1073. Rest in Jesus

Welcome to The Daily Platform from Bob Jones University in Greenville, South Carolina. The school was founded in 1927 by the evangelist Dr. Bob Jones Senior's intent was to make a school where Christ would be the center of everything, so he established daily chapel services today.

That tradition continues with fervent biblical preaching from the University travel platform today on The Daily Platform were continuing a study series entitled looking at the Jesus which is a study of Christ in the Old Testament. Today's message will be preached by Dr. Ted Miller, a professor in the school of religion so honored and thankful today to have one of our Bible teachers, professors, Dr. Ted Miller who is going to lift up our hearts this morning to look to our Lord Christ, and we are thankful for him and his family were thankful for their perseverance and their endurance in great trials and yet they are faithful to our Lord and so we respect Dr. Miller and his family. We love him and we pray that God will greatly use him as he speaks to us this morning. Thank you.

Please turn your Bibles to Hebrews chapter 3 will be there as well. In a few moments to set some context. I'd like to imagine or have you imagine that you have a best friend called L. Dad and yelled at, as you might imagine from his name is an Israelite factor want you to imagine that you're an Israelite, and virtually everybody you know is an Israelite and you know that have known each other for a long time in front of her friends.

You which are grown now and have your own families and you currently live next to each other and that's not saying much, because also your imagination. I want to live much. Imagine that you live next to everybody your tent and held as tenter, virtually on top of her underneath everybody else's tent stretching out about as far as you can imagine in every direction you've encamped your current location for about a month just over six weeks and during a brief period of just waiting been around a year and 1/2 or two years since you all fled Egypt and you are very very ready to settle down in the promised land – a location called kiddush bar near and your journey began when the current leader of Israel, who hadn't heard from for a very long time showed up the number and began speaking with another number of other key leaders of Israel said the God and sent them the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob sent him to rescue you and all of your nation out of slavery in Egypt.

You know that and everyone else at that moment while still slaves feel the first sentence in a long time of real hope.

But your hope is also mixed with a serious dose of reality.

I mean it's easy to talk about getting out of Egypt to Essen who hasn't talked about it, but getting out is entirely different matter altogether the next few months were quite frankly, a blur, but with the kinds of memories that you would could never forget you never seen anything like it. Moses in the God who sent them systematically wrote the most powerful nation on earth. The culmination of a law at least while you're still in Egypt was the night that you received the message that very soon you be leaving, but as part of your preparations for leaving you had to follow some very, very specific instructions. You know that everyone else were told that each family needed to kill a lamb spread its blood of the common read above the door in your household. Failure to do so would result in the unimaginable horror of the death of the firstborn within each household did not comply. Now, there's actually no question that you would comply. You didn't even think about. Of course you do it, but you also mulled over the question of should I tell and explain all this to my family you know that. Talk to Doreen decided that, although you certainly going to obey you work in a telltale lease and details. Your sons, you would not tell your own 10-year-old son somehow he found out because kids always do. They talk and they overhear things that they shouldn't and unrepaired is as careful as you are of course also and when your son Doreen comes to you later that day and says dad do we have many lambs your your Hartford of comes up in your throat, you know exactly what is asking to get done. Alumni needs taken by Russell shoulders Hill because I miss a Dorian lesson. You don't have to be afraid all we can trust God.

I have a lamb and son on not let anything bad happen to you. I guarantee it. He couldn't tell exactly how is processing all this, but he sorta stayed particular close to all night that night cycle shadow around if you did all the preparations and when it finally got time to sleep. You wouldn't sleep and you're exhausted and so finally, in some desperation is yank a bench and pulled over against the wall and you settle down with your back against the wall in your arm around him and he settles with his head against your chest and finally he falls asleep he feels body.

The tension just relax and he rests in somehow, in spite of all your frenzied thoughts. You somehow sometime fell asleep as well. You awaken to absolute chaos, as does Dorian and the rest of your family and in the chaos and panic those intervening of that night in the intervening months when you wake your family you for your fleeing your oppressors.

