Working at resting!
The Jewish believers to whom Hebrews was written were facing important decisions. Did they go forward, following Jesus Christ; trusting Him for their salvation? Or did they go back to their old way of life with its thousands of years of history and traditions? Hebrews has already given them clear, positive reasons for following Jesus.
They have been graphically reminded that Jesus is God’s beloved Son and heir, the creator and sustainer of the whole universe, the pinnacle of God’s revelation to us – showing what God is like and what He expects from us. These early chapters have also demonstrated that Jesus was and is greater than the angels, the OT prophets and even Moses.
We have also been warned of the danger of neglecting or disobeying God’s beloved Son. In chapter 3 the writer was probably thinking generally of the time that Israel wasted in the wilderness, while in chapter 4 he seems to have focussed on the sad instance when they turned back at Kadesh-Barnea instead of going forward to take possession of the Promised Land. Let’s look at that story and see what light it sheds on the passage that we read together.
It is quite a long story which you can read in Numbers 13 and 14. Let me summarise what happened:
• About two years after they left Egypt Moses sent spies into the land of Canaan 1-3. (Don’t confuse this with the spies that Joshua sent in to spy out Jericho. That took place about 38 years later.)
• They spent 40 days spying out the land and reported back 21-25.
• They found that the land was rich and fertile – returning with one cluster of grapes; they carried it between two of them on a pole V23. Imagine a bunch of grapes so big that you need two men to carry it! They said “We went to the land where you sent us. It truly flows with milk and honey. 27
• On the other hand the Canaanites were very powerful, militarily. They were strong; the cities are fortified and very large – v28. They saw giants (the descendants of Anak); and they felt like grasshoppers – v33 in comparison. 10 of the 12 spies concluded:“We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we.” v31
• Caleb, another spy, disagreed – Let us go up at once and take possession, for we are well able to overcome it. v30
• The people lost hope when they heard about the military power of the Canaanites. They wept and moaned. Nu 14:2“If only we had died in the land of Egypt! Or if only we had died in this wilderness! 3 “Why has the LORD brought us to this land to fall by the sword, that our wives and children should become victims? Would it not be better for us to return to Egypt?” 4 So they said to one another, “Let us select a leader and return to Egypt.” Moaning was their specialist subject; they practiced it so often! Are we any better, any more thankful today?
• Joshua and Caleb (the other two spies) made one last attempt to persuade the people to trust God. 7“The land we passed through to spy out is an exceedingly good land. 8 “If the LORD delights in us, then He will bring us into this land and give it to us…’ 9 “Only do not rebel against the LORD, nor fear the people of the land, for they are our bread; their protection has departed from them, and the LORD is with us. Do not fear them.”
• But instead of trusting God the people tried to stone them. 10
• God was angry with them: 11 the LORD said to Moses: “How long will these people reject Me? And how long will they not believe Me, with all the signs which I have performed among them?
• God declared that none of these people, who had seen His glory and the signs which He did in Egypt and in the wilderness v22, would enter the Promised Land. 30 ‘Except for Caleb the son of Jephunneh and Joshua the son of Nun, you shall by no means enter the land which I swore I would make you dwell in. 31 ‘But your little ones, whom you said would be victims, I will bring in, and they shall know the land which you have despised. 32 ‘But as for you, your carcasses shall fall in this wilderness. 33 ‘And your sons shall be shepherds in the wilderness forty years, … for each day you shall bear your guilt one year, namely forty years, and you shall know My rejection.
• The spies who had discouraged the people were judged immediately and died by the plague before the LORD v37. Finally the people understood their folly and they mourned greatly v37. They announced that, after all they would go up to the place which the LORD has promised, for we have sinned! v40. Moses warned them that it was too late to change their minds – the LORD is not among you. 43 “For the Amalekites and the Canaanites are there before you, and you shall fall by the sword; because you have turned away from the LORD, the LORD will not be with you.” 44 But they presumed to go up to the mountaintop; nevertheless, neither the ark of the covenant of the LORD nor Moses departed from the camp. 45 Then the Amalekites and the Canaanites who dwelt in that mountain came down and attacked them, and drove them back as far as Hormah.
They were only a day late, but what a difference it made! They had delayed, they failed to trust the Lord and obey His commands the previous day, and now they were condemned to years of aimless wandering in the wilderness and to die there. Near to, but outside the Promised Land. What a tragic waste!
The Undiscovered Country
What does this ancient history matter to us today? Think for a moment. Has God not dealt with each of us and brought us to this place today? Like the Jews of Moses day we can look back and see what God has done so far and gaze over the border into the uncertain future that lies ahead – a Star Trek film called the future the Undiscovered Country. Of course we are all at different stages of the journey through life, but the principles in the story and Hebrews 3 and 4 apply to all of us.
Moses sent out the spies so that they could plan how best to conquer the land. They brought back a mixed message. The good news was that it was a very fertile land and they would be able to live well there, but there was a downside too! The bad news was that the land was very well fortified. There were machine gun emplacements, barbed wire and landmines everywhere and the soldiers all looked like Rambo! OK, I exaggerate … a bit, but I’m sure you get the picture.
Moses told them to go forwards, but who were they to defeat such well armed and strong troops? Perhaps Egypt wasn’t so bad after all, the food had been tasty – “We remember the fish which we ate freely in Egypt, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic; “but now our whole being is dried up; there is nothing at all except this manna before our eyes!”. (Num 11:5-6) Then they started to get angry. Why had Moses brought them out of Egypt to die fighting giants? It was all his fault! Maybe they should kill him and find a new leader who would take them back.
