Warning against unbelief!

Moses Leading the Israelites Out of Egypt by József Molnár,1861

Hebrews 3:7–19

Warning against unbelief

7 So, as the Holy Spirit says:

‘Today, if you hear his voice,
8     do not harden your hearts
as you did in the rebellion,
    during the time of testing in the wilderness,
9 where your ancestors tested and tried me,
    though for forty years they saw what I did.
10 That is why I was angry with that generation;
    I said, “Their hearts are always going astray,
    and they have not known my ways.”
11 So I declared on oath in my anger,
    “They shall never enter my rest.”’

12 See to it, brothers and sisters, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. 13 But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called ‘Today’, so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness. 14 We have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original conviction firmly to the very end. 15 As has just been said:

‘Today, if you hear his voice,
    do not harden your hearts
    as you did in the rebellion.’

16 Who were they who heard and rebelled? Were they not all those Moses led out of Egypt? 17 And with whom was he angry for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies perished in the wilderness? 18 And to whom did God swear that they would never enter his rest if not to those who disobeyed? 19 So we see that they were not able to enter, because of their unbelief.

Hebrews is famous for its warning passages. This is one of them (others are 6:4–8; 10:26–31). The warning here is: don’t repeat the mistake that the Israelites made. They had begun OK – they had followed Moses out of Egypt (v 16). But when things got difficult, even the God who had parted the sea to save them, couldn’t be trusted to give them water to drink! So God was angry with them (vs 10,11,17). In the end, they perished in the wilderness (v 17) and did not enter God’s ‘rest’ (v 18). These verses warn us: don’t be like them. Or you too risk not entering God’s ‘rest’ (v 19). 

The Israelites’ problem was they thought they knew a better way to satisfy their thirst than trusting in God’s provision. ‘Why did you bring us here? We had water back in Egypt’ (see Exodus 17:3)! Don’t make the same mistake. Instead, remember that this is the living God (v 12), who speaks to you (vs 7,15), who wants you to share in Christ (v 14), who wants you with him now and in the forever rest of eternal life. Sin cannot satisfy, only God can quench the thirst in our souls. Believe in him. He can be trusted. Keep a soft heart towards God.

Author

Angus Moyes

Dear friends, I hope that you enjoyed reading this bible reading for today that can be found on this site Wordlive.org. Keeping you all in my prayers that the love of our Lord Jesus-Christ be abundant in your life. In the name of Jesus-Christ. Amen Blessings and love. Nicky A.

Who was Gideon? find out!...

When God rescued his family from a nation called Midian, he did it through a guy named Gideon. At first, Gideon didn’t think he was strong enough to lead God’s people, but God gave him the strength and help he needed.
Gideon Defeats the Midianites

7 Early in the morning, Jerub-Baal (that is, Gideon) and all his men camped at the spring of Harod. The camp of Midian was north of them in the valley near the hill of Moreh. 2 The Lord said to Gideon, “You have too many men. I cannot deliver Midian into their hands, or Israel would boast against me, ‘My own strength has saved me.’ 3 Now announce to the army, ‘Anyone who trembles with fear may turn back and leave Mount Gilead.’” So twenty-two thousand men left, while ten thousand remained.

4 But the Lord said to Gideon, “There are still too many men. Take them down to the water, and I will thin them out for you there. If I say, ‘This one shall go with you,’ he shall go; but if I say, ‘This one shall not go with you,’ he shall not go.”

5 So Gideon took the men down to the water. There the Lord told him, “Separate those who lap the water with their tongues as a dog laps from those who kneel down to drink.” 6 Three hundred of them drank from cupped hands, lapping like dogs. All the rest got down on their knees to drink.

7 The Lord said to Gideon, “With the three hundred men that lapped I will save you and give the Midianites into your hands. Let all the others go home.” 8 So Gideon sent the rest of the Israelites home but kept the three hundred, who took over the provisions and trumpets of the others.

Now the camp of Midian lay below him in the valley. 9 During that night the Lord said to Gideon, “Get up, go down against the camp, because I am going to give it into your hands. 10 If you are afraid to attack, go down to the camp with your servant Purah 11 and listen to what they are saying. Afterward, you will be encouraged to attack the camp.” So he and Purah his servant went down to the outposts of the camp. 12 The Midianites, the Amalekites and all the other eastern peoples had settled in the valley, thick as locusts. Their camels could no more be counted than the sand on the seashore.

13 Gideon arrived just as a man was telling a friend his dream. “I had a dream,” he was saying. “A round loaf of barley bread came tumbling into the Midianite camp. It struck the tent with such force that the tent overturned and collapsed.”

14 His friend responded, “This can be nothing other than the sword of Gideon son of Joash, the Israelite. God has given the Midianites and the whole camp into his hands.”

15 When Gideon heard the dream and its interpretation, he bowed down and worshiped. He returned to the camp of Israel and called out, “Get up! The Lord has given the Midianite camp into your hands.” 16 Dividing the three hundred men into three companies, he placed trumpets and empty jars in the hands of all of them, with torches inside.

17 “Watch me,” he told them. “Follow my lead. When I get to the edge of the camp, do exactly as I do. 18 When I and all who are with me blow our trumpets, then from all around the camp blow yours and shout, ‘For the Lord and for Gideon.’”

