I NEED MERCY AND GRACE

Hebrews 4:16 Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.

In Life you and I will be faced with many ups and downs good times and unpleasant times.There will be obstacles and adversity along the way. And God will give us veracity and victory in our lives.

And I heard Denzel Washington say on a post “Why are you waiting on other people to give you flowers, when you can plant your own garden and grow your own flowers”.

That’s what I’ve had to deal with for over 42 years. When you go to college everybody acts like they want you to win, but after you graduate and get out everybody acts like they are actively trying to make you lose.

And I pondered this awful phenomenon and I found out Why. The real reason is that you’ve now entered the same rat race of life that everybody else is in, and they are desperately trying to win at the rat of life, They are running to beat you!!! It’s not personal, it’s business. It’s not personal, it’s perseverance. it’s not personal, it’s human nature.

And so Chevon Cherrie Bogle taught me something that she learned from the S.U.B.R. “You can help me win or watch me win but as way it goes, I will be winning.”

And somebody asked me what does that have to do with the text. I’m so glad you asked because I’ve so many facts from the word that proves several points.

1.The book of Hebrews is a powerful potent and prophetic book. And the church said Amen.

2. Theologians argue over who wrote the book of Hebrews, some say Paul others say Apollos. Personally I lean towards Apollos simply because the writing style is different from the other epistles of Paul.

Let me prove it with my own writing style.( I hope y’all don’t make me shame on TV) Let’s see if you can finish my opening introductory statements

“To begin with my brothers and sss Christian fff Well www and Saints ooo. Amen Amen Amen

And then another as we glint gleam and gaze at this glorious text we find some gallant facts that will help us to have the faith that won’t fizzle before the finish and that faith will funnel us into a fabulous future.

3. Now that we know that Apollos is writing the text now we must discover what the writer is saying in this text that is relative to 2024 standards of living. The writer starts off in Hebrews 3:16-19 through Hebrews 4:1 by letting us know that.

That some people are going to listen and get blessed and others are going to get left behind. Everybody can’t go on the same journey with you, Trust Me and if you don’t trust you’ll find out the hard way. Everybody can’t go where you’re going.

Some people were obedient and some were offensive towards God.

Some people were punished in the wilderness and went around that mountain and around and around and around that same mountain in the wilderness after their open defiance, disobedience, and disrespect toward God and Moses. And the church said Amen.

4. The writer says brothers and sisters don’t get caught up in disobedient pride and “the erroneous doctrine of (I ain’t listening to no you).( You better learn to listen and quick too)

Some of us know that time that has been won’t be no more and that time is winding up and it’s high time to get on board and listen.

And here’s my personal philosophy “Little Trinity came and prayed last Sunday and her little heart is pure. Here’s my point “Any day of the week Little Trinity can teach Pastor Allen something”.

Some people act like they can’t be told nothing.

Well according to the text Hebrews 3:16-19 those are precisely the people who didn’t get to go to the promise land. And the relevance to 2024 is to always be on the right side of History with God!!! Listen Judas had the best Pastor the best leader the best adviser and the best counselor yet he failed. The problem is not the leadership or the church you go to. Because if your attitude or character doesn’t change or your heart doesn’t transform you will always be the same.

5. Personally I choose Hebrews 4:3 . because verse 2 says in the NCV 2 The Good News was preached to us just as it was to them. Wait 3x The Gospel was preached to them but the bible says “But the teaching they heard did not help them, because they heard it but did not accept it with faith”. True story Did you know that you can raise all your children the same way and all of them will come out different!!! And One Day I was just ta fussing and Abbie said Daddy stop! every tub sits on its own bottom right!!! That’s what you taught us so let it go… And I said Amen.

And so, here’s where I firmly stand in verse

3. We who have believed, yes sir 3x are able to enter and have God’s rest. As God has said, “I was angry and made a promise,‘They will never enter my rest.’ In  Psalm 95:11 from the KJV the bible says 11.Unto whom I sware in my wrath That ‵ they should not enter into my rest. ′  This tells us that the writer is very astute very well learned in scripture and is speaking with the authority of the text.

6.Because the last part of verse 3 says God’s work was finished from the time he made the world. Verse 4 In the Scriptures he talked about the seventh day of the week: “And on the seventh day God rested from all his works.” 5 And again in the Scripture God said, “They will never enter my rest.” Wow this blew my mind!!! This blew my mind because the Hebrew writer is now speaking eschatological Meaning Apollos was speaking of the end times, the end of the world, while using the analogy of the Genesis of time or the Beginning of time or the start of time when God made the world at the first.

