Nursery Duty (Part 3)

All right, if you would take
your Bibles and turn to the book of Hebrews once again. We have
transitioned from chapter five into chapter six, and it’s there
that we will begin. We are in the midst of considering
these enduring admonitions, admonitions that were issued for first century
believers living in Jerusalem, most of whom were Jewish converts
to the faith, but We call them enduring admonitions because
they are for us. We’ve considered three already. We’re in the midst of considering
a fourth admonition. The first three were that if
we are to glorify Christ in great trial, we must listen to the
one who is greater than angels. That’s the issue that the writer
addresses in the first two chapters of Hebrews that Christ is better
than angels, and because of that, we must heed and pay closer attention
to his words. Secondly, if we’re going to glorify
Christ in great trial, we must come to the one whose salvation
is greater than Moses. This was the subject of chapters
three and four. where Christ was presented as
better than Moses, his ministry, his salvation, better than Moses. And that led us to the third
point that not only is Christ better than Moses, he is better
than Aaron. And because of that, we are to
come to the throne of grace. We are not forbidden. In fact, we are commanded to
come. to the throne of grace because Christ, our high priest,
was better than Aaron’s priesthood. We’re in the midst of considering
the fourth, as I mentioned, that if we are to glorify Christ in
great trial, we must become spiritual adults. Now, I can’t take the
time to review that entire section this morning, but the argument
began in chapter 5, verse 11, where the author pointed out
a dearth of spiritual maturity. He was actually disappointed
that he, as he looked out over the landscape of the Jerusalem
church, the church for which he was concerned, he noticed
a tendency that there was a distinct spiritual immaturity that was
present there in that church. And so having pointed out a dearth
of spiritual maturity in verses 11 through 14 of chapter 5, he
begins to turn his attention to encouraging them to pursue
spiritual maturity, beginning in chapter 6. This is where we
were last Lord’s Day, and in chapter 6, verses 1 and 2, he
simply states very carefully the need the intention that we
should have in pressing on to spiritual maturity. He says in
verse one, therefore, leaving the elementary teaching about
the Christ, let us press on to maturity. Then he goes on to
tell us all of those elements of basic Christianity, Christianity
101 as we referred to it, repentance and faith and instruction about
washings. there in verse 2. Well, having
laid that foundation, this persuasion to spiritual maturity, and this
intention that he states in verse 3, this we will do if God permits,
He then gives one of the greatest motivations to spiritual maturity
that we would ever receive. And when I say great, it isn’t
pleasant to read, but it is a strong admonition. It is a strong illustration
of those who ultimately fell away. And so he horrifically
contrasts the true believer that presses on in faith to maturity
in contrast with those who are casual about what they do, they’re
careless about their soul, and ultimately they fall away. That
illustration is in verses four through eight, and essentially
that’s where we left off last Lord’s Day. And so we come to
chapter six, verse nine, where there is a strong contrast here
in verse nine. He has just given us this horrific
illustration of those who fall away, but he says in verse 9,
but, and he inserts that strong contrast to circle back to his
readers. Remember, we had already seen
that he isn’t talking about his readers having fallen away. He
is appealing to them, warning them, lest they do fall away. But in chapter six, verse nine,
he says to them, we are convinced of better things concerning you. He had hopes for the believers,
and I would have you pick up with me beginning in verse nine,
and we’ll course all the way down to the end of the chapter
as we conclude this portion this morning. where the writer writes, but
beloved, we are convinced of better things concerning you
and things that accompany salvation, though we are speaking in this
way. For God is not unjust so as to forget your work and the
love which you have shown toward his name in having ministered
and in still ministering to the saints. And we desire that each
one of you show the same diligence so as to realize the full assurance
of hope until the end, so that you will not be sluggish, but
imitators of those who, through faith and patience, inherit the
promises. For when God made the promise
to Abraham, since he could swear by no one greater, he swore by
himself, saying, I will surely bless you, and I will surely
multiply you. And so, having patiently waited,
he obtained the promise. For men swear by one greater
than themselves, and with them an oath given as confirmation
is an end of every dispute. In the same way, God, desiring
even more to show to the heirs of the promise the unchangeableness
of his purpose, interposed with an oath two unchangeable things,
so that so that by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible
for God to lie, we who have taken refuge would have strong encouragement
to take hold of the hope set before us. This hope we have
as an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and steadfast, and
one which enters within the veil where Jesus has entered as a
forerunner for us. having become a high priest forever. If you would circle back to verse
nine, as we begin to consider this final section of the great
subject of spiritual maturity began back in chapter five, verse
11, we’ll bring it home today, beginning with this consideration
of his persuasion to maturity, which is now lovingly encouraged. He had used this horrific illustration
previously as a means of motivating his readers to consider their
own walk by presenting to them an example of those who fell
away. But now he takes a much more loving approach, and they
are lovingly encouraged to pursue spiritual maturity. Begin, if
you would, look at verse nine. this faithful friend, so faithful
that he issues one of the strongest warnings in all of scripture,
but also such a friend that he is almost stunned by his own
illustration, by his own admonition in verses four through eight.
