So yeah, turning your Bibles
to Hebrew history please. Over the last two weeks we've
looked at two completely different ways that men seek righteousness. A righteousness that qualifies
them to enter the presence of a holy God. In the first week
we saw that to subject ourselves to the law of God in an attempt
to earn that necessary righteousness was to condemn ourselves and
in fact increase our accountability to our God. As Romans 3 tells
us, by the deeds of the law, there shall no flesh be justified
in his sight. In the second week, however,
we saw that the true righteousness, the righteousness that does qualify
us to enter the presence of our holy God actually comes to men
by the grace of God through our Lord Jesus Christ. He, as our
great substitute, was subject to the law of God on our behalf. He fulfilled that law perfectly. By His perfect life and sin-atoning
death, He established that necessary righteousness for all those the
Father had given Him in the everlasting covenant. Today, if the Lord would allow,
I'd want us to consider both the way men access this necessary
righteousness and just what it is that this righteousness secures
for those who acquire it. So our text today is from Hebrews
3 and 4. It doesn't help the chapter division
sometimes because it seems to split it in the middle, but we're
gonna read Hebrews 3, or part of Hebrews 3 and part of Hebrews
4. because it gives us a comparison of the two different ways that
men seek righteousness in this world, and it gives us the consequences
of each. So let's start from Hebrews 3
verse 12. Take heed, brethren, lest there
be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from
the living God. but exhort one another daily
while it is called today, lest any of you be hardened through
the deceitfulness of sin. For we are made partakers of
Christ if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast unto
the end. While it is said, today if you
will hear his voice, harden not your hearts as in the provocation,
For some, when they heard, did provoke, howbeit not all that
came out of Egypt by Moses. But with whom was he grieved
forty years? Was it not with them that had
sinned? His carcasses fell in the wilderness. And to whom swear he that they
should not enter into his rest, but to them that believed not? So we see that they could not
enter in because of unbelief. Hebrews 4, let us therefore fear,
lest a promise being left us of entering into his rest, any
of you should seem to come short of it. For unto us was the gospel
preached as well as unto them. But the word preached did not
profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard
it. For we which have believed do
enter into rest, as he said, as I have sworn in my wrath,
if they shall enter into my rest. Although the works were finished
from the foundation of the world, For he spake in a certain place
of the seventh day on this wise, and God did rest the seventh
day from all his works. And in this place again, if they
shall enter into my rest, seeing therefore it remaineth that some
must enter therein, and they to whom it was first preached
entered not in because of unbelief, Again, he limiteth a certain
day, saying in David, Today, after so long a time, as it is
said, today, if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts. For if Jesus had given them rest,
then would he not afterward have spoken of another day? There
remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. For he that
is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own
works, as God did from his. Let us therefore labour to enter
into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of
unbelief. Sorry. So a text begins with yet another
contrast accompanied by a warning similar to that of Genesis 2. Verse 12 and 13. Take heed, brethren,
lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing
from the living God. But exhort one another daily
while it is called today, lest any of you be hardened through
the deceitfulness of sin. As I said, this is a warning.
