that He was the King (verse 42) Then thirdly, that He had the capacity to save Him, since He wanted to be remembered by Jesus (verse 42).
4. He was justified by faith, thus gaining entry Luke 23:43
The declaration of Jesus: Today you will be with me in paradise" would not had been stated to a man who was still remaining guilty in the sight of God. By grace through faith and repentance this man was declared fit to have entryway into heaven or paradise! He avoided Hell by believing on Jesus for the forgiveness of his sins.
Hell is avoidable through Jesus Christ
As we close out today's blog, I would urge my readers to consider all that we have covered these last couple of days. In considering Korah, the rich man and the thief, my final challenge would be: Please don't go to hell. Why? Because scripture uses each of these men to demonstrate the following ideas:
1. Hell is the awful destination - compare Korah in Numbers 16
2. Hell is the awful place - compare the rich man in Luke 16
3. Hell is avoidable - compare the thief beside Jesus in Luke 23
Luke 16:19-23 19“Now there was a rich man, and he habitually
dressed in purple and fine linen, joyously living in splendor every day. 20“And a poor man named Lazarus was laid at his
gate, covered with sores, 21and
longing to be fed with the crumbs which were falling from the rich man’s
table; besides, even the dogs were coming and licking his sores. 22“Now the poor man died and was carried away by
the angels to Abraham’s bosom; and the rich man also died and was buried. 23“In Hades he lifted up his eyes, being in
torment, and saw Abraham far away and Lazarus in his bosom.
Yesterday we looked at Korah, the man who went to hell. Today we will meet a second man, called "the rich man" who is described being in hell. Before we come to his story, let us first consider the New Testament teaching on Hell.
Jesus' Teaching on Hell
According to Dr. John MacArthur, Jesus teaches more on the subject of hell than the prophets, apostles and evangelists of scripture put together. (Ashamed of the Gospel, page 64). In my own study of Jesus' teachings on various subjects, it is surprising to see how often he mentions "Hell" in comparison to other topics:
1. Heaven = 34 times
2. Salvation = 21 times
3. Hell = 17 times
4. Love = 17 times
5. Money = 12 times
6. Prediction of his crucifixion = around 10 times
7. Not judging people = 3 times
Further study reveals Jesus' description of hell, which matches the Old Testament understanding but with far more detail:
1. Unquenchable Fire Mark 9:43 compare Num 16:25; Ps106:17,18
2. Everlasting Fire Matthew 18:18
3. Outer Darkness Matthew 25:46
4. Gates of Hell Matthew 16:18 compare Ps 9:13; Is 38:10
5. Place of conscious existence. Luke 16:25-28
6. Place of wailing, weeping and gnashing of teeth. Mt 8:12; 13:42, 50; 22:13; 24:51; 25:30; Luke 13:28
7. Place of constant burning and stench. Matt 5:22, 29-30; 10:28; Matt 18:9; 23:15,33; Mark 9:43,45,47; Luke 12:5
The Rich man in hell
With the full background of Jesus' teaching on Hell, we now come to Luke 16, which represents the fullest treatment on the physical sights and sounds of "hades", "sheol" or as the KJV renders "hell". What can we note about this rich man in hell?
1. The rich man would had been unexpected in hell.
In the Jewish culture, particularly the Pharisees to whom Jesus' was speaking, wealth was taken to be a sign that someone was right with God. In fact, Luke 16:14 tells us that the Pharisees loved money, since it not only fit their desires but also was a big part of their theology of works righteousness. To have a rich person in hell would had been offensive to the listener of Jesus' day. We reading the text may not be as surprised, since the Rich Man is described as living for himself and his pleasures, not evidencing any sign of ever having repented or believed on the Lord for His salvation. Nonetheless, if we would had been listening to Jesus, knowing what we know of that culture, we would not had expected it as much. Like Korah in Numbers 16, we could say the rich man would had been the last person we would had expected to end up in Hell. It goes to show that only by grace through faith in Christ is a person saved from wrath, rather than one's social standing or supposed reputation among men.
