Father in heaven, I pray, God, would you please work this morning, God, through the preaching of your word. Please, God, I pray, would you have your way in our hearts, God, teach us what these things mean, that we might apply them in our lives. I pray in Jesus' name, amen. Let's go to Hebrews chapter 4. We're going to look at verses 1 and 2. And we're going to do something a little bit different than we normally do. Normally, we go through each passage of Scripture, one passage at a time. Usually, we cover anywhere from 4 up to 9 or 10 verses of Scripture. Today, we're only going to look at two passages. And so let's look at Hebrews chapter 4 verses 1 and 2. Let's read those two verses. Thus therefore fear, as they promise being left us of entering into his wrath, any of you should seem to come short of it. For unto us was the gospel preached as well as unto them, but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it." And I believe, I want your attention this morning because this subject that we're going to talk about is of incredible importance. And the misunderstanding of it today is, I see everywhere. I see everywhere, so I would ask you to please listen carefully to what is about to be said. Last week we ended the sermon in Hebrews 4.2, but I feel that we need to spend more time on this verse, because it introduces our third theme in the book of Hebrews, which is the principle of faith. Remember when we first got into Hebrews? There's three main parts in the book of Hebrews. Do you remember what the three main parts of Hebrews are? First, is almost half the book is spoken of is the superiority of Jesus Christ. One quarter of the book of Hebrews, it talks about the warnings. If you've noticed over the last month or so, there's been a lot of warnings in the book of Hebrews. And then thirdly, the third major theme you see in the book of Hebrews is faith. Faith. You see that. About one-sixth of the book of Hebrews is dedicated to the subject of faith. I believe that so is because so many of the Hebrews went back to sight and went back to works. But you'll see that that's true. One-sixth of the book is dedicated to faith, which is the introduction here. We're introduced to this principle of faith here in Hebrews chapter 4, verse 2. And in Ephesians 6, when the apostle is introducing us to the different parts of the armor that the Christian must have, in Ephesians 6.16 he says, and above all, the shield of faith wherewith you may be able to quench the fiery darts of the wicked one. Without a biblical faith, the Christian is totally defenseless against the devil. Without the shield of faith, without a proper understanding of faith, the believer is defenseless against the devil. And in Ephesians 2.8 it says, For by grace you saved through faith, that not of yourselves, but as a gift of God. Faith is the means by which a person is saved. The means by which we are accepted into heaven. This principle of faith cannot be taken lightly or be understood outside of a biblical understanding. Faith. I think we all have an idea of what we think faith is. But my friends, listen to me, we must have a biblical understanding of what faith is and how faith operates. Let's define what we mean by a biblical understanding. Over the past few months, I have been purposing to go over certain hermeneutical principles. Hermeneutics is simply the art and science of interpreting the Bible. If it's too much for you to grasp, I tell people, if it's too much for you to grasp all these principles, take what you can and then leave the rest. Just take what you can. But I'm also available to help people. If people have questions, I'm available. We were for a while, at 1 o'clock we were meeting after the service and answering questions. I think that's good to do. Maybe we can start doing that again. So I would say use that principle. But last week we talked about, if you remember, paradoxes in the Bible. The week before we talked about theology and how that theology affects our application in our life. So we've been going through these hermeneutical principles, which I think is very important. This week I would like to look at another principle, one of these hermeneutical principles, I would like to look at how to biblically define words and principles. How to biblically define words. Listen to me, this will greatly help you if you can understand this. Well, I think the first step, the first step in understanding biblical words is to understand that my thinking is messed up. Trust in the Lord with all your heart. Lean not to your own understanding. Acknowledge Him in all your ways, and He shall direct your paths. Trust in the Lord with all your heart. Lean not to your own understanding. The first step in biblically understanding what a word means is to understand that my thinking is messed up. Sin has corrupted my thinking. I need to change it. I need a biblical understanding of what these words mean. And faith is a big one. And first, a word is defined by its definition. We all went to elementary school and learned that, right? A word is defined by its definition. First. But first, we approach it. How do we approach the definition of a word? We approach it knowing that our thinking without God's Word, without His Spirit, is messed up. That's