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Introduction: Higher Expectations

It is a very unpleasant experience to be called into the teacher’s office after you hand in an assignment that you know wasn’t your best work. The teacher sits you down and looks at you, and says, This work isn’t like you. This isn’t the normal quality you usually submit. You normally do work much better than this. Your expected performance is much higher. It’s not a great feeling. If we are being honest, it feels like getting punched in the gut. Especially when you know it’s true. You know that the work that you submitted wasn’t as good, that you hadn’t put in the full effort. You phoned it in on this one, maybe out of discouragement or out of tiredness.

The author of Hebrews, like a master teacher or coach, is doing the same thing for his audience. In our passage this morning, Hebrews 10:19-39, the author of Hebrews, like a good mentor or a good teacher, is coaching his readers to continue on in their former diligence, not to be content with this kind of work.

He does this by first pointing out the ample resources available to them to draw on to aid them in their work. Then he warns them of the consequences of falling back in their faith. Finally, he’s going to encourage them, reminding them of their potential. They were successful in the past, and he is so confident that they will persevere until the end.

 

Make Use of Your Gifts

We read beginning in Hebrews 10, verse 19:

“Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, and since we have a great high priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart and full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful.”

In the letter to the Hebrews, there is this beautiful sermon about faithfulness to Jesus and all the blessings and riches that the believer stands to gain that he has through Christ. This better covenant has been discussed over the past nine chapters, and now, at this point in chapter 10, the hope is that the Christian would make use of all these gifts and blessings. Full access to God has been granted through the sacrifice of Jesus. We have an amazing High Priest, better than we could imagine. So the reader is urged to make use of these great privileges.

May you draw near to God with that full assurance of faith he’s giving you, because you have been sprinkled clean, you have been washed, you have been purified through Jesus. Draw near and hold fast to your confession. You’ve been given these resources, so you should use them. Why is studying your Bible exciting? Because it’s going to recount to you the love and care that God has for you. Why is reading theology worthwhile? Because it’s talking about the faithfulness of our God. Hold fast to the confession of your hope, because the One who made it is faithful both to you and to all of his promises.

It should be obvious what should be done. If we have these blessings, then we should take every opportunity to draw on them, to recall them, to meditate on them. If I have the Torchy’s Tacos gold card and I get free queso every time I show up to Torchy’s, why would I go to Torchy’s and not get free queso? As silly as that analogy is, that’s what’s going on here in Hebrews. He’s saying, you’ve been given these awesome blessings. You’ve got these gifts, you have these tools. Make use of them, use them. Don’t go to Torchy’s and not get free queso. Draw near to God. Hold fast to the sure hope that you have in Jesus.

 

Consider Ways to Stir Up Love

Now, as we move on, in verse 24, it says:

“And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day is drawing near.”

Christians should take time to consider the way they can stir up other Christians to love, demonstrating that love through good works. Stir up is usually more of a negative word, used to agitate a crowd, but here it’s used positively. In the same passion, with the same fiery fervor, you might start a protest over something, do that. But do that for believers to love Jesus more. Stir them up. Fan the flames. Encourage the new believer to draw near to God’s word and to grow in prayer. Show others how valuable this Christian community is.

Warm the heart of the suffering brother who may be going through a spiritually dry season. Call out and keep accountable others whose love may be diminished from the gloom of sin. These are just some of the ways. There are many others that you could stir up Christians to love and good works.

The word I want to focus on here for a minute is consider. The challenge here is not only to go about stirring up others to love Jesus and obey him, but to think about ways to do this in advance of meeting those brothers and sisters on a Sunday morning. Plan out before Sunday morning gets here, ways that you can minister to others during the Sunday gathering. So when Thursday, Friday, and Saturday roll around in your busy week, take some time to plan for church, to prep for how you might encourage, uplift, or challenge others to follow Jesus.

Don’t leave the stirring up of others to improvisation. All of us do this planning naturally for other things. I don’t think anyone here would invite someone over for dinner and not plan out a single detail until that person walked in the door. No, you make a plan for them coming over. All of us do this naturally and innately. We invite someone over, and we naturally start to think of what we need to do for them. We need to clean the house, we need to get it ready. We need to cook the roast, we need to go to the grocery store. We need to make a list so that when we go to the grocery store, we don’t forget something.

