Yahweh’s Gracious Redemption for His Glory • 03.09.25
Yahweh’s Gracious Redemption for His Glory
Isaiah 48:1-22
Recognizing the severity of our sin and necessity of heart change for glorifying God and experiencing blessing
- God has gone to incredible lengths to make Himself known
- God’s people have persisted in their stubborn rebellion
- The Lord is long-suffering for the sake of His glory
- God continues to call His people to hear and trust Him
- Those who continue in sin will never find peace
Manuscript:
Good morning, church family! (Introduce self + welcome guests)
4th + 5th graders
Ushers + Bibles (Isaiah 48; page 723)
Can I ask you an honest question this morning? I don’t know why I’m asking your permission, because I’m going to anyways… 😊 Have you ever noticed how many people claim to be a Christian yet seem to have little to no interest or desire for living for Christ? If you were to follow them around in a given week, there would be little evidence that they are followers of God, as they claim to be. For all intents and purposes, they live like the rest of the unbelieving world. Am I allowed to say this out loud from the pulpit? I hope so. Because it’s a real problem and we’re not exempt from it in our community and local church.
How is this possible? Why would anyone who has heard about the One, True God who rescues and redeems us from our sin willingly mock that God by continuing to live in sin? … *pause*
As it turns out, this is not a new problem in our day and age. As we’ve been studying in Isaiah, we have seen this same struggle in the people of Isaiah’s day. It seems that despite the incredible amount of evidence for Yahweh as the One, True God, humanity is quite proud and unwilling to live by faith in Him. Instead, what we have witnessed is both the pagan nations like Assyria and Babylon, as well as God’s chosen people – the Israelites/Judeans, worshiping false idols carved by human hands. In previous weeks, after declaring the great rescue He would provide from Babylon, we heard God lament:
Isaiah 43:22–24 (ESV)
22 “Yet you did not call upon me, O Jacob;
but you have been weary of me, O Israel!
23 You have not brought me your sheep for burnt offerings,
or honored me with your sacrifices.
I have not burdened you with offerings,
or wearied you with frankincense.
24 You have not bought me sweet cane with money,
or satisfied me with the fat of your sacrifices.
But you have burdened me with your sins;
you have wearied me with your iniquities.
God, in his steadfast love and faithfulness, has graciously endured the people’s rebellion and dishonoring of the covenant. He has been long-suffering with his people as they effectively spit in his face repeatedly by doing what is right in their own eyes.
Perhaps it has been easy for us to look at Judah and say, “What in the world is wrong with you people?!” But let us be careful not to ignore our own spiritual condition! Are we willing to turn the mirror of God’s Word on ourselves? “What in the world is wrong with me?! Why would I fail to believe in the One, True God?! Why would I continue in my sin, when I have the glorious Creator of the Universe revealed before my very eyes?! Why would I allow spiritual apathy or idolatry to remain in my life when he is so worthy and has gone to such great lengths to rescue and redeem me?!” These are the kinds of questions that our study in Isaiah should be provoking within us! My prayer is that it will be very hard for anyone attending our church to remain stuck in spiritual apathy! *pause*
Last week we heard of the coming utter humiliation of Babylon at the hands of God. Their pride had led to their destruction. They incorrectly assumed that because life was going their way, because they had conquered Assyria and Jerusalem and many other nations, because they were able to enjoy the splendors of victory… that they were in control. They could not have been more wrong. God was never off the throne. He is always in control. And, as we heard, he was calling Babylon to account. They will not stand when God comes to take vengeance. Their dependence on worldly wisdom and ways would provide no security from his wrath.
This interaction between God and Babylon ought to have humbled Judah. If God knows the desires of the Babylonian’s hearts, then surely, he knows their hearts too. If God opposes pride in the Babylonians, surely, he opposes pride in the Judeans. This whole segment of Isaiah from 40-47 has revealed the incomparable greatness of Yahweh in comparison to the futility of their idols. It is Yahweh who has foretold the exile and then brought it to pass. It is Yahweh who has foretold their rescue via Cyrus of Persia and then brought it to pass. No idol can foretell the future or bring anything to pass. Surely, they would take all this wonderful truth to heart and allow it to transform them into worshipers of the One, True God!
