Hebrews 10:26 For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins,
27 But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries.
28 He that despised Moses’ law died without mercy under two or three witnesses:
29 Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace?
In the previous verses God has given us instructions on the response that He expects from a true child of God. He can expect a certain response because He has designed His salvation to bring about such a response.
New Evangelicalism has fought against God’s truth since its inception in 1948. Prior to that time there were other false belief systems in place, the Catholics being one of the main groups. Many have followed false teaching rather than the truth because they wanted a feel good type of religion. The devil is happy to give just that type of religion. He offers a religion where the people choose their level of commitment and where their ideas are paramount. His ideas regarding religion are no different than his idea regarding democracy.
Democracy is suggested to be a people empowered type of government. Anyone with their eyes open should be able to see the downfall of that system in our country right now. It is a wrong headed approach to government and it devolves into anarchy which brings about a dictatorship. We are in the place of tyrannical government now and close to anarchy. Citizens are rising up and defying the officials. We know the officials are not following the Constitution, but they do not care. Citizens are standing in resistance against police officers in several places in our country. Our Prime Minister is demanding that the “law” be used against them in a very forceful manner. The Premier of Ontario has called for a state of emergency so that he can keep his unlawful mandates going, but can quash the resistance against those illegal mandates. The current leader of the opposition, the supposed “saviour” in the minds of some, has proven to be just as corrupt as the current P.M. History shows us we are in a bad place at this present time. The Bible shows us the reason we are in this bad place. It did not start with bad government. It developed over time as people rejected God’s truth and chose the feel good religions instead.
God directed the writer here to draw from the Old Testament passages of Numbers 15:30-31 and Deuteronomy 17:12 where He made it clear that willful sin had no justification. The judgment for such was severe for the purpose of limiting the spread of such sin in the camp of Israel. Most people are quite susceptible to mob control. Some might be more reluctant than others, but people are “people followers.” We can see that with what is happening now.
In our text God warns us against willful sin against His clear teaching. There is no other truth beside God’s truth. If a person wants to rebel against God’s Word and reject His salvation and the fruit of that salvation, He has no other salvation to offer. That person is in grave danger. Those who sat down and developed the basis of the New Evangelicalism that is running so rampant yet now, are probably all dead and gone. They are guilty before God and they know it now. They knew it while they were alive but they rejected the convicting work of the Holy Spirit in their lives. However, now they know full well that what they developed and what they promoted was evil.
There are many today who are quite content to follow that philosophy while they also know it is not Biblical. They too are guilty before God. Unless they repent toward God and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation, they too are in grave danger.
Matthew 7:13 Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat:
14 Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.
Verse 27 of our text tells us very clearly what lies ahead for those who want to follow some deluded spirituality, rather than God’s truth. Many people do not like a narrow way. They want room to develop their own thinking and do their own thing. That is possible in the world. It is not possible on the narrow way.
As we mentioned, verse 28 takes us back to the passages we mentioned above. God was very clear with the nation of Israel. An entire generation died out in the wilderness (except for 2 people) because they sinned wilfully against the Lord. They did not just do it once. They did it ten times. God is merciful. He gives man room to repent. However, those that refuse to repent and persist in their evil ways will face His wrath.
Verse 29 contrasts the depth of the sin of rejecting the effectiveness of the sacrifice of Christ with the rejection of the blood of bulls and goats. Many rejected the efficacy of the Old Testament sacrifices. They held them as rituals, but of no real value. There was no sacrifice provided for that rejection. There was only God’s wrath to face.
God warns of those in this present time who hold the blood of Jesus Christ the same way. They want to be called Christians, but they do not believe that His blood affects any real change in the recipients life.
I read a headline recently that stated: “Why attending church no longer makes sense”. The author of this article states that he was a lead pastor in his particular church for a while but not any longer. We can certainly see that fewer and fewer people have a sense of commitment to a true local church. Many, who profess to be saved are quite content to stay home or if the weather is good, to go fishing or travelling etc. They have no shame in doing so either. They have come up with ways to justify this.
God warns us in this passage of the danger of rejecting the value of His salvation. His salvation still changes the heart of the recipient. It still causes them to pass from death unto life. It still gives them a new nature. With that new nature we are told “old things are passed away, behold all things are become new.”
II Corinthians 5:17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
We mentioned in the opening of this devotional that we are in a bad place as a nation and as a world. The root cause of this is due to the rejection of God’s truth. When God’s truth is rejected, everything else falls apart. Most people reject that fact, but God shows us in the Bible and we can also see it in post-Bible history that it is true.
God is shaking things up. He is purifying His body. Soon the Trumpet will sound. Soon the Lord will return in the clouds. God expects His saints to be just as true to Him just prior to that event as in any other generation. He warns of the falling away that will happen and it is happening right now. However, His children still have the truth and His truth never loses its power or relevance.
Let me encourage those who are saved to be much in prayer for one another and for our country. It would be a great blessing to see our P.M. saved as well as many others both in government and in the medical field. I would also like to encourage those who are saved to be faithful in a true local Bible-believing church. You need a good local church. Faithfulness in a true local church is not doing a favour to God or to the pastor. It is doing a favour to you. It is God’s design for this age. We also need to pray for the many who are making a mockery of Jesus’ sacrifice. We need to pray for their salvation. God is merciful and He is longsuffering. The Bible tells us this has a limit to it. As the writer of Hebrews pointed out several times, to day is the day of salvation.
Pastor Bartel
