hey all :)
i hope your breaks are going well and that you are finding rest. chapter 3 of Hebrews talks quite a bit about entering into God's rest.
here are some points as I was studying it.
un: Hebrews 3 starts with Jesus being greater than Moses. (Hebrews 1 & 2 talked about Jesus being greater than the prophets and Jesus being greater than the angels.) The author is clearly distinguishing Jesus --- but not in any way that belittles Moses --- by claiming his superiority.
deux: In the Old Testament, the Israelites led by Moses in the desert were not able to enter into rest because of their disobedience to God. And so the author here also warns us about not "entering into rest". It is rest in a spiritual sense. (And another point, more relevant to the Jews back then, the author is saying that following the old Jewish ways will not be the entry into God's rest, but it is only through following Christ.)
trois: Even though God offers rest to his people, there are some who will still rebel. So let us encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of us may be hardened by sin's deceitfulness.
---the word "daily" means that encouragement should be habitual
---the word "Today" makes this urgent for today does not last forever.
--- and sin IS deceitful.
quatre: The author is building a case for Jesus as Christ from old testament passages to basically prove to the Jews that He is the Messiah! And so, if He is the Messiah, they must make a decision to live their lives as Christians, even endure persecution. Yes, it'd be easier to stay living in their Jewish customs and traditions because it was under Rome's official protection, but Jesus is the Christ!
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I'll update on my family in another post.
And please pray for me as I write my essays for Audiology programs.
I'm applying to NU and Pittsburgh for sure, and possibly Wash U as well.
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omgosh. so french. -.-
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