Chapter
12 Previous chapters have shown us the passing away of the Law, the futility
of further blood sacrifices, the power of a simple faith, and the better realm
of the Sonship and priesthood of Jesus. Now we come to the chapter that spells
out clearly that Sonship is for us, and how to come into it. This is one of the
outstanding chapters in the Bible on the sons of God, and the kingdom that shall
not be shaken or pass away.
The last 2 verses of chapter 11 make it plain
that those heroes of faith won the approval of god, but did not come into the
realm of perfection that we are speaking about. Let me read that from the amplified
Bible: "And all of these, though they won divine approval by means of their faith,
did not receive the fulfillment of what was promised, because God had us in mind
and had something better and greater in view for us, so that they (these heroes
and heroines of faith) should not come to perfection apart from us, that is, before
we could join them." (Hebrews 11:39-40, Amplified).
Obviously, God has
something for us that goes far beyond what can be obtained by faith. It is far
greater than opening up the Red Sea, crossing the Jordan River dry shod, calling
fire down from heaven, crumbling the walls of Jericho, closing the mouth of lions,
and subduing kingdoms. All these things were done by those saints in chapter 11,
through the power of living faith. Yet the perfection, the full maturity of God's
plan could not come by that. This greater realm had to wait for the Body of Christ
to be formed and matured. The birth and formation of that body was not enough.
It came forth on the Day of Pentecost. But as the Feast of Pentecost so clearly
points out, with it's bread baked with leaven, that early church was not the perfect
order. It was the body of Christ, but it was far from maturity. So for two days
(2,000 years) God has left that body in the earth. Now, in the dawning of the
third day, the world is going to discover that the stone has been rolled away,
and a perfected glorious church without spot or wrinkle has appeared in earth.
The garments of religious covering that have covered us through the night of the
age of darkness, are left in the tomb. They are nicely wrapped and folded in their
man made order, but there is no life in them. A new day has dawned, and the real
church is coming into visibility.
"Wherefore."
Chapter 12 starts
with a word that ties what it is about to say, with what has just been said in
the previous chapter. "Wherefore." or because of that glorious witness of those
in the faith realm, and because the word makes it plain that we have come to something
far higher, let us strip off all encumbrances and run the race to win.
These
first 2 verses are beautiful and powerful in the King James, but have additional
beauty and impact in the Amplified. "Therefore then, since we are surrounded by
so great a cloud of witnesses who have borne testimony of the Truth, let us strip
off and throw aside every encumbrance--unnecessary weight--and that sin which
so readily (deftly and cleverly) clings to and entangles us, and let us run with
patient endurance and steady and active persistence the appointed course of the
race that is set before us, looking away (from all that will distract) to Jesus,
Who is the Leader and the Source of our faith (giving the first incentive for
our belief) and is also its Finisher, (bringing it to maturity and perfection).
He, for the joy (of obtaining the prize) that was set before Him, endured the
cross, despising and ignoring the shame, and is now seated at the right hand of
the throne of God," (Hebrews 12:1-2, Amplified).
"Wherefore". the gateway
from faith to perfection, from heroes of faith to sons of god. Chapter 11 makes
it clear that no one can please God without faith. And those who think they can
find the perfection of sonship without walking it out in the life of faith, will
find that they have missed the gateway to glory.
The Old Testament saints
did tremendous exploits, and the key word was "faith". The end-time sons of God
shall do the "greater works", and the word here is "dominion". Dominion and authority
over all creation was the realm that Jesus walked in while He was on earth demonstrating
the power of Sonship. The early church entered only into the firstfruits of this,
through the power of the Holy Spirit. And the apostles continually reminded the
churches, in the epistles, that the fulness of Sonship was yet ahead of them.
"Praying. that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God." "Till we all come.
unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ". "Unto an inheritance.
ready to be revealed in the last time". "Press toward the mark for the prize of
the high calling of God in Christ Jesus." "Ourselves also, which have the firstfruits
of the Spirit. groan within ourselves waiting for the adoption" (the placing as
full grown sons). "Wherefore". let us, upon whom the end of the age has come,
strip ourselves of all encumbrances, and run this race with patience.
