Do Not Harden Your Hearts — Hebrews 1-3

0:00 Good morning. Good morning. We're gonna be looking at Hebrews chapters three today. Before we start, we'll just ask the Lord's blessing. Our God and our Father, we're thankful that we have the word of God to look at, to study, to have it speak to us.

0:32 We pray father for thy help, for the spirit of god to speak in the message today. Thy word is so practical. But also with solemn warnings. We pray that each of us might hear the voice of God speaking today. For we ask it in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.

0:55 Amen. Amen. Hebrews chapter three. It starts off in verse one. Therefore, so we know that that's tying in with the end of chapter two.

1:09 Therefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the apostle and high priest of our confession, Christ Jesus, who is faithful to him who appointed him, as Moses also was faithful in all his house. For this one has been counted worthy of more glory than Moses. In as much as he who built the house has more honor than the house. For every house is built by someone, but he who built all things is God. And Moses indeed was faithful in all his house as a servant.

1:50 For a testimony of those things which would be spoken afterward. But Christ as the son over his own house, whose house we are if we hold fast the confess... The confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm to the end. Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says, today if you will hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion, in the day of trial in the wilderness, where your fathers tested me, tried me, and saw my works forty years. Therefore, I was angry with that generation and said they always go astray in their heart and they have not known my ways.

2:38 So I swore in my wrath, they shall not enter my rest. Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, 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 have become partakers of Christ if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast to the end. While it is said, today if you will hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion. For who having heard rebelled?

3:20 Indeed, was it not all who came out of Egypt led by Moses? Now, with whom was he angry forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose corpses fell in the wilderness? And to whom did he swear they would not enter his rest, but to those who did not obey. So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief.

3:52 Now as we look at the book of Hebrews, I've been really struck of how logical the writer to the Hebrews presents his message. It's very much like a lawyer would lay out a case in court. It reminds me of the book of Romans. And I tend to believe that the writer was the same of both books. But I won't really stress that because the book of Hebrews has no writer designated.

4:33 Because the glory and the honor and all the attention is centered on the lord Jesus Christ. Christ in chapters one through four is superior in his person. In chapters five through 10, he's superior in his priesthood. We've looked at chapter one a couple weeks ago with the deity of Christ. Last week, Don Morris brought before us the humanity of Christ in chapter two.

5:08 As we come to chapter three, chapter three and chapter four really go together. And they're speaking about the rest that God has for his people. We've looked at the fact that Christ is superior in chapter one and the first three verses to the old testament prophets. He's superior to the angels. Chapter two, he's superior to Adam.

5:38 In chapter three, he is superior to Moses. Chapter four, he's superior to Joshua. And as we look at this chapter, you'll notice that it breaks into two sections. The first six verses is the contrast of the superiority of Christ to Moses, as great a man as Moses was. But from verse seven on, we have this second warning.

6:45 But we're also should be holy in our practice, in our walk. And so as he starts off this chapter, he's challenging his listeners, those that are reading, his readers to a holy life. And he calls them partakers of the heavenly calling. Now as he is speaking about our calling in Christ. It's a heavenly calling and he contrasts that in this chapter with the earthly calling of Israel.

7:24 They were called out of Egypt, they were called to go into the promised land. A land flowing with milk and honey. A land that God was leading them to. And we'll be looking at that later. But he says, consider the apostle and the high priest of our confession, Christ Jesus.

7:47 The apostle, the divine spokesman. That's what we find in the beginning of chapter one. God hath in these last days spoken unto us by his son. The high priest was the end of chapter two, of merciful and faithful high priest. So he says consider what I've been writing to you in these first two chapters.

8:17 Consider, meditate on this one that is above Moses. He says, the Lord Jesus was faithful to him, the father, who appointed him. As Moses also was faithful in God's house. But then he goes on and he says there's there's one comparison. But here's the contrast.

8:46 And he gives three reasons why the Lord Jesus Christ, seated in glory, is so much superior to even as great a man as Moses. In verse three, he says, this one, the Lord Jesus, has been counted worthy of more glory than Moses. In as much as he who built the house has more honor than the house. In verse four he says, every house is built by someone. But he said, beyond someone building a house.

