Bodies In The Wilderness: An Object Lesson For The Church (part 3) - [Hebrews 3:7ff]

I've received much criticism over the last twenty years being your pastor and much of it was well-deserved but a few times it wasn't. I remember one time a person said to me pastor mike i've got a bone to pick with you and i said how can i help you.

And they said when we come in for counseling you just tell us what the bible says. And that's all that one i was guilty as charged with. Another time i heard a knock on the door and someone came to the door and they said i live in the carolinas and i've come up here to talk to you.

I've heard one of your radio shows down there and i disagree with it and i'd like to correct you about your radio show i said welcome to west boylston. And my favorite one maybe was during awana. Awana is our children's program awana approved workmen are not ashamed from second timothy and we had an irate parent and so i said please come into my study.

I'd like to talk with you. And they said we cannot believe what's going on at this church. My little daughter's in sparky's and uh... they've had to memorize an acronym for sparky and the s stands for sinner and she's supposed to say that she's a sinner and needs a savior said sir see that sign out there bethlehem bible church i said you know you don't have to bring your daughter to sparky if you don't want to but we're here to teach the bible.

And so if you would like to learn what the bible teaches we want to tell you and your daughter about that because at the center of the bible is the lord jesus christ whose righteousness is greater than anyone's sins.

We want to teach your daughter and you how you can be forgiven in christ jesus. So if you are here today it's called bethlehem bible church take your bibles and turn to hebrews. Chapter three. We're in the book of hebrews this morning i have lots of goals when i preach.

One is to exalt jesus. One is to give you the authorial intent of the bible. And today i want you to keep your bibles open so you can understand the bible for yourself. This tuesday i preach at the master seminary chapel and we have a professor who just went home to glory two months ago or a month ago.

His name's robert thomas and he was a southern gentleman and he would sit and listen to the people preach in the chapel. And if the person went off on a tangent and talked about philosophy or something that wasn't according to the bible he would just slowly close his bible saying to himself i don't need this anymore.

And so when i preach there on tuesday i'm gonna preach for lots of reasons but i'm gonna preach under the goal that if dr thomas were sitting there he'd have to have his bible open. You don't want my opinions.

You don't want my politics. You don't want my economics. What does the bible say. And god has given us his word. It's authoritative it is sufficient. And so we want to expose you to it right. Expository preaching verse by verse exposing you.

The opposite of exposition is what imposition where i just impose my thoughts on this text. Now last week when we were in hebrews chapter three we were asking the question do you have real faith or a fake faith.

There's a saving faith that's a trusting in christ jesus with knowledge assent and trust. It's a saving faith that will bring you to heaven. God uses that as an instrument to bring you to heaven. And then there's a fake faith.

Lots of people say they're christians but they're not. It's a spurious faith. It's a faith that under examination won't get you to heaven. And of course what we want and what the writer of hebrews wants even in this epistle this exhortation hebrews is a sermon essentially written down.

He knew people in the congregation were going to be both believers and unbelievers. And so he encourages the believers and he says to them listen here's who jesus is. I know the temple is over there and it's calling you like a siren song.

With it's marble with it's gold with it's trumpets with it's incense all the tactile all the sensual things that go along with it. And it was fabulous. But the veil has been torn and you have access now.

You don't need the temple. You have jesus christ. And jesus is enough. Don't go back. But there were some people who weren't real believers. And we talked about that last week. There's a fake faith. A false faith a plastic faith.

So my question this morning is this. How do you know your faith is real? If spurious faith is so awful if a false faith condemns. I'd like to know if my faith is real. Would you not like to know? It's hard to know if your faith is real in the sense you can't see jesus.

He's invisible right? He's at the right hand of the father. You can't see him. It's not empirical. How do you know if your faith in christ jesus is real? In this particular section here's what's going to happen.

God is going to use trials in your life to prove the validity of your faith. He's going to test the genuineness of your faith by a trial and giving you this trial so that at the end of the trial you can say yes.

In fact i know my redeemer lives though he slay me. Yet i will trust in him. You probably asked yourself the question before why would god send a trial? Paul was troubled on every side. Jesus had trials.

We have all kinds of trials. Even as charlie said the last six months in our church. It's easy to believe when everything is going well. And even that first song we sang as long as you're glorified. It's easy to say praise the lord when things are going well.

But what's your response when things aren't going so well? The bottom falls out and there's a miscarriage. A grandfather dies. You've got that little gown in the doctor's office. The man with the white coat comes in and says i have some bad news for you on the day of testing.