2. The rich man was unrepentant. Luke 16:24
This rich man was in agony in the flames of hell. He wanted comfort. Just as he had lived his entire life in "joyous splendor everyday" (16:19), he was chiefly concerned about escaping the pain. Contrary to what many may think, hell is not a place full of people regetting their rebellion against God. In Revelation 16:9,11 and 21 we see God pouring out final wrath upon this earth, a "literal hell on earth" prior to Christ's return. Unbelievers left on this planet actually curse God all the more, giving us insight into the fact that whatever the condition of unbelief in this life, it is only magnified in hell.
3. The rich man had re-occuring memories. Luke 16:25,28
Father Abraham reminds the rich man: "remember during your life". The rich man begs Abraham to send Lazarus to "his father's house, for he has five brothers". The rich man's perpective on Lazarus as the "begger at his gate" had not changed. In hell, the person refuses to change. Ironically, the rich man is now the beggar and Lazarus is in comfort. (Luke 16:25)
4. The rich man rejects God's Word. Luke 16:30
As the rich man and Abraham continue to exchange words "across the gulf" fixed between them, the rich man begs Abraham to send warning to his brothers about the awfulness of hell. Abraham states in Luke 16:29 “But Abraham said, ‘They have Moses and the
Prophets; let them hear them.’ What does the rich man say? Luke 16:30 tells us -“But he
said, ‘No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will
repent!’" Notice how the rich man still believes his way to be better than God's Word. Furthermore, someone else needs to repent, however the rich man never expresses remorse over his unrepentance. Sad indeed!
Why the doctrine of Hell is crucial for Christian consideration
As you read on into Luke 17, Jesus gives further warnings about being on our guard in our faithwalk and not stumbling. In Luke 17:5 we read - "The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our
faith!”
Hell is admittedly a disturbing doctrine, however for the Christian the doctrine of Hell is beneficial in the following ways:
1. It puts into sharp focus eternity and the need to trust in Christ. It should raise the burden to get the gospel to as many people as possible.
2. For the Christian, the doctrine of Hell has the positive benefit of helping us praise God for His grace and to rely ever more on such grace.
3. I'm sure when the disciples heard this teaching they lost confidence in their own self-righteousness and leaned more on Christ their righteousness. Only through Christ can I have confidence before the Just and Holy God.
4. Only in Christ can I have the increased faith needed to overcome adversity and fear. 1 John 4:17 states - "By this, love is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of
judgment; because as He is, so also are we in this world."
Numbers 16:1-3a "Now Korah the son of Izhar, the son of Kohath, the son of Levi, with Dathan and
Abiram, the sons of Eliab, and On the son of Peleth, sons of Reuben, took
action, 2and they rose up before Moses, together with some
of the sons of Israel, two hundred and fifty leaders of the congregation, chosen
in the assembly, men of renown. 3They
assembled together against Moses and Aaron..."
Hell's description in the Old Testament
Numbers 16 stands out as one of the earliest mentions of Hell in the Bible. In nearly 100 places God's Word mentions or refers to the reality and truth of this place. In the Book of Numbers in particular we see references to the wrath of God's consuming fire in Numbers 11:1-3, as well as early references to the realm of the dead called "sheol" or "the grave" in Genesis 37:35. However it is here in Numbers 16 that we see for the first time the bringing together of the basic elements that would define the Biblical definition of the place called "sheol" in the Hebrew Old Testament, "hades" in the New Testament Greek or "hell" as we see it translated most often.
God's revelation of scripture is progressive and unfolding. We learn that in Genesis, the patriarchs used the word "sheol" to describe the realm of the Dead where they believed they would go. The Patriarchs of Genesis were given the revelation of the resurrection and existence of the after-life. (Genesis 37:35; Hebrews 11:19)
Its not until we come to Numbers that we understand the word to be used more specifically to refer to the destination of the wicked like Korah in Numbers 16. In both Numbers 16 and Deuteronomy 32:22, Isaiah 14:9 and Ezekiel 31:15 we understand that "sheol" or "Hades" as it is called in the New Testament is located somehow within the earth and is a place of continual fire. According to Wilmington in "The Complete Book of Bible lists", hell is described by Isaiah 5:14 and Habakkuk 2:5 as a gaping, craving monster. No doubt, Hell is an awful destination and place which finds even further description in the New Testament.