the first way we approach the definition of the word. Second, we look at the definition. We must understand that words change over time. And the meaning that we attach to a word today may have been much different in the Bible times. Even in modern times, we see this. As I look at a word like faith, I look it up in the 1997 Webster's Dictionary, and it says, A belief in a value, truth, or trustworthiness of someone or something. More trust in God. So it says in the 1997 dictionary, let me read to you what it says in the 1828 Webster's dictionary. It says, to persuade, to draw towards anything, to believe, to obey, and to bind to. Do you see the difference there? There's a huge difference. In the 1997 definition, there's no mention of obedience. Actually, I read further in the Webster's 1828, and they say to bind is like a rope. To bind something by a rope is what one definition of faith is that they used. But to obey? This word, faith, has changed in our culture. It has changed in our times, and do you know what it has become? Do you know what it means today? It means just what it said in 1997. It means to have a mental agreement, to agree with something. That's really what the word faith and belief means to many people. The modern definition has no sense of action and seems to only rely on a mental assent. with the older definition helps us understand that faith is not only an agreement with what is true, but it is a commitment. In the Biblical definition, the most common Greek word used is the word pistos, which means to be persuaded, credence, moral conviction and reliance upon. It's the most common Greek word used for the word faith. So to first understand a word, we must look at its definition. And we can compare definitions and start to see a consistent definition. But more importantly, we must look at the biblical definition, such as the Greek words. The problem is that most people stop there when they define words. And if we do, we are missing a huge part of what the Bible is saying. Words are understood by definition and by context. And if we don't go into the context of a word, we are missing much of what the word means. Stay with me because this is very important to understand what faith is and how faith works. Francis, Francis, I need you to be quiet, okay? It could be a distraction on the people. Thank you. Thanks, buddy. So, this is particularly important in understanding faith. Because the Bible speaks of different types of faith. In other words, we look at faith in the Bible and we think there's just one word that covers the whole thing, or one principle. But there's not. The Bible speaks of different types of faith. James 2.26 speaks of a dead faith. The Bible also speaks of a living faith. Peter speaks of a precious faith. James again, he talks of a vain faith. Paul talks about a shipwrecked faith. And then he also talks of a faith that works by love. The Bible speaks of a confident faith or a fully persuaded faith. So faith in these definitions are being described by the words that are describing them. The shipwrecked faith, the vain faith, the dead faith. They're described by the adjectives. And we'll come back to this principle. But with that in mind, let's look at verse 1. Keep that in mind. The definition of a word and the context of a word. I'm telling you right now. The context of a word in a biblical manner will teach you much more on the definition of a word than it will in just the raw definition. So let's go to verse 1 in this chapter. Stay with me, this will come together. Let us therefore fear lest the promise being left us of entering into rest, any of you should seem to come short of it. In order to get a proper interpretation of this text in verse 1, we must look at what the writer is referring to in the past, how that directly relates to the people he is writing to, and then look at how that applies to us today. The first part of the equation is the question of what is he referring to in the past? I think it's quite obvious that the writer is referring to the children of Israel entering into the promised land. Or should we say the children of Israel not entering the promised land because of unbelief? Chapter 3 ends very clearly with that thought in mind. Chapter 3, if you remember in Hebrews, very clearly leaves us with that thought. The many bodies that fell dead in the desert because of unbelief. They did not enter in. But it says, let us fear, in verse 1, or be afraid of unbelief. we ought to fear unbelief for we see how many did not believe we also see the dire consequences of unbelief as we went over last week verse one continues to say lest the promise being left us of entering into his rest this verse is making a shift from the old covenant to the new covenant the old being a type of the new the old being a shadow, the new being the real thing. The old promise of entering into rest was the promise of entering into the land of Canaan, the land flowing with milk and honey, the land that God had promised to Abraham and his descendants. But now in the new covenant, under the covenant of the accomplished work of Jesus Christ, in his life, death, burial, resurrection, and ascended glory, The rest that we have is His rest. Do you see that in verse 1? It refers to it as His