Does your faith hold up? And when those tests come. Option one is false faith will be revealed. Option two. Real faith will be revealed. Chapter three. Verse seven. Follow along with me. This is our section today.

The Holy Spirit’s Warning in Hebrews 3

Hebrews three verses seven through nineteen. The second warning in these thirteen chapters. Therefore hebrews three seven as the holy spirit says today if you hear his voice do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion on the day of testing in the wilderness where your fathers put me to the test and saw my works for forty years.

Therefore i was provoked with that generation and said they always go astray in their heart. They have not known my ways as i swore in my wrath. They shall not enter my rest. Take care brothers lest there be in any of you an evil unbelieving heart leading you to fall away from the living god but exhort one another every day as long as it is called today that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.

For we have come to share in christ if indeed we hold our original confidence firm to the end as it is said today if you hear his voice do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion. For who are those who heard and yet rebelled.

Was it not all those who left egypt led by moses. And with whom was he provoked for forty years. Was it not with those who sinned whose bodies fell in the wilderness. And to whom did he swear that they would not enter his rest.

But to those who were disobedient. So we see that they were unable to enter because of unbelief. This whole section is very simple. If you just step back here's the section. If you're a christian keep believing.

And if you're not a christian you have no other hope except to believe on the lord jesus christ. There's no other way to heaven. There's no other way for forgiveness. There are not many roads that go to god.

There's one and only it's the lord jesus christ. Last week we looked at the first question to help us understand this section. And that question was is there anything more important in your life than your relationship with god.

Remember the verse in verse seven. Therefore as the holy spirit says today if you hear his voice there was an urgency a seriousness to believe. This is not game playing. Today we come to question number two to help understand this warning section.

Are you tempted to doubt god's goodness when things are going poorly. Are you tempted to doubt god's goodness when things are going poorly. Now so far in hebrews jesus has been set forth as a faithful high priest.

Moses even was faithful. And now we come to this section where the writer is going to use israel's bad example of faithlessness. So you don't follow that same path keeping your finger at hebrews. Let's go to numbers fourteen please as a backdrop as an illustration of what was going on with those in the wilderness those israelites.

This is the backdrop the background for hebrews chapter three verses eight to ten. And the hardening of the heart and the rebellion and the testing in the wilderness. Numbers fourteen. Remember what ron allen said here years ago when he did a conference.

What's the theme of numbers in the desert. There's a lot of sand and god has a lot of time. That's the book of numbers. What old testament narrative was the writer of hebrews referring to. Here's the chapter.

I will make a couple comments as i read it. But you really need to see it in its flow because it's crazy. These people should be believing they've seen god do his mighty works. And they're in the wilderness and they're not trusting in him.

They've been rescued out of slavery out of egypt's clutches through the red sea. Remember mountain on one side mountain on the other side the red sea in front of you and behind you pharaoh's army. And here god saves them through the red sea.

And now they're in the desert. And this is the attitude of unbelief. Chapter 14 verse 1. Then all the congregation raised a loud cry and the people wept that night. Can you imagine two million people loud and crying.

All the people of israel grumbled against moses and aaron. The whole congregation said to them would that we had died in the land of egypt. Or would that we had died in this wilderness. Why is the lord bringing us into this land to fall by the sword.

Our wives and our little ones will become prey. Would it not be better for us to go back to egypt. And you can really sense or you should sense the mob mentality when everybody gets together pushing and shoving and screaming.

And they said to one another let us choose a leader and go back to egypt. Then moses and aaron fell on their faces before all the assembly. The congregation of the people of israel. Can you imagine six hundred thousand men and these two just dropped down to begin to pray.

Joshua the son of nun and caleb the son of jefuna who were among those who had spied out the land tore their clothes. They said to all the congregation of the people of israel the land which we passed through to spy it out it's an exceedingly good land.

We're right there on the cusp of this. If yahweh delights in us he will bring us into this land and give it to us a land that flows with milk and honey. Only do not rebel against the lord and do not fear the people of the land.

For they are bred for us. Their protection is removed from them and the lord is with us. Do not fear them. Chapter 13. It ends. Hey we can't go in there. The people are big. They're goliaths they're giants.

We're gonna get massacred. Verse 10. Then all the congregation said to stone them with stones. But the glory of the lord appeared at the tent of meeting to all the people of israel god's gonna save their life.

And the lord said to moses how long will this people despise me. And how long will they not. Here's the key believe in me. It's all about faith. It's all about trust. It's all about believing in spite of all the signs that i've done among them i will strike them with the pestilence and disinherit them.

