Let Us Fear, Let Us Be Diligent

In one paragraph

The pastor worked through Hebrews 4:1-13, a passage he described as the most grammatically difficult he has encountered in this series. He traced the argument the author of Hebrews makes around the theme of rest, warning the congregation that the same unbelief and disobedience that kept the Exodus generation out of the promised land can keep people short of God's rest today. The passage opens with...

Read together

1. Psalm 147 congregation invited to sing from it at the opening
2. 2 Timothy 3:16-17 read aloud before worship: all scripture is God-breathed, useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness
3. Hebrews 3:7-19 read through as the prior week's text on taking heed, covering the Exodus generation's unbelief and hardened hearts
4. Hebrews 4:1-13 main preaching passage for the sermon
5. Psalm 95 quoted repeatedly within Hebrews 3-4 as the Holy Spirit speaking through David: today if you hear his voice do not harden your hearts
6. Genesis 2 identified as the somewhere the author of Hebrews quotes about God resting on the seventh day from all his works
7. Hebrews 2:1 cited on paying much closer attention to what we have heard so that we do not drift away
8. 1 John 1:9 quoted on confessing sins: he is faithful and just to forgive sins and cleanse from all unrighteousness
9. Hebrews 4:14-16 previewed at close: since we have a great high priest, let us hold fast our confession and draw near with confidence to the throne of grace

Talk about it

1. The pastor said that unbelief and disobedience go hand in hand throughout Hebrews, that you act in accordance with what you truly believe. Where have you seen that connection play out in your own life, either in a positive or a negative direction?
2. The sermon pointed out that the Exodus generation had good news preached to them, just as we do, but the word did not profit them because it was not united with faith. What does it look like practically to hear scripture in a way that is united with faith rather than just taking it in as information?
3. The pastor said that sin is inherently deceitful, and that to walk away from the living God toward sin involves a false promise. What kinds of false promises does sin tend to make, and how have you found yourself seeing through them or being taken in by them?
4. The writer of Hebrews calls us to encourage one another day after day so that none of us will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. What does that kind of daily encouragement actually look like in a church community, and where do you see it happening or falling short here?
5. The pastor closed by noting that Hebrews 4 leads straight into Jesus as our great high priest who was tempted in every way we are, yet without sin, and who invites us to draw near with confidence to the throne of grace. How does knowing that Jesus sympathizes with your weaknesses change the way you approach God when you are struggling?