The Danger of Misplaced Faith
"Anyone who has rejected Moses’ law dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. Of how much worse punishment, do you suppose, will he be thought worthy who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, counted the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified a common thing, and insulted the Spirit of grace?" (Heb. 10:28-29)
Throughout human history whenever mankind has fallen short of God's glory, there is a certain judgment that inevitably comes whereby we must reap what we have sown. God is holy and requires us to live according to His holy word in all of our conduct. BUT GOD is also rich in mercy and often provides a window for mankind to turn and return before bringing His final judgment. In God's economy, "mercy triumphs over judgment" (James 2:13).
In the Garden, God pursued man and clothed Adam and Eve with the skins of a sacrificed animal...but He still allowed them to be punished for their sins. God showed mercy to Noah when he obediently built an ark, but He still judged the rest of the world. God raised up a deliverer and rescued Israel from Egypt but also sent certain judgments to those who sinned while mercifully taking care of them in the wilderness.
Whenever His people rejected His Law, God sent judgment to His children and some were even brought to point of death. This reality of God's judgment must never be overlooked or underestimated. In fact, God will never be less than just, but He can be more than just as He desires that all men be saved, reserving the right to show mercy and grace on whomever He desires.
With all that said, we must take the warnings of God seriously and realize that the judgment we face will be even more severe if we refuse to trust and embrace the finished work of Jesus on the cross and turn away from Him. This is the warning that the writer of Hebrews gives to those who were given the enlightenment of the work of the cross and yet end up not giving worth to the cross by putting our faith in something or someone else.
Many Jews who heard the gospel of Christ were tempted to return to their old sacrificial system and even stopped gathering with the saints. This is the danger of misplaced faith, even though God would not accept any other sacrifice except the provision of His own Son.
It is amazing to think that in all the sacrifices that took place before Jesus, there was never an animal that could speak to man or pray for man or go through the temptations of man. But Jesus, as the God Man, was tempted in all points and yet never sinned but sacrificially died ONCE AND FOR ALL in the place of sinners!
O how amazing is the love of God! And O how tragic it is when the perfect sacrifice of Christ has been offered only to be disrespected and disregarded, as though it never even happened or that it was not sufficient or applicable to them! The sacrifice of Jesus can cleanse us of all sin...except the sin that opposes the sacrifice of Jesus Himself, whereby the cross is minimized and the selfish will is maximized to fulfill one's own desire.
There are three specific ways to oppose the perfect sacrifice of New Covenant:
…To trample is to literally and knowingly “walk over Jesus’ dead body” so to speak!
…To disregard the blood is to treat the blood of God’s Son as if it were as common as that of a bull or goat.
…To insult the Spirit of grace is to resist the Spirit of God and place your faith in that which is lower and lesser and outside of the Gospel of grace.
This rejection and refusal of Christ kindles the wrath of God that will be released at the appointed time! There is going to come a day when God will judge all things and the earth will melt with fervent heat and then all people will be judged for what they have done and for rejecting His Son. This will be a scary and frightening day for those that have not put their trust in Jesus Christ alone and have paved their way to hell. As Peter says in his final epistle,
"Therefore, beloved, looking forward to these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless; and consider that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation" (2 Peter 3:14-15).
The ONLY WAY to be saved and forgiven is to place your TRUST FULLY in the finished work of the Cross. Whatever is not forgiven and accepted by Jesus must be tossed aside to perish in the fire. The writer of Hebrews says, “For our God is a consuming fire" (Heb. 12:29).
Consuming fire is what awaits all those who reject the Son and who depart from the loving God. Those who continually practice sin will receive judgment from the living God. Hell was prepared for the devil and his angels but it will also receive all those who reject Jesus and place their faith elsewhere. The truth is that if we don’t give worth to the sacrifice of the Son, we will never escape the wrath of the Father.
There is a window of grace available before the judgment to come but we must believe and receive Jesus wholeheartedly and continue with Him and not replace our faith with any misplaced faith in anything else but the grace found in Christ.
"Therefore do not cast away your confidence, which has great reward. For you have need of endurance, so that after you have done the will of God, you may receive the promise:
“For yet a little while, And He who is coming will come and will not tarry. Now the just shall live by faith; But if anyone draws back, My soul has no pleasure in him” (Heb. 10:35-38).
Those who are truly in Christ will be kept by Christ but the evidence of this will be shown by those who continue to "believe to the saving of the soul".
James 1:12 concludes this same point as well: "Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him."
This Week’s New Covenant Exhortation:
Let us abandon every false religious way and any form of self reliance and place our trust fully IN CHRIST ALONE.
Will you test the hands of a righteous JUDGE OR trust in the arms of a merciful SAVIOR?