It's a warning to those that stand in the grace of God and
trust all their righteousness to our Lord Jesus Christ. It's
a warning to stand fast in the grace of God and not reject that
grace as we did in our father Adam. See, Adam, through an evil
heart of unbelief, he rejected the grace of God in which he
stood. and departing from the living God, he put his faith
in Satan, receiving Satan's poison and relying on his own wisdom
and works for righteousness. Now, every one of us carries
the same poison of Satan in our flesh, and like that body of
death that Paul speaks of in Romans 7, This flesh, including
our naturally evil hearts of unbelief, continually influences
us to turn away from our God and his grace, to rely back on
our own strength for righteousness. In verse 13, this warning is
addressed to the church as a whole. We're encouraged to exhort one
another daily, to remind each other of the futility
of trying to achieve that necessary righteousness ourselves. That's
what it is to be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin, to
reject God and turn to our own strength. Brothers and sisters,
we simply declare the gospel to one another and encourage
faith in one another. Even when we fall, we restore
each other by preaching the gospel to each other, just like we saw
in Galatians 6 the other week. And the last thing we need to
consider in these two verses is this term today, because it's
used throughout our text. Basically, and we'll look at
it a little more closely later on, it's referring to every opportunity
that we get. It's to exhort or to encourage
one another constantly. presently or as often as we can. And why? Because the temptation
to depart from our God and his grace is ever present in our
flesh. Verse 14 to 16. For we are made
partakers of Christ if we hold the beginning of our confidence
steadfast unto the end. While it is said today, today,
if you will hear his voice, harden not your hearts as in the provocation,
for some when they had heard did provoke. Howbeit, not all
came out of Egypt by Moses." See, verse 14 begins with a for
or a because, and here we're given the reason to encourage
or exalt one another daily. The chosen children of God will
be given saving faith by our Father in heaven, because in
the everlasting covenant before the foundation of the world,
they've already been made partakers of Christ. And it's through this
faith that we embrace that reality. Now sadly all creation in some
way has been set to buffet our faith and this is why we're called
to bear one another's burdens in Galatians 6. We're to encourage
one another's faith by reminding each other of the One. However, not all the claim to
be God's people actually are God's people. In Hebrews 11,
we're told that faith is the evidence and the substance of
our salvation. It's by this faith that we hold
the beginning of our confidence steadfast until the end. Now,
Paul reminds us of this same thing in Colossians 2.6. When
he says, as we have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord,
so walk ye in him. We received him by faith, and
we continue to walk by faith. So there are some who claim to
be the people of God, people that claim to hear his voice,
And yet when they do hear the gospel command to trust our Saviour
for that necessary righteousness, they actually harden their hearts
and they reject God and His grace. And they choose to establish
their own righteousness. Again, just as Adam did in the
garden, and just as we all do constantly in our flesh. And how exactly does this provoke
God? Well, the apostle uses the example
of Israel in the wilderness in the next few verses. But with
whom was he grieved forty years? Was it not with them that had
sinned, whose carcasses fell in the wilderness? And to whom
swear he that they should not enter into his rest? But to them
that believed not. So we see that they could not
enter in because of unbelief. To provoke God is to grieve him,
and to grieve can mean to promote anger in someone. So how is it
that we grieve God? We invite God's judgment upon
us in the arrogance as if somehow we've earned a place in his presence
by our own wisdom and works. We grieve God by rejecting his
grace in the Lord Jesus Christ and standing naked before him
in our sins. Do you notice here that sin is
interchangeable with unbelief? In Romans 14, 23, we're told
that whatsoever is not of faith is sin. You see, the greatest sin we
can ever commit against our God is to reject him in unbelief. And why? Because to reject him
is to reject his son. To reject Him is to reject that
covering for our sin in His Son. The robe of righteousness that
we read in Isaiah 61, that's our covering. And that's the
rest that we enter into by faith. Our God is a consuming fire. And to come into his presence
without that covering of God's own righteousness, well, it's
to subject ourselves to eternal condemnation because of his wrath
against our sin. And that's why the apostle continues
in Hebrews 4 to encourage us to rest in faith. Verse 1 of Chapter 4 Let us therefore
fear, lest, a promise being left us of entering into his rest,
any of you should seem to come short of it. For unto us was
the gospel preached, as well as unto them. But the word preached
did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that
heard it. Here we're warned again to fear
coming short of the rest that God provides in His Son, the
Lord Jesus Christ. In Hebrews 6, 11-6, faith is
the only way to please God. It's only by faith in God and
His provision of salvation in His Son that we enter into this
rest. Without this saving faith, given
and grown by our God, the gospel can never profit us. See, the gospel is a commandment
to believe on the name of God's Son, Jesus Christ, 1 John 3.23. But unless God actually gives
us this faith to believe on His Son, that same gospel can only
ever condemn us. In 1 Peter 2, Peter actually
contrasts faith with disobedience. And that's why Paul in Galatians
2 and Galatians 5 encourages us to obey the truth of the gospel. Because to not obey the gospel,
according to 2 Thessalonians 1, is to suffer the flaming fire
of God's vengeance. So with all this talk of faith,
