Keeping our Focus
Notes
Transcript
What can distract you from God?
What can distract you from God?
Business
Desire
Pain
Worry
Fear
Pleasure
Laziness
Today’s passage is one of the warnings given in the book of Hebrews. It is a warning to stay focus and not get distracted from our walk with the Lord.
1 Therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it.
2 For since the message declared by angels proved to be reliable, and every transgression or disobedience received a just retribution,
3 how shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation? It was declared at first by the Lord, and it was attested to us by those who heard,
4 while God also bore witness by signs and wonders and various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.
What's the “therefore”, there for?
What's the “therefore”, there for?
It reminds us that what we ae about to read and be challenged by is directly connected to the proceeding truths in chapter 1.
Jesus is superior to the angels in his name, in his inheritance, and in his authority.
Jesus is superior to the angels in his name, in his inheritance, and in his authority.
Jesus is the The Son, while angels are ministering spirits.
Jesus is the The Son, while angels are ministering spirits.
With this in mind we step into these four verses of challenge and admonition.
Pay attention or risk drifting away.
Pay attention or risk drifting away.
1 Therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it.
What are we to pay attention to?
What are we to pay attention to?
2 For since the message declared by angels proved to be reliable, and every transgression or disobedience received a just retribution,
3 how shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation? It was declared at first by the Lord, and it was attested to us by those who heard,
4 while God also bore witness by signs and wonders and various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.
What message was delivered by angels?
What message was delivered by angels?
19 Why then the law? It was added because of transgressions, until the offspring should come to whom the promise had been made, and it was put in place through angels by an intermediary.
What message was delivered by Jesus?
What message was delivered by Jesus?
14 Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God,
15 and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”
16 And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up. And as was his custom, he went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and he stood up to read.
17 And the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written,
18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed,
19 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”
20 And he rolled up the scroll and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him.
21 And he began to say to them, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”
Jesus message of hope centered on the reality that He had come. He had come in fulfillment of the prophecies of the old testament. He had come to reign. Where the king is, there is his kingdom and those who are a part of his kingdom get to join in the blessing of his riches. This is the good news for all who believe.
16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.
17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.”
Do not drift away?
Do not drift away?
1 Therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it.
The unbeliever to judgment
The unbeliever to judgment
5 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous;
11 Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. From his presence earth and sky fled away, and no place was found for them.
12 And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done.
13 And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them, and they were judged, each one of them, according to what they had done.
14 Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire.
15 And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.
The believer to discipline
The believer to discipline
11 My son, do not despise the Lord’s discipline or be weary of his reproof,
12 for the Lord reproves him whom he loves, as a father the son in whom he delights.
7 It is for discipline that you have to endure. God is treating you as sons. For what son is there whom his father does not discipline?
8 If you are left without discipline, in which all have participated, then you are illegitimate children and not sons.
9 Besides this, we have had earthly fathers who disciplined us and we respected them. Shall we not much more be subject to the Father of spirits and live?
10 For they disciplined us for a short time as it seemed best to them, but he disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness.
11 For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.
19 Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent.
In the case of communion:
In the case of communion:
27 Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty concerning the body and blood of the Lord.
28 Let a person examine himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup.
29 For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself.
30 That is why many of you are weak and ill, and some have died.
31 But if we judged ourselves truly, we would not be judged.
32 But when we are judged by the Lord, we are disciplined so that we may not be condemned along with the world.
What should our response be to this warning?
What should our response be to this warning?
Be a student of the Word of God
Be a student of the Word of God
15 Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.
Be a doer of the Word of God
Be a doer of the Word of God
22 But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.
116 Uphold me according to your promise, that I may live, and let me not be put to shame in my hope!
4 But he answered, “It is written, “ ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’ ”
16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.