You watch them all die in the dead center in the Dead Sea the Red Sea you feel the pain of thirst terror of hunger. The anguish of not knowing one day to the next so you can provide for you and your little ones just keep you alive through each of these episodes you just get continuously impressed with Moses, I meet you guys normally have bad days like everybody else, but is just this amazing example of stability and faithfulness. Every time something happens. He keeps saying Lucas gets going to be okay. We can believe God. We can trust him. He's going to help us is not can abandon us and now past Sinai been eating manna for some time without the water from the rock in you and your family. All of us were just waiting. Waiting to get the Canaan land with never seen, but which our forefathers lived in and Caleb a member of our tribe the world the tribe Judah, and one member from all the other tribes they've gone to scope the land which is worn on the anticipation is growing all the kids are just talk about how excited the be to finally get out of the Larson into their new house the new places where the be at last the spies return, and they have good news and bad news. The place is a great place to live and they say look, it is like the milk and honey are just flowing his unbelievable is a land of plenty, but there are also plenty of people living there and that's the bad news. They are mighty and reputation mighty and number their well armed and fortified cities.

Some of the warriors are so massive that they say we feeling bugs when around them.

I mean is just doesn't look good as you listen and is all that and all the rest, people listen to this report unfold you feel your heart start to sink it. We just you can't believe this is happening.

The whole journey has been an absolute fool's errand. I mean slavery in Egypt with horrible walking in the sure death is crazy. Who do that. What was Moses thinking mean anything or just a walk in the land people to give up their season and walk off was I thinking what kind of fool's hope did I entertain, to make me think that dragging my family out of Egypt and pulling them across the worst I ever think that this was good and well, he realizes these thoughts raced through your mind that you're staring at the ground and you has a glance around and he staring at the ground rather pensively in. He looks up and your eyes meet his and hear an echo of your own thoughts as you see him shake his head slowly in disbelief and you realize all his kids are staring at him in the US all your kids are staring at you in that moment here shouting up ahead, and you realize that that there's two men, Joshua Nuno Caleb there there there shouting or having an argument with a shouting match with these other guys are giving the report is a no-no dealership. We can go in. God is going to help us you can believe in. You can trust him.

We we don't have to stay here in the wilderness, but the other spies in the now growing mob or greater number in the shouting match becomes more syndrome mob united against Moses and Joshua and Caleb and you and L. Dad and I all join in the outburst. How dare these fools take us from the relative security of Egypt to certain death in the wilderness that if God wanted to kill all of us and kill her children could've spared all of us a lot of trouble. At this point we need to leave this mob. This form indicators Bernie and we need to fast-forward about 1500 years. We need to fast for the period of the early church, and particularly to the audience of the book of Hebrews, what you imagine now if you would, that you are a young Jewish adults knew growing up in the cultural and religious atmosphere of following observing the Jewish law. The Mosaic ceremonies and celebrations you've observed from a child the law of the customs the Passover. All the feasts and one day we hear for the first time a man named Jesus of Nazareth as you listen to the message of who he is and what he's done it all just starts to click and as you hold up what the what the messenger is saying about who Jesus is and what he's done against the tapestry of Moses's law and the observation of the commands the celebrations of the ceremonies.

It all just fits this is the prophet that Moses said in Deuteronomy 2 would come the people. The mountains and were scared to death of God talk to us anymore like that we can handle it.

Moses is coming prophet comes is like will speak you like I do.

This is the Passover lamb. This is the one whose blood was shed and died so that other people could live. This is the one who, in the heart and the firstfruits rose again, this is the one who sent the Spirit back at the time of the Pentecostal harvest. It all just fit and not only does all fit just makes so much sense to us. The people delivering the message they're doing miracles and they say look, God is proving to you and all of us did this Jesus of Nazareth is his son, and you can follow him just like you followed Moses just like you believed Moses, now you can follow him.

And now that was some years ago although you and I were convinced that Jesus was the long-awaited one. Many of our fellow Israelites never really clicked for them. They were convinced the whole issue had effects, but the synagogue and half and family relationships, friendships are all strained now that you feel the tension of the estrangement and the ostracism and the lost opportunities. The conversations that never happened. Maintaining relationships just very, very difficult. You got this general agonizing sense of what one finds wrong about this whole thing and sometimes you wonder you really wonder if you still believe that Jesus was the one you're waiting for, and this kind of person is in the audience that the author of Hebrews anticipates in Hebrews wanted to.