His letter, his words have come from a heart of love for these
friends, but he could not bear that they would bear the full
weight of this warning. That could lead some to hopelessness. And so suddenly he reverts from
this alarming tone that he has established in verses four through
eight, and he returns to the tone of a loving friend. And
note that he calls them beloved. But beloved, we are convinced
of better things concerning you.” His overall opinion of them is
positive. He fully believes that they will
rise to the challenge, to heed his appeal. He is convinced of
it. He thinks better of them. He
hopes better of them and from them and for them. And not just
in some general way, but in line with the very subject of this
entire epistle, their salvation. He is convinced of their salvation. He is hopeful of their salvation. He was convinced that they would
heed the warning that he has provided, that they would attend
to his encouragements and that in the end they would be found
spiritually mature. And he gives the reason for this
in verse 10. For God is not unjust so as to
forget your work and the love which you have shown toward his
name in having ministered and in still ministering to the saints.
He finished this point with his reasoning. His explanation for
his confidence. Why was he so sure about the
Hebrew converts to Christianity living in Jerusalem? Why did
he trust so much that they would end up persevering to Christ?
His explanation is based on the kind deeds, their labor of love
that was shown to their fellow believers. Those kindnesses,
he says, are a proof of God’s work in them, God’s grace working
through them. There is no merit due to them
for these kindnesses. It’s not that they were in the
process of earning their salvation, but at at the core of his reasoning
is grace, God’s grace. And he says that God’s grace
at work within them was proof. a strong indicator of the fact
that God had already begun and would complete his work in them. He knew that God, in his mercy
and grace, would not be so cruel as to bar them just simply because
of their sluggishness. We’ll come back to that thought
in a moment. After all, he had already begun to pour forth His
grace in them and through them. It was God’s grace at work, so
He couldn’t forget that. God wouldn’t overlook His work
of grace coursing through them. After all these works, These
kind deeds done to their brothers and sisters in Christ were done
in his name. And as Jesus said, to the extent
that you did it to one of these brothers of mine, even to the
least of them, you did it to me. A drink of water, clothing,
food. And so our friend, this dear,
loving friend, having issued this strong exhortation, gives
them a confident outlook. He believed that God was at work
in them. He believed that God would sustain
them and carry them through to completion. And he turns to the
final section. And in verses 9 all the way through
verse 20, we basically have one point. It is a longing for completion. He’s in the midst of persuading
them, but it is a longing for completion that he has in view
in these final words of this section. First of all, look at
his exhortation to laying hold of the hope of promise. We find
it in verse 11, where he says, and we desire that each one of
you show the same diligence so as to realize the full assurance
of hope until the end, so that you will not be sluggish, but
imitators of those who, through faith and patience, inherit the
promises. Well, he wants to urge upon them
not only a confident outlook. I mean, that would help to have
somebody look at you and say, I think you’re going to be just
fine. I think you’re going to make it. But our writer here
will close this challenge of what we’ve already noted was
debilitating immaturity in the church. He will close this challenge
with a final element of persuasion to spiritual maturity. His final
point expresses a longing on his part for these believers
to complete their Christian journey. And note right off the bat here
that like a good shepherd, he has each one of them in mind. This universal concern for these
friends has been evident throughout this letter, but look at it here.