Sadly, that is not what we will see today in Isaiah 48. In this chapter, which closes out this section of the book of Isaiah, we find that it is not Judah’s worthiness that drives God’s plan of redemption. What drives his plan is his own glory! The people continue in their sin, despite all the evidence of God’s greatness. Now, out of his own mercy and grace, he will provide redemption, while also warning them of the danger of continuing in sin!
I believe this chapter has so much for us today. Because the patterns and struggles of human hearts have not changed from the days of Isaiah. As I mentioned at the beginning of the sermon, there are still many who claim to know God yet remain apathetic in their faith and live relatively worldly lives. We need to hear God’s call to the Judeans today and take heed for our own sake.
Let’s read our text for today.
Isaiah 48:1–22 (ESV)
Hear this, O house of Jacob,
who are called by the name of Israel,
and who came from the waters of Judah,
who swear by the name of the Lord
and confess the God of Israel,
but not in truth or right.
2 For they call themselves after the holy city,
and stay themselves on the God of Israel;
the Lord of hosts is his name.
3 “The former things I declared of old;
they went out from my mouth, and I announced them;
then suddenly I did them, and they came to pass.
4 Because I know that you are obstinate,
and your neck is an iron sinew
and your forehead brass,
5 I declared them to you from of old,
before they came to pass I announced them to you,
lest you should say, ‘My idol did them,
my carved image and my metal image commanded them.’
6 “You have heard; now see all this;
and will you not declare it?
From this time forth I announce to you new things,
hidden things that you have not known.
7 They are created now, not long ago;
before today you have never heard of them,
lest you should say, ‘Behold, I knew them.’
8 You have never heard, you have never known,
from of old your ear has not been opened.
For I knew that you would surely deal treacherously,
and that from before birth you were called a rebel.
9 “For my name’s sake I defer my anger;
for the sake of my praise I restrain it for you,
that I may not cut you off.
10 Behold, I have refined you, but not as silver;
I have tried you in the furnace of affliction.
11 For my own sake, for my own sake, I do it,
for how should my name be profaned?
My glory I will not give to another.
12 “Listen to me, O Jacob,
and Israel, whom I called!
I am he; I am the first,
and I am the last.
13 My hand laid the foundation of the earth,
and my right hand spread out the heavens;
when I call to them,
they stand forth together.
14 “Assemble, all of you, and listen!
Who among them has declared these things?
The Lord loves him;
he shall perform his purpose on Babylon,
and his arm shall be against the Chaldeans.
15 I, even I, have spoken and called him;
I have brought him, and he will prosper in his way.
16 Draw near to me, hear this:
from the beginning I have not spoken in secret,
from the time it came to be I have been there.”
And now the Lord God has sent me, and his Spirit.
17 Thus says the Lord,
your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel:
“I am the Lord your God,
who teaches you to profit,
who leads you in the way you should go.
18 Oh that you had paid attention to my commandments!
Then your peace would have been like a river,
and your righteousness like the waves of the sea;
19 your offspring would have been like the sand,
and your descendants like its grains;
their name would never be cut off
or destroyed from before me.”
20 Go out from Babylon, flee from Chaldea,
declare this with a shout of joy, proclaim it,
send it out to the end of the earth;
say, “The Lord has redeemed his servant Jacob!”
21 They did not thirst when he led them through the deserts;
he made water flow for them from the rock;
he split the rock and the water gushed out.
22 “There is no peace,” says the Lord, “for the wicked.”
This chapter serves as a closing of the Lord’s work in rescuing Judah from exile, revealing that Yahweh is in control and so much greater than pagan idols, and yet it also shows us that Judah remained in their rebellion. As God’s first servant, who had been charged with spreading God’s glory to the nations, they had failed due to selfishness and sin. But God is not defeated, nor is he done! In the coming chapters, we will hear more about his plan to raise up a New Servant, one who will honor and glorify him. In the meantime, God will graciously redeem his people for his own glory! And he will continue to teach them (and us) about our need to trust in Him through it all.