A
Great Cloud of Witnesses
"A great cloud of witnesses" could also be expressed
"a cloud of great witnesses". For truly our brothers and sisters who walked such
victorious lives in faith prior to the Day of Pentecost, set us an example that
should put us to shame. They did not have the baptism of the Holy Spirit as we
know it today. They did not know the glory that is now invested in the Body of
Christ, except in types and shadows. They had no local churches where they could
gather to worship in the Spirit. Their form of worship consisted of a stone altar,
a tabernacle, or a temple, depending upon the times in which they lived. Their
sins were dealt with at the end of each year, as the high priest took the blood
of a goat into the Holy of Holies to be placed on the mercy seat. And yet, in
spite of walking in the shadows, in spite of the lack of the reality of Christ,
they made a full commitment to god by faith, even to the laying down of their
lives. And now, being surrounded by witnesses such as these, how much more should
we be willing to do? Too often, a few little discomforts and trials of life cause
us to complain bitterly and to throw up our hands in abject defeat. God help us
to run this race.
Why does the scripture call them a "CLOUD" of witnesses?
Throughout the Bible the term "cloud" signifies witness or ministry. In 2 Peter
2:17 and Jude 12 it speaks of false ministries being "clouds without water"" Like
the fig tree with leaves but no fruit, they give the appearance of life and ministry,
but there is no life in them. Proverbs 25:14 says: "Whoso boasteth himself of
a false gift is like clouds and wind without rain". What a picture of some present
day ministries. Winds of doctrine (Ephesians 4:14), and clouds without water.
Wanting only to float through the heavens and to be seen of man. But no willingness
to be a poured out life to bless the body of Christ.
The picture of a true
life-giving ministry is found in Ecclesiastes 11:3. "If the clouds be full of
rain, they empty themselves upon the earth." These are the kind of clouds, or
witnesses, we are surrounded with. And these are the clouds that Jesus is coming
back with. Many people seem to be waiting to meet Jesus on top of a cloud somewhere
a few thousand feet up in the sky. And they think it will be one of these natural
rain clouds. I would have you notice that the Bible never says that Jesus comes
"to the clouds", or returns to earth "on a cloud". The Bible is careful to tell
us that He comes "in the clouds of heaven" (Matthew 24:30, "coming in a cloud
with power and great glory") (Luke 21:27), "sitting on the right hand of power,
and coming in the clouds of heaven" (Matthew 26:64). He is also said to come "with
the clouds of heaven" (Daniel 7:13), "Behold, He cometh with clouds" (Revelation
1:7). But never does it say that Jesus returns "to the clouds of earth", or to
the natural rain clouds.
In speaking of the fate of those who died in faith,
and who are now with the Lord, 1 Thessalonians 4:14 tells us that when Jesus returns
to earth "even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with Him" Yes,
He is coming with clouds, and He shall appear in the clouds of heaven, that great
cloud of witnesses. Not only those listed by name in Hebrews 11, but many others
known only to Him. Faithful witnesses, life-giving ministries, poured out lives,
these are His clouds which He wears like a garment of glory (Revelation 10:1).
Yes, when you see Him, you will first of all see Him in them.
Weights and
Sin
"Strip off and throw aside. that sin which so readily (deftly and cleverly)
clings to and entangles us." Wait just one minute! Is he talking to sinners here,
or is he addressing sons of God? How can he be talking to sons, consecrated saints
of god, and dealing with sin which clings to and entangles them? Do you mean that
these "super-spiritual, sanctified, manifested untouchables" actually have problems
resisting sin, just like the rest of us human beings? The fact is, that verse
1 here is speaking to the most spiritual of God's people, since they are just
as human as the rest of us. There are no "untouchables" in the Adamic race. Take
a close look at chapter 11, and you will find that those heroes of faith mentioned
by name produced such sin as drunkenness, lying, unbelief, scheming, stealing,
disobedience, murder, adultery, and revealing the source of God's power to the
enemy. These sins did not come from the Philistines or Amalekites, but from God's
choicest servants. Why did God record their failures for us to see? To let us
know that none of us are above being tempted to do the same, so that we be not
high-minded, but realize that our hope of real holiness is in Jesus Christ. Only
by the grace of God can we overcome the enemy's subtle attacks. We do not condemn
Samson, David, and the rest of those precious people. We see some glorious victories
in their fight against sin. But as we approach the realm of sonship, we cry out
for the power to obey verse 1 and "lay aside every weight. and sin." For the example
we have as sons is not found in chapter 11 of Hebrews, but in the life of Jesus
Christ. And in His life there was no failure, no clinging sin to be cast aside.
He was stripped when He came into the world, stripped of everything except the
nature of His Father. And through exceeding great and precious promises, we are
also made partakers of that same nature.
So be patient and loving and forgiving
with those who still manifest the weakness of the human flesh. And set for our
own personal goal, the perfection of Jesus the son of God, stripping ourselves
of all that would hinder our attaining that goal.
