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<h2><a onclick="return mV('Hbr',12,'1-');">Hbr 12</a> - Reasons to Endure Discouraging Times</h2>
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<p>A. Look unto Jesus.</p>
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<p class="c1">1. (<a onclick="return mV('Hbr',12,1);">1</a>) Application of the demonstrations of enduring faith in <a onclick="return mV('Hbr',11,'1-');">Hbr 11</a>.</p>
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<p class="c2"><span>Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares <i>us, </i>and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,</span></p>
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<p class="c4">a. <b><span class="c3">Since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses</span></b>: The author envisions these previous champions of faith as spectators from the heavens, cheering us on as we endeavor to overcome present discouragement as in an athletic competition.</p>
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<p class="c5">i. The idea of the heroes of faith in the past being spectators as we live lives of faith has made some think that in heaven, people can and do observe what goes on earth. This single passage may <i>suggest</i> this, but it is inconclusive to <i>prove</i> this.</p>
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<p class="c5">ii. We rightly think of heaven as a place where people are always happy and untroubled; it would be hard to think that those in heaven could be happy and untroubled if they saw what was happening on the earth. So, it is difficult to saw that people in heaven are actually observing us!</p>
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<p class="c5">iii. Others consider that these <b><span class="c3">witnesses</span></b> are not witnessing <i>us</i> as we conduct our lives. Instead, they are <b><span class="c3">witnesses</span></b> <i>to</i> us of faith and endurance.</p>
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<p class="c5">iv. "Both the <i>Greeks</i> and the <i>Latins</i> frequently use the term <i>cloud</i>, to express a <i>great number</i> of persons or things." (Clarke)</p>
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<p class="c4">b. <b><span class="c3">Lay aside every weight, and the sin</span></b>: Sin can hold us back. But there are also things that may not be sin (<b><span class="c3">every weight</span></b>) but are merely hindrances that can keep us from running effectively the race God has for us.</p>
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<p class="c5">i. Our choices are not always between right and wrong, but between something that may hinder us and something else that may not. Is there a <b><span class="c3">weight</span></b> in your life you must <b><span class="c3">lay aside</span></b>?</p>
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<p class="c4">c. <b><span class="c3">So easily ensnares us</span></b>: <b><span class="c3">Easily ensnares</span></b> translates a difficult ancient Greek word (<i>euperistaton</i>), which can be translated four ways: "easily avoided," "admired," "ensnaring," or "dangerous."</p>
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<p class="c5">i. Some sins can be <i>easily avoided</i>, but are not. Some sins are <i>admired</i>, yet must be laid aside. Some sins are <i>ensnaring</i> and thus especially harmful. And some sins are more <i>dangerous</i> than others are. Let us <b><span class="c3">lay</span></b> them all <b><span class="c3">aside</span></b>!</p>
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<p class="c5">ii. If such ensnaring sins were really the work of demonic possession or demonic influence in the Christian, wouldn't this not be an ideal place for the Holy Spirit to address this? Yet we are never given reason to blame our sin on demons; the appeal is simply for us to, in the power of the Holy Spirit, <b><span class="c3">lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us</span></b>.</p>
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<p class="c4">d. <b><span class="c3">Let us run with endurance</span></b>: What is needed is <b><span class="c3">endurance</span></b>, to finish what we have begun in Jesus Christ - a <b><span class="c3">race that is set before us</span></b>.</p>
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<p class="c5">i. God has set before you a <b><span class="c3">race</span></b>. You must run it; and it will involve effort and commitment. Just being passive never runs a race. God wants us to run the race, and finish it right!</p>
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<p class="c5">ii. In <a onclick="return mV('Act',20,24);">Act 20:24</a>, Paul pictures himself as a runner who had a race to finish, and nothing would keep Paul from finishing the race with joy. In that passage, Paul speaks of <i>my race</i> - he had his race to run, we have our own - but God calls us to finish it with joy, and that only happens with <b><span class="c3">endurance</span></b>.</p>
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<p class="c4">e. <b><span class="c3">Race</span></b> is the ancient Greek word <i>agona</i>, a word used for conflict or struggle of many kinds, and a favorite word of Paul (<a onclick="return mV('Phl',1,30);">Phl 1:30</a>; <a onclick="return mV('Col',2,1);">Col 2:1</a>; <a onclick="return mV('1Th',2,2);">1Th 2:2</a>; <a onclick="return mV('1Ti',6,12);">1Ti 6:12</a>; <a onclick="return mV('2Ti',4,7);">2Ti 4:7</a>).</p>