rest. The land of Canaan is a picture of heaven. Do you see what a picture is, or a shadow? In the Old Testament, God used things to show us a picture. So the physical is actually what is not real, and the spiritual, what is real. And Jesus used that all the time. Jesus said, I'm the bread that came down from heaven. Jesus said, I am the door. Jesus said, so he always used physical illustrations to show the spiritual. Because the physical is actually the shadow. It's what is not real in that sense. But the spiritual is what's real. And the physical is only there to show us what the spiritual is. In the land of Canaan is a picture of heaven. which will be the ultimate rest for the believer. However, the reality of heaven for the believer has tremendous implications for the rest that he has on earth. For our rest or expectation of our future eternal peace and joy with Christ in heaven causes us to have a rest on earth. Do you see that? That's a very important point. If your hope is in this world, and in all your circumstances and situations getting better in this world, You will be certainly disappointed, more than once, and some more than others. But if your hope is in heaven, if your hope is in Christ, you will not be disappointed, because He fulfills His promises. He keeps His promises. It causes us to have a full confidence in Him, in Christ. And this is a very precious thing. But looking at the things in the temporal or natural, as a blessing, or the blessings of the believer will do the opposite, will cause discouragement. But beware! Beware, lest any of you should seem to come short of it. Do you see that at the end of verse 1? It says, beware, lest any of you come short of it. What does it mean to come short of it? It was like seeing the goal, but unable to attain it. To be going in the right direction, but to stop short of it. Maybe in today's world, it's like when the kicker in the football game kicks the field goal, and it's headed towards the goal, and it falls short. That's the picture of it. Falling short of it. It's headed in the right direction, but it falls short of the goal or the mark that it was intended for. To stop short of what? To stop short of what? To stop short of faith. Look at verse 2. For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them." Now the gospels preached, they're being pointed in the right direction, right? They're being pointed in the right... But the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith. Not being mixed with faith in them that heard it. So, to stop short, in what way? They were hearing the gospel and even understanding the gospel. So by hearing and understanding the gospel, they're being pointed in the right direction of the goal. But falling short of it, how? Not mixing faith with what they had heard or comprehended. In verse 2, it is a lack of faith. Faith being the primary missing element in the human nature to come to God. We went over that last week. That's why last week was so important for you to hear. Because faith is a gift from God. Faith in Ephesians 2a is a gift that comes from God. But beware, my friends, beware. I warn you, there is a sin of unbelief that appears to be faith. There is a natural way that we can believe in our natural capacity, separated from the work of God in our heart, and separated from His Word, that appears to be faith. And it is a type of faith. And I want to help you make that discernment today. That's one of the main points I want to help you with. And it makes me think, Two people who may have both grown up in the same church, and this is my case actually and maybe even in the same family But when they came of age one denies Christianity and the other continues as a steadfast disciple of Jesus Christ Both heard the same exact teaching memorized the same Bible verses as children were under the same parental authority and example and Yet, when they became adults, one follows Jesus, one does not. What is the difference? I think it's pretty clear, according to verse 2, one mixes faith with what they heard, and the other does not. It would make it easy, though, if that problem, if that was the end of the problem, or if it was that simple. It's not that simple. Because of the deceitfulness of sin, because of the deceitfulness of heart. I believe, and this is debatable, but I believe that faith was in Adam. Obviously it was. Faith was in Adam before he sinned. He sinned, right? And I believe that faith that was in him was corrupted. by sin. And therefore, in Romans 5.12, that sin or death has been passed down to every man. In Genesis 5.3, Adam bore children. How? After his own image. I believe there's a capacity of faith that we have, that we are born with, that is natural, that is not unto salvation, that is not godly. And it can deceive us. And I believe many are deceived today because they have only a natural faith. They have not been born again from above with this supernatural faith. I want to make that clearer today. I want to help you understand that. But verse 1 teaches us that there is a group of people in the church that are headed in the right direction that come short of faith or short of believing. We can call it a short faith if we will. We see the short faith in the children of Israel when God led