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Through the Bible with Les Feldick
LESSON 2 * PART 4 * BOOK 52
Hebrews 11:24 – 12:17 - Part 2
"Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God." All right, Hebrews 1 verse 3 says it even plainer than Hebrews 12:
Because it was perfect. All right, now then, let’s move on into Hebrews chapter 12 verse 3.
"Ye have not yet resisted unto blood, striving against sin." What’s it speaking of? Now verse 5;
"And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him:"Now of course, Paul as I’ve said so often, can shift gears. To increase their faith. All right, so he says, "Don’t despise the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked." Now here’s the reason in verse 6.
Some of it God permits as a chastening process to increase our faith, to increase our Christian discipline. All right, verse 7:
"If ye endure chastening,…" Why do we discipline our kids? Why, because we love them. We discipline them because we love them. All right, and he’s bringing it right into the Christian experience.
"If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not?" If a father never disciplines, he’s not a father. All right, verse 8:
"But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, (illegitimate) and not sons." Satan’s not going to leave us alone if we’re a true child of God. Now verse 9:
Hebrews 12:9a
All right, Paul is saying the same thing spiritually. See? All right, that’s what God does to us - He chastens us. All right, now then, if our earthly fathers got that kind of response:
Now verse 11 – oh, this is so true.
Is it joyous to chasten? All right, now Paul is bringing it right back into the spiritual, "Nevertheless afterward it yielded the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby." Verse 12. What’s the first word? "Wherefore." In other words, learn the lesson that as a child is disciplined for his own good, God does the same thing with us, to increase our faith.
Because there are two reasons God brings adversity into the life of the believer - two, not one. To exercise his faith. If a believer is going through hard times (health, finance or whatever), God may be just doing all this to increase their faith, and just strengthen them spiritually. The individual believer knows if God is spanking him because he’s been a disobedient child. Now verse 12.
Now verse 14, and admonition in our everyday experience.
"Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord: 15. Hebrews 12:16a
"Lest there be any fornicator, or profane person, as Esau,…" What was Esau’s problem - if you remember my teaching back in Genesis? He was destitute of faith. Esau never saw any good in anything that God said. Esau was probably a nicer young man than his brother Jacob), but he had no faith.
What God said meant nothing to Esau. It’s no longer relevant. All right, that was Esau. Esau had no biblical morality, and the reason he didn’t have any morality was because he had no faith. Hebrews 12:16
That birthright didn’t mean a thing to Esau because it was a spiritual thing. And spiritual things mean nothing to people who have no faith. And so Esau is the perfect example through Scripture of a man destitute of faith - and, consequently, becomes immoral and he counts for nothing spiritually. And so that was Esau. Now verse 17.
It was literally preordained by a Sovereign God that this should fall into place - but you remember how Jacob sort of befuddled Isaac, and got there before Esau and got the blessing. Now here comes Esau. Hebrews 12:17b
Esau isn’t trying to repent himself. Unbelief causes people to lose the peace with God, the tranquility, the joy of this life - but far more important, eternity. In fact, come back with me to Romans chapter 5 verse 1. Romans 5:1
faith, (the same thing we’ve been talking about here in Hebrews 11) we have (in the here and now) peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:" What more could we ask for? We’ve placed our faith in that finished work of the cross.
"By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God." I have to always go from here right over to Romans 8 verse 1 - one of my favorite verses.
God cannot make one accusation against us because it’s under the blood. Our faith has caused Him to cancel it. Now remember, Esau isn’t the only man like this. Hebrews 12:18a
"For ye…" Never forget that Paul is speaking to these Hebrews, and is trying to convince them that the whole concept of salvation is through grace by faith alone! Hebrews 12:18a

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