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Ephesians 3:17-19, John 15:5, Hebrews 6:7, Matthew 13:23, Romans 5:8

Jesus and Fruit

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
October 16, 2019

Ephesians 3:17-19 connects the love of Christ, Christ’s love for us, not our love for him, as the nutrients which will bring about spiritual maturity. He describes maturity as a progressive understanding and appreciation of God’s love expressed on the Cross. He says it this way, “so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.” If we sink our roots into God’s love, the nutrients for true spiritual growth will flow through us and produce fruit. We can’t produce fruit on our own. The children of Israel could not force “rest” in the Promised Land without God. We can’t find “rest” outside of our complete faith and trust in the full sufficiency of Jesus.  Jesus said it this way in John 15:5, “I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.”

The author of the book of Hebrews turns to this agricultural picture to illustrate this truth. He suggests that it takes continual (note the word “often”) Jesus nourishment (abiding in Christ) to produce fruit. This nourishment is abundantly available to all. In Hebrews 6:7 he says, “For land that has drunk the rain that often falls on it, and produces a crop useful to those for whose sake it is cultivated, receives a blessing from God.” Crops draw their nourishment from the rains and the soil, but Christians draw maturing nourishment from Jesus. He is the only source of “living water” and the only true “bread of life.” The land that continually draws its nutrients from Jesus,  the “Word” of God, will mature and produce fruit. In Matthew 13:23 Jesus said, “As for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it. He indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty.”

This is all leading up to the author’s return to the Genesis account of Melchizedek. There is true Jesus meat in that story and he’ll take some time in cutting up the meat and serving it to his readers. He seems to be setting the table now and in the rest of Hebrews chapter 6. Make no mistake, it’s understanding the depth of God’s love for us as expressed on Calvary through Jesus that nourishes spiritual growth. Romans 8:5 says, “But God demonstrates His love for us in this: while we were still sinners Christ died for us.” The growing appreciation of this is what brings us into God’s rest. Jesus did it for us! Like the children of Israel at Kadesh Barnea, we cannot do it on our own. “Apart from Him, we can do nothing.”

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Hebrews 6:6, Galatians 2:21, Ephesians 3:17-19

Jesus is the only way!

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
October 14, 2019

The last part of this passage (Hebrews 6:4-6) says, “… to restore them again to repentance, since they are crucifying once again the Son of God to their own harm and holding him up to contempt.” The connection between this and the actions of the children of Israel at Kadesh Barnea is still in play with this last phrase. They flagrantly and publicly rejected God’s offer of the Promised Land wherein there was rest from all their enemies. Paul said that to add anything to the full sufficiency of Christ is to nullify God’s grace. In Galatians 2:21 he writes, “I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness were through the law, then Christ died for no purpose.” When good works, sacrifices, rituals, religious practices, and even devotion replace the work of Christ, we disgrace God’s work in Christ and hold Him up to public ridicule. As Paul says, we “nullify” what Christ has done, thus if God would permit your works to replace Christ’s works on the cross it would mean that Christ’s sacrifice wasn’t enough and therefore God would need to offer another sacrifice which He will not do. Thus, to your own harm, through your lack of full, mature faith in Christ, it’s impossible for you to be restored to repentance from dead works.

I believe it’s this understanding that led Girdwood to write, “Those who fall away cannot be restored so long as they persist in their flagrant and public rejection of Christ.”[1] There is only one sufficient sacrifice for our sins! There is only one way to enjoy “rest” with God and rest for our souls. It’s through unwavering and complete confidence in Christ’s work alone, that one can be sure of where they stand with God. No amount of good works or sacrifices or any rituals of any kind can take the place of or add to the fully sufficient work of Christ. When he said “It is finished,” He meant that. Jesus is the one and only way to peace with God.

The difference between Jesus’ milk drinkers and Jesus’ meat eaters is that the meat eaters have their senses trained to see Christ in the entire Bible. They are nourished by God’s Word in everything they read, and grow stronger and stronger with each meal. Paul prayed for the Ephesians when he explained why he wanted them to grow. He said in Ephesians 3:17-19, “so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.” Let me repeat Guzik’s words. He writes, “The idea is not that ‘if you fall away, you can’t ever come back to Jesus.’ Instead, the idea is ‘if you turn your back on Jesus, don’t expect to find salvation anywhere else, especially in the practice of religion apart from the fullness of Jesus.”[2]

[1] James Girdwood and Peter Verkruyse, Hebrews, The College Press NIV Commentary (Joplin, MO: College Press, 1997), Heb 6:4–8.

