Without wavering

19 Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, 20 by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, 21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. 23 Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. 24 And let us consider how we may spur one another on towards love and good deeds. 25 Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

                                                                        Hebrews 10 19-25

There’s a lovely section in Kenneth Grahame’s book “The Wind in the Willows” in which Ratty introduces Mole to the wonders of sailing – or, as he calls it, messing about in boats.[i] 

I know very little about boating – but my daughter did insist that we take a boat out onto the River Tamega in Portugal – so I had some limited experience of it.

It’s strange, isn’t it, that rowing is one activity most frequently done backwards! You need someone to be facing forwards, perhaps even holding the tiller; someone to warn of other boats or the bank of the river, or even an overhanging branch.

The Christian life is a little like that. How often we appear to be rowing up stream with little if any knowledge of any obstacles – and only a general idea of our direction – dependent on Someone Else to say “This way” or “That way”

I think that the writer of Hebrews had some experience of boats because he has quite a few memorable phrases that fit that activity:

    He warns about the danger of “drifting away” in Chapter 2

    He speaks famously about the anchor of the soul

    And here in chapter 10 he exhorts us to HOLD UNSWERVINGLY.

But there is a great difference between the activities of a casual boater, or the sentimental story of Ratty “messing about in boats” – and the serious warnings in this chapter.    Here are a set of instructions for holding a true course so that we do not drift away.

Each statement begins with the phrase (in the NIV) “Let us…”  - a very popular phrase with our writer in this book:

V22   let us draw near to God…

V23   let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess…

V24   let us consider how we may spur one another on

V25   let us not give up meeting together

        But let us encourage one another..

And all of these are against the background (“Therefore… v19) of the completed work of Our High Priest

12 But when this priest had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God.

This he expands in the opening two verses of the paragraph we are looking at this morning:

19 Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, 20 by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, 21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 

I want you to see these LET US phrases in the following way:

1.   God and our aim

2.   The Partnership with other believers

3.   The solemn personal responsibility

A. God and our aim

First he would have us focus on GOD and our Saviour

To take up the rowing boat analogy again: God knows the direction of our life – and what we cannot see He fully understands.  He gives us a very clear short term objective

19 Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, 20 by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, 21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 

22 let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. 

This is a common theme in this letter:

Hebrews 4:16 - Let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and may find grace to help in time of need.

Hebrews 7:25 - He is able to save forever those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.

Hebrews 11:6 - Without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who draws near to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.

This is the writer’s chosen method of application. He introduces a profound statement of what God has done in Jesus – and then leans on us to respond

    God has spoken by His Son

    His Son is better than all the earlier marks of God’s working

    His Son has entered the Holy Place and intercedes for us

    Therefore we must draw near to God

One of the obvious reasons we drift away is because we stop being CLOSE TO GOD.

That, of course, is the major function of worship in the Church. It is one of the main reasons we are here today.  But drawing near to God is also a matter of personal devotions. 

As our Lord has gone to such lengths to secure our acceptance in the presence of the Father – we MUST draw near.

We are exhorted to do this “with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water“

This no casual matter – but a well prepared, honest believing approach.

Having in mind that He keeps His promises  v23 and will judge His people v 30

The guarantee of our progress is not in ourselves but in HIM and His promises.

How close are you to Him?

B. This is a PARTNERSHIP with other believers

V24   let us consider how we may spur one another on

V25   let us not give up meeting together

        But let us encourage one another..

Whilst it is true that our faith is an individual matter we are meant to be in fellowship with other believers.

Part of our swerving and wavering is trying to go it alone.

You don’t need me the new expert at rowing to tell you what happens if only one rower of a partnership actually makes the effort!

This partnership is not an optional extra – it is crucial to the spiritual life

So he gives us a threefold statement about believers working together

a.   PROVOCATION

The AV renders the verse “provoke one another”

Consider how we may spur one another on…

This might be the main function of the preacher – but it doesn’t have to be – this is part of the fellowship maximising its human assets

b.  MEETING TOGETHER

Hebrews acknowledges that believers often give up on this.  We should consider the likely reasons. 

c.   MUTUAL ENCOURAGEMENT

Hebrews sets this exhortation against the backdrop of Christ’s return

25 Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

Notice that meeting together and encouragement go hand in hand. And in the light of these end times such is needed especially.

There are few ministries so needed in the Church today as encouragement.

It can be an affirming role – in which we positively underscore what others are doing and contributing, and it can be a negative critical role where folks are in need of a reminder that more must be done – either way there is intended to be a Church dynamic which both directs and encourages.

    By listening

    By sharing

    By encouraging

    By provoking one another

The vessel of faith makes its way UNSWERVINGLY in obedience to its Lord.

But, at the end of the day….

C. This is a PERSONAL OBLIGATION

23 Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.

Notice that there is a balance between the command and the promise

Between the profession and the direction

There is a danger that we may regard all this as a pleasant day boating sort of activity. We may enthuse about the tranquillity of the water – the pleasant movement  of the boat on the water – and find ourselves DRIFTING AWAY.

Notice the emphasis on hope rather than faith.

I want to leave you with three questions:

1.   Do you have a hope?

2.   Do you profess it?

3.   Do you keep to it?

They have no hope at all who do not trust entirely in Jesus Christ – by whom and by whom alone we come into the presence of God.

Those of us who claim allegiance to Our Lord need to EXPRESS that hope in what we used more easily to call OUR PROFESSION – our willingness to give testimony to what God has done for us – our willingness to express it in LIFE and in WORD.

If we don’t keep to it – if we don’t HOLD UNSWERVINGLY to it – then read on in this chapter…

----

[i]    `Nice? It's the only thing,' said the Water Rat solemnly, as he leant forward for his stroke. `Believe me, my young friend, there is nothing -- absolute nothing -- half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats. Simply messing,' he went on dreamily: `messing -- about -- in -- boats; messing -- -- '

   `Look ahead, Rat!' cried the Mole suddenly.

   It was too late. The boat struck the bank full tilt. The dreamer, the joyous oarsman, lay on his back at the bottom of the boat, his heels in the air.

   ` -- about in boats -- or with boats,' the Rat went on composedly, picking himself up with a pleasant laugh. `In or out of 'em, it doesn't matter. Nothing seems really to matter, that's the charm of it. Whether you get away, or whether you don't; whether you arrive at your destination or whether you reach somewhere else, or whether you never get anywhere at all, you're always busy, and you never do anything in particular; and when you've done it there's always something else to do,