Yeah 3x . This is some deep stuff. but that’s not all; because verses 6&7 are off the chain. They talk about the superlative form of the text meaning not the yesterday of the text and not the tomorrow of the text but the right now Today of the text.

The writer says Today when you hear God’s voice Harden not your Heart. The writer is saying once you’ve heard the sermon don’t act like you ain’t heard the truth. Don’t try to minimalize it, don’t try to marginalize it, don’t try to compromise it, and don’t try to conceptualize God’s Word in a Syncretism context. In other words don’t try to change the truth of God to fit your feeling. Because a lot of time my feeling be wrong. and the word say Today when you hear God’s word going forth don’t be hard headed don’t be stubborn and don’t harden your heart. Well let read the text in verses 6&76 It is still true that some people will enter God’s rest, but those who first heard the way to be saved did not enter, because they did not obey. 7 So God planned another day, called “today.” He spoke about that day through David a long time later in the same Scripture used before: “Today listen to what he says.Do not be stubborn.” The writer is quoting Psalm 95:7-11

Verse 7 says “For he is our God; and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand. To day if ye will hear his voice, 8 Harden not your heart, as in the provocation, and as in the day of temptation in the wilderness: 9 When your fathers tempted me, proved me, and saw my work. 10 Forty years long was I grieved with this generation, and said, It is a people that do err in their heart, and they have not known my ways: 11 Unto whom I sware in my wrath that they should not enter into my rest. The writer getting instructions from God must have felt some kind of way about the people he was pastoring because Apollos is saying some hard stuff. Then if you look at the natural progression of the text, with Joshua. Moses took them through the ten plaques and the Red Sea and Manna in the wilderness and around and around that same stupid mountain for 40 years until all the old clan was dead and buried.

Then comes Joshua in the text in Hebrews 4: 8-11 Verse 8 says “We know that Joshua did not lead the people into that rest”, because God spoke later about another day. 9 This shows that the rest for God’s people is still coming. 10 Anyone who enters God’s rest will rest from his work as God did. 11 Let us try as hard as we can to enter God’s rest so that no one will fail by following the example of those who refused to obey.

Last weeks sermon was Blessed are the Pure in Heart for they shall see God. And Like Jesus, Apollos is almost begging us to have our hearts right with God.

Because God is the righteous Judge. you don’t tell God what to do He tell us what to do. And that’s never going to change.

And Apollos is saying some hard facts to us in 2024

Because when we honestly look at verses 12 &13 it makes the Christian hearted person straighten up and fly right. The word of power says in verse 12

“God’s word is alive and working and is sharper than a double-edged sword. It cuts all the way into us, where the soul and the spirit are joined, to the center of our joints and bones. And it judges the thoughts and feelings in our hearts. 13 Nothing in all the world can be hidden from God. Everything is clear and lies open before him, and to him we must explain the way we have lived.

Now for me right here I say Lord I’m sorry for every wrong thing I have done. and Lord I’m godly sorry for every wrong thing I am doing right nah. and Lord please forgive of any sins that I will commit in the future. I mean if verse 13 clearly says that God is Omniscient meaning that God knows everything about anything that is known that is knowable, Then I have to say Lord you made me and you knows all about me. Please sir to have mercy. I ain’t gon even try to pretend with God like I’m holy and righteous and pious and sanctified when in reality like many of us I’m tore up from the floor up and I need God’s help all the way through this Christian Journey. Oh Lord Jesus please look past my faults and see about my needs.

Valencia sent me this and I’ll share it with you.Heavenly Father Please encamp your angels around us to guide and protect us from all hurt harm and seen and unseen dangers today Lord. Great God our Lord let good health, answered prayers and miraculous healings come forth and be our portion. And Lord if someone is in pain, either physically or emotionally, please comfort us with your love Father your grace your mercy and your peace. In the precious name of Jesus. Amen. Then Lastly 14 Since we have a great high priest, Jesus the Son of God, who has gone into heaven, let us hold on to the faith we have. 15 For our high priest is able to understand our weaknesses. He was tempted in every way that we are, but he did not sin. 16 Let us, then, feel very sure that we can come before God’s throne where there is grace. There we can receive mercy and grace to help us when we need it.

And as we unpack this powerful, potent and prophetic text there are a plethora of nuggets to see.

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