In the same way, you should plan in advance. Consider ways to stir up others in the church. Give thought to the advanced planning of how you might encourage, equip, bless, admonish, and correct the fellow members of the church on Sunday morning. You can’t stir up others if you’re not around others. It’s obvious, but it needs to be said. So Hebrews reminds you not to neglect meeting together as the church, and it puts more urgency on doing so since the race is almost finished.

The day of the Lord is near. For those of you who may have been in church for a long time, you’ve probably heard these verses before, and they’ve probably been in the context of exhorting you not to neglect meeting together. Don’t skip church because it’s bad for you. That you need the church, that’s the way you grow, and you miss out on so many benefits and equipping for yourself if you skip church. So make it a regular habit.

Don’t be absent because you’re leaving behind growth for yourself, and it’s not good for your soul. I want to reiterate that it is all true, but I want us to look at this text from another angle this morning. Don’t neglect meeting together because there are others in the church who need you. There are other people on Sunday morning who need your particular encouragement.

They need your help. They need your presence. You have been gifted. The scriptures tell us you’ve been gifted with special gifts and talents and abilities, encouragements, even just special words. These are given to you by God for the purpose of ministering to others in the church.

You’re not gifted for your own upliftment, for your own spiritual growth, for your own edification. You have been gifted uniquely by God so others will benefit. When you neglect meeting together, when you make a habit of doing so, you’re robbing, removing, holding back those gifts that are needed by other people in the church. Don’t neglect meeting together because other people may need you. You’re necessary.

It’s good, it’s important that you took the time to be here. Prioritize the church gathering, yes, because it’s good for you. But make sure that the church is a priority because we need you here. We need you with us. I need you stirring up love and good works in my heart.

 

A Warning from the Writer of Hebrews

Now, the great teacher and coach, the author of Hebrews, is going to move into a very stark warning. He’s reminded us of the resources we have, the abilities that we have, and the community needed to help each other along the way. Now he’s going to give us a warning of what happens if we continue to go down the road of poor-quality work.

What will happen if we embrace a pattern of neglecting the church, neglecting the gifts that Jesus has given us? What if we freely draw back, and instead we become apathetic and stagnant in our faith? What’s going to happen if you follow that path? Maybe that’s what the audience of Hebrews is starting to walk down. So we read in verse 26 this warning:

“For if we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a fearful expectation of judgment, and a fury of fire that will consume the adversaries. Anyone who has set aside the law of Moses dies without mercy on the evidence of two or three witnesses. How much worse punishment, do you think, will be deserved by the one who has trampled underfoot the Son of God, and has profaned the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has outraged the Spirit of grace? For we know him who said, ‘Vengeance is mine; I will repay.’ And again, ‘The Lord will judge his people.’ It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.”

This is a strong, harsh warning to the believers that a judgment awaits those who fall away. What happens if they continue to hand in subpar work? What happens if they become lax? 
If they start to treat the gifts that God is offering them with contempt? The judgment of God comes. The author of Hebrews warns strongly that the judgment of God is no good thing. It’s fearful, it’s full of dread. No one wants to fall under the judgment of God. It is horrible.

He compares the Old Covenant to the New Covenant in this warning. We’ve learned throughout the book of Hebrews that the Old Covenant has been made obsolete by the new and better Covenant. So if you or I, who are now under this new, better covenant, fall away, if we treat these better things with contempt, the gifts of God that we’ve been given graciously by him, if we treat those with contempt, how much greater judgment will there be on us?

There was judgment on those who disregarded, disobeyed, and trampled underfoot the Old Covenant. Now that we have the New Covenant, how much more will God judge us for not paying closer attention to it, for disregarding it, for disrespecting it, for going on deliberately sinning? If God judged those in the Old Covenant who disregarded and disrespected their hamburger steak, how much more, the author of Hebrews is saying, will God judge those who have been given the prime USDA Black Angus certified rib eye and despise that cut of meat?

