Hebrews 12:4-6 In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood.
How seriously do we take sin? How hard do we work at getting rid of sin in our lives? The word “resist” implies that we must do our part against the battle with sin. We must use our faith in Christ as the primary weapon. By seeking him and following after God’s promises found in Christ, we are better equipped and able to resist sin. In some cases, this may mean that we even suffer. When persecution comes, are we trusting in Christ for our strength, which may even mean suffering pain, or do we succumb to the pressures and take the easy way, which often ends up being that we forsake our faith in Christ? Sin often looks like the easy way, but it always ends up in a worse situation, if not in this life, surely in the judgment. This is a difficult message to hear and accept. The author has written many things in this letter to strengthen the faith of the readers. They may have been undergoing some type of persecution and needed the assurance of faith provided in this letter. The answer for enduring through persecution is to strengthen our faith in Jesus. This is also the same answer for victory over sin. We cannot win the battle against sin and evil by our own strength but only when we turn to Jesus. There is a difficult balance to maintain between faith in Jesus and our obedience in action. For the author of this epistle, faith must be active, and that activity is seen by moving towards God’s promises in obedience.
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