Latest / A Chapter a Day Bible Reading / May 28 - Hebrews 12

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May 28 - Hebrews 12 · A Chapter a Day Bible Reading

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  Hello friends, it's Sean here. It's Wednesday, it is the 28th
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  of May and what an exciting day this is.
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  This is the day that pastoral carers, chaplains, spiritual
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  carers from all around Tasmania are driving into the little town
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  of Campbelltown in the middle of our state, where we are going to
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  come together and learn all about how to nurture ourselves,
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  care for ourselves as we care for others.
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  And my fantastic, fantastic, amazing old friend Jim has flown
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  all the way down to Tassie to come and share his wisdom with
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  us. And I get to drive all the way
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  there and back with him all to myself.
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  What a treat, what a day. I hope your day is going to be a
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  good one or has been a good one, wherever you are, no matter what
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  is happening, we get to put it all down and come before our God
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  as we continue to hear what He has to speak to us through this
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  amazing book of Hebrews. And yesterday we heard all about
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  these people who live these lives of faith.
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  And today our focus shifts back to God and His goodness, His
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  discipline, and His love for us. So why don't you join me
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  friends, as we read together Hebrews chapter 12?
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  Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd
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  of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every
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  weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so
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  easily trips us up, and let us run with endurance the race God
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  has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes
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  on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith
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  because of the joy awaiting him. He endured the cross,
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  disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of
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  honour beside God's throne. Think of all the hostility he
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  endured from sinful people. Then you won't become weary and
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  give up. After all, you have not yet
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  given your lives and your struggle against sin.
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  And have you forgotten the encouraging words God spoke to
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  you as His children? He said, My child, don't make
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  light of the Lord's discipline, and don't give up when He
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  corrects you. For the Lord disciplines those
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  He loves, and He punishes each one he accepts as His child.
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  As you endure this divine discipline, remember that God is
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  treating you as His own children.
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  Whoever heard of a child who is never disciplined by its father?
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  If God doesn't discipline you as He does all of His children, it
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  means that you are illegitimate and are not really His children
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  at all. Since we respected our earthly
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  fathers who disciplined us, shouldn't we submit even more to
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  the discipline of the Father of our spirits and live forever?
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  For our earthly fathers disciplined us for a few years,
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  doing the best they knew how. But God's discipline is always
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  good for us so that we might share in His Holiness.
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  No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening.
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  It's painful. But afterward there will be a
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  peaceful harvest of right living for those who are trained in
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  this way. So take a new grip with your
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  tired hands and strengthen your weak knees.
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  Mark out a straight path for your feet so that those who are
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  weak and lame will not fall but become strong.
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  Work at living in peace with everyone and work at living a
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  holy life for those who are not holy will not see the Lord.
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  Look after each other so that none of you fails to receive the
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  grace of God. Watch out that no poisonous root
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  of bitterness grows up to trouble you, corrupting many.
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  Make sure that no one is immoral or godless like Esau, who traded
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  his birthright as the first born son for a single meal.
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  You know that afterward, when he wanted his father's blessing, he
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  was rejected. It was too late for repentance,
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  even though he begged with bitter tears.
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  You have not come to a physical mountain, to a place of flaming
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  fire, darkness, gloom, and whirlwind, as the Israelites did
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  at Mount Sinai. For they heard an awesome
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  trumpet blast and a voice so terrible that they begged God to
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  stop speaking. They staggered back under God's
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  command. If even an animal touches the
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  mountain, it must be stoned to death.
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  Moses himself was so frightened at the sight that he said, I am
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  terrified and trembling. No, you have come to Mount Zion,
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  to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to
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  countless thousands of angels in a joyful gathering.
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  You have come to the assembly of God's first born children whose
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  names are written in heaven. You have come to God Himself,
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  who is the judge over all things.
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  You have come to the spirits of the righteous ones in heaven who
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  have now been made perfect. You have come to Jesus, the One
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  who mediates the new covenant between God and people, and the
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  sprinkled blood, which speaks of forgiveness instead of crying
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  out for vengeance like the blood of Abel.
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  Be careful that you do not refuse to listen to the one who
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  is speaking, for if the people of Israel did not escape when
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  they refused to listen to Moses, the earthly messenger, we will
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  certainly not escape if we reject the one who speaks to us
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  from heaven. When God spoke from Mount Sinai,
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  His voice shook the earth, but now He makes another promise.
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  Once again I will shake not only the earth, but the heavens also.
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  This means that all the creation will be shaken and removed so
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  that only unshakable things will remain.
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  Since we are receiving a Kingdom that is unshakable, let us be
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  thankful and please God by worshipping Him with holy fear
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  and awe, for our God is a devouring fire.
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  Oh Jesus, you know that it's hard
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  for us because we are surrounded by this world, rich and intense
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  and present and physical. And Lord, as we hear the birds
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  chirping in the trees, Lord, we know that all of this is indeed
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  shakeable. And this beautiful image that
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  you give us in the book of Hebrews where the world will be
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  shaken and we can just imagine it being shaken and all falling
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  away and leaving only the unshakable things, which is you,
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  your Kingdom, your love, our identity in you, and the calling
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  and mission and vocation that you give us as your children.
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  Oh Jesus, fine tune our focus so that truly we can see the
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  unshakeable things brightly and clearly and that all these
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  transient, shakeable items which are here today but gone
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  eternally, but they would not be louder and brighter than your
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  eternal things. So we recommit ourselves to you
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  and your unshakeable Kingdom. Jesus, Use us, shape us, guide
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  us, and ultimately welcome us back into your embrace.
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  When all is said and done, we love you and we pray all of this
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  in your saving name, Jesus, Amen.