Hebrews 3:7-19

Order of Service

• Scripture Reading — Hebrews 3:7-19
• Sermon
• Prayer

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Sermon Title: Pursuing the Rest That Remains

Scripture: Hebrews 3:7-19

I. Pursuing the Goal — Rest with God

A. The author of Hebrews sets before his readers a specific goal: entering into God's rest B. This rest is multifaceted, not mere idleness

1. Rest now — resting from earning salvation through works; trusting in the person and work of Christ, who made propitiation for sin (Hebrews 2:17)
2. Rest to come — eternal rest with God in the city that is to come; a Sabbath rest that remains for the people of God (Hebrews 4:9, Hebrews 11:13-16, Hebrews 13:14) C. The land of promise given to Israel prefigures this greater rest; even Abraham dwelt in it as a tent-dweller, looking toward a better country

II. Painting Lines Toward the Goal — The Use of Psalm 95

A. The author of Hebrews draws on Psalm 95:7-11, which is itself David's reflection on the Wilderness wandering

1. The historical moment: Israel in the wilderness, grumbling despite seeing God's mighty acts — the plagues, the pillar of fire, the cloud — repeatedly failed to trust God's word of promise
2. The first generation was barred from entering God's rest because of unbelief and disobedience (Hebrews 3:17-19) B. David wrote Psalm 95 to his own contemporaries — already settled in the land — warning them not to repeat that hardness of heart
3. Even in the land of promise, the call remained: today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts
4. The land itself was a foretaste and marker pointing to something greater — a lasting city, an eternal Sabbath rest C. The author of Hebrews now applies the same Psalm to his own congregation
5. The audience is not called to pursue a geographic land but to hold fast to Christ, in whom the fullness of rest is found
6. New Testament believers, like wilderness sojourners, are pilgrims and strangers prone to grumbling and unbelief
7. The pastoral purpose is to woo readers to Christ as their sole source of salvation and to warn them not to wander from him

III. Persevering Toward the Goal

A. The call to hold fast — Hebrews 3:14

1. "We have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original confidence firm to the end"
2. Sharing in Christ means sharing all the benefits of his finished work — the cross, resurrection, and his present session at the right hand of the Father B. The means of perseverance — mutual exhortation — Hebrews 3:13
3. "Exhort one another every day, as long as it is called today, that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin"
4. Believers are not to be isolated; we are one people in Christ called to know one another's weaknesses and point each other back to Christ
5. There is urgency: every day — frequently, consistently C. The doctrine of perseverance held in balance
6. We are called from our side to keep believing, to hold fast to our confession of Christ
7. God preserves his people — he is a keeping God; the Son intercedes for those given to him (John 17)
8. The hard warnings of Hebrews must be held together with the confidence of God's sovereign, electing love — both the call to persevere and the assurance of God's preserving grace are true