And i will make of you a nation greater and mightier than they. I'm gonna wipe out everybody and start over from scratch just like i did back in noah's day. But moses said to the lord then the egyptians will hear of it.

For you brought up this people in your might from among them. And they will tell the inhabitants of this land that they have heard you oh lord are in the midst of this people. For you oh lord are seen face to face.

And your cloud stands over them and you go before them in the pillar of cloud by day and in the pillar of fire by night. Now if you kill this people as one man then the nations who have heard your fame will say it's because the lord wasn't able to bring the people into the land that he swore to give to them that he has killed them in the wilderness.

And now please let the power of the lord be great as you have promised seen just like when moses saw the lord back in exodus chapter 34. The lord is slow to anger abounding in steadfast love forgiving iniquity and transgression.

But he will by no means clear the guilty visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and fourth generation. Please pardon the iniquity of this people according to the greatness of your steadfast love just as you have forgiven this people from egypt until now.

Then the lord said i have pardoned according to your word but truly as i live verse 21. And as all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the lord none of the men who have seen my glory and my signs that i did in egypt and in the wilderness and yet have put me to the test these ten times and have not obeyed my voice shall see the land that i swore to give to their fathers.

And none of those who despise me shall see it. But my servant caleb because he has a different spirit and has followed me fully i will bring into the land in which he went and his descendants shall possess it.

Now the amalekites and the canaanites dwell in the valleys turn tomorrow when set out for the wilderness by the way to the red sea. And the lord spoke to moses and aaron saying how long shall this wicked congregation grumble against me.

I've heard the grumblings of the people of israel which they grumbled against me saying to them as i live declares the lord what you have said in my hearing i will do to you. Your dead body shall fall in this wilderness.

And of all your number listed in the census from twenty years old and upward who have grumbled against me not one shall come into the land which i swore that i would make you dwell except caleb the son of jefuna and joshua the son of nun.

But your little ones who you said would become prey i will bring in and they shall know the land that you have rejected. But as for you your dead body shall fall in this wilderness. Now back to hebrews the backdrop for all this is remember hundred and thirty seven people dying a day for forty years in the wilderness that adds up to be two million people.

They're dying because they don't believe. And now the preacher the new testament preacher he's saying to the congregation let that be an example of unbelief. So you don't go that same path. I don't know if this is true or not.

But could it be these forty years in the wilderness of unbelief. Don't let that be similar to jesus dies around thirty a .d. thirty three a .d. And we're almost forty years after the crucifixion of jesus.

Don't you be unbelievers now. And what does he say in verse eight of hebrews three do not harden your hearts. Harden your hearts. In the new testament means this i'm going to do what i want to do. You ever seen that in a kid.

I know my kids didn't do it when i was babysitting yours though that came over by the way when i first got here everybody wanted to babysit our kids. And i found something out. They would say to the kids like in the back seat.

So what's your mom and dad really like you guys are so awful. I would never do that to you. I'm going to do what i want to do. That's harden your heart. Arterial sclerosis. Harden sclerosis. That's the greek word right here.

One time i was in the operating room and i said to the doctor he was doing a carotid endarterectomy. And so this carotid artery gets filled up with all kinds of hardening plaque. And so i'm not allowed to touch the sterile field.

And i was looking like this. I said what's that feel like. As he was cutting it out. And he said put a glove on. So i put a glove on. And he said put your hand out. And he dropped that piece of hardened plaque.

Goop. It was firm. And i said how do you get that. And he goes genetics and fritos. It's hard. Except this is now hard. Calluses on your heart. You tell me to do something god. And as the created being i am i will just say sure i will follow you.

I will trust you. If a child is supposed to do that to a parent how much more are we to god. But these people out in the wilderness even though they saw the signs for 40 years provision manna water sandals not wearing out.

They're like well we will do what we will do. Don't you tell us. And it all stems from lack of faith. Remember the big picture is believe or not believe. We will not take you at your word. And it's not just a a fancy what's it say in the text verse 8 do not harden your hearts.

Now we tend to think in evangelicalism things like this. We have head knowledge and heart knowledge. That's not the way to think either in the hebrew language or in the greek heart has in the hebrew and the greek it has mind.

Yes it has will. Yes. It has emotions. Yes. It's talking about you as a person a totality of you who wants to say you know what. I am not going to take god at his word. That's what was going on back there 40 years of testing lack of faith.

They're just getting hardened. Verse 9 where your fathers put me to the test. Isn't that fascinating lane translates that through their distrust they're putting god to the test. We don't take you at your word.

