Entering Into The Rest Of God: Avoiding Sclerosis

Wherefore (as the Holy Ghost saith, 

Today if ye will hear His voice,

 harden not your hearts, as in the day

of redemption in the wilderness: 

when your fathers tempted me,

proved me, and saw my works

forty years. Wherefore I was grieved

with that generation, and said, they

do alway err in their heart; and they 

have not known My ways. So I swore

in My wrath, they shall not enter 

into my rest). 

Hebrews 3:7-11

      This question by the Holy Spirit is a question for us today: "Will you hear His voice?" Will you hear the voice of God? This hearing the voice of God is not what some who attend Churches and preaching of some new revelation spoken to someone, no, it is hearing the words of God as found in Scripture. Faith comes by hearing, and hearing the word of God (Romans 10:17) and not by some supposed revelation that cannot be be examined or proved. Hearing is an active work and to not hear is also an active exercise. To not purposely hear is to become apathetic or to follow what you want to hear, to listen to someone who tickles the ears making a person feel as though they have heard the Spirit of God. The Greek word for "if" is subjunctive, that is you might hear and you might not, and the choice is yours to hear or not to hear; but if you do not hear then you will harden your heart. To harden your heart is to purposely avoid hearing for whatever reason you assert and to harden your heart is to be far from Spiritual health. The Greek word for harden is where we get the English word "sclerotic" as in sclerosis of the arteries, and even in muscle tissue. Sclerosis of the muscles occurs from lack of exercise, or movement as in a stroke victim where their arms or legs, or both over time due to lack of movement become sclerotic. This sclerosis is a change in the muscle tissue and that change is where this tissue becomes fibrous tissue as in multiple sclerosis. Sclerosis can occur when the adrenal glands due to stress exude adrenaline, and cortisol, causing two problems: the adrenaline over time will harden the wall of the arteries, and in time the body will no longer be affected by the over stimulation of cortisol. Both adrenaline and cortisol are important for our life and when kept in control produce health, but is overuse or non-use that life becomes unhealthful. 

     The Greek word translated provocation has the meaning of making something bitter, to be amiss, to be from something causing provocation. Provocation is to be provoked, or something that provokes, by inciting, or by some instigation, to be angered, or irritated. The example being used by the writer of Hebrews is to show that the Hebrews after being led out of Egypt became angry, and incited, to become bitter as they traversed the desert and could not see where they were going or why they had to have such a hard time to get to wherever they were going. The Hebrews were so bitter over this that they were now tempted to go back to Egypt a place where they, even though persecuted badly seemed better than their present condition. The English word "proved" means to be as in the Greek word, to test, and this test an experience that was testing their character, their will caused them to question the validity of why they had left Egypt in the first place. This testing was whether or not this flee from Egypt was of God or was just of man. This grieved God and by their provocation that led them to no longer trust in God, God then allowed them to travel in the desert forty years. The old people died, and only the young were allowed to enter into the land where God was leading. Those who provoked God to this anger never entered into His rest. 

     Are you allowing your heart to be hardened, to become sclerotic? Are you questioning God and see only the good times of the past, those times when you were not concerned with what is right before God, those times where you were happy even in your sins. Are you allowing apathy, a lack of exercising your faith, and Authentic Christian Faith so that your heart becomes so hard that you turn away from the truth? Are you turning to some sort of prescription that is not proven to be of God but makes you feel as though you are spiritually healthy, that you are doing what God sees as of His will? The writer of Hebrews continues: "Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God" (Hebrews 3:12). This hardening of heart is to allow the heart you to become an unbeliever, one looking for truth, but as the song goes: "looking for love (truth) in all the wrong places." 

     To not allow laziness, apathy, or to be looking for "truth" in wrong places is to remain in a right relationship with Jesus Christ. This right relationship only remain healthful if you stand firm for what God inspired men to write and that inspiration is found in God word, the Bible. If you do not believe that then you are hardening your heart against God who has revealed Himself and what He requires of His children. If this hardening occurs then you will not enter into His rest. Yes, the road of truth is hard, filled with many trials, but, and this is important, we have the Holy Spirit to guide us if we choose, (the "if" that is subjunctive, to choose one way or the other), the right path and walk, exercise faith, in the path that God has ordained for you to walk. Proved today who you will serve, God or man!