You would not expect less judgment on the New Covenant. You would expect greater judgment. So don’t be apathetic to the covenant. Don’t fall back. Don’t be discouraged. Keep pushing forward in your faith. With that sobering warning, the author of Hebrews wants to snap our attention back to Jesus, to see the dangerous pit looming under you so that you can course correct and press on in the faith.

While these warnings can sound harsh, and you may have started to wonder, Why is the author of Hebrews so mean? It’s quite the opposite. I hope you can see that it’s out of an abundance of care and love for them that he gives these sharp warnings to his readers. These warnings are to help you see the seriousness of falling away from Jesus. They’re supposed to remind you that there is so very, very much to gain in your faith, and there is so much to lose by turning away from Jesus.

If my son walked out into the road and there was a speeding car coming right at him, I wouldn’t say, Kai, at your earliest convenience, could you please consider the bad choice that you’re about to make and kindly refrain from walking in that direction to avoid any potential bodily injury? No. I would shout harshly, Kai, get out of the road. The sharpness is needed. It puts you on high alert. It communicates to you the severity of the danger and the need for immediate action. Hebrews is warning us from being lazy and apathetic in our pursuit of God, for disregarding the gifts of God.

There’s a short story by Herman Melville, the author of Moby Dick, called ‘Bartleby the Scrivener’. In this story, Bartleby is hired by a lawyer to be a clerk for him. Initially, he hands in wonderful quality work and a quantity that’s unmatched by the other clerks around him. But then, all of a sudden, one day the lawyer walks in and says, Good morning, Bartleby. Can I have those numbers on my desk by 10?

Barleby looks up at him and, in a very unaffected, nonplussed way, just says, I would prefer not to. Well, the boss is taken aback. Well, it’s your job, Bartleby. Can you get these numbers on my desk? And again, the same unaffected response. I would prefer not to. Bartleby stops doing any work, and he simply stares all day out of a window that faces a brick wall. He stops taking care of himself. Anytime anyone asks him anything, he just says, I would prefer not to.

The lawyer finds out that he’s living in the office building, and it starts driving him nuts that he continually says the same thing. ‘I would prefer not to do anything’. So he leases out his building to another employer and goes to get away from Bartleby. The new owner calls and complains and says, This guy is driving me crazy. How did you not warn me about this guy? He just says, ‘I would prefer not to’, to every request.

I think this story can illustrate how apathy, a lack of motivation, can creep into our hearts. It not only ruins our lives, but it also drives the people around us crazy. It zaps all ambition from our hearts. I think that’s the temptation, to be like Bartleby. That may be what the author of Hebrews is trying to say to the people he’s addressing in Hebrews 10.

After all, as we’re going to read on, these believers had already been enduring quite a lot. The cost of discipleship for them was high. They have been enduring mocking, disgrace, and possibly plundering of property. Maybe there was a vibrancy when they first started for the first couple of years to fight the good fight of faith, to be good witnesses despite persecution and sword, despite prison sentences. But now, after so many years later, there’s a temptation in this reader’s heart to just say, God, I don’t want to do this anymore.

Year after year of hardship and struggle and pain, my perseverance, God, and my endurance is starting to grow thin. Maybe they, like Bartleby, just want to say, I would prefer not to have to do this anymore. They may be starting to say, I’m tired of being mocked. I’m tired of the culture constantly pushing against me. I’m tired of getting my stuff stolen.

They may be thinking, I’m tired of being called names and being made fun of for my sincere faith, and I would just prefer not to have to do this anymore. So, by way of warning of what that apathy could lead to, the author of Hebrews is reminding them of the fearful judgment of trampling underfoot the covenant of God and Disregarding what they had been taught, he gives them this warning as a reminder to refocus, to not fall into apathy, to not give up in the face of hardships.