[2] David Guzik, Hebrews, David Guzik’s Commentaries on the Bible (Santa Barbara, CA: David Guzik, 2013), Heb 6:4–6.

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Hebrews 6:6a

Jesus said, “It is finished”

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
October 14, 2019

The “impossibility” addressed in Hebrews chapter 6 verses 4-6 is a subject of serious disagreement. The entire passage says, “For it is impossible, in the case of those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, and have shared in the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come, and then have fallen away, to restore them again to repentance…” What does it mean when it says that it’s impossible to restore them again to repentance? If I keep with the idea of “repentance from dead works” as mentioned in an earlier verse, it might become a little clearer. I see it that way. It’s referring to the insistence of some people to make “works” an integral part of their acceptance by God. This fosters a permanent immaturity. There is no rest for them. Their sin nature leads them to failure often, and guilt and regrets dominate. Then they pick themselves up and try again, and again, and again! There is nothing more discouraging than serving a god of another chance, especially when my second, third, fourth, and all my chances, end in failure. We can only experience rest when we trust in what Christ has accomplished for us.

Keeping this in line with the example taken from Numbers regarding the failure of the Israelites to enter into God’s promised rest in the Promised Land, we get the idea that the decision to maintain a focus on my behavior and deeds completely precludes any experience of God’s rest. Jesus said “It is finished” on the cross and to insist on adding my own efforts to His finished work destroys His finished work. Guzik gets that. He writes, “The idea is not that ‘if you fall away, you can’t ever come back to Jesus.’ Instead, the idea is ‘if you turn your back on Jesus, don’t expect to find salvation anywhere else, especially in the practice of religion apart from the fullness of Jesus.’”[1] You see, outside of the finished work of Jesus, there is no rest, only self-effort, sacrifice, daily stress, and eventual failure! It’s totally impossible to experience God’s rest and God’s peace as long as we add anything to the complete sufficiency of Christ’s work on our behalf.

Pentecost explains why the children of Israel were forbidden to enter the land even after repenting. He writes, “Thus God made it impossible for those who had rebelled—even though they repented—to proceed into the land to enjoy its blessings. Their loss of privilege, in other words, was irreversible.”[2] Taking the land on their own was another display that they did not need God. They trusted in their own strength this time even in rebellion against Moses and God’s pronouncement that they cannot enter God’s rest in the Promised Land. They rejected the sufficiency of God’s promise and the veracity of His word and stepped up on their own to make it happen. It failed of course! It always fails! When Jesus said “It is finished,” He meant it.

[1] David Guzik, Hebrews, David Guzik’s Commentaries on the Bible (Santa Barbara, CA: David Guzik, 2013), Heb 6:4–6.

[2] J. Dwight Pentecost and Ken Durham, Faith That Endures : A Practical Commentary on the Book of Hebrews, Rev. ed. (Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Publications, 2000), 106

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Numbers 14:21-23, Numbers 14:39-45, Hebrews 6:4-6a

Entering into Jesus’ Rest

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
October 14, 2019

When the Israelites took their eyes off of God and His promises to give them the Promised Land wherein lay “rest” from all their enemies, they looked at themselves, looked at their opposition, and doubted God’s promise and therefore languished away in the wilderness for 40 years. The result of that lack of faith was that they could never enter into God’s rest. God told them so in Numbers 14:21-23, “But truly, as I live, and as all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the LORD, none of the men who have seen my glory and my signs that I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and yet have put me to the test these ten times and have not obeyed my voice, shall see the land that I swore to give to their fathers.” In other words, it became impossible for them to enter into the rest God had promised the nation. They tried to do so on their own and were soundly defeated by the inhabitants of that land (See Numbers 14:39-45). It’s impossible to experience God’s rest through our own efforts. God’s promise forbids it just as He forbade the Israelites from entering into their rest.

