As a young boy I had all the makings of a farmer. Well, an impatient farmer. I made a little garden for a few years. One year I planted carrots. But I didn’t know how to tell when the carrots were ready and I couldn’t wait to pull them. So I ended up with a bunch of tiny underdeveloped carrots (Maybe it is impatient farmers that grow baby carrots). But the truth was that when I had pulled the carrot (and for some reason I pulled them all up too early) I had no opportunity to put them back. That was it.
The author of Hebrews wants us to realize that we need to apply the lessons we learn from discipline before it becomes too late for us to put them into practice. The key idea he gives us is, in order to grow in the lessons of discipline we need to have an outlook of repentance. If we refuse to live righteously in learning from our discipline we may find ourselves experiencing serious consequences.
In the previous verses, the author described the process of God’s discipline in the life of the believer. Now, he notes two ways in which we must live in order to move past discipline in our lives.
I. Live Repentantly
First, we must live repentantly. The author notes this for us in verses 12-13. Your manner of life as a believer must be one of repentance. Repentance is a turning of mind unto what is right. It is an agreement with God in our mind and will that leads to a change in life. And the author describes three actions you must take in following through with true repentance and thereby moving past God’s fatherly discipline.
A. Recognize the cause
The first action you must take in following through with true repentance is to recognize the cause. In verse 12 the author mentions, “the hands that are weak and the knees that are feeble.” In this he uses a bodily metaphor to describe the issue. The weak hands and feeble knees represent the cause or reason for which God brought discipline upon the individual. And in the original, the author emphasizes this by putting them first in the sentence. Literally it reads, “Therefore, the weak hands and the feeble knees.”
The author wants us to understand that we need to determine just what areas in our life need correction. What are the sinful patterns or tendencies God has been showing us that exist in our lives? Again as we have discussed in the previous weeks if you do not learn from God’s discipline you will continue to experience it for the same causes. And so the author tells us to take note of the weak hands and feeble knees. Nothing short of recognizing the issue will allow you to overcome it.
So what is it you need to do? You need to see the problem from God’s viewpoint. Look at what the Word of God says about the issue. Find out how God sees it, THEN you will be able to respond appropriately. And when you begin to see what it is God has trying to work out of you and what He has been trying to work into you, then you will be ready for the next action you need to take.
B. Reset the crooked
The next action you must take in following through with true repentance to move past God’s discipline is to reset the crooked. The author here answers the questions, “What about the weak hands and the feeble knees? What do we do with these weaknesses and the characteristic sins in which we indulge?” The NAS says, “strengthen them” but a better translation would read, “straighten them” or “reset them.” The verb translated “strengthen” is a word from which we get the English term, “orthopedic.” Our English word deals with the correction of that which is not right in the skeletal system and its associated components. So we can see that it is imperative for us to reset the crooked parts. The weak hands and feeble knees are that way because they are out of joint. Until you straighten them out, until you reset them you cannot make progress in your Christian life.
Sometimes the resetting can be a little painful. But if it isn’t reset you can’t grow. Now often it is the pain that causes us to want it to be reset. And the pain that God allows into our lives to bring correction should cause us to desire to reset the deformed limb. There are steps you need to take to reset that limb. And it might be painful in the process. When I dislocated my shoulder 5 years ago I found that if I didn’t move the arm at all it didn’t hurt (as much). Of course the shoulder was hanging down to my chest and I wasn’t able to move it in the slightest. Now if I wanted it reset the doctor would have to move it a great deal. I had two choices; leave like it was and not ever do anything so that it wouldn’t cause pain or allow the twist and shout maneuver (the doctor twists and I shout). I opted for the second and I am here, able to speak with you today because of this.