Our aim this morning is… a big one… it’s a mouthful! Here it is…
Recognizing the severity of our sin and necessity of heart change for glorifying God and experiencing blessing
This is what we are after. I am convinced there is so much great truth here for us to know and apply. While it was written originally to Judah, it is also written for our benefit. It was written so that you might see the danger of your own sin and recognize your need for deep, lasting change at the core of your personhood if you’re going to fulfill the purpose for which you’ve been created and experience the joy of living God’s way.
So, with that in mind, let’s consider what we’ve heard in this text. It starts with recognizing that…
- God has gone to incredible lengths to make Himself known
This truth is certainly not limited to what we’ve seen in chapter 48. Throughout the book and throughout their history as a nation, God had repeatedly done great things so that they might know him. What comes to mind as you think of times where God made himself known to the people? Perhaps his appearance to Moses in the burning bush. Or maybe leading the nation of Israel out of Egypt in the pillar of cloud by day and fire by night. Or descending on Mount Sinai in fire and lightning. Or throughout their journey to the Promised Land when he provided food and water and kept their clothes from wearing out. These are just a few of the many ways that God made himself known to the people.
During Isaiah’s lifetime, God was making himself known to the people through the prophets. He repeatedly sent prophets to them to declare what he would do well in advance before he brought it to pass. That’s what he brought up again in this chapter in verses 3-5. He is the only One who can do such things. Fulfilled prophecy is astonishing evidence for the truthfulness of Yahweh.
If you’ve never done a study on the probability of the hundreds of fulfilled prophecies that we have in the Bible, I would encourage you to go look that up. There is some work easily found online by Dr. Hugh Ross of Reasons.org or Josh & Sean McDowell as they reference the work of Professor Peter Stoner. If you want the cliff notes, the known fulfilled prophecies we find in Scripture provide great confidence in the faith! God has made himself known by defying the odds. He has demonstrated his trustworthiness in bringing these things to pass.
It is truly amazing. Yet God did not stop with fulfilled prophecy in their past. He has announced several times that he is now doing a new thing, hidden things that they have not known.
Isaiah 42:9 (ESV)
9 Behold, the former things have come to pass,
and new things I now declare;
before they spring forth
I tell you of them.”
Isaiah 43:19 (ESV)
19 Behold, I am doing a new thing;
now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?
I will make a way in the wilderness
and rivers in the desert.
Isaiah 48:6–7 (ESV)
6 “You have heard; now see all this;
and will you not declare it?
From this time forth I announce to you new things,
hidden things that you have not known.
7 They are created now, not long ago;
before today you have never heard of them,
lest you should say, ‘Behold, I knew them.’
God was not done going to incredible lengths to make Himself known. He would rescue and redeem them from exile, but, even more importantly, He would send His Servant to bring justice to the nations and establish righteousness on the earth. This is going to be the focus of the remaining chapters and sections of Isaiah. Though Israel had failed God, God would not give up on his grand redemption plan.
You see, Israel as a nation had failed in their calling to represent and reflect Yahweh to the world. Their repeated rebellion and pursuit of their own ways had allowed the world to have more influence on them than their influencing of the world towards God’s righteousness. This reality leads us to our second observation today…
- God’s people have persisted in their stubborn rebellion
They were described in verse 4 as obstinate, stiff-necked, and hard-headed. God knew they would try to ascribe his glory to their dumb idols. He creatively revealed things so that would not be possible – he alone gets the glory! In verse 8 he told them, “You have never heard, you have never known, from of old your ear has not been opened. For I knew that you would surely deal treacherously, and that from before birth you were called a rebel.”
How would you like to hear your Creator saying these things of you? Oof, right! Humbling. And yet, an honest assessment of human history would reveal that this persistent, stubborn rebellion has been the common struggle for all of us. Just as it was true of Israel and Judah, so it is true of people in our day.
You may wonder why we speak about sin so often. The answer is because God speaks of it so often in his Word and highlights just how HUGE of a problem it is. Sin is the universal human problem that separates us from our Holy Creator. It is rebellion against the King of Kings, the highest possible Authority in all of Creation.
