Cork Free Presbyterian Church, 10 Briarscourt
(Annex) Shanakiel, Cork, Ireland
Pastor: Colin Maxwell. Email: colin.maxwell@fpcmission.org
Third in a series of 8 messages
READ: HEBREWS 3:1-19 v6 HOLD FAST OUR PROFESSION 3/8
But Christ as a son over his
own house; whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and the
rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end.
God makes all things work together for good to those who love Him and who are the called according to His purpose (Romans 8:28)
Even things that don't look good and aren't good!
Whole context/Book of Hebrews: A significant number of professing
Hebrew Christians were being tempted to return back to Judaism with its
emphasis on salvation by works and Jewish rituals etc.,
It is evident from tone/book that Paul is playing the part of the persuader:
Persuading them by many different arguments to stay where they are i.e. in NT Christianity
While this produces some warning passages (notably: 6:4-6/10:26-31)
Yet it also produces many fine, doctrinal, heart warming passages also
where Paul excels himself in showing us how much we have in Christ
Humanly speaking…had the Hebrew Christians not have wavered, we would not have had this book written
A great example: Romans 8:28
In Hebrews 3 here, Paul counters the imbalanced notion that the Jews had about their great hero/leader Moses
Please notice: Paul did not rubbish Moses in any way
He praises him in v4 and again, later on, he gives him more mention than any other individual in 11:23-28
Moses was one of Paul's heroes - He had been reared on his exploits
But he does point out the necessary limitations of Moses and the greater glory of Christ in the same passage
Moses was a faithful servant in the house - no doubts about this
But far better still: Christ was a Son over His own house
And (with all due respect) this leaves Moses in the shade
Why follow Moses (and it actually wouldn't even be a true following of
Moses: John 5:45-47) when you can follow the Son of God Himself?
In our text, we are said to be the house/greater Christ if we hold fast
to the confidence and rejoicing of the hope firm to the end
There is always an "if" in these things
Some Hyper Calvinists don't seem to like this word "if"
They say, it implies creature power - the "human veto" over God
That is an imbalanced look at Scripture
God uses the "if's" to keep us on our toes and to prevent us being deluded by presumption rather than being lifted up by faith
Don't be afraid of the "if's" of Scripture - they are there to help
5 things in our text which encourage us to hold fast
1) THE HOUSE WE ARE:
Paul here is referring to the people/God (The Church) as a house
Many pictures given in NT:- Bride/vine/body etc., but here as a
household (so translated x3 including Lydia's household Acts 16:15)
B/ Very apt picture for many reasons:
[i] God's people have been born into this household (John 3:1-7)
[ii] We have also come into: household/family by faith (John 1:12-13)
[iii] These things being so, we have the same Heavenly Father
[iv] We have the same Elder Brother i.e. the Lord Jesus Christ
[v] We have the same Counsellor i.e. the Holy Spirit
[vi] There is an overall unity in the household - otherwise: Luke 11:17
[v] There are great responsibilities in the household: Malachi 1:6
It is true that the term "household" may also take in the thought of servants (slaves) within the household
Again: a very apt picture (Bible often employs conflicting pictures to denote a different aspect)
[i] We have been purchased out of a horrible slave market
[ii] We were purchased at a tremendous price
[iii] The entire needs of the servant/slave fell upon his Master
[iv] We have been saved to work for our Master's glory
[v] We will be graciously rewarded for what we do for His glory
[vi] We fall into that sad category of being an unprofitable servant
C/ So we are the household of Jesus Christ
He is the Son over His house - the heir of all things (1:2)
Moses was but a servant in that house - answerable to the Son
And so are we - for we are the servants of Jesus Christ
2) THE HOPE WE HAVE:
if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope
A/ Always needful to remind you: Hope/Bible is sure/certain
Do not confuse it: that anxious, uncertain, often unlikely, hankering which can leave the aspiring one deeply disappointed
Immediate context: Would this thought be likely to woo back those wavering Hebrews who were feeling the pressure big time?
Again (context) How can you reconcile such "hope" with "confidence?"
Again (context) How could you rejoice in such a hope?