But let’s consider and understand that in the resetting process there may very well be some pain. As you struggle against sin there may be hardship. You may have to break off some relationships with friends, you may have to go and ask forgiveness from someone. You may have to quit a job that has you doing something not right. But the question of whether something hurts is not the question to be asked. The question to be asked is what is the right thing to do? What would God have me to do? What is it that will allow me to overcome some sin or weakness that is hindering me from serving Christ effectively? When you have recognized what is wrong and have gone to the Word of God to see His viewpoint on the matter you next need to reset the crooked and seek the grace of God to give you the strength to overcome it. How often do you come before God to overcome this? You come before Him as often as you need. But what was the wonderful promise we learned earlier in the book of Hebrews? In chapter 4 we read, “Let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” This is the next step in repentance. We need to reset the crooked. Straighten what has been put out of joint. By His stripes we are healed. Let the great physician reset the crooked. Come to Him for the healing you need in your life. Repent of the sin that so easily besets you. Stop making excuses so the lame limb may be healed.
C. Resolve to walk on the right course
And this brings to the third action you must take in following through with true repentance is to resolve to walk on the right course. In verse 13, he says, “make straight paths for your feet, so that the limb which is lame may not be put out of joint, but rather be healed.” When he says to make straight paths for your feet he is describing our will to walk on the right path. Walking along a path may be easy or difficult depending on the terrain over which you travel. If you are walking on a rough road with many dips and obstacles in the way you may find it difficult or dangerous. A smooth path, however, is an easier road on which to make progress. And this is what the author means by a straight path. He is describing a smooth or easy path in which to walk. When you are recovering from a leg or foot injury there are certain places you do not go and certain motions you do not make. Last year I had torn cartilage in my knee and had to have surgery. Well now I will not play racquetball because of my knee. Neither can I make sharp, quick turns around corners. For some reason my knee doesn’t want to follow. Well if I don’t want more trouble with my knee I am going to avoid these things. I need to resolve not to walk into a racquetball court if I am going to keep myself from putting my lame knee out of joint.
Friends, you need to choose, you need to decide that you are going walk in the right paths. Don’t make spiritual progress any more difficult than you need for yourself. In Psalm 1, King David describes the person who is blessed. What is the characteristic of this person? “How blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly nor stands in the way of the sinner nor sits in the seat of the scornful but his delight is in the law of the Lord and he meditates on it day and night.” If you are going to make progress in the Christian life you are going to have to resolve to walk in the right places. Not only must you avoid the paths of unrighteousness but also you need to spend time with the Lord. This blessed individual meditates on God’s Word. The first step into walking on the wrong paths is to neglect God’s Word. And if you are walking on the wrong path you need to fill that time by walking with the Lord. You can’t just stop something unless you fill it with something else. I heard of one person who put a pocket Bible in the place they use to keep their cigarettes so whenever they instinctively reached for their cigarette pack they found their Bible and read it. Oh, desire to walk on the smooth paths. Look for ways to avoid the paths that have been leading you into sin. And replace the times you have been yielding to sin with time spent before the Lord in prayer, supplication and reading His Word. Resolve to walk on the right course.
II. Live Righteously
The second way in which we must live in order to move past discipline in our lives is that we are to live righteously. The author notes two attitudes we must possess if we are to live righteously.
A. Pursue right conduct
The first attitude we must possess if we are to live righteously is we must pursue right conduct. This is what the author tells us in verse 14. “Pursue peace with all men, and the sanctification without which no one will see the Lord.” First the author says, “pursue peace with all men.” Now this is an essential for the believer. The Christian must live in a manner that shows he has no enemies as far as he is concerned. It is interesting to note the word the author uses here is the word that is also translated persecute (or pursue in a way to bring injury). We, as believers, are not to pursue vengeance but peace. The apostle Paul said in Romans 12:18, “If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men.” We must understand that in following Christ we must show patience toward people and seek to be at peace with them. If you cannot civilly conduct yourself toward a person (I don’t mean they must conduct themselves civilly with you) then you need to examine your heart and confess the hatred and bitterness that is eating away your heart or you will die.