We desire that each one of you He wasn’t willing to lose even
a single sheep. Throughout this letter that has
been the sustained concern of this writer, Hebrews chapter
three, verse 12. Just think back with me, take
care brethren that there not be in any one of you. an evil,
unbelieving heart that falls away from the living God. Hebrews
4 verse 1, therefore let us fear if while a promise remains of
entering his rest, any one of you may seem to come short of
it. Again, in the same chapter, verse 11, 411, therefore, let
us be diligent to enter that rest so that no one will fall. This writer was interested just
as the savior is in each individual believer. There wasn’t any believer
that he was willing to let wander away without appealing to them. with everything in his heart.
And so his great desire for them, he expresses in a single word,
full assurance that they would come to the finish line of their
Christian race. He desires not that they would
spend a life of uncertainty, kind of vacillating here and
there between a measure of faith pressed in intermittently by
discouragement and doubt. It could be that this full assurance
was waning on the part of some of these believers, doubt was
setting in, or it could be that they’d never really arrived at
this level of confidence in their faith. Either way, it is a concern
for this friend, this writer of Hebrews. This was obviously
a significant concern for him, for this faithful friend, Because
he returns to it again and again throughout this epistle. In chapter
10, he says, let us draw near with sincere heart in full assurance. He wanted them to have absolute
confidence in their Christianity. One of the things that thrilled
the heart of Paul was knowing that his churches had reached
this level of spiritual confidence. In 1 Thessalonians 1 5, which
passage we looked at some months ago, he says, our gospel did
not come to you in word only, but also in power and in the
Holy Spirit and with full conviction, same word, He says it in more
hopeful terms, prayerful terms to the Colossians. Colossians
2.2, he said that their hearts may be encouraged, having been
knit together in love, attaining to all the wealth that comes
from the full assurance, same word, of understanding. He prayed
that the Colossians would come to that point, just like these
Hebrew believers. Likewise, there in 1 Thessalonians 1, these
were those that had already come to know this great truth. And so Paul says to them that
they came in great confidence in the gospel. They weren’t doubtful. just crossing their fingers,
hoping that this message worked, they came with great confidence
and preached the gospel. And as one said, the inborn assurance
with which the believers accepted it, combined with the spirits
in working and the powerful utterance entrusted to them, were a sign
that they were, in their audiences, those whom they could soon recognize
as God’s elect. In other words, what he says
is that as Paul and his friends went about preaching, the reception
was so strong, so powerful, their assurance was so palpable that Paul and his companions
were confident that they were the very chosen, the elect of
God, And so, likewise, the writer of Hebrews desires that same
sentiment. He desires that the Christians
to whom he writes should live a Christian life of full assurance. He wanted that they would enjoy
a life of confident faith. But they must know that this
confidence would not come by osmosis, that it wouldn’t come
just by his own prayer wishes. Rather, it comes by sheer diligence,
sustained and focused effort. This word diligence is translated
occasionally in a manner that we might not even pick it up.
In Luke 139, it’s translated as in a hurry. Mary arose and
went in a hurry. But typically, it is translated
as diligence. And many times in the New Testament,
not the least of which is 2 Peter 1, where the whole encouragement
is to growth in Christianity. And there at the outset, he says,
now for this reason also applying all diligence. And so this diligence
speaks of a thing that is done with earnestness, with attention,
with intention, with zeal, as opposed to some careless, lazy,
half-hearted effort. And so it intends not so much
to speak about the speed with which something is undertaken,
but the urgency with which we take up a task, earnestness as
it’s often translated. And so these believers, as he’s
already noted, in measures had shown diligence, they had shown
diligence in serving their fellow believers, as the writer has
already noted, and that God would not forget those kindnesses,
but he says they must apply the same kind of diligence in the
pursuit of their maturity in the faith. One writer commended
here that their public life and their public spirit were exemplary.
And if the same steadfastness and resolution only marked their
inner life, if they were only as zealous about reading the
word, only as zealous about praying, only as zealous about developing
convictions. To explain the opposite of diligence,
a writer returns to a word that he had used earlier in this same
discussion. Remember the word dull? They
were like dull knives in a drawer. He challenged his readers at
the outset of this discussion with his assessment that they
had become dull of hearing. They were trending towards dullness
or the word translated here as sluggishness. This must be overcome
by means of diligence in their Christian walk. It must become
intentional. It must become a priority in
their life. Their tendency towards indolence,
laziness, and spiritual neglect must be overcome. They, like
we, must battle against the flesh in order to conquer their own
inclination towards spiritual apathy and sloth. They must be diligent. And he
rounds out verse 12 by calling attention to the fact that they
do have godly examples after whom they can pattern their lives.