The Man who went to Hell - Korah
As we go back to Numbers 16 we run across a man by the name of Korah who had organized a rebellion against Moses and Aaron. From the testimony of scripture we can term Korah as the portrait of the man who went to hell. Note his traits:
1. He was a religious leader
Now Korah was no slouch when measured by the standards of men. He was the great grandson of the patriarch Levi and first cousin to Moses according to the geneaology of Exodus 6:18-21. Korah was listed among the first listing of the leaders and elders of Israel in Exodus 6:24. He was of the priestly tribe and among those who served in the Tabernacle. Korah's pedigree and prominence would had made his mutiny against Moses and Aaron an unexpected episode in the life of the nation. Station in life and religious zeal does not make one right with God - as we shall see.
2. He was a rebel
Korah's true nature was going to be revealed as Numbers 16 unfolds the events of the attempted coup against Moses and God in Numbers 16:3.
3. He was repeatedly warned
I count no less than five times of Korah being warned by Moses that he has crossed the line with God. In Numbers 16:5 he tells Korah that "God will show who is his, and who is holy". In Numbers 16:7 we Moses' second statement, telling Korah and his band that "You have gone far enough, you sons of Levi!" The third indicator or warning to Korah comes in 16:11, where Moses questions Korah as to why he is rising up against Aaron. This tells us that Korah had rejected the sacrificial system set up by God, since to reject the high priest is to reject the provision of blood sacrifice.
The fourth event that should had warned Korah that he had gone too far was when Moses and Aaron both, in the hearing of the whole congregation, beg God not to destroy the people in Numbers 16:22. Despite that compassionate plea, Korah and his band hung onto their "rights", rather than repenting. The final warning event is found in Numbers 16:26-29, where the word of the Lord comes, telling everyone to step away from the "tents of wickedness" lest "the people be swept away in all their sin". Korah had five chances to turn from His sin and confess his wrong doing, but he, along with his 250 cohorts "stood at their tents", holding their ground so to speak.
4. He rejected God's Word.
Korah's rebellion was characterized by his rejection of God's word through God's man. He wanted what he wanted, when he wanted and how he wanted - the epitomy of a man centered on gratification of the self-life. He along with his followers called evil good and good evil, by even referring to Egypt as the "land flowing with milk and Honey". (Numbers 16:13) Despite the warnings and despite the space for repentance given by God, Korah would not recant nor retract. Thus the sad consequence of hell would follow.
5. Unrepentance unto death led to hell
Numbers 16:33 states - "33So they and all that belonged to them went down
alive to Sheol; and the earth closed over them, and they perished from the midst
of the assembly." The earth literally opened up underneath Korah and all of those who had followed them. The Bible states they literally fell alive into "sheol" or "hell".
Jude 11a-13 tells of men like Korah and their current estate following death - ...."and perished in the rebellion of Korah. 12These are
the men who are hidden reefs in your love feasts when they feast with you
without fear, caring for themselves; clouds without water, carried along by
winds; autumn trees without fruit, doubly dead, uprooted; 13wild waves
of the sea, casting up their own shame like foam; wandering stars, for whom the
black darkness has been reserved forever."
Hell is a true reality that only Christ can save you from
Sadly Korah is right now alive, suffering in torment for His rejection of God's Word and refusal to repent. He, like the false teachers of Jude's day, demonstrated they had never taken in Christ by grace through faith. Hell is a place that is both dark and full of flames. Contrary to what many may think, flames and darkness match the conditions of a major fire. I've witnessed a massive fire in my time and know this to be true. The fact that Korah had lived 1400 years prior to Jude, and was still described as being in Hell, tells us that in hell, the soul is very conscious and very much intact - awaiting judgment.
Romans 5:8-9 states - "But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in
that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. 9Much more
then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath
of God through Him."
Hebrews 4:1 Therefore let us be diligent to enter that rest,
so that no one will fall, through following the same example of
disobedience.
A Warning about unbelief
In yesterday's blog we looked at the episode of the nation of Israel's failure to enter into the promised land due to unbelief. They spied out the land to consider whether or not it was what God said it was. Then they came back with a conflicting report and made a costly choice against God's promises. Despite Moses' intercession for them, the people still rebelled and were cursed - resulting in many of them dying.