does that mean that salvation is a free will choice of men? If we read on in our passage,
it answers it very clearly. Verse three, for we which have
believed do enter into rest, as he said, as I've sworn in
my wrath, if they shall enter into my rest. although the works
were finished from the foundation of the world. For he spoke in
a certain place of the seventh day on this wise, and God did
rest the seventh day from all his works, and in this place
again, if they shall enter into my rest." God's chosen children
do enter his rest by faith. But there are many that profess
to be Christian that would see this passage as a confirmation
that to rest by faith is a work that all men can do by their
free will. When the saints of God enter
this rest through faith, they're actually resting their whole
lives, both spiritually and physically, In what? In the sovereignty of
our God. The Holy Spirit firmly reminds
us here that our God's sovereign, even over the salvation of men. You see, the Holy Spirit reminds
us that this salvation, as with all the works of God, was finished
from the foundation of the world. there truly is a risk for God's
people. And they really do enter in by
faith. But that faith must be given
and grown by our God. And it's only given to those
He's chosen and placed in His Son in the everlasting covenant
of His grace. All those not chosen of God will
continue in unbelief, no matter what evidence is laid before
them. One of the most simple and yet
most powerful declarations of the gospel is simply, thy God
reigns, Isaiah 52.7. And the reason that it's one
of the most powerful declarations of the gospel is to believe into
this precious truth, is to not only commit our lives physically
to God, but our souls spiritually to Him. It's to become totally
reliant on our God every moment for every intricate detail of
our lives. Verse six, seeing therefore it
remaineth that some must enter in, and they to whom it was first
preached entered not in because of unbelief. Again, he limiteth
a certain day saying in David, today after so long a time, as
it is said, today if you will hear his voice, harden not your
hearts, For if Jesus had given them rest, then would he not
afterward have spoken of another day? There is a rest for God's people
proclaimed in the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. A rest, as
our verse suggests, that they must enter into. And while throughout History,
there are many who enter not in because of unbelief. The gospel
has been continually declared from the foundation of the world.
There's a very real and a very powerful call in the gospel for
all the saints of God. It's this call that draws us
to our God. And it's also this call that
sustains us in his grace. Brothers and sisters, we desperately
need God's grace every single moment of our lives. See, salvation
is a continuous, eternal activity of our God. It's not something
temporal. It's not praying a prayer or
walking an aisle, as some suggest. When we're called to exhort one
another daily, while it's called today, back in verse 13, it's
because we need to be encouraged constantly. And we need to enter
this grace of God's rest continuously. That's what it is to enter God's
rest. It's to commit our whole being
physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually to our great
God. It's trusting Him to provide
all that's necessary for our life here and our life with Him
for all eternity. So what does true rest look like?
Let's look at verses nine and 10. For there remaineth therefore
a rest to the people of God. For he that is entered into his
rest, he also has ceased from his own works as God did from
his. The unbelief that prevents us
from entering into the rest of God, well, it's the same unbelief
of Adam in the garden, isn't it? It's rejecting God, refusing
his provision of grace, and attempting to establish our own righteousness
through the knowledge of good and evil. And as we saw last
week, every single one of us commits this very same offence,
both in our Father Adam and continually throughout our lives. And how
do we do it? by simply trusting in our own
works. However, when we commit our lives
into the care of our God by faith, we cease from trusting in our
own works. We come to rely solely upon the
work of another, a work that was finished from the foundation
of the world. We come to rely on the perfect,
finished work of our Lord Jesus Christ, our great substitute
and saviour. This rest, brothers and sisters,
it's true rest indeed. It's not only rest from our labours,
it's rest for our souls. It's rest from our guilty consciences. It's a rest that gives us peace,
even in our greatest trials. It's also a rest of true comfort
that comes to us by and in the very presence of our God. See, it's a rest that comes from
being in union with Him in His precious Son. In all creation, including our
own flesh, There's a constant, ever-present temptation to reject
God and his grace, to trust in our own wisdom and works. This
temptation, it's far too powerful and far too overwhelming for
us to combat by our own strength. Thankfully, our God's faithful
to his chosen children. Thankfully, he continues to strengthen
our faith. Thankfully, he continues to powerfully
call us in the gospel. And thankfully, our scriptures
are filled with these gospel encouragements to believe. Like
verse 11, let us labor therefore to enter into that rest, lest
any man fall after the same example of unbelief. Every single one
of us, when we fell in Adam, we received the poison of Satan. Every single one of us have the
predisposition in our flesh to subject ourselves again under
the law of God. Every single one of us are constantly
influenced and overwhelmingly, sorry, with an overwhelming desire
to work at establishing our own righteousness. What an irony. The only work necessary, and
yet the hardest work for us to ever achieve, is to cease from
our labours and enter into that rest of God. When our Lord in Matthew 11 said,
The labour there is this work to establish our own righteousness. And why are we heavy laden? Because
it's impossible. And what's the rest of the office?
