Hebrews 3:13-19 — Big "But"

READ THIS: Hebrews 3:13-19

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.

WHAT’S THIS MEAN, ANYWAY?

Since today's verses start with the word- "but," we should look back at the last verse of yesterday to know what the "but" is all about! Verse 12 says, "Watch out, brothers and sisters, so that there won't be any of you an evil, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God." So, when verse 13 says to "encourage each other daily," the encouragement is what helps each other remain faithful, that is how important encouraging words are!

This passage also references the Exodus story from yesterday again, referencing Psalms 95 again as well. It warns us against hearing God's voice and then still turning away from Him and hardening our hearts. When it asks those questions in 16-18, it is referring how the people Moses led out of Egypt were literally being led by God in a cloud and a pillar of fire, and yet they still turned away. We should take this as a warning against turning away from God, without God we will not find rest.

BUT! There is still hope in this, because the reverse of that is if we turn TO God, we will find so much rest and peace! In Matthew 11:28-30 it says, "Come to me all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me for I am gentle and humble in heart, you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."

THINK ABOUT IT:

1. Is there a time you can remember when someone's encouraging words helped you remain faithful?
 
2. What do you think "hardening your heart towards God" means? What can you do to soften your heart?

TRY THIS:

The next time you notice someone turning away from God or sinning, meet them with a genuine word of encouragement and see how it changes their mood and also how it makes you feel!

SONG OF THE WEEK:
 
This week, we see how Jesus lived His life and that points us to living our lives differently! Think about this concept through the song of the week!




Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Luke 8:19-21 — Jesus's Fam!

R EAD THIS:  Luke 8:19-21 19 Now Jesus’ mother and brothers came to see him, but they were not able to get near him because of the crowd. 20 Someone told him, “Your mother and brothers are standing outside, wanting to see you.” 21 He replied, “My mother and brothers are those who hear God’s word and put it into practice.” WHAT’S THIS MEAN, ANYWAY? Ummmm, hold up, is Jesus dissing on His family here? I mean, I know He is God's Son and all, but at first glance, this passage makes it seem like He is kind of hating on His family! However, if we really look into this passage, it's actually a lot more about us than it is about the family of Jesus.  In case you forgot, the last few passages have features Jesus telling and explaining different parables to a large crowd as well as His disciples. Clearly, the crowd has gotten so large that Mary and Jesus's brothers (yes... Jesus had brothers!) couldn't even reach Him. When someone told Jesus "hey dude, your fam is here an
Read more

WELCOME BACK! Hebrews Introduction

WELCOME BACK TO DEEPLY ROOTED!!! Greetings fellow Bible readers and Jesus journey-ers! We're stoked to get back in the swing of things with y'all. For any new readers, this section would usually be where our handful of Bible verses will be. The section below would break down what in the world the verses mean. Then, there are some debrief questions for you to dive deeper and an application point. A new addition this year is the Song of the Week! We'll share a song that ties into the theme of the next few verses...if you gaze ahead and have song suggestions, comment below or text! HEBREWS INTRODUCTION: As with any book of the Bible, different Biblical scholars say different things about this letter, but we'll tell you the most probable take. So here it is: Hebrews is a letter written to a group of Jews who were being persecuted for deciding to follow Jesus. It is a letter to encourage them and to show that Jesus truly is the best person to follow despite how hard it was g
Read more

Galatians 2:1-5 — Marathon Training

R EAD THIS:  Galatians 2:1-5 1 Then after fourteen years, I went up again to Jerusalem, this time with Barnabas. I took Titus along also. 2 I went in response to a revelation and, meeting privately with those esteemed as leaders, I presented to them the gospel that I preach among the Gentiles. I wanted to be sure I was not running and had not been running my race in vain. 3 Yet not even Titus, who was with me, was compelled to be circumcised, even though he was a Greek. 4 This matter arose because some false believers had infiltrated our ranks to spy on the freedom we have in Christ Jesus and to make us slaves. 5 We did not give in to them for a moment, so that the truth of the gospel might be preserved for you.   WHAT’S THIS MEAN, ANYWAY? Yesterday, we learned about how Paul went to Jerusalem and shared the incredible things Jesus did, but today, we are hearing about Paul's second time visiting Jerusalem... 14 years later. Paul talks about a bunch of things that happened durin
Read more