They are to become imitators of those who inherited the promises. Now, as you know, our writer
will go on in chapter 11, the great hall of faith. One by one,
he’ll go on to speak at many lengths about many saints of
old who took God at his word, who walked in faith and in confidence
of God’s faithfulness to his word, that he would fulfill his
promises. They took him at his word and
lived accordingly. And they waited patiently. We, he says, are to follow their
example. Scripture makes no apologies
for encouraging Christians to imitate one another. We are called
not only to be examples, we are called to follow examples. Here’s
just a few. 1 Corinthians 4, 16, therefore
I exhort you, be imitators of me, says Paul. To the Philippians,
he said, brethren, join in following my example. Later in 1 Corinthians
11, be imitators of me just as I am of Christ, and that is key. As Christ was Paul’s example,
Paul would be his Churches example first Thessalonians
1 6 you became imitators of us and of the Lord and so the Thessalonians
Were copying Paul, but ultimately they were living lives that exemplified
Christ their imitation of Paul and his friends was actually
an imitation of the Lord Jesus himself And here, the particular
examples are these compound virtues of faith and patience. This was
the great end, our writer urges, that the saints of old laid hold
of these things which God had promised them. They accepted
the promise of them in faith. since they were not received
immediately. And the patience he mentions
here, which is essentially an attribute of God himself and
of God, often translated as long-suffering. In other words, God’s people
received these promises in faith and set about in long-suffering,
patient endurance, waiting for the fulfillment of these promises. Scripture speaks plentifully
about God’s patience. First Peter 3.20 speaks about
the patience of God. First Timothy 1.16, Jesus Christ
might demonstrate his perfect patience. But God expects patience
of his people as well. And by the power of the Spirit,
believers are to cultivate the grace of patience, particularly
when it comes to receiving the promises of God. They are to be examples of patience. Ephesians 4.2 speaks of patience
with regards to our fellow believers showing tolerance for one another
in love. 1 Thessalonians 5 urges us to
be patient with everyone. Well, if we should be patient
with everyone, all of our fellow believers, one another, As Paul
says in Ephesians 4-2, shouldn’t we be especially patient with
God? If God has made a promise to
us, we can take him at his word in faith, but we must exercise
patience in the reception of that promise ultimately. We cannot please God. Our writer hints here. with childish temper tantrums
or feelings of hopelessness. We would call this hope deferred. But it’s a promise, delayed or
deferred, but it’s not doubted. It’s not an empty promise, as
our writer will go on to prove. It’s an assured future enjoyment
of a promise that God himself has made. But I want you to notice
one last thing in these verses, verses 11 through 12. We desire
that each one of you show the same diligence so as to realize
the full assurance of hope until the end. There were many attempts, good
attempts. There were many good statements on some of these elements
of this passage. One said it very effectively
this way, faith is the belief of what God reveals respecting
the way of salvation. Now, anybody who has placed their
faith in Christ, they’ve already done that. But faith in eternity,
faith in the forgiveness that God provides, faith in our ultimate
redemption is a promise that is only tasted here and now. It will be granted fully and
completely in eternity. And so he says faith is the belief
of what God reveals, respecting the way of salvation. Hope is
the expectation of obtaining a salvation. Faith is that full
persuasion of the truth of what God reveals. In other words,
we take God at his word that he says when Jesus Christ died
for our sins, our sins were paid in full, once for all. And he rounds out his descriptions
of some of these terms with this, the assurance of hope then is
a full explanation of obtaining what God had promised. That’s
what the writer is urging his readers to come to a full assurance
of hope. That they would come to believe
that Jesus Christ was who he said he was, had done everything
that they needed for salvation, and they could believe it and
place their hope in that. And so hope then becomes the
confidence that is instilled by the reception of a promise. Did you get that? Hope is the
confidence that is instilled by the reception of a promise.