The writer of Hebrews recounts that episode in Hebrews 3:16-19. Why had they failed? Hebrews 4:2 says it all - "For indeed we have had good news preached to us,
just as they also; but the word they heard did not profit them, because it was
not united by faith in those who heard." The people never received into their lives God's work for them, resulting in them not pursuing the land He had promised both they and their forefathers. With that warning laid out in Hebrews 3:16-19, we see the exhortation in Hebrews 4 to receive and pursue the following by faith:
1. Receive Christ's Call. Hebrews 4:1-8
Whatever you receive into your heart will determine what you pursue. If you take into your heart unbelief, you will pursue those interests which cater to your unbelief. However if you receive by faith Christ and His interests - your pursuits in life will revolve about Him. Ephesians 4:1 states - "Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore
you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called". Colossians 2:6 echoes similarly: "Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the
Lord, so walk in Him".
To receive Christ means to "take Him along side of me" or "to walk with Him" as we see presented in Colossians and Ephesians. Now here in Hebrews 4 we see the emphasis upon "entering into the rest of God". Hebrews 4:3 describes what takes place at Christian conversion - "For we who have believed have entered that rest". It is at saving faith I by grace am firmly persuaded to receive, take in Christ by faith.
As we noted already, whatever I "receive" into my heart, that will I pursue. Thus you and I need to receive the call of Christ and secondly...
Pursue Christ's Call. Hebrews 4:9-16
With a slight bit of overlap the writer in Hebrews reiterates the emphasis on entering the "rest of God" at salvation, noting that not everyone has yet entered it. (Hebrews 4:7). They need to receive the call of Christ by faith. With that said, the writer states in Hebrews 4:9 "So there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God."
Notice the shift of thinking: Salvation, entering into God's rest, is not only understood as what takes place at conversion (i.e saving rest), now it is viewed from another angle - the completion of it in eternity (i.e eternal rest). Having received and thus begun pursuing Christ, I must also understand that my receiving and pursuit of Christ will continue unto completion in eternity.
Then we see a third way of understanding our salvation or "entering into God's rest" in Hebrews 4:11 - "Therefore let us be diligent to enter that rest,
so that no one will fall, through following the same example of
disobedience." So we see our receiving and pursuit of Christ as a present ongoing activity (i.e sanctifying rest). Are you currently pursuing Him whom you claimed you received? We can summarize the writer of Hebrews usage of this phrase "rest of God" as three stages of salvation:
1). Salvation past (i.e saving rest). In other words, regeneration / conversion / justification by grace through faith. Let me ask you this question: did you receive the call of Christ and thus begin pursuing His call on your life? Have you "entered His rest" (Hebrews 4:3)?
2). Salvation present (i.e sanctifying rest). In other words sanctification or walking in obedience by faith with God. Are you now continuing to receive daily the insights of Christ calling you by His Word and prayer, pursuing Him in obedience and worship? In other words, "are you striving to enter His rest" (Hebrews 4:11)? If you are continuing to receive and take in the things of Christ, then you will pursue his things in an ongoing fashion.
3). Salvation complete (i.e eternal rest). The term for this complete stage is "glorification". According to Hebrews 4:9, there "yet remains a Sabbath rest". As you and I continue to receive and pursue the call of Christ (as urged in Ephesians 4:1 and Colossians 2:6), we will reach the end of our lives and live on in glory with the Lord. (2 Corinthians 5:6). In salvation past, or regeneration / conversion / justification, I'm saved from sin's penalty. In salvation present, or sanctification, I'm being saved from sin's power. In salvation complete, or glorification, I'll be saved from sin's presence.
In eternity, every Christian will continue receiving and pursuing the call of Christ. Once with Him, we will eagerly await for Him to go back to earth, knowing that we will receive a glorified resurrection body like His. (1 John 3:1-3). Our eternal "receiving and pursuing" will have another level, whereby we will have glorified resurrected bodies. The figure below will summarize these three types of rest in Hebrews 4:
saving rest---------------------sanctifying rest----------------eternal rest
As we close today's blog - have you received, and are you pursuing Christ's call on your life? Only what you receive into your life will be the pursuit of your life.