Sin is what brought death and brokenness into our existence. Sin has profound effects on our mind, body, and soul. Sin causes us to suppress the truth about God and believe lies instead. Sin leads us down a path of selfish desires that spirals into more and more chaos. Which is unpacked so clearly in the New Testament in Romans 1. I won’t read the whole chapter, but listen to this portion:
Romans 1:18–25 (ESV)
18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. 19 For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. 20 For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made.
So they are without excuse. 21 For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Claiming to be wise, they became fools, 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.
24 Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, 25 because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.
Sin has led humanity to make the great exchange – denying the truth about God and searching for something… anything to take his place… Ultimately so that we can be in control and have what we want! This has been the consistent human struggle since the Garden of Eden, and we can see the fruit of our indulgence in sin all around us (and in us). Depression/anxiety/broken relationships/horrific treatment of other image bearers of God/using our words to tear down rather than build up/immense selfishness and pride…
Our persistent, stubborn rebellion/sin has caused so much damage. Yet what makes it most severe is whom it is against! Our sin is against the MOST HOLY God. Do you recall how the heavenly host worshiped God in Isaiah’s vision of God’s throne room?
Isaiah 6:3 (ESV)
3 And one called to another and said:
“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts;
the whole earth is full of his glory!”
Holy, holy, holy = The MOST HOLY. He is perfectly holy, perfectly glorious. There is no one purer, none more perfect, no one more deserving of praise than God. He is without fault or flaw. And let us not forget that humans were created to reflect His glorious image:
Genesis 1:26–28 (ESV)
26 Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”
27 So God created man in his own image,
in the image of God he created him;
male and female he created them.
28 And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”
The nation of Israel/Judah was set apart to represent and reflect Yahweh’s image to the watching world. God’s people today, as the church, the holy bride of Christ, are called to the same. And when we persist in stubborn rebellion and indulge in our sinful desires, we are not fulfilling that calling!
Thankfully, God is faithful, even when we are not. Listen again to verses 9-11:
Isaiah 48:9–11 (ESV)
9 “For my name’s sake I defer my anger;
for the sake of my praise I restrain it for you,
that I may not cut you off.
10 Behold, I have refined you, but not as silver;
I have tried you in the furnace of affliction.
11 For my own sake, for my own sake, I do it,
for how should my name be profaned?
My glory I will not give to another.
Despite their rebellion, God was faithful for his name’s sake. His commitment to his own glory led him to defer his anger and restrain his wrath. So, they underwent his discipline, but they were not wiped out. He could not allow the rest of the world to think that the pagan idols of Bel and Nebo had somehow defeated the One, True God. Preserving his people was the path to preserving his glory in the eyes of the nations. What we learn from this is that…
- The Lord is long-suffering for the sake of His glory
Understanding the centrality of God’s glory is essential to understanding all of life and creation. God is glorious and it is his chief aim that his glory would be known and proclaimed throughout all creation. All that God does is for his glory. His plan of redemption for stubborn rebels is driven by his pursuit of his glory. His judgment for those who remain in their sin is driven by his pursuit of his glory. He is glorified when he is revealed as the Merciful Redeemer and the Just Judge. We catch a glimpse of this in 48:20, when God commands them what to do as they flee from Babylon:
Isaiah 48:20 (ESV)
20 Go out from Babylon, flee from Chaldea,
declare this with a shout of joy, proclaim it,
send it out to the end of the earth;
say, “The Lord has redeemed his servant Jacob!”
Tell the nations of God’s glory in his redemption of undeserving sinners and his judgment of the wicked!
God puts up with a LOT from his people throughout history. He endured with the rebellious nation of Israel/Judah for generations. He continues to endure the shortcomings of his people in our day. No one here would claim perfection. We are imperfect people worshiping a perfect God! And we are so thankful that He perseveres with us for the sake of His glory.
Perhaps I shouldn’t assume… you ought to be thankful. Are you? Please tell me you are not presuming upon the Lord’s mercy and grace today! “He’s God, of course he’ll forgive me. I can live however I want.” Or “Yes, I made a profession of faith, I’m good with God. I don’t need to worry about how I live.”