The slothful man roasted not

    that which he took in hunting:

but the substance of a diligent man

    is precious.

                  Proverbs 12:27

Do not allow sclerosis 

Richard L. Crumb

Committlment To Jesus Christ A House Built By HIm

Wherefore, holy brethren, paratakers

of the heavenly calling, consider the

Apostle and High Priest of our profession,

Christ Jesus; who was faithful to Him

that appointed Him,as also Moses

was faithful in all his house. For this 

man was counted worthy of more 

glory than Moses, inasmuch as he who

hath builded the house hath more

honour than the house. For every

house is builded by some man;

but He that built all things is God.

And Moses verily was faithful in all

his house, as a servant, for a testimony

of those things which were to be 

spoken after; but Christ as a son 

over His own house; whose house

are we, if we hold fast the confidence

and the rejoicing of he hope firm

unto the end.

Hebrews 3:1-6

     Jesus Christ is called an apostle and a high priest and this He is for the word apostle means one who is set apart and sent out and this sending out was to reveal Himself as the Messiah and that He was sent to die to pay for sin, the debt owed to God. As High Priest then He represents us to God in that capacity. The High Priest of old would enter into the most holy place once a year and present to God a sacrament for sin of the people. Jesus is our High Priest and has presented to God His death as a sacrament for sin. We are called by God to receive this death of Jesus, this sacrament for sin and to commit to Jesus all that we are and all that we will ever be. Moses was a man called by God to lead the people, to be the one who would be used by God to present to the Hebrew people His law and this Moses did faithfully. Yet, Moses was not greater than the law, this house of God, for this law, this house of God, was created by God and the one who builds this house of God is Jesus Christ and is worthy more that the house itself. What house is being spoken of as being built by Jesus? It is those whom God has called and is being built by Jesus Christ. You are, if you have come to believe that Jesus is God and is the Messiah, and is the Savior, and by this belief, a true Authentic belief, then you will commit to Him and be used by Him as a testimony of and to Him: "and whosoever liveth and believeth in Me shall never die" (John 11:26). Do you believe? Good but to believe is to commit. To commit is to abandon all that is not related to that commitment. This is conversion, a change from one thing to another, a better way is involved in conversion for it takes what is incomplete and makes it complete and useful. Have you converted to Jesus Christ, or is your belief a simple and unfinished belief? When you have committed you will find that faith is as natural as breathing, and you will look back and see how foolish you were not to commit and trust Him. 

     What is being taught is of salvation and some Churches teach a salvation that is not of Scripture. How? They teach a liberal Christianity that salvation is in man. This is not Scriptural for Christianity, Authentic Christianity finds salvation in an act of God. The basis of salvation is found in the work of Jesus Christ, not any work of man. This belief in Jesus Christ is that He is our Savior, not by virtue of what He said, not even by virtue of what He was, rather it is by what He did. What did He do? He took our sins, the sin of the world and bore that dreadful guilt of our sins upon the cross instead of us: this is vicarious atonement. This is what our testimony is all about so that others see Jesus in us by our being built into a house of God. We are the temple and Jesus is the High Priest of our temple, this temple built by God. This is the only way the New Testament speaks of the atonement: Jesus Christ died for sin and vicariously applies this atonement to those whom God has called. To many preachers and liberal Churches do not often speak of the atonement and teach more about modern culture and of satisfying human pride. Run from such preaching and teaching!

     Liberal Christianity in its essence teach that the death of Jesus Christ did not have an affect upon God but only upon man. Really? Did not God the Father turn His face away from Jesus on the Cross because of the sin that Jesus bore? Yes? When the true words of God are strained to present Jesus Christ work on the cross other teachings are presented as truth and this in many forms. One such form is that the death of Jesus Christ is an example of self-sacrifice and you are to emulate this self-sacrifice. This then becomes  a symbol for people to express self-sacrifice in concrete forms and avoids the more simpler form that Jesus came to die to bring justice for sin, a sin against a Holy God. Furthermore, it is said that God hates sin so much that He sent Jesus Christ to die upon the Cross, therefore we ought to hate sin as does God and repent. Or, that the death of Jesus Christ is an act that displays God's love for exhibits God's own Son as given up for us all. All these theories may be taught and preached in various levels and all may seem to have some truth in them, joining them with a high view of Jesus Christ. Yet, they err! How? They ignore the dreadful reality of guilt, and make a mere persuasion of the human will all that is needed for salvation. Yes, although those theories have elements of truth as found in Scripture they are swallowed up in a greater truth, and that truth is: Christ died instead of us to present us faultless before the throne of God. Without that central truth, all the rest is devoid of real meaning. If we are to commit, to convert to Jesus Christ and if the cross is to be restored to its rightful place in Christian life, we shall have to penetrate far beneath the modern theories to Him who loved us and gave Himself for us. 