Do something else. We don't take you at your word. We're never going to be delivered. We don't take you at your word. We're not going to believe. And they saw verse 9 my works for 40 years. That's a long time to see the faithfulness of god.

And then say no i don't care. Now you know that the preacher in the book of hebrews he's going to be bringing all kinds of his arsenal his preaching arsenal to be saying to these people look how god has been faithful thus far.

Look at your life. I know you're in a trial now. Remember these people in the book of hebrews they were persecuted. They were losing their homes. They're on the run. And this trial is either going to bring out their genuine faith or their fake faith.

Keep believing. Verse 10. Therefore i was provoked with that generation and said they always go astray in their heart. It's not a one time thing. And they have not known my ways. They've stopped trusting in me.

They say they're unfamiliar with me. What's happening here in the book of hebrews. The trial is coming for these listeners. And he's saying remember you've got two options. Keep believing. Or this trial will reveal your unbelief.

And it's going to be just like those in israel. I'd like to say something about preaching and evangelism for a second maybe more than a second. If you tell people come to jesus your life will be fixed.

Number one. Some people's lives don't need fixing. I know people who aren't believers and they have a great marriage a great life great health great trips. Great this. Great job. Great 401k. What can you possibly give them.

Especially if your marriage or my marriage isn't even as good as theirs. Jesus. This fixer come to jesus he'll fix everything. Because jesus when he broaches salvation you better count the cost. Because sometimes when you come to jesus he splits up marriages.

He splits up people. Things get worse. But what jesus does do when he saves you. He gives you the most important thing that you need. And that is standing right before a holy god. Forgiveness. All the other things pale in comparison.

I know god is holy. I know god is just and righteous. How can i stand before him when he requires holiness and righteousness and perfection. And i am spotted with sin. I cannot earn his favor because that's perfection.

But i'm trusting in jesus the one who did earn his favor. And what would you tell these people here. Hey you listeners in the book of hebrews come to jesus everything will be fine. And now they're on their run.

They're on the firing line losing their homes getting thrown into prison. How do you know your faith is real when you're in a trial. After the trial and during the trial you say i still believe. Turn to hebrews chapter 13.

Today as you know i typically try to stay in one passage and not jump around a lot when i hear a preacher. And the only thing he does is jump from verse to verse to verse to verse to verse without context.

I call him an audible preacher 423 1681 914 and off he goes. I just can't keep track. But this is important to see not only hebrews context but the background. And then also what does jesus say in matthew chapter 13.

Something very similar. What hebrews author is after is the same thing jesus was talking about matthew chapter 13 the parable of the sower. And let's just go right down to the explanation and see if you can notice the similarities between the book of hebrews and matthew 13 verse 18.

Please hear then the parable of the sower verse 19 of matthew 13. When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart.

This is what was sown along the path. So the evil one the devil satan comes along. People have heard the word and he takes away the word. It doesn't embed itself in the heart of a person. It doesn't sink in.

These people are stiff necked and they are foolish and they are indifferent. And satan knows that. And they are not going to believe and be saved. But now we come to the heart soil number 2. The seed hits this kind of soil.

And what happens here is hebrews chapter 3 as for what was sown on rocky ground. This is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy. Great message. Great sermon. I like to hear about the bible.

Yet he has no root in himself. But he endures for a while. And when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word immediately he falls away. That my friends is the book of hebrews chapter 3.

Everything is going great. Jesus is god. Jesus is man. Jesus is a high priest. He is the apostle. He is the sacrifice. He is prophet, priest and king. I believe all that. I am happy to know about this jesus.

The trials come and you go. I am not so sure. Or the trials come and you say i am glad i have a faithful savior because i am not faithful. These are people who believe for a little while. But when the chips are down the euphoric feeling goes away.

It is a shallow hearted reception. That is exactly what jesus was talking about. When you are a believer you will certainly persevere. And you must persevere no matter when trials come you will persevere and you must persevere.

If you are a christian let me ask you this question. Or let's pose it this way. God sends you trials by sovereign decree. And they are to test your faith to see if it is true or not in his kindness, in his goodness.

How should that make you now see trials. In other words, here is what happens when i am in a trial. How do i get out of this. It is my first response. Ejection seat. But god takes a trial and then makes sure that my faith is real.

I think therefore when trials come can that be a good thing. Is it a good thing testing your faith. How would you like to go your entire life with a false faith. It's never been tested. And then you stand before god.