All negative answers - Hope the Bible always means certainty
B/ Let's see a few things about this hope which we have:
Could fill up the rest/time with a concordance - just a few samples:
[i] It is a hope that comes from God: "God of hope" (Romans 15:13)
All other sourced hopes will be dashed, including the hypocrite's hope (Job 8:13) Again thought: presumption is not faith
But hope/text with all its confidence/rejoicing flows from God
Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and stedfast, and which entereth into that within the veil; (6:19)
[ii] This hope is sustained by God - we do not lose it
May lose the sense of it and the joy of it etc., but the hope itself, if genuine, is sustained by God
It is sustained by God through means, hence this letter/waverers
For whatsoever things were written
aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and
comfort of the scriptures might have hope. (Romans 15:4)
Prayer is another means/grace - all given to sustain this hope
[iii] This hope leads to God:
For we are saved by hope: but hope
that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope
for? (Romans 8:24)
This is the end of all our hope and faith: So shall we ever be with the Lord (1 Thessalonians 4:17)
C/ This hope/confidence etc., is ours in Jesus Christ
In 1 Timothy 1:1 Christ is declared to be our hope
We can only rightly hope as those hopes are centred in Him
All that He is - All that He has done, is doing and will yet do is the target of our hope/confidence
Such hope is built on the knowledge of Him - in both sentences
[i] We must know about Him (i.e. as revealed/Bible)
[ii] We must know Him personally, having acted upon the knowledge and received Him as our Lord/Saviour
D/ This is why we reject the ecumenical movement which encourages
unsaved people, who are without God and without hope, to have hope
Not in the evangelical sense/word in inviting them to faith/Christ, but
in the wicked sense/word of telling the unregenerate that they are
already Christians by virtue of their baptism/good works etc.,
That is cruelty wrapped up in professed tolerance/kindness
We think it better to take the false charge/bigotry but be faithful to the people's souls and tell them the truth in love
E/ What a hope we have! Judaism could not provide this hope
Judaism is built on a works religion and such can never give a man such
hope - for he is ever conscious that he has not done enough
(He hasn't…and never can…only Christ can do the necessary work)
3) THE HOUR WE APPROACH: the hope firm unto the end
A/ This "end" is either unto death or the end/age
(whatever comes first) for such will be the culmination of our hope
He that endureth to the end shall be saved (Matthew 10:22)
Be thou faithful/death, I will give thee the crown/life (Revelation 2:10)
B/ We are to consider our Christian faith to be a lifelong matter
I believed this the day I was saved - Under no illusions about it
C/ We are to maintain this hope through all those means which God has
given us to do so, without falling away (like Hebrews proposed)
I know this thought is pretty scary
We are painfully aware of many falls in the past - are rightly afraid
of the many varied temptations of the Devil in the present/future
Will we withstand the Devil successfully to the very end?
Will be successfully steer our little battered ship into the great
harbour - almost broken with the winds/rain, but safe nevertheless?
I believe that every true child/God will
Just as he that perseveres/end will be saved, so too he that is saved
will persevere unto the end. Some men have problems with that hymn:
Saved while to Thee we cling, but I do not share their concerns, except that it may be misinterpreted (like these texts/NT)
Will we hold out/hold on and be saved?
Yes! Here's how…
4) THE HOLD WE MAINTAIN: hold fast the confidence
A/ We do not let go of our doctrine as to who Christ is
Hebrews were in danger of forsaking the doctrine of Jesus/Messiah
Judaism wouldn't take them back if they still held to it, because if it
were true, then they had crucified their Messiah (Acts 2:22-23)
They would have also to give up the Resurrection doctrine etc., and the Second Coming etc.,
Leading them to jettison every fundamental saving truth
So we hold these things tight, even when others deny them
You cannot have any hope/confidence/rejoicing without these truths:
The gospel truth is the truth that sets us free (John 8:32)
B/ We do not let go of those holy/sacred practices which are the means to this end:
[i] Scriptures (as implied in 4:2)
[ii] Prayer (as implied in Hebrews 13:18)
[iii] Assembling of ourselves (as exhorted: 10:25)
C/ Must of all, which is the key to the rest, we keep looking unto Jesus (12:2)
No matter what happens to us, we look to Him
Through good report and bad - through sunshine/rain - in life or in death - at whatever cost, we say:
My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus' blood and righteousness etc.,
If we do this, then we will persevere unto the end and be saved
Might be many falls on along the way…but we will get up and follow on
5) THE HARDNESS WE AVOID:
A/ Really takes us into next few verses but context is important
Do all to keep your heart tender towards God
Sin hardens/coarsens the heart
Seek to be holy, for without such holiness, no man shall see the Lord (Hebrews 12:14)
Hold fast etc.,
THE END