Hebrews 3:7-9 So, as the Holy Spirit says: “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion, during the time of testing in the wilderness, where your ancestors tested and tried me, though for forty years they saw what I did.
The Holy Spirit speaks through the words of the Old Testament and brings them to life for the readers of this epistle. The Bible is God’s living and active word (Hebrews 4:12) because it is inspired again today through the Holy Spirit who makes the ancient words relevant to us. In these verses, the Holy Spirit uses a passage from Psalm 95:7-12 that reflects on the story from Numbers 12 about when the people of Israel rebelled against God and did not trust God in faith to enter into the land of promise. They rejected the report brought back by Joshua and Caleb and instead, hardened their hearts in rebellion and ended up wandering around the desert for a whole generation. The author takes this passage and specifically applies it to the readers of this epistle. The readers were facing the same type of decision. Would they follow in the path of the ancient Israelites and forsake God’s promise of salvation? Would they harden their hearts and turn from hope in Christ? They fast a time of testing, just like the Israelites. Our faith is often tested, perhaps not to this point in explicit ways, but there are many implicit ways to compromise and let down our guard. If we give in to temptation long enough, our hope will begin to diminish and we will harden our hearts. When we harden our hearts in disobedience, we end up grieving the Spirit. The author will write about this in Hebrews 6:1-7. At this point, he is using this Old Testament passage and the story behind it to call for his readers to move forward to experience the full salvation God offers in Jesus Christ. They should not wander on the boarder of the Promised Land of sanctification, one foot in slavery and one foot in freedom. This compromise will end up as a disaster as the pull of the world is strong. We like the readers must go “full in” and give our total selves in faith to God and enter the promised rest from sin promised in Jesus Christ. The people of Israel saw God’s miracles and yet still would not trust in God. There are people today who have experienced the goodness of God, perhaps as children or youth, and then walked away. They say they believe in God but give no evidence of this by walking in obedience.
For older posts, click here.