Something similar is going to be impossible for some of those to whom the author of Hebrews is addressing. In Hebrews 6:4-6a he describes those who will face this impossibility. He says, “For it is impossible, in the case of those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, and have shared in the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come and then have fallen away…” The Israelites in Egypt were enlightened while all of Egypt was cast into darkness during the 10 plagues. Jesus, the light of the world, could not be overcome by the darkness (John 1:5). The Israelites tasted the Passover lamb whose blood protected them from God’s judgment on Egypt. John the Baptist pointed to Jesus and said, “behold the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.” The Israelites witnessed the parting of the Red Sea and joined in the procession of those who marched through on dry ground while the Egyptians entered a watery grave. Jesus gives us the Holy Spirit which becomes a well of water within us, swelling up into eternal life and whoever drinks from it will have eternal life. The Israelites saw God’s provision day after day in the wilderness and enjoyed the faithfulness of God providing daily manna from heaven. But Jesus is the “true bread” that comes from heaven and those who feast on it will have eternal life. The Israelites saw the promise of a coming Kingdom in the Promised Land where they would find perfect rest.  Jesus came to bring us the Kingdom and has promised to come again with the Kingdom of God wherein we too will find perfect rest.

With respect to the phrase “fallen away,” the idea has appeared twice before in this epistle. Both times, Hebrews 3:12 and Hebrews 4:11, it has to do with events that took place at Kadesh Barnea. That’s why Tanner says, “Thus falling away’ in v 6 is to transgress against the Lord in a way that parallels what happened at Kadesh Barnea when the Hebrews hardened their hearts and rebelled against the Lord in unbelief.”[1] Because of their lack of maturing faith, the Israelites were unable to move forward into God’s rest. Many Christians today languish in immaturity. They wrestle constantly with guilt and bitterness and find no rest from their dilemma. Only the maturing believer, finding Jesus meat throughout the entire Bible, experiences a vibrant and growing faith in Jesus’ complete sufficiency. His grace is sufficient for all our circumstances. Growing up in Christ requires Jesus meat and the Bible is full of it. Melchizedek is a full healthy meal as it illustrates for us the role of Jesus in dealing with our sin and guilt. The author will go there next.

[1] J. Paul Tanner, “The Epistle to the Hebrews,” in The Grace New Testament Commentary, ed. Robert N. Wilkin (Denton, TX: Grace Evangelical Society, 2010), 1053.

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Hebrews 6:3, Hebrews 3:11

Jesus gives us rest

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
October 8, 2019

The author of Hebrews hopes that he can move on from Jesus milk to Jesus meat. The milk is crucial because it nourishes and strengthens us to be able to manage more sophisticated meals; Jesus meat. He’s already explained that Jesus milk consists of several doctrines that are foundational to the Christian faith. The first one is salvation by grace through faith and not confidence in the dead works of the law. The second one concerns the sacrificial system of purification and transferring our sin to a substitutionary sacrifice. It’s not bulls and goats, but the very Son of God that entered into the presence of God with the all sufficient sacrifice for our sins once and for all. The third issue was the resurrection of the dead and the eternal judgement from which, as Paul says, in 1 Thessalonians 1:10, is Jesus “who God raised from the dead.” Further it is Jesus who “rescued us from the terrors of the coming judgment.” These issues are all fundamental and everything about the superstructure must rest upon these principles.

But the writer hopes to move on to Jesus meat. He wants to give his readers something to chew on regarding more mature teaching regarding Jesus. In Hebrews 6:3 he says, “And this we will do if God permits.” The author is again including himself in this prayer. He wants to move on from the foundational truths to build a life out of biblical truths that rest upon the solid ground of the Jesus milk. Just as the milk is “Jesus” milk, the meat is “Jesus” meat. It’s the same nourishment but comes in a more mature form. We know where this writer is going with this because he will return to his study of the life of Melchizedek at the end of chapter 6 and for all of chapter 7. Melchizedek, King of Righteousness, is a figure from the Old Testament that teaches a deeper and more mature understanding of Jesus. That was Melchizedek’s role: to open the eyes of mature Christians to all the glories and wonders of the Savior that strengthen the foundational truths and builds our confidence in Jesus. The writer wants his readers to move on into a mature confidence or rest in Jesus.