Numbers 14:2-3 2All the sons of Israel grumbled against Moses and
Aaron; and the whole congregation said to them, “Would that we had died in the
land of Egypt! Or would that we had died in this wilderness! 3 Why is the LORD
bringing us into this land, to fall by the sword? Our wives and our little ones
will become plunder; would it not be better for us to return to Egypt?” 4So they said to one another, “Let us appoint a
leader and return to Egypt.”
The Tragedy of Unbelief
What happens when people don't believe God's Word? One word: Tragedy. In today's blog I want us to look at the tragic decision made by a whole generation that rejected God's Word. This decision led Israel to wander in the wilderness for 40 years. Like the barring of Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden following their rebellion, we see God barring these people from enjoyment of the promised land due to their rebellion.
What makes unbelief so tragic? Consider the story of Israel's rebellion in Numbers 13-14 in the following points below:
1. They were to Consider the Promised land. Numbers 13:1-24
God had redeemed these people out of Egypt to not only bring them to Mount Sinai to worship, but to ultimately bring them into the Promised land. God's Covenant with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob had been a promise to both they and their descendants. God was wanting them to possess the promises. However they first had to consider the land - which meant exploring it. They were given the opportunity to spend 40 days investigating the "promised land" to determine if it was what God said it was. Would they trust their reason and opinion, or God's revelation and Word?
2. A Conflicting Report. Numbers 13:25-33
After 40 days the 12 spies returned. 10 of them stated that the land was too big and the occupants too strong - whereas two of the spies (Joshua & Caleb) said that the land could be taken. The ten spies said that it was impossible; whereas Joshua and Caleb, the two spies who believed God, said that with Him all things are possible. Which report would the people believe? The majority or minority report?
3. A Costly Choice. Numbers 14:1-10
Some of the saddest words in Holy Writ are recorded in Numbers 14:3-4 3“Why is the LORD
bringing us into this land, to fall by the sword? Our wives and our little ones
will become plunder; would it not be better for us to return to Egypt?” 4So they said to one another, “Let us appoint a
leader and return to Egypt.”
4. A Compassionate Intercessor. Numbers 14:11-19
God was rightfully and justly provoked at these people. He desired to destroy them (Numbers 14:12). Yet Moses interceded and pleaded for them (Numbers 14:13-19). Remarkably lest God the Holy Spirit had raised up in Moses the desire to intercede, there would had been no intercession in the first place. Moses - picturing for us Jesus Christ - stood in the gap. The people were spared total immediate destruction - however their decision came at a great cost.
5. A Curse. Numbers 14:20-38
Numbers 14:29 says it all - "29your corpses will fall in this wilderness, even
all your numbered men, according to your complete number from twenty years old
and upward, who have grumbled against Me." Reminiscent of Adam and Eve in the Garden whenever they received the curse of God for their sin, the unbelief of those ten spies spread like gangreen through the whole camp - consigning a whole generation to non-entry into the promised land.
6. Concluding Tragedy of Unbelief - Death. Numbers 14:39-45
The people of Israel refused to accept God's sentence. They presumed that they could possess the promise of God without God. To presume means taking God's word out of context, making it fit my context and thus assume I still have His blessing. Unbelief will use God's word from yesterday to attempt what needs to be done today. Unbelief wants the things of God - but not God Himself. According to Hebrews 3:19, the people could not enter due to unbelief. As a result of their folly, Numbers 14:45 tells us that the enemies of Israel struck them down. Tragedy indeed!
How to avoid the tragedy of unbelief
The tragedy of unbelief does not have to be your tragedy nor mine. Hebrews 3 and 4 revisits this episode from Numbers 13-14 and states in Hebrews 4:11 "Therefore let us be diligent to enter that rest,
so that no one will fall, through following the same example of
disobedience." Christians have the scriptures (Hebrews 4:12); the Lord Jesus Christ (Hebrews 4:14) and the power of prayer (Hebrews 4:15-16). True faith receives and pursues what it receives. If you have received Christ by faith - pursue Him! Only in Him can you avoid the tragedy of unbelief.