And then what. Aren't you glad. Throughout the road of life there are all these tests that come along. And then on the other side of the test you can say i still believe. Now those tests you might fail in certain things.

And you might be faithless sometimes. But you are still believing. You might have anxiety. You might have fear. As i look back and even talking to dave copper with his cancer. You get that phone call.

You have cancer. What is your first response. Trials prove my faith. Yay. Wow merry christmas. My kids are home. I have to tell them now. But the trial comes along and early on you just think i just have to get retested.

I have to get better doctors do i have the right insurance. And all these things. And that is fine to do. I am not saying anything is wrong with that. But all of a sudden you start moving through and you see what god is doing.

And you are thinking. You know what. I am anxious but god is not anxious. I am fretful but god is not fretful. You know me i am not really a bird watcher. But i am a bird watcher now because god says when you are worried about yourself go out and look at some birds.

So now all you weird bird watchers i am you. So i like poetry and i like birds. Ok pretty soon you think it is the grace of god to bring these trials along. Because god is not requiring my perfection in the middle of them he is requiring that i still believe the one who is perfect.

Because friends if you have to be perfect as you respond to a trial and not sin how are you doing. How many sins does it take for god to say. Well you know you are not my child. I unadopt you. I un-predestine you.

I un-elect you. No. Your response is i know this is painful. I know this hurts. But i am still trusting that jesus is god. In those late nights hovering over the computer trying to figure out how much ginger root could i eat to make this go away.

And then finally you should be able to say. And i should be able to say god. I thank you for that trial because it has shown the validity of the faith that you have given me. I thank you for that trial.

Turn a few words to 1st peter chapter 1. We have been memorizing this in our discipleship group. And this is exactly the point of 1st peter trials tested. It echoes hebrews. Hebrews is more of a warning.

If you stop believing you are going to get cut down on the wilderness floor. But the positive side is if you are believing it is proving that your faith is true. It is a real saving faith. Someone asked me this week i would like to know if my faith is real.

I could have told them yes i will pray for you. And i am praying that trials come. 1st peter chapter 1. Remember these people are suffering. This is a bad book to preach through. If you are a word faith prosperity heretic everything is going great best life now.

Kind of stuff. Didn't john macarthur say. If your best life is now then that means you are going to hell. This isn't our best life. And this writer peter he learned from jesus about trials and trouble.

And what does he say. He just extols god. It is just like fireworks of praise. Everything else in the world might be falling apart. These people are even getting killed for their faith. Unlike the book of hebrews where they are just starting to be persecuted.

And peter says what in chapter 1. Verse 3. Blessed be the god and father of our lord jesus christ according to his great mercy he has caused us to be born again. If you don't think god is in charge of salvation you ought to underline those words right there.

He caused us to be born again not just to a dead hope but a living hope through the resurrection of jesus from the dead. And you might lose your inheritance on earth now. But there is an inheritance that is imperishable undefiled unfading kept in heaven for you.

Who is keeping it god is keeping it. Who by god's power are being guarded through faith for salvation ready to be revealed at the last time. And then what does peter say. What does he say in verse 8. Though you have not seen him.

You love him though you do not now see him. You believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory. Like pastor mike you left something out. What else does 1st peter chapter 1 say.

It talks about tested genuineness of your faith. Does it not. Verse 6 in this you rejoice though now for a little while if necessary you have been grieved by various trials. And here we go. It's the exact same principle so that the tested genuineness of your faith more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of jesus christ.

I'm so going to rejoice that god made me born again that even though i have these trials and these troubles and these tribulations they confirm my faith. They validate my faith. They show that it's real because i'm still believing romans chapter 5 please it shows it there as well.

I'm trying to give you a sweep through general epistles. Pauline epistles. The same principle is there that is in the book of hebrews. What do trials do for the christian. They test you unlike the people in israel who are testing god.

Now god tests us and we respond with i still believe romans chapter 5. It talks about it the same way many of us have met as you're turning there people who have said i believe for a little while but then you know there's a lot of people in church that hurt me and i'm going to walk away from the faith.

I believe for a little while but then i got sick. I believe for a little while but it just didn't really work for me. I believe for a little while and then and then and then and then what they're showing you is that's not real faith.

Because real faith necessitates a perseverance. And real faith certainly will persevere. What do trials and tests do for the christian. They reveal your faith is real. Romans 5. Let's just pick it up there since it's such a great chapter.

Therefore since we have been justified by faith declared righteous based on the work of jesus we have all kinds of benefits. What are those benefits. We have peace with god through our lord jesus christ.