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<p class="c5">i. <b><span class="c3">Endurance</span></b> is needed to run that race. <b><span class="c3">Endurance</span></b> translates the ancient Greek word <i>hupomone</i>, "which does not mean the patience which sits down and accepts things but the patience which masters them...It is a determination, unhurrying and yet undelaying, which goes steadily on and refuses to be deflected." (Barclay)</p>
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<p class="c1">2. (<a onclick="return mV('Hbr',12,2);">2</a>) The ultimate example: Jesus Christ.</p>
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<p class="c2"><span>Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of <i>our </i>faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.</span></p>
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<p class="c4">a. <b><span class="c3">Looking unto Jesus</span></b>: The <i>New American Standard Version</i> translates this beautifully: <i>fixing our eyes on Jesus</i>. We can only run the race as we look to Jesus, and have our eyes locked on to Him. He is our focus, our inspiration, and our example.</p>
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<p class="c5">i. In the ancient Greek, <b><span class="c3">looking unto Jesus</span></b> uses a verb that implies a definite <i>looking away</i> from other things and a present <i>looking unto</i> Jesus.</p>
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<p class="c5">ii. We must guard against seeing Jesus as <i>only</i> an example; He was and is so much more. But He also remains the ultimate example of Christian endurance.</p>
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<p class="c4">b. <b><span class="c3">The author and finisher of our faith</span></b>: Jesus is not only the <b><span class="c3">author</span></b> of our faith; He is the <b><span class="c3">finisher</span></b> of it also. The idea of <i>He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ</i> (<a onclick="return mV('Phl',1,6);">Phl 1:6</a>) is comforting indeed to these discouraged Christians.</p>
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<p class="c4">c. <b><span class="c3">Who for the joy that was set before Him</span></b>: Jesus did not regard the cross itself as a joy. But He could look past the horror of the cross to enjoy the joy beyond it. The same mentality will enable these Jewish Christians (and we ourselves) to endure.</p>
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<p class="c4">d. <b><span class="c3">Despising the shame</span></b>: One of the most prominent elements of the torture of the cross was its extreme <b><span class="c3">shame</span></b>. Jesus did not welcome this shame - He <i>despised</i> it! - yet He endured through the shame.</p>
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<p class="c5">i. This is a stumbling block to many; they will do just about anything for Jesus except endure shame or embarrassment. Spurgeon spoke boldly to Christians who could not bear the shame that comes from the world for following Jesus: "Yet you are a coward. Yes, put it down in English: you are a coward. If anybody called you so you would turn red in the face; and perhaps you are not a coward in reference to any other subject. What a shameful thing it is that while you are bold about everything else you are cowardly about Jesus Christ. Brave for the world and cowardly towards Christ!"</p>
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<p class="c4">e. <b><span class="c3">And has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God</span></b>: This speaks of Jesus' glorification. The same promise of being glorified after our shame (though in a different sense) is true for the Christian.</p>
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<p class="c1">3. (<a onclick="return mV('Hbr',12,'3-4');">3-4</a>) Consider Jesus.</p>
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<p class="c2"><span>For consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself, lest you become weary and discouraged in your souls. You have not yet resisted to bloodshed, striving against sin.</span></p>
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<p class="c4">a. <b><span class="c3">You have not yet resisted to bloodshed, striving against sin</span></b>: These Jewish Christians were so discouraged because they were starting to experience significant social and economic persecution (though not yet to the shedding of blood).</p>
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<p class="c4">b. But they should <b><span class="c3">consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself</span></b>, and be <i>encouraged</i>, not <i>discouraged</i>, knowing that they are following in the footsteps of Jesus. As Paul wrote, <i>if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together</i>. (<a onclick="return mV('Rom',8,17);">Rom 8:17</a>)</p>
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<p class="c4">c. <b><span class="c3">Lest you become weary and discouraged in your souls</span></b>: Knowing that Jesus doesn't ask more of us than what He has Himself experienced, and that He knows exactly what we are going through keeps us from becoming <b><span class="c3">weary and discouraged in your souls</span></b>.</p>
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<p>B. Why God allows difficult times: the chastening of God.</p>
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<p class="c1">1. Introductory thoughts on the subject of chastening.</p>
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<p class="c4">a. <a onclick="return mV('Hbr',12,'5-11');">Hbr 12:5-11</a> deals with the question "why does God allow such difficult times as we are going through." This is a question commonly asked in seasons of discouragement.</p>
