So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief... Hebrews 3:19
I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me. - John 17:23
So do not throw away your confidence: It will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised. - Hebrews 10:35-36
* To whom did God say, "You shall not enter into the rest, the Promised Land, the abundance of milk and honey"? I would have thought it would have been to those who worshiped idols or to those who didn't have morning devotions. I would have thought it would have been to immoral men or to those who didn't offer sacrifices. Yet, in reality, the only thing that kept the children of Israel from the Promised Land was their lack of faith.
This is critically important theology, for the singular sin that kept them from blessing was simply thinking God's promise was just too good to be true. Precious people, you can live the abundant Spirit-filled, successful, exciting, thrilling Christian life if, instead of thinking that God can't bless you because you haven't had morning devotions regularly, you say, "I'm a spiritual grasshopper, Lord. But if You want to bring me into this great land of blessing, I'll gladly go in!"
The sin of Hebrews 3 is singular. It's not fornication, as destructive as that sin may be. It's not idolatry, as sad as that sin in. Rather, it's simply not believing how good God is.
* Truly, the basic understanding of most people is that, because God was frustrated with mankind, Jesus came on the scene to calm Him down. But such is not true biblical theology. Jesus came to earth not primarily for you or me. He came to do the will of His Father. And it was the Father's will to save you.
* Biblical Christianity is not about us. It's not about our prayer. It's not about our devotion. It's not about whether we're good or bad, obedient or disobedient. It's not about how much we pray or how little we pray. It's not about where we go or don't go, what we do or don't do. It's about Jesus' faithfulness to His Father. And our failures only make His ministry to the the Father that much more impressive. "If that's true," you say, "if my relationship with God is not about my prayer life, my worship, my anointing, my ministry, then how do I fit in at all? Am I just a pawn, just a piece of the puzzle in the demonstration of the faithfulness of the Son to the Father?"
For the answer, turn to John 17...
This is critically important theology, for the singular sin that kept them from blessing was simply thinking God's promise was just too good to be true. Precious people, you can live the abundant Spirit-filled, successful, exciting, thrilling Christian life if, instead of thinking that God can't bless you because you haven't had morning devotions regularly, you say, "I'm a spiritual grasshopper, Lord. But if You want to bring me into this great land of blessing, I'll gladly go in!"
The sin of Hebrews 3 is singular. It's not fornication, as destructive as that sin may be. It's not idolatry, as sad as that sin in. Rather, it's simply not believing how good God is.
* Truly, the basic understanding of most people is that, because God was frustrated with mankind, Jesus came on the scene to calm Him down. But such is not true biblical theology. Jesus came to earth not primarily for you or me. He came to do the will of His Father. And it was the Father's will to save you.
* Biblical Christianity is not about us. It's not about our prayer. It's not about our devotion. It's not about whether we're good or bad, obedient or disobedient. It's not about how much we pray or how little we pray. It's not about where we go or don't go, what we do or don't do. It's about Jesus' faithfulness to His Father. And our failures only make His ministry to the the Father that much more impressive. "If that's true," you say, "if my relationship with God is not about my prayer life, my worship, my anointing, my ministry, then how do I fit in at all? Am I just a pawn, just a piece of the puzzle in the demonstration of the faithfulness of the Son to the Father?"
For the answer, turn to John 17...
I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me. - John 17:23
* What if we believed this? What if we really believed that the Father loves us as much as He loves His own Son? We would pray with confidence. We wouldn't have to prove anything to Him or to ourselves. We would be at peace. The repercussions? We would pray more. We would study the Word more. We would worship more - not to earn spiritual brownie points, but just to enjoy our Father.
* Our Apostle and High Priest, Jesus Christ, will not fail - no matter how many times we do - because His ministry is to the Father. And the Father will never frustrate Him.
* Our Apostle and High Priest, Jesus Christ, will not fail - no matter how many times we do - because His ministry is to the Father. And the Father will never frustrate Him.
So do not throw away your confidence: It will be richly rewarded. You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised. - Hebrews 10:35-36
*Taken from Jon Courson's Application Commentary
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