If you believe the promise is for you and you believe that
the promise is true and legitimate, then you well with hope at that
promises fulfillment. And so in order to inherit these
promises, it is literally to step into a sentiment of hope. One pastor said, the hope of
eternal life animates the mind and makes us willing to do and
suffer all that is necessary to gaining the object of our
hope. It gives us strength, both for
labor and suffering. And of course he said this to
motivate the readers. He wants to cultivate hope in
them. He wants to remind them of this
promise. He wants the hope to well up
within them because he wants them to lay hold with full assurance. And so he gives us an example,
an example of a great saint. He’s already urged the need to
follow examples. And he gives us an example of
a great saint who did exactly this. Look at verse 13. For when
God made the promise to Abraham, since he could swear by no one
greater, he swore by himself, saying, I will surely bless you
and I will surely multiply you. And so, having patiently waited,
he obtained the promise. For men swear by one greater
than themselves, and with them an oath given as confirmation
is an end of every dispute.” Let’s take it from the start.
Look at verse 13. Now, as I said, our writer is
ultimately going to proceed to recount dozens of examples of
saints who received a promise from God in faith and waited
for the fulfillment of that promise patiently. But he selects one
of the greatest examples to set before his readers, none other
than the great patriarch himself, Abraham. And he insists that
this whole group of verses, verses 13 through 16, he inserts them
almost parenthetically. This isn’t the main thought,
it’s an illustration in order to prepare and to underscore
the point that he is about to make. This is his offer of proof
to his readers that God’s promises are valid. They are well worth
a patient wait. Abraham was a masterful choice
by this writer. He was a masterful choice of
examples to set before converted Jews because Abraham still held
a justifiably high position of esteem in their hearts. Paul
referred to Abraham as the father of the faithful. And that captures
Abraham’s regard in the people’s eyes. Abraham was certainly not
the only predecessor who provided an example, but he was a great
one. And he calls to mind here a time
when God made a promise to Abraham. The promise, he calls it. God
made numerous promises to Abraham. Think back with me, if you would,
to Genesis 12. In Genesis 12, the Lord said
to Abraham, Go forth from your country, from your relatives,
from your father’s house, to the land which I will show you.
I will make you a great nation. And I will bless you. There’s
a second promise. And I will make your name great. There’s a third. And so you shall
be a blessing. There’s a fourth. But that isn’t
the promise that a writer has in mind. Perhaps it was Genesis
15. Listen to that account. Behold, the word of the Lord
came to him saying, this man will not be your heir, but the
one who will come forth from your body, he shall be your heir,
speaking of Isaac. And he took him outside and said,
now look toward the heavens, count the stars, if you’re able
to count them. And he said to him, so shall your descendants
be. I’m going to give you a son.
And as I promised earlier, I will make a great nation of you so
plentiful it will outnumber the stars. Now, Abraham could hardly
see how those things could come to pass, but he accepted them
in faith. He took God at his word. But
our writer seems to have another very specific promise in mind. And it isn’t even hard to determine
what promise he’s speaking of because the hint provided that
God backed up this promise with an oath. In Genesis 22, it’s
recorded that God tested Abraham, remember? You know the account. God told him to take his son,
Isaac, his only son, to offer him as a sacrifice. And the account
proceeds right up to the moment where Abraham was to make the
sacrifice and God halted him by means of an angel. Abraham
had passed the test in his willingness to carry out God’s command. And
it is here that the promise alluded to In Hebrews chapter six is
uttered. Think back with me to Genesis
22. Then the angel of the Lord called
to Abraham a second time from heaven and said, by myself, I
have sworn declares the Lord. Because you have done this thing
and have not withheld your son, your only son, indeed, I will
greatly bless you. I will greatly multiply your
seed as the stars of the heavens and as the sand, which is on
the seashore. And your seed shall possess the gates of their enemies
in your seed. All the nations of the earth
shall be blessed because you have obeyed my voice. And so
Abraham received the gracious promise from God and because