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<p class="c4">b. We must admit that God does <i>allow</i> every thing that happens; so He must at least passively approve of it, because He certainly has the power to stop bad things that happen.</p>
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<p class="c5">i. Of course, God can <i>never</i> be the author of evil. But He does allow others to choose evil, and He can use the evil choice another makes to work out His ultimately good purpose, even if only to demonstrate His justice and righteousness in contrast to evil.</p>
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<p class="c4">c. The discussion of <i>chastening</i> that follows should not be regarded as the <i>only </i>reason God allows difficult times, but it is an important one. For example, we know that God allows difficult times so that we can, at a later time, comfort someone else with the same comfort God shows towards us in our crisis (<a onclick="return mV('2Cr',1,'3-7');">2Cr 1:3-7</a>).</p>
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<p class="c1">2. (<a onclick="return mV('Hbr',12,'5-6');">5-6</a>) Remember the exhortation regarding the discipline of the Lord.</p>
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<p class="c2"><span>And you have forgotten the exhortation which speaks to you as to sons: "My son, do not despise the chastening of the <span class="c6">Lord</span>, nor be discouraged when you are rebuked by Him; for whom the <span class="c6">Lord</span> loves He chastens, and scourges every son whom He receives."</span></p>
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<p class="c4">a. <b><span class="c3">You have forgotten</span></b>: One great reason for the discouragement among these Jewish Christians was because they saw no reason why God would allow difficult times to arise. But they have forgotten principles regarding the chastening of the Lord.</p>
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<p class="c5">i. How much of the difficulty in our Christian life can be traced back to those three words: <b><span class="c3">you have forgotten</span></b>! Perhaps it is some principle we remember in our minds, but we <b><span class="c3">have forgotten</span></b> it with our hearts - and we must remember it again!</p>
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<p class="c4">b. <b><span class="c3">Which speaks to you as sons</span></b>: The quotation from <a onclick="return mV('Pro',3,'11-12');">Pro 3:11-12</a> reminds us that God's chastening should <i>never</i> be taken as a sign of His rejection. It is rather a sign of His treating us as His children.</p>
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<p class="c5">i. Only the most proud Christian would claim they are never in need of correction from God. No one is above this kind of training.</p>
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<p class="c4">c. God's chastening can come in many forms; and what may be God's chastening to endure in the life of one believer may be a Satanic attack to resist in the life of another.</p>
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<p class="c5">i. This is why James recommends a prayer for wisdom in the context of enduring trials (<a onclick="return mV('Jam',1,'2-5');">Jam 1:2-5</a>). We need to know how to react differently when God does different things.</p>
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<p class="c1">3. (<a onclick="return mV('Hbr',12,'7-8');">7-8</a>) Chastening a sign of sonship.</p>
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<p class="c2"><span>If you endure chastening, God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom a father does not chasten? But if you are without chastening, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate and not sons.</span></p>
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<p class="c4">a. <b><span class="c3">God deals with you as sons</span></b>: Many people claim an inability to relate to God as a loving Father, because they have never known a loving human father in their own experience. Yet, even these can still receive the love of God the Father.</p>
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<p class="c5">i. We have not all known by <i>experience</i> what a model father is, but we do all know by <i>intuition</i> what a good father is. God is that perfect Father, and He has given us that intuition.</p>
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<p class="c4">b. <b><span class="c3">God deals with you as sons</span></b>: God's correction is never to punish us, never to make us <i>pay</i> for our sins. That was done once and for all at the cross. His correction is motivated <i>only</i> by His love, not by His justice; He chastens us without anger.</p>
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<p class="c4">c. <b><span class="c3">If you are without chastening...you are illegitimate and not sons</span></b>: Those who fancy themselves "beyond" God's chastening mark themselves as <b><span class="c3">illegitimate</span></b> children of God.</p>
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<p class="c4">d. God demonstrates His wrath when He ignores our sin, allowing it to pass without correction. His inactivity is never due to ignorance or a lack of initiative, as may be the case with a human father.</p>
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<p class="c1">4. (<a onclick="return mV('Hbr',12,'9-10');">9-10</a>) God's chastening is superior to that of human fathers.</p>