 

A Word of Encouragement

But he doesn’t do just that. Like any great coach, he gives the warning of the danger they’re facing to be sure their attention is focused. But then he encourages them by reminding them of their past victory. We read starting in verse 32:

“But recall the former days when, after you were enlightened, you endured a hard struggle with sufferings, sometimes being publicly exposed to reproach and affliction, and sometimes being partners with those so treated. For you had compassion on those in prison, and you joyfully accepted the plundering of your property, since you knew that you yourselves had a better possession and an abiding one. Therefore do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward. For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God you may receive what is promised. For, ‘Yet a little while, and the coming one will come and will not delay; but my righteous one shall live by faith, and if he shrinks back, my soul will have no pleasure in him’.”

Rehashing your past is a wonderful marriage counseling tool. It’s helpful for couples who you are counseling that seem to be so angry and against each other that they practically can’t speak to one another. So what you do as an aid in this situation is to do separate sessions with them, and at each one, one at a time, you start to pull the story from them of when they first fell in love. What was it that really drew her to your eye? What was it about him that you didn’t want to be away from him for a second?

As you recall that story, the feelings of love start to flood back into your mind. The temporary blinding by this frustration-fueled amnesia fades away, and they see with a little bit more clarity the beauty and deep abiding love for their spouse. Nostalgia can work wonders as you are reminded of when the sparks first flew, when the fireworks of romance first exploded. There was a time when that person was so dear to you, you were not always antagonistic towards each other.

This can help in many situations beyond just marriage. When you’re feeling burnt out, remembering why you’re pursuing something in the first place can reignite the motivation that’s now become dormant from all the frustrations that you met along the way. The author of Hebrews is using this method as any good coach or mentor would, to motivate his readers to press on despite the pain and frustration. They need a boost. They need this reminder. They need endurance to keep running at the great pace they had started with. The race isn’t over. It’s been arduous for them.

For the audience of this letter, life seems to be full of trials, and they’re probably getting exhausted with all they’ve had to endure so far. So the author is reminding them of what they have in Jesus. The zeal they had at first was because of the glory revealed to them and secured to them in the New Covenant. They knew there was a greater kingdom to come. Their eyes had been fixed on the reward Christ had for them. So what does it matter if their property was plundered? What does it matter if they’re going to go to prison?

What’s a year-long prison sentence in view of an eternity with God and all the joy set before them? What could men do under persecution compared to what Jesus had already secured for them? The value of Jesus was worth enduring anything. The picture in their mind of the kingdom of God drove their steadfast faith. So just like in that marriage counseling tool, he’s reminding them of these things to fan the flames of faithfulness that may have started to grow cold, to fuel up their emptying tanks of endurance, urging them to continue to fight the good fight of fate, to not put down their sword, to not abandon the battle.

Our great coach and teacher, the author of Hebrews, continues encouraging his pupils by letting them know that he has full confidence in them, their character, and their work. They’re not part of this faithless crowd that falls away and faces the judgment of God, they are faithful people. They’re winners. They’re achievers. Like the best teachers and mentors, He says to his audience, I have confidence in you. I know you’re capable. I know you’re the kind of person who perseveres to the end. I am confident that you are not one of those who shrink back and fall into destruction. In verse 39, he says:

“But we are not those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who have faith and preserve their souls.”

You’re with us. You’re one of the ones who perseveres to the end, who sees the great reward that there is in Jesus, who sees the kingdom of heaven kept for them, the better kingdom not built by human hands. That’s the kind of people you are. From this section of warning and encouragement, he’s going to jump into a very, very long sermon illustration in chapter 11 of all the people in the past that held on by faith.

All of those who have gone before them who have shown themselves faithful despite hardships, those who have endured to the end in their faith. As he goes through this list of people he’s pointing his readers to see, this is the crowd you belong to. These are your people, not the people who shrink back and are destroyed. You are like these people. That’s the team that you are on.

 

Closing: Don’t Settle For a Weak Faith

By way of application, what can we glean from this passage this morning? The warning that the author of Hebrews gives in Hebrews 10 is very strong, very sharply worded for a church that is growing tired and lacking motivation in the face of persecution. They need this endurance to persevere in their faith. The temptation to just give up and give in is strong. The author of Hebrews gives this strong and sharply worded pastoral warning to help them course correct. To help them not give up on the great reward that is waiting for those who continue to the end. If this is a warning for them, it certainly is a warning for us. who have yet to face the kinds of trials the audience of Hebrews suffered.

