First Baptist Church
Fairbanks, Alaska
805 Sixth Avenue
(907) 456-4923
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Fairbanks, Alaska 805 Sixth Avenue (907) 456-4923 |
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“Lesson from a Golden Calf” A Study of the Book of Hebrews (Part 3) Hebrews 3-5 Mark Howdeshell (May 4, 2008) Hebrews 4:12 For the word of the God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword. It penetrates event to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Introduction This morning I want us to take a trip. I want to escape the cold, snow, drizzly weather we’ve been experiencing and use our magic transporters to take us back to the land of Egypt. Specifically I want to go Exodus 15:22. There we find the newly freed nation of Israel and Moses entering into the Desert of Shur. They have just witnessed the parting of the Red Sea and have experienced the mightiness of God. Join me now as I take on the persona of a man walking in the crowd with Moses. Now we’ve been traveling for 3 days in the desert….without finding water. What is Moses trying to do to us? Lead us out of Egypt to die in the desert? But wait………………..there’s some water!!! YUCK!!!! This water is no good!!! MOSES!!!! What is he doing? Moses is putting a piece of wood into the water……..and now he’s drinking it and says that it is good. Hallelujah!! I’m thirsty!! Now it is some time later……..we left Elim and are walking through the Desert of Sin. Man, I’m hungry! There is no food……..and no sign of any. I had plenty of food back in Egypt! Why did Moses bring us out here to starve to death when we had plenty of food to eat before? Who does Moses think he is anyway? He says he talks to God. I HAVEN’T SPOKEN TO GOD!!!!!! Now he says that God will give us all the food we want starting this evening……..meat nonetheless, and bread in the morning……..I don’t see any meat unless we slaughter our own animals!!! Who does he think he is? I don’t believe it…….there has been plenty of food. But now there is no water, again! “Moses, give us water to drink!” (Exodus 17:2) Come on Moses. “Why did you bring us up out of Egypt to make us and our children and livestock die of thirst?” Don’t walk away from us, Moses! What are you doing? Why are you about to hit that rock? If it’s because you’re mad at us…………………WATER!! How is water flowing out of that rock? It’s now been 3 months of wandering in the desert and we’re camped in the Desert of Sinai, at the base of the mountains. Moses walked up into the mountains and came down saying that God wanted us to promise to obey him fully and to keep His covenants. God said that if we did this, we would be His most treasured possession. Imagine that………God’s favorite. It is now 3 days later. Moses said that God would speak and we could hear Him…and even see Him. But…all I see and hear are huge ominous clouds, lightening flashes, and deafening thunder. Wait, now I hear a trumpet, too. Is that God? Moses said that God told him that we are to have no other gods beside Him…none of silver or of gold. Man, I saw how powerful He was. There’s no way I’ll go against him! Moses has gone back to the mountain. He’s been gone a long time!!! I think he’s dead. Many of us are going to go to Aaron and suggest that we make a golden calf to worship. Moses’ God must have gone with Moses………………..Aaron has agreed. Tomorrow we celebrate!!!! We celebrate the golden calf that brought us out of Egypt……………………………………………………………………… Can you see and hear the faithlessness of the people around Moses? The Word says that it was all around. People openly and deliberately disobeyed God. We would be smart to learn from their mistakes. The Meat of the Message Hebrews 3 1 Therefore, holy brothers, who share in the heavenly calling, fix your thoughts on Jesus, the apostle and high priest whom we confess. 2 He was faithful to the one who appointed him, just as Moses was faithful in all God's house. 3 Jesus has been found worthy of greater honor than Moses, just as the builder of a house has greater honor than the house itself. 4 For every house is built by someone, but God is the builder of everything. 5 Moses was faithful as a servant in all God's house, testifying to what would be said in the future. 6 But Christ is faithful as a son over God's house. And we are his house, if we hold on to our courage and the hope of which we boast. 7 So, as the Holy Spirit says: "Today, if you hear his voice, 8 do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion, during the time of testing in the desert, 9 where your fathers tested and tried me and for forty years saw what I did. 10 That is why I was angry with that generation, and I said, 'Their hearts are always going astray, and they have not known my ways.' 11 So I declared on oath in my anger, 'They shall never enter my rest.'" 12 See to it, brothers, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. 13 But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin's deceitfulness. 14 We have come to share in Christ if we hold firmly till the end the confidence we had at first. 15 As has just been said: "Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion." 16 Who were they who heard and rebelled? Were they not all those Moses led out of Egypt? 17 And with whom was he angry for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies fell in the desert? 18 And to whom did God swear that they would never enter his rest if not to those who disobeyed? 19 So we see that they were not able to enter, because of their unbelief.