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<p class="c2"><span>Furthermore, we have had human fathers who corrected <i>us, </i>and we paid <i>them </i>respect. Shall we not much more readily be in subjection to the Father of spirits and live? For they indeed for a few days chastened <i>us </i>as seemed <i>best </i>to them, but He for <i>our </i>profit, that <i>we </i>may be partakers of His holiness.</span></p>
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<p class="c4">a. <b><span class="c3">We paid them respect</span></b>: We should be even more submissive and respectful to our Heavenly Father's correction than to an earthly Father's correction.</p>
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<p class="c4">b. <b><span class="c3">Shall we not much more readily be in subjection to the Father of Spirits and live?</span></b> Therefore, we must never despise God for His chastening, though it is unpleasant. When we resent it, we consider ourselves virtual equals with God, instead of His children.</p>
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<p class="c5">i. It is humiliating and bitter to be chastened by an equal, but not by one who is legitimately our superior. Resentment at chastening shows how we see God and how we see ourselves.</p>
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<p class="c4">c. <b><span class="c3">But He for our profit</span></b>: Human fathers, even with the best of intention, can only chasten imperfectly, because they lack perfect knowledge. The all-knowing God can chasten us perfectly, with better and more lasting results than even the best earthly father.</p>
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<p class="c1">5. (<a onclick="return mV('Hbr',12,11);">11</a>) Look to the <i>result</i> of chastening more than the <i>process</i> of chastening.</p>
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<p class="c2"><span>Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.</span></p>
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<p class="c4">a. <b><span class="c3">Afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness</span></b>: Our author isn't trying to deny the unpleasant nature of a "heavenly spanking" (<b><span class="c3">no chastening seems to be joyful for the present</span></b>). But he does want us to look beyond the <i>process</i> to the <i>result</i>.</p>
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<p class="c4">b. <b><span class="c3">The peaceable fruit of righteousness</span></b>: Is this <b><span class="c3">fruit</span></b> evident in your life? The reason why many live a "one-crisis-after-another" life is because they are either blind to God's chastening, or are resisting it. They have not been <b><span class="c3">trained by it</span></b>, and so the <b><span class="c3">peaceable fruit of righteousness</span></b> is not evident.</p>
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<p class="c5">i. They never experience the <b><span class="c3">peaceable fruit of righteousness</span></b> because they have never been <b><span class="c3">trained by</span></b> God's chastening.</p>
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<p class="c5">ii. <b><span class="c3">Trained</span></b> in the ancient Greek language is a word from the world of athletics; as an athlete is trained by some agony, so are we - as God's "spiritual athletes."</p>
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<p class="c4">c. God has a purpose for training you. Think of David after being attacked by a lion while just he was just a boy tending the sheep. "Why did God allow such a terrible think to happen to me?" He might of thought. "I barely escaped!" But if only David could see ahead, he would see God had a giant named Goliath he was destined to face, and the battle with the lion prepared him ahead of time. God always has a purpose. We can trust Him.</p>
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<p>C. Application: Get strong, get right, get bold, and watch out.</p>
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<p class="c1">1. (<a onclick="return mV('Hbr',12,'12-13');">12-13</a>) Get strong.</p>
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<p class="c2"><span>Therefore strengthen the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees, and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be <i>dislocated, </i>but rather be healed.</span></p>
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<p class="c4">a. <b><span class="c3">Therefore strengthen the hands which hang down</span></b>: Almost like a coach or a military officer, the author tells the "troops" to get with it. He has given exhaustive <i>reasons</i> to be strong in the Lord and put off discouragement, so now is the time to <i>do it</i>.</p>
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<p class="c4">b. The pictures here (strengthened <b><span class="c3">hands</span></b> and <b><span class="c3">knees</span></b>, "straight-ahead" <b><span class="c3">feet</span></b>) speak of readiness to work and move for the Lord. This readiness is first to go when one surrenders to discouragement.</p>
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<p class="c1">2. (<a onclick="return mV('Hbr',12,'14-17');">14-17</a>) Get right.</p>
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<p class="c2"><span>Pursue peace with all <i>people, </i>and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord: looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled; lest there <i>be </i>any fornicator or profane person like Esau, who for one morsel of food sold his birthright. For you know that afterward, when he wanted to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no place for repentance, though he sought it diligently with tears.</span></p>