These are apathetic, selfish ways to think and live. They have no place in the life of a man or woman who has truly been redeemed by the Lord! Did you notice God’s warning and rebuke of the Judeans in verses 1-2 of this chapter? They called themselves by the name of God’s nation, they even swore by the name of the LORD and confessed to believe in the God of Israel… They talked the talk, claimed the identity, said they worshiped YHWH… But what does he respond with at the end of verse 1? “But not in truth or right.”
God saw through their vain use of his name. *pause* Being part of God’s family is about more than claiming to bear his name. Authentic faith is revealed in both word and deed. You profess faith in Him and then you bear witness to that reality by the way you live. Your life is authentically transformed by trusting in Him.
God had already rebuked these people in 29:13 for drawing near with their mouths and honoring him with their lips, while their hearts were far from him. He does not want lip-service. He knows our hearts! What glorifies God is a heart that has been wholly devoted to him. Where do you stand with the Lord? Is it your heart’s desire to glorify Him?
Unfortunately, the nation of Judah was persistent in their sin. Their sin invited God’s discipline that took them into exile. Their time in exile was not marked by contrite hearts or repentance. And even as God was now promising to execute his rescue through Cyrus, they were in danger of simply moving back to the Promised Land still stuck in their sin. One commentator I read put it this way:
A change of address is not a change of heart. Great as was the deliverance from political captivity, peace with God, deliverance from sin, is another matter altogether and has yet to be accomplished. (Alec Motyer, TOTC:Isaiah)
Their greatest need was the same as ours… to hear and trust God for deliverance from sin and reconciliation to our Creator. Which brings us to our fourth observation from this text…
- God continues to call His people to hear and trust Him
If you hadn’t noticed, this chapter is full of “listen/hear/pay attention” type of language and commands; it is especially prevalent in verses 12-16. God is faithfully calling His people to hear and trust Him. They need that genuine heart change that leads them to embrace God’s calling, his identity for them, and his purpose in their lives.
He is the One who called them. He is the Only God, the first and the last. He laid the foundation of the earth and spread out the heavens. He is the One who sent Cyrus to make a way of rescue for Judah. If only they would stop complaining about what God was doing and get on board! You may not remember how they were contending with God, even as he revealed to them that Cyrus was his chosen instrument:
Isaiah 45:9–10 (ESV)
9 “Woe to him who strives with him who formed him,
a pot among earthen pots!
Does the clay say to him who forms it, ‘What are you making?’
or ‘Your work has no handles’?
10 Woe to him who says to a father, ‘What are you begetting?’
or to a woman, ‘With what are you in labor?’ ”
Learn from Judah’s obstinance. Don’t waste your time arguing with God about how you would do things differently or better. Don’t spend your life pursuing your own will and ways, as if you somehow know better than God how to live the good life. He is the source of truth and goodness and righteousness! There is no better way than HIS WAY. Listen to Him! Trust Him!
For some of you, that looks like confessing your lifelong rebellion against Him as you’ve sought to live your own way. You know who you are. Your entire life has been about you rather than about Him. Today that can change. You can learn from Judah and respond in faith in God! Cry out to Him in prayer. Ask Jesus, His Son who died for you, to forgive you and to give you a new heart that desires to live for Him! This is exactly what God promises to do whenever someone trusts in Jesus Christ for new life. Ask Him to help you learn how to live for him in the days/weeks/years ahead.
For others, this looks like confessing that you’ve been using the Lord’s name in vain. You’ve claimed belief outwardly/verbally, but in your heart, you have continued in spiritual apathy. This is revealed by the way you live. You have no desire to know God through the study of His Word. To read the Bible is like pulling teeth for you. Prayer is an after-thought and only present at meals as a formality or learned ritual. Assembling with the church on Sundays or at small group is not a high priority for you because you really don’t enjoy the fellowship of the saints. You would rather spend time on your latest hobby or catching up on your sleep or frankly doing anything else than having to study the Word and participate in deep relationships with Christians.
