Hebrews 12:
5 And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him:
(He is bringing to these believers’ attention that they have forgotten that a person who is chastised should not despise or faint.)
verse 5 forgotten-eklanthanomahee - to be utterly oblivious-
6 For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth.
7 If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not?
verse 7 - endure - hupomeno - to stay under i.e. remain, to undergo, i.e. to bear trials, have fortitude, to persevere
(The word IF indicates that there is a condition here. God will dealeth with you -believers- as sons IF believers persevere and stay when chastised.)
8 But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons.
verse 8 - bastards - nothos - illegitimate son
verse 8 - chastisement - paideia - tutorage i.e. education or training; by implication disciplinary correction
9 Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live?
10 For they verily for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure; but he for our profit, that we might be partakers of his holiness.
11 Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby.
(One is not exercised or trained by the chastisement if one despises the chastisement or faints when being rebuked - as warned in verse 5. We must remember that the book of Hebrews is addressing believers.)
12 Wherefore lift up the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees;
13 And make straight paths for your feet, lest that which is lame be turned out of the way; but let it rather be healed.
(He is calling these believers to lift up hands that hang down & knees that are feeble, to make straight paths for feet - Then, he explains what happens if that does not occur - LEST what is lame be turned out of the way.)
verse 13 - turned - ektrepo- to deflect i.e. turn away
14 Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord:
15 Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled;
16 Lest there be any fornicator, or profane person, as Esau, who for one morsel of meat sold his birthright.
17 For ye know how that afterward, when he would have inherited the blessing, he was rejected: for he found no place of repentance, though he sought it carefully with tears.
(Again, he provides believers with the example of Esau who sold his birthright. He is not simply reminding believers of a man who sold his birthright for no apparent reason. There is a lesson in the example of Esau: We, as believers, must remain in the faith, and our continuation is demonstrated if we obey the Lord’s leading. There will be times of chastisement and instruction during which we must not despise nor faint. However, if we do not endure the chastisement and yield the peaceable fruit of righteousness, then we will have sold our birthright of being sons.)
In addition, there are so many verses in the Bible illustrating that it is possible a person will have faith or believe and choose not to continue in that faith/belief.
Parable of the Sower
Luke 8:
11 Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God.
12 Those by the way side are they that hear; then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.
13 They on the rock are they, which, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, which for A WHILE BELIEVE, and in time of temptation fall away.
14 And that which fell among thorns are they, which, when they have heard, go forth, and are choked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to perfection.
15 But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience.
In verse 13, Jesus does not say they never believed; He says they believe for A WHILE, but when they are tempted (and all of us will be tempted – it is the trying of our faith), they FALL AWAY. One cannot “fall away” from what one was never a part of. Jesus describes that there are and will be believers who accept His Word and do believe, but that those very same people during a time of temptation fall away. The word WHILE used in verse 13 indicates a measure of time, but does not provide the exact measure of time; we do know that a “while” is not forever. We also know that there are those who believe for a while but turn away from the Word, from the faith, from believing - and therefore, those once believers do not inherit eternal life.
In verse 14, Jesus teaches that there are those who believe the Word of God (the seed) but are “choked” and bring NO fruit to perfection or maturity. Jesus’ description of this parable is also found in Mark 4:18-19. “And these are they which are sown among thorns; such as hear the word, and the cares of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the lusts of other things entering in, choke the word, and it becometh UNfruitful.”
unfruitful - akarpos - barren --without fruit
What does Jesus say about fruit?
John 15:8 - Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.
Matthew 7: 19-20 - Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. Wherefore by their fruits you will know them.
John 15
1 I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman.
2 Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit.
3 Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.
4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me.
5 I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.
6 If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned.
7 If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.
8 Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.
9 As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love.
10 If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love.
abide - meno - to stay (in a given place, state, relation, or expectancy)
John 15 and 1 John (the entire book) use the word abide several times, and each time, abide means to stay.
Abiding in Christ is not optional for eternal life - it is necessary and mandatory for eternal life. Not abiding, as Jesus shows in verse 6, will result in being burned by fire.
John 8:
30 As he spake these words, many believed on him.
31 Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed;
32 And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
Verse 31 - continue - meno - to stay (in a given place, state, relation, or expectancy)
** Notice that the Greek word for abide and continue is the same = meno.
Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.
And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth.
If one does not abide or continue (meno - stay) in Christ, then one cannot be sanctified by the truth.
But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.
And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake: but he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.
endure - hupomeno - to stay under (behind) i.e. remain; fig. to undergo, i.e. to bear (trials) have fortitude, persevere
The root Greek word for endure is the same as for abide and continue = meno.
2 comments:
Thank you for sharing this, sister.It's a good word and very encouraging!
Hello Anonymous,
In these dark days, followers of Christ need so much encouragement from one another. Your comment is encouraging to me. Thank you.
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