Perseverance
Hebrews 10:32-39
Emmanuel Christian Church 10.12.25
INTRODUCTION:
Hebrews 10:32 Remember those earlier days after you had received the
light, when you stood your ground in a great contest in the face of
suffering. 33 Sometimes you were publicly exposed to insult and
persecution; at other times you stood side by side with those who were so
treated. 34 You sympathized with those in prison and joyfully accepted
the confiscation of your property, because you knew that you yourselves
had better and lasting possessions.
Hebrews 10:35 So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly
rewarded. 36 You need to persevere so that when you have done the will
of God, you will receive what he has promised. 37 For in just a very little
while, “He who is coming will come and will not delay. 38 But my
righteous one will live by faith. And if he shrinks back, I will not be pleased
with him.” 39 But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed,
but of those who believe and are saved.
PROPOSITION: One word: “Perseverance”. That’s it! It’s the whole point
of everything in this message. If you take that one word away with you
from this sermon, and commit yourself to it with every fiber of your being-
it will lead you into God’s presence at the end of your journey and you will
hear the words “Well done, good and faithful servant!”
Now, let’s be very clear- the kind of perseverance we’re talking about is of
the godly, Christian variety. Anything other than that is nothing more than
plain old stubbornness that is either selfish or downright sinful!
Godly, Christian perseverance is a VIRTUE, selfish stubbornness is just
plain STUPID!
What does godly, Christian perseverance look like?
- It’s COURAGEOUS “you stood your ground” - When you are
courageous, you encourage others to be courageous.
- It’s “SEMPER FI” “you stood side by side” - When you suffer with those
who suffer, you reduce the suffering of others.
- It’s COMPASSIONATE “you sympathized” - When you show
compassion to those alone in their suffering, loneliness loses its power
in their lives.
- It’s JOYFUL “joyfully accepted” - Your joy in the face of material loss
proves before the watching world that your treasures are securely stored
away in Heaven.
- It’s CONFIDENT “your confidence”- You refusal to surrender your
confidence in the face of catastrophe is evidence to the skeptic that you
know something they do not!
APPLICATION: Godly perseverance doesn’t just usher YOU into the
presence of God, it calls other people up to join you in the journey! It is
the power of ENCOURAGEMENT by example. Remember, Jesus said
“Follow me”. The Apostle Paul said: “Follow my example, as I follow the
example of Christ.” (1Corinthians 11:1).
Why is perseverance so important?
- It is IMPOSSIBLE to be a follower of Jesus without it!
- Jesus’ parable of the “Sower”
Luke 8:4 While a large crowd was gathering and people were coming to
Jesus from town after town, he told this parable: 5 “A farmer went out to
sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path; it
was trampled on, and the birds of the air ate it up. 6 Some fell on rock,
and when it came up, the plants withered because they had no moisture.
7 Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up with it and choked the
plants. 8 Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up and yielded a crop, a
hundred times more than was sown.”
When he said this, he called out, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”
Hears what? Jesus’ lesson on the importance of PERSEVERANCE!
Luke 8:9 His disciples asked him what this parable meant. 10 He said,
“The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of God has been given to
you, but to others I speak in parables, so that, “‘though seeing, they may
not see; though hearing, they may not understand.’
Luke 8:11 “This is the meaning of the parable: The seed is the word of
God. 12 Those along the path are the ones who hear, and then the devil
comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not
believe and be saved. 13 Those on the rock are the ones who receive the
word with joy when they hear it, but they have no root. They believe for a
while, but in the time of testing they fall away. 14 The seed that fell among
thorns stands for those who hear, but as they go on their way they are
choked by life’s worries, riches and pleasures, and they do not mature. 15
But the seed on good soil stands for those with a noble and good heart,
who hear the word, retain it, and by PERSEVERING produce a crop.
- 4 “would be” followers:
- The first doesn’t even make it out of the starting gate, for satan
steals the seed of the Gospel!
- The second BELIEVES the Gospel and begins to walk with Jesus,
but for lack of perseverance falls away when the path gets tough.
- The third BELIEVES the Gospel and begins to walk with Jesus, but
for lack of perseverance is enticed to fall away by the cares and
pleasures of the world.
- It’s only the last one who BELIEVES the Gospel, sticks with it, and
perseveres to the end!
APPLICATION: Believing in Jesus WILL NOT get you to heaven- even the
demons believe in Jesus! Even having once walked with Jesus is no
assurance of your ultimate salvation! God’s Word is crystal clear on the
subject: our salvation is a matter of God’s grace and our perseverance
in making the choice to continually walk in it.
Luke records Jesus’ encounter with two “would be” followers. One
requests leave to “bury” his father, the other to “say good-bye” to his
family. Both seem to be reasonable requests. Jesus response?
Luke 9:62 “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for
service in the kingdom of God.”
Sounds harsh to our ears! But remember who’s talking here- it’s God
Himself! And what He’s talking about is PERSEVERANCE!
None of this should come as a surprise, after all Jesus warned about the
cost for those who would follow Him:
“If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his
cross daily and follow me.”
- Perseverance is important because troubled times are ahead.
NOT IF, but when… Jesus went on to warn about conditions in the last
days and to emphasize the absolute importance of perseverance…
Luke 21:10 Then he said to them: “Nation will rise against nation, and
kingdom against kingdom. 11 There will be great earthquakes, famines
and pestilences in various places, and fearful events and great signs from
heaven.
Luke 21:12 “But before all this, they will lay hands on you and persecute
you. They will deliver you to synagogues and prisons, and you will be
brought before kings and governors, and all on account of my name. 13
This will result in your being witnesses to them. 14 But make up your mind
not to worry beforehand how you will defend yourselves. 15 For I will give
you words and wisdom that none of your adversaries will be able to resist
or contradict. 16 You will be betrayed even by parents, brothers, relatives
and friends, and they will put some of you to death. 17 All men will hate
you because of me. 18 But not a hair of your head will perish. 19 By
standing firm (PERSEVERANCE) you will gain life.
Don’t be fooled- the human condition is not destined to get better. Yes,
there may be advances in technology and medicine that bring comfort and
convenience into our lives, but the Scripture is VERY clear on the fact that
the spiritual condition of man is bound to go from bad to worse before the
return of Christ.
2 Timothy 3:1 But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days.
2 People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud,
abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3 without love,
unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good,
4 treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of
God — 5 having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing
to do with them.
God’s grace and our choice to persevere is our only hope and strategy
as each day brings us closer to the final chapter of human history on
planet earth.
As the Revelation speaks to the events of the last days it gives us this
exhortation:
Revelation 14:12 This calls for patient endurance (PERSEVERANCE) on
the part of the saints who obey God’s commandments and remain faithful
to Jesus.
CONCLUSION: The key to understanding the next two chapters
(Hebrews 11 & 12) is this one word PERSEVERANCE. But even more than
that, it is the key that unlocks the blessing of God in the face of the
catastrophe of this sin broken world. Listen to this final word of
encouragement from God’s Word:
Romans 5:1 Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we
have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through whom we
have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And
we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. 3 Not only so, but we also
rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces
perseverance; 4 perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5 And
hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into
our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.
James 1:2 Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of
many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith develops
perseverance. 4 Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be
mature and complete, not lacking anything.