If this is hitting home for you, then I would lovingly exhort you with Paul’s admonition to the Corinthians:
2 Corinthians 13:5 (ESV)
5 Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves…
I care about your soul. I do not want you to continue in spiritual apathy. Apathetic faith is dead faith. And fake faith is no faith. Repent and return to the Lord while there is still opportunity.
God reveals the beauty of what could have been if the Israelites had listened and obeyed his commandments! Listen again to this beautiful picture of living obediently under God’s authority:
Isaiah 48:17–19 (ESV)
17 Thus says the Lord,
your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel:
“I am the Lord your God,
who teaches you to profit,
who leads you in the way you should go.
18 Oh that you had paid attention to my commandments!
Then your peace would have been like a river,
and your righteousness like the waves of the sea;
19 your offspring would have been like the sand,
and your descendants like its grains;
their name would never be cut off
or destroyed from before me.”
This life of blessing comes from hearing and trusting in the Lord. Though God had specific covenant promises for the nation of Israel, He has also promised eternal life and blessing for those who follow Christ. Allow me to show you this consistent pattern in Jesus’ ministry as captured in the Gospel of John:
John 4:13–14 (ESV)
13 Jesus said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, 14 but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”
John 5:24 (ESV)
24 Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.
John 6:35 (ESV)
35 Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.
John 10:10 (ESV)
10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.
Jesus’ promise was that those who hear and trust in Him would be satisfied, both in this life and the one to come. He fills the void in your soul in a way that nothing else can. Faith in Jesus is the way to peace with God and peace within. Rest for your soul, as he promises in Matthew 11:28-30.
Doesn’t rest for your soul sound enticing in a world full of sin and brokenness? I think so. And we all know that whatever else we’ve tried to fill our lives with other than the Lord has not satisfied. It doesn’t matter how much food you eat, how many people you sleep with, how much money is in your account, how many hobbies you indulge in, how many toys you have to play with… in the end they all leave you feeling… empty and dissatisfied.
As we’ve heard repeatedly in Isaiah, idols were never meant to take the place of the One, True God in our lives. So, hear his call to trust Him and follow Him. Put your faith in Jesus. Make it your aim in life to know your Creator and Savior through the study of His Word and prayer. Lean into the beauty of God’s plan to save us into the community of the local church and get deeply connected in one. Give of your time, talent, and treasure to spread the Good News to the ends of the earth, starting in your own community. Make it your aim to please Christ and I promise you, it will be a life well-lived; one that culminates in standing before your King one day and hearing, “Well done, good and faithful servant, enter into the joy of your Master.” I pray you choose to forsake sin and pursue this faithful way of life!
Because the bleak alternative is laid out for us in verse 22.
Isaiah 48:22 (ESV)
22 “There is no peace,” says the Lord, “for the wicked.”
God is not talking solely about the Babylonians here. He is speaking to the people of Judah, his chosen nation, who have willingly forsaken him to pursue a life of idolatry and selfish rebellion. Our final observation this morning is…
- Those who continue in sin will never find peace
This is the problem of unrepentance. This was Israel’s past and present problem and now God is warning them to evaluate whether it will remain their future problem. Because He loves them, He continues to warn and discipline them to show them the folly of sin.
It is because the Holy God reigns that wholeness or peace is impossible for those who will not repent. To live this way is to reject God and to choose to remain his enemy.
This warning is echoed in the New Testament:
James 4:4 (ESV)
4 You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.
To be a friend of the world is to embrace the godless priorities and way of life of those who reject God.
Hebrews 10:26–31 (ESV)
26 For if we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, 27 but a fearful expectation of judgment, and a fury of fire that will consume the adversaries. 28 Anyone who has set aside the law of Moses dies without mercy on the evidence of two or three witnesses.
29 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? 30 For we know him who said, “Vengeance is mine; I will repay.” And again, “The Lord will judge his people.” 31 It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.
These warnings are for our benefit. Because God loves you and does not want you to perish, He warns you of the way that leads to death. Heed his call. Trust in Him. Live for Him.
Let’s pray.
Pray – pray the Gospel.