he believed it, he set about to wait and wait and wait patiently. And in time, in God’s time, Abraham
did obtain the promise. It was fulfilled in part while
he was on the earth and fulfilled and enjoyed in full when Abraham
died and went to glory, he obtained it. Now on earth, that isn’t
always the case. Because in Hebrews 11 39, it
says all these having gained approval by their faith through
their faith did not receive what was promised. In other words,
their their faith was really tested. Some of them had to die
holding on in faith to the fulfillment of a promise. Perhaps one of the things that
aided Abraham so readily in accepting God’s promise in faith and waiting
so patiently was the fact that, as a writer here tells us, God
backed it up with an oath. He swore that he would do this. The writer points out an interesting
thing here that when people use an oath, like in the court of
law, I swear to tell the truth. It is supposed to be the end
of the discussion. Okay, he’s going to now begin
speaking truth. That’s what a writer says is
the case in verse 16. When men swear, that is when
they make an oath in God’s name, it serves to confirm what they
are claiming. This is the truth, the whole
truth, nothing but the truth. Commentator noted this, when
men appeal to God, the greater one, they bring him as surety
between themselves and those whom they make their promise
or affirmation. So you’re basically calling God as witness. End of
discussion. And that’s what he says happened
when God made his promise to Abraham so doubly believable. God said it, that should have
been enough, but he backed it up with an oath. Now, it would be really easy
to forget entirely why our writer is telling us all of this, about
Abraham and promises and faith and hope. And so he pieces it
all together here in verses 17 and 18. Just as God made a promise to
Abraham and then confirmed it with an oath, God has done likewise
to those who hear the gospel. What our writer says here is
that just as in the days of old for Abraham, God exhibited the
same grace to this generation as a living declaration that
God does not change. His word, his promises remain
true and sure and trustworthy. Now when our writer here refers
to these two unchangeable things, he refers simply to the promise
that God made and to the oath that he spoke to back it up. One pastor declared that the
unchangeable God is faithful. His word is sure and always dependable,
but when it is confirmed by an oath, it is even more worthy
of our trust. In all this, the weakest Christian
should find strong consolation and comfort. God does not change. Malachi 3, 6, I, the Lord, do
not change. Isaiah 46, my purpose will be
established. I will accomplish my good pleasure. Truly, I have spoken it. Truly,
I will bring it to pass. Psalm 33, 11, the counsel of
the Lord stands forever. The plans of his heart from generation
to generation. Not only does God not change,
God does not lie. Numbers 23, 19, God is not a
man that he should lie. He has said, and will he not
do it? Or has he spoken and will he
not make good? Will God send his son to die
for our sin, promise us eternal life and forgiveness in Christ,
and then not do it? For Samuel 15, 29, the glory
of Israel will not lie or change his mind, for he is not a man
that he should change his mind. Clement, the early church father,
said of God so definitively, nothing is impossible to God
except to lie. Well, that produced a great,
huge debate. And really, that debate rages.
Can God create something so big that he can’t move? You know,
that kind of a thing. I love the way one faithful shepherd
just put an end to this whole nonsense. This impossibility
argues no want or lack in the power of God, but on the contrary,
the highest perfection of it. He goes on to explain, it is
a deficiency of power or goodness in men which makes them violate
their promises or oath. They either cannot make good
what they sincerely promise or they propose some advantage to
themselves by falsehood. But this can never be the case
with God who possesses infinite power, goodness, faithfulness,
so that there is an utter impossibility arising from his perfections
that his promise should fail. It is superfluous, essentially
is what he says, to argue whether or not God can lie. Because as
soon as God speaks a word, it is truth. because of who he is. He is not able to lie, not because
some lack of power, but purely because such would be completely
contrary to his character. And so God’s promises are believable.
And it’s crucial that we observe the reason why our writer is
telling us these things about God. Look again at verse 17,
he’s telling us all of these things in the same way, God desiring
even more to show the heirs of the promise, the unchangeableness
of his purpose interposed with an oath. Why did he tell us all this?
