DAILY WORD 6/11/20

14. For if we are faithful to the end, trusting God just as firmly as when we first believed, we will share in all that belongs to Christ.

15. Remember what it says: “Today when you hear his voice, don’t harden your hearts as Israel did when they rebelled.”

16. And who was it who rebelled against God, even though they heard his voice? Wasn’t it the people Moses led out of Egypt?

17. And who made God angry for forty years? Wasn’t it the people who sinned, whose corpses lay in the wilderness?

18. And to whom was God speaking when he took an oath that they would never enter his rest? Wasn’t it the people who disobeyed him?

19. So we see that because of their unbelief they were not able to enter his rest.

Hebrews 3:14–19 NLT

Today’s passage concludes Chapter 3 of the Book of Hebrews and the thought that the author is offering to his readers. He has circled back to the point that he made about halfway through the Verse and is reiterating it here to be sure we have it down pat.

This passage is all about the Power of Belief versus the dangers of unbelief. He begins by ensuring that we know what it takes to share in the Reward that Jesus Went to Prepare for us in Heaven.

If we hold fast to our Faith and Confidence in God, like we did when we were first Saved, we will Partake in His Promises for His Saints. This is all it takes to be part of the number that is Granted that Singular Blessing and the one thing all believers are looking forward to. All you have to do is hold on.

However, as simple as that all sounds, this Chapter wouldn’t even be necessary if it were that easy. Look at how many of those that Moses saved from Egypt and brought on the journey to the promised land, and then grumbled and complained when they were in the wilderness, that made it to the Land God had Sworn to give to them.

ZERO!!! Not a single individual that came out of Egypt and angered God with their unbelief made it to the Land of Promise! Why is this? The author makes it clear in the rest of this passage.

It was the very people that God sent Moses to save from Pharoah’s wrath that provoked God and rebelled against Him. Those very same people refused to learn their lesson and continued to sin against God stoking His Furious Anger against them.

Their repeated and unrepentant disobedience caused God to

Swear an Oath that not a single one of them would see even a blade of grass or enjoy a moment of triumph in the land that He set aside for them. Every one of them died in the wilderness as they wandered there for forty years!

They were right there! It was not like the Promised Land was far away. It was only a matter of miles from where they wandered aimlessly for 4 decades. An entire generation of people died because of their unbelief!

All they had to do was Trust in God, Repent of their disobedience, have Faith in His Promise, and cease their grumbling against Him and they could have been there in a matter of days, not years!

But they chose to allow their fears to overwhelm their Faith in a God Who had just brought them out of hundreds of years of captivity by Displaying His Miraculous Power to them over and over again.

This is the danger that the author is warning us about today. If it was that easy for the Children of Israel to fall into fear and unbelief when, with their own eyes, they had seen God Work Miracles to Save them, how much more difficult might it be for us, who have never see God’s Hand of Power first hand, to fall into unbelief?

Because of their unbelief, they were not able to enter into their rest and if we fall into unbelief we too will be in danger of missing out on God’s intended Rest for His Children.

We must hold fast to our Faith and refuse to allow anything, even the very real threat of worry, danger, or doubt enter into our minds, and throw us off the Path to Heaven!

It can be difficult to remain this focused which is why it is so vitally important, as we spoke about yesterday, to have people in your life that are willing, ready, and able to keep you honest about your walk with God and to help keep you on the Proper Pathway.

If we are all facing similar dangers and we are all heading in the same direction, it only makes sense to help each other to cross the finish line by ensuring the requisite focus required to See the Promised Land!

Be that for your friends, for your family, and for the Body of Christ that you know are marching with you toward Eternity. It may be your Faith, your Determination, or your Courage that gets them over the line. But never forget that it may also be theirs that helps get you there as well.

Have a Thought-Provoking Thursday, FB, and Stay Safe out there!