But God did not permit the Israelites to enter into that rest. They took their eyes off of God’s promises and looked at all the troubles and challenges around them and said “we can’t do it.” Actually what that meant was “God can’t keep His promise.” So God declared “they will never enter my rest” (See Hebrews 3:11). They came out of Egypt of course, and were freed from Egyptian bondage but never experienced the full “rest” God wanted for them in the Promised Land. I like the way Steadman puts it, “The unbelieving Israelites in the desert wanted to enter into Canaan, and, presumably, into the spiritual rest which Canaan symbolized. But they could not, for God would not permit it! Hence they must continue to wander in the wilderness till all were dead. Far from being a polite cliché or pious wish, these words God permitting form the fulcrum on which the warning of verses 4–8 turns.”[1] Jesus meat nourishes our faith and enables us to “rest” confidently in God’s promises. Without a full, growing faith in God’s promises realized in Jesus, we’ll never enter into His rest.

[1] Ray C. Stedman, Hebrews, The IVP New Testament Commentary Series (Westmont, IL: IVP Academic, 1992), Heb 6:1.

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Hebrews 6:1-2, John 11:25-26, 1 Thessalonians 1:10

Jesus is the Resurrection

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
October 8, 2019

Jesus is both milk and meat! He nourishes the infants and He nourishes the adults. He is all the nourishment believers need. But if children don’t digest the Jesus milk, they’ll never be able to handle the Jesus meat. The author of Hebrews seems to say that Jesus milk is foundational. If you don’t get that, digest that, you’ll never be able to digest the meat. In Hebrews 6:1-2 the writer says, “Therefore let us leave the elementary doctrine of Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God, and of instruction about washings, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment.” The first foundational principle of Christ that must be laid deals with the issue of salvation by grace through faith instead of by dead works of the law. If that’s not the basis of your understanding of the whole Bible, you don’t understand the whole Bible.

The second foundational principle deals with Jesus’ sacrificial death on the cross as payment for our sins. It was in my stead that Jesus died, and for my sins that Jesus died. As the author said earlier and will say again later, Jesus had no sin for which He needed to offer a sacrifice as the Priests of Aaron’s line did. If the washings of purification made people acceptable to God how much more acceptable will we be who are purified by the cleaning blood of Jesus? After the priest laid his hands on the sacrifice, transferring the sins of the people onto it, he then sent it out into the wilderness never to return. Salvation is by God’s grace through faith in Jesus! This is foundational. We are cleansed from our sins by his sacrifice! This is foundational. If you don’t build all your thinking around these two truths, you’ll never understand God.

But there is another foundational issue the author mentions in the last part of verse 2. It concerns “…the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment.” The resurrection is an essential and foundational doctrine of the faith. Whether these doctrines were part of Old Testament theology or not it must be recognized as Hughes observes, “But in the New Testament these subjects take on massive significance, with Jesus Christ at their very center.” This foundational doctrine came directly from the mouth of Jesus in John’s Gospel 11:25-26. He said, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” Further, 1 Thessalonians 1:10 puts the two, resurrection and judgment, into the hands of Jesus. It commend the believers who “are looking forward to the coming of God’s Son from heaven—Jesus, whom God raised from the dead. He is the one who has rescued us from the terrors of the coming judgment.” These are foundational! We are saved by grace through faith alone in Jesus. Jesus paid our debt and cleansed us from our sins. Jesus’ resurrection guarantees God’s acceptance of us in the future kingdom. It’s all about Jesus! If you don’t get these, you won’t get the Bible.

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Hebrews 6:1-2, 9:13,14, Leviticus 16:21, John 6:55-56

Jesus cleanses us from all sin

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
October 8, 2019

Hebrews 6:2 continues from verse 1 naming the foundational teachings of Christ upon which the superstructure of the faith must be built. Hebrews 6:1-2 says, “Therefore let us leave the elementary doctrine of Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God, and of instruction about washings, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment.” The first foundational issue is that we repent of our confidence in our works and rest confidently in Christ’s work for us on the cross. It’s easy to see why the writer would include this as the first foundational issue. The second issue deals with 2 other items that could be connected to the idea of dead works. One commentary said, “Dead works may represent the efforts connected with the earthly sanctuary system to secure cleansing and acceptance before God.”[1] The instructions about washings and laying on of hands deal with offering sacrifices under the Old Testament economy. It has to do with the purification of sinners through blood sacrifices.