"Run With Patience"
There
is a race set before us. We have too many people who seem to think it is a 50
yard dash. They come streaking through the heavens like a comet, making a big
blazing light for a season, then disappearing into oblivion. "Mushroom Christians",
they pop up all of a sudden, are "experts" on any spiritual subject, in submission
to no one, and just as suddenly they are gone. In the U.S. Marines we had some
young officers who had taken a 3 month course in military technique, had no leadership
experience, and no combat. Yet they came flying in with their shiny new second
Lieutenant gold bars, giving orders to the troops. We called them "90 day wonders".
There are far too many of these in the army of God.
Some of our young officers
in the Marines grew up quickly under fire, in combat. And God is putting some
young recruits in the midst of hot spiritual battles, to mature them quickly for
leadership in the Kingdom of God. But his training is a time when much patience
is needed. It is a race where endurance is a necessary quality. We are constantly
being bombarded by young zealots who declare that all we need is "faith", and
we can enter all the promises of God. In this computerized age of instant everything,
there are those who want "instant sainthood" and immediate Sonship. It doesn't
work that way. Back in Hebrews 6:12 we read that we are to be "followers of them
who through faith AND patience inherit the promises."
Salvation from sin
is not a prize to be won in a race. It is the gift of God, through Jesus Christ
our Lord. The prize of the high calling of God (Philippians 3:14) is not heaven.
But there is a race to be run, and a prize to be won. It is to overcome, and sit
down with Him on His throne. Glory to God, what a promise!
So much for
verse 1 of Hebrews 12. This portion of scripture is so profound and so deep in
spiritual truths, unless we step up the pace, we will never finish the chapter.
Looking unto Jesus
As we run this race, we must keep our eyes upon
the goal. Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith. He is the Alpha and Omega,
the first and the last. Now there is a false doctrine that uses these terms to
try to prove that Jesus was the first Adam as well as the last Adam. They say
that he was the one who fell in the garden of Eden, and God is giving him a second
chance to come back and overcome temptation and redeem his people. That doctrine
is false, right from the pit. Jesus was not the first sinner, the one who brought
death upon the human family, and chaos upon creation. Scriptures such as "Adam,
the son of god" (Luke 3:38), Jesus "the last Adam", the "beginning and the end",
etc., are twisted to try to put the blame for original sin upon our Saviour. Jesus
was the lamb without spot or blemish. Adam reincarnated could never be the offering
for our sin, for he was not without blemish.
Looking unto Jesus! What a
strength to keep us going in troubled times! Such a sight for souls in combat.
looking unto Jesus! Back in the days of plowing behind a mule, the farmer was
trying to teach his son how to plow a straight furrow, "Just set your eyes on
a goal on the far side of the field, and keep the mule going straight toward that
goal, and when you get across the field you'll have a straight furrow." Well,
the young son tried that. He picked out a big brown cow grazing on the other side
of the field, but when he got across and looked back, he had a very crooked furrow.
For the cow had wandered about in her grazing, and he had been following a moving
goal. "Wandering stars" are not goals to be followed. "Follow me as I follow Christ",
Paul said. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. So we can safely
keep our eyes upon Him as our goal, and our lives will be straight.
The
word "author" here in verse 2 means "leader, originator, source." All we get in
God, we get through and from Jesus Christ. There is no other source of life. Neither
Judaism, Islam, Eastern occult philosophies, TM, nor any other religion can produce
eternal life. It only comes through the source, Jesus! That is why we look only
to Him. There can be no co-existence, no compromise in this fundamental truth.
"Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven
given among men, whereby we must be saved" (Acts 4:12). Narrow minded, you say?
Yes, narrow is the way, and strait is the gate, but it leads to life. Glory to
Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith!
The Joy Set Before Him
Jesus
had a goal set before Him, a goal that was to bring Him extreme joy. This joy
set before Him gave Him strength to endure the awful suffering. He did not let
the shame of that cross, hanging naked and condemned before the eyes of wicked
humanity, keep Him from attaining that goal. But at least, you say, He can take
comfort in the knowledge that He was innocent, wrongfully condemned and not worthy
of the death He suffered. Oh no, my friends, that is not so. He was guilty of
death, and suffered the penalty that was due Him. In fact, He hung on that cross,
guilty of murder, rape, incest, arson, robbery, homosexual vice, and every other
sin known to man. They were not His own sins, for He lived a pure and perfect
life. But He voluntarily accepted and took upon Himself every sin committed by
human beings from the creation to the great white throne judgment. So that now,
when sinners go to hell, they don't go there because of their sins, for Jesus
died for their sins and judgment has been requited. People miss eternal life because
they reject the only source of life. the Saviour, Jesus Christ. Some may ask if
that would not encourage some to accept Jesus and then continue on in their sin?