It's a rest again in his finished work. Brothers and sisters, we're called
in every single gospel declaration to labour, to rest by faith. When Paul speaks of running a
race in 1 Corinthians 9 or fighting the good fight in 2 Timothy 4,
he's encouraging us again to labour, to rest. This is the great battleground
for the saints. It's our faith. This is the focus
of all our enemies. If Satan can get us to turn back
to God's law in unbelief, then he's effectively separated us
from our union with our Father in heaven. Thankfully, the faithfulness
of our God is just magnified all the more the greater our
enemies are. What we have again in this passage
is a contrast of two covenants. It's a contrast between law and
grace. It's a contrast between the righteousness
of men and the perfect righteousness of our God. It's a contrast between
faith and unbelief. Unbelief dwells in every carnal
heart, and it's revealed through the legalistic religious works
of men as they try to appease the wrath of God against their
sin through their own wisdom and works. Now, whether it's
revealed in the obvious religious philosophies and practices that
we see so often, or whether it's revealed in the more subtle errors
like judging sin in society through the lens of the law, the result
is still the same. Judgment, condemnation, and eternal
separation from the living God. Faith, on the other hand, well,
faith must be given and exercised by our God, the author and perfecter
of faith. For the saints of God, faith
is revealed as we trust our God in all situations of life, especially
in our trials and tribulations. As we've seen in our text, it's
by faith that we enter this rest of God. So as we close, I just
want to read some scripture and see exactly what faith receives
and how that relates to this rest of God. In Ephesians 2.8,
we're saved through faith. In Galatians 3.26, we're children
of God by faith. In Ephesians 1.3.17, Christ dwells
in our hearts by faith. In Galatians 3.2, we receive
the Holy Spirit by the hearing of faith. In 2 Corinthians 1,
we stand by faith. In 2 Corinthians 5, we walk by
faith. In Galatians 5.1, we have peace
with God by faith. In Galatians 3, we live by faith. In Acts 15, we purify our hearts
by faith. Acts 26, we're sanctified by
faith. Romans 3, we're justified through
faith. Galatians 5, we receive righteousness
through faith. Now brothers and sisters, these
are just some of the blessings of God that we access through
faith. They're blessings that are common to
all the saints of God. Please read Hebrews 11 at home
at your leisure. But you'll see in there that
there are so many other blessings that are particular and personal
that every one of God's children accesses by faith in our everyday
lives. May our great God continue to
grow our faith. May he sustain us in his rest. to exhort one another and encourage
one another to remain in this same faith. And may we do it by declaring
his gospel as often as he allows. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, what a wonderful
design you have, that you have provided all things necessary
in your Son. And through the process of our
lives, you give us faith, and you grow us in that faith, and
you humble us by that faith, and you remind us again and again
of the wonders of your grace in your Son through that faith. Father, please help us to be
united in encouraging one another as often as we get a chance. Because we fall so easily and
we are so frail in this world. Father, please make opportunities
for us to be in each other's lives and to encourage one another
by simply preaching the gospel to each other. Father, we thank you that there
is a great power in your gospel, and that as your Spirit applies
it to the hearts of your people, you do refresh souls. You do
energize us. You do grow us in the grace and
knowledge of our great King and Saviour. And you strengthen our
union with you, Heavenly Father. So we do thank you for this church,
and we thank you for the preaching of the gospel in the world, and
we just pray, Father, that you will continue to do so as you
please, declaring your word, your truths, and encouraging
your people. And we thank you again and pray
in the name of your dear and precious Son, our Lord Jesus
Christ. For your glory's sake, Father.
Amen.