The author of Hebrews lays out who Jesus is, he is God he is the Son of Man, and what he has done the sacrifice that he made and that that wraps through chapter 2 with the warning that we have to be very careful not to let these things know that you be careful not to let them slip to just sort of go away without even thinking about it all the polls against you here, but to 18 just diverse just before chapter 3 ends with an interesting thought and I want to draw your attention to, and I want to trace some ideas through chapter 3 and four for in that he himself also suffered being tempted. So here is this God man, he has suffered being tempted less. One thing but he doesn't just know what it's like to be tempted, he is able to help those who are tempted. That's a new idea houses possible. Let's look at how that how the author starts talking about the difference between Moses and she is a start.

Talk about Moses here. Later, as we keep going in chapter 3 for this man was counted worthy of more glory than Moses speaks very favorably Moses, but he doesn't think of Moses and Jesus as being inherently competition with one another.

But no matter how much regard that the people of Israel had for the faithfulness of Moses and the Jews. To this day still have for him. The regard that you have for Moses can never match the regard for Christ because you regard a faithful servant differently than you regard a faithful son, a faithful child is always greater in the household that a faithful, hired's hand. In addition, he plays briefly with this idea of house but Christ is a son verse six as a son over his own house whose house we are if we hold fast confidence in rejoicing of the hope under the end and then he alludes back to the mob that was form indicators Bernie and read with me. In verses seven through 11. Wherefore, the Holy Ghost, saith today if you will hear his voice, harden not your hearts as in the provocation in the day of temptation in the wilderness, when your father's tempted me proved me saw my works 40 years.

Wherefore, I was grieved with that generation. I said they do always err in their heart they have not known my ways. So I swore in my wrath, they shall not enter my rest. The people here did not succumb to just some general temptation here.

God had told them specifically to go forward and they refused. We all accused God of trying to kill us and announced that we were going back back to Egypt in this action, God's calls in verse nine, tempting him the first buses may seem a little bit is Isaac James may be contradicting here is because Hebrews is work that they tempted him and James says you can't tempt God and says, and gave the guy you can't tempt God to perform evil but think about the flow of thought that his work up to this moment in the story in Numbers 14, where they tempt God, I mean God has provided every step of the ways they've gotten out of Egypt they would be dead by the Egyptians by the Red Sea by hunger by thirst. They would never have survived if God is not holding them in his hand. They were dependent on God whether they liked it or not, and that they get to the point of entry in the lands and they decide they can't depend on God and they tell God the very God who sustains their lives that they're trying to get them killed.

The strength and killed. They now sit there going back may have the gall to tell God that he's trying to get them killed, and how they were gigabyte Egypt on their own. There is no path back. There's only a path forward and is only by following the living God, that they are ready to their heart and hearts of her fault that there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief and departing from the living God there is any other hope in the author of Hebrews turns this story from Numbers 14 occasion burn it into the strongest of please to his audience to say you cannot make the same mistake as a matter fact it would name the same mistake. It would be worse because if you rebel if that generation rebelled against the servant and read 40 years of wandering in the wilderness. How much worse will it be if we rebel against God by rebellion against his son.

Everything is magnified now in the author of Hebrews says in verse four of chapter 4 verse one that he wants them to experience something that most of us would just as soon avoid. Let us therefore fear the entire weight of this Old Testament episode of this massive failure that resulted in the people that God swore he would bring in land not going in all that weight now falls on this generation that the author Hebrews is talking to, but there's a development of thought here that I want to trace through chapter 4, not by exposing a reverse but looking for two recurring words.

The two recurring words are let us, let us fear he says in verse four chapter 4 verse one, lest a promise been left us of entering into his rest with any motion seem to come short of it word is preached, not profit them. It was not mixed with faith in them that heard it then explains for a little while. How that rest was still available to the people of God's promises of David and of Joshua and pick up in verse nine he said there the mermaid is therefore a rest to the people of God so work where he says the first generation here after Christ worse were the same crocs that they were in. They were good.