Of course not! For only those who have not accepted Jesus can feel comfortable
in sin. Romans 6:2 points it out so clearly: "How shall we that are dead to sin,
live any longer therein?" The life of Jesus coming into our hearts wipes out the
desire for sin. And we cast from us those sins that so easily beset us.
So
as He hung on that cross for 6 hours, dying a slow tortuous death, He had become
sin for us, that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him (2 Corinthians
5:21). That knowledge of sin, that contact with all the filth of the world, was
greater suffering than even the horrible physical pain He endured. But He endured
it all for the joy set before Him.
What was that joy? It was in "bringing
many sons unto glory" (Hebrews 2:10). It was in presenting to Himself "a glorious
church, Not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing. holy and without blemish."
(Ephesians 5:27). It was in giving to us the glory the Father had given Him (John
17:22). And glory to God, "It is finished". No more for Him to accomplish. All
the work is done. The wheels of God's purposes are grinding everything out to
the Ultimate of what God has ordained and spoken. Nothing can stop it, not the
attacks of the enemy, nor the unbelief and apathy of mankind. It has been spoken,
the work has been accomplished by Him who endured, and it shall surely come to
pass. He is not struggling for power, or fighting any battles. He sits on the
right hand of the throne of God. That simply means that He is now in the place
of absolute authority. Everything in the lives of men and nations is in His control.
He is in complete charge. For those who trust Him there is nothing to fear. All
things work together for our good, to bring us to His highest. We are in His hand.
Whom the Lord Loveth
In verse 3 he begins dealing with those who
were getting weary with the trials and persecutions. In the Amplified Bible we
read: "Just think of Him who endured from sinners such grievous opposition and
bitter hostility against Himself--reckon up and consider it all in comparison
with your trials--so that you may not grow weary or exhausted, losing heart and
relaxing and fainting in your minds."
Looking unto Jesus helps us to see
that our problems are small in comparison with what He endured to bring us to
Himself, to Sonship. From this point the scripture begins to illuminate the truths
concerning the source of our chastening. It is not the devil who chastises us,
it is God our Father. And it is not because He hates us or is mad at us, but because
He loves us and wants to bring us to full mature Sonship. He emphasizes, verse
after verse, that chastening is necessary. It is of the Lord, and is a result
of our relationship to Him as sons.
Verses 5-6-7 tell us a great deal about
the proper attitude toward chastening. We are not to despise chastening, nor are
we to faint because of it. It is a mark of His love, and a sign that He has received
us as sons. But neither are we told to enjoy the chastening, but to endure it.
Seeing how Jesus endured the cross for us, it seems a small thing for us to endure
chastening from our Father. The 3 verses, beginning with verse 8, are especially
eloquent in the Amplified: "Now if you are exempt from correction and left without
discipline in which all of God's children share, then you are illegitimate offspring
and not true sons at all. Moreover, we have had earthly fathers who disciplined
us and we yielded to them and respected them for training us. Shall we not much
more cheerfully submit to the Father of spirits and so truly live? For our earthly
fathers disciplined us for only a short period of time and chastised us as seemed
proper and good to them, but He disciplines us for our certain good, that we may
become sharers in His own holiness." So that is the purpose of the discipline.
That we might share in His holiness, His nature. Glory to God! Rejoice in your
chastisements, sons. It is a means of bringing you into the likeness of your Father.
The next few verses are exhortations for the discouraged, defeated, downhearted
people of God to realize who they are, and to rise up in victory. Yield the fruit
of righteousness, lift up holy hands, walk in straight paths, follow peace and
holiness, stay in the grace of God, and don't let bitterness of any kind enter
your heart. Using Esau for an example, he warns us not to throw away our precious
eternal inheritance for one wild fling at sin. This does not mean that God will
not forgive some truly repentant heart for falling into sin. But there is a danger
for those who carelessly trample the precious things of God under their feet,
like Esau, that they will not be able to repent of what they have done. There
is a vast difference between getting caught red-handed in a crime, and being sorry
that you got caught, than in having real godly sorrow over your sin, and repenting
and turning away from it voluntarily. The criminal is very sorry that he got caught,
wished he had never committed the crime, because he doesn't like going to jail.
The Christian is sorry he committed the sin, repents and turns away from it, because
he knows that it displeases and hurts the One he loves the most. Esau could not
find that kind of repentance, though he sought for it. He wanted the benefits
of his inheritance, but there was a hardness in his heart. His attitude toward
the things of God had not changed. This is a warning to us not to play around
with sin, not to handle the promises of God carelessly.