Thomas à Kempis, in his Imitation of Christ wrote, “Do not say, ‘I cannot endure such things from this person,’ or ‘I will not tolerate these things: he has done me great injury, and accused me of things I never considered’…such thoughts are foolish (à Kempis says), for you ignore the merit of patience and Him who rewards it, and think only of the person who has injured you and the wrong you endure.”
Friends, this kind of response, a deep anger that only leads to frustration and bitterness must be repented of for without such repentance you cannot pursue peace with everyone. Again, someone may have a problem with you and not desire to resolve it but don’t allow your life to prevent any issues between you and someone else from being resolved. Pursue, follow after, peace with everyone.
But notice this also includes sanctification. Sanctification or holiness is that purity of heart that is a result the forgiveness of sins and the righteousness that only Christ can give. This sanctification is complete or total sanctification. Jesus said in Matthew 5, it is the pure in heart that shall see God. And this is what the author says. Unless our hearts have been sanctified by God then we will not see God. Unless you have been born again and been given a new heart by God you will not see the kingdom of heaven.
Why is this? God is holy. A person who has not been made completely holy cannot stand in His presence. God will not receive a sinner into His dwelling place. Anyone without a record of perfect righteousness will be cast into outer darkness to experience the wrath of God.
Remember the author is dealing with the possibility that there were some in the congregation who had not yet received the grace of God in Christ. And in the midst of the difficulties they were experiencing, there was the prospect that some might leave their connection with the Christian faith.
We must understand the limited insight of the author. He is writing from a position of partial knowledge. What evidence was there for him to determine if someone had been truly born again? They would continue to pursue a life of sanctification. They would seek to live out what God had placed in their heart by faith. Remember there is no assurance for the believer who does not desire to be holy as the Lord is holy. Oh there might be some who have a false sense of assurance but remember what the author noted in the previous verses. Believers who are not currently pursuing a path of holiness and receive no discipline from the Lord are assuredly illegitimate. They may claim to be saved but have no real testimony that they belong to God.
B. Eschew a corrupt heart
The second attitude we must possess if we are to live righteously is we must eschew a corrupt heart. The author, beginning in verse 15, says that there are two characteristics of a corrupt heart. Here again he brings to the forefront that each one of you in the body should be caring for one another and be diligent to make sure others in the congregation are not on the path to destruction. Why do I say this? At the beginning of verse 15 he says, you “see to it that no one comes short of the grace of God.” The word translated, “See to it” is the word used of the concern pastors are commanded to have in their care for the congregation. It means to be diligently looking into the business of others. This does not mean we are to be busybodies looking for juicy gossip. It means that each one of you is to be concerned about the spiritual welfare of one another. If you see someone who needs encouragement or instruction in the Christian life you should go to them. If you see someone who is struggling to understand the doctrine of grace (a doctrine if someone doesn’t comprehend does not have eternal life) then go to them and explain the doctrine of grace. Make sure that people who are here are not going through the motions of church without understanding what it means to be born again. Each of us needs to look out for the spiritual needs of one another. What does the author say these people with a corrupt heart are like? He notes what they are like in two ways.
1. Devoid of grace
First, he notes they are devoid of grace. “See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God; that no root of bitterness springing up causes trouble, and by it many be defiled.” Again the author’s concern in this letter is this: there may be some who are participating in the worship and the work of the church but may be devoid of God’s grace. The word translated “come short” could also be translated “be lacking.” The author wants us to make sure there aren’t people in our midst who are lacking the grace of God. Remember that God’s saving grace only comes through faith in Jesus Christ. If someone lacks full understanding of God’s redemption, available freely in the death burial and resurrection of Christ then they do not possess God’s saving grace.