them out of Egypt. They came to the Red Sea. Go to Exodus 14. I don't want to make you turn to too many places in your Bible, but turn to Exodus 14, because this example could be the greatest example we have of this. There's other examples, but this is a very good one. Go to Exodus chapter 14. I want to show you something here. You can read the whole passage on yourself, by yourself, because it's like two chapters. We're only going to read one verse here and one verse there. But look in Exodus 14, 11. And when they said unto Moses, because there was no graves in Egypt, the way it does cross away to die in the wilderness, wherefore thou hast dealt with us to carry us forth out of Egypt." They complained, right, in that verse. But then if you read on in verses 12 through 30 of that chapter, what happens? This is the story when God parts the Red Sea, the Children of Israel cross on dry land, and then the Egyptians pursue them, God takes off their chariot wheels, He brings back the sea, and their enemies are destroyed right before them. And it's interesting what it says in verse 31. Look in verse 31 in the same chapter. See them complaining in verse 11. God does these great miracles and verse 31 says what? And Israel saw that great work which the Lord did upon the Egyptians, and the people feared the Lord. Look at this. And believed the Lord and His servant Moses. They believed the Lord. But look at this. They believe to the point of, actually if you read on in chapter 15, 1-21, the whole nation sings this beautiful song. This is probably one of the most beautiful songs in the scripture. In verses 1-21. And they're exalting the Lord in many ways. But then in verses 15, 22-24 of Exodus, we are told it takes only three days before the people go back to murmuring and complaining against Moses and God. It only took three days for them to forget about the goodness of God. And even in spite of their murmurings, you can read in chapter 15, God provides for their needs. The journey from Egypt... Listen, the journey from Egypt to the Promised Land should have took 11 days. They could have did it in 11 days. It took them 40 years. because they lacked faith, but they had a form of faith. It said that they believed in verse 31. Very similar to John chapter 2, at the end of the chapter, verses 21 through 23, when it says, Many believed in Jesus, but Jesus would not give himself unto them, because he knew what was in their hearts. It shows that there's a faith, there's a believing that is natural, and it is short-lived. My question is, why does verse 31 of chapter 14 of Exodus say that they feared the Lord and believed the Lord, when soon after they so evidently did not? I would say that their faith only went as far as God had already done, and did not go as far as what God would do. Maybe an illustration would help. If someone handed you $100, could you believe that that person would give you $100? Of course, he just did. You would believe it because it just happened. Now, if that same person tells you that they will come back next week and give you a thousand dollars, if you do a certain amount of work, you would have to trust that person or place your faith in that person, that they would do what they say and what they say is true. So they were only able to believe what had already happened. I believe that there is a faith in a man or woman that is natural. A faith that is based on sight. 1 Corinthians 4.18 says that we look not on the things that are seen, but we look on the things that are not seen. This natural faith is a faith that believes for the purpose of getting what it wants. The children of Israel were able to believe when everything was going how they thought it should. But as soon as their outward situation changed in a direction they viewed as unfavorable, they were no longer able to believe. The natural person wants the natural blessings, but the spiritual person wants the spiritual blessings. Can we believe that what God promises will come to pass? This is the key question. Can we believe that what God says will come to pass? He does not promise me that He will make me healthy and wealthy and wise. God does not promise me that my sickness will go away. God does not promise me that all my relational problems will go away. If I'm believing God for that and those things only, it is all based on the natural. The natural man desires natural things, but the spiritual man desires spiritual things. Do I believe that when Jesus Christ said, if you believe on me, I will give you eternal life? Do you believe that? That is what the spiritual man desires. Eternal life. I say, Lord, if I'm sick my whole entire earthly life, thank you. Thank you. If I can have eternal life. I desire eternal life. The spiritual man desires his spiritual life. Now granted, we can pray for our health. We can pray for our sickness. Amen. Well, we should. The Bible tells us to in James 5.14. Clearly. I'm not saying we should not pray for physical health. But my friends, if that's all we think about, there's something far greater And let me tell you, there's saints, even the great apostle Paul, who suffered with physical ailment his whole life. And the Lord said, no, Paul, I won't take it from you. In 2 Corinthians 12, when he prayed that it would