It’s faith in God and the sacrifice offered by Jesus on the cross of Calvary that replaces all that. It’s foundational to our faith to see that there need not be any more blood sacrifices for the forgiveness of sins. That’s been taken care of! It’s foundational. The author of Hebrews will make this all perfectly clear in Chapter 9 verses 13-14 when he writes, “For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the sprinkling of defiled persons with the ashes of a heifer, sanctify for the purification of the flesh, how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God.”

“Laying on of hands” is another ritual of the Jewish religious system. Another commentary explains, “The rite symbolized transfer. On the Day of Atonement hands were placed on the head of a goat as the priest confessed the sins of Israel (Lev. 16:21). Then the goat was sent away into the wilderness where he typically carried the sins which he bore, never to return with them again.”[2] The foundational issues associated with washings and laying on of hands as practiced in the Old Testament have been fulfilled in Christ. Like salvation by grace through faith alone, the sufficiency of Christ’s sacrifice on the cross for our sins is foundational. Your sins have been atoned for and taken away as far as the east is from the west to never return. If you don’t grasp this truth, you’ll not understand Jesus meat! He says (John 6:55-56), “My body is real food. My blood is real drink. Anyone who eats my body and drinks my blood remains in me. And I remain in him.”

[1] J. Paul Tanner, “The Epistle to the Hebrews,” in The Grace New Testament Commentary, ed. Robert N. Wilkin (Denton, TX: Grace Evangelical Society, 2010), 1052.

[2] Charles F. Pfeiffer, The Epistle to the Hebrews, Everyman’s Bible Commentary (Chicago, IL: Moody Press, 1962), 50.

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Hebrews 6:1, 1 Corinthians 3:11, Isaiah 28:16

Jesus is Milk and Meat!

Filed Under: Devotions by Chuck
October 4, 2019

Hebrews 6:1 begins with a “therefore.” That always requires that we understand what the “therefore” is there for. What is the connection between what he is about to say and what he has already said? He’s argued that Jesus is the absolute best thing from God. He’s better than the prophets, the angels, the law, Moses and the priesthood of Aaron’s line. When he speaks of the priesthood of Jesus, he identifies Jesus as a priest in the order of Melchizedek, not Aaron. Then stops and says this is really difficult to understand and is intended for the mature believer. He is concerned because his readers are only accustomed to the Jesus milk and needed to grow up in order to be able to digest the Jesus meat. Jesus milk is nourishing for infants but adults need more than that. Melchizedek is going to be meaty and the writer is going to go back to that discussion in Chapter 7 but not until he deals with the difference between Jesus milk and Jesus meat. Hebrews 6:1 says, “Therefore let us leave the elementary doctrine of Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God.”

Don’t think that “the elementary doctrine of Christ” is something to be discarded! It’s actually the foundation of everything. It’s something that’s built upon and which holds the superstructure together. Jesus speaks of the difference between those who build on a solid foundation and those who build on sand.  Houses built on sand collapse, but not those built on a solid foundation. Paul makes sure we know what our foundation is and the writer of Hebrews knows this also. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 3:11, “For no one is able to lay another foundation than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.” This foundation was spoken of by Isaiah years before. He speaks for God and says in Isaiah 28:16 “Look! I am placing a foundation stone in Jerusalem, a firm and tested stone. It is a precious cornerstone that is safe to build on. Whoever believes need never be shaken.”

“Dead works” refers to a foundation of sand. It’s never going to be secure! A relationship with God based on my performance and my works of righteousness is always going to fall short. I’ll never quite be good enough. But faith in Jesus who is perfect, is a solid foundation upon which we can build confidently and securely. This is Jesus milk. Every understanding of the Old Testament must be founded on this truth. The writer of Hebrews directs our attention to the Old Testament prophets, priests, laws, and everything else as further nourishment for Christians. Drawing out the nutrients of Christ as seen in every verse is our solid food and our solid foundation. He will cut up the meat of Melchizedek for us in Chapter 7 and even go on later in his letter to dish up more meat of salvation by grace through faith alone by pointing out the foundational truth of Christ in all the key figures in the Old Testament. In Chapter 11 the writer will begin his long review of the key characters in the Bible explaining that it was faith, not works, that declared them righteous. In Hebrews 11:4 he talks about Able and says, “By an act of faith, Abel brought a better sacrifice to God than Cain. It was what he believed, not what he brought, that made the difference. That’s what God noticed and approved as righteous” (The Message).

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