i. Satan CANNOT coexist with Jesus ii. Satan CANNOT compete with Jesus iii. Satan enters in the picture when we lose our focus, direction, and way
i. If we hold on to the courage and hope of which we boast (v. 6) ii. God is the builder of everything. WE must be faithful to Him.
i. Israel’s unbelief angered God greatly 1. God wanted to destroy the people of Israel that turned their backs on Him 2. Moses interceded on behalf of the people and God relented 3. Moses offered himself as a sacrifice for them ii. God led them to wander in the desert for 40 years and they were only allowed to enter after Moses’ death (v. 19)
i. Mean through your whole life on this earth 1. The past is gone 2. The future will be in Heaven with no sin ii. “Today, if you hear the voice, do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion.” (v. 15)
i. HUGE reason to join a church and be active ii. Helps to retain focus on Jesus
Heb 4:1-134:1 Therefore, since the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us be careful that none of you be found to have fallen short of it. 2 For we also have had the gospel preached to us, just as they did; but the message they heard was of no value to them, because those who heard did not combine it with faith. 3 Now we who have believed enter that rest, just as God has said, "So I declared on oath in my anger, 'They shall never enter my rest.'" And yet his work has been finished since the creation of the world. 4 For somewhere he has spoken about the seventh day in these words: "And on the seventh day God rested from all his work." 5 And again in the passage above he says, "They shall never enter my rest." 6 It still remains that some will enter that rest, and those who formerly had the gospel preached to them did not go in, because of their disobedience. 7 Therefore God again set a certain day, calling it Today, when a long time later he spoke through David, as was said before: "Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts." 8 For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken later about another day. 9 There remains, then, a Sabbath — rest for the people of God; 10 for anyone who enters God's rest also rests from his own work, just as God did from his. 11 Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will fall by following their example of disobedience.
12 For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. 13 Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.
i. Refers to Heaven ii. The place that God dwells iii. The promise of entering still stands 1. Through faith in Jesus Christ 2. We who have believed enter the rest…(v. 3)
i. Penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow ii. Judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart iii. NOTHING is hidden from God’s sight The Bottom Line Our God is a jealous God. We are to serve Him and Him alone. Our God is a merciful God. He has provided a way for us to be redeemed when we fall short of His glory. We will only have that opportunity Today, while we’re still alive on this earth. We are called to 1) fix our thoughts on Jesus 2) do not turn away from the Living God 3) encourage one another daily 4) and to be careful not to fall short of His rest. We can do all of these things by knowing and obeying the Word of God. The Bible is not a history book…..dead and about the past. The Bible is alive and active. The lessons contained within are just a pertinent today as they were when they were written. The Holy Spirit interprets and speaks to us if we’re willing to listen. Spend time with God Today!!! Invitation I’m going to try something a little different this morning for our time of invitation. I ask that everyone remain seated, bow you heads, and close your eyes. As Sylvia plays, I ask you to pray. Pray for the person sitting next to you……then pray for yourself. Pray that God will use His Living Word to touch your life…..to use the sword to penetrate the areas that aren’t pleasing to Him and divide them from your Spirit and to change the attitude of your Heart. Now I ask, as you keep your head bowed and eyes closed, to raise your hand if you would like me to come pray with you. There is no shame in this….this is you bearing your soul before Jesus. I’ll come and say a quick prayer with you…….you don’t even have to say a thing. Let’s let Jesus take over this service this morning. |
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