be taken from him, the Lord said, no, I won't take it from you. But my grace is sufficient for you in your weakness. One main point I want you to see this morning is that there is two types of faith. There is a natural faith and a spiritual faith, or supernatural faith. There is a capacity of faith that each one of us has in the flesh. And it is called an empty faith in James 2.20. In James 2.26 the Bible says, For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also. James here calls it a dead faith. There's a faith or trust that is dead or only based in the natural capacity to believe. Beware! Because it is the same as unbelief. It is a part of the deceitfulness of sin spoken of in Hebrews 3.13 that comes from the evil heart. We can say, oh, I believe, I agree, or I comprehend. that the gospel is true, and not be committed to it, and not be surrendered in our life to it. Comprehending is a part of believing, but it comes short, it comes short of spiritual faith, a faith that comes from God as a gift, as a commitment, as a surrender. But don't get me wrong, this commitment and surrender are not the cause of faith, or what even activates true faith. But commitment and surrender are always the effects or the results of true faith. Ephesians 2.8, like we've already quoted, faith is a gift. It comes from God. Romans 10.17 says faith comes by hearing, hearing by the Word of God. Faith comes by the Spirit and by the Word. When the Spirit of God enlightens us to who Jesus Christ is, we will lay down our weapons and surrender. We will bow down and worship the King of Glory, the One for whom all things were created in Colossians 1.17 and Ephesians 1.10. You can try to say, OK, I'm really going to make a commitment this time. I'm really going to believe and it will profit you nothing. But when you see the riches and glory in Jesus Christ, you will gladly commit everything to Him. There are three questions we can ask in closing to help distinguish between dead natural faith and living spiritual faith. And those three questions are this. We've already covered them basically, but for your notes, Maybe for your notes or maybe for your thoughts. I like when people take notes because I usually take notes while I listen to the sermon because you can lay everything out. So to help you understand what we've already said, I'd like to ask these three questions and then we'll close in just a matter of five to ten minutes. What is my hope? What does it produce? And how long does it last? These are the three distinguishing questions between a faith that is natural and a faith that is spiritual. A faith that only can believe. Natural faith can only believe to a certain point. It can only believe what it sees, really. But what is my hope? The natural faith hopes in natural things. Health, wealth, prosperity. This brings us back to our question of what does God promise? The problem is most people do not have a clue of what God promises. Neither would I unless God showed me. Through his word we must understand that everything in the physical or in the old covenant is a picture or type of the spiritual or what is in the new covenant. God gave the Israelites manna in the desert. And Jesus said, I am the bread that comes down from heaven. God gave the Israelites meat in the desert also. And Jesus told his apostles, I have meat that you know not of. God provided water for the Israelites in the desert. Then Jesus says that in you will spring up rivers of living water. Speaking of the Holy Spirit, do you see how these things are all symbolic of what is spiritual? My friends, our hope is not in the natural. If you have true saving faith in Jesus Christ, your hope is not in the natural. Your situation, I have news today, I'm sorry to say, your natural situation could get worse. My natural situation could get worse. God doesn't promise me that. Jesus said, in this world, you will suffer. But be of good cheer. He said, I go to heaven to prepare a place for you. Be of good cheer. I can say, in the midst of my trouble, I can say, praise the Lord. God is preparing a place for me. This faith that God gives a person when he is born again, hopes in heavenly things. Those who have this hope, will never be let down. But those who hope that God will give them physical things and it never goes into the spiritual, they will be let down. First, what is your hope? Second, what does spiritual faith produce? James 2.17 says what? Faith without works is dead. It would be foolish for me to say I trust God, or I trust anyone for that matter, and not entrust them with something. Okay? It's like saying, I trust you, and then you ask me for something and I say, no, I'm not going to do it. There's a disconnect there. I can't say I trust you, and then when it's time to entrust you with something, not entrust you with it. Do you see what I'm saying? So if I say I trust God and I believe God, then what do I do? I entrust Him with my life. I say, God, I entrust you with my life. Faith without works is dead. In other words, true faith always leads to action. If you have a friend or you have a deep trust in that person, it's going to show in how you relate to that person. True faith always produces godly works. To say I believe and not act on that belief is to make God