19 Gideon and the hundred men with him reached the edge of the camp at the beginning of the middle watch, just after they had changed the guard. They blew their trumpets and broke the jars that were in their hands. 20 The three companies blew the trumpets and smashed the jars. Grasping the torches in their left hands and holding in their right hands the trumpets they were to blow, they shouted, “A sword for the Lord and for Gideon!” 21 While each man held his position around the camp, all the Midianites ran, crying out as they fled.

22 When the three hundred trumpets sounded, the Lord caused the men throughout the camp to turn on each other with their swords. The army fled to Beth Shittah toward Zererah as far as the border of Abel Meholah near Tabbath. 23 Israelites from Naphtali, Asher and all Manasseh were called out, and they pursued the Midianites. 24 Gideon sent messengers throughout the hill country of Ephraim, saying, “Come down against the Midianites and seize the waters of the Jordan ahead of them as far as Beth Barah.”

So all the men of Ephraim were called out and they seized the waters of the Jordan as far as Beth Barah. 25 They also captured two of the Midianite leaders, Oreb and Zeeb. They killed Oreb at the rock of Oreb, and Zeeb at the winepress of Zeeb. They pursued the Midianites and brought the heads of Oreb and Zeeb to Gideon, who was by the Jordan.

The Lord's unfailing love

Psalm 33:18-19

But the eyes of the Lord are on those who fear him,

on those whose hope is in his unfailing love,

to deliver them from death

and keep them alive in famine.

Though our Lord is in charge of everything, he does care for us personally.. His “eyes” are on those who “fear Him” and upon those who “hope in His unfailing love”. This is such a comforting thought. The other day, a dear friend was telling me how she delights in reading the psalms. I do too. In this psalm, the Lord promises to save us and care for us...

One question: what does 'fearing the Lord' mean? In Proverbs 7:1, we read that "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge. Fearing the Lord is about respecting what He tells us. If we love the Lord, then we do what is pleasing to Him and not what we want to do. It is not always easy..however if we think that Jesus died for us and conquered death for us to be reconciled with our Father in heaven, then we must carry on and persevere. Have a blessed week-end. N.

I am a leper, does your God really love me?

A few days ago, I received 'Send', the Gospel for Asia news magazine. 
You can read amazing and true stories of how God heals, saves, forgives and sets people free from all kinds of bondage. Also, when those people meet Jesus through pastors or  friends, they do not keep it secret, they spread 
the Good News. get together to read the Bible and tell everybody else!
I was also shocked to read that there are still so many lepers there: 133, 717. I quote: 'They live with a curse they believe cannot be cured. Their society casts them out, calling them unlovable and of no worth. But Gospel for Asia-supported workers are taking the love of Jesus to these people.' Can we imagine the NHS refusing to treat people with a particular disease! Read more, click here
Everytime I read Send, I want to praise the Lord and thank Him for his blessings on our brothers and sisters in Christ. If you feel disheartened and lost, why don't you read the magazine on line. 
I  thank the Lord for all the blessings he provides generously and freely everyday. 

Whoever is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels. Luke 9:26

In His presence

This was the title of the 10th anniversary conference Steven and I attended last saturday in Lichfield cathedral. In the morning, we had a powerful address by Revd Richard Taylor and in the afternoon Michele Guinness invited us to party, yes, really we had a party!

Here are some brief notes I took while Richard Taylor was talking.

I was a heroin addict and Jesus saved me. I gave my life to Jesus. I want to share Jesus with everybody. My book, To catch a thief from career criminal to a life of hope is a UK based story. It can be found in most prisons in the UK as I believe if I can change, other people can change too and come to saving faith. We see them and they are transformed. One girl who was a hard drug user, a gaunt prostitute with scars all over, she'd been sexually, physically and emotionally abused for years. Trudy came to us  and became part of the family. We got used to her, show her love and three years on she is the manager of the girls home.

I became Christian in a pentecostal environment and then I was introduced to reformed theology. I became friend with Archbishop Rowan . I have what I have by the grace of the Lord and I believe in the power of the Gospel. Jesus is explaining to his disciples the type of relationship between him and the Father, entering in his presence. His presence lives in us. The anointing is in us already! We rely too much on the atmosphere. Jesus is saying that He is in the Father. Do we understand the power of God's presence? The scriptures point to the fact that his presence is already in us. I take his presence to street work. In Edgbaston, I asked a young woman for a coffee and she started to shake the coffee so much that she spilt it. She could experience something different, God's presence. We talked further and I told her I was a Christian. The presence of God is in us. We have the power of the living Christ in us. The same Spirit that resurrected Jesus from the dead dwells in us. Christ is more than a religious leader. John 8:58-59  ⁵⁸"I tell you the truth," Jesus answered, "before Abraham was born, I am!  Jesus was speaking of his presence. Jesus-Christ is God. However ecumenical we want to be, the message of the Gospel is exclusive and politically opposed. We are not physical, Christ came with love. Now that we are forgiven, the gospel is inclusive to those who believe. [....] I recommend Richard's book, To catch a thief. It is an excellent read and you won't want to put it down!

I am currently reading Michele Guinness 's  autobiography : Chosen and I am enjoying it thoroughly!
Blessings. Yours in Christ.