If they could be tempted by apathy, who had already faced public shame, prison, and stolen property, they did that gladly for their faith. How much more can we be tempted today to disregard these things, to grow apathetic, to grow lax in our faith? The bar is already been set at the lowest it’s ever been in church history. Very little is expected of the average Christian. Biblical illiteracy is rampant in churches.

It’s even becoming common for pastors today to have little knowledge of the Bible. Church attendance is seen as a low priority. Ethics is a forgotten subject. Serving is optional, Prayer is a foreign language, and the kingdom of God is just another far off distant land. You enjoy an unprecedented amount of comfort and freedom that the persecuted church might be jealous of.

You should be outperforming those who have limitations on their meeting places. Those who have to do underground churches face prison sentences and death if they convert. You would think that that would mean that the American church would skyrocket, but it’s not. We’re marked instead by increasing apathy, self-centeredness, and laziness. It’s marked by less discipleship, less biblical knowledge, permissive and sometimes unashamedly sinful congregations.

We have not grown more than the persecuted brothers and sisters. We have fallen so far behind them in faith that it’s kind of baffling. There are so many temptations that you face in the world right now to abandon Christ. It is not always in dramatic ways, but sometimes slowly, like the drip of a leaky faucet. Satan seems to have enticed us into being deceived, into thinking that with all of our accomplishments, achievements, technologies, and comforts offered to us, we can somehow reverse the curse of the sin-stained world.

Removing from us the desire for that better kingdom. Because with our luxury, it’s hard to imagine that what we have now is worse than what’s coming. It’s hard to imagine that kingdom is any better than all the nice things we have now. How often are you clinging by faith to the better kingdom of God awaiting you? Or are you just desperate for a little bit more time here? Let’s raise the standard. Let’s set the bar higher. Let’s not settle for weak faith, but press on into maturity.

How can you expect to grow and stir up others into good works in the face of hardships and difficulties in life if your faith is weak? Is the best hope you can offer to the struggling Christian just a little bit more worldly comfort? Is it the best that we can do to stir up others by just talking about the new iPhone or how cool AI is? Be comforted, Christian.

Instead, point them to the riches in Jesus. Lift up this future kingdom that awaits us. That despite the pain today, there will come a day when the people of God will be presented to Jesus, adorned as a bride, ready for the wedding feast of the Lamb. Look forward to that day, discouraged brother. Feast on the coming promises of God, distressed sister.

Jesus, in his parable of a man who finds a valuable treasure in a field, says that that man went and sold all that he had to purchase the field because he knew that not a single one of his possessions compared to the value of the treasure that he found in the field. This man sold everything he had, and it says he did it with joy. He’s delighted to sell everything he has because he knows the treasure in that field is already worth more than anything he could possess.

He isn’t begrudgingly doing it all. It’s not, if my pastor says I have to, or since you’re making me feel guilty about it, I’ll sell my possessions. This isn’t a lecture. It’s not a guilt trip for him. No one is spending hours convincing him that the things of God are good and important. The Christian shouldn’t have to be convinced that the things of God are worthwhile. You shouldn’t need to be argued into faithfulness. But this man is wiser than we. He quickly assesses the value to be had. He weighs it against all he currently has, and he realizes there’s much more value there.

I need to get that field. I need that treasure that’s in there. So who cares if he has to sell his Ninja Blender or autographed football? Who cares if he has to sell his Chevy or his house or any of his other stuff? Who cares if he has to sell it? Jesus is worth far more than the value of all these things combined. My stuff doesn’t hold a candle to Jesus.

You have a lot of work in the faith ahead of you. You have need of endurance. This morning, you need to keep your motivation in the faith. So draw near to God. Hold fast to him. Hold fast to the sure confession, because he is faithful. Come to the gathering because you need it, and we need you. I am confident that you will not hear these warnings and encouragements and shrink back. I am confident that you all are those who will endure to the end and preserve your souls.