a fool. God forbid. But when the love of Christ is shed abroad in our heart by faith, through the work of the Holy Spirit, your first words will be what? Like Paul on the road to Damascus when he seen Christ, what was his first words? Lord, what do you want me to do? That was his first words. Lord, what do you want me to do? That's what true saving faith produces. Because when we have the love of Christ in us, when we see the riches in Him and what He's poured on us, our first words, when we have that saving faith that comes from above will be, Lord, What will you have me to do? Natural faith, which is nothing more than unbelief, produces murmuring or complaining, like we see in the children of Israel. They believe, and three days later, what are they doing? They're murmuring and complaining against God and against Moses. It produces a lack of motivation, because its expectations are selfish. and they will never be fulfilled. And thirdly, a natural faith only lasts for a certain period of time, but spiritual faith will continue to the end. Now don't get me wrong, I think those who are truly born again can slip away for a period of time and can lack faith to a certain degree. I'm not saying everybody that's a Christian is going to be always, you know, look like that on the outside. There's times when I think all believers can go through struggles at times and lack faith, but they will persevere through that. God will bring them back. He'll bring them back through His loving kindness. He draws us with His cords of love. He will bring that person back and their faith will persevere to the end. It will persevere till the end. We see that in Hebrews chapter 3 verses 6 and 13 and 14 that the persevering faith perseveres how long? It perseveres till the end. Faith is to believe that which we cannot see. And how can we have this faith unless we trust the word of the one who promised it? the hope that the believer has in Jesus. It's hard even to put into words because of how great it is. Jesus didn't promise us hell, although we may get healed. But he who soever, Jesus does promise when he says, he who soever believes in me will have eternal life. Jesus doesn't promise us lots of money, But he promised us to share with his saints and his eternal inheritance. Jesus didn't promise us fame, but he did promise that those who trust him will shine like the stars forever. Jesus didn't promise me a comfortable dwelling on this earth, but he did promise me that he's going to heaven to prepare a place for me. Don't settle! for these poor, pitiful things on earth. Jesus offers us eternal blessings. Jesus offers eternal... So many settle for these things. My friends, these things will be gone. Our life is like a blade of grass, the Bible says. It's here and it's gone. It's like a vapor. You see it for a second and it's gone. My friends, put your treasure in heaven. Christ promises us eternal blessings. This is where the real blessings are. They are found in Him. But the world will call you foolish. The world will say, why aren't you going after all the good things in this world? And I say, because I have something far better. I have something far better. It's eternal blessings in Christ Jesus. I would say that In closing, to trust Christ. Look, this faith that is in Christ is not based on your own capacity. It's based on what God has done for you. And God has proven, listen, if God sent His Son to die on a cross, His most precious Son, the most precious thing to Him, He gave up in order that we might have eternal life. Most certainly, He desires that you would believe and trust in Him. He's not going to withhold that. If He gave it to us, listen to me, if He gave us His Son, and Jesus died for us, Certainly, He will give us eternal life if we will trust Him. Can you believe today that what Jesus Christ said is true? That Jesus said, whoever believes in Me shall never die? He didn't mean physically, you will die physically, but He meant spiritually, that you'll live forever. Can you believe that? Well, it is true. It is true that Jesus said that. And if you place your faith in Him, you will have eternal life. You will have eternal life. But my friend, if all your faith is in all these natural things that God's going to do for you, it's a faith that falls short. It's a short faith, as we read in these verses today. But I am here to bring you a message of hope, that there is great hope in Jesus Christ. I would say trust Him and His promises are true. And He gives eternal life. So praise His name. Let's pray. Dear Father, I thank You for Your Word that You've given us. It's so precious to us, God. I thank You for Your Son, our precious Lord Jesus. I pray, God, please help us with this understanding of faith, God, that we would see that all the riches and glory and everything is found in Jesus Christ. I pray, God, that that would be revealed to each of us here today. If it has been revealed, I pray that it would be revealed in greater degrees. We're seeing the riches that are in Christ will cause us to just put these other things aside and say, Jesus is my all in all, and I pray, God, that Jesus Christ would be our all in all to each and every one here. I thank you and praise you, God, for your grace towards us. In Jesus' name, amen.