Enter rest but didn't we have a promise of rest and what we do for he verse 10 that is entered in the rest had ceased from his own works is critical as God did from his. Let us labor therefore to enter into rest when an interesting phrase, lest any man should fall after the same example of unbelief and that let us labor at the beginning of verse 11 should think about. In contrast to the unbelief at the end of verse 11 were laboring to enter into rest and not to enter into unbelief that he says in verse 12 how powerful God's word is how can just drill into us exposing ways we can't hide from and then in verse 14 to 16 he says to me, it sounds just like the end of chapter 2, but with Summit added material seeing then that we have a great high priest that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the son of God, let us hold fast our profession.

There's the third. Let us he starts with, let us fear that he says let us labor to enter that rest, and now let us hold fast our profession will quite honestly, that's the very thing is wavering. Not sure I can hold onto it. You need something. He says for we have not a high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities. Jesus knows what it's like to feel that pool to go back. He was tempted in all points like as we are yet without sin.

He did not go back. Let us was the next word therefore come boldly. What a cool transition from the beginning of the chapter to the end. It starts with, let us fear and ends with let us come boldly. The fear is real the weight of responsibility cannot be changed but God even though he draws our attention to the fear, the weight of the situation.

The author of Hebrews says to his audience that is not what God intends to lead us and leave us he is moving us to a kind of bold coming that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need to see women hearing recently that the Christian life is a race that you can't quit. But this is not a kind of race we just dig deeper and grit your teeth and so I hang on to the end of your rope and just just hope you don't let go is not a labor of self effort is it actually ironically a labor of nonlabor with what is says back in verse 10 for he that is entered into his rest, he hath what ceased from his own works. We have real confidence but is not in us is where is in the one who is both our example in the water turns around and doesn't just say do it like I did it. He turns out to says I can help you been hearing a lot about God being our help.

A lot of things start coming together.

This episode of the Passover to the to the wilderness wanderings occasion burn in the update that we get this the theological implications. The New Testament, how much more should we realize what God is doing for us today. Seek God did not rescue Israel from Egypt just to show off his power and he didn't. He wasn't like missing incense burning and need to get some people going with this God did all this for Israel because he loved them in the expressions of his love the hotel for actually almost embarrassing to read. Sometimes place out loud and even though God's love is always greater in God's love is always first is still described in Scripture is the kind of personal love, the desires reciprocation. God loves you and he wants you to love and depend on him. That is the reciprocation is not an earning of anything is merely the response to everything that he's done in his love, he rescue that generation that eventually turned in the mob in Numbers 14. He details exactly how how he will executor wore them in kind. They forgot that just as their own sons trusted them to spread the door. The blood above the door of the Passover that they could trust their father to not let anything harm them.

God did not bring them through the wilderness to kill them where you your heart waiver. Sometimes fear is that God loves you more than any father ever could in any earthly father and he wants you to love him back with all your being and God wants you to love him in a way that, as he described John.

John 17 that you and I are one with him.

This is a relational thing is not really God wants to do things to you or do things for you or door to think through you. He wants to be with you. He loves you. What is he wants free to take even that wandering heart say Lord I don't even know how to hang on. Sometimes like that father to pay Jesus to to save his child so Lord, I believe, help, nonbelief when you realize how much God loves you that every school she brings in your life is a piece of learning not to turn on him but to depend on him. That is when you are exactly where God wants you and your reciprocating the greatness of his love that a creature can reciprocate our love is never first are no love is never greater but is real and that is what God wants. He wants you to depend on him, not just to follow him, not just to think of those good example but to go to his throne room and asked for the thing he wants to give more than anything else is his help. You've been listening to a sermon preached at Bob Jones University by Dr. Ted Miller, which is part of the study series about Christ in the Old Testament.

I'm Steve Pettit, president of Bob Jones University in Greenville, South Carolina. Thank you for listening to The Daily Platform. If you're looking for a regionally accredited Christian liberal arts university. I invite you to consider beating you which is purposely designed to inspire a lifelong pursuit of learning loving and leading. For more information about Bob Jones University visit BJ you.edu or call 800-252-6363. Thanks for listening and join us again tomorrow as we study God's word together on The Daily Platform