9:24 There's one that's over all that has created the universe and has built all things, created all things. That's God. The son is God as well. Verses five and six, Moses indeed was faithful in all his house as a servant. About Moses.

9:58 And why does the rest of the chapter give this warning about this particular incident that happened back in Numbers. To look at this chapter and to understand that we have to really have a background in the old testament. Numbers chapter 12, thirteen and fourteen, Deuteronomy chapter one and Psalm 95 that this section is quoted from. But we find that as we look at this section, Josh a few weeks ago pointed out that the writer to the old, the writer to Hebrews was someone that was extremely familiar with the old testament. We find references again and again and again to the old testament.

10:55 And these things were written for our learning, our instruction. And while we want to look at the interpretation, we also want to look at some of the powerful applications to our life today. There's some tremendous applications, some very challenging and sobering, as well as some very encouraging applications. But this section from verse seven on is a second warning. We had the first warning back in chapter two, the first four verses.

11:33 And that was a warning against slipping away from the salvation that they had been exposed to and that they had professed to believe. And this warning, it's a more serious warning as well as the longest warning. This warning is a warning against apostrophe. A deliberate turning away, going back to Judaism, going back to the rituals of the temple, the animal sacrifices. All the ritual and the practice.

12:18 All that they could see visually and turning away from the worship of the Lord Jesus Christ as their savior. The man in the glory that we had the privilege of remembering this morning. A deliberate turning back. And that's why this incident from the old testament is so powerful. And we're going to spend some time turning back to numbers.

12:47 Because the nation of Israel made a very deliberate choice. God had given them instruction. Moses was faithful in leading them through the desert. But the people said no. And we're going to look at some of the details of why it was such a solemn choice.

14:06 This section is speaking about the rest of God. The savior says, I will give you rest if you will come to me. Come with your need and we all have a need because we're born as sinners. We've all broken God's law. And as we realize, we can do nothing to merit heaven in our own works.

14:33 There is nothing we can do to pay the price of redemption. But there is one that came from heaven, God's son that we were looking at. He came and we saw that at the end of chapter two. He came to be the savior, the savior of the world. He paid that price with his precious blood on the cross of Calvary.

15:01 Man said, away with him, crucify him. They did. But it was all according to God's plan. He was delivered up by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God. He was the lamb of God foreordained before the foundation of the world.

15:20 He was the only one that could pay the price. He paid it because he was sinless, he was perfect, he was willing, he suffered not only the torture of his creatures. He suffered the wrath of God for sin in those hours of darkness upon the cross. He's a savior that says come unto me, oh you that labor and are heavy laden and I will give you rest. But I'd just like to turn back please to Numbers chapter 12.

16:02 I'd like to look at a little more of the detail of these sections. In Numbers chapter 12, the nation of Israel in the chapters before has repeatedly complained and murmured and grumbled in resentment against Moses. Again and again they complain. They complain that there is no water. They complain that there is no food.

16:35 Moses strikes the rock and the water flows forth as a river. God provides the manna, angels food it's called, as they go through the desert. And they complain about this and they complain about that. Grumbling, complaining. Again and again they turned back and they said, oh we had better food back in Egypt.

17:04 The onions, the melons, the garlics and all the rest of it. We hate this manna. They were rejecting God's provision for them. But now in this chapter, it even reaches a higher level because Moses' brother and sister, Aaron and Miriam, they started complaining against him. And they said, has the Lord only indeed spoken through Moses?

17:40 How about us? In their desire for pride and in their jealousy, they said, what about us? We're just as good. Why is Moses getting all the glory? He wasn't getting any glory, I'll tell you.

18:05 He was getting all the complaints. He was getting all the grumbling. But yet in all that we find Moses did not say a word of defense. He lets them complain, my brother and my sister, they're against me. This whole 2,000,000 or so people, they are against me.