We can be like that. We hear God’s command to go forwards, but see the difficulties and draw back because we are afraid. But it’s important to know what we are getting into, that’s why God told Moses to send in the spies. The same is true about becoming a Christian. Preachers often make it sound wonderful to be a Christian, but in contrast Jesus repeatedly emphasised how difficult following Him would be:
Mt 10:16 “Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves. Therefore be wise as serpents and harmless as doves. 17 “But beware of men, for they will deliver you up to councils and scourge you in their synagogues. … 21 “Now brother will deliver up brother to death, and a father his child; and children will rise up against parents and cause them to be put to death. 22 “And you will be hated by all for My name’s sake. But he who endures to the end will be saved. … 25 “It is enough for a disciple that he be like his teacher, and a servant like his master. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebub, how much more will they call those of his household!
Paul made similar points: 2Ti 3:12 all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution.
Are you standing on the threshold of God’s Promised Land today? Do you look over the border or hear reports from others so that you begin to glimpse its wonders – love, forgiveness, peace, unquestioning acceptance and heaven? Can you almost hear Jesus calling you on?
Yet perhaps at the same time you can see all sorts of problems. Your family might disown you, friends would laugh at you. You would have to give up control of your own life, your money and possessions. Perhaps there are things about your life that you know are wrong, but you don’t want to let go of them. In many countries around the world becoming a Christian would also put you at risk of being thrown into jail or even murdered and, the way things are going, that may even happen in this country before long.
You look forwards into the Promised Land, but you also look back to Egypt and you can’t decide what to do. You hear the 10 spies report on the problems, while only a few urge you to go on.
The Jews turned back in fear. They forgot how God had brought them out of Egypt and how He had brought them through the Red Sea, destroying their enemies. How He had cared and provided for them in their wilderness journey. Caleb and Joshua urged them to go on, reminding them that God was able to deal with the problems ahead, even though they weren’t. But they turned back. Hebrews warns us that we are also in danger of falling after the same example of unbelief.
Unbelief
It was unbelief that snatched the hope from the Jews. Today it is still fear and unbelief that robs us of rest and peace. Will you let your fear hold you back, or will you trust Jesus – knowing that He has warned you that it will be anything but easy – but also knowing that He will be with you every step of the way to help. We can’t storm the machine gun emplacements or defeat the giants, but He can. His track record proves it.
When they turned back towards Egypt God killed the 10 spies because they had discouraged the people. The people then changed their minds and said, like petulant children, alright we’ll go anyway. God warned them that it was too late, but they ignored Him and went off to invade Canaan. Without God’s help they were thoroughly routed.
What a difference a day makes! That is why it says twice in chapter 3 (vv 7&15) “Today, if you will hear His voice, Do not harden your hearts. God calls on us to hear and obey today, He does not promise to repeat the offer tomorrow. Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation. 2 Cor 6:2. God said Go and they turned back; He said stay and they went! We think that we can choose what to obey and when. It is not so.
It was unbelief and disobedience that kept the Jews out of the Promised Land. It is unbelief and disobedience that still keeps people away from God today. Unbelief and disobedience made them turn back and think that they could ignore God’s warning and go forwards at a time and in a manner of their own choosing. It didn’t work out for them and it doesn’t for us today. Disobedience always has consequences.
God’s Word
We have to come on God’s terms and in accordance with His commands. That is, I think, why 4:12 appears in this context. For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword., piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
I have quoted this verse, and heard it quoted many times, but I have never considered its context before. The end of v 11 shows that the context is disobedience and I think that the real thrust of this verse is that the Jews in Moses day were judged for their disobedience to God’s word – the way they reacted to His commands exposed their unbelief. This is still true today.
It is interesting that this verse describes the Word as having two edges. It cuts in two ways. If we seek to follow Jesus and obey His word it will cut away the chains that hold us back, the burdens that hold us down. Like Christian in Pilgrim’s Progress we shall feel the burden of our sin falling away. Equally, however, this sword will slash out in judgement if we reject Jesus and His word. It will expose our disobedience and folly. John 12:48 “He who rejects Me, and does not receive My words, has that which judges him–the word that I have spoken will judge him in the last day.
In September, 1938, a man who lived on Long Island ordered a very fine barometer. When it arrived he was extremely disappointed to find that the dial was stuck, pointing to “Hurricane.” After shaking the barometer very vigorously several times, its new owner sat down and wrote a scorching letter to the store from which he had purchased the instrument, and on the following morning, on his way to his office in New York, he mailed the letter. That evening he returned to Long Island, to find the barometer missing – along with his house! The barometer had been right. There was a hurricane!
What the Bible says is always true. People may think there is something wrong with what the Bible says, but its diagnosis and warnings are spot on. We may con our neighbours, even our family, but God knows us and our motives thoroughly. There is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account. 13
Today will you move forwards in obedience to God’s word? Will you ask for His help in defeating the giants that stand arrayed before you, recognising that you never could do this on your own? Or will you turn back to live a wasted, aimless, useless life in the wilderness. What a tragedy it is to stand at the border of the Promised Land and to look across, yet never to enter in. For all the costs of being a Christian it is truly worth being diligent to enter that rest v11.
A man started out through a forest so thickly covered with trees that one day he could not see the sun or sky. After travelling for a long time he knew it was getting night time, so started for what he thought was home. He was so certain that his direction was right that he did not look at his compass. But when he did look at it, he was surprised to find that he was going west when he thought he was going east. He was so sure he was right that he started to throw his compass away. Then he thought, “You have never told me an untruth, and I’ll trust you now.” He followed the compass and came out right.
Are you ranked among God’s people? If not make haste today while you still have an opportunity. Let the Word of God guide and direct you or you will remain lost for all eternity.