It’s so that we would have strong encouragement to take hold of
the hope set before us. We’ll come to that, but observe
first to those whom he is speaking. It is those who have taken refuge. Now, in the Old Testament, you
may be familiar with cities of refuge. If you had committed
some crime and maybe the court system was corrupt or you were
fearful, maybe you were innocent, you could flee to a city of refuge
and avoid some unjust judgment But the reference really here,
as the writer is speaking of it, is for us who have fled to
Christ for refuge. We fled to Christ from the deadly
effects of sin. We fled to him for protection,
for forgiveness from sin, for redemption. We fled to him for
eternal life. And now we are in a place of
refuge. One pastor described these terms. He said the words fled for refuge
suggest a danger on one side, an asylum on the other, safety. The danger is the corruption
that is in the world, the consciousness of sin, the impending moral entrance
of God into the world, and the asylum or protection to which
they have fled is the hope set or lying before them, the promises
and their fulfillment. And the writer says, I don’t
want you just to have an idea. I want you to have strong encouragement. Strong encouragement to take
hold of the hope set before you. You likely know that this word
encouragement is one of Paul’s favorite words. 19 times in his
epistles, he uses this word. And it’s translated variously
as exhort, or comfort, or encourage. It is the same root from where
we get our word paraclete, the called alongside one, the Holy
Spirit, who comes alongside of us to exhort and encourage and
comfort. And he says he wants nothing
more for his readers to have strong encouragement that comes
from taking hold of the hope. Hearing God’s promise, setting
our hope so firmly that we remain confident. And he turns the corner in verse
19. having laid hold, encouraged his people to lay hold of the
hope of this promise. He says, this hope we have as
an anchor of the soul, basically presents an image, an illustration. And our faithful friend rounds
this corner and brings this great section to a close in verses
19 and 20. And he does so with this powerful
image of an anchor. Look at verses 19 and 20. This
hope we have is an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and
steadfast and one which enters within the veil where Jesus has
entered as a forerunner for us, having become a high priest forever
according to the order of Melchizedek. We know of anchors, massive weights
tied by a cable or a chain or a rope that are lowered into
the sea in order to prevent the ship or the boat from drifting
with the ocean tide or current. It’s an amazing image that he
uses here. It’s a powerful metaphor. He
speaks of an anchor only instead of this anchor being thrown into
the sea, his description tells us that Christ himself carried
this anchor into the very presence of God, into what one writer
called the very sanctuary of him who is the God of hope. And he set the anchor. He fixed
it fast. And when he tells us that it’s
anchored within the veil, he uses imagery that not only Jewish
readers would understand, but Christians down to our day can
readily understand. He’s speaking of the veil of
the temple. That great curtain which separated
the holy of holies from the rest of the temple. In Exodus chapter
26, it’s described. You shall make a veil of blue
and purple and scarlet material and twisted linen. It should
be made with cherubim, the work of a skillful workman. You shall
hang it on four pillars of acacia overlaid with gold, their hooks
being of gold, on four-inch sockets of silver. You shall hang up
the veil under the clasps and shall bring in the ark of the
testimony there within the veil. And the veil shall serve to you
as a partition between the holy place and the holy of holies. You shall put the mercy seat
on the ark of the testimony and the holy of holies. You shall
set the table outside the veil and the lampstand opposite the
table on the side of the tabernacle toward the south. And you shall
put the table on the north side. And so it’s a description of
this curtain that hung between the holy of holies, and the outer
temple. Well, the writer says that Jesus
Christ entered not just an earthly temple, he entered into the very
presence of God. Remember that the veil, the temple
curtain was torn in two, Matthew 27. The curtain was torn in two when
Christ offered sacrifice of himself on the cross, but now the curtain
that our writer of this great epistle is speaking of is the
curtain that separates God in his holy of holies. Christ went
there. Christ set the anchor there.
