Hebrews 10:19-39

Hebrews 10:19. Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh; and having an high priest over the house of God; let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.

The place of the Christian is that of the nearest conceivable access to God for «the holiest» is «the holy of holies,»-that innermost part of the tabernacle to reach which the high priest had to pass through the outer court, and through the court of the priests, and then through the beautiful veil which concealed the mercy-seat. At the death of Christ, that veil was rent from the top to the bottom, so now there is nothing to keep us back from the mercy-seat. We, therefore, have boldness and liberty in that way «to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus;» where the high priest himself could only go once in the year, we may go at all times. The veil has not been merely lifted up for a while, and then dropped down again; it is not rolled up ready for future use; it is rent in twain, destroyed. Since Jesus has died, there is no separation now between the believer and his God except by means of such a veil as our base unbelief may please to hang up. The crimson way of Christ's shed blood lies open to all believers therefore, «let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water,»

Hebrews 10:23. Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering;

Not only hold it, but hold it fast without wavering. Let us never have a question about it. God grant that we may have an unquestioning, unstaggering faith! To hold fast the profession of our faith, seems enough; but to hold it fast without wavering, is better still; and so we ought to do.

Hebrews 10:23. (For he is faithful that promised;)

God gives us no cause for wavering, for he never wavers. If he were an unfaithful God, we might naturally be an unbelieving people; but «he is faithful that promised.» Therefore, «let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering.»

Hebrews 10:24. And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works:

I am afraid there are some who consider one another to provoke in quite a different spirit from this,-who watch to find out a tender spot where a wound will be most felt. They observe the weakness of a brother's constitution, and then play upon it, or make jests about it. All this is evil, so let us avoid it; let us all seek out the good points of our brethren, and consider them, that we may afterwards be the means of guiding them to those peculiar good works for which they are best adapted. «Provoke unto love and to good works.» I do not know how we can do that better than by being very loving and very full of good works ourselves, for then will others be likely to say, «If these people are helped by God's grace to love like this, and to labour like this, why should not we do the same» A good example is often better than a very proper precept.

Hebrews 10:25. Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is;-

Yes; there are some who even make a bad use of what ought to be a great blessing, namely, the printing-press, and the printed sermon, by staying at home to read a sermon because, they say, it is better than going out to hear one. Well, dear friend, if I could not hear profitably, I would still make one of the assembly gathered together for the worship of God. It is a bad example for a professing Christian to absent himself from the assembly of the friends of Christ. There was a dear sister, whom many of you knew, who used to attend here with great regularity, although she could not hear a word that was said; but she said it did her good to join in the hymns, and to know that she was worshipping God with the rest of his people. I wish that some, who stay away for the most frivolous excuses, would think of this verse: «Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is;»-

Hebrews 10:25. But exhorting one another and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.

It is not the work of the minister alone to exhort, but the brethren, and the sisters, too, should exhort one another, and seek to stir each other up in the faith and fear of God.

Hebrews 10:26. For if we sin willfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins, but a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries.

This is a solemn text, containing a very terrible truth. If, after having been regenerated, and made children of God, we were willfully and deliberately to let the Saviour go, and apostatize altogether to the world, there would be no hope for us. What, then, is our hope? Why, that we shall never be permitted to do so,-that the grace of God will keep us so that, although we may fall like Peter, we shall not fall away like Judas,-that, though we may sin, there shall not be that degree of studied willfulness about it that would make it to be the sin unto death, a deliberate act of spiritual suicide. The doctrine of the final perseverance of the saints derives great glory from this other truth that, if they did not persevere, there is no second means of grace, no other plan of salvation. No man was ever born again twice; no man was ever washed twice in the precious blood of Jesus. The one washing makes us so clean that «he that is washed needeth not save to wash his feet,» for which Jesus provides by daily cleansing; but the one grand atoning act never fails. If it did fail, there would remain «no more sacrifice for sins.