     You are the temple of God, a house built by God and that builder is greater than the house that is built. That house, you, are to be a testimony, a true and Authentic Testimony of God, or Jesus Christ who died for sin and now by His death salvation can be given to you for you are called by God to be His child, His temple. Will you be one? I pray that this will be true for you.

This book of the law shall not depart

    out of thy mouth; but thou shalt 

meditate therein day and night, 

    that thou mayest observe to do

according to all that is written 

    therein: for then thou shalt 

make thy way prosperous,and 

    thou shalt have good success.

                        Joshua 1:8

The prosperous and successful way is eternal life

Richard L. Crumb 

God Taking On The Nature Of Men: How?

For verily He took not on Him 

the nature  of angels; but He 

took on Him the seed of Abraham.

Wherefore in all things it behoved

Him to be made like unto His brethren,

that He might be a merciful and faithful

high priest in things pertaining to God,

to make reconciliation for the sins of

the people. For in that He Himself hath

suffered being tempted, He is able

to succour them that are tempted.

Hebrews 2:16-18

     Jesus Christ did not take on the nature of angels and the Greek word: επιμβάνεται, is in the middle passive voice so it is to be translated to take hold of, or take on, so it must be understood that Jesus was not an angel so if He was then this word would not apply to Him. Jesus was something else than an angel. What was that something else? He was and is God, God as the Second Person of the Godhead, the Trinity. Jehovah Witnesses who follow Arius and the theology of Arius are wrong, Jesus was not created to be another god. God would not allow another being to be the one who succored justice for Him, this would be as though God was sort of wringing His hand wondering if this other created being would be sinless. No! God determined to do what no other creature could do and not have the chance to sin and lose what He had willed to be done: satisfaction for the debt of sin that man could not satisfy. God sent His Wisdom, the Word, His Word, to secure payment and this required that God, His Wisdom, would take on the nature of man. God planted into Mary Holy Seed and that Seed conjoined with the seed of Mary making that which was born to be flesh and blood and at the same time be God in the flesh. Now, the debt could be paid. Payment was made by God Himself to Himself but it required that the Son of God, the Only Begotten Son of God come to earth, live as man, as a man, suffer, and die, die sinless. Jesus felt all that every man feels. Jesus lived the life of men, He became tired, He ate, He slept, He prayed to the Father as a man, and with all the temptations that surrounded Him He did not falter and succumb to sin, therefore He died as a man sinless. 

     This shows to us the mercy and love of God for His creation, men. God sent to us a High Priest, and this means that as a High Priest He can represent us to God. Jesus by His death, His sinless life, now can make reconciliation for the sins of men. Jesus is the propitiation for sin. God did this not just for Himself, but for you and me. The door is open for men to come to Him for He calls men to Himself and enables men to have faith in Him and in His Son Jesus Christ. By coming and answering this call of God and putting your faith in Jesus Christ, His work upon the cross and having lived life as a man facing all kinds of temptations and not sinning then we took when tempted can do exactly what Jesus did: Stay connected to God. To stay connected to God requires a change, a change in your thinking, a change in your life, you must change from the inside/out for if this change does not occur then you will never manifest this love and mercy of God. You can say you have changed, but if it is hidden from view then it is doubtful if it is really true. But, if your change, your conversion to Jesus Christ is manifested then all can see that this change is a fact. Not by works alone, but by your life that has conformed to the commands of God. You go about your life living in a right relationship with Jesus and when tempted you do not have to decide if it is right or wrong, you will know what it is and avoid without much thought any temptation. You live for and with Jesus Christ. He lived for you! So live for Him!

He that turneth away form hearing

     the law, even his prayer shall be 

abomination. Whoso causeth the

     righteous to go astray in an evil way,

he shall fall himself into his own pit:

     but the upright shall have good things

in possession.

                      Proverbs 28:9-10

You have help in temptation

Richard L. Crumb