Wen-Wei's Devotion - 17 Jan 08

As you know, I have been reading through the book of Joshua in my devotions.  I finished it this morning. One of the main thoughts for me from the book has been the idea of Rest.  Israel was anticipating a future rest through all their desert wandering.  Joshua brought them into the promised land and gave them rest.  Joshua 11:24 - So Joshua took the entire land, just as the LORD had directed Moses, and he gave it as an inheritance to Israel according to their tribal divisions. Then the land had rest from war.

And I remembered in the book of Hebrews it talks about the rest that Joshua achieved for Israel as only a foreshadow of the more permanent rest to come.  So I detoured to Hebrews to read up more.  You can read about this in Hebrews 4. Then I got very captivated by Hebrews and pretty much read through the whole book.  

Now here's the main point of this post ... Hebrews 10 is a very familiar passage regarding the importance of the fellowship of believers. We all know Hebrews 10:24-25 really well.  By why? The context of Hebrews 10 gives the answer and it reminded me of Jude which we are now studying.  A stern warning follows for those for take God's grace for granted.  The severest warning is reserved for those who trample on the grace of Jesus by continuing in wilful sin and disobedience after knowing the truth.  I append that passage here for you ... may it be a warning to us all and an exhortation to continue to daily spur each other on in our most holy faith.

My prayers for God's blessings to be upon you.

Wei

Hebrews 10:23-31 (NIV)

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 toward 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.

26 If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left,

27 but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God.

28 Anyone who rejected the law of Moses died without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses.

29 How much more severely do you think a man deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God under foot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified him, and who has insulted the Spirit of grace?

30 For we know him who said, "It is mine to avenge; I will repay," and again, "The Lord will judge his people."

31 It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.