by Caroline Speas
Hebrews 3:7-8 - "So, as the Holy Spirit says: 'Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion, during the time of testing in the wilderness,'"
Hebrews 3:12 - "See to it, brothers and sisters, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God."
Hebrews 3:15 - "As has just been said: 'Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion.'"
Rebellion? Hard hearts? Sinful and unbelieving? That all sounds pretty strong, doesn’t it? How could this verse apply to us?
The author of Hebrews wrote this letter to Christian Jews to help them to continue in their faith in Jesus Christ. He warns against turning back to the Jewish religion. Now, maybe you are thinking, ‘But I’m not tempted to turn to another religion, so I’m fine.” I believe, though, that we can learn a lot from this letter to the Hebrews. And we can start with that simple, doable word – today.
Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts. As he speaks to you, respond in obedience. Each time. Do it today. And then tomorrow will be a new today, but when he speaks to you tomorrow, you will already be caught up, because you obeyed today! Whew!
So why is that word unbelieving in there? The Jews were tempted to leave their relationship with Christ and turn to something that seemed more tangible and familiar – their Jewish beliefs rather than their Christian beliefs. I believe disobedience is directly linked to a lack of trust in God. When the Lord leads us to do something, and we don’t do it, we are essentially saying we trust our own judgment more than we trust the leadership of Jesus Christ. Years before, the Jews had hardened their hearts against God, because they chose not to trust Him. And they missed out on God’s very special promise! The footnotes to verse 15 in the NLT Life Application Bible say, “Lack of trust in God always prevents us from receiving His best.” I certainly don’t want to miss out on God’s best, and I don’t think you do either!
So be careful. As He speaks to you, listen and obey. And do it today.
Today's reading comes from Acts 23 and Psalm 130.