Endure by Pursuing Good and Avoiding Wrong (Hebrews 12:14-17)
We now see some practical examples of what faithful perseverance looks like. We are to strive for peace and holiness and help each other obtain the grace of God. This is not a call to earn our salvation or worthiness, as those have been accomplished by Christ in His perfect sacrifice. However, in light of the salvation we have received, we are to run the race set before us with:
Peace. This is not something that comes easily to us as sinful beings. We even find excuses to justify our conflicts and fights in our faith.
Holiness. Again, we do not earn standing with God through our own holiness, but as His children, we should want to live as members of His family do. We emulate God and His holy character.
Grace. Here, the author tells us we should be looking out for each other on the racecourse of life. We do not need to endure alone. In fact, we are not meant to.
We are also encouraged to avoid things in our faithful endurance. We are to guard against bitterness, sexual immorality, and unholiness. Bitterness is a danger because it drives us away from God and to sin, and because it is contagious. Immorality is another danger because it is so widespread. The first steps away from the faith and toward apostasy often begin with sexual temptations. Esau’s example of unholiness might seem strange. He merely despised the blessings that God had given Him. He rejected his birthright and did not see the value of what he had not earned.
Esau’s story is particularly devastating because when he later did see the value of what he had been born with, it was too late. We need to endure by guarding what God has given us even when we don’t yet see the value of it. Good things and bad things in life are given to us by God and we need to keep our eyes on Jesus and endure the race set before us.
Peace. This is not something that comes easily to us as sinful beings. We even find excuses to justify our conflicts and fights in our faith.
Holiness. Again, we do not earn standing with God through our own holiness, but as His children, we should want to live as members of His family do. We emulate God and His holy character.
Grace. Here, the author tells us we should be looking out for each other on the racecourse of life. We do not need to endure alone. In fact, we are not meant to.
We are also encouraged to avoid things in our faithful endurance. We are to guard against bitterness, sexual immorality, and unholiness. Bitterness is a danger because it drives us away from God and to sin, and because it is contagious. Immorality is another danger because it is so widespread. The first steps away from the faith and toward apostasy often begin with sexual temptations. Esau’s example of unholiness might seem strange. He merely despised the blessings that God had given Him. He rejected his birthright and did not see the value of what he had not earned.
Esau’s story is particularly devastating because when he later did see the value of what he had been born with, it was too late. We need to endure by guarding what God has given us even when we don’t yet see the value of it. Good things and bad things in life are given to us by God and we need to keep our eyes on Jesus and endure the race set before us.
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