The Danger of Unbelief
The book of Hebrews is filled with encouragement and warnings
The last time we look at Hebrews the writers showed the greatness of Jesus in comparison to Moses
Moses is most likely one of the greatest servants of God in the Old Testament
But Jesus is greater
But after examining the greatness of Jesus against Moses, he now gives a warning
Examining the history of Israel under the leadership of Moses shows us there are lessons to be learned
They say that if you fail to study history you are bound to repeat it
The word unbelief represents two Greek words that mean disobedience and distrust
When one acts or operates in unbelief what they are doing is rejecting the word of God and instead they are embracing the lie of the enemy
Jesus said we cannot serve two masters and our lives will either be based on the truth of God’s word or the lies of the enemy
But the writer of Hebrews begins his next section looking at the history of Israel and their failure in the wilderness
Hebrews 3:7-11
7 So, as the Holy Spirit says:
“Today, if you hear his voice, 8 do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion, during the time of testing in the wilderness, 9 where your ancestors tested and tried me, though for forty years they saw what I did. 10 That is why I was angry with that generation; I said, ‘Their hearts are always going astray, and they have not known my ways.’ 11 So I declared on oath in my anger, ‘They shall never enter my rest.’ ”
1.A warning is given
This portion of scripture is from Psalm 95
The warning is very clear: Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion
Though these words were written concerning Israel in the past, they still stand today
The believers at this time were considering abandoning Christ
To abandon Christ requires one to harden their hearts to the voice of the Holy Spirit
We cannot lose our salvation, it is a gift
But we can choose to reject the gift
To receive the gift requires faith
The Israelites spent 40 years in the wilderness on a journey that should have taken 11 days
They’re continually complaining and rebellion caused them to wander in the wilderness
Their ultimate rebellion that is found in Numbers 13 and 14 caused that generation to die in the wilderness
They didn’t enter the promise land
The only two from that generation that entered the promise land were Caleb and Joshua
Because when they spied out the land they were the only ones who believed
They trusted the Lord while the other ten spies infected that generation with unbelief like a cancer
They clamored to return to Egypt and stone Moses
But their failure should be a warning to every believer in Christ.
Does God get angry?
The answer is yes
What caused Him to be angry with that generation?
Their hearts are always going astray, and they have not known my ways
Psalm 86:15 But you, Lord, are a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.
God put up with that generation for forty years
He continually provided and they continually complained
One of the greatest signs of unbelief is complaining
For if we truly trust God we live in a place of thanksgiving and praise
But ultimately that generation had hearts that continually went astray from the Lord
2. The solution to guard against Unbelief
Hebrews 3:12-15
12 See to it, brothers and sisters, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. 13 But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called “Today,” so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness. 14 We have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original conviction firmly to the very end. 15 As has just been said:
“Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion.”
The answer given of how to guard against unbelief is fellowship with other believers
13 But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called “Today,” so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness.
We are called to encourage one another
This can only take place as the body of Christ comes together
Encouraging one another will guard us from being hardened by sin’s deceitfulness
Why do people throw in the towel?
Why do they abandon faith in Christ in the face of opposition?
Often when people become isolated they become easy targets of the enemy
When we are in fellowship the Lord can speak through another believer into our lives
We cannot only encourage one another, we can pray for one another
Very Important: We have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original conviction firmly to the very end.
If we are to share in Christ, we must hold firm to the faith we have in Christ
If we abandon faith in Christ, we abandon salvation
Again salvation is a gift
Received by faith alone and it cannot be earned
But when faith is abandoned, we are without hope
3. How the generation of the past applies to us today
Hebrews 3:16-19
16 Who were they who heard and rebelled? Were they not all those Moses led out of Egypt? 17 And with whom was he angry for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies perished in the wilderness? 18 And to whom did God swear that they would never enter his rest if not to those who disobeyed? 19 So we see that they were not able to enter, because of their unbelief.
Three questions are asked/Three answers giving
Question 1 Who were they who heard and rebelled?
Answer: Those Moses led out of Egypt
The Israelites being led out of a Egypt is a picture of us being led out of the dominion of darkness of Satan by Jesus Christ
Before we come to Christ we are in bondage and slavery to the devil even though we don’t know it
The devil is a cruel slave master
But Jesus comes and sets us free by His blood
The Israelites finally came out of bondage when the blood of the Lamb was placed on the door post and the death angel came through Egypt
They were saved by the blood of the Lamb and we are saved by the blood of the lamb
Question 2: And with whom was he angry for forty years?
Answer 2: those who sinned, whose bodies perished in the wilderness
What was their sin?
It was simply unbelief
They hardened their hearts against the word of the Lord
God rose up Moses as their leader and deliverer
God empowered him to do signs and wonders
But no matter how God demonstrated His faithfulness, they continually doubted and complained
As followers of Jesus we have a choice on a daily basis
We can choose to surrender to the leading and guidance of the Holy Spirit
We can heed the voice of the Holy Spirit and live in obedience
Or we can choose to rebel and live for our selfish sinful nature
Obedience isn’t optional as a Christian
Either Jesus is Lord or He isn’t
He cannot simply be Savior without being Lord
That isn’t biblical Christianity
When we come to Jesus we choose to give up all for the sake of His kingdom
Matthew 16:24-27
24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. 25 For whoever wants to save their life[f] will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it. 26 What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul? 27 For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father’s glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what they have done.
We must be willing to give up everything
Question 3 whom did God swear that they would never enter his rest
Answer 3 those who disobeyed, 19 So we see that they were not able to enter, because of their unbelief
They were not able to enter because of unbelief
Unbelief again is a combination of disobedience and distrust
When we live in disobedience we begin to reject the word of the Lord and begin to embrace the lie of the enemy
Our trust is no longer in what God tells us but what the enemy is telling us
It goes back to the Garden of Eden
God has given us His word
His word is true
It is unshakable
Jesus Christ is the sure foundation
Matthew 7:24-27
24 “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. 26 But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. 27 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”
To build our lives on Christ is to build our lives on a sure foundation
But to reject the word of God because of unbelief is to build our life on sand and in the end it leads to destruction
To abandon Christ is to abandon everything
If we have Jesus but nothing else, we have everything
But if we have everything but do not have Jesus, we have nothing
There is a true danger in unbelief and may we daily build our lives on the word of God
May we encourage one another
May we pray for one another
May we stay in fellowship and grow together in Jesus