Throughout human history whenever mankind has fallen short of God's glory, there is a certain judgment that inevitably comes whereby we must reap what we have sown. God is holy and requires us to live according to His holy word in all of our conduct. BUT GOD is also rich in mercy and often provides a window for mankind to turn and return before bringing His final judgment. In God's economy, "mercy triumphs over judgment" (James 2:13).
In the Garden, God pursued man and clothed Adam and Eve with the skins of a sacrificed animal...but He still allowed them to be punished for their sins. God showed mercy to Noah when he obediently built an ark, but He still judged the rest of the world. God raised up a deliverer and rescued Israel from Egypt but also sent certain judgments to those who sinned while mercifully taking care of them in the wilderness.
Whenever His people rejected His Law, God sent judgment to His children and some were even brought to point of death. This reality of God's judgment must never be overlooked or underestimated. In fact, God will never be less than just, but He can be more than just as He desires that all men be saved, reserving the right to show mercy and grace on whomever He desires.
With all that said, we must take the warnings of God seriously and realize that the judgment we face will be even more severe if we refuse to trust and embrace the finished work of Jesus on the cross and turn away from Him. This is the warning that the writer of Hebrews gives to those who were given the enlightenment of the work of the cross and yet end up not giving worth to the cross by putting our faith in something or someone else.
Many Jews who heard the gospel of Christ were tempted to return to their old sacrificial system and even stopped gathering with the saints. This is the danger of misplaced faith, even though God would not accept any other sacrifice except the provision of His own Son.
It is amazing to think that in all the sacrifices that took place before Jesus, there was never an animal that could speak to man or pray for man or go through the temptations of man. But Jesus, as the God Man, was tempted in all points and yet never sinned but sacrificially died ONCE AND FOR ALL in the place of sinners!
O how amazing is the love of God! And O how tragic it is when the perfect sacrifice of Christ has been offered only to be disrespected and disregarded, as though it never even happened or that it was not sufficient or applicable to them! The sacrifice of Jesus can cleanse us of all sin...except the sin that opposes the sacrifice of Jesus Himself, whereby the cross is minimized and the selfish will is maximized to fulfill one's own desire.
There are three specific ways to oppose the perfect sacrifice of New Covenant:
- To trample (reject, tread down) the Son of God underfoot.
- To disregard (degrade) the blood of Christ - count it as “a common thing”.
- To insult (do despite unto) the Spirit of grace.
…To trample is to literally and knowingly “walk over Jesus’ dead body” so to speak!
…To disregard the blood is to treat the blood of God’s Son as if it were as common as that of a bull or goat.
…To insult the Spirit of grace is to resist the Spirit of God and place your faith in that which is lower and lesser and outside of the Gospel of grace.
This rejection and refusal of Christ kindles the wrath of God that will be released at the appointed time! There is going to come a day when God will judge all things and the earth will melt with fervent heat and then all people will be judged for what they have done and for rejecting His Son. This will be a scary and frightening day for those that have not put their trust in Jesus Christ alone and have paved their way to hell. As Peter says in his final epistle,
"Therefore, beloved, looking forward to these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless; and consider that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation" (2 Peter 3:14-15).
The ONLY WAY to be saved and forgiven is to place your TRUST FULLY in the finished work of the Cross. Whatever is not forgiven and accepted by Jesus must be tossed aside to perish in the fire. The writer of Hebrews says, “For our God is a consuming fire" (Heb. 12:29).
Consuming fire is what awaits all those who reject the Son and who depart from the loving God. Those who continually practice sin will receive judgment from the living God. Hell was prepared for the devil and his angels but it will also receive all those who reject Jesus and place their faith elsewhere. The truth is that if we don’t give worth to the sacrifice of the Son, we will never escape the wrath of the Father.
There is a window of grace available before the judgment to come but we must believe and receive Jesus wholeheartedly and continue with Him and not replace our faith with any misplaced faith in anything else but the grace found in Christ.
"Therefore do not cast away your confidence, which has great reward. For you have need of endurance, so that after you have done the will of God, you may receive the promise:
“For yet a little while, And He who is coming will come and will not tarry. Now the just shall live by faith; But if anyone draws back, My soul has no pleasure in him” (Heb. 10:35-38).
Those who are truly in Christ will be kept by Christ but the evidence of this will be shown by those who continue to "believe to the saving of the soul".
James 1:12 concludes this same point as well: "Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him."
This Week’s New Covenant Exhortation:
Let us abandon every false religious way and any form of self reliance and place our trust fully IN CHRIST ALONE.
Will you test the hands of a righteous JUDGE OR trust in the arms of a merciful SAVIOR?
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