Hebrews 10:28. He that despised Moses law died without mercy under two or three witnesses: of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace

For apostasy from Christ would amount to all this; and if that were possible, what grace would remain?

Hebrews 10:30. For we know him that hath said, Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense, saith the Lord. And again, The Lord shall judge his people.

O professors, take this message home to your hearts! Let every one of us take it home: «The Lord shall judge his people.» God's fire is in Zion, and his furnace in Jerusalem. If a man tries nothing else, he will test his gold; and if no others shall be judged, yet certainly those will be who say that they are the Lord's people. In that dread day, he will separate the goats from the sheep, the tares from the wheat, and the dross from the gold; his fan will be in his hand, and he will throughly purge his floor; he will sit as a refiner of silver, and he will purify the sons of Levi; he shall be like a refiner's fire, and like fuller's soap. Woe to those, in that day, who are a defilement to his Church, and an adulteration to the purity of his people!

Hebrews 10:31. It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

What a terrible verse is that! It is a text that ought to be preached from by those who are always saying that the punishment of the wicked will be less than, according to our minds, the Word of God leads us to expect it to be:

«It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.»

Hebrews 10:32. But call to remembrance the former days,-

The apostle is not expecting that any of them will ever go back to where they were before; he is persuaded that they will persevere even to the end. The very warning that he gives is a powerful preventive against apostasy. Now comes the exhortation: «Call to remembrance the former days.» Some of you can «call to remembrance» the time when you joined the church, when you had to run the gauntlet for Christ's sake. Then, in your early Christian life, you feared nothing and nobody so long as you could glorify God. Then, you had great enjoyment, sweet seasons of communion with your Lord: «Call to remembrance the former days.»

Hebrews 10:32. In which, after ye were illuminated, ye endured a great fight of afflictions; partly, whilst ye were made a gazing stock both by reproaches and afflictions; and partly, whilst ye became companions of them that were so used.

In your early Christian days, you were pointed at, and regarded as quite singular for being servants of Christ; or, possibly, it was not yourselves so much as your pastors, your leaders, your friends who were prominent in the church, at whom the arrows of the adversaries were aimed. They shot at you through them; and, sometimes, that pained you much more than when they distinctly attacked you. Altogether, it was «a great fight of afflictions» that you had to endure.

Hebrews 10:34. For ye had compassion of me in my bonds,

In those early days, the Jewish believers clung as the unbelieving Jews persecuted him, to Paul just as ardently

Hebrews 10:34. And took joyfully the spoiling of your goods, knowing in yourselves that ye have in heaven a better and an enduring substance. Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompense of reward.

Be like the brave Spartan who would never lose his shield, but would come home either with it or on it. «Cast not away your confidence.» You trusted in God in those early days, and nothing seemed to daunt you then. «Cast not away your confidence.» Rather, get more to add to it. Let there be no thought of going back, but may there rather be a distinct advance!

Hebrews 10:36. For ye have need of patience,-

Our supply of that virtue is often very short; it is an article of which there is very little in the market, and all of us have need of more of it: «Ye have need of patience,»-

Hebrews 10:36. That, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise.

There must first be the doing of the will of God, and then the reward will come afterwards. God will not give to his people their full reward yet. Patience, then, brother; patience, sister. Saturday night will come one of these days; your week's work will then be over, and you will be more than repaid for anything you have done for your Lord.

Hebrews 10:37. For yet a little while, and he that shall come will come, and will not tarry. Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him.

The drawers back-the mere professors-those who say they have been illuminated, and who have tasted, in a measure, the sweetness of religion, yet who never received Christ in their inmost heart,-these are the people in whom God hath no pleasure.

Hebrews 10:39. But we-What a consoling end this is to the chapter!

It ought to comfort every believer in Christ who has been distressed by the earlier verses: «we»-

Hebrews 10:39. Are not of them who draw back unto perdition; but of them that believe to the saving of the soul.

May that be true of every one of us, for our Lord Jesus Christ's sake! Amen.