18:29 He just goes on, consistent. Moses was faithful as a servant for God. But then, I think maybe we can kind of relate to ourselves. I think probably if most of us were really honest before God. There are times we complain.

18:55 There are times we grumble. Lord, why am I going through this? Why is someone else getting through life and their family is going along great and I don't think they're serving the Lord as much as some other people who are having struggles. Why is that person always getting the recognition when I think someone else should be getting it? Why?

19:33 Why? Why? You know, I think we need to all check ourselves. I'm not speaking to you before speaking to myself. Are we guilty of grumbling?

19:50 Are we guilty of complaining? Are we guilty of getting our eyes off the Lord Jesus and looking at others? And this is what Aaron and Miriam had done. And so finally the Lord comes down in a cloud and he calls them to come to the tabernacle. And the three of them come out and then he calls Aaron and Miriam and he says, hear now my voice.

21:04 He is faithful in all my house. I speak plainly. He sees the form but not my face. Why is it that you were not afraid to speak against Moses? To speak against my servant Moses, my faithful servant?

21:26 Why were you not afraid? You know, there's a warning here for us not to speak against God's servants. My servant Moses is faithful in all my house. Why were you not afraid to speak against my servant Moses? The anger of the Lord is aroused and Miriam turns leprous.

21:59 You can say, well what about Aaron? Well I think Aaron, if he turned leprous, will no longer be qualified to be the high priest. God in mercy to that nation preserves it. But Miriam turns leprous and Aaron says to Moses, pray, pray for her. She's our sister.

22:25 Moses cries out to the Lord and the Lord says, have her step outside the camp for seven days. And after seven days she can come in and she will be cleansed. But then they go on and they're at the place in the desert called Canaan Shepherneh. And God has told the nation of Israel that they're to go in. And it says here in chapter 13, the Lord spoke to Moses saying send men in to spy the land.

23:01 But that's... We're missing part of the story. If you go back to Deuteronomy chapter one, it was the people's request. Send spies so that we can see this land. It tells us in Deuteronomy one that Moses thought it was a great idea.

23:25 And so finally God allows them to send out spies. It was not God's directive will, it was his permissive will. Because he knew what the land was like and he had told them to go in in faith. But as Moses sends out these 12 spies, he gives them some instructions. Numbers 13 and verse 17 he says, go into the land and see what the land is like.

24:02 See what the people are like whether they're strong or weak, many or few. See whether the cities are strong or small. What the crops are like, whether there's forests or mountains, be of good courage. But why did Moses ask them to look at the people? To look at the cities?

24:27 That wasn't what God wanted. That was man's idea. And you know as we get into trying to instill our ideas into God's instruction, it never works. And that's what we find. Because they go, these 12 spies, one from every tribe, they go out and for forty days they travel throughout the land.

24:57 They look and they see, man this is the time of harvest. They run across this bunch of grapes in the Valley Of Hesco. This one is a spy with you. And he said, now I'm 85 years old. He said, I have spent five years fighting in this land with you, defeating the enemy.

25:26 And if you look at Joshua chapter 10, Joshua chapter 11, we find that as the nation of Israel goes through that land, the promised land of Canaan, they crush one king after another. It's an amazing study to look at those two chapters. And nine times it says there, there are nine references to the Lord fighting for the nation of Israel and delivering the enemy into their hand. And he says, Joshua, you know I'm 85 years old now and I like to settle down. The rest of the nation has gotten their different sections in the land.

26:20 Give me that mountain. 85 years old, he's climbing the mountain. And you know, Hebron was the city where all the giants lived. It was their stronghold. And when he goes up, he kills three of the giants, the sons of Anak.

26:41 At 85 years old, I don't want the plane. I don't want the easy life. I want that mountain. And you know, I'd just like to challenge each of us. Are we ready for a spiritual climb?

27:31 May the Lord give you help. Shall we pray? Father we ask that thou will just speak to our hearts. Help us to keep from wanting to settle down with an easy life. Help us to keep our eye on the Lord and His promises.

27:50 Father, help us to keep climbing a mountain that we might be in service for you. We ask it in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.