Posts

Showing posts with the label Faith

Hold Fast Our Confession

Image
After urging believers to enter God’s “ rest ,” the Letter to the Hebrews presents a description of the powerful word of God. It then returns to the subject of the Son’s priesthood “ after the order of Melchizedek .” Believers must strive to enter His “ rest ” while the opportunity remains - “ TODAY, hearken to His voice .” In contrast, Israel refused to believe the words of Yahweh, therefore, Joshua could not lead the generation that came out of Egypt into the Promised Land.

Enter His Rest

The Letter continues with its analogy to Israel’s rebellion in the wilderness, thereby summoning believers not to make the same error of unbelief and fail to enter God’s “ rest .” In the desert, Yahweh decreed that the generation of Israelites that fled from Egypt would not enter the Promised Land. And so, disciples of Jesus who fail to “ hold fast the beginning of their confidence firm unto the end ” will face a similar fate. They will not inherit the promises of God.

Harden Not Your Hearts

After expounding on the “ household of God ” and demonstrating the superiority of the Son  over Moses ,  Hebrews  continues with a lesson drawn from the history of Israel. During its sojourn in the wilderness, the Israelites complained bitterly against the “ servant of God ,” for leading them to a place with insufficient water supplies. Consequently, God decreed that the generation of Israelites freed from Egyptian bondage would not enter the Promised Land.

Stumped by Unbelief

Unbelief hindered the ability of Jesus to heal some afflicted persons, not the lack of fasting or other ritualistic practices  -  Mark 9:14-29 .  When Peter, James, and John saw the Transfiguration of Jesus on the mount, the rest of the disciples were ministering nearby. But whenever they ministered when Jesus was absent, they quickly found themselves in trouble. And this time, as soon as the crowd saw him returning from the mountain, they flocked to him for healing and deliverance - [ Photo by Zach Lezniewicz on Unsplash ].

Spiritual Dullness

Mark highlights the unbelief behind the inability of both his opponents and the disciples to perceive exactly who Jesus was  -  Mark 8:1-21 .  Despite all they had seen, the disciples remained dull of hearing and ran the risk of submitting to the same unbelief that characterized the opponents of Jesus, especially the unbelief and hostility of the Pharisees. Regardless of his many miracles, they still could not comprehend who he was, the Messiah of Israel and the savior of the world.