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<p class="c4">a. Get right with both men (<b><span class="c3">pursue peace with all men</span></b>) and with God (<b><span class="c3">and holiness</span></b>). Discouragement makes us sloppy and unconcerned with our personal relationships.</p>
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<p class="c5">i. Regarding holiness, we are told <b><span class="c3">without which no one will see the Lord</span></b>. A lack of holiness is a critical obstacle to a close relationship with God.</p>
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<p class="c4">b. <b><span class="c3">Lest anyone fall short of the grace of God</span></b>: We must get right with God's grace. So look diligently to keep both yourself and others from a return to legalism in either outward form or inward attitude that falls short of God's grace, <b><span class="c3">lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble</span></b>.</p>
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<p class="c5">i. "A <i>bitter root</i> is a root that bears bitter fruit...So it is possible for the seed of bitterness to be sown in a community and, though nothing is immediately apparent, in due time the inevitable fruit appears." (Morris)</p>
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<p class="c5">ii. Many are corrupted because of bitterness towards someone they feel has wronged them, and they hold on to the bitterness with amazing stubbornness! What they must do is remember the grace of God extended to them, and start extending that grace towards others - loving the undeserving.</p>
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<p class="c5">iii. A legalistic attitude will always produce a bitterness that defiles many; its emphasis on what we should do for God before what He has done for us in Jesus puts us (and those around us) in a terrible performance trap.</p>
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<p class="c4">c. <b><span class="c3">Lest there be any fornicator or profane person</span></b>: Get right with your moral conduct; remember that there are blessings reserved only for the <i>pure in heart</i>: <i>they shall see God</i> (<a onclick="return mV('Mat',5,8);">Mat 5:8</a>).</p>
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<p class="c5">i. <b><span class="c3">Like Esau, who for one morsel of food sold his birthright</span></b>: Many Christians today sell a birthright of intimacy with God as cheaply as Esau sold his birthright (<a onclick="return mV('Gen',25,'29-34');">Gen 25:29-34</a> and <a onclick="return mV('Gen',27,'30-40');">27:30-40</a>).</p>
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<p class="c5">ii. <b><span class="c3">Though he sought it diligently with tears</span></b>: Esau's birthright wasn't restored simply because he wished it back. It could never be regained because he despised it.</p>
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<p class="c1">3. (<a onclick="return mV('Hbr',12,'18-24');">18-24</a>) Get bold.</p>
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<p class="c2"><span>For you have not come to the mountain that may be touched and that burned with fire, and to blackness and darkness and tempest, and the sound of a trumpet and the voice of words, so that those who heard <i>it </i>begged that the word should not be spoken to them anymore. (For they could not endure what was commanded: "And if so much as a beast touches the mountain, it shall be stoned or shot with an arrow." And so terrifying was the sight <i>that </i>Moses said, "I am exceedingly afraid and trembling.") But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn <i>who are </i>registered in heaven, to God the Judge of all, to the spirits of just men made perfect, to Jesus the Mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling that speaks better things than <i>that of </i>Abel.</span></p>
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<p class="c4">a. <b><span class="c3">For you have not come to the mountain that may be touched and that burned with fire</span></b>: <a onclick="return mV('Exd',19,'10-25');">Exd 19:10-25</a> explains what it was like when Israel came to Mount Sinai. The mountain was fenced off; there was no trespassing, on pain of death. They were commanded to wash their clothes and abstain from sexual relations. There was thunder, lightning and a thick cloud. There was the sound of a trumpet, calling forth the nation to meet with God. There was more smoke, like a furnace, and earthquakes; then the trumpet sounded long - until Moses spoke, and God Himself answered. God spoke to Israel from Sinai, but warned them in every way possible to <i>stay away</i>.</p>
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<p class="c4">b. <b><span class="c3">So that those who heard it begged that the word should not be spoken to them anymore</span></b><span>:</span> The reaction of Israel was understandable: they were terrified (<a onclick="return mV('Exd',20,'18-21');">Exd 20:18-21</a>). They wanted the experience to <i>stop</i>, not to continue.</p>
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<p class="c5">i. Did this fear work in promoting holiness among the people of Israel? Did it change the heart of Israel? 40 days later, they worshipped a gold calf, saying it was the god that brought them out of Egypt!</p>
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<p class="c4">c. But we are in a different place. <b><span class="c3">For you have not come to the mountain</span></b>: Our relationship with God is not modeled after Israel's experience on Mount Sinai. We come to God's other mountain: Zion, the name of the hill upon which Jerusalem sits.</p>