Why is this such an important issue to the author? Because those in the church who are devoid of God’s grace may very well end up destroying a portion of the work of God in the church. Look at what he says. “See to it…that no root of bitterness springing up causes trouble, and by it many be defiled.” This bitter root of which the author speaks is not general bitterness in someone’s life. It is not the anger someone stores up by which they destroy their life and the lives of those around them. No this is much worse than that. The word is also used for something that is poisonous. In Revelation 8:11 the passage says, “Many men died from the waters, because they were made bitter.” The author of Hebrews alludes to Deuteronomy 29:18. The passage says, “So that there will not be among you a man or woman, or family or tribe, whose heart turns away today from the LORD our God, to go and serve the gods of those nations; that there will not be among you a root bearing poisonous (or bitter) fruit and wormwood.”
What is Moses speaking about in this passage? He is describing the individual or group that is devoid of the grace of God and begins to worship idols. What is the result of this? Can anyone depart into apostasy and not affect those around them? What does a root that is bitter or poisonous produce? It produces poisonous fruit that kills those nearby who eat it.
What does the author of Hebrews seek to convey? He wants his readers to understand that those who fall away because they are devoid of grace may lead others astray. Think about the person who makes a profession of faith in Christ. They may appear to be doing well in their Christian walk. People may be encouraged as they see this person but then the individual falls away. In his apostasy he may even discourage others in their faith.
This is the serious nature of an individual who has this heart devoid of God’s grace. The most grave danger in this instance is a person who has long been associated with a church but has never been born again. Their heart has not been cleansed by faith. And when they fall away they have even greater influence than the person who has recently made profession of faith in Christ. And they will cause a great commotion among a body of believers and bring many into disillusionment.
Jesus mentions those who have elevated themselves to the level of prophet or teacher but are devoid of the grace of God. Jesus’ warning is to beware of those who come dressed in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravening wolves. In Matthew 12:33 Jesus said, “Make a tree good and its fruit will be good, or make a tree bad and its fruit will be bad, for a tree is recognized by its fruit.” If a person hasn’t been changed inwardly by the grace of God, no matter what they attempt on the outside, the lasting fruit they try to produce will be corrupt. This is the condition of a person devoid of the grace of God.
2. Devoid of self-control
How else does the author describe those with a corrupt heart? Secondly, he says they are devoid of self-control. He mentions this in verses 16-17. And he gives us three features of this person with a corrupt heart who is devoid of self-control.
a. They cannot control their body
First, they cannot control their body. “See to it…that there be no immoral or godless person like Esau, who sold his own birthright for a single meal.” The author describes Esau as “immoral.” This word brings forth the full connotation of being sexually depraved. It describes someone who cannot or will not control their sexual desire within the constraints of marriage. The apostle Paul describes this in 1 Thessalonians 4:3. This is the will of God, your sanctification; that is, that you abstain from sexual immorality; that each of you know how to possess his own vessel in sanctification and honor, and not in lustful passion, like the Gentiles who do not know God.” There is no self-restraint in the physical realm for them because, again, the grace of God does not live in their heart. And so instead of living in a manner to please God they live in such a way as to please themselves. They cannot control their body.
b. They cannot control their mind
Secondly, they cannot control their mind. The author calls Esau, “godless” or “profane.” The apostle Paul uses this a number of times in his letters and his use of the word helps us to understand why I describe this as an inability to control their mind. Let me read a few passages where Paul uses this word. In these passages it is translated “worldly.” In 1 Timothy 4:7 Paul says, “Have nothing to do with “worldly” fables.” In 1 Timothy 6:20 he says, “Guard what has been entrusted to you, avoiding worldly and empty chatter.” In 2 Timothy 2:16 he uses almost the exact same wording, “avoid worldly and empty chatter, for it will lead to further ungodliness, and their talk will spread like gangrene.”
This worldly talk and worldly fables are what come up from inappropriate thought. Jesus said that which comes out of the mouth does so because of the thought processes of the heart. These who the author of Hebrews describes as godless or profane cannot control their mind. They think on that which is lewd, vulgar. And their mind brings them to speak on all kinds of rotten worldly chatter. They cannot control their minds. From this we could say that neither can they control their mouths. But this is not the next point.
c. They cannot control their consequences
The next point is that they cannot control their consequences. This is the saddest part of all. This is how the author closes the section. “Esau sold his own birthright for a single meal. For you know that even afterwards, when he desired to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no place for repentance, though he sought it with tears.”