Ye Are Come to
Mount Zion
The writer of Hebrews is speaking to Jewish Christians. They
are proud of their history. And the happenings at Mount Sinai are an outstanding
part of their national life. It was here the Law was given, with much supernatural
manifestation of the mighty presence of God. He reminds them what a dreadful and
solemn day that was. Then he points out that we, as Christians, have come to something
far greater.
Hebrews is the book of "better things". Earlier we learned
that Jesus was better than Moses, the priesthood of Christ is better than the
Law, and that sonship is better than the realm of Old Testament faith. Now he
begins to unveil a better kingdom, one that cannot be shaken.
In verse
18 he describes the awful gloom, darkness, and the raging storm, all associated
with the giving of the Law at Sinai. They had just come out of Egypt, a disorganized
bunch of slaves, mumbling and grumbling all the way. Here He put the fear of God
in their hearts. They could not endure the presence of Almighty God in the awesome
glory of His judgmental power. Even Moses, who knew God and had talked with Him
before, was "terrified, aghast and trembling with fear." (Amplified) What he is
saying is "Aren't we glad that we don't have to face such as this in order to
come into our kingdom?"
Now we get a beautiful picture of the realm of
the Spirit reserved for us, of those that are there, and a warning that we should
not fail to hear Him that speaks from heaven. With the dreadful things that happened
at Sinai, God made sure that He had their attention, so that they could hear what
He was saying to them. Our calling is much more heavenly, more glorious, and our
ears should be even more alert to God's voice today. Verse 23 tells us that we
have come to the church of the firstborn who are registered as citizens in Heaven.
Philippians 3:20 also tells us that our citizenship is in heaven. Glory to God,
no wonder I don't feel at home in this old world anymore! I'm a citizen of a heavenly
country. (Hebrews 11:16). It confirms here that though men's bodies may lie in
the grave, their spirits are in heaven, now made perfect.
We have also
come to Jesus, the mediator of the new covenant. The Amplified says: "and to the
sprinkled blood which speaks of mercy, a better and nobler and more gracious message
than the blood of Abel which cried out for vengeance."
A Kingdom Which
Cannot be Moved
The next 5 verses bring us face to face with one of the
most powerful prophecies in the Bible relating to the end-time. After dealing
with our personal Sonship earlier in the chapter, and our individual chastening,
now he begins to deal with the corporate kingdom of God, and the fate of the nations.
There is to be a shaking such as the world has never seen before.
First
of all, be sure you hear the One who is speaking from heaven. There was judgment
for those who refused to hear His voice in the Law. They refused the Law, they
were dealt with by the Law. So let us not refuse the heavenly voice. At the giving
of the Law, His voice shook the earth. Now He will shake not only the earth, but
also heaven. At the giving of the Law, God dealt with the Adamic race, of the
earth, earthy. But in these last days God will shake the heavens, and deal with
the principalities and powers in heavenly places. He will cast down the thrones
of those who dwell in the heavens, the rulers of the darkness of this age. Yes,
Satan will be bound. Satan's kingdom will fall, his power will be destroyed.
Verse
26 quotes from Haggai 2, where God deals with the rebuilding of the temple, and
gives a promise of the glory of this end-time revival. All of those things made
by carnal man will be shaken, that those things brought forth by the Spirit may
remain. According to Haggai, the world has never seen anything so glorious as
the end-time body of Christ, that restored temple, the dwelling place of God Himself.
This chapter closes with the certain promise that we are receiving a kingdom
that is not of man, and cannot be shaken. It is far beyond our comprehension to
know what He has prepared for us. Therefore, we should have grace to serve God
acceptably, with reverence and godly fear. Dear ones, we should never take our
God lightly. I shudder when I hear men joke about god in a light and frivolous
manner. Sometimes I see the people of god becoming very casual about the presence
of God. I have seen them prophesy in such a careless and casual way, as though
they were sharing the neighborhood gossip over the back fence. These things are
sacred, and we must hold all the things of God in deep reverence. Remember, our
kingdom cannot be moved! What a security that should give us. We need fear for
none of the things that are coming upon the earth, for nothing is going to shake
the kingdom that is ours. Let the kingdoms of man fall, and they shall. Do not
fret thyself about them. For thou shalt speak the word, and men shall know that
thy God reigneth!
A Consuming Fire
Fire is light, fire is cleansing,
fire is warmth, and fire is consuming. What does God consume? He will consume
and destroy all sin, and the curse that is upon the earth through Adam's fall.
He will consume all the Adam that is still in us, and bring us forth in His own
likeness. Thus saith the Lord!
Bill
Britton Hebrews the book of better things