The writer says that Christ, as our high priest, entered not
just an earthly temple, but into the very presence of God, and
he fixes a permanent placeholder there for believers. And just
like a well-set ship’s anchor that prevents drift, Christ’s
well-set anchor holds firm. He says it is sure and steadfast. These are powerful words. The
word sure translated in Acts chapter 21 as the facts. There is a certain confidence
in this that as those that were examining Paul could not ascertain
the facts of what the riot was even about. In Acts 22 it’s translated
as certain, wishing to know for certain why he had been accused
by the Jews. In Acts chapter 25, it’s translated
as definite. The facts, certain, definite. And there’s an even more powerful
explanation in Philippians 3.1. In Philippians 3.1, the same
word is used. Finally, my brethren, rejoice
in the Lord. To write the same thing again
is no trouble to me, and it is a safeguard for you. It’s a fact. It’s certain. It’s definite. And the anchor that is set in
heaven is, first of all, sure. It’s certain. It’s a fact. It’s a safeguard for us, and
it is absolutely definite, but it is also steadfast. This word,
too, is rich in its significance. In Romans 4.16, it’s translated
as guaranteed. In 2 Corinthians 1.7, it’s translated
as firmly grounded. And in 2 Peter 1.10, it’s translated
likewise as certain. But you know, we came across
this word in Hebrews chapter two. In Hebrews chapter two,
our writer was making this point about the giving of the law,
which he reminded that their forefathers believed that the
angels had attended to the very giving of the law, and that it
was verified in its truthfulness. It was shown to be unalterable. The same word. This anchor that
is set in the very throne room of God is steadfast, it’s sure,
it’s unalterable. It will not be loosened or pulled
up. And this is the greatest of blessings
because a believer, not a boat, is the one who is tethered to
the other end of that line. If you have placed your faith
in the Lord Jesus Christ, you have an anchor in the very throne
room of God Almighty. And that cord cannot be cut,
that chain cannot be broken, that anchor cannot be loosened.
No wonder that down through the ages, the centuries of Christianity,
the image of an anchor has endured from the earliest days of Christianity
as a symbol It was an early symbol of hope and would even be found
in time stamped as such on coins. One early church father noted
that it was often found on signet rings of believers, and he even
marked believers’ graves, such as the image that the writer
provides us here, an indelible metaphor of the absolute steadfastness
of our salvation in Christ. God has promised, we have hope
in that promise. That promise, that hope rather
functions like an anchor for our soul. And at the other end
of that unbreakable chain is an anchor holding firm in the
presence of God, our God and Savior, our Lord Jesus. One pastor said here that Jesus
entered into that which is within the veil. God’s very presence,
having obtained eternal redemption, he is the mediator of a new covenant
that they which have been called may receive the promise of the
eternal inheritance. Our hope enters there with him
and holds us secure. There in the very throne room
of God, the glorious presence of God, Jesus has entered. And
as we already learned, he is seated. And we are told that
as such, he is our forerunner. He has gone before us, but we,
by his grace, will surely follow. And having even just mentioned
Jesus Christ as the high priest, he comes full circle back to
this idea of this mysterious Melchizedek, a relationship which
he will discuss in full in the ensuing chapters 7 through 10. One pastor said in closing, one
more time about this hope. This hope that we have in the
promise that God has given to us, that our redemption is sure
in Christ. This hope is fitted to preserve
the mind firm in the profession and obedience of the truth. He
who is laid hold of and who keeps this hope will not be tossed
to and fro by every wind of doctrine. but he will be rooted and grounded
in love. And so I ask you once again,
are you growing in grace? Are you more firm in your faith
now than you were a year ago or five years ago, certainly
than 10 years ago? Are you further along in your
Christian life? Again, I ask you, are there areas
of your life where you could identify you need to grow? That’s a mature Christian that
can even observe that. Are you growing in your hatred
of sin and its deadly effects in your life? Is your love for Christ ever
increasing? Do you love him more now than
you ever have? Do you love his word and his
church and his people in practical terms, not just a feeling in
the heart? I close this section with an
echo from Paul’s closing in Romans chapter 15. Romans chapter 15
verse four, Paul says, whatever was written in earlier times
was written for our instruction. so that through perseverance
and encouragement of the scriptures we might have hope. Now may the
God who gives perseverance and encouragement grant you to be
of the same mind toward one another according to Christ Jesus. May
the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace believing so
that you will abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Let’s pray. Our merciful King, we thank you
for these words, which at the outset we thought might even
dismantle whatever faith we had. Lord, that was not our writer’s
purpose. And even though the words in verses four through
eight are some of the strongest in all of scripture, we know
that if we have placed our faith in Christ, we are tethered to
an anchor that is fixed in heaven. We’ve placed our faith in the
Lord Jesus Christ. That doesn’t say that we don’t
need to grow. We do. Every believer must continue
on this path of spiritual maturity. But we do so by your grace. We
do so by your word and the power of your spirit. And we do so
in order to lay hold of the full assurance of hope until the end. Lord, this is our prayer. We
lay it before you and plead that you would have your way with
every believer who hears this message. We thank you and we
praise you in Jesus name. Amen.