Again this is a very sad portion of Scripture. What happened to cause Esau to sell his birthright is described in Genesis 25:27-34. We won’t turn there but Esau came in from a hard time of hunting. He hadn’t caught anything. He was famished and as he approached home, the smell of cooking stew wafted into the air. He began to long for the stew. All he could think about was the stew. When he came in he expected supper to be ready and his mother waiting to dish out some food for him. But instead, his brother had been fixing it. So he begged his brother to have a bowl of it and Jacob asked Esau to give him the birthright in exchange for the stew. Esau thought so little of the birthright that he exchanged it for a meal.
Now the birthright is the privilege of the first born to certain blessings. The firstborn would get a bigger portion of the inheritance. He would pass down the family name. And he would receive whatever promises went with it. In this case it was the promise of God’s blessing upon him and his descendants to bring forth the Messiah. He rejected all this for a bowl of soup. This is what the author is trying to say is so dreadful. He gave this up because of his physical lust for food. He couldn’t control his mind and he couldn’t control his body.
So what is the result? He couldn’t control his circumstances. When time came for the blessing, he was rejected. He sought for it with tears. He sought for it diligently but the time was past. He had been so devoid of the grace of God that the things of God didn’t matter to him. And when it became apparent to him what this all meant it was too late. He despised the things of God for a little physical satisfaction.
The author of Hebrews has brought to us a serious warning. Some of you may be playing with Christianity. You refuse to repent of your sin now because you want to satisfy your lusts first, instead of following Christ. You want to think on that which is profane instead of meditating on that which is true and honest and just and pure and lovely and virtuous and praiseworthy. Instead you meditate on the physical world and see it as the only reality. You want it now while you still have life left. And you think that some time in the future when you want, when you decide, you will repent and trust Christ as Savior. But it will not be. As Esau found no place for repentance so it may be with you. Only the grace of God allows you to still be here and be alive. And if you are here for some other reason than to be serious for God you are treading on thin ice. There have been many who have gone kicking and screaming into hell having understood the time for their repentance was past. Henry Prince of Wales said as he died, “Tie a rope around my body, pull me out of bed, and lay me in ashes, that I may die with repentant prayers to an offended God. Oh! I…wish for that time I lost…in vain recreations.” William Pope, who died in 1797, was the leader of a company of infidels who ridiculed everything religious. His friends who were present at his death spoke of it as a scene of terror. He died crying these words, “I have no contrition. I cannot repent. God will damn me. I know that the day of grace is past…You see one who is damned forever…Oh, Eternity! Eternity! Nothing for me but hell.”
Here are these who rejected or toyed with spiritual realities in exchange for that which they could see and feel. And when this life they could see and feel neared its end they found no comfort in it. Even as Esau found no place for repentance neither could these.
Friends, as the author mentioned back in chapter 3, “Take care…that there not be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart that falls away from the living God.” Have you placed your trust in Jesus Christ? Are you living as you should to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ? Are you living repentantly? Are you recognizing what God has been trying to teach you so you may turn from your sin and resolve to walk on the right course? Are you living righteously in pursuing right conduct? You have time for so many other things? Do you have time for the things of God? Will you commit yourself to live by the grace of Christ in faith?
Perhaps you have come here today and you are not sure if you would escape the terrors of hell and enter the paradise of God. If you have not trusted Christ then you need to understand that all have sinned and fall short of God’s glorious standard of perfect righteousness. You need to know that you must believe (put all your trust) in the fact that Jesus died to pay the penalty of all your sin and put on His righteousness so that God the Father may accept you freely. Eternal life is a gift that can be freely received for God has paid its price for you. Don’t delay for the time may come when your heart has become so callous that you cannot repent. And you will find no place for repentance though you seek it with tears.