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<p class="c4">d. Contrasts between Mount Sinai and Mount Zion.</p>
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<p class="c5">i. Mount Sinai was marked by fear and terror. Mount Zion is a place of love and forgiveness.</p>
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<p class="c5">ii. Mount Sinai is in the desert. Mount Zion is the city of the Living God.</p>
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<p class="c5">iii. Mount Sinai spoke of earthly things. Mount Zion speaks of heavenly things.</p>
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<p class="c5">iv. At Mount Sinai, only Moses was allowed to draw near to God. At Mount Zion, an <b><span class="c3">innumerable company</span></b>, a <b><span class="c3">general assembly</span></b> is invited to draw near.</p>
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<p class="c5">v. Mount Sinai was characterized by guilty men in fear. Mount Zion features <b><span class="c3">just men made perfect</span></b>.</p>
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<p class="c5">vi. At Mount Sinai, Moses was the mediator. At Mount Zion, Jesus is the mediator.</p>
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<p class="c5">vii. Mount Sinai brings an Old Covenant, which was ratified by the blood of animals. Mount Zion brings a New Covenant, which is ratified by the blood of God's precious Son.</p>
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<p class="c5">vii. Mount Sinai was all about exclusion, keeping people away from the mountain. Mount Zion is all about invitation.</p>
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<p class="c5">ix. Mount Sinai is all about Law. Mount Zion is all about grace.</p>
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<p class="c4">e. <b><span class="c3">But you have come to Mount Zion</span></b>: The lesson is plain. We shouldn't come to Mount Zion as if we were coming to Mount Sinai. So put away your hesitation and get bold in coming to God!</p>
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<p class="c5">i. Of course, the idea of the superiority of the New Covenant is also repeated. How could these Jewish Christians even consider going back and preferring the religion of Mount Sinai over the relationship of Mount Zion?</p>
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<p class="c4">f. <b><span class="c3">The blood of sprinkling that speaks better things than that of Abel</span></b><span>: </span>The <b><span class="c3">blood of Abel</span></b> does not mean the blood he shed in his martyrdom. Rather, it was the blood of the sacrifice he made - the first recorded sacrifice from man to God in the Bible. The blood of Jesus <b><span class="c3">speaks better things</span></b> than the blood of animal sacrifice, the blood of Abel.</p>
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<p class="c1">4. (<a onclick="return mV('Hbr',12,'25-29');">25-29</a>) Watch out.</p>
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<p class="c2"><span>See that you do not refuse Him who speaks. For if they did not escape who refused Him who spoke on earth, much more <i>shall we not escape </i>if we turn away from Him who <i>speaks </i>from heaven, whose voice then shook the earth; but now He has promised, saying, "Yet once more I shake not only the earth, but also heaven." Now this, "Yet once more," indicates the removal of those things that are being shaken, as of things that are made, that the things which cannot be shaken may remain. Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear. For our God <i>is </i>a consuming fire.</span></p>
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<p class="c4">a. <b><span class="c3">See that you do not refuse Him who speaks</span></b>: If we refuse to get strong, get right, and get bold, we should not remain ignorant of the consequences.</p>
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<p class="c4">b. <b><span class="c3">They did not escape</span></b>: There were consequences for rebelling at Mount Sinai. How much more should there be consequences for resisting God's greater work at Zion?</p>
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<p class="c4">c. <b><span class="c3">Whose voice then shook the earth...Yet once more I shake not only the earth, but also heaven...things which cannot be shaken</span></b>: God is shaking the present order, and these beleaguered Jewish Christians felt it. But the things of God and the people of God will remain.</p>
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<p class="c4">d. <b><span class="c3">Since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace</span></b>: The kingdom itself will never be shaken. So it behooves us to seize God's unmerited approval in Jesus, helping us to <b><span class="c3">serve God acceptably</span></b>.</p>
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<p class="c5">i. Many wrongly argue that "too much" grace gives license and breeds disrespect towards God. Actually, grace gives us <b><span class="c3">reverence and godly fear</span></b>. Perhaps those who think grace gives them license to sin aren't walking in grace at all!</p>
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<p class="c4">e. <b><span class="c3">Our God is a consuming fire</span></b>: Since God is in fact a consuming fire, we do best to come to Him on His terms. These are the terms of unmerited approval